It fills me with anxiety to live in a city ruled by AAP. In the last 10+ years, Delhi is one city that has improved every year as a city to reside in. To now leave it at the mercy of a bunch of street protestors is frightening. No harm in staying optimistic though. While my impression of Modi's governance has deteriorated substantially for now, one always thought he got the political art and science right. AAP had caught Delhi's imagination a year ago and had equally managed to lose its appeal with almost the same pace. A plethora of miscalculations by BJP have let them claw back in and actually emerge way stronger than 2013. This despite the BJP winning every single seat in the Parliament polls riding on massive resentment against Kejriwal's irresponsible antics.
The BJP had a very creditable Lok Sabha win and followed it through with a series of successful Legislative Assembly elections. The "Modi wave" certainly had a palpable impact but its effect was overestimated by the BJP leadership. The country was governed by the UPA for a decade. Maharashtra and Haryana were also governed by Congress led regimes for two terms or more. There was significant anti-incumbency that helped the BJP way more than merely the Modi wave. Modi was the instrument used to usher in the anti-incumbency message. He read way more into the message than he ought to have.
Last time round, the anti-incumbency vote in Delhi was against the Congress. By delaying elections till 9 months of their own rule, the disenchantment with Modi's "high oratory low delivery" model translated itself into an anti-BJP vote. Modi knows the short public memory better than most. The CWG scam has faded from public memory just the way 2002 riots have. To compound matters, they decided to air-drop a CM candidate with no political experience and thrust her on the soldiers. A cadre-based party does not take kindly to a last-minute import and the silent mutiny began . The strong personality of Modi and Amit Shah coupled with their reputation for mercilessness prevented a public rebellion. Surprisingly, the RSS remained a silent spectator and permitted Ms Bedi to be foisted and supported Modi's bid to stymie popular mass-leaders like Harsh Vardhan.
The Prime Minister of India is under incredible scrutiny. Every gesture or action is observed, scrutinised and dissected by all and sundry. The electorate across the country is watching the PM's publicised parleys with Sajjad Lone or even the "flexible" coalition being worked out with the PDP. Delhi voters do realise that elections were called for only when all attempts at horse-trading with AAP legislators failed. The people of Maharashtra would have made a silent note when the BJP colluded with the NCP to win a trust vote. A challenger can resort to dirty speeches. The PM taking cheap shots at opponents make him appear like a better dressed version of Kejriwal. If manipulation, mud-slinging and inconsistent values have to be the order of the day, the PM ought to maintain arms-length and leave the overt trench fighting to his satraps. It is never too late to attempt statesmanship.
The stern demeanour and overconfident body language of Modi help cultivate the strongman image that the country so desperately craved in its leader. Add to that an Amit Shah (with very similar traits) and its an amplified overdose of arrogance. In his PM hat, Modi allocates ministries at whim, replaces officers unceremoniously (including to Andamans) and runs his government like a monarchy. Amit Shah brings the same cocky approach to political machinations. Shah brazenly dismisses a core poll promise like "black money back in 100 days" as an "election stunt". This, on the eve of a high-profile election. Something has got to give. With the BJP increasingly operating like the Gandhi-family led Congress, how long before we see the first breakaway faction?
It will be unfair not to give Kejriwal credit for a brilliantly scripted campaign. Apart from creativity and punch, there was an element of unprecedented boldness in his approach that rattled everyone's cage. He is the only politician in the country who has Modi's combination of political vision, guile and earthy charisma.The battlelines were long drawn but the battle has just begun.
The BJP had a very creditable Lok Sabha win and followed it through with a series of successful Legislative Assembly elections. The "Modi wave" certainly had a palpable impact but its effect was overestimated by the BJP leadership. The country was governed by the UPA for a decade. Maharashtra and Haryana were also governed by Congress led regimes for two terms or more. There was significant anti-incumbency that helped the BJP way more than merely the Modi wave. Modi was the instrument used to usher in the anti-incumbency message. He read way more into the message than he ought to have.
Last time round, the anti-incumbency vote in Delhi was against the Congress. By delaying elections till 9 months of their own rule, the disenchantment with Modi's "high oratory low delivery" model translated itself into an anti-BJP vote. Modi knows the short public memory better than most. The CWG scam has faded from public memory just the way 2002 riots have. To compound matters, they decided to air-drop a CM candidate with no political experience and thrust her on the soldiers. A cadre-based party does not take kindly to a last-minute import and the silent mutiny began . The strong personality of Modi and Amit Shah coupled with their reputation for mercilessness prevented a public rebellion. Surprisingly, the RSS remained a silent spectator and permitted Ms Bedi to be foisted and supported Modi's bid to stymie popular mass-leaders like Harsh Vardhan.
The Prime Minister of India is under incredible scrutiny. Every gesture or action is observed, scrutinised and dissected by all and sundry. The electorate across the country is watching the PM's publicised parleys with Sajjad Lone or even the "flexible" coalition being worked out with the PDP. Delhi voters do realise that elections were called for only when all attempts at horse-trading with AAP legislators failed. The people of Maharashtra would have made a silent note when the BJP colluded with the NCP to win a trust vote. A challenger can resort to dirty speeches. The PM taking cheap shots at opponents make him appear like a better dressed version of Kejriwal. If manipulation, mud-slinging and inconsistent values have to be the order of the day, the PM ought to maintain arms-length and leave the overt trench fighting to his satraps. It is never too late to attempt statesmanship.
The stern demeanour and overconfident body language of Modi help cultivate the strongman image that the country so desperately craved in its leader. Add to that an Amit Shah (with very similar traits) and its an amplified overdose of arrogance. In his PM hat, Modi allocates ministries at whim, replaces officers unceremoniously (including to Andamans) and runs his government like a monarchy. Amit Shah brings the same cocky approach to political machinations. Shah brazenly dismisses a core poll promise like "black money back in 100 days" as an "election stunt". This, on the eve of a high-profile election. Something has got to give. With the BJP increasingly operating like the Gandhi-family led Congress, how long before we see the first breakaway faction?
It will be unfair not to give Kejriwal credit for a brilliantly scripted campaign. Apart from creativity and punch, there was an element of unprecedented boldness in his approach that rattled everyone's cage. He is the only politician in the country who has Modi's combination of political vision, guile and earthy charisma.The battlelines were long drawn but the battle has just begun.
