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Sunday,
February 2, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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ON RECORD A POINT OF VIEW COMMENTARY |
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KASHMIR DIARY
Harihar Swarup
Dhumal makes history
Humra Quraishi
Hans
Blix: another avtar
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ON RECORD
Despite the Opposition’s anger at the BJP-led NDA’s decision to elect Manohar Gajanan Joshi as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Shiv Sena leader has come a long way in making his presence felt in the House of the People. "I am a student of the MPs and all political parties and MPs are innately good," observes Mr Joshi. Born in a lower middle class family in a small village in Maharashtra, one of the first jobs of the 65-year-old Mr Joshi was that of a newspaper delivery boy at the age of 12 to meet his education expenses. Mr Joshi considers himself extremely fortunate to have been the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and as a first time MP in 1999 to become a cabinet minister in Atal Behari Vajpayee’s cabinet and subsequently being catapulted to the high office of Speaker.
In a relaxed interview at his residence in New Delhi, Mr Joshi maintained that Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray had "never indulged in back seat driving" on his elevation as Speaker of the Lok Sabha and "told me to be impartial and become a successful Speaker." Excerpts: Q: How is it that the winter session remained a smooth affair? A: It is necessary to establish friendly relations with all the political parties, parliamentarians and convince them that the reputation of Parliament is going down with frequent disturbances and adjournments. The House is for debating and not adjourning. Parliament is the supreme body and mother of all the legislatures. It is, therefore, necessary to set an ideal for all. I appealed to the conscience of all the sections that without their cooperation nothing is possible. They realised that no purpose is being achieved with adjournments. It is necessary to have good debates and evoke positive responses from the government. There were two adjournment motions against the government. Why should the government not accept adjournment motions when they are in a majority and no voting has been asked for. Nobody was on a ego trip during the session as no fewer than 43 bills were passed which is a record for the last 30 years. The government is happy and so is the Opposition. Q: Is the code of conduct being followed strictly? A: Who tells the people of the goings on in the House. The media. If MPs troop into the well of the Lok Sabha on any issue it gets noticed and if they make long speeches nothing gets published. If the press comes together and decides not to give publicity to the use of lung power, misbehaviour or dashing to the well of the House, the Speaker’s task will become easy. I want peace. The question is how can the Speaker and Press come together. If the press ignores incidents of MPs surging to the well of the House, parliamentarians will feel ashamed and stop it. The next experiment should ensure that no publicity is given to those who misbehave. Publicity should be given only to good suggestions in the House. MPs at least like to see their names appear in print. Q: On quality of debates and work of Standing Committees of Parliament? A: The Standing Committees are very effective. They scrutinise the budget proposals despite the complaint that people do not study and come prepared for debates. There is no problem in giving time for discussing the demands for grants of various ministries and departments but the discussion has to be pointed as they are money matters. Q: What is your suggestion for MPs? A: MPs should be investigative in their approach. A lot of things can be investigated. Opposition MPs must be well armed and ask pointed questions to ministers. This will be good for all the MPs and the ministers compelled to provide satisfactory answers rather than just restricting to what is penned in the files. I take a detailed briefing everyday for about 30-45 minutes so that I am aware of the questions and issues at hand. I believe in democracy. As a legislator in the Maharashtra Assembly, I used to investigate and come armed with facts. It is also my duty to see that ministers don’t give the same replies to questions as they had done three months back. I had taken exception to this and the minister concerned came to my chamber and apologised. The minister has to provide information to the members. Q: On the ticklish issue of quorum. A: Quorum has to be there and it is for the ruling coalition and the Opposition to take care of this. I appeal to all to be present so that the House is not adjourned for want of quorum. Q: On taking action against unruly members. A: Parliament must run very well. Members must be allowed to vent their feelings of the grave happenings in their constituencies. After all, members are the representatives of the people. If MPs indulge in misbehaviour then the House should boycott them. If hundreds of people are killed in communal violence, there is bound to be commotion in the House. Parliament is a reflection of the wishes of the people. A parliamentarian must always understand his responsibilities. Taking strict action against the member should be the last resort. Disruption of the House will not be tolerated. Initiating action against a member for disrupting the House or misbehaviour should be avoided as far as possible. Such action can also lead to severe consequences. There should be no bitterness. Q: On women parliamentarians and reservation for them in legislatures. A: Women’s representation in legislatures including Parliament should be increased. Maharashtra was the first to come forward with 33 per cent reservation for women. However, at the Centre it is a game of politics. Everybody is playing politics in this matter. Q: Is your leader Balasaheb Thackeray backseat driving once again as evidenced during your chief ministership of Maharashtra? A: (After
a brief introspection) There is no backseat driving by Balasaheb
Thackeray. When I went to seek his permission and blessings, Mr
Thackeray told me that I should be impartial. Mr Thackeray said go and
become a successful Speaker. |
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A POINT OF VIEW It started with Pakistan's ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, saying in early January that he had threatened nuclear war against India during last summer's tense confrontation, when more than a million soldiers were mobilised along the common border. India's Defence Minister, George Fernandes, replied that if Pakistan ever carried out its threat, "There will be no Pakistan left when we have responded". Then on January 8, the Pakistani armed forces took delivery of their first operational Ghauri medium-range missile. The next day India carried out the first of six scheduled test flights of its comparable Agni missile, and the subcontinent was away to the races again. By January 19, George Fernandes was in Moscow signing a $2.9-billion agreement to lease four long-range TU-22 bombers and two Akula-class nuclear submarines from the Russians. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov even threw in an ageing aircraft carrier, the ‘Admiral Gorshkov’, for free, provided that India paid around $500 million to refit it. Most important of all, the two countries agreed to pump more money into a joint programme to develop a long-range, supersonic cruise missile, the BrahMos. Accusations flew back and forth between the two neighbours, who have fought three wars in the past half-century, and on January 22, India expelled four Pakistani diplomats from New Delhi. Pakistan did a tit-for-tat expulsion of four Indian diplomats the following day. Western news media virtually ignored the story in favour of an obsessive focus on Iraq, but this is about a potential nuclear war involving almost a quarter of the human race. To be fair, the Indians and Pakistanis are being no stupider about nuclear weapons than the Americans and Russians were 50 years ago, when they were at the same stage in the evolution of their potentially lethal nuclear relationship. On the other hand, they aren’t being any smarter about it either — and they need to be a lot smarter, for India and Pakistan are far likelier to topple over the edge into a nuclear war than the USA and the Soviet Union ever were. The Americans and the Russians had never fought a war against each other, they had no territorial disputes, and they didn't even have a common land border. Several times they came close to a nuclear war anyway — the Cuban missile crisis of 1962 was the most frightening — but there was never the depth of mutual fear and loathing that are built into the Indo-Pak relationship. So these are countries that have to be ultra-cautious about their nuclear strategies if they want to have a future. How careful do they need to be? Not talking loosely about exterminating the other side would certainly help, but it is basically a technological question. At the moment India and Pakistan, like America and Russia in the 1950s, are in "launch on warning" mode in their nuclear relationship. They have no choice at this point, but "launch on warning" is a suicide pact with a high probability of success. The problem in the early stages of any nuclear confrontation is that each side has relatively few nuclear weapons — an estimated 60-150 for India and 20-60 for Pakistan at the moment — and highly vulnerable delivery vehicles that could be destroyed on the ground in a surprise attack. So the temptation is always there for either side to try a surprise attack that would eliminate all the other side's nuclear capabilities. How does a prudent commander deal with this horrifying possibility that the other side might just do a nuclear ‘Pearl Harbour’ on him? By ordering his subordinates to launch their nuclear weapons at the other side at once if they spot an incoming attack, before any of the enemy's missiles land: "launch on warning". The only problem with this policy is that if your radar operators are wrong —and they sometimes are — then it's too late. You can't call your missiles back, and you've started a nuclear war by accident. It would have been far better for India and Pakistan never to have started down this road, but their best route to safety now lies in moving on as fast as possible to a "secure second-strike" capability. At least some of their nuclear weapons need to be invulnerable to a surprise attack, so that their commanders can get out of this insane "launch on warning" posture. The best way of doing that, as all the older nuclear-weapons powers have long recognised, is by sending some of your nukes out to sea in submarines. If the enemy can't find them, he can't destroy them. This is the real meaning of India's recent arms deal with Russia: the Akula-class submarines, married to the nuclear-capable BrahMos cruise missile, will allow India to end its "launch on warning" policy. The great irony, however, is that this will only make Pakistan safe from an Indian attack launched in error. India will not be safe until Pakistan can move away from "launch on warning" too. So here is a modest proposal. India should buy two more Akula submarines from the Russians, together with some state-of-the-art cruise missiles — and give them to Pakistan, no strings attached. If India won't do it, the rest of us should take up a collection and do it on India's behalf. I know it sounds crazy, but everything about nuclear "strategy" is crazy. The proposal, nevertheless, is serious. The writer is a
London-based commentator. |
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COMMENTARY Reason has at last triumphed in Sri Lanka. The Sinhalas have realised that they cannot "rule" over the Tamils. And the Tamils have realised that their further is linked with the Sinhalas, that Tamil aspirations can be met by self-rule and regional autonomy. "Eelam" is out, autonomy is in. But to understand this simple logic, they fought a destructive war for 18 years and sacrificed the lives of 70,000 people! It does not speak well of man's capacity to organise his life. Millions and millions have perished before in the pursuit of weird and utopian ideals. And more millions have perished by man'a blind faith in false gods and false men. The tragedy continues. The world has not learnt anything from its tragedies. There are still many ethnic groups hankering after independence. They follow the same futile paths without knowing that they lead nowhere but to sorrow and destruction. Such is the case with the Nagas who have fought for half a century. Such is the case with the Kashmiris. And others in the North-East of India. They go against the current of history. And what is the current of history? History is about two things today: one, it liberates the individual from the clutches of the collective and, two, it cases the burden of his economic life. While the political process is widening the scope of the individual's rights, the economic process is driving him to globalisation. And while globalisation enhances economic opportunities, it also takes away economic freedom as we understand it. It is true, it is all taking place in a haphazard way, because our scholars have failed to explain these processes. Hence the confusion and contradictions. The Hindu civilisation is founded on freedom of thought and the senses. Which is why it gave birth to the great diversity of thoughts and ways of life. The Reformation, the Age of Reason, liberated the Christian (only part of them) from the bondage. He was told that human reason was adequate to guide his destiny. This was the advice the Buddha gave his disciples two thousand years ago before the Reformation. He said: "Be ye a lamp unto yourself." It took 2000 years for the West to discover this truth. Alas, Islam is yet to permit free enquiry! The Muslim is still not free from the collective. And Islam has not given up the goal of collective salvation. We used to say there can be no political freedom without economic freedom. Yet, globalisation has taken away the economic freedom of people (of even nations) to work out their economic choice. Cooperation, swadeshi, self-reliance — all these concepts, designed to enhance the economic freedom of the individual, have been discarded. We no more talk of these ideals. Is there then no logic behind globalisation? There is. As long as production depends on the individual decisions of billions of men and women, there should be "free trade"; the market should be open and global. But globalisation, driven by a few hundred MNCs, like the caste system, is an aberration. And it is inexorable for the moment. With what result? Today few countries enjoy economic freedom. Decisions are made by a few mega corporations. and America has the final say in all economic matters. Loss of economic freedom has adversely affected political sovereignty of nations. Most of all of smaller nations. The smaller the nation, the greater its dependence. And greater the pressure from the dominant powers. Fragmentation is ruinous for other reasons, too. If America is the supreme power today, it is because it has the resources to pursue any objective — even to put a man on the moon. How many other nations can do that? This explains why nations are coming together in economic associations. It enhances their political sovereignty and makes it possible for them to pursue larger political, economic and social objectives. Ethnic assertion goes against these new devices. Together, the Sinhalas and Tamils can build a viable state. Alone, they will be at the doors of the rich with begging bowls. This being so, the future belongs to people who can work together with others, to people who like to cooperate — not to those who quarrel and kill each other. But this involves a willingness to submerge part of one's identity for a common cause. (Are the Nagas, Kashmiris and others listening?) India should, therefore, do everything to promote the process of reconciliation between Sinhalas and Tamils. This is by no means going to be easy after years of bitterness. India must undertake the social and economic reconstruction of the Tamil areas, which have been devastated by the long war. This is the least it must do to win back the trust and affections of the Tamils. And India must help the Sinhalas to fortify their new faith in a plural society. It is true the struggle for power may yet thwart the process of reconciliation. One must hope that better counsels will prevail. Sri Lanka needs huge funds. India has invested about $650 million in Sri Lanka. But this is a pittance. We must be more generous. Friendship with India, says Mrs Kumaratunga, "is a national and vital ingredient for our national wellbeing". Well said. India and Sri Lanka must set the
example for South Asia. To me it is more than the coming together of
two nations. India is no "Big Brother" as is made out by
some. Rama told Laxman in the Ramayana to learn statecraft from the
fallen Ravana. Such has been India's humility through the ages. |
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KASHMIR DIARY It is hardly surprising that the Harkat-ul Jihad-e-Islami should try to prevent Kashmir’s women from working. Several Pakistan-based organisations run madarsas but the Harkat groups, including Harkat-ul Mujahideen and Harkat-ul Ansar, have been spawned by the same set of madarsas that trained the Taliban in the early and mid-1990s. They have brought to Kashmir the same mindset from those conservative schools also imparted to the Taliban. In trying to replicate what they did in Afghanistan here, however, they are making a mistake. They believe, of course, that there is only one correct way for all Muslim societies to conduct themselves but different ethnic groups have social mores as diverse as their environments, histories and cultures. Former Kashmiri militants who did a stint in the Afghan "jihad" say they were amazed at the radically different mores they found there. Women in certain parts of that country were never seen and one could be killed for even glimpsing the women in a neighbour’s house by mistake. By contrast, Kashmiris do not by and large subscribe to such limiting notions of what makes for a good Islamic society. Kashmiris are apt to quote from the life of the Prophet to cite the high esteem and responsibilities he gave to women, even in his own family. Interaction between men and women is generally very open, not only within homes but outside too. Kashmiri women have since time immemorial shared with men the responsibilities not only of raising families but also of running the household and the economy. This is particularly true of agriculture, which remains even today the largest sector of the Kashmiri economy. When the paddy crop is sown in May and June, women can be seen in the verdant terraced fields across the valley, and again when the time for harvest comes round in September. Through the summer, they can be seen striding to those fields to make sure there is just enough water. Older Kashmiris talk of women working in the fields ever since they can remember and probably throughout history. In fact, they say, Pandit women remained sheltered at home more often than Muslim women, who participated in sowing and harvesting, standing shoulder to shoulder with men, and tended the cattle that many rural families kept. When I asked a rural Kashmiri whether older women used to wear burqas when he was a boy, he shook his head and said with a grin that nobody could afford one. It was not the custom either, he added. The local Pir — Kashmir being full of Sufi Pirs, moreso then than now — would keep a few burqas, which older women would sometimes borrow for a wedding or other such major occasion and then return. In fact, contrary to what one might imagine, Srinagar’s women, particularly in the old town areas, are sometimes bound by more conservative social mores than rural ones. In more uptown areas of the city, of course, women participate in all kinds of economic activity. A young woman, head sedately covered by a scarf, can sometimes be seen driving a car alone on Srinagar’s streets. Upmarket localities are dotted with beauty parlours and boutiques, which are not only patronised by women but also quite often owned by them. I was once driving with a friend when he stopped the car, saying he had to visit his sister. Up some stairs, I found that it was not her home but her workshop that we had come to. She owns a small boutique, employing tailors to make the dresses she designs. She was obviously proud of her work and showed me some of the dresses, which were modern without being provocative. There were tassles and shiny beads on some of them, but there are obviously buyers for such clothes, which are certainly not conservative. What I found remarkable was that she runs this business at the edge of the generally conservative old town. Whenever I have met her father, he has been dressed in traditional clothes, with an Islamic skull cap on his head, but he obviously finds nothing objectionable about this. Women can quite often be seen sitting together in cafes and restaurants in Srinagar, particularly in the upmarket Regal Chowk area. At the botanical gardens, couples can be seen sitting close together in almost every shady corner on just about any pleasant afternoon. To try and replicate what the Taliban
imposed in Afghanistan in this kind of society can only create a
reaction. Already, over the past 13 years, Kashmir’s women have
several times defied diktats that they must wear burqas, even after
acid was thrown at the faces of some. Under threat, women have donned
burqas for a few days or weeks but they threw them off again each
time. Now that their income and self-sufficiency is at stake, they
could react with even more resolve. |
Keeping self-respect high on his agenda
Barely two years back the BJP’s National Executive unanimously appointed Janaji the party President — first from the South — when the party’s image had touched rock bottom in the wake of Bangaru Laxman’s ignominious exit. While Bangaru was dubbed as “a failed Swayamsevak”, Krishnamurthy was hailed as life-time “Swayamsevak”. Nobody could ever accuse him of taking a bribe or asking for even a simple favour for himself or his family members. His main thrust throughout his long political career has been on integrity and honesty in both public and private life. The BJP’s leadership had realised, though belatedly, that “he is the right man for the right job in a right party” but the high sounding precept was not to last long. Almost a year before his tenure was to end, Janaji was virtually hounded out of the party’s top slot to make way for much junior and rather flamboyant Venkiah Naidu. The elderly leader was hurt, felt betrayed and wanted, at least, to complete his term but persuaded by the BJP’s leadership to join the Vajpayee government as Law Minister. Himself a lawyer by profession, Janaji abided by wishes of what he called “Atalji and Advaniji”. Janaji was BJP’s senior Vice-President about three years back and he was certain to succeed aging Kushabhau Thakre as the party Chief. Many congratulated him too and he acknowledged the felicitations with a nod mixed with optimistic caution — “let us see.”. His choice was considered eminently suited to head the ruling party at the Centre. The argument advanced was that he was responsible for building the party in Tamil Nadu right from the Jana Sangh days even in the teeth of opposition from the Dravidian parties, which were anti-RSS. Then something went wrong. A dark horse — Bangaru Laxman — emerged as the man for the party’s top slot. The entire rank and file of the BJP was taken by surprise and a dismayed leader could not holdback his shock. His impromptu comment was: “strange are ways of our senior leaders who can turn a dark horse into a bright star at the bat of an eyelid”. Great injustice was done to the leader from Tamil Nadu but he took humiliation in his stride. Janaji was, evidently, cut up at the way he was slighted down but he never showed any sign of rancour, at least, not openly and dutifully pledged his loyalty to the new party President, who appointed him the chief spokesman — a job which he did extremely well. Hailing from a leading family of lawyers from Madurai, Janaji joined the RSS in 1940 when he was in his teens, became a “Pracharak”, held the position from 1945 to 1951 and subsequently joined the Jana Sangh. He was in the forefront when Atal Behari Vajpayee gave a call, following the death of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, to all young men to give up their jobs and serve the party .A murderous attempt was made on his life in Coimbatore as far back as 1982 but no harm came to him. The only election Janaji contested was from the prestigious constituency of Madras (South) in 1998 but he lost to T.R. Balu of the DMK. In the past Madras (South) was represented by such eminent persons as C.N.Annadurai, the first DMK Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and former President R.Venkataraman. Krishnamurthy came to Delhi at the behest of L.K.Advani in 1993 and, since then, has been associated with the party’s think-tank, headed its intellectual, economic, defence and foreign affairs cells and, subsequently, elevated to the post of party’s Vice-President. Unlike other RSS “Pracharaks”, Janaji is married and has two sons and three daughters. As party’s Vice-President, he stayed at 9, Asoka Road, the bungalow adjacent to the BJP headquarters. The Asoka Road bungalow has come to be known as bachelor’s den where such veterans as J.P. Mathur and Pyarelal Khandelwal live. An exception, Janaji had occupied one room and drawing room and kitchen were common till he moved to a ministerial bungalow. His life style has always been simple in sharp contrast to ministers who live in style in their official residences. Janaji’s handicap is the lack of proficiency in Hindi.
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Dhumal makes history However, more interesting would be the implications of the dissolution on the decision of HVC leader Sukh Ram to fight the elections. Lawyers of Sukh Ram, who has moved court on his conviction in a corruption case, have told him that his case for fighting elections was strong as he was a sitting MLA. Now that he is a former MLA, will law be interpreted differently? Art of diplomacy Diplomacy is all about keeping one’s cool in the most trying and provocative situations. This is what India’s hapless Charge d’Affaires in Pakistan Sudhir Vyas did when his car was boxed in by ISI goons and not allowed to move in Islamabad a couple of weeks ago. Guess what Vyas did as he was seated with his wife in his boxed-in car? The cool diplomat told his wife to not to worry and listen to some vintage Hindi film songs. But the first song that his car music system played was absolutely out of tune with the reality: “Hawa mein udta jaye mera laal dupatta malmal ka”. Did you say: if music be the food of diplomacy, play on? All in a name Days before her exit from the Vajpayee Cabinet, Uma Bharti was presiding over a conference of Ministers of Mining from states earlier this week. She was taken aback when a Minister from a Congress- ruled state agreed with her on the need for strengthening local-self government institutions saying that empowering Panchayati Raj institutions was originally Gandhi’s idea. For a moment, she was taken aback trying to figure out which Gandhi he was referring to. When the Minister said that he was talking about the Father of the Nation, smile quickly returned to her face. But the smile was shortlived when the minister went on to say that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was instrumental in bringing back the focus of development on panchayats. Mahajan &
Antony Mahajan shocked the scribes and trigger-happy cameramen deployed outside the PM’s residence as he had discarded his official car with the flashing red flight and chosen to come in his personal car which he drove himself. Senior Congress leader from Kerala, A K Antony, had created a similar flutter when the then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao had asked him to resign from the Union Cabinet. Antony had then arrived in an auto-rickshaw. Belling the cat More than the fact that the younger leaders of the party, who earlier used to seek appointment to meet Govindacharya, are occupying important positions in the party headquarters. The apparent reason seems to be the fear among them that any acknowledgement of Govindacharya would mean
alienating Vajpayee. Govindacharya’s problems had begun after he allegedly dubbed Vajpayee as party’s “mukhota” (mask). The allegation stuck despite repeated denials. Now the million dollar question is who will bell the cat? Foes within Itching for more issues to throw against Raje, her detractors have now started questioning her style of functioning, especially her inaccessibility. As they say, the foe within is more formidable than the enemy outside. Watch this space to see how she tackles this new problem from within the party. Contributed by Prashant Sood, T.V.Lakshminarayan, Satish Misra, S.Satyanarayanan and Rajeev Sharma. |
Chandigarh scandal worries
Delhi-ites Delhi-ites are worried over Chandigarh’s so-called “bureaucratic scandal”. The very act seems to have become so very special in the Capital. However, if two consenting adults are making love how should it bother the rest? Adultery, they would scream. But then, who hasn't committed adultery? In fact, Khushwant Singh once commented that each one of us has committed adultery. Definitely in the mind, if not in bed. After all, you just can't leash that mind from wandering all over, with who so ever it wishes to get close to. Though I have never met Mukul Joshi, last year, I used to see him in the Lodi Gardens (he'd be either walking or jogging in the company of his spouse, Alka Pande). Each time I would see him his olive green tracksuit would catch attention — for no other reason except the fact that it seemed he had just that one pair, for day after day he wore the same — unless he had bought olive coloured ones by the dozen. Last week as I read details of the so-called scandal, my spontaneous reaction was how can a man change partners when he was unchanging in the colour of his joggers. I could write further but its best if I offload these lines of Khalil Gibran: “If any of you would bring to judgement the unfaithful wife/ Let him also weigh the heart of her husband in scales and measure his soul in measurements/ And let him who would lash the offender look unto the spirit of the offended / And if any one of you would punish in the name of righteousness and lay the axe unto the evil tree, let him see to its roots/ And verily he will find the roots of the good and the bad, the fruitful and the fruitless, all entwined together…What judgement pronounce you upon him who though honest in the flesh yet a thief in spirit…” Another aspect has been bothering me. Why do we have a separate code of conduct for the politician of the day? Why didn't anybody object to Kanshi Ram stuffing a cake piece into Ms Mayawati’s mouth in full media glare? Shouldn't we have burst into a chorus, why not stuffing of another kind — our Indian snacks such as samosas and pakoras? Why this gaudy public display of such affection and companionship? Kashmiri's woes New Delhi’s People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) contains reports of harassment of Kashmiris in Delhi which shoot up between January 6 and 30. According to the report, once the train from J&K enters Punjab, the Punjab Police personnel enter the coaches and search the passengers. Ditto for bus passengers. J&K buses are stopped on the highway and checked. Once the bus reaches ISBT near Tis Hazari, the police once again check everyone who disembarks. The report states that though there are no official figures on the number of Kashmiris who visit Delhi, most come to sell shawls or to look for employment or for better educational facilities. But the humiliation they face here could be best termed as shocking. In this report, they have been quoted as saying that they are treated as suspects, terrorists and as people who could be easily bullied, for it takes minutes for allegations to be thrown at them. Gitanjali I have received from the UBS publishers a copy of “Gitanjali” by Rabindranath Tagore. Tagore's poetry is what Paul Nash says: “One feels about them (the poems) that they are the thoughts that come to our minds in moments of deep feeling, written down for us in the simplest way...” And this edition of “Gitanjali” has also incorporated the original Bengali lyrics in facsimile and the effect is so complete, so fulfilling...You will sense this the minute you will hold the book and move beyond the preface.
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Hans
Blix: another avtar With the US President's threat of war on Iraq, Dr Hans Blix is in world focus. It is on his “report” that President Bush bases his case of war being inevitable. What is the credibility of Dr Blix? Years ago, in the fall of 1997, I had the rare opportunity of an encounter with Dr Hans Blix, the much sought after UN Armaments Inspector. But that was another avtar of Blix, then on a visit to India. He was on quite a different mission to this country — as the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The encounter with Dr Blix took place in the Doordarshan lounge, while warming up for a TV interview. It was all about IAEA, India and the global nuclear scenario — a triangular discussion with the IAEA chief and Dr Chidambaram, Chairman of India's Atomic Energy Commission (now the PM's Chief Scientific Advisor). My role was that of a moderator. Many a revelation flowed from the warming up session for which I was hardly prepared. Preparatory to the TV interview, I put a query to Dr Blix “Can you tell us about IAEA’s...?” Pat came an interjection: “I am not a scientist”. That the head of the UN's IAEA was not a scientist was hard to believe. “But aren't you Dr Blix”, I asked. “I am a doctor of law, not of science”, he answered. My mood soured, but the result was not bad. On IAEA, I bluntly told him that the IAEA acted more as a policeman than a promoter of atomic energy development.
“To maintain vigilance over proliferation activity is an important part of IAEA's mandate”, he said. “The IAEA then, is essentially a watchdog, so far as developing countries are concerned”, I asked. Dr Blix took it in good humour. “We only bark, but do not bite,” he laughed. Evidently the biting was left to others. From the post of IAEA Director-General to that of the UN's Chief Armaments Inspector is quite a long jump that Dr Hans Blix has performed. No doubt, Uncle Sam thoughtfully facilitated this very long leap. I recollect Blix’s visit to India was just a few months prior to the Indian nuclear tests at Pokhran on May 11 and 13, 1996. Clearly, he got no scent of the preparations for the tests which undoubtedly were on when he inspected the Indian atomic projects and research institutions such as the BARC where indeed the hub of Indian nuclear capability lies. His impressions on this count were in all probability quite satisfactory. So when Dr Hans Blix left, he was brimming and all praise for India's strides in the nuclear field. In respect to nuclear capability, we place India among the developed countries, not as a Third World nation”, he remarked. |
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It is difficult to find a person in the weird world of politics who believes in righteousness and adheres to values, cares less for plum ministerial berths and keeps his self-respect high on personal agenda. The breed of leaders with high moral standard has become rare and, those who still survive, prove misfit in the fast degenerating realm of politics. Dropped in last week’s Union Cabinet reshuffle, Law Minister Jana Krishnamurthy, is among the rare politicians for whom dignity is more important than a ministerial berth. When he was offered a gubernatorial post as a consolation for sacrificing his berth in the Cabinet, he firmly declined the offer. His cryptic comment was: “I will prefer to retire to my home in Chennai rather than becoming a Governor”. The Prime Minister then offered him an insignificant portfolio — Union Ministry of Culture — but Janaji preferred to sent in his resignation than be slighted in this manner. He had always upheld the dignity of the high office he held. In the past also top policy-making leaders of the BJP had been unfair to the upright leader from Tamil Nadu.
The Prem Kumar Dhumal government in Himachal Pradesh created history of sorts by holding a meeting of its Cabinet in New Delhi. The meeting, convened to recommend dissolution of the State Assembly, came after the state government realised that the last assembly session had been convened on September 2 and a “constitutional crisis” would have resulted due to the six-month gap from the last session. Since it was imprudent to call a special assembly session due to start of election process in the state, the government thought it best to hold a cabinet meeting in the capital where the party ministers were assembled regarding tickets for the coming elections.
Pramod Mahajan rekindled the decade-old memories of another out-of-favour Union Minister on January 29 when he went to the Prime Minister’s House to submit his resignation to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. 
Things have completely changed for former BJP General Secretary K.N.Govindacharya after two-year-long sabbatical. Though the former party ideologue still commands substantial following at the grassroots level, hardly anyone in the top echelons of the party is willing to speak in favour of his recall into the party. 
Having ensured her exit from Vajpayee’s Council of Ministers, Vasundhara Raje-baiters are in no mood to let her go off the hook. Senior BJP leaders from Rajasthan, who had been voicing their opposition to holding of dual post by Vasundhara Raje, are gleeful now that Vajpayee has dropped her from the government and asked her to concentrate fully in Rajasthan as State BJP Chief.