Till 1991, decades of central planning, licence raj and big government had crushed the confidence of Indian youth in their ability to compete globally. Liberalisation changed all that. India integrated into the global economy, started modernising, and its national income shot up. No longer was it necessary to wait for ones relatives settled abroad to bring in tiny blocks of imported cheese. No longer was it necessary to apply for permissions in triplicate to get foreign exchange.
But something was amiss. For whatever reason, no one was stepping forward to claim credit for this Big Bang reform. No leader told us why liberalisation is good. And the many failures of basic governance continued, unabated. Two things stood out in particular: low levels of freedom and high levels of corruption.
Even today, nearly 70 years after independence, India ranks close to the bottom of the world in all global indicators of freedom and justice. And we have a Censor Board, we have laws about matters that should be within the purview of religion, and our governments directly manage or fund religious bodies and events.
As far as corruption is concerned, my stint in the IAS since 1982 showed me that Indias politicians were hopelessly corrupt and that corruption always started from the top. I was getting sick of serving under these despicable leaders.
In 1998 i decided to look for a political solution. Joining mainstream parties was not an option because of their involvement in corruption. What i was looking for was a liberal party that would fight for a small but strong government, for free markets and for equality of opportunity (not equal outcomes). It would form a government that undertakes a limited role of defence, security and justice. Such a government would have very little discretion in regulating peoples social preferences or economic affairs except to the extent they physically harm others. Such a government would never be allowed to use taxpayers money to operate businesses such as Air India or Ashok hotel.
Since the reforms needed for this to happen would require controlling the central government, this party would have to be national (as opposed to regional).
After an initial failed discussion with a few liberals about forming such a party, i resigned from the IAS in 2001 and moved to Australia to learn about modern governance and to continue my search for a liberal party. The key was to find leaders to take this forward. In a book that i wrote in 2008 to outline policies that such a party would implement, i invited liberals to form a team. This team grew bigger and we launched the Swarna Bharat Party in 2013. A huge task lay ahead.
SBP offers the vision of a golden India, an India that would lead the world in freedom and wealth, an India capable of competing with the best in every field. An SBP government would perform core functions (which current governments do not much care for) and leave the people alone to live their lives in a manner consistent with their beliefs (or lack thereof). It goes without saying that an SBP government would treat everyone equally under the law, not divide them on the basis of religion, caste, language or class.
Liberalism is the belief that we are born free and that freedom is the highest value. Liberalism is the idea that the common man is sovereign and the government is our servant. It is the belief that through their own free endeavours the people can achieve material (and for those so inclined, spiritual) prosperity: even greatness. And it is the belief that if anyone is left behind after putting his best foot forward then the government should top up such a persons income and lift him above dire poverty.
SBP is growing steadily. There is a small but growing group of young Indians, widely travelled, who understand that working together to increase liberty is pivotal to Indias success. But what about the other new parties that have found favour with the youth? Unfortunately, despite their good intentions, they are offering old wine (socialism and freebies) in a new bottle. One would hope they examine the proven benefits of liberty and reconsider their by now outdated approach.
Unlike in the UK or in the USA, the idea of liberty is skin deep in India. We have no counterpart of the 1215 Magna Carta or the 1689 Bill of Rights. We fought for independence from foreign rule, not so much to advance our personal economic, political and social liberties. Till today, our countrys conservative and socialist leadership operates on the premise that for Indians liberty does not matter.
The first stage will be to awaken the people. We will need to show them the enormous benefits of liberty and the real solutions to their problems, not the hype of Jan Lokpal or the magic of demonetisation. And it will be good enough initially if those who understand liberty step forward to contest elections. Winning will happen when its time comes.
I invite those interested in good governance to assess SBPs manifesto. Gokhale, Ambedkar and Rajaji were among Indias early liberals. Now it is time for a new generation of liberals to lead.
If this task is undertaken with persistence, the day will come when India votes for a liberal party. And then Indias reform journey and journey to freedom can finally begin.
DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.
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For a liberal India: The country now has its first liberal party, the Swarna Bharat Party - Times of India (blog)