For once the parliamentarians of the nation can boast of unity. They may differ on political ideologies and may not see eye to eye on economic policies. They would have no qualms about stalling the proceedings of the august body if their writ does not run and unhesitatingly enter into wordy duets at the slightest provocation which on several occasions have ended up in pandemonium and sometimes even fisticuffs. Neither would the strictures of the Speaker discipline them nor would the live coverage of the proceedings deter them from exhibiting their lung power as well as their muscle power.
But these political animals who represent a larger constituency of political animals who voted them too can be tamed and herded into a single lot and made to speak in one voice; much in contrast to the din of several voices that so frequently drown Parliaments and with it hopes of a workable democracy. There is a Mantra that can work this miracle and it is called ‘Elections’. Utter this one-word to our belligerent representatives and you will agree that the effect is devastating. This one word unwritten whip would make them fall in line, transcending even political affiliations. You can just watch these bloated giants shrink into tiny mosquitoes right in front of your eyes. Unnerved by the prospect of their term being cut short so soon, their furtive movements in the corridors of power are indicative of a deep sense of paranoia, as they gather in groups to discuss their fate. Party lines vanish, ideologies converge, friends and foes join hands and first timers and old timers come together as they all wrack their brains, for once, on how to enact their single point agenda: Avoiding elections!
This malaise that has gripped the country is now an epidemic with all political parties getting afflicted by it and reeling under the prospect. The mortal fear of facing the electorate with empty hands is enough to shake them to their foundations. Even parties which claimed immunity from its disease appear to have now changed their mind though each has its own reason
The BJP has by far been the most vociferous advocate of a mid-term poll. Their leaders have been predicting it ever since the last elections which made them the single largest party but failed to give an absolute mandate. They enjoy the dubious distinction of ruling the country for the shortest period after perhaps some moghul kings after Aurangazeb. Vajpayee’s short stint had to be aborted owing to his failure to put two and two together. But it is a different story now. The party has more than made up for its lapses in arithmetic thanks to UP’s Kalyan Singh who can not only add but also multiply his party’s strength through an easier route called defections. The once naive Vajpayees are no longer so. They openly talk about repeating UP at the Centre and have virtually issued an open tender for willing MPs. No doubt an effective panacea for those members in the grip of election fever.
The once bitten BJP is wiser now. It has told the President in no uncertain terms that it be consulted before any decision on polls is taken, a clear indication that it may have a go by staking its claim to form a government. The party also has a reason for its volte-face vis-a-vis elections. Having shed all moral pretensions the party now fears that it is too early to go to the people as the UP episode is still afresh in memory. The BJP has inadvertently pushed Kanshi and Mulayam, who are waiting for revenge, into the hands of the Congress, which could then become a formidable combination. The party also does not want to take a chance if Sonia were to enter the picture in the context of the Jain panel report. The group of first timers who called on the President in a bid to stave off elections were primarily inspired by the BJP, it is learnt.
The Congress is a house divided, with the hawks and doves fighting to have their way. After the initial bravado that prompted the party to serve an ultimatum to the UF to drop the DMK or perish, the Congress appears to have lost its steam. The party can neither go back on its demand nor can it risk a battle at the hustings with no commitment forthcoming from 10, Janpath, the Congress’s only hope. Two days after Gujral expressed his inability to comply with the demands, the party is still deliberating on what to do next. The Congressmen apparently are reluctant to go back to the people unless they are sure of Sonia spearheading the campaign, which they believe will make all the difference between victory and defeat.
The DMK and its chief have never been found wanting in loud talk. The Chief Minister has heroically announced that he would go to the people to prove that he and his party have been wronged by the Jain panel. He has not clarified whether it means an election to the State Assembly too. Also he does not seem to be aware of the fact that the group of first time MPs who met the President to prevail upon him to somehow avoid a snap poll, included two of his own party members. Of course the CM would say they did so on their own just as his blue-eyed journo Gopal walked into the jungles without telling him. These days few people feel the need to keep the CM updated.
It is all quiet on the TMC front. The ‘true’ Congress in Tamilnadu, is yet to even open its mouth on the fate at its relationship with its ally who has been indicted for allowing LTTE infiltration which eventually tied to Rajiv’s assassination. While the whole nation is burning with this issue, the party has decided to play a Nero, albeit in silence. But if the party were to defend the DMK, as its silence is likely to be interpreted, it would do so at its own peril and long-term detriment. It is perhaps the reason why the TMC has become taboo to the Congress, which till the other day was wooing it. With a discredited ally and an unlikely homecoming, the TMC no doubt finds itself in the wilderness. Little wonder that the party wishes to avoid elections.
The political parties’ and its members’ desire to save the nations the trouble of another expensive and alibi for their own of nerve. The people too, do not want an election, but for an entirely different reason what is the point in voting for the same lot which has perpetrated this mockery on them? But do they have a choice?
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