THE GREAT INDIAN CIRCUS
Corruption is at the core of India and Indianness. It is all powerful, unbeatable and unconquerable. The Prime Minister of nation said so, sometime back. The Chief Minister, apparently, skipped the newspapers that particular day, which is evident from his sermons on corruption. And of course, there is his own dubious past to reckon with. A dangerous gamble, indeed. But no doubt an opportunity for me to sermonise, instead. Here it goes…
Corruption is a very convenient stick in hands of politicians. The political outs hound the political ins with this stick until they make it to the corridors of power. The stick is then left behind for the use of those who are now in the ranks of the opposition. This routine goes on endlessly as the poll roulette keeps rotating the rulers and the opponents alternately with the people having no choice but to choose from between Tweedledum and Tweedledee.
Corruption is also the engine that propels the very political system. Those who vow to root it out are actually those who perpetrate it. Then why do they say so? Why do the politicians, irrespective of party affiliation make tall claims about wiping out corruption from the face of the earth knowing fully well that they owe their very existence to it? Do they not realise that if they wipe out corruption they may also end up getting wiped out? The fight against corruption indulged in by politicians of all hue is in essence just a shadow war, a mock exercise for the consumption of the gullible and the insensitive, who unfortunately, still abound and are aplenty.
Just as Columbus discovered America politicians discovered corruption. And like America, which despite its hegemonistic tendencies still remains the most cosmopolitan of societies, corruption too is now everyone’s territory. It is no longer the sole preserve of politicians. There is freedom for all in the frantic free-for-all pursuit of pelf and wealth. The doors of this fortress are ever open to those who desire to make it big, by hook or crook, fast and first. There is, of course a security check at the entry point where you are frisked for morals and consciences. And if you are found in possession of such objectionable objects, you are promptly stripped of those. Thereafter it is only a question of survival of the fittest, meaning survival of the corrupt.
Corruption in India has a well set hierarchy that can put even the best managed multinational company to shame. From simple grease at the common man’s level it ranges to the scams in high places. And as one goes up the corruption ladder, the attendant risks also rise in direct proportion, as do the returns. But does not fortune favour only the brave?
There are, no doubt, watchdogs but as the name indicates they just watch and sometimes even bark, but seldom bite owing to lack of teeth. The watchdogs themselves sometimes join the party, for they also have a stomach which too can experience hunger. And above all, starving while watching others eat is not an attractive pastime and the temptation to butter their bread too may get the better off even call of duty.
Corruption is a great unifier. It is secular and transcends religions and creed. It neither knows Mandir nor Masjid. It is equally unaware of Mandal and blissfully ignorant of reservations, be it 50 per cent or 69 percent; quotas and percentages read a different meaning in the corruption lexicon. The upper castes and the lower castes are on par, with equal opportunity for survival. If it is Bofors for one, there is always a Fodder for the other.
Corruption is the true champion of socialism. To each according to his needs, from each according to his ability is the maxim here too. Arid you may also add, what the traffic can bear. And as it spreads like the Bolshevik revolution did early this century, it is certain to ensure that the state withers away.
It is no respecter of national frontiers. The world of corruption is indeed a very small one. You would realise how close Switzerland is to India. Or even, Sweden. Corrupt capital flies across borders, faster than the Concord. And it may come back, even faster, like a rocket, if your country is intelligent enough to announce an amnesty. Of course our country is intelligent. It recognises the potency of corruption and knows it cannot tackle it. If you cannot fight them then Join them. The government did so. For nine months it opened its counters in a grand act of surrender, but paraded as a divine act of pardon. So if you manage to earn 100% of illegal money, you just bribe the government with 30% and no questions will be asked. You can then retain the 70%, with a bonus of 100% peace not to speak of the 200% freedom to make several 100 per cent more.
Corruption is still, however, perceived as a devil. Reason why you find a plethora of high priests who claim to be specialists in exorcising it. They owe their expertise to their own hands-on experiences in the past, when rice, wheat, sugar, pesticides and the like were in short supply. They are them-selves pastmasters in the art of sleaze, having elevated it to the level of a science. Scientific corruption is indeed their achievement and they have ‘certificates’ to prove their sole claim to it. They are now the priests who are going to wipe the devil off the face of the country. And they are on parade owing to the famed public memory which cannot remember beyond the immediate past election.
Beware voters, of these pretenders. You know too well that the monster is of immense dimensions and it needs more than elections to get rid of it. And if someone does Come knocking, promising to do so, just utter the word ‘Sarkaria’. They would simply vanish. You would have exorcised the exorcists.
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