25 February 2014

Emergence of Aam Aadmi Party

by Chanchal Chauhan

The Party system with Parliamentary democracy emerged with the birth of new modern classes after the fall of monarchies and with the development of capitalism in various countries of the world. The European countries were the first in the advancement of learning that developed new tools of production after amassing wealth in the era of mercantile capitalism and established modern industry, modern way of life and modern education. India began this process late in the colonial era itself when she also established modern factory system, modern press and modern education in the last phase of the 19^th century. The Indian National Congress was organised in 1885, thus the seed of the modern Party system was sown on the Indian soil also. Later on, other Parties too were born to represent the interests of various strata of society.

The scientific analysis of social changes reveals that the development of tools of production and the ownership of those tools are the basic factors that lead to various changes in the social system. The system of monarchies fell with the rise of modern factory system and capitalist ownership of those new tools led to a social change in every field of life. So the parliamentary democracy along with Party system is also the product of capitalist system in all the countries. The French revolution of 1789 did away with the old rotten system of the monarchy and established capitalist democratic system. The same process followed in other countries with the passage of time. Our dear neighbour, Nepal is undergoing the similar change now and waiting for capitalist system to be well-entrenched in the near future, even if the parliament there may be dominated by small coterie of capitalists in the form of the Nepali Congress or the Nepali communists of various shades.

 If we look at the history of the Party system, we may recognise the class base of the political parties of various societies. The classes that dominate the new tools of production also dominate the Parties they form for their own profit. As opposed to their evil designs of exploitation of man by man, the working class also forms its own political structure known as the Communist Party in all those countries where the capitalist system emerges with the development of new tools and technology for mass production and sale in the modern market for earning huge profits.

 In the epoch of imperialist phase of capitalism, the different political parties had their different class base, such as the Party of the indigenous capitalist class, the working class and parties supporting old rotten feudal class and also collaborating with the imperialism in various countries. The basic clash has been between the capitalists and the revolutionary working class every where in the past. India was no exception.

 The world capitalism today has undergone a big change, it has become a system enveloping the whole globe, converting it a global village with the dominance of international finance capital. The IMF and the World Bank are the key players in the hegemony of capitalist system every where. India too is in the grip of the same system governed by the international finance capital as many countries of the globe that are following the economic policies of globalisation and liberalisation to suit the interests of the international finance capital. The glaring example of this process can be seen in the fact that in our country too the key positions of economic affairs are all held by the ex-officials of the World Bank.

 Before the dominance of international finance capital the political organisations were guided (and financed) by mainly two warring classes, i.e. capitalists and workers that were known as ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ in common parleys. After the emergence of the international finance capital a new class known as neo-rich also came into existence in huge numbers in all the countries that became the modern consumers of mass production of commodities produced by fast growing technology owned by capitalists world over. This new class is now very big in size and it has its aspirations too. Earlier this class when it was not big enough to nurture any ambition to be on the centre-stage  was indiffefent to politics and only  few of them could side with either labouring masses or with ruling elite.  

Beginning with 1992, the inflow of finance capital provided this class with financial help in the form of loans and raised hopes in it for better future. When the capitalist system entered in the new cycle of crisis in 2008, it began to eat into the income of the middle class also every where on the globe. Of late, the enraged middle class in all the countries began to revolt against the same exploiting class that created it in such a big size as mass consumers. So this class raised the slogan, ‘Occupy the Wall Street’. This class began to organise people against the regime in Egypt. Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal representing the same class interests got similar response in India; the same revolt can be witnessed now going on in Thailand, Ukraine and many other countries against regimes of the exploiting classes that are pursuing neo-liberal economic policies dictated by the international finance capital.

This new phenomenon has not been analysed by the social scientists, surprisingly not even by the Marxists who have always been quick in looking at the essence of events happening any where on the globe. The rise of the new outfit, Aam Aadami Party in India has been caused by this realisation that this class also can serve its interests by organising itself in the similar garb as the capitalist class once did it during the era of the French revolution. It talks of ‘Aam Aadami’ (common man) as this class also knows that it cannot achieve its goal without attracting the poor masses on its side. (The opening scene of Shakespeare’s famous play, Julius Caesar, tells this truth dramatically and enacted by every Party every where.) So the new outfit raised the hopes of the poor by assuring ‘free water’, ‘free electricity’, ‘ mass participation’ in governance and , of course, clean administration without traces of any corruption at official levels. The common masses feel happy with such a new political structure and are attracted to it in a big way.

In the recent past the middle class was in the grip of post-modernist philosophy of remaining apolitical, the political philosophy still followed by Anna Hazare and some of his followers. When his followers were chided, ‘Join politics, fight elections, and win majority in Parliament and then pass your Jan Lokpal Bill, or follow the dictum of the existing Parliament and the Party that owns majority.’ This challenge angered a section of the followers of Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal decided to lead that section of the movement and wished to show the exit to those who, according to him, are ‘corrupt’ and responsible for breeding corruption at all levels. He was supported by the corporate media till he was spreading cynicism, but when he began to challenge the ‘crony capitalism’ and filed FIR against the most powerful monopoly house that is exploiting Delhi consumers, the media too took a U-turn and the Political parties that depended on the support of monopoly houses managed to topple his weakling regime and now bitterly criticising AAP every day and trying to tarnish its image by posters, demonstrations, and rumour mongering, particularly by outfits dominated by the RSS as they smell danger in the strong wave created by the AAP that may undo the dream of Hindu Rashtra. Let us watch and see.