Social work and politics never go together although the

Hear the words of Suresh Gopi, spoken with the clarity of one who has walked in both realms of service and power: “Social work and politics never go together although the intention behind politics is social work.” In this saying lies a paradox, a truth both bitter and illuminating. It reminds us that politics, in its purest design, was meant to serve the people, to lift the weak, to ensure justice. Yet in practice, politics often strays from this noble path, weighed down by ambition, rivalry, and corruption. Meanwhile, social work stands apart, humble and unadorned, serving not for power but for compassion.

The intention of politics—from its very birth in the assemblies of Athens and the senates of Rome—was rooted in the service of society. Leaders were meant to be guardians, shepherds of the people, voices for the common good. Yet power, like fire, is double-edged. Where it warms, it also burns; where it builds, it also destroys. Too often politics, instead of becoming a vessel of social service, has become a battlefield of egos and ambitions. Thus, the purity of intention and the impurity of execution stand in eternal tension.

Social work, by contrast, is unburdened by the hunger for dominion. It moves in the shadows, in villages, in slums, in quiet corners where need cries out. It is not crowned with titles nor adorned with wealth. Its power is love, and its reward is the transformation of lives. When Mother Teresa gathered the dying from the streets of Calcutta, she sought no seat of power, no throne of politics. Her service was direct, her motive pure. This is the spirit of social work—small acts of mercy that ripple outward like waves, shaping a better world without ever demanding applause.

History has shown us the tension between these two worlds. Consider the life of Mahatma Gandhi. He began as a social reformer, lifting up the poor, embracing simplicity, living among the lowest castes. Yet his path inevitably crossed into politics, for the liberation of India demanded not only compassion but also struggle against empire. Gandhi wrestled with this tension: how to remain rooted in truth and humility while walking in the realm of power. His greatness lay in keeping the soul of social work alive within politics, though the two realms warred against each other.

Suresh Gopi’s words carry both lament and warning. He laments that politics and social work rarely walk hand in hand—for politics too often consumes itself in pride and rivalry, while social work flourishes best in simplicity and humility. And yet, he warns that the true intention of politics is meant to be social work. If politics forgets this, it loses its soul. If social work avoids politics entirely, it may lack the power to change structures of injustice. Thus the challenge of every age is to reconcile the two—to bring compassion into power without allowing power to corrupt compassion.

The lesson is this: never forget that the purpose of politics is service. If you enter public life, remember that titles are nothing without deeds of mercy. If you labor in social work, do not despise politics, but hold it accountable to its original calling. And if you are neither politician nor social worker, still live by the truth that service is the measure of all life. For in the end, greatness is not found in crowns or offices, but in the lives uplifted by our choices.

In practice, this means: honor those who work in silence for the good of others. Support leaders whose politics truly resemble social work, whose laws uplift rather than oppress, whose policies heal rather than divide. And in your own life, let service—not ambition—be your guide. For though politics may fail, though powers may crumble, the humble hand that lifts another endures forever in memory and in spirit.

So let Suresh Gopi’s words echo like a timeless reminder: politics without service is corruption, and service without power is limited. Yet when the two are united, when politics remembers its true purpose as social work, then justice can flow like a river, and nations can rise in harmony and compassion. This is the union humanity has long awaited, and the standard by which every leader must be judged.