Villagers came to see door-frame metal detector at Rahul Gandhi's meeting in Bihar

AURANGABAD: "Wapas kahe jayait ha. Abhi to sabha shuruo nahoil. Sun ke jayiha (Why are you people going back? The meet is yet to begin. Go after listening the speeches)," some apparently Congress supporters told their villagers who moved towards the exit door much before the commencement of Rahul Gandhi's meet at Aurangabad on Tuesday.
Pat came the reply: Hamnika ihan bhashan sune na aili hi.Bhashan sunte sunte to kan pak gel. Kuchho mile la. Sab neta log janata ke thagela (We did not come here to hear speeches. The speeches do no good to anyone. We are fed up with speeches. All leaders befool people).
If not to hear speeches, why you came here, asked someone from among the crowd. The reply was candid: We had come to Aurangabad for shopping. We came to know that 'pi-pi wallah darwaja (door-frame metal detector) has been installed here. We had not seen such a door, so we came here. Now that we have seen it, we are going back. If we stay back to hear the speech, we will not get space in the Rafiganj-bound vehicles.
A: You can't say all politicians befool people. Look at our own Nikhil Babu. He has given up the comforts of Rajbhavan to be among us.
B: What Rajbhavan comforts? Do MPs live on footpath? Rajbhavan is a cage. Birds used to flying free do not like cages even if it is a golden cage. So is the case with Nikhil Babu. He does not want to live in distant Kerala. He wants to be in Delhi where he has been all through his life. For MPs, sky is the limit. Who knows, if elected, Nikhil Babu becomes a central minister. Membership of the Union cabinet is much more important than governorship.
C: And if Nikhil Babu is really interested in serving us, you need not necessarily be an MP to serve people. Real well-wishers of people do not aspire for positions of power and privilege. Whether it was Gandhiji, JP or, for that matter, it is Anna Hazare, they were never MPs and ministers. But their contribution is second to none.
D: And if you want to serve the people you must remain with them to familiarize with the local problems and solutions. With victory certificate in hand, MPs invariably do the vanishing Act. They rarely visit the area and even on the rare occasions when they visit the constituency, the MPs, surrounded by cronies and petty contractors, remain ensconced in the Circuit House.
A: Why are you targeting Nikhil Babu?
D: I am not targeting any Babu. I am just making a general statement. All the three main contestants are tested materials. Sushil Singh (BJP candidate) has been the MP twice. His (Sushil's) father Lutan Singh also won two parliamentary elections from here. Did they do anything?
A: What about Bagi Verma (JD-U) candidate?
D: Bagi is no different. He was a minister in Bihar. Did he do anything for us? Bagi's father Upendra Nath Verma was a central minster. He too did nothing.
A: Should we boycott the election then?
D: I am not favouring election boycott. All I am saying is that elections do not hold much promise. People do not matter anywhere. They just exercise their franchise and the leaders take over. We are destined to suffer, to grease palms for getting routine works done. Petty officials like BDOs and SHOs treat ordinary people like dirt. Politicians too side with the officials. There is nobody to take care of us. So, why should we bother about the leaders? If you want, cast your vote in favour of anybody you like. But do not expect anything from the leaders. They have their own agenda. Moreover, we should not fight among ourselves for these leaders. They all are one and the same, including those 'rashtriya netas'. They are just doing 'natak'. Each one is acting according to his own script. Once the play is over, they become one.