Why Akhilesh reminds you of a young, progressive Pawar

by Abhay Vaidya Thirty-eight years old Akhilesh Yadav is the new face of Uttar Pradesh and there is hope and expectation all around. He reminds you of  a story that unfolded in Maharashtra 34 years ago when Sharad Pawar became the state’s youngest chief minister for the first time at 38. Young and educated with a Master’s degree in environmental engineering from Sydney University, Akhilesh holds the promise of ushering in a new culture of politics in Uttar Pradesh. He is charismatic, has a mass appeal and the mandate to bring change. His rhetoric has an accent on development and good governance which bodes well. What is to be seen is the extent to which he will be able to translate his words into action. [caption id=“attachment_240107” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“A rare picture of a young Sharad Pawar & Indira Gandhi. Photo: Shyam Shinde, Baramati.”] [/caption] Akhilesh, with his speech and body language comes across as someone with a progressive mindset. He changed the image of the caste-and-religion fixated Samajwadi Party by talking development, helping it shed the anti-English image and promising laptops and tablets to students. He denied tickets to candidates with a criminal background and assured that he would not demolish the gigantic statues of Mayawati and Kanshi Ram but put the grandiose memorials to some productive use “such as public hospitals”. Sharad Pawar who studied at Pune’s Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce showed the promise of leadership when quite young and was groomed by his mentor Yashwantrao Chavan, the first chief minister of Maharashtra. Immensely charismatic throughout his early years and right till the time when he was chief minister for four terms, Pawar’s charisma began eroding in later years as he became controversial. This was due to allegations of involvement in mega deals such as the wheat import scam, nexus with Shahid Balwa’s DB Realty, the Lavasa project and the IPL bidding controversy, among others. Throughout his political career, few in Maharashtra have matched Pawar in his mass appeal, Balasaheb Thackeray being one of them. Pawar as chief minister had two distinct qualities to his credit. Unlike the prevailing parochial political culture where politicians  failed to focus on the larger picture, Pawar was seen as someone with a progressive streak and forward-looking. His other strong attribute was his grip over administrative matters, leading to his reputation as a good administrator. Pawar showed considerable interest in education, social welfare and policies for women. In the 1980s, he was fascinated by drip irrigation in Israel and took many steps to promote it in Maharashtra. He tried to use modern technology for development and took many initiatives in sugar production at Pune’s Vasantdada Sugar Institute. His annual World Bank-assisted Baramati Initiatives to use the internet to bridge digital divide was another example of his attempts to promote development through technology. Much of this drive was lost when in the late 1990s, Pawar decided that he had outgrown as chief minister and had a larger political role to play in Delhi. Kept under check in the Congress, which frustrated his attempts to become prime minister, Pawar eventually broke out to form the NCP. As chief minister, Akhilesh Yadav stands in untested waters and has numerous challenges waiting for him as he takes reins of one of the foremost BIMARU states in the country. Uttar Pradesh is in need of a leader who can arouse hope in the people and guide it on the path of development, as has happened in neighbouring Bihar. The state needs stability through law and order and a responsive administration. Perhaps, Akhilesh Yadav’s leadership will mark the watershed moment that UP has been waiting for.