Author: Pran Kurup

In the early 1990s when Bill Clinton was campaigning for the US Presidency he permanently transformed the way Americans (and to a large extent the world) looked at Presidential campaigns. Hailing from a relatively small southern state, Bill Clinton turned on his rustic charm and reached out to people at coffee shops, fast food joints, restaurants, parks, malls you name it. He was indulging in “retail politics” like no politician had managed to do before. A product of a small town upbringing, he was a natural at this. His ability to connect one on one with people in person was phenomenal. He extended that rapport on to the TV screen during his debates. His brilliant mind and his thorough grasp of the issues further helped him stand out. Not surprisingly he went on to win two elections and led America through two terms of economic boom.

Fast forward of couple of decades and here we are in India at a time when the economy is in the tank, the ruling party is plagued by corruption and mis-governance and the opposition BJP on a rampant bid for coalition partners in a desperate attempt to achieve the the magic number of 272 seats at any cost.

It was January 2014 and Maya Vishwakarma had just quit the cosy comfort of her job in California to pursue her idealitic dream of cleansing her motherland of corruption and nepotism. Riding on a high wave of optimism following the unprecedented success of the Aam Aadmi Party in the Delhi elections, and inspired by the noble vision of its leader Arvind Kejriwal, this young woman landed at Indira Gandhi International Airport airborne on the wings of hope.

As Maya passed through security check to board a connecting flight from New Delhi to Bhopal, she didn’t realize she had presented herself at the VIP counter. Seeing her in the distinctive AAP t-shirt, a security guard remarked jocularly, “Madam, ye khaas aadmi ke liye hain aapka ticket to aam aadmi ka hai!” (Madam. this line is for special persons, your ticket is for common people!) Another police officer said, “Please come this way. We will treat you as a special person today because your party is doing such excellent work.”

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

Is the middle class starting to have second thoughts about the Aam Aadmi Party? A key issue that seems to be bothering their minds is the recent resignation of the Kejriwal government in Delhi. There are some who say, “You had an opportunity to govern but you threw it all away because you were too ambitious and wanted to grow bigger, faster – let the BJP govern in 2014 and we’ll vote for you in 2019.” A simple thought comes to mind: Can we tolerate such extreme corruption in this country for another 5 years? Is choosing the lesser of the two evils the only way forward?

Let us retrace the steps leading up to the resignation of the Kejriwal government in Delhi.  When the Jan Lokpal bill was expected to be tabled in the assembly, Arvind Kejriwal had an on-stage interview in the midst of the Delhi Lit Festival where he had said categorically that if the bill can’t be passed, his government would resign. This was telecast live. The anchor was thrilled and at the same time surprised because, firstly, she knew she had just been delivered a TRP coup, and secondly, she was least expecting such a candid response from the young CM.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

The middle class which heavily backed the Aam Aadmi party (AAP) during the Delhi elections appears to be having some second thoughts for a whole host of reasons. Let me address two of these pet peeves in this piece: We don’t like the subsidies for power and electricity, AAP is the B-team of the Congress and is being used by them to stop the Modi juggernaut.

I’ll start with the last one first, as it’s the easiest and the more ridiculous of the two. Firstly, these conspiracy theorists must ask themselves these questions: Who had the guts to expose Robert Vadera? It is an accepted reality that everyone (including those in the media and the BJP veterans in Delhi) knew about Mr. Vadera’s dealings but no one but Arvind Kejriwal  had the wherewithal to stand up to the high and mighty, and put everything at risk to bring to light serious charges of corruption. Besides, the ministers of the UPA government, most of whom were from the Congress, was alsoexposed by the then Team Anna. Would the B-team of the Congress strike at the very heart of the Congress? It just does not make sense whatsoever.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

I met up with a handful of friends at a social gathering recently. Most of them were IIT-ians and invariably the topic of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and of Arvind Kejriwal came up. It was only a matter of time before one of them brought up the issue of water subsidies introduced by the AAP while in power in Delhi. He was referring to an observation made by a columnist that the 700 L of free water was a pro-rich measure. The theory put forth in the article was that poorer households have more members and hence need more water than the affluent, and so it is the rich who benefit from these subsidies.

As usual, everyone weighed in. Some felt the subsidies were populist measures. Others felt it was a creditable move on the part of the government. I then popped the question, “Do you know how much water you use in your house in a month?” Not surprisingly, no one in the room had an answer. This is the reality. Most people, even among the educated class, do not know how much water they consume and many have no idea how much their water bills are every month either.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

As India evolves and communication technologies improve by the day, the role of the media in India’s future is becoming increasingly critical. The tendency to report based on unverified information is fast becoming the norm, as you will see in the case of the various articles referenced here.

Take the example of this news report on Kumar Vishwas’ rally in Amethi. It clearly says that the event was a success despite some hiccups. Now, take a look at this report that deems it a flop! It’s the exact same event that is being reported on. But the conclusions are diametrically opposite. Clearly, they both can’t be true! The issue of whether an event is a success or a flop can be a matter of opinion. But there should be no ambiguity about the real “data” – how large the crowd was, the response of the crowd, etc.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

There is always a lot of talk about how technology is evolving in the world we live in- how new technologies are emerging while old ones fall out of favor. If you want to see how technology is changing the world, just look at how kids and the younger generation use it. For instance, they collaborate on Google docs, they stay in touch via text and Instant Messaging, they take pictures and share them instantaneously via Facebook and Snapchat, they do mobile search to find restaurants and shops, and when parents are lost they are quick to use Google Maps to find the most convenient routes. In contrast, if you belong to a slightly older generation, here is what your technology life looks like – you email MS-Word documents and spreadsheets back and forth, you hear your kids say, “Mom/Dad, don’t use IE, use Chrome!”, you take pictures but you need your kids to upload it and give you a link that you can email to your family, you have a hard time switching from TV to DVD to on-demand, while recording TV shows that you love seems like rocket science. Ok, if you belong to the second category I won’t embarrass you any more.

Interestingly, the world of Indian politics seems to be evolving in a similar fashion. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) appears to be operating and forging ahead on a totally different “wavelength” than the rest of India’s political parties. For instance, the AAP launched a membership campaign with an ambitious target of 1 crore members. In an attempt to achieve its goal, the party has waived the membership fee of Rs.10 for a 15 day period. Today, anyone can become a member by submitting a form on the AAP website, mailing in a completed registration form or via SMS. There is no question that this is a brilliant move by the party and here is why. Generations of Indians have never known what it’s like or what it means to be the member of a political party. A large part of our population has never ever been a member of any party, no matter what their political leanings might be. The AAP has completely changed this notion with its massive membership drive. Firstly, the AAP has made the process  of becoming a member very simple. Secondly, the party has run a time-bound promotion of sorts drawing from traditional retail marketing techniques, thereby creating a sense of urgency like never before.

The membership drive by the AAP is bound to have long-term implications for the party itself and Indian politics as a whole, much of which is not apparent now. For Indians who have never officially joined any political party in their life, the step of joining the AAP is a simple but momentous one. Firstly, it’s a sign that the AAP’s message resonates with them. Next, it gives the AAP a sense of where their fan base lies. The AAP can slice and dice the data to determine its strong and weak constituencies. Thirdly, there is automatically a shared sense of ownership and participation in the political process that India has not seen since the early days of Independence. Lastly and most importantly, the AAP will soon be able to communicate directly with its expanded member base in a heart-beat using all the latest technologies – Internet, SMS, social media, live streaming, you name it. As a result, the AAP will be able to reach out and mobilize its party rank and file, even without the help of the media. It will be able to counter negative campaigns much better and faster. It can plan and conduct referendums and seek inputs from its supporter base when desired. The traditional megaphone will be brilliantly complemented with a few mouse clicks that can carry the AAP’s message far and wide.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

Our media has been going gaga over the last several months positioning the upcoming Lok Sabha election as some kind of “beauty contest” between Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi. With the Congress party receiving a drubbing in the recent assembly polls, Rahul Gandhi’s leadership is being questioned by one and all. Meanwhile, the AAP after its electoral success in Delhi, has now captured the imagination of the media. Slowly but surely, the media appears to be re-positioning its discussions now around “Kejriwal vs. Modi” battle for the Lok Sabha.

The AAP supporters look at this with dreamy, optimistic eyes. The BJP fans look at this with a mixture of fear and frustration – “The AAP will not let the BJP come to power, nor can they come to power on their own. They might just end up helping the Congress. Why don’t they wait till 2019 and join hands with BJP this time around to fight the Congress?” The Congress party appears to be in a soul searching mode after its recent defeats in the assembly elections and, at present, views this with a mixture of concern and despondency.

Despite the media’s self-serving desire to rake up its TRPs by debating non-existent personality battles, if the Delhi elections are any indication, the upcoming Lok Sabha polls are not going to be based on personalities but on “bread and butter” issues that affects the aam aadmi across the country. Arvind Kejriwal, during the Delhi campaign, repeatedly said in many of his speeches, “People flock to help the AAP not because they love the AAP or love Arvind Kejriwal. They are here because they love this country. The idea is for all of us to come together to solve the problems of this country.” Contrast this with the BJP’s hero worship of Modi as “the man with all the answers” and his own talk about how “hunky-dory” things are in Gujarat.

What the AAP has going for it is its straight-forward, simplistic message – one based on honesty, integrity and probity in public life with a zero-tolerance towards corruption, plus a focus on everyday issues such as water, electricity, public education and health, women’s safety – that has won the hearts of Delhi-ites and more than perked the curiosity of many all over India. With the victory in Delhi, the AAP’s powerful message has already started to resonate with the people across the country.

In 1963, when Martin Luther King gave his “I have a dream” speech, a million people from all across the US travelled to Washington. In those days, there was no email, SMS, Internet, social media or any such mechanisms that we have today to spread the word. Yet, people flocked to the event in droves. They did so because they deeply believed in Martin Luther King’s message of ending segregation. There is no doubt that he was a dynamic and moving speaker, but it was the power, honesty and appeal behind his message that drew people to the cause.

Click here to read the rest of the article in The Economic Times

After the Delhi elections, the BJP with 32 seats was clearly within striking distance of forming a government. The Congress party, with 8 seats, was completely battered and in no position to stake a claim. The AAP stood at second place with 28 seats. No sooner had the results been announced, the two major parties began their political posturing while the AAP stuck to its pre-election stand of, “We will neither take nor give support to either the Congress or the BJP.”

With 32 seats, the BJP was the natural choice to form the government. Unfortunately for the BJP, they decided to not take the support of the Congress or the AAP. In fact, it appears that they chose not to even explore those possibilities. At the same time, not wanting to be seen as a “wheeling-dealing” party despite its poor track record on this front in states like Karnataka, the BJP decided to take the moral high ground and turned down the offer to form the government.

The Congress party went a step further than the BJP by first saying it would provide “unconditional support” and later waffling on the true meaning of the word “unconditional.” The AAP, in a clever move, involved the people in the decision-making process by going in for an unprecedented referendum. With the people behind them, the AAP clearly had the wind in its sails. It decided to form the government with the “outside support” of the Congress party.

There have been voices of disagreement from within the Congress ranks about it decision to support the AAP. It appears that the Congress is now terrified that they can’t easily withdraw support because, unlike in the past, where support of this nature was discussed behind closed doors (often with cash enticements), now “everything is in the open.” Any attempt to play politics as usual and topple the AAP government in the short-term could show them in very poor light and ruin whatever little chances they might have in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. At present, the Congress’s best hope is that the AAP makes a false move after coming to power, so they can use that as an excuse to pull the rug from under the AAP government. In short, the Congress party has boxed itself into a corner with no good options.

Once the BJP decided not to form the government in Delhi, it started egging the AAP by saying, “We will provide constructive support, the AAP is running away from their responsibility of forming a government, etc.”  However, after the AAP decided to form the government, the BJP started to claim that the AAP was hand-in-glove with the Congress. By first criticizing the AAP for not forming the government, and later criticizing the AAP for accepting the support of the Congress, the BJP in Delhi has shown muddled political thinking. It should come as no surprise that they are left exactly where they have been for the last 15 years – warming the opposition benches. The second prize winner, the AAP, instead walked away with ultimate prize of forming the government.