E D I T O R I A L

Rituals All

India seems to have mastered the art of turning everything into a ritual. It may be religion or politics. Other institutions like birth, marriage and even death are part of grand rituals. Quickly the substance is lost and ceremonies take over, at times turning these into a farce. India has been home to world’s grand religions, worship of nature in its raw powers, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism besides several other small religions. Most of these have lost their core meaning and have been subsumed by rites and rituals. Illiterate priests, majority of them illiterate, dispense these realigns as quacks do. Symbols have eaten substance like moth.

What is true about the destiny of religions is true about our democracy. We stage grand elections and then as elected representatives of the people or lok sewaks get busy either grabbing power or amassing wealth, the electros are conveniently forgotten. A sham dance of democracy keeps taking place for five years or so till another grand ritual is staged. Charade of sorts is labeled as an ideal democracy and then a government by the people, for the people and of the people comes into power. The rulers then make merry as the electros hurl curses, cry for help and seek big or small favours. They adopt every trick to attract the attention of the members of parliament or state assemblies.

Bernard Shaw in his introduction to his famous political extravaganza, The Apple Cart flays this melodrama of Democracy through an analogy. ‘Democratically’ elected government is a big balloon, filled with gas or hot air, and sent up so that we shall be kept looking up at the sky whilst other people are picking your pockets.  When the balloon comes down to earth every five years or so we are invited to get into the basket if we can throw out one of the people who are sitting tightly in it; but as we can afford neither the time nor the money, and there are millions of us and hardly room for a few hundred in the basket, the balloon goes up again with much the same lot in it and leaves us where you were before.  Shaw says, “I think you will admit that the balloon as an image of Democracy corresponds to the parliamentary facts.”

A triumph of autocracy over democracy, and its dramatization an act of political apostasy on the part of Shaw is persuasive that our professed devotion to political principles is only a mask for our idolatry of eminent persons.  The Apple Cart exposes the unreality of democracy.

This drama is being staged in Punjab these days with great skill and as an ugly display of money power. It is there for everyone to see, laugh or weep as one may wish. Voters have some privilege, a  short lived to be charmed, enticed and offered almost everything under the sun. Money, caste, religion and clan politics would be in full display.  Observers are asserting that this would be one of the costliest elections so far. Some have put a price of Rs one this at crore They say money would flow as liquor and other intoxicants. This means that Punjab has great wealth to display and devour during elections. Already high pitch rallies, vikas yatras and propaganda through media has been a costly affair.

Increasingly the political culture is becoming more akin to a private limited company, collecting huge funds, adopting modern management and public relations techniques and dispensing favours. This in turn brings rich pecuniary dividends to the leaders. Media too is getting rich in the process as advertisements worth crores are on display. It is more of a family business. There are scores of political dynasties: Badals, Amarinders, Dullos, Ranas, Bajwas, Dhillons, Sandhus, Chaudhrys and many more poaching all the political parties. Is it democracy and plutocracy? Make your one judgment.

Political debate on basic issues is missing. People shall have to look elsewhere than the political class to understand the reasons and solution for agrarian crisis, drug addiction, ever-rising unemployment and high cost of living and the rising crime graph including corruption. Meanwhile, they would have endless tamashas, paradoxically at their own cost.

Democracy if it has to have any worth is all about choices and participation at many levels. This is totally missing in our system. Choices in Punjab are limited to two groupings; the Congress and the Akali BJP combine and they do not differ in their approach to various issues and share a common way of working. Both have shown great love for power and pelf.  So choice is limited and as far participation, it comes once in five years and can been exercised in a limited way through the ballots.

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With Compliments from


Gogi Sidhu
President

Satish K. Jain
Executive Vice President

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