By Col Mukesh Pokhriyal (Retd)
The battle lines that currently animate politics in Uttarakhand reach well beyond the state boundaries. Politics and politicians have developed new tools of survival. The launch of strikingly professional “image laundering” campaign by inoculating themselves by using government’s financial resources to capture and be at the centre of power politics is exasperating. A new found “enabler” in the world of photo-ops politics! The various state elections in 2026 have scrambled many of the assumptions that have long shaped the understanding of Indian politics. The upstart TVK, led by the enigmatic actor Vijay, has disrupted a political duopoly that has defined the state for decades. Will Uttarakhand in 2027 witness something like this? Or will the decade long project of social engineering, social realignment and polarisation culminate in something else? Given that the state has a history of “political opportunism”, it is very hard to wrangle and manage all of these political actors who are “political entrepreneurs” of their own might. Add to that, it is fashionable and trending too at the central level politics- be it the case of Bengal or Maharashtra.
This gets to another question – are Uttarakhandis prepared for these political defections, if ever, they happen? Did the nine defections in 2016 help the citizens of Uttarakhand tide over their basic necessities – education, health and employment? Or did it aid in kleptocracy? A decade later, what kind of political framework are the citizens experiencing? Is it bureaucratic authoritarianism and political decay that has become par for the course? Amidst the euphoria and exuberance of tenanting for more number of days as CM than the late ND Tiwari, citizens need to analyse whether it is quantity over quality or vice versa! The defiance with which unwarranted projects are being given go ahead against much public outcry, the manner in which large scale tree felling and illegal sand mining continues unabated, the absolute lawlessness on the streets of Uttarakhand, points to polluted politics. This is something the state of Uttarakhand is witnessing for the first time in a natal representative democracy of twenty-five years – a flawed democracy. Kakistocracy is the hallmark, where corruption is not an anomaly but the primary currency that keeps the system running. The citizens must bear in mind how public infrastructure, law and order, state finances crumble when policy making is reduced to a transaction between compromised politicians and powerful bureaucrats. The current political discourse of the country revolves around a limited number of “personalities” and “stakeholders”. No wonder, but for the “personalities”, the selected – elected members heading the states are merely front men. Uttarakhand is no exception. Ministers and MLAs view public office as personal property rather than a service, leading to arrogant public statements, because they feel immune to institutional accountability. The motor mouths further expose themselves and their psychological profile, reflecting how deep seated is demagoguery in the political narrative of the state.
What are the options? While the state has historically rotated power between national giants, several third front players are active. Individuals, groups, newly consolidated platform of activists and progressive leaders explicitly backed by young voters and educated gentry must be given a fair chance to drive meaningful change. To bypass ineffective party politics and make a vote count toward real development, voters can adopt a performance and candidate-centric evaluation framework. Prioritise candidate merits over party symbols. Evaluate the individual candidate’s accessibility, educational background and history of community service. The central grievances of Uttarakhand citizens usually stem from systemic neglect of the fragile mountain ecosystem and its residents. Electing strong independent or regional voices forces national parties to abandon complacency and listen to grassroots representatives. Coordinate with local community groups, village panchayats and youth forums to back a singular, strong alternative candidate in the constituency who shows the highest likelihood of defeating non–performing legacy nincompoops from national parties. National parties often lean into macro – level or identity narratives. A vote for “the good” means redirecting focus toward state livelihood security. And finally, do not bet on “jumlas” anymore, instead get into the brass-tacks of last one decade and grill them on non-deliveries and inaction on corruption. After all, the great Alfred Lord Tennyson penned many years ago – “The old order changeth, yielding place to new….”
