Seizing an opportunity?

In Jean-Paul Sartre's vision man is born into a kind of void, a mud. He has the liberty to remain in this mud and continue to lead a supine existence. Or, he could acquire a stand-out form deriving a new energy and become relevant to the world. It is a matter of choice.

Why does YSRCP president Jaganmohan Reddy go to Jantar Mantar to sit in a dharna, only to go back and delete the same from his memory? No one denies the credit to him for staging these shows some 1,800 km away from his 'karma bhoomi'. But the intent is somewhat baffling. Jantar Mantar is a national protest square where hundreds of demonstrations are held, some for a brief while and some for days and years too. The purpose always is to target the Centre.

Special Status for Andhra Pradesh is a justifiable demand of the people of Andhra Pradesh and all political parties are on the same page in this matter. This demand is becoming strident by the day, particularly, in the backdrop of the death of a Congress activist at Tirupati on Sunday – it has the potential to grow bigger. However, the muted response of the YSRCP, the principal Opposition, to this issue all these days in AP has given rise to a few questions.

Being an ally and sharing power with the BJP at the Centre as well in the State, the TDP's dilemma is understandable if it is not being too vocal and is taking time to formulate its response. These limitations do not apply to YSRCP and it could have gone ahead with its agitation any time.

If he is facing criticism over the same, then Jagan should realise that it is rightly so. Even the latest show at Delhi is a one-man show, filmier with the sidekicks playing their roles. A more matured approach would have seen leaders from other States like Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha invited for the same to make it a national issue. Instead of nationalising, he almost trivialised the same by addressing Chandrababu Naidu more and the Centre less.

The initiative sounded inadequate as it was leader-centric, not people-oriented. Jagan held a 'Jala Deeksha' too here. He held a 'Rythu Deeksha" in AP. Every beginning must have an end. But in his case, sadly, it is always half-an-act. That Jagan used the platform to criticise his arch rival is his business. But, why come to the capital to do what he could in his own backyard? The inadequacy of strategy is glaring in Jagan's brand of cult-politics.

Targeting Naidu and ignoring the BJP thus gives rise to the suspicion that there is more to it than meets the eye. Is he playing it safe keeping the possibilities in politics? Or is it to acquire that legitimacy in AP where his going soft on the TRS has given room for criticism? If good governance is a prerequisite in democracy, a good Opposition is equally so. Unfortunately, both seem to elude the people.