All the eyes are fixed on the coming general elections. What will the Parliament look like in
2024? Till recently there was no hope that the Congress Party and the rest of the
opposition parties would pose any challenge to the ruling BJP. The BJP party was confident
that it would sweep the elections yet again.
There were several attempts by the opposition parties to forge an alliance against the BJP.
But this did not see any tangible results. There were contradictions among the regional
parties. It was believed that the Congress Party was not willing to give space for the
opposition parties and form an alliance. Aam Aadmi Party wanted to finish off the Congress
Party. In UP, Samajwadi Party did not believe that it could form an alliance with the
Congress. The earlier attempt for alliance between Samajwadi Party and the Congress Party
did not bear any positive results. In West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress Party did not
want to have any understanding with the Congress Party. Though the Trinamool Party was
an offshoot of the Congress party; probably because it was an offshoot of the Congress
party, they were at war with each other. This animosity had heightened when Congress
Party formed an alliance with CPM to fight during the last Assembly Election in West
Bengal.
During the last assembly elections in Bihar, JDU was in alliance with the BJP. They did not
believe that they could do any business with the Congress party. Congress Party is also in
alliance with RJD which had opposed JDU. But this alliance did not help the Congress party
to improve its position in Bihar. The Congress Party had demanded a big share of seats,
which they could not win in the end. According to some this alliance led to a kind of
weakening of RJD Party. In Telangana, Telangana Rastra Samity (TRS) was determined not
to have any understanding with the Congress Party. ̎
Since the Congress Party has a national Presence with the biggest vote share, no formidable
alliance would be formed against the BJP by ignoring the Congress Party. Despite this,
Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, and TRS were uncompromising in their opposition
to the congress party.
The Emergence of I.N.D.I.A.
Today we have seen the emergence of the “Indian National Developmental Inclusive
Alliance (INDIA).” The Chief Minister of Bihar had broken his alliance with the BJP because
he realized that the BJP was planning to destroy JDU and become a single largest party in
Bihar. Nitish Kumar once again came out of alliance with BJP and formed an alliance with
RJD and remained the Chief Minister. It was a magnanimous gesture on the part of RJD to
agree to this alliance with Nithish Kumar and give him the chief ministership and form the
government. I say it was a magnanimous gesture on the part of RJD because RJD had
experienced a betrayal from JDS; RJD had bigger number of MLAs and further it did not
insist on leading the alliance.
Nithish Kumar slowly develops a conviction that opposition should come together and
defeat the BJP in 2024. He went out of his way to meet Mamata Banerjee, Sharad Pawar,
Chandrasekar Rao (TRS) and Arvind Kejriwal (Aam Aadmi Party) who responded positively
to the suggestion of Nithish Kumar. It is very likely that Nithish Kumar also saw a
possibility of becoming a prime minister if the opposition alliance gains power at the
centre.
The Revival of Congress
The Congress Party came to the lime light and showed itself to be a powerful force,
probably more powerful than the rest of the opposition parties put together. Rahul Gandhi
ventured into a Padayatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. His objective was to bring unity
and solidarity among the citizens of the country. He wanted to oppose the polarizing and
divisive politics of BJP. He called this Yatra Bharat Jodo Yatra. There had been some
apprehensions by other political parties about the ability of Rahul Gandhi to complete this
ambitious yatra. But Rahul Gandhi proved everybody wrong. When he started his yatra
from Kanyakumari, DMK and the civil society in Tamil Nadu came in big numbers and
supported his yatra and walked with him. In Kerala too, he got a very warm welcome
everywhere. Wherever he went people welcomed him and he was able to meet youth,
women, and farmers and had conversation with them. All the people from different walks
of life showed great appreciation for the Yatra. They spoke to him about their disillusion
with the present BJP government, about the price rise, unemployment. Rahul Gandhi met
women who not only shared their concerns with him but also assured their support. The
people showed such a great interest in what Rahul had to say they stood in pouring rain
and listened to him till the end of his speech. Again, in Kashmir he stood in the heavy
snowfall and spoke to the people of Kashmir. Congress party does now have a strong
following in Kashmir. Rahul Gandhi achieved a great success in his Bharat Jodo Yatra,
reaching out to the people and learning from them.
Rahul Gandhi 2.0
The nation saw, a different Rahul Gandhi throughout his journey to Kashmir in Bharat Jodo
Yatra. He stood out the tallest leader of the congress party. The BJP had spent huge amount
of money to destroy his image and had succeeded in making the general public to believe
that Rahul Gandhi was immature, impulsive, and eccentric person, not fit for any political
role. They nick named him ‘PAPPU’. Rahul Gandhi proved them wrong. He destroyed the
image that BJP had created of him in the minds of the nation. In all his meetings with the
people, in his press conferences, and in his speeches, he expressed a great concern for the
Nafrat that BJP had spread in the country. He promise that he would like to build “Nafrat Ki
Bazar Me Mohabbat Ku Dukan.” Meaning, ‘shop of love in the market of hate’. This iconic
slogan appealed to the large population of the country.
Another very important development that happened in the life of Mr. Rahul Gandhi was his
disqualification from the Parliament and dismissal from his house. In the budget session of
the Parliament, Rahul Gandhi gave a spirited speech and raised the number of issues and
made the BJP Government, and Modi in particular, accountable. One of the most important
issues was Mr. Modi’s relationship with Adani. Why did Modi take Adani with him to his
foreign tours? He also questioned the source of Rs 2000 crores which Adani had invested in
his shell companies. These questions frightened Modi and wanted to find a way to shut the
mouth of Rahul Gandhi.
2019 election Rahul Gandi had given a speech in Kolar where he expressed his surprise to
several people who had looted the country seem to have common surname Modi, Nirav
Modi, Lalit Modi and now Narendra Modi. An insignificant MLA in Gujarat Assembly,
Purnesh Modi filed a defamation case in Surat court against Rahul. After getting frustrated
with nothing coming from this case, he went to the high court in Gujrat and brought a stay
on the case. But when Narendra Modi was cornered by Rahul Gandhi Purnesh Modi was
asked to revive that case immediately. P Modi went to the High Court and opened up the
case again. It was with lightning speed, the trial court in Surat gave two years (maximum)
punishment for Rahul Gandhi, which would eventually make him lose his Parliament
membership. As soon as the verdict reached Delhi (within a matter of few hours), Rahul
Gandhi’s membership to the Parliament was cancelled and he was asked to vacate the
house he lived it. Rahul Gandhi fought for stay on the conviction and went right up to the
Gujarat High Court. Gujarat judiciary refused to give him any relief. It was like Gujarat mafia
trying to corner and teach a lesson to Rahul Gandhi whereby he would be jailed for two
years. His membership to be parliament would be cancelled and he would not be able to
contest elections for another six years. The case was very simple. Purnesh Modi wasn’t
really a Modi. He had changed his name into Modi. Secondly Modi is not a generic name for
a backward caste. Hence insulting the backward caste by Rahul Gandhi did not happen.
Lalit Modi & Nirav Modi, the names he had mentioned in his speech were not the people
belonging to backward class. However, Rahul Gandhi did not attend the parliament and he
vacated the house graciously and with equal lightning speed. Rahul Gandhi showed tremendous amount of courage and statesmanship. He was not deterred by the consequences of the action of Gujarat mafia. He was getting ready to go to jail. The manner in which he responded to these developments gave Rahul Gandhi tremendous sympathy from the entire country. The Supreme Court finally gave him the relief and he was
reinstated in the parliament. This proved that Rahul Gandhi is a politician with outstanding qualities.
The Bharat Jodo Yatra made the other regional opposition parties realize the extend of
support Rahul personally and the Congress Party in general received from the citizens of
the country. Those who were not willing to do any business with the Congress party
realised that the Congress Party should lead the opposition alliance. Rahul Gandhi and the
Congress Party did not claim Prime Minister Ship for the party. The newly elected Congress
President, with his outstanding leadership, also assured the nation that congress Party was
not in the race for the Prime Minister ship of the country.
Congress party is recognised as a leader of the alliance because the spectacular victory in
Karnataka election. Karnataka victory was a game changer in Indian politics. It changed the
entire scenario of politics in the country. It gave new hope for the opposition that together
they could defeat the BJP and they are willing to repose their faith in the leadership of the
Congress party.
The INDIA alliance had shown its strength during the monsoon session. Even the Aam
Aadmi Party had been very cooperative and showed faith in Rahul Gandhi. There will be
another meeting in Mumbai where the INDIA alliance will meet and trash out seats sharing
issues and there is a possibility that the INDIA alliance will put up a spectacular show and
defeat the NDA alliance.
One should say that the puzzle of the united opposition has fallen in its place. There is no
doubt in the minds of anybody that Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance will
pose a serious challenge for the BJP. It is an alliance of 28 parties. In this respect we can
safely conclude the preparation of the opposition parties for the 2024 parliament election
in the right direction.
BJP and the General Elections 2024
The BJP is not complacent about their winning possibility. There is a palpable fear in
Narendra Modi and the BJP party. Modi did not lose any time in forming a new NDA with 36
parties. The new NDA consist of parties who had deserted NDA, or found no place in NDA.
Most of them have no MLAS or MPs in the present state and central government.
The body language of the INDIA alliance is very different from the NDA alliance. Indian
alliance shows far more respect for their partners and their comradeship. What is noteworthy is there was jostling for the prominent seats on the days when NDA leaders
met in Delhi. The NDA alliance projected Modi to be the god who will guarantee a victory to
NDA. While all the other people stood at a distance, Modi alone stood in the centre with a
big garland for the photo.
The one very spectacular aspect of NDA preparation for 2024 election is seen in the
attempt of the BJP Party to dilute the position of the election commission. BJP in general
and Modi in particular is indeed very frightened of the defeat that they see in the air during
the fag end of the monsoon session. BJP has introduced a new bill, which will alter the
committee that will choose and appoint the election commission. The test of democracy lies
in the neutrality of the election commission. This means that if we want the neutral election
commission, then the committee that appoints the election commission should be
constituted by the Prime Minister, the leader of the Opposition, and the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court. The Chief justice of the Supreme Court has shown himself to be a fearless
man with a strong backbone in his pronouncement of several judgements. He has come out
without fear or favour. He being on the committee to appoint election commission would
ring dangerous bells for the BJP. Therefore, BJP has introduced a Bill in the Rajya Shabha to
reconstitute the committee that would appoint the election commission. The bill aims at
removing the Supreme Court Chief Justice from the committee and instead include a
minister of the Parliament of Modi Government. If this bill is passed, then effectively, BJP
will have a complete control on making an appointment of the CEC and election
commission. This also means BJP will ensure that the opposition alliance will be
handicapped and probably be defeated through the role of the Chief Election Commission.
In other word, there will be no fair and free General Elections in 2024.
The Manipur Experiment
Manipur was one of the latest laboratory experiments for the BJP government to prepare
for the 2024 election. The plot was very simple. It is one of the smallest states in India. The
majority community living in this state is Meitei living in the valleys. Nagas and Kukis are in
minority, but not so small in numbers. Majority of them are Christians. It has been proved
beyond doubt that BJP use its chief Minister and its RSS army to spread fear among the
minority community of the Kukis and Nagas. They declared them as people who have
migrated from Myanmar. They created doubts in the minds of the Meitei group that these
Kukis and Nagas have occupied the most advantageous hilltops. They are declared as
adivasis and they hold the best properties on the hilltop. Therefore, it was essential that
these people should be driven out. This false propaganda starts the war between the Kukis
and Meiteis. There seem to be no end this conflict. If this state was ruled by any opposition
party the BJP at the Centre would have lost no time in dismissing the chief minister of
Manipur and imposing President’s rule. In spite of large-scale killing and violence, burning
down of properties the central government does not think that Manipur has totally failed in
maintaining law and order. They have continued to keep him in the post of chief
ministership because he is the best agent to carry out the plan of the Sangh Parivar.
We have seen in many other states where there had been absolutely no problems, no law
and order situation, and still BJP had changed their chief ministers several times. Amit
Shah, the home minister had visited once and spent two or three days and promised the
world that he has managed to control the violence. But it was only a promise and the reality
was that he could not stop the violence. They say the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had
enough time to travel across the world to attend to the minor and small inauguration
functions but he did not have time and inclination to visit Manipur. He did not come to the
Parliament for the monsoon session because he did not want the issue of Manipur to be
discussed in the Parliament. Opposition parties had to call no-confidence motion to force
Modi to come to the Parliament. And in spite of his coming to the Parliament in his two-
hour long reply Speech, he did not come to the point of Manipur violence. Opposition felt
being insulted and they walked out of the Parliament. It is only after they had walked out
that Modi spoke very briefly on the need to end violence in Manipur. But he did not come
up with any concrete plan. It is evident now that he supported the violence in Manipur, in
order to spread fear among the minorities and come to power.
The Haryana Incident
Another example of this kind of plan was being implemented in the Muslim dominated
place called Nuh In Haryana, where RSS and Bajrang Dal took out a religious procession
through the areas which was thickly populated by the Muslims. We have not heard of any
religious procession where people carry guns, swords and sticks; but these religious people
in their religious procession, waved out guns, swords and sticks and challenged the Muslim
majority of people living there. Any small throwing of a stone could easily spark violence
and this is exactly what happened. It is not important who threw the first stone. What is
important is, why did the right-wing people create the situation of intimidation?
So for the BJP, preparation for the Parliamentary election is to spread Nafrat, create fear in
the minds of the minority. Propagate the notion of Hindu khatre Mein Hai (Hindu is in
danger) and force people to vote for BJP.
This is how BJP is preparing for 2024 election. There are serious doubts in the mind of
some that Modi may indulge into a huge action to attract votes from the people, even the
action of sending the army into Pakistan occupied Kashmir. Indulging in a small-scale
warfare with the Chinese in Ladak is also not ruled out. We have listened to Satpal Malik,
the former governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
BJP is looking out for more opportune time to change the Constitution of India. a third term
in Delhi will that opportune time. Our constitution would be changed; perhaps Manu Smriti
would be our constitution. The people belonging to the minorities, Dalits and Adivasis will not be full citizens of the country. They will not have rights that the normal citizens enjoy.
Shree Golwalkar has already explicated the norms for an Indian who is not a Hindu. India
will be a Hindu Rashtra.
Social discourses are important to explode the many myths the Hindutva forces are
spreading in the country and make people understand the idea of India as secular,
democratic and socialist India.
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