Modi should avoid pitfalls and focus on positives

So, even as the economy is certified by the Reserve Bank governor to be on the mend, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised to take the country into a digital age with more e-governance, it is the daily stumbles of ministers and mandarins that are attracting greater attention.

While these misnomers may be difficult to prevent, given the casual manner in which rules tend to be flouted by the rich and powerful, a prompt and decisive intervention from the highest levels will be an effective counter to the impression that the government is being overwhelmed by various problems.

The prime minister's decision to step into the rumpus caused by the deplaning of passengers in Leh, Ladakh, to accommodate VIPs is a sign that the norms are being tightened. But there has to be more such steps at a time when the various controversies range from Lalit Modi to the mysterious deaths of the accused and witnesses associated with Vyapam scam to the holding up of an international flight.

Collectively, the drip-drip of allegations can erode the government's image. It will not be until the economy reaches a high plateau of an 8-9 percent growth rate, or the prime minister's fabled penchant for enforcing discipline begins to visibly bear fruit on more than one occasion, that the government will be able to breathe easily.

The only success which the government has been able to achieve so far is to prevent a major communal flare-up. Related to this achievement is the government's success in taming the saffron hotheads. What is curious, however, is why the government has been unwilling to take pre-emptive action against the fundamentalists so that they will not be able to queer the pitch to start with.

Had that been done, much of its image problems could have been avoided. The anticipatory steps might have been expected since the umbilical connections between those in the government and the extremists outside would have warned the former what to expect.

Yet, we have the instances of madrasas being downgraded in Maharashtra or the National Investigative Agency's lawyers being asked to go slow on Hindu militants, which cannot but reinforce the perception of the government being guided by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

Arguably, by the time the economy picks up and the daily gaffes are curbed, the next general election will not be far away. In the meantime, the state elections in Bihar, Assam, West Bengal and elsewhere, apart from the various by-elections, may not always yield results in the BJP's favour, thereby denting its confidence.

Since the run-up to a general election is not the time to take what may be unpopular decisions, whatever the government has to do on the economic front will have to be done now. If any "bitter medicine" is to be administered, as the prime minister said right at the beginning of his tenure, this is the time for it to be given.

What the fate of the Congress in the last general election has shown is that the government must always be proactive about its plus points. Otherwise, an accumulation of negative impressions can be fatal. As is known, the poverty reduction under the Manmohan Singh government was the fastest in the country's history. This was stated by none other than the present government's chief economic adviser, Arvind Subramanian.

By Amulya Ganguli