Lets vote on it

The other day our visitors from North India saw her sitting shrivelled up in her bed. Listlessly cutting garlics.

But a few days before Mrs. Tina had been doing something else. This lady with HIV has seen so many ups and downs. And mainly the latter with months of deep depression punctuated by what seem to be ephemeral days of hope. This lady had the mark on her finger. She had gone to vote. Her HIV infected finger was one of the many across the nation who will help shape the next government at the centre.

Another one of our HIV positive friends - Mrs. Reshmi - also went to the polling booth, but found that her name was not there. She saw that the name of her late husband's first wife, however, was there. She prayed. Literally prayed. That she would be able to vote. Then she told the local official the situation. She was the real wife of her late husband.

Amazingly, the man did something. He wrote some notes on an official paper and stamped it and allowed her to vote. She did. Her finger has the mark to show that she exercised her franchise.

It looks likely that the national picture will throw up a fractured mandate with no one party big enough to form the goverment on its own.

Be that as it may, the amazing thing is to think of all the HIV positive people who contributed to this democratic act. Who dragged themselves out like Mrs. Tina and voted. Who prayed like Mrs. Reshmi, and voted. And many, many more. Many who do not know that they have HIV. And many who do. Their votes count - and will be counted starting on May 16th.