MyVoice: Views of our readers 03rd December 2023

All eyes on ballot boxes: New govt or status quo?

It is an undeniable truth that public opinion and election results often play a significant role in gauzing success or failure of strategies adopted by the respective political parties. (‘Poll outcome to speak volumes of strategies,’ The Hans India, 2 Dec). While the BRS and INC have run a high-octane, energetic and positive campaign, based on welfare-cum-development, the BJP quite uncharacteristically adopted a largely negative campaign. The BJP'S strategy revolved largely around issues such as: (1) changing the names of Hyderabad, Mahabubnagar; (2) Scrapping of Muslim quota; (3) free travel to Ayodhya for senior citizens; (4) SC categorization; (5) BC CM. It created a negative impact on the voters. In fact, the BC CM card plus SC categorisation exposed the political hypocrisy of BJP. In the final analysis, the INC & BRS are the two parties in the race and 3rd December will be day of victory for better strategy.

–P H Hema Sagar, Secunderabad

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Telangana state elections have at least apparently shown up very keen contests by all the three contesting political parties even though the voting percentage was hardly around 75% as a whole with the Hyderabad city voting percentage being around 40% as usual in almost every election. The exit poll forecasts cannot be taken for granted and at least now, there is no necessity for any party to celebrate or to mull over candidates for the position of the CM of the state etc. This is because the exit poll agencies have hardly a chance to meet the voters after voting for ascertaining their selections which is not allowable as per election rules. In these circumstances, relying on earlier pre-poll exit samples is just meaningless and unreliable. The voters’ trend is thus not available even to a reasonable extent. All the parties and the voters have to wait until the counting day comes and they should not show conclusive acts until then.

Katuru Durga Prasad Rao, Hyderabad

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If exit polls pertaining to Telangana State are anything to go by their veracity, the BRS is likely to lose the required number of seats to form a government under the leadership of KCR and his coterie. There are several reasons that are responsible for the downfall of BRS in the hustings. It is seemingly true that overconfidence of BRS leaders has paid less dividends to them. The voters have given less weightage and importance to the 10-year-old Telangana sentiment. There is a marked despondency among the people of the State over 10-year family rule unleashed by KCR that has come under public scanner as well as in the notice of the Prime Minister and the central high command. The BRS rule has been charged with corruption and nepotism in the view of the PM whose remarks against the rule in the State have been publicly countered, criticised/indicted by KCR and his family members on several occasions over the public platform.

–Bh Indu Sekhar,Hyderabad

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Election scenario in India takes deep deviation as the exit polls revealed a turnaround of Congress against the ruling BJP in most of the states, where results are expected. Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram have taken place and the counting of votes would take place on December 3 for all the five States and it will be a cliffhanger and, in some states, hung assembly is also expected, setting the ball rolling for the crucial polls which are being considered to be the semi-finals to the 2024 general elections. Whether it is semi or quarter finals these results will not have a direct bearing in the end results of General Elections 2024. Anti-incumbency factor put BRS in trouble and there appears to be an upset. Congress under Chidambaram gave statehood to Telangana and now it goes its way in an unexpected turnaround. All the hype, hoopla and hysteria of KCR in first page ads in news dailies with pink background have all gone waste.

–M R Jayanthy, Mumbai

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Exit polls say that Congress has a clear edge in Telangana which is not digestible to BJP and BRS. People may award a cruel opinion to BJP due to its disservice to government, senior citizens in many ways. In one word to say, BJP cannot keep its presence in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in near future. It lost only one state, Karnataka, recently. We can say it is a self-made sin. Anti-incumbency may not be the sole reason in TS. Congress party if secures power in TS, within a short period it may lose its sheen if it fails to rise to the expectations.

– Dr NSR Murthy, Secunderabad

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History shows that the outcome of these polls may not significantly impact the results of next year's general election. There are multiple examples to show that voters' preferences are not similar in national and state elections. Not just at state elections preceding Lok Sabha polls, the Indian voter's preferences can significantly differ even when the two elections are held simultaneously. A major example of this was Odisha in 2019 – when BJD won a fifth term at the assembly with a resounding mandate, but got only 12 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats, losing significant ground to BJP.

There might, however, be one distinct carryover from these state elections to next year's national election. The ongoing elections are being considered a vote on the popularity, or the lack of it, of the BJP and the Congress and its INDIA alliance. The results will certainly set the tone of the campaign for the Lok Sabha elections early next year.

– N Sadhasiva Reddy, Bengaluru

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This has reference to bold talk "Poll outcome to speak volumes of strategies' (THI, December 2). The entire essay appears to be a factual description of polls recently held in Telangana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram. People and parties are very curiously and enthusiastically concentrated on all these states' outcome, except the last one. The impact of final judgment may fall on the ensuing Parliament elections. However, it is on record that people have given different results in Assembly and Parliament elections.

People in two Telugu states are not trusting in Prime Minister Narendra Modi who reversed his promises after bifurcation of states. In Andhra Pradesh especially Congress party went into grave and BJP could not perfectly exhibit its existence. In TS, BJP has ruined its firm stand from almost first place to least due to change of its guard from Bandi Sanjay Kumar who is the right person to counter BRS and Congress. As stated in the talk, the author is suspecting what will be the course of action if hung happens? As rightly and brightly pointed out, BJP will never join hands with Congress, but it may go with BRS. If no coalition is acceptable, then President rule may be clamped. BRS is still hopeful of getting majority seats. Let us wait till Dec 3 and all clouds will be cleared and the true colour of all parties will come to surface. Then we will see sunrise in sunset.

– NSK Prasad, Hyderabad

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Poll agencies can present different numeric trends which can be misleading. The pulse of the people is difficult to be judged. No data science and careful analysis can with certainty assure the predicted results. The voters’ choice need not remain the same. As a voter’s needs & aspirations change, so does his voting preferences. It keeps evolving. Politics is science and art of winning the electorate’s confidence time & again. The Indian electorate has matured over the years. This is the case even among the illiterate. The liberal use of money power and other freebies will not induce voting patterns. To add further, they are gleefully accepted and not reciprocated while voting. The giver is thus fooled. Results can turn topsy-turvy and the predictions of exit surveys may boomerang. Parties their leaders and cadres, beware!

– N R Raghuram, Hyderabad

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The failures and the dark blotches of the BRS government mainly distanced it from the voters. Paper leakages for almost all 14 exams indicate the inefficiency of the government. The RTC strike was prolonged and not taken into confidence after the 52-day strike – only it has been pacified. The dictator style of functioning does not honor or respect the elected representatives. Not honoring the time punctuality in attending the secretariat and functioning of the administration from Pragati Bhavan also affected the anti-incumbency vote.

The much-claimed Kaleshwaram project has not been done as efficiently as people were expecting. In any press conference, only KCR speaks, no one even the concerned ministry nor the concerned secretary addresses the meetings. The one-sided dominated nature of KCR and KTR will not work for a decade. The internal democracy within the party of BRS we rarely see and how can we expect that the present government will uphold the democracy and honor the voters and their aspirations? The Congress most likely may win between 66 to 71, whereas the BJP will improve its positions by crossing two-digit numbers and will improve its position considerably.

– Kanagiri S Prasad, Hyderabad

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The writer V Ramu Sarma had said that poll surveys and exit polls having come to stay is only to a certain extent can be relied upon and not wholly is absolutely correct. Sadly, the fact remains that in the backdrop of appeasement politics and announcement of freebies taking precedence, strategies adopted by every party has been only short-term for the sake of power rather than long-term benefit for the nation. India needs a strong ruling government and an equally strong opposition, but as things stand, Congress and regional parties as long as it is run like family enterprise can no longer be able to provide an alternative stable governance nor act like responsible opposition. In short, unless and until, it abandons family rule, it would not serve democracy. It needs to recalibrate to serve independent India. By and large, exit polls give a clear indication that people yearn for change in rule due to corruption and unemployment and that there is no perceptible pro-Congress wave for the party to be upbeat before the results are out.

–K R Srinivasan, Secunderabad

Open letter to Election Commission of India

Dear Election Commissioner! Let me begin my missive (will not be long) by complimenting the peaceful conduct of the elections in five states. Of course, thanks to security forces who ensured that anti-social elements are kept under close watch. One hopes the same would continue when the entire country goes for general elections early next year.

However, my concern is whether as constitutional head, whether the Election Commission was fair and independent in deed and actions? I am sorry, you and members of this constitutional body have miserably failed the voters.

Model Code of Conduct (MCC) which is supposed to be treated by the parties and that by the party in power (no matter whoever they are) as Moral Code of Conduct was never followed by them or implemented by you in letter and spirit. When it comes to enforcing the MCC, you have failed to show impartiality. When the opposition leader and Congress MP committed the act of repeating someone as “bad omen” by referring to PM, you were quick to take cognisance of complaint from a ruling party leader but at the same time failed to take similar when PM himself openly flouted the MCC by referring the opposition leaders in most uncharitable ways. What was more shocking was the way campaigning was allowed by ruling party supporters to bring bulldozers to welcome UP Chief Minister in Rajasthan at a time SC and other lower courts have on more than one occasion hace indicted the misuse of bulldozer. Showcasing the bulldozer in an election campaign is nothing but sign intimidation of voters.

On the announcement of continuation of existing welfare, again the opposition ruled Telangana was made to stop distribution of farmers investment support but the ruling party at the center was allowed to announce free distribution nationwide ration. Several TVC government advertisements which carried PM’s photos were freely allowed.

Like in the past, despite several warnings by courts, the teaching community was not spared from election duty and many of them (in particular as old as in their late fifties) were made to go to places where the polling booth didn’t have proper washroom facilities. If this wasn't enough some head of the institution made the teachers to report to school on the following day by openly flouting the order by local adminstration. On this account you have failed to show your humanitarian consideration.

The road shows cutting across parties were allowed and that too in the era when leaders virtually reach the drawing rooms of voters. Even the PM has failed to set an example, leave alone you and your members. Hope, if at all someone brings this missive from an ordinary person, will you introspect and remember late TN Sheshan who is badly missed.

–N Nagarajan, Hyderabad

Colonial narratives on caste dubious

Shri David Miltonji calls caste as 'sanctified apartheid’ (letter dated December 2, 2023, THI). This shows how deeply colonial narratives have taken root in Indian thinking. Our social sciences after independence did not pause to think that the caste story that the colonials set for us could be false too.

‘Caste’ came to us from a Christian Portuguese world where the ‘casta’ of ‘New’ Christians (converted Muslims and Jews) and ‘Old’ Christians played a role with notions of ‘purity of blood’ at its roots. Varna and Jati grew in Indian contexts. There were always four varnas based on ideas like guna (nature), swadharma, and karma. The word ‘caste’ has no equivalent in the Indian scriptures, and yet we have extraordinarily superimposed caste on all our indigenous social systems and achieved a breakdown of the country that the colonials could only dream of.

Many Indian scriptures challenge the notion of the hierarchical ordering of varnas as characteristically developed. There are more likely to be ‘categories’ and sometimes there was a complete reversal of hierarchies, a fact conveniently ignored in the cherry picking of data.

Dr Balagangadhara says: “As a system from antiquity, it (caste) survived Buddhism, Bhakti movements, colonisation, Indian independence, world capitalism, and globalisation strongly. Hence, it must be a very stable social organization. There is no centralised authority for enforcing the caste system...Hence, it adapts itself to any new environment it finds itself in. New castes have come and gone, and hence, this system is also dynamic. Since it has survived under all political regimes, it must be neutral to political ideologies, too. Would not such an autonomous, decentralised, stable, adaptive, dynamic, self-reproducing social organisation, also neutral to all political, economic, and religious doctrines and environments, be the most ideal system if one really existed as such? This most ideal caste system derives only from the present descriptions of the caste system and does not require any additional theories or assumptions. Hence, the European narrative about the ‘evil caste system’ may not amount to much." Can our social sciences do better at developing a better understanding of India instead of parroting what the West tells us?

–Dr Pingali Gopal, Hanamkonda

Pollution becoming a burden on economy

As the winter season approaches, the air quality starts deteriorating in many cities including Delhi. Air pollution is generally seen as having an impact on health, but research reports from many reputed institutions are indicating that it can be fatal for the economy as well. Global rating agency 'Fitch' has estimated India's economic growth rate to be the highest among the top 10 economies of the world in the financial year 2023-24. Another rating agency 'S&P' also estimates that by 2030, India can become the world's third largest economy with a GDP of $7.3 trillion. But all these projections of development may remain in vain, if we do not keep pollution, especially air pollution, under control. And now these fears are also gaining strength.

India's economy will be affected by increasing air pollution in the following ways:

Expenditure on health: Due to air pollution in developing countries including India, people spend 7 percent more of their total expenditure on their health. That means the money which should be spent in the positive direction starts being spent in the negative direction. According to a study by 'Lancet Commission', more than 20 lakh people in India die untimely due to pollution. These untimely deaths have a serious impact on the economy.

Impact on Agriculture: When agriculture fails, the economy also collapses. According to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), due to pollution and greenhouse gases, agricultural production may decline by up to 30 per cent by the year 2030. This will affect the income of farmers. There may also be a reduction in the availability of food for the people. This may affect food prices.

Decrease in Productivity: If the citizens of a country are more productive then the economy there will also flourish more. Poor health affects the productivity of the person concerned. According to 'Clean Air Fund', India's economy suffers a loss of up to $95 billion every year due to decline in productivity.

Construction Activities: The contribution of the construction industry to the country's GDP is above 8 per cent, which is estimated to be 12 per cent by the year 2025. But whenever the air quality in the country's capital and adjoining areas (NCR) is poor, the first thing that is done is construction activities are banned. The Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) has demanded removal of the recent restrictions as the construction industry is incurring losses worth crores every day. However, according to a report, the construction industry itself accounts for 23 percent of air pollution.

Impact on the global economy: According to the World Bank report, if the same level of air pollution continues, then by 2030 the world economy will have to suffer a loss of up to $2.7 trillion every year. The most affected areas will be Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

'According to an assessment by the World Resources Institute (WRI), if it is possible to reduce air polluting gases by 80 per cent by 2050, then it will save $ 700 billion annually by 2040. Apart from this, it will create an additional 10 lakh jobs every year from 2030. According to research by the European Commission, to reduce air pollution by 25 percent in Europe, 1.2 billion euros (108 billion rupees) more will have to be spent every year. Its benefits will be 100 times more than this expense.

–Rishabh Mishra, Kanpur