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Both governments in India and Bangladesh have enjoyed backing of a new breed of voters who are more aware than ever; for now, it can only be hoped that these voters' hope for a better future do not disappear amidst the political games being played both within and between the parties,
writes Hasanuzzaman
THE Indian National Congress has witnessed an unexpected victory in which it, along with its alliances, has won 262 seats. This is the first time since Jawarharlal Nehru in 1961 that a prime minister has been re-elected after serving a full first term. The government of India in 1991, led by the then prime minister PV Narasimha Rao, appointed Manmohan Singh as the finance minister. This was his first step into the limelight of Indian politics.
Before discussing Singh's achievements as the finance minister and more importantly, as the prime minister, it is imperative to set the background on which this highly enigmatic leader emerged in the political scene. The early 1990s remains exclusive for many scholars attribute the fall of the Berlin Wall and the subsequent integration of East and West Germany as igniting the globalisation process. Furthermore the European Union, which today is an economic union of 27 member states, was established by the Treaty of Maastricht in 1993. The early 1990s was a period when economics trumped politics, i.e. the notions of free market and capitalism overriding the beliefs that were held under a communist system.
The collapse in 1989 of the Soviet Union, which was India's most important trading partner, and the first Gulf War, which started within a couple of years, the by-product of which was a spike in worldwide oil prices, further exacerbated India's balance-of-payments situation. In response, Prime Minister Narasimha Rao along with his finance minister Manmohan Singh initiated the economic liberalisation reforms programme of 1991. The reforms eliminated the Licence Raj (investment, industrial and import licensing) and ended many public monopolies. The economic reform package included dismantling License Raj that made it difficult for private businesses to even exist. The economy of India today is the twelfth largest in the world by market exchange rates and the fourth largest by GDP measured on purchasing power parity basis.
One of the most critical areas of concern for India at the turn of the century was foreign policy. The most controversial period of Singh's tenure was the time when the Indian government decided to work with the United States in a nuclear deal which was signed by the respective leaders in October 2008. The basic framework of this agreement was that India agreed to separate its civil and military nuclear facilities and place all its civil nuclear facilities under the International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards whilst the United States agreed to work toward full civil nuclear cooperation with India. The Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement was not as easy to ratify domestically as had been contemplated by Singh. The most decisive issue persists with regard to allowing India to maintain a strategic reserve of nuclear fuel. Many Indian critics had also raised doubts over the fact that such a deal would undermine India's sovereignty.
India had witnessed much political alliance building with the world in general. The last ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation took place during Singh's tenure. Relations had improved with Japan and the EU (mainly France and Germany) and the United Kingdom. New Delhi also hosted an India-Africa Summit in April 2006 which was attended by the leaders of 15 African states. As a result of the ongoing Doha Round of trade negotiations, which began in 2001 under auspices of the WTO, countries such as India and Brazil were natural allies since they had realised that they had much to gain by taking a collective approach, rather than on an individual country basis. The formation and subsequent proliferation of country groups such as the NAMA-11 demonstrate the willingness of these countries to cooperate with each other.
Singh's government had also been especially keen on expanding ties with Israel and the latter now rivals Russia to become India's defence partner.. Though there have been a few diplomatic caveats between India and Russia in recent times, especially over the delay and price hike of several Russian weapons that were meant to be delivered to India, relations between the two remain strong through agreements to increase defence, nuclear energy and space cooperation.
Singh, along with former finance minister P Chidambaram had presided over a period where the Indian economy grew with an 8-9 per cent economic growth rate. The Indian economy is worth more than a trillion dollar today. As prime minister, Singh continued to follow the economic reforms of Rao's era. He did not neglect the programmes that were started by the preceding government and continued the Golden Quadrilateral and the highway modernisation programme. In the context of balance of payments which had remained disturbing during the 1990s decade, it increased by more than double between the fiscal years 2006-07, and 2007-08 (from $36 billion to $90 billion). His government was also successful in taming the silent tsunami which had severely undermined the global agriculture market and had caused riots in many countries around the globe in 2008.
In spite of Singh's well-intended policies, India's rapid growth and development has not been as dynamic as intended. In this context, the most significant contribution by Singh's government has been the enactment of the Right to Information act and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in 2005. The RTI covers the whole of India excluding the never-ending disputed areas of Jammu and Kashmir. More fundamentally, the act specifies that citizens have a right to (a) request any information (as mandated); (b) avail copies of documents; (c) assess and inspect documents, works and records; (d) access certified samples of materials of work; and, (e) avail information in form of printouts, diskettes, floppies, tapes, video cassettes or in any other electronic mode or through printout. Taking into the cognisance the proliferation of self-help groups and the intensification of NGOs' activities in India, such an act is certain to bear the desired fruits by minimising the scope of corruption and building a check-balance system.
The other significant step by Singh's government has been the launching of the national employment programmes under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. Even though the outreach and effectiveness of the NREGA is being contested, such a programme has contributed in consolidating the support of rural poor and more importantly, empowering them to a certain extent which has had somewhat helped them to overcome the vicious cycles of poverty.
Indeed, Singh has proven himself to be the king of Indian politics by fully demonstrating how things run under democracy. One of the crucial messages emanating from this year's Indian elections is that of Singh's strong preference for the rising star of the Nehru dynasty – Rahul Gandhi – to join the cabinet. This ought to be perceived as more than a royal gesture; after all, Nepal's history shows how hunger for power can lead to the demise of an entire royal family! It is worth highlighting here that Rahul Gandhi has been playing a proactive role in Indian politics for quite sometime now and he has had addressed more rallies than the prime minister and Sonia Gandhi together since 2004. This ought to be the point of departure for our leaders who may be contemplating on introducing new and honest faces to the public.
Will the current Bangladesh government be re-elected in 2013 and, more importantly, will we be able to think beyond the faces of Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia? Will there be another face which will capitalise on the notions of 'change'? Time will certainly be the decisive factor and more decisive will be the voters. Both governments in India and Bangladesh have enjoyed backing of a new breed of voters who are more aware than ever; for now, it can only be hoped that these voters' hope for a better future do not disappear amidst the political games being played both within and between the parties.
Hasanuzzaman is a researcher at the Centre for Policy Dialogue, a research organisation.
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