Statewide and National runup to 2014 General elections

M Joshi · Post by **M Joshi** » 30 Dec 2013 17:14

Among the MSM the biggest suckers for AAP seems to be Aaj Tak/Headlines Today. And it's no coincidence that Aaj Tak has the highest viewership in Delhi/NCR.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 30 Dec 2013 17:21

Published on Dec 30, 2013
Kongu Party Hints at Forging LS Poll Alliance with BJP: New Indian Express

maitas66 #HDL ‏@chinmaykrvd
If KNMK-BJP-MDMK-DMDK alliance materializes in Tamil Nadu it could be a political game changer.Contest would be very interesting

svenkat · Post by **svenkat** » 30 Dec 2013 17:51

I think MDMK of Vaiko is a bit dicey.Better avoid MDMK.Yes KMK+DMDK not bad, though KMK too is essentially caste based(kongu vellalars).That way even DMDKs agenda is protection of telugu tamils from onslaught of parochial 100% pure tamils.Vaiko is seen as a telugu by PMK,VCK etc inspite of his shrill rhetoric.

Sometimes,I think the Congress India was really an interrugnum which has already evaporated.We need a Hindu identity equally respectful of all sub-identities.Is that possible or is it a pipe dream?

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 30 Dec 2013 18:01

Virendra wrote:the common man would lend his ear first to the road-food and power related topics, before listening to Batla and Kashmir. Nobody can say that these are not important issues. What has been happening cannot be dnied.
But you also cannot dictate to the common voter as to what factors he considers before casting his/her vote or what factors take precedence over the others for him/her. That is exactly the context in which Kejri's few short term grabs of low handing fruits, hyperventilated by the crazy media as messiaic, will be potentially dangerous.

The rural population is still in the grasp of Jai Jawan Jai Kisan. It is the rural and semi-urban population that contributes foot soldiers to Army and police forces. So Batala and Kashmir, beheading of soldiers will find a lot of resonance with deeper India. Though the population may be casteistic etc., they still have some fundamentals of a nation and community.

It is the younger sections of metro population whose geography starts from one street end to other end. Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad have become truly ghettos. Some of the great and offrepeated examples- "As war will bring down business and IT we should not worry about loss of Kargil" and "India should safely and peacefully transfer Tawang to China as war is a disaster for all the services jobs".
It is the metro population who these days know better about the world than India and for these folks the grass is always and in all aspects greener on the otherside. If there is Orange Revolution in Egypt, we need one yaar. If Obama wins using internet campaign we need one for us. It is purely ape style imitation of perceived glamor. The India villages is or non-metro folks are still not like that. Very rarely we see someone really excelling in competitions from metros whether it is ranks or competition based reality shows. The folks as remote as Assam, Orissa or deeper Rajasthan/Gujarat makes it to singing or dance competitions.

There is no conspiracy here and they have only such means and education. The brainwashing is everywhere such as social life, meanings of freedom, culture, education. It is not at all difficult for the disruptive forces to customize the message meant for each ghetto to capture their imagination and keep the divide India and destroy India leaders at the top of such orange revolutions. They truly succeeded in Delhi.

BJP cannot get beyond what they got in Delhi. Probably getting four more seats they may form government and that does not change the fact that their strength is always way less than who don't like them in the city. They cannot change their entire costume just for metro population. They have to think beyond and in spite of them.

Supratik · Post by **Supratik** » 30 Dec 2013 20:31

Pranav wrote: BJP may also have to reach some understanding with media houses, to compensate for its criminal negligence in the media sphere.

Following MSM since rise of BJP. They are controlled by the same anti-Hindutva kleptocracy that controls India. Vajpayee tried to curry favors by giving 25% FDI in media. Did not help. So while I am in agreement with other suggestions but this one is not possible w/o fixing a few. I am sure if you look hard you will find skeletons in their cupboard just like TT.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 30 Dec 2013 20:46

Supratik wrote:
Pranav wrote: BJP may also have to reach some understanding with media houses, to compensate for its criminal negligence in the media sphere.

Following MSM since rise of BJP. They are controlled by the same anti-Hindutva kleptocracy that controls India. Vajpayee tried to curry favors by giving 25% FDI in media. Did not help. So while I am in agreement with other suggestions but this one is not possible w/o fixing a few. I am sure if you look hard you will find skeletons in their cupboard just like TT.

Every single Paid Media journo, editor or owner belongs behind bars. All the stuff would be coming out little by little, first as a trickle and then as a mighty river!

India needs to rebuild media from ground up. Modi should get Arun Shourie to rebuild India Media.

krishnan · Post by **krishnan** » 30 Dec 2013 20:53

JOTHISH NAIR ‏@jothishnair1010 29m

Karat hints at alliance with AAP. Earlier he was projecting Mulayam. Prostitutes see potential client in every passerby.

arindam · Post by **arindam** » 30 Dec 2013 23:36

Cross posted from NaMo thread.

Why AAP’s Delhi water charade is careless populism

Delhi has a serious water problem. But the problem is not that consumers pay too much for water. It's the fact that consumers receive too little of a vital resource, not more than two hours a day even in the most affluent parts of the city.

For Arvind Kejriwal, keeping the promise of 700 litres of free water (it is going to be 670 litres per day) was always going to be easy. It only needed the stroke of his pen and a slight alteration in the Delhi Jal Board's water bill calculations. Fulfilling the promise of 24x7 water supply to every household in Delhi would have tested Kejriwal.

a.For a start, it would have meant providing connections to the 7 lakh households (or 20 percent of Delhi’s households) which are not linked to the water grid.
b.It would have also meant thinking hard about how to increase the overall water supply in Delhi.
c.It would have meant clamping down on theft.
d.It would have meant thinking about water conservation strategies.
e.It would have meant finding an appropriate price for water so that people valued the water they consumed, and not wasted it.

But all of that may have been too complicated for the Aam Kejriwal. Careless populism pays off in the short run in electoral politics.

But in the end, nothing is free. Someone has to pay the price for free water. After all, supplying water costs money — the physical infrastructure and the human resources at the least. If not consumers, then taxpayers must foot the bill. It's a folly to argue that only the rich pay taxes. The poor do too. Everyone who buys even basic commodities or buys a basic service pays a Value Added Tax or Service Tax. Indirect taxes are not progressive (the rich don’t pay extra) and they form the revenue base of a state Government like Delhi’s. So for "free" services like water, the poor without piped connections will end up paying a subsidy for the rich. Is that a pro-aam aadmi policy?

If the AAP had cared to look around for role model case studies in how to manage water, they would have found them right here in India. In 2012, Isher Judge Ahluwalia, who chaired a High level Government Committee on Urban Infrastructure wrote an article in The Indian Express in which she documented in some detail how the local authorities in Amravati, in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region, had ensured 24x7 water supply to 20 percent of their 7 lakh residents (they were scaling it up at the time she wrote) in rapid time by using technology, sophisticated data gathering, restoration of piping systems and the imposition of differential tariffs depending on how much water was consumed. Amravati was following the example of Malkapur (also in Maharashtra) which had used similar methods to provide 24x7 water ti its 40,000 residents. Now, if Malkapur and Amravati can deliver 24x7 water supply to their residents why cannot the Government of Delhi? If the residents of Malkapur and Amravati are happy to pay for their water (tariffs go up as people consume more, but nobody gets it free) why won’t Delhiites who are, on average, more prosperous?

Why should the Aam Aadmi Party be allowed to fritter away the Rs 446 crore profit the Delhi Jal Board made in 2012-13 in subsidies to the middle class and rich when that money would be better used connecting the 7 lakh poorest households who are not getting any water at all, and who are at the mercy of the water tanker mafia which charges them several times the multiple of the average water tariff in Delhi?

arindam · Post by **arindam** » 30 Dec 2013 23:36

cross posted from NaMo thread.

Centre Right India
How do you solve a problem like Kejriwal?

At the end of this post I had cautioned about the remote possibility of Kejriwal playing spoilsports. Well with the Delhi elections the possibility just got less remote. The surprising turn of events culminating in Arvind Kejriwal taking oath as Chief Minister has dramatically altered the possibilities for Lok Sabha.

In a nutshell Arvind Kejriwal has become the great secular hope. Our sec-lib establishment which is desperate to stop Modi juggernaut has come around to view Kejriwal as its champion. For them such a drastic turnaround in their view has a simple logic, Kejriwal appeals most to urban middle class voters, which used to be core constituency for BJP and more importantly Modi must attract if he hopes to upstage Delhi Sultanate. For the establishment then, the calculation becomes straightforward, more Kejriwal is successful in convincing urban voters, less likely Modi is to be at the helm of the things.

The problem for the BJP in my view is that the assessment of establishment seems correct. Anecdotal evidence suggests that even normally apathetic and apolitical middle class is warming up to Kejriwal. Kejriwal, and his network of highly motivated volunteers can leverage their strong online presence to quickly scale up their political operations at the grassroots and hence convert positive perception for Kejriwal into votes.

Ofcourse this will not convert into many Lok Sabha seats for Kejriwal at such a short notice. But it will undercut BJP votes which is the main aim of establishment and I suspect Kejriwal.

Going forward, strategy for establishment media is going to be simple, wall to wall positive coverage of Kejriwal (accompanied by incessant negative coverage of BJP), similarly expect Kejriwal to reserve and direct his strongest attacks on Modi and BJP.

Which brings us to our main concern, how should BJP tackle Kejriwal. I am afraid that in terms of immediate action, there is hardly anything BJP can do. The reasons behind Kejriwal’s appeal to middle class is his status as political neophyte as well as his open contempt and disdain for political system and process, both of which resonates with middle class. It is clear BJP being on wrong side of both the issues, can not hope to convince the disenchanted middle class.

Luckily though, BJP has a crucial ally, his name is Arvind Kejriwal.

Currently middle class is smitten with him, however as the quotidian reality of governance sinks, the untenable nature of blatantly populist policies of Kejriwal will gradually become clear to middle class and hopefully its fascination with Kejriwal will wear off.

Both Kejriwal and Congress realize this. I am reasonably sure that as a countermeasure they are looking for “martyrdom” of Kejriwal. Congress will withdraw support from Kejriwal on some pretext or other. It will not endear Congress to middle class, however at this point Congress has reconciled itself to middle class voting against it. Crucially for Congress, such a “martyrdom” act by Kejriwal will further boost his popularity among the middle class.

BJP can foil this strategy by deploying “liquid oxygen”. In a famous Ajeet joke, the villains asks his henchman “Raabert” to throw hero in “liquid oxygen”, reasoning, liquid will not let the hero live and oxygen will not let the hero die. This is exactly how BJP should proceed.

First the oxygen, BJP should promise that it will play role of constructive opposition, further it should promise then if Congress withdraws support on any flimsy grounds, it will not vote against Kejriwal government.

Now the liquid part, BJP should do its utmost to keep pressure on Kejriwal, by questioning and exposing the harebrained schemes of Kejriwal and Gang, by subjecting each and every step of Aam Aadmi Party to intense scrutiny, and publicizing every shenanigans to middle class.

And hope that middle class will wake up from its dream

Someone in the comments section:

So the field has become extremely dicey. You have a situation when Congress with all the money power combines with AAP which has nothing to lose, the public exploitative potential is far greater than BJP, which can only appeal to reason and long term sense, and there is no time for that. The fact that AAP is going to contest only from BJP strongholds, shows their intent – not doing anything positive but only to dislodge Modi. The combination of agendas of International agencies, including the communists, evangelical societies etc. all pose a daunting task to BJP’s straight approach of appeal to reason. There is no option but to polarize through sensationalizing the draconian communist and anti-Hindu agenda of these forces and scare people about the disastrous consequences of commie ideology getting stronger, ruining both Indian economy and culture. Someone has to design simple communication material articulating the ideas of Rajiv Malhotra, so that youngsters and urban people even with limited education can be effectively influenced. If BJP doesn’t buck up, the cup and the lip may miss meeting.

Added later: "martyrdom" of Kejriwal doesn't necessarily imply pulling off the rug under his feet. The shenanigans of congi for power knows no bound. What if kejri is bumped off/martyred in true sense of the term. We have already seen Jogi/maino mischief in CH. Congi can blame bhajpa or worse face the wrath of voters themselves, but hey they have nothing to loose. Garner a huge sympathy wave across the country for AAP. Stop NaMo mission achieved. Bharat looses another decade.

chaanakya · Post by **chaanakya** » 30 Dec 2013 23:42

Why he has not announced anything on corruption front as yet? He vowed to put kongis in jail. What happened. Is he waiting for janlokpal bill to be passed by his govt with congi support?

Gus · Post by **Gus** » 30 Dec 2013 23:44

RajeshA wrote:Published on Dec 30, 2013
Kongu Party Hints at Forging LS Poll Alliance with BJP: New Indian Express

maitas66 #HDL ‏@chinmaykrvd
If KNMK-BJP-MDMK-DMDK alliance materializes in Tamil Nadu it could be a political game changer.Contest would be very interesting

the problem is that these parties are concentrated in different areas MDMK has 5 to 15% support in 4 or 5 constituencies max. Same with DMDK in southern districts. There maybe a few where they both can add.

Kongu party is a caste party in kongu districts of erode, salem, namakkal, coimbatore etc in middle TN. they can help in couple of constituencies, especially coimbatore. but they are zero in south where DMDK and MDMK have presence.

Muppalla · Post by **Muppalla** » 30 Dec 2013 23:53

Gus wrote:
RajeshA wrote:Published on Dec 30, 2013
Kongu Party Hints at Forging LS Poll Alliance with BJP: New Indian Express

maitas66 #HDL ‏@chinmaykrvd
If KNMK-BJP-MDMK-DMDK alliance materializes in Tamil Nadu it could be a political game changer.Contest would be very interesting
the problem is that these parties are concentrated in different areas MDMK has 5 to 15% support in 4 or 5 constituencies max. Same with DMDK in southern districts. There maybe a few where they both can add.

Kongu party is a caste party in kongu districts of erode, salem, namakkal, coimbatore etc in middle TN. they can help in couple of constituencies, especially coimbatore. but they are zero in south where DMDK and MDMK have presence.

The real thing is if these great alliances help DMK? Probable if DMK and ADMK split the state's 39 then may be an easier playground of negotiations for NaMo. any thoughts?

devesh · Post by **devesh** » 31 Dec 2013 00:10

KJoishy wrote: Even for me, the only reason I support BJP now is because of NaMo. Yeddy was as corrupt as Bangarappa in Karnataka, so they are no better as a party.

can you post some numbers or examples of this? I don't believe in the idea of "rama-rajya". I believe in getting the best governance possible without compromising on the security of nation and its people. you are saying that a BJP with Yeddyurappa is just as bad as a vacuum entity like INC. we've had many iterations of this debate on BRF before. can you take this as a request and tell me why you think so? thanks.

anmol · Post by **anmol** » 31 Dec 2013 00:24

vivek.rao · Post by **vivek.rao** » 31 Dec 2013 00:32

Arvind Kejriwal, for God’s sake, skip the details

As the old adage goes, God is in the details.

And the details are dangerous.

From the time the Aam Aadmi Party has been formed, the political novice has been churning out headline after headline, but little or no body copy.

That worked.

Who didn’t want to read or hear headlines that said that the AAP would eradicate corruption, ensure water for all, house the homeless, bring down electricity tariffs, punish corrupt politicians and bureaucrats alike, and so on.

The AAP didn’t get into cumbersome details; they remained delightfully vague on how these promises would be kept.

It’s in the last few days that the AAP has decided to take the plunge and reveal details. For example, we now know that the AAP is opposed to nuclear power in general and the Kudankulam project in specific. We know that the AAP has assured every Delhi family 700 litres of water everyday, free of cost.

And once the AAP gets into specifics, they lose the protection afforded by the emotion-only argument and come to the dangerous area of the rational argument.

“Even 50 LCPD (litres per capita per day) is sufficient. The idea of free water is unsustainable. It should be subsidized but not free. There will be wastage if it's free. The objective of supplying equitable amounts of water to the needy will be defeated," says Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan.

Perhaps the AAP is committed to all that they have promised – and perhaps they would have attempted to deliver on their promises. But, considering the composition of the Delhi Assembly, in which the AAP clearly needs the Congress support on pushing through anything that is contentious, they will fail.

If the AAP had a clear majority, they could have attempted to push through all kinds of legislation and policy without being hamstrung by coalition partners. As things stand, there is a limit to what they can push through at the state level – and there is little or nothing that they can do at the national level.

To get into issues like nuclear power, about which they can do nothing, is folly of the worst kind. There are clearly many who see the benefits of nuclear power, and some of them will clearly get a rational argument to criticize the AAP. Some supporters of nuclear power could well also have been AAP supporters – till now.

It is unnecessary for the AAP to get into details till such time as they have the power and the numbers to push through their dream. Till then, stay away from details and stay delightfully vague.

Stay vague, and the argument stays emotional. Get specific, and there’s a rational argument. The AAP could lose both the argument and the votes.

This is where we have to pin them down, question and make people realize these policies are bad.

JohnTitor · Post by **JohnTitor** » 31 Dec 2013 00:36

abhik wrote:
gashish wrote:AAP funds-follow the money trail. Pune/Bangalore will be staging areas to make foray into south of Vindhyas.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 074062.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/photo/28074124.cms
These figures reveal a gaping hole in their armor. It was quite well known that a significant amount of the AAP's funding and dedicated manpower came form outside Delhi, but I didn't expect the figure to be so high at 80%. This was massed armor blitzkrieg in Delhi 2013 which they cannot repeat in GE 2014, where the battle front will much larger. Now each region will have to sustain itself. To get a glimpse of the challenge ahead just consider Delhi, they could raise only 20% of the funds required for the local campaign. If they have to keep up the same tempo for the GE without external help, they will need to scale up by a massive 5X. And Delhi represents just 7 seats. If they want to replicate to other top tier cities, say to 70 seats(of the total 543, a measly 13%), they will have to scale up 50X. Now granted their membership and funding base will increase drastically after the ascension to power in Delhi, but is doubtful to rise to the level required. Given that they have shown their intent of contesting 300+ seats one can imagine how thin they are going to spread themselves.

I believe your argument has the following flaws:
1 - 70 seats is not "measly" - don't forget that almost all these 70 seats would be seats BJP is likely to contest (even in a worst case scenario, it is likely to win 40-50% of those seats .. around 30-35!)
2- Raising 50x more has a very big assumption - that INC isn't helping AAP (directly or indirectly)

Shanmukh · Post by **Shanmukh** » 31 Dec 2013 00:45

KJoishy wrote: Even for me, the only reason I support BJP now is because of NaMo. Yeddy was as corrupt as Bangarappa in Karnataka, so they are no better as a party.

Dude - I have no idea where you are from, but having had hands on experience with both Bangarappa and Yeddy, I can tell you that Bangarappa was head and shoulders ahead of everyone in corruption. He had a rate fixed for every single thing, from small level transfers to the highest government contract bids (until you paid him that amount, you would not get his signature for your document). Corruption was the life blood of the Bangarappa government. Yeddy was a whole whole lot better.

Gus · Post by **Gus** » 31 Dec 2013 00:50

Muppalla wrote: The real thing is if these great alliances help DMK? Probable if DMK and ADMK split the state's 39 then may be an easier playground of negotiations for NaMo. any thoughts?

no. i don't think anything can help dmk. or congress. they are both in such a bad position that both are thinking that they are better off facing polls separately.

IOW, dmk feels adding congress will lose them votes and vice versa.

they will get their core partymen votes and nothing more. those who are not party affiliated won't vote for them. my guess is that admk will sweep the polls barring 4 or 5 seats. bjp, if it plays its card right, can snag those with the right coalition and focused campaigning there.

Shanmukh · Post by **Shanmukh** » 31 Dec 2013 01:12

Gus wrote:
Muppalla wrote: The real thing is if these great alliances help DMK? Probable if DMK and ADMK split the state's 39 then may be an easier playground of negotiations for NaMo. any thoughts?
no. i don't think anything can help dmk. or congress. they are both in such a bad position that both are thinking that they are better off facing polls separately.

IOW, dmk feels adding congress will lose them votes and vice versa. they will get their core partymen votes and nothing more. those who are not party affiliated won't vote for them. my guess is that admk will sweep the polls barring 4 or 5 seats. bjp, if it plays its card right, can snag those with the right coalition and focused campaigning there.

Gus-ji,
What you are saying agrees with what my sources are claiming. My source in TN claimed that the BJP grand alliance (BJP+MDMK+KMK+DMDK+PMK) can win upto 7 seats. He also said that DMK will win 1-2 seats, and the remaining 30 will go to JJ.

vivek.rao · Post by **vivek.rao** » 31 Dec 2013 02:51

AAP delivers on water promise, but bills to rise for big consumers

In other words, while AAP largesse would benefit around nine lakh families, for the remaining six lakh families water would become more expensive, and going ahead, this could accentuate the rich versus poor debate. At present, free water won't be available in the NDMC areas, Delhi Cantonment and Dwarka.

Announcing the free water scheme, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the sop would be effective from Wednesday, or January 1. The 10% higher water tariff would also kick in on the same day. The hike is part of an earlier decision taken by Delhi Jal Board to increase tariff by 10% annually. AAP had opposed this, claiming the need to increase rates was a result of DJB's mismanagement. Obviously, the hard economics of water in Delhi has forced Kejriwal to do a rethink.

In all, Delhi has 16 lakh metered water connections. In addition, there are four lakh connections that are not metered. DJB was quiet on how the water subsidy would apply to these connections.

The total annual subsidy in the current financial year - that is the next three months up to March - would be about Rs 40 crore and the annual subsidy would be in the region of Rs 160 crore, said DJB officials.

AAP sources justified the 10% hike by pitching it against the free water sop. "If we are rewarding someone for using less water, those who consume more should pay more," said a senior party official.

Yet AAP has agreed to a 10% hike this time. This means, that those who have been complaining about inflated bills could get a bigger shock in the coming year.

Let it hit these people. Also, this will create more corruption for people to use low level workers to manipulate meters.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 31 Dec 2013 03:36

Gus wrote:
Muppalla wrote: The real thing is if these great alliances help DMK? Probable if DMK and ADMK split the state's 39 then may be an easier playground of negotiations for NaMo. any thoughts?
no. i don't think anything can help dmk. or congress. they are both in such a bad position that both are thinking that they are better off facing polls separately.

IOW, dmk feels adding congress will lose them votes and vice versa. they will get their core partymen votes and nothing more. those who are not party affiliated won't vote for them. my guess is that admk will sweep the polls barring 4 or 5 seats. bjp, if it plays its card right, can snag those with the right coalition and focused campaigning there.

It was something similar in Bihar with JD-U and Congress. Each thought the other was somewhat of a liability.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 31 Dec 2013 03:40

chaanakya wrote:Why he has not announced anything on corruption front as yet? He vowed to put kongis in jail. What happened. Is he waiting for janlokpal bill to be passed by his govt with congi support?

He is waiting for the Ides of March!

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 31 Dec 2013 03:52

nageshks wrote:
KJoishy wrote: Even for me, the only reason I support BJP now is because of NaMo. Yeddy was as corrupt as Bangarappa in Karnataka, so they are no better as a party.
Dude - I have no idea where you are from, but having had hands on experience with both Bangarappa and Yeddy, I can tell you that Bangarappa was head and shoulders ahead of everyone in corruption. He had a rate fixed for every single thing, from small level transfers to the highest government contract bids (until you paid him that amount, you would not get his signature for your document). Corruption was the life blood of the Bangarappa government. Yeddy was a whole whole lot better.

For all the mythology gurus,

since Yeddyurappa is coming home, and all parties are going to all fall upon BJP on this issue, as a party of corrupt people and do an equal equal with Congress corruption, there is a need to explain to the people the difference between the moral slip of a good man (I am not saying that Yeddy did anything wrong, his FIR was quashed) and the crimes of a serial offender who does 10,000 times bigger crimes.

Are there any examples from mythology that one can use to explain the difference!

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 31 Dec 2013 03:57

i have a feeling that what aap is doing is laying the foundation for next generation of corruption or next generation of politics. one of the two is guarantee. i like it because, it just throws away the dynasty type of corruption and poltiics. why? this makes people take ownership.. and not keep blaming on kangrez alone.

now what? it goes around in circles for many voters... cycles after cycles kala angrez will be back again otherwise.

challenge to modi is good in a constructive sense. modi should engage aap policy by policy. it will only strengthen. like they say, the more you attack modi, the more he becomes stronger...similarly, the more modi makes robust policies, the better nation becomes.

i think aap is the first movement for such corrections/// btw, aap can't do a zilch. we need correction inputs, where we tackle aap's future.

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 31 Dec 2013 04:38

guru jan,

earlier I tweeted to Arjun Munda, Senior BJP leader in Jharkhand

@RajeshABRF wrote:.@MundaArjun
If you don't get Jharkhand's 14 LS seats 4 #BJP, it wd b really disappointing. Plz gt #BabulalMarandi 2 join BJP. Chk Karnataka

Just like BJP got Ananth Kumar to personally go and invite BS Yeddyurappa back into BJP, so should Arjun Munda himself take it upon himself to get him back. JVM-P of Babulal Marandi should merge with BJP again. However Babulal Marandi is not smitten by Narendra Modi like the way BS Yeddyurappa has a rapport with Modi.

I suggest one bombards Arjun Munda with such requests, all differently formulated, to get Marandi back into BJP. The Hindi belt should be fully Modi-fied.

Saral · Post by **Saral** » 31 Dec 2013 05:44

rohitvats wrote:The proof of the pudding is when you eat it - same goes for the AAP and AK in Delhi.

The party has risen to power because it promised to solve the day-to-day issues faced by common people - and people have bought into these promises. AK does not need to be a superman to address lot of issues faced by a common man. The government and government machinery in India has become a power-unto-itself without any regard to person on the street - there is every possibility that this status quo can and will be broken under AAP in Delhi. If this happens, it will lead to some level of improvement in the life of a common man.

And if AAP can demonstrate genuine thrust in this regard and if people see accountability in government departments and offices they come in contact with, all the gains are for AAP to take. Everyone knows that AK does not have magic wand to remove all the ills in a super-quick time. But they sure will be looking out for intentions and conduct of AAP leadership and cadre.

Issue like stand of AAP on Batla House encounter or Kashmir are not germane to a state level election - or even LS. These are topics for discussion by the people like us on BRF - to a common person choosing next government at state level (or even national level) the issue is that of governance, jobs, price hike and growth. That is the platform which has been successfully used by NM to reach out to people - and has got a massive response in return.

But the same common man is also keenly looking at AAP experiment - if he sees (or perceives) it as a success and considers it as an opportunity to address his daily issues and make life better for himself and his family, he will give it a chance. The way swearing in ceremony was conducted itself has struck a strong chord with people (at least the ones I spoke to in Gurgaon) - they feel they finally have a voice in the system.

But how long can AAP maintain the image is a real challenge for them - as they grow, they will attract all sorts of character looking to rise the AAP wave to MLA post. It is one thing to manage the show and maintain a identity with a small group but completely different as the body grows. Power centers and power struggles are bound to come up. How AAP fares and the impact it has on their perception remains to be seen.

And IMO, by giving support to AAP, Congress has tried to spoil the BJP's party in ND. And salvage some sort of moral high ground for itself after the massive drubbing. There is not much time between today and LS polls and anything positive done (or perception of honest intentions) by AAP government will strengthen their chances in LS Polls. Congress knows it is a spent force in Delhi but wants to spoil BJP's chances by using AAP as a proxy.

But it has also put itself in a tight spot - Any antics by Congress to withdraw support from AAP will be projected as a betrayal of people's aspirations by AAP and Congress can kiss it's sorry arse good-bye for a long time to come in ND.

When we're looking at the AAP phenomenon, it would be incorrect to focus on the issues like Batla House encounter or Prashant Bhusan's stand on Kashmir. These are 30,000 feet topics - they don't win elections. Simple. People who came out to listen to NM speak and are expected to vote for him are not doing so because they have suddenly developed love and affection for RJB issue or Article 370 or Uniform Civil Code. They have done that because they see in him a leader who they feel can make a material difference in their lives. Same goes for AAP movement and AK. Any attempt at character assassination of AK will back-fire and back-fire big time.

We need to understand and accept that a common person is willing to throw his lot with people who he perceives can give him a better life. BJP local leadership needs to project itself as being able to do that. And engage more with people. You cannot deny the fact that the kind of participatory democracy which AAP proposes with serious accountability from government departments is quite revolutionary from what exists today. If AAP manages to deliver even on 50% promises, people are likely to give it a thumbs-up and will never settle for anything else but what they have experienced under AAP government. Their performance in ND will become their CV for attempting similar exercise in other urban areas. And there is no better publicity than honest word of mouth publicity.

If AAP can deliver good governance to common man in ND in the way they have promised, than it would definitely be a new chapter in Indian democracy. But how long can they sustain the idea and philosophy remains to be seen.

The most sensible/even-handed analysis on the AAP I've read so far. Like it or not, AK is a unique phenom.. a flakey fluke who could self-destruct sooner than later but someone who might become and stay a national leader for a very long time. BJP should not dismiss him as a one-state, one-time wonder. If they play their cards right, they could benefit from AK if he continues to erode Congress vote share.

Gus · Post by **Gus** » 31 Dec 2013 05:53

Rajesh_A , there's plenty. Shikandi, killing of vaali behind tree, Aswathama has died etc etc.

Or even better from our mard e momin - one is permitted to lie in cause of Islam.

LakshO · Post by **LakshO** » 31 Dec 2013 06:42

Copy pasting from the NaMo thread....

SaiK wrote:what is the requirement per family of 4 (or the dilli family average number of persons) water consumption? I don't think even in amrikka one need 700 ltrs of water per day.

let us say: per person: 1 liter to drink, 5 liters to cook, 50 liters for bathing, 50 liters for washing... this is like paradise living.. btw.

so worst case is 106 liters of water per person day. now what kujli is making is 7 times the scam.

imho, free water itself a scam to the nation. looting the tax is a crime.

From my personal experience, I pay approximately Rs. 350 p.m for 14 KL p.m. Anything in excess is of this volume is billed at Rs.12/KL. This is in Hyderabad/Secunderabad, upper middle class area. Water consumption in my home (3 adults) is typically 250L per day. 700LPD free is vastly excessive

to AAP/AK for taking citizens of Delhi for ride.

vivek.rao · Post by **vivek.rao** » 31 Dec 2013 06:56

Let BJP fight Kejriwal; Rahul should rip, mix & personalise AAP politics

Delhi has a serious water problem. But the problem is not that consumers pay too much for water. It's the fact that consumers receive too little of a vital resource, not more than two hours a day even in the most affluent parts of the city. It's an issue serious enough to dominate an election campaign.

A pity then that the Aam Aadmi Party opted for the administratively easy (but fiscally tough or should one say irresponsible?) option of offering to reduce water tariffs rather than the administratively harder (and fiscally easier) offer of ensuring 24x7 water supply to all the capital's residents.

Can we tweet this point again and again?

Modi would have ensured 24x7 water for Delhi at reasonable prices where as COMMIE Kejriwal wants to give it away for election fraud

Saral · Post by **Saral** » 31 Dec 2013 07:08

vivek.rao wrote: Let it hit these people. Also, this will create more corruption for people to use low level workers to manipulate meters.

The distribution post-policy will be very "unnatural" with many of the readings just shy of the "free" threshold. This would likely be the result of meter tampering rather than self-control on the part of consumers. The method called "p hacking" can be used to detect research fraud and a similar approach (distributional) can be used to conclude meter tampering when/if it happens. http://bigthink.com/todays-big-idea/tod ... -p-hacking

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 31 Dec 2013 07:39

http://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/viewto ... 8#p1567308

rohitvats, Aap to yaar nikale!!! Why are you wasting time with mil forum etc.

Should start a political blog and give center right/left a run for thier money.

Keep the critical thinking coming along.

krishnan · Post by **krishnan** » 31 Dec 2013 08:31

300-400 ltrs is more than enough for more houses.

darshhan · Post by **darshhan** » 31 Dec 2013 08:45

Now the tanker mafia in NCR will use free water from Delhi and supply it to Gurgaon, Faridabad etc at a neat profit. Tanker mafia is not going to be unhappy. They will use this hairbrained policy to their advantage.

muraliravi · Post by **muraliravi** » 31 Dec 2013 08:51

RajeshA wrote:guru jan,

earlier I tweeted to Arjun Munda, Senior BJP leader in Jharkhand

@RajeshABRF wrote:.@MundaArjun
If you don't get Jharkhand's 14 LS seats 4 #BJP, it wd b really disappointing. Plz gt #BabulalMarandi 2 join BJP. Chk Karnataka
Just like BJP got Ananth Kumar to personally go and invite BS Yeddyurappa back into BJP, so should Arjun Munda himself take it upon himself to get him back. JVM-P of Babulal Marandi should merge with BJP again. However Babulal Marandi is not smitten by Narendra Modi like the way BS Yeddyurappa has a rapport with Modi.

I suggest one bombards Arjun Munda with such requests, all differently formulated, to get Marandi back into BJP. The Hindi belt should be fully Modi-fied.

The grapevine is that, many BJP top brass including Modi have personally approached marandi to join BJP again or at least have alliance with BJP. Marandi has spurned all such requests and is interested in the 3rd front bogey. All this happened around 2 months back. Since then Modi has actively poached top leaders from JVM one by one to leave Marandi naked.

darshhan · Post by **darshhan** » 31 Dec 2013 09:09

muraliravi wrote:
The grapevine is that, many BJP top brass including Modi have personally approached marandi to join BJP again or at least have alliance with BJP. Marandi has spurned all such requests and is interested in the 3rd front bogey. All this happened around 2 months back. Since then Modi has actively poached top leaders from JVM one by one to leave Marandi naked.

Babulal Marandi has nothing against Namo. If anything he will support him after the polls if required to. His main gripe is against Rajnath Singh for favouring Arjun Munda over him.

Saral · Post by **Saral** » 31 Dec 2013 09:24

Unfortunate that Vriksh's attempt at AAP and its governance model thread was locked. This is not about a particular election but a particular "movement" which currently is manifest as AAP but may morph into various other things later. It could've been a long-lived thread. The 2014 elections is a different thing and AAP is a minor player at best, IMHO. Mods can reconsider at their leisure.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 31 Dec 2013 09:44

Gadkari alleges AAP-congress deal brokered by a MNC

muraliravi · Post by **muraliravi** » 31 Dec 2013 09:54

IndraD wrote:Gadkari alleges AAP-congress deal brokered by a MNC

BJP should stand behind Gadkari instead of speaking in differing tones. He is saying the truth. The only easy way for BJP to screw AAP which they should do day in and out is, they said they are anti-congress, but now they are in bed with congress, see for urself

ShyamSP · Post by **ShyamSP** » 31 Dec 2013 10:01

IndraD wrote:Gadkari alleges AAP-congress deal brokered by a MNC

When AAP is colored revolution engineered by non-Indian entities and Congress, why is it a surprise?

Main problem is this success will lead non-Indian entities to be more aggressive in upcoming national elections. Can BJP match money and external powers and defeat them?

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 31 Dec 2013 10:01

ramana wrote:http://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/viewto ... 8#p1567308

rohitvats, Aap to yaar nikale!!! Why are you wasting time with mil forum etc.

Should start a political blog and give center right/left a run for thier money.

Keep the critical thinking coming along.

thanks for the ref.. nice post rohit! well said.