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| Elections 2012; coming elections cast dismal shadow | | | By Retd Col J P Singh | 3/17/2012 10:36:28 PM |
| The voter is never wrong and I pre
sume so was Anna Hazzare. Con
gress continues to prove it right again and again. UP, Goa and Punjab voters have put the confirmation seal on these presumptions. UP voters dumped Congress after the emergency days after which they kept experimenting with SP, BJP and BSP in rotations/coalitions but never gave Congress a single chance. It was therefore structurally wrong to turn the UP election as spring board to catapult Rahul into the Prime Minister's chair. His advisors and political gurus were nothing short of sycophants, Hindu bashers and Muslim appeasers. That made Rahul's campaign Herculean. The fact that he took up the cudgels deserves credit. He inducted dynamism and freshness in the electioneering. His quantum and sincerity of effort was monumental. During the campaign trail he even said, "I am not obsessed with becoming Prime Minister; my obsession in fact is UP". This statement meant that he was willing to be Chief Minister if voted to power. His only fault perhaps was that as a General he declared a war without preparing a standing army and saw victory at the tip of muskets of borrowed Musketeers. Entire Gandhi Brigade jumped into the battlefield under the leadership of novice commander. Every one fought from the front but lost the battle miserably. Rahul seemed to believe that all that was needed was Gandhi family to win back a state lost 22 years ago. That is why entire Gandhi family including the family son in law led the nation to believe that it was now Rahul's time and there is no alternative to Gandhi dynasty. It was considered height of arrogance and counter productive. Rout of BSP is the electorate's way of telling India that misgoverance, corruption and arrogance can't be tolerated. No body can be allowed to squander public money. New lesson for govts is that their performance is going to be watched minutely and Anna factor is long lasting. Anna's anti corruption and Lokpal agitation has spread anti congress sentiment throughout the country which has been reflected in election 2012 results. Gandhian like Anna may not win an election but will certainly impact the future elections' outcome. 45 years ago Congress started ceding political space to regional parties. Its nadir came in 1977 despite its best performance of 1972. Again in 1984, Indira Gandhi's martyrdom injected lot of oxygen in its lungs taking its performance to all times high. After that Congress has not gained political supremacy of the period between 1952 to 67. Indira Gandhi's ideology of stronger centre with subservient states ended with her tragic demise. Thereafter the voter understood the meaning of federalism and sought stronger states. Congress is hurtling from one stumbling block to another . It was scams, scandals and corruption which humbled it years ago in state elections after which it was swept by Anna storm that galvanized common man to demand accountability and transparency in govt and politics. Little hope of redeeming lost ground in UP election has been marred by humiliating defeat. Chances of replacing Manmohan Singh with Rahul in 2014 will not be easy now. Coming elections in Gujarat, Karnataka and HP signal more trouble for the Congress and its weak kneed leadership. Presidential election in July this year is another litmus test for Congress. For Sonia Gandhi there is no dearth of challenges. Dr. Manmohan Singh's distance from party affairs, the failure of heir apparent at the time of reckoning, she has an ordeal of fire ahead of her. The next general election will be her toughest test of resilience. All eyes now will be on Delhi. If Mamta withdraws support, Manmohan Singh govt can't survive without Mulayam's support. The fact is that Mulayam Singh does not require Sonia Gandhi for his survival in Lucknow whereas his support is needed in Delhi for the survival of UPA. This will keep irking her. The net result is weakening of central govt and reassertion of regional parties and state leaders.
Rahul was sincere in his endeavors to rid the UP of autocratic ruler of caste based corrupt govt. He deserved a fair deal and justice for himself as he was seeking it for the public. Glaring deficit of the Congress has been to convert the crowds into votes. In the event that he has failed, like any commander in military and a leader in politics, when failed, he is discarded; if not, he loses faith in himself & establishment and makes mistakes. His enthusiasm in cleaning the rotten political system in the country and bettering lives of masses is derailed. He is likely to lose faith in Indian democracy which stands derailed. Ethics, propriety and truthfulness for him become nightmare. Hence our hopes in his leadership for cleaning politics of casteism, corruption and criminality are put off the track. He will be at the helm of affairs in Indian politics for long but as a shattered person rather than an enthusiast leader like his father. The charisma of Gandhi family has diminished. In Rae Bareilly, Sonia Gandhi's constituency, where Pariyanka campaigned effectively lost all the seats. The writings on the wall suggest that Congress has no future in India if it relies on Gandhi family. Has public lost faith in Congress' ability to handle political, economic, internal security and territorial integrity affairs of the nation? If that is so, in other words it reflects their deep concern for national issues which is a healthy sign.
The truth is that only Rahul can change the things that are fundamentally wrong with the party of his inheritance, Manmohan Singh can't. Not only the congress and Rahul but the polity will also be a loser if Rahul is cleaned bowled in the next inning.
(scribe is a columnist, accessible at [email protected]) |
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