This is the first sequel of any of the posts I have written so far. What does democracy mean?
Does it mean that I need to vote as soon as I am 18. Is that it?
All I need to do is pick the least corrupt candidate in my constituency?
Does my right to raise my voice or present my opinion end there?
What the person I vote for doesn't win the election?
What if the person I vote for sells out his followers to a much more powerful party in the quest for greater power?
Above all, what if, because of the "one of the most inefficient and corrupt administration" I don't even get a voter card?
What is real democracy? How can my voice be heard? I am never called up by any News channel for my opinion? How come Mahesh Bhatt, whose sole objective of life is to make sure that you find enough sex on screen gets a chance and I dont? How come Arundhati roy, who doesnt even believe in democracy gets so many chances to lambaste democracy using the so called democracy? How come Digvijay singh gets a chance to speak his utmost stupid thoughts on national TV once every 3 days? You would find more articles on jacqueline fernandez's cleavage and Deepika padukone's boob job than what the common man of the country thinks about its government or its policies. I am literally fed up of watching the self proclaimed intellects on the various talk shows, debates, interviews etc. who doesnt have an iota of understanding of what the real India wants.
A country where you are born with the special right of "Right to give and take bribe", "Right to Corruption". Literally. The first thing you need. A birth certificate. Whom would you raise voice against? Its not an infected body part which you can amputate, its cancer, blood cancer. It runs through the whole body.
The various governments one after other have taken great pain to table and withdraw the Lokpal Bill which is thought to bring the corrupt to justice. Though none of the government succeeded in doing so. The UPA-II has certainly made progress. Not by tabling a good bill, but it surely has given relief to the common man. Now I dont feel too bad while handing over Rs 50 to the traffic constable or the passport verification officer or the civil supply officer. It is just fifty bucks, who the fuck cares in a country which wakes up to a thousand crore scam everyday. Its fucking peanuts.
Though I am not a big fan of Mahatma Gandhi, his ideals surely seem to be working well in the current scenario as well. Anna hazare, the dictator, the person who brought democracy to its knees, the stubborn arrogant Gandhian. Well, these are some of the praises the gifted intellect had to share on some of the news channels. I do hear such pleasing salutations for Mr. Modi, one of the few politicians I admire. In any case there are proven accusations against Anna Hazare's organizations of corruption amounting to 2L rupees. Please refer to Justice Sawant Commission. Does someone who might have been invloved in any corrupt activity have the moral authority to lead a crusade against corruption? I gave it a thought, the first thing that came to my mind is I am a citizen of a country which voted back Indira Gandhi to power even after she imposed emergency in hope of better governance. That says it all. Everytime someone questions the policies of the Govt. either Congress or BJP, the immediate reaction is they dig out some dirty little secret about the person and claim that he does not have the right to question their ill doings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y8yuMF8mf0
The video is just one masterpiece of many. Manish Tiwary, alike DigVijay Singh is a gifted intellect who you would find blabbering on the News channels very frequently.
How do I conclude my view on this ever expanding topic? The newspapers say that the middle class is supporting Anna Hazare's movement because corruption is the root cause of the country's problems. Some say that this is the Anger of the people of India which has led to the huge support Anna is getting. Some even praise the restraint and patience shown by the people. Not a single act of violence. To me this is not the anger of the people, it is HOPE that has brought housewives out of their homes, techies bunk offices, dabbawalas strike for a day, autowalas take a day off. This not anger, not at all. It is definitely hope. Imagine why would the autowalas who over charge the passengers often support something against corruption? It is just the hope that has led to this budding revolution. The hope that the next time you visit a government office, you would find the employees there by time. The hope that the next time your family member goes for a driving test all he needs is to show that he can drive a vehicle. The hope that the next time a policewala harasses you, you can fearlessly file a complaint against him.
Will all these problems be solved by a strong Lokpal? Nope. Not at all. Does all those who support the Lokpal movement actually know what the bill is about? not at all. Then what does the people expect from this? To my understanding, it is change. For a change, the corrupt must be brought to justice. For a change, the government is for the people. For a change, democracy is DEMOCRACY.
P.S : I request all the readers to go through the Government's and India Against Corruption's versions of the Lokpal Bill. Simply Wiki it. Please spread the awareness about the bill and support the versions or the amendments you would want to make with justification.
