CORRUPTION : INDIA’S ENEMY

Editorial

‘It is impossible to know when and how much water a fish drank; similar is the act of officials stealing Government money.’ Arya Chanakya said this about corruption almost 2000 years ago. The statement must have been made on the circumstances that prevailed then.

If we were to correlate the statement with the present day circumstances, then it would be an open secret on who is indulging in corruption, when and how. It can be said that the corrupt have made some progress over the years ! Though this is a well-known fact, the Supreme Court of India had to give a reminder ! The Honourable Supreme Court said, ‘The corrupt are ruining the country. You see what is going on in every Government office. The Government does not take stringent action against such people. As a result, they continue with their corrupt practices. This is the root cause of corruption’.

How many Newspapers published this observation of the Supreme Court and how many people have read it has very little importance; because, there is nothing new in it and is known to all. The question is who and how will this situation change ?

Arya Chanakya overthrew King Dhana Nanda of Magadh because of his corrupt nature. Today, there are numerous examples of Governments that have been overthrown because of corruption, and there will be more in the future; but corruption will continue unabated. It is because of the basic nature of humans.
If an individual is of a sacrificing nature, expectationless and unattached, then corruptionless governance can be expected of him; however, such people are rare. People who had these qualities in the past are not even remembered easily.

We will not be able to say that we have had such a ruler in the past few centuries. The equation around the world today is power for the sake of money and money for the sake of power. As a result, saying that many countries have regressed or are on the path of regression will not be an exaggeration. Efforts are being made in the world to find effective measures on this and arrest corruption; however, the corrupt are more advanced, and hence, in such circumstances too, they indulge in corruption. The Supreme Court has said that corruption is the cause for India’s downfall. It has to be noted that the Court has not said what can be done about it or who should do what. Even the Court has its limitations.

There are accusations that there is corruption in the Courts as well. Therefore, implementing measures such as making rules, formulating laws, keeping a watch will not help much unless the basic nature and attitude of the people change.

The need to create sanskars

There is a proverb in Marathi which means – The behaviour of subjects is like that of their king. Accordingly, if the king himself is sacrificing in nature, expectationless and unattached by nature, his subjects too will become like him.

The best and probably the only example is that of Deity Shriram. People expect Ramrajya to be established even today; however, this requires that the king or ruler be like Shriram. For this to happen, it is necessary that the associated sanskars be performed on the people. The fact is, we do not see this happening. The responsibility of performing such sanskars lies with the parents and the teachers. However, we do not see them doing this anywhere. We do not see any mother, wife or child questioning their son, husband or father respectively (who occupy high posts) whether they are earning more than their known source of income.

This effectively means that everyone seems to be agreeing to this corruption. At such times, how will sattvik or good sanskars be made and followed ? How will anyone start behaving ethically ? People in the political field, without a job or business, accumulate wealth running into crores of Rupees. Why does this happen ? Everyone in India knows the answer; but the question is who will take action ?

Performing spiritual practice ensures success

Although 7 of 10 are corrupt in any group, organisation, political party or Government, 2-3 are honest and try to be sincere. Of the 7, some are blatantly corrupt; whereas, some are compelled by their circumstances. Therefore, the actual number of the corrupt is less, and yet, because the corrupt have power and the strength of unity, they always have the upper hand. These aspects needs to be shaken up. If a Chief (for example – the President of an organisation) or the main individual in the Government is sincere, he can work honestly and get the work done.

Today, citizens feel that during the earlier Congress rule there were allegations of corruption, which used to get exposed. However, under the present BJP Government, there are no allegations of corruption on anyone. To say that there is no corruption now will be a bold statement. Even people know the truth. We have to take India ahead in great strides. We will have to free every field from corruption. Today, we find a vegetable vendor, a grocery shop owner, etc. cheating in weights and measures. In his rule, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had strictly warned His mavalas not to harass farmers. This means that corruption existed even during those times.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj tried to stop it because He abided by Dharma, was law-abiding himself and detached.

If we wish to elect such rulers, then citizens will have to fight the present system. The energy to fight the system can be obtained only through spiritual practice. One who performs spiritual practice is helped by God and becomes successful. If corruption is to really be eliminated, the citizens will have to compulsorily perform spiritual practice.

The energy to fight the system can be obtained only through spiritual practice. One who does, is helped by God !