Ravi Shankar Etteth
First Published : 16 Apr 2011 11:19:00 PM IST
Last Updated : 17 Apr 2011 01:08:44 AM IST
Fatigue has no place in history. History is for heroes. It’s a timeless tome that chronicles the bloody rise and fall of empires; mighty heroes, sadistic tyrants and flaming prophets; doomed romances and savage cataclysms; inventions that changed the way man lives and dies and forms the genealogy of civilisation. History doesn’t forgive those who fade, and while fading, cling to their pedestals like insubstantial phantoms of past glory. That’s probably why Infosys pioneers N R Narayana Murthy and now Mohandas Pai left their jobs, so that fresh talent could replace them and reinvent the company. The clever charisma of Anna Hazare is that he pitches his tent on the sidelines of leadership while those who rebuke his methods — like L K Advani and Manmohan Singh — love the limelight.
Suppositions apart — if Jesus wasn’t crucified what would’ve happened to Christianity; if Gandhi wasn’t assassinated would he have become an eternal touchstone — many Indian politicians suffer from “Leader Fatigue”. Manmohan hasn’t had a single Great Idea since ‘economic liberalisation’ and is running on nothing but reputation; Advani — Sardar Patel II, India’s strongman and the Ram of Kalyug — has little to contribute to the War on Corruption except that Hazare is wrong and all politicians are not corrupt. Sadly for Opposition politics, it is he who is the face of India’s most powerful opposition party, the BJP, that has been consistently driving the Government into a tight corral over corruption. All great leaders have a carpe diem sensometer that intuits the popular mood. Is Advani’s dead?
One would expect the BJP leviathan — who left party positions in 2009 to don the role of mentor — to distance himself from active politics. Yet, he clings on to Advanihood, a now-wavering voice that often wanders in its logic; praising Jinnah here, mourning Babri Masjid there, admonishing Hazare now. This is a man whose political career began with India’s birth, the man who inspired a generation with a rath yatra and a home minister who almost went to war with Pakistan.
Ernie Arbuckle, the Stanford Business School dean, believes that leaders have to be “repotted” — quit while you are on top. He thought the right moment to “repot” was after a decade, and the longer a leader stays on, he loses out on new challenges and opportunities. Stanford academic Jeffrey Pfeffer writes, “The problem is that most people, having attained a position of power, cling to office because their age suggests they will not go on to scale greater heights.”
History will always remember Advani as BJP’s Pranab Mukherjee — an eternal prime minister-in-waiting. It’s time he is reconciled to it. At 84, he needs to read history more than watch Bollywood films at private screenings held at home. Remember Nanaji Deshmukh. After retiring from active politics to settle down in Chitrakoot, where Ram is said to have spent the years of his exile, Deshmukh started to work for the poor, joking that he preferred Vanavasi Ram to Raja Ram. He lived to be 86, left behind a legacy of Hindu patriotism melded with altruism and became one of the most beloved icons of nationalistic India. The magazine he edited was entitled Manthan. It means ‘introspection.’ Perhaps Advani should look it up. Maybe lend Manmohan a copy too.
Topics:
NR Narayana Murthy,
Mohandas Pai,
Anna Hazare,
Manmohan Singh,
LK Advani
Delicious
Digg
Yahoo
Stumble
Comments
A historian wrote that she does not know of a single idea that has emerged from Asia or Africa that has anything to do with the modern world except Gandhi's non violent protest.What ideas are relevant is not clear and the media gives millions of words as advice.We want systems so perfect that nobody need be good.. Why blame Advani? WHAT EXACTLY HAS congress or communists thrown up as ideas? cONGRESS HAS PULVERISED iNDIA..Except caste community and pelf can congress think of anthing?NO. KURUP
By s.kurup
4/17/2011 6:41:00 PM
Dear Mr Etteh : Nice article. You have however forgot to mention the most venal, senile politician in India today - MuKa alias Karuna. How can you forget him? A man who rose to be the torch-bearer of the Dravidian movement, had some original ideas on emancipation of women and weaker sections, reputed for his administrative acument and hardwork (even as I hate him, I have seen him come to office on sundays also to clear files)...He was at the peak of his career, I suppose at the beginning of this term, just after his party won in 2006. Jaya had been banished - he had helped provide a stable UPA-I. But as you have pointed out, hubris then took over him, his family became greedy and desparate - so instead of becoming a hero, he is today the most vilified politician in the country. Surprising that his name did not strike you...I hope it was not deliberate!!!
By K Raman
4/17/2011 1:10:00 PM
corruption is eating the very fabric of the nation. But the leaders are turning a nelson's eye to this fact.
By b.ravi kumar
4/17/2011 12:03:00 PM
well said.All politicians above 70 should retire from active politics and don the role of advisers.
By suryaprakasam
4/17/2011 10:17:00 AM
Post your comments *
No comments:
Post a Comment