P A G E
Friday, September 11, 1998
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E D I T O R I A L P A G E |
Friday, September 11, 1998 |
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Time
for realism
Advantage,
the corrupt
Afghanistan
as Pak’s soft underbelly? |
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Notes
and Comments |
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Time for realism AS Indian diplomacy is counting its wounds and bruises sustained at Durban and in many major capital cities of the world, Pakistan is taking its undeclared war to various parts of this country. The Bharatiya Janata Party's reaction to Mr Natwar Singh's observation that "we were completely isolated at the NAM summit and not a single country responded to India" offers more irritability and evasiveness than quintessential explanation of the lapses on the foreign policy front. The BJP says, inter alia, that "the Congress (through Mr Natwar Singh) is making unwarranted and ill-tempered comments" and that it is "making cynical attempts at politicising all issues, including those of national interest". We hold no brief either for the Congress or for Mr Natwar Singh, who has, in his own right, been a witness to this country's diplomatic ups and down over the past three disturbed decades. Therefore, we view the anti-India tilt abroad with much concern and anguish. Mr Nelson Mandela's proxy apology for his Durban utterances has at best brought a little relief to those minds which have cherished the positivity of the Indian-South African relationship from the days of Gandhi to NAM's dark hour. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has poured vitriol on India on the Kashmir issue. President Clinton is "in close touch" on Kashmir with Pakistan's Prime Minister, Mr Nawaz Sharif, who is escalating what has been so far euphemistically described as "proxy war". Our correspondent has
travelled on the high way and in the interior of Jammu
and Kashmir and brought the ominous impression that even
Ladakh or Leh is no longer "relatively safe".
Civilian targets are being attacked round the clock by
Pakistani troops who, after the recent visit of the Chief
of Army Staff, Gen V.P. Malik, to the affected areas,
cannot be called mercenaries or Pakistan-trained
militants. Regular troops are being used in planned and
continuing assaults. According to General Malik, our
emphasis at the moment is on protecting the civilian
areas from "Pakistani shelling and making Indian
response more focused and damaging". Satellite
telecommunication is being used by Islamabad for
identifying villages and towns and killing civilians.
Apparently, the Union Government has not been quite aware
of such developments until the other day. Even now, the
General wants "a detailed and clear picture of what
has happened". The dead armymen and civilians tell
clear tales relegating the myth of "hearsays"
to the background. The Defence Ministry is still
discussing the idea of buying a thermal image
surveillance equipment to keep track of the constant
shifting of heavy artillery guns by the Pakistanis and to
have some information about their attempt at pushing
militants into Indian territory. There are enough ISI
infiltrators in this country to disrupt peace in major
cities. They are equipped with chemical weapons and
high-tech lethal arms. Tamil Nadu knows this fact; so do
Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and many sensitive parts of the
North-East. What the Director-General of the Punjab
Police, Mr P.C. Dogra, has revealed recently should make
the Union Home Ministry lose some sleep. Ever heard of a
large plan of poisoning drinking water (simultaneously?)
in various parts of the country with cyanide? Even in the
worst of the days of conflicts with this country,
Pakistan had not taken recourse to strong anaesthetics to
incapacitate and murder people. The Punjab Police has
confessed that although carriers of weapons used in
chemical warfare have been nabbed, the end-users in India
have not been identified. So how much credit do we give
to our intelligence agencies just for compiling a list of
hazards noticed over quite a long stretch of time? A
major part of the recovered cyanide makes us look back to
October 24 last year and July 10 this year. How much
alertness has been shown during this period on the fronts
of intelligence-gathering and inimical activities? The
number of militant hide-outs in Punjab is increasing.
Although Home Minister L.K. Advani knows
"enough" about this fact, his senior officials
show ignorance "about seizures and arrests". We
should look beyond the Babbar Khalsa centres and increase
our surveillance, keeping an eye on all possible
instruments of terrorism, including infamous politicians
and gangsters. This is the time to act. Delay will prove
most expensive in terms of life and property. |
Enforced restitution THERE are several red faces in New Delhi and expectedly so. It is tough for powerful people to undo their own deeds, tougher to do it under judicial coercion, and toughest to swallow stinging strictures. The case of the transfer and the cancellation of the transfer of Mr M.K. Bezbaruah of the Enforcement Directorate is a mixture of all these three ingredients with the distinct possibility of a fourth one — political censure — completing the process. With the advantage of hindsight, it can be said that the bureaucracy, hired legal expertise and the political leadership wilfully ignored a series of warning, and committed repeated mistakes, generating a full-blown controversy and annoying the Supreme Court. Missing were the famed bureaucratic penchant for going by the rule and the political sensitivity to sniff out potential trouble. And the combined effect is for all to see. An angry apex court has bluntly ordered the government to reinstate the ousted Mr Bezbaruah as head of the Enforcement Directorate; embarrassed officialdom is busy covering its track and the Prime Minister is seeking a report on who wrote the affidavit that earned a sharp rebuke of the court. From the look of it, the Prime Minister may soon widen the inquiry to cover who played what role in the transfer affair. He should do it now before the Supreme Court activates another explosive issue — the ordinance on the Central Vigilance Commissioner. The Bezbaruah case has
brought out bureaucratic inefficiency and the absence of
imaginative ministerial vigilance. The Finance Minister
once complained that he did not get full cooperation from
his officers and the Home Minister said in a television
interview that the Cabinet lacked experience, and both
were right at that time. After six months in office, this
is hollow defence. Obviously there is no monitoring
agency, or if there is one it is dormant. Otherwise, it
is hard to understand how the Ministries of Personnel,
Law and the Cabinet Secretariat failed to read the
intentions behind the apex court’s description of
the transfer as “very, very distressing”. That
was on August 18, barely five days after the transfer.
And the court has gone the farthest to insulate top
investigating officers from political or bureaucratic
intervention. A sharp comment from a deeply committed
Bench was as good as an order, but the Central
Secretariat looked the other way. Earlier this week, the
court virtually rejected the affidavit — and hence
the basis of government’s defence — terming it
“misleading”. That was the day to act, to
cancel the order and inform the Bench of the compliance
of its stated desire. That would have been graceful and
saved the government from a legal rout and surrender. It
would not do for the BJP to dismiss it as an
administrative matter; everything concerning the
government is political and in the days to come, the case
will come handy to the opposition to turn the spotlight
on the messy handling of the controversy. Mr Bezbaruah
has been an unwitting instrument in baring a number of
creaky points in the administration. But it is for others
to investigate and set them right. |
ADVANTAGE, THE CORRUPT
WHEN it comes to tackling corruption, the system, as it exists at different levels, proves to be both powerful and stubborn to stall any real or superficial moves in that direction. In other words, the politico-bureaucratic wall proves to be impregnable against all possible onslaughts against corruption and corrupt practices among the powers that be. This has been a normal pattern irrespective of the nature of the government at the Centre and in the states. Judicial responses to corruption cases too have been slow and varied. Even the method of inquiry by a committee or courts tends to be slow, costly and time-consuming. Conviction also becomes difficult because of the law of evidence. The climate of political instability existing in New Delhi for the past several years has only made matters worse. Not that stable governments tend to be less corrupt. But the parameters of greed in the corridors of power do get widened in a state of instability to the advantage of corrupt persons. In the Indian scheme of
things, there is no premium on honesty. In today's setup
everything is a matter of manipulation. So, the face of
truth gets manipulated and twisted beyond recognition if
the powerful and the influential have their way. Look at the several cases ranging from hawala to the fodder scam. In most corruption cases involving politicians, bureaucrats and other high-ups, truth becomes the first casualty. There are surely certain loose ends in law. Still, the present legal provisions are adequate enough to take care of the corrupt provided there is a political will to take things to the logical conclusion. But then being a soft state everything is circumvented in this country, from traffic violations to scams of a serious nature. The enforcement process is faulty. The system, as it operates, is heavily tilted against honest citizens. It is true that an honest person occupying a key position generally cannot impose his will on the system and the people working below. It is the honest man who is ultimately eased out. So powerful is the system dominated by vested interests that no honest person can dare question it. Small wonder that in the name of tackling corruption we see nothing but shadow-boxing. In most cases, the often-talked-about anti-corruption moves remain on paper. Every government has talked about legislative measures, but they either remain stuck or are made toothless. This is also true of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in its new avtar under the Ordinance promulgated recently by the BJP-led government. The CVC is a much watered-down version of what was originally conceived. The Supreme Court had a different idea. But the final shape of the CVC will virtually make it yet another tool in the hands of the bureaucracy. The commission will probably get sucked into the official system which has already become hollow and rotten from within. The Ordinance has virtually converted a purely advisory institution into a constitutional body without a proper study of the issues involved and consultations with experts. What is equally disturbing is that the only credible official setup — the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) — will virtually become impotent in the new setup. The Delhi Police Establishment Act has also been amended by the same Ordinance. This will considerably weaken the CBI in the process. The CBI has thus ceased to be an autonomous body. So the question of its working without fear or favour no longer seems feasible. This is how the instruments against corruption are blunted officially. Ironically, all this is done in the name of fighting corruption. India today has the dubious distinction of being ranked the ninth most corrupt country in the world. Not that there was no corruption earlier, but its range and dimension has increased alarmingly during the past three decades or so. The Santhanam Committee, among other things, once specifically talked about corruption in the ruling elite. Its report said: "There is a widespread impression that failure of integrity is not common among ministers and that some ministers who have held office during the past 16 years have enriched themselves and illegitimately obtained good jobs for their sons and relations through nepotism and have reaped other advantages inconsistent with any notion of purity in public life...." These observations were made in 1964. We are now nearly at the end of 1998. In the sixties, it was probably easier to count on one's fingers the number of corrupt persons. The very process has of late got reversed. We can now count only a few honest persons in the vast ocean of corruption. A report by the National
Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) has
highlighted how large-scale leakages take place in public
expenses. It says at least 25 per cent of the allocations
for the operation and maintenance of canals are routinely
shared among dishonest politicians, officials and
contractors. Looking at the poor state of maintenance of roads, canals and other vital public installations, the leakage probably is more than a quarter of the funds allotted. In the construction of the Kosi canal the leakage was said to be 40 to 50 per cent. Even delay and red-tapism in many government offices are deliberate. This invariably leads to corrupt practices. It is also no secret that 50 to 80 per cent of the public funds earmarked for anti-poverty programmes are deflected or diverted to other areas. So, crores of rupees go down the drain every year in the name of eradicating poverty. This is a telling commentary on the standard of governance in the country. If corruption and corrupt practices become a part of governance, then what hope is there in the future for the betterment of the conditions of the common man? On the face of it, the situation seems hopeless. Reversing this corruption-prone trend will not be easy. It is a difficult task of a gigantic magnitude that calls for the right attitudes, the right type of persons in key and sensitive areas of public affairs and the right dose of political will to break the vicious circle of corruption. The moot point is: does the leadership possess the political will to launch a cleansing operation? Over a period of time the political system has been tampered with, and it has so developed that it works at all levels for the benefit of those at the helm. This is true of most of the political leaders occupying public positions. In this permissive atmosphere, everyone tends to look after himself to the detriment of public good. Be that as it may. We have to look afresh at the whole gamut of corrupt operations and take concrete steps to plug the loopholes and ensure a fair system of accountability. What we need are a few basic though small steps to strike at the root of the problem. Mercifully, the nation is still vibrant and the public vigilant. Also, thanks to a free Press and operational democracy, people understand what is what. However, mere understanding the problem cannot take us anywhere. Nor will mere hurling of charges against individuals without evidence help. The time has now come to view the problem in a larger perspective and put pressure on the rulers to introduce fiscal, administrative and electoral reforms to minimise the influence of black money. Equally important is prompt punishment to those who violate the law. The corrupt must not be allowed to get away with their ill-gotten wealth. Public money should not be diverted toward private gains. At the same time, as Jawaharlal Nehru once said, "We cannot make progress in this country if everybody suspects the other of lack of integrity". Public accountability must be part of our system. This will be possible if the air of secrecy that goes with official dealings is ended. Secretiveness is conducive to an atmosphere of intrigue and unhealthy curiosity. It indirectly aids corruption and corrupt practices. Indeed, corruption is practised in secret and not in the presence of honest and reliable witnesses. The people have the right to information. So, it is imperative that the sluice gates of misinformation are identified, exposed and closed, whether they are operated by state agencies or non-official agencies. Of crucial importance here
is the task of reorienting the administrative structure
and revamping the established procedures with a view to
helping honest citizens. This will be possible if two
sets of rules are not operational — one for the poor
and the other for the rich and influence-wielders. |
Afghanistan as Pak’s soft
underbelly? PAKISTAN is elated over the recent success of the Taliban in gaining control over most of Afghanistan. It sees in it the fulfilment of its long-held strategic ambitions. But the celebrations may be premature. The war in Afghanistan is not yet over, and Pakistan may have over-estimated its strategic gains. The overall situation is not all that favourable. The redoubtable Ahmed Shah Masoud is still in occupation of the Panjshir Valley. He has promised to continue the fight by reverting to the guerilla tactics of the Soviet occupation era. Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (COS) have warned Pakistan to desist from interfering in Afghanistan. And Iran has taken up an openly belligerent stance by holding a major military exercise on the Afghan border. This cannot be good news for the Pakistan army. Though Islamabad has denied the Russian and CIS allegations, for any discerning military observer there can be little doubt that its army is deeply involved with the Taliban. No matter how great their religious fervour, no group of students just out of religious schools can organise a modern army and conduct coordinated military operations like the Taliban had done. Even more revealing is the aspect of administration and maintenance. It requires a proper logistics set-up to maintain an army which is using modern weapon systems like tanks, guns, multi-barrel rocket launchers and aircraft in the field. The Taliban could have learnt how to operate the equipments, but they could not possibly have established the infrastructure for their repair and maintenance in such a short time. That requires technically qualified and experienced manpower, especially for the maintenance of aircraft. This facility could only have been provided by Pakistan. So also the question of military planning and leadership. It takes years of experience and professional training to lead large bodies of troops in a modern battle. Here, too, the stamp of the Pakistan army is unmistakable. Pakistan has perceived several advantages in the Taliban’s recent victory. It now hopes to end the tensions it has always had with the earlier governments in Afghanistan over the Durand Line and the Pakhtunistan issue. Secondly, it will now have the strategic depth against India it has always been seeking. And, finally, it feels
that as a result of the Taliban victory, it would be in a
position to offer a reliable route for the export of
Central Asian oil and gas through the Arabian Sea via
Afghanistan and Pakistan. This would not only be
advantageous to it in economic terms, but would also
enable it to develop leverages to play an important role
in the Central Asian region. Pakistan may have miscalculated on all these counts. The Taliban has spelt out its stand on Afghanistan’s inter-state disputes, but Pakistan may be a bit optimistic in this matter. Bangladesh did not soften its stand on any of the problems the erstwhile East Pakistan had with India even after New Delhi had helped it attain independence. Pakistan’s search for strategic depth against India in Afghanistan appears to be conceptually flawed. In a war strategic depth can serve three purposes. It can provide the space to fall back deep within one’s own territory till the enemy flanks are exposed and his lines of communication (LOC) over-stretched. He can then be annihilated by a counter-thrust. This is what the Russians did to the Germans in World War II. The second purpose of depth can be to provide a safe area away from the battle front where own forces can be allowed to take rest, reorganised and trained before being launched for a counter-offensive. Britain was such an area for the allies while preparing for the invasion of the European mainland during World War II. And, thirdly, it can provide a safe area for locating the country’s logistic bases and strategic industries. From the strategic point of view, the question of strategic depth became quite redundant for Pakistan after it had announced in 1987 that it had acquired nuclear capability. After that there was no question of a deep thrust by India. It could have resulted in a nuclear war. Even otherwise also, Afghanistan is quite unsuitable as a depth area. Field Marshal Wavell once defined military strategy as nothing more than a study of communications. Pakistan’s lines of communications are such that by falling back on Afghanistan, it would be exposing them rather than covering them. For the same reason, Afghanistan cannot be used as a base to reorganise and re-fit a force for a counter-offensive. And no Pakistani would ever think of locating their logistic bases or strategic industries there. The Taliban victory in Afghanistan, therefore, does not confer any significant military advantage on Pakistan. On the other hand, it could turn out to be a serious disadvantage. — INFA (The author is a
retired Lieut-General.) |
The tyranny of memory
WHEN you come to a place where you have lived earlier, the days of the past haunt you. Imperceptibly, the intervening period sinks into oblivion and you find the past superimposed on the present. This co-existence of the past and the present at a particular period of time creates in the mind a trance-like state. You are aware all the time of two-levels of existence, but find it hard to come out of the charmed circle. This suspension between the polarities is both a thrilling and an exasperating experience. Marcel Proust was able to visualise the memory of the days of the past quite vividly when he commenced writing his novel, “Remembrance of Things Past”. In fact, he summoned up the days gone by to the sessions of sweet silent thought. Certainly the past is recreated through memory but it is not an end in itself. There is something more to it. In the course of time, memory links the past with the future. No one can become what one cannot find in one’s memories. In the words of Edward Schillebeeck, “A future is opened to us as we become reconciled to the past.” In a different frame of mind, Albert Camus has observed, “Man consciously wants to avoid memories.” Indeed memories, at times, besiege you and it becomes difficult to loosen their hold upon your mind. You feel like a man possessed, and roam about in the valley of the desires that have been clinging to your soul all these years. Desires have an uncertain future; as such, they gnaw at the vitals of the present. The attempt made haphazardly to transcend them is bound to be thwarted. So, the best course open to an individual is to reconcile the persistence of desires to the persuasion of logicality. In fact, it is a long drawn-out struggle of memory against forgetting. I wonder if it is possible to persuade Shakespeare at this time to change his line “Ripeness is all” to “Forgetfulness is all”. Or perhaps ripeness ensues forgetfulness as a natural sequence. In case the personal memories are eclipsed for the time being, what about the historical memories. Nietzsche says, “Man is the bearer of the burden of historical memories.” The days of Partition are still alive in the memories of most of us. It is not easy to obliterate them by the force of one’s will. Something that has been etched on the surface of the mind cannot be effaced by the waters of time. Hence the predicament of the human situation. There is another dimension
to this process of memory and forgetting. It has been
said that language is a treasure of memories of the
collective struggle of the people. Likewise, individual
memories merge themselves into collective memories and
assume the shape of destiny. At certain moments in the
course of life, man tries to disentangle his personal
memories from the collective memories, just to have a
look at them. Of course, it is not possible to achieve
this end. If at all it happens as desired, the resultant
feelings cannot be different from those of the South
African poet, Dennis Brutus, when he says: “I am the
voice/crying in the night/that cries endlessly/and will
not be reconciled.” |
China a prison of nationalities HALF of China, lying beyond the Great Wall, was added by conquests. And all along its western border, 5000 miles long, live the conquered peoples — Tibetans, Manchus, Uighurs, Mongols — sullen and rebellious. China is a prison of nationalities (this was said of Russia before). It is highly vulnerable. Unlike other empires of old, the Chinese empire never forgot its conquered peoples. It came back again and again to re-conquer them and subdue them. This was the case of Tibet in particular. But the conquered have never been reconciled to the rule of the Hans. It is said that a nation is judged by the way it treats its minorities. This is largely true. How does China stand up to this test? Rather terribly. China is the most oppressive nation to its minorities (can anything be more terrible than to systematically obliterate the identity of minorities and efface their memory?), but it is most chauvinistic about its own people — the Hans. China has been seeking a “final solution” to the minority problem. But how? By submerging the separate identity of the conquered in a sea of the Han race through colonisation, forced marriages and destruction of the visible symbols of their separate identity! And this by a state which calls itself civilised and socialist! What is India’s attitude towards its minorities? It is said of India that it is a mosaic of races and religions, languages and life-styles — in short, home of the greatest diversity on earth. India does not interfere in the life of its minorities. Being secular, it does not interfere with their religious and social customs, too. There are about 100 non-Han peoples in China, who number about 50 million to 55 million, that is 5 per cent of the billion population. Obviously, they have not multiplied as fast as the Han people. The Chuangs, Tibetans, Uighurs, Mongols, Manchus and others are minorities with a long history. Three of them occupy the largest provinces of China — Tibet, Sinkiang and Inner Mongolia. Take away from China these provinces, it will be reduced to a small state, with little of resources. America is working on this as a long-term objective. It suits India. (China is already working for the balkanisation of India). China had two distinct lines on minorities — a Marxist line and a Mao line. A resolution passed at the sixth Congress of the CPC (1928), held in Moscow, stated that the unification of China would be based on the right of nations to self-determination. (Right to self-determination was then the cry of all Communists and it covered all subject peoples.) But when Mao, the ultra nationalist, came to lead the Chinese party, the attitude began to change. Self-determination gave way to autonomy and autonomy gave way to assimilation. Sure enough, when the Maoists seized power, they established direct rule over the minorities and dismissed the demand for autonomy as contrary to Marxist and Communist practices. In 1958, Mao made it clear the right to self-determination would never be given to “national minorities”. But the deception continues that China respects the autonomy of its minorities. With the suppression of the Tibetans in the fifties, Beijing set in motion its policy of colonialism and assimilation. The eighth Congress under Liu Shao-Chi, who was opposed to Mao, took note of the aberrations in nationality policy and condemned “Great Han chauvinism”. But it is Mao’s line which has finally triumphed, as is evident from recent developments. Millions of Han Chinese have been moved into minority areas. Thus two regions with Han population were added to Inner Mongolia to reduce the strength of the Mongolians to 10 per cent! Similarly, non-Han peoples were deliberately scattered throughout China. Yet another method adopted by China to wipe out the separate identity of minorities was to force girls of non-Chinese nationalities to marry Chinese boys and non-Chinese boys to marry Chinese girls. Colonisation and other anti-minority measures produced revolts among minorities — in Tibet, Sinkiang and Inner Mongolia. The army was used to suppress them. Beijing characterised these revolts as “class struggle” between “slave owners” and the new forces! From the sixties, the Maoists began to suppress minority cultures. With China turning against Moscow from the sixties, the Central Asians living in western China became suspect. Their contacts with Central Asia were cut. The media fully supported these policies. In 1960 Sinkiang Hungchi wrote on the need for the “fusion” of all nationalities, while Sinkiang Jihpao said that “assimilation” is a “Marxist and Communist measure”. “He who is opposed to assimilation,” it said, “is opposed to socialism and Communism.” After such categoric statements, opposition was almost suicidal. And yet China failed to stamp out all opposition. During the “cultural revolution” every effort was made to destroy the cultural identities of the minorities. Theatre, music, literature, etc of minorities were abolished. They were not allowed to have denominational schools of their own. The medium of instruction was changed to Chinese or their languages were “sinified” and written in Chinese script. Party and state organs were quietly liquidated and replaced by “revolutionary committee” in which Hans dominated. We hear of only Tibet, of late, not much of Sinkiang and Inner Mongolia. This is because the Tibetan exiles keep their problem in world focus. What is more, Tibet arouses special fears among Chinese because of its strategic location. Together with Sinkiang, the region can become a base for a powerful movement to dislodge the Communists. This explains why China has chosen to destroy all traces of Tibetan culture, and why it refuses to come to terms with the Dalai Lama. As for Sinkiang, the home of Muslims, Hans continue to pour into this area. This province, once called Eastern Turkestan, which clearly hints at its historical background (even India had close links with this region) is rich in minerals, including oil. It is China’s main nuclear centre. If Tibet and Sinkiang can cause trouble to Beijing, it is Inner Mongolia that can cause greater trouble (Mongols once ruled over China), for it will be difficult for China to resist the demand for Mongolian unification, when China itself had been demanding the unification of Hong Kong and Taiwan with mainland China. All that America and Taiwan have to do is to spend some money to promote the “Greater Mongolia Movement”, which is already a factor to reckon with. Like the Mongols, the Manchus too conquered China and ruled over it for 300 years. And like the Mongols, the Manchus too were brought under the Chinese empire once their power came to an end. Manchuria, which Japan wanted to annex, is the richest province of China in terms of resources. The Manchus too have been reduced to a minority status in their own homeland. There are 10 million to 12 million Muslims in China. Most of them are scattered. Only the Uighurs (7 million) are concentrated in Sinkiang. Muslim fundamentalists are active in this area. Commune living has changed the ritual aspects of Muslim life. Their Wakf lands were collectivised, thus destroying the life support of Mullahs and madrasas. Religious teachings in schools were forbidden. Madrasas were amalgamated with Chinese schools. New mosques were permitted only in special circumstances. China, as can be seen, is
desperate to wipe out the separate identity of the
minorities, for it wants to present to the world a fait
accompli — that China has no minorities! Is this the
China that Washington wants to foist on Asia? |
THE question of Lala Lajpat Rai’s ill-health and release formed the subject matter of interpellations at Tuesday’s meeting of the Legislative Assembly. In reply to Rai Bahadur Lala Jawahar Lal’s question, the Home Minister admitted that the attention of the Government had been drawn to the question and the reply of Lala Lajpat Rai in the House of Commons. In reply to another question by a non-official member, Sir Malcolm Hailey said that the result of the medical examination was that they had not known the exact nature of the malady; that there is good reason to suppose, although the diagnosis has not been completed, that the disease is not tuberculosis; that there has been an increase in the weight of Lala Lajpat Rai by four pounds since he went to jail; and that he is given good diet. Asked whether the Government of India was prepared to remit under Section 401 of the Cr. P. Code the unexpired portion of the sentence of Lala Lajpat Rai on grounds of his ill-health, the Home Member said: “I have not yet seen any memorial from Lala Lajpat Rai himself.” If Sir Malcolm Hailey, in giving this last reply, wanted to indulge in cheap humour, all that we can say is that the government is not yet convinced of the urgent necessity of the release. When interpellated in the Commons, Earl Winterton refused to intervene on the ground that the matter was within the competence of the Government of India. And now when the latter is asked to act, the Home Member says that the question of Lala Lajpat Rai’s release must be put to the Punjab Government. But the Punjab Government
cannot be interpellated because the Council session,
which was announced to be held towards the end of this
month, has been postponed sine die. Does it mean, then,
that Lala Lajpat Rai must continue to languish in jail,
either because he himself will not submit a memorial for
his release or because there is no opportunity in the
near future for non-official members of the local
legislature to interpellate the Punjab Government on the
subject? |
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