With the elections just a few months away, the sensational ‘Red Diary’ episode seems to have put the Ashok Gehlot-headed Congress government in Rajasthan on the mat. Rajendra Gudha, whom Gehlot fired as a minister on Saturday, waved a red-coloured diary in the House claiming that it contained information on questionable financial transactions, which resulted in the adjournment of the Rajasthan legislature assembly following unruly scenes. The alleged secrets in that ‘Red Diary’ is now being brought into the public domain, by not the Congress’ political adversaries, but its own MLA and the chief minister’s close confidante. Gudha was sacked for expressing concern over the growing sexual assault on women in his state while the party was busy focussing on the mayhem in Manipur. And a visibly rattled Gehlot let off his partymen on Gudha when he brought the controversial diary to the assembly. Interestingly, the MLA, who hid the same diary from the Enforcement Directorate, has managed to retain it despite the Gehlot goons tried to tear it. How far the Diary got damaged may be difficult to ascertain, but the MLA was seen waiving it before the TV cameras to claim that the diary contains information on a staggering Rs 500 crore fraud allegedly committed by the chief minister. Unless the Central agency swings into action and seize the diary, it would be difficult to prove the allegations. As usual, neither the Opposition nor the Lutyen’s media is willing to discuss and debate, as they are more interested in asking questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, over his stoic silence, while Manipur was burning.
They even questioned the need for the Prime Minister to travel to France or other countries, to receive accolades while violence continued unabated in Manipur. It’s more than three months since the ethnic violence broke out and a video of two women being dragged out by a mob, gang-raped and paraded naked went viral on social media. Undoubtedly, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-headed Manipur government needs to be asked questions for its inaction to contain the violence and also the Centre’s failure to chasten it. But, the fact remains that the BJP government at the Centre proved ineffective, unlike the age-old Congress, which ruled the country for more than six decades, which used or misused Articles 356 or 365 at will to sack democratically elected governments, to maintain the ‘civilized rule’. And, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in that aspect, appears to be a misfit or failure, for his restraint in acting against erring governments. This often led to his supporters thinking aloud if he was aspiring to set some record or aiming for a Nobel prize! His inaction is more evident when comes to West Bengal, where Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TMC) made the majority Hindus’ lives miserable and even forced them to flee, post-assembly poll violence.
Her quest is to remain in power by hook or by crook, overseeing the worst violence in the state since its formation, breaking even the record of erstwhile Communist Party of India-Marxist-led governments. While the I N.D.I.A., the newly-formed conglomeration of 26 parties, is united in stalling the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament demanding Modi’s statement on Manipur violence, instead of Home Minister Amit Shah’s, who was supposed to as per parliamentary traditions. Ironically, the Congress is ignorant of its past decisions, which in fact, set a precedent for the BJP. For example, the then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh refused to make a statement when the infamous Nirbhaya mass rape case occurred in the national capital. It was his Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, who made a statement despite the Opposition’s demand for the PM’s intervention. Against that backdrop, there are no takers for the Opposition’s pointless accusations that it was the BJP governments in Manipur or at the Centre solely responsible for the ethnic violence. This website has already unravelled the truth that led to the ethnic frenzy. The frequent clashes between the Kukis and Meiteis, the two predominant communities in the state, are not new. Added to that is envious neighbour China’s dubious intentions to destabilize India, as it is growing economically thick and fast, and is also considered as one of the reasons for the present crisis. As if this was not enough, the large-scale seizures of banned drugs (opium) by the present dispensation is said to be another major factor that kept the state boiling.
Amidst this, a survey by the anti-Modi media set to cause more embarrassment to the I.N.D.I.A. The survey makes it clear that Modi continues to sway the country’s electorate with 57 per cent, while none of the Opposition leaders in the new outfit come close to him. Interestingly, Priyanka Gandhi emerges with an 18 per cent vote as PM candidate. It s nothing short of an humiliation for those who tried to cobble up this unholy alliance, like Nitish Kumar of the Janata Dal (United) or Sharad Pawar of the Nationalist Congress Party or Mamata’s TMC, besides more ambitious Aam Aadmi Party’s Arwind Kejriwal, who remains in poor single digit popularity bracket for PM’s gaddi. Against that backdrop, contents of the ‘Red Diary’ may prove disastrous to the Congress’ prospects not only in the upcoming Rajasthan elections but also in the party-ruled state like Chattisgarh. It may also have an adverse effect even in Telangana, where many thought the Congress got an advantage after the massive win in neighbouring Karnataka elections. If one has to go by the C-Voter survey being commissioned by the ABP (Anand Bazar Patrika), the new alliance, all put together, is unlikely to reach the three-figure mark in the next year’s Lok Sabha elections.
