As India heads for the 16th Loksabha elections, it resembles
a boat adrift. This has been the state of the nation ever since UPA began its
second innings. In five years, UPA has managed to squander the favourable
mandate it got in 2009 & has emerged as the most chided government in the
history of the republic. Whatever good work it did in the first five years has
been undone thanks to the rampant corruption, high inflation & falling
investments. Just take a look at these numbers GDP growth that was at 8.5% in
2003-04, has come down to 4.5% in the last financial year. The fiscal deficit
after a roller coaster ride over the years remains where it was ten years back
at 4.8% .FDI that increased ten times during the period of 2004-09 has halved
over the past five years. If opinion polls are to be believed, Congress is
heading for its worst performance ever. The scion of the ruling family comes
across as a well-meaning amateur who does not have any clue about how to turn
around his party’s fortunes. To be fair Mr. Gandhi is paying the price for the
lapses of the Manmohan Singh government. However, it is worth to note that he
did not take much of an effort to evolve as a leader in his decade long stint
as a politician. A mere look at his performance in the parliament proves how
seriously he takes politics absent for
more than half of the time during the last Loksabha he just participated in two
debates & never raised a single question. On the other hand, BJP’s Prime
Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi has successfully projected himself as a
no-nonsense development man who could deliver. The taint of his involvement in
postgodhra riots that haunted him all these days seems to disappear slowly.
Thanks to the UPA government’s disastrous performance & his over hyped
record of accomplishment in Gujarat Modi has finally managed to strike a chord
with the electorate especially the younger voters. He is the fickle minded
Indian middle class’s new messiah; a certain Manmohan Singh occupied that
position five years back. However even the most optimistic poll projection does
not predict BJP to get a majority of its own. To capture power in Delhi one
needs the support of regional parties. That is not hard to come by if one
manages to cross the 200mark .For regional parties are ready to cohabit anyone
who comes closer to capturing power ask Mr.Paswasn if you have any doubts. One
thing is certain a congressman is not going to succeed Manmohan Singh as the
next Prime Minister. However, elections are still a month away & a month is
a longtime in politics. Picture abhi baki hai, mere dost.
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