For reforms, laying groundwork is key

While it is possible the opposition to such reforms was inevitable, it is also possible that their intensity might have been diminished through a consultative process involving all stakeholders

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comment in Bengaluru — “Several decisions and reforms may be unpleasant temporarily, but with time their benefits can be experienced by the country” — may have been made without specific context, but is espec-ially relevant because it comes against the backdrop of widespread and violent protests against the Agnipath scheme for induction of soldiers into the armed forces.

Irrespective of the merits of the scheme, the concerns over it, the demands of the protesters, or the presence of political and commercial forces behind the agitation — the administration’s response has focused on all four — it is difficult to ignore the fact that this is the third big reform by the Modi-led government to face serious opposition. (PTI)

Irrespective of the merits of the scheme, the concerns over it, the demands of the protesters, or the presence of political and commercial forces behind the agitation — the administration’s response has focused on all four — it is difficult to ignore the fact that this is the third big reform by the Modi-led government to face serious opposition. The government expended political equity on the first two — the land reforms bill in its first term and the farm reforms bill in its second — before giving up despite there being enough reasons (including strong economic ones) to persist with the reforms. The issues that these two aborted reforms set out to address remain, and are likely to have a detrimental impact on the Indian economy.

While it is possible the opposition to such reforms was inevitable, it is also possible that their intensity might have been diminished through a consultative process involving all stakeholders, an elaborate detailing of the contours of the reforms (especially of the sort that has come after the protests in the case of the Agnipath scheme), and better communication. When it comes to the adoption of radical reforms, good intentions and a majority in Parliament may not necessarily translate into instant and universal acceptance. It is up to the government to bridge this gap, even as it maintains its resolve to push ahead.