I have liked Amitabh Bacchan movies right from childhood, what was it that made me like it? This lean, tall, poor, often orphan guy would take on people more powerful and did this with all his frailties. He had no magic wand but made way, to emerge by sheer will. We were all glued thinking we all can actually do what this person has done. However in 2 hours we knew it is a movie and the hero will surely emerge successful here but not in real life.We were proved wrong a month ago. AAP has made reality of an idea, no one would have believed a few years ago. It is the new angry man standing for all that we think someone should stand for.
No matter what deep down it has shaken the conscience of the people. It has brought hope. It has made politics look as an option to many people who had given up on it.
When someone stands for something it is bound to conflict with those, who benefit from the status quo, not just the current government but people who indirectly benefit from that association. If the establishment was good enough we would not need Amitabh Bacchan or Arvind Kejriwal to fight with it.
Since it stands for something new,with its own ways, accepting the changing realities will take time for all. There will be periods where just like in a movie we all will say “Yahan isne galat kiya, aisa nahi karna chahihe ” but that very fact that we think about it, discuss, write and offer our opionion shows that we care for it and want to see it through.
AAP though has many things to take care of. An umbrage of vested interest would be unleashed on AAP, people would try and color it with lies, nothing would be spared to destroy it since this is what suits the current powerful. It may make mistakes and lose the track.It may misjudge and misread things for other complulsions. However it must always remember that people who actually care for AAP are the marginalised in the system, people who had no say in the system for many many years, people whose voices have been crushed and need someone to tell them that they can speak.
We must be prepared for a lot of controversy ahead. Since the methods are new so would the results be. When we are not looking for good governance but questioning the way we are governed we can very well imagine how deep the faultlines are. People who have been used to the current style of governance would vehemently resist a style that largely takes their power away and distributes it to the people
What is needed is a rational long term perspective for India. Even without AAP the possibility of a hung parliament was not ruled out, with the emergence of AAP the possibilities becomes even more pronounced. The national mood is not for AAP, it is for honesty and clean politics. Everyone must adopt to it. AAP birth is a lesson in miscalculation of people’s mood by established parties, they must not misread the national mood now.
Anna and all of us must be happy that the Jan Lok pal bill was not passed in 2011 else we would not have the political entity-AAP. Jo hota hai acche ke liye hota hai.The rules of the politics has been changed by AAP. Awareness of the rules is now being made to old players by the new born.
Happy that the Jan Lok pal bill was not passed in 2011
Ashutosh Pratap 