Modi 2.0 : Moving full steam ahead

KV Prasad

The alacrity with which the Narendra Modi government moved legislations to bring about two major changes — altering Article 370 of the Constitution, its related bifurcation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) — underscored the determination of Modi 2.0 regime to implement the Bharatiya Janata Party’s decades-old promises.

In his Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reminded that in ushering in changes in Jammu & Kashmir within 70 days of returning to power, his government achieved what the previous governments could not in 70 years.

Redrawing the map

From August 5, when Home Minister Amit Shah stood up in the Rajya Sabha to introduce the Bill to amend Article 370, along with map-altering changes in the contours of the erstwhile state of J&K, to December 11, when he rose in the same House to push forward the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, these two acts occurred in a span of slightly more than three months, 126 days to be precise. If one rewinds the BJP’s history and stops at 1998, there is enough evidence to suggest that the BJP had three issues in the top drawer — revocation of Article 370, Uniform Civil Code and construction of Ram Temple at Ayodhya. However, despite its ideological fondness for these, the BJP reluctantly dumped these in the farthest corner. Pragmatic politics, and not any change of heart, led the BJP to push these issue on the back burner. It was guided primarily by the sheer necessity to accommodate the sensitivities of its new allies whose crucial support was imperative on two counts: to run a non-Congress coalition government at the Centre under Atal Bihari Vajpayee and retain its newly acquired lustre of a party that others across the spectrum were willing to be in company of.

The second element also made a bold statement that the BJP came out from the splendid political isolation that had resulted in Vajpayee being unable to find support to run his government beyond 13 days in 1996. The BJP was no longer a party politically characterised ‘untouchable’ for pursuing a policy of Hindutva.

Despite the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance keeping the three issues out of the agreed roadmap for governance, political parties on the other side of the fence mockingly referred to these as BJP’s “hidden agenda”. For once, the Vajpayee government did attempt to negotiate a settlement to the Ram Temple issue by bringing along religious leaders from the two communities.

Modi gets cracking

Fast forward to May 2019. After the electorate armed PM Modi with a massive mandate of 300 plus seats, the earliest signs of some stirring in Jammu & Kashmir came in the form of an innocuous message from a government official suggesting his team to stock up on provisions and essentials for a few months, a circular vehemently denied by the authorities. J&K was soon stripped of its special status in August.

In 2015, Modi 1.0 had made clear its intent of introducing the Citizenship Amendment Bill containing a similar clause. The Lok Sabha had cleared it, but not the Rajya Sabha. Then, the government agenda for the winter session listed it among the 27 new Bills, so there was no element of surprise.

One plausible explanation as to why the Modi government decided to go ahead full steam within such a short time after returning to power is that it wanted to get cracking on the most contentious issues at the earliest. This should allow the government and the organisation to deal with the fallout, giving it ample room to devote greater focus on others issues of governance, including promise of housing for all, piped water to every household et al under its grand vision of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas aur Sabka Vishwas”.

Majoritarianism at play 

Many in the Opposition and sections of civil society interpret the back-to-back enactments on Article 370 and Citizenship Amendment as precursors to the BJP moving the needle of country’s compass in favour of the majority community. These, coupled with its other grand announcements of preparing a National Register for Citizens throughout the country to weed out illegal migrants and incrementally step towards Uniform Civil Code, are administrative measures that would earn the party leaders encomiums from its ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The bold decisions, including demonetisation and implementation of Goods & Services Tax in the first tenure, abrogation of Article 370 and the CAA at the start of its second tenure, reinforce the narrative of a strong and decisive leader, Narendra Modi.

These are early days to predict the outcome of the government’s actions, called disruptive by some and altering of social discourse of the country by some others. However, as the world and India prepare to herald 2020, the government seems inspired by this format of the game of cricket, at least in taking decisions like never before.

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The highs

India clears anti-satellite test  

India conducted its first anti-satellite missile test to shoot down a live satellite in space.

The successful test makes India the fourth nation in the world with an anti-satellite missile after Russia, the US and China.

Banerjee wins Nobel

Indian-American Abhijit Banerjee, his wife Esther Duflo and another economist Michael Kremer, jointly won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty”.

As a direct result of one of their studies, more than five million Indian children have benefitted from effective programmes of remedial tutoring in schools.

Reservation for EWS

The Parliament passed 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) of society at the start of the year. The EWS in the general category will get reservation in government jobs and in government educational instituions.

Balakot strikes

The Indian Air Force carried out strikes on terror camps in Balakot, in Pakistan, after the ghastly Pulwama attack, in which more than 40 CRPF personnel were killed. The punitive action reinforced the notion that India would not let go any act of terrorism on its soil unpunished.

India’s fastest train launched

Vande Bharat, India’s first semi-high speed train, was launched in February. The indigenously built train can run up to a maximum speed of 160 kmph and has travel classes like the Shatabdi trains but with better facilities. It has been introduced to provide a much better travel experience to passengers.

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The lows

Raped, murdered… ‘encountered’

The rape and murder of a veterinary doctor in Hyderabad reminded the country of 2012’s Nirbhaya gang rape. The 26-year-old had parked her scooter at a toll plaza on November 27. The accused, possibly four, deflated its tyre while she was away. Upon her return, they offered to help, but ambushed and raped her, later setting her on fire. The gruesome rape and murder and police laxity enraged the nation. The accused were arrested soon after but ‘encountered’ when they allegedly tried to escape from the scene of crime where the police had taken them.

Unnao rape victim dies

A 23-year-old Unnao rape victim was set ablaze by her perpetrators in December. A day later, she passed away at the Safdarjung Hospital in New Delhi after doctors failed to revive her following a cardiac arrest. The girl was allegedly raped by two boys in December 2018 and had been pursuing justice. The only positive news to come out amid all this was life term for expelled BJP MLA Kuldeep Senger, also from Unnao, who had raped a minor in 2017.

Rahul steps down

Rahul Gandhi stepped down as Congress President after party suffered a telling defeat in Lok Sabha polls. In his four-page letter posted on Twitter, he owned responsibility for the party’s loss in the election.

Fani’s trail of destruction

Cyclone Fani, the second strongest storm after super cyclone of 1999 in Odisha, left a trail of destruction. Unseasonal rains in North and Central India caused loss of lives and property.

Jet Airways goes bust

Jet Airways halted all flight operations after its lenders rejected its plea for emergency funds, bringing the curtains down on what was once India’s largest private airline. This left its roughly 16,000 employees jobless. The airline is under bankruptcy proceedings.