Narendra Modi’s early tweet after his stupendous sweep at the polls, said it all. He described the BJP victory as “Bharat Ki Vijay…” And how right he was! The people of India have delivered their verdict — 814 million of them. We have to bow our heads and accept the new order with humility and grace, no matter what our reservations and apprehensions about the man who will soon be anointed the Prime Minister of the world’s largest democracy. Change was imminent. Change has happened. A brand new chapter in India’s history has begun. The first few lines are still being written, even as the final numbers get firmed up. This is not the time to gloat. Or mourn. There is a great deal of work that needs to get done. And it needs to get done quickly. Let us see if Narendra Modi and his team live up to people’s high expectations from the party that promised “Minimum government, maximum governance.”
Is anybody really surprised by the numbers we have seen? Yes and no. Political pundits had predicted pretty accurately (for a change!) that the country was ready to shift gears and elect not just a new leader, but a new political ecosystem. India has given its mandate to a brand new leader. Indian voters have demonstrated their faith in a person who decisively projected dynamism and strength, stressing on “development” over “dynasty” all along. Perhaps it was that precisely pitched emotive call — to finally overthrow a family that had effectively run and ruined the country for six decades — which did the trick. Let’s be honest — this was a vote against the Gandhi family. It was also a vote against systemic and sustained corruption.
Make no bones about it. Voters equated the two — the Gandhis and corruption — and delivered a strong verdict against the Congress-led UPA government. It’s a verdict that says one hell of a lot about the frustration and rage of the electorate, the youth of the country in particular. Mr Modi’s strident call to aggressively fight India’s first family of politics was the trigger that led to the snowballing of a nation-wide revolt aimed at overthrowing Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul Gandhi, two individuals who had become emblematic of all that was wrong in India’s polity.
The real test for Mr Modi and his team begins now.
All eyes will be on the man who toppled several apple carts and changed the paradigm as it were. Political discourse will never be the same again — historians will talk in terms of pre-Modi and post-Modi India. The biggest achievement of elections 2014 is the collapse of the class-caste mindset, and there can be no better example of that development having taken place than “Chaiwallah” Modi. One of his cleverest comebacks to the “tea seller” jibe was to use that very putdown to his advantage and make Mani Shankar Aiyar regret his words.
While the shehzada and the empress refused to read the writing on the wall, and Congress courtiers in Mrs Gandhi’s durbar fiddled away, India was changing. And how! The young today don’t give a damn about which politician went to Oxford (Salman Khurshid found that out when he lost) and which one sold tea. They backed the person who was like them… only far more ambitious and intelligent. The RSS and the BJP took an enormous gamble when it was decided to make NaMo the face and future of the BJP. His was the sort of belligerent personality that antagonised and alienated the old school. A lot of concerned citizens had a problem with his handling of Gujarat riots and the more recent “Snoopgate”. These were and remain moral issues that cannot be swept under the carpet. All eyes will be on the new government to see how old enemies, bitter rivals and trenchant critics are dealt with by NaMo. More than any other person, how will the NDA deal with Robert Vadra?
Mr Modi is known not to forget or forgive. There is widespread fear that he will go after those who have criticised him in the past, those who opposed him, those who mocked him. Vendetta is a harsh and ugly word. If Mr Modi proves his detractors wrong by not being vindictive or petty, he will win over many die-hard opponents who at the moment are watching their backs. What India needs is not a witch hunt, but a thorough clean up. And this is where Arvind Kejriwal’s jhadoo played an important role. Never mind the Aam Aadmi Party’s poor showing. It began as a one man crusade and grew into an authentic people’s movement. It will always be seen as a defiant protest that fearlessly took on the mighty. For doing just that, we should thank Mr Kejriwal. As for Rahul Gandhi, let’s not crucify the Reluctant Prince. It was a tough job that was thrust on him. The poor guy tried. Alas, India did not find him good enough. The Congress Party has been decimated. Which is a good thing. This signals the death of dynasty, and the rebirth of democracy.
Jai Hind!
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