Vote For Love

Seram Neken *

I remember you only on the eve of polling day. So, I come to you to enquire how you are and what you want. Dear grandparents, I am ready to lift you on my back and escort you to the polling station. But please don't forget the symbol and the serial number. I wish to offer you the best of the dish so that you agree to vote for my candidate. However, my love for you won't last long. It's only for the voting day that I am compelled to show love to you.

Election time love, compelled love, purchased love or whatever you can call it, we find it during elections. The scene is highly emotional. Youths do escort their grandparents to the polling station. Sick, disfigured, neglected and ostracized elders get their wards' kindness on the election-day. Likewise, the leaders remember their electorate once in five years. For the rest of the days, no care at all. Thanks to the elections, thanks to democracy, thanks to vote. If there were no election, the young people would have forgotten their elders for life. If there were no voting, leaders would have neglected their followers for all times to come.

Right to vote is not only the right to vote, it is also the right to abstain from voting. If one does not like any one of the candidates, one can very well abstain from voting in exercise of the right to vote. In my locality, there is a man who never accepts money or anything for favour of vote. He once contested the general elections, but could manage to win a few hundreds only due to his outdated canvassing. I won't disclose his name now. He will be remembered by the posterior for his will. He really votes without any influence. On some occasion, the wife of a particular candidate offered a 'Pheijom' on the occasion of 'Cheiraoba'. This man returned the same to the candidate as soon as he came to know the hidden intention of the gift. Words fail to describe this man's character. I really appreciate him. No election worker is bold enough to offer money or meal to any of his family member for canvassing. Most candidates leave his house during house-campaigns for fear of scolds. His family is always omitted from the list of money distributors. I would say his vote is genuine and with conscience. We need to imitate this man.

In my opinion, election is not merely an event of a day, a week or a few months. It is a long term process. The election workers need to instill belief, love and sympathy of the electorate by helping them from the heart. There are voters who have received real kindness and lasting love of workers. None can purchase their votes. They might have got money from many candidates, but they will cast votes for the one they have the soft-corner. So, such soft-corner has to be developed and earned by the election workers and candidates. It takes time, it requires sincerity, it cannot come overnight.

It is also worth mentioning that there are also huge numbers of people who do not respect the sympathy, love and kindness of those who helped them. They work for money. They spoil relations. For a few paper notes, such people discard the age-old reputations and hard-earned sympathy of people around. Such a picture is visible during the elections. And the various wealthy candidates who disguise themselves as self-styled leaders take advantage of the weak mindset of such people. They roll out their easy-earned money and purchase such people just like they purchase vegetables from the market. So money plays a great role to such people. Most funny part of the story is that newly recruited election workers of the same candidate are fighting tooth and nail for grabbing money from their candidates. Clashes are visible within and among the same group only for sharing money. But money fails to pull people who have strong will and a civilized mindset. Election has become sub-standard nowadays.

Now the 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly Elections is over. We witnessed hue and cry of money, for money and by money. In spite of heavy strictures imposed by the Election Commission of India, votes were stealthily purchased at rupees 1000, rupees 500, rupees 200. In some constituencies belonging to wealthy contractor candidates, the price went up as high as rupees 3000. It was pathetic. Self-styled social workers who are new, energetic and young in politics were always on the lead to spend money in huge amounts as compared to the old politicians who are already in government and politics. It is obvious that such new brand people are spoiling the political sphere. They are polluting the society with their black money. However, if you vote for Love, it is genuine because money can't purchase Love.