With the first phase of polling over, with the exit polls swinging wildly in their assessments, with the earlier polls being completely wrong about Andhra, with the BJP figures dropping despite the NDA leading, with the Congress numbers going up marginally, mid-May madness is bound to overwhelm us all. Is Mulayam Singh going to be the kingmaker replacing Chandrababu Naidu?
ORG, AC Nielsen ? are they not the same thing? The latter bought the former! And the same group is doing polls for different clients? A bit confusing to say the least. Therefore, is it the interpretation of the collected data that is swinging like a pendulum? I suppose the real picture will only emerge on the 13th of May because there well may be small margin seats that no exit poll will be able to foresee.
Elections 2004 have been pretty absurd. To spread the exercise across three weeks in endless phases, for whatever reason, is incomprehensible. To divide voting dates within a state is unfathomable and divisive. It tires the constituents and the exit poll results are so different and diverse that they could confuse and confound the voter as also the unceasing daily commentaries. This onslaught of opinions and views can compel the voter to stand away in scepticism and allow the propaganda from all sides to fall by the wayside. Maybe the hype that was created has had the opposite effect ? it may well force individuals to think for themselves because the jargon appears unreal.
Comments, discussions and debates on television are dull and predictable much like most of the interviews, sound-byte type interviews, are. The same people, the same hackneyed explanations, no one under the age of 60 ? tired discourse. Small wonder that some politicians shirk away from the press. Who wants to go on answering the same old questions? One has not come across an election trail interview that asks anything of consequence, anything that has to do with the reality on the ground or the thinking of the politician concerned on local or larger issues. An intelligent politician would run a mile from the banal questions that are put forth. An intelligent viewer would switch channels.
And the question on ?dynasty? is enough to drive one bananas. Such an irrelevant question because the in-cumbent has to win or lose an election and dynasties in a democracy do not have the divine right to rule. Why this pent up anger towards individuals who come from political or feudal families? Why this resentment about such people? And, why does the press treat them with scorn when the electorate does not? If they are so irrelevant, why does the press want to interview them? Convoluted contradictions are rampant and as a voyeur, it is rather amusing to watch!
Finally, the crass campaigns that marred the sensibilities of many, leaving a dreadful taste in one?s mouth, seem to have ended for the moment. Summer respite. However, with the exit poll results of the assembly elections, the TDP and the BJP appear to be disturbed. So much for the technology poster boy who was feted by the World Bank et al. It is clear that without the ?human face? any change will be marginal and the mandate will always be fractured ? them and us. The earlier hype of India Shining has, thankfully, been balanced by the reality on the ground. There is a lesson to be learnt here ? you cannot neglect the poor and under-privileged because they will bring you back to square one.
The most important area of infrastructure development is the power sector. Despite its utmost importance, it remains utterly neglected despite much talk about India shining. Nothing works without power, nothing at all. There have been ?booms? in many sectors but never in the most crucial of all sectors. Now, with the entry of Anil Ambani into this critical sector, one can look forward to rapid and substantial growth and change.
Anil Ambani seems to have developed a new and all-consuming passion for creating an infrastructure that would benefit all and set the base for true growth. He has entered the area of power without which there can be no real growth or development. A chip off the old block, he seems to be pioneering a very large business for himself ? one that addresses the basic needs of people, rich and poor, across the spectrum. He has entered the social sector and if he succeeds in delivering the goods, he shall be hailed as the man who brought energy to a nation struggling to move forward.
It is very interesting to see how a corporate inheritor has stepped out into the ?big bad world? and is challenged enough to take the risk of walking into potentially the most critical area of infrastructure development.