Dubbed “slapgate” by a depressingly unimaginative electorate, the Waheeda Shah case reinforces what the educated, urban middle-class already believes about the political class.
And it is condemnable what the PPP leader did. First, at the risk of stating the painfully obvious, politicians don’t go around slapping people. They are role models and exist to reach out to people. They use words. They are diplomats. The idea is, even though they will deny it, that they represent the best of their constituency.
But it doesn’t stop at that. For it wasn’t just anybody that she slapped. It was an on-duty servant of the state. Slapping one of these means slapping the state. A public servant, especially in our elitist state, can lord over many in his village or locality and this sort needs to be countered with people power. But an on duty policeman, Wapda lineman, postman, school-teacher or, as was the case here, polling station official, represents the state. Interference in their duty should not be taken lightly.
Action should be taken against her. The tricky question here is what that action should be. The media is baying for her blood. They demand her to lose her seat. That would be most unfortunate.
Whereas the premise of the pitchfork brigade is the sanctity of the electoral exercise, it is exactly that sanctity, that respect for the will of the people that a penalty like this would violate. Contesting an election is a tortuously difficult ordeal. Even in “feudal” constituencies, if the other guy is a feudal – and, increasingly, even if he or she isn’t – the candidate has to go through the motions, reach out to people and be very thick-skinned because the electorate can subject the campaigning politician to a lot of slander. Tensions run high. One example was Ms Shah’s losing her cool on polling day, an action that she immediately regretted.
Kudos to a national media which flashed the slap in an election otherwise won fair and square. A stark contrast from outright ballot box stuffing and intimidated constituencies in, say, Pakistan’s commercial capital. Not much media activism there come polling time.
Punish Ms Shah; send her to jail, if need be. But don’t take her seat away from her. She has been elected by her constituents to legislate according to their hopes and aspirations. That should be respected.
