Shiban Khaibri
We usually very often see, in run up to general elections, some ambitious alliances of various political parties taking place with the sole motive of ousting the incumbent Government or to put it the other way, ensuring the Government in office was not voted to power again. The levels of Indian politics simultaneously have steadily come to such levels , to call a spade a spade , especially since 2014, that not a single step taken by the Government in power is appreciated by the opposition . That in other words means that there has got to be criticism come what may, even if the logic put forward to justify such criticism would tantamount to proving the spellings of “School” written incorrect as the letter ”O” on the left of ” l” should have been on the right of letter ” h” and vice versa . In this connection, to embarrass and abash the Government, no opportunity nor any occasion is spared for which even the efficacies of various official data depicting positive and growth figures are questioned and pooh- poohed. Resorting to supporting various stirs and agitations, if not inciting to weaken and cornering the Government, are freely arranged. We saw to what extent the opposition could go in this pursuit in lending support even to some JNU students in Feb 2016 who had without any basis, reason or rhyme raised seditious and provocative slogans and openly demanded “Aazadi” – not knowing which Aazadi and from whom. In much awaited and increasingly needed CAA, open incitement to people to agitate and “come on roads” followed by full support to anti Citizenship Amendment Act sit-in protest at Shaheen Bagh Delhi was seen which starting from early December 2019 lasted till the end of March 2020 and interestingly, this all was termed exercising democratic rights but in the same breath, screaming was also there that democratic rights were usurped and democracy was imperilled . What a hypocrisy?
How much democracy was put in danger by the Government and right to expression “suppressed” could be “seen” in a former senior Union Minister being spotted in participating in a jolly round of Aazadi chanting in anti CAA stir in Delhi that was led by a child .The Union Minister smiling and beaming with pride encouraged the child to chant slogans ……”Hum csheen kay lenge aazadi” ..Then came the farmers’ agitation in response to the Government passing three Farm Laws which experts otherwise had claimed to change the face of Indian agriculture but most of the farmers fearing private players to benefit at their cost , organised a year long agitation which was actively and openly supported by various opposition parties with intention only to trouble the Government and least to benefit the famers . They were expecting a catastrophic harvest by the Government in electoral field immediately in the UP Assembly elections but that too did not work . In the mean time ,the tools of intolerance, unfair treatment of minorities, suppression of voice and dissent, misusing Government agencies and saffron-ising of institutions , undermining constitution and establishing a rule reminiscent of undeclared emergency (all manufactured), rising prices, rising unemployment and costly fuel and LPG etc etc were lavishly sharpened coupled with dishing out high doses of appeasement.
Though Himachal and Karnataka got “influenced” by such continuous efforts by Congress , the longing for doing it big at New Delhi for 2024 prompted various opposition parties to club together to unitedly “fight” Modi Ji which otherwise appeared to them quite impossible. See the scenario – a senior Congress leader mocking and ridiculing Modi in 2014 in respect of aspiring to become PM, had instead offered a corner in the space of Congress Headquarters to him to sell tea , had later to cajole Pakistan urging , “Iss ko hatao aur hamen lao” . Narendra Modi by dint of his hardest work and superb performance has become a darling of masses and for unseating him in 2024, these parties felt the same could be achieved only by forming an alliance. This alliance has been named as I.N.D.I alliance and presently is engrossed in devising means and ways to somehow achieve its sole objective of defeating Modi Ji.
Needless to add, in early 2019 too, we watched a highly ambitious coalition of parties to oust the ”communal and divisive BJP and save democracy”, the chief architect of this coalition was Chandra Babu Naidu whose TDP was itself a coalition partner of the NDA but Naidu nursed an aspiration and a longing to claim the coveted Prime Minister’s seat in New Delhi hence taking the risk of even biting more than he could chew. He appeared to be aggressively campaigning politically cultivating more hope than required in the combine, chiefly to lavishly cash the supposed anger of the people on demonetization. Even , some Lutyens media houses projected a sure win for the opposition combine . We recall the words of Naidu, “We have to move forward, there are political compulsions, there are ideological compulsions … and overall interest of the nation – how to join together…how to work together . I am meeting everybody and we have to move forward (to defeat Modi and BJP).” That ”democracy was in danger” like at present, was felt by him also and he met almost all political parties and leaders to “work together” to “save democracy and institutions”. In that, he had got with him the NC leadership also.
Exactly in the same fashion ,Nitish Kumar the CM of Bihar with his own JD(U) Party’s tally of just 43 MLAs in 243 Assembly seats, walked out of NDA just a few months ago to repeat the attempt which Chandra Babu Naidu had initiated in 2019, with contacting in person almost each and every leader in the opposition camp preceded by joining hands with the same RJD of Laloo Prasad with whom he had parted ways in July 2017 over corruption charges against his the then Deputy and Laloo Ji’s younger son Tejaswi Yadav. Worth noting that even though the BJP had won twice as many seats as JD(u) but keeping pre-poll promises of projecting Nitish Ji as CM, it consented to have him sworn in as the CM. A commonality between the coming together of opposition parties against Modi Ji for 2019 and 2024 elections is the architectural similarity of building the combination although the fact is that Nitish Kumar has done it in more organised way and with more parties even with scant or no representation in the present Lok Sabha, the aim being to ”get rid” of Modi . It agreeably cannot be argued that Narendra Modi is indispensable and that there could be no one as capable as he in this country but decidedly, there appears none as capable as Modi in the alliance. Removing Modi electorally could be Nitish’s democratic right and also that of the INDI alliance but has it in its kitty a better performing, strong willed, dedicated and impeccably honest leader than Modi ? If not , then does the alliance aspire to revert to pre 2014 position and weaken Bharat? It is learnt that most of the leaders in the alliance allegedly have court cases, suspected corruption charges or are likely to face ones. You may even call these as instances of vendetta or politically motivated as very often interpreted.
With which agenda , the alliance intends to motivate the voters to vote for it and not or the NDA excepting with the same rhetoric of ”Mehengai, Berozgaari etc” Besides that, keeping minorities under manufactured fear from the RSS and the BJP. Agreed, enough hate is generated against Modi thanks to spate of canards and misinformation , but sensing that would not work , foreign platforms too have been attempted to be used to attack this Government even if in the process, it could place the country in poor shape. Now, for quite some time , after arguing Hindutva and Hinduism (there is nothing like Hinduism, it is Hindu religion) to be separate entities ,there is full tirade against the Hindu religion – the Sanatan Dharam by various political leaders / parties that are constituents of this anti Modi alliance . That the alliance appears desperate and helpless in not even openly condemning the stance of such leaders instead they are held impliedly right or just no importance is feigned to be given to the statement of ”wiping out” Sanatan Dharam is not only all shocking but contemptuously condemnable. Another leader of the main constituent of INDI alliance has unfolded the agenda of the alliance as the one “created to combat Sanatan Dharam”. The INDI alliance has not countered this revelation.
Arranging a piece written on “Satyam Shivam Sundaram” and giving sermons on what Hindu Dharma stands for and turning out to be temporary “Chunavi Hindus” , donning Baghwa attire and bowing at temples etc are all tantrums just to put wool in the eyes of gullible, peaceful and highly tolerant Hindu voters with intent to seek their votes . After that, the proverbial “Khel khatam aur paisa hazam” shall operate . Unless one sided and fake secularism was seriously bidden an adieu for good and really true secularism employed , those who are now openly playing religious and sectarian card to influence the ensuing elections specially of 2024 general elections are exposed and opposed , such gimmicks will not work and the alliance despite playing now OBC card and caste census to the hilt is destined to lose the much hyped electoral battle of 2024.
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