Complacence not an option for re elected

Complacence not an option for re elected

Getting re-elected is a heady feeling. The incumbent leaders of Kerala, Assam and West Bengal have every right to be pleased with themselves and deserve kudos. Mamata Banerjee deserves special commendation for not just surviving but raising her party’s vote share, in a battle in which she forsook the safety of her traditional seat and took the challenge to her local rival’s home turf. However, it would be a mistake for these parties to think they just need to keep doing what they have been doing for a repeat performance five years from now.

Politics keeps changing, throwing up fresh challenges. Past achievement could lull the achievers into a false sense of complacence. That would be a big mistake. Pinarayi Vijayan in Kerala impressed the normally cynical Malayalis with his crisis management skills. However, the state cannot be in permanent crisis for him to keep impressing his voters. He needs new ideas for economic development of the state, beyond the welfarism he has perfected as part of crisis management. The BJP in Assam got a free pass, thanks to the listless Congress leadership of the state. What should have been the Congress leadership is with the BJP, leaving the Congress with the scion of its three-time chief minister to lead the party with few credentials other than his lineage. That would not be the case forever. The BJP needs to find a solution to the NRC crisis it has created.

Mamata Banerjee would do well to appreciate that the BJP’s campaign against what it dubs her appeasement politics has a lot of purchase among the people. Further, people expect less corruption and hate the culture of political violence. Even if successful politicians are ill-disposed towards unsolicited advice.