Should Murthy walk alone?

Should Murthy walk alone?
Other Industrialists Should Speak Up
The Economic Times

WHEN Deve Gowda goes after Narayana Murthy, should other industrialists watch on, strong and silent? There are very good reasons for other industrialists to speak out in solidarity with Mr Murthy. The issue is not limited to either the individual likes and dislikes of the principal protagonists or to the state of Karnataka. As we said in this column last Saturday (Oct 22), when an experienced politician takes on an industrialist of iconic stature, it is because he hopes to tap into a vein of rich political potential. This comes in the shape of policy failure so far to make a visible link between the success of information technology sectors (shining India) and the rural economy (Bharat). Industrialists do need to grapple with this alienation of the majority from the success of a minority, as such a schism, if sustained, will lead to assorted social tensions that abort growth. But that is not the only reason why other prominent businessmen and their associations should speak up now. In India’s political economy, the politician has tended to treat the businessman like some species of guard dog, always expected to do its job and take in an occasional whipping without fuss, sometimes rewarded with a bone or two, even indulged, but never accepted as a regular member of the household. It’s time this changed.

A society that does not respect its wealth creators, said Dhirubhai Ambani, is doomed. Businessmen deserve respect. Society at large is now ready to accord greater respect to a businessman like Narayana Murthy than to members of the khadi-clad tribe who manipulate group loyalties and disaffections to worm their way into power. Business leaders must take this opportunity to assert their rights as honourable members of society. They will lose both those rights as well as public respect, if they do not show the courage to stand up for what is right, when a manifest wrong is perpetrated on one of their best.