[ <strong>THE</strong> INDIA COLUMN ] What’s up with the election coverage? “The media, which boasts of being the fourth pillar of democracy, needs to realise that its duty is not to feed insatiable curiosity of sections of the people about who will vote for whom, but to discharge its democratic duty to empower the voters with right information.” [ By VIsHAL ArOrA ] It is election season in India; while elections were held in five states last month, political parties are now gearing up for the national election that are expected to take place around May 2009. Pick up any newspaper or magazine and you will find that a large section of the coverage is being devoted to elections. However, as it happens around every election, you can stumble on many articles that seem to approve bad politics. Many elections stories typically dwell on the prospects of the contending parties based by drawing a demographical sketch of the constituencies, anticipating how various religious and caste communities are likely to cast their votes. For instance, many such articles appeared about the recent state elections. It was said that a majority of the Jat people in Rajasthan might not vote for the Congress, as Jat leader Parasram Maderna was not made chief minister 10 years ago when the seat was instead given to Ashok Gehlot. On the other hand, the Gujjar community, it was said, was ill at ease with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – for not providing reservation in jobs and for the heavy-handedness of the state police during the Gujjar protests earlier this year, and therefore, was likely to support the Congress. Similarly, articles anticipated that the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which was more of a ‘spoiler’ than contender in the elections, would cut into the votebank of the Congress in Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, and Chhattisgarh, because both parties seek to woo Dalits and Muslims. Others evaluated the BJP’s stronghold in the Jammu region of Jammu & Kashmir following the massive mobilisation of Hindutva supporters in the wake of the contentious Amarnath land row, which centred on the question whether the state government should have allowed makeshift facilities for Hindu pilgrims in a Muslim-majority region in the state. What’s the problem with such analysis? News stories that merely examine parties’ performance on the lines of caste and religion without condemning and exposing the misuse of religion and caste in politics endorse the use of identity politics by parties. Here’s a hypothetical example to bring home the point. What if a newspaper article explores the possibility of the rise in the amount of bribe, government officials receive annually due to the enactment of a new law? And this without condemning bribery or making it clear that it seeks to warn the anti-corruption department? Do you think such an article will appear unless bribery becomes so acceptable that babus can accept money over the table? So have the people of India finally accepted the use of divisive politics? Regrettably, the answer seems to be in the affirmative. Now, whether improper reporting has led to the acceptance of identity politics or such coverage merely reflects the popular approval is like the chicken and egg debate. But it goes without saying that at least some of the responsibility lies with the media. Therefore, the media, which boasts of being the fourth pillar of democracy, needs to realise that its duty is not to feed insatiable curiosity of sections of the people about who will vote for whom, but to discharge its democratic duty to empower the voters with right information. Information on crucial issues related to the welfare of all sections of society as well as on various aspects of political parties and their candidates, such as their ideologies, policies and past record. Unfortunately, it is increasingly becoming a trend in political reporting where journalists like to mull over politicians’ concerns, rather than that of the people. This is why we read reports dealing primarily with how certain policies and moves of a party would affect the party itself – with no input on how those developments would affect the people or democracy. It’s not that journalists should not research votebanks or predict election results, but they should disseminate the information in a larger context and with a clear stand. Otherwise, it’s we the people who will bear the brunt of bad politics. Vishal Arora is a freelance journalist based in New Delhi. 8 <strong>THE</strong> <strong>INTERNATIONAL</strong> INDIAN
etterlife ad.indd 1 12/10/2008 3:43:58 PM