Elections 2012 & voter list information

The Election Commission has announced the poll schedule for five states - Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Punjab and Goa.

While Manipur, Goa, Punjab and Uttarakhand will see a single-phase election, Uttar Pradesh will witness seven phases of polling. The counting will take place on March 4, 2012.

Poll schedule is shown below:

Manipur January 28, 2012
Punjab January 30, 2012
Uttarakhand January 30, 2012
Goa March 3
Uttar Pradesh Starts on February 4, ends on February 28.
The seven-phased polling in Uttar Pradesh will be the longest in any state in the country so far.

How to check if my name is included in the voter’s list?

There is a way to check on the following websites about a lot of information regarding elections - checking your name in the voter’s list, information about your constituency etc. Shown below is the information about CEO (Chief Electoral Officer) website for each of the states

Follow the instructions at the following link to see if your name is in the voter list:

http://www.indg.in/e-governance/check-your-name-in-electoral-rolls#

Chief Electoral Office Websites:

Uttar Pradesh
Punjab
Uttarakhand
Goa
Manipur

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/election-commission-announces-poll-schedule-for-five-states-160493&cp

Assembly Elections in India 2011

5 Indian states - West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Assam and Kerala, are gearing up for the upcoming Assembly elections in 2011.

Tamil Nadu - Will Jayalalitha come back to power given the 2G scam and other corruption cases that DMK has been involved in? Both Karuna & Jaya have been competing with each other in offering freebies..Whose money is it after all.

West Bengal - Will Mamata topple the Left Rule?

voters needing to know if their name is in the voter list or not and the nearest electoral booth, refer this URL for more details - Voter list Details for different states

Fight against corruption

“Dekh kya rahe ho, shaamil ho jao” - Several hundred people this morning were raising this slogan. For those who dont understand Hindi, this means “What are you seeing, come and join us”. The march was an Anti-corruption march. Hundreds of Indians fed up with the Government and various agencies that are supposed to prevent corruption, joined together and organized a protest march urging people to join them and fight against the corrupt practices. The group had gathered several statistics on corruption, black money and distributed hand-outs to people and curious on-lookers to convey their message. The group also raised the demand of enacting the law to set up an effective Anti-corruption Body called “Lokpal”. Kiran Bedi, Justice Santosh Hegde, Prashant Bhushan, J.M.Lyngdoh and others have drafted this Bill. A nation wide movement called “India Against Corruption” has been started.

The march started from M.G.Road, Mahatma Gandhi statue. The march went around the Kanteerava stadium and back to the statue, on a day that the Mahatma was assassinated. It was a hot Sunday afternoon, but that didn’t ditter the protesters and volunteers which shows the amount of frustration that has built up on the state of affairs in the country when it comes to corruption. The group vowed to be in touch and organize more such marches. It advocated people not to pay any bribes in any of the offices. And the group made everyone present aware of a system by which people can register their names as a protest against corruption and build up a sizeable vote bank which will force the government to sit up and notice this movement and do something about it. The march ended with everyone singing the National Anthem!

Personally, it was a very satisfying experience for me and my good friend who participated in this march and came away feeling a sense of pride and the feeling of doing something about a problem instead of just feeling bad about it…Some of the moments from the march captured on lens –

Pledge against Corruption

Suresh protesting against corruption

Dont take Corruption for granted

Victory against Corruption at Sub-Registrar office

Its with great sense of satisfaction and pride that I share our experience in dealing with corruption successfully at the Sub-Registrar’s office in Bangalore.

We booked a flat with a reputed builder in Bangalore. After a 2 year delay, we got possession of our apartment recently and it was time to also get it registered.

A day before, the builder’s office was very clear in their instructions to me that I had to carry 15,000 rupees as “Misc expenses”, which is very obvious that it was for bribing Govt officials at the Sub-registrar’s office. I spoke to a few folks who had already registered their apartment on their experience and they indicated that they had not paid any bribe. My resolve became even stronger that I dont need to pay any bribes.

On the D-Day, we are ready with the Demand Drafts for the registration, stamp duty AND our firm resolve to stand up against this corrupt practice. We arrive at the Sub-Registrar’s office; we have two guys to help us with the registration process — one is the builder’s representative (hereinafter referred as Mr.B) and the other guy from a 3rd party Legal Authority (Mr.L).

The interesting discussions start now —

1. Mr.B asks me to give me the DDs. I give it to him. He then asks me to handover 15,000 rupees cash. I tell him there is no need of that and I can take care of it.
2. Mr.B says that the process cannot start unless Misc expenses are provided. I excuse myself as though I want to make a call. I then go back and ask him what would happen if I dont pay; to which I am told (Mr.B & Mr.L in Chorus) that the process can start once the money is given else it will be delayed. They show me money in their pocket and tell me others have paid as well and this is mandatory. They show me another person who they call as an “agent”, who needs the money.
3. I indicate to them that I can wait, but will not pay.
4. Mr.B, Mr.L then tell the agent in hush hush voice pointing towards me that I dont want to pay
5. We arrived at the Registrar’s office at 11:45am and its now 12:30
6. To my amazement, I saw other residents from the same apartment complex walking in one-by-one; uttering not even a single word and paying up the 15,000 rupees.
7. Our registration is put hold, 9 other registrations happen; with each of them not taking more then 20-30mins.
8. Its about 1:30 now, I ask Mr.B how long I need to wait. He says he doesnt know. He then takes the pain to remind me of another resident who is a very aggressive chap who had fought against the builder for delays; and that he himself had paid the bribe and asks me to do the same. I tell him politely that I dont want to be doing the same thing. I then tell him that he can delay as long as he wants, but I will wait.
9. Once most of the registrations are done and its around lunch, something very interesting happens….Negotiation….

A. I am told that the Misc expenses have been reduced to 10K and ask me to pay. I say NO
B. More waiting….Its few minutes past 2pm now
C. One more negotiation..Mr.B & L get desperate. They tell me this is going nowhere and show their frustration. They give me a final offer - 7500 rupees. I say NO and you should have seen their faces
D. Mr.B now tries to put some pressure on me, tells Mr.L that he needs to back to office for a meeting and he cant wait any more. I dont react..
E. Mr.B gives back both the DDs. So I ask the question - “Are you guys telling me that you cannot register my property unless I pay up”? I dont get a straight answer. When asked the same question after a few mins, Mr.L gets irritated and asks me why I ask such cross questions. He tells me that it will get delayed and I tell him - “I will wait”. I then ask him to give back the legal fees cheque as well.

We go for lunch and started looking for Vigilance, Corruption Bureau numbers; but dont get them. While having lunch, I get a call. The guy tells me that he is from the Legal office (same as Mr.L) and tells me that he will get my registration done. When I get back to the office, I realize the guy who had called me was the one Mr.L had earlier referred as the agent.
By now I realized completely that Mr.B, L1, L2 are all bloody “Agents” for the Sub-Registrar who broker deals and all of them get their share! What a shame, these guys represent reputed companies. Because of the Lok Ayuktha raids, no govt official directly accepts the money. Its these agents who do the job.

L2 now gets my registration done in a jiffy!! The moment the registration is done, B & L1 dont show their face to me. They just vanish. L2 tells me that I can get Certified copies of my Sale Deed immediately if I pay up 250rupees or fill up application form to go via the normal route and take it the next day. I tell him that I will follow the normal application form route. Frustrates him even more….He then gives me some wrong instructions about application form, and asks me to take Document No. from the Builder’s office whereas the No. is available right next in the scanning counter. L2 vanishes as well…We fill up the forms and got the Doc No. as well and are asked to come next day to pick up Encumbrance Certificate and Certified Copies. I even got receipts for the doc scanning charges & application forms!!

We leave the office after this ordeal…but with great sense of achievement of NOT falling in line with the corrupt practices but fighting against it and coming out victoriously. Some of the things that worked for us —

1. We looked cool throughout. No nervousness on our faces. We were ready to wait for many more hours or come on multiple days!
2. I kept asking just one question which made them quite uncomfortable — “Are you saying that registration will not be done UNTIL I pay up”. It definitely gave them a feeling that I would take further steps as no one can refuse to register my property.
3. Support & Conviction - All of us were firm that we will fight back and not give in. That helps.

TO REMEMBER — Its your right to get the property registered. The office cannot refuse. They can raise objections if you are trying to hide something..but if thats not the case, there is no way to refuse. Most people dont have time (we had to spend 4 hours there) or inclination to fight back against the system…So these guys have a field time as NO one refuses to pay. If people refuse, these guys cant do anything..

I will need to do the same for Khata also..I am told guys ask for Bribe for giving Khata also. But with this experience behind me, dont think I am too worried about handling it…

Ayodhya Verdict: a fair verdict

Today’s Ayodhya verdict seems to be a fair verdict. No victory or defeat for any of the parties involved in the litigation. This is a verdict that is forward looking and addresses the overall interest of keeping the progressive nation aspect ahead of specific religious interests aspect.

I welcome this verdict. As per the verdict,

1. The disputed land will be divided into 3 parts -

Part1: belongs to Hindus, the place under the dome where Idols of Ram are placed will continue to remain there.

Part2: belongs to Muslims (the Waqf board)

Part3: belongs to Nirmohi Akhara

2. Status quo will be maintained for 3 months while the specific rules are being framed for the division of the land

3. The disputed structure was built by Babar (year not certain), but the structure does not follow the tenets of Islam and hence cannot be considered as a mosque

Extract from Wikipedia:
The Allahabad high court bench began hearing the case in 2002, which was completed in 2010. However, the bench withheld its verdict till September 24. After the Supreme Court dismissed a plea to defer the high court verdict, the high court set September 30, 2010 as the final date for pronouncing the judgment.

On September 30, 2010, the High Court of Allahabad,the three-member bench,comprising justices SU Khan, Sudhir Agarwal and DV Sharma ruled that the disputed land be split into three parts. The site of the Ramlala idol to Lord Ram, Nirmohi Akhara gets Sita Rasoi and Ram Chabutara, Sunni Wakf Board to get the rest. The court also ruled that status quo was to be maintained for three months.
–extract ends—

I hope all parties/litigants, people of India accept this verdict and move forward as there are a lot bigger things to be achieved in the interest of nation. Hopefully we don’t get stuck in more of this by going to Supreme court & so on.

While the judgment may be fair, what about the culprits who demolished the mosque in the first place? They need to be punished; else it sets a wrong precedent where one can go ahead and demolish something and go to court to get a verdict.

BBMP Elections: Find name online in the voters list

BBMP has launched a website where one can check if their name is in the voters list. Check out the link provided below. It is fast and works without any issues. You need not fill up all the fields; though filling up all of them will give you a quicker match.

http://www.bbmpelections.info/bbmpele/kescUIsearchVoters.aspx

Other than the name, you can also get ward number, part number, polling booth details etc.

Lets vote!

Telangana, Gorkhaland, Purvanchal..how many more?

Congress has messed up the situation big time with the resolution to initiate the process of creating the state of Telangana. Now this is a golden opportunity for many other politicians, with their most selfish ambitions, to demand for separate states at their whims and fancies.

The proof is in the recent developments. Take for instance the following demands -
a. Demand for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling
b. Mayawati asks for Bundelkhand and Paschimanchal states
c. In a second letter to PM, Mayawati asks for Poorvanchal!

The list is totally 10 if you include older demands (which are likely to be renewed) like Coorg, Mithilanchal in Bihar, Saurashtra in Gujarat, Bhojpur state comprising areas of Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Chhattisgarh.

Where are we heading to? Isnt the Govt of India responsible for keeping the country united and not keep making divisions like this?

Can the political system get any worse? Is making separate states the only way to solve problems like some regions being neglected or under-developed?

Wake up, India. We are being projected to be the next super-power; look at the way India’s economy was referenced in terms of how we weathered the recession when some of the biggest economies collapsed - and here we are here busy dividing up the country into smaller pieces.

For God’s sake, lets not waste food

Food - in abundance for some, cant afford two square meals a day for some.
Food - taken for granted for some, cant afford to take for granted even the next meal for some.

Such diversity with the fundamental ingredient required to keep a man alive. Then, does it gets it due respect? Or do some people even think that it deserves that? Take a look at some facts. Let me also add this disclaimer here that I am not against any kind of tradition, I respect them; but wastage of food is something to think about.

1. In India, it’s a tradition in weddings to shower bride and groom with rice grains. After the tradition, I am sure these are swept away. Say we use only 1 kg of rice per wedding, we have thousands of weddings each year. It could have fed so many hungry people.
Alternative - Why not use ‘CONFETTIS’ ? or colourful thermocol balls?
2. In Switzerland, there is an old tradition of carving the Turnips and making Lanterns out of it.
This happens typically in November , and TONS and TONS of turnips are carved, kids make beautiful lamps and there is a procession in the evening in every street.
First, you grow turnips, remove the pulp inside - throw the pulp, carve the outer turnip to make lamps, end of the day just throw! what a waste?
3. Florida - Yearly even; Throwing the oranges at each other.
4. Spain - Yearly event; Tomatoes thrown at each other, crushed etc..
5. India - Dasheera , Big festival, ‘TONS’ of White pumpkin crushed
6. India - Got a new new vehicle, congratulations - crush 4 lemons for all the 4 wheels of the car…belief is that there will be no accidents.. hey comeon.. just drive carefully. Please do your poojas, but don’t waste food items.

PLEASE -There is another world, where people simply can’t afford even sometimes one meal a day.
Can we not do our part? Can we not teach some of these things to our children, so atleast the next generation is more aware and does its part?

Read a few more links below related to this -

http://www.mamalisa.com/blog/the-turnip-fair-in-switzerland-marked-by-thousands-of-lanterns-made-out-of-turnips/

http://www.andreagrant.org/zuerich/turnip.html

http://www.sa-venues.com/events/kwazulu-natal-event-description.php?id=896

State of Indian politics, Congress is the party for the future

The political scenario, post general elections 2009, in India has taken a very interesting twist.

Sometime back it appeared like there is “tough competition” between Congress & BJP during the elections 2009; but subsequently it was a comprehensive victory for the Congress. A lot of things have changed since then. The BJP did not even give an impression of carrying out a proper postmortem and lessons learnt from the debacle. Instead the infighting within the party has just come out more in the open. This party needs a good leader; and unfortunately this has been a problem since Vajpayeeji retired from active politics. At this rate, instead of the second largest party, BJP is likely to become yet another party like CPI or DMK and so on. These are small parties who can be termed as party spoilers than someone who can create a significant impact or forming a government on their own. And the Third Front crashed even before it could take off.

On the other hand, take the Congress Party. They have exceeded people’s expectations. The strategy of gaining Uttar Pradesh was so well planned and executed. Superb! They got the best leaders at the helm - Sonia & Manmohan Singh. And Rahul is showing the right signs of becoming one of the influential and iconic leaders in the future. Congress ministers look more well-versed in their domains and look more capable than the counter parts in other parties. Congress shows clear signs of accountability, performance and the best thing is that they are bringing in youth into the mainstream. BJP is a big loser on this front.

Given the current trends, Congress party is the party for the future. It will be a while before any of the parties are even able to come close to them. The only thing is that Congress should not allow the victory to get into their head and end up doing something stupid; I guess the party is mature enough to manage that. I would even go one step further and say that they will get a clear majority during the next elections, and wouldnt need support from the smaller parties. They wouldnt need to handle messy situations like appeasing DMK and so on for portfolio assignment.

Way to go, Congress!

A Shame. Bangalore poll turnout not even 50%

What a shame! Bangalore poll turnout did not even touch 50%. Can you beat it that Bangalore Rural had more voter turnout than the urban areas? The rural population has shown that they are more responsible than the high profile and highly educated urban folks. There is a difference of atleast 10 to 12% b/w rural and urban areas. Its quite shocking to see that the turnout is this low after several public campaigns like Jaagore, Aamir Khan’s ADR campaign, and other such organizations. You cant blame work because most companies had closed to allow their employees to vote. So, what else was needed to get more than half of the urban Bangalore to vote?

Look at the voter turnout figures below -
Bangalore Rural 57.92%
Bangalore North 46.78%
Bangalore South 44.73%
Bangalore Central 45.25%

Lets stop blaming the government or the politicians for the state of road, infrastructure, corruption etc. We are the ones who are allowing them to do so by not even taking a small effort to vote. We have no right to sit back and simply blame or point fingers.

The other problem was that many people who wanted to vote could not get their names in the electoral rolls. For god’s sake, someone should fix this because this happens during every election. Why is the process so cumbersome/unreliable to get one’s name in the rolls? One of my colleagues has tried 4 times and hasn’t been able to get his name.

One encouraging news I read in TOI today is that Chief Electoral officer M N Vidyashankar has identified this problem and plans to set up a 24×7 Help desk through BangaloreOne centres. This will function through the year and not just before elections to tackle voter woes.

I sincerely hope our people act more responsibly and the voter turnout for next polls are high, and hope that we end up having a government that we want to see.