The recent political fiasco in Maharashtra led by Eknath Shinde has reminded us of the limits our politicians can go to capture power. One can aptly say that it is perhaps karma that this crisis has hit Shiv Sena, which had compromised its foundational ideology to form a government with its traditional rivals.
Although built on a shaky platform, the Maha Vikas Aghadhi (MVA) coalition was running a smooth government in Maharashtra, it seemed that the once rival parties had now struck the perfect balance of power and found a common rival in the form of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Shiv Sena which is otherwise accustomed to such rebellions, was caught off guard this time, as the dissent was headed by the very core that had been loyal to the party for decades.
This revolt has largely been unpopular among the people who feel that the elected individuals have broken the trust of the public, many political parties also criticized this act, claiming the influence of power, money, and pressure from the BJP.
This leads us to the question, is our system effectively armed to tackle this unethical practice? While the laws are there to prevent defection, political parties have extensively used the loopholes of such rules and regulations to grasp power.
Additionally, for a very long time, both the national and state political space was immensely dominated by a single party, and it was not uncommon for the central government to infuse instability in opposition-led state governments.
As a result, India’s brief political history is no stranger to such political rebellions, which is infamous for such unethical practices and are marred by instability.
While some argue that these political revolts are necessary to ensure that the political party remains in touch with the views and needs of the public, it can’t be ignored that corruption and power also play a role in such rebellions.
Additionally, such crises lead to immense instability, resulting in an ignorant attitude towards the duty of serving the public.
The ’80s and ’90s are perhaps an appropriate example of this, the political destabilization of governments headed by Vajpayee, Chandra Shekar, Deve Gowda, VP Singh, and IK Gujral which was scripted by the INC (Congress) led to immense instability of the economy.
The rapid change in governments led to difficulties in carrying forward economic and social policies, thus forcing the economy to limit itself to the primary sector.
Taking the current case of Maharashtra, at a time when states in India were moving towards increased foreign investment and engagement to develop its industrial and service sector, the immediate effect of the ongoing crises would be a fall in such investments since a volatile, political environment is never an optimal situation to invest.
It would create a sense of immense distrust within the public, especially amongst the youth who are already struggling due to the rapid increase in unemployment and the economic crises fueled by the pandemic.
Eknath Shinde’s revolt has only strengthened the image of Shiv Sena, which will arise from this conflict as the victim of betrayal. It has further deepened the rivalry between the BJP and Shiv Sena and has led to a possible BJP government in Maharashtra, making the future of both the Congress and NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) very bleak.
One cannot deny that this fiasco will have a direct impact on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, which will perhaps decide the future of many opposition parties that are struggling to remain relevant.