Chotti Losal fetes its big day

The celebrations at Chotti Losal began much before the results of the presidential elections were officially declared.

The celebrations at Chotti Losal began much before the results of the presidential elections were officially declared. The singing and dancing started with the counting of votes at 11 am on Saturday and a cheer went up with every update. This small village is the hometown of Pratibha Patil’s husband and the villagers’ joy knew no bounds.

“This is a big day for us. It is a historical day for the whole country, but much more than that for us. All of us are so proud that the daughter-in-law of our village has been elected President,” said Prem Kanwar, the sarpanch of Chotti Losal.

The villagers have been busy preparing for this day ever since Patil was named the UPA presidential candidate. The villagers were so sure of her victory that rather than keeping tab, over the developments, they preferred to start celebrating right away.

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“Why waste time? Our dadisa is sure to win, it is only a matter of a few hours,” said Suman Kanwar, a 12-year-old girl from the village.

All the villagers gathered outside Devisingh Shekhawat’s ancestral home and danced to the tunes of Rajasthani folk music and also some peppy Bollywood numbers. While candies were distributed among children throughout the day, the news that Patil had won was welcomed with sweets. “She has made us proud. She has given all of us in the village a chance to celebrate together and none of us, even the kids, will ever forget this day,” said Surajmal Sharma, another villager.

Congressmen were also present at the village, announcing the result updates from time to time.