The Indian elections have entered the final stage and some very surprising assessments are emerging on the outcome of what the results may hold. Unlike the rather expected outcome or the pre-poll tall claims of the BJP/NDA that even the number of 400 seats merely represented a ‘course’s par’, it, on the contrary, seems to be a very close contest between the ruling coalition and the Congress/INDIA alliance (led by Rahul Gandhi) and where the latter seems to in fact have an upper hand for now – remember 272 is the magical majority number to form the government in the parliament.
Whereas, not too long ago, as early as in March this year, it appeared quite apparent that Narendra Modi and his cohorts could very well cross this number of 400 to have an outright two-thirds majority, thereby cementing its grip on Indian politics and on to further enhance their agenda of un-checked and un-licensed dictatorial governance, things suddenly appeared to have changed. Well, amongst other factors, the Election pundits believe that analysts covering the exit polls were blinded and biased anyway – we all know how tainted the Indian media is today, and therefore, it simply failed to correctly gauge the underlying sentiments of a vast majority of common yet secular Indian voters.
Congress/INDIA, on the other hand, struck a chord with the general masses by talking about their (general masses) issues and strengths and how real Indian growth could emerge only when unleashed from the platform of small businesses, local cottage scale innovations (made in India) and the hardworking Indian farmers, as against a naked and vulgar reliance on a select few big boys who have not just cornered the Indian economy, but also that the resultant concentration of wealth in just handful houses in-effect poses the biggest threat to India’s future as a unified country – a sort of moral victory of love, brotherhood and togetherness over hate and divisiveness.
During the course of these two months, the simple, elegant, and down-to-earth style of Priyanka Gandhi’s campaign trails has become a sort of folklore with her deft style of getting to the root cause of ordinary peoples’ issues and her micro-management ways of an on finer details that have left even her party workers puzzled or in awe.
So, what exactly went wrong for Modi’s shinning India? The answer lies somewhere in or shared amongst three main components: A financial architecture that though overtly showed great numbers, in reality, alienated the common man by disturbingly creating class divides and increasing the gap between haves and have-nots; An assault on the Indian legal system by the Modi Sarkar that not only weakened the most important pillar of the state but also waned people’s very confidence in the legal and governance framework; and the third, the politics of fear and brutality that overtime has ironically created a deep resented within the communities of ‘all’ faiths in India and in these elections they seem to have rebelled by using the power of their Vote. To exploit this system’s weaknesses and the sad story of human cum communal tragedies in India over the last decade and a half, the Congress/INDIA alliance has promised to deliver a vision that instead requires a proactive collaboration between public authorities, smaller private sector institutions, and people per se. Its action plan entails establishing a strong foundation that would pave the way for a unified and inclusive financial system promising innovative, participatory, accessible, and affordable opportunities for everyone alike. Well, some may say that it is perhaps too early to comment on how the results will shape up, however, regardless of what the outcome tends to be one thing is for sure, the people of India are sick of the extremist ways that gripped the country for too long and are today lining up by calling for one India for all stakeholders!
Dr Kamal Monnoo
The writer is an entrepreneur and economic analyst. Email: kamal.monnoo@gmail.com