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| << March21, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net] Indian Tax payer and the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas |
March22, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Visually-challenged becomes doctor >> |
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No strings attached: NGOs enter mainstream politics NDTV Correspondent Saturday, March 20, 2004 (New Delhi): Nice people do not fight elections and that is what most of us believe because in our minds elections are all about money and muscle power. But for the first time hundreds of NGOs have decided that they will give professional politicians and political parties, a run for their money. So they have got together and are putting up candidates all across the country, each with their own quiet campaigning style. Sunil is standing for elections. Of course, he does not have the funds, the colourful posters and musclemen. But what he has is an ability to speak to the adivasis, dalits and the poor in Madhya Pradesh's Hoshangabad district, who have been displaced by development in the form of dams and new forest laws. Political representation Sunil, who used to be a student activist in Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University started one of the most successful cooperative societies in the region, organising the people to fight injustice. But over time he realized that without political representation, nothing can get done. "Our elected representatives have always betrayed us. We have no voice in the corridors of power. No one who will take up our issues. So this step became inevitable," said Sunil. Electioneering material The crux of Sunil's campaign is a pamphlet with 20 questions for Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and it is also the basic electioneering material for other candidates of his party, the Samajwadi Jan Parishad (SJP). "We are confident of making a difference to electoral politics. The choice cannot continue to be only between the BJP and the Congress," said Shameem Modi, SJP candidate. Grassroot agencies The SJP is part of a larger initiative by 200 grassroot agencies across India to participate in the elections so that the democratic space is not entirely taken over by mainstream professional politicians. But they all agree their appeal is limited since the urban middle class sees them as people who refuse to move with the times. "People in towns think that since we work in the adivasi areas, we represent only their interests. But this is not true," said Phagiram, SJP member. But despite the knowledge that they might not be able to challenge mainstream parties, these leaders are determined to put up a fight. They say they will start by making a dent in the system and then maybe some day change it in favour of those who have lost out. |
| << March21, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net] Indian Tax payer and the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas |
March22, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]Visually-challenged becomes doctor >> |
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