Who makes the decisions?
This is about the already much discussed Indo-US Nuclear deal. I don't pretend to be a nuclear expert, I do not claim to have sufficient knowledge or expertise to express my opinion on the subject, but as a citizen of the country, I have a right to ask questions on the manner in which the decision on such an important issue was taken.
The Government said this was in the interest of the country. The pact was needed for India's energy requirements. Good. But did anybody tell us what would be India's energy requirement in the next twenty years and how much of that would be met by this pact? Did anybody think of telling us why it couldn't be met by India's own resources? Did anybody consult the Indian scientists to ask if we could generate our own nuclear energy? What about the thorium reserve in Ladakh?
The Leftists opposed this pact simply because the USA is their ideological enemy. Some others said this pact was anti-Muslim. Now what on earth was that about? If the pact really meets India's energy requirements, it should be beneficial to all Indians, right? And if the pact does not meet our energy requirements and if in fact it hampers our sovereignty or our environment, it should be against all Indians irrespective of their religions. How can it be anti-Muslim? In the end, when the time came for voting, the decision was made not through any logical reasoning, but on the choices of various political parties who decided whether they wanted the government to stay or fall. What was the point of those long debates and speeches when everything was pre-decided? Nobody talked about nuclear pollution, nobody talked about India's progress, they only voted according to Party whips, or being bribed, voted otherwise. Where did we, Indians figure in all this? How was this for the greater good of the country? I repeat, I am not for or against the deal. I am not for or against any political party, but I am asking readers to consider the callous manner in which our country's policies are shaped. Each member of parliament is supposed to exercize his thinking abilities and his intelligence, his concern for the country when he votes for or against a motion. But in the present system, how a party votes depends almost entirely upon his party's stand, which in turn is decided by whether that particular party supports the government or is in the opposition. Isn't it time to review this system?
On a related note to the confidence motions, what about coalition politics in India? There are too many parties today for any party to have a simple majority in parliament, but I believe, I strongly believe that every coalition should be determined before the elections. and there should be a law in this regard. When we vote for one party, we should know which other parties we are helping to power by voting for that party. Right?
The Government said this was in the interest of the country. The pact was needed for India's energy requirements. Good. But did anybody tell us what would be India's energy requirement in the next twenty years and how much of that would be met by this pact? Did anybody think of telling us why it couldn't be met by India's own resources? Did anybody consult the Indian scientists to ask if we could generate our own nuclear energy? What about the thorium reserve in Ladakh?
The Leftists opposed this pact simply because the USA is their ideological enemy. Some others said this pact was anti-Muslim. Now what on earth was that about? If the pact really meets India's energy requirements, it should be beneficial to all Indians, right? And if the pact does not meet our energy requirements and if in fact it hampers our sovereignty or our environment, it should be against all Indians irrespective of their religions. How can it be anti-Muslim? In the end, when the time came for voting, the decision was made not through any logical reasoning, but on the choices of various political parties who decided whether they wanted the government to stay or fall. What was the point of those long debates and speeches when everything was pre-decided? Nobody talked about nuclear pollution, nobody talked about India's progress, they only voted according to Party whips, or being bribed, voted otherwise. Where did we, Indians figure in all this? How was this for the greater good of the country? I repeat, I am not for or against the deal. I am not for or against any political party, but I am asking readers to consider the callous manner in which our country's policies are shaped. Each member of parliament is supposed to exercize his thinking abilities and his intelligence, his concern for the country when he votes for or against a motion. But in the present system, how a party votes depends almost entirely upon his party's stand, which in turn is decided by whether that particular party supports the government or is in the opposition. Isn't it time to review this system?
On a related note to the confidence motions, what about coalition politics in India? There are too many parties today for any party to have a simple majority in parliament, but I believe, I strongly believe that every coalition should be determined before the elections. and there should be a law in this regard. When we vote for one party, we should know which other parties we are helping to power by voting for that party. Right?
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