International Journal of Advanced Research in Engineering and Technology (IJARET) Volume 11, Issue 4, April 2020, pp.515-525, Article ID: IJARET_11_04_050 Available online at http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJARET?Volume=11&Issue=4 ISSN Print: 0976-6480 and ISSN Online: 0976-6499 DOI: 10.34218/IJARET.11.4.2020.05 0

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DIGITAL IN INDIA: TECHNOLOGY DRIVEN POLITICS OR POLITICALLY DRIVEN TECHNOLOGY?

Ankur Protim Mahanta Assistant Professor, Department of Don Bosco College, Golaghat, Assam, India

ABSTRACT Objectives: An attempt has been made in the paper to analyze how emerging technologies have influenced people's political behavior, how technology and politics are intrinsically interrelated, and the possible consequences of their interrelation. This paper also tries to evaluate the role of technology on the electroral politics of India and what type of role technology is going to play in the forthcoming days. Furthermore, it illuminates how technology is used by the different political parties, political leaders, to maximize their political end and influence outcomes. Research Methods/ Data Analysis: To discover all those questions, the study used experimental, hi storical, descriptive and analytical m ethods and c ollected dat a from governmental and non-governmental reports. All data have been collected from Pew Research Center, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Social Science Research Council, Fobes and Carnegie India. Bar diagrams have been used for data analysis. sources have also been used to update the empirical data and for the overall enrichment of studies. Findings: After analyzing the data from various sources and surveys, it can be opined that technology has both positive and negative effects in the Indian . The use of various technology, and startup companies in electoral politics has changed the traditional features of Indian politics. After reviewing the opinions of social media users, it can be said that technology and politics are both sides of the same coin. Despite various shortcomings, in the contemporary era, the interrelation between politics and technology has become important to enjoy better political freedom. Novelty/Applications: The study provides an experimental analysis of both the positive and negative aspects of the interrelationship between politics and technology. In this digital age, study will give people the right path by which they can choose the right way for their development. Key words: Technology, Politics, Digitalization, Social media, Political behaviour, Electoral politics

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 515 [email protected] Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology?

Cite this Article: Ankur Protim Mahanta, Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology? International Journal of Advanced Research in Engineering and Technology, 11(04), 2020, pp.515-525 http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJARET?Volume=11&Issue=4

1. INTRODUCTION Technological innovations are having an incomprehensible impact on our social, political and economic life, including access to information, building social movements, catalysing political movements and the way we interact. It has become ubiquitous to say that science and technology play a pivotal role in our society. These scientific and technological artefacts are building blocks in our way of life. Our modern lives are loaded with technologies. Although it’s consequences are remarkable in scale and importance, but its political ramifications are disputed, and its long term effects are unknown. Technology is often acknowledged as a weapon for economic growth, the impetus of c ultural creativity, the necessary tools of and the cornerstone of security. Technologies have changed the way people live, work, and play. However, this is not a new phenomenon as technology has changed civilization in many ways throughout history. Over the past years, we had an important part of technological progress in society that revolves around all aspects of society. History has been witness to the Industrial Revolution which has been going on for centuries. The first revolution started with the power of steam proved that manpower is not the only way to progress; Human efforts were reduced by joining machines and muscles. The second industrial revolution brought the world closer with electric power. The leap in technology led t o new w ays of life a nd t he gl obal economy. T hen t he c omputer c hanged everything. Information technology and electronics led to the third industrial revolution, work space became smarter, technology became personal and communication went mobile. The fourth industrial revolution is bringing together the physical and digital worlds in industries to create a mutually global value chain. Powerful technology, incredible connectivity and unlimited information are available at our fingertips. Business leaders around the world are gearing up to be part of this ecosystem. No matter when or where they were made, or who made them, all technologies have political implications as technologies shape our society in international and contingent ways. The way we obtain pol itical i nformation has l ong been a n i mportant par t of t he pr ocess of . Communication through news media, from friends or colleagues, or from politicians themselves, helps us think about what are the important political issues of the day and how we think about them. Digital media has become an integral part of the political lives of individual citizens as a growing number of people worldwide use digital media technologies for communication. However, Social media has become one of the key areas of influence for politics, where millions of users are able to learn about the and statements of politicians, interact with political leaders, organize, and express their opinions on political matters. The continuous development of science and t echnology has had a noteworthy implications on e ach and every aspects of politics, f rom gl obal t o r egional, b allot t o E lectronic V oting Machine, t raditional t o digital administration and many more. It has changed the character of Indian electoral and campaigning system as many new things are added to those. 2. RESEARCH METHOD For this study, experimental, historical, descriptive and analytical methods are used to understand how t echnology has c hanged t he nat ure I ndian pol itics and people’s r esponse t owards the interrelationship between technology and politics. All the data are collected from Pew Research Center, Center for Strategic & International Studies, Social Science Research Council, Fobes and Carnegie India. Bar diagram is used for data analysis. Secondary sources such as books, scholarly

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 516 [email protected] Ankur Protim Mahanta articles published in journals, newspapers, data published in government documents, various official declarations and statements, reports etc. are used for overall enrichment the research and these help in getting various ideas. The entire research is based on inductive reasoning, interpretivism and constructionism. The error of central tendency scale is used while observing the r esearch a reas. Internet s ources a re a lso used t o update e mpirical data a nd f or overall enrichment of the study.

2.1. Research Question • What is the relationship between technology and politics? Who has driven whom? • What role does digital technology play in Indian administration, political campaigning and in electoral politics? • Should technology be perceived as problematic or can it provide a means to increasing accountability and transparency in government?

2.2. Understanding Politics in the era of technology The roots of politics are found in ancient civilizations around the world. The famous ancient political philosophers Plato, Aristotle and Kautilya have contributed greatly to the development of politics. However, when the world had entered the medieval era, where religion occupied a central place, the study of political science lost its scientific temperament. Nevertheless, the beginning of t he m odern e ra w ith i ndustrial a nd gl orious r evolutions has c hanged people's attitudes and aspects and pushed politics to reach another level. The rapid expansion of technology and digital facilities has changed its character of traditional politics, political behavior and campaign environment. The entire definitions of politics have changed with the availability and adoption of technology and new innovations. From political to people's behavior, formulation to policy implementation, every aspect of politics is changing and posing challenges to the state machinery as political protest becomes more stormy, unpredictable and societies become tougher to govern.

2.3. Technology and Politics: An overview An indirect correlation between technology and politics exists as both are related to human behavior and social environment. Traditionally, politics was not associated with human behavior and any other social values and norms. However, due to social flows and behavioral revolution in the field of politics, there exist mutual cooperation between technology and politics.

2.3.1. E-governance: Way to digital administration The concept of internetization has got currency as it narrates the empowerment of electronic connectivity in the age of new economy, characterized by liberalised trade, unregulated flow of capital, revolution in the field of transport and communication (Passaris, 2018). The uninterrupted process of globalization and digitalization has altered the prospects and possibilities of politics as major changes have been seen in the every aspects of the society. As the whole world is moving with science and technology, India is also adopting digitized and innovative t echniques f or m aking a n a dvanced nation. T he m assive i nitiatives and strategic decisions were taken in the past that paved the way of future India in which currently we are breathing and existing. The newest one, ‘Digital India’ was launched by the Narendra Modi on 1 J uly, 2015 t o f acilitate a nd r enovate I ndia’s s ocio-economic and political c onstruction, to generate structural empowerment and to craft governance digitally compliant. The India’s digital mission, an initiative to hunt for transfiguration and modernity is based on nine parameters of development as it has the ability to integrate the governmental arrangement. Among those nine pillars, e-governance is one of them that believes computerization and internetization of http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 517 [email protected] Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology? government services t o m ake it transparent, f air, effective, accountable and receptive to the aspirations of the citizens. The new innovations and technology has proven its effectiveness and utility in the implementation of various welfare oriented scheme such as weather forecasting, e- learning management, e-commerce, e-service centres etc. The implementation of various e- governance scheme such as Bhoomi project, Gyandoot-Community-owned Rural Internet Kiosks, Computer-aided Administration of Registration Department (CARD), FRIENDS- Online payment to the Government in Kerala etc have reduced the transaction cost, blurred the boundaries of government departments, removed the middleman, scope of discretion and ensured clarity and transparency in all transactions on the part of govement administration.

2.3.2. Weaponizing technology: in digital age At the point when India cooks for polls, it implies a serious business, the battle is on and crores of rupees are expended on it. The history has been witnessed the use of fancy slogan in the campaign since the first general of 1951-52. Political parties have faith in spoken word, which is more powerful in comparison to printed word as it is the easiest way to touch the roots of tree; means to woo voters. The political campaign is one of the vital fragments of contemporary Indian politics where politics has seen the weaponization of technology to gain political advantage. Rapid development in the field of technology and innovations has changed the nature and objectives of politics. In earlier times, politicians placed more emphasis on stage publicity and other means to increase their popularity among the masses. But, after entering the digital age, the means of reaching the ends have changed a s they have become m ore dependent on digital platforms . The latest innovations in the field of social media have completely changed the nature of politics; predominantly political campaigns. In the contemporary digital era, every politician has tried to capture and use social media, such as YouTube, , WhatsApp, Twitter, etc., to invoke political milieu. In this digital era, internet and technology has become an instrument to manipulate the masses as the nation witness swelling politics of manipulation. Manipulative politics denotes an underlying management of political consciousness and behaviour, which forces them to act in light of a legitimate c oncern for m anipulations. However, Erich F romm asserts, “political manipulation denies a person ability to make a complete picture of the world, replaces with an abstract m osaic of r elated f acts” ( Belyaev, 2017). I n t he gam e of m anipulation; sympathy, calculating word, labeling and compromising materials are used by the candidates as the part of propaganda. The prominent American political scientist Harold Laswell, the architect of ‘scientific direction’ claims how does word play significantly in propaganda and how calculating words a re used ‘ to t ransfer t he r ight m eaning a nd c reate pol itical myths’(Belyaev, 2017). In contemporary Indian political culture, however, creating political myths and manipulating key issues is a major concern where politicians indulge in and accomplish their goal by trampling the dreams of others. Technology is used as a weapon for creating political myths, accomplishing the political goals and publishing their political agendas at cheap cost. Now, politicians don’t have to go door to door or any stage campaigning; just from their own places they can manage everything. Therefore, Housley claims, “whether we acknowledge it or not, technology is a deciding factor in most political races. Through technology, politicians are able to access funds, gain political pundits, and spend less on campaigning and pushing their candidacy” (Housley, 2012). By the use of latest innovations and technology, political publicity has become easy stunt specifically since technological devices are so accessible and boundless.

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2.3.3. Public opinion: How does technology work? Public opinion can be considered another vital conception of politics and traces can be found in the liberal democratic principles of the Enlightenment era (Palmer, 1936). Public opinion simultaneously developed with demcracy and became one of the imperative aspects of politics in the contemporary era. In the rise of political-economic power and to strengthen democracy, public opinion has played a very essential role. Prior to the advent of digitalization and internetization, the creation of public opinion was a difficult assignment. But after the latest innovations in technology and communication, it has gained momentum and taken a new shape. The rapid development and use of information and communication techonology has changed everything in the arean of politics, precisely from unstructured to structured, elite to participatory democracy. It opens the doors of opportunities, by which people can use those for their betterment. The increment of ICT makes the process of ‘grievance redressal’ easier for the people as it brings a massive transformation in their life and helps in creating public opinions. The innovative technology a nd r evolution in t he field of communication has fostered people’s sustainability, reduced dependence on the extension functionaries as the people mostly depend upon various governmental and non-governmental personnel for attaining information regarding public polices and other governmental informations. The interrelationship between politics and technology assists in the process of sound decision making by providing comprehensive, timely and up- t o-date i nformation. I nformation and c ommunication are r equisite for updating and resolving community problems as it inspires people to participate in the governmental process by facilitating prompt feedback system and by speedy analysing and decision making.

2.3.4. Election in digital era: Evidence from contemporary Indian politics The waves of technology is not limited only to political propaganda and public opinion; in fact, it has a di verse i mpact on e lections. F or a dem ocratic c ountry l ike I ndia, e lections c an be considered a s heartbea t of dem ocracy as t he success a nd future of democracy a re mostly dependent on the smooth conduct of the electoral process. But in the digital era, technology is changing the nature of politics as the whole process has become easy and transparent since the innovations of various technological devices, such as digital voter cards, Aadhaar cards and electronic machines. Meanwhile, the availability of data in the era of information and technology helps political parties to grab the attention of voters. The existence of various data vendors help the politicians and political parties to get voter’s information, collected from different social media sources. Sunil Khosla, a Communications and Political Strategist believe, “technology’s r ole i n I ndian e lections will onl y go v iral w ith the march of digital society and will be good for Indian democracy” (Election-tech: The march of technology in Indian , 2016). Meanwhile, he has developed “RanNeeti” for utilizing the power of techonology and latest innovations to enhance voter share by 10 to 15% immensely and got the recognition as India’s first application based digital election and campaign management system (Election-tech: The march of technology in Indian elections, 2016). During 9th General election, for the first time technology was used in Indian in t he f orm of E lectronic V oting Machine ( EVM); m arked a s not eworthy i nstant i n Indian . The 2014 General election was witnessed complete use of techonology and social medias for political campaignings and to popularise the electoral manifesto of political parties. The use of technolohgy and social media brought Indian electoral politics to another level as different startups such as Voxta (a speech recognition service that assisted in communicating of N arendra Modi’s dialogues), F rrole ( a bi g data s tartup t o provide i nsights into Twitter discussions), Simply360 (another analytics providing insights into social media threads) along with campaign initiatives like ‘NaMo Number’ and 3-D rallies provided the necessary technological impetus in 2014 to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (Majumdar, 2019). Political

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 519 [email protected] Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology? parties are developing their own apps like ‘cell phone pramukh’ (BJP), ‘Digital Sathi’ (Congress) to boost and broadcast their own electoral manifesto. Futhermore, they have their own IT cells, Facebook page, Twitter account, Youtube channel to propel their political campaingings that reshaped the t raditional c haracteristics of I ndian poi litics ( Majumdar, 2019). T he i mpact of techonology over politics is crucial as in 2017, PM Modi said, “the 2019 election would be fought on the ” (Bansal, 2019). In the year 2018, Om Prakash Rawat, the then chief election officer of I ndia, s aid, “ technological i nterventions t hat a re a ble t o s way e lections, s uch as targeting tailored messages to groups based on demographics and political leanings on social media, are the ‘biggest challenge’ for the electoral process”.

3. THE NEXUS OF TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE How technology is disturbing politics and democracy? ‘Is technology destroying democracy’ is the most crucial question in contemporary era that forces us to rethink about the relationship between technology and democracy. Some years ago, in the initial stage of digitalization, the relationship between technology and politics has been seen in an optimistic way; something like, is technology going to liberate humanity, is technology going to democratize the world? But in the due course of time, the perception was changed towards this relationship a nd pessim istic w ay is used t o l ook at t he r ole of technonolgy on pol itics and democracy. The increasing pessimistic viewpoint among the civic raise the debate on ‘is technology destroying a nd di sturbing pol itics or dem ocracy?’ T here e xist t wo perspectives, where in one hand some analytists argue that digitized tools and techniques would empower citizens and deepen democratic participation by improving their way of life and way to think and other hand, Cambridge Analytica Whistleblowing scandal or Russia’s alleged interference in the Brexit referendum have revealed the fear of harming western democracy by the use of those tools (“Commission on Democracy and Technology in Europe”, 2019). In contemporary Indian politics has witnessed remarkable changes in the nature democracy and pol itics a s m ost of t he t imes, t echnology i s used a s a t ool a dvertisement f or electoral campaigning. Rather focing on the ideological and developemental agendas, the focus is given more on manipulation, which destroy the true character of democracy and most of the people have lost their faith on politics and democracy.

Table 1 Responses of internet users in Indian regarding negative impact of technology Content Percentage Easier to manipulate with false information and rumors 60% The risk that people in our country might be manipulated by domestic politicians 42% Spreading false and misleading information 55% Makes them feel negatively about groups of people different from them 51% The news and information, get from social media is more biased 57% More hateful compared with other sources 54% Divided people on the basis their political opinions 46% The risk that foreign powers might interfere in their country’s elections 34%

Source: (Mobile Technology and Its Social Impact Survey 2018).

In Indian politics, in lieu of using technology for good will, it has been used for personal motive. In one survey report, where 11 emerging econmies across the world were surveyed, revealed that more than 70% of the Indian witness false and misleading content in social media http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 520 [email protected] Ankur Protim Mahanta

(Smith, Silver, Johnson, Taylor & Jiang, 2019). Political parties, their leaders and IT cells use technology for spreading rumors and fake information, by which manipulation and misleading has become easier for them. The research report, entitled “Publics in Emerging Economies Worry Social Media S ow D ivision, E ven a s T hey O ffer N ew C hances f or P olitical Engagement” exposes that more than 60% of the adults of India says the internet, social media and digital technology has made people more easy to manipulate and mislead with false informations and rumors (“Mobile T echnology a nd i ts s ocial i mpact S urvey 2018”, 2018). Before and during election, incitement and political violenence is the prime character of Indian political system and social media has feuled this. A survey on social users of 11 emerging economies, including India reveals the fact that often they encounter negative content and information in social medias, like facebook, whatsapp etc. Percentage

Percentage

Make them feel negatively about people… 56%

Seem obviously false or untrue 68%

Figure 1 The percentage of respondents about what they feel and see in social media Source:https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/05/13/publics-think-technology-impacts-the- political-environment-i n -both-positive-and-negative-ways/ Although, the Above mentioned figure clearly reveals the perception of social media users of 11 emerging economies, including India towards the informations that received through social media and messaging apps. The study tells that when the social media users use article and other information that make them feel negatively about the people who have different opinion from them and frequently seem false or untrue.

120%

100%

e 80% g a t n

e 60% c r e

P 40%

20%

0% Hateful Reliable Biased Less 30% 39% 25% About the same 34% 30% 31% More 31% 31% 30%

Figure 2 Percentage of social media platform and messaging app users who say that the news and information they get on social media is more/about the same/less compared with other sources Source: Mobile Technology and Its Social Impact Survey 2018. Again, an average 30% of social media users believe that social media is more or about the same hateful and biased compared to other sources. In contemporary era, in Indian politics we

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 521 [email protected] Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology? have seen the use of social media and other messenger apps for spreading and broadcasting hateful and biased information that develops the sentiment of anti-nationalism and communalism. Due to romours and false informations spread in social media trigger mobs that resulted in the killing of huge number of people and demolition of state properties (Bashyakarla, 2019). More or less, the negatice use of technology in Indian political system can be found in different ways and forms.

4. POSITIVE IMPLICATIONS OF TECHNOLOGY ON POLITICS Towards making of an advanced nation Technology and social media has a widespread implication in the political process not only in domestic level, but a lso i n international level. I n contemporary era, technology has become integral t o pol itics a s i t has i nfluenced t he i ndividual’s pol itical behaviour , pol itical , political rights and social movements accros the world. From Arab Spring to MeToo movement India, each and every events have been aided by digitized technology and social media. Technology and social media has a great impact in the worldwide spread of information and various events. It has become a liberating tools for the people through which people can better utilize of their political rights, espesifically right to criticise the government.

Table 2 Responses of Internet users in India regarding the positive impact of technology Content Percentage More information about current political events 65%

The ability of the oridinary people in our country to 42% have a meaningful voice in the political parties

Accepting of people who have different political views 38%

Provide up to date political information 50% More reliable 49% Good influence of interent on politics 38% Willing to engage in political debates 46% Ability of Non-governmental groups and charities to 39% promote their causes

Source: (Mobile Technology and Its Social Impact Survey 2018).

The above mentioned data on the responses of internet users in India regarding the positive impact of technology on Indian political culture has clearly revealed the role that has played by technology i n t he f ield of pol itics. I n t he r ise of pol itical c onsciousness a mog t he masses, technology has played a massive role by providing more information to people about current political processes. By the grace of technology, now a day, an ordinary people have a meaningful voice in the political parties and events and people can easily engage in the political debates via social media platforms.

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Less up to date

About the same

More up to date

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% More up to date About the same Less up to date Percentage of respondent 49% 16% 24%

Figure 3 Responses by Social media users in India about information that received through social media and messaging apps Source:https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/05/13/publics-think-technology-impacts-the- political-environment-i n-both-positive-and-negative-ways/ The above mentioned data clearly reflect the positive attitude of major portion of social media users about the information that received through various social media and messaging apps. Approxmiately, 49% of the total respondent believe that in providng more latest information, social m edia a nd t echnology has pl ayed a m ajor r ole, w hich c an’t be i gnored. F astest tele- communication and social media help people to reach the depth of any content.

Less reliable

About the same

More reliable

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

More reliable About the same Less reliable Percentage of respondents 35% 15% 41%

Figure 4 Responses by Social media users in India about the reliability of informations that received through social media and messaging apps Source:https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/05/13/publics-think-technology-impacts-the- political-environment-i n-both-positive-and-negative-ways/ The study of social media users of 11 emerging economies of globe, including India encounter the fact that more than 50% of them find reliability in the informations available in social media and messaging apps. The social media and messaging apps have provided a space

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJARET 523 [email protected] Digital Politics in India: Technology Driven Politics or Politically Driven Technology? and opportunity to their users through which they can easily raise their voice and give their opinion on political system. Thus, after examining the various data, it can be said that technology has both negative and positive aspects and responsibility on us for the positive use.

5. CONCLUDING THOUGHTS When we talk about technology is not a technocratic topic, it is not about technology only; indeed, it is about how technology is shaping and reshaping the socio-economic system where we are living and it has a very implication in shaping government, geo-politics and future economic system and obiously dem ocracy is par t of t hat. I n the c ontemporary world, there i s urge to revitalize democracy, to restore the loss hope of people on democratic form of government and to convert it to participatory, where people will get right value and respect for their rights and decisions. In making an advanced and popular nation, technology become crucial as various tech- sectors are working for people to make their life easier and happier. Some analytists argue that digital democracy or facebook democracy doesnot exist; rather it is a myth as it is never only a digital. So, we always need to mix technology and democracy and to practise a hybrid form of representative democracy. Technology is not a problem or crisis for democracy, but concentration of pow er on t echnology, weaponization of innovations and technology push democracy to crisis situation. Therefore, some strict regulations are necessary for effective and efficient utilization of technology; so that technology can be used not as a means of manipulation and political campaigning, but as a means to increase accountability and transparency in government. Ultimately, it can be sum up that ‘technology driven politics’ or ‘politically driven technology’ is still critical question to answer; but the combination of both is urge of the time. ‘Who has driven whom’ is not so important; important is to make politics and technology for good will and betterment of the society. 6. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to thank all my teachers of the department of Political Science, Dibrugarh University, my parents and my friends for their support and guidance in the completion of the research.

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