Quo Vadis, India ?

In 1957 when  Nehru heard Vajpayee in parliament he said “This young man will be Prime Minister”.   As for Vajpayee, an RSS pracharak, he had no reason to like Nehru whom RSS considered a pseudo-secular anglicised Indian. Yet when Nehru died, Vajpayee paid a handsome tribute to Nehru. He said “A dream has remained half-fulfilled, a song has fallen silent and the flame has vanished into the Unknown. The dream was of a world free of fear and hunger, the song an epic resonant with the spirit of the Gita and as fragrant as a rose and the flame a candle that burnt all night to show us the way “.

Having seen the current parliament stuttering its meaningless way through days and weeks and watched Congress and BJP “pracharaks “  shouting and hooting down each other to no purpose I could not but think of the  life of the parliament in its glorious past from which only Vajpayee remains as the only genuine statesman. He  was loyal to his party but loved his nation more and acknowledged patriots from other parties with total respect. I recalled my childhood and growing years  when we read about the great parliamentarians of the first and second generation from different parties with conflicting ideologies but all united in their concern for the well-being of India.

Nehru, Patel, Ananthashayanam Iyengar, Hiren Mukherji, Dange, Ram Manohar Lohia were only some of the great orators who were listened to with wrapt attention even if they were speaking against  each other. There was criticism but no malice. There was force in what they said but not the coercive and threatening kind. It was all reason and thinking. With those memories still alive it has been terrible to watch those seats occupied by comparative pygmies battling it out depending more on decibels than sense, on muscle rather than brain. Where there was decorum and dignity there is neither now.There was dignity in the House in those distant years  because there was dignity in the members. . The Speaker was a firm and just traffic policeman who managed the proceedings fairly, enforced rules and was respected. The Parliament was theirs to protect and not a transit camp to occupy for a few years and from which to acquire an identity and benefits which they never had.

The stand-off between BJP and Congress which has been marked by anger and bitterness and a huge dose of ego has cost the nation dear. The Parliament has been turned into a venue  for rowdy behaviour, display of total contempt for rules and disregard for the waste of  time and  money. Legislative business of great relevance remains ignored while personal animosity between leaders rules supreme. It is as if important legislation accepted in principle by both sides is being blocked by Congress to show how even a depleted opposition can obstruct the majority.  The tragedy is the unanimity among the opposition parties which have risen in rebellion against punishment of rowdy behaviour in the Lok Sabha after repeated warnings. The  impasse has now been escalated into a new level by a boycott of the parliament.

The BJP after a strong resistance to objections to the format of the pending Bills has compromised in an effort to  move forward. The Congress are sticking to their stand for resignations which is totally untenable as they have rejected the offer of a debate on the issue in Parliament. This is where the leaders have to  show their mettle and statecraft but then ego has to be sacrificed at the altar of national cause.

Congress leadership seems to wish to cling to its ego as that appears to be all that it has. “Indian”ness is not enough to lead an Indian political party, “Indian”ness has to have that little bit more to be truly Indian and to feel for the country. It is the feeling for the country that makes a true patriot and, sadly, that is  a rare commodity in our politics today. Sonia Gandhi had received the acknowledgement of Indians for the manner in which she has merged with the local scene but her current policy of unconditional confrontation could damage her claim to be truly Indian. The young and new blood in Congress,future hopes such as the Sachin Pilots and the Scindias and the not so young but experienced Jairam Rameshs and Anand Sharmas have unfortunately chosen to follow lamb-like rather than advise steps that put the nation first and inter-party conflict last. It is sad that at the top Manmohan Singh, Antony and others  like them have been reduced to mere mute followers of what seems unworthy of their stature. Forgotten is the basic tenet that leadership lies in overcoming, not creating crises.

All these experiences have a lot of lessons to offer on the need for electoral reforms which ensure that instruments of democracy such as parliament are in the hands of those equipped  to handle the work within just as any other instruments need trained users. Even an attender’s job demands minimum educational qualification and acceptable credentials. It is strange that the destiny of our nation is placed in the hands of those who have no credentials whatsoever. Even  known criminal records are no bar to becoming a party candidate for election and in fact, in many cases, it is a desirable qualification ! Fake  supporting documents are par for the course and so the path to parliament and legislature  is literally and figuratively paved with gold ! The result is that a large number of MP’s have come out in open support of the suspended members saying that the agitation and noisy demonstrations inside parliament. are acceptable means of protest in a democracy. Sonia Gandhi said so too  adding that the suspension was a murder of democracy. How the mighty have fallen ! An MP said yesterday that Nehru would have wept at the suspension. Little did he know that Nehru would have exploded in outrage at the unruly behaviour and would have had the members evicted.

The Parliament stands immobilised despite the brave attempt in Lok Sabha to  go through the routine. The Rajya Sabha faces the same noisy demonstrations led by Congress and what it takes to restore normalcy is in the hands of Modi and Sonia Gandhi. This reminds me of the Cold War when USA and USSR faced each other in cold silence with nuclear weapons at the ready. But then that war was also de-fused  by leaders who saw the futility of it and the damage that it was doing to their economies. We here, of course, do not have the luxury of that length of time and one can only hope that good sense will prevail and end this Cold War soon.

A new development is that the Indian people at every level who are aware of the far-reaching reforms awaiting clearance are openly getting restive. In fact there is widespread disapproval among the public  of the disruption of parliament  and the colossal waste of public money at the rate of at least a quarter of a million rupees every minute. Politicians are already being stopped on the road and heckled in many States for not doing enough for the people or for doing too much for themselves. It would not be too unreasonable to fear that the  stoppage of parliament could trigger more active protests from public organisations which would then be a gathering wave. Political leaders need to keep this in mind.

I had said in one of my earlier articles that Modi has to reach out to Congress With his constant absence at every meeting and his infrequent presence  on a selective basis he is putting more distance between himself and the opposition than is wise. He only makes his job more difficult when he has the presence and personality to mend fences.. He has already had a cordial meeting with  Dr.Manmohan Singh. – one cannot have any other kind of meeting with Dr.Singh ! –who would be a good interlocutor to restore contact between both sides. If Modi can restore talks with the Pakistan PM, surely,  he can do the same with Sonia Gandhi who at least has direct interest in India.I have maintained that if Modi and Sonia Gandhi  can agree on a national agenda which is kept out of party conflicts the country can move swiftly forward. Congress can be an active stakeholder in the success that would follow. It would also spell a release for both sides from the hold of the host of lesser parties which are only concerned with furthering their narrow .interests. It may also help remove the sham of the secular divide that exists today.

Admittedly Indian politics is in turmoil but  it is said that everything churns into a mess before clearing. One hopes this is true and that we shall have an answer to our question Quo Vadis , India ?