In a pride of lions, the alpha male is boss. He protects the pride, fights off competing males and fathers the cubs. The lionesses are second in command. They work together to do the hunting and look after the little ones. Whenever the lionesses bring in a kill, it is the alpha male who gets the first pick. Once he has eaten his fill, the lionesses get their turn; and whatever remains is shared by the cubs.

In this apparently unfair but clear demarcation of power lies the essence of politics—power sharing. Politics explores the dynamics of power and status, and the funny things people do to make sure they have enough of these in their pockets.

Now, whenever there is power to be distributed, one thing that arises as an inevitable consequence is the trouble of diverging interests. And wherever there are diverging interests, there is conflict.

The regular dinner table conversation at Mr. Amte’s house is an argument over which TV channel to watch. He wants his daily dose of CNN. Mrs. Amte doesn’t want to miss out on CSI, and both the junior Amtes advocate for Animal Planet Safari. Mr. and Mrs. Amte, claiming that they each had the more difficult day at work, believe that they should be the ones to get their way. The children argue that minors should have the right to choose first, and that the perils of an anteater’s life are as important an issue as any. The bickering continues till grandmother quietly picks up the remote and switches to the IPL. She had cooked the dinner, and so no one utters a word of protest.

An observation now comes to light. Politics isn’t the end, but the means. It refers to the tactics people use to ensure that their interests are served. Hence the phrase, ‘playing politics’.

The interesting thing about politics, though, is its universality. It is just as much in the average household argument over which TV channel to watch as it is in every administrative matter discussed in the government. Be it an increase in tax or an increase in the monthly allowance of a 12 year-old, politics applies to every conceivable level of human activity. In other words, politics affects everything.

And here is proof: