It is for not for nothing that Nitish Kumar was called ‘Chanankya’ of undivided Janta Dal in the early ’90s. In his present avatar too, he has mixed up a fair dose of realpolitik with his developmental plank. From the very beginning of his term he strategically targeted the vote banks of his two chief opponents in the state – Lalu Yadav (RJD) & Ramvilas Paswan (LJP).

He began by assiduously wooing the Muslim Community to break the Muslim-Yadav (MY) axis of Lalu Yadav. Apart from symbolic gestures of admitting a large number of Muslim Leaders to his party (JDU), attending Muslim festivities, drafting a Muslim bureaucrat for the critical Home Secretary position ( rarity for a BJP ruled/partnered state) etc., he also has also launched several schemes for the Muslim community (such as ‘Hunar’) and recruited ‘urdu’ teachers in bulk . He took credit for finally convicting the main accused of Bhagalpur riots of 1989 and distributing relief to its victims on the lines of Delhi 1984 Sikh riots. He has cleverly positioned himself as a ‘doer’ versus Lalu who he says, only provided ‘lip service’ to the community. His recent decision of allocating 250 acres of land for establishing a center of Aligarh Muslim University in Bihar too, has been a step in the same direction..

At the same time he also targeted the ‘Dalit’ vote bank of Ramvilas Paswan. He first broke off a large chunk of the community by branding them as ‘Maha-Dalits’ as they had not received the benefits due to them while all their benefits were being cornered by the more well off communities among Dalits. A separate “Mahadalit Vikas Mission‘ was founded under his supervision and a flood of schemes have been launched to directly target succour to this community. To add injury to salt, he has slowly expanded the ambit of ‘Mahadalits’ leaving only the ‘Paswans’ in the dalit community. This move has been greatly resented by Ramvilas Paswan who has seen his electoral fortunes dwindle.

He has even tried to neutralize Congress with his demand for a special state status for Bihar. He strategically voiced this demand just before the declaration of the results of General Parliamentary Elections, at the time when Congress was fishing for more allies. The Congress was initially sympathetic but backtracked later after they were able to cobble up a comfortable majority on their own. Nitish now periodically uses this demand as a stick to beat Congress apart from his usual lament of insufficient central assistance. He has not even spared his partners in the government – BJP. Starting off as junior partners with BJP in the undivided Bihar, he has slowly pushed them to a corner and assumed the role of big brother in the state. He also asserts his authority clearly in matters of protecting his secular credentials such as the recent land allocation to AMU.

Internally he has moved swiftly against detractors in his own party. Early dissenters like Upendra Kumar Kushwaha were promptly shown the door. ( He has recently rejoined Nitish after unsuccessfully trying his luck with NCP for past 4 years). Even the party patriarch, George Fernandis who was also the convener of NDA, was kept at bay. Fernandis was denied a Loksabha ticket on grounds of ill health, though he was later accommodated in the Rajya Sabha. Other detractors such Nagmani were thrown out or the ones like Prabhunath Singh were neutralised through election defeat.

However despite all his brilliant strategies, Nitish received a body blow in the last bye-election for 18 assembly seats in September 2009. He along with BJP could only manage to win 5 setas whereas RJD+LJP won 9 and Congress 2. This has exposed his razor thin lead in the deeply divided caste equations of Bihar. While the marginalisation of Ramvilas Paswan has pushed him firmly into the Lalu camp, the rejuvenation of Congress nationally and the decline of BJP (his partner in the state) together have the potential of stinging him badly in the next assembly elections slated for late 2010. Only saving grace for him is that there is still another year to go and if he heeds to the warning signals of the recent bye-election defeat, he can still re-work the magic next year.

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Note: This is the second part of a multi part series on Nitish Kumar and his efforts to build a New Bihar.

Another major challenge that confronted Nitish Kumar was Infrastructure. Roads through out the state were in poor condition. While rural roads were non-existent, National Highways too were in bad shape. Even roads in major towns were full of pot holes.  An immediate task was to find contractors to build these roads. In the past decades, all the big contractors had fled the state. Those who remained, were small and had no infrastructure of their own. Outside contractors were not interested due to the smaller size of opportunity and the overhang of bad image. Still,the work on road construction started early in Nitish’s term. Unfortunately the beginning itself was botched up badly by the inflexible bureaucracy. A rare national contractor, Tantia Constructions, who ventured to work on the Patna Road Project, was forced to exit the state after one year of incomplete work. Either side blamed the other, however the real losers were people (who had to wait longer) and the state (whose already tarnished image took another hit). Notwithstanding the initial hiccups, most roads in Patna at least have now been built. What is more remarkable however are the drainages (nalis) that have been built alongside all the major roads. This will prevent water logging and ensure that roads last longer. Paved footpaths too have sprung up, where none had existed earlier. Today wherever one goes in the state, construction activity is visible. Even though progress has been stilted, it is still progress nevertheless from the days when infrastructure in Bihar wasn’t going anywhere.

The real crown jewel of infrastructure however, has been a small, erstwhile sick, state PSU - Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam. The Nigam which was put under liquidation by the previous administration, has been turned around in quick time. From having accumulated losses of Rs. 17 crores in 2005-06, it was able to contribute Rs. 20 crores towards CM Relief Fund after last year’s devastating Kosi Floods. In the past 3 years it has built an impressive array of 300 high level bridges at an estimated cost of Rs. 708 crores.

Bridges that had languished since ages, have been completed in record time. In the process many a stereotypes of a state infamous for tardy work culture, have been broken. The corporation has emerged as a role model for other ailing state corporations. Another stereotype that has been challenged is that of an ossified bureaucracy. The success of Amrit Pratyaya, a young, soft spoken, 1991 batch IAS officer, who is credited with this turnaround, has demonstrated what committed bureaucracy can achieve if it can rise above vested interests and get out of its comfort zone. The IAS Officer has since then been shifted to head a much larger Road construction department, normally reserved for a more senior, Principal Secretary level officer. This has lent credence to another important, emerging Nitish trait that he is able to spot, inspire, back and reward good performers consistently.

Part: 1 2 3 4 5

Note: This is the first part of a multi part series on Nitish Kumar and his efforts to build a New Bihar.

When Mayawati became Chief Minster of U.P. for the first time, she shook up the entire bureaucracy and police by shifting more than 150 officers in one day. When Lalu became CM, he soon landed up at the Patna Medical College Hospital with the media in tow, to inspect whether Doctors were attending duty properly. He publicly rebuked those who were found derelict. He did the same when he became the Central Railway Minister, by ordering the office gates to be locked after the scheduled time so that the habitual late-comers could not get in. Yet, when Nitish Kumar became CM of Bihar in November 2005, after 15 long years of Lalu-Rabri rule, there was hardly a flutter.

Save one or two key bureaucratic changes, there were hardly any changes anywhere. So much so that even the official residence of Chief Minster, 1 Anne Marg, continued to adorn the outgoing Chief Minister, Rabri Devi more than two months after he was sworn in. People started to wonder what, if any, were the changes. Nitish Kumar went to work with practically the same bureaucratic and executive team as his predecessor. Sure there were reshuffles later on but the pace was unremarkable. He started off by conducting long meetings with the senior bureaucrats that routinely went on till late nights. The bureaucracy was rattled a bit but not too much thinking that the initial enthusiasm will soon run out of steam. They were, however, in for a rude shock. Nitish was digging his heels for a long seize, not a guerrilla war. Assiduously he went to work to put the state back on track, bit by bit.

One of the first challenges was to stabilize law and order situation. However here too, those who were looking for some high profile, quick fix solutions, were disappointed. In fact the first full year barely saw any change. High profile kidnappings and murders continued to rattle the state. Nitish came in for criticism for his pre-election claim that he will fix law & order within three months.  Change however, started to become visible later after a few cases were cracked by the Police and the accused were charge sheeted promptly. Another significant change appeared in the form of unshackling of several upright senior Police Officers who had been completely sidelined during the Lalu Rabri era.

Another turning point was the gusto with which the state embraced the centrally sponsored Fast Track Court scheme. More and cases were transfered to the FTC especially those belonging to high profile criminal politicians ( even those from his own JDU Party) . Suddenly things started to look up after the conviction rates started to inch up. In the past two years 2006 – 2008, more than 26000 convictions have taken place. Several dreaded political criminals have been awarded capital punishment and lesser sentences. Today, even thogh the law & order situation may not be ideal, but at least it has turned a corner . A clear proof of this is that Bihar has already ceded its monopoly over prime time television news to a lot of other states. No news is indeed good news.

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Note: This is the concluding part of the three part series on Next Generation Electoral Reforms (other two –   Intership for MPs & MLAs , Inner Party Democracy) .

Indian Electoral System today is at a point of inflection. What started in early ’90s as a  lone struggle by a maverick (T. N. Seshan) to cleanse the cesspool of Indian Elections, has now transformed into a well oiled election machinery that has won acclaims for the  successful conduct of several difficult electoral battles. Indian Elections are unique because of the number of people that vote, the varied geography it covers as well as the specter of violence that hangs around them. The real game changer has been the speedy roll out of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). From trial runs to all EVM Elections, they have even caught the fancy of the world community.  The somewhat checkered implementation of the Voter ID Cards, and the mandatory affidavits by candidates have  also contributed to the credibility of Indian Elections.  But where do we go from here?

To be sure, there are still problems galore. There is the problem of increased Naxalite insurgency and the violence inflicted by them during elections. Beside that the role of money power too has come in for sharp focus. Around 300 present MPs are known to be Crorepatis, giving rise to the feeling that in near future, being a millionaire might become a pre-requisite for the job.  However the most serious problem of them all is the twin issue of increasing Criminalisation of Politics and the lack of good people joining politics.  Both these are essentially two sides of the same coin.

For our democracy to enter the next level of maturity, we need to usher in a new generation of Electoral Reforms. It is customary in the election season to run campaigns for increased voter turnout. There have been other ideas that have come to fore such as public funding of Elections, option to reject all candidates, provisions for recall of candidates etc. However many of these ideas can only take us thus far. Increased voter turnout will only have an impact if there is a wide choice of good candidates and detailed information about their performance is available. Even though public funding is being touted as a solution to the rising influence of money power, it may end up becoming up another channel for large scale waste of public money.

The problem of the criminalisation of politics needs to be tackled head on. We have for too long, dithered on the premise that any law to debar under trial criminals before they are finally convicted by the highest court, will open the door for falsely implicating innocent persons and will be against the laws of natural justice . However such arguments have become fallacious after more and more MPs & MLAs are being convicted of serious crimes such as murder, rape & sedition. We need to bite the bullet now and make the law applicable to criminals convicted of serious crimes by any court of law. Once convicted they should not be allowed to contest even if their appeal is pending in a higher court, till the time their conviction is annulled by a competent court. Besides this ‘Fast Courts’ should be mandatory in case of MPs & MLAs being accused.

The problems facing our nation are serious and the rapid degeneration in the quality of our MPs and MLAs will reverse whatever progress we have made in the past decades. An intense debate on Next Generation Electoral Reforms is the need of the hour and the denizens of Social Media Network should take a lead in this direction. These discussions will hopefully throw up some ideas that will help shape a new dawn.

Note: This is the second part of the three part series on Next Generation Electoral Reforms (other two –   Intership for MPs & MLAs , MP – M for Muder, P for Politcs ) .

One look at the leadership of various political parties in India, will confirm that our democracy is only skin deep. While the leaders give customary lip service to democracy, their autocratic streak is all too evident in their dealings within their own political parties. Not only do they shamelessly promote their kith and kins, they run their parties as personal fiefdoms. They also prevent free voicing of opinions. Any contrarian voice against the ruling clique even at ‘Inner Party Fora’ leads to swift expulsion. Even though it is now established, that dissent is the true essence of democracy, no political party in India, without exception, provides any space for dissent. How can such a situation be conducive to the growth and prosperity of democratic values in our polity?

Not too long ago, Government formation at the Center was held hostage to the the equitable distribution of power within the progeny of Karunanidhi from his three marriages. Alas! he did not command the numerical strength to justify a cabinet birth for each of his sons/daughters/grand nephews, but he gave the Congress negotiators a tough time anyway. The recent clamour in Andhra Pradesh for anointing the political novice son of the late Chief Minister as the next CM, is symptomatic of the same problem. Indian political history is replete with instances of dynastic successions. Led by the redoubtable Nehru-Indira Gandhi-Rajeev-Sonia-Rahul, off late this virus has been contracted by practically every state  satrap be it Lalu-Rabri & Paswans in Bihar, Patnayaks in Orissa, Badals in Punjab, Abdullahs & Sayeeds in J&K, Pawars & Thakerays in Maharashtra, Goudas in Karnataka, Mulayam clan in U.P., Karunanidhi clan in TN etc. . The examples are endless on both sides of the divide. The oft repeated, specious argument that one should not object to politician’s son being a politician when there is no objection to a doctor’ son becoming doctor, engineer’s son being engineer etc., does not hold much water. The objections are not just based on the sons/daughters/nephews/wives joining politics but more importantly on the complete absence of any due process and the walkover awarded to these star politicians. It is almost akin to a business or a monarchical succession. Obviously it is at the cost of other more deserving leaders and it discourages those without such affiliations to enter politics.

Even otherwise, nomination of candidates for elections by Political parties is done without any tranparent due process. It is subject to the whims of the ruling clique. In some cases, sale of party tickets to the highest bidder has also come to light. It may seem like an internal matter of the respective political party, but it has an important bearing on the quality of choice (or lack of it) available to the electorate. Hence this process to needs to be brought under public scrutiny. We need to devise a model where party members duly elect their candidates for each constituency after following a due process.

Party system is an integral part of parliamentary democracy. It plays a crucial role in deciding not just the candidates but also the ‘party line’ on critical issues. This ‘party line’  is then enforced in the legislatures using the anti-defection bill, if required. Normally the political satrap’s whim becomes the will of the people. Hence political parties can not be left soley to the discretion of the  their leaders alone. They needs to be more tightly regulated by an outside agency. While the election commission mandates timely election of party functionaries, in most cases it is a mere formality. Active electioneering is discouraged and a consensus is concocted to keep the status quo going.

Inner party democracy will add more depth and meaning to our democracy. It will also have a direct impact on the kind of people joining politcs and a bearing on the choice available to the elecotorate.