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MR P.H. VAISHNAV has come out “In defence of bureaucracy” (The Tribune, Jan 11) but has failed to provide any agenda for reforms. Even if the service chiefs have “a direct access to the Prime Minister and the Defence Minister, and rank higher than the Defence Secretary”, the bureaucracy in the ministry has all the powers, wherewithal and willingness to delay endlessly or even scuttle proposals of the chiefs. For day-to-day decisions a service chief cannot put the weight of his rank behind every proposal of his or keep complaining to the Prime Minister or the Defence Minister. Is the writer unaware of the fact that defence service officers have to pursue almost all their cases with the officials of the ministry?

The claim that Mr Ajit Kumar was “transferred for compliance” is outrageous. If the Defence Secretary cannot maintain a cordial working relationship with all the three chiefs, who rank higher than him according to the writer, it is a big question mark on his professional competence. If for even matters of crucial supplies to the troops in Siachin the Defence Minister is to intervene, either the Secretary’s efficiency or his intention is questionable.

The writer considers the middle-level officers in the Army so gullible and unaware of the ways of the world that mere assertions and allegations will sway them to believe that civil authority means civil service. They witness almost daily how their smarter colleagues having links even in the lower echelons of the ministry manage their postings while their pleadings for bare essentials in the field area get lost in the files.

The assertion that restructuring may result in the weakening of an already weak political executive, is an attempt to play on the fears of a corrupt, short-sighted and largely ignorant political leadership so that the hegemony of the civil bureaucracy remains unquestioned. To give dark hints that the military and the police bureaucracy are trying to question the authority of the political executive is to the same end.

Nobody can doubt that the system — which has given rise to an unholy nexus among politicians, bureaucrats, senior defence service officers and arms dealers — needs urgent reforms. It is not a question of defence of the bureaucracy or of the armed forces, the security of the country is at stake. Admiral Bhagwat’s defiant nature may be partially responsible for his dismissal, but the occasion needs to be used to establish a befitting command and control system for the 21st century nuclear India. The bureaucracy should not be allowed to use this case to obstruct genuine reforms.

A foggy problem

The editorial “Fogged out” (Jan 4) was clear on the apathy of the so-called crisis managers in North India. The fog in North India plays havoc with rail, road and air traffic.

Whereas the central government authorities drag their feet on acquiring modern instruments, the provincial governments never come out with adequate indigenous plans to meet eventualities by setting up force groups on national highways and link roads.

It is a different matter that Punjabis will not bother about any eventuality when they resolve to help anybody in distress. The recent “fog accident” near Khanna-Doraha is an example.

In 1996, the 83rd Science Congress at Punjabi University, Patiala, began on January 3 as usual. The then Prime Minister, Mr P.V. Narasimha Rao, was to inaugurate the congress, but the fog in Punjab prevented him from landing either at Chandigarh or at Patiala. His faxed message was read out by an eminent linguist, Prof S.S. Joshi. How we reconciled to this fogged situation, may be best known to those people who knew that Mr Rao’s name was not on the records of the Science Congress secretariat, but only the Prime Minister was invited.

Similarly, during the 59th session of the Indian History Congress during December, 1998, Mr I.K. Gujral, former Prime Minister, was to deliver the valedictory address at the fag-end of December. He was to land at 12 noon at Patiala to join 700 delegates. The fog delayed him for one hour, and he resumed his address at 1.45 p.m. at Guru Tegh Bahadur Hall.

SAT PAL SHARMA
Patiala

This refers to Mr Hari Jaisingh’s article, “Growing signs of intolerance: new response system needed” (Jan 8). Many of us, faced with the facts of growing intolerance and violence, would be appalled, dismayed, saddened, bitter or resentful. The character of these feelings is one of passivity or quietness.

It is unreflective, incidentally, to succumb to the generalisation that such cases of violence and growing intolerance always pose a threat to the continuation of a democratic system of government. Such threats conveyed by the incidents of violence carry an unpredictable sequence of events ending in the destruction of the system.

Guided by the author’s findings and will for a new response system, an approach must be made if we are to reach anything like a judicious view of how violence affects democracy. Violence breaks the rule of democracy that government decisions are to be taken as binding, that the rule of law is to prevail.

To think that violence — may be political, democratic, religious or foreign-inspired one — can be justified is a mistaken idea. If it brings votes, it also maims and kills. The deprivation and degradation that go with violence should never be forgotten.

Plato’s words will explain my point: “We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of dark, the real tragedy is when men are afraid of the light”.

COMMUNAL QUESTION: It is a fact that Hindus are shedding conventional moderation of late. But that is a reaction or at best it is due to the virus of immitation. How else can one explain the excommunication of Mr Kalyan Singh, Chief Minister of U.P., by sadhus?

Minority communalism was overlooked by vote-bank politics. The reaction to the hawkish trends gave the impression that this tendency pays quickly and surely. This should never have happened.

I think to quell the communalism of the majority, we must tackle the communalism of the minorities in such a way that it does not send wrong signals to the former. That will go a long way towards solving the communal question.

I read the January 1 editorial page article, “Exploring highways of ideas — Indians poor learners of history”, and feel that it has been correctly observed that “it cannot be tailor-made to suit one group or the other. Nor can facts be tempered with to promote a special interest ...”. Therefore, it is evident that if facts are twisted, the conclusions would be wrong. This is exactly what is happening in India. We are the victims of tailor-made history.

In public perception, the District Superintendent of Police has a pivotal role to play in crime management. But the Haryana government seems to think otherwise. To arrest the sharp rise in the crime graph in Gurgaon, it has transferred the DIG and suspended the SHO. Apparently, the middle rung officers — the SP and the DSP — have no responsibility to share because they are closely related to very important politicians!

	M A I L B A G	Friday, January 15, 1999
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