5/26/13

9 Years of UPA

9 Years of UPA
Publication: The Economic Times Mumbai; UPA-2 marked four years in power with a dinner bash. Will it turn out to be its last supper or are there more to come? The answer is a year away :: CL Manoj One would expect anniversar y celebrations to be synonymous with conf idence an d excitement . But when n U PA-2 2 marked it s fourth anni versary last week with a c u s t o m a rr y political jamboree, the air was thick with uncertainty and urgency. The urgency is understandable given that the general elections are now only a yea r away, but the uncertainty tells us all is not well w ith the UPA-2. Who could be hosting next years function he re? Narendra Modi or will it again be a Congress PM? asked an invitee in an i nformal chat on the sidelines of the UPA function, letting slip perhaps what was in the minds of many leaders attending the anniversary dinner. At least a few would be forgiven for thinking they were having UPAs last supper. The optimists would say they are readying to show once again their capacity to fight back in the very last year just as the UPA-1 did in 2008-09 against many odds and premature obituaries. These days in Delhi you will find many Congress leaders spitting out weshallover-come... statements. Likewise, you can hear the BJP we will conquer them all... chorus. But in private, they would tell you the political scene in all camps is dicey, volatile and unsettled for anyone to put his money on the winner in next years Lok Sabha elections. Yet, if there is a vote on deciding the side that is currently on the political backfoot, the overwhelming majority will pick the Congress and UPA. Date: May Section: 26, 2013; In Focus; Page: 13

epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_ETNEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=ET

1/5

5/26/13

9 Years of UPA

Problems Galore No recent governme nt has so spectacularly wasted the glow of its back-toback electoral victories by plunging into one crisis aft er another the slew of corruption charges, the periodical spectacle of exits by ministers, policy paralysis and so on. To add to the UPA woes, it has been unable to stem the domestic fallout of the global economic slowdown. On the political front, the UPA has lost its two major allies Trinamool Congress and DMK With time fast running out, t h e C o n - gress is f a c ing a huge organisational and leadership challenge as well as coalition troubles in the biggest six states Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar which together account for 291 seats. Scams have severely eroded UPAs credibility. In this age of coalition politics, the Congress has managed to lose its major allies and is in no position to win over worthy partners ahead of polls. Only a dramatic twist in politics can save us, said a leader of a Congress ally in UPA. Operation Salvage For its part, the Congress brass is working desperately on an Operation Salvage, with Sonia Gandhi callingg for an all-out fightback. First F off the block was the launch of a Bharat Nirman blitzkrieg by the government, consciously scripted to reach out to rural belts with a thrust on the social sector. In no time, it invited comparison with the NDAs ill-fated India Shining campaign. I&B Minister Manish Tewari disagreed. There has been a constant hostile campaign by some sections to run down the UPA-2.through a motivated campaign. Our government is determined to take to the people our achievements in social sector schemes that have helped all weaker sections of society. Equally important is our sound economic management in the face of the global economic slowdown, he told ET Magazine. With the Opposition stalling (by demanding the exit of Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar) the bid to clear two politically crucial legislations the
epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_ETNEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=ET 2/5

5/26/13

9 Years of UPA

Food Security Bill and the Land Acquisition Bill in the Budget session, the Congress now plans an all-out mobilisation to get these bills passed in the next couple of months. Its gamble: it would be suicidal for the Opposition to block these pro-poor Bills. Indeed, Congress sources say the UPAs poll plank will be mainly five propoor social sector schemesdirect cash transfer, food security, land acquisition plan, upcoming packages for farmers/ minorities and mega housing schemes for the urban and rural poor. Sonia Gandhi made no secret of the Congress faith in rural voters and its aam aadmi base when she made a biting comment on what she thinks is Delhicentric belligerent attack on UPA. I am happy with the work done by the UPA. But Dilliwallahs dont know our success story. What else do you expect from them? she quipped at the UPA function. Organisationally too, the Congress is working on a war-footing. Five state Congress committees have been revamped in the past one month. The hunt for allies has started in earnest with a bid to rope in JMM and RJD in Jharkhand, a possible revival of a Congress-Lalu-Paswan alliance in Bihar, a hush-hush bid to revert to DMK via Capt Vijayakanths DMDK, a likely gamble on Jagan Reddy/Telengana fronts etc. A unite or perish message was sounded by Rahul Gandhi to the factional leaders of the poll-bound states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Delhi. The Congress leadership wants the PM and the FM to complement these efforts with steps to boost the economy and contain inflation. Marathon Instincts One has to wait and see whether these efforts will succeed. But what is known is the marathon instincts of the Congress to bounce back in the last leg. During the UPA-1, the Congress government was battered until 2008 by the constant Left needling, spiralling inflation and frequent terror strikes. It stunned rivals and critics by bouncing back in 2009 by riding on the nuclear deal punch, NREGA and a surprise showing in the urban belts. The Congress uncanny ability to come from behind, in turn, tests the Oppositions capacity to retain its early tempo. The dramatic defeat of the Anna Hazare movement shows the perils of high-speed launches in super-fast political tracks. As we enter the election year, Delhis worstkept political secret
epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_ETNEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=ET 3/5

5/26/13

9 Years of UPA

is that Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modis blitzkrieg is not only creating deep divisions within the BJP and NDA but also gives the Congress ammunition to fight back. Our leadership and programmes will reassure and unite all sections of our society unlike the negative politics and divisive politics of the BJP, said CWC member Mohan Prakash. In the next 12 months, politics will put the IPL to shame with its twists and turns. Time to reserve a seat.

epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_ETNEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=ET

4/5

5/26/13

9 Years of UPA

epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_ETNEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=ET

5/5