Ram Rattan Sharma
Enough is thought, spoken, written and devised on it, but corruption continues to grow at a cumulative rate. Everybody asks a question about this, but no body has the answer. Including the law, the lawmakers, the law breakers and the law seekers. It means the foundation and sources of survival of corruption lie deeper and are simply beyond the pale of mere law making and implementation process. Two hundred years of British rule in India could be regarded as the basis of the spread and mass conversion of people’s mentality in to some thing different, which were thought in terms of career and prospects. The British Govt. engraved into the minds of people that manipulation, divide and rule and policy of suppression cum reconciliation could even convert a powerful sovereign land into a classical colony. The whole regime passed amidst accusations and justifications and India experienced horrible governance during her colonial tenure.
Corruption was not only made widespread both horizontally and vertically by the British but it was made a way of life. The whole British Colonial apparatus was guided towards shielding wrong people, wrong work and wrong policies. It created an atmosphere where anti-nationalists short-sighted, whimsical people could get the benefits and honest and hardworking people could go to backyard of the machinery. Infact, capriciousness was accepted as a talent and straight forwardness and steadfast was forcefully and awfully discouraged.
Gradually in course of time corruption and corrupt practices assimilated into the work culture and encroached the mental faculty of most of the people in India. The British clearly sent a message to most of the younger generation at that time that if they wanted to excel in their lives, they had to compromise with certain dignified proposition and then only they can survive the on slaughts of parochial governance. With this temperament, we got freedom and British left the country. But these two hundred years of alien rule completely transmuted the character of the Indians. The British rule infused a sense of insecurity amongst most of the people about their future and career of their children. Therefore needs are being transformed in to greed. The person not only tries to earn for one self but also for the entire generations to come and this attitude towards work and life forms the genesis of all cronyism. The British Govt. consciously avoided to touch sensitive issues of administration and continued their rule on the basis of touch and go and adhocism. They never tried to find out any solution for long-term problems and through the constitution of various committees and commissions. We are also following the same methods. The British govt. deliberately created crisis and confusion among the communities through the policy of divide and rule. This created a sense of mental suspicion towards each other and laid the foundations of sectarian politics in India. This breeds and sustains corruption. The British govt. ushered all the developments and projects to suit their interests. Even today investments are made on same pattern. In independent India also most of the projects are driven by the interests of a few groups of persons.
The British devised covenanted civil services to serve the British imperialist interests in India by collecting revenues for them with out ensuring any accountability. They were called civil servants but they were basically representatives of their British Masters. The people do not get due justice and service from the officers even now. The administration suffers and corruption breeds. The British Govt. did not touch education, including primary, higher and technical beyond their utility level. In the name of modern education, the British govt. confused the minds of the people. The British govt. showed a very low respect about our traditional system education but never tried to replace it with a more rational and growth oriented system of education. This creates fragmented and dilapediated mind set of both the leaders and voters and breeds uncontrollable spate of political corruption. Manipulating and being manipulated has much acceptance now than it was earlier in our society. The British in a way rationalized and justified it as a way of living. Manipulation is the basis of Western or Euro-centric approach of development let us be realistic. But what can definitely be wished is that those who get manipulated be not protected from the wrath of those in power. The British responded in a favourable manner to blandishment and flattery. It was made to appear as a survival strategy for the Indians. The humblest and determined either give away their work and the manipulative give way to the powerful head. What is supposed to be selfless turns in to self centered. It destroys the strength of our administration and breeds corruption at all levels.
It is unfortunate since this had brought us to a level where we only find ourselves in search of more money, more power and thereby greater respect and influence thus the British made a notable change in the outlook of society. The race for money and power is now unprecedented and it has corrupted the minds of the people. There is need of an institution which is very powerful and that institution is supposed to act as a watch dog for the nation, as the debate is going on for the constitution of powerful Lok Pal, as in the Jan Lok Pal bill, being considered by the civil societies. It asks for such a Lok Pal which brings with in its purview the CVC and the CB.
Considering the history of colonial rule and inability of the last 64 years old rule to break the jinx of corruption, the huge magnitude and proportions of corruption cannot be tackled by mere individual or individuals or for that matter any institution. Infact, we have to realize that the level acceptance of corruption among us has to be rejected thoroughly and in this regard we have to come out collectively by surmounting and obliterating our habits, mind set, temptations, myopic calculations and behavioural pattern, and this is not easy, mind it, accept it and work it to get rid of it.
(The author is former Dy. Librarian University of Jammu and a social activist)
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