Notwithstanding the fact that the Tehelka journalists have adopted the most unconventional methods to bring out in the open the rampant corruption that has become part of our daily life, I still feel that they could have done it such that they did not bring the government to a halt and thus defeat the very purpose. Unless their aim was only to create - as their name suggests - a ’tehelka’.
What I am trying to say is that by bringing out the contents of the tape as they did they have pushed back reforms which this government was sincerely trying to push through. Something which other governments have only paid lip-service to.
Instead of focusing on just the government of the day, they could have instead caught a major functionary of at least one other party to show that every one across the board and not just the government of the day is in the same boat. Going by the ease with which they were able to do so this should not have been too difficult a task. By doing so, they would have caused everyone in politics as such to hang their head in shame. Instead what we have now is the Opposition pointing fingers when their own hands are tainted as everyone knows. Important legislation including a path-breaking Budget has been indefinitely help up and privatisation, without which the govt will become bankrupt, has also been stymied.
All this, of course, is in hindsight and maybe it requires vision to be able to foresee the consequences of actions like this. Maybe Tehelka just wanted to highlight corruption with the aim of bringing it out and could not foresee that the entire country would be pushed back as a result.