Is it right for a good politician to play politics to win elections?

[An online spiritual discussion was conducted on November 29, 2020, in which several devotees participated. Some of the questions of devotees answered by Swāmi are given below.]

[Śrī Hrushikesh asked: Some good politicians play politics and do some wrong deeds in order to win the elections. It appears to be unavoidable since we have a lot of ignorant people in our country. But is it right to do such actions in politics?]

Swāmi replied: When the public is ignorant, you are forced to go with the flow, in order to win the election. But after winning the election, you can sincerely try to bring about some reformation in the world because you are already transformed inside, with this spiritual knowledge preached by Datta Swami. Without inner transformation, external reformation is a dream! Winning the election is the means and bringing about reformation among people in society is the end. The ends justify the means. God Kṛṣṇa did a lot of fraud, while fighting the war against the demonic Kauravas. All that fraud was justified because the end achieved by Him was the victory of justice (Pāṇḍavas) and the destruction of injustice (Kauravas). When there is no alternative, in terms of the means, injustice can be followed. Such inevitable adoption of unjust means will get neutralised by the end, which is the establishment of justice. But one must be careful and ensure that justice is established in the end; otherwise, it will be a double injustice—injustice in the means and injustice in the end!

★ ★ ★ ★ ★