MAKE A DIFFERENCE:::::: PLEASE DON’T VOTE

"There is no point in voting. A pack of mentally challenged chimpanzees would run this country. Politicians are immoral, unnecessary and just don't work" bellowed my friend.

For many years, I have been prophesizing the benefits of voting; for years, I have been arguing with the Voter ID and the CENSUS people to get me on the voter list; for years, I have patiently followed each and every major political party’s written manifesto, election propaganda and actions. Hence, my ecstasy knew no bounds when I realized that after all these years, I would be in the country at the time of elections and finally cast my vote in favor of my chosen candidate. (I could have voted whilst abroad, but getting the consulates to make the process smooth in a foreign land is subject to theory only). As I was discussing this exciting, hopefully-once-in-five-years-event with a close friend, he retorted with many reasons to not cast a vote, and summed it all up with the line above.


He bellowed “Make a difference. Don’t vote. Utilize the time and energy to finish a profitable task for yourself “! He pointed out that more than 55% of us have never voted, and this year thanks to the IPL in South Africa, the number would touch 70%. ONE solitary vote won’t make any difference.

We sat down to draw up a list of as many reasons (serious or plain lame) that could be there to not vote in this year’s elections. The deal is that we would have to go through our own list a day before the election, and then make up our mind whether its being a good citizen by casting your vote and simply selecting the best amongst the worst of the lot, or more productive cleaning my toilet, reading a good book or watching TV.

So this is written with all hints of sarcasm and to be taken with a pinch of salt & pepper… and keep adding to the list! Hopefully, we’ll have it on the upswing and have a hundred reasons pre-election day! Cheers!!

Reasons for not voting in these elections

1. Politicians are immoral, unnecessary, and just don’t work (wouldn’t this be true for every politician who has walked the face of the earth though?)

2. You play hard to get. You want a party to do something for you: AVOID voting for them. Whether they come in power or not, they’d pursue you & try please you.

3. Most would ask you to "shut up"—that if you don't vote, you have no right to complain about politics or society. REALLY?! When you vote, you play into the hands of the ruling party. And then, you play by their rules. Remember how many people at bars complain about the fact that they can’t smoke there anymore? Now who made that rule? The Government. And who gave that power to the government? The voters! Au contraire, then, those who vote they should not complain. Those who don’t, can be whiners and grumblers all their lives! And that’s far more exciting than following the written word!


4. People would tell you “if everyone follows your words and don’t vote, then…” well, then GREAT! The only people voting then would be the political candidates themselves and their supporters. And if 99% of the population doesn’t vote, where is the majority?!

5. These resources being used for the elections can quite easily be better used for organizing IPL and other sports tournaments.

6. Come on, do we really care about cleanliness, healthcare and safety? When was the last time you stopped yourself from tossing garbage on the streets? When did you make a deal about too much noise in your locality? We never go to government hospitals, so let healthcare goto hell… and hey, if some women feel unsafe on the road at night, they should stay home; so what if the on-duty personnel has decided to take off for a movie?

7. Statisticians comment that it would be a mathematical miracle to make ONE solitary vote, YOUR vote make a difference; its all in the trends-like calculation of the TRPs or the Duckworth-Lewis in cricket. The collective effect of the votes is negated by the presence of anti social elements.

8. It’s all about the media and people’s perceptions change as advertisements change on TV & on social networking sites. Remember the movie “WAG THE DOG”? Hah! End of the day, the better marketed candidate on LinkedIN and Facebook would win!

8. Voting is a waste of time. Elections are rigged. In the sense, the more powerful dumbass gets to be the victor; end of the day, its dumbass against dumbass


9. Voting is dangerous. The probability of your vote making the difference in the outcome has a lower probability than some mad man shooting you down or driving over you on election day. Why risk it?

10. Does ANY politician offer anything new? Do we have even the basic necessities sorted? Can you get a glass of clean water in any village in the country? Well then why vote? Any winning party would make false promises and the viscous circle would continue. Why contribute to the chaos?You’ve never really voted, right? Why venture into the unknown?

11. Those who’ve voted before have always complained that their vote got wasted. Telling you, its all rigged


12. All of the media supports voting. If we vote, we support the media. Hey, the media should follow our thought process, not vice versa

13. Voting means taking a stance. Come on, who wants to leave the good-two-shoes position of the neutral man?


14. Eeeu. Most of our politicians look so old, hogged, ugly, and dirty. Who wants to make an effort to see a lot more of them around?

15. It’s all karma. All those who have voted, have complained of boyfriend/girlfriend issues, severe stress and aggravated emotional trauma. You don’t have to get into a similar group!

16. If you vote, you end up supporting one or the other evil; its just about thinking that who is the lesser evil

17. Voting is doing what they tell you to do; not voting is more controversial, rebellious hence a much cooler exercise!