‘We can no longer be certain our vote will have a say’

The ideology of a candidate and the party he belongs to are very important to me. As a person from a marginalised caste, I find there is little representation of Dalit issues in mainstream political parties—this despite the city’s anti-caste legacy. I have found only the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi coming out openly against the sub-categorisation of scheduled castes, something which most Dalits are opposed to.

Muscle power and majoritarian politics take up the stage because it is only thanks to money that political parties are able to gain power and votes. People buy into this, as they are threatened that the free perks they are receiving will stop if the party loses. I can’t blame the people for this, as they are desperate due to unemployment and inflation. This is the ecosystem that has been created instead of one which is more sustainable for everyone.

From what I have seen, only the dominant parties occupy the space for campaigning, and it does feel like voting for a smaller party that aligns with my ideology would have no effect.

The spate of defections and splits in the parties over the last term has also decreased my trust in political parties, and we can no longer be certain our vote will have a say. It is a betrayal of the voter, and some mechanisms should be put in place to stop it.

As a doctor at a government hospital, it is also increasingly clear that healthcare is not the foremost priority for political parties. The only exceptions are when an issue catches steam, like with the incident at Kolkata’s R G Kar hospital that mobilised many people across the country. Walk into any BMC hospital, and you will see that things are in desperate need of improvement, due to which violence against doctors is increasing.

There is a dire need to increase the health budget. This should be a given for a party with a scientific temperament, but the latter quality is sorely lacking in our political landscape.

(As told to Sabah Virani)