In J&K, winners as losers

If you are an optimist, you would take heart from the on-going tussle between the Congress and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the chiefministerial crown and perceive it as more evidence of ‘normalcy’ in J&K. After all, ceremonies of this kind invariably precede the swearing-in ceremony in most states where elections have thrown up a hung assembly, as the recent instance of Uttar Pradesh demonstrated. However, it would certainly be unfortunate if, as in UP, the popular vote against the National Conference (NC) actually leads to that party coming back to power through means of a political ‘arrangement’. In UP, it may be recalled, the BJP had clearly lost the mandate to rule but today it is part of the government thanks to a deal its struck with ‘senior’ partner, the BSP.

The NC must be hoping for a similar denouement in J&K, but it would be outrageous were that to happen. Remember the party referred to here has presided over the state’s destiny for over a quarter of a century. Remember that the poor governance it provided resulted in a particularly damning slogan this time: ‘I am voting for azadi; azadi from the NC first’. Remember, too, that the party’s president and scion of the Abdullah dynasty, Omar Abdullah, lost the election from Ganderbal, the family’s pocket borough in fact. True, the NC, with 28 seats, emerged as the largest single party this time, but it had clearly lost its moral right to rule as its leaders had first admitted under the pall of a crushing defeat. Now, emboldened by the incapacity of their political rivals to arrive at an understanding, both over the chiefministership and a common minimum programme, this tune too is changing.

So all that can be suggested in the interest of the people’s mandate is for the Congress and the PDP to get their act together and arrive at an understanding that is realistic and sustainable. There is, after all, a considerable difference in perspective between the two parties. This, instead of being a hindrance, can in fact be an advantage if the game is played right. The synergy of a national party and one with regional focus can, potentially, transform the state’s politics. But for that to happen, both entities need to rise above ego and fantasy trips; perceive the state as a unitary whole rather than as a trifurcated one; and desist from playing cat-and-mouse games with each other. The people of the state have voted. Now they deserve to get a government that will address their needs with empathy and efficiency as quickly as possible.