O P I N I O N S

guest column
Doctor, time to build your legacy is 
running out
For the Prime Minister to go down in history as a nation-builder, and not just as the one who lasted the longest in office after Pandit Nehru, he will have to make the policies he initiated bear fruit.
Manpreet Badal
To use an age-old Harold Wilson phrase, “A week is a long time in politics.” By that scale, one year is like an eternity and it would be foolhardy to predict anything about the 2014 general elections. Whether the newly elected vice-president of the Congress would take on a BJP Chief Minister from Gujarat or Madhya Pradesh, or will he project the incumbent Finance Minister as the new PM candidate, still lies in the realm of conjecture. But one thing we can say with certainty is that the holy grail of prime-ministership will not be offered to Dr Manmohan Singh again.

FIFTY FIFTY
See, hear, read no evil
We are intolerant of anything that threatens our status quo, but forget that most art and intellectual debate is provocative.
KISHWAR DESAI
This was a week when various groups decided what we should not read (Salman Rushdie), what we should not see (Kamal Haasan) and what we should not hear (Ashis Nandy). Perhaps they would have preferred us to be like Gandhiji’s three monkeys — and Salman Rushdie was not entirely wrong when he declared a ‘state of cultural emergency’ in India.

ground zero
A young King and ‘Gross National Happiness’
Any apprehensions that India harboured over relations between Bhutan and China were allayed by categorical assurances given by the Bhutanese government that the tiny kingdom would do nothing to jeopardise relations with India.
Raj Chengappa
Samuel Butler once wrote, “True greatness wears an invisible cloak, under the cover of which it goes in and out among men without being suspected.” Both power and greatness rest lightly on the young shoulders of the King of Bhutan, His Majesty The Druk Gyalpo Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. He will turn 33 on February 21, but exhibits a maturity and calm far beyond his age. His Majesty was the Chief Guest at India’s 64th Republic Day celebrations, which he graced along with his charming young wife, Her Majesty The Gyaltsuen Jetsun Pema.

guest column
Doctor, time to build your legacy is running out
For the Prime Minister to go down in history as a nation-builder, and not just as the one who lasted the longest in office after Pandit Nehru, he will have to make the policies he initiated bear fruit.
Manpreet Badal

To use an age-old Harold Wilson phrase, “A week is a long time in politics.” By that scale, one year is like an eternity and it would be foolhardy to predict anything about the 2014 general elections. Whether the newly elected vice-president of the Congress would take on a BJP Chief Minister from Gujarat or Madhya Pradesh, or will he project the incumbent Finance Minister as the new PM candidate, still lies in the realm of conjecture. But one thing we can say with certainty is that the holy grail of prime-ministership will not be offered to Dr Manmohan Singh again.

Unless things change, not all will be ‘theek’.

An honourable man and an inspirational academic, Dr Singh’s entry to 7 Race Course in 2004 was the quintessential dark horse story. As the initial surprise waned off, there were expectations from him of scripting an almost Nehruvian success story for the 21st century India, in the fields of science, technology, commerce, public policy and education. His phenomenal credentials gave credence to such anticipations. Like the first Prime Minister of India, he was expected to lead a modern India to new “commanding heights”. Unfortunately, the only comparison left with Pandit Nehru’s legacy is of having the second longest tenure in office.

Towards the end of his first tenure, we saw him in an aggressive avatar, taking on the BJP and the Communists. A civil nuclear deal was signed and he tried to convince the country it promised salvation from power shortage. Five years hence, the rest of the world is debunking nuclear power, and India is still facing the typical Third World power outages. He opened new IIT and IIM campuses, a decision that now appears to have been taken merely to make the increase in reservation more palatable. These institutes are now short on infrastructure and facing an enormous faculty crunch. Even if we concede that Dr Singh has not enjoyed a free rein (neither did Vajpayee or any of his predecessors in post-liberalised India), his contribution to the social sector also appears to be indifferent.

The nation was always aware that Dr Singh was short on charisma, but people forgave him because he was a brilliant economist who was going to get us out of the mess — of poverty, hunger, unemployment. Most importantly, he was ‘clean’. But now, in the eyes of a very young India, he is a Prime Minister who lacks the will and enthusiasm to solve the problems. He appears to not have the nerves of steel required to take on his coalition partners, much less a very aggressive Opposition. To top it all, he lacks the determination to weed out corruption and move the nation onto the path of prosperity.

This is regrettable because irrespective of his prime-ministerial legacy, Dr Singh, has played a sterling role in the development and evolution of modern India, in his countless responsibilities as an economist, as RBI Governor and then as Finance Minister. How could a man so accomplished not succeed when he had the entire public’s support and adulation behind him?

On foreign policy, his approach of cordiality with Pakistan drew flak after the recent beheading of one of our soldiers. The timing was unfortunate for Dr Singh, even though we are all aware that normalising relations with Pakistan has been the only way to proceed.

On the domestic front, the Prime Minister has become infamous for his resounding silences. “Theek hai” were his most quoted words in 2012, which he inadvertently uttered during a national broadcast and didn’t realise the microphone was on.

The Congress’ much-touted MGNREGA scheme failed to achieve its desired purpose. While it did provide a boost to rural employment and was a significant factor in the UPA’s success in 2009, it still retains glaring loopholes. It was expected that in its second term, the government would ensure better allocation of wages and more facilitate asset creation. This has not been achieved. An unconscionably high inflation rate has remained the motif of his tenure, and his argument of ‘international factors’ doesn’t cut much ice.

As he starts the last year of his second tenure, most of his ideas have yet to move off the ground or have run out of steam. This means the comparison would not be with Nehru or any other nation-builder, but with Mohammad Bin Tughlaq, an intelligent man who had great ideas but poor implementation. It is critical that the Prime Minister spends the last year ensuring proper implementation of the policies he initiated. Primary among these is direct cash transfers. As is evidenced by the example of Brazil, if properly implemented, the scheme can go a long way in ensuring proper utilisation of subsidies. But if the Congress has introduced the scheme merely as a poll sop, it will turn out to be ineffective.

Time is running out, Dr Singh, we would like you to go down in history as a nation-builder.

FIFTY FIFTY
See, hear, read no evil
We are intolerant of anything that threatens our status quo, but forget that most art and intellectual debate is provocative.
KISHWAR DESAI

This was a week when various groups decided what we should not read (Salman Rushdie), what we should not see (Kamal Haasan) and what we should not hear (Ashis Nandy). Perhaps they would have preferred us to be like Gandhiji’s three monkeys — and Salman Rushdie was not entirely wrong when he declared a ‘state of cultural emergency’ in India.

For groups who are looking for cheap political mileage before the national elections, art, cinema and literature seem to be the easiest target. Attacking a star actor or writer gets quick global headlines, and these groups, often unknown previously, are suddenly famous.

Protesters tearing a poster of Kamal Haasan’s movie ‘Vishwaroopam’ in Mumbai.

But there are other implications: not just for freedom of speech and expression, but also for India’s global image as well as diversity, which can only flourish if different and sometimes opposing views are expressed. Not if these are suppressed or banned.

We need to be very worried because India’s emergence as a soft power has been on the fast track in recent years, and we are making an impact all over the world — even more than China! But before we can benefit from it, are the competing groups (or vote banks) in our country sabotaging this flowering?

Will the image of India as a liberal country with hard-won freedoms now be sacrificed at the altar of a few votes by nervous governments, both at the Centre and the state? Will the diversity that we celebrated now become a worrying factor as insecure, newly empowered communities flex their muscle, banning debate, literature, song and cinema at will?

Even though some of the soft power, especially through cinema, has been showcased globally, it still needs nurturing because there is so much to promote. Not only within the traditional arts, music, dance and painting, but also the modern community of artists, filmmakers and authors who are appreciated around the world. It also is a huge employment generator for those looking at working outside the formal sector. We are becoming a breakthrough nation thanks to our vast cultural heritage and it is indeed a tragedy that just when there is a possibility of gaining appreciation and accolades, we are tripped up and made to look as though we cannot give our creative energies free rein.

The fact that we are probably the most diverse nation in the world is often forgotten — a tragedy because it is this diversity that gives us creative energy, and, of course, leads to many of our problems as well, including the diverse (sometimes unpalatable) opinions expressed. To live in a country as varied as this requires a special skill and learning which we need to acquire, but not descend into censorship.

It is sad that our strength — diversity — can also be converted into weakness. A cauldron of unease often simmers with the multitude of religions and castes, classes and communities; either it can be calmed with the voice of reason, or it can boil over with the fury of confrontational politics. It all depends on who exploits it and with what purpose. And once a particular section of the population has been needled into deliberate anger, an incident is likely to spiral out of control.

However, by threatening someone, or excommunicating them, discussion or understanding is unlikely to grow. The real question then is that do only the ‘offended’ have the liberty of ‘freedom of speech’ and not the un-offended?

Does this mean Indians are becoming the most insecure species in the world? We are intolerant of anything that threatens our status quo, but forget that most art and intellectual debate is provocative. The skill lies in propagating better ideas than those of our opponents and not shutting them up.

Recently, at the Jaipur Literary Festival, we were sitting inside the authors’ lounge when an irate politician burst in. None of us recognised him, but he was obviously someone important because he was accompanied by a posse of policemen. Suddenly, silence descended on the room, as the man was courteously escorted to a chair and the atmosphere changed completely. We realised the situation was very serious when Dr Ashis Nandy, who was also present, was questioned over his earlier statement in a public discussion about corruption. As Dr Nandy explained and other authors such as Javed Akhtar and Kanchah Iliah joined in to further clarify what had been said, it became obvious the matter would not be allowed to rest there. And of course, the next day we learnt that an FIR had been lodged and that there was an order for the organiser of the festival, Sanjoy Roy, not to leave the festival either.

Thankfully, the Supreme Court has given some relief to Dr Nandy, and he will not be jailed — as perhaps there is a tacit understanding that a statement made in an intellectual debate is meant to explore a particular argument, to analyse our society and the times. But the Supreme Court, too, could not resist giving Dr Nandy a rap on the knuckles.

While in the past week we have seen mob censorship at its worst — in Rajasthan, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu (all non-BJP states, for once!) — encouraged by the state governments, we have to understand that this is a reflection of the political expediency that prevails.

The paradox is we do not need these threats and banishments to preserve India’s diversity, but more diversity itself through more ideas, interaction, debate and discussion. If we listen to those who only want bland universally accepted thoughts and censorship, we will become a land of homogenous bores.