Why I Distrust Politicians

Democracy and politics are inseparable. One would be a fool to deny that. However, there are undrawn lines in politics that one should never cross. In my view, national interest is one.

Before anyone jumps the gun, let me clarify: I have no party affiliations. For the full picture on where I stand, refer to my political stance.

The Core Disconnect: Rhetoric vs. Reality

Prime Minister Modi is absolutely right in saying that we must reduce our use of petrol and diesel. But I find it rather interesting that this message came from him in May, and not in February.

During the election season, the elders in my family—who are ardent supporters of the BJP—kept telling me how great the government was. They pointed to social media feeds claiming India had achieved ‘fuel security’, asserting that unlike the rest of the world, we faced no shortages and were selling fuel at stable prices. The narrative was clear: the government had insulated us from the global energy crisis.

Then came the elections. The party won in West Bengal, retained their administration in Puducherry and Assam, and retained their vote share in Keralam. And suddenly, in May, the script flipped. We are now told to carpool, to drive less, to conserve.

Here is the uncomfortable truth: the situation isn’t much worse now than it was in February. Yet, the urgency only emerged post-victory. It suggests a calculated delay. Had this message been delivered in February, the ‘stupid people’—the voters—might have voted against the party. Instead, the government ran a campaign on a false sense of security, using taxpayer money to pay ransoms to international suppliers to ensure fuel delivery, simply to avoid political embarrassment.

Once the votes were secured, the responsibility was transferred back to us. We pay the taxes. We tolerate the incompetence. And now, we are told to take responsibility for national interest and energy security. Is this our idea of democracy? Where the demo does everything, and the krati (leadership) does nothing but claim credit?

On Commute: The Carpooling Paradox

Let’s look at the specifics of the speech. Mr Modi promoted carpooling. In a culture where a car is a status symbol and urban India has become increasingly car-forward, the idea is theoretically sound. It addresses last-mile connectivity and reduces exposure to the heat and pollution.

But what is the legal reality on the ground?

Not long ago, taxi and auto unions in Bengaluru sued carpooling services, arguing they threatened livelihoods. Bengaluru South MP, Tejasvi Surya, did chime in against the case, but the result was a stalemate. No policy change took place. The ambiguity remains.¹

As a user of these services, I can tell you: people aren’t opting for carpooling because the matching algorithms fail due to low adoption (people aren’t using them because not enough people are using them). But why is adoption low? Because the legality is murky. The unions benefit a bit from this ambiguity, but the average commuter? They just pick up their own vehicle. Ultimately, the only winners are the fuel stations—often owned by politicians or their aides.

Public Transport: A Tale of Two Cities

The speech also championed public transport. A noble sentiment. But how many cities have robust systems with reliability, accountability, comfort, and trackability?

I can speak for my city: Bengaluru. We do not.

The BMTC implemented UPI after quite a struggle, yet, the implementation of the National Common Mobility Card is still ‘on the horizon’.² It is a shame for the tech capital of India. Contrast this with Chennai, which implemented NCMC in their Metros much later, yet has already successfully rolled it out for city buses (MTC) and parking.³

Consider the NICE route in Bengaluru. I see hundreds of cars carrying one person each every day. How many bus trips run from my locality to my workplace? One or two per day. Between 7 and 8 am, and 5 and 6 pm.

But here is the catch: when do IT folks actually work?

People in my office log in between 10:30 and 12:30, and log out between 7:30 and 8:30. So whom are those buses for?

Those lamenting that BMTC makes a loss year after year should remember that public transport is never meant for profit. They should, however, understand the real work timings of their target riders. Run air-conditioned buses during the hours IT professionals travel, and you will see thousands opt for them. One AC bus carrying sixty people is infinitely better than sixty AC cars carrying one person each.

Again, a serious disconnect between policy and reality.

Self-Reliance: The Quality Gap

Make a list of things which you use daily and find out what is foreign.

Sure, I can live with ‘Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of good’. Use Indian things where possible. But how many Indian things of good quality and reliability are there? And why?

Mr Piyush Goyal recently smacked our start-ups on their heads at the Startup Mahakumbh, asking if we were happy being ‘delivery boys and girls’ while China surged ahead in deep tech. While his point on deep tech has merit, it would have been reasonable coming from a common citizen, not a government functionary—a minister no less.⁴

This echoes Ms Mamata Banerjee’s protests after the R.G. Kar fiasco.

Who is responsible for creating policies for ease of doing business? Who creates the industrial policies? And what happened to Make in India?

More importantly, quality control. Every other day, there is news about children dying from bad medicines, or about rampant adulteration in food, or heavy metals in water. And the FSSAI is going around suing people who refer to them in satire.⁵ Talk about priorities!

On what grounds are you asking us to buy all-Indian goods when we cannot even ensure quality control in the most fundamental items like food and water, Mr Prime Minister?

Patanjali is a national favourite, the nationalist desi brand touting itself as the Indian alternative to everything in the FMCG category. How many of their products would you use, Mr Prime Minister—bought from common channels like an arbitrary kirānā store, not vetted by your functionaries?

We want to be considered the leading tech exporter, but we cannot manufacture a mobile phone that does not have surveillance on it, or a laptop that does not crash within six months. We cannot make a single piece of consumer electronic equipment of value without Chinese involvement. We cannot even trust our BEML to build coaches for our Metro trains, we instead strike a multi-crore deal with the CRRC. What a shame.⁶

How many Indian companies can make affordable electric cars? Do you know the cost of the cheapest Indian-made electric car? The Vayve Mobility Eva (a concept so far) sure starts at ₹3.25 lakh, but for a mainstream, reliable option, the price jumps significantly. How many can afford them?⁷

Gold: The Ultimate Trust Deficit

It would be interesting to see how many of Mr Modi’s ardent followers listen to him and stop buying gold for weddings. I am not a fan of the yellow metal, but one cannot deny that precious metals help offset inflation. They are among the best ways to protect your money from losing its value.

And while the Rupee wanders and ‘finds its way’, people will accumulate more gold. People will offset our foreign reserves. Not because they do not care about the country, but because they do not trust our government to uphold the value of their money.

Conclusion

I am not anti-establishment. I believe in a democracy where accountability is non-negotiable. When the government creates a false sense of security to win an election, and then transfers the burden of national survival to the citizenry the moment the votes are counted, that is not governance. That is mismanagement.

We pay taxes. We expect competence. We demand that the lines of national interest are never crossed for political gain. Until then, the distrust remains justified.