Between soulless modernism and dank pessimism, between ideology and ambition, India finds itself on the horns of a dilemma. We are torn between the bleeding hearts and noble minds of NGOs, the militant lobbying of a Beijing-sponsored Left, the sycophantic mindsets in the Congress Party, the petty hoodlums of caste and regional groups, a recalcitrant bureaucracy and a judiciary that seems to prefer governance to justice.

NGOs propagate the view that all development is suspect if it is not indigenous. Every project is seen as a scam in which multinational companies, the US government, the World Bank and the IMF play out their agendas. Every effort — commercial, social and academic, is weighed, not on its merits, but because it is undertaken by any of these three organisations and other similar ‘debased’ groups. We all know about the Narmada dam, the airports, the water supply system in Delhi and the Indo-US agreement on civilian nuclear power. If you don’t believe us, they aver, ask Arundhati Roy, the author whom the liberal whites in the West have crowned queen.

The Left admires Beijing. Many of their worthies point to the “human development indices” of China: low infant mortality, high literacy, effective public health. What they don’t
seem to recognise is that the mandarins of the Middle Kingdom see it as a payoff for keeping their hold on power. Their natural bent would be to put these protests down by force as the Chinese do. But they have to reckon with the Constitution, the legislature, the courts and the commercial media. The possibility of a Beijing-style authoritarian response is slim.

Our desi comrades seem not to understand that the political demand in India is not simply equity but governance; that the difference between their public relations and public opinion is their negative mindset. They are objects of derision and scorn among middle class audiences, whose clout is growing by the day. They sound pompous when they talk about “the people,” given the bulk of their support is drawn from the bhadralok of Bengal, opportunists in Kerala and public sector union leaders.

The Congress Party today is headed by one of the most compassionate leaders in Indian politics. A further plus is the Prime Minister, who is an instinctive reformer. Sadly, however, both have to deal with a ring of sycophants, who have manoeuvred their way into positions of power through palace intrigue in the manner of the Praetorian Guard that encircled the leader in medieval times. They have no ideology but only subservience to the leader, to whom they owe everything. In the event, they espouse the same old tired ideas that have been found wanting since independence. But nobody’s risking their standing by championing new ideas. Better to pay obeisance to the past than to risk the future.

And what to say about the lot that deals with caste and religion? These are primordial, atavistic groups that will remain like pimples on the face of our country; their power grows from their supporters who are essentially outlaws. They derive power from thugs and bandits who operate in UP and Bihar, India’s underworld. Mercifully, they are simply a law-and-order problem. They are the voice of a moffusil mafia.

Bureaucracy is the cancer on the body politic. It was set up as the “steel frame” to administer colonial law. After independence, government officials hankered after the perks of their forebears of the British Raj, but had no sense of service. They are nuisances who seek to put a spoke in the wheel of India’s private-led growth.

The judiciary is middle class India’s Great White Hope. State governments have hitherto hidden behind judicial robes to accomplish things that they could not politically. Compromised by delays in the administration of justice, the courts seem to prefer expediting political cases and public interest litigation. Individuals have to wait years for a civilian ruling; businesses languish for the lack of a hearing and poor people languish in jails as “undertrials.” Meanwhile, the courts are busy appointing monitoring committees whose members are not accountable to the people.

These six speed breakers the government must negotiate in its bid to modernise India. As the New Year dawns, there is hope that these obstacles will be surmounted. It’s the 007 year; if there is any message from the James Bond films, it is — the good guys always win.

E-mail: rdesai@comma.in