India as nation is losing its glory on many fronts, be it governance, economy, or social dynamics. The recent high-drama eviction of Ramdev from Ramlila ground is an indication of how the government has reduced to a helpless bunch of irresponsible leaders who don't understand the statecraft, forget about running this country. What's more disturbing is the way political leaders are hobnobbing with gurus, babas, and other popular figures in this country has created vacuum in the integrity and sophistication of politics. Politics that was once reserved for the most elite class of society has become a vocation of anybody and everybody irrespective of their social strata and perhaps that's the primary reason as to why both politics and politicians have not only lost their grip on the governance of this nation but also lost their shine over the years.
Now if the recent government at the centre is helplessly firefighting the burning issues such as corruption, black money, anarchy, and brewing social revolutions like the Annas and Ramdevs are resorting to, it's because the political leaders in the past had paved the way of vote bank politics as a major tool to win elections term after term, forgetting the fact that the future generation would face the repercussions of their mistakes. Why UPA II is the most vulnerable government at the centre today is not because of any drawback in Dr. Manmohan Singh, rather it's the consequence of cumulative blunders committed by heads of Congress party over last many decades.
Corruption and black money are not recent phenomena. They have been smuggled into politics and governance since independence because heads of political parties presumed that running a national political party and winning subsequent elections need huge amount of funding thus opening avenues for corrupt practices. Then vested interest sections like business houses, religious groups, and other minority groups started lobbying in politics that founded the emergence of corruption at high places and then cascaded down to lower echelons in the government departments eventually engulfing the entire system what we now connote this as systemic corruption.
We can't entirely blame the current UPA II for the anarchy that has crept into the governance of nation. What has happened today is a consequence of continuous degradation of political ideologies. There was a time when Nehru and Shashtri maintained an extremely sophisticated aura around the highest position of this country, their successors diluted that exclusiveness through their personal alliances with some elements of society, maybe for winning popularity or other personal reasons, and that practices have organically inherited to party leaders.
Let me cite some examples to substantiate my hypothesis. In the recent past, our Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh flew down to Puttaparti for tendering last tribute to Saibaba, and by doing this he has grossly violated the protocol of his position. Similarly, last week our Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee rushed to airport to welcome Ramdev. What's prompting these ministers to commit mistakes after mistakes? Is it their naivety or adaption of party ideologies? Whatever be the reason, they are making glaring blunders and creating bad precedents for the future generation.
Finally, politics has lost its elitism, and that's the prime reason for anarchy in a parliamentary democracy. Democracy doesn't promote the theory that popularity is the necessary attribute of leaders, rather it's their value system, calibre, intellectual level, vision, honesty, commitment, and empathy for people, which in turn portrait them as great leaders.
India doesn't need popular politics. To win elections, political parties are fielding popular figures such as actors, sports persons, religious leaders, criminals, and the likes without considering their leadership attributes. This mix of mindless inclusiveness has degraded politics. What we really need are great leaders with commitment for nation building. Now national politics need a complete overhaul in terms of party ideologies and leadership qualities. Anybody listening?
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