Country without politicians

CBSE’s class eleven English course has a poem by Vikram Seth titled The Tale of Melon City.  The essence of the poem is that people will live in “Peace and Liberty” as long as there are no foolish politicians around.

The king in that poem is the quintessential politician who tries to please everybody.  He is also a narcissist who hates obstacles on his way.  When his crown is knocked down, while he takes a victorious ride on his chariot, by the arch that he was inaugurating to show off himself, his narcissistic pride is hurt.  He orders someone to be hanged in order to assuage his hurt pride. 

The accused passes the blame to another person as self-defence. The king has to guard his reputation for being just and honest.  So he orders that newly accused person to be hanged.  And the blame continues to be passed from one to another. 

I teach this poem in my class where the blame passes on from the Mughals to the British to Christian missionaries to Dalits to just any nobody.  But that’s just an aside.  Let’s get back to the poem.

Finally, in Seth’s poem, the blame comes back to the king himself.  The king orders his own hanging, being “just and honest”.  And the people of the country are happy to hang the king.  According to the cultural tradition of the country, the new king is to be chosen by the person who crosses the city gate after the election is proclaimed.  Very simple, inexpensive form of election.  The person who dares to pass the gate in such a troubled time obviously is an idiot. Who else will take upon himself such a responsibility as choosing the king? 

“Who will be the next king?” the kingpin asks the idiot.

“Melon,” answers the idiot.  The idiot loved melons, says the poet.

And a melon became the king of Melon City.  People lived in “Peace and Liberty” because a melon doesn’t require taxes for anything – not for foreign travels, not for publicity, not for costumes, not for you name it.

I leave the question to thinking people: why not eliminate politicians?  Why not live in “Peace and Liberty”?  Why not get rid of taxes levied by kings (governments – both Central and State)?  Why not get rid of the mafia run by governments?  Why not get rid of the bureaucracy which sucks our blood?  Why not get rid of the religious leaders who sell us ignorance? 

I never raise these questions in my class.  Because these questions are my private dreams.  A country without politicians is just a dream.  A country of intelligent people is a nightmare.