30 August,2011 10:09 AM IST | | B V Shiva Shankar
LokpaL Bill might not be a magic wand wiping out corruption. But the movement has created a strong anti-corruption brand: Anna Hazare. And that is the real gain of the historic groundswell. Hope Anna has realised his importance, while he is now embarking upon his next leg of mass-movement for electoral reforms.
It is practical to say corruption cannot be abolished by law. The menace is so ingrained in the social culture that the Lokpal Bill is a weak brush to scrub it. It is required to convert minds and change the culture. So it is natural to say Anna had to be in connection with people at the ground level perusing people, instead of putting up a TV show with fancy characters. One big shout from the roof top was required, and the shout was from Ramlila. It was thunderous and with that, Anna Hazare has now become a crowd-puller wherever he goes.
The Gandhian way of social reform can definitely change the mind set and bring in electoral reforms in the country
Before this movement it would have been impractical to expect an effective social reform from him although he earned a name as a Gandhian and anti-corruption crusader. His crusade was unknown to the T-shirt activists and the gen-X, and for this we must thank the media for their non-stop coverage of his fast.
Now, Anna has to tap this potential. Else the ardor will die down with the euphoric waves subside. Then Anna would have to re-start from scratch and this time without a guarantee of the same response. People always like an unpredictable drama rather than a re-enactment of an older one.
Psychology of the society is that we all think that corruption is something that other people practice. Anna's next leg of movement must focus on this. But he must now strictly say no to the fasting drama and rhetoric of Kiran Bedi brand. When pressure tactics become inseparable from blackmail tactics, they lose their moral strength and become another form of corruption.
Electoral reforms must not be restricted to talk about state funding of polls, recalling representatives or rejecting candidates, but focus on bringing in a holistic change in the system. More importantly, people must be inspired not to get note for vote, especially in rural areas. In the urban area cynicism is the malice and they must be inspired to come out to vote.
The Gandhian way of social reform can definitely change the mindset and bring in electoral reforms. The next step should be change in NGOs and corporates. Without cleaning up these two sectors you can't clean out corruption.
