Bengaluru: "We for sure need a Lokpal Bill because it will bring in a clean government. Anna Hazare should be worshipped for what he is doing," Sonu, a barber, told me earlier this week.
Not just Sonu, but many I chatted with believe the Lokpal can be a solution to all their problems, from water supply to ration cards to gas connections.
So what do we understand from the Sonus of this world?
A) Many supporting Anna Hazare's movement don't have the slightest clue about the specifics of the bill. They think the Lokpal is a magic cure for all the ills in the country.
B) Team Anna (led by Arvind Kejriwal) has captured the imagination of everyone tired of the bureaucratic and political corruption in this country. Their call to fight 'corruption' with a 'fast' is working wonderfully in mobilising people.
What is being forgotten in all this is that the team is offering a simplistic solution to a complex problem. Team Anna is offering a quick fix to corruption via the Jan Lokpal Bill.
Khristina, a journalist, says when people see something good happening, they instantly want to become a part of it.
"Even when there's an illusion of something good, we would want to be a part of it. I guess this happens because all of us want to be a part of the 'greater good'; to say 'I was there'. Of course, there could also be a 'herd mentality' at work. In fact, many may not fully understand Anna's 'Fight Against Corruption' and its implications, but the knowledge that it may result in something good is causing this frenzy," she explains.
This is where Team Anna have got their strategy right: they are fighting for the good and the betterment of the nation. A vast majority feel they should be behind Anna Hazare and support the movement. On the other hand, the government has failed to explain its stand to the nation. Its communication strategy, if it has one at all, has failed miserably.
Jharna, a cricket journalist, says: "I feel Anna and his supporters are trying to rouse public sentiment against established evils like corruption, but the resulting wave will do very little towards actually getting rid of bribery in daily life. The leaders are merely encouraging blind faith and putting themselves on pedestals to be worshipped the same way modern-day politicians do."
How the UPA lost the plot
How has such a mass movement built up over the last couple of months? The UPA has much to answer for. Instead of trying to bring to book people behind its mega-scams, it was busy cementing its coalition and running down activists behind the Lokpal movement.
From maligning protesters to spreading rumours, the government has tried several dirty tricks. What it hasn't done is to tell the misinformed masses what the Jan Lokpal bill is all about and how it can't solve all the nation's problems.
The government isn't speaking lucidly about how our country already has independent agencies such as the Central Vigilance Commission, the Comptroller and Auditor General's office, the Election Commission, and the Central Bureau of Investigation to fight corruption. A Lokpal would only add to the long list of investigating bodies in the country.
Instead of explaining why it is against Team Anna's version of the Lokpal, it goes about arresting Anna and creating a huge sympathy wave for protesters, bringing back memories of the Emergency era.
Anna's arrest catalysed common citizens. It made them take to the streets as they saw the government's action as undemocratic, an obstruction of their rights. The Congress has spoken in many voices, confounding the issue further. From a minister calling Anna Hazare mad to Abhishek Manu Singhvi announcing the government is open to discussing 80 per cent of the bill, the UPA has made a farce of the issue.
Manu Singhvi's statement shows that the government was ready to extend an olive branch only when things seemed to be going out of control. The government has blamed Lokpal activists of compromising India's security and integrity, when there was no vandalism, and even a basic law-and-order problem was not in evidence. Some Congressmen were so foolish as to draw a parallel between the recent London riots, comparing anti-corruption protesters to hooligans.
These are the mistakes that have fuelled the public sentiment against the government. Kapil Sibal says Anna is undemocratic. Manmohan Singh says his government is taking the strictest possible action against the corrupt, but everyone knows how he had no role in nailing those guilty in the 2G and the Commonwealth Games scam. It was only after our apex court intervened that arrests were made.
This is proof enough that the government is not serious about curbing corruption. As a believer in our democracy, I feel we have enough institutions that can corrupt the corrupt. I don't feel the need for a new Lokpal, but if the government continues functioning the way it has been, the day won't be far when widespread rage grips the nation, leaving us in anarchy.
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