Circa 2008?Indian politicians and administrators live in fear of endorsing our many freedoms because they have failed miserably to deliver a freedom from fear within the jurisdiction of their rule. When the privileged are intellectually insecure, the norms they propagate degrade into unacceptable rules and regulations that insult and sometimes assault the dignity of a people.
When the judiciary of a nation fights to remain, through special dispensation, outside of the realms of scrutiny, it is time to shake oneself out of the stupor we have veiled ourselves with, and fight to uphold truth and the dignity of the honest, ordinary, uncorrupted citizen who is forced to wade in filthy mire.
The judiciary should proclaim, loud and clear, that it is upright, that it abides by the laws of our land it has pledged to abide by, and that it will always be open to scrutiny as it sets the standards of honesty, integrity and the rule of law. Till that happens,nothing will correct itself.
The argument against scrutiny has been that the ?independence? of the judiciary will be affected. Should we, the media also demand to be protected from ?scrutiny? to remain independent and non-partisan? Every professional group, including efficient under world operators, could demand the same privilege based on the same argument. Why this discrimination? Surely the judiciary in a democracy cannot follow the principle of the Divine Right of Kings! Much of this absurd debate can be interpreted as the beginning of a brutal attack on democracy and civil society.
The political class in India operates within its own, out of context, exclusive set of self imposed norms. It breaks oath of office with regularity as it fails to deliver the basic goods and services to the Indian public, and has proven itself unfit to govern and take forward, this multi-lingual, plural civilisation. The delivery mechanism has ceased to function and is virtually nonexistent. Six decades from the time we became a democratic republic, elected representatives and the district, state and central administrative services have failed to provide potable water, electricity, drainage, connectivity, health and basic education to every Indian. The income tax, excise and customs services have failed to ensure diligent and clean adherence to the law. They have become corrupt themselves forcing the citizen to comply dishonestly.
In contrast is the infectious energy and determined aspiration of a new, young, and dynamic economy, looking for opportunities of growth to generate honest wealth within the borders of our nation state. Sadly, India has a rusted, faulty infrastructure, which is governed by a set of archaic, redundant rules, a perverse legacy inherited from the last ruling colonial power as it retreated home. Britain changed its structures based of the need of the times but India did not. Contemporary India is being compelled to live the life of an under dog in its own land ruled by its own leaders. That is the tragedy. And, till it does not correct itself, India will not move out of the present regressive mode.
Therefore, to make correctives in the operating systems, the political, administrative and judicial class must be put under severe public scrutiny. Mechanisms need to be set up to ensure this happens. Rules and laws of a colonial power that governed us need to be rewritten to deal with the demands of a sovereign, democratic republic. For this to happen, civil society representatives, academics and other professionals need to put their heads together and devise a simple rulebook, without endless convolutions, that only endorse unimaginable interpretations to prevent straightforward, diligent, honest enforcement of the simple, common rule of law. Once that is in place, India could become a powerhouse of human resource, goods and services appropriate for the future of mankind.
The author is the publisher of Seminar magazine