How have Kisan Baburao Hazare (India
We live in an era of expediency. The world is thronged by bigots who only need a rattling sound by rumor mongers to spring a blockade on government, authority or establishment. The pomp and extravaganza of 2011-Common Wealth Games hosted in Delhi
While the pendulum swung back and forth between hope and despair for the hosts, the opposition parties were eager to exploit the suspense leading up to the event. Finally, the needle within the haystack was traced and what emerged as a delight to the opposition turned out to be a nightmare for the government. The needle of suspicion pointed to a grueling corruption that practically deflated the moving wheels of a national event.
Before the curtain could be pulled up and the event commenced, loud whispers went around alleging huge amounts of public fund having been stashed away through spurious channels in to private accounts abroad. With a view to arresting any likely damage to the national image and to avoid embarrassment being caused to hordes of athletes participating in the event or sending wrong signal to athletes and dignitaries visiting from foreign countries, the Central and Delhi Governments swung in to action. A national catastrophe was nipped in the bud and a fiasco of colossal magnitude averted. The grandiose event, the only one of its kind for a nation that deemed the event as a rare opportunity to upgrade its infrastructure and the overall outlook of the capital, was conducted with much fanfare. Thanks to the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) government and other officials who intervened at the nick of time. The event marked a grand success. And the national anthem on the evening of 14th October, 2010 pulled the curtain down without allowing rumors to mar the situation. But the damage was done and the cat was out. Corruption of a colossal magnitude! The question that now poses is “who will bell the cat?”
Extremism calls for daredevilry to act and make good the escape or self-destruct themselves, but not so with corruption.
Corruption is a despicable art, committed by people and syndicate with relatively high skill and ability to ride rough shod over government, law and authority. Corruption is no law and order problem, no failure of government machinery, no intelligence failure and does not attract a situation for imposition of emergency. Indulgence in corruption demands high density nerves, temerity of extreme tolerance and a spurt of intelligence that can withstand pressure from people and government alike.
Corruption is a high handed atrocity that adds new dimension to hitherto known list of social menaces. The people and government today are waking up to a new dawn, a new era emerging out of the shadows of crime and influence, a passion for wealth and comfort, a systematic descent to depths of ease and carefree-ness whereby large amounts of public wealth are tunneled off to foreign banks, the route and source of which are intrinsically shaded with dubious people and underworld dons.
For stamping out this social menace, there is need to ensure close coordination between people and government, frame new laws that can motivate people to scrupulously follow laws and procedures without straying off the path of truth and righteousness. Unfortunately, the world and people have fallen off the cliff of hard work and dedication in to depths of mediocrity and petulance because corruption was no issue at the time of framing of the constitution.
Kisan Baburao Hazare is a tune without rhythm, a voice devoid of sound, a spirit without truth, a mind without conscience, a wind that blows nobody any good and a man who cannot officiate as a mediator between masses and the government. The only good trait in him is an un-written will to fade away from life with a Gandhian image, which wish of his too fails to materialize because he possesses no charisma or a national image. All that he has is a driving force called ‘ego’, which is hooded behind his vague articulation to rid corruption off the national periphery and which call of his is orchestrated by a few of his regional followers from Ralegaon. To go straight to the point, he is yet to feel the pulse of the nation and the nation his worth.
What Hazare ought to have done, in the thick of allegations of corruption was to adopt a stand, formulate a view, find a solution and pave the way for people and machinery (democratically elected government) set in motion to act, without allowing chaos to set in and cripple the system that we have endeared for so many decades. In its place, what he actually did was to feign a ‘mahatma’ and undertake a fast. The welfare of the nation and the upholding of a government, the Constitution and the prestige of the nation ought to stand supreme in the mind of all citizens whereas in the case of Hazare, he had the entire machinery including the government beckoned to his aid, trying to persuade him to break the fast, which ultimately he did, but to what effect? The nation lost as many days of activity tending to a freak mahatma of ill-gotten mind of his own.
We have a functioning government unlike that of the communal one, which while in powr from 1998 to 2004, had engaged itself swaying between national priorities and communal organizations. It was a pretentious government that was manipulated by communal forces like RSS, VHP, Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena, Ram Sene and their like. The short break of 6 years at the centre tripped the national priorities and after the present government stepped in, with the help of a fractured coalition, the UPA made its mark felt by people and institutions alike, the statistics of which are there for everyone to see.
Merely picking out names of people, officials and members within the government and flinging aspersions of corruption on any particular politician does not augur well for a nation aspiring as a super power contender. The present government is fully active and where instances of corruption does surface, necessary action to rectify the area is being carried out with loyalty and dedication.
The government at the centre is active and decisive with firm will to establish a corruption-free society. However, there are hurdles that need to be tackled through legal procedures and by keeping the prestige of the nation in mind. There are also areas which need to be kept aloof from prying eyes of foreign countries, others which need to be preserved from ordinary public. Thereafter, to clear the hassles for ridding the nation of evil forces at work, will need to be done cautiously without stepping on to the rights and privileges of people at different levels.
Hazare needs to do homework and analyze the repercussions of over indulgence which could overstep on to other people’s privileges. Merely by undertaking a fast unto death, the evil does not vanish nor does it hasten the process. Moreover, government does not have sweeping powers to formulate policies and hand them down as law. It has to weigh the options, fight the opposition which is there to block any or all attempt at creation of laws and then give the objective a necessary thrust to make a law effective.
Ramdev or Hazare might blurt their mind or profess a fast unto death, but is that the ultimate that people need to do? Are we not diverting the work and profession of the government machinery? And for how long will two people hold the nation to ransom and to what effect? We all carry views that emanate out of hearsay or gossip stuff available at every nook and corner of the nation all 24 hours. But when you get down to reality, there are hurdles which can best be removed by a government set in motion. Corruption is a plague which has caught up with everybody but ought we to take to streets and stall the process of a democratically elected government to bend down to appease their singular demands? They, within the government, too are human beings who ought not be chased by pestering them at will, lest they commit major blunders, the repercussions of which could be irreversible. Individuals and mob ought not be allowed to ransack the system, which needs to follow legalities before arriving at a solution.
The duo – Hazare and Ramdev in unison have given the basic virtues of patience and scrupulousness a skip and adopted measures through coercive and blackmail tactics in their bid to axe a democratic appeal by the government to abide by a timely process. The present stage of corruption culminated through many decades of let up in our effort to bring about the process, which from time to time got deflected with the change of governments. Now that the UPA government is well in place, we may expect a possible and positive result, but for everything a vibrant majority within the government is the asking rate. Can we provide that?
In order to excel in every discipline or to bring about brilliance in every aspect, the complete system and governance need to be overhauled. Merely by pulling at loose ends such as corruption, the focus could be lost and opportunity squandered away unnecessarily whereby the very same elements indulging in nefarious activities might try and find out alternate methods of overcoming the hurdles placed in a hurry to keep the evil elements at bay. The country is presently on the right path to progress and development and it should be the endeavor of people and individuals to address the loopholes facing the society, the nation and the world in general.
The nation has its wheels deflated by a bunch of hostile elements in the shape of communal organizations (like RSS, VHP, Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena Ram Zene etc and the alike) and to realize any positive result, be it ridding of corruption, there is always these elements and the communal parties creating hurdles.
We the people of India
Unfortunately, Hindus are not able to reconcile with their own misadventures, so people have to link them and their culture with a colour – why not saffron? Ayodhya issue and its aftermath where their own vices have given voice to their own culture of extremism rather than a spirit of reconciliation is by itself an eye opener, on the extent to which religion could disintegrate the nation in to a chaotic state in a couple of decades hence.
A bunch of jokers in the form of communal fanatics have taken the centre stage on a land which has always been safeguarded by the single party that has kept itself aloof from communal politics. We need to reassure ourselves that the nation is on the right rails and must necessarily allow it to function at a pace and process that would take the entire country forward irrespective of a community, race, caste or state.
However, by no means can corruption be curbed by undertaking a ‘fast unto death’ and paralyzing the government machinery, authority and establishment as did the 71 year old Baburao Kisan Hazare on 5th April, 2011. Hazare from within the Panel is stepping up his penchant for fast-unto-death for 16th August, 2011. He needs to realize that corruption is a world phenomenon and should he go ahead with his threat for 16th August 2011, the least the Government of India ought to do is to depute a functionary to place a wreath as a mark of respect for a deliberately departed soul of Kisan Baburao Hazare, who being an uneducated Social Worker from Ralegaon Siddhi pursued the intelligent swindlers of a corrupt India and fasted to meet his end! R.I.P.
