Words of warning

In a meeting with reporters,a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party,Yashwant Sinha,said that there was “so much evidence that has come out against [Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram in the 2G spectrum case that for the CBI to say in court now that he is not guilty would be laughable”. He added that “Chidambaram’s place is in the same cell in Tihar jail in which [former telecom minister A. Raja has been lodged”. Through these words,Sinha,himself a former finance minister like Chidambaram,has unfortunately chosen to align the country’s principal opposition party not with the fact-finding,legality and regulatory reform that must be the response to revelations about irregularities in the 2G licensing process,but instead with the increasingly heated sab-chor-hai rhetoric that has begun to poison our political discourse. This is a grave error; it is not only politically short-sighted for what pretends to be,after all,the alternative party of government,but also sets back the chances of institutional strengthening being the end-product of any anger caused by the 2G revelations.

It is necessary to remember that there is a crucial difference between financial misappropriation or bribery,and disagreements over policy. In the response to the finance ministry’s note about auctions,this difference seems to have been elided over,and now Sinha has upped the ante considerably. This is unfortunate,as it is essential to preserve that difference if we are to get policy we approve of — or even policy discussions that are open and comprehensive.

Even worse,however,is the nature of Sinha’s rhetoric. In the retributive nature of what is being suggested,there is little space for fact-finding or even for rationality; there is little space for the legal process to swing into motion — just as they have been doing,albeit prodded by the Supreme Court,in the 2G case. Had Sinha chosen his words responsibly,he could have debated the policy decisions under consideration instead — and we would have,for one,yet more political heft behind auction mechanisms,a much-needed reform. As the main opposition party,one which has the experience of running this country’s government at the Centre,the BJP could have hammered away at the strengthening of institutions that is needed. But we have been given,in place of that,irresponsible rhetoric.