Kejriwal, Mamata, Narayanaswamy: Many CMs went on strike, but only one got it right
When a CM strikes, there has to be a cause. A cast. And a carefully managed plot.
There was a surgical strike. There was Arvind Kejriwal’s strike (okay, there were several by him, he really likes to go on strike). There was the recent big show by the big Didi of every protester-politician, Mamata Banerjee. The latest of our CMs struck by the strike epidemic is V Narayanaswamy, Chief Minister of Puducherry.
While these strikes by CMs are not likely to have an Uri made on them, their josh is still quite high.
So here’s a review of the recent dharnas by chief ministers, and our verdict on who did them best.
V Narayanaswamy
On February 13, Narayanaswamy, along with several of his ministers, camped outside the Union territory’s Raj Nivas, to protest against Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi. The Congress leader and his team spent the night on the roads, and were very much on the spot while this article was being written.
Day 2, HCM @VNarayanasami , Hon'ble Ministers, MLAs, & other leaders continues the Dharna in front of Raj Nivas against the undemocratic acts & unlawful ways of @LGov_Puducherry @thekiranbedi at #puducherry .@rashtrapatibhvn @PMOIndia @HMOIndia @PTI_News pic.twitter.com/sOod7AoS4l
— CMO Puducherry (@CMPuducherry) February 14, 2019
The protesters have done costumes well — the CM in all-black, others with black towels around their necks. They have also managed to get in cross-party participation, with DMK MLAs sitting beside them. Although over-enthusiasm led to an apparent faux pas here — the Assembly speaker, supposed to be neutral, joined them too — and the CM had to do some damage control.
Where Narayanaswamy has slipped up is narrative management.
The immediate trigger for the protest is that Bedi wants bikers to wear helmets — a cause rather above reproach. The CM has other issues with the Lieutenant Governor — she is apparently holding up proposals of a free rice scheme, grants to privately educational institutes and several welfare schemes for backward castes.
In fact, the CM has been quoted as saying he is against the “continued rejection of government proposals to ameliorate the lot of the poor and have-nots”.
This should have been the headline, Mr CM! Not helmets.
So, optics: Good. Star cast: Good. Plot: Bad.
Score: 3 out of 5.
Arvind Kejriwal
Kejriwal ji has been part of so many strikes, sit-ins, stand-ups that we were spoilt for choice. We chose to focus on the June 2018 episode, where Kejriwal and his ministers sat on strike at Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s office, blessing the Internet with meme gold.
During engineering,Pic 1: How we planned to study one night before the exam.Pic2: How we actually ended up pic.twitter.com/WHGp1CStcR
— Aditya Tiwari (@adt007ad) June 11, 2018
Kejriwal has always been upset about the LG’s ‘undue interference’ in the functioning of the Delhi government — but this strike was special. The CM went on strike because he wanted the LG to persuade bureaucrats to end their strike, who were saying they were not on strike.
While the plot is pure Rohit Shetty, the movie was absolute Ashutosh Gowarikar — much too long, lasting for nine days.
There’s a thin line between drama and melodrama. Kejriwal crossed it with his cabinet in tow.
Optics: Hilarious. Star cast: Repetitive. Plot: Bizarre.
Score: 2.5 out of 5.
Mamata Banerjee
If dharnas have a Dharma Productions, Mamata Banerjee owns it.
Her recent show in Kolkata saw leaders from other states flying in, grand speeches and slogans, reverberations in Parliament and the Supreme Court.
Over three action-packed days, Mamata made the fight directly between the PM and herself, with other Opposition leaders playing supporting cast.
Only, her cause was rather dodgy.
Mamata raised fire and brimstone, proclaimed federalism, Constitution, democracy itself in danger, all apparently because the CBI wanted to interrogate Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar in the Saradha chit fund scam — not a wildly unreasonable request, as many surmised.
Optics: Grand. Cast: Glittery. Plot: Mildly shaky.
Score: 4 out of 5.
Final verdict: When it comes to street-style protests, only Mamata has khomota.