Skip to main content

Indian politics, data analysis and data security

I am reading a lot of fuss about data privacy and leaks? Apparently political parties are using Social Media and Data Analytics to influence elections. But how is it new to us? Indian politics has always been influenced by data alone. That it has transformed from sheets of A4 size paper to digital format is a mere progression.


We Indians have had never any privacy over our personal data. How do you think we kill people during riots? Using data sheets from electoral rolls to check where people practicing a particular religion live.

Governments have the caste census done so that we know who will win the election. Because we vote for castes. Elections in India are always about data analysis.That is how you get a ticket from a political party. That's how psephologists predict who will win the election. The dominant caste decides the verdict eventually. So you got to know which is the dominant caste and which way will it swing.

In India, we have at least 10 or more central agencies just collecting our personal data. From the National Survey to Election Commission, Aadhar, Ration Cards, Passports, are we really such fools to understand that only Aadhar is insecure?

Our data was never secure. More so that the previous government and even the current dispensation wants to outsource much of the task to third-party contractors. From our Passport to Aadhar, all data collection is being left to firms we are not much aware of. To debate that is it secure today or not is a moot point.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Also read

Does India need communal parties?

I think, it was Tan's post on this blog itself, Republic Day Event, where this question was raised. My answer. YES. we need communal parties even in Independent, Secular India. Now let me take you, back to events before 1947. When India was a colony of the British Empire. The congress party, in its attempt to gain momentum for the independence movement, heavily used Hinduism, an example of which is the famous Ganesh Utsav held in Mumbai every year. Who complains? No one. But at that time, due to various policies of the congress, Muslims started feeling alienated. Jinnah, in these times, got stubborn over the need of Pakistan and he did find a lot of supporters. Congress, up till late 1940's never got bothered by it. And why should we? Who complains? No one. But there were repercussions. The way people were butchered and slaughtered during that brief time when India got partitioned, was even worse than a civil war scenario. All in the name of religion. And there indeed was cr...
40 comments
Read more

Epitome of equality

First of all This is not to demean any religion.. I am a Hindu by birth, but yes I respect all religions .I offer my daily prayers , fast on holy days , but there was something that was disturbing me . God as per me was a Friend, someone who was by my side always , someone who was a dear friend , but this is not what everyone else thought , for others he was the Judge who gives his verdict always and punishes anyone and everyone . Walk into any temple and you would see , if you have money , you will be treated in a way as if you are the ONLY disciple of the God . I have had too many experiences where I was treated as a second class citizen in the temple . Why? Well I could not afford giving thousands as donation. This is not how it should be , God looks at each one of us with the same divinity .As I mentioned God for me is a friend, so tell me, do we chose friends based on their bank balances? Do we give our verdict on them ? then how can God do it? I know many of us would ...
32 comments
Read more

Spill the Tea: Karan and loyalty without reward

Spill the Tea: Karan, Who Always Shows Up Karan arrives with takeaway, helps in the kitchen, and quietly holds up the people in his life without being asked. Through tea, small talk, and unspoken habits, his story reveals loyalty that has become duty, care that goes unreturned. Part of the Spill the Tea series, this piece explores devotion, invisibility, and the cost of always showing up. Karan arrived with two plastic bags, the handles cutting into his fingers. He didn’t ring the bell. He never did. He knocked once and opened the door when I called out, already stepping inside like he’d been here yesterday.  His hair was still damp, curling at the edges, as if he’d showered in a hurry. “I brought Chinese,” he said. Not cheerful. Not performative. Just information. He walked straight to the kitchen and set the bags on the counter. One of the containers had leaked a little; sauce glistened on the plastic. He wiped it with a tissue from his pocket before I could reach for one. “Yo...
Post a Comment
Read more