Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A)
Er. P.L Khushu
Opposition gathering at Bangalore chooses to represent India as Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A), that is India with stops, not a regular INDIA. India is a name that epitomizes unity and integrity. The recently framed Opposition Trust is a motley bunch of family based political elements and its division of the word India into five alphabets reflects its separatist mentality (India into 5 parts). Looking to the composition of this compulsive alliance, it sounds like (Indian Nepotistic Dynastic Indian Alliance). Does it show their weak position across the country, or a natural instinctual warning to the people of India that such a desperate forum of opportunists and dynastic, will break India as a concept of Bharat.
UPA changes the track, changing itself to Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A). Why so? Yes, the circumstances for congress dominating UPA, have made it to change its form, as the grapes have been sour for it from some years in UPA. It is surprising to note that this new alliance of the opposition parties is now an alliance where in a new word has been introduced, which is “Development Inclusive”. Does it mean that all such opposition parties, particularly the Congress, TMC, RJD, NCP, NC, PDD, DMK and the like, which were having a ruling role in some prominent states of India, have been ruling such states without any development agenda. Have their ruling patterns so far been to rule for self interests. This is what Modi is speaking about all such political parties. Probably he is right. Such a new nomenclature for the new “Opposition Trust”, stands as a testimony to it. Old habits die-hard is a famous saying. Can they change their old habits of fleecing the public for their personal interests? Will they mean it as “Development Inclusive”, or, will work as “Indian National Self-Developmental Inclusive Alliance”. What a paradox. Time will prove it. But let these political way wanderers not break India as they have unfortunately chosen a broken symbol I.N.D.I.A to represent India. The great congress party of India of erstwhile times, fathered by Nehru or even Indra Gandhi, is now gasping for oxygen and trying to woo the smaller regional parties in various states to accommodate it as a junior partner. Kejriwal of AAP, made congress to bow before it, by accepting his terms of opposing the passing of the Center’s Ordinance about the services in Delhi, in the Rajya Sabha. By such a move, the present congress has ditched its own congress in Delhi and Punjab. Who does not know how bitter AAP and congress have been against each other in Delhi and Punjab. In fact it is APP which has removed the residual remains of congress in most of the states in India, like Delhi, Punjab and Gujarat etc, after Modi’s historical call in 2014, about congress that make India ” Congress Mukhtak Bharat”. It came true, but who put the last nail in the coffin of congress was ” Kejriwal of AAP.
The political deadlock between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress appeared to continue even after attempts of like-minded parties to form an Opposition alliance ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The exchange of words between the AAP and the Congress over the Centre’s ordinance related to services in Delhi and the AAP’s attempt to isolate the grand old party in the Patna conclave for not supporting them over the ordinance issue, had sent a clear message that both the parties are not going to share one platform against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha elections due in 2024. The rift between both the parties widened when AAP Convener Arvind Kejriwal along with his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann left the opposition meeting in Patna midway and later his party’s general secretary Sandeep Pathak announced in principle support to the controversial Uniform Civil Code if the Centre brings it in Parliament.
Many of the Congress leaders have had an issue with the AAP since the emergence of the India Against Corruption (IAC) movement and the inception of the AAP as a political party. With his anti-corruption stand against Manmohan Singh-led central government and Sheila Dixit-led Delhi government, Arvind Kejriwal emerged as a strong face from IAC and later formed the Aam Aadmi Party on the same base. Barely one-and half-year later, the AAP formed a government in Delhi for 49 days in 2014 with the outside support of the Congress whom the newly formed party touted to be ‘most corrupt’. Even after ousting Congress, AAP leaders left no stone unturned to gain political scores by cursing Congress’ previous governments. In Punjab after the AAP took the reins of governance, two of its former ministers of congress were arrested in connection with different cases of graft. An uneasy calm started prevailing in the Punjab Congress amid fears that more of its leaders may end up in jail as the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi party dispensation has initiated inquiries into several irregularities. The Vigilance Bureau arrested former Food and Civil Supplies Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu in a case of alleged food grain lifting tender scam. In June, the Vigilance Bureau had arrested former minister and Congress leader Sadhu Singh Dharamsot on corruption charges. While Congress accused the AAP government of political vendetta, Chief Minister Mann, said his party had promised to the people of Punjab in the run up to the Assembly polls that it will seek account of each penny from those who looted the state exchequer. But what has happened with congress now to say, that it will support AAP in the Rajya Sabha at their Bangalore meeting. It shows its extreme fear of getting trounced in future political battles in the country as a major political party. Congress has succumbed to a small political party for its existence, which until now was its worst enemy. Dynastic Congress has ditched its own congress stalwarts of Delhi and Punjab. What a travesty of political justice. Even under the fear of extinction, Congress says now that it does not ask for the Prime Minister’s post for it , though being the natural bigger alliance as per its regular definition.
Addressing a joint press conference after a meeting of 26 opposition parties in Bangalore, Kharge said, “This was a very important meeting to save democracy and the Constitution in the interest of the people of the country.” ” He said that We have come together and discussed various points. With one voice, people supported the resolution adopted today”. Drawing the battle lines, opposition parties resolved to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party untidily in 2024 Lok Sabha elections in this crucial meeting here. A famous saying, “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride”. It applies to all of these family-based opposition party representatives, who had come on a good excursion first to Patna and now to Bangalore, when most of the leaders of this political conglomeration are day dreaming to be the next Prime Minister of India, an illusion which will never come true. Are they trying to show an opposition unity to the people of India? Who does not know that these different political entities have been cut throat rivals of each other in the various states of India for political power. Recent Panchayat poles in West Bengal, where congress repeatedly claimed that presidents rule should be imposed in that state, as it alleged that enough of its filed workers have been killed by the party workers of TMC. The congress leadership of west Bengal have already made it known that it will contest the forth coming parliamentary elections in an alliance with the communists against the TMC in West Bengal. What did Mamta BanerjI chief minister of West Bengal display about the unity of this (Opposition Trust) to defeat BJP and Modi, as a political gathering called as India, when this is already shaken and broken in the states. Congress is fighting against the communists in Kerala . Where is the unity and which unity? Is it the unity of dissention for face saving?
How can it be helped for these fallen and disgruntled political leaders by any one, when some of them are on bail, or are on the radar of judicial processes of sorts?
Who are the constituents of this opposition conclave? Rahul Gandhi, the family product of Gandhi’s and son of Sonia Gandhi, who is on bail on a criminal case, when he is punished with two years jail term. Tejaswi Yadav, deputy chief minister of Bihar, son of Lalu Yadav, ex Chief Minister of Bihar and ex central minster recently freed from jail, crowned with heavy corruption charges, on different counts, representing JDU. Akhlesh Yadav, representing SP, son of late Sh. Mulayam Singh Yadav, ex Chief Minister of UP, and ex central minister. Omar Abdullah, representing NC, family product of Sheikh Abdullah, ex Chief minister of J &K and son of Farooq Abdullah, ex Chief Minister of J &K, ex central minister and present MP from J& K. Mehbooba Mufti representing PDD, daughter of Mufti Mohamed Syed, ex chief Minister of J & K, and central minister, when PDD has not a single member in the both houses of Parliament. Stalin, son of Sh. Kurnanidhi, the ex chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the family bastion of Kurnanidhi’s. Jharkhand’s Hemant Soren of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, son of Shubu Soren ex chief minister of Jharkhand who was also miserably involved in corruption cases. Maharashtra’s former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray (Shiv Sena-UBT), son of Sh. Bal-Thackeray along with his son, his grooming heir apparent. Sharad Pawar, when Sh. Sharad Pawar’s NCP has broken now in two different NCP’s, the other represented by his nephew Ajit Pawar, who defected from NCP recently with a major chunk of MLA’s of NCP. Is it a family problem of these political way wanderers, as they have lost power to rule? If the people of India have rejected them, who can help them. Such rejoicing meetings only speak about their meaningless excursions without any results.
Should it be concluded that are these defeated politicians, when most of them are with family base, so much afraid of Modi, for his popularity, his vision, his honesty, his statesmanship, his grip on true democratic governance for the nation, his service to the poor and the downtrodden class of the people of India, his fame across the globe and above all his dedication to his duty as the Prime Minister of India, that they have started to conspire against him and speak venom against him and his leadership. This is the Modi Charisma, when the congress has taken shelter under other regional political parties and have made other dynasty based political conglomerates to come together and mourn about their falls in political arena of India under Modi’s honest Prime Minister ship to rule India.
(The author is a chartered consultant civil engineer, passionately attached to his
mother land – Jammu & Kashmir).