Bottom up Politics

On 26/11, when Mumbai was attacked by terrorists from Pakistan, the entire city was outraged by the act and at the same time was disappointed by the lackluster populism politics being played by our so called “leaders”. The gallant acts of protests which were organized in Mumbai following the attacks showcased the public discontent, especially among the youth for a change and reform oriented politics as contrary to the populist, vote-bank based, reactive and blame game political approach being followed currently. There was a hunger for justice around the population, hunger for justice for those innocent civilian life lost in the brazen attack, hunger for justice for those who lost their life fighting the terrorist menace all across the country.

But the recent elections for the Lok Sabha, 2009, the voters turnout and the court proceedings against Ajmal kasab, the lone terrorist who was caught by Mumbai police are proving that justice is a mere mirage in a country which is reactive and amnesic in its own nature.

The Judiciary is too busy in determining the age of Kasab, but to be honest does it matter how old he is, looking at the magnitude of his actions and the consequences. And the direction which the court proceedings are taking proves where our courts (With all due respect) are spending their efforts, in pointless arguments which are leading nowhere. Firstly does people like Kasab, require a court proceeding which will take another ten years to come to a conclusion. Does people like him require be defended that too by an Indian lawyer, the country against which the attack was launched. If justice has to be served the court should be able to expedite the case and the intelligence should be able t o extract valuable information about the terrorist infrastructure from Kasab.

While the court is too busy with the age factor, our Mumbaikars who raised there voice and rose together against the publicity politics were no where to be seen when it came to exercising their franchise. Either they have gone to their hometowns thanks to the long weekend or too busy watching IPL. This is clear from the fact that the voter turnout in Mumbai was a mere 43%, which seems to be a dismal figure compared to the furor after the attacks.

The process of change in India has been bottom up, the economic liberty of India in the last two decades are not state sponsored but came from individual growth aspirations. When the Indian growth story was taking place our populist politicians were busy thinking about how much subsidies, loan waivers, reservations, free electricity and other freebies, losing the pulse of the restlessness and aspirations of the country. Whether it is the number of entrepreneurs, the world class industries, the booming IT and services sector, the extra ordinary growth in trade or the change in the lifestyle, all of it came from individuals or communities with the state playing a minimal role.

But when it comes to the elections and politics, there seems to be lack of individual or community based participation is appalling. One side of the argument says that irrespective of the party we vote for, it will be the same wine served maybe in a different bottle. The same old story of populist politics will take the throne irrespective of the elected party. I cannot agree more on that, looking at the manifestos of the major political parties, there was not a single reform oriented action plan but populism seems to be ubiquitous with a rat race for the most subsidies.


But if we look at the individuals and independents who are contesting in the cities (like student groups and youth federations) at least in the city, some of the manifestos where reform based. To the surprise these fledgling political aspirants were able to diagnose the pulse of the populace better than the veterans. And looking at the non-voting populace, which is more than 50%, they have a say in shifting the favor towards reforms than subsidies.

But our non-voting populace is simply indifferent. If the anger shown in the Mumbai protests were channeled into the elections and voted for the right person, we could have seen a shift in the political orientation of the country and there could have been a bottom up shift in the politics of the country as well.

First and foremost of the reforms we require is in the electoral process and the people’s mindset towards politics. Only then the necessary reforms will follow….