Lessons from the 2G Spectrum Scam (contd.)

The scam is so pernicious and deep that it is impossible to grasp fully the significance of the entire scandal. Failure of governance has never been so outrageous. Economic loss to the nation is enormous. The prime minister's role (or should we say non-role) has caused dismay all over the country. How could a supposedly honest leader be a helpless bystander when his team-mate was literally running amuck? Some columnists have averred that this could have happened only at the instance of some one more powerful than the prime minister himself.

Let us not blame only the Congress and the DMK for the abysmal fall in political standards. The BJP which used to claim that it was a party with a difference is shamelessly proving by its behaviour in Karnataka that it is an equal match for the Congress party. Politcs cannot become dirtier than this.

There are also disturbing reports that even some eminent journalists of the electronic media have had a role in rehabilitating proven scamsters in the central cabinet. It is easy to turn pessimistic in a situation like this. At the same time, one may also hope that things can only become better.