Friendship within the political field can be seen as one marked by strategy, survival, and self-interest. But, history and the Indian politics of recent times also teach us that beyond the scenes of power games and policy making, there are human relationships; more often than not of loyalty, trust, and then, as it turns out, at least quite sometimes, also of unexpected affection. With this Friendship Day, we take no sides and no party lines, or power games, in looking through the lenses of friendship and the friendship that has made Indian politics strong, sometimes uneasy, but always meaningful.
PM Narendra Modi And Amit Shah
Top of the list is the mighty combination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah. They started their comradeship at the political pressure cooker of Gujarat and it blossomed into a national alliance. The uncannily unswerving belief and undetermined quiet coordination that have transformed the electoral machine of the BJP should, in customary occasion, have been called friendship born of fire between Modi, the leader, and Shah, the strategist.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee And L.K. Advani
Another good illustration can be seen in history with Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L.K. Advani. Together they were able to figure out ideological transformations of the BJP one being the poet-statesman and the other the disciplined ideologue. This friendship paved the way to the emergence of the party, and it also showed that friendship which is based on mutual respect made possible to withstand political turmoil.
Rahul Gandhi And Jyotiraditya Scindia
Not every political friendship has a good ending. Rahul Gandhi and Jyotiraditya Scindia were once regarded as the modern face of the Congress as they are articulate, educated and a reformist party. They were friends, of a personal and of a political order, and for ambition and disappointment parted. The defection by Scindia to join the BJP in 2020 was not just a political front-page event, but also it was the termination of a very personal arithmetic.
Some Friendships That Changed The Political Landscape
Other bonds are stable through the changing sands of the political landscape. Examples of longstanding loyalties and relationship with a shared history to the extent of friendship are between Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel, M.K. Stalin and Udhayanidhi Stalin, and Sonia Gandhi with the late Ahmed Patel. Just as Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia have remained close friends of AAP core character, legal battles against them strain its strength.
Some of the friendships across party lines are also there. Bihar saw a similar relationship between Nitish Kumar and Sushil Modi, both of whom headed different parties even though JD(U) and BJP were co-joined forces in the state.
Mamata Banerjee And Derek O’Brien
Mamata Banerjee and Derek O’Brien have proven that personal trust can become a good political collaboration. Even though it may seem slightly more on the national scale as Derek extends the voice of Mamata to all of India, this friendship is a great example of functional synergy.
In a world where the political alliances or partnerships change overnight or there are betrayals which often make news headlines, these friendships are today considered rare constants. They are there to remind us that even in a realm of competition and antagonism such as the realm of politics, friendship and empathy bind people together, and are important.
What about Friendship Day this year when we commemorate what happens in school and office, can we not dwell on the friendships made in the halls of power- parliament, cabinet and campaign? These handshake governance so often dictate the decision-making, develop public policy, as well as, influence the direction of our democracy in furtive manner.
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