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Sunday,
March 23, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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GUEST COLUMN ON RECORD A VIEWPOINT |
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IN MEMORIAM
Hunting the Guru
Full marks to judiciary
Daunting task for Sahay
Delhi abuzz with Saddam
talk
UN has become an
irrelevant body
Dev Anand: the evergreen
entertainer
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GUEST COLUMN
The Charter of United Nations (UN) prohibits any kind of use of force against another member or non-member of the UN. One of the important principles of the UN is the Principle of Non-Intervention. This principle is also a part of customary international law and is founded upon the concept of respect for territorial sovereignty of states. However, what is intervention under international law? International jurists have defined intervention as “dictatorial interference by a state in the affairs of another state for the purpose of maintaining or altering the actual condition of a thing”. This also includes in its ambit the threat or use of force by one state against another, and it is very explicit in the provisions of the UN Charter. Article 2 (4) states: “All members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state or in any other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations”. Article 1 of the UN Charter could be mentioned here for referring to the main purposes of the UN,
i.e. to maintain international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among the nations, etc. Nowhere does the Charter legalise the use of force but for Article 42 and 51. There are only two grounds under the UN Charter that legalise use of force. Of course under those grounds the force can be used under certain conditions. The first ground for the use of force is individual or collective self-defence under Art.51. Article 51 provides that nothing in the UN Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence, if an armed attack occurs against a member of the UN, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. Therefore, the conditions necessary for the use of force even under Article 51 is that the armed attack has already occurred against the member of the UN. It is very explicit from the provision of the Charter that force cannot be used in anticipation of the armed attack. Relating this particular provision to the present situation in Iraq, the USA cannot justify its military intervention in Iraq since armed attack has not occurred against the USA or against its allies or any other member state wherein the USA can justify its actions under collective self-defence. The present situation where Iraq is in possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), as alleged by the USA, can be taken to be a threat to international peace and security or a situation where there is an anticipation of an armed attack, but this anticipation will not make use of force by the USA or the UK legal under Article 51, which clearly provides that the armed attack has to occur. The Charter does not legalise the use of force in self-defence on grounds where there is only a threat of the use of force and no attack has taken place. The second legal ground for the use of force under the UN Charter is, when the use of force is authorised by the Security Council under the provisions of Chapter VII (Article 42). Article 42 provides that in case the Security Council considers that the economic measures against the state which are posing a threat to international peace and security are inadequate or have proved to be inadequate, then the Security Council may take such action by air, sea or land forces as may be necessary for maintaining international peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations, blockade and other operations by air, sea or land force of members of the UN. These are the only two grounds of use of force under the UN Charter. A look at Article 42 suggests that under this provision the Security Council is the sole body, which can authorise use of force if there is a threat to international peace and security. This simply means that the Security Council may authorise the use of force in anticipation of the act of aggression. And relating this provision to the present situation in Iraq, in case the Security Council would have authorised the US attacks on the grounds that the possession of WMD by Iraq means a threat to international peace and security, then the USA’s attacks would have definitely been legal. However, since the Security Council has not authorised the attacks or military intervention by the USA, the action taken by the USA against Iraq is illegal and is considered to be an act of aggression or a crime against peace under international law. It is under UN Security Council Resolution 1441 that the USA is trying to justify its attack. The Security Council, under this Resolution, authorises the use of force by the USA against Iraq. This Resolution, which was unanimously adopted in November, 2002, gave a final opportunity to Iraq to comply with its disarmament obligations. It establishes an inspection regime for Iraq, to be carried by UNMOVIC (United Nations Monitoring Verification and Inspection Commission) and IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency). The Resolution states that Iraq remains in material breach of the Security Council resolutions relating to Kuwait’s invasion by Iraq in 1990 and requires Baghdad to give unrestricted entry to UNMOVIC and IAEA teams for inspection of WMD and requires Baghdad to make full disclosure of all the weapons-chemical, biological, nuclear and other ballistic missiles. The Resolution further warns Iraq that it will face “serious consequences” if it continues to violate its obligations as mentioned in it; the obligations of disarmament. Since it was unanimously adopted by the 15 members of the Security Council, the USA has construed that because Iraq has not complied with the international obligations, it now has to face serious consequences including the use of force, which the Security Council has still not authorised. Since Iraq has not complied with the obligations of disarmament, as alleged by the USA, the Security Council was to pass another resolution to define what kind of serious consequences it wants to impose or use. However, in the absence of the second Security Council resolution, the serious consequences that ensue from violation of international obligations by Iraq, cannot be interpreted as using force against Iraq. And without the second resolution or without the Security Council authorisation, the US military attacks on Iraq which are against the wishes of the UN, might as well sound the death-knell of the UN. In any case, that cannot be the intention of the Security Council because its main aim is to ensure international peace and security, and more important, war or using force against Iraq will disturb international peace and security. It will cause mass destruction in Iraq, many casualties will take place, and many innocent civilians will be killed in the attack, which will be against the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Protocol 1 of 1977 to the Geneva Conventions. These provide that the use of force should be proportionate and only that much force should be used which is necessary. The question here is, whether the USA and the UK can justify their attacks first as legal under the UN Charter and then, whether they will be proportionate to the destruction and mass killings that they will cause. —
The writer is Lecturer in Law, Army Institute of Law, Patiala. A Fellow of Cambridge Commonwealth, she specialises in international law. |
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ON RECORD Udit Raj, National Chairman of the All-India Confederation of SC and ST Organisations, is one of them. He convinces Dalits to convert to Buddhism. “The idea is to empower them at the mental level”, says Udit Raj who did his postgraduation in Political Science from Jawharlal Nehru University. He spoke to The Tribune on a number of issues. Excerpts:
Q: Where does Dalit politics stand in the country today? A: Dalit politics in India is an emerging phenomenon and this has become more discernible during the last decade or so.
Q: What is main difference between the approach to Dalit politics by the two main political parties in India — the Congress and the BJP? A: There is a difference. The BJP is trying to reinforce the caste syndrome through the concept of cultural nationalism and ultimately the Dalits will have to pay a very heavy price for it. I will explain how. The Dalits will be severely affected through privatisation and disinvestment as it would render the policy of job reservation for Dalits redundant. I will give you an example. Quite often I am asked by foreign journalists whether there are any Dalit journalists. And very regretfully I have to tell them that I cannot find any. The position in trade and industry is similar with not a single national level Dalit industrialist yet to emerge. Similarly, it is difficult to find senior advocates belonging to the Dalit community in the Supreme Court. So, I feel without reservation it is difficult to find any major representation of the Dalit community in the media, the judiciary, trade and industry. Privatisation in the name of globalisation and liberalisation is hitting the Dalits hard. Globalisation has so far not paid any dividends to this country. I cannot really see that the fruits of liberalisation will percolate down to the masses. As far as the Congress is concerned on the issue of privatisation, there is no difference with the BJP. They more or less pursue the same policy. But ideologically they are a lesser evil. They are not directly reinforcing the caste syndrome. In this respect they are different. But in respect of globalisation, there is no difference between the BJP and the Congress. In fact, Punjab Chief Minister
Capt. Amarinder Singh, for instance, is ahead of the BJP in terms of privatising state public sector undertakings. He is even privatising the profit making concerns. I do not know where is the Congress going now. During the Gujarat elections, Mrs Sonia Gandhi addressed some rallies. I am pained to see that she did not utter a single word for the Dalits. This is in contrast to Indira Gandhi who used to mention about the Dalits whenever she addressed a rally.
Q: In recent years Dalit politics seems to have been monopolised by the BSP. Their leaders Kanshi Ram and Mayawati are today hand in glove with the BJP. In your assessment, what is the contribution of people like Kanshi Ram in Dalit politics? A: Dalit politics is an emerging phenomenon. I see the BSP phenomenon shrinking fast. It is only in one state (Uttar Pradesh) that the BSP has made inroads and come to power. In fact in many states, Dalit politics has not yet come up. There is no question of being monopolised. By going with the BJP, the BSP is not speaking anything against privatisation or anything about Dalit rights. There may be some political compulsion. Not talking about Dalit rights is more dangerous.
Q: How do you think Dalits can be brought to the mainstream? Privatisation, as you said, is going to do away with the job reservation policy which is critical for the upliftment of the Dalits. Reservation in jobs is different from reservation in educational institutions. How would you reconcile the two concepts in the emerging scenario? A: Reservation is not going to solve all the problems of this country. It is not a panacea. What I would suggest instead is compulsory and equal education for all. This will imply that what the Prime Minister’s son will study, the poor children will get equal academic training. If that happens, we are ready to compromise and bargain on the reservation issue. Three thousand years of caste system can be destroyed through this methodology and no other method. It will solve the problem of caste system and thereby address the issue of population and law and order. In the current situation, can one imagine a non-Sikh Chief Minister of Punjab or for that matter a non-Jat leader becoming the Chief Minister of Haryana. Mr
L.K. Advani contests election from Gandhinagar where Sindhis dominate. So far I have not seen any election being fought on basic issues such as education, poverty and illiteracy.
Q: You had recently undertaken a drive to convert Dalits to Buddhism. How do you think it will solve the problem of caste-based discrimination in the country? A: That is one of the ways out. Dalits are also responsible for their own problems. They started believing that what they are is because of their actions in their past life. People leave to unnatural powers to punish the guilty in this system. That is where Buddhism helps. It liberates them mentally. The idea is to empower them at the mental level. Not that it will take care of everything. But in due course of time, they will emerge mentally stronger. |
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A VIEWPOINT There is need for a reappraisal of the functions and responsibilities of individual diplomats serving India abroad. Here are some suggestions for the consideration of External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha. The Ambassador should be directly responsible to the External Affairs Minister. Only three or four officials, specialising in politics, economics, intelligence, security and defence should assist him. He should refine and sieve the views given to him. Only the Ambassador or head of the mission and two of his subordinates should enjoy diplomatic status. Other officials should be given official passports. In the diplomatic hierarchy, the Minister or Deputy Chief of the Mission should be responsible for Consular services — issue of visas to foreigners, immigration and related problems. A register, updated periodically, should be maintained by the Deputy Chief of the Mission. One or two Indians should be posted to assist him in the mission. While the Deputy Chief should have diplomatic status, his assistants should be given official passports. At the other level, the diplomat, either a Counsellor or First Secretary, should be responsible for Information & Press Relations, Cultural Affairs, Library and Indian books, etc. One person could assist him. A housekeeping section, manned by an Indian with official passport, should deal with houses given to India-based personnel. For him, accounting and auditing assignments are needed on which he should report to South Block at appropriate levels. If these suggestions are concretised, the Indian missions can become more functional-oriented centres. Till recently in most countries Indian diplomats avoided resident Indians. This is wrong because during the last few years long-term visas for periods up to 20 years are being issued to India-born foreigners. During the brief tenure of this writer in a European country, several Ambassadors asserted that they had no responsibility for the welfare of Indians or India-born foreign citizens. When the writer was the Charged’ Affaires in the Indian Embassy in Dublin, Ireland, only Mr George Fernandes welcomed a meeting with India-born or Indian citizens although at that time he was a Minister in the Morarji Desai Government. A review is also needed for the two-way despatch and receipt of diplomatic bags on weekly or biweekly basis between Indian missions and South Block. It is known that the diplomatic bags are occasionally
misused. A senior diplomat in 1977 had obtained his Wissen revolver from New Delhi through the diplomatic bag which was impermissible in the country to which he was accredited, and which overlooked this infringement of its law. Further, diplomatic bags in the missions and South Block are closed by protocol officials who may be unaware of the communications or goods received or sent. Non-diplomatic Indian officials also not infrequently send complaints against diplomatic colleagues to vitiate relations within the missions or between the missions and Foreign Office in Delhi. A pouch could also be sent by heads of missions to the Foreign Office in Delhi, to be opened by Heads of Desks\ Foreign Secretary. For coded messages are decoded by designated officials and can be misplaced. It is good that the key for decoding messages is revamped periodically. Similarly, the two-way exchange of diplomatic bags might also be re-examined by diplomats or security officers. There is need for conservation of foreign exchange. Thus, Indian missions should give practical turn to diplomatic receptions, avoiding cocktail circuits so popular to diplomats in developing countries. —
The writer is former Chief Editor of Indian and Foreign Review, New Delhi. |
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IN MEMORIAM As Acharya Vinoba Bhave commenced padayatra on a “change of heart” mission among the Chambal bandits in 1960, he wanted the outlaws to surrender. The police was baffled for that was not the way to obtain surrender from hardened criminals. Nor would the baghis (as the dacoits styled themselves) believe that the Baba could get them a reprieve. The success of the mission, which aroused nationwide attention, rested on the Government’s assurance for a general amnesty to the outlaws. The amnesty move was initiated by President Rajendra Prasad’s ADC, Major-General Yadunath Singh. He travelled down to Bhind in his bid to get a pardon for Tehsildar Singh, the absconding son of dreaded dacoit leader Mansingh, just then gunned down in an encounter with Madhya Pradesh police. K.F. Rustomji was the Inspector-General of Police then. His forces were in full cry in the Chambal valley, shouting defiantly, “Nothing doing”. His firm stand showed that he was not one of those police officers who would oblige political bosses. On his desk at the peak of anti-dacoity operations, he was maintaining a regular register of dacoits of the Chambal ravine. Remarkably, each line on its pages carried the name of a notorious outlaw in the ravines. Rustomji would strike out with his red pencil the name of the dacoit just shot dead. It was a very methodical approach. Known for his no-nonsense approach to administrative matters, the highly suave police officer from the MP cadre, rose to become the Presonal Security Officer of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Another high water mark of his official career was the pioneering work he did as founder of the Border Security Force in the mid-sixties. While looking for a suitable officer, Union Home Minister Gulzarilal Nanda’s eyes settled on Rustomji as he found in this highly acclaimed supercop an officer who also enjoyed the confidence of Pandit Nehru. On being relieved from the BSF, he was given a secretary-rank post in the Home Ministry, to enable the administration avail itself of his counsels on national security. On retirement, he settled down in Mumbai where he passed away a few weeks back. Prior to his selection for the Indian Police, he was a professor in Science College, Nagpur. In his regular contributions to The Tribune, he was particularly articulate on secularism, communal harmony, police reforms and media freedom. |
Hunting the Guru
The phenomenon of a human incarnation of god-on-earth is almost entirely an oriental concept largely Hindu and Sufi. Since Islam condemns assumption of divinity by a mortal as heresy punishable with death, Sufi Saints restricted their claims to be being counsellors and guides. Hindu Gurus placed no such restrictions on themselves and unabashedly allowed themselves to be worshipped as Avatars, Bhagwans, Acharyas and Swamis. The guru-shishya relationship was closer than the father-son relationship. Without a guru to show the way a person could not achieve moksha, or salvation. However, a disciple must pledge all he has — body, soul and worldly wealth (tan, man, dhan) to his chosen guru before he receives diksha (sacred mantra) and is accepted. Why do so many people look for Guru? What questions do they seek answers to which they cannot find in their scriptures or other books of wisdom? Do they in fact get satisfactory answers and live in peace with themselves ever after? Every thinking person wants to find out answers to three questions: Wherefrom? Why? Whence after death? Some try to find answers in their own and admit failure. Alama Iqbal put it neatly in a couplet: Dhoondta phirta hoon, ai Iqbal, apney aap ko Goya aap hee musafir, aap hee manzil hoon main O Iqbal you go hither and thither looking for yourself As if you were the traveller as well as his destination. Javed Akhtar put the futility of the search more succinctly: Hum nay jaa kay deykha hai rah guzar say aagey bhee Raah guzar hee raah rahguzar hai raahguzar say aagey bhee I have gone beyond the beaten path to see It is one beaten path after another even beyond all trodden paths. However, there are many more who instead of wrestling with these problems themselves seek guru’s for the right answers. Amongst them is “film-maker Rajiv Mehrotra. In his latest book The Mind of the Guru: Conversations with Spiritual Masters (Penguin Viking) he has recorded interviews with living savants, men and women. Quite a few of them would deny they are gurus in the accepted meaning of the word: Swami Agnivesh, Baba Amte, David Frawley, B.K.S. Iyengar (Yoga) teacher), the Aga Khan, Dr Karan Singh, Bishop Desmond Tutu. When do they qualify but have nothing new to say for the simple reason there is nothing new to say. They play round with words and phrases which have become stock-in-trade of spiritual masters: soul, truth is within you, god is love, truth is god, cosmic forces and different techniques of meditation. However, when any one like Mehrotra is determined to find answers when there are none he will do so. in the opening paragraph of his introduction he writes: “For long I yearned for an all-knowing, enlightened and true spiritual master who would, with his touch, with the wave of the proverbial magical wand or at least a teaching or a technique, transmit insights, understanding and even powers that would enable me to transcend the deep, abiding incompleteness I felt in relating to myself and my world. If only, if only I could find someone to surrender to, whose spiritual embrace would yield the ultimate truths and realisations. What must it have been like for those who were touched by the Buddha, Christ, or Sri Ramakrishna. And so I waited, struggling with an impatient patience for my karma to ripen, for the time to be right, for me to be ready, for my guru and me to find each other. There were many dark nights of the soul, of an unquenched yearning for someone who would lead me out of the abyss.” It is somewhat surprising that the author did not interview gurus like Sai Baba, heads of the Radha Soamis, Brahma Kumaris, Namdharis and Nirankaris who have huge followers. He might also have taken note of the skeptics’ point of view on the subject. Despite these minor shortcomings the interviews make interesting reading and the sketches by Sujata Bansal do more justice to the gurus interviewed than any photographs would have done.
Monsoon and Literature For good reasons monsoon rouses more emotions in minds of Indians than any other natural phenomenon. In all our languages more evocative poetry has been written on it: from Kalidas to Rabindranath Tagore than on spring, autumn or winter. For some reason I have not been able to discover Urdu which is so rich in describing emotions of love and longing is singularly poor in describing the onset of the rainy season. I suspect it is due to the influence of Persian and Arabic: Monsoon meant little to Iranians or Arabs. For the rest it could be summed up in the lines of an old film song: Kaalee ghataa chaaee hai/Jiya mora lehraa hai — as dark clouds cover the sky my heart goes into an ecstasy of dance. The heavenly fragrance of the perched earth when the first drops of rain fall on it, the sudden renewal of life: fresh grass, moths, bugs, ants, fire-flies, beetles erupt as if from nothing. Its time for meeting of lovers, nights spent in making love to the music of rain pouring over their roofs. Another thing which strikes me as odd is in depicting monsoons, photographers do a better job than painters. Photographers capture rain-soaked cities and the countryside more vividly than anyone do on canvass. So I welcomed the appearance of the little booklet Monsoon by the poet Sundeep Sen and photographer Mahmud (ISBN). Sundeep Sen is Indian Bengali; Mahmud a Bangladeshi. Sundeep assures us that the monsoon in the two Bengals are different from anywhere else. As far as I can make out it is heavier and more prolonged than in the rest of India. He writes: “Rain has sparked so many imaginations all over the world. But there is nothing like the rain in the two Bengals — West Bengal in India and Bangladesh. Rain in its overbeating gait, its preparation, its stature, its brooding quality, and its romantic heavy-lidded cloud structure. Ordinarily one would call these rain clouds “cumulonimbus” but that name or model does not in any way do them justice. Here the clouds assume a deep grey-black quality, and just prior to a heavy downpour it is almost pitch-dark. The leaves rustle around in little circular flurries, there is a pregnant heaviness in the air, the smell of wet clay and the hustling sounds of birds taking shelter permeate the sky. Barsha, as the monsoon rains are locally known, has a truly unmatchable resonance — elegant, weighty, ponderous, raw, but always striking and graceful.” He also assures us that during the rains Bengali girls become more desirable and kissable. I take his word for it and will schedule my next visit to Kolkata sometime after the month of saavan. At times Sundeep gets so emotionally overcharged that all he can say on paper is to repeat the word rain spread over two pages a few hundred times. I can understand his frustration.
Sasuraal Santa: “Yaar Banta, when you went to your inlaws’ on your marriage day, you looked very happy and confident but now when you go, you look very scared. What is the matter? Banta: “On my marriage day there were 100 people with me but now I have to go alone. That is why I am nervous.” Banta’s wife was very serious. The doctor told Banta: “..... Mr Singh your wife will not survive more than 20 days.” Banta said: “Don’t worry when I have faced her for 20 years, I can face her 20 days more.” —
Contributed by J.P. Singh Kaka, Bhopal |
Full marks to judiciary
I was hopefully waiting that such a day would come when we could have a right to know who our political masters are? What is their past track record? How much are they educated? What is their source of livelihood? Certainly, not for reasons of intrusion into their personal lives but to know the kind of person/s we were going to vote for and elect, to govern the country, and be entrusted with its present and the future. Every time I had any role in the selection of the rank and file I wondered how even a minor error in declaration by the candidate disqualified her/him. And involvement in a law violation even minor was a ground for selecting another who had none of that kind. The decision has saved us of an embarrassment and a guilt conscience, when we were often confronted with a question, why us alone? What about them? But one clear effect I do see from this judgement is that now the onus shall be even more on the electorate who knowingly will be electing clean/honest or dubious individuals The Opposition too could effectively use the opportunity, provided their candidate is not in the same boat. And if that happens it shall be tragic for that constituency and the country. It’s then that the absence of a clear right to a "rejection vote" or a right to say, "none of the above" would be felt. The only way a voter could lodge a symbolic protest is by making the ballot paper invalid. But that invalid vote will not be counted as a resentment of a situation where he/she has been given no choice. Hence it may not serve the purpose or drive home the message for which it is meant. However, imagine if this "right to reject" also comes one day. We may well have a situation where robinhoods (rhs) are wholesale voted in while independents with no police records get a rejection vote in certain constituencies controlled by the rhs historically. It could also work conversely. But my gut feeling is that in the coming years this judicial verdict will cleanse the political profile of the world’s largest democracy. More and more of people with a missionary zeal may enter the political scene to contribute to nation building and why not, they may well be in demand. It is now to be seen what kind of public relations campaigns are launched or advertisements and posters appear? The coming days belong to the ordinary voter who will certainly be the king or the Queen maker. How many of the electorate really knows this? Is someone going to enmasse alert them on this? Perhaps this is a very good and appropriate time for many a NGO who I recall were active in this crusade in the last electoral run up. It is time and opportunity for them to go back to the starting points and put on their runners once again and get set. The trophies have to go only to the really deserving. Now the rules are public knowledge.
We need to be aware and spread awareness. This is what a country
demands of its citizens. Let us do it out of love and respect for it.
It's our mother.
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Daunting task for Sahay
Recently, US intelligence agencies depended on RAW for providing information regarding activities of Al-Qaeda and Taliban targets. Maps and photographs of terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan were given to US officials. RAW was created in 1968 to provide hardcore external intelligence and it depended on an assortment of officials from IAS, IPS and Indian Information Service. Armed force officers too helped RAW. Considering the importance of external intelligence, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi raised an exclusive cadre for the organisation called the Research and Analysis Service. Officers with special aptitude for highly sophisticated intelligence were recruited for RAW but those belonging to IAS and IPS continued to get plum postings (on deputation) in the set up. Reports suggest that the outgoing Chief, Vikram Sood, originally belongs to Indian Postal Service but he made a mark in RAW. RAW directly works under the Prime Minister, its operations are kept secret and it has large, unaccounted funds at its disposal. Even Parliament is not supposed to know about its activities and the manner in which the funds are spend. Happily, the new RAW Chief C D Sahay, belongs to RAW. He has been closely associated with gathering of highly sensitive intelligence. He has put in 28 years of experience as an intelligence officer. Known to be the most knowledgeable analyst of events in Kashmir, Pakistan and international terrorism, Sahay was closely involved in sorting out many complex situations including Kandahar hijacking. Besides postings in neighbouring countries, his last overseas assignment was London. He was Special Secretary (RAW) in the Cabinet Secretariat before his elevation to the top slot. Sahay, in fact, supersedes the senior
most officer in RAW, B.S. Bedi. An army officer, Bedi joined the RAW
in early 1970s but he has only seven months to go for superannuation.
This was the reason why the Prime Minister’s Office choose Sahay for
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Delhi abuzz with Saddam talk
The topic of discussion at these dos is the impact of America’s actions on multilateralism and its continuing efficacy coupled with Washington’s first objective of decapitating Saddam Hussein and his cronies in Baghdad. Some have no doubt that the USA is bent upon redrawing the contours of West Asia. Mohsina effect It was victory in the Azamgarh Lok Sabha by-election during the Janata Party rule in the late seventies which put the Congress on the winning course for the general elections in 1980. It is victory in Himachal Pradesh elections that the Congress hopes will set the stage for its return to power in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. Both the Azamgarh victory and the results of Himachal Pradesh elections have a common link — Mohsina Kidwai. The Congress leader was the party’s candidate in Azamgarh and she is presently the general secretary in charge of Himachal Pradesh where the party has registered an emphatic victory. Congressmen direly needed a victory in Himachal Pradesh to contain a resurgent BJP before the coming electoral battles. Party observers say that Mohsina Kidwai is regarded "lucky" for the Congress especially by the leaders of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. Sonia Gandhi must be hoping that Himachal Pradesh does for her what Azamgarh did for Indira Gandhi. New traditions
Jammu and Kashmir is seen by many as a test case of secularism in India and the leaders from the state are setting new traditions. First it was Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP leader Mufti Mohammad Sayeed who organised "Shivaratri Milan" in the capital. Senior Congress leader and state PCC chief Ghulam Nabi Azad has followed it with "Holi Milan". Held regularly, the "milans" promise to become a conspicuous part of the political itinerary like the Iftars. ...& now 5 years These days the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is claiming completion of five years by the Vajpayee government. The exercise is being repeated as earlier they were celebrating three years of the NDA government. A little puzzled and perplexed, it is difficult to comprehend how the same dispensation can celebrate completion of three years and five years in the span of a few months. But a little bird tells us that since the ruling party is contemplating going in for snap polls, it became necessary to torpedo the Congress claim of stability. So, the spin doctors were asked to hype up the claim of five years by adding two years of a defeated government to the period of three years. The Vajpayee government was defeated in 1999 by a solitary vote on the floor of the Lok Sabha after which it had assumed the role of being a caretaker regime. Mahajan's mobile
Honour for Sikh Baljit Chadha, an Indo-Canadian businessman has been appointed to an exclusive body that oversees the functioning of Canadian intelligence. Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien recently named the Montreal-based Chadha as a member of the Canadian Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC). The appointment is deemed as one of the most prestigious in Canada as members are privy to all security matters that affect the country. The Committee oversees the functioning of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) that is akin to the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in this country. Chadha is founder of the Canadian Sikh Council and International Punjabi Society for Central Canada. He has also been named to the Queen’s Privy Council of Canada, the first non-politician of South Asian origin to enter it. Established in 1984, the SIRC comprises three to five members of the Queen’s Privy Council and is responsible for ensuring that the CSIS uses its powers legally and appropriately. — Contributed by Prashant Sood, Satish
Misra and T.V.Lakshminarayan.
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UN has become an irrelevant body Though several UN days stand lined up — beginning March 21 (Elimination of Racial Discrimination), March 22 (World Day for Water), March 23 (World Meteorological Day), April 7 (World Health Day), April 23 (World Book and Copyright Day), now there’s simply no hope left in the UN. The way the USA was allowed to unleash the war on Iraq cannot be overlooked. The UN comes across as a pathetically fragile body, ought to retire into oblivion. The news of the war on Iraq has brought about depression. I must say that one of my warmest friendships have been with the Iraqis posted here. Outgoing Iraqi Ambassador to India Saleh Mukhtar (last week this editor- turned-diplomat got posted to Vietnam) was not just well versed in world politics, but was a fiction writer too and spoke at length on literary subjects. Despite the tarnished image projected by the USA of the Arabs, I have found them to be extremely warm and forthcoming. Little surprising that when I praised the sprawling mansion in which the Iraqi envoy to India lives, he said that the property was gifted in the 50s by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to the first Iraqi Ambassador to India. Of course, those were the days of our close proximity with the leaders of the Arab world. And its within in this last decade that I’m a witness to the rather apparent decline of not just Indo-Arab ties (what with an obvious and official tilt towards Israel and the not so clear a policy towards the USA) but also on their embassy front. In the early 90s, the Iraqi embassy in New Delhi’s Jor Bagh area was alive with diplomats and visitors and visa seekers. Steadily, the numbers went down and today there are only two Iraqi diplomats manning the embassy (last year it shifted to Vasant Vihar). And the day the war broke out, I’d telephoned Iraqi Charge D’Affaires Mohsin Hadi. I was in for a shock. He too has got posted out. I kept thinking of him, his wife and son who was studying at the Dayal Singh College. Talking of diplomats’ children, Saleh Mukhtar’s young son had to undergo mouth surgery without anaesthesia in a Baghdad hospital. This happened a couple of years back. The situation would have definitely worsened today because of the sanctions on Baghdad hospitals. No supply of life-saving medicines. Not even the basics. And now, of course, the steady destruction of life. Tight Security Security in the entire Chanakyapuri area has been tightened. Last night I was there to attend the wedding reception of socialite BhaiChand Patel’s daughter (at Swedish Ambassador to India’s residence). It was an absolutely tight affair
with many of the connecting roads blocked by the security. Yes, at the
reception many Europeon diplomats were spotted, but marked by their
absence were Arab and African diplomats. |
Dev Anand: the evergreen
entertainer
Excerpts: Q: How do you manage to get so excited about all your films? A: If you love your work the way I do and especially if it’s creative work waiting to be judged by the world, then I think the process is astonishingly invigorating. I pick up a thought and start building on it. It could be from an encounter on a street, a book, or watching the news...there’s so much of real life drama to be inspired from. Q: Do you have a problem in getting the right cast and crew for your projects? A: I work with likeminded people. They’re on their toes all the time. I work at a very fast pace, and they’re with me all the way. My latest film "Love At Times Square" was an Indian love story set in the USA. You know Times Square in New York is a mind-blowing sight. I went twice to capture it on film. That’s where the girl and boy meet. Q: You play a father in "Love At Times Square"? A: I do. But I am not a run-of-the-mill father. I share a beautiful relationship with my screen-daughter. We needed a sensitive actor for the role. And since I had written the story myself I knew how to play the father. Q: You’ve discovered some great actresses like Zeenat Aman and Tina Munim. A: Even Tabu. She wasn’t my leading lady. But the roots of her career sprang from my film "Hum Naujawan". When a film does well and it’s seen by the maximum number of people, only then does a newcomer get noticed. Q: How do you look back on more than 50 years in films? A: I think they were very glorious years. They taught me lots of things. I’m still learning. I’ve had a marvellous career so far. I’ve no regrets. I’m making a journey towards the top of a mountain though I still can’t see the summit. There’re lots of things to be done still. Every film I make is a new experience. That keeps me going. Q: Are you planning an autobiography? A: It
must be done. Fifty-six years of my career as a star and a filmmaker
and all the accompanying experiences will be encapsulated in the
biography. I want to say some beautiful things in the book. I’ll
start writing after my "Love At Times Square" release. I can’t
rest on my laurels. IANS |
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Tribhuvan Nath
Dalit politics, a crucial component of sociology in the political spectrum, is evolving as it is yet to assume its full potential. While Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Kanshi Ram and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati are trying to mobilise silent but increasingly assertive Dalits by whipping up emotions and sentiments for furthering their political objectives, there are others who approach the socio-political phenomenon with a structural prism.
When I read here the
news over the Internet that the highest court of my country has ruled
the right to information of the electorate, as regards the candidates
it is to vote for, is inviolable, my gratitude to the judiciary knew
no bounds.
India’s premier
external intelligence agency, RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) has
somewhat lost its momentum and, lately, not lived up to the task for
which it was created. On the contrary, its Pakistani counterpart —
ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) — has done a far better job. It
was almost reversal of roles in 1999; what RAW did in erstwhile East
Pakistan (now Bangladesh) three decades back, ISI did in Kargil. RAW’s
most stark failure was to keep a track of Pakistan’s stealth
incursion on the icy heights of Kargil and the lapse put India,
initially, in a difficult position; pushed India and Pakistan almost
on the brink of a war. Also, perhaps, erroneously the RAW virtually
trained and equipped the LTTE which later proved costly to India,
resulting in the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. Specialists feel that
RAW needs to be restructured to brace up to new challenges. This is a
daunting task for the new RAW Chief, C.D.Sahay. He will have a
two-year tenure which may be extended if the restructuring requires
his services for some more time.
The capital’s
cocktail circuit is abuzz with talk whether Iraqi President Saddam
Hussein will be as elusive as the Saudi fugitive and mastermind of
9/11 Osama bin Laden. First, there was never any doubt in anybody’s
mind that the George Bush-led coalition will launch a military attack
against Iraq. The overarching belief of the Chiefs of various missions
in New Delhi is that the USA as the lone super power has arraigned to
itself the role of being a Super Cop and is muzzling others to fall in
line.
Former high profile
Minister Pramod Mahajan, in his new avtar as the General Secretary of
the Bharatiya Janata Party, is finding it a trifle difficult to cope
with the media pressure as was evident the other day when a group of
journalists complained to him about his accessibility. Asked for his
mobile number, Mahajan said that he does not carry a mobile phone.
However, when a scribe contradicted his claim, he observed that his
handset only provides for making outgoing calls blanking out incoming
ones. It has been specially designed for him by IT experts during his
days as Minister for Information Technology.
He has spent 56 years
in front of and behind the camera, but Dev Anand says much still
remains to be done. His quest for the distant silver lining is nothing
short of miraculous. The evergreen entertainer, who is nearly 80,
spoke in an interview about his glorious years.