More problems for Kejriwal?
Delhi has been functioning as a partial statehood with its own Chief Minister but there is a fear that it could lose this as well. There is a buzz that the Union Government is planning to reduce Delhi to a city capital, much on the lines of London, which is a province and not a state. This is not a new proposal but something that is mulled over at various intervals, and comes up whenever there is a demand to restore full statehood to Delhi. (If you recall Delhi was initially a state but lost its statehood in 1956 under the States Reorganisation Act. Post that the Jan Sangh, and later on the BJP, have been campaigning for statehood and even tabled the Delhi Statehood Bill in the Lok Sabha in 2003 but it lost interest after it lost the Delhi elections thereafter). In fact, since then the BJP has never won Delhi and accordingly its stand has taken a U Turn, especially since it got into a turf war with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party over governance issues. In hindsight, the Delhi Services Bill (GNCTD Amendment Bill) that gives the LG an authority that impinges on the mandate of the state government could be read as a step in this direction. But if Delhi is reduced to a metropolitical council, then what will happen to the Aam Aadmi Party? It is only in power in Delhi and Punjab; and its hold over the former seems much more secure than its government in Punjab. If the Modi government does go through with this move it could have serious implications on the political future of the Aam Aadmi Party. Clearly, Arvind Kejriwal has a lot more to worry about than just his legal cases.
Why Atishi?
Why did Arvind Kejriwal opt for Atishi as the Delhi CM to replace him? There were various contenders for the job but what worked for Atishi were three things, the first being her image. She started out as an advisor to Manish Sisodia in the Education Ministry and was one of the principal movers behind the success of the Delhi education program. Since then she has emerged as one of Sisodia’s most trusted proteges. Second, she is a woman and this is an age where each party is going all out to woo the woman vote. Third—and perhaps the most important—is that she is seen as someone who will stick to the plan and not let her own ambitions derail Kerjiwal’s return to the CM’s chair, should the AAP win the next Delhi elections. (Currently the indications are that the AAP is best poised to do so). Well, whatever the reasons, Delhi once again has a woman Chief Minister after Sheila Dikshit and Sushma Swaraj.
Who will deliver the message?
Is the BJP losing the communications game? The Modi Government 3.0 recently completed 100 days in office but the event was marked more by the Congress than the BJP. It was the Opposition that drove the narrative, with some deft fielding done by none other than Home Minister Amit Shah along with I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at a press conference. Also, take a look at the last Parliament session; while the Opposition fielded an array of articulate speakers ranging from Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Abhishek Bannerjee, Mahua Moitra, Gaurav Gogoi, Shashi Tharoor, Raghav Chaddha and Sanjay Singh, the treasury benches had to largely depend on Amit Shah and at times the PM himself to counter these (though of course here one must mention Anurag Thakur’s tirade as well that had the entire Opposition up in arms). Again, fielding Union Cabinet Minister Hardeep Singh Puri to take on Rahul Gandhi for his comments about Sikhs feeling insecure in India worked for the BJP, because he is an articulate voice who has heft and an individual standing apart from the government post.
A few exceptions aside, clearly the BJP leadership needs to give its second rung more responsibility. This will add to their credibility when taking on the Opposition which, don’t forget, has a large number of out of work former union ministers at its disposal. In addition, while building a second rung is always commendable, the BJP could also make more use of the old guard who come with some political gravitas, such as Nitin Gadkari and Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Social media prowess can keep you afloat but you still need anchors to moor the ship of state.