POST EDITORIAL: POLITICAL ALLEGATIONS AND ACCUSATIONS-THE EASIEST WEAPON

Santi Sharma.

The 2014 Election in Sikkim is going to be like a tug of war where every political party would try to win some seats and come into power. Every day we get to know about the accusations made by one political party against the other. The parties are hardly bothered about the ramifications of their acts. They have a stereotype mindset that the more we criticize the more popularity we get. But that is not so in reality. The criticizing party is again and again glorifying its opponent’s name, be it in a bad fame. Blaming each other won’t work now. The days have gone where showing shortcomings of your rival would fetch you votes.

Now, people don’t want to know what others didn’t do. They only want to know what you are planning to do, your vision for the upcoming generations, your policies and mainly the kind of people you are putting on the forefront. Image, reputation and past records play an important and decisive role while the judgment of casting one's vote is made. Youth of today do not want to know which party is contesting the election, they just want to know the candidate as a person, his/her background, educational qualifications and basic human traits like honesty and commitment.

Thus, statement given by the President of Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad, Mr. A.D.Subba that SDF rebel Mr. Prem Singh Golay is misleading and betraying the followers of Sikkim Krantikari Morcha is in itself a weak point to make an accusation. What Mr. Golay is doing is completely out of the purview of SHRP.

The SHRP party should come out with its own agenda, issues and objectives. Whether Mr. Golay is misleading or not will be clear during the coming election result. And I don’t understand how can a learned person like Dr.A.D.Subba utter such words. If Mr. Golay is misleading then why is not SHRP showing the right path? The same applies to any other new party. Why are the parties not focusing upon the real and urgent problems and trying to find a permanent solution? Will every election leave us with a sense of power struggle and upliftment of poor and downtrodden people will only be in their popular speeches? Are we, the educated youth of Sikkim, not aware of the declining phase of our democracy? Are we waiting for some genius and outstanding personality like Gandhiji to take birth in our motherland and remove all these vices of corruption, inequality, underdevelopment, poor health facilities etc? But I am sorry to say my fellow brothers and sisters; no one is going to come out unless you take the lead. Why are you afraid of losing? In a battlefield we do encounter strong and brutal enemies but it does not mean we should not fight. You never know when things change and we might achieve the victory.

So, the educated youth from various streams having expertise in their own fields should enter into Sikkim’s politics and head towards the era of real change and development. It is not necessary to have money power or muscle power to enter into politics. We only need clear intentions, farsighted vision and commitment towards the welfare of the society. Sooner or later we would definitely be able to achieve Sikkim of our Dreams.

In my view, politics should not run on shrewd tactics and political games. It should be a combination of social, economic and political development. Even human beings cannot live in isolation. We need some companions and friends to live a better life. So, how can politics survive in isolation? Social and economic aspects do play a major role in the process of development and sustainability. Change does not mean putting the same old wine in a new bottle. It means a total transformation in their mind set, behavior, way of functioning, the idea of Governance and understanding politics as a platform for social engineering.

Power politics along with power struggle will only result in a devastating disaster. It will lead us nowhere. And if the parties really opt to bring dynamic changes then the leadership and the governance should be handled by the young, dynamic and educated group of people. People with old ideas and vision cannot tackle with the technology and needs that are arising every second in this Information Age. Inventions and advancements have touched new heights, so we need efficient people to administer the state and nation as a whole.

Things cannot be changed overnight. It shocks me when a person, who spent his whole life doing illegal, acts can one fine day wake up and talk about change, that too with learned people. I always believe in a quote which says “Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.” So, it is a heartiest request from my side to every Sikkimese fellow being, please do not tolerate anything wrong. You are born as a human and you have every right to disagree with the evils and wrongdoers. Fight for your cause, fight for the betterment. Use you valuable vote judiciously because with one stroke it can do wonders and, if used irresponsibly, can also destroy our state leaving it in an irreparable condition.

Democracy is a boon, but only when it is backed by active participation of the people. Unfortunately, a lot of politicians seek to scuttle this very participation by denying the people the voice in governance that they deserve. If such is the situation, the only way out is for the people to be more assertive in ensuring their participation. The first step is to realise the value of one's vote and cast it judiciously without paying heed to the narrow considerations of caste and community. The sole criteria for determination of the worthy candidate should be the developmental vision that the candidate provides. This will give the state a fresh headstart on the path of inclusive development that has for long been denied to us. This should be backed by being consistently involved in governance and fearlessly using the structural tools at one's disposal, including the RTI. If the Sikkimese people are willing to take this path, the brighter future that we all aspire for may be closer than we think.