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Round The States
New Delhi, 9 May, 2013
Ecstasy And Agony
In Karnataka
7 YEARS ITCH WINS:
CONGRESS TRUMPS BJP
By Insaf
The Karnataka election results, whereby the Congress
returned to power after seven years in the political wilderness were a foregone
conclusion. Making its success sweeter, the Congress has won a clear majority
after 14 years netting 121 of the 223 Assembly seats, an increase of 18 per
cent in its vote share. Both the ruling BJP and Opposition JD (S) are tied at
40 seats each. Importantly, coming on the heels of the Congress victory in
three States, Himachal, Uttarakhand and Meghalaya recently, it has earned a
breather for the scam-tainted Manmohan Singh Government at the Centre. Indeed
the Party was quick to capitalize on this by proclaiming there was no
corruption stigma against it. Also, for the first time in line with Congress
scion Rahul’s thinking, it let local leaders have a decisive say in the
candidates’ selection. Notably, the Congress victory underscores a new trend of
the electorate giving thumbs up for a decisive mandate in its desire for stable
and honest governance.
Undeniably, the BJP has only itself to blame for its vote
share plummeting by 13.9 per cent while the JD(S) has increased its share by
over one per cent. Adding to the Saffron Sangh’s wounds, its loss of power in
its first Southern bastion was primarily due to mis-governance, corruption and
instability. Pertinently, in the five-years of its Government in Bangalore, the relentless
factional feuds saw three Chief Ministers. Worse, the main damage to the Party was
inflicted by ousted Chief Minister Yeddyurappa who floated his own Party
Karnataka Janata Party and struck gold by winning six seats. Also, the
erstwhile Saffron Lingayat leader not only shredded the Party in Central and
Northern areas of the State but also weaned his community’s votes away. Add to
this the apathy of its support base handed the Party a severe reverse. Time for
the BJP to set its house in order if it nurtures ambitions of lording over four
States which go to polls later this year and netting India’s Raj Gaddi in 2014!
* * * *
J&K Government
Fail Miserably
The National Conference-Congress Government in Jammu &
Kashmir should hang its head in shame. It has completely failed in winning back
the confidant of the Kashmiri Pandits. Shocking are the statistics released by
the Centre to Parliament on Tuesday last. Only one of the displaced Kashmiri
Pandit families has so far returned to the Valley since the exodus! In all 4522
families continue to live in the four camps in Jammu. This apart what is worse, is that the
comprehensive package of Rs.1618.40 crore announced by the Prime Minister in
April 2008 for return and rehabilitation of the Kashmiri migrants has not
helped. The package includes assistance towards housing,
employment/continuation of cash relief, transit accommodation etc. An ex-gratia
relief of Rs.44.77 lakh between 2010-13 has been disbursed by the J&K
Government to the migrants. Given the above, both the State and Centre Governments
would need to reflect and introspect why the Kashmiri Pandits are failing to
return back home. If the two are able to find the elusive answer perhaps the
record of normalcy returning to Jammu & Kashmir would be more cheerful.
* * * *
Breather For Assam
Assam can heave sigh of relief--- for the
time being. The two Assom Gana Parishad members in the Rajya Sabha were on
Tuesday last able to stall the introduction of the contentious bill ---
Constitution (119th Amendment) Bill, which seeks to ratify the land
boundary agreement (LBA) with Bangla Desh, way back in September 2011. If
passed, it would lead to transfer of land to and fro from the neighbour. This,
the AGP has warned all along would “start a secession movement”. However, ruling
Congress Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi is all for the Bill “in view of long-term
tranquility on the Indo-Bangla border”, and that the State would be a
beneficiary as the lands in question are technically not in its possession.
Accordingly, while Assam
would lose some land, West Bengal and
Meghalaya would gain. With the two parties holding opposite views the fate of
the Bill is uncertain. Whether the Centre will be able to get an all-party
consensus on the Bill will be known later, what is certain is that the State
will be spared turmoil till then.
* * * *
CBI Probe Into Bengal Scandal?
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s tall claim of
being “satatar pratik” (symbol of
honesty),” appears to be taking a severe beating. The Opposition Left in the
State is going all out to extract their pound of flesh with investigations into
the Saradha group chit fund scandal pointing towards ‘political connections’.
On Thursday last, leaders of CPM, CPI and RSP met Prime Minister and Finance
Minister demanding a CBI probe into the ponzi scam. They claim the probe, which
is being objected to by Mamata, would reveal links of Trinamool Congress’ close
association with the Saradha Group. The Left is accusing the TMC of “forcing”
Saradha to launch newspaper, magazine and TV channel on condition to propagate
the party's agenda! Worse, it has rubbished Mamata’s move to enact a law to
protect small depositors by stating that it would only provide crucial time to
chit fund operators to relocate their properties. Whether the Centre will
oblige the Left is worth a watch, but what is disheartening is that the
distress of the people affected has got overshadowed in this political
one-upmanship game.
* * * *
UP’s Poor Education
Uttar Pradesh has got its priorities wrong. While Chief
Minister Akhilesh Yadav has been on a merry spree giving free laptops to
intermediate pass students, he has shockingly overlooked the key issue of
providing basic education. Not only does the State have the maximum shortage of
teachers in schools, three lakhs, in the country, but worse, of the 8.6 lakh
untrained teachers, 1.43 lakh belong to UP. Add to this the absurdity that
while the Government has made English a compulsory subject from Class I, only
2-2.5 per cent primary and secondary teachers
can speak or teach in English. According to a report, schools today have
a situation where a “science teacher is teaching Hindi and a mathematics
teacher is taking social science classes.” Clearly, the Government should
realise that fulfilling a poll promise of free laptops to prove to the world
that “the Samajwadi Party can talk about English and laptops” is not going to
help its students. Instead, the focus needs to shift to basic grounding of the
young ones. It must fill up the vacancies and improve standards of its
teachers, else its plan of “internet-based progressive education,” shall be of
no use.---INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)
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