Prithvi Reddy - It was a pleasure meeting you again on
Republic Day and I really admire you and your views not only as a political
spokesperson but also as a person. I really see you amongst the few people in
politics that I can actually look up to even though we have had very limited
interactions and I do believe you are the kind of person who would at least
consider our opinions. In retrospect, I would like to state my opinion
regarding the rally your party is conducting to try to annul Section 8 of the
Central Motor Vehicles Rules. Please do not misunderstand my intentions. I, for
one, would stand tall for the rights of the people of my country: whether the
discussions involve the elite, or, as in this case, the auto drivers. While I
do appreciate the fact that AAP is conducting rallies for the commoners,
especially the auto drivers, some may argue that there are more critical issues
that require your undivided attention. And since you believe auto drivers are
the aggrieved citizens I would stick to discussing auto drivers here over other
issues.
As far as the rule is concerned, which requires a person to
at least pass standard 8th, it is something I do not concur with either and as
you rightly pointed out that there are politicians with lesser qualifications
so why should there be any limitations on someone who is driving an auto. But I
strongly believe that being in the public space, they form a larger impression
on our society than most of us who sit behind our desks. While there are some
very honest and noble auto drivers, a majority of them are amongst the people
who bring the most disgrace to our society. If you and your party could spot
the issues in Section 8 and bring it to the limelight it is hard to comprehend
why none of the parties come out in public against some of the atrocious
behaviours of the people in question that are so ubiquitous that they seem to
have become acceptable to the society. As a matter of fact, I was trying to look
up some of the issues people face with regards to auto drivers but I noticed
that most of the online communities have now become dormant and the posts dated
back to at least 2 or 3 years. It's not that the issues have reduced but simply
that people have lost faith in the systems in place. These might seem as an
anomaly, but I do believe that if the auto drivers were to be taxed at source
on the income that they actually earn, they would be paying more taxes than me,
which could justify my position.
I am aware of the role auto drivers played in helping your
party win the recent elections in Delhi and you may do just as well by building
on that strategy here in a city like Bangalore. But your party, AAP, was built
on some strong principles, principles which made us believe that your party is
not a party of appeasements and would speak out against some core issues. In my
humble opinion, conducting rallies to try to get rid of Section 8, as noble as
the intentions might be, would appear to be more of an appeasement tactic to
build a foundation here for your party. You did paraphrase Gandhi to me by
saying, "To a man with an empty stomach, food is God, and their education
qualification should not come in the way of earning their living". But I
have come across many people who drive autos and are more qualified than I am.
If they can get better jobs outside then why would they still be driving autos?
There must be some business sense to it. While I wouldn't deny that there are
some people who are driven by necessity, a lot of them look at it as a means to
earn more money than they could from an honest profession. And as a matter of
fact, I stayed in a flat during my college days, and the entire building was
owned by an auto driver. I cannot afford to own such a place myself and I am
beginning to wonder if I should quit my job to be an auto driver instead. If
not anything, I will know for a fact that I will always have every major
political party always supporting me and looking out for my best interests.
Getting Arvind Kejrival to Bangalore to rally for the auto
drivers during the coming weekend proves just that. Given the positive steps
the Aam Aadmi party has taken in Delhi to encourage people to use more of
public transport, and given that your party recognises the stand that a
developed country isn't one where the poor drive cars but one where even the
rich take public transport, it would only help if you take steps to encourage
people to take autos as well. When all political parties seem to be going out
of their way to support auto drivers and their unions it only adds fuel to
their belief that they can charge as much as they like from the public and
behave rudely with people knowing that they have the backing of the political
parties.
With respect to the rally, thank you for inviting me to it,
and I would be amongst the first in any of your rallies including this one as
long as you also speak up against the atrocities of the auto drivers amongst
other things. I am one of those people who have to take an auto everyday to
work and I don't remember a day when I haven't got into an argument with an
auto driver because I not only refuse to give in to their demands but also
question them on their methods. As a matter of fact, my experiences in the last
couple of days since we last met was compelling enough to at least write
something about it. While revoking this rule may be right what is really more
important is that there is a more effective system in place to ensure that they
do not even think of charging beyond the meter or refuse to take us to our
destination let alone harassing people. I urge, in addition to your intentions
regarding section 8, you develop a basic code of conduct and ensure adequate
measures are taken to implement the same. Education need not be a prerequisite
but basic courtesy must be one. And I would also hope that you send out a stern
message to the auto drivers and their unions before or during the rally.
Like Martin Luther once said "In the end, we will
remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends". We
look at you and your party as our friends and I can only hope that you don't
remain silent on the issues mentioned herein and beyond.
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