'Caste'-ing the vote

Not long ago I was venturing through my ancestral land in Bihar. It was not just any time of the year. It was during a peculiar festival that I was roving through my village. It was the time of the Panchayat ( local body) elections. The colorful streets with flags hoisted at every corner, the untamed enthusiasm of people and the uncanny slogans and marching bands were no less festive than what Times Square is during Christmas and new year. 

Elections in Bihar is a mega event and undoubtedly the most awaited one. Albeit the democratic purpose behind elections, the real deal in these elections is not so pious. Our driver knew exactly how many votes each candidate will win. He was no soothsayer but still, he knew it all. How? Well, voting in these villages is not based solely on the work of candidates or popularity or even their intentions or vision for development. The people cast their votes based on caste. I know it rhymes! This melody however is a malady that the country is suffering from. 

The framers of our constitution wanted to rid the country of caste biases. 75 years have gone since but the bitterness of the caste system still spoils the taste of Indian democracy. The reservation policy that was meant to reduce the social differences that plagued India within a time frame of 10 years became a political phantom outliving its life span because its removal will result in unpleasant uprisings and implicate the vote bank. In fact, reservation has expanded to please the people. 

The real devilish caste system continues to haunt many. It thrives in many societies and the government has only postmortem actions that sue the perpetrators, that too if the incident is reported. Maybe, we as a nation failed to uplift those who needed it the most. Maybe we made a political joke about the whole issue. Maybe we still have time to mend the follies of the past but given the fate of the farm laws, the ever-increasing agony against reforms is indeed a reality of this democracy.