To vote or not to vote

The dwindling number of voters in India and in United States is indicative of collective apathy and a lack of political conscience, writes Meeta Chaitanya Bhatnagar.

All that chutzpah about voting on November 2 got a beating recently when a famous comedian announced on national TV that if someone votes for a candidate because a sold out (pun intended) celebrity wants him to, he shouldn’t be voting anyway.

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This triggered an absolute frenzy in the ‘visiting’ Indian camp here. Over teacups and spicy Haldirambhujia, people began to draw strangely poignant inferences between the current Indian polity and the US elections.

This, coupled with the fact that outsourcing is an issue, the complexity of which is yet to be grasped by politician and people alike, made it imperative for Indians here- both Indian Americans and passer-by Indians, to have a say.

Someone suggested that AmitabhBachchan should say something on these lines on TV back in India so as to dissuade the masses from voting inefficient caricatures into public office.

“Arreybhaiya, nahiboojhta to vote mat karo, Hum kahtehain,” was the slogan Amitabh should mouth, agreed everybody unanimously. After all, he did give a fillip to chocolates and churan!

Someone else, who was totally miffed about Sonia bahu getting way too much footage as compared to Manekabahu, suggested that the latter should be considered for the role.

Mat karo vote, vegetarianism kitarah ye bhi ‘achchahai’, could be Maneka slogan.

Varied also, was the opinion about the concept of Presidential debates. Should India have rampantly televised debates where leaders representing the much anticipated individual manifestoes come out in the open?

Or should the interminable BharatYatras cater to all parties, who can then carry out a procession of individual wares (a la republic day celebrations) through the length and breadth of the nation? This was something that needed mulling, decided the amorphous jing-bang.

Although there was much animated altercation about the choice of ‘don’t-vote’ brand ambassador, the concept appealed to almost everyone who had originally converged at the Global Mall for some spicy Indian khaana and pumpkin splendour to celebrate Halloween.

Some young Indian Americans who had recently been to the ‘Rock the Vote’ party organized in Atlanta to encourage youth to perform the sacred rite and to assure them that their voice counted, returned a look of utter shock. First our folks send us to a place that fosters this pretty notion about taking on responsibility for an elected congressman and then, they discuss the actual merits of staying away, their wide-eyed glances seemed to be conveying.

On a more serious note, just a grazing comparison of data in both countries is reflective of a phenomenon that we can now safely call voter paralysis.

In India, for the Lok Sabha elections held in May this year the percentage voter turnout was a mere 57.65 (source: eic.gov.in). In the US the reported turnout of voting-age population was 51.3 per cent in the year 2000 federal elections (source: infoplease.com). This is not, however, considered well enough a barometer for the choice of a national leader, many pundits feel. In addition, the number of women who turned out to vote was even more abysmal.

The dwindling numbers of voters in both countries is representative of collective apathy and a lack of political conscience. Rajeev Mittal, an Atlanta resident for six years now and a senior executive in an IT firm here voiced his dissent saying, “We were so sure that we had found an exemplary statesman-politician in Vajpayee; exit polls reiterated this view, and yet he fell to the vagaries of voters.” To take the argument a step further, thanks to the despotic churning of the ballot box, we have today a Prime Minister that none bargained for, and yet one that is everyman’s best man, given the choice set.

The rationale behind this medley of facts seems to be an oxymoronic dictum that simply put is this: those who should be voting (so called intelligentsia that badgers the government, any government with characteristic flourish of knowledge) are not voting; those who shouldn’t be voting are voting (mindless masses that are captivated by free saris in India and a Bruce Springsteen concert in the US) and those voted into office are candidates who perhaps never envisioned it in the first place, let alone having a vision for the country, whichever country.

Thankfully, as Georgia goes to the polls for the first time, in advance, in a presidential election, initial reports looked good with people lining up early morning to fulfill their primary duty as citizens. The Indian American population in the state is 46,132 (Year 2000 census), surely their voice should count. If they care to be heard that is.

And hence, back to exercising the option of not voting. To not vote at all, and to vote mindlessly are both bad. However, the latter may be a tad better. There is an outside chance that it may actually impact the former class of people and turn them into voters at least. Mindful, mindless, whatever…