Tamasha Dekko!

As Anna Hazare fasts, life around continues with all its usual corruption that India allows as its unofficial national anthem. From the top to the bottom in the public service sector, and most predominantly in government agencies; we have a pandemic attitude of getting a free buck where ever we can. There are of course many "rationals" given that support the "reasons" for this; and our conscience buys into these deep pockets of grime because we have no desire to hold ourselves accountable.

As scam after scam rains down on us, our leaders show up at cricket matches for photo opportunities, pretending to appear that the aam janata is truly their concern. Like the dinner in a thatched hut with a poor woman at the time of elections that became the speech of virtue in Parliament; we see the umpteen hollow gestures such as these that are bartered for goodwill and belief of an electoral. And of course we buy it all, lock stock and barrel, white kurta and dimples thrown in for free!

We are always a waiting and watching society! Dekko dekko, tamasha deko! Announcements on television by savvy political spokes-people elude the real issues that need confronting which are transparently obvious tactics to fool a nation into believing that civil societies demands are being met. It is moments like this that clearly showcase why politics does not become a profession that attracts an inflow of new blood into its fold each year. The dynastic gene pool will continue to be where sons and daughters of old hands are fished out to continue the swindling process and with impressive degrees in hand from swanky phoren universities, we believe we are being blessed by their sacrifice to serve the nation!

Am I sounding cynical? Is my optimism on the wane? What I am sure of right now and which is very worrying, is that is our democratic process is being cast to fit a mould that is vastly different from the Constitution of India that made us its mid-nights children. We need more voices out in the open to question with informed insights as to what is going wrong, and make the public more aware of how we are squandering our chances of progress and achievement as a nation which is essential at this juncture of India's development. Did we come out of one Raj only to exchange it for another? Is corruption what becomes India's new national flag? We need to really clarify these rather basic points for ourselves and maybe then we will see the light of day more clearly. But is anyone really listening?!