Editor,
With the parliamentary and the assembly elections round the corner, the state is witnessing daily mass joining programmes at village and community levels in support of their MLA/MP candidates. These MLA/MP candidates, who are either new or from non-BJP parties, in turn are seen joining the ruling BJP in the state in the hope of getting the party ticket to contest.
Incidentally, the door of the BJP office is wide open for all and sundry. This has led to a situation in many constituencies where all the aspiring candidates are from the BJP alone. Now, who among them will get the BJP ticket is the big mystery for their supporters. Nonetheless, these supporters are claiming that their candidate will receive the ticket due to their connections to Khandu, or the DCM, or Kiren Rijiju, or people from Nagpur/RSS. The party itself is no doubt spoiled for choices.
This frenzy for BJP tickets in Arunachal, to my understanding, is due to two main reasons. Firstly, the poll pundits and media give the impression that the party is coming back to power under Modi for the third term. Secondly, the party is the richest political party now in India, largely due to electoral bonds, which was recently declared to be illegal and unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. This money power of the BJP is attracting both the candidates and voters in Arunachal.
The opposition parties of the state, on the other hand, seem to have put down their arms before the battle. Not much interest is being shown by the aspiring candidates for a Congress or other party tickets. Many opposition MLAs have defected to the BJP camp with their supporters. These defector ‘Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram’ MLAs will have eggs on their faces if they don’t get the party tickets by any chance.
Ultimately, the aspiring candidates who don’t get the BJP ticket will have to contest elections as independent or as other parties’ candidates. Nevertheless, the weakening of the opposition with no check and balance is a worrisome sign for a healthy democracy in the state.
An observer