The outcome of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections shows an
overwhelming countrywide rejection of the Congress and UPA and a decisive
majority for the BJP and the NDA. The BJP and NDA clearly emerged as the biggest
beneficiaries of the widespread mass anger against the UPA misrule and
non-performance marked by massive corruption, price-hike and all-round economic
crisis.
Ten years ago the NDA government headed by Atal
Bihari Vajpayee which claimed India was ‘feeling good’ was voted out of power.
Narendra Modi and the 2002 Gujarat carnage he presided over were clearly a
major factor that determined the 2004 outcome. Ironically enough, ten years
later India has elected another NDA government headed by the same Narendra Modi
promising to usher in ‘good times’.
The unprecedented rise of the BJP on a truly
national scale clearly marks a concentrated political expression of the
continuing rightward shift in policies and politics and growing corporate
domination over the spheres of economy and mass communication. While the BJP
has secured close to 300 seats on its own, the Left bloc in Parliament has been
reduced to just a dozen seats. The AAP which had captured considerable
democratic imagination in the wake of its spectacular debut in Delhi Assembly
elections has had to remain content with 4 seats that it managed to win quite surprisingly
in Punjab.
The corporate sector which invested massively in
Modi’s campaign obviously expects an even freer run under the new government,
and the Sangh Parivar has already claimed a mandate for rapid escalation of its
communal agenda. But a majority among the millions of people who have voted for
a ‘Modi Sarkar’ expect a solution to their pressing economic problems and
governance that is responsive, transparent and accountable, a hope which can
only be disappointed by the new dispensation. In the difficult days to come the
CPI(ML) will stand firmly by the people and their hopes and aspirations, and
needs and interests.
The BJP election campaign did have an unmistakable
communal aspect to it. The Muzaffarnagar riots were engineered with a clear
purpose of creating a communal polarisation and the election speeches of
several BJP leaders, Narendra Modi included, injected enough communal vitriol
into the political discourse. In the middle of the elections we saw horrific
communal violence in Assam and reports of post-poll attacks on minorities are
also coming in from different parts of the country. The election outcome does
not legitimise past crimes or exonerate the guilty, nor does it give any
licence for fresh crimes against humanity. The battle for equal justice and
equal rights for all will surely go on unabated.
The CPI(ML) is committed to continuing and
intensifying the struggle against the corporate-dictated policies that are the
root cause of corruption, price rise, unemployment and deepening economic crisis.
The CPI(ML) is also committed to the ongoing struggles against all kinds
of injustice and oppression, and to expose and resist any attempts to whip up
campaigns against the rights of marginalised and oppressed sections of people. The
party appeals to all defenders of democracy to remain vigilant against any
possible attempt to vitiate the socio-political climate, subvert democratic
institutions and curb people’s rights.
The 2014 outcome has highlighted the inherent
vagaries of the first-past-the-post system where parties do not win seats
despite securing significant votes. A 31% vote share has fetched the BJP a
clear majority whereas 4% vote share for BSP has not translated into a single
seat. It is high time to reform India’s electoral system and introduce aspects
of proportional representation for a more realistic reflection of the political
choice made by the people.
While the new government unveils its agenda, the
forces of people’s movements will step up their vigil and democratic
intervention and assertion on every available platform and by all possible
means.
Central Committee
CPI(ML)(Liberation)
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