Obituary to Arvind Kejriwal: The hero who promised to change the system and then became part of the system

I am ashamed at the speed at which my opinion has changed about Arvind Kejriwal. But then this man has changed at such a speed if I do not change my opinion it would be my ego what would be stopping me from seeing the truth.

When Arvind Kejriwal emerged from the national outrage against corruption, we thought our hero has emerged who would lead to change the system itself. We were scared that the political system is very strong and would never let a clean person win an election. We used to believe that politics is the last resort for criminals and crooks and a clean person would never make it. When AAP almost won the Delhi elections and AK went on to become the CM, it was like a miracle moment. That moment we thought: a good person can stand up, fight and change the system. A man can stand up and win against this system. It was the best moment in our AAP journey. That moment a Kanjoos like me also went on their website and donated my hard earned money so that from now on elections would be fought with clean money, without vote bank politics, in a transparent manner.

But we were wrong. The system was much more powerful than we thought; it had Aces up it sleeves. The speed at which the system managed to convert the man fighting against the system to man part of the system is mind boggling. He became part of the system and started doing everything what other politicians have been doing all the while. Overnight he became what we were rooting against. We have not seen a bigger Paltu in our lifetime. His U-turn list is endless:

1. Government cars
2. Taking Government housing and not vacating it
3. Personal Security
4.  Charter Planes
5. Support of Parties like Congress when he has pledged in his children name against it
6. Asking for proof against Shiela Dixit when he himself has been before elections claiming to have enough proof against her
7. Vote bank politics
1.  Power bill relief to select few who supported him and break the law by now paying the bill
2. Talk about reservation in Delhi University
3. Painting private sector in bad light
4. Using the communal card against BJP, using Jhadoo symbol to appease lower class etc
8. False propaganda against good work done by Gujarat government when his own party members have   previously praised that
9. Selling of tickets or giving out tickets to the ‘Khas Aadmi’
10. Defending his law minister even when enough proof against him was provided by people
11. High command system against internal party democracy
12. Funding by Ford foundation & corporates

He became a habitual liar. (Now I think he was always a liar, we are able to see through him only now). The ultimate was his deal with media where the leaked video clearly shows him admitting that he is creating a bad image of private sector for getting votes. The success got into his head and he got blinded by the ambition to become PM, rather than making good of the opportunity provided to him in Delhi to make the change he has promised. From a leader of a revolution he became a Nautanki using the people’s hunger for change to fulfill his own ambition. From a revolutionary who promised a totally new system, he became a leftist*2, a Mamta Banerjee who know only two words “cholbe na…cholbe na”. Rather than changing the system, he started painting everybody else corrupts except himself. From Businessman to Police to courts to media to Aam Aadmi , now everybody is corrupt. Neither he refrained from generalization nor did he tried to find root cause or solution for the same. Just “cholbe na…cholbe na”.

He forgot that the middle class and lower class has contributed their hard earned money to make him win the elections. He forgot that people have left their high paying international jobs to become part of the revolution with the hope to change the system. He left the opportunity given by people to create a model for change in Delhi and jumped into national elections asking people for more donation and more sacrifice of their livelihood.

What is he dreaming? Does he believe that he can get 272+ seats all by himself? Or this time he is not swearing in his children name that he will not take support of Congress or BJP? Whose support then he will take – Lalu Prasad Yadav? Karunanidhi? Mayawati? Mulayam Singh? He justified his resignation in 49 days in India Today Conclave by saying that “itna seat mein itna hi milta hai”. What is he expecting in Lok Sabha? I am sure 75% of the people in India have not even heard about AAP leave alone voting for them. He at best might get 10 seats. What he aims to do with that. Horse trading? Buy a plump portfolio? AK I want to ask Lok Sabha me kitna seat mein kitna milta hai. 5 seat mein kya milega and 10 seat mein kya milega? Tell us what you will deliver rather than finding faults with everybody.

One good thing of this ‘hope of revolution’ is that we have come out of our lethargy. Many of us at least put in the effort of getting ourselves registered as voters. Lot more like us are now actively taking part in political debate on at least social media. This itself is a change. Change cannot happen overnight. It is not a 20-20 match which we would have preferred and what AK was making us believe. It’s important that disappoint with AK & AAP does not make us go back to our earlier belief that everybody in the system is dirty and good people should have nothing to do with politics. Politicians thrive on that. Let’s not wait for the ideal candidate and let’s vote for the best among them. If we do not vote, we will have to live with whatever others choose for us. Let’s vote for somebody who is at least of sound mind, has shown decent performance in the past. Politicians appease the voter who is willing to come to vote and have the ability to get together and demand something. Let’s become the largest vote bank demanding change. Let’s list down the change we want and demand that as a vote bank:

1. Criminals not allowed to contest elections
2. Right to directly elect our PM rather than through 543 MPs who change after we have voted
3. Investment in infrastructure (roads, electricity, education, medical, sanitation, transportation etc.) and better quality of living
4. Judiciary system that work within defined time lines
5. E-governance & answerable government
6. Development, Growth and jobs
7. Women safety
8. ……….

Modi is symbol of change while continuing in the system; AK was a symbol of changing the system itself. We will have to do with Modi, till we find a new hero who is willing to fight the system and change the system. Our democracy rule books of multiple party etc won’t change overnight and it will have to be changed from inside. We will have to give clear majority for Modi to effectively deliver. We cannot afford another five years of Congress rule supported by crooks like Lalu, Mayawati, Karunanidhi and Mulayam Singh. We have to change last 10 years of mis-governance. Let’s not forget that we wanted this revolution because we are fed up with Congress.

 Modi has one black spot but we need to understand the situation. Riot was result of an equally wrong incident. We all get blinded when revenge blinds us. Country like USA drops bombs on civilians in Afghanistan because of wrong deads of select few. We never boycotted USA. Yes, he should have found out the exact people who burnt the train and should not have let everybody in the community suffer due to misdeed of few. At the same time we should not let Congress win, because they not only do not take any action against terrorists but also shift blame on others for vote bank politics. Congress is thriving on the fact that we vote against one unfair action rather than 1000 no action. We have to give Modi the credit that after that incident no riot has happed in that state. On the other hand places like UP we end up having riot every day because everybody is playing politics of appeasing certain vote bank. Unlike them Modi has been following a policy of ‘Development for all, appeasement for none’. All communities have benefited from the development of Gujarat and he has not been selective in development. 

We will have to select a not so perfect candidate, with a good track record of development and governance and then we will have to demand the changes we want by becoming the biggest vote bank. We will have to force him and incentivize him to make the changes we demand. If we don’t give his clear majority he will have to partner with likes of Mayawati and Jayalalita. They will take their pound of flesh. If we want him to be effective we have to be unanimous what the best option in front of us is and go all out to make him win. In real life we will never get a ‘perfect’ candidate, if we keep waiting for him another 5 years of Congress rule we will have to suffer.