My friend Jaiprakash Singh, runs the 'Sujata School' in Hyderabad and Moinabad.
During my visit to the school he requested me to speak to and motivate the young students in class 10, who were shortly due to leave school for college. The easiest thing to do in the world is, to lecture others especially the young and dole out unsolicited advice. Rather than lecture I prefer to have a dialogue with the young, for they never fail to surprise me with amazing new perspectives and their boundless enthusiasm and energy.
We spoke about several things and then a quick poll of the students revealed a great surprise. Several boys and girls said their career choice was to become politicians.
Wow! I never saw that coming.
I later realised that, we often ask what, but rarely why?
I have no definitive answers but yes a theory.
Most people dream of being powerful, rich or famous. In India all these three things are possible in one profession represented by the Indian politicians of today. Politicians are a force that is not dependent on any other group in society. They are just one step below God in social standing.
All they need is a fig leaf of concern and service.
Politics is the only profession in which no pre-qualification, formal training, skill acquisition or training is mandated or required. Politics is open for admission to all, and it seems to require no study or hard work.
Traditional Indian society had four classes.
1. The warrior class who held the muscle power.
2. The priestly class who were custodians of society's knowledge and wisdom.
3. The traders who had most of the money and controlled commerce.
4. The working class, who had the skills to provide products and services and also those who tilled the land, the farmers.
This arrangement ensured that no one group controlled more than one lever of power. This provided balance in society because each group was interdependent on the others. The is why India was an economic success and social stability, and there was no social unrest or revolution for over 5000 years.
Now in post independent India there has been a convergence. The people with muscle power now also have financial and administrative power. They are the politicians. Sadly they have made irrelevant religion and education by subjugating and corrupting them.
Though there are exceptions, it is generally believed that politicians exist only to serve themselves. During their team as elected officials, they are magically transformed into business and property tycoons. Their wealth grows by leaps and bounds sometimes a thousand fold in 5 years.They usually live in palatial homes and estates, and are surrounded by incredible luxury. If you smell an incredible amount of money, you can be pretty sure a politician is nearby.
Politicians are extraconstitutional authorities. Yes I know about that humbug, that everyone is equal under the law and as per the constitution. Politicians are not under the law, they are above it. The entire government administrative machinery is at their disposal. Their power comes by controlling criminal elements, the law and order machinery, the keys to the vault etc. Politicians withhold funds from opponents and those who do not pay, while granting favours and projects usually to cronies, themselves, their kith and kin through front men or to others for a fee. They usually misdirect tax and regulatory authorities to harass and destroy any voice that speaks or even contemplates speaking against them. They are powerful and they have no qualms about demonstrating it, and flexing their muscles often.
Famous, they are. Other than film stars and cricketeers media reports primarily on politicians. They cover almost every action, and expression. They hang on to every word politicians utter, as if it were holy gospel. This encourages more useless and often harmful verbal diarrhea. The media uses this 'info-tainment' to often fake concern for the people and affairs of the nation to make money while irresponsibility abounds
Kids are impressionable and they learn quickly, particularly fast the things that are not good. Is it any any wonder that politics is the preferred profession for many youngsters?
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