Why Politics Will Stay On The Boil

It's obvious to all that the Congress is overestimating its success and the BJP is underestimating people's message delivered through the ballot box, notes Sheela Bhatt.

Things are getting more and more political in New Delhi.

The quality of headline news has changed.

The people's fury over the NEET scam is an eyeopener for the Modi government and it forced Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to appear humble before lakhs of students.

The deaths of 121 people in the stampede in Hathras has evoked much stronger reactions and is keeping the Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh under huge pressure to take strident action against self-styled godman Bhole Baba and his managers.

Rahul Gandhi is a man in hurry, impatient to consolidate the gains in the Lok Sabha election.

He is running from Ahmedabad to Imphal to kickstart his tenure as Leader of the Opposition by presenting himself as the first among equals amongst all the leaders of the Opposition.

Meanwhile, the government, which is unsettled internally because the Bharatiya Janata Party has not earned a majority by itself, is trying hard to project that not much has changed on Raisina Hill and on the ground.

The results of UP have spoken volumes on what all has gone wrong in the past ten years.

But Narendra Modi has preferred to tread cautiously and hasn't changed his rajniti ki bhasha.

Many are surprised that Modi is not injecting a freshness to make people feel 'taaji hawa aayi hai' (a fresh wind is blowing) in his third term.

Modi is working with the same colleagues and it shows that the government is taking its own time to come to terms with a new political reality.

On other hand, Rahul Gandhi's graph is on an ascending order for sure, but he is creating many puzzles too on his way up.

He was at his confident best in his maiden speech in the Lok Sabha as the Leader of the Opposition.

However, on the issue of Hindutva politics what Rahul is doing may create a deep divide within the secular-liberal sections.

Those who oppose the BJP vehemently were taken back by Rahul's use of Lord Shiva to send across the message that the Hindu samaj is not the BJP-RSS' thekedaari (property).

This gesture is politically understandable, but it has its consequences too.

The BJP will get a strong reason to not put a full stop to the Hindutva debate at all.

The BJP has more staying power on Hindutva issues than any other party.

The Congress can't cross its secular Lakshman rekha to match the unabashed BJP's Hindutva challenge.

Under no circumstances would the people of India want competition between the Congress and BJP to capture Hindu votes in name of religion.

A larger section of youth disappointed with the BJP is not looking forward to Rahul to unveil Lord Shiva's poster each time he addresses public meetings.

In a nation of 1.4 billion people, at any given time, there are minimum 100 pockets of active discontent, minor mutinies and street protests. They speak against injustice and exploitation.

It's good politics for any Leader of Opposition to meet these victims of the system and identify with their pain. Rahul has been doing it for a decade.

But such visits are never an easy ride.

To project himself in sharp contrast to Modi, Rahul Gandhi visited Manipur for a third time since the state saw ethnic riots between the largely Christian tribal Kukis living in the hills and non-tribal Hindu Meiteis, the ethnic group native to Manipur residing in the plains.

The ethnic riots started in Manipur in May 2023. It was quite improper of Modi to not visit Manipur even once, but Rahul's visit explained us one of the dark realities of the state.

Governments in the past have failed to resolve the cultural and social crisis in Manipur where Meiteis feel insecure about preserving a thousand year-old rich culture including their language.

Meiteis are demanding scheduled tribe status, which has created a violent backlash in the villages of Manipur.

The Kukis fiercely oppose the Meitei demand and want more share in Manipur's economy monopolised by the Meiteis. They also want legal ownership of their land in the hills.

The current escalation in the disturbances has also been due to influx of Kukis from neighbouring Myanmar. This would disturb the demography and will be an additional burden on the local economy.

During his visits except praying for peace for the Manipuris Rahul was unable to speak a word on the political divide which has disturbed the peace in the state.

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, a Meitei himself, has been a total failure in dealing with the strife that helped the Congress win Manipur's two Lok Sabha seats, but Rahul is unable to take a stand on Manipur.

It was a telling moment when Rahul exhibited maturity and didn't respond to any questions from the media at a press conference. He kept silent because no national politician is in a position to take the side of the Kukis or Meiteis.

The first month after the results has given us ample proof that Indian politics will remain on the boil.

A lot will happen when the BJP and Congress change the gears of their current politics to contest the assembly elections in Haryana, Jharkhand and Maharashtra.

The Constitution, political cadres, candidates and caste issues will once again take centrestage.

What do all these actions and one-upmanship on the part of the two national parties tell us?

It's obvious to all that the Congress is overestimating its success and the BJP is underestimating the people's message delivered through the ballot box.

This column first appeared in Dainik Bhaskar.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com