Dramatic chapter in Congress’s history

Ravindra Bhoyar (third from left) was inducted into the Congress and the announcement of his candidature was made within hours

The grand old party added one more dramatic chapter to its history, this time an embarrassing one for the ruling partners in Maharashtra, when it pulled out its official candidate, an import from the Bharatiya Janata Party, on the eve of the Nagpur Legislative Council polls, in which the local self-government representatives voted last week. Party's apex body - the All India Congress Committee - which had announced the ex-BJP man's candidature in the last week of November, shied away from issuing a letter of support for an independent. Instead, it authorised the state unit to declare, because it must have had enough embarrassing moments. Victory alone can neutralise the red-face effect in the Congress that overshadowed the immense interest the RSS worker-turned-BJP corporator Ravindra Bhoyar's entry had created. Bhoyar was to take on his former party colleague, BJP's ex-minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule. Instead, an independent Mangesh Deshmukh, who was one among the three contestants, challenged the Congress opponent.

Among various versions the Congress leaders have given, the one that blames the mess on the hasty selection of the turncoat appears somewhat founded. The majority Congress leaders say that due diligence wasn't done before admitting Bhoyar, who has a strong connection with the RSS. They say that the announcement of Bhoyar's candidature made within hours of his induction was nothing short of one-upmanship, rather than a wiser political move. Projected as a giant killer, the ex-BJP guy expressed inability to contest (the Congress letter of support to Deshmukh says so) and turned out to be a liability for the Congress leaders, who found yet another opportunity in the subsequent mess to get even with each other. Before the high command caved in at the eleventh hour, the blame game was played over a week preceding the polling day. The fight turned into compromises, albeit temporary, with the local leaders promising a stunner. Win or defeat, the Nagpur election has offered an invaluable lesson for picking the right persons for fielding in the elections, especially while importing them from the other parties. Congress had one, others may learn from it.

Stuck in litigation, the 27 per cent quota for the other backward classes (OBCs) in the local self-government may have put the Maha Vikas Aghadi in a political crisis, but having the leadership that is known for converting the crisis into an opportunity, the MVA can very well use the issue to sort out things that it may not have been able to, if the elections were held on schedule. No wonder, the MVA has stepped up efforts to delay the elections to be held later this month, and it is likely to do so for the next year's ‘mini' Assembly-type local body polls, including the Mumbai and Thane civic polls. The restructuring of civic wards and the exercise of increasing the number of electoral constituencies in both civic and district governments is expected to delay the election programme. In restructuring, the ruling parties have always ensured that the benefit remained with them; the increased number of wards will widen the electoral spectrum, allowing more party workers to contest.

The pandemic-struck MVA will get more time to prepare and overcome the OBC wrath to some extent if the Supreme Court accepts its prayer for postponing the entire elections instead of withholding the OBC contest. The local bodies with expired terms will be brought under the government's direct control through the babus administering them.

The state's presentation in the court is expected to centre around the argument that the stay on the elections to the OBC seats amounts to meting out injustice to the largest social group in the state that must be represented politically. Another argument is that the State Backward Class Commission (SBCC), that has been founded to collect empirical data to support the grant of the quantum of the OBC quota, will require months to complete the exercise. The MVA has been facing allegations of delaying the constitution of SBCC and further delaying its working by not supporting it financially. Under pressure from within and outside, the government gave the commission specific terms of reference and also the first installment of financial aid last week. Meanwhile, in the eastern Maharashtra districts where local body polls are slated to be held without the OBC seats later this month, the community members have displayed on their doors a warning note that reads, "Please, do not ask for our votes".

Dharmendra Jore is political editor, mid-day. He tweets @dharmendrajore

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