That idea again

Amid a calibrated upping of the antagonism by the Left against the Congress before a crucial round of assembly polls, the CPM8217;s Prakash Karat dug into his bag 8212; and conveniently hit the idea of the Third Front. Add the fact that the Samajwadi Party has indicated its openness to what used to be known as a 8216;realignment of political forces8217;, plus a willing TDP, and the conditions seem suspiciously ripe. So, must be prepare to welcome a new incarnation of a political animal that dies several deaths, yet dares to raise its head again? Will there, seriously, be another Third Front? For the answer, just rewind to the question and hear the ring of disbelief and poignance that has become so inseparable a part of it.

When the Left resurrects talk of a non-Congress and non-BJP alternative as a bargaining chip with the Congress-led government, it points to an unchanging affliction: the idea of the Third Front has typically suffered from a short-term and cynical leadership. The variegated advocates of the Third Front idea have always rallied around it as a means to hold power. By itself, that is an unexceptionable thing in a competitive democracy, except that it does not make for a political platform with any longevity. Be it the United Front the Congress propped up in power, 1996-1998, or the People8217;s Front that flashed briefly on the public eye more recently, the Third Front has refused to define an affirmative political agenda. Instead, it holds aloft an anti- politics. It says 8216;no8217; to the 8216;communal BJP8217;; it is against the 8216;anti-people8217; economic policies followed by both BJP and Congress.

As the idea comes visiting again today, it seems, most of all, like a slogan from long ago. There have been some large changes since the Third Front was first conceived. The 8216;communal-secular8217; divide has refused to hold as the central faultline in our diverse politics and the BJP has proved itself irresistibly coalitionable, even for members of erstwhile Third Fronts. Then, a politically diminished Congress has taken the sting out of anti-Congressism. The 2004 election affirmed that the polity is moving toward a two-front bipolarity. Finally, in these times when governments are judged on the economic development they bring and for their ability to burnish India8217;s growing credentials on the global stage, there is even less patience for a naysaying politics.