Two events in the past fortnight stand out: India winning the cricket World Cup on April 2 in Mumbai and activist Anna Hazare bowling a non-violent Gandhian googly, which resulted in the Manmohan Singh government being caught on the wrong foot.
Who would have imagined on August 15, 1947 – the day India was declared independent – that so English a game as cricket would become such an enduring and widespread sports phenomenon? It is a wholly unexpected “raj legacy”. Gone is cricket racialism, which was so rampant till a few decades ago. Imagine a South African coaching the Indian cricket team and being carried on shoulders by them — it was inconceivable even two decades ago.
I do not see cricket fatigue taking over in the near future. People are more familiar with the names of Dhoni, Tendulkar, Sehwag and Zaheer Khan than they are with any member of the Manmohan Singh government. Purists probably feel uncomfortable with these icons becoming millionaires, or being elevated to the Bollywood stars’ league. I see nothing reprehensible in the super-star status being conferred on them. Film stars shoot one scene a dozen times. This is not the case with our cricket stars – no room for “cut” and “shoot” again. They perform before 50,000 to 100,000 spectators. Imagine the tension that must grip these immensely talented young men — success is never insured; defeat is always lurking around the wicket. Talent, nerves, hours of practice and luck go into the making of great cricketers. If even one of these is missing then it’s all over. Sehwag can score 309 runs in one Test match and get out without scoring anything in the other. Glory and agony go together.
I watched the finals of the 1983 World Cup at Lord’s. No one expected India to win after such a poor total score — 183. But our cricketers did beat the unbeatable West Indians. On the flight back to Delhi I had the “pleasure” of Kapil Dev’s company. I have put the word pleasure in inverted commas. Why? Because we did not exchange words. Dev was the last to arrive on the plane. Even before the plane took off, he was fast asleep and remained in that blissful state for the next nine hours.
Moving on to Anna Hazare, will his mini-Gandhian upsurge become a victim of the law of diminishing returns? It can, if not handled properly. It has not been hijacked so far. And the reason is simple. Anna Hazare, the most unlikely of heroes, cannot be hijacked. He caught the imagination of the youth of urban India. Had his fast lasted longer, the message – which was to fight corruption – would have spread far beyond the city dwellers. Hazare’s timing was brilliant. The electronic media, one channel in particular, saw the movement’s potential very early. The others followed suit. The UPA government dithered, created confusion, contradicted itself and seemed inept because its approach lacked coherence. It was Anna Hazare who was calling the shots throughout. A note of caution: Annaji speak less. And the unspoken word is your slave; the spoken one is your master.
The Lokpal story has now become real. The committee of ten has its task cut out. Its deliberations will be closely monitored and widely watched. Many questions will be raised. Should civil servants come under the Bill? If they do, will they give their opinions freely or become overcautious? Should corporate India be included? And what about NGOs? What will Parliament do with the findings and recommendations of the committee? The grey areas are numerous. Will it be empiricism or pragmatism? Will the committee come up with unanimous conclusions or produce two separate reports? These are devilishly complex issues. And there are no instant solutions here.
Now let’s talk about BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It is a formidable grouping. These countries have two things in common: enough money and muscle. No country or group of countries can push BRICS around. And that’s an undeniable reality. The national agenda of each country is inevitably different. Their vital national interests are not similar. But vital interests, too, undergo changes. It’s far too early to pass judgement on the future of BRICS. Let’s wait and watch.
TAILPIECE
On April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin created history in space. Nikita Khrushchev, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, gave a reception at the Kremlin to honour the cosmonaut. At the end of the reception, Khrushchev took Gagarin aside and asked him, “Yuri, did you see God up there? Tell me the truth.” Yuri nervously replied, “Comrade General Secretary, I did not.” Khrushchev heaved a sigh of relief and said, “I thought so. But don’t say this to the Pope when you see him next week.” When later the Pope asked the same question, Gagarin replied, “Holy Father, I did not.” The Pope, too, heaved a sigh of relief and said, “I thought so.”
