Category Archives: PERSPECTIVE

The Indian Revolution

So, Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak is out. End of tyranny. Toppled by a no-matter-what-they-say-but-this-was-genuine peoples’ movement. The Army takes over. But is the future secure?

Probably, no.

Revolutions are characteristic of radical changes. And Egypt is certainly witnessing the best of one. While a whole country celebrates a triumph of a kind, the world watches on with great interest.

And so does India.

The peoples of this republic will certainly be wondering, while glued to their TV sets or chatting away in coffee shops, what it would be like to just get together on the streets of thousands of cities and towns, waving the India flag with much joy and calling for the ouster of hundreds of those corrupt, senile office-bearers in this supposed-to-be-great institution called the Government of India.

And that is even our right. We have a right to protest, which must be used. We have a right to speak our mind against the perennially erring, which must be used. We, however, do not possess a ‘right to revolution’ simply because this is a constitutional democracy that calls for sorting out all of our problems through constitutional means. There is absolutely no need for a revolution, which may cause loss of lives, time, public money and property and even bring the nation to a halt.

So what do we do, one asks. Reforms. In a democracy, reforms is the way ahead. And while we may have a set of people (in Government or otherwise) entirely dedicated to ensure reforms don’t go through, we must persist. And there are solutions. Corruption? Cut government spending and reduce the size of the institution. Scandals? Firmer implementation of the Rule of Law (which in my opinion, must be linked directly to growth), and consequently the implementation of punishments handed out to offenders while respecting their democratic right to appeal.

In a democracy, a ‘revolution’ may be slow but it mostly always is for the better. In a dictatorship, one cannot predict which way the ‘swing’ will happen. And many countries around the world offer opportune examples of failed ‘revolutions’. Structure must be maintained, and for that the idea of a revolution is redundant. And that is what makes it entirely absurd to consistently maintain a thought like ‘People must topple the Government’. What, even when the people themselves are responsible for the Government? And if there does actually exist a sincere willingness to change leaders – Vote.

The republic must be protected from a revolution by firmly implementing exactly what our cynical selves struggle to believe these days – that politicians (who are elected representatives of the very same people who complain again and again about the lack of change) can work for good and the ones who don’t must be shunned entirely when elections come calling, that the problem of corruption can be overcome by reforms implemented with speed and conviction, that the Constitution of India has all the solutions and can bring in more solutions through civilized, democratic means.

That there can, and will, be change.

Cry, My Divided

Over the last couple of years, I’ve become accustomed to tweeting over blogging. It could be general laziness to pen long write-ups (which is what I will be doing for a living, actually), or scattered thoughts unable to occupy their space in a well-constructed, thought-out piece that isn’t 140 characters long.

But, it is being on Twitter that has made me more observatory than I ever was. And I have to say, most of what I read is downright cynical with not a shred of hope in it. Hell, it’s even got into my writing. The Indian Twitteratti, as it appears, is a firmly divided lot that may unite for the barest of minimums when a Sachin Tendulkar kisses the India flag on his jersey after notching up yet another record-breaking century, but is firmly entrenched and happy in it’s divisions.

And that, sadly, is evident in thousands of tweets. There is a Right, a Left, an apathetic lot, a happy bunch and some who are just plainly sad and frustrated. The moment a slightly sensitive issue props up in the mainstream media, there will come an avalanche of tweets attempting to rip any genuineness in the issue to shreds. Maybe, this has just become a way of moving on rather easily. And continuing to believe the greatest fallacy of our times – that life is easy.

The problem with divisions is that they only ensure greater determination to the parties that hold forth their point of view, no matter how ridiculous and detrimental to other important causes. While it is absolutely vital and democratic to have a point of view, it is not necessary (keeping basic sensibilities in mind) that the said point of view means something. Even matter of fact-ly, it may mean nothing.

This is probably the most negative side of fundamentalism, which breeds such disregard for what actually may be an issue of concern to many. A firmly entrenched lot will just not believe in any seriousness in the issue, because they’ve molded themselves in that way.

Increased bigotry, increased disgust, increased apathy, increased suffering – increased hatred. This is what one ends up with, and the ones who are actually responsible merely disperse themselves among the noises of the voices. The next time they are screaming about something, you’ve already forgotten what they were culpable for.

And that, is the greatest tragedy of them all.

Verdict: Fear

With the Babri Masjid verdict all set to be announced by the Allahabad High Court on September 30th after a deferring by the Supreme Court from the original date of September 24th, India awaits the result with baited breath.

Yes? No. Not really. The issue, as has been pointed out numerous times, does not connect with a new India that is more focused on India’s economic improvements and genuine rise rather than sort out an age-old issue that, yes, did divide the country on communal lines back in the early 90s.

Now, a quiet majority of this country may be glad to put the past behind by hoping to accept any decision from the High Court. But what may have gone unnoticed is that India has already lost, as a whole. Look around you. Talk Babri and you are basically using a word that may be synonymous to ‘Fear’.

From Facebook statuses to Twitter talks, from SMSes to activists visiting houses to ask people to not venture out, it’s nothing more than game of fear. What purpose does any ‘important’ issue serve if the people primarily disconnected with the issue if you talk about India’s young, are driven back to their homes and asked to embrace fear over freedom?

There is so much fear of reactions from either sides of the Babri conflict, that the importance of the verdict seemingly pales in comparison. If sensitivity over historical issues perpetrates a mindset of continuing distress on the people of the country, then how respectable is that sensitivity? This is nothing more than ‘Feelings Terror’, one that may not necessarily be accompanied by violence but succeeds in generating enough panic in the mind and the heart.

There will only be victory if we can get over it.

Maintaining An Edge

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When I read editorials detailing China’s power indicators with respect to India, I tend to appreciate the fact that our eastern neighbours are indeed way ahead of us in terms of infrastructure, growth and in providing basic hygiene and a higher standard of living to her citizens.

But the attempt made by some commentators to establish Chinese authority (just because of those factors) doesn’t really appeal to me. Obviously, actually. Similarly, jingoistic pieces from India (or Indians abroad) that turn a blind eye to China’s genuine rise are a turn-off too. The faster we accept this fact, the better it could turn out and eventually benefit us.

All emotions aside, India must maintain the edge that it holds in various sectors vis-a-vis China. The Chinese are quick learners and will certainly will have marked out areas where Indians are ahead. I have visited China in the recent past, and here is what I made of the Chinese (a very informal piece, that one).

However, there are certain areas where India clearly holds the edge. The fact that Indian outsourcing giants like TCS are looking towards China as a market [Link] suggests that the Chinese market is rather fragmented. India’s firms, on the other hand, have been posting consistent profits and rise in growth. TCS, themselves, have grown by 8-10 pc this year. It could take China a while to even contemplate capturing the IT services sector. And there is a second factor that comes into play – the English language.

India has the largest number of English speakers in the world, outside the United States. China, as of now, does not even appear in the Top 7. But it is an advantage that could possibly end (considering China’s dedication to increasing the versatility of her workforce) and India must hold on to it, at any cost. English speaking directly increases employability and plays a huge role in attaining professional success in various streams. Add to that, the opportunities Indians get to work and live abroad.

India offers protection to intellectual property, that is way better than China. Although the Chinese are working hard to end their piracy issues, the CEO of Microsoft himself has stated that it is India, and not China, that attracts software companies. [Link] There was also the recent censorship issue between Google and China, that hasn’t worked in Chinese favour.

Finally, we have our principles. Yes, India is more principled than China (democracy, rule of Law, transparency) and there is not a shadow of doubt about that fact. But India must not use that as an excuse to garner international opinion in support of it’s potential superpowerdom and must focus on giving her people a life that is worth living.

There is no ‘greater greatness’ than ensuring the prosperity and well-being of Indians in India and all over the world. And that is what India’s leaders and policy-makers must aspire to do.

Always.