2019 polls: Noida versus Lodhi road

Socially-aware middle-class from ordinary backgrounds, keen to shed the old notions of secularism and socialism, are strong backers of Narendra Modi's vision for India

The battle for 2019 is in full swing but there is an even bigger war being fought for over a decade now which will have a more decisive say on the future of India. Since Independence, the destiny of India has been dominated by a small group of urban upper-caste Nehruvian elites ruling in alliance with local feudal elites who were responsible for ensuring election victories. The social structure of power was simple: The urban elites would dominate the academia, bureaucracy, institutions and policymaking, and local feudal elites would be left alone except to undertake some token pro-people actions like tenancy reforms which would be passed off as land reforms. The poor and destitute could hardly exercise their votes freely. They voted as they were told to by the feudals of the dominant castes or were denied the vote. Booth capturing and preventing people from reaching the polling venues were common events.

The major reason why the Nehruvians ruled unchallenged for years and a specific Idea of India reigned supreme was this politics of unfreedom at the grassroots notwithstanding all talk of social justice and democracy in the seminar halls and party manifestos. This was challenged vigorously from the 1980s by the Dalit and OBCs’ (other backward classes) assertion which changed the dynamics of the electoral battle and reduced the space available to the traditional elites in the direct exercise of the power. But even they couldn’t challenge the hegemony of the Nehruvian consensus as the terms of reference remained the same old Idea of India which is a secular-socialist, Gandhian dystopia. Even the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) remained stuck within this framework.

But something else was churning on the ground. The economic reforms created a new class of people who were not part of the old elite. They were not landed elites in the countryside or part of the bureaucratic structures or derived their power and wealth from proximity to the corridors of power in Lutyens’ Delhi. They were simple middle and neo-middle class folk from small towns armed with modern education for whom the avenues of socioeconomic mobility were suddenly opened up by the growing private sector. Over the past two decades, millions of them moved from mofussil towns and regional capitals to the burgeoning metropolises of Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. They could hope for a better lifestyle and opportunities without being part of the old system.

These new urban denizens were not part of the globetrotting old urban elites. They did not have foreign degrees or relatives settled in the West. They were rooted in their customs and traditions and their drawing room talks centred not on US politics but local concerns back in their home districts. They were to be found in the rapidly growing new urban landscapes of Noida and Gurugram. Their dream, and the dream they inspired back home, was to buy a flat in the satellite towns of metropolises — not to move to London or the US. And they did not agree with the Nehruvian Idea of India imposed from the top through newsrooms and academic propaganda. They looked at the old elites with disdain and held them responsible for the bad policies which kept India a poor and backward country. For them, the nation and nationalism were not abstract concepts nor their religion or culture was an academic object to be deconstructed using psychoanalysis and twisted beyond recognition. They had had enough of being talked down to by the high priests of the Nehruvian consensus on the virtues of secularism and socialism.

Rebellion was in the air but the old elites, nested comfortably in Lodhi Road, had no idea about its existence. And then came social media. Facebook, Whatsapp and Twitter completely changed how public discourse was conducted. No longer could journalists, news anchors or even academics, pass on their versions as indisputable facts. They were challenged by your average officegoer or by college students. One by one, all the myth-making of the Nehruvian consensus was shredded by the millions who now had a voice and an audience. It is they who rooted for the new BJP under Narendra Modi in 2014 and swept aside the old mainstream media. It is they who have been marked as the new evil by the old elites as bhakts who must be demonised and purged. It is this war of the narratives that underpins the 2019 elections. It is about who will dominate the avenues of power in the future and whose Idea of India will reign supreme. It is a war between the old urban power centre and the new upcoming challengers. It is a war between Noida and the Lodhi Road.

Abhinav Prakash Singh is an assistant professor at SRCC, Delhi University
May 3rd, 2019
2019 polls: Noida versus Lodhi road

A political philosophy that works!

Let's look at what works

Political parties and governments have experimented over centuries and failed to lift people out of poverty. The capitalist model has worked wonders across the globe and it is also the best model for India. On the other hand, dependency on other countries or unstable macro-economics does not work, nor do farm loan waivers, Nyay of Congress (eg), and taking big risks with the social engineering of the type espoused by liberals and the left. 

-- A prosperous country has a vibrant middle class
-- A prosperous country has a working class that is eager and willing to work
-- A prosperous country has the monied class that deserves the monies and has to work hard to maintain that success

1. It is not possible for the monied class to fund the middle class. If the country tries to do that, it will lose this monied class. If at all govt does this, then privileged or connected people will thrive and others will fall down to middle class.

2. So the aim of governments is to make the middle class capable, hard-working, able to make more than they need to spend and contribute in some way to govt revenues.

3. The government can make the working class more resourceful, by giving them more towards their essential needs and by increasing the efficiency in their daily lives -- so they need less money to look after themselves. Yet they should be incentivized to earn for their keep until old age.

Let's look at what BJP is doing for the poor

1. If basic utilities are a great help in the daily lives of people, then why haven't the poor paid for the connections themselves? It is like asking if computers can make your life easier, then why haven't you made use of them. It is better to ask when a connection is made, will the poor benefit by using them -- Eg. electricity - is it worth having? cylinder gas and toilets - are they worth having? clean, piped water - is it worth having? 

2. If the benefits exceeds the costs for maintaining and using the facility, then by providing it the govt would have improved the lives of the working class, reduced poverty and reduced the burden of looking after the poor.

3. One can ask the same about education and health. To push the poor into the middle class, education is a pre-requisite. There is no avoiding the need for treating illness and all people do their best till they die. But in this process, do they lose valuable days, months and years of useful working life. It is worth the govt investing in health because this gives higher benefits compared to costs.

4. Infrastructure is another good route to reducing deprivation or poverty. A person needs shelter against bad weather and bad climate. For bad weather, he needs good housing which is adapted for annual weather cycles. For climate, it is about having community infrastructure for drought proofing, flood proofing, cyclone proofing, landslide proofing, snow proofing, etc. 

5. Similarly, there is a need for both law & order and security. Law & order is like weather and security is like climate. This can be expanded to banking, insurance and savings, transportation, communications, digital services, etc

6. It is also important for govt to build in incentives for work. Work incentive schemes are useful for creating employment opportunities. A lot of govt work should be about bringing jobs, or rather bringing income-earning opportunities within the reach of poor people in particular regions, districts, towns, and villages.

7. There is a need for work-related social security, which includes a subsidized pension. 

8. Govt shouldn't be doling out income benefits but it can help the poor to buy some necessary day to day items, which can't be afforded on working-class incomes and during retirement.

The need for a strong middle class

The crux of govt efforts is to achieve a vibrant middle class. An expanded middle-class is the overall aim of the govt. It can't hope to do that all by itself, as it must be done by the people who are competent, hard-working and wanting to be self-sufficient. Any govt should encourage the middle-class to prosper, to save for their present and future needs and also have good consumption. Domestic consumption helps other people reach or maintain middle-class status. In the global scenario, the middle-class must be able to export so they can consume foreign goods and services, yet keep the trade balance and achieve the same outcome. If higher valued exports are increased, India's relative per capita standing will improve.

The upper-class that is not corrupt, privileged or benefited by connections

Govt legislation should encourage entrepreneurship so that more middle class can be wealthy. At the same time, higher direct taxation will help to reduce those who have accumulated wealth simply due to privilege. Govt should go after those who have acquired their wealth illegally or have wrongly declared their incomes or wealth. As long as newer entrepreneurs enter the wealthy bracket there will be a steady dilution of the corrosive presence of the "corrupt, privileged or connected people" that form the feudal, monied classes. 

The importance of good infrastructure

Infrastructure costs money to build and maintain. But infrastructure often survives the person and so is accumulated over the years by monies earned by previous generations. This type of infrastructure will help to uplift the area and people living in them. Secondly, community infrastructure, one that is shared by rich and poor should be encouraged through sponsorships and community efforts. Good infrastructure might mean higher wealth, not necessarily higher incomes but are desirable never the less (eg a capable military, sports facilities, good environment). If the govt is investing in good infrastructure, it may not necessarily increase the people's incomes too much but will increase the feel-good factor or wealth. A steady build-up of this is also good.

On the way to a developed India

Fair progressive taxation will take care of most things -- provided the govt takes care of working class, middle class, and monied class as I have suggested. A good govt should work tirelessly to improve labour productivity and labour participation in order to increase per capita incomes. It should combat economic losses from various, avoidable social activities. As income growth gains momentum, it should start to ramp up wealth creation across the country, in terms of quality infrastructure, disaster prevention & mitigation, security, dharma, beautification of the environment, sustainable growth & development, recreation & better quality of life. 
May 6th, 2019