On Politicians and Morality..
..in Quote of the Week. Courtesy, Labour leader and politician from UK, Ed Miliband:
I don’t think it is for politicians to lecture people about morality.
The Labour leader made the comments after Mr Cameron branded the tax arrangement of Mr Carr “morally wrong” after it emerged he was using a scheme which allows the wealthy to pay as little as one per cent of their income.
Congratulations on registering this news. I was wondering whether you would. It is extremely important to appreciate that morality is not a useful concept in every walk of life.
I believe educated Indians will do well to debate this issue. It is very easy (for an individual or a group) to believe that he/she/it/they is/are moral and the rest of the world is not. It is very easy to believe that Indian politicians are somehow immoral and corrupt (not many educated Indians study western politicians so the value judgement is usually absolute, not relative). The truth is far more complicated. (On this note, I have some hopes from Akhilesh. He might, in fact, turn out to be one of more effective nextgen politicians at a National level. He seems to have got a good background. He has done his Engg. from Bangalore and speks Kannada well. It is definitely a plus for national integration.)
It seems to me that Ed Miliband’s quoted statement was generally accepted well. In England, some of these debates are based on a profound understanding of the political process and are worth following.
@prakash “On this note, I have some hopes from Akhilesh” – https://satyameva-jayate.org/2012/07/04/cars-for-mlas
My response to @2. I had seen the article and refrained from commenting on it simply because I don’t like either the tone, or the basis, or the implication of what was written there.
Consider a proper political process (in India or elsewhere). What does an MP/MLA need to discharge his/her duties to his constituency? Does he have enough resources at his disposal? How does a politician further his career? Is 20 Lacs a big amount if it clears some of the cobwebs? If nothing else, it will increase the chance of a few MLAs opting to be less corrupt! (Don’t forget that PV Narsimha Rao, that great Master of political art, had started the scheme of allocating 1 Crore to each MP for local development, a scheme that did produce some good results.. the story of Moser Baer if I remember correctly. Heard of it? )
A couple of times, I had exhorted Shantanu to think about these issues. The appeal fell on deaf ears. Unfortunately, years after this blog started, it is still stuck in stale thoughts and ideas. This post is a good beginning to break away from that rut but the readers of this blog seem disinterested.
Just to make my position clear on this (since doubts have been raised whether I support the present low salaries that MPs and MLAs are entitled to):
1] From this post https://satyameva-jayate.org/2007/09/14/fixing-the-system/ dated 14th Sept ’07, pl read bullet point #3 under “Barrriers and Compulsions that prevent good people from joining Politics”
2] Pl read my comment #10 dt 15th Apr ’07 (reproduced below):
https://satyameva-jayate.org/2007/04/13/bpd-bm-lp-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel/ : “Add to that the fact than an hones MLA’s salary is unlikely to help anyone live even a half decent (as in comfortable) life, you will begin to understand why most honest people do not join politics (and also why most politicians need other “sources†of income to survive)”
I am very much in favour of increasing salaries to attract the best in politics.
I do not understand how providing a “vehicle” will help though. As most of you know, MLAs and MPs are entitled to generous travel allowances and perks (I’m trying to get the full details) – why are they insufficient? Remember that a “vehicle” is a perk (not part of the salary).
And instead of the government deciding that every MLA needs a four-wheeler, I would rather let the MLA decide whether he/she needs a 2-wheeler or a 6-wheeler…and make sure that they have a reasonable salary to purchase whatever they need (unless it is a private jet!)
Please note I will not be engaging in any further discussion on this matter. Years after this blog has started, I have realised that there is not much to be gained by arguing beyond a point.
Let my actions speak for themselves. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
In Hindu philosophy, the Nyaya-Vaisheshika schools of thought established a procedure for debate. I doubt whether ‘not engaging in futher discussion’ is in line with good Hindu principles but then, this is a blog about Dharma, so it has a right to reject Dharma!!
There is a saying “Yatha Raja Tatha Praja”. If the rulers are immoral, the whole world will become immoral. It will be free for all; Jungle Raj, so to say. What will happen to Rule of Law ? Then a common man should not even expect justice from the rulers. What will be an immoral society be like ?
If all the free perks including life long pension, are taken into account our MLA’s and MP’s not really poor. Yes, they should also be reimbursed their election expenses with proper accounting and audit. But the argument that they necessarily need to be immoral to perform their duties is really bizarre.