It’s done and over with, tied with a glitzy bow and smacked with kisses by one and all.
Dogged by negative publicity, initial concerns about incomplete venues, and a bumbling Organising Committee to top the mess, the Delhi Commonwealth Games were nothing short of controversial—slashed, hacked, and spit out brutally by the national and international media alike. Even before the Games started, no one in their wildest optimistic dreams had expected them to be this successful.
The honeymoon kick from the glittering tally of the medals has driven sporting ambitions to a new high. With heroes blazing their trail from mofussil (exurban) India, the success stories of the Games are inspiring.
The albatross around the Government’s neck was miraculously removed with the spectacular opening ceremony and flew away into oblivion with the fireworks at the closing ceremony.
Unfortunately, the glitz of the win has clouded over the media rage about the allegations of corruption in the work on the venues of the Games Village. We’d expected all to conveniently forget about the dirty linen that was being aired for the whole world to see prior to the Games, but surprisingly, the top brass itself have urged a probe into the corruption matter. A group of Ministers, headed by Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy, will look into the matter, and government agencies are expected to submit reports by 31 October.
Corruption in India is akin to the ten-headed Ravana. You cut off one head to find another taking its place. Rooted deep in the bureaucracy, it is difficult to shake off the shadows of this particular affliction.
With the campaign for eradication of corruption kickstarted by the media baying for blood and the Government eager to grant them some, I hope we purge the rest of the bureaucracy of this weed.
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