When People Speak, Listen

Editorial:-

Before it is time for the evening tea today, the people’s verdict for the next five years will be clear. There will celebrations in some corners, dejection in others; and surprises and shocks as rejections and endorsements are dished out in ample measure. Psephology is a very uncertain science when applied to our country and speculations on what the EVMs hold are best made in private, but what is certain though is that the State government for the next term, irrespective of the seat-share, will be one voted into power by the most number of Sikkimese, ever. The voter count has gone up substantially since 2009, and the voter turnout has held steady at around 82%, as a result, 2.80 lakh people cast their votes on 12 April 2014. Compare this with the 76,299 voters who elected the first Bhandari-led Government in Sikkim in 1979, or even the 1,78,023 who voted in 1994 [when the first SDF Government was elected], and the scale of endorsement that the new government will enjoy becomes apparent. In a country where governments are being formed by opportunistic alliances and slim shares of the now-finally-warming-up voter response, Sikkim will again have a government that most of its adults [82%] decided to have a share in electing to power. And this should be the message that underlines the verdict that Sikkim posts today.

Once the elections results are declared, analysis and commentary will start pouring out from the woodwork. There will also be allegations ranging from condemnations of communal voting patterns to intimidation and definitely some imaginative suggestions in line with some of the hilariously puerile arguments that the campaign trail in Sikkim was littered with. That is expected, because politics has not yet matured to the level of giving Sikkim sporting losers or even gracious victors [except in clean sweep scenarios]. The rumour mill is already suggesting that the post-verdict scenario will not necessarily have victors as magnanimous as is easy to be in victory. Let’s hope that the whisper brigade is wrong once again in Sikkim. What needs to be borne in mind is that Elections 2014, even if the campaigning was a tad boring when it comes to debating issues and too vitriolic when it came to running down opponents, was the strongest celebration of democracy in Sikkim thus far. The campaigning was peaceful even if the pre-campaign days were violent, and the polling passed without any untoward incident. Most of the ingredients required for a healthy democracy were noticeably present – the number of candidates was respectable enough even though the contest was essentially two-way and the expressions of support open and loud confirming a maturing democratic space, and as mentioned, the voter turnout the highest ever in Sikkim. These factors deserve universal celebration, cutting across party lines in Sikkim. While this celebration is underway, let us also bear in mind that when so many free citizens express themselves, unanimity is not always possible; majority opinion will definitely be there, but unanimity might not only not be possible, but is perhaps not even healthy. Democracy requires a certain amount of dissent to stay sharp and healthy itself and also keep governments responsive and responsible.

Now, to see how Sikkim has spoken. And for those who care to listen, remember, this is the time for celebrations, irrespective of victory or loss, not the moment to settle scores or even dish out rewards. This is also the moment to listen and understand what the people have said through the EVMs.