New Delhi: (Captain GR Gopinath founded Air Deccan and is considered a pioneer in the low-cost airline sector. He joined Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party in January this year.)As the sun set on Election Day 17th of April, the Election Commission website showed a dismal voter turnout of around 54 per cent for the three urban constituencies of Bangalore. A most shocking, and shameful performance which took most people by surprise. (
Low voter turnout shames India's IT city Bangalore)
The software professionals of the famed metro simply fled the city to the cool climes of neighbouring hill districts of Chikmagalore and Coorg for a long weekend where whiskey in hand, they could bemoan our corruption, our awful infrastructure and abuse our venal politicians and wax eloquent about a glittering Dubai and an impressive Singapore or an idyllic Switzerland. (
Watch: Is there apathy among voters in Bangalore?)
The dismal show is perplexing many poll watchers.
In this election, parties fielded fairly good candidates in all the Bangalore constituencies. Among them was the Aam Aadmi Party's V Balakrishnan, former CFO of the iconic Infosys. During the Anna movement against corruption, Bangalore was the most vibrant city after Delhi. In recognition of this, other parties fielded high-profile and clean candidates, notable among them Nandan Nilekani, former CEO of Infosys and Chairman of the Adhaar project, who contested from Bangalore South from the Congress. He is widely acknowledged as a very capable man. (
Read: In Karnataka, big guns battle it out)
The city gave another famous gift to India for increasing voter awareness by an NGO led by well-known civic activist Ramesh Ramanathan which created the movement Jago Re, which appeals to people, especially the youth, to come out and vote. Jago Re started to work with the youth even before the last general elections five years ago. Eminent entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar Shaw together with respected professionals like Mohan Das Pai founded an organisation called B-PAC to promote voter participation and to help voters decide how to evaluate candidates.
But all this to no avail. Urban Bangalore's turnout was a poor 54 percent.
Rural Bangalore recorded 72 percent, Chickmagalore constituency in the rainy season where many voters have to trek three to four kilometres over hills and valleys to reach a polling booth, recorded over 70 percent. Rural Karnataka has averaged 68 percent. Our farmers and tribal people and our artisans and labourers in villages are much better people and citizens, than us in the city who live in our cocoon of complacency. Of what use then, is our education?
AAP expected a strong voter turnout which would go in its favour- in the Delhi election in December, Bangalore was No 2 in donations to the party. The BJP, riding the Modi wave, expected urban voters to support him. The Congress was hoping for a tail wind.
One explanation for the low turnout could be that cynicism and distrust took the better of our educated urban elite because AAP has lost its sheen after quitting the Delhi government. The BJP may have isolated voters by taking back tainted leaders like BS Yeddyurappa. And Chief Minister Siddaramaiah of the Congress is seen as honest but anti-business.
But it bears repetition at the risk of sounding preachy to repeat, in spite of all the ills in our country, that we will have no worthy future if we do not take part in scripting our future.
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