FROM  HARVARD  TO  NDA!

SUNNY THOMAS

An academic of dubious repute travelled in time from the 21^st century to the 13^th century, and found such immense delight in its primitive mores that he decided to adapt its virtues for the rest of his life. Guess, who? As they say, no prize for guessing.  

Academic is the pursuit of excellence, excellence in the field of knowledge. Politics, the barbaric pursuit of power; it is impossible for the sane to survive in an insane world. Psychiatric researches have proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that it is impossible for normal healthy persons to join politics; it is only the ideologically insane who join politics.    

A streak of megalomania is common for all successful politicians, while some suffer from illusions of grandeur. Some politicians want to defeat Babur while some Genghis Khan and reclaim the land conquered, treasure robbed, and make them accountable. They believe it is possible and are bent on doing it.  

India is a land of women chief ministers: no country in the world has produced so many successful one. The success of one chief minister lies in the acquisition of exquisitely designed footwear, a world of them in superb craftsmanship. Another successful chief minister’s obsession with building statues is much written about.  

Marx, Lenin, Stalin and Lohia form such idols of veneration that some politicians think they are their re-incarnation! Without a royal family and blue blood, there can be no fairytale nationalism, and hence some politicians uphold family values above ideological values. New Stone Age politicians of the Valley believes in cleansing the country of corruption by eliminating lives – lives of innocent children and women who have done them no wrong!     

Into such a world our Harvard professor has decided to embark himself on. When politics enters the academic mind, it turns it topsy-turvy; and that precious commodity called truth becomes the casualty. A highly politicized university is a sure recipe for academic disaster. (For monumental proof, visit the once-prestigious Delhi University).    

Politicians seldom think of the good of the nation, and are obsessed with their own. They are instant historians who would manufacture evidence to prove their theory and make the work of historians redundant. They are instant economists who have the panacea for all economic problems, provided they are voted to power – not just in power but in absolute power because in coalition politics, you can’t do a thing. They are also instant nuclear scientists who can make all our renowned scientists dinosaurs. They can measure the potential nuclear radiation leaks of a plant under construction, without even stirring out of their palace.

Such specimens of wisdom, you will never find in history. Into such a world, our Harvard professor is entering, to make a difference. Good luck professor!