Page 31 - English Tehelka Issue 6 - March 31, 2018

politics

BJP’s PomPous march that “the functioning of the lo- the states of the South and

cal bodies were crippled, and
the North-East during crucial
interruPted the police was given dictato- elections, may destroy the for-
tunes of Prime Minister Nar-
rial powers of encounters,
but the Yogi government is endra Modi. Adityanath had
The ruling BJP’s defeat to the SP, backed by the avoiding the Supreme Court termed the by-elections as a
BSP, comes as a shock to the saffron party that has directive of 2006 on police “dress rehearsal” for the 2019
reforms. Favourites of the BJP Lok Sabha polls. The saffron
been confident of its surges and a question mark on were appointed in the higher party was highly confident of
the strategies of its leaders, Mudit Mathur writes echelons of administration. winning in Gorakhpur, the
It was evident when the bastion of Adityanath, and
returning officer deliberately the defeat has given a major
he embarrass- strategist and president Amit delayed the bye-polls results setback to the party’s image.
ing defeat of the Shah has set the target of in Gorakhpur, because BJP Prior to Adityanath, the seat
Bharatiya Janata winning all 80 parliamentary was losing the poll”. was thrice represented in
Party (BJP) in the seats in the state in the 2019 The political decline of Parliament by his mentor Yogi
T constituencies of general election. In 2014, the Adityanath, who has been Avaidyanath.
Gorakhpur, previously held BJP had won 77 out of 80 Lok the face of the party even in The results indicate a
with the masses, organizational weak- Major regional revival in the region will be difficult.” by its poster boy and Uttar Sabha seats in the crucial declining popularity graph
ness, paucity of fiscal resources, mass Pradesh chief minister Yogi state. as the chief minister had ad-
desertion of regional level leaders to and sub-regional Way Ahead Adityanath, and Phulpur held According to political After losing dressed more than a hundred
the BJP, etc. According to one opinion, Under the given circumstances, Con- by his deputy Keshav Prasad analyst and journalist Gopal the two meetings in his own nurtured
being in the Opposition at the Centre parties are either gress of its own is unable to stop Modi’s Maurya, have served a hard Mishra, “The cause of the constituency that he held for
makes the Congress less attractive for intellectually or political juggernaut. While setting blow to the party that was defeat is a hazardous mix Parliamentary five terms since 1998. Politi-
local political elites. Some experts point its own house in order, the Congress buoyant after its massive of Modi’s rhetoric and the seats, the BJP’s cal murmurings have been
out inability of the Congress high com- politically not needs to make itself acceptable to other victory in three states of the undermining of the basic pro- visible among Adityanath’s
mand to revitalize the party in states convinced on the non-NDA parties. Admittedly, it is only North-East. tocol of professional admin- tally in the Lok detractors who see this de-
where it is not in power. It invested an alliance of like-minded democratic Even in Bihar, where the istration. The claim of giving Sabha has been bacle as a moral defeat of his
its energy in Gujarat and managed need to form an Opposition parties, which can chal- BJP had recently forged an an honest administration ap- politics of religious aggression
to reap good dividends and now it is alliance to replace lenge and replace the present politi- alliance with the JD(U) to pears to have been drowned reduced to 272 and communal polarisation.
concentrating its focus on Karnataka cal dispensation. Regrettably, the major stake claim to form the state in the rhetoric of much talked which is exactly Interestingly, the spiritual seat
and hopes to fare better. It should have the present ruling regional and sub-regional parties are government, it managed to about good governance. The of Gorakhnath Mutt headed
invested similar energy in the North- dispensation either intellectually or politically not retain the Bhabua assembly established systems under the the number by Adityanath is based on a
East as well. convinced on the need to form an constituency but couldn’t RTI Act of 2005 of transpar- religion-neutral philosophy
The second problem confronting at the Centre alliance to replace the present ruling wrestle the Jehanabad assem- ency in the governance has needed to form which is against the way he is
the Congress is the level of factionalism dispensation at the Centre and they are ble seat from the RJD. been deliberately diluted or a majority portraying its faith.
in each state unit. Factionalism, inter- more interested in floating regional ar- While the BJP has been made ineffective by the Yogi
nal fissures and bickering at the state an incumbent, it is not able to defend rangements for their own convenience appearing confident of its administration.” He added government letters@tehelka.com
unit level leads to draining out a lot of its record. It has lost the art of stitching at the expense of national interest. victory in next year’s general
energy and sinking of party morale together multi-ethnic alliances, The Bihar Model of ‘Mahgathband- election, it may now face dif-
which belies the hope of a coherent, so critical to political success… It has han’ had raised some hopes of taking on ferent ground realities with
unified party ready for battle. One lost the skill of saying different things BJP’s political juggernaut, but it also fell new alignment of political
expert has opined that the Congress to different constituencies yet being a prey to political opportunism guided forces to defeat its might.
High Command has been unable able to take them all together. It is not by narrow and petty political interests. If the new political alli-
to stem the tide of desertions at the seen as standing for either develop- Even after humiliating electoral drub- ance between the BSP and
state level in the absence of personal ment or identity rights.” These experts bings, many regional parties have not Samajwadi Party continues in
investment in wooing and retaining further warn that unless the party risen above narrow interests. Anti-BJP future and encourages other
leaders as well as sustaining the morale leadership decides that each state is stance is understandable and can be Opposition parties to forge
of the cadre. significant, “unless state leaders work good incentive spurring Opposition similar alliances, it may pose
Some experts have aptly summed in tandem and factional battles are unity, but anti-Congress stance at a a big challenge for the saffron
up weaknesses of the Congress in resolved, unless incentives change time when the Congress itself is faced party’s grand plans; its master
these words: “The Congress is at a and the desertions stop, unless the with existential crisis by these regional
complete loss in terms of a narrative Congress realises that getting up late parties and the Left is puzzling. • Victory of unity The victory in UP
and message. When it is a challenger, is no longer an option in elections, and Assembly polls is being credited to
it is not aggressive enough. When it is unless it figures out its own story, its letters@tehelka.com SP-BSP alliance

Tehelka / 31 march 2018 30 www.Tehelka.com

28-30 Column-Anil Singh.indd 4 14/03/18 5:02 PM 31 UP.indd 3 14/03/18 7:06 PM