What's first:
Politician or Constitution?
Of Democracy's fabled Four Estates,
the Indian Constitution ignored the First and the Second,
Clergy and Nobility,
with the contempt they deserved.
It laid great score by the Third,
Parliament.
And it indirectly recognised the Fourth,
the Press.
It says a lot about the way
we have practised democracy this past half-century
that the order envisaged by the Constitution stands reversed today.
Clergy in the form of religious lobbies,
and
Nobility in the form of VIPs,
IAS babus and the Moneyed Mafia
come above others.
Parliament has gone into self-destruct.
The Press
is a victim of marketing maniacs
within and would-be controllers without.
A nation state is only as good as
the foundational institutions that hold it up.
Parliament and the judiciary were
the most obvious of these foundations.
A network of other supervisory bodies
was also put in place,
their independence constitutionally protected
so that no scheming
politician
or
vested interest could interfere.
This guaranteed independence gave institutions
like the Comptroller & Auditor General,
the Election Commission,
even the CBI
a halo that commanded high respect.
In practice,
however, the Constitution proposed,
the politicians disposed.
Parliament received a lethal blow
when Sanjay Gandhi filled it with
"elected"
street hooligans
who provided the shouting brigade he wanted.
The man and the autocracy
he represented are gone,
but the culture of hooliganism he developed
continues in Parliament.
Dishonourable MPs
have built on that culture.
We have seen
MPs taking bribes for raising questions,
and MPs smuggling illegal emigrants abroad.
Now
we have an MP going into the cockpit of an aircraft
and calling the pilot a glorified driver.
This man is not even a people's representative as he claimed;
he won a nomination on the basis of his wealth
and his friendship with corrupt politicians.
Any Parliament
would be demeaned by such arrogant members.
Unlike Parliament,
which went from bad to worse,
the judiciary recovered from Indira Gandhi's onslaught.
It is today perhaps the
single most important upholder of people's rights.
That can hardly be said of the crucial institution of
Comptroller & Auditor General.
When T N Chaturvedi,
who retired from that post,
accepted a state governorship at the behest of a political party,
he dragged the reputation of the C & AG down
along with his own.
It was as violative of democratic propriety
as Balram Jakhar accepting
a governor's post after being
Lok Sabha Speaker.
Now even the Election Commission is getting devalued.
After the glory days of T N Seshan's masterly independence,
the appointment of Navin Chawla,
politically branded by his
closeness to the Indira Gandhi family,
gave it a body blow.
Now the appointment of former CEC Gill
as a minister in Delhi has eroded
what is left of its credibility.
In the days to come,
perhaps the Election Commission
will play its role as the CBI is playing its.
This is the singular contribution of
the Sonia Gandhi culture
that envelopes all appointments today.
Even her critics must admit that
the daughter-in- law is subtler
and cleverer than the mother-in-law.
One needed Emergency to impose her will on the country.
The other does the same thing without Emergency.
Cry, the beloved country.
Sriram Savarkar
Hinduism is more a way of life than a method of worship.
Dharmo Rakshati Rakshithaha
If you protect Dharma, Dharma will in turn protect you.
Politician or Constitution?
Of Democracy's fabled Four Estates,
the Indian Constitution ignored the First and the Second,
Clergy and Nobility,
with the contempt they deserved.
It laid great score by the Third,
Parliament.
And it indirectly recognised the Fourth,
the Press.
It says a lot about the way
we have practised democracy this past half-century
that the order envisaged by the Constitution stands reversed today.
Clergy in the form of religious lobbies,
and
Nobility in the form of VIPs,
IAS babus and the Moneyed Mafia
come above others.
Parliament has gone into self-destruct.
The Press
is a victim of marketing maniacs
within and would-be controllers without.
A nation state is only as good as
the foundational institutions that hold it up.
Parliament and the judiciary were
the most obvious of these foundations.
A network of other supervisory bodies
was also put in place,
their independence constitutionally protected
so that no scheming
politician
or
vested interest could interfere.
This guaranteed independence gave institutions
like the Comptroller & Auditor General,
the Election Commission,
even the CBI
a halo that commanded high respect.
In practice,
however, the Constitution proposed,
the politicians disposed.
Parliament received a lethal blow
when Sanjay Gandhi filled it with
"elected"
street hooligans
who provided the shouting brigade he wanted.
The man and the autocracy
he represented are gone,
but the culture of hooliganism he developed
continues in Parliament.
Dishonourable MPs
have built on that culture.
We have seen
MPs taking bribes for raising questions,
and MPs smuggling illegal emigrants abroad.
Now
we have an MP going into the cockpit of an aircraft
and calling the pilot a glorified driver.
This man is not even a people's representative as he claimed;
he won a nomination on the basis of his wealth
and his friendship with corrupt politicians.
Any Parliament
would be demeaned by such arrogant members.
Unlike Parliament,
which went from bad to worse,
the judiciary recovered from Indira Gandhi's onslaught.
It is today perhaps the
single most important upholder of people's rights.
That can hardly be said of the crucial institution of
Comptroller & Auditor General.
When T N Chaturvedi,
who retired from that post,
accepted a state governorship at the behest of a political party,
he dragged the reputation of the C & AG down
along with his own.
It was as violative of democratic propriety
as Balram Jakhar accepting
a governor's post after being
Lok Sabha Speaker.
Now even the Election Commission is getting devalued.
After the glory days of T N Seshan's masterly independence,
the appointment of Navin Chawla,
politically branded by his
closeness to the Indira Gandhi family,
gave it a body blow.
Now the appointment of former CEC Gill
as a minister in Delhi has eroded
what is left of its credibility.
In the days to come,
perhaps the Election Commission
will play its role as the CBI is playing its.
This is the singular contribution of
the Sonia Gandhi culture
that envelopes all appointments today.
Even her critics must admit that
the daughter-in- law is subtler
and cleverer than the mother-in-law.
One needed Emergency to impose her will on the country.
The other does the same thing without Emergency.
Cry, the beloved country.
Sriram Savarkar
Hinduism is more a way of life than a method of worship.
Dharmo Rakshati Rakshithaha
If you protect Dharma, Dharma will in turn protect you.
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