After 238 electoral defeats, a candidate “happy” prepares for his next failure

Already 238 electoral defeats, and soon 239. Indian K. Padmarajan, 65, says he is “happy” to prepare his campaign with the certainty of losing AGAIN in the next legislative elections of the largest democracy in the world, which will begin on 19 April for six weeks.

Owner of a tire repair shop, K. Padmarajan first ran as an independent candidate in elections in 1988, in Mettur, his hometown, located in the state of Tamil Nadu (south).

“All candidates seek victory, not me”

People laughed when he threw himself into battle. Without allegiance to any party, he replied that he wanted to prove that an ordinary man could enter politics.

“All candidates seek victory in the elections,” he declares between his large mustaches, a flamboyant stole falling over his shoulder. ” Not me ! “, he asserts in the manner of Pierre de Coubertin, the important thing for him being to participate: “Victory is secondary. » And at the time of inevitable defeat, he persists in saying that he is “happy to lose”.

$300 per lost election

This year, he is contesting for an MP seat in Tamil Nadu’s Dharmapuri district. Nicknamed the “King of Elections,” he tried his luck, from the presidential election to local elections all over the country. He lost to several prime ministers including Narendra Modi, Atal Bihar Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh. He was also defeated by Congress candidate Rahul Gandhi.

His main concern now is to continue his unusual collection of defeats. Even if they cost him dearly. He estimates he has spent thousands of dollars over more than three decades. A security deposit of 25,000 rupees ($300) was required for his current election participation. It will not be reimbursed unless he wins more than 16% of the votes.

6,200 votes maximum

His only triumph is to have managed to win the title of unluckiest Indian candidate approved by the Limca book of Records broken in India. Mr. Padmarajan’s best performance was in the Mettur legislative elections in 2011, where he won 6,237 votes. The winner obtained more than 75,000.

“I expected not to win any,” he remembers, “that proves that people accept me.” Once mocked, Mr. Padmarajan is now invited to speak about resilience in front of students, speaking on how to cope with defeat. “I don’t think about winning. Failure is better,” he emphasizes, this time in the manner of Samuel Beckett and his famous formula “fail again, fail better”. “In such a state of mind, there is no stress,” explains the candidate.

“I would have a heart attack if I won”

Mr. Padmarajan carries a lesson in democracy, at a time when it seems to be weakening in India according to a survey published in February by the Pew Research Center, revealing that 67% of Indians (compared to 48% in 2017) believed in 2023 that an autocracy would be a better system than a representative democracy.

“It’s their right, they must vote. In this regard, there is neither victory nor defeat,” he judges, assuring that he would be a candidate in the country’s elections until his last breath. What if he wins one day? “I’d have a heart attack,” he jokes.

source site