The most consequential and defining general elections of recent time is due in less than a month now. The current political opposition is busy creating the world records of self goals and starting campaigning for the ruling party. First, with the colloquially infamous slogans ‘chaiwala’ in 2014; further with 2019’s ‘chowkidar char hai’. And now in 2024 with the controversial remarks revolving around the revered symbol ‘shakti’. There is almost no electorally genuine, impressive and formidable issue that is translating the naysayers’ snail pace to victory. It seems that the fragmented political opponents cannot stop putting one’s foot in the mouth. They are not even pretending to fight back anymore.
Public mandate seems crystal clear, if you know, you know. What begs the question is where is the constructive criticism from the opposition? Why are they shying from entering the real electoral debate? Apparently kitty party gangs from the posh pockets of the city provide better grapevine talk and arguments than the tired and hollow arguments of the Lutyen’s cocktail party gang.
After addressing the sorry state of condition of the opposition, the next goal post moves from domestic politics which seems to be polarised in the upcoming elections, to the seldomly disputed foreign policy matters under PM Modi era. IFP in the last couple of decades has seen different phases under the political leadership of Rajiv Gandhi, P V Narsimharao, I K Gujral, Atal Nihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh and now Narendra Modi. They all have shaped and pushed foreign policy in different directions and brought a new perspective and capabilities of India to the spotlight.
To be clear, under PM Modi’s paragon stewardship, India’s foreign policy (IFP) has not only changed rudimentarily but undergone a complete makeover. Furthermore, the political opposition is unable to cope and is entirely clueless and miffed with the new offensive playing tactics of the Indian grand strategy.
The unconventional, audacious, bold and in your face attitude since 2014 perhaps be seen as emancipatory for the pre 2014 uptight and cumbersome high on protocol nature of IFP. The idea is simple yet effective: India First. However, political discourses have often viewed this outlook as hyper-nationalistic and view him as charlatan. Yet, PM Modi’s political adroitness let him take the cake, baker and the bakery.
The decade gone by is discerned by the spectacular and thrilling record of decisions taken under the purview of IFP. The lethal duo, PM Modi and professional diplomat turned politician S Jaishankar has boosted Indian diplomacy clout and secured India’s seat as the Global South leader at the global high table.
Notably, Modi’s foreign policy has the trend of making its adversaries as irrelevant in the global affairs. After successfully de-hyphenating itself from failed states like Pakistan, the latter is surviving in tattered condition and in its most turbulent times. Similarly, after several attempts to reform UNSC fell on deaf ears, India and like-minded countries are giving cold shoulder to the intergovernmental organisation and going beyond and making regional forums and organisations like G20, QUAD and BRICS larger than life.
Brand India aka Atmanirbhar Bharat has been grandly endorsed. India is projecting a fast, organic and augmenting economic salience from fragile five to $5 trillion capacity economy coupled with a reliable partnership amidst the rabid big power tussle.
Despite providing a definite edge to India in international relations, it is hard to argue that the current regime should not be countered and questioned or policy alternatives should not to be proposed by the other side. The lack of debate over foreign policy issues shows an exhaustive, dispirited and irked opposition. It is not a matter of difference of opinion, it is a matter of poverty of thought.
In the past, backseat driving was led by middlemen like the erstwhile Soviet era KGB and Chinese communists which showcased Indian political leadership as mere pawns in the hands of war mongering countries. Indian foreign policy today is eliminating the concealed external interferences from influencing the policy domain and creating an environment where it is built by Indians and caters to the true Indian political landscape.
In the current times, out in the open, the government emerges as the juggernaut in the ideological war. However, the deep state is still on loose, essentially run by the Left and its establishments have long and tangled roots. A mere decade is not sufficient to unravel them.
Meanwhile, scholarly analysis states that PM Modi in 2014 ascended the democratic throne with full majority, subsequently improving the result in 2019, where he has cemented his command over his party, government and given a long rope to handle external affairs. On the contrary, it has been argued that his political predecessors especially since the Rajiv Gandhi government were running coalition Governments and most of their policy framework including foreign policies were under extreme scrutiny and contestation. But, it cannot absolve them from not systematically reforming the IFP structure.
The current opposition led by Congress has been unable to point out any substantial flaws and are unwilling to challenge the ongoing discussion over foreign policies decisions. When the Gandhi scion visited abroad in recent times, he chose to typically focus on domestic issues, instead of emphasising on Indian perspective in the world order. Similar patterns were witnessed over Ukraine invasion, Israel-Gaza conflict and the Red Sea crisis, their stance seems negligible and narrowed down. Juxtaposing, Modi government seems prepared in the face of adversaries, carrying out successful evacuation operations in recent years like Operation Ganga and Operation Kaveri, etc, is a strong testament.
This is where opposition is falling short and has limited insight. While deliberating on caste and religious fault lines, it is important to also discuss lives, livelihood, security and future of India which includes India’s global outreach. Today India’s foreign policy has taken a quantum leap and garnered massive popularity. The multiplier effect on Indian diplomacy is clearly visible vis a vis the increased inputs from the diplomatic stakeholders accompanied with proliferation of niche sectors like technological and digital prowess, space sector, semiconductors, renewables, soft power and intensification of defence sector, etc.
The impending challenges that lie ahead as a minefield for IFP are firstly the correct diagnosis and precise timing for the next step in the fluxing world order. Identifying the hotspots like Indo-Pacific, rising interest in West Asia and Taiwan Strait Crisis. Great powers are encircling and tightening their vice grips. India needs to thoroughly manoeuvre its path and safeguard its interests.
Secondly, India needs to look for the intersections between globalisation, de-globalisation and re-globalisation. The global leadership landscape is looking at the interplay between protectionism and hyper-nationalism. Thus, the global economy is also fickle marred by the US-China stiff competition vis a vis countries like India hedging to seek new commercial partnerships on equal footing.
Thirdly, addressing the most argued theme: China. It is posed as the most intriguing, insinuated and convoluted challenge on every front for India to overcome.
Fourth, last but not the least, the lexical resources of Indian diplomacy have Indianised. The typical nomenclatures like NAM and strategic autonomy have become obsolete. India has come to terms with world order being a free space and a level playing field where it can choose its strategic partners according to its circumstances. India’s bilateral relationship with Russia in times where India’s relationship with the US is on high octane, shows the historical hesitancy towards choosing between Moscow and Washington has been left way behind by New Delhi.
It is now upto the political opponents to either understand that IFP is becoming a bread and butter issue for Indians. Or to continue to non-deliver and cost another electoral term as a routine. Consequently, provide another clean sweep of the polls to the ruling party leading India towards ‘param vaibhavam netumetat swarashtram’.
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