“Democracy cannot survive on arithmetic alone"
By Uday Rajan
I am robbed … Everyone is calling this a “people’s mandate” for TVK.
But the reality is very different. What the people have actually delivered is a hung Assembly — a fractured verdict that clearly shows uncertainty, dissatisfaction, and hesitation. If the people had truly and decisively chosen one party, there would have been a clear majority.
For decades, Tamil Nadu voters have given strong mandates when they were convinced about leadership. This election is not one of those moments. A hung verdict means the people are still questioning, still evaluating, and still unwilling to hand over unchecked power to anyone. Yet political leaders are now behaving as though they own the people’s votes and can transfer them like personal property through backroom negotiations and support letters. Who gave them that authority?
I voted for my leader and my party — not for my vote to be silently diverted and surrendered to TVK without my consent. No one asked the people before extending support. No one sought the mandate again. Alliances made after elections, without consulting voters, are nothing short of political betrayal.
Today, I do not feel represented. I feel robbed. The mandate was for accountability, caution, and balance — not for political opportunism disguised as “stability.”
Every leader who ignored the sentiments of their voters and rushed to support another party without public consultation has cheated the trust of the people. This moment also exposes the urgent need for serious electoral reforms in India.
Voters deserve transparency and fair representation — not post-election power arrangements made behind closed doors. Political parties must be legally and morally accountable to the mandate they sought from the people.
Democracy cannot survive on arithmetic alone. It must survive on trust.
For me, this is not a day of democratic victory.
It is a black day for voter respect, political honesty, and fair representation.
Uday Rajan is a student who is a member of PUCL-Tamil Nadu.