Politics of "No" Policy

Today's election campaigns are more like commercial films full of actions and dialogues. It is full of entertaining materials and purposes are very clear; it is for huge business and a degnified route to make blackmoney white. Vote in reality is now big business. The sheer amount of cash money seized by police on the eve of polls is frightening. But insiders say it is the tip of the iceberg. Who is going to curb black money? Nobody. There is hardly any teaching and learning except marketing of fashion commodities/consumer products. The content of commercial film is the competition between a hero/heroine and a villain. It is variously love-relation centric and what the hero/heroine intends to do is good. Reversely, all bad/illicit works are associated with the villain and his/her associates.

In election campaigns too political leaders are in two groups like commercial films. Their campaign materials are varied according to the choice of the crowd/voters where they would lecture. They try to win voters' minds through speeches what the voters favour most. Finally, they indulge in hate and revenge against their opponents leaving aside constitutional norms and values giving the much touted 'model code of conduct' a goodbye.

The recent speeches of Mr Modi and Ms Banerjee in election campaigns of West Bengal are a competition of vocabularies and some sorts of revenge they would take after election. In the speeches of both leaders had hardly any course of action and specific strategies for betterment of the voters. They did not utter a word about their weakness and failure and no policy or programme of substance to overcome it in the future. There is no place of national issues like strategies for reduction of unemployment and so forth. There is no political courtesy with each other. They are fighting parliamentary elections in most unparliamentary way.

It is very unfortunate that nowadays there is no learning from leaders, besides learning of division, hate and revenge. It is enough to cultivate a disturbance in community as well as social life. Is it not enough to destroy the country's unity and diversity?

The election campaigns are always valuable to everyone of the country. It makes aware about the social, economic and cultural reality of the country. It provides information about the country's internal und external policy for the future. How the country was competing and what would be the rectified policy for the future. Usually, the political campaigns tell about the country's failure as well as progress. It teaches about the future goal of the nation.

But the people of this country never expect critical analysis of any policy in the election campaign from any political party. Mode of gaining of power and driving of power has been changed. The leaders usually try to make political profit of power and authority.

Most important success of democracy is that it transforms people from silent spectators to participants. People participate in government through electing their representatives. So the government is considered as people's government. It ensures equality and justice to every citizen. India is the largest functioning democracy—whatever it means—in the world. Needless to say, it is more implied theoretically than practice except in some cases. Sharing of power and authority are usually consumed by the elected representatives. The leaders are very much hungry of power and authority. They are more interested to fulfil their own party's interest. Election has become a way to meet their desired needs.

Nowadays election has become an event of horror-conflict, violence and murder of common people. No election is complete without murder of political activists and innocent by standers. Musclemen are on high demand. Election is not free and fair though there is an Election Commission supposed to work impertially. The free and fair election is now a myth. There is a battle every time amongst the leaders. For one thing election procedure makes people violent. Significantly, election makes participants violent while once they were just silent spectators.

Come election season the leaders only promise to grant liberal doles for sheer survival rather than solution of fundamental rights and needs i.e. hunger, ill-health, unemployment and so forth for humanly living. They use the voters variously, and their tactics are to make people violent participants for some doles and cither benefits. They desperately yield a culture of competition among people for some benefits in exchange of their votes. They divide people in terms of benefit sharing, they divide people in terms of race, caste, religion and other terms. So, division among people has become the best policy to win the election battle. Ethicless politics is making people unethical. Constitutional rights of people are under threat and Indian democracy is in distress.

[contributed]

Frontier
Vol. 51, No. 43, Apr 28 - May 4, 2019