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Criminals Banne Netas: PARTIES GIVE ‘SUPARI’, By Poonam I Kaushish, 20 October 2020 Print E-mail

Political Diary

New Delhi, 20 October 2020

Criminals Banne Netas

PARTIES GIVE ‘SUPARI’  

By Poonam I Kaushish

 

We hang petty thieves and elect criminals to public office. Sadly, this Aesop’s truism lays bare India’s ruthless truth: An MP and MLA tag is the ultimate ‘bullet proof’ for mafia dons, katils and apradhees whereby khoon is the flavour in Bihar’s new political season with Parties getting their arsenal ready for the Assembly elections wherein thousands of our criminal-politicos are vying for the “bullet-proof jackets” --- MLAs tag. Welcome a new ‘don’ (dawn) of criminals banne neta, jo jeeta wohi sikander!

Naturally, in a milieu where ends matter not means and the winner takes all, bahubalis, murderers and gangsters are in great demand with every Party as crime appears to have an electoral edge over honesty. And this poll is no different. Of 1,066 candidates in the fray during the first phase 319 have criminal antecedents.

Gaya tops the list with 49 candidates, followed by 39 in Bhojpur, 37 in Rohtas, 33 in Buxar having criminal antecedents, then come Patna, Jehanabad, Aurangabad, Jumai  etc . Currently the sitting Mokama MLA “Chote Sarkar” nee Singh lodged in jail under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act case came out and filed his nomination on a RJD ticket. Big deal, if his affidavit declared 38 serious criminal cases, including seven murders.

Worse, Parties have brazenly nominated criminals, despite various Court judgments. The latest February wherein the Supreme Court made it mandatory for Parties and candidates to provide details of their criminal background and the Election Commission asked them to publish their unlawful antecedents, provide reasons for their nomination so that voters could make an informed choice.

If this was meant to halt candidates with criminal qualifications it is like water of a duck’s back. Many have found ways to bypass these rules by pushing close relatives to contest. Wives of three mafia dons awarded life-term for murder or rape have been granted tickets by the RJD, the  JD(U) and LJP have fielded two musclemen’s wives.

 

According to an Association for Democratic Reforms 2015 Assembly election analysis over 60% or 140 MLAs and 30% of candidates had declared criminal charges against themselves of which 94 had murder or rape charges. Of the 81 RJD MLAs, 46 (64%) had serious criminal charges, followed by BJP 36 of 54 and JD(U) 34 of 71 seats, 40% of 25 Congress, one out of 2 LJP, 2 out of 3 CPI(ML) and three out of five Independent had declared cases.

 

With power translating into a numbers game Parties field mafia dons as they convert muscle power into votes at gun point with illicit funds emerging victorious than candidates with clean records. It works on quid-pro-quo. Parties get unlimited funds to fight elections, secure strategic advantage in constituencies with a high degree of electoral uncertainty and illiteracy as criminals have a higher capacity to intimidate voters compared to clean netas.

 

Mafia dons invest large sums to get respectability, continue extortions using political power, gain influence and ensure that cases against them are dropped. Besides, the returns on political investments are so high and profitable that criminals are disinclined to invest in anything else. Thus, our system has unwittingly created huge incentives for criminals to enter politics. Immortalised by renowned Mumbai mafia don-turned MLA Arun Gawli: “Ab kis ka dam hai ki mujhe encounter me maare. Now no politician can give supari (contract killing) to any police officer or gangster to kill me.”

 

Raising a moot point: Does the electorate really want honest politicians and a clean Government? True, a sincere person can promise to fight the system and reform it, but voters prefer venal fixers who flex muscle, terrorise constituents to keep them in check, provide protection, ration and Government jobs. For this, he gets votes.  

 

Any wonder, criminal are crowding out honest candidates at the national and State level. According to a recent report 45.5% ‘criminal’ candidates win against 24.7% with a clean background. Unreachable by law, they are the law and all-powerful. Thus, in this self perpetuating system democracy is being boxed in three stages --- mafia box, cartridge box and ballot box!

 

More shocking, the growing Indian middle class is not averse to electing criminals if they can become their patrons and deliver goods. Consequently, our jan sevaks now dance to the tune of their underworld benefactors at the cost of the janata, democratic ethos and good governance.

 

As a former Chief Minister argued when quizzed about having 22 Ministers in his Cabinet with criminal antecedents, "I don't bother about the Ministers' past. After joining the Government, they are not indulging in crimes and are ready to help suppress criminal activities. Ask the people why they have elected them.” How do you rebut this logic?

 

More. Our politico-criminals are paraded as prized bulls and portrayed as safedi ki chamkan compared to their chor brethren who are unfit to rule, leave alone provide good and honest governance. Consequently, the State has become a battleground of mafia dons, their senas, armed brigades and ideologically indoctrinated lumpens. So what if they are the biggest threat to society and nation.

 

Think. Mafia dons have been elected from prisons, some MLAs continue to hold durbars in jail, with all home comforts, instruct chamchas via cellphone and rule their empire, issuing diktats that few dare disobey. Not a few take the anticipatory bail route to avoid arrest, others simply abscond only to "surrender" when ready. It defies logic that instead of being shunned criminals come up trumps in elections.

 

One could dismiss this politicization of crime as an evolving phase of our democratic process. But the tragedy is that the only thing that matters is on whose side the criminal is. His or ours? They are all the same. Only the degrees differ. A vicious circle of you scratch my back, I scratch yours!

 

It is this mutual benefit and camaraderie between the criminal-Party nexus which is the cause célèbre for our netagan resisting passing any legislation that would rid politics of the cancer of the three C’s --- criminalization, corruption and crisis of credibility. See, how our leaders divide along Party lines on most issues but close ranks when it comes to taking steps to address this problem.

 

Sadly, it is one of the main reasons for the deteriorating law and order situation. It is also a given that the inability of the State to arrest and prosecute politicos with criminal antecedents is primarily because the State is part of the problem and not the solution. Criminals protect the illegitimate interests of politicians and in turn obtain protection from them and their Parties.

 

Most distressing is that it doesn’t strike any chord anywhere. With every passing election, the phenomenon of criminals-turned-politicos no longer shocks or causes mass protests. It is slowly becoming an accepted norm, part of one’s routine.

 

What next? Where do we go from here? No longer can we merely shrug our shoulders and dismiss it as political kalyug. India is today at the moral crossroads. Specially against the backdrop of our politicians having perfected the art of cultivating low morality and high greed.

 

The Supreme Court has exposed India’s political nadir. How many murder charges are required before one is considered unfit to represent the people of India? Time our polity re-thinks their priorities, bite the bullet and pass a legislation that bars criminals and mafia dons from entering the political arena.

 

Can our netas rise to the occasion and protect purity in politics? Remember, the country can no longer allow small men to continue to cast big shadows as nothing costs a nation more than criminal politician! ---- INFA

 

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

 

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