The Save Democracy rally organised by Opposition parties on March 31 was a significant political development, providing an opportunity for the INDIA bloc to assert itself as a formidable alliance. The arrest of Delhi chief minister (CM) Arvind Kejriwal was an important and immediate factor that somehow legitimised the need for Opposition unity and its effective demonstration.
The INDIA bloc, for the first time, has moved away from the routine business of seat-sharing. The Opposition was able to come out with a coherent political agenda to raise the stakes against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). To illustrate, the Delhi CM’s wife, Sunita Kejriwal, read out a letter on his behalf, explaining the six guarantees of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which include free electricity for poor households, and the establishment of government schools and mohalla (locality) clinics in the country. Similarly, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav evoked the unity of the PDA (pichre, Dalit, alpsankhyak, or the backward classes, Dalits, and minorities) for protecting democracy, the Constitution and, above all, reservation.
The rally finally adopted a resolution underlining five key demands: The Election Commission of India (ECI) should ensure a level playing field for all parties in the Lok Sabha elections; it should ensure that Opposition leaders are not targeted by government agencies such the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Income Tax (I-T) department; former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren and Arvind Kejriwal should be released immediately; any tactic to “financially strangulate the Opposition parties” before the Lok Sabha elections must immediately cease; and a Special Investigation Team (SIT), under the supervision of the Supreme Court (SC), should be formed to look into “money laundering and extortion” by the BJP through electoral bonds.
Neither the demands nor the poll promises are entirely new. Opposition leaders have been highlighting these demands since the inception of the alliance. And when it comes to the poll promises, in fact, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra did make a serious attempt to redefine social justice and democratic equality as a counter-narrative to that of the ruling party. However, these individual efforts could not be translated into an action-oriented electoral agenda. The Save Democracy rally, in a way, has emerged as a public platform where the collective resolve of the Opposition has found clear political expression.
It will be too early to make any speculative comment on the electoral outcomes of this mega event. However, three important future-oriented arguments have begun to take concrete political shape after this rally.
First, the Opposition has expressed its collective unease about the actual functioning of State institutions. Government agencies are not merely criticised for being biased and narrow-minded, their expanded institutional mandate is also being questioned. The status of ECI, in this sense, becomes very delicate. The Opposition did not reject ECI completely. However, the statements made by a few senior leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, clearly show that the Opposition is apprehensive about ECI’s role in the coming election. The SC is identified as the most trusted institution in this schema. This criticism of the institutional apparatus has the potential to destabilise the established narrative of development and democracy in the long run.
Second, the Opposition has given a new meaning to the Constitution. Both Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav evoked the principles of the Constitution as a serious political resource. In a way, a simple and uncomplicated argument is advanced: The Constitution is a living document that ensures democratic equality and social justice. Therefore, the survival of democracy is seen as a prerequisite for the protection of the Constitution. Yadav’s speech is very significant in this regard. He did not just talk about Dalits and OBCs but also included minorities in his configuration of PDA. This argument is powerful and persuasive. It may not merely be used to substantiate the anti-BJP posture, but also help the Opposition strengthen its criticism of institutional misuse, especially against marginalised social groups.
The third evolving argument is related to what I call the religionisation of Indian politics. In her short concluding speech, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra used the encounter between Lord Ram and Ravana in an interesting manner. She highlighted the fact that Lord Ram did not have money, resources, and institutional support, while Ravana was politically authoritative and financially powerful. Despite this imbalance, Lord Ram was able to win because he was fighting for a just cause. This metaphoric use of the Ramayana as a resource for making a political point is important.
The BJP has normalised the use of religious symbols in public life in overtly Hindutva terms. In fact, Hindutva-driven nationalism has emerged as the dominant electoral narrative of Indian politics. The impact of this narrative was so powerful that the entire political class began to adjust itself to Hindu idioms and metaphors. The Congress’s intellectual leaders such as Shashi Tharoor and Salman Khurshid also tried to develop a counter-argument by making a distinction between Hinduism and Hindutva. Kejriwal redesigned his politics around Hindu symbols. Priyanka Gandhi’s short speech was a significant departure from others. She was able to communicate Hinduism in simple political terms while questioning the politics of the ruling party.
These three arguments — unease with institutional decline, adherence to the ethics of the Constitution, and an alternative politics of faith — have not yet been linked to each other in any coherent manner. One should not exaggerate them to envisage any possible anti-BJPism, or for that matter, any counter-narrative at this stage. At the same time, one cannot underestimate the importance of this emerging political churning. It will be interesting to observe how these arguments help the INDIA bloc counter the BJP’s Hindutva-driven nationalism and labharthi (beneficiary)-driven development electoral narrative in 2024.
Hilal Ahmed is associate professor, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies. The views expressed are personal
Emerging outlines of Opposition’s agenda
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1
02.04.2024
The Save Democracy rally organised by Opposition parties on March 31 was a significant political development, providing an opportunity for the INDIA bloc to assert itself as a formidable alliance. The arrest of Delhi chief minister (CM) Arvind Kejriwal was an important and immediate factor that somehow legitimised the need for Opposition unity and its effective demonstration.
The INDIA bloc, for the first time, has moved away from the routine business of seat-sharing. The Opposition was able to come out with a coherent political agenda to raise the stakes against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). To illustrate, the Delhi CM’s wife, Sunita Kejriwal, read out a letter on his behalf, explaining the six guarantees of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which include free electricity for poor households, and the establishment of government schools and mohalla (locality) clinics in the country. Similarly, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav evoked the unity of the PDA (pichre, Dalit, alpsankhyak, or the backward classes, Dalits, and minorities) for protecting democracy, the Constitution and, above all, reservation.
The rally finally adopted a resolution underlining five key demands: The Election Commission of India (ECI) should ensure a level playing field for all parties in the Lok Sabha elections; it should ensure that Opposition leaders are not targeted by government agencies such the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Income Tax (I-T) department; former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren and Arvind Kejriwal should be released immediately; any........
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