It’s election time for India

Rahul Gandhi (left) and Narendra Modi: Battling chieftains
Photo from: en.wikipedia.org

Come 7th April, India, the largest democracy is going for voting. Placed 7th by geographical size and 2nd by population, India has got its election process equally extensive and complex. The voting would continue till 12th of May along 35 regional provinces (28 states and 7 union territories). Voting, one of the cardinal democratic rights would be enjoyed by 814 million people – a figure far above the total voters of the US and Europe. To reach the climax – the much awaited results – you have to wait till 16th of May, when the whole world would know about which party would rule India for the next five years. In India, parliament elections began in 1957 and the upcoming is the 15th.

According to the Election Commission of India, general elections this time would be held along 543 Parliamentary Constituencies. Along with this, elections would also be held to decide upon governments in three states including Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim. 

Indian elections stand tall, owing to its mammoth proportion and highest levels of democratic values. This, along with the geopolitical as well as strategic significance of the country, gets the world’s eyes hooked on Indian elections and their results. 

Ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by the Indian National Congress (Congress) and the main opposition, National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are the principal contestants. 

A past story

The Congress holds the record of being the single party to rule India for the longest tenure. The party could rule India alone – without any alliance - during 1957 and 1962 under Jawaharlal Nehru; and in 1967, 1971 and 1980 under his daughter Indira Gandhi. In 1984 and 1991, congress once more got the majority to rule the country without any other’s support, owing to emergence of sentimental waves – during the assassinations of Indira Gandhi and her son Rajiv Gandhi respectively. 

Elections in India provide the best chances for its people to hold the whip hand and lash at erring politicians. For example, after imposing a period of emergency that curtailed freedom of all sorts, in 1977, Indira Gandhi’s Congress was reduced to a minority. Indira and her son Sanjay couldn’t even get votes enough for receiving back their procedural deposit money! In 1989, Rajiv Gandhi and his allies were sent to opposition benches after the explosion of Bofors scandal pertaining to defence purchase. 

Till recently, the Congress party used to boast that whenever their party was denied of a single party mandate, the country was left with unstable governments.  Their argument is but substantiated by evidences.  In 1977, 1989, 1996 and 1998 governments led by other parties toppled before completing stipulated five years. Many of them fell down even before a year. 

Alliances

A bold alternative to the Congress monopoly for stable governments was given in 1999 when AB Vajpayee completed a five year term forming National Democratic Alliance (NDA) of likeminded parties with his BJP in the lead. Thereafter single party rule in India became a story of the past. The Congress too changed its strategy in favour of alliances, and it worked well. In 2004 and 2009 Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) succeeded in completing their stipulated five years with Dr. Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. 

On the battle grounds of 2014 general elections, the UPA’s major strengths and major weaknesses emerge out of this past ten years of its rule. Strengths are the divergence and vibrancy of progress its rule could bring in for preparing well the country to take the pathways of the new century. Weaknesses are the unbridled corruption and allegations against its leaders. Naturally, when stained with corruption, no progress can shine. Incumbent Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh; and the UPA chairperson and Congress party president, Sonia Gandhi, many among their ministers and some leaders of their regional factions are all shot with one or other allegations by the opposition. Such allegations got a natural acceleration ever since the drumbeats of elections began audible.  Hence the long rule the Congress and its UPA had made in the country has become boon as well bane for them. When elections make merits and demerits of parties a subject for public debate, this becomes more important. 

All optimistic

However, with the prominence of young Rahul Gandhi, son of Sonia Gandhi and the late Rajiv Gandhi, in the election fray, the ruling Congress and its UPA seem to have got a bit invigorated. With youthful Rahul’s leadership the party looks forward of removing the mud already splashed over it. With strong Narendra Modi as its Prime Minister candidate, the BJP and its NDA are also racing with added energy.  The BJP’s enthusiasm is based on the fact that Modi’s Gujarat model of governance is secretly praised even by its enemies. Some of the opinion polls held since 2013, though very much controversial, are also seen tilted in favour of the NDA. 

Arvind Kejariwal: Name reckoned
Photo from: en.wikipedia.org

As in every general election, this time too there are new entrants showing their strength. Emergence of Aam Aadmy Party (AAP) is an example. In fact, the AAP’s seeds were sown during an extensive campaign against corruption recently unleashed by a pious leader, Anna Hasare. The campaign gathered huge public support and could set a major national agenda against corruption growing in horrific proportions. ‘Mr. Cleans’ of the anti corruption campaign later got together under the leadership of Arvind Kejariwal – a product of Indian Institute of Technology - to form a political party – AAP. By name, the AAP is meant as common man’s party. The AAP’s win in recent state elections in Delhi, the capital region of the country, has become a bolt from the blue for the major parties. 

Its naivety is AAP’s major challenge, especially while the matter comes to deal with diverse political issues. For example, after being chief minister of Delhi for mere 49 days, its leader Kejariwal resigned owing to a difference of opinion with the Governor. Thus others got a chance for criticising the AAP as politically incompetent and immature. The party’s candidates are already in the fray in almost every constituency. Hence one should wait and see its influence.

First time

For the first time, during the upcoming elections, electronic voting machines would contain the option, ‘None of the above’ (NOTA). If political parties force people to vote for infamous candidates, voters can press ‘NOTA’ button. This button has hence prompted political parties to give extra care on their candidates’ credibility. Also for the first time, 11844 Non Resident Indians (Indians living abroad) have enrolled for a chance to vote. Quite interestingly, over 11000 of them are natives of Kerala, a state well-known for its excellence in literacy and political awareness. 

In India democracy is as vast as the three oceans encircling the subcontinent. Political parties form the vessels that float on. There is no bar on freedom of expression; you can sail to any extent. Myriads of media in the country – English and vernacular; national and regional; print and electronic – enjoy full freedom and play a critical role in ensuring a free and fair pole.  In the fuming political debates, allegations will be there, alternatives will also be there. The Election Commission is playing a judicious referee, who ensures dignity and high morale of democracy.

Political parties, their actions and motives are already well sifted and weighed in the conscience of exactly 814.5 million voters of India. On the Election Day, they would express their ultimate will through a right push on the button of their exact choice in the voting machine. 

- K.P. Sivakumar

Shaken hearts and a ‘handshake’

This article was published in The Ethiopian Herald on 20 March 2014. 

This photo of the missing Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER that went missing on 8th March 2014 was published in www.thehindu.com yesterday. The photo was stated as taken by Laurent Errera on 26th December 2011 at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport, France. 

Usual evening chat at our home was almost over. Yet we friends had something grave to share between.  We wanted all of us to be wary of recent glitches of Air India flights. We were possessed with a long list – all newspaper reports. If once it was a piece of tiles covering the aircraft was separated and flew into the air; another time there was a problem of some other sort; then there was an untoward skirmish between the crew and passengers... Majority's opinion was not to opt Air India until its lost repute is regained. But anti Air India comments awakened the chauvinist in me. I made a futile attempt to save the prestige of India’s official carrier. Mine was a common man’s attempt to keep intact the prestige of one’s country. It was an ant’s effort to save the elephant’s dignity. Alas! I could not get even my wife’s support!! Akhila sided with the majority and made a stubborn conclusion that as long as such reports continue to appear in the media, Air India should not be our first priority. With a good sleep in the night, chauvinist in  me went for its usual hibernation.  

One week prior to this discussion, we also heard the news of a co-pilot hijacking an Ethiopian Airlines flight on its way to Italy and landing it at his own in Geneva. The hero of this high drama, after making a rope dive himself from the cockpit of the landed aircraft surrendered before the security personnel and right away sought a Swiss asylum. Later he was adjudged mentally devastated out of his intimate uncle's demise. 

Hardly a couple of weeks later, the shattering news of Malaysian Airlines’ missing flight hit us. The Malaysian aircraft has become a painful mystery. Wherever people with sense exist in this world, the incident continues to be a patch of sorrow in their minds.

I’m more or less a big nothing with technology. My major familiarity with technology these days is limited to driving a car or operating my laptop, mobile or at the most some household gadgets. An induction cooker in the kitchen extremely mesmerizes me. But the reports over the missing aircraft continue to provoke many technological thoughts even in my lay mind. Thanks to myriads of news that appear. 

How large a gap the space-age technology has got to let that flying machine elude! All surveillance mechanisms were annulled before the MH370 got its 239 people onboard land over a thoroughly anonymous tarmac!! 

I always had a conception that the space-age technology has already put the entire world, the skies and the depths of seas under its scrupulous surveillance mechanisms. While reading some defence publications about how Saddam Husain was spotted precisely at his hideout, I thought of a world of no more hideouts. When pilotless ‘Drons’ bomb terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and when a ‘ruthless’ Osama was knocked down accurately by a ‘righteous’ Obama, my humble imagination drew the picture of an inescapable and inevitable mesh of technology that has already been spread over humanity. 

But the Malaysian aircraft has devastated those technology towers of my layman imaginations. The missing aeroplane has taught me that the technology’s mesh is too large at least for a big jet to zoom into a world of obscurity. 

'Handshake' 

Even after the civilian air control room lost transponder contact with the aircraft, the Malaysian military radars could spot the flight as flying far above the heights told for it! Even after the Malaysian military radars lost a clue of the aircraft, there was satellite named, Inmarsat that was collecting beeps from the flying aircraft. The satellite was just sensing a partly functional transponder flying in the sky. Many speculate that the transponder system of the missing aircraft was partly made inoperative by someone in the aircraft. No location was recorded, no human voice was received, but the satellite continued to sense the flying of a plane at an interval of each hour or so. Such hourly connection between a flying aircraft and a remote satellite is known as ‘handshake’, a newspaper quotes US scientists. 

What a satellite’s ‘handshake’ could offer in search operations? When the satellite establishes a 'handshake' with a moving aircraft, automatically its radars twist/turn in the direction of the aircraft’s position to make it either receive a message or send one. In case of the missing Malaysian flight, no message was sent or received. But the ‘handshakes’ repeated at every one hour or so. Now the scientists can check at which angle and how many times the Inmarsat’s antenna turned to establish 'handshake' with the missing plane. This would give enough information to know where in this vast sky was the aircraft when it was sensed by the Inmarsat. 

The scientists have already prepared two broad arcs based on the antenna positions of the satellite. One arc begins from northern Thailand and ends somewhat over Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan; the second arc begins from Indonesia and ends over southern Indian Ocean. See, how extensive the matter is!

If the flight has sunk into the sea, it is already time for the remnants and human bodies not tied with seatbelts to float over. Had the flight being engulfed by Indian Ocean, the vastness and the undercurrents would be among the biggest challenges.  Now the speed, force and direction of the sea currents should be analysed to make estimates about probable position of debris. 

Reports say that shortly before the plane disappeared, its Co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid said with a conspicuous calmness ‘all right, good night’. Was the calmness prelude to a catastrophe? Behind the mystery curtains, could there be something to smile? Something to swab the tears? 

News articles on the missing plane is elevating our thoughts over the skies and lowering at times into the depths of vast oceans...! Ashore, in reality, I’m perplexed... Which science would finally spread an arch of solace for the aching hearts!! 

K.P. Sivakumar