Aditi Phadnis: Ms Dikshit can't fix it

PLAIN POLITICS

She's the best CM Delhi's had, but the Congress is making life impossible for her

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit seemed not to have a care in the world as she tripped along London cobblestones to eat golgappas in Trafalgar Square last month. She was in the UK to inaugurate Dilli Haat so she couldn't go to the US to receive an award the Delhi Government has got for the concept of Bhagidari.

Delhi Chief Secretary S Reghunathan was to have gone abroad as well, to speak on all that the Delhi government had achieved but the Lieutenant Governor pooped that party. Four ministers of the Delhi government were also abroad most of last month. But the chief minister wore a mien that declared to the world: "What, me worry ?"

Frankly, this is the only course that Dikshit can adopt, so deep is she in the gooey stuff. Why a chief minister with a record of proven performance and arguably the best chief minister Delhi has had, should face the kind of harassment Dikshit has been subjected to in the past few months, is beyond comprehension.

It is not the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that is the official opposition in Delhi. It is Dikshit's own party. For years, the Congress couldn't form a government in Delhi because it was so riddled with factionalism. Dikshit worked hard and managed not only to form a government but also run it efficiently. And what has she got for her exertions? A set-down from party bosses.

Dikshit appears reconciled to the fact that she's serving out her notice period. For the past two months, the Delhi Government has been running on auto-pilot. Power tariffs should have been raised in Delhi several months ago by at least 10 per cent following a ruling by the DERC.

The rationale was that after the unbundling of the Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB), government subsidies on power were to go down with a corresponding upgradation of power infrastructure by the distribution companies (discoms). Only one of the discoms has invested any money in infrastructure but both are ready to raise tariffs.

Realising the political cost of this, the government got into a fight with them. The DERC intervened and recommended a 10 per cent hike in power rates. What was needed was the touch of an iron hand in a velvet glove, of the kind that Dikshit specialises in. But in the given environment, she obviously believes intervention is pointless.

Water is another issue crying out for attention. Dikshit had declared her intention to reform the Delhi Jal Board. How urgently reform is needed should be clear from the fact that south and south-west Delhi have officially been designated black areas in terms of the quality of water.

The water infrastructure in Delhi is 80 years old, wastage and theft is rampant and unauthorised colonies neither get quality water nor pay for what they use. "User charges" is a dirty word in Delhi politics, used interchangeably with "privatisation" of water.

A study by PriceWaterhouseCooper commissioned by Dikshit's government has argued that if services are to be improved, an injection of funds is imperative. But where are the funds to come from? A few months ago, the government ordered a three-fold increase in water charges. But that's a long-term measure. Shortages had to be addressed in the interim.

Dikshit botched this up comprehensively. Apparently under so much pressure that she wasn't thinking straight, she said in a press release that no one should worry because UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav had offered Delhi 270 cusecs of water.

Within hours, Yadav said he had done no such thing. He advised Delhiites to drink mineral water. They could afford it: UP farmers needed every drop of water they could get for cultivation.

This was a major embarrassment for Dikshit. Earlier, she had managed to get concessions from UP. But there was no way Yadav was going to let Dikshit walk away scoring brownie points at his cost. The BJP was emboldened to release a chargesheet against her, Yadav and Ajit Singh got a campaign point and the shortage of water remained unaddressed.

What is tragic is that Dikshit's party is gloating. In April, after the famous "public" meeting of Congress workers convened by PCC Chief Rambabu Sharma where TV reporters and Congress workers alike saw a public humiliation of the chief minister, Dikshit has been unable to regain control of the party.

Rambabu Sharma has been reappointed PCC chief and she has been forced to set up a co-ordination committee of PCC leaders and MLAs to guide the government. Nothing can be worse than guided democracy "" especially if you are the chief and the "guides" are other people. So small wonder that neither Dikshit nor her government is working.

She's made her share of mistakes. She probably thought what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander and pressed for the East Delhi Lok Sabha seat for her son, Sandeep, going so far as to strike a strategic alliance with Sajjan Kumar to ensure her son's victory.

It was the young, talented and ruthless Ajay Maken who cried that he'd been thrown to the wolves "" he was made to contest from the impossibly difficult New Delhi seat.

Both eventually won, proving Dikshit right. but Maken felt wronged at being removed from Delhi politics and became a useful weapon for the Central leadership to beat Dikshit with. It helped that he was youthful, clean-cut and articulate, and not a thug, strong in the musculature department. It gave him credibility.

It is painful to see the diminution of a politician with vision "" simply because they're so thin on the ground. Maybe it is time for Dikshit to cut her losses and move away from Delhi politics. She needn't despair. You can take Delhi away from Dikshit but can't take Dikshit out of Delhi.