Monday 30 March 2009

UP - A Haven for crooks?

I have been following the election drama in the news channels and all possible online newspapers and am seeing a pattern here..

Every crook that is entering politics seems to be getting a ticket from UP! Thank about it, Sanjay Dutt, who has lived all his life in Mumbai, suddenly realizes that he has 'roots' in Lucknow, calls it his 'second home'????



Azharuddin, somebody who could not even play sports with honesty has jumped in the fray - originally from Hyderabad, is now going to contest from Moradabad, UP! Wonder what roots he found there? I am sure they will think up something!!



And not to mention, Varun Gandhi - he probably has more of 'roots' in Pilibhit, as that was his mother's constituency.. As for whether, there is any other reason, he could be allotted that constituency - is anybody's guess!!


So what is it about UP, that seems to be attract every crook in town? Is it because the masses have been kept mired in illiteracy, casteism and regressive traditions, to ensure that they are easily swayed by our 'leaders'?? While I am not denying that every region has it's share of crooked politicians, I just wonder if it would have been so easy for Sanjay Dutt to go and contest in a place like, say, Bengal?

Isn't it, also not more than a little ironic, that the 2 states that send the maximum number of MPs to the Lok Sabha, seems to have the dirtiest politicians??

22 comments:

hitch writer said...

God save the people who elect these qualified politicians !! good luck to them !

However it seems they have to select the lesser evil... ~!

hitch writer said...

Cant believe Azhar is standing...

i was his biggest fan, tried to bat like him all my life...

always used to copy his way of keeping the collar up...

the way he walked... used to favour a leg on the field...

he was my cricket hero... for a large part of my child hood...

when his name came in the match fixing saga... i almost, almost gave up on cricket...

he was my biggest hero and he cheated me big time...

I just cannot believe that a guy like him can stand up...

Saritha said...

Azhar doesn't have any roots,if he had roots he couldn't have done what he did to indian cricket,it's a shame to contest a election that to from moradabad,maybe he is scared that no one will vote for him in hyderabad.
I think varun gandhi will be a closed chapter after the elections.
Anyone heard of jayapradha,she was removed from TDP and she is sitting MP from rampur,she evades paying taxes,her cinema halls in chennai were closed etc.These are our politician who run our country........

Smitha said...

@Dhiren, Exactly my sentiments.. Azharuddin was quite popular among so many Indians.. It is sad that people have to resort to corruption everywhere...And then have the gall to join politics where they are supposed to 'serve' the public?

@Varunavi, Clearly, they are scared of standing in the cities/towns where they belong as they clearly stand no chance of winning..
What bothers me is that UP seems to be easiest place to win! Its almost as if out political parties know that they can easily brainwash people there??

I was watching NDTV's We the People, where some people were actually saying that 'it's ok' if 20% of our politicians are crooks or corrupt! That worried and scares me!

Dhiren - The lesser evil, that we have been settling for all these years - I think thats part of the problem too..

hitch writer said...

a large part of the office going, educated and mordern world didnt want to vote... or felt it was useless... or just to bother some was what was a problem too...

though i get a feeling this time it will be addressed... with so many people deciding to vote... results will be different and i m sure the polling percentage will go up... once the polling percentage will go up automatically the elected people will feel the need to perform, as they won;t be winning by bogus votes or by helping just one section of the society...

this election will be different.. or so i hope !

Smitha said...

@Dhiren, So do I! I really think campaigns like 'Jaago Re' will make people think about voting.. The only thing is that is really does not end with voting.. Things will start to change only if we as a people, get more involved and start demanding our basic rights..

Pixie said...

Hmm... Scary thoughts really.. What if these people actually get elected?? *shudder*

I hope that this time at least people take the time to see and vote for the proper ones....

Vinod_Sharma said...

UP is not called "Ulta" Pradesh for nothing! SIMI was also born there and most of the those guys arrested for a series of blasts all over the country are from Uttar Pradesh, as are most of the underworld guys. Soon, if things are not checked, it might soon be known as "Ultra" Pradesh...

Indian Home Maker said...

Smitha one good thing is that some action is being taken :)

The UP government on Sunday invoked the provisions of the National Security Act against Varun Gandhi.

And Mr Dutt's wife will have to leave the kitchen behind as a sacrifice for her lord and his duties, in case the actor fails to get a clearance from the court to contest the Lok Sabha elections from the Lucknow constituency.

Saritha said...

I remember there was a chapter in civics in school which states that no person who has criminal background/person who has been in jail for x years(i dont remember how many years) can't contest in elections,it also states the age etc.Those civics books are also changed... someone pls give me info on this

Smitha said...

@Vinod, 'Soon, if things are not checked, it might soon be known as "Ultra" Pradesh...
Quite possible... Lets see how things turn out in these elections... hopefully, with people getting more vocal, things will start to change.

@IHM, Yes, thankfully some action is being taken.. But don't you think Varun Gandhi is being turned into some kind of a martyr with all that arrest tamasha? I just hope that this arrest does not turn out to be his silver lining - in that he wins - just because of all this propoganda - that would be the worst!

As for Sanjay Dutt, lets hope he gets barred too - but I'm quite sure, pati-vrata Manyata will jump in - to save her husband's honour and contesting on his behalf :(

@Varunavi, As far as I know, I believe, that anybody convicted for a crime for a period of 2 yrs or above is barred from contesting - Not completely sure - will look up and get back to you.

Smitha said...

@Pixie - Sorry missed replying to you. It sure is scary, but I think thats the reason, none of these people are contesting from the places that they belong to.. I think they have the confidence that they can hoodwink people in UP...

Indyeah said...

absolutely!just google Adityanath and Gorakhpur and see the links that come up. not to mention SIMI and the otehr fanatics out there...

Uttar Pradesh is quite backward when it comes to literacy...

Is it because the masses have been kept mired in illiteracy, casteism and regressive traditions, to ensure that they are easily swayed by our 'leaders'??

bang on!!
and all the parties are ready to take in anyone who has the slightest chance of getting them some votes!pathetic!

OG said...

:) yeah, god save us.....:) psthetic is all i have to say...

Smitha said...

@Indyeah, What really shocks me is that we are getting used to it.. When we have educated people saything that 'So what if 20% of our politicians are corrupt?' - we are already on our way down.. I was watching NDTV last night- and was shocked when I heard this..
As far as accept it - things will never change.. Lets see what happens in these elections..

@Ajit, God can't save us :) But we do have some good independant candidates, trying to make a difference.. I think, that is a commendable move..

Smitha said...

@Indyeah, I just googled 'Adityanath and Gorakhpur' and I am shocked - to say the least! How I wish, we had a truly secular democracy, with religion playing no role in public life...

Pradeep said...

So much effort is going into cleaning up Indian politics by getting young voters to vote. But unless we have a good set of people to vote for, what's the use?

With these guys standing, what hope we have? There are few upright guys standing, but my doubt is whether they will be allowed the space by the established guys. Doubtful. The few young MPs haven't had any say in politics.

Solilo said...

Looks like UP accepts all. Munnabhai, Azharuddin everyone wants a piece I mean seat from UP.

What's happening to my UP? It accepted me too but I am no crook. :)):))

Mavin said...

These are the badlands of India. The cow belt seems to be caught in a time warp.

Bad lands, bad man, bad neta...a sort of Gulshan Grover villian ka dialogue.

Smitha said...

@Pradeep, It is important for the youth to vote, even if we do not have good candidates as we need to get involved with the system for the system to change.. As long as we stay away from politics - things cannot change.. It goes beyond just voting..

@Solilo, lol! That was good! Yes, you are no crook :)Hopefully, one day it will change.. Apparently some heavy weight crooks in Bihar have been barred from contesting..

@Mavin, I do believe that things will change. If Bihar could get a Nitish - I am sure we have hope for UP..

Ajith said...

UP is safe heaven for most wannabe politicians and experienced ones in Gandhi family also. You have correctly listed the reasons - illiteracy, caste ism and regressive traditions. I am sure tht the politicians will keep it like that for another 100 years, so that their MP seats are intact.

Smitha said...

@Ajith, Welcome here! Sad state of affairs to be honest.. I do have some hope that things will change.. slowly but surely..