MONTH-IN-PERSPECTIVE-JANUARY 2021

NEW DELHI: It is deeply disturbing to see that a section of Indians whose determined agenda is only to destabilize the present dispensation at the centre in joining hands, ostensibly in support of agitation by Punjab farmers. Prima facie they are not supporting farmers at all. Trudeau from Canada supported Indian farmers’ agitation because of his local politics to keep Canadian sardars happy who are his voters. But Canada has forgotten it's the same Khalistani Sardars who bombed Air India Boing KANISHKA in the middle of Atlantic killing some 400 innocent civilians of all nationalities including most Indians by making fool of Canadian Security apparatus at the Toronto airport. Ritudaman Singh Malik, one of the masterminds, who is a Canadian, was acquitted on questionable grounds. Then you have those 40 or so MPs from the UK. They are mostly Khalistaani supporters or Pakistanis and those who are on the pay roll of Pakistan. Then you have Badals of Punjab having lost power to Congress in Punjab with very high stakes in agricultural produce marketing, itching to take on Modi government. Then there is Pawar, another agricultural income affected politician, joining the bandwagon and asserting with the support of opportunistic political family outfit of Shiv Sena, only to hurt the NDA government to score political points, without the interest of the country. Then there are those who are unhappy with the government at the centre with supposedly Hindu supported BJP and by extension Narendra Modi, and growing in political acceptance, joining the agitation caravan. Of course the Congress, the Communists, SP, BSP, TRS, DMK, TMC, AAP etc. all driven with single point program of fixing Modi government. It could be true that there are issues like not having taken farmers associations and bodies on board while drafting the law. But both houses of parliament have passed these laws with appropriate procedures. Of course pushing one man's agenda, however well intentioned, needs to have a relook. It could also be true that private corporation have been given an opening to enter the agricultural sector. But then liberalization of market economy has been an ongoing programme of all governments in Delhi except Communists. You don’t do you are damned, you do you are damned! All that the government may be pressured to do is to refer these laws to a committee of economists, social scientists, bureaucrats with appropriate background and a representative from all major political parties with complete media cover so that the transparency is visible. Hope there is a breakthrough in the impasse and all take India into consideration for the larger national interest. NEW DELHI:CSE, Centre for Science & Environment had gone public some days ago, that most branded HONEY available in the market is adulterated. They are using sweetening agents of different kinds to increase the weight and in the process make a killing with lower cost and higher rates as they are branded to the detriment of public health. CSE report had accused big names like Dabur, Patanjali and other leading HONEY brands of adulteration. Reportedly both these manufacturers and marketers have protested. But CSE is reportedly on strong ground and they have already made a presentation to FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India), the regulator meant to look into quality aspect of food products. And comes this report datelined New Delhi “Government may curb import of China’s honey adulterant”. There may not be any competitor to Chinese market intelligence in their ability to identify demand for products. In India’s business class, unfortunately cheating is a way of life for a large section. So, adulteration of every item of consumption is an ongoing business practice. Quality and purity of a product is not an Indian strength. Chinese had identified that Honey marketing companies are using sugary syrups of all kinds of quality to mix with honey and sell. According to the report some 11000 tonnes of syrup was imported with some 70% coming from China. Micro, Small & Medium enterprises minister Nithin Gadkari, apparently worried about the livelihood of those engaged in honey bee farming as cottage industry, but not of the health of consuming public or that of business malpractices by industry big wigs. Honey being adulterated, sold and consumed since ages. There have been reports in the past about these adulteration practices, but nothing serious happened. Its only when CSE, the respected environment watch dog revealed that 10 of 13 honey brands could not clear the adulteration test, authorities took note. Better late than never, government should ban the import of Fructose Syrup, which is used as Honey adulterant. Even if slightly expensive, branded HONEY should be without any adulteration mix. So also those who are engaged in traditional Honey bee farming are encouraged to market their product through some organized effort to reap better price and for consuming public to get pure Honey at reasonable price. Hope the CSE initiative with FSSAI intervention, wayward companies like Dabur, Patanjali and others are asked to mend their ways and consumers get quality products. NEW DELHI:So the Bharat Bandh has come and gone. Except Punjab, the epicenter of protest, it was mixed and almost ineffective in most parts of India. In Punjab, government supported the bandh. As reports are available in the media, news is farmers led by many leaders are demanding the repeal of these 3 laws; which were designed to reform the agriculture sector from the exploitational dimension. Unfortunately opposition parties having been caught in the bind is endorsing the farmers demand from Punjab knowing full well that they are wrong. And they called on President Ramnath Kovind with a memorandum demanding the rollback of reforms included in these 3 bills. Free Press Journal, in its editorial has remarked “Many of opposition worthies had pressed for the very same reforms while in power. The latest to join the galaxy of opportunists is the AAP fuehrer Arvind Kejriwal. As chief minister of Delhi, he took the lead in notifying farm reforms in Union Territory, but he is now shame facedly claims to be against them. The AAP government criminalized farm waste burning some months ago. And farmers from Punjab are demanding repeal by decriminalizing such burning. And AAP is with farmers. What a hypocrisy! He even falsely claimed that he was put under house arrest on the day of bandh”. This is opportunism at its lowest. According to the news paper, it is the farmers from Punjab who are hell bent upon the repeal of these 3 legislations, since ‘they have a deep financial stake in ensuring the indefinite continuance of the system of wheat and paddy procurement at the minimum support price. Though Madhya Pradesh now produces a higher tonnage of wheat, and invariably of a superior quality as well, it is the Punjab farmer who has come to develop a vested interest in the MSP mechanism for marketing his produce. Should the Government give in to the unreasonable demand for jettisoning the long overdue reforms, there can be no guarantee that future procurement under the MSP mechanism would absorb the entire quantities of wheat and paddy. Servicing the interest alone of nearly Rs 2 lakh crore in borrowed funds for procurement of foodgrain stored in the FCI godowns inflicts a heavy cost on the public exchequer. FCI has a legitimate reason not to stock wheat and paddy over and above the requirement to maintain an officially mandated minimum buffer stock. The point is that the Punjab farmers ought to switch gradually to cash crops, animal husbandry, poultry etc. The FCI is a relic of the era of food shortages when the country lived from, as they said those days, from ship to mouth. Searing memories of the begging bowl economy, with the PL-480 wheat distributed through the countrywide ration-shop network may not haunt the younger generations fortunate to have been born in an era of food surpluses. But the tragedy is that the Punjab farmers insist on keeping alive the system devised for an earlier period. Such a vested interest in the past is inimical to the modernisation of Indian agriculture”. Also there are many worthies in civil society seeing this from communal prism. Only because the central government is of BJP headed NDA and because it has supposedly mainly Hindu supporters. Those who are anti BJP they are in support of farmers protest, right or wrong. It is indeed very sad that a larger long term national goal is attempted to be sacrificed at the altar of selfish short-term interest of a small section. Here it is pertinent to quote Divender Sharma, a well known Agriculture Sector Expert. In 2010 he had gone on record that for the year 2009/10, Punjab middlemen, known as ARHTIYAS, had pocketed Rs. 783 crores as commission for doing practically nothing. According to him during the past decade these ARHTIYAS have pocketed Rs. 6400 crores and there are some 20,000 of them, who are also into money lending to farmers. Due to the size of the unearned income and number of these looters of the system, their hold on the government apparatus is enormous. They use their clout to their advantage every time central government tries to help farmers, to get the terms of payment changed. That’s how, all payment for procurement of wheat & paddy goes through these ARHTIYAS. Divender Sharma also writes “Instead of recovering Rs. 6400 crores that the ARHTIYAS have pocketed in the past ten years, the Punjab government has allowed them to fleece the farmers for another year. Thus the loot continues”. However what is also important is the NDA government in Delhi, should have taken the views of a cross section of opinion makers like Divender Sharma and his ilk, instead of the usual ‘I/we know better attitude’ which is prevailing currently in the corridors of power. Now that some farmers have approached the Supreme Court for the annulment of the enactment, it is a welcome development. As the ultimate of arbiter of justice the highest court of the land shall see the merit in those 3 legislations after hearing all sides. Justice should not only be seen as done but it actually happens on the ground. NEW DELHI:A 94 years old lady Veera Sarin, suddenly woke up after almost 45 years to question the constitutionality of proclamation of Emergency at the midnight of 25th June 1975 by the then President of India Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed on the recommendation of the government of Indira Gandhi. Reportedly she has suffered due to the imposition of State of Emergency all over the country. She claims Rs. 25 crores as compensation. India is a free country, as long as one is not causing any public nuisance or is being violent; the person has every right to give expression to his/her desire. In this case this Veera Sarin appoints one of the most expensive lawyers, Harish Salve, to represent her in the Supreme Court. Prima facie, it’s a bit bizarre, an old lady complaining to get reddressal to her suffering, perceived or real, after close to 5 decades. She wants the act of proclamation of Emergency declared as ‘unconstitutional’, which prima facie, was any way unconstitutional, purely for lack of valid grounds. But why she waited for so long? Why she wants to claim Rs. 25 crores as damages? Chances are Supreme Court may declare the imposition of Emergency in June 1975 as ‘unconstitutional’. But very unlikely it would entertain the compensation of Rs. 25 crores as damages, only on the ground of such an inordinate delay of 45 long years. Of course Harish Salve will try his best to win the case for his client. But frankly it does not make any sense, except to establish responsibility of those who helped the emergency to sustain for 22 months. Yes, it has its value in terms of constitutional propriety and such measures should not be resorted to, unless the country is passing through some grave situation. Hope Apex Court shall take the call appropriately, so that the contemporary history of India stands rewritten to include the observation of the highest court of the land on this epochal event, for the information of posterity. UTTAR PRADESH:A bunch of oft repeated terms ‘Love Jihad’ is being increasingly used in public space these days. With Uttar Pradesh having enacted a statute to prohibit conversion only for the purpose of marriage between two hetero individuals, from different religious background, these terms have become bit ‘notorious’, if the usage of this word is permitted. Love Jihad, primarily in vogue to describe marriage of Hindu girls to Muslim boys. Lately even Christian parents have started to use this pair of words when their daughters were allegedly lured by Muslim men and got married after converting them to Islam. It is evident in the debate that there is a victim and there is an accused. The accused always the Muslim men, their parents and of course the clergy since they are the ones who force the woman to convert since wedding cannot be legalized in Islam if both the woman and man are not Muslims. There are evidences in the public space that both Hindu parents and Christian parents did not oppose Love Jihad marriages if their daughters are not forced into becoming Muslim. Of course there are boys/men among Muslims who stood by their ‘would be wife’ in their desire to keep their religion. Sadly they are few and far between. Be that as it may, comes an interview in TOI by Historian Aparna Vaidik, an Associate Professor at Ashoka University. Here it is pertinent to observe that sadly the print-media took generally a partisan view to paint Hindu parents, and now Christian parents as villains in this ‘Love drama’, whether it is the TOI or The Hindu and there are others too. Clearly Aparna Vaidik has somewhat different views unlike others, seeing it from a Hindu caste perspective, but at the end she too jumps in as a fellow traveler stating that “A conversation about India’s violent inheritance is overdue”. Here, it may not be wrong to state that TOI has an unstated agenda to portray Hindu society in poor light. At the outset, we all should recognise that there is no society which is absolutely fair and just in all its dealing with everything that is living. All of us, across the world of biosphere, are unfair and unjust at least to some extent. It may be 5% to 95%. We are living in a world where less violent and more tolerant are more acceptable than vice versa. Therefore, the very fact that Prof Aparna Vaidik talks freely about all her reservations and opinions and her interlocutors are as free and breathing, as a bird in the sky, the atmosphere where they live is certainly more open and tolerant. Another aspect is in every human inter-course, down the ages, there has been violence, between stronger and the weak, haves and have nots, powerful and less powerful. This has been so across the spectrum. Inequity is an inherent dimension in all human societies. Yet the truth is India remained India only because of the majority among the majority are non-violent and there are enough and more non-Hindus writing on such situation and admiring the catholicism of Indian society. These non-Hindu writers, whether Muslim or Christian have openly admitted that SECULARISM in India is safe only because as MJ Akbar puts it “9 out 10 Hindus are not violent against non-Hindus”. The conclusion by Prof. Aparna Vaidik that, “Idea of ‘Love Jihad’ is not simply about the Hindu Muslim divide. It’s intrinsically tied to the caste system” is one more attempt at Hindu bashing. That’s rather sad. KARNATAKA: TOI, Mangalooru, had these 4 headlines on page 4 with reports 1) ‘NEP to encourage critical thinking’ 2) ‘Bad time for Edu Sector’ 3) ‘Muslims are worried: Ex CM’ 4) ‘FDs Not attached’. All these 4 reports had one common line printed in dark letters: Continued from page 1. Having seen the 1st page, I was looking to link these 4 reports on page 4 which highlighted “continued from page 1. On page 1, there were 3 reports which ended to indicate that the report has continued on page 4. Of the 3 reports only one could be connected, that is “FDs not attached”, for which the 1st page title was “HC to ED: Under what power were Amnesty a/c frozen”. Thus there were 3 reports in P/4 which couldn’t be linked, besides two other reports “Ph3 Covax in trials begin in Bengalooru” and “No Covid surge after Deepawali, cases are falling” indicating continued on P4 were not there at all on page 4. So from where do they begin and where do they end! What is happening with the NEWS PAPER TO THE NATION or is it to do with the highly paid staff masquerading as ‘responsible journos’! I wish somebody calls me up from TOI and tell me that I am wrong. Would they? KERALA: 27th March 1992, turned out to be the blackest day for Catholics in Kerala. An 18 year young girl, Bina Thomas, who grew up to become Sister Abhaya,, a student of St. Pius X Convent in Kottayam was found dead in a well within the compound of the convent, too young to have committed suicide in the dead of the night. On-the-spot investigation found out that it was an unnatural death; with tell tale marks on her body. However both local police and crime branch reportedly concluded the death as suicide. Clearly there were people who didn’t want to let the truth come out. She was done to death. She was attacked and thrown into the well, or was it, she was killed and then thrown into the well! But it emerged as a cold blooded murder. But murder by whom and for what, that too in a convent! Whole of Kerala, who are mostly well informed were shocked and baffled. Early past of 1992 and end of 2020, a few days before the Christmas, after more than 28 years, this case of the young girl having been murdered has seen some end. After an arduous labyrinth the CBI special court in Thiruvanantapuram pronounced Father Thomas Kottoor and Sister Sephy were found guilty of murder of Sister Abhaya and on 23/12/2020, both were awarded life imprisonment and Rs. 12 lakhs in fine. Court was more harsh on Father Kottoor. Reportedly they were charged under IPC section 302- murder and section 201-destruction of evidence. However Father Kottoor, shall undergo double life term and pay Rs. 6.5 of the fine, since he was also charged under section 202-giving false information and section 449- trespass to commit crime. What needs to be highlighted here is since this Christian denomination –Knanaya Catholic Church- tiny but influential, tried its best to sabotage the investigation. Thus, local police and crime branch both concluded the death to be a suicide. Groups of activists got involved to challenge the police version of suicide. A year after the alleged murder, the story of Fr. Kottoor & Fr. Jose Poorthirikal having illicit affair with Sister Sephy came to light. On that fateful night, allegedly Sister Abhaya found Fr. Kottoor and Sister Sephy in compromising position, when Sister Abhaya had entered kitchen to drink water. Allegedly, they attacked the young student, hacked her to death, and threw the body into the well. All three were arrested, but Fr. Jose was acquitted since on that fateful day, he was absent. After an year, under public pressure, the case was handed over to CBI, who too under political pressure slept over it for 27 years. Both accused applied to Kerala High Court to discharge them since their culpability was not established. On 8th April 2019 KHC rejected their appeal. Suddenly CBI woke up. Unfortunately even CBI initially took the stand that it was a death by suicide. Fortunately there were people with some values left, who persisted with the justice to have its last word. Sometime truth can be stranger than fiction. Most of the key evidences were destroyed. Key witnesses went turtle. But it was left to a petty thief, who had barged into the convent compound on that night of 27th March 1992 to steal, had seen Fr. Kattoor inside the convent who stood by his statement all through, which reliably fixed the matter and CBI court relied on his consistent deposition and decided the case. Here it may be relevant to state that sex among ‘celibate’ clergy is an open secret. But they want to enjoy the sex without the responsibility of family burden. It is time all religions must scrap the vow of celibacy among clergy so that, they can live as man and wife with their chosen partner. So that the possibility of getting caught is not there and innocents are not killed as a result. WORLD: Kaalakke thakka kola kattu, is a time tested idiom used in coastal Karnataka. This only means, in spirit change is permanent, keep changing according to the time. Time indeed is a greatest common denominator. In the sweep of time everything gets swept away. The other day there was this news datelined Dubai “In a major shift, UAE eases Islamic personal laws”. UAE, or United Arab Emirates is a union of six emirates, Abu Dhabhi, Dubai, Sharjah, Rasal- Khaima, Fujeira, Ajman & Umm- Al- Quwain. These countries are in the sea front of Persian Gulf facing Iran with Oman on one side and Saudi Arabia on the other. So clearly the geographical land mass of UAE is surrounded by Islamic countries and UAE itself is united on Islamic background. But fortunately, these Islamic countries especially UAE have allowed pragmatism to enter their drawing rooms. They were the first set of countries that have recognized Israel and went ahead with establishing diplomatic relation. This latest relationship is expected to be a win-win arrangement for both countries, economically and politically. Come 2020, with Corona 19 invading the world, the way world looked at things, changed radically. Economic survival was the name of the game. UAE was, for the larger part, a trading economy, an import export hub, with tourism and oil revenue contributing to a good measure. However pandemic has played havoc with all and UAE was no exception. But UAE realized its pitfalls pretty early and decided to open the emirates for tourism. Of all the changes, the governments of these emirates agreed and eased stringent Islamic Personal Laws prevailing therein. Authorities opened alcohol consumption to its Muslim population by granting permits and allowed freedom from restrictions on consumption of alcohol. In a country where foreigners are 9 to 1 local, it would be a blessing and boon for liquor trade. Similarly earlier the local laws forbade unwed couple to cohabit. It’s been now removed and decriminalized. This will greatly enhance the personal freedom of its own female population. This relaxation would go a long way in making peaceful co-existence so much easier for all those who live there or those who travel as tourists. Similarly the so-called honour killing by the so-called puritans will be a crime like any other crime. Surely this will lead to easier breathing by all. It is true there have been protests in the social media by those who felt outraged because of this formal relaxation by UAE authorities. This was only expected. But it is time for those obscurantist to change their stripes. After all, world is changing and why not Islamic society? WORLD: International arbitration tribunal “Ordered India to pay $1.4 billion to Cairn Energy” was the news in print media, a few days ago. It was a disappointing development for India, which had similarly lost a case against Vodafone with a $3 billion tax demand. It is a truth that the business is in business of business only to make money. But they make money in a business friendly atmosphere created by a country’s government. Governments fund their development projects from the resources collected from its citizens vide many measures like, excise duty, commercial tax and personal income tax and corporate income tax etc. It’s corporate and High Net Worth (HNW) individuals who pay tax on their profits and income. Most ordinary people pay taxes on the goods and services available in the market. Since the number of those who pay taxes on goods and services is more than those in the HNW individuals groups and corporates, the revenue for the state is more from the lower middle class and poorer sections of society since their number is generally large. Now that the business is in business for making profit, but the profit is risk bearing. So you earn rewards of profit because you take risk and business pays tax on its income as stipulated by the law. But sometime they can lose, like all risks have such a possibility. What happens in such cases? If there is no recorded profit, they do not have to pay tax. Some time or may be even more often, business may not record profit or may record more expenditure and hide its profit and thus deny the legitimate dues of the state. Many times state is helpless in such situation. State has given all kinds of encouragement both financial and providing physical infrastructure for the business to grow. But more often than not business double crosses the state for the selfishness of its promoters. Thus many times business goes scot free and enjoys the perks of deceit. Also when there is more income, after a threshold the higher rates of taxes are applicable, based on the progressive taxation principle of what traffic can bear. Also, when there are legitimate losses suffered by business, governments have gone out of its way to help overcome its difficulties like interest waiver or loan write off etc. But business is always YEH DIL MAANGE MORE, they are like Olive Twist, never happy with whatever government does for it. Therefore, it is clearly within the domain of fair business practice, when the government claims its share when there is windfall gain, as it happened in the case of Vodafone and Cairn. The arbitrators have only seen the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the law. The opportunity to make money was created by the government of India and it’s only fair that they should pay the fair share of the profit as tax on unearned income, period. In a situation where in the larger interest of state, which exists for its people, the private enterprise should necessarily pay a part of their profits, whether law specifically provides for it or not. After all the state is not snatching it from the business but the avarice of the business should be called to question.