The position of the Freedom Team of India on the Jan Lokpal Bill

25 March 2012
(All FTI documents are draft documents, subject to ongoing improvement)

1. What is the Freedom Team of India?
The Freedom Team of India (FTI) is a team of leaders who will, with due preparation, contest elections on a platform of world’s best policies to increase the liberty and prosperity of Indian citizens.

FTI’s ideas are based on the philosophy of classical liberalism (which is the polar opposite of socialism). Classical liberalism insists on equal liberty for all, while ensuring accountability. We enourage you to consider FTI’s policy principles at: http://freedomteam.in/blog/draft-policies.

FTI’s members maintain and are required to always maintain the highest standards of integrity in public life. Through its code of conduct and other processes FTI guarantees the quality and integrity of its members. India can confidently entrust its future to FTI members, who are always ready to be held to account. FTI membership is seal of quality in public life.

2. FTI stand on the Jan Lokpal institution
FTI applauds Anna Hazare, Baba Ramdev and Arvind Kejriwal, among others, for their fight against deeply entrenched political and bureaucratic corruption in India.

For such effort to be effective, however, careful understanding of the causes of corruption is necessary. For instance, a question is sometimes asked: Why doesn’t FTI make its own draft Jan Lokpal Bill and share it online?

That is because FTI does not believe that (under the current system of socialist governance) a Lokpal offers a genuine solution to India’s rampant corruption. Therefore FTI does not wish to offer a draft Bill that will not meet the objective.

Instead, FTI offers more: a package of reforms which is guaranteed to achieve integrity in public life and increase India’s opportunities for prosperity.

This will be explained below.

3. India’s many problems have a common source: socialism
Before a doctor can successfully treat a disease, he must diagnose it correctly. He must understand its cause.

Team Anna believes that corruption arises because too many Indians are bad. If this is right, then the solution should be to punish bad Indians. FTI accepts that there are a large number of corrupt Indians who must be punished through an effective system of rule of law. FTI’s diagnosis, however, is focused on underlying causes, and therefore, in building a lasting solution.

FTI believes that corruption arises from poorly designed governance systems, based on the philosophy of socialism. FTI believes that no Indian is born corrupt but badly designed systems motivate them to become corrupt. The same Indians who are corrupt and incompetent in India often do wonderfully well (and honestly) in the West. A bad system can make a genius look like an idiot. On the other hand, through a good system, even “ordinary” people can perform great deeds.

Since the past six decades, all public policy in India is based on the socialist model, which which empowers governments to directly operate businesses as well as to interfere with the free interactions of citizens. This creates strong incentives for politicians to sell favours (rent seeking) and thus become corrupt.

Socialist hypocrisy also permeates India’s electoral system, in which everyone knows that political parties spend tens of crores of rupees in each parliamentary election, but all candidates declare falsely that they spend less than Rs.25 lakhs.

In brief, it is the philosophy of socialism leads to hypocrisy, dishonesty, and corruption. Without removing this dreaded philosophy from India, corruption can never be removed. Witch-hunts to identify “corrupt” individuals won’t solve the problem of corruption.

4. FTI’s solution to the problem of corruption
Under today’s socialistic dispensation, no political party can survive without corruption. Politicians need huge sums of money for elections which they have to raise through corrupt means. They also need the support of corrupt officials.

While an effective Lokpal can reduce corruption, this can only happen when systemic corruption has been first addressed. Systemic reform essentially involves two key steps:
a) Reduce the need for corruption by having an electoral system with a low barrier of entry for honest people, and a system that pays candidates a certain amount per valid vote cast; and
b) Reduce the opportunity for corruption by having policies that prevent governments from unnecessarily directing and interfering in citizens’ lives.

FTI’s recommended set of policies are aimed at systemic reform, not piecemeal patchwork band-aids. Corruption will reduce very signficantly should such systemic reforms be undertaken.

Numerous countries have low levels of corruption without any Lokpal or similar body. Examples of policies that reduce corruption (without a Lokpal) include:
● state funding of elections (e.g. Rs.15 per valid vote polled) to reduce the need to raise funds through corruption;
● high salaries for politicians to motivate competent people to enter politics;
● contractual appointments of senior bureaucrats (so they can be terminated if they fail to deliver integrity and high quality outcomes).

India should not vest excessive authority in unelected officials. Such authority can undermine democracy without necessarily improving governance. It is important to build systems that work, not systems that punish.

5. What will happen if we implement a Lokpal without eliminating the socialist policies?

a) Reality: A Lokpal can’t stop the generation of corruption
India’s socialist policies put excessive power and discretion in the hands of decision-makers. Each law that allows a politician or bureaucrat to interfere in economic activity creates an opportunity for corruption. The Lokpal does not change such policies, nor reform the electoral system to reduce the need for corrupt money during elections. Therefore, the Lokpal cannot prevent the continuous generation of corruption. It will be far more effective if we change socialist policies.

b) Reality: The Lokpal can’t catch even a fraction of the corrupt
A Lokpal will become viable and effective if only one per cent (or less) of India’s politicians and bureaucrats are corrupt. But when 99 percent of them are corrupt, then catching a few corrupt people here or there will hardly make a difference. The cancer must be addressed at the source.

c) Reality: Corruption “charges” will increase because of the Lokpal
Because the corrupt will now have to factor in the (presumably slightly) higher probability of being caught, the “rate” they demand for their “services” will increase.

d) Reality: Corruption will be driven even more underground
The Lokpal, under the current system, will merely drive corruption more underground – into more hidden methods. Greater outflows of corrupt money from India will occur to Switzerland or other tax havens. In this “game” of corruption, it is best to stop corruption in the first place, not to waste precious time and resources in chasing corrupt people across the world.

e) Reality: The big fish will escape
Under the current system, big fish can easily access various sophisticated methods of corruption. They can also hire expensive lawyers to exploit loopholes in the legal system to delay and subvert justice, should any case be launched against them. In general, the big fish will escape scrutiny (or punishment) and the Lokpal will be forced to focus on small fry.

f) Reality: Government inefficiency will increase
The Indian Constitution provides extraordinary protections to public servants. There is therefore virtually no way available for governments to punish public servants who do not perform their work properly. If their opportunities for corruption are reduced then public servants are likely to even further slow down their work, leading to total paralysis of governance. The Lokpal (if it becomes even slightly effective, and therefore reduces corruption) will end up putting a severe brake on India’s economic growth.

h) Reality: Lokpal could itself become corrupt
Corrupt politicians and government servants have plenty of money to bribe investigative agencies – and judges. Under the current dispensation there is very significant corruption both in the government and judiciary. It is not difficult to see a situation, particularly with lowly paid Lokpal employees, when the Lokpal officials start accepting bribes.

i) Reality: Lokpal can’t deliver results because of India’s court system
The Lokpal cannot deliver results because it does not control the courts. As Swami Aiyar has pointed out:

Even if the Lokpal controls the CBI, it will have no control over the courts. These seem incapable of convicting any resourceful person beyond appeals within his or her lifetime. Little will be achieved if the Lokpal initiates a thousand cases that then drag on for decades, with the accused out on bail.

FTI does not recommend scrapping the principles of natural justice for those charged with corruption. We need systemic reforms that include the policies outlined earlier, as well as a strong justice system to quickly and effectively punish the corrupt.

6. Other questions people have regarding the Lokpal
a) What are the mechanisms apart from Lokpal to stop corruption?
Alternative mechanisms to reducing corruption have been outlined above. These are far more effective and involve two key changes:
(i) Reduce the need for corruption: ensure electoral reforms that motivate good people to enter politics, and pay a certain amount per valid vote cast to candidates; and
(ii) Reduce the opportunity for corruption: remove socialist policies so that people can undertake economic activity without unnecessary government regulation.

Currently, no political party offers such systemic reforms in India. Without political leadership, however, such reforms cannot be implemented. FTI is a platform for those who understand such reforms to step forward and contest elections. Only then will such systemic reforms be introduced, bringing an end to corruption.

b) Why does FTI not support the Lokpal, given that Hong Kong has a Lokpal-like model?
Hong Kong is highly ranked on Transparency International rankings (currently No. 12, below countries like Australia and New Zealand which do not have any Lokpal).

Not very long ago, Hong Kong was a very corrupt country. Its reforms, do not include just an Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC, which started in 1974), but a wide range of policy initiatives such as good governance, world-best economic policy and high quality education. The existence of ICAC should not be seen in isolation from these broader reforms. Indonesia has tried to copy the Hong Kong model and has failed, because it has not adopted the free market economic model of Hong Kong.

As Offstumped has pointed out:

“Indonesia’s corruption eradication commission, one message screams out — India does not need to make Indonesia’s mistakes with the proposed Lokpal Bill. It has been nearly 10 years since the KPK was established by law in Indonesia. Ten years on, no surprises: Corruption has not been eradicated from Indonesia. Far from eliminating corruption, KPK continues to be at the centre of political intrigue in Indonesia.”

A Lokpal cannot succeed in removing corruption without a host of far more basic reforms. FTI believes that there is a place for Lokpal in India’s governance, but not today. Only in due course, as part of an entire suite of governance and economic reforms.

c) Won’t a Lokpal help create new government jobs?
Indeed, the Lokpal will create new jobs but creating government cannot be a valid reason to have a Lokpal. Economic growth & prosperity is never created through government jobs. India needs policies of liberty that will create opportunities for millions to earn their livelihood.

d) Since the poor have to constantly interface with the state, won’t the Lokpal provide a check to corruption at lower level of bureaucracy?
Unless economic policies and the system of governance is changed, villagers in India will not be able to escape from chronic corruption (such as corrupt tahsildars and other land records staff). Villagers, being illiterate, do not have the capacity or resources to lodge (and pursue) complaints with the Lokpal.

Villagers have not been able to utilise existing institutions like state vigilance bodies and police because of inability or fea. The Lokpal’s rules and procedures will preclude the possibility of justice for villagers. The corrupt will go scot free even if complaints are lodged against them, due to the sheer numbers involved.

Far better to build systems that preclude corruption in the first place. Trying to fix the problem of corruption after it has established itself is a far more difficult (even impossible) task.

e) What is FTI’s view on the level of corruption that can a Lokpal can reduce?
The jury is out on this important question. However, for reasons given above, FTI believes that Lokpal will not reduce corruption, and will probably increase it and drive it underground.

f) How much will the Lokpal cost the taxpayer?
This will depend on the nature and design of the Lokpal. But it will not be cheap. Unfortunately, there will be almost no social gain from this institution. So taxpayers will spend money on the Lokpal, even as the corrupt officials and politicians of India continue their loot.

Conclusion
All Indians all angry with our corrupt politicians and bureaucrats. However, we should use our head, not our emotions.

FTI agrees with and supports, in principle, IAC people’s movement against corruption. But FTI believes that (at this stage – i.e., without changing the policies of socialism, and ensuring that good people are able to contest elections) the Lokpal will make no difference to the lives of Indians, and could even make things worse in a number of ways.

FTI therefore asks the Indian people to seek solutions that will actually work.

The people of India have awakened due to the IAC movement. But it is important to understand that the solution does not lie in a Lokpal, but in a package of reforms that will essentially abolish socialism and make Indians free.

FTI invites you to support the team to provide India with modern, effective governance.

It is hard to remove the socialistic mindset of Indian politicians who think that voters wants such policies. It is up to the educated class to show voters that demanding subsidies and handouts from politicians is not the right way to eliminate poverty. They voter must demand good governance, good education, not charity.

The poor will become prosperous through freedom. On this journey, a social minimum (which includes high quality private school education for all children and a guaranteed top-up to eliminate poverty) will support those who falter on this journey towards freedom, integrity, and prosperity.

In simple language, let’s drain the swamp so that mosquitoes don’t breed. It is not a sensible idea to kill the mosquitoes, one at a time. As FTI member Vijay Mohan has depicted:

The position of the Freedom Team of India on the Jan Lokpal Bill (DRAFT, 27 December 2011)

 

These are the views of the Freedom Team of India Upon the Jan Lokpal, currently being debated in the parliament. This is a draft document open for the public to comment on. The concerns and comments will be taken into account for subsequent revisions of this document subjecting that it meets the core fundamental beliefs of the team. While not all comments can be accommodated they however will be help us gauge the informed public positions on the Jan Lokpal debate. Please go through the document and let us know your opinions.

1. What is the Freedom Team of India?

TheFreedomTeamofIndia (FTI) is a team of leaders who will contest elections to offer India the world’s best policies that will increase the liberty and prosperity of the ordinary citizens of India. All FTI thinking is aimed at maximising the freedom and prosperity of Indians. This strong perspective, based on liberty, inevitably leads to a focus on the impacts of a policy on the common man.

FTI applauds Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev for their belief that they are fighting against corruption. However, fighting corruption requires a careful understanding of the causes of corruption.

A question is asked: Why doesn’t FTI make a draft of Jan Lokpal Bill and share it online? That is because FTI does not believe that (under the current system of socialist governance) a Lokpal will be a solution to India’s problems.

Therefore FTI does not wish to offer any draft Bill on this subject. Instead, it offers more, far more: total integrity in public life and very significantly increased prosperity for all Indians.

FTI’s cast iron guarantee of public integrity

FTI stands for the abolition of all socialist policies in India and their replacement of by policies that are grounded in the principles of liberty. Flowing from that, FTI offers a CAST IRON GUARANTEE of total integrity in public life and significantly increased prosperity for all Indians.

2. FTI’s diagnosis of India’s problems

Before a doctor can treat a problem, he must diagnose it properly first. That means understanding its causes. FTI’s diagnosis of corruption is dramatically different to Team Anna’s diagnosis.

FTI believes that corruption arises due to bad systems. Team Anna believes that corruption arises due to bad people. FTI vigorously opposes any suggestion that India’s politicians are born corrupt or criminally minded. FTI believes that all Indians have the same DNA (like any other human), and that no one is born with “corrupt” DNA.

FTI is convinced, from careful analysis of incentives, that bad systems create bad people. Indeed, a bad system can even make a genius look like an idiot. The same Indians do wonderfully well in the West but perform pathetically in India. Why so? Because it is systems that convert geniuses into idiots (and vice versa). There are sufficient case studies available today that show that through good systems; even “ordinary” people can perform great deeds.

It is our socialist system of governance that forces our politicians into corruption. Witch-hunts and chasing after specific “corrupt” individuals will not resolve the problem of corruption, particularly since virtually all politicians are either directly corrupt or promote or connive with corruption.

Further, as SwamiAiyarhaspointedout, “Even if the Lokpal controls the CBI, it will have no control over the courts. These seem incapable of convicting any resourceful person beyond appeals within his or her lifetime. Little will be achieved if the Lokpal initiates a thousand cases that then drag on for decades, with the accused out on bail.”

Blaming the judiciary is not quite right. Unless it is proposed that the principles of natural justice are to be scrapped, the judiciary is obliged to follow the laws of India.

3. FTI’s solution

Since FTI’s diagnosis of the problem is completely opposite to Team Anna’s diagnosis, therefore FTI’s solution is entirely different to Team Anna’s solution.

Yes, FTI believes that the Lokpal can have an effect, but only when the level of systemic corruption in India is reduced to the minimum (say, to less than five per cent of the politicians and bureaucrats of India being corrupt). At that point Lokpal will definitely have an effect and form an important part of the toolkit.

So, what is FTI’s solution?

The first step, FTI believes, is to bring down corruption to a very low level through systemic reform. It is necessary to build systems of governance where only the honest can enter politics, and the policies which are promulgated do not allow corruption to be generated. What is needed are well-thought-out policies that are based on a sound understanding of economic incentives.

FTI’s solution is founded on the philosophy of classical liberalism, which is the opposite of socialism. Classical liberalism is based on the principle of equal liberty for all. FTI does not pay lip service to liberty, like most other leaders of India do (including Team Anna, some of whose leaders don’t hesitate in beating poor villagers with an army belt).

FTI offers real liberty to all Indians (while ensuring accountability). FTI’s principles and policies are outlined in considerable detail here: http://freedomteam.in/blog/draft-policies. We encourage you to read and understand these.

What do these policies mean in practical terms? FTI is working as a team to formulate detailed policies, but you can get an idea about what these policies might look like, by reading the book, Breaking Free of Nehru (BFN) which is freely available here: http://bfn.sabhlokcity.com/. Note that the policies in BFN have not yet been agreed by the team, and it is FTI that will ultimately offer the more detailed policies.

4. Now, to the Lokpal issue in more detail

a) The shortage of Lokpal does not cause corruption

Numerous countries in the West with very low levels of corruption. They do not achieve such low levels of corruption through Lokpal or similar bodies. They have achieved it through systemic reforms, such as state funding of elections, high salaries for politicians, and contractual appointments of senior bureaucrats. Most free countries in the world do not give significant powers to unelected officials like a Lokpal. That does not mean they have significant corruption.

FTI believes that India should not vest too much authority in unelected officials. Such actions will undermine the authority of India’s elected representatives, without in any way improving the governance of India.

b) Lokpal won’t stop the system that generates corruption

As FTI has clearly pointed out, India’s socialist policies generate corruption. So the task of the Lokpal is basically futile. It is far better to focus on the policies to improve India’s governance.

c) Lokpal won’t/ can’t catch all the corrupt

The Lokpal will try to catch the corrupt. That might be fine if (say) 1 per cent of India’s politicians and bureaucrats are corrupt, but when 99 per cent are corrupt, then catching one or two people will hardly make a difference.

d) The big fish will invariably escape

The Lokpal will merely catch a lot of small fish. The big fish will escape since the big fish have access to more sophisticated methods of corruption, by which they can’t be easily caught. Corruption will be driven into Swiss accounts or other tax havens (including benami transactions in Indian real estate). There will be an even greater outflow of corrupt money outside India.

e) The corruption ‘charges’ will increase

Because the corrupt will have to factor in the (presumably) slightly higher probability of being caught, the “rate” they demand will increase. And indeed, without addressing the basic causes of corruption, it will merely be driven underground.

f) Inefficiency in government will increase

Given the extraordinary protections available to them under the Constitution, there is no clear method available to punish Indian government servants for not doing their work. There is no way to get rid of someone only on grounds of inefficiency. Therefore, if their opportunities for corruption are reduced, government servants will slack off, leading to total paralysis. The Lokpal could therefore put a brake on India’s economic growth.

g) Lokpal could itself become a corrupt organisation

Corrupt politicians and government servants have plenty of money to bribe investigative agencies and judges. It won’t take them long to bribe the Lokpal (or his officials).

5. Common questions/comments regarding Lokpal

a. Are there other mechanisms apart from Lokpal to stop corruption? (I.e. if not Lokpal then what?)

Yes, there are many mechanisms. These involve two key changes:

(i) Ensuring that socialist policies are removed and thereby the people of India enabled to undertake many more activities without government regulation; and

(ii) Ensuring electoral reforms that facilitate good people to successfully compete against those who use huge amounts of black money.

These changes will require a change in the political leadership of India. Currently no political party offers these reforms. It is important that people who offer such reforms step forward to offer themselves as candidates in elections. FTIis a platform for such candidates.

b) Did Hong Kong not succeed with a Lokpal-like model?

Hong Kong ranks close to the top of the world in terms of ethics in public life. It was, not long ago, a very corrupt country. The reforms that reduced corruption started with free market reforms. Only after all these were implemented was its Independent Commission Against Corruption made into a constitutional body. The main cause of integrity in public life is its free market policies. India should adopt these first.

Indonesia tried to copy the Hong Kong model and has badly failed, because it did not adopt the free market model of Hong Kong. As Offstumpedhas pointed out, “Indonesia’s corruption eradication commission, one message screams out — India does not need to make Indonesia’s mistakes with the proposed Lokpal Bill. It has been nearly 10 years since the KPK was established by law in Indonesia. Ten years on, no surprises: Corruption has not been eradicated from Indonesia. Far from eliminating corruption, KPK continues to be at the centre of political intrigue in Indonesia.”

c) Won’t the Lokpal create many new government jobs?

Indeed, it will. But if economic growth were as easy as creating new government jobs, then we could very well create a Ministry of jobs whose job would be to create new jobs that dig up holes and fill them again. Surely, creating jobs is not a good excuse to have a Lokpal. Jobs that do not add value to the economy will reduce India’s economic growth.

d) The middle class have less interaction with the government but the poor have to constantly interface with the state? Will Lokpal not help them?

No. Unless the systems are changed, the villager can’t avoid corruption. In particular, villagers need to have the capacity to lodge a case with the Lokpal – something which they are unlikely to possess. They also would need to pursue these cases, something for which they do not have the time. The corrupt tahsidars and patwaris will go scot free.

e) How much percentage of corruption can a Lokpal bring down?

The jury is out on this, but FTI believes that Lokpal will not reduce corruption, but might even increase it.

f) How much will Lokpal cost?

Quite a lot! For almost no social gain.

Conclusion

In summary, FTI does not oppose Anna Hazare as a person. It applauds him and his supporters for being angry with the mess made by corrupt politicians in India for over sixty years.

It does not even want to oppose the Lokpal bill since it is neither here nor there; an ineffective intervention that will probably do some harm and some good. On balance, the Lokpal will make no difference to the lives of Indians. FTI agrees with and supports, in principle, IAC people’s movement against corruption, but not Lokpal as a solution. It asks the people of India to look for the actual solution, which involves a fight against socialism.

All existing political forces (all major political parties are socialist) have harmed India and must be opposed. Most policies will need to be changed, to break away from socialistic ideologies.

Unfortunately, while the people of India are now awaking due to the IAC movement, they are being offered the same socialist solution as anyone else.

The people of India deserve to be shown the right solution, the solution that will work. And we need leaders who understand these policy issues to step forward and lead. FTI invites you to join the team and work towards providing India with alternative governance.

Rethinking federalism in India

In a period of widespread discontent and chaos, a period of the increasing clamour for Autonomy and separate states, a period of the waking of the political consciousness and aspiration for managing of their own affairs by local communities and regions, I think it would be a legitimate to ask the question, do we need to rethink federalism in India? I think it is pertinent that every generation in order to move forward, should rethink and rework the underlying ideas that govern them and question those underlying assumptions and if need be dismantle those structures which have out lived their purpose. For my generation the task is humongous but equally important, exciting and worthwhile.

The whole idea behind the reorganisation of the current boundaries of the states in India is also the process to get at minimum government maximising liberty for its citizens and de-centralisation of power and efficient local resources management. These objectives have to be dealt with simultaneously to create a more perfect union. The politics in India has become regional in nature, where the influence of these parties has being having a dysfunctional influence on the central government. India being a centralised form of governance has had a deleterious effect on the democratic institutions as a whole. This trend needs to be arrested if we are to progress into a great nation. The incremental reforms or changes that have been brought about by the government over the past many years have only add fuel to the fire or this regional question- the question of autonomy. The time, I think, has come for a final settlement to the question of Autonomy, which is also the question fundamentally about federalism in India.

The founding fathers of this nation, in their profound wisdom and efficiency thought it right to have a stronger central government in a quasi-federal political setup, mainly to keep at bay the fear of balkanisation of this young Nation. The ghost of partition and the fear of disintegration of the country veiled their foresight. The problems they sought to keep at bay started haunting them immediately after independence and has since only compounded. The ghosts have grown larger and more violent, yet the ability to exorcize them remains imbecilic at best and outright incompetent at worst.

For any nation to progress and develop into a economic and military superpower, it has to have a sustained period of peace and internal stability. With the benefit of hindsight when we lok a history all the great empires were able to develop into great states because they were able to ensure periods of great peace and stability to their citizens. You may look at the roman, Chinese, Maurayan or the British and the American states they all share this character. But, due to the incompetency of our political class and the the failure to find long term solutions to the administrative problems of this country this period of peace and stability has been elusive. There are far too many internal problems in India at the present to haul us into a developed nation category. And, these problems in turn stem from one form or another relating to the question of Autonomy.

Of late the demand for new states and further demand for Autonomy within these sates has been growing, dividing the politics with a regional bias and disruption of public life. The main problem before the policy maker is no more simply how to solve these diverse problems but, how far do they go to get a final settlement leading to a more perfect union. This leads us to call into question the examination of the federal structure of the Union of India. During the drafting of the constitution a strong centralised government may have seemed the best suitable form of governance, but somehow it has failed to work as envisaged. This is not because the political class did not try their best to make it work but, due to the short sightedness of the founding fathers of this nation. The makers of the constitution failed to appreciate the diversity of the nation, when they were resorting to the centralised federation.

The nature of Indian federation is better described as a cooperative federalism where the states act as administrative agencies of the central government. This is where the problem lies. In effect the government has become too big to manage itself. The bigger a government gets the more inefficient and irresponsive it becomes. The idea is to keep the government small and its constituent units smaller. And, this shall be the basic idea guiding us to rethink federalism in India.

More often than is desirable, there is a lot of interference by the centre into the administration of the states. This had not been conducive to a healthy functioning of the federal structure. Now, not all the interference has been direct, more often it is disguised especially through the planning commission. An extra constitutional body is perhaps the biggest anathema to federalism. The sooner this super body is scrapped the better. Then there is the all-pervasive and sanctimonious article 356 of the constitution, where by the union government can at will decide whether a government at the states are being run according to the provisions of the constitution. And, of course the financial relationship between the union and the states which is to the disadvantage of the states. There are numerous others which impinge upon the functioning of the state governments.

Keeping in view these problems I am starting a series of proposals for the Rethinking of the whole federal structure in India. Should you wish to engage in a discussion upon the rethinking of the federal structure you may write to me @ vidyutjain@gmail.com

On the futility of the Jan Lok Pal and importance of Election Reforms first.

As we approach the 64^thIndependence Day, my thoughts yet again drift towards the state of our union, and the way towards a more perfect one. In the past year a lot has happened that was not in the interest of the idea of a more perfect union. The scams of enormous proportion have hit us. The multiplicities of the protests have been undermining our democracy. A whole lot our citizens dying of hunger, disease and as collateral for state policies in the Red corridor and other militarised zones. It has been quite much the same for the past 63 years. The government merely becomes more dysfunctional every passing year. And we move on.

But during this past year there is something that has been happening which if successful will rupture the public discourse on governance in this nation for the better- Anna Hazare’s crusade against corruption. Though I don’t disagree with Mr Hazare on the need for eradication of the bad governance which has plagued this nation for far too long, I don’t think that there can be much progress on the issue of corruption unless there are large scale systemic reforms beginning with the Elections reforms. The gates of representative democracy have to be guarded not the guillotine.it is the politics of welfare that has to be overturned. Merely punishing a few of those corrupt and vicious will not lead to a corruption free society.

Mr Hazare thought noble in intent and serious purpose is attacking on the wrong side of the problem to find the right solution. Since he had built up a sizable following, and will in the future contest elections I suppose, he is best placed to agitate for reforms that will truly start to clean up the system. Rather than agitating for Jan Lok Pal, he should consider starting a movement for electoral reforms, which will then enable reasonably good and talented people to enter politics and work towards larger reforms. Contrary to what Mr Hazare has been saying the Jan Lok pal bill will only cut of the dead parts while leaving the diseased body intact. Corruption is merely a symptom of a dysfunctional system.

If we were to reflect a little on the general elections of 2009, it will make a lot of things quite clear about the electoral gaps that exist in India which at the same time is a huge opportunity for reform and new politics emerging. And importance of electoral reforms first.

The chart below shows the performance of the National Parties in 2009 General elections:

For the analysis I am only focusing upon the national parties. There were 7 national parties who contested elections all over India. There are a total of 543 seats in the Indian parliament.

The first observation is, none of the national parties contested for all the 543 seats. Interestingly, BSP was the party which contested the most number of seats, 500 in all and won only 21. The BJP and the INC contested roughly about the same number about 433 and 440 in all wining 116 and 206 respectively. They did not fare any well. The point here is that even after 64 years of independence there is not a single party which can contest from the entire allotted seats. Today there is no party which can claim to represent, the idea of India. This in some respects suggests a compartmented electorate, implying a divided politics. No National party has an appeal throughout the Nation.

The second and most important material for my argument are the number of votes that was cast in the favour of each party.

Total Electors – 71, 69, 85,101 Male – 37, 47, 58,801 Female– 34, 22, 26,300

Total electors who voted -41, 71, 59,281

Total population of India was about 119.8 crores

The observations are quite significant:

1. The total turnout of the registers votes was only 58.19%, 41.18% of the voters did not cast their votes. For a big democracy like India this is very significant numbering 29, 98, 25,820 or about 30 crore citizens. So, according to this almost half of our population goes unrepresented in the Indian Parliament.

2. The largest party to emerge from the general elections was the INC which was able to garner about 12 Crore votes. This in percentage terms translates into 16.61% of total electorate, 28.55% of total votes polled and 0.1% of the total population of India. That was the biggest party! The BJP fared no better garnering 10.94% of total electorate, 18.80% of total votes polled and 0.06% of the total population of India. Same with all the others. The point to take note is that representing only about 30% of the popular votes the INC was able to form the government at the centre. And, with about 20% of the popular votes the BJP became the main opposition party.

Now, the electoral system in India is “first past the post”, which means that there is requirement for an absolute majority the winner is he who gets the maximum number of votes. This could vary as much as 70% for a candidate to merely a 20% of the total votes polled. It is often observed that the candidates mostly only secure less than even 40% votes to secure an election. The chart below shows the figures for the 2009 general elections:

With the current electoral system most of the candidates elected are securing only about 30% votes on an average. As the figures show majority of the candidates don not even cross the 50% threshold, whereas ideally they should. So, the first reform must start here, we need to dismantle the whole system of electoral process currently being followed in India.

The candidates can easily manipulate the votes securing the highest numbers yet be far below the ideal majority. In this first past the post system there is absolutely no conventions that have formed over the years which would have at least an unwritten majority warranted. This should have evolved by now. In what kind of a democracy should we have people wining only 10% of the votes and yet be declared winner. This system is has to be replaced.

 

These are Some Suggestions for Reforms.

1)      All the election to the state and the central legislatures should be held simultaneously on the same day. Only in cases where a person had died during his term in public office should by elections be held. If all the elections are on the same day the voter turnout is bound to increase, and it will also have the parties be more involved with real issues that matter with the public. In due course it will help in the nation integration.

2)      Voting should be made compulsory.

(1)    Over time this will lead to destruction of the vote bank politics that today has become so blatant.

(2)    Political participation and awareness of issues surround the nation will increase.

(3)    Role of money and muscle over time shall decrease.

3)      The important public office bearers should be directly elected by the people.

(1)    The president, The Vice-president and The Prime Minister should be directly elected by the people during the general elections. The whole of the country should have a say as to who the most important officers bearers are. Over time this shall lead to national integration and also bring out national perspectives and issues to the electorate. Most of the elections today only have a regional focus, this need to be expanded towards having national focus. The majority of the citizens of this nation do not know or cannot identify with the President or the Prime Minister. Till the time the President and the Prime Minister are not seen as true leaders, national leaders national integration will be a far cry.

(2)    There should be a provision where the parties put forward the name of their presidential candidates and the candidacy is open to all the citizens who qualify the minimum requirements of solvency, education at least a graduation from a recognised university and a clean background in terms of his finances and law abiding record.

(3)    The elections have to state funded. This is important if the influence of money has to be mitigated. The state could choose to a reasonable deposit from every candidate standing up for elections. Say, about 5 lakhs from every candidate which would be non-refundable.

(4)    Upon the submission of his name for the candidacy of the President of India, he/she will within a month of such submission also announce the name of his Vice- President and the Prime Minister as running mates. So for the period of the election the {presidential candidate shall be the more important of the three in every respect. However, after the election are over he shall go back to his role as the titular head of the government, after which the prime Minister shall become the de facto head of the executive.

(5)    The Prime Minister shall be free to choose his cabinet from within or outside the parliament. None of the cabinet members shall hold seats in the parliament. This will separate the legislature from the executive in total in respective of every day functions. And, it will have the fantastic effect of attracting on the people who are genuinely interested in policy making and public policy. All the current incentives of being elected to the parliament shall be withdrawn.

(6)    They shall only receive salaries and no other perks.

(7)    The electoral expenditure shall be made public by the Election commission.

(8)    Anyone of the name for election to the Parliament having a criminal background shall be disqualified for life. They will not be allowed to stand for election till such time as the purported charges are not cleared by the court of law.

(9)    Reservation and nominations of all types shall be nullified. They have outlived their purpose and will not serve any purpose by extending them. Every one shall be equal before the law and the electorate.

(10)The Presidential elections shall be conducted as primaries, where the remaining candidate shall be eliminated save for two securing the most overall votes.

(11)For the purpose of primaries the country shall be divided into four zones- North, south, east and west. This is necessary so as to come to the final of two candidates most agreeable to the electorate without the parochial chauvinism to influence their choices.

(12)Finally, in the national general elections the presidential candidates shall have to have at least 50 % of the popular votes to be declared a winner.

4)      Now, these changes are going to be revolutionary and will require revolutionary methods of conducting it. Some of the suggestion would be :

a)      The UID (Aadhar) card shall be made compulsory for the purpose of voting doing away with the election cards.

b)      The use of biometric systems shall be developed.

c)       A system where the UID can be punched from poll booths, ATMs, and personal computers and mobile phones should be developed.

d)      A live feed of the votes shall be done, not waiting for weeks before finally counting the votes. All results shall be declared on the eve of the elections.

If these suggestion are given a serious consideration by Mr Hazare and his team, and the people of India at large I think we can form a consensus and revolutionise the way election s are conducted and election themselves. These if implemented will truly take this country to commanding heights among the world nations.

Instead of wasting time and energy fight for a lesser Jan Lokh Pal Bill, the Anna team should stop to reflect on the benefits of fighting a worthy fight for election reforms.

None of the present political parties are going to take these suggestions, the reason being that if would disqualify the majority of their candidate overnight. The mixed legislature and the executive that they love so much will no longer be under their control. And, most importantly it will expose their claims of being all India party. In this type of an election format there is no group or set of people can actually be placated. The benefit is obvious that we will have able and charismatic leader who will truly represent the people of India and the people represent them. The people shall finally vote as one people for one leader.

Now, there of course will be a lot of disagreement to these suggested reforms, the idea is however to stimulate a consensus for reforms. My purpose is experimental in the sense that I wish to engage as many people to engage into a conversation for an idea of a New India. Mr Hazare I sincerely wish you all the best towards your efforts; however at the same time I should like you to think on a large scale with encompassing vision for the future of this nation on this eve of Independence Day.

If this thought process has some semblance of sense to you. And, if you too think that electoral reforms are the need of the hour rather than the Jan Lok Pal, you may consider furthering our efforts by joining the Freedom Team of India (FTI). You should visit www.freedomteam.in

I dedicate these thoughts for a better India to my fellow countrymen.

Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country – J.F.Kennedy

Jai Hind!

Disclaimer: The thoughts reflected in this write up are my thought and do not reflect the official views of the FTI in any capacity.

 

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Support the Freedom Team by wearing the FTI T-shirt.

The Freedom Team of India has kindly coordinated and produced the first batch of FTI T-shirts, which are now on sale in India. The shirts are depicted below (click for larger image).

Only a few shirts are available in this first batch, so please place your orders soon! Orders will be filled based on the principle: “First Come First Served”.

FRONT

BACK

SIZE: Currently available only in ONE size: Male, XL (extra-large).

COST: Shipping is FREE within India. Please note that these shirts are not delivered outside India. 

Number of shirts	Total cost
1	Rs. 350
2	Rs. 650
3	Rs. 950
4	Rs. 1,250
5	Rs. 1,550
6	Rs. 1,850
7	Rs. 2,150
8	Rs. 2,450
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For each shirt ordered, FTI will receive Rs.44.  You can donate more to FTI through the method outlined here.

HOW TO PLACE YOUR ORDER:

Step 1: Please complete the preliminary order below.

Step 2: After you place the order, I will get in touch with you regarding details of payment.

Step 3: Send the payment to me according to the details your receive. I will dispatch the T-shirts only AFTER receiving your payment.  Being the first FTI merchandise, we don’t have an automated system for payments, yet. Please bear with us.

We look forward to your support!

In defence of idealism

Over the years India has steadily wavered towards cynicism bordering on apathy. The idealistic nostalgia of the pre Independence era has all but faded away. Not much progress seems to have been made on many fronts in this country in the past 60 or so years. The mirages of freedom, prosperity and a dignified life for its citizens have left the people disillusioned and rudderless. The crisis in its leadership is gaping. The politics of cynicism and fear is dominant. The era of defiant and revolutionary politics is dead.

It would be a folly to expect these habitual criminals that we have voted to the parliament to change their methods of governance. So, the way out of this mess is that we start to change ourselves and our perspectives of the present politics to a new politics of the future.

A country which woke up to independence from the womb of idealistic thinking and actions seeking such ends, today finds itself devoid of it. The cynical political leaders and the politics of divisiveness of their rhetoric have killed idealism within us. The politics of this country has failed to inspire its citizens to achieve to the best of their abilities. Now the time has come push idealism back into our politics. It is a time for optimism. It is time for a renewal.

I can think of no human being who is not at the same time has not been an idealist at some point in time. It could have been in the youth or the old age, the fact would remain that he wished for a better situation than was currently presented. Some of them held on to it to take up the challenge of leadership others led it fade. In the same breath I could add another question: what is leadership? You may wonder how it is related to idealism. In some sense it is idealism. Every leader is an idealist, but not every idealist is a leader till such time as he does not take up the challenge of leadership. But, what is this challenge of leadership?

The challenge of leadership is the gap between an imagined vision and its implementation. This could occur due to various reasons like – corruption, incompetence, lack of discipline but, to my mind most importantly, lack of inspiration. If one is not inspired enough by his vision of the future, his articulation of it, no matter how eloquent will not inspire others. This is where only a few truly great men have come to be.it is their ability to inspire people and to move them to action that makes them stand apart.

To be inspired is a sustained state of mind, and not many of us can take that for too long, and if action is not forthcoming, disappointment knocks round the corner. This is where the gaps starts to form and cynicism fill it. The challenge of leadership emerges from the failure of people who have left the road half way. India today suffers from this at a grand scale; the forthcoming future doesn’t look too bright either if the gap continues. However, if we can fill the gap and emerge from the challenge of leadership we have a terrific future waiting, all its citizens.

We as citizens of this nation have to start believing that justice, fairness, a good and accountable government are not mere words, but perspective which can be realised into reality. We have to think of the possibilities not the impossibilities. For a dull mind everything is impossible, but for those who choose to be inspired by ideas nothing is. The impossible is something which simply has not been done before, it is a challenge.

The history of human progress is the triumph of idealism, because someone somewhere believed in those ideas, because someone somewhere took a stand to realise it, because someone somewhere choose to give up the comfort and monotony of everyday existence to envision and create the place he lived better. We stand on the shoulders of giants so that we can see further, it is demeaning to human dignity to spend their lives at their feet.

So my countrymen believe that each and every one of you can make the difference, start to believe in the ideas for a new future to be created by us together. Let us be the founders of change.

The problem with India is that the leaders of this nation are not being able to inspire us to achieve the best in us. They have failed us as our leaders. As, as a consequence of which we have resigned to believe in ourselves. The politics of divisiveness and fear is the direct outcome of chasing the chimera of equality, rather than opportunity. This very politics of equality is leading our nation to its ruin.

The time has come to start assembling to leading our country to a fundamentally new direction.

To join in the on-going effort please visit www.freedomteam.in .

Believe in the power of ideas. Be Inspired!

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Freedom Team of India (FTI) – North Eastern India Outreach program 2011

Who are we?

We are a group of ordinary Indians who believe that India can become a land which is proudly honest, immensely prosperous: a land of opportunity. But our governance has deeply entrenched corruption. Due to the lack of good governance and the continuing apathy of many of our educated citizens, India is composed of islands of plenty surrounded by poverty and penury. We believe that India has the potential to become a global leader if people of impeccable integrity can come together on a common platform and work to take India to glorious heights of freedom.

There are many people like us, disillusioned and frustrated with the inefficient and inadequate governance systems of India. We believe that, if given a platform, they would dedicate their energies to the task of re-building India in the image of a modern, prosperous and just society.

We have named this movement as “Freedom Team of India”.

Some of you may well ask – why ‘freedom’, as India is already a free country? Yes, India is free from its colonial masters, but that only means that we are an independent nation. Freedom, we believe, means the capacity to pursue our ambitions and happiness to the best of our abilities, without being encumbered by unjust rules, even as we remain fully accountable for all our actions. It implies creating a society where everyone can live with self-respect and dignity, and can achieve to their fullest potential. It is also a state where all the citizens are equal stakeholders in determining the rules of society. Further, freedom cannot exist amidst ignorance, illiteracy, and penury, and so these must be banished. We have frittered away our independence and failed to convert it into an opportunity to achieve freedom.

Our emphasis is on the word “team” because all members in this group are equal partners in the design and delivery of its activities and governance, and work as a close-knit team, each member respecting and considering others’ opinions. We have no elected ‘leadership team’ for everyone on FTI is a leader. There are no ‘presidents’ or ‘general secretaries’ on this team. The formal leader of the team will be elected once at least 1,500 members have joined and agreed to a detailed plan of action. In other words, this effort is not about us. It is about a Great India. We are merely citizens taking responsibility for our country.

We believe that politics is a field for the attainment of the highest faculties of man – including vision, compassion, knowledge, and the ability to deliver. It is also a noble vocation, to which the best people of the country should aspire. Politics, in a free nation, is not the haven for the corrupt and shameless as it has currently become in India through our neglect. To change this image of politics, YOU will have to come forward! We are unable to offer you a seat as a spectator, whereby you can complain and blame others but do nothing. You have to enter the ring and fight! All people with commitment to India’s freedom and prosperity should come together. The time for watching from the side lines is long past.

(Source FTI brochure)

We at The Freedom Team of India (FTI) will be holding an Outreach for the north East Indian in the months of August and September 2011, from the 29^th of August 2001 to the 3^rd September 2011. The purpose of this outreach is to find leaders from the north east India. We will be discussing the core ideas and beliefs behind the FTI, and the case for change in Indian politics. We will be reaching out to the citizens of India living in the North eastern India. the total number of leaders we are looking at is 25 from the seven north-eastern states.The rough estimate of the number of leaders we need in the north east can be seen in the table below:

Seats in Lok Sabha

Sl. No	State / Union Territory	Type of Constituencies	TOTAL
GEN	SC	ST
1	Andhra Pradesh	34	6	2	42
2	Arunachal Pradesh	2	-	-	2
3	Assam	11	1	2	14
4	Bihar	33	7	-	40
5	Jharkhand	8	1	5	14
6	Goa	2	-	-	2
7	Gujarat	20	2	4	26
8	Haryana	8	2	-	10
9	Himachal Pradesh	3	1	-	4
10	Jammu & Kashmir	6	-	-	6
11	Karnataka	24	4	-	28
12	Kerala	18	2	-	20
13	Madhya Pradesh	20	4	5	29
14	Chhattisgarh*	5	2	4	11
15	Maharashtra	41	3	4	48
16	Manipur	1	-	1	2
17	Meghalaya	2	-	-	2
18	Mizoram	-	-	1	1
19	Nagaland	1	-	-	1
20	Orissa	13	3	5	21
21	Punjab	10	3	-	13
22	Rajasthan	18	4	3	25
23	Sikkim	1	-	-	1
24	Tamil Nadu	32	7	-	39
25	Tripura	1	-	1	2
26	Uttar Pradesh	63	17	-	80
27	Uttaranchal*	4	1	-	5
28	West Bengal	32	8	2	42
29	A & N Islands	1	-	-	1
30	Chandigarh	1	-	-	1
31	D & N Haveli	-	-	1	1
32	Daman & Diu	1	-	-	1
33	Delhi	6	1	-	7
34	Lakshadweep	-	-	1	1
35	Pondicherry	1	-	-	1
	Total:	423	79	41	543

Those interested in participating in the event or joining the FTI may visit our website www.freedomteam.in. or alternatively mail me at vidyutjain@gmail.com

On the question regarding our strategy of finding leader first you may visit our website and read the brochure. A gist of which is:

Even the biggest event has to start from an idea. The idea here is to bring together at least 1,500 outstanding leaders – individuals of unimpeachable integrity and sound liberal thinking – who are willing to lead and contest elections in the coming years. Why 1,500? We believe that the number of 1,500 leaders mark a good starting point for action. It will mean we have roughly three outstanding leaders for each of India’s 550 parliamentary constituencies. For each constituency, if one of the leaders can not contest for unavoidable reasons, then two others will be ready to stand up. If (and this has to be faced as part of the reality of Indian elections) the second one is killed, then the third will stand up. Through repeatedly offering good leaders to Indian voters to choose from in each election, we believe that good governments will begin to be formed at the national level. Those leaders who did not get to contest the parliamentary elections will contest the state elections, and the leadership team continuously enhanced. It is our hope that the core group of 1,500 good leaders will be relatively easy to find among our billion plus population. The Freedom Team also believes that women should form half our membership, but we do not believe in a system of quotas either within or outside this group. However, good leaders do not fall from the sky. It won’t do to sit by and wait for leaders who will liberate us from our ills to arise spontaneously. We also have to stop criticising and blaming our existing politicians who are doing the best they can give that good competent people refuse to lead. The only solution is for each of us to take up the leadership challenge. This has to be based on a movement where ordinary citizens decide to rise to new heights and take up leadership roles. No one else exists. You must lead India to greatness. About thirty leaders of high calibre have already joined. A few high calibre observers have also joined, to provide advice. If you believe that you can lead India, if you wish to reform and transform India, do consider joining the Freedom Team today. Right now! The sooner 1,500 people commit to a shared action plan, the sooner the reform of India can begin. You do not have to leave your existing group or political party: please continue with it. But you should also join the Freedom Team if you believe in its underlying ideas. If you don’t like being part of this team, please start your own team. Let a million flowers bloom. But do something. Do not wait for India to change on its own, which will never happen. This is our only plea: you should take on your responsibility as a citizen.

(Source FTI Brochure)

If you believe in the power of an idea, if you believe in the power of words and that they can echo through history with sufficient belief in it. If you have said “I Protest”. If you believe that you can lead this nation to a better future. If you believe that freedom is non-negotiable. If you believe that the government should be small but effective. If you believe that all the hungry can be fed, all people deserve a better future, if you can help them dream then you are the person we are looking for.

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Voices from the past–A time for Re-education II,The dawn of freedom,Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) (New Delhi, August 1947)

A beautiful speech given by Dr Radhakrishan on the eve of independence day. It echoes what we are still grappling with as a nation. Definitely worth reading for every Indian citizen. Dr Radhakrishan in is own words

 

Mr President, Sir, it is not necessary for me to speak at any great length on this Resolution so impressively moved by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and seconded by Mr Khaliquzzaman. History and legend will grow round this day. It marks a milestone in the march of our democracy. A significant date it is in the drama of the Indian people who are trying to rebuild and transform themselves. Through a long night of waiting, a night full of fateful portents and silent prayers for the dawn of freedom, of haunting spectres of hunger and death, our sentinels kept watch, the lights were burning bright, till at last the dawn is breaking and we greet it with the utmost enthusiasm. When we are passing from a state of serfdom, a state of slavery and subjection to one of freedom and liberation, it is an occasion for rejoicing. That it is being effected in such an orderly and dignified way is a matter for gratification.

Mr Attlee spoke with visible pride in the House of Commons when he said that this is the first great instance of a strong Imperialist power transferring its authority to a subject people whom it ruled with force and firmness for nearly two centuries. For a parallel he cited the British withdrawal from South Africa; but it is nothing comparable in scale and circumstances to the British withdrawal from this country. When we see what the Dutch are doing in Indonesia, when we see how the French are clinging to their possessions, we cannot but admire the political sagacity and courage of the British people. (Cheers.)

We on our side, have also added a chapter to the history of the World. Look at the way in which subject peoples in history won their freedom. Let us also consider the methods by which power was acquired. How did men like Washington, Napoleon, Cromwell, Lenin, Hitler and Mussolini get into power? Look at the methods of blood and steel, of terrorism and assassination, of bloodshed and anarchy by which these so called great men of the world came into the possession of power. Here in this land under the leadership of one who will go down in history as perhaps the greatest man of our age (loud cheers) we have opposed patience to fury, quietness of spirit to bureaucratic tyranny and are acquiring power through peaceful and civilised methods. What is the result? The transition is being effected with the least bitterness, with utterly no kind of hatred at all. The very fact that we are appointing Lord Mountbatten as the Governor-General of India, shows the spirit of understanding and friendliness in which this whole transition is being effected. (Cheers.)

You, Mr President, referred to the sadness in our hearts, to the sorrow which also clouds our rejoicings. May I say that we are in an essential sense responsible for it also though not entirely. From 1600, Englishmen have come to this country-priests and nuns, merchants and adventurers, diplomats and statesmen, missionaries and idealists. They bought and sold, marched and fought, plotted and profited, helped and healed. The greatest among them wished to modernise the country, to raise its intellectual and moral standards, its political status. They wished to regenerate the whole people. But the small among them worked with sinister objective. They tried to increase the disunion in the country, made the country poorer, weaker and more disunited. They also have had their chance now.

The freedom we are attaining is the fulfilment of this dual tendency among British administrators. While India is attaining freedom, she is attaining it in a manner which does not produce joy in the hearts of people or a radiant smile on their faces. Some of those who were charged with the responsibility for the administration of this country, tried to accentuate communal consciousness and bring about the present result which is a logical outcome of the policies adopted by the lesser minds of Britain. But I would never blame them. Were we not victims, ready victims, so to say, of the separatist tendencies foisted on us? Should we not now correct our national faults of character, our domestic despotism, our intolerance which has assumed the different forms of obscurantism of narrow-mindedness, of superstitious bigotry?

Others were able to play on our weakness because we had them. I would like therefore to take this opportunity to call for self examination, for a searching of hearts. We have gained but we have not gained in the manner we wished to gain and if we have, not done so, the responsibility is our own. And when this pledge says that we have to serve our country, we can best serve our country by removing these fundamental defects which have prevented us from gaining the objective of a free and united India.

Now that India is divided, it is our duty not to indulge in words of anger. They lead us nowhere. We must avoid passion, and wisdom never go together. The body politic may be divided but the body historic lives on. (Hear, hear.)

Political divisions, physical partitions, are external but the psychological divisions are deeper. The cultural cleavages are the more dangerous. We should not allow them to grow. What we should do is to preserve those cultural ties, those spiritual bonds which knit our peoples together into one organic whole.

Patient consideration, slow process of education, adjustment to one another’s needs, the discovery of points of view which are common to both the dominions in the matter of Communications, Defence, Foreign Affairs, these are the things which should be allowed to grow in the daily business of life and administration. It is by developing such attitudes that we can once again draw near and gain the lost unity of this country. That is the only way to it.

Our opportunities are great but let me warn you that when power outstrips ability, we will fall on evil days. We should develop competence and ability which would help us to utilise the opportunities which are now open to us. From tomorrow morning — from midnight today — we cannot throw the blame on the Britisher. We have to assume the responsibility ourselves for what we do. A free India will be judged by the way in which it will serve the interests of the common man in the matter of food, clothing, shelter and the social services.

Unless we destroy corruption in high places, root out every trace of nepotism, love of power, profiteering and black marketing which have spoiled the good name of this great country in recent times, we will not be able to raise the standards of efficiency in administration as well as in the production and distribution of the necessary goods of life.

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru referred to the great contribution which this country will make to the promotion of world peace and the welfare at mankind. The — chakra, the Asokan wheel, which is there in the flag embodies for us a great idea, Asoka, the greatest of our emperors, look at the words of H G Wells regarding him ‘Highnesses, Magnificence’s, Excellences, Serenities, Majesties — among them all, he shines alone a star Asoka the greatest of all monarchs.’ He cut into rock his message for the healing of discords. If there are differences, the way in which you can solve them is by promoting concord. Concord is the only way by which we can get rid of differences. There is no other method which is open to us.

We are lucky in having for our leader one who is a world citizen, who is essentially a humanist, who possesses a buoyant optimism and robust good sense in spite of the perversity of things and the hostility of human affairs. We see the way in which his Department interfered actively and in a timely manner in the Indonesian dispute. (Loud applause.) It shows that if India gains freedom, that freedom will be used not merely for the well-being of India but for Vishva Kalyana, world peace, the welfare of mankind.

 

Our pledge tells us that this ancient land shall attain her rightful and honoured place. We take pride in the antiquity of this land for it is a land which has been nearly four or five millenniums of history. It has passed through many vicissitudes and at the moment it stands, still responding to the thrill of the same great ideal.

Civilisation is a thing of the spirit, it is not something external, solid and mechanical. It is the dream in the people’s hearts. It is the inward aspiration of the people’s souls. It is the imaginative interpretation of the human life and the perception of the mystery of human existence. That is what civilisation actually stands for.

We should bear in mind these great ideals which have been transmitted to us across the ages. In this great time of our history we should bear ourselves humbly before God, brace ourselves to this supreme task which is confronting us and conduct ourselves in a manner that is worthy of the ageless spirit of India.

If we do so, I have no doubt that, the future of this land will be as great as its once glorious past.

Sarvabhutdisahamatmanam
Sarvabhutani catmani
Sampasyam atmayajivai
Saarwjyam adhigachati

Swarajya is the development of that kind of tolerant attitude which sees in brother man the face Divine. Intolerance has been the greatest enemy of our progress. Tolerance of one another’s views, thoughts and beliefs is the only remedy that we can possibly adopt.

Therefore I support with very great pleasure this Resolution which asks us as the representatives of the people of India to conduct ourselves in all humility in the service of our country and the word ‘Humility’ here means that we are by ourselves very Insignificant. Our efforts by themselves cannot carry us to a long distance.

We should make ourselves dependent on that other than ourselves which makes for righteousness. The note of humility means the unimportance, of the individual and the supreme importance of the unfolding purpose which we are called upon to serve. So in a mood of humility, in a spirit of dedication let us take this pledge as soon as the clock strikes twelve.

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Must social change precede political change in India?

I always thought that the question of, whether social change must precede political change in India had been suitable answered by the event of Indian Independence in 1947.This event I though was a classic case where political change preceded social change, thereby giving us Indians an opportunity to facilitate social change. Apparently this event seems to have gone unnoticed when talking about bringing about social/political change in India. The question revisited me under a peculiar context again, during the live chat organised by the Freedom Team of India to discuss the strategy of having leaders first in the team to lead India, before we actually hit the political ground, there was a lot of talk on this theme, mostly in favour of social change first. It was a chat called “Leaders First” organised by Mr Shantanu Bhagwat, a member of The Freedom Team of India whose blog can be viewed at http://Satyameva-Jayate.org. For those who may be interested in the Transcript of the chat may visit Sanjeev Sabhloks blog at http://sabhlokcity.com/2011/01/transcript-live-chat-26-january-2011-leaders-first/. There were various threads that emerged from the chat however; the one that got me curious was about precedence of social and political change. The chat was informative and thought provoking and I highly suggest those interested in doing their bit for India to go through it.

Views were aired by the participants regarding a need for social change and all the reluctance or the arguments against joining politics somewhere hit this line of thought. Previous to the chat I had not thought about this issue in a perspective of being a hindrance to joining/supporting a better alternative in politics, nor did I understand that this would manifest as a kind of a shadow lurking in the minds of the people. In some sense I thought that it signified a lack of confidence in them and by implication in our on-going project to bring about change in India. Well, here is my response to them and a case for why political change should precede social change in India? I sincerely hope that I may be able to change a few minds that India needs urgently for making it a much better India.

Coming back to the question I wish to explore, if we were to look at history of the world closely, the case for social change invariably preceding political change is very weak. To take a view in history of India at a close range to facilitate better understanding of the question is the Indian freedom movement. In the late 1800’s and the early 1900’s the freedom fighters of India were precisely wrought into a similar dilemma as to whether, social change should precede political change. And, a few of the fighters stuck to the first and few to the second. No conclusive view emerged then, at a time when the idea of India needed those therapeutic measures. Gopal Krishna Gokhale, a man of brilliance and erudition maintained that political change will automatically lead to social change. He argued that after having got freedom, we should be in a better position to argue out the need for the social change and how far we could actually take the proposed changes as a free people. His was perhaps the first of its kind articulation, until later Gandhi amalgamated the two into a simultaneous process.

Now let’s move a little forward to the time of independence 1947. What happened then? Of course, India got freedom. But, what else did happen? Well political change preceded social change. The whole of the country, every citizen got enfranchised; they in fact got the right to vote when most of the western countries did not give all their citizens the power of the ballot. Some countries withheld the power of the ballot from women, others from differently coloured still others for various other superficialities. But India was different with a stroke of a pen all citizen became equal not in word but indeed. This is perhaps the best example of political change preceding social change. Why? Because, the founding father believed that a country as vast and as complex as India, where social change was desperately need could come about only if we had political change first. How else could the possibility of breaking the caste hierarchy emerge, or the empowerment of woman in a hopelessly patriarchal society take roots, and how else could the consolidated geographical entities be merged into a single union with an Idea of India.

 

 

 

At the time of being granted independence, India was a country at the bottom of most of the social indices, very much like today (but that would be better left for another occasion). Now, the state of the nation at the time was miserable in terms of social practices as well, as can well be gauged from the fact the founders had to pass a number of legislation specifically targeting social practices, ranging from dowry, inheritance, to sati and civil rights. Untouchabilty was viewed as such a heinous crime by the founding father that they resorted to place it in the section under the fundamental rights of the constitution of India. It was a still remains one of the biggest social evils in existence in India. Some of the laws against these social evils were passed by the British in the early part of the nineteenth century. The practise of untouchabilty alone stands nullifies the guarantee of equality for all citizens under the constitution. And, still it exists. Did they wait for social reform before political reform? If they had operated upon such logic I think we would not have gotten Independence let alone an attempt at social changes through political empowerment.

Social change is in a sense political change, every social change empowers people as is the case in political change. To expect that one must be a precondition for the other to proceed is erroneous thinking. Social changes coming into effect without having political setup to facilitate that is empty, and political changes without social practices to support them is blind. They have and always work in tandem. Any attempt to separate the two or give precedence to one over the other in terms of political/social activity will lead either to exploitative practices or worse a tyranny of the political class in social guise, India is the case is point for the latter.

Here is a illustrative list of laws passed in India during the past two centuries aiming at specifically curbing social evils, thereby bring about/facilitating social change. The effectiveness of the laws and their implementation are a question, which the readers have to make an assessment for themselves. However the list is illustrative is a sense if it makes my case stronger by asking a question. Would these social evils have been curbed or attempted to be curbed without a political change that followed in India after 1947? This list is below, as follows;

1. Caste Disabilities Removal Act 1850

2. Public Gambling Act 1867

3. Indian Divorce Act 1869

4. Marriages Validation Act 1892

5. Lepers Act 1898

6. Ancient Monuments Preservation Act 1904

7. Anand Marriage Act 1909

8. Hindu Inheritance (Removal of Disabilities) Act 1928

9. Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929

10. Children (Pledging of Labour) Act 1933

11. Hindu Marriage Act 1955

12. Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956

13. Dowry Prohibition Act 1961

14. Untouchabilty (Offences) Amendment and Miscellaneous Provision Act 1976

15. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985

16. Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986

17. Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act 1986

18. Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986

19. Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989

20. National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act 1999

21. Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005

22. Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005

23. Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2007

24. Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009

Now, to wait for social change to happen first and expect that political reform will follow swiftly is wishful thinking. It will never complete its intended project without the support of political setup. Moreover, historically political changes in a society have led to massive social changes as in the case of England, France, America and many more countries. One of the reasons as to why this should be so, is that, to bring about social unity for instance in a country as diverse as India is not only an impossible task but a path to folly. Where as to bring about a political unity in this country would be not as difficult, a unity of one nation, one people which has be elusive so far. Elusive not because people can’t be united, elusive because the uniting factor has been social rather than political, regional rather than national in character. This path to folly will only lead to a disaster in form of the quagmire that we are in today. This can only be arrested by having political change first as a result of political unity. One nation, one people!

To all the cynics who will tell us that is impossible, that because it has never been done before, that we are too young to undertake this giant leap of faith, faith in the rule of law, faith in freedom for everyone, faith in the unity of a nation as one people. We the people must not allow those who practise the politics of division, of hate, of fear to sacrifice our future to the altar of the past. People, who vehemently will oppose political change to the precedence of social change, are the very same people who are scared to lose this status quo, they are the centres of powers that will refuse to budge, but we must train ourselves, and train ourselves well to see through this guise. They are the opposition to the future we seek.

Give people political freedom and they will create a heaven, restrict them socially and they will perish in the hell of their making. It is time we stopped making excuses of what should come first and what next and concentrate our energies to create a conducive political environment to facilitate the social change. When we bring about political change, is it any different than bring about social change? The time has come for us to start to sense the spectre that is haunting India, the spectre of freedom, prosperity and dignity. It is for us to take the mantle of a more prosperous, free India. It is our duty as citizens of a free nation to pass the baton to the future generations in a much better health, a stronger unified Union of India.

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Voices from the past–A time for Re-education, Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964): Speech On the Granting of Indian Independence, August 14, 1947

Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long supressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of Inida and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.

At the dawn of history India started on her unending quest, and trackless centuries are filled with her striving and the grandeur of her success and her failures. Through good and ill fortune alike she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?

Freedom and power bring responsibility. The responsibility rests upon this Assembly, a sovereign body representing the sovereign people of India. Before the birth of freedom we have endured all the pains of labour and our hearts are heavy with the memory of this sorrow. Some of those pains continue even now. Nevertheless, the past is over and it is the future that beckons to us now.

That future is not one of ease or resting but of incessant striving so that we may fulfil the pledges we have so often taken and the one we shall take today. The service of India means the service of the millions who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye. That may be beyond us, but as long as there are tears and suffering, so long our work will not be over.

And so we have to labour and to work, and work hard, to give reality to our dreams. Those dreams are for India, but they are also for the world, for all the nations and peoples are too closely knit together today for any one of them to imagine that it can live apart Peace has been said to be indivisible; so is freedom, so is prosperity now, and so also is disaster in this One World that can no longer be split into isolated fragments.

To the people of India, whose representatives we are, we make an appeal to join us with faith and confidence in this great adventure. This is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill-will or blaming others. We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell.

II

The appointed day has come-the day appointed by destiny-and India stands forth again, after long slumber and struggle, awake, vital, free and independent. The past clings on to us still in some measure and we have to do much before we redeem the pledges we have so often taken. Yet the turning-point is past, and history begins anew for us, the history which we shall live and act and others will write about.

It is a fateful moment for us in India, for all Asia and for the world. A new star rises, the star of freedom in the East, a new hope comes into being, a vision long cherished materializes. May the star never set and that hope never be betrayed!

We rejoice in that freedom, even though clouds surround us, and many of our people are sorrowstricken and difficult problems encompass us. But freedom brings responsibilities and burdens and we have to face them in the spirit of a free and disciplined people.

On this day our first thoughts go to the architect of this freedom, the Father of our Nation [Gandhi], who, embodying the old spirit of India, held aloft the torch of freedom and lighted up the darkness that surrounded us. We have often been unworthy followers of his and have strayed from his message, but not only we but succeeding generations will remember this message and bear the imprint in their hearts of this great son of India, magnificent in his faith and strength and courage and humility. We shall never allow that torch of freedom to be blown out, however high the wind or stormy the tempest.

Our next thoughts must be of the unknown volunteers and soldiers of freedom who, without praise or reward, have served India even unto death.

We think also of our brothers and sisters who have been cut off from us by political boundaries and who unhappily cannot share at present in the freedom

that has come. They are of us and will remain of us whatever may happen, and we shall be sharers in their good [or] ill fortune alike.

The future beckons to us. Whither do we go and what shall be our endeavour? To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman.

We have hard work ahead. There is no resting for any one of us till we redeem our pledge in full, till we make all the people of India what destiny intended them to be. We are citizens of a great country on the verge of bold advance, and we have to live up to that high standard. All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of India with equal rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation can be great whose people are narrow in thought or in action.

To the nations and peoples of the world we send greetings and pledge ourselves to cooperate with them in furthering peace, freedom and democracy.

And to India, our much-loved motherland, the ancient, the eternal and the ever-new, we pay our reverent homage and we bind ourselves afresh to her service.

JAI HIND.

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