The bullying allies
IT is public knowledge that the BJP-led alliance’s major troubles come from within. Until now the accusing finger pointed only at the two formidable ladies from Chennai and Calcutta. And it must be said to the credit of the BJP and its peace-brokers that a method of sorts has been perfected to douse down the rising tempers and strike an awkward balance.

Enough not enough in Bihar
THE current happenings in Bihar are not surprising. Mr Laloo Yadav is continuing with his usual arrogant behaviour and engineering violence, particularly in south and central Bihar. The bandh called by him on Monday showed the real state of things: the people are living in fear but are expecting a reasonably tranquil atmosphere under President's rule.

Crime and politics
THE arrest of dreaded Uttar Pradesh gangster Rajan Tewari in Delhi from the residence of a member of Parliament has once again brought into focus the nexus between politics and crime.

BUS TO PAKISTAN
by A. N. Dar
SOON India’s Prime Minister will be travelling in a DTC bus to Lahore and, hopefully, on his return the VIP contingent will be doubled by having the Prime Minister of Pakistan as Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee’s fellow-traveller to Delhi. A journey worth million of words to write about!

Privatising professional education
by Damodar Agrawal
ON January 21 the Delhi government has finally announced its decision to privatise medical, engineering and management education. Accordingly, it will start at least 26 colleges called “professional” within two-three years from now, and some will start functioning as soon as in July, 1999.

Political fire-fighting
in full blast
by P. Raman
INDIAN POLITICS is fast moving towards its ugliest phase. If any one still entertains any doubt about the sad drift, just look at the kind of wanton misuse of state power for purely partisan purposes and all the political intrigues and oneupmanship around. It has reached such a stage that any one who has control over a couple of Lok Sabha members can make George Fernandes and Pramod Mahajan come running with all sorts of deals and inducements.

Drama over President’s
nod on Bihar
THE imposition of Central rule in Bihar had its dramatic moments with the leading players in the operation being kept on tenterhooks till the time the President, Mr K.R. Narayanan, gave his approval to the decision.

Left high and dry
by Iqbal Singh Ahuja
INVITATIONS always give great pleasure and also a sense of hi-fi feeling. Somebody wants you to come and join. Among such invitation cards — came a unique card with a dotted black line. This intrigued me as it was a different presentation. Saffron Kesar touch indicates happy news and single black line in the corner or a rectangular boundary in black indicates sad news.

75 Years Ago

Bengal Congress differences
THE members of the new council of Bengal Provincial Congress Committee elected at Saturday’s meeting went to the Congress office in Sukea Street today to hold a meeting and the new Secretary intended to ask the old Secretary to hand over charge of office to him.

The bullying allies

IT is public knowledge that the BJP-led alliance’s major troubles come from within. Until now the accusing finger pointed only at the two formidable ladies from Chennai and Calcutta. And it must be said to the credit of the BJP and its peace-brokers that a method of sorts has been perfected to douse down the rising tempers and strike an awkward balance. Like the Ministry of Personnel did last week to mollify Ms Jayalalitha and like Mr Pramod Mahajan did in Calcutta. Now a new source of trouble has been identified and surprisingly it is Mr Om Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal. And there is Home Minister L.K.Advani making the charge, but in his soft but sure style. He chose Mr Chautala home ground, Sonepat district, to lament that parties with three or four MPs are bullying the BJP-led alliance government and thus bringing a bad name to it. Strong words these, but coming from perhaps the only BJP leader who has built up a reputation for thinking fast and speaking in measured words, the bullying charge has a different ring to it.

Everything about his action is strange. He employed a style that is certainly not his. He speaks in general terms and avoids throwing unmistakable hints unless he is referring to a political adversary. He was speaking in Jhinjhouli and to the members of the Mahila Morcha, not a particularly powerful political formation. And he certainly targeted the wrong party for flinging his accusation. Mr Chautala’s is a four-MP party and only last week he extended his deadline for withdrawal of support to February 21. He was the first outside the loose electoral allies to offer support to the BJP to form a government and he did it on his own without the party seeking it. He did not press for ministerial rewards and fought the November Assembly election in Delhi, in what was then seen as a heroic attempt to mobilise the confused and angry Jat voters in the rural segment behind the beleaguered BJP. That his party did not win even one seat is a different matter. Further, his is a farmers party and it is legitimate for him to ventilate their demands like retaining the subsidy on urea.

There is a political angle to it. The INLD is no more the main rival to the ruling HVP-BJP alliance. The Congress is making a powerful attempt to recover its lost ground and HPCC chief Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s padyatra and the upbeat mood generated by Mrs Sonia Gandhi’s leadership are causes for worry. Add to it, the constant Congress taunt that despite his unconditional support to the BJP-led government, Mr Chautala has not been able to gain anything for the state. This will not harm him politically, but hurts his ego. All this explains his compulsions to strike a militant pose and the withdrawal of subsidy on urea came handy. Mr Advani has obviously misunderstood the INLD motive or is that the Home Minister has chosen this particular case to express himself unambiguously? The coming weeks hold the answer.

Enough not enough in Bihar

THE current happenings in Bihar are not surprising. Mr Laloo Yadav is continuing with his usual arrogant behaviour and engineering violence, particularly in south and central Bihar. The bandh called by him on Monday showed the real state of things: the people are living in fear but are expecting a reasonably tranquil atmosphere under President's rule. The Tribune had been consistently asking for the correct Central dispensation. If there has ever been a fit case for the application of Article 356 of the Constitution, it has been the anarchical province ruled by an almost illiterate Chief Minister subjected to the dangerous consequences of maddening back-seat driving by a narcissist politician. President K. R. Narayanan has acted a little too late. But in an area where the concept of the rule of law has been wantonly undermined by money and muscle power, it is always "better late than never". His wavering can be overlooked. The recent Jehanabad killings are a sign of evil times; even Patna district is getting into a violent quagmire. South Bihar is sitting on a powder keg, thanks to murky business activities and literal tribalism. In the north, Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur and Bhojpur are highly sensitive districts. The security aspect of the Bhojpur belt cannot be overlooked and, thus, no nook and corner of Bihar is safe to live in. Governor Sundar Singh Bhandari has no grand reputation for trouble-shooting. Some of his advisers are men belonging to the Laloo clique. The face of the administration cannot be changed overnight. But it is necessary to ensure that the organisers of anti-people bandhs are kept in leash. They are easily identifiable. One has to pick them up from the feudal section on the one hand and from organisations like the People's War Group (PWG) and the CPI-ML (Liberation) on the other hand. Some firmness in dealing with lawless elements was evident on Monday. However, Mrs Rabri Devi's remark that the death toll during the nascent dispensation is mounting should be construed as ominous. Her husband has been responsible for causing many social conflicts during the past 10 years. He has threatened repeatedly to create chaos and to "rule from the jail". It will be unreasonable to think that President's rule was brought into operation only because of the Narayanpura carnage.

The Union Cabinet has taken stock of the situation in Bihar in its totality and acted cautiously. We had suggested the supervision of the criminalised Bihar police by senior men from para-military forces. This step has become unavoidable in the present circumstances. Let no one confuse hooch deaths in obscure pockets with planned killings. The Ranvir Sena consists of brigades of goons and goondas patronised by upper-caste rich men. Clashes between the warring groups are pre-planned. None of the masterminds with proven criminality has been arrested. The sooner the Centre brings the real engineers of killings to book, the better it would be for the blood-bathed territory. Railway Minister Nitish Kumar is not talking conciliatory language. Mrs Sonia Gandhi's representatives have, at long last, realised the need for keeping themselves at a distance from the Rashtriya Janata Dal trouble-makers. It is time to re-establish the rule of law. Nothing has been done in violation of the Supreme Court ruling in the Bommai case. It would be a folly to form an alternative government in indecent haste. The Assembly can be kept in suspended animation. But any attempt by Mr Laloo Yadav to reorganise an unworkable administrative network must be treated with the contempt it deserves. Bihar is not for burning. The Congress should, in its own interest, support the new prescription for peace. It still has a considerable base in semi-urban areas. A thorough cleansing of the administrative machinery is the need of the hour. The steps taken so far by the Governor at the behest of the Union Home Minister are justifiable. All disturbances should be dealt with ruthlessly. Enough is not enough in Bihar.

Crime and politics

THE arrest of dreaded Uttar Pradesh gangster Rajan Tewari in Delhi from the residence of a member of Parliament has once again brought into focus the nexus between politics and crime. Tewari is said to be a member of the Shri Prakash Shukla gang. Shukla was killed in an encounter following reports that he had accepted a contract for eliminating UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh. According to the police, Tewari has confessed his role in the killing of a policeman who was part of the special task force for “capturing Shukla dead or alive”. Police interrogations have revealed that the gangster enjoyed the patronage of powerful politicians, including sitting MPs and MLAs, and is said to have received Rs 15 lakh from one of them for killing the policeman. Of course, the politicians who have been named by Tewari — some of them too have criminal cases pending against them — have denied any association with the gangster. It is evident that once the dust has settled the Rajan Tewari case too would become one of the several such cases in which politicians have been named by the suspects. The arrest of Romesh Sharma too had revived the debate on the need for breaking the nexus between criminals and politicians. Before his arrest Romesh Sharma was a “respected” figure in Delhi’s party circuit. A number of senior bureaucrats and important politicians considered it an honour to be invited to the lavish parties organised by Romesh Sharma.

The reason why the known — and those still not exposed — power-brokers-cum-criminals could not match the political and bureaucratic clout of Chandraswami was that the controversial godman had powerful international patrons. The name of Dubai-based Dawood Ibrahim too keeps cropping up from time to time but no serious effort has been made so far to arrest him and bringing him back to India for trial. The reason why cases against criminals with political links are seldom pursued seriously is obvious. There is hardly a political party which has not at one point of time or the other not hobnobbed with criminals. In UP Mr Kalyan Singh’s jumbo-sized Cabinet has several ministers with criminal records. Of course, most of them became members of the UP Assembly on the tickets given to them by the Samajwadi Party, the BSP and the Congress. But now they are part of the BJP-led coalition. The left parties can claim a relatively clean record in this respect. But without support from the other political outfits there is little they can do to implement the agenda for breaking the nexus between criminals and politicians. It is not that the “criminal cat” cannot be belled. But without the political will to act even a paper tiger begins to look ominous.

BUS TO PAKISTAN
Realistic objectives a must
by A. N. Dar

SOON India’s Prime Minister will be travelling in a DTC bus to Lahore and, hopefully, on his return the VIP contingent will be doubled by having the Prime Minister of Pakistan as Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee’s fellow-traveller to Delhi. A journey worth million of words to write about!

In the undertaking will be a key to the future of the subcontinent. The question to be asked is: will the key turn? In the roar of the vehicle can be heard the tune of future peace. Who will set its pace? No one at present knows. All that can be said is that the engine can be made to leave out the dust of war-like noises. If Mr Vajpayee and Mr Nawaz Sharif can have a smooth ride, they will be able to bring their countries nearer. If that happens, history will record them as messengers of peace, like Begin and Sadat or Rabin and Arafat.

But peace does not come so easily, as West Asia has shown. India and Pakistan have many grievances to settle and much prejudices to give up. Leave aside history, the two countries have people who will work against any compromise. Both Prime Ministers would have to be extremely realistic.

Before the bus journey, experts of the two countries should sit separately in their capitals to draw up lists of what can be achieved and what cannot be immediately tried. This can give them the blueprint of what Mr Nawaz Sharif has called a “road map” of how they should go along. It will be worth watching if India is able to buy power from Pakistan, something that Islamabad cannot use at present and New Delhi wants it badly. The negotiations will show the intentions of the two countries.

It will be a highly dramatic journey. Both sides must agree that it will be a useless exercise if realistic objectives are not set before each other by the two parties. Mr Nawaz Sharif is correct in saying that “the times have changed”. This means that it is now easier to come to a compromise. By and large, the people in both countries have come round to the view that continued hostility will do no good. It will only waste energy and resources. Both countries will suffer. With the people wanting a compromise, the governments will find it easier to work for it.

This is also the view even about the recent nuclear explosions. The people have been thinking about the waste these have caused. What have the two countries gained from the explosions? India may have gained a little because it is also facing the problem of a nuclear China, another of our close neighbours. But so far as India and Pakistan are concerned, they have gained nothing. They have been trying to deter each other — but at what an enormous cost? If India has a bomb, so has Pakistan. Once India went in for the test, Pakistan too had to have it.

Mr Nawaz Sharif has said that he would not have remained in power had he too not gone in for an explosion. Ms Benazir Bhutto would have exploited it to the most. Comparing the two, Ms Bhutto, hungry for power, would like to exploit the conflict with India to strengthen herself. Mr Nawaz Sharif at present seems to believe that it is better to work for peace with India. At present he is a better bet.

Mr Vajpayee was wise in reacting positively to Mr Nawaz Sharif’s gesture. His offer to travel to Lahore was welcomed by all, judging by the general atmosphere in the two countries. See the applause the Pakistani cricketers received. If Mr Vajpayee went to Ferozeshah Kotla to watch the match, so did Ms Sonia Gandhi. This points to the mood in the country.

Mr Nawaz Sharif wisely said: “Our race should be in the fields of investment, trade and business, cricket, hockey and culture. I have been wishing for a long time to come to India and see the Red Fort, Agra, or those parts of Delhi that represent its rich culture and history”. For Mr Nawaz Sharif to enjoy it all, he must know that it would be essential to show to the people that the governments of the two countries mean real business. It would do no good if Mr Nawaz Sharif is at the Red Fort while his ISI would be sending AK-47s into Kashmir through Pakistani and Afghan saboteurs. This kind of peace will not work, however, hard the two Prime Ministers might try. At the height of the Cold War the Soviet Union had the largest cultural exchange with the USA, but did it bring them peace until the basic policies changed after Mr Gorbachev’s coming to the scene?

The two Prime Ministers will have to learn to change their basic policies. Mr Nawaz Sharif is a little too optimistic when he says: “I agree that we have been sitting in our trenches. But these are declared positions which can remain”. The two Prime Ministers will have to get out of their trenches into open territory of compromise. Their men who are killing each other in Kashmir and infiltrating from Dhaka and Kathmandu into India with consignments of explosives to create trouble will have to give up their positions. “It is not as if we will give up our principled positions but it is time that we moved from the status quo and start negotiating with open minds”, Mr Nawaz Sharif said.

On February 4 he said that the settlement of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions was essential for a regional environment of durable peace and stability. This shows that even now he is not able to get away from the pressures he faces from his own hardliners.

But if, for instance, Kashmir remains a plague spot of contentions and a battleground for a proxy war, both countries must know that bringing about peace will not be easy. I was not even two feet away from the table when Indira Gandhi and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto signed the Simla Agreement. All of us thought that after the war India and Pakistan has signed for a permanent peace. At the time conditions were ideal for it. But we did not realise that this was a short-time reprieve. The two countries had actually not come any closer.

The Simla Agreement was signed on wrong assumptions. Bhutto assured Indira Gandhi verbally that he would have a permanent settlement worked out along the Line of Control. Indira Gandhi did not want to send Bhutto home without any tangible agreement because she thought that if he had nothing to show off to his people he would be thrown out and democracy would suffer in Pakistan.

Now we know that it was a mistake to sign an agreement without any a change of heart, with the contours of a permanent accord, based on Bhutto’s assurance, not having been spelt out in a written statement. India returned the conquered territory and the prisoners of war. But the written agreement, instead of resolving the differences, made Kashmir a dispute yet to be negotiated. It is an albatross which neither government can easily give up. What could have brought the two countries closer has made them farther apart.

The two Prime Ministers must know that they would have to work hard to solidly resolve their major disputes. They cannot wish them away. They are so important that they cannot also be put under the carpet. Mr Nawaz Sharif said: ... “when we will keep our declared positions behind and sit together with an open mind. Let us talk to each other about how to solve the Kashmir problem. Let us examine each other’s proposals. Let us sit on one table and talk. Some movements or the other is bound to take place. It will take place. It should take place”.

For a lasting agreement, it will be necessary to find ways to end major disputes. The best thing that Mr Nawaz Sharif has said is: “Let us sit on one table and talk”. That puts him close to the Indian stance of bilateralism. This is what India should welcome the most. Let the bus then take off — with the heavy luggage on top. Down the mountain road it will not slip if the drivers mean well. But they will have to be very careful.

Privatising professional education
by Damodar Agrawal

ON January 21 the Delhi government has finally announced its decision to privatise medical, engineering and management education. Accordingly, it will start at least 26 colleges called “professional” within two-three years from now, and some will start functioning as soon as in July, 1999. Funded totally by the private sector, they will be affiliated to the state’s new university called Indraprastha University. The building and other infrastructure will take years to complete and will consume hundreds of crores of rupees. Till then the colleges will function from school buildings.

As the reports state, temporary buildings to house them have already been marked for six engineering and seven colleges each of business administration and computer applications. In addition, there will be three colleges of architecture, and one each of hotel management, pharmacology and energy management.

Recognised or unrecognised, some colleges and private coaching school of this kind are already in existence in the National Capital Region. They attract students from UP, Bihar, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. It is believed that those follow the norms and guidelines of the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) will be considered for immediate affiliation.

Proposals in this regard have already been received and scrutinised. Surprisingly, a large number of school societies and business houses have evinced their interest. If this is casting a shadow of doubt their actual motive (profit or education), it is another matter.

The industrial groups which seem to be most enthusiastic are the Jindal and Amity groups. In Delhi and Haryana, they are already running expensive public schools and marketing colleges. The Birla Institute of Management and Technology, at present purely private, is also likely to respond soon. Trusts and foundations are not lagging behind. Most significant of these are the Mahavir Foundation, the Guru Tegh Bahadur Society and the Maharaja Agrasen Group.

As some minority societies are also formulating their proposals, there is likely to be a mad rush in the pipeline. But the government is cautious about granting permission to the minorities. They may take advantage of their minority status, constitutionally granted to them, the bungle with funds and admissions. This may lead to nepotism and deterioration in the standard.

There is no proposal for opening medical and dental colleges, nor for the much-needed nursing colleges. From this it is obvious that the businessmen who are taking interest in it want only to earn the maximum of money with the minimum of investment. If this implies commercialisation of education the government will have to be cautious.

Some of the private public schools of Delhi are doing very well. Notable among them are such names as DPS, Modern, Shriram, Jindal, Birla Vidya Mandir and so on. They belong to industrial houses and rich registered societies. They charge high fees and maintain the desired standards. If they open professional colleges, they will look for complete financial and academic autonomy. They may also attract good students. But one is not sure whether the new university to which they will be affiliated will give them the desired freedom.

The state of vocational education in the Capital is not worthy of a big nation. For a local population of 12 million, there are only two engineering and three medical colleges. There is just one school of planning and architecture, a college of homoeopathic, an agricultural institute and two colleges of pharmacy. The IIT, being an all-India institution, does not help the Delhiites much, and the three central university (Delhi University, JNU and Jamia) plus a university of distance education (IGNOU) have failed miserably to vocationalise their courses.

This is being taken advantage of by unscrupulous elements. Functioning as educationists, they have covered the territories with their own institutes. In Delhi, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon and Faridabad they run management and computer centres and are minting money. Rejects from the known and recognised institutes pay them heavily, though their employment potentials are weak and doubtful. If some of these apply for affiliation, the authorities of Indraprastha University will have to be cautious.

Left high and dry
by Iqbal Singh Ahuja

INVITATIONS always give great pleasure and also a sense of hi-fi feeling. Somebody wants you to come and join. Among such invitation cards — came a unique card with a dotted black line. This intrigued me as it was a different presentation. Saffron Kesar touch indicates happy news and single black line in the corner or a rectangular boundary in black indicates sad news. This black dotted line made me think. Ultimately I could reach a decision that this must be halfway — neither sad nor happy news.

I could not wait. No doubt the card was different. It was an invitation for a consolation meeting for those who have missed the prestigious Indian awards. It was supposed to be a meeting of super humans. So I decided to attend the meeting.

The meeting started on the dot. The Chairman got up to speak. While he was looking at his papers, I looked at the crowd. Many distinguished personalities were present there either with their previous failure record or eager to enter the arena. I could see doctors, journalists, social workers etc. The chairman knocked at the speaker. Thuk-thuk noise meant that we should now lend our ears and eyes to him.

“Dear friends,” the Chairman spoke, “today is not a very auspicious day. We have all gathered here for a condolence, sorry consolation, meeting to console those who have missed the prestigious Indian awards. I may add here that awards and rewards are closely related. As far as my knowledge and experience goes, the awards come to you by your good luck or a very good “Sifarish”. Reward means you reap the award by your hard work. You should not lose courage. The award ceremony does not end here — you may get it late during your life time. If not you can expect these awards up to 30 years after your death also. So with this sermon to you all, I declare the consolation meeting open.”

I have rarely heard such a short speech by the Chairman. The atmosphere looked very gloomy. The speakers started speaking one by one. As it usually happens, the speakers were giving lectures and nobody was listening. My colleague who was sitting next to me said, “the real award is the satisfaction of your patients. The blessing and love you get from your patients is far higher than those awards”. I agreed with him and felt a bit low as I had also run the race. I realised what Benzamin Franklin said: “A ploughman on his legs is higher than a gentleman on his knees.”

Suddenly the Chairman called me to come onto the stage and say a few words. I had not listened to what the other speakers had said and I knew the same fate would be mine. However, one has to speak on the stage whether somebody listens to you or not.

I started by saying To err is human, and the problem is that we are all humans. We start thinking about awards and rewards very soon. Even the sacred Gita has advised us “to do the action and not think of the reward.” When you decide to enter the arena of awards, you must be prepared for the upheavals in your lifestyle. There will be a lot of variations in your mood. You always lurk between Shri—Padmashree—Shree. Ultimately you realise you were better of as “Shri” which God and society has bestowed upon you.

The journey to the prestigious awards is very difficult. You get a number of angel friends who work hard for you and wish well from the core of the heart. Your personal friends share the agony and ecstasy. Even God feels helpless in front of political Dons.

For receiving an award you need luck, merit, God and the most important, Godfather. If the Godfather is from the South, a lot better. It is the opinion of the majority that brain dwells in the South and muscles in the North. So if you want an intelligent award, you better represent from the South. For a muscle award North is all right. What you are not able to do today, you will achieve tomorrow. “Persevere and you shall conquer”. I ended my speech with a quote of Swami Vivekanand: “Get up and set your shoulder to the wheels. How long is this life for? As you have come into this world, leave some mark behind otherwise where is the difference between you and the beasts and stones.”

I looked up — there was pindrop silence. I felt guilty of making a consolation meeting into a condolence meeting. To cheer them up I quoted H.W. Longfellow: “Let us then be up and doing, With a heart for any fate, Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labour and wait”:

Political fire-fighting in full blast

by P. Raman

INDIAN POLITICS is fast moving towards its ugliest phase. If any one still entertains any doubt about the sad drift, just look at the kind of wanton misuse of state power for purely partisan purposes and all the political intrigues and oneupmanship around. It has reached such a stage that any one who has control over a couple of Lok Sabha members can make George Fernandes and Pramod Mahajan come running with all sorts of deals and inducements.

For the past few weeks, the main function of the PMO under Atal Behari Vajpayee has been political fire-fighting. Official aircraft are kept ready to ferry trouble shooters to different destinations. Apart from ministers and party functionaries, even the PMO officials have gained expertise in such emergency operations. This writer can vouchsafe that no Prime Minister in the past three decades — not even Indira Gandhi — had built up such an elaborate machinery to strike so many political deals so effectively with such a large number of demanding allies.

None other than Mahajan confirms all this when he said at the Mamata Banerjee rally this week: “The Vajpayee Government is like a Kalpavriksha. But if the tree is not there who will fulfil the wishes?” And Mamata proudly acknowledges the power of political swap: “Did any party (in her state) succeed in making New Delhi run to Bengal to give it all that it asks for?” By no means, has she been the lone achiever. Almost simultaneously, Jayalalitha was able to wrest much more from George Fernandes by putting her bargaining levers to the best use.

More disturbing has been the latest trend of takeover bids by “outsiders” through illegal trading in this vast political market, where the sale and purchase of political support has been flourishing. The quiet entry of Deve Gowda ostensibly with the support of certain institutional buyers, has sent shockwaves to Race Course Road. The whole political operation that ensued still remains shrouded in mystery. All this has led to the increasing reliance on reports by official agencies on the happenings in other parties. Details of the visitors and the nature of discussions among the allies reach troubleshooters almost immediately.

No one involved in this high political drama would reveal the facts. No one, however, disputes the fact that Gowda’s close aide, C.M. Ibrahim, had a prolonged meeting with Jayalalitha at her grand haveli in Chennai. It is also widely known that Gowda himself had established some contact with sections in the Congress establishment and had paid special visits to Delhi for this purpose. Officially, he may not have been given the go-ahead for the operation but he himself apparently chose to take the initiative. Cool and cunning, Jayalalitha was quite responsive to the Gowda formula to usher in a government led by himself, provided her interests are fully taken care of.

Jayalalitha knew that she would gain in either case. If the Gowda plan failed to take off as it was destined from the very start, due to Congress disinterest, she could easily use it to strike a bargain with Vajpayee. This was precisely what had happened. The Ibrahim mission sent shockwaves across Race Course Road. Sonia Gandhi’s unusual emphasis on the early downfall of the Vajpayee Government had further confirmed the fears. George Fernandes was rushed with a free hand not just to get her signature on the joint statement of the allies. The real motive was to frustrate what the troubleshooters describe as the “Gowda conspiracy” to topple the government.

For some time there has been utter panic, and as a last resort Fernandes was directed to readily concede her demands with regard to the special courts — something which Vajpayee has been refusing to do for about eight months. All these developments took place in a span of barely two days, indicating the speed with which the Vajpayee camp frustrated the Gowda “conspiracy”. The government gazette was hurriedly brought out knowing full well that it would invite the judicial wrath and tend to tarnish Vajpayee’s well-cultivated liberal image. It would turn many old BJP campaigns against corruption and misuse of official machinery into mockery. The party finally chose to face all this ignominy as a last resort to avert what it thought would be a bigger disaster.

The BJP establishment had every reason to link the Gowda “plot” with the sudden threat from Mamata Banerjee and Om Prakash Chautala. For a few days, Gowda, Chautala’s former colleague in the Chandra Shekhar party, has been in touch with him. As for Mamata Banerjee, the Vajpayee establishment had reports that both P.A. Sangma and Santosh Mohan Dev, who is known to share bitter anti-Leftism with the former, have been vigorously cultivating her. Much of the groundwork in this regard has been done with the knowledge of central Congress leadership. Mamata Banerjee’s then — increasing anti-BJP outbursts and the proportionate softening of the Bengal Congress leaders’ attitude towards her, were seen in the light of this “conspiracy”.

In all such cases, the BJP acted with extreme alarm. The moment the frightening reports arrived from Calcutta, Sudhirendra Kulkarni, a PMO official, was rushed to mollify the “angry Bengal tigress” with an immediate offer of railway projects worth about Rs 3000 crore. Simultaneously, the Union Cabinet met and approved the impromptu bonanza despite Nitish Kumar’s reservations. She was assured of more such announcements at her rally which Mahajan promptly did. In the case of Chautala, the fire-fighters had rushed to him barely an hour after his withdrawal threat. First Mahajan phoned him. He then rushed to personally negotiate a compromise. Such has been the paranoia in the Prime Minister’s camp that in a span of 24 hours, Vajpayee himself had phoned Chautala thrice from his foreign tour.

At the moment, how serious has been the Gowda move is a secondary issue. It is more important to go into the gradual political changes that have emboldened a person like Gowda to fish in troubled waters and the BJP to so feverishly press the panic button. In the coming months,it may recur in a different form. First, realisation has dawned on the BJP that it will get badly mauled if elections are held in the immediate future. Apart from the drubbing it got in its own traditional strongholds in the recent assembly elections, its non-performance and the quarrels with its allies, as well as within the parivar have created an adverse public opinion. Privately, even some senior leaders anticipate a big drop in its Lok Sabha tally. Therefore, the BJP will have to avert an early election to ward off a rout.

Second, Vajpayee’s survival strategists feel that now is the worst time for the government. If it could drag on for a few more months, the developing strains in the relationship of the Congress and other opposition parties would brighten the BJP’s electoral prospects. The resurrection of Congress in UP and Bihar would divide the minority votes. This might benefit the BJP and its allies. Third, the Congress is not keen on forming an alternative government with the help of others in the current Lok Sabha. This itself will induce the BJP allies to stay on with it if only to avert another early election. The BJP wants to make best out of this situation even if it means frequent surrender in the face of blackmail by allies.

In BJP, moves by the likes of Gowda are viewed as a real challenge. Party circles give details of the efforts being made by individual Congress leaders to wean BJP allies away by inducements. Apart from the Gowda formula, they talk of an alleged move to hoist the leader of an allied party as Prime Minister. It is to avert such “subvertion of democracy” that the BJP has been suffering the humiliation of becoming a prisoner of frequent political intimidation by the allies. They also see a gradual shift in the professed attitude of the Congress towards the Vajpayee Government.

According to them, the Congress had made some fresh electoral calculations and found the time ripe for pulling down the government. Its leaders display increasing impatience with their earlier stand that the government would fall under its own weight. Such trepidation in the BJP apart, there is as yet no clear signal from the Congress about its readiness to resort to the pre-Sonia strategy of toppling the government by inducing a split in the alliance and then hoisting a temporary puppet government. Unlike under the late Rajiv Gandhi, the present dispensation, at least as of now, is not inclined to resorting to such short-cuts. Instead, it is more keen on giving it a “party-with-a-difference” image, something which the BJP had once tried for itself.

Interestingly, amidst all this politics of blackmail, appeasement and secret deals, little is heard of the attempts at engineering defections. On the other, the emphasis of the political operators has been on winning over the entire party. It did not work even in the case of Chautala’s party. This has been entirely due to the present atmosphere of uncertainty. Legislators defect only if they are assured of a reasonable period of stability. Alternatively, they should feel confident of falling back on an electorally strong party. With the ruling party’s stock so low, conventional defections have no more become profitable.

While the BJP will have to pay a heavy price for succumbing to political blackmail on issues like corruption cases, Mahajan’s kalpavriksha solution is bound to have wider implications. Already, there are competitive demands from other allies like the Orissa BJD, which has its own package. There has always been strong public reaction to such indiscriminate swapping of state funds and projects for partisan purposes.

Drama over President’s nod on Bihar

THE imposition of Central rule in Bihar had its dramatic moments with the leading players in the operation being kept on tenterhooks till the time the President, Mr K.R. Narayanan, gave his approval to the decision.

On one hand, there was Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan pacing up and down in his office waiting for confirmation of the President’s approval. He had a reason to be anxious as he had already scheduled a press conference at 6 p.m. on Saturday to announce the momentous decision.

However, with the Centre’s emissary failing to get immediate audience with the President, who was away in Calcutta, word was sent that the press conference was being delayed by one and a half hours. Even at the appointed hour, there was no news from Calcutta leading to speculation whether the President had refused to sign on the dotted line.

The Press Information Bureau did its bit to put the scribes at ease and served hot tea with pakoras to go with it. However, with their deadline nearing not many could relish the government’s hospitality.

The drama ended soon after 9 p.m. when Mr Mahajan received word from Calcutta that the President had given his approval. Tension gave way to smiles and thereafter it was an enthusiastic minister who proceeded with the briefing.

Laloo’s strange request

Well that was not the end of all. For apart from Mr Mahajan, the former Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav, too was anxious to know the outcome of the Centre’s move.

The maverick Bihar politician, who was good meat for a whole lot of television channels on that particular day, made use of the television crew to get information for himself. He told a correspondent of a private television channel in Patna that he would speak about the Centre’s decision once he knew about the President’s approval.

Then to the surprise of the correspondent, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav made a strange request. He told the TV scribe to get in touch with his New Delhi office and keep him abreast of the happenings in Calcutta. It could not be ascertained whether the TV channel broke the news of the dismissal of the Rabri Devi Government to him or his wife gave him the “bad” news.

Cabin shortage at AICC HQ

The recent induction of more General Secretaries by the Congress President as well as appointment of the chairman of the party’s Minorities Department has led to a peculiar problem for the AICC Secretariat — shortage of cabins at the party headquarters.

Earlier, the AICC had five General Secretaries who had occupied spacious rooms in the main building at 24, Akbar Road. So whenever, replacements occurred, the new occupants just moved into the cabins vacated by their predecessors.

This time around, apart from appointing two additional General Secretaries, the Congress President also increased the heads of various frontal units.

As a result, Mr Arjun Singh who, by virtue of being a senior CWC member and also chairman of the Minorities Department, moved into a room, while Mrs Ambika Soni has to remain content with a space at the back of the building.

The person who is apparently now harassed is the party Treasurer, Mr Ahmed Patel, who ironically holds the keys to various rooms that are vacant.

Meanwhile, the AICC headquarters is getting a facelift with the Congress President seeking more greenery in the otherwise drab surrounds. Fresh landscaping, planting of shrubs and fresh grass is being planted as part of the plan.

Ambika not for bouquets

The newly-appointed General Secretary, Mrs Ambika Soni, is in great demand these days. Ever since her elevation to the post, greetings from friends and acquaintances are pouring in.

However, Mrs Sonia is particular that ordinary party workers do not arrive with bouquets for it costs money. She told a supporter: “Just forget the bouquets just give me your good wishes”.

New Toyota family car

India’s auto industry appears to have come of age. Consider the auto industry, for instance. Ever since the opening up of the economy, global automakers are clamouring and jostling to gulp a larger share of the Indian cake.

The latest entrant is none other than the Japanese auto major, Toyota. The first offering from Toyota to the Indian consumers is an 8 to 10 seater multi-utility vehicle targeted at the family and not the individual, a version somewhat similar to the erstwhile Trekker of Hindustan Motors.

The Toyota small car is planned to zoom across Indian roads by 2002 and interestingly Indian industry’s old warhorse and veteran of many a product, the Tatas are expected to provide the toughest competition to these global soldiers.

Interestingly, in this hoopla of competition, the good old Maruti is still the king. Global majors are you listening?

(Contributed by T.V. Lakshminarayanan, K.V. Prasad, P.N. Andley and Gaurav Choudhury)

75 YEARS AGO

Bengal Congress differences

THE members of the new council of Bengal Provincial Congress Committee elected at Saturday’s meeting went to the Congress office in Sukea Street today to hold a meeting and the new Secretary intended to ask the old Secretary to hand over charge of office to him.

On their arrival, however, admittance was refused by the men posted at the door, and members went to another house where the meeting was held over which Maulana Akram Khan presided.

This meeting is described as the first meeting for the election of the delegates to the Special Congress at Delhi.