A Letter to ANNA *Censored*: The man behind an illogical revolution

Dear *CRUSADER* Anna,

In the capacity of an active citizen of India, I ask for and demand your support for the day

when “Fast unto Death” would become a tradition or let’s say a habit. I just heard of a

school kid on Fast somewhere in the US and another person somewhere in Europe. Some

model ‘Wali’ from Delhi is even ready to strip naked for Lokpal. Dear Anna, you’ve planted

the venomous seed. The day is not far when any random person would start “Fast unto

Death” and “Strip until Naked” which is nothing but blackmail... This can be translated in

every possible type of social-nuisance... You have nothing in specific, you resorted to hunger

strike... That Delhi-based-model has nice body and a well maintained shape, she resorts to

nudity... I have a sharp mind (and I don’t mind boasting about it); so yes, if this continues I’d

have to resort to arresting my mind from functioning... My mind would better be on strike

instead of functioning in a nuisances-driven society! And you’ve given birth to this nuisance

that could rise in the society, Mr. Anna! I would not want to be a leader in this society sir. I’ll

explain how.

You might be very good as a person, but I do not support you at all. You made the village of

Ralegan Siddhi fully self sustainable... Very good... Highly Noble... Ideal too... But, if you say

you’re Gandhian, I disagree... Leave aside what you’re fighting for (Arundhati Roy has

described that too Non-Gandhian... http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tpopinion/

article2380789.ece), I’d challenge your means too... When in the village, you

started an anti-drinking campaign with a few of your youth supporters... You requested the

owners of around 30 brewery units in the village to close down the units... Most of them did

so, voluntarily... A few did not and their units were smashed up by the then Anna Team...

‘Generating Fear’ and ‘Resorting to easier ways’, it seems, has been your ideology, then and

now... Now, after making the village liquor-free, which again might be a very good thing

perhaps for the village (though by unlawful means), those who used to still indulge in

drinking from nearby villages, were tied to poles/pillars of the temple and punished by the

medieval punishment of flogging (beating them up with whips), sometimes personally by

you too, soldier Hazare! You justified this act by saying, “Doesn’t a mother administer bitter

medicines to a sick child when she knows that the medicine can cure her child? The child

may not like the medicine, but the mother does it only because she cares for the child.”

Now, what if I don’t want you as my mother, what if I know what I should be doing, what

about my right against exploitation, what about my right to freedom of conscience??? Why

do you forcibly want to be the mother of everyone??? A self-proclaimed mother!

Leave aside all these, let’s consider the fact that you were successfully able to make the

village an ideal and a self-sustainable place, which is again a noble deed. But do we accept

that the means that you used in that particular village can be implemented all across the

nation??? If we beat up every villager of India who drinks, if we resort to such means for

anything at all, will it be fruitful for the country as a whole??? Your thinking, your ideology

and your actions perhaps seem to have a very small scale application. And yes, as you forced

the people in the village, you have now resorted to forcing all the Indians and blackmailing

the government. I’ll explain how.

Now, if someone asks me, what has Anna been doing since 2003? I’d answer, “Fasting.” At

every point in time, when you became helpless, you fasted... Your fasting has also once

resulted in the implementation of Lokpal in Maharashtra since 2005... The Lokpal in

Maharashtra which became synonymous to corruption... Now, do we miss some logic here?

Maharashtra has witnessed the most cruel corruption cases, within the government, within

the civil society and everywhere, since then! What is the Lokpal committee doing there? If it

is so corrupt, why don’t we put them under the purview of a Sr. Lokpal Committee, anticorrution-activist-Hazare??

Introduction of Lokpal would merely be a game of shifting powers and nothing more than

that; let’s understand, metamorphic Hazare. Currently, PM, CJI and CBI are highly powerful

in their own respective terms. After the bill is passed as you want it to, Lokpals would in a

way control the activities of PM, CJI and the CBI too.

The real farce is the demand of bringing the PM under the purview of Lokpal Committee.

This would mean that the one who is elected by the people will have to succumb to the

power of a parallel vortex, the Lokpal Committee, whose members are either selfnominated

or government-nominated. Why is everyone missing this particular fact?? Does

this movement make sense at all?? This would ruin the democracy and might make the

parliament a joke. And they say that you are synonymous to rural development! Doesn’t

that translate to the development of India too??

Now, the Lokpal bill had been accepted in the first phase of your farce... The Lokpal

committee consisting of 5 govt. nominees and 5 civil society members met for the first time.

This development had in a way brought you in power as a member of the Lokpal committee.

You had yourself accepted the duty to serve the nation by being at the topmost level of

governance... Now from this position, sorry but you can not back out, you cannot abstain

from the duties that you yourself accepted... But you did... The 10 member committee could

never come to consensus 'cos of the rigid attitude of the civic society representatives...

Pranab Mukherjee, being the chairman of the committee, he carried his duty by writing a

letter to all the CMs of states, opposition leaders and people who represent people,

regarding the differences the committee had over your demand of including the PM & CJI

under the purview of Lokpal... I'm not supporting Pranab Mukherjee, but yes, he did his

part! In a democracy, obviously decisions should not be taken only on the basis of the rigid

attitude of 5 people! Those 5 people who foolishly are talking about ruining democracy

without even realizing it.

On 28 July 2011 the union cabinet approved a draft of the Lokpal Bill, which keeps the Prime

Minister, judiciary and lower bureaucracy out of the ambit of the proposed corruption

ombudsman Lokpal. Now, Anna definitely is not beyond the Parliament, right??

Now if we come to consider the people who form the Cabinet, why do we miss the fact that

the Cabinet Secretary is a Civil Servant too... As a matter of convention the senior most civil

servant is appointed as a Cabinet Secretary... The Cabinet Secretary is the head of all the

civil services under the constitution. Thus, he is the head of all the All India services

including the Indian Police Service(IPS), Indian Administrative Service(IAS), Indian Foreign

Service (IFS), Indian Revenue Service(IRS) and the Indian Forest Service(IFS). Let’s also not

forget that the Cabinet also consists of non-political leaders like Nandan Nilekani (Aadhar,

UID) and Montek Singh Ahluwalia (Planning Commission). Come on, let’s not overrule the

Cabinet too...

You wanted that they pass the bill, they did... Now its upto you to convince the Parliament,

if at all you can... The Parliament is the sole decision making body in India in such cases... If

you want to be more powerful than the Parliament, I'm sorry to say Anna, but you seem to

be driving the country towards worthless efforts! Should we allow any random ANNAs of

the country to be more powerful than the Parliament?? On one side, you want the PM

under you and on the other side, you want the Parliament to work the way you want it to...

Waah Anna...

If after accepting the duty, the only work you do is ABSTAIN from the duties, I can never

trust you for my life to do some serious work at top level... I'd trust Manmohan Singh and

his corrupt government over you! Atleast they have experienced and they know how

leadership dynamics work when you're running a whole country...

Let’s face it... The problem is ours, not the PM’s... Let’s put ourselves under the purview of

our own inner Lokpal and eradicate corruption from the roots, from the system. Let’s pledge

and practice cleanliness instead of forcing it... Anna, it’s high time you realize the fact that

Lokpal is just a way to eradicate corruption from people in power and not from the system...

Lokpal is a way towards removing corrupt people from their post and not towards a

corruption free system... If Lokpal finds one minister corrupt, he’d be removed and

someone else would take his place... Now what’s the guarantee of his not being corrupt??

You can destroy corrupt people but can you destroy corruption from its base?? This positive

destruction is possible only by educating people and not by abstaining or bringing a Lokpal

committee... Think beyond, Sir Anna...

Let’s face it... It’s the problem of democracy if it has not evolved enough to represent

people... The system needs a change or the democracy needs an evolution...

India should ve definitely arisen, but not for you Anna, not through your sympathy-gaining

show, not for the stupid demand of your Team; which I guess is damn powerful in PR and

promotional activities. 8 years of work experience it is, after all. I happened to read your Jail

story Anna and I was ashamed of you misleading the country. If you say corruption has to be

eradicated, you should also understand that ‘charity begins at home.’

What kind of protest is this where you reach with your whole event management and PR

team who set up the venue for you? What kind of premises do you follow if you yourself

disobey the laws? Don’t we eradicate corruption by obeying and adhering to the laws?

Legally, you had to sign a bail when you were bailed. You did not. You even disobeyed the

Indian Police (Now do not miss the fact that you’re the same person who’s asking the

LEADER of the country to obey to some stupid bench, not elected by the public!) by setting

up your camp illegally (by corrupt means) at the venue you desired and then you got

arrested. Now, can we locate the conspiracy towards getting into Jail? And a further

conspiracy of being in the jail overnight and gaining people’s support by not signing the bail.

You were even provided a 5 star treatment in the jail, specially demanded by you and your

followers. How could have you and your PR team achieve your goals without that

treatment? PR strategy: “Be in the jail and gain more support by gaining people’s

sympathy!” The route taken through sympathy for getting something done is the route I

despise the most, philosopher Hazare!

You also seem to be a fan of Neuro Linguistic Programming technique. You don’t fail in

conditioning the human psyche by the repeated use of a few typical words throughout your

speeches and throughout your campaign... Your campaign associates you with Gandhi...

With a huge backdrop of Gandhi, you’re effectively relating your baseless fight with the

Independence struggle, which rarely makes any sense. But Anna, the transmigration of the

soul too has to happen if you want to be Gandhi. I loathe everyone who has to compare you

with Gandhi. The other day you said in your speech, “Those who think I support RSS and BJP

should be sent to the mental hospital!” Wow... Definitely you’re Gandhian, dude Anna...

We’re not deaf... The grandson of Gandhi too has rightly discredited your movement...

Phrases like “Freedom Struggle”, “Inquilaab Zindabad”, etc. are a very strong part of your PR

Campaign... I marvel at the proficiency with which you’ve concealed the whole game and

termed it an Anti-Corruption movement, the adeptness with which you’ve used and

marketed the “C” (Corruption) word towards arising public sentiments. Don’t we know that

this is not the way corruption would end, strategist Hazare?

And yes, we do not forget the contribution of “THE GREAT INDIAN MEDIA” in your

“FREEDOM STRUGGLE!” I’m sure the media strategy must also have crossed the minds of

your campaign managers. If this be a freedom struggle, let me be damned for being a slave!

Corruption essentially is at two levels if you may agree Anna sir. One very small level which

is practiced by bribing a policemen or by paying for education that you don’t deserve. Lokpal

can never control this level of corruption, only we ourselves can... For the second and the

higher level of corruption, we have an established system of law... And if this system does

not function properly as of now, we need some refinements to be done within the system;

we don’t need to build a whole new system altogether which would monitor the existing

system! If a bulb fades, we don’t sit on strike demanding for a new bulb which can monitor

if the existing bulb works efficiently or not. We either repair the existing bulb or bring a new

one. So simple it is, brother Anna...

I had a good laugh on reading a complaint from Mr. Bhushan (your teammate) who wailed

about the government not being ready to overrule the parliament. On a serious note, Mr.

Anna, is our Parliament a joke which can be overruled anytime you want? Is it so weak that

it can be amended for any Anna of the country? Wouldn’t it really become a joke if it is bent

even once? Do you realize Anna that it’s the people of India who have shaped the

parliament and if required, public has the power to bulldoze the whole parliament, even the

PM??? Let the public be arisen to exercise that power, Sire Anna. The Public power. Don’t

misuse it. Don’t fool the public by your quest-to-power fight! The Public power is enough if

utilized. Why can’t everyone understand that it’s a mere game of transferring power...

You’re plainly saying, “you had the power, now give us the power”... I’ll explain how!

After your bill, those 10 non-elected, non-representative-of-public members will also have

the power. And yes, till you are a part of it, I’d keep doubting its credibility. For all you have

learnt in the septuagenarian part of your life is to Fast, to blackmail... To abstain... For you

possess the willpower to abstain anytime and anywhere if the decision does not go your

way! Being an egotist is fine crusader Hazare but you should be open to thoughts and

ideas...

To laugh out loud, I even visited your official website where you have a tagline too.. haha..

an example of damn good product packaging... Keep it up! Let’s suppose it’s being managed

by a fan; but when it is my official website, I’d never allow anyone to sing out loud about

me! Straight forward, NO! If I m a crusader of the country, let my work speak, let wiki boast

of my achievements. But Anna, you believe in direct marketing perhaps. That is the reason

you have kept your website to sing out loud about you and make you a global celebrity. Btw,

your tagline is catchy man, “A man behind the RTI revolution.” LOL.. Your website describes

you as a crusader, a social activist, a social reformer, synonymous to rural development, a

revolutionary, a tenacious soldier and what not. In fact, all the adjectives that I’ve used in

this letter have been derived from your OFFICIAL website itself... haha... Anyway personally,

my life would not be worth living merely on self-proclaimed titles and adjectives!!! I heard

you once survived a war where everyone with you died. But the website does not even

mention that you were a driver in the army and that you were driving a truck when you

escaped death. The martyrs fought while you were driving a truck. A driver would obviously

escape, the fighters won’t! Anyway, this might be a personal perspective, but what bad is it

to mention in your website about your being a driver in the army alongwith mentioning

‘tenacious soldier’?? And why such lowly loud mouthed publicity??

Also let’s consider the fact that it has nowadays become too damn easy to appeal the nation

or the youth in specific. Organize a candle march and everyone would come together,

organize a groundless slut walk and thousands of people will come to support. You highly

capitalized on this fact, Anna. And specially with the damn strong campaign that you and

your team has pulled across.

Do you see that you have in a way motivated people throughout your life? Towards not

drinking (by smashing them by whips), towards stripping (which the Indian culture regards

the worst thing to do), towards fasting (which you can term as abstention or blackmailing in

this case!), towards fighting for a cause (to mock the parliament and overrule it anytime you

want). Well, anyway there has to be some positives or say by-products of this whole hoopla.

One good by-product can be the realization that has come to the politicians that public

won’t tolerate their misconduct or corrupt practices. Another positive motivation is the one

that you’ve provided to people like me, towards writing this about you, addressing you! But

probably that’s that!

I humbly request you, as a citizen of India, to leave your obstinate ways and buckle up for

the national challenge ahead. Lokpal is not a bad thing if the government version is passed...

Your adamant attitude is in fact as bad as your version of Lokpal is! Be happy that Lokpal has

been passed and start utilizing it towards the country’s upliftment instead of cribbing about

the PM not being under it.

Interpreting the same in Narayan Murthy’s words, Indian governance system is already

weak with a two-pronged power sharing approach... There is one party head and one

government head...

Now, don’t we see that if the Lokpal can question even the PM and the CJI, this would bring

across a third dimension to power... I take it in this way: “Sabke paas power hogi but kisike

paas power nai hogi... Not even the ultimate leader of the country... He’ll always be a weak

leader who’d be a puppet of the Lokpal Committee... The country would be devoid of

dynamic leaders in power... That’d be sad!!!”

In this current situation, the government can only request you not to put a gun on its head...

If at all you realize that your movement is more than this!

Lastly, everyone knows that one-leader system is accepted all across the world. A group

discussion can seldom be meaningful if it is not guided by one person. A company cannot

function if it does not have a leader. Take an example of a company where I’m holding some

stake; if I would think the way you think, I’d put a Lokpal bench on the leader of the

company. If this is the only way out, as our very own Anna suggests, he has to be the

greatest leader ever born on Earth. LORD ANNA. Why can’t we simply understand, the PM

cannot be under the purview of any goddamn thing if we claim him to be the leader of the

country... Why to pass such a bill which would eradicate the concept of leadership from the

politics of the country? The country needs dynamic leaders and not watch dogs who will do

nothing except monitoring each and every step of an already-established and chosen-bypublic

leader! If we simply can’t trust anyone as a leader, let’s bring PM under the purview

of Lokpal and live in a country where leaders are not respected... where leaders are not

empowered... where leaders symbolize weakness... Weak Leader... Isn’t it an oxymoron??

And I see this as a probable outcome of your whole act... Poor future political leaders of

India! Neither would they be nurtured nor would anyone want to become a political leader

in India! If you be a political leader, people would automatically start being cynical,

suspicious and contemptuous about you! Isn’t this the repetition of the same old chain,

Anna? Leaders would be perhaps better off outside politics!

Sorry Anna, I cannot let this happen to my country!

Sincerely Annoyed,

Hardeep H Pathak