Heading for a much needed change

While Manmohan Singh has kept the Prime :tvlinister's seat warm, he is not seen as particularly charismatic.

Even m tbeir most ardent suppo rte r s, it must be clear that the Congress par ty in India is headed for defeat in tbe forthcoming general elections. The electio ns ru:e about four months away, and while a week can be a long time in politics as th ings can change overnight, the question which looms for the Congress party is not if they can win, but how man y sears can they acmaU)• hold on to The experts feel tha t anything over a 100 in the 545+ Lok Sabha will be a good resulr.

The Congress faces the burden of incumbency. After 1 0 years in power, they are looking ol d and jaded. They are failing to capture the attention of the constituenrs , whereas the Bbru:atiya Janara Party has a strong and a highly controve rsial l eader in Narendra Modi, who is successfully positioning bimself as a viable alternative.

What also hurts the Congress party is the lack of puhLic information about who acmaUy leads the party.

Rahul Gandhi is muted as the heir apparent to the leadership, but bis recent performance on a popular TV show was universaUy lampooned, and he came across as a man who did no t have a clue on important l ocal issues. His inability to articulate under questioning was painful to watch. Whether the Congress party considers someone outside the Gandhi d ynasty i s h ig h ly improbable, but perhaps the re will be some deep soul-sea rching i f the elections create the catas trophic effect which pundits are predicting for d1e Congress.

Meanwhile, after forming government in Delhi, the fledgling Aam Aadmi Party has its share of support, though largel y from the northern s tates lts early days of governance in Delhi have been marked by a s how of incompetence, but just the facr that the party is willing to stand against tbe endemic cocruptiou in India is enough to stimulate the hearrs and minds of voting Indians.

Of the 800 mirnon people in lndia who will be voti ng in the next elections,

150 mirnon will be first- time voters. This generation that has grown up in the 2000s, having come across constant b lockages co their dreams and aspirations from dishonest practices, will use their voting power co challenge the accepted norm of corruption.

Surprisingly, it is only lately that d1e Supreme Court of India has stood up against politician s with criminal records who may want ro contes t in the next elections.

Currently, there are 162 Lok Sabha members who have criminal charges filed against them, and of these 72 are serio us charges such as rape, robbery and murder. The Aam Aadrni Party on its platform of anti -corruption, has a very fertile field on which to plam its fumre plan s

The beauty of India's democracy is that after the elections, the bacon could change sol ely on d1e wishes of the constituents. 800 million peopl e will express their wishes, and the politicians will follow their orders. How wonderful is that!

Pawao Luthra i s the 2012 Parliament of NS\V Multicultural Journalist of the Year.