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UP poll sweepstakes Putin
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UP poll
sweepstakes
Emerging political
scenario
Ghost of a chance
News
analysis Delhi
Durbar
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UP poll sweepstakes THE latest political signals from Uttar Pradesh appear to reveal as much as they conceal. As of today, the Congress is in a no-win position. The Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party have both "rejected" its offer of alliance for defeating the "communal" forces. Ms Mayawati and Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav have their own political compulsions for keeping Mrs Sonia Gandhi guessing. While the former believes that the Congress is hardly in a position to transfer its votes to the BSP, the UP Chief Minister has a long-term political strategy in which the Congress is more a liability than an asset. In any case, the Congress has been out of power for eight years now and the two parties do not believe that it is in a position to provide an alternative government. They would rather have an understanding with the NDA than the Congress. Under these circumstances, why should either of the two key political spoilers in UP take the gamble of accepting a formal alliance with a party which has lost its base and even the political instinct for resurrection? In the assembly elections, the Samajwadi Party and the BSP between them cornered most of the seats. The post-election desertions left the Congress with just a token presence in the biggest legislature in the country. It must be remembered that the Congress has succeeded in striking alliances with regional parties whose leaders do not openly nurse the dream of becoming Prime Minister. The same cannot be said about Ms Mayawati or Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav. It is doubtful whether Mr Virendra Singh, spearheading the Congress' campaign in UP, really believes that either of the two regional satraps would accept his party's invitation for an alliance of the "secular forces" at the last minute. The intervention of the anti-NDA brokers in Delhi may result in some kind of a face-saving formula for the Congress. It is unlikely that the formula would go beyond managing a marriage of convenience for the oldest political party of the country. That may not be good enough for it to banish the eight-year itch for power. |
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Putin proves it President Vladimir Putin of Russia has won a fresh mandate to rule his country for another four years. This is not surprising as most opinion polls had predicted his victory. What is noteworthy is that a vast majority of the 109 million registered voters exercised their right in favour of the incumbent President. Political pundits had apprehensions that since people already knew that Mr Putin was almost certain to be re-elected, the voter turnout could fall before the eligibility mark. The Russians, therefore, must be feeling relaxed after the election results. The voters' decision is believed to have been guided by their economic pragmatism. They knew that of all the candidates in the fray, only Mr Putin was capable of leading Russia on the road to progress in an era of market economy. Mr Putin also stands for democratic values, freedom of the Press and a socially-oriented state, besides other things, for which the Russians have paid a heavy price for over a decade. They do not want these gains of the post-Soviet era to be lost. Mr Putin has proved during his first term that he is a good manager whom Russia cannot afford to lose, at least at this stage. There is, however, a danger ahead. Mr Putin may start functioning like an autocrat in the absence of a credible opposition. He has behaved in this manner on many occasions in the past. In any case, a strong and credible opposition is a must for realising the Russian dream of a healthy democracy. One reason given for the dismal performance by all his challengers — a Communist, a pro-business liberal, two nationalists and a pro-Kremlin lawmaker — is that the presidential election was held soon after the parliamentary polls. The opposition candidates could not find enough time to prepare for the crucial battle of the ballot. Whatever is the cause, the Russians will have to concentrate on evolving a dependable party system, which is missing today. |
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UP poll
sweepstakes THE rule of law is premised on equality. But the way those in power exercise their authority gives the distinct impression that some are more than equal before the law. Take the case of a Subdivisional Magistrate of Punjab, who was caught red-handed with two peacocks and four grey partridges. The peacock is a national bird, figuring in Schedule 1 of the Wild Conservation Act, the killing of which is a non-bailable offence. The law does not allow the killing of partridges either. Yet, the SDM was bailed out within a few hours of his arrest while film star Salman Khan, who hunted down a black buck in Rajasthan, had to cool his heels in a jail for quite a few days before he was released. In sharp contrast, the SDM’s friends tried their best to save him. But for the perseverance of the two wildlife wardens who caught him, the birds would not have been sent for postmortem. Sadly for the SDM, the postmortem report has confirmed that the birds were indeed shot down. Given the abysmally low rate of conviction in poaching cases, it is difficult to believe that the SDM would be given the punishment he deserves. Reports suggest that those entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing the law without fear or favour have weakened the case with the result that it will hardly stand judicial scrutiny. The SDM did not deserve any leniency as he was supposed to know the seriousness of the offence he was committing when he went to the jungles with his gun. In fact, his job was to ensure that the law was not violated. But the authorities went out of the way to bail him out as he would have been suspended if he had remained in jail for more than 24 hours. Back in his powerful job, it is only reasonable to expect the SDM to use all his clout to get away with murder. The SDM’s is not a solitary case. Last week the leader of a particular sect in Punjab, who was accused of heinous crimes, was arrested and released immediately, courtesy grant of bail by the police themselves. It is for the court to decide whether he is guilty or not. The police are not known to show such leniency to people facing similar charges. Incidents of this kind will negate the rule of law with disastrous consequences for the body politic. |
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Thought for the day Leadership is not about being nice. It’s about being right and being strong.
— Paul Keating |
Emerging political scenario EVEN as the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress fan out to nooks and corners of the country to garner votes, a dark cloud is looming on the horizon. It is the prospect of a host of Chandrababu Naidus demanding their pound of flesh for supporting the ruling dispensation at the Centre. The irony is that just when the halcyon days of Mr Naidu in extracting concessions from New Delhi in exchange for supporting the ruling coalition at the Centre seem numbered, others are throwing their hats in the ring. There are at least three serious contenders for Mr Naidu’s crown as the central arch of a coalition but for whose support the edifice of government would crumble. The betting in Delhi is that Mr Naidu will not be able to repeat the number of Telugu Desam Party MPs he had in the dissolved Lok Sabha. Since a regional satrap’s clout is directly and proportionately dependent upon the votes he can muster in Parliament, the Andhra Chief Minister might have to remain content with taking a back seat in New Delhi. The three rising stars, if the voters agree with the pundits, are, in order of importance: Uttar Pradesh’s Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ms Jayalalitha of Tamil Nadu and Ms Mayawati, largely of Uttar Pradesh. Hovering in the background is Bihar’s inimitable Laloo Prasad Yadav who would rather be king than the king-maker. The implicit meaning of the new emerging trend is that the largest single party leading the coalition - in the present context, the BJP or the Congress - would be a lot less independent in policy-making as regional leaders with significant numbers in the Lok Sabha influence policy. Thus, political influence in making national policy would shift to the regions to a greater extent. Much will, of course, depend upon the performance of the regional leaders, which again would be determined by the understandings, or lack of them, between competing parties. UP remains a prize catch, in view of its mammoth representation in Parliament. At present there are three main competing parties — the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the BJP — with the Congress bringing up the rear. The BJP swallowed its pride to invite Mr Kalyan Singh back into the fold to improve its state tally while the prospects of the Congress in the state would worsen if Ms Mayawati continues to disdain “the hand” on the rational premise that it has few votes to offer the BSP in the state. Mr Mulayam Singh, whose prime ministerial ambitions are no secret, is seeking to become the king-maker in Delhi in the first instance although it is still unclear how the three-way division of votes would fall. Perhaps enthused by future prospects, the UP Chief Minister is giving a new shine to what has traditionally been regarded as a sleepy and backward state by arranging a dazzling array of the rich and the famous announcing a stake in its development. Whatever the future might hold for Mr Mulayam Singh, the mega projects he is luring will do the state some good. Ms Jayalalithaa, who is well known for her penchant for upsetting applecarts (she already has the scalp of one BJP-led coalition government in New Delhi), has given notice of her plans by doling out a miserly seven seats to the BJP in the state. But the pattern of voting in Tamil Nadu follows its own logic and it remains to be seen whether, through sheer will power, Ms Jayalalithaa can alter the see-saw swing of votes from one Dravidian party, her AIADMK, to the other, the opposing DMK. But no one can be under any illusion about her determination to extract the greatest advantage from a given situation. Ms Mayawati is in a class of her own. She takes pride in highlighting her followers’ wretchedness and lowly status, but her constituency is solid and can be counted upon to support her loyally. Her extravagant birthday celebration and the expensive jewellery she wore while still the state Chief Minister might have grated upon the sensibility of the middle class, but were plus points for her followers. For them, she is a symbol of the lowly having made good. It is significant that two of the three leaders aspiring to have a major say in national policy-making are women while four women Chief Ministers rule their states today. The bulk of male legislators might routinely deny women a proportion of reserved seats in Parliament, but those who successfully climb the ladder in politics often show a steely determination men lack. Even if the Gallup polls predicting the BJP’s emergence as the single largest party prove to be somewhat accurate, the nature of the governing coalition will present a different picture from the familiar National Democratic Alliance dispensation as we have known it. And if the direction tilts further in favour of regional leaders, governing a coalition could prove to be a lot more difficult. Today the BJP takes great pride in advertising the fact that thanks to Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee’s deft handing, the disparate coalition of many parties has lasted a full term, with few opting out and a party such as the Trinamool Congress beseeching to return to the fold. At one time, politicians were shut out of power if they left the Congress. Then the choice widened to include the BJP and, in the in-between phase, many who had parked themselves in minor or regional outfits were catapulted to the highest political office in games of permutations and combinations. The illusion of a Third Front coming to power still haunts a number of politicians although only the BJP or the Congress is in a position to provide a nucleus around which a coalition could be gathered. Perhaps some nurture the forlorn hope that, in seeking to keep the BJP out of power, the Congress may yet again choose to play the second fiddle. In retrospect, such dispensations proved disruptive and were cynical exercises for the ultimate profit of the Congress. They could not last. The more likely scenario is that the BJP or the Congress, depending upon performance, will seek coalition partners who will be bigger players on the national scene than their predecessors were. Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani’s recent appeal to Haryana voters to choose either the BJP or the Congress stemmed from a premonition of the shape of things to
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Ghost of a chance I looked at my maid who was wringing her hands with nervousness, “What do you mean?” I asked, crossly. Radha tried to explain, “Well, you need a new girl to work in the house and I have a girl. My niece... She is 16 years old... but will you... can you keep her?” she faltered again. Radha usually never tried me this way. “Why,” I said, choosing my words with care, “won’t I keep a maid, when we need one, and when she is your niece? What is wrong?” The story came tumbling out. There was nothing wrong with the girl, except that she was very dark, totally black — and no one employed her because of this. “She is so black,” concluded her aunt tearfully,
“that people have forgotten her name and she is known as Bhootni. How can you employ a Bhootni in your house?” I was silent from sheer shock. This was the 21st century but this was also India, throwing up surprises, from behind corners, just when you least expected it. Radha was a sensible woman, who moved with the times, but this... “Bring her,” I said. The 16-year-old joined work from the next day. I found her silent and withdrawn, hiding away under the burden of colour, which made her unfit for her own people in the village. She did her work quietly almost like a ghost and made no friends in the household — except for one. The other members of the staff grumbled. “She is so rude,” complained Manju. “She answers back whenever she is told to do something.” Radha, already guilty in the eyes of her colleagues for burdening them with a ‘bhootni’, also chipped in, “Such a lucky girl, for once fortune has smiled on her, and she dares to behave like this...” “Mamma,” said my daughter, indignantly, “they yell at her if she sits down, they want her to work all the time.” “But she is rude to them,” I pointed out. “No mamma,” said my daughter, “she works the whole day. She only sits down sometimes. She can’t keep running up and down or standing the whole day. She is a girl. Just like me.” Just like me... Ugly, black, squint-eyed Bhootni. Silent as a ghost. One who even lacked the only required skill of not speaking back to her betters. Bhootni, who had lost a parent at an early age, whose sick mother slaved as a vegetable vendor, to feed three children, crippled by debt due to her father’s last lingering illness. Bhootni, which literally means a ghost or “the ugly one” was a girl, “just like me”... my daughter’s voice echoed through my thoughts. “Tell her to go,” hissed Manju, “Send her home. She is useless, that girl.” “Yes, if you let me, I will send her home tomorrow,” said Radha, submissively. “No, mamma, give her a chance,” pleaded my daughter. The difficult problem was solved. Bhootni’s mother came to fetch her home. She was radiant. “I have found a match for my daughter,” she babbled, “They want only Rs 50,000 as dowry... they don’t mind a dark girl...” “What does the boy do?” I asked, sharply. The mother’s eyes fell. “Well, he fell from a tree when he was a child, so he is not exactly normal, but his parents are very good and they will look after her...,” she was babbling again. Radha silently helped Bhootni to gather her meagre belongings. I watched the girl leave with her mother. I had never seen her smile, almost never heard her speak. “She is a girl-just like me,” ran the words in my head. “Mamma,” called my daughter, “her name was Rekha.” And so the circle of life for India’s Bhootnis goes on. We refuse them even the dignity of a
name.
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News analysis
The political storm over the controversial Jammu and Kashmir Permanent Residents (Disqualification) Bill 2004 in the state legislature was finally blown over by the Chairman of the Upper House on Thursday night. The Chairman, Abdul Rashid Dar’s decision to abruptly adjourn the Legislative Council after a six-hour-long discussion raised many an eyebrow. The Bill had already been passed by the Legislative Assembly on March 5. By the time the issue was taken up in the Council on March 11, there were demonstrations against the Bill in the Jammu region, and in its support in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley. Though the ruling PDP and the opposition National Conference, which is the single largest party with 28 members, were strong supporters of the Bill, the public mood threatened the very survival of the coalition government. The Chairman, Abdul Rashid Dar of the National Conference, as a result of his ruling, has been rewarded with an expulsion from the party. Observers, however, feel that his move had given a new lease of life to the PDP-Congress coalition government. The Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, has maintained a complete silence over the issue. It was described as a “criminal silence” by National Conference President Omar Abdullah. Congress leader and Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma claimed that certain misgivings were created over the inheritance issue. “The proposed law in its objects and reasons, makes it clear that a female, even after marrying a non-state subject, would inherit the property as per the personal law of the religion she belongs to”, he stated. The State subject law was made by the late Maharaja Hari Singh, in exercise of his constitutional power, way back in 1927. This law was protected both in the Instrument of Accession and Article 370 of the Constitution of India. Under the law, as interpreted by the government for the last 75 years, a state subject certificate was issued in favour of a female Permanent Resident of the state only till marriage. The females were deprived of this status if they married a non-state subject. In response to various petitions, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court in its 2002 judgement had pointed out that the particular clause in the notification of 1927 issued by the late Maharaja Hari Singh, did not expressly provide that a female state subject, upon her marriage to a non-state subject, would lose her status as a state subject, even though this interpretation had been followed over the past 75 years. The court also held that a woman could not be deprived of her status, adding that the state legislature has the authority to make an express provision in this regard. The issue gathered storm late last month after the state government withdrew its Special Leave Petition (SLP) from the Supreme Court against the judgement of the J&K High Court. The issue was raised by the
CPI (M) MLA, Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami, an ally of the coalition government. This was supported by the National Conference members, who apprehended the intentions of the state government. Consequently, the Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Muzaffar Hussain Beigh, decided to bring in a Bill in the House on March 5. Since the Budget session of the legislature was restricted in duration on the advice of the Election Commission, the Bill was passed without any debate. It was supported not only by the opposition National Conference and the BJP, but also by the ruling partners. Taking a strong exception to the issue, the National Conference leadership has claimed that the passage of the Bill in the Legislative Council was sabotaged by the Mufti’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and New Delhi. If passed, the Bill would have endangered the survival of PDP-Congress coalition government. The NC leadership also claims that the Centre had been playing a pivotal role against the interests of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Omar Abdullah said that the Centre was not happy with the Bill and it managed to sabotage it like it did two other issues — the Resettlement Bill and the Autonomy Resolution. Dr Farooq Abdullah said that even as the Congress and the BJP had, at the initial stage, supported the Bill, they backtracked later. Though women in Kashmir vociferously support the Bill for their interests, some feel it was drafted in haste and without any discussion. Dr Ravinderjeet Kaur of the Political Science Department of the University of Kashmir seeks a thorough debate at the political level as well as the academic level. Mrs Nusrat Andrabi, a former college teacher, opines that it is important for the identity of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, which enjoys a special status. She lamented that political parties were making it a public issue deliberately ahead of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. “It has only created confusion”, she commented. On the other hand, the voice is different in the Jammu region. “The Bill downgrades women of J&K. Their rights were contingent upon surrendering their fundamental rights of residence and selection of life-partner. Only Jammu and Kashmir has the dubious distinction of stamping the PR document issued to a girl with the humiliating conditionality of “Valid Until Marriage”. This was an unbearable insult to us. Generations of girls will now onwards live with this stamp of humiliation unless something is done to do away this injustice”, comments Mrs. Khajooria from Jammu, who is married outside the state. |
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Delhi Durbar In his own inimitable style, Defence Minister and NDA convener George Feranades has sought to play down the BJP’s feel-good factor. When scribes asked Fernandes last Friday why only the BJP leaders were harping on the feel-good factor while most of their allies were not even talking about it, Fernandes had a tongue-in-cheek answer. Without going into an overdrive on the feel-good factor, the NDA convener said in soft tones that the feel-good factor should begin with every human being. Be good and do good. Transfer a part of the feel-good factor to others by lending a helping hand. And that was that. Lobbying for ticket With the Congress looking for a candidate from the Sikh community for the South Delhi Lok Sabha seat, aspirants are making a line to the AICC. While most of the candidates are relying on behind-the-scenes lobbying and
canvassing, a few are following the more conventional method of landing at the AICC with their supporters. The more ingenious ones are bringing their delegations in the form of victory processions with bands in tow. One of the ticket aspirants is AICC Secretary Dalbir Singh, who enjoys the backing of the Shiromani Akali Dal Delhi which had won the DSGMC poll. Dalbir Singh has also been “handling Sikh affairs” in the AICC. Dr Manmohan Singh, who was the Congress candidate from the seat in the last elections, does not want to be in the fray.
Cricket is in the air The Indo-Pak cricket series is turning out to be one big marketing opportunity which nobody is willing to let go. Apart from the big corporate sponsors of the event itself, everybody from the high-profile restauranteur to the roadside dhabawallah is seeking to ride on the sixers of the master blaster. There are big screens as also small black and white tellys everywhere, menu lists are being rewritten in the game’s jargon, the waiters’ are changing into cricketing attire and even the local panwallah is packing a punch in his own inimitable style as the good old transistor is making a comeback. With cricket being the new mantra of local and global business, Ganguly is being compared to a CEO of an institution with more than one billion investors who seek reports not on a quarterly basis, but on a minute-to-minute basis.
Coping with pressure In their effort to ensure the operational efficiency of the two match specials connecting Delhi with Attari, Northern Railway officers have had no time to indulge in the usual pre-match commentary on the strength and weakness of each team. The hype preceding the match has added to the pressure on the Northern Railway General Manager, the Chief Commercial Manager and the public relations and ticketing staff. After announcing the schedule and fare structure of the two special trains, their job is to ensure that tickets are issued on a first-come, first-serve basis. And just in case, visas outnumber the seats (110) on each train between Delhi and Attari, they are prepared to add another coach. They are also expected to depute two officers, including one from public relations, to ensure that the train runs on time. It is learnt that the Divisional Railway Manager of
Ferozepore has even got in touch with his counterpart in the Pakistan Railway to ensure that all arrangements are made for the 26-km journey between Attari and Lahore. Contributed by S. Satyanarayanan, Prashant Sood and Tripti Nath
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Women expect, suffer, hope and receive. They long for compassion, mercy, peace. Femininity is in all beings. — Dr S. Radhakrishnan Blessed is such a householder, a recluse, a yogi, who attunes himself to the love of God. — Guru Nanak Ahimsa must be placed before everything else while it is professed. Then alone it becomes
irresistible. — Mahatma Gandhi It is easy to criticise an author, but difficult to appreciate him. — Vauvenargues |
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