Threat Culture

Pradosh Nath

Now doctors are being threatened to sign a document declaring that there is no threat culture in the workplace. ‘Threat Culture’, now the buzz word resonating every nook and corner of the state of West Bengal, exposes more than what eyes and ears can capture. A wider perspective may reveal that the so-called Threat Culture is a feudal mode of extracting rent using neo-Nazi instruments institutionalised in a post ideology socio-political environment.

Rent is extracted for access to the services of the power of the political authority (power of the soil–in Ricardo). It has several layers– from the supreme authority down to local authorities. But unlike Ricardian rent that is paid for the use of original and indestructible powers of the soil, here the power is intangible, and it is neither original nor indestructible. Therefore, it is more repressive and virulent in maximising rent in the shortest period of time. Unlike power of the soil, political power is not inert, it is to be continuously exercised, not only to keep it alive but also to create space for its actions. Accrual of rent depends on the quality of the power, which in turn depends on the trust of and loyalty and proximity to the political authority at the top. There could be petty rent (sometimes as intangible as the public image of having access to power) to as hefty as a mountain depending on the art of capitalising the access to power. It also depends on business acumen and innovative ways of creating space for rent.

Wherever there is government fund and /or services there could be opportunity of earning rent. Crudest and dirtiest variety would be taking a (say) 50% cut for enrolling the name of a woman beneficiary for a monthly allowance of say Rs1000. Rent for arranging transfer to a preferred location, or arranging a job might be seen as lesser evil due to mutual interest. Education could be one of the most fertile areas. People were all against the practice of mass copying. Strengthening vigilance in the exam hall has been the solution. The solution also opened a new window for earning rent. Allow only those who can pay rent. Create the necessary power nexus required for that. Then there are even better innovations. With right connectivity and rent sharing arrangement, accrual of rent could be much higher in an arrangement where enrolling for a particular exam would be good enough, while rest would be taken care of in the final result sheet.

The problem is, given the bleak employment scenario, getting employment with degrees acquired through such innovative ways appeared to be difficult. Only opportunity, even though limited, in government and government aided schools, where appointments are made through the government created agencies. A more attractive opportunity thus innovated. For example, a teachers’ job requires a B.Ed degree. In no time across the state mushroomed B.Ed colleges. Accrual of rent from admission in the college, for ensuring degree, for good grades in the exams for recruitment, and finally for getting a job. This route to innovating new sources of rent income can be chalked out in any sphere of social and economic lives where govt administration has even a marginal presence. It appears that medical colleges and hospitals are the gold mines. It could be anything from dead bodies, medical wastes, medicine, construction, and of course, giving grades to the students.

It does not require great insights to understand that the execution of the above mentioned innovative ways of extracting rent requires invincible network at the levels of govt. administration with the patronage of the ruling political dispensation. This nexus functions through a neo-Nazi modus operandi. Hitler, the original executor of Nazi mode of operation, planned mass killing of Jews as the way to social cleansing. Mass killing is a condemned way of cleansing social or economic opponents. Alternative is, instead of killing, keep the undesirables on tenterhook, - either you live the way the ruling dispensation wants you to live, or leave, or live with misery. Spreading fear that one would be either killed or harmed in case of disobedience is the neo-Nazi instrument. Palestine situation can broadly be narrated with this neo-Nazi modus operandi.

Here in this land, however, neo-Nazism has taken an interesting incarnation. It is secular in nature – in the sense that it is apparently not against any caste, creed, religion, or community. It operates through subjugation of the masses. Subjugation is perpetrated in two ways: Granting favour for a price. Since it is hush money it is never talked about, and remains an open secret for ages. And making access to normal life, or legitimate right difficult so that asking favour paying appropriate rent becomes the destiny. Mass killing is not the agenda, selective killing is, in case subjugation is questioned.

This Indian version of neo Nazism gets expression in the phrase– Threat Culture. The above understanding leads to a considered guess about the recent rape and murder (or murder and rape) of a lady junior doctor in R G Kar Medical College & Hospital, Kolkata. There was an all-out effort to destroy traces of evidence was it a case of defying the subjugation? Was it perpetrated for questioning the practices of the culture of rent maximisation, the Threat Culture?

The softer and passive form of rent seeking political culture has been there for quite some time. How it evolved in its present form is an interesting part of post- 70’s socio-political history of the state. But it is believed that it has not been absent even in pre-70 days. The culture has matured, and has become endemic in the present political eco-system. This is a post ideology political eco-system, where politics is nothing but the problem of management for retaining power and maximising rent income in a short period of time. If ideology is at all talked about, it is only to ensure a façade that can cover the ugly face of neo-Nazism.

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Frontier
Vol 57, No. 19, Nov 3 - 9, 2024