February 9, 1998

By Dilip Bobb

Rural India has been strangely silent, except for the times when Sonia makes her grand entrance and prompts the Mexican Wave. Maybe they are as confused as everybody else regarding who to vote for in the coming elections. Or perhaps they are saving their collective wisdom till the time is right to make their momentous decision. Either way, in their calloused hands, rests the fate of the next Lok Sabha. Here's a typical meeting of village elders as they discuss the key issues and options.

1st Elder: My fellow villagers, what we sow others are going to reap so we must be careful about deciding who gets our vote. It is time to separate the wheat from the chaff.

2nd Elder: We have been trying to do that for the last 30 years and look where it has got us. We now have more chaff than wheat. Let us first look at the facts. What choices do we have?

3rd Elder: It's very simple. There's one party with a prime ministerial candidate, another where the star campaigner doesn't want to be prime minister or even lead the party, a third with too many prime ministerial candidates and then there's poor Mani Shankar Aiyar who doesn't even have a party...

1st Elder: That is much too confusing for us poor illiterate farmers. Let's look at the main issues.

2nd Elder: That's even more confusing. We have the bjp promising stability and clean government. The Congress is promising stability and Sonia Gandhi. The United Front is saying that it still has promises to keep and the Left is not making any promises at all, except to keep the IMF out.

3rd Elder: IMF?

2nd Elder: Indian-made Foreigners.

1st Elder: Let's look at personalities then. That Vajpayee seems a reasonable chap. Anybody who recites poetry all the time can't be that bad.

2nd Elder: He may sing a different tune after the elections.

1st Elder: What about Sonia Gandhi?

2nd Elder: She isn't even standing from Amethi which means we will be stuck with Sitaram Kesri, who can barely stand.

3rd Elder: So where does that leave us?

1st Elder: Where we have been for the last five elections. No credible issues, no credible parties, no credible leaders. Our vote must convey our protest.

3rd Elder: How?

2nd Elder: By voting for Mani Shankar Aiyar.

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