Political Diary

New Delhi, 12 April 2014

NaMo’s Private Mukhota

WHAT’S BIG DEAL ABOUT A WIFE?

By Poonam I Kaushish

Jashodaben, who? Never heard of her? Right. Till Modi filed his filed his nomination from the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat last week. Whereby, he ‘rediscovered’ his long lost wife of 46 years. And all hell broke loose. You mean Modi has a wife? You kidding? Modi till date has averred he is a bachelor? Where was she all these years? Welcome to India’s political twilight zone!

The facts are clear. Narender Modi is no blushing newly wed. He was a dulha at 17 married to 16-year old Jashodaben from Gujarat’s Rajosana village.  According to Mrs NaMo, her husband left her after three years of grihasti never to return.

Yet, this retired school teacher getting a monthly pension of Rs 14,000 who shuttles between her two brothers continues to be a true-blue Bharitiya patni. She has been keeping fasts for some months now and even gave up wearing footwear for four months as a penance to see her husband becoming the Prime Minister.

Questionably, is one making a mountain out of a molehill? Or a molehill out of a mountain of Modi’s marital status? Two questions which are exercising-exciting political Delhi. Raising a moot point:  What is the line between a politician’s public and personal life? Is his private life any concern of the people? Has politics become too personal or should politicians expect intense media scrutiny of their affairs?

Do we have unrealistic expectations of our leaders? Can he be ethical in public if he is unethical in private? Should our netagan be the epitome of morality and probity? A notch above ordinary mortals. For us to look up to and respect. People who will not easily succumb to human weaknesses and foibles?

Undeniably, personal lives of our netagan have never been part of political discourse unless it interferes into the public domain. It is also true, that newsworthiness of is a politician’s spouse is determined by whether she or he is remarkable and makes waves. Like former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor’s “Rs 5 crore girlfriend” nee stunning wife the late Sunanda Pushkar, a permanent fixture on Page 3.  Today, Modi would be eating his words.

It is also correct to affirm that a leader’s news-value is determined by his political deeds, misdeeds and misdemeanors and not by his personal status. So naturally, Modi had not formally declared his marital status in his earlier poll affidavits choosing to leave them blank. Till, the Supreme Court declared it mandatory for all candidates to make full declarations. Advised by his lawyers, Modi followed the rule book, lest he be disqualified.

So why make a big deal about Jashodaben Chimanlal Modi?  Specially against the backdrop of Modi’s elder brother’s assertions that the marriage was only a “social formality”.  It might be, none dispute that. But at the same time that is precisely where Modi and his cahoots are wrong.

Importantly, the issue is not that Modi is married or not but much more complex. Nor is it about tit-for-tat politricking: The Congress’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh too lied by showing his residence as Assam to fulfill the Rajya Sabha MP criteria, so why make our NaMo the scapegoat.

Two wrongs do not make a right. On several scores. One, Modi did not make a voluntary admission. The law demanded he laid bare all facts of his life. Two, he lied under oath. Frankly, I am not the least surprised. The ascetic 63-year-old, times out of number at various rallies has tom-tommed his bachelor status and taint-free reputation of having no family to inherit. “I have no family ties, I am single. Who will I be corrupt for?”  Sic.

Undoubtedly, no leader who aspires to be the country’s next Prime Minister can justify telling half-truths or white lies. As it would be a reflection on his character, integrity and values. This entails our politicians are expected to be a notch above ordinary mortals. To be respected and held in high esteem who don’t easily succumb to human weaknesses and foibles.

Towards that end, a leader has to pay the price of his privacy and personal details once he enters public life which demands accountable to the people. The aam aadmi has a right to know everything about his netas as their salaries are paid for by the people who need to make informed judgments about the kind of leaders they want. 

For example, how can a Minister or MP busy in jan seva, afford a Swiss bank account, Ferrari, a yacht and a villa in Monaco on his salary?  That too, without working honestly for even one day.

Sadly, this disclosure has put a big question mark on Modi’s credibility. Specially against the backdrop of Modi’s tall promises on empowering women and providing safety to them. Moreover, given our traditionally open society, the question of private life vs public persona has never arisen. The reason why the Constitution does not have any provision for privacy, unlike other countries.

Undoubtedly, constant scrutiny is the price of fame. If our leaders want to enjoy the privileges of power and all the status that goes with it then they should willingly pay the price of absolute integrity and honesty. If a person lies in small things how can one trust him on bigger things?

One is either honest or not. Think. A politician who betrays his wife is capable of breaking his promises and lying to his country. The nation demands, its polity to be whiter than white otherwise they are not fit to do the job

In America, the Press is allowed to publish almost any true material about public figures on the ground that “virtually all human activity reveals the true character of the person”. Remember, ex-President Clinton who barely escaped impeachment for converting the Presidential Oval office into the oral (sex) office, courtesy Monica Lewinsky.

In UK there is no right to privacy and, therefore, no right of action in the courts for breach of privacy. However, conventions are followed strictly and honourably. Wherein a politician bows out of office once a serious allegation is made. No matter how important he may be. The obverse holds true in France, Denmark and Germany where access to privacy is an offence.

It is an offence to publish information, real or speculative, about an individual’s personal relationships, state of health, private finances or domestic arrangements. It is a criminal offence to intrude on a private place by taking a photograph or making a recording of private conversations. Keeping or using the material is a further offence.

All in all, as Modi swears by upholding Gandhian principles, “service to the nation is my only religion”, he would do well to remember, Gandhiji saying: A public man has no private parts to shield. The Mahatma was clear that a man’s public life could never be clean if his private life was not.  The two were indivisible. Now that NaMo has taken a nano step by unmasking his private mukhota, he needs to lead by example. What do you say? ------ INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)