Akalis Cong in Punjab

Akalis, Cong Finished In Punjab, People Fed Up With AAP: Capt

Exuding confidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will come to power in Punjab, former Chief Minister and BJP leader Captain Amarinder Singh say that Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Congress are finished in Punjab and the people of the state are fed up with Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in six months.

Last month, Singh had joined the BJP and merged his party Punjab Lok Congress (PLC) with BJP.
Speaking to ANI, “I am very happy ever since I joined BJP and I feel that now BJP will rule all over India and in coming times in Punjab also because there is neither a leader in Congress nor leadership.”

Talking about the situation of the Congress party, the former Punjab CM said that it is very difficult for the grand old party to come out of the present condition in which they are in, because the Gandhi family wants “yes man”, even in the party presidential elections.

Amarinder Singh had floated the PLC last year after quitting Congress following his unceremonious exit as chief minister.

In September last year, Amarinder Singh had resigned from Congress ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections.

He stitched an alliance with the BJP that already had made SAD (Sanyukt) as its ally.

Former Chief Minister further said that BJP will form govt both in Punjab and the Center.

“Akali Dal and Congress are finished in Punjab and people are fed up with Aam Aadmi Party, so now BJP will rule in Punjab and together we will bring BJP power in Punjab and at the Centre,” said Singh.

It is pertinent to mention that Amarinder Singh failed to win polls from his home turf of Patiala Urban in Assembly polls. His party also failed to win even a single seat in the state assembly polls.

In six months of the government of Bhagwant Mann, he said that the APP government in Punjab has failed in all ways.

“I have been in politics for more than 50 years but I have not yet seen a government like this which has brought its confidence motion within six months. This shows that nothing good is going on within the government and this government has failed in all ways,” he added.

Further slamming the AAP government over the law and order situation, the former CM said, “Law and order are the responsibility of the state government. The government needs to crack down on the issue of Khalistan. Khalistan slogans weren’t raised during my tenure as I took strict steps. According to the Constitution, the state government has the right to keep its province safe. They are not doing anything.”

Attacking Pakistan for making attempts to create unrest in Pakistan, Singh targeted Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for faltering in dispensing his duties.

“Pakistan is engaged in sending drones and efforts are being made to spread unrest in Punjab. The Chief Minister is not able to give as much time as he should. The duty of running the government here was of Bhagwant Mann but he is not doing it,” Singh said.

“This is the duty of the Punjab government, it is the duty of Bhagwant Mann as law and order is state subject,” Singh added.

On the question of making Governor by the government, Singh said he would follow what BJP will ask him to do but he will not contest elections.

“I have been in the army since the beginning, so if the BJP government of India tells me I am ready to fight, but now I will not contest elections,” he said.

He also expressed happiness over the closure of the Twitter handle of Pakistan by the Central Government and said that it should have been done earlier.

The Twitter account of the Pakistani government has been taken down in India. “Account Withheld. @GovtofPakistan’s account has been withheld in India in response to a legal demand,” a message in the page read.

“I want to congratulate the Government of India for this because Pakistan is always engaged in destabilizing India and Punjab,” he said.

Responding to his wife Preneet Kaur’s question, he said, “It is her wish that from which party she contests elections, but if she asks for my opinion, then I will advise her to fight from BJP.” (ANI)

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AAP MLA Mankotia

Former AAP MLA Mankotia From Udhampur Joins BJP

Days after being expelled by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Jammu, former Udhampur MLA Balwant Singh Mankotia joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the national capital on Thursday.

Last week on September 23, AAP terminated Mankotia from the party for anti-party activities.
“It has come to our knowledge that you are involved in anti-party activities, mainly engaging with other national and regional political parties in J-K, not engaging or participating in any of the party’s political activities and not performing any task given by the party for the last three months,” AAP election in-charge Harjot Singh Bains said in a letter to Mankotia.

As per the letter, Mankotia has also been charged with serious allegations of influencing AAP volunteers to join other parties and offering them positions in other parties and defaming the party on media platforms.

“The Legal Cell of Aam Aadmi Party is available to conduct the investigation at any point of moment, may collect the copies of publicly available social media posts or interviews & it may focus on any other such activity which ultimately defames the Patry causing harm to the reputation of the Party,” the letter reads.

“Aam Aadmi Party nevertheless is more vigilant about those who distract members/co-volunteers from getting their work done or who cause other volunteers to feel uncomfortable or involved in any other anti-party activity. All volunteers; members are expected to treat each other with respect, any discriminatory language or conduct will not be tolerated,” it said.

The letter further accused Mankotia of influencing AAP volunteers to join other parties and offering them positions in other parties and also defaming the party.

“Party has taken serious note of these issues (anti-party activities) and after investigation, you have been found guilty. Therefore, your basic membership with AAP standards terminated from September 23,” the letter stated. (ANI)

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BJP ECI SNATCH YADAV

BJP Using ECI To Snatch Yadav, Muslim Votes In UP: Akhilesh

Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with the help of the Election Commission machinery “snatched” away the power in Uttar Pradesh from Samajwadi Party because they are aware that without UP, they cannot remain in power at the Centre.

Elaborating further he accused the Election Commission of deliberately reducing the votes of ‘Muslim’ and ‘Yadav’ communities by 20,000 in almost every Vidhan sabha seat on the diktats of BJP and its aides.
“The Election Commission deliberately reduced the votes of Yadavs & Muslims by 20,000 in almost every Vidhan sabha seat on diktats of BJP & its aides. A probe can be conducted, it will be found that the names of many people were removed…,” SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said.

Akhilesh, who was elected as the National President of the Samajwadi Party at the party’s national conference for the third consecutive time, made a scathing attack on the BJP and said that a probe can be conducted on how the votes of Yadavs and Muslims have been reduced in almost every Vidhan sabha seat.

“This government is not made by people, even people don’t believe how they again formed the government. They and their machinery snatched away the government from the Samajwadi party because they knew if they lose power in UP they’ll lose power in Delhi,” Akhilesh said.

Attacking the BJP, Akhilesh Yadav said, “The Gujarat businessmen and industrialists have enjoyed the maximum loan waiver. Despite forming the government twice, the current government has only increased unemployment and poverty across the state.”

“Agni Veers were being recruited in Farrukhabad, lakhs of youth had come for recruitment, but the government has betrayed the country’s army. The youth were coming for Army recruitment because of poverty and unemployment,” he further said.

“This government is playing with the reservation system. Ever since they came to power, atrocities towards Azam Khan have been unstoppable. Even the officers have been instructed that they will only get promotions if they continue to do atrocities,” said Akhilesh Yadav.

The SP Chief further took a jibe at the free ration scheme of the BJP and called it an election gimmick.

“They have made ration free as elections are approaching in some states. They can make ration free but can’t provide stretcher or ambulance to poor people in villages while they give huge benefits to big businessman,” the SP Chief said.

Earlier on September 20, Samajwadi Party led by Akhilesh Yadav, held a protest march against the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government, highlighting issues in the state before the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the state legislature.

The Leader of Opposition (LoP) Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP government of stopping him and his party members from marching to the Vidhan Bhavan.

However, the BJP hit back at the protests and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prashad Maurya said that the march was not related to the benefit of the common people. (ANI)

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Bharatiya Janata Party National President JP Nadda

Nadda: Kerala Becoming Hotspot Of Terrorism

Bharatiya Janata Party president JP Nadda on Monday attacked the CPI-M-led Left government in Kerala, saying the state is “becoming a hotspot of terrorism and fringe elements” and “communal tensions are increasing”.

Nadda, who inaugurated BJP district office in Thycaud and addressed booth presidents and booth Incharges district level meeting in Kowdiar in the state, alleged that the Pinarayi Vijayan government was involved in corruption.
“The Kerala government is neck deep in corruption. When even the CM office of a state ends up under the ambit of corruption, what else could be more unfortunate about the governance therein? This is how the LDF government is ruining and destroying the state of Kerala,” he said.

“Kerala is becoming a hotspot of terrorism and fringe elements. Life is not safe, ordinary citizen not finding himself to be safe. Communal tensions are mounting. The tacit support to culprits by the left govt is nothing but state-sponsored lawlessness,” he added.

Nadda said BJP is a structured, cadre-based party that is consistent in its ideology and has a mass following.

He said PM Modi is leaving no stone unturned to uplift each section of society.

“We are lucky to be a part of the BJP as we are the only political party with an ideology which started with Jana Sangh in 1950. The implementation of our ideology is reflected by the fact on our stance on Article 370. Our national commitments is undeterred but the aspiration of regional people are never ignored. We are not just a political party, but a party living on the principles of humanity and social service,” he said.

He said the BJP government has always been pro-poor, taking care of the marginalized in every way possible. “To save people from hunger during the pandemic, PM Modi started PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana under which 5 kg of wheat/rice and 1 kg of pulses were provided to every eligible person.”

“It is a proactive and pro-responsive government and an example of the same is the rescue during the Ukraine war. Thousands of Indian students were trapped in the conflict zone and were brought back safely to their homes.”

He said the new party office is an infrastructure and in this hardware, “you need to put software”. “Our karyakartas are software. You need to use this office as Sanskar kendra. Through this office, you need to give sanskar to the karyakartas”.

He alleged Kerala is entering into a debt trap.

“The financial discipline isn’t being maintained due to the policies of LDF government. This government is synonymous with corruption, and I am sorry to say that CM office is also involved in it.

Not only corruption, but there is nepotism in university appointments as people close to CM are being placed. The powers of Lokayukta are being diluted for protecting the CM office which is involved in corruption.”

In order to give boost to connectivity in the state, a significant amount of finance is being infused for strengthening the network of National Highways in Kerala, Nadda said.

“As BJP is the largest political party, we think on all parameters- the Size, Scale and Skill of the party. We have to be well-equipped and enlightened about what can be done in the best of our capacities- for humanity, for the society, and for the people of Kerala,” he said. (ANI)

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Three Quick Takeaways From Assembly Poll Results

If you distil down the results of the five states that held assembly elections recently, there are three conclusions that could describe them best. These three facts are what will shape the future of politics and governance in India. The same three conclusions will also impact the future of three political parties.

First, it is the unabated surge of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Winning Uttar Pradesh decisively by getting 255 of the 403 seats and, thus, retaining India’s most populous state does two things. It underlines how strong the party is in the northern belt, which in turn could be a pointer to its fortunes when parliamentary elections are held in 2024. It also silences critics who thought that the stock of UP’s hardliner chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, was falling. Already speculation has begun on whether Adityanath, 49, could succeed Narendra Modi, 71, as Prime Minister in the coming years.

There was a time before 2014 that many people ruled out that Modi (whose tenure as chief minister of Gujarat was controversial) could become India’s Prime Minister. As it happened, the doubters were put paid and Modi’s popularity continues to soar. Could Adityanath be waiting in the wings to succeed him? In Indian politics, as they say, anything can happen.

The second conclusion is the spectacular surge of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). There is possibly no precedent to what the party, led by Delhi’s chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, has pulled off by winning Punjab. No small regional party such as AAP has done that before. AAP won 92 of the 177 seats in Punjab, thereby reducing the traditional contenders — Shiromani Akali Dal, BJP, and Congress — to mere also rans. This has many ramifications.

ALSO READ: Cong Leadership Will Never Learn: Capt

It establishes that small regional parties, if they play their strategies well, can expand to other regions outside their strongholds and can prove to be formidable opponents to bigger traditional parties in their own bastion. AAP’s victory in Punjab does just that but it also catapults the party and its leader Kejriwal to the central stage. AAP will now be a force to contend with and we ought not to be surprised if prominent leaders from parties such as the Congress leave to join the AAP.

The third and least surprising conclusion is the complete rout of the Congress party, a political organisation that once reigned supreme in the country. Indeed, looking at the party’s current state, it is difficult to believe that it had ever been so strong, powerful, and at the top of India’s political pack. In Uttar Pradesh, the Congress won just two seats of the 403; in Punjab it managed 18; in Goa 11 (the BJP won 20) of the 40; in Uttarakhand 19 (BJP won 47) out of 70; and in Manipur it got five (BJP won 32) of the 60 seats. The writing on the wall is clear.

The Congress, run by the Gandhi family, is facing a serious leadership crisis. This has not only meant that that the party is rudderless but it has continued to be dynastic — Rahul Gandhi, the reluctant heir to his mother and the party’s current head, Sonia Gandhi, has proved himself to be a failure several times over and yet the party’s leaders do not try to infuse new blood or revamp the way the party is run. By the time 2024 rolls in and the Lok Sabha elections are held, the Congress could get diminished even further. Its fate in the recent five-state assembly polls shows that clearly.

Not Vote For BJP This Time

‘I’m A BJP Supporter But Don’t Want Yogi To Be CM Again’

Rahul Jaiswal, 30, from Deoria in Uttar Pradesh, says he will not vote for BJP this time as Chief Minister Yogi promotes negativity among polity

I am an ardent supporter of Bharatiya Janata Party. If you follow Uttar Pradesh politics closely, my surname is enough for you to presume my political leaning. The entire Jaiswal community in the state forms the core BJP support base and my ideology is no different from the community. For as long as I can recall, I have been voting in favour of the BJP –Assembly elections, Lok Sabha elections, or local body elections.

But this time, I am not rooting for the party. Well, I am not voting for Yogi ji specifically. He’s the Chief Ministerial face of the BJP and if the party wins, he will be the in-charge of Uttar Pradesh again. I don’t support his brand of politics and way of governance.

Yogi is very short-sighted in his approach. His vision is myopic and devoid of any fruitful outcome. If you look at his major decisions in the past, you can see he has failed to provide a single positive result to the masses.

All those things which he is recognised with – bulldozer, police raj, and fake encounters – are related with destruction, negativity and profiling. Even his laws for the safety of cows couldn’t yield a positive outcome; the stray cattle have turned into a menace now.

I want to make it clear that I want all the things that Yogi ji proclaims to achieve. I want the land mafia raj to end. I want my state to be crime-free. I want cows to be protected. But, the way these targets have been sought to achieve by the chief minister has brought about more devastation than progress.

ALSO READ: The Monk Who Sold Hardline Hindutva

He brought the protection law for cows and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for this. But I want to know where are sheds for abandoned cows! I want to know why this state still has one of the highest crime rates in the country! After killing criminals, why are police now targeting innocent people? We saw what happened in Gorakhpur when police killed an innocent businessman and labeled him a criminal.

The state has become a laughing stock nationally. All those grievances which we had against other parties in the UP are now laid at the doors of the BJP. It has acquired all the shortcomings of other parties and is no different from them any longer. Probably, Yogi ji thinks that his voter base doesn’t see or hear things and is blinded by the love for the party.

I don’t know whether the situation in Uttar Pradesh will improve if Samajwadi Party comes to power. Currently, I am looking at the present and the scenario looks bleak. I think UP needs change for now. No political party or leader should feel complacent. Political leaders must know that the ultimate power rests in the hands of us the people.

As told to Md Tausif Alam

Narendra modi and Yogi Adityanath

Bad News Awaits Yogi In Uttar Pradesh

As the dance of democracy rolls on in Uttar Pradesh, it seems bad news has come to stay for the BJP, even as the assembly polls in the spring of 2022 might signal symbolic signs of which way the wind might blow in the Lok Sabha elections in 2024. Indeed, for both Yogi Adityanath and Narendra Modi, the writing on the wall is loud and clear, and, surely, achche din seem nowhere in sight for them, or the BJP.

The seasoned journalists who were predicting only a depletion of 100 seats for the BJP, have now come down to 150. Apparently, certain bureaucrats in the state are calling up Akhilesh Yadav, sensing the mood on the ground. A district magistrate in Western UP, reportedly, refused to order a repoll in certain booths in a constituency despite the ardent pleas of a BJP heavyweight. These are all markers blowing in the wind, like the chronicle of a tale foretold.

While his father remains entrenched in the Union cabinet, despite the angst and anger of the farmers, the release on bail of the principle accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri murder case, with crackers etc to welcome him, has sent waves of disgust and dismay across the rural landscape in the area. Modi’s rally out here therefore might not change the simmering mood on the ground.

Besides, old memories have come to haunt the BJP. The burning pyre of a young Dalit girl in Hathras, with the UP police barricading the site, is etched in the mind of the locals, especially the Dalits. She was brutally assaulted and raped, and her family was not allowed to be part of the funeral of their own daughter. The media was not allowed to report, and, opposition leaders like Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi were stopped at the Delhi-UP border. With massive protests and nation-wide outrage spreading all across, the Yogi regime was compelled to allow the media and politicians access to the mourning family.

Now, Dalits in and around Hathras, are determined to teach Yogi a lesson. Not only here, with Mayawati having disappeared from the scene, Dalits across UP are unhappy with the BJP. In Western UP, anyway, Dalits have consolidated themselves with their Jat and Muslim brothers, in the formidable SP-RLD electoral alliance. The BJP leaders are not even able to visit their own constituencies, or else they have to face the wrath of the farmers. The confluence of Har Har Mahadev and Allah-u-Akbar at the massive Muzaffarnagar rally in the recent past, has all but eliminated the Hindutva card. Polarisation and hate politics just cannot work in Western UP anymore.

There is a noticeable paradigm shift in terms of the dominant BJP narrative in UP. Gone is the belligerent aggression and the strident Hindutva overdrive. The divisive discourse is all but over because communal politics is just not selling anymore in the Hindi heartland.

People have long memories. Bad, sad, bitter memories have a long shelf life. The toxic taste of demonetisation and GST lingers in the back-lanes like ghost stories. The ravaged economic lives of the small-scale industry and petty traders stalk the by-lanes. There is mass unemployment and the economy has gone for a toss. People want development, a better life, food to eat, health and education, jobs for the young. Surely, they don’t want hate politics.

Poor people are not able to have two square meals a day. Poor mothers are eating one meal a day. Women seem to have disappeared from the unorganised work force. The pandemic and lockdown has taken its toll on the poor.

ALSO READ: ‘Why I Don’t Want Yogi To Be CM Again’

The Khatik community of Banda district in Bundelkhand, who backed the BJP in the past, are now terribly disappointed. Poor Khatiks who pick up sand since eternity, for a living, have to spend Rs 200 per day to feed their donkeys. From where will they get this kind of money? ‘‘Badlaav hoga,’’ (there will be change), said a woman to Chal Chitra Abhiyan, an independent news channel run by locals in Western UP.

In the village of Utarva in Banda, according to the news channel, Dalits want jobs. Doors have locks in this village because there is mass migration in search of livelihood. The nomadic community here, who voted for the BJP last time, will not toe the line anymore.

Talking of sand, the memories of the dead buried on the sandy shores of the Ganga, along with scores of dead bodies floating in the river, during the deadly Delta wave in the summer of 2021, haunts the people. People remember the dead cremated in public spaces and the hoardings put up hurriedly in Lucknow by the UP government to block photographers and journalists.

Plus, the memories of the anti-CAA protests have come back. The Supreme Court has recently ordered that the UP government should refund the damages worth crores recovered from the persons accused of destroying public property during the peaceful protests. Several activists, including women, were trapped in false cases.

Besides, the Brahmins, who can sense power from a distance, are waiting and watching. They will certainly vote for the winning alliance. In any case, bereft of political and bureaucratic power, they have been deeply disturbed by the unilateral power enjoyed by the Thakurs under the Yogi dispensation. Across UP, from Lucknow and Varanasi to Saharanpur and Meerut, the disgruntled Brahmin community might mark a decisive shift against the BJP in these assembly polls.

Political observers believe that at least 35 per cent of the BJP support base will shift this time. The backward caste vote base has all but aligned with the SP. Combined with the formidable Yadav-Muslim alliance, this seems a win-win scenario for Akhilesh Yadav. That heavyweights like Swamy Prasad Maurya, a powerful backward caste leader, four times minister with a daughter as MP, has aligned with Akhilesh, is a sign of the times. Like those bureaucrats, he too has sensed the shifting mood on the ground.

The Muslim factor too is crucial. Earlier, sidelining the Muslims, not pitching a single Muslim candidate, and ground level polarization would consolidate the Hindutva votes across the Hindu community. Now no more. This will lead to the Muslim community uniting as one against the BJP. With the backward castes, a section of Dalits and Brahmins too joining the Yadav alliance, the BJP is on a sticky wicket.

The ban on hijab in the schools of Karnataka has shocked the nation. Even BJP supporters can’t understand why school girls with backpacks, chasing dreams, should be unnecessarily targeted. There are reports that there is deep resentment within the BJP, including among Union cabinet ministers, against the move. The ban, which seemed a symbolic sign to polarize in UP, seemed to have boomeranged.

With schoolgirls from the Hindu, Christian and other communities, holding hands with the Muslim schoolmates in hijab, marching in solidarity, hand to hand, a new wave of unity in diversity has brought cheer to the nation. And this is the cheer and optimism which will be blowing in the wind in the state of UP in the spring of 2022. Resurrecting the chronicle of a tale foretold in the summer of 2022.

A Better Leader than Akhilesh Yadav

‘Polarisation And Pandemic Will Dominate UP Elections’

Danial Faraz, 26, a lecturer in Uttar Pradesh, considers Yogi a better leader than Akhilesh Yadav and warns against hate-mongers like Waseem Rizvi (aka Jitendra N Tyagi)

What a time to be voting in! In the middle of the pandemic. The virus has kept everyone on their toes, and depending on the severity of the Omicron variant, the number of people attending political rallies can go up and down. Which is to say that the situation and its handling by leaders might play an important role in deciding which way the wind blows.

So we will have to take each month as it comes until elections are due in India’s most populous state. After the virus, it is polarisation that can sway the votes, and polarising people is something that BJP and its leaders know how to do really well. One would have thought that after the Ram Mandir Bhoomi Poojan in August 2019, there would be no more issues on which people could be polarised, but that is not the case. Polarisation continues and people give in.

If you were to ask me whose tenure I found better between Akhilesh Yadav & Yogi Adityanath as CM, as an individual, I would say Yogi Adityanath. Even though Akhilesh Yadav started the Laptop Distribution Scheme for the youth and the Dial 100 scheme, there were many things that were left to be desired.

ALSO READ: BJP Has Done Good Work In UP, But Polarised Society Too

The Muzaffarnagar riot took place under his watch and people were not brought to task. I feel Akhilesh Yadav has become greedy for power like many others and forgotten to carve his own separate way. There was a lot of biradariwad (nepotism). Yadavs were preferred over efficient people in the administration. I don’t know how his alliances with the smaller parties or independent candidates will work, but he needs to step up his presence.

Faraz considers Asaduddin Owaisi (right) a strong contestant in UP elections

Under Yogi Adityanath, the crime rate has definitely come down. If we don’t go into the means used to bring the crime rate down, then we can say that the lowering of crime rate has proved beneficial to many. One work of Yogi Adityanath government that I really like is the Scholarship Schemes for graduates where 60% marks is the set criteria for receiving aid and students have been receiving them consistently for the past 4.5 years.

I am not scared of living in UP, himmat se kam lena chahiye. Take life each day as it comes. I believe in the Indian Constitution and also believe that a good leader is one who teaches us the Constitution (as in our rights and duties) better.

I feel Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM) is the right leader. Many people think he is a polarising figure as well, but I don’t believe that to be true. Just because he takes care of the Muslim community doesn’t mean he doesn’t care for Hindus. There are Hindus in his party. If his party’s results in Bihar elections are anything to go by (a nearly 25% success rates) then he should be able to make headway in UP as well. Many people think he is an outsider and would not have an understanding of local issues, but I believe deep down our issues are more or less the same, given that we are all humans.

It is leaders like Waseem Rizvi aka Jitendra Narayan Singh Tyagi who do major harm to the whole political landscape. People like him are mere opportunists, ready to go to any length to remain relevant, and the youth needs to be especially weary of turncoat leaders.

I believe youngsters should give weight to the party leader, but also take note of what kind of work their local leader has done. One should give importance to individuals over party. Choose a leader who is good for you.

The Battle For Bengal Is The Election To Watch

Of the four states where there will soon be assembly elections in April-May, West Bengal’s will be the most keenly watched. It is the state where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is the biggest challenger to the incumbent All-India Trinamool Congress (AITC) government, which, led by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, is completing 10 years in power.

For several years, the eastern state has been a hard nut to crack for the BJP but in the last parliamentary polls, the party managed to win 18 member of parliament seats from Bengal, which was a feat considering that the party has traditionally managed to get no more than two MPs elected from the state. In the West Bengal assembly, the BJP currently has just 27 of the 294 seats (the AITC and its allies have 211).

The BJP’s formulaic approach to winning in the states – the party enjoys power in 18 of India’s 28 states – thus far has been a combination of caste and religion based politics. In the Hindi belt states as well as in the western states this has worked well. But in Bengal, caste politics and religious issues have mattered less in the past. That, however, could change. The Muslim population in Bengal has grown steadily and is estimated now at nearly 30% compared to the all-India proportion of a little more than 13%.

This has two implications. A larger proportion of Muslim voters has stood in the way of the Hindu nationalist-leaning BJP becoming popular in the state. But it has also created a sort of backlash among Hindu voters many of whom perceive Ms Banerjee’s government as being one that appeases the minority community. The BJP wants to turn that sort of backlash to an electoral advantage.

The BJP is also following a strategy that challenges Ms Banerjee’s government with charges of corruption, particularly against her nephew Abhisek Banerjee, who is an MP and a powerful member of her party. The party has also managed to chip away at the AITC by getting some of its prominent leaders such as former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi, former state ministers Subhendu Adhikary and Rajib Banerjee to defect to the BJP. Although these leaders have limited mass following in the state, their exits have triggered some dissension within Ms Banerjee’s party.

ALSO READ: It’s Bangla Trinamool Vs Outsider BJP

There are other factors that might help the BJP. A large part of the urban population comprising middle-class could be a bit restive about Ms Banerjee’s government, which despite promises has not really been effective in ensuring the state’s economic progress at a more rapid pace. The continuing impact of the pandemic has not helped either.

But yet, the AITC led by the feisty Ms Banerjee has many strong advantages in the state. For instance, the BJP really doesn’t have a credible face to project as its chief ministerial candidate for the state. Also, the backlash against Muslims may have grown but the fact remains that at in 100 of the 294 constituencies, Muslim voters will be the ones who will decide who wins. And the BJP is unlikely to get their favour.

The AITC has also employed the services of a poll strategist with a good track record – Prashant Kishor, who has worked with several Indian parties and leaders, including his efforts in Gujarat where he is believed to have played a key role in ensuring that Narendra Modi got a third term there as chief minister in 2011. The other niggling factor that might affect the BJP is the first ever formal seat-sharing arrangement in the state between the Congress and the Left parties. Both are not significant players anymore (both have just 46 seats between them) but an alliance could dent both, the AITC as well as the BJP’s fortunes in the elections.

The other states that will go to the polls are Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry. In Tamil Nadu it will be a repeat of the traditional battle between two regional parties, DMK and AIADMK. The BJP, which is likely to have an alliance with AIADMK (in power now), hopes to piggyback on that party if it manages to be re-elected. But early analyses show that DMK may have an edge this time. The Congress and Left parties in the state are allied with the DMK.

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In Kerala, the pattern has traditionally been one where every five years the fortunes swing between the Left and the Congress. In other words, the opposition gets elected to power. By that logic, the Congress-led alliance may come back to power, dislodging the Left alliance which forms the incumbent government. The Congress is hoping that the fact that Rahul Gandhi represents Wayanad (he was elected MP from that constituency in Kerala) will give it more of an edge.

Meanwhile, the BJP looks confident in being able to retain power in Assam but the Congress party there is focussing its strategy on opposing the National Registrar of Citizens and the Citizenship Amendment Act, two thorny issues that have divisive effects in the state. In Puducherry, a union territory, the Congress government has collapsed recently and although this has created uncertainties, it could well work to the advantage of a BJP-backed alliance if that can be formed.

But it is West Bengal that will steal the show during the state elections. The battle for Bengal could be one that is fought tooth and nail by both, Ms Banerjee who wants to come back for a third term; and the BJP, which wants to wrest control of a state that has always posed formidable challenges to it.

Are India’s Probing Agencies Becoming Political Puppets?

Last month the Jammu & Kashmir People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti said the Centre was “weaponising” central investigating agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), National Investigation Agency (NIA), and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) by using them to probe and harass her, her friends and family, and her party leaders. She scathingly remarked that the ruling regime, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was using these agencies as its “mistresses” to target her and her party.

Jammu and Kashmir is now administered as a Union Territory under the terms of Article 239A (which was initially applied to Puducherry is now also applicable to the Union Territory as per The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019) of the Constitution of India. Before that Act was passed, J&K was administered by a coalition government that was formed by an alliance of the PDP and the BJP. That alliance was ill-fated and in June 2018, it broke down, leading J&K back to Governor’s Rule.

Ms Mufti’s remarks alleging that the Centre is using the government’s investigation agencies to target the ruling regime’s political opponents is not an isolated one. This is not the first time that CBI, NIA, ED, and other central investigative agencies have been accused of being used politically by ruling regimes in India. The CBI is India’s premier investigating agency and functions as a national investigating and security organisation as well as an intelligence agency; the NIA acts as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency; and the ED is a law enforcement agency and economic intelligence agency that is responsible for enforcing economic laws and fighting economic crime in India.

Targeting political rivals or opposition leaders by using the services of such agencies is not new in India. Successive ruling regimes have been observed to have done it. However, the rising concerns are about the alleged spread of the practice since 2014 when the incumbent BJP-led coalition came to power at the Centre and, subsequently, was re-elected in 2019. The BJP’s clearly-stated objective is not only to make India emerge as a country “freed of the Congress” (Congress mukt Bharat, in Hindi) but also to wrest control in as many of the Indian states as it can. So, its political rivals include, not only a national party such as the Congress, but also several regional parties that hold sway in the states.

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The first of the apparently politically-motivated actions by investigating agencies during the BJP-ruled regime began early. Soon after the BJP-led coalition came to power in 2014, investigative agencies swung into action. There were raids at the Delhi chief minister (and vocal opponent of the BJP) Arvind Kejriwal’s office; and old cases against Uttar Pradesh’s Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party president Mayawati were revived. In 2019, just before the general elections, the CBI raided the Kolkata police commissioner’s office without a warrant in what was an action quite clearly directed at undermining the Trinamool Congress’ Mamata Banerjee who is the chief minister of West Bengal and also a huge critic of the ruling regime at the Centre.

The list of such political targeting by investigative agencies is long. In 2019, former Haryana chief minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, faced raids in connection to old cases of alleged corruption in land deals; Congress MP and political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, Ahmed Patel (who passed away in 2020) was linked to a money-laundering scheme in Gujarat; and the homes of leaders close to the Biju Janata Dal leader and Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik were raided before panchayat elections in that state. These are only a few examples of what Indian political parties, particularly those who oppose the BJP, call “political vendetta” against them. Last month, when the ED summoned a Shiv Sena leader’s wife in Mumbai for questioning in connection with a bank fraud, the party’s workers put up a banner in front of the city’s ED office, which proclaimed that it was a BJP office.

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It should not be anybody’s case the charges that are levelled by the investigating agencies against opposition politicians are rigged or false. Some (or perhaps, even all) of them may have some basis for investigation. But it is the concerted manner in which the agencies are used that is of concern because it smacks of government interference in the role of the agencies that are supposed to be autonomous and apolitical.

One of the most high-profile cases was the one involving former finance minister P Chidambaram in 2019. He was accused of being involved in the INX Media scandal. Chidambaram was charged with allowing an irregular transfer of overseas funds to the media company. Chidambaram was arrested and the CBI tried to extend his custody many times. But that case has now gone nowhere.

That is the other thing. Many of the cases on which investigative agencies have based their actions against opposition political leaders have either died down, reached a dead-end, or not been pursued after the initial raids, arrests, and so on. While that could reinforce the opposition parties’ allegations that the ruling regime is using the agencies for political vendetta, the more serious issue is about what such a practice could do to the reputation and autonomy of India’s central investigating agencies, which are, by law, meant to be non-partisan, apolitical, unbiased, and independent. If these institutions and their functioning are prone to political interference, not only will their functioning be eroded but Indians will lose their faith in the establishment and its ability to function without fear and favour.