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Young blood not raring to vote

Elections are upon us, but are youths really interested? K. PRADEEP finds that some are disillusioned, others plainly confused, while some feel the right candidates are yet to come

It's hard not to be informed of politics and elections these days. Take a walk down the street and your eye is sure to get hooked on to huge billboards and graffiti. Flip the radio station and there are at least 20 people talking about this or that politics. Turn on the television and there it is. It is simply impossible for someone to be oblivious of it. Whether you like it or not, one is going to have some idea about what politics is all about.

Look around again. Train your eyes to campuses, coffee shops, shopping malls, or any of those teenage-haunts. It is a different world. A good number of youngsters out there are rooted in the moment, cocooned in their own interests and aspirations. The young adults constitute a culture completely removed from the adult society. They possess their own values, language, tastes and interests, all of which cause them to be politically disinterested.

Colleges were till recently fertile breeding ground for politics. Units of leading political parties, campaigning, the excitement of elections, violence was integral to life on the campus. A legal order restraining political activities on the campus brought an end to this in most of the colleges in the State. Now we have teenagers who are abreast of the prevailing political temper, immersed in political activities and act as lead campaigners during elections. We have others who have progressed to anger, cynicism, and sometimes to learned helplessness. And another group who are totally disinterested in the whole process.

Lack of role models

"Colleges should be exclusively academic zones. In most colleges, like in ours, we have only checked political parties and politicisation. But it does not mean that the students are not exposed to or are not aware of the swings and trends in politics. But of late I have noticed a general revulsion for politics. One reason for this is lack of political role models. They do not spend much time discussing it, are more concerned about their future and in debating on various other subjects," says Leslie Pallath, principal, St. Albert's College.

But there are many principals who think differently on the issue. Varghese John, principal, Union Christian College, Aluva, has a different opinion. "We are one of the few colleges in the city that still encourages campus politics. The elections were held very peacefully last academic year and the elected union did a wonderful job. My personal experience has been that the youth of today is very much aware of politics and every aspect of electioneering. Of course, there are students who are not interested but isn't that a reflection of a general trend?"

With the Assembly elections round the corner there are youngsters who live in a borderline world, devoid of serious concerns and moral obligations. It is not that they do not understand democracy, government and elections are salient parts of their lives, but it is only that there is apathy. If there is a disinterest among the youngsters it is, to a certain extent, justified. Most of them are disillusioned with the antiquated system and dream of a change. Vivek. S. Menon, a final year engineering student has this to say. "There is nothing that the youngsters can look forward to from the present system. We have political parties that are busy with their in-house wrangles and others that are so blatantly anti-development. Just compare our State to some of our neighbouring ones and you'll feel the difference. If we have a party comprising youngsters, like the IITians formed recently, I and my friends would surely vote for them."

Cynical attitudes to voting, poor understanding of the electoral process, confusion regarding the candidates and their policies are sometimes overriding sentiments during elections. But can these be reasons enough to remain indifferent? "This is bad. We live in a country that has such a system. Agreed, it has its advantages and disadvantages but election is the heart of the system. We may not have the right candidates but that must not put one off from being part of the election process. It is the right of a citizen to exercise his or her franchise. This, in a small way at least, is being involved in the whole process. Indifference, apathy and not participating in the election is a very bad trend," feels Abhijath Venugopal, a young professional.

Political groups are attempting to respond to the growing number of young people realising how crucial their influence can be. But the youth feel that this response, if any, has been slow. "Old people and old views. There is nothing much the present lot can do to attract the young generation into the process. It is time that new and fresh ideas came in. We need more qualified personnel as candidates," says Narayanan, a first year degree student.

Alienation of youth

Every time elections are held a good number of youths don't vote, that is indicative of the general alienation among the youth. Surprisingly very little research is done on youth voting or non-voting pattern.

First-time voters seem to be totally disinterested. Most of them seem uninterested in even verifying the electoral list to find out whether their names are in print in the basic document. "Have those involved in the electoral process ever thought of what happens to a huge chunk which does not vote? I don't think so. I know of a huge disinterested group. Some of them have not cast their votes at all. I feel they do not realise how important, and what a responsible thing it is to vote. Perhaps later on in life, when the confusion that now exists gets cleared they would get more involved," reveals Rohini, a C.A. student.

Attitude aside, elections will remain the core of a democratic system. Changes, like always, will be snail-paced. Till then, like the saying goes, `Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights. Get up, stand up, don't give up the fight.'

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