Dear Thiru Edapatti Palanisamy,
I am an ordinary senior citizen of Tamil Nadu. I was born in Coimbatore and completed my entire education in the state. I retired from the Indian Police Service in 2001 as the head of CBI.
I used to be a proud Tamilian until recently. I am no longer so, because of the incidents that happened in the State Assembly a few days ago. Our state now enjoys the same reputation as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar for political chicanery.
My heartiest congratulations to you on having won the vote of confidence in the Assembly. I have my own reservations about your ability to handle the job of Chief Minister, a position once held by sterling personalities, such as Rajaji, Kamaraj and Annadurai, men known for their utter selflessness and integrity. I am sure you will spend some time studying how these three illustrious sons of Tamil Nadu conducted themselves as CM.
Every resident of Tamil Nadu expects and demands that you will discharge your responsibilities honestly and fearlessly. To be specific, he would like you not to look up to Parappana Agrahara, Bengaluru for instructions.
All of us desire that you work on your own perception of the current acute problems that the state is facing. You have been appointed as the leader of the majority party in your own right. Please don’t look up to your political mentor to fill your role as CM. The people will not forgive you if this advice is ignored.
We demand that you work 24/7 to alleviate the State's dreadful problem, viz. the huge drought that afflicts most regions across the state. You have some outstanding civil servants who will help you in this gargantuan task. Don't fritter away your energies trying to settle your problems on the political front.
You need to concentrate on the drought situation and bring immediate relief to crores of Tamilians suffering beyond description. Do keep New Delhi in good spirits, or else the state will not get the kind of financial help it needs to handle the drought.
The second most pressing problem is the corruption that stalks public life in the state.
I am not telling you anything that you don't know already. The average Tamilian has to pay a bribe for every service that he is entitled to as a citizen, be it a birth certificate, death certificate or driving licence. If you have to register a property, you have to shell out a huge sum.
You also know that every job – from a police constable to a vice-chancellor – is sold to the highest bidder. Do you know that if a state board school wants to move over to CBSE, it has to pay a huge bribe? We do not know who the beneficiary actually is in all this.
This is an utterly shameful state of affairs. People will assess you by your willingness to change all this. Do not take the stand that the scene is not very different in other states. That is poor consolation. We, Tamilians like you, want you to change this appalling situation. We do not want to hear excuses from you.
We want action. We propose to closely monitor your performance, and we will not hesitate to go to the media and the judiciary whenever we find anything outrageous in your governance. Meanwhile, we wish you all the best in your assignment. We will stand by you and extend full support in all your honest endeavours.
Yours sincerely,
R K Raghavan,
A well-meaning citizen of Tamil Nadu.
(The writer is a former CBI Director. He can be reached @rkraghu1. This is a personal blog and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)
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