EDITORIAL: ALWAYS CHANGE IS BETTER IN DEMOCRACY

By M H Ahssan / Hyderabad

Time for a stable, effective government that can put Karnataka back on centre stage. The verdict is clear. The people of Karnataka have had enough of a regime accused of indulging in corruption and partisan misgovernance. By electing the Congress with a clear majority, the electorate has expressed its desire for a viable administration. After nine years of opportunistic coalitions and lack of good governance, it wants a dispensation that works not for cronies and ideological affiliates, but for the people at large. 

The Congress has huge challenges. The first will be to put in place a team that inspires confidence. The party has too many aspirants for the ministry with too little to boast of. But with numbers on its side, this is its chance to set aside people with questionable credentials and to rise above considerations of caste and religion. The Congress can start with a thoughtful selection of ministers, and move on to responsive and relatively clean governance. This would help it to counter the Modi factor in 2014. 
    
The BJP’s ignominy is of its own making. The corruption, saffronisation and plunder of iron ore that characterised its five years in office have cost it heavily. The worst news for it is that Lingayat voters, who were overwhelmingly with it in 2008, have switched support to the Congress. Even its strongholds in the coastal belt have deserted it. Bringing B S Yeddyurappa back into the fold now may be a tempting thought. But given his besmirched image, such a move will backfire for a party crying hoarse over scams under UPA rule. The biggest surprise is the JD(S). 

Though largely confined to the southern districts, it has snatched several seats from the BJP and Congress. This party worked hard and was first off the mark in selecting candidates. But, given its social base, it will be a long time before it can win power on its own. Surveys were right in projecting Yeddyurappa’s KJP merely as a spoiler for the BJP. Left rudderless after their party’s dismal showing, its leaders might make a beeline for other parties. 
    
This is a huge opportunity for the Congress to bring Karnataka back to centre stage. Nine years of political meandering have seen the state falling back in social and civic infrastructure. Restoring it will be a task for the new government, which will also need to work on restoring the faith IT companies and other investors once had in the state.