The main fallout of caste-based reservation has been, therefore, fragmentation of politics into caste-based parties fighting for crumbs of a small cake. This has created many leaders who rely on their caste-based loyalists to wield political clout. Most analysts would describe these leaders as the biggest beneficiaries of caste-based reservation. The analysts may be wrong. Caste-based and community-based leaders are in actual fact small fry, fairly easy to manipulate. Consider the overall political context in which these leaders function.
Two glaring aspects of the current electoral scene are the proliferation of political outfits based on caste or community, and the inordinately high cost of maintaining these outfits. Add to these the high and rising cost of electioneering. In this scenario corruption grows, the number of parties grows, and the absolute reliance on money to sustain political cadres grows. So, who is the biggest beneficiary of these conditions?
On any sober reckoning the biggest beneficiaries would seem the big, corrupt eco-political mafia and its global partners. The crucial role of money and the fragmentation of the polity give this class virtual freedom to manipulate politics. The absence of ideology and policy among parties, with their survival directly or indirectly based on corrupt deals and funding, facilitates the making and breaking of political alliances. Recall how BSP and SP allied to win power and how they split to become bitter foes. Recall the ease with which BJP’s Kalyan Singh, the destroyer of Babri Masjid, defected to Mulayam Singh. And recall also the ease with which the BJP welcomed him back with open arms. Recall how Karunanidhi allied with the BJP, then with the Congress. Recall how Mamata Bannerji allied with BJP, then broke away, and now quite possibly is inching towards the Congress. Recall how Jayalalithaa was with Rajiv Gandhi, later with Vajpayee. Examples are endless. Power hungry politicians bereft of principles and policies, operating in a badly fragmented polity, provide the easiest pickings for this mafia.
The eco-political mafia therefore is the biggest beneficiary of caste-based reservation. It is the master that can install or destroy governments, can make or break political alliances. One might ask: but can politicians be influenced by this corporate class? To determine this, consider theSamajwadi Party (SP) which swears by Dr Lohia and is directed by Amar Singh. Even Mulayam Singh would not dispute Amar Singh’s phenomenal access to big business, with a reach that extends to the world’s richest as listed byForbes. Or consider Laloo Yadav. Ignore the cases of corruption and disproportionate assets against him. These days he talks more about IPL cricket than about rural development. Or consider Mayawati, whose much-talked about obsession with personal wealth and property reflects big business aspirations rather than help and backing for poor Dalits. Or consider the BJP, in which many leaders, after assuming power, have transformed their lifestyles beyond recognition from their Spartan origins in the RSS. Congress leaders one need not consider. They have the longest record that attests to their orientation.
On any sober reckoning, then, caste-based reservation has helped the eco-political mafiathe most to achieve a total stranglehold on India's politics. Let politicians make any claims. Thanks to political fragmentation caused by reservation, dubious businessmen call the shots.