Three gutsy men steeped in Gandhian values

This is a story of three courageous Indians the country should be proud of. Since I did not have the tenacity of a Justice Suresh, the strength of character of a Chaman Lal and the indomitable courage of Harsh Mander, let me salute these three countrymen of mine whose sense of justice and depth of compassion rival their loyalty to the Constitution and the country. Moreover, each of them is a true Gandhian!

Justice Hosbet Suresh died last week in Mumbai. His death is mourned by all those of us who craved for justice and fair play. While he sat on the Bench in the Bombay High Court, Justice Suresh was a fiery upholder of the rights of the underdog — the poor, the oppressed, the minorities. It is par for the course for those who do not feel for the have-nots to dub any human who stands up for their rights as ‘leftist’! And consign him or her to the dustbins used by the ‘rightists’.

But Justice Suresh would not be bothered by any such classifications. He stood for what he felt was right. His conscience would not have allowed him to do otherwise. His brother judge on the Bombay Bench, Justice SM Doud, was inspired to follow Justice Suresh. Because of their close friendship, he did not have to appear to be secular. When the necessity to be secular overrides the duty of being true to the law and the Constitution and your own conscience, justice is the victim.

After they retired from the Bench, these two judges took up various public causes to the deep delight of public-spirited citizens. Justice Suresh was the first choice of these activists, along with Chief Justices Verma and Venkatachaliah of the Supreme Court, when worried citizens sought to establish facts that politicians wanted to hide or obfuscate. ‘Citizens’ Tribunals’, consisting of these respected judges, were set up.

There are public-spirited men and women in each of the government’s myriad ‘Services’! There are many such individuals, but I will make my own selection of three men I admire and invite the readers to make their choices from among public servants they know.

In the police service, of which I was a proud member till 1989, my choice is Chaman Lal of the Madhya Pradesh cadre who retired as DGP of Nagaland. The Nagas have no love for ‘outsiders’, but Chaman was an exception! His ability to relate to the people he served, to dispense justice, follow the spirit of the law and to use compassion instead of force to solve difficult law and order problems marked him out for special mention.

Chaman served with me in Punjab at the height of the terrorist menace in that state. He endeared himself to Jat Sikh farmers in the villages which he frequently visited to win over hearts and minds. I accompanied him at times, till the Governor was advised by the DGP to discourage this practice because KPS Gill thought that it made the police appear weak!

After retirement, Chaman worked tirelessly with voiceless adivasis in the ‘Veerappan-controlled territory’, and for the needy victims of routine injustices in other parts of the country. When a drunk adivasi on a motorcycle accidentally deprived Chaman of the use of his leg, Chief Justices Verma and Venkatachaliah both set out from the Bangalore end, crossed into the Veerappan-controlled forest to touch base with this noble police officer whose commitment to human rights had attracted their attention and their admiration.

The IAS has thrown up an even more remarkable giant of a man. I first met Harsh Mander in Shimla when I, as DGP of Punjab, was invited to address a group of IAS officers attending an in-service training course. The next time I met him was in 2002 in a TV channel’s studio in Delhi. We both had been invited to discuss the Gujarat riots. I had visited Ahmedabad to find out why a force, which I had once headed, had failed so miserably. Harsh had been called because he had resigned from the IAS in protest against a massacre which had the tacit approval of the government.

Instances of officers resigning from prestigious services like the IAS or the IPS are too many to count, but a resignation to protest government apathy was truly unique!

Harsh held his horses till his resignation was accepted so that no law or rule was violated. Then, in his quiet, dignified manner, he chose his real calling. He decided to espouse the cause of the victims of the Gujarat riots. While another minority rights activist, Teesta Setalvad, went about collecting evidence to nail the culprits, Harsh concentrated on the rehabilitation of the families of the victims who were living in subhuman conditions in makeshift camps. As a former IAS officer, he knew exactly what was possible in the sphere of rehabilitation and he could compare that with what had been attempted on the ground by an indifferent and reluctant administration.

His outspokenness on the issue displeased, even angered, those in power. They put him on their ‘in pectore’ black list. Certainly, in their mind’s eye, Teesta and Harsh were mosquitoes who had to be swatted. Their bites were more than they could withstand!

Harsh set up an NGO to ensure justice for the victims of communal and caste violence. When lynchings hit the headlines of the print and electronic media, he inaugurated the Karwan-e-Mohabbat, traversing the length and breadth of the country to condole and empathise with the families of victims of religious and caste hatred and violence.

Since such professions of compassion gave the government a negative image, Harsh became an even bigger ‘persona non grata’ with the authorities. They did not appreciate any reference to the barbaric acts perpetrated by their fringe followers. So, when Harsh, who is at heart a Gandhian, made one of his usual speeches advocating love and non-violence, the government set its police machinery in motion. His words were taken out of context to misinterpret his messages in order to fix him!

The Delhi police, led by members of my own fraternity, I am sorry to note, registered an FIR against Harsh for a speech delivered at Jamia Millia University, an institution in the line of the Hindutva fire. Extracts of the speech were quoted, though the entire speech if read as an entity would have shown Harsh for what he really is — a law-abiding, solid, decent citizen and a good human being, steeped in Gandhian values!