Contrasting Polls – Punjab Vs UP
By: Amit Bhushan Date: 2nd Nov. 2016
While the ‘Game’ tests any ideological moorings while reaching out to a wide audience of people is known and understood to be in line with its competitive spirits. However the ‘Game’ also tests ‘performance’ vis-à-vis promise and/or potential of the competing candidates and it cannot be under-emphasized. There is need to reiterate that as principle of Game seem rather easily forgotten by people too keen to push the envelope of their own names in poll hustling. The Game can have collaborative content but only as long as the collaborators are willing to ‘raise questions’, ‘face questions’, ‘define/underline answers’ and ‘set agendas’ jointly and are willing to participate in all these tasks together although these can be done individually as well as long as there is no collaboration. A deviation or inability to perform any of these tasks whether in collaboration or individually as opted by a player or party is actually a ‘stalemate’ from the hustling rather than a signal of a competitive player. Taking only the choice piece in collaboration is often not the option unless the competitors and collaborators are both dumb.
The focus on the test of performance vis-à-vis testing one’s ideology in an integral part of the competition. In fact it is performance in line with one’s ideology and how it touches the population is what depicts one’s sincerity to delivery as per ideology and not mere lectures, which is what political leaders often tend to sermonize. Also, the effectiveness of political leaders to indoctrinate senior bureaucrats to deliver suitable policy, procedures and a priority list of projects as well as actual projects delivery in line with ideology is of the test of ‘game’ and seals electoral fortunes. The collaborators in this regards, have to justify that the performance and delivery has been in line over the past years, while those in opposition would raise question (often called tough questions, now-a-days). This while the party and collaborators may continue to raise issues about the priority list of projects, policy options exercised and procedures adopted by other in fray. This competition can be at two level viz. at the constituency level where individual candidates need to manage show for themselves and at the party/super-neta level where ideological moorings impact a little more, but past performance/s still needs to be justified by each of the competing sides. And of course the competition may choose to respond more fiercely at the constituency level to manage its victory which may be in line with their competitive streak or a strong ideological lecture or questioning strategy in media, whatever does best for them.
The case of the two major states going to polls is a contrasting study. While in Punjab, there seems to be a bevy of questions by all parties rather than any attempt to showcase delivery, while in the largest state there seems to be a competition to deliver ‘answers’ in isolation and/or in collaboration, much to the amusement of the ‘voters’. This is while the media circus continues to follow the neta side of story while ignoring the ‘villages’ which may still be looking for their MLAs and MPs who were supposed to make them Swachh and a few were expecting to be transformed. Even the cities might be have expectation on lines of country turning electricity surplus and large sanitation projects to clean cities as well as stop the river pollution. Then of course the questions around rural roads, civic amenities and infrastructure desired and its maintenance, corruption in development authorities and PWD, education and health care issues (or the lack of it) remain besides the Jobs related questions of the masses. It may be noted that it takes a High Court judge to question authorities on Dengue related woes before it is taken up by the ‘Commercial News Media’ and despite of it the public continues to witness tussle between the executive and the judiciary which is often terms as intervening and overarching. This is despite the fact the same Commercial News Media would spare no stone unturned to highlight the plight of people on account of the same disease in neighbouring Delhi, just a few days earlier. Incidentally, Punjab doesn’t suffer from the malaise so seriously it seems as it has just the other woes highlighted by its netas. The author is reasonably sure that there would be some lawmakers who would agree that there cannot be a public case to call Judiciary as overarching in such a situation.
With the Netas getting busy to manage their media exposure as the electoral politics heats up, much before the poll commission’s formal announcement, a spate of questions on individual netas and humble and ever-complying bureaucrats are likely to be raised. As the activists form the collaborating parties and opposition vie for the shrinking pie of the ‘winning’ tickets and seek reward for their hard work over the years. The ideologies, policies and performance would continue to be questioned in spirit of the ‘game’ even as the ‘Game’ continues to evolve…
By: Amit Bhushan Date: 2nd Nov. 2016
While the ‘Game’ tests any ideological moorings while reaching out to a wide audience of people is known and understood to be in line with its competitive spirits. However the ‘Game’ also tests ‘performance’ vis-à-vis promise and/or potential of the competing candidates and it cannot be under-emphasized. There is need to reiterate that as principle of Game seem rather easily forgotten by people too keen to push the envelope of their own names in poll hustling. The Game can have collaborative content but only as long as the collaborators are willing to ‘raise questions’, ‘face questions’, ‘define/underline answers’ and ‘set agendas’ jointly and are willing to participate in all these tasks together although these can be done individually as well as long as there is no collaboration. A deviation or inability to perform any of these tasks whether in collaboration or individually as opted by a player or party is actually a ‘stalemate’ from the hustling rather than a signal of a competitive player. Taking only the choice piece in collaboration is often not the option unless the competitors and collaborators are both dumb.
The focus on the test of performance vis-à-vis testing one’s ideology in an integral part of the competition. In fact it is performance in line with one’s ideology and how it touches the population is what depicts one’s sincerity to delivery as per ideology and not mere lectures, which is what political leaders often tend to sermonize. Also, the effectiveness of political leaders to indoctrinate senior bureaucrats to deliver suitable policy, procedures and a priority list of projects as well as actual projects delivery in line with ideology is of the test of ‘game’ and seals electoral fortunes. The collaborators in this regards, have to justify that the performance and delivery has been in line over the past years, while those in opposition would raise question (often called tough questions, now-a-days). This while the party and collaborators may continue to raise issues about the priority list of projects, policy options exercised and procedures adopted by other in fray. This competition can be at two level viz. at the constituency level where individual candidates need to manage show for themselves and at the party/super-neta level where ideological moorings impact a little more, but past performance/s still needs to be justified by each of the competing sides. And of course the competition may choose to respond more fiercely at the constituency level to manage its victory which may be in line with their competitive streak or a strong ideological lecture or questioning strategy in media, whatever does best for them.
The case of the two major states going to polls is a contrasting study. While in Punjab, there seems to be a bevy of questions by all parties rather than any attempt to showcase delivery, while in the largest state there seems to be a competition to deliver ‘answers’ in isolation and/or in collaboration, much to the amusement of the ‘voters’. This is while the media circus continues to follow the neta side of story while ignoring the ‘villages’ which may still be looking for their MLAs and MPs who were supposed to make them Swachh and a few were expecting to be transformed. Even the cities might be have expectation on lines of country turning electricity surplus and large sanitation projects to clean cities as well as stop the river pollution. Then of course the questions around rural roads, civic amenities and infrastructure desired and its maintenance, corruption in development authorities and PWD, education and health care issues (or the lack of it) remain besides the Jobs related questions of the masses. It may be noted that it takes a High Court judge to question authorities on Dengue related woes before it is taken up by the ‘Commercial News Media’ and despite of it the public continues to witness tussle between the executive and the judiciary which is often terms as intervening and overarching. This is despite the fact the same Commercial News Media would spare no stone unturned to highlight the plight of people on account of the same disease in neighbouring Delhi, just a few days earlier. Incidentally, Punjab doesn’t suffer from the malaise so seriously it seems as it has just the other woes highlighted by its netas. The author is reasonably sure that there would be some lawmakers who would agree that there cannot be a public case to call Judiciary as overarching in such a situation.
With the Netas getting busy to manage their media exposure as the electoral politics heats up, much before the poll commission’s formal announcement, a spate of questions on individual netas and humble and ever-complying bureaucrats are likely to be raised. As the activists form the collaborating parties and opposition vie for the shrinking pie of the ‘winning’ tickets and seek reward for their hard work over the years. The ideologies, policies and performance would continue to be questioned in spirit of the ‘game’ even as the ‘Game’ continues to evolve…