Awards, honors and games politicos play by Randeep Wadehra

It’s a cliché but television is a powerful medium and cricket a great crowd-puller-cum-opiate; further, Twenty20 is the latest craze if only for the fact that the men in blue are current world champs in this version. This potent combination didn’t go unexploited by Punjab’s politicos. They held a Congress XI versus Akali-BJP XI T20 match at Mohali which was duly telecast by Zee Punjabi. Although the camera understandably focused largely on politicians and partly on spectators, it also panned, occasionally, on the physically challenged invitees to buttress the organizers’ claim that they were holding a charity match. But this wasn’t the only reason touted for the show. According to Sukhbir Badal it was meant for promoting amicability among the ruling and opposition parties by inculcating the game’s vaunted values of sportsmanship, ignoring the current wisdom that it’s no more a gentleman’s game, whatever the version. This became manifest when Parkash Singh Badal took a swipe at his bête noire on the issue of “vendetta politics” even as he assumed grandfatherly mien while advising the legislators to cooperate in the smooth running of legislative proceedings. So, even while one was puzzling over the purpose of the entire razzmatazz one espied Rajinder Kaur Bhattal seated on a sofa, looking forlorn, wearing a baffled smile. One wonders why. Even if the Congressmen had lost the match, the political fraternity had won. After all who is going to remember the handicapped guests after their fifteen seconds exposure to dubious limelight? The actual winner? Politicians. And we know that winner takes all.

Then there was this news clipping of Punjab’s sportspersons being honored. All one saw was a less than ten seconds shot of happy recipients and more than a minute long footage of a garlanded Sukhbir Badal being ‘honoured’ by an official. Period.

Another netaji who has become adept at drawing public attention and scoring brownie points with his constituency is MS Bitta of the Anti-Terrorist-Front fame. Sensing an opportunity in the growing popularity of Kashmir Singh he too decided to organize a function to honor the alleged spy who came back from the cold. Using superlatives in praise of the guest Bitta exhorted the government to get other ‘brave sons of India’ released from Pakistani prisons. Now that he has studied neta log quite closely since his return one wonders whether Kashmir too is contemplating becoming one – the ruminative expression on his face seemed to indicate as much. The symbiosis between popularity, politics and pelf is natural, enduring and alluring in the extant milieu. Let’s not forget how the media helped assorted politicians extract political mileage out of the Sarabjit issue. Now, reportedly, his hanging has been postponed to 30^th of April. Enough time for Punjab’s politicos to switch over from cricket to the more familiar game of political ducks and drakes.