India, July 7 -- The American people - who were startled by the rise of Zohran Mamdani, the Democrat candidate for the post of New York mayor - are now seeing an even bigger and spicier political potboiler. The world's richest person, Elon Musk, has just announced a new political outfit, the America Party. Not too long ago, Musk was considered by most to be the staunchest ally of American President Donald Trump, who is a member of the Republican Party. Indeed, Musk was made the chief of the infamous department of government efficiency (DOGE) within days of Trump entering the Oval Office. The department had been created to pare down "inefficient" government expenditure, and Musk ruthlessly fired many government functionaries in the name of reducing such "inefficiency." A raft of schemes and many departments that were long considered as being foundational to the US's democracy faced Musk's axe. He wanted to drive the government like a corporate entity. At this point, he ran into opposition from vice-president JD Vance and other influential people. The clash ended with his unceremonious removal from DOGE. Since then, both Trump and Musk have publicly threatened each other. Musk alleged that Trump was named in the Epstein sex trafficking case files in a post on X.com, the short-messaging platform he owns. He later deleted the post, but not before he had enraged President Trump, who shot back with a threat to deport him. Being a beneficiary of government subsidies and doles, Musk knows that his ambitions can only see the light of day by being on the right side of government and not taking an adversarial position. This is the reason he has launched his own political party. He feels that most Americans are tired of the system and are yearning for a new dawn. However, the question is, will he succeed? Especially at a time when Mamdani, who identifies as a democratic socialist, is gaining political ground on the streets of New York. He has accumulated political support at the pace at which Musk amassed his phenomenal wealth. Mamdani won the Democratic Party primaries for the New York mayoral poll. He will create history if he wins that election, scheduled for November. He would be the first Muslim mayor of the city. He became a US citizen in 2018, married a Syrian Muslim, and his mother, Mira Nair, is a celebrated Indian-origin filmmaker. His father is Mahmood Mamdani, an Ugandan left-wing intellectual of Gujarati origin, who has taught at Columbia University. Mamdani's views and stated principles set him apart from the rest of his peers. At times, he becomes so aggressive that his colleagues in the Democratic Party rush to air their suspicion of his so-called extreme approach. But Mamdani doesn't seem too bothered. During his campaign, Mamdani connected with the large immigrant population in the US, something that was unheard of in the country's elections until recently. He promised free bus rides, and he told people he would freeze metro fares as soon as he won elections. He promised construction of low-cost housing, fixing rents for residential properties, and the creation of free childcare centres throughout the city. He wants to create government-run grocery shops and supermarkets to keep essentials affordable. According to certain estimates, the average New Yorker spends 9-12% of their income on groceries and essential items. During the last decade, this expenditure has witnessed a 50% increase. Mamdani also wishes to levy higher taxes on the rich. India has witnessed this brand of politics for decades; we are also the ones who established that there are severe limitations to such politics. To win elections, leaders need to strike a balance while playing the populism harp. An astute political science student can compare the performance of regional and national parties. In contrast to India, communist countries like China and Vietnam have created their unique economic models where there is equal opportunity to work with State-sponsored enterprises or pursue private entrepreneurship. Was it their success that has led many in the US, especially the millennials, to express low faith in capitalism? They felt their democracy has been hijacked by the oligarchs. Against such a backdrop, the triangular tussle between the richest man on the planet, a democratic socialist, and the established political order promises to create history. People who understand the American system know that the country became great when people from varied backgrounds and ideologies got the same opportunity to live and thrive, in harmony. With the rise of the right wing, it seemed that this space was shrinking. But Mamdani's rise and the civil society's rear-guard actions have once again brought the US to a point where it is still considered a democratic ideal despite being a global hegemon. In the past, too, during the 1960s and 1970s, when the US was involved in the Vietnam War, it saw the rise of the anti-war movement, anarchy, a string of Nobel prizes, development and spread of its ideas in the so-called Third World, and the Cold War with the Soviet Union. The naysayers may insist that times never remain the same. Situations change, altering the operating premise as well as space for even the most powerful. Today, China and the Global South are challenging the US domination in completely different ways. The world order crafted by the US and West European nations at the end of World War II has started to unravel. The same order that made wars a distant memory has led to their revival. This is the reason scholars are talking of a tectonic shift in the systems laid down by West-backed capitalism and US neo-imperialism. Rising geopolitical constraints are deepening such apprehensions. Have we unwittingly reached a crossroads that is leading towards a systemic change?...