Why India needs Anna.... but probably doesn't deserve him.

Over the last week India has witnessed gentle but telling protests on the streets over the Anti-Corruption Bill that's been introduced by the government. And it's been led by a frail septuagenarian by the name of Anna Hazare. A man who, until a few weeks ago, was a largely unknown entity (freedom fighter? what's that?) in the political consciousness of millions of ordinary Indians, but is probably now known to as many.

It's quite interesting to see that for as many millions of people rooting for his "movement" (it's too early to call it a revolution), there are just as many doubters and critics who believe that India doesn't need a movement and it certainly doesn't need a 76 year old Gandhian to rid the nation of corruption. That it's a just a silly side-show that's not worth the price of admission.

Then there are some who argue with the logic that charity begins at home, so it's enough to stop the common practice of bribing corrupt officials to get a job done. No movement or protests required whatsoever! Ha! If only it were so simple.

For one thing, they fail to address the reason why people pay bribes. It's not because they want to, it's because it's the only way to get things done in the system, most of the times. The house you are living in right now, for instance. No doubt you paid the builder a "deposit", a euphemism for black money, which the builder claims he needs to pay off various people in the government machinery to get the building alloted. Technically, you haven't paid a bribe, but indirectly you have. Need to get a ration card/passport but don't satisfy every single of the dozen odd arbitrary conditions? Prepare to pay up. What alternative do you have? Tell the authorities? Aha! But who? You see, the bureaucratic system isn't designed to make it any easier to not pay. Au contraire! Pay or die, in a manner of speaking.

Which brings us to this bill. No, it's not going to solve all our corruption problems. Let's not be so naive! To truly solve corruption, the government needs to change the bureaucratic system to make it easier for everyone to get the things they want. If all it takes is a few documents and a quick visit to the local office to get a job sorted out, without paying anybody, do you really think people will resort to bribes? If you think so, you need to remember that most things in nature prefer the path of least resistance. I mean, look around you. Aren't you surrounded by things that make it easier for you to live? Survive? Entertain? People inevitably take the path that leads to least suffering. Jesus and Gandhi were exceptions.

A strong anti-corruption bill will do a couple of things: 1) Make people think twice about accepting and paying bribes. 2) Create an autonomous authority to which people can report problems. Currently, only a couple of states have a strong independent Anti-Corruption Bureau. However, as events in Karnataka have illustrated, they are ill-equipped when it comes to taking on the government itself on corruption cases. Surely, that's a start? A start worth fighting for?

Hopefully, the government will also take steps to rehaul the system itself. To make people accountable. To make things less bothersome and painful for ordinary people who just want to get along with their lives. I mean, that's what we all want, right? The bill is a start, nothing more. Both critics and supporters need to understand this. There are other battles ahead, but if we all can't agree on this single first step, I fear we won't be getting very far!

So, I don't understand the negativity surrounding the recent protests. Just because people are rallying to a call, and have found a leader to follow, and are active about it on social networks (Facebook seems to be a dirty word these days), doesn't make the essence of the matter any less relevant or important. Let's not miss the woods for the trees. Such opportunities don't come often, and leaders like Anna are a rare dying breed. If we don't rally now, we never will!