March 23, 1998

Indian democracy requires the Congress to be a force--not a farce.

It is time the Congress asked itself an essential, existential question: does it consider itself a political party or merely India's longest running soap opera? The decline of what was once the natural party of governance, its virtual disappearance from whole regions -- notably Uttar Pradesh, a state it once dominated -- is a matter of great concern. Everybody seems to have realised this -- except, inexplicably, Congressmen. The intra-party jockeying, which has been evident over the past week, has only added to the farce. For a start, Sitaram Kesri, the party president, has presented a resignation which means all things to all people. While ambiguity and confusion may be essential weapons in any good Congress leader's armoury, Kesri's little drama has done nothing more than arouse further disgust. In the end, nobody knows whether or when Kesri will demit office and nobody knows whether or when Sonia Gandhi will replace him as the party chief.

If the Congress were a private club, its internal dynamics would have evoked no more than amusement. Unfortunately, the Congress is an essential prop of Indian democracy. Its survival -- indeed, robust revival -- is a priority. After decades of a skewed polity, India is only just entering an era where a genuine multi-party system can thrive. For this to happen, the tempering of the bjp and the symbiosis of regional forces and mainstream politics is a must. So is the strengthening of the Congress. In the end, it is not important if Sonia leads the Congress or Kesri does. As the recent election has shown, a leader can only draw crowds -- not ensure votes. For that to happen, the Congress has to galvanise its moribund party organisation, right down to the proverbial grassroots. Unfortunately, this is just what the Congress is not addressing. The party of Gandhi, of Tilak, of Nehru is a national institution. India cannot watch it destroy itself without shedding a tear.

Murder on the Campus
Punish college bullies instantly; don't wait for ragging to take lives.

On March 11, a court in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu, awarded the killer of a medical student two terms of life imprisonment. The horrific murder -- the victim's body was dismembered -- was the culmination of a ragging incident in a local college. In sum, John David, the perpetrator of this most macabre crime, will spend 36 years in jail. It will be easy to paint David as a psychologically unbalanced individual rather than your regular medico. This may be true. David's post-murder behaviour, particularly his disposal of the body, was remarkably meticulous and betrayed few signs of panic. Nevertheless, this was no isolated instance. There have been several incidents of harmless pranks going terribly wrong. While not every attempt at ragging is necessarily a murderous assault, the practice is increasingly manifesting itself in extremely pernicious forms across the country. This has been particularly so in medical and engineering colleges -- and even the famed Indian Institutes of Technology have been more than tainted.

Sociologists could write tomes rationalising violent ragging in terms of a larger brutalisation of the Indian mind. Unfortunately, to any student who has suffered such an indignity, this would be a specious argument. The perverted pysche of David was allowed to stay unfettered by lax administrators. Vigilant wardens may not be able to reshape a society's mindset but surely they can take on the campus bully. Ideally, a regular offender should be served an expulsion notice. Sadly, as political parties take control of even students' unions, college authorities shy away from strict action. This is all very well but it cannot be allowed to take lives. If it will require statutory depoliticisation of educational institutions to defang ragging, so be it. The least India can do is make its classrooms safe for its children.

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