The existential crisis of caste and other variables...

Am not a political pundit but there is one thing that I found heartening about the state elections just concluded.


The electorate are now repeatedly reminding the politicians that they are unimpressed by histrionics and are immune to the divisive politics of communalism and caste politics. And there is the Anna effect - corruption is now big factor. Starting with UPA-II and Nitish Kumar's triumphal re-election, the voters around the country are awakening the indian polity to the fact that all the mathematical equations of combinations that they had learnt regarding caste and creed, which before had assured someone like Lalu Prasad Yadav to uninterrupted rule, has fallen by the wayside.


Nitish Kumar seems to be here for the long haul because he continues to do what he was elected for. UPA-II is headed for a rout because they have forgotten.


No more will a politician thrive on top solely on caste alliances. If they cant build roads and cant provide real improvement in the life of the people, they will be booted out. And they will keep getting booted out until they learn.


And a lesson to politicians like Mayawati and Rahul Gandhi - two spectrum of the erstwhile feudal class. One playing the victim card of three millennium in order to hoard diamonds, believing that Dalits will vote for her just because she is a Dalit in power. The other, strutting around like a maharajas of old, deigning to dine with the outcast, expecting swooning crowds to vote for him, blinded by a aristocratic lineage and a dimpled charm.


The fact is that the people voted for those who advocated development. And the parties which had their ear on the ground won. A party like Samajwadi Party led by Akhilesh Yadav realized people are in no mood for the rule of old. They snubbed the people who had tainted past and claimed to be a party who is shedding its lawless image. And they won in a landslide.


Of course, all politics is local and all is fair in politics, so it for posterity to see how the elected behave. But one thing is for sure, the people are speaking up. It is for the the elected to listen...

Two Cheers and an amber light…

The Congress has won in many ways its a welcome result.

Mainly for two reasons…

Firstly,

This is a signal from the population that they are tired of the parochial and narrow obscurantist politics that the likes of SP, BSP other regional satraps follow. We give the people of India less credit than they deserve every elections, which is why we were surprised by the positive vote for peace that was they gave in 2004 and again in 2009. Which is why we hear Mayawati threatening her party members that unless they concentrate on development, she would throw them out (one can only hope that she does not mean developments of her innumerable self-glorifying parks)…the people of India have succeeded in making the most boastful of politicos smell the dirt…Lets hope that regionalism keeps on receding (that would depend on the work that the Centre does now)

Secondly,

This result can be seen as a resounding yay for constructive politics – for development, for a better standard of life, for peace and harmony. The fact that everywhere the people have voted for parties which have done constructive work. This has cut across the party colours. BJP and Congress have both been beneficiaries of this. Delhi, MP and especially Bihar are apt testimony to this…As I said, we give the masses lesser credit than they deserve. They don't really want people whose agenda is temple building or who have  hazy concepts of antique ideology or who want to abolish English for that matter. They want the opportunities to get to a good life and they will vote the party who will concentrate on that…

Now for the amber light…

Ask any graphic novel reader and they will tell you that every superhero needs an arch-villain to be a superhero.

Without a challenge, the best of the people and the best of the organization become sluggish and worse complacent, which is why the opposition in a vibrant democracy needs to be strong to keep the ruling government on its toes.

For all the faults of the Left, they were the few people in the country who can initiate a serious debate. Many of the achievements were successful because of the vociferous debates that the Left brought about – NREGA being just one.That would be missing this time.

The opposition to the Congress has been virtually decimated. BJP is lost in the woods and virtually bankrupt of ideas. Their appeal has died down and their militancy on the basis of exclusivist religion has  takers only in some parts of Gujarat and Karnataka. Unless they can see the writing on the wall and reinvent themselves as a more inclusive conservative party, they will cease to be a serious contender by the next elections. The Left has been brought on its knees because their approach has been seen as obstructionist and based on an ideology that has not stood the test of time. Karat and Co still live in 1917 whereas the socialist rulers of world today – from Castro to Chavez and Morales have moved on to a more indigenous variety that has been tailored to their country. And of course the left supporters have been appalled at the party aligning itself with characters like Mayawati and Jayalalitha. The regional rulers have been mauled badly.

In this situation, Congress has the whole field to themselves and have no excuses not to perform. But this situation is the perfect recipe for lethargy and complacency after a couple of years or worse, dictatorship of opinion and action due to lack of strong opposition which may lead to wrong policies that would harm the country. That has happened with Congress in the past and can happen again…

If that happens, it would be a tragedy and the gains of the last two elections would be lost…

All we can do is wait and watch…these should be exciting and instructive times…

Technorati Tags: Elections,India,democracy,Congress,BJP,Left,Elections 2009

Sumon – the tragedy of a poet turncoat

There was once a rebel poet-singer who modelled himself on the traditions of Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and early Dylan. He sang songs that cut through the baggage of Bengali music that had stagnated for over two decades. He sang songs of protests, of frank love, of yearning, of rage and of revolution. He sang songs of the man on the street and his life. His voice and lyrics reminded us of the best traditions of Bengali music – anti-conventional, poetic and stirring.

For this he was hailed and feted as the saviour of Bengali culture by a generation tired of its own pretensions and saw him as a fresh wind blowing away the cobwebs of oppressive tradition. I remember whole families – three generations together, under his spell.

And for a while he lived upto his promise. He touched off a revolution in Bengali music with Anjan Dutta becoming the first convert. Today’s popular bands like Chandrabindoo, Bhoomi, Cactus owe their existence directly or indirectly to Sumon’s revolution.

Today, however, Sumon has become the face of the tragedy of people who betray themselves and show themselves to be hollow, both politically and personally.

The worst kind of extremist is someone who is a new convert to a faith that he once opposed. He is the most enthusiastic and as a result is the most vulgar. Sumon has come to typify this example best.

Sumon joined Trinamool. If that was not enough to make his former fans puke instantly, he goes on become a servile sycophant of one of the worse politicians to ever come up in India – Mamta Banerjee. He talks about uprooting and killing and wiping off CPM off West Bengal in the worst form of demagoguery possible.

Anyone with half a political brain can see the tragedy that would befall Bengal if Mamta Banerjee and her goons ever come to power – they who have never done anything constructive in their political career and instead have focussed on disruption as their main agenda.

And Sumon, who once extolled the virtues of the 60’s political stance cravenly follows this party. Why you may ask? Maybe he needs a career and he feels he is morally outraged by what happened in Nandigram (which needs a big discussion in itself) and that Trinamool gave him some importance that others don't give him.

Whatever the case may be, Sumon has become the face of people who were once hailed the voice of the people and who instead of remaining outside the sphere of political parties so that he is not morally compromised, has become a tool in the hands of politicians who just want to use him for giving some hollow ‘fiery’ speeches.

Does he understand that he is being exploited? He, once sang of society’s oppression and how humans are used as tools, does he understand the depths to which he has fallen?

Maybe it is too late for realizations. Sumon has become an example of those who are fiery in their youths out of compulsion of their hot blood which masks their cowardice and lack of political depth, which comes out later…and when it does, it is ugly.

END OF POST

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