Understanding the Precious Gifts of Indian Republic

by NANDKUMAR KAMAT
Posted on 2009-01-26
TEARS fill my eyes when I think of the price, which our beloved country has paid to retain her freedom, integrity and sovereignty. Wars, insurgency, famines, floods, earthquakes, communal riots, tsunami, terrorism and political and economic scandals – somehow the will of the Indian people to stay together, stick together through thick and thin has prevailed.
As Indian republic enters the 60th year of its’ foundation, the most sacred words on our constitution flash before the mind – ‘We, the people’. Who are these people? They are not celebrities or the highest income tax payers. They produce my tea in the hills of the Northeast and wheat for my daily bread in the plains of Punjab. They produce the cotton for my textiles in the black volcanic soils of the Deccan and my staple food, rice, in vast fields of Andhra Pradesh or Kerala. They come forward to donate blood even when they are not related to you. They are prepared to walk into the jaws of death to defend our freedom. They lift and nurse a leper shunned by the society and they may go without food to feed a hungry neighbour. Mothers working untiringly day and night, brave soldiers, toiling farmers, village artisans, small traders, workers, teachers, scientists-they all have made Indian republic what it is today. The republic stands on their shoulders.
Indian republic respects diversity – racial, regional, religious, linguistic and cultural. Respect for pluralism and multiculturalism is the precious gift of Indian republic. Indian republic also expects the citizens to perform their fundamental duties under article 51 of the Constitution. Some of these duties are as old as the empire of the benevolent Mauryan emperor – Ashoka. But if a survey is held then it would be discovered that only a microscopic section of the 750 million literate citizens have ever opened a copy of the Indian Constitution. The illiteracy of average Indians about republic’s constitution is the biggest hurdle in strengthening the foundation of democracy and secularism.
Critics say that the Indian republic has failed. No, Indian citizens have failed in discharging their fundamental duties. The republic bestowed some precious gifts on them. The republic gave them their parliamentary system – which is one of the best in the world. It was left to the citizens to vote and choose their favourite representatives. The republic expected the parliamentarians to come prepared with brilliant ideas and discuss the best public policies and enact the best public legislations.
Legislations are constitutional tools to touch the lives of the poorest of the poor. Miracles have taken place when good bills have been passed in the parliament – like the bills to introduce panchayati raj, national employment guarantee scheme and the right to information. The Rajya Sabha secretariat has recently published an advertisement educating the citizens about their rights to petition on any public issue. Interestingly it was such a petition by the Goan ST leader, Ex-MLA, Mr Antonio Gaonkar, which had resulted in the central government’s decision to include Gavada, Kunbis and Velips in the list of STs. This is the beauty of the Indian republic.
But Indians, in general seem to lack self-confidence. They may spend reams of paper in producing press releases on some long pending public grievance but would seldom care to draft a simple petition using the constitutional route. The republic gave us a free and independent judiciary – one of the best in the world, despite the mountain of litigations in the lower courts. The Indian judiciary has undergone massive self-transformation and has today become a ray of hope for the common man. The Supreme Court has reached the common man through the facility of a simple letter petition. This is still a luxury in other democratic societies. The republic also gave us the world’s largest and decidedly the best Election Commission, which successfully conducts regular festivals of democracy – the elections to Lok Sabha and the state assemblies. It is constantly reforming the election system.
Gone are the days of blatant misuse of government machinery to tilt the political power equations. The culture of code of conduct is here to stay and it is likely to become more stringent in future. The Indian railway and the Indian postal system have become global icons because both have strengthened the republic. Publicly financed institutions like the Prasar Bharati, the UGC, the CSIR, ISRO are impacting the lives of millions every year. The voice of All India Radio and the signals of Doordarshan now reach almost every corner of our republic. There is no match in Asia for the work done by thousands of agricultural scientists in India’s prestigious ICAR. Today, India is the world’s largest food producer country. UGC and CSIR have ambitious plans to recruit young talent and boost intellectual and scientific excellence. The tri-colour of our republic has already landed on the Moon – thanks to the Chandrayaan 1 mission of ISRO.
India as a civilization was always a philosophical, ideological, intellectual, philosophical and cultural superpower. Today, India as a vibrant republic aspires to be a scientific and technological, economic and political superpower. We really do not need Barack Obamas here – because our republic gives an opportunity to anyone to reach the highest office without distinction of the colour of the skin, gender, caste, creed, economic or educational status.
The Indian republic had shown its’ potent power when ‘we, the people’ rose in one voice in March 1977 to overthrow a regime which they felt had gone against the spirit of the constitution. The Indian republic permits two diametrically opposite ideologies to rule in the states – the BJP in Gujarat and the leftist alliance in West Bengal. As it enters its 60th year, the Indian republic needs to address the challenge of caring for the world’s largest number of poor, illiterate masses and hungry children. All the gifts of the republic are useless if these challenges are not met resolutely.
On the eve of this republic day I saw this scene on the road in front of Campal’s super centre. A six-year-old girl child in rags was holding a newly born infant in her arms. She used to approach every customer and beg for money. Then she suddenly disappeared and returned without the infant. Another woman was begging on the footpath with two kids, who were apparently sick and hungry. A gentleman took pity on the girl and offered to buy food. I stopped him. Don’t encourage begging. It is against the Childrens’ Act, I told him. “Where ‘s your mother and the infant”, I asked the girl. She said that her mother was begging too. And obviously a contractor was collecting all their money. What gifts Indian republic has for that girl, those unfortunate kids and their equally miserable mothers and multitudes like them? I am still hunting for the answers.