Why Bandhs are Unconstitutional and Anti-Poor?

​

Those who can afford a paid holiday are excited about this Bandh against the price rise. Those who cannot, suffer silently. But the opinions of the common man will never be taken into account. On one hand, the common man has to suffer the poor governance of the ruling government whereas on the other hand, he has to face the thugs and goondas unleashed by the opposition parties to enforce bandh for political gains. No leader has the temerity to call for a voluntary public participation for this bandh as it will fall flat in their face, as they have no standing or credibility in the eyes of the public. Hence, they will unleash their goondas and smash the buses, stop the trains, compel the shops to shut down or face the consequences. There is place for dissent in a democracy, but Democracy does not allow forced violence as an expression of dissent. At the end of the day, the opposition parties will express victory for a job well done. The ruling Government will do its best to save face and no one will actually care for the rise in prices that burdens the common man.


No political party has the solutions for halting the rise in prices of essential commodities. The political gimmick played out by the opposition after the hike in petrol and LPG prices is elitist in nature. The subsidies given by the Government cannot go on for ever as it will lead to a huge Public Debt in the near future which will spell doom for the poor. The Subsidies actually benefit those who can actually pay and is of no use to those who cannot afford to pay at all. This bandh called by the opposition parties neither helps those who are below the party line, nor helps those working in unorganized sector on daily basis. 50% of country’s children are malnourished and go to sleep without a proper meal a day and this empty political rhetoric is concerned only about the rise in petrol prices. So, I cannot understand what class of people do these political establishments cater to? A nation coming to a standstill for the entire day costs millions of rupees to the country’s exchequer. Who is going to pay for it? Ultimately, the burden for today’s bandh will finally fall on the common man.


As far as oil prices are concerned, the low oil prices are enhancing our country’s public debt and are also doing great damage to our oil companies, which bear the brunt of the subsidies. In the long run, it will damage our economy and cause a bigger damage to our country’s energy security and the environment.


When we keep fuel prices cheap, we are essentially transferring political power to the oil producers, the vast majority of them being unpopular authoritarian or theocratic regimes. Oil wealth and authoritarian regimes are inter-linked as columnist Tom Friedman so conclusively proves in his latest book, Hot, Flat and Crowded.


Authoritarian regimes maintain their hold on power by buying off political dissenters with subsidies financed from oil wealth. Put another way, the world’s dependence on oil is funding intolerant or heavy-handed regimes from Saudi Arabia to Sudan.


The big positive spin-offs from higher priced oil are that it will force us to save energy. That, in itself, will be good for India. Next, it will encourage companies to invest in alternate sources of energy which will make big investments in solar, fuel-cell and other forms of alternative energy sources viable and encourage lower dependence on depleting fossil fuels. Over the long-term, thus, power will shift back from oil producers and Opec to consumers.

A shift from fossil fuels to alternative sources means a giant shift away from natural resources to perennial sources. It lowers the bargaining powers of those who were merely fortunate enough to be sitting on the right geographical areas to those who use their intellect to generate energy from knowledge and technology. It is fundamentally democratizing.

But for such things to happen, we need mature political parties who sit across the table with the ruling government and discuss worthwhile issues. The thugs and rowdy elements who burn buses and vandalize shops cannot find a solution to the above problem.

On a closing note, I would like to narrate one incident two weeks ago, when the taxi strike happened in Mumbai for demanding higher fares. A man seriously injured due to an accident was lying unattended for hours as there was no taxi available for taking him immediately to the nearest hospital. The crowd remained mute spectators to his agony. By the time, the Police forcibly made a taxi driver to take the victim to hospital, he lost his life. Today, so many needy persons would have been inconvenienced by the bandh while those who are well off would be enjoying watching cable TV inside their houses. What is the use of such Bandhs when it poses a major hindrance to the common man himself? Why can’t these political leaders organize a fast unto death till the prices go down and leave the common man alone?

 

thanks kelly for your comments

regards
suresh