Friday, October 5, 2012

How to still praise the PM!


The following article was written for Niti Central. Reposting it here for reference :) 

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Till today, it was hard to believe that one can think of writing a 1200 word article on the current crisis our country is facing, without blaming the existing leadership of Dr. Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi. Till today. 

Today, Harish Khare (former media advisor to this Prime Minister) wrote in The Hindu, suggesting that we look at the brighter side of TMC withdrawing support to the UPA. Loaded and lofty words come so easily to these folks - sample just the first two sentences of the article!

Ignoring the adjectives and platitudes attributed to the duo of PM and Sonia Gandhi, the summary of these two lines is that the duo should thank Mamata for giving them "yet" another opportunity to show that they can work around the present economic crisis. "Yet another"? which means the duo were presented with multiple opportunities before? How did they fare then? Harish Khare doesn't bother to tell us.  

Apparently, this is a good time to remind that the nation that it cannot be governed with "timidity". Harish Khare very conveiniently avoids mentioning who exhibits tendencies of "timidity" the most! This Prime Minister has hardly ever stood his ground - the umpteen number of times he has cited "coalition compulsions" to escape taking responsibility is on record - yet Harish Khare wants us to believe that this Prime Minister will show the nation that it cannot be governed with "timidity"! And this is the just the beginning of the article. 

Harish Khare is aghast that Mamata Banerjee, who has been elected to govern West Bengal is seeking powers to control economic and foriegn policy of the entire country. Fair enough - but who displayed extraordinary "timidity" in allowing her to dictate such terms Mr. Harish Khare? Whose "timidity" is responsible for a party with 19 MPs running "roughshod" over a party with >200 MPs? And when you blame the Congress "eagerness" that gave her those powers, who exactly in the Congress exhibited this "eagerness"? Their president? Their general secretary? Their spokesperson? Their booth level cadre?

Midway though the article, this shocker lands! 

Those in the judiciary and other constitutional institutions smelled the spilt blood within the UPA and felt doubly empowered to muddy the political waters.

This has got to be the single most insinuation against multiple institutions ever! Essentially, what Mr. Khare is saying here is that the Supreme Court and the CAG have displayed rank opportunism in trying to bring out the scams and resort to some course correction. Course correction that was ignored by "tentativeness" and "timidity" of the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi. It is plain shocking that a former media advisor to the Prime Minister so openly attributes motives to multiple constitutional institutions in one go. 

There continue to be more surprises in store for us.

"For too long, a false impression has been allowed to be created that there are two sets of calculus, one preferred at Race Course Road and another at Akbar Road."

Yep - you read it right - a false impression that there are two power centres it seems! The statement needs no further arguments at all. The world play that these folks resort to, is amusing to say the least. Sample this:
  
"Prime Ministerial authority needs to be seen to have been restored. "

"Needs to be seen"? Meaning, the authority is being displayed and is not being shown the outer world? Harish Khare himself goes on to explain that the congress ministers cannot be seen as not respecting the Prime Minister. Which brings us back to the original question - who is displaying enormous "timidity" to degrade the institution of the PMO? Who exactly is to take the blame for all this mess, Mr. Harish Khare?

The concluding paragraphs deride the absence of "prime ministerial oversight" too. Basically, a former insider is telling us that this Prime Minister does not bother to oversee due process and procedure. It’s a scathing indictment of Dr. Manmohan Singh’s capabilities, but somehow Mr. Khare wants us to believe that the multiple crises the country is facing is not because of the duo but inspite of them, whilst it is the converse that is true.

Like Kanchan Gupta said - India deserves far better than a Prime Minister held in such utter contempt by coalition partners. 

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