Opposition Politics: Multiple Challenges
By: Amit Bhushan Date: 12th April, 2019
The low voter turnout conundrum will haunt the opposition a bit more than the ruling party. And therefore some introspection and course correction may be needed. The lower trunout is an indicator that job-less are not enamored by the present ‘opposition’ in the respective ‘states’. This is also true for those states where the present ruling party is in the role of the opposition. And the same may be true about the farmers who may simply be letting the ‘fate’ be responsible for their woes rather than holding the system and rulers accountable. Basically in the ‘opposition’ saga one can hear a lot of noise around the failures of the government, but not one word on the policy steps to make a ‘difference’. This is even when the ‘social media’ challenges them with ‘muddas’ like ‘Bujhailo - ki Naahi’ and about bank/other defaulters etc. Sections in commercial news media have been more forthcoming on ‘electoral transparency’ in these elections wherein they highlighted ‘operational failures and (continuance of) mismanagement’ on social fronts like education/skilling, healthcare, water and other challenges. Then of course we have rather very limited results on key slogans around ‘Make in India’, ‘Skill India’ etc. with continued political belief that ‘Ram would save the day’ for the politicos or else the ‘Jaati (mix with minority) trumpcard is always around the corner, almost never failing at this’. This is so even though ‘Prophecy of the Game’ regards Third Flush was out near five years back.
One is unable to sense a competition in ‘Job creation’ in polity, even if there is a lot of mud-slinging around jobs. Netas here are unable to prove/convince or willing to convince that we are or will perform better. This is even when the agri-woes related suicides are now tumbling up the ruling Netas in almost every election and are likely to do so in this one as well. The political class in opposition (including where ruling party is in opposition) knows this and are banking on this very fact for improving their respective political tally. There has been little curiosity if people are better off today than yesterday or say five years previous and what would it take to improve the situation and this may be true not just about opposition but also about Netas in government as well. While the Netas of each side may be praying that the voter turnout being witnessed is ‘their voter’s turnout’, however they should know ‘which type of voters are they relying upon more’. Now of course, some pundits will tend to then dismiss ‘Jobs itself as one of the muddas’, which is not the case, but of course ‘failure of any political gameplan regarding it, is the key’. A ‘hung’ fate awaits post elections as has been the ‘Prophecy of the Game’, but with the advantage to ‘you know who’ in such a scenario. In a multi-phase election, the ‘opposition’ too has a chance to do some course correction and mix a ‘push (to voters with a nudge around failure) with pull (a ‘positive’ job-growth plan)’, and that should be of some help to them, possibly. Nevertheless, the ‘results’ are likely to once again validate the Prophecy.
The opposition has also failed to unearth ‘people’ who may actually have benefitted on account of the promises by the Netas to distribute ‘money amongst the poor’. Quite a few of such people are freely distributing ‘Gyan’ on the ‘social media’ now a days with little curiosity by the Netas in opposition about this ‘phenomenon’, which may not be as simplistic as it appears. It would be easy to decipher independent ‘social media’ which is around ‘tough questions’, ‘bread & butter’ issues from ‘paid news and social media’ which is mostly around ‘statements/slogans/slangs/clear political inclinations’ etc. New bogus fashion is also to support ‘Sena’ and ‘manufacture fear (instead of safety)’ rather than the Judiciary system to whom one may turn to, in case of grievance subject of course to money and time permitting. The task here for the opposition was to either expose it or to match the slang or to raise the costs for those resorting to it. Then of course we have the usual play around ‘old bogus hyperbole’ whether on caste slogans or about religious fervor from Neta keen to ‘repeating past’. Needless to say that the past vs future is almost always a decisive battle in politics with a no-brainer that who wins except for the morons carting such ideas. The ‘opposition’ Netas looking for a bulwark to build their own campaign against government on ‘negation’ of hot air balloons floating around will continue to gain an upper hand in such a scenario, subject to ‘ration/jobs/water/hygiene/healthcare’ related issues being focused upon and some positive ideas/goals to be achieved being discussed so that a factor to ‘pull-out’ the voting masses rather than just ‘push (around ‘how others are skewering’). It should be noted that polity isn’t ready to even discuss ‘defaulters’ of public money and farm-buyers failing to pay during polls, with very few names coming out in spite of political challenges. This is even as ‘agencies’ becoming much more active and ‘cry of vendetta’ from nearly ‘all corners’. Let the ‘Game’ evolve…..