The Elections , the Results and the future

To say that I was elated on the outcome  of the Indian elections would be an understatement. It has been a decade since I  had some  excitement connected with  the political front  and the governance of the country.

 The last ten years had seen the country struggle with the  coalition form of the government. Small regional /local players who had no locus standi at the national level taking  limelight, getting  Plump portfolios allocated to them in various ministries and with clear intent to move things in the direction they wanted and in the process ensuring richness to them and to their masters.

Several opportunities were spurned on the decision making fronts as alignment was not possible and at times would not be made possible . With the result,  we had a situation of  a person of great repute being reduced to man of inaction  and being made part of all the madness that was happening around.

No decisive decision on any front that brought the country to a standstill.

It was time to give a decisive mandate and  make the change. 

Several things went in favour of the man who is going to head this greatest democracy in to the future:

Clear vision of what was needed – this was set up not just some months back but several years ago. Intentions made clear that he wanted the Top job and nothing else. Several obstacles to that were removed  or marginalized. Credit to the President of the party for having faith and pushing through the nomination. Do they not say bite the bullet and move forward ?

The background  of the incidents in Godra may be a worry spot . The leader may have seen an unfortunate riot happening during the initial part of his reign, and the Supreme Court may have correctly or incorrectly given him a clean chit, but the fact is in never repeating a mistake. And while before and after 2002, we have seen hundreds of riots taking place all around in India, we haven’t seen another one in Gujarat!

His  vision of growth is what India needs. Gujarat may not be the role model, but there are no two things that the leader is growth focused, and  economic growth focussed (These can make people independent and not dependent) – rather than populist approaches like free water and electricity –

We cannot have an unpredictable government . Business  or any one for that matter can rely on unpredictable government

He has a great image . IAS officers swear that they haven’t seen a better decision maker than him. We need a firm decision makers.

Data tells us that in Gujarat, the crime rate is the lowest amongst all big states of India. After Delhi  incidents ( injustice to women ), we need a leader who can control crime.

Good governance is his promise. Good governance is surely not about pointing fingers randomly at others! It’s about walking the talk. And here is a man who has walked the talk for 12 years and more, and shown how to win hearts and make a progressive state with good governance.

We need to break away from dynastic politics of unilateral, closed-door, secretive, mother and child decision making. Thus, getting a party to power, which does have a central committee democratically taking decisions, is a must and will restore our faith in democracy.

Finally,  he  coming in after Manmohan Singh will in any case make him look like the best PM ever ( sorry about this but could not avoid saying this )! What a contrast and relief it will be! 

Let’s all give this man a chance! The task is not going to be easy but we have the best man on the job and hope that he will live up to its image and reputation. And there is no reason to fear , he will not!

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The election results  also have put a huge question mark over the word, “national”, in the Indian National Congress. With less than fifty seats , it has no  claim to define itself as a national party. The Congress has a past, it has no present. For this plight, the Congress has only its leadership to blame. The central issue before the voters was the one relating to the economy. The India of 2014 is  bored with the ideology  and the weary , unaccountable  methods of the Congress.  It wants to see advancements in production, the creation of jobs and a better future. The people who  heard  the campaign of Narendra Modi,  saw it an echo of their own hopes and aspirations.

One reason why the Congress has been totally oblivious to  changes is its complete dependence on one family for leadership. The Indian National Congress has ceased to be a political party. It is now a dynasty-driven. A  testimony of this is the fact that in Uttar Pradesh, the only two seats the Congress won are those of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. Below the two of them there are no leaders because none have been encouraged lest they become challengers. It appeared that they believe they are not accountable to anyone save themselves.  And hence :

The people of India have answered back with this mandate

PS: Hope other parties  that are dynasty driven take note !