Gamble of a solitary 'reformer'

Amit Sengupta Delhi

Surely, winter and spring are far away. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh might not be the Great Gambler in the four seasons of realpolitik, but clearly, his great nuclear gamble seems to be descending into a black hole of uncertainty. If he thought that he could push through the civilian nuclear deal as no one's ready for mid-term polls, he has proved to be only partially right. Left's trenchant opposition to it has only succeeded in almost destabilising his own government. The big question is: was the gamble worth it?

Without a political constituency, Singh's gambit may have led the Congress into a trap from where it may find it difficult to come out. There was little reason to jeopardise the government if the civilian nuclear deal did not enjoy the support of its allies.

Singh benefited from a  historical rupture which saw him become PM, while Sonia Gandhi did all the hard work at the ground, in the arid landscape of poverty-stricken, rural India, fighting the 'foreign origin' abuses brazenly laced with gender bias, taking on the muscle-flexing of communal fascists and market fundamentalists of India Shining.

Hence, when Singh arrived at Raisina Hill, and despite the pro-US structural adjustment baggage of the World Bank, the economist provided a sense of dignity and decency to the civil society and his high office. Gone was the crude pumping of chests as in the BJP era, the glorification of Narendra Modi, the obsessive xenophobic discourse, the macho nationalism of militarism and the Hindutva Bomb, the compulsive Pakistan-bashing with the 'nuclear subcontinent' on the threshold of war.

There was suddenly a semblance of relief and hope. The India Shining and Gujarat card had been decisively defeated. Sonia Gandhi designed the wave of Congress victory. And the Left hit its highest tally in Parliament — evidence of what the vast majority of poor and secular India wanted from the new dispensation.

The National Advisory Council (NAC) promised grassroots accountability, as did the Right to Information Act; the NREGA redefined the liberal State's relationship with unorganised workers, especially in rural India, who have no social security, access to land, education or health, not even 100 days of work in a year. Roads, health, education, mid-day meals, power, drinking water, panchayati raj, decentralisation, justice for the victims of State-sponsored genocides, terrorists attacks and riots, the scrapping of POTA, inclusive development: There was a shift in political and social discourse.

Not for long. The NAC was dismantled. The NREGA is proving to be partially successful, largely a failure, a scam in most parts, as is the right to information campaign. Mass displacement of people due to mega projects continue. Price rise has broken the people's back. Thousands of tribals, dalits and poor resisted the infamous British-era Land Acquisition Act, implemented by the State to benefit big business and MNCs. SEZs have become the latest instrument to legitimise social inequality.

Relentless patronage for the corporate rich continues unabashedly distorting policies and national interests. Consider the fact that 90 per cent of our gas reserves are controlled by one private capitalist group!

Slums are being demolished, the poor are kicked on their stomach really hard. The upwardly mobile celebrate, even as social and economic disparities became irreconcilable. Ten per cent growth, shopping malls, multiplexes and lavish lifestyles become symbols of development, even while thousands of farmers commit suicide and an average poor household in rural India can't even afford one 60 watt bulb. All these policies are hurting grassroot politics and empowering corporate India.

Ideally, the Left-backed UPA government should have found its original mandate in these issues of popular realism. They should have punished the guilty of the Gujarat genocide and implemented the Srikrishna Commission Report and set an example. They should have actually threatened withdrawal of support on many of these issues.

They did not move one inch. All they did was ride the pro-rich bandwagon.

That is why, for majority India, there can be no spring after winter.