A
Generation
Shift


A Generation Shift
Uday Dandavate

India has voted for ending the politics of divisiveness. Indian voters have voted
for a power shift to a new political culture. They have reaffirmed their faith in the
leaders who were perceived to be untainted by power mongering and have
established, through their actions, worthiness of representing a new face of India.
Rahul Gandhi, Navin Patnaik, Nitish Kumar and Dayanidhi Maran represent a
Generation shift in Indian politics.

In the Lok Sabha elections of 2004 Mrs. Sonia Gandhi single handedly led the
Congress Party’s election campaign and surprised the congressmen,
psephologists and the media by dislodging the National Democratic Alliance
(NDA) government. By declining the Prime Ministership at the time, and instead
positioning herself as the watchdog of the United Progressive Alliance, Sonia
paved the way for further consolidation of the Congress party’s image in the
minds of Indian voters. The victory of Congress party in 2009 represents a
continuation of a political strategy that was set in motion in 2004. Dr. Manmohan
Singh’s contribution to Congress party’s victory cannot be undermined. In the
backdrop of prevailing political culture of divisiveness and opportunism,
Manmohan Singh’s image as a clean, well meaning, apolitical economist, leading
India’s experiment with a new economic model has put him in league with other
political leaders in the states who have been rewarded for their governance.

The opposition parties, on the other hand, have much to ponder about. Congress
party will continue working on its strategy for formalizing the restoration of the
Nehru-Gandhi dynasty through imminent and ultimate transition of Rahul Gandhi
to the position of the Prime Minister of India. The opposition parties, on the other
hand, need to respond urgently to a nation craving for a generation shift, new
ideas and more options.
One of the key messages of this election is, voters’ declining enthusiasm for
BJP’s post-Vajpayee shift towards a Advani/ Modi brand of politics. Sushma
Swaraj, has already attributed the defeat partially to the absence of Shri Atal
Bihari Vajpayee in the campaign. Govindacharya once called Vajpayee the
“Mukhauta” of the BJP. This Mukhauta was not available during this election. A
paradox of this election is represented in the success of Narendra Modi in Gujrat.
He may have become a liability for the BJP at the national level due to his close
association with the communal riots of Gujrat. However, he was able to match
the performance of Naveen Patnaik and Nitish Kumar in his state and improve on
his own performance from the previous Lok Sabha elections, by asking the
voters in Gujrat to focus on his governance. The BJP will now have to determine
which path it wants to take, and whether Narendra Modi’s credentials will help or
hurt it in the long run at the national level.

While the congress party is striving to reclaim its historical dominant position in
the Indian political system, the opposition space is unfortunately lacking in a
progressive, youthful, and innovative leadership that can inspire a pan-india
vision of the future. The speaker of the last Lok Sabha, Somnath Chatterjee has
on numerous occasions expressed his frustration at the declining quality of
debates in the parliament. Prof. Hiren Mukherjee, Ram Manohar Lohia, Barrister
Nath Pai, Jotirmoy Basu, Prof. Madhu Dandavate, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Pilloo
Modi, and many other veteran parliamentarians once kept the government in
check inside the Parliament while building political organizations that offered
alternative programs and a vision for the India of their dreams. Over the years,
the opposition politics have increasingly fragmented along regional, communal
and casteist lines. Furthermore, greed for power has given rise to a new class of
political wheelers and dealers who are more interested in keeping their options
open for making deals with ruling party, rather than providing a clear,
progressive, and alternative agenda for the future.
This election has proved again that Indian democracy is maturing. However it
also points to the looming danger of Indian Polity reverting to a one party
domination and to the perpetuation of a dynasty. As long as Indian society is
divided along economic, cultural, and social lines, there will be a need for a pan-
india vision that focuses on equal opportunities for all. Herbet Hoover once said,
“Competition is not only the basis of protection to the consumer, but is the
incentive to progress.” Indian political system requires healthy competition.