Con-Front-ed

India goes to vote in less than 24 hours from now and in what promises to be a fascinating exposition of democracy choose who rules the country for the coming five years.

Though the latter part of the above statement might be an oversimplification the average Indian will keep pegging his hopes at seeing a stable government installed at the Centre. Here are some reasons he might get disappointed in the near future:

Each of the UPA, NDA and the Third Front combines fail to reach the magic number of 272 and we get a hung assembly, which in all possibility we will. The following situations might surface :

1. Congress emerges as the single largest party. DMK does well in Tamil Nadu to lend respectability to whatever little remains of the UPA . RJD-LJP-SP perform well enough in the cow-belt to be profitably realigned with the UPA with more bargaining power than before. Sensing the current towards this fledgling front NCP throws in its weight and the UPA is resurrected, dangling cabinet posts for more new friends, willing them to join in. The southern-settlement negotiated with the likes of PMK and MDMK the Congress still seems to be in need of additional support.

Now,

(i) Mr. Karat says "No" and the UPA is looking at weaning away Mayavati or Jayalalitha from the Third Front. The presence of Mulayam Singh Yadav and Karunanidhi in the UPA makes cohabitation an impossible exercise for these two mercurial maidens of legendary whim. In comparison, taking in Deve Gowda might be easy but it will hardly serve the purpose of meeting numbers.

(ii) Mr. Karat says "Yes" and the Left Front reverts back to its "We had to do it to keep the communal forces ( read BJP) out". Considering the projected losses of the Left in West Bengal and Kerala come out to be real, even after their support the UPA will enjoy a very thin majority and be liable to seasonal fluctuations of temper and policy. Add to it the disturbing apparition of Mamata Banerjee and the CPI(M) in the same front and you know Mrs Gandhi's hands are going to be more than full this summer.


2. The BJP emerges as the single largest party and JD(U), Akali Dal does well in Bihar and Punjab respectively. Seizing the opportunity TDP, AIADMK and BJD bolster the NDA and with time more friends emerge from nooks and corners. The Third Front disintegrates and both Sonia Gandhi and Prakash Karat are left sulking in their dens. That leaves the NDA humoring cabinet-berth demands of Jayalalitha on one hand and wooing Mayavati, just in case the wheels wobble mid-way.


3. The Third Front bags 125 odd seats and proves to be uncharacteristically cohesive in the post-election scenario. The Congress having conceded its single largest party status in the House to BJP is left with few options but to support a Third Front Govt. from outside "for the sake of secularism". Mayavati becomes PM with BSP bagging 40 odd seats and the country becomes one huge caste-cauldron in the mould of U.P and Bihar with reservations becoming the top priority in a Dalit-Muslim oriented Pan-India agenda. The Congress looks to pull the plug on the govt. at the first opportunity which presents itself and the cabinet lives precariously, formulating policies for survival rather than progress.



Any fair judge of the situation would recognize the fact that the probability of any of the three major fronts forming a Govt. at the Centre is equal. But one thing is certain considering the mutable nature of political alliances in election season this summer and that is:

" Don't vote for any Front. It might not be there come May."

Oye! It's Dryday!

After clamping down on "Western Evils" like Valentine's Day and 'necking in public' [link] the ire of our self-appointed moral guardians has shifted to something which can be, at its euphemistic best, called a fledgling social rot - Women who love their pint. [video link]

If the MNS, Bajrang Dal, RSS, VHP and Shiv Sena were not enough already there has emerged from nowhere a group of Right-Wing (flightless) moralists called Ram Sena, hell bent on reforming our society for us, their way. What is most disconcerting is the support, tacit or otherwise, that these hooligans are garnering from ministers holding public office. Karnataka CM B.S Yediyurappa and Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot who represent two of our nation's largest political parties have expressed their disapproval of 'the pub culture' gaining ground in this country. Public outrage and an active media has entailed that ever-invisible tug from their respective high commands in New Delhi and they have more or less disambiguated their previous statements, smoothening the edges to give it all a liberal yet concerned look.
Union Health Minister, Anmubani Ramadoss has chipped in with his comments,

"It is not our culture. If it goes this way, I don't think India will progress". [link]

Though it may strike as startling as to how women pubbing can affect the nations progress we hope the Union Minister has some logical explanation for his sermon.

History shows that any recession is marked by an increase in alcohol consumption in that economy. India is no exception. With newspapers ringing in bad news every morning regarding the employment figures around the world plummeting to new lows what can but a commoner, or say a software engineer do? A moment of thought for the Satyam employee and another for the recruited fresher biding his time in seclusion, waiting for that elusive DoJ ( 'Date of Joining' for the uninitiated).
The positives of spirit-induced-forgetfulness -
1. A restless youth kept reigned in the confines of a pub, voluntarily.
2. The exponential growth of the liquor industry.
3. A happy Vijay Mallya - meaning more colorful calendars.
4. More time to reflect upon the futility of material pursuits and hence renunciation.
5. A profusion of Devdases, born of diverse reasons - not necessarily Paros & Chandramukhis. - Better material for Bhansali and Co. to build their films on. Realistic ones at that.
6. A spirited nation looking at a better tomorrow. Sloshed.

So we look forward to a pubbing.. errr... throbbing nation.


P.S - About women's rights and their pursuit of pegs - I will write another day. Surely.
Till then, Hic!

Sweet 60 !!

As our 60-th Independence Day dawn on us amidst the veritable din of patriotic songs and parades it’s almost time the new generation paused to ponder for a while and took stock of things. A country celebrating 60 years of independence from foreign rule should be considered a ‘Mature Democracy’ judging by world standards and it would be juvenile to associate the same pomp and show, the same joy and jubilation that was characteristic of its 50^th year bash. Sentiments must take a back-seat now. Awareness must reign supreme. One as in his individual capacities and the nation in its entirety must take a more circumspect, a more futuristic approach to the road ahead. And that’s where, I feel, our true emancipation lies.

Though dollops of newsprint have been already spent on driving home such points and instilling nationalism amongst the fast-paced youth of today I am sure, as happens every year, the fizz would soon fizzle out from such an endeavor. Headlines would soon be snatched by issues more appealing than idle retrospection typically unsuited to business over a prolonged period. Though cynical it may seem to some still, there remain much to be questioned and much to be answered regarding the conduct of the annual rituals of the ‘Great Indian Independence Itch’. Every year in build-up to this momentous day articles are written, debates are organized; documentaries are televised as to how far we have come. Hackneyed questions are raised. Is this the best that we could have done? What should be our approach towards the future? How we should be feeling proud of our heritage, our freedom struggle and our motherland. How can the youth be further inspired in nationalism and loyalty? And everybody jumps in to convey their well thought out opinions. But what we miss within this bedlam of celebratory banter is the very essence of independence that we savor within this chaos. The fact that India as a nation has graduated to higher pedestals of self-actualization and freedom is evident in the very fact that today almost every one has an opinion. There is a collective consciousness at work, a great sea of humanity that is aware of its challenges and expectations. There can be no doubt that people have learnt to ask for their dues. But what on the other hand is depressing is the inability of the administration to ensure that they are actually addressed.

Though the progress made cannot be denied over these past 60 years in fields of science and technology, trade and commerce, burgeoning job-markets at home and abroad, mushrooming of industries and entrepreneurs, an impressive GDP, growth-rate on an upward climb numerous issues remain unattended or ill-diagnosed. Education is still to see the upward spiral that was so solemnly promised from the eve of our first Independence Day, urban congestion wed to problems of population and pollution are demons leading us to doomsday by the passing hour, corruption remains as perceptible as the pole-star on clear nights and the political system is still to be made suitably accountable to the masses. Still, as a true Indian I continue to be an unrelenting optimist though streaks of cynicism escape out of my system every now and then.

So, here’s hoping India a prosperous next sixty years. Sixty years that would generate more wealth for its people, more power to its voters, more choice to its consumers, sanity to its ministers, and peace to its neighbors.

Jai Hind!