My kingdom for some powder

But there is a slight twist to the plot. Something that would have even delighted the master: William Shakespeare.

There is a character flaw, which transcends caste and creed: stuff that dinosaurs like Arjun Singh are fighting for. It is also representative of the new India that we are in denial of. The new India, where the new rich want to be seen to have arrived. Where being Rahul Mahajan is more important that behaving with a sense of sobriety and responsibility. And the fault lies not in them, but in the way they’ve been brought up and as I mentioned the Mahajan brat is only representative of his era.

The concept of some sacred cows is now long over and we as a nation need to come to terms with it. Periods of mourning, much like the Greek, have now become periods of celebration and the ubiquitous Ganga jal has been replaced with some fine Dom Perignon and these are signs of the times we live in. The police continue to delight us with their Keystonian attitude as do hospitals, which can so easily doctor (no pun intended) blood reports.

The larger malaise is we ourselves. The richest and the fanciest homes in India serve cocaine as exotic canapes and there is nothing we can do about it. They have protection only until they make a mistake. Which is what I find so tragic. Why must the system react only when it collapses? Why must we know about the Rahul Mahajans and their secretaries only when they froth at the mouth? Why must the hospitals only be honest when an alert media shows them up for what they are? Why must a Vajpayee then condone this by saying everyone makes a mistake? The system itself is rotten.

There is no question in mind about the rampant complicity that exists and to weed that out you need courage and you do need a couple of deaths. You need to amend the law, which I don’t think will ever happen, since Parliament is busy sorting out quotas. You need demonstrable deterrent punishment and this again will never happen, since very few in this country amongst those who govern us, actually have homes from where they can throw stones! I have earlier argued for the death sentence as far as drugs are concerned. I believe we must follow the example of Thailand and Singapore because the problems in our country are much worse when it comes to both demand and supply. Several years ago, a high-profile fashion designer and some rich industrialist kids were named post a drug raid by the police. But nothing happened. Society welcomed them back as if they had just beaten Roger Bannister in the heats. This is where societal influences work against the betterment of society itself.

So why did Rahul Mahajan did what he finally did? Simple. This is the real life they actually live. They abuse the system, which throws them up as people who are powerful and rich, and then they go ahead and do exactly what they feel like. No different from what the Manu Sharmas and the D P Yadavs are doing. No different from what the Pappu Yadavs and the Sadhu Yadavs have done. Or for that matter no different from what Fardeen Khan did. They have all broken the law only to see the law (rather then they themselves) amend itself. Which points to yet another thing. In typical King Lear speak. Pray do not mock me but I am an old and foolish law.

But the moot question is where does this buck stop if at all? Who is finally responsible for the Rahuls and the Manus of this world? To be honest, each one of us. For making them into the demons they finally become and what’s more, for tolerating them and blaming their faults on child-like innocence, which must be pardoned. In the process, the needle of impotence and inadequacy points firmly towards us. We have allowed these people to make a mockery of everything we believed in. And some of us still do. The fashion designer still has gala shows and no one has made him into a pariah. The Manu Sharmas of this world still open their bars and restaurants to an unfazed clientele and life just carries on. This is where the real tragedy rests. Life in India has the knack to go on as if nothing ever happened. Rahul Mahajan will be a footnote in India’s political history and the history of drugs in India. Just as Manu Sharma is for murder. This is how the play will end. Morality will be given the short shrift and life will just carry on.

So why make such a big deal about such little powder? Only because if we remain silent today, if we keep quiet about the role that our law-makers and our police play in arresting this crime, if we remain numb to the curse of cocaine, generations of Indians will wake up to a reality laced with death. But then this is the choice we need to make today. Forget morals. Focus on mortality.

The writer is Managing Partner of Counselage India suhel.seth@expressindia.com