Is Cong in hurry to hold elections before schedule?

Yusuf Ansari Shocked with the setbacks suffered in the recent Gujarat and Himachal assembly polls, a worried Congress seems to be gearing up for upcoming elections in the country as well as six states. The party has entrusted Union Ministers with the charge of three states going to polls in the near future. While Saifuddin Soz has been given the charge of Jammu and Kashmir, Priyaranjan Das Munshi has got West Bengal and Suresh Pachauri Madhya Pradesh. While handing over the charge of these states to Union Ministers, the party seems to have set aside its Kamraj plan, which gave a slogan of ‘party before politics’. Congress has in the past followed a policy of ‘one man one post’ whereby members either hold a position in the party or in the government. But this time, the party seems to be shifting away from the Kamraj plan, as it has given multiple responsibilities to its leaders. Prithvi Raj Chavan, apart from being a Minister of State in the UPA government, has also been acting as the party general secretary in charge of Karnataka and J&K. Ajay Maken, who is also an MoS, has the charge of a crucial state, Jharkhand. Another MoS Shakeel Ahmed is party’s spokesman as well as its new Muslim face. Congress is trying to milk the image of its popular leaders in assembly as well as Lok Sabha polls.With every passing day the party appears to be not just preparing for upcoming assembly polls in six states, but is also aiming at next year’s general elections. One group in the Congress wants Lok Sabha polls to be held along with state elections in Delhi, Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh. The party, therefore, is trying to reach an understanding with its UPA allies and has already started deliberations with NCP leader Sharad Pawar, DMK’s Karunanidhi and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav. Every stakeholder is trying to weigh the pros and cons of going in for early polls. The Congress is scheduled to hold its working committee meet in the first or second week of March and the decision on whether to go in for early Lok Sabha polls will most likely be taken then. It seems the party has already made up its mind, as Finance Minister P Chidambaram has reportedly asked for the Sixth Pay Commission’s report to have a look at its recommendations. The government is planning to implement the recommendations during the recess in the Budget Session of Parliament so as to please government employees. The report of the Delimitation Commission has already been implemented, and this is likely to cause a delay in assembly polls in Karnataka, which are due before May. The Election Commission needs at least two to three months to prepare for polls in the wake of delimitation. And it has to prepare the voters’ list from the scratch. The term of J&K assembly ends on November 20, while assemblies in MP, Mizoram, Delhi and Chhattisgarh complete their term in December. And the term of Rajasthan assembly expires in the first month of next year. The elections in these states will be held near simultaneously. And a school of thought within the Congress believes it is better to hold Lok Sabha elections along with polls in these six states. The Union Cabinet took over two months to approve the report on delimitation after it was tabled in Parliament. Perhaps keeping in mind the upcoming general elections, the Centre also took several populist decisions including the decision to implement recommendations of the Sachchar Commission, scholarships for 25 lakh students belonging to minorities, health insurance for common man, and bringing in a law to ensure social security for those employed in the unorganised sector. Besides, the government is also trying to make sure the Budget 2008 pleases one and all, as Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh himself is keeping a tab on the preparations. Pranab Mukherjee is busy giving a political touch to the budget. The party has even sent a note to the PM telling him what it wants in the budget. If the general elections are not held this year, they are due by June 2009, meaning the model code of conduct will automatically take effect in January next year. In that case, the government will not get a chance to present next budget. It will then seek grant in aid for its day-to-day expenditure till a new government is in place. So Budget 2008 is the last opportunity for the government to woo the electorate. Same is the case with Railway Minister Lalu Yadav, who is also busy making his budget populist. Many in the Congress favouring early Lok Sabha polls along with assembly elections believe this would help the party. Last time, an excited NDA had called early Parliamentary polls after winning Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, but failed to repeat the same at the Centre. Taking a lesson from the NDA’s debacle, the majority in the party believes the battle for these states as well as the Centre should be fought together. Many UPA allies, including Lalu Yadav, Ram Vilas Paswan, Sharad Pawar and Karunanidhi, seem to be ready for early polls. If an understanding is reached, the Lok Sabha may be dissolved in July-August and polls held soon after. It seems the Left has also got a hint of Congress’ plans. The reason, CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat recently asked the Congress to seek fresh mandate if it wants to proceed with the Indo-US nuclear deal. Just few months back, the Left was hell-bent on ensuring the UPA government falls, but even they are quiet now. Perhaps, they too have reached an understanding with the Congress to hold elections before schedule. Congress is also afraid of the scenario wherein Mayawati and the UNPA, or the Third Front, would gain enough strength to eat into its vote share. The party believes such a scenario could become a reality if the Lok Sabha polls are held on schedule. There is also a possibility that the Left might go with the UNPA. If this happens, the UPA’s chances of returning to power will surely be hit. Adapted by: Deepak Nagpal