Last Christmas In Bandra Summary

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The honest judge in the story “Last Christmas in Bandra” also shares a similar sentiment on Indian democracy. The genial judge loses all his compassion for the poor when he thinks that they have been keeping the country from progressing by casting their votes to let the corrupt rule the country. The only change brought about by way of elections in India is a change of personnel at the top; otherwise it is always the same story playing out without any change to the existing patterns. Balram also confides the common knowledge with Wen Jiabao that people in India like to talk about politics and their concerns reach a crescendo during electioneering. It is the time when the politicians promise the impossible to the rural masses who get feverishly excited and agitated by the whole process: There are the three main diseases of this country, sir: typhoid, cholera, and election fever. This last one is the worst; it makes people talk and talk about things that they have no say in. . . . At the tea shop, the gossip grew furious. People sipped their tea and discussed the same things again and again. . . . Like eunuchs discussing the Kama Sutra, the voters discuss the elections in Laxmangarh. (58) The election process is often little more than deal making. The Great Socialist is a seasoned politician and therefore it is very hard for his opponents to topple him. He has always won elections by striking deals with the landlords, but even when they oppose him he remains unfazed because

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