Amogh Rohmetra
Party, politics and parliament are not the 3Ps from the PM’s fiery yet extensive speech in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. 3-hours long (cumulative) speeches were full of emotion, drama, facts, allegations, politics and achievements. But there were 3 pointers or 3Ps that are thought provoking, especially as we head towards what many call as ‘semi finals’ before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Interestingly, 1 P was missing and 2 were unmissable.
First, what’s missing. Our first P has been missing in BJP campaigns even in UP for a while now. Of course, when Hyundai or KFC controversies– over Kashmir– erupt, BJP leaders are at the forefront but not as much as they used to be.
Yes, it is Pakistan. Many would say that PM Modi is not that much obsessed with Pakistan that it should feature in every speech. But think again, there is just too much to read into from both sides.
Anyone who tracks Pakistani media wouldn’t have missed Mian Mansha’s comments. Mansha had claimed that backdoor channels are active between the two neighbours. Mian Mansha is neither a politician nor a bureaucrat and not even a member of the security forces. He is a billionaire businessman, but he comes from a powerful corridor and needs to be taken seriously.
Businessman’s word is not what my point is wholly based on.
An RTI had revealed that over 14,000 ‘Ceasefire Violations/ Cross Border Firing incidents’ took place between 2010 and February 2021. But since the Feb 2021 ceasefire, the border has largely remained peaceful from both sides. For sure, those who were calling for dialogues between the two countries would neither acknowledge this nor appreciate this but there is more to read into.
Not enough? The biggest giveaway from Pakistan is its extensive National Security Policy for the next five years. The policy that was unveiled on 14th January this year talks of peace with India and barely mentions Imran Khan’s go-to-topic in times of crisis –Kashmir. Pakistan’s ‘militablishement’ broadly remains unpredictable but messaging remains important. Imran Khan’s so-called concern for Kashmir has all of a sudden vanished away. In fact, it is no secret that the Pakistani army also wanted renewal of trade with India.
At the same time, UP voters would be voting on 10th February and Pakistan is barely on cards. There was a little bit of Jinnah, for sure there is 80 vs 20 but Pakistan hasn’t been much on cards. Modi government would not want issues with Pakistan at a time when China is poking on the other side, just for the sake of politics. Pakistan is unlikely to feature much in the upcoming polls.
This missing P is to be looked at with changing dynamics between Russia and Pakistan as well. But now for the unmissables.
Union Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman, Anurag Thakur, Piyush Goyal, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kiren Rijiju; Chief Ministers Basavaraj Bommai (Karnataka), Pema Khandu (Arunachal Pradesh); MPs Dushyant Singh, Jayant Sinha, Sunny Deol, Varun Gandhi; MLA Pankaj Singh among many many more. What do they all have in common? It’s not 2015 or 2016 or even 2017 that we need any guessing here. We know apart from the fact that they are from BJP, they all are ‘dynasts’. The latest to be added to this elite list is Mulayam Singh Yadav’s daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav, who joined BJP on 19th January 2022 in UP. This brings me to my second of three Ps ‘Parivarwad’.
While Gandhis are the prime examples in the list, the fact is that as BJP is ageing enough to produce dynasts and it is nowhere behind.
It is not a secret anymore that BJP is full of dynasts ‘as well’ and it’s adding more by the day. You don’t need to be in opposition to acknowledge this fact. Like any other party/industry in the country, politics would produce dynasts and BJP– born in 1980 – is no exception to the fact.
In fact, according to a Times of India report published on 1st Feb 2022 “An analysis of poll data reveals that Congress has given tickets to 10 candidates with political family background, BJP to 8 and BSP to one such candidate“ in Uttarakhand. Though PM Modi’s parivarwad attacks were only restricted to Congress, likes of SP-ShivSena-SAD barely featured.
“Uttar Pradesh (UP) has had 51 politicians with dynastic links elected to the Lok Sabha since 1952, the most of any state” and 17 of them (maximum) come from BJP followed by congress at 15. It is congress’ failure that they haven’t been able to do away with parivarwad tag. But Only if the opposition was strong enough to spread facts, that BJP is not behind in dynasty.
Our third P comes from the dynasty. As election mode in the run-up to 2024 has started, Pt. Nehru has been revived by the Prime Minister. Pt. Nehru is our third P.
Modi reminded all hardcore BJP supporters how to counter the growing questions of inflation– go back to Pt. Nehru. It is very easy to compare today’s numbers with Pt. Nehru’s India when it was still making its way out of British rule and blunders of partition. But that doesn’t count in Modi’s books.
PM Modi is the sharpest political mind in the country and he knows Indira Gandhi still holds popularity in some sections and thus cannot be attacked as often. Gandhi’s ‘Garibi Hatao’ had raised inflation to as high as 22% in the 70s but Modi chose Nehru to attack for inflation. At the same time, he reminds us of the emergency but barely mentions Indira’s name.
Pt. Nehru has also made his inroads into Goa with the Prime Minister attacking him for Goa’s late union with India in 1961. With this, it marks Pt. Nehru’s entry into the election season officially!
As election season heats, PM Modi’s all-out attack is what any Prime Minister would have done. But the fact that he chose only Congress to attack by name in parliament yet again, is unmissable. While Congress vs BJP fight is broadly for power in three out of five upcoming state elections in Feb-March 2022 i.e. Goa, Manipur, Uttarakhand. We also need to remember Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh will go to the polls later this year and they are more bipolar than any of these states. And after that, we enter 2023 leading up to the 2024 general elections. It’s now the election gear on more than ever. But we as a voter need to be aware of facts at all times, from all sides, to make the right choice.
(The author works at The Print, New Delhi. He tweets@RohmetraA)
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