One more election, one more dream; writes Satraajit Palchoudhury

-Satraajit Palchoudhury-

Time flies so fast. It seems that just yesterday Narendra Modi-led BJP placed its berth in Delhi Durbar and today once again the nation is getting ready for the forthcoming general elections. The billion dollar question is—will BJP be able to repeat its stellar performance in 2019? Politicians know the art of coining new slogans. They are merchants of dreams. In 2019, Modi has coined a new slogan—New India.

The India of yesteryears has a chequered history of its own. We the people of India look at every election with a new hope, with a new dream. The general elections of 2019 will be another opportunity for people like us to chase our dreams.The India of bygone days has been a witness to the bloody partition. Post-independent India had to witness communal riots in places like Nellie, Bhagalpur and Godhra. Let’s not mention about the infamous 1984 anti-Sikh riots. But we the people of India are optimists. We the people of India firmly believe that a new dawn will usher in. The light of the rising sun will surely remove the darkness that is looming over our country.

India is reeling under severe problems. At a time when the nation is getting ready for another Kurukshetra, Pak-sponsored Jaish-e-Mohammad carried out a ghastly act in Pulwama killing 45 brave hearts. Today the whole world is facing the menace of terrorism. For decades, India is bearing the brunt of this virus. The west could feel the pain on 9/11. India, it seems has not been fortune’s favourite. Still we are hopeful of a better tomorrow. The nation is mourning the deaths of the brave CRPF jawans. The sulking Indians are clamouring for action. The anger is justified. Patience has its own limitations. The nation has just one question after Pulwama catastrophe—for how long?

The old India has witnessed many societal ills. Unfortunately these ailments are not getting the desired attention. The statistics of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) say that everyday 21 women are falling prey to dowry. The conviction rate is just 35 per cent. Hopefully, these gruesome incidents will not find place in New India.

The much publicized National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise in Assam has discovered 40 lakh people as ‘uninvited’ guests in its territory. Now, one should ask what will be the fate of this hapless lot. Citizens like Sahera Khatun take years to prove their citizenship. Khatun needs no introduction. Till few years back she was considered as a D-voter—today she has been able to prove her Indian citizenship.

In the annals of history, 2018 will be remembered as a year of lynching. On July 1, five people were killed in Maharashtra’s Dhule. They were suspected to be child-lifters. The horrifying lynching of Abhijeet Nathand Nilotpal Das in Karbi Anglong is still afresh in our minds. Have we been able to forget the Alwar lynching victims—Rakbar Khan and Aslam?

We the people of India never want to experience such horrifying incidents in New India.The political class also needs to change their narrative. In 2019, the opposition parties especially the established regional satraps have one common aim—’Modi hatao’. The tone and tenor of their speeches towards their bête noire is not at all commendable. The politics of Lutyen’s Delhi has always been centered on the magic number of 272. In 2014, the narrative was secularism and in 2019 a silent but visible competition is going on between the two principal poles of Indian polity—Congress & BJP—who is a better Hindu.

The Gandhi scion suddenly has realized the importance of holding the tag of a ‘Janeyudhari Hindu’. This narrow vision of Indian nationalism should not find mention in our New India.The definition and meaning of politics has changed completely. It has now turned out to be a feudal profession. The regional satraps have built their own dynasty and are busy in launching their heirs. A leader is expected to be one amongst us. A leader is not born to rule. Rather a leader is born to serve.

The entire subcontinent has been home to dynastic politics. In Pakistan the Bhuttos dominated the politics for a long period of time. In Bangladesh, the family of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is ruling the roost and in India it’s the Gandhis who are treated as the first political family. In a true democracy, dynasty has no place. The emergence of Imran Khan has broken this record in Pakistan. Similarly the emergence of BJP has broken this trend in India because the top leadership is not restricted to any particular ‘family.

’Time is changing. The aspirations of people are changing.We want our New India to get us rid of all the societal ills that have taken our nation into its clutches. We dream of a rational, liberal and modern India. We dream of such a country where there will be no corruption, no fight over one’s religion, language and culture.

We are hopeful. Every election comes with a promise and a dream. To us this is one more election, one more opportunity to chase our dreams.