DC Edit | Leaders Must Work To Restore Civility In Politics
There is very little reason for the Congress to dig out remarks earlier made by BJP leaders about leaders of the opposition parties, including Rahul Gandhi. References made in breach of decency do not cancel out; they remain a blot on those who make them and on their parties. An unconditional apology would be a better course for the party and its leader to take
India is a nation of 140 crore people and the problems they face 80 years after the country attained independence will call for the focused and unadulterated attention of all the political parties. It is sad that the most important agenda often gets derailed by issues invented by parties or by an innocuous remark by a politician.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is one of the senior-most leaders of the country and commands respect not only among his party workers but also across the political spectrum. A man who has risen through the ranks fighting odds, he adds grace to the political class in the country. An intemperate retort he made to respond to a comment referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi made by a member of his audience has no justification whatsoever. There is very little reason for the Congress to dig out remarks earlier made by BJP leaders about leaders of the opposition parties, including Rahul Gandhi. References made in breach of decency do not cancel out; they remain a blot on those who make them and on their parties. An unconditional apology would be a better course for the party and its leader to take.
The BJP, expectedly, is making a big hue and cry about the whole episode. The party cannot be blamed in making its protest heard loudly as the Congress leader’s comments referred to the party’s tallest leader now.
All senior leaders of the party, including defence minister Rajnath Singh, have jumped on to the protest bandwagon and the state units have been directed to take the issue to the people.
Mr Singh would call Mr Kharge’s remark an insult to India as it breached the decorum expected of politicians.
The NDA government has been on the back foot on several issues of governance of late. The support it has extended to chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on the issue of special intensive revision of electoral rolls has not helped boost the image of the party politically. It has not been able to defend itself successfully against the push the Gen Z has been exerting on it for what it calls the failures of the government in addressing issues youth face. The pieces of news from the borders by no means reinforce the image the Modi government has been building assiduously for itself all these years. Politically, the NDA is entering a crucial phase, with Assembly elections approaching in states such as Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP has much at stake. The BJP needs no lessons in using the episode to divert attention from serious issues facing the country, and it is bound to make the most of Mr Kharge’s remarks.
India, or for that matter any democracy, has no means other than politics and politicians to solve its problems.
The people expect politicians to work in a congenial atmosphere where parties will retain their political differences and still explore areas where they can work jointly for the greater common good. This will be made possible only if all those in the business of politics understand this and act accordingly. The people will be the losers for all the shortcomings in this mechanism.
