India – Similarities in Political Regimes

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Economy, Social, Nuclear & Environment Issues

Padmini Arhant

The topic sheds light on similarities in economy, social, nuclear and environment issues among political regimes in power.

Congress led UPA 1 and UPA 2 embarked on economic reform from earlier days were fully charged on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inviting overseas investors to invest in India.

In this context, UPA went further in granting multinationals and retail giants like United States based Walmart full access to Indian market at then U.S.President Barack Obama’s behest whose spouse Michelle Obama was on Walmart’s board misusing political status for personal gains. Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh decision to let Walmart was made against Indian retail merchants vehement protest.

When I shared my concerns against Indian government action highlighting serious repercussions on India’s retail chain and informal sector affecting millions of livelihoods on globally used twitter to attract political establishment attention in United States viz. Barack Obama administration and Sonia Gandhi government in India,

I was denied access to twitter thereafter to express my views on the issue. Subsequently I rejected twitter for good with no regrets knowing the social outlet is a mere propaganda platform to muzzle genuine thoughts on political class policy and impact on world population. 

Despite harsh reactions against poignant disagreement, Walmart could not make inroads and had to differ their entry.

Any later appearance in this regard would have been in disguise and not without serious political and economic liability to those behind devious agenda.

UPA government launched their nuclear plant issue in Kudankulam, Tamil nadu again much to locals angst and massive disapproval.  

Congress fielded the former President Abdul Kalam as a strong advocate on Kudankulam Nuclear plant who ignored the local residents grievances especially in the wake of Fukushima nuclear disaster. 

The former President Abdul Kalam did not hesitate to rebuke me for not joining him and his political class and criticized me for concurring with TamilNadu people legitimate worries on reactivating nuclear reactors in environment hazard area. 

The quid pro quo awards and accolades to individuals are meant to serve political objectives were evident in ex-President Abdul Kalam’s activism on anti-environment nuclear plant in Tamil Nadu. 

UPA 1 Congress government utilized ex-President Abdul Kalam’s nuclear physics background to their nuclear plant agenda in Tamil Nadu and other parts of India due to public dissent on this sensitive nuclear reactors operation given the poor safety standards and lack of accountability upon any major industrial accident witnessed in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on Union Carbide gas leaks claiming thousands of lives in that city and neighboring territories in the central state during Congress rule. 

UPA made headlines for bribing MPs in Parliament to pass legislation on the controversial nuclear deal. Then Congress member i.e. the broker and go between Bollywood and politics Amar Singh was sentenced to prison.

Amar Singh accompanied fellow politicians on bail crossing over to BJP after Congress dropped the ball. Amar Singh supplies members from Bollywood to politics to assist in the trend on celebrities contesting elections at eleventh hour in the hope of winning on star power.

The tradition much to voters great despair is continued unabated as celebrities are nothing more than opportunists depriving qualified ordinary citizens from political representation in Parliament in the so-called world’s largest democracy.

Congress and RSS manned BJP are parallel in many aspects. Both national parties form coalitions with former rivals turning into rallying partners to suit political aspirations. 

Congress and BJP along with their allies in UPA or NDA subscribe to dynasty politics, black money funding and unaccounted money trails financing election campaigns and their party affairs. 

Congress and BJP have ethnic cleansing and communal riots record viz. 1984 violence against innocent Sikhs and 2002 Godhra violence against Muslims and Hindus in Gujarat respectively.

Congress and BJP are on par in using caste based vote banks during elections and both are equally inept i.e. gross negligence in curbing terror attacks in the mainland and at the border experienced until now.

The two national parties remain so with the help of coalition lest they would be irrelevant  in national domain.

Congress and BJP have strong media house backing with television networks and press split in extending their support to these two parties turning a blind eye to their legacy marred with corruption, fraud and communal violence.

Neither Congress nor BJP care about meritocracy and instead rely on dynasty and celebrity politics to avail power. 

Likewise, Congress and BJP tow the line to foreign diktat and influence with one exceeding the other when in power.

These two parties are firmly against anti-corruption with Congress enforced brute force against anti-corruption rally in 2011 resulting in the fatality of a woman participant in Delhi. Congress along with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha violently dispersed peaceful assembly of locals in nuclear plant Kudankulam, Tamilnadu.

BJP on its part authorized sniper attacks killing seventeen-year-old high school graduates gathered to peacefully voice environment woes from Copper Sterlite plant in coastal town Thoothukudi, Tamil nadu.

BJP and Congress recruited proxies are utilized in accordance with those whom they oblige and use crony contingency as weapons of mass deception.

In the economic front –  youth unemployment, agrarian crisis leading to farmers’ suicide, controversial plans and programs like GST, NEET for medical students and ignoring basic developments and requirements of citizens nationwide – Congress setting precedence with BJP worsening issues is the hallmark of these regimes. 

Congress and RSS guided BJP are partners in dereliction of duty and abdication of responsibility. 

On domestic issues – Jammu & Kashmir and North Eastern states – Congress and BJP judiciously maintain British Raj rules such as Armed Forces Special Protection Act (AFSPA) exacerbating tensions in these regions.

The two parties have no desire or political will to shelve any of these archaic practices harming the morale and goodwill among citizens and armed personnel alike.

Congress and BJP policy towards Indian defense force is no better. The two parties have neglected the needs of servicemen and their families ordeal. 

In denying Border Security force (BSF) servicemen one rank one pension, decent facilities in terms of food and transportation protecting them from potential and persistent terror attacks witnessed in Pulwama, Kashmir and earlier, BJP and Congress are two sides of the same coin.

Foreign policy – Congress and BJP’s relations with Pakistan is pretentious enmity in public and comradery in private setting posing conflict of interest in the face of repeat violence and LOC violations from Pakistan across the border.

Other nations in Indian Sub-Continent – BJP and Congress meet, greet and honor leaderships having little or no regard for democracy and electoral process like barring opposition parties from free and fair election viz. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka’s Mahinda Rajapaksa to name a few.

Finally on environment – BJP and Congress are veterans in compromising air and water quality with no sincere commitment to reduce carbon emission or clean up heavily contaminated rivers and reservoirs throughout the country.

Additionally, Congress and BJP are tough competitors with a common goal i.e. distributing farmers and Adivasis (native tribes) owned agriculture lands to own relatives viz. Robert Vadra (Priyanka Vadra’s spouse) and/or industrialists Adhani, Ambanis and others of their choice lured to bait in exchange of political favors to benefit one another.

Congress and BJP along with alliances alternate to form governments with poor performance and consistent failures in alleviating poverty, improving infrastructure especially roads and thoroughfares,  providing basic means from clean water to electricity, affordable housing, health care and education.

Who is the ultimate winner?

The political members vying for office and not the voters electing them for public service that is transformed into private enterprise with a price tag charged to the citizens expecting any response to urgent and long overdue problems in the country.

Thank you.

Padmini Arhant

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