Victory of Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi
By Sanjay Hegde December 12, 2013
Victory of AAP in Delhi assembly is certainly praiseworthy and astonishing, particularly on the background that the party was born only a year ago. AAP has certainly sparked the imagination of a large section of population. It has brought in visible change in the participation of a section of society which otherwise was indifferent to the election process due to its cynicism towards political parties. This is apparent from the increase in voters' turnout. It is also healthy to see social activists trying to find solutions to bad governance by participating in the elections rather than only raising issues.
It is Mahatma Gandhi who said "Be part of change you want to bring around". In that respect, AAP's success is welcome and very healthy for democracy. It has proved that citizens are constantly looking for better alternatives. In a democracy, the only way citizens can throw out an ineffective government is through elections. Hence, there is no alternative to elections. While social activists have a definite role in today's society, a long term solution for the country's governance lies when more good meaning and educated people join the polity through election process.
Many of the persons elected from AAP have no special social background. Neither are they from political families, sons of politicians nor any special achievements to their credit. Their win demolishes the argument of winnability put forward by established parties while foisting criminals on the electorate. The so called winnable candidates put up by established parties were defeated by AAP candidates by huge margin.
Hence, the message to established parties is that they shouldn't decide for voters and leave the decision to them with a candidate with a clean image and commitment to serve.
The statements coming from AAP leaders after the victory need some analysis. While there is every reason for AAP leaders to be euphoric about the victory, their body language and attitude smack of arrogance. The victory was unexpected to general observers and many had discounted the party to be a fringe one.
On that background, every AAP member has a right to be proud and elated. However their apparent desire for a reelection is not understandable. While reelection may be a definite possibility given a fractured mandate, it should not be the first choice of a party which has taken up Aam adami's cause.
Elections in India are a costly affair. It not only costs money, it also leads to productive time being diverted. When asked about the cost of reelection by a TV channel anchor, Arvind Kejriwal remarked " So what? It only costs between Rs 50 to 100 crores". This is certainly not expected of a person who is basing his claim to govern based on ethics, honesty and interest of aam adami.
AAP leaders are also claiming that only their party has won and everyone has lost. While AAP's success cannot be ignored, their claim that only they have won and everyone else has lost is not true. AAP has got 30% vote share of Delhi's electorate with a win in 28 constituencies.
While this is certainly significant for new party, it is also a fact that almost 70% of electorate have voted for other parties. If we take into consideration 70% voter turnout, AAP represents 21% of total Delhi electorate. BJP which has got 34% of electorate vote has won 32 seats and is the single largest party.
BJP was expected to do much better in view of anger against Congress government but by virtue having won the largest number of seats and leading vote share it cannot be considered to be a loser. Note that amongst them the two national parties got 60% vote share.
Governance in India is complex and hence should not be reduced to a farce. It is easy to attract voters by promising cheap water and electricity but far more difficult to deliver on those promises without making governance suffer. While voters in Delhi have certainly voted against mis governance, they might have been swayed by AAP's promises. Voters from other states like Rajasthan have seen the damage that such promises inflict.
While India needs wholesale change in polity, arrival of small new political parties may not augur well in the long term.
The two national parties need to deeply introspect of the state of affairs and bring about radical changes. The parties should not only represent aspirations of new India, they should by their own conduct and transparent communication be seen to be doing so. Both the national parties have been built over decades through sacrifices made by past leaders.
The answer to Good governance in India does not lie in multiple regional parties but lies in two or three strong national parties with people of character, commitment, intelligence and above all a desire to serve the country.
The country's problems cannot be solved by giving subsidies and doles. The only way, the country and thereby its citizens can progress is through inclusive, balanced and high growth. It requires a vision shared by all its countrymen. We may have to make sacrifices in the short term.
The national parties therefore have to make a course correction. They need to have a comprehensive review of their organization and leadership at the helm of affairs. Neither of the two parties can call themselves a cadre based party. It is the cadre who takes up the issue and lead agitations like the one seen in Delhi in the recent past. There is a tendency in both parties that elections can be won through "M" power i.e. money, muscle and media.
In that respect, Delhi's election is a wakeup call. Parties should immediately draw a code of conduct and ethics which lays down among other matters, maximum times a person can contest election, entry and retirement age, the period he / she has to spend in party affairs before taking to electoral politics and also how government will be accountable to party. In today's politics, there is no oversight of party over government.
Student movements gave birth to many new leaders. It was a breeding ground for new political leadership. Unfortunately, it does not exist today in its true sense. The space occupied by AAP today was a natural space left vacant by national parties.
While there are limitations of every government in meeting all aspirations of its citizens, voters can understand the difference between an honest attempt and bad governance!
Hence, it is time for both national parties to overhaul their organizations, being in gender equality, weed away vested interest, put up candidates of integrity and clean image.
It is a long drawn process and may take one or two elections. Alternatively, they may ignore the message and get wiped out from the electorate map of India.
The author is a Mumbai based Chartered Accountant