25 मार्च 2019 को काँग्रेस सरकार एक अनाउंसमेंट करती है कि वह 25 करोड़ हाउसहोल्ड में से सबसे ज़्यादा गरीब 20% लोगों को जिनकी वार्षिक आय 72000 से कम तथा मासिक आय 12000 से कम है, उन्हें 6 हज़ार रुपये महीना या 72000 रुपये सालाना की आय देगी।

वैसे तो यह स्कीम भाजपा सरकार द्वारा प्रस्तावित ‘प्रधानमंत्री किसान सम्मान योजना’ की राइवल लगती है लेकिन एक नज़र देखने पर उससे कहीं ज़्यादा बेहतर भी लगती है। ज़मीनी नज़रिये से क्या यह पूरे तरीके से संभव है, इसे कैसे लागू किया जाएगा और इसमें कठिनाइयां क्या-क्या आएंगी, यह सब समझना होगा।

6000 रुपये हर महीने या 72000 हज़ार सालाना देने का मतलब यह नहीं है कि उन गरीब 20% के अकाउंट में हर महीने 6000 रुपये या 72000 रुपये सालाना भेज दिया जाएगा, बल्कि इस स्कीम के अनुसार यह एक ब्रिज का काम करेगी, कैसा ब्रिज आइए समझते हैं।

मान लीजिए आपकी फैमिली की महीने की इनकम 4000 रुपये है या आपकी फैमिली की सालाना इनकम 48000 रुपये है, तो जो बचा हुआ पैसा, जो कि 2000 रुपये महीना या 24000 रुपये सालाना है, आपकी मिनिमम आय को बराबर करने के लिए वह पैसा सरकार की तरफ से आपको इस स्कीम के तहत दी जाएगी।

अब हमें यह समझना होगा कि सरकार यह इन्श्योर कैसे करेगी कि भारत के 20% गरीब लोग कौन हैं, जिनको इसका लाभ मिलना है?

भारत जैसे देश में करप्शन कितना ज़्यादा है और नकली डॉक्यूमेंट बनाना कितना आसान है, हम और आप अच्छे से जानते हैं। भारत आज भी आधिकारिक इनकम डाटा नहीं कलेक्ट करता है, इसलिए वे 20% लोग जो इसके असल में लाभार्थी हैं, उनका आंकड़ा निकालना बहुत मुश्किल होगा और हम सभी जानते हैं कि भारत में इनकम सर्टिफिकेट प्राप्त करना बहुत ही करप्ट प्रॉसेस है।

एसईसीसी डाटा-2011 (सामाजिक-आर्थिक और जाति आधारित जनगणना) का उपयोग अगर किया जाए तो भी इसे पूरी तरीके से नहीं समझा जा सकता कि कौन इसके लाभार्थी हैं क्योंकि भारत में गरीबी चेक करने के भी बहुत अजीब तरीके हैं। जैसे कि आपके पास किस टाइप का घर है कच्चा या पक्का, ज़मीन ज़ायदात कितनी है, परमानेंट जॉब है या नहीं इत्यादि। इनकम डाटा सही तरीके से इकठ्ठा किया ही नहीं जा सकता है।

अब हम समझते हैं कि इसका क्या असर होगा

• रघुराम राजन ने अपनी नई किताब ”थर्ड पिलर” के विमोचन के दौरान कहा कि यह स्कीम सोचने और कहने के लिए तो ठीक है लेकिन भारत की वित्तीय सच्चाई को ध्यान में रखना होगा, जहां भारत में राजकोषीय घाटा हर साल बढ़ता जा रहा है, इसे इम्प्लीमेंट करने में बहुत सावधानियां बरतनी होंगी। उन्होंने यह भी कहा कि अगर इसे सही से इम्प्लीमेंट किया गया तो यह क्रांतिकारी तरीके से चीज़ों को बदलने में सक्षम होगा।
• अगर इस स्कीम के तहत सभी 20% घरानों को इसका लाभ दिया जाए, तो हर साल बजट पर 3 लाख 60 हज़ार करोड़ के लगभग का बोझ आएगा।
• अभी अलग-अलग माध्यम से 3,27,679.43 करोड़ केंद्र द्वारा 29 स्कीमों में दिए जा रहे हैं, जिनमें मनरेगा, स्वच्छ भारत मिशन, नैश्नल हेल्थ मिशन और नैश्नल एजुकेशन मिशन प्रमुख हैं।

तो क्या काँग्रेस सरकार इन सभी योजनाओं से काटकर यह स्कीम लागू करेगी? अगर किसी और तरीके से करती भी है, तो इसका असर राजकोष पर बहुत ज़्यादा पड़ेगा जो शायद पूरा नहीं किया जा सकेगा।

The post काँग्रेस की 72 हज़ार बांटने वाली योजना तो अच्छी है लेकिन पैसे कहां से आएंगे? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

घोर माओवाद प्रभावित दंतेवाड़ा ज़िले के नकुलनार इलाके में मंगलवार शाम माओवादियों द्वारा किये गए आईईडी ब्लास्ट में दंतेवाड़ा से भाजपा विधायक भीमा मंडावी की मौत हो गई। हमले में चार जवान शहीद हो गए। घटना से पहले पुलिस ने विधायक मंडावी को छोटे रास्ते से जाने को मना किया था और माओवादी हमले की आशंका व्यक्त की थी लेकिन मंडावी नहीं माने और उसी रास्ते से गए जहां घात लगाए बैठे माओवादियों ने बारूदी विस्फोट कर विधायक के वाहन को उड़ा दिया।

भीमा के वाहन के पीछे तीन अन्य वाहन चल रहे थे। इसमें दो वाहनों में 8 जवान और उनके समर्थक बैठे थे। फायरिंग होता देख जान बचाने के लिए इधर-उधर छिप गए। विस्फोट इतना जबरदस्त था कि पांच किमी दूर तक उसकी आवाज़ सुनाई दी। घटनास्थल पर सात फुट चौड़ा गड्डा हो गया।

दंतेवाड़ा ज़िले के गदापाल निवासी भीमा मंडावी 2008 में विधायक चुने गए थे। 2013 के विधानसभा चुनाव में काँग्रेस की देवती कर्मा से हार गए थे लेकिन 2018 में हुए विधानसभा चुनाव में भाजपा ने टिकट दिया। इस बार देवती कर्मा को 2071 वोट से मात दी।

भाजपा विधायक भीमा मंडावी मंगलवार शाम तकरीबन पांच बजे श्यामगिरी में आयोजित मेले से वापस लौट रहे थे। इसी बीच नकुलनार थाने से 4 किमी पहले घात लगाकर बैठे माओवादियों ने ब्लास्ट किया। पुलिस के अनुसार माओवादियों ने घटना में तकरीबन 70 किलो आईईडी का इस्तेमाल किया था।

विस्फोट के तत्काल बाद छिपे हुए माओवादियों ने फायरिंग करनी शुरू कर दी जो कि लगभग आधे घंटे तक चलती रही। दंतेवाड़ा के एसपी डॉ. अभिषेक पल्लव ने माना कि पुलिस के पास इस किस्म के हमलों को लेकर इंटेलिजेंस की सुचना थी इसलिए एक बूथ को शिफ्ट भी किया था और विधायक मंडावी को भी सुचना दी थी।

सोमवार को भी भीमा मंडावी और अन्य उम्मीदवारों के साथ माओवादियों से मोर्चा लेने वाले डीआरजी जवानों की टीम भी थी और इस वजह से कोई घटना नहीं घटी। भाजपा विधायक भीमा मंडावी ने सोमवार को ही आम जनता के बीच श्यामगीरी मेले में जाने की बात कही थी, जिसकी जानकारी वहां मौजूद माओवादियों को हो गई थी।

बचेली कुंवाकोंडा मार्ग पर भीमा मंडावी की गाड़ी को ब्लास्ट से उड़ाने की योजना 24 घंटे पहले बनाई गई थी। मंगलवार को उस 13 किमी के बचेली कुंवाकोंड़ा मार्ग की चुनावी व्यस्ता से डीमाईनिंग नहीं की जा सकी थी, जिसकी जानकारी मृत्यु से पहले भीमा मंडावी को थी। टीआई बचेली शील आदित्य सिंह द्वारा बार बार मना किए जाने के बाद भीमा मंडावी ने काह कि नहीं जाऊंगा फिर भी उसी रास्ते को चुन लिया जहां माओवादियों ने लैंडमाइन्स बिछा रखी थी।

आश्चर्यजनक बात है कि बचेली और कुंवाकोंड़ा के टीई क्रमश: शील आदित्य सिंह और जीतेन्द्र साहू को पता था कि विधायक जी मना किए जाने के बावजूद खतरनाक रास्ते पर निकल गए हैं। भीमा मंडावी राष्ट्रीय स्वयंसेवक संघ आरएसएस से जुड़े कट्टर हिंदुत्त्वादी नेता थे, जो आदिवासियों से आदिवासियों को लड़ाने वाले खूनी संघर्ष सरकारी सलवा जुडूम अभियान से भी जुड़े थे।

ज़ेड श्रेणी की सुरक्षा में खुद को महफूज़ समझने की चूक में मारे गए मंडावी। माओवादियों ने इसके पहले भी उनको निशाना बनाया था लेकिन वह बच निकले थे। 25 मई 2013 को बस्तर के झीरम घाटी में काँग्रेस की परिवर्तन यात्रा पर हमला कर माओवादियों ने काँग्रेस के बड़े नेताओं समेत 29 लोगों को मार दिया था।

यह घटना भी विधानसभा चुनाव के दौरान घटी थी। यह समझा जाता है कि झीरम घाटी हमले के पीछे एक षडयंत्र था। बचेली से नकुलनार का यह 38 किमी मार्ग खूनी सड़क के नाम से फेमस है। यह पहली बार है जब 15 वर्ष तक छत्तीसगढ़ में सत्ता में रहे भाजपा के किसी विधायक की माओवादी हिंसा में मौत हुई है।

The post छत्तीसगढ़ में बड़ा माओवादी हमला, विधायक मंडावी समेत 5 लोगों की मौत appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

नए वोटरों को लुभाने के लिए नए तरीके 

पार्टियों का मेन अजेंडा  

दो नहीं, पांच गठबंधन 

आसान नहीं है राह 

The post इस चुनाव नए तरीकों से युवाओं को लुभाने की छिड़ी है जंग appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is just not a politician, he is more than that. He is an idea that most Indians were subconsciously waiting to transform into a reality; a thought that is not metaphorical, and a consciousness that is amalgamated with unaccountable aggression, anger, and apathy.

If you look around, what do you see?  In a span of five years, India as a society has witnessed a vociferous and unapologetic jingoism, upper-caste fascism, and unfettered perilous politics, Orwellianism of data and privacy, jobless growth, anti-beef pogrom and post-truth narratives on media.

One cannot blame and bash PM Modi totally. He is just acting as a medium for many of us to unleash our inherent egotism and oppressive attitude. As a community, while building the so-called modern civilization of tall buildings and cities, we are unknowingly failing the socialization processes. The ‘agents of socialization’ have compromised with irrational thinking, and adjusted to cognitive tools with incoherent thoughts; as such it is anyway a post-truth era and an epoch of anger, materialism and confirmation bias.

PM Modi is just delivering to his audience, what we had been knowingly or unknowingly feeding each other till date. Most of his toadies see their reflection in his personality, mindset, and speeches. If you try to make them  ‘think’ by putting forth a rational perspective, they will bash you for triggering their matrix of fake consciousness and clutches of fake news.

Ignorance is not a ‘demonetized’ bliss, in today’s fake-news ecosystem. Read Alt-News co-founder Pratik Sinha’s interview to unearth the grand circus of Modi’s media policy.

A survey report, in the month of October 2017, by the PEW Institute, revealed that the majority of Indians prefers autocracy and military dictatorship. “In India, where the economy has grown on average by 6.9% since 2012, 85% (of people) trust their national government,” Pew Research said in a report based on its survey on governance. According to this survey, more than one-fourth of Indians (27%) want a “strong leader”. These numerical conclusions summarize the growth of ‘Modi syndrome’ in India and hint at the context of this article.

The Modi syndrome is being systematically injected into the social system of India, thoroughly equipping a new environment (New India) in a way that people would automatically pay blind obeisance to the authorities and their political statism, by letting the people assimilate a new culture without direct acceptance, otherwise dissents would anyway experience the heat for not adjusting. A few weeks back, in this context, a young BJP candidate Tejasvi Surya in his speech made it succinct, “if you are not with Modi, you are with anti-India forces”. Such immersion of ‘Dunning-Kruger effect’ is the latest evaporation of a perilous trend, which is for sure to get the constitutional, post-2019 election.

It is not a conspiracy anymore to comprehend that ‘Modi syndrome’ is a new normal. The gradual development of Modi syndrome, since May 2014, has made India collapse on her ‘freedom of speech’ global index rank (published in the year 2018) from 136th to 138th, just one rank above the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (which stands at 139th).

On the other side of the world, do you recollect the apathetic nature of his crowd and toadies shouting ‘Mari nakho, mari nakho (kill him, kill him)‘ at an election rally in his Gujarat state, in the year 2007, when Modi was assuring his citizens that Sohrabuddin Sheikh ‘got what he deserved’? I guess, No.

In today’s political climate, his assurance has received an extendable warm welcome in our society which is eventually normalizing Modi syndrome. Titles like “Urban Naxal“, statements like “go to Pakistan“, premises like “If you are not with Modi, you are anti-national”, whatabouteries like “what did Nehru do?” etc are just the advanced stages of ‘Mari nakho, mari nakho’ school of thought intended to mechanically hijack the cognition of mass audience from discovering the truth and intellectualism.

The citizens who do not experience these online statements/certificates are brutally suffering from ‘Modi syndrome’ and far luckier to have their free speech not spiralled down to the culture of silence and suppression. For which, a renowned journalist Gauri Lankesh paid a heavy price.

The post The Social Psychology of ‘Modi Syndrome’ appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

लोकतंत्र के सबसे बड़े पर्व के चुनावी प्रचार में सेना का राजनीतिकरण, ट्रेन-हवाई यात्रा में टिकटों और डिस्पोज़ल कपों पर प्रधानमंत्री की तस्वीरों का प्रयोग, बिना लाइसेंस के नमो टीवी पर प्रधानमंत्री की सभाओं का लाइव प्रसारण और प्रधानमंत्री नरेन्द्र मोदी पर बनी फिल्म के रिलीज़ को लेकर भारतीय चुनाव आयोग का चरित्र संदेह के घेरे में आ रहा था।

यहां तक कुछ टेलीविज़न सीरियल भी आदर्श आचार संहिता के घेरे में आ चुके हैं, जो मोदी सरकार की योजनाएं और मोदी सरकार की तारीफों के पुल बांध रहे हैं। मोदी पर एक वेब सीरीज़ तक रिलीज़ की जा चुकी है, जो आचार संहिता का उल्लंघन है।

इस माहौल में स्वस्थ लोकतंत्र की मर्यादा का तकाज़ा समझते हुए चुनाव आयोग ने नमो टीवी के प्रसारण के साथ-साथ प्रधानमंत्री मोदी पर बनी फिल्म पर चुनाव परिणाम आने तक बैन लगा दिया है, जिसका स्वागत किया जाना चाहिए।

इसका एक दूसरा पक्ष भी है कि नमो टीवी और प्रधानमंत्री मोदी की फिल्म पर बैन करके चुनाव आयोग ने एक बड़ी बहस को रिलीज़ कर दिया है। इसमें कोई दो राय नहीं है कि खेमों में बट चुका देश सोशल मीडिया और सूचना प्रसारण के तमाम प्लैटफॉर्म पर बेसिर-पैर की बहस ज़रूर करेगा। हालांकि यह कोई नई परिघटना नहीं है, इसके पूर्व भी चुनाव आयोग ने अमिताभ बच्चन की फिल्म पर प्रतिबंध लगाया था, जब कॉंग्रेस के टिकट पर वो तब के इलाहाबाद और आज के प्रयागराज में लोकसभा के प्रत्याशी थे। उस दौर में सोशल मीडिया जैसी चीज़ नहीं थी और सूचनाओं के प्रसारण के लिए दूरदर्शन, रेडियो और अखबारों के अतिरिक्त कोई माध्यम नहीं था।

आज व्हाट्सएप, यू-टूयूब या आनलाइन फिल्म या नेताओं के भाषण लीक करके इस कमी को पाटने की कोशिश हो सकती है। हालांकि चुनाव आयोग ने चुनाव प्रचार के लिए सोशल मीडिया के उपयोग को लेकर निगरानी की बात प्रमुखता से की है। ज़ाहिर है, सभी को पता है कि संचार व्यवस्था में ओपिनियन लीडर की स्पीच मतदाताओं का मत निमार्ण करती है, इसलिए नमो टीवी और नरेन्द्र मोदी पर बनी फिल्म पर रोक लगाने के लिए विपक्षी दल चुनाव आयोग से लेकर सर्वोच्च न्यायालय तक दरवाज़ा खटखटा रहे थे।

कुछ लोगों का तर्क है कि चुनाव के दौरान उन सारे प्रतीकों पर प्रतिबंध लगा देना चाहिए जो राजनीतिक दलों के चुनाव चिन्ह हैं और आम मतदाता उनका इस्तेमाल दैनिक जीवन में करते हैं। इन लोगों को यह पता नहीं है कि चुनाव के दौरान पार्टियां मतदाताओं को लुभाने के लिए तरह-तरह के तीकड़म भिड़ाती हैं।

इस चुनाव के दौरान मोदी-राहुल-सोनिया की तस्वीरों वाली साड़ियां तक देखने को मिल रही हैं। पर्व-त्यौहार के दौरान तो मिठाई-पतंग-पटाखे तक जन-प्रतिनिधियों या नेताओं के देखने को मिलते हैं, जिनकी छूट चुनाव आयोग देता है। ज़ाहिर है इस तरह के बे-सिर पैर की बाते करने वाले ना ही चुनाव की गंभीरता को समझते हैं, ना ही किसी भी लोकतंत्र में संचार व्यवस्था में लोगों के परसेप्सन बनाने में संचार माध्यमों के भूमिका के बारे में जानते हैं। उनको यह भी नहीं पता है कि पार्टियां चुनाव चिन्ह के रूप में लोकप्रिय प्रतीकों को इसलिए चुनती हैं, ताकि आम मतदाता अगर किसी पार्टी के प्रतिनिधि को नहीं पहचान रहा हो, तो चुनाव-चिन्ह को पहचानकर मत का प्रयोग कर सके।

चुनाव आयोग के इस कदम की सराहना की जानी चाहिए

चुनाव आयोग के मौजूद निर्णय से कुछ लोगों की असहमति इसलिए भी है, क्योंकि पूर्व में चुनाव आयोग ने कुछ गलतियां कर दी हैं, जिससे चुनाव आयोग के बारे में अधिकांश लोगों की राय चाभी वाले गुड्डे की तरह है। जब जो अधिक चाभी घुमाता है, गुड्डा उस अनुपात में नाचने लगता है। इन गलतियों में यूपी में चुनावों के दौरान पार्कों में लगी हाथियों की मूर्तियों को ढकने की घटना भी है।

इस बात से कोई इंकार नहीं है कि सोशल मीडिया के दौर में वायरल हो रही सूचनाओं को रोकना एक चुनौती है। परंतु, जहां तक हो सके चुनाव आयोग द्वारा आदर्श आचार संहिता का पालन करते हुए चुनाव कराने की कोशिश के लिए उनका हौसला अफज़ाई ज़रूर करना चाहिए। साथ-ही-साथ अगर आदर्श आचार संहिता के मायने बताने के लिए चुनाव आयोग को सख्त होने की ज़रूरत है, क्योंकि चुनाव आयोग कोई मज़ाक बनकर रह जाने वाली संस्था नहीं है।

The post “मेरे लिए मोदी की फिल्म और नमो टीवी पर चुनाव आयोग का फैसला सराहनीय है” appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

दिल्ली के मुख्यमंत्री केजरीवाल ने ट्वीट किया है, “पाकिस्तान मोदी को क्यों जिताना चाहता है? मोदी जी देश को बताएं कि पाकिस्तान के साथ उनके कितने गहरे रिश्ते हैं? सभी भारतवासी जान लें कि अगर मोदी जी चुनाव जीते तो पाकिस्तान में पटाखे फूटेंगे।”

पाकिस्तान मोदी जी को क्यों जिताना चाहता है? मोदी जी देश को बतायें कि पाकिस्तान के साथ उनके कितने गहरे रिश्ते हैं?

सभी भारतवासी जान लें कि अगर मोदी जी जीते तो पाकिस्तान में पटाखे फूटेंगे। https://t.co/nWtsOFSMVl

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) April 10, 2019

दरअसल, केजरीवाल का यह ट्वीट उस खबर के बाद आया, जब पाकिस्तान के प्रधानमंत्री इमरान खान ने कहा,

अगर भारत के आम चुनाव में भारतीय जनता पार्टी की जीत होती है और नरेंद्र मोदी दोबारा प्रधानमंत्री बनते हैं तो शांति वार्ता की संभावना ज़्यादा रहेगी।

बस फिर क्या था कॉंग्रेस समेत सभी वे दल जो भाजपा के विरुद्ध चुनाव लड़ रहे हैं, उनकी बांछे खिल गईं कि आ गया ऊंट पहाड़ के नीचे। देखा जाये तो सबसे ज़्यादा धन्यवाद इमरान खान का कॉंग्रेस को बोलना चाहिए क्योंकि यह कलंक अभी तक उसके माथे फूट रहा था।

जब भी किसी राज्य में विधानसभा या देश चुनाव होते हैं तो भाजपा का एक बयान ज़रूर आता था कि यदि कॉंग्रेस चुनाव जीती तो पाकिस्तान में पठाखे फोड़े जायेंगे। पिछले दिनों ही मेहसाणा में बीजेपी की विजय संकल्प रैली, मुख्यमंत्री विजय रूपाणी ने कहा था,

जब 23 मई को परिणाम घोषित होगा और यदि गलती से कॉंग्रेस जीत जाती है तो पाकिस्तान में दिवाली मनाई जाएगी।

हालांकि पता नहीं लोगों ने इस बयान को कैसे लिया पर मुझे खुशी हुई कि पाकिस्तान में अभी तक सिर्फ ईद मनायी जाती है। हम भी चाहते हैं वहां दीवाली भी मने। तो भाई, अगर ऐसा हो तो इसमें बुराई क्या है? आप तो हिन्दुत्व के ठेकेदार हो, क्या आप नहीं चाहते पाकिस्तान में दीवाली मनायी जाये?

बहराल, मेरी उम्र कम है, इस लिहाज़ से ज़्यादा तो पता नहीं पर क्या 70 साल से ज़्यादा उम्र का कोई ताऊ या चाचा बता सकते हैं कि जब 1980 में पूर्ण बहुमत में इंदिरा गाँधी की सरकार बनी या बाद में राजीव की, इसके बाद नरसिम्हा राव की सरकार बनी हो या फिर दो बार मनमोहन सिंह की तब पाकिस्तान में कितने पटाखे फोड़े गये थे और कितनी बार दीवाली मनाई गयी?

आज देशभक्ति का अर्थ दूसरा है। छोटी-छोटी उम्र के नई नवेले देशभक्त हैं और वो सन् 1962-65 और 71 के देशभक्तों को तो आज कुछ और ही मान बैठे।

खैर, बात पटाखे की दुकान की चल रही है, अब अपने देश में पटाखे की दुकान खोलूं तो शायद चलेगी नहीं, क्योंकि क्रिकेट का अब उतना बुखार रहा नहीं और दिवाली पर सुप्रीम कोर्ट पालथी मारकर बैठ जाती है, तो सोच रहा हूं कि चुनाव तो हमारे यहां 12 मास चलते रहते हैं तो क्यों ना पाकिस्तान में ही पटाखे की दुकान खोल लूं।

अब यह सच में हो सकता है, जिसे-जिसे मेरी बात पर यकीन ना हो तो वे आरएसएस नेता इन्द्रेश कुमार जी का पिछले महीने का बयान ज़रूर सुन ले। जब वह कह रहे थे,

आप लिखकर ले लीजिए 5 या 7 साल बाद आप कहीं करांची, लाहौर, रावलपिंडी या सियालकोट में मकान खरीदेंगे और दुकान लगाएंगे।

अब इससे अच्छा मौका कब आएगा। तो सोच रहा हूं कि लगे हाथ पहले ही जा बैठूं। 5 साल बाद तो दुकान इतनी महंगी हो जाएगी कि क्या पता फिर मिले या ना मिले।

असल में यह चुनाव के समय का रिवाज़ सा बन गया है, जब पाकिस्तान में चुनाव आते हैं तो दो महीने वे लोग हमें सुनाते हैं, बर्बाद करने की धमकी देते हैं, ये कर देंगे वो कर देंगे और जब हमारे यहां चुनाव आते हैं, तो यही सब हमारे यहां दोहराया जाता है।

पता नहीं यह सब देश की जनता कब समझेगी। नेताओं से भी मेरा निवेदन है कि ईश्वर के लिए अपने कार्यों में ना सही कम-से-कम बयानों में कुछ बदलाव ले आओ। बाकी बस यही कह सकता हूं कि चुनाव है भाई, लगे रहो ताकि इस भारत-पाकिस्तान, गद्दार-देशभक्त, तू-तू मैं-मैं में मतदाताओं का भी मन लगा रहे और देश के असली मुद्दे छिपे रहें।

The post “सोच रहा हूं पाकिस्तान में एक पटाखे की दुकान खोल लूं” appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

As the stage is all set for the 17th general elections in the world largest democratic country, the political parties and their supporters are all geared up. The campaigns are on a high, and the so-called ‘Josh(enthusiasm)’ is also high among the politicians, party workers as well as the voters. It must be admitted that political parties have tried hard to accommodate the expectations and ambitions of every section of the society in their respective manifestos.

There is no denying the fact that the youth and farmers play a vital role in Indian politics. But are their woes really paid heed to?

Congress in it’s manifesto said that if it returns to power, 22 lakh job vacancies will be filled by March 31, 2020. However, will this really put an end to the burgeoning issue of youth unemployment?  Likewise, the BJP aspires to make India the third largest world economy by 2030, but how is the unemployment rate of a whopping 6.1% (that is highest in the past 45 years) justified? So, on whom we can rely?

The young population is the building block of the nation,  but unfortunately, most of the political parties cash in on their dreams and hopes to garner votes. Moreover, nowadays, the new trend of jingoistic nationalism is being used as a tool to distract the young voter of this country from the actual issues on the ground. Indeed the present government made some stern decisions after the Pulwama attack which is quite appreciable, but how will it justify the gross neglect of other raging social and economic issues like unemployment, inflation, poverty, communal violence, etc. It seems as if everything just took a back seat amidst the chaos of  Pulwama and Balakot.

Coming on to “farmers”. As we all are familiar that they are being misguided since independence and their existence is taken into cognizance only when the elections are nearing. The irony is the food providers of this country are ending their lives because of starvation. They have been always left with false promises and a few loan waivers.

Apparently, the government runs to the rescue of big industrialists when they go bankrupt, but doesn’t flinch an eye when thousands of farmers commit suicide because of indebtedness. Moreover, the real question is if the loan waiver is actually a solution to all their problems? It’s high time that the authorities came up with a concrete solution to put an end to the miseries of small and marginal farmers.

In such circumstances the youth, the farmers and every aware citizen of this nation should resolve to vote for the candidates who will actually work for their benefit at the grass root level without any vested interests. That person could be anyone,  maybe not from any political party, maybe not a so-called ‘Bahubali’, maybe a literate or an illiterate, or maybe a social worker. Rather than casting your vote on the basis of caste, money or alcohol, vote for real change, vote for India as a whole.

The post When Will The Government Start Paying Heed To The Real Issues Plaguing The Country? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

(This is part of a series of articles called #ManifestoMusings, based on the manifestos of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Indian National Congress for the Indian General Elections 2019)

The Indian General Election season is here!

Will it be ‘Abki baar (phir) Modi sarkaar’ (‘this time (again) it is time for a Modi government’) or ‘Jaat par na pat par, mohar lagega haath par’ (‘neither based on caste nor on creed, my vote will be on the hand’; the hand is the symbol of the Indian National Congress)? Will India finally vote for a regime mainly on development issues or are we still some way off from such a scenario? How important will caste dynamics be? Will communal and sectarian politics play a role?

These are all questions that shall matter immensely as the country gears up for the General Election 2019, beginning from 11 April 2019.

The manifestos for Indian General Election 2019 of the major Indian national parties: Bharatiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress, have now been released. Both parties have looked into various aspects of life and society in their respective manifestos, right from the economy and jobs to foreign affairs and defense. While one focuses on its leader (the BJP’s with the focus being on Narendra Modi), the other seems to focus on people, in general. One talks of resolutions (‘Sankalp‘) while the other talks of its ability to deliver (the Indian National Congress).

As the country gears up to vote, I would like to look at the key points that are covered (or not covered) in the manifestos, in a series of articles called #ManifestoMusings. This first article is looking at infrastructure building plans and projects suggested by the two parties. The importance of infrastructure building cannot be highlighted enough. Be it power, roadways, buildings, lines of communication, rail-lines or waterways, infrastructure is crucial for the smooth functioning of the nation. India’s road to growth that is sustainable and comes with a manufacturing sector that is competitive has to be with reliable and robust infrastructure across the country.

India currently invests capital worth about 35% of its GDP in infrastructure. However, as per government estimates, India still needs more than ₹1 crore crores in infrastructure investments over the next ten years to bridge the infrastructure deficit! On top of this, one needs more capital for future growth with a tried-and-tested ‘multiplier effect’ of infrastructure investments on economic growth (and GDP) across the various sectors.

As both parties pitch their manifestos for claiming power in 2019, let us see what the two parties have to say on this.

Is The Congress Going Back To The Basics?

The Indian National Congress begins its infra-pitch (understandably) by highlighting that ‘flawed design, inefficient execution, insufficient capacity and poor maintenance of infrastructure have dragged India’s growth rate down‘. Not wanting to sound unfairly harsh but most of the years since India’s independence in 1947 has seen a Congress government in the center, and so I wonder if that statement, in itself, is not a self-indictment. To counter this problem,

Congress promises to address these deficiencies with a combination of planning, technology, quality and accountability.

The Congress has travelled a long way since the inception of the Republic, often at the helm of matters. British economist Barbara Ward once wrote that ‘the Indian record in both infrastructure and industry is one of substantial advance on a broad front, (…) like the big push needed to achieve sustained growth.’ Even though the GDP of India did not grow immensely (also because there had been near zero-percent growth in the first half of the twentieth century) but the basics of economics and infrastructure investment done right gave the country a near 4% economic growth until around the Indo-China war in 1962.

As much as the Congress worked on this front last time they were in power, there remains a lot more left to be done. And the INC gets down to it, by going back to the basics. It begins with the arteries of the country, when it comes to trade and movement of individuals, in a manner of speaking: the roadways and railways. It looks at not only maintaining the existing infrastructure relating to these two areas but also building infrastructure wherever lacking or required. It promises to increase the total length of national highways, with a focus on quality, accountability, maintenance and design. The Congress also talks of massively modernising ‘all outdated railway infrastructure’. Both road and railways construction is open to private capital and capacity being involved, along with an emphasis on the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model.

It is interesting that in the very next section in its infra-pitch, the Congress arguably tries to correct the one thing that cost the INC the elections last time: natural resources and spectrum allocation. A number of scams and scandals rocked the Congress’ boat to the extent of nearly sinking it in 2014. In 2019, the INC says that:

Congress promises to review, re-formulate and implement the policy on spectrum and on exploration and extraction of natural resources. The policy will address issues of allocation, capital investment, enhanced production, transparency, efficiency, risk-reward concerns, environmental sustainability, inter-generational equity, accountability, competition and appropriate sectoral regulation.

There still is a lot to be done on this front that the Congress does not talk about. Water is a major natural resource that needs efficient usage. City water distribution systems need to be improved (possibly with latest technology like digital technology with flowmeters), which can also give some additional water revenues. Interception and treatment of sewerage water for reuse before it enters water bodies is also an area that needs work. When it comes to coal, pre-processing, combustion as well as modernization of coal plants are important areas where infrastructure needs to improved, and where digital technology deployment could improve results.

The same goes for oil and gas industries in the country. The Congress does seek to look into clean energy and promises to encourage the increased use of green energy over fossil fuels, but does not quite lay out the details on how it seeks to do so. The party also has a dedicated promise to substituting LPG in homes by electricity and solar energy, in the long term. Big promises that can help immensely, but only time will tell if these have substance in them.

Power is an area that is of utmost importance in India, in industry, civilian habitation and elsewhere. The BJP has been trying to project its electrification drive as a major poll pitch. The INC tries to dent this one area that the BJP has made a key issue: electrification of houses, particularly in rural India, by saying that the Congress promises “to enhance availability of, and access to, electricity in rural areas by encouraging investment in off-grid renewable power generation with ownership and revenues vesting in local bodies”. The Congress talks of electrifying every village and every home ‘in the true sense’, whatever that means.

As per government sources, 5,61,613 villages were electrified till 31 October 2013, which was a little more than 90% of the villages! Given that many of the villages that the BJP government claims to have electrified have less than the minimum 10% electricity required to call it truly ‘electrified’, the Congress can use this pitch effectively if it can present the arguments and a case for the same. The other big elephant in the room is quality assurance. Under the rural electrification scheme, the cost for providing free electricity connection to a household that is Below-the-Poverty-Line (BPL) is ₹3,000, though it has been noted that this cost is seen to be inadequate and lower than required for good quality and proper implementation of the scheme. This is where the Congress can step in and possibly even rope in its much-quoted PPP model.

When it comes to infrastructure related to rural development, the Congress looks into other areas as well, saying that “in order to fill the gaps in sector-specific schemes as well correct any unintended bias”, they would like to empower Panchayats and municipalities to themselves design and implement their own infrastructure projects, along with promising to create a ‘non-lapsable Rural Infrastructure Fund’ to provide grants and loans to such projects. The reason I find this a bit ludicrous is because there already exists a Rural Infrastructure Development Fund that was created by the Government of India within the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) in 1995-96, with a cumulative allocation of ₹3,20,500 crore, including ₹18,500 crore under Bharat Nirman. Unless the Congress has short-term memory loss regarding this fund created by their own government (though their historical disregard for non-Gandhi PMs from their party like P.V. Narasimha Rao is well known), the party needs to stop building castles in the air where ramparts have long been standing.

Not to forget, how can one talk of rural development in a Congress manifesto and not talk of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)? The Congress talks of launch MGNREGA 3.0 in 2019 to ‘address issues of water security, soil quality and similar issues that aggravate farmers’ distress’. They propose to increase the guaranteed days of employment to 150 days in blocks and districts where 100 days employment guarantee has been achieved. This is a bit too ambitious since government data shows that less than 15% of eligible families have got 100 days of work in a year since 2006!

While the INC also talks of using MGNREGA labour in new areas such as the Waterbodies Restoration Mission and the Wasteland Regeneration Mission, what I find strange and a tad bit disturbing is that they talk of using the MGNREGA funds to also build public assets such as classrooms and health centres. I do not see what is new or different in this since public assets development is already given a high priority. The Congress goes on to assure that its will connect all habitation with a population of 250 with a road under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, besides working on broadband connectivity and the National Drinking Water Mission.

What I find commendable is the commitment to passing the Right to Homestead Act that has been languishing in the government corridors since 2013. The NDA government agreed to discuss people’s right to homestead land in June 2018 last I read about it and there has not been much thereafter. The Act will provide a homestead for every household that doesn’t own land or a home.

When it comes to urban development and urban policy, the Congress promises to formulate a comprehensive plan for urbanisation after consulting with various stakeholders. The consultation will be on topics such as governance (including mayors directly elected by the people, which I personally do not feel is a great idea for being imposed across the country, as also put forth by Mathew Idiculla in this article, and multi-disciplinary teams to do urban planning and implement municipal works), housing, climate change and pollution, transportation systems and disaster management.

Much like the BJP’s smart city plan, the INC seeks to build new towns and cities as well as satellite towns across the country. Moreover, the plan to devolve power and functions to the local bodies is good thought financial devolution may need stringent checks and balances in place for it to not become a model for the corruption seen in places like the Bombay Municipal Corporation. The Congress also talks of promising the Right to Housing for the urban poor and building night shelters for the homeless. They also talk of ensuring basic amenities to slum dwellers. I ask them: what is so different in this, either in design or implementation, from the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)?

The BJP Bandwagon: Bharatmala, Jal Jivan Mission And More

The best way to describe what the BJP has broadly done is to hear from their own introductory blurb in their infra-pitch, where it highlight its strong performance on the infrastructure building front and the problems created by the Congress rule before 2014,

In the 10 years of UPA rule, policy paralysis and corruption had derailed infrastructural development. The last five years, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, infrastructural roll out has been put back on track. For the first time, India has started marching and is being seen on the path of global standards in infrastructure and civic amenities. The speed of constructing rural roads has doubled and 90% of rural road connectivity has been achieved.

Furthermore, India has become a net exporter of electricity and has achieved maximum production of coal and maximum distribution of LED bulbs. There has been an unprecedented rise in the port capacity and the speed of setting up new rail lines, gauge conversion, and electrification of railway tracks has doubled. We have invested at an unprecedented level in building infrastructure in the last five years. This includes massive budgetary allocation for railways, highways, village roads and other health as well as educational infrastructure. We have also started and matured into a new technology driven platform called PRAGATI (Pro-active Governance and Timely Implementation). Through this, mechanism, we are de-bottlenecking major projects on a regular basis through video conference with offcials across the country.

Not only does the BJP speak of cutting edge technology and infrastructure building such as seeking to connect every Gram Panchayat with high speed optical fibre network by 2022 in its manifesto, but much like the INC, the BJP also has a dedicated section on basic infrastructure, particularly roadways and railways. For roadways, the BJP puts forth the specific target of constructing 60,000 km of National Highways in the next five years, in continuation of `constructing roads at an unprecedented pace’.

The BJP seeks to double the length of National Highways by 2022 and complete the first phase of the Bharatmala project, besides seeking to launch Bharatmala 2.0, to `support the states to develop state road networks connecting the interior regions to the main roads and to effectively leverage the economic potential and market opportunities of the concerned regions’. The referenced Bharatmala project is a centrally-sponsored and funded roadways project for building roads for more than 83,500 km by the Indian government at a staggering investment of ₹5.35 lakh crore, making it the single largest outlay for a government road construction scheme.

The project will build highways Gujarat and Rajasthan, moving north to Haryana and Punjab, then covering the states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and some portions of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, before finally moving to West Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Manipur. Bharatmala is slated to connect 550 district headquarters to minimum 4-lane highway by raising the number of corridors to 50 and moving 80% freight traffic to national highways. On roadways, the BJP goes on to say that it would like to bring in new technology and ways of road construction, maintenance and operation. To make matters even more cutting-edge, the BJP promises to work on trying to make India a world leader in e-mobility. As per the party, ₹10,000 crores have already been allocated for launching a programme to promote vehicles operated on clean energy and batteries. They promise to keep up this work to ensure `expansion of this new mobility experience’.

When it comes to railways, the BJP says it shall continue to work on making the experience of travelling on railways safe, satisfying and clean, with development of infrastructure for the same. This includes their poll promise of electrification of all railway tracks, equipping all main railways stations with WiFi and ensuring the conversion of all viable rail tracks to broad gauge by 2022.  Recently, RailTel (a Mini-Ratna PSU of the Indian Railways) provided high-speed WiFi at 985 stations with their own funds and at 415 other stations by associating with Google as the technology partner for Radio Access.

In the last five years, all unmanned level crossing (UMLCs) on broad gauge lines were eliminated, CCTV coverage at stations as well as trains have been improved, a new ticketing website with better features has been released, handheld POS machines have been introduced for ticketing and food billing to ensure transparency and over 1.8 lakh bio-toilets have been installed in trains. All these achievements make one positive of the promises the BJP makes. The BJP also speaks of expanding the connectivity of, and experience in, high speed, new trains such as Vande Bharat Express across the country in the next five years, along with completing the dedicated freight corridor project by 2022.

Not to be left behind, air travel and coastal development are also poll issues for the BJP. The BJP also promises to double the number of airports from 101 as it stands, in the next five years. Another area it looks at is coastal development, on which it says that it will double the country’s port capacity in the next five years. Looking at the comprehensive development of the coastal areas, it talks of development of cities, transportation and industrialization in the coastal areas. It talks of upgrading the infrastructure for connecting the coastal areas with their hinterlands to ensure efficient and smooth transportation. Speaking of a comprehensive, integrated plan for water transportation infrastructure, the BJP not only talks of developing inland waterways but also focus on the potential of coastal development for tourism, transportation and welfare of the coastal communities under the recently launched Sagarmala programme.

Moving on to the key area of infrastructure related to energy and electrification, the BJP says that it made a commitment in 2014 to provide 24×7 electricity to all and the country has moved in leaps and bounds in that direction. As mentioned previously, this claim is a bit beyond the reality in many parts of the country but the country seems to be heading in the right direction. Even though the BJP government is far from electrifying every home as it had envisioned, it has come a long way by bringing electricity connections to 23.9 million households across 25 states, as per the government’s Press Information Bureau. It is true that exemplary work has been done in boosting the generation of electricity (though there is still a lot to be done on this front) and ‘in laying down of transmission lines and in putting up the nationwide transmission grid’.

With India now apparently becoming a net exporter of electricity, the BJP seeks to now direct its attention at ensuring that a right mix of energy is used for a cleaner environment, supplying quality electricity to all and making state electricity bodies efficient and financially sound. When it comes to the first point, the BJP highlights that India has `achieved cumulative installed renewable energy capacity of 76.87 GW as on February, 2019′ and is `on track to achieve our goal of 175 GW by 2022′. The BJP seeks to continue efforts in this direction and invite other countries to become members of the International Solar Alliance. Last but not the least,

Human beings need water above all else (arguably). As a result, infrastructure for harnessing and using water resources is extremely important. The BJP looks into this with the first major point being the formation of a Ministry of Water that shall unify `the water management functions to approach the issue of water management holistically and ensure better coordination of efforts’. To highlight the existing, India already has a Ministry of Water Resource, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (MOWR). The planned Ministry of Water will also be taking forward the river-linking project conceptualized by Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, to ‘ensure a solution to the problems of drinking water and irrigation’. Even though I am highly cautious about the river-water linking project, due to ecological reasons, the BJP seems to be going in the direction of dedicated efforts to make India have enough water in every household, across the country. Besides wanting to launch a ‘Jal Jivan Mission’ with a special programme named ‘Nal se Jal’ to `ensure piped water for every household by 2024′, the BJP also seeks to ‘ensure sustainability of water supply through special focus on conservation of rural water bodies and ground water recharge’.

Last but definitely not the least, going by the principle of ‘cleanliness is next to godliness‘, the BJP plans to continue its ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan‘. They seek to take the mission to a new level through ‘sustainable Solid Waste Management in every village’. Through the mission, the BJP seeks to ensure disposal of all liquid waste through ’emphasis on faecal sludge management and reuse of waste water in rural, peri-urban and unsewered areas’. One of the key areas of neglect in India on this front has been open defecation and lack of toilets (remember the movie Toilet: Ek Prem Katha?). The BJP seeks to ensure that all habitations attain what they call an ‘open defecation free status’ and that those that already have attained this should be able to sustain this change.

In Conclusion

The largest democratic exercise comes with the largest dilemmas on whom to elect as the next Prime Minister of India. Narendra Modi or Rahul Gandhi. Both the parties have come out with well-made manifestos that cover a whole range of topics. In this analysis I have tried to be as impartial as possible in my assessment when it comes to the poll pitches for infrastructure. I believe that while the BJP has an exciting vision and the necessary gumption to bring meaningful change, the Congress wants to get its basics right though it could do more with novelty in the ideas proposed. Both parties have their strengths and weaknesses, like any other party. I would like my readers to decide after going through the manifestos and my series #ManifestoMusings, of which this is the first article. Mandate 2019 is a massive decision for the fate of the country, and as responsible citizens of the country, it is our duty to take an informed and well-thought-out position.

Every vote counts, every voice is important.

These are exciting times and I look forward to seeing another chapter being inked into the history of modern India on 23 May 2019 when a new government shall take office in India.

Jai Hind!

The post An Assessment Of BJP And INC’s Poll Pitches For Infrastructure appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

The first day of voting for the 17th Lok Sabha election began with its share of controversy, as curious onlookers saw food packets with ‘Namo Foods’ inscribed on them being sent inside the poll booth at sector 15A in Uttar Pradesh’s Gautam Buddha Nagar constituency.

According to news reports, policemen stationed outside polling booths in Noida were reportedly distributed food packets that had the logo ‘Namo foods’ emblazoned on top of them in Hindi.

After the reports emerged, the Uttar Pradesh Chief Election Office (CEO) L Venkateshwarlu has reportedly taken cognisance of the matter. The CEO has also sought a report from the Gautam Nagar District Magistrate on the matter, as per a tweet by a News18 reporter.

Meanwhile, the official Twitter handle of SSP Noida clarified that the food packets were not from any political party, and were procured at a local level.

Appeal to all that do not trust rumours. Pls go by facts @noidapolice @dgpup @PTI_News @adgzonemeerut @igrangemeerut @ceoup @ceouptweets @Uppolice pic.twitter.com/Pi3besBOsY

— SSP NOIDA (@sspnoida) April 11, 2019

Even as an online debate started on Twitter whether this was a violation of the model code of conduct, BR Tiwari, Addl. Chief Election Officer, told ANI that the packets came from a “very old shop” which happens to have “the same brand name”.

BR Tiwari, Addl. Chief Election Officer on reports of Namo food packets being distributed in Noida: We came to know about this from media reports. There is a very old shop, more than 10-year-old, which has this brand name. It has been highlighted in a different manner in media pic.twitter.com/J0FXBLKSXO

— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 11, 2019

According to Indian election rules, the presence of any paraphernalia related to parties or candidates is barred from within 200 metres of polling booths on Election Day.

Over the course of the last few days, the election commission has been swamped with accusations of election rules violations and opposition parties have even accused it of going slow over complaints that involve the BJP.

The post ‘Namo Foods’ Distributed At Noida’s Polling Booths On 1st Day Of Voting appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

We are about to witness the biggest festival of the world’s largest democracy on 11th of April. Approximately 900 million eligible voters are going to hand over the future of India to a new government for the next five years, out of which 84.3 million will be voting for the first time. Every political party is eyeing this new vote bank. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed to the ‘first time voters’ to cast their vote in record number and the Bhartiya Janta Party is running a campaign “Pahla vote Modi ko” to woo these budding voters. The Congress party president Rahul Gandhi is also visiting universities to establishing himself among the youth and to grab this uncharted territory.

As per the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) report in 2014, BJP had attracted 34% young voters aged between 18-25 years. By that time, Modi was the most popular leader among youth, but paradoxically, the same youth is the ‘most annoyed vote bank’ this year as they have suffered more in Modi’s regime.

So, the biggest question is what is the mood of millions of youngster who came of age this spring? Who will they vote for? What are the major issues they will have in mind before pushing the decisive button?

Want Job, Not Jumla

Modi government has shown a false dream of providing two crore jobs to the youth, but in reality they subducted the same number of jobs. According to NSSO report, between financial year 2012-18, almost 2 crore people lost their jobs and the unemployment is at all time high since the last 45 years. The youth feels cheated by the NDA government.

As a youth, I’m worried about my future. My two elder brothers and two elder sisters are unemployed – in spite of being graduates. I will also be a graduate by 2020 and I have the same fear of being unemployed. The Congress party has promised that it will offer 22 lakh jobs in government sector as soon as possible after forming the government, but critics say there aren’t enough vacancies under the central government to fulfil such a promise. Whereas BJP has not given any concrete road map in terms of providing jobs neither have they fulfilled their earlier promises.

But before voting, youth of India will definitely analyse the agenda of political parties pertaining the youth. They will minutely observe promises regarding jobs and the possibility of those promises becoming a reality. Indian youth will definitely differentiate between job and jumla, and will vote to defeat the politics of lies.

Want Secularism, Not Chauvinism

The divisive politics being played in the name of region, religion and caste is converting Hindustan into Lynchistan day by day. We are slowly moving towards a civil war. In this day and time, the lynching of minorities and Dalits have become common. Since 2015, almost 90 people have been killed by fractious mobs. Among these people, those who were minorities, had been brutally murdered by the “self affiliated Gau Rakshaks” by blaming them for beef eating and slaughtering cows, whereas those who were Dalits had been killed due to the prevailing feudalistic mindset of the so-called highborn people. In current scenario, hyper nationalism is at an apex point under the patronage of the incumbent government. The ruling party and politicians are busy in just certifying dissenting voices as anti-nationals and making statements about sending them to Pakistan.

So this time, I will vote as a ‘first time voter’ to eliminate the poison of hate and to re-establish secular ethos of India.

Save Kisan, Not Ram

As per 2018 financial year, approx. 58% of Indian population depends on agriculture which unfortunately contributes only 17-18% of GDP. This is sufficient to throw light on the situation of Indian farmers.

According to CSDS study report approx. 76% farmers want to give up farming. The crystal clear reason is that the government has failed to fulfil its promises. The situation of agriculture has never been good but during this government the situation has become worse. It is leading poor farmers in debt and they are committing suicide. National Crime Record Bureau report says that more than 296,438 Indian farmers have committed suicide since 1995 and 45 farmers commit suicide every day.

But who cares?

Every political party is busy playing with the religious sentiments of the people. They have burnt the bridge of the ‘Ganga-Yamuna Tehzeeb’ and incited people at a level of animalism in the name of religion.

Politicians are preaching sacred things to those people who are starving. If they really care about religion and respect humanity; they should first ensure better economic conditions for the farmers. Instead they are busy disseminating propaganda for vote bank politics. They must follow the mantra of Chanakya “Dharmashya Mulam Artham, Arthayshya Mulam Kamam” – which means wealth is the root of religion and if wealth will be weaker, the religion itself will become weak.

So, they must take care of India’s largest population whose soul resides in villages. And this is the only way through which they can win the hearts of people, as well as the fascinating game of power politics. The youth doesn’t want Jumla and utopian promises, anymore. The son of a farmer will vote for the party which will take some concrete and relevant steps to ensure the survival of his father. He will vote to save the lives of 263 million people who are farmers just like his father.

The post The First Time Voters Want Jobs Not Jumlas appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

The Right to Information in India was not available at the birth of its democracy, but only after it faced successive defeats and failures. The RTI mechanism emerged fundamentally as a demonstration of the desire to move the process of democracy towards participatory and contributive democracy, thereby strengthening it.

The Supreme Court of India is known to be the guardian of the Constitution and the custodian of fundamental rights. The first progressive step with regards to the implementation of RTI mechanism in India was taken by the Supreme Court in the case of State of Uttar Pradesh v. Raj Narain [1975 AIR 865]. In the meritorious judgment, J. Mathew held that “The people of this country have a right to know every public act, everything that is done in a public way by their public functionaries. Their right to know, which is derived from the concept of freedom of speech, though not absolute, is a factor which should make one wary when secrecy is claimed for transactions which can, at any rate, have no repercussion on public security”. Therefore, it was the judiciary which filled the void in the laws by providing a cornerstone foundation to the concept of Right to Information in India.

Understanding The Conflict Between RTI And Judiciary

A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India is currently hearing a matter related to an immediate question i.e. whether the judiciary and the office of Chief Justice of India fall within the purview of Right to Information Act, 2005. The issue involves the personal assets of the judges and results of the collegium to fall within the scope of the RTI Act.

The interpretation of provisions of the RTI Act, 2005 depicts that the above-mentioned factors do fall within the scope of the Act. After interpreting Wednesday’s hearing in the Apex Court, an engaging fact of this conflict can be inferred. The Advocate General representing the Supreme Court’s Central Public Information Officer quoted certain reasons as to why the information related to judiciary must not come into the public domain.

To quote some reasons, the AG argued that the RTI regime will destroy the independence of the judiciary, the disclosure of decisions of the collegium will ruin the future of the judges, and the litigants would lose their confidence in them. These reasons were not backed by any legal provisions, that could support the arguments of the AG and were mere inferences drawn from the rational mind which alone cannot be the ground for exemption of judiciary from the information sought under the RTI Act, and hence can be said to be irrational and inconsistent with regards to the objective of the RTI Act.

For maintaining a balance between the Right to Information and Judiciary, both on the grounds of logical reasoning and legality, the following conclusions can be drawn.

Judiciary Not Exempted Under The RTI Act

For any information to be exempted under the Act, it must fall under the purview of the exemptions provided by the statute under Sec. 24. Interestingly, the section does not include the judicial organ of the Government. This makes the whole issue of applicability of the Act on the judiciary indisputable.

Severability And Information Sought Under The Act

Sec. 10 of the Act provides with the rule of severability which means that if the disclosure of information involves private information, such disclosure may reasonably be severed or separated from any part of the information and other relevant information will be made available to the public. To consider an example, if the information involves private information that has a connection with the health or life of the judge which he feels should be protected under the umbrella of his Right to Health and Privacy, especially after the 2017 judgment of Justice K.S. Puttuswamy v. Union of India [(2017) 10 SCC 1] and Mr. X v. Hospital Z [(2000)9 SCC 439] then such disclosure may reasonably be severed from any part that contains exempted information under Sec.10.

Harmonizing The Relationship Between Organs Of The Government Vis-à-Vis Other Two Organs Of The Government

The principle of separation of powers between the three organs of the state namely, the legislature, executive and judiciary is the sine qua non of the operations of these organs as envisaged under the Constitution of India. Therefore, another reason to allow the application of RTI on the judiciary is the protection of the doctrine of distribution of powers between organs of the Government.

Like most of the democracies of the world, the executive and the legislature are directly questioned for their actions. The judiciary has no special reasons, neither under any statutory provision nor rationally, to be left from falling under the scope of RTI when the other two organs are unquestionably doing so.

Right To Information Vs Right To Privacy: Is There Any Conflict Between The Two?

As earlier mentioned, there can be no invasion of privacy with respect to any information sought under the RTI Act regarding the disclosure of personal assets of judges and results of the collegium. Let us first consider the point of disclosure of personal assets of judges. The Right to privacy under Art. 21 is not an absolute right and thus is subject to certain restrictions. The test of compelling state interest is one such exception to this right. If the disclosure falls within the meaning of larger public interest and passes the test of compelling state interest, then such information has to be made available to the public without any question and hence, no question on the violation of Right to Privacy.

Considering the second point i.e. disclosure of results of Collegium, this disclosure will let the general public, as well as the judges, know about the true manner in which the appointments were conducted and therefore, will help in curbing the chances of controversies that might occur between the judges and public due to the lack of transparency in the collegium process. The recent controversy of the transfer of J. Sanjeev Khanna to the Supreme Court in January this year can be seen as one of the contemporary examples.

Conclusion

In order to attract the provisions of the Act, the information sought must have a larger public interest. If disclosure of assets of the judiciary is essential to be kept open in the public domain, then there is no denying the fact that the same should be done unarguably. If not, then the judge has no reason to fear such disclosure. The only thing which the judiciary should worry about is to secure public confidence.

People of the country have increasingly started believing in the decision of the courts and have, from time to time, shown their faith in the judicial process. This move of exempting judiciary from RTI without any just, legal or logical reasoning will cast doubts on the judges and the public confidence in such a pious institution will be lost.

“If there is an open government where there is full access to information regarding the functioning of government, then only the participants of democracy i.e. people can play an important role in the democracy”. – Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer, Freedom of Information, 1990

The post Should Judiciary Come Under The Purview Of RTI ? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

Whenever we hear about positions like MP, MLA, IAS or IPS, some of the first words that come into our minds are –  VIP(Very Important Person), prestige, richness, etc.  When in reality, these positions represent the role of public servants who are mandated to work for the public and fulfill their demands. They are accountable to the people which is the essence of democracy. But, what actually happens is that people appointed to such positions end up turning into VIPs. They live a luxurious life, the kind that any common person can’t even think of.

Traffic is expected to stop when their cars with blue or red beacons drive by down the road. They get special privileges at every public place and people salute them by joining hands or bowing in front of them. They attend high profile parties instead of public meetings. Nobody can approach them and they are like celebrities for the people. They are hardly approachable to the ‘common folks’.

What kind of servants are they? Why are public servants treated as VIPs? What is the logic behind this?

Civil servants like IAS or IPS officers are allotted big residential bungalows with multiple servants and lots of security at the expense of public money. I want to know, why? Why can’t they be given accommodation in a normal locality to make them approachable for the public? Why is there a need for beacons on their cars?

These questions also apply to elected representatives like MPs and MLAs. Unlike civil servants, people directly elect them for society’s welfare but there is no direct contact between the people and their representatives. Candidates visit door to door asking for votes and then disappear for 5 years once the election is won. Amid such conditions, how can we expect these MPs/MLAs to work for us when they don’t even know about our problems?

It is common sense, whenever we want to help someone, we meet him/her and inquire about issues to solve them. But, our representatives don’t have time to visit their constituencies even once in 5 years. How can we call this democracy?

It is understandable that the so-called “public servants” have immense power which gives them authority over the public. But, people are scared of them because they can misuse those powers to ruin anyone’s life. The government has not provided an avenue for the public to make these public servants accountable to the people. I believe the concentration of power in the hands of a few public servants makes them VIPs.

I think a public servant should live like a commoner as far as possible. We are often surprised that instead of selecting talented people, our bureaucracy is made up of corrupt officers. In my opinion, this happens because people are attracted to such positions mainly due to the perks and prestige attached to them. Once these unnecessary privileges are removed from these positions, India will get the civil servants who are actually dedicated to the nation.

Some would say that these perks act as an incentive to attract talent. But, why would a candidate who has the intention to serve people need such incentives? The opportunity to serve people at such a large scale is an incentive in itself.

The term “Public servant” should be realised in a real manner in India to root out corruption and improve the quality of democracy. There should be proper checks and limits on the assets of these rich governments servants. The government should impose restrictions on the wealth possessed by them and keep them at the same level as the public in every aspect. My ideas may seem radical or utopian, but this can be done easily. I think it will be more logical when public servants sit with the public and interact in a friendly manner in order to understand their problems and solve them, rather than passing orders from an air-conditioned bungalow or an office.

The post Why Are Public Servants Treated Like Royalty In India ? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

2019 Lok Sabha elections are approaching and in the meantime, the two big parties, i.e. BJP and Congress have released their respective manifestos. Here, the major focus would be on the Congress Manifesto which was released on 3rd April 2019 in the presence of Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Other major congressmen were also present during the event.

The most important aspect highlighted in the Congress’ manifesto is their flagship scheme named NYAY (Nyuntam Aay Yojana). Under this scheme, 5 crore families (below poverty line families) will be provided with a benefit of ₹72,000 per year.

Highlights Of The Congress Manifesto 2019

• The party has promised to fulfil 22 lakh job vacancies within the public sector for increasing the employment rate. Moreover, they have pledged to make the jobs as their first priority.
• The party has promised to come up with 10 lakh new Seva Mitra positions in every gram panchayat and urban local body.
• The country is aware of the agrarian crisis and there have been numerous schemes, benefits and efforts taken, but the situation has hardly changed. On the same line, the Congress party has pledged to come up with a separate “Kisan Budget” every year and formation of a permanent National Commission on Agricultural Development and Planning.
• The party has promised to double the expenditure on health and education to 3% and 6% respectively by 2023-24.
• GST is one of the most prominent steps taken by the Modi Government that has several criticisms surrounding it. Thus, the Congress party assured in their manifesto to simplify the tax rate, zero-rating of exports and exemption on essential goods and services.
• The party has promised to set up a separate National Election Fund that will be provided to the major political parties during election times.
• Further, the party promised to increase the number of days in MNREGA to 150 days from the existing 100 days.

However, the manifesto seems to be appealing by targeting the major issues pertaining to poverty and employment. But there are several implementation hurdles especially in case of NYAY scheme. Giving 5 crore poor households  ₹72,000 per year means a total of ₹3,60,000 crore per year. This is a huge amount and a burden on the government revenue when already, there are schemes such as Ayushman Bharat which is incurring huge expenditures on the government’s treasure. Also, increasing the man-days under MNREGA scheme will be not so easy due to finances. Another important sector focused on the manifesto is employment. However, the figures provided are quite ambitious when compared with the proposed time frame.

Thus, to be neutral, the Congress Manifesto 2019 has targeted the right sectors and issues but the proposed promises do not seem to be realistic in terms of finances. However, it will depend on the election results which will be out on 23rd May – whether the manifesto has been successful in creating enough impact on the people of India or not.

The post How Realistic Is Congress’ 2019 Election Manifesto? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

We are in the midst of yet another general election and with the declaration of results on May 23, 2019, members of the 17th Lok Sabha will be chosen. Thus, in the hectic election season, election speculation news, in-depth coverage, analysis and opinion scattered across the media ecosystem are but glaringly obvious. However, as political rhetoric and frenzied election campaigns garnished with calamitous language reach cacophonic climax a few questions remain unanswered.

Which political party demonstrated a commitment to end the criminalization of politics? Which political party is sincere to end dark money in political funding? Which political party remained steadfast in its resolve to eliminate poverty, hunger, and illiteracy? The answer is ‘NONE’, though the electoral manifestos have become ubiquitous in the political landscape that plays a crucial role in visions of party democracy.

Under the circumstances, questioning the country’s political process and government efficacy is what truly makes one patriotic – not the other way around. The idea, however, is not to get drawn into the whirlpool of fanatical patriotism.

Let’s remember country’s first president Dr. Rajendra Prasad’s address to the Constituent Assembly in November 1949, where he had said, “If the people who are elected are capable and men of character and integrity, they would be able to make the best even of a defective Constitution. If they are lacking in these, the Constitution cannot help the country…….. India needs today nothing more than a set of honest men who will have the interest of the country before them….. We can only hope that the country will throw up such men in abundance.”

But alas, men of that ilk have been few and far between.

No matter who wins the 2019 election battle, issues like poor politics, corruption, growing income disparity, and communal churning will be extremely difficult to halt, much less reverse. No wall will be high enough to shield India from these events. Hence, whether it’s Modi or Rahul, Mayawati or Mamata, Pawar or Akhilesh, regardless of how 2019 election unfolds, the story is unlikely to have a happy ending. The choice therefore before 900 million voters in this general election is acutely limited as political parties continue to choose the candidates based on winnability and not pick candidates that best represent the interests of voters.

dentally, we have had enough of poor politics fixated on short-term gains, not addressing long-term challenges – from unemployment to agrarian crisis (Sir Malcolm Darling’s words continue to haunt us – the British researcher, wrote in 1925 that the peasant in India is born in debt, lives in debt, dies in debt and bequeaths debt) to proposed Nyuntam Aay Yojana, or NYAY to yet another promise of a “new India“. The resulting crisis seems stark, but not insurmountable though. With a set of sincere leaders at the helm of affairs of the nation, we can expect deeper changes in the country’s socio-political narrative to ensure democratic renewal and substantial policy reform.

And, to achieve that, the country needs to look beyond current frontline political leadership and look for other new generation dedicated leaders, capable of offering sincere and spirited leadership. The country is in dire need of leaders who are to share space for constructive voices and promote positive change in our political discourse. The country is in need of strong leaders who are not vulnerable to the fatal vices of corruption, rent-seeking, inefficiency, and self-serving or capricious leadership.

Even as writer and columnist Aakar Patel in an article recently reasoned why we should look forward to a hung Parliament after this election, I take the liberty of looking forward to a National government. Because, in a deeper sense, it’s no longer about the country’s politicians or its politics alone; it’s about 130 crore people.

It’s time to draw inspiration from David Gergen’s quote. The advisor to four U.S. presidents said “At a time when national politics is so broken, we are in desperate need of a new generation of leaders who cut their teeth on public service. Recruiting these leaders and giving them the resources to run for public office may be our best hope of breaking out of today’s mess.”

It’s indeed time for new political thinking, it’s time for new political leadership, it’s time for retailoring our notion and above all it’s time for a new form of government – a kind of government having people like Nandan Nilekani, Sachin Pilot, Nitin Gadkari, Pavan Verma, Yogendra Yadav, Jotiraditya Scindia, Nirmala Sitharaman, Baijayant Jay Panda, Jairam Ramesh, Varun Gandhi, Atishi and Raghav Chadha.

Setting Policy Priorities

It includes the overhauling of the public education and health systems, 100% literacy, strengthening the economy, national service for youth, judicial reform, electoral reforms, critical assessment of entire spectrum of reservation and quota policies as also ending well-entrenched VVIP culture.

Closing thoughts

Worry is not “who rules,” but whether who rules matters in terms of political process and government policy. The generational shift in political landscape will eventually see usual factors like caste, region, religion, etc. lose grip on Indian politics.

The post As Rot Runs Deep, It’s Time To Look Beyond Front-line Political Leadership appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

India is having its first national election in five years.

Partisanship in India is no better than in the United States. Probably much worse. Political party choices polarize families, friends, and whole communities, and every election season can be a very divisive time.

No wonder then that the US’ nearly 4.5 million Indian-Americans watch India’s elections with sharp eyes.

A recent episode on Indian-American Muslim comedian Hasan Minhaj’s show illustrated the nature of the diaspora’s interest in Indian politics. In a promo, he reveals his topic to Indian couples sitting at home. They are horrified: “Indian elections are a definite no-no.”

“Democracy is for people with power, people with muscle power and money power,” says one man. “It’s not for you and me.”

“There will be an accident,” says one woman. “You will be burnt to death. Be gone.”

“You cannot talk about Narendra Modi,” warns another woman.

Indeed, unless it’s something positive, then talking about Indian Prime Minister Modi can get people into real hot water. Last year in India, for instance, a high school teacher was arrested for writing on Facebook that voting for Modi is like “garlanding a dog”.

Talking about Modi in the US, meanwhile, is very controversial. The issue splits the Indian-American diaspora. One side believes in Modi and is devoted to advancing his vision for India. The other side believes Modi is a fascist leader with blood on his hands.

Nothing widens the divide more than the religious angle. Only about half of the Indian-American diaspora is Hindu. The other half is a diverse mix of Buddhist, Christian, Dalit, Muslim, Sikh, and so forth — or non-religious. Modi’s party is a religious nationalist party and he identifies as a ‘Hindutvavadi’ (supporter of Hindutva). The ideology teaches that all Indians are Hindus and non-Hindus are foreign to India.

Beyond differences of opinion, the diaspora is also split in how it is involved in the Indian election.

Those who oppose Modi often follow elections in India with great interest, and maybe even talk or write about them, but do little beyond. Those who support Modi organize rallies, training camps, and campaign events — in America. While one side alleges that Modi staged a pogrom, thousands of volunteers from the other side return to India to physically canvass for his political party.

Perhaps another reason that talking about Indian elections is controversial is because the Indian diaspora’s surpassing interest in the issue often slips into direct involvement — even to the point of serving as boots on the ground in India.

The opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), is just as guilty as Modi’s party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), of attempting to organize direct involvement of Indian emigrants in Indian elections. Yet they cannot hold a candle to the success of the BJP in harnessing the diaspora. The Overseas Friends of BJP (OFBJP) provides the organizational structure underlying that success.

The OFBJP was launched in America in April 1992 to counter negative press.

Eight months later, in December, a BJP-organized crowd of 150,000 tore down a mosque in India. Their fervor was stoked by speeches from BJP elected officials and even the party president, who demanded that the government build a Hindu temple there instead. Razing the mosque provoked nationwide riots in which an estimated 2,000 Muslims were killed. In response, the opposition-controlled central government temporarily banned the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a paramilitary involved in the violence.

The BJP, which was created by the RSS in 1980, responded to the scandal by establishing a strong international presence of trained party activists. Internationally, the OFBJP eventually expanded to nearly 40 chapters. In America, their membership is largely composed of U.S. citizens.

The OFBJP-US says its goal is to project a ‘positive and correct image of India’ in the West and ‘correct any distortions’ in media coverage. They work hand-in-glove with BJP leadership back in India. For years leading up to Modi’s 2014 election, OFBJP chief Vijay Jolly toured the U.S. to speak at diaspora rallies and meet American politicians.

“We need to touch base with as many among the diaspora as possible and to indoctrinate them with the BJP ideology,” Jolly says. Speaking in 2015, after the BJP won in India, he urged the OFBJP to be ‘expansionist’. He has since been replaced by Vijay Chauthaiwale as head of the BJP’s Foreign Affairs Cell.

Considering its 2014 levels, any expansion of the OFBJP-US would make its reach and potential for influence truly colossal.

Nationwide, it boasts 18 chapters in 13 states. In 2014, it reportedly had 4,000 members. It has an elected National Executive Committee of 10 people and a nearly 40-person National Council.

In 2013, over 1,000 people turned up to watch Modi deliver a live, televised address to the OFBJP-U.S.’s annual convention in Florida. When the BJP won India’s state elections in December 2013, the group organized victory parties around the country. In Houston, Texas, over 300 people showed up.

Then the OFBJP-US swung into high gear.

They had a three-pronged strategy. Organize phone-banks for Indian-Americans to call back to India and tell people to vote for the BJP. Finance a Modi victory fund. Travel back to India to put boots on the ground to campaign for the BJP directly. Like a sleeper cell waiting for orders, the group sprung into action in January 2014.

In Houston alone, a diaspora media outlet reports that 700 people “worked round the clock to motivate voters in India”. The key organizer was Ramesh Bhutada, who also happens to be Vice-President of the American chapter of India’s RSS paramilitary. Nationwide, then OFBJP-US President Chandrakant Patel said that thousands of activists were making 200 calls or more per day.

How much money OFBJP members actually donated to Modi’s victory fund is a difficult thing to determine. Yet the mass mobilization of U.S.-based BJP backers who went to India to canvass for Modi was widely reported.

By March 2014, Chandrakant Patel was personally leading a team of over 1,000 OFBJB-US operatives. Aside from promoting the party, some of them reportedly even ran polling booths. They remained in the country for the duration of the phased, month-long voting process.

Their hard work paid off. Modi was announced as the new Prime Minister on May 12. Over the ensuing weeks, the OFBJP-US hosted victory parties throughout America. One event in Atlanta, Georgia drew a crowd of 700. Others also drew hundreds.

Because of his human rights record, Modi was barred from visiting the U.S. in 2005. As the newly-elected executive of India, however, he was now free to travel. He soon made plans to do so.

To herald Modi’s arrival, Foreign Affairs Cell head Vijay Jolly again began touring the U.S. In September 2014, just four months after he was elected, Prime Minister Modi spoke to a crowd of nearly 20,000 in New York City. It was a publicity bonanza which enthused BJP backers all around America. For instance, diaspora media reports that Vijay Pallod, who campaigned for Modi in India, flew from Texas just to attend.

After 2014, the OFBJP-US continued to organize rallies, stage protests, and host tours by BJP elected officials from India, expand its membership, and train its activists.

The new OFBJP-US President, Krishna Reddy Anugula, estimates the group has a loose network of up to 300,000 Indian-Americans. They began mobilizing months ago in preparation for when polls open in India on April 11, 2019. Coordinated phone-banking is underway, activists are making hundreds of phone calls each, and putting in hours a day after work to support the Indian political party from America.

Anugula says that thousands of Indian-American operatives will travel to India to work until the phased elections end.

While these teams permeate India, trained activists in the U.S. are making a stir.

In February, after a local youth bombed a military convoy in Kashmir, the BJP blamed Pakistan and began agitating for war. As tensions soared between the two nuclear-armed powers, the OFBJP organized protests in at least six U.S. states to demand that India attack Pakistan. Signs said things such as “world hates Pakistan”.

They also began hosting Chai pe Charcha (Chat Over Tea) events. Chai pe Charchas have occurred in Washington, New York, Virginia, Michigan, Texas, and many other locations. One in Chicago on March 3 featured Sunil Deodhar, a BJP national secretary.

From America, they have also heeded the call of India’s Prime Minister.

Terming himself a ‘chowkidar’ (watchman), Modi declared in March, “Your chowkidar is standing firm and serving the nation.” He called on everyone working for India to say “Main Bhi Chowkidar” (I am a watchman). Obediently answering Modi, activists attending Chai pe Charcha events began publicly pledging to work for his re-election.

Most recently, at the end of March, over 400 activists gathered in California’s Silicon Valley for a conference featuring Kailash Vijayvargiya, a BJP national general secretary.

Thus, the OFBJP’s operational approach seems to follow this model. Embrace the political party line. Emigrate. Take up U.S. citizenship, which requires renouncing Indian citizenship. Spread the mother country’s party line to project a “positive” image in the adopted homeland. Cultivate diaspora interest in the party. Return to India — as U.S. citizens — to campaign for that party and instruct Indian citizens who to vote for.

Thus, every election season, the BJP harnesses the help of people who are dedicated to keeping the BJP in power in India despite having abandoned life in India themselves.

Elections in India conclude on May 19. Until then, the OFBJP promises to grow only more heavily involved. The impact of thousands of American boots on the ground in India remains to be seen.

It appears, however, that Indian-Americans organized by the BJP have already played a huge role in influencing Indian elections and are working to expand that role.

Perhaps that influence — some might call it interference — is one reason why, as Hasan Minhaj discovered, the topic of India’s 2019 General Election is no laughing matter for the Indian-American diaspora.

The post How India’s Ruling Party Mobilises Indian-Americans To Win Elections appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

With inputs by Gopika Bhat:

In a recent conversation with a friend of mine, we were contemplating on the perception of the Congress party that has formed in the eyes of the Indian electorate in the previous years. From their stifling defeat in 2014 to their struggles with portraying Mr Gandhi as a serious Prime Ministerial candidate given how he had been a popular meme template on the internet, to Mr Gandhi slowly finding his ground, to the Congress party genuinely working towards winning the next election, this former political monopoly has seen it all.

While we marvelled at the progress of this party, we could not consciously ignore the reason for this gradual change. We could neither ignore the reason they were dethroned by the BJP, nor could we ignore the situation that has forced them to take things seriously: the power of the voter.

Indian elections have been the largest elections in the world for a while now, thanks to our increasing population and to the diversity we proud ourselves of. What this brings to the table is the fear that the whim of the electorate induces in the parties. Moreover, the idea behind our Constitution defining a fixed five-year term for the party in power is another evidence of how the democratic process is enshrined into our political landscape. This idea of a limited period of governance is integral to holding the leaders accountable for their actions and their policies throughout their tenure.

In light of the knowledge of this claim, what is most vital to the essence of a democratic election is the voters’ ability to rethink their options again and again over every election. It is very necessary that we, as an aware electorate, continue to analyze the pros as well as cons of every party in question and don’t hesitate to re-position ourselves in terms of our political inclination.

History has, time and again, showed how people have changed their decision when they felt that the current representatives were misusing their power. For instance, after 34 years of ruling the state, CPM was voted out of power by the voters. Even the UP elections, where the BJP rose to power after defeating the Samajwadi Party, the most powerful party of the state, is another such example.

It has been seen that politicians resort to every possible method for winning an election. As the election dates come closer, they can be seen visiting the homes of the economically backward people, crying with them in their sorrows and leaving them with the promise that the poor would live happier lives only when they are elected to power. Politicians also portray themselves as the messiah of the common people, someone who is capable of solving all their problems, wiping their tears and also cleaning their feet.

Even a crowd favourite as Ms Indira Gandhi, who was seen as one of the most powerful politicians of her time and a champion of the country’s economy, couldn’t save herself from the wrath of the unsatisfied voter. In 1977, her invincible self lost the elections. Examples like hers present to us a picture, a picture that depicts the power that the Indian voter wields even today. After acknowledging this power, all that is left for us, as aware voters, is to introspect.

Did you support the Congress before 2014 and the corruption that reigned supreme during UPA-II made you look over to the BJP’s appeal?

Or did you vote in the BJP because of your affection towards the country’s ideals, but are now doubtful of how devoted they actually are towards protecting the country’s foremost declaration, the Constitution? Are you wondering if the Congress has really changed?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, congratulations! You just made use of an important feature bestowed upon us by the directives that our Constitution lays out.

According to me, the best feature of a democratic republic is not just the fact that we get to choose our own leaders. It is the fact that we get to choose our leaders repeatedly. It is because of this continuous sense of responsibility towards the sanctity of the country’s ideals that we have a working government in place. It is only in the presence of a politically aware citizen with the right political tools in hand, that we can aim towards contributing our best to society.

Therefore, when you go out to vote again this time, set your biases aside. I know that sounds tough, and it is frankly impossible, but acknowledge them, at the very least. Unpack the ideas and policies that the candidates in your constituency have to offer. Read up on how feasible those policies are and choose the most competent of them all. Don’t be ashamed of re-thinking your political ideologies, for power is a corrupting force and the individual, who you trusted five years ago, may not be the same person now.

Featured image for representative purpose only.
Featured image source: Public.Resource.Org/Flickr.

The post Being Able To Change Who You Vote For Is A Vital Part Of Your Rights As An Indian appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

हम पहले चरण के चुनाव प्रचार के आखिरी दिन का ज़िक्र कर रहे हैं, जहां उत्तर प्रदेश के लोकसभा चुनाव में महागठबंधन सपा, बसपा और रालोद की मेरठ के देवबंद में चुनावी रैली में मयावती ने मुसलमानों को काँग्रेस या किसी अन्य दल को अपना वोट नहीं देने की बात कही।

मायावती का यह भी कहना था कि बीजेपी और काँग्रेस चाहती है मुस्लिम वोटों में बंटवारा हो जाए। इस दौरान मायावती ने मुस्लिमों से केवल गठबंधन को वोट करने की अपील की थी। उस पर पलटवार करते हुए भाजपा के स्टार प्रचारक और सूबे के मुख्यमंत्री योगी आदित्यनाथ भी कहां थमने वाले थे।

उन्होंने मायावती के बयान पर पलटवार करते हुए कहा, “महागठबंधन के पास अली हैं तो हमलोगों के पास बजरंगबली हैं। योगी आदित्यनाथ ने कहा था कि अगर काँग्रेस, सपा और बसपा को अली पर विश्वास है तो हमें भी बजरंग बली पर विश्वास है।

गौरतलब है कि आचार संहिता उल्लंघन मामले में चुनाव आयोग ने योगी आदित्यनाथ और मायवती को नोटिस जारी करते हुए जवाब मांगा है।

ऐसे में क्या यह समझा जाए कि विकास, रोज़गार और भ्रष्टाचार के मुद्दे से हटकर अब भी राजनीतिक पार्टियां वोट के लिए धर्म की राजनीति करना नहीं छोड़ सकती हैं? देखने वाली बात यह होगी कि इसी तरह के बयान 2014 के लोकसभा चुनाव में भी सुनने को मिले थे मगर इसका पूरा लाभ भारतीय जनता पार्टी को मिला था। क्योंकि 80 में से 71 सीटों पर इनका कब्ज़ा रहा था।

अब देखना होगा कि इस बार अली के नाम लेने वालों को जनता अपना आशीर्वाद देगी या बजरंगबली का आशीर्वाद मिलेगा। हलांकि इस बयान पर चुनाव आयोग ने संज्ञान लिया है। मुख्य निर्वाचन अधिकारी ने स्थानीय प्रशासन से इस संबंध में रिपोर्ट भी मांगी है। आखिर क्यों उत्तर प्रदेश में किसी भी स्तर का चुनाव ‘ध्रुवीकरण’ की राजनीति में तब्दील हो जाता है? उत्तर प्रदेश के लिए यह कोइ नई बात नहीं है।

जनसंख्या और धर्म

उत्तर प्रदेश की कुल आबादी का 19.3% मुस्लिम आबादी है, वहीं, हिंदुओं की जनसंख्या लगभग 79.73% है। ऐसे में धर्म के नाम पर राजनीति लाज़मी है। ग्रामीण क्षेत्रों के मुकाबले शहरी क्षेत्रों में मुस्लिम वोट अधिक हैं। शहरों में 32% मुस्लिम वोट हैं और ग्रामीण क्षेत्रों में यह 16% है।

प्रदेश के उत्तरी क्षेत्रों में मुस्लिम बेल्‍ट की बाहुलता केंद्रित है। ऐसा माना जाता है कि यह वोट बैंक काँग्रेस या सपा के पक्ष में ही रहा है। 2014 के लोकसभा चुनाव में इस वोट बैंक का 66% हिस्‍सा सपा और काँग्रेस के खाते में गया। वहीं, 21% हिस्‍सा मायावती की बीएसपी के पास गया।बाकी, अन्‍यों में विभाजित हो गया था। आंकड़े यह भी कहते हैं कि जिन जगहों पर मुस्लिम वोट ज़्यादा हैं, वहां हिंदू वोट बड़े पैमाने पर बीजेपी के ही खाते में गए हैं।

काँग्रेस का मानना है कि मुस्लिम समुदाय का वोट उनका है। ऐसा इसलिए मानती है काँग्रेस क्योंकि भाजपा केवल हिंदूवादी राजनीति के ज़रिये कट्टरपंथी विचारधारा को अपनाती है। दूसरी तरफ सपा भी मुस्लिमों को अपना फिक्सड वोट बैंक मानती है। इससे पीछे दलितों की हितैषी कहलाने वाली पार्टी बसपा भी कहां हटने वाली हैं, उसका भी मानना है कि मुस्लिमों के हक की बात सिर्फ बसपा ही करती आई है।

इसलिए हर चुनाव के आते ही सभी मुस्लिम समुदाय के नाम पर राजनीति शुरू कर देते हैं। इन चीज़ों से भाजपा भी कहां दूर रहने वाली है।अपने संकल्प पत्र में तो तीन तलाक और सिविल कोड के नाम पर कानून बनाने का वादा तक कर दिया है।

हालांकि भाजपा को पिछ्ली विधानसभा के चुनाव में 2014 लोकसभा चुनाव से अधिक मुस्लिम वोट प्राप्त हुआ था। कहीं ना कहीं भाजपा इस वोट बैंक को अपनी तरफ और भी बढ़ाना चाहेगी। इसी को देखते हुए भाजपा का यह भी कहना है कि पिछली विधानसभा चुनाव में मुस्लिम महिलाओं ने भाजपा को वोट दिया था। उसका उदाहरण भी देखने को मिला है।

मुस्लिम बाहुल्य क्षेत्रों में भाजपा को अन्य दलों से ज़्यादा वोट मिले थे। अब इसके मायने इस लोकसभा में क्या होंगे, यह तो 23 मई को चुनाव परिणाम आने के बाद ही बताया जा सकता है। बहरहाल, चुनावों में नेताओं के बीच जुबानी जंग जारी रहने वाली है। इस पर चुनाव आयोग भी लगाम लगाने में सफल साबित होता नहीं दिख रहा है।

The post धर्म और वोट की राजनीति आखिर कब तक? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

Every election season we get torn between two narratives. One is the majority and politically correct stand of exercising our voting power by hook and crook. The other is by the extreme leftists on how the current electoral system is a mess and no good will happen through voting. Amid this, there are other miscellaneous narratives on how a single vote will (not) bring any ‘huge’ change or the need for representative electoral, etc., etc.

However, one cannot deny the fact that every election season we get worked up on who to vote for or who to vote out unless otherwise, we are following any party or person blindly. That makes it simple sometimes.

Anyway as millennial voters, we are time and again lectured on the need to vote for the right candidate irrespective of the party. Let me illustrate how I have religiously followed it and loosened my stand over time. It was in the year 2015, I have developed a severe hatred against our former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa for the scam that put her behind bars for a brief period of time then (and accused posthumously) and the commotion that followed her release. I have pledged to never vote for her party in my life. As fate would have it, she herself contested from my constituency the same year to secure her seat in the Assembly. I stood my promise and researched the candidates and decided to vote for activist ‘Traffic’ Ramasamy, an independent candidate. No extra marks for guessing, Mr.Ramasamy deposit got forfeited and CM got a whopping majority.

Her term came to an end in a year as it was just a by-election. Again she contested from the same constituency and I was still determined. This time I voted for educationalist Vasanthi Devi. As expected, she too lost deposit and Jayalalithaa secured her consecutive term as CM. Later, following her sad demise, when by-elections were declared, I was determined to use my vote to teach the ruling party a lesson as they were increasingly becoming unbearable. Hence I voted for the opposition party, DMK (not the candidate, just the party). To my surprise, TTV Dinakaran, an independent claiming as the ‘real’ ADMK, won. Smart ass tricked people with just 20 Rs. each; anyway people are to be equally blamed for falling in the trap. And to much surprise, DMK lost the deposit. Now it’s again that crucial time to elect a representative. Although one part of me wants to vote out the incumbency, other part wants to recognize a ‘deserving’ candidate.

This time, in my constituency major parties, have fielded candidates of influential background. However, there is one candidate, Ms. Kaliyammal, from fisherfolk community, who stands out and have gained remarkable popularity through social media, for her clear cut speech and attitude fuelled by her knowledge on the understanding of the needs of the constituency. The party that fielded her is a half-baked separatist party run by bigots spinning lies out of nowhere. Yet the need to elect  a candidate like her cannot be overlooked for the following reasons;

• As a woman, I keep advocating for women reservation bill and even when that does not happen, I press for the need for parties to give equal tickets to women. Then, do I not have the equal responsibility to vote for women candidates?
•  Do I not have the moral responsibility to do my least part to make the voice of marginalised people be heard in lawmaking houses?
• If voting is just to overthrow governments, and not strengthen grass root level politics, is that even democracy?
• The reason why major parties don’t field candidates like her is the role of money involved in winning elections. By electing them, will I not become a part of this dirty practice?

That said, also, I have serious questions on the credibility of ‘good’ people elected miraculously. For example, why do we not hear much about the good deeds once the popular social activists are elected? For example, Jignesh Mevani won with huge fanfare, but why didn’t we hear about his works for his constituency after that. Ironically, the parties fare well when evaluated collectively.

Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu have been instrumental in the long-term growth of the state, LDF in Kerala has been revolutionary to do away with social inequalities, Kejriwal’s AAP in revolutionizing School education, etc., so it makes me wonder whether voting for the candidate actually matters in the present scenario? However, the party cadres turning into goons and wreaking havoc in the lives of common people and larger than life scams that keep happening also cannot be ignored. But how do we maintain a balance?

It all boils down to one thing-the abysmal role, we, as citizens play in the politics surrounding our lives. We have narrowed down our understanding of politics as just a rivalry between parties and our role in politics is to just vote. We do not even care to register our complaints regarding the lack of basic civil facilities in our street. We do not even care to remember our representative’s names, let alone tracking how they have spent their LAD funds. Irrespective of the party and ideology an elected person represents, they owe to the people. But, if only we are ready to question them and make them accountable.

Politicians have the idea of circumventing people as soon as the polls are over, only because we circumvent political involvement just after polling. With the boom in technology, most of the solutions have come handy. We can always register our complaints in online portals. The complaints redressal is slowly gaining momentum. We can file RTIs online just for 10 rupees. Even if we are not ready to engage in party politics, we should not shun away from using our education in a productive way to keep engaging in politics throughout.

I asked my senior, “Did we really not have had representatives who have worked for their constituency, not as a leader but as an individual?” He told me about the inspiring story of a Dalit leader ‘Kuthambakkam’ Elango, an IIT alumnus who quit his job and ran for the panchayat president election. The people who were hostile initially came around seeing his works and together they developed model gram sabha, eradicating liquor business and bringing peace amid the warring castes in the village. During the first five years, he made a lot of transformation in the village, including creating opportunities for employment generation and education. In 2001 Panchayat election, he was elected unopposed by the villagers. During his second term, he completed all the unfinished works and placed his village in the Indian map as a Model village.

He says his idea is to work from the bottom and grow horizontally. That exactly has to be our idea too. If we all pick up works unattended starting from our streets, we could bring a huge difference. Like Gandhi said, “In a gentle way, we can shake the world.”

The post This Election Let Us Not Limit Our Political Activism To Just Voting appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

किसान कर्ज़माफी का नारा देकर वर्ष 2018  में तीन राज्यों, राजस्थान, मध्य प्रदेश तथा छत्तीसगढ़ के विधानसभा चुनावों में जब से काँग्रेस ने जीत हासिल की, तब से सभी राजनीतिक पार्टियां किसानों के कल्याण की घोषणाएं करने में एक दूसरे से आगे आने की होड़ में लग गई हैं।

भाजपा ने इस पारी के अंतिम बजट में घोषणा की कि ‘प्रधानमंत्री किसान सम्मान योजना’ के तहत पांच एकड़ तक की ज़मीन वाले सभी छोटे और सीमान्त किसानों को प्रतिवर्ष छह हज़ार रूपए दिए जाएंगे।

बाद में राहुल गाँधी के पांच करोड़ गरीब परिवारों को न्यूनतम आय योजना के तहत प्रति परिवार प्रतिवर्ष 72000 रुपए देने की घोषणा ने बीजेपी के गरीब परिवारों के वोट बैंक में सेंध लगाने के प्रयास को विफल कर दिया और भाजपा द्वारा  गरीबों के वोट खींचने की आस पर पानी फेर दिया।

काँग्रेस के इस तीर को काटने के लिए भाजपा ने अपने ताज़ा जारी संकल्प पत्र में एक और तीर चलाया कि प्रधानमंत्री  किसान सम्मान योजना के तहत बिना भू-सीमा के सभी  किसानों  को 6 हज़ार रुपये का लाभ मिलेगा।

केवल छोटे किसानों को ही मदद देने से छोटे किसान भाजपा से जुड़ेंगे या नहीं, यह तो वक्त ही बताएगा मगर सभी किसानों को इस योजना के दायरे में ना लेने से बड़े किसान अवश्य भाजपा से नाराज़ हो गए थे। अब संकल्प पत्र में सभी किसानों को जोड़ने की घोषणा से भाजपा ने अपने विश्वसनीय वोट बैंक रहे बड़े किसानों को पुनः अपने से बांधे रखने का प्रयास किया है।

इस अचानक तब्दीली के बारे में भाजपा का तर्क

केंद्र में रेलवे एवं कोयला मंत्री पीयूष गोयल, जिन्होंने भाजपा की इस पारी का अंतिम बजट भी पेश किया था, उन्होंने टाइम्स ऑफ इंडिया को दिए एक इंटरव्यू में, जो 10  अप्रैल 2019 के अंक में प्रकाशित हुआ है, तर्क दिया, “हमारे संज्ञान में एक जेन्युइन मामला आया कि देश के कई क्षेत्रों में बड़े किसान भी अधिक वर्षा, सुखाड़ या बाढ़ की मार से परेशान होते रहे हैं।”

उन्होंने आगे कहा, “बुन्देलखण्ड की भांति कई क्षेत्र ऐसे हैं, जहां किसान सूखे से प्रभावित हैं। सभी किसानों ने, सामूहिक रूप से देश को खाद्यान तथा अन्य फसलों के उत्पादन में आत्मनिर्भर बनाने में बहुत बड़ा योगदान दिया है। इसलिए हमने सोचा कि सभी किसानों को प्रधानमंत्री  किसान सम्मान योजना के तहत कवर किया जाए।”

फिर पांच एकड़ से अधिक वाले किसान बुढ़ापा पेंशन से वंचित क्यों?

भाजपा द्वारा जारी संकल्प पत्र में भाजपा ने घोषणा की है कि सभी छोटे और सीमांत किसानों को 60 साल के बाद पेंशन की सुविधा देंगे। हम देश में सभी सीमांत और छोटे किसानों के लिए पेंशन की योजना आरंभ करेंगे ताकि 60 वर्ष के बाद भी उनकी सामाजिक सुरक्षा सुनिश्चित हो सके।

यदि भाजपा के संकल्प पत्र को ही भाजपा की आगामी योजनाओं का संकेत माना जाए, तो भाजपा केवल 60 वर्ष से अधिक आयु के सीमांत और छोटे किसानों को ही बुढ़ापा पेंशन देगी।

जब भाजपा के केन्द्रीय मंत्री पीयूष गोयल प्रधानमंत्री  किसान सम्मान योजना में बड़े किसानों को शामिल करने हेतु तर्क देते हैं कि छोटे या बड़े सभी किसान अधिक वर्षा, सुखा या बाढ़ की मार से परेशान होते हैं और सभी किसानों ने सामूहिक रूप से देश को खाद्यान्न तथा अन्य फसलों के उत्पादन में आत्मनिर्भर बनाने में बहुत बड़ा योगदान दिया है, फिर किसानों को पेंशन देने में पांच एकड़ की सीमा क्यों लगाई जा रही है?

क्यों नहीं पांच एकड़ से ऊपर वाले सभी किसानों को भी उनके देश की तरक्की में योगदान को देखते हुए बुढ़ापा पेंशन दी जाए ? हरियाणा के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री एवं देश के उप-प्रधानमंत्री दिवंगत चौधरी देवीलाल द्वारा हरियाणा में 1987 में शुरू की गई 60 वर्ष से अधिक आयु वाले, ना केवल किसान बल्कि हरियाणा के हर नागरिक को बिना किसी व्यवसाय के भेदभाव किए अभी भी दी जा रही दो हज़ार रुपये प्रति माह सम्मान पेंशन की तर्ज पर देश के हर नागरिक को सम्मान पेंशन क्यों नहीं ?

अब प्रश्न उठता है कि क्या सारे देश में समान सिविल कोड लागू करने की हिमायती भाजपा अपने संकल्प पत्र को सारे देश में समान रूप से लागु करेगी?  यदि हां, तो क्या भाजपा सारे देश में समरूपता लाते हुए केवल पांच एकड़ तक वाले किसानों को ही साठ वर्ष से अधिक आयु होने पर पेंशन देगी?

तो क्या हरियाणा में, जहां प्रदेश में भी भाजपा की सरकार है और जहां सभी किसान बिना किसी भूमि सीमा रेखा के बुढ़ापा पेंशन ले रहे हैं, वहां भी केवल छोटे और सीमान्त यानि पांच एकड़ तक के किसानों को ही पेंशन मिलेगी? तो क्या लोकसभा चुनाव के बाद हरियाणा में पांच एकड़ से अधिक वाले किसानो की बुढ़ापा पेंशन बंद कर दी जाएगी?

क्या भाजपा इतना कठोर कदम उठा पाएगी? क्या भाजपा पहले से शोषित किसानों के आक्रोश को झेल पाएगी? इन सवालों के उत्तर भाजपा पहले दे चुकी है। वर्ष 2004 में भारतीय जनता पार्टी की सरकार ने कर्मचारी यूनियनों के आक्रोश की परवाह किए बिना मिलिट्री कर्मियों को छोड़कर पैरामिलिट्री फोर्सेज़ समेत सभी केन्द्रीय एवं राज्य कर्मचारियों की पेंशन बंद कर दी थी, जिसका खामियाज़ा कर्मचारी आज तक भुगत रहे हैं और बार-बार पुरानी पेंशन बहाली की मांग उठाते रहते हैं।

खैर, हाथी की चाल से मस्ती में चल रही भाजपा इसकी कोई परवाह नहीं कर रही है और चले भी क्यों नहीं? हमारे देश का वोटर मुद्दों को नहीं देखता, बल्कि जुमलों से प्रभावित होकर वोट देता है या जातिगत व धार्मिक आधार पर निर्णय कर भेड़चाल में ईवीएम मशीन का बटन दबाता है और इसी बटन के साथ ही दबा देता है अपने देश और प्रगति का गला।

संदर्भ- बीजेपी मैनिफेस्टो

The post BJP के संकल्प पत्र में किसानों की पेंशन की बात बजट से अलग क्यों है? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.

March 10, 2019 will go down as the or one of the worst days of Modi’s political life. His concerted attempts to keep the Rafale deal documents from the purview of the Supreme Court was brushed aside by the Court, EC took a giant stride in an attempt to try and restore some of its fast diminishing credibility of being an independent body by delaying the release of Modi’s biopic. It also ensured that Modi’s propaganda channel, NaMo TV gets no more airtime. But the biggest dent has been caused from the most unlikely source. None other than the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan, endorsing him as PM for another term.

Now why doesn’t the government want the apex court of the country to see Rafale documents? If they have been stolen as the government claims, it could well be in the public domain now. What is it about the documents that the government is so fiercely guarding from the eyes of the Court?

Thankfully, the Court has bypassed all the ridiculous arguments the AG has posed before it and has directed that all relevant documents be produced before it. Moreover how much time has passed since the files have been “stolen”? Why hasn’t the government initiated an investigation into the theft and recovered the files yet since the government itself claims the files are of high national security? Why isn’t the Court or the petitioners of the case asking this to the AG? Beats my commonsense.

A biopic of Modi is disconcerting to begin with. It has drawn comparison with a similar movie made about Adolf Hitler when he was the chancellor of Germany. Why would elected leaders in governance endorse and promote movies about themselves that glorifies them from the beginning to the end? What was Modi hoping to get by releasing the movie at the stroke of elections?

Was he expecting unemployed distressed youth and farmers committing suicide because of debt to get swayed by the movie and vote for him? I still do not understand why political parties and its leaders need pamphlets, flexes and banners to advertise about themselves. Good work speaks for itself anywhere. This is the fundamental flaw in Indian electoral establishment. We are expected to vote for political leaders who are thrust as our representatives by the parties.

Politics is their full time employment. Most of them are of the opinion that they can work for people only if they are elected and have power. We need to elect social leaders who have worked for people’s development and welfare in the past. Not a single politician in India has such a pedigree as Arvind Kejriwal who has won the Ramon Magsaysay award for his work with none other than the peerless Mother Teresa. It is high time we started rejecting political leaders without social experience.

This is one reason why I denounce AAP for advertising its achievements and spending people’s money for it. If they are working for the people, people will speak about it and there has never been and will never be better marketing than word of mouth. So more marketing and trumpeting amounts to lesser governance and less work for people. To go as far as a biopic and propaganda TV channel indicates how little Modi has done for the people.

This takes me to the NaMo TV facade. Absolutely hilarious and disgusting at the same time. Who on earth would go to this extent for self publicity, that too by flouting all rules and bypassing all required licenses? This clearly shows Modi’s desperation to hold on to power by any means and why he has been using every available government machinery at his whims and fancies. People were increasingly expressing their resentment fiercely on social media and were incensed at NaMo TV being pushed to them on multiple channels by some service providers. EC could no longer play pied piper to Modi’s tunes.

The last and the most important brow beating that Modi has received has come from the most unlikeliest of sources. From out of nowhere, Imran Khan, the PM of Pakistan has endorsed Modi as PM for a second term and said he believes some sort of settlement could be reached with the BJP nationalist government regarding Jammu & Kashmir if Modi is elected as PM again. His statement is wide open for multiple interpretations.

It could mean he wants Hindu fundamentalism to take over the country, destroy democracy and become like Pakistan and then Hindu and Muslim fundamentalists can sit together and smoke peace pipes. But what I believe in is a larger message to Modi through endorsing him.

What most people haven’t realized is that the endorsement is a double edged sword. Modi’s agenda for this election is largely national security which means every conversation he has and every speech he delivers will have Pakistan in it. By endorsing him, Imran has effectively choked that narrative in Modi’s throat. Imran’s message to Modi seems to be “Do not make Pakistan your punching bag to fool the people of India and win their votes”. Now, if Modi wins the election and becomes PM again, Imran can throw his endorsement right back on Modi’s face and pull him to the negotiating table on Jammu and Kashmir. Imran has thrown the gauntlet to Modi and the whole world knows about it.

Imran is Oxford educated and he will always be remembered as one of the shrewdest cricketers and captains ever. Pakistan cricket teams of every era have been abundance of skill and talent which has always made them dangerous and unpredictable at the same time. Leading such a highly talented group of players to the World Cup, holding them together and inspiring them to win the cup against all the odds at the age of 40 defies all conventional logic. Modi should have had spoken to Indian cricket players before continuing with his anti-Pakistan rhetoric after Imran became PM.

If Imran was to play for any country now, he would walk into the team automatically as its captain, coach and chief selector all rolled into one. He had carried this reputation over to social service when he set up Pakistan’s first cancer hospital against all odds and after everyone had derided him. No politician in India has the wherewithal to handle the guile of Imran. Modi should have realized this at least when Imran clean bowled all of Modi’s plans by returning Abhinandan to India unconditionally and gaining global fame at Modi’s expense.

Imran’s endorsement of Modi seems to be the final nail in Modi’s political coffin. Modi’s bhakts (blind followers) have been robbed off all their narratives and rhetoric.

Some are saying Imran is endorsing Rahul Gandhi indirectly but it is far from true. Imran has ensured that there will be no Pakistan effect on the elections along with laying a political trap for Modi with regards to Jammu and Kashmir. After the dilemma between ousting Alok Verma and risking a CBI investigation, Modi has been caught again but this time it is between the devil and the deep sea. The only option he has left to avoid Imran’s trap is to not become PM again.

Of course, Modi is just the face. The master strategist and the brain behind Modi, Amit Shah must be fuming his lungs out.

The post Rafale, SC, EC And Imran Khan: Is This The Beginning Of Modi’s Political Fall? appeared first and originally on Youth Ki Awaaz and is a copyright of the same. Please do not republish.