It should have been obvious to all that according to the Indian constitution, sovereignty rests with the people, and the Parliament represents them. The Indian constitution begins with the line “we the people” it does not say “we the Parliament”. Parliament”, “Anna Hazare should talk to the standing committee”, and the like. It is again the technocratic-bu reaucratic-econ omist-manage- rial mindset that seeks to deal with a political tactic like fast unto death with arguments like the “Parliament is sovereign”, it is “peo- ple It is only the bureaucratic-technocratic-economist-managerial mindset that could have stopped enquiry into a simple issue li ke the Batala House encounter, as it would “lower the morale of the police” it is again the same mindset that would think of sending the army to combat Maoism in Chattisgarh and Central India politi- cians of yore would have laughed at clichés mounted by contem- porary political honchos as the ABC of politics tells you that in a Parliamentary democracy what the electorate wants is more impor- tant than administrative issues, like police morale, and you do not send armies to resolve contradictions with your own people. The organizing skills of an advertiser, the smooth English of party spokespersons, the economist’s approach towards political issues, the administrative approach towards people’s issues, the technocratic juggling of numbers, the bureaucratic interpretation of constitutional issues was con- sidered more important than a direct feedback from people and their socio-economic life. We were told with repeated emphasis that what politics needs is deft management and gloss, not the dust and heat of streets, alleys and vil- lages. Time and time again commentators and columnists used to remind us that since eco- nomic liberalisation pumped in capital in the Indian market and society, the era of mass protests and people-oriented politics is over. But this same media, over the past two decades, was painting an entirely different picture before Indians. The media today would like to see itself as the har- binger of the revival of the Indian street. Ill a chubby, fragile, ageing Gandhian reminded India the power of mass movements, several myths about political action had built up, especially since the begin- ning of the liberalisation era in the early 1990s.
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