Mumbai, 7 December 2013

Former Union Minister Arun Shourie on Friday delivered a lecture on ‘governance deficit’, organised by the Observer Research Foundation at KC college, Mumbai. Following are insightful takeaways from his speech:

-The current investor climate in India can be attributed to the fact that the government has evaporated. The downturn has nothing to do with the economy, it has to do with the evaporation of a government; and every minister became the government, every investigating agency became the government.

-Narendra Modi uses an interesting analogy to describe bad governance, he says it’s like diabetes, once it enters the body, it invites all other diseases. Today, you can reverse the current economic sentiments, but what you require is a strong Prime Minister, a PM who is there, and you need a strong PM’s office.

-To get the economy moving, a list of things that can be done without legislation should be drawn out because Parliament is not functional; and it will not be allowed to function even after the election.For instance, if Narendra Modi comes to power, the Congress and Samajwadi (Party) won’t allow it to function. So, whoever comes, should make a list of things that can be done in every sector without legislation. The quality of persons in Parliament is such that they do not have the competency to assess issues from the national perspective. Today, the government is already in a quasi-presidential system. In fact, you tell me a state in which the cabinet matters, only the CM matters and sometimes even CMs don’t.

-One should ignore the opposition party, be it Congress or BJP and make the CMs’ partners in governing India. Many CMs, including the CM of Maharashtra, run states bigger than most European countries. But they have to troupe to the Planning Commission for annual plan discussion, why can’t the latter come to them?

-Another focus area should be to have a dialogue with the judiciary. I have not met a judge who has been to a factory and even their casual remark can stop factories. We must bring them into the real world. In infrastructure, damage has been done by few ministers and by few enthusiastic judges. You cannot have across the board rulings which stops everything. In cases like reservation, environment, they are carried away by rhetoric or by the case at hand.

-Till 1970, there was an active debate in India on whether we need another Constitution. Jayprakash Narayan had proposed a complete overhaul of the system. Indira Gandhi’s cousin B K Nehru, an eminent civil servant, had pleaded for switching over to the Presidential system.After the 42nd amendment brought in by Indira Gandhi nobody thought of having a second look at the Constitution.When Vajpayee and Advani set up the Venkatchaliah Commission, it was attacked so ferociously that it did not examine the structure (of the Constitution) but just wrote footnotes to existing Articles.We must revive that debate. We are already in a quasi presidential system. What is parliamentary is our method of obstruction.So many facts of the present system are not known. You call this a Parliamentary system….. In a previous Lok Sabha, 99.4 per cent members were elected on minority vote.

From Twitter

-‘India actually has a Presidential form of Governance, Parliamentary process is just a way of obstruction’ – Arun Shourie

-Arun Shourie: India can be set right in 3 months, work existing institutions, much work can be done without legislation.

-The 10 Ravanas who are omnipresent and debating on all TV channels simultaneously, should be slain by the remote. Switch off

-Ayodhya movement was necessary to recalibrate and arrest the perversion in secular discourse.

-Bal Thackrey said he had the remote control. You have one too in your home, use it and switch off the TV! Read a book!

-When honest public officer targeted, please visit him, touch him, honor him, appreciate him personally for what they have done.

-Politics is not just electoral politics, but involvement in public life.