I pride myself on being politically aware and active in a nation where it is still considered a dirty dungeon where no one wants to tread. Hence, I was genuinely happy, when the masses in Delhi turned out to vote for the Assembly elections. Notwithstanding the fact that most voters did not know who they were voting for except that it was an AAP candidate. It was a red flag, but I ignored it, thinking it to be the start and that, it may hold the key to change.
I had genuinely not hoped that AAP would get more than 10 seats- that I guessed were enough to keep the ruling (sic) BJP and the other opposition (Congress) on its toes, as AAP would make a fantastic opposition. The results proved me wrong and horribly so- horrible because I know what a fractured mandate can do- (At the national level) we have all seen it in ‘96-’99 and even now, when vested interests decide major policies. The congress promptly tried to corner AAP in a difficult spot, and AAP fell for it- after a high voltage drama.
I am going to list out in numbers my problems with the entire thing for ease of discussion. AAP members, as I have observed, do not answer questions directed at them, but try to take it on a whole lot “holier than thou” level.
1. AAP asked Congress and BJP for BLIND support on 18 points: Anyone who is remotely familiar with legislative process knows that any law comes into force after a lot of debate, our constitution also provides for the same - LS>RS> back to LS for verifying changes and vice versa. Sure, it does take time, but it also ensures that no one is above a collectively empowered parliament. Or else, the Gandhis would have by now declared India a Gandhian sovereign territory piggybacking on their sycophants. By asking for blind support on legislations/ decisions, many of whom were not even presented, AAP was trying to undermine a constitutional consultative process. What if a BJP legislator had a point to be included/ removed from the AAP version of Janlokpal/ Mohalla samitis?
2. Lies and more lies: Since the very start, we have been witnessing a slew of lies from AAP’s stable. I will not even talk about not joining politics, not taking congress support, not in Lok Sabha fray etc. But it gets embarrassing when Kejriwal brings out a letter from the Ugandan embassy and it is found to be a dated internal memo. Our position in the world suffers due to such antics.
3. VIP culture: Yes we are all sick of it, but Mr Kejriwal- the 4000 policemen deployed for your dharna today were part of someone’s security. You might well say that you didn’t ask for it, but the fact is if something went wrong, you would have come out clean saying that Delhi police is not under my control.
As for a house and security, enough has been said already. Im sure great leaders like Lal Bahadur Shashtri and Atal Behari Vajpayee did live in official bungalows, did use official cars, but never did we associate them with extravagance. On the other hand, I know many MP’s who use the MP shuttle (a Maruti Versa van that seats 6 MPs at one time) in the mornings to reach the parliament, and never did they publicise their austerity.
More important than the above, as we can see in the video attached here, the AAP workers are threatening the police saying- “Ap MLA ko marenge?” Surely something is amiss- because in the hurry of fielding 800 candidates, you are enrolling everyone into the party. Is there a common thread- NO?
4. Statesmanship: The moment AAP’s government was sworn in, they ceased to be a movement and joined the executive. You may surely be angry at the way the system runs, but that is no excuse for saying “Main in policewalo ko dekh lunga?” (AK said this in the interview with Rajdeep Sardesai) The Delhi Police may have its share of issues, but in my opinion, it is still one of the better managed forces. Disagree- try living in Gurgaon/ Ghaziabad, and you will know what I am talking about.
AK demanded suspensions/ transfers of 5 top police officers on account of non performance- meaning they weren’t registering cases on the basis of audio clips. Try taking one such case to a court and see how it falls. The result: The two honest officers that AK wanted to be posted to the ACB went to the governor and refused the appointment. Demoralizing your honest officers is not going to help.
5. Saving your ministers even when they are wrong: I understand the point about your ministers being accessible to the people, but in these cases, they were clearly on the wrong- the law does not permit the police to barge into anyone’s house, when there are women present. The day you authorise such actions on oral orders, you become another SP in a rural town, where the local minister can dictate the police actions.
Instead of taking actions against your ministers- you go on a televised drama using the rape case of a Danish girl, and your minister twice- against the law -spurts out the names of victims.
6. The last- biting more than you can chew- Even before any concrete work on Delhi has been delivered, the entire brass is busy making claims/ plans about the national election. It will be difficult to get 800 clean and capable candidates in a short period of time, especially when the party has no central ideology to bind people together. So, instead of expanding like Mallya did, be prudent and evolve a central ideology. Anti corruption can not be an ideology, there are many examples of partly corrupt nations that are doing pretty well in the world, for themselves and for their people. Get a backbone, and stick to it.
AAP has become a consortium of smug people, and a borrowed quote summarises it - “Subah ka corrupt agar shaam ko AAP me aa jaye to usey corrupt nahi kehte” My advice would be to take your mandate seriously before the people who voted you in, throw you into oblivion.
