HVK Archives: No pains, no gains
No pains, no gains - The observer
Editorial
()
5 June 1996
Title : No pains, no gains
Author : Editorial
Publication : The observer
Date : June 5, 1996
PRAGMATISTS have prevailed over the ideological hardliners. That
is the message behind the CPI national council's decision to join
the United Front government. Not that the opportunity has been
there for the asking. But when it did knock in 1977 and 1989,
the party as also the Left in general had chosen to treat it as
the proverbial gift horse. The response was premised on two
factors. One, that the strength of the Left forces in the
Parliament at the relevant times was incommensurate with a
decisive say in setting the tone of the policy regime. Two, the
dilution of the Left ideological line implicit in joining a
motley government was, therefore, a risk best left alone.
The ground realities have changed little since then. The
CPI(M)'s decision to persist with its policy of lending outside
support this time around too is based on this perception. Nor is
there any reason to believe that the CPI's assessment differs
substantially. If, notwithstanding this, the CPI has broken rank
with the other Left parties, it is probably because the former
has realised that there is no premium in nursing ideological
purity at the cost of growth. As much was hinted in deputy
general secretary A B Bardhan's qualifier: "Everything does not
depend ,on history." In plain language this translates to no
pains, no gains. The logic is impeccable. More so, since for
nearly a decade now the Left has played the role of the prime
mover in the evolution of the third pole - in the sense of a non-
Congress and non-BJP configuration -- in Indian politics. The
CPI's decision to join the government is, therefore, a welcome
earnest that the party is prepared to pull out all stops in
consolidating the gains made in this direction.
The United Front government is the best instrument for the third
pole to strike firmer roots. Provided the Left has the savvy not
to lean too hard and has the grace to bend its ideological
preferences to the felt need of enlarging the areas of consensus
within the constituents and backers of the government. The
tactical as well as the strategic dividends lie therein.
Additionally, if the CPI can harness itself towards setting
standards of transparency and accountability, it will be a bonus
for the country as a whole.
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