Nov.09 : The last month has been traumatic for the people of Karnataka. Fierce floods have inundated over 15 districts of the state, and nearly 200 people have lost their lives as a result. The damage to crops and cattle has been mammoth, and the process of rehabilitation is bound to be long, arduous, and difficult. 

However, in this most difficult of times for Karnataka, the government of the state, which is the most important player, in terms of providing relief and rehabilitation to the people, is nowhere to be seen. Half the elected Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs are holed up in five-star hotels in Hyderabad, and the remaining are floating around other five-star hotels, or in Delhi. Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa emerges from negotiations from time to time, to announce defiantly that he will not quit as chief minister, and at equally periodic intervals, the other protagonists, the famous Reddy brothers emerge to announce that they have not agreed to any formula, and Mr Yeddyurappa must go. The hapless "high command" of the BJP, watches helplessly from Delhi, unable to even predict the next move, leave alone, crack the whip.

The Yedyurappa government, was a tainted one, to start with. It did not have a proper majority, and no sooner than the Assembly elections were over, Mr Yeddyurappa, swung into the unholy task of horsetrading, and barter, lured away MLAs, encouraged and formented defection, and created a wholly artificial majority with the help of money power, and the lure of office. However, notoriously forgetful, and forgiving, public memory may be, it would be difficult to forget what happened, just a short while ago, when Mr Yeddyurappa used every move, in the dirty tricks department to bribe MLAs, foster defection, and somehow cling to power. Today, those very tactics have turned back to bite the Yeddyurappa government, in what must be a perfect illustration of poetic justice. However, this poetic justice is cold comfort to the suffering people of Karnataka, and a dismayed nation.

As a party, the BJP is obliged to immediately set its house in order, and render governance to the flood-affected and suffering people of Karnataka. If not, they should accept defeat, and face the consequences. The unseemly public wrangling between the powerful Reddy lobby and Mr Yeddyurappa brings no credit to our democracy, and although the blame is to be laid squarely at the door of the BJP, and its bankrupt policies, lack of integrity and utter inefficiency, the mud and slime, somehow taint the entire political class, and brings shame and discredit to our democracy.

The drama in Karnataka, equally, underlines the need to create zero tolerance for unprincipled politics. The best traditions of democratic governance, cannot be hijacked to serve the narrow and selfish ambitions of one party or one group of people. It is at times like this when the political class as a whole would do well to reflect upon the basics of good democracy. When we look around us, especially at states, where democracy has already failed, or is teetering on the brink of collapse, we feel proud that despite all our warts, Indian democracy has weathered the storms and travails of all the contradictions that beset us, and has remained a vibrant democracy, through the worst of times. We are the largest democracy in the world, with vastly different geography, language, religion and economic status. Yet, when tragedy befalls one part of India, every Indian’s heart beats as one, and the entire country rises to help the afflicted. Be it the Kargil war or the earthquake in Latur, Indians in the most remote village of our country contributed their mite to help and ameliorate to some extent the tragedy that had befallen their brothers and sisters, in far away states. Time, and time again, the Indian voter has voted out governments, and brought in new ones, sending each time an unmistakable message to the political class, even when the mandate was a fractured verdict.

However, it would be too facile to blame the political class alone, for the level to which our polity has sunk. Sections of the judiciary is equally to blame, as are corrupt bureaucrats, and corrupt industrialists. One of the most unfortunate trends in recent times has been the discovery that the judiciary, who were till now the heroes of the people-as opposed to politicians who were generally considered villainous, also have feet of clay. The enduring tragedy of our public life is the fact that politicians introduced the Right to Information Act, to make governance transparent and ensure accountability, and the judiciary, which should have been first in line to ensure compliance with the RTI Act, has found it so difficult to apply the act to itself.

The other great tragedy, especially at the time of elections, is the commercialisation of the media. During the last Parliament elections, we witnessed the emergence of "package journalism’ — an innocuous sounding term which describes one of the most dangerous trends in modern India, where that pillar of democracy, namely, a free press, goes on sale to the highest bidder. Intersted parties may buy a "package" which means they get, not an advertorial, which would have been the case in more honest times, but news coverage, slanted in their favour.

The issue of corrupt bureaucrats, of course, needs no further elaboration….from the poorest, most disadvantaged citizen, who does not get his benefits under NREGA, or flood relief, to huge industries who have to bribe their way to swing policy their way, it may or may not be the politician who gets the flak, but one may count on the fact that a couple of bureaucrats are back there, enjoying some of the benefits, but staying out of the limelight.

The Karnataka crisis is clearly not the beginning or end of corrupt administration. Nor is the Karnataka BJP solely responsible for the omissions and commissions of judges and bureaucrats. This is merely a particularly eloquent example, of why it is important for us, as a society, to collectively examine our conscience, and wake up to the reality, that our wonderful vibrant democracy will rot away from inside unless every single one of us wakes up and takes a stand. The first and most important step is to implement zero tolerance to corruption. Thereafter, we may reclaim our lost ideals and restore our democracy to its early glory.

Jayanthi Natarajan is a Congress MP in the Rajya Sabha and AICC spokesperson.The views expressed in this column are her own.

Jayanthi Natarajan