The recently concluded devil’s workshop of idle minds masquerading as custodians of secularism, democracy, economic policy and sundry other subjects has once again established beyond all reasonable doubt that the Leftists of India are a bunch of dreamers languishing in a world of their own.
After three days of deliberations, discussions, debates and what not, the antique party’s outdated leaders have come out with profound ideas and even more earth shaking discoveries. And that is that the third front is the only salvation for the country, that both communalism and liberalisation have to be fought and fighting the former- read BJP- is a top priority while the Congress which represents the other enemy, namely, liberalisation could always be reckoned with at a later stage. And after both the BJP and the Congress have been felled, the third front can take over and the countrymen can live happily ever after.
Such presumptuous blabber is the hallmark of the Indian Leftists and at times we are even tempted to take pity on them for their naivete. The aura of self-importance that hangs over them, their tendency to revel in theoretical quagmires even while ground realities tell a different tale and more importantly, their frequent metamorphosis from extreme rigidity to total flexibility have together made them and their claims sound as hollow as a decaying tree trunk.
They have now adopted a new line, which we should say is not very straight. On the contrary the party’s latest line which they hope will take them to power via the third front, is rather convoluted and is fraught with so many cuts and dead ends that it is doubtful if it will take them anywhere. They have now realised that their anti-Congressism has not helped them a wee bit and instead it is the BJP which has gained because of the weakening of the Congress.
As a corollary they have inferred that it is time to now join hands with the ‘secular’ Congress to demolish the ‘communal’ BJP. It does not need much of foresight to predict that probably five years from now another CPI-M conclave in some other city would realise and dutifully pass a resolution that it was a mistake to have joined hands with the ‘dynastic’ Congress, as they would have discovered that in their fight against the BJP it is the Congress which has grown and the Leftists remain where they are.
Possibly, even below because they would have then compromised with their only enemy in the only two states that they control now. But let us not break the news ourselves for they always prefer to learn it their own way, using their own fussy logic and taking their own sweet time. Till then they are entitled to their delusions and dreams.
The conclave has identified communalism as represented by the BJP and the Sangh Parivar as the biggest danger confronting the nation. We should now remind the amnesia-prone Leftists about who fuelled the growth of the BJP and who did business with them in the first place. A walk down memory lane to the forgettable times of that one-man-suicide squad called V.P.Singh would be in order, though those dark days are best not recalled.
That was when the aforementioned sole-something put up a brief darshan along with two diverse consorts, namely the ‘communal’ BJP and the ‘secular’ CPI-M, on either side. The leftists, conveniently, never bothered to look beyond ‘weepy’ Singh’s shoulders to the other side or probably the reds were colour blind to saffron.
In their meaningless pursuit of blind anti-Congressism, they were ready to align with anyone, be it Singh or Sangh. So, for eleven long, painful months the BJP and the Communists sailed on the same boat that was doomed to sink. However, the BJP never looked back after that first, brief brush with power, courtesy Leftists. If the paling reds now find the entire country getting saffronised, the first coat was most certainly painted by the Communists themselves.
The ruthless but practical Congress has promptly rebuffed the Left’s offer of support post haste because their leading lady is yet to make up her mind which in turn depends on the outcome of the power struggle inside that party. They are also aware of the Left’s proclivity, as frequently demonstrated by the bearded oracle answering to the name Surjeet, of getting uncomfortable when it comes to counting the economic chicken.
They know that it will not be long before the Left will once again shift their focus back from communalism to economic policy in some god forsaken conclave. In any case the Congressmen are not very socialistically inclined when it comes to sharing power and they would always prefer absolute control, addicted as they are to the benefits of office unchecked. They would rather tolerate a communal BJP managing the country than running it themselves with a few irksome comrades breathing down their neck.
The ‘bright’ idea of a third front is of course laughable and as suggested in these columns sometime back, is best consigned to the dustbin of history, which is already littered with the other two earlier fronts, namely, National and United.
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