Don't lose sight of the big picture

As a Cancer Imaging Fellow at Harvard, I often encounter cancer patients, and there is one thing which keeps surprising me. Many patients with advanced cancers still come and voice their concerns about ‘radiation exposure’ while undergoing a CT scan. Oncologists will similarly share multiple patients whose cancers have good treatments available, but patients will be more concerned about side-effects than hoping about being cured. I often wonder how can one lose perspective like this?

Seeing the current Indian election scenario nowadays makes me feel the same. You ask any Indian what ails the country’s politics- he will say corruption, the way they divide us on the basis of caste, religion, region, the lal-batti attitude, the intolerance towards liberalism, that people with honest intentions can never enter politics. They will all agree that BJP is equally corrupt as Congress, Yedyurappa is an equivalent of Raja, that corporates do fund elections for both parties and will get their payback later, that India should support gay rights, that they hate casteist politics, that it is strange that no party has started an anti-corruption helpline in any state inspite of the Delhi success. They all know in their hearts that AAP is non-corrupt and does not try to divide people. They know that learning governance is not easy and takes time and patience. They know that the highlight of Modi’s first 49 days of governance was Godhra riots while Kejriwal managed to significantly decrease corruption levels in Delhi in his 49 days despite his relative inexperience and lack of media support and patience. And yet, they not only not vote for AAP but actually criticize and condemn the only honest party in politics today.

I appeal to all to think of two things. 1. People accuse Kejriwal of running away from responsibility by resigning when given an opportunity. I agree even I was disappointed with his resignation. But he isn’t running away. He is fighting to get re-elected with majority in Delhi. It is we who are running away from responsibility by supporting the same old corrupt divisive system yet again when we have a chance to elect someone honest. A VOTE FOR EITHER THE CONGRESS OR THE BJP IS A VOTE WHICH SAYS THAT IT DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU PUT CRIMINAL CANDIDATES OR CORRUPT CANDIDATES, IT DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU TRY DIVIDING US, IT DOESN’T MATTER IF YOU OVERSEE A MASSACRE AND REFUSE TO EVEN APOLOGISE FOR IT, WE WILL STILL VOTE FOR YOU. A VOTE FOR AAP SAYS THAT WE ARE SICK OF THE CORRUPT SYSTEM, AND YES WE HAVE A CHOICE AND A HOPE FOR A BRIGHT FUTURE, AND WE CHOOSE THAT.

2. Many people are afraid they vote will go ‘waste’ if they vote for AAP. If the Delhiites thought the same, this hope for India where an honest simple person can actually politics and work for the country would never have been created at all. It doesn’t matter how many seats they win. When AAP won Delhi, other politicians were forced to improve- RaGa passed Jan Lokpal, Vasundhara stopped using lal-battis, Harshvardhan refused to horsetrade; until the politicians realized it is easier to discredit the AAP rather than go back to better politics. Irrespective of who governs the country, a good start for the AAP will force others to improve again as well. Furthermore, a tally of even 20 AAP MPs this time will let them create a base of experience MPs who know how to govern and how to behave like a responsible opposition. 20 today sustains the movement and can and will lead to 200 tomorrow, but if we fail them, then we defeat the movement and India’s hope right here, and then we will be the ones responsible when someone blames the ‘system’ in the future. Don’t lose perspective. Defeat the cancer, rather than worrying and nitpicking about the radiation exposure! Vote positively for India’s future today.