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| Shadow cabinets and consensus | | It is time for reponsible postures on policy |
| Business Standard / New Delhi Feb 07, 2010, 00:40 IST |
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Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari’s initiative to create an organisational framework for reflecting on policy matters, involving chief ministers of party run state governments, is a good idea. India’s opposition political parties have for long lived the life of Dr Jekyll, while in government, and Mr Hyde, while in opposition. As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh once famously commented on political doublespeak: don’t judge politicians by what they say when in opposition, but by what they do when in government! To an extent it is understandable that an opposition political party needs a slogan to campaign against the government to turn the tide of public opinion towards itself and against the ruling political party. However, with governments increasingly having revolving doors it is not always easy to figure out who is in opposition and who is in office. The statements of Congress party spokespersons on policy issues often give the impression that they are in opposition, rather than a ruling, political party!
Be that as it may, the time has come for some element of responsible posturing on policy by all political parties that consider themselves as potential government forming parties, either at the centre or in the states. As a national party, and that too a party of government, the BJP can ill-afford the hypocrisy of the Left Front parties that have over the years done one thing sitting in office in Kolkata and said another, at the same time, sitting in opposition in New Delhi. The only honourable exception to this used to be West Bengal chief minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya, in his early days in office, when he opted for a cooperative stance on the fight against extremism and terrorism even with a BJP home minister like Mr L K Advani.
On many governance issues governments at the centre and in the states have to work together. With different political parties in power in the centre and the states, it is often the case that ruling and opposition parties will have to work together on policy initiatives. Mr Gadkari's initiative to create a development forum that would enable the party’s national leadership to interact with and guide its’ state units and governments should be the first step to the creation of a shadow union cabinet that would enable the party's top leaders to think about concrete policy options and articulate them in a consistent manner. This would not only encourage greater responsibility among opposition politicians, who would be required to offer alternative proposals whenever they criticise the government, but would also impart en element of predictability and stability to policy and policymaking. The BJP could also benefit from the creation of a shadow cabinet since it would help the party project itself once again as a party of government, and not as the permanent opposition! This idea may flounder on the issue of who will be named shadow PM! For the time being the BJP could work with a national development council of its own, that would include party CMs and key national leaders, and focus more purposefully on important national and state level policy issues.
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