Gautam Ganguly
(The writer can be reached at gautamganguly2012@gmail.com)
Ayub Khan, the then president of Pakistan, in his characteristic tirade against India, uttered, 'Democracy with illiteracy is hypocrisy', pure and simple. Needless to say that Ayub Khan, the Army General, who had assumed the presidency of Pakistan forcibly, was vehemently critical of the poor literacy rate in India. Winston Churchill, the redoubtable English Prime Minister and Noble Laureate were sceptical of the success of Indian democracy due to her prevalent colossal illiteracy. Therefore, when Jawaharlal Nehru had chosen to introduce universal adult franchise and the first general election in India was held in 1952 with nearly 85 per cent of the voters being illiterate, a large section of intellectuals was highly critical dubbing it as "the biggest gamble in history".
Notwithstanding the abysmal literacy rate of 21.95% in 1961 which rose 23.17% in 1971 and 32.32% in 1981, an objective analysis magnifies how the Indian electors have proved themselves prudent and judicious in exercising their franchise in different general elections to form a 'Union government' at the Centre since Independence. Time and again the so-called uneducated Indian voters have risen to a man whenever problems and challenges, be it political, financial or external aggression, have threatened the country and invariably voted for its solidarity and progress. A track record of electioneering reveals that the Indian electorate has been confronted with the challenging task to choose from among multitudinous candidates representing a plethora of political parties, divergent issues and promises!! And to use the cliché, such issues00 range from sublime to ridiculous. A candidate of a state has promised to take the voters to the 'moon' if he wins in the ongoing election!! Trivial promises to bestow pressure cooker warmer, mixer grinder are in abundance much to the bewilderment of confused electors.
In stark contrast, we find a considerably less number of candidates in the fray in the UK or the USA, the world's two best democracies, practising a 'two-party system' thereby making the task of voters simpler. Consequently, issues, demands and promises surrounding the election in England and the USA are not as glaringly contradictory, bizarre and blatantly puzzling, thereby enabling the electors to choose their preference from a small canvass.
Ripples of resentment among the Indian electorate were noticeable in the general election of 1967 ending the hitherto rollercoaster ride of the Indian National Congress. Food shortage and regional sentiments are attributed to the partial disillusionment of the Indian electorate with the Congress that led to the formation of the Union government with a reduced majority securing only 243 seats. However, the disillusionment of the electorate was short-lived. The Congress was back with an overwhelming majority in the 1971 general election. The success of the 'green revolution, nationalization of banks, abolition of 'privy purses' etc., were some of the progressive factors influencing the electorate.
Unbridled authoritarianism, imposition of emergency, amendment of Indian constitution and many such reprehensible acts had disillusioned the Indian voters. The Congress government was toppled in the general election of 1977 paving the way for a coalition government. However, the coalition government, bedevilled with internal dissensions and squabbling, ushered a period of political instability. The mature Indian electorate gave its strong mandate against instability and chaos giving the thumping majority to the Congress which secured 353 seats in the Parliament while none of the other parties could score even a 'half century'.
General elections of 1984 held after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi shocked the nation ensuring a landslide victory for the Congress, winning 414 seats out of a total of 533 seats in the Parliament. "Mrs Gandhi dead was stronger than Mrs Indira Gandhi alive," was what political analysts exclaimed following such an unprecedented mandate. However, hope soon turned into a hoax as the new government of 1984 failed miserably to live up to the expectation of the electorate.
The coalition government that came in the wake of the 1989 general election met with the same fate as that of the 1977 coalition government and was thrown out by the voters for being ineffective.
As many as seven general elections were held from 1991 to 2019 to form the Union Government. The results of all these elections highlight the expediency, analytical capability, political wisdom and most importantly the objectivity and unbiased nature of the common man, nay the voters. Despite being highly appreciative of the 1991 UPA government for its progressive economic policies, financial liberalization, open-air policy, technological revolution etc., that have a far-reaching beneficial impact on the country, the Indian voters were unforgiving to the government for being corrupt and being submerged in monetary scandals.
The Indian voters strongly gave the verdict to various corruption allegations that had marked the Union government of 2009 and voted the NDA under Narendra Modi to power. The voters again reposed faith with the policies enunciated by the NDA in the general election of 2019.
My esteemed readers, I have analysed the real-time results of different general elections from 1967 to 2019 and tried to highlight the prudent Indian electorate are in their proper perspective. All the results are in the public domain, and I have merely tried to defend my fellow countrymen and their high sense of justice. They are often accused of being illiterate. Analysis of the results, in no way, reflects my political affiliation with any political party.