If an athlete exceeds the weight limit by a few grams, she is disqualified.
Years of gruelling struggle, their skill and aspirations are cruelly rendered worthless. She is not only denied the medal that she legitimately deserved, she is thrown out of the world’s greatest sporting carnival to deal with disappointment and disgrace in agonising isolation.
What if a judge is caught with conscience deficit weighing 100 tonnes while delivering justice? What does he get in return? A coveted post-retirement assignment in reward, or a Rajya Sabha nomination?
What if a bureaucrat is found exceeding his limits to please the political master through an amoral act weighing a quintal? The most sought-after posting, in addition to immunity from legal consequences?
What if a journalist violates ethics in sycophancy of the rulers, demonstrating amorality worth 100 kilograms in terms of weight? An interview with the prime minister, or loads of cash?
Empirical evidence suggests others do not suffer similar consequences for crimes much bigger than a sportsperson faces for an indiscretion worth 100 grams.
How many times do we see politicians making blatantly false promises which are forgotten after coming to power? You can feel your ears burning with fake words like “we will bring back black money and distribute it among the people.” Shouldn’t the government be disqualified if citizens die of hunger, because no hospitals give them admission, because of oxygen crisis? Aren’t these crimes worse than exceeding a weight mark by 100 grams?
Is democracy a cunning ploy to protect the powerful behind the deceptive propaganda – of the people, by the people, for the people? Have lawmakers been fooling the citizens for centuries by not subjecting themselves to the same ruthless principle of accountability that the common man is forced to face?
The unwritten rule of the railway minister resigning because of frequent train accidents emanated from political morality that gave accountability a sacred place in democracy. But this sacred principle has been forgotten and buried as politics of deception shrouded political morality. This created a culture where bad judges, unethical journalists, corrupt bureaucrats and evil politicians became useful and started dominated the structures of power.
The time has come to apply that metaphorical ‘100-gm disqualification regime’ on these characters who have vitiated the national fabric. If a sports administrator is accused of exploiting and harassing athletes, that’s crime weighing a million tonnes. That’s a screaming verdict for disqualification and disgrace. Powers that refused to read this message need to review their position in the aftermath of ‘100-gram’ bullet that pierced the nation’s soul.
The ‘100-gram’ narrative must not be forgotten. It should wake us up. This is a moment of national awakening.
This should compel us to analyse how shamelessly we tolerate or ignore crimes and violations weighing quintals and tonnes.
The abnormally high degree of tolerance of evil Indian society usually demonstrates must be acknowledged and reviewed at this juncture of national heartbreak. If ‘100-gram’ excess can give us the sinking feeling, how come the ‘quintal sin’ is being so comfortably tolerated?
We tolerate discrimination on the basis of caste, religion and gender. We tolerate economic inequality which has become so wild – while some starve to death, others earn hundreds of crore in a day. We demand honesty and accountability from servants and street vendors but ignore violations by governments and tycoons. We see even crime against women through the prism of political loyalty. We tolerate lies, not by thugs and thieves on the streets, but by ministers, chief ministers and the prime minister. Judge yourself – is that not exceeding the ‘100-gram’ disqualification mark?
Though many suspect a conspiracy in that ‘100-gram’ nonsense and it sounds credible, we are ignoring that possibility at the moment. But why should only sportspersons be subjected to that purity standard? Why not professors, judges and journalists? Why not the industrialists and traders? Why not ministers, bureaucrats and the presiding officers of both Houses of Parliament? Be kind and give them some leeway. Don’t hang them for ‘100 gram’ violation, as India’s wonderful daughter Vinesh Phogat was done. But why ignore a 100-kg crime, a 100-tonne sin? Look around and you will feel ashamed. Judges strike deals and accept political roles and government’s posts soon after retirement. Journalists trample ethics and act like rulers’ shield and hounds. Businessmen violate rules and loot billions of rupees. Ministers violate the constitution and laws, treating the nation as their personal fiefdom. How much to ignore – 100 gram, 100 kg, or 100 quintals?
