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Journalism of Courage
As Bihar approaches the first anniversary of an election that, through all the complex arithmetic of identity politics, delivered a non-sectarian message for governance, UP approaches an election that8217;s inevitably raising the question whether it can achieve a similar political transformation. It would be right to say that the signs aren8217;t good. The only time major parties in the state are not trying to encash cheques in vote banks is when they are trying to increase the deposit base. But, interestingly, the limits to this strategy already seem apparent.
The BJP8217;s good showing at recent urban municipal polls would seem to be in large measure a reaction to real and perceived wooing by Mulayam Singh Yadav of the more strident representatives of minority politics. Even the BJP is not claiming that its wins were courtesy campaigns on governance issues. But just as this shows the limits of identity politics to SP, it also demonstrates them to the BJP. The latter needs the former to be able to appear attractive to some section of voters, who seemed otherwise to have deserted the party in recent polls. Most instructively, even Mayawati, the early favourite, is feeling the constraints. Her nervousness at the BJP8217;s showing has translated to somewhat panicky courting of the 8220;Brahmin vote8221;. She also has to manage her core vote, which the SP has been enviously eyeing.
