Electoral diktat

There was not even a veneer of camouflage to the Prime Minister&’s election-oriented declaration that the land acquisition ordinance would not be re-issued. The timing, during his radio-pep talk (will AlR dare to release the listenership ratings?), was a blatant bid to try and de-fang the flak he expected to receive a few hours later at the Swabhiman rally of the trinity of convenience. Mr Modi&’s backers, however, will have a hard time negating the impact of the Opposition chants of a U-turn, back-track, writhing under pressure and claims of a “victory”. That the BJP found itself on the back foot was apparent from several of its leaders trying to sell the line that their party was not anti-farmer, and accusing the Opposition of spreading canards.

It must be noted that the shouts, from both sides, are essentially political – the farmers themselves have not protested too loudly. Maybe they will express themselves through their ballots during the impending Bihar polls: that is the audience being addressed, the sole determining factor in the present scheme of things. This re-confirms the disgusting reality that mechanisms of governance and administration are rendered irrelevant by the scraping of the barrel to garner votes. All the positives the BJP&’s ministers and leaders had been citing when insisting that acquisition reform was critical have been discarded.

Discarded also has been some of the confidence of “India Inc” that, unlike his predecessor, Mr Modi had the conviction and guts to progress the economic reforms he had promised. The reaction of the industrial/business community clearly reflects its dismay that the prime objective remains seeking electoral advantage by pandering to “socialist” sentiments – all the sarkari slogans being junked because the lust for power drives Mr Modi & Co. Securing a majority in the Lok Sabha that ensured its authority could not be challenged for the next few years ought to have strengthened the resolve to reform the economy. But an electoral reverse in Bihar, particularly after the rout in the elections to the Delhi Assembly was too much of a risk for Modi & Co. to run. And that also points to a huge governance-deficit. Rather than effectively counter the Opposition arguments (which it insists are skewed) the government buckled.

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The smug airs that came with 282 seats in the Lok Sabha militated against the government reaching out and ensuring that its lack of numbers in the Rajya Sabha did not become a stumbling block. Having now eaten “crow”, the probability of encountering further resistance in the House of Elders has been enhanced. The short point being that electoral success does not equate with efficient functioning, but it remains an obsession with those who refuse to discern the difference.

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