Anna Vs Rascal(a)s!

India is a rainbow country. On one hand, we throng the streets and celebrate our cricket team’s victory in the world cup , on the other, we become mute spectators when it comes to crime and corruption. Indians are spectators of great contrast. Enthusiastic and vibrant for a cricket match, numb & mute for a ‘real cause’.

But things are taking a different turn now. The jubilation over World Cup has quickly and swiftly paved way for an unprecedented agitation against corruption. Jantar Mantar and India Gate have become flash-points of India’s fight against corruption, fight against a government that seems to be neck-deep in shit. Not long ago it was India Vs Pakistan or India Vs Lanka, Now it is India Vs Corruption. Anna Vs Rascals.

The sight at Jantar Mantar is electrifying as thousands of people, from all walks of life, have gathered to root out that one evil that has eaten away India’s wealth like a termite. A 73-year old Gandhinian, Anna Hazare, is on indefinite hunger strike to force the arrogant government to draft and implement the ‘Jan Lokpal Bill’.

The Lokpal Bill has been lying in the government’s cold storage for some 42 years now. Successive governments have failed to get the bill passed through the parliament. Also, the current Lokpal Bill is nothing more than a ‘Fun Jokepal’ Bill. Anna’s Jan Lokpal bill proposes sweeping powers for the ‘Lokpal’ or the corruption Watchdog. With implementation of this bill, the Lokpal could charge-sheet, prosecute and punish the guilty.

The government is shivering in its shoes with fear of skeletons tumbling out of its own closet. It simply does not have the courage to provide teeth to the Corruption Watchdog. The dialogue between the Government (Kapil Sibal) and the activists has not paid much dividends. Agreement on two contagious issues is yet to be reached. The government has agreed to form a committee that would look after the drafting of the Lokpal Bill. It has also agreed to allocate 50% of the committee’s strength to the Civil Society. But it is simply not ready to accept Anna as the chairperson of the committee, or any eminent non-politicians for that matter. The government is also not ready to issue a public notification declaring the formation of the committee. This very fact makes one doubt the very intention and sincerity of the government. (See the picture below for better insight of the stand-off)

You simply can not have the corrupt making laws to check corruption. India’s government, its ministers, members of parliament have lost the confidence of common man. Its time the government came out of its illusion and start realizing that the power is wielded by the voter not the government itself. Its, we the people, who are the decision-makers of this country, the government is a mere representative of us.

Sadly, the representatives have let us down and the corrupt is still making merry in the sun. A rascal like Sharad Pawar, who has consumed most of India’s grains, was part of the Group of Empowered Ministers that is supposed to draft this bill. How can a thief make a law to check theft? This very government had ministers like Raja, officials like Kalmadi. How can we expect a government of Rascals to stop the spread of cancerous corruption?

Keep that finger in Check!

Anna Hazare has emerged as a ray of hope for this country of brilliant laziness. People are finally shedding their inhibitions and taking part in what is turning out to be a spectacular mass movement. Anna’s poise, determination and stubbornness remind me of a certain Gandhi. The youth, thankfully, has rallied behind the ‘Modern Gandhi’ and is ready to take the battle to its conclusion.

A nation headed by a crippled Prime Minister, a bunch of thugs & goons needs a small little Jasmine Revolution of its own. Corruption is the biggest enemy Indians would ever face. Right from registering a birth to cremating a dead body, shameless corrupt officials siphon out our hard earned money. This movement has given us the much needed momentum and, as they say in cricketing terms, we must make a good match of it.