Big win for Congress in Karnataka

A huge setback for the ruling BJP, as the opposition Congress party is all set to form a government on its own in this southwestern state of Karnataka.

The counting of votes cast on May 10 began at 8 am today, and about five hours later, the trends were so clear that BJP conceded defeat.

Results on the Election Commission website

I am glad that we have a decisive mandate. That's good for governance. 

A big worry all these days was if the election would throw up a fractured verdict, as has been the case in the past. Unstable coalition governments are no good. 

BJP ERRED

It's a huge setback for the BJP, which had staked so much on this election. They were the incumbent and were facing allegations of massive corruption.

BJP, which has all along been saying that Congress is a party of corrupt leaders, probably never expected that the refrain would boomerang on them. BJP never addressed the issue of corruption in the state, and they have paid a huge price. 

The second big mistake BJP made was that it ignored regional issues and leaders. They went with a macro view and national leaders. 

There was a high-voltage campaign led by none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union home minister Amit Shah for the BJP. 

There was a perception all around -- hope in BJP and fear in Congress -- that Modi's charisma and oratorical skills would decisively swing the votes in favour of the BJP.

One of their pitches was that if the same party is in power in the centre and the state, that would aid development, which they sloganised as "double-engine government".

This argument attracted a lot of criticism since it implicitly means that state governments in India have no major role.

CONGRESS CAPITALISED

Congress focused on the failings of the government. They micro-managed the campaign with local issues and leaders. They were proactive rather than reactive.

Finally, after all the speeches and roadshows, people voted the way they felt was right, resulting in an outcome that jolted the BJP.

I am also happy that all the cherished values like diversity and democratic choices are very much alive in our country. People don't get swayed by rhetoric; they think independently.

They opted for change and gave Congress a chance to rule the state for the next five years.

Congress will now call a meeting of its legislative party (comprising the lawmakers who have been elected), and they will choose their leader, who will be sworn in as the chief minister.

Karnataka elections: Why you should vote, and what if you don't want to vote

The state assembly elections in Karnataka on May 10 are just a couple of days away. 

There is now full-throttle campaigning by the two big parties -- BJP, which is in power, and the opposition Congress.

BJP campaign is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress has deployed a battery of both national leaders like its president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party president Rahul Gandhi, general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, as well as regional leaders like the leader of the opposition Siddaramaiah and state Congress president D K Shivakumar.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading BJP campaign

What BJP is banking on:

- Oratorical skills and charisma of Narendra Modi.

- Many developmental and social welfare schemes that the current BJP state government and BJP federal government have implemented.

- The hope that people will like the status quo to continue.

Congress leader and former chief minister Siddaramaiah.

What Congress is banking on:

- Allegations of corruption against BJP leaders in the state.

- Perception that BJP is ignoring local issues and sentiments in favour of a national narrative.

- Hope that people would want a change and many previous instances of the incumbent party losing.

WHY YOU SHOULD VOTE

Democracy is not perfect, nor are our democratic governments. But we are certainly lucky that we have that form of governance. 

That's because it gives us the freedom to be who we are and to do what we want to, of course, within the ambit of the law.

If that freedom is misused, the fault is ours and of the system.

In a democracy, we elect our representatives who form the government. So, we have a responsibility to participate in the political process. 

We must come out and vote because it is a fundamental aspect of democracy. When we vote, we are exercising our right to shape our own lives and communities.

On the left is the voting machine and, on the right,
is the VVPAT, a unit to indicate that the vote
has been cast correctly.

WHAT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO VOTE

In India, voting is not mandatory, and many people don't vote. While some places record around 90% polling, there are others that register just about 50%.

Two reasons why people choose not to vote.

One, no candidate is good enough.

Two, elected representatives never do their job well, so there is no point in electing anyone.

'Whom do I vote for?'

It's quite possible no candidate measures up to the electorates' expectations. In such cases, they choose not to vote. 

There is a solution to this problem. You can still vote. 

In 2009, the Election Commission of India introduced an option of "None of the Above" or NOTA in the electronic voting machines. If you choose that, it means you haven't chosen to vote for any candidate.

However, NOTA has no electoral value. If NOTA votes are in the majority, still the candidate who has secured the most votes will be declared the winner. 

There have been suggestions that in such a case, the election should be annulled and fresh voting held.

So far, there has never been an instance when NOTA secured the most votes. But NOTA has always picked up votes. And that does indeed send out a message.

'They are irresponsible'

It's a fact that there is disenchantment with legislators' commitment. Many feel that they are not doing their job well. 

But the counter to that is not we also not doing our job well. 

If someone is irresponsible, that doesn't mean we also should be irresponsible.

When we do our part well, we have the moral right to insist that lawmakers also do their job well.

VOTING DAY - MAY 10

This time the Election Commission took care to ensure that the voting day is mid-week to obviate the possibility of people clubbing polling day with the weekend and taking off on holiday.

So, on May 10, let us do our part of the job well. 

It's very simple.

Go out and vote.

--------------------

Image credits

Narendra Modi - Hindustan Times

Siddaramaiah - NDTV

Electronic voting machine - Wikipedia

A to Z Challenge - Reflections

The month of April just flew by. I am sure one of the reasons was the one-post-a-day routine.

I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of posting 26 articles on "chemicals in our everyday life". 

I chose the topic because of my interest in chemistry in particular and science in general.

If you want to go over them, they are all here. 

I knew that science and chemicals are a part of our lives. But what I discovered in April, during the course of research for the posts, was its extent.

The A to Z Blogging Challenge, in a way, rekindled my interest in science which was sort of lying dormant all these years.

It wasn't easy putting up those posts. Time was a big challenge. But somehow, I managed to do it.

On the flip side, unlike the previous years, I couldn't visit as many fellow participants' posts as I wished to. Even if I managed to read, I didn't find enough time to key in a comment.

That can be made up in the coming days, and I hope to make up for what I missed.

I hope the April Challenge is just the beginning and we continue to read other posts as we share and learn new facets of everyday life.