India's Political Stupidity

Monjib Mochahari May 08, 2009

By Monjib Mochahari

Does democracy provides space for political stupidity? The answer is probably ‘yes’ as there are ample manifestations that one can cite to prove it. To siege power, to remain in power and to exercise power, politicians in India are leaving no stone unturned. It seems they are staging dramas where there are no audience to watch them. But politicians are experimenting all possible new things, sometimes absurd and stupid enough to make us laugh when we don’t want to. Whether it’s the Congress- BJP- Left-SP or any regional or national, all parties and a section of political figures are hooked in the vicious cycle of political stupidities. They are germinating controversies. At the moment, the air we breadth is filled with raucous slogans ‘Jai ho and Bhay ho’. And the common people are confused whether to sing it or shout at it. We are either forced to laugh at or criticise sensibly.

Interestingly, the Congress and the BJP seemed to have smarted the art of manufacturing populist election manifestos and promises. Celebration of poverty and hunger, the flamboyant Congress party, if comes back to power at the Centre promised to give 25 kg of rice for Rs. 3 per kg to the Bellow Poverty Line (BPL) families. Whereas, the BJP has gone an extra mile counteracting the Congress, promised to give 30 kg of rice for Rs. 2 per kg, if party strikes the ballot boxes.

For those who lieve poverty and hunger, the promise carries a lot of meaning. Yet, the question that every sensible Indian often likes to raise is - why should the political parties keep on making poverty an election issue? Justifiably, everyone understands that poverty is a national issue. It’s a national shame. Poor Indians, do they deserve any better treatment than this? But the irony is, the political system in our country has given them only two options- either they press their fingers on a highly sophisticated Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) in favour of a party in exchange for a square of meal or remain in remain in eternal poverty. Why can’t the central or the state governments give them those means to come out of their vicious cycle of poverty? Is there any way out? Probably, the answer is definitely yes. But those who have money and power love to see poor people die of poverty and hunger. I guess, politicians never think out of the box.

‘Change we can believe in’ was the message of Barack Obama’s US Presidential election campaign. Of course, the world leaders eagerly waited his change to come in. We too would have expected some changes from the BJP’s dream Prime Ministerial candidate Lal Krishna Advani. But the naked truth is – Advani in his political career has actually generated more ccontroversies than what he was expected to deliver as a political statesman. Whether it’s the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992 or the Kandahar hijack in 1999 or the Jinnah controversy, Advani has stigmatized himself only to be reminded by his political counterparts. And now Black Money stashed in the Swish Bank has energized his political campaigns and sidelined the issues the country is looking for to be addressed.

But he has given us another big surprise. Of course, it’s not a controversy that we can discus. At the time when people are questioning the relevance of the Post Offices in India, the NDA’s Prime Ministerial Candidate L.K. Advani has flabbergasted everybody by sending more than a thousand letters to religious heads. Sure, a brilliant idea to market his secular image? Doubtful. Despite his high-tech political campaign, Advani has not overcome his past credentials. His saintly criticism against the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh is regrettable. But silenced him when the triangle bullets from Soniaji-Rahulji-Manmohanji hit him where it hurts. Advani’s all dim-witted efforts seem to be fading away. Certainly, he would have positioned himself better if he wered to use his efforts for genuine cause. By the way it’s Advani’s another political play.

The three star campaigners - Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi and SP leader Secretary Sanjay Dutt too have caught up in the vicious circle of politics. Modi’s angelic voice, describing the Congress as a "burden on the country" and Gandhi as a "burden on the Congress. Gandhi can’t even recite Vande mataram without reading from a paper” is deeply regrettable. Whereas, actor and budding politician Sanjay Dutt’s Boollywood style dialogue 'jhuppi and puppi' on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister is rather humorous, seems to be fitting on the screen, not in politics. Absolutely! Congress' poster-boy Rahulji, who seems to have acquired enough knowledge about rural India during his first five year tenure as the MP, is reaching out to the left and the right, the north and the sought seeking new partners to form the next government. And in the midst of all these political Hullaballoo, Boollywood superstar Salman Khan turns genius campaigning for different parties simultaneously.

From obscurity to popularity and finally to Dalit Icon, Utter Pradesh, Chief Minister Mayawati is mastering the art of elephant making and trying to make it run on the Parliament streets. While more than 30 percent of the state’s population live in extreme poverty, Chief Minister is busy splurging crores of rupees erecting monuments and statues of herself. The cost of each red stone elephant in her dream project in Lucknow– Baba Saheb Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Sthal (Mayabati’s Taj Mahal) is more than 65 lakh. The Elephant Court will house 60 red sandstone elephants. If the money is spent for building lost-cost houses, imagine, hundreds of poor people have benefited. nonetheless, the question arises can taxpayers’ money be so lavishly spent for self-glorification or political agendas? Is a sign of the empowerment of the Dalit communities?

While the Samajwadi Party (SP) gave everybody big a surprise when it announced its election manifestos for the 15th General Elections. While Chinese government is making all possible efforts to impart English education to its younger generations, the SP seems to be disturbed by the proliferation of the English medium schools. The party seems to have also mastered the art of job creation putting an end to the use of computers. Rather than highlighting the genuine problems of the education, the party is obsessed with the wrong issue, which cannot but must be ignored. Certainly, the elections manifestos might have also been prepared in English?

Whereas in the southern State of Tamil Nadu, it’s the LTTE that makes good politics. The political pundits find hard to survive if they exclude this from their political dish. Unfortunate, the tsunami victims continue live in abject poverty, struggling for a square meal. And even now it’s not an issue in the political agendas. The horrible post-tsunami aftermath, the story of several poverty stricken fisherwomen selling out their kidneys to make a living, reported in 2007 is a shame on the politicians. Turning a deaf ear on the local issues and fighting for a cause overseas? Now the LTTE has dugged its own graves, will the politicians in Tamil Nadu fill them? But the politicians have escaped the poor fishermen’s fishing nets.

In Assam, it’s action that speaks louder than the voice. While people engulfed in fear and anxiety due to demographic change, the Congress party has allegedly mastered the art of accommodating the illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the state. Today, of the 27 districts in the sate, in seven districts the local tribal communities have become totally minority. Dubri District,b bordering Bangladeshi, which is also known as the hub of the Bangladeshi migrant population openly claim it as “Mini-Bangladeshi”. The district has been in the headlines for harbouring jihadi elements. But the state government is turning a deaf ear, even though the issue requires quick fixing. If every person who cross to India illegally from Pakistan is a matter of concern, why not those who illegally enters the Northest India is not an issue? Stop this unabted migration.

In October, 2008, when Bangladeshi immigrants launched a brutal attack to wipe out the indigenous tribal communities in two districts of the state- Udalguri and Darrang, the ruling Congress government remained a silent spectator till the situation deteriorated. Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi refused to accept reports that Pakistani flags have been hoisted in three villages in the riot hit districts of Assam even though there are video evidences to this effect and the incident has been widely reported in the North-Eastern Media. Mr. Gogoi pinned the blame upon the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) who are in cease fire since 2005 for starting the violence, even though the violence was perpetrated by the Bangladeshi migrants when they brutally killed two Bodo youths. Fearing the lost of Muslims votes the state government was quick to side with the illegal Bangladeshis and said nothing against them. This only exposes the vote-bank politics of the Congress Party. And still continues even today.

In Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Area District (BTAD) that consists of four districts – Udalguri, Kokrajhar, Bagsha and Chirang, the political story is a bit scary and dangerous. The politics in the region since the formation of the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) in 2003 is getting dirtier by every passing day. The Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) led by Hagram Mohilary who is also the current Chief of the 40 Members BTC seemed to have allegedly formed the Bodoland Royal Tiger Force (BRTF) - an armed group of the party. And allegedly siphoned of the funds allocated for the development of the BTAD region for training and procuring arms for the Frankenstein the party has given birth.

However, the party claims it as the Youth Wing of the BPF. The group has been has designed to ensure that the BPF wins the council elections in 2010 and to wipe out its rival party Bodoland People’s Progressive Front (BFPF) led by former All Bodo Student’s Union leader Rabiram Narzari. The outfit has already created hell-like situations in the four districts of the region. Hagrama, in his four years in power, the ideal concept of development - ‘Model BTC’ which he promised during the swearing ceremony as the BTC Chief has been thrown in the dustbin forever.

Endless political stupidity. Nothing, but for petty political power. There is no end even though the problems have multiplied in thousands. The Boollywood film industry deserves accolades for screening the gloomy political shades of our country. All these dangerous political exercises make one believe that India’s politicians are genius of political misadventures. Politicans live in an ivory of political controversy. They seldom lack talents, but never made use. Even if they use, most of the times it is for building name and fame. After all issues and problems are of the common citizens are untouchables to them. We can endlessly argue on it, but the question is will the ‘z-security’ politicians ever think of those citizens who have ‘zero-security’? Certainly, it’s a ‘politocracy’ (democracy for the politicians, by the politicans and of the politicians. Right? Abraham Lincoln’s definition of democracy-‘by the people, for the people and of the people’ is a cry in the virgin forest.

Tags: General Elections , Politics , Narendra Modi