April 14

The stage is set for India to witness its biggest ever election. The election manifestoes of political parties is a document that sets out the policies that the parties will adopt if voted to power, but it is also the weakest aspect of elections. It is a document that most of the electorate does not even read when deciding which party or candidate to vote.  The parties themselves give very little importance to these manifestos which is apparent from the fact that it is presented to the public a week or a fortnight before the elections.

This time around, all the national parties toured the entire nation to ask, know and gather the demands of the people to collate all of it in the election manifesto, due to which they were not announced till the 11^th hour.

Going by party ideologies, One India One People writers have tried to come up with what could be the likely election manifestos of the top national parties – The Congress and The Bharatiya Janata Party the infant Aam Aadmi Party and the regional parties, in its April issue.  The issue also highlights the demands of the youth, the tribals and the dalits in the form of their manifestos.  However, what would be interesting to watch is how many of the promises made in the manifetsos will be fulfilled in the next five years by the party that comes to power.

In the lead article, ‘Elections 2014: Who reads a manifesto, anyway’, C.V. Aravind says, election manifestos have lost their relevance, as disillusioned voters have neither the time nor the inclination to even glance through them leave alone read them with interest.

The writer is a Bangalore-based freelance journalist.

(The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In the article, ‘End of the party’, Dr. B. Ramesh Babu, says that policy paralysis and spectacular corruption have become by-words for the UPA-2. Against this backdrop, the Congress party has bleak chances of being voted to power, despite a populist agenda and the freebies on offer, as he analyses the party’s draft manifesto.

The writer is President of the Hyderabad Chapter of the Indian Liberal Group. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In the article, ‘The stamp of NaMo’, Prakash Bal Joshi spells out the likely manifesto of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), seen as the strongest contender in the 2014 general elections. He says that some contentious issues and promises made in the 2009 manifesto are expected to be repeated in the 2014 manifesto, which will have the NaMo stamp.

The writer is a Mumbai-based journalist and artist. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In ‘AAP’s ‘Manifest Destiny’, Dr. P. M. Kamath says besides fighting corruption

and crony capitalism, some populist measures such as subsidised electricity and free water to consumers, could be a part of the election manifesto of the infant Aam Aadmi Party.

The writer is former Professor of Politics, University of Mumbai and currently, Director, VPM’s Centre for International Studies (Regd.) and Adjunct Professor, Department of Geopolitics and International Relations, Manipal University, Manipal. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In the write up, ‘Regionalising Democracy’, Ajay Gudavarthy talks about the failure to come up with an agenda that is distinct from the national parties and common to all regional parties, that the latter have repeatedly failed to forge a stable coalition in the form a third front at the Centre.

The writer teaches at the Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University.  He has also taught at the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. His areas of interest include Political Theory, Indian Politics, debates on Civil Society, Democracy and Globalisation.  (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In the article, ‘What does the youth want’,  Shivani Gupta presents a youth manifesto and says it is very important to harness the energy, creativity, enthusiasm and intellect of the youth to give this nation a more meaningful future and change the regressive and archaic status quo that it is existing in.

The writer is a media advocate working with Community Media Network in ComMutiny – the Youth Collective (CYC). (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In our Youth Voice, first time voters tell us what they will look for in a candidate/party before casting their vote.

“I believe in one man army”

Raghav Seth (21), Area – Prabhadevi

“Not all the promises listed in the manifestos are fulfilled”

Kulsum Nakadar (19), Area - Mahim

“It is important to elect a worthy candidate who can handle the reigns of our democracy”

Nupur Karam (19), Area - Santacruz (East)

“It takes just one right person to change the world”

Vidhi Trivedi (21), Area - Tardeo

In ‘Justice and social equity for all’, Pooja Parvati proposes a people’s manifesto based on the millennium development goals.

The writer is leading the Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (WNTA) campaign on post-2015 development agenda since January 2013. She has over eleven years of experience working on issues of public policy, governance and concerns pertaining to gender and social exclusion. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In ‘Right to dignity and identity’, Dr. Joseph Marianus Kujur writes about the expectations of the Adivasis, one of the most neglected sections of our society. Besides transparency and accountability in governance, social security, guarantee of their rights, preservation of environment and promotion of sustainable development are some of their expectations.

The writer is the Head, Department of Tribal Studies at The Indian Social Institute, New Delhi. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

In ‘Dalits and elections’, Anoop Kumar says that every political group, even those who explicitly abhor identity politics of any kind wooes dalits and backward caste voters. He highlights issues that reflect the aspirations of the community that can play an important role in this election.

The writer is a community teacher based in Wardha, Maharashtra and has been a part of Dalit movement since last two decades. (The views expressed in the article are those of the writer.)

know india better

Hampi

The hidden jewel of Karnataka

Whispering winds, magnificent ruins, traces and scents of a bygone era still linger fresh at Hampi and virtually transport the visitor to a world of kings, battles and long forgotten marvels. Masarrath Ali Khan with his text and photographs takes us through the World Heritage site with its temples and ruins.

The author is a freelance travel writer.

face to face

“Election Manifestos are perfectly legal, even if they promise the moon”

Former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India, Dr S Y Quraishi has brought a special focus on people’s participation, voters’ education and youth involvement in the electoral process through scientific research and interventions. He has been an ardent proponent for lending strength to the grassroots level election functionaries.  

In an e-mail interview to Sonam Saigal,  Dr Quraishi talks about the recent guidelines given by the Supreme Court to the Election Commission (EC) on framing the election manifestos.

In our Features sections, the write up is on, ‘A pink revolution in the North’ where Shoma A. Chatterji narrates the story behind the much acclaimed ‘Gulabi Gang’, a group of  pink sari-clad women led by Sampat Pal, through a successful documentary made on the subject.

The writer is a freelance journalist, film scholar and author. She has authored 17 published titles and won the National Award for Best Writing on Cinema twice. She won the UNFPA-Laadli Media Award, 2010 for ‘commitment to addressing and analysing gender issues’ among many awards. She is currently Senior Research Fellow, ICSSR, Delhi researching the politics of presentation of working women in post-colonial Bengali cinema 1950 to 2003.

CULTURAL KALEIDOSCOPE is on ‘Mohini Attam – dance of the enchantress’. Dr Kanak Rele, Director, Nalanda Dance Research Center and recipient of Padmabhushan award, Akademi Ratna (Fellow of Sangeet Natak Akademi describes the dance that reflects the enchantment that is life, its enjoyment and relish that creates the state of Beautitude, enveloping the spectator in an aura of grace, charm and lyricism.)

In GEMS FROM THE PAST, BMN Murthy writes on Arthashastra, an ancient treatise on statecraft. In ‘Discoverer of Kautilya’s Arthashastra’ he recounts the birth of Arthashashtra through Dr. Rudrapatnam Shamashastry who was titled ‘Arthashastra Visharada’ by the Maharaja of Mysore.

B M N Murthy, who passed away in March 2014, regularly wrote on Indian heritage, tradition, vedic wisdom, etc.

GREAT INDIANS

We have profiled,

Air Vice Marshal Ranjan Dutt Vr C - The dynamic flying commander (1922- 2013)

A Nageswara Rao - A tri-lingual actor (1924-2014) 

Advocate Vasudha Dhagamwar - Legal campaigner for gender justice (1940-2014)

And also read our regular columns and other features. To book a copy, email to oiopfoundation@gmai.com / oiop@vsnl.net or call Nagesh Bangera, OIOP Subscription-in-charge at 022- 2353 44 00.

We look forward to your feedback.