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The Congress’s fumbling for answers that has present deed the conspiracy theorist’s dead-end began successful 2014, erstwhile the Narendra Modi-led BJP archetypal swept to powerfulness astatine the Centre.
Nov 28, 2024 04:20 IST First published on: Nov 28, 2024 astatine 04:20 IST
In the aftermath of the Maharashtra predetermination results, a clamour is rising successful the Congress ranks with immoderate of its allies joining in. It is the soundtrack of a sore loser. “We should commencement a question for the return of insubstantial ballot,” says enactment president Mallikarjun Kharge. The EVM dunnit, Congress leaders say. It is not that Congress hasn’t attempted to blasted its electoral decision connected the voting instrumentality earlier — it has, astir precocious aft past month’s Haryana result. But its broad drubbing astatine the hands of the Maharashtra electorate seems to person near it peculiarly singed. The enactment is entitled to its bewilderment. But arsenic the starring enactment of the Opposition, it besides has a work to beryllium liable successful defeat. It indispensable cognize that casting aspersions connected the established process of escaped and just elections, and the rules of the crippled that anchor it, is simply a measurement excessively acold — it cannot beryllium taken lightly. It indispensable beryllium based connected verifiable evidence, of which determination is nary truthful far; not connected “gut feel” oregon an injured consciousness of entitlement, oregon the hopeless tendency to find a autumn guy.
The Congress’s fumbling for answers that has present deed the conspiracy theorist’s dead-end began successful 2014, erstwhile the Narendra Modi-led BJP archetypal swept to powerfulness astatine the Centre. Its instrumentality to the saddle successful 2019 and for a 3rd word successful 2024, and respective assembly elections won by the BJP successful between, person lone made Congress descend deeper into incoherence. This has adjacent made it undermine its and its allies’ ain successes. Congress precocious won Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh, and humbled the BJP successful the Lok Sabha predetermination successful Rajasthan, Maharashtra and UP. Even arsenic it was routed successful Maharashtra, its state JMM has brought it backmost to powerfulness successful Jharkhand — it is mean-spirited, astatine best, and absurd successful fact, to accidental that the BJP “let JMM win” Jharkhand, each the amended to hijack the mandate successful Maharashtra. This hunt for casual and imagined villains, this authorities of sticking pins into voodoo dolls, is taking a rising toll. It is holding Congress backmost from an honorable reckoning. It needs to inquire itself whether it is giving the voters a crushed to ballot for it — oregon is it lone criticising the BJP? Is it evading the large questions due to the fact that of its ain flawed record, oregon due to the fact that of a deficiency of condemnation and clarity? Is its strategy of going hyper-local successful effect to the BJP’s choreography of large, ideology-drenched narratives a cop-out? When its leader, Rahul Gandhi takes a beardown view, does his ain anemic CV travel successful the way, oregon the inability oregon unwillingness of section Congressmen and women to instrumentality their cue from him?
At the aforesaid time, it is existent that the behaviour of the predetermination monitor, the Election Commission, leaves overmuch to beryllium desired. When it comes to the ruling party, it wears kid gloves; it’s been dilatory to instrumentality announcement of its violations of the exemplary of conduct. The Opposition whitethorn person chosen intemperate words successful its onslaught but the connection of the EC’s authoritative responses reads bitter and angry, arsenic if it were the substance of a governmental party, not of a law authority. The predetermination strategy has imperfections — immoderate playing tract is skewed erstwhile 1 broadside is simply a three-term authorities with a formidable scope of resources, fiscal to organization — but it has served this ample and divers state well, and continues to acceptable an example. Sharad Pawar has told his party’s candidates to hunt for “evidence” to nail the EVM conspiracy. That hunt should surely continue, nary stakeholder would privation otherwise, but the Congress would bash good not to task connected the strategy its interior crisis. Some of its allies person been much judicious successful their response. Other players, similar AAP, which has started making conspiratorial noises up of Delhi’s upcoming election, indispensable besides instrumentality a heavy breath, look astatine the elector — and, astir importantly, look within.
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