Having seen and participated in various Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, as a voter, since 1957, I have observed that, (unlike Muslims), Hindu intelligentsia sees elections just as cricket matches. This very mentality is reflected in news broadcasts and political commentaries, both in print media as well as electronic media.
Because of various national and international developments in past years, especially the fast growing home grown and Pak sponsored Islamic terrorism, there is a little change in the climate. A sizeable section of the intelligentsia has come to realize the difference between Assembly elections and the Lok Sabha elections. Whereas Assembly elections are related to local or regional issues- like, roads, water supply, irrigation, education, health, etc.- the Lok Sabha elections are for national issues – national economy, price rise, unemployment, population control, infiltration, smuggling of arms/ammunition, bring in fake currency, foreign funding of India's internal enemies and above all national security – internal as well as external.
There is also a growing awareness that the national issues can best be tackled by national parties and that the regional parties, allied with one or the other national party, only put hindrances in the working of national parties. Off and on, they blackmail the national party of their alliance and have no qualms in changing sides, on petty matters. In this situation, the intelligentsia has only to decide which of the two national parties, (Congress or the BJP), is better suited in the current situation, physically go to the polling booth and cast their valuable votes, accordingly. Public concentration on national parties in Lok Sabha elections will teach a correct lesson to regional parties to behave in a better way or get merged with any one of the national parties. Further, this way, the country will move towards a two party system, as in the USA, that is one of the conditions for the success of democracy.
As the vast majority of Indian people is still illiterate or semi-literate, it is the national and moral duty of the intelligentsia, the educated and more privileged ones, to educate the former about the difference between Lok Sabha and Assembly elections and to cast their vote judiciously, without fear, favour, caste, or parochial considerations. National parties should also use public platforms to educate the people rather than indulging in mud slinging or cheap gimmicks.
|
(0 vote)