08 May 2013, 03:19 PM IST
Startling ironies mark the results of the elections in Karnataka. The Congress benefited from the backlash against the BJP's record of abject greed during its years in power. Yet, across the nation, it is the Congress that is in the dock for a number of financial misdemeanours at the national level. Indeed, the voters in state were unmoved by the most recent shenanigans of two of its senior ministers: railway minister Pawan Kumar and law minister Ashwini Kumar.
Thanks to a number of 24X7 news channels, including, especially, in the vernacular languages, the electorate across the caste/regional/minority/ urban/rural divides was abreast of these shenanigans. But they chose to punish alleged thieves in the state rather than the alleged thieves in New Delhi. This is a pointed indicator to two new phenomena in our politics. The first is that mass communications – both mainstream and non-mainstream – have obliterated earlier distinctions between urban and rural voters. And the second is that our politics is now well and truly federalised. A battle won in one state does not translate into a war won nation-wide.
That second argument is, of course, what the BJP would like to emphasize. But that is a self-serving approach. It sought to gain the high moral ground when it showed Yedurappa the door. But this did not blur, let alone erase, the stain of corruption that blotched its image. The election result has shown Yedurappa for what he is: a Kannada Keshubhai Patel. Here, howver, is the difference: Keshubhai could not prevent Narendra Modi's third triumph in the state elections. But Yedurappa managed to ensure the BJP's debacle in Karnataka.
So here is another irony. Yedurappa is a Modi acolyte. But the results suggest that the BJP couldn't make a headway in the areas that Modi campaigned. The exception is perhaps Bangalore. Questions are therefore bound to be asked, quite pertinently, if Modi, who aspires to be the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, can impact the electorate beyond his fiefdom in Gujarat. His adversaries in the BJP – and their number is legion – will harp on this fact. Modi's appearences in Maharashtra, incidently, have been equally counter-productive.
This is bound to sharpen the antagonisms within the BJP leadership. Several senior leaders leave no room for doubt – in private – that Modi is a divisive figure who, given his propensity to toe to the Hindutva line in front of some audiences and toe the development line in front of others, will land the party in a cul-de-sac. The NDA allies are even more sceptical about Modi in view of their dependence on the minority vote.
The impact of the campaign of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh is equally problematic. But here is what differentiates the Congress and the BJP. There is no tussle in the Congress for the top job. That is not true for the BJP. The former projects an image of a united party; the latter has six actors in search of the main role.
Here is another irony. The JD(S) has fared better than any one had bargained for. It has indeed emerged as the main opposition party. But since the Congress is now poised to form a government on his own he can no longer realise his prime ambition: to be a kingmaker. It has now vowed to fight both the Congress and the BJP. The intent clearly is to give a new lease of life to a third front. But, from all accounts, this is a pipe dream.
The reason is clear enough: regional parties will need to side with one major national party or the other to safeguard their interests in their state. At present the number of parties who are anti-Congress is greater than parties who are pro-BJP. But if the BJP does get the requisite numbers to form the government – even if it emerges as the largest party in the general elections – the BJP might have to eat crow again. Remember: in Karanatka the JD (S), once an ally of the BJP, will now be the principal opposition party in the state.
And here is the final irony. When asked who would head the government in Karnatka, the stock answer of Congress leaders is that this would be decided by the party's high-command. The fact is that the party won in Karnataka despite the miserable choice of candidates. It is the state leaders who clinched the victory. A bit of modesty would do a whole lot of good to the high command.
This is even more true of the BJP high command. This cabal is out of tune with the swift federalisation of Indian politics. It botched its chances in Karnataka. It will botch them in other BJP-ruled states if their leaders who have proved their worth are side-lined. The cabal has disrupted the functioning of parliament at a time when it has enough ammunition to make the Congress answerable for the humongous scams that have taken place under its watch.
Trust the Congress to show the door to Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwini Kumar sooner or later. Trust it, too, to use the ordinance route to bring in legislation on the food security bill and the land acquisition bill. These are the party's trump cards. Trust it, again, to draw the line between progressive and secular forces and retrograde forces in the campaign for the general elections. All of this may not help the Congress to score a hat trick. It has to contend with its battered image as a corrupt and ineffective government. But it would help to send the BJP back, yet again, to the opposition benches.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Paradoxes galore in Karnataka elections
Dengan url
http://osteoporosista.blogspot.com/2013/05/paradoxes-galore-in-karnataka-elections.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Paradoxes galore in Karnataka elections
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Paradoxes galore in Karnataka elections
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar