“Sir, I have 12 votes in my family, how much will you give us to vote for you?”
“We have 58 homes, 225 votes. On voting day, give us breakfast and lunch, give us money, then all our votes are yours.”
“My family and I have been given Rs 4,000 per voter not to vote in this election by the candidate from another community. He is arranging a bus to take us and others from my community away on a day-trip on voting day so that we don’t vote.”
“All other parties favour the 35 crore people from other communities. Against them, only one man stands to defend the 100 crore people of our community. Support his party, save our nation!” exhorted one of thousands of similar social media messages.
These are just a few of hundreds of encounters I had in the week prior to the Karnataka assembly elections. In the dead of night before voting day, and on voting day itself, as I went around booth by booth, I saw workers of other parties going around and credibly heard about them distributing cash to voters. One party was paying Rs 1,500 per vote, another Rs 2,000 per vote, apparently. Voters who had promised they would vote for honest politics turned their heads away when they saw me and avoided eye contact.
I realised what I knew but hoped had changed, that my constituency, Shivajinagar in Bengaluru was still steeped in the politics of the three Cs – Cash, Community and Caste. That our democracy was still hostage to a group of politicians and parties who perpetuated their collective power in ways that neither reflected the ideals of our Constitution nor promoted the true development of our society towards the Tagore’s dream of “where the mind is without fear and the head is held high…”
Thirty-two months ago, I gave up my career and joined politics to provide a different alternative. An alternative that would not be about these 3 Cs but about one ‘P’: performance. An alternative that would be non-corrupt, that would truly live the Preamble of our Constitution – Liberty, Equality, Justice, Fraternity. An alternative that would genuinely care for everyone. And an alternative that would set and achieve world-class standards of development.
I joined the Aam Aadmi Party because it is a party that strives to provide the same alternative.
Four months ago, I decided to contest this election from Shivajinagar, the constituency my family has lived in for 15 years. People tried to discourage me. I was from the “wrong” community for this constituency, I was told. Money and community politics overrides everything else, I was warned. I might as well be a “foreigner” or an “alien”, I was chided. “After the night before election, the “katal ki raat” when all the cash gets distributed, you won’t even get one vote!” sneered a politically-savvy person from one of the two big parties.
But I started walking almost all the streets of Shivajinagar, meeting everyone, understanding them and getting them to understand me and my party’s message. “How much will you pay us to vote for you?” many people openly asked. “Well, I don’t pay for votes nor does my party. But I will work honestly and tirelessly for you, your families and children and for a transformational development of Shivajinagar,” I replied. Many laughed and went away, the first time. When I came back to them repeatedly over these last 16 weeks, I felt that for many of them, derision and disbelief started turning into doubt, then to curiosity, then to hope. And for some, into faith.
I built a wonderful and diverse team which had people from all communities, ages and strata. It happened naturally, not by design. We visited almost everyone door-to-door. We released an amazing manifesto which, we felt, reflected the wants of all the people of the constituency. It called out my vision of making our Shivajinagar the most world-class, citizen-friendly city-centre in the country. It was not about 3 Cs, it was about performance!
Our campaign was financed by legal donations and was within the limits of the Election Commission rules. We didn’t pay for a single vote. We never played community or caste politics. In spite of that, as we reached the final days of campaigning, observers felt I had emerged as a very strong contender in the race.
On voting day, I saw that cash and community politics had overpowered much of the popularity we had garnered. ”Realpolitik” seemed to have trumped idealism.
However, I am not disheartened. Amongst hundreds of messages and calls I got, thanking me for providing a different alternative, was this short one from a stranger that I will cherish because it is all I really wanted, “Best wishes, I casted my vote for you, Sir!”
This was a fight worth fighting, this is a race worth winning! Sometimes that takes time, but hum hongey kaamyab.
Prakash Nedungadi is an MBA from IIM Calcutta and former President of Madura Garments. After a 38-year career as a Corporate leader, he is contesting from Central Bengaluru ‘s Shivajinagar Constituency on the AAP ticket.
