Election fever

This short visit to Punjab was a novel experience. Had a chance to see some live campaigning by candidates from parties of all shades.

Attending a GD at the head office of Sukriet, a local NGO – I had a chance to engage into conversation with a PPP candidate from my constituency. I had a high view of the People’s Part of Punjab – not because it was headed by a Stephanian but because of the fiscal consolidation policies that I supported. I have been critical of excessive populist subsidies to large farmers back home – I call them populist because the subsidies do not serve a definitive purpose, I still get to see huge disturbing statistics of farmer suicides in a quick scan of the Ludhiana Tribune. Subsidies like humans should be mortal and should have a limited life span during the course of which a community can be supported and brought to a requisite starting line.

And so this short one-to-one meeting with the PPP candidate turned out to be flip-flop as the candidate ducked questions, knew little about the economy of Punjab as  a whole, and turned out to be someone who had joined the party just because no body else would give him a ticket because of nepotism within other long established parties.