“In my opinion, our people possess intelligence and commonsense. They also have a culture which the sophisticated people of today may not appreciate, but which is solid. They are not literate and do not possess the mechanical skill of reading and writing. But, I have no doubt in my mind that they are able to take measure of their own interest and also of the interests of the country at large if things are explained to them. In fact, in some respects, I consider them to be even more intelligent than many a worker in a factory, who loses his individuality and becomes more or less a part of the machine which he has to work”. – Dr Rajendra Prasad, Valedictory address to the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949
As the long and mammoth electoral exercise is about to be over and all are waiting for the counting day outcome, a strange and sinister design is unfolding. If we win, the election was free and fair; if we lose, it was fixed and manipulated; hence, it should be nullified. This is the new narrative of opposition parties, frustrated Lutyens elite and their masters working as external manipulators. Before such a disastrous narrative takes ground and ugly turn, as Rahul Gandhi is trying to intimidate, it is necessary that the common masses, united, come together and defeat the dangerous design.
The rejection of Hindutva thought, and Prime Minister Modi as a leader is not new for these groups. In fact, despite the decisive mandate, these forces have never respected and accepted the democratically elected Government in the last ten years. All illogical arguments were made from giving a call not to vote for Modi in 2014 through foreign media and then claiming that the electoral majority is not a democracy as the majority are not voting for the ruling dispensation. The fact is remains that none of the governments since independence has touched the fifty percent mark in terms of vote share – as generally the first post past system works. The award wapasi to forcing the Government to take back the laws passed by the parliament, creating impediments in implementing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), all were part of the same tricks. In the name of liberalism and democracy, they went on to defend the most undemocratic and discriminatory provisions under Article 370 for Jammu and Kashmir. They resented the empowerment of Muslim women with a ban on instant triple talaq. As if it was insufficient, external voices and their power are used to tarnish Bharat’s image. Neither democracy nor Constitution but dislodging the BJP-led Government at any cost, even sacrificing the national interest, seems to be the sole objective of opposition parties and their allies.
While approaching the 2024 elections, they formed a grand alliance mainly of corrupt and dynastic parties with fanfare. Caste census, redistribution of wealth, reservations for Muslims and saving the Constitution were the campaign points for the election. As there was no joint constructive programme as an alternative to what the Modi-led NDA government provided, this so-called INDI alliance remained a fragile grouping with many prime-ministerial aspirants trying to cut each other to size. Whitewashing the blatant violence and intimidation in West Bengal, the Aam Aadmi Party, which emerged out of the anti-corruption movement, finding itself immersed in all corrupt practices and defending corrupt and convicted politicians, is nothing but the signs of shamelessness and nothing else. Naturally, this unnatural grouping, where constituents are allies in one state and abusing each other in another, does not find any traction with the voters.
Hence, the new strategy is to question the role of the Election Commission, Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and the entire election process. Though the appointment of election commissioners has been made more inclusive and transparent, and the issues related to EVMs have been settled in the court of law, the attempt to put a question mark on both is contempt for democracy. The warning of putting the entire country on fire if the ruling party is victorious indicates the authoritative mindset of the opposition. Will they nullify the previous assembly elections where the opposition has formed the Government?
Fortunately, as the first President of Bharat Dr Rajendra Prasad had expressed his confidence in the ‘intelligence’ and ‘commonsense’, they would not be dissuaded by such tricks. The common masses, with their inherent resilience, will not be swayed. At the same time, the real concerned people who believe in the Constitutional democracy must come together and defeat this dangerous design of discrediting democracy.
