While a safe guess is that Parliament elections could take place sooner than later, issues are being raised in a flurry to sway the public mood in favour of, or against, some political parties. In the forefront of these attempts is, obviously, the ruling BJP itself. After cold-shouldering an issue for nine years, the Modi establishment is now reviving its promise for the ‘one nation, one poll’ system. It is also in a mood to rename India as Bharat, a sure shot to boost the morale of the Hindi belt. Alongside, it is catching on a statement from DMK minister Udayanidhi Stalin that Sanatana Dharma has no relevance in today’s world, as its tenets are used to “perpetrate caste-based and other discriminations against disadvantaged segments of the population like Dalits, tribals etc.” The BJP energetically turned this into a national issue and is seeking the governor’s permission to prosecute the minister. In a democratic nation, a minister should have the freedom to express his views without fear or favour. But, the BJP’s overdrive now is to whip up sentiments and win more votes from the Hindi belt. All these, over and above the recent push to introduce a Uniform Civil Code (UCC).
These issues have their merits and positive action is welcome. But a point to stress is, should the nation face the parliament elections with these as the central agenda with grave exclusion of the matters of urgent importance. For one, the failure of the Modi establishment to check freewheeling corruption! To argue that the Prime Minister is not corrupt means little when he presides over an empire of corruption and does not show the nerve to check such tendencies through hard-edged actions. Vigilance sleuths catching an official or two, here or there, meant little. By doing so, the department is only proving its relevance to exist, while its ranks too are seen to be largely corrupt, as also the entire police, revenue and other sectors in state after state.
Administrative and other reforms on multiple fronts have either not been attempted at or left half done or were undone under pressure as was the case with the farm reform legislation. Judicial reforms are not even attempted at. The government lacks the courage to bell the cat while the Supreme Court mandarins put spokes into the wheel. Cases are piling up in courts and justice is delayed as cases are investigated and argued for decades in gay abandon. What this government did and did not do must be reviewed before the polls. The election must be fought on such issues. The nation cannot afford to miss the wood for the trees.