No one supports emergency, but Indira Gandhi incomparable

Emergency means throttling of democracy, which no Indian likes. There is no taker for the emergency in democracy. India is a democratic country. So, every Indian is opposed even to the idea of the emergency. Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed emergency 43 years back when she failed to control the situation prevailing those days. Press was put under censorship. Almost all leading opposition leaders were put behind bars. Editors, reporters and journalists who refused to fall in line were also put behind bars. Indira Gandhi government imposed emergency to bring discipline in all walks of life. Everywhere there was anarchic situation at that time. All had their own ways. Indira Gandhi was under attack from all corners- legislative, judiciary and the press. All these things necessitated emergency. But for imposing emergency in the country, she cannot be compared with Hitler, who was by birth dictator. He had got training in dictatorship while Indira Gandhi was a born democrat. Imposition of emergency was an aberration in her political life which she realized later. After two years of emergency, she lifted it and dissolved the Lok Sabha. Lok Sabha elections were held and the Congress was punished by the people of the country. Not only Congress party lost elections but Indira Gandhi herself and her son Sanjay Gandhi were also badly defeated. She and her party were thrown out of power. The entire nation realized after it that the people would not tolerate anything against democracy. Had Indira Gandhi followed German dictator Hitler, the people of this very country would not vote back her to power with a two-third majority. Hitler had no relation with democracy while Indira was by birth democrat and she lived all her life in democracy. So, it is totally unwarranted and unnecessary to equate her with Hitler. Indira Gandhi was one of the best Prime Ministers the nation has ever witnessed. She was an iron-willed lady. She was decisive and sacrificed her life for the unity and integrity of the nation. So, equating her with Hitler reflects the narrow-minded thinking of her opponents. She undoubtedly did wrong by imposing emergency for which she was punished by the people. The people of the nation also gave the slogan - Aadhi Roti Khaenge Indira ko Layenge. This shows her charismatic personality and connection with the people of the country. She loved the people, especially the poor and the week most. One mistake by her does not wash all her precious contribution to building the nation. Only the political opponent can equate her with Hitler. She committed blunder so was she punished in that proportion by the people of the country. Equating her with Hitler only because she imposed emergency in the country is not justified. She was incomparable.

Cong indispensable for third or federal front

Rallying behind Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to support him in his protest against the highhandedness of Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on the order from NDA govt. at the Centre by all opposition parties except Congress makes no meaning. The ruling AAP is Congress' immediate rival and the former came to power by throwing out the later in Delhi. Congress considers APP as its immediate adversary and when it is improving its fortune in Delhi as the recent survey done by the party under the supervision of the professional psephologist is anything to go by, how can it support Delhi CM in the name of opposing Prime Minister Narendra Modi? Congress blames both PM Modi and CM Kejri for the mess in Delhi. On the one hand, Delhi is becoming unlivable on account of rising pollution and severe water crisis and the CM and his Cabinet colleague have been sitting -in protest at L-G House for more than a week on the other. This is nothing but the dharna politics of Kejriwal to infuse confidence and fighting spirit into his party cadres and workers in view of the coming elections. In Delhi only three parties- AAP, BJP and Congress – matter in Delhi. All other parties have negligible presence. In the given situation the support of four CMs of four different states to CM Kejriwal makes no meaning. Congress has ruled Delhi for 15 years. It made a great contribution to Delhi. Former Congress Chief Minister of Delhi Sheila Dikshit is solely responsible for the all-round development made during her time. She had been the CM of Delhi for 15 years in a row. All credits go to her. Now, Delhiites remember her contribution to the development of Delhi. The Congress workers and leaders of Delhi are dead against any sort of alliance with Aam Aadmi Party in the coming elections. Kejriwal government is performing almost nothing. Except, waiving electricity and water bill with a rider that the people cannot consume more than the fixed limit to avail waiver, Kejriwal govt. has done nothing for Delhiites. So, it is futile to say that Congress has lost the opportunity of building up a front of opposition parties against the BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Whether it is third front or federal front, it cannot succeed in its mission unless and until the Congress party supports it even after the Lok Sabha election result in 2019. No opposition party leader can dream of becoming the PM without the support of Congress. Congress party may be down, but it cannot be out. It is the oldest political party, which ruled most of time after independence. It has a presence in every nook and corner of the country. Presently, Congress is in opposition to BJP in most of the state. The states like MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh are going to polls by the end of the year. Congress party is the main opposition there. All the four CMs who showed solidarity with Kejriwal by visiting his residence and meeting his wife and family have no political significance in terms of votes. They are paper leaders in these three states and in Delhi. So, Congress is indispensable for the opposition parties to challenge PM Modi in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Voice of moderation silenced

The dastardly killing of Sujat Bukhari, the editor of the English daily Rising Kashmir is a big blow to the peace process in the Valley. There has been an all-round condemnation of the killing of Sujat Bukhari. The militants are always on to derail any move of peace. The killing of the senior journalist clearly reflects anyone who shows sanity may be killed by the militants in the Valley. What is the intelligence agency doing in the state when the murder of this magnitude takes place? This also shows the laxity in security on the part of the state govt. The brutal murder Sujat Bukhari must be thoroughly probed and a ceasefire must not be extended any more at any cost. Sujat's death sends signal among the army jawans to be prepared to face any threat. The time has come in Jammu and Kashmir to act against the militancy decisively. The entire Valley is stunned at his death. First, it is nothing but the sheer foolishness and shortsightedness that the Centre experimented the move in regard to Jammu and Kashmir which had already been done in the past and proved to be a total failure. Former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee had also announced the unilateral ceasefire in Kashmir during the holy month of Ramazan about 15 years back. But what result came out of it. There was a spurt in militant violence. Prime Minister Narendra Modi must have kept in mind the decision of the previous govt. in this matter before giving nod to announce the unilateral ceasefire. Sujat Bukhari was the voice of moderation among the people of the trouble-torn state of Jammu and Kashmir. As he was fiercely independent in raising the voice on the ground, he had welcomed the govt.move of the unilateral ceasefire. He was killed brutally when the ceasefire was to end in only two days and a move was in place to extend it. It is not only he but also his Personal Security officer and a soldier was also killed. It is after almost a decade that the militants have opened fire on the journalist like Sujat Bukhari to silence the voice of peace and amity. Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was the prime mover for the declaration of a ceasefire during Ramadan and the Amarnath Yatra. As PDP-BJP alliance government is there in Jammu and Kashmir, it was natural for the Modi govt. at the Centre to acquiesce to her demand of ceasefire. BJP and PSD are the two poles apart ideologically. One is the North Pole and the other is the South Pole. So, the question of meeting there in reality on the ground is out of the question. PDP is considered to be soft towards militant while the BJP is known for its hard-line against them. But when the politics is played in every area, anything can happen. It is the lust of power that pushed BJP to go into the lap of PDP. Every action of PDP clearly indicates to be guiding the BJP on the issue of Kashmir. It clearly appears that BJP is not ready to discuss the issue Kashmir seriously. Prime Minister Narendra Modi must take a decisive step in Jammu and Kashmir to break the backbone of terrorism.

Sena’s position is of big brother

Now it is turn for Shiv Sena in Maharashtra after JD(U) in Bihar to say to BJP that it is its big brother. Shiv Sena has said that it is the big brother of BJP in the state. Under the programme Sampark for Samarthan, BJP President Amit Shah met Shiv Sena Supremo Udhav Thackery at his Matoshree residence to mollify his ruffled feather. But Shiv Sena as stated earlier has again reiterated that it will go solo in all the coming elections. The resolution to this effect was already passed by Shiv Sena’s Executive Committee. So, nothing fruitful came out of Shah and Udhav meeting. Shiv thinks that the BJP is hijacking its vote bank. So, it is better for the party to go it alone in the coming Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra. Its expansion is also within the state of Maharashtra. Shiv Sena is the oldest ally of BJP. It aligned with BJP in 1989 and they formed govt. in Maharshtra together in 1995. Earlier, Shiv Sena was in big brother role with BJP in the state. But after 2014 Lok Sabha elections, it lost its space to BJP which emerged bigger in the state. Consequently, both fought the assembly elections separately and BJP emerged as the single largest party. Shiv Sena had to agree to strike post poll alliance with BJP. With BJP’s Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP -Sena govt. was formed in the state. Shiv Sena participated in the govt in state and at the Centre, which is also led by BJP. But despite being in the state and at Central govt., Shiv Sena continued to publicly denounce both the govts. of the BJP. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were attacked by the Shive Sena whenever the need arose. Shiv Sena in Maharashtra and JD(U) in Bihar have understood that without their alliance, the BJP cannot win elections in these two states. Both consider themselves as dominant partners in Maharashtra and Bihar respectively. Samapark for Samarthan Programme was launched by BJP president Amit Shah after the party’s recent defeat in Kairana Lok Sabha by-elections. Opposition is uniting against the BJP and getting success in defeating it on the one hand and BJP’s allies are putting pressure on it to accept their demands on the other. Shah is knocking the door of one ally after another to assuage its hurt feeling, but getting no success. One formidable ally Andhra Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu has already left the NDA because of its differences with BJP. From the very beginning, BJP has not been treating its allies on equal footing. It established itself as their big brother but when the Lok Sabha elections came near and it started losing one by-poll after another at the hands of the united opposition, it has launched Sampark for Samarthan. But now the time has changed. It is no longer 2014. It is 2018. So, the BJP has realized that it has to be the second fiddle to its allies like JD(U) and Shiv Sena in Bihar and Maharashtra respectively.

BJP under pressure from allies

After experiencing the might of united opposition in one by poll after another and the formation of JD(S)-Congress coalition govt. in Karnataka with HD Kumaraswamy as Chief Minister, BJP has gone all out to reach to its allies. If the electoral arithmetic is to be believed, a united opposition will certainly give the BJP a tough challenge in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Bihar is going to be the most problematic state for BJP from the point of view of seat adjustments with its allies in Lok Sabha elections. JD(U) had fought with BJP in 2009 and it had contested on 25 seats and BJP on 15 Lok Sabha seats. In 2014, JD(U) was not with BJP. BJP had fought on 30 seats and won 22 in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. In the coming Lok Sabha elections in 2019, JD (U) has also again become the part of NDA. Other than JD (U), BJP along with LJP of Ramvilash Paswan and RLSP of Upendra Kushawaha is in NDA. JD(U) is the largest constituent of NDA and its leader Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is its face in Bihar. JD(U) itself says that it is the big brother of BJP in Bihar. Most of the senior BJP leaders in Bihar appear to have accepted that JD (U) is their big brother. In the given political scenario in the state, seat sharing formula for the Lok Sabha elections among BJP, JD(U), LJP and RLSP is going to be very tough. JD(U) claims the lion's share of not fewer than it had fought in 2009 with the BJP while LJP is not ready to accept less than the 7 Lok Sabha seats and RLSP had fought on 3 seats in 2014 and won all. It had hundred per cent strike rate. So, question of fewer than 3 seats doesn't arise as far as its claim is concerned. All the allies of BJP have understood that it cannot win on its own in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It has to be dependent on them as it is not 2014. There has been sharp decline in BJP's popularity among the people. Four years of Modi govt. has not shown any notable development in any field in the country. The people have come to know that it also only believes in tall talking. That is why BJP has come under the pressure of allies like JD (U) in Bihar and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra. Under its outreach programme, BJP President Amit Shah is meeting celebrities, luminaries and political leaders for support in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He is meeting today famous Bollywood actor Madhuri Dixit and Shiv Sena boss Udhav Thackeray. But Shiv Sena has already reiterated its posture of going alone in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Shiv Sena is the oldest ally of BJP and it has also been its natural ally. BJP President is going to Matoshree to meet Udhav but no change of mind is expected towards him. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu has already gone out of NDA due to its difference with BJP. So, the party has come under severe pressure from all sides. It appears that BJP too realizes that much water has flown down the Ganges. It is not 2014 and LJP has rightly said that BJP cannot win 2019 Lok Sabha elections on its own.

Adversary to turn follower

Enemy’s enemy is a friend. This is about to be applied to Congress and AAP. The political circle is rife with the news that AAP and Congress have been trying to sew up an alliance in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab to defeat BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It is virtually the social media news and Delhi Congress boss Ajay Maken and AAP National spokesperson Dilip Pandey has exchanged views regarding the alliance on Twitter. Congress says that the initiative for the alliance was taken by AAP because of its weakening position in Delhi after the Municipal elections while APP says that feelers were sent by Congress for striking an alliance to defeat BJP. In the current political scenario, APP has started losing its sheen in Delhi. AAP came to power after throwing out the Congress govt. of Sheila Dikshit. Congress was the main target of attack during the Anna agitation in which AAP Convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal had played a pivotal role in defaming Congress and thereby giving adequate space to BJP to flourish. The disinformation campaign launched against the Manmohan Singh govt. by AAP caused the worst-ever defeat of the Congress party in Delhi. The defeat of the BJP is certain if Congress and AAP aligned to fight it. But the Congress must think that it is a national political party and it does not behove of it to always play the second fiddle. One thing is also clear that AAP is no longer in its prime. Its popularity has gown down considerably as it has done nothing any different from the Sheila Dikshit govt. Most of the Delhiites now feel that they are missing her govt. Shiela Dikshit govt. was result and development oriented one. Delhi stands still where she left it. In addition to that, there has been an upswing in the popularity of Congress party among Delhiites. AAP has lost its mass appeal in Delhi. Congress leader and workers in Delhi are opposed to any kind of alliance with AAP. AAP is on a weak wicket. Congress party has the ability to defeat PM Modi if the poll is held free and fair. Though ideologically both AAP and Congress enjoy the same alliance, it is difficult to sew coalition on the ground. Congress is going from strength in Delhi while AAP support base is dwindling. Apart from all this, AAP may prove to be the most undependable Dilip Pandey claims that the Congress had got in touch with them for a coalition ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. Maken, however, said they were some discussions but the Delhi unit was not in favour of it. Rumours of AAP’s possible tie-up with the Congress were rife in political circles after the AAP appointed five Lok Sabha in-charges for parliamentary constituencies of Delhi. The appointments were made only on five out of seven constituency seats in Delhi while leaving two seats vacant as of now. These gave rise to speculation that these two seats could have been left for the Congress. Congress must think twice before tying up with AAP, which has been its adversary since its birth. AAP has borne on anti-Congress thought and principle. It is not sworn into any ideology that goes against the BJP in principle. It has also been instrumental in the meteoric rise of BJP in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. So, any patch-up of Congress with AAP in Delhi will be its suicidal.

Is PM Modi magic waning?

If the by-poll results of four Lok Sabha and 11 assembly constituencies are anything to go by, the magic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the people appears clearly to be waning. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had led the BJP to a massive victory in 2014 Lok Sabha elections single-handedly. But in the last four years of his regime, people have fed up with his Man Ki Baat and tall talks. He never did the 'Kam Ki Baat. Fuel prices continued to go up; unemployment rate went up and prices of all essential commodities sky-rocketing without any check. BJP-led NDA Govt. at the Centre has completely failed to take notice them. In addition to that, they failed to deliver on the promises made to the people during 2014 Lok Sabha elections that if voted to power, they would bring back black money stashed in foreign banks, generate two Crore employment per year and deposit Rs. 15 lakh with each and every bank account. This has caused disillusionment among the people steadily. Undoubtedly, PM Modi is the single most popular leader of the country. But at the same time as far as the by-poll results are concerned, it has become crystal clear that he is no longer invincible. It has also become clear that a united opposition can defeat BJP convincingly in the coming Lok Sabha elections. It is a simple formula that when the former Prime Minister and the most popular leader late Indira Gandhi could be defeated by the united opposition, what to talk of others. The by-poll result has clearly shown that if the opposition parties rise above personal political interest and unite to defeat the arch-rival ruling BJP, it can be easily possible. The people of this country are very wise. They know everything. A leader can sway them by his pep talk once, but not always. People vote with a hope and trust that such and such leader would work for their betterment. They never vote for only tall talking. It is not only PM Modi but all the BJP leaders always attack only Congress party and talk about their wrongdoings. The sum and substance of their speech are only to criticize the Congress. People understand which party did what for the country. Congress failed to improve the lives of the people when it was in power from 2004 to 2014. So, they voted BJP to power. They did not vote for it only to criticize the previous Congress govt. They have already punished it. They voted you to work. Neither any industry nor any foreign investment of substance ever came to India in the last four years. BJP has only attacked Congress and tried to create division in society. The by-poll result of Kairana Lok Sabha constituency has given a heavy blow to both Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and PM Modi. PM Modi may not have held any rally in Kairana by poll but he staged a road show in the nearby during the inauguration of 9 KM road adjacent to Bagpat with the sole political motive to influence it but failed miserably. Before the Kairana by-poll, BJP has already lost by-poll in Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha constituencies. It is an important issue as these two constituencies were represented by CM and Deputy CM of UP respectively. As Opposition SP, BSP gave a united fight; they defeated BJP candidates very easily. As far as the policy of Congress is concerned, it has given the clear signal from Karnataka that it has no reservation in playing the second fiddle to defeat the BJP at any cost. So, these by poll results have shown that BJP is no longer invincible. The united opposition can defeat it in 2019.