Value your vote
Jahadi Hasan has been working with NGOs in West Bengal for the last 13 years. In 2008, he joined the Mahadebnagar Rural Welfare Society (MRWS) in Murshidabad district, an organization that focuses on health and education, particularly of the locals employed in tobacco factories and their families. Today, he is the Secretary of the NGO.
After seeing the episode on the Criminalization of Politics in India where Mr Aamir Khan urged citizens to not sell their votes, Mr Hasan was inspired to organize a campaign in the villages of Murshidabad district. He contacted Satyamev Jayate and we put him in touch with The Concerned for Working Children, that spearheads the Me and My Vote are NOT for SALE campaign in Karnataka. The campaign warns people against the dangers of taking bribes from corrupt politicians in exchange for votes, and urges them to demand accountability from their elected representatives.
Mr Hasan then took it upon himself to take the movement forward. Here's what happened, in his own words:
“After we got in touch with the NGO in Bangalore, they emailed us the banners for their campaign 'Me and My Vote are NOT for SALE'. We translated them into Bengali and got them printed. Then we organized a camp in the rural areas of Mahadebnagar and Momrejpore Farakka in Murshidabad district.
Around 700–800 people participated in the rally, mostly women and youth. The problem that these women usually face is that their husbands get imported liquor from electoral candidates and they then force their wives to vote for them. We urged the women to make their own decisions based on information about the respective candidates, or after reading their party’s manifestos.
We not only organized the campaign but also reviewed the learning and feedback. Although we faced some resistance from political parties, we replied by saying that we are not against any party but are just spreading awareness. We are not very well-funded but the information we got from the show is itself equivalent to Rs 50 crore—after all, how can we fight without correct information?”
The MRWS plans to continue campaigning till the elections end, will take this message to other communities as well.
If you would like help to start such a campaign in your area, send an email to
.