12/04/2014 Reporters

Welcome to a special edition of Reporters. I am in the Indian

capital of Delhi. As the biggest democracy in the world goes to the

poll, we have a range of reports from our correspondent across the

country. We will focus on the issues shaping their selection. Coming up

in this week 's programme: A unique exercise in democracy. We join some

of the first voters in Assad. It has been a solid start on day one of the

voting with a good turnout, always a sign that voters want to send the

politicians a strong message. Andrew North profiles the controversial

Hindu nationalist candidate whose election could change the face of

Indian politics. He has a simple message, he is promising a return to

high`speed growth at a time when many Indians fear their country has

lost its way and the message has growing appeal. A family business,

we assess the lasting legacy of the counties as they try to keep the

dynasty alive `` Ghandi's. Leaving his mark on the streets of India,

the artist spreading his political message with spray paint. It is an

election night no other, the world 's biggest vote is under way in

India, where the ruling Congress party faces a strong challenge from

the opposition right`wing BJP. It is a marathon contest over 800 million

people will be voting in nine phases in 930 thousand polling booths

across the country over a period of five weeks. One of the first regions

to go to the polls is the strategic north`eastern state of Assam. They

queued up from the early hours of morning at this polling stations set

up in a girls school. Women, almost outnumbering men. Standing patiently

for hours in 30 degrees heat. Once inside, a quick identity check after

which their fingers are marked with indelible ink, to ensure no one

votes twice. It has been a solid start and on day one of the voting a

pretty good turnout. It is a sign voters want to send politicians a

strong message. Assam has not kept pace with the rest of India when it

comes to development. There is a sense you sometimes that they have

been left out. A sense of frustration and even of alienation.

This is tea growing country. The Plantation in this region was set up

by the British in the mid`19th century to produce the world`famous

Assam T. While the industry has prospered, tea growers haven't. ``

tea. This is three generations of one family, Father, son and

grandson, and they will all vote in this poll. They live right by the

plantation in conditions that have seen little improvement over the

years. The tin shacks that serve as their homes offer no protection

against the heat. There is no electricity or proper healthcare.

TRANSLATION: The British were here and I have been working here since

then. They left, and I voted in the first elections and have voted in

all the elections since then. We are not asking for much. All we want is

for someone who will improve things for us. We work so hard, but our

wages are really low. The industry is making profits. We get no share

of that. I am voting for the first time so I am really excited. Our

lives here are pathetic. There is no future for me here. I want to vote

for someone who will give me an opportunity to move out from here

and begin a new life. Now, it is decision time for Assam and the rest

of India. Five weeks from now, we will know who they have backed.

As we have said, this year 's election is seen as a 2`way contest

between the ruling Congress party and the opposition right`wing BJP.

The BJP is left eye Narendra Modi, a controversial figure selling himself

as a figure for a new India. As Andrew North report, a population

frustrated with the economic slowdown and corruption, large

numbers are expected to turn out to vote for him.

A new face for India. The country desperate for change. A growing wave

of support is growing behind the renter Modi, the politician who has

worked his way up from the bottom. As a boy, he sold tea in a railway

station and now he sells himself as the only man who can get India back

on track. `` macro to. TRANSLATION: From the political pundits to the

common man, everyone in every corner of India knows who will win and for

the next government `` pro two. An explosion of communal violence in

his home state, at one he still cast a shadow. `` Narendra Modi. Thousand

people died, most of them Muslim. He has never shown remorse. He is an

unapologetic Hindu nationalist and it all makes many Muslims nervous.

TRANSLATION: Narendra Modi may have been cleared, but he does not

trigger. Ask a mother who lost a child if she will vote for him. She

will throw shoes at him. What is driving voters Narendra Modi's Way

is the boom in his state he has created, while India's economy has

slumped under the other party rule. Many see him as their only hope. He

is he will develop India. That is why we support him. His muscular

style appeals to those who Narendra Modi has a `` appeals to so.

Narendra Modi has growing appeal, regardless of questions about his

divisive past. Modi`mania Is taking hold and if he winds, prepare for a

new kind of India, may be growing faster again, but perhaps also with

a harder face. Facing Narendra Modi is Rahul

Ghandi, leading the governing Congress party. The Ghandi dynasty

has dominated politics for 60 years and the party has given the country

three prime ministers and Congress is hoping the Ghandi legacy will be

a enough to bring victory to the party again. Our correspondent has

been investigating why Indian politics is still very much a family

business. That grand collier Palace from where

the family once ruled. Becoming one of India's most powerful

aristocracies. Three centuries later, the air to the throng Kingdom

`` heir to the former kingdom, rules the people who were once their

subjects. Is something I am proud of but having said that living in

21st`century India, I believe that more work must account for yourself

in terms of your connection to the people and your track record. The

fiefdom voted for his father and grandmother during their political

careers and the adulation he receives makes him a favourite to

win. TRANSLATION: For us, he is our king and it will always remain our

king. The family has done so much for us. He is a good leader. The

political dynasty in India brings to mind the Ghandi family, which

brought its first PM to India. His great`grandson, Rahul Ghandi, is

trying to keep the legacy alive. Three generations of his family have

let India and he is hoping to be the fourth. India might be a mod in

democracy, but family and feudal loyalties are important to its

culture, one reason why the trend is spreading `` modern. In the eastern

state of Bihar, another dynasty is unfolding. Laloo Yadav is a champion

of the lower caste. He is politician without political or aristocratic

lineage. Now, his daughter is making a political debut, cashing in on her

father 's considerable fame. She might be a political debutante but

as we walk through these lanes, you can see the interest she is

generating particularly among women. It is not surprising because she is

the daughter of one of the most famous politicians. Now, Indians

from across the country are poised to make their choice. They will

determine who makes it to Parliament. Will the new MPs truly

represent the world 's largest democracy? From Dynasty is to

India's business elite. This year, many candidates with high`profile

corporate backgrounds are standing for Parliament, with the country in

the midst of an economic slowdown, they are getting a lot of support.

We have been finding out what has taken these business barons from the

boardroom to the ballot box. Their heat and noise of India's

political landscape. The co`founder of one of the country's biggest

software giant has set foot on new turf. But, he is quickly learning

the ropes, and finding out what makes a good photo opportunity. Five

years ago, he left his company to head a government programme giving

an unique identification programme to teach Indian citizen. Now, he is

wooing the people to put him in Parliament. For the billionaire, who

is the richest candidate, this is a far cry from his corporate life. I

was sitting in an air`conditioned office, overlooking the golf course,

now here I am walking around with people. It is very good, because I

am learning the real issues that people face, and I think you need to

win a popular election. India needs a lot of change. In India, the

middle and upper classes have not been engaged with politics in the

past, but that has certainly changed this time. Many people believe that

they can be part of the political system if they want to see a change

in the way that India is governed. It means people with corporate

backgrounds are jumping in to contest elections, whatever party

they might choose to join, and that is a reflection. So, in the southern

part of Bangalore, one of his former colleagues is also canvassing for

votes. Shedding the Isthmus suits he wore as a chief executive, he now

looks every bit the politician. He quit the company just over a month

ago to join the common man's party, apolitical outfit formed from the

movement in India. I thought I had done everything I want to do in the

corporate world, I want to do something for society. Think this

election will be a turning point, with some people from the corporate

world being elected and coming to Parliament. They will become role

models for future people to follow. Despite their lack of political

experience, the corporate candidates are expected to put up a good fight

against the more seasoned politicians. But there are still on

the handful of them. For these former software bosses, it will be a

while before they can rewrite the code for Indian politics.

The horrific rape and murder of a young Delhi student in December 2012

has prompted national soul`searching about the way Indian women are

treated in society. It has also brought the issue of women's rights

onto agenda of this election. We travelled to the north`eastern

state, considered progressive by many, but found there is still a lot

of social pressure on women to forgive rapist. Men should learn to

respect women more. Independent, ambitious and confident. These young

students at university seem to have got it together. Like this

23`year`old, who lives alone in the city and is researching the issue of

violence against women. I really want to work for women, and stand up

for women's rights. This bright young modern image hides a dark

side. Rape is rampant here. Most perpetrators are known to the

victims. Sarah, not her real name, is 19 years old. She says she has

been repeatedly raped by her stepfather since the age of ten. But

every she was silenced. TRANSLATION: Family forced me to my stepfather.

If I had a choice I would never forgive him. I am scared not just of

him, but all men around me. This type of violence, and the silence

around it, is a well`kept secret. Starkly different from conservative

parts of northern India, this is refreshing. Women are visible and

employed. I am told that 80% of all people here are women. But, they

have almost zero political representation. This woman stood for

state elections twice and lost. She tells me no woman from this area has

ever been elected to the Indian parliament, and this time, no one is

even contesting. On our society, females are looked down upon. We

cannot be elected as Judge Elders also, so it affects politics also.

Men find it difficult to accept a female to be in the position.

Efforts to get more women into public life are continuing. The hope

is that when educated, employed women are also politically

empowered, it will not be possible to silence them any more.

An unprecedented number of young people are expected to vote in this

election, so the youth vote could be decisive. We have been talking to

students at a Muslim school in Delhi to find out what they make of the

Indian elections so far. Everything that you see in the

newspaper, it says, make your vote count. They want us to vote, they

want a political opinions, they want us to have, you know, they want us

to decide as to where we want our country... If we are not working or

sleeping, so much is going on. Every brand is trying to take a bit of

politics with it, they are popularising it. They don't think

twice before putting our status online, or commenting about it. We

are bombarded with messages all throughout. During the World Cup,

you would have seen, in the outbreaks, a Narendra Modi campaign

going on, then in the next one a rival Gundy campaign going on. ``

Rahul Gandhi. I am tired of it going on, all the different parties. You

have leaders who have gone on Twitter, on Facebook, and every day,

every minute, they are tweeting. They go out and meet the common

people, and various pictures up there. You are seeing a very

interactive form. People below the poverty line, who are in the

maximum, they are given things only in the times of elections. They give

them gifts, no one cares about them outside of the election times. It

looks like it is a gimmick to gain votes from them. I would like to see

actual world changes. If they could show us that they have actually gone

and built a school, they have built facilities, and they actually show

testimonies of these people, I would believe them. He is not a political

candidate, but he is keen to get voters' attention. Daku, India's

Banksy, is an artist and political activist who operates on scene and

anonymously. His artwork is in plain sight across Delhi, but no one has

ever seen his face. Says his art is a political statement. He tells us

why he wants to provoke a reaction. My name is Daku and name a street

artist. Daku is a Hindi word, that means lend. I take walls and leave

my mark on the walls. Most of my work includes social political

topics, mostly in India. Everyone has an image of Daku in their head.

I think in India, people can paint everywhere, but painting is illegal,

how is that? In America, people look at graffiti very negatively,

generally in India, people don't look at it as vandalism, it is some

colour on the walls. Most of my work has multiple stories. People make up

their own stories with that, and that is what I like about it.

Whether it is pro` voting or anti` voting, it has some kind of

conversation around it. Science like stop riding, stop shopping, stop

raping. So many of them. Because Banksy is popular, so you compare me

with him, as Daku is spreading it will become more and more like,

Banksy... More people see it and like it, more people sharing and do

it, and it multiplies. I also feel that a wall is a very powerful

medium, it is sensitive. You can almost start a riot with just one

word. Whether it is in the form of graffiti or street art or whatever

it is, I want more youngsters to come out and express themselves.

Especially on streets, because that is where you can get a message out.

That is all for this special Indian elections episode of Reporters for

this week. Goodbye for now. We saw quite a contrast in weather

conditions across the UK during Saturday. Northern areas were

windier with also some showers. Further south, a dry picture.

Through the night, it remains much the same. The southern half of the

UK seem long, clear spells through the night.