You get the government you deserve, but not always. Most of the time, you get the government you don’t deserve, as if you had sinned in your previous birth and have now to suffer for it. Anyway, that is what most Maharashtrians must be thinking, for they now have a government which they will do anything to get rid of, if only they can.
Actually, it is the same government they had before the latest elections: The same chief minister, the same deputy chief minister, and almost the same gang of ministers. It was the most incompetent, lazy and corrupt government in recent memory, and the new one is also going to be the most incompetent, lazy and corrupt government you could think of. The Maharashtrians, an enterprising lot, are now saddled with the same lot for the next five years, unless there is an earthquake. The elections have cost Rs 1500 crore, money down the drain.
Of course, the people of the state asked for it. They voted for the same parties, give or take a few seats, and now they have to make do with what they have got. Why did the voters vote for the same faces? The only reason I can think of is that there are times when you are so confused you cannot distinguish between good and evil, and you are so fed up with the whole thing you just close your eyes and press the first button on the infernal machine and make a quick exit.
Even I nearly did so. I went to the booth, an old school, stood in line for a few minutes-most voters a wise lot, had stayed away-and after the official in charge had applied the ink to my finger, I marched to the stand on which the voting machine was mounted, like a jawan advancing on the Indo-Pak border. When I looked at the machine, I said to myself, my God, what am I going to do? For a while, I could not trace the particular name I was looking for, and everything went blank. I thought I would go back to the official, who was now watching me as a wolf watches his sheep, and ask him why my man had not been listed. But I am always scared to speak to officials and I stood there, almost paralysed, went over the names again and finally pressed the right button.
It so happened that my man won, but many of his friends did not. The same old disgraceful lot has returned and has now formed a new government, new only in name, for they are the same people and they seem to have a monopoly on power, just as some traders have a monopoly on ginger or lentils, and control the business for years, maybe generations.
I am quite sure that the so-called new government will end up doing nothing, exactly like the last one. The last government was not able to set up a single power station in five years, maybe longer. In other countries, including China, they set up new giant power stations at the rate of one a week, but in Maharashtra, the old chief minister was so busy watching half-naked starlets at film festivals, he had no time for such mundane things. This was the same person who, a few days after 26/11 last year, collected his filmy buddies to visit five-star hotels to inspect the damage. As far as I know, he never went to any hospital to meet the wounded, and, of course, avoided the dead. During his reign, the state had descended so low in rankings that Maharashtra is now almost on par with Bihar. The man is now in central cabinet in Delhi where Lalu Prasad Yadav, another do-nothing one-time Chief Minister, keeps him company.
Then there is corruption. In fact, the entire delay in forming the new government revolved around the choice of ministries, or sharing of the loot. Sharad Pawar’s party wanted ministries in which they could make maximum money–ministries like finance, home, and, of course, PWD. The Congress also had an eye on the same ministries. This has always been Sharad Pawar’s business model-business is the right word. Make money from the government and use that money to tighten the grip on the government. In the process, you create your own army of workers who work only for money and the more money they make, the tighter your girp on the government and the administration, and, of course, on the entire election process.
What does the poor common man, the voter who takes all the trouble to go to the booth to vote, get out of this? In a single word, nothing. And as far as Maharshtra is concerned, this is what he has been getting for the last ten years-nothing. He has no power, no water, no jobs, no houses. But the ministers, which means politicians, who play the political game, remain totally indifferent.
If this is democracy, it is time we decided whether this is what we really want. The point is, why have elections at all, if all you get at the end are the same corrupt and incompetent ministers? This explains why fewer and fewer voters take the trouble to go out and vote, since at the end of it all-so-called democratic process-you get the same rascals and their parties at a huge cost to the exchequer, which also means your pocket, since the exchequer is funded by the taxpayer. The politicians make so much money, they do not know where to keep it, like Madhu Koda. And there is not just one Madhu Koda. They are spread all over the place, hiding their loot in cubby holes here and abroad. There are reports that there is hardly a plot of land in Pune in which ministers do not have a stake. Not just plots of land but also petrol pumps, gas agencies, bus companies, co-operative banks and sugar factories. They also own five-star hotels, coal mines and shipping companies. Only a foolish man like Lalu was content with cows and buffaloes. But he will not commit that mistake next time.
The question is, why have politicians at all, if all they do is rob the country–and, of course, you and me-and ask your vote every five years, as if it was their right? The price of a vote in Maharashtra is said to be between Rs 1500 and Rs 2500, and there are politicians who gladly pay it, because it is their investment, and they can recoup it within months, if not weeks. If this is happening in a so-called progressive state like Maharashtra, you can imagine what must be going on in states like Bihar and Jharkhand. Of course, we know what is happening in Jharkhand from Madhu Koda & Co. Probably it is only the tip of the iceberg.
One day this iceberg is going to hit the ship called “India”, and we shall all go down like the Titanic, hopefully along with the politicians!
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