“Unka Sankalp, Vipareet Bharat”
“Sab ka naash, Sab ka Vinaash”
April 19, 2024
By Aravind Bhatikar
PARLIAMENTARY democracy in India rests on three pillars – the Legislature, Executive and the Judiciary. Media is often called the forth pillar of democracy. The system, as laid down in the Constitution, works well when there is mutual respect between the political class in the Parliament, State Legislatures, Central and State governments on one side and members of higher Judiciary on the other. During the last 77 years, barring the period under Emergency, recklessly imposed by Indira Gandhi, and some minor glitches from time to time, our democracy has been functioning within the boundaries laid down by the Constitution.
The BJP government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1999 to 2004 respected the Constitution and worked within the Constitutional boundaries. The BJP government from 2014 to 2024 under Prime Minister Modi has shown little respect for the Constitution and its institutions. His arbitrary administration and dictatorial style of functioning has sparked off widespread fears that a third 5- year term as the prime minister for him will be suicidal for our democracy.
Here are a few glaring instances of Modi’s dictatorial style of functioning that have spawned fears about the future of our democracy if Modi continues as the prime minister:
THE RAFALE SCAM
On March 25, 2015 Dassault’s CEO Éric Trappier said that although the deal was taking time, it was “95 percent completed.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an official visit to Paris and announced that India would acquire 36 fully built Rafale jet fighters from Dassault company in France.
The then defence minister, Manohar Parrikar, however, stated in the Rajya Sabha in July 2015 that the earlier tender for 126 jet fighters was withdrawn and negotiations had started for purchase of 36 Rafale jet fighters from Dassault in France. It was only 14 months later, in September 2016, that the government of India signed an agreement with the government of France for the acquisition of 36 Rafale jet fighters, after the Cabinet Committee on Security in India had cleared the deal. The final price and the other financial conditions were yet to be decided at a time of signing of the inter-governmental agreement.
It was clear that Modi had announced the deal before the clearance by the Union Cabinet and before the completion of negotiations. The inter-governmental agreement between India and France took place 17 months after Modi had made the announcement in Paris. Modi had announced the deal well before the usual procedures were completed.
ARBITRARY DEMONETIZATION
ON November 8, 2016 Modi suddenly announced in an address to the nation, the demonetization of Rs500 and Rs1,000 notes. The decision was reportedly opposed by the RBI and was ostensibly not discussed in a formal cabinet meeting before the announcement. The nation is still suffering from the deleterious effects of Modi’s reckless decision. Justice Nagarathanam of the Supreme Court recently observed that she had held the demonetization illegal since the decision had been taken without following the due consultative process. The other 4 Supreme Court Judges in the 5-Member Bench had upheld the decision.
THE ELECTORAL BONDS SCAM
THE world’s biggest scam in our “mother of democracy” was scripted and enacted by Narendra Modi, to decimate Opposition parties to make the make the country a one party republic like north Korea. The whole scheme was meant to convert thousands of crore of black money into white without revealing the names of donors who gave donations through electoral bonds. The RBI and the Finance Ministry had expressed concern over the dangerous effects of this scheme on our political system and country’s security.
But for the Supreme Court’s intervention (justice delayed but not denied) Narendra Modi’s plan to amass huge funds for the BJP and use those funds to convert our Parliamentary democracy into a one party republic might have succeeded.
RUBBISHING PARLIAMENTARY CONVENTIONS
THE President of India is the head of Parliament. However, the President was not invited for the inauguration of the new Sansad Bhavan. This was because Modi wanted all cameras to be focused on him and him alone.
For the first time in the history of Lok Sabha, 146 members of the Opposition were suspended, ostensibly to avoid discussions on amendments to the Indian Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code.
The three agricultural acts, which sparked off a 13 month long agitation of Indian farmers, were preceeded by three ordinances on those subjects. The ordinances were obviously promulgated to avoid discussion on those subjects in the Lok Sabha. The acts were later withdrawn by Modi in a public announcement, before the Lok Sabha passed an act withdrawing the acts.
REDUCING THE ROLE OF JUDICIARY
CONSTITUTIONAL democracy can work well only if there is mutual respect between Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. During the last 10 years of Modi rule there have been many instances when the Lok Sabha has rendered Supreme Court’s decisions ineffective, by passing laws to overrule judgments given by the Supreme Court.
A 5-member Bench of the Supreme Court had ruled that the bureaucracy in Delhi government should work directly under the control of the elected chief minister. The Modi government amended some other law to bring the bureaucracy under the control of the Lt Governor of Delhi, thereby rendering ineffective the judgment passed by the 5-member Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court.
Another important judgment of the Supreme Court stipulating that the Chief Justice of India would be a member of the committee constituted to select Election Commissioners was overturned by the Modi government by passing a law to constitute the committee without the Chief Justice of India. These actions of the Modi government pave the way for a weak and emaciated Judiciary in future.
DEMOLITION OF FEDERAL STRUCTURE
INDIA is a federal republic where administrative and financial powers and functions are divided between the Central and the State governments. The Modi government, over the last few years, has levied many cesses and surcharges instead of increasing the tax rate, since tax revenues are to be shared as prescribed by the Finance Commission whereas revenues from cesses and surcharges need not be shared with States.
The grants-in-aid due to State governments on account of various Central schemes are reportedly delayed on various pretexts in the case of States ruled by opposition governments. Recently, Delhi was witness to a very strange scenario in which many chief ,inisters staged a dharna at the Jantar Mantar in Delhi demanding release of aid due to their states for implementation of Central schemes.
Besides, governors of West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Kerala have been known to harass their chief ministers in various ways, obviously at the instance of the Central Home Ministry.
Modi is the first prime minister who has initiated this practice of non-cooperation with state governments.
WEAPONISATION OF AGENCIES
MODI & Shah began the practice of weaponising the ED, CBI and the IT departments to file cases and conduct raids on the offices and houses of Opposition leaders. For the first time in the history of free India, two sitting chief ministers have been arrested and jailed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Modi & Shah engineered defections in Maharashtra and Bihar with the help of ED, CBI, etc, which led to the collapse of those governments, paving way for the BJP rule in those states.
Modi & Shah have given to their countrymen a taste of what they can expect if Modi is allowed a third term as the prime minister of India.
It is only WE, THE PEOPLE who can now save our country from falling into the hands of a ruthless dictator. If WE, THE PEOPLE do not act now in this election to defeat the BJP, it will be too late for anybody else to do anything in the matter.
April 20, 2024
MODIGATE AND MODI FATIGUE-II
THE first phase of the Lok Sabha election is over. Experienced journalists from various states, interviewed on independent YouTube channels, have predicted that the I.N.D.I.A. Alliance will be winning 60-70 seats out of 102 that went to polls. There is a general agreement among all interviewed journalists that this time around, there is no “wave” in anybody’s favour. A few of them confirmed that Modi is drawing lesser crowd and that crowd shepherded to the rallies by BJP managers are not responsive. Those who did random checks with voters on the polling day found that voters were aware of the issues raised by Rahul Gandhi and other leaders of I.N.D.I.A. Alliance and that Modi-Shah and other senior leaders of the BJP avoided responding on those issues.
While Rahul Gandhi spoke about unemployment, rising inflation, galloping inequality, BJP’s corruption, electoral bonds, BJP’s culture of polarization and hatred, Modi & Shah are neither talking about these issues nor have they stated their positions on these in the BJP’s recently released manifesto.
There was a general consensus among the interviewed journalists that I.N.D.I.A. Alliance, inspite of all its failures, will maintain its lead over the NDA in all phases and that BJP may not cross the 200 mark. Dr Parakala Prabhakar, a well-known economist and political analyst (also the husband of India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman), feels Modi might not cross a figure of 230.
Rahul Gandhi put the figure at 180 at the Ramlila Maidan rally on March 31. In a recent press conference, he and Akhilesh Yadav held in UP, Rahul Gandhi observed that his latest feedback from across the country suggested that the BJP would not cross 150. Modi & Shah are, of course, sticking to their positions and repeating ad nauseam the figures of 370 and 400 plus.
The question “If not Modi, who?” often raised and casually discussed among self-professed intellectuals is irrelevant in a Parliamentary democracy, where the leader of the Legislative party is chosen by the party which wins a majority. The leader is then sworn in as the prime minister. Narendra Modi has subtly spread the idea that India should have a presidential form of government instead of a parliamentary democracy. That is the reason for the question “who after Modi” raised by confused minds.
During the last 77 years, India has had 14 prime ministers. Three of these viz Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi served the country as prime minister for a total of 37 years and the remaining 11, who included four from the Congress, served India for 40 years.
The I.N.D.I.A. Alliance has many capable youngsters who can take over as India’s Prime Minister. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, MK Stalin, Uddhav Thakray, Arvind Kejriwal, Akhilesh Yadav, Tejaswi Yadav, Derek O’Brien are among the relative youngsters who can be depended on to occupy the chair of the prime minister. Among the older people Mallikarjun Kharge, Mamata Banerjee or Sitaram Yechury can also fill the bill. Any of the above can be a better prime minister than Narendra Modi.
Narendra Modi is perhaps the best orator among India’s politicians. But for a country of India’s size and complexities, any of the above individuals can prove to be a better prime minister than Modi.
April 25, 2024
MODIGATE AND MODI FATIGUE-III
NARENDRA MODI is at it again. This is now his last resort. The no-holds-barred assault on communal peace and harmony has begun. He has dug out from the PMO archives a speech of Dr Manmohan Singh delivered in 2006 to the National Development Council. Dr Manmohan Singh, the then prime minister, spoke about the necessity for equitable distribution of our country’s national wealth among all sections of the society and emphasized that the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes, Backward class, the poor and minorities should receive their equitable share before others.
In an election rally in Rajasthan a few days back, Narendra Modi, without even batting an eyelid, deliberately distorted Dr Manmohan Singh’s words and told the public at the rally blatant lies that Dr Manmohan Singh wanted the country’s national wealth to be given first to Muslims. Modi also referred to Muslims as “illegal migrants” and “those who produce more children.”
Modi’s speech was nothing but a calculated and well-planned outburst against the Muslim community meant to spark off communal violence and polarize Hindu votes in favour of the BJP. Insighting communal trouble to polarize votes has been an old strategy of the BJP.
In the recent past, however, their promotion of “Hindutva” did not seem to have a strong anti-Muslim or anti-minority element. The euphoria in the weeks before the Pranpratishtha of the Ram temple in Ayodhya seems to have died down. Bhagwan Shri Ram seems to have disapproved of BJP’s efforts to politicize his name. The pre-poll survey by the Centre for the Study of Developing Society (CSDS) revealed that only 2% of the respondents thought Ram temple was an election issue and only 5% agreed that Hindutva was an election issue. Unemployment and inflation are major issues for 25% and 27% respondents, respectively.
The first phase of the Lok Sabha elections covering 102 constituencies confirmed the findings of the CSDS pre-poll survey. There is a consensus among independent journalists and commentators (excluding Godi media) that the I.N.D.I.A. Alliance will win between 60 and 80 seats out of the 102 that went to polls on april 19.
Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Chhattisgarh (BIMARU), considered strongholds of the BJP for Lok Sabha elections, saw a much lower turnout of voters as compared to 2019. The eight constituencies in UP saw 57% voting in the first phase in 2024 as against 59.21% for the whole state in 2019. 63.33% voters turned out in Madhya Pradesh in the first phase in 2024 as against 71.2% for the state as a whole in 2019.
50.95% voters voted in the first phase of polling in Rajasthan as against 66.34% for the state as a whole in 2019. Bihar saw the lowest turnout at 47.49% in the first phase as against 57.33% turnout for the state as a whole in 2019. Chhattisgarh saw a voter turnout of 63.41% in the first phase in 2024 as against 71.64% for the state as a whole in 2019. The low turnout in the first phase in BJP’s traditional strongholds is viewed as a harbinger of an impending defeat for the BJP, unless the turnout increases in the remaining six phases.
Akhilesh Yadav, an important leader of I.N.D.I.A. Alliance, warned the country that Modi & Shah had felt the winds of defeat blowing towards them and would go to any extent to wrest victory from I.N.D.I.A. Alliance. He observed that wrestlers become desperate when they face defeat and even bite their opponents. The victory of the BJP candidate in Surat after rejection of the nomination of the Congress candidate is the latest proof of the extent to which BJP can go to win this election.
The desperate attempt by Narendra Modi to incite communal violence may not succeed this time since both the Hindu and Muslim communities may have, by now, seen through BJP’s devious politics of hate and destruction. The Chandigarh mayor’s election sometime back and the unopposed election of the BJP candidate in Surat a few days back raise the question: what next?
Can WE, THE PEOPLE stop the wrestler who is about to bite the opponent?
