Pushing the political ball into the judicial court: Whither political accountability?

As the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic recedes, a political virus seems to be spreading wide and fast across the state and is having major national reverberations. The column this month takes two important developments that have played out over the last month and its wider implications for state politics.

Let us start with the more distant event and then come to the more recent one. A major political event during the third wave of the pandemic was the padayatra of KPCC President D.K.Shiva Kumar. The Mekedatu padayatra was called a Walk for Water in the wider context of the water dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Given the history of padayatra politics in the state, the KPCC President saw a golden opportunity to place the government on the back-foot and in the process seize the political initiative a year prior to the state going to the polls. Questions were raised from day one, whether it was appropriate to conduct a public event stretching across several days across the state, while the third wave of the pandemic was on. Whatever precautions one was to take with such events, the likelihood of such a march adversely impacting on the health status of those involved and participating had to be kept in mind.

As expected the protest march generated its fair share of political controversy. The KPCC President made light of the pandemic and its impact. He refused to undergo the RTPCR test when requested by the government authorities. Many of those who marched with him tested positive and dropped out of the protest. Ultimately, it required an intervention by the Karnataka High Court, to direct the state government to take action in the light of the rising number of COBID 19 related cases in the cases. The Congress reluctantly suspended the march temporarily and promised to continue it when the health situation improved. One is waiting with baited breath as to when that resumption will happen.

It is beyond doubt that the march led by the KPCC President achieved two objectives. First, it seems to have galvanised the rank and file of the party. As the leading Opposition in the state, there was very little visible political activity on the ground. The march, for the period that it continued, did boost the energies of party workers and revived their enthusiasm in important ways. For too long had the Congress in Karnataka, allowed the BJP to set the agenda and merely respond to the same. In that sense, the protest march did help the party enthuse its cadres across the state. Secondly, the protest march also saw the coming together of the two most important leaders of the party in the state - KPCC President Shiva Kumar and Leader of the Opposition and former Chief Minister - Siddaramaiah. The unity that was displayed by the party leadership was well a short in the arm for the party, in its efforts it assert its political presence.

The padyatra has now been pushed to the back-burner with another controversy grabbing centre-stage.

The hijab controversy that began in an educational institution in Udupi, has had an impact across the state. It has also caught the national headlines. This was a slug-fight which could have very well been nipped in the bud. If the groups involved had sat together and reached a negotiated settlement, the controversy could well have been resolved. On the other hand, all political players saw an opportunity to grab the maximum political mileage from the controversy. For short term gains, the political class sacrificed long term social harmony. As has happened in the past with sensitive social controversies, the political players found it convenient to push the issue to the lap of the court. Now one awaits the decision of the Court and all political players would take a public stand that they are constrained by the court verdict.

Thus, in both the cases discussed, the political players preferred to toss the ball of controversy to the court of the judiciary. They could thus try to insulate themselves from the implications of the judicial verdict by pleading that they are merely implementing the directive of the judiciary.

The question one needs to ask at this stage, when we are a little over a year away from the state elections, is whether the real people's issues are being side-tracked by the political class. Survey after survey in Karnataka has shown that the top two issues that are exercising the minds of people in the state are unemployment and price rise. Are both the ruling party as well as the opposition making this the focus of their attention or does one see a bankruptcy of ideas especially in the light of an absence of political will to focus on people's issues.

The challenge for both the Congress and the BJP as they prepare for the elections next year is also to project their party as a united front and not as a collection of faction leaders pulling in different directions. The stalled protest march did help the Congress move in the direction of fortifying this unity.

The test of 2023 will be a test of unity and leadership. How do the Karnataka voters perceive the leadership skills of those who represent the Congress and the BJP at the state level and the unity demonstrated by the each party will be critical? Does the voter in the state reassert a trend seen since 1989 of the ruling party facing a setback or does it reverse the trend will be decided by this crucial factor.

(Dr. Sandeep Shastri is a keen student of Indian politics. Dr Shastri is a researcher on politics for the last four decades)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.