Political Fatigue

Politics has become a way of life- especially in India where most live eat and breath politics.

With social media and especially whats app and twitter, shorter crispier and caustic conversations have become a norm. In India which is constantly in election mode- the tempo never gets off your back. Lok Sabha elections of 2024 was a back breaker- as if, more for voters than the ones who fought the elections. It was like test cricket- long drawn but not boring!


Political leaders, karya kartas and organisers are in it as a profession. They have no choice, like cricketers and actors. It is a life they have chosen. Yet the janta gets so involved as if it is a question of life and death for them. TV channels have a field day and they make it so juicy that most people watch the same news again and again in different languages as if a language can change the news.

A football match is for say 90 minutes a T20 for a few hours but political slugfest or tug of war, war of words- written and spoken goes on for months on. Political keeda refuses to let go like a political leach!

It gets very hot!

Fire builds more fire and media and social media adds fuel to the fire. Camps are divided- very clearly on God knows what criterion. Some are rationalists, some realists, some socialists, leftists, some nationalists and some just loyalists. Some right, some left, some centre, some right of centre some left of centre and some don’t know where they stand- but all of them stand for something and someone or the other- however mundane.

Political analysts and experts pop up like mushrooms in a jungle during rains or frogs in a puddle and they seem so confident about the topic on hand that they can get you by your neck and can convince you to the idea they profess. You don’t know who to believe.

Every one becomes a spokesperson for someone and every panellist is a political analyst.TV anchor divides them into for and against teams. They are grouped into two separate windows- side by side or one below the other. Some jumbo panels have six aside hockey teams! Including the anchor thirteen can just manage to fit in on the screen. It appears all of them are PhD in geopolitics or international relations- every one is a ‘visheshagya’- Aka expert.
People keenly watch which ministerial portfolio went to whom, from which part and why? Most may know very little about the span of control of a ministry but each has an ‘opinion’ a very strong opinion about the choice the CM/PM makes- why he put X and not Y in a ministry.

Every one has to put his penny’s worth in the selection process- OBC, SC/ST or Religion or caste analysis is done thread bare. Tribal, Brahmin, Jat or Yadav, I wonder how Washington post or New York Times can understand any of this- they pitch in to preach democracy. Even post elections Elon Musk has to open his big mouth regarding EVM hacking- he is talking about some other country yet we take it to heart.

Everyone is bothered as to how the PM will run the government and why so and so was dropped and so and so was taken in the cabinet. Will a coalition government last its full term without absolute majority or not is the question everyone must comment on. They are more worried than the PM.

Fights in the drawing rooms/bedrooms

Every day it is like India Pakistan match being watched on TV. People commenting in real time on whats app to friends and foe. Sometimes discussions get so heated that people become abusive as sworn enemies. You block those you don’t like! Unblock- fire and re-block so that the joker cannot respond!

Logic is often thrown out of the window. Everyone is so convinced about his or her conviction that you can never change their mind- ‘this is democracy, and I have my opinion- what is your problem?’

‘Arre yaar yeh padha likha anpadh hai- this is our problem- if a riksha wala said this I would accept it but not from him- bhai yeh Dilli university ka double MA hai or itna bada gadha!’

‘Don’t call me gadha or bewkoof OK- you are an idiot who has blinkers on and cannot see what is actu ally happening on ground. And feel so great how dare you compare me with a rikshaw wala?’.

‘yaar iske saath behas karne ka koi point nahi hai- iska IQ level itna low hai kya karo’

Over the dining table in one hour six people get abusive almost getting into a fist fight, and feel they have solved all the problems of India.

‘Boss Amreekans are bigger idiots than us. Look they are fighting for two idiots- Trump and Biden- do
Budhey- ek pagaal or doosre ka dimaag kaam nahi karta, bhai har desh main yahi chaal raha hai’.

Third one chips in ‘paar dekh lo , Rishi Sunak UK ka PM Indian hai- Narayan murthi ke pair chchoota hoga’.
‘You never know he will give Infosys some discounts’

‘Boss we all are chors iss liye hamay saab chor nazar atey hain’.

‘bhai DNA ki samasya hai’

‘yaar let us not take uneccessary credit- he is a Britisher- born Brit.’

‘Paar khoon to hamara he hai?’

‘yahan to gadhe ko ghoda bananay ki koshish ho rahi hai’ ‘since last thirty years’

‘pata nahi kaise itne senior well educated log chaploosi karte hain yaar’ ‘ assee saal ka budha iske peeche peeche chalta hai- besharam’.

‘Bhai 3 acre ki kothi Lyutens Delhi main, Bijli Pani, bhojan gadee free, koi responsibility nahi, Sirf TV ko bite do- fikar nahi- jimmewari nahi- mujhe koi dey to main bhee gadhy ko good morning sir boloonga- why not?’

‘Look I am prepared to accept anything but don’t blame our blood line or DNA’.

‘Paar yeh to centuries old problem hai- daal daal paar JAYCHAND HAI’

‘yahan jaiychand kahan se agaya? Baat Rishi Sunak ki ho rahi thee’

‘even you will sell yourself and your family if someone offers you 100 crores’

‘Now you are crossing the line bro’

‘I am not your bro bro’

‘This is hitting below the belt’

‘teri belt ke neeche hai kya?’

Now ladies jump in ‘please stop this nonsense- bahut ho gaya politics- now you are getting dirty in front of ladies- buss chup’

‘ Chalo bhai before we have a scuffle, let us have ice cream and move on’

‘Arrey Billoo Kulfi laya hai- falooda hai Bhabhi ji?’

‘But don’t forget we are meeting for the morning walk tomorrow- don’t be late- rest tomorrow ke liye’

‘OK folks good night’

‘Drive carefully after drinks- and just chill’

PS
This time all Poll pundits, analysts, experts and psephologists
went totally wrong.

‘Aglee baar ham phir ayenge ek bar’ say the pollsters.

The nation suffers from political fatigue- but imagine those who campaigned in sweltering heat for months on are back to business the very next day- cobbling alliances- deciding who is who and who will be where and who will be nowhere.

Life must go on.