Politics is a wonderful thing, as it can provide one with the unique opportunity of posturing oneself as a defender of the poor, while making oneself very rich.
Every country has their own corrupt defender/demagogue, but India has one of the best. Laloo Prasad Yadav became the chief executive of the state of Bihar by representing himself as a savior of the oppressed -- and he saved them by ripping them off in a very big way.
Yadav is charged with being part of a ring that bilked $138 million that was meant to buy livestock feed for state dairy farms. But his lower-class, uneducated constituents still love him. After all, except for the huge money, power, and position, Yadav is just like them.
As Yadav was driven to jail, his 30-car motorcade was surrounded by thousands of adoring supporters. A former police compound has been converted into a luxury jail to accommodate Yadav.
Yadav has even managed to have his wife, who has no education or political experience, assume the position he had to vacate as a result of the corruption charges. Ain't politics great?
(Source: CNN.)
