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INDIA @72: ARTICLE 370 & BETI BACHAO TO MLA BACHAO

So, the 73^rd Independence Day has come and gone. 16^th August 2019, was just another day and it was life as usual. As is customary, Prime Minister Modi spoke to the nation for some 100 minutes or so after unfurling the tricolour on the ramparts of Red Fort. It was the first Independence Day speech after the emphatic victory of NDA III or the Election 2019.

More confident and more assured, the leader of the ruling combine Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the New India of his dreams. Of course, he sounded more subdued unlike his usual rhetoric’s. The excessive rain in many parts of India, which led to flooding, causing death and destruction, in different parts of India, was indeed a matter of deep concern, which found expression in his address.

Continuing his address he mentioned “while 2014-19 was a period of fulfilling basic needs, the years from 2019 and beyond will see your aspirations and dreams getting fulfilled”. This is bit of a self-congratulation. While it is true that, there have been efforts from the government to address some of the basic needs, the unfinished job in this basic needs’ sector is still humungous. Truly speaking most of 2014-19 period was a work-in-progress and it has to continue into 2019-24. The huge victory at the Loksabha election of May 2019, should not make the Modi regime forget the ground realities. However it is also true, “Trust and confidence that everyone reposed in us over the last five years will inspire us to serve the nation with more vigour”. Indeed NDA III and its leadership under Modi has to work with more vigour and commitment.

He touched on the abrogation of article 370 in more detail. We have discussed, in following pages separately the issue of irrelevance of article 370 in Indian constitution and how its repeal was more than overdue.

He touched upon the scarcity of drinking water. We have heard in the past “Water water everywhere but no water to drink”. Indeed, the abundance of rain has not ensured abundant drinking water. This is something, every government, both Centre and State, have failed to address for all these 72 years of free India. He spoke about Rs3.5 lakhs crores provision on Jal-Jeevan Mission, and stressed on water conservation, rain water harvesting, sea water and waste water treatment, irrigation including micro irrigation and water management. Here it is pertinent to recapitulate an incident involving Ms. Nirmala Sitaraman. As commerce minister a few years ago, she had come to Mangalooru to address the local crowd about the positives of 3 years rule by Modi regime. She was giving a brighter picture of the then government of Modi-NDA III. While addressing the media a local journalist of an English periodical enquired about – why Drinking Water is not a priority even after 70 years?. Unsure of how to handle the question, she asked her collegue, one Chandhry, a minister of state, to field the question. Clearly, he too was bowled by the question, and he said. “Drinking water comes under state list. You must address this question to state.” But the journalist persisted. “But, how Swatch Bharath Abhiyan is in central list?”. Question remained unanswered. A photo journalist quipped “This was the best question, and both the ministers couldn’t answer it”.

Another very important point Prime Minister Modi touched was the issue of population explosion. In fact both drinking water management and control of population have been touched by NDA III for the first time. Importance of both these issues need not be over emphasized. Both issues deserve constant monitoring for the overall picture of India to change.

Mentioning ‘rapidly increasing population poses various new challenges for the country and future generation,’ he lauded ‘the emergence of small families among a section of Indians and they should be recognised and honoured’.

We all recognise that population explosion is the mother of all problems. Whether it is poverty, whether it is poor sanitation, whether it is malnutrition, whether it is illiteracy, whether it is housing, health or even unemployment and under employment, pressure on infrastructure, the genesis of all these problems is over population. But sadly none of our governments for all these 72 years, failed to have a coherent population policy, except a slogan “Hum Do Hamara Do”. It is time that we have to tackle the issue of population head-on with imaginative measures to control the galloping population. No wonder PM Modi, reiterated “we need to worry about population explosion”.

One of the fresh approach by the Modi led NDA III has been the weeding out of top officials, for varieties of reasons, like, corruption, incompetence, negative work culture etc. This is something no other government has tried in the past. This is good for the efficiency and improved delivery system within the body politic, and has sent appropriate signals at appropriate level that NDA III led by PM Modi means business.

“The meaning of an Independent India for me is to create an ecosystem that gradually reduces the involvement of govt. in the lives of people”, while adding “keeping this in mind we have set a dream target of building a 5 trillion $ economy”.

But dear Prime Minister, while it is good to dream big, we need to recognise that there is nothing as a ‘trickle down’ effect in the nations economic growth, where those who are strong financially will continue to grow and those who are weak will either stagnate and slip further down. They need to be ‘hand held’ at times, with government intervention only.

Welfare measures are part of the socio-political management of any country including the U.S, Japan and all advanced European countries. So the question of ‘gradually reduces the involvement of the government in the lives of people’ does not arise. Involvement and interference are clearly two different things.

Winding up his speech, he mentioned about making the country free of single-use-plastic from Oct 2^nd, being the Gandhi Jayanthi day, so also promote domestic tourism and exhorted Indians to travel with families to at least 15 tourist destinations before 2022.

All in all, he touched most issues of evolving India. However he failed to touch on the negatives among his party legislators and party functionaries. He could have used the occasion to publicly warn these black-sheeps in his party. We have tried to highlight the negatives among the BJP MLAs in a separate piece in following pages. But when all is said and done. India, that is Bharat, is still a developing nation with poor Human Development Index (HDI) as categorised by UNDP. India ranks 130 among 189 countries, while Sri Lanka, our southern neighbor is at 76. In other words Sri Lanka is better than India at almost double of what India is in HDI. Sri Lanka is better than even China. China ranked 86 out of 189 countries, while Israel ranked 22 in the very high development group and Kuwait at 56. According to UNDP, there are four groups, like VERY HIGH/HIGH/MEDIUM/LOW.

Of the five countries that we discussed above, Israel is in VERY HIGH DEVELOPMENT GROUP, while Kuwait, Sri Lanka & China is in HIGH DEVELOPMENT GROUP and India in Middle development group. Kuwait is the richest, but Israel is not as rich. China is the country with higher population. So its not the riches that brings the better HDI, nor the population that affects the HDI to be lower, but the policy intervention of the government of the day that brings about better Human Development Index (HDI). India’s Planners need to understand this dimension of development. Hope the NDA III walk the talk. “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas”. However, it has to be recognized that reduction in population can bring about better HDI, an issue PM could have touched, but did not.

ABROGATION OF ARTICLE 370

Pouring over the newspapers and periodicals, came across a statement attributed to the present Home Minister of India, Amith Shah. He is reported to have stated at a meeting sometime in late July, that “We are not a government for five or ten years. We are the Indian government and we are responsible to the people of this country; not from today, but from 1947. We are answerable to them for all the rights and wrongs and we will correct them”.

Every government, elected on the basis of adult franchise is responsible to the people who elected them. It is Universal. But every government also has its own interpretation of what constitutes responsibility towards its people. Sometime it matches with the expectation of its people and sometime it goes off the tangent.

BJP government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been somewhat different, unlike all other earlier governments. And it has been visible from 2014 itself. Although it has not been spectacular in its performance, there are many positives visible to all discernible unbiased citizens. At times it left people aghast by the suddenness of its action, euphemistically called ‘surgical strikes’.

It was indeed a surgical strike, when on 5^th August 2019, the Home Minister Amit Shah shook the nation’s senses when he told the parliament that the government is revoking the constitutional provision of article 370, which granted special status to Jammu & Kashmir. While doing so, government also bifurcated the state into two Union Territories-J&K and Ladakh.

The resolution on the abrogation of article 370 was passed by 125 to 61 votes in Rajya Sabha. The following day, on the 6^th Aug, after a day long debate, the Bill was passed by 370 votes infavour and 70 against in Lok Sabha. It is expected to be a law anytime soon.

Post announcement by the Home Minister, as expected there were heated exchanges on both days. If Congress had called it ‘murder of democracy’, ‘catastrophic’ and ‘black day’ etc., other parties who opposed it were equally vociferous. However supporters of the move had a different story to tell. Numbers are clearly telling where the wind was blowing. Among those who supported were, Mayawati’s BSP, Arvind Kejriwal of AAP, YSR Congress, Biju Janath Dal, TDP, AIADMK and Shiv Sena. Congress, the main architect of article 370 was shocked to react sensibly. Congressman from Kashmir-Gulam Nabi Azad had remarked “Kashmir considered as India’s crown has been chopped off”.

Prima facie, for all the 72 years that have gone by, the thought that article 370 could ever be revoked was difficult to perceive, with so many procedural complexities involved.

BJP as a political party had always mentioned in its election manifesto, right from the days of Jana Sangh that it will scrap article 370 when it came to power. But the ease with which it was done has surprised all. They were less 2/3 rd majority in Loksabha. They were in minority in Rajyasabha, but managed the passage of the bill in style.

So, from now on J&K is another state of India and no more special status, and all those problems inherited due to this forced article on an unsuspecting nation by the Indian leadership of 1949. Indeed as BJP claimed “We are rectifying a historical blunder”.

1.     Looking back in time, it was in 1949, upon the specific demand of Sheik Abdullah article 370 was included in the constitution. Except Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, all opposed it. Even Nehru too, probably was not happy but succumbed to the pressure of Sheikh Abdulla. After all it was Nehru’s government which put Sheik behind bar once. Article 370 gave some special privileges to J&K. Table below indicates status before and after, the abrogation of the article 370

BEFORE

1.                 Special powers exercised by J&K.

2.                 Dual Citizenship-Indian & Kashmiri-with separate passports.

3.                 Separate flag for J&K

4.                 No reservation for Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist minorities.

5.                 RTI not applicable.

6.                 6 years duration for Legislative Assembly.

7.                 Indians from other states cannot buy land or property in J&K.

8.                 If a J&K woman marries an outsider she will lose J&K Citizenship.

9.                 Panchayats had no rights.

10.            RTE not applicable.

NOW

1.                 No more special powers.

2.                 Single Indian citizenship.

3.                 Only Indian tricolour will be the flag.

4.                 16% reservation for minorities.

5.                 RTI will be applicable.

6.                 5years like all other assemblies.

7.                 Open for purchasing land or property by all Indians.

8.                 No issue since J&K citizenship is scrapped.

9.                 Like all other states, J&K Panchayat would enjoy rights available to it

10.             RTE will be applicable.

The fact of the existence of article 370 has truly never helped ordinary Kashmiri’s. It was clearly discriminatory. No development took place because industries could not come to J&K. Employment generation also did not happen due to the lack of industries. Due to many negatives of gargantuan proportions and growth of militancy leading to terror activities supported from across the border made the scrapping of article 370 essential.

FROM BETI BACHAAVO TO MLA BACHAAVO: BJP’S NEW INDIA!

Launched on 22^nd Jan 2015 in Haryana, by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a joint initiative of MOWCD, MOHFW and MOHRD and the Prime Minister, was intended to generate awareness and improve the efficiency of welfare services meant for girls in India, backed by appropriate funding. Certainly it was with good intentions that Prime Minister Modi had initiated this programme of empowering millions of our girls.

There is no doubt there have been efforts to translate this vision into reality, but the sad part is there are men and women who have tried to derail this laudable initiative of Prime Minister Modi. In his visions for NEW INDIA, where everyone in the margins, including vulnerable sections of both men and women, are encouraged and probably even assisted in dreaming of better days and possibly even realize their dreams slowly but steadily. But in a country of close to 1350 million Indians of all hues, there are forces, organisatons, men and women who have tried to derail this vision, for their own selfish agenda. Such a situation is not different in different parts of the world. But, India is a democracy, largest one at that, which unfortunately suffers from more irresponsible rights mongers, who do not think of their duties to their fellow men, their society and the nation at large.

Every government for all these 72 years of free India has tried in its limited way to improve the lot of common man. But we are all aware how vested interest groups within the body politic, within the section of ruling parties, within the section of law makers and of course within the section of our great Indian public have tried to aggrandize their personal fortunes and those of their friends and cronies. These groups have tried to commit all unlawful and illegal acts for their own selfish benefits. It is also true that despite all their negative contributions, the country has mercifully remained one, and has progressed to a great extent with vast majority of law abiding citizens standing with the government of the day in being fair and square. Yet and yet….

The latest story of this 17 year old girl from Unnao, having been physically assaulted by an elected member, to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, right inside his house, when she had approached him for help in getting an employment, tragically, another women Shashi Singh was the accomplice in abetting the crime.

It happened on 4^th June 2017. However on 11^th June 2017, this Shashi Singh and her daughter Nidhi Singh again, reportedly lured this minor girl to accompany her son Shubham Singh to Kanpur promising employment there. On the way, she was allegedly raped multiple times by Shubham Singh and his driver Awadesh Tiwari. Continuing her ordeal with unknown men, she was allegedly sold to one Brijesh Yadav for Rs60000/-. An FIR was filed on 20^th June 2017, against Shubham Singh and Awadesh Tiwari.

After tracking down the minor girl from a village, she was sent for medical examination by the police. On 22^nd she recorded her statement in front of a Judicial Magistrate, narrating her suffering and named the trio named above and some unknown assailants. Another FIR was registered under POSCO and all accused were arrested and sent to jail. She had also made a statement against the MLA Kuldip Singh Sengar that she was raped by him on 4^th June at 8:00pm in his house, when she had called on him looking for some employment. But reportedly police did not allow her to name the MLA in the FIR.

On 17^th AUG 2017, reportedly she wrote an open letter to UP-CM Yogi Adithyanath. Strangely nothing seem to have moved, but the minor victim’s father was reportedly assaulted by MLA’s men almost after 10 months and instead of attackers, the victim’s father was arrested on 5^th April 2018 on some false charges and put in judicial custody, clearly indicating police connivance in influencing the course of events. He accused MLA’s brother Atul Sengar of having led the attack. But reportedly no action was taken against the accused. Four days later minor victim attempted self immolation outside the house of CM Yogi Adithyanath accusing the police of inaction. A day after, on 9^th April, victim’s father succumbed to his injuries in the hospital. Suddenly police acted to arrest Atul Sengar and six policemen were suspended. Public outcry followed and an FIR was registered against MLA Kuldip Singh Sengar, after more than 10 months. UP government handed over the file to CBI and case transferred to Allahabad High Court. As soon as CBI took this MLA for questioning, High Court ordered his arrest, followed by the arrest of Shashi Singh for complicity.

Harassment by the police started. They arrested the younger brother of victim’s father, who had earlier died in the hospital, on an 18 year old case of gun-firing. After that, except a mere statement of condemnation by PM Modi nothing moved, including CBI, slept over it. It was only after the truck collision on 28^th July 2019, (after some 26 months of the first incident of rape by MLA) and Supreme Court intervention, where two of victim’s relatives died and victim and her lawyer suffered serious injuries, allegedly engineered by MLA’s men, government acted. Reportedly victim had written to Chief Justice, Ranjan Gogoi on 12^th July alleging coercion by MLA’s men, but it took over 2 weeks to reach the table of Chief Justice. Here it is important to quote what the brother of the victim’s lawyer, Devendra Singh had to say. According to him ‘the minor rape survivor had sent over 33 letters to concerned officials in the past one year, claiming a threat to her life but none took cognizance of the these letters’. In the meanwhile the deadly accident took place and the principal witness to fix MLA Sengar is fighting for life.

First it was UP police who did not act, even Chief Minister Yogi Adithyanath betrayed this minor victim by complete inaction to save the MLA. CBI took more than 12 months when, as per POSCO, it should have taken only two months. It is very clear in Unnao case, how the entire law and order apparatus has been systematically subverted for over two years, because of the political influence of the accused. The fact that BJP took two years, that too only after Supreme Court took up the case and got  all cases transferred to Delhi, BJP leadership woke up to expel this rape accused MLA Kuldip Singh Sengar, confirms the attitude of power that be, only to MLA Bachav instead of Beti Bachav.

Here it is very pertinent to recollect incidents involving four BJP law makers from different states of India involved in criminal acts yet how BJP leadership have been acting differently with different MLAs.

If Unuao represented the ultimate humiliation of a minor girl, one that happened in Gujarat was barbaric enough to throw this MLA Balram Thawani out of BJP. But very sadly nothing happened to the MLA. He was found kicking, punching and thrashing a woman Neetu Tejwani. Her fault was she enquired about the water supply in her area in Ahmadabad. Reportedly, she was first slapped so hard that she fell on the ground following which this barbarian MLA kicked her, thrashed her and even put his boot on her face. Even her husband was beaten when he intervened. The entire incident was video graphed which was later posted on the social media. Disturbed administration instead of arresting the MLA admonished the MLA to patch up with the victim. And he goes with a raakhee to the women and gets it tied, as if it’s all over! How can any government remain mute in the face of such bestial act! And where is PM Modi, a Gujarathi himself, to protect the women of Gujarath? May be his wife could have come to the defense of this hapless woman when whole of Gujarat kept quiet.

Then you have this Akash Vijayavargiya, an MLA from Indore. He is the son of Kailash Vijayavargiya, a Vice President of BJP. He was found treating a Municipal Corporation employee like a cricket ball. He hit this employee with the bat, for doing his duty during demolition drive. PM Narendra Modi had reportedly remarked “I don’t care whose son he is, he and his patrons should be thrown out of the party,” while stating ‘Yeh Manmaani nahee chalegee’. MLA was arrested and is now out on bail. When proved guilty by the court, his political life will be sealed. At least some action!

Another MLA, where BJP acted with abnormal alacrity, was an MLA from Uttarakhand, Kunwar Pranav Singh Champion. His crime was he was found dancing with his licensed weapons. They were not illegal arms. All that the party could have done was to suspend or even cancel his arms’ license; instead he was expelled from the party for six years.

BJP Uttarakhand president Ajay Bhatt goes to town to tell “The BJP is a party which does not compromise on principles. Indiscipline by anyone can not be tolerated.” This is nonsense, since their reactions and actions are very selective for whatever reasons.

Unnao MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar was expelled from the party after 2 years of the crime. That too only after Supreme Court pulled up the UP government. At least more than a year earlier he was imprisoned after Allahabad High Court ordered his arrest. Even then BJP did not expel the MLA.

Akash Vijayavargiya, MLA from Indore has not been expelled despite being arrested, although PM Modi had, rather very unusually, reacted very angrily “throw him and his patrons out of BJP”.

Kunwar Singh Champion, at least he was not violent, did not cause physical injury to anybody. Yet he was expelled from the party for 6 years.

But the cake goes to Balram Thawani, a Gujarat MLA. He was the most power drunk. He publicly beat-up a woman very violently and caused the ultimate indignity of stamping the face of the fallen woman. Nothing, absolutely nothing happened to him. Because, he ostensibly patched up with the woman, he has not been touched. What chance the woman had in a macho society, to survive if she had declined to patch up! She was even beaten up by the brother of this MLA, who is a corporator of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation.

This is BJP for you with multiple standards. A party with a difference, it’s a joke.