Governing by Arrogance and Fear

Karan Kharb

Anti-corruption rallies of Anna Hazare and Swami Ramdev will be remembered as watershed of democratic mass movements in India.  Masses rallied behind them to fight political corruption at the top levels. Both rallies drew large number of people from all over the country.  Both set examples of natural leadership and remarkable public sense of responsibility, self-discipline and restraint – a virtue never seen in mobs herded by our politicians to project their dubious popularity. While these off-beat rallies inspired confidence and kindled hope among the masses, they stunned the political class and made the Government bend and soften under the growing public aversion against its callous and corrupt governance. The stubborn official attitude against the unassuming novices in political game – an ex-soldier and a Yoga Guru, both with no apparent political prowess – lay shattered sooner than expected.  The pig-headed stance of the Government against ‘Jan Lokpal Bill’ caved in unbelievably soon sending the high and mighty in the Government scrambling to sit in the Joint Drafting Committee with the very people (Team Anna) they had scornfully derided only a day earlier. In the case of Baba Ramdev, the top guns of the Government lay prostrate in royal salute to the Baba imploring him to be friends with the Government even before he reached the Ramlila ground.  Neither strategy worked though!

The enactment of the drama, however, had a purpose. While everything was stage-managed to project Government’s sincerity, the behind the scene strategy was to cheat and betray. The Lokpal Bill is perhaps the oldest and most debated legislation having been taken up 13-14 times before being lost in the parliamentary din every time over the last 43 years or more. Irony is that it is struck despite universal public desire and in-principle agreement of all political parties on the desirability of an institution called Lokpal.  Yet, it is no longer a secret that every political party has devised strategies to block its passage without being visible in doing so.

Round Two of the Satyagraha was to reveal another facet of the political posturing.  The frantic responsiveness of the Government on earlier occasions when it hurriedly went into a huddle with Team Anna and the royal reception extended to the Baba had faced sharp in-house criticism within the Government.  Government’s legal eagle, Kapil Sibal is said to have reviewed the situation retrospectively and cajoled the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi into a studied complacence.  “Why are you bothered about the teeming masses at Ramlila ground, Jantar Mantar or India Gate?” he is said to have told the duo.  “Why do you panic? For what? What went wrong in the 13-14 days they held a mela at the Ramlila ground? Every year teeming thousands congregate for Ramlila as it is. Let’s ignore it and relax. Our silence will tire them and the Government can easily afford such a stance because they are non-violent and there is no damage to life or property…..” He reassured them and their faces gleamed with a new-found cheer and confidence instantly. The way Government handled Round 2 of the two Satyagrahas against official corruption and the black money stashed abroad has only proved this shrewd advisor right! The Government ignored the peaceful congregations and the Movement seemed to fizzle out. 

Consequently, the political Establishment have found their comfort zone.  No revelations, no sting operations, no investigations move them anymore. If anything, the setback to the Movement has left the politicians more stubborn and revengeful.  Salman Khurshid, the Law Minister of world’s largest Democracy, had the audacity to challenge a peace loving law abiding Arvind Kejriwal that if he ever went to Farrukhabad (the minister’s constituency), he would not return alive. In a Rule of Law, he would have been sacked and put behind the bars. In India, not only has he got away with his villainous outburst but has been soon rewarded with a promotion as Foreign Affairs Minister.

Thanks to the shrewd, cunning advice tendered by his most trusted legal brain, the Prime Minister has never cared to respond to serious questions – be they from the CAG, Kejriwal or Subramanyam Swamy Opposition. No previous Government had come under so persistent attacks not only from the Opposition or who could be dismissed as detractors, but more significantly from the CAG, country’s highest audit authority and even the Judiciary.  Yet, the sphinx like stubborn silence of Sonia Gandhi, the UPA Chairperson and the PM are indicative of how corruption and callousness flow from the top. The Home Minister laughs away the Coalgate scandal as if it were just a pebble. The Finance Minister says since the coal is not yet excavated from ‘Mother Earth’s womb the allegation of financial loss to state is baseless.’ It like granting innocence to a thief caught with stolen wealth under the plea that he was yet to gain from it by pawning or selling it in the market. Ever heard a more preposterous argument?

An honest, efficient and conscientious IAS officer who raised logical queries on the devious land deal between DLF and Robert Vadra was punished instantly for not letting an illegal, corrupt deal pass through. Rules, regulations, ethics and probity – all have been put to sleep. While Robert Vadra is never heard, Governments at the Centre and State go into frenzy defending the ‘private citizen’. In contrast to this, girls are raped and killed almost daily in Haryana, and instead of coming to their rescue, we have party spokesmen passing disparaging remarks like ‘most of these girls want to be raped… (sic)’. Street smart hooligans and goondas owing allegiance to political parties gather and raid peaceful meetings hurling abuses, stones and shoes to disrupt peaceful protest meetings. It is learnt that videos of such misconduct are forwarded as credentials of ‘loyalty’ to the senior party office bearers where they are fondly played and improvements suggested for rowdier shows in the future.  This explains why rapists and miscreants are left either untraced or released soon if taken into police custody despite their blatant criminal conduct.   

The political class is snoring even as people at large are seething with rage against systemic collapse and reckless apathy in all government offices and departments.  Here are some useful tips to survive and thrive in modern India:

·          If you wish to get rid of someone forever without being suspected for his murder, send him to a government hospital and wait until his family gets a call from the mortuary.

·           If you want to replace education with cunning and cookery, send your child to a government school. 

·          If your house is burgled, don’t rush to the police station; seek help from the bootlegger who delivers scotch whisky to the DCP’s house every week.

·          If you have applied for a plot of flat in DDA, HUDA, MHADA or any other government scheme and expect your name to figure among the successful, you are choosing to run against the luck. You must invest in luck through touts to get you your choice – if only at a price of course!  

·          You must be dumb if you thought only brilliance mattered for success in Judicial Services, Civil Services, Railways or any other lucrative government job. The rates at last count ranged between Rs 1 Crore to 35 lakhs.

·          Party tickets are, of course, always earned through competitive bidding unless you hail from the 'Family' or had earlier anchored your loyalty with the ‘High Command’. 

·          If you are a minister, MP, MLA or a government officer, never bother about complaints against you.  At best, you would be transferred or suspended only for a while to silence the media and the complainant.  You would be rehabilitated with more rewards in due course. Didn’t Shashi Tharoor come back?  Who dares ask why he was removed in the first case and what brings him back?

·          If you do not earn enough to save, start accumulating through smart acts – develop soft skills to ‘please the right people and fleece the rest’.

This fizzling out of the anti-government campaign has come as a shot in the arm for the political class. Rather than fortifying themselves as a united People’s Movement, the crusaders drifted falling apart.  Earlier, when Congress was their only target, the crusaders had at least the vocal support of the BJP and others in the Opposition. Arvind’s all-out onslaught against Congress, BJP and all political parties, scared them so much that they have all polarised against his tirade. Arvind and Prashant Bhushan are men of exemplary courage and honesty possessing sterling qualities of character and integrity. Their other colleagues also must be similarly charged and inspired. These great qualities drive them to be always transparent, truthful and ethically fair and upright.  This high moral strength is their weakness too because they are waging a war against the immoral forces of corruption for whom it’s no holds barred. Lord Krishna in Mahabharat unhesitatingly employed intrigue, ambush, surprise and deception as tools of war to hit and weaken the enemy on every front. And these techniques are taught today in all military academies all over the world as principles of war. Political fighting is more sinister than conventional military warfare. Arvind’s Aam Admi, therefore, will have to acquire more armour, armament and supporting forces to fight the forces he has unified and strengthened against himself! 

In normal times, people pin their hopes on the Opposition.  This time around, however, peoples’ hopes are shattered as BJP, the principal Opposition Party is looking no different from the ruling Congress. Both parties have their own complexities and leadership issues. Congress has no leader but they have a Family that symbolizes its unquestioned leadership no matter how uninitiated the Nehru Gandhi scion has remained despite being pushed through road shows and rallies which have ended only in successive failures.  The BJP, on the other hand, has too many leaders and aspirants for the top position. For Family they have the Parivar to dictate and approve leaders and programmes. There is one who could be nation’s best choice with proven credentials but his rivals within the Party are too many. 

It is all factual and transparent but only a tiny depiction of today’s India.  In the civilized world such a state is called ‘anarchy’. The Political Establishment must keep the dialogue on and heed the writing on the wall before it is too late. Corruption, crime and inefficiency must be severely dealt with through radical reforms and speedy summary disposal of individual cases through administrative action. Ignoring and making fun of peaceful rallies portends a dangerous future because if peace fails, the other alternative is violence. Public patience has limits and it would suicidal for any Government to try it that far. With almost 40 per cent of the country already under Maoist influence and rest of it fuming under a callous and corrupt dispensation, the situation is highly inflammable and any eruption of violence may spread uncontrollably throughout the country. Drastic and ruthless measures alone can save the dangerous drift.