A dalit ki beti has become Uttar Pradesh ki rani: Mayawati has created a historic win in Uttar Pradesh. "Caste" and "religion" are the dominant words used to describe UP's politics. But instead, as any reporter on the UP trail will tell you, UP's politics is also about another word. In addition to caste and religion, the other word is "opportunity."
In the absence of a business sector, a vibrant intelligentsia or a society where talent is recognized, politics is the only status-provider in UP. Politics is played for basic livelihood, upward mobility and good salaries. How to become the village daroga? How to get a son into government school? How to arrange a suitable match for a daughter. Politics provides the linkages that oil one's daily existence. Thus, politics is to UP what the private sector is to other states. Politics is Uttar Pradesh's largest industry, it is the state's corporate sector, and it is a key avenue of employment. Because politics is the private sector, "opportunity" becomes the key determinant of political behaviour.
A state without an Infosys or a Wipro, with an industrial growth rate at a dismal 4 per cent, it is the Bahujan Samaj Party Pvt Ltd, the Samajwadi Party Pvt Ltd and the Bharatiya Janata Party Pvt Limited that are the aspiration of millions. Whoever forms the next government in UP, will thus be driven by the desire to raise the profitability of the company, attract new shareholders and pursue as many joint ventures as possible. Its not fair to judge the politics of UP by how far it conforms to standards of public life. In fact, party behaviour should be judged by but how far political parties serve their stakeholders and how far they are able to remain successful brand names.
Those who expect a "political" outcome of the UP elections, in terms of ideology and party loyalty are thus invariably disappointed. What emerges on the other hand, is a "business" outcome, a final result where the opportunity levels within a party are displayed in public. The saying in UP is ,"ugta suraj ko sab salaam karte hai." Everyone from Brahmin to dalit always salutes the rising sun, and everyone also wants to join a new successful company.
In the absence of a business sector, a vibrant intelligentsia or a society where talent is recognized, politics is the only status-provider in UP. Politics is played for basic livelihood, upward mobility and good salaries. How to become the village daroga? How to get a son into government school? How to arrange a suitable match for a daughter. Politics provides the linkages that oil one's daily existence. Thus, politics is to UP what the private sector is to other states. Politics is Uttar Pradesh's largest industry, it is the state's corporate sector, and it is a key avenue of employment. Because politics is the private sector, "opportunity" becomes the key determinant of political behaviour.
A state without an Infosys or a Wipro, with an industrial growth rate at a dismal 4 per cent, it is the Bahujan Samaj Party Pvt Ltd, the Samajwadi Party Pvt Ltd and the Bharatiya Janata Party Pvt Limited that are the aspiration of millions. Whoever forms the next government in UP, will thus be driven by the desire to raise the profitability of the company, attract new shareholders and pursue as many joint ventures as possible. Its not fair to judge the politics of UP by how far it conforms to standards of public life. In fact, party behaviour should be judged by but how far political parties serve their stakeholders and how far they are able to remain successful brand names.
Those who expect a "political" outcome of the UP elections, in terms of ideology and party loyalty are thus invariably disappointed. What emerges on the other hand, is a "business" outcome, a final result where the opportunity levels within a party are displayed in public. The saying in UP is ,"ugta suraj ko sab salaam karte hai." Everyone from Brahmin to dalit always salutes the rising sun, and everyone also wants to join a new successful company.
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