People's Democracy

EDITORIAL

BJP’s Debasement Of Political Morality 

THE BJP – “the party with a difference” – is proving by the day, that, it is, indeed, different. It is scripting new definitions of political morality in independent India’s political history.

Usually, political immorality is associated with corruption. The BJP, indeed, proved itself to be ‘a party with a difference’ on this score as well.   The unprecedented string of corruption scandals that rocked the Vajpayee’s tenure of six years had shocked the country. The telecom scandal, the sugar scam, the UTI fiasco, the Khetan Parek stock market scam, scams in the  defence deals exposed by the tehelka, the coffin scam and others connected with purchases during the Kargil war, the provision of Mauritius route for loot by foreign institutional investors, the land scam, the mega petro scam and the scams connected with the privatisation of the public sector – to name a few, illuminated the BJP-led government’s rule in the country. 

While they perfected the art of looting, there were other areas as well where they were scripting newer definitions of political morality. The unprincipled alliances that they stuck and unstuck in various parts of the country in pursuit of their political agenda have added a new chapter to politics of opportunism and convenience in India. Most recently, the unscrupulous horse-trading in Jharkhand by inducting those very people  as ministers who won by defeating the BJP candidates illustrates the depths to which  they can stoop in pursuit  of power.  It should never be lost sight of that they seek to remain in power for the sole objective of implementing the RSS vision of transforming the secular democratic Indian Republic into a rabidly fascistic “Hindu Rashtra”.

Having ignomiously lost the general elections in 2004 and, hence, being forced to sit in the opposition, the BJP is now adding yet another chapter in its contributions to defining political immorality. On a string of policy measures which they had proposed when they were in power, they are now reneging simply because they are sitting in the opposition.  There is no principle for the BJP, it appears, other than being the ruling party or the opposition. Its approach on policy matters is defined by its position! 

The latest example of this is their shameless turn around on the  Patents Amendment Bill.  Earlier, they did a similar turn around on the issue of implementing VAT which was spearheaded by their own finance minister in the past. The Pension Regulatory Authority Bill, a consequence of the new pension scheme introduced by the Vajpayee government undemocratically without consulting any trade unions, is now being opposed by them.

When the Vajpayee government introduced the Patents Amendment Bill, the CPI(M) had suggested similar amendments that have now been accepted  by the UPA government.  The BJP refused to even consider these amendments, playing ball as they were with US imperialism.  Their urge to appease and succumb to US imperialist interests is unmatched. 

It does not take much for anyone to see through the BJP’s diabolic gameplan. Finding themselves unable to rouse the Indian people, once again, on communal passions, they are seeking to enlist support of the people by reversing their own positions advanced while they were in government. No one is going to be fooled by such hypocrisy.  Apart from all other important and overbearing reasons, on this count of the debasement of political morality alone, the BJP must be kept as far away as possible from State power for the sake of India, i.e., Bharat.