Saturday, July 18, 2009

Politics stoops to low level

Both BSP and Congress are beating the war drums against each other in the state. The recent ugly happenings at the Congress President Rita Bahuguna Joshi’s residence paint a picture of sorry state of affairs. It was noticeable when the mob led by ruling BSP MLA attacked Rita’s residence and set it on fire because of her alleged derogatory remarks against the BSP supremo and UP Chief minister Mayawati at a public meeting in Muradabad. The Mayawati government gives Rs 25 to 75 thousand to the rape victims belonging SC and ST. The rape is on rise and government is busy distributing money. If any one asks the UP CM if money can compensate the indignities suffered by the victims of rape, her answer will must be straight “No”. The money can not heal the wound in the heart of the rape victims. The accused of rape must be given deterrent punishment so that no one in society could dare commit this bestial act of rape. Bahuguna was addressing the public and as they were angry at the total failure of Mayawati government, she made anti-Mayawati comment. If she did wrong she must be punished. But it does not mean a mob of hoodlums under the leadership of a ruling party MLA should go and set her house on fire. There is law to take note of Rita’s derogatory remarks against Mayawati. The way UP police administration conducted reflects amply the dictatorial nature of the government.
Though the remarks by Rita Bahuguna against Mayawati was derogatory, the naked highhandedness of state police administration could be watched on TVs when in the presence of police personnel, Congress President’s residence in Lucknow was ransacked by the mob led by BSP MLA. Rita Bahuguna was also booked under ST/ST Act and she was taken into custody. The decorum and decency must be maintained in politics as well as public life. And at the same time power of the government must not be used against the opposition party leaders.
Undoubtedly, the law and order has broken down in the state and rape and murder have become a routine affair. Rape and molestation of SC/ ST women are the highest in Uttar Pradesh if the report of ST/SC Commission is to be believed. The people of Uttar Pradesh voted BSP to power in the state in great expectation of the all-round development. This is the fourth time that Mayawati was elected CM of UP. And this is also for the first time in the last 20 years that a single party rule was established in the state. BSP single-handedly won the majority in assembly elections. It had promised to the people of delivering a responsive administration but the BSP supremo Mayawati appears to have developed only excessive soft corner for installing her own statues at every Chowk at the expense of crores of rupees of the state exchequer. This is nothing but the squandering of public exchequer.
The resurgent Congress under the leadership of Party General Secretary and the future of the party Rahul Gandhi is beating the drum for the development of the state. Congress party has one-point agenda and that is of development in UP. The party sees complete revival in the coming assembly elections by capturing power in the state. If Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar is revived, it will have no problem in getting back its pre-eminent position in the coming days. The party leadership is trying its best to infuse life into its workers who felt as orphaned in the last 20 years in Hindi heartland of UP and Bihar. The remarkable recovery of the party in the just-concluded LS elections by winning the highest number of MPs (21) in UP shows that it has guts to rejuvenate the organization and restore its past glory. It has boosted up workers morale in the state. So it is a warning for Mayawati that if she continued to go after statue spree, she will no longer the only hope of SC/ST in the state. Congress is retrieving its lost ground and time is not far off when it will be able to replace Mayawati on the strength of its growing influence among its old vote banks of Brahmin, Muslim, SC/ST, Backward and downtrodden in the state.

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