:: Dilip Cherian

The cost of loyalty

Dilip Cherian

Augest.09 : Loyalty is no doubt a fine thing in babudom, but it does not always pay off. In one particular instance, it led to a major Indo-US deal getting derailed. Apparently the rather clever Americans had the "intelligence" to tap into the room of an Indian mantri. This revelation in itself is bound to raise hackles all around, with complete denials likely.

The said mantri was caught, in an obviously unguarded private moment with his babus, making some rather rude, explicit and uncharitable remarks about the "other side". Nobody ever referred to the manner in which the negotiations ended abruptly. That much must be said for the babus involved and their loyalty to their boss. Inevitably, of course, it came as no surprise that the talks subsequently broke down. And of course after an appropriate delay, the United States is supposed to have sent a rather curt letter to the Prime Minister, explaining, without going into details, the reasons why! Whether some babus will also end up having a blot on their careers is uncertain as yet. For the moment, others on the scene of that crime are keeping their collective fingers crossed.

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Rao’s challenge

India’s new foreign secretary Nirupama Rao has taken over when there is increasing concern that the country’s foreign policy is being increasingly driven by Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) denizens rather than ministry of external affairs (MEA) mandarins. The brouhaha over the "B-word" in the Indo-Pak joint statement is being seen as an outcome of this "drift".

While Ms Rao’s appointment was announced some time ago, there is no official word yet on what the future holds in store for her predecessor, Shivshankar Menon. Apparently he is all set to join the PMO as another special envoy, in the footsteps of Shyam Saran, S.K. Lambah and Chinmay Gharekhan, even if he is trying to deflect flak for his role in landing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the soup.

It is not clear what MEA’s mandarins make of the foreign policy ventures of the PMO, but it is apparent that there is discontent afoot. Ms Rao will have to show that the MEA and its foreign service officers are still relevant.