BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir in Robbinsville Holds Voter Education and Registration Drives

“Every vote matters,” noted Ravi Patni, a BAPS volunteer. Patni was ending his remarks at the weekly assembly at the local BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville, New Jersey, to encourage his fellow members to vote in the upcoming national elections.

As a Hindu organization with 95 mandirs across the United States, BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha conducted a nationwide voter education and registration drive this year to coincide with the U.S. Presidential election. “Our faith teaches us that all individuals have a duty to be active and contributing members of the communities we live in. One aspect of that duty is to participate in the democratic process by voting,” said Patni.

Through this event, volunteers raised awareness of the election process in the United States and aided those who attended in registering to vote for this November’s Presidential Election. The first part of the drive consisted of a presentation which highlighted the importance of voting, voter eligibility, common misconceptions about voting, and finally the voter registration process itself. After the presentation, volunteers provided the necessary documents and instructions to all the attendees and assisted them with the registration process. The voter registration and education drives were planned to maximize their reach. By raising awareness on an individual level, BAPS continuously succeeds in being an active member of the community.

Raju Patel, who volunteered his time to help register voters, noted that the response was overwhelming. “Visitors view the mandir as an extension of their homes, and so when the mandir encourages us to vote, it comes with a stamp of approval that really resonates,” Patel added. “Beyond this, simple things, like translators who could help individuals fill out voter registration forms encouraged people to register to vote.”

As part of BAPS’ voter education and registration drives, His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, the spiritual leader of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, shared a nonpartisan message with BAPS congregations across the United States asking them to exercise their civic responsibility and vote in the upcoming election. “[T]he United States has provided our community a new and welcoming home with incredible opportunities to grow and achieve success in all realms. Given these great opportunities, it is our responsibility to complete our civic duty by voting in the national elections on Tuesday, November 8, 2016,” said His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj in a message that will reach hundreds of thousands of individuals who visit BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha mandirs for Diwali and the Hindu New Year, which fall on October 30th and 31st this year.

Under His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj’s leadership, BAPS is committed to exploring opportunities for encouraging civic participation. Jigar Amin, a BAPS volunteer, explained, “I was concerned that, even beyond the voter registration drive, the community may need even more signals to turn out and vote, so I thought, why not make the mandir a polling place?” As a result, for the first time, BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, in Stafford, Texas will serve as a polling place in an official election. He added, “It’s difficult to overstate the importance of this step: it is a more direct means to encourage the South Asian community to vote.”