EDITORIAL OPIATE TATHAGATA SATPATHY
Granted that there was an element of hyperbole in the contention of a senior Congress leader that this is time to observe the “death anniversary” of “Acche Din” in the country, the statement was not wide of the mark either. Fact is, the just-ended one year of the Narendra Damodardass Modi government has been least inspiring.
As a matter of fact, even BJP leaders do not claim that their government headed by Modi has lived up to people’s expectations. Nor has it matched Modi’s own promises during his high-profile General Election campaign last year that good days were round the corner. For the common man, it has been a life more miserable. There was little of perceptible improvement to his living conditions. Prices, that had shown some stability, are again spiraling. Farmers are in utter anguish and those among them caught in the debt burden are committing suicide by hundreds. Public services, including that of the Railways, have seen no visible improvement. Farm lands are up for grabs, and a new legislation in this respect is adding to the worries on the rural front. What political parties like the Aam Aadmi Party claim, that the land bill has been brought in by the Modi government to help corporate lobbies and the “super rich” at the expense of poor farmers, does not seem as trashy opposition.
Modi entered Parliament House for the first time after his election to head the new government with a deep bow, demonstrating his respect for the institution of democracy. However, his parliamentary conduct has been one of the most questionable aspects of his one year rule. His has been a rare appearance in Parliament, and this is so even when he was not touring the world. Legislations were more often than not pushed through the backdoor, ostensibly to skip discussions and debate, and brought in through an ordinance Raj. This decimated the significant role of the Opposition in a democratic system of governance. No government in recent history has shown such utter disregard for parliamentary system matched only by a penchant for circumventing established rules and procedures.
This past year has seen no surprises, which should be a surprise in itself, given the way Modi raised the expectations of the people through his jet-set campaign rounds in the build-up to the 2014 general elections. The Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has turned out to be a disappointment. So also in most other fields such as energy, water resources, infrastructure in general and monetary management in particular, this government has not been able to exhibit any newness of thought or action. It would be unfair to oppose for the sake of opposition.
Although many critics laugh at Modi’s foreign jaunts, which seemingly add up to 18 in the past 12 months, many also feel that India deserved a leader who could talk to other world leaders on a one to one basis. Obviously, that situation can only arise when a personal rapport exists between two individuals. Modi’s travels may not all be in vain. While his domestic policies and programmes seem to be anti-poor, his foreign policy and how he utilizes his international contacts remain to be tested.
