Politics and principles
Gandhiji on October 2 every year has been a ritual we have been practicing religiously ever since Independence. But there is need to go beyond that. Gandhiji was a leader, activist, Mahatma and, more importantly, a politician all rolled into one.
But he was a politician of a different mettle and it is this role of Gandhiji that is most relevant today.
The political class is fast losing its relevance as the benefactor of the masses, and the common Indian seems to be alienated by the state of affairs, rather affairs of the state.
Writing in the weekly newspaper Young India in the October 22, 1925 issue, Gandhiji talked about seven social sins. And the one that matters most today is Politics without Principles.
This is the mother of all sins. Politics rules and is at the helm of everything. Politics may have many definitions, but they all invariably suggest one thing — it is all about power.
To rule, and rule at any cost.
Naturally, if politics becomes unprincipled, chaos and disorder become the norm. The difference between order of gods and demons, Ram and Ravan, dictators and democrats, despots and leaders, has something to do with principles. For Gandhiji, principle was the expression of perfection — without it, the ruler could not be fair.
Principle is the basis of Raj Dharm, the essence of good governance. The problems of the world today are due to unprincipled leadership styles that are ego-driven rather than ethics-driven. Truth and non-violence, the two cornerstones of Gandhiji's philosophy, need to be inculcated in present-day politics.
