TIME TO FIX THE FIXERS

The Radia tapes revelation which is now famously been referred as the ‘Radigate’has become the biggest talking point in New Delhi. Never before has the deep nexus between the corporates, politicians and a section of the media been exposed to this degree that has left everyone stunned.

Niira Radia who was famous in the political & corporate circle has now become an instant star. She has become the symbol of a power lobbying or should we say power broker. Everyone wants to know and hear more abour Radia and her conversations with people cutting across political and business circles.The proximity between politicians & businessmen was never a secret. For decades business houses and tycoons have been funding political parties and in return politicians have helped them in growing their businesses. Many businessmen have a politician’s money invested in their companies and are business partners with them. The relationship has always been of scratching each others back and safe guarding each others interest. So why is everyone shocked to discover this nexus now?

Niira Radia who in many ways has emerged as the face of this nexus is not an exception nor does she represent a new breed which has recently taken birth. Brokers or deal fixers or dalals or let me use a dignified term - lobbyists as they are called have always existed in the system. The job of a lobbyist has always been of bridging the gap between politicians & businessmen. They are faceless but wield more power than the many potent faces in power. If the Indian system is considered corrupt then one major reason for that without a doubt are lobbyists. Whenever the businessman faces an obstacle in his business it has always been these lobbyists that solved their problem through these politicians & ministers.

There is a sense of disappointment within corporate India that these scams may shake their morale which may in turn effect the stupendous economic growth India has been riding on. Many have even send a message to the prime minister and finance minister that this crusade needs to stop otherwise it will impact the markets which in turn will impact the governments plan to raise money through capital market for expenditure. This may be a subtle blackmail or maybe even a warning.

But many belief that this whole 2G scam and the Radigate has really upset the prime minister and the Congress high command. And if the prime minister as it suggests at the moment decides to go to the bottom of this issue even at the cost of political vulnerability then it will surely send the right message to the angry public.

This is a golden opportunity for prime minister to crack down on this unholy nexus between the politicians and businessmen. By nailing down the culprits the government can actually intimidate this convenient working model shared between politicians and businessmen. And if Raja & Radia are found guilty then the government should surely punish them in the most severe fashion. The crackdown should be so severe that it sends down a shiver among politicians, businessmen & lobbyists (fixers). These fixers are the genesis of corruption as it has been proved through the Radia tapes. If the government can intimidates them it will surely have an impact on the politician-businessman nexus. This step could go a really long way in at least subsiding corruption on that level even if not completely but to a great extent. Given Manmohan Singh’s track record of being the most honest prime minister, he surely would not want to go down in history as the ‘most honest prime minister of the most corrupt government ever’.It’s time to fix the ‘fixers’ that can pave the way for India’s inclusive growth The onus is on the prime minister and his government.

UPA’S BIGGEST HEADACHE :COALITION DHARMA

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his first press conference after taking charge of the government for the second time, seemed a bit nervous while responding to the media queries. Probably that’s the nature of Dr Singh who believes more in action than words.

In the last one year, there have been many thorny issues that have pricked the government. To begin with the positives – the government was successful in handling the global financial crisis. The woman reservation’s bill which got passed in the Rajya Sabha, and the Right to Education Bill, were some key achievements of the UPA 2. But if we look at the negatives - clearly the price rise issue has hurt the government and the people of the country the most.

The Naxal issue has led to more chaos and destruction rather than achievements. Pakistan’s failure on the 26/11 front has also not helped the government.

To measure a performance of any government it is important to take individual performances of the cabinet ministers into consideration. After all a government is like any other team, especially when it involves coalition partners. Over all the performance of the ‘Congress’ ministers has been satisfying. Kapil Sibal, P. Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee have been the star performers for the government in their respective ministries. Shashi Tharoor , who was in the news throughout for the all the wrong reasons, was show the exit door while Jairam Ramesh has been appreciated for his work as the environment minister but has been a let down for his comments on other ministers.

But the biggest negative for team UPA has been the performance of the coalition partners and their ministers.

Sharad Pawar has made more news in cricket rather than agriculture and agri-products which directly impacts the price of essential food items. He has been a total failure on that front.

Mamata Banerjee has been a visiting minister for the government. She is mostly in Kolkata and her priority is the West Bengal elections next year. She has been soft on the Naxal issue and has openly criticized the government for its policy towards Naxals. Mamata is clearly turning out to be the biggest irritant for the current UPA government much like the ‘Left’ parties who stalled various reform decisions taken by the UPA during its first tenure..

The DMK is the biggest liability for the government in terms of performance. M.K Alagiri and A Raja have been an embarrassment for the government. A Raja’s alleged involvement in the 2G scam, which if proved by the investigating agencies, would be the biggest scam in the history of India. Though the PM has defended Raja, but with a rider that if anyone is found guilty, he will take action. On the other hand, Karunanidhi’s elder son Alagiri has been a complete misfit in the capital so far. He has not been attending the Parliament, even after been reprimanded by the speaker. He has shown no interest in his portfolio so far.

But Manmohan Singh’s biggest problem is that he can’t take ministers from coalition partners to task. He can’t pressurize them as he has to keep this coalition intact for the UPA to last a full 5-year term. The first year is a very short duration for any government to be judged as all the major reforms are initiated only from the third-year onwards. If the first tenure saw the rise of Manmohan Singh as an effective political leader; this tenure would be a test of Singh’s ability to extract good performances from his team. No one doubts Singh’s potential as an individual performer but if his other ministers do not perform in this tenure, it would dent Singh’s legacy.