Back when the Supreme Court deallocated all the captive coalblocks, it had felt like a victory of the little people. A number of “nobodies” — activists from states like Chhattisgarh, anonymous CAG officials, lawyers, low-profile politicians — had flagged the issue of corruption in captive coal block allocation and, despite opposition from industrialists and their lackeys in politics and even investigative agencies, seen the process through to its final denouement — deallocation.
Yesterday, as votes got counted, history repeated itself. Between 8 AM and 1130 AM, the poor of this country — dalits, adivasis, farmers, muslims, youngsters and others — voted against authoritarianism and majoritarianism. This was the last bulwark for the country. None of India’s much-vaunted defences — institutions like the NHRC or the election commission; its courts; its lily-livered, cynical, corrupt-as-all-hell and profoundly-dunderheaded-to-boot news media — put up a fight. But once more, the poor of the country have voted for democracy. As Ashok Vajpeyi had told me a couple of years ago, the Constitution is a more progressive document than any religion in this country. Indians don’t want the rights it confers messed with. After seventy years of independence, it’s now also hardwired into the janta’s thinking that governments serve at its pleasure. The BJP, with its attempts to rule through fear and coercion, has now been shown its place.
My brain is still a mash-mash of thoughts. A part of me is thinking, as the preceding lines show, about people’s desire for democracy. Odd, isn’t it? All this time, surveys have told us Indians want autocratic leaders. I am also thinking about the minor miracle we saw. The BJP had just begun talking about a 1,000 year reign. People were wondering how long it would take for its chokehold over the country to be loosened — especially with it brainwashing every new generation through school textbooks, social media disinformation architectures, mass media and whatnot. As it turned out, it took six hours of vote counting.
This is how yesterday played out.
9:07: 215/543. BJP 111. Cong 42. BJP seat share: 51% (At this time, thanks to the shenanigans at Surat, the BJP already has one victory).
9:30: 311/543. BJP 152. CONG: 61. SP: 32. TDP: 12. BJP seat share: 48%
10:00: 457/543. BJP 209. Cong: 80. SP: 29. DMK: 13. AITC: 13. BJP seat share: 45%
10:30: 516/543. BJP. 223. Cong: 96. SP: 34. AITC: 23. DMK: 17. TDP: 15. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 8. BJP: 43%
11:00: 539/543. BJP. 237. Cong: 97. SP: 34. AITC: 23. DMK: 20. TDP: 15. JDU: 15. SSUBT: 11. NCPSP: 8. BJP: 43.9%.
11:30: 543/543. BJP: 237 (including the win). Cong: 98. SP: 34. AITC: 28. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP. 8. SSSHP: 6. RJD: 5. BJP: 43.6%
12:00: 543/543. BJP. 234. Cong: 98. SP:36. AITC: 32. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 11. NCPSP: 8. RJD: 5. BJP: 43.0%. (A sudden jump in BJP numbers follows)
1230: 543/543. BJP: 244. Cong: 94. SP: 33. AITC: 30. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 15. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 8. RJD: 4. BJP: 44.9%
1300: 543/543. BJP: 242. Cong: 94. SP: 36. AITC: 31. DMK: 21: TDP: 16. JDU: 15. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 7. RJD: 4. BJP: 44.5%
1330: 543/543. BJP: 241. Cong: 96. SP: 37. AITC: 31. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 15. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 8. SSSHS: 6. RJD: 3. BJP: 44.3%
1400: 543/543. BJP: 238. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 31. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 15. SSUBT: 11. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 5. BJP: 43.8%
1430: 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 98. SP: 37. AITC: 31. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 11. NCPSP: 6. SSSHS: 5. BJP: 44.1%
1500. 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 99. SP: 36. AITC: 30. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 11. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 5. BJP: 44.1%
1545: 543/543. BJP: 242. Cong: 100. SP: 33. AITC: 29. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.5%
1600: 543/543. BJP: 243. Cong: 99. SP: 33. AITC: 29. DMK: 21. TDP: 16. JDU: 14. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.7%
1630: 543/543. BJP: 244. Cong: 98. SP: 34. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 13. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 7. BJP: 44.9%
1700: 543/543. BJP: 243. Cong: 98. SP: 35. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.7%
1730: 543/543. BJP: 241. Cong: 99. SP: 36. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.3%
1804: 543/543. BJP: 241. Cong: 98. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.3%
1830: 543/543. BJP: 241. Cong: 98. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.3%
1916: 543/543. BJP: 239. Cong: 99. SP: 38. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 7. BJP: 44.0%
1916: 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 7. BJP: 44.1%
2030: 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.1%. By this time, Jairam Ramesh has tweeted saying the ECI is counting slowly in UP and Bihar. By now, though, the ECI, which has held a foul press conference previous day dismissing concerns about electoral malpractice as “fake narratives” and “toolkits”, is more circumspect. Like the rest of India, it too is in the dark by now re who will form the next government. Despite a number of closely fought constituencies in the fray, final numbers do not change dramatically.
2300. 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 10. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 6. BJP: 44.1%
0000. 543/543. BJP: 241. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 7. SSSHS: 7. BJP: 44.3%
FINAL: 543/543. BJP: 240. Cong: 99. SP: 37. AITC: 29. DMK: 22. TDP: 16. JDU: 12. SSUBT: 9. NCPSP: 8. SSSHS: 7. BJP: 44.1%
Odd. Innit? Sometimes, history does turn on a dime. The BJP now needs support from Nitish and Naidu. It remains to be seen if Modi and Shah will manage to hold their seats. In the meantime, their aura of hegemony has been shattered. The country’s institutions should work better now. My friends and I, for sure, are feeling free-er today.
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