Modi Sarkar Needs To Show Results

Voters all around the world have a notoriously short attention span. How else can you explain UPA-II? The current government was elected with great hopes by the voters after promises of all kinds were made by the Modi campaign. Now that the campaigning is over and it is down to business, the fickle minded voters are going to demand results. With Congress leaving India in the fields (can’t really say toilet now can I?) there cannot be any honeymoon period for Modi.

By all indications, the man is a workaholic and a taskmaster to boot. Anyone who can make desi babus to work is aces in my book. Every move that he has made, every decision that he has taken has received kudos from non politicians. The politicians especially the Congress variety who are still in denial about the drubbing, continue to show entitlement. Despite of clear cut rules, they are demanding the opposition leadership. Unable to shed off the 800 pound monkey AKA Gandhi Family of their backs, the Congress are offering invalid criticism sounding more petulant than responsible. Their criticism of the Rail budget is pathetic (A man who is in no position to talk of vision and future, Rahul says the budget lacks vision. WOW!). Meanwhile similar sharpening of knives are being seen elsewhere as well. If you understand politics then you know that all this is expected.

Important state elections are on the horizon. Modi govt. knows that and are asking for 12 to 18 months for results. It is not too long to ask to clean up a decade of criminal neglect, incompetence and corruption. Indian voter should be patience and give this govt. a real chance to solve these problems. However, we all know that the voter is a fickle person. Prices are still high, electricity still scarce, temperature still high and a poor monsoon is expected. Except the hardcore BJP supporters, Indians will be asking for results – sooner than later. Unfortunately for the BJP all the aforementioned problems are going to take a while to get resolved. Economy cannot be fixed overnight. Infrastructure could take better part of the next five years. To win the upcoming state elections and maintain the voter confidence, Modi sarkar really needs to show tangible results and measurable success before long. Here are some suggestions.

1. They need to go after hoarders and middle men in the consumable goods market. Distribution of food in storages need to be taken up with extreme urgency. If there is going to be a drought (no matter how partial), the poor are going to get affected. Distribution and price control of basic food needs to be taken at a war footing.

2. Power plants are not running at their optimum because of shortage on coal supply. Sounds like an eminently solvable problem. This also needs to be addressed in a hurry.

3. The Rail budget is a very good move. However people need to see that increased fare is resulting in better services. At the very least safety and cleanliness in our trains need to be addressed quickly.

4. Safety. Even a slight improvement is going to get noticed. The way the stranded Indians have been brought back from Iraq has not gone unnoticed even in the BJP unfriendly state of Kerala. The BJP really need to establish courts to expedite the rape cases. These cases really need to be adjudicated and the rapists need to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. Maneka Gandhi was never the best person for the job but now that she has it, she really needs to step up and ensure the welfare of our women. Terror cases also need to be addressed. The lingering ones need to be solved and the guilty punished. Going after criminal infrastructure of people like Dawood Ibrahim will also get noticed. Rajnath Singh needs to justify his appointment to the second most important post in the government.

5. Black money in and out of India. I never understood why we could not go after black money in India. Arvind and Tinu Joshi who is the IAS couple from MP, accused and proven to have stolen more than 300 crores are still in the employ of the Indian government. Why is it taking so long to expel them from the services and send them to jail. Imagine the message sent to the babus and the voters. As far as the money abroad, we now have the attention of the western world. They know India is open for business. We really need to use that clout and force the foreign banks to return the Indian black money. Even If it the return gets initiated, Modi sarkar can claim a huge victory which will be appreciated by the Indian voters.

The list is by no means complete. I am sure that there are many other ways that Modi sarkar can show tangible and immediate progress to the voters. But the voters need to see their government in action. They need to see the results. They need to see someone unlike the leaders before, is in charge. The Gujarati Lion needs to transmogrify into the Indian Tiger. Modi needs to earn his stripes. He needs to do it in a hurry. He needs the voters to see that.