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Wrong card Blair vs BBC |
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A new peace move
Displaying BJP’s assets
Payback time?
A rendezvous with writers in
Pakistan DELHI DURBAR
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Wrong card The NDA as well as the BJP would do well to turn down the advice of the RSS to use the Hindutva card in the coming elections. It is obvious that while proffering the advice, the RSS did not have the long-term interests of the country in mind. Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee should spurn the advice on the ground that it would not bring any new votes to the party and it would divide the polity on communal grounds. Gujarat aside, Hindutva was never a successful electoral plank. The BJP’s success in the 1989 elections is often attributed to the Ayodhya Rathyatra without realizing that it was Mr V.P. Singh’s revolt over the Bofors issue that turned the tide against the Congress and catapulted the BJP to power. All the subsequent elections proved the limitations of the Hindutva card. If today the BJP has been emboldened to advance the elections, it is not because of its faith in Hindutva. Rather, it was its ability to put such contentious issues as building a magnificent temple at Ayodhya, enactment of a common civil code and abolition of Article 370 of the Constitution on the backburner that enabled the BJP to hold the ruling coalition together for so long. The party hopes to cash in on the so-called feel-good factor, which, again, has little to do with Hindutva. Conversely, there would have been no feel-good factor if the BJP had harped on Hindutva and pursued the agenda dear to the RSS. Even if it had succeeded as in Gujarat, the nation would have had to pay a heavy price for it, which would have made the whole enterprise counter-productive. The BJP leaders are never tired of claiming that they won the recent elections in three major states purely on the plank of development. There is an element of truth in the assertion but for which it would not have gone in for an early election. It also knows that the only way in which the Ayodhya tangle can be tackled is either through talks between the leaders of the two communities or through a judicial verdict. This being the case, no purpose will be served if the temple issue is flogged during the campaign. It will only divide the electorate on communal lines, taking the lustre away from “India Shining”. |
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Blair vs BBC The reports that the BBC could be dismantled and its editorial independence curbed are disturbing. The government sledgehammer is being put to use in the wake of the row over Iraq. Prime Minister Tony Blair and his associates have slammed the BBC for its "inaccurate" and "unsubstantiated" reporting, especially in the wake of the death of weapons scientist David Kelly. Lord Hutton has been exceptionally critical in his report. But all this looks like an attempt to deflect the attention from the government's own failures. Yes, the BBC has made some mistakes and has even apologised for them. But the government is yet to show such sagacity. Anyone can make errors under pressure. The government's attempt to take away the independence of the venerable organisation on the pretext of overseeing its impartiality and accuracy is too extreme and clever a measure. BBC reporter Andrew Gilligan has apologised for his May 29 broadcast last year in which he accused the British government of "sexing up" the threat from Saddam Hussein. It is this allegation which had sparked what had come to be known as the Kelly affair. Many senior BBC men resigned in the wake. Now the government is believed to have drawn up a break-up plan which would end its 80-year existence as a national institution. Once its royal charter runs out in 2006, the BBC may be split into "separate entities for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland". Two of the greatest contributions of England to the world are the English language and the BBC. Doing a hatchet job on the venerable institution will be self-defeating, especially when it is more than keen to apply correctives. Prime Ministers from Winston Churchill downwards have taken the BBC to task (Churchill had accused it of behaving "like one of the major neutrals") but Mr Blair seems determined to exceed them all. Even if he is able to remain in power for sometime, and do damage to the BBC, he will continue to be hounded by the simple question which he has never answered: What happened to the weapons of mass destruction — an issue he used to launch the Iraq war in the company of President George Bush. |
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A new peace move Even an Ariel Sharon can change. With the US-backed road-map for peace remaining abandoned, the Israel Prime Minister has drawn up his own security plan. Besides the controversial wall, separating the West Bank's Jews from Palestinians, he has decided to dismantle all 17 settlements in Gaza and three in West Bank, and relocate the affected Jews to elsewhere in the country. This could not be believed till the significant announcement was made the other day, Mr Sharon being the principal architect of Israel's settlement policy. The step, Mr Sharon argues, will work as a brake on the suicide bombings in Israeli towns. US key officials are arriving in Israel soon for an assessment of the plan. This shows that Washington has informally cleared the idea, but wants to be sure that it is not objectionable. Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei has welcomed the move, demanding that the Gaza pullout should be accompanied by Israeli withdrawal from all the West Bank areas occupied in the 1967 war. The popular opinion in Israel also supports Mr Sharon's scheme of things. This large peace constituency is growing everyday. That is why Mr Sharon has asserted that he can form a new government if those opposed to his plan within his coalition government decide to part company. Mr Sharon's idea for a long wall in the name of security has come in for sharp criticism from various quarters. While the Palestinians accuse him of working on a design to prevent the coming up of their homeland including much of the West Bank areas, Israeli human rights groups oppose the wall construction on the grounds that the permanent barrier will lead to untold miseries to the people. They have challenged its legality, describing it as a violation of human rights. The wall passes through the Palestinian areas in West Bank which could be a part of the future state of Palestine. Mr Sharon should realise that the physical barrier can never provide a solution to a human problem. |
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I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance. —Socrates |
Displaying BJP’s assets
A
subtle change has taken place in the pre-election scenario even as the Bharatiya Janata Party propagates its assets: Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the longevity of the coalition and, of course, “India Shining”. Despite the confident predictions of BJP spokesmen of returning to power, their strategists are counting the possible seats the party can win in the Lok Sabha and the figures are not quite adding up. The return of the prodigal, Mr Kalyan Singh, had its own ironic story to tell, underlining as it did the BJP’s willingness to prostrate itself before a former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister who was biting in his criticism of the party and its iconic leader at the time of his bitter departure. Fearing that it would be wiped out in a state that sends 80 members to the Lok Sabha, the BJP sought Mr Kalyan Singh’s return to the fold on his terms. Haryana, of course, is in another league, but Mr Om Prakash Chautala’s decision to leave the fold of the National Democratic Alliance presents a new dilemma for the BJP. The alliance partners, where they are in power, are seeking to call the shots because they have profited from the sterling performance of the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Chandrababu Naidu. Refusing to participate in the Union Cabinet in order not to accept a small favour, he extracted the greatest advantage from a bounteous Centre for supporting the NDA. The obvious lesson the other constituents have learned is that their parties’ strength in the Lok Sabha is an essential bargaining chip in receiving favours from the Centre. (It remains to be seen whether they would have the will to resist the perquisites of power in Delhi.) No longer are the regional parties or constituents willing to remain satisfied with contesting the bulk of assembly seats in exchange for letting the major national party have the lion’s share of the Lok Sabha seats. The Haryana reverse for the BJP stemmed from Mr Chautala’s refusal to part with any seat for the BJP. And Ms Jayalalithaa, a quick learner, has been parsimonious in doling out a quota for the BJP in Tamil Nadu, despite her staged reconciliation with a party whose government she had sabotaged not so long ago. True, the BJP’s other assets are very much on display. Mr Vajpayee seemingly grows in stature each day even as he is economical with truth in his campaign speeches. The Islamabad architecture for a rapprochement is still on course, thanks to squashing the foolish idea of postponing the much-heralded tour of the Indian cricket team to Pakistan. But dark clouds are gathering on the horizon on the domestic scene as the NDA constituents are proving more difficult than anticipated and the prospect of their striking a hard bargain in a future coalition, should the BJP emerge as the single largest party in the Lok Sabha. Besides, the manner in which the “India Shining” campaign is being propagated — at great cost to the tax-payer — is becoming counter-productive. There is undoubtedly a bounce in the country’s urban centres and a good monsoon has given the rural areas in most parts additional purchasing power which boosts industry. The economic indicators are encouraging, apart from the crippling national deficit, and industrialists display new self-confidence in expanding their enterprises at home and abroad. But India still remains a poor country with a distressingly large number of people living below the poverty line and hunger still stalks parts of the countryside, despite the bulging food stocks. And the hydra-headed monster of corruption is very much in business. The “party with a difference” lost that appellation years ago, but it could have done without the advertisement of one of its central ministers, Mr Rajiv Pratap Rudy, being tardy in paying his hotel bill in Goa for a family holiday, if indeed he initially intended to, and milking the public sector undertaking under his authority to indulge his taste in fancy mobile telephone instruments and paintings. He did not help his cause by suggesting that he was merely following a common practice. He seemed untroubled by the Central Vigilance Commissioner recently pointing to the Prime Minister the misuse of public sector enterprises by overseeing ministries. In the campaign for the assembly elections, BJP spokesmen had made a better impression than those of the Congress for their quick-wittedness and repartee. Success seems to have gone to their head because their new aggressiveness is often unbecoming and there is little profit in indulging in vulgar assertions pandering to regional or national prejudices. Indeed, the BJP must guard against overkill. The Congress is, of course, as opportunistic as the BJP in seeking an alliance with the DMK in Tamil Nadu and in wooing Ms Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party and Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party. Despite the discouraging response the Congress has met, neither alliance nor arrangement can be ruled out although the BSP is quite candid in debating the additional seats the Congress could bring. The Congress remains the under-dog and there is a measure of over-earnestness in Ms Sonia Gandhi’s wooing of the electorate and the media. It is, in any event, an improvement upon the impression she had earlier given of aloofness and no politician can harm himself or herself by flattering the media. The Congress has apparently decided to press all the buttons it can in search of votes and support. It overdid its exploitation of the clean chit a high court gave Rajiv Gandhi in the controversial purchase of the Bofors gun, inviting a BJP riposte. With the election schedule still to be announced, there is thus far no trend, much less a wave, for one party or the other. If the BJP comes to the conclusion that its prospects are not as rosy as it had initially believed, we might witness a change in tactics and even a rethink on its campaign promises. Thus far, the party has contented itself with the symbolism of Mr Vajpayee starting his election campaign from Ayodhya while reiterating its well-known formula of how the Ram temple should be built. Will it be tempted to play the temple card more blatantly if it feels it might not garner the votes to form a new government? At any rate, the punters are encouraged by the prospect of a keener contest between the BJP and the Congress although the odds in the racing book would still seem to favour a new Vajpayee-led
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Payback time? The phone was ringing as I entered the house. It was Surekha, a former colleague and a good friend, “Where have you been all evening?” “I was at a friend’s, to celebrate her retirement.” “Celebrate? Retirement? Well, how was it?” “The dinner was sumptuous and exotic. But what I found extraordinary was the way Rohini outlined her life after retirement. She plans to travel a bit and then settle down to her life here. She has a lot of reading to do, to complete the book that she is writing. She will interact more with her group of friends, they will meet every Friday for a discussion. She will pursue her hobbies of bonsai cultivation....”, captivated by Rohini’s enthusiasm and loving the sound of my own voice (like most teachers) I continued without a pause, “But Rohini sounded most excited when she talked of the post-retirement period as payback time. The society has given me so much. Now I have the time and the resources to pay back that debt. You know, she has arranged with certain institutes where she would give free counselling sessions to youngsters, their parents, and young couples. What do you think?” I asked. “Well, you and I are not so lucky, as we don’t have regular income in the form of pension. We have devoted the best years of our life serving in one of the premier universities of the country — Panjab University. With unfailing regularity we have been told that we are the builders of the nation, that Guru is superior to Gobind etc etc. What about the payback to us? Allow us to live with grace and dignity.” Mollified by the rising bitterness in my normally fun-loving friend’s voice I intervened lamely: “How was your day?” “Oh, today again we went to the post office and then to the various banks. Do you know — bank gives half per cent more interest. Our banker friend told us that if you link your post office account to the recurring deposit account....” She went on and on for what seemed like eternity. Rohini’s infectious enthusiasm evaporated. I was like Cinderella whose coach and horses suddenly turned to pumpkins! I felt weary and tired. My own retirement is five years away and with shrinking interest rates and no pension.... Suddenly the darkness outside seemed all enveloping and insurmountable. As I climbed into bed, I remembered my father, an eminent teacher and scholar (and a student of Dr Radhakrishanan, the teachers’ teacher!). One of the last happy images I have of him is, when looking gleeful and guilty as a school boy, he announced to my mother: “You know I got a pension hike so I finally bought that book on Ho Chi Minh.” How will my son remember me after I am gone? Will he remember an upbeat, busy and contented woman or a tired, old hag whose only abiding interest was bank rates and saving schemes? Will the eminent teacher and scholar heading the Human Resource Development ministry please give a
clue?
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A rendezvous with writers in Pakistan IT was quite an emotional experience. I crossed the Wagah amidst a profusion of garlands of roses, the clicking of cameras and warm bear-hugs. Carrying the 140-member Indian delegation, the Delhi-Lahore bus drove through the outskirts of Lahore, to the Civil Lines where the historic buildings of Forman Christian College and Kinnaid College stood as the sentinels of orientalism of the Raj. After an hour’s ride, the excited delegates reached Faletti’s hotel, the venue of the World Punjabi Conference. Unlike other conferences, the 9th World Conference had evoked hopes and fears, dreams and nostalgia. Much more happened on the margins of this conference where writers, poets, scholars, businessmen and retired bureaucrats interacted with one another oblivious of their national, religious and perhaps gender identities. While awaiting my turn for the accommodation card, I was accosted by a bright-eyed and pleasant lady who enquired, “Are you a delegate to the World Punjabi Conference?” I quipped, “We are here to meet Punjabis”. Hugging me affectionately, Neelima Durrani remarked, “Let us meet as Punjabis”. My fellow-delegates seemed highly impressed when she revealed her identity as the Superintendent of Police. She is also a poetess with five anthologies to her credit. Thus began my rendzevous with writes, poets, scholars and journalists. Acutely conscious of my limited visa in Pakistan, I sought the help of a local writer, Shahnaz Muzammail, for contacting Munir Niazi, Sharif Qunjahi, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Azhar Javed and historians Mubarak Ali and Imran Ali as soon as possible. I had already met Asad Mufti, who introduced me to Kanwal Mushtaq, the organising secretary of the conference. In the meanwhile, the delegates were invited to the luncheon-meeting where they met correspondents of Dawn, The News, The Nation and other publications, including the yet to be released Punjabi newspaper “Khabran”. Syed Farah Hashmi, a reporter of Daily Din, was engaged in an opinion poll regarding the popular medium of exchange between the peoples of East and West
Punjabis. The majority of delegates were keen to go for sight-seeing and shopping in Anarkali, Rang Mahal and Hall Bazaar despite the heavy rain and chilly winds. My interest lay in meeting writers in Shahmukhi and Urdu. With the help of the proprietor-manager of the Shah Taj, I was able to phone Azhar Javed, the editor of a well-known literary Urdu bi-monthly “Takhleek”. Azhar Javed is a born crusader for protecting the identity of Urdu language and literary sensibility. In our conservation, Qateel Shafai figured again and again. In no mood to sleep, the more adventurous amongst us drove to Al-hamara, a premier art centre in Lahore, for a music concert. The memorable evening of qwwaalis came to an end around 3 am and we went to Avari Lahore for “sahari” on the invitation of the former PTV director. The inaugural function was notable for the presence of two Chief Ministers of West and East Punjabs: Parvez Ilahi and Capt Amarinder Singh and their Ministers for Education. The delegates were officially permitted and invited to visit the cities of their choice. Extremely keen to meet Munir Niazi, I waited impatiently for the end of the inaugural session. Munir Niazi, the octogenarian poet, writes in Urdu and Punjabi with equal felicity. During the past one decade, he has enriched the literature in Shahmukhi through his ghazals and nazms. I snatched these memorable moments while the participants were busy debating the substance of official announcements regarding the establishment of the Institute of Punjabi Language and Culture at Lahore and a Joint Research Council at Patiala and financial support for the projects of the World Punjabi Conference. I was lucky to interact with Sharif Qunjahi, one of the major living Punjabi writers and the star of the Festival of the Punjabi Mother Tongue. A face-to-face meeting with him was an unforgettable experience. It began with an affectionate rebuke “Mein ehde naal gal nahin karni. Pichli vari ais dhi nein meinu phone keeta mein Qunjah nahin aa sakdi”. The very next moment, the grand old man, who had rescued my father’s paternal uncle from a mad, blood-thirsty mob in 1947, hugged me warmly. An extremely fine human being, Sharif Qunjahi has been hailed as a great non-Ravian poet ad scholar in a special issue of the Ravi, published by Government College, Lahore, now a deemed university. The 92nd issue of the Ravi includes a Punjabi section spread of 46 pages. Notable for its Gosha-i-Sharif Qunjahi, it lauds his contribution to the growth of the Punjabi language. Fakhr Zaman conceded that it was Qunjahi who brought him into the Punjabi literary circle. His book of critical essays “Jhatian” has been acclaimed as a trend-setter in Punjabi criticism. Besides, his translations of Allama Iqbal’s Madras lectures and Persian poetry, Sharif Qunjahi has published two anthologies of his own poems. Just a tantalising glimpse of his biography by Khalid Humayoon was enough to provoke me to hunt for its copy in bookshops. Unfortunately, it was out of stock. My rendezvous with Punjabi poets, writers and scholars would have remained incomplete without paying homage to Bulleh
Shah, whose poetry has a timeless appeal. It is a perennial fount of inspiration for crusaders of civil liberties. A visit to his “mazar” was an unforgettable spiritual experience. I had the unusual luck of sharing the ecstasy of the young qwwaals. Watching my rapturous expression, one of the spectators commented, “You belong to us. How come you are a Hindu?” His spontaneous bonding with another Punjabi left me speechless. |
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The mysticism of Sufism and the intricacies of Islam form the themes of the most popular literary arrivals from Pakistan at the 16th World Book Fair in New Delhi. The Pakistani participants at the nine-day-long event that started on Saturday say these two subjects have done well at the past few book fairs in India and are favourites even back home. “Sufi literature, just like Sufi music and poetry, has an emotional content that attracts human beings,” said Ramik Akhund of Oxford University Press, Karachi. “The mystery that surrounds such sects as Sufism pulls people towards it. It transports you into a dimension which is non-materialistic.” The five Pakistani stalls at the book fair seem to be receiving a good audience. The stalls are packed and the participants flooded with inquiries. “The reading habit in India is more developed and diverse than in Pakistan,” noted Akhund. Jamshed Mirza, a veteran in the book industry, says there is a large demand in India for books on Pakistani politics, history and culture. Karachi-based Mirza (75) has been in this trade for the last 40 years. He feels the book trade between the two countries continues satisfactorily but there is a huge scope for improvement. Mirza says the books in Urdu, mostly on religious issues, too have a great market among Indian readers. Safdar Mehndi (72) estimates Rs.2 million worth of book exports from Pakistan to India. However, he says the export from India is much higher. Among some interesting books at the Pakistani stalls is an English translation of renowned Hindi writer Premchand’s work in Urdu — “Bazaar-e-Husn” or “Courtesans’ Quarter”. Premchand, who spent some of his formative years in an Urdu medium school, used to write under the pen name of Nawab Rai till the British banned his books. Mehndi, who has been participating in the World Book Fair for the last 15 years, feels the governments on both sides need to take a more liberal stand on the book trade. “The Pakistani customs officials are the more paranoid of the two and conduct repeated checks fearing any anti-Pakistan and anti-Islam literature from India,” Mehndi told IANS.
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Image building of Sonia With BJP chief M. Venkaiah Naidu and just about everyone in the party hogging the spotlight in the media, the Congress is on an overdrive to ensure that the party’s chief, Sonia Gandhi, is not shy of facing the onslaught of scribes. The guarded approach of super selectivity evidenced in the past is being given a goby. Mrs Gandhi’s roadshow in certain districts of Uttar Pradesh coupled with the new-found urgency to forge alliances in keeping with the existing political realities has given a fresh shot in the arm to Congress workers. The image makeover of moving gears from a stoic, elusive and less communicative Congress President to being a self-assured, media savvy is taking place, observes a Nehru-Gandhi loyalist. The lunch for reporters covering the Congress followed by the dinner reception for columnists and editors found Congress leaders clamouring for space to hear what the party leader had to say or the advice tendered by the invitees to triumph in the April-May general election.
Tarlochan and turban National Commission for Minorities Chairman Tarlochan Singh’s meeting with French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin on Friday was more in the nature of a lawyer presenting his case forcefully that wearing the turban was an inalienable part of the Sikh custom. Armed with relevant texts, photographs and flagged documents over the last 100 years, Tarlochan Singh impressed upon de Villepin to make a brief statement to scribes waiting in the hotel lobby. The latter readily obliged him by conceding that the French government would find some way to settle the controversy about banning religious symbols in schools. Tarlochan Singh had put in a request for an interface with de Villepin nearly a month ago. Paris sought more details, including the bio-data of Tarlochan Singh and subsequently the meeting was arranged.
Poll to decide CMs’ fate Much as it will decide the ruling party at the Centre for the next five years, the Lok Sabha poll will also determine the future of quite a few Congress Chief Ministers. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is perhaps the most vulnerable. Having barely survived a rebellion from almost half of his MLAs, the Chief Minister has no option but to deliver forcefully. Though his bete noire in the party is stuck in a legal jam, the Chief Minister will be in the firing line if the party fares poorly in the coming poll. Dissidence will also raise its head in Himachal Pradesh if the Congress does not win at least half the Lok Sabha seats from the state. The story will not be different in Uttaranchal, except that if the Congress is within a striking distance of forming a government at the Centre, Chief Minister N.D. Tiwari will be more than happy to leave his state. A contrary stand Political compulsions have forced the Amarinder Singh government to take a contrary stand on the Rajiv-Logowal accord in the context of building the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal in the Supreme Court. Punjab’s counsel said the agreement signed by the late Prime
Minister Rajiv Gandhi with the Akali leader in 1984 was not legally binding as Sant Harchand Singh Longowal had no constitutional authority to represent the state. Lawyers representing both Punjab and Haryana admit that the issue is sensitive for the two states, especially at the time of the Lok Sabha poll. They point out that former Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had even expressed his willingness to go to jail than “sacrifice” the interests of Punjab’s farmers when the apex court in its January 15, 2002 verdict gave the state one-year deadline to complete the SYL canal.
Indo-Pakistan exchanges The election fever apart, Indo-Pak exchanges and people-to-people contacts are gaining momentum. The first- ever Bollywood show is on the anvil in Pakistan. Theatre groups from this country will be taking part in a women’s theatre festival in Lahore from March 7 to 14 coinciding with the Indian cricket team’s tour of the neighbouring country. Come February 19, Bollywood stars and singers will brush shoulders with their Pakistani counterparts to strengthen the forces of peace and friendship. On the women’s theatre front, Zohra Sehgal, Usha Ganguly of
Kolkata, Neelam Mann Singh and G.S. Channi of Chandigarh, Kanwal Dhaliwal of Amritsar and M.K. Raina of Delhi will be heading the Indian groups. The theatre groups will feature plays like “Barri,” “Adhoori,” “Jhali Kithay Jawe” and “Aik Thi Nani.” Contributed by T.R. Ramachandran, S. Satyanarayanan and Prashant Sood. |
If you do whatever you have to do in a spirit of dedication, it is God’s worship; nothing separate need be done. — Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan in The Bhagavad Gita God Himself is the Doer as well as the Cause. — Guru Nanak Love the whole world as a mother loves her only child. — The Buddha We have to take the whole universe as the expression of the one Self. Then only our love flows to all beings and creatures in the world equally. — Swami Ramdas |
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