Of Franchise & Follies - The Salad Issue

I was led into a very thought-provoking issue by one of the few men who inspire me and for whom I have genuine respect - My elder brother Shayne John. He told me, "If you don't think much of a person's integrity or ability, criticize that - propaganda that attacks a person is absolutely scurrilous and shows how low public debate in India has fallen." He was referring to a forward that supposedly discussed the private life of some very famous people.
I do not normally investigate the private lives of people. However, just for the sake of a good debate, I wrote about why normal rules of decency don’t apply in India…Imagine a public debate between 2 Prime Ministerial candidates in India.

[Jacob]
Blinded by the glare of the propriety of Democracy we fail to notice that 'exercise of franchise' devoid of a specific social-structure background means nothing...at least in India. In a country like India, an educated person would be part of a minority. A 'reasonable' and educated person would be part of an exceedingly small minority. Frankly, in our scheme of things, criticism of integrity would not be worth much...it sounds good...better on television as a discussion between a couple of JNU professors...In truth, nobody buys it...and even if they do, it does not change ground realities.
Like the East India Company of the late 1700s (after 1757) and the great West Indian sides of the 1980s, fear is the key for the continuing breed of power vendors - they distribute it like cheap lager, through the brooding gunslinging certainty that their 'bhais' and 'sadhus' bring to every tight display of 'franchise'. Even today, as I am writing this, the only terror in our minds is that of an encounter with these menaces. More than 50 years after our 'assumption' of 'self-rule', we have not been able to successfully exorcise the ghost of feudal submission, albeit in the backdrop of the 21st century. 60% of the country may have cell phones but it has not changed the basic equations that govern their political psyche. Swaraj started out in 1947. It failed much before that. 'Swaraj' was demonstrated by a headstrong Mr. M.K. Gandhi as 'my rule'. His shameful treatment of popular politicians and open bias for Nehru makes for good reading material.
The situation is made dicier by the knowledge that an election involves choice of the lesser evil. We are not making much progress in the light of the 'politics-is-the-last-refuge-of-the-scoundrel' proverb. Honest people do not wish to get embroiled in politics... the few who do get annihilated (take Mr. A. K. Antony for instance). In the face of such a situation, people - educated or not - tend to flock together on the basis of community...religious affiliation is the name of the game. The point is not whether Dr. Manmohan Singh's grandfather was a Marthomite or not. The point is that his being Sikh wittingly or unwittingly fits perfectly into the dynamics of the political strategy of the ruling party. If his grandfather were a Marthomite, it would suit his party just as well - The more the merrier (And I very much respect Dr. Singh). In India there is an incongruity in the communal allowances made to Indians - For the common man the option is an 'OR' gate while for the public figure an 'AND' gate is critical. Multiple affiliations signal the ability to prise open multiple vote banks. Is it just co-incidence that the President as well the Prime Minister of the country, appointed by different parties, are part of minority communities? Is it entirely an assumption that Dr. P.C. Alexander was not appointed president because:
a.) He was part of a smaller (vote-bank) minority.
b.) It would be an anomaly if both the President and Prime Minister (Ms. Sonia Gandhi was touted to be P.M. at that time) were of Christian origin?
You are absolutely right about the level of political rhetoric existing in India. However there is nothing anybody can do about it. The truth is that India was Gandhi's gift to Nehru (wittingly or not...I won't debate). The point is that we, as a people, are governed highly by the social stys we are born in. Our 'loyalty' is unerring and as stated by Abraham Maslow's theory we strive for acceptance within our community. That is the reason why we stick by our 'favourite' politician or dynasty or pastor or sitcom. In any other country the religious affiliation of the ruling dynasty is strictly their business but not in India. Unfortunately, for those who look at the world through ‘developed’ eyes, the situation is the same even in the US of A. Conservative Christians grouped together and voted Dubya back into power...and he is probably the least popular leader in the whole wide world! This is a perfect example for my earlier points - criticizing lack of certain traits in your local politician might not do the trick anymore. Criticism does not ever inhibit scoundrels. They act in spite of it and it gradually yields to them.

The State of Reason

Chirping birds in the warm sunshine
A comfortable seat…without the incline
Testy waters flowing at breakneck speed
This is where I do my deed


The work involves constructing away
From a platform with a continuous sway
Ridiculous plans without foundation
Like a decree with a regional ration


As if the deed were not stress already
Others can hardly remain steady
What do we do if one of us does fall?
What do I know? It’s not my call


Feel it stab…feel it sting
Just one of ‘us’ doing his thing
Deep inside you start to wonder
Will my ‘own’ rip me asunder?


This is my state of reason
Catalyzed by the act of treason
Aided by bovine apathy
Guided by age-old pithy


Asks the alchemist at that moment
How long will you bear this torment?
Will you not their inequality decline?
How else will you build your spine?


Then does my wounded self speak
"Do not think me pale and weak
For even in the unsoundest moment of my darkest day
I’m the predator and they are the prey."

Operation Hope

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not
sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.”

- Anne Bradstreet (1612 - 1672), 'Meditations Divine and Moral,' 1655

The moment we rolled down the windows of our Qualis, the stench struck at us like a slap on our face. It seemed that this was a treatment meted out to uninvited prying visitors from a different socio-economic culture. Our welcome was not grand, in a matter of speaking. However, it was a reception that mere mortals like us would remember for a lifetime. The dilapidated building looked at us in deep sorrow…beckoning us to lend it some honour in its hour of nakedness. The grounds loyally embracing the old building lay bare silently accepting the human faeces being piled on it. The ‘caged’ hence protected saplings, provided by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation, growing in the midst of the wilderness were keenly telling their story. It was a story in likeness to the lives led by the people in the area. Posh housing colonies set amidst uncivilized impoverished and rejected destitute. If these silent witnesses could speak out they would have narrated a very tragic tale…a tale of a destitute destitute-home.

“There will be little rubs and disappointments everywhere, and we are all apt to
expect too much; but then, if one scheme of happiness fails, human nature turns
to another; if the first calculation is wrong, we make a second better: we find
comfort somewhere.”

- Jane Austen (1775 - 1817), Mansfield Park

Enter Esther. Make no mistake, this pint sized woman is in no way related to Xeres the king of ancient Persia. However like the Esther of old her love for ‘her’ people was more than ‘evident’ from her eyes. Our mutual introduction done, we walked through the front door of the institution. While walking through the door we felt a caressing on our heads. Imagine our horror when we realized that the source of affection was actually a network of naked wires coming out of their meter board! We were then taken around the single storeyed building and shown the different rooms. There was a room for sewing machines where the local womenfolk would stitch bed-sheets. There was a cramped classroom where almost 40 children of varied ages sat and stared at their instructor. There was a room where the teachers assembled. Finally there was a broken down room with a board ‘Centre for Performing Arts’ - This was their toilet. Just taking in the sights any ordinary person could estimate the pathetic environment that the children and women spent their days in.

Our team, after absorbing the initial shock, immediately sprung into action. While Sharda, Ruby and Sandhya held a meeting with the women Avantika, Kavita, Niju, Manoj and I spent our time with the children.


“

There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct or
more uncertain in its success than to take the lead in the introduction of a new
order of things.”

- Niccolo Machiavelli (1469 - 1527)

The children as expected were extremely shy at first. It seemed that the presence of their instructor inhibited their interaction with us. On our request their instructor left them completely in our hands. A couple of songs and several handfuls of toffees later the children opened up to us. We then got down to knowing their names - Ruby, Isha, Poonam, Mahesh, Rumina, Sarita among others – Children whom fate had dealt a crippling blow, children who with their apparently nameless faces would automatically disappear in the labyrinth of social inequalities. The singing reached its crescendo with ‘I am a soldier’ – their favourite song. A round of story telling followed the singing. I tried to tell them the parable of the ‘Ten Talents’ in the context of rural India. We then distributed pencil boxes and notebooks to the children. The distribution complete, we encouraged the children to break their inhibitions by dancing to the tunes of the latest film tunes. The children danced whole-heartedly along with Niju, Kavita and Avantika. Their enthusiasm was infectious enough to keep us going longer than we had planned.

After a fabulous round of dance, we distributed food packets to the children. Just after this Niju and me spoke to the children about personal hygiene. The children, although they looked like urchins, were aware of the various forms of personal hygiene. This came as a very pleasant surprise to us.

“Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried
before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth,
and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to
the appellation.”

- George Washington (1732 - 1799)

Our most enterprising contribution was the provision of seeds of seasonal fruits and vegetables for the purpose of gardening. I had a wonderful time, through an interactive session, giving them a few specific tips on planting these. These seeds were selected on the basis of economic and time-bound viability. They could grow vegetables year-round to feed their families, and any surplus would be a source of income. As an extra measure of enthusiasm, we expressed our desire to revisit them in August – to partake in the fruits of their labour. The success of our maiden venture could be gauged by the fact that the children could identify each of us by our names…or nicknames shall we say.

"Every action of our lives touches on some chord that will vibrate in eternity."

- Sean O'Casey (1880 - 1964)

Our trip was based around the premise that it would not be a one-time affair. On grounds of plain old humanity it is imperative that these people receive our continuous support…much beyond the requirements of a ‘Global Volunteer Day’ programme. From a corporate perspective, it is a social obligation that we must live upto. The difference is in empathizing with these destitute and not sympathizing with them. We must realize that what these women and children are in is a situation. If not solved soon enough, it will become a problem.