By Prerna Tyagi:
2010, undoubtedly the ‘Year of Scams’ saw the unveiling of the biggest scams of all time, one after the other in a row. The moment we tried to come out of the shock of one fraud, the other was eagerly waiting to say ‘Hello, here I come’. The common thread that runs through all these big scams namely the 2G Scam, the CWG Scam, the IPL Scam is the politico-connect. The notion that politics is not meant for the honest beings has been strengthened further and the time when Indian Politics was in dire need of Youth, the Youth of the country has got a confirmation that politics can only get dirtier.
Today at the college level, the candidates contesting elections hold the record of being the most notorious goons. A good student would never dare to join and would try to keep a safe distance from such miscreants and if one does garner the courage to stand up to them then call it his bad luck as he is at the greatest risk of being exploited, harassed verbally, physically abused, and the chances of his family being brought into the matter make him eventually step down from the elections.
These student leaders are the most carefree lot with no hassles like short attendance, they carry the license to eve-tease or pass lewd comments and harass every other student passing by. Their most common ‘hang out’ places are the dhabas or the paan stalls outside the college campuses, they are often found tipsy and could be planning the upcoming fight with the rival group (Gundas from the other colleges).
They are fearless but those in fear are the faculty, the college authorities who are under constant fear of getting beaten down.
It is very interesting to note that all this goes into the making of our leaders, our future leaders who know how to get things right for themselves as their options are many ranging from kidnapping, murdering, using their power to fill their coffers with the public money as corruption is their trademark and accepting and giving bribe is like exchanging pleasantries for them.
The biggest institution, if any, for producing honest and responsible leaders is the Home.
Home is where all the teaching and training commences. Thus, for a better and corruption free India, it is the parents, the family which hold the responsibility of imbibing good values and habits in their children. By criticizing the politicians at home for corruption and then in evening giving the receptionist a hundred rupee note to get you an earlier appointment is uncalled for. Don’t wait for others to improve instead try improving one’s own self. Be the change you want to see and set examples for your children so that they look up to you as role models and for us the Youth, the message is clear- ‘We Are the Change’.