Nobody sheds a tear when the police harass ordinary citizens. But with the rich and powerful under the corruption scanner, the Prime Minister now fears a police state.
The Prime Minister and his advisors just don't get it. At a time when the public is looking for an end to the loot of public money, the last thing they want to hear from their government is a bunch of excuses and alibis.
In his interaction with a small group of editors on Wednesday, Dr. Manmohan Singh made a number of arguments to justify the half-hearted action that has been taken so far against the politicians, officials and businessmen suspected of corruption in the telecom, hydrocarbon and other sectors.
First he said the decisions which the media and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) are citing as evidence of irregularities and graft were all taken in good faith under conditions of uncertainty. “If out of 10 decisions that I take, seven turn out to be right ex-post, that would be considered an excellent performance,” he said. “But if you have a system which is required to perform [in] 10 out of 10 cases, no system can be effective and satisfy that onerous condition.”
His second argument was to attack all bearers of bad tidings, accusing the CAG of going beyond the limits prescribed by Constitution and the media of being judge, jury and executioner rolled into one. The Prime Minister then invoked the spectre of India becoming a police state — a situation “where everybody is policing everybody else” and the entrepreneurial spirit of our businessmen is crushed — if the present atmosphere of “cynicism” about government decisions continued. Finally, he sought to puncture the popular demand for a strong and effective Lokpal, saying an ombudsman of that kind was not a panacea. Instead, he suggested the government's Unique ID programme might be the magic wand people are looking for: “If … [we] can give unique ID numbers to all our residents, we would have discovered a new pathway to eliminate the scope for corruption and leakages in the management and distribution of various subsidies.”
Taken together, these arguments tell us not only how far the government is from reality but also how divorced the Congress and its leaders are from the political pulse of the country.
2G spectrum issue
To begin with, it is doubtful whether any of the decisions which have proved this government's undoing were taken under conditions of uncertainty. Let us consider the 2G spectrum allocation issue. Dr. Singh knew the decision to auction spectrum was questionable. Like a risk-averse bureaucrat, however, he recorded his objections on paper before letting the Telecom Minister, A. Raja, have his way. What he forgot, of course, was that he was not a bureaucrat but a Prime Minister and a top-notch economist to boot. Economics teaches us that whether the government prices spectrum properly or not, the market will. Any scarce asset allocated preferentially is bound to change hands until its true value is realised. This, in essence, was what the 2G scam was all about. As an economist, Dr. Singh would surely have suspected that selling spectrum for less than its market value would generate rent seeking behaviour by both the Minister and the telecom industry. And as Prime Minister, he had the administrative and investigative wherewithal to nip this corruption in the bud. Dr. Singh now says he shouldn't be blamed for not acting on the basis of newspaper reports. But there was a context to those reports which he knew only too well, since he had already red-flagged Mr. Raja's decision to avoid an open auction. The minute the stories surfaced of the Telecom Ministry cherry-picking companies for the coveted licenses, alarm bells should have started ringing in his office. Dr. Singh should have gone, “Aha! I knew he was up to something.” But he kept his counsel. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) eventually got around to raiding the Telecom Ministry but made no headway whatsoever for several months. It was only when the CAG report documented in cold print the theft which had taken place that the government realised inaction was no longer a viable political strategy. But even as the CBI moved finally to make arrests, the Congress party attacked the CAG for over-reaching itself. While Dr. Singh did well not to repeat the folly of Kapil Sibal's “zero loss” theory, he did accuse the constitutionally-mandated auditing watchdog of overstepping its mandate. Curiously, he also faulted the CAG for holding a press conference, even though it has done so in the past and there is a ruling of the Madras High Court upholding its right to speak directly to the public after a report has been tabled.
CAG
If his attack on the CAG was uncalled for, the Prime Minister's warning about corruption accusations turning the country into a virtual police state is likely to leave many people shaking their heads in disbelief. The police and intelligence agencies have snooped and spied and harassed innocent citizens and political activists throughout the country for decades without any one in authority ever worrying about the consequences. But the minute the voice of a Ratan Tata or a Mukesh Ambani is heard on a tapped telephone, or senior executives from some of India's biggest private companies are arrested for having paid bribes, the cry goes out that we are on the verge of becoming a “banana republic,” that we are bringing back the bad old days of the “license permit raj.” Dr. Singh's lament may go down well in corporate boardrooms but not with the crores of ordinary Indians who are demanding accountability and transparency in the functioning of their government.
Of course the Lokpal is not a panacea (nor indeed is the UID) but the government's aversion to accepting the proposals made by various civil society representatives would be more credible if it were backed by a clear will to tackle corruption. So far, that will is lacking. In his interaction with the editors, the Prime Minister said he was not a lame duck. Sadly, the excuses he trotted out on corruption were.
Keywords: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Editors' meeting, 2G spectrum scam, CAG report, UPA Government
This harping on the honesty and integrity of MMS is really shocking. Even after all the scams that have been exposed in recent times! Have people forgotten that he had even taken a false address to facilitate his nomination from Assam? Ok, he might have really bought some property there. Anybody with money can. But would that make him an ordinarily resident of that place? Then his idea of Lokpal vs UID seems to suggest that even his educational qualifications will have to be verified.
UID is a good thing to go. No questions asked. May Mr. M M S please openly declare what percentage of the current Congress MPs, MLAs, and party workers have registered themselves with UIDAI so far?
Brilliant article.The problem with MMS is that he does not know the basics of governance. If I am a Manager, I am accountable and responsible for the actions of />my subordinate.He has no idea of this principle.Secondly, MMS and his team now are in coma.
Excellent article sir....Congress and PM really doesn't get it. They still are going against what the majority of the country thinks....meeting with hand picked editors and that too without camera? This is really uncalled for.
Informative article though not well balanced.When you include names of Ratan Tata and Mukesh Ambani in the tapped conversation Why you forgot to name the two top most media Journalists in the tape Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi? Did not you hear them? Are not they accountable to the public? Why is the silence being maintained? When you talk about corporates also talk about media.Its running parallel now with corporates.Thats not a good sign.This is the biggest reason for Prime Minister to be selective this time for his interaction.Stop for a moment & give a thought not as a Journalist to what Prime minister said you will know his concerns are meaningful.He is honest in his comments.Rejecting it on the basis of common perception is Wrong.
A very well written article. If PM does not knows what is going in his ministry, then how he will be able to know, what the ordinary citizens are going through. We would have like to have seen our PM to take stand, the way he did on nuclear deal. Inequalities have grown more in last 10 years after the best indian economist are leading the country.
Add to these scams, the Maran scam of BSNL on which the CBI reported years back. Now we have Mani Shankar Aiyer's letters to the PM which clearly brought the PM's attention to the developing scam. Yet the PM did nothing to stem the rot.
"Economics teaches us that whether the government prices spectrum properly or not, the market will. Any scarce asset allocated preferentially is bound to change hands until its true value is realised. This, in essence, was what the 2G scam was all about." --best summary on 2G scam.
"The police and intelligence agencies have snooped and spied and harassed innocent citizens and political activists throughout the country for decades without any one in authority ever worrying about the consequences." ---one of the true facts.
SIDDHARTH VARADARAJAN's article shows up the PM in his true colours, as opposed the fantasy created by media so far. How could a man with any pretensions to honesty come out with these astounding statements. First, he remains silent for months and years as corruption becomes unbearable. Then he cites 'coalition compulsions' for failure to act. He is forced to do something by directions of the Supreme Court. Next, he hides from media glare and hides behind a set of docile editors, for whom the privilege of being invited to his presence is such an honour that they leave behind their journalistic prudence and try to justify the PM's stance.
It is comical that PM thinks Lokpal is not a panacea, but UID is the magic wand. His former institution's, (LSE)debunked similar claims of the Blair government in UK. The PM is either ignorant of UID, its utility & CIA connections, through L 1 Identity Solutions or deliberately clinging to it to circumvent Lokpal Bill. The choice is yours.
Action speaks louder than words and inaction much louder. The present PM has allowed weeds to grow under his very feet. Corruption cannot be eradicated by a public relations excise. Due to unwillingness to book the corrupt ministers and to bring the black money from Swiss banks, the present government has lost its credibility. At any rate, the interaction with small group of editors serves no purpose. Most of the journalists in India are concerned with evening Scotch doled out by some one or other; a plot or flat in the prime area of any city and such other mundane maters. They serve their bosses who are industrialists with a keen eye on their business interests. A journalist is yet to be borne in this country.. The meeting is by a dummy with other dummies. The job of representing the government in the public should be left to some minor functionary. This PM thinks that he has a job to do. If at all he has vision, he has not taken the nation into confidence.
The scant regard for democracy that this government has shown exposes the true face of its official ideology, Neoliberalism. It is tragic that the people of India do not have a viable and more pro-people alternative to the Congress and its self-seeking allies at this point of time. Boosting the growth of the GDP is one thing; encouraging monopolies is >another. Manmohanomics seems to be about the latter!
Siddharth\the Hindu, you have scored points in analysing the version of Manmohan to a select group of editors. Your points on corruption, lokpal controversy etc are right. But the way union government is running show and media hype appear that India has realy become a banana republic! Instead of stressing on welfare measures by union and state governments to uplift poor, everybody is after lokpal bill and rigidity of government and so called civil society. Govt has many things to do for poor and rural people , who constitute over 80 percent in the country. Corruption is a big issue and it must be tackled firmly. Media must show its character in exposing politicians and civil society members for ignoring poors' causes like starvation death, farmers' suicide, uprooting of tribal,price rise etc. Civil society must show guts to fight for poor also under their right to life and expression under the Constitution. PM is covered by anti-corruption law then what is harm in including him under Lokpal?
Am surprised that the 'leading editors' who attended this meet were not able to articulate and ask the PM about these lapses. Kumar Ketkar particularly, came out beaming, exulting like a kid who was granted audience to Spiderman!
Well written. Glad you clearly expressed the anguish and exasperation of the people with this 'blame the messenger' government.
Mr Prime Minister, Here is a humble and sincere advice from a common citizen of your country - At your personal level, all is not lost as yet. This country wholeheartedly reposed their trust in your integrity and competence. Come out of the clutches of your self inflicted personal fears and expose the detractors who are within and not outside. At your age, what have you got to lose? You belong to a noble warrior clan of guru sikhs. Show the countrymen your courage and expose the people who are making you do such anti national acts and make such patently false and timid excuses so much so that you have even lost the moral courage to face the public in open discussion. The difficult situation you are in today can also catapult you in the all time greats of this country if you show a little courage and expose >the enemies of this country lurking within.
This has finally put some sense into me. Until yesterday i was of the view that the civil society was arm twisting the government on the Lok-pal issue.But today, reading two articles in the Hindu, one by Mr.Anil Divan and now Mr.Siddarth Varadarajan, i'd be fool if i dont see the light now. Thanks to 'Hindu' and its elite reporters for bringing out the right direction of thought one should pursue in such issues.
Your article is ill motivated and totally one sided. Prime Minister has every right to point out his arguments, and that is what we expect. Dr. Manmohan Singh is one of best Prime Minister's of this world. He is leading India to new heights. Now India is among the top 10 countries. Can we forget the '90's when even world bank refused to give loan. Manmohan at least took strict action against the corrupt, including his >own mighty colleagues in govt. Kudos to Dr. Singh.
Excellent article...atlast I found someone who stood and spoke. Else it was all nice things about him.
The never ending list of A Rajas, K Balasubramaniums,Kodas.......JMM Bribery, Fodder Scam, CWG Scams, 2G Scam....... Our country has become a Nation of Scams and Scamsters, then why Sibbal and the Govt is so vehemently opposing the LOKPAL. Obviously they don't want to check the ongoing corrupt practices which can't be controlled unless the top is clean. Sadly our so called leaders only serve their own intrests be it LOKPAL Bill or WOMEN's RESERVATION Bill, such things that clip their wings will never see light of the day
I'm disappointed with your cynical rendering of the PM's meeting with Editors. And I always read you. Let's face it - the media has decided that it is going to project only the negatives. Poor form Mr. Varadarajan.
Was it a case of Dr.Manmohan Singh carelessly not using his oversight respnsibilities and thereby indirectly permitting A.Raja to sell 2G spectrum as the latter pleased and increase Mr.Raja's personal wealth or was it a case of the PM deliberately 'looking the other way' when Mr.Raja sold the spectrum at a price low enough to drastically bring down (as it did) the mobile phone call rate and thereby make the mobile telephone industry grow at such a fast rate (as it did) that it became a major contributor to the nation's high GDP growth which is the PM's main economic objective? Why hasn't this line of thought gained currency? It is difficult to believe that such a thought did not occur the whiz kids of the Indian media?
A well written article, adequately sums up the frustration, helplessness of ordinary citizen who is aghast because of government's inaction and weird arguments in favour of corrupts.
A brilliant article ,summing up the swelling anger and angst of Indian people
I understand the media is either anti-government or anti-congress. I also get a feeling that your newspaper is leading the pack. I am not trying to defend the government or congress party. I read the interview. I have found every reporting of the event exceptionally misleading with statements being taken out of context and added to another statement to give an impression completely different than what is said. I am quite amazed to know that corruption is limited only at the top, only to the politicians and perhaps only to Congress. I am yet to see any such strident criticism of Yedurappa. I am yet to see any such strident criticism of businessmen or for that matter of the corruption indulged in by people in everyday life. I really hope that the media gets responsible in its reporting.
Very well written, this government is very thick-skinned. They deserve all the public rebuke being heaped on them. But all Indians had a lot of faith in MMS's wisdom and respected his understated strengths. He should realize how much he has let the people down, he should try to regain the trust of the ordinary Indian by exposing the rot in his government and his party. He has been given this unique opportunity to give up his subservience to the party president and act towards improving governance by enacting a strong Lokpal bill. This is not the time for lame excuses, it is time for action against the elements which are out to sell the country to the highest bidder. Please wake up Dr. MMS and make the most of this opportunity, your country needs you to show some muscle.
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