Opinion View from the left

It also says that these elections throw up important questions: “First, in the history of independent India’s parliamentary democracy, this is the first time that a government will be formed by a party winning a majority of seats in the Lok Sabha on the basis of the lowest vote share it received… Such an anomaly arises due to the ‘first-past-the-post’ system…” it states. Second, “the display of money power in these elections has been unprecedented…” it adds. “The time has come to consider a comprehensive package of electoral reforms…”
it concludes.

Verdict Analysis

“It is a victory for the corporate sector and the Sangh Parivar headed by the RSS, representing the most right reactionary ideology in the country,” the CPI’s New Age says. “We have been stressing from the beginning of the election campaign that the corporate sector, after milking… UPA 2 to the hilt has now planned to install a more pliable and pro-corporate Union government that can help them to further loot the national and natural resources and help them to maximise their profit,” an editorial says, claiming an important feature of the corporate plan was to “isolate and marginalise the Left”. It also points towards the use of money in this election that, it claims, “flowed like water”.
“As far as the Congress is concerned it has genuinely paid for its misgovernance and corruption,” it says. However, in its introspection of the Left’s dismal performance, it says, “Apart from the print and electronic media, the Left also failed in utilising the emerging social media that was possible, if plans had been drawn in advance.”

Verdict Implications

Claiming that the results have “stunned” everyone, the CPI(ML)’s ML UPdate says the BJP also benefited from the “explicit corporate preference for a stable Modi-led government”. It adds, “But in the immediate political context, there can be no overlooking the fact that the BJP has expanded its network on a really all-India scale and its growing influence in states like Assam, West Bengal and even Kerala surely merits serious attention. Instead of remaining complacent with the 69 per cent figure that did not vote for Modi, it is important
to carry the message of alternative politics
to sections of the 31 per cent who voted
for Modi…”

The “claims of pro-Modi propagandists will hardly inspire confidence in people  who have been at the receiving end of  the Sangh brigade’s hate politics and  who can see the organic links between India’s crony capitalism… and the Modi variety of politics of ‘law and order’ and ‘corporate-led development’ encapsulated it his slogan ‘minimum government, maximum governance’,” it says.