A lazysunday. Bored to the core of boredom that boredom was bored of me and vice-versa. Browsing through facebook, i came across this interesting topic which caused the grey cells in my brain to think about it. Think beyond the a-z of softwares and work and etc etc. So i here i go about it.
The point i came across was - voting in the general elections in india 09. What about the indians abroad ? This seemed a weird idea at first glance but on more thought, i wondered - why not. I am pretty sure there is no provision in the constitution for indians abroad to vote but that book was written 60 years ago. Why not introduce a change in it which has a definite possibility of doing something good for the counry ?
I am of the opinion that there are many reasons why such a thing should be implemented and soon. There are scores and scores of indians abroad. Indians in the form of students flocking in big numbers to pursue their dreams and higher education in the lands of uncle sam and many european nations as well. Indian workers working abroad in the countless organizations spread throughout the world. After seeing so many indians in this tiny island of cyprus which i had not even heard of before getting placed here, there is little doubt left in my mind that there is any country in this world without a sizeable number of legal indian migrants.
So why should'nt these indians (including me - lets call them nri's since that is also the official lingo and slang used to refer them) be allowed to cast their vote. People may say, we are NRI's, and we care less for india, we are'nt patriotic or that i presume is the general perception but thats not true and in no way can one generalize this opinion of all of us. I do like to believe many indians abroad do care about india and occassionally, do or atleast try to do their bit for her. The results are not always tangible for all to see. So why then arent they allowed to vote. In the current elections, i saw politicians and media urging each one to spare those 5 mins, go to the nearest voting station and exercise their franchise. But when i saw the voter turnout results of Bombay, which was being billed as the city of people eager to show their power by the ballot after the november carnage, i felt so pity and sorry. A mere what 40% or so turned out out of a million citizens. And i am also at fault in this. Not that because of being abroad i can escape, but i am sure had i been there, i also would have been among those 60% that enjoyed the holiday more.
And these turnouts have been more or less not even 50 % in major states or places. Except for some eastern states where it reached about 65%, it was the same story everywhere. And with no party gaining majority with or without alliances, it sure seems headed for a hung parliament. So then if the indians in india dont seem to care much, why not give the indians not in india a chance to make a miniscule difference.Surely with the technologically advanced country in terms of telecom and IT that we are, i am of the opinion that implementing such a system for nri's would not be a challenging technical hurdle atleast. We have millions of engg, the best software companies in the world, so its definitly an implementable system i feel. Morally also, some indians abroad may crib, that the country is not progressing and will never do so, but there is a small number having tremendous faith in india and her abilities to take on any damn challenge in this world.
The indians in india missed their chance. They didnt care much to use the power given to them. But what about the indians abroad. They werent even given a chance. Even if 1 nri out of every 100 votes sincerely, it will make a difference to india. Every year, the govt celebrates the pravasi bhartiya divas respecting noted nri personalities, politicians and state govts ask nris to fund projects in india. If all this, then why not the right to vote. Why not ask us to go to the nearest indian mission/consulate and press that all important button ? Why not allow us also to have a say in the largest democracy of the world ?
This year i missed my chance. But i make a promise to myself, that if i am in india in 2014, i will walk down to the voting station and let my vote be counted. If am i not, but my wish above comes true, i will go to the indian consulate and do the same. But if this does not happen and i am abroad, i will have nothing to do than sulk and probably rewrite this blog and wait till 2019.
The 'I' in NRI stands for INDIAN.
3 comments:
well as long as u r holdin an indian passport the demand is fair
but the reality check is they bungle up- my name didnt figure in the electoral rolls
A great great thought that only come from the gray cells of a person like you. Fantastic yaar, it is surely a thought to give a try for. but as Rohit said the same was case here, the name of my entire family was missing from the voters list. the very next day an article came in the newspapers that a large number of names were suppressed (mostly north indians what they also call as Bhaiya Log)so that they could profit frm the Marathi vote bank.
In such a case u can't really do anything but hope that an inquiry is being done that gives a valid outcome.
But still, lot of applauses for the great thought that u have brought across. keep the clock ticking and let some amazing thoughts flow from the gray cells of urs.
One textual mistake in ur blog, in the last line it should have an I instead of T for the NRI.
the last line is I surrounded by quotes to emphasize. So no typo there :)
thanks for your comment though vikas.
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