Kaapi Aur Charcha, Azim Premji University, 14th April 2014 Sridhar Pabbisetty, Centre for Inclusive Governance

Sridhar.pabbisetty@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/CentreForInclusiveGovernance 9916298421

Lok Sabha 2014

In more ways than one, the Lok Sabha elections of 2014 are

a tipping point in Indian Democracy. Largest elections ever conducted in the world with 814.5 million voters will come together to choose 543 representatives Entry of 101.5 million first time voters. This is about 2/3rds of the number of votes the UPA (153,482,356) got in the 2009 elections and close to BJPs 2009 tally of 102,689,312. Interesting Anti-incumbency winds for UPA, a high decibel campaign by BJP and the guerilla campaign by AAP. The regional parties will have their own share of influence given the shallow pre poll alliances

How does one make a voting choice?

Emotional?

Issue Based?

Track record?

Want a new framework?

Emotional?
If your choice has been made based Har haath shakthi, har haath tarakki Abki baar Modi Sarkaar AAP ka Sarkaar

Manifesto - Congress

http://inc.in/manifesto/

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/full-text-bjp-manifesto-for-2014-lok-sabha-elections/463184-37-64.html

http://inc.in/manifesto/

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/full-text-bjp-manifesto-for-2014-lok-sabhaelections/463184-37-64.html

Manifesto - AAP

http://theuforce.blogspot.in/

Still unable to decide?

http://media.salon.com/2000/10/ignore_the_undecided-293x307.jpg

Issue Based?
Price rise

Demographic Dividend
Corruption and Crony Capitalism China, Pakistan or maybe even Nepal Personal liberty Article 377 Safety Nirbhaya

Criminalization?
Money Power? Growth Vs Development

Criminalization
Red Alert Constituencies*: 94 constituencies have at least 3 candidates with declared criminal cases. Beed Constituency, Maharashtra has the most number of candidates with criminal cases, i.e. 9 with criminal cases against them. *Red Alert Constituencies are those which have 3 or more candidates with criminal cases contesting elections.

www.adrindia.org

Money Power

www.adrindia.org

Little more peeking into affidavits?

www.adrindia.org

Track record?
Is it enough to claim in manifesto? What is the track record on other issues? Coalgate, 2G, Commonwealth heck why only these- anyone

remember the coffin scam and jeep scams? Circa 1948 - Rs 80 lakh with a foreign firm for the purchase of 4603 army jeeps. MP Track by PRS Legislative Research gives us option to see our MPs contribution in parliament Daksh ADR survey - largest ever survey in India with over 250,000 respondents in 525 constituencies of the Lok Sabha gives - voter priorities, Rating of MPs and Role of caste, religion, crime and money power in elections http://adrindia.org/content/adr-daksh-national-voters-survey
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_scandal_case

Collective Failure
The 15th Lok Sabha met for an average of around 60 days a

year in comparison to around 120 days that the previous 14 Lok Sabhas did. The Winter Session of December 2013 was only for 4 hours and 31 minutes, or 6% of the schedule time. The 15th Lok Sabha has only passed 118 bills till date and of these only 27 of them (23%) were discussed for 2-3 hours. About 20 bills were passed with discussions of less than 5 minutes. As on 11th Feb, 130 bills are pending in this last session of the current Lok Sabha. Despite all this, the Lok Sabha met for only 15 minutes on the 07 Feb 2014 and was adjourned due to the Telengana issue. We the citizens must come together and demand that our MPs bring out an annual report card clearly outlining their performance.
http://rbalu.wordpress.com/2014/02/10/understanding-the-lok-sabha-and-ourmembers-of-parliament/

Still unable to decide?

Want a new framework?

John Dalberg-Acton
If there is any presumption

it is the other way, against the holders of power, increasing as the power increases. Historic responsibility has to make up for the want of legal responsibility. Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
While opposing - moves to promulgate the doctrine of papal infallibility

CDMA of Governance
American economist Robert Klitgaard summarised

the factors encouraging corruption

Corruption = Monopoly

+ Discretion - Accountability

http://www.smh.com.au/news/editorial/monopoly--discretion--accountability-corruption/2006/12/03/1165080809865.html

IMR 46
number of deaths of infants under one year old per 1,000 live births

Kenya Iran Iraq Korea, North

http://www.indexmundi.com/map/?v=29

Crony capitalism
Crony capitalism is a term

describing an economy in which success in business depends on close relationships between business people and government officials. It may be exhibited by favoritism in the distribution of legal permits, government grants, special tax breaks, or other forms of state interventionism

In 2012 India has ranked 94th out of 176 countries in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:World_Map_Index_of_perception_of_corruption.svg

Karnataka formation
In 1903, addressing a meeting

at the Sangha, Alur Venkata Rao spoke about the need to integrate Kannada regions of Madras Province and north Karnataka. 1946 Sardas assures In January 1953, the movement entered its last leg when at the Congress session in Hyderabad, a resolution was also passed favouring just the creation of Andhra Pradesh but not Karnataka

A J Dodmeti resigns, hunger

strike, hubli riots follow Hubli-Dharwad by elections that followed, the Congress suffered thumping defeat while the Karnataka Ekikarana Paksha's candidate won by a landslide Nehru wakes up and fazal Ali Committee is formed

VP Singh
1980 Made CM of UP Cleans up the dacoity menace and gains national popularity by offering to resign 1984 Finance Minister Boy what was Rajiv

under Rajiv
License Raj Gold Smuggling DA and AB raids force him

thinking? National Front centrist forces come together 1989 PM from 2 December 1989 to 10 November 1990 Forces mandal commission Social Justice is taken over by Ram Mandir

to Defence Ministry

Atal Bihari Vajpayee

VP Singh stops the kar-seva and the govt falls

Ram mandir becomes a major boost for their

fortunes Win in Gujurat, Maharashtra and good performance in Karnataka 3 non consecutive terms 13 days, 13 months and 13 years? Golden Quadrilateral, Customs, Unleashing growth based on PVNs trajectory

Transparency
RTI Killings

Pendency of requests

Accountability
Coal gate files go missing

Who will bell the cat ?

Remote control PM?

Decentralization
BBMP lame duck

Mayor is looking forward to ending ceremony before

he ends the inception 73rd and 74th Amendment ? What is it?

Participatory
Public Consultation when and how

Real estate and other lobbies over citizens

Ward committees what are they?

Representative Democracy
I have gotten out of the Myth of voting for the winning

candidate or the PM party? Let us choose the one who will represent us better rather than wanting to vote for the winning guy Our forefathers wisely choose Representative over Presidential and let us put the best man in. In Bangalore North, I do have a wide choice and thanks to the data sources mentioned, I can rank them.

After all my vote is not to make a CANDIDATE win

but make my causes and concerns represented in Parliament. Thats how I will win in Indian democracy

Thank You

References (all accessed 14 April 2014)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dalberg-Acton,_1st_Baron_Acton http://www.nationalreview.com/agenda/374495/indias-thatcher

reihan-salam http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/RfmvWQWF6Unf9ZreeKcMAI/Fro m-representative-democracy.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._P._Singh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_of_Karnataka http://en.wikipedia.org