Page 10 - English Tehelka Issue 7 - April 15, 2018

khaliStan

surest way to avoid fixing responsi-
bility — the best way to ensure that
the blame does not end at your door.
The more we seem to enjoy ridicul-
ing or demonizing the politician, the
more we reveal our own fear of the
conversation turning to us, and the
consequent fear of being exposed.
And just to re-iterate, most of
this ridiculing and demonizing is
a part of a ‘quid pro quo’ between
us and our ‘leader’. It seems to me
that our ‘ignorance’ regarding the
politician himself being merely a
product of the prevalent national
temper is deliberate. We know and
pretend not to know that he is at
best the greatest player of the dirty
games we as society play. It is okay to
scape-goat ‘the leader’ and to soothe
our own conscience or — better still, photo: raman gill
cheat our own conscience with our
accusing finger always pointing out- Our irresponsible • Supected kingpin Bikram Singh Majithia is
wards. That cannot hide our fear of alleged to be the kingpin behind drug trade
photo: raman gill
the finger turning inwards. There is attitude towards
from. Generally we know that in the • Sorry affair Even after Kejriwal apology, something about our bosoms which
name of the kitchen, truck loads of The apology AAP’s troubles are far from over is deeply troubling and we just want politicians is politician merely provides the ‘other’
smuggled and contraband ‘meals’ to keep our minds off it. responsible for end. The first party in the trade is
enter the beneficent food-giver’s certainly caused a If Kejriwal appears to us to be you — the common man who has
store, only a small bit of which ruckus in his own the epitome of opportunism today, keeping learned, no qualms greasing others palms to
“trickles” into our shamelessly even elements willing to sell of the it is just because we are not willing enlightened, get extremely petty favours such as
outstretched palms, for which we party and led his interests of the nation for the merest to share the blame for the kind of an out-of-turn issuance of a driving
are privately grateful and publicly opponents to sport lure of profit. national psyche that has produced honest and public license or securing admission for
‘dismissive’. Some of this criticism is undoubt- him — a psyche which is of our own spirited people your child into an elitist school at
But what should worry us the smug and self- edly justified. But there is more to creation. A politician is what we the cost of another more deserving
most is the stink emanating from the malaise than just the quality of want him to be: that is the nature of miles away from child. There is dishonesty in the way
politics around us. So strong is righteous smiles politicians we have had to deal with. his job. He becomes anything other politics our schools are run. There is cynical
this odour that no sooner does a over one man’s It needs to be acknowledged that than what we approve of in him, and and heartless pursuit of the money
reasonably clean man take a plunge the politician is merely the strong- he loses out. And he is too smart to by our doctors. The poor or the mid-
into the arena than he is dubbed by embarrassment est symbol of the evils existing in try to be anything that we don’t want behind our own minds and seen us dle class common man is fleeced
friends and foes alike as dishonest. society. It is not fair to single him him to be. He needs our approval. If for who we really are: hypocrites. A at the hospitals that are run more
It is not uncommon to hear people out for special treatment. Yes, he we want him to remain clean, there politician thrives on our hypocrisy like money-spinners. And now,
talking about politics as the “last anthem. The moment you start talk- is the most visible symptom of the is no way he can be anything else for and is always willing to play ball the watch dog and the conscience
resort of scoundrels”. Some of the ing about anything concerning the epidemic of moral breakdown, but more than a period of just five years- with our petty greed and double of society — the media — has also
most common adjectives used for country, the conversation inevitably he is neither the whole problem nor at the most. In fact, not even that standards. We speak the language joined the unholy race. Why blame
politicians are “filthy, corrupt, im- redirects itself towards the ‘filthy even the originator of it. What we because even to get his first opportu- of honesty but live the life of the the politician alone?
moral, cheap, vulgar and guilty of all politician.’ People talk about politi- must acknowledge — and what we nity, the politician needs an endorse- scoundrel camouflaged by hypo- Which takes us back to the Delhi
kinds of sins, including betrayal of cians with a dishonest, self-righteous are shy of acknowledging — is that a ment from us of his antecedents, his critical morality. The corruption Chief Minister and Aam Admi Party
the country. “ indignation. No matter where you politician is a product of the system, temper, his beliefs and his overall which a politician indulges does not supremo Arvind Kejriwal and the
Some of the criticism heaped on happen to be — in schools, colleges, and not the way around. In order to conduct. exist in a vacuam: for one politician apology offered by him to the Punjab
those belonging to the political class clubs, societies, wedding parties or cleanse the system, you cannot start Looked at a little more closely, to take bribes, there have to be a politician Bikram Singh Majithia.
is well founded and well deserved. any social gatherings — running with the politician. If you take that the phenomenon of the politician as thousand commoners willing to give There has been a virtual revolt in his
That is bad enough as it is. But what down the politician is the item on route, you are never likely to reach “the filthy and stinking” repository bribes. And let us not pretend that party against this apology, and there
is even worse is that this demoniza- top of any social menu. It is as if the goal. In fact, taking that route is of power has come into existence the one giving bribes is less guilty is as much hypocrisy and political
tion of the politicization has been the country’s political circles were merely a proof that you do not really only because those who worship than the one accepting it. It takes two gamesmanship behind this revolt as
elevated to the level of a national teeming with crooks and cheats and want to reach anywhere. It is the opportunism and greed have gotten to make an unholy alliance. And the there is behind the apology — and as

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