This Indian election marks a celebration of democracy that begins as soon as the election dates are announced. Usually, when there are elections scheduled, political parties improve governance institutions and develop infrastructure in order to satisfy the vote bank and garner public confidence.
This particular election season, it is different. The essence of a formidable opposition is lost behind the facade of false media propaganda. Especially at a time when India ranks 138th in the World Press Freedom Index. Several decisions taken by the government including, but not limited to, the A-SAT launch and the attempted pre-emptive attack on terror bases in and around Pakistan, have all been magnanimously misconstrued by the public because of their representation in media.
Secondly, the role of identity-based politics has seen increasing growth in recent years, especially with the rise of Narendra Modi in power. His ability to bring together religion and the political structure of our nation is unparalleled. There could not have been another person who could possibly, with this much vigour, change the shape of the Indian polity from a loose secular model envisaging upon a journey of internationalism and expansion of diplomatic interests to a pre-colonial model of ‘segregate and scene-create’ similar to the policies as espoused by Lord Curzon during the reign of the British East India Company. The common mass cannot see effort from the government to provide any retreat from such communal tensions that unseeingly keep growing with the passage of time. I argue, if Modi does get re-elected this time, India may just become a nation for the Hindus, by the Hindus and with the Hindus, as also stated by the youngest BJP candidate Tejasvi Surya, who is contesting from Bangalore South; depriving the major chunk of minority faiths the very essence of religious freedom our comprehensive Indian Constitution provides us with under Articles 25-28.
In the entire Kashmir disposition, the sheer lack of political will to find a sustainable settlement and form a government is a mere amalgamation of the cultural shocks the region and its inhabitants have been facing over the ages and our governments’ failed attempt and strong-arming the public. Sometimes, with the use of violent unconventional shelling techniques and legislation that direct the proverbial middle finger to any and every human right obligation we are granted as, as a responsible citizen of this proud glorious nation.
The communal objectives of our government are showcased in broad daylight through the unfortunate use of inhumane violence, sometimes sexual abuse and torture. These cases of lynchings are unfortunately far too common in today’s emerging India, and definitely cannot be ignored. The historical antecedents of communal riots sparking off from mob unrests taking the shape of an outright civil war or at least a prolonged period of distraught and disharmony have been replaced in modern times, by these segregated cases of mob lynchings. The essence of it has however continued to remain one of the deterministic examples of the communal disharmony within India. The media, behind the veil of silence, allows these hard truths about our government to pass off on as rational mis-happenings that we the people aren’t empowered enough to deal with. The very Preamble of our Constitution itself calls us secular, but we cannot hold a single dialogue on religion and communalism without the imagery of a cow being dragged in or a passing reference to the metaphysically misconstrued ‘Mandir’.
In today’s India, it is one thing to be a farmer – fighting for survival every day without a guarantee of a meal for the next day; and another, to be a member of Parliament from Maharastra, Gopal Shetty, and believe it is in fashion for farmers to commit suicide due to their gross economic deprivation. I mean, you’d want to believe that the government and the law will represent both such individuals with equal eyes. But, it is far from the truth. While individuals like Gopal Shetty will continue contesting elections, our voices will continue to remain insignificant as we call out the perpetrators. To further this discontent, our government is also upholding critical information about the rate of such farmer suicides, and deaths related to agriculture in general. How low can the government go? Will we still let thew grow roots into our democracy until they require chemical pesticides to be uprooted?
There also exists another conjecture the existing political paradigm in India, that India needs a remarkable shift in. The very fact that our government does not have any definite educational criteria for he who represents us at the helm of democratic affairs. A literal chaiwala could be our Prime Minister and no one would notice. People would label him a chowdikaar once in a while and everyone would just sit and nod to his security advice. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying it is but, it is what it is. Should we not outrage?
In other words, we represent the Indian Prime Minister synonymously with Narendra Damodardas Modi. I argue, we should not. The Indian Prime Minister is not Modi. Although, Modi may be for some the ideal Indian Prime Minister. Modi is who he is, to us, because his actions and his persona has been glorified to us in any form of content we consume. It is our perception of the Prime Minister that has granted him his unsaid legitimacy from any form of public accountability. I mean, he hasn’t even held a single press conference in the nation after he came to power, has he? So let us just agree the next time we read that BJP is in fact the party to field the most number of criminally charged as political representatives of our will, granting them access to authority and the resources of our nation. Because the first step to disrupt the status quo one needs to acknowledge that the status quo needs to changed. In this case, the status quo is in shackles of conservatism and excess historical baggage of the long lost Indian heritage and it is urging to break free and fly into the waves of tomorrow, breathe in the future, walk in arms with its like.
The image of Modi as the ideal Indian Prime Minister has been brought back from the old mythical age of saffron-clad Hindu sages, with its own weapons of mass destruction in- Hindu nationalism and political adventurism. What is worse is that he had his own warriors who helped him drive his chariot into this helm of democracy, a new age world where chariots can be decimated by unseeable agents from remote locales. He has successfully managed to bring back populism into Indian politics with his strong affluent oratory, affectionate personality traits, similar to the Nehruvian ages but, with little relevant effect, also similar to the Nehruvian era itself. Modi has taken his opportunism to another level with the alleged politicisation of the armed forces to score brownie points over an already lackadaisical opposition lead by the Congress under the ‘[f]able’ leadership of Rahul Gandhi.
Modi, Sir, the Army is the ‘Indian’ Armed Forces and not your own. You have been given a position of responsibility as the Commander of our Armed Forces by virtue of the elections we chose you through. If we the people can vote you to power, we can take you off from it too. The army is the Indian Army and will always remain independent of the politics of a party no matter which colour clad the leader of it might wear. This effect, however, has not been the result of an overnight cause but, rather a long and sustained period of corrupt hegemonic policies undertaken by the previous governments. And, now with a month to go, with the same question to answer, if we choose to: Mother, should we trust the government? Most of us will not and choose to remain nonchalant.
This election, vote only after very close scrutiny of your local contestants irrespective of what colours they might dawn. This election, do not vote for a Prime Minister, vote for a government, #VoteforIndia.