And so the results are out. India has
spoken and NaMo is in the PMO. While the results were unexpected in their sheer
magnitude and significance, what is not surprising is the aftermath and
fallout. In accepting responsibility for reducing the INC to its lowest tally
in parliment, SoGa and RaGa both offered to resign. In a shocking
surprise, the resignation was turned down by the party as they felt they would
not be able to survive without the first family of Indian politics leading
them. After presiding over the decline of the INC's political fortune and
gradually eroding all its credibility with voters, the Gandhi's are still
apparently indispensable, underlining the moral bankruptcy and sycophantic
culture so deeply embedded in the INC. Their lack of vision and complete
disconnect with the nation's sentiment was brutally highlighted during their
brief televised statement on result day, with RaGa smiling like a complete dolt
and SoGa displaying a distinct lack of grace in wishing the incoming
government. She could not resist taking a parting potshot by saying that "I hope that the incoming government will not
compromise with the interests of society". One really needs to question if that was the best time to
be insinuating that the incoming government does not have society's best
interest at heart. After all, the nation has delivered its verdict, how about
respecting it for at least a day and accepting your reality gracefully?
This lack of grace
was unfortunately a theme subscribed to and displayed by several other parties
and players. Laloo Yadav refused to congratulate NaMo. Sanjay Jha refused to
accept that the INC had lost due to misgovernance and voter apathy, instead
blaming their inability to communicate with voters on their achievements. Ajay
Maken tried shifting the entire blame on Dentsu, the Japanese PR firm the INC
had hired for a campaign costing Rs.600 crore. Kamal Nath and Praful Patel
pinned the blame on Dr. Manmohan Singh, conveniently shifting the blame from
the party to the government. AAP and ArKe went as far as to suggest they stood
for elections not to win but to make their presence felt – this after promising
to win and usher in a corruption-free India. The Left (or what is left of it)
tried to raise the secular bogey yet again, warning the country of impending
doom. When did respecting the wishes of a majority become communal while
pandering to minorities become secular? This lack of grace, like a disease, was
widespread and contagious.
After facing
electoral reverses, ArKe has now expressed regret regarding their resignation
from the Delhi Government. Instead of making up their minds on what they want
to do, stating a clear policy and rejoining the political fray, they simply
want to sit in dharna. In fairly simple terms, if you accuse someone of being
one of the most corrupt politicians in the country, that person has the right
to take you to court. This is the essence of our judicial system – innocent
until proven guilty. When the court asks you to post a reasonable bail bond and
you refuse, the court has no option but to place you in custody. Why should the
law be different for anyone, especially for someone who prides himself on being
a common man, the epitome of the aam aadmi? When will my liberal friends learn
that only dharnas and protests will not achieve anything until they are backed
up by concrete action and judicious governance?
Along with this
disconnect from reality is pettiness and vindictiveness, as demonstrated in two
instances – the furore around the PMO twitter handle and the issuance of a
notice to the Adani Group. In the first instance, the outgoing government
decided to retire the handle @PMOIndia, the account used by the office of the
Prime Minister of India to communicate with followers on Twitter, a social media
platform. The handle (account) was not of Manmohan Singh or UPA or Congress, it
was of the PMO, an institution and not somebody’s personal property. As an
electronic asset of an institution, logically it should remain with the
institution, irrespective of who is occupying that institution. Unfortunately,
in an act that can only be described as petty, the outgoing PMO decided to
retire the handle and archive all communication. Naturally this attracted
widespread condemnation (although not a squeak from our liberal and secular
leaders), and Twitter was forced to act, archiving all previous communications
and reserving the verified handle for new residents of the PMO. In another
desperate act in its last dying breath, the UPA government slapped a Rs.5,500 crore
notice on the Adani Group through the offices of the Directorate of Revenue
Intelligence, barely hours before counting was due to begin. If this is not an
act of petulant vindictiveness, then what is? Irrespective of the merits of the
case, the sheer timing taints it beyond redemption and opens the door to
tit-for-tat witch hunts.
Surprisingly, through
all this furore, the only person who has demonstrated some semblance of
statesmanship has been NaMo. Perceived as autocratic (even a despot by some),
he has displayed rare graciousness, going as far as to acknowledge the good
work done by previous governments and thank all those who have helped him reach
where he is. His critics will ascribe this to grandstanding, a façade and a
carefully cultivated public image, but at least he is trying. In the minds of
many he will always remain guilty – the top man should be held accountable –
but like it or not, he is the Prime Minister of India, holding the highest
office in the country on the back of a massive electoral mandate, where for the
first time in India’s history, a single party (apart from the Congress) has
achieved a majority on its own. Inspite of the hyperbole, it is a historic
mandate and we owe it to the people of India to give him a fair shot with an
open mind. As they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and doodh ka
doodh aur paani ka paani bahut jaldi ho jayega. Till then, can we display some
grace and unite for a while?
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