Developmental Agenda Pays at last

I have refrained from posting anything on politics. It is not that I am apolitical. In fact I am politically very conscious though not too opinionated. My political leanings have swung from one end of the spectrum to the other end over the years.

Today's election victory by BJP and Narendra Modi in Gujarat elections gives me some satisfaction. I am not a BJP supporter nor am I a party sympathizer. The satisfaction is because the voters have finally put the developmental agenda on the forefront and have returned a Chief Minister with a resounding margin. I hold no brief for Modi and what happened in 2002. But I have always held the view that what has happened in 2002 is to be treated as a crime and has to be tackled as such. Whoever was behind Godhra and the subsequent riots have to be brought to justice. But unfortunately our snail paced judicial system will ensure that people go scotfree (the Supreme Court has again ordered a CBI enquiry into Jagdish Tytlers role 23 years after the 1984 Sikh carnage in Delhi). No country can hope to raise to high levels if it compromises on law and order.

Coming back to the issue on hand why I am pleased with the election verdict is that there has been a perception that any Government that spends money on development work cannot expect to win and that only populism brings votes. Pundits pointed out to the examples of Chandrababu Naidu in AP, BJP in the Centre in 2004 and even Jayalalitha in TN. They also gave the example of Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi in Bihar as a classic example of winning on vote bank politics at the expense of any development. Bihar was ruled by the husband and wife for more than a decade and the state actually went considerably backward on all parameters. It came to such a situation that rulers felt that giving subsidies, free TVs, free rice, free power and a combination of caste/community appeasement is the success formula.

Modi, post 2002, put development as his mantra. It helped that he was ruling a state which is known for its entrepreneurship skills. He created a favourable atmosphere for the industrialists to invest and they responded. He also took a no nonsense stand against terrorism.For the first time in the history Gujarat virtually went curfew free for 5 years. Modi learned from the mistake Chandrababu Naidu made - that 60% of the population depends on agriculture and you ignore them at your peril. Instead of offering freebies to the agriculturalists, he went ahead and improved the irrigation facilities, tackled the critical water problem in the draught hit Saurashtra area and he even asked the farmers to pay for the power while at the same time ensuring uninterrupted power supply. The contribution of Agriculture to State GDP increased substantially.

He is not without his faults. But having defined sound administration as his USP, he ensured people got what they wanted - terrorism free environment, industrial development, agricultural development, electricity and water. And people voted him to a resounding victory with nearly 2/3 rd majority.

There is a message in this for the Centre and other State Governments. An inclusive development with security for the people will definitely pay.

And that definitely is a positive sign for our country