The isolated Left

After the volte-face of Mulayam Singh in the pretext of ‘country’s interest’ and resolving the age-old enmities with the Congress party, the politics in New Delhi has become throbbing again. Mulayam has announced that communalism is far more dangerous than imperialism, Advani is far more dangerous than Bush. What a perceptive politician that he is! This mood is reflecting in the electronic media where experts have already started to highlight who are the winners and losers in this whole drama. Everyone is sure of one thing. Prakash Karat, the leader of the Left is the foremost loser. A secret deal termed as the ‘master stroke’ has isolated the Left, made them irrelevant now in the national politics. Many hawks are jubilant. Manmohan Singh can now march ahead to finalize the nuclear deal without any more hindrance because everyone except the anti-American Left has cleared their conscience; the deal is good for the country.

And why not? Abdul Kalam has assured the knowledge-seeking politicians how India will benefit from the deal. The depressing part of this country’s scientific psyche is, Abdul Kalam is highly esteemed as the undeniable authority to all scientific issues in India. The former President, phrased by the Indian media as the ‘People’s President’, is considered by the establishment as the topmost living scientist while this man is in fact more a technocrat than a scientist, who began his career as a technology professional. He is the brain behind India’s guided missile program and “regards his work on India’s nuclear weapons program as a way to assert India’s place as a future superpower”. He was the Scientific Adviser to the Defence Ministry who believes that “.....peace is ensured by strength. Missiles were developed to strengthen the country.” and “Only strength respects strength”. The ideological moorings of Kalam were never in conflict with the jingoistic trend propagated inside the collective psyche of modern India by the authorities. Who can imagine that this man would ever advice the sly politicians against the nuclear deal?

The focus of the nuclear deal is no more about electrical power but military power. The main opposition party BJP was always clear that the meaning deep beneath the nuclear deal is not about nuclear energy but a close strategic and military tie up with US and they never had any objection on this. Their only disagreement is on the specific point that the deal should not blockade India’s sovereignty to explode nuclear bombs. The other basis of their opposition is they do not want the international leadership to credit the Congress party for the deal. Parties like BSP, DMK or TDP do not really bother about the national impact of the deal, as regionalism is the base of their politics. Their stands are determined by their narrow regional political calculations. They will only be fishing in the murky water for their trifling interests as Mayawati has already started playing the Muslim card in Uttar Pradesh.

So what is wrong going with America if it ensures strength to our nation as propagated by our former People’s President? What is wrong to get blessed by America, the supreme boss of this planet? The neo-liberalized Indian middle class devoted to Dalal Street, TV soaps, computers, the Deity, Baba Ramdev and America feels bored and threatened by the argumentative Mr. Karat and his hard ways of thinking.

The Left, especially the CPIM has initiated this battle of resistance from a strong and determined ideological platform. Only after thorough research and analysis they have appeared for the battle and thus their point of debate cannot be easily brushed aside by uttering cliché words like ‘anti-American’ or ‘pro-Chinese’. Their categorical and continuous exposure of the evil designs behind the deal has made a section of this country, may be small, aware and alert that things are not as good as they appear. There is a significant difference between the protests of the Left and BJP on the same issue and we must be very clear in our mind about this difference. Prakash Karat and the Left are really the solitary block today that is vehemently opposing the neo-imperialism imposed on this world by the policies of United States.

So is it that the Left has lost the battle? We do not think so. We can make out that the battle has only just started.