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Make haste, slowly Putting up a challenge |
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Changing Middle East alignments
Overcoming a fear,
finally
Past forward:
Revisiting August 15, 1947
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Putting up a challenge The
independence-day celebrations in Pakistan came with a twist as two opposition groups mounted major protest marches against the Nawaz Sharif government. Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri, a Canada-based cleric, both came together to challenge the year-old Nawaz Sharif government. The two groups have different agenda but are working together at the moment. The government seemed to yield some ground when it announced a commission to investigate allegations of rigging in the 2013 poll, as demanded by Imran Khan's Tehreek-e-Insaaf party, but he dismissed the move as too little too late. Islamabad was virtually locked down by the security forces. Road blocks were placed and mobile phone services were disrupted. On a day when Pakistanis should have been celebrating their independence, they were worried about their freedom. A duly elected government was under siege, and even as the army kept its distance, it is no secret that its relationship with the government is under a strain. At the heart of the problem is the growing discontent and frustration among ordinary people, especially young Pakistanis, about the overall situation in the country. While Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is seen as an astute leader, he has not been able to do much to improve the economy. Power shortages bedevil the country, and terrorist activity continues to claim innocent lives. A day of celebration in Pakistan became one marking the discontent of many Pakistanis with the government they elected to power. The Lahore-to-Islamabad march is indicative of the growing distance between the people of Pakistan and their government. It shows the impatience of people with the present state. There is no doubt, however, that the answers to the vexatious problems of Pakistan will have to be found in the democratic system alone. Various civil and judicial institutions will need to be strengthened so that the government can meet the aspirations of an increasingly vocal and restive public.
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When a man opens a car door for his wife, it's either a new car or a new wife.
— Prince Philip
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The Significance of Indian and British unity It has been reserved for Sir Pheroze Shah M. Mehta, who is lovingly called the uncrowned king of Bombay, to give free expression to the one feeling which now dominates the minds of all the many different races who inhabit this great country and who owe willing and unquestioned allegiance to British Crown. In his brief and telling speech at the Town Hall meeting on Thursday evening he said: "At this juncture of supreme gravity we have met together here to-day in this public hall of different races and religions, of different creeds and communities — English and Hindu, Parsi and Musalman — to proclaim with one heart, one soul and one mind that these differences distinguish but do not divide us, and that in the presence of this solemn situation we are merged in one general and universal denomination, the proud denomination of loyal and devoted subjects of the British Crown." Recall of officers on leave It is certainly the right thing that the Government of India has called back all I.C.S. men and police officers now on leave in England to resume duty at once in India. At a time of storm and stress every body should be at his post. We understand that the Punjab officers now at home on leave will all be back by the first week of September. When they have returned the question of posting them will be one of importance. One thing that should be borne in mind in this connection is that important districts should be placed in charge of men who are well known for their tact and experience, men who possess cool heads and large hearts. The proper thing would be to appoint men, both civilians and police officers, to districts where they are well-known, loved and respected.
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Changing Middle East alignments
Recent
developments in the Middle East show with startling reality how quickly geopolitical verities and alignments can change. The most dramatic change has, of course, been brought about by the phenomenon of Isis, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, later christening itself the Levant, before becoming simply the IS, Islamic State. As the IS has set about capturing more and more territory in Syria and Iraq, it has finally brought the United States military into the picture after its departure from Iraq in 2011 in the form of air strikes on IS forces now challenging the relatively peaceful Kurdish semi-autonomous region of Iraq. For one thing, the anti-President Bashar al-Assad crusade by the US and its Sunni allies and monarchies is on the back burner. The more important task of preventing the IS from capturing more of Iraq and Syria is taking precedence. Second, the task of preventing a successful onslaught on the Kurdish region assumes great importance. As a backdrop, the continuing tragedy of the Palestinians in Gaza, with the obscene number of Palestinian deaths by Israeli military in answer to rockets fired by the Hamas movement is an illustration of the mismatch of forces - one fighting against great odds amidst suspicions of such Arab states as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, among others, and the other supported by US might. There are no easy answers to any of the crises facing the volatile region. The Gulf monarchies are usually ranged on one side, but they are forced to shift their policies from an indiscriminate funding of Sunni factions opposing the Assad regime to a more cautious policy, given the birth of first the Al Nusra, then the Isis leading inexorably to the IS. Indeed, regionally Turkey and Qatar are now classed as being closest to the Palestinians of the Hamas variety. How these changing alignments will play out is too early to tell. But the chaos that reigns in Iraq and Syria and is increasingly impinging on Lebanon, perennially a fragile entity, are crystal clear. At the heart of the evolving new order is the nature of the change in Egypt having been transformed from first the fall of Hosni Mubarak to the one-year rule of the first genuinely elected President in the country's history, Mohamed Morsi of Muslim Brotherhood, to the coup of the present ruler, General Abdel Fatah el-Sisi, on the cusp of a popular revolt, to his inevitable election as President. Egypt today, already the recipient of generous assistance from the Gulf monarchies, is now their ally, and although as the most important Arab nation still leads in mediation efforts between Israelis and Palestinians, seems more allied to Tel Aviv than the Gazans and the Palestine Authority. How then are the Arab world and outside powers led by the United States to begin to resolve problems as one crisis trumps another? As far as the Gaza crisis is concerned, the US bias in favour of Israel, which it funds and arms to the hilt, is no secret. Therefore, Washington will have to lean on Egypt's shoulder to try to mediate. But in the larger regional context, the dramatic rise of the IS represents a new scale of conflict and danger. Not only is the IS a terrorist movement but it is also disciplined and brutal in spreading its creed and beliefs which are contrary to civilized conduct and living. In purely geopolitical terms, the United States cannot afford to let IS or its Isis variant swallow up most of Syria and Iraq in the name of a divine mission. For the present, Washington has chosen to shore up the Iraqi Kurds, the most stable and harmonious part of Iraq, from being overrun by the IS onslaught. It has also been unsuccessfully pleading for an inclusive government in place of the overtly Shia dispensation of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. For one thing, the Saudis are shoring up the Lebanese army with an additional $1 billion assistance. Mercifully, most Lebanese factions agree on maintaining the status quo. The one fly in the ointment is the Hebzullah movement, a powerful player who has been helping the Assad side in Syria. The key question is whether the IS, in its triumphant onslaught on Iraq and Syria, has bitten more than it can chew. It has, in the ultimate analysis, brought the US military into the picture despite President Barack Obama's reluctance to re-engage his military in a country much the worse for Washington's original invasion. Judging by the increasing number of air strikes at IS military installations to blunt its attack on the Kurdish region, its leaders might be ruing their overreach. However, even a beginning to resolve the set of enmeshing problems in the region is for the long haul. The US will retain its partiality for Israel for domestic reasons, if not for other factors. Defeating the IS and its allies will require the building up of a viable coalition to separate the hostile Iraqi Sunnis from their opportunistic alliance with the Isis and the dethronement of Mr Maliki., who is resisting attempts to replace him. Another major problem is how to bridge the Sunni-Shia divide represented at the two poles led by Saudi Arabia and Iran. An ultimate nuclear agreement between the West and Iran is still possible despite the difficulties. But the Gulf monarchies are not reconciled to getting Iran into the tent, rather than sitting outside. The best that can be hoped for is a ceasefire in Gaza based on some Israeli concessions in lifting the inhumane blockade of the Gaza Strip abetted by Egypt's new rulers. Second, the US and many other regional and world powers are hoping that both the Kurds, the Sunnis and the new Iraqi Prime Minister will get their acts together to defeat the IS in stages. The obvious conflicting interests and pursuits of the regional players aided by outside actors will take long to resolve. The world's attention is focused on the short term.
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Overcoming a fear, finally The day I visited that house, as I was going upstairs, someone released the bucket to draw water from the well. It hit the water surface with a loud thud. A roaring sound echoed in the courtyard. A child as I was, I was terror struck by the sound and stood there in the centre of the stairs. I refused to go up and my mother could take me up after great persuasion. That dreadful sound instilled such a fear in me that I would avoid looking into the well. Once or twice, whenever I peered into its darkness, my heart came to my mouth. The fear remained with me in the years to come. During the construction of Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Plant at Ropar, a tall chimney, having more than three times the height of Qutab Minar, was to be built. It was to be a huge structure, the tallest in North India at that time. I came to know that an engineer had refused a posting due to the risk involved. I decided to take up the challenge. The purpose was to overcome the fear that was not leaving me. The construction work began and the chimney having a vast diameter of 90 feet began gaining its height. I would ride a ladder to its top every day. When it gained more than 70 feet height, a temporary cage, run on a pulley by a motor, was erected. Now, I began riding this cage. On the days of power failure, I would go up by the ladder. Caught in the busy cycle of work, I didn't know when the chimney gained a 400-foot height. One day, it was 12.30 at night and I was standing on the top deck supervising the workers and engineers doing their assigned job in a deft manner. There was total darkness all round. Suddenly, a storm engulfed the chimney. The velocity of the wind was so high that it became impossible for me to stay on my feet. I felt I would be swept away by the storm. I lay down on a wooden plank and firmly caught of some steel bars emerging out of concrete. Then I remembered all my relatives -- my parents, my family, my siblings. I felt as if it was my last day of life. As I lay on the wooden plank, I noted that the workers were fast rushing towards the cage to go down. There could be a stampede or someone could slip down, 400 feet below. I didn't know when I got up, shouted at them to stop and jumped to the lower deck to take control of the situation. Soon the things were in control and I settled on an empty drum placed there. Slowly, the storm lost its speed. I got up and moved around, taking stock of the situation. I peered out into the dark, bent myself more and more and looked down, 400 feet below. Then the revelation came. I found that I was no more afraid of the height or depth. The fear was gone!
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Past forward: Revisiting August 15, 1947 Even though India’s fight for freedom was a long and arduous struggle, it was finally during the summer of 1947 that India’s political destiny was truly written. A walk down history lane recreates the events of the milestone day.
The 20th century will be recorded in the annals of world history for some hugely important events. Many of these have left imprints that transformed the world and its people. The two World Wars (1914-19 and 1939-45); the two revolutions, Russia (1917) and China (1949); the use of atomic weapons; landing man on the moon and the scientific advances that followed; the microchip, adult franchise, the list goes on. The world we live in today is very different from the world of a time when imperialism and colonialism were respectable terms. India's struggle for freedom and its final victory sounded in a way the first call that would in the course of time demolish the concept of colonial empires. As country after country followed India in discarding their colonial yokes —1947 became iconic in the context of freedom and nationalistic aspirations not just on the subcontinent, but virtually all across the colonised world. In this sense particularly for the younger generation, it is important to remember that 15 August, 1947 is a date significant not only in our history but in the history of the colonised world. The summer of 1947 Even though India's fight for freedom was a long and arduous struggle, it was during the summer of 1947 that India's political destiny was truly written. The British officialdom in India were as tired and exhausted as the Indian leaders. As much also remains unexplained, students of history continue to search in the dark for answers to key decisions, awaiting key files to be made accessible. By the first week of August an estimated 150,000 people had already been killed in the Punjab and, the worst was yet to come. However, in Delhi, notwithstanding the calls for boycott by many people, the tempo for the Independence Day celebrations had begun to speed up from the beginning of August itself. In the East Punjab, however, the situation was quite different. There prevailed almost a complete lack of enthusiasm among the common people in most parts. Officially, the government of East Punjab issued instructions to all the 12 deputy commissioners on how celebrations were to be organised. Every district was to organise a main function which was to be attended by all officials where the new flag of the Republic was to be saluted. Arrangements were to be made for illuminating important government buildings. In Lahore, Muddie was sworn in as Governor of Punjab at 10.45 am, on August 15, 1947. Even as Lahore was being overrun by violence a great part of the attention and effort of senior functionaries of the government was being devoted to arranging a grand event in the Ballroom of Government House. The invitation card carried details of dresses to be worn and elaborate protocol that was to be followed. As Muddie took oath of office with bands and salutes, sounds of gun fire, looting and screaming and dark clouds of smoke from burning buildings formed the backdrop. There is an interesting story of how August 15 was chosen by Mountbatten for the formal transfer of power. Not having been in India long enough to realise that the opinion of astrologers usually played an important role in the choice of dates and time for important events, Mountbatten chose August 15 for the simple reason that it was on this day that Japan had surrendered to the Allied Forces — marking the end of World War II (1945). Mountbatten knew that the rationalist Nehru would be happy ignoring astrologers even though a great many of the other Congress titans were firmly committed to astrology. In his Personal Report (No 16 August 9, 1947), Mountbatten writes: "… the astrologers are being rather tiresome, since both August 13 and 15 have been declared inauspicious …" The Viceroy noted with a smut that: "luckily the Constituent Assembly has got over this by deciding to meet before midnight August 14". Mountbatten was as we know a great believer in pomp and pageantry. The dramatics of handing over power at midnight fascinated the Viceroy. Thus came to be the memorable ceremony and Nehru's speech in the central hall of Parliament, " … as the world sleeps … India will…" India’s first Cabinet The formation of free India's first Cabinet finds an interesting reference in Mountbatten's Personal Reports (Report No 15, August 2, 1947). In the first week of August (1947), Delhi was full of stories of who would make it to the Cabinet and who would be left out. Mountbatten was keen that Nehru must choose young and imaginative people for his Cabinet rather than old Congressmen: "I told him unless he got rid of a lot of top weights like Rajagopalachari and Maulana Azad he would find himself hampered. I told him Bhabha and Mathai should both be kept since they were extremely able and fearless. I told him Baldev Singh appeared unsatisfactory (for Defence) even though I realized he was the only Sikh". Mountbatten, in fact, suggested that Rajendra Prasad should be a very good Speaker. The Report says Nehru agreed, but he (Nehru) felt, there was a: "remarkable dearth of good young men", to take up such responsibility. Nehru is quoted as saying: "he would induct some young people as Deputy Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries to give them experience". Later Nehru went to his colleagues in the party who had already drawn up a list of their own. Nehru tore up the list. Some days later, just before Mountbatten was to leave for the midnight ceremony (August 14), Nehru called on Mountbatten: "And you Sir, have chosen me as your Prime Minister and there is the Cabinet which I submit to you", (handing over to Mountbatten an envelope). When Mountbatten opened the envelope it contained only a blank sheet of paper. On seeing Mountbatten's amazement Nehru lightly remarked: "You and I have been through this so often it doesn't matter. You and I have agreed who it is going to be". Both the national flag and the national anthem find interesting entries in the Viceroy's private papers. The prospect of lowering the Union Jack (the flag of Great Britain) for the last time in India appears to have been weighing on the Viceroy. The Viceroy's Personal Report (No 17) for August 16, 1947 (para 67) reads: "At 6 pm the great event of the day was to take place — the salutation of the new Dominion Flag. This programme had originally included a ceremonial lowering of the Union Jack, but when I discussed this with Nehru he entirely agreed that this was a day they wanted everybody to be happy and if the lowering of the Union Jack in any way offended British sensibilities, he would certainly see that it did not take place". With regard to the national anthem even as late as August 7, the agenda item to decide on the national anthem had listed Bande Matram. There are numerous versions of how and when it was changed. But from initial responses of senior leaders the decision to change the national anthem appears not to have been well-received. First brush with democracy The main function was planned for about 30,000 but over 300,000 actually turned up. Democracy India-style gave its first picture. Crowds stormed the seating reserved for dignitaries. Never had the British system of protocol failed so badly. The Viceroy and Lady Mountbatten found themselves among common people, with the August heat and the crowd combining to create a lethal combination. All the carefully worked out details were swept aside. Mountbatten virtually shouted the order to hoist the Tricolour. As the Tricolour was hoisted, a thunderous roar came up from the crowd. So much was the noise that the sound of the saluting guns, seemed a whimper. Some reports noted the sight of a rainbow — the colours of which bore a stark resemblance to the Tricolour. Such was the hysteria that Nehru actually sat cross-legged on the bonnet of his vehicle, finding it impossible to get in on the way back. Indian crowds being what they are soon raised slogans - "Pandit Mountbatten ki jai". If anything, the ceremony and confusion that followed showed that the British had got away with their honour and dignity unharmed. As Cambell Johnson in his important work noted: "After 200 years Britain has conquered India", referring as he was to the crowd's response. From the Minutes of the Viceroy's Staff Meeting (No 65), of July 28, 1947, comes another amusing incident. The Viceroy issued instructions for a grand dinner and reception which was to follow the midnight ceremony of August 14-15. For the first time the convention of raising a toast to the "King Emperor" was to be changed to merely the "Health of the King". Many years later, Mountbatten remarked: "...to drink port at 2 am, in a toast to the King of England at the dawn of India's Independence was quite something..." At some stage Mountbatten appears to have been of the impression that both Nehru and Gandhi had agreed to have on the Indian Union's flag, even if in a symbolic manner, the Union Jack. Mountbatten was reasonably sure that the Congress would accept the idea and in believing so had, ready on his table a design of the proposed flag when Nehru came to meet him on June 24. It is difficult to know what Nehru thought or how he reacted mentally to the proposal, but certainly the gentleman that Nehru was, he did not show any response to Mountbatten. Nehru even took the design with him on the grounds that he would discuss the matter with other leaders. Mountbatten even appears to have thought that a similar proposal might carry conviction with Jinnah as well. Jinnah of course was blunt and straightforward when a similar proposal was put up to him. In a note appended to the proceedings of this meeting, Mountbatten recorded that while Nehru said that "extremists in the Congress would not agree", Jinnah said that "it would be repugnant to the feelings of Muslims to have the Christian cross alongside the crescent". The same document also shows that at some earlier stage Mountbatten had also reached a decision with senior Indian leaders that even after August 15, (1947) the Union Jack would be flown in India on special occasions. What Gandhi felt Any reference to the last days of British rule and the first days of our Independence cannot but end without a reference to the great man himself. Even though Mahatma Gandhi was as Robert Payne put it: "..like a mountain and Nehru like a blade of grass..", Gandhi died a sad man, disillusioned and disenchanted. Soon after Mountbatten had been requested to accept the office of Governor-General, Gandhi called on him: "I wanted to let you know, you must please give an example. We are a poor country. The British ruled with tremendous show of panoply and ceremony… if you are Head of State you must come down and be humble and live in a small house with your wife — be accessible like I". Mountbatten remarked: "And what do we do with this magnificent house which cost a fortune to build". "Ah! That", Gandhiji replied, "should be turned into a hospital". Mountbatten tried to explain that the place was not planned and therefore not suitable to be a hospital. Gandhiji then said: "You must find some use for it… move out as an example. We must all live on a much lower scale". Reliving history
The writer is Senior Professor, Department of History, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra.
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I was seven years old when I happened to visit the house of the maternal uncle of my mother, located in Moga. It was a big house with a deep and huge well in the centre of its courtyard. There were rooms and galleries all around and they lived on the first floor level. In such houses, normally the central courtyard is open to the sky but a strange thing here was that the courtyard had a roof the double-story level. Thus the well looked deep, dark and mysterious. They had got erected a mechanism to draw water out of the well and for all purposes, water was drawn from the well only.
