Goa as a poll pointer
FRIDAY, June 4, will provide answers to several questions thrown up by major political developments in recent weeks. That is the day when Goa will elect its 40-member Assembly, one with the least number of seats.

US court's verdict
THE sexual harassment debate in India was provided muscle by the Supreme Court through the landmark judgement on the subject. The verdict gave women the power to protect themselves from the unwelcome advances of their male colleagues at the work place.

DEBATE ON POLL
by Sumer Kaul
THANKS to the self-seeking games parties and politicians play, the much-harassed people of this country have to brace themselves for yet another road show of democracy — for the third time in three years and fifth in barely a decade. Election after election they troop out in their millions in the hopes of giving themselves a cohesive and caring government for five years.


It’s long haul in Kargil
by P. K. Vasudeva
THE Indian government in general and the Army in particular have been caught napping as it happened in 1962 in the Northeast. Military intelligence, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Special Security Bureau (SSB), Intelligence Bureau (IB) and more than a dozen other intelligence agencies operating along the Line of Control (LoC) have failed in spotting concentrations of infiltrators and their occupation of the tactically important heights along Srinagar-Dras (10 km from LoC)-Kargil (8 km from LoC)-Batalik (5 km from the LoC)-Leh road.

Sonia is a citizen, read Constitution again
by Anupam Gupta
HIS formidable legal skills notwithstanding, Union Minister for Urban Development Ram Jethmalani cannot resist putting his foot in his mouth. And he has done it again with customary aplomb. “I would strongly oppose,” he says, concluding the second of his two long pieces on the subject two days ago in The Statesman, any constitutional amendment to debar the likes of Sonia Gandhi from holding the office of President, Vice-President or Prime Minister of India.

Concerts lining up for Pak ghazal queen
by Humra Quraishi
IRONICAL it may sound but as news of the tension building up in the Kargil sector was being reported Pakistani ghazal queen Farida Khanam was rendering ghazal after ghazal for the audiences here — which included the Prime Minister, the Union Railway Minister and the top brass of Northern Railway — at the Siri Fort auditorium.

Pre-eminence of May
by M. K. Agarwal
PEOPLE have different perceptions about the significance of a month, depending on their experience, background or attitude. Many would relate it to their own birth or marriage or to a new arrival in home.

75 Years Ago

Ambala contempt of court case
THE following are further proceedings of the case in which Khan Ahmad Khan, Sub-Judge, Ambala, convicted Lala Duni Chand, MLA, of Contempt of Court.

Goa as a poll pointer

FRIDAY, June 4, will provide answers to several questions thrown up by major political developments in recent weeks. That is the day when Goa will elect its 40-member Assembly, one with the least number of seats. Thus the outcome may not influence the voting pattern in other states in choosing new Lok Sabha members or MLAs. Also the answers may not be clear cut or loud enough for analysts to draw fairly reliable conclusions. But yet as the first election after the Vajpayee-led government lost the trust vote and the split in the Congress and the emergence of Mrs Sonia Gandhi as the undisputed leader of her party, the Goa verdict will be watched with keen interest. Some special features of the state’s electoral landscape lend it weight that an election to a mini state does not normally warrant. One, there is a sharp political polarisation along language-determined policies.

The Congress is an umbrella party, housing all religious and language groups without evoking the fierce loyalty of anyone. The Maharash-trawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) draws strength from the once dominant yearning for the merger of the state with neighbouring Maharashtra. That the merger demand was rejected in a referendum in the late sixties has not disheartened the former ruling party, though it has brought it down in popular rating, winning only eight seats in last elections. There is the United Goan Democratic Party, now reduced to a splinter group, which exists only to oppose the MGP and which does not trust the Congress to safeguard the Goan identity. Then there is the BJP, a Johnny-come-lately, which has a marginal presence (four MLAs) and held its last national executive meeting there to coyly proclaim that it was the ruling party in waiting. Goa is thus representative of the country as a whole in that it has both national parties and two regional parties. What is more, it boasts of a very high literacy rate (76.9 per cent) and ranks fifth in per capita income. These factors make Goa an exciting laboratory, even if it is not India in microcosm.

The Congress is approaching the voter with two novel promises: it will not encourage or condone defection, an endemic problem in the state, and, two, if voted to power the ministry will have only six members ( 15 per cent of the House strength). In the past 10 years, the state had nine Chief Ministers, all defecting or redefecting Congress-men. This fact explains the compulsion of the anti-defection stance. The party hopes to tap a strong sympathy wave generated by the BJP’s nationality attack on Mrs Gandhi. The Hindutva party is also eyeing a similar mood in favour of Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee for the way he lost power. Considering that the BJP has a narrow base and is going it alone, it cannot expect a breakthrough, but even a gain of two or more seats will broadly vindicate its claim and warn its rivals. If the Congress gets more than 30 seats (it had 25 in the dissolved House), Mrs Sonia Gandhi can claim to be a vote-getter for the party. Any number less than that will encourage Mr Sharad Pawar to see his own lengthening shadow across the southern border of his bastion, Maharashtra. June 4 is indeed an important day.

US court's verdict

THE sexual harassment debate in India was provided muscle by the Supreme Court through the landmark judgement on the subject. The verdict gave women the power to protect themselves from the unwelcome advances of their male colleagues at the work place. It is a different matter that few women are willing to speak up against the acts of misconduct of their male colleagues in spite of the clear-cut guidelines of the apex court. However, it can be said that the Supreme Court overlooked an important aspect of the problem while giving women the power to protect themselves from sexual harassment at the workplace. What about the increasing complaints of girl students against “naughty boys” in co-educational institutions? An answer to the question was provided by the US Supreme Court which made schools liable for legal action if they failed to redress complaints between students. In what US legal luminaries saw as a significant expansion in the sexual harassment laws of the country a divided Supreme Court, by a majority of one, ruled that the school systems which fail to prevent students from sexually harassing other students can be required to pay the victims for the trauma caused to them.

Considering the fact that co-educational institutions are replacing single sex schools in India it would be a worthwhile exercise to study the US Supreme Court ruling on sexual harassment and adopt it for implementation after suitable modifications, if necessary. In America the 5-to-4 ruling is likely to have far reaching consequences, special in the case of schools which accept government grants. The ruling would cover educational institutions from the elementary to the university level.The ruling has been welcomed by the Clinton Administration and a large number of social activists who have all along argued that students deserve the same sort of legal protection, particularly from extreme harassment,that apply at the workplace. The landmark ruling came in a case in which a 10-year-old girl complained of being repeatedly “groped, taunted and accosted by a classmate”. The US Supreme Court ruled that the school district could be held financially responsible if it knew about the harassment but remained deliberately indifferent. The US verdict can form the basis for aggrieved students to seek similar relief from the Indian judiciary.

DEBATE ON POLL
A close look at the problems
by Sumer Kaul

THANKS to the self-seeking games parties and politicians play, the much-harassed people of this country have to brace themselves for yet another road show of democracy — for the third time in three years and fifth in barely a decade. Election after election they troop out in their millions in the hopes of giving themselves a cohesive and caring government for five years. Instead, courtesy our rabidly divisive politics, they end up getting hydra-headed or hydra-tailed creatures with genes programmed to first collude and then collide. Result: seven governments in 10 years. Italy, with 45 government in 50 years, boast not!

Such is the perversity of present-day politics that in this cavalcade of governments the only dispensation to last the full term started off as a minority government (and continued in that state for a long period until by hook, crook and stuffed suitcases it managed a majority). In contrast, a pre-election coalition which demonstrated its majority at the time of taking office and proved it again on the Bihar ordinance, was brought down by one vote — not on any policy issue, not on any matter of national import but because it was beginning to look good.

This was the nightmare of certain opposition parties from the day the Vajpayee administration came to power, and the moment one of the ruling partners decided to change its political bedfellows, the ever-ready suitors in the Opposition grabbed its hand, and each other’s, in the hope of a new power wedlock. As it happened, however, it turned out to be a one-night stand, and the morning after saw them all falling flat on their faces, singly and collectively.

Now the onus is back on the people; they have to elect a new government. Will their verdict be fractured again? Come campaigning and they will be pulled and pushed and buffeted and cajoled and threatened and misled and misguided to vote for this party or that. This will cause many to vote against their wishes but they will only be a small minority; the vast minority; the vast majority of people, I have no doubt, vote in good faith. But given the plethora of parties in the fray, given the socio-political balkanisation, there is no certainty that a fresh election will end the aayee sarkar-gayee sarkar phenomenon. Unless the rules of the game are changed.

There have been many ideas on what these changes should be. One major suggestion is to switch over to the presidential system. Another is to take the relevant leaf from the German Basic Law: no government can be brought down in a parliamentary vote without the MPs simultaneously electing a new government. Considering what happened in the 12th Lok Sabha, this stipulation is now favoured, among many others, by Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee. Had this provision been in force, with 269 MPs supporting his government and 233 an alternative one, the outgoing Prime Minister would not have gone.

Effective as this stipulation could be against unprincipled and reckless politicking, it may not be all that foolproof in our multitudinous-party system — 46 of them in the last Lok Sabha. These parties do not represent 46 ideologies; barring one or two they represent no definable ideology at all, only local or regional or caste interests. Indeed, with the near-total demise of ideological politics, very little distinguishes one from the other. In fact, they are united in a common agenda; somehow to get into power or in positions where they can get crumbs thereof. This explains their alliance promiscuity. There is no party which has not aligned with or otherwise supported any other party. Some of the daggers-drawn enemies of today were all on the same side in 1989 and were, in fact, one party in 1977! In this kaleidoscopic politics, you never know what combinations will emerge when, break when and re-form how.

Such are the shifting sands of Indian politics that one seriously wonders if we wouldn’t be better off with partyless democracy, a system where individuals stand for elections as individuals and those elected choose the Prime Minister who in turn chooses his Cabinet from among all the MPs. It could be done like this: A minimum of 100 MPs each propose prime ministerial names and then, on the basis of the candidates’ known credentials and policy statements before the vote, the House elects whoever it wants by a majority. In case there are more than two contenders and no one secures 50 per cent plus votes, there would be a run-off between the top two. We could also provide that such a government can be changed only through the German stipulation.

This is not as impossible an idea as it may seem at first. But, yes, it is rather radical and least likely to have any takers. I, therefore, revert to the changes I have long advocated, changes which would ensure a fairer representation of the people’s preferences both at the individual and party levels. Let the party system continue, but no one should be declared elected unless he or she secures more than 50 per cent of the votes. In all other cases the votes polled by the candidates go into their party tally. (Non-successful independents can pledge their votes to a party of their choice.) The seats not filled through the majority stipulation should be distributed among the parties in proportion to their over-all vote score.

This reform will not, however, necessarily give Parliament the sorely-needed national profile. For Parliament to be truly pan-Indian, we simply have to keep teeny-weeny and purely local interest parties out of it. This can be done by laying down a minimum percentage of the over-all vote that a party must secure to merit representation in the Lok Sabha. Whatever the cut-off percentage decided, each party would be required to name two other parties as first and second preferences to which its vote will be transferred in the event of it failing to meet the qualifying requirement, and this should be done before the election so that voters know where their support will go should the party they voted for fail to qualify. In all fairness, this will not affect the candidates elected on the 50 per cent plus vote, which means we may still have small parties but these will be fewer and smaller than at present, and, therefore the possibility of the tail toppling the dog will be so much the less.

These reforms may seem complicated, but then the problems sought to be removed are not simple either. But whether a solution to the recurring coalition crises and the consequent instability is found on these lines or any other, it is an urgent matter which must be dealt with urgently. The Prime Minister has appealed to “jurists and public men” to suggest possible reforms. There already are many suggestion at hand. What is needed is to seriously discuss the possibilities and then take a decision. But that is where the rub lies. While we can debate endlessly, the people who can decide are the politicians and parties — and most of them stand to lose from such reforms and will, therefore, resist change. In any case, nothing can be done in time for the upcoming election.

So where does it leave us, the people? Well, it leaves us nowhere other than in long queues, fingers crossed and fervently hoping against hope that this time we will rise above caste, communal and regional considerations and give a clear mandate for a good and durable government. A midsummer night’s dream!

It’s long haul in Kargil
by P. K. Vasudeva

THE Indian government in general and the Army in particular have been caught napping as it happened in 1962 in the Northeast. Military intelligence, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), Special Security Bureau (SSB), Intelligence Bureau (IB) and more than a dozen other intelligence agencies operating along the Line of Control (LoC) have failed in spotting concentrations of infiltrators and their occupation of the tactically important heights along Srinagar-Dras (10 km from LoC)-Kargil (8 km from LoC)-Batalik (5 km from the LoC)-Leh road. This is a serious lapse, especially when the troops on both the sides are deployed in a eyeball to eyeball confrontation.

If the ISI-supported intrusion of about one thousand mercenaries into the Indian territory in the Kargil sector and the ISI’s creation of a special sanctuary for the mercenaries on the ridges from where they could disrupt the Srinagar-Leh road, keep large number of Indian troops bottled up their aim is achieved. Hence, they have to be exited without delay. The Army and the Air Force will have to pay a price to throw out the infiltrators from well-entrenched positions at heights more than 15000 to 17000 ft in the snow-bound areas. The Air Force has already lost one MiG 21 fighter plane, one MiG 27 reconnaissance plane and one MI-17 helicopter.

The Pakistani infiltrators must have occupied these heights in early spring — March/April — dug up trenches, stacked ammunition, ration for one or two months reserve and prepared an escape route to Pakistani territory. The terrain in this area is very hostile interspersed as it is with deep gorges and steep mountains covered with 20 to 30 feet of snow. It is very difficult for a soldier to go on foot and launch an attack. The combined operation by the Army and Air Force will certainly reduce pressure. It is not merely a question of evicting or flushing out the infiltrators. A proper attack has to be launched to capture these heights, which may take three to four months.

The whole operation has been well planned by the Inter Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI) and Pakistan Army to realign the LoC and cut off our vital road to Ladakh from Srinagar. May be Pakistan wants to make new LoC a permanent border during the future rounds of Indo-Pak talks, as the thinking goes in some quarters. It is wrong on the part of Defence Minister Fernandes to think that the Pakistan government or the ISI is not involved in this operation. Unconfirmed reports say that ISI possibly helped Osama bin Laden and his Arab and Afghan mercenaries escape US punishment by creating a sanctuary for them in the Indian territory by taking advantage of the absence of the Indian Army in the winter. Bin Laden and his followers have disappeared from the Kandhar area of Afghanistan in February after the USA threatened to bomb their hideout. There has been speculation that they are either hiding in Iraq or in the Federally Administered Tribal Area of Pakistan. It is possible that some of the highly trained Bin Laden mercenaries are occupying the heights in the Kargil sector, carrying US-made Stinger missiles.

Air strikes by India and artillery shelling are purely a counter-insurgency-operation undertaken over Indian territory in an inhabited area where there is no danger to civilians. The results have been very good.

As a precautionary measure all airbases in the northern and western parts of the country have already been put on maximum alert. This is intended to meet possible Pakistan retaliation.

Intelligence reports suggested on May 21 that a group of at least 50 irregulars had used the Mushkoh valley to move into Kashmir and from there to Doda. Further a Pakistani Army Brigade moved down the Mian Lungpa valley to support pickets engaged by the Indian troops around Baroro, Chorbat La and Turtok.

Pakistan movement in the area was first detected almost accidentally, when a routine summer patrol was sent out on May 5 to the Kaksar area near Kargil. Lieut V.K. Kalia and six men of his patrol party have been reported missing, but Pakistan Sakardu radio has reported that they were captured. A second patrol in the Batalik area was subsequently ambushed. An officer and a soldier died covering the retreat of six other soldiers. Reconnaissance parties and surveillance later discovered dozens of Pakistani posts which had sprung up, in early spring causing panic in and threat to the Army bases.

Further losses, particularly helicopters, are possible in the course of air strikes as MI-17 helicopters are not designed to fly at altitudes over 16000 feet. They are also not designed as attacking platforms. They are prone to attacks from SAMs and machine gun fire from the Pak troops occupying the heights.

India should be prepared to accept casualties in the air and on ground since an operation for the capture of these heights will invite resistance from the Pakistan side and there will be murderous firing along the LoC.

(The author, a retired Colonel, has fought in the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars in Jammu and Kashmir and was a Commanding Officer of a Garhwal Regiment during the 1981-83 skirmishes in the area.)

Pre-eminence of May
by M. K. Agarwal

PEOPLE have different perceptions about the significance of a month, depending on their experience, background or attitude. Many would relate it to their own birth or marriage or to a new arrival in home. Others would assign momentousness to a month in which they realised a cherished goal, like discovery of a new scientific truth by a researcher or making of first million bucks by an entrepreneur. To a government employee the month in which he started his career innings or earned his promotion could be the most eventful. A public leader would find meaning in the month which determined his political fortune. But, if we ignore the personal angle or the transitory phenomenon, we shall discover that it is May which has a pervasiveness, a universality, a kind of uniqueness, characteristically its own. History, tradition, climate, literature bear ample testimony to his pre-eminence.

For instance, many important national and international days fall in May, giving it a distinctive place in the calendar. The first of May is universally acclaimed as May Day. It is celebrated with fervour as Workers’ Day or International Labour Day. It is also the day traditionally dedicated to sports, fun and frolic. Press Freedom Day on May 3 is dedicated to the cause of independence and dignity of journalism. May 8 is earmarked as World Red Cross Day, when the nations resolve to pool their efforts and resources to mitigate human suffering. International Mother’s Day is celebrated with much fanfare, especially in the western world, on second Sunday of May. Mom is humoured and idolised- she is given the day off, dad and children take her place in the kitchen and in the evening take her out for her favourite dinner. This is said to be busiest day for restaurants in the USA.

Exploring further, we find that National Solidarity Day is observed in this country with all solemnity on May 13. International Day of the family, due on May 15, is a reminder to the people to ponder over the sanctity and unity of home. May 17 — World Telecommunication Day beckons the information enthusiasts to reach out and also explore new vistas. Commonwealth Day comes off on May 24. Jawaharlal Nehru left this mortal world on May 27, 1964; it is an occasion to pay homage to a great leader and remind ourselves of his ideals. His grandson, Rajiv Gandhi — former Prime Minister — fell victim to a human bomb in this very month May 21, to be precise. May 31 is Anti-tobacco Day; interestingly, the outgoing day of the month has mixed appeal-cheer for the health lobby but only chagrin and disdain for the tobacco lovers.

May 11 has become synonymous with India’s scientific and technical achievements and has rightly been declared Technology Day. It is a day hallowed by trinity of path-breaking accomplishments viz, launching of Hansa 3, the first indigenous civil aircraft; test firing of Trishul; and the historic nuclear explosions at Pokhran.

The fact that India has always tested the nuclear device in May- first in 1974 and again in 1998- is of enormous importance in terms of secrecy against inquisitive foreign surveillance. The prevailing winds in this month create so strong duststorms that they deny the intelligence satellites a clear view. Shifting sand obliterates in no time every trace of tyre tracks which could, otherwise, be a great signature for land movements. Infrared sensors, too, have a problem picking up radioactivity, especially in daytime when temperatures often soar up to 50 degrees Celsius. No wonder, May has been favoured as the most opportune time for nuclear tests.

For a large body of young students, May is the harbinger of much sought relief. With the agony of examinations and pangs of admission behind them and spell of summer vacation ahead, their hearts are suffused with joy and rapture. Most flock to the parks or playgrounds; for many it is a time of annual home-coming; the fortunate few flee to the hills. However, the senior ones, intent on a professional career or pursuit of higher education, find May to be the most gruelling and harrowing time of their life.

To the Indian farmer, May symbolises prosperity. With his granary overflowing with rabi harvest and his wallet stuffed with money, he is a picture of confidence. His mood is expansive and his spirits are charged, which find expression in the form of folk dances, bouts of revelry and feats of gallantry. Festivity, colour and splendour are much on display.

Looking back to the annals one finds that May has been the most propitious month to the mountaineers in Elimbing Mount Everest. Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing did so for the first time in May, 1953. The first woman, Junko Tabei of Japan, achieved this distinction in May, 1975. The first Indian woman, Bachendari Pal, conquered the peak in May, 1984, while Santosh Yadav, first woman in the world to reach Everest for the second time, made it in May of 1993. The recurrence of these remarkable feats of valour and endurance in May has been ascribed to the conducive climate and favourable glacier position at this time of the year.

Philosophically speaking, May has a monk-like character. Among all the months it has the briefest, three-letter spelling. Its full as well as abbreviated forms are simply ‘May’. Not so with other months. June and July come very close but, besides having four letters, they have to shed one last letter in the process of abbreviation viz., Jun/Jul for June/July. May’s brief accoutrement and unchanging form are characteristic of the Indian ethos.

The English people are said to be in their most joyful and festive mood in the month of May. The weather is balmy, flowers are in bloom, air is fragrant. The sensuousness of the season of that land has been beautifully described by Chaucer in his inimitable words: ‘Hard is the heart that loveth not in May’. Shakespeare goes further when he equates freshness and sprightliness of youth with May: ‘Maids are May when they are maids, but the sky changes when they are wives’.

More could be said to bring home the significance of May. But, the brief memorabilia unfolded above should suffice to vindicate its uniqueness.

Sonia is a citizen, read Constitution again

by Anupam Gupta

HIS formidable legal skills notwithstanding, Union Minister for Urban Development Ram Jethmalani cannot resist putting his foot in his mouth. And he has done it again with customary aplomb. “I would strongly oppose,” he says, concluding the second of his two long pieces on the subject two days ago in The Statesman, any constitutional amendment to debar the likes of Sonia Gandhi from holding the office of President, Vice-President or Prime Minister of India.

That is surely news, given the fact that the lawyer-turned- politician occupies a cabinet berth in a BJP-led government. But he graciously supplies the reason for his ostensible dissent from the official party line. “In the first place,” he says, “it (the amendment) is unnecessary. The existing law correctly interpreted is likely to produce the same result.”

In any event, he maintains, the result can be achieved by adding the following “simple explanation” to the Citizenship Act:

“For the avoidance of doubts it is hereby declared that no person who has acquired citizenship by registration or naturalisation shall be entitled to hold the office of President, Vice-President and Prime Minister of India.”

Add that simple explanation to an ordinary law of Parliament, the Citizenship Act of 1955, and achieve the same result as that of amending the Constitution and its many provisions relating to the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister! And add it, if need be (though he does not say as much) since Parliament now stands dissolved, by the simple expedient of a presidential ordinance under Article 123, by mere executive action!

Never mind if the Citizenship Act deals only with citizenship, its acquisition and termination, and not with the constitutional structure of the polity and the way the polity is to be constituted and governed. Never mind, too, that it is elementary constitutional law that, but for certain well-defined exceptions prescribed in the Constitution itself — such as Article 4, dealing with territorial reorganisation of States — the Constitution can be amended by Parliament only in exercise of its constituent power under Article 368 and never by ordinary legislation.

Never mind all that, and all else, for Mr Jethmalani’s word is law and that is sufficient to amend the Constitution!

But let us move ahead of that which is elementary and examine on merits Mr Jethmalani’s claim that the existing law (of citizenship), correctly interpreted, is likely to produce the same result as that intended by the proposed constitutional amendment.

Article 5 of the Constitution, he argues in the first of his two articles sarcastically titled “Our Beloved Bahu — Is Sonia eligible under law”, envisages only “primary natural citizenship by birth or blood connection alone,” whatever may be the position under the Citizenship Act enacted after a gap of five years from the adoption of the Constitution.

“But the vital question of constitutional law (he writes) that arises is whether the constitutional requirement that a Prime Minister like the President must be a citizen of India requires primary citizenship by birth or blood under Article 5 of the Constitution or whether it covers citizenship acquired by an alien by naturalisation. It is quite obvious that upto 1955 at any rate, it could not have been otherwise.”

Mr Jethmalani would have studied the Constitution for almost double the number of years that I have done but he is clearly wrong. Article 5 deals with citizenship only at the commencement of the Constitution and not thereafter. But even then, it not only contemplates but expressly provides for citizenship otherwise than by birth.

At the commencement of this Constitution, reads Article 5, every person who has domicile in the territory of India and (a) who was born in the territory of India; or (b) either of whose parents was born in the territory of India; or (c) who has been ordinarily resident in the territory of India for not less than five years immediately preceding such commencement, shall be a citizen of India.

Of the three clauses, Clauses (a) and (b) alone provide for citizenship by birth (coupled with domicile). Clause (c) does not refer to birth at all and has actually nothing to do with it. It was inserted in the Constitution by the Drafting Committee in response to a complaint received from Justice Meredith of the Patna High Court.

The draft Constitution, said Justice Meredith, “leaves the position of Europeans like myself who might wish to take out Indian citizenship very uncertain. I suggest that some provisions for naturalisation should be inserted in the Constitution.” Every country, he said, has provisions for naturalisation in proper cases. There was no constitutional protection for persons permanently resident in the country or having their domicile therein who are not citizens. “Moreover, citizenship appears to have been made an essential qualification for practically every appointment under the Union of India.”

The point raised by Justice Meredith was considered at a meeting of the Drafting Committee and the draft Article was amended to incorporate a new clause, substantially the present Clause (c).

The new Clause, said the Constitutional Adviser to the Constituent Assembly and the real draftsman of the Constitution, Sir B.N. Rau, in a letter to Assembly President Rajendra Prasad dated April 13, 1948, “will apply to persons like Justice Meredith. All such persons who have taken up their fixed habitation in India shall be deemed to have their domicile in India....”

Amend the Constitution if you will, Mr Jethmalani, if you dislike Sonia Gandhi or for any other reason but, for God’s sake, do not distort its original intent.

More on the controversy next week.

Concerts lining up for Pak ghazal queen

by Humra Quraishi

IRONICAL it may sound but as news of the tension building up in the Kargil sector was being reported Pakistani ghazal queen Farida Khanam was rendering ghazal after ghazal for the audiences here — which included the Prime Minister, the Union Railway Minister and the top brass of Northern Railway — at the Siri Fort auditorium. Sharing the dais with Gulzar and Jagjit Singh, Khanam began each ghazal by very eloquently stating that it was her good fortune to be able to render ghazals for the New Delhi audience and, of course, repeatedly saying that the mohabbat she was receiving here was absolutely touching. It seemed she was so overwhelmed by it all that her sari kept sliding, revealing an awesome cleavage. As the tempo picked up the audience simply wouldn’t let her go and she went on till midnight. And it is said that Khanam is likely to be here till June 2, as requests for private concerts are lining up. And just when she leaves New Delhi we’ll have Mehndi Hassan here. His scheduled visit is likely to start from June 3 and though the season is lean but it would lie interspread with a series of his concerts.

Beginning with the June 5 concert at the Centaur hotel, arranged by Shahrukh Khan’s uncle-in-law Satish Chibba. Moving ahead I must mention that in the last a few get-togethers and national day receptions the Pakistani High Commissioner, Mr Ashraf Jahangir Qazi, was not to be spotted. After the call given by the Editors Guild of boycott functions of the Pakistan High Commission and of the High Commissioner as a mark of their protest at the arrest of Pakistani editor Najam Sethi, the Pakistani High Commissioner is said to be keeping a very low profile. Previously, together with his spouse he was spotted at many a function and dinner reception.

Interspread with this, is the news that Ram Jethmalani has postponed his bus ride to Lahore, which he was undertaking with a group of lawyers at the invitation of the Lahore Bar Association. Never mind, for the Prime Minister is said to be boarding another bus, this time to Dhaka. The details are yet to unroll, especially whether he would be boarding it from Calcutta or just a few kilometres before the Indo-Bangla border. And as for the Lahore bus ride it was predominantly the who’s who from the erstwhile Punjab who had accompanied him and for this Bangladesh trip there is general speculation that the list of passengers would be the who’s who of Calcutta.

Jordanian national day reception

Unlike the European diplomats, as a general rule their Arab counterparts do talk very spontaneously and that’s probably why the receptions hosted by them are altogether different. The Royal Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan celebrated their country’s national day on May 24 and besides representatives from the 18 Arab nations with missions here, also to be spotted were the envoys of the USA and Israel. The new Iraqi ambassador to India, Salah Al-Mukhtar, was also present, and probably he is the most vocal diplomat around. Till very recently he was editing Iraq’s highest circulated newspaper Al Jamuriya and he says the US attacks on different parts of the Iraqi territory have become an everyday reality. “Earlier it was reported in the media, but now with concentration getting focused on Belgrade and Kosovo there is little to no mention of these attacks ....” But he added that he soon plans to call for a Press conference to give details of the US attacks. If I am not mistaken the US ambassador was not within hearing distance and left the venue soon as he had to reportedly catch a flight for Mumbai. Also to be spotted were Iraqi and Kuwaiti diplomats and this in itself was a strange combination in the sense that after the Gulf war they, as a rule, never share the same platform or venue.

In fact, no sooner had Sonia Gandhi taken back her resignation I called up Mani Shankar Aiyar. If you’d recall in my last column I had quoted him stating very categorically and confidentially that “99.9% Mrs Sonia Gandhi wouldn’t take back her resignation and that leaves us with only 0.1% chance of her going back on her earlier decision....” Well, you have guessed right, I called him up to ask him whether his mathematics is in shambles or he himself. He had his reasons lined up for the poor calculation — “I think what happened was the last minute grassroots upsurge. Also, just before the AICC session began there were strong indications that the loyalists would disrupt the proceedings if some other leader’s name was announced as Congress president. In that context Mrs Sonia Gandhi acted very prudently and controlled the situation by taking back her resignation”.

Anyway, for the time being the ‘foreigner’ issue seems to have died down or to quote Aiyar “that issue — of Mrs Gandhi being a foreigner — is like a dead horse and if the BJP tries to whip it again then it would be like whipping a dead horse!” Meanwhile sources state that Mrs Sonia Gandhi has immersed herself in preparations for the coming elections and has started holding meetings to work out the strategies.

A must read

Just finished reading the revised edition of Dr Prakash Kothari’s book — Common Sexual Problems ... Solutions (UBS). I think it is a must read for all of us, for specific problems are dealt with very clear cut answers. In fact the entire book, spanning over 200 pages, is in the question-answer format, so that makes it all the more direct.

75 YEARS AGO

Ambala contempt of court case

THE following are further proceedings of the case in which Khan Ahmad Khan, Sub-Judge, Ambala, convicted Lala Duni Chand, MLA, of Contempt of Court.

Additional statement of L. Duni Chand:

Question: Do you belong to the class who were agitating the people to non-cooperate with the government and to set their authority at naught and were you convicted of such offence under the Cr L.A. Act and sentenced to imprisonment?

Answer: Yes! I must strongly resent the most offensive form in which the question has been put to me; but as I am before this court as an accused person. I reply to the question in spite of the most painful feeling that this court has caused to me. I also venture to think that the question is absolutely irrelevant; and it only betrays the mind and the attitude of the court towards me. I never belong to a party of agitators, but I did take part in the honourable struggle for freedom of this country. I certainly took part in the non-cooperation movement though not as much as one should; but it was peaceful and legitimate. I never preached to set at naught the authority of officers and the government. My position from the very beginning has been, as it will appear from my numerous speeches on the public platform, including my address as the President of the Punjab Provincial Conference held at Rohtak, that it is perfectly legitimate for a citizen to do his part of the duty for the country’s cause.