Know your MP!

Do you know your MP?

Well I do know the name of my constituency's (Chandigarh) representative - Pawan Kumar Bansal. And I do know that he's part of the Indian National Congress. Apart from that, I confess I don't really know anything.

But perhaps maybe we should care a bit more. We do tend to spend too much time looking at affairs at the Centre level; will the Left rejoin the UPA this time around? Fascinating political stuff no doubt, but not one to directly impact our everyday lives. Our own local MP - slightly more relevant!

Every election has its fair share of independent candidates, more than what you think. They usually have low profiles, low finances, hardly a clear political mandate, and ultimately tend to fail miserably at the ballot box. But a few times, some committed independents do stand a chance - when the electorate is fed up of the existing options and the new option resembles a breath of fresh air.

Take the case of Meera Sanyal, whose enjoyed a lot of publicity recently. The current Chief Executive of ABN Amro in India, Sanyal has taken a sabbatical from work and has announced her candidature in the upcoming General Elections of 2009 from the South Mumbai constituency. Inspired by the outburst of the general public in the aftermath of the 26/11 terrorist attacks, Sanyal's campaign slogan is 'lets get Mumbai back on track'. She proclaims her 'Punch-a-mantra' as -

1. More Investment for Infrastructure in Mumbai
2. A Radically Improved Public Transport System
3. Stronger Security
4. Systemic Reforms through the Nagara Raj Bill
5. Directly Elected and Empowered Mayor

See something different? Any mention of reservations in educational institutions for any particular caste? What about points for or against the Indo-US Nuclear Deal? What about 'realistic claims' like fixing the price of rice of Rs. 2 per kg?

In fact, there are no national issues at stake here. All 5 points concern MUMBAI, which happens to be the very location of the seat being contested. Before deriding the sarcasm, do think how many other candidates talk seriously about local issues. And when do you ever listen to them? I'm pretty sure if youre a BJP / Congress supporter, you'll vote for pretty much anyone who your preferred party will put up to contest the elections. Kumar this time, Raj the next, who cares about the guy? After all, isnt it more important to make sure the right party comes to power at the Centre?

Not quite. Let me refresh what I wrote in an earlier article (System Overhaul?)-

'The point of parliamentary democracy is to choose your own area's representatives. These representatives, based on ideologies are members of political parties. And the party with the most number of seats in the national assembly chooses a representative to lead the government, and effectively, the country.'

It makes more sense to vote for who the right MP is. And if you agree so much with your preferred party, you really should agree with their candidate, right?

Sanyal's announcement has gained national publicity. Her idea is good, tackling real issues is what politics is intended to be. But dont fool yourself into thinking that she is a front runner. The odds are still stacked against her. She might have the support of the English-speaking, but in a representative democracy, the masses are what win you the seat. And wherever the masses are involved, a huge amount of unpredictability follows. MIP does wish Sanyal luck, if she is true to her word, Mumbai will stand to benefit greatly.

But what about all you other readers residing in different parts of the country? Do you know your MP? Well very simply, just long on to - http://www.hindustantimes.com/Loksabha2009/

Type in your location to personalize your election page. A resident of Kolkata, after simply trying 'Kolkata' will get access to all 42 MP's from West Bengal. If you live in the 'Calcutta North East' constituency, simply click on the name of the constituency and you will see that your MP is Mohammed Salim, a 46 year old representative of the CPI(M), attended 87% of Parliamentary meetings, and participated in 59 Parliamentary debates.

Similarly, you can see 'Development Data' as of 2008, compared with that of 2004, to see the progress made under the incumbent MP. Lastly, Hindustan Times provided location-customized election news. So now you can keep track of the politics concerning the area where you reside!

Go ahead, have a look. Know more about your MP. Judge for yourself from the development data whether he's done a good job. The General Elections are for determining the next National Government, but are also for determining the fates of 552 constituencies all around the country.