Our Hobson’s choice election

The Great Election tamasha is upon us. Karnataka is being visited by the high and mighty. Charges are being hurled, abuses unleashed. Civility (what is that?) in public discourse has long gone by. Everybody is eager to impress the electorate with things done and things they will do. The manifestoes promise a host of things--from half a litre of milk every day to all BPL families, to free cooking gas, to free electricity, to housing sites for the homeless, to waiver of loans, to guarantees that guarantees will be met.

You read the manifestoes carefully and wonder how many of these promises will be kept. You wonder how many of these are implementable. You wonder why there is no public scrutiny and audit of promises made in the past and their present status. You wonder why issues like joblessness and measures to uplift large swathes of the population from desperate poverty are not debated.

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You remember that the PRS Legislative Research has pointed out that the 15th Karnataka legislative assembly which functioned from May 2018 to February 2023 met for an average of only 33 days in a year - this against the mandate of the Karnataka Conduct of Government Business in the State Legislatures Act 2005 that the assembly should meet at least 60 days in a year.

You remember, as per the Act, the Budget sessions should be at least 20 days; monsoon sessions at least 15 days. This is to ensure and facilitate debate and informed discussions. These requirements have been met more in breach. Again, as pointed out by PRS, as against the mandated requirement as per the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly that each sitting should last at least 6.5 hours, more than 70% of the sittings in this term lasted less than 6.5 hours. You remember that out of the 176 bills introduced in the term of the assembly, less than 9 were referred to committees for detailed scrutiny; 32 percent were passed on the same day. You remember that, as per the Association for Democratic Reforms, out of the 8893 candidates who have either contested the parliamentary or state elections from Karnataka since 2004, 1135 have pending criminal cases against them. The average assets of all the candidates for the same period is said to be Rs.5.91 crore; the average asset of 705 candidates with declared serious criminal charges is Rs 14. 59 crore. So much for what was.

You look at the current list of candidates. You are repeatedly told it is your duty to vote. You tell yourself you need to perform your duty; the scriptures enjoin you to do so, as also the Constitution.

So, you sit again and look at the names of the candidates. You shake your head. You learn that the largest number of candidates have ‘social worker’ as their profession. You contemplate as to what that means. You see a jump in assets of most candidates--of even up to 160% in some cases. You reason that is indeed possible-and pray for the day when similar jumps in the assets of ordinary citizens can also take place. You try to learn more about the candidates. Should you vote for the individual irrespective of the party? or the party irrespective of the individual? You see close relatives of politicians in the list of candidates. You reason that should not be a reason for any person not being considered.

You look at the chaotic traffic, the squalor, the poor water connection, the wonder pipes that are to bring in Kaveri water and do so randomly a day or two in the week, the plethora of water tankers that cress-cross the city supplying water and wonder why there are no pipes from where these tankers are collecting water. You look at the garbage piling up on most roads and wonder who is responsible. You look at the frenetic road repair activity, potholes--the cause of so many fatal accidents--being filled, and tell yourself that elections are not bad.

I come back to the conundrum. Should we vote for good men and women on the list, irrespective of party affiliations? And pray they will rise above party affiliations and do what is right ? Pray that they will adhere to the Platonian virtues which he extolled for a politician: courage, moderation, wisdom, and justice. You again shake your head and wonder if this is ever possible in the present day. You tell yourself never become so cynical that you lose hope. You tell yourself be a good citizen first and only then expect good politicians. So, we come back to the puzzle: Who do we vote for?

You reach the conclusion that each of us should vote as per our conscience. Even if that means that your candidate loses his deposit. But vote, you have no right to complain if you do not exercise your right to vote. And in the meantime, consider changing your profession; you too could become a social worker and do your bit to improve society.

(The writer is a former chairman, Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs)