Giving Money for voting NOTA

If I have power, I would change the elections where voters would get money, if they choose NOTA. 

In the new system, we will remove the NOTA option from the main polling ballot box, and put a separate exclusive small box for it, with only a button (So that, it is easily distinguishable). When anyone presses that button, it would be considered as voting for NOTA, and a printed paper with a QR code would come. The voter can take that paper (preferably without others noticing, and hide it in pocket or somewhere). 

After two days, they can use one of their UPI apps like Paytm, Google Pay, Phone Pe etc., and scan that QR code. Once they scan, they would get some money in their bank account linked with the corresponding UPI. The QR code would expire after a month after the election results are announced, and they have to scan it before that to get the money.

How does it work behind the scenes?

Once the election notification is issued, the Election commission would invite donations to distribute to the people who have voted for NOTA. The donations can be at the level of Country, State, Parliamentary/Assembly constituency or even at the polling booth level. The money that anyone donates for a particular level is distributed among all the voters of NOTA at that level. The donations are accepted till 2 days before the election, and the donation details at all levels (along with the total number of voters at that level) are published a day before the election. 

Let's say, I donated Rs.1 lakh to a polling booth in one particular assembly constituency that has 1000 voters. In that polling booth, if 100 people vote for NOTA, then this Rs.1 lakh would be distributed among all the 100 people, and everyone would get Rs.1000 each from the money that I donated. 

Along with that, if someone else had donated Rs.1 crore in that assembly constituency of 2 Lakh voters, and if there were 20,000 NOTA votes, then each voter in that assembly constituency would get Rs.500. 

The voters in the above polling booth would get Rs.1000 at the polling booth level and Rs.500 at the assembly constituency level, and in total they would get Rs.1500.

Once the election is completed, and the presiding officer signs off saying that there were no issues in the polling and it does not need any re-poll, the NOTA box would be separated, and the corresponding QR codes would be activated. Once the QR codes are activated, anyone who got the QR code slip can scan from any UPI app and get the money.

Reason for giving money to NOTA voters

Many people do not know the value of the vote. If they have to choose between voting for a particular person or Rs.500, many of them would choose money. In an ideal democracy, the person who wins in the election should be liked by the majority of the people who care for the democracy. The people who do not care about the democracy should be neutral. In the present system, people who do not care about the democracy are voting for random people, and the elected people are not the representatives of the people who care for the democracy. 

Anonymous voting

As long as the voter takes the QR code slip without others noticing, the anonymousness is not lost. Once the QR code is activated, that can be scanned from any UPI app of any person, and it does not need to be from the account of that particular voter. 

Announcement of NOTA votes before the election results

The count of NOTA votes are announced 2 days after the polling and there is no harm in that. If people get the money immediately, then it would give some idea to the voters about NOTA in the next phase of that election. 

Funding for the distribution

In the elections where the political parties are already spending a lot of money, there won't be any issue in the funding. Political parties want people to vote for them. Along with that, many parties try to stop people from voting for the other parties, and they try to do many things like splitting their vote bank by bringing another candidate who is from the same background (like their party's rebel candidate, or if there is caste feeling, then same caste person etc.). 

With this, they do not need to spend a lot of effort on those things. If the political party feels that voters in a particular polling booth would vote for their main opposition party, then they can donate a lot of money to that particular booth, and people in that booth would choose NOTA, by depriving the votes for the other party. 

Of course, the same thing would be done by the opposition party in the polling booths where they have more support. 

Trends of the Money

In this approach, the money that people would get is going to be significant. In selected polling booths of Pulivendula, Kuppam, Mangalagiri and Bhimavaram constituencies (Constituencies where Y.S.Jagan Mohan Reddy, Nara Chandra babu Naidu, Nara Lokesh and Pawan Kalyan contested), the money may even cross Rs.10,000 per NOTA vote. 

But, after an election or two, the money may come down drastically, if people do not change. If people prefer Rs.500 higher than voting for a candidate, then political parties may just give enough funding for them to select for NOTA, and there is no need for them to give a lot of money for NOTA.

[Unless people become too intelligent, where they threaten the main political parties to give higher amount for NOTA, or otherwise, they would vote for the independents.]

Future of the elections - Taking the ideology to the public

Once the people who do not care about democracy are going to be neutral, the next thing that any political party has to do is, taking their party's ideology to the public. They have to convince people that their ideology is the best, and that is more valuable than Rs.10,000. 

The politics have to be done like many religious institutions, where their only goal is taking their ideology to the people. If one looks at any serious follower of any major religious institution (including ISKCON, Art of Living, Isha Foundation etc.), if they are given an option of choosing money vs their organization, they would choose their organization. 

Politics also would change that way, where each political party's goal is taking their ideology to the public and convincing them about that (and in the words of non-supporters, it is brainwashing). 

And, that is the ideal democracy.

Meesala Saibaba, Loksatta Party

 

Meesala Saibaba garu is a low profile leader who contested in 6 elections for Corporator, MLA, MLC and MP from Loksatta party and as an Independent. He worked for Loksatta party initially, and after Loksatta Party stopped contesting in the elections, he contested in the elections as an Independent by taking Loksatta Party symbol (Whistle).

When I met him first time, I never thought that he would go on contesting in that many elections. 

He always used to say that, he does small small things. He never did any big things like other leaders. Because of that, I never expected him to contest in any election. But, he showed how does one achieve bigger goals by taking baby steps. 

Sadly, he left us too early. 

Idiotic Decision by Modi

Introducing 33% reservations for women is the most idiotic decision by Modi.

Already, our democracy was in bad shape. With these kinds of policies, democracy is on its deathbed.

Already, local elections in many states have become a mockery of democracy. Once the reservations are finalized, in many villages, there will be only a handful of people who can even contest in the elections. Among those few, some may choose to contest, and people will have to vote for one of them. Our ineffective leaders will present this as democracy, similar to how China and North Korea do.

In North Korea and China also, people vote, but the voting process is different. In North Korea, there is only one candidate, and people have to vote for that candidate, who is then elected.

I fear we are heading in that direction.

Modi often criticizes Nehru for many things. Even though Nehru did not develop the economy, he built the institutions, especially democracy, which is why India is still united and hasn't fragmented.

Modi's behavior seems like temporary development and permanent destruction.

Husband Like Rama or Krishna

This post is NOT for spiritual interpretation.

Many people say, they would prefer husband like Rama and not like Krishna.

Rama has married only one woman. 

After Sita was captured by Ravana, Rama accepted her back only after she entered into fire. 

When one citizen of his kingdom talked bad about Rama, he sent Sita to forest, when she was pregnant.

Krishna married 16,108 women.

16,100 women were initially captured by Narakasura. After killing Narakasura, Krishna married all of them.

He gave equal importance to all his wives and has taken 16,108 forms to take care of them.

Krishna never left anyone who has surrendered to him.

If a woman wants a person who can take care of her well, then she should ask for someone like Krishna. 

If a woman wants a person who does not look at other women, even if he does not take care her well, then she should ask for someone like Rama. 

The reason why Rama has done like that has many reasons behind. This post is not for interpretation in those lines.

Astrology - Basic Criteria for the Predictions

Once an astrologer said, there is going to be a big fire in the next few days. 

After a few days, he said, there was a big fire in Pakistan, and he claimed his predictions were correct.

This made me think of the evaluation of a prediction. 

What I feel is, for a prediction to be of some sense, by following the prediction, we should be able to take some decision or change a decision or atleast give more or less confidence in the decision that we are already taking. If it does not give any of them, then that prediction is useless. 

Once I went to Mumbai and it rained a lot. All the trains and flights got cancelled, and there was a lot of water on the road and travelling even by the road was not possible. I faced a lot of difficulties, cancelled all my plans, and it costed me a lot. If someone had predicted that I would face difficulties if I go to Mumbai, I would have saved a lot of money. 

That prediction does not need to be from an astrologer who looks at Horoscope charts or palm. It can be somebody who can look at the weather report of Mumbai, and who knows that, whenever there is a lot of rain, Mumbai would be flooded and the trains would be cancelled. 

It does not matter how I get the predictions. By that prediction, I should be able to take a decision or change the decision or should change the confidence level of the decision that I was taking.