Dr Kalam and the politics of presidency
By Sekhar Datta

Mahatma Gandhi's tragic assassination on the fateful January 30 1948 had sparked indignant and stunned reactions across the world but with his razor-sharp wit the Irish playwright and Nobel laureate George Bernard Shaw had captured the real mood . 'The assassination of Gandhi in all its gory details shows how dangerous it is to be too good' Shaw had observed in his cryptic reaction. There is also an age old adage : 'it is good to be great but it is greater to be good'. But is it really so? There is a fundamental contradiction in the idea-goodness and greatness do not always go together and, much as greatness may be bereft of any element of goodness, goodness is no guarantee for greatness. It is all a matter of perception and highly relative in connotation.

Leaving aside the hair-splitting arguments over esoteric ideas, what are we to make out of the sad spectacle in the national politics of presidency?. Since a choice of the next occupant of the Raisina hills had become imminent the country has been witness to a bizarre drama with leading protagonists singing in different tunes and making conflicting postures . 'Shivraj Patil is Sonia Gandhi's first choice' a newspaper headline had blared out as early as in the first week of May. The reaction it evoked was not comforting for a host of reasons. Shivraj has already proved himself as arguably the worst performer in the sensitive union home ministry, he has failed on almost all fronts but he enjoys committed backing and support of all-important Madam. 'He has to nod so frequently and so heavily in approval whenever he is in the gracious and exalted presence of Madam Gandhi that he is all set to contract spondylitis soon ' reported a leading national daily , quoting as usual a highly placed source in the Congress 'on condition of anonymity'. Shivraj also performed a 'Yagna' (sacrifice) in his Delhi home to propitiate malevolent supernatural influences so that his journey to Raisina hill and the pages of history became smooth . But all his initiatives ended in smoke as Madam thought otherwise. 

Speculation ruled the roost as Pranab Mookherjee's name was pitchforked into prominence as the choice of the UPA allies for occupancy of the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Puerile subnationalism was at its height as the Calcutta-based dailies harped on the tune : first Bengali likely to hold the highest position in the country. Public memory is notoriously short but how people conveniently forgot or wrapped under carpet the same Pranab Mookherjee's extremely dubious record as a major player in Indira Gandhi's repressive regime , specially during the emergency days , shady record as finance minister and shameless promotion of Dhirubhai Ambani and his industrial empire-in lieu of suitable rewards , needless to say-will haunt many . Secularist Arjun Singh's pangs of ambition had never really been articulated save by a few hangers-on but this fell flat on Madam's reportedly avowed anathema to the man who had narrowly escaped gubernatorial exile by springing the reservation surprise on an unsuspecting nation . 'Rashtrapati Bhawan can not be a rehabilitation centre for the physically handicapped and senile'-was how one of wily Arjun's inner-party enemies was reported to have commented. Arjun by all accounts can not stir up even from his chair without leaning on a walking stick.

Having considered all the pros and cons ,therefore, Madam zeroed in on Pratibha Patil to pip the allies to the post by hijacking the gender sensitivity and compassion plank . A lady of hardly any consequence , Pratibha Patil may pose a problem of upkeep to the bureaucracy in Raisina hill on account of her considerably numerous family, as one newspaper photograph showed, but she is sure to be an eminently servile and accreditated custodian of 10 Janpath's safest base camp in Rashtrapati Bhawan. Gyani Zail Singh had once thrown protocol to the winds and come forward to open the door of Indira Gandhi's car after the lady had called at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, presumably to flaunt his undying loyalty to the dynasty . One should not be amazed at similar spectacles in future .

 
An apt and tragic epitaph on the president's election this year is inescapable : a  nation that fail to recognise and honour its noble sons is destined to languish in mediocrity. The solemn farce surrounding the election of next president has however spawned a striking reality to the fore : the majority of Indians-more than fifty three percent , according to one opinion poll-root for a richly deserved second term for Dr A.P.J.Abdul Kalam.

Since Dr Rajendra Prasad no central government has allowed a second term for a president but the majority of Indians wanted an exception this time. A man who personifies all that is great and noble in Indian civilization, culture and values Dr Kalam is far above petty politicking and power-brokery and it is good that he has refused to stoop to the level of contesting against a feather-weight though it is tempting to believe that his presence in the fray would have caused considerable jitters and a possible upset. The political posturing over the president's election has however brought to the fore the fundamental disconnect in contemporary India between popular perception and political decision-making- never a healthy trend in a democratic polity. The lone consolation is that saintly Dr Kalam who in his all-sacrificing life-style and brilliant contribution to the development of science and technology in India reminds one of ancient sage Baudhayan will still be as creative as ever in his days of retirement. His 'Wings of Fire' will certainly propel him to produce yet another masterpiece with a few pages devoted to his days in the confines of Rashtrapati Bhawan. He is simply too good and too great to be of choice to the country’s political class.