I am a master in India

Chapter 441 What I said

In early September, the second round of the election began.

In Mumbai, state elections and national elections began almost simultaneously.

Chogashvari became lively again on election day. It was drizzling, but that did not dampen the enthusiasm of the voters who flocked to the city.

The campaign staff took their positions, tore off small ballots, and handed them to voters.

Kamat led Giris to campaign for voters, so Amor and the others went into the slums once again.

Mr. Suer instructed us to closely observe public sentiment during this election.

Kamat knew everyone there. He and Giris greeted the Gujaratis in Gujarati, saying "Hello!" to the Bihars, and Marathi to his fellow countrymen.

They urged people to hurry up and vote, "Vote for the one with the bow on the side," they instructed.

More than half of the country’s population is illiterate, so simply telling them the candidates’ names won’t work.

As Amor walked through the slums that day, he felt an unusual silence and realized that apart from the occasional broadcasts of ALL India TV and Sun TV, almost no one watched television.

Kamath temporarily shut down his cable television network to get people to vote.

"Kamate, please give us some entertainment!" an old man pleaded.

"We'll talk after you've cast your vote," he replied.

The group returned to the polling station, where a Shiva army leader was discussing with Kamat the possibility of another round of voter mobilization after lunch.

By then, the ticket inspectors will be able to determine who has voted and who hasn't, based on the list they have.

“Four or five people won’t do; we need a group of brothers,” Kamat suggested, using the English word “brothers.”

“Alright, I’ll call my men.” The squad leader said confidently.

These "brothers" would return to the slums, knocking on doors from house to house, and anyone who didn't vote would be threatened by them.

"It's just to create some tension," Kamat explained.

Despite being rivals, Kamath has close relationships with candidates in nearby Congress constituencies.

This man, named Mama, was in the cable business and was the leader of Rajan's gang.

Mama is in her thirties. She was born in Mumbai, and her father moved to Mumbai from the caste-conscious north when she was young.

Mama is from a low caste, but Mumbai, a city that transcends social norms, gave him and his family a new life.

“In rural areas, lower castes are only fit to be slaves to higher castes. But here, lower castes still reign supreme,” Mama said smugly.

Through manipulation of power, the lower castes gained control of the city.

Mama explained the pros and cons to the donors who provided him with political contributions.

“Give me five rac today,” he told a construction contractor. “After I am elected, I will return the money to you within five days and immediately approve your contract to build public toilets.”

Kamat scoffed, saying that Mama's promise to his voters was: "If you vote for me, you won't have to pay any more protection money."

As a triad boss, Mama promised that anyone in her constituency who submitted to her would be under her protection.

Since the police are incompetent and unable to stop the thugs from extorting money from local residents, why not elect the thugs themselves as their superiors?

Since we'll have to pay protection money anyway, we might as well spend money to buy peace.

Well, this shock therapy might be a viable approach.

In the last general election, following the bombings, it was for the same reasons that five percent of the herders voted for their sworn enemy, Shiva's army.

Meanwhile, a friend of Amor's who works in advertising photography in the Malabar Mountains called him.

He said he was going to cast a vote for the first time ever, something he, as an elite, had never cared about before.

“I’m in the same area where your family used to live,” he said on the other end of the phone, referring to the polling station at Walsingham Girls’ School.

“There are two ballot boxes in front of me. One says ‘House of the People’ and the other says ‘House of the Federal People’. Which one is the central government and which one is the state government?” he asked Amor, completely bewildered and utterly ignorant of election basics.

The simultaneous holding of national and state elections has left many people bewildered.

In Chogshwari, no one asks such a question. The poor are very enthusiastic about voting because it concerns their livelihoods.

If you ask Mama, "Who do you think Mumbai belongs to? The rich people of Malabar, or the Marathi people who have now risen from serfdom and are singing their praises?"

He'll laugh and tell you, "Mumbai either belongs to the people who eat vada bread, or it belongs to no one."

Neither the Shiva Army nor the Congress Party can sway the thoughts of more than ten million people.

Over the years, Mumbai has held three general elections. India has made incredibly painful yet persistent efforts to demonstrate its commitment to democracy.

It must prove time and time again that we are a democratic country.

The patience of the people of this country is truly astonishing.

Year after year, with no other choice and without regret, they fulfilled their obligation to vote.

In 1991, 57% of Indians participated in the vote. In 1996, the voter turnout rose by one percentage point. By last year, this figure had risen further, with 62% of India's 600 million people exercising their right to vote.

What was the significance of the 99 Indian general election? Despite spending huge sums of money and braving the sweltering heat to campaign across the country, the same few faces remained in power in Delhi.

It was said that no one would vote this year and that a boycott would sweep across India, but in the end, the voter turnout in early September only declined slightly.

People continue to endure the sweltering heat, forming long queues at polling stations. Perhaps this is the fate of this Indian nation.

People don't ask why they vote; they just vote.

In late September, the election results came out, and the Shiva Army, which had ruled Mumbai for nearly ten years, lost the election.

In the lower house election, i.e., the general election, the BJP won again, and they have a tighter grip on power.

No one was surprised by the defeat of Shiva's army and the BJP in Maharashtra.

They promised voters in the slums that they would build four million homes to benefit the people, but in the end, they built fewer than four thousand.

The people who ate the wada bread abandoned them, and it had nothing to do with violence or religious beliefs.

For most people, what they truly value is still the means to make a living.

However, the Shiva army is once again in a tense atmosphere because the newly elected Congress Party is bringing up the Seri Krishna investigation report again.

The report addresses the 92 Mumbai riots, in which Thackeray faces fourteen charges.

On Saturday night, Amor received a call from Kamat, who said he and his men would blockade Mumbai.

At an evening meeting of the Shiva army branch, they received information that Thackeray would be arrested early the next morning.

Amor could hear the furious roars of the tiger's army in the background.

He also sensed a renewed energy from Kamat on the other end of the phone, as if everything had returned to the old days.

The following day, Kamat called frequently to update Amor on the latest developments.

He and his men were sent to Gorgan, while the Gorgan branch went to Chogashvari.

In this way, the local police, who had always been both enemies and friends with them, would not recognize them.

As Kamat's men launched a major strike, two hundred Gorgon police officers could only stand by and watch, uttering useless shouts and threatening to write down Kamat and his men's names and then arrest them.

Kamat's small group stopped a bus, and the driver told the passengers to get off quickly, only to watch helplessly as the vehicle was burned by Shiva's army.

The team also went into a shop with an entire glass wall and threatened the owner that if he didn't close the shop immediately, they would smash the glass wall with stones.

To avoid further economic losses, the shop owner had no choice but to comply and pull down the roller shutter.

Nearly 800 Shiva soldiers were scattered in Chokshwari, stopping trains and forcing taxis and rickshaws to shut down.

They stormed into the local bus terminal, where the station manager personally pleaded with Shiva's army to show mercy and allow him to recall all the buses.

And so, the entire city of Mumbai was paralyzed.

With civil war seemingly imminent, Thackeray, having nowhere else to turn, once again sought out Ron.

This time he adopted an even more humble stance, no longer mentioning the importance of the election or their close relationship.

He had to bow his head; if the mighty leader of Shiva's army were to be imprisoned, it would truly become a joke.

This is not only a matter of face, but also of Thackeray's control over Shiva's army.

Those hot-tempered young people might cause another riot in Mumbai for him, but Thackeray would no longer be the leader they would follow to the death.

No man will easily relinquish power, especially one he once held, ravaged, and dominated…

“Ron, if I go in, Shiva’s army will be uncontrollable. The whole of Mumbai will be in chaos, even war. Yes, civil war. There will definitely be riots then.”

Thackeray spoke calmly, without raising his voice or making any threats; he simply stated what he was certain would happen.

"Then you will know that what I said today is true. God help me, I do not want war to happen, but I know it will happen. Pastoralists will rush in, not just those in Mumbai, but those from all over India, and then it will be a nationwide war."

“Do you know where the problem lies?” Ron, who was standing by the window, turned around.

"what?"

"Shiva's army is too fond of violence. If you rely on it, you will eventually be controlled by it."

“But we have to do it. Those lunatics have guns and ammunition. If it weren’t for my men, I’m sure the Hindus would have been wiped out by the herders long ago.”

"If the civil war you mentioned were to occur, what does Shiva's army intend to do?"

"We will fight with all our might. We have to fight for India. Revenge is our birthright," he declared confidently.

“You underestimate New Delhi and overestimate its strength,” Ron shook his head.

“Looking across all of India, only Shiva’s army dares to stand up and openly challenge the herders,” Thackeray retorted.

"Before you two even start fighting, tens of thousands of police will be there to keep you in place. The so-called civil war will never even begin, I'm telling you."

Thackeray paused, still somewhat unwilling.

"After that, without Shiva's army, who will keep an eye on the herdsmen for you, and who will deter the villains?"

Ron looked out the window in silence for a long time before slightly turning his head.

“Go back. The judges in Mumbai won’t do anything to you. I’m the one who said that.”

Thackeray breathed a sigh of relief, clasped his hands together in prayer, and then hurriedly took his leave.

(End of this chapter)