EDITORIAL

Friends
Month of August, unlike any other month has its own appeal. In the roughly 1200 million Indians, how many will be remembering and emotionally looking forward to the day which some 63 years ago gave us political freedom, is a question of myriad dimension. On 15th of August 1947, when the tricolour finally flew on the ramparts of Lal Kila (Red Fort), surely crowd assembled there could have gone delirious with joy. Many would have surely wept. Around 350 million Indians, who had the singular joy of being free from the colonial rule, in some form or the other, which began with the establishment of East India Company in the year 1600 on the shores of Hoogli river, in the then Calcutta, by Robert Clive, how would they look back?
How have those 350 million Indians traveled down the development road for 63 years in free India could be an exercise of profound significance. Joys and suffering, dreams and disappointments, success and failures of living in democratic India could as well be a study of extremely contrasting dimension, which needs to be looked into. In the meanwhile wishing all Indians Swatantr Diwas ke Shubh Kaamnaaye and great days ahead.
Looking back over the happenings of the month that went by, the festering unrest in Kashmir valley is again becoming more serious. Reports indicating terrorist elements backed from across the border, joining local militants, is a matter of serious concern. Local population unfortunately have a Pak bias, purely based on the fact of their being Muslim, and Pakistan is exploiting it. This latest trouble apparently was to force the Indian hand during the meeting of Foreign Ministers which took place in Islamabad in mid-July. As usual Pakistan always deflected from the core issue of ‘terror from its soil’ against India and tried to bring K factor. Every time you see trouble in Kashmir, Pakistani elements were always found there. Unless and until this aspect is properly articulated, and brought home to Kashmere people, the truth that they are only playing into the trap of Pakistan’s double game, shall continue. So, when the unrest is fuelled by Pakistani elements, it takes ugly turn, and the intervention by security forces becomes necessary. It is to the credit of Omar Abdulla, who had reportedly stated that ‘security forces could not be expected constantly to show restraint when they were so often pelted with stones’. What Kashmeres need to understand is, this kind of approach shall not have any desired result, because they are often Pakistan dictated and Pakistan funded, including the stone pelting industry. It is a well known fact that this stone pelting is an employment for many in the valley. The involvement of Pakistan elements come to the fore every time security forces raise their ante. While some militants from across the border were killed, a report coming from Srinagar said it all. "LeT commander on the run" was a report appeared in the print media in the midst of the recent unrest. The report informed that "Wireless intercepts between militants in Kashmir and their handlers in Pakistan, reveal that LeT commander Abdullah Ooni is making desperate attempt to run away from the valley as Indian Security Forces turn the heat on cross border militants". According to reports, at least on six occasions, he gave a slip to Security Forces, with the local connivance. The truth therefore is Kashmirese must come to terms to live with India with dignity rather than play the Pak card and create problem for themselves and to India. This view point has to be articulated by the present leadership both at centre and state. But unfortunately agenda based responses have always put paid to the resolution of Kashmir problem. Sheikh Abdulla always wanted to opt for India but the Indian political leadership of the day did not show political sagacity. Solution is possible only when both sides reach out to one another. Can this happen?
Better late than never was the message of this decision of Central Home Ministry to withhold pension to disgraced policeman SP Rathore of Haryana. Icing on the cake was the statement of Home Ministry which said "Pension has been withheld in full on permanent basis". The action of the Home Ministry was loud and clear that characters like Rathore shall not be allowed to get away. It was an action that came late but hopefully shall have a salutary effect on erring policemen, who think that their uniform and their proximity to politicians would allow them to carry on their nefarious activities indefinitely. The family of victim Ruchika Girhotra have hailed this landmark action. Kudos to Chidambaram & Co.
Tug of war between Trivendrum Golf Club and the Left Front government to take over the 30 acre land being used by the club can lead to positive development. While the court in Kerala is in no mood to listen to the club to retain its hold on this long expired lease-hold land, it has questioned the validity of state government running a Golf club in the heart of the city, remarking that "Golf is not Kabaddi that everybody can play." Hope Kerala government of Achutanandan comes up with some people friendly and development oriented utilisational projects.
There was this report in the press about RBI proposal to slash the booming salary and perks of Private Bank CEOs. If the largest public sector bank SBI has a package of around Rs. 30 lakh for its CEO, can it be justifiable for a private sector bank to have more than Rs. 1.7 crore in salary package to its CEO? This almost 6 fold size of the pay packet to its CEOs, the private sector banks are being patently iniquitous. We all know that inequity is one of our national trait. But it should not be so flagrant. The proposal of RBI has not come a day too soon. We are all privy to the knowledge of the 2008 financial crisis of the west, and how Obama administration came rather heavily on the payment of bonus to CEOs, especially when those American banks were in the deep red. Yes, as proposed by RBI there has to be a fixed and variable component in the pay package with variable dependent upon performance and that should also be applicable for PSU banks as well, for the purpose of equity.
A report in the print media "India snubs Howard" made a bad reading. If India’s Sharad Pawar, who is a full time politician and full time Union Minister of Food and Agriculture, can, by-hook-or-crook, become ICC president, why not John Howard, who is a former Australian Premier, presently without any public responsibility of the state, as the vice president? In one of the last occasion when Australian Captain Ricky Pointing, kind of pushed Sharad Pawar after receiving the trophy from his hand, Pawar should have got the message, internationally he is not wanted. Of course it was the most uncouth act for a white man, that too a sportsman. It was also very humiliating to see an Indian Union Minister walking away after being belittled publicly with millions of TV viewers witnessing it the world over. Now it’s Mr Speed, who has reportedly stated "Mr Pawar does not know cricket", and he is the ICC president! Cricket Australia is justifiably upset. What is the qualification of Sharad Pawar to become the ICC president? ICC is a global cricket body. It needs a proven administrator of the game. Pawar has no such background, except that he became the BCCI chief by machination, for which he is generally known. How ambitious is Sharad Pawar? He wants to become India’s Prime Minister, he wants to remote control Maharashta politics, he wants to remote control BCCI , and money spinner IPL and now ICC, where will his ambition stop? At least for the sake of doing some semblance of justice to the multiple roles that he wants to play, he must forthwith quit Union Minsitry. May be Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should prevail upon him to leave the cabinet, for a better person. After all Food and Agriculture Ministry is a very important ministry in the wake of National Food Security Act. Hope he does.
"Terrorists plunge Lahore into grief, kill 45 at Shrine", made a very painful reading of happenings in Pakistan. Two suicide bombers, reportedly blew themselves up inside a famous Sufi Shrine when it was packed with thousands of worshippers. Sufi saints are known peace lovers and they love humanity in general and to attack their shrine must be the work of the most depraved section of the society. It is indeed sad and bad that militancy in Pakistan has come to this sorry pass. What is the logic of this barbaric act, it is difficult to reason, especially when both of them - attacker and victim – belong to the same socio-religious group and revere the same scripture and God. Then you have Shia’s and Ahmedies being attacked brutally by this Sunny militancy. How can a government of the people, for the people and not necessarily by the people come to terms with this reality of Pakistan’s public life within the larger congregation of human society is difficult to fathom. Who can save such a nation?
Controversy over ‘The Red Sari’ is quite normal. Like all books on individuals and political families are bound to raise hackles, this too would face humps, more so with Indian National Congress, sycophancy or no sycophancy. There have been surge of reactions from Congress media managers. They are only doing their job, for which they are appointed to. Abhishek Singhvi, the Congress spokesman, was accused of being manipulative by the author Javier Moro. But then most humans are, and Singhvi need not be an exception, so what if he is an advocate? Not having read the book, it is difficult to pass value judgement, if the book is derogatory in any way to the Congress President. However it is easier to surmise that book may not be derogatory, but the interpretation of events may be a matter of conjecture and all need not agree, hence the controversy. ‘What I have written shouldn’t surprise Indians’ is what the author has reportedly stated. Yes, the controversy has only made the author richer, it will be better sold.
In the wake of Bhopal disaster and UCC head Warren Anderson playing difficult, it is interesting to note what British Petroleum Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg had remarked and then was forced to eat it, besides paying a compensation of U.S. $20 billion. The explosion of Deep Water Horizon rig belonging to BP had caused huge oil spill all over the Gulf Coast affecting marine life in Louisiana and Alabama. Understandably, cleaning it, would be an extraordinarily huge task. To address the environmental disaster a meeting took place at the highest level, no less than the President of U.S. Barack Obama and the BP Chairman. The meeting took place in matter of weeks and compensation was agreed and paid of U.S. $ 20 billion. After the meeting, speaking to media BP Chairman had reportedly stated that BP is not greedy ‘we care about small people’. The use of ‘small people’ phrase had outraged Americans no-end. The Alabama mayor had laughed and retorted ‘They call me small, miniature, they can call me anything. Just write the cheque and send it to us’. Cheque they did get. Yes, it was Americans, who were hit and they knew it well how to get their share of the compensation and got it literally in matter of weeks for cleaning up the mess.
And for New Orleans mayor it was no laughing matter. While saying, that these Swedes, the BP owners, are no greater than U.S. citizens, he had remarked ‘We are not small people. We are human beings’.
Oh Really!
‘How different you see it, when it affects you Mr Obama! Americans are human beings and we Indians are worthless animals! Your corporation killed over 20,000 human beings, maimed half a million in life long injuries, and you paid U.S. $476 million, and the mess left behind by UCC is still there in the Bhopal backyards. Yes, like everywhere else, power dictates judgement, damn the justice. If the U.S. environment problem was addressed in weeks, with huge compensation, after 26 years, in the aftermath of the greatest industrial disaster the world has seen, India is still struggling for justice with peanuts as compensation! Oh poor Mother India.
This had to happen. ‘TALKS TRIP IN PUBLIC’ said one paper, ‘Qureshi Sparks War of Words-Krishna Hits Back’ said the other, ‘Square Off-Takes two to Spat’ said the third, commenting on the outcome of Indo-Pak Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Islamabad recently. The press conference was only a medium. Pakistan couldn’t digest what Home Secretary Pillai said about the Headley inputs on ISI role in Mumbai attack. What he said did upset the Pakistani establishment that the ‘cat is out’, without any escape route. So the best way to weather the storm was to be a bad host, and Qureshi has once again proved that he is a rude and arrogant man. But for Mr SMK, the Indian MEA to rap Home Secretary Pillai in public was patently uncalled for. He has not done anything to cause this reprimand. It could be that what he said, was not in his brief, but that could have been otherwise sorted out. Besides SMK had acknowledged while in Islamabad that ‘there is nothing wrong in what Pillai had said’. So why this somersault on return to New Delhi, local Congress group dynamics?!
Pakistan is the ‘epicentre’ of terror said Richard Halbrooke, while speaking to Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, and described that ‘Pak has five major insurgencies going on in their country, The Afghan Taliban, The Pakistan Taliban, LeT, the odious Hakkani network, Al Qaeda itself and several other groups. Their situation is enormously complicated.’ But he had little idea that Google has ranked Pakistan as No: 1 in searching pornography and sex related sites. This is one more dubious distinction that this Islamic Republic of Pakistan has acquired. The details of these searches are bizarre. According to a ‘Fox News’ report ‘Pakistan, the land of the pure, is ranked No: 1 in the world by Google, in searches for pornographic terms, outranking every other country in the world in searches per person for sex-related content’ the report said. Where this country could be in the ‘World Sex Hunger Index’, if there is one? and what would their semineries or mullas have to say. No fatwa?!
Justice Santosh Hegde, the Karnataka Lokayukta was in the news for all right reasons. He quit his engagement with the Karnataka’s BJP government. He left in exasperation and in helpless disgust. His disappointment was understandable with all round machinations in the body politic of Karnataka. Initially, there have been all round appeal to the Lokayukta not to quit, except the government of Yediyurappa, who did not try to conceal its unofficial response of letting the man go. Of course Justice Hegde had remained steadfast in his intention to quit, but I&C had argued why ‘Dharma Yuddha’ has to be continued and that he should not quit. Out of the blue comes L. K. Advani, the BJP patriarch, and Justice Hegde relents and announces withdrawal of his resignation, much to the delite of a cross section of Karnataka people. But some people including the Dalit organisations go ballistic. It appeared engineered, and was a front. However, as a Supreme Court Judge, was it OK for him to listen to a senior BJP leader and change his decision? This is a question going in circles. In fact some papers and scribes have commented about his possible Hindutva affiliations. However, what is probably important and hence should be accepted universally, is, if someone is doing a great job, he should be allowed to continue and if possible support him for the larger good than get bogged down by issues like ideologies etc. Justice Hegde, now that you are back in the saddle, I&C wishes you great innings.
The Belgaum issue never seem to die. As if one Kashmir is not enough, with a foreign hand fishing in the troubled waters, now we have this interstate border issue between Karnataka and Maharashtra. There is problem between Maama-Bhatija - The Thackrays -, and they needed some oxygen to keep themselves alive, and Belgaum became a ready fodder. CM Chavan of Congress and RR Patil of NCP were not to be left behind as the protectors of Marathi Manoos interest, just joined the melee. The stand of central government was well known even before the affidavit was formally filed in the Supreme Court. You can’t draw the state lines to suite whims and fancies of each political party of the state – in power or out of power. What everybody, which includes everybody, should understand and appreciate that once the state demarcation is done, its like Laxman Rekha, can be crossed only in an exceptional case. Every state shall have people speaking the language of the neighbouring state, its bound to be so. Look at Solapur and Latur in Maharashtra, majority speak Kannada, did Karnataka raise the issue? There is Kasargod in Kerala, where Kannada is the majority spoken language. Similarly Andhra has some claims on Telugu speaking villages in Maharashtra. These are aberrations in a system. There is no perfect solution to all our problems. We do learn to live with it, as long as it does not make our living difficult and unbearable, and the life of those Marathi speaking people within Karnataka border, or those living in Kerala who do not speak Malayalam or those who can’t speak Marathi in its borders with Andhra, they are all living without any serious problem. When shall Indians think as Indians first? How poor we are!
Insensitivity and inequity, unfortunately, is emerging as our national trait. Last month we had the unhappiness of writing about the Ministry of Defence challenging the Punjab & Haryana High Court direction to appoint a labourer, and Supreme Court had thrown it out with the contempt it deserved. This month Supreme Court has again pulled up the central government for denying IAS job to a successful blind candidate despite Delhi High Court’s direction to appoint Ravi Praksh Gupta. As usual government and the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) had tried to be difficult under provisions of Disabilities Act 1995. Don’t you feel sorry for this vested interest set up called CAT who control the government to a large extent?
Imbroglio involving UN office in Colombo and the Sri Lankan government is a sad reflection of the days to come. Assertiveness is the name of the game. The human rights violation and war crimes during the Lankan civil war is fairly known to the reading public the world over. Lanka had won against LTTE. But did not behave as a victor. It tried to victimise the vanquished on an unprecedented scale. In wars, rightly or wrongly, excess do happen, but it is possible to redress the wrongs by the winning side by being generous to the losing side. But Rajpaksa government remained adamant in suppressing the losing side. If UN had taken suo moto initiative to reach out to Tamils, they are only doing the job for which they are supposedly there. But it is unfortunate that Sri Lankan government has forced the closure of UN office by taking to the street. That is a sad development that international community must take note of.
If Khairlanji killings of four Dalits have made every Indian hang his head in shame at the utter barbarity of the upper cast Hindu, on 29th Sept. 2006, the judgement by the Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has left most Indians speechless. The court ruled that the case did not fall under the ‘rarest of rare’ category, while turning down the plea of CBI to give death sentence to all 8 accused instead of 6 that lower court had ruled earlier. The Bench gave 25 years prison terms to all eight accused. Surekha Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange, a dalit had complained to the police on a land dispute against an upper cast neighbour. As a reprisal to her daring, 12 men of this upper cast Dhande clan had butchered 4 of the Bhotmange family in sheer depravity. Surekha, a woman 45 years and Priyanka, a young girl of 17, were stripped, paraded naked, beaten with cycle chain and publicly gang raped until they succumbed to the agony. Barbarism of the upper cast made them rape the dead and stopped with sticks and rods being shoved into their genitals. Two young sons of the family, aged 23 and 21 were beaten and killed after mutilating their private parts, all in full public view. Young Priyanka, media had reported, was a brilliant child and was hoping to do her IAS. A bright spark was thus extinguished by the upper caste hyenas. And our learned judges of the high court thought that, this was not the ‘rarest of rare’ case to be given death penalty. When shall we Indians and our loaded system have a sense of proportion?
Casualness or the ‘chaltaa hai’ attitude is our national malaise, especially with men working for public sector undertakings. Or else, how has Bombay Port Trust suddenly woke up from its deep slumber of 15 long years to realise that those 105 chlorine gas cylinders left in open to the vagaries of monsoon, winter and summer, for all these years, have at last, due to corrosion, started leaking lethely? Indians by and large act only after disaster strikes. We cannot anticipate and act on a possibility of an accident. We are neither preventive managers nor are we good at curative management. Some 500 people were affected in the neighbourhood with some of them in critical condition. As usual investigation shall start and some lowly placed men, with no influence of power or money, shall be made ‘bakraa’ and punished, and life in all probability will go on as normal. This is our India, that is Bharath.
The 1984, anti Sikh riot is still haunting the nation’s conscience. For varieties of reasons, culprits who were politicians remained largely protected from the long arms of law, except some passing brush with the law enforcing authorities. But truth has to triumph someday. Yes, law is catching up with the fugitives. Sajjan Kumar, a Congress leader was, after 26 years, charged with the murder and rioting by a Delhi Court. The Karkardooma Court had on Feb 23, this year has issued a non-bailable warrant against Kumar and slammed the thick skinned CBI for its failure to arrest Kumar and others accused in the case. Whoever had said that CBI does not sleep. At times they do sleep, if it suits them
That brings us to the Gujarath imbroglio involving the CBI arrest of state home minister. Of course as usual Congress, the party in power in Delhi and therefore CBI boss, has taken a holier – than – thou attitude that CBI is only doing its job. But the earlier para on 1984 Sikh pogrom in Delhi and how CBI again as usual taking a nap is well documented. Thus the selective approach of CBI was always highlighted by the media. While the arrest of Gujarath home minister, if appropriate, has to be welcomed, the misuse of official position by the CBI has to be condemned in its selective approach. The debate in the electronic media, more often, leave the audience more confused, what are they driving at? Is it to find the truth, is it to be evenhanded in a secular polity, or just showing our intelligence in a democratic set up, worried more about our rights than our duties and responsibilities? Law is meant to be applied and enforced without any favour or fear. That is not happening. Neither our media debate it. Our courts are there mostly to deliver judgement based on witness provided, again may be selective, and not necessarily as the sentinels of justice. This aspect has to be debated, but not done again. How can we create a society which is responsive and responsible, therefore fair and just?
The news that the new government of the United Kingdom has decided to cut foreign aid funding to India should be welcomed. To think that some of the worlds richest men live in the U.K. who are either Indian passport holders or British subjects of Indian origin, and then to extend our hands to receive aid in sterling £ sounds little bizarre. In fact India should stop receiving any aid from foreign countries. The story of Britain funded Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan mired in corruption and embezzlement is certainly no song to Britain nor it is to PM Dr Manmohan Singh. Promising zero tolerance to corruption and immediate enquiry, Jo Johnson, a conservative MP and a member of Chancellor of Exchequer’s team wrote in the Financial Times "India can now fund its own development needs despite 450 million poor being there. It has a defence budget of $: 31.5 billion, plans for a prestige boosting moon-shot and a substantial foreign aid programme of its own." He averred "India is not China, but as a claimant to a permanent security council seat and a place at the top table of world affairs, it is also no longer a natural aid recipient". Mr. Johnson is telling the truth. Self dependence has to be our national vision and mission, only that will make us super power, nothing else.
Honor killings, Khap Panchayats and these moribund fatwas have one thing in common. They represent the repressive tendency of man, the male chauvinist. PTI reports from New Delhi "Honor killings is a global phenomenon". "Islamic scholars question relevance of fatwas", was another New Delhi date lined news by PTI. Describing "Man is a social animal" sociologists forgot to add "Man is also a cruel animal when his authority is challenged". Some of the stories are bizarre to say the least. A husband reportedly murdered his wife, since he dreamt in sleep of her betrayal of him. In Turkey, a young woman’s throat was reportedly slit in the town square because of a love ballad over the radio was dedicated to her. Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiuddin Khan had a dig at fatwa manufacturers, saying its only a points of view left to the individual to follow or not to follow. "If one goes to another planet and finds an alien, can he click its picture". Fatwa reportedly was, 'Islam forbids clicking pictures of living'. "If a female child of six can ride a cycle", fatwas was, "yes, only up to 9 yrs:, and not beyond". Do we laugh at them. Then there is another, "if an adult decides to breast feed, he can only call the women, his mother". What should one call this, if not outlandish!?
‘Islamisation is the aim of Popular Front of India’ (PFI) reiterates Kerala Chief Minister Achutanandan. Quite understandably it has raised hackles of some communal groups and some political parties. This news was in the coastal Kannada Daily Udayavani in its 27th July issue. But the India’s National News Paper since 1878, THE HINDU, maintained its ‘studied’! silence. Until this writing there was no reference to it, and it is the most circulated English daily of coastal Karnataka published from Mangalore. Like Achutanandan, it was A.K. Antony, Union Defence Minister and former Kerala CM, whose blunt remark about Marad violence had similarly raised hackles of these groups. While all Indians agree with their views or not, they at least displayed the courage of their conviction in hitting the nails on the head without mincing words. Look at both of them, they are politicians of rare integrity and honesty and therefore what they say carries lot of weight. And mind you, both of them are opposed to right wing BJP, supposedly a party of Hindus. Their stand does put both CPI and Congress in a bit of spot, but they are not unduly concerned, and their parties are not in a position to rebut them. However what need to be appreciated is there is truth in what they are saying and what is Government of India doing about it, so are our ‘conditioned’ media men and women? If BJP wants to hit back, can they be faulted?
Millennium Development Goals have envisioned a hunger free world. Right enough, the UPA Government in Delhi have taken upon itself the enactment of National Food Security Bill. We have taken it up in Focus, for the significance it has. Hope readers shall find it interesting. Do revert with your thoughts. Rest of the issues are as usual.