"In every age the vilest specimens of human nature are to be found among the demagogues".
Thomas Macaulay
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I wouldn't dilly dally on who is the vilest man in India right now. It is Arvind Kejriwal, incarnation of purest form of evil - unadulterated and incorrigible. The reasons are many, some can be explained with facts and some with analysis. But he inarguably represents the worst of human faculty, and how a bit of position of power and public acceptance, can actually make a man viler than he ever was.
This anti-corruption messiah is anything but that. I don't know if he was this way all along. His Wikipedia page does carry an entry on "Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership" in 2006, which in my view has generally gone to highly deserving people. I can't even say if Arvind Kejriwal is an exception, but I can say with enough amount of certainty that he is unfit to be a leader of anything, including animals, leave alone people, for he exhibits none of the leadership traits one would normally associate with even an ordinary leader.
I still remember the day in 2011, just after India had won the ICC Cricket World Cup, the anti-corruption crusade touched the collective conscience of the entire nation (to borrow 'Arnold' Goswami). A friend of mine was an active participant in my home town in the India Against Corruption (IAC) meetings and fasts. People were sold on the 'modern day equivalent of fight for Country's independence'. Anna Hazare, was suddenly on the Facebook as the profile pic of scores of Indians. And in a week or so, I suddenly started seeing this man, Arvind Kejriwal, more than once. For all the integrity which Anna Hazare presumably had, he came across as someone wanting on cerebral faculty when it came to articulating his thoughts while talking to people or the media. His ignorance and naivety easily outdid his integrity, and this is where Arvind Kejriwal starting shining bright.
He appeared to be, then, very earnest, articulate and honest man. His voice and tone had none of that crudeness that one would associate with the political thugs. He was completely believable. Heck, I would have happily considered him my role model. In fact, around that time we had the great comparison between Arvind Kejriwal and Rahul Gandhi, on qualifications, accomplishments and actual performance on field, and it inevitably had a conclusion which easily favoured Arvind Kejriwal (for obvious reasons). I was favourably inclined towards Arvind Kejriwal and if I remember correctly, had shared the picture on the FB.
And it has been continuously downward journey every since that. I don't really worry about the countless "U Turns" he has taken. But I am hardly amused at his rubbish uttering and justifications for the same. He is that goddamn paid assassin of a truck driver who drives over people just for the heck of it, and end up justifying.
His recent abuses on the Prime Minister are barely a confirmation of whatever he was for ever. His vileness wasn't completely evident the day he floated a political party. It was just a signal to many that he isn't what he proclaims to be. "Mein Aam Aadmi Hoon" sounded revolutionary. It kind of turned the tables on the then Congress led UPA Government, arguably the lamest and morally corrupt Government in any part of the world at that point of time. His justification for setting up a political party was perfect! Only thing that it was the same thing that certain dumb political morons were saying to these activists. "Be part of the mainstream politics.", which people like Kejriwal steadfastly refused to be part of.
I could personally realize what kind of evil he was only when AAP led by this incorriglbe and corrupt managed to surprise many and grab around 27 or 28 seats in the Delhi Assembly Elections that preceded the Lok Sabha Election of 2014. It was not the victory. Even though I was suspicious of these people known for their selective activism, I was still happy for them since they represented some kind of change against the existing status quo. And any meaningful conclusion can be had only when they manage to run the Government for sometime.
It was the time when Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, protested in the road that I realized this man isn't any ordinary human, but a one with sinister mindset and a shrewd one at that. For a person who all along was blaming Sheila Dikshit for everything wrong in the National Capital, he still managed to get Congress support for becoming the CM. Later he probably realized that being Delhi CM is just a shade above being a Municipal Corporation Mayor, and utterly a powerless position. Just because our TRP starved, loss making media people continuously cover anything and everything at Delhi, and the frequent media mileage which a Delhi based politician typically get, Kejriwal probably thought that it would be a powerful post, only to realize the hard truth sometime later.
Now he can't go back and offer apologies to Sheila Dikshit. He can't even go back to the General Public and say that he can't do anything since the position itself is without any meaningful power or authority. That would go against the basic premise on which he had won considerable number of seats. He started acting in as much strange fashion as is possible, and started initiating actions including the now ill fated Jan Lokpal bill, which will surely fail, and he could still play victim.
It was like this. You are given a molehill to climb. You are incapable even for doing a walk. You don't want to expose yourself. So you say you will try climbing the Mount Everest. And you will obviously fail. But people will now think that he tried doing something extraordinary, and therefore, he should be encouraged or congratulated. And he precisely did that. And we had countless buffoons in the TV studios still praising the Satan for his efforts. Kejriwal's strategy was nothing short of perfect, and his execution was almost magical.
After a few weeks of daily natak, and dwindling TRP ratings on all his tamashas, he probably realized the diminishing marginal utility of his stunts, and he quit. He quit on the very same public of New Delhi, which had given such a massive support to a political newbie. As one thought that he will probably go back to the same public for a better support, to form a Government of majority, he set his sights on the Lok Sabha Elections.
That is when his hunger for power, and attention, and his constant and almost fetish like actions to hit on the powerful and the mighty to grab eyeballs, and portray himself as someone who is weaker, but yet managing to fight the stronger one, and therefore, the morally superior and powerful one kind of role, started becoming more and more evident. Who can ever forget his harebrained stunt of visiting the Gujrat to meet the then Chief Minister, Narendra Modi, without as much as a request for meeting, with a great entourage to question him on Governance?
He wanted to contest the Lok Sabha Elections, and knowing well that he and his party in any case will be doomed, decided to contest from Varanasi, from where Modi contested. Needless to say, Kejriwal lost by around four lakhs votes. And today, he speaks about Jaitley's lack of public reputation, because Jaitley lost by around 1L vote. One can't help but loathe this creature, which is scavenging around for opportunity to become more powerful, and yet play victim.
The day he decided to contest the Lok Sabha Elections with all kinds of false promises, quitting on the people of Delhi, I knew for good that we have probably the vilest Indian Politician ever. Lalu Yadavs, Rabri's, Reddy's and Karunanidhi's were simply washed away by a man who is such a smart evil that he politically monetizes every single opportunity, at the same time winning much public sympathy. Often I have wondered, if the people supporting him are so very dumb, or he so very smart. I have concluded that it is a mixture of both.
After sometime, and another bout of "allegations" and "media justice" followed. The Truck Driver Styled Hitman was back, and we had a daily dose of media interactions, and our useless media houses started accommodating this hero even more. And he wins the Delhi Elections second time around resoundingly, teaching all the educated, dimwitted idiots of other politicians, a lesson on faking throughout the action so that the people will give you that orgasmic victory. In the run up to the elections, his opposition unknowingly made the "Mufflerman", some kind of Super Hero.
This time though, he is playing even smarter, and constantly staying in media's attention. There was the sacking of the two trusted and founding members of AAP. There was the constant exit of many of the leaders of the party. There as a CBI raid on his Principal Secretary, and his foul mouthed rant. There was the odd even scheme (which our media suckers held as a grand victory within half a day). Then there was the next bomb that he and Manish Sisodia are the next target of CBI. Then there was this graveyard tourism to Hyderabad. And he comes with one thing or the other. But one common thread through all these are his obsession to stay in the limelight.
And I still can't believe what good some people see in him, including the educated and professionals. That is when I came across this piece of humor, which is more true than the Gospel -
"For those who wonder how people can still believe in Arvind Kejriwal, remember there are people who still believe in existence of Santa Clause"
In all through this, I was constantly reminded of scenes from a Vijayakanth movie "Perarasu", in which the principal antagonist Prakash Raj, playing a politician "Ilakkiyan" in that, starts off his political career as an activist. The village / town chieftain, played by Sarath Babu, impressed by Ilakkiyan's honesty and integrity, supports him, and helps him become an MLA. And then Ilakkiyan, has a change of heart, and joining hands with another politician kills village Chieftain. When he kills, he delivers a dialogue, explaining his true character, which pretty much sums of what Kejriwal was always all about (around 1 hour 22 Minutes in the video).
"Earlier I used to get agitated and angry at politicians, bosses and the rich. There used to be a fire in my belly. I thought it was a "Puratchi Thee" (revolutionary fire). Only later did I realize that it is "Poramai Thee" (Jealousy)."
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