False Poll Promises and Platitudes; No, Thanks

…Yes, promising masses something and forgetting that is cheating, a mass cheating, of course. But what about fulfilling a vow in an undemocratic way, or making an unrealistic promise for that matter, the promise which is practically impossible to keep. Lastly, there is a class of unconstitutional pledges in sub continent’s politics, too…

Saurabh Dharmeshwari

This election season we got nearly mentally abeyant, most of us, our mind, left thoughtless by an electioneering characterized by mudslinging and issueless hullabaloo, really didn’t grasp the issue of the issues, a routine, usual affair but gone neglected, non-discussed hitherto – the guiding principle of electioneering, the political parties’ election manifestos and strange promises made in them.
 
Of late, a citizen, obviously sick and tired of rancorous, purposeless election campaign, moved the Supreme Court and insisted on one of his controlling democratic rights, democratic weaponry to be more precise that had been expected to teach netas their lesson. The guy, an opinionated sort, wanted that the apex court must take legal action against political parties and public representatives that, after getting elected to power, forget the promises mentioned in their election manifestos.

Though not many of us, engrossed as we are in our significant assignments, might have ever cared about flipping through a manifesto, and are informed of parties’ pledges by the clamour leaders blissfully make, we are hurt when a promise doesn’t come to fruition and feel cheated.
 
The awakened sort, having a feeling of being cheated, was not prepared any longer to buy the utopia sold at the press conferences of political parties.

No doubt, we as a democracy are learning to express our anger both ways, by not voting as well as by voting, and by moving the court with basic complaints against our political system. Complaints as serious as mass cheating, cheating the masses by false promises, that is.

Given the voters sprouting indifference even to going out for casting their ballots, it was quite strange a thing to me, and relieving, too, the fellow’s activeness! No doubt, we as a democracy are learning to express our anger both ways, by not voting as well as by voting, and by moving the court with basic complaints against our political system. Complaints as serious as mass cheating, cheating the masses by false promises, that is.

Though netas still have no reason to bite their nails – for SC dismissed poor fellow’s petition – I, inspired by our erudite Chief Justice KG Balkrishanan and Justice Arijit Pasayat’s observation that the parties and the politicians can at least be sued for compensation of damage if they don’t fulfill their promises, have something to add to the plaintiff’s list of complaints.

It is not just that the political parties, blinded by their struggle to attain, or retain power in dog-eat-dog competition of coalition, make scores of promises, most of them platitudes repeated election after election, and forget them in a moment as their struggle drops them at their desired slots. In fact, the actual problem is about the practicality, the realism of the pledges which often present most serious cases of cheating.

To bring home the point, consider three most prominent promises of Indian elections – Indira Gandhi’s Garibi Hatao vow; National Front’s Equality to all slogan which it went about achieving in 1977 in a very uncivilized, unintelligent way making the equality an injustice, to be honest; and the BJP’s Ram Temple pledge which it never even talked about while being at helm of the affairs.

Yes, promising masses something and forgetting that is cheating, a mass cheating, of course. But what about fulfilling a vow in an undemocratic way, or making an unrealistic promise for that matter, the promise which is practically impossible to keep. Lastly, there is a class of unconstitutional pledges in sub continent’s politics, too, as censoring certain basic part of the Constitution, or more sensitive, formulating the other one afresh. The problem under discussion has four faces thus.

The current elections, being fought amid the uncertainties of the highest order, are no exception with first three faces exposed. Promises like providing jobs to all youth living in rural areas, bringing back India’s black money stashed abroad within hundred days of acquiring power, abolishing English language and computer application from educational institutes and offices are indutibly no more than a pile of hogwash.

Though political parties and leaders cannot be permitted to handle the pressure of competition the way it suits them most, the SC’s observation suggesting filing a law suit for compensation of damage is no remedy.

Can our netas be convinced that this type of cheating is in fact a kind of unrepairable damage in the first place, a damage incurred on a society, region and the whole nation? For their promises, false, unrealistic, or whatsoever, blocked the way of others, may be more genuine ones, to reach the power. Knowing that their cheatable audience is mostly illiterate, uneducated and without means, and it is this audience that forms majority of those who turn out to vote, political parties cannot be expected to introduce a law forbidding false, unrealistic, unconstitutional election-promising.

Furthermore, with politicos’ expertise to move out of a court case safe, no party or public representative is likely to be ever fined for lying during electioneering, and so the cheated masses practically have nowhere to go.

Nevertheless, Indian democracy replete with incredible features offers a hope. Our upmarket crowd, educated, foreign returned and accented that it is, is cast-down with the realpolitik to the extent that they don’t even give a damn to voting; but our rustic brothers, vulnerable to cheating thoroughly, vote ardently despite becoming victims of poll promises again and again. And it is they who can most easily put this point across.

Nevertheless, Indian democracy replete with incredible features offers a hope. Our upmarket crowd, educated, foreign returned and accented that it is, is cast-down with the realpolitik to the extent that they don’t even give a damn to voting; but our rustic brothers, vulnerable to cheating thoroughly, vote ardently despite becoming victims of poll promises again and again. And it is they who can most easily put this point across.

The most down-to-earth beginning of its management has to come from just a handful of comparatively awakened people among the cheatable crowd. They should be as noisy about realism, practicality, humanity and constitutionality of a poll promise as political parties are about selling a reverie.

They can accost the party activists, can ask them on streets how their party intends to fulfill a pledge. If they get a simple answer which is by its very virtue agreeable, the vow is redeemable. Otherwise a smear-campaign becomes a necessity.

Talk about it in a group, at home, at tea stall, in commuter bus. Tell friends, relatives, acquaintances, work-mates and others about what’s real and what’s not, what’s possible and what’s impossible, what’s democratic and what’s draconian.

Tell them to tell their local politicians all about it, street leaders, that is. For unagreeble answers and explanations, criticise them and their party right under the sun. There are chances that these party functionaries, disparaged by the masses on streets, might form pressure groups on their organization. And thus the political parties, competing avariciously with tough rivals in race to power, take to genuine promising to prevent votes slipping from their hands.

Let’s see which region registers itself as a reformer of a political malpractice in India’s democratic history, and also which party becomes first to write it.