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Daily Vocab Capsule 29th December 2019

Another One Bites the Dust

Jharkhand verdict shows that instead of being in danger, democracy is alive and kicking And another one gone, and another

one gone, Another one bites the dust.

Another One Bites the Dust, 1980, Queen

Forget nightmares of Narendra Modi becoming an all-powerful autocrat out to convert India into a Hindu nationalist State

where Muslims will be second-class citizens. He has just been thrashed in the Jharkhand state election. This means BJP

now rules states accounting for under 40% of India’s territory, down from 70% two years ago.

Non-BJP states are now on the offensive. They have given notice that they will not implement the Citizenship (Amendment)

Act (CAA), or the proposed all-India National Register of Citizens (NRC), which many analysts feared could render

millions of Muslims stateless. Some alarmists have warned for months that Indian democracy is in danger. On the contrary,

democracy is alive and kicking. Modi suddenly looks not just in decline but incompetent, unable to implement his socio-

political agenda.

His stunning general election victory in May led some to believe he was set to become as hegemonic as Indira Gandhi in

her heyday. That’s now history. BJP has fared badly in nine major state elections in a row. Its Jharkhand defeat suggests it

is getting ever-weaker, not ever-stronger, in the states.

In December 2018, BJP lost elections in the central Indian states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Three

more state elections in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana were held simultaneously with the general election in May

2019, and BJP and allies were thrashed in all three. Next came the fiasco in Maharashtra where the BJP-Shiv Sena won the

election with a reduced majority, but the Sena then joined Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to form a

non-BJP government. A telling lesson from this episode was that the Hindutva front was not solid and could be broken.

In Haryana, BJP lost ground and fell well short of a majority. But it formed a coalition government with a regional party.

Now You’re the Incumbent

BJP supporters will point out that the party, along with regional allies, won the state elections in Sikkim and Arunachal

Pradesh that were held along with the general election in May. But these were tiny victories in tiny states outside the national

trend. They cannot compensate for the string of reverses in major states, the latest example being Jharkhand.

Modi is unquestionably India’s most popular politician. But his personal popularity does not translate into victories in state

elections. After he won the 2014 general election, BJP won a string of state victories. This gave the impression of a new

unstoppable force. But those BJP state victories stemmed mainly from anti-incumbency. Indian voters see most politicians

as knaves and rogues that must be turfed out. In the years after Modi’s 2014 win, anti-incumbency aided BJP. But that

very anti-incumbency is now crippling the party.

The state legislatures elect members of the Rajya Sabha. BJP had hoped to garner a majority in the Rajya Sabha by the end

of 2020. That looks a lost hope after its string of state election losses.

India is ruled mainly by state governments, not New Delhi. The states control the police, courts, administration, agriculture,

education, health, transport and much else. Modi’s most controversial proposals — NRC and CAA — need full-blooded

state support for implementation. His string of electoral defeats has made that impossible.

Home minister Amit Shah had earlier called Muslim immigrants from Bangladesh ‘termites’ that must be ejected. The

problem is most acute in Assam. A court-ordained NRC was attempted there. Individuals had to provide documentary

proof of citizenship, which proved impractical in a state with weak literacy and documentation. Of the 1.9 million Assamese

that failed the documentation test, roughly half were Hindus. The attempt to nail Muslim ‘termites’ failed.

So, Modi enacted CAA, fast-tracking citizenship for people of all faiths except Islam from Bangladesh, Pakistan and

Afghanistan. Shah promised to extend NRC to the whole of India. This could have made tens of millions of Muslims

stateless, raising the prospect of huge detention camps. That sparked protests and riots that continue.

We CAAn… We CAAn’t…

However, since many non-BJP states have refused to implement NRC and CAA, Shah’s game plan will not work. Last

week, Modi attempted to back-pedal. He claimed that CAA was inclusive in fast-tracking refugees rather than

exclusionary. He said the Cabinet had never discussed an all-India NRC. Even Shah, who earlier shouted this from the

rooftops, has been obliged to back down, at least for now.

Hurrah! The realpolitik of state elections, the mass agitation by large sections of students and the citizenry, and the

consequent refusal of non-BJP states to implement any NRC has transformed the political landscape. That is great news.

Courtesy: The Economic Times (National)

1. Heyday (noun): Meaning: The period of a person's or thing's greatest success, popularity, activity, or vigour.

(सुनहरे दिन)

Synonyms: Prime, Zenith, Acme, Salad Days, Halcyon Days

Antonyms: Low Point, Nadir, The Pits

Example: In its heyday, the company ran trains every fifteen minutes.

2. Simultaneously (adverb): Meaning: In a way that is simultaneous (= happening or being done at exactly the

same time). (एक ही समय पर)

Synonyms: Concurrently, Concomitantly, At Once, In Concert

Antonyms: Singly, Seriatim, Individually, One By One

Example: He does many tasks simultaneously.

3. Coalition (Noun): Meaning: A temporary alliance for combined action, especially of political parties forming

a government. (गठबंधन)

Synonyms: Alliance, Merger, Confederation, Caucus, Consortium

Antonyms: Disassociation, Division, Parting, Separation

Example: Government by coalition has its own peculiar set of problems.

4. Translate into (phrasal verb): Meaning: To lead to (something) as a result. (पररणाम होना; में बिलना)

Synonyms: Result In, Effectuate, Beget, Effect Into

Antonyms: Prevent, Stop, Preclude, Impede

Example: Competition often translates into lower costs to the consumer.

5. Knave (noun): Meaning: A dishonest boy or man. (धूर्त)

Synonyms: Rogue, Scoundrel, Swindler, Picaroon

Antonyms: Innocent, Angle, Saint

Example: The Jacks are sometimes called Knaves.

6. Turf (verb): Meaning: Force (someone) to leave somewhere. (बाहर करना)

Synonyms: Expel, Dislodge, Oust, Evict, Eject

Antonyms: Welcome, House, Harbour, Shelter

Example: The families claim they are being turfed out of their homes.

7. Full-blooded (adjective): Meaning: Done with a lot of energy or in a complete way. (उत्साहयुक्त; पूणतर्या)

Synonyms: Vigorous, Hearty, Thoroughgoing, Out-And-Out

Antonyms: Half-Hearted, Lukewarm, Feeble, Listless

Example: The spectators showed full-blooded support for their countrymen.

8. Ordain (verb): Meaning: Order (something) officially. (आिेश िेना)

Synonyms: Decree, Rule, Pronounce, Adjudge

Antonyms: Propose, Suggest, Recommend, Advocate

Example: Equal punishment was ordained for the two crimes.

9. Consequent (adjective): Meaning: Following as a result or effect. (अनुगामी)

Synonyms: resulting, ensuing, consequential, subsequent

Antonyms: causal, starting

Example: Our use of harmful chemicals and the consequent damage to the environment is a very serious matter.

10. Fiasco (noun): Meaning: A complete failure, especially a ridiculous or humiliating one. (असफलर्ा)

Synonyms: Failure, Disaster, Debacle, Shambles, Ruination

Antonyms: Success, Accomplishment, Triumph, Feat

Example: The show was a fiasco - one actor forgot his lines and another fell off the stage.