Inside Patna: How Nitish stumped all to handpick new CM 

May 20, 2014

Patna: A bitter internal feud in the Janata Dal (United) [JD(U)] that broke out since the 16 May Lok Sabha results, has temporarily subsided with Jitan Ram Majhi replacing Nitish Kumar as the new Bihar chief minister. Mr Kumar was locked in a fierce battle with a rival group led by Sharad Yadav, who blamed Mr Kumar’s decisions for the party’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha. Mr Kumar eventually had his way by handpicking his successor, a Dalit leader who had served as minister for scheduled caste and scheduled tribe welfare in his cabinet.

Mr Majhi, a low-profile Nitish Kumar loyalist, had lost his Lok Sabha seat in Gaya, only managing third position. Around 5pm yesterday, as he was about to leave for Gaya, Mr Majhi suddenly got a call from Nitish Kumar. Within a couple of hours he was formally announced as the next chief minster of Bihar.

How Nitish turned the tide

Ever since he snapped ties with BJP, Mr Kumar has been under pressure within his party: once the Lok Sabha results came in, with his party winning just two seats (down from 20 last time), that disenchantment turned into rebellion against him. That is when he decided to pull the plug, going in for the resignation.

“Nitishji’s decision has made the rebels rethink,” said one party spokesperson. “He is getting enormous support now: even the ministers and MLAs who were against him are stumped and are now supporting him. They can’t accept any other leader, who they can take as the face of the party when they go back to the electorate.”

A campaign to get Nitish Kumar back to accept the CMs post was launched by both the pro-Nitish camp and the upper caste faction in the party to stop Sharad Yadav’s camp from taking over the government of Bihar. But Mr Kumar conveyed to the party that he wants to go back to the electorate and return to the assembly with a stronger mandate in the elections, which are due in the second half of 2015. He said he wanted to tour the state and is keen to know about the reasons of the BJP’s landslide victory in Bihar.

In his resignation, he scored over two of his opponents: Narendra Singh, who used to raise a banner of revolt every now and then against him, worked with his group of upper caste MLAs to rally behind Mr Kumar; the other ambitious man in the party Sharad Yadav, faced the wrath of the party MLAs and workers since he started taking initiatives to form the next government after Mr Kumar’s resignation. Mr Yadav has been isolated in his own party over his comments on Mr Kumar and inclination to tie-up with Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).

The Nitish Kumar camp took a two step-strategy: first take over the party meetings, second get an upper hand in selection of the next chief minister. They succeeded in both.

In the meeting of the JD(U) legislative party on 18 May, the atmosphere was quite charged and some MLAs even raised slogans against Sharad Yadav. When the state party chief, Vashishtha Narayan Singh stood to speak and said that no decision would be taken without the consent of Mr Kumar, he was booed and forced to sit down. Nitish Kumar confidante Shyam Rajak said that all decision of the party and government’s future would be taken by Mr Kumar and the party will not accept any name apart from him.

The heated debate continued until Nitish Kumar intervened and spoke for more than an hour justifying his resignation and decision to go with it; in the end, he asked for a day’s time to take a final call. Next day the mood in the meeting remained pro-Nitish Kumar, though he declined to get back as chief minister. So, he was asked to pick a name of his choice.

Modi’s win forces talks with Lalu

As the Modi sledgehammer flattened all opposition in Bihar, friends turned foes were once again ready to turn friends. Old socialist comrades Sharad Yadav and Lalu Prasad Yadav were in hectic parleys, figuring out if they can work together against the Modi wave, which was threatening to break the JD(U). But Nitish Kumar and his supporters stood firmly against any truck with the RJD: after all the JD(U) was carved out of the erstwhile Janata Dal after Lalu Prasad Yadav was named in the fodder scam.

In the talks with Sharad Yadav’s camp, the RJD was pushing for a Yadav chief minister from the JD (U), with a Muslim deputyfrom the RJD; this was an effort by the RJD chief to strengthen his fabled Muslim-Yadav alliance. But this proposal was not acceptable to many JD(U) leaders, who are primarily from the Kurmi and upper caste communities. They saw the strengthening of the Yadav-Muslim axis as a losing proposition. So, in spite of their misgivings about Nitish Kumar’s leadership, many JD(U) leaders fell in line with their former chief minister.


And then Mr Kumar surprised all by his choice of the new chief minister, including the chosen one himself.

- This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 20, 2014

Worship, hope and a little fear: 3 faces at the Modi celebrations

May 17, 2014

Worship

Rajendra Maavi also calls himself Rajendra Modi, because he looks like him, dresses like him and plays to the gallery like his idol. He is a front-running Narendra Modi bhakt, a worshipper of the cult that has redefined Indian politics in 2014. At the BJP headquarters, still waiting for the real Mr Modi to arrive, he caught many eyes, many other bhakts were taking photos with him.

“I toured 86 constituencies to garner support for Modiji,” said Mr Maavi. “I am very fortunate that I am a lookalike of the man who is synonym of change for Indians today.” Then he moves into statesman mode. “All work which is stalled would be completed very soon, everyone wants good days and they are here.”

To get the maximum attention he kept on moving from one place to another in the party office, with maximum appearance at the media gallery.

Hope

Waving a BJP flag, the 79-year old Amar Singh, has bought into the achhe din aane wale hain (good days are upon us) slogan. He has married of eight daughters, he said, and his family still lives under a thatched roof – for him good days would mean being able to convert that into a pucca house.

“I support and voted for the BJP because of Modi,” said Mr Singh. “I have a handicapped son to look after and I am not getting my pension for the last three years, I will talk to Modiji about this, he will get it done hopefully. If he works I will be with him.”

In front of 14 Ashoka Road, the BJP headquarters in Delhi, Mr Singh was seen reaching out to all political leaders whom he identified for help. He wanted them to note his jhuggi number, take his pension details which he carried on a piece of paper.


A little fear

For Dana, a visiting research scholar from Michigan University, coming down to the BJP office was a spur of the moment decision. She had come down to Khan Market to get a feel of what’s happening around Delhi, but then someone suggested that all the action today was at the BJP office.

“The roads seemed deserted, there was nothing happening anywhere so I came here,” she said.

“Narendra Modi and the Indian elections are making headlines all over, so I thought I might as well see what’s happening.” Mr Modi’s stunning victory had also piqued her research interest. “It will be interesting to look into why Indian voted in such a manner. Is this going to be a welcome change for India?” She was diplomatic about it, but some Indians too are asking whether this tectonic rightward shift in Indian politics can lead to sectarian strife.


But Dana could not resist doing a jig with the dancing women and joining the festivities.

- This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 17, 2014

Interview: We must win hearts of investors, says BJP’s Captain Abhimanyu 

May 15, 2014

New Delhi: While BJP prepares to celebrate a Lok Sabha election victory after 15 years, the Political Indian talked to party’s national spokesperson Capt. Abhimanyu on how he felt on the counting day eve. The 47-year old ex-serviceman who is the face of the party in Haryana was very candid in his approach and said that the results would be the best for the BJP ever.

Q. The exit polls predict a comfortable victory for the BJP and the NDA, what do you have to say on the eve of counting?

A. The exits polls are just an indicator; they tell us the direction in which things are moving. The country is in a mood for a change and that is clear. We have our own network with huge number of workers at all levels, and their feedback has also points at a groundswell of support for us. Voters wanted a strong, stable government and they have given us a resounding mandate.

Q. These elections seemed to be more about Narendra Modi than the BJP. Has that paid off?

A. Modiji’s coronation as prime ministerial candidate was a collective decision by the party. He has done excellent work in Gujarat, earning respect by developing the state. Crores of party workers worked under his leadership of Modiji, and people of the country saw a real common man achieve so much, they loved him.

Q. If you get a majority on your own, will you take other political parties along?

A. We have never played the politics of untouchability ever. It’s the Congress that plays the game of political untouchability in the name of pseudo-secularism. BJP’s doors are open for all the political parties who follow the agenda of good governance and development.

Q. But there are people like Giriraj Singh who continue to spew venom.

A. Giriraj Singh has said that he was quoted out of context, though the party doesn’t endorse any such comment. And on secularism, we don’t need to learn it from others. We follow the tenets of vasudhaiva kutumbakam (the whole world is a family) and sarve bhavantu sukhin (happiness for all). The one who runs the nation has to treat people of all caste, religion and state equally.

Q. What lies in store for Mr. Lal Krishna Advani?

A. Advaniji is the shikhar purush (towering personality) of Indian politics, he has nurtured the party, had worked very hard to make it grow. When he comes to the parliament as an MP, he will be a guide, not only to the government but also to the political system of India. He is not hankering for power, his personality is much above that and he will keep guiding the government.

Q. Urban pockets have been your strength, now AAP is making in-roads in the urban areas, do you see a potential threat?

A. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is a new political outfit. They are yet to evolve. They have not made their ideology clear, they are yet to establish internal democracy in their party; they are running with a party supremo at the helm. They have several kinds of voices together in the party, who are often at odds against each other. It was only the weakness of the Congress party and the space they left that made the AAP grow. But AAP is yet to prove itself as a serious political party.

Q. Your comments on the role of RSS in elections and governance.

A. The RSS played a great role as far as the elections are concerned, they campaigned for maximum voting to make the democracy strong. As far as governance, history tells us, they don’t interfere in it. RSS is a very disciplined organization which has its own style of functioning.

Q. Your comments on the Congress campaign and the blame-game which has already started.

A. The elections gone by have proved that the Congress party is leaderless, bereft of policies and directionless. This will be the worst performance by the Congress party ever; it has made itself irrelevant during the last 10-years of the governance. It’s disappointing that they didn’t even give the minimum courtesy to their prime minister during his farewell, the man who anchored the government for two terms. See, defeat is always orphan and it’s in the Congress culture that if they win, it’s all about the Gandhi family and while they look for scapegoats when they loose. Let’s see who becomes the scapegoat after results tomorrow.

Q. What would be the main challenges for the new government?

A. Let the government be formed, there is a long list. We will have to counter inflation, corruption, and speed up infrastructure development; there is a severe policy paralysis, the approach needs to be changed to pro-active policy initiative. We must win the heart of the investors; the environment must be business friendly; we also need to work on getting the economy on track.

Q. Narendra Modi’s mantra has been “minimum government, maximum governance”. How do you plan to implement it?

A. “Minimum government, maximum governance” means giving better quality governance by deciding where the government should be and where it should not be. We have to identify how much government interference is required and areas where less government interference will be good. The system needs to be reviewed in a creative manner, to optimize it for effective policy implementation.

- This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 15, 2014

Interview: Don’t count our MPs, weigh them, says Kumar Vishvas 

May 15, 2014

Ghaziabad: Aam Aadmi Party leader Kumar Vishvas is locked in a three-cornered electoral battle in Amethi against Rahul Gandhi and BJP’s Smriti Irani. The 44-year old AAP leader, known for his off the cuff remarks, says he is confident of winning over the Gandhi bastion where he camped for three months.

Q. One day to the results of the big fight, what are your expectations?

A. We entered this arena about one and a half years ago with a mission to change the way politics runs in the nation. The only expectation and wish we have, is to see how much we have succeeded in our mission. I do respect the electoral process, but I add strongly that politics is way larger than elections. Tomorrow numbers will be in focus, but what is more important to me is how much impact did our hard work create on the voters. We would like to see what is the effect of reaching-out and communicating with the last person of the society. We would like to see what is the effect of the two-way communication with the voters, something which is new for the Indian political system.

Q. How many seats do you see coming to the AAP?

A. Let me answer this question with a couplet. Someone has said, “Jamhooriyat wo tarz-e-hukoomat hai ki jisme, bando ko ginaa jaata hai taulaa nahi jaata.” (In a democracy, people are only counted and not weighed). Unfortunately, in the recent past, Indian democracy has seen a similar phase. Only quantity matters and quality is often unaccounted for. But in the new politics that AAP wants to establish, quality has space too. So, whether AAP gets 1 seat or 100 seats, it doesn’t matter much, because even a single AAP MP will stand against anything wrong happening around us. So, for an AAP MPs, don’t count them, weigh them.

Q. The exit polls have predicted a dismal performance for the AAP? What do you have to say?

A. The exit polls are more of a guessing game rather than the actual representation. If you talk of exit polls, they predicted 4 to 5 seats for the AAP in the Delhi assembly polls, and we came out with 28. So, it would be immature to comment on this. But even then, if we take the exit polls as actual results, I would say it is a great beginning. Politics is not a thing limited to one election. AAP will go higher and higher starting with this election.

Q. Do you think that the AAP committed mistakes that dented your prospects?

A. We did some things right, and some others things wrong, and there were decisions that seemed right, but feel wrong once their repercussions are seen. Let us talk about a crucial cricket match, where the last over is set to decide the win or loss. Further, another thing happened, what I call “Headline Conspiracy”. There are a few media houses that have been known to have their hidden agenda. Actually it is very easy to twist the flavor of the tale merely by putting a misleading headline. Same story could be titled as “Kejriwal quits Delhi midway for Lok Sabha dreams?” or as “Kejriwal sacrifices CM’s post for his commitment to Janlokpal”. It’s the headline that makes noise on social media as most of the youngsters are in a habit of reacting before reading the full story. So, the so-called dent in the image was more due to misbranding rather than making mistakes.

Q. Many in the party have left saying there is a lack of democracy in the party? Your comments.

A. It’s unfortunate that some of our friends left the party due to various reasons ranging from personal political inclination to publicity stunt. Some people joined the party with vested interests, or to get an important positions, and when they did not get that they said there is a “lack of democracy”, it’s really unfortunate. Position seekers left the party, as we do not have thousands of positions in the party. This party runs on volunteers, no genuine volunteer has ever asked for a position in the party. Those who think that parties run from 10 Janpath or Nagpur are democratic, then they are free to join them.

Q. If Mr Vishwas is given one opportunity to change one decision of AAP, which would that be?

A. Maybe we could have dealt with the resignation from the Delhi government a bit better.

Q. Which was a bigger mistake: forming a government in Delhi or resigning?

A. I have maintained that resigning from Delhi government was not a mistake. We were committed to pass the Jan Lokpal. I have said in my previous interviews, that if Arvind would have retained his CM post after failing to fulfill the Jan Lokpal commitment, I would have been the first person to stand against him. But in the public imagination, we could not establish the actual matrix that made us resign. It finally ended up as a “mistake” due to the misbranding. We were unable to convince the nation why we quit.

Q. Do you think you failed the people of Delhi? The support base, according to surveys and polls is going down.

A. No, the support base is not going down at all! Even when exit polls are predicting 1-2 seats for us in Delhi, the percentage of vote share has not decreased, and that is the beauty. Even if we talk of other states, the 12% or 14% or 20% people voting for us see a hope in the party.

Q. There are talks that you are not very happy with the party? Is it true?

A. The formation of this question is bit vague. I am not happy with the party means nothing. What is the party made of? I am one nerve of the party, Arvind is another, and similarly each and every volunteer is a tissue of the party. Being a part of the party, there can’t be a question of being unhappy. Any difference of opinion leads to a healthy discussion and debate, after which decisions are finalized. That’s why we always say that we are trying to establish a new political system in India.

Q. One last question, in case you have to choose between Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi, who will you choose?

A. Heads and tails may decide the fate of a decision in a cricket field, but they are two sides of the same coin.

- This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 15, 2014. It was also published by Rediff.com.

The gloomy groupies at 24 Akbar Road

May 14, 2014

New Delhi: On any given day for the last ten years, 24 Akbar Road, which houses the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters, has not looked so deserted. Since the exit polls predicted a complete rout for the Congress, this seat of power in the heart of Lutyens Delhi, is left to contemplate on past glory. For those who live off their proximity to 24 Akbar Road, the future is uncertain.

Most rooms in the office are locked, no senior party member available: only Tom Vadakkan of the communication department was seen chatting with some reporters in the middle. The discussion veered from the Congress rout to the Modi wave. Mr Vadakkan, clearly uncomfortable with the topic at hand, kept his calm but went into his office quickly.

Meanwhile Congress beat reporters had their own worries. “There is big difference between being the beat reporter of the party in power and covering the opposition,” a reporter who has covered the Congress for the last eight years said. “When you cover the most important political party, you are automatically get more importance in your organization. If the Congress goes out of power, the beat reporters will also lose value. The tag of the one being in the middle of the power circle would be lost.”

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi, tried to put up a brave face in the press conference announcing victory and citing the unreliability of exit polls. Rahul Gandhi’s key aide Meenakshi Natarajan, party candidate from Mandsaur, walked into the party office but left without speaking to anyone. Some party officials promised a battery of party leaders for the results on 16th May.

But the mood is somber at AICC canteen, Shree Rathnam, known for its south Indian delicacies. Today, there were not many takers for their idli-sambhar, vada and uttapam. Most of those having their meals were either security men or media-persons who were waiting for the press conference to be addressed by party leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi. The usual hangers-on, favor seekers and party faithful are missing.

“The place remains full most of the time, though they are saying things will change after results,” said the boy serving tea at the canteen. “People from all over the country used to flock the office, but now our business will go down if the Congress is out of power.”

The tea vendor and party flag seller outside the AICC gate were also tense. “We earn our daily living from this,” said the tea vendor, an eight-year old whose father normally mans their little stall. “We want people to keep coming in here, otherwise we will have a very tough time.”

And there are the die-hards who still have not lost faith. “The Congress party will win and one of the Gandhis will be the next prime minister of the country,” yelled Jaikishan Agarwal, who claims to be working for the party since 1999, sitting outside the gate in his Gandhi cap and Congress scarf. “The media is sold out, they are predicting wrong results and this is not the first time. They predicted we will lose in 2004 and 2009 too. It’s a conspiracy to break the country, a conspiracy which will be exposed and punctured.”

- This story was first published in www.thepoliticalindian.com on May 14, 2014