At 61!

The Hindu calendar and custom refers to the 61st birthday as “Sashtiabdhapoorthi” and is considered very auspicious. It gives Hindus an opportunity to seek atonement for sins committed knowingly and unknowingly and also prepares them for their inward journey and spiritual life. Not sure if 61 years make a human being wise and rich, but the 60 years makes them go through the rut of life viz. education, job, marriage, children, and finally gets them the grandparents status. For many this is not a choice, happens as a part of life and social mores.

61 an important milestone for Hindu(stan)!
Leaving Hindus aside, let me now come to our Hindustan! 60 years have gone by since the Indian Constitution of was put together and today marks the 61st birthday of the Republic of India.

And this is what sir Anthony Eden, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom had to say at that time of the emergence of Indian Republic “Of all the experiments in government, which have been attempted since the beginning of time, I believe that the Indian venture into parliamentary government is the most exciting. A vast subcontinent is attempting to apply to its tens and thousands of millions a system of free democracy. It is a brave thing to try to do so. The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of. If it succeeds, its influence on Asia is incalculable for good. Whatever the outcome we must honor those who attempt it.”

Has the 60 year journey been exciting? Has it been a free and fair democracy? Have we succeeded as a Republic and a democracy?

Year after year we have walked the road from Rashtrapathi Bhavan to Red Fort via Rajpath and India gate exhibiting our gallantry, pride and culture of our nation, and finally honoring those soldiers and jawans who have sacrificed their life guarding our Motherland along our borders. But do we still feel the sense of pride and the duty to participate and protect our democracy in the banana republic today?

In a few months from now my home state, Tamilnadu will go for elections. Looking at what is happening in the country today – rampant corruption, I am asking if I should really participate in the election process? Is the process of election fair in the Indian democracy where people are paid by political parties to cast vote in favor of their party.

It is sad to know that our political system doesn’t need any qualification/ background checks and don’t need moral rules to win an election/ form a government/ and head a cabinet. We have Union Ministers who can’t make to the Parliament (may be they have taken work from home option?), who can’t converse in Hindi or English and who have no understanding of their portfolio, policy making or functioning of the government. Winter session of Parliament got over with opposition parties staging walkout over 2G scam. And we as citizens elect them, and patiently watch them showcase their incompetency for 5 years. Who should be blamed for the bad crop? Is it the soil or the farmer?

Sadly portfolios are awarded to ministers not based on their understanding/ experience or qualification, but based on satisfying the caste politics and alliance parties. Captains who sit in the helm want Ministers who will listen to them and help them amass wealth and serves the masses. They announce slew free schemes from free motors, free electricity to subsidized loans and seeds to keep them happy. And the process of disbursement is so shoddy and corrupt and continues to keep the population in the bottom of the pyramid poor and hungry, while those on top siphon money away to their Swiss Bank accounts.

Corruption the way of life
From getting birth certificate to death certificate, from government schools to hospitals to offices, it is a greasy journey in India. Grease the wheels, grease the palms and everything is greasy. The educated working class pays taxes to run the country, while politicians and celebrities evade taxes and move money to Swiss Banks. Those who have managed to flee the country in the name of education, career, etc. have escaped, while the rest are helplessly looking up for help. Many have accepted this as a way of life and learnt to live in the system, while some are caught in moral turbulence.

India – The Mother of Scams
We have hundreds of media channels today and they are all busy unearthing scams after scams. From animal food to food grains we haven’t left anything untouched. UP Government officials with the help of Railway ministry successfully siphoned away and sell crores of rupees worth of subsidized grain kept for the poor to neighboring countries. Land allotted for war veterans and widows were sold by politicians and corrupt army officials to larger public and their relatives. In the name of Common Wealth Games our officials painted both their hands black and painted Mother India faces with corruption. We have lost thousand hundred crores in the allotment of the 2G spectrum. What is the use of unearthing scams? Sadly we only have 2 major political parties to choose from, and we use the five years to forget the past and give them another chance. 60 years and 12 Governments have gone by and India is still struggling. And political party that comes to power use all their energy to sue the opposition leader and launder money, more than attend to commoners needs.

How much have we progressed in the 60 years? We have gone to war with all our neighbors, though we may claim we did so in the name of self protection. The growth in India is not as a result of the astuteness of our people or politicians, but the global engine of demand has brought opportunity to our doors. Though many blame the education system that British created and left behind in India, it has helped us gain competitive advantage in the software field. But our educated IFS officers still continue to beat their wife, launder public money, plunder natural resources and misbehave in public and continue to smear the India shinning brand.

Tatkal - a legalized form of corruption
Government has legalized corruption in the name of “Tatkal”. From train tickets to passport, just pay the government little more and you will get it fast. Extra money is paid for the same work! What do you call this other than legalized corruption? Makes me wonder if Government took inspiration from the private school and colleges that take money from parents in the name of donation aka capitation to admit students? Or it took inspiration from temples like TTD that take money to let public visit the almighty?

Peace and not piece
Caste politics and incidents like Rama Janam Bhoomi and Godhra incidents have taken Hindus and Muslims to the boiling point. During the recent judgement on Babri Masjid, public expressed their desire for peace more than piece of land for their belief and religion. Though this was a welcome, but still we have miles to go and heaps of scamfills to clears.

As a result of our lax attitude and corrupted political system companies like Union Carbide have left India without paying for their mistakes. So, should we trust and turn to our judicial system for help and remedy? Judges are busier being a part of commissions and committees to examine scams and corruption and those that are in the courts are anyways corrupt.

Does this all sound like the problem of sixty, like enlarged prostate and menopause? Or is it the unattended problems unhealthy lifestyle from the youth manifesting in a bigger way at 60? Who do we blame for our insatiable glut and greed, double digit inflation and corrupt leadership?

Natural resources, cheap labor and other competitive advantages have all been exploited in the name of globalization. Metros are struggling with increasing population growth and crumbling infrastructure, while farmlands are abandoned, turned fallow and villages have been turned ghost towns with increasing farmer suicides. Nobody wants to be accountable and answerable. We as a nation have lost our values and as a result lost our respect.

And today it makes me wonder if we are really are a Banana Republic? When Sir Anthony Eden made this statement “The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of”, was he referring to nepotism and red tape?

At 61 Hinduism offers an opportunity to look back at life, seek atonement and start a new journey. Should we use this opportunity to being a new journey for Hindustan and for its citizens? Or should we continue to be passive and endlessly wait for an incarnation of the almighty to weed out the society like in the Hindu mythology?

Baratha, brother of Lord Rama ruled the kingdom with Rama’s paduka on the throne, Chozha King ran the chariot over his son for killing a calf, and there are many more such tales of honesty and righteousness, but for today we can only look at the past and loathe the present. As I do my sankalp every day – “Baratha varushe Barathakande..” I remind myself and remind the almighty of this country that was once righteous, but for now I am yet another helpless Hindustani and our tricolor flag is soiled.

Let us hope 61 will be a journey of transformation, a turning point in the Indian history.