IN BRIEF

Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam

The NDA has crossed the 100-day mark in office and it is rightly in for evaluation. So, let us see what we (or the government) has got to show for it. In short, nothing much.

All these 100 days slogans and big promises have been dinned into our ears, day in and day out. We had been told at the beginning of the regime that it would bring back the huge amounts of black money stashed away in foreign banks within a 100 days.

Not a single dollar or rupee has been brought back from secret bank accounts in foreign countries. Nor there is any trace of it. The government has not announced a second deadline for it.

We had been promised that inflation would vanish with the waving of a magic wand, but the high price of all essentials remains as back-breaking as it was 101 days ago.

There are more ominous rumblings in the form of NDA’s attempts at subversion of noble institutions like the judiciary and educational institutions like UGC, NCERT and universities. The initiative to change the system of appointment of judges in higher judiciary can be highly destructive, if not checkmated in time. The speed of such subversion is very fast. In one fell blow the Planning Commission has been done away with.

The quality of justice has suffered. The institutional subversion begins right at the top with this parliamentary democratic system working virtually as a presidential one. For all practical purposes, it is not the cabinet or even Parliament that is part of the ruling authority, but it is Mr. Modi alone, all the way.

The changes have been so quick that observers are left breathless with amazement. The only unchanging element in this fast-changing scenario is communal riots and openly communal, anti-Muslim mobilisation in Uttar Pradesh in time for the coming by-elections to 11 assembly seats and one parliamentary seat on September 13.

We have been constantly told that the NDA is focused on good governance as it represents people’s aspirations for a better life. However, this is not reflected in the blatantly anti-Muslim speeches of the rabble-rousing mahant, Adityanath of Gorakhpur, who has been made BJP’s poll campaign chief in UP. The person to assist him is Sangeet Som, who stands accused in Muzaffarnagar riots. This shows where BJP stands.

All this goes on to show that in the next 1,000 days the Union government will move closer to the Hindutva agenda than in the first 100 days. Now, just imagine what is in store in the next 1,000 days.