"Indian Politics" is perhaps the dirtiest of words. It surpasses the four-letter variety not just by sheer word-count but in its concept as well. Take CVs of most politicians and chances are there's a Student Union background tucked away somewhere. It's said that there are two kinds of leaders - those interested in the flock and those interested in the fleece. Indian Politics leans very heavily on the later.

At IIM-B, the Student Council set-up is concerned about the flock. It must be clearly understood that unlike other student bodies, the IIM-B Student Council isn't factional. The traffic is two-way, smooth and causes no jam, unlike the intersection just outside the IIM-B campus.

Satish, who is Mr. President of this term's Student Council explains how the system works. "I head a 17-member core committee. I interact between the Student's Council, students and the faculty. I represent the council at faculty meetings to present the student's view point, if there is an issue that needs addressing."

At IIM-B, the election process is sans the razzmatazz of noisy campaigning, "Vote For" processions and ugly sights of posters haphazardly stuck all over. Instead, each student is given a login ID and votes through the electronic medium. "The system is devoid of politics of any sort," says Satish. "I had some ideas in mind which I thought I could implement. Secondly, one has to be committed enough since being the President can take quite a bit of your time and one should accept the responsibility." One of Satish's initiatives as 'Pres' has been the Asian Culture Transfer exchange student program.

Different Strokes. Constructive initiatives such as these would make our world a better place to live in. Lessons there, that a civilized election process is possible.

Before that however, there's hope that the Electronic Voting Machine India has developed, will work without a glitch.