:: Arun Nehru

Austerity exposes expensive chinks

By Arun Nehru

Sep 20 : The results of the recently-concluded by-elections in the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are political indicators. While in Gujarat, Narendra Modi won five out of seven seats (earlier held by the Congress), in Madhya Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won one out of the two seats held by the Congress. This indicates that recent events had little impact on the ground situation. At this stage, it would be too early for either party to claim victory.

Magistrate S.P. Tamang’s probe report, which said that the 2004 killing of young college girl Ishrat Jahan and three others suspected to be on a mission to "kill" Mr Modi was a case of fake encounter by the police, fell flat as an affidavit filed by the state home ministry says that they were Lashkar-e-Tayyaba activists.

Also the decision of the Gujarat high court to stay and question the magistrate’s report once again indicates that Mr Modi is being targeted for "special attention". As long as this feeling persist, Mr Modi’s reputation, integrity, performance and the ability to lead will override the negatives exaggerated by a section of the media.

This issue is now with the Supreme Court. However, the reality of the situation is that "encounters" do take place and they are not confined to Gujarat alone. Our legal system and the delay associated with the administration of justice make it impossible for any security agency to deliver timely results.

Votebank politics interferes with the law-making process and its implementation. We see this in hundreds of pending cases. Take, for example, the attack on Parliament and the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. Are we going to take 10-20 years to convict the perpetrators of these crimes!

The Congress has lost five out of seven seats and unless they have effective leaders at the national level, things will be difficult at the state level.

We have seen the attitude of the Pakistan government on Mumbai terror attacks of November 26, 2008. Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf’s statement that military aid provided by the United States to Pakistan for the war against terror was used to strengthen defences against India does not come as a surprise.

No one including the US is going to help us unless we adopt a "zero-tolerance" towards terror and those who give terrorists sanctuary.

In the past few months we have witnessed the death of Ranvir Singh who was shot dead after he and his two friends had a scuffle in a crowded locality with policemen in Uttarakhand, rape and murder of two women in Shopian in Jammu and Kashmir, the killing of Chongkham Sanjit in Manipur and the case of Ishrat Jahan and three men. If innocent people have been killed then the guilty must be brought to justice and given exemplary punishment. But do we have a system which is free from votebank and party politics?

Security issues will dominate the political agenda and the more we grow as an economic power, the more attention we will draw. But this can have both positive as well as negative effects.

We have a volatile situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Over the past two decades we have tried everything to encourage stability in the area, but things are far from happy and the rogue elements in these countries continue to support terror networks in India.

The situation is equally volatile in the East and continued infiltration from Nepal is a serious issue. While media has created a great deal of hype regarding Chinese incursions, the government has played it down. The border issue between India and China continues. This matter must be resolved in an amicable manner as much has to be done by the ministry of external affairs.

I don’t think the recent controversy generated by external affairs minister S.M. Krishna and minister of state for external affairs Shashi Tharoor in a five-star hotel for three months has done anyone any good. Whilst Mr Krishna has wisely maintained his silence over the issue, Mr Tharoor has increased his television appearances, which will only invite further negative reactions. Sermons are really not necessary and appearances in the media must only be made when something important needs to be communicated.

The austerity drive gathers momentum as United Progressive Alliance chairperson Mrs Sonia Gandhi and Congress general-secretary Rahul Gandhi (he is austere by nature) followed by several ministers had set an example. This is a positive thing and should be encouraged at all levels across the party.

The government and those who indulge in wasteful expenditure deserves a "political haircut"! For many, election to public office is a licence to use public resources as a personal "piggy bank". This includes the extravagant lifestyles, stay in five-star hotels, foreign visits, excessive security and building parks and statues, granting real estate benefits at public expense to close associates and organisations for political benefits.

Misuse of public facilities must be highlighted. In this connection, the electronic media has exposed many VIPs who continue to cling onto their official bungalows. It is time that leaders of all political parties drew a line on this indiscretion and set an example for the future.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his family members have set an excellent example of austerity and political dignity. In all fairness, 95 per cent of the political establishment has a rather frugal existence. Despite the economic growth and India’s soaring gross domestic product, we still have a very large disparity to cover.

Whilst those in private organisations with their private resources can "afford" in extravagant lifestyles, those in public office must reflect the political ground reality.

Political accidents lead to corrective action and I sometimes wonder if all this would have taken place if the media had not highlighted the three-month stay of the two ministers in luxury hotels.

We must move on with the "positives" and look at the facilities created by Shri Narayan Murthy and his Infosys team in Mysore. These are the temples of modern India which will propel India to become a superpower. There should be hundreds and thousands of similar initiatives at all levels. Whilst we applaud and reward the "present", we must pay tribute to the "past" and to those who had the foresight and the vision to provide for the future.

Arun Nehru is a former Union Minister