What is the similarity among the film actor Govinda, Samajwadi Party Supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and Member of Parliament and film actress Jaya Prada?. In fact, some of them are related to acting and some are in politics but there is one similarity in all. In the recent days, they are bearing the brunt of the notice of the Election Commission for violating the Model Code of Conduct Distribution of cash has caught the ire of Election Commission because they distributed money in the name of Holi. This was proved to be dangerous for them. Thanks to EC, such generous acts are treated as an attempt to bribe the voter.

The spectacle of a Mulayam Singh giving out Rs100 notes or of Govinda giving out a few Rs500 notes during Holi celebrations is the stark reality of Indian elections. Our leaders never want to miss the opportunity of distributing money on every occasion in order to shine their political career. Just before the last parliamentary elections, Lalji Tandan had planned a program to distribute Sarees in the constituency of former prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee but there was stampede in which few women died and some were injured.

Not only the politicians even in few places large groups of people refuse to step out to vote unless they are adequately appeased with notes. A young ward member from Uttar Pradesh told me that he had to spend nearly one lakh rupees for just 2000 voters.

In fact, it is proudly said that we live in the largest democracy in the world but the political leaders often ridicule our democracy. We can’t deny the fact that money has corrupted politics. Apart from the cash distribution among the voters, bundles of notes have been displayed in Parliament during the 14th Lok Sabha.

It is a different matter that the amount for buying the leaders was more than the voters. One of the biggest festivals is the Lok Sabha election but to what extent it is right that the leaders would continue to shine their political career by this sort of attitude.