The ominous developments pose serious challenges to alliance government. These include strong anti-incumbency, erosion in Akali Dal’s main Sikh support base, agitations by farmers, deteriorating law and order, atrocities on Dalits and empty treasuries. If a Bihar-like united front of secular parties for which efforts are being made comes into being, it could prove to be the proverbial nail in the coffin of Akali-BJP’s electoral prospects in the 2017 assembly elections. Whether the ruling alliance will be able to face these challenges is doubtful.

The main factor which triggered erosion in the Akali Dal’s popular base was the massive attendance of Sikhs at the Sarbat Khalsa organized by some radical Sikh bodies in the wake of Guru Granth Sahib’s sacrilege incidents. This combined with the government’s failure to unearth the culprits responsible for sacrilege angered the Sikhs who were not convinced by the government’s claim that Congressmen had backed and attended the congregation. To neutralize the adverse political impact of the SarbatKhalsa, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh planned a series of Sadbhawna rallies in the state. The massively attended Sadbhawna rallies, no doubt, once again proved the organisational skills of Sukhbir. On-the-spot media reports, however, quoted a number of participants saying that they had been promised money and food for attending the rallies. There was large scale misuse of government machinery for the rallies.

Such rallies are not always a guarantee for fetching votes. For instance, the huge crowds at Indira Gandhi’s 1977 rallies after she withdrew Emergency did not vote for her party. They were mere spectators. Similarly, in the Bihar Assembly polls the massive crowds at Narendra Modi’s rallies proved to be more of spectators than voters as despite Modi’s eloquence the BJP suffered humiliating defeat.

The recent utterances of senior Akali and Congress leaders show the diametrically opposite stands they take in their public discourses. It started with the chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, otherwise reputed for his modesty, humility and high stature, regrettably touching lowest level of political discourse when, using his favourite religion-mix-politics weapon, he said at his Nakodar Sadbhavna rally “Capt. Amarinder Singh had a bar at his official residence when he was heading the State while he (Badal) had installed Guru Granth Sahib there. …Even at my house in Badal village I have ‘parkash’ of Guru Granth and people knew what was there in Moti Mahal (Amarinder’s residence in Patiala)….I start work after taking Guru’s blessings”. Using unbecoming derogatory language, Badal compared Amarinder with a bull saying “Ih uho jiha dhagga jehra nale badkan mari janda nale moke mari janda”. Are such undignified utterances signs of panic or desperation?

In this era of bans, the Akali leaders also sermonize about what people should have in their homes to serve their guests or for self consumption. Leave aside the debatable issue of the much desired prohibition. The question is about the senior Akali leaders and their government serving liquor to business magnates and foreign guests at five star hotels. And what about government’s giving of licenses to thousands of vendors to sell liquor in villages and along national highways? The liquor quotas of venders are increased every year to earn higher revenue. Hypocrisy thy name is politics!

Forget acrimonious exchanges Badals and Capt. used to once have. Compare the senior Badal’s holier-than-you sermons with Amarinder’s sober comments made in his last week’s interview with the editor of a leading English daily: “We are going to keep a positive approach in poll campaign. People are fed up with name-calling. They want to know what we are going to do for them and for Punjab. That is going to be our focus (in poll campaign)”. He, however, matched the Badals in using religion by touching a ‘gutka’ (Sikhs holy book) to his forehead while taking oath as PPC chief saying he would fulfill his promises on coming to power.

The quality of good governance largely depends on the state of law and order of which Sukhbir is in charge as Home Minister. And law and order in Punjab has deteriorated to such levels that murders, particularly of Dalits, are being committed even by Akali leaders. The police has become the ruling party’s tool to suppress the people fighting for their demands. The Sukhbir-appointed halqa (constituency) in charges act as extra-constitutional centres of authority. They have become law unto themselves interfering in normal functioning of government officials not only for seeking favourable decisions but also for letting loose police against their adversaries. Such developments are traits of authoritarian and dictatorial mindset.

About Punjab’s financial health, the less said the better. Under heavy debt, the state has failed to get the promised financial package from the centre despite the chief minister’s repeated requests to Modi. The treasury is empty mainly due to the government’s mismanagement of state’s finances and populist decisions. The situation is illustrated by some of the last week’s media headlines. “Punjab goes bust, puts widow home and jails on ‘girvi’ (mortgage)”, “Rs.2,645 crore’s unpaid bills for 2015”. “Sarpanches not paid for two years”, “Government imposes restrictions in releasing money to employees from their general provident fund”.

The state finance minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa says “we are trying our best to release salaries and pensions on time. It will be one odd month when we have defaulted on releasing payments”. But the next day he said the fiscal health of the State was comfortable and the Congress party was planting stories through the media.

Contrarily, the Akali leadership has been accumulating assets by monopolizing lucrative businesses at the cost of the state sector.

Ruling leaders of all hues must remember that politicians ascendency to power is marked by struggle and uncertainty. But once they capture power, their downfall is inevitable. (IPA Service)