This time around I was not nervous. Entering the main building did not make me numb. As I was taking the oath, I was relaxed enough to look around and observe my surroundings. I even noticed several people were absent.
Ladies and Gentlemen - welcome to the 15 edition of the Lok Sabha. The last time around, there was drama, suspense, horror, deception, disruption and a little bit of progress. This time around, we're hoping to accomplish a lot more progress. As Pranab Ji said it in his patented style, our campaigning for the 2014 elections must begin today itself.
After taking the oath, as I approached Advani Ji for his blessings, he said something to me that I can never forget. He said to me that the future of India has very high hopes from me. The same sentiment was echoed by the other seniors in the opposition as they congratulated me. I was astonished at they candour. Is the opposition really broken down? Has the opposition lost their bearings? Have they also succumbed to the Gandhi aura? Am I now going to get a special treatment from them too?
I must have been there for only a moment and yet I was flooded with all sorts of random thoughts. Does a strong mandate for the Congress mean a fragmented and week opposition? Is that a reality of coalition politics? Do we have to now choose between a strong government and a strong opposition? Can we not have both? Are not both absolute essentials for a proper democracy? The opposition too represents citizen's sentiments and if they're not well represented in the house, will people take to the streets and get violent? Can we afford any more violence?
I must have been lost in all this for an eternity, and if you saw the live proceedings on TV - you would agree it was an eternity, but speaking to Sachin and Praful Ji later I learnt that everyone received the same comment from these stalwarts. They were just being cordial.
That made more sense to me.
But I must agree that even though the opposition made personal attacks at me, my family and my party leaders - in person they are kind and courteous. I guess it is just the politics that brings out the worst in us all. I too may have been out of line at time during the campaign.
As our very own Dr. Singh said before the start of the session - let this be a new beginning.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Friday, May 29, 2009
Undynastic INC
First off, I would like to congratulate Mr. Stalin on becoming Deputy Chief Minister. Despite reports to the contrary, I did not know anything about it :-)
Secondly, in response to allegations that the Congress is dynastic in its functioning, I point to just about every other political party in India - and rest my case.
See - I'm not making an excuse by pointing fingers at others, I just think if the issue is not unique to the Congress then why do our rivals try to throw stones only at us every time they get half a chance? Agreed there is an element of dynasty driven leadership in the Congress, but we're not acting as dictators. We're perhaps the first party that is actually introducing fresh minds into our leadership ranks - not just bringing in more and more "party workers" that will "ji huzoor" the top brass as our rivals do. We're actually creating a leadership structure that has more than the Gandhi surname in it. We're actually using the power of the surname to get merit (however hidden) recognized and placed at the right spots so that overall performance of the government improves.
Let's run a thought experiment...
Imagine the Indian National Congress was currently being run by a different group of people. Assume it is a subset of the existing faces known to us, hence no new faces or dramatically different way of thinking. What then, would be the odds of getting a clean, competent and cerebral Dr. Manmohan Singh to head the government?
I know what some of you are thinking - you're questioning if Dr. Singh is indeed all that. I will address that in detail in some other post, for now just accept the mandate of the people of India.
Agreed Dr. Singh was hand picked, but his hands have not been tied. He has been functioning independently knowing very well what political constraints exist in our reality. In true shared-responsibility style of functioning, he discusses his views with senior leaders and seeks their opinion, but does indeed take his own decisions. That has become easier now with the Congress getting a stronger mandate.
Anyway, back to our experiment...
How easy could it have been for a gentleman with no mass following yet all the credentials for the job to actually get the job? I tell you this, it would have been impossible. With the dynastic craze in the party though, such decisions become a possibility, and in this case a reality. Yes it does come down to intent - does the dynasty intend to make decisions that are best for the nation, or only for its personal gain? That is out in the open for everyone to judge.
Effective leaders need to have two very important characteristics. First - they need to know how to get their people to follow them. Second, they need to know where to lead them to.
Assuming the second trait is a function of brute intelligence, compassion, trustworthy advisers and the best of intent - you would have to agree it is the more trivial trait of the two. The first trait is more tricky to exhibit. Such an ability comes (maybe) through years and years of having proven yourself right from the grass root level upto a higher level. Even then, self interest of rivals within the team can be a hindrance. What makes it easy is that magic wand called "surname". In a culture such as ours that is so driven by emotions, you would want to have a person at the helm who can take tough decisions that won't be questioned and will in fact be followed through with full rigour.
Yes, the answer now gets clearer.
If there is a political party that has this superb combination, it would be best suited to serve the people of India as a whole. Why then should it back off from such a combination? Why should it give up its competitive edge? There are some who would continue to make allegations that we're dynastic but if there are many more out there who benefit from better governance because of the Congress then the allegations don't bother me one bit. It is very rare (even in a nation of a billion) to find someone with a strong intent to improve the plight of the people, a strong group of trustworthy advisers and a strong position to influence the hearts and minds of its team.
We're not about to let this rare convergence go to waste.
Secondly, in response to allegations that the Congress is dynastic in its functioning, I point to just about every other political party in India - and rest my case.
See - I'm not making an excuse by pointing fingers at others, I just think if the issue is not unique to the Congress then why do our rivals try to throw stones only at us every time they get half a chance? Agreed there is an element of dynasty driven leadership in the Congress, but we're not acting as dictators. We're perhaps the first party that is actually introducing fresh minds into our leadership ranks - not just bringing in more and more "party workers" that will "ji huzoor" the top brass as our rivals do. We're actually creating a leadership structure that has more than the Gandhi surname in it. We're actually using the power of the surname to get merit (however hidden) recognized and placed at the right spots so that overall performance of the government improves.
Let's run a thought experiment...
Imagine the Indian National Congress was currently being run by a different group of people. Assume it is a subset of the existing faces known to us, hence no new faces or dramatically different way of thinking. What then, would be the odds of getting a clean, competent and cerebral Dr. Manmohan Singh to head the government?
I know what some of you are thinking - you're questioning if Dr. Singh is indeed all that. I will address that in detail in some other post, for now just accept the mandate of the people of India.
Agreed Dr. Singh was hand picked, but his hands have not been tied. He has been functioning independently knowing very well what political constraints exist in our reality. In true shared-responsibility style of functioning, he discusses his views with senior leaders and seeks their opinion, but does indeed take his own decisions. That has become easier now with the Congress getting a stronger mandate.
Anyway, back to our experiment...
How easy could it have been for a gentleman with no mass following yet all the credentials for the job to actually get the job? I tell you this, it would have been impossible. With the dynastic craze in the party though, such decisions become a possibility, and in this case a reality. Yes it does come down to intent - does the dynasty intend to make decisions that are best for the nation, or only for its personal gain? That is out in the open for everyone to judge.
Effective leaders need to have two very important characteristics. First - they need to know how to get their people to follow them. Second, they need to know where to lead them to.
Assuming the second trait is a function of brute intelligence, compassion, trustworthy advisers and the best of intent - you would have to agree it is the more trivial trait of the two. The first trait is more tricky to exhibit. Such an ability comes (maybe) through years and years of having proven yourself right from the grass root level upto a higher level. Even then, self interest of rivals within the team can be a hindrance. What makes it easy is that magic wand called "surname". In a culture such as ours that is so driven by emotions, you would want to have a person at the helm who can take tough decisions that won't be questioned and will in fact be followed through with full rigour.
Yes, the answer now gets clearer.
If there is a political party that has this superb combination, it would be best suited to serve the people of India as a whole. Why then should it back off from such a combination? Why should it give up its competitive edge? There are some who would continue to make allegations that we're dynastic but if there are many more out there who benefit from better governance because of the Congress then the allegations don't bother me one bit. It is very rare (even in a nation of a billion) to find someone with a strong intent to improve the plight of the people, a strong group of trustworthy advisers and a strong position to influence the hearts and minds of its team.
We're not about to let this rare convergence go to waste.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Let's Move On
I am a dangerous person to be interviewed. I tend to speak my mind and I cannot hold back my emotions.
Now that the formalities are over, we know who the Ministers are and what their portfolios are. I, as many others within the Congress, have been disappointed with the process and - in most part - with the outcome but will put my weight behind making this government a success. I understand the powers that be had so many variables to balance in the complex equations they were managing. From this point on, I will not question or undermine the government in any way.
I must congratulate some of the people who I saw share my frustration with this process but deal with it very gracefully in the media. They have taken the questions/allegations etc. in their stride, defended the decisions and upheld the highest traditions of Parliamentarians. They are the reasons I feel I am not suited for interviews.
On a lighter note, several people have asked me why I wore the Devdas look at the oath ceremony today. I want to set the record straight - it had nothing to do with the choice of people participating in the ceremony. It also had nothing to do with the possibility of a love interest.
I will just leave it at that now :-)
Now that the formalities are over, we know who the Ministers are and what their portfolios are. I, as many others within the Congress, have been disappointed with the process and - in most part - with the outcome but will put my weight behind making this government a success. I understand the powers that be had so many variables to balance in the complex equations they were managing. From this point on, I will not question or undermine the government in any way.
I must congratulate some of the people who I saw share my frustration with this process but deal with it very gracefully in the media. They have taken the questions/allegations etc. in their stride, defended the decisions and upheld the highest traditions of Parliamentarians. They are the reasons I feel I am not suited for interviews.
On a lighter note, several people have asked me why I wore the Devdas look at the oath ceremony today. I want to set the record straight - it had nothing to do with the choice of people participating in the ceremony. It also had nothing to do with the possibility of a love interest.
I will just leave it at that now :-)
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Sad Day For India
The finalized list of Ministers has just been released. While I was not involved in those discussions and was not informed of the list before it was released, I did put forth a few points to my Mother and the Prime Minister. I must say that list has not been adhered to in its entirety - though I must also add that there never was an obligation for them to do so.
Here is a summary of what I had put forth:
- Tainted Ministers to not be allowed.
- Experience and past performance over caste/state/religion bias.
- First time MPs to not be included. Except of course, Mr. Tharoor.
I'm sure you can see some of the points have not been adhered to. When I spoke to my Mother about this, she said there are certain things you have to give up in order to get certain other things - which hopefully are more important. In this case, there are several within the Congress Party itself that needed to see things this way, otherwise they would not have put their full support behind the "Central Command" and in the absence of that, we could not have led the nation the way we would like to - the right way. Not only would the party be fractured, even the people who did not see their state/caste/religion getting represented in the cabinet would not vote for us again.
I see the point.
I understand we need to go through the transformation at a pace that the country as a whole can keep up with. But that pace is usually going to be determined by the slowest of us all. Just as a chain is only as strong as the weakest link, the country can develop only as much or as fast as the stupidest amongst us will let it. The smart ones will one day give up and head out to other countries then. No one wants to see their aspirations capped by the stupidest amongst us.
This is truly a sad day for India. What could have been a dream cabinet has been reduced to an average cabinet. All because there are those in the country who have to be satisfied. Those who see their national identity as their secondary identity, but their state/caste/religious identity as their primary identity.
There are many within the Congress that are not too happy about this new cabinet. They feel we have a clear mandate for change, and this Cabinet does not give the voters a strong confidence that we are ready to make a change. They feel we should ride the wave of voter support and impress them with what we're trying to do. There are yet others who feel this is an acceptable cabinet, that it helps us balance out things with voter and allies. They feel we need to survive the next 5 years without any hiccups and that itself will be enough to come back to power. In terms of performance, it would be fine to just got there half way.
We're already giving up what the media has termed the Rahul Doctrine. And this is just within the Congress. Don't even get me started on what we've had to give up because of our allies.
Here is a summary of what I had put forth:
- Tainted Ministers to not be allowed.
- Experience and past performance over caste/state/religion bias.
- First time MPs to not be included. Except of course, Mr. Tharoor.
I'm sure you can see some of the points have not been adhered to. When I spoke to my Mother about this, she said there are certain things you have to give up in order to get certain other things - which hopefully are more important. In this case, there are several within the Congress Party itself that needed to see things this way, otherwise they would not have put their full support behind the "Central Command" and in the absence of that, we could not have led the nation the way we would like to - the right way. Not only would the party be fractured, even the people who did not see their state/caste/religion getting represented in the cabinet would not vote for us again.
I see the point.
I understand we need to go through the transformation at a pace that the country as a whole can keep up with. But that pace is usually going to be determined by the slowest of us all. Just as a chain is only as strong as the weakest link, the country can develop only as much or as fast as the stupidest amongst us will let it. The smart ones will one day give up and head out to other countries then. No one wants to see their aspirations capped by the stupidest amongst us.
This is truly a sad day for India. What could have been a dream cabinet has been reduced to an average cabinet. All because there are those in the country who have to be satisfied. Those who see their national identity as their secondary identity, but their state/caste/religious identity as their primary identity.
There are many within the Congress that are not too happy about this new cabinet. They feel we have a clear mandate for change, and this Cabinet does not give the voters a strong confidence that we are ready to make a change. They feel we should ride the wave of voter support and impress them with what we're trying to do. There are yet others who feel this is an acceptable cabinet, that it helps us balance out things with voter and allies. They feel we need to survive the next 5 years without any hiccups and that itself will be enough to come back to power. In terms of performance, it would be fine to just got there half way.
We're already giving up what the media has termed the Rahul Doctrine. And this is just within the Congress. Don't even get me started on what we've had to give up because of our allies.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Indian Media - An Open Challenge To You
I was shocked a few days ago when the media presented the country with possible options of Cabinet Ministers and had a category for Dalits saying these would be the Dalit faces of the Cabinet. I was shocked because they trivialized the Cabinet and made it seem like those candidates were in the race only because they were Dalits. But I also realized this particular incident is just a symptom of a bigger problem. We tend to assign a secondary identity to just about everyone.
If there is a terrorist attack, it must be terrorists from a particular religion. It is not enough to just call them terrorists, we must drag the "religion" in as well as if that particular religion has a part-time job to groom terrorists. Dear God, we even put that religious tag on the victims, saying most of the victims of that terror incident were of that other "religion". Sometimes we put a caste based tag on them, and sometimes a community based tag.
Is it possible that the media is just as guilty of instigating communal disharmony as many suggest a rival political party does?
Here is an open challenge to the Indian Media - let me see you drop such classifications! Let me see you identify a terrorist as just that, a terrorist. Let that terrorist not be called a Muslim terrorist or Hindu terrorist. Let a politician be just that, a politician - not a Hindu, Muslim or Dalit politician.
Who in the media would be willing to take up such a challenge? This would probably be the first major step in uniting the country and ushering a whole new generation into a new kind of thinking.
Who is up for this challenge?
If there is a terrorist attack, it must be terrorists from a particular religion. It is not enough to just call them terrorists, we must drag the "religion" in as well as if that particular religion has a part-time job to groom terrorists. Dear God, we even put that religious tag on the victims, saying most of the victims of that terror incident were of that other "religion". Sometimes we put a caste based tag on them, and sometimes a community based tag.
Is it possible that the media is just as guilty of instigating communal disharmony as many suggest a rival political party does?
Here is an open challenge to the Indian Media - let me see you drop such classifications! Let me see you identify a terrorist as just that, a terrorist. Let that terrorist not be called a Muslim terrorist or Hindu terrorist. Let a politician be just that, a politician - not a Hindu, Muslim or Dalit politician.
Who in the media would be willing to take up such a challenge? This would probably be the first major step in uniting the country and ushering a whole new generation into a new kind of thinking.
Who is up for this challenge?
Monday, May 25, 2009
Brothers Against Brothers
The news of the Austrian Gurdwara Shootout has shook the nation. People are still wondering just what happened, but it is clear that this was a case of rivalry between two groups. The after shocks are being felt in India as well.
What shameful world do we live in? Even when we're from the same country, we find enough reasons to be violent against each other. When we're from the same religious group also we do not spare each other. When we're from the same caste, we activate the caveat of not being from the same sub-caste and find genuine reasons to annihilate each other.
Is it not enough that we are fellow humans? It should not matter what country, faith, caste or gender we belong to. We are humans. And in that capacity, keepers of each other. I remember Sachin telling me a few weeks ago that the best chance of getting united as humanity lies in being visited by Aliens. At that time I thought he was being filmy, but today I feel however ridiculous that may sound when you hear it for the first time, it might just be the only way we can stop brothers from fighting each other.
The youth, more than ever, has to take the lead on this front. Let's promise to create a new world.
What shameful world do we live in? Even when we're from the same country, we find enough reasons to be violent against each other. When we're from the same religious group also we do not spare each other. When we're from the same caste, we activate the caveat of not being from the same sub-caste and find genuine reasons to annihilate each other.
Is it not enough that we are fellow humans? It should not matter what country, faith, caste or gender we belong to. We are humans. And in that capacity, keepers of each other. I remember Sachin telling me a few weeks ago that the best chance of getting united as humanity lies in being visited by Aliens. At that time I thought he was being filmy, but today I feel however ridiculous that may sound when you hear it for the first time, it might just be the only way we can stop brothers from fighting each other.
The youth, more than ever, has to take the lead on this front. Let's promise to create a new world.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Congratulations Mr. Prime Minister
Just got back from Ashoka Hall. The first (of hopefully not so many) oath ceremony is over. I join the nation in congratulating Dr. Manmohan Singh in winning the hearts and minds of so many people and formalizing that faith in front of millions.
Someone from the media came up to me as I was discussing something with Priyanka and asked bluntly why the "young faces" didn't figure in the list of Ministers to be sworn in. It lead me to believe there is a huge segment of the population that is wondering just that. I say to you in this blog what I told that media person - the Cabinet Ministers are chosen at the Prime Minister's discretion. We've repeatedly made that clear to everyone.
If I had to make an educated guess about why we don't see those "young faces" - and this is just my educated guess, I am in no way second guessing the Prime Minister or undermining his constitutional right to form a Cabinet that he chooses - I would say that we are going through a very difficult phase in our economy and nation building that requires not people who will learn on the job but people who can deliver. We will find other ways for the "young faces" to get the exposure required, and perhaps gradually bring them into the fold once we are more comfortable with them and our environment.
When I say "we" in the above, I mean the UPA Leadership. I, in no way, mean my Mother and I. I just needed to include that disclaimer before sparking off another controversy.
The UPA Leadership now will primarily focus on urgent matters of governance that need immediate attention and are crucial for our people. I hope we can do that without anymore "berth" distractions.
Someone from the media came up to me as I was discussing something with Priyanka and asked bluntly why the "young faces" didn't figure in the list of Ministers to be sworn in. It lead me to believe there is a huge segment of the population that is wondering just that. I say to you in this blog what I told that media person - the Cabinet Ministers are chosen at the Prime Minister's discretion. We've repeatedly made that clear to everyone.
If I had to make an educated guess about why we don't see those "young faces" - and this is just my educated guess, I am in no way second guessing the Prime Minister or undermining his constitutional right to form a Cabinet that he chooses - I would say that we are going through a very difficult phase in our economy and nation building that requires not people who will learn on the job but people who can deliver. We will find other ways for the "young faces" to get the exposure required, and perhaps gradually bring them into the fold once we are more comfortable with them and our environment.
When I say "we" in the above, I mean the UPA Leadership. I, in no way, mean my Mother and I. I just needed to include that disclaimer before sparking off another controversy.
The UPA Leadership now will primarily focus on urgent matters of governance that need immediate attention and are crucial for our people. I hope we can do that without anymore "berth" distractions.
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