Randon Thoughts on Nationhood, Constitution, Politics, Change, Common Person etc.

Our constitution makers had envisioned in the preamble of our constitution that politics was a means to bring socio-economic transformation in society. What had we as a newly independent nation resolved then? We said.....We the people of Bharat want to make ourselves a nation that endeavors to secure justice, liberty, and equality for all its citizens and promote fraternity to maintain the unity and integrity of the nation. But let’s be clear that we did not become a nation in 1947. We were always a nation. This fact is to be attested by the fact that when we became Independent, there were more than 563 princely states in the country. As we all know, the Mountbatten Plan which later came to be known as the Indian Independence Act, of 1947, had given liberty to all these princely states to either remain independent or accede to Bharat or Pakistan. On the call given by Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, they all joined Indian Union except for three examples Junagarh, Jammu & Kashmir, and Hyderabad. But we must also remember that people in these three states also wanted to join Bharat. Therefore, we did not face much difficulty while integrating them all with Bharat. Why could this be done so easily? That’s because we always had a sense of nationhood conceived in the deepest of our hearts for centuries.

On one occasion while paying tribute to Gandhiji on his birthday Gurudev Ravindranath Tagore said that “Each country has its own inner geography where a spirit dwells and where physical force can never conquer even an inch of ground”. He further said that “India is not merely a geographical entity but is a living truth which lives and moves.” Therefore, we have a responsibility to build the pillars of our country deep and take them to the sky.

To understand this spirit let's also look at the ideals enshrined in our constitution. We have talked of social, economic, and political justice in the preamble of our constitution. From the day first we extended the adult franchise to each and every individual in our country without discriminating on caste, religion, or gender lines. It’s important to remember that certain so-called developed countries of Europe extended voting rights to women much later than we in Bharat did.  To make things clearer, let’s take stock of certain figures for our understanding in this regard. In the 2019 General Elections, more than 900 million people were eligible to cast their votes. Around 67% of people voted which means more than 600 million people voted in these elections. Around 11-12 million people were involved in conducting these elections. Interesting to note that there are about 110 countries that have less than 10 million people residing on their lands. Therefore, we as the largest democracy have also turned out to be one of the most vibrant democracies in the world. We have outlasted all the doubts and aspersions that were thrown at us in our first experiment of election during 1951-52.

How could this become possible? This became possible for us because we have always observed democracy in our way of life. In our history, the Sabha- the sovereign assembly of people and the Samiti-the elite body of elders have their mention in Rig Veda and Atharva Veda in which decisions were made after due consultation of all. The same fact had been emphasized by Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar in a speech before the constituent assembly on 25^th November 1949, one day before the constitution was adopted on 26^th November 1949. But in the same speech, he also emphasized transforming political democracy into social and economic democracy.

What kind of socio-economic transformation should we aspire to achieve? The age-old Vedantic philosophy of our tradition would be of great help to us in this context. The central message of Vedanta is that of oneness between the worshiper and the worshiped. Every being, and every particle in the universe is divine and linked to each other. Therefore, when we do service and help a poor person, we are doing no act of kindness. Since we are linked with each other, helping the needy is tantamount to helping own self. Charity is not service in the true sense. The recipient of a charitable deed is not inferior to the giver. Service has to be done with humility otherwise it is not service.

Swami Vivekananda, a staunch believer in Vedanta had said, “If you want to find God, serve man. To reach Narayana you must serve the Daridra Narayanas – the starving millions of India”

Gandhiji's talisman emphasizes the notion. He had said, "I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him. Will he gain anything from it? Will it restore him to control over his own life and destiny? In other words, will it lead to swaraj for the hungry and spiritually starving millions? Then you will find your doubts and yourself will melt away."

Our sages and seers and great men in our history have always taught us to wish well for all

आ नो भद्रा: क्रतवो यन्तु विश्वत:

and

सर्वेभवन्तु सुखिन: सर्वे सन्तु निरामया: |

सर्वेभद्राणि पश्यन्तु मा कश्चिद् दु:खभाग भवेत् ||

Therefore, if politics is understood in these terms, then it will be led by honest, transparent, patient, and committed persons. Citizens too are mandated to oust the ones who are dishonest in their intentions and impatient in their demeanors. Such individuals in politics are the biggest hurdles in transforming politics that can be a means to bring out socio-economic transformations in the lives of people in general.

Modi Government’s Initiatives for Change

With a philosophy to achieve the development of all and appeasement of none, the BJP government has been working steadily. The unfinished agenda of the Vajpayee government is being vigorously pushed forward by the Modi government from the time it came into power in 2014. Let’s have a look at some of the potentially transformative initiatives based on the motto of ‘Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas, and Sab Ka Vishwas’.

·         Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission)- More than 100 million individual household-level toilets in rural areas, and 6 million household toilets in urban areas have been constructed. In addition, nearly 6 million community and public toilets have also been constructed in urban areas. Consequently, 4,234 cities and more than 600,000 villages across the country have declared themselves open-defecation-free (ODF)

·         Make in India and Skill India (Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana): Through this scheme, the government has been able to boost the manufacturing sector by transforming Bharat into an attractive investment destination. This scheme helped India to take significant strides in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index rank. We moved from 142 in 2014 to 63 in 2019. Six new industrial corridors were developed and we also received some large foreign investments in manufacturing.

·         Financial Inclusion Scheme (Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana): Modi government announced one of the world’s biggest financial inclusion programs in 2014. Since its inception, the initiative has been successful in opening around 380 million bank accounts. Today, 80 percent of adults in Bharat have access to a bank account, which has significantly reduced the inefficiencies in cash transfers to beneficiaries.

·         Health Care Access (Ayushyman Bharat Yojna): This health care access scheme launched by the government in 2018 is aimed to provide quality healthcare to vulnerable communities through two components – health insurance and the creation of health/wellness centers across rural India. The government provides health insurance coverage of up to Rs. 5,00,000 per family per year. More than 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) are covered across the country.

·         Housing for All (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana): In line with the objective of Housing for All 2022, the government’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U) has so far sanctioned around 1.13 crore houses for its beneficiaries, out of which over 83 lakh houses are grounded and around 50 lakhs have been completed and delivered to beneficiaries.

·         Highway Construction: We have been constructing highways at a speed of 35 km/per day which highest in the world. As Shri Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways of India often cites John F Kennedy’s quote, “American roads are not good because America is rich, but America is rich because American roads are good”.

In conclusion, a lot is being done and a lot needs to be done. Until we are successful in wiping tears out of poor man’s eyes, we haven’t lived up to the expectations of Gandhiji’s Sarvodaya. Until we haven’t taken care of the essential needs of the last individual standing in our society’s queue, we haven’t lived up to the ideals of Deen Dayal Upadhyayaji. Therefore, our politics and policymaking, our legislature, executive, and judiciary and we as citizens as well need to put the common person in the center stage of our social thinking, public life, and private thinking.