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Not too populist
Expanding ties |
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Pakistan: The turmoil within
Little knowledge is not dangerous
Subversive texts or alternative perspectives
Vague laws and hurt feelings
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Not too populist AN interim budget is meant to secure Parliament’s approval for essential government expenditure until a new government takes charge. Still Monday’s exercise was no dull affair and there were not many giveaways ahead of the elections in May as was expected. Finance Minister P. Chidambaram helped at least three categories of people: ex-servicemen, student loan takers and prospective car and mobile buyers. Retired soldiers' long-pending demand for one rank, one pension was accepted. Benefiting some nine lakh students, the government decided to clear the outstanding interest on education loans taken before March 2009, provided the borrowers pay interest for the period after January 1, 2014. Much to the annoyance of environmentalists and leftists, the FM not only cut excise on two-wheelers and small cars but also on large cars and SUVs. Given the alarming number of fatalities and congestion on roads, a better alternative was to grant tax incentives to housing. Owning a house is more important than a car. It is a basic need. Besides, the construction industry would have spurred economic growth in a better way than the auto sector could do. GDP growth has slumped to a decade's low and is expected to stay below 5 per cent in the coming year. The reasons include the delayed clearance of projects and shelving of reforms. The introduction of GST (goods and services tax) alone would have made a difference. Yet Chidambaram tried to fend off the charge of “policy paralysis” in what is perceived as the UPA's “farewell budget”. As is the practice, the FM left the direct taxes untouched. So there is no relief for the salaried class and the income tax levels will remain unchanged. Chidambaram did not try to please too many people other than ex-servicemen and students. As promised, he kept the fiscal deficit — gap between expenditure and revenue - at 4.6 per cent of GDP. This was achieved through (1) spectrum auction (2) hefty dividends from government companies and (3) compression of government expenditure. Lower spending, especially on infrastructure, helped the FM attain the fiscal deficit target but it eventually harmed growth
pick-up.
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Expanding ties War-torn
Afghanistan took another step in its transition towards becoming a productive country with the inauguration of an agricultural university in
Kandahar. Afghan National Agricultural Sciences and Technology University has been set up with Indian assistance. External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid was present at the inauguration of the university in a former Taliban stronghold. India is already training 614 Afghan agriculture students at various institutions and it has offered scholarships to them. India has benefited tremendously from agriculture education, which provided the country with the much-need breakthroughs that took the form of the Green Revolution and brought about self-sufficiency in
foodgrains. Like India, Afghanistan is predominantly an agrarian society and 80 per cent of Afghan people are dependent upon agriculture for livelihood. The sector, however, has not been adequately
modernised. India can provide the know-how and is also a good example of how the use of modern methods, high-yielding varieties of seeds, drip irrigation and modern processing can change agrarian economies. In Afghanistan, there is much scope for improvement in agricultural practices and the use of technology that would help the farmers get better yields. India has, for long, been a strategic partner of the present Afghan government. During the last decade, India contributed to infrastructure, especially in building roads and bridges. Recently the two countries have also signed agreements which allow for military aid. Soon Indian helicopters are expected to join Afghan forces. Even as Afghanistan faces impending Presidential elections, India is rightly continuing its engagement with the Karzai regime. Indeed, for India, it is imperative to press on with a variety of programmes that will help Afghan people in a meaningful manner. The agriculture university can perform a significant role in educating Afghan agriculture scientists and thus benefit farmers.
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Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. — Frank Zappa
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‘The cult of secrecy in the Secretariat’ THE following Press communique has been issued by the Punjab Government: The attention of Government has been drawn to an article in the Tribune of the 28th January 1914, in which allusion is made to the “Cult of secrecy in the Secretariat.” The comments appear to have been written in ignorance of Punjab Government Circular No. 815 (Home General) dated the 8th May, 1912 to all Editors of responsible newspapers. To the Circular was attached a copy of the Rules regarding the supply of information to the public press. Within the lines therein laid down Government desires that the Press both English and Vernacular should be given all reasonable facilities to acquire early and correct information of its proceedings. If such a circular was issued at all, it was issued as a result of agitation in the press. Is it really contended that there has been any marked improvement in the supply of information to the press since May 1912? Will the Punjab Secretariat be pleased to issue a statement showing the number of papers placed at the disposal of the press annually since 1910, and stating also the subject matter of such papers? Indians in the Agricultural Department IT is refreshing to notice that among the mass of European evidence given before the Public Services Commission, recommending that Indians should not be admitted to the Imperial Service, the recommendations of the Directors General of Agriculture of Bombay and Central Provinces are to the contrary and they want Indians to be promoted to the Imperial Service, after a course of training in Europe. Mr. Kaatings of Bombay spoke of the special value of Indian officers in spreading agricultural knowledge to the people, as without them the work of the department could not be well explained for the good of the agriculturists.
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Pakistan: The turmoil within Despite facing the grave danger of a possible collapse of the state, the Pakistan government's counter-insurgency policy lacks cohesion. The latest manifestation of the lack of will is the commencement of a peace dialogue with the Taliban, even though the Taliban are willing to talk only on the assumption that the introduction of Sharia will replace democracy in Pakistan. The latest attempt at peace-making is contrary to the wishes of the Pakistan army. Hurt by a series of Taliban successes in “liberating” tribal areas and under pressure from the Americans to deliver in the “war on terror”, in the initial stages the Pakistan army had employed massive firepower to stem the rot. Fighter aircraft, helicopter gunships and heavy artillery were liberally employed to destroy suspected terrorist hideouts. This heavy-handed firepower-based approach without simultaneous infantry operations failed to dislodge the militants but caused large-scale collateral damage and served to alienate the tribal population. Major reverses had led to panic reactions, including the hurried negotiation of “peace accords” that were invariably broken by the militants. On September 5, 2006, the government of Pakistan had signed a "peace accord" with the tribal leaders in the North Waziristan town of Miranshah. The salient points of this rather surprising agreement included the following: the government agrees to stop air and ground attacks against militants in Waziristan; militants are to cease cross-border movement into and out of Afghanistan; foreigners (understood to mean foreign jihadists) in North Waziristan will have to leave Pakistan but "those who cannot leave will be allowed to live peacefully, respecting the law of the land and the agreement"; area check-points and border patrols will be manned by a tribal force and the Pakistan army will withdraw from control points; no parallel administration will be established in the area; the government agrees to follow local customs and traditions in resolving issues; the tribal leaders will ensure that no one attacks law-enforcement personnel or damages state property; tribesmen will not carry heavy weapons, but small arms will be allowed; militants will not enter agencies adjacent to North Waziristan; both sides will return any captured weapons, vehicles, and communication devices; the government will release captured militants and will not arrest them again; and, the government will pay compensation for property damaged and deaths of innocent civilians in the area. The terms of the Miranshah peace accord were humiliating for a proud professional force to swallow. The accord is reported to have led to the payment of large amounts of money for “damaged property” — sums that went indirectly to the militants. The US and its NATO allies were taken completely by surprise by the accord that allowed the militants to make peace with the Pakistan army and gave them the freedom to use the NWFP and FATA areas close to the Afghan border as safe havens to attack the US and NATO forces. The militants soon broke the cease-fire as well as the peace accord. In October 2007, the Pakistan Government entered into a peace agreement with the terrorists in the Swat Valley as militancy there was spinning out of control. This accord too did not last long. All these accords clearly showed that the Pakistan army and the Musharraf-led government of the day had no clear strategy to counter the growing menace of Taliban-al Qaida insurgency in Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa (NWFP) and FATA. Soon after he became Prime Minister again, Nawaz Sharif adopted a new counter-terrorism policy. Titled National Counter-Terrorism and Extremism Policy 2013, it focuses on eliminating terrorist networks through counter-insurgency operations based on accurate intelligence, in coordination with the police and the prosecution of captured terrorists. According to the Express Tribune, “the five-layered counter-terror policy seeks to dismantle, contain, prevent, educate and re-integrate.” “The policy “calls for building the police capacity and following up on the military action in an extremist bastion with a broad strategy focused on development work and economic revival.” The new policy calls for periodic re-assessment of the terror threat by the National Counter-Terrorism Authority, measures to plug sources of funding and better management of the western border to prevent the ingress of militants. The policy proposes to review education in Pakistan, including the madrassa system. Re-integration and the rehabilitation of captured and surrendered militants is also part of the new policy. All of this is unexceptionable, but the policy appears to have been discarded in favour of appeasement and attempts are once again under way to broker peace. It has now been reported that the Taliban Shura has finalised a 15-point agenda for talks with the government. The major demands of the Taliban include the imposition of Sharia law in courts, the withdrawal of the army from the tribal areas and handing over control over them to the local forces, the withdrawal of criminal charges and the release of Taliban and foreign fighters from jails, suspension of Pakistan's relations with the US, halting of US drone attacks, compensation for the loss of life and damage to property in drone attacks, job offers for the families of drone attack victims and the introduction of an Islamic system of education in schools. It is now well understood that governance, development and security are three ends of the counter-insurgency triangle and all must proceed in close synchronisation for a counter-insurgency campaign to be waged effectively. Unless the Pakistan Government adopts a comprehensive national-level approach on fighting the Taliban and allied groups that are threatening the cohesion of the state, the eventual break-up of Pakistan may become inevitable — with disastrous consequences for the region. The writer is a Delhi-based strategic analyst.
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Little knowledge is not dangerous Once the flush tank was leaking and the plumber was unavailable. I examined and found that the rubber pipe had worn out from the joint. I brought the spanner, cut the damaged portion and rejoined it. The leakage stopped and this became the turning point. "Oh, I had learnt these skills during my engineering course. Why not try my hand at these again?" I thought to myself and the next day I was there with a tool bag. “Are you going to start your second innings as a mechanic?” the wife said playfully, after seeing the tool bag. "No darling! That will be the next stage. First, I will hone my skill at home itself." In the ensuing days I attended to all types of repairs with considerable success though it was not without inviting the displeasure of my wife, who would feel peeved even if asked to pass on the tool from the bag. One day when I was back from my out-of-station visit, my wife looked impatient to share something with a furrowed forehead. “In your absence I had to summon our old electrician since the geyser had stopped working. He was terribly upset with the mess you have created everywhere with your new-found passion. He set everything in order but had a word of caution — little knowledge could be dangerous. Please tell Sahib to avoid fiddling with electrical fittings.” Continuing, she said, “I hope you’ve got the message. He charged just Rs 200 and took Rs 100 for replacing the fuse. Now let me handle as I was doing it earlier”. Confronted with a situation where my hard labour had brought only discredit, I disgustingly decided to withdraw. Hardly a week passed, she came to me with a long face. “Both geysers are not working”. "Well call up your electrician,” I said raising my hands. In the meanwhile I opened the MCB Board and found that one fuse was missing and the other was burnt. I could make out what that Johny had done. He charged Rs 100 for the new isolator but did not put the one and instead he put its cable in the adjoining 32 Amp isolator, which was not in a position to take the load of two geysers and was burnt. I explained this to her. By now, she looked much mellowed. The electrician came. “Where did you install the new isolator?” she asked in the tone of a designated inquiry officer “Ma’am on that day the market was closed so I made a temporary connection thinking that I'd put a new Isolator while passing by your house. I'll get it in five minutes”. He said as a face saving measure. “Hey, listen, get two, not one; the second one has also got burnt because of your foolishness.” As I said this, the electrician understood that little knowledge also worked and, for a change, my better-half also looked at me with a semblance of respect.
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Subversive texts or alternative perspectives However, there are protests galore, and court cases to boot, if an erudite scholar with decades of research behind her dares to explain this maddening, widening, evolving, involving, religiosity that we conveniently call ‘Hinduism’ from an ‘alternative’ perspective. Yes, I am speaking of Wendy Doniger’s ‘The Hindus: An Alternative History,’ recently withdrawn by Penguin India from the market (and to be pulped in the next six months), after an out-of-court settlement with the Shiksha Bachao Andolan, an outfit assumedly brought into existence by a person called Dinanath Batra to set straight our crooked knowledge and worse, our crooked morality. And the depressing regularity with which us hapless ‘liberal types’ are dinned our dharmic lessons – just think of the fate of some of the writings and other creative expressions of the likes of Salman Rushdie, M.F. Husain, A.K. Ramanujan, James Laine, Taslima Nasreen to name a few – would have set straight any dogged kutta, but us dogs do have the most curled tails. For that’s what Doniger has dared to do in this book – speak of the alternative perspectives from those of the Sanskrit-spouting Brahmins and upper caste men – to those of the women, the untouchables, of animals, of the vernacular and the deshi. Not only does she delight in bringing alternate sources to the forefront, those not assembled and collated by high caste men, but equally enjoys shining the light on those very cracks and crevices in the Sanskritic literature that allow a space for other voices, different concerns. Nor is she shy of bringing her ‘outsider’ perspective to Hinduism (if decades of search still tags you as an outsider), saying tongue-in-cheek that ‘you don’t have to be an elephant to study zoology, but zoologists do not injure elephants by writing about them.’ Determined to de-centre Hinduism, studying it from the margins as it were, she insists contentiously that there is no single central quality that Hindus must have, likening it to a ‘Zen’ diagram (no, not a Venn diagram), with no central ring. This is an idea anathema to the Rightists, who see not just a central core to their idea of Hinduism, but also claim that that is the only possible vision one must have. No wonder this phoren woman, a Jew, delightfully telling the world about the multiple other Hindus, happily splashing the pages with their concerns and histories, anecdotally recounting their many stories, deliciously speaking of their sensual appetites and sexual escapades, is the target of dyed in the saffron wool oldish men, who have spent years cleansing Hindu polytheism of its ‘poly’, Krishna of his amorous gopis, and Ram of any human desire (except of course of revenge against the ‘usurpation’ of his alleged birth place). But let’s pause a minute and think not only of the growing intolerance in society, the vicious scramble for cultural space, the anxious outlook that believes in annihilating any opinion other than its own, but also the implications for an increasingly competitive polity. In this season of garnering votes, when parties are looking beyond their traditional vote banks, does it behoove to wipe out histories of women, Dalits, and other benighted beings? The question is to be asked not only of the Hindu Right, who one might even smugly say have exposed their true upper caste colours, but also of the pusillanimous centrists, the leftists, and those secularists who have time and again retreated from taking a stand, paid lip-service to a liberal tradition they no longer believe in? The constructors of modern constitutional and democratic polity, the Ambedkars and the Nehrus and many others were extremely conscious of protecting the rights of the minorities, the women and the weak, in order to create a fair and egalitarian society. Dare we subjugate that fulsome legacy? Doniger’s is indeed a subversive text. Not because alternate visions did not have a voice in society. Her text, a tome of almost eight hundred pages, is a testimony to a constant presence throughout history. No, her book is subversive because what was on the periphery is beginning to occupy a central space in today’s discourse. We should celebrate the scholar who has delved deep into Hinduism’s pluralistic traditions, its multiple voices, its many well-known and not-so-well-known protagonists. They will not be silenced. As far as Doniger is concerned, I doubt if a prolific and voluble academic like her will be frightened into silence, least of all by the moralising men out to prove their righteously hurt manhood.
The writer is a Fellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi.
Banned to bestseller
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Vague laws and hurt feelings FIRs under two familiar and overused Sections 153 A and 295 A of the IPC were filed against the four writers. The former makes it an offence to say or write anything that “promotes disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between different religious, racial, language or regional groups or castes and communities.” This broad-based definition offers a vast ground under which any expression can be strangled. The latter singles out religious sentiment and punishes those who intentionally outrage religious feelings or insult any religion or religious belief held by the citizens of India. These laws were introduced in 1927. Four different courts in Rajasthan booked cases against the organisers of the JLF and the four writers for hurting religious sentiments of the minority community. The fact is, the texts read out were non-controversial. The laws operate in a manner that allows those who claim to be offended or insulted to lay down what constitutes hate speech. It is an insidious form of censorship and control. In India, it assumes truly ominous proportions because of a dangerous cocktail of circumstances; political parties that prefer to exploit such issues to their advantage, a citizenry that takes offence much too easily and governments prefer to look the other way till this concoction brews to their advantage. Every section of society colludes with the malcontents rather than stand up for free expression. And, for some inexplicable reason courts take these frivolous petitions in all seriousness. The banning of A.K. Ramanujan’s scholarly essay “Three Hundred Ramayanas” by the Academic Council of Delhi University and Rohintan Mistry’s novel “Such a Long Journey” by the Vice Chancellor of Mumbai University left the academics feel betrayed by their own community. If universities cannot protect the spirit of inquiry, publishers, art galleries and theatres can always hide behind the compulsions of commerce. The intentions behind laws governing such objectionable expressions (for example, protecting minorities from abhorrent diatribes) are generally blameless. But hate speech is used as umbrella term to cover any form of expression that disparages a group of people on the basis of, at times petty and avoidable issues which have nothing to do with race, community, religion, gender and sexual orientation. A democracy that guarantees freedom of expression, coupled with such inherently vague and subjective laws create ludicrous situations in the name of hurting sentiments of others. The laws also ignore technological advancements that make these bans almost redundant. There is no objective way of distinguishing between unacceptable hate speech and an acceptable rant, if some groups decide to get hurt for the sake of getting hurt, they will.
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Since
They
Over
So what would an alternate history of Shani maharaj and his temple be, away from, let’s say, the perspective of the priests and upper caste men and women that scrape their foreheads on its portals? A view, for example, from the displaced denizens of the pavement, or say from the beggars who thrive because of the temple’s growing popularity? Or perhaps a standpoint away from that of the father Surya, and the son Shani, one that gives account of the mother Chhaya, a mere shadow, or the vahana, the ubiquitously maligned crow? 
Salman