ROLLING PRIME MINISTERS!

SUNNY THOMAS

I am not Anna Hazare (as teenagers’ T-shirts declare); I am not Arun Kejriwal; I am not even Kiran Bedi! Nor am I one of those gullible Indians who believed a handful of fellow-countrymen could end corruption by a road show near Jantar Mantar. I know one gentleman who tried to eliminate corruption from this country single-handedly. He happened to be the home minister in Lal Bahadhur Shastri’s Cabinet, and his name Gulzarilal Nanda. And two years later, he disappeared without a trace from the political scenario.

I vehemently disagree with everything Kejriwal says or does, but his reply to members of Parliament regarding his dishonouring Parliament merits our time:    

 The present Lok Sabha has 162 parliamentarians on whom 522 criminal issues are lodged. Out of these, 76 are heinous crimes. Murder cases on 14, attempt to murder cases on 20, fraud charges on 11, kidnapping charges on 13. In addition to these, there are many parliamentarians on whom corruption charges are lodged.

In 2009, Congress gave tickets to 117 people with criminal background, out of which 44 got elected. BJP gave tickets to 116 people with criminal background, out of which 44 got elected. Other parties too have proactively given tickets to the tainted. The court has charge sheeted a good many of them with heinous crimes.

In 2004 elections, 128 people in Lok Sabha were with criminal backgrounds. In 2009 elections their number went up to 162. By this progression, the day is not far when the majority of the parliament will consist of people with criminal background…

Think of 2014, notwithstanding the bravado of some political parties that they want a general election right now. The greatest danger the country faces is a pack of regional parties bereft of a national vision or goal coming to power. A whimsical Mamata Banerjee, a capricious Jayalalithaa, and a Navin Pet-naik (Maoists are his pets) coming to Delhi to rule the country could be the catastrophe of the century. Mamata could turn Bengal into a Bihar by driving away all industry and sealing the job prospects of the youth. Jaya’s understanding of the world ends within the borders of Tamil Nadu, and her `by Tamils, of Tamils and for Tamils policy’, however laudable, may open the Pandora’s Box. Navin’s dilly-dallying with terrorists is tantamount to riding the tiger.  

A practical solution to the impending disaster is – however impractical it might look today – for Congress and BJP to forge a Reforms Agenda to make India the second greatest economic superpower. (Politicians are the bane of this country but we can’t do without politics or politicians). In BJP we have leaders like Arun Jaitley, a prime ministerial material, and Sushma Swaraj, the ideal compromise candidate; in Congress the promising Rahul Gandhi and the man of all seasons, Pranab Mukherjee, who should not be allowed to retire before he is a hundred years young. Draft Nitish Kumar for good governance and Mulayam for stability. The Prime Minister’s office should be a rolling one, one year per person, and be treated as the office of a chairperson rather than the omnipotent one.        

It could be experimentally proved in India that rolling Prime Ministers make better prime ministers than the non-rolling ones because each has to deliver the goodies in just one year. And the time for Rahul Gandhi to meet Akhilesh Yadav, notwithstanding the acrimony, is not after 2014 but now. Good personal relationship fosters good policies quintessential for the country’s progress. But have you heard of Digvijay Singh’s ambitious political plans? After losing his home state to BJP and helping and advising Rahul Gandhi to lose UP, Digy is setting up a political consultancy, cutting across party lines, on how to win state elections: he has all the case studies live

The year 2014 will be here even before we realize it. What is impossible in 2012 will be possible in 2014, the East meeting the West!