Any person who wishes to lead a public life should ensure that his personal life is above board, if not exemplary.
Some do not understand the simple logic behind this. Or they pretend to do so for convenience. Those in public life are those about whom ordinary people read, listen and talk about. They are very often those upon whom ordinary people look up to, or, in certain cases, become role models for many a common man.
Let us consider God-men. Yes, they are now in legion and hence cannot be ignored. God-men possess enormous influence among their followers. Any serious problem a person who believes in such men faces, he visits them and tries to find 'peace'. In return he becomes prepared to offer anything.
Such bing the influence of God-men, wouldn't their followers be interested in their guru's personal life? If not, or, more so, wouldn't they want to know it when something contentious props up? Definitely they would! Only if their personal lives are above board can their followers have complete faith in them and their preachings.
The book that was published by an American follower of a God-woman of Kerala about her days at the ashram where the former was sexually assaulted by many of her fellow followers and where she also alleged that the ashram including its head was indulged in many illegal activities corroborates the point that I just made.
The reactions that ensued in this particular case would, too, be of interest. A section of her followers, pathological in faith and approach, retaliated with violence. Some, less enraged, took to television studios and social networking sites. Some supported the guru, some the follower-turned-antagonist. There was hardly any effort to dwell in to the issues raised so as to find the truth.
Another God-man in Madhya Pradesh recently went absconding and was later arrested on charges of sexual assault on his follower. Knowing this, would people still go to him? A 'Baba' was and still remains under the scanner of the income tax department for embezzling funds that was received in the name of his trust. Doesn't the personal lives of such men and women impact their followers? Don't the followers have the right to know?
Coming to the politicians (not all deserved to be called 'leaders'), they have a lot of followers. Some among the followers see them as role models. These politicians are those who formulate policies for us, decide how our lives would be. People depending on God-men would be far less at least when compared to the people who depend on the politicians.
Therefore the politicians need to be more clean on their personal front than perhaps anyone else. Politicians caught for financial frauds are not a rarity. Those caught for perpetuating violence and harassment are in the rise. There have been cases of politicians having extra marital relationships that goes on to become conspicuous blots on their public life. But strange is it when a politician tries to hush down his sole and legally not separated wife.
The most branded politician of this general election, Narendrabhai Modi has, after leaving unanswered a question about his marital status in the election nomination form he had filed for four assembly elections in Gujarat, now filled in it the name of Smt. Jashodaben as his wife.
A simple question that arises in every individual's mind would be that why did he choose to hide it in all the nominations he had filed earlier in 2001, 2002, 2007 and 2012 and reveal it now in 2014!
His wife reportedly said that they were together only for 3 years and then mutually separated. Since they are not legally separated, and that Modiji himself has said that she is his wife, by no reckoning can he be termed a bachelor, as is being done by many of his followers and image builders. The fact that he left questions about this unanswered shows how he has been, in the words of Mr. Karan Thapar, 'less than honest'.
I would go a step further. Hiding a truth is equivalent to lying and hence I would not hold back my tongue in spelling out that Modiji had lied in this matter. Whatever had been the reason behind his not revealing this truth earlier, it was incorrect on his part and is certainly unbecoming of a man aspiring to become the Prime Minister of our country.
This person was not even able to mention the name of his estranged wife whom he had married closely 50 years before. No wonder he has not been able to even tender an apology for the 2002 riots.
His own party men in Gujarat say that he was given 'better legal advise' this time and hence this revelation now. Probably he and his men could not think of his losing the Prime Ministership after getting a clear majority, which the party is surprisingly already sure of, if the Election Commission took objection to his leaving blank the question about his marital status, the answer to which he very well knew.
I see this issue through the prism of propriety than that of legality. It is seriously an issue every voter should sit back and think. Do we want us to be led by a person who quite dis-honestly hides, and reveals, even his marital status for purely political gains? Has it stooped so low?
Such bing the influence of God-men, wouldn't their followers be interested in their guru's personal life? If not, or, more so, wouldn't they want to know it when something contentious props up? Definitely they would! Only if their personal lives are above board can their followers have complete faith in them and their preachings.
The book that was published by an American follower of a God-woman of Kerala about her days at the ashram where the former was sexually assaulted by many of her fellow followers and where she also alleged that the ashram including its head was indulged in many illegal activities corroborates the point that I just made.
The reactions that ensued in this particular case would, too, be of interest. A section of her followers, pathological in faith and approach, retaliated with violence. Some, less enraged, took to television studios and social networking sites. Some supported the guru, some the follower-turned-antagonist. There was hardly any effort to dwell in to the issues raised so as to find the truth.
Another God-man in Madhya Pradesh recently went absconding and was later arrested on charges of sexual assault on his follower. Knowing this, would people still go to him? A 'Baba' was and still remains under the scanner of the income tax department for embezzling funds that was received in the name of his trust. Doesn't the personal lives of such men and women impact their followers? Don't the followers have the right to know?
Coming to the politicians (not all deserved to be called 'leaders'), they have a lot of followers. Some among the followers see them as role models. These politicians are those who formulate policies for us, decide how our lives would be. People depending on God-men would be far less at least when compared to the people who depend on the politicians.
Therefore the politicians need to be more clean on their personal front than perhaps anyone else. Politicians caught for financial frauds are not a rarity. Those caught for perpetuating violence and harassment are in the rise. There have been cases of politicians having extra marital relationships that goes on to become conspicuous blots on their public life. But strange is it when a politician tries to hush down his sole and legally not separated wife.
The most branded politician of this general election, Narendrabhai Modi has, after leaving unanswered a question about his marital status in the election nomination form he had filed for four assembly elections in Gujarat, now filled in it the name of Smt. Jashodaben as his wife.
A simple question that arises in every individual's mind would be that why did he choose to hide it in all the nominations he had filed earlier in 2001, 2002, 2007 and 2012 and reveal it now in 2014!
His wife reportedly said that they were together only for 3 years and then mutually separated. Since they are not legally separated, and that Modiji himself has said that she is his wife, by no reckoning can he be termed a bachelor, as is being done by many of his followers and image builders. The fact that he left questions about this unanswered shows how he has been, in the words of Mr. Karan Thapar, 'less than honest'.
I would go a step further. Hiding a truth is equivalent to lying and hence I would not hold back my tongue in spelling out that Modiji had lied in this matter. Whatever had been the reason behind his not revealing this truth earlier, it was incorrect on his part and is certainly unbecoming of a man aspiring to become the Prime Minister of our country.
This person was not even able to mention the name of his estranged wife whom he had married closely 50 years before. No wonder he has not been able to even tender an apology for the 2002 riots.
His own party men in Gujarat say that he was given 'better legal advise' this time and hence this revelation now. Probably he and his men could not think of his losing the Prime Ministership after getting a clear majority, which the party is surprisingly already sure of, if the Election Commission took objection to his leaving blank the question about his marital status, the answer to which he very well knew.
I see this issue through the prism of propriety than that of legality. It is seriously an issue every voter should sit back and think. Do we want us to be led by a person who quite dis-honestly hides, and reveals, even his marital status for purely political gains? Has it stooped so low?
