“The Ram Temple has been built…But what about our small neighbourhood temple for Hanumanji?” asks Indra Raj Singh, a resident of Arthala village in Ghaziabad, head of the organising committee of the local Hanuman Temple which was brought down for reconstruction. Work on it is stalled due to the Ghaziabad Municipal Authority’s claim over the land.
“We approached everyone, they are not just unhelpful, rude too. This is the problem when you have an MP, MLA and Mayor, all from the same party, the BJP, and when the Opposition so weak. These leaders have become ghamandi (arrogant), confident of staying in satta (power), because there is no vipaksh (Opposition). That’s not healthy.”
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Singh’s words find an echo in Deepansh, a final-year B. Tech student at a private university in Meerut, who says it’s hard to hold to account a ruling party that’s taken victory for granted. A sign of the disarray in the Opposition, says Mohammad Mehtab, a flower-seller in the heart of Meerut city, is that this time the Samajwadi Party has twice changed its candidate – it doesn’t augur well, he says.
Of course, there’s not much love lost for the Opposition here, no visible dent in this solid BJP bastion – Meerut has been a party stronghold for the last 15 years, Ghaziabad for two decades, the party’s vote share in the last election touching just shy of 50% in Meerut, above 60% in Ghaziabad. But you do hear a refrain of the “missing Opposition.”
Vote shares in the Meerut and Ghaziabad Lok Sabha seats.
The arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia, ex-Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, and the tax notices to Congress are talking points. Some say “every party in power does this (flex its agency muscle).” But there are others who, even as they blame the Congress and SP for not getting their act together, express concern.
“In a democracy, there should be an Opposition. Unfortunately, the leadership of the biggest Opposition party does not do anything to keep itself relevant or keep the INDI alliance strong,” says Rajender Agrwal, the three-term sitting Meerut MP who has not been given a ticket by the BJP this time. That has gone to Arun Govil.
In a campaign overwhelmingly dominated by the BJP – Prime Minister Narendra Modi did a roadshow here Saturday – where the party remains firmly in the pole position, voters, both young and old, in this part of Uttar Pradesh, are asking for more.
During the 1.4-km-long roadshow from Maliwada Chowk to Chaudhary Mod at Ambedkar Road, Modi stood atop an open jeep along with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. (Express photo by Gajendra Yadav)
Most of the vote-BJP boxes check here. Voters are certainly happy that the Ram temple in Ayodhya has come after a decades-long wait, they appreciate the improved law and order situation, are grateful that poor families get free ration, India’s rising place in the world does strike many a chord.
What is also inescapable is that many wonder about the efficacy of “one-sided (ek tarfa) politics” if there is no one to check or balance.
Take the Hanuman temple story, for example.
Indra Raj Singh, an ex-Army man along with a few prominent faces in Arthala, wanted to rebuild it as it developed cracks in the roof. They pulled down the building, collected money from villagers, started constructing the walls. Municipal authorities issued notices claiming the land belonged to the municipality and eventually demolished the wall.
“We went to the Mayor (Sunita Dayal) who called us Bhu-mafia (land mafia), later to the MLA who could not help and then we went to meet senior BJP leaders. They all washed their hands of, one of them said, ‘aap log raat mein kyon nahi bana lete hain jaise baki log karte hain?” (Why can’t you make it at night like others do)?”
When contacted, Dayal said that the land belonged to the municipality and that’s why she didn’t stop the authorities “from doing their job.”
Here is where Singh feels that an Opposition could have helped. “Had there been some credible Opposition leaders, they would have come here and stood against the bulldozers. I may be a BJP voter but I do not want to lose my rights to question or oppose the authorities,” says Singh.
Similar concerns are expressed by many voters in neighbouring Meerut who are also asking for more. “Modiji has constructed Ram Mandir, it’s fine. The welfare schemes are provided by every party government. But have they done anything for filling vacancies in government jobs?” asks Virender, a truck-driver.
He flags the provisions under the new law for hit-and-run cases which carry a jail time of up to 10 years and/or a fine of Rs 7 lakh for serious road accidents due to negligent driving and where drivers run away without informing the police. The Centre has assured that there would be talks with the truckers before implementing the new rules.
However, Rajender , who also work with the same truck firm, did not agree with his friend. “Modiji has launched programs for every section. If Modi remains Prime Minister for 20-25 years, India will go ahead of all other countries,” he says.
His friend Pradeep Kumar, another truck driver, agrees. “The poor get free power, cooking gas and houses under this government. Of course, Modi has issues, everyone has, but he is better than any other PM we have ever had.”
Shikha Gupta and Shweta Agrawal, two homemakers, residents of Meerut city, are in awe of Modi, not just because of the Ram Temple construction. “That (the temple) was to happen anyway. The Modi government takes care of everyone while other parties work for a particular community or a section,” says Gupta. For Agrawal, the “end of Goonda raj in Uttar Pradesh” under Yogi Adityanath government means a change so valuable that she says she doesn’t want to take any chances with her vote.
For Mohd Mehtab and his friends, the weakening Opposition is a cause for despair and worry. “Whomn do we vote for…look at what happened to the opposition in Meerut,” he says.
The Samajwadi Party, which got Meerut in the seat distribution agreement with the Congress, announced Bhanu Pratap Singh as its candidate but later changed it to sitting Sardhana MLA Atul Pradhan who filed the nomination. However, a day later, the party made Meerut Mayor Suneeta Verma to file the nomination.
Significantly, many young voters The Indian Express spoke to said they were not satisfied with the Modi government’s initiatives for education or employment. “Merely constructing new colleges does not help. We need to improve the quality of the education,” says Deepansh, the final-year engineering student.
Agreed Arnab, a para-medical science student at the same private university as Deepansh. “The job situation is really bleak. My father spends at least Rs 15,000 for me in a month, apart from the fee. Once I complete my Lab technician course, I might get a job for Rs 10,000 a month in a private hospital or nursing home. There are no government jobs. The only one we have heard who got a government job from my class is a senior from 2015 batch who was recently recruited. It makes no sense,” says Arnab.
“The Opposition is really weak,” says Deepansh. “They do not know how to communicate properly. There are issues we students are concerned about but the Opposition does not bother to explain or express them with clarity. Prime Minister Modi is a wonderful communicator…they are the only ones heard,” he said. “Without a fear of change, there will not be any accountability. Fear of losing power always makes politicians and parties more people-friendly and more accountable.”