Doing Away with the Gandhian Philosophy

The present UPA government was the first government after Rajiv Gandhi to be blessed with such a popular mandate. The after-election response was that it was a golden opportunity to perform without the pressure of appeasing any allies. But the second innings of the UPA government is turning out to be nothing short of a disaster. Talking about foreign policy, the government is turning out to be a dud. Indians had attached high expectations from this government. And rightly so.  The mandate ensured that the government was free from the push and pulls of coalition dharma. And with the policy of granting ministries on the basis of qualification and bringing in foreign policy veterans such as Shashi Tharoor, the expectations weren’t unjustified. But the government hasn’t been able to live up to the expectations attached to it. Instead it has meekly surrendered in front of China and USA.

China has upped the ante with constant interference in the matters of the government of India and Arunachal Pradesh. But instead of coming out with a strong response, we get to hear the age-old “strong condemnation” of China’s statement and the regular “Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India”. I have already started yawning considering the number of times I have heard this repetitive response. Shouldn’t we go on the offensive and attack china on its human rights record in Tibet or ask them to move out of the territory occupied by them in Tibet. Instead we think twice before permitting Dalai Lama to visit Arunachal Pradesh lest it hurts the sentiments of China. The response by the government asking China to stop its activities in PoK was in the right direction and it should continue on this path whenever there is any sort of interference from China. Why do we need to meekly surrender in front of the world’s superpowers or the budding superpowers? I might be accused of jingoism. But I don’t believe in the Gandhian philosophy of offering your other cheek when someone slaps you on the first. Instead, I believe we should return the favour by hitting them where it hurts most.

Contrast that to the BJP government which went ahead with the nuclear tests even after being aware of the impending sanctions on the international front. The BJP government not only carried out the tests but also deftly managed  to strengthen relations with the major international players. Relations with USA reached a new height and the foundation for 123 Nuclear Agreement was set up. That sharp acumen and political manoeuvering seems to lack in the present dispension. Long way to go for Mr. S. M. Krishna and his high profile MoS Mr. Shashi Tharoor considering the standards that have been set in the foreign policy segment by his predecessors in the BJP government.

India's Best Prime Ministers

Atal Bihari Vajpayee

1. Foreign Policy: Vajpayee's foreign policy successes are many. He led India to a victory over Pakistan in 1999 in Kargil and more importantly, the US began to recognize India's position against Pakistan. Relations with China also normalised. He had the guts to go in for a nuclear test and under him, India started it's march of economic prosperity and self-confidence.
2. Economy: The economy stabilised by the time he took over in 1999 and started an unbelievable growth trajectory. He firmly supported disinvestment, but not blind privatisation. As Manmohan Singh said at a recent rally, the economy grew at 5.6% during the Vajpayee tenure, indeed a very impressive growth rate.
3. Home Affairs: This is where the Vajpayee Government had its failures. It failed to check the VHP's protests in 2002 in order to celebrate the demolition of the Babri Masjid. He also failed to take any concrete action against Narendra Modi's Government. You may argue that he upheld democracy by allowing the people to judge - and it thus remains debatable whether you can blame him.
4. Biggest Embarrassment: The Tehelka scandal rocked his ministry and the Coffin scandal involving George Fernandes portrayed his ministry as quite corrupt.
5. Biggest Advantage: He's a 10 time Lok Sabha member and has won the "Best Parliamentarian" award. He took tough decisions which were the need of the hour.

Jawaharlal Nehru

1. Foreign Policy: Jawaharlal Nehru's foreign policy was flawed beyond repair. His Non-Aligned Movement and more importantly, his blind trust of China exploded in his later years. Problems that he created (like Kashmir) haunt India till this day.
2. Economy: The Indian economy under Nehru was rebuilding itself. The foundations laid by Nehru were strong enough to sustain India through a lot of dangerous periods. Food security also improved vastly and industrial growth also remained consistent.
3. Home Affairs: Democracy took deep roots under Nehru. All institution of independent and democratic India (the courts, the army, and the police) were set up and remain strong till this day. If India has survived till this day, a lot of credit goes to Nehru for letting democracy take off in India.
4. Biggest Embarrassment: The defeat to China will remain forever to portray Nehru's later years as weak and incompetent.
5. Biggest Success: DEMOCRACY!!

Manmohan Singh

1. Foreign Policy: His single biggest foreign policy success remains the Indo-US Nuclear Deal.
2. Economy: The biggest challenge for the Indian economy ever took place in his tenure. The economy still maintained a 6-7% growth rate and never went into recession. Two stimuli packages were announced and a slew of other measures taken. Though the Left clipped his wings, he still managed to bring stability to the economy.
3. Home Affairs: Terrorism marked his tenure. The rapidity of attacks increased. Thrice in Delhi, twice in Mumbai - and the Government failed to take any measures. It reached a peak in 2008, only after which the Government removed the Home Minister. It is noticeable that since P Chidambaram took over, only 1 terrorist attack took place.
4. Biggest Embarrassment: The presence of inefficient and often corrupt ministers like Shibu Soren in his cabinet and the ruckus created during the trust vote marred his credentials.
5. Biggest Advantage: A clean image remains his USP. He's slowly being recognized as a man of clean politics and strong convictions.

Indira Gandhi

1. Foreign Policy: Indira Gandhi scores highest on foreign policy. She led India to a victory over Pakistan in 1971 and captured 1 lakh Prisoners of War. She presided over India's first nuclear explosion and stood tall before Nixon. She withstood US ire and still managed to reinstill the sense of national pride. It should be noted that Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the one who called her "Durga" after the Bangladesh liberation.
2. Economy: The economy was a problem during most of Indira Gandhi's tenure. She began with a huge economic crisis and the country went through cycles of deflation and inflation. However, the green revolution that she presided over has ensured India's food security till date.
3. Home Affairs: Indira Gandhi could have been on top of the list just that I am not comfortable with the idea of putting on top a person who didn't believe full-heartedly in democracy. A Prime Minister has got to respect democracy. But declaring Emergency and by turning the Congress into a sycophants' club, Indira Gandhi left a very bad legacy for democracy in India.
4. Biggest Embarrassment: The emergency and Operation Blue Star will continue to define her. She almost succeeded in hurling Indian democracy down the drain.
5. Biggest Advantage: She seems to have been destiny's child. Despite the emergency, she remained so popular with the masses.

UPA v.2.0

After coming back to power with a resounding victory, one would have expected Manmohan Singh to display signs of control and talk about a reformist and a socialist agenda for his new government. Disappointingly, we miss the flashes of brilliance and the astute political mind which he displayed during the Confidence motion brought in Parliament over the passage of the Nuclear Deal. It was then that I felt the PM was not “weak”. Manmohan Singh had such strong convictions about the N-Deal and its benefits for the country that he decided to put his chair to stake. How could a PM who staked his chair because of his strong convictions be considered weak? The only thing was that he and his policies had a human touch which India had missed sorely during the previous governments (without any disrespect to Mr. Vajpayee, the contemporary politician I admire the most).

But his second stint hasn’t been as rewarding as his first. Among the many gaffes committed by him and the PMO are the Baluchistan fiasco and the end-user agreement signed with the US. The PM while catering to Pakistani counterpart has gone on record to say that India and Pakistan are the common victims of the same type of terrorism. A totally unfounded statement. While we suffer terrorism originating from across the border, Pakistan is suffering their own making. The PM has only vindicated Pakistan. Next time there’s a terrorist attack on Indian soil, Pakistan can simply wash its hands off the issue by saying both the countries are the victims of terrorism.

The mention of Baluchistan in the joint declaration with Pakistan is another fiasco that had the foreign policy think-tank and the Parliament demanding and explanation in chorus. The situation came to such a pass that the outgoing foreign secretary, Shiv Shankar Menon had to give a clarification in the Lok Sabha. He termed it as a drafting error. It’s to be seen how much this drafting error costs India in the international forum in the long run. Then there’s a delinking of terrorist activities and the peace process initiated between the two countries. This is exactly opposite to the stand that the PM had taken when he met the Pakistani president, Asif Ali Zardari and snubbed him in public. The change in stance is reportedly being ascribed to US pressure. And the PM is supposed to have bowed down to that pressure. The issue of the end-user agreement for military equipments signed during Hillary Clinton’s visit caused a lot of noise in the Parliament. Then there’s the bad handling of the Shopian rape case in Kashmir which has only allowed separatists to become stronger. If nothing else, the demand for “aazadi” was clearly audible during the entire drama. The economic recession has only added salt to the wounds of the already beleaguered PM.

It’s not to say that UPA version 2.0 is a failure. There has been progress on a host of issues. But a lot of expectations were attached with this government – especially when it became clear that the government was not in pressure to cater to the demands of its allies but was free to pursue its own will. It’s to be seen whether Manmohan Singh can stand on the pedestal and fulfill the needs and aspirations of the teeming millions. Till then, let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Time for PC to run on MS-Word

With the global financial crisis slowing spreading its claws across India, the government which till now was flaying India’s exponential growth story has been forced to rethink its policies.

But what a great time for India to have a crisis like this!!! Phew... you must be wondering how that could be true. But I mean it. In fact, with Manmohan Singh at the helm of affairs, India couldn’t have asked for a better timing to deal with this crisis. Manmohan Singh’s antics back in 1991 are still not forgotten. With a foreign exchange reserve just enough to meet India’s import needs for another week, the good doctor had swung into action and had introduced what is now known as the economic reforms era. And the results are there for everyone to see.

Now with another crisis looming large over the head and with the doctor along with his old and trusted team of P Chidambaram and Montek Singh Ahluwalia back at the helm, they shouldn’t find themselves in an unfamiliar situation. Given the huge similarities between the 1991 era and today’s situation, I wonder whether they are nostalgic at times.... recalling their past days. 

With its honeymoon with the US and the 123 behind the back, the government should now try to get the economy back on track. In spite of the current scenario, it’s basically a US crisis which is spilling over to other parts of the world. And this has led to the recent market meltdown (where are those decoupling stories I had been hearing of, its back to the same old days of waiting for global market cues every morning and promptly falling in line). We are still a very stable economy in ourselves. Hence the FM who is dying a hundred deaths every time the Sensex slips should focus more on getting the fundamentals right. Oops... they are already right, he needs to make it stronger.

Or rather it’s time for P Chidambaram (PC) to lay back a bit and let Manmohan Singh (MS) call the shots in the finance ministry... (For those wondering how the title of the post fitted in, I hope I have cleared your doubts now). After all, isn’t this the ideal time for the ‘Economic Reforms Part – II’ to be unleashed. And who’s better than the doctor himself to get his hands on it. Manmohan Singh, with his hands tied by the Left for the major part of his rule, would like to take some positives back home. And here’s a golden chance awaiting him!!! Its time which will tell whether he is successful in his second innings. Till then, Indians are keeping their fingers crossed. For now, we can only hope that he starts on the path already traversed by him in 1991.

The Bomb in the N-deal

After the US went public, or in their terms – cleared a few misconceptions about the N-deal related to right to test, fuel reprocessing and the legal invalidity of the clause pertaining to fuel supply assurances till perpetuity, the Indian government has been pushed on the back foot. However these circumstances have led to the emergence of a few doubts. Quite a few NSG members were not supportive of the 123 agreement because that gave India a backdoor entry to the elite group of “N” nations without signing the NPT. If a clause for testing was present as mentioned in the letter made public, why was there an objection from the NSG members? There’s surely something more than what meets the eye. Even the timing of the release (a couple of days before NSG board meets to discuss the issue) raises a few eyebrows.

But it is Dr. Manmohan Singh’s name that evokes trust among the people. If he is strongly supportive of the deal going through, there must be something in it worth reconsidering.

Due to the recent developments, the major factor India has to look forward to is to ensure that the deal passes through the NSG stage. After that, it will be a case for India to pursue on a country-to-country basis. So even if the deal runs into rough weather in America, India can always bank upon its traditional allies, namely France and Russia, to pull it out of the mess. After all, it has not been forgotten how Russia went out of its way to provide fuel for the Tarapur plant when its reactors were on the verge of closing down due to lack of fuel supply. India will have to ensure that it keeps its allies in good humour and does not go on to offend them while extending generous overtures to the US. After all, these are the reliable members who have always supported India’s case at international forums. And only these members can be expected to bail India out in case the US does a U-turn when it sees its own interests fading...
As the adage goes:

Be nice to people on your way up because you meet them on your way down

Musharraf's Exit and it's Implications for India

The dance of democracy has begun on the streets of Islamabad. With the international media coverage with its full glare in Pakistan, the people do not need to be prompted. They break out into a jig as soon as a TV camera comes approaching. I have always wondered whether there is a tactical understanding between these people and the camera crew.

Well, the Pakistanis have reason to rejoice. The president/military chief/dictator (whatever you may call him) has finally lost his grip over the administration. Finally, a semblance of democracy has been restored, though doubts have been raised over its stability. In all the hurry, the Pakistanis should avoid being fickle. They should thank Musharraf for everything he has done for the larger interests and the long term benefits of the country. Right from a sagging economy to a corrupt administration, he tried to bring things in order and succeeded to a large extent.

Coming to India, concerns over his exit are being raised behind closed doors in the galleries of power. Though he started as a military dictator, the post 9/11 scenario and the US pressure kept him in check. And he gradually softened towards the end of his rule. He was a person instrumental in maintaining the ceasefire along the line of control (LoC). It’s not a coincidence that his exit has led to the banned militant outfits reopening their offices in the hub of Karachi. Not only that, there are reports of ceasefire violations almost daily along the LoC. This was a thing which had not happened for years since the mutual announcement of the ceasefire. The attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, where India has a strategic upper hand in the hearts of the Afganistanis much to the chagrin of the power players in Pakistan furthers this case.

All these clues are not coincidental, given the power shift in Pakistan. And these hints will not be missed in Delhi. So here’s the irony... the man responsible for Kargil will be missed in the corridors of power in Delhi...

The times, thy sure are changing...