Subhash Rai: Journalist from India

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Archive for 2011

Not quite the debate on the ills of parliament

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When the former cabinet secretary, T S R Subramanian, asks: Has Parliament lost all its significance? One does realise that things have gone awry. Not just in parliament, but also in the elite’s unabashed penchant for stating “nothing” rather profoundly.
While he notes that the past 30 years as being particularly bad, Subramanian doesn’t contrast the fall in esteem of parliament lately with that of the “honourable” conduct of parliamentarians just after the stroke of the midnight hour. Instead he mentions Benjamin Franklin and Disraeli! Satyamurti comes up at the rear end of of the list. But Piloo Mody of course gets special mention.
Subramanian has missed out on the Indian parliament’s glorious history. His ideological myopia dissuades him from naming the likes of Hiren Mukherjee, who has otherwise won wholesome praise from even rabid reactionaries. Subramanian wouldn’t of course be expected to name the likes of Nehru or Ambedkar!
The former cabinet secretary has post-retirement found a vocation as a columnist, but he could do a lot better if he didn’t inflict readers with incomplete analyses, even if biased. It would have really helped enhance the debate on a genuine disquiet facing India.

Written by Subhash

February 23rd, 2011 at 10:47 am

Posted in Politics