The term 'psephology' is derived from the word 'pebble' in Greek. The Greeks used to vote with the help of pebbles when they had to elect a leader in the ancient times. Now that the etymology is clear, we can move to the more metaphorical use of the word.
I have not always been 'visibly' enthusiastic about elections and who wins by what margin the Indian subcontinent majorly because I know my place in the country that is dominated by the likes of those who would rather operate from blind faith than pick up the Bhagwad Gita by themselves to see what is inside of it. I am fortunate that my friend circle is no longer constituted by those who think having a political opinion is useless because 'What do we gain by just discussing about who should reign or not? That is not my headache..." My political opinions do not see the light of the day most of the times owing to the minority section of society I belong to and to a religion that has the most number of reverts in the world.
My doctoral thesis dealt with students and their machinery to bring about change in the post world war scenario and significantly after independence. To talk to me about how political parties and their peculiar ways to gain public trust, especially the youth is no surprise to me because I, as a research scholar will read against the grain (look for gaps in academia) every single time someone mentions that something is either black or white, no greys.
I do not pick sides until I see there is something fundamentally wrong in the way of things or someone who simply attempts to bring about some change. Bias, no. Opinion, definitely yes. I have friends who work for a political party that is hated by liberals. But I like the way in which they operate in their respective constituencies.
What does bug me is when people shout at the top of their voices trying to make a point before the poll results are out. And all the arguments they put forth make no sense and this is why---- they do not talk about youth, or what the youth stands for. A bunch of 50- 60 year old men screaming at the top of their lungs to make a point, a point that has nothing to do with usage of resources, generating employment or dealing with lesser known issues. A certain person did that for a while and then the public started wondering if he was a better actor than his actress wife.
While people wondered what the results would be like, I had an epiphany that no matter who comes to power in the state elections, the course of development or change in society would not really be possible because of the mindset of the people residing in the particular state. In a world where we seek development and progress, we also are aware than Indians do not deserve development. Records have shown how new transportation or any new service that was introduced to the masses met with highly disgusting behaviour, far from civility and it was impossible to conclude if people were even literate.
We are not only talking about politics here. Consider an office setup. When you take a look around, you will find those who work the least are favoured more than the ones who work their butts off. If the leader of the team gets to know you are efficient, you will not be applauded but more work will be dumped on you because 'you are good'. I have friends in the corporate sector and all they do is say "I am swamped with..."
The fundamental structure of society is corrupted, we can blame the politicians but the main question actually is-- do we even deserve progress? On a molecular level, many things have gone awry in the last 5- 6 years and on some level post covid era just looks like we have gone back a 100 years.
When you look at the predictions about which party should rule and may rule for a certain tenure, nobody wants to discuss the major themes in the news channels. Of course, media is bought, I know that--- the industrialists and tycoons buy the channels, trying to encroach on areas that are sacred and justifying inhuman treatment of certain marginalised sections of society. 'Pebbled' brains, I guess.
We blame politicians because they hold offices of 'power' and people look upto them for emancipation. We are going the wrong way. We fail to acknowledge that it is power that makes an authority feel threatened. What will happen if people quit altogether? What should even happen if people resigned because a certain employee faces discrimination on any ground at all? It is easier said than done but I guess, we forget that as people, humans of society we have a lot more power. History is witness to the fact that mass revolts have happened for a change to take place. Some might even say, "Oh it is easy to be saying this stuff sitting in an AC room and typing it out, pointing fingers and going on a whataboutery..." Protest at any level matters. Don't believe me? Search Jitu Munda on Google, a tribal man who exhumed the body of his dead sister to prove bank officials that she was indeed no more. You will find what happened a week later, thanks to the social media outrage and extensive coverage by internet journalists. If you want more proof, search Nepal GenZ protests of 2025.
The predictions about elections have now reduced themselves to living room wagers. I will leave you with something to think about.
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