Apr 19, 2024
Apr 19, 2024
Lately, some politicos in India have been considering the establishment of a new political party. Many question the validity of this, since there are currently so many political parties in existence.
Those in favor of a new party argue that the Indian National Congress (INC), India’s oldest political party (1885), is on crutches. It did not win an absolute majority (272+) in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament, in 2004 and 2009 and is unlikely to do so in the 2014 election. Furthermore, the party, in an alliance with its own offshoots and a few other political parties, has been ineffectually ruling the nation since 2004. The opposition is also in disarray.
New party supporters further point out that both Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Mr. Manmohan Singh of INC have been involved in politics for years. She is the longest serving President of INC, the role she assumed in 1998. He has been in government since the 1970s and has been leading a coalition government as Prime Minister since 2004. Like them, other parties’ leaders have also been in the public arena for decades.
All political parties in India are indistinguishably similar. They stand on platforms which espouse the expansion and strengthening of central government. They are opposed to dismantling the public sector and they appease minorities and labor unions. The parties push aside human miseries, ignore ways to protect natural resources and develop alternatives to depleting existing ones. They avoid having to take courageous actions, evade responsibilities, and ultimately, blame the others for their failures.
New Party
Hence a new party could be launched based on new and improved tenets. This party could be named the National Party of India (NPI) and it would follow the following doctrines:
A government by the people of a party of well-founded principles and highly principled members could lead the nation to a better future.
Image (c) Gettyimages.com
13-Sep-2012
More by : Vasant G. Gandhi
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Mr. Bohre, Yes, if central govt. empowers a state, state in turn empowers a district, and district in turn empowers panchayat, we would solve many problems quickly. The central govt. has a few but very important tasks to perform. For example, people of Arunachal Pradesh cannot defend themselves against foreign aggression, so we need Delhi to protect our borders. Similarly, inland needs to be protected from terrorists, so we need Delhi to do that. We need Delhi to adopt prudent monetary and fiscal policies, so we would have a stable rupee. Delhi should have our justice system resolve legal matters rapidly. Finally, we need a foreign policy that serves India’s interest well. Our central govt. is doing too many things, such as running banks, insurance companies, factories, railways, unemployment benefit schemes, subsidy programs, and on and on. So, if we can have a national party in power that collects limited amount of taxes and concentrates on the tasks listed above, we would see a change for better. A state has no business in formulating and running a foreign policy. For example, there are so many people of Punjab origin living in Canada, the UK, and the USA, but if they are not treated well in foreign countries, there is very little the government of the state of Punjab can do. It should not meddle into foreign affairs. I concur with your last lines. |
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Mr. Gnadhi, Point made of a great importance to the current electoral system in India. Why a national political party should take great interest in municipal elections or even panchayat elections ? Aren't the challenges and issue in governance altogether different in local elections, assembly elections and national elections ? While car parking space, octrai check posts, parks and hospitals are supposedly issues in local elections, the national issues that a national party needs to deal with are totally different, such as foreign policy of India, strategic planning, national budget etc. Despite these issues being vastly different, we see national level politicians taking keen interests in local body elections, in fact it becomes national news too now a days ! Then, there comes a further complex situation, where local and state level issues take control of national matters. Such as issues addressing relationship with Sri Lanka. Since there is a sympathetic vote bank favoring Tamil Sri Lankans and Sri Lankan govt is perceived as not being good to them in past, should state level vote bank politics be allowed to shadow over how Indian national govt should deal with Sri Lanka in international affairs ? Should we allow Central govt to work against national interest just to please a small population of India, especially when China pursuing to build good relationship with Sri Lanka to build a military base over there ? Will that small population for which the vote bank politics is being played, not be in danger if China succeeds in creating base at Sri Lanka ? ---------------------- So, indeed, there is a great merit in asking why National political parties should only focus on national politics (and so on with regional and local bodies). The political environment in India will definitely improve if this distinction can be done. |
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Fluttering of a flag is imagination that the flat is waving in air, which it actually does when air blows through a hoisted flag. Whereas, the map shown in the article is imagination that part of J&K legally belongs to Pakistan and Indians have no claim over it. There is a vast difference between the two thought processes, one politically motivated while the other is not. |
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Mr. Bohre.... (1) I am very proud of being an Indian. (2) I stated in my earlier comment that the image is not at all a reflection of the political map of India but conveys clearly the theme of the article. (3) On many articles the flag of India is shown fluttering, half or partial. Does that make the flag in any manner untrue. My point (3) should make my stance as editor/publisher of the article clear. Please do start a constructive debate on the article. |
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Dear Mr. Raj, Otherwise I was about to praise the article a lot and extend the discussion further by putting more aguments to support the great view presented in the article... But, the map of India stuck first - it is not acceptable, at least in India, of which I am a citizen. If map can not be fixed (because it was created outside India and we just borrowed the image), it can be remove altogether. The article will still make a lot of sense. I do see this 'Anerican/Chinese/Pakistani' version of the Indian map often and I am surprised at the acceptability Indians show towards it (including you, padon me if you are not Indian citizen). |
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The image is not a reflection of the political map of India. It is suggestive of the theme of the article. Why India needs a new political party? And how India should have prominence on the globe politically and otherwise? This is what the image is meant to convey. |
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Mr. Bohre, thank you for your observation. I will let the editor know. |
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Please fix India's map in the image within this article - please put map provided by Govt of India. |