blokate

During the recent elections to the Karnataka legislative Assembly, one aspect which was discussed quiet openly was the display of enormous money power. Never before had so much money flown so openly in bribing voters, especially in regions where the Mining lords and the real estate lobby had a sway over the election campaign. Even those who were once considered "money bags" in the more innocent days of electioneering, were left gasping for breath, trying to keep pace with the recent entrants to the game. "I have decided that I will die but not contest another direct election", a well known former MP from Karnataka had remarked as hordes of people waited outside his house, during the campaign.

But what happened in Karnataka, and many other States in the country, where the role of hard cash is becoming increasingly evident in elections, may all pale into insignificance. The State which has overtaken most other Indian States quietly in the obnoxious use of money to buy votes is somewhere tucked in the edge of India in the north east. Arunachal Pradesh, which hardly registers in the minds of people in the mainland India, witnessed Panchayat elections late last month, and some re-elections are still on.

In this tiny picturesque State, where hardly one sees a tourist, forget foreigners, even Indians, elections have become a nightmare for potential candidates. And at all level, from Gram Panchayat to Parliament.

"I wanted to contest the Assembly elections last time, but then I realised that I could not even cross the first hurdle--- of getting a major national party ticket. I had to pay, a ridiculous amount, and I decided to forget it, as I didn't have that kind of money". This is a prominent woman in Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh.

In fact even in the recently held Panchayat elections, it is only those who could generate huge amount of cash who could contest. Talking to a cross section of people in some parts of the State, one could gather how cash-minded the politics of the State has become.

Even at the lowest level, which is a gram Panchayat, where ordinarily there are no more 300 to 400 voters, no candidate can hope to get elected, without spending anything less than Rs.4 to 5 lakhs. For a Zilla Parishad seat, for anyone who cannot raise Rs.35 to 40 lakhs, there is no hope. But that also does not assure a seat.

"The candidate I supported for the Zilla Parishad seat, an independent, also spent atleast Rs.30 to 35 lakhs, but she could not win, as the candidate who won from Congress spent much more", confided a school teacher in Ziro, a district headquarters, six hours by road from Itanagar. One can get an idea of the enormity of the cost involved, as in an average Zilla Parishad constituency there are only 2,800 voters in this sparsely populated State.