Teens eager to leave a mark on debut

KOLKATA: As polling enters the city on Thursday, scores of enthusiastic young voters will be venturing into election booths for the first time. Thrilled at the opportunity to excersices their franchise, they have varied reasons for voting. While it is the maiden chance to express their political opinion for some, others are simply excited to join the `adult league'. And then there are some who are just eager to click selfies with the ink mark.As Probar Mukherjee, a student of St Xavier's College and a Maniktala resident, says, "I am extremely keen on casting my first vote and I wish everything goes smoothly. It is good to know that I, too, have a say in the matters of the state now." Kaushik Pal, a student of Narula Institute of Technology , says he is indifferent to politics but is curious to see how voting happens. "I will be there for the experience," he says.Saunak Chakraborty, also a Narula student, has an interesting reason to vote. "I would love to see that black mark on my finger. It makes you feel like a grown up. I also want to click a selfie and upload it on social media," he declares.Many first-timers are confused as to who they should vote for. While some are keen on voting for a change, they are not sure who could be an ideal replacement.Sourojeet Basu, a student of City College, Amherst Street, says he would rather choose none of them. "It is like choosing the less harmful from a bunch of inefficient candidates," he says.People in power should be more educated and voters should know who they are voting for, believes Probar. "People shouldn't be lured to vote. Unfortunately, that happens quite often and it reduces polling to a farce," he said.Scams, lawlessness and rigging have made many skeptical of joining the voting queue on Thursday . It may not be worth the effort or the risk, says Jyoti Prokash Roy , a student of Ashutosh College. "You do feel scared watching poll violence on TV ," he said. Young leaders with a fresh perspective could turn things around, he felt.Sourojeet felt Amartya Sen would be a good option if he chooses to get into the political arena. Jyoti Prokash had a different take on this. "With all the filmstars joining the political fraternity , I think Prosenjit Chatterjee would be a good choice."