Manifesto Based Campaigning Needed But Not Personal Attacking

PERSONAL ATTACKING IN ELECTION CAMPAIGNS

Manifesto Based Campaigning Needed But Not Personal Attacking

With every election, the personal attacks on candidates at various elections are constantly increasing. Rather than personal attacks, people want decent election campaigns.

New Delhi: Every election at all levels (may be for local bodies, MLA or MP elections), the campaign is getting murkier day by day. Each political party as well as contestant is having right to campaign for the party or his candidature and ask for the votes.

The ruling party is expected to explain its various actions taken for welfare of the people whereas the opposition and other parties are supposed to show the failures of the ruling party and enlighten the people/voters on the pending issues that need to be addressed on priority basis.

Instead of basing the campaigns on actual and achievements, the recent campaigns are found to be more individual. This kind of personal attack is applied by all parties without much difference.

Congress has been personally attacking BJP PM Candidate NaMo and there is no mention by congress about the wrong mentions in the election manifesto released by the BJP. Some of congress’ candidates like Imran Masood went a step forward and gave hate speech “to chop NaMo into pieces”. The same candidate was supposed to be supported by Rahul Gandhi as per the schedule and which was subsequently cancelled due to this hate speech and consequent arrest of Imran Masood. This kind of campaign is never expected in the largest democratic country of the world.

BJP has been reasonably self-restraint as far as personal attacking is concerned. It has all along been mentioning about the failures of the congress government (not of any particular individual) and mentioning what BJP/NDA wants to do if they are given an opportunity to form government.

Almost all the regional parties in India involve in personal attacking in election campaigns with exception of TDP. TDP’s Chandrababu Naidu also has been reasonably self-restraint and he avoids personal attacks in most of the cases. In rare cases where he has been constantly instigated that he will respond by attacking in person.

More and more social media involvement in day to day life suggests that a dignified campaigning is possible in each of the elections. Political parties can canvass their ideology and manifesto in the social media as well and this takes ample care of their ideologies being discussed at length.

People of India are expecting decent election campaigning rather than personal attacks.