I Cheer for India!!

Remember Remember 5^th of December!! Back in 2013 a slogan, based on a Hollywood movie ‘V for Vendetta’ had reverberated in the atmospheres of Delhi. ‘Mein Hu Aam Admi’ cries had soared in the spirits of Delhi Belly. ‘Corruption Hatao, Desh Bachao’ resonated in sync with the common man of National Capital. From out of nowhere AAP had risen up the political ladders; spectacularly winning not one, not two, but overwhelming 28 assembly seats in their debut election. That also included a record defeat of almost invincible Delhi former CM Sheila Dixit against a freshman Arvind Kejriwal.

Unfortunately just within 49 days, Kejriwal had to resign from the post. From that day till yesterday; series of theatricity, debates, interviews and rallies have led to the mandate, Delhi people have given today. A spectacular victory! Not just 50% but a staggering 95% seats were won by Team Kejriwal. And the most heartbreaking figure of zero has scripted obituary for National Congress. Had Pandit Nehru been with us today, he would have regretted for founding the IITs. Social Network at its best. :D

How did this happen? What charm does AK carry and not even big players like PM Modi?  He has always sought a victory and this time an astounding triumph, decimating the rivals out rightly.

Well, I`m not going to talk about the political aspects which I guess are very crystalline. But, what struck me the most about AK is that his ability to touch people, willingness to step down, mix and connect with the fundamental issues of the people. And on top of that his ability to accept the mistakes. First thing he did after the Loksabha election was, he surrendered to the public and apologized for quitting all of a sudden. Whatever reasons there might be, he didn’t hide behind the excuses or blamed others. That was perhaps the rarest of the qualities we find among today’s politicians. And in every interview, panel discussion, debates, he made sure that the apology is reiterated and reached the masses.  

But the reason why I`m writing today is to clarify my personal political views. I and my friend keep bashing on each other every time elections are around the corner. But honestly speaking, I don’t belong to any parties (as of now) and nor do I support any party out of emotions or religious bias. But in my opinion political parties and that too BJP, Congress are two sides of a same coin. One is driven by a sheer religious ideology of Hindutva and other is ruled by the royal family lineage. I personally feel that politics should keep religion, caste, creed, race and region at bay. The very purpose of secularism defeats right when the governing party’s decision making is influenced by religious, caste based or regional biasness. Unfortunately no party, national or regional has ever succeeded to achieve that; or for that matter willed to change its ways. And more surprisingly, they haven’t accepted the fact that today’s voters are awakened. They can no more be bought by a few thousands rupees or a bottle of rum or can be cheated with fancy unrealistic promises. (BJP, to a certain extend did change their strategies, agendas and the leadership; but congress continued to remain in deep shit and now the Delhi mandate has clearly pushed them into a bottomless pit.)  

AAP has shown Delhi a way out. A party which is not religiously influenced, a party which is not dominated by one single family, a party which doesn’t play with people’s emotions; but a party which is driven by an urge to serve first the primary needs of human being, a party willing to deliver a transparent governance and a party who wish to set the democratic and secular principles anew. But AAP’s modes operandi can work only in National Capital for obvious reasons such as easy access to information, top leadership from core Delhi etc. It will take time and require significant efforts to become a national party provided AAP team doesn’t stray from their core beliefs. In such situation, only possible options for Loksabha elections were BJP and Congress. I may not be a supporter of BJP but a great admirer of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi for their stellar leadership and progressive vision for India. Thus, due to 10 years of sluggish and corrupt governance of UPA, void in strong leadership at centre, BJP’s revamped campaign strategy and Modi himself being a Prime Ministerial candidate; the mandate was sure to go in favor of BJP in 2014 elections.

Then India needed a change nationwide and not just Delhi centric. And I feel that Narendra Modi with his vision of ‘Development for all’ was the solution. Keep the BJP, RSS, and VHP aspects aside; I supported a visionary leader within him. And I continue to support him even now. India needed a spearhead like Modi to lead us and make us believe in our own enormous potential. Modi has not only proved himself as an astute politician in the eyes of the world but also stepped forward with great initiatives. But India also needed AAP in Delhi to ignite the hope that honesty can still be the best policy. This is what Modi is unable to provide, has been quite dexterously proposed by Kejriwal. Clean Governance!!

Now comes the time of deliverance. Both Modi and Kejriwal will prove complementary to each other and together they, although via different path; will work for India’s better tomorrow. Modi in Centre and Kejriwal in Delhi is a win-win situation for AAP, BJP, Delhi and India. In the end, the truth is that humans are bound to err and sooner or later, politics lets the virus of greed & power creep in the weaker ones. But sometimes truth is just not enough. What matters is that in certain times, people need to have their faith rewarded. Faith in honesty, faith in transparency, accountability. This mammoth election triumph belonged to this faith. Delhi people didn’t vote for Modi, nor for Kejriwal either.

They voted for India. They cheered for India!!