The Hindu Business Line : Democracy, the winner

WITH no single party emerging the clear winner, there is understandably some anxiety on the governance front. Some of our citizens who were `feeling good' may now be `feeling bad'.

No doubt at the moment they are worried that economic progress will slow down or come to a halt. On the contrary for those who voted for change, a feel good sentiment is just beginning. For them, the new government will bring economic progress.

This is the reality of a pluralistic society. The next government will be another coalition, with the Congress' dominant partner being the Left.

Will the Communists derail reforms? Unlikely. They have become more businesslike. For instance, in rural West Bengal, one is struck by the large numbers of cold storage facilities for the potato crop — this infrastructure was created over the years by the communist government..

The Left may resist privatisation, but would certainly encourage value creation in public sector enterprises. And as seen in West Bengal, projects such as farm-to-home infrastructure are being encouraged, which is eminently desirable.

The Congress, besides upholding secularism, was the initiator of economic reforms. Though when in the Opposition, it did oppose some of the reforms initiated by the NDA Government. However, this was simply political expediency, not an innate resistance to reforms, as was evident in the States it ruled where it pursued the very same reforms.

Therefore, there is no reason for worry on the reforms front. Rather, what the new dispensation calls for is vigil and being vocal when required. If the government decides to mollycoddle workers, protests must be made loud and clear.

If privatisation is stopped, minority shareholders must demand continuation of the process of value creation. And if corruption or misdeeds raise their ugly heads, media must be ready to expose them. Every recent government has created its own weapon for self-destruction — the Hindutva plank of the outgoing government is a case in point. In hindsight, the NDA's reforms were biased towards a relatively small section of the population, thus debunking the "feel good" factor.

The new government in Andhra Pradesh has committed itself to giving free power to farmers, an absolutely retrograde step. The new government at the Centre should desist from creating its own poison pill.

Once at least every five years the citizen gets a chance to use a non-violent weapon to activate the poison pill — the vote. Regrettably, not everyone uses it.

Those who do can cause havoc of the type we have just seen. It is a triumph for the citizens, though the flip side is that they have to suffer the conseqences. Perhaps, we have to come to terms with this relentless cycle of democracy.

(The author is Chairman of IndAsia, a private equity and corporate finance advisory business. )