My first Elections

My first elections

In school I had read and studied about elections. We were told that what sets India apart is the fact that we have a government which is elected by the people for the people and is constituted of the people. Such glorification of this great democratic exercise led me to believe that whatever may happen, in the end it is the power which is with the people will prevail. Though our system maybe corrupt, the freedom to vote and elect our government will nullify everything.
Hence continuing with my good faith in our democratic system I eagerly awaited my first elections. I was told that college elections will be fun and they surely were. We could get good long breaks in between the classes when candidates came for campaigning. Speech day was fun too. One could shout as much as he wanted. But of course you could not hear any of the speeches because of that shouting. Still, it was nothing what I had expected this GREAT DEMOCRATIC EXERCISE to be. Elections were supposed to start at 8.30 am. But at that time, college was practically deserted. Identification cards were not checked while allowing the entry. The best part was that I was still not sure to whom to vote for. My friends guided me regarding that and I finally voted. As far as university elections are considered, I simply did not know which candidate belonged to which party. So again, my good old friends came to my rescue.
This surely was not what I had elections to be. But then strangely, I am not very heart broken or disappointed though my so called faith has shaken up.
After giving the issue a thought I have come to the conclusion that maybe I am politically ignorant. Maybe it is just that I do not care enough who gets elected. Maybe I have this I don’t give a damn attitude towards the whole process though I don’t want to accept it. And finally maybe somewhere in my heart I know that all the high ideals I had about elections were a farce and a way to affirm my faith in the system I have been living in and living with.