Secret of Naveen’s Success: Demystifying the Survival Strategy
By Sabyasachi Amitav: CM Naveen Patnaik, who has managed to survive in power for 17 long years, becoming the longest-serving Chief Minister of the state, remains one of the biggest enigmas in Odisha Politics. He had taken over on March 5, 2000 and set to continue till May 2019. And, if he gets another term, it would be history!
What’s the secret behind Naveen’s success? Is it sheer luck, as his detractors claim? Or, is it a reward for hard work and good governance, as his fans and admirers would like us to believe?
Hardly anyone heard about Naveen Patnaik when he took over the newly formed Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in 1997. Yet, he led his party to massive victory in four successive assembly elections, almost decimated the Congress and BJP and vanquished all his powerful enemies like Bijoy Mohapatra, Nalini Mohanty, Pyari Mohapatra etc. He emerged as BJD’s vote catching mascot in Odisha.
Nobody talks about rampant corruption, appalling human development indices, malnutrition death of children, wastage of public funds, and luxurious lifestyle of ruling politicians and arrogance of ministers. Personal charges like Chit fund scandal and mines scam have failed to work against the incumbent CM.
If we look at the facts and figures, Naveen Patnaik is hugely popular in rural areas and among the urban poor. Indeed, he has emerged as the most popular Chief Minister in the State’s history. It’s not due to development, as spin doctors would like people to believe.
True, state budget has increased seven times, gross state domestic products has jumped by 400 per cent, agricultural growth rate is 18 per cent, electricity production has gone up to 29,147 MW and irrigation capacity has been increased from 8.5 lakh hectares to 43 lakh hectares. All these might have contributed to his success, but four major factors are responsible for his popularity, and consequent longevity.
First, he has changed BJD’s image from to a party of farmers and urban poor, making a dent in congress vote bank. He is also the first politician in Odisha to impress upon the women through his popular schemes like ‘Mamata’ and ‘Biju Kanya Ratna’, providing them 35 per cent reservation in government jobs and 50 per cent in local bodies.
The second factor is his populist policies like farm loan at 2 per cent interest. The distressed farmers love him because of his decision to purchase onion directly from them. The archetypal politician is never wary of making announcements. Chief Secretaries are at their wits end keeping track of all the promises made by him and try to fulfill those even to some extent.
His clean image and ability to relate to the masses has been another major factor that works in his favour always. Being from an elite Doon School background, he faces criticism for his lack of knowledge in Odia, but his humility makes him just a face in the crowd. He knows how to turn a weakness into strength.
One of the biggest strengths of Naveen Patnaik, is not to allow the Opposition get better of him in the state. While he wholeheartedly supports populist schemes and development initiatives of the Centre to make his point, he also dares to up the ante and take on the centre when it comes to Odisha’s interest. Whether it’s fuel price hike, MSP of paddy, Mahanadi or Polavaram, Naveen never hesitates to fight back, thus projecting himself as a person who is always concerned and worried about Odisha’s pride and dignity. Nobody can beat him when it comes to engineering large scale defections in BJD’s favour. Apparently, both BJP and Congress have a reason to worry about as long as Naveen Patnaik remains at the helm of affairs.
(Sabyasachi Amitav is Journalist, based in Bhubaneswar. He can be contacted at 9438296519 or can be reached at his Twitter Handle: @tvjournoamitav)