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Six former Janata Parivar political parties have decided to merge to form a new political party. But there is enough from the past to suggest that this effort might not take off. Here are five reasons the new outfit might go nowhere.
1. The M factor: Narendra Modi, an OBC himself, surpassed the caste appeal of leaders such as Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. He effectively mixed his message of appealing to the aspiration of the backward castes and Dalits by promising development while projecting himself as one of their own, as a chaiwallah (tea seller). Modi changed the politics of caste empowerment leaving the so-called ‘Janata’ leaders shorn of their traditional support base. They are now faced with reinventing their politics.
2. Monumental Egos: The disunity of the Janata Parivar has primarily been thanks to the monumental egos of its leadership. Janata leaders, brilliant individuals and fiery speakers, have also been incapable of tolerating each other for too long. The rivalry between Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav is just one such. It was famously said how each Janata Parivar leader is a political party in his own right.
3. Dynastic politics and tired leadership: Anti-dynasty politics was a chief tenet of the ‘Janata’ brand of politics. The ‘Janata’ – comprising socialists, former Congressmen and Charan Singh’s Lok Dal – had stridently opposed Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi’s dynastic politics. The present crop of leaders are not only past their prime but have encouraged dynasty politics. Their successors are their children and grandchildren. Their parties look more like family-run businesses. All of SP’s five Lok Sabha MPs are from the same family. This dynastic politics is unlikely to find wider appeal among the young electorate which is in thrall of Modi's merit as a self-made man.
4. Restricted appeal: Modi appealed to a wide section of people across caste lines. However, most of the Janata leaders are currently viewed as representing particular caste formations. Moreover, their individual appeal does not transcend their particular state. A Mulayam Singh Yadav is unlikely to help Chautala get more votes in Haryana or a Deve Gowda help SP increase its popularity in UP and vice versa.
5. Less than clean record: His role during the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat notwithstanding, Modi has no corruption cases against him. However, barring former Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Janata Dal (United) president Sharad Yadav, most other leaders of the proposed new party have found themselves facing serious corruption cases in the recent past. Indian National Lok Dal’s Om Prakash Chautala is in jail for his role in corruption in appointment to government jobs, while Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Lalu Prasad has served a prison term over the fodder scam.
