Prathamesh Murkute explains why he has volunteered his personal time and money to support a movement called the Aam Aadmi Party.
Debates about inequality, crony capitalism, corruption, water disputes and land grabs were not new at my home.
My family and my friends have varied opinions and don't hesitate to express them.
In fact, when the first Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi resigned after 49 days, nobody held back their views. Just like they had not restrained their words when Anna Hazare and Arvind Kerjriwal took separate roads due their differing opinions about the Jan Lokpal movement.
They had a point to make; that good people cannot stay together for long, they cannot deliver, they will always fight and end up dismantling what they were trying to achieve.
At first, it was the Jan Lokpal movement.
Then came the AAP resignation in Delhi.
It was in the midst of all this turmoil, one fine Sunday, that the realisation dawned on me: If we want this new movement, this experiment, to succeed, we all must act. It’s easy to be an armchair critic, to debate issues; it’s much more difficult to actually try and do something about it.
For the first time I really understood the saying: The greatest tragedy is not the strident clamour of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people.
I had to break this appalling silence.
If I could see the hurdles in our political system, the least I could do was alert people and support those who were trying to find a solution. And the only way to change things then was to be part of the change.
That Sunday, I officially jumped into the fray. I joined the Aam Aadmi Party.
The journey, thereafter, has been quite dramatic.
My first experience of a political campaign was the Lok Sabha election.
After the hectic campaigning for various AAP candidates in Mumbai, including the much-respected Medha Patkar, we moved to other parts of the country, at our own cost, to do whatever was required.
The biggest electoral contest, however, was Varanasi, where we all finally convened to help Arvind Kejriwal take on Narendra Modi.
I had skipped the marriage of my first cousin to go Varanasi, which my family was very unhappy about.
Some of my friends had postponed their PhD thesis submissions. Others had sacrificed their promotions in order to take leave during the elections. Some donated their hard-earned salaries. Still others had shut down their businesses in order to devote their finances and their attention to this new movement.
In the end, when the results were announced, it was a shock. Many of us wondered whether what we were doing was futile. It was depressing to see how people rejected so many social workers, who were otherwise hailed for their selfless devotion towards improving India’s social fabric.
The defeat of Medha Patkar, for whom we campaigned very strongly, was a huge disappointment.
Meanwhile, some key members in the party had become unreachable. Some left the party.
Various allegations swirled around AAP -- that there was no internal democracy, that Arvind was a dictator and what not.
What kept us going, apart from our conviction in the party’s agenda, was the love and faith strangers showed in us when we were campaigning.
People who would come with a glass of water or a packet of biscuits when we were campaigning at railway stations.
People would get down of their vehicles when they saw us distributing pamphlets, waving flags, holding a street play or taking part in a road march and talk to us.
They would discuss their doubts, donate money then and there and proactively seek a receipt.
When the watchman in a society didn’t allow us to enter, the chairman came down to receive us and personally took us to all the flats there.
Such experiences assured us that people were rooting for AAP; that it was just a matter of time before the party found more supporters.
Equally encouraging were the mohalla sabhas conducted by AAP MLAs in Delhi and the way they spent their funds. AAP, in these ways, was actually delivering on its promises.
This is why, despite what had happened in the national election in 2014, we were looking forward to the 2015 Delhi election. That was where our political journey had started. That was where we would take the next step.
A unique initiative like the Delhi Dialogue (which was in line with the principle of crowd sourcing of ideas and problems) in preparing the manifesto assured volunteers like me that AAP was indeed practising what it preached.
Once the Delhi election was announced, I was eager to go there for a month at least and campaign again. This time, though, I could not do so. But thanks to the innovations in AAP’s campaign strategy, I could actually be part of the campaign process from Mumbai itself.
This election, I became a phone campaigner. Every evening, for at least three hours, I would call prospective voters.
Like door-to-door campaigns, this too proved interesting.
People just would cut the call at times, just like they shut the door on us during door-to-door campaigns.
At other times, a child would pick up the phone and hand it over to his/her grandmother, saying, ‘Topiwale ka phone aaya hai (the party that wears the cap is calling) ’.
The grandmother happily extend her support and taunt her husband (who clearly did not support AAP) by hoping people would be wiser with their votes this election.
There were those would ask us why AAP resigned in Delhi after 49 days. Others wanted to know why Arvind gets slapped so much.
But one thing was very clear – most of them were aware some part of AAP’s manifesto, whether it was about bijli (electricity), paani (water), schools, women safety, entrepreneurship or students loans.
Clearly, the party had done an amazing job in communicating its manifesto to the voters.
I believe the party’s strong positive agenda and organisation built over last few months has contributed to AAP’s success.
It shows that AAP is capable of delivering in electoral politics. It reaffirms the fact that AAP’s leaders have learnt from past experiences.
They have understood the importance of standing together and working around their differences.
I have heard many discouraging tales in the social and political context of how people cannot work together for long – the Jayaprakash Narayan movement of the 1970s is an oft-cited example -- and how money and muscle power always rules the political space.
Our win, keeping this in mind, is reassuring.
Now I will have a tale to share too!
It's not a fairy tale. It’s a real life story of how people came together, fought together and carved themselves a victory. And this time, for a change, winners are no goons. There was no money and muscle power on winners’ side.
There was no communal or sectarian rhetoric to the campaign. The opponent was way stronger and had unlimited resources and power.
Metaphorically, this victory makes me imagine how Shivaji Maharaj would have defeated Afzal Khan and his huge army.
This victory assures us that we are not lone warriors any more; others are joining our movement.
Finally, the ‘good people’ had broken their ‘appalling silence’.
Initially, it had been a lonely battle. Most of my family, friends and neighbours had ridiculed the thought of AAP winning an election. They did not believe AAP was capable of bringing about change.
My family would warn me that politics is a mucky game and all politicians are the same – they will use you and then turn their back on you.
Many friends became foes; reassuringly, in this new journey, I made new friends.
February 10, 2015, changed that.
AAP swept the elections in Delhi. The result cleared the doubts harboured by those who were close to me.
This victory has convinced them that AAP is an electorally viable party. It has reunited me with lost friends and upset family members.
Many have called and pledged their support to AAP. This, for me, has been one of the most priceless moments on this journey!
This victory assures me that, together, we too can stand. Together, we too shall rise.
Image, top: Prathamesh Murkute with AAP volunteers.
Image, below: Prathamesh Murkhute
Photographs: Shirali Tyabji
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