DailyPost 2807
THE BUSINESS OF ELECTIONS
Are elections just a celebration of democracy; a neat sacred exercise wherein the citizen exercises his franchise, elects his representative, leading to the formation of the government. The government presumably becomes the will of the people, and works for the greater good of the masses. If democracy and governance were so simple, straightforward and neat, democracies could have been declared a paradise a long time back. Democracies can broadly be divided into two main elements; the rulers and ruled and between the democratic interfaces, the institutions.
The voter, citizen, extending to the total population, the ruled, does all that is required out of them as duties; political or financial – mostly fully dutiful in taxes. Broadly, there is no choice for him. Where does the problem arise? It’s the politicians, they also control the institutions. What is the business of elections? Its unravelling will display the operational ropes of our democracy and how they are intertwined. As elections are the kernel of democracy, everything converges into it and everything emanates from it, the business of elections has to be understood. The election smokescreens provides the validity to it. Every single component is worth an independent study.
Nobody knows how much is spent in this celebration of democracy; black, grey and white in the same order. In the business of elections, funding is like getting ready for it, like in the traditional daughter’s marriage. How it is paid back no one knows with clarity. Conjecture provides another level of validity to this business. Unfortunately, our calendar is dotted with elections, year after year, the big one coming once in five years. All decisions are taken with elections in mind. The policy paralysis and lack of governance or general low quality governance is a part of the same package. If you are not able to win at the hustings, you cease to be politically relevant for five years. Political relevance is at the root of any form of relevance in this country. Hence, wooing the populace is of prime concern.
The election business model has come to stay, efforts are always made to perfect a customized one, for the party concerned. A modus operandi that delivers the best. Having kept the average Indian at the educational and economic level we know of, its continuation and accentuation, is the biggest project of every election. To hit at the business model of other parties, is a part of the same package. Oblivious of the business of elections, the vast majority of voters exercise their franchise with festival fervor and gaiety, who have taken upon themselves to take our democracy to greater heights. All the other stakeholders in this business, understandably, partake proactively in the election process, overt and covert to subserve their vested interest.
MAKING THE ELECTORATE MATURED IS THE DUTY OF THE POLITICAL PARTIES. HAVE THEY TAKEN IT IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION?
Sanjay Sahay
Have a nice evening.