AAP's Music: Symphony of Hope or Cacophony of Despair

        AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) led by tenacious Arvind Kejriwal arrived on Indian political horizon with a bang on Dec 8, 2013 winning 28 out of 70 seats in the Delhi Assembly elections finishing behind BJP who got 32 seats. The vanquished party (Congress) in a tactical move, not liked by many Congressmen offered them unconditional support and Arvind Kejriwal became 7th Chief Minister of Delhi embarking on his maiden legislative journey amid great excitement of his supporters and grave concern of detractors.

        Getting to the chair was the easy part, it seems now, as problems started cropping up in quick succession mostly owing to their callowness, over-confidence and on few occasions  sheer insolence. The antics of Kejriwal and some of his ministerial colleagues suddenly elevated to power and drunk on the heady cocktail of ambition, arrogance and inexperience created a near mayhem in Delhi for two weeks of their rule and the media had a busy time. Bizarre incidents of travel by metro for oath ceremony, Janata darbar fiasco, controversy on Kejriwal's accommodation and security, vigilante-style functioning of his ministers, sitting on dharna by Chief Minister took the shine off from its stunning electoral debut. Reports in media of fake members joining the party and expulsion of a MLA who was denied ministerial berth further tarnished the fledgling party's image and may dissuade potential members.

        Leaving behind those nightmarish episodes, Kejriwal should focus on administration so that he can showcase his achievements of first 100 days in power- the usual honeymoon period allowed to a new government. As he does not have a magic lamp, he should set a modest target and focus on those items from his extensive laundry list which are less complicated and can be done within a short period. Apart from water, power and public transport, issues affecting the lives of common man like Govt hospitals/schools, roads, women's security, rain water harvesting should be on his menu. Rather than tinkering with the existing system, he could open up the system itself and show its functioning to the public using modern IT tools, something like an open kitchen. But he should refrain from conducting official business in maidans and stadiums instead of  Assembly and  Secretariat. Resorting to acts of symbolism, populism and gimmickry will not fetch his party extra votes and he may become all hat and no cattle. Unguarded comments (on Kashmir and Maoists), sweeping remarks (on corrupt politicians), indiscriminate announcements (on Khap panchayat) will spread confusion and bitterness. He will be lost in the warren of narrow vision if he tried his hands at too many things. Kejriwal would do well to remember the golden saying, "One thing at a time and that done well, is a very good rule as many can tell".

        A word about the man of the moment - Kejriwal started his career in 1989 with Tata Steel after finishing IIT, joined IRS in 1995, founded an NGO Parivartan in 1999 while still in Income Tax Department which he left in 2006, was associated with RTI, Jan Lok Pal movements, participated in Anna Hazare Movement in 2011 and parted ways to form Aam Aadmi Party in Nov 2012. He is young, courageous, street smart and media savvy but the way he fell out with his mentors like Aruna Roy and Anna Hazare and former comrades like Kiran Bedi betrays his individualistic streak.

        Kejriwal is not an 'Anarchist' and after becoming CM, he is no longer an 'Activist'. He should also not dream of bringing a political revolution in India because he lacks the vision, stature and charisma of intellectual giants from Trotsky (Permanent revolution - 1905) to JP (Total Revolution - 1974) who exhorted the masses to bring a revolutionary change in people's life but failed to bring the new dawn. Even movements like Arab Spring (2010) and Anna Hazare (2011) which engendered mass protests and generated great hope could not succeed in improving the living conditions of common man. As a full-fledged politician his priority should be to provide a clean government, devoid of functional anarchy, in Delhi. It would not be easy as both his unwilling accomplice (Congress) and those who missed the chair by a whisker (BJP) will make things difficult for him.

        To replicate the Delhi experiment in other parts of India, he would require a cadre-based party which may take years to build but that is the right way to go. A proper screening would eliminate fake members and prevent those trying to leap on its bandwagon. Past experience has shown that political leaders and parties take time to grow and mature. Today's strong regional parties like SP, BSP, AIDMK, TMC, TDP, BJD and their leaders have been in existence for decades. Drawn into the vortex of real politics, always a treacherous terrain, Kejriwal will need patience and nerve to play a long innings as in a 5-day test match rather than its shorter version of T-20. If AAP can win even a dozen seats in 2014 elections and about 5% popular votes on its own, people will forget its cacophonous beginning and hope for an amazing symphony in 2019. Failure to do so will merit soul-searching and taking AAP back to basics or disband it altogether and rejoin the biradari of activists. 

Also see: The Kejriwal phenomenon

DESTINATION DELHI: 2014

The Sun goes down, the Stars come out

And all that counts is here and now

My Universe will never be the same

I'm glad you came.

          Narendra Modi is the new rising star on India's political firmament. From a humble tea seller to merchant of development aiming for the country's top job. Not everyone gets this far in a lifetime. His immediate destination is still distant but indefatigable Modi continues to soldier on with a missionary zeal. Till the other day he was just among a select band of chief ministers who have made their mark for good work in their states. But sudden developments in his party seem to have given him, to borrow Rahul Gandhi's phrase, "Jupiter's escape velocity" and positioned him in the higher orbit of national politics. 

         

          His advent on national stage, though, was met with stiff resistance and open hostility in his own party as many senior leaders in the party considered him a 'gate-crasher' and were not ready to play second fiddle to him. After weeks of bickering, bad-blood and back-room maneuverings, on 13 September 2013 he was finally handed over the baton and anointed as party's prime ministerial candidate for 2014 General elections, much to the relief of its well-wishers. To his credit, Modi has taken the new responsibility in right earnest and lost no time in galvanizing party workers and supporters. Starting his blitzkrieg from Haryana, in less than 6 weeks, he has addressed over a dozen huge public rallies, attended by lakhs of enthusiastic supporters at Rewari (September 15 - Ex-servicemen rally), Bhopal (September 25 - Karyakarta rally), Trichy (September 26 - BJP Youth rally), Delhi (September 29 - Vijay rally), Kanpur (Oct 19 - Vijay Sankhnad), Jhansi (October - 25), Udaipur (October 26 - Janjati  Sammelan), Patna (October 27 - Hunkar ) and other places. He is literally all over the place. 

          Modi is like manna from heaven for BJP which had been in a "Waiting for Godot" like situation since the retirement of affable, statesman -like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and after successive defeats in 2004 and 2009. Modi's critics see him as divisive, opportunistic, vindictive, authoritarian, anti-minority and what have you. To his legion of admirers, he is a paragon of virtues and right choice to lead the country. Still to many others he is an efficient, development-oriented, incorruptible and strong leader. Whether you love or hate him, he draws your attention. He may not be comfortable in English, occasionally falters on facts, dresses rather too well and indulges in self-promotion but even his detractors concede his high- octane oratorical skills. He creates instant bonding with the audience and can keep them spellbound till the cows come home. No wonder within a short period of just two months nearly 5 million people are reported to have attended his massive rallies in a diverse country like ours. It is astonishing a veritable crowd-puller like him has few friends and is known to be a loner.

          His adversaries may not praise his model of development in Gujarat but how do you dispute its highest economic growth rate, low crime graph, excellent roads, 24 hours electricity to domestic feeders under widely-acclaimed Jyotigram Yojna. On these parameters, the record of states like UP and Bihar is extremely poor. If Gujarat was unsafe for minorities why thousands of unemployed including Muslims from these 2 states would go there to earn their livelihood. People can no longer be deceived by empty slogans of casteist, communalist ,family- fixated and self-serving  politicians. An average voter in this country wants job, low food prices, good infra-structure and security to his life and all these day-to-day necessities are, directly or indirectly, affected by corruption, the most efficient industry in this country run by a cartel of corrupt bureaucrats, crony capitalists, greedy politicians and criminals. 
    Unlike secularism which is a state of mind, corruption like poverty is a state of matter. It is seen, felt, heard and smelled by millions in this country in one form or the other everyday. Corruption was always there but in the last 4 years it has crossed all the limits and has acquired the form of a powerful Djinn which will hover around till the next election. Meanwhile, Modi's juggernaut rolls on.

          The cumulative efforts of apex court's activism, RTI, investigative journalism, brave whistle-blowers, sincere NGOs and vociferous activists has ignited public mind like never before and Congress is in deep trouble. If Rahul Gandhi had woken up after UP's debacle in  March 2012 (http://rksingh167.blogspot.in/2012/03/mission-2014-rahul-bhai-lage-raho.html), restructured his party, got popular bills like Lok Pal, Women reservation passed and taken effective measures to curb corruption his party would not have been in dire straits today. He had 20 months to fix things. At this late hour only a bumper crop, low inflation, speedy implementation of cash transfer, food security, and other welfare schemes and  favourable electoral tie-ups in UP, Bihar , TN and AP (accounting for 202 seats) may resuscitate his party's fortunes, though, Icons like Sachin Tendulkar may not help much.

          Coming back to Modi, his exertions so far is like a movie's trailer. The real show will start after December 8, 2013 when the results of assembly elections to 5 states would be out. Demographic changes in last 5 years have resulted in 378.6 million voters in the age-group of 18 - 35 years, 149 million first-time voters, over 380 million urban population and around 80 million active users of social media sites. A tech-savvy person like Modi will make optimum use of these factors to his advantage in the personality-based 2014 parliamentary elections. Modi's popularity among country's youth, full of hope and enthusiasm, is amazing, more so, as his main adversary is nearly 20 years younger to him. He would entice this young constituency with a seductive package of strong India --devoid of corruption, bustling with development and full of opportunities for them. This will be an offer very few would refuse in these tough times. It would be dicey,at the present moment, to predict the outcome of next elections but with Modi Effect a rejuvenated BJP can dream of 180 seats. A clean sweep in MP, Rajasthan, Delhi and Chhattisgarh may generate a Modi Lehar and fetch the party even 200 seats. Not Impossible.

Ides of September : Month of judgements

Ides of September: Month of Judgements

Be you ever so high,

The law is above you.

                September 2013 will go down in the modern Indian history as a memorable month for two pronouncements by the Supreme Court of India and their possible catalytic effect in giving new dimension to the country's politics. It is safe to assume that these judgements will have a far-reaching impact on shaping the destinies of many politicians and political parties in this country. This month also saw emergence of a new political star in Narendra Modi and yet another cameo from endearing and ever-confused Rahul Gandhi. This is how the month unfolded:

Sept 4 - Supreme Court of India rejects Central Govt's review petition of its historic judgement of July 10, 2013, which stated that "convicted MPs/MLAs/MLCs would stand disqualified immediately if convicted by court for crimes with punishment of 2 years or more."

Sep 24 - Central cabinet approves an Ordinance to negate this judgement and sends it to the President of India for his assent.

Sept 27 - Rahul Gandhi Congress Vice President states that in his personal opinion, the ordinance is 'complete nonsense' and 'it should be torn up and thrown away'.

Sept 27 - Supreme Court in a landmark judgement allowed voters to cast negative votes observing "when a large number of voters will press NOTA (None of the above) button, it will force political parties to choose better candidates. Negative voting will lead to systemic change in polls."     

Sept 11 to 30 - BJP's PM's candidate Narendra Modi addresses huge political rallies in Haryana, AP, MP, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, Tamilnadu, Delhi and Mumbai.

Sept 30 - Lalu Yadav, former Railway Minister convicted in 17 years old Fodder scam and sent to jail.

                All the above events had different backdrops,albeit, similar contours but likely to converge on same path leading, one hopes, to the highway of a clean polity in India. There is no doubt that these judgements will have substantial prophylactic effect on the country's ailing democracy. The apex court has proved it  once again why they are perceived by common man as last resort. One could not have asked for more in these depressing times. The message from the court is unambiguous. Keep the criminals out of politics and ban their entry into the temples of democracy( Parliament and State Assemblies).

                Of course, the bell tolls for the political class and they should wake up. It is time for politicians, particularly those who have relatively unsullied and untainted image and still many years left in their chosen vocation, to rise to the occasion and take the call to provide a strong body to the spirit of judgements. They will be doing a great service to themselves and to their tribe in the bargain. Remember what politics used to be in the 50's and 60's when the leaders would mix freely with the crowd, honesty was still a cherished word and driving force behind their profession was the basic spirit of social service.All that has vanished in the deep sea of regret and anguish. It would be difficult to bring back those halcyon days but at least sincere efforts can be made by the present crop of politicians to regain people's trust and goodwill. Then you would not require an army of commandos or goons to protect you from the same people whom you want to reach. There will be no need to hire a crowd. Expenses on elections can be scaled down drastically. No pivotal role for black money as elections could be financed in a transparent manner.

                All this appears like a dream but still possible and doable by honest and visionary political leaders in this country. As Walt Disney said "If you can dream it, you can do it". Supreme Court has already gifted the nation, not one but two historic judgements. Now it is over to you folks,the practitioners of World's  second oldest profession to use these judgements to protect  our beautiful and vulnerable democracy which has been under constant attacks by a bunch of criminal ,corrupt, casteist and communal politicians.Just remove the veil of hypocrisy and see the sun of reality. Go for candidates with a clean image in the forthcoming parliamentary elections. While winnability factor cannot be ignored, the education, integrity and reputation as a sincere social worker should carry maximum weightage.For starters,at least major political parties can take a lead in this direction. That will be our real tryst with democracy.

P.S.: Rasheed Masood, Congress MP from Rajya Sabha and known for getting a meal for Rs 5 has been jailed for 4 years in a scam. He is likely to beat Lalu Yadav to become first convicted leader to lose his Parliament seat. All this has been made possible by the recent historic judgement of Supreme Court. It could not be more ironic when we celebrate today birthdays of  Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri, two great leaders from the same party. May their souls rest in peace.

Corruption - Road to Perdition

              Like a short spell of light rains in the hot summer months, victory in Karnataka assembly elections will provide much-needed relief to Congress party. But this will be a temporary relief. Things will heat up soon. To be sure, it is not a spectacular victory for Congress, rather an expected drubbing for BJP. The electorates have taught the latter a deserving lesson. The message from Karnataka is loud and clear. Corruption is now the most serious offence in the eyes of electorate, punishable with denial of votes to the perpetrators. Poor governance and lack of development also rank very high on the voters negative list. A leader is a dealer in hope but in India we have to be content with wheeler dealers.

              Hope the two major national parties dreaming to form the next government at the center have got the message right. First BJP, the main opposition party in the parliament. They would do well to remember the famous words attributed to French diplomat Talleyrand about the restored Bourbon dynasty after the abdication of Napoleon "they had learnt nothing and forgotten nothing". Apparently, BJP have learnt nothing after debacles in Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and Himachal to name a few. Perhaps, they would become wiser after their thrashing in Karnataka. A party which till the other day took pride in calling itself a party with a difference is a totally different party now. They may be less corrupt, more democratic and development-oriented but are bereft of new ideas. They do not seem to have added new voters and will continue to face drought of sizeable minority votes. In short, a pedestrian party surviving only because their main opponent is sinking in the quagmire of sleaze and sloth. It has some competent and honest leaders but the party as a whole does not inspire confidence. Only a Lehar (wave) can take them near the 180 mark. And they may well be tempted to play the Narendra Modi card to generate this wave. Will that work? 

              The situation of Congress is worse. They have simply lost the confidence of the man on the streets. The life of an ordinary man has become insecure as never before but this supine government is unable to do much. However, when it comes to the lives of VIPs, nothing is left to chance. In fact, the union Home Minister has created an unprecedented record by providing the highest security cover (Z plus category) to the country's top corporate leader who lives in the most expensive house in the world. Being the wealthiest Indian he could have easily paid for the best available personal security system in the world. By the way, he is the same gentleman who is reported to have boasted that "Congress toh ab apni dukaan hai" (courtesy Nira Radia tapes). Coming on the hot topic of corruption, as if their big-ticket scams like CWG, 2G and Coalgate were not enough, Congress-led UPA-II government have also dirtied their hands with smaller ventures like Adarsh gate, Chopper gate and now Rail gate. But for the courageous and exemplary intervention of judiciary, laudable work of CAG and alacrity of a vigilant media, the country would not have been able to watch the corruption item numbers in 3D. People are so aghast and distressed at this sordid state of affairs that they are waiting for elections to fix the fixers. We know from the tales of "Arabian nights", that only a greedy and reckless Cassim gets caught while the smart Ali Baba manages to escape. Both brothers have their clones in the murky world of Indian politics.

              Political power is like poison, confessed Congress main hope Rahul Gandhi in an emotional speech a few months back. Looking at the kind of life enjoyed by the beneficiaries of this system, he should have said that power is like nectar. Once you have it you don't need anything and if you don't have it, it does not matter what else you have. Contrast the lifestyle of these lotus-eaters living in a land of milk and honey with the pathetic conditions of millions who gave them this power. Do we need to say anything more? In 2009, when he commenced his second innings no one would have imagined that an honest, hard-working and humble person like Dr. Manmohan Singh would come to be associated with corruption and his opponents would dare to point fingers straight at him. A tragic paradox but incredibly true! It remains a mystery as to why he has not quit so far. Loyalty to the leader who gave him the job or lure for the chair or both? One day we may know. Decent man that he is he should not have descended so low. We can only hope that history will be kind to him. Here one is reminded of the lamentations of Thomas Wolsey, Chief Adviser to King Henry VIII in the 15th Century England, "If I had served my God as I did my King, He would not have given me over in my grey hairs ".

              Make no mistake. Corruption, as things stand today, will be the single most deciding factor in the forthcoming elections to the State assemblies and Parliament. For the political class which loves to perpetuate this unholy and unfair dispensation, it is time to reflect on the sane advice of famous Swiss psychotherapist Carl Jung, "The man who promises everything is sure to fulfill nothing, and everyone who promises too much is in danger of using evil means in order to carry out his promises, and is already on the road to perdition".

Nirbhaya- the girl who stirred our soul.

           World did not end on 21 /12/2012 as prophesied in the Mayan Eschatological myth ( maybe it would on  21-12-2112). But barely one week after this ominous day, the world of millions in India came to a sad end with the demise  of a brave 23 year old girl ( officially unnamed  so far ). Her low-key, unsung and  surreptitious cremation distressing as it was,  has also  demonstrated  the cowardice  of the rulers.  The palpitation of their heart was clearly heard by the people across the country.  Peaceful , candle-lights protest drove the political class into stupor for 13 days. Awakening of the lambs seemed  to have alarmed the wolves, So much so that the leading lights of all major political parties were  conspicuous by their  silence in the wake of  this tragedy. They were also, tactfully, absent from the scene. Those who ventured  were soundly rebuffed by the irate crowd and had to beat a hasty retreat. Smart ones like Kejriwal ,sensing the fiery mood at the gathering, left their political caps behind  to join the marchers. The worst-hit were incorrigible publicity hounds  known for their inane quotes for every occasion and on any subject under the sun.They had  vanished into thin air.  


                                          

            This veritable triumph of the unarmed  non-political class over the highly protected political elite should be disturbing to the latter. The sudden eruption over the Nirbhaya issue, led mostly by the youth, was somewhat a culmination of the pent-up anger of the apolitical  class against the well-entrenched politicians over their  apathetic inaction to find solutions to their day-to day problems flagged  by  the civil movements led by Anna Hazare and other activists since 2011. In coming months such agitations will be frequent.Come election time this year  or  next , those  presently reclining  in their  ivory towers  will have to  face the people at the gate. So please wake up, read the writings on the wall and go for mid course correction.

                    
          Nirbhaya is dead. But to enable  her soul  rest in peace,we have to take effective steps to empower the system responsible to bring her tormentors  to justice and  put in place a dispensation which will ensure that acts of failure on the part of guardians of law does not get unpunished. Some of these steps could be :

                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Law and  Police :

• Setting up of Special fast track courts in major cities/towns of  the country.
• Amendment of the Indian Evidence Act and other relevant laws which are hindrance to a speedy trial process
• Keeping in view increasing number of heinous crimes like rape and murder being committed by the juveniles,it would be necessary to lower the age bar  from the existing 18 to 16 years.
• Setting up of modern forensic labs and optimal use of latest technology viz: GPS,CCTV, online database of petty criminals, verification of all drivers and supporting staff of public transport. Active patrolling by well-armed beat constables and PCR vans.
• Protection to members of public who come forward to help police/victims. Their identity should be withheld and no inconvenience caused to them.It will increase the number of good samaritans in our society.
• Cases to be supervised by DCP/JtCP - level officer
• Sex-related offences to be treated as non-bailable offence and police given  custody of such  offenders. No adjournment after the commencement of day to day trials.
• 90 days time-limit from filing of FIR to execution of punishment.

Quantum of punishment :

ü  5 years imprisonment for molestation. Denial of passport, driving licence and similar facilities including jobs by State/Central Govts.                  

ü  15 years imprisonment for rape for an offender below 16 years and 25 years for others.

ü  Life imprisonment, without parole, for rape and death of the victim.

ü  Death penalty for rape,death and acts of depravity or barbarity ( as in Nirbhaya's case)

Political:

·         No ticket  to sex-offenders for fighting elections right from the Panchayat/Ward level to the Parliament.

·         Sex-offenders already occupying political post be expelled.

            With the gradual erosion of human values in our society, break-up of the joint family, large scale migration of rural youth to towns/big cities for jobs, culture of  " Greed and Speed ", it is difficult to eradicate crime. But with the concerted efforts of  active judiciary, people-friendly police, sensitive politicians,vigilant media and alert common man, the crime graph can be brought down drastically in a year or two. All the stakeholders must come on board and share the grim responsibilities.      

                      

     
          It was time Govt revealed Nirbhaya's real name and instituted a national award for bravery to honour her memory.This will inspire many to become Nirbhaya (Fearless) in future. It should not be difficult considering the fact that in this country we already have 51 awards named after 3 members of a single political family. One more award will not harm anybody.

The Kejriwal phenomenon - A Tale of Two Caps.

            The die is cast. India Against Corruption ( IAC)  led by Arvind Kejriwal has taken a plunge in the whirlpool of murky Indian  politics and decided to form a political party. This is  news .And very good news for his political detractors who must be chortling in delight on his joining their ranks, rather echoing the words of the immortal  ' Gabbar Singh' from the Hindi classic film 'Sholay'( 1975), -- "Ab aayega maza khel ka ". At the best of times, a politician does not enjoy a good reputation. But in the present atmosphere of scams, scandals and stings it would require a brave soul to leave the safe bastion of a moralistic civil society and enter into the notoriously dark caves of politics.  No wonder, the debut of this nascent outfit has been welcomed with a controversy engulfing its three media-savvy members alleged to be involved in wrong-doings. Baptism by the political fire, one would venture to say.  An IAC-appointed  Ombudsmen ( 3 former judges of High Courts ) will investigate into the allegations against Prashant Bhushan, Mayank Gandhi and Anjali Damaniya.   Instead of questioning others through TV Channels/ press conferences they will be replying to the queries from the judges.  It may not be an ominous start but far from an auspicious beginning. A gratuitous pincer attack from an erstwhile  fellow traveller has  further confounded the well-wishers of this organisation. It is going to be a long season of attacks, barbs, defamation suits, innuendos, counter-attacks and unpleasant situations.

         

           Till yesterday the IAC team were protected by the Anna shield. Anna's simplicity, modesty, honesty and steely determination to fight corruption had created a halo around him when he led the Lok Pal bill movement in the early 2011. His aura had inspired millions in this country to hit the streets on the issue of Jan Lok Pal bill. Fight against rampant corruption became top social priority for people from different segment of society and the media had a field day. The embers will keep burning, at least, till the next General elections.  Kejriwal and his colleagues, with their apparent dedication, motivation and fighting spirit did a tremendous job in transforming Anna's vision into a near- reality. Their contribution in making Anna a household name can neither be overlooked nor underestimated. Sadly, it is a distant past now. After parting company with Anna and his cap he is donning a new cap of mango people. Very soon he will have the company of the very people he denounces. What a quirk of fate. The mutation of a popular civil society activist into a budding politician is baffling.  

                

                Though his fledgling party would require considerable time, efforts and resources to make its presence felt, Kejriwal seems to be a man in tearing hurry. He will realize soon enough that politics is a different proposition altogether.The word politics is derived from the word ‘poly’ meaning 'many' and the word 'tics' meaning'blood-sucking parasites'(Larry Hardiman).Since he has dubbed all political parties as corrupt and in cahoots with each other, it is presumed he will not go for an alliance with two main parties and most of the remaining parties whose leaders are facing corruption charges. Going alone in Assembly or Lok Sabha elections will be suicidal for his party. As it is, his influence is confined to some parts of Haryana, Delhi and West UP, courtesy Anna movement. In the last Lok Sabha elections in 2009 the two main parties (Congress and BJP) won 322 seats with nearly 48% votes. Further, the two alliances led by them, UPA (Congress and 10 other parties) and NDA (BJP and 7 other parties) captured 421 seats (four-fifth of the total seats with nearly 62% votes) taking the lion's share of the political space. It may not be comforting for Kejriwal and his friends to know that  most of these parties have a cadre, abundance of resources( read money-power and muscle-power) accumulated over the last many years, and a gang of  seasoned campaigners well-versed in the art and craft of  electoral politics. These parties are familiar with the permutation and combination of caste, religion, local issues and right slogans. So in a political Mahabharat his position will be much worse than that of Abhimanyu in the Chakravyuh.

            Corruption is a major issue today as it was 25 years ago. VP Singh who had been UP Chief Minister and India's Finance and Defence Minister left Congress in 1987 to form Jan Morcha party. His party's first foray in the UP assembly election drew a blank winning just 1 seat out of 118 contested. Subsequently he had to merge his party with Lok Dal, Janata Party and Congress(S) to cobble together a disparate Janata Dal. In the 9th Lok Sabha elections in 1989, when the Bofors scandal was at its nadir and VP Singh's popularity at its peak the  Janata Dal could get only 143 seats and had to secure help of both leftist and rightist parties to form a government which lasted barely 11 months.In terms of fame and reputation, VP Singh of pre-1989 days was miles ahead  of Kejriwal of 2012 but disappeared into the political  oblivion very soon.The grim lesson for Kejriwal is that it would be impudent as well as  imprudent to go for a  head-on confrontation with all parties simultaneously. A less unwise step would have been to stay away from the real politics for a few years, maintain pressure on the corrupt politicians/corporates/bureaucrats troika and continue the fight for the electoral and other reforms including Lok Pal and create a broad-based  party cadre before testing your strength in an electoral battle. But since he has crossed the Rubicon, the second option is to go for an alliance of like-minded organisations that may be keen to test electoral waters and, perhaps, less-tainted political parties. Because a few good and reasonably honest politicians would be available in most of the parties in India even if their numbers have been dwindling over the years, just as the numbers of dishonest and ugly politicians have been swelling.

                If the great Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib was alive today,his word of advice to Kejriwal may have been :   

         "Ye Siyasat nahin aasaan bas itna samajh lijiye,

          Ek aag ka dariya hai aur doob kar jaanaa hai".

              But the manner in which Kejriwal has rattled some well- known people linked with politics and  politicians  by serial expose of their misdeeds in the last fortnight is truly striking. Some have been put on the defensive.Some are running for the cover. Some have gone into the hiding and the rest are having anxious moments. This is no mean achievement and should make his supporters happy and fence-sitters hopeful.

FURY OF A HUMBLE MAN

                  Fury of a humble man

       Beware the fury of a patient man, said John Dryden in the 17th century. You replace ' patient' by 'humble' but the devastating effect of  fury remains  same. FDI onslaught may have come a little late in the day but once the Govt has decided to ' bite the bullet'', it is assumed there would not be any roll-back on this and other overdue reforms. Even if Mamta does not show any mamta and some others who have come to its rescue in the past have new ideas this Govt will survive. Somehow. Thanks to a plethora of ongoing anti-corruption agitations, the atmospherics for politicians in India is so hostile at the moment that very few will itch for early elections. 

       For a giant country like India with a humongous and mostly young  population of over 1.2 billion - one sixth of humanity with nearly 300 million living in the sub-human conditions, it is a stupendous task for any government  -left, right or centre -  to do everything for everybody. But the unbridled corruption on a mega scale, sky-rocketing prices of daily necessities, high inflation and massive unemployment have been extremely difficult and depressing for millions in this country for quite some time. And above all, the palpable helplessness of the top man have disappointed his admirers and enraged the masses. His position has become somewhat similar to stalwarts like Bhishma and Dronacharya during the shameful Draupadi cheerharan in Mahabharata.

       In the present context, it is the wanton pillage of  country's precious and  limited natural resources. The roles of Duryodhana, Dushasana and other participants being gleefully enacted by a handful of crony capitalists, sleazy politicians and greedy bureaucrats.  No wonder people are aghast, distraught and angry. The despair laced with ire has turned people in a rebellious mood against the government.

       However, this entire bleak scenario can change in less than two years if this Govt finally decides to take a few firm measures without worrying for the consequences. Because whatever his critics may say the PM's old image of   ' personally honest' is still intact. He has been rightly accused of 'policy paralysis' and 'Under-achievement' and given many unflattering epithets. But just remember he is the same person who till the other day was the darling of the middle class. They trusted his judgement on India's economy and were impressed by his personal qualities of honesty, humility and humaneness rarely seen in the cut-throat world of Indian politics. But what went terribly wrong in the last couple of years. We may hold different views, but there would be unanimity on one word - Corruption.

      Corruption is neither new (a former PM is credited of calling it 'a global phenomenon' in the 1970s) nor confined to a single political party. But what the country has witnessed in the last 3 years from 2G scam to Coalgate is pure loot and plunders on a monstrous scale. The bold talk of reviving the animal spirits in economy is all very fine but if the government really wants to generate trust of common man in this country it would not be enough. If the elections are held in a few months time Congress will be lucky to reach even a pathetic figure of a hundred seats in the Lok Sabha, so low is its stock in public's perception. Unless it takes a huge gamble to revive its electoral fortunes, the downhill journey will continue. That gamble would be a ruthless crackdown on corruption in the coming months.  If the illegitimate beneficiaries who have made "Mota Maal" in the scams of recent vintages can be brought to justice on a war footing, the blue devils will disappear from the depressed public mind.

       For this to happen and soon, the government will have to have   powerful high-level fast- track courts to handle such cases. They will require scores of fearless, competent and honest bureaucrats. These are hard times and it is difficult to get an honest, fearless and competent person in India. But there are plenty of them around. They have to be singled out, assigned and empowered. All the premier investigating agencies should be given a free hand and tasked to assist the fast track courts in order to get concrete results within a time-frame of 6 to 12 months.  Lokpal/Lokayktas, RTI activists, civil society members (without political agenda), Whistle blowers, CAG/CVC, judiciary and media should be natural allies of an honest government in fighting the menace of corruption.

       So while his finance minister takes a shot at reviving the economy with a slew of reforms, Dr Singh personally comes down with a heavy hand on corruption on a scale not seen in this country before. Nothing will please the people particularly the middle class across the country more than watching these crooks being paraded to jails, their ill-gotten wealth confiscated and punishment meted out to them in a transparent manner. Such drastic actions will change the present mood of apprehension and despondency into expectation and hope. For the sake of increase in their TRP ratings, our 24x7 TV channels will ensure it happens.

     In his 1992 budget speech as Finance Minister, Dr Man Mohan Singh quoted Victor Hugo "All the forces in the world are not as powerful as an idea whose time has come".  Hugo is still relevant to our present-day situation. The time to tackle corruption in India has come. Only he can make it possible for the simple reason that people still believe he is personally not corrupt.  We should not forget that   for every corrupt person in this country there are hundreds of honest people. The silent majority should not be let down time and again by well-meaning leaders.  PM will be celebrating his 80th birthday (he shares his birthday with evergreen Dev Anand - a man of action) next week. Such a long and eventful journey, with more than 8 years on the country's hot seat. It would be great to see him in action. A firm resolve to fight corruption will be the icing on the cake of economic reforms.