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Sunday,
November 4, 2001,
Chandigarh, India   |
Vajpayee’s visit will boost Indo-Russian ties M. L. Madhu in Moscow AS Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee is visiting Russia today, it would be worthwhile to take stock of the Indo-Russian relations which are age old. Russia’s first contact with India began with Afanasy Nikitin, a merchant from Tver on the banks of the Volga river, who facing many odds and challenging difficulties, reached India in 1469 and lived there for three years. A legacy denied: All that Nehru stood for is now under attack |
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Lack of majority is BJP’s strength!
Humra Quraishi Sahmat meet
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Vajpayee’s visit will boost Indo-Russian ties
AS Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee is visiting Russia today, it would be worthwhile to take stock of the Indo-Russian relations which are age old. Russia’s first contact with India began with Afanasy Nikitin, a merchant from Tver on the banks of the Volga river, who facing many odds and challenging difficulties, reached India in 1469 and lived there for three years. He was primarily inspired to see and know India closely and probably explore some trade possibilities. He, therefore, freely mixed with common people, tried to understand their social, cultural and religious ideas, habits and traditions and gave them a written form in his book “Voyage beyond three seas”. Based on his personal experience, impressions and close contacts with all stratas of Indian society, this book presents a very vivid picture of India of those days. The beginning made by Afanasy Nikitin inspired the enterprising Indian traders and merchants to find good market in Russia. In the 16th century, Astrakhan became a big centre of Indian traders, who built settlements and opened bazaars there. Thus in the 16th and 17th century, economic and cultural ties between the two countries increased with greater sources of information and written accounts of travellers. A more profound and lasting period of relations started with Gerasim Stepanovich Lebedev, a Russian actor, musician and scholar, who spent 12 years in India from 1785 to 1797. Besides establishing a first European style theatre in Calcutta, he studied the character of some of the Indian languages, their sources of origin and affinity with Asian and European languages. He was the first Russian to point out the affinity of Sanskrit with European and Slavonic languages and may be rightly considered the founder of Indology in Russia. This followed the research work on comparative studies in linguistics and proximity and similarity of Sanskrit and Slavonic languages. In the thirties of the 19th century, regular and systematic study of Sanskrit started in St.Petersburg and Kazan Universities. In Kazan University, besides Sanskrit, Hindi, Marathi and some other Indian languages were also taught and a Sanskritology Chair was established. In Moscow, the Department of Oriental languages was opened in 1851 and Sanskrit Chair was established in St. Petersburg in 1855 in the Oriental Languages Department. By the end of the 19th century, Indology had grown firm roots in Russia. A very vital role in this field was played by a highly respected and recognized Russian scholar of ancient Indian languages and literature – Ivan Minaev (1840 – 1890). His two brilliant pupils Oldenburg and Scherbatsky carried further their teacher’s devoted work and initiated a Library on Buddhism which received world-wide recognition and appreciation. Scholars, specialists of Indian languages, literature, philosophy and folklore and even revolutionary democrats such as Chernyshevsky, Pisarev and Dobrolyubov made valuable contribution in getting the Russians acquainted with India’s past glory, historical and cultural heritage and the damage being done to it by the colonial British rule. Lenin, especially Lev Tolstoy and Maxim Gorky, strongly supported India’s struggle for freedom. Russian Indologists have done a remarkable research work in the field of ancient Indian religious thoughts, philosophy, history and literature; they have helped in translating a number of Indian monumental works in Russian. Thanks to the efforts and keen interest of Russian poets and men of letters, Rig Veda and Atharvved, immortal epics Mahabharata and Ramayana, some Upanishadas, Bhagavad Gita, Panchatantra, Hitopdesh, works of Sanskrit classics such as Kalidas, Shudrik and Bhartihari have been translated in Russian. Medieval age poetry of Kabir, Surdas, Tulsidas, Mirabai, Amir Khusro, Vidyapati and many others have reached the Russian readers. Amongst those who have made valuable contribution in this field, the names of the Russian poet Zhukovsky, the founder of the Russian Romantic school of poetry, historian and scholar Karamzin, poet Fet, academician Alexei Baranikov, who translated Saint poet Tulsidas’s Ram Charit Manas, popularly known as Tulsi Ramayan, deserve special mention. Lasting contribution to enrich the Indo-Russian cultural ties has been made by world famous artist, poet, scholar and traveller Nikolai Roerich, his wife Yelena and sons Yuri – an Indologist – and artist Svetoslav Roerich. After India attained Independence in 1947, cultural, literary, economic, trade, scientific and technical ties with the Soviet Union increased immensely. Mutual interest and understanding of the needs of proximity between the two countries, leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, especially, the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Soviet leader Nikita Khruschev and Brezhnev, Indira Gandhi and others ushered in a new era of co-operation in our relations in various fields. During the last five decades, many poets and writers, artists, singers, dancers have visited each other’s country under the cultural exchange programmes. A number of Russian and Soviet poets and writers have written poems and literary pieces dedicated to India. In these years translations of modern Indian poets and writers have been published in millions of copies in Russian and other languages of the Soviet Republics. Dozens of research works have been written. Literary works of Rabindranath Tagore, Sharat Chander, Prem Chand and a number of other modern Indian poets and writers are available to Russians and readers of various other languages of the former Soviet Union. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Moscow’s “Progress” and “Raduga” publishers and India’s Sahitya Academy and some other publishers, rich literary works of Russian classical and modern poets and writers such as Pushkin, Lermontov, Maya-kovsky, Chukovsky, Gogol, Lev Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Turgenev, Chekov, Gorky, Kuprin and many others have become accessible to Indian readers in a number of Indian languages. No less important is the contribution of Russian and Indian artists, painters, actors, dancers, composers, singers and musicians, joint film producers and theatrical workers in promoting cultural understanding of our heritage. Very impressive and successful cultural festivals, film festivals and art exhibitions organised by both the countries from time to time, have helped in promoting mutual understanding. Unfortunately, after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the end of 1991 and the difficulties and huge problems faced by Russia in the transitional period, the cultural and other ties between our two countries have suffered some setback. But they are being revived slowly and gradually. President Putin’s visit to India last year and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s forthcoming visit to Russia will hopefully go a long way in giving a new impetus and inspiration to the age-old cultural and other ties between our two countries. |
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A legacy denied: All that Nehru stood for is now under attack IN October, we remember Gandhiji. In November, thoughts of Nehru come to mind. His 112th birth anniversary falls on Nov 14. This year we have special reasons to remember Nehru with affection and pride. He remains the tallest among the nation’s leaders. He represents all that is noblest and best in our composite culture. Our democracy and the institutional traditions we have evolved owe much to his personality. Much denigrated in recent years by those who despise his philosophy and ideas, there is still much in him that can inspire future generations. His passion was to modernise India and bring it abreast with the rest of the world. It’s sad to think that if he were to visit us today, he would see an India being dragged back to the distant mythical past. Obscurantism is on the rise, modernism in retreat (or so it would seem); science and technology downgraded, astrology in the ascendant; history being re-written to glorify communal chauvinism. All that Nehru stood for is now under attack. Nehru’s dreams for India allowed us all to look forward to a great future. Though poor, we could live in hope, if not for ourselves, for our children and our grandchildren. The demolition programme of Nehru’s ideals began with the Janata government, under Morarji Desai. First he introduced the Rolling Plan, whatever that meant. The idea was, I suppose to dilute the Five Year Plan objectives and, of course, to show the world that we were moving away from the Soviet model. Morarji also wanted to end the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, signed during the Bangladesh war, but the External Affairs Ministry prevailed upon him not to. Morarji didn’t like India’s policy of non-alignment. He wanted us to be aligned properly with the Western powers. So he coined the phrase ‘genuine non-alignment’ to denote his own brand of alignment. This policy of being simultaneously aligned and non-aligned continues. It fits in with Vajpayee’s multi-masked government. Madhavrao Scindia, in an article in Mainstream in 1980 made this remark: “As far as India’s relations with the superpowers are concerned, I have not yet understood the Janata party’s phrase ‘genuine non-alignment’. What is ‘non-alignment’ and ‘genuine non-alignment’? It is like a husband telling his wife to be ‘genuinely faithful’.” Voices are heard these days asking for the revival of the non-aligned movement. While wars and conflicts darken our skies, it could have had an influential role. I don’t know if the movement is actually dead or just retired. Anyway, how can a movement survive when its leader itself has lost interest? In Nehru’s time, India was still a nation with ideals. It had some prestige and its voice was heard with respect around the world. Today, who listens to us? Stricken by poverty and ignorance, bogged down in parochial conflicts and sterile arguments, we appear to be a nation that has lost its way, drifting aimlessly. Nehru’s legacy maybe summarised as nationalism, secularism and democracy. While he lived nobody made much of the contradiction of an agnostic governing a nation of believers. But once he died, all the suppressed religious fervour came to the surface and now Ram Janmabhoomi rules our emotions more than the institutions of democracy that Nehru built by hard labour and dedication. Octavio Paz, poet and former Mexican ambassador in New Delhi, wrote about Nehru: “Whether among the precursors (of the national movement) in Bengal at the turn of the century or among certain leaders of the Congress, there was an ambiguity between their democratic ideas and their profound Hinduism. Their political nationalism was at times indistinguishable from their religious fervour, although they didn’t adopt the aberrant form of Hinduism of Sarvarkar and his followers. Nehru was the great exception. His attempt to modernise, which was partially realised, corresponds exactly to what he truly was. He was not, like his predecessors and associates, a soul divided by two traditions; his were rather a mind and sensibility torn apart by the nearly always tragic enigma of history. His waverings were due to the complexities of the circumstances, not to the influence of irreconcilable values and ideas. He loved India with a lucid love, and without sharing them, understood and accepted its contradictions. His love for Western civilisation on his rationalist and socialist side, was not stained by religious superstition, and he was able to see the Europeans as his equals”. May his spirit deliver our nation from obscurantism and lead it forward to enlightenment and prosperity. |
Punjab and Haryana river waters dispute THE current water dispute between Punjab and Haryana have views wide apart. Whereas Haryana lays claim to some 3.5 MAF of water, Punjab says that there is ‘not a drop of spare water’ and so nothing can be given to Haryana. For conveyance of the above claimed waters from the Nangal Pond, Haryana wants Punjab to build a ‘feeder canal’ to carry waters to the Haryana borders. This canal is named SYL or the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal. The construction of this canal was taken up in 1970’s but is still incomplete. Punjab lays its claim to the waters of the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej (the tributaries of the River Indus) on the basis that the State lies within the Indus Basin, (whereas Haryana does not fall in the Indus Basin). Hence, it has the ‘first claim’ to the flows of these rivers and if some water happens to be ‘surplus’ or ‘spare’, it could be given to the non-riparian states like Haryana. When the Sutlej Valley Project was taken up in late 1920’s, the ‘special request’ of the Bikaner state was considered by the “Crown” and it was decided that the Bikaner State would be allowed waters from the left bank of the Husseniwala Headworks located near Ferozepore on the river Sutlej and the Gang Canal or Bikaner Canal was built. Bhawalpur State received waters from the right bank canal called the “Dipalpur Canal” and the British Punjab through the left bank called the Eastern Canal. Through an Interstate Agreement signed at Shimla, the Bikaner State was required to pay seigneur charges to the riparian states of Bhawalpur and the British Punjab. The quantum of charges were worked out from the prevailing ‘water charges’ recovered from the farmers and were 50 per cent of these water charges considering the water supplied. These charges continued to be paid by the Bikaner State without any grumbling, till August 14, 1947. The Government of India wants the River Water Disputes Act to be amended suitably to apply the ‘sudden death rule’ so that the dispute must be decided within a specified period, say three years. If not, it would be decided by the Central Government and the ‘award’ would be binding on the states involved and there will be no right to appeal to the Supreme Court against the award given. Punjab fears that if this amendment comes through, it’s case would be thrown overboard and it would be deprived of waters to which it had sole claims. The awards so far given have been always in the favour of Haryana. Punjab’s move is not clear because in Parliament, none of the MP’s spoke against it. During mid-1950’s, Punjab’s negotiating team in Washington said that India is likely to get full use of the three eastern Punjab rivers and that they wanted ‘possible distribution’ of the water to the extent of 15.82 MAF which would become available when released by Pakistan. At that time, the Irrigation Minister was Ch Rizak Ram from the traditional Haryana region and the Chief Minister was Sardar Partap Singh Kairon. The team worked out a ‘fair distribution’ which holds uptil now. Broadly, it was decided to allocate 8.0 MAF to Rajasthan, 0.65 MAF to the J&K areas and 0.237 MAF to Delhi areas for meeting the ‘drinking water demand’. The balance water available for distribution was around 7.2 MAF and distribution was done on a ‘fair and equitable’ basis, approved by Ch Rizak Ram and Sardar Partap Singh Kairon. According to the accepted distribution, the amount of water that fell to the areas which went over to Haryana after reorganisation on Nov 1, 1966, was around 0.9 MAF and this water had to become available at the Nangal Pond Level if it were to flow by gravity to Haryana areas and not by ‘lift schemes’. As the waters of the Sutlej had already been ‘allocated’, expert advice was sought from Mr A.N. Khosla who suggested building a link of 0.9 MAF for transfer of the Beas Waters into the Sutlej Basin above Bhakra Dam. Mr Khosla asked Punjab to determine the ‘optimum capacity’ of the Link after carrying out the Water-Power Studies so that the cost:benefit ratio could be “maximised.” The Punjab Irrigation Department went on with the preparation of projects and executing the same till Nov 1, 1966 when Punjab State got reorganised into Punjab and Haryana with some areas going over to Himachal Pradesh. However, the new Haryana was not satisfied with the previous allocation of 0.9 MAF and wanted around 3.5 MAF i.e. the entire volume of Beas that would become available after construction of the B-S Link. The period that followed is full of moves and counter-moves and the case is pending in the Supreme Court and before a Tribunal. Under the Rajiv-Longowal Accord (1985), it was decided that the farmers of Punjab would get water received with the operation of the SYL, as they happened to receive on July 1, 1985. According to the assessment, on the ‘designated date’, Punjab farmers happened to receive 4.752 MAF and those in Haryana 1.62 MAF. These waters were over and above the ‘pre-partition use’. Haryana’s share was carried through the existing canal system of Bhakra Main Line (BML) and Narwana Branch (NB). The Water Distribution under Reorganisation Act (1966) provides that the Beas-Sutlej waters would be shared in the ratio of 60:40 between Punjab and Haryana. Haryana tried to include the waters of the River Ravi in the waters to be ‘shared’ under the Act on the plea that due to construction of the Madhopur-Beas Link, the Ravi waters became available at Harike and so formed part of the ‘pool’ to be shared. Punjab checkmated the move and asked for inclusion of the waters of the river Yamuna which fell to the share of erstwhile Punjab and later to Haryana, the ‘successor state’. A jatha of over 500 Haryana farmers went to the Golden Temple on May 25, 2001 to seek the ‘intervention of the Akal Takht, the highest temporal authority of the Sikhs on the issue. In a petition to the Akal Takht Jathedar, they requested early completion of the SYL to help Haryana farmers. The basic principle for equitable distribution of water resources between the two States should be that of ‘free flow’ and ‘stored waters’ of the four perennial rivers (Yamuna, Sutlej, Beas and Ravi), and should be divided to provide equitable distribution in respect of ‘water allowance’ and ‘intensity of irrigation’ on the basis of the overall ‘cultivable area’ in the two States taking into account the soil characteristics in the various zones, underground water resources (considering its quality) and average rainfall in the two States. We should work towards such a distribution instead of the current recourses taken. The writer, a water resources consultant, is a retired Chief Engineer (Irrigation) of the Punjab Government. The views expressed are his own. |
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Political solution remains elusive THIRTY-five years ago, Haryana was born on November 1 with the congenital problem of acute thirst. The State mainly comprises the arid zone of joint Punjab where water was scarce even for drinking purposes. The present Haryana first became entitled to Ravi and Beas waters when the Beas Project was envisaged and India signed the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan. India paid Pakistan Rs 110 crore as “cost of replacement” when it was decided that Ravi, Beas and Satluj waters will go to India and those of Chenab and Jhelum to Pakistan. The stated purpose of the Beas Project was to provide water for “arid zone of Punjab” -- the present Haryana. Its claim was further strengthened by Section 78 of the Reorganisation Act (1966) under which Haryana as a “successor state” was entitled to receive and utilise the waters available from the Bhakra Nangal Project and the Beas Project. The share was to be fixed through an agreement between Punjab and Haryana in consultation with the Centre. The Act provided that if the two states failed to reach an agreement within two years, the Centre would fix the share. The two states failed to agree on sharing and 10 years later the Centre issued a notification on March 24, 1976 fixing the shares. It was determined that on the basis of flow series 1921-45, a total of 7.2 MAF water was available for distribution. Haryana had originally sought 4.8 MAF but was allocated 3.5 MAF. Punjab was to get up to 3.5 MAF which meant that Haryana would first get its share and out of the remaining Punjab would draw not more than 3.5 MAF. However, Delhi too was allocated 0.2 MAF to which Haryana objected strongly. Haryana’s share of water was intended to be carried through a new canal called the Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) canal starting from the tail of the Anandpur Sahib Hydel Channel near Lohand Khad. The Punjab portion of the canal was supposed to be 121 km long with a designed capacity of 6,500 cusecs. The Haryana portion was supposed to be 91 km long with a designed capacity of 7,435 cusecs. Haryana began work on the project in October 1976 and completed it in June 1980. The project then cost Rs 56 crore. But this was useless without completion of the Punjab portion. So, Haryana deposited Rs 1 crore with Punjab on November 16, 1976. A similar amount was paid again on March 31, 1979. However, Punjab never started constructing the canal. Haryana filed a case in the Supreme Court on April 13, 1979 seeking implementation of the orders of the Government of India. Punjab in turn challenged it on July 7, 1979. Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan signed an agreement on December 31, 1981 under which fresh allocations were made on the basis of 1921-60 flow series. It was then stated that the availability of water had gone up to 17.17 MAF. This agreement increased Punjab’s share to 4.22 MAF while Haryana’s share remained unchanged. Punjab undertook to complete its portion of the new canal by December 31, 1983. Punjab and Haryana unconditionally withdrew their cases from the court in February 1982 and work began on the canal the next month from Kapoori village at snail’s pace. However, the Rajiv-Longowal Accord was signed on July 24, 1985 and the issue of sharing was reopened by referring it to a tribunal for adjudication. The Eradi Tribunal, which submitted its report on January 30, 1987, increased the availability of water to 18.28 MAF and increased Punjab’s share to 5 MAF. Haryana got 3.83 MAF while the shares of other states remained unchanged. Both Punjab and Haryana filed objections before the tribunal under the Inter-State Water Disputes Act (1956). A few hearings were held in 1988 but the disturbed conditions in Punjab led to the adjournment of the tribunal sine die in April 1989. Since the work on the canal in Punjab had halted, the then Prime Minister convened a meeting of the two states on December 16, 1986 and decided that the entire cost of the project would be borne by the Centre. This speeded up work. The work stopped again on July 7, 1990 when terrorists gunned down senior engineers of the project. On Haryana’s initiative, the Centre handed over the project to the Border Roads Organisation but construction did not resume. By June 1990, 95 per cent of the Punjab portion of the canal had been completed. Not a brick has been laid since then. The Eradi Tribunal resumed hearings in August 1997. A few sittings took place till 1998 when its member Justice U. C. Banerjee was elevated to the Supreme Court. No sittings were possible thereafter since the vacancy has not been filled till date. The delay has escalated the cost of the project from Rs 176 crore in 1983 to Rs 601 crore (November 1994 price index level). Till September 2000, the project had cost Rs 652.75 crore. Notably, Punjab continues to spend Rs 1.58 crore every year on the establishment. Fed up with the delay, Haryana filed a suit in the Supreme Court in November 1995. During the last hearing on August 9, 2001 arguments were concluded and the court reserved its judgement saying the two states should try to reach an agreement with the help of the Prime Minister. The Centre failed to file its report on the outcome by September 6 last. Haryana is now awaiting the court’s judgement. Haryana’s Finance Minister Sampat Singh says, as the issue has been so much politicised , no political solution is feasible now. “Legally, Haryana has a very strong case. It’s just that every time a political settlement was attempted, Haryana’s interests were sacrificed. But, finally now we are expecting justice. We shall abide by the court’s orders”, he says. Most Haryanvis tend to agree with this observation as they realise that there is no way Punjab can deny them their share of waters if the court so ruled. They feel though the Congress ruled at the Centre and in the two states, no solution was found. Now, the BJP is leading the NDA coalition at the Centre and shares power in Haryana and Punjab. A political solution remains elusive despite the apex court’s efforts. Haryanvis feel that all political parties in the two states take diametrically opposite stand when in and out of power. Sadly, despite spending Rs 652 crore, the canal is in ruins. Over the years, Punjab has used it to divert its floodwaters damaging it severely. There are more than 100 cuts in the canal in Punjab. Likewise, the Haryana portion too is in a shambles. So, even if the Supreme Court ruled in Haryana’s favour, it will take a long time before water begins to flow in the SYL canal. |
Koshiari wedded to RSS tradition & philosophy
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Chief Minister of Uttaranchal, Bhagat Singh Koshiari, is indeed a dark horse. A few outside Uttar Pradesh have heard his name till the BJP’s Central leadership sprang a surprise by pitch forking him to the top post in the one-year-old hill state. Holding power portfolio in the preceding Nityanand Swami Ministry, Koshiari is known to be a staunch RSS man, brought up in the strict discipline of the organisation. In keeping with the RSS tradition, he has not married and devoted long years of his life in the service of the “Sangh”. Except one year in the Swami government, he has no administrative experience nor did he ever contest an election. He was a member of the U.P. Legislative Council when the most populous state of the union was split and Uttaranchal carved out; he was inducted in the first government of the hill state and as important portfolios as power, irrigation and law were allocated to him. Even though lacking in experience in administration, his record as power minister has been impressive. Known to be a man of simple life style, Koshiari has been basically a man of the organisation and played an important role in building up the BJP in the hill region of U.P. which, a year back, became the state of Uttaranchal. He was also among the front ranking leader in the agitation for carving out the separate hill state. A “Pahari” (hailing from hills) in true sense, many call him son of mountains. Born in Almora when the Quit India movement was gathering momentum in 1942, he completed his pre-university education in his native town and obtained Master’s degree in English Literature from the Agra University. He briefly took a job as teacher but soon resigned to become full time RSS activist. Since then, there is no looking back for him. While working with the RSS, he published and edited a weekly, known as “Parvartiya Piyush” (flower of the mountain). Exactly a year back when the BJP’s high command picked up Nityanand Swami to head the first government of the hill state, Koshiari and his supporters raised the banner of revolt. Even though he proposed last year Swami’s name for the leadership of Uttaranchal BJP Legislature Party, ostensibly, following pressure of the party’s High Command, Koshiari and two other senior leaders, Ramesh Pokhriyal and Narain Ram Das declined to join the ministry. Koshiari was, in fact, a serious contender for the top post, claiming that the honour to become the first C.M. of the hill state should go to a “son of the soil” (a pahari) and he was the genuine one belonging to Kumaon region. His contention was that Swami does not belong to hills and his ancestors were migrants from Haryana. Koshiari was virtually forced to withdraw from the contest and compelled to propose the name of Swami much against his conscience. The simmering discontent, however, burst into open with Koshiari’s supporters going on rampage, smashing the entire stage soon after the swearing-in ceremony of Swami as the C.M . They were protesting against selection of what they the called “ a non-pahari” to head the government. Swami hit back asserting: “I am the biggest Pahari in the new state. I have been living here for 40 years”. Later, Koshiari was prevailed upon by the central leadership to take oath as a cabinet minister in the Swami government but the discontent continued to brew. Exactly a year after the BJP’s High Command had to eat humble pie; compelled to replace Swami by Koshiari. Supporters of the new C.M. say he has got his due. Koshiari, however, faces an uphill task; he will have to lead the party to polls in four months time. One wonders if he will be able to live up to the expectations of the central leadership. Change of guard in the hill state is said to be part of a new experiment by the BJP. They have brought in committed RSS men-Rajnath Singh in U.P. and recently Narendra Modi in Gujarat-as part of the new strategy. While Rajnath Singh got reasonable time to improve the sagging morale of the party in U.P, time for Koshiari is running out fast. True, Koshiari, like his predecessor, does not suffer from “ outsider tag”. While Swami had a brief stint in the Congress, the new Chief Minister is an old hand in “saffron circle” and counted among the RSS ideologue. Nevertheless, it is widely felt that his saffron background may not take him far in the first-ever assembly elections in the hill state. Added to that, he is also known to be short tempered and poor in public relations. These are not qualifications for a leader who is supposed to lead his party in the battle at the
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Lack of majority is BJP’s strength! WHAT
is the reason for the “relative stability” of NDA government? It is not the towering personality of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee nor the TINA (There Is No Alternative) factor, insist Congressmen. The stability, they say in lighter vein, is because the BJP does not have a majority of its own in Lok Sabha. If the BJP had an absolute majority, point out Congressmen, the top leader would have been changed more than once and the government at the Centre would have had to bear the consequences. To butress their theory, Congressmen point to the changes at the top in the states where the BJP is in power. It has happened thrice in UP, once in Gujarat and the latest change has taken place in Uttaranchal. Earlier, similar changes were made in Delhi with a lot more hullabaloo but without much success. Congressmen have also not missed out on another trend. They say that alternate BJP Chief Ministers are all coming from the RSS -- Narendra Modi, Bhagat Singh Koshiyari. “The difference, if any, between the BJP and the Sangh is vanishing,” said a senior Congress leader. The bottomline, however, is that if the BJP’s not having an absolute majority keeps it in power at the Centre, what does it portend for the Congress? Own agenda India has become the hotbed of diplomatic exchanges thanks to the serious developments in the neighbourhood. World leaders or their representatives are visiting India apparently to counsel New Delhi to maintain good relations with Pakistan and help the US-led coalition to achieve its goal in Afghanistan. It is a different matter that they are not interested in listening to India’s tale of woes in Jammu and Kashmir. Whether it be Colin Powell of the USA, Tony Blair of the UK or Gerhard Schroeder of Germany each one had his own agenda to pursue. As if their not agreeing with the Indian position on Jammu and Kashmir was not enough, the leaders have been rubbing salt on New Delhi’s wounds by raising the agenda at the forthcoming WTO meeting in Doha. India has been told forcefully to toe the line of the developed world or face isolation. New Delhi has been at the forefront of garnering support among the developing nations to thwart any moves to add new issues to the agenda at Doha and instead focus on resolving the outstanding implementation issues. It appears India is unlikely to have its way and the officials are already preparing for the worst case scenario. Nice
guy In his death, B.K.Nehru proved the title of his book “Nice Guys Finish Second” wrong. Of what one saw and heard during his final journey, he came first. The distinguished gathering at Delhi’s Nigambodh Ghat electric crematorium included several people who had been closely associated with the doyen of the extended Nehru family. There was Commodore (retd) Chaman Sachdev, who had served under Nehru in the Indian High Commission in London, or for that matter R.C.Piplani, Secretary of the Nehru Trust for Indian Collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum and Nehru Trust for Cambridge University who spoke reverentially about Nehru and his ability to earn friends and influence people. Sachdev and his wife recalled their dinner invitation to High Commissioner Nehru and their surprise at it being accepted without the slightest fuss. Being a formal dinner, Commodore Sachdev had kept his teenaged son out of sit down affair. When Nehru came to know about it, he demanded that the 15-year-old boy be seated next to him. The distinguished diplomat then settled for a leisurely dinner and chatted with the boy for quite a while. There were similar pleasant facets of Nehru’s life that came out during the sombre occasion. Sweet
conspiracy Justice A.S.Anand could not have got a better birthday gift from his daughter on his 65th birthday and last day as the Chief Justice of India. He acknolwledged that a sweet conspiracy by his advocate daughter, Munisha Gandhi culminated in the release of the book “Justice for Women:Concerns and Expressions”, a compilation of his letters, speeches and landmark judgments. Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Sushma Swaraj nursed pride in the fact that Justice Anand who had been her teacher at Punjab University was like a father. While showering greetings of a long life to Justice Anand, a speaker wished that each birthday of Justice Anand would witness release of such publications. The best compliment of the evening perhaps came from the Chairperson of the National Commission for Women, Vibha Parthasarathi, who said that Justice Anand had opened the doors to the still unborn women of the country. Hyderabad blues The sprawling Hyderabad House in the capital has been buzzing with activity since the September 11 attacks in the USA. An ideal location for official banquets and other major functions, the External Affairs Ministry has literally set up its second office there. The week gone by witnessed the Foreign Ministers of France and Greece enjoying the hospitality and ambience at Hyderabad House. The food and the settings are perfect but the place could do with some better acoustics. When the Ministers from France and Greece addressed press conferences, the mikes simply failed to deliver. It was a harrowing time indeed for the scribes covering the visits. Tailpiece Sonia Gandhi it appears strictly adheres to all Indian customs. At the cremation of B.K. Nehru, the Congress President and her daughter Priyanka were the only visitors who came barefooted to pay their last respects to the eminent bureaucrat. Contributed by Prashant Sood, T.V. Lakshminarayan, Tripti Nath and Rajeev Sharma. |
Cultural life in capital keeps going IN
keeping with the ongoing philosophy ‘life has to go on…’ the cultural life that had temporarily halted is moving on. Before anything else, news is that artists — Raja Radha Reddy, Zakir Hussain — have been flown from here to New York to perform in memory for those killed on September 11 and this special show is hosted by an NRI body called The Vedic Foundation. Back home, last week Shovana Narayan Traxl and her Austrian husband celebrated their country’s national day with enthusiasm so very typical of that couple. Artist Arpana Cour opened her solo show after a gap of four years at the Academy of Fine Arts and Literature, where in spite of a major traffic chaos many of the capital’s who’s who managed to turn up. Interestingly, the same evening, her writer mother Ajit Cour had invited a group of poets to recite their latest verse, webbed around the latest happenings of this changing world order. I was late and when I was entering it was Kulu-based Bulbul Singh who had just got over with the recitation and was telling the audience of his travels and stay in Afghanistan. When CPI(M) MP Mr Baby was asked to say few words he minced none of them, “We have a Osama bin Laden sitting in the US in the form of President Bush” and together with that recounted how he had spread canvas along a two and a half kilometre stretch in Thiruvantipuram and had diverted people’s attention from the daily rut and depression, for even the passersby were given a brush to vent out their feelings on the canvas…“if only we convert military space to artistic space there’d be lesser problems the world over...” But then, how would the politicians survive? And this coming week, the Greek Ambassador to India,Yannis Alexis Zepos is hosting an elaborate “goodbye” do. Don’t know whether he would be remembered for any of his diplomatic traits but his artist spouse Daphne who has held many a show here of her portraits, will most certainly be missed. If I am not mistaken she has made portraits of several men and women of this city. Of course, only of the well-knowns of the city, for portrait making is certainly an expensive art. But to Zepos goes the credit of finding a place of residence for the Greek envoys to India. Till very recently, all envoys from Greece had made hotel Oberoi their place of residence but it was in the Zepos tenure that a new Greek Embassy together with a residential wing came up. In fact, envoys from some other countries also use hotel rooms as their residence. At least till late, the Israeli ambassador to India l ived and operated from a suite of hotel Ashoka and the ambassador of Panama lived in hotel Hyatt Regency (but I would stand corrected if they have managed to find homes of late). What should turn out to be an absolutely different set of photo series is an exhibition beginning on November 5 at the Max Mueller Bhavan. Tilted ‘Photo Dialogues -The Art of Therapy’, these photographs are taken by Christa Mayer, a qualified psychotherapist who has been working as a clinical psychologist in a psychiatric hospital in Berlin and “while treating the mentally ill adults she is moved by their desperate efforts to deal with a world with which they cannot cope and their withdrawal into private spheres of being. She lets the patient act as the director of the photograph, permits him to choose the situation, moods, poses etc...” For the first time a PIL from a Srinagar resident has been filed in the Supreme Court here. Filed by a young lawyer — Syed Mujtaba Hussain with several firsts to his credit — it is the plea of an individual to save the Dal lake because …” in the next ten years Dal Lake would cease to exist and meet the same fate as other Lakes in Kashmir have met, such as, Aanchaar Lake, Manasbal Lake and the ‘Wular Lake’. The open area of Dal Lake was reported to have been 75 sq. km in 1200 A.D, but has shrunk over time to just 15 sq. km...this is because of the wastes getting pumped into it and as a citizen of this country it is my right to ask for its protection...” As the hearings continue, it will be inappropriate to write more of this case. But it is noteworthy that even in the turmoil stricken Srinagar, a band of environmental enthusiasts have formed ‘Green Kashmir’ to help salvage the Dal lake. Sahmat
meet SAHMAT is organising a convention on Nov 6 where historians and academicians including Professors K N Panikkar, Satish Chandra, Bipan Chandra, Irfan Habib, Arjun Dev and Amiya K. Bagchi would speak against the campaign to denigrate secular historical writings by distorting and misrepresenting their contents. It may be recalled that a similar attack on history had been launched by the Jan Sangh-RSS elements in the Janata Party government during 1977-79. The attack was foiled by a countrywide protest by academics and other secular forces. |
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