Sunday, March 29, 2009

Politics of Alliance in India

The concept of alliances in electoral politics has always baffled me. Nowadays it amuses me to no ends. It is the crudest form of a self seeking exercise. Perhaps it is from this very concept that the saying, politics makes strange bedfellows, emanates.

Come election time and parties easily form these alliance of convenience. When one party enters into an alliance with another, they simply agree not to criticize each other. It is an understanding to overlook each others weaknesses. They gang up to target parties of other alliances - who in due course will become their partners, no sooner than a new re alignment takes place. This again supports another theory; there are no permanent friends or foes in politics. Doesn't it smack of sheer opportunism? Gullible that our masses are, they have been putting up with such nonsense for 50 long years. I wonder! How long will they still have to.

In the run up to the general elections, alliances have been struck and new formations emerged. But it all appears too contrived to be given any serious consideration at all. I am keenly waiting for the post-poll alliance scenario.

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