It should be a matter of concern that the resort to freebie allurements by political parties during elections has only increased. There is no concern about the impact these will have on local economies, particularly in the cash-strapped states. Even the BJP, which has otherwise stuck to economically sensible policies has succumbed to some extent. This is because it has suffered political setbacks and believes, perhaps, that it could have been because of the freebie culture. Also, the opposition parties, on their part, feel they succeeded due to the shower of promises and do not want to lose this advantage.
The same goes for the divisiveness in political campaigns. The members of the INDI Alliance have gone into overdrive on the ‘caste census’ because it broke through the Hindutva flank. As a result, the BJP has ratcheted up its religion-based appeal with the ‘Batoge toh katoge’ slogan. With nonsense increasingly prevailing over sense, UP CM Yogi Adityanath is being provided a larger role in the electoral campaign. It is a fact that he can perform well at the level the elections are being fought.
This queers the pitch somewhat for PM Modi’s ‘nation-first’ approach in the strategic, economic, social welfare, and delivery fields. Building the nation’s infrastructure, defence and technological capabilities cannot be confined to five-year election cycles. The public still have faith, as is evident in how Delhi votes for him at the national level, and for free electricity at the local one. However, the propaganda that the BJP wishes to undo caste reservations and suchlike finds traction in the less informed sections of society. This has to be countered and, unfortunately, it is being done through increased populism and polarisation. Important issues such as chronic misgovernance and corruption are covered up by such politics.
What will this likely lead to? Success for either side will prove a vindication of their tactics and a continuation in the future. What kind of a verdict would ensure that the right message is conveyed, and the parties brought back to healthy politics? The ongoing elections for the assemblies of Jharkhand and Maharashtra as well as a slew of bypolls in other states are an opportunity to do so. It will be important that, both, the politicians and the electorate interpret the results in the right way so that better sense prevails. India, at this crucial juncture in its development journey, cannot afford to take the wrong direction.
