Politicians play with words. For, they have a game to win which is election or struggle for power. One day they can condemn a person. The following day they can shake hands with him or her. There are examples galore around us. Why should they do it? On the face of it a query like this may appear to be simplistic. Anyone raising it runs the risk of being laughed at. This is an age when even in the land of Mahatma Gandhi the person holding the centre stage is Machiavelli. The Italian thinker has taught us that everything is fair in politics and the ends justify the means. Loyalty to an ideology or a person is fickle. The main goal of politicians is to wrest power and build vote citadels for the purpose.

It was doubtful whether the listeners could follow a word of all that Lieutenant Mirza Afzal Baig  uttered in English illiteracy then was rampant and television which is a beneficial source of acquaintance with multiplicity of languages conspicuous by its absence. It did not seem to be Baig’s aim either to communicate to them. While giving vent to his bitter sentiments in English he would invariably turn his face towards media persons. Baig is not the solitary example of politicians playing games that remind us of an Urdu couplet: ‘Kuch aise bhi manzar hain, tarikh ki nazron mein, lamho ne khata ki, sadiyon ne sazapayee’ meaning history has many instances in which a moment’s mistake leads to sufferings for centuries.

At this juncture the words are again flowing thick and fast on our political spectrum. After all these are the only tools through which politicians make themselves heard. Former Chief Minister Ghulam NabiAzad has made one of his most hard-hitting speeches recently. He has wondered why there should have been fuss over a non-issue like the allotment of land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board when such allotments are made every day for schools and roads. Were these reasons not enough for him to have stood his ground and stuck to his decision of allotting land to the SASB? He could have neither raised nor answered this question in his emotional charged mood. Clearly he has decided to lead the Congress rally in the face of currently adverse popular mood in the Jammu region.

In Srinagar any National Conference (NC) has finally put his foot down. Earlier there was a political incongruity with the NC swimming along with the extremists on the issue of land allotment. The NC’s survival and strength hinge on how effectively it can underline the distinction with fundamentalists in the Valley in particular. Politicians has minced no words while saying that he would not be browbeaten by anybody's threats and accusations as many of those calling for Azadi and Pakistan were hand in glove with the Government of India. They will strive to persuade people to stay away from polling booths. The former does not believe in making compromises. The latter has been innovative from time to time and, as a result, has been considered more realistic. How will their new alliance function? Can it be formed without causing ripples in their respective camps and sorting out the original bone of contention that has genesis in the 2002 polls? We will like to keep our fingers crossed by listening to words they say.