Let
me start by confessing that I not visualised the scale of BJP’s victory at
anytime in the run-up to the polls. On the contrary, the shrill media generated
noises on ‘Modi-as-PM’ being the against very ‘Idea of India’ (whatever it
means), had given rise to lots of apprehension that these elections too, would
be decided on some esoteric humbug and that our ruling buccaneers would get yet
another shot at power through some more crooked arrangements – all to defend
that ludicrous ‘idea’. Even worse, a communal consolidation against Modi would
have meant a BJP tally of something like 180 odd seats, which would have
resulted in shameful contortions by the party to solicit support of the likes
of Mamata and Maya. Mercifully, the Indian people have ensured the BJP and the
Nation has been spared such ignominy for now.
One
would have imagined that the mere fact of BJP’s wins in places where it did not
even have units in place and an over 13% surge in popular votes (in spite of
having fought in lesser seats than 2009) would have shut all those ridiculing
the concept of a Modi wave. But, never underestimate the thick skin of our self
proclaimed ‘intellectuals’. The chief editor of a leading fiberal weekly, who
happens to be a UK citizen but claims to have voted in these elections, was
trying hard to argue that ‘64% of all those who voted for the BJP would still
have voted for it even if Modi were not its PM candidate!’ Unfortunately for
him, his verbal jugglery itself reveals that at least 36% or 1 of the 3 BJP
voters, voted for Modi and not the party. Juxtaposed against the BJP’s
voteshare, a standalone Modi vote is some 11%, a figure which by itself would
make it the 3rd largest political formation in India in terms of
popular vote! Remove this 11% from the BJP’s 31% and you have a 20% share, the
same as what the party drew in 1991 and 1996!
No
group of people worldwide, other than our fiberals would have the gall to
contend that it they (the media) who propped Modi up. If by propping up, they
mean continuous abuse, derision, name calling, targeted ‘sting’ operations,
vilification campaign, mobilising ‘intellectual’ opinion and writing reams on
‘Why Modi cannot be the Prime Minister’, then yes, Modi could not have been
supported more! Needless to say, this support is going to continue and our
fiberals are going to continue to hold Modi responsible even if dogs litter
Sujan Singh Park!
Very
certainly, it was only on account of this support that the Modi wave has
resulted in the BJP having at least 1 Lok Sabha seat from each major state
barring Kerala. For the first time, the BJP is the largest political formation
in the country, both in terms of seats and in popular vote (Even in 1998, the
Congress with 112 seats had a slightly higher vote share than the BJP with its
182 seats). And again for the first time, it has swept 6 states (Gujarat,
Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Goa). But, the icing on the cake
has been Uttar Pradesh. This intermittent blogger has consistently argued that
the BJP’s revival runs through Uttar Pradesh and what a vindication it has
been!
With
all its good tidings, mandate 2014 does have some jarring notes. While it is
disappointing that a stellar candidate like O Rajagopal had to lose yet again
on account of the Muslim-Christian consolidation against him, it is even more
disappointing that the winning candidate had to be Shashi Tharoor, a person
whose integrity was tainted on account of his involvement in the IPL sweat equity
scandal and even more criminally, whose wife was found dead under mysterious
circumstances with lots of questions remaining unanswered.
Among
the states, while the BJP should have performed better in Tamil Nadu and
Bengal, the real disappointment is its performance in Andhra Pradesh,
particularly Telangana. Just what did BJP have to show as results for its 45
assembly and 8 parliament contests? A measely 3 and 1 seat as results! Maybe it
is poetic justice. Just as the Congress was punished by both Seemandhra and
Telangana for its crooked mechanisms around bifurcation of the state, the BJP
was punished for its complicity with the Congress in ensuring that all
parliamentary decencies were given a go by when the Telangana bill was being
piloted.
Then
we have the curious case of the self proclaimed ‘Chinamma’ from Vidisha. From
threatening to shave off her head if Sonia became the PM, to declaring herself a
‘little mother’ to Sonia’s ‘mother’, Sushma Swaraj has indeed traversed quite
some distance. Some five years, the advent of Sushma Swaraj as the leader of
the opposition was welcomed as a harbinger of change for the BJP. But what did
Sushma do? In spite of being the Leader of the Opposition, she insulated
herself so much from the general workers/public that even her email ID is not
accessible to the general public. If any of her constituents tried to reach her
on her phone numbers, he would be asked by one of her lackeys to send a letter
by post! Maybe Sushmaji picked her imperiousness from Soniaji who she tried
hard to emulate. If this were all, maybe it could have been excused. No.
Sushmaji tried very hard to emerge as a leader with friends across the
political spectrum. If that meant BJP’s absence from parliamentary discussions
or its voting for disastrous bills being pushed by the UPA, well, that were a
small price to pay for possible Prime Ministership. This was the lady who in
1999 had promised the residents of Bellary that she would perform the
Varahlakshmi puja with them every year. But once her protégés, the Reddy
brothers came under the cloud, not only did she jettison them, she jettisoned
Bellary altogether. Throughout the election campaign, the lady remained aloof
from campaigning, other than in Vidisha. Through public pronouncements, she
tried very hard to portray that she was not party to decisions which were being
criticised by the media. Yet, she believes that it is her right to be ‘suitably
rewarded’ in the new Modi Government! It is really, really unfortunate that she
won her Vidisha seat. This victory, of a thoroughly undeserving candidate, will
be one of the conspicuous low points of verdict 2014.
For
the BJP, Arun Jaitley’s defeat is certainly a setback. What makes it even more
unpalatable is that the victor, Amarinder Singh is not really seen as a person
with high integrity. While it was good that the people of Punjab registered
their rejection of the depraved Majithia, it was distressing that Mr Jaitley
became a collateral damage to that rejection. Still, a victory to Mr Jaitley would have been
a sort of approval of the Sukhbeer-Majithia duo and compared to them, Amarinder
Singh certainly comes across as the lesser devil. One silver lining from Punjab
has been the performance of Aam Aadmi Party. Not only is the victory of those 4
AAP candidates a testimony to people’s rejection of corruption in all colours,
it is also a strong rejection of the empty attention grabbing antics of the AAP
leadership. If only Arvind Kejriwal had remembered that people chose him in
November to fight corruption and not to act as yet another ‘secular’ warrior,
he would have ended these elections with some dignity left.
Having
been a Hindu Nationalist since gaining political consciousness, I had no doubts
with regards to who I will vote for these elections. However, in spite of
having voted for and being almost deliriously happy in celebrating Modi’s
victory, I will confess yet again to continue being a little apprehensive on
the future. The years under the previous NDA regime were wasted in a sense for
while the Government changed, governance did not. Vajpayee continued the old
Nehruvian consensus and the result was a saffron coloured Congress Government
in between 1998 and 2004. Will Modi bring about a paradigm change or will 2014
remain a wave election like 1977 and 1984, much sound and fury but no impact?
That said, unlike many who feel that Modi could inflict as much harm to the
Nation as Indira Gandhi, I believe that unlike Indira, all of whose actions were
aimed solely at neutralising her detractors and consolidating her position,
Modi has the interests of our Nation at heart. Yet, these are early days. 1971
gifted us an autocrat whose actions hit the very core of our National well
being. History alone will be able to judge if 2014 was the decisive right turn
on our path to all round progress.
