When former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram was being taken to prison Thursday after a CBI court rejected his bail petition in a money laundering case, a reporter asked him, “Are you not worried (that you are) going to Tihar Jail?” The veteran economist and politician’s instant response was, “I am more worried about our economy!”
It echoed the concerns he had flagged in his speech on the Union Budget in the Rajya Sabha in July. According to Chidambaram, an “opaque” and “insipid” Budget not taking into account the seriousness of the economic crisis was extremely alarming.
Almost every day, there are reports about India’s economy heading towards a dangerous recession, about automobile factories and showrooms shutting down, about falling rupee and tumbling stock market and declining export. And all the Narendra Modi government could do is dip into the central bank’s reserves to borrow ₹1.76 lakh crore because it can’t manage the country’s fiscal deficit any other way.
And yet the dedicated supporters of Narendra Modi and the BJP say there is ‘nothing to worry’, that this slowdown (which many don’t even acknowledge) is ‘cyclical’, that soon the economy will recover. Their response to every news story on the failing economy is to accuse the media of ‘spreading panic’. It is this complacency, this smugness that is more worrisome. The attempt to divert attention through headline management just never ends.
Chidambaram was only highlighting this concern when he was on his way to Tihar Jail. The former Union minister can’t secure a bail because he isn’t Salman Khan, who flies kites with Modi.
But Chidambaram isn’t the only one concerned. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh too expressed his anguish a few days ago when he almost implored the Modi government to listen to sane voices and do something about the economy. In his statement listing out all that ails the country’s economy today, Singh sharply criticised Modi government’s mindless actions like demonetisation and the hastily implemented GST that have deepened the crisis. But he has been reviled so much in the last eight years or so that Modi and his ministers just won’t take his advice seriously – nor will BJP supporters see reason and force the government into action.
In addition to the economic woes, the situation in Assam after the disastrous exercise to update the National Register of Citizens and the unpredictable future of Jammu and Kashmir are just promos of the anarchy that lies ahead. The Modi-Shah regime is only three months old, and the remaining 57 months are not going to be easy for everyone involved.
Also read: The economy is India’s most potent weapon, but it’s losing its power
It’s always the economy, stupid
No analogy will explain India’s current economic and political scenario blow-by-blow. But the United States of 1992 and the presidential election campaign that year hold out some similarities. Democrat candidate Bill Clinton was critical of the economic mismanagement by the incumbent President George H.W. Bush, after all, “It is the economy, stupid!”
Similar to the Modi government today, the Bush administration seeking a second term was on cloud nine. The Berlin Wall had fallen in 1989, the US had achieved a sensational victory in the Gulf War, and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 had ended the Cold War. The opinion polls were spectacularly in favour of the Republicans (who previously had been in power for two more terms under Ronald Reagan). Clinton was an unknown figure from the “nondescript” state of Arkansas. And yet, all those high popularity ratings for Bush didn’t work for him in the elections and Clinton romped home to a massive victory.
The frenzy that we are witnessing over the abrogation of Article 370, and the “liberation” of Kashmir from dynastic politics, is akin to the jingoism that existed in the US then. The unprecedented second term that Narendra Modi won this year, with his aide Amit Shah planning the so-called ‘legendary’ strategies, have generated a similar heightened jingoism across the country.
And just like the Democratic Party in the US then, the Indian National Congress today looks confused and defeatist.
Also read: Nirmala Sitharaman must stop stonewalling questions on slowdown. Denial mode isn’t an option
Lessons from history
It is no one’s argument that the Congress will emerge victorious like the Democrats in the assembly elections that will be held over the next two years. But that does not mean the political strategising and loud victory drums will help the Modi government push all the concerns and debates over the economy under the carpet. It should recall how the Congress was unable to draw much political mileage either from the victory in the 1965 war with Pakistan or from the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971. The economic crisis of 1966 could not be contained by the so-called ‘magic’ of Jawaharlal Nehru’s legacy (he had passed away two years ago in 1964) nor by Lal Bahadur Shastri’s leadership. In the 1967 election, Indira Gandhi lost as many as eight states because it was impossible for the masses to ignore the devalued rupee, the recession, the massive industrial strikes.
Similarly, the Bangladesh victory in 1971 could not control the political anarchy, which had roots in the turbulent economic situation. The huge rise in the crude oil price following the 1967 Arab-Israeli War (or the Six-Day War), the 1972 drought, the famine that even caused food riots in some parts of the country, the rural distress, the growing unemployment, the ethnic and linguistic riots all added to it. This discontent led to Jayaprakash Narayan’s movement, which managed to dent Indira Gandhi’s charisma to an extent. When her popular appeal began to fade, she took the recourse of measures like the Emergency. One of her objectives was to bring the economy on the rails.
The economic crisis that forced the Indian government to pledge 47-tonne gold to the Bank of England in 1990 can be considered as near equivalent that has made the RBI transfer its surplus of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the Modi government now. The economic crisis of 1989-90 led to complex political uncertainty, which led to yet another mid-term election in 1991. (Rajiv Gandhi was killed during the election campaign.)
If it wasn’t for the major economic liberalisation and reform measures undertaken by then- Finance Minister Manmohan Singh, under the government of P.V. Narasimha Rao, the situation could not have been brought under control. Not only the gold that was sent to the UK came back, but a new era began and an aspirational middle-class emerged.
Ironically, the IT revolution that was kickstarted by the policies of Rajiv Gandhi gave rise to a new NRI community that is now all cheers for Modi and has no memory of the man who ushered the revolution.
Also read: Slow economic growth is both immoral and anti-national. Don’t ignore falling GDP rate
Anarchy ahead
Politics cannot be delinked from economics. It is political economy that defines stability and development. And if the economy is mismanaged or driven by populist and patriotic jingoism, then it inevitably will lead to chaos and political disorder. One does not need a JP to channelise brewing discontent among the citizens. It will gain its own momentum.
The author is a former editor and Congress member of Rajya Sabha. Views are personal.
The day kumar ketkar accepted the offer of congress to make him rajya sabha member he lost all the credibility which he had accumulated over decades. I am wondering a political analyst writing about indian economy all for a rajya sabha seat.
I am still laughing reading this article…….
I know that “The Print” has a tilt towards the grand old Congress Party. But Shekhar Gupta still manages to do a good unbiased journalism when he is not bashing Modi & his comrades. Criticism of the current state of the economy is good; it is necessary and very much required. All is not well. No doubt about that.
However, I am duly surprised that a Congress Party’s Rajya Sabha MP is finally taking the name of P V Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh in good sense and giving them some due credit. Mr. Ketkar is fighting dangerous tides if he is criticizing Modi Govt. and going against Sonia Gandhi (her disrespect to Rao and non-committal stance on Singh is well documented) at the same time. The bugger must either be grossly incompetent or has a death wish.
What a hollowed, biased, immoral write up. This is just a party propaganda and a shame for journalism. It completely incoherent tryimg to pass off entirely unrelated things as examples and showls the moral bankruptcy and utter incompetency of this person who calls himself a wtoter. It is a shame that these kinds of cheap write ups are given print space
Dear frustrated soul, everyone knows why do these people go to politics just to make money there is no intension of development in their mind, who ever the author is go get a life, dont lick their boots,boot licking is the tradition of gulamas as you are doing from indipendnce, still nothing left to lick from neharu, you gave even your birth credit to nehru i feel pity on you, if you would have respected your parents the same way you would have earned something in life. Gulamgiri is in your blood.and dont you dare to think people are people if your boss chidu is innocent why do he need even bail he can come out directly..and what you think we are not fools like people who supprt you to belive that he made crores worth money property in india and abroad with his MP, CM salary in a leagal way..and i bless you with loads of power to your toung to lick and this is my personal opinion and i dont give shit about gulams
Well said. Ketkar is a shame for entire Maharashtra as well as our beloved country ?? India.
Ketkar is nothing but a Congress puppet. This article should be read keeping this in light
This Chidu is a thief and so are most Congies. They looted the country right and left.
Kumar is puppet, like the great economist. Manmohan sir has a brain, all knows, but it’s like Maine Inka Namak khaya hai…
I am from Assam, I know that NRC was started when neither BJP government was in centre or state. It was started by Congress govt. I dont know a lot of economics but I would say some decisions come right some decisions backfire. But I dont think BJP govt intention are to destroy the government. I was reading that chinese automobile industry are facing a similar slowdown. The only thing that I think Modi govt could have done to cause people buying less car is that they probably don’t want get caught by taxman.
I get scared thinking of high inflation under upa. The Nehru family and Chidambaram should be jailed for life.
Bail is given by courts, NOT Modi, or ‘this’ government. The writer knows this well. But how else can he push the Congress line? After all, he has got into the RS courtesy Congress.
Yes. I agree that PC was very worried about economy and GDP coming down to 5% this quarter. The same man who quoted in 2012-13 that GDP reaching 5% for couple of quarter should not worrisome factor and he felt that India is growing much higher than others. Well, the worrying man, his family and his party looted India and prestitutes are ready to support him now.
Kumar Ketkar’s pathetic defence of a man who is being tried by the SC for serious corruption and fraud. But, what can be expected of a man who masquerades as a journalist, but joins the Congress to justify his hatred for Modi. Keep defending Chidambaram, Mr. Ketkar, you now have no choice. A Rajya Sabha seat does not come for free !!
What Kumar should have actually worried about is this – the economic deceleration has come about in the first 100 days of Modi 2.0 and he has enough time to correct the position and improve the situation as well. Had it been during the middle part of his tenure, it could have been a different issue. Modi is already much more pro-poor than Congress and he is actually delivering the benefits to them, unlike Congress . Modi will finish all the three points of BJP’s core agenda around 2020. That will leave nothing for Congress to fight back, as the entire Hindu vote would have consolidated behind Modi. Instead of wasting time on conjuring wrong analogies (like Salma’s bail versus Chidambaran’s bail, Gold pledging in 1990 to RBI’s transfer to government of its excess capital of 48 thousand crores etc), Kumar should introspect the changing political scenario where most of the politically dividing issues will be settled and only performance of the government will matter. Who is most trusted will finally win. Where does Congress stand on this?
Chidmbaram and his son got bail more than 25 times to avoid arrest. This is a record in itself. What is this ketkar writing. Would it be possible for any ordinary citizen with the same crimes to get even once bail.