SoundaryaLahari
Hopes Must Stay Afloat Despite the Sabotage
Lahari Reddy Lahari Reddy
8 hours ago
Infamous Game of Dice
Shakuni to Duryodhana: They will roll as I want. Ask me for any number – I will get it for you.
After the spectacle of a show at the Rajasthan politics, the BJP might have its reasons for jubilation. Most of the BJP leaders are already out in the open taking a jibe like usual at the “mismanagement” of the party by the Gandhi family. Of course, Sachin Pilot’s exit and the drama attached to it has disappointed Congress supporters but this may not be much a reason to be so.
Today politics is all about the disposition of power, fame and money. No leader today wants to wear their heart on sleeves and work for the countrymen. Leaders like Jyotirao Scindia only look out for their personal interests and mask it with a rudimentary “no recognition for talent in Congress” excuse. If one can very conveniently make their move to a political party which has exact opposite beliefs than their former, it just speaks volume of how much the ideologies of such “leaders” are for sale. Overnight from being a believer of secularism, you wish for a “Hindu Rashtra” and that must go down well with the general public. If only! Congress is rather better off without such venom spewing dual-faced leaders.
Yes, in a very short span of time, another tragedy hit upon Congress with the tiff involving the Gehlot government. The reason again that’s rife are the problems with leadership. Sachin Pilot’s sudden exit made the rumour mills rife. Such incidents lead to speculation in media houses about the tussle between the old guards and young workers in Indian National Congress. The reality is far from that. Finely articulated vehicles to channel misunderstandings internally are what they actually are.
Right-wing and pseudo-liberal journalists would then question why Gehlot succumbed to a “show of power” to the press if there aren’t any problems. Not just that but also question why the MLAs were held captive in a resort. It’s as simple as this, if someone tries to snatch your land or home, you guard it and protect it. Something that the Modi sarkar still needs to prove in action with the Sino-India stand-off. The outcome, however, is that BJP and their media mouthpieces are playing it out to attack the Gandhi family yet again.
The BJP’s way of doing politics has always been on the cradle of muscle power and pushing loaded communal propaganda. The Maharashtra poll results and its aftermaths are a depiction of how much force they can impose. The bizarre and discreet swearing-in of Fadnavis as the Chief Minister was a clear show of that as well until Shiv Sena’s Thackray took over. Where the party doesn’t see that their ideas are fetching them the votes, they are using their might. Much of their power also comes with the regional parties not questioning the centre. A Kejriwal at Delhi or a Mayawati at Lucknow and their respective parties do not dare stand strong against the socially chauvinist policies of the BJP. A surprising event was so in West Bengal where the long reigning CPI(M) received such scanty votes as compared to BJP in the last polls the state witnessed. The mum that the regional parties are keeping are sort of indicative of the secret support that the party at the centre might be enjoying.
The irony is that when the BJP MPs and MLAs talk about the incompetency of Congress’s leaders, they forget that they are nothing without their supreme commander Shri Narendra Modi. Except for the Hindi belt and Assam in the northeast, the BJP has no luck with states where their Hindutva movement does not have much value.
In Maharashtra and Haryana elections last year, it was clear that without Modi being a direct manifesto, BJP had no stand with its contending leaders. Wherever Modi is not overwhelmingly present is where the public believe in the power of secularism. They reject the dictatorial command of the centre to exercise. Clearly without Modi, what will happen to the leadership of BJP which they so proudly boast? What will be their future once Modi loses his sheen? Will they form or protect a single state government once they lose in the center?
BJP projects as though it is unaffected by the presence of Rahul Gandhi. Yet, it has a running PR machinery, IT cells, the Godi media that incessantly report against him to mar his name. Had he not been a threat at all, why all this fuss? In the recent events where Congress governments are toppling, BJP left no stone unturned to always demand for an ED or CBI intrusion and call for floor tests. This sort of sabotaging events that it withholds is quite very obvious of their showcase of muscle power. Moreover, the party always comes back to the issue of the existence of dynasty in the INC as a major flaw and how that is unsecular. They have a problem with it while they have almost 24% dynastic composition within them.
Most importantly, just like regional communal safeguarding groups like Muslim League and Akali Dal, BJP too is born out of its parent organisations, Rashtriya Swayam Sevak and Hindu Mahasabha which want to promote Hindutva at a national level. And just like how these groups have a leader of the same community, BJP too follows the same principle. Under the Congress regime, one could witness leaders belonging to various communities and religion donning the leader’s hat. It is nothing but the political value of the party on which this was possible. The values which are true to our constitution.
The Hindi speaking belt which has bought the BJP’s idea of Hindutva will see a fallout soon with the increasing unemployment. The Modi government has performed poorly in the job creation sector. In its 2014 campaign, BJP promised that 1 crore jobs would be created every year. But where are they now? But the government since it has come to power has very little interest vested on it. Since 2014, the unemployment rates have dropped gravely with the lowest in two years being 7.6% in December, 2019 and stands at 10.9% in June, 2020 as per CMIE. Ever since the employment rate is calibrated depending on people who are educated yet unemployed, the rates have been alarming in the BJP regime. Now even Hindu residents of the Hindi speaking belt want jobs over communal politics. It’s already a ticking time bomb for the Modi government in the region it takes most pride in.
A change in the U.S. politics too will ring a bell. Currently the Trump administration is gelling well with the Modi government where Trump also goes ahead to call Modi a “good friend”. Not to forget the flamboyant “Trump in India” charades. But once the November Democrats restore their power in the U.S., the first thing that they would expect from the centre in India is to fix the domestic issues. Already, the Democratic Party has expressed that they will call out India upon its human rights issues. The revoking of the Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, long blackouts, detention of political leaders, curtailment of civil liberties where the Citizenship Act is final nail in the coffin are not looked good upon. Furthermore, the party has also condemned the calling out of minorities by the BJP members as mass spreaders of the Coronavirus. The BJP would be very sceptical to ignore the U.S.A given the support it needs against China. The belt which is still considerably poorly literate takes whatever job that comes to them, when this realisation will hit them, the frustration will erode them of their trust on the BJP. In spite of all the Hindutva push, this will topple the BJP government down even in the Hindi speaking heartland.
Despite all the odds, Congress supporters still have very solid reasons to support the party and not lose hopes. Congress is still the party of freedom fighters who made our country the secular state that it is, unlike BJP. Congress has all the right talent it just needs to have a solid presidency at the earliest. Even if Rahul Gandhi does not want to take on the seat, he can be very well a support stand for the party. He can play the role that senior leader like Vajpayee played for the BJP.
Meanwhile, it also needs to develop and focus on building good camaraderie. The PCCs must be modified and the CWC needs a good revision. What the party needs the most at the moment is to keep internal conflicts internal. When an opposition that is always ready to prey on even a single fault, it is best to keep matters closed within four walls. Both the central government and the media might confuse INC supporters and make-believe of its instability. The truth is that such differences are present in every party. But what BJP does better is to keep internal conflicts in their confinements. Congress needs to adopt the same for their best interest.
As supporters, the best is to consume information from Congress supporting social media like Rahul’s videos etc. as it will have facts for facts. The misinformation and disinformation that the paid machinery of BJP tries to exercise to immobilise Congress supporters might get confusing. Congress followers need to enlighten themselves from correct sources and not get blinded by news items which are biased. In order to protect India for what it stands for, the one with the identity of an inclusive secular state, it needs the Congress and Congress needs the strength and faith of its cohorts.
PS: BJP’s acts are akin to a compulsive gambler, can lose everything in an instant, destroying countless lives in the process. All it takes is a one bad bet which takes a card shark to experience extended cold streak.
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