Be Happy – We May Make Our Nation Happier.

Yesterday, it was 64^th Republic Day of our Great Bharat that is called as India.

With a lot of struggle almost by all the sections of our society, we achieved the freedom and the reins of governance came in the hands of the persons elected by the people. Our dreams were there and the zeal too for implementation. For long, our forefathers struggled in their simplicity and after getting freedom, in majority of the principles of governance the same attitude prevailed. But human psychology in the changing times did not permit and in result, we found that the simplicity was encroached upon by the greed of power and those who wished to have power used all kinds of methods to achieve and retain it anyhow. We forgot the ideals of Ram Rajya and those conceived by our freedom fighters.

Today, we find that in course of time, the public life has become a matter of formal obligations only; we face lack of our emotions with others and became more self-centric. The family values are diminishing. Generally, we assign this depreciation to growing effect of the western culture on the eastern culture. But it is not so, both cultures have their own merits. It is we who select what to adopt.

Presently, Bharat in all its aspects is plunging ever deeper into a multiplicity of crises that needs attention and questioning its governing principles, practices and institutions. Our democratic system is said to have four main pillars to stand on – Law Makers, Law Implementation Agency, Judiciary and Media. All the four pillars have got their roles well defined to maintain balance. If anyone(s) of them is found not performing the duties properly, that would definitely create problems.

Today, we find that in the law making bodies, there are a number of persons who have got criminal allegations against them. The politics has become so dirty that its practitioners, called politicians do not get into power by merit alone. They exercise and use money and muscle power. The law implementation body which we may call as the group of bureaucrats has lowered their goodwill to such extent that a simple person does not think simply that he would get his due rightfully unless he spends something extra either in shape of money, kinds or some other way. The majority of the bureaucrats have got such a gruesome system developed with the law making persons that does not provide relief to a common man easily. Judiciary is there where a common man was expecting some solace but that too has entangled itself in the methods and intricacies of the law so bitterly that a common person does not feel easy to afford an opportunity to get some relief from the web knitted by the politicians and the bureaucrats. Media has for some time been found active to disclose the wrongs being committed by the politicians and the bureaucrats but in course of time, some of them are enjoying gifts for the paid news and many times the truth comes in front only when the deal does not mature. In total, the present state of affairs does not speak well about the future in case we do not take corrective action immediately.

When we talk of the nation, we talk of the society as well. How we are maintaining our family, how we are dealing with other families or members thereof depends very much upon our innate behavior with them. We know that innate behavior is the inherent inclination of a living organism toward a particular complex behavior. Any behavior is instinctive if it is performed without being based upon prior experience (that is, in the absence of learning), and is therefore an expression of innate biological factors. Sea turtles, newly hatched on a beach, will automatically move toward the ocean. Honeybees communicate by dancing in the direction of a food source without formal instruction. Other examples include animal fighting, animal courtship behavior, internal escape functions, and the building of nests.

It appears that due to long period of slavery, our innate behavior did not change and even after getting freedom, we did not attach importance to our rights and duties as much they were warranted for being a responsible citizen of a free nation. The freedom was granted to us with a plethora of the problems like illiteracy, poverty, unemployment, social imbalances, gender differences etc.

It is a matter of some satisfaction that now, with the passage of more than six decades, a larger section of the people has started to understand the value of the rights granted under the Constitution. We have just seen the movements created by Anna Hazare, Ram Deo, Arvind Kejriwal and thereafter, the spontaneous reaction of the youth against the Dec 16 gang-rape. It indicates a beginning of the change when the youth appeared to have taught the older generation. But the Police including their top brass like DGPs, ministries and the governing class could not deliver what they were expected.

Today, we need total cleansing of our system. We need stiffer provision for banning entrance of the criminals into law making bodies, use of the money and muscle power into election process and ensuring better representation of the public instead of hair-thin majority, right of calling back, limited tenures, minimum education level, retirement age and other reforms for the persons aspiring to enter into law making bodies. Politicization of crime must stop. At present politicians are disqualified for elections if there is conviction; they should be disqualified once cognizance of offence is taken by the court, you don't have to wait for the trial to end. Police reforms a must for preservation of rule of law. Law enforcement agencies must not become tools in the hands of political masters.

For law implementation bodies, we need the persons’ answerability for the duties assigned for implementation of the policy by corruption free and time-bound working. For judiciary, I feel that this pillar, the judiciary has the primary responsibility of ensuring fundamental rights through constitutional remedies. The CJI can take suo motu cognizance and social activists should assist the court. The Chief Justice of the high court of every state should device appropriate machinery for quicker and cheaper delivery of the justice by setting up benches in divisional headquarters all over the States. The Judiciary must change its attitude of following the system as such. It should keep care that natural justice should come up in front of the cumbersome procedures and the victims should not continue to suffer.  The FIR of each crime must be registered online to avoid delay and corruption. The Government can designate cyber cafes and set up retail outlets for registering the FIR online anytime. The fee of the advocates must be decided reasonably and every member of the judiciary must declare the assets acquired from time to time.

The Government should ensure that academic and vocational education be made compulsory for every child irrespective of the caste, color and creed. Health facilities are provided free of cost to all those who are living below poverty line. All marriages in the country, should be solemnized after ascertaining financial soundness and medical perfection of the both and mandatorily be registered in the presence of a magistrate and the magistrate will ensure that the marriage has been solemnized without any demand for dowry having been made and that the marriage has taken place with the full and free consent of both partners. Inter caste marriages must be promoted.

Juvenile homes should be run in the spirit envisaged in the Juvenile Justice Act so that juvenile homes should not become breeding grounds of all sorts of sex crimes. Trafficking of minor children must be made a serious offence, to be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than seven years, but which may also extend to 10 years. If any police officer, public servant is found trafficking a child there should be a stricter sentence against him.

The girls should be given training in Krav Maga (a non-competitive eclectic self-defence system developed in Israel that involves boxing, muay Thai, jiu-jitsu and wrestling) and the boys upto 18 years must join NCC. Public places must be kept under constant vigil to avoid the bad elements’ working there. The people must be encouraged to use public conveyance. Cultural exchanges and sports must be promoted more. The government/NGOs must ensure that every city must have a well equipped library. Girls’ hostels, working women’s hostels, old age shelter houses and orphanages must be maintained well.

We can enumerate a number of steps more but we need sincere efforts for their implementation in national interests. Once we are able to introduce sincerity in our character for a noble and national cause, we would really be able to celebrate our national festivals more truly.