The world of politics is not the only place I am sure. But the hanger-on or ‘chamcha’ is proliferating. I am not sure if this is because of social media, but this is the person who bows double in front of people they perceive important. I don’t mean politeness, but grovelling. I do not mean touching feet (a part of our culture, a mark of respect to elders) but I mean boot-licking.
The reason this bothers me in politics is because I recall long ago saying to my then mentor that at HM Queen’s Birthday Party at the British High Commissioner’s Residence in New Delhi, how proudly everyone rightly stood to attention and what a wonderful occasion it was. And it was and I am proud to have been there.
But it quickly became clear to us, it was not just pomp and circumstance that allowed the British to build their Empire, but also the mindset of the recipient too.
That mindset is the mindset of the hanger-on, the chamcha. It is a defeated, inferiority. It is pathetic. I have seen it exemplified by professionals. They lose respect, because they have no self-respect. In this election season, I want to see independent minds. I want clear voices, without fear or favour.
What is sad, is those surrounded by the grovelers, and it happens from Prime Ministers to CEOs through the ages, is that they expect it. And when they do not get the laurels laid at their feet, they cannot hold back their disappointment.
Not an independent thought, but how can I ingratiate myself. No straight taking of truth. Can you imagine if Sardar Patel had been like that? I mention all this because it is election time. And videos are surfacing on social media of Parliamentary Candidates being filmed grovelling to audiences saying what they would not normally say in public.
‘Chamchas’ are the intermediaries who will doubtless read this and suggest it is targeted at the person whose boots they are licking. These are the ones who are already side lined in life and live vicariously on the coat-tails of others.
To them, in politics and elsewhere, I say, show some self-respect and dignity. Nothing is worth the hanging on you seek. Do not be a boot licker. Have an independent mind. Speak up for what is true and right. Be fearless. Show some bloody class. If not for yourself, but because your own children may be watching.
