Power corrupts & absolute power corrupts absolutely Lord Acton
January 8th, 2015, is a red letter day in South Asian
history; after all the mighty Mahinda Rajapaksa was defeated in the
Presidential race by a relative unknown Maitripala Sirisena; the latter was incidentally a minister in the former’s
cabinet till he defected to the opposition’s ranks just before the elections
& achieved a stupendous victory. Rajapaksa accepted defeat & promised a
smooth transition but his gesture which evinced initial appreciation was soon
sullied by an unverified accusation of an aborted attempt by the first family to
retain power through military intervention. The steadfastness of the army chief
– it is alleged – not to tinker with a democratic process averted a catastrophe.
The new dispensation has announced its intention to launch an impartial
enquiry.
The drama continues. The
sudden disappearance of KP (K Padmanabhan), just after the election results
were announced, has surprised many. He was one of the accused in the Rajiv
Gandhi assassination case, not repatriated to India by the Sri Lankan
Government despite several requests & is now assumed to have found safe sanctuary
in either China or Pakistan - states inimical to India’s interests. KP was the chief arms procurer of the Tamil terrorist
outfit, LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealem), till he was captured in a
south east Asian country in 2009 & post co-operating with the government,
ostensibly released, in 2012, to run his NGO (Non-Government Organization)
activities in Killinochi. He was used to finish off the last remnants of the
LTTE & perhaps used to make a surreptitious attempt to influence the Tamil
minority during the elections. The conspiracy theories are therefore flying
thick & fast.
Against this background, it
is pertinent to note that the ruling party in India –the BJP -& the government
have not acquainted themselves well for they got their assessment of the
electoral results completely wrong. Arvind Gupta, the head of the BJP’s IT cell
was deputed to help Rajapaska with his social media strategy; after the former’s
impressive performance, as part of the Modi’s electoral team, in the just
concluded parliamentary elections in May 2014. Salman Khan, surprisingly, canvassed
for Rajapaksa, perhaps, with the concurrence of the government, although the
media tom-tommed that it was his co-star, Jacqueline Fernandez, who prompted
such a move. Surely, Salman, who is facing legal troubles, would not have done
anything that would annoy the government.
The hot political climate in
the sub-continent is replete with conflicting narratives; the counter narrative,
to the one listed above is that India was annoyed with Rajapaksa because of his
pro-China tilt & willingness to be part of the “Strings of Pearls” strategy
to contain India. Added to that was the irritant of non-devolution of powers to
the Tamils in the North & East which heated up the political landscape in
Tamil Nadu, much to the chagrin of the BJP which is planning to be a major
political force in the southern state. Likewise, the US has been at the
forefront, trying to implicate Sri Lanka on the human rights violations front while
the OIC (organization of Islamic Countries) was annoyed because the pro Buddhist,
Bodu Bala Sena, was being allowed a free run by the government to torment the
Muslim minority. It is suggested that all these three interest groups joined
hands & used their assets in Sri Lanka to help Sirisena win. All this
cannot be ruled out as a figment of imagination for external interventions are
but a part of covert diplomacy.
While the reasons could be
many, it is a fact that family rule, corruption & denial of minority rights
finished off Rajapaksa. Infrastructure development, high growth rates &
strong leadership could not come to his rescue. The great fall of Mahinda
Rajapaksa is but a reminder that the citizenry across countries seek
compassionate & progressive leadership
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