Good news for both polity economy

Good news for both polity economy

Poll results a call for greater accountability.

The Maharashtra and Haryana assembly election results offer good news on the polity and the economy. Democracy calls for an Opposition, not just a strong ruling party. That had been missing, since the Lok Sabha election results came out in May. The idea of an Opposition is now back. Congress is the principal beneficiary, as of now. But it would be a mistake for the party to take that happenstance as destiny and sit back on its haunches waiting for time to roll out its fortunes. The economy gains because the election results smash a gathering impression that the economic slowdown has no political consequence. If the people make it clear that bread and butter issues matter, and not just questions of nationalism and ideology, the political executive would be forced to seek and implement remedies for the slowdown with vigour.

The incumbent government has at its disposal a huge amount of political capital. It has to be prudently spent on reviving the economy. BJP’s national-level leaders campaigned on nationalist themes in these elections: Kashmir, a National Register of Citizens for the country as a whole. The response of the voters has been underwhelming. The BJPShiv Sena combine in Maharashtra has ceded space to the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance, not just in comparison to the wave election of May 2019 but in relation to the assembly elections of 2014. The story has been repeated in Haryana, with voter disenchantment even stronger than in Maharashtra. BJP, minus a clear majority of its own, might yet form the government. But that should not prevent it from heeding the lesson the state’s voters have handed out.

The government must address the structural constraints on the economy rooted in political economy. Stop tolerating theft and giveaways of power; these eviscerate the power sector and thwart a potential agro-processing revolution in rural India. Align crops with soil, water and elevation conditions that suit them. End political funding from the siphoned-off padding of project costs funded by banks. Tough calls, but ultimately rewarding.