India's aged democracy: The long view LAL KRISHNA ADVANI, long a dominant figure in the opposition BJP, harrumphed this week over the "personal agendas" of younger leaders in the party. Yet it is the young who should really moan: about the elderly who clog Indian politics, and a stultifying culture of deference to the old. Manmohan Singh, at 80, is one of the world's oldest leaders and his cabinet creaks with pensioners. Pranab Mukherjee, the president, is 77. The oldies are heavily over-represented in both houses of parliament. Rishang Keishing, a charming 94-year-old Baptist from Manipur, sits in the upper house, the Rajya Sabha. He is believed to be the oldest MP in the world. Looking fit in his gold-rimmed glasses and a neat blue shirt, Mr Keishing remains alert and well-informed. Elected to independent India's first parliament in 1952, he offers the long view of politics. Sadly, what Mr Keishing sees is mostly parliamentary decline. He recalls constructive, articulate debates soon after independence, when members respected the speaker as if "a priest in a church." Elected politicians, he says, perhaps a little rosily, had a readiness to serve the people and "the corruption we see today was completely absent." Now he laments endless confrontation, posturing for television, widespread graft and constant shouting during debates. The result: this parliament has passed fewer laws and sat for less time than any full parliament in India's history. He worries that voters are losing respect for the institution, though not for democracy. He plans to retire in April. A member of the ruling Congress party, Mr Keishing refuses to blame dynastic politics for falling standards. Instead he points to the recent emergence of many regional parties with no interest in national matters. He would like a constitutional change to wipe out the smallest. But, he concedes, keeping such diverse groups involved in parliament is also India's democratic strength: "Like a kedgeree, we are mixed together."