The outcome of the scandal in Karnataka involving three high-ranking ministers watching a pornographic film in the state legislature, will indicate whether this incident can be viewed as an aberration by individuals, or as a reflection of the moral perfidy of our political parties.

It will depend on the punishment the offenders receive. If the party takes a zero tolerance approach and permanently strips them of membership, it can retain some modicum of morality, worthy of public respect at the ballot box. If however, it follows the usual “wait until public memory and media attention fades” policy that we are accustomed to, then it will prove to be another instance of supreme arrogance shown by governments. The question facing all of us as a society is how important is morality in the people that govern us?

How offensive do we find the idea that our minister in charge of the portfolio of welfare of women and children, is an avid voyeur of debasing videos of women?

Change in a democracy will not come from within the system, but when people demand better of their elected representatives. If the guilty get away unscathed, it is not just an indictment of a politician or a party, but of the kind of society we are today.

We can be cynical and fatalistic about our government, or we can make sure we engage in the political process and don’t forget or forgive.

—The writer is Co-Founder of Janaagraha Center for Citizenship & Democracy and Chairperson, India Urban Space Foundation