Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Opaque Operations!!!!

The period 18th April 2010 to 30th April 2010 has been a particularly significant period for us. The chronological order of the events unfolded before us.

1. Resignation of Mr. Shashi Tharoor. (IPL fallout)
2. Suspension of Lalit Modi (IPL fallout)
3. Arrest of Ketan Desai of Medical council of India.
4. Arrest of 2 senior bureaucrats on charges of corruption. (MHA)
5. Mayawati supporting the UPA Government in Parliament subsequently the Cut Motion defeated in Parliament.
6. Conclusion of the trial of lone surviving terrorist of 26/11/2008
7. Telecom spectrum scam. (2G)
8. Telephone Tapping of Politicians.
9. Ms.Madhuri Gupta.

Which of these should have taken precedence for an article by any journalist, largely depends on his/her leaning and compulsions as dictated by the Political masters of that particular media house.

It comes as no surprise to read Opaque Operations by Ms. Barkha Dutt her political proximity and preferences are well known to all of us. The choice of subject is along the expected lines, for it is her favorite which in line of fire, had it been any other political setup besieged with similar issues she would have gone to town with her ranting and denouncements of that outfit.

Modi is to journalists, as the proverbial red rag is to bulls, regardless of the fact this time it is Lalit and not Narendra. The writer is castigating Indians for their obsession to show case India thru the sprawling acre of Infosys rather than the Dharavis of India. Dharavis are the creative formulations of our political class, and Infosys the outcome of entrepreneurial skills and hard work of the middle class people of India. Yes the Indian of today seeks idols in the corporate world, for this is one enduring dream that all Indians have and seek to realize. It is not a fantasy that Modi created, sold to the people of India and the world at large. IPL is a great product created by an imaginative individual with copious amount of blood sweat and tears as the cliché goes. The author believes that celebrating Indians on the international billionaires list is a shallow validation.

Has his life really spun out of control? Subject for a larger debate! Only the envious would pretend to look the other way, for the students and the business people of India here is a model to be studied and replicated. The whispers of sleaze funds and tax evasions need to be investigated and proved in the court of law. To categories IPL as a fantasy reeks of biased mindset.

There is a sweeping and a generalized statement being made, there is no denying that good bad and ugly exist in every walk of life. This is not reason enough for us to paint all business people with the same brush. In comparison to what we have on the political canvass, corporate India would need to really work hard to achieve a similar dubious reputation. This is what would be classified as a fantasy, in the business world it is about actual responsibility as against the imagined moral responsibility in the political field.
Corporate India has accountability and governance parameters to follow, deviation leads to serious consequences for the directors entrusted with functioning of the business on a daily basis. This is totally absent in the political arena. Vigilant media is a fallacy, what we have is a vigilante media, functioning at the behest of its political masters and for it own benefits. Media also is covered under the ambit of corporate India.

The initial 30 years of Independent India from 1947 to 1977. Which should have been the period of building this country were spent by the Congress party in injecting corruption into the system. Building behemoths which bleed steadily and continuously bringing the country to bankruptcy in ‘90’s. Can we deny the fact that it is this party which has let down the country thru its flawed policies, which made the very word businessman to denote a dishonest anti national, and profit a profanity that we were instructed never to employ. A faulty foundation is the real reason for all that ails India today.

Business is beyond the comprehension of the Jholawalas. Masquerading as a journalist is simpler, no real qualifications are required, just have the fingers on the right buttons and utter the words, the powers that maybe want hear and any Tom Dick or Harry can be labeled as a journalist. The corrupt business people will face the wrath of the law, and will serve their time as awarded by the courts. Politicians in this country have always cocked a snook at us, and walked away merrily with the entire loot. Oh how we wish the politician was answerable to us the electorate! The political class is it own master and beyond the reach of us Indians. Was this not amply borne out by the cut motion moved by the opposition in the parliament. The very parties who were holding rallies and protests outside the Parliament did not vote for the cuts so badly needed by the Indians whose back is all but broken under the unbearable weight of price rise.

Show us a single politician who has been convicted for corruption in the last 62years, no not one has paid for his crime till date.