Predicament of a voter

Unless you dont read newspapers, dont watch tv or dont interact with your friends you would know that elections are around the corner in India.

I being a Mumbai resident for past 8 years, will vote on 24th April. I am voting first time ever this time and till i did not have a voter card, i was a BJP supporter. However,  since the voter card was delivered and polling date comes closer, i am no longer sure. i am in 2 minds on both who to vote for and how to vote. There are 2 dilemmas i am facing wrt voting:

a) do you vote to elect next PM or do you vote to elect your next MP

b) Do you vote for forming a stable govt at centre to ensure there are no political compulsions of coalition (read BJP) or should you vote for a party which you know would not be able to form a govt but would be an active watchdog (AAP)

In larger scheme of things, my 1 vote would not matter but i want to cast my vote ethically and give it the due importance and hence i am sharing my thoughts on both dilemmas i am facing:


do you vote to elect next PM or do you vote to elect your next MP

should i vote for Modi/Kejriwal or should i vote for Kirit Somaiya/Medha Patkar?

On one hand is the argument that you are voting for party in centre and hence you should vote for PM candidates and local MP does not matter. On the other hand is the argument that you need to vote for the person who would best serve interests of the area you live in irrespective of what party is in power at centre.

While advantage of former is that your vote would go to either of 3 big parties and in turn ensure that all seats are divided amongst these parties only (and by extension ensuring that whoever wins would more likely have a simple majority). The advantage of voting for your local candidate is that he/she may be from a regional party or be an independent but if you vote for right candidate, criminality is likely to go out in long run from indian politics and while there may be no clear majority at centre but members of parliament would be progressive, honest and will put the country first.

Unfortunately or fortunately the 2 candidates put by BJP and AAP in my constituency have proven records. While Kirit Somaiya is a long time anti-corruption crusader, Medha Patkar has got years of service to poor and for people without a voice through her work in slums and anti dam movements. Both would be an asset to overall functioning of parliament and hence my un-decidedness on who to to vote for. Had either of them been corrupt (like the 3rd principal candidate) my choice would have been simple


Do you vote for BJP or AAP?

Voting for BJP would mean that i would be helping them cross 272 hurdle as they are likely to get short of majority anyways. in my view BJP is a party which along with being largely corruption free has a real chance to come to power. On the flip side, i dont like their record on minorties and recent speeches of Amit Shah has confirmed that. Also, i am not sure of development record in Gujarat on whether it is good marketing or actually there has been a change since Modi has come in. I know it for a fact though that corruption is minimal in Gujarat compared to other states

Voting for AAP would most likely be a waste as it would mean division of vote to a non-principal party. AAP is not likely to get more than 50 seats and no party with these many MPs can form a govt. Also, AAP has no proven governance record anywhere. However, on the other hand voting for AAP would mean a vote for a party which is corruption free and one which aims to bring people participation in governance. Also, this is the first party which represents honest people who are fed up with corruption. if these very people dont support this party, it may be the greatest loss for democracy in long run.