Thursday, May 15, 2014

What does the Mandate 2014 mean?


This blog is being written on the caveat that the election results would be in tune with the Exit polls findings.

On a macro level, firstly  What does the mandate mean to politics of Aam Admi Party? On a positive note, AAP could break the entry barriers for politics telling the middle class that hating politics is no solution to the problems. 
Arrogance and absence of agenda for AAP have their major lapses.
Moral lesson: 
Don’t dream a moon, u r Arvind Kejriwal – not a JP or even Anna Hazare!

 What does the mandate mean to politics of BJP (new phenomenon on Modi-centric Rajnath-Modi jugalbandi)
BJP is already into 'Modi-fied' structure as Rajnath and other BJP leaders had to air-dash to conclave with 'PM-designate' Narendra Modi.


For Congress – the big message will be a rejection for dynasty…
But one can say, for Congress, which suffered defeats in December 2013 assembly polls ….. to hope for a revival under Rahul Gandhi was going to be like pinning jelly to a wall. 

Should not and will not Congress regret statements from leaders like Digvijay Singh, who did not hesitate to insult Muslims (not to speak of Indians in general) by addressing Osama bin Laden as 'Osamaji'. Someone also addressed fugitive don as 'Mister Dawood'. 

The mandate 2014 could have interesting impacts on the life and career of individuals like Arvind Kejriwal, Mulayam-Akhilesh, Mayawati (is she a new Paswan in making), Anna Hazare, M M Joshi etc etc

Now, on the national perspective the mandate 2014 offers a few hard lessons. India has been essentially good at resolving the problems. In the past, it has braved through a few crises. The debacle with China in the sixties, the emergency and suspension of fundamental rights in 1970s, politics of opportunism, terrorism and corruption in 1980s, the economic doldrums of 1991 and later the political instability. Each time the country has rebounded emphatically because we Indians may not be good at anticipating the problems but by nature are good at fixing them. Thus, in terms of the mandate this year, India has shown its appetite for reinvention and to rekindle itself for a march towards greater glory.
Gujarat: Road to Godhra

The last decade has been a decade of misgovernance. The corruption went berserk and the trend was in the name of stopping BJP – that is SICKULARISM (distorted version of true and genuine secularism), any body could get away with anything.
But the elections provided an opportunity to size up the polity. That we Indians are beginning to ‘correct’ our mistakes and lapses is certainly a good step forward.
For a change, the heaven would have perhaps fallen had India not voted the manner it did. (Exit polls findings)....
The mandate was not so much decisive for a party like BJP, but it was more for a persona called Narendra Modi. The critics had dubbed it as an endorsement of Hitler style of his functioning. While one could debate that allegation, it goes without saying that after a spell of policy paralysis of 10 years, the countrymen and women were looking for a strong government.
This is why my bet is on Narendra Modi and not the old guards like L K Advani, who too has or at least had an image of a hardliner Hindutva but when in government showed the performance was far from satisfactory!!





Hardliner Hindutva is actually non issue. The bigger issue is that the leader must take a decision. Narendra Modi seems to attract those Indians who feel attracted towards this argument of a strong and prosperous India under a strong leadership.
I am aware of immense pathological hatred an overwhelming section of our Indian brethren has towards Modi. I am not talking about Muslims alone. The pathological hatred towards ‘Modi’ or anything that has to do with BJP is more with a self-styled and self-appointed brigade of ‘seculars’ – whom I prefer to call SICKULARS. The hatred clouds their minds – this section is among Hindus, Christians and others - and eyes so much that they would not see the other side.
If Hindus and even a sizeable number of Sikhs, Muslims and Christians have backed Modi today in various parts of the country, there is a big reason as 12 long years of one sided attack on an individual had only earned him sympathy and admiration.

Any kind of fundamentalism is an infection and can spread. It is best not encouraged to raise its head.
The Indian secularism or ‘sickularism’ is actually also a form of fundamentalism, lucidly argued by my Washington-based friend Tufail Ahmed. Indian secularism is to be perhaps abhorred and handled effectively as it also creates division between communities.
When a semi-literate Dalit woman near Vrindavan says, “Suna hae Modi ji Bijli layenge ( I am told Modi will bring electricity)”, -- the real story is different. And that’s the lesson of the mandate 2014. For everyone, the fear is not about 'Modi' alone but also about hunger and unemployment. 

   

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