Letters to the Editor: Assam bye-poll results

The recent Assembly bye-election results of five constituencies where all BJP-led alliance candidates won convincingly by comprehensively defeating the opposition alliance have many meanings. That these turncoat politicians could win the trust of the people may be an indication that people vote for individuals and their performance, and parties don't matter to voters or cadres. The voice of common voters gets drowned in the face of formidable and loyal cadres who decide the direction of debates. This is probably because when common people are suffering heavily under the impact of skyrocketing prices of essential commodities, including fuel, their anger should have got reflected in the bye-poll results. Instead of that, mud-slinging matches have taken centre stage, benefitting the ruling party. The rejuvenated Congress and stridently vocal Akhil Gogoi are no match for the charisma of BJP. Have they lost credibility with people?

The results have enthused the Chief Minister to proclaim that the next aim is to capture all 126 Assembly seats in line with BJP's vision of making Bharat Congress mukt (Congress less India). This is the most dangerous agenda a political party can think of in a functional democracy. The plurality of opinion and views are the best defence for democracy. Lack of this will lead us to the path of autocracy, and non-accountability. The common man will then be left at the mercy of despots and desperadoes. The bye-election results have enough hints of this.

Rajib Sarma,

Guwahati

Test of secularism

The country has just gained some foothold after about 20 months of fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and prolonged lockdowns forcefully obstructing economic activities, earning of livelihood and denial of educational teaching. During this newfound respite, the sole agenda of governance must be to put back the wheels of development and reconstruction works moving. The state of Maharashtra has been the most worst-affected of all the states and is still battling with the contamination, yet the situation is not worrying for the State Government. The Maharashtra Vikash Akhadi (MVA) Government, an ally of Shiv Sena, NCP of Power Parivar and Congress of Gandhi parivar which is in office has preferred cold politics to a serious act of governance. A minister from the NCP has been regularly making repetitive and meaningless charges in the daily press meet against Sameer Wankhade, the zonal Director of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) who has been in charge of last month's anti-drug raid in a ship cruise at Mumbai dock which discovered one Ayan Khan, film star Sharuk Khan's son, among the 20 people arrested. This particular arrest was enough ammunition for the minister backed by the ruling alliance to kick-start a campaign to defame the central agency (NCB) and its zonal Director personally as well as the anti-Centre diatribe. The minister's criticism and politics have gained huge publicity rather than a thorough investigation of the drug racket which is most terrible. This is a shocking spectacle how the anti-Modi parties' Governments in states are spoiling the governance and politics in the country.

That the State Government's concern for the people's woes is the least as is testified by calling a bandh on 11th October by the state alliance partners on the peasants stir of Kheri (in Uttar Pradesh) pushing the state to utter mess when the state people are passing through very hard days. It may be recalled that the MVA Government has not shown any urgency in punishing the culprits of the Palgarh saints lynching in Maharashtra which had taken place almost two years back— a new shift to the anti-Hindu line of the Shiv Sena politics in the new company of NCP-Congress. As it transpires the MVA allies are pursuing a faith-based politics which seems fine streaming of Islamism in Maharashtra with an eye on the vote bank and has put the practice of secularism in the severe test. The MVA juggernaut has this way made a mockery of people's mandate leaving Shiv Sena high and dry. What does the secular band say?

Pannalal Dey,

Guwahati

Bye-poll results

In a neck-and-neck fight in three Lok Sabha and 29 Assembly bye-elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress bagged one Lok Sabha seat each while the Congress fared better, winning 8 Assembly seats against the BJP's tally of 7. Interestingly, four days back in Goa when West Bengal Chief Minister (CM) Mamata Banerjee had said: "Modiji is going to be more powerful because of the Congress... Congress is the BJP's TRP…," but these bye-poll results are no sign of Mamata's any assertion, instead, it's a warning to BJP and lifeline for Congress. Also to some extent sending a message that the saffron magic in the Hindi belt is eroding. Despite spectacular results in Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan and to some extent Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, there were worrying signs for the Congress from other states like Assam, Bihar, even in Telangana where the Congress nurtures illusions of a strong revival. Its candidate got 1.48 per cent votes, forfeiting deposits. Though brutally beaten in West Bengal and whipped in Himachal Pradesh, the BJP appeared to have protected its support base despite the price rise, the economic slide and unemployment in other states.

The results of the October 30 bye-elections have the verdict in Himachal and Haryana (Indian National Lok Dal candidate Abhay Singh Chautala retained the Ellenabad Assembly seat) is at variance with the general trend in most other states, where the ruling party/alliance fared well in the bye-lections. Whatsoever, it's a mixed bag of results that haven't given Congress and particularly BJP much to cheer over.

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee,

Faridabad 121005