The British, it seems were right after all when they
answered demands for freedom by saying that Indians were incapable of running
responsible self government. A few energetic upper class individuals, who had
come in direct touch with the West, were convinced that given a chance Indians
could run a government much better than imperial British
bureaucrats-cum-autocrats. But how wrong they were. That many of them are
vilified today particularly by the younger generation is a sign that their
confidence in Indians was misplaced. Running a democratic government means a
great deal of voluntary organisation and action, an idea which is foreign to
most Indians. ‘Let George do it’ predominates their mindset in which ‘George’
can be substituted by the word government. ‘Mai baap sarkar’ is the feeling
that rules the minds whether urban or rural.
WE NEED SUPERMEN
The only explanation I have found for the so-called
‘Modi wave’ (which incidentally could fetch no more than 31 per cent support of
the voters in 2014) is that people expect him to single-handedly sweep away
with a broom the dirt that they have created over the years while they
themselves relax. Swachh Bharat, for example is a wonderful idea except that
attitudes don’t change overnight even if the Prime Minister wants it to happen.
His intention no doubt is laudable. But it is likely to end in total failure
since individually people not only have unimaginably dirty habits but also are highly
resistant to change. So who is to
convince the man who spits out the paan masaala on the road or shamelessly
urinates by the wayside to change his ways?
Some years back in the older parts of the desert
town of Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) I had attempted to persuade a shopkeeper, selling spices and tea leaves spread out on a board set up right across an open sewer, to have the place
cleaned so that tourists were not turned off. This perfectly sane advice offended him very
much and he curtly snapped at me that it was the job of the municipality to keep the area clean, not his. Open sewers leave tourists little option but to block their nostrils with bandanas when taking the famed haveli (old mansions) walks of
Bikaner. Inhabitants of the area see nothing odd or shameful in this or even that it might inconvenience people. So when
will India become clean? Only when people understand the importance of good hygiene and change their habits voluntarily. It
is futile to expect slogans and celebrity endorsements to act like a magic wand.
The same goes for dirty money.
THE BIG QUESTION...
The big question is do Indians have the
capacity for voluntary action and organisation? The short answer is NO. Their
social and family systems make sure that they never develop this capacity. In
this connection I want to share an unusually sharp insight into the Indian
character. “Europeans”, says the author of an article written over 80 years ago
in ‘The Modern Review’, “(and not infrequently Indians themselves) are often
taken aback by the fact that the latter exhibit a lamentable lack of organizing
power. Among all peoples, they say, those of this country should excel in this
respect, for their family and social life is perhaps the best disciplined in
the world.” The author of the article Frank C. Bancroft Jr., whose details I
have not been able to unearth. He observes that both in the family and in the
caste system hierarchies are clear and strictly followed both by those who
command and those who obey. This discipline has merely to be transferred to
voluntary organisations like political parties or municipal bodies or
educational institutions for their efficient functioning.
...AND THE REALITY
But what is the reality? Indians are totally inept
at the individual level when it comes to organisation for voluntary work. The
reason behind this is that the traditional Indian family is a “benevolent
despotism” in which each member performs certain duties but is seldom called
upon to exercise the disciplined initiative which is at the heart of voluntary
corporate enterprise. “During his youth he does what he is told; in his
maturity he does the telling and others obey. Between these two periods there
is nothing.” Youngsters are spoon-fed from school and through college and
university. They are discouraged from taking initiative or taking their own
decisions for fear that they may turn into agitators and challenge the existing
powers. Young men and women then marry in accordance with the wishes of their
parents and follow the dictates of the head of the family. It is rarely before
the age of 45 that a man is forced to take his own decisions either because his
predecessor is too old and enfeebled or dead. At this stage of life he is
totally unfit to take up the new challenge as he has never learnt how to carry
out the role of independent decision making.
What holds true within the family also applies when
these kind of people become part of a voluntary social or political organisation.
Let’s take the example of a new political party Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Before
being elected to power the party had stated in its vision document that it
wants to put the power of governance and the rights of democracy in the
hands of the people. This is a clear statement of voluntary organisation
and action. People voted overwhelmingly for the party returning 67 of its
members to the Delhi assembly two years back. Now a large number of people appear
to be disappointed. The party has done nothing for us, they lament. Maybe they
got misled by the broom symbol of the party thinking that this party would
clean up everything with the broom. Had it not ridden in on the anti-corruption
wave? But did not the party say that it wanted to put power in the hands of the
people? And if power is in the hands of the people they themselves are expected
to exercise it and assert their democratic rights through voluntary
organisation and action. But unfortunately Indians are simply incapable of
doing this. They want somebody like Narendra Modi or Arvind Kejriwal to do
their dirty work for them which I think is a totally unfair expectation.
JUGGERNAUT OF CHANGE
At the time of independence many had believed that with rise in education people would be able to run their democracy better. But I don’t believe it’s only a matter of education. Mindsets have to change and ordinary people will have to dirty their hands. It won’t be easy as they are ranged against powerful interests who have benefitted from the old mindset and desperately don’t want people to actually exercise power. That is why the top priority of many parties and media houses is to somehow stop this entity called AAP though it is merely a fledgling political party in limited pockets. Is it really that great a threat to long-established political parties? Opponents don’t hesitate to mock those who voted for AAP and use words like ‘severe setback’ and ‘wiped out’ liberally expressing wishful thinking. No corruption case has been proved against AAP members yet Congress leaders who looted the country for years are gleefully telling AAP that it has no right to speak against corruption. This from a party whose members have no compunction in hopping to the BJP to protect their personal interests, ideology be blowed. But beware. The juggernaut of people’s power is on the move and can’t be stopped, not even by the so-called great power of digital media.
