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India Goes to Polls
But with a
confused idea of future
 "Congress
may take Left support."
"Left will not back a Congress-led government."
"Left will not go with Manmohan Singh as PM."
"Lalu says Left continues to be friend."
"Nitish Kumar praises Left."
"Nitish may go with UPA."
"Cong may have to deal with Jaya, Maya."
"Will DMK stay with UPA?"
Indian political sands sifted fast. The entire poll campaign
witnessed hectic realignment of political alliances, and much of the
game was devoid of principles which makes manoeuvrings easy,
meaningless and shameless. Opportunism remained the factor most
relevant, and was often cloaked in a secularism-communalism colors.
Then there were other compulsions. Some political alignments
were there because of provincial realities. For example, Janata Dal
United cannot afford to leave the NDA unless it is prepared to
forsake the government in
Bihar which exists
with BJP’s support. The DMK has to go with the Congress in Tamil
Nadu. And the AIADMK will come with UPA only if it is promised that
Karunanidhi will be thrown out and into jail.
Shameless announcements about such opportunism and misuse of
power were made in well attended public rallies. In
Punjab, Congress
openly threatened that the Akali Dal government will fall after the
Lok Sabha election results are out. In Tamil Nadu, any AIADMK win is
tied up with the fate of DMK government.
But much of the focus remained on current demographic
composition of
India.
Fifty four per cent of our population is, according to the 2001
Census, below the age of 25 years. Most political parties have
claimed their birthright of fulfilling all aspirations of the young,
often acting as if the youth were invented yesterday and never
existed earlier.
Realpolitik in
India remains so
tied up with the immediate that centuries of entrenched power
structures are not even hinted at, except perhaps when Mayawati
speaks of discrimination against Dalits. She too keeps the debate
too narrow and limited, and has made too many compromises to be
taken seriously by even those who see the point in her rise and
location in Indian social landscape.
The change of guard at the Hindutva spewing RSS, and
declarations of
India
being a Hindu rashtra was made neither an issue by the Congress at
the natinal level, nor by the Akali Dal in Punjab where it has an
alliance with the BJP. Janata Dal (United) man Nitish Kumar in Bihar
issues more statements about his differences with the BJP than the
Akali Dal in Punjab.
Both Congress and the BJP at the national level kept on
decrying regional parties, often making little effort at showing
their disdain about the smaller parties and the people's movements,
but little was heard from the likes of Akali Dal on this score. Not
one statement of the Badals, senior or junior, articulated the fact
that the emergence of identity politics or of regional political
parties was not unnatural and far from a regression of Indian
democracy, it reflected the maturation of its people who want the
power levers to reflect plurality.
But amid this madness of issueless elections, the contending
parties’ outlines were clearly visible. The centrist Congress may no
longer tilt left, and surely has brahamanical elements entrenched in
it. The BJP remains the ultra rightwing party that dreams Hindu
rashtra dreams. The Third Front remains a loose rag tag of Left and
some left overs who are currently not cure whether to tild BJP or
Congress.
A large number of Indian electorates are now ready to vote,
and will. Many of them will be sure, and rightly so, about their
candidates victory. Many may correctly even tell you that the party
they are voting will win. But few can tell you whether the winner
party will be in the ruling coalition or the opposition. Nitish is
wth BJP-NDA, but will he remain? Will Samajwadi Party go with
Congress? Will Congress prefer Mayawati? Will Mayawati prefer Third
Front? Will Jayalalithaa prefer Sharad Pawar? Will Prakash Karat dig
in his heels against Manmohan Singh?
And we haven’t even started talking about what many have:
Will Advani remain a PM in Waiting or will he lose even that
distinction to Narendra Modi? And pray, if that happened, will
India
remain?
As we said, elections are a time to ask all important
questions.
6
May 2009
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