By William Walker.
Largest Indian district goes to the polls as candidates target religion and caste.
India is a powerhouse of development. For a populous that far exceeds one billion denizens, it boasts the world’s ninth largest economy in terms of GDP and possesses an impressive bronze medal in Purchasing Power Parity. It is also a country, however, marred by centuries of British exploitation, internal strife and a repressive system of social castes.
It is these very issues that are most central to the people of Uttar Pradesh, a district of India so vast were it to declare independence; its population of over 200 million would become the fifth largest nation on the planet. It is no surprise, therefore, that during the current round of local elections, prospective candidates are espousing all manner of rhetoric in their efforts to cultivate the deep and fiercely embedded demographics that comprise the area.
The idea of caste may have no legal or valuable relevance in modern society but in the North West of India it is still a highly pertinent issue. The “untouchables”, placed at the lowest extremity of Indian society make up a large proportion of Uttar Pradesh and thus a large section of the electorate.
Of particular interest to the parties are the Muslim population, of which 18% of the locals ascribe. Despite insistences to the contrary many perceive a “block-voting” mentality, and parties have seized on this by offering outlandish and often bizarre incentives to vote. One timely offer, more reasonable than the propaganda and rhetoric that surrounds many of the party campaigns, is the introduction of a 4.5% quota of jobs in government and education positions for this religious community, who feel at odds with the overwhelmingly Hindu population.
Although it may not seem immediately apparent from the bustling modernization of Agra, literacy levels in this region are some of the lowest in India, particular with women, and mortality rates are under the national average. It is these issues that the parties currently vying for power are keen to emphasize, but it is these same issues that have been attacked by the very same parties in similar, previous elections.
The world will know the result by early March, and it will go a long way towards predicting further elections in the country. It seems that in a country in which ageing systems of social inequality persist a great deal is needed to effect change, and perhaps a great deal more than the words of yet another in a long list of contestants.
