Papa Kehte Hain..

All a typical Indian parent wants is for his/her child to have a steady income job. Its the quintessential Indian (Middle-Class) Dream. One Degree- Doctor/Engineer/Architect/Lawyer/Accountant, One Job, One marriage equals One happy life. The dream now comes in a few more versions- Artist Version, Entrepreneur Version, Sports Version, etc. But Mummy-Daddy just want to see you "settled". 

What with the UP elections, rail budget and The budget, I got to thinking about the people who become politicians. How come we don't see a pattern of natural distribution, the law of averages at work in politics? How come there is no bell curve of the type of people who participate in politics? They just seem the cluster around one extreme. And its not the good one. But what if it changed and politics became a noble profession? Or even better, Can politics become one of the accepted professions of the Indian (Middle-Class) dream?

Yes it can! How about this. We open schools, colleges and universities and start awarding degrees to students to participate in Indian Politics. Bachelor of Politics, Masters In politics and even Doctorates. All those interested  can join these institutions and can learn subjects relevant to their future as leaders and policy makers of our country. The curriculum would include History, Political Science, Economics, Civics,Economic, some Maths, etc. There would be electives for students interested in agriculture or mining or transport or finance for students aiming at those portfolios in the cabinet. And at the end, there would be placements. Come day Zero, all political parties would come for recruiting these students. They would offer adequate compensation, provide perks and of course, you might want to join them simply for their ideology. Some students would want to take an entrepreneurial route and start their own political party. 

Once in the party ranks they would be given roles and responsibilities based on their interest and aptitude. Some might go into data analysis, some into marketing and building brand value, some into managing the party's finances. Some may be put into the party's leadership program, to be groomed into potential electoral candidates. Now no profession can hope to qualify for the Indian (Middle-Class) Dream if there isn't a steady monthly income involved. So as far as salaries for these students go, the party would need funds. The party could be an organized enterprise getting donations from supporters or having business interests of its own. Of course for this to work, the donations that individuals or institutions make to political parties should be legalized, taxed, audited and published. Thus the problem of the rich buying political power would be reduced if not eliminated.

This idea of mine is neither perfect nor fully practical.But atleast it will give us an option of educated and aware candidates chosen through a process of merit. Also this would make politics an accepted job option for the Aam Indian Aadmi just like any other job. Soon matrimonial ads will read "Wanted fair homely bride for senior manager working in National Political Party with 6 figure salary". And when Aunty asks Monu Beta "What do you want to be when you grow up? Monu will say " Urban Development Minister" and Monu's Mummy-Daddy would smile proudly.

How are women successful in Indian Politics

I have often wondered that in a country like India where women are still considered 2nd class citizens, crime against women is rampant and mostly goes unpunished, a girl child is a worry for her parents from the moment she is born, where it feels like society is deliberately trying to ensure that women don't break the shackles that they have been put into, how come the actual seat of power in the Indian government is a woman, the chief minister of the largest and electorally most significant state is a woman and the one holding the government to ransom from Bengal is a woman.

Our society will make it extremely hard for a woman have a modest career but will hand over the reins of the country to a woman. I have often wondered about this dichotomy. It happens in other subcontinent countries too. But since the Indian subcontinent countries are like cousins who grew up in the same household, this is hardly surprising. I read this great article by Sagarika Ghose in HT about women in political power in India. It was entertaining and thought provoking. She says " India’s women politicians cultivate a designer madness, a well thought out insanity, to force their presence and personality in the brutally male-dominated world of Indian politics". That's one way to look at it.

I think the entry of a woman in politics might be due to circumstances - logical consequence to the death a closely related male leader. The core group around the leader may have installed the woman as a puppet to pander to public sentiment and like Pinocchio, she came to life and started acting on own terms. Or it might be the fruit of a hard fought struggle for rights and power. But once they are in, I think the key is to downplay their gender as much as possible. They wear unassuming clothes, hardly if ever raise there voices for womens' issues and usually don't have a visibly significant husband/partner. If the people forget you are infact a woman, they will forget their bias and their opposition to women having power to live equally and freely. For the moment, I think this is how women succeed in Indian politics, but I hope one day it will be for their ability to lead and not because of or inspite of their gender.