Freshmen at the Vote

At 21, Ashok is a curious mixture of cynicism and positivity. Notwithstanding his disappointment with the party he voted to power in the state, he8217;s gung-ho about the April elections. 8216;8216;My vote will make a difference,8217;8217; he asserts. Then, he adds with a laugh, 8216;8216;At least to the politician, who goes from house to house begging for votes. Never mind if that8217;s the last time we see him!8217;8217;

The black humour has its source in deep personal frustration. 8216;8216;We are poor people, tribals. I studied upto the fifth standard, and my brother Veeru did his 102. We8217;re both unemployed. At least I cobble together Rs 500-600 per month selling posters and calendars. My brother can8217;t earn even that.8217;8217;

Subjects like Ram Mandir or Hindutva don8217;t bother him in the least, but he is concerned about a local temple boundary wall that the local MLA promised to fund with Rs 20,000. 8216;8216;If our devta is pleased, we will be content,8217;8217; he says. What about the reigning political deities? 8216;8216;Vajpayee shayad mantri hai Dilli mein. Aur Sonia Gandhi desh ki mantri,8217;8217; is his confident answer.

VISHAL KANADE, 21
will vote in SOUTH MUMBAI constituency

HE just turned 21 on March 8 but remembers when, at 13, he longed to cast a bogus vote because he hated studying Civics.

Today, Vishal knows voting is serious business. To this student of law from Government Law College, Churchgate, voting is a right and a duty. 8216;8216;I don8217;t know how people can just shrug and say they don8217;t believe in voting,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;We8217;d have realised the value of democracy if we lived in Afghanistan under the Taliban or in Iraq under Saddam Hussein.8217;8217;

His 68217;48217;8217; frame is simply dressed in a navy blue shirt and jeans. Hair cut short and neat, Vishal doesn8217;t look like a typical SoBo dude. His ability to argue probably comes from having a High Court judge for a father and an advocate for a mother.

Night life for this Maharashtrian is about watching political debates and current affairs shows on television. When he isn8217;t watching war films, he is scouring newspapers for stories on defence and politics. He doesn8217;t think politics is a bad job, but he isn8217;t very impressed with the current breed of politicians. 8216;8216;If it8217;s a choice between a robber, a dacoit and a pick-pocketeer, one would go for the third because he is the least evil of them,8217;8217; he reasons.

But he is quick to deny that he is cynical. 8216;8216;There are exceptions. Which is why I will choose a candidate, not a party,8217;8217; he adds, claiming to be well aware of the battle in his part of town.

Ask him about issues that politicians need to address and he enthusiastically says he8217;s got it all figured out. 8216;8216;Planned economic progress, proper distribution of food and a better foreign policy,8217;8217; he lists. 8216;8216;Locally, it8217;s got to be Mumbai8217;s disaster management system. This is the country8217;s nerve centre. If a 9/11 happens here it8217;ll send the country back by God knows how many years.8217;8217;

And what about larger issues like Hindutva or Ayodhya? 8216;8216;Even if we want to believe that the elections are being fought on basic issues, the communal undercurrent is always there,8217;8217; he argues. 8216;8216;These politicians have played the communal card for so long that they feel compelled to stick to it now to save face.8217;8217;

Vishal hopes to get busy with his legal practice before the next polls, considering they8217;ll happen only in 2009. 8216;8216;But I won8217;t let anything interfere with my right and duty to vote.8217;8217;

8211; Sweta Ramanujan

SHABANA BUNDUBHAI KHURESHI, 19
will vote in AHMEDABAD constituency

SAFETY and security may have been issues in the December 2002 assembly elections. Not any longer. And according to this resident of Jawan Nagar, Naroda-Patia, who lost her mother and sister in the 2002 riots, they are the only ones that matter. 8216;8216;Bijli-sadak-paani are all very well, but as basic amenities shouldn8217;t the government have taken care of them long ago?8217;8217; asks Shabana. 8216;8216;I don8217;t know what the leaders are promising this time but if I, as a minority, expect security, the majority community will rake up issues like Hindutva.8217;8217;

Shabana admits that she is neither aware of her constituency nor even the candidates. 8216;8216;It doesn8217;t matter . I will just take a look at the symbols 8212; the kamal is most certainly out of question 8212; and vote,8217;8217; she declares.

8216;8216;Who knows, my vote might just turn out to be crucial, the one which will make our future more safe. Maybe a few years from now my father, a daily-wager, will be better employed and things will be easier for us, not just us Muslims, but all lower middle-class people, whichever community they belong to.8217;8217;

8211; Palak Nandi

MANJU, 20
will vote in RAIPUR constituency

8216;8216;BUT we just had elections. Why again?8217;8217; Manju, a Gond tribal farm labourer, is flummoxed. Try explaining that the polls three months ago were state elections, and the ones ahead are for the 8216;8216;badi sarkar8217;8217;, and you8217;re likely to elicit an uncomprehending stare. But Manju is all excited about the elections. A resident of Chaitet, a village 30 km away from Raipur, the mother of two is totally illiterate. Her family income doesn8217;t exceed a few hundred rupees a month.

Why is she so keen to vote? Her face lights up: 8216;8216;Vote dene se garibi door hoti hai it eradicates poverty8217;8217;. That8217;s the only issue that she can relate to.

The excitement is evident when she mentions the EVM. 8216;8216;This will be the first time. Babu ne bataya hai, panja chhap par button dabana hai My man has told me, I must press the EVM button on the hand symbol.8217;8217;

8211; Ashwani Sharma

TANAZ PATEL, 18
will vote in SOUTH MUMBAI constituency

CASTING her vote is Tanaz8217;s way of doing something for the country. She8217;s confident that her vote will make a difference. 8216;8216;We8217;ve progressed far beyond food, clothing and shelter. Besides, we are no longer a third world country,8217;8217; she asserts. Seconds later, the FYBCom student adds, 8216;8216;But since the masses outweigh the classes, the three basic issues will again be the deciding factors.8221;

Tanaz, though, has her own agenda for political parties: Elementary education, employment, squalor and corruption. 8216;8216;How can anyone centre elections on issues like religion? I8217;m quite sure if religious ideology were to dominate the elections, I wouldn8217;t vote,8217;8217; she says.

On the walls of her home are three photos of Indira Gandhi, Feroze Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, but Tanaz hesitates before finally naming Milind Deora as her Congress candidate. She has no clue about his rivals.

8211; Snehal Fernandes

ARJUN GUPTA, 19
will vote in SOUTH DELHI constituency

HE digs jazz, chills out with his friends every other evening, is in his second year of engineering, learns the piano at the Delhi School of Music and is 8216;8216;totally not interested in politics8217;8217;. At least, that was the case so long for Arjun.

In April, the Vasant Vihar resident will be casting his first vote. 8216;8216;It8217;s my brother, not my parents his father is a senior officer at Maruti, who has influenced my decision. He will vote for the BJP, so will I,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;The BJP seems like an obvious choice, based on its performance over the past five years.8217;8217;

So why didn8217;t he vote last year for the assembly elections? Clad in a casual black T-shirt, beige dungarees and floaters, Arjun thinks aloud: 8216;8216;I8217;m not really sure. It8217;s true that our generation is much more cynical about politics. The reason why I8217;m voting, and the reason why everyone in my generation should vote, is because we8217;re much more aware of the ground realities than our parents. We decide what the future will hold.8217;8217;

Arjun emphasises time and again that he does not know 8216;8216;anything8217;8217; about politics, including his choice of candidates. But he does know that the BJP has brought 8216;8216;stability in the country over the past few years and stability is what India requires for progress, economic or otherwise.8217;8217;

With issues like corruption and religion, Arjun is clear where he stands. 8216;8216;People say that corruption is a major issue but both the Congress and the BJP are corrupt and have corrupt leaders. I don8217;t think religion is an issue either. Ayodhya, religious symbolism, Hindutva 8212; all these doesn8217;t really affect anyone. It8217;s the civic amenities, the country8217;s economic progress and the quality of education which will be the deciding factors for me,8217;8217; says Arjun.

About the future, the teenager is less clear. 8216;8216;My ambition is probably to make money,8217;8217; he signs off.

8211; Esha Roy

RAJ BAHADUR RAWAT, 20
will vote in LUCKNOW constituency

RAJ still hasn8217;t got his voter I-card, but he is looking forward to casting his vote in April. Not that he puts too much store by the I-card. 8216;8216;Back home in my village in the Gomtipur assembly constituency, even young kids have these cards,8217;8217; he grins.

The eldest son of a marginal Dalit labourer, Raj works as a painter to earn about Rs 20,000 annually. He quit school while in class VIII to support his five brothers and sisters.

If he gets his I-card, the prime minister could be counting on his vote, but Raj himself has no idea who his options are. 8216;8216;Hamre gaon mein kisi sarkar ne kuch nahin kiya. Lekin hum vote jaroor dalenge kyonki ek-ek vote se bahut sare hote hain No government has ever done any work in our village. But I will definitely vote because each vote counts,8217;8217; he says.

For all the feel-good sloganeering, the BJP is on a tough wicket in Mall village, if Raj is to be believed. 8216;8216;Vote ke samay sab log ate hain. Uske bad koi nahin puchta Everyone visits us ahead of the elections. After that, no one cares,8217;8217; he says.

Yet Raj declares himself proud to be an Indian. His logic, though, is slightly fuzzy. 8216;8216;Hamre desh jaisi suvidha kahin nahin hain. Jab chaho kaam kaaro, aur jab chaho sote raho No country offers such ease. Work when you want, sleep when you want,8217;8217; he says.

8211; Amit Sharma

SHARANBASAPPA TUKAPPA PATIL, 18
will vote in SOLAPUR constituency

THE only son of a nine-member family, Sharanbasappa is torn into two. On one hand, he is wildly excited about becoming eligible to vote, on the other, his father, the only earning member of the family, scoffs openly at his ambition of becoming a politician. 8216;8216;My father says only taporis join politics,8217;8217; says Sharan.

In Hotgi, part of Chief Minister Sushilkumar Shinde8217;s assembly constituency, a prolonged drought has forced Sharan8217;s family to send their two cows and two buffaloes to a cattle camp and the class VIII drop-out believes his vote will let him express his anger.

8216;8216;I don8217;t know if my vote will make a difference in the way the country is run. Water scarcity, fodder problems, the drought situation are problems that need to be sorted out.. But though I may not understand politics, I do know that politicians are selfish.

8211; Bakhttar Tangsal

JIGAR GIRISHBHAI BAROT, 19
will vote in GANDHINAGAR constituency

THOUGH associated with the VHP for the past three years, Jigar is quite confident that the main issue for any election is development. 8216;8216;Roads, water, drainage are basic needs and should be addressed on priority,8217;8217; says this BE Mechanical student. 8216;8216;I have lived in Ghatlodia since my birth, but we got the amenities only over the past five years. Anyone who has lived here cannot forget this.8217;8217;

At the same time, he acknowledges that if the BJP comes to power, Hindutva and the Ram temple will again become major issues. 8216;8216;Even if political parties are not making communalism an issue this time, it will always remain at the back of the voter8217;s mind. For a Hindu voter, especially in Gujarat, Hindutva and foreign origin are important issues. How can one forget what the ramsevaks went through? I guess even Muslims here will give these issues a thought.8217;8217;

Jigar8217;s father Girishbhai, a state government employee, is a Hindutva sympathiser. Jigar himself is well-versed on the BJP candidate for his constituency, but professes ignorance about his Congress rival. 8216;8216;That doesn8217;t matter. I believe in the BJP8217;s ideology and know it is the only one that can ensure a better future,8217;8217; says the youth, who is keeping a close tab on Advani8217;s Bharat Uday yatra.

So far as voting for the first time is concerned, Jigar is thrilled in that 8216;8216;I finally have the power and the right to ensure a better future. If I choose the right political party, the country will develop and with it, its citizens8217;8217;.

On V-day, says Jigar, he will cast his own vote as soon as the booths open. 8216;8216;Then I8217;ll get together with my friends and help people who may be facing problems. With 45 per cent of the population below 25, if we start thinking why we should vote, we8217;ll be the ones to suffer in later years.8217;8217;

So far as the future is concerned, Jigar only hopes to be able to make more time for VHP activities within two-three years.

8211; Palak Nandi

MADHU KAUSHIK, 22
will vote in the CHANDIGARH constituency

8216;8216;I8217;m fed up with our politicians, not with democracy. Our generation can bring about a change,8217;8217; says Madhu Kaushik, first year MSc student at Panjab University.

The subject closest to this Chemistry major8217;s heart is, not surprisingly, education. 8216;8216;Our budget for scientific education is not even one per cent of the GDP. It was more during Indira Gandhi8217;s time. That8217;s why we8217;re perennially short of chemicals in the lab and the departments are short-staffed. I wonder what keeps the politicians busy when these priority issues are being ignored,8217;8217; says Madhu, who topped the university in her graduation exams.

8216;8216;I feel for my country, my city and so should all voters. In the city, slums are sprouting everywhere, traffic is going haywire, there is widespread illegal construction. At the national level, security is a major issue.8221;

Heavy stuff, but the studious daughter of a Haryana government official believes she can influence all of them by exercising her franchise. 8216;8216;I want to cast my vote because I8217;m not helpless. If everyone starts wondering how much of a difference a single vote can make, corrupt politicians will simply win power from illiterate voters by playing religion and caste cards.8217;8217;

8211; Vibhor Mohan

NAINISH TIKOO, 21,
will vote in PUNE constituency

THE 21-year-old believes in taking life seriously. So no pubs and discotheques for him, Nainish would rather be rounding up his peers to make sure they cast their first-time-ever vote in April.

8216;8216;At the moment, the only power the populace has is the power to vote. Unless the middle-class starts voting, political parties will not field the kind of candidates they want,8217;8217; says this Jammu born-and-bred student of BE Mechanical at a Pune college. His father, a Central government employee, and his mother, a lecturer; are both in Jammu.

Never mind the troubles of his home state, Nainish believes there are more pressing problems facing the nation. 8216;8216;To me, the biggest concern is the population. Then there are issues like electricity, malnutrition, poverty, unemployment, corruption, criminalisation of politics. They concern the common man much more than world peace,8217;8217; says Nainish. 8216;8216;That is why it8217;s exciting the upcoming elections are being fought on the bijli-sadak-paani plank. Today8217;s voter understands what the real issues are. I think even Lord Ram would be happy if poverty and roads were the basis of vote-catching, not his name.8217;8217;

Can one vote make a difference? The answer is an emphatic yes. 8216;8216;The 12th Lok Sabha was dissolved because of one vote. That showed each vote counts, mine will too,8217;8217; says Nainish.

For all his commitment to and seriousness about voting for the first time, the engineering student is cautious when it comes to his future plans as a citizen of the country. 8216;8216;A lot depends on the candidates who are fielded. If the candidate I vote for today wins and keeps most of his promises over the next five years, it will definitely draw me out again to the polling booth in 2009,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;By then maybe I will be in the civil services. It will help me fulfill my desire to do some developmental work for the nation.8217;8217;

8211; Sunanda Mehta

KASEER SHAFI, 18
will vote in BARAMULLAH-KUPWARA constituency

LIFE changed for Kaseer five years ago, on his uncle8217;s wedding day. 8216;8216;The militants chose that day to gun him down. I was with him, I saw his bullet-ridden body. As a lower rank army officer, he was the sole breadwinner in our family. For a livelihood and also to save my own skin, I moved to Srinagar from my village in Kupwara. Now I support my aged parents, two brothers and a sister by doing menial jobs,8217;8217; says the youth, while refusing to be photographed.

He is willing to stand up and be counted, however, when polling day comes around on April 20. 8216;8216;I started dreaming about peace the day my uncle was killed. I am sure that even if my vote can8217;t bring peace, it can contribute to the ongoing peace process,8217;8217; Kaseer says. 8216;8216;I believe political leaders are the only people who can bring peace.8217;8217;

The first-time-voter makes no bones about who his choice is. 8216;8216;The People8217;s Democratic Party can bring peace in the Valley. I keep tabs on leaders of all the political parties by watching television and reading newspapers,8217;8217; he says proudly.

A city resident for the past five years, Kaseer wants similar roads, electricity and facilities for his remote village. 8216;8216;Now people want change. If I am able to vote in a good representative, he can serve the people better,8217;8217; he says.

Though proud to be an Indian, he feels the Centre has always neglected Valley youth. 8216;8216;The Centre should announce big economic packages for youth, at least to prevent local boys from joining militant cadres,8217;8217; he says.

BILAL AHMAD DAR, 20
will vote in BUDGAM-SRINAGAR constituency

LAST week, Bilal travelled all the way from Bichroo village in Central Budgam district to Srinagar just to seek an audience with a candidate for the upcoming elections. That8217;s how enthusiastic he is about the polls.

8216;8216;My vote has a value. It is going to make a difference, especially in the Valley, where very few people show up on poll day. I am ready to brave militant threats to cast my vote,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;I will convince others too to exercise their franchise. If we vote in a good candidate, he can prove to be an asset.8217;8217;

Despite being familiar with all national and state politicians, Bilal is concerned about good roads, job opportunities and peace in the state. 8216;8216;I want to see my village blossoming into a model village and all my friends absorbed in government jobs,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;I attend political rallies and listen to the radio to learn what8217;s going on.8217;8217;

With his fiery optimism as a talisman, Bilal looks to taking a self-employment loan to launch his own business, which will help fund his younger brothers8217; education. 8216;8216;Peace is imperative and it can only come about by electing good representatives to the Lok Sabha,8217;8217; he says.

8211; Mir Ehsan

ANITA SHUKLA, 20
will vote in LUCKNOW constituency

THE fact that her father is a senior journalist may have something to do with Anita8217;s deep interest in politics. But her reaction to the idea of voting for the first time is simple: 8216;8216;It8217;ll be fun!8217;8217;

On a more serious note, she adds, 8216;8216;First-timers like me should cast their votes to ensure power goes to the right hands, not the bad people. It is a kind of service to the nation. I firmly believe every vote has a value.8217;8217;

Coming from a family of post-graduates, Anita, who herself is pursuing her graduation with English, Economics and Sociology, is strongly against political exploitation of emotive issues. 8216;8216;Employment, and only employment, should be the main plank for all political parties. Religion and similar issues can help political parties capture power, but they will not help the common man,8217;8217; she says.

The caste card is yet another taboo for Anita. 8216;8216;One8217;s vote should go to a candidate because he will work, not because he belongs to a caste.8217;8217;

For all her clear thinking, Anita recalls the name of only candidate in her constituency: Vajpayee. .

Come V-Day, and Anita will make her way to the polling booth early in the morning. 8216;8216;Then it8217;s back to the books. I have to become an MBA and get a good job. Hopefully by the next Lok Sabha elections come around, I will be working. But I will definitely take time out to cast my vote.8217;8217;

8211; Amit Sharma

MANPREET SINGH, 21
will vote in CHANDIGARH constituency

THREE things excite him: NCC, NDA and politics. Manpreet Singh is a staunch Vajpayee supporter, even though he isn8217;t too sure who the local BJP candidate is.

8216;8216;But unlike all my classmates, I do get excited by the elections. My family has a tradition of voting,8217;8217; says the jean-clad Manpreet, perched on a bench in his Government College, Sector 11, where he will soon be appearing for his BA final exams. 8216;8216;My vote matters, because in this era of coalitions, the margin of victory is always very narrow. And the government has spent so much on our I-cards, the least we can do is cast our vote.8217;8217;

Manpreet, whose parents both work in the Punjab Architecture Department, has an opinion on nearly everything and he8217;s not afraid to voice it. 8216;8216;I feel politicians should keep away from the educational institutions. The IIM fee-cuts, for instance, will definitely affect the quality of teaching and infrastructure there,8217;8217; he says.

Though bijli-paani are not issues in Chandigarh, the basic amenities are a cause for concern. 8216;8216;Even in Delhi, it8217;s a privilege to have uninterrupted power and water supply,8217;8217; he says. 8216;8216;But communal issues should be a big no-no.8217;8217;

The young man hopes to keep his interest in politics alive. 8220;Even if the issues remain the same in 2009, I8217;ll be voting again, hopefully in army uniform.8217;8217;

8211; Vibhor Mohan