Opposition agenda

Opposition agenda

Why it must come up with a well conceived common minimum programme.

On Valentine’s Day yesterday, opposition parties seeking to put up a joint anti-Modi front still seemed to be in the ‘He loves me, He loves me not’ mode in sorting out disagreements among themselves. The previous day, opposition leaders met at NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s residence to decide the way forward and reportedly gave Congress president Rahul Gandhi the responsibility of drafting a common minimum programme – a good strategy given that contradictions within the mahagathbandhan are becoming apparent.

Such a common minimum programme (CMP) must think beyond the usual staples of such programmes – leaky doles and handouts which are inflationary and could potentially bankrupt the economy. Since the mahagathbandhan wishes to focus attention on the erosion of institutions under the current NDA government’s watch, and portrays its tenure as a continual assault on democratic values, it should put its money where its mouth is. Thus its CMP should distinguish itself by taking a clear and unequivocal position against archaic and draconian laws.

It should, for example, squarely target the colonial-era sedition law – Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code – and promise to scrap it entirely from the statute books given its random and frivolous misuse these days. It should flesh out a mechanism to uphold the autonomy of CBI and RBI. It should sketch a compelling vision of police reforms, transforming the police into a modern and professional force. It should undertake to make the NSA Act applicable only to clear and present dangers to national security. It should vow to make defamation a civil rather than a criminal offence.

Second, if opposition parties argue that the NDA government has failed to ensure a pickup in private investment and jobs, they have valid ground to do so. But to make this argument compelling they must flesh out a plan of what they will do differently, to enhance productivity and jobs in the economy. For example, why can’t we unshackle our educational institutions to offer world class education? If China and Malaysia can become global educational hubs, why can’t India? To fulfil Indians’ aspirations that have been aroused a second generation of reforms must be launched – and this is where, arguably, the Modi government has fallen short. It’s time the opposition put its best foot forward, and demonstrated that it has a vision which stretches beyond replacing Prime Minister Narendra Modi with one of their own.