1. Elections: Buggles have been sounded. Drums are beating. Rallies are on. Motley crowds are blocking all streets and corners. There is a mad rush for getting out of the heap and gripping the moon. Every individual has his dreams. He has his ambitions. Nobody wants to be left behind. Power is a great motivator. It is here. It is there and it is everywhere. It appears to be within grasp. It is like a mirage. Very near, but very far. Very illusive. Very intoxicating. People spend a lifetime chasing it. They may get it. They may not get it. But the chase goes on. Power, more power and absolute power. For what, nobody knows. It is an obsession. It is a dream and nobody has the answers.
Elections are intended to choose people’s representatives, who ultimately form the government and man a host of constitutional offices. All along, the people are considered as supreme. They are placed on a high pedestal. They are depicted as repositories of all power. Adult franchise symbolizes this notion. Power to vote is considered as an opportunity to chose the representatives and to chose the form of government and its policies, and programmes. The fond hope is that everything will work out, as visualized. Elections provide some hope to the common man. Hope for something better. Something satisfying.
2. The System: In the good old days, there used to be city states, where the numbers were small and all citizens assembled at the city square and had an opportunity to have their say in the choice of policies and programmes and functionaries of the state. In the modern state, the numbers are large and naturally, the representation is indirect and multi-tiered. The constituencies are wide spread and the contact of the common man with his representative is mostly limited to casting the vote on the election day. By and large most of those people, who seek elected offices look to the power and prestige that goes on with those offices and in the process they go all out, to throw all sort of populist promises and allurements and naturally, they vie in outdoing each other. All elections are mega-events. They require the mobilization of all types of resources-physical, financial, social, cultural and political and of course, by all means fair or fowl. Naturally, all types of equations, combinations and compromises start taking shape and in the process, the very purpose of the elections gets lost. Peoples’ representatives, who are supposed to be the voice of the people and are expected to look after the safety, security and basic social, economic and development needs of the people, are gradually transformed into the voice of the vested interests and start playing in their hands. As time rolls on, they loose almost all touch with the people, whom they are supposed to represent- the very people who elect them and place them on the high pedestal.
3. Political parties: Some two centuries back, when parliamentary democracy took its roots, the franchise was extremely limited. The issues were not contentious and the people were mostly divided in two distinct classes-the privileged class and the non-privileged class. The parties representing the privileged classes had different names in different countries, e.g., conservative party, republican party, swatantra party etc. The non-privileged classes preferred the banner of people’s party, labour party or democratic party. Normally, one party formed the government and the other party functioned as the shadow government to keep the ruling party on track. The constituencies, commitments and ideologies of the two parties were different, but there were no conflicts on fundamental issues and most of the time, the party in power and the party in the opposition worked in tandem for the overall welfare and prosperity of the people and broad based development and growth of the country. In the modern state, there is a lot of consciousness and diversity of interests based on caste, creed, language and religion and social, economic, political and regional affiliations. And, then there are personal egos, family and fraternal loyalties and so many other factors. Since, the elections are resource based, a very limited number of individuals decide to get into the fray as independents and very few of them are ultimately successful. Naturally, the political parties are major players in the elections. The pull and mesmerizing smell of power that flows from the elections, has stimulated the growth of all types of national, regional and denomination based parties, trumping their ideologies, agendas and manifestos. And, in the process, almost all people, young and old coming from different professions and walks of life, knock the doors of these parties and try to squeeze in somewhere, in the fond hope of fulfilling their aspirations and dreams someday. It is really difficult to see or to understand, what binds the political parties and its workers. But, they keep clinging to each other, in the fond hope of getting some share of the spoils someday.
4. Technology: Technology in everyday life of the people is a recent development. People are intimately connected to each other through mobile phones and other electronic devices and are freely available on social networking sites. Even some insignificant news anywhere in the world make headlines. Under the context, technology provides an absolutely new dimension in the conduct of elections. The candidates are in a position to contact and freely communicate with almost everybody in the electorate. The spoken word reverberates everywhere. And of course, the trends and blowing winds are captured from day to day and hour to hour for clear course correction. The media looks to such occasions and goes on highlighting and rubbing in the eyes and ears of the people, all that the candidates like to see and hear. Technology also helps considerably in resource mobilization, but, at the same time, full and proper use of technology in elections calls for a regular and unending flow of resources. Ultimately, the contest between the candidates and parties turns out to be a contest between the resources mustered by individual candidates and parties. The candidates or parties, which lay hands on a bigger pool of resources and are adept in manipulating it and keeping it flowing, succeed in crossing the finishing line and fluttering the winning flag.
5. Conclusion: Politics is all about getting some sort of leverage with or without adjustments and compromises that exigencies warrant. Gradually, people get used to it and that becomes their way of thinking and way of life. Elections provide them with an opportunity to go up the ladder and ultimately get into the positions of power. They may or may not be equipped for the tasks facing them, but, they relish the whole show and keep clinging to it. To-day, almost all countries of the world are face to face with a number of complex problems. Blasts, serial blasts, terrorism, deteriorating law and order problems, unemployment, under-employment, poverty, malnutrition, hunger, economic recession and concerns about peace, safety and security of the people and the state and a host of other problems. Whatever, the candidates or the political parties may say or profess, the elections are not expected to solve any of these problems. Winning parties may form the government. and if need be they may stitch coalitions for stability, help and support, but, they do not have the capacity or inclination to get involved in the solution of these problems. Those who are not able to get onto the bandwagon of the winning combination, have no option but to sit in the opposition. Most of their time and energy is dissipated in verbal duels, mud-slinging and de-stabilizing the government. Meanwhile, the whole country witnesses the show with utter dismay and disbelief as the days and months keep rolling and the people start looking for the next elections with fond hopes for some miracles. Nobody is in a mood to believe or think, that, if all strands join together, then with or without elections, with or without adjustments and compromises, most of the problems facing the world can find some sort of satisfying solutions.