Nishkam Karam is an action performed according to one's sense of duty without the expectation of results. The opposite of Nishkam Karam is Sakam Karam which pertains to actions undertaken with an end objective in mind and is based on selfish motivation.
Most thinkers in the West and especially those who work with companies are strong advocates of Sakam Karam. Phrases like 'Management by Objectives' and 'Key Result Areas' and so forth are results of this kind of thinking. Performance bonuses and incentives are also an outcome of Sakam Karam thinking. On the other hand Indian philosophy focuses more on Nishkam Karam and indeed our most profound philosophical work, the Geeta is entirely based on this thinking. I feel that Sakam Karam has had a profoundly negative impact on commercial enterprises. It is outside the scope of this post to dwell on how short term, result oriented management ignores value creation in the long term. How 'quarter on quarter' growth has destroyed the core of otherwise well managed corporations. The purpose here is to look for a parallel in the political arena especially with reference to the fledgling AAP.
One of the strongest criticisms of the AAP is that they are politically inexperienced and unproven. This is of course true and is applicable to any young person at the start of their career. In my view this is a non issue. The fact is that both the established national parties in India (not to mention a slew of regional ones) have made a spectacular hash of governance. Even Modi's Gujarat has chinks in its armour and as for West Bengal and UP the less said the better. Hence, there is every reason to look for something new and not keep harking back to the lack of administrative experience of the AAP.
The second criticism about the AAP stems from the seemingly unconventional methods that they adopt. Yesterday I watched an extremely amusing (to me) debate on NDTV in which both the BJP and the Congress tried to belittle the anti corruption helpline that has been started in Delhi by the AAP. While the major parties went all out to criticize this initiative the fact was that the first day got as many as 25,000 calls about corruption! The political establishment is missing the main point. The fact is that our country is simply steeped in corruption and that the Aam Aadmi is just waiting to find a way of expressing his frustration. The Congress in its years of governance in Delhi did not do anything about it and the BJP is not much better. The AAP is at least providing a way forward. It may be imperfect but there is a willingness and desire to do something. One may argue that the multi thousand crore scams that one has got so used to hearing about are not going to be addressed by this help line. That is obviously true, but at least the 'transactional corruption' that Sanjay Jha referred to in the NDTV programme so glibly will get impacted to some extent.
Finally coming to the real purpose of writing this post. The fact of the matter is that corruption cannot be removed by waving a magic wand. Good governance will not descend from heaven. The corrupt edifice that has been created in Indian politics due to years of apathy and neglect will not go away in a hurry. The main thing is for the AAP to follow through diligently on what they undertake. There is no need to worry about results. Results will take care of themselves if they remain true to their ethical and moral philosophy. Most politicians are obsessed with re-election. The AAP should make the most of the time they have got to institute real, sincere and long lasting changes in the body politic. Re election will follow.
Most thinkers in the West and especially those who work with companies are strong advocates of Sakam Karam. Phrases like 'Management by Objectives' and 'Key Result Areas' and so forth are results of this kind of thinking. Performance bonuses and incentives are also an outcome of Sakam Karam thinking. On the other hand Indian philosophy focuses more on Nishkam Karam and indeed our most profound philosophical work, the Geeta is entirely based on this thinking. I feel that Sakam Karam has had a profoundly negative impact on commercial enterprises. It is outside the scope of this post to dwell on how short term, result oriented management ignores value creation in the long term. How 'quarter on quarter' growth has destroyed the core of otherwise well managed corporations. The purpose here is to look for a parallel in the political arena especially with reference to the fledgling AAP.
One of the strongest criticisms of the AAP is that they are politically inexperienced and unproven. This is of course true and is applicable to any young person at the start of their career. In my view this is a non issue. The fact is that both the established national parties in India (not to mention a slew of regional ones) have made a spectacular hash of governance. Even Modi's Gujarat has chinks in its armour and as for West Bengal and UP the less said the better. Hence, there is every reason to look for something new and not keep harking back to the lack of administrative experience of the AAP.
The second criticism about the AAP stems from the seemingly unconventional methods that they adopt. Yesterday I watched an extremely amusing (to me) debate on NDTV in which both the BJP and the Congress tried to belittle the anti corruption helpline that has been started in Delhi by the AAP. While the major parties went all out to criticize this initiative the fact was that the first day got as many as 25,000 calls about corruption! The political establishment is missing the main point. The fact is that our country is simply steeped in corruption and that the Aam Aadmi is just waiting to find a way of expressing his frustration. The Congress in its years of governance in Delhi did not do anything about it and the BJP is not much better. The AAP is at least providing a way forward. It may be imperfect but there is a willingness and desire to do something. One may argue that the multi thousand crore scams that one has got so used to hearing about are not going to be addressed by this help line. That is obviously true, but at least the 'transactional corruption' that Sanjay Jha referred to in the NDTV programme so glibly will get impacted to some extent.
Finally coming to the real purpose of writing this post. The fact of the matter is that corruption cannot be removed by waving a magic wand. Good governance will not descend from heaven. The corrupt edifice that has been created in Indian politics due to years of apathy and neglect will not go away in a hurry. The main thing is for the AAP to follow through diligently on what they undertake. There is no need to worry about results. Results will take care of themselves if they remain true to their ethical and moral philosophy. Most politicians are obsessed with re-election. The AAP should make the most of the time they have got to institute real, sincere and long lasting changes in the body politic. Re election will follow.
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