Politics, Policy and Propaganda

The literacy rate in India is 74.04% according to recent data. India, as we all know, is the World’s Largest Democracy. These two facts might seem very random to be placed one after the other, but I see a very clear relation between the two. These two facts play a major role in deciding the political discourse of the county and the way policies are implemented for the “benefit” of the people of our nation and in general the narrative of the county.

As sections of the people are uneducated the politicians rely on sentiments to secure votes and seats. The best way to direct these sentiments in ones favour is to rely on propaganda. As a nation having a majority of Hindu population, we see two clear cut distinctions in the way propaganda is formed and targeted, you either target Hindus or you target people who believe in relative secularism. I specifically use the term ‘relative secularism’ here as absolute secularism is not possible without a completely educated populous. We see the two largest political parties in the country use both these ideologies respectively and try to gain the majority share of votes during elections. Due to this our country was divided into two distinct political camps, and from term to term both the camps have experienced their fair share of success. Recently however we see one of the parties enjoying a clear majority, which might change in the upcoming election.

Propaganda works only when it reaches the masses. The best way to do so is through the media and more specifically through news channels. Daily soaps have now given way to “Prime Time Debates”. Both however contain the same ingredients which are: conflict, drama and confrontation. We see spokespersons of respective political parties shout at each other, call each other petty names and even shout slogans on national television and the audience consumes it like they would any dramatic series. Everyday features a new “episode” i.e. a topic of discussion and it follows the same format. Sadly these people are dramatizing issues of national importance which have an impact on the lives of individuals and society as a whole.

 The ease with which people now access the internet has added fuel to the fire. Now, propaganda reaches people in different formats like text, audio and video and it spreads like wildfire. These “forwards” have a scarring impact on people’s ideology and opinions. They do not even bother to verify the information and just spread it further. This again boils down to people not being educated, as they just consume things presented to them without taking the effort to make sure if the content is authentic. In this aspect however I would also blame educated people who fall prey to the same “forwards” and let it easily affect their opinion. A majority of the citizens are just turning passive which, works perfectly for the politicians but is a threat to democracy.

Meanwhile, there is a political party that is currently the ruling party of the National Capital Territory of Delhi is doing wonders for the people of Delhi. They have managed to curb two major problems faced by the citizens there which are electricity and water. They have implemented projects which benefit the public schools of the territory and they are focusing on educating the next breed of alert and responsible citizens. This however doesn’t play well for the major political parties of the nation, as when citizens get educated they will question the party in power, because in educational institutions a ‘democratic instinct’ is developed within the students. When such an instinct is developed the students understand that questioning the government for not functioning properly or criticizing it when it goes wrong is a part of the democratic system. By doing so they will not be branded as ‘anti-national’.  Is why, all efforts are being taken by these parties to present a negative image of this party and its leaders through the media. This is easy for them as they influence content on major news channels and the passive citizens believe everything without question.

In this election year I hope our people wake up. See through this screen of propaganda placed in front of us and discuss and deliberate about the important issues. Issues related to the development of people and the society. I would specially like to address the students of our country who are eligible to vote. I know politics isn’t glamorous and it is “uncool” to be interested in it. But, what we do not realize is that as the youth we have a major say in the political discourse of the county. It is for our own benefit. We have to do this for better jobs and better futures. Let us finally take the responsibility to become active citizens so that we make life easier for us and for others around us. The best way to do this is to vote responsible citizens into power. Every Vote Counts!

Doodle Credits: Hailey Mukatiwala