Statewide and National runup to 2014 General elections

Supratik · Post by **Supratik** » 11 Apr 2013 20:21

They should wait. Project Modi without naming PM candidate so that everyone knows he will get the chair if the numbers are right. No need to officially declare. Play your own little game with JD(U).

Aditya_V · Post by **Aditya_V** » 12 Apr 2013 00:07

Yes no need to declare, Let JD(U) call their bluff, they can't. INC is desperate to attack Modi post declaration. They are vary of Gadkari type Rajnath episode where they have gone for the wrong persons but exposing their spies and personal.

Let the elections be announced then we can talk of primeministerial candidates.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 12 Apr 2013 00:57

Most likely INC doesn't want TMC in the UPA. There are lot of scare tactics going on to make didi jump ship maybe to make way for NiKa

krisna · Post by **krisna** » 12 Apr 2013 06:35

MMS - minorities have the first right on resources.
queen B is a minority in a beehive, hence the first right to nation's resources.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Apr 2013 09:28

BJP should not oblige NK and his gang. Call their bluff and let them do whatever they want. It should not even respond saying it will do things in its sweat time. Let JD(U) to take the steps of going out of NDA. No problem. if it happense - project Sushil Modi as CM candidate in the next election and fight a hard fight in Loksabha seats in Bihar. I am sure 10 seats can be gained there. Let there is a trip of Modi to Patna with all local BJP state ministers attending the meeting praising etc. It will force Nithish to do his worst. BJP also got well known leaders like Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Ravishankar Prasad etc who can contest in Loksabha elections and in a multi-cornered elections GOK who will win condition will be there and BJP with divided votes can do well.

BJP and JD(U) came together and with that JD(U) was helped. Sharad Yadav who is from Jabalpur could find a political seat there in Bihar.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 12 Apr 2013 11:56

Bangalore: The real estate lobby entered the Karnataka state politics in the late 90s. CNN-IBN takes a look at some of the richest candidates in the fray for this year's Assembly polls, many of them from the real estate business.

Priyakrishna is the richest candidate in the fray and also one of the youngest. When he successfully contested an Assembly by-poll at the age of 25, his declared assets value was over Rs 750 crore. At 29, he is now seeking a second term on a Congress ticket from Govindarajanagar in Bangalore.
The source of his riches is real estate. His father M Krishnappa, who is popularly known as Layout Krishnappa, is also the Congress MLA from neighbouring Vijayanagara. Layout Krishnappa started off as a real estate tycoon who later entered politics to protect the family's booming business. "There are enough people with money and many without it too. Ultimately it's the support of the people that really matters," Priyakrishna said.

The symbiotic relationship between real estate and politics cuts across all political parties. BJP's young MLAs Nandish Reddy, Satish Reddy and SR Vishwanath are also linked to real estate in the prosperous parts of the city. BJP spokesperson S Prakash said, "Bangalore has a huge real estate market and seats are also decided on it. Every one wants to use this to contest."

The real estate lobby entered Karnataka politics in the late 90s. The IT city tag and booming real estate made many people crorepatis overnight. Instead of supporting other politicians, real estate tycoons themselves started contesting elections. The alleged sale of tickets to such moneybags has led to protests by candidates who have been overlooked. Congress member Shashidhar said, "They take money. There has been injustice with some candidates. I felt something fishy with this deal."

Nearly 50 per cent of Bangalore's real estate is directly or indirectly controlled by politicians. So will this year's elections spell a different story or will money power once again muscle its way to the seat of power?

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 12 Apr 2013 12:17

Singha wrote:Nearly 50 per cent of Bangalore's real estate is directly or indirectly controlled by politicians. So will this year's elections spell a different story or will money power once again muscle its way to the seat of power?

Without money power+caste there are no results in either KA or AP. You can name the parties as BJP, INC, Jagan, JD(S), TDP or whatever and the bottomlines of these two states does not change much. The concepts of "party with diff", Loksatta or any other textbook terms are all mental masturbation in the digital world.

INC ensured that Yeddi+Reddys are out of BJP and lack of that combination is itself a body blow to BJP. All other talk of Yeddi is bad because of this or that is hawa.

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 12 Apr 2013 12:19

geeth wrote:you mean, it is difficult to wean away few JD(U) MLAs and make the govt collapse? Afterall, Kangress& others together are only 12 and NiKu needs atleast 7 of them to keep going..

What I mean is BJP is not too far away with 91 seats. It can also form government using the break away JD(U).

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 12 Apr 2013 12:30

Muppalla wrote: INC ensured that Yeddi+Reddys are out of BJP and lack of that combination is itself a body blow to BJP. All other talk of Yeddi is bad because of this or that is hawa.

I personally think Yeddi ensured that due to his own exaggerated sense of self importance after becoming CM. INC of course helped.

Pacha nahi paya (could not digest) the power.

PS> I of course agree with the money+caste etc..

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 12 Apr 2013 12:43

yeddi had to fight many battles
- the initial 50:50 timeshare aggreement with JD(S) and HVK getting to be CM first
- the shock of HVK saying at end of his timeshare, "agreement, what aggrement?"
- leading a agitation to get HVK out after new elections
- no sooner had he been seated and started enjoying some malai than the loyakukta was activated to target the bellary brothers and split the Govt
- the bellary bros were also not willing to consider him the supreme leader and had independent channels to some of D4 it looks like
- being hung out dry as a sacrificial bakra by the delhi bjp high command
- being in jail for a while
- finally leaving and forming his own outfit

given this complex and fluid battle scenario, the fact of his being there without suffering a stroke is miraculous

this unholy mess came due to repeated fractured verdicts. any one of the three main formations with a strong mandate might have been better for the state overall.

unless Namo can create a nationwide wave and take the NDA alone over the line, UPA3 will be the same old s**t with a new twist, new yuvaraj and the usual b-team of hyenas lined up behind Scar.

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 12 Apr 2013 12:46

Sanku wrote: I personally think Yeddi ensured that due to his own exaggerated sense of self importance after becoming CM. INC of course helped.
Pacha nahi paya (could not digest) the power.

PS> I of course agree with the money+caste etc..

Could be true. That is where the top leadership makes a difference by making a choice. All Yeddi wanted was being CM. Negotiate everything else except that and work it out with indefinite patience. Instead it expedited his exit. When you really have super power capabilities then you venture into removing him. The bottomline is that the top leadership did not ensure a continuity of power to BJP in KA. In short they just played into the hands of KA governor/dynasty in dealing with Reddys and Yeddi.

Another thing I don't buy from other AP based posters on this forum is that Jagan's party members as some untouchables because of EJs etc. If BJP had nurtured and supported Reddy bros to the style of "rain or shine" we are with you, they could buy off a bunch from Jagan's party if push comes shove and there is need to overcome Nitish type junk. The "operation-Lotus" performed by Reddys+Yeddi is needed thing until realistic electoral reforms are done.

As I keep repeating again it is always India's cricket+IPL model. First play the game per the rules that are set and once you are superpower change the rules.

Exact action-replay of UP-Kalyan is what BJP did in KA-Yeddi.

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 12 Apr 2013 12:52

TWIW. I don't know from where these IRIS type orgs suddenly appear.

Social media to influence 160 Lok Sabha seats in next polls: Study

In the next general election, social media is likely to influence 160 Lok Sabha seats, a study said.

“There are 160 high impact constituencies out of the total of 543 constituencies, which are likely be influenced by social media during the next general elections,” the study by IRIS Knowledge Foundation and Internet and Mobile Association of India has said.

The State of Maharashtra has the maximum 21 high impact constituencies followed by Gujarat (17), the study — Social Media and Lok Sabha Elections — said.

High impact constituencies are those where the number of Facebook users is more than the margin of victory of the winner in the last Lok Sabha election, or where Facebook users account for over 10 per cent of total voters in a constituency.

Uttar Pradesh has 14 high impact constituencies, while Karnataka has 12 such seats. Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala has 12, 11 and 10 such seats respectively.

Madhya Pradesh has nine high impact constituencies while Delhi has seven, the study said.

Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan have five high impact constituencies each while Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand and West Bengal have four constituencies, the study said.

There are a total of 67 constituencies, which have been identified as medium impact constituencies, while the rest of the constituencies have been identified as low impact or no impact constituencies, the study said.

The medium impact constituencies are those where it has been assumed that a Facebook user can influence one other voter who may not be on Facebook, it said.

There are 60 low impact constituencies while the remaining 256 are in no-impact category, it added.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Apr 2013 14:49

If internet is so powerful now then BJP should win most of these seats because of "Internet Hindus". But this report is a S**t

Jagan is EJ gang member and is with INC only but not openly. Even now he is kept in Jail and still allowed to meet all political leaders. One improtant Filmstar Nagarjuna went to jail to meet Nimmagadda Prasad (who jailed in Jagan case) and rurmour has it that he also met Jagan. Nagarjuna also getting old and his father is a long standing indirect supportor of INC since start. So Nagarjuna may jum in the politics for Jagan gang. ha ha ha.

Atri · Post by **Atri** » 12 Apr 2013 15:05

Also, many IH are located in IT hubs OR keep on migrating between IT hubs due to job changes without registering themselves as voters in the local office. Many of them are NRIs. And more many IH in IT hubs, there are normal Rams and Shyams who are into other essential sectors and do not access social media to have that much impact.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 12 Apr 2013 15:10

IMO BJP should ditch most (if not all) its allies this time and go all alone. Certainly they are not helping them in growing their presence in the states, but limiting it. We want a strong BJP across the nation. JD in Bihar, SS in MH, DMK in TN, Akali in PU all are useless and limiting BJP's presence there. No one is stopping them doing post poll alliance like con. But at least they should fight all out. If at all, this exercise will help them do better in future elections in center as well as states.

Actually there is no point in doing a pre-poll alliance with regional parties for INC/BJP. Those parties' sole agenda is to eat up the national party's presence in the state over the period of time and at the same time increase their presence in other states.

Just look at WB. There is no BJP today because they did alliance in previous poll. If they do alliance with TMC for 14 then we can write off even the next elections as well along with state elections. Same with AP. If they don't break alliance with JD today, soon they have to write off Bihar. MH is another example where they conceded too much and can do better this time. BJP did very poor in seat sharing with its allies in 09. It seems that NM will be better bargainer than LKA so we can hope for some sanity from BJP this time.

Added later: For example, if there was no NM wave this time NiKu would have bargained hard and ate up 50% more seats. What will the BJP workers do in those constituencies then? Surely they will not sit on their arses but join JD which will practically removing BJP from Bihar over the period of time. He made himself hero out of nothing and completely sidelined BJP in state politics (see his recent rally for special status). Once that is done he can maneuver around INC and BJP in center to get maximum gain. THAT is the core reason NiKu has the allergy from NM. He simply wishes him out of the PM race.

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 12 Apr 2013 15:42

Muppalla wrote: Instead it expedited his exit. .

No Mupalla ji, Yeddi was finally let go ONLY after there was summons for him by Lokayukta.

You can not have the CM operating from jail can you ? What is there to be upset about?

Similarly Kalyan Singh again went down because of a woman -- no wonder a King is supposed to be Indriyajayi.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Apr 2013 15:53

Correct. I remember someone posting that Hindu rulers were more sucessful when then captured other hindu rulers and grow big and not done so good when tried to befrind other hindu rulers. BJP now contesting some 300 seats and need to make big numbers in that where as INC was trying for more. Even in it present depleted status INC is going it alone in more places and is a PAN India party. BJP is not trying it out. Nothing wrong in contesting every where with full force. The lone time mistake of Karnataka wherein they failed to grow and Odissa drama when JDS diched them. Chal Akela - Chel Akela Chel Akela should be the song for BJP.

Hari Seldon · Post by **Hari Seldon** » 12 Apr 2013 16:21

proponents of BJP's ekla chelo re have a point. certainly so in East India - WB, Odisha, JH, Asom, and maybe Bihar.

Again, ekla chalo in AP, maybe MH and certainly KA and Kerala make sense only.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 12 Apr 2013 16:47

^^^ What it does is that it keeps the party alive in every corner of the country. Even if they keep losing consistently, they will still have some reserved vote bank. This is what cong does so good. At least BJP with its Hindutva ideology will have some bare minimum number of votes everytime irrespective of wave. This base will grow suddenly when there is a positive wave. Just imagine WB's outcome if there was a good base for BJP in this wave of NM. They could easily expect more than 10 seats. But now the best they can hope is to at least have a decent share of votes irrespective of number of seats, that too if they go alone. If there was no NM wave, the Bihar, MH and PU were lost cause for BJP and resulted into steep down slide.

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 12 Apr 2013 16:55

kapilrdave wrote: At least BJP with its Hindutva ideology will have some bare minimum number of votes everytime irrespective of wave. This base will grow suddenly when there is a positive wave.

That is supposed to be a strategy? More like hope and prayer.

This is like turning the clock back to 80s.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 12 Apr 2013 17:02

^^^ What better can you suggest in current situation?

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 12 Apr 2013 17:32

Contesting in elections is a must if you really want to grow. You may not win or may lose badly but you will keep the base workers active and every one knows you are there. In Telangana region of AP BJP can anyday get aroung 15% t0 20% votes. Contesting in all the MP and MLA seats there makes lot of sense. I myself worked in elections in costal AP for BJP and we always used to get good response from public though we never won in our place after 1956 ( as Jana Sangh) What is the fun of calling BJP a national party and not contesting in the elections. In any event in states like AP there is no postive offer from any other party to support BJP and CBN who should have continued in NDA camp left it the moment NDA lost power and singing 3rd front and secular song with left parties. CPI in AP even going to join Jagan gang. So BJP should contest every seat wherein they do not have positve alley. May be not in Odissa - JDS seems to have made the offer to support NaMo.

If you fight there is nothing to lose except your chains ( Comme slogan sorry)

Virendra · Post by **Virendra** » 12 Apr 2013 19:06

Rajasthan update:

Resentment against Gehlot's completely absent Industrial aptitude is clearly noticed among the middle class.
People point out many projects & potential opportunities that in ruins as Gehlot Government has turned a blind eye.
His organizational capability (specially inside State Congress) is good, but the grip on bureaucrats is again not to the desired effect.

Vasundhara's constant flip flop, being in and out of Rajasthan are not helping the state BJP.
Her differences with other leaders in state BJP have been ironed out.
But now that she's caressing the unhappy ones, the loyal ones already in her pocket may feel suffocated and want out.

Regards,
Virendra

fanne · Post by **fanne** » 12 Apr 2013 21:51

Virendra, first sentence is giving many meaning depending on how you read it, can you please rephrase it for clarity

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 12 Apr 2013 23:56

kapilrdave wrote:^^^ What better can you suggest in current situation?

BJP has limited resources, it should focus on winning the areas where it has a chance, there is should go for a kill, other places allies are ok.

There are enough places where they will never have allies (Arunachal, Kerala, Jammu) but where they are not present. For the next step, they should go in those places.

Finally they should start replacing the least reliable ally with themselves (orissa) -- bottom line, no point putting up candidates for show and tell, this is serious business, they should ONLY put up candidates where they can go for a kill.

This half hearted approach is murder.

Kakkaji · Post by **Kakkaji** » 13 Apr 2013 04:40

The objective in this parliamentary election should be to reduce the vote share and the vote percentage of the Congress to the minimum possible. Gathering allies judiciously is a means to achieving that goal. As one of the Gurus posted earlier, forming alliance with (flawed) Sugreev and Vibhishan was necessary to achieve the overarching goal of destroying Ravan.

Once the primary goal is achieved, the other goals can be achieved in due time.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 13 Apr 2013 06:11

http://www.rediff.com/news/report/congr ... 130410.htm

There is trouble for the Congress in Bellary with party leaders threatening to field independent candidates against the party. Anil Lad, a mining baron from Bellary, was denied a party ticket which prompted him to rebel against the Congress.

Lad said that he and his followers were denied a Congress ticket. “This is unfair and I will not take it lightly. I will field independent candidates from all the eight constituencies in Bellary. All these candidates will be my followers,” said Lad.

The Congress has been cautious in giving out tickets, especially in Bellary, as the mining issue had snowballed and put the Bharatiya Janata Party [ Images ] in a very tight spot. The Congress feels that anyone associated with the mining scam should be left out of the election race. The Congress feels that their decision to keep miners away from the election ensured a good result in the urban local body polls.

With nearly 47 more candidates to be announced, the Congress is facing its worst nightmare. On Wednesday morning protests were staged outside the Karnataka Pradesh Congress office. There were similar protests in Davangere, Bellary and Bagalkot.

Some members of the Congress even picketed the house of AICC General Secretary Oscar Fernandes [ Images ] in Udupi demanding that they be considered for tickets.

The Congress is expected to announce its final list of candidates on Wednesday evening. The list is being prepared in consultation with the Congress bigwigs in New Delhi [ Images ].

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 11:01

Sanku ji,

The point is that BJP is entertaining its current allies unnecessarily. They can achieve better result in those states by going alone. No regional ally is reliable. They will go where the money/power is. One can argue that SS and Akali are more reliable, but hey, you don't want such idiots anywhere near to you, right? By doing alliance where they can win they are shooting their own foot.

Regarding the places where they are not present like AP, Kerala, Jammu you and me are saying the same thing.

Regarding places like WB, TN, AP I don't see any good in doing pre poll alliance. Of course nobody is stopping them doing the post poll alliance.

I don't know what you mean by saying 'BJP has limited resources'. Money? workers? Workers will only come when you show the intent to contest. I don't know about money resource in BJP but I would be surprised to know that BJP doesn't have its own account in swiss

.

Pranav · Post by **Pranav** » 13 Apr 2013 11:08

Basic point is that allies come to you only if you have your own strength.

Advani in his speech to BJP workers was pleading that the BJP is too weak and therefore needs to rely more on allies and secularism.

But Advani has it pretty good right now, he gets crumbs which Maino throws on the floor and he controls the BJP parliamentary board. No reason for him to rock the boat. He is happier now than he would be with Modi as PM.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 11:22

Pranav wrote: But Advani has it pretty good right now, he gets crumbs which Maino throws on the floor and he controls the BJP parliamentary board. No reason for him to rock the boat. He is happier now than he would be with Modi as PM.

Just to clarify that I don't agree with above statement. LKA could be weaker and less intelligent leader than NM but can't be crumb catcher as you are describing. This is my personal opinion and will not argue more on this.

Clarified the above in fear of Sanku ji jumping gun on me

Sushupti · Post by **Sushupti** » 13 Apr 2013 11:34

CBI Power

http://www.firstpost.com/politics/a-day ... 97716.html

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 11:45

^^^ No. That move reminded Rae Bareily and Amethi that it is the die-nasty which gives them the 24X7 power so they better keep them voting. This is mili-bhagat from cong and Mr. Silki (mulayam). Mafia fears from defeat in those constituencies this time. What a shame it would be for them to contest from a different place than these. Also it will severely affect their chances in joo-pee.

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 13 Apr 2013 13:15

kapilrdave wrote:Sanku ji,
The point is that BJP is entertaining its current allies unnecessarily. They can achieve better result in those states by going alone. No regional ally is reliable. They will go where the money/power is.

Of course there are unreliable allies, however there are reliable allies as well. Further more, I do not agree that BJP can do better by going alone. Not in Bihar, not in TN (say), not in Bengal etc etc.

They will lose badly, and staying on the fringes of power is not good for party building either. It will just wither away. A much better strategy is to ally and then cannibalize, like what was done with Parvatak. That is the ONLY solution.

One can argue that SS and Akali are more reliable, but hey, you don't want such idiots anywhere near to you, right? By doing alliance where they can win they are shooting their own foot.

You must be joking. SS and Akali have been allies since nearly their incepetion, and no they are not idiots, they are very powerful and respectable regional parties which can add muscles and be used to carry out agenda which BJP might not immediately obviously endorse.

Regarding the places where they are not present like AP, Kerala, Jammu you and me are saying the same thing.

But there is a big difference in what you are saying and what I am. You are arguing from a ideological ground, I am putting a road-map of staggered growth in a pragmatic fashion combining with ideology.

Regarding places like WB, TN, AP I don't see any good in doing pre poll alliance. Of course nobody is stopping them doing the post poll alliance.

BJP is a cipher in TN, if it can get a pre poll alliance, it can only grow. Otherwise it will only hurt its prospective partners after polls, what is the point of doing that?

Do you want to defeat congress or not.

I don't know what you mean by saying 'BJP has limited resources'. Money? workers? Workers will only come when you show the intent to contest. I don't know about money resource in BJP but I would be surprised to know that BJP doesn't have its own account in swiss .

Both, and the point is not that BJP has zero resources; however that does not mean there are infinite resources either, which can be squandered.

If BJP did have such resources, it would have already won.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 14:31

Sanku wrote:
kapilrdave wrote:Sanku ji,
The point is that BJP is entertaining its current allies unnecessarily. They can achieve better result in those states by going alone. No regional ally is reliable. They will go where the money/power is.
Of course there are unreliable allies, however there are reliable allies as well. Further more, I do not agree that BJP can do better by going alone. Not in Bihar, not in TN (say), not in Bengal etc etc.

They will lose badly, and staying on the fringes of power is not good for party building either. It will just wither away. A much better strategy is to ally and then cannibalize, like what was done with Parvatak. That is the ONLY solution.

In Bihar BJP can definitely get more than 12 which is their score in 09. They can't do worse in WB and TN, 1 and 0 respectively. At least they can build a workers and voters base for next election.

Sanku wrote:
kapilrdave wrote: One can argue that SS and Akali are more reliable, but hey, you don't want such idiots anywhere near to you, right? By doing alliance where they can win they are shooting their own foot.
You must be joking. SS and Akali have been allies since nearly their incepetion, and no they are not idiots, they are very powerful and respectable regional parties which can add muscles and be used to carry out agenda which BJP might not immediately obviously endorse.

SS today has reduced to a goonda org. And akali is supporting khalistanis. Politically they may be useful but I would not want them in my side. And even politically they are limiting BJP's seats in their states. IMO MH and PU can be won alone in current scenario.

Sanku wrote:
kapilrdave wrote: Regarding the places where they are not present like AP, Kerala, Jammu you and me are saying the same thing.
But there is a big difference in what you are saying and what I am. You are arguing from a ideological ground, I am putting a road-map of staggered growth in a pragmatic fashion combining with ideology.

When I say they need to contest on these states, that doesn't mean they just have to fill the form and sit on their arse wearing the thick blind goggle of 'ideology' and wait for result. Contesting itself means they have to fight hard with strategy. They may still lose, but they will get there eventually sometime. But to go somewhere you have to start from somewhere.

Sanku wrote:
kapilrdave wrote: Regarding places like WB, TN, AP I don't see any good in doing pre poll alliance. Of course nobody is stopping them doing the post poll alliance.
BJP is a cipher in TN, if it can get a pre poll alliance, it can only grow. Otherwise it will only hurt its prospective partners after polls, what is the point of doing that?

Do you want to defeat congress or not.

Hmmm. I can agree with that particularly about TN.

vijayk · Post by **vijayk** » 13 Apr 2013 15:58

http://www.firstpost.com/india/power-cr ... 97793.html
Power crisis: Nagaland faces 12-16 hours of daily loadshedding

http://www.firstpost.com/india/power-cr ... 97765.html
Power crunch turns grim in Kerala, water level at reservoirs receding

http://www.firstpost.com/politics/a-day ... 97716.html
A day later, UP restores 24X7 power supply to Rae Bareli, Amethi

Finally someone speaks truth
http://www.firstpost.com/politics/upa-a ... _medium=hp
UPA is a rogue Govt

JohnTitor · Post by **JohnTitor** » 13 Apr 2013 17:00

Here is an article of great importance to bharat in the long run.

India blows gains from disinvestment

Why this contention? Lets take the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, a scheme that every government legislator will swear by, as it enabled them to retain power in 2009. The concept, though commendable, has had less than desirable outcome. The huge amount of money that was spent on this scheme hardly created any asset that could be leveraged upon in the future. Also, apart from well-documented incidence of massive corruption, what it led to was an increasing desire of the beneficiaries against moving to other places that offer better job opportunities.

Essentially it turned out to be an exercise of mere transfer of income, which, apart from an immediate benefit, makes the beneficiaries too dependent on the dole for their own good.

Or take the case of the Integrated Child Development Scheme, which is close to completing the fourth decade of its existence. Touted as one of the world's largest and most distinct programs for early childhood development, it has recently been rapped by the Comptroller and Auditor General for its corruption while every second malnourished child in the world is still an Indian.

Or the Food Security Bill. As pointed out by the economist Arvind Virmani, a former International Monetary Fund executive director, the country's problem is malnutrition and not hunger. Yet the food security bill insists on spending humungous amounts of money on distributing cheap cereals, which while important to take care of hunger does precious little to fight malnutrition. However, for impoverished people who are resigned to their fate of lowly existence, getting two square meals a day from the government (irrespective of the nutritional value) is like a gift from god. This food security bill is the plank on which the government hopes to be re-elected in the 2014 general election.

The common thread to all of these schemes is that the apparent benefits are immediately visible to the intended beneficiaries, irrespective of the long-term implications. To the recipient, therefore, the government is the messiah. To keep up with this image and to keep the votes flowing, the messiah needs to find resources to keep the ruse going.

So, when a steady stream of income (read tax revenues) fails to satiate the appetite for spending, there is an increasing dependence on one-time revenue generation to get started a scheme that will entail perpetual spending. While there is a potential for once-in-a-while revenue generation through the auction of scarce resources, including telecom spectrum, disinvestment - the sale if government stakes in state-owned companies - is the UPA's answer to the challenge of garnering a steady stream of revenues every year.

Disinvestment, in principle, is an excellent idea, since the government has no business to be in business. However, the best way to utilize such revenues is either to create newer assets or to reduce liabilities. Instead, these revenues are being used to create newer liabilities, so that the messiah can live up to the expectations. In essence, while the economy suffers from lack of investment, unimaginative and poorly targeted social sector spending grabs all the resources.

When the messiah is at work, a struggling economy or weakening state-owned companies are but mere collateral damage.

basically, what this means is that once all these are sold off.. we have huge debt, nothing to show for it and a govt that is more corrupt that ever.

Pratyush · Post by **Pratyush** » 13 Apr 2013 17:01

Just to add to the above

CBI, Centre at loggerhead in SC over Coalgate scam findings

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 13 Apr 2013 19:00

kapilrdave wrote:
In Bihar BJP can definitely get more than 12 which is their score in 09. They can't do worse in WB and TN, 1 and 0 respectively. At least they can build a workers and voters base for next election.

May be, may be not? But the above will also ensure that Laloo gets 10 seats (and hence Congress gets 10 seats) more in BIhar.

You call gifting away seats to your enemy wise?

I dont get it, just what is the goal here? To lose the elections ?

Sanku wrote: SS today has reduced to a goonda org. And akali is supporting khalistanis. Politically they may be useful but I would not want them in my side.

Dude, lets get real. Its fine to hope and wish that BJP will suddenly grow and have a pan India presence, however that happens between elections and not during elections.

At this point of time, the goal is to remove Congress (as NaMo also said) -- and BJP should concentrate on where it can do well, letting others do well where they are strong.

The time for building the party and taking on elections is between 2014 and 2019, and if they are in power, they can significantly expedite the process.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 19:49

How is it that all advantage will go to lallu (that's his real name. We/media give him a better name needlessly.) by BJP vs JDU battle? Lallu lost miserably last time and there are no such development that indicate his rise. In fact, by doing anti modi campaign bhikhari will snatch a good muslim vote share from him which he cannot by being with BJP. In any ways, however it may seem so but lallu is not equal to congress. The power con enjoys is because of its own count and not of UPA. If BJP has that power of its own rest will fall in line. There will be many parties ready to support if the numbers are there. And what is the guarantee that bhikhari kumar will not join con after poll? He is not joining it now because it is not in his interest. The things might be different then. The point is, let JDU and lallu worry for themselves. BJP should worry about their own onlee. NM categorically emphasized on defeating con as prime goal, but as I said lallu <> cong. The single minded agenda of BJP should be to increase its own count. That's it.

I see that you selectively quote my post only partially. This happened before in our previous exchange as well. You din't quote what I said about SS and akali after that "politically useful" statement. Let me post it in full now.

kapilrdave wrote: SS today has reduced to a goonda org. And akali is supporting khalistanis. Politically they may be useful but I would not want them in my side. And even politically they are limiting BJP's seats in their states. IMO MH and PU can be won alone in current scenario.

kapilrdave · Post by **kapilrdave** » 13 Apr 2013 20:09

Quoting Sushupti ji from the NaMo thread. See even local BJP workers don't mind breaking the alliance which implies that they are confident enough and want to go alone.

Sushupti wrote:JD(U), public want alliance; Narendra Modi first for BJP

Nitish Kumar’s clear indication on the NDA’s prime ministerial candidate ahead of next year’s Lok Sabha elections may have put the BJP in a tight spot in Delhi but his JD(U) workers and supporters on the ground in Bihar seem visibly reluctant to break ranks with their alliance partner in the state.

And that poses a dilemma for the JD(U) leadership.

This week, The Indian Express visited eight Lok Sabha constituencies in Bihar — Muzaffarpur, Nalanda, Munger, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Darbhanga, Madhubani and Nawada — shared equally between the two parties, to get a sense of how the tensions between the two parties at the national level are playing out on the electoral battlefield.

In general, BJP workers in these constituencies were less keen to save the alliance with the JD(U) at the expense of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s claim to be projected as the NDA’s prime ministerial candidate.

JD(U) supporters, however, appeared eager to stick together even as they asserted that their core support base of extremely backward classes (EBCs) and Mahadalits would remain intact, come what may.

While public sentiment seemed to acknowledge the rising popularity of Modi, it was also clearly opposed to the BJP and the JD(U) going their separate ways as people seemed to fear it would give a window of opportunity to Lalu Prasad’s RJD.

“Both will suffer losses,” was the common refrain when people were asked about the BJP and JD(U) breaking their alliance over Modi.

“There is no alternative to Nitish Kumar in Bihar. The end of the alliance will give an unnecessary opening to RJD’s Lalu Prasad, whom we cannot trust, and even the Congress that does not exist in Bihar,” said Rajkumar Mahto of Gyodhapar, a village in the Harnaut assembly segment of Nalanda.

The fear of Lalu returning in the event of the BJP and JD(U) breaking up weighs heavily on the minds of supporters of both parties. The JD(U) is also apprehensive about whether its anti-Modi plank would be good enough to woo more Muslims to make up for the loss of upper-caste voters traditionally associated with the BJP.

“There is a sense of fear of sailing alone because we are not sure whether the anti-Modi plank alone can bring us enough minority support to compensate for the loss of upper-caste support. Minorities still have a natural affinity for RJD and Congress when it comes to national elections. We do not have that comfort as yet,” said a JD(U) district president who did not want to be identified for fear of being hauled up for his remarks at the party’s national conference in Delhi over the weekend.

Another JD(U) chief hinted at similar sentiments when he advocated that if the JD(U) called off its alliance with the BJP, it should ally with the Congress to send a clear signal to Muslims ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

“Nitish has solid credentials to attract more Muslim supporters because he has pursued pro-minority policies despite being in alliance with the BJP and the BJP has been kept at bay on issues and initiatives concerning Muslims during the last seven years,” said Shabbeer Ahmed, JD(U) town president for Muzaffarpur.

This sentiment is echoed in several villages with a substantial Muslim population.

“Lalu has been the first choice of Muslims, but if Nitish and Congress join hands it will become more than a 50:50 split in Muslim votes in favour of Nitish,” speculates Mohammed Vakil of Parsauni village which has a large Muslim population and is located on the road between Sheohar and Sitamarhi.

Other Muslims acknowledge that Nitish’s tenure has not been bad for the community but they maintain that he will have to take one major step forward to make Muslims natural allies of the JD(U) over RJD.

“If Nitish wishes to woo us, he will have to break the alliance with the BJP well in time to ensure a bitter and open war of words and demonstrate his anti-Modi credentials, and also have enough time to spread the word in the community about his action and mobilise them,” said Imtiaz of Sakari, a large village on the boundary of Madhubani and Darbhanga constituencies.

Imtiaz also questioned the low political representation given to Muslim leaders by Nitish compared to that of Lalu.

But talking about the core support bases of the BJP and the JD(U), there were competing claims among party workers with one section believing that Nitish’s good governance would wean upper-caste voters to the JD(U) while another section fearing that Modi’s charisma could push EBC voters towards the BJP.

“We have moved much ahead of Mandal-kamandal politics and do not want to bring back emotional issues. Our workers are not getting provoked and want the alliance to continue,” said Nalanda JD(U) president Siyasharan Thakur.

But the thinking within the BJP on the ground is that Modi is the natural option for the BJP to project as PM. “If our alliance with the JD(U) breaks in the name of Narendra Modi, so be it,” said Manoj Kumar, the BJP’s district president of Sitamarhi which is represented by the JD(U) in the Lok Sabha.

Similar sentiments were expressed by a majority of the BJP’s district presidents, indicating the party’s reluctance to save the alliance at the expense of Modi’s claim for the top job.

http://m.indianexpress.com/news/jd%28u% ... p/1101820/