Historians often liken the Hindu civilisation for having shared 'affinities' at the very initial stage with Mesopotamia.
But the respective journey and growth trajectories have been different. Hence as and when the Indian National Congress and Communist growths are discussed, we have to see why both have lost ground.
This brings us to debate a very important chapter of Indian politics. The shrinkage of bases of the Congress party and the Indian Communists have also largely created ground for the growth of Hindu fundamentalist forces, like the BJP.
There is yet another important lesson of politics.
Even the rise of regionalist stars like Mamata Banerjee have a typical reasoning of poor performance by the Congress and the Communists.
In the 2021 polls, the Trinamool Congress' 200-plus haul would not have been possible had not Congress and Leftists lost all their seats. This downward slippery journey of Indian communists and Congress have also unnerved minorities such as Muslims and Christians.
The decline is not only electoral but also in exerting influence on the sociopolitical mindset.
In the regions where the Congress and the comrades lost their grip, the pro-Hindu BJP has gained ground.
Of course the 'Moditva phenomenon' always helped BJP is states such as West Bengal in 2026.
In recent by-elections Congress found itself deserted by Muslim voters in Nagaon assembly polls and also Silchar municipal polls --- where the voting was done by ballot papers.
In Nagaon, BJP candidate Devasish Sharma has registered a victory by a margin of around 1.4 lakh over pro-Muslim AIUDF's Badruddin Ajmal. The Congress, which fought to retain the Muslim-majority seat, was a distant third.
The by-election was necessitated as Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned and switched over to the BJP.
The bigger message was in th defeat of AIUDF.
Badruddin Ajmal, AIUDF chief, is a perfume baron with his Ajmal Perfumes doing good retail business in the Middle East and has a magical appeal amongst Bengali Muslims.
Nagaon, a seat with 53% Muslim population, however, was a heartbreak for both - Ajmal and the Congress.
In terms of analysis, one can say - the religious minorities could have been happy about atheism (the Communists) losing ground. But they are irked as a worse and more dangerous form of political ideology has gained power. The BJP with its commitment to make India a nation of 'Hindu hegemony' is now in power in West Bengal - having ousted Mamata Banerjee.
It had won 18 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in 2019 Lok Sabha polls; emerged principal opposition party in 2021 assembly polls and created history this year pulling the carpet underneath Mamata's feet.
The BJP is in power in Bihar, Odisha, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and also Tripura in the east and north east. It has NDA dispensation in states such as Manipur and Nagaland and also Sikkim.
 |
| Enchanting rural Nagaland |
The BJP's 'growing support base' in Kerala also essentially means dwindling popularity of Kerala's two traditional political alliances -- UDF (led by the Congress) and the other LDF, led by Leftists.
One need not be a bitter rival or detractor to point out that even in Kerala comrade Pinarayi Vijayan has often tinted the Communists' red flag with the hues of saffron, the colour associated with Hindu forces.
In other words, the comrades are also careful not to 'offend' Hindu sentiment with the so-called progressive Communist ideas.
The Leftists are good at giving a spin to events and they may thus describe this appeasement of Hindu sentiment or religion as pragmatism.
One emerging refrain is -- the Communists could be anti-religion, but they have long been the real custodians of a 'secular polity' where nearly 80 per cent of its 1.4 billion (140 crore) people are Hindus.
The minorities see a protector in Communist leadership although in Kerala, the CPI(M) for long was also known as a pro-Hindu party.
In other words, the weakening of Communists signals the rise of Hindutva-ridden macho nationalism.
The Leftists are still fighting the BJP. The recent protests in Delhi - either in July or even lately on Oct 10th and 11th; would not have been successful to the extent both had been -- without the support of pro-Left All India Students' Association (AISA).
But pragmatism, as they say, is often a good political substitute for naked opportunism. Thus, the Marxists in the southern state of Kerala have actually sparked off a 'power struggle' between Kerala's two dominant minorities -- the Muslims and the Christians.
Out of a population of 36 million, Muslims and Christians together constitute about 40 per cent in this state.
Apparently, The god-denying communists also cannot seek votes on religious lines.
The possibility of Christians and Muslims backing communists against the BJP is sometime a very complex subject. These religious communities cannot support atheism-based political outfits.
Will the leftists remain relevant in Indian politics?
ends
No comments:
Post a Comment