With the next general elections promising to be a hotly contested affair, my mind goes back to the political slogans which I heard in my growing up years in Allahabad. Being a politically sensitive and aware city, I got to hear the choicest of political slogans and some fiery political speeches. After leaving Allahabad, I never quite got the same flavour in any other city expect perhaps in Kolkata where again political speeches are fiery, fun and perennial.
The earliest slogan which I recall was "Inquilab Zindabad". The leader would call "Inquilab" and the followers would respond "zindabad zindabad" in a nice rhythm. I was a lad and did not know the meaning of Inquilab. But even after I understood its meaning, I have not understand the use of the word by people who stood for more of the same rather than change. But "Inquilab Zindabad" was a respectable slogan, used in the Independence movement and by leftist even today. Though it is supposed to convey change and revolution, it was very much a pro establishment and status quo kind of slogan.
The most interesting and the most aggressive slogans came in the newly formed Janata Party campaign in 1977. The contest was intense and no holds barred. I was shocked to hear, " Gali Gali Mein Shor hain; Indira Gandhi Chor hain"; taken aback by the blatant accusation directed towards the then PM, with whom Allahabad had a close emotional connection. The media, largely government controlled had painted a very rosy picture of the state of affairs of the government and it was difficult to imagine otherwise.
Later I realized that this was a very flexible slogan and could be used to tease any friend or berate an enemy, all you needed to do was to substitute the name. And if you wanted to rile someone really bad, the chor could be replaced with something more obnoxious.
Other standard slogans were, "Hamara Neta kaisa ho, Raju bhaiya jaisa ho", "aya hai bhai aya hai, Raju Bhaiya aya hain nai kranti laya hain", "Din ho ya raat ho, Raju Bhaiya sath ho". The Raju of course can be replace by any name. My friend Manoj recalls a slogan "Ek Sherni Dus Langoor, Chikmanglur Chikmanglur." This was used by supporters of Indira Gandhi when she stood for elections from Chikmanglaur in Karnataka. Some of the more saucier slogans would probably invite action under the IT Act and I dare not share.
Sloganeering on Kokata streets is a sophisticated art and is meant for all seasons. Rarely you will see people shouting. The leader gives a call and the followers respond with melodious and rhyming words, almost like chants. Its is spiritual. The slogans are also the most imaginative. "Inquilab Zindabad" is a hot favorite with the communist parties who fight for various kinds of revolutions. A popular chant of the masses is "korte hobe, korte hobe" (will have to be done) in response to a demand articulated by the leader.
Politicians now use TV debates to push their view and reach out to the public. It is sad that street smart sloganeering is now more or less dead.It would be great fun if political parties were a bit more creative about slogan making. Even if you need to run down opposition, it has to be done with elan and needs to entertain. After all its called a political circus!! We need to move beyond shahzada and feku. How about something more positive like, "Modi Bhaiya ainge, Bharat to swarg banaiye ge" or "AAP layie, bahar ayaegi", "Rahul Gandhi jetenge, baki sab ko pitega".
Maybe the election commission can sponsor a slogan writing contest to built awareness about voting amongst voters.
Meanwhile lets coin and share our own slogans and have fun while the election atmosphere lasts.
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