India has been witnessing a grand play from the genre of the theatre of the absurd, the Natwar Natak. The sootradhaar in this performance did a deft jig, transmitting much through his body language and spicing it all with contradictions galore that brought many laughs from the audience. Verbal acrobatics, laced with hysteria, made for many climactic moments in the first act. This has been Natwar Singh’s maiden attempt at an extempore stand-alone comic show. Intermission.
We now await Act II, ?Characters in search of power.? A near complete political representation that will attempt to author India?s immediate future. The chorus in this show are the same singers who burst into the same refrain at each point of advance in the plot. They interrupt the flow and stall all movement.
They are dressed in bright post-box red and wear a white hammer and sickle as their headgear to distinguish them from the rest. We are all panting for more of this superhit comedy. There are no premium seats. It is transmitted on all channels and it is live entertainment for the aam aadmi.
We have had many similar political revue recently. The public witnessed, again on the small screen, endless vignettes of ?Mole in the Mind?, a short imaginative skit that was masterfully crafted and orchestrated by the media and marketing men. A fading protagonist was suddenly flung into the limelight, having been near-forgotten. He made the cover of a newsmagazine for no real reason, was the pet subject for national anchor people, and as the curtain came down on those regular shows, he flew off to begin playing out the charade in the United States!
But, jokes apart, it is truly sad that two supposedly ?erudite? members of the Rajya Sabha, India?s upper house of Parliament, with many decades in public life, should become caricatures of themselves and shame all of us who believe in the dignity of office and in the responsibility of leadership. It makes one ashamed of how our leadership has diluted itself into futile assaults, allegations, abuse and unfortunately, unending contradictions and double-speak, that in normal parlance are called lies.
It makes one shudder to think that senior ministerial responsibilities and direction of policy were in the hands of these two men, albeit at different times. These spectacles have betrayed the ethos and integrity of India and left the country gaping, stupefied by the shenanigans that have been trotted out for all and sundry, leading to a complete lack of faith in the intentions and integrity of such politicians.
It is truly sad that two supposedly erudite members of the Rajya Sabha should become caricatures of themselves |
Yet again, as we are compelled to wade through this ?mire?, Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi in their silent appraisal of the situation, staying away from letting the media run riot, speak another language. One of probity in public life which firmly establishes their integrity and decency in this realm. They stand alone, heads held higher than many others, visible to all and saluted by most, despite some of the weaknesses of their coalition, government and party. Often, at moments such as this, failures, lack of decision-making or wrong decisions, are all forgotten temporarily in an attempt to support good intention and appropriate, dignified behaviour.
Leaders are expected to lead and when they behave in a way that is embarrassing, it reflects negatively on the constituents of the country. And to give the benefit of the doubt to such men and women becomes near impossible. It heralds the beginnings of a real breakdown.
Political guts demand going to the polls at a time like this when there is constant disruption of initiatives and governance. Chances are that if a campaign is addressed carefully, exposing the assault on civil society indulged in by elected representatives, the mandate may be substantial for one national party. Coalitions that have entities blackmailing them cannot function. The juvenile activity of stalling Parliament proceedings at the drop of a hat instead of arguing the many issues with clarity and thought makes a mockery of the institution. It suggests that our parliamentarians have much more to do on the practice of democracy, to avoid aiding the process of disruption and worse. This tearing apart of the symbols of civility, behaving as they do in a crude manner, using unacceptable means to fight their political opponents, is not on.