The state of elections

It’s a free-for-all as the state elections approach, and may the most corrupt win

BY DILIP JADEJA

ith over 300 million people, the world’s biggest democracy - Uttar Pradesh (UP) in India - goes to election in February 2012. Perhaps for the last time, because two influential political parties want this (once downsized and split into two) state to be split further four ways. Traditionally, a UP win was a tick for Prime Ministership and this made it a playground for the big bulls - and cows, to be politically overseas accounts was, and still is, the number one issue. But the poor themselves need money every day, and here is a political opportunity.

Large hauls of cash and liquor are being captured and the police say they were most likely destined for the elections. A lot of the money is spent in the hope of making it up, once the voters have voted the spenders in. This creates a cycle – abuse one’s constitutional position to make unaccounted money; stash it up in overseas accounts in secretive tax havens; spend a portion of it to buy votes at the next election; get re-elected and go remake even more money! In case the election is lost, there is the option of spending the remaining cash forever after!

because self-serving politicians benefit the most by keeping them poor. These politicians have well learnt colonial Britain’s world famous “divide and rule” policy. Apart from hoards of hard cash, every fiery subject like religion, reservation quotas for schools admissions to government jobs and quotas for everything (but not everyone) are all weapons of choice to win the elections. Some had the audacity to suggest quotas even for private jobs!

The poor may get carried away, but quotas are never enough and they still have to pay, because a billion people can flood any quota. In the end, the quota system becomes another lucrative palm-greasing opportunity for the touts. As the state of UP has a large enough Muslim population to matter, both incumbent Mayawati’s BSP and challenger Rahul’s Congress have announced Muslim quotas as political pointscoring. In a letter to the PM, Commissioner Qureshi of the Election Commission (EC) condemned the Congress’ Law Minister Salman Khurshid for over-stepping conduct rules during electioneering.

As the stAte of UP hAs A lArge enoUgh MUsliM PoPUlAtion to MAtter, both incUMbent MAyAwAti’s bsP And chAllenger rAhUl’s congress hAve AnnoUnced

MUsliM qUotAs

As PoliticAl Point-scoring

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All sense of proportion is lost in this blind game, and several leaders are suspected of sitting with overseas account holdings of billions with some at the forefront, by all indications, have holdings larger than Warren Buffet and Rupert Murdoch’s Forbes listed assets, with a couple exceeding those of Bill Gates!

So who will end this cycle and how?

There are not too many options, but the US is making a water-tight regulation on disclosure by banks holding illicit money of any clients whatsoever, and insisting on adding such disclosure clauses in every US Treaty of every country. It’s a good start.

For the black money generation, it is grossly important that voters remain poor and for this reason, amongst others, India’s poor are forever damned. No amount of hard work will ever end their poverty

The players are flamboyant and one would be blind, deaf and dumb to take any of them on face value. The incumbent boasts to be untouchable, though everyone has to ‘touch her feet’ before they can get anywhere in her state. A rare living person in the world, Mayawati dared make her own statue, unfurled it herself with fanfare, even garlanded it! Her election symbol is an elephant. Every week from November to January, Rahul did not miss saying to voters in UP, “The elephant has been eating away your money!”

Well, the elephant is not the only one foraging, and people know that. Mayawati has fired a whole line of Ministers “over corruption” to save her image. Of course, influenced by protests from Rahul’s Congress Party, the EC ordered that Mayawati’s statue and her election symbol elephant statues be covered up during elections. It took five days for her statue to remain behind wood planks. In retaliation, Mayawati’s supporters claimed that statues of Rahul’s father, grandmother and great-grandfather remain uncovered in all election states. Mayawati also complained that election symbols of other parties including the Congress and Akali Dal remain uncovered. Congress spokesperson Ajam Khan compared Mayawati’s statue with Saddam’s, and wished that it fell like one!