I am a master in India

Chapter 413 General Election

The Shiva Army is not a political party, but they have close ties with the BJP.

During the general election, Thackeray, as the party leader, naturally stepped forward to campaign for the BJP.

He spotted Amor immediately and waved to him.

Thackeray, dressed in a crisp white shirt and black suit trousers, and wearing sunglasses, pulled Amor to the front and introduced him to everyone.

“Ron Sue’s confidant, who used to be in charge of his security, is now the personnel manager of Sue Electric.”

"Oh!" People smiled at him.

This position is highly valuable, especially for ordinary people.

Because he can decide who gets into Sull Electric, India’s largest electrical appliance company.

Kamat, the leader of a branch of Shiva's army, immediately got off his motorcycle and warmly greeted Amor by shaking his hands.

Sackley instructed his subordinate, Kamath, to bring Amor along to campaign for Ram Naik, another candidate of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

“There will definitely be some unpleasant things to say,” Kamat laughed. “That’s how it is when you’re campaigning.”

White lines were painted on the roads within a 200-meter radius of the polling station, prohibiting vehicles from passing through.

Everyone around him wanted Amor to see the world and enthusiastically offered to show him the way.

Amor and his friends lined up in front of the school, which had been set up as a polling station, and gradually moved inside with the surging crowd.

Kamat stood at the threshold first. The staff member, whose fingers were covered in ink stains, first checked his identity, then pressed down the ballot with a steel ruler and tore it off for him.

Kamath took the ballot and a rubber stamp, went behind a chest-high cardboard fence, stamped the ballot, folded it, and put it into the ballot box.

"See that? Like this." He demonstrated it once.

However, for many people in the city, voting is not so simple.

They went through great hardship to reach the polling station, only to find that their names had been marked with a red checkmark, indicating that someone else had voted for them in their names.

In this country that should be democratic, someone has stolen their rights and made choices for them.

Although this was the only meaningful option for them.

At that point, whether they could prove "I am who I am" was no longer important; they were too late.

The inspectors who verify identity information and provide the corresponding tickets outside the polling station are independently hired by the campaign office.

A BJP prosecutor earns 50 rupees a day, while a Congress prosecutor earns 100 rupees a day, plus perks such as puli, vegetables, and shila desserts.

Amor immediately realized that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was supported by Shiva's army, was in a winning position: the weaker party, the more obviously it would lose, the more money it needed to pay for people.

Amor took the opportunity to chat with a Congress Party staff member named Batia.

Despite being a supporter of the Congress Party since childhood, Batiah was not particularly interested in this election.

However, he offered an interesting reason for supporting the Congress Party: "The Congress Party is already full, while the Shiva Army is not. They are all robbers, but if they come to power, the Congress Party will definitely have a smaller appetite than the Shiva Army."

This kind of logic is truly brilliant.

Kamat of Shiva’s army wanted to befriend Amor, so he invited him to a meal, accompanied by another leader of Shiva’s army, Girish.

They had lunch at an upscale restaurant at the foot of Mount Malabar. The restaurant was elegant and decorated with candles.

“It’s all to save electricity,” Girish said.

To hide his discomfort, he put on a fierce demeanor and took every opportunity to nitpick at the waiters: "The food is taking too long to arrive."

He'd never been to such a high-class place before, so he could only bluff.

“Girish looks like he used to be a big shot,” Amor chuckled.

“He was very rich back then,” Kamath agreed.

What he meant was that Giris had also had a substitute right before.

Girish is a proper university graduate, but he is not having a good time finding a job.

"If I had known this would happen, I should have gone to a more prestigious school." He also studied computer programming and became a stockbroker in early 91 when the stock market was booming.

That's how Giris made his fortune, and that's how everyone who rushed into the stock market back then made their fortune.

In water-scarce India, he can afford to drink fruit juice every day.

"Even if we want to drink banana juice, we'll choose to buy the more expensive bananas."

Unfortunately, the stock market plummeted after the series of bombings in 93.

Since then, Giris has been unemployed and living in dire poverty. He can't even afford running water, let alone juice.

Later, he joined Shiva's army and became a minor leader, making a living by taking on private jobs.

“Money is God,” Carmat added.

“Mumbai is a city of gold.” Gilish nodded with considerable emotion.

Kamat wasn't exactly a model citizen either; he started working for gangsters as a young man, buying them food and observing how they made money in Mumbai.

He failed his junior high school graduation exam the first time and only passed after retaking it. When it came time for the college entrance exam, Kamat "got smarter."

According to him, studying desperately, failing the exam, and then retaking it is "something only a fool would do."

He forged his exam admission ticket, hired a substitute to take the exam for him, and successfully obtained a top grade. After graduating from high school, Kamat joined the Shiva Army. Whenever he needed blood transfusions, it was his fellow Shiva Army members who donated blood for him.

This deeply moved Kamat, who said they were brothers who had risked their lives for each other.

Later, Kamat made his fortune.

He was no longer a street thug. Taking advantage of the booming sales of Suer televisions, he also started a private cable television business, specializing in showing adult movies.

Because of his connection to Shiva's army, nobody bothered him. The police even jokingly hoped he would release his "Happy Bean" video.

That evening, his private television station aired a restricted-rated film produced by the New Union.

This business was very profitable. With the money he made, he opened a small pen factory, sold mangoes on the side, and bought a van to receive tour groups.

Having gained considerable influence, Kamat stepped in to resolve numerous local disputes, and his relationship with the police grew increasingly close.

There was a time when some thugs got into a conflict with a tricycle driver. To settle the matter, Kamat gave up his parking lot and allowed them to park for free.

He had a thick stack of business cards in his pocket, the most conspicuous one of which read "Chartered Chief Executive".

“With this business card in hand, I am the Chief Justice of Mumbai,” Kamath said proudly, even though he is at most a figurehead notary.

Once a political party comes to power, one of its ways of winning over its subordinates is by promoting and giving them official titles and ranks.

Therefore, there are hundreds of "chartered executive officers" or "enforcement judges" parading around, and a considerable number of them have a history of misconduct.

From a purely legal perspective, such a business card cannot grant Kamath real power, but it is precisely this business card that gives him the identity and confidence he has long desired.

When he shows his business card, people see the government seal on it and no longer delve into the exact meaning of "Chartered Chief Executive".

Kamat also has influence, even hospitals give him face. His father recently underwent surgery that cost 15,000 rupees.

This was entirely within Kamath's means, and he enrolled his father in Sindhuja Hospital, Mumbai's best hospital with five-star facilities.

“I can freely enter and leave any hospital, even Sindhuja. I spoke to Bar Thackeray, and with one phone call from Thackeray, the hospital had no choice but to obey.”

Kamath's daughter also attended the Mumbai International School, an elite school founded by Ron that uses English as the medium of instruction.

The enrollment was arranged by a member of parliament who also got Kamath released from detention after Kamath was arrested for participating in the riots.

In return, whenever Your Excellency needs him but is unable to appear in person, Kamat and his henchmen will be at your beck and call.

From Ron to the senator, and then to Kamath, this is the bribery system under the electoral system.

After a busy day at various polling stations, Amor, wanting to reciprocate, invited the two to his home.

He bought a new apartment near Bandera. Unlike Ashish, who squeezed into a shabby "middle-class apartment," Amor chose a truly upscale one.

He was a Brahmin, and should have lived in a place like this. His wife and children had gone back to the countryside, and he was all alone in the apartment.

It was raining outside, and the night sky over Mumbai was filled with spectacular lightning and thunder as they drank whiskey on the balcony.

Carmat took off his shirt and sat down in the armchair, wearing only a vest. He kept glancing at his new watch, not to check the time, but purely to admire it.

Amor noticed more than once that Kamat was smug and self-satisfied. People of his background rarely climbed three floors.

The rain outside is getting heavier and heavier, which is unusual for this time of year.

“It’s because of the sins we committed,” Kamat muttered to himself. “Even God cannot forgive Mumbai. He created the heavens and the earth, but he cannot accept Mumbai.”

Kamat and Gilish recounted their actions during the 92 riots, describing how they committed murder, arson, and other heinous crimes, yet they are now the "chartered governors" of Mumbai.

This apartment is located near the commercial center of Bandera, with a street full of restaurants downstairs.

They were sitting on the balcony drinking, but Carmat was abstaining from alcohol, meaning he didn't drink whiskey.

Amor poured him a glass of wine, though it wasn't really alcohol. Kamat held the glass between his fingertips and took small sips.

Watching the bearded Carmat carefully sip his red wine felt as out of place as seeing him at an art gallery opening or an English afternoon tea party.

The two of them looked around Amor's apartment with admiration, as if they had lived in such a house themselves.

A moment later, Kamat got up and went to the bathroom.

"Don't you flush your toilet?" he asked when he came back.

Amor looked up at him, not understanding for a moment.

"Let's charge!" he said.

But Girish understood; he had used a toilet when he was a stockbroker.

He led Carmat back to the bathroom and demonstrated to him how to flush.

He taught Kamath: Press the knob, the lever will move the tank to dispense water, so you don't need to scoop water into the toilet.

Amor chuckled inexplicably, looked out the window, and clicked his tongue.

In an instant, colorful fireworks rose into the sky outside and then scattered in all directions; it must be a wedding ceremony taking place.

After the fireworks faded, a sky full of silvery lightning illuminated the city that was both familiar and strange to Amor.

He looked down at Mumbai, its dazzling yet disorienting chaos.