BENGALURU: While the Congress and JDS are screaming themselves hoarse that the BJP government is indulging in “vendetta politics’’ across the country, especially after the arrest of P Chidambaram and DK Shivakumar, BJP leaders suggest that this is part of the government’s anti-corruption narrative. Political observers say that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that the first 100 days of his government was “just a trailer” and that the “rest of the film is yet to be played’’, is setting the narrative that the government is serious about taking action against “corrupt” leaders.
Opening investigations against populist schemes of the previous Congress government, the IMA scam and kickbacks to politicians, complaints with the Anti-Corruption Bureau against a former PWD minister, the CBI probe into phone-tapping and so on, are only adding to this anti-corruption narrative. The governments in the state and at the Centre have, time and again, maintained that the law will take its own course and it is not vendetta.
Observers say it is part of the BJP’s attempt to appear intolerant to corruption, and as a larger strategy, it will be useful for by-elections in Karnataka and the upcoming elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand, and even after that. Suggesting that the BJP should go after the corrupt, BJP minister CT Ravi said, “The corrupt should be brought on to the streets, people should not come out and support the corrupt.” Ravi was making an obvious reference to the protests where people had hit the streets against the arrest of Shivakumar, and termed it “vendetta’’.
BJP minister Suresh Kumar said, “Calling the investigation political vendetta is itself seeking to politicize the issue. They say there is no smoke without fire. Here, there is a big fire and a lot of smoke. Instead, the Congress should introspect.” Analyst BS Murthy said, “This anti-corruption narrative may not be useful for the Maharashtra elections because the BJP has accepted into its fold some opposition leaders who have been accused of corruption, but who have switched over to the BJP. How will this anti-corruption narrative stick in such a situation? The BJP has accepted leaders like Kripashankar Singh, Chhagan Bhujbal, Narayan Rane and others, so how can it speak of anti-corruption? But it could be useful as an ongoing larger narrative against corruption.”