Delhi polls: Adventures of a YouTuber neta from Malviya Nagar

A former journalist and a LAMP fellow who once helped MPs with their research, Meghnad S. is contesting for the Delhi assembly from Malviya Nagar as an independent candidate. The fun fact is that he is recording his experience, creating content and uploading them on his YouTube channel. An insider’s guide to the election!

While nobody takes ‘independent candidates’ seriously — and yes, several are put up by one political party or the other to create confusion or chip away some votes off rivals — they should actually be more effective than candidates put up by parties, says Meghnad S.

The content creator, who has a YouTube channel with 80 thousand subscribers, has just put up a video to explain why he is being ‘foolish enough’ to contest an election.

He describes his adventure as ‘#ProjectAnda’, knowing full well that he may end up receiving only his own vote and lose his security deposit of Rs 10,000. He is also putting in his own money to campaign for the election and plans to spend no more than Rs 1.5 lakh from his savings on it.

It is an investment as a content creator, after all, because he is recording the adventure on video, capturing his experience on camera and plans to turn them into content. “It might be a good idea to release a manual for independent candidates on how to contest elections and possibly develop a network of independent candidates,” he muses.

Explaining why he feels an independent candidate can be more effective than a party-aligned peer, he points out that such candidates do not have ‘bosses’ to report to, are accountable only to their own constituents and do not fall under the purview of the anti-defection Act.

They can also speak their mind in the assembly, suggest radical solutions and pursue them, whereas others can be restrained by the party or other extraneous factors, Meghnad says.

The other reason he decided to contest was to do a deep-dive into the role of bureaucrats, political parties, candidates and of course the Election Commission of India.

His quest is to understand the processes and the place he lives in better and connect with the people. He has already been asked multiple times why he is wasting his time and money and whether his wife believes he is turning a little mad, he concedes with a smile.

He also walked into the office of the BJP candidate from Malviya Nagar, Satish Upadhyay, and sought to interview him on camera. “I introduced myself as an independent candidate contesting against him and sought his advice; but he refused to say anything on camera,” Meghnad says with a chuckle.

Off camera, he was invited to join the BJP and learn about politics and elections first.

The first lesson he has picked up already is that contesting an election is a complicated process, perhaps needlessly so — which explains why so many nominations are rejected, because just one mistake in the nomination papers (it is actually a booklet and not a form) can lead to rejection.

On the day of the scrutiny, all candidates and their agents are invited together. It was a free-for-all during which the political parties tried to point out defects in the nomination papers filed by others, he recalls.

As an independent candidate, Meghnad needed 10 proposers registered as voters in his constituency, as against just three for candidates from the political parties. He had to obtain their photographs, signatures and other details — indicating the part, booth and number in the voters’ list — and then write out an application for each one of them, getting them certified and notarised, before submitting the names.

As a candidate, he had to submit proof of every detail about himself, his education, finances, investment, property and those of his wife and dependents. If any information turns out to be incorrect, then it is deemed an offence.

What was more amusing to him, though, were the expenditure limits set by the Election Commission.

In the Delhi assembly elections, the maximum amount that a single candidate is allowed to spend is Rs 40 lakh — but their parties can spend an unlimited amount.

Candidates are expected to maintain daily expenditure statements and submit them once in three days. The rates are also prescribed: Rs 6 for a cup of tea (tea was being sold at Rs 10 outside the election office in Saket) and Rs 750 for hiring an e-rickshaw for a day (e-rickshaw drivers, however, demanded to be paid Rs 2,200 for a day). Every expenditure statement is to be accompanied by invoices from every service provider, including the chaiwallah and the e-rickshaw driver.

Another complication is that campaigning requires prior permission — including the time and place of distributing flyers and pamphlets to conducting door-to-door campaigns and of course rallies, if any. Posters require permission from the municipal corporation as well.

Once the nomination is accepted and the candidate is allotted a symbol —our candidate’s symbol is the nib of a fountain pen — and the candidate and his agent receive an official identity card, they are flooded with information. The EVMs, their movement, details of strongrooms, randomisation at different stages... The candidate and his agent are free to go anywhere and inspect anything.

The candidate is also given the phone numbers of two election observers who are to be available on the phone at all times for feedback, complaints and any help required.

Contesting the election with no cadre, workers or lawyers and without the backing of a party is tough — but our content creator is determined to pursue his passion and record his experience.

Judging by the first few videos uploaded, the content promises to be insightful, interesting and fun to follow.

May the best candidate win!