A is for AAP
That stripped the BJP of its halo and showed up its Lok Sabha victory as a flash in the pan
A is also for Agrarian Distress
That is the chief outcome of One Year of Modi: agri growth is down now to under one per cent
B is for Black Money
That Modi promised to bring back at Rs.15 lakh a head, but which languishes still in foreign banks while domestic black swells and swells
B is also for Budgets cuts
That Modi's government has savagely imposed on social sectors like Health, Education, MNREGA and Child Nutrition
B is finally for Banks
Or perhaps "bankruptcy", since Non-Performing Assets have reached the highest point ever but credit off-take lags far behind alleged GDP growth
C is for Chai-wallah
That Modi never was; he helped out in a canteen at the State Transport Depot taken on contract by his family
D is for Development
Of the Gujarat kind, which means fattening the fat cat by grabbing land from innocent mice
D is also for Dignity, Decorum, and Decency
That Modi throws to the winds every time he addresses NRIs abroad
E is for Environment
That is being ruthlessly wrecked with clearances fast-tracked without a care for the consequences
E is also for Exports
That continue to plummet, dragging the Rupee down to depths not plumbed before
F is for FDI
That Modi hopes will bail him out, but which fights shy, seeking action not slogans
F is also for Ford Foundation
That Modi is hounding, little honouring its huge contribution to the consolidation of Development and Democracy in our land
G is for Godhra
And all that followed, which Modi wants us to forget but which the nation cannot
G is also for Ghar Wapsi
That discredits Modi and calls into question his protestations
G is finally for Greenpeace
That Modi is going after for having the temerity to question him and his policies
H is for Hindutva
Modi's badge of pride, even if it alarms all those who believe in the Idea of India
I is for Industrialists
The heartless crowd that within a year has turned on Modi
I is also for Indian Council of Historical Research
That is headed by a pracharak and is being packed with mythologists, not historians
J is for Jayalalithaa
That elusive will o' the wisp, who keeps Modi dangling in despairing hope
K is for Kisan
Whose very existence is being snuffed out because Modi considers them a nuisance and a roadblock to growth
L is for Land
That Modi wants to acquire with both hands to pass on to his "suited-booted" cronies
M is for Minorities
That Modi has ceaselessly failed to protect
M is also for Manufacturing
That adamantly refuses to pick up despite Modi's pleadings
N is for Nagpur
That dictates the BJP's every move
O is for Ordinances
That Modi spews like a fountain
P is for Panchayats
That Modi grossly neglects
P is for Parliament
That Modi is also grossly neglecting
Q is for Questions
That hang over Modi's acche din - aakhir, hain kahan?
R is for RSS
That rules the roost
R is also for Rafale
That has killed "Make in India"
S is for Swachch Bharat
That has left us as filthy as before
T is for Talkathons
That Modi loves treating himself to, forgetting the Gita's injunction that action is his duty
U is for Ubiquitous
That means Modi being everywhere
U is also for Universities
Left headless while Modi's government seeks saffron ideologues to fill the vacancies
V is for Voter
Duped and abandoned
W is for Wife
Whose RTI petition is callously thrown in the dustbin
X is for Xmas
That Modi has obliterated as a holiday (also, see point M on Minorities)
Y is for YOU
You poor misled citizen
Z is for Zero
The mark awarded to One Year of Modi
Mani Shankar Aiyar's Achhe Din? Ha! Ha!! - a compilation of his weekly blogs for NDTV.com - will be available later this week in all leading bookstores. Or visit
www.palimpsest.co.in(Mani Shankar Aiyar is a Congress MP in the Rajya Sabha.)Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.