A farewell missive to the CEC

Dear Mr Lyngdoh: In an interview to the BBC recently, you likened politicians to a cancer afflicting the body politic. You said if a cure is...

Dear Mr Lyngdoh: In an interview to the BBC recently, you likened politicians to a cancer afflicting the body politic. You said if a cure is found for cancer, you will have to search for another expression. You said you could not think of a single living politician in the country today who is committed to democracy. It is not clear whether you had such dismal views about the political leadership of our country before you became election commissioner, and later chief election commissioner, or such conviction dawned on you only on the day of the interview by the BBC.

Normally one would not join a religion in which one has no faith. You were appointed as chief election commissioner by the president on the advice of the Appointments Committee consisting of the home minister and prime minister. They knew you are scrupulously honest, not at all amenable to any pressure from anyone on earth. Appointing you as CEC, to use a local idiom, was like politicians combing their hair with a flaming torch. They did it.

The fact that they appointed you and political parties allowed them to do so is itself unmistakable proof of politicians8217; commitment to democracy, howsoever inadequate it may be. The tribe you condemned was the very one that appointed you to the post of CEC.

This is not to say that all is fine with the political class. Many feel there is rampant corruption, cheating and bullying. But can we say other organs of state are unaffected by the declining standards of public conduct? Are you not aware of the declining values in the civil services? Do bureaucrats have no share in the blame attached to the political executive? How many men have you come across who have acted with your level of courage, conviction and integrity?

I am not unaware of the deficiencies of the politicians. To strike a personal note, I suffered unusually shabby treatment at the hands of some of them in my various postings. When I was a district collector, political leaders of the district got an inquiry ordered by the Intelligence Bureau for the simple 8220;sin8221; of giving audience to the poor. When I was director, social welfare, an intensive field posting, a chief minister ordered that I should not go on tours as he felt I was spreading revolution. But then, another chief minister incurred the wrath of all district leaders by persisting with me as collector. A central minister, the late K.V. Raghunatha Reddy, came all the way from Delhi to offer a few words of comfort. In my experience, there are some good politicians just as there are some committed and courageous Lyngdohs.

You said that there are very few politicians who even know how to talk politely and very few who understand courtesies. As a former head of civil service in my state, I can say from personal experience that the quantum of discourtesy we dispense to the public and politicians from our ivory tower of power and authority is several times more than which politicians dole out to civil servants and the people.

As CEC and citizen, you are entitled to your views and you have the right to express them. But permit me to be honest about this interview. It made me sad. Because the unbecoming outburst came from a man who set the highest standards for the independence and impartiality of the Election Commission. Sad, because sages tell us not to look down on anybody except when we are helping him up, while you looked down on the entire political system not with an intent to help them up but to condemn and ridicule them. Sad, because you chose to proclaim to the whole world, through the BBC, that the entire political leadership of our country is rotten. You could have opted for the constructive alternative of writing to the president of India, to convey your anguish about the falling standards of our political system and offer your valuable suggestions for its improvement.

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But consider the way politicians and political parties reacted to your outburst. They could have hurled abuse; they could have called you names. Compared to the severity of your condemnation, their rejoinders were mild and generous.

Some people praise you for courageously condemning the political class. Honesty and courage are, no doubt, great qualities. But there are qualities of nobility and humility. Your BBC

interview is full of boldness, bluntness, tough language. But look into yourself to find if there is even a trace of nobility and humility in what you said.

The writer is State Election Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh