An Old piece written for elections post NOTA.
For
anyone who is concerned about the quality of governance in India, the recent
Supreme Court judgement on “none of the above” (NOTA) option on the ballot
paper is largely perceived as a game changer. The first reactions then were an immense sense of déjàvua watershed moment.
The future of how we govern ourselves appears redefined or so that we expect. A huge optimism is building up in that the coming
general elections will be far promising than the previous once as political parties
are likely to act responsibly realising the consequences and embarrassment in
the wake of significant use of this option.
Some even argue that unprecedented voting in just concluded 5 assembly
elections was because of this new button on the ballots. The provision did attract
voters in all the states that went to votes. Possibly these were those who
otherwise never stepped out to vote. The percentage of voters who chose this
option in four states are Chhattisgarh (3 percent), Rajasthan (2 percent) and
Delhi, Madhya Pradesh (1 percent) each.
The important question, though, is not if NOTA is a game
changer but what kind of democratic values the biggest democracy wants to showcase
and what role will we citizens play in shaping that identity.
Seen from that perspective, there’s only one relevant question: Are we citizens
content at politician bashing at every available opportunity renewed through
the new weapon of NOTA or do we aspire to find some solution?
The
Supreme Court in enforcing NOTA though was not intending to inject anything more
dramatic than what is already contained in Rule 49(0) of the Election Rules.
Through its pronouncement, it just conferred the right to vote in “secrecy”
interpreting the right to expression as the fundamental right of
speech and expression under the Constitution. Seen on the world map, NOTA on
the ballots is not a new concept in democratic countries. At least 13 other nations follow
the practice of "electronic abstention". Notable amongst them are France,
Brazil, Greece, Ukraine, Spain, Chile and Colombia. Russia had such an option
on its ballots but was abolished in 2006. Bangladesh introduced this option in
2008. Pakistan introduced this for the 2013 elections but later the Election
Commission of Pakistan rejected this.
As
the euphoria continues, 2014 election armed with NOTA is expected to be lot
more interesting. So much so that it will throw open both our maturity as well
as our deep rooted helplessness. Time only will tell the worth of the words of
the ruling: "When the political
parties will realise that a large number of people are expressing their
disapproval with the candidates being put up by them, gradually there will be a
systemic change and the parties will be forced to accept the will of the
people." The core idea or the philosophy behind the judgement thus appears
to be an attempt to prevent
further de-legitimisation of the Indian democracy. And NOTA is expected to give
it the right push.
NOTA’s
promise to clean the system or its absence, it will not be an exaggeration to
conclude that India’s future is at stake. Trust deficit looms large with few
days passing by without some protest. Somewhere the institutions have been
dented. And hence there is a larger
question that haunts our present day democracy that has seemingly reached an
abyss. Do we intend to be “just counted” or will the system of democracy “count
on us” to clean the mess we perceive and sometimes believe to be in.
Those
who care about democracy and good governance should not find solace in NOTA.
Instead they should resolve to Promise to Vote to marginalise the non-worthy
sending the same message to the Politicians in a positive constructive way. The
mind-set that is Voting is a right should graduate to a mind-set of Voting is a
privilege that is to be used carefully and judiciously as a state of an ideal
setup is nothing more than an idealism. Let us not cheer about our newly
acquired power to show our no confidence much, because the kind of laziness we
show while going to vote if is any indicator and if we continue the lethargy
all neutral votes will go for the “none of the above” and the remaining would
be divided into party cadets defeating the very purpose. The greater good is
the idea of voting in large numbers to the best possible rather than pursuing a
negative vengeance. The eagerness to vote would be the game changer and not the
feeling of vengeance to an institution that is passing through a phase of a
huge trust deficits. Elections are meant to elect and not reject. In a democracy each one of us counts and must
stand up to be counted. To give up is to accept defeat of the good over evil,
disdain over hope.
M V Rajeev Gowda, in a recent article “Don’t cripple clean
politicians” convincingly argues “As more sections of society actively
contribute and participate, the political system will undergo a transformation.
Then, the much-celebrated NOTA and 'right to reject' will become mere footnotes
in history. We will see inclusive, empowered parties, citizen candidates and
positive politics”. Those who win the elections on such a positive vote
will dispel the negativity that brings undue cheers to NOTA. The politicians are intelligent and
would eventually serve what we demand and this is the essence of democracy.
Till then it’s only
the elite who will rule in the name of the people through various hues of vote
banks. It is time to check mate
political shortfalls like trust deficits, democracy deficits and governance
deficits, through citizenship engagement and not otherwise. Let the expression
“clean Politician” become a reality and not an oxymoron.
Of the various academic researches
on waning political participation, the Michigan model (1960) emphasizes the importance of partisanship or
enduring party loyalties in voting behaviour. According to this model, strong
partisan feelings contribute to electoral participation. Voters go to the
polling booth to express their preferences towards parties and make their
favoured parties win. Therefore, the more intense electoral competition between
rival parties is, the more people go to vote. We
can make this competition more meaningful when our enthusiasm is not drained by
the feeling of helplessness that we feel about the control we have over our
political masters.
Public engagement can begin with staying informed
about what is going around in our neighbourhoods and the policies that are
important for personal benefits. In the information age, not being aware has
consequences. The politicians to be fair enough do not deserve our revile when
we compare the efforts they take in galvanising groups in contrast to the
laziness we show in stepping out to vote. They in fact work harder than we do
in expressing solidarity when it means business. It is high time we stop make a farce of our democracy. We
shouldn't wait for some magical power to end all our miseries. We are the ones
who have the power to bring about a change. Democracy in other words is vox populi, or the
voice of the people. Let silence, callousness or helplessness not snatch the
power that lies in the hands of this one-billion-plus country. “Clean
Politicians" The words no more will be an oxymoron, if we Promise to Vote
for self as well as our children’s future.
