By
Randeep Wadehra
The recent Karnataka State Assembly election results
were not surprising. Most poll pundits foresaw BJP’s defeat and the Congress’s
resurgence. However, it is remarkable that the Congress has returned to power
on its own steam, and the BJP has been decimated to such an extent that it has
been pushed to the margins of Karnataka politics. Some attribute this to the
Yeddy and Reddy factors. Thanks to BS Yeddyurappa’s breakaway KJP, the BJP
bastions in different parts of the state, which were actually controlled by BSY
and the Reddy Brothers, fell. Equally remarkably, BSY's KJP did not benefit
much. It secured only seven seats. So, would it be right to conclude that the
issues related to corruption and bad governance in the state overshadowed the
caste factor? It is true that people in Karnataka want good, efficient and
honest governance – something that the BJP had promised, but apparently could
not fulfill. So, is it a positive vote for the Congress? Perhaps the voters
there realized that it is always dangerous to feel good about any government
they elected. In the American satirist PJ O’Rourke’s words, “Feeling good about
government is like looking on the bright side of any catastrophe. When you stop
looking at the bright side, the catastrophe is still there.”
Factionalism did great harm to the BJP’s image in
Karnataka. Apart from traditional rivalries between the Lingayats and the
Vokkaligas, there are other divisions that are based on other issues, including
vested interests, a factor hinted at both by LK Advani and Jagdish Shattar in
their post-election observations. But the party is also bedeviled with other
problems. As elsewhere in the country, the BJP government in Karnataka too had
ignored corruption and maladministration; worse, wheeling and dealing was
actually encouraged. The Reddy-Yeddy phenomenon is but a symptom of deeper malaise
in the state’s politics; and the Congress party is certainly not immune to this
either. With rivalry among the three frontrunners for the CM's post, viz.,
Siddaramaiah, Mallikarjun Kharge and Veerappa Moily heating up, there was every
chance of faction fights erupting in the Congress. However, prompt decision to
install Siddaramaiah as the CM pre-empted this. Thereafter, despite the
lobbying for plum portfolios, there has been a conscious show of unity among
the various factions. But, would this show of unity endure? Let us not
underestimate G. Parameswara, who might have lost the election, but has enough
friends and followers to create problems for the incumbent CM.
There have been proclamations by Congress
spokespersons about the victory being a trailer for what would happen in the coming
general elections. However, although this sort of talk is good for boosting the
party cadres’ morale, the Congress cannot afford to take Karnataka as a
harbinger of things to come in 2014. In fact, it should be worried; there are
so many negatives cropping up simultaneously. It would be fatal for the party’s
election prospects if it attempts to make light of the Supreme Court’s
observations vis-à-vis the CBI’s report on the coalmine swindle. The belated
resignation/removal of the law minister Ashwani Kumar may just about control
further damage to the already considerably eroded credibility of the UPA. Let
us not forget that the initial hesitation regarding action on the 2G scam too had
cost the UPA a lot in terms of its integrity in public perception. A firm and
prompt action in the case of coalmine scam would have redeemed its public image
or, at least, would not have allowed things to come to such a pass.
Similarly, the railway bribery scandal is not going
to die away anytime soon. The BJP and its allies are going to keep the pot
boiling by using it as fuel. Indeed, it is tempting to ask – how is it that no
one in the government got the wind of what was happening in the Tricity, which
comprises Panchkula, Chandigarh and Mohali? One is tempted to congratulate the
CBI officials for unearthing the bribery scandal, but given its “caged parrot”
status, there is every chance that Bansal’s rivals in the UPA might have
managed to cut short his flight. In the process, PKB might well prove to be the
Congress Party’s BSY in the general elections that are only a few months away
now. Already, the Delhi based media is circulating unconfirmed reports of the
UPA considering the possibility of replacing Mr. Manmohan Singh. But, how would
this help the party? At the most, it will be eyewash that will not fool
anybody, and certainly not the general public.
People are getting increasingly impatient with the
manner in which various institutions are being brazenly subverted. They will
not put up with graft. This will be a major factor in the coming general
elections. In fact, the Karnataka elections have some important lessons to
offer to the wannabe netas and even governments. The aam aadmi has come to realize
that giving power to today’s politicos is like allowing a teenager to drive car,
without examining his driving skills and temperament. Most of those who get
into the positions of power behave irresponsibly. Like the proverbial teenager
on a speeding spree, the elected politico gets a thrill out of violating all
legal and constitutional norms governing his conduct. He wants to get rich
quick, establish his family as a dynastic power-center and ensure perpetual
hold on the levers of power. So far, the ruling class has been successful in
keeping the aam aadmi submissive to the point of becoming an unwitting/hapless
accomplice in the politician’s self-aggrandizement shenanigans.
Gradually, things are changing. People have begun to
look beyond the caste and community badges in order to evaluate and understand
the true motives of a politician who stands at their doorsteps, with folded hands,
offering to serve them. They realize that this once in five years show of
humility is the single biggest put-on job that deprives them of a lifetime of
security and dignity, while multistoried mansions and tons of cash flow into the
kitty of that humble servant and his family. Today’s voter is far better
informed, thanks to a combination of better education and an easy access to a
large number of independent media. Whatever ideological plank a party chooses
during an election, it will have to reckon with the voter’s rising aspirations.
Published in The Financial World dated May 17, 2013
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