If Bhagat Singh, Savarkar and many others would have given preference to Profit and loss statements, Non-Agricultural lands and company formations, we would have been a colony of Great Britain even today. When political parties turn into corporate, the public becomes the consumer who is used for profits. And this applies to all in power positions. The Army of every country is expected to safeguard the nation from its enemies. Politicians are given the duty to work towards the welfare and progress of the citizens of the country. Both armed forces and political leaders are equally responsible for building the nation’s future. How they design and define the systems will decide the quality of our living. While the army marches and dies whenever required, are the politicians doing the needful? A public servant is married to the nation and is expected to perform his/her duties with dedication and honesty. But a maximum number of people joining politics do not enter it with the idea of social service or nation-building. Money and power are the real factors to achieve their unreasonable life demands. People worship stars and leaders like God. That’s exactly what we see when big leaders announce rallies. Followers make time to visit these rallies by investing their time and energy.
Raj Thackeray has been blessed with a fan following who craves even a glance of their leader. Until now, he has not given anything to his party people yet. They function more like volunteers and their love for their hero keeps them active. He has not got a chance to be in the ministry and serve Maharashtra. However, he has the oratory to create hope in the otherwise hopeless people who can bear their today, while they are waiting for a better tomorrow that they visualise. The public looks at him as someone who will bring about a change. His followers have stuck around unconditionally with hope. These hopes should be addressed in some ways, not for any gain but as a token of love to all those who blindly trust.
Yesterday’s Gudhi Padwa Sabha of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena was an example of the love and devotion that his followers have for him. The unfortunate part about Raj Thackeray’s speech yesterday was that he also spent the most time discussing the family feud like all others. All the leaders who have been expelled or have left Shiv Sena, consume more energy on the explanation of the past than on discussion of the present and planning for the future. His followers were expecting some guidelines from their hero which was missing. Sandeep Deshpande, his loyalist was attacked, but there was no mention of it. The public was eager to hear about the incident. He skipped taking a few names deliberately. One issue got praise. The issue of the illegal land acquisition in the Mahim sea and the Pakistani flag being put up there was an instant hit. Action has been taken and we can consider this as progress. But the speech was wrapped up fast and felt incomplete to many. It did not give closure. The silver lining was that he is showing his power time and again, irrespective of elections and votes. And he manages to maintain this love relationship with his followers for many years.
But the fact remains, when you are a political leader, you have to know that you are given the love and power to do something extraordinary for the public that they can’t do for themselves. When political parties start functioning like proprietary concerns or private limited companies, they forget that the largest stakeholder is the public and not their children and relatives. A real leader works for his territory, not for wealth accumulation. Till Balasaheb was alive, Shiv Sena was a political party and a social service association. After him, it seemed like a proprietorship company and with time passing time, it proved to be a Private Ltd entity. All those who laughed at Raj Thackeray when he left Shiv Sena, will now have a different opinion about his exit. It’s high time Raj Thackeray stops discussing the Thackeray Pvt Ltd matters and gives all his energy to the youth that’s banking upon him. Maharashtra is waiting for his next speech for better takeaways.
A good leader does anything and everything that’s best for his nation, his party and the people who trust him. Taking a step back gracefully also can be considered Statesmanship. Three cheers to all the leaders who have done this and best wishes to all those who are looking forward to becoming a better version of themselves. Politics is public and unlimited. Anything that is private and limited will shatter.