Opinion Delicate matters
First of all,we all have to wish Sonia Gandhi a speedy and healthy recovery.
First of all,we all have to wish Sonia Gandhi a speedy and healthy recovery. Of course,we have not been told what is wrong with her. But anything which requires surgery and two to three weeks in recovery must be serious. It is a pity that in India there is a lot of secrecy about the medical problems of the elite. We were told in great detail about Dr Manmohan Singhs quintuple bypasses two years ago. So why not now?
Of course,it is her personal choice to remain secretive about her health. But she is not just a private citizen. She is a pivotal person in Indian politics. She has achieved this status not merely as a result of her marriage to Rajiv Gandhi. She did decline to succeed him when she was offered the post of leadership on his untimely death. But then seven years later,she took up the cudgels,making a near bankrupt party electable and succeeded within another seven years.
A democracy should be open about the health problems of its leaders. In the US,there was secrecy about the numerous ailments John Kennedy suffered from which required him to be almost permanently sedated on novocaine. It was only since his sudden death that the health of the American President as well as of contenders for presidency in primaries has become an open issue. If Indian leaders had known the true state of Jinnahs health in the run up to Independence,Partition could have been prevented,saving thousands of lives.
It is not just health. Even in terms of immunity from the law and impunity of behaviour,India does make great concessions to the people elected as leaders. The idea that leaders are somewhat different from the rest of us is embedded in Indian political psyche. Indeed anyone,as soon as s/he becomes an MLA,MP or even a municipal councilor,thinks themselves above the people and indeed above the law.
This issue is at the heart of the Lokpal Bill currently going through Lok Sabha. The issue is not just whether the PM should be included within its ambit but why anyone should be excluded at all. Law should have universal applicability unless there is an overwhelming reason to do otherwise. Some of the anger that Anna Hazare has harvested is due to a widespread feeling among the middle classes as well as poorer people that the elected and the appointed are above the law. This is not just about financial corruption; it is even more about the privileges flaunted by the elite and their arrogance when pulled up about any misbehaviour.
It is too early to say whether and how much the Bill will be amended in the Standing Committee. One can only hope that Opposition parties will amend the Bill and incorporate many of the concerns of the civil society. Only Parliament has legitimacy; the civil society can only push the system via the Opposition to have its view put across.
Unfortunately,what transpired on the floor of the Lok Sabha on the inflation debate does not inspire any confidence. What was promised to be an akhara became more like a hippie love-in between the two principal parties. Yashwant Sinhas attack was wrong headed to charge that growth was the cause of inflation. He denigrated growth itself when it was his stewardship as FM which launched India on the high growth path. Low inflation has not been achieved in India more due to policy failures than due to pursuit of growth or even globalisation as Salman Khursheed tried to argue. It was the failure of supply side policy on the foodgrain frontneglect of agriculture and reluctance to release stockswhich is the principal reason for high inflation.
Far from pursuing high growth,India is about to witness the halting of the juggernaut. The PMs EAC has already downgraded growth forecast to 8.2 per cent but even that will prove an overestimate. It will be good if India clears 7 per cent. There is a fashion among the jholawalas to denigrate growth and blame it for all ills including corruption. All I can say is,wait till growth disappears and then see how much more difficult it becomes to help the poor.
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