Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has his task cut out. Major challenges include modernisation of the three services besides increasing their squadron strength
One of the biggest challenges that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is faced with is the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) depleting war machinery — aircraft/fighters. The depletion of fighters has indeed been a worrisome trend as the IAF squadrons’ strength is down to 32 from the 42 minimum required for a two-front scenario. The situation of transport aircraft, too, is no better because age-old aircraft have been meeting with accidents and replacements are not coming through fast because of resource crunch and bureaucratic hurdles.
The IAF recently lost its fifth Russian-origin Antonov AN-32 military transport aircraft launched in 1984. The twin-engine plane went missing on June 3 after taking off from Jorhat in Assam with 13 Air Force personnel on board. It was flying to an Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) in Menchuka, Arunachal Pradesh, near the Chinese border. Strangely, on three occasions, including this time, the aircraft has disappeared without any trace.
A search-and-rescue (SAR) operation launched has been pressed into service for an aerial and ground search — two Sukhoi Su-30 multirole fighter aircraft, a C-130J, AN-32, two Mi-17 helicopters and one Advance Light Helicopter (ALH) — have been carrying out sorties in the areas around Siang district. A P8i long-range reconnaissance aircraft of the Indian Navy took off from Tamil Nadu to join the search operations. Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) CARTOSAT and RISAT satellites are taking images of the area. Ground parties of the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) as well as locals and district administration officials are also searching the area. However, no wreckage has been sighted so far.
The AN-32s have a spotty safety record. The plane and its variants have been involved in more than 15 incidents since 1986, according to the Aviation Safety Network. In 1986, an AN-32 disappeared over the Arabian Sea on a delivery flight from the Soviet Union via Oman. No trace was found of the aircraft or the people on board. In 2016, another AN-32 having 29 personnel flying from Chennai to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands went missing above the Bay of Bengal. In between these two incidents, there were two crashes — in 1989 and 2009 — that resulted in the deaths of the 13 crewmembers.
The IAF has over 100 AN-32s, which play a critical role in equipping India’s frontline forces. The IAF supplies nearly 40,000 tonnes of material, including food and kerosene, every year to far-off places. People believe that transport aircraft is only for carrying passengers but that isn’t its only role — the AN-32 has done a fantastic job for the Air Force and the country. Almost 15 years back, it was used to transport Meat on the Hoof, including sheep and lambs to Ladakh, Siachen and Arunachal bases. It hasn’t just been called a workhorse.
The Ukrainian manufacturer of the AN-32 transport aircraft, Antonov Aeronautical Scientific/Technical Complex, had been awarded a $400 million order to upgrade the entire AN-32 fleet. The AN-32s were fast approaching the end of their “total technical life” of 25 years by the end of 2019, which prompted the Ministry of Defence to issue one of its largest upgrade contract till date. Under the contract, an estimated 100 AN-32s will get an upgrade and life extension overhaul over a period of five years, with an initial lot being sent to Ukraine and the rest undergoing it at Kanpur depot of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The project was executed in 2009-2013. It will include life extension of both the engines and airframe, improved avionics suite, communication equipment and landing aids”. Surprisingly, the upgrade did not include the engines or the air-frame.
The twin-turboprop AN-32s, which ferry troops and supplies to forward areas, has suffered from poor serviceability, tardy maintenance, delays in overhauls and shortage of spares, resulting in a high Aircraft On Ground (AOG) percentage.
Unfortunately, this non-upgraded aircraft was operating in such a hostile and rugged terrain. As a result, there could be no significant life extension. Yet the fact, as recorded in a Comptroller and Auditor-General of India (CAG) report tabled in 2015, is that the upgrade programmes “was neither completely successful nor comprehensive”. Defence Minister Rajnath must ensure that some heads fall for such a serious lapse.
Of the 28 IAF fighters crashed between April 2012 and March 2016, more than one-fourth (eight) involved the MiG-21, six of which were the upgraded MiG-21 Bison variant, the Government told the Parliament in March 2016. From 1971 to April 2012 as many as 482 MiG aircraft accidents took place, killing 171 pilots, 39 civilians, eight service personnel and one aircrew, the Government told the Parliament in May 2012.
From 1993 to 2013, 198 MiG-21s specifically — often dubbed “flying coffins” by pilots — of different variants have crashed, killing 151 pilots. By 2022, these aircraft will have reached the end of their lifetime and the MiG-21s along with the MiG-23 and MiG-27 will be phased out. To overcome its depleting fighter strength, the IAF will have to acquire the aircraft as soon as possible. Over 10 squadrons of MiG-21 Bisons and MiG-27 Floggers will be retiring by the end of 2019.
To hold up against today’s fighter-jets, an aircraft needs the latest technology such as advanced avionics and radar, greater weapon-load capacity, stealth technology, electronic warfare capability, precision weaponry and other such features, which the MiG-21 does not have. To arrest the drawdown, the Air Force will induct Sukhoi-20, Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) and Rafale jets, the IAF told the parliamentary committee.
In April 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, side-stepping a three-year negotiation for the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) competition, also known as the MRCA tender to supply 126 multi-role combat aircraft to the IAF tender, announced the purchase of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft after a deal struck directly with the French Government. While the acquisition of 36 Rafale, which will be delivered during the time frame 2019-23, will ameliorate the situation somewhat, the squadron strength will still be alarmingly worrisome.
There is indeed a dire need for a spirit of inquiry in a country where year after year an ever-increasing Defence Budget (Rs 418,000 crore for the FY 2019-2020) gets passed in the Parliament without any discussion or debate, even as India’s security challenges continue to mount. Yet, despite this huge allocation, the capital outlay remains both inadequate and sometimes even under-spent due to bureaucratic interference.
The depletion of IAF squadrons is a matter of great concern. How can a nation afford to lose highly trained brave lives (IAF pilots) and billions of dollars war equipment besides plummeting combat efficiency? Rajnath Singh has to also uproot this lackadaisical attitude of bureaucracy by integrating military leadership in MoD. Now that the fresh Budget will be presented in the Parliament in July, the Defence Minister must raise the meagre Defence Budget on the whole and ensure immediate measures to build up around 10 deficient fighter squadrons for improving IAF’s combat efficiency.
(The writer is a retired Professor in international trade)
Writer: PK Vasudeva
Courtesy: The Pioneer
Thirty years after the brutality at Tiananmen Square, China has become a powerhouse nation. But it can’t erase its past
One of the enduring images of protest in the 20th century is that of the ‘Tank Man’. Who he is? Nobody knows but the image of a man standing up to a tank, it’s gun raised in anger, moving to the centre of Beijing likely to fire on Chinese youngsters has become an iconic image of a common citizen protesting Government excess. Unfortunately, the ‘Tank Man’ was unable to stop the Chinese Army from senselessly killing its own 20-year-old soldiers firing at 20-year-old students. We will never know the scale of brutality — China has never revealed the actual death toll and if it were not for hundreds of dissidents escaping to the West, this story might have been buried forever. The demonstrators in the Tiananmen Square were screaming for democracy, communism had collapsed across Eastern Europe and for the young students, it was their turn. The authorities did not get the message about democracy but Chinese leaders realised that without economic progress and more wealth in the hands of the citizens, protests would erupt again. In a way, China’s economic miracle was built on the foundation of the dead bodies of the Tiananmen Square protesters. But what a story of economic growth: China today stands alone in challenging Americas global hegemony with its Belt and Road Initiative, it has a modern-day East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere that Imperial Japan envisaged before World War II, but on a grander scale.
China has substituted democracy for development, its rapid industrial and manufacturing prowess has become the strongest case against democracy, leading many Indians to also believe that democracy is a hurdle to development. We should not let this narrative succeed. As India has proven, democracy can be a force for good in this, the world’s largest multiethnic nation. Democracy gives a voice to the subaltern, and they can roar. China might have grown dramatically but that growth has not been completely even — some have benefited more than others and many have been left behind. The protesters in the Tiananmen Square were not what the Communist Party of India Marxist shamefully called counter-revolutionaries, they were demanding a voice. But China changed as a result and moved away from communism just as much as Eastern Europe did. The protesters did achieve something, not democracy but a changed China. It is up to today’s leaders in China whether they see themselves as a force for good or not.
Writer: Pioneer
Courtesy: The Pioneer
History has it that there is a fundamental reason for charismatic leadership to keep the Congress together. And political acumen is not an essential component
National president of Swaraj India, Yogendra Yadav, would like the Congress to die for the sake of the country’s political welfare so that space is created for a new Opposition organisation to come up to help remove the Modi regime. Evidently, Yadav is afflicted with anger; or else he would not have made such an irrational statement. The Congress enjoys enormous brand equity, which is essential for a party to get national acceptability. India is not only huge but a diverse country in terms of languages and ethos. Within a language group, too, there are differences — perhaps inherited from the caste system. Then there are variations in development — some are still at the cultural level of the 19th Century while others are on the apron of the 21st Century.
To get identified with such a wide variety of people is very difficult. For a new party to grow into a national formation, opposing the BJP and removing its leadership, would not only be a Herculean task but also might take decades to be successful. One may note that for all its successes, the BJP has not yet been able to effectively reach out to the people of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. Its prototype, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, was founded in 1951, ie, 68 years ago. I doubt if a third alternative has come up, although some friends have told this writer that a Delhi-based party is hopeful of going national. One wonders if Yadav, when he was a member of a party, had provided the inspiration?
The Congress has a unique record. It began with informing the British rulers how the Indian intelligentsia felt about their policies and actions. Gradually, it started agitating for freedom or discretion to Indians. In such a cause, virtually anyone was welcome to join — whether Indian or foreigner — the party’s founder was an Englishman, Allan Octavian Hume. Until the advent of Mahatma Gandhi, the Congress was a gentlemen’s set-up, rather like a club. It was in 1921, with the non-cooperation movement, that it began to take the character of a mass party. Soon, the Mahatma became its leader, who led the party until Jawaharlal Nehru took over. After Nehru’s death, his daughter, Indira Gandhi, took over.
In October 1984, after being shot by her bodyguards, Indira Gandhi had been declared dead by doctors at AIIMS hospital and the tragic news was broadcast by the BBC radio by 11 am. But Akashvani and Doordarshan kept this development under wraps until 6 pm by when President Zail Singh had returned to India and was ready to swear in Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister. This subterfuge showed how important leadership was to the Congress. By then, the party had hardly any assets, except its brand equity. Until 1969, the Congress had virtually everything that a political party might want. But with its split in 1969, the assets, including the organisational network, remained with the Congress (organisation). Indira Gandhi’s Congress (ruling) had nothing except the members, who were personally loyal to her. As it happened, she chose to not have assets. Several Pradesh Congress Committees operated from their president’s residence. For instance, Ajit Kumar Panja of West Bengal used the drawing room of his residence at 250, Chittranjan Avenue, Kolkata. Many a member, wedded to the tradition, would swear “I will go to any masjid or any mandir but refuse to visit an imam or mahant at his house”. Indira Gandhi must have received such complaints but she did not care. Presumably, her view might have been “what I do not have, no one can take away”. Evidently, she did not trust many. By 1980, half the district Congress committees did not exist. She depended on her charisma and her mass following; party members were powerless helpers in promoting her cause.
Many Congressmen by then had also come to believe that the Nehru-Gandhi family had a unique charisma among the masses. Their evidence was that the Mahatma transformed the Congress into a mass party and it flourished on his charisma until Nehru took the baton from him. After Nehru, Indira Gandhi effectively played this role and enabled the Congress to dominate the Indian political scene. Thereafter, Rajiv Gandhi played a yeoman’s role in keeping the party flying high. For the first and the only time, he led over 400 Congressmen in the Lok Sabha. If he lost the 1989 elections, it was because of Bofors more than anything else. In the 1990s, many of the partymen missed a Gandhi at the helm. They found it difficult to swallow the leadership of PV Narasimha Rao. This writer has personally heard four Hindu Congressmen saying that Rao wore khaki knickers as his underwear. Three Muslim members were heard whispering under their breath that it was he who destroyed the Babri Masjid. This is to illustrate the frustration among party members.
When Sitaram Kesari became party president, several rumour-mongers were selling the belief that at this rate, their historic party would break up. Little wonder that the only Gandhi available, namely, Sonia Gandhi, was elevated to the ivory throne of the Congress. The partymen had no inhibition as it had been founded by an Englishman. It was later presided over by an Irish woman Annie Besant and subsequently, by Nellie Sengupta. For Congressmen, the priority was a charismatic Gandhi, no matter whether brown or white.
There is a fundamental reason for charismatic leadership to keep the Congress together. That reason is that the party is primarily a platform of politicians to meet for the pursuit of power. Especially after Independence, it had no particular cause, nor an ideology to hold it together. Little wonder that the Mahatma recommended its dissolution post-Independence. In the great man’s own time, the Congress had opposed Partition and without much hesitation, had accepted the division after Jinnah’s Direct Action, inaugurated by the Great Calcutta Killing of August 1946.
To quote a more recent example, the Congress had won the 1991 general election on a socialistic manifesto. Within a week, however, it gave a go-by to all socialism and liberalised the economy on the basis of an IMF prescription. This freedom from ideology has enabled the Congress to induct members from all walks of political life, whether an Akali like Zail Singh or a communist like Rangarajan Kumaramangalam or a Shiv Sainik like Chhagan Bhujbal, et al. The flip side of this convenience is the indispensability of charismatic leaders as binders or unifiers.
The political acumen that Yadav yearns for is not an essential component of charisma. Rajiv Gandhi did not have it. Be that as it may, what is necessary for the party is to find such a leader rather than wanting the Congress to die. In any case, the Congress is not a roadblock to the rise of a third national party. The pathways for the rise of such a party are innumerable in our large country.
(The writer is a well-known columnist and an author. Views expressed are personal)
Writer: Pioneer
Courtesy: Prafull Goradia
Communist dictatorship survived in China while it peacefully expired in Russia. It still looks solid even today: Xi Jinping effectively declared himself President-for-life. But communist rule in China has now reached the magic age of 70. Is it immortal? Probably not
Another of the five-yearly anniversaries has rolled around and it’s time to write another think-piece about the long-term meaning of the massacre on Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989. But 30 years later, what is there left to say?
Great changes were already underway in the Communist-ruled parts of Europe in 1989. Mikhail Gorbachev, the reformist Soviet leader, visited Beijing after the students had taken over the square in late April and he obviously thought that the same process was underway in China. Maybe it was, but it was violently aborted — and it has still not recovered.
That’s not what people thought at the time. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of students were killed on the square — the soldiers burned the bodies in a massive pyre right on the square, so there was never an accurate count. Hundreds or thousands more died elsewhere because similar demonstrations were put down in every major Chinese city. And we all thought: This will never be forgotten.
The students weren’t counter-revolutionaries. Their hero, the man whose death they were honouring when they occupied the square, was Hu Yaobang, a life-long communist, a veteran of the Long March, who believed that it was high time to ease up on the controls four decades after the communists took power in China.
For that Hu, the then General Secretary of the Chinese communist party, had been forced into retirement by the party’s hard-liners in 1987. But everybody knew what he wanted and when he died two years later, the students came out to demand it again: Government accountability, freedom of the press, freedom of speech and free trade unions.
The dominant conservative faction in the Chinese communist party responded by killing them and then set out to erase all popular memory of what had happened. It can’t be done, said all the journalists outside China: They will never be forgiven. The crowds will be back on the streets one of these days and there will be a great reckoning and radical change.
Well, not. Thirty years later, most Chinese millennials are ignorant of exactly what happened in 1989. The older generation remember, but they dare not mention it in public and they are a dwindling minority. Journalist Louisa Lim has accurately described contemporary China as the “People’s Republic of Amnesia”.
Why did this happen and has the notion of a freer future really gone down the memory hole in China? Start with the fact that the Soviet Union was 72-years-old in 1989, whereas the Chinese People’s Republic was only 40.
That extra generation meant that there was nobody still in power in Russia who had actually ordered the deaths of thousands of people. Not only the revolutionary generation but also the Stalinist generation were gone and by the 1980s, the career communists, who had climbed the greasy pole of power, were mere bureaucrats.
They thought they were hard men, too, but in fact, they weren’t anything of the sort. A few of them tried to carry out a coup and restore communist rule in 1991, but they were actually trembling with fear as they spoke on TV and they were seen off in a couple of days. Whereas China’s rulers in 1989 still had lots of hands-on experience with killing people. Some of them, like Hu and his successor Zhao Ziyang, were genuine idealists, who felt that the party’s controls must be loosened now that the revolution was an accomplished fact. Zhao actually went to the square at dawn on May 19 and addressed the students, urging them to hold fast to their demands.
“We are already old, we do not matter anymore,” he told them — but Zhao already knew that he had lost the argument and that the communist party leadership had decided to clear the square by force. He had also been stripped of his own position and would live the last 15 years of his life under house-arrest.
The actual massacre was delayed for a further two weeks because the soldiers in Beijing had been fraternising with the students and could no longer be trusted to kill them. It took two weeks to replace them with fresh troops, who knew nothing about what was happening in Beijing and would obediently kill the ‘counter-revolutionaries.’
So the communist dictatorship survived in China while it peacefully expired in Russia. It still looks solid today: The current leader, Xi Jinping, has just effectively declared himself president-for-life. But communist rule in China has now reached the magic age of 70. Is it immortal? Probably not.
Communist rule in the Soviet Union would probably have survived if the economy had been growing strongly. What brought it down was the insolence of absolute power combined with an abject failure to deliver the goods economically. The Chinese communist regime is very insolent, but it will probably survive as long as it delivers the goods.
However, China has a market economy now and market economies have recessions. The official Chinese growth rate is still six per cent, but the real rate of growth has already fallen to somewhere between three per cent and zero. The next five or 10 years should be quite interesting.
(The writer’s new book is Growing Pains: The Future of Democracy and Work)
Writer & Courtesy: Gwynne Dyer
Delimitation of constituencies in Jammu & Kashmir is essential to end regional discrimination and dominance of one particular region over the other two
Among the many problems that engulf Jammu & Kashmir, regional discrimination tops the list. Not very long ago, there was a misconception in the country that Jammu & Kashmir means Kashmir. Many official documents of the Government, as also the media, very often referred to the State as Kashmir. Even the important organs of the State, which included police, administrative services and broadcasting services, are even today referred to as the Kashmir Police Service, Kashmir Administrative Services, Radio Kashmir and DD Kashir. The media, while reporting incidents in the Jammu region, still headlines them as happening in Kashmir. This misconception has been created deliberately by the Kashmiri rulers, who have ruled the State ever since its accession with India, to ensure Kashmiri dominance over the other two regions of the State.
Both Jammu and Ladakh have opposed the Kashmiri hegemony ever since early 1950s when the Constituent Assembly was formed and thereafter, the Sheikh Abdullah-led Government began to rule the State. The Kashmir-centric leadership, with the blessings of Congress-led Nehru Government at the Centre, began systematic degradation of Jammu region in order to express their annoyance against the Maharaja and Dogras. Ladakh was also taken for granted and neglected for being a Buddhist majority area.
However, Sheikh Abdullah, who enjoyed absolute power, institutionalised the hegemony through arbitrary allotment of seats among the three regions of the State when the Constituent Assembly was convened in 1951. The elections were held arbitrarily without any formal authority to conduct elections and women were debarred from enrolling as voters. A total of 100 seats were delineated for the Constituent Assembly. While 25 seats were reserved for the residents of Pak-occupied areas (POJK), elections were held for the remaining 75 seats. There was no delimitation done, nor any yardsticks were laid down for the distribution of seats to the three different regions of the State. The figure of 75 was also borrowed from the Maharaja to whom goes the credit of establishing in 1934 the first elected legislature known as Prajasabha, which had 75 members (both elected and nominated, including the members of the Maharaja’s Cabinet). Out of the 75 seats for which elections were to be held to elect the Constituent Assembly, 40 were allotted to Kashmir, 33 to Jammu and two to Ladakh.
To ensure control of the legislature, Sheikh Abdullah played this fraud with the people of Jammu and Ladakh, ignoring the basic principle of proportional representation since Jammu had larger area and almost equal population with Kashmir. Though Ladakh had the largest area, it was sparsely populated. Jammu Praja Parishad, a political party in Jammu, objected to the discrimination and boycotted the elections. The National Conference (NC) won all 75 seats and Sheikh Abdullah was elected as the Prime Minister of the State. The last session of the Constituent Assembly was held on January 25, 1957, and the new Constitution came into force from January 26. A bicameral Legislature was envisaged for the State.
Meanwhile, a delimitation commission was constituted in India in 1952. However, J&K has not constituted a single commission till date while the rest of the country has benefitted on four occasions so far. In J&K, delimitation has been done only once in 1995, ordered by the then Governor Gen KV Krishna Rao. Delimitation Commission is tasked with redrawing boundaries of various Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies based on the last Census of 2011. In view of Article 370, the Delimitation Commission ordered by the Government of India does not have jurisdiction over J&K. But no such commission has been ordered by the State Government as well for obvious reasons.
Till 1988, the strength of the Assembly continued to be 100 with 75 elected members. The number was increased to 111 vide the Constitution of Jammu & Kashmir (20th Amendment) Act of 1988. Of these, 24 seats are designated for areas under illegal occupation of Pakistan and remain officially vacant as per section 48 of the Constitution and are not taken into account for voting and deciding quorum of the House. Elections are, thus, held for 87 seats, of which Kashmir has the majority share of 46 seats, Jammu 37 seats and Ladakh four seats. Once again, region-wise distribution of seats was done arbitrarily to ensure continuation of Kashmiri dominance. The term of the Assembly is six years, contrary to the rest of the country where the legislatures have a five-year term. There is no justification for the same except to emphasise the State’s presumed special status and flaunt Kashmiri identity. However, the delineation for additional 11 seats was done only in 1995 — on orders of the then Governor, by Justice (retd) KK Gupta, who allotted six seats to Kashmir and five to Jammu. Logically, the next delimitation should have been held in 2005.
Following in the footsteps of his father, Farooq Abdullah, who returned in 1996 as the Chief Minister, played the biggest fraud by passing a resolution in the State Assembly, freezing delimitation till 2026. Concerned with the rise of growing anger among the people of Jammu and Ladakh regions against Kashmiri dominance, Farooq amended the State’s Constitution through 29th amendment of 2002, inserting a new para in Section 47 (3) of the Constitution, freezing fresh delimitation till first Census taken after the year 2026. As a matter of fact, no fresh delimitation is possible till 2031 because that is when theCensus would be due after 2026, a master stroke of Farooq to ensure continuation of Kashmiri hegemony. While Section 49 grants political reservation to SCs, the STs (Gujjars, Bakarwals, Gaddis), which form more than 12 per cent of the State’s population, are denied the political reservations. Going by Farooq’s dubious master stroke, justice cannot be provided to the tribal communities of the State till 2031. Around 24 seats earmarked for the people of POJK serve no purpose except to strengthen our claim on the illegally occupied part of the State. About eight-10 seats out of these should also be allotted to Jammu since all POJK refugees are settled in Jammu region. Using his guile and influence, Sheikh Abdullah did not let any of the refugees from Mirpur-Muzaffarabad belt settle in Kashmir though going by geographical proximity, Kashmir should have been the natural habitat of refugees from Muzaffarabad. The displaced community of Kashmiri Pandits should also have reserved seats in Kashmir.
Der ayad durust ayad (better late than never) is a popular saying. The initiative being taken by Modi 2.0 Government, with Amit Shah heading the vital Home Ministry, is a welcome step to end regional discrimination and dominance of one particular region over the other two. This is vital to bridge the growing divide between the three regions to ensure unity of the State. By empowering the people of Jammu and Ladakh, vital stakeholders and separatist forces will be hit hard and pave way for return of peace and normalcy to the troubled State. Apart from removing inequity and anomaly of regional disparity long suffered by people of Jammu, who form 44 per cent population of the State and occupy 26 per cent of the State’s total area as per the 2011 Census, fresh delimitation will also provide representation to all reserved categories in the State Assembly.
It is not intended to raise finger on the validity of the Census 2011, but the people need to know two glaring observations in the Census that question the large gap of about 15 lakh between the populations of two regions. First, the entire migratory population of Gujjar, Bakerwal and Gaddis that account for 12 per cent of the total population (14,93,299) and is a floating population has been included in the population of Kashmir region. Second, about two lakh Kashmiri Pandit population is also included in Kashmir’s population. The fact is known world over. Kashmiri Pandits migrated in the early 1990s and 66 per cent of them are staying in the Jammu region. The rest are divided between Delhi and other parts of the country. Hardly a few thousands Kashmiri Pandits continue to stay in Kashmir. The point to highlight is that if factual position is taken, Jammu region has more population than Kashmir.
Also, while constituencies in Kashmir are delineated for a population of 35000-40000, many in Jammu have an electorate of lakh plus. While Kashmiris want to heap the benefit of floating population to show that the region is more populated than Jammu, when it comes to granting them political reservations, they deny them the same. This explains the political dynamics of State which were heavily skewed in favour of Kashmir. Since the State is under President’s Rule, legislative powers of the legislature are vested with the Indian Parliament and executive authority is with the President in accordance with Article 356 of the Constitution. Therefore, in order to amend Section 47 of the State’s Constitution, Parliament’s approval will be needed based on which the President will issue the Presidential Order, paving way for the Constitution of a Delimitation Commission. In order to protect multi-cultural, multi-lingual, multi-religious and inclusive ethos of State, it is necessary to bridge the widening distrust between the three regions. Regional disparities have to end first before other measures can be taken. All eyes and hopes of the people of Jammu and Ladakh are on Modi 2.0.
(The writer is a Jammu-based political commentator, columnist, security and strategic analyst)
Writer & Courtesy: Anil Gupta
AAP Govt’s free public transport move for women could set a policy benchmark across genders and cities
Is poverty the price of prosperity? Paradoxical as this may sound, the experience of both developed and emerging economies seems to reinforce this reality. This is especially true for vast metropolitan conglomerations such as Mumbai, Mexico City, Manila and increasingly Delhi. The overcrowded slums in these cities coexist cheek-by-jowl with serenely decked-up bungalows that house the rich, the powerful and the beautiful. The neighbourhood slums or multi-storey ghettos exist to service the “other half” so to speak. This stark class differentiation compels city administrations to devise policies to cater to the conflicting needs of rival sections. The Delhi government’s controversial move to make public transportation free for women comes in the category of such a contradictory policy. Predictably, its intended beneficiaries have welcomed it, but the rest are miffed. Critics say women should not be specially favoured in the age of gender equality, while its proponents assert that the city administration must be responsive to the financial and security concerns of women commuters. A more widespread charge against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi is that it has been overtly populist and opportunistic by announcing this move just a few months before the City-State’s Assembly election. It would, however, be unfair to blame AAP as even the biggest national parties such as the Congress and BJP have both indulged in the same. In fact, Delhi is relatively prosperous compared to most States of the Union and can afford a fair degree of populism. It is also a fact that Delhi’s two-crore plus population is highly disaggregated with thousands of poor people from neighbouring States migrating almost daily. India is a free country in which there are, rightly, no curbs on internal migration unlike, say, China.
Will this help decongest the Capital’s overburdened roads? In all probability — No. But it will definitely help working woman commute at lesser cost while their greater numbers should make metro coaches safer for travelling. If this experiment succeeds as it surely will, a debate on making public transport free for all must follow. Arguably, it was once a socialist ideal and socialism itself has been thrown out of the window almost everywhere in the world. But when public transport was virtually free in Socialist Bloc countries, the world was far less prosperous than it is today. In fact, the gains of capitalism allow us to adopt more socialist policies than hitherto conceivable. Running public transport should not in any case be guided by the idea of profit and loss. The state has certain responsibilities towards its citizens and providing affordable and efficient public transportation in all large urban conglomerates is one of its duties. This point was emphasised by none other than India’s own Metro Man, E Sreedharan, who was highly critical of the public-private model adopted for Hyderabad. He said that public transport infrastructure is very expensive and recovering costs both of construction and operations through fares is simply not possible. So subsidies are a must. The question is how much subsidy is the optimum. That in turn depends on its objective. If the idea is to facilitate urban commuting and help generate more from the work force, the state must look upon public transport infrastructure as investment in economic growth. There was a time when peak hour traffic in Beijing consisted of pedestrians, metro commuters and bicyclists. Cars were few and far between. Today traffic jams in the Chinese Capital are as bad as New York, suggesting a degree of prosperity unthinkable even two decades ago. Traffic explosion may be the downside of prosperity, but that does not mean we adopt Pol Pot-like measures to stymie growth. Therefore, a subsidised growth model is a must for metro rail if our urban hubs are to prosper. Delhi, with its visionary Chief Minister is probably the right man to lay the footprint for a free yet viable metro network in all major cities of India.
It appears that the summers are getting hotter. It is time we looked at climate change making the summers worse
Headlines are screaming about how temperatures across the country are hitting record highs. On social media, users are posting pictures of their car thermometers in cities like Delhi often displaying readings of temperatures rising above 50oC. As many as 10 places in India currently figure among the 15 hottest in the world. Further, according to the Ministry of statistics and programme implementation, heat waves and cold waves in the country have increased greatly over the past two years. While the number of heatwaves increased 14 times in 2017 compared to 2016, the number of cold waves spiked 34 times in the same period. The fact of the matter is that summers in India have become progressively warmer over the years. While the heat that builds up over north and central India creates a large low pressure zone, which draws in the rain-laden clouds from the Indian Ocean, the temperatures are now hitting deadly levels, making living and working outside downright dangerous for the people. Not everyone has the privilege of working indoors, sitting comfortably inside the office premises. From delivery boys to traffic policemen and women as also service staffers, who work in this unbearable heat — all risk their lives just as they are doing their daily routine jobs. They do not have a choice and we doff our caps to these brave souls working in these truly atrocious conditions. One irony of soaring temperatures is that it makes those, who can afford to use air conditioners, use them more. There is nothing wrong per se. In this heat, any creature comfort that can make one feel cooler is a must. But air conditioners work by exchanging heat and the exhaust from them, in homes, offices and cars make the outside air hotter still. And then there is the power needed to power all the cooling devices, made from polluting coal as India still generates a bulk of its electricity from thermal sources. To make matters worse this summer, when the thin air is usually blowing around, air pollution levels normally reduce dramatically but this year, Delhi’s Air Quality Index has been stuck in the severe category for days. One reason for that is likely the more intense measuring of pollution nowadays, but residents in cities across North India feel the air they breathe and they will tell you that it is dirtier than usual.
The example of air conditioners and how their use has built up a positive feedback cycle making the heat worse is a prime example of climate change-driven by our everyday actions. And we can feel that the average temperature is rising year after year when we step out into the heat and feel our skin sear and notice the roads melt. This is just another challenge for the new Government, how to balance the needs of the population with the environment. You can’t stop people from using air conditioners if they can afford it and more Indians can afford it every year. But you can mandate more efficient air conditioners alongside better building design and strive for cleaner energy sources. One of the keys to protect oneself from the heat waves is to avoid exposure to direct sunlight during the hottest time of the day, around noon time. Alongside, State Governments must play a proactive role in implementing the NDMA guidelines, which lays down the measures to prepare, protect, and mitigate the ill-effects of heat waves. With advanced meteorological forecasting systems, the public can be alerted as soon as the temperatures cross the threshold limit. They must be advised about the precautionary measures to be taken, especially the most vulnerable lot. It is only a matter of time when the headlines will scream out that the temperature in Delhi, which is after all a city of 20 million souls, will exceed 50oC at a measuring station. By then, it might be too late to turn back time even as the effects of climate change causes an increase in extreme weather-related events.
Writer & Courtesy: The Pioneer
China is a good example of how it has balanced environmental protection and economic growth. India must learn from Beijing to tackle air pollution
Air pollution has become an unwitting part of our daily lives along with its health and economic consequences. This, despite the tremendous efforts being made to bring down the scale of pollution through path-breaking measures aided by researched scientific studies. Today, the entire world’s attention will be focused on air pollution as it happens to be the theme of this year’s World Environment Day, which is being hosted by China. World Environment Day, celebrated since 1974, is the United Nations day for encouraging worldwide awareness and action to protect the environment.
Since its inception, the World Environment Day has grown to become a global platform for public outreach that is celebrated in over 100 countries. Above all, this day has become “people’s day” for doing something to take care of the Earth. That “something” can be local, national or global. This year’s theme of ‘air pollution’ is apt as this issue has been causing immense concern to the well-being of humanity across the world. Globally, it is estimated that air pollution is responsible for 3.1 million premature deaths worldwide every year and 3.2 percent of the global burden of disease.
Epidemiological studies revealed that there is a link between air pollution and diseases with public health importance such as cardiovascular diseases for instance, stroke and ischemic heart disease, cancers and respiratory diseases. Respiratory diseases related to air pollution include acute respiratory infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and asthma. India is one of the main sufferers of deteriorating air quality levels. Though the Government is making efforts all-year round to mitigate its effects, no noticeable dip in air pollution levels have been registered. This year, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has released a song titled, ‘Hawa Aane De’ to spread awareness among the general public regarding air pollution and its adverse effects on the eve of the World Environment Day. Even the traffic police has been roped in to create the required consciousness regarding air pollution and associated problems.
The World Environment Day is also referred to as the ‘Action Day’ when people around the world are expected to take meaningful action in their own way possible and do their bit for planet Earth. The day symbolises the efforts to save the environment and is the biggest annual event for positive environmental action. However, the current state of dismal air quality levels and withering environment is indicative of the fact that intense and productive action is needed almost on a daily basis to save our ambient air quality. In this regard, perhaps it is not coincidental that China is hosting this year’s ‘World Environment Day’. The country is increasingly being recognised by the world for its hard and aggressive domestic stand on matters pertaining to environmental conservation.
China was at the receiving end of severe air pollution levels till recently but concentrated and non-negotiable policies are slowly turning the tide in its favour. Besides, China is also planning to adopt more efficient and targeted measures during its continuing campaign against pollution by not relaxing the targets or easing crackdown on violators. One of the first measures adopted by the Chinese Government was to give autonomy to regional pollution control authorities to curb the production of heavy industries in their region, depending upon the local air quality level. This helped it bring an end to the earlier practice of imposing nation-wide production curbs on heavy industries in response to spike in air pollution levels in some regional areas. This impacted the economy negatively than actually curbing the pollution levels.
The bevy of policy initiatives taken up by China has made the world sit up and take notice. The efforts of China to control the pollution levels are nearly 20-year-old and according to a research conducted by UN Environment and the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau (BEE), it is evident how Beijing’s air quality management programme has evolved and makes for a sustainable strategy for the future. The report by BEE specifically mentions, “This improvement in air quality didn’t happen by accident. It was the result of an enormous investment of time, resources and political will.”
Figures of improvement in air quality speak for themselves. Reeling under the pressure of ever worsening air quality, Beijing adopted systematic and intensive measures in the beginning of 2013. Thanks to unwavering and concentrated efforts by the Government — which was fully supported by the disciplined population — by the end of 2017, fine particulate pollution (PM2.5) had fallen by 35 per cent and by 25 per cent in the surrounding Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Over this period, annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM10) and volatile organic compounds in Beijing decreased by 83 per cent, 43 per cent, 55 per cent and 42 per cent respectively. Much of this reduction came from measures to control coal-fired boilers, provide cleaner domestic fuels and industrial restructuring. This by itself is an area of learning for India.
What is the backbone of this firm Chinese resolve to bring down air pollution levels? It is definitely not a set of token efforts played mainly for optics by the Government as in other countries. In fact, Beijing’s air quality management system is supported by a comprehensive monitoring, evaluation, pollution source apportionment and emission inventories. It also contains wide-ranging legal standards and strict environmental law enforcement. Air quality work is supported by economic policies, public participation and coordination on air pollution prevention and control in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. These robust networks of actionable laws and policies have helped China achieve something that other nations suffering from falling air quality standards are still grappling with. Without doubt, Beijing’s efforts, achievements, experiences and lessons in air pollution control over the last 20 years are worth analysing and sharing in order to progress global environmental governance.
Beijing has achieved impressive air quality improvements in a short span. It is a good example of how to balance environmental protection and economic growth. India is ambitiously targeting aggressive economic growth that might outpace Chinese economy eventually. But what will this progress cost us? A country that loses its environment and gains economic prosperity has only won in short-term and lost in long-term. Therefore a balance is of utmost importance. The World Environment Day in India must come to mean the significance of this balance.
India must rejig its environmental priorities and ensure that the annual World Environment Day is utilised for stock-taking and assessment of efforts taken in the last year. As a first step, the new Government must set actionable goals that are time-bound and specify penalties for relevant authorities for not adhering to the deadlines. People, too, need to be held accountable for the environment and sufficient measures must be envisioned and implemented that seek to awake environmental consciousness of the common man and also ensure that willful and deliberate polluters of environment are exemplarily punished. Would these measures be harsh for India? Maybe not if one factors in the suffering undergone by the environment and our fragile ecosystem till now.
It is time to quantify the progress made by us in safeguarding the environment. Celebration of a specific day by caring for the planet for that particular day is woefully inadequate. This has to be a year-long effort until we reclaim our environment. As China has shown, this is very much possible.
(The writer is an environmental journalist)
Writer: Kota Sriraj
Courtesy: The Pioneer
The JD(U) chief has reminded the ruling NDA why it must abide by the coalition dharma and not dismiss allies
India’s experiments with coalition governments may have had varying degrees of success, sometimes as that of a keeper of checks and balances, sometimes as deal-breakers for policy implementation. But by and large, India has evolved its coalition dharma with artful management of consensus politics. Alliance governments are now not just part of the political grammar but no party, no matter how big its verdict, can afford to ignore the contribution made by its regional partners. Without that arrangement, there would not have been a combined vote surge or the number of seats. The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), should know this too well, now that it is into its third edition. But the huge individual numbers for the BJP (303 Lok Sabha seats, majority being 272) may have led to hubris and a confidence which was definitely not there before the elections. In fact, both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his wingman Amit Shah had carefully worked on adding more and more allies, even the smallest, months before the polls, unsure as they were of the verdict. True, numerically the BJP can afford to be blatant but the question is would the numbers appear on the tally had it not been for its notional inclusive approach? It is in this light that the BJP should remember the virtues of flexibility and sensitivity rather than arrogance and rigidity. Had it been wary, it could well have avoided the kind of tiff it had with Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal-United (JD-U) chief Nitish Kumar.
Nitish was reportedly upset at being offered no more than one berth in the Union Cabinet though he claimed 50 per cent seats of the total NDA tally from Bihar. So he chose to stay out of the government and offer only outside support to NDA3. Not only that, he declared that the JD-U would not join the NDA government in future either if tokenism was the only criterion. Agreed the BJP had a bigger seat tally to justify reducing the quota for allies but during the election, it had accorded some allies like the Shiv Sena and JD-U greater space in seat allocation and had hence built up expectations of primacy. In that case, there should have been equally open talks at the allies’ meet before government formation. In a hitback, Nitish did not include a single BJP member as he expanded his State Cabinet on Sunday and inducted eight of his legislators. Although some firefighting was done saying one seat was left for the BJP, speculation was rife that fissures within the NDA were getting deeper, given the fact that Nitish’s relationship with the BJP has always been uncomfortable, the alliance being one of political necessity than ideological compliance. In fact, Nitish’s socialist belief systems have always been antithetical to the BJP’s and had not Bihar’s former strongman Lalu Prasad Yadav painted him into a corner, disagreeing with his clean politics than his own dynastic one, Nitish would not have had to make this unhappy compromise. But wily that he is, Nitish is also keeping his self-worth intact by just extending support and not participating in governance, giving the BJP some anxiety before the Assembly elections next year. In fact, most of his State Cabinet inductees are from the backward and extremely backward castes, the numerical consolidation of which has also been the target of the BJP. Besides, if the success of the Biju Janata Dal has proved anything, it is that a fair bit of equidistance helps. By staying out of the government, Nitish is also hoping to get special status for Bihar ahead of the Assembly election. By taking the moral high ground, he is appealing to his electorate. Besides, should the ruling BJP get aggressive about pushing contentious issues like Article 370 or the latest language chauvinism — ideas Nitish detests — he can claim distance on secular grounds. Also, the failure of Lalu and Congress has left Bihar a fertile ground for new political alignments ahead of the Assembly elections. The BJP, too, cannot take everything for granted so early in the day.
Writer: Pioneer
Courtesy: The Pioneer
The Modi-led new Government deserves six tension-free months to put its plans and promises in action mode. Meanwhile, the Opposition must set its own house in order
Narendra Modi 2.0 has begun on a triumphant note for the BJP and its allies. Obviously, it has come as a shock to ‘seasoned’ politicians, none of whom — with all the experience of electioneering behind — could anticipate such a massive mandate in favour of Narendra Modi. Many of them thought the 2014 victory was a fluke; that people were tempted by what they called ‘unfulfilled promises’. Congressmen were convinced that people would return back to the grand old party; other parties thought that their caste base was intact as Modi could not bring back black money, out of which every Indian was to get 15 lakh in his/her account. Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav dismissed the panel of spokespersons of the party. Congress has decided not to send spokespersons for TV debates for a month. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) continues to complain about ‘good EVMs’ and ‘doctored EVMs’. All of these indicate the level and intensity of pain the defeat has inflicted on major Opposition parties.
Yes, it is a sharp indictment inflicted by the people on them and it will be tough for these parties to come out of the shock. They are best advised to seek solace and guidance from what Alvin Toffler had written a couple of decades ago: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.” Think of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, who was travelling to various places, making an attempt to bring Opposition parties together and offer a national alternative — even a Prime Minister! In his own State, he was facing the Assembly elections. Probably he knew nothing about which way the wind was blowing there. Literacy has so many dimensions. The contours of Indian electoral politics have undergone a silent though major transformation over the years and those, who continue to depend upon taking the voter for granted, will just vanish from the scene. One can be sure that the fate of Trinamool Congress (TMC), SP, BSP and Indian National Congress — still keen to continue the politics of 1980s — shall be observed very closely even by international pundits of electoral politics.
Pre-election activities to the 17th Lok Sabha polls shall be remembered in history for the absence of efforts by Opposition parties to comprehend the prevailing mood of the electorate. Absence of strategic deficiencies and restlessness among all major Opposition parties was visible all around. They targetted Narendra Modi, and were not against the BJP. The manner chowkidar chor hai boomeranged indicates the absence of “unlearn and relearn.” After the elections, Opposition parties face a bleak future. They are a worried lot as this election could herbal a total transformation of the Indian political scenario during the next five years. Political parties based on caste, sub-caste and communal considerations, mostly owned by individuals and families, have already sensed grave danger to their very existence after the renewed arrival of Narendra Modi on the national scene. In the 2014 elections, his popularity cut across caste, creed, regional or parochial considerations. He could even make a dent in the Muslim community votes, which indeed was a great achievement even as the numbers were not so impressive. Modi has endeared himself to the liberal and educated Muslim community on the one hand and on the other, to those who are grateful to receive gas connections, pucca houses, toilets and several other benefits. The Opposition knew it well — though they could not accept it publically for obvious reasons — that some of the schemes launched by Narendra Modi had impacted millions of families who were deprived of basic facilities and human dignity for ages. A gas connection, toilet, pucca house, a bank account, health support, farm insurance and the like brought achhe din to crores of families — without any discrimination. This was one well-thought out step that related every member of the beneficiary family to Prime Minister Modi on one-to-one basis.
Here was a Prime Minister, who was worried about the smoke in the kitchen of the poor and the embarrassment suffered by women who had to suffer due to the practice of open defecation all along. He had the courage to speak about it from the ramparts of the Red Fort. He could set the entire nation on the move — clean India an ODF India. Not that these concerns were not highlighted in policies and programmes earlier, but implementation mostly remained on files only. Things are different this time: A family that uses toilets now shall never let it go non-functional in the future. Those, who are used to the luxury of shining marble-floored attached toilets for four-five decades, just could not visualise the impact on the families getting a toilet for the first time.
Think of the political leadership of the first two decades after independence. Most of them had impressive saga of sacrifices and sufferings behind them. They had worked with the people, understood India, were practicing Gandhian values, knew India likes and adores those who comprehend the import of non-accumulation; Aparigrah. People are just trying to find one person in public life who practices Aparigrah like Modi in his real life. The newly elected MP from Balasore, Pratap Sarangi, comes in this category. He received the maximum applause while taking oath as a Minister of State in the new Cabinet. He lives in a thatched house, rides a bicycle and created history by winning the election without any expenditure. People are keen to know more about him, his lifestyle and the way he conducts himself. They are least concerned about his caste or political affiliation. This India is now emerging. It has naturally caused great concern among those who find their citadels of power, affluence and authority crumbling under the upthrust from below — the rise of neglected people, deprived people and those who were presumed destined to suffer forever.
People are no more impressed by lavish lifestyles, long cavalcades and hoards of favour-seekers around their leaders. Gradually, India has developed distaste for avoidable pomp and show, particularly by elected representatives, including those occupying high positions in the Government. It was left to Narendra Modi to realise that the red beacon on vehicles was disliked by practically everyone in the public. By one single act, he won over innumerable fans throughout the country. One could enlist several such successful initiatives that have changed the psyche of the people of India. They are breaking the barriers in Indian politics, freeing it from the bondages of caste and communal shackles. The real and realistic change is taking place in villages and small towns of India. And this indeed is a very encouraging sign. The manner in which political parties and leaders are incisively analysed in village chaupals and roadside tea stalls can often become an eye-opener for political pundits. Voting patterns in States of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are rare examples of the increasing maturity of the Indian voter. They installed Congress Governments in these States just six months ago, but extended full-scale support to Modi in national elections. It is this newly-acquired skill of discrimination that represents an increase in the strength of democracy.
The new Government deserves six tension-free months to put its plans and promises in action mode. The Opposition can utilise this time to set its house in order. Most regional parties are facing some crises or the other. There is disappointment in parties like BSP, SP, NCP, TDP and there is immense frustration that has manifested most in West Bengal, or in speeches of leaders like Farooq Abdullah, Mamata Banerjee or Mehbooba Mufti. The best course open for Opposition parties is to direct their leaders and workers to go to villages, stay there for at least a month, if not more, and find out what people really need and what impacts them. Take one example: If instead of going abroad for two months on a secret mission, Rahul Gandhi had stayed — at least once in five years — in Amethi for that much period, he would certainly not have suffered a humiliating defeat. He would have gathered tremendous experience in understanding India if he had gone to take medicine from the local health centre, accompanied a farmer to the police station to get an FIR registered, visited sarkari schools to find what happens to the mid-day meal scheme.
Smriti Irani maintained her links even after losing the 2014 elections and her doors were open 24X7 to anyone coming to Delhi from Amethi. This was bound to pay dividends. It worked and she could achieve what was considered impossibility by most experts. It will be interesting and rewarding if someone could study and analyse how many candidates, who came second in 2014 elections, really kept in touch with their electorate for five years. My presumption, sadly enough, is not encouraging at all.
(The writer is the Indian Representative on the Executive Board of UNESCO)
Writer: JS Rajput
Courtesy: The Pioneer
To rise again, the Congress needs to reinvent itself and strengthen the organisation. It must play the role of a credible Opposition not by criticising every move of the Government but by supporting it for the acts that are in the nation’s interest
The Congress has gone back to the tried and tested leadership of Sonia Gandhi by once again electing her as the leader of its parliamentary party in its hour of crisis. Calling it “unprecedented crisis”, Sonia herself acknowledged the numerous challenges confronting the grand old party. Claiming that several decisive measures were being mulled to strengthen the organisation, she hinted that Rahul Gandhi would continue as the party chief though he had offered his resignation to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) after the defeat. In one voice, the CWC rejected his resignation. By now, it is clear that neither will the party give up on the Gandhi family nor will the family will give up its power over the 132- year grand old party.
Rahul Gandhi should learn a lesson or two from other Opposition leaders, who, too, were humiliated in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has already made changes to her party to get ready for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh polls. Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has asked his party to be prepared for the 2020 Assembly polls. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has begun her street-level fight to prepare for the Assembly polls. So, the fighting politician will not sulk as Rahul Gandhi did for the past few days. If the general is demoralised, what happens to the foot soldiers?
Rahul Gandhi’s pep-talk to his party MPs last week sent the right signal that it will fight back in Parliament and outside as that is what is expected from a responsible Opposition leader. He said, “We are 52 MPs. I guarantee you that these 52 MPs will fight against the BJP every single inch. We are enough to make the BJP jump everyday.” But to do this, Rahul Gandhi should come to Parliament regularly and lead from the front. So far he had been irregular in his Parliament attendance. If public meetings and rallies brings a leader in direct contact with the people, the Parliament is where the Opposition should take on the Government effectively through debates and discussions. Sonia Gandhi optimistically predicted that, “In an unprecedented crisis lies an unprecedented opportunity…Undeterred by the many challenges that lie ahead, we will rise again,” she said.
To rise again, the party needs to reinvent itself and strengthen the organisation. Rahul Gandhi’s first challenge is to show that the Congress is not a spent-force.
Second, he should make efforts to unite the Opposition to function in a cohesive manner in Parliament on issues that matter. Now that the NDA has emerged with 352 seats in the Lok Sabha, passing Bills will not be a problem for the Modi Government. But this is where the Congress and other Opposition parties should be vigilant. An effective Opposition does not need numbers but members, who can raise the issues effectively. Did not former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi face such turbulent times in Parliament during the Bofors scam days, though he had a brute majority of 415 members? A dozen of Opposition leaders, including Madhu Dandavate, Somnath Chatterjee, Indrajit Gupta, Jaipal Reddy and KP Unnikrishnan not only raised issues effectively but also saw to it that Rajiv Gandhi lost power in the 1989 elections.
Third, the Congress should strengthen the Opposition by winning cooperation of parties like Biju Janata Dal, YSR Congress Party and Telangana Rashtra Samithi among others during parliamentary debates and discussions.
Fourth, though there is no provision of a shadow Cabinet in the Indian system, the Congress can think of encouraging its MPs to develop expertise in certain domains. This will come handy for the party. After all, it has several experienced ex-Ministers. Lastly, the party should live in the present and not in its past glory as no legacy however strong can go on forever.
The role of the Opposition is not to criticise every decision of the Government but support issues of public interest. Boycotting the Parliament, stalling business and hitting the streets will not work. Modi-bashing days are over after the BJP registered a stunning victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. It is time to look ahead. Ideas of secularism/fundamentalism have no longer any appeal going by the way the BJP is growing. What Congress needs is to find an identity, appeal and a new narrative. After all, it has to face several Assembly elections before the next Lok Sabha polls in 2024. The Congress as a credible Opposition is critical for Indian democracy because despite its losses, the party still remains the only political force as a counterbalance to the BJP’s surge.
The Congress should work towards building a cohesive Opposition and take note of what the Prime Minister said in a televised address: “Whatever happened in these elections is in the past, we have to look ahead. We have to take everyone forward, including our staunchest opponents.” If he is looking ahead, so should the Opposition.
(The writer is a senior political commentator and syndicated columnist)
Writer: Kalyani Shankar
Courtesy: The Pioneer
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