Opinion Politics

Opinion | But Politics Is Not a Cricket Match

Have we slowly turned politics into a stadium sport? We pick a side. We wear invisible jerseys. We cheer when our team scores and we boo when the other side speaks. And when our side commits a foul, we look away or worse we justify it.

That is where the real damage begins.

In a cricket match, loyalty is harmless. We can defend our team even when they play badly. The worst outcome is a bruised ego, a night of disappointment, maybe a few jokes at our expense. Life moves on.

Politics does not work that way.

When we blindly cheer for a political party, we stop seeing policy failures. We excuse poor decisions. We defend wrongdoing. We attack anyone who asks questions, not because they are wrong, but because they are not “our side”. In that process, accountability quietly dies.

Support your preferred political party. Campaign for it. Promote it. Defend it. But do all of that during elections.

Once the election is over and a government is formed, our role must change. We are no longer cheerleaders. We are citizens. At that point, every policy deserves scrutiny. Every decision demands questions. Approval should be earned, not assumed.

A voter’s duty does not end at the ballot box. It begins there.

Be independent evaluators of the government we chose. Do not behave like karyakartas or ground staff whose job is only to protect the team at all costs. Governments are not cricket teams. They are custodians of our present and our children’s future.

If a government fails, the damage is not temporary. It lingers for decades. In weakened institutions. In lost opportunities. In generations that may never forgive us for staying silent when questions mattered.

So the next time you feel the urge to defend a political decision simply because it came from “your side”, pause and ask yourself a simple question.

Am I being a citizen, or just a fan?

Think about it

Dear Readers,
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.

Related posts