Shun hero worship, save India's democratic setup: former CEC

Former Chief Election Commissioner T S Krishna Murthy has said that India is a sea of opportunities and there is no reason to state that India does not have a future. In view of conserving our democratic system, hero worship should not be encouraged, he said.

He delivered the foundation day lecture at Shri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara Institute for Management Development (SDM-IMD), here on Tuesday.

“Over the past two or three decades, governance has lost direction in India. India became a victim of the Macaulay trap and is yet to recover. In 1947, when India became independent, it was thought that the nation would become a superpower by 20 or 30 years. But, even after 70 years, we are plagued by illiteracy, corruption and poverty. Western education in itself is not a drawback. But, its application makes the difference. We have not taken the positive aspects of the Western culture, but are quick in picking up negative influences,” he said.

“We have succeeded in having democracy as a structure not in substance. Our Constitution is perhaps the most elaborate in the world. It is lauded as one of the best. However, when it comes to progress, we match only some African nations. We are yet to catch up with developed European and American nations. We are quick to worship heroes. They initially perform well but as hero worshipping goes to their head, they fall prey to various traps. However, we need role models and they should come from local populations,” he said.

“Networking with world leaders is necessary. But as a nation, are we making an impact on the international community? We have not been able to manage our nation properly so far. The present culture is conducive neither for industrial nor institutional growth. Why is profit anathema here? Profit is necessary, profiteering is bad. Why should a rich politician pose to be humble? There are flaws with a few regulatory bodies also. They change the regulations to rein in a single organisation. This is where good governance can play a role. So, India has enormous opportunities for people in all walks of life. There is future only in this country,” he asserted.

‘GST will unify nation’

With regard to resistance to the implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) Krishna Murthy said, “GST will unify the nation. Before independence, there were nearly 500 provinces, each of which claimed to be different. Even now, many states resist people from other states. Even in case of Jammu and Kashmir, the victims of the restriction on people from outside are the Kashmiris themselves. Now GST will play a vital role in unifying people,” he said.

DH News Service