All That Chandrababu Needs Is A Mirror On The Wall

Y. Satyanarayana

One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we've been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We're no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It's simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we've been taken. Once you give a charlatan power over you, you almost never get it back—Carl Sagan, astronomer and writer (9 Nov 1934-1996)

The widening gap between Chandrababu Naidu's claims about his achievements and the reality on the ground, point to several things. One clear fact is that he lives in a delusional world and feeds off flattery. The Andhra Pradesh chief minister’s responses are almost always, self-referential. In this, he is aided by a set of media megaphones which try to present his Goebbelsian repetition of what he and they, consider as demonstrable facts.

In peddling the AP chief minister’s line and falsehoods constantly, this section of the media is doing a disservice and failing in its duty as society's conscience keeper. In the process, they frequently set a narrative which is nothing short of an insult to the collective intelligence of the people of Andhra Pradesh.

Take for instance, Chandrababu Naidu’s absurd claim that he is a “saviour” of democracy. When he makes these pronouncements, he says so with all the confidence of a carnival huckster. Has anyone savaged the Constitution more brazenly than he has, in the history of Andhra Pradesh, reducing the authority and eminence of his office, to a grotesque charade? Several facets of his behaviour bear this out but a couple of examples would suffice—Chandrababu Naidu's treatment of and attitude towards opposition parties, mainly the YSR Congress party.

The shameless manner in which the TDP supremo lured 23 YSRCP MLAs into his party, making four of them his cabinet colleagues, ranks among the most unconstitutional acts in the history of post-Independent Indian democracy. The Andhra Pradesh Chief minister’s denial of funds to constituencies represented by MLAs of YSRCP is yet another example of his undemocratic ways. The setting up of Janmabhoomi committees and investing them with authority which is extra-constitutional in nature is another instance of how a democratic set up can be subverted at the grassroots level. The yellow media outlets, though, would have us believe that, Chandrababu is a knight in shining armour taking on the Centre for the cause of democracy. If wishes were horses.....

Chandrababu’s Narcissistic worldview is a narrow one, circumscribed by bravado and endless self-praise. His constant need to be recognised as the seniormost politician in the country is yet another example of a delusional image he has created of himself which he repeatedly projects to try to convince others about his imagined greatness. Like all self-obsessed people, it is his inflated ego and sense of self which makes him say things such as he had to bow before Prime Minister Modi and address him as “sir” to satiate Modi's ego. In trying to reinforce his grandiose vision of himself, the AP chief minister has only ended up as the laughing stock on the national stage of Indian politics. Analysts say that his “I, Me, Myself” vision of AP has harmed the state’s interests irreparably over the past four and a half years. In truth, through his brazen cronyism, as observers point out, Chandrababu has set Andhra Pradesh back by many years.

Chandrababu Naidu's false sense of victimhood is not helping the state’s cause in any way. He harps on the injustice being done to Andhra Pradesh and on funds being denied by the Centre to the state. When he is called out by Union ministers and BJP leaders, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister conveniently changes his tune. He responds with a question: “Whose money is the Centre distributing?” Few people take him back to his original gripe and nail him on it—his whinging about denial of funds by the Centre. Chandrababu also tends to forget that he is equally accountable for the funds given by the Centre as YSRCP, and BJP leaders have been repeatedly emphasising.

The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister is a crafty politician who has mastered the art of steamrolling any dialogue back to the message which he intends to send out. Not that this strategy works all the time, but that does not stop him from trying. He wants Andhra Pradesh to be overpowered by collective amnesia on the fact that he had hailed the special package given by the Centre as something more than special category status to the state. The Andhra Pradesh chief minister wants the people of the state to forget that he had ridiculed the concept of SCS and that he had described it as no Sanjeevini, or magic cure.

Chandrababu Naidu does a major U turn after being an ally of the BJP for four years and then wants the people of Andhra Pradesh to believe that he has all along been a champion of SCS to the state. His Dharma Porata Deeksha is a travesty of truth and a mega farce being played out at public expense. Does he have credible answers to the question: why did he not take up the cause of SCS to AP right from day one, from 2014 itself?

Experts have pointed out that a world-class capital could be built at an estimated cost of Rs. 5000 crore. Chandrababu Naidu's latest plan suggests that the TDP government plans to spend more than 10 times this amount for the proposed capital city by borrowing extensively. How such staggering loans would be serviced is again in the realm of conjecture and remains an unanswered question.

Only the other day media reports said that the Andhra Pradesh cabinet Okayed a proposal for the construction of Amaravati by the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) with a total financial outlay of Rs. 55,343 crore, including expenditure on the construction of buildings, roads, basic infrastructure amenities among others. The cabinet also lent its nod to the CRDA borrowing Rs. 37,112 crore by hypothecating projects in the capital and raising Rs. 500 crore through public bonds, reports further said. Who will stand guarantee to the CRDA loan? The AP government, reports stated, based on the cabinet's decision. The Opposition parties, mainly the YSR Congress party have been pointing out over and over again, that through such heavy borrowings and without a clear plan of servicing them, the Chandrabu Naidu government is pushing the state into an economic quagmire.

Pushed against the electoral wall, the TDP supremo has been raining sops to win over large sections of the voters of the state who appear to be vexed with his regime. The latest among these is the Rs.10,000 the government proposes to give women in three instalments. The catch there of course, is that they will get this amount in post-dated cheques. YSRCP MLA from Nagari, RK Roja aptly described the exercise as "post-dated cheques by an outdated CM." Chandrababu Naidu is trying to woo disparate segments of society which are seething with anger, using his wile and guile. There comes a time in the life of all men, including delusional leaders, when they come face to face with reality. All that Chandrababu needs now is a mirror on his wall.

Also Read: Chandrababu Promises The Moon And More, As AP Voters Spurn TDP