Facts on ground have changed, politics must change accordingly, says Faesal

Shah Faesal, IAS topper and politician, in a candid interview to Arun Joshi admitted that out of detention, he finds himself in an unfamiliar territory. He regrets that his resignation from the service before he stepped onto the volatile political terrain “created more problems than it solved,” as he had never “imagined that an act of dissent would be seen as an act of sedition that erased the immense goodwill that I had across India after topping the CSE”.

Dismissing the perceptions that his acts have increased trust deficit in political system, he said the “facts on the ground have changed, the politics must change accordingly. He described his experiences in the past two years as “hard but still an unbelievably meaningful journey”.

In an interview with The Tribune on Tuesday night, he said: “Out of detention, I feel like (French novelist Albert) Camus’ ‘Stranger’ — a man in an unfamiliar territory”.

Excerpts from the interview:

Don’t you think your acts have increased trust deficit in political parties’ system?

Not at all. My message here is that if you want to do politics then accept the new political realities and go ahead. I’m making things clear for the youth. That now the facts on ground have changed, the politics must change accordingly. Those who can adapt will find success.

What are your future plans?

As of now I am done with a phase of my life. What’s past is past and I am looking forward to starting afresh. I have no idea where will I land but I think I would continue to work in the development sector.

Are you in communication with the government?

I’m a man from the system and I can never be out of communication with the system. But as of now I am not sure what’s in the government’s mind.

Do you see any political role for yourself in the government?

I don’t think I can take up any political role at this juncture. I want to move on.

About charges of violating service rules?

All I have done is made some statements and I do regret some of these. Political discourse is such that many times we forget the line between what is necessary and what is absurd. But then I was a new comer and we learn with time.

How much money was collected through crowd funding?

We collected Rs 6.001 lakh in the crowd fund account. Can you imagine it was just six lakh? People spread rumours that we collected crores. That is a public account in the Kanispora branch and anyone can check the balance, etc. We spent the entire money on helping pellet victims, terminally ill patients and poor needy people and the details are being shared. It’s unfortunate that such questions are being raised.. The party is still there. And also, I gave up lakhs of rupees as my salary and such is the viciousness of these critics that they will count pennies and miss the pounds.

How would you reconcile the violation of the conduct of service rules and hope to rejoin the services?

This is an extraordinary situation and I don’t know what’s in the government’s mind. I am approaching this situation with an open mind. I don’t think the government has taken any decision about it yet.

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