When I was growing up, I didn’t know of anyone who wanted to enter politics in India. None of my friends, peers, or acquaintances. We might not have had official “Career Day” in school, but every time youngsters discussed their career aspirations, politics didn’t appear in the list.
Politics was meant for certain people. People who were not only okay with adorning saris and kurta pajamas 24/7 but also okay with being under-handed and salacious. In a nutshell, if you weren’t corrupt, you couldn’t make it in politics. If you weren’t slimy, you couldn’t survive a day. Maybe these were exaggerated impressions my generation grew up with, but after all, it’s all about perception, isn’t it?
Life went on. Politicians came and went. Corruption increased manifolds. I grew older. My questions became bolder. And hopefully, a lot wiser. My curiosity became unbiased.
A simple thought began to occupy my mind. Sure, corruption has eaten away the foundation of Indian politics and governance like termites in a New York building. However, for corruption to exist and grow, someone has to be encouraging it. All things, be it good or bad, are a two-way street.
It’s so easy to blame politicians. Much easier to call them sick and dishonest. Thieves robbing the morale and hope of the country. But at the end of the day, who is exacerbating the problem? Who is letting them get away with all the filth? Who has given them the power to ruin our lives? It’s the PUBLIC!
Corruption shouldn’t go unpunished. But along with politicians, people are equally to blame. Every one of us has resorted to “unofficial” methods in India to get something done. It could be something as trivial as bribing a traffic cop to avoid a DUI ticket to getting a ration card to a driver’s license to paying a bill to obtaining a passport. If parents refused to bribe the admissions committee at engineering and medical colleges, all kids would stand a fair chance. But when it comes down to survival, the thinking becomes inward. People think only about their individual needs and benefits.
Recently, Anna Hazare, a 73-year-old-man Padma Bhushan winner, decided to bring a change in India. He went on a crusade against corruption: a 97-hour fast until government agreed to almost all of his demands. Film stars like Aamir Khan and Rajnikant endorsed Anna Hazare’s mission. Soon, the common man followed.
It’s in our Indian blood to do “dharna.” To build and burn effigies. To follow the mob, often without understanding the crux of the issue. It’s considered elitist to attend processions and marches. Burn candles for “causes.” Then make others believe you believe in a cause. Doing so is associated with being “liberal.” And being “liberal” makes you appear hip and cool.
How many people really know what the The Jan Lokpal Bill is about? Literally, it means an independent body would investigate corruption cases, complete the investigation within a year, and envisage trial in the case getting over in the next one year. How many of them are willing to deal or comprehend the repercussions of it?
When I was in my 10th grade, the Mandal Commission chaos happened right before my board exams. Innumerable youngsters burnt themselves, gave up their lives for justice. I ask: How many of these people really knew what they were doing? What would their sacrifice bring? Who received justice? Not the mourning family members of those deceased.
Reactionary mobs, comprising of a large group of BJP Mahila Morcha activists, attacked writer and activist Arundhati Roy’s house, in New Delhi, in October 2010. About a hundred people vandalized her property. They were protesting Arundhati Roy’s remarks on Kashmir. My question again: How many of these protestors were there because they were truly offended by Ms. Roy’s statement and how many of them became a part of the brouhaha because they had nothing better to do?
An average Indian is angry today. It takes nothing much for a person with low self-esteem to be egged on. It takes very little for someone with no direction in life to follow any path available. It’s no surprise that the Indian youth is using social media to sway and be swayed. I have lost count of the number of Facebook status updates and Twitter tweets urging people to join Anna Hazare in his cause. I choose to not keep track of the number of “cause” requests I received to join Anna Hazare in his crusade.
The same people evade fines when caught speaking on the phone while driving. The same people tell tales when stopped for drunk driving. The same people send “gifts” to obtain a voter card. How many of these people even vote?
Believe me, I am all for Anna Hazare and the other society cleansers. I am an idealist and would like nothing more than India and the world to be corruption and crime-free.
I pose a bigger question: Is the average Indian prepared to live in a transparent system? Let go and get things done the right way, not the easy way? Get off their lazy butt and take responsibility for their actions!
A nation so crippled by corruption can come out clean when the changes start at home.
More until next time,
Xoxo
Copyright © 04.14.2011
“Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks.” ~Doug Larson
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