This post was prompted by this article, where Shashi Tharoor addresses India's newest voters.
However at the outset let me make two disclaimers/confessions. I am an admirer of Shashi Tharoor, for his literary genius and for what he has achieved in his life. Also till date due to various reasons I have not been able to vote. Even for the forthcoming elections by the time I could think of registering myself the date was past. However I felt I had to mention a few points when I saw the letter.
The letter is a not-so-subtle repeat of Rahul Gandhi's "Congress is secular, BJP is communal" rant. For all the erudition and passion Tharoor puts into it the letter boils down to this simple statement. He claims that on one side is a grouping which has carried forward the lofty ideals of our founding fathers. I would like to point out a few more things about this grouping.
1. Did not Mahatma Gandhi call for disbanding this grouping after independence was achieved saying its objective was fulfilled?
2. This is a grouping which has propagated nepotism and family promotion at the highest levels of the government, at the Prime Minister's level no less.
3. For all its ranting in favour of its "inclusiveness" this is a grouping which has promoted concentration of power and individual worship throughout its existence, at least after independence.
4. For all its ranting about being "secular" the perpetrators of certain riots when the then PM was killed have not been brought to book till date. In fact one of the accused almost got tickets to contest some time back.
5. Two of its Prime Ministers were killed because of groups that directly or indirectly were initially encouraged by them, one of them being in a foreign land.
6. This grouping is so hungry for power that it went ahead and dismembered a state without regard to the feelings of more than half (?) the population. As somebody recently remarked there has been more haste to divide the state than to pass the women's reservation bill.
7. This grouping claims to have brought in the RTI. However as an article in yesterday's ET says most government departments have not yet fulfilled their obligations as part of implementing the RTI. Will this grouping compliment itself on having brought in the legislation only? Will they not be responsible for its implementation also?
8. This grouping set an extra-constitutional body headed by a person who "sacrificed" the PM's post, thus giving up responsibility but not giving up power. Most of the significant decisions made by the present government were actually initiated by this extra-constitutional body, unless I am mistaken.
9. It is felt that the last 10 years have seen the most corrupt phase of our society.
This list can probably go on and on. However I hope I have made my point. In today's India I am not very sure any party can truly claim a holier-than-thou attitude!
