Skip to main content

Maharashtra: Myth of the mighty stands shattered


Image preview


Jagtar Singh

Maharashtra has redefined the terms of both the political discourse and political trade and at the heart of the change is the fall of the mighty. The myth of invincibility of the mighty stand shattered. Although the Assembly election results of Maharashtra and  Haryana had given the first indication of the changing political discourse, every effort was made to perpetuate the myth.
It is Sharad Pawar who has emerged as the proverbial phoenix, rising from the ashes.
He has positioned himself in the political matrix at a strategic point to challenge Narendra Modi-Amit Shah duo in the coming period who had earned the distinction of being invincible with almost 80 per cent of the media turning what can be termed as loyalist media. Like the political class, the people in the media too seem to suffer from memory loss. History has lessons for everybody.
Maharashtra is a lesson for every leader and every political party that matters. The lesson si that nothing can be taken for granted for too long.
Ironically, fraud was committed on the constitution coinciding with its 70th anniversary. Equally important is the spirit of the constitution along with the letters. It is the spirt of the constitution that was violated with impunity and this was not possible without the knowledge, if not involvement, of the people entrusted by “we the people of India” to protect it.
The Congress had been completely demoralised after the repeat humiliation in the Lok Sabha elections and the party just did not put its heart into the Haryana and Maharashtra elections. This disinterest was evident even when Sharad Pawar initiated the move to install non-BJP government in his home state. The task was gigantic and the Shiv Sena had been the oldest ally of the BJP that also swears by Hindutva. The Shiromani Akali Dal joined hands with the BJP after the Shiv Sena although this once a party of the Sikhs has nothing in common with the Hindutva party.
Pawar has succeeded in effecting a deep divide in the broader Hindutva stream and this is an equally strategic dimension of the changing political discourse.
The mighty duo has now a situation to confront with. Maharashtra has posed the challenge at different levels as this state controls the capital. Mumbai might witness divided loyalties at various levels. Mumbai had virtually been acting as the flag bearer of the duo. This needs no elaboration.
The other important aspect of the situation is the Congress factor.
Case this degenerating party can now reverse its fortunes? This is not possible without complete overhaul. The positive aspect is that its base, although shrinking, has been intact as this party is still perceived to hold secular credentials. India can’t afford divisive discourse. This is the lesson that the history of this region teaches.
Corruption has ceased to be a weapon against non-BJP parties after Maharashtra. The BJP has lost its moral credentials and this is perhaps the biggest loss of the party.
The myth of invincibility of the duo stands shattered at the time when the economy is in a free fall and there are little signs of recovery in the short run. Indira Gandhi, who had emerged all powerful after dividing Pakistan in two in 1971 war got destabilised due to economic crisis. Here is the lesson from history.
It is the economy that matters in the long run. Of course, elections are not won or lost in India on developmental issues. Elections in India are fought on slogans but it is the ground situation that shapes perception in the long run.
The fall of the mighty is likely to puncture the Hindutva dreamers.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sinister and deep design to divide Sikhs and Hindus in Canada needs to be exposed

  Sinister and deep design to divide Sikhs and Hindus in Canada needs to be exposed Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh: Let us decode deeper design in what apparently seems to be deliberate distortion of facts in case of the so-called Sikh-Hindu clash in Canada to project it as confrontation between the two communities. The Indian media and the establishment gave it out as a communal conflict and attack on a Mandir, the Hindu place of worship. Let us first put the matter straight from the evidence available in the form of videos relating to every dimension of this narrative and the statements. It was neither a Sikh-Hindu clash nor an attack on the Hindu temple per se. It was a protest by the SFJ activists against the Indian consulate organizing a camp there. Such protests have been held against the consulate outside the gurdwaras too as per the record. The saner statement issued by the Hindu Federation of November 4 is very important in the interpretation of this narra...
Post a Comment
Read more

History seems to be ominously repeating itself to drive Punjab into religio-political minefield again

  History ominously repeating itself to drive Punjab into religio-political minefield again Ground Zero Jagtar Singh This headline is not rooted in some sort of pessimism. The signals are loud and clear. The onus to counter such signals is on the Punjab government. History in Punjab seems to be repeating itself to push Punjab into yet another cycle of what can be termed as the avoidable toxic situation. That cycle has now impacted even geo-political relations of India with some countries, especially Canada where the Sikhs are settled in sizeable numbers. In the context of the Sikhs as a globalized people, it is pertinent to mention that even in United Kingdom House of Commons, the representation of the Sikhs is now in double digit after the recent elections. Punjab is still impacted by the tremors of religio-political   dynamics that got triggered in 1978 with the Sikh-Nirankari clash on the Baisakhi on April 13 at Amritsar, the religious capital of the Sikhs. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Two binaries emerging in Punjab’s multi-polar polls where last 72 hours are always crucial

  Two binaries emerging in Punjab’s multi-polar polls where last 72 hours are always crucial   Ground Zero Jagtar Singh Chandigarh, May 28: The inter-play of socio-political forces in Punjab in the run up to the June 1 Lok Sabha elections is unprecedented. This is besides that established fact that the religio-political dynamics of this state has always been different from the rest of India, even when the boundaries of this country touched the Khyber Pass connecting with Afghanistan. It is for the first time that so many main political players are in the fray independently thereby making the contest multi-polar. Then there are two other eruptions in the electoral matrix making the multi-polar contest all the more interesting, and also important for future dynamics of not only Punjab but also India as the roots of this phenomena are not in too distant a past but in not so recent period of militancy. It is after decades that Punjab is going to the polls without a...
Post a Comment
Read more