Prof A N Sadhu
Time is swift and silent escaper. Six years have passed since we had the last elections in the state. The process for a fresh election has already begun. Elections generate excitement, raise hopes and aspirations and provide yet another opportunity to the electorate to exercise their franchise.The contestants organise public meetings , corner meetings. Door-to door campaigning and advertisements to woo the voters. The common man suddenly becomes a VIP.Ministers become easily available to inaugurate the community halls, beauty saloons, jewellery shops and all that. That elections are conducted freely and fairly is a great tribute to Indian democracy and the secular constitution of the Indian state.
During the last thirty years, the country witnessed the emergence of a political scenario far too different than the earlier one. The mandate remained fractured pointing to a mental agitation of the voter who could neither certify to the achievements of the government in power,nor could he feel convinced to repose his faith in it. As a result the coalition Governments became unavoidable to run the affairs of the country. The way these Coalitions functioned also left much to be desired. What follows from this is that indispensability of a single party Government is outright rejected if it fails to perform and address to the concerns of the people as per the promises made to them at the time of elections. By way of an alternative. The people tried the coalition form of Government, which again did not meet their expectations. Coalition Dharma were coined to justify the decisions taken which were not based on objective criteria to serve the interests of the people but, instead to serve the interests, of the coalition partners and help them to stay in power and enjoy the privileges at the cost of the common man. Corruption became rampant, Mafia groups came up in every sector of the economy and common man was driven to the wall. The nexuses so developed that even some honest officers were suffocated and coerced into the acceptance of the Mafia dictums.Deep into the fractured mandate lies the danger of polarisation of the electorate on the basis of caste, religion and ethnicity , which shakes the very foundations of what the constitution of the country stood for. However, the disgust of the voter, on the one hand and the outcry for a change, on the other, was clearly manifested in returning to power one single party with absolute majority, in the centre.
The Parliamentary elections held a few months earlier should mark a turning point in the democratic process of the country. It clearly reveals the maturity of the electorate in making a rational choice independent of the considerations of caste, creed and religion. The country has a young population of 65 percent below the age of 38 years and this sizeable young population has out rightly rejected the subjective criteria in exercising their franchise freely and fearlessly. They have clearly voted for development, the pre-requisite for which is the peace and cooperation. The new Government , at the centre, seems to be conscious of carrying people with them by involving them in the overall growth process and ensuring that growth is inclusive and confined to a few pockets and few sections of the population. It should be exercising great care to let the benefits of growth trickle down to all sections of the society, particularly those sections of the population who either remained neglected or marginalised. The growth also has to be both urban centric as also rural centric in a balanced manner. Some of the initiatives taken such as ‘ swatch Bharat Abhiyan’ and ‘Jan DhanYojna’ are directly aimed at involvement of the people in the process of change. Let every Indian become an agent of change. Emergence of this awakening has put a great challenge before the young electorate and every election has become a very important event, in that, the youth will come forward and impact the shaping of future political scenario in any part of the country.
The elections in the state of Jammu and Kashmir are held in this backdrop. The parroting of frequently used slogans will not produce much impact because the youth has awakened to new realities and are capable of determining their priorities and exercising the franchise in a rational manner. The young electorate has watched the working of two Coalition Governments in the state. The electorate has assessed their working very closely. The graph is not much different than that of the coalition governments witnessed in the centre. In 2008, the voters turned out in large numbers and high hopes were raised when a young chief Minister assumed office, in the state. His qualification, exposure and uprightness aroused great optimism about a better and fair governance. May be he himself started with that urge but , at the end of the innings, the excitement among the electorate is not visible. How will the voters behave at the hustings will be revealing and equally revealing will be its impact on the future of the state. As of now, the situation seems quite fluid pointing towards a fractured mandate, as in the last two elections. However, the formation of a coalition government, this time, is going to be more formidable. New political equations cannot be ruled out.
The youth of the state is charged with a heavy responsibility of exercising their choice in a rational manner. The youth alone can bring about an era of peace and stability and put the state on a growth trajectory that will generate employment avenues for them and boost the SDP satisfactorily. The state has witnessed large scale violence during the last 25 years and recent floods have further aggravated the problems of reconstruction and rehabilitation. The state needs a functional and a stable government which demands that the voters rise to the occasion and steer the state through this fluid political situation. The complex problems facing the state cannot be ignored. The blame games will not serve any purpose. It is only a thoughtful exercise that will ensure the establishment of an honest, efficient and development oriented government in the state. Bigger players in the field, should not overlook the psyche and sensitivity of the local electorate and make overestimates. The history is witness to the fact that emergence of seasonal groupings and cartels donot make any significant impact on the election outcomes in the state. As was the case at the national level that people earnestly wanted a change, so is the position in the state as well but response to bring about that change will not get expressed in the same manner, although it should. The statesmanship demands that democratic processes are deepened and the thinking of the youth moulded towards peace and progress, which in turn can take care of other issues, not required to be connected with the process of elections. Peace, prosperity and progress, within its fold, brings about, automatically, the resolution to the vexed problems.
Follow our WhatsApp channel