Stark cynicism of Third Front
Political cynicism & personal ambitions run high in the Third Front.
By ET Bureau |
While being of significant import, the move by NCP supremo Sharad Pawar to heighten speculation on a tie-up with the Third Front again highlights the confluence of shaky common ground, political cynicism and personal ambition that constitutes this Front. Clearly, the sight of the crucial UPA ally sharing political space with the likes of the CPI(M), CPI and BJD at a rally in Bhubaneshwar is meant to signal to the Congress that Pawar has not given up his oft-stated PM ambitions.
But beyond the electoral significance of regional parties increasingly seeking to cobble together a non-Congress/BJP alternative or milking the latter���s dependence on them for forming coalitions, the idea of a Third Front has repeatedly come unstuck given the absence of a well-defined political or ideological core. The point isn���t merely that the current avatar of the Third Front is perhaps the least cohesive of such attempts ��� not least given its medley of ambitious, unpredictable satraps.
Or that it is also representative of the regional constituents seeking to protect their preserve while maintaining a bargaining platform for a greater part of the post-poll pie. Rather, for such an alternative to coalesce into a viable one, there has to be some real convergence on a political and development agenda beyond the mere positing of a vague ���secular and pro-people��� one.
And even as the CPI(M) has become the main mover behind the new attempt to forge a national, secular alternative to the Congress party, the fundamental arrangement ��� based on tactical electoral schemes ��� is unlikely to consolidate into a stable coalition.
Indeed, what has prevented the idea of such a third political formation from realising itself is the lack of a central unifying ideological vision. Historically, when such a vision did emerge ��� as with the socialists, while unravelled by internal divisions ��� it did at least possess the wherewithal to become such an alternative.
In sharp contrast, however, the current setup, given the diverse personal, political and electoral agendas of the concerned participants, is only providing ground for stark cynicism.
But beyond the electoral significance of regional parties increasingly seeking to cobble together a non-Congress/BJP alternative or milking the latter���s dependence on them for forming coalitions, the idea of a Third Front has repeatedly come unstuck given the absence of a well-defined political or ideological core. The point isn���t merely that the current avatar of the Third Front is perhaps the least cohesive of such attempts ��� not least given its medley of ambitious, unpredictable satraps.
Or that it is also representative of the regional constituents seeking to protect their preserve while maintaining a bargaining platform for a greater part of the post-poll pie. Rather, for such an alternative to coalesce into a viable one, there has to be some real convergence on a political and development agenda beyond the mere positing of a vague ���secular and pro-people��� one.
And even as the CPI(M) has become the main mover behind the new attempt to forge a national, secular alternative to the Congress party, the fundamental arrangement ��� based on tactical electoral schemes ��� is unlikely to consolidate into a stable coalition.
Indeed, what has prevented the idea of such a third political formation from realising itself is the lack of a central unifying ideological vision. Historically, when such a vision did emerge ��� as with the socialists, while unravelled by internal divisions ��� it did at least possess the wherewithal to become such an alternative.
In sharp contrast, however, the current setup, given the diverse personal, political and electoral agendas of the concerned participants, is only providing ground for stark cynicism.
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