05 January 2014, 12:10 PM IST
Everyone knows that Dasarath sent Ram off to the forest, acting on his youngest wife Kaikeyi's demand. But not many remember why Kaikeyi could demand such a wrenching sacrifice from her husband. Kaikeyi had been in the chariot with Dasarath on the battlefield once, when she noticed that the chariot wheel's lynchpin was coming off. She immediately inserted her own finger in place of the pin. Dasarath fought on, and only when the battle was done did he notice his wife's bloodied finger holding up the chariot, keeping it going, enabling him to fight and prevail. In gratitude, he issued her the blank cheque that she encashed with such telling effect years later.
The United Progressive Alliance's most important achievement is like a lynchpin. When it is in place, no one notices it. In its absence, things fall apart. Political cohesion is what the UPA achieved. And because it is in place, people take it for granted, no one gives it credit. And cohesion of the polity is what threatens to unravel, should Narendra Modi storm to power in the forthcoming general elections. At his press conference, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh undersold his government's achievement.
India is a composite nation, whose many constituents and their identities mingle in a state of flux — they are not cast as an amalgam. While any of these multiple identities based on caste, religion, region, language, ethnicity and degree of economic empowerment can suddenly turn fissile, by and large, India's traditional ideology and liberal democracy have accommodated them in a manageable state of tension. And even provided room for these identities to evolve, mutate and reconfigure.
Ever since the Sangh Parivar-sponsored campaign to demolish the Ayodhya mosque began in 1985, wound its way across the land sprouting riots and spreading hatred in its wake, and succeeded in its mission in 1992, this framework of political cohesion had come under serious strain.
Under the government led by the political arm of the Sangh Parivar, the BJP, over 1998-2004, alienation of the Muslim minority deepened in real earnest. Communalisation of school textbooks, appointment of Hindutva ideologues to key positions in the administration and the academia and transformation of the public discourse to create a steady majoritarian undertone followed. The Gujarat riots of 2002 were just one prominent incident in a continuum of political change that alienated the minorities, produced terror outfits, paved the way for an authoritarian state response (remember Pota?) and made Indian democracy, already fragile, ever more febrile.
The UPA halted this trend, even if it did not succeed in reversing it overmuch. Its agenda of inclusive growth reached out to alienated sections of Indian society, the minorities, the tribal people and the rural poor. Fast growth produced enough revenue for redistribution. Concerted investment in rural areas and in human capital has yielded rapid growth in real consumption, leading to the fastest decline in poverty in India's history. Persistent food inflation stems from a combination of two things: mass adoption of superior foods (protein foods and fruits and vegetables) and failure to increase production in proportion.
Inclusive growth has not been good only for political cohesion. It has also led to the economy's structural transformation, with the share of the workforce employed in farming falling below 50%. Telecom spread like wildfire — even rural teledensity is now 40% odd, up from 1.4% in 2004, thanks to allocation of spectrum on a first-come-first-served basis. More capacity has been added in power generation since 2004 than had been created prior to that since Independence. Aadhar now promises to enable financial inclusion and radical overhaul of subsidy administration, besides offering India's growing body of migrants the empowerment of an undisputed identity.
The infant mortality rate has fallen by 30 percentage points, a huge achievement. The Right to Information Act of 2005 underpins much of recent democratic mobilisation. There has been a huge increase in the number of new universities and centres of excellence.
The nuclear deal has liberated India from the technology denial regime that had been constraining India's strategic capability. India's relations have improved with all the major power centres of the world, never mind the ongoing juvenile antics against American diplomats in New Delhi.
Unfortunately, all these sterling achievements stand occluded from the public eye, thanks to two things. One, poor communication, especially by the prime minister himself. Two, pervasive corruption.
Indian democracy is funded by the proceeds of corruption, cutting across parties. The UPA and its leaders revelled in this: there was no question of their trying to clean up political funding. Products of fast, inclusive growth — RTI, internet-enabled mobilisation and a growing middle class that does not owe its prosperity to patronage — have turned on corruption with a vengeance. The Aam Aadmi Party leads the charge.
The whole focus is on the finger that points in accusation. No one has time to notice the finger standing in for the lynchpin. But, Dr Singh was right, history probably would take note.
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