The Hindu : It is not their business

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 04, 2004

Opinion

Opinion - News Analysis

It is not their business

There were no takers for the idea of businessmen running the country instead of politicians.

IS THE businessman the alternative to the politician? In Europe, the successful entrepreneur has already been accepted as a serious, viable applicant for the king's job.

In the United States, businessmen and tycoons have regularly insinuated themselves into the elective space, all in the name of fulfilling what Henry Kissinger, the lifelong courtier of the rich, called "the moral obligations of his (Nelson Rockefeller) inheritance." In 1992, a self-made billionaire, Ross Perot, became a respectable third party presidential candidate.

In India, a number of industrialists made themselves partners in the national struggle for Independence. After 1947, the likes of Ghanshyam Das Birla and Jamnalal Bajaj became highly respected members of the political elite that undertook the civilisational task of building a nation out of a feudal society.

But the industrial entrepreneurs never enjoyed the nation's unqualified respect or even admiration. The political leaders remained the designated helmsmen. The mood began to change in 1991. The businessmen appeared to get excited about the economic reforms and were given a place of respect at the policy-making high table.

Achievers in the new economy, such as Azim Premji and N.R. Narayana Murthy became national role models. So much so that after the death of the legendary Dhirubhai Ambani, a senior BJP leader, Pramod Mahajan, publicly questioned the norms and the criteria for awarding Bharat Ratnas because the Reliance founder had not yet been conferred this honour.

It is therefore a surprise that there are no takers for the presumably "successful, hard-working, honest" businessman replacing the notoriously venal politician.

The panel was asked whether it would want the country's affairs to be handed over to a governing council, consisting of Ratan Tata, Mukesh Ambani, Narayana Murthy, Azim Premji and Rahul Bajaj. The almost unanimous verdict: no, thank you very much, but we would rather do with our politicians.

"They are businessmen at the end of the day and would never have been able to lead the nation. We have different kinds of economic strata in our society and cannot be treated as one working class. We are not America where capitalism can work. We need people who can work for a society with different needs," argued the molecular biologist at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

The IIM professor thought that running a corporate house was one thing but to run a complex and diverse country like India was quite another. "The objectives before a corporate house is very clear: survival and profitability.''

He thought even business leaders like Ratan Tata and Narayana Murthy would not be able to govern India. "The main goals before the country are health, education, food and other public amenities. It cannot be easy for the corporate giants."

No less sceptical about the businessmen as our national saviours was the tourism consultant. "They are in business to make money. Even when they get into charity it is for availing themselves of tax concessions. They have a vision only for business. Moreover they do not represent people. Businessmen of this country have no concern for the people. At times, they don't even mind sacrificing the interest of the nation for their personal good. The salvation is not likely to come from the business houses."

Nor were all businessmen deemed to be paragons of virtue and integrity. "Point out one businessman to me who has never given or received a bribe in the course of his career," said the Kolkata company executive. — H.K.

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