These are solid reasons for jettisoning the idea but only if the signals of 2008 are totally ignored.  But if they do hold out straws then it is one that invites experimentation. After all could not a trust be set up to finance the election campaigns of such individuals? Could not the trust draw on the Obama campaign tactics and use Internet to raise money from an ‘angry’ public? A contribution of say Rs. 100/- from even a part of India’s so called middle class could put over Rs. 100 crores into the trust. The effort may come to naught but if it did not and some candidates were elected through such a process it could galvanise a significant challenge to the present conventional narrative of governance. And if that happened the needle would shift not simply in the direction of symbolism but towards systemic, durable and positive changes.

The writer is chairman, Shell Group in India; views expressed are personal