Disclaimer: I respect the Constitution of India and the ideals expressed in it. The thoughts expressed in this post are not an attempt to actually push for a ban on the Constitution. It is just an attempt to help fellow citizens realise the power they have.
Scenario 1
Uber, a taxi booking company
operating in India ,
provides a platform to connect commuters and taxi drivers. Thousands of cab drivers
use this platform to get more rides and make a living. One of the drivers commits
a heinous crime on one of his passengers. The driver in question is arrested
and Uber (along with other such companies) is banned for failing to carry out adequate
background checks.
Scenario 2
Our Constitution provides a
platform that allows citizens to participate in governance through their
representatives. The representatives are an elected (“elite”) group of people
who sit in an Assembly or Parliament and we call such a place “temple of
democracy”.
As citizens, we conduct a
background check and review their performance periodically before electing them
to office. We pay our representatives salaries and perks. We pamper them with
official residences and vehicles. We trust them to take the country forward when
we are busy leading a normal life. In short, we have done everything possible
to “hire” the right people!
Yet, based on statistics for
Karnataka available from filed affidavits, 34% of this “elite” group of people has
criminal cases against them. 17% of them have serious criminal cases like
attempt to murder, kidnapping, dacoity, assault against women etc. 5 of them
have declared (YES – in a sworn affidavit) that they have murder related
charges against them.
If you thought they might mend
their ways after entering the “temple of democracy”, just look at the gain in
assets of representatives who are re-elected. The average gain in assets over a
five year period is Rs. 17.57 crores or nearly 3.5 crores per year. In short,
the situation just gets worse every time we re-elect someone. So, who is to
blame?
Should we blame the Constitution
for giving us democracy, universal adult franchise and allowing everyone to
have a say?
Should we blame the Election
Commission for not stopping such people from contesting?
Should we blame the political
parties for not allowing only the best of the best to represent the rest of us?
Should we take the blame
ourselves for our disinterest in politics and for not doing a thorough
background check before electing them?
Fortunately, we don’t have to
think much. The Union Home Ministry has set a precedent in the Uber case - ban
the platform provider, arrest the driver and do nothing to solve the problems
of the end user.
A similar knee-jerk reaction is
probably needed to jolt us – ban the platform provider (Constitution/political
parties), arrest the driver (elected representatives) and do nothing to solve
actual problems of the citizens.
So, just for today, let us all
join hands as “the people of India ”
to push for a ban on our Constitution – the only document we have given to
ourselves and hence the only one on which we have any degree of control.
It surely solves nothing, but
once in a while it feels good to wield the power we have. Ah! Now I understand
how the Union Home Ministry feels…
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