What is the Left’s 'hidden agenda'?

It is difficult to understand what drives the Left. They lent outside support to the UPA government with a view to keeping the BJP out. While the BJP imploded, the Left has played the role of the Opposition. This incredible twist by the comrades of supporting and opposing the ruling coalition is one that political scientists will have to spend a lot of time to understand.

Coalition politics has drawn the attention of scholars over the years. In political systems where there is a general agreement on governance, coalitions are beneficial because they foster the emergence of a broad consensus on difficult issues. However, in developing systems like India, coalition politics can be dysfunctional. Under the circumstances, the national agenda can be pulled in various different directions till it reaches breaking point.

In a recent speech, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that political parties should agree upon certain basic issues of policy and not hold them hostage to political whims and fancies: issues such as health, education, welfare and roads, water, power and transport. The tussle over the Indo-US nuclear deal is a good example.

Apart from providing help to the flagging civilian nuclear power pro-gramme, it will also provide access to supercomputers and other sophisticated technologies that were hitherto denied because of export controls. The Nuclear Suppliers Group was formed in response to India’s 1974 nuclear test to enforce a strict regime of control over such ‘dual-use’ technologies.

The Left has tried to portray the deal as a sellout to the United States and, as such, an infringement of sovereignty. It says the UPA government stands isolated on the issue in Parliament, pointing to the rag tag group of ex-chief ministers assembled under the banner of the UNPA. This group has the credibility of Burmese currency. As for the NDA’s opposition, it first appeared to be a fit of pique at the UPA carrying forward what they could not finish; however, that’s too noble a posture for the ideological chameleons that comprise the alliance. Their stand is purely opportunistic.

Opposition from these two groups is more noise than substance. The Left’s brinkmanship is not only about its ideological aversion to the United States; it prefers Venezuela’s dictatorial leader Hugo Chavez and Iran’s religious mullahs because it supports democracy and secularism. Many in government, the Congress and the media are of the view that this could be narcissistic power play by Karat and his cronies, doing this to show that they can; front-page mentions and prime time television coverage are ego boosters.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is quite clear that he will not stand down on what he believes is an ‘honourable’ agreement. The Left speaks with many tongues: it warns of ‘consequences’ if the government takes ‘the next steps’ in completing the pact, while saying it will not topple the government. Should the commissars persist in their foolhardy campaign against the treaty, there could be political turmoil at a time when millions of Indians are being extricated from poverty into a middle class existence.

The Left campaign against the Indo-US deal is pernicious. Ideology and vanity are necessary but not sufficient as explanations for this display of mindlessness. In searching for that third component that completes the ex-planation, Delhi is abuzz with whispers about the Left’s ‘hidden agenda’. According to sources, the Left is acting on behalf of the Chinese, who have made it plain that they are against the alliance between the US and India.

This could explain why Karat is adamant that the government should not take ‘the next steps’. The general secretary realises or has been told that if India goes before the IAEA and the Nuclear Suppliers Group, as a member of both, Beijing would be embarrassed at opposing the Indian petition and certainly is wary of supporting it. The Chinese would prefer that the application never reaches the two groups. In the process, if there is political turmoil in India, that’s an added bonus.

Email: rdesai@comma.in