Sunday, July 20, 2003		Books

High on rhetoric, low on logic
Harbans Singh

Blueprint of Political Reforms
by Subhash C. Kashyap. Shipra Publications, Delhi. Pages 316. Rs 550.

THIS book is the result of a Ford Foundation-funded research project undertaken by the Centre for Policy Research (CPR). The feedback and suggestions, which form the core of the book, came from workshops, seminars and conferences conducted by the CPR in various parts of the country and they were "concrete and actionable suggestions."

Author Subhash C. Kashyap is a familiar name for those interested in the working of the Indian political system. He stands apart in the contemporary world because of the prolific nature of his writings. He has been responsible for directing and coordinating the whole project and was also a member of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) as well as the Chairman of its Drafting Committee. The book has been written with the intention of generating further debate and contributing to the process of actually launching basic political reforms.

The preface categorically asserts that the "nation is passing through critical times" and that because of the severe strain under which our polity is, "Faith of the people in the quality, integrity and efficiency of governmental institutions stands seriously eroded," therefore, a "case for a review of the working of the institutions... and for wide ranging political reforms is unassailable."

How he has concluded that the ills afflicting the Indian polity can only be eradicated by reviewing the working of the institutions has not been explained and his refrain of a nation or a society passing through critical times is something that has been echoed by successive generations since times immemorial. Therefore, one might well challenge the author and remind him that even though our democracy and constitution are relatively young in the modern era, yet in the short duration they have demonstrated resilience and strength time and again.

This is not to claim that our system and institutions have been flawless, but then one might ask the author and his fellow travellers as to which system is. It is also true that we should have achieved much more than what we have; however, what we have is no mean achievement when we think of the state and condition of our people when we adopted our constitution. This again is not to say that there is no room for improvement. There is; and the area that needs improvement is more in the hearts and attitudes of our citizenry rather than the Articles, Rules and Procedures laid down for the working of our system.

At times this seems to be recognised by the author, too, who fervently calls upon the citizens for a more active and participatory role in civic duties. But then nothing justifies such an officially sanctioned massive exercise of reviewing the working of the Constitution. Each of the subjects dealt in this book are high on rhetoric and moral lecture, but in the end there is nothing substantial that has been recommended for change. The author is also monotonous and repetitive.

Readers might feel that the spirit of "I," "me" and "myself" has been all pervasive in the book, but there is no doubting the sincerity of the author, though one tends to feel that the experience of successive general elections to the Lok Sabha between 1996 and 1999 have weighed too much on the author. Else, he would not have recommended that there be a "constructive no confidence" motion or that it should be allowed to only twice in a full term of five years. This, after having elsewhere dealt in detail as to how after careful deliberation the founding fathers of the Constitution opted for an accountable rather than a stable government. He has failed to see merit in the fact that though Parliament did not repose its faith in a known and popular personality like Atal Behari Vajpayee in 1996, yet Deve Gowda came from obscurity to lead the government. During this period the economic growth might have slowed down but then the ledger books do not alone make for the organic growth of a nation.

There is need for reforms and improvement, everyone agrees. For many it should first come in the field of law and policing, others might argue for faster economic reforms. But if good education could transform the attitudes of our citizens then perhaps we would stop quarrelling with our tools and get on with the task of nation building. Let us not forget that there was a time when American Presidency was suspected to be in close proximity to the Mafia of the time and Italy was virtually ruled by the Mafia. Both the democracies have survived!