I normally shave at home, but quite often I’m tempted to head straight for the saloon on the Highway in Verna and shaving is just an excuse! Manoj the barber, who claims to be a graduate of some UP university, can speak non-stop on almost any subject with great confidence: He knows exactly how Modi should balance the budget, get back the Black money, bring down prices and deal with Pakistan. He even has a bagful of advice for our cricket team managers!
The only thing I don’t like about Manoj is his inability to balance his own budget, on account of which he is perpetually bankrupt. “Sir, ek do hazar melega?” he seldom forgets to ask whenever I reach for my wallet to pay his fees. I prefer to pay him a small tip instead… Honestly, it’s not about the money; I’m more scared of losing a ‘friend’ – probably both!
The other day when I visited his saloon, Manoj was a crestfallen man: burglars had broken into his saloon a day before to decamp with tools of his trade. “Sir, sab neta log chor kuim hota hai?” he started off on a angry bitter note and noting my shrug, proceeded to answer his own question.
According to Manoj, adoption of Universal Adult Franchise which has allowed the most unscrupulous elements to manipulate their way to power is the biggest bane of Indian politics. “Voting rights should never have gone to the vulnerable ‘cattle class’ who are yet to realise the meaning and value of their vote,” says Manoj. He feels that there should be a scheme to allow vote sellers to voluntarily surrender their voting right in lieu of monetary benefits – a handsome amount promptly transferred to their account, plus a suitable handout at every elections. Manoj thinks that the disenfranchising could be made reversible, subject to the disenfranchised citizen paying back the benefits received. At first I thought the shock of being deprived of his important tools had seriously affected Manoj’s brains. But ruminating on it while driving back home, I realised the substance in his arguments.
Money power plays a decisive role in Indian politics and ironically it is the same ‘bought out’ people who are the main casualities! In 1928 Dr B.R Ambedkar appeared before the Simon Commission and insisted on incorporating Universal Adult Franchise in the Constitution. According to him, Universal Adult Franchise was a “weapon in the hands of the oppressed” and despite serious doubts expressed by many, it was adopted.
Goans are by and large a self respected community, but there are always people who can be bought and sold. They may be a small percentage, varying between 10- 25%, but considering that on the average the winner gets only about 30% of the total votes, these people make all the difference between winning and losing! The easy susceptibility of this class to the lure of money has made it difficult for good people to survive in politics where scoundrels & thieves thrive & prosper! With many doubts raised at the time of drafting the constitution proving true, the ‘weapon of the oppressed’ appears to have been turned 180 degrees to keep them confined to a commodity that can be bought for peanuts and sold for Pistachios.
