Should Rajinikanth's digital drive worry his political opponents?
Actor Rajinikanth has launched a website and an app on Google Play Store as a quick follow-up to his big announcement of entering politics on December 31, 2017.
Leaving aside the fact that the website is as basic as it comes and looks cluttered, how far will this be helpful in taking his political career forward with the recruitment of new members is the real question.
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— Rajinikanth (@superstarrajini) January 1, 2018
Online recruitment is not new in Indian politics. The Congress has an online membership form through which you can become a member of the party without visiting any of its offices. All you need is a copy of your voter ID card. The BJP takes this a step further and gives you an option between becoming a member and online aficionado of the party with portal user-only access. In Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK and the DMK too allow online enrolment into the party.
When it comes to reaching out to their followers, almost all big names have mobile apps. Even new entrants who are yet to launch their parties such as actors Kamal Haasan and Vishal have launched their own apps to connect with the people.
While these apps and website will definitely be useful, will it really be a key player in inviting new members into the party? Well, yes. It will attract the current generation who are perpetually glued to their phone screens to join the party or their cause. The only issue is, how to convert these members into actual votes.
When one had to visit an office, fill out a form and pay a membership fee, the person joining the party would have to have the intention and the will to join for him to put in that effort. If you belong to the left-wing political parties, you are expected to share a portion of your monthly purse with the party.
You will be forced to make a conscious decision of following the ideology of the party and going out of your way before joining it. Even though this is not foolproof, it will at the very least ensure that the person who joins your party has the will to vote for you at the time of contributing to your vote share in the constituency.
When all you have to do is fill up four to five fields in an online form to join a party, you will not only attract the “why not” crowd, but also the mischievous, if not malicious elements.
This could lead to embarrassing situations in the future since the party leadership would be answerable for their actions. It would also end up inflating the party numbers and giving false hope to the party leadership. Another question that the party needs to ask itself is if the numbers generated from online membership actually translate into votes in its favour.
But make no mistake about it, apps and websites are absolutely essential in today’s age. It will help the party and the leader keep his cadre engaged. Providing an app to existing party members where they would need their party ID to login would help them keep their base consolidated. It will also keep them apprised of the party’s current stand on important issues, rally them for protests and even help them provide effective feedback to the party leadership on the local issues.
However, the effectiveness of online recruitment of party members is something that is untested and may prove to be ineffective for a start-up party.
If Rajinikanth plans to convert these members directly into party cadre en masse, he would have to be wary of the pitfalls that would ensue with the strategy. For, people who probably do not want to see Rajinikanth in politics, can use the website/app to infiltrate into the party and corrupt his base and image altogether. That is one danger the existing parties with consolidated base which use the app or website for communication is safe from.