| Politics in India continues to defy prognosis. The art of
the unexpected continues to prevail. A week ago conventional wisdom held that Indian
politics had returned to its roots. The shape of the government would be decided by
national parties. It took only a few rounds of negotiation for that wisdom to be consigned
to the dustbin. Regional leaders were again holding sway. And as the BJP -- which required
allies to establish itself in office -- realised, regional leaders can be useful but they
can also be difficult. Whatever, they cannot be ignored. Once more, the keys of government
lay in the hands of smaller yet crucial players such as Mamata Banerjee, George Fernandes
and J. Jayalalitha. And once again a government, in a sense, was being held to ransom,
dictated to not by ideology but by individual agendas. To twist a familiar saying, if they
sneezed Atal Bihari Vajpayee did not just catch a cold, he got a fever. Especially when it came to Jayalalitha, the focus of our cover story this
week. From film actress to popular leader to fallen monarch faced with corruption charges
to reborn politician, her life has been unpredictable. As the BJP has found out, so is
she. Constantly altering her demands, repeatedly changing her mind, she has kept it on
tenterhooks, delaying her assent as long as possible. It is clear that even with just 17
seats Jayalalitha, once but a regional satrap, has become a national force. She is also,
as our correspondents and the BJP leadership found to their dismay, inaccessible. Indeed,
at one juncture she switched off all her phones at her residence, ensuring no one could
reach her. As Special Correspondent K.M. Thomas, who tracked her from Chennai, says,
"The Congress and the BJP have at least one thing in common. The destinies of both
parties depend on enigmatic women." So does India's, it seems.
(Aroon Purie) |
