Political Diary

New Delhi, 7 September 2013

The Great Indian Fraud

BACK SCRATCHERS TALES: SAB CHALTA HAI!

By Poonam I Kaushish

It’s the season of rip-offs wherein our political Gangs of Wasseypur and Babudom merrily conduct public affairs for private advantage. No, I am not talking of the countless scams dotting our Republic, or out politicos’-bureaucrats being caught with their hands in the Government till, neither about the ad nauseum abuse and misuse of power but their latest heist --- to retain their bullet-proof jackets and freebies galore. All at the aam aadmi’s expense!

Shockingly, all Parties ganged up and surreptitiously overturned the Supreme Court’s whacker barring a person in jail from fighting the Lok Sabha or Assembly elections, even if not convicted. Adding a new provision to sub-section (2) of Section 62 of the Representation of the People (Amendment and Validation) Bill, now netas who are behind bars can contest polls. That too on the penultimate day in Parliament in a record 15 minutes!

Justifying the amendment asserted Law Minister Sibal, “If a SHO decides to detain you on the eve of elections, then you cannot file nominations. It is our Constitutional duty to correct it.” Adding, detention of a person’ means his or her right to vote or a contest poll is only temporarily suspended. Sic.

Really?  How come an ordinary citizen is barred from contesting elections if he has any criminal cases pending against him? Why this double standard wherein criminal-politicos’ can contest but not lesser mortals? Whatever happened to abiding by the Constitution and not nominating criminals? And honestly governing, being transparent and accountable?

Questionably, what is it about taint and cleansing the political cesspool that scares our polity away? Specially when they love talking about it and even go blue in the face about ushering in surf ki chamkaan wali politics. Go to any extent to prove (sic) their honesty and sincere endeavours. Yet when it comes to acting on their words, they feign ignorance and play dumb, blind and deaf.

Think. After 18 years the Vohra report has come a full circle. Clearly, the Amendment unmasks the conspiracy of criminal intent of our polity.  The ugly networking of muscle-money and criminal power. Consider also: criminals have been elected from prison. Some continue to rule their empire from jails, hold durbars and issue diktats that few dare disobey. Scandalously, there are 450 ‘tainted’ constituencies with at least 1 candidate facing criminal charges, in 104 two and 56 with over 5 contenders.

Undoubtedly, India’s downslide has been rapid. Most distressing with every passing election the phenomenon of criminals-turned politicos no longer creates a ripple, let alone set the Ganges on fire. The tragedy of it all is that the Bill will open the floodgates for Parties to openly nominate criminals as candidates. The day is not far when rogues', bandits, racketeers and murderers will fill the halls of power and fame.

But all is not lost. There is a silver lining with the Supreme Court issuing a decree to the Government and the Election Commission to comply with its 10 July order stating, “Sitting MPs and legislators will no longer be protected by Clause 4 of Section 6 of the RPA. ” Thereby, convicted lawmakers who took refuge against disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal against their conviction in higher courts would now have to quit and barred from seeking re-election.

How commonplace is the criminal-politicos hall of shame is an eye-opener. More than 30%, 1460 of 4807 sitting MPs and MLAs have declared criminal cases. Out of 543 Lok Sabha MPs 162 have cases pending. Notably, Former Union Railway Minister and Bihar Chief Minister RJD’s Lalu Yadav, Telecom Minister A Raja, CWG in-charge Congress’s Suresh Kalmadi and DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi, BJP’s LK Advani, MM Joshi et al.

Alas, in this free-for-all political khichri, another signpost of greed and gluttony came to the fore with babudom slyly injected a killer overdose by granting IAS, IFS and IPS officers and their immediate family members to fly abroad for treatment at the Government's expense including return airfare.

That too at when the country is suffering from an ailing economy and worrisome fiscal health. No matter, it will end up burning a hole in the Government's pocket, read taxpayer’s, given the high cost of medical treatment abroad.

The Centre for reasons hard to fathom changed the 30-year-old 1983 rules whereby the Government reimbursed the medical expenditure only to the extent the same treatment would cost in a private ward at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi.

Before you flay your arms in horror, rest assured this is only a miniscule of the ugly rape of the system by our ruling class with impunity. One has to see the new Officers Club made in the heart of Lutyens Delhi which could put a seven star hotel to shame. But this is for joint secretaries and above. The second-rung services also have their own clubs to let their hair down after a hard day’s work? Add to this a swanky school for their children and friends. A making of a perfect scam.

Take for instance the “rape” of Air India. Upgrading from economy to first class is passé. Free tickets for kith, kin and friends along-with free hotel stay-meals are fashionable in salubrious foreign climes. Quipped a senior Air India official: “It all comes out of the discretionary quota. Our position is like a woman who continues to be raped day in and day out. We have become so used to it that like the hapless woman, we just lie back and accept the inevitable.”

Worse, officials misuse their position and extract an “extra pound of flesh” when they are on a private visit. In India or abroad, matters little. By getting the respective Ministry to send an innocuous message, “please extend the usual courtesies.” Shopping jamborees too are written off as entertainment allowance. Sab chalta hai! 

A number of public undertakings also incur extravagant expenditure on entertainment in utter disregard of the interests of the poor tax-payer. One PSU spent Rs one lakh on a lunch for entertaining the Secretary and 9 other officers.

Undeniably, the Civil Service today is a leviathan with immense power, circumscribing the whole panoply of the State indulging in countless subterfuges of the fishes and loaves of office that is all paid for by the blood, sweat, tears and hard-earned monies of the tax payers.

This virus is symbolised by the sea of red-blue beacons flashed by all and sundry with security becoming a well-cultivated paranoia to commandeer commandos. Are these people jan sevaks or peers of a new realm they have created?

What next? At one end the battle for clean politics is on. If the scourge of criminal-politicos has to be flushed out we need to set in motion the long pending electoral reforms and rid of our feudal democratic mindset of jee huzoors.

At the other, babus need to change their values, else become irrelevant. Recall, the Orwellian syndrome is antithetical to an egalitarian democracy with its avowed aim of equity. It is high time that our powers-that-be cries a halt to the great fraud on the people. No longer can India afford to shrug and rue ki pharak painda hai!–INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)