I
ndians are voting in the first round of the country's 15th general elections.
Voters in 124 constituencies are taking part in the ballot. There has so far been a steady turnout, marred by several attacks from Maoist insurgents.
More than 700 million Indians overall are eligible to vote for seats in the lower house of parliament.
The incumbent Congress-led coalition government is facing a challenge from the main opposition BJP-led alliance.
The two main blocs are also competing against a "third front" of communist and regional parties in a poll that is too close to call. Results are due on 16 May and a new parliament must be in place by 2 June.
Voters began queuing up early at many polling stations across the country. TV pictures showed women queuing in Assam in light drizzle.
Among high profile candidates who cast votes early was former UN diplomat Shashi Tharoor in the southern city of Thiruvananthapuram.
"It is a great privilege to vote. It is an extra bonus to vote for myself," said Mr Tharoor, who is standing for the Congress party. "I should be able to romp home."
A massive security operation is in place across India. In the eastern state of Jharkhand six paramilitary soldiers were killed in a landmine blast blamed on Maoist rebels, police said.
Maoists also attacked polling booths in the states of Orissa and Bihar. The BBC's Chris Morris in Delhi says they were isolated incidents in remote rural areas, but still disruptive and carried out to prevent people voting.
In Bihar's Gaya district a polling booth was attacked. Two security personnel were killed and two female voters received bullet wounds, locals told the BBC. In addition the insurgents looted electronic voting machines and four police rifles.
Officials in the state say that 264 booths in areas where the Maoists are active will close down two hours ahead of time as a security precaution.
The attack in Orissa took place in Malkangiri district, where the insurgents burned some electronic voting machines, police said. The rebels have also blocked roads in the district after felling trees.
Local issues
The first voting is taking place in constituencies spread across the country, including volatile areas in north and central India.
States where voting takes place are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Lakshwadeep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
More than two million security personnel have been deployed, many of them in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, which is voting for both national and state assembly representatives.
"We have taken every necessary measure to ensure peaceful, free and fair elections. Now you go out and vote," state director general of police AK Mohanty said in the state capital, Hyderabad.
Thousands of troops have also been placed on alert in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, which has the most seats in the national parliament. Polling will take place for 16 of the state's 80 seats.
Neither of the two main parties in the election - Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - is expected to gain a clear majority.
Both may have to depend on the support of smaller parties to form a government - and correspondents say the campaign rhetoric in recent days has become increasingly bitter.
While security and the economy are key election issues, especially after last year's attacks in Mumbai (Bombay), global economic meltdown and local and regional issues are all expected to be key issues.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Millions of Indians go to polls
I
ndians are voting in the first round of the country's 15th general elections.
Voters in 124 constituencies are taking part in the ballot. There has so far been a steady turnout, marred by several attacks from Maoist insurgents.
More than 700 million Indians overall are eligible to vote for seats in the lower house of parliament.
The incumbent Congress-led coalition government is facing a challenge from the main opposition BJP-led alliance.
The two main blocs are also competing against a "third front" of communist and regional parties in a poll that is too close to call. Results are due on 16 May and a new parliament must be in place by 2 June.
Voters began queuing up early at many polling stations across the country. TV pictures showed women queuing in Assam in light drizzle.
Among high profile candidates who cast votes early was former UN diplomat Shashi Tharoor in the southern city of Thiruvananthapuram.
"It is a great privilege to vote. It is an extra bonus to vote for myself," said Mr Tharoor, who is standing for the Congress party. "I should be able to romp home."
A massive security operation is in place across India. In the eastern state of Jharkhand six paramilitary soldiers were killed in a landmine blast blamed on Maoist rebels, police said.
Maoists also attacked polling booths in the states of Orissa and Bihar. The BBC's Chris Morris in Delhi says they were isolated incidents in remote rural areas, but still disruptive and carried out to prevent people voting.
In Bihar's Gaya district a polling booth was attacked. Two security personnel were killed and two female voters received bullet wounds, locals told the BBC. In addition the insurgents looted electronic voting machines and four police rifles.
Officials in the state say that 264 booths in areas where the Maoists are active will close down two hours ahead of time as a security precaution.
The attack in Orissa took place in Malkangiri district, where the insurgents burned some electronic voting machines, police said. The rebels have also blocked roads in the district after felling trees.
Local issues
The first voting is taking place in constituencies spread across the country, including volatile areas in north and central India.
States where voting takes place are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Lakshwadeep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
More than two million security personnel have been deployed, many of them in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, which is voting for both national and state assembly representatives.
"We have taken every necessary measure to ensure peaceful, free and fair elections. Now you go out and vote," state director general of police AK Mohanty said in the state capital, Hyderabad.
Thousands of troops have also been placed on alert in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, which has the most seats in the national parliament. Polling will take place for 16 of the state's 80 seats.
Neither of the two main parties in the election - Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) - is expected to gain a clear majority.
Both may have to depend on the support of smaller parties to form a government - and correspondents say the campaign rhetoric in recent days has become increasingly bitter.
While security and the economy are key election issues, especially after last year's attacks in Mumbai (Bombay), global economic meltdown and local and regional issues are all expected to be key issues.
Message Behind The Assam Blasts
T
he 7 April blasts in Assam, the second within a space of 10 days, are attention-seeking gimmicks. That such gimmicks result in loss of human lives does not seem to bother either the terrorists or the state.
The irony is that such blasts are not unexpected for two reasons. First, the Ulfa was preparing to commemorate its Raising Day. Second, it is election time and the Ulfa is a major player here. Blasts are the only means of drawing attention to the fact that the outfit is alive and kicking.
The state’s response is predictable. So is the public reaction. After the usual brouhaha, things slip back to normal until the next blast. The only difference is that this time a high-level delegation from the Union home ministry headed by the cabinet secretary has flown in to assess the situation from a closer angle, perhaps to ensure that militants do not get a free run between now and the election dates.
Blasts are a dramatic posturing by insurgents. Considering that these ruthless elements are targeting unsuspecting citizens, it is time we drop the euphemisms and simply call them terrorists.
Forget their goals, since all terrorists have altruistic goals anyway. Having got the nomenclature right, it is time to do some serious introspection to identify and nail the villains of the piece in this most reprehensible crime against humankind.
Mrinal Hazarika, leader of the Ulfa’s pro-talks faction, confessed recently that the outfit had played a key role in all elections in Assam. Now that says it all. Politicians of all shades have taken the help of the Ulfa to win elections or to eliminate/defeat rivals.
However, this phenomenon is not peculiar to Assam. No political party or politician anywhere in the region can claim immunity from the allegation that they have marriages of convenience with terror groups. Chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s trouble-shooters are alleged to have worked out their compromise formulae with the Ulfa on more than one occasion.
The February 2007 National Games passed off smoothly not because security was top notch but because the Ulfa was allegedly paid off. It is ritualistic for militant groups in the North-east to raise the pitch during election time. After all, this is party time when big money is at stake! It is also a time when political parties and politicians jostle to capture the mind space of the electorate. One bomb blast can undo a lot of leg work.
Militants have used terror tactics to influence voter behaviour. Taking a cue from Mrinal Hazarika’s confession, one question needs answering — what does the Ulfa want this time? Is it money, or breathing space? Or is it merely a show of strength?
Planting bombs is not without an agenda, even though it has become the easiest method of creating terror. And there appears to be no dearth of willing agents to do so on payment.
Bomb mechanics are getting bolder and bolder. In the latest blast at Maligaon, the devices were planted opposite a police station. This informs us that the masterminds of the episode are cocking a snook at the security forces and dumping down their claims of preparedness for the polls.
Those who think the Ulfa is on its last legs wear blinkers. The outfit continues to have fire power and it makes a spectacular display of that capability days before the commemoration of its Raising Day (7 April). This daredevilry is possible because of the lack of seriousness on the part of the state government to tackle the outfit head-on.
The Centre simply compounds the problem by not getting the correct perspective. Blasts allow the state government to make unreasonable demands from the Centre.
Many of these demands are not related to strengthening the local policing, which is at the crux of the matter. Local police require advanced training on counter-terrorism. Ordinary policemen trained to tackle law and order are no match for the ruthless tactics of terrorists. But strong policing must be matched by strong political will.
The second part is hardly forthcoming. As long as politicians and terrorists have liaisons of convenience, the game of cat and mouse will go on. Innocent citizens will continue to lose their lives and the security forces will be demoralised.
A demoralised security outfit is no match for an aggressive terrorist organisation. This story of compromises and secret pacts is so deeply entrenched that you wonder what sort of game the governments at the Centre and states play?
And at whose cost? Do they really want to see the end of terrorism? Or do they want it to survive on their terms? Unfortunately this is a question that no one asks.
The fact is that there are too few stakeholders in peace. These few are also too inconsequential to make an impact. Many more powerful people benefit from terror and have a stake in it. Peace is simply a rhetoric mouthed by some idealists and academics at workshops and seminars.
Look at the profile of those who have died in Assam. Aren’t they the most powerless lot? What clout do Bihari labourers have? Or the ordinary mortal ekeing out a livelihood?
Let’s remind ourselves that the Mumbai terror attack got the prominence it did because it happened at high profile places where the creamy layer congregate for their business and leisure. As was rightly pointed out, the most crowded CST station never attracted too much media attention. Such is life today that every human being is recognised only by his bank balance. Those with no balance are dispensable.
Again, what happened in Mumbai has had a snowballing effect in that the NSG is given the prominence and nurturing it deserves. Now one reads that they would have access to all state-of-the-art equipment which had hitherto remained locked in Union home ministry files. What major decisions has Tarun Gogoi taken to initiate new security measures to counter the terror threat in Assam?
Any security force is good only to the extent that it has clear-cut, unambiguous goals and is allowed to function under a command structure that has specific objectives. In the North-east, there is no definite dividing line between insurgents and politicians. Separating the two could be embarrassing and dangerous.
Parties ruling at the Centre are fully aware of these embarrassing alliances. But when the only goal is to get power at any cost then there are few choices left. Even supping with the devil becomes an attractive proposition.
No wonder the Union home ministry is reduced to an ineffectual top-heavy bureaucracy with massive monolithic establishments that have failed to deliver. They have learnt to acquiesce with what politicians want. After a while they compose their own tunes and dance to it.
The Union home ministry mandarins and those under them are shamelessly unapologetic about their failure to deliver. What is a blast in Assam, anyway? The place is so goddamned distant from the core, so why should it matter how many people are killed?
The North-east is no financial capital. In fact, over the decades, this region has taken the shape of a begging bowl, thanks to the Centre’s deliberate policy and our own politicians’ proclivity to be led instead of leading.
Every now and again the North-east is reminded that it is a prisoner of geography. Contradictory statements mouthed by people like former Union minister Jairam Ramesh that the North-East should be economically aligned with South-east Asia while being politically integrated to India makes the region a sort of schizophrenic space. Why are people so apathetic about their own destinies?
Delhi has never really allowed any kind of free-thinking here. We do not even enjoy a fullfledged democracy, living as we do under oppressive laws. But can we allow democracy to be muzzled by a small group of megalomaniacs in Delhi and the states?
If Delhi is serious about things, it should also stop talking to sundry militant groups. With terrorists you need to deploy tough action. Where uprisings are mainly due to the absence of development, as in the plains tribal areas of Assam, a different approach is required. But on no account should the Centre compound the problems here.
