Divided we stand: Under the weight of powerplay and ego

In the recent past, Uttar Pradesh’s ruling party, Samajwadi has been facing battles not from the opposition, but from within. As father and party president Mulayam Singh Yadav and son Akhilesh, also the Chief Minister, have been locking horns over various issues, things get tougher.

Families feuding against one another, especially when they’re in the limelight, are not uncommon and are seen across spheres, from politics to business, and even in the film industry. Whether it’s the Ambani brothers’ division of companies, Maneka and Varun Gandhi siding with their family party’s opposition or Raj Thackeray’s decision to form the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena after differences with his cousin and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav — ego and power seem to be the driving force behind wedges between power families.

“The clash is always because of two power centres and when there are differences in their perspectives,” says Kamala Ganesh, a professor of sociology at the University of Mumbai. “With Akhilesh and Mulayam’s case, both are in power and no one has relinquished their power. If we look at other cases like Karunanidhi or even Jayalalitha, we’ll find that eventually there will be reconciliation, at least publicly”.

“Of course, what will happen is a realignment of power, some compromises and hidden agendas, which the public will never get to know,” adds Kamala.

The lack of a charismatic leader could also lead to power struggles among family, says Prof. Ramachandran, executive director of the Thomas Schmidheiny Centre for Family Enterprise at ISB. He says, “In the absence of stewardship, values of service and family level code of conduct, this is bound to happen. Families that lead political parties ought to have shared purpose and strategy to remain unified and build ‘competitive advantage’ for the whole family.”

And while these feuds take up most of our primetime media coverage, others add that such battles have a heavier impact not just on the families but on the industry they’re in, and the country itself. Jayaprakash Narayana, founder and president of the Lok Satta party, says, “There is a desperation to use family as a ladder, instead of relying on your own hard work. And once that happens, the family-driven positions always follow autocracy — someone in the family will decide. So there will be jealousy between two brothers, such as the case with Stalin and Alagiri in Tamil Nadu. It’s a very feudal, medieval approach and unless we change that, we will suffer as a country.

“The party will suffer eventually. In the short term, people may fall in line, but ultimately we see how it affects it — today, the Congress is in decline, Samajwadi party has fights. You’re deterring the finest people, the ones with the best ideas and ambitions won’t be given a chance. How will such a party survive?” he asks.

According to Andhra intellectual forum convenor Chalasani Srinivas, hero-worshipping is what propagates these feuds. “People propagate themselves as heroes, and that only this or that clan can rule, and this is causing irreparable damage to democracy. As Mayawati rightly said, issues like these distract people from the real problems and they, in the end, pose together for family photos saying everything is fine.”

But looking at the larger picture can actually help families work through their ego. Says film historian S.M.M. Ausaja, “Sometimes, when there are differences, it only makes sense to separate and realign oneself. However, if this separation is mutual and amicable, it is beneficial to both parties. Several of B.R. Chopra’s hits were directed by Yash Chopra. Since Yash was so talented, they later separated — and this was a mutual decision. Yash was groomed under B.R. Chopra and later, both the brothers went on to do great work, which means that not all parting is done with distaste.”

— With inputs from Swati Sharma, Somudra Banerjee and Pooja Salvi