Opinion polls distort peoples' free choice

In response to election commission's request, Congress expressed the view that opinion polls tend to influence voters' decision. Congress has sought ban on such opinion polls. It cannot be ruled out that these polls are generally based on inadequate data are unreliable. These may also be doctored to suit certain groups. Other parties are yet to give their views to EC.

http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=815983

It is right than opinion polls are base less but it is also right that Indian voters never influence with these opinion polls. Cast, money , religion and some more this influence voters.

If you run a party, hire an agency. The opinion polls will say, "Anil's party will sweep the polls." everything is business here. There is no credibility to the present day opinion polls.

Tell me how many voters watch these opinion polls seriously. Country where voter vote to symble , they cann't read name of candidates, how can they understand opinion polls.

It may be that the voters do not understand the opinion polls. Then what are these opinion polls about. These reflect choice of the very voters who cannot understand these. Consequently are these polls not fake.?

I think yes, but they are changing the way it can be conducted so it won't much of a impact on outcome now. Besides, they cannot air or publish them where next phase polls are about to take place but only after polling is over.

In response to election commission's request, Congress expressed the view that opinion polls tend to influence voters' decision. Congress has sought ban on such opinion polls. It cannot be ruled out that these polls are generally based on inadequate data are unreliable. These may also be doctored to suit certain groups. Other parties are yet to give their views to EC.

http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=815983

It is right than opinion polls are base less but it is also right that Indian voters never influence with these opinion polls. Cast, money , religion and some more this influence voters.

If you run a party, hire an agency. The opinion polls will say, "Anil's party will sweep the polls." everything is business here. There is no credibility to the present day opinion polls.

Tell me how many voters watch these opinion polls seriously. Country where voter vote to symble , they cann't read name of candidates, how can they understand opinion polls.

It may be that the voters do not understand the opinion polls. Then what are these opinion polls about. These reflect choice of the very voters who cannot understand these. Consequently are these polls not fake.?

Certainly they are fake. They are manipulated and cooked up data which have no value or reflect the pulse of the public.

I think it is there in each democracy, there are some credible organizations, but still it gives additional revenue to media channels and certainly people are not influenced with it. ;) ;)

To a great extent people do get influenced especially in rural areas where a village head or the local leader has sway over the entire population.The leaders go by popular choice since they feel it is to their benefit and the entire village ends up doibg what the village head or local leader asks them to do...Of course this can happen even without an oinion poll ! But opinion polls further encourage them to vote blindly without giving any thought to the issue and the responsibility that goes with it ...

They say if you go on hearing a lie, it becomes a truth. Mind has the tendency to get influenced. Mao's regime in China has used this to its advantage effectively.

Actually the trick of telling lies repeatedly was invented by Nazi Germany. Goebbels- Hitler's Foreign minister- believed that a lie repeated one thousand times becomes truth. But this is not possible in a country like India. We have multi party system and independent press and media.

Now let us go the main theme of this thread, viz. opinion polls. Congress opposes the opinion. But many other parties are supporting this. The real fact is that any political party supports or opposes the opinion poll according to relative advantage. If the poll says you will win- okay. If the poll says you will lose- this is bad and should be banned.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/367099/no-case-ban.html

I am not supporting this, Opinion polls should not be banned, it is against freedom of speech, and why EC will ask these, as these are not the duties of their, it is the duty of Honorable Supreme Court to give verdict, and in democracy there are many opinions, voters are not mutants to influenced by all these. Parties should concentrate on their ground work, they should not think beyond it.

Freedom of speech is acceptable as long as this does not degenerate to freedom to cheat. The so called opinion polls are not based on peoples' opinion. These are manipulated by interested parties. One user has commented in a post that most people do not understand these opinion polls. I wonder how opinion of 'most people who do not understand these opinion polls' is gathered by the organizers of the 'opinion polls'.

BJP thinks that coward feels unsecured to participate in opinion polls.
According to me, the question of bravery and cowardness has nothing to do with polls.

BJP thinks that coward feels unsecured to participate in opinion polls.
According to me, the question of bravery and cowardness has nothing to do with polls.

They call cowards to political parties who are opposing such polls and now latest time now poll who is always partisan issued its poll survey and there are some parties can now smile on these results.

BJP thinks that coward feels unsecured to participate in opinion polls.
According to me, the question of bravery and cowardness has nothing to do with polls.

They call cowards to political parties who are opposing such polls and now latest time now poll who is always partisan issued its poll survey and there are some parties can now smile on these results.

Don't forget that the poll agencies are paid agencies. The poll verdict will be in accordance with the diktats of the party or individual that hired the agency.

BJP thinks that coward feels unsecured to participate in opinion polls.
According to me, the question of bravery and cowardness has nothing to do with polls.

They call cowards to political parties who are opposing such polls and now latest time now poll who is always partisan issued its poll survey and there are some parties can now smile on these results.

Don't forget that the poll agencies are paid agencies. The poll verdict will be in accordance with the diktats of the party or individual that hired the agency.

It seems one political party is hiring all pollsters, and the result is inclined to one political party then why the other major political party is not doing the same?

BJP thinks that coward feels unsecured to participate in opinion polls.
According to me, the question of bravery and cowardness has nothing to do with polls.

They call cowards to political parties who are opposing such polls and now latest time now poll who is always partisan issued its poll survey and there are some parties can now smile on these results.

Don't forget that the poll agencies are paid agencies. The poll verdict will be in accordance with the diktats of the party or individual that hired the agency.

It seems one political party is hiring all pollsters, and the result is inclined to one political party then why the other major political party is not doing the same?

Other political parties are doing the same. Its an open secret. One of the political leader said that these cooked up opinion polls are aimed to demoralise their opponents.

Friends don't you think these are all new ways of harassing general public. Now I really don't find any interest in votes, polls, elections, politics, etc.

This is nothing to do with democracy, and Indian voting patterns as with it democracy could rise again to its optimum capacity. One should not lose interest in democracy as it is by far the greatest asset of democratic institutions.

This is nothing to do with democracy, and Indian voting patterns as with it democracy could rise again to its optimum capacity. One should not lose interest in democracy as it is by far the greatest asset of democratic institutions.

Yes with that hope only, Indians are living ever since India has become independent.

I do not think people are such idiots not to know all these tricks. Why people are influenced from it, is there any such index and research to prove it. Opinion polls are not new in India and why this time there is so much ho halla in the political sphere?

I do not think people are such idiots not to know all these tricks. Why people are influenced from it, is there any such index and research to prove it. Opinion polls are not new in India and why this time there is so much ho halla in the political sphere?

Halla about the present opinion polls is due to the reason that they were proved to be mere cooked up data as dictated by concerned hiring political party or the organisation. And these opinion polls are mere fiction and they are far from truth.

As far as the validity of the polls are concerned I feel that it does have some becuae it is conducted with the opinion taken from a random selection of ten thousand people .The error margin is normally 1 -2 %.....I remember seeing a similar such poll when Karnataka went into polls last year and the predictions were bang on, they had said that BJP would lose and Congress would win and thats what happened. Congress did not have any issues with the opinion polls then....However, I personally feel that any opinion poll can influence the voter to a certain extent especially those who are not sure ..

Political parties are giving too much importance to electronic media, as they should indulge themselves in grass root level work and other functions.

Political parties are giving too much importance to electronic media, as they should indulge themselves in grass root level work and other functions.

Some political parties have no 'grass roots' (party workers). They will contest only on TV publicity and rallies and field candidates who can contribute more to party funds. They will also get financial support from industrialists, smugglers, mafia.

EC has ordered not to announce exit and opinion polls from Nov. 11 to Dec 4 of all polling days. :whistle: :whistle: :whistle: :whistle: