Political stirs to go online

BY J.R.PRASAD
Hyderabad, Feb. 19: Protesters and debaters no longer take to the streets with slogans and banners. They just click the mouse.Many people have set up blogs and websites to express their anguish at various ills of the political system emulating people of the United States.They are doing this even as political parties like the Telugu Desam, the Praja Rajyam and the BJP are trying to emulate the web campaign of the US president, Mr Barack Obama.It is to be seen whether the parties evoke any response, but the sites of netizens are surely getting huge hits.For instance, www.indiademocracy.org, a political networking site launched to create awareness among people, has become very popular. This site encourages visitors to post their opinions on the present political scenario. Similarly, through www.politicsparty.com, Internet users can share their opinions on the current political system.“Public opinion is one of the most powerful tools in democracy,” said Mr Kolakaluri Sridhar, who runs a blog on the present political system. “These sites will influence the opinion of computer-literate people, who in turn can influence the common man.”