Opinion Poll “Dancing
situation of Indian politics”
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An opinion poll deals with the opinion
of the people of a country that what they think about their vote
they have given. In India, opinion poll have always been a touchy topic. A
Sting operation by News Express just showed that polling agencies were willing
to manipulate the projections and publish erroneous results. This recent
revelation has yet again re-opened a national debate and puts a question mark
on the relevance of opinion polls in India.
Parsing the manifestos makes good television and news columns –
for a few days, anyway. The delay in the release of the BJP manifesto
attracted a good deal attention – of the commentariat, but not of the voters.
They seemed not especially bothered, if they were at all concerned, about
the manifestos in the first place. Leaders have carpet-bombed the country with
rallies and the media coverage has been so extensive that there is virtually no
other news in sight or print. Pre-election opinion polls have shown
remarkable convergence in identifying voter concerns and preferences. That
begs the question: how relevant are these declarations? Indeed, the BJP
had its best electoral performance until now in 1999, when it went to the polls
without a manifesto, but only the National Democratic Alliance’s National
Agenda for Governance. Even in the United States, where the two parties
adopt their elaborate platforms in the nominating conventions, nationally
televised debates are far more effective in communicating the parties’ visions
and views. Our pundits, who believe that manifestos must be
engraved-in-stone pure ideology, might want to know that these are in fact
carefully crafted compromises among competing views within the party.
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| http://media2.intoday.in/btmt/images/stories/opinion-polls) |
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( www.liberation.typepad.com)
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When
people vote, they have certain expectations, whether informed by formal
declarations of the contestants or otherwise. The real test for those
staking their future on the voting exercise is how well they have anticipated
and interpreted the mandate they are likely to receive and whether they are
prepared for it. Manifestos reduced to rituals are of little relevance in
meeting on-ground challenges.
Opinion
polls, if conducted in the right way, reflect the true mood of the people and
offer critical insights into their minds. Contrary to the popular belief in our
country, these polls are a powerful tool and its findings can be used in
positive ways for the betterment of a party, candidate or government.
Kaushal Kishor
M.Sc Media, P.G 1
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