Good riddance

One of the most valued qualities in people is grace. Its absence arouses discomfort, embarrassment, irritation, frustration and more. Given his long career in diplomacy, one would have expected Natwar Singh to have at least acquired, in case he was not naturally blessed with it, a minimum degree of graceful behaviour. Instead, as the recent events involving him and the Volcker report on the Oil For Food scams have shown, he has conducted himself in the most disgraceful manner possible. Propriety demanded that he should have resigned as soon as it became known that the Volcker report contained his name. Far from doing that, Mr Singh went on a wholly unjustified offensive. As a result, he stands isolated and reviled, looking foolish and without not just a job but any kind of influence in the Congress party. It has been a sad end for what was a moderately distinguished career built on loyalty to the Gandhi family. He has now discovered that even the most loyal servitors are no more than just that, and when they cross certain lines, they have to be shown the door. With this the inquiries by Justice Pathak and Mr Dayal have become more a matter of academic interest. The political explosiveness of the scandal has been dampened almost wholly. The Opposition will of course try and keep the issue alive but it will be wasting its time and should let Parliament get on with its work.

If Mr Singh behaved stupidly, the only thing that can be said about his party is that it stopped itself from doing the same thing in time. It will be recalled that its first response to the Volcker report had been one of dismissive denial. In fact, the Prime Minister had, wholly unnecessarily, made a statement that the Volcker report proved nothing conclusively and therefore there was no reason to ask for Mr Singh's resignation. In the subsequent days the official line was moderated and it soon became clear that the powers that be were steadily distancing themselves from Mr Singh. This has led to considerable speculation about the reasons. The most charitable of these is that Sonia Gandhi has decided that it is critically important to change the manner in which the public perceives her party. Over the years, the Congress has come to be seen as a staunch defender of its loyal servants even when they have been shown to be undeserving of such defence. This has made the public see the party as perhaps the most corrupt amongst all important political parties, even if the distinction between it and the others is only that of a whisker. Through the exit of Mr Singh from the government, Ms Gandhi has sent out a clear message that in the future acts of omission and commission that result in the party's image being besmirched will not be tolerated. Given the Prime Minister's perceived political clout, even small steps in this direction will have a visible public impact. Ms Gandhi deserves to be congratulated on having broken what the country had come to regard as an inviolate practice. The only political party to have come out looking completely silly is the CPI(M), whose general secretary publicly attacked the Volcker report as being an instrument of imperialism. It and Mr Singh can now offer each other tea and sympathy.