Political Diary

New Delhi, 29 September 2012

Gandhi’s Fables

IS HE RELEVANT TODAY?

By Poonam I Kaushish

“What do you think of Gandhi? He is ‘hot dude,” shot back a 20-year old. “Silly, I am not talking of Rahul, but the other Gandhi. Oh, you mean his mother Sonia? The most powerful leader in the country”, chuckled a middle-age woman. “Not at all. Oh, I get it, you are talking about the strange old man we read about in history and get a chuutti from school,” giggled an 8-year old boy. “The one they call the Mahatma, incidentally what did he do?”

That my fellow countrymen, is what Gen Next thinks of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, aka Mahatma Gandhi who we reverently address as Father of the Nation. Alas, he has been buried in the dustbin of history to be aired every 2 October for his annual ‘autumn cleaning’. A ritualistic visit to his Samadhi at Rajghat, singing his favourite hymns followed by our leaders pledging to follow in his footsteps. Sic. Obeisance paid, duty over its back to the business of democracy and rule by law.

Indeed, we have come a long way from what Gandhiji espoused 65 years ago. Today, he has been reduced to intellectual indulgence whereby his ideals are forgotten and much of what he stood for remembered selectively or misunderstood. Like his belief in simple living and high thinking, sense of right and wrong and his value system. What else can one expect from a politically, socially and morally bankrupt nation?

Look around and one sees how far removed we are from Bapu’s vision of India. Not many are aware Gandhi was opposed to the Westminster model of Government that we are following. He was opposed to it because it implied the existence of two classes the rulers and the ruled.

The British Parliament according to him was a "sterile woman" because it could do anything with finality. Nor could its members act on their own but must obey the whip of their parties, reducing them to rubber stamps. It was unfortunate that after independence India did not heed his advice.

He also wanted to disband the Congress party which he knew consisted of selected leaders who were going to rule over the people much like the British, and replace it with a Lok Seva Sangh. This was primarily because of the rot setting into the Party. He had received information that some Congress legislators were taking money from business houses to get them licences, indulging in black-marketing, subverting the judiciary and intimidating officials to secure transfers and promotions for their protégées in the administration. He wanted somehow to stop the Congress and Congressmen from capitalizing on the freedom struggle in which the nation as a whole had participated.

One can look back and say Bapu was right. Depressingly, no where does ideology, principles, Party interests or policies even rhetorically figure in our netagans’ vocabulary. In the past, the leaders at least used to camouflage their intentions in ideological garbage. Today, even that fig leaf or verbosity has been discarded.

Sadly, India is bereft of genuine leaders of the people and genuinely from the people. “Let them not arrogate to themselves greater knowledge than those who have unrivalled experience but do not happen to occupy their chair,” said Gandhi. Today, it’s power at any cost, a kissa kursi ka and paisa pakro gaddi rakho all times. So much for upholding Gandhiji tenet of holding offices lightly, not tightly!

Bapu had said, “Ministers should not live as ‘sahib log’ or use private work facilities provided by the Government for official duties.” Nothing could be farther from the truth. Yesterday’s princes have made way for the neo-Maharajas, read Ministers and MPs who see themselves as winners, replete with the power trappings that go with it. All in the crippling morass of a jee huzoor feudal mindset

Worse, our netagan are only for themselves, good governance be damned. All suffering from Acute Orwellian syndrome of “some are more equal than others”. Their hierarchy of status gauged by the gun-totting commandos surrounding them, screeching lal batti gaddis jumping traffic lights and causing accidents. Funny isn’t it that they need protection from the aam aadmi they assiduously swear to represent and serve.

Wherein, Gandhi’s teachings have been reduced to mere straws that fly about in the political wind, courtesy our parochial leaders. Pious platitudes and inane speeches to paint a halo round their heads. The fire and zeal of Gandhi’s “do-or-die” slogan died an early death, replaced by a rent-a-crowd show of strength. What else can one expect from our paper tigers?

Ironically, even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh extols his colleagues to follow Gandhi and give up conspicuous consumption as “money does not grow on trees…and return to simplicity, efficiency and commitment to national goals hold the key to self reliance!” His brave words taunt the five-star bash on UPA II’s third anniversary celebrations at his residence in May. An RTI query reveals that Rs 7,721 was spent on each dinner plate totaling Rs 11,34,296, Rs 14,42,678 on tent arrangements and Rs 26,444 for flowers, a grand bill of Rs 28,95,503 for just 375 netas.

Contrast this with the harsh reality of half of India’s 1.1 billion people not having enough to eat with over 700 million living below the poverty line. Yet the Planning Commission asserts Rs 32 per person for urban areas and Rs 26 per head for rural areas is enough to keep body and soul together.  And nearly one million die every year due to inadequate healthcare facilities and one in every five children is malnourished.

If ahimsa cast a Mahatma’s halo around him universally, himsa is the ugly universal truth for our society. India is angry, very angry. The aam aadmi’s angst has morphsized from gheraos, chakka jams and road rage to shoe-cides and slaps directed at our netagan. Thanks to the daily aggravation of being bin bijli aur paani, sky rocketing prices, unemployment, ghooskhori and the in-your-face behavior of our political mai-baaps.

Bringing things to such a ludicrous pass that Gandhi seems an alien from a different planet. Pointedly brought home by a Gandhian: “Gandhi was considered a saint, Rajghat is more about spirituality and Indians today are more bothered about survival”. 

In the final analysis what should one say of a polity that swears in the name of Mahatma Gandhi but doesn’t heed him. Instead practice the seven sins he abhorred: Politics without principles; wealth without work; commerce without morality; education without character; pleasure without conscience; science without humanity and worship without sacrifice.

 “Today I am your leader but tomorrow you may have to put me behind the bars because I will criticize you, if you do not bring about Ram Rajya,” Bapu said. We did not put him behind bars. Instead, we murdered him --- and continue to do so daily. Our experiments with untruth!  ---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)