India Votes
When Dr. Manmohan Singh took over as Prime Minister in May 2004, nobody gave him more than five months with the unpredictable Left support. Now he has not only successfully completed five years in office but has made the left an irrelevant spent force in India. He is only the Second Prime Minister after Nehru to have come back to power after completing a five year tenure. Both the Communist parties together have twenty seats in Lok Sabha and they were dictating terms to the good Doctor on how India and the world should run. In the new Lok Sabha , the Congress has 206 seats and BJP 116 seats. The next highest number is 23 for the Samajwadi Party. There is only one more party BSP, with more than 20 seats, at 21.
Corruption, cash, caste, performance, economy, nuclear agreement, price rise – none of these influenced the voting. Then what did? Is the Indian voter tired of frequent elections and decided to vote for someone who can give them a stable government for five years. Or did those who have money stashed away in foreign lands ensure that Advani is defeated so that all that money is not brought back. This couldn't be as nobody believed that BJP would bring back that money. Nobody will. Let us forget all the idealistic talk of bringing back the foreign money or curbing corruption – as long as politicians have big stakes in these enterprises, nothing much is going to happen. But this is a great opportunity for the Ruling Party to prove its worth in providing a stable and competent government – the peoples' expectations are very simple – don't make our lives more miserable. It is also a great opportunity for the BJP to modify or rather deModyfy. Issues like Ayodhya and Hindutwa are as relevant as the archaic policies of the Communists. Whoever is BJP's leader in Lok Sabha, he/she should ensure that parliamentary proceedings are not disrupted. Let us have an orderly Parliament where members impress by the quality of debate not by decibels.
The voters of India have done their duty exceedingly well – now it is for the politicians to reciprocate.
Know your MPs – For a list of all elected Members of the Lok Sabha, click here + See Editorial