(Vote) to the Party or not to the Party...that is the question...

This is a reply to a blog that I had recently read here.

First of all, Meera is right about the tag line of LP - 'Party by the IITians' - being unnecessary. Though it took a long time for me to reconcile to the idea, I have adjusted to it now. It is a very dangerous thing, but in our country, educated does really not mean uncorrupt. But let us discuss the party and the need of needlessness of it.

For years now, we have been ruled by Congress and the BJP. Though we are a multi party system, the majority of our years have been taken over by people from these parties. But the results have hardly been like what the Democrats or the Republicans of the USA have produced. Corruption, and I may sound like millions of others in our country, is a way of life. Greedy, power hungry, insensitive politicians have twisted the various helplessnesses of people to their advantage and managed to stay in power and cut off the very hands that fed them, rather, voted for them. People dont hesitate to kill for votes and apart from the period where everyone was talking about some India that was shining, I did not feel good from inside ever. Especially in the last year or so, I feel pained EVERY damned day looking at events unfolding in our country. 

We are being torn apart by the people that rule over us. They are managing easily to pound us into submission and get away with what they want. Recent examples are

• The TATA Nano fiasco
  
• Raj Thackeray's atrocities and the Biharis' reaction to them
  
• The various bomb blasts happpening around the country
  
• Various parties (Left coalition, DMK etc) threatening the PM at the drop of a hat to pull out support if he did not abide by their desires
  
• J&K threatening to go out of hand, without even Paki intervention
  

And on and on and on...

Now, the reason I'd seriously think about voting for a party like LP is really very simple. The alternatives have NOT delivered. They have proven that whichever party comes to power, national harmony or integrity would be the last thing in its mind. Politicians of today would go to any extent to protect their self interests. And no end seems in sight. 

And talking about LP, they are too young an organisation to be put under the scanner. We cannot really talk much about their way of working yet because we have really not yet seen how they work. It may be true that within two years, there are talks of a split and casteism, but three years is quite a long period of time to pick up fights. I am running an NGO with some friends for the past three years and there are a few people in our organisation who do not like the way I particuarly work or think. And here we are talking of a national level political party. Imagine the number of people who are working in it and the range of characteristics that they would all collectively possess! It is but natural that division occurs. It is the way Mr. Chandrashekar (Leader of LP) handles the issues and stays strong that needs to be monitored. (I recently read of news where the head of the party in Karnataka was kicked out as he seemed to be going the corrupt way)

I believe that the act of judging something is an art. I have been guilty many times in the past of acting in haste and stereotyping a person or a thing as good or bad or otherwise too soon.Especially when we are juding something like a party that wants to make a difference, I think we should wait and watch. Participate in their functioning if possible, but if not, all the more reason to wait longer. We should give them a chance..(after all we are a nation that give Ajit Agarkar a thousand chances to peform) and then decide for ourselves. 

About Meera's comment about keeping faith in the current crop of politicians for a while longer, well, I have kept the faith for the last ten years (its been that much time since I could legally vote), and I have only seen insipid cops, poor traffic management, complete disregard to nature and wildlife and many more. I think I will blindly vote for anyone else that comes along... And if it is something like LP, it makes the decision a no-brainer.

PS: I have no connection with the party and I do not in any direct or indirect way contribute to it. I am just one frustrated Indian who myself have plans of entering politics in order to make a change somewhere down the long road ahead of me, and hence was researching about similar new parties and chanced upon Meera's post that lead me to spend the last thirty minutes on this blog!