Ashok Bhan
Balakote airstrike deep into the territory of Pakistan as an effective retaliatory measure against Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were martyred,went deep into the psyche of Indian masses across the spectrum and was competently used by well oiled BJP machinery in election campaign,that turned its fortunes to a massive electoral victory. Modi successfulIy portrayed himself as the saviour of Indian nationalism, culture and civilisational ethos.People believed him and every bit of his narrative in poll campaign.He turned the whole election a sort of ‘Presidential form’, people trusted and voted for him overwhelmingly.That is Modi-Juggernaut..
Narender Damodar Modi is India’s Prime Minister-2.O His team of 58 ministers among others consists of-his trusted man Amit Shah as Home Minister, Nirmala Sitaraman,a JNU product,as Finance Minister, Rajnath Singh as Defence Minister and a former bureaucrat as Foreign Minister along with a team of mix of old, young and fresh faces in the Cabinet.The new Government has started its business right away.
People’s expectations have risen very high and the aspirational India is looking to Modi as a new avatar for solution to all the critical problems of the nation namely-terrorism,economic slowdown, unemployment, agrarian distres, Kashmir Imbroglio, Issues of Art.370 and 35-A, return of exiled Kashmiri Pandits back to Kashmir, minorities insecurity,failing institutions, Foreign affairs issues with China, Pakistan and other hostile nations and host of other important issues the nation is confronted with.Lingering Kashmir Imbroglio deserves priority and urgent resolution.
The Indian National Congress (INC), led by Rahul Gandhi, returned with a tally of about 50 from 44 in 2014, raising questions about the grand old party’s ability to challenge the new template of politics that Modi and BJP have repeatedly demonstrated over the last five year.
Modi led a fierce election campaign across the country in blazing summer in the seven-phase election spread across 39 days. The NDA swept the states of Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana and Jharkhand, bettered its tally in Karnataka, and romped home with a landslide in Maharashtra.In Uttar Pradesh, where it was locked in a pitched battle with the Samajwadi Party (SP)-Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP)-Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance), BJP won about 60 seats, down from 71 last year.
The BJP was, able to contain its slide in Uttar Pradesh, India’s biggest state with 224 million people,despite a spirited opposition that had sought to halt the Modi juggernaut in the state by putting up a joint fight, setting aside their historically acrimonious differences. The Congress, which did not join the opposition alliance in the state, managed to win only 1 seat, Rae Bareli contested by Sonia Gandhi. The Congress was humbled by the loss of its President Rahul Gandhi from Amethi.
The BJP, however, offset its losses in Uttar Pradesh, by making deep inroads in India’s eastern and north-eastern region.
West Bengal, the east Indian state saw a fierce battle between BJP and state chief minister Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC), and where BJP expended a lot of political capital (Modi addressed bulk of his rallies in UP and West Bengal), delivered about 18 seats to party, a giant gain from the modest two seats it had won in 2014. Odisha, another east Indian state where BJP focussed in 2019, fetched eight seats for the party against just one seat in 2014.
The Congress was expected to do well in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, where it had ousted BJP governments in recent state Assembly polls. Rural angst over low prices of farm commodities has been identified by experts as a key reason for the BJP’S defeats in these states in the state elections in December. Five months later, however, the BJP retained the bulk of its 2014 harvest in these states.
While the opposition alliance in Uttar Pradesh did help halt their unstoppable surge.In Karnataka, the BJP reaped a bountiful crop, winning 25 of the 28 seats overriding a Congress-JD (S) coalition, which is currently ruling the state.
BJP ended up to remain a marginal player in southern India, barring Karnataka, a state where it has been strong traditionally. It won 4 seats in Telangana and none in Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.
The Congress and UPA on the other hand, made meaningful gains in southern India, especially Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 19 of the 20 seats in Kerala, up from 12 seats in 2014. In Tamil Nadu, UPA made big gains and won 31 seats (most by its alliance partner DMK) against none in 2014. Tamil Nadu and Kerala are the only two states where the UPA’s tally reached double-digit seats in 2019.
BJP’s timely alliances in Maharashtra and Bihar, struck closer to the elections, seems to have helped with the NDA’s tally at 41 out of 48 in Maharashtra and 39 out of 40 in Bihar.
The NDA had contested this election highlighting the Government’s achievements and Modi’s resolve to respond effectively to the terror attacks and himself sought votes for seamless continuity in his policies. The poll results indicate that voters from Himachal Pradesh in north India and Karnataka in the south, Gujarat in the west and the Arunachal in the north-east, bought into Modi’s India Dream.
The poll results will strengthen Modi’s hands, allowing him to accelerate policymaking in many critical areas. The bitterly fought elections had everyone hanging to the edge of their seats. The consensus among non-NDA parties was that even if Modi had an edge he might have to enlist new political parties to attain simple majority and form a government. The rationale: NDA had hit a peak in 2014 and it could only go down from there.
The results relegated the Congress to the peripheries of India’s national politics. The grand old party’s wins were largely limited to Punjab and Kerala, where Rahul Gandhi contested from Wayanad, while its campaign in states such as Uttar Pradesh seems to have only helped NDA gain by splitting Opposition votes.
Narendra Modi was born into one of India’s most disadvantaged social groups,” he explained. “In reaching the very top, he personifies the aspirational working classes and can self-identify with his country’s poorest citizens in a way that the Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty, who have led India for most of the 72 years since independence, simply cannot,” said the IANS article, quoting Ladwa’s editorial.
“Yet despite the strong and often unfair criticisms levelled at Modi’s policies both throughout his first term and this marathon election, no Prime Minister has united the Indian electorate as much in close to five decades,” the editorial said, referring to former Congress prime minister Indira Gandhi’s massive 1971 victory.
The huge victory mandates the Modi Government to accelerate at least its unfinished political and his committed -manifesto initiatives,on construction of Ram Temple Ayodhya,repatriation of exiled Kashmiri Pandits back to Kashmir,issues of Article 370 and 35-A,flush out terrorism from JKState and elsewhere,build up trust with Muslim minority etc.besides reforms,ranging from income tax reforms to a simpler goods and services tax, from structural solutions for the farm sector to banking reforms, and enabling investment to create opportunities to the armies of young people joining the queue of job hopefuls every year.
Country needs a healthy opposition in the best interests of a robust democratic and transparent governance.The grand old party Indian National Congress is expected to lead opposition. Democracy and formidable opposition leads moderation and checks and balance.Would the Party rise to the occasion and fulfil the most onerous democratic role for building and strengthening a moderate,secular and inclusive idea of India.
The nation expects Modi Government to bring India at 3rd.largest economy of the world and at 2nd.position in science,technology,military and diplomacy superpower. Let the nation watch and wait Modi to deliver.
(The author is Senior Advocate and Political Analysts)
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com
Follow our WhatsApp channel
