An Open Letter to Prisoner 3642

So, you were exposing a corrupt politician and you have ended up in jail? Did you not see “Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron”, where the two central characters are out to expose the system; however the unholy nexus of government, crony capitalists and press victimize the duo.

The nation has seen you play the victim in what you believe are countless conspiracies against you and your party members. And today, on an issue that is largely trivial in the grand scheme of things you continue to play the victim card asking what was wrong in exposing a supposedly corrupt man? Corruption has been endemic and has corroded away the foundation of the nation and it is imperative that the guilty be brought to book. Your current campaign will do neither; neither will corruption go away, nor the guilty face justice. The story now is all about you the victim.

You stormed the national scene, with the people of Delhi giving you a near decisive mandate to be the master’s of their destiny. That was a defining moment not just for your party but our democracy as a whole. We had come of age, elections could be won with small budgets by well meaning individuals and that politics was not necessarily the last refuge of the scoundrels. And you squandered away that opportunity outright! You chose some trivial battles like transfers of SHOs, the passing of Jan Lokpal Bill, the case against Reliance, issues that would have no direct impact on the lives of your subjects. Your supporters were not expecting instant results; they had given you a full 5 years to work the mandate.

However, you chose to abandon your post by spinning it as a sacrifice. You were convinced probably that it was a sacrifice. No sir; sacrifice is not abandoning your post and your people; it is giving your life for the people. The traditional “jail gaye” or “lathiyaan khai” are not hallmarks of a leader in this day and age.

We heard from your party sources that you were checkmated by the Big-2 and yet again you were the victim seeking sympathy from the people. The people of the country are distraught; they were looking for a leader; a guiding beacon who could steer the ship out of the choppy waters. You failed to inspire; you playing the “bechara” who was wronged by the system left people questioning your intentions or if you had the stomach for a political fight. Today, as you look back and by your own admittance, you realize, abandoning Delhi was a mistake, attributing it to political inexperience. I am no political strategist, but with my limited perspective, could have given you free advice to stay on your post and work from within the system to deliver on your promise. Did you not yourself dissolve your anti corruption movement to form a political party with an aim to fight the system by being a part of it?

The second blunder you committed was contesting a national election. Established political parties have found it hard to carve out a national foot print. How did you think that a political start up could garner national support without the requisite organizational structure? Being regional is no disgrace; regional parties in India have often determined the composition and the course of the government. Was it that you were in a hurry to occupy the prime minister’s chair? You are a good man who set to change the political discourse; where did you lose your way?

The Delhi state assembly elections would soon be fought. Reportedly, the last time, the Big-2 conspired to check mate your intentions. There is only a Big-1 now whose unstoppable juggernaut is going to bulldoze all in it’s way. Sadly, you and your movement are likely to be flattened and that would be a blow to the new brand of politics that you espoused.

The dust of the general election has settled; the “duffer” would be rehabilitated by virtue of his lineage, the “bluffer” has set out in right earnest to erase that perception; so that people are able to repose faith in your brand of politics the tattered “muffler” needs to be knitted all over again.