All of India has been voting using EVMs for quite some time now but this is a notice I found at my booth this morning - some things never change!
Thursday 23 April, 2009
Saturday 11 April, 2009
Gen Next of Indian 'leadership'
After a long, long hiatus, I am finally prompted to pick up my pen (well, punch the keys) again, the trigger being the Indian General Elections 2009.
While 70 per cent of India’s population is below 40 years of age, 80 per cent of India’s politicians are over 70 years. According to a recent opinion poll that I caught on TV, over 60% of Indians believe that age is not an issue when it comes to leadership. Even assuming that these opinion polls are merely an exercise in amusement, I find this a really bitter pill to swallow!
Also for a while now, I have been mulling over the issue of ‘dynastic’ politics. Is there anything wrong with it? After all, isn’t it considered perfectly normal when engineers’ kids pursue engineering, doctors’ kids become doctors, and cine kids join movies? Why then single out politicians? To my mind, there is one difference and a significant one. In other fields, the progeny are responsible only for themselves but in politics, ‘star’ kids as leaders are responsible for the nation. Then again, why should that be a problem – yes, meritocracy is of paramount importance but in a functioning democracy, that should automatically be taken care of – we always have the power to boot out those who don’t perform.
As India does not have a Presidential form of Government, I have to confess that it irks me no end that Rahul Gandhi is already projected as the automatic young ‘leader’ of the Congress and India’s future Prime Minister when there are several other notable young guns in the party who do not make silly and obfuscating speeches about Kalawatis and do not escort foreign dignitaries on ridiculous ‘rural tourism’ jaunts. There’s nothing wrong with inheriting a political background, but this inheritance is based on past accomplishments of the family; to not have to compete with ones peers in the present is to make a mockery of our political system.
This brings me to a compilation (a comparative study if you will) that I have made of some of India’s next generation of politicians (excluding Independents).
While 70 per cent of India’s population is below 40 years of age, 80 per cent of India’s politicians are over 70 years. According to a recent opinion poll that I caught on TV, over 60% of Indians believe that age is not an issue when it comes to leadership. Even assuming that these opinion polls are merely an exercise in amusement, I find this a really bitter pill to swallow!
Also for a while now, I have been mulling over the issue of ‘dynastic’ politics. Is there anything wrong with it? After all, isn’t it considered perfectly normal when engineers’ kids pursue engineering, doctors’ kids become doctors, and cine kids join movies? Why then single out politicians? To my mind, there is one difference and a significant one. In other fields, the progeny are responsible only for themselves but in politics, ‘star’ kids as leaders are responsible for the nation. Then again, why should that be a problem – yes, meritocracy is of paramount importance but in a functioning democracy, that should automatically be taken care of – we always have the power to boot out those who don’t perform.
As India does not have a Presidential form of Government, I have to confess that it irks me no end that Rahul Gandhi is already projected as the automatic young ‘leader’ of the Congress and India’s future Prime Minister when there are several other notable young guns in the party who do not make silly and obfuscating speeches about Kalawatis and do not escort foreign dignitaries on ridiculous ‘rural tourism’ jaunts. There’s nothing wrong with inheriting a political background, but this inheritance is based on past accomplishments of the family; to not have to compete with ones peers in the present is to make a mockery of our political system.
This brings me to a compilation (a comparative study if you will) that I have made of some of India’s next generation of politicians (excluding Independents).
Disclaimer: The information below is taken from multiple sources and while I have tried to cross verify the data as much as I could, I cannot vouchsafe the veracity of all the contents.
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