Numb System or numb citizens

INDIA’S march after independence is a success story. What helped India, a country of billion plus with hundreds of cultures, to evolve as a nation is its democratic culture? To want perfection is innate to human nature, but no human effort has ever been perfect, at least not till date.

Pundits believe: The ills of democracy will be taken care of by more democracy alone. Empirical evidence suggests differently.

Has the quality of leadership improved or declined? Who have replaced (or aspire to) replace Nehru, Patel, Shastri and Vajpayee —Shibu Soren, and Amar Singh and Sharad Pawar? Will Nehru not be a restless soul, seeing his descendent Varun Gandhi speaking like a religious bigot?

Today over half of India is literate, fast developing and politically empowered, but why is the society as a whole consistently on the decline, and value systems crumbling? Why has Indian society over the years become corrupt — morally and materially? Where is public integrity for which Mother India was known for decades? Corrupt and criminal politicians have occupied the higher positions of the society. It is said that “nearly 25 per cent of Lok Sabha MPs had criminal cases against them”.

Eventually, with the passing of stringent laws, and the strict attitude of courts or the Indian Law, it is expected that the participation by criminal elements may eventually come down. But the same cannot be said about corrupt politicians and tolerance for corruption has grown.

To state some happenings, in June 2006 Kashmir was rocked by a sex scandal involving top politicians and bureaucrats. Though the trial is going on, the accused were gradually released on bail. In early 2007, Shoaib Lone, MLA from Sangrama, created a sudden outburst in the Assembly by alleging corruption against state Congress president and senior minister Peerzada Mohammed Syed. The MLA alleged he had paid Rs 40,000 to the minister in place of a favour for an educational institution managed by his sister. The National Conference had stalled proceedings for many days. The minister had to resign. During the 2008 Assembly elections two Congress candidates and sitting MLAs Peerzada and Mir were each surprisingly able to secure a fresh mandate. When voters were asked why they voted for the tainted and blackly candidates, the reply was revealing: Corruption and sex allegations are issues for the chattering and talkative classes in Srinagar; what matters for us is the availability of our MLAs. Peerzada Syed went on to become minister as the Congress nominee in the coalition. And guess what, he had his old portfolio back: minister of school education. All is known about our honorable Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and he is still honorable. There is a long list of names in the Telgi matter, where is the list, where are the names, where are those top shots?

Reports of crimes by politicians appear frequently and Kashmir’s politicians do not lag behind.

But people have become used to politicians’ moral and ethical degradation. That is why parties chose candidates on caste, religious and regional considerations. Politicians purchase citizens, the Indian Citizen, to get elected. Winnability, accessibility, effectiveness or properness — these are not issues; everybody just wants a share in the booty

Earlier it was thought that elections at the grassroots would broaden the net of democracy and help able leadership emerge. Instead, democratization of corruption has happened. Earlier MPs and MLAs were partners in crime; now representatives of local bodies also demand their share of the loot.

Everybody is aware of the continually annoying political system. But the question remains, where this is going to lead and is this failure of the system or of the self? Is there any hope left? The situation has gone from bad to worse. Numbness has crept in and the ‘feel-bad’ factor against social evils is missing. Can things improve? This is the question for ‘social scientists’. And then comes the question, where are they???