People in general think that the party in power always has the advantage in any election. This gets half the propaganda done, as most people tend to gravitate towards the winning side. These are the fence sitters popularly known in collectivity as the ‘floating vote’ who have no loyalty to any ideology or party. All they care about is to be associated with the winners and they could be easily bought over by greasing their palms. As regards resources, the party in power has no dearth and is not afraid to oblige. They have the network of agents, by virtue of being the ruling party, to identify such fence-sitters.
On the other hand, the Opposition parties have to double their efforts to counter the popular belief and win over the votes. They mostly bank on the anti-incumbency factor and failed policies of the ruling to gain advantage. This happens in almost all elections. But this year, it is quite different. Dejected with the state of unrest and months of turmoil combined with a seeming lack of political will on the part of the ruling establishment to run its writ and enforce the rule of law in the state, large chunks of people in the valley areas of Manipur have expressed their reservations about participating in these elections.
Displaced people, particularly those staying in the relief camps with no hope of returning to original home and hearth, are vehemently not only against participation in the election but also against holding of elections at this particular juncture. The Election Commission might have arranged special polling stations for the internally displaced people at different locations as its bounden duty to ensure maximum participation in voting of people in different situations and locations. But one has to see how many would turn up at these special polling stations.
A feature never before seen in any elections in the state, the usual fanfare of rallies and loud campaigns besides public meetings are missing in these elections and this will be remembered for all times to come. It is not because of some organisations asking parties or the people to desist from loud campaigns, but mostly because of the general distaste of the powers that be who had neglected its bounden duty to provide security and safety besides ensuring right to life and committed efforts towards to conflict resolution or conflict transformation whichever is applicable.
Even though violence has come down, the warring sides are still engaged in hate diatribe on social media and the atmosphere created is such that it is going to be a fight to the finish or complete annihilation of each other. That would be indeed disastrous. We all know that there are still sane elements or voices in both the communities and it is still not too late to cultivate these elements to initiate a process. Instead, parties seem hellbent on taking maximum advantage of the current turmoil to harness votes without any thought of the consequences which might follow. Politicians are like that, they are only concerned with how to snare the simple folks with their propaganda to get votes.
Another interesting feature of this election is the mood in the hills. The Nagas have long learnt the lesson of not participating or boycotting elections. In the pursuit of their dream of a Greater Nagalim and a sovereign future, they have learnt that participation in the Indian elections is also a step towards its realisation. When they boycotted the Lok Sabha elections they were out of power politics and the political leverage was reduced to the CSO level. So now, they have formed a political outfit and at every opportunity they became a party to power.
The Kukis also know this and their avowed mission is to ensure a sizable presence in the power circuit. But the circumstances are different this time. Even with the unresolved crisis, they have chosen to participate in the parliamentary elections. Their cries for separate administration or union territories are still in nowhere territory while the continuation of SoO is at stake. Also, the government at the Centre had suspended FMR and decided on border fencing much to their dismay, Yet, they are strangely silent and eager to participate in the elections. What have they been promised? Therein lies the paradox.
