When loyalty means nothing |
Money, muscle, and manpower appear to be the new deciding factors when it comes to distributing tickets among party workers, reducing politics to a raw contest for power and eroding democracy
Flags and scarves of various political parties are put on displayed at a shop in Lalbaug, South Mumbai, on December 23, 2025. Pic/Ashish Raje
In Mumbai and other elsewhere, the rules regarding electoral merit have been quietly rewritten. Loyalty and years of service no longer define who gets rewarded. Instead, tickets are increasingly decided by three Ms — money, muscle, and manpower.
There was a time when party loyalty, clean conduct, and a strong connection with the people mattered while claiming an election ticket. A worker had to spend years building the party at the ground level.
Today, these values barely count. The way tickets are being distributed for civic polls across Maharashtra makes one thing clear: the old belief that “loyalty pays” no longer holds true.
Across parties, long-serving workers are being pushed aside while tickets are handed out based on convenience, influence, or last-minute calculations. Loyalty alone is no longer a guarantee of reward. No party is an exception to this new political mantra.
Whispers from the grassroots have grown louder with aspirants alleging that cash is being demanded for party tickets, accusations that are publicly explosive but often remain legally unproven, even if there might be some merit to the charges.
As ethics and morality are pushed aside, politics stops being about public service and turns into a raw contest for power.
The late Bharat Ratna and former Prime Minister