Smita Mishra
After reigning on the national capital for about a decade, the Congress government under Sheila Dikshit again faces the litmus test in the assembly elections. Will it be voted back to the power corridors once again, or will it give way to BJP whose Chief Ministerial candidate Vijay Malhotra promises to give back the city its bygone era of easy prices and terror free living.
Who will actually grab the power chains will only be judged on the basis of the major issues looming large over the assembly elections this year.
INFLATION:
It has become quite clear that the spiraling prices and the growing uncertainty in the job market has hit the common man hard and the present government is not going to be judged in benevolent light on account of its inability to check rising prices. The BJP has already made it an election issue organizing “Tomato Road shows”, targeting the government on vegetables getting unaffordable. The rising fuel prices and the inability of the government to actually do something to mitigate the pain despite claims that it has opened six Kendriya Bhandars which are doing quite well, may prove fatal for it in the coming elections. Terrorism as an electoral issue has lost some of its appeal after the alleged involvement of some right-wing Hindus in the Malegaon blast. Therefore, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is banking heavily on the issue of inflation to help it ride to power.
SECURITY SITUATION:
The issue of security probably is the most serious one, as the people will never like to vote for a government that is unable to protect them from the onslaughts of mindless murderers. In the 10 years of Congress rule the vulnerability of the capital to terror attacks has become quite obvious in the eyes of the public. The perception is that the government is not just incapable of preventing such attacks, but is also wanting when it comes handling the situation if such an exigency occurs. The blasts of 2005 and 2008 will go down the pages of history as among the most heinous crimes against humanity. No wonder the opposition is pitching terrorism as one of the major election issues.
The safety of citizens is another major issue that will become the basis of judging the present government. In a state which has the longest serving woman Chief Minister and a woman as Mayor, it is nothing but sheer irony that women don’t feel free to venture out alone after dark. The statement of Sheila Dikshit after the murder of TV Journalist Saumya Viswanathan that ‘women should not be adventurous’ drew severe criticism from all quarters. The safety of senior citizens will be another whetstone that will determine the trend of voting in the Assembly elections.
SEALING DRIVE:
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi started the sealing drive in 2006 to seal a number of unauthorized colonies, school and shops. The move was severely opposed and several protest rallies were conducted through out the capital. The Supreme Court warned the government umpteen times for improperly conducting the drive and the bias it showed in closing unauthorized buildings in small villages and posh areas. Finally through an ordinance the sealing was halted till Dec 2008. This ordinance came at a crucial time, just before the assembly poll. But the people of Delhi are aware that the problem is still not solved and this protection is given till December 2008, till government prepares a detailed guideline in accordance with Master Plan Delhi 2021. It is but natural that they would not like to vote for a government that will raze down their houses and places of work.
BLUE LINE MENACE:
The capital’s 4,000-strong privately run Blueline bus fleet, has mercilessly and ceaselessly mowed down people over the years, almost always getting away with it. This year alone they claimed 80 lives. There have been talks of their being phased out gradually and the Delhi government has actually come out with a handful of high capacity buses. But as it turns out to be, the opposition parties are saying that this is nothing but an election gimmick as Delhi is due for polls.
DEVELOPMENT:
On the issue of development the Dikshit government can score some points at least for the boon that the Delhiites got in the shape of metro and the numerous fly over that have to a great extent solved the problem of traffic jams. The sparkling malls dotting the capital are another feature of development that was not seen some 10 years ago. However due to the absence of proper maintenance the structures are already crumbling. Ill maintained roads, poor management of rain water drainage and repeated collapse of ill made flyovers, can no doubt be made an agenda by the opposition parties.
Development in the name of Commonwealth Games is also a big issue raging in the political circles. Who will be the fittest to hold the Commonwealth Games in 2010? 71 year old Sheila Dikshit or 77 year old Vijay Malhotra? There has been a lot of mudslinging among the political parties regarding the efforts in bracing up the capital for the Commonwealth Games. The issues have been raised regarding the late running projects and inability of the government to raise the river bed to build complexes and residences. The government however has been defending its position and says that it is doing everything to prepare the capital for the coming sports event.
CASTE POLITICS:
The anti-incumbency wave against both Centre and state government along with the BSP factor will determine the vote bank as was seen in the recent Delhi municipal elections. With V K Malhotra as its Chief Ministerial candidate, BJP may well want to mop up the Punjabi factor in its favour. But the changed complexion of the capital has ensured that it will woo other caste and community groups whose numbers have swelled and who have now become politically demanding. While for the Congress, candidates from the Scheduled Castes form a big chunk, the BJP is banking heavily on the Baniya support. Both parties have also made concerted efforts to trap the Gujjar votebank. Here however the BJP may suffer some setback on account of last year’s Gujjar agitation which is likely to caste some of its shadow over the elections. And BSP may spoil the party for Congress by dividing the Dalit vote.
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