With General Elections due in May 2014 and widespread political speculation that the Congress Party might call them before the end of 2013, it would be timely to gaze on the political debris that has heaped over in nine years of Congress rule. India’s national security, foreign policy, internal security management and deterrent counter-terrorism strategies lie tattered. Grandiose populist social welfare schemes costing lakhs of crores of rupees have drained the national exchequer. The picture is dismal and the Indian public must ask questions if it was politically worth it to vote the Congress Party into power in 2004 and 2009.
National security was given a go-by in the unending scramble for political survival of the Congress Government throughout the two tenures. Notable in this direction are the two strategic realities in terms of India’s war-preparedness to meet any military misadventures by India’s two major threats from Pakistan and China. India’s Armed Forces have glaring voids in their holdings of major weapons systems. The Indian Air Force which provides the cutting edge of India’s defensive and offensive capabilities is short of nearly 140 Combat Fighter Planes.
Foreign policy mismanagement debris lies pitiably strewn all over the Indian Sub-Continent. In the Indian Sub-Continent where India as the dominant power in terms of power attributes should have prevailed, India stands reduced to a powerless and dwarfed entity. India’s external image stands severely dented by India’s timid policy postures against Pakistan and China by nine years of ‘appeasement policies’.
Internal security has deteriorated so steeply during 2004-2009 that in terms of perceptions, India’s internal security threats outweigh India’s external threats. Here the toll has been taken by a confused focus on vote-bank politics coupled with social deprivation in tribal areas ignored totally as they do not provide significant captive vote-banks for the ruling party.
Counter-terrorism policies in terms of imposing effective deterrence against elements indulging in terrorism against the Indian Republic and assaulting its sovereignty were subordinated to compulsions of captive vote-banks of the ruling party. Internal security issues stood politicized as ruling party leaders implicitly or directly accused security agencies of fake encounters.
Economic management which should have been the spectacular ‘Star-Show’ of the Congress Party with a Congress Party President nominated economist Prime Minister is in utter shambles. Economic mismanagement has resulted in economic growth rates dipping sharply, inflation at an all-time high and prices of essential commodities necessary for the survival of the ‘Aam Admi’ making his survival back-breaking. Foreign direct investment in India is no longer an attractive proposition.
The topping on this political debris of Congress rule from2004-2013 is the shameless and brazen corruption of India’s political leaders and a civil bureaucracy complicit with them in the looting of the Indian Republic in billions of rupees.
India’s political debris from 2004-2013 of Congress rule should move the impassivity of the Indian voter cutting across social and economic distinction and question their earlier wisdom in twice voting the Congress Party to power in 2004 and 2009.
