Outlook India - 23 July - [2012] - PDF - E - Magazine

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THE WEEKLY NEWSMAGAZINE July 23, 2012 `30

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Published for the week of July 17-23, 2012

Released on July 16, 2012Total no. of pages 64 + Covers

www.outlookindia.com

Volume LII, No. 29

In this issue...

OUTLOOK 23 July 2012 1

How do we deal with the shrinking ofnational parties, the mess they are inand make the regional forces into apositive energy for the nation? Also,interview with Prakash Karat.

Tell-all books by ex-priests and nuns,sex scandals, cover-ups, the image of the Church in Kerala has taken a beating of late. How did the rot set in?Also, a column by Paul Zacharia.

10 PHOTOFEATURE Floods in Assam

12 P.V. NARASIMHA RAO Revisitinghis Role in December 6, 1992

14 FOREIGN LAW FIRMS AHampered Practice

16 IMA Promo Provocateurs

17 COLUMN S. Anand

36 Sense of a CommunityA group of Indian and French scholars go

past the ‘ghetto’ to see other ways in whichMuslims gather together in a locality

42 KINGFISHER Beleaguered Airline

44 BATTLEGROUND O/S Microsoft vsGoogle vs Apple

46 PAKISTAN Sold on Indian Scarves

54 PHOTOFEATURE K.N. ShanthKumar’s Olympics Pictures

56 BOOKS Excerpts from ShashiTharoor’s Pax Indica

F E A T U R E S

B U S I N E S S

C U R R E N T A F F A I R S

2 LETTERS 6 POLSCAPE 58 BOOKS 60 FINE LIVING 62 GLITTERATI 64 DIARY

REGULARS

Cover Design: Deepak Sharma

18 48ELECTORAL REFORMS INSIDE THE CHURCH

Agenda for Revival Bearing the Cross



Kuldip Nayar confirms whattwo of Shastri’s biographers—D.R. Mankekar and C.P. Sriva-stava—said long ago: that, re-gardless of all his ‘proper’ pub-lic pronouncements, Nehruactually wanted his daughter

to succeed him. Equally, Ind-ira’s hostility towards Shastriwas no secret. Had Shastri notdied in 1966, she’d surely haveforced a leadership contestafter the 1967 election.SHARADCHANDRA PANSE, PUNE

Was it to assuage her guilt thatIndira, after many years, madeShastri’s son the office-bearerof the Congress?JAWAHAR P. SEKHAR, DUBAI

Shastri was one of the finest,most honest and simplestprime ministers India has everhad. I wish we had a leader ofhis stature in the corruption-ridden scenario of today. CHANKYA PANDIA, NEWARK

Nayar in his book says that ata reception hosted by KamalAmrohi in Bombay for his filmPakeezah, Shastri didn’t knowwho Meena Kumari was. Itcould not have been the prem-iere surely, since Pakeezah wasout in late ’71! Must have beenthat epic 14-year gestation.ANANT RAM GAUR, NEW DELHI

Incredible! Kuldip Nayar is awalking history book. LAKHJEET, MUNICH

Kuldip Nayar’s book is onemore evidence of how histori-ans’ accounts vary so muchfrom those who have a grand-stand view of things. H.R. BAPU SATYANARAYANA, MYSORE

Since most of the people hecomments on are not aroundtoday, it affects the credibilityof Mr Nayar’s comments.R.V. SUBRAMANIAN, GURGAON

Kuldip Nayar, shall we say, isjust a sophisticated version ofKhushwant Singh. RAMKI, DELHI

Khushwant Singh is: that’show I saw it. Kuldip Nayar is:that’s how it was. SANTOSH GAIROLA, HSINCHU

Compulsive reading. That’sKuldip Nayar’s book. A.K. SAXENA, DELHI

It is surprising to know that aleader of Jinnah’s stature didnot visualise the migrations,

murders and riots that wouldensue on India’s partition alongcommunal lines. Either he wasincredibly naive, or his words—‘what have I done’—were justcrocodile tears.VENKATESH G. IYER, CHENNAI

Jinnah apologists still love toquote his speech in Karachiafter a separate Pakistan hadbeen obtained to say he was notcommunal. But that was just apolitician changing his rhetoricafter the objective he desiredhad been met, over the deadbodies of millions of humans.BABLOO SR, KANSAS

According to Nayar, Patel app-arently argued with SheikhAbdullah that as Kashmir wasa Muslim-majority area, itshould go to Pakistan. Howcome Patel did not apply thesame logic in Hyderabad? V.R. GANESAN, NEW JERSEY

Who can believe what SheikhAbdullah says. Rafi AhmedKidwai arrested him on char-ges of “destroying confidentialstate documents” relating tothe negotiations on Kashmirby the maharajah! PINAKI S. RAY, ADELAIDE

It’s only due to Nehru’s senti-ment-derived political mis-take that we have the mess ofKashmir. Had he allowedIndia to give up its claim onthe Muslim-majority KashmirValley and insisted on retain-ing just Jammu and Ladakh,the dreaded K word would nothave blighted Indo-Pak rela-tions for these many years.G. NIRANJAN RAO, HYDERABAD

Virender Prabhakar’s pictureof Nehru and Indira in yourissue symbolised the passingof the baton perfectly.M.K. SAINI, DELHI

Kuldip Nayar is among thecountry’s original hypocritecandlewallah brigade. MAHA, NEW JERSEY

L E T T E R S

Outlook’s July 9 cover poses the question: Was Shastri poi-soned? Yes, either by Pakistani agents or Indian politicalrivals. The Pakistanis were seething in indignation by thedefeat inflicted by Shastri in the ’65 war, ridiculing himas the dhoti-clad man, whereas power-seekers back homewere frustrated by his meteoric rise in popularity. Besides,his honesty instilled fear in many.J.N. BHARTIYA, HYDERABAD

This is nothing but sensational journalism. It is a fact thatLal Bahadur Shastri died of a heart attack. It was the RSS andJan Sangh which spread rumours and brainwashed LalitaShastri that her husband was poisoned. When he was alive,these very forces would criticise him as they never had anylove for Congress leaders. It’s been 40 years since Shastridied and now you want to know if he died a natural death! PURUSHOTAM C. BAFNA, GOKAK, KARNATAKA

History from theHorse’s Mouth

23 July 2012 OUTLOOK2 WorldMags.netWorldMags.net


3OUTLOOK 23 July 2012

Blue on BlueApropos All That Pain, Disin-terred (Jul 9), the reassassi-

nation of Bhindranwale by

the media has led many to

presume that he was an

extremist trying to break up

India. However, if one reads

the Anandpur Sahib resolu-

tion, one can see that his

struggle had nothing to do

with religion. He only wanted

fair treatment for Punjab by

the Centre, in areas like indus-

trialisation and river water

distribution. He never said he

wanted Khalistan but would

not refuse it if made the offer.

The Centre’s rejection of the

resolution and Indira Gandhi’s

vengeful authoritarian nature

led to the violence of the

’80s. And Sikhs for Justice is

a human rights group, not an

extremist organisation.

RAJ KUMAR, CHANDIGARH

The Akali Dal and the Dam-

dami Taksal say the Blue Star

memorial is in the memory of

Sikhs who died defending the

Golden Temple from the Ind-

ian army. This is egregiously

wrong. The army had to enter

the temple and neutralise

Bhindranwale and his men.

Bhindranwale proved to be a

coward—he holed himself

into the holy shrine. He is res-

ponsible for its desecration.

A.K. BUNDI, ON E-MAIL

Rogue PriestThe Indian Brown Shirts (or

Shorts) will make a hero out

of Shrikant Purohit (Terrorist?Not our Man, Jul 9). With

moles in every arm of govern-

ment, Pragya, Purohit & Co

can get away with murder.

K.D. MUNSHI, CALCUTTA

After four years, the investi-

gating agencies have not

even filed a chargesheet,

which only goes to show

that they don’t have a case.

Outlook regardless is still on

the ‘Hindu terror’ trail.

S. MADHEKAR, PUNE

If Purohit was doing only

what his job demanded, why

did the army hand him over

to the ATS so quickly (‘I infil-

trated Abhinav Bharat’)?

Could it be that they didn’t

want to expose their other

right-wing operatives?

ZAFAR, SYDNEY

Our ‘secular’ government

needed Purohit in prior to

the assembly polls in Uttar

Pradesh. Now they need him

out prior to the Gujarat and

Madhya Pradesh elections.

S. BENGANI, ON E-MAIL

Why Outlook even bothered

to publish the evidence of its

own incompetence is the

only mystery here.

A. ABHI, ON E-MAIL

Why would the army be

interested in infiltrating

Abhinav Bharat? I haven’t

heard of the force being

involved in internal security

and intelligence-gathering.

ARUN SATHAYE, INDORE

The article on Brigadier Moh-ammad Usman and his exp-loits made inspirational read-ing (A Lion, To The Last, Jul 9).He is a true hero, and the pre-sent letter writer is proud tobe his grandson. Growing upwith his stories, I have tried tocollect bits on every episode ofhis illustrious life. Incidenta-lly, the person in the picturewith PM Nehru, to my obser-vation, is not Brig Usman, butBrig Guffran, his younger bro-ther, who later was defencesecretary to president Rajen-dra Prasad. I thank Outlook forremembering him.MIR FEROZUDDIN, LUCKNOW

What an incredibly braveman! May his tribe increase!ALAKSHYENDRA, HYDERABAD

I salute the brigadier whoseheroics allowed India to cap-ture Jhangar. It’s because ofsentinels like him that we havebeen able to defend our bor-ders. Now, the situation is ala-rming, as the army has becomean epitome of corruption.KESHAV KUMAR, PUNE

The Naushera sector had seenmany battles between Indiaand Pakistan. The terrain isadvantageous to Pakistan interms of troop mobilisationand logistics. Brig Usman hadfailed to defend Jhangar ear-lier; he vowed to recapture it.Till then, he didn’t sleep on a

cot, but on the floor instead. Inthe battle of Naushera, whereBrig Usman had his revenge,enemy casualty was about2,000 (dead and wounded), not900, as reported. Brig Usman’soutfit lost only about 60 men. B. VENURAJA GOPAL RAO, WARANGAL

Brig Usman made India proud,and in the annals of Indian mil-itary history his exploits will

remain undimmed. May his100th birthday be celebratedwith full ceremony.NF, LONDON

May we strive to protect ourmotherland, and cherish thesupreme sacrifice of BrigUsman and countless others.KAUTILYA, WASHINGTON

India should publish morestories of sacrifices like BrigUsman’s in the internationalmedia. It would serve to showeveryone what India has sac-rificed to keep Kashmir with-in the folds of democracy andgenuine pluralism. VARUN SHEKHAR, TORONTO

Every reader of Outlook wouldbe grateful to the editorial teamfor publishing this article. Ishamefully admit that till Iread this, I didn’t even knowthe name of Brig Usman. Wetend to remember very few ofour heroes—maybe that of MajSomnath Sharma, the firstParam Vir Chakra winner; FltOff Nirmaljit Sekhon, the firstIAF PVC winner. Or maybe thepoliceman Tukaram Omble,who won the Ashok Chakra foraction in the 26/11 attacks.GAURAB BANERJEE, CALCUTTA

The brave deeds of soldierslike Brig Usman continue toserve as a beacon to us amidstthe dark deeds of corruptpoliticians. What a pity we losthim at the young age of 36. Buthe’ll remain in our memory.R.K. SINGH, GURGAON

An exemplary Indian, an exce-llent soldier, a martyr for hismotherland. I salute BrigUsman. Let him be a shiningexample for us to follow.ASHUTOSH KAUL, TORONTO

I’ll appreciate your publishingmore stories on our unsungheroes like Brig Usman. Theyoung must know the cost ofthe freedom they enjoy.ASHU ALEC, INDORE

Why can’t we have a Muslimas our army chief? Brig Usmanhad no problem remainingloyal to religion and country.SHYAMAL BARUA, CALCUTTA

Truly the Big Cat



23 July 2012 OUTLOOK

L E T T E R S

4

The plight of Mumbai—andother such mega-cities—maybe attributed to the ludicrousexplosion of population. Grow-ing populations—together with“de-intellectualisation”, whichyou mention in the article—make for votebanks that can beeasily manipulated. The politi-

cal class is unlikely to addressthe problem. As for the so-called educated and intellect-ual classes, we choose to liveour comfortable lives, ignoringthe obvious, or voicing our opi-nions via articles or commentslike this but doing little else.‘ANARQUEI’, ON E-MAIL

Mumbai is on the verge ofbeing admitted to the ICU.Water is poorly managed. Thepolice, rather than take the eff-ective crime-control route ofbeat patrolling, spends energyon curbing nightlife and moralpolicing. And your photosdepict all too well the dismalstate of housing in the city. Theless said about Mumbai’s trans-portation problems, the better:no one seems to focus on themajority, which uses publictransport, bicycles, or walks. SUDHIR BADAMI, MUMBAI

The former presidencies ofBombay, Calcutta and Madrasshould have been made intounion territories to retain theircosmopolitan character. Inte-gration on the basis of languagehas ensured the laying-to-waste of the inclusive cultureand ethos of these cities.GANESH NATRAJAN, ISERE, FRANCE

The damage done to Mumbaiis irreparable and the peopleto be blamed are its politi-cians, industrialists, celebri-ties, artistes—and the com-mon man. Everyone took allthey could from Mumbai andgave nothing in return. And tothink the city is home to one ofthe world’s richest men!K.C. KUMAR, BANGALORE

Mumbai is the city of slum-dogs and millionaires—withonly fictional characters com-mon to both groups.K. SURESH, BANGALORE

Sad to read about the declineof my favourite Indian city. ANWAAR, DALLAS

Not Singapore or Shanghai,Mumbai should look to Delhiand its continual transforma-tion into a world-class city.ASHOK LAL, MUMBAI

A frequent visitor to Mumbai,I still rank it higher thanDelhi, and of course, muchhigher than Calcutta. But tho-ugh I’d like to move there, Ijust can’t afford it: the city ispricing itself to its own doom.BISWAPRIYA PURKAYASTHA, SHILLONG

Without clear-sighted politi-cal and administrative will,Mumbai won’t improve. Also,all those who come to earn aliving in Mumbai have hardlyany connection to its cultureand history, and care littleabout its future. I can under-stand Kiran Nagarkar’s feelingof helplessness (Want to be aPhilistine). For, everything isdriven by money these days.NARENDRA M. APTE, PUNE

Not for nothing has Mumbaibeen called the ‘commercial’capital of India. Even so, Ithink Nagarkar is too hard onthe city—other cities, likeHyderabad, Chennai and Ban-galore fare no better. Nagarkarcalls the malady “deification ofpower”—let’s just use the oldIndian word ‘chamchagiri’, atrait common across India.P. VIJAYA BHANU, KAKINADA

Apropos the box in the storyThe Enforcer’s Arm, I want totell ACP Dhoble to ignore whatthe media says about him andget on with it: 80 per cent ofMumbaikars are with him.SHONALI ROY, MUMBAI

As someone Bombay-born and -bred, I am greatly saddenedat the decline and fall of this great city (Sing No More theMumbai Malhar, July 9). The downfall began in the early’70s, when Nariman Point and Cuffe Parade were develo-ped and, instead of world-class infrastructure, hideous loo-king high-rises came up on the reclaimed land, now occu-pied by the elite and the world’s leading bank and financialinstitutions. Worse, urban infrastructure has not been dev-eloped: millions commute daily in abominable conditionsand the city is sinking into a slum-infested morass of its ownmaking. Gone forever are the Sizzler at the old Excelsiorcinema, Gourdons, Bombellis and the other wonderfulplaces that made Bombay unique. Farewell, Bombay. RIP.SANJAY MODAK, HONG KONG

A Song Long Gone

A Vote for Sangma I don’t know whether Purno

A. Sangma belongs to a

Scheduled Tribe or is a Chris-

tian or Buddhist. But all those

groups deserve a place in our

politics and perhaps a repre-

sentation in the presidential

office too. Besides, Sangma is

from the Northeast, a region

that remains on the sidelines.

As to his personal qualities,

Sangma has been honest and

sincere and proved his mettle

as a Lok Sabha Speaker. On

the other hand, Pranab

Mukherjee, who is his rival for

the president’s post, has only

messed up the economy. I

hope many in the presidential

electorate will keep all this in

mind and vote for Sangma.

BIDDATANDA T. SUBBAIAH, NAPOKLU, KARNATAKA



Sheikhed, Stirred Apropos The Karachi Confec-tion (Jul 9), dreaded gangster

Abu Salem, deported by the

Portuguese seven years ago, is

still treated as a Portuguese

national because of some

mutual agreement. I hope Abu

Jundal, too, isn’t treated as a

Saudi sheikh in our prisons.

K.P. RAJAN, MUMBAI

Well-written piece by Mr K.C.

Singh, perhaps the most sensi-

ble analyst in India today

(Arabia Shuts the Gates). I

have heard him speak many

times and his clarity and pro-

fessionalism are unparalleled.

VIMAL, MUNICH

Judge MeantJustice V.N. Khare in his inter-

view says ‘corruption is ram-

pant in the lower courts’ (Jul

9), but what of the higher

courts he himself presided

over? We’ll never know, for

the Outlook interviewer, did

not ask any hard questions.

HARIDASAN M., MUMBAI

The judiciary is one of the pil-

lars of our democracy and if

that institution is vested with

white ants, then we can only

pray that our hard-earned

freedoms don’t tumble like a

pack of cards.

CHANDRU MANI IYER, BANGALORE

When V.N. Khare says “jud-

ges are only people like us”,

is he, a learned and revered

judge, justifying the actions

of subordinate judges?

V.N.K. MURTI, PATTAMBI

Khare’s views are grossly

exaggerated and reflect the

elitist mindset prevalent in

parts of the higher judiciary.

A.M. VIJAY, BANGALORE

The entire edifice of our

society is now founded on

corruption. Why blame only

the judiciary?

NITAIDAS SAHA, DHAKA

As the bumper sticker says,

‘Mera Bharat mahaan, 100may se 99 beimaan’.MAHESH KUMAR, DELHI

Guiding LightShweta has paved the way

for our society’s little thin-

kers and doers (The GirlWho Saw The Light, Jul 9).

She has become a role

model for at least some sch-

ools for sure.

SUBHASH MISHRA, MADHUBANI

Kudos to Shweta for her ent-

erprising, brilliant presenta-

tion of economical, power-

saving devices at Rio—and at

such a young age and from

such humble origins.

KUSUM GOKARN, PUNE

Darryl D’Monte is right to say

that nations pay a great deal

of lip-service to the environ-

ment (A Wet Behind TheEars Feeling, Jul 9). Their

declarations at the end of

such climate conferences

read like a wishlist of green

objectives with no deadlines,

much less penalties, for not

abiding by regulations.

BEENA MATHUR, PUNE

Tense TennisFor once, Suhel Seth has voi-

ced something that echoes

the thoughts of most Indian

tennis fans (In the Age ofUnreason, Jul 9). The cheek

of Bopanna, refusing to part-

ner Leander, one of the

greatest tennis players that

India has produced.

RAJESH RAMASWAMY, BANGALORE

Let’s assume, the Earth is

under threat. Superman and

Batman are at loggerheads.

Who do you send? Obvi-

ously, Batman and Robin.

Superman can meanwhile

force Supergirl to team up

with him. Get the drift?

RAM YEGGINA, ON E-MAIL

Mr Seth, your article was well-

written. In this age of bitter-

ness and malice, it is people

like Leander who are needed

the most. Kindness is no

longer perceived as such.

MAMATHA JOSHI, ON E-MAIL

Patriotism cannot transcend

personal egos. Leander and

Mahesh were bound to

spring on each other some

day. India should perhaps

look to blood the younger

players and stop sticking

with ageing stars.

T. SANTHANAM, ON E-MAIL

For Paes and Bhupathi, this

may very well be their last

chance to win an Olympics

medal. Not so for Indian ten-

nis. All the concern for Indian

tennis just doesn’t wash.

FRANCIS CHANDY, KOCHI

While Mr Seth’s arguments

during TV debates are usu-

ally well-reasoned ones, he

surely needs a crash course

on refinement in speech.

DEBASHISH, NEW DELHI

Can’t Eat This! Apropos Go Take the Malle-shwaram (Fine Living, Jul 9),

`110 for a dosa! Good to see

a Bangalorean taking Dilli-

walas for a ride, for a change.

SRIRAM, BANGALORE

Game Up!The review of Gangs ofWasseypur was decent (Gli-tterati, Jul 9), but could have

used a spoiler alert.

SABER, JERSEY CITY

5OUTLOOK 23 July 2012

Apropos the piece A Stick Called 124(A) and Arundhati Roy’sinterview (‘Terrorism isn’t the disease, egregious injustice is’),in your July 2 issue. We limit our discussion to the violence inDandakaranya between the Maoists and the government andavoid using the word “terrorism”, because wedon’t think what’s happening there is terror-ism. Even so, we appreciate that Arundhatiseeks a reasonably just society and wantsthe adivasis to live a life of peace in har-mony with the rest of society. TheMaoist violence is a response to thestructural violence of the government ofIndia, and we, as members of the SamathaSwaraj Mitra Mandal, have initiated amovement based on what the Buddha and Mahatma Gandhitaught—the path of empathy and non-violence as a means togaining trust. Like Gandhiji’s Sevashram, we propose to startashrams in every block of the violence-affected areas. The firstis coming up in a village called Chatti in the Khammam dis-trict of Andhra Pradesh. We would like to appeal to like-mind-ed youth and others to join in our efforts. We would also liketo appeal to other activists to explore our strategy so that thepath of absolute ahimsa disables the “stick called 124(A)”.V.B. CHANDRASEKARAN, CHATTI, KHAMMAM DIST, AP

An Appeal...



23 July 2012 OUTLOOK6

NOTES

PACK, UNPACK, REPACK! WILL INDIA BE HOT, COLD OR RAINY? I REALLY

did not want to go but how can I ignore 257 speaking invitations,21 doctorates and other honours which I did not know even

existed. These are more than the Nobel and Pulitzer put together.My journalistic coup was calling Indian Prime Minister Dr Man-mohan Singh an ‘underachiever’ and unwilling to stick his neck outto solve his nation’s problems. We in Time go for objectivity. Way backin the 1930s, our founder-editor Henry Luce rewrote every singleword filed by our China correspondent, Teddy White, and Americalearnt that China was the Yellow Peril. For we Time editors knoweverything. Our great presidents like Nixon, Reagan, Bush and oth-ers stuck their necks out to ‘save democracy’ in Vietnam, Iraq andtinpot dictatorships in Latin America. So our calling Manmohan an‘underachiever’ was fully justified.

Look at the jubilation in the BJP, particu-larly in Gujarat, that wonderful state ruledby that overachiever Narendra Modi. Ittowers over other states in everything,including per capita consumption of ice-cream!We in Time are proud that the Manmohan Singhissue, translated into Gujarati, sold five millioncopies. It is now a school text in the state, peo-ple testifying in courts swear on it now. Eng-lish TV channels debated the ‘underachiever’theme 5,448 times, at least six anchors were hospi-talised for sore throats for zestfully discussing thePM’s future after the Time judgement. All these showed how muchthe Indian media and people cared for and respected Time.

And they have no choice but to, for the US and Time are over-achievers. There was so much talk of corruption in India which ledto Singh’s underachievement. Our presidential hopeful, Mitt Rom-ney, does not care a bit about his off shore investments. The US over-achieved because our Supreme Court, unlike that of India, waspacked with political appointees. The judges did not retire but diedcarrying their convictions to their grave. We can go on and on buteveryone knows how great we are. And Time is proud to be part ofour overachieving, balanced media. Some 10 years back, we publisheda great objective cover story on the then Indian PM, Vajpayee, refer-ring to his boozing, falling asleep during meetings, waddling on wob-bly knees. Strangely, the Indian media didn’t like that piece one bit.

Finally, an idea for India to become a nation of overachievers—itsleaders must confide to the media. Hugh Sidey, our famous WhiteHouse correspondent for decades, once revealed a Kennedy con-versation where the president told him that despite his love forwords, it was only after coming to the Senate and then the WhiteHouse that he learnt to spell ‘fornication’. So there. 4

THE SECRET DIARY OF A

V. GANGADHARThe Mumbai-based satirist is the creator of ‘Trishanku’

E-mail your secret diarist: [email protected]

Time magazine editor

by Sorit

CROSSINGS

MIRROR IMAGE

The Bombay HCacquits five, upholds life-termfor four in Gujarat riots BEST

BAKERY CASE, where a mobburnt 14 people alive. Pulls uppolice for “serious lapses”.

In LIBYA’S first freepolls in six decades, war-timePM Mahmoud Jibril’s NationalForces Alliance leads over theIslamists. Fight for 80 seats in 200-member assembly, national elections on in 2013.

MARK BOUCHER, 35, mercurial SA wicketkeeper,after a freak game accidentleaves him with a laceratedleft eyeball. Most successful’keeper ever, 998 dismissals in15-year career. Handy bat too..

Viswa BharatiUniv, Santiniketan, in a spotafter girls’ hostel wardenforces 10-year-old girl to drinkher own urine as “therapy” forbedwetting. Nation furious.

SUNIL CHHETRI, 28, Indian football captain, joinsPortuguese grandee SportingLisbon’s B-team on one-yearstint, calls move “opportunityof a life-time”. Media tepid; isit more a club marketing ploy?

JOINED

OUTRAGED

RETIRED

VOTED

INDICTED





POLSCAPE

The BroBeater THE UP MUNICIPAL POLL

results are out and, no sur-prises, the Congress hasagain taken a hiding. Andthis when the biggies, SPand BSP, had decided not tocontest and there was only

the BJP to beat. Which leadsus to the next situation:wherein the Congress partymeets to analyse threadbarewhere it failed and whetherthey had learnt anythingfrom the recent assemblypoll debacle. But how to dothat when the dais has noleaders. Party workers andjournos desperately callingUPCC chief Rita BahugunaJoshi found that “Didi hadgone to work for Bhai”. Thatwould be Vijay Bahuguna,new Uttaranchal CM, whowas contesting the Sitarganjbyelection. Congressmen inLucknow express theirhelplessness, “When bhai isbigger than party, what elsecan you expect....” 4

Flip The PageNOW YOU KNOW WHERE IDEAS

for the new agrarian revolu-tion are going to come from.It will be from Champak

and Chandamama, which isamong the hordes of maga-zines agriculture ministerSharad Pawar and his staffsubscribe to to take theirminds off weightier issueslike the delayed monsoonand rotting foodgrain stocks.

An RTI application has rev-ealed the ministry’s annualexpenditure “for magazines,newspapers and journals” is`5,76,387 (2011-12). And thisincludes everything fromBanking Service Chronicle toCosmopolitan to Manohar

Kahaniyaan. The staff wasalso keeping an eye on theirstars with Grahon ke Khel.With the monsoons as theyare, it looks like our farmerstoo will have to settle forstar-gazing. 4

Hear, HearBJP SPOKESMAN SHAHNAWAZ

Hussain’s funny bone peeksout at times. This, to journoshounding him for an insidetrack on inner-party shena-nigans: “Listen, I’m a Sunniaadmi, and I can only tellyou suni hui baat”. 4

AFTER THE HECTIC POLL CAMPAIGN AND NOW THE PUSH AND PULL OF MANAGING THE

garrulous Samajwadis, Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav has decided that he reallyneeds a break. Newly elected MP-wife Dimple had been keen on visiting AD’s (shortfor ‘Akhilesh dada’, as she fondly calls him) alma mater Sydney University for a longwhile now, so a four-day trip was plannedto the land of Oz together withthe three little ’uns. So, thefamily duly left Lucknowon July 7 for Delhi fromwhere they were to pro-ceed for their first offi-cial holiday. Two dayslater, though, it was dis-covered the country’syoungest chief minister hadlanded up in the United King-dom. It seems the family chose to slightlyalter the itinerary, choosing Big Ben over theenvironmental engineering lab at Sydney Univ.Lucknow sources close to the CM gravely claimed,“Well, he had taken the visa both for Australia andthe UK. The children were more keen on Londonso....” Guess Dimple will have to leave the Sydneyharbour light show for next time. 4


“When the urban middle class can buy mineral water for Rs 15 and ice-cream for Rs 20,why make so much noise about fuel prices?”—Union home minister P. Chidambaram

Cartoons by SORIT

NOTES

What’s The Difference?





LeveeBreachLeveeBreach

coverage have magnified the destructionas never before. As many as 125 peoplehave lost their lives so far; 4,500 villagesspread over 9.35 lakh hectares across 25districts have been inundated and 600animals, including 17 rhinos, five eleph-

ants and 512 deers, have perished.Heavy rainfall in the catchment areas,

deforestation for road building and infra-structure projects in Arunachal Pradesh,failure to desilt the Brahmaputra andcorruption have been held responsiblefor the misery of the half a million peo-ple who have been rendered homeless.

The politician’s penchant for short-term measures and embankments, upfrom 200 km in 1954 to 4,134 km in 1988,is also a perceived cause. This resort-ment to stop-gap methods has continued

despite the Union government’s claimsto have released ̀ 1,138.54 crore for floodcontrol to the state in the last four yearsand `33,000 crore in all since 1954.

Misery, though, is a money magnet.Even as a stock of damages was beingtaken, the state government demanded`11,316 crore for immediate relief andrehabilitation; `2,526 crore to repairdamaged infrastructure; ̀ 8,790 crore toput in place long-term measures and`700 crore to deal with the waterloggingissue in the capital city of Guwahati. 4

ASSAMFLOODS

ASSAM has seen moredevastating floods, theworst coming in 1988.

This time, though, technologyand unrelenting mass media



Photograph: REUTERSWorldMags.netWorldMags.net


BOOKSBABRI DEMOLITION


So Many AfteTwo books blame Rao for Ayodhya; former aid

File photo of Rao at a temple (not on Dec 6, 1992) in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh

who was prime minister then, the lateP.V. Narasimha Rao, was never able tounsling that albatross from around hisneck. There’s of course no escaping thatit happened on his watch. But eight yearsafter his death in 2004, two books by per-sons who were in vantage positions dur-ing the 1990s have imputed to him farworse than that, making a Nero of him.

The first, Between the Lines, is the auto-biography of Kuldip Nayar, a veteranjournalist. And the second, A Grain ofSand in the Hourglass of Time, is theautobiography, recently released, of thelate Arjun Singh, who was Rao’s HRD

minister and for decades one of the mostpowerful Congressmen. Both books haveset off a hubbub with their accounts ofwhat happened in government in thedays before the demolition, and espe-cially of what Rao did—or did not do—onthe day the mosque was demolished.Nayar says Rao was performing puja asthe mosque came down; Arjun that hewas unavailable to his own ministers.

Equally, there are those who dismissthose shocking accounts. They too hadaccess to Rao in those days. “The late P.V.Narasimha Rao’s residence did not havea puja room, nor was he the sort to dospecial or even regular puja,” saysP.V.R.K. Prasad, a retired IAS officer whowas the late PM’s media advisor. “Therewas just one picture of Lord Venkat-eswara in his bedroom, and after hisbath, PV would offer a namaskaram forabout 10 seconds and his staff wouldlight some incence sticks.”

Prasad says that on December 6, 1992,the day the masjid was battered by ram-paging crowds, he had reached the PM’sresidence at 11 am, when kar sevaks hadalready started surrounding the mosque.The PM, he says, spent the whole daysupervising the situation, consultingministers and officials about imposingPresident’s rule on Uttar Pradesh. He

by Madhavi Tata

ONE tremendouslyshameful event in recentnational history is the

1992 demolition of the BabriMasjid in Ayodhya. The man




calls Nayar’s version “one of the bestcock and bull stories” he’s ever heard.“Besides me, there were many witnessesto PV’s activities that day,” he says. “It’sstrange that a senior journalist like Nayarhas chosen to cook up such a baselessstory. Was PV Lord Krishna to be in twoplaces—the cabinet room and in a puja—at the same time?” He equally objects tothe “incorrect facts” presented in Arjun’sposthumous autobiography.

Of the PM’s unavailability on Decem-ber 6, 1992, Arjun’s book begins by say-ing: “The secular mosaic of India hadbeen seriously damaged. In such aframe of mind, from Muktsar, I rang upthe PM’s residence early in the after-noon.” It goes on to say he was told thePM was “not available to talk to anyone”,and when he probed, he was told thePM had “locked himself in his room.”

But P.C. Rao, who was law secretarywhen Narasimha Rao was PM and isnow a judge at the International Tri-bunal for the Law of the Sea, in Ham-burg, dismisses Arjun’s unflattering por-trayal and says Narasimha Rao did every-thing he could. The former law secretaryalso gives details of what happened onthe preceding day, particularly an inter-action between the former PM andArjun. He says that during a meeting onDecember 5, 1992, at which then homeminister S.B. Chavan was present, Arjunwalked in and demanded the impositionof President’s rule on Uttar Pradesh. ThePM asked him if he had any special infor-mation that the mosque was underthreat, to which Arjun replied in the neg-ative but said the BJP and other outfitsassociated with it—which were leadingthe agitation—could not be trusted.

“While PV did not get into an argu-ment with Arjun, he did not concede tohis demand as there was no conclusiveinformation on a breakdown of theconstitutional machinery in Uttar Pra-desh,” says the former law secretary.“Even the IB chief and UP governor hadadvised the PM that moving centraltroops towards the mosque on Decem-ber 5 would enrage the kar sevaks andencourage them to go for the structure.”

He says repeated calls were made tothen UP chief minister Kalyan Singh toget the forces moving. Of the 20,000 cen-

tral troops stationed in Faizabad, 8 kmfrom the mosque, those that had movedsome 2 km ahead were sent back.Narasimha Rao’s law secretary and hismedia advisor both say he was a hands-on PM that day, summoning the homesecretary (Madhav Godbole), enquiringabout troop movements, keeping track ofdevelopments in Ayodhya. Godbole andChavan were briefing the PM over phonefrom North Block every 20 minutes.

According to the former law secretary,the Intelligence Bureau chief too hadinformed the PM that religious heads inAyodhya had said in a meeting there wasno plan to attack the mosque. “This wasthe information the PM, a stickler forrules and the Constitution, went by,” hesays. “Besides, the Uttar Pradesh gov-ernment had assured the SC themosque would be protected at all costs.Officials and the PM went to bed thatnight with a sigh of relief, as we wereassured all was quiet on the ground.When the horror unfolded on televisionscreens the next day, the PM was asshocked as the rest of the nation.”

The PM held his first meeting ofDecember 6, 1992, in the ante-room ofthe PMO, says the former law secretary,who attended it. Also present were Cha-van, Godbole, A.N. Verma (the PM’s prin-cipal secretary) and Naresh Chandra (aspecial officer in the PMO, in charge ofAyodhya developments). “At no point,”says the former law secretary, “didNarasimha Rao lock himself up in aroom.” He says Narasimha Rao andArjun shared an uneasy relationship.“But PV did give Arjun due respect andalways listened to him,” he says. “Henever got into arguments with him.”

Asked for comments on their father’smemoir, Arjun’s sons Ajay Singh, leaderof the opposition in Madhya Pradesh,and Abhimanyu Singh, who holds thecopyright, say they haven’t read thebook but plan to do so soon. But Abhi-manyu says he doesn’t think anything“has been omitted” in the book.

Narasimha Rao quietly faded awayfrom the political scene after his termended in 1996, ignored by his own party.At least there are some who won’t seehim painted a Nero. 4

with Anuradha Raman

“My information was,Rao had connived atthe demolition. Hesat at puja when thekar sevaks beganpulling down themosque and roseonly when the laststone had been removed. MadhuLimaye told me that during thepuja, Rao's aide whispered in hisears that the masjid had beendemolished. Within seconds, thepuja was over.”

(Kuldip Nayar in Beyond the Lines)

“I rang up the primeminister's residenceearly in the after-noon. I was told thathe was not availableto talk to anyone. Iasked the personwho had answeredmy call: 'Since when is heincommunicado, or is he out ofDelhi.’ He replied: 'He is in Delhi,but he has locked himself in hisroom and our directions are notto disturb him under anycircumstances.'(Arjun Singh in A Grain of Sand in the

Hourglass of Time)

rtaleses spring to his defence



LAWFOREIGN FIRMS


‘practice of law’ involved both litigationand ‘desk work’ and instructed the Res-erve Bank of India not to issue any clear-ance to any foreign law firm, laying theground rules for a hearing later this year.

Spearheading the resistance to foreignlaw firms, the Society of Indian LawFirms (SILF) is scathing in its opinion.“Unlike our foreign counterparts, we are

by Uttam Sengupta

IT’S a legal wrangle over legal practice. The Supreme Courtinterim order last week, on a petition filed by the Bar Councilof India, on the contentious subject of allowing foreign law

firms into the country, has rung in the final round of a battle thathas raged for the past 18 years. The apex court adjudged that

To Readjust The BarShould India let foreign law firms in? A legal tug of war thickens.

Foreign Firms: Pluses And The Flip Side

● Bring in international experience,knowledge in emerging areas

● Ensure better opportunities toyoung Indian lawyers

● Are likely to give healthy competition to Indian law firms

● Will be more cost-effective toclients and offer faster service

● Likely to take advantage of relatively low costs and bring inmore business

● Expected to bring in much more legal process outsourcingfrom abroad

The Supreme Courtwill have a final sayon foreign firms

● Foreign law firms will push up thecost of legal services in India

● Best legal talents in Indian lawfirms could migrate to foreign firms● Indian firms will be affected bypoaching; rate of attrition will go up● There is no guarantee that the Westwill allow Indian lawyers to practise ● India is not prepared with regulations in place for foreign firms● Global law firms with deep pocketscan buy up Indian firms ● Foreign firms are allowed to advertise, but Indian firms aren’t

JITENDER GUPTA




not into the business of law. We (sic) area profession and our profession is not forsale,” reads one of its statements on thesubject. SILF alleges that the governmentis under intense pressure from the USand the UK to open up the legal servicessector. As elsewhere in the world, Indiadoes not allow foreigners to practice law.

But whether foreign lawyers can set upa practice on foreign and transactionallaw falls in a grey area, allowing foreignfirms to operate by taking advantage ofthe ambiguity in the law with the gov-ernment’s tacit approval. With an incre-asing number of Indian companies buy-ing up land, mines and manufacturingunits abroad, the demand for expert adv-ice on foreign law and such acquisitionshas gone up. The number of foreign lawfirms operating in the country, estimatesSILF president Lalit Bhasin, has gone upfrom just three in 1994 to over 50 in 2012.

Indeed, the legal services sector hasquadrupled in the last 20 years. Thereare over 200 Indian law firms now inmajor Indian cities, claims SILF. As manyas 1.7 million advocates are enrolled withthe Bar Council of India, and every year60-70,000 law graduates are added tothe ranks. Unofficial estimates place theturnover of Indian law firms at severalthousand crores of rupees.

SILF, curiously, is not opposed to foreignlawyers flying in and out “on business”,but is against their setting up shop here.The reason is not far to seek. Foreign lawfirms now operate through Indian firmsand end up paying substantial fees on thebusiness secured. They have also triedout ‘best friend’ arrangements with Ind-ian firms to share cost, training andinfrastructure. Some foreign firms havealso taken to recruiting Indian law grad-uates, mostly from the National LawSchools, at fancy salaries and havingthem trained abroad—all to circumventthe ban on foreign firms and lawyers.

The opposition also stems from thedistinct possibility that foreign law firms,once allowed, might end up buying someof the Indian ones. Also, publisher-edi-tor of the portal legallyindia.com, KianGanz, points out, “Entry of foreign firmsmight drive up top salaries in the marketand prompt domestic players to increasetheir fees.” On the other hand, younger

lawyers would also hope for betteropportunities, and service conditions,and can be poached from Indian firms.

The issue has its genesis in 1994, whenthree firms, two based in New York andone in London, were allowed by the RBI

to set up offices in India. Both the RBI andthe Centre argued then that foreignfirms were not interested in litigation but‘desk work’, which, they believed, did notamount to legal practice. The BombayHigh Court took almost 15 years to ruleagainst the government in December2009. But there was still no clarity onwhether foreign lawyers could advise

Indian clients here on foreign law, whichthe SC is now expected to adjudicate.

But the system was sought to be manip-ulated, points out Anand Grover ofLawyers Collective, which had first chal-lenged the entry of foreign firms in 1995.Referring to a controversial ruling of theMadras High Court delivered earlier thisyear, Grover asks how two different highcourts could lay down contradictoryrules on the same subject.

The Madras High Court ruling tookthe “pragmatic” approach of allowingforeign lawyers to fly in and out of Indiafor temporary periods. It would not bepractical, the court said, to debar foreignlawyers in view of the government’s aimof converting India into an arbitration

hub. “The Bombay High Court hadalready settled that foreign firms can’tpractice here. There was no need for theMadras High Court to come up with adifferent ruling,” Grover told Outlook.

The eagerness of foreign law firms toget a foothold in India is evident. Lon-don-based A&O commissioned an “ind-ependent” survey this year to claim thatIndian clients, lawyers, even law firmsare overwhelmingly in favour of openingup the legal sector. When the BritishPrime Minister David Cameron visitedIndia, his entourage included a high-profile British lawyer, Stewart Popham.

Ganz points out that the revenue of UKlaw firms are growing faster in Asia thanin the West, which explains their eager-ness to set up offices in India.

But Grover is clear that till the West all-ows Indian lawyers similar rights in theirown countries, there is no reason to fav-our them here. “Nowhere in the world dothey allow foreign lawyers to practiseunless they are enrolled with the Bar andhave cleared a tough examination,” hepoints out. Bhasin agrees. “There is evenno point in the UK allowing Indian firmspermission to open offices, unless workpermits are also given,” he says. Reci-procity is a concern, adds Bar Council ofIndia chairman Manan Kumar Mishra.“We recognise law degrees conferred by25 foreign law schools in India; but theWest does not recognise ours.”

Indian firms also complain that whileforeign law firms are allowed to adver-tise, Indian law does not permit any kindof advertising or soliciting by lawyers.The websites of law firms, contends Bha-sin, contain the barest minimum infor-mation, and that too thanks to a specialdirective of the apex court.

The Bar Council of India is also oppos-ing moves to allow Harvard, Yale andStanford law schools to set up campus inIndia, which it feels would lead to a“backdoor entry” by foreign lawyers.

Experts, however, feel that second gen-eration reforms in legal education, prep-aration for a level playing field and put-ting proper guidelines in place wouldsort out the matter. “It will be far lesspainful then, when the invasion doestake place,” says a former chairman ofthe Bar Council of India. 4

“Actually, thequestion is not ofthe pie, but one of principle. Whoneeds foreign lawfirms in our country?”

Lalit Bhasin President, SILF

“The Australianand the Britishhigh commissiongot in touch withus this month. Butwe were bypassedfor 18 years.”

Manan K. Mishra Chairman, Bar Council of India



(IMA), which represents some 1.78 lakhdoctors, has demanded an apology fromthe film star. But there’s somethingquestionable the association has in com-mon with the filmstar—endorsements.Aamir once endorsed Coca Cola; theassociation endorses another soft drinkand a soap, among other products. Abody of doctors—People for BetterTreatment—has now issued an open let-ter, pursuant to its complaint with theNational Human Rights Commission(NHRC), seeking investigation of IMA’sintentions and ethics, for it has beenendorsing products for quite a few years.

Kunal Saha, president of People forBetter Treatment, has written to thehuman rights watchdog, saying that suchendorsements—especially of colas—could adversely impact people’s health.Children overindulging in colas could beat risk of obesity and other conditions.

The IMA signed endorsement dealswith Pepsi and Dabur in November2008. Saha’s complaint to NHRC, filed inApril 2010, says: “The sinister dealbetween the IMA and Pepsi and Dabur iswrong legally and raises ethical ques-tions as well.... We request you to inves-tigate and take immediate measuresagainst the IMA and the MCI (MedicalCouncil of India) for these deliberatemoves. We request that the IMA mustrefund the money received from theseendorsements and that the money beused to promote awareness about theharmful nature of these drinks and food(products) for the public at large.”

According to Saha’s group, the IMA

makes `45 lakh annually for endorsingthe products of the two companies.Therefore, the group argues, instead ofdemanding an apology from AamirKhan, the IMA and other medical associ-ations should have come forward to sup-port the issues raised by Aamir in theSatyamev Jayate episode that dealt with

malpractices in the health care system.Dr D.R. Rai, secretary-general of the

IMA, confirmed the deals. “They havebeen there for some time, but I do notremember the exact amount. But it’s forthe health messages on the products.” Infact, he revealed that a lawsuit, too, hadbeen filed in the Delhi High Court by“others upset with the IMA” and said that,because of the complaint and the case,the IMA wasn’t endorsing any productnow—further endorsements would beresumed after the court verdict.

Meanwhile, Saha’s group is enlistingsupport for the issues raised on Aamir’sshow. Groups like the Medico FriendCircle (MFC) and the Forum for MedicalEthics Society (FMES) have asked the IMA

to participate in the social regulation ofthe medical profession and worktowards universal healthcare instead ofdemanding an apology from Aamir.These groups, too, have been skirmish-ing with the IMA through open letters.The MFC’s letter asks IMA to treat theissues raised on the show as a wake-upcall and work towards its stated objectiveof “improvement of public health andmedical education in India”. “It’suncalled for, on part of the IMA, to opposea rightful issue (raised by the filmstar)”,says Dr Probir Chatterjee of the MFC.

Among the steps the MFC suggests arethe self-regulation of the medical pro-fession with active participation of citi-zens, moving beyond mere bureaucraticregulation. It says doctors must focus onrational care and become sensitive topatients’ rights and healthcare. It stres-ses that the medical profession mustmove away from the current market-cen-tric model to a more socialised form. 4

IMAENDORSEMENTS


by Chandrani Banerjee

AFTER a recent episodeon medical malpracticeon Aamir Khan’s TV

show Satyamev Jayate, theIndian Medical Association

Promo ProvocationDoctors’ groups oppose IMA’s ad deals

The Indian Medical Associationendorses products like soap,and some doctors’ groups callthis an unethical practice.

Target practice IMA’s demand for an apology from Aamir has started a war of words

NARENDRA BISHT



THE Satyamev Jayate episode ofJuly 8, on untouchability, beganwith Kaushal Panwar’s story—

from a childhood during which she wasforced to join her mother in cleaningshit to her pursuit of a PhD in Sanskrit. We werethen given a glimpse of the life of Balwant Singh,author of An Untouchable in the IAS. After a shot of himlooking at a larger-than-life portrait of Dr B.R. Ambedkarin his Saharanpur house, I realised that, 30 minutes into theshow, there had been no verbal mention of Ambedkar. ThatSingh was perhaps the first and only IAS officer to bedemoted to the rank of tehsildar was edited out. I intu-itively felt the show would scrupulously avoid two keyideas—reservation and Ambedkar.

How did Kaushal Panwar get her PhD and land a job withDelhi University? What is the one policy that enables Dal-its to stop cleaning shit and reclaim their humanity, get aneducation and a decent job? Reservation.And who was it who made this policypossible? Ambedkar. But Aamir wouldnot mention the ‘R’ and ‘A’ words for fearof alienating his middle-class audience.

Not surprisingly, Aamir didn’t mentionthe fact that an atrocity is committed ona Dalit every 18 minutes, according tothe National Crime Records Bureau.Nowhere on display in this episode wasthe penchant Aamir and his researchersshowed for laws and statistics in the firsttwo episodes. Then the show featureddocumentary filmmaker Stalin K. Padmaand clips from his three-hour film IndiaUntouched, on manual scavenging. Again, the cherry-picked excerpts skirted any reference to ‘A’ and ‘R’. Stalinfawned upon Aamir and congratulated him.

Homilies from His Holiness, Justice C.S. Dharmadhikari(retd), followed. Pretending to denounce all labels, Dhar-madhikari ended up parading every label of privilege fromhis curriculum vitae—including the “blessings” allegedlybestowed by Adi Sankara on his ancestors. Since I had spot-ted Bezwada Wilson in the audience, I was waiting to seeif this leader of the Safai Karamchari Andolan, a man whohad pioneered the demolition of dry latrines (for whichmanual scavenging is required) across India, would salvagethe morning. He too was asked to narrate his early life, andhe too shed tears. As did Aamir, with practised ease.

The next day I asked Wilson why Ambedkar and reser-vation had been skipped. He said such references wereedited out, and added that he hadn’t been in the audience

when Aamir interviewed Kaushal Panwar. But I’dseen him “reacting” to what Panwar said on stage.“Even I was shocked,” said Wilson. Kaushal Panwarhad been interviewed in an empty studio. And yet,every once in a while, we saw close-ups of fretful,anxious, pained and agonised faces of those in theaudience as the lady narrated her story. They clap-ped on cue. Clearly, all this was faked.

I checked with Kaushal Panwar, and this was true.I also found that Aamir and his team had interviewed twomembers of the Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce andIndustry—its chairman Milind Kamble and key advisorAshok Khade. They were informed just a week ahead of thetelecast that their interviews wouldn’t be aired as they “didnot fit in with the story”. In fact, when ChandrabhanPrasad, mentor to DICCI, watched the show with Kamblein Pune, they couldn’t believe their eyes. When the inter-view was shot, Kamble had been seated next to Dharmad-hikari on a studio couch; but he was nowhere in the broad-cast version. Rather than dirty-trick editing, it’s likely

Dharmadhikari did not mind giving afresh take—minus Kamble. I also learntparticipants sign confidentiality agree-ments to keep them from speaking abouttheir participation—recorded monthsahead of broadcast—on social media.

In his column in The Hindu, Aamirbegins with “Gandhiji’s struggle” for“those ostracised as untouchables”,mentioning Ambedkar in passing. ButGandhi considered manual scavenging“the most honourable occupation”, andwrote: “I don’t consider it an uncleanoccupation by any means. That you haveto handle dirt is true. But that every

mother is doing and has to do. Nobody says a mother’soccupation is unclean.” He also said: “My ideal bhangiwould know the quality of night-soil and urine. He wouldkeep close watch on these and give a timely warning to theindividual concerned. Thus, he will give a timely notice ofthe results of his examination of the excreta.” It’s this kindof Gandhian piety that has kept manual scavenging alive.Ambedkar, on the contrary, held that in India, you were ascavenger by birth: “Under Hinduism scavenging was nota matter of choice, it was a matter of force. What doesGandhism do? It seeks to perpetuate this system by prais-ing scavenging as the noblest service to society!”

The show manipulates even more. Wilson said, “In fact,it was not I who actually began crying. Aamir started to cry,so I was forced to cry along.” Obviously, Aamir thinks wecan flush away middle-class shit with tears. 4

(The writer is publisher, Navayana)

17

Silence Eva Jayate

OUTLOOK 23 July 2012

S. ANANDOPINION

SORIT




Circus oThe big national parties look lost in their own

NATIONAL PARTIESAGENDA

17.3 27.2

911.6

39.5

14.710.7

15.2

8.4 9.3

21.1 21

40.8

35.334.6

16.3

5

8.4

1991 2002 2012 1999 2004 2009

1996 2006 2011 1995 2005 2010

1991 2006 2011 1999 2004 2009

Uttar Pradesh 13.7%Maharashtra 27.7%West Bengal 24.7%Bihar 13.1%Tamil Nadu 10.1%

UttarPradesh Maharashtra

WestBengal

Bihar

TamilNadu

Karnataka

CCoonnggrreessss vvootteesshhaarree ((%%)) ssiinnccee 11998899

CCoonnggrreessss aavvgg vvootteesshhaarree aafftteerr 11998899//9900

31.5 14.5

20.115

6.5

1.9

4.8

1.7 2

0.4

13.714

20.7

28.3

33.9

15.716.5

1991 2002 2012 1999 2004 2009

1996 2006 2011 1995 2005 2010

1991 2006 2011 1999 2004 2009

Uttar Pradesh 20.89%Maharashtra 13.15%West Bengal 5.03%Bihar 14.27%Tamil Nadu 1.57%

UttarPradesh Maharashtra

WestBengal

Bihar

TamilNadu

Karnataka

BBJJPP vvootteesshhaarree ((%%)) ssiinnccee 11998899

BBJJPP aavveerraaggee vvootteesshhaarree aafftteerr 11998899//9900

13

Graphics by KULDEEP




coalitions and currently the Congressmanagers are heaving a huge sigh ofrelief for finally crossing the bump of apresidential election that will soon havePranab Mukherjee shifting to Rashtrap-ati Bhavan, barring unlikely mishaps.Meanwhile, the BJP has endured anotherbrazen spectacle of fratricidal politics inKarnataka that increases the caste cleav-age between the Lingayats and Vokkali-gas, climaxing in the swearing in of yetanother CM, the third in the last year.

Both must breathe a little easy afterthese by now commonplace contortionsin their politics. Off the record, mem-bers of both parties agree that neitherseems to be headed to any glorious posi-

tion in contemporary reality. But a fewthings have changed, although the over-all picture of drift continues with thetwo principal parties of India. The moresignificant political outcome of the pres-idential poll is not Pranabda’s elevationbut the fact that Prime Minister Man-mohan Singh’s continuation in the posttill 2014 is now a certainty. There is noalternative and, moreover, Rahul Gandhidoes not seem to want power.

Within the party, the ripples havebegun. The jockeying for positions hasbegun as changes are expected, both inthe organisation and government. Aministerial expansion and reshuffle ison the cards. Most bets are placed onthis happening after the monsoon ses-sion of Parliament that will begin in the

by Saba Naqvi

IS it just a small crisis, a minor hump in the trajectory, or afull-blown existential impasse? Politics plays on but thereality is that the national parties of modern India are in

perpetual decline. There is no leadership that inspires, no planfor revival as yet revealed. There is only arithmetic in this era of

n Noticevortex. Will they wake up, do a rebound by 2014?

“The big nationalleaders havefaded, peoplehave no faith inthem. They aremore connectedto regional netas.”

Kalyan BanerjeeTMC MP, Serampore, WB

“National partiesdon’t have themandate. Gettinga total majority toform governmentis a distant dreamfor all parties.”

Seema UpadhyayaBSP MP, Agra

Shrink wrapped Sonia Gandhi, L.K. Advani

TRIBHUVAN TIWARI



first week of August (dates are still to beannounced) and continue for a month.

Linked to this will be an organisa-tional reshuffle and although there hasbeen talk of a ‘Kamaraj Plan’ whichenvisages ministers returning to theorganisation, it’s really not that simple.Some like law minister Salman Khur-shid have offered to return to the party(after the UP assembly poll debacle inMarch this year), but there is great cyn-icism about such postures and a wide-spread belief that no one really wantsthings to go that way. Says a veteran atthe Congress national HQ at 24 AkbarRoad, “Every time change is in the air,there is a great sense of expectation andpositioning. You will see stories beingplanted about so and so becoming fina-nce minister, about how another indivi-

dual wants to serve the party, a thirdpledging allegiance to the Gandhi fam-ily in a roundabout way.” It’s the lang-uage of Congress leaders, a grammarthey understand well.

All this happens in the backdrop of theRahul Gandhi promise not becoming areality. So last week when Khurshid wasquoted as saying Rahul had only put in a“cameo appearance”, he was actuallysaying on record what others say off it.Short of any real-time info on membersof the dynasty, there are only intelligentguesses (from individuals who are usu-ally right) that Rahul will not be positedat the front of a ship that is expected tosink by 2014. At best he will shouldergreater organisational responsibility.Meanwhile, he is apparently engaged ingetting reports from district/local bod-


seen as uninspiring. The management of the economy is thesingle greatest failure of UPA-II; corruption scandals haveadded to that, reducing the credibility of the party in power.When in difficulty, the Congress is in the habit of turningto its first family. Parties which are a crowd around a fam-ily suffer from one major handicap. When a particular gen-eration of the family is incapable of delivering, the partycorrespondingly collapses. All this must worry the Con-gress, in relation to the next general election.

At the same time, the regional parties have becomeincreasingly assertive. Trends indicate that they will con-stitute a significant section of India’s next parliament. Thishas also given rise to a speculative debate whether the usualThird Front, this time disguised as a Federal Front, willemerge as a powerful claimant to power. Some have evenasked whether the national parties could now be the sup-porting entities instead of the leading players.

The age of tall majorities by a single party appears to benow over. That by no means is a reason to suggest that therole of national parties in providing a government is goingto decline. The natural ability of the Congress to get a bigmajority on its own in the first four decades ended in the

1990s. In 1996, 1998 and 1999, it was the BJP which was thesingle largest party. In 2004, the Congress had a meagreseven-seat lead over the BJP. That lead increased signifi-cantly in 2009 due to better alliances in the states and apopular desire for political stability.

But since 2009, the UPA provided an ineffective govern-ment. So the principal political party occupying the non-Congress space in every state has been a natural benefici-ary in recent elections. There are no indications so far thatthis trend will be reversed. The number of Congress seatsin the next Lok Sabha could be shockingly low.

The Third Front formula has been tried thrice so far. Oneach occasion, the Congress provided support to makeCharan Singh, Chandra Shekhar, and the United Front’sH.D. Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral. None of them comple-ted even a year in office. The Congress was using them asa stop-gap arrangement and then bidding for elections ata time they saw as beneficial to them. The very idea of athird front, by whatever name, is a failed idea.

The core of the third front idea conventionally has beenthe Left and the Samajwadi Party. Both at the time of thevote of confidence during the 2008 nuclear debate andrecently the presidential election, the Samajwadi Party suc-cumbed to the Congress because its leader faced corrup-tion cases. The corrupt are vulnerable and can be tackledeasily; the Congress has shown this in its management ofthe Samajwadi Party and the BSP. The honest can be moredefiant. The Trinamool Congress’s defiance is a case inpoint. The vulnerability of the Samajwadi Party has dealt

THE trends in recent elections—whetherto the assemblies, local bodies or inbyelections—have clearly indicated a

decline in the popularity of the Congress. Theprime minister’s leadership in government is

BIHARTToottaall MMPPss::2/40 (5%)

TToottaall MMLLAAss::4/243 (1.6%)

UPTToottaall MMPPss::

21/80 (26.3%)TToottaall MMLLAAss::

28/403 (6.9%)

W. BENGALTToottaall MMPPss::6/40 (15%)


APTToottaall MMPPss::


151/294 (51.3%)

M’RASHTRATToottaall MMPPss::


82/289 (28.4%)

TAMIL NADU

TToottaall MMPPss::8/39 (20.5%)TToottaall MMLLAAss::5/235 (2.1%)

CONGRESSIN BIG SIX

STATES

National parties haven’t faded For us in the NDA, Atalji’s management of the coalition in 1996-98 is a lesson



ies leaders about the state of the party.Those reports cannot be good. The

party may have displayed skills in arran-ging surplus votes of elected represen-tatives for the presidential polls, but ishaving no luck with the ordinary voter.After the debacle in the Andhra bypolls,there was another dismal performancein the UP local body elections. The int-ernal assessments give this picture—fall-ing stock in Congress-ruled Rajasthan,no chance in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh,close contest in BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh,defeat in BJP-ruled Gujarat, close call inBJP-ruled Himachal Pradesh, poor per-formance in Congress-NCP ruled Maha-rashtra. (What happens in UP and Biharin a national election will, however, bedetermined by the party leaderships andissues that prevail at the time. For insta-

nce, positioning Narendra Modi at a nat-ional level will certainly change equati-ons in the heartland.)

Meanwhile, one would imagine thatthe grand old party would be seeing amajor opportunity in the misrule displ-ayed in Karnataka where the BJP rulesand does it badly. Yet the Congress’s Kar-nataka unit is in a bad shape. As a stateleader says, “Our hopes are pinned on BJP

misrule, not on our abilities. We expectto gain only because there will be greatanti-incumbency.” Outlook has accessedan internal Congress report on the stateof affairs in Karnataka. The long-winded‘Fact-finding committee on cross-votingduring the biennial elections to the Kar-nataka legislative council held on 11thJune’ gives a fascinating insight intoparty factionalism (it had expected four


a severe blow to the very idea of a third front.The Left is now in a dilemma. Its political base has not

expanded beyond a few states. In Kerala, it alternatelyexchanges government with the Congress. For threedecades, there was no alternative in West Bengal. With theseats it won in West Bengal, the Left had a significant pres-ence in Parliament. But now, there’s an effective alternative.So where the Left sits in Parliament willdepend on where the Trinamool Congressstands. Hence the capacity of the Sama-jwadi Party and the Left to anchor the thirdfront has been reduced.

THE BSP is yet to open itscards. The Supreme Courthas quashed the probe

against its leader Mayawati onhighly questionable and technicalgrounds. The jury is still out on whether theBSP will be eternally grateful to the Congress or is it nowfree from the clutches of the Congress. The answer to thisquestion is still not known.

Most regional parties have been part of coalitions. Theyhave matured as national players. The common thread thatruns through many regional parties is that their politicalbattle in the states is with the Congress. For them to sup-port the Congress or to depend on the Congress can shrink

their own base in the future. And even at the peak of theirsuccess, they can get a significant number of seats, but onlyin one state and I can hardly see any of them crossing 30seats. They hold the balance of power and can decide as towho rules. But there are many regional players that cannotbe on the same side. The DMK and AIADMK, the TDP and theYSR Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the BSP would nor-mally not be on the same side. In the regional block, all ofthem cannot sit on the same table at the same time. At best,some of them can. With the Samajwadi Party and the Leftunsure of where they would sit in the future, the internal

contradictions between regional partiesgets highlighted. Since none of these par-ties has the ability to win seats in multiplestates, the idea of the regional players mar-ginalising national parties for a claim topower at the centre is a flawed one.

Trends indicating the decline of the Con-gress and the dilution of the Oppositioncredentials of some regional players leads tothe inevitable conclusion that the alterna-tive can only be the NDA. For us in the NDA,Atalji’s management of the alliance in 1996to 1998 is a lesson to be learnt. Within 18months, a three-party NDA evolved into a 24-

party coalition. The NDA today has an important historicrole to play as an alternative to a failed UPA. The NDA has tomake itself flexible to accommodate traditional non-Con-gress players from various regions. India lives in an era ofcoalition politics. The nucleus of the coalition necessarilyhas to be a large player. 4(The writer, a Bharatiya Janata Party MP, is the Leader of

the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.)

BIHARTToottaall MMPPss::12/40 (30%)TToottaall MMLLAAss::

91/243 (37.4%)

UPTToottaall MMPPss::


47/403 (11.7%)

W. BENGALTToottaall MMPPss::1/40 (2.4%)TToottaall MMLLAAss::0/295 (0%)

APTToottaall MMPPss::0/42 (0%)


M’RASHTRATToottaall MMPPss::

9/48 (18.7%)TToottaall MMLLAAss::46/289 (16%)

TAMIL NADU

TToottaall MMPPss::0/39 (0%)

TToottaall MMLLAAss::0/235 (0%)

BJP IN BIG SIXSTATES

awayto keep in mind

ARUNJAITLEY

OPINION

REGIONAL PARTIESHAVE MATURED AS

NATIONAL PLAYERS,BUT MOST OF THEMHAVE BATTLES WITH

THE CONGRESS IN THESTATES, VITIATINGTHEIR POSITION.




The Left has usually been the pivot forregional groupings in India. But lately thepolitical landscape has changed with areduction of Communist strength and theemergence of new regional players. CPI(M)general secretary Prakash Karat looks atthe political possibilities, gives his viewson Mulayam and Rahul Gandhi, explainshis party’s positions, and convolutions, ina conversation with Saba Naqvi andPanini Anand. Excerpts:

How do you view the decline ofnational parties?The two major national parties, theCongress and the BJP, together have noteven touched 50 per cent of votes in theLok Sabha polls. They are not growingbecause their policies will not get masssupport. The major issue for the CPI(M),and the Left as a whole, is why are we notadvancing even when the two nationalparties are shrinking?Do you believe the future belongs toregional parties? And will you play arole in any third or fourth front? We see the growth of regional parties asa positive development. But at the sametime, it’s difficult to form a coherent all-India front. That’s why in our recentparty congress, we’ve not talked aboutthe third alternative, or an alternative ofregional forces. So you will not be a sheet anchor fora third or fourth front? No, we are not interested. We will coop-erate with some of these parties. We willfight together for issues from time totime, without any illusion that we are athird or alternative front.Do you think that there is need of aconsolidated, comprehensive Left?The need is there. But for what? Not forformation of a non-Congress and non-BJP front which has no common pro-gramme or perspective. We feel there isno other way but building movements, bymobilising people on an alternative plat-form of policy. The need is there but it’sunreal to think about a third front.Why did you support the Congresspresidential candidate Pranab Mukh-

erjee, while other Left parties didn’t?We have given primacy to a candidatewith a firm secular outlook, and we havefollowed this consistently since 1992.After the rise of the BJP, this has been ourcriteria. Except Mr Kalam, we have sup-ported all other Congress candidates.Don’t you think the regional partiesalso follow neo-liberal policies?I don’t think so. Because they run stategovernments, they are more responsibletowards people. To sell rice for onerupee a kilo is not a neo-liberal policy. Ifthey were so, they’d curtail the PDS andlet the market prevail. Prasenjit Bose and some student lead-ers opposed supporting Pranab....Some individuals are critical but are notin the party leadership. I have not got asingle opinion from any of the partycommittees questioning our action.There’re problems in the Kerala unit.In Kerala, at the state level, there hasbeen a particular problem. We havetaken action in that matter.It’s said the Left is insensitive tocaste, the leadership is upper caste.This is baseless. People who join us are

from the working class. We give ̀ 3,000-4,000 to a married person. So, the poor-est section can’t afford to be full-timers.Cadre from the middle class do. If the BJP comes out on top in the 2014elections, won’t the secular principlepropel you to support the Congress?Supporting Congress is ruled out.Unless Rahul Gandhi declares himselfa socialist, and has a new economicmanifesto, then we will see (laughs). Are you supporting Hamid Ansarifor vice-president? I was not given any name. When asked bythe PM, I said since the president isgoing to be from the Congress, so itwould be better to have a distinguished,non-Congress candidate.What about Mulayam Singh, hismoves and counter-moves?He thinks that there is a serious possi-bility he could become the PM.Can he be trusted by any otherregional party?Ask that to Mamata Banerjee (laughs). 4

Read the full interview at www.outlookindia.com

“Not helping Congress unlessRahul discovers socialism”

JITENDER GUPTA



candidates to win but one lost due tocross-voting). The panel found that“indiscipline” caused the defeat. FourMLAs went on record to suggest “narco-analysis or brain-mapping of the MLAs toestablish truth and their credibility”.The committee wrote that it “app-reciates the MLAs’ suggestion” but “feelsit is not advisable to subject every MLA tonarco-analysis.” It’s almost comical tosee the Congress struggling in whatshould have been a win-win situation.

The consolation prize here is, of course,the confusion and lack of direction in theBJP. At the core, there are both similari-ties and differences in the crises the twoparties face. But Karnataka is not reallya reflection of the BJP’s overall strength.The party has strong bases in the reg-ions. So, on balance, if one does somequick arithmetic, nationally it seemspoised to do better than the Congress. Italso has a strong cadre base which is whyit does well in local body elections (thecadre matters in small contests). Yet theBJP too has no plans for growth. There istalk of the RSS and a section of the partypositioning Modi as a national leader, on

the argument that he meets the urbanvoters’ stereotype of a “strong, fix-it”leader. But in a coalition era, significantallies who may want to do business withthe BJP could find it hard to do so withModi. This would particularly be thecase in a pre-poll scenario, althoughthings could change were the BJP to cross150 seats in Parliament. So, the currentstatus is that the leadership issue liesunresolved, waiting to be determined byrealpolitik closer to the general electionsin 2014. It is a period of floating and test-ing the Modi card. Besides, when itcomes to the leadership question, thereis always the RSS’s role in vetoing or sup-

porting a particular individual. In the Congress, a dynasty is in place

but no one knows any longer when theanointed one will take the reins. As forthe issue of state leaders, the Congresshas a different approach to the BJP

(which projects chief ministers and spe-cific individuals). Because of infightingin the units, the Congress leaves it toSonia’s choice post-election. Perhapsthe leadership question is so vexing forboth parties because it’s almost impos-sible now to find a pan-Indian figure.Meanwhile, in the regions the strongleaders get stronger by the day. 4

with Chandrani Banerjee

“Look at the BJPin Karnataka, athird CM in a year.Can any partyhave national credibility in such an age?”

Uma Shankar SinghRJD MP, Maharajganj

“The cost of pollsin south India isaffecting allnational parties.Compared to that,Bihar is a modelin low-cost polls.”

B.K. HariprasadCong Gen Secy

NATIONALPARTIESAGENDA



senior leaders and concerned citizens.Politics is getting too polarised (Gujarat,Uttar Pradesh); there is great churningand rejection of the status quo (both theCongress and BJP were rejected in therecent state polls; the Congress and TDP

are on the decline in Andhra Pradeshwhile the YSR Congress Party is on therise); the buying of votes is rampant (itcosts `5-7 crore to contest an assemblyseat in AP, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka);parties are forced to field criminals ascandidates (UP, Bihar); reckless pop-ulism is hurting the exchequer; corrup-tion is supreme; fiscal deficits are notunder control; education and healthcareare in a shambles; governments in moststates and at the Centre seem to be pow-erless to halt the slide, and politics isreviled as never before.

Where have we gone wrong? Blamingit all on politicians and parties is futileand counterproductive. The more wedelegitimise politics, the harder it is tonurture good leadership and to summonthe will and skill to improve things. Foryears, we pinned hopes on economicgrowth to somehow resolve our politicalcrisis. But our political failures are und-ermining growth and opportunity forthe poor. Modern economy cannot forlong coexist with antediluvian politics.

We need to return to the initial con-ditions that existed when we gave our-selves democracy. During the freedomstruggle, India was blessed with excep-tional leadership across all regions andsocial groups. After independence,these freedom-fighters were the first-generation politicians and nation-

builders. They did a great job integrat-ing princely states, bringing order,building institutions and articulating anational vision. That is why Indiaremains an oasis of robust democracyamong nations liberated after the War.

However, power remained centralised.India became unique in that liberty anduniversal franchise coexisted with ahigh degree of centralisation (with citi-zens marginalised, and citizenship deva-lued), and there was abject dependenceon those with power and influence forsimple services (ration card, birth certi-ficate, FIR registration, land records). Theearly, robust attempts to decentralisepower were soon given up after a decade.This centralisation prevented the growthof local leadership and innovation. Peo-ple were not enabled to discover the pos-sibilities and limits of power. Asymmetryof power and poverty meant a desperatequest for daily necessities and elusivegovernment services. The licence rajmade things worse. The lower bureau-cracy remained unaccountable andexploitative. People needed sifarish orbribe to get even the smallest thing done.

The romance of freedom gave way to dis-enchantment within 20 years.

The hapless citizen had only one leverto get even simplest things done—thevote. The politician who sought it wasthe only one who would listen—or beforced to listen! The local MLA thusbecame the disguised executive, an elec-ted maharaja, to get everything done. Buthe had no real, legal authority, and nomeans of really delivering. However hardhe tried to intervene on a daily basis toreach some services to the people, theresults remained unsatisfactory.

Soon the politician realised that peopledepended on him for everything, but he


IS Indian democracy at the crossroads? Certainly we haveachieved a great deal; protection of freedoms, deepeningparticipation, reasonable though sub-par economic growth,

peaceful transfer of power and fierce political competition.And yet there is a sense of foreboding, a growing disquiet among

A Call to ORevile not politics. Reform it instead. And the first step towards it? Ca

ELECTORAL REFORMAN AGENDA

“The FPTP systemweakens therepresentativecharacter ofelective bodies.This anomaly hasto be corrected.”

Atal Behari VajpayeeFormer PM, NDA government

Shame! Porn in Karnataka assembly, kickingand screaming in J&K house, cash for votes



had no ability to deliver. And he had notime for his family or for pursuing anyeconomic activity for an honest liveli-hood. Yet, it was a thankless task. Therewas neither the glory of freedom strug-gle, nor the satisfaction of getting thingsdone. Only the odium of having to beg forvotes, and the criticism and grumbling ofdissatisfied voters. The politician sooncame to the conclusion that honesty wasincompatible with survival in politics.Many honest politicians faded out. Sonsand daughters of entrenched politicians,or those who made politics and patron-age a means of personal profit, becamethe dominant players in politics.

Armed with the realisation that hon-esty didn’t pay in politics, a few politi-cians started inducing poor voters withmoney and liquor. Soon, most seriouscompetitors followed suit. A large expen-diture did not guarantee victory; but fail-ure to spend almost certainly meantdefeat. Big money became the entrancefee for political competition. Corruptionfed the system. What started as a neces-sity became an opportunity, and naturalresources, contracts, transfers, licencesand permits—all became a source of pri-vate gain. With all major parties deploy-ing big money in elections, more wasneeded to get votes. Intense populism

and freebies became weapons in theelectoral armoury. Instead of focusing oneducation, healthcare, skills and jobs, thepoor began to be offered immediate,short-term palliatives (free rice, freepower, colour TVs, bicycles, etc). How-ever, after all parties caught on, freebiesalone became insufficient to assure vic-tory. The traditional caste, religious andregional divides in Indian societybecame fertile ground for politicalmanipulation. It is easy to provoke pri-mordial loyalties in a divided, heteroge-neous society and pit one group againstthe other. The severe competition forpatronage, higher education, jobs and


rderst a vote for proportional representation.

JAYAPRAKASHNARAYAN

OPINION

7

3

4

56

8

9

1

210

1112

UNPREDICTABLE ELECTIONS

20092004

138(22.16)

145(26.53)

19 (5.33)

9 (1.80)

10 (1.41)

21 (6.17)

16 (5.33)

9 (2.04)

4 (1.43)

43(5.66)

116(18.80)

206(28.55)

BBJJPP

IINNCC

BBSSPP

CCPPII((MM))

NNCCPP

CCPPII

The number of seats (polled percentage)secured by different political parties in

the 2004 and 2009 general elections

PTI



political office could be easily channel-ised to provoke rivalries and jealousies,and fashion long-term votebanks. Allthese three—vote-buying, freebies andcalling on primordial loyalties—are nowthe staple of electoral politics.

We can discern three phases of politicssince 1947. The first phase (1947-67) sawnation-building and Congress monopoly.The second (1967-89) saw a challenge toCongress monopoly and the emergenceof alternatives. The third phase (1989-2000) witnessed fierce competition forpower in each state and at the nationallevel. We are now entering a fourthphase—characterised by anger andennui, delegitimisation of politics, cyni-cism, rejection of established parties,fragmentation, invoking primordial loy-alties, zero-sum-game politics, rampantcorruption, and increasing incapacity toaddress challenges or have an honestconversation with people, a failure ofnerve, and intense, reckless populism.

Where do we go now? Is Indian poli-tics bound to degenerate and lead toanarchy? Is our economy doomedbecause of failed politics? Will India bean also-ran, instead of being a majorworld economy? Will the next genera-tion continue to suffer unnecessarypoverty, pain and anguish? Is there a

way out of the political morass? Theseare the inevitable questions today.

There is no simple silver bullet toresolve a long-incubating political cri-sis, no short-cuts to national rejuvena-tion. No single solution applies to allsocieties; answers that are relevant inone situation have no value in differentcircumstances. If we understand thelevers of change in a context, then arapid course correction is possible.

One critical factor trapping us into avicious cycle is the importance of themarginal vote for victory in each consti-tuency in our first-past-the-post (FPTP)system. In our system, a party or candi-date is elected in each constituency onthe basis of obtaining more votes thanany other candidate. Such a system hasthe advantage of a comfortable majorityfor a ruling party. Only Britain and someof its former colonies, the US, India, Pak-istan, Bangladesh, the Philippines andCanada have such a system. The US andthe Philippines have a presidential sys-tem, and Pakistan has a president andcabinet sharing power, with the armydominating. Britain has different sys-tems at other levels—local governments,regional parliaments in Scotland, Walesand Northern Ireland, European Parlia-ment and London city. The House of

ELECTORALREFORMAGENDA


Which countries follow the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system? The US, UK, Canada, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines,Malawi and Zambia.

What’s wrong with the FPTP system?If there are only two choices (two parties or two candidates),FPTP can be a reasonable reflection of public will. But wherethere are multiple choices, the results are often skewed anddistorted, and the elected house may not be truly representative.

Does it mean FPTP may result in minority governments? In both the 2004 and 2009 general elections, the UPA secured lessthan 40 per cent of the votes polled. In other words, a majority ofthe voters—60 per cent and more—were not in favour of the UPA.But FPTP gave UPA a majority of seats.

What’s the relationship between voteshare and seats under FPTP?A small change in voteshare may lead to a disproportionateincrease or decrease in the number of seats won by a politicalparty. The Samajwadi Party, for example, increased its votesharein Uttar Pradesh from 25.43 per cent in 2007 to 29.15 per cent inthe 2012 assembly election—an increase of 3.72 percentagepoints—but it won an additional 127 seats, an increase of 131 percent. The Congress also increased its voteshare by 3.02 per cent inthe state this time but gained only six additional seats.

Which countries follow the proportional representation system? By far, the majority of the countries. Germany, France, Austria,Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Russia and many other countriesfollow different variations of the PR system while some mix itwith the FPTP system.

Why is the proportional representation system more useful? Besides being a better and more representative reflection ofpopular will, the PR system will cut down on electoral expensesand reduce the use of both money and muscle power. Byelectionstoo can be avoided.

Why are Indian political parties opposed to PR then?Regional parties are apprehensive that proportionalrepresentation will reduce their strength in Parliament andtherefore their political clout. National parties argue it will bemore complicated, will lead to instability.

Does the Constitution allow for proportional representation?Nothing in the Indian Constitution prescribes that we should havethe first-past-the-post system. A suitable amendment in theRepresentation of People Act is all that is required. TheConstitution merely mandates a government which is collectivelyresponsible to Parliament and prescribes that members of the LokSabha be elected directly.

FPTP vs PR: Which is Better?

LOPSIDED RESULTS

2007 2012

BSP SP BSP SP

DMK+ AIADMK+ DMK+ AIADMK+

Cong TDP+ Cong TDP+

30.4

39.4

29

39.9

69.6

44.8

34.76

51.4 36.4

36.5

16.7

40.2

76.9

48.7

13.2 86.7

51.8

55.62024.1

29.225.925.4

51.1

VVOO

TTEE

SSHH

AARR

EESS

EEAA

TTSS

HHAA

RREE

VVOO

TTEE

SSHH

AARR

EESS

EEAA

TTSS

HHAA

RREE

VVOO

TTEE

SSHH

AARR

EESS

EEAA

TTSS

HHAA

RREE

Even a small difference in votes nowmakes a large difference in seats. See the

skewed relation between both in theassembly poll results in UP, TN and AP.





Commons alone is based on FPTP.The FPTP works well in Britain. Its elec-

torate is educated and well-informed;public discourse is intelligent and focu-sed on issues and policies; there is novote-buying; politics attracts the finesttalent; parties offer alternative policies;new leadership and new ideas continueto emerge. In such a country, it makes nosense to change the electoral system.

IN today’s India, FPTP hasdifferent consequences. InFPTP, the total share of a

candidate’s or party’s vote hasno relevance. What matters is getting at least one more vote than thenearest rival. One more vote means vic-tory; and one less voter means defeat.There are no second prizes in a winner-take-all system. The candidate is there-fore desperate to woo the marginal votefor victory. In a poor country with ram-pant corruption, vote-buying is inevita-ble to induce the marginal voter. In FPTP,people rarely vote for the best candidateor party; they tend to vote for the second-worst party, for fear of being saddledwith the worst option in their estima-tion. Even when better candidates orparties are available, voters all over theworld hate to see their votes “wasted” onsure losers. In FPTP, usually the two dom-inant candidates/parties alone matter;and all behave similarly to get marginalvotes. No matter who wins, they adoptsimilar methods, and nothing funda-mentally changes after elections. Manyvoters, particularly those not induced bymoney, stay away from elections. As ageneral rule, the polling percentage inFPTP is 10-15 per cent lower than in pro-portional representation. If candidatesstop buying votes, our polling percentagein many constituencies will be closer to40 per cent, not 60 per cent.

Given the compulsions of FPTP intoday’s Indian conditions, parties areforced to deploy not the most desirablecandidates, but those who can some-how win the marginal vote. Those withlarge amounts to spend on vote-buying(`5-10 crore for an MLA in some states),or those who emerged as leaders of the

caste that dominates in the constitu-ency, or criminals with muscle power,money and caste-base emerge as idealcandidates for all serious parties com-peting for power. Even honest leadersgenuinely striving to improve thingshave no choice but to deploy such can-didates if they are to have a chance ofgaining power and influence. Can weredefine victory and change incentivesin politics? Can a different way of elect-ing our leaders alter the course of pol-itics? No electoral system is perfect. Wehave to look at practical and acceptableanswers suitable to a society in a spe-cific context. It is time we Indiansfocused on our electoral system, insteadof reviling politicians and shunningpublic life. We need to create a frame-

work in which incentives change, vote-buying is rendered unnecessary, honestpolitics is sustainable, policies and ideasgain precedence over prejudices, hon-est, competent and purposive citizenscan get elected, and the vicious cycle ofbad politics and corruption can be bro-ken. A system which gives a party seatsin the legislature in proportion to thevotes it obtains—statewise—will radi-cally alter our politics and outcomes.

Such a proportional representationsystem would not depend on the margi-nal vote in a constituency for gainingseats. The parties will get seats in theassembly and Lok Sabha in proportion totheir votes in each state. Vote-buying willbe redundant because a few more votesin a constituency at the cost of the over-all party image will not be desperatelyimportant to survive. The parties can putup decent and worthy candidates whocan enrich public life and be electoralassets—many such people can only benominated to the Rajya Sabha now. Theparties will also not be desperate to makeunholy compromises for electoral survi-val. They can honestly seek vote on theirvision and policies. The corrupt and cyn-ical politicians will give way to the hon-est and competent leaders who share abroader vision for society. A class of lead-ers similar to our freedom-fighters willemerge from the younger generation tobuild a new India. More and more dis-enchanted voters and citizens will returnto polling booths and participate. Ademocratic rejuvenation will take place.

In addition, if we also genuinely trans-fer power and resources to local govern-ments, and build a robust, third tier offederalism, our democracy will mature.People will see the link between theirvote and consequences in terms of pub-lic good. The person who is elected willstart making a real difference. There willbe greater transparency as the way taxesand resources are deployed will be visi-ble. People will ensure that servicesimprove. Authority will be fused withaccountability, and there will be no alibisfor non-performance—those who deli-ver will be empowered. 4

(Doctor-turned-civil servant-turnedlegislator, the author is Lok Satta party

convenor and NAC member.)

ELECTORALREFORMAGENDA


Decline of Congress in UP

100

80

60

40

20

0

201219961989197719671951

■ Seat share %■ Voteshare %

Decline of BJP in UP

100

80

60

40

20

0

201219961989197719671951

■ Seat share %■ Voteshare %

FRINGE PLAYERSCongress and BJP have negligible presence

in the UP assembly. National partiesreduced to insignificance.

“The CPI wouldintensify itsstruggle to ensurethat parties aregiven proportionalrepresentation inelected bodies.”

S. Sudhakar ReddyCPI general secretary



7years



DR.M.G.R EDUCATIONAL AND RESEARCH INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITYA pleasurable learning experience – that’s the mantra of Dr. Dr.M.G.R Educational and Research Institute University. With over 27 years experience in education, the University is the only private institution to provide higher education within the city limits of Chennai.

Dr. M.G.R Engineering College founded in the year 1988 and in 1991 Thai Moogambigai Dental College and Hospital was established. Both these institutions were recognized for their

contribution and attained Deemed University status under the name Dr. M.G.R Educational and Research Institute, University in the year 2003. The courses of the University are accredited by NAAC and the courses of the Thai Moogambigai Dental College and Hospital are recognized by the Dental Council of India. The BDS degree is also recognized by the Medical Council of Sri Lanka.A survey by the Sunday Indian ranked the University third in India and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has accorded a B+ rating for the University with a score of 78.55%, which is the second highest ranked Deemed University.

With state-of-the-art global standard campuses providing world class

facilities, today the institution is a high quality centre for learning in the fields of Engineering & Technology, Dentistry, Humanities and Pure Sciences.

The University boasts highly competent faculties with Doctoral qualifications and achievements to their name. With a curriculum that is constantly updated to keep up with the growing trends, the University has signed MoU’s through Dr.M.G.R Centre for International Studies.with global Universities like University of Sunderland (UK), University of South Australia, Adelaide , University of Wolver Hampton, UK, Perth College, Scotland, University of Farleigh Dickenson, USA, ABK-AOTS DOSOKAI – Hiyoshi Corporation Japan, Sailcon, China etc., These MoU’s allow both

“ Higher Learning - Making the right move”

India, the land of abundant human potential has seen explosive growth especially in the last two decades with respect to education. With globalisation paving way for

multinational companies setting their foot in India, to meet the demands of quali�ed professionals in these companies has given rise to many engineering colleges.

Given this scenario, it becomes essential for the student to choose the right college to avoid being not industry ready while graduating. It becomes a constant

challenge for the colleges to ensure they are on top of things in giving the students an education that is not just academic but also help in making the student industry ready.

The following educational institutions are most sought after by students and recruiters due to the colleges laying emphasis on setting standards in engineering education.

7years



DR.M.G.R EDUCATIONAL AND RESEARCH INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITYA pleasurable learning experience – that’s the mantra of Dr. Dr.M.G.R Educational and Research Institute University. With over 27 years experience in education, the University is the only private institution to provide higher education within the city limits of Chennai.

Dr. M.G.R Engineering College founded in the year 1988 and in 1991 Thai Moogambigai Dental College and Hospital was established. Both these institutions were recognized for their

contribution and attained Deemed University status under the name Dr. M.G.R Educational and Research Institute, University in the year 2003. The courses of the University are accredited by NAAC and the courses of the Thai Moogambigai Dental College and Hospital are recognized by the Dental Council of India. The BDS degree is also recognized by the Medical Council of Sri Lanka.A survey by the Sunday Indian ranked the University third in India and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has accorded a B+ rating for the University with a score of 78.55%, which is the second highest ranked Deemed University.

With state-of-the-art global standard campuses providing world class

facilities, today the institution is a high quality centre for learning in the fields of Engineering & Technology, Dentistry, Humanities and Pure Sciences.

The University boasts highly competent faculties with Doctoral qualifications and achievements to their name. With a curriculum that is constantly updated to keep up with the growing trends, the University has signed MoU’s through Dr.M.G.R Centre for International Studies.with global Universities like University of Sunderland (UK), University of South Australia, Adelaide , University of Wolver Hampton, UK, Perth College, Scotland, University of Farleigh Dickenson, USA, ABK-AOTS DOSOKAI – Hiyoshi Corporation Japan, Sailcon, China etc., These MoU’s allow both

“ Higher Learning - Making the right move”

India, the land of abundant human potential has seen explosive growth especially in the last two decades with respect to education. With globalisation paving way for

multinational companies setting their foot in India, to meet the demands of quali�ed professionals in these companies has given rise to many engineering colleges.

Given this scenario, it becomes essential for the student to choose the right college to avoid being not industry ready while graduating. It becomes a constant

challenge for the colleges to ensure they are on top of things in giving the students an education that is not just academic but also help in making the student industry ready.

The following educational institutions are most sought after by students and recruiters due to the colleges laying emphasis on setting standards in engineering education.

7years



faculties and students to undergo exchange programs.

The University has also signed several MoU’s with Indian Companies to provide students with hands-on experience in Industry trends.The University offer students a vibrant atmosphere to learn, grow and meet the demands of the Industries. Besides a strong academic rigor, the students of the University has made a mark for the University in various competition organized by world renowned Corporates and other Institutes.

Beyond education, the University has honoured social change makers Dr. Shantha, Dr. Shenbagavalli, Dr. Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy and Dr. Sunita Solmon with Life Time Achievement Awards for their dedicated services rendered to the Nation. Being part of a reputed University has been a source of pride for over 8000 students who have graduated from this prestigious University and the trade mark is always the same, confident positive ambitious and well-shaped individuals.

JAYA GROUP OF INSTITUTIONSFrom Kindergarten to professional education, Jaya Group of Educational Institutions has been playing a key role in the field of academics since 1977. With over 20 institutions in various disciplines fulfilling the needs of 25000 plus students, today Jaya Group offers Quality, Skill & Value based education in the field of Aviation, Dental, Nursing, Engineering, Medical, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Teacher-Education, Arts, Science & Business Administration.

Situated close to the Chennai metropolis, Jaya Group of Institutions is one of the foremost centres for graduate and professional education

in the state of Tamilnadu. Clearly,

the undergraduate and post-graduate programmes in Engineering at the College offer

its students the

optimum setting in tertiary education: specialized programmes with a contingent of accessible and dedicated faculty members, within a large, highly diverse college offerings nearly unlimited academic opportunities and resources. Lectures and Laboratory areas are modern and well-equipped; the college has extensive links with IT facilities for the benefit of students.

The college ensures that all students have the opportunity to acquire and develop personal and transferable skills, such as technical communication and team-working skills, which are directly appropriate to their future courses. With a warm and friendly environment that fosters a wonderful bonding between the students and staff and management, the college is known for its constant endeavour to provide the students with the latest facilities in the industry. Besides world class infrastructure, the management ensures to provide quality education to all students and deserving students are provided with free education or concession on the fee.

True to its mission of creating a model educational institution that contributes to innovation, entrepreneurship and technology management for India, today Jaya Group of Institutions are known for providing high quality education in various disciplines addressing the needs of the Industry and Society.

SRI SAI RAM ENGINEERING COLLEGEFrom its sublime beginnings to stupendous success, Sri Sai Ram Engineering College has been surging ahead with the mission of imparting

quality education to the Semi-urban society. Established in the year 1995 by well known visionary and Philanthropist MJF. Ln. Leo Muthu, today the institution has become synonymous with quality education. The institution has been a pioneering one in contributing technologically competent, Intuitive, Innovative Intelligent and well informed manpower to the nation.

The inspiring words of Hon’ble former President, Dr.A.P.J Abdul Kalam, who made his presence two times at the institute, “Aim at excellence in education and achieve it in profession. Ensure Righteousness and morality in your chosen path” has been the motto of the institution.

The Institute has everything in place for its students to have a good educational experience. The amenities include State-of-the-art laboratories, Internet Centers, Central and department libraries, spacious and well ventilated classrooms, fully furnished hostels, sports complex, a

23 July 2012 OUTLOOK 32 WorldMags.netWorldMags.net


faculties and students to undergo exchange programs.

The University has also signed several MoU’s with Indian Companies to provide students with hands-on experience in Industry trends.The University offer students a vibrant atmosphere to learn, grow and meet the demands of the Industries. Besides a strong academic rigor, the students of the University has made a mark for the University in various competition organized by world renowned Corporates and other Institutes.

Beyond education, the University has honoured social change makers Dr. Shantha, Dr. Shenbagavalli, Dr. Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy and Dr. Sunita Solmon with Life Time Achievement Awards for their dedicated services rendered to the Nation. Being part of a reputed University has been a source of pride for over 8000 students who have graduated from this prestigious University and the trade mark is always the same, confident positive ambitious and well-shaped individuals.

JAYA GROUP OF INSTITUTIONSFrom Kindergarten to professional education, Jaya Group of Educational Institutions has been playing a key role in the field of academics since 1977. With over 20 institutions in various disciplines fulfilling the needs of 25000 plus students, today Jaya Group offers Quality, Skill & Value based education in the field of Aviation, Dental, Nursing, Engineering, Medical, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Teacher-Education, Arts, Science & Business Administration.

Situated close to the Chennai metropolis, Jaya Group of Institutions is one of the foremost centres for graduate and professional education

in the state of Tamilnadu. Clearly,

the undergraduate and post-graduate programmes in Engineering at the College offer

its students the

optimum setting in tertiary education: specialized programmes with a contingent of accessible and dedicated faculty members, within a large, highly diverse college offerings nearly unlimited academic opportunities and resources. Lectures and Laboratory areas are modern and well-equipped; the college has extensive links with IT facilities for the benefit of students.

The college ensures that all students have the opportunity to acquire and develop personal and transferable skills, such as technical communication and team-working skills, which are directly appropriate to their future courses. With a warm and friendly environment that fosters a wonderful bonding between the students and staff and management, the college is known for its constant endeavour to provide the students with the latest facilities in the industry. Besides world class infrastructure, the management ensures to provide quality education to all students and deserving students are provided with free education or concession on the fee.

True to its mission of creating a model educational institution that contributes to innovation, entrepreneurship and technology management for India, today Jaya Group of Institutions are known for providing high quality education in various disciplines addressing the needs of the Industry and Society.

SRI SAI RAM ENGINEERING COLLEGEFrom its sublime beginnings to stupendous success, Sri Sai Ram Engineering College has been surging ahead with the mission of imparting

quality education to the Semi-urban society. Established in the year 1995 by well known visionary and Philanthropist MJF. Ln. Leo Muthu, today the institution has become synonymous with quality education. The institution has been a pioneering one in contributing technologically competent, Intuitive, Innovative Intelligent and well informed manpower to the nation.

The inspiring words of Hon’ble former President, Dr.A.P.J Abdul Kalam, who made his presence two times at the institute, “Aim at excellence in education and achieve it in profession. Ensure Righteousness and morality in your chosen path” has been the motto of the institution.

The Institute has everything in place for its students to have a good educational experience. The amenities include State-of-the-art laboratories, Internet Centers, Central and department libraries, spacious and well ventilated classrooms, fully furnished hostels, sports complex, a

23 July 2012 OUTLOOK 32 WorldMags.netWorldMags.net


23 July 2012 OUTLOOK 34

Bazaar,

LIST OF INSTITUTIONS

T

T T

T

AFFILIA

T

T T

T

T T

“From Kindergarden to professional education, Jaya Group of Educational Institutions have been playing a key role in the field of academics since 1977. With over 20 institutions in various discipline fulfilling the needs of over 25000 students, we are here to lighten up your future. Importance is given in Quality, Skill & Value based education in the field of Aviation, Dental, Nursing, Engineering, Medical, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Teacher-Education, Arts, Science & Business Administration”.

well maintained canteen, NCC wing, YRC Unit, Cultural Arena, and Center of excellence for R&D activities and an efficient Placement corridor.

With smart class rooms, Wi-Fi enabled campus; the students are abreast of the latest trends in technology and engineering. The institute offers various scholarship schemes for deserving students. Also the children of the staff members are provided free education from school to college. They include the wards of Office Assistants, Sweepers etc., who made the institute proud by securing more than 90% marks serves as a testimony to the unbiased treatment and quality of education provided by the institute.

The institute also conducts National and International conferences besides sponsoring students to participate in Workshops and Conferences in India and Abroad. Students are also encouraged to participate in sports and extra-curricular activities and competitions. Under the guidance of the institutes Chairman MJF Ln. Leo Muthu, the faculties and staffs work as one unit and help in fostering innovation, creativity and research, nourish entrepreneurial skills and instil leadership qualities in the students.

Year after year new feathers are being added to the Sai Ram Engineering College’s ever expanding wing in terms of various accreditations, awards and achievements for its excellence in quality education and unmatched student services. Some of the notable landmarks of the institution in its humble two decades of existence include:

l 242 University ranks and 14 Gold Medals with a result percentage of above 95% in the last 12 years since inception.

l Astonishing 90% placement record with globally well placed alumnus.

l Increasing percentage of students doing higher studies abroad.

l Increasing number of Doctorate faculty with higher staff retention rate.

l Inflowing grants of funds from both

State and Central Government bodies and associations for acclaimed socially relevant projects.

l Participation and presentation in International conferences by students as well as faculties.

MAHARASHTRA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (MIT)Established in 1983 by Vishwanath D.Karad, MIT, Pune is among the first engineering colleges in the private sector in Maharashtra. Affiliated to the University of Pune, the institute boasts more than 10 campuses covering almost 1000 acres of area. The MIT group provides education in the fields of of Engineering, Medicine, Pharmacy, Marine Engineering, Insurance, Distance Education, Telecom Management, Lighting, Design, Food & Technology, Retail Management, and Masters in Business Administration, School of Government and also School Education. At any given point of time, more than 50000 students are pursuing various courses in over 65+ institutes. With this statistics, the MIT Group is almost a big University by itself.

MAEER’s MIT as a group believes in promoting “Culture of Peace” through value based “Universal Education System”, with a firm belief that “Union of Science and Religion / Spirituality alone will bring peace to mankind”

MAEER has been founded by teachers who firmly believe that value-based quality education is the best foundation for success in life. With this in mind, MAEER focuses on excellent infrastructure and faculty for imparting highest quality of holistic education, and emphasize on inculcating the right values through discipline and spiritual education. From academics to sports and from spiritual development to personality development, every aspect is given importance, and attention is paid to each of these facets of education.

Each campus of MIT Pune has its own character. But they all combine state-of-the-art facilities with a friendly study environment, setting modern architecture against a backdrop of natural beauty and a special emphasis on a green environment. A lot of thought has gone into creating a stimulating environment in the campuses for study and research. The campuses are well-equipped with very good infrastructure and world-standard separate hostels for boys and girls.

Placements at MIT have its own beauty. Taking into consideration the struggle that youth go through during their job search MIT conducts separate

training through its placement cell and more than 300 Companies visit MIT Pune

for campus placements, mostly services companies. Training is provided to students to enhance soft-skills, group

discussion and aptitude test capabilities as well as interview techniques.

Special training courses are organized for students and faculty by world renowned industrial organizations to make them conversant with the ever-changing industrial requirements.

Entrepreneurship training programs in collaboration with National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN) are conducted regularly. The institute also has Amdocs Innovation Lab established by Amdocs, IBM Center of Excellence established by India, NVIDIA CUDA Parallel Computing Laboratory established by NVidia. MIT, which has advanced CAD, CAM, CAE Training & Design Center, is also an Authorized Training Partner (ATP) of Siemens PLM software.

MIT has evolved in twenty-six years by overcoming tough hurdles set more by limitations of thinking in that era, rather than lack of ability, to arrive at a point where students can explore the vastness of knowledge and possibilities on the global canvas. At MAEER’s MIT, it’s never about which of our institutes you choose to study in, it is more about how and where you reach in life thereafter. l



23 July 2012 OUTLOOK 34

Bazaar,

LIST OF INSTITUTIONS

T

T T

T

AFFILIA

T

T T

T

T T

“From Kindergarden to professional education, Jaya Group of Educational Institutions have been playing a key role in the field of academics since 1977. With over 20 institutions in various discipline fulfilling the needs of over 25000 students, we are here to lighten up your future. Importance is given in Quality, Skill & Value based education in the field of Aviation, Dental, Nursing, Engineering, Medical, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Teacher-Education, Arts, Science & Business Administration”.

well maintained canteen, NCC wing, YRC Unit, Cultural Arena, and Center of excellence for R&D activities and an efficient Placement corridor.

With smart class rooms, Wi-Fi enabled campus; the students are abreast of the latest trends in technology and engineering. The institute offers various scholarship schemes for deserving students. Also the children of the staff members are provided free education from school to college. They include the wards of Office Assistants, Sweepers etc., who made the institute proud by securing more than 90% marks serves as a testimony to the unbiased treatment and quality of education provided by the institute.

The institute also conducts National and International conferences besides sponsoring students to participate in Workshops and Conferences in India and Abroad. Students are also encouraged to participate in sports and extra-curricular activities and competitions. Under the guidance of the institutes Chairman MJF Ln. Leo Muthu, the faculties and staffs work as one unit and help in fostering innovation, creativity and research, nourish entrepreneurial skills and instil leadership qualities in the students.

Year after year new feathers are being added to the Sai Ram Engineering College’s ever expanding wing in terms of various accreditations, awards and achievements for its excellence in quality education and unmatched student services. Some of the notable landmarks of the institution in its humble two decades of existence include:

l 242 University ranks and 14 Gold Medals with a result percentage of above 95% in the last 12 years since inception.

l Astonishing 90% placement record with globally well placed alumnus.

l Increasing percentage of students doing higher studies abroad.

l Increasing number of Doctorate faculty with higher staff retention rate.

l Inflowing grants of funds from both

State and Central Government bodies and associations for acclaimed socially relevant projects.

l Participation and presentation in International conferences by students as well as faculties.

MAHARASHTRA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (MIT)Established in 1983 by Vishwanath D.Karad, MIT, Pune is among the first engineering colleges in the private sector in Maharashtra. Affiliated to the University of Pune, the institute boasts more than 10 campuses covering almost 1000 acres of area. The MIT group provides education in the fields of of Engineering, Medicine, Pharmacy, Marine Engineering, Insurance, Distance Education, Telecom Management, Lighting, Design, Food & Technology, Retail Management, and Masters in Business Administration, School of Government and also School Education. At any given point of time, more than 50000 students are pursuing various courses in over 65+ institutes. With this statistics, the MIT Group is almost a big University by itself.

MAEER’s MIT as a group believes in promoting “Culture of Peace” through value based “Universal Education System”, with a firm belief that “Union of Science and Religion / Spirituality alone will bring peace to mankind”

MAEER has been founded by teachers who firmly believe that value-based quality education is the best foundation for success in life. With this in mind, MAEER focuses on excellent infrastructure and faculty for imparting highest quality of holistic education, and emphasize on inculcating the right values through discipline and spiritual education. From academics to sports and from spiritual development to personality development, every aspect is given importance, and attention is paid to each of these facets of education.

Each campus of MIT Pune has its own character. But they all combine state-of-the-art facilities with a friendly study environment, setting modern architecture against a backdrop of natural beauty and a special emphasis on a green environment. A lot of thought has gone into creating a stimulating environment in the campuses for study and research. The campuses are well-equipped with very good infrastructure and world-standard separate hostels for boys and girls.

Placements at MIT have its own beauty. Taking into consideration the struggle that youth go through during their job search MIT conducts separate

training through its placement cell and more than 300 Companies visit MIT Pune

for campus placements, mostly services companies. Training is provided to students to enhance soft-skills, group

discussion and aptitude test capabilities as well as interview techniques.

Special training courses are organized for students and faculty by world renowned industrial organizations to make them conversant with the ever-changing industrial requirements.

Entrepreneurship training programs in collaboration with National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN) are conducted regularly. The institute also has Amdocs Innovation Lab established by Amdocs, IBM Center of Excellence established by India, NVIDIA CUDA Parallel Computing Laboratory established by NVidia. MIT, which has advanced CAD, CAM, CAE Training & Design Center, is also an Authorized Training Partner (ATP) of Siemens PLM software.

MIT has evolved in twenty-six years by overcoming tough hurdles set more by limitations of thinking in that era, rather than lack of ability, to arrive at a point where students can explore the vastness of knowledge and possibilities on the global canvas. At MAEER’s MIT, it’s never about which of our institutes you choose to study in, it is more about how and where you reach in life thereafter. l



ESSAYMUSLIMS IN INDIA


INDIAN Muslims entertain a peculiar relation to cities.Historically, many of the subcontinent’s cities—whenthey have not been colonial creations (like Bombay or

Calcutta)—have a Muslim origin, as their names often sugg-est: Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Agra, Aligarh, Ahm-ednagar, Aurangabad, Allahabad, Bhopal...the list is long. EvenDelhi, though not founded by Muslims, has been transformedby first the Delhi Sultanate and then the Mughal Empire.This legacy comes from the traditional affinities Isl-amic civilisation has had with urbanity followingits Medina utopia. But it also stems from thelarger political role bequeathed to Muslimsafter they came to power in India in themedieval period and beyond. As rulers, theyhad to live in the power centre that was thecity. While the emperors stayed in Delhi orAgra, the nawabs, nizams and begumsestablished smaller cities that are, today,often state capitals. Along with the rulerscame the service gentry and the artisanswho worked for the kings and theircourtiers—three groups among whomMuslims were over-represented.

Today, and largely because of this histo-rical legacy, Muslims constitute the mosturbanised community in India—with theexclusion of the Parsis and the Jews.While India’s urbanisation rate, accord-ing to the 2001 census, is below 28 percent, 35.7 per cent of its Muslims live in

towns and cities. The gap had been even larger in earlier dec-ades. Interestingly, more than 50 per cent of Indian Muslimslive in towns and cities in seven states (whose urbanisationrate is in the range of 20-45 per cent): Tamil Nadu (73 percent), Maharashtra (70 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (63.5 percent), Chhattisgarh (63 per cent), Karnataka (59 per cent),Gujarat (59 per cent) and Andhra Pradesh (58 per cent).

If Muslims are more numerous than any other commun-ity in cities—that they have often built or fully refurb-

ished—they are also on the verge of marginalisa-tion in most of them. Theirs is the only com-

munity (barring the Sikhs) where the pro-portion of poor is greater amongst theurban population than in the rural one.Thirty-seven per cent of urban Muslims live

below the poverty line against 27 per centof rural Muslims—as opposed to, respec-tively, 22 and 28 per cent among Hindus.This state of affairs shares congruencewith some of the findings of the SacharCommittee, which showed (among otherthings) that only eight per cent of urbanMuslims were integrated into the formalsector whereas the national average was 21per cent for city-dwellers. In towns andcities, Muslims make a (usually very mod-est) living as artisans (mechanics andweavers, among others) or peddlers. Theyare not as constituent a component of thesalariat as are other communities.

The Sense ofa Community

A team of French and Indian scholars go past the stereotype of the ‘ghettoised’ Muslim and visit 10Indian cities to document the various patterns in which Muslims gather together in a particular locality

by Christophe Jaffrelot

Photograph: AP

Ahmedabad 11.4

Aligarh 17.8

Bangalore 13.4

Calicut 37.5

Cuttack 5.2

Delhi 11.7

Hyderabad 41.17

Jaipur 9.8

Lucknow 20.5

Mumbai (suburban) 17.2

Mumbai 22.0

Figures are in per cent; Source: 2001 census

DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEMuslims in Indian cities

Graphics by KULDEEP



OLD DELHI CHARMHub of Muslim festivity

DELHI



The decline of the Indian Muslims harks back to the Bri-tish Raj (when they ceded their power and when Persian andUrdu lost their statuses as languages of the court) and, sub-sequently, to the abolition of the princely states (Hyderabad,Bhopal, among others) besides Partition, which mangled thecommunity. The rise of Hindu nationalism in the 1980s-90salso contributed to the marginalisation of the community,and not just in socio-economic terms—the representation ofMuslims among local businessmen and lawyers is on thedecline almost everywhere—but also in spatial terms.

Communal violence and ghettoisation

IN preparation for a book I co-edited with Laurent Gayerthis year, Muslims in Indian Cities: Trajectories of Mar-

ginalisation, a team of 12 Indian and French researchers ana-lysed the situation of the Muslim populations of 10 Indiancities: Ahmedabad, Aligarh, Bangalore, Calicut, Cuttack,Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow and Mumbai. This ana-lysis was not limited solely among the local elite groups(businessmen, politicians, lawyers...), nor limited in geo-graphical terms. While this ethnographic and statisticalexercise by and large vindicated the assessment of theSachar report insofar as the socio-economic decline of Mus-lims is concerned, the responses received to our question“Where do Muslims live?” are more nuanced.

Many of the elderly we interviewed emphasised the pastcomposite culture of their city in evocative and emotionalterms: they kept using formulae such as mili juli/mushta-rka/ganga-jamuni tehzeeb. Their nostalgia was, for the most

part, misplaced since Indian cities have always been struc-tured along ethnic lines. Neither caste groups nor religiouscommunities traditionally mixed in the same building—oreven in the same lane. One of the reasons for this (self-)seg-regation was deeply rooted in their food habits (and taboos).

But the old-timers had a point in the sense that cities formedmosaics in which different communities cohabited in the sameneighbourhoods. In the old cities—which were also known asthe walled cities—next to a Brahmin or a Jain lane, one couldfind a Pathan mohalla. Similarly, on the periphery of theseurban cores—especially after industrialisation resulted in thecreation of new suburbs—low-caste Muslims and Dalits usedto coexist in separate, but adjacent settlements. Many of themhad a shared culture as part of the labour movement, especia-lly in the cities where unions had fostered a labour culture.Ahmedabad is a case in point: in addition to the mosaic of ‘pols’(lanes) of the walled city, the ‘challis’ (the dense rows of oneroom-houses) of the ‘Manchester of India’ developed alongthese lines in the first decades of the 20th century.

This pattern of erosion is put into practice today in manyplaces—and ghettoisation has been the end-result in someextreme cases. And here, we need to formulate a new defini-tion for ghettoisation because the word tends to be used ina rather loose manner today. We must reserve it for desig-nating the gathering together of members of a community(in this case, the Muslims) irrespective of their other socialmarkers (class/caste or ethnic origin, for instance) in a local-


ESSAYMUSLIMS IN

INDIA

LUCKNOW

Fruit of urbanisation The burqa is no restraint to a workout

JITENDER GUPTA



ity insulated from the rest of the city (be it at its centre or atthe periphery) where state services (roads, schools, hospi-tals...) are not maintained properly—if at all present.

The main factor of ghettoisation is communal violence. Inriots, the most common targets are isolated pockets of the‘other’ community. Therefore, the minority (whatever its rel-igion) tends to move to safer neighbourhoods where co-reli-gionists are already in large numbers. These safe havens canbe in the walled cities—like in Hyderabad, Jaipur or Bho-pal—or on the periphery—as with Mumbai or Ahmedabad.In that case, Muslims are often uprooted and dislodged fromthe city centres. Again, Ahmedabad best illustrates thispoint. In spite of its rather modest size, compared to Mum-bai, for instance, Ahmedabad is the city where Hindu-Mus-lim violence has been the more devastating over the last sixdecades. Every 10 years or so, a major access of violenceoccurs (1969, 1985, 1992, 2002...). After each bout, someMuslims from the walled city and the industrial belt havemoved in large numbers to the periphery, and more espe-cially to Juhapura. Here is a ghetto of about four lakh wheremiddle-class people (IAS, IPS and IFS cadres, lawyers, busi-nessmen) have joined slum-dwellers for the sake of safety.The state has neglected this locality to such an extent thatno bus service connects Juhapura to the city. Simultane-ously, the Hindus who used to live here have left and thosewho live in the neighbouring localities have built walls.

While walls separating communities are making an app-earance everywhere in the world—including in West Asia—few cities (Belfast is a notorious exception) have resorted tosuch lines of demarcation. Ahmedabad is the only one wefound in India. But in many places, railway lines and roadsare used as almost invisible borders between India and whatis locally known, sometimes, as “little Pakistans”.

Muslims = Victims?

THE combination of spatial concentration and socio-eco-nomic decline has resulted in the making of specific

kinds of “Muslim constituencies” in many Indiancities. In the old cities of erstwhile princelystate capitals, where Muslims represent alarge share of the voters—Hyderabad,Bhopal, Lucknow—local parties (the MIM

in Hyderabad, for instance) and theCongress indulge in emotional politicswithout paying much attention to theeffective upliftment of the Muslims. Theyproject themselves as the defenders of thewaqf properties more than they promoteeducation. That way, the local voters arebound to remain in the need of local sav-iours. The Congress and the MIM are verygood at playing this brand of clientelismwhich makes the ghettoised Muslims vic-tims...of other Muslims!

Similarly, ghettoised Muslims are notvictims but actors when the making of

Muslim enclaves is due to their quest of cultural homogene-ity. Lower-middle-class neighbourhoods—like in Zakir Nagarin Delhi—sometimes develop along these lines. They do notresult only from discrimination, but also from self-segregationon the part of families eager to offer to their children an atmos-phere free from Hindu influences likely to “corrupt” them.

Ghettoisation can also be a blessing in disguise. In Ahm-edabad, the 2002 pogrom led middle-class people to go

to Juhapura, where they took new initiatives thatbenefited the old, poorer inhabitants—

including some slum-dwellers. Not onlysomewhat better roads were developed,but private hospitals and schools werecreated. This last initiative met risingexpectations of the poor whose hungerfor education was even more acute than

elsewhere in India. If the relief colonieshad been created for the victims of thepogrom by Islamic NGOs, which kepttelling their “beneficiaries” that they hadbeen punished for not being “good enoughMuslims”—and which built mosquesbefore anything else almost—most of therefugees do not indulge in guilt feeling anymore but believe in modern education.Some of the new Juhapura schools are so“modern” indeed that their Islamic nature


AHMEDABAD

The uprooted Homes and hearths lost to communal violence

SIDDHARAJ

STATES WITH MORE URBAN

MUSLIMS

States

% ofUrban

Muslims

% of Urban

Population

Sources: P.M. Kulkarni, The Muslim Population of India,based on 2001 census

Andhra Pradesh

Chhattisgarh

Gujarat

Karnataka

Maharashtra

Madhya Pradesh

Tamil Nadu

58.1

62.9

58.7

59

70

63.5

72.8

27.3

20.1

37.4

34

42.4

26.5

44



is completely obliterated. Some of them haveeven adopted Hindu names....

The paradoxical, positive impact of ghettoi-sation suggests that the real victims among theMuslims are not those who live in ghettoes,but those who live in slums within citieswhere the Muslim middle class can afford notto go to the ghetto, like in Mumbai and Ali-garh. In Mumbai, the Muslim middle class hasbeen shaken by the riots of 1992-93 and isaffected by discrimination, but is moreresilient than its Ahmedabadi cousin. As aresult, there are more Muslim slums—likeShivaji Nagar—than Muslim ghettoes. In Ali-garh, the Muslim university professors (andemployees) represent such a critical mass thatthey form an enclave by themselves and do notmix (not even interact!) with the inhabitants ofthe Muslim slums (including Shah Jamal).

In addition to these socio-economic divisionsalong lines of caste and class, there are other factors of frag-mentation within the Muslims. In Lucknow, Shias and Sun-nis are locked in historical rivalries—which have to do withunequal access to power and economic resources again, andthis fracture translates in the making of additional forms ofspatial self-segregation. In Gujarat, a similar sectarian cleav-age has resulted in the insulation of the Bohras from the otherMuslims. In fact, the Bohras—trading communities who con-verted lately from Hinduism—do not wish to share the painof the Sunnis and sometimes even do not give “Islam” as theirreligion to the census enumerators. Some of the leaders of thecommunity have decided to make peace with Narendra Modiand are as close to the BJP as many Shias of Lucknow.

Marginalisation is not the order of the day for Muslims ofall Indian cities. Their situation is better in the south and theeast than in the west and the north. The case studies con-ducted in Calicut, Bangalore and Cuttack (and presented inthe book mentioned above) show that mixity resists trendsof (self-) segregation. Such contrasts are the products of his-tory: in the south, Islam was introduced by Arab merchantsalong commercial routes in a quietist manner and Muslimsfelt (and were seen to be) as much Dravidian as the Hindusdid. In Kerala, they also benefited from the Gulf connectionthat partly explains their relative affluence.

But the Muslims from Kerala are not the only ones to ben-efit from Gulf remittance money. In fact, in almost each andevery city mentioned above, including Bhopal, Jaipur, Luc-know and, of course, Mumbai and Hyd-erabad, large numbers of Muslim fam-ilies have expatriate members workingin that part of the world. This externalresource plays a major role in keepingthem afloat. But the new, emerging (ifnot embryonic) middle class which isdeveloping among the Muslims in thecities elsewhere is hopeful that other

opportunities will materialise in India itself thanks to lib-eralisation. They not only expect more international tradefrom the economic reforms, but also more jobs. Usually,weaker sections—including the Dalits—long for a strongerpublic sector. The Muslims (who do not get the benefit ofreservations) have no nostalgia for the Nehruvian patternbecause the State has discriminated against them more thanagainst any other community—as evident from the figuresof the Sachar Committee reports which show, for instance,that non-OBC Muslims represent 2.7 per cent of the PSUs’ per-sonnel and 4.5 per cent of the railways, when the Hindu OBCsare respectively 8.3 and 9.3 per cent.

Whether the private sector will do better in this respectremains to be seen. The Muslims who invest in educationhave great expectations that may remain dead letter. In theprocess, they may learn to downplay their Islamic identitylike some of the best schools of Juhapura or some of theMuslim localities which have adopted the name of Shivaji(in Bangalore and Hyderabad) in order to conceal their Mus-lim character. Whatever the result, these moves already sug-gest that even if ghettoisation is not as bad as it sounds, Ind-ian multiculturalism is in danger.

There is much at stake there. Most of SIMI’s cadre—includ-ing the few, radical ones who created, apparently, the Ind-ian Mujahideen—were educated Muslims. To alienate those

who invested in education in order tobe part of the brighter part of urbanIndia may result in the making of“reluctant fundamentalists”, to use thetitle of a recent book. 4

(Christophe Jaffrelot is the co-editorof Muslims in Indian Cities: Trajecto-

ries of Marginalisation, to be publishedsoon in India by HarperCollins.)

ESSAYMUSLIMS IN

INDIA


HYDERABAD

Muslim social Class is a factor in Muslim fragmentation

The real victims among Muslimsare not those in ghettos but thosein slums within cities where theMuslim middle class are saferand have no need to ghettoise.

JITENDER GUPTA






Kingfisher Airlines’ woesappear to be insurmountable.

How much longer does it havebefore it completely shuts down? Given its cash flow issues, truncatedoperations, repossessed planes, lossesof over `1,100 crore in the last quarter,frozen bank accounts, unpaid and strik-ing employees, most experts agree it’ssimply a matter of time before the air-line shuts shop. Aviation industry sou-rces feel that Kingfisher will continueto survive in bare-bone mode till it isforced to cease operations. Actually, theverdict is divided among experts. Eitherthe airline will last for another two qua-rters. Or it will continue with minimaloperations, using say 5-10 aircraft, eno-ugh to hold on to its Scheduled Opera-tor Permit. Whatever the scenario, thefuture is bleak, nay, hopeless.

Continuing to fly Kingfishersuits Vijay Mallya, correct?

Yes, Mallya isn’t an easy man to workwith. Many of his former associates sayhe can be eccentric to the point of beingunprofessional, but they all agree hewill hang on till the very end. “Mallya isnot likely to voluntarily take the decis-ion to shut it down,” says a Kingfisheremployee. It suits him to stay afloat andin the game with a running airline. Thegovernment’s reluctance to take mattershead on has led to this strange impasse,borne out by Kingfisher’s bankers. “Ina sense we have been backed into a cor-ner. We have no bargaining chip left. Weare waiting for them (Kingfisher) to tellus where they are heading and they arewaiting to see what our next move is lik-ely to be,” a senior public sector bankofficial says, on condition of anonymity.

But given that Kingfisher’sdebt is at a whopping `7,500

crore, why are its bankers notbeing more aggressive?The banks are more or less resigned toa huge loss from Kingfisher. Since thereare no underlying assets to speak of,expect a long process of litigation in abid to try and regain some—very little,actually—money. The value of the ‘col-lateral’ from Mallya’s promoter holding(35.86 per cent) in Kingfisher is not lik-ely to yield more than `300 crore at

current market prices. Coupled withMallya’s non-core assets, propertiesand helicopters, he will serve up anot-her `500 crore at most. In short, thebankers have no chance in hell of recov-ering all their money. Recently, ICICI

Bank—one of the larger private sectorlenders—sold its debt of `430 crore toa fund managed by Srei Infrastructure.

What explains the reluctanceof the government to act?

“There is too much at stake for the gov-ernment to let it collapse,” says RameshVaidyanathan, partner at Advaya Legal,which does work in the aviation sector.Vaidyanathan is referring to the 4,000-odd employees on Kingfisher’s rolls,many of whom have not received sala-

ries for months now. If the airline doesindeed shut down, it’s going to raisemany uncomfortable questions. Therehas been no move to try and reclaimdues from the airline on behalf of thebanks. “If the ministry puts enoughpressure and gives the banks the goahead, the recovery process can be ini-tiated,” says a former banker. However,banking and finance industry watcherssay that one of the reasons that this isnot being done is because it will openup a can of worms. “How were thebanks allowed to give out so much cre-dit to an airline that was continuouslyshowing losses? Why has public moneygone towards a faulty business model?These are not questions either the

1

2

3

4

AVIATIONKINGFISHER




banks or the government want to ans-wer,” says a top aviation industry source.

Was director general of civilaviation (DGCA) head E.K. Bha-

rat Bhushan shunted out due to histough stand on Kingfisher?The government might claim that itwas because of a “bureaucratic goof-up”, but industry and official sourcesseem to confirm the buzz that has beengoing around: that Bhushan’s removalfrom the post had a strong link to hisposture on Kingfisher. Bhushan’s sack-ing came within 24 hours of his mak-ing a noting on a file to serve notice tothe ailing airline. The note warned ofthe termination of Kingfisher’s operat-ing licence if the salaries and other

employee dues, which have been pen-ding since February, were not clearedimmediately. While Bhushan’s criticsaccuse him of being slow to act on thefinancial surveillance and audit of Kin-gfisher, which he had ordered six mon-ths ago, his supporters claim that an RTI

would reveal that while following theset rules and procedures, operationalsecurity concerns were continuallybeing looked at. The bottomline: King-fisher continues to fly, watched over bya benevolent government. “If Mallyawants to continue with operations—which he has done after twice cuttingdown scheduled operations—how hedoes it is the DGCA’s problem,” says atop aviation ministry source.

What rescue options doesMallya have, really? Is his Uni-

ted Breweries (UB) under threat?Mallya is banking on being able to gar-ner funds through FDI in domestic airli-nes. But even if FDI is allowed, it won’t domuch to save the airline. “Theoretically,it is possible to turn around Kingfisher,but very difficult practically. Kingfis-her’s promoters continue to feed the air-line because its closure will have a mas-sive impact on the UB group,” says KapilKaul, CEO, Centre for Aviation. In 2010,a Grant Thornton report had valued theKingfisher brand at about `4,111 crore,three times its market value at the time.

Along with the Kingfisher shares,Mallya has also pledged his holdings inUB Holdings, which has interests inboth liquor and aviation. By defaultnow, if the plug is pulled on Kingfisher,Mallya’s stake in the liquor companies(including United Spirits and UB Ltd)are under threat. Mallya’s flagship beercompany UB Ltd has a joint venturewith Heineken (UB has a 40.4 per centstake). Industry sources say there is astrong possibility that Mallya may cho-ose to pare down his personal stake(which is around 18 per cent) in thebusiness in order to save Kingfisher.However, Heineken has raised concernsabout the dilution of the Kingfisherbrand name. This is the subject of cur-rent negotiation, according to sources.

Finally, should consumerscontinue to fly Kingfisher?

If they can find a flight, that is. The air-line is available on only a few routesdomestically. Not surprisingly, King-fisher’s marketshare has crashed toabout five per cent. A small number ofconsumers willing to put up with thedelays and the abruptly cancelled flig-hts have still been flying on the airline.“He (Vijay Mallya) has always been asurvivor and I hope that he will pull arabbit out of the hat. A closure of theairline may lead to a cartelisation in thesector,” says G.R. Gopinath, Air Deccanfounder. But Kingfisher’s customers—like its options—have been dwindlingrapidly. And that is the unhappy realityfor the king of good times. 4

with Arindam Mukherjee and Lola Nayar

5

7

6

Last Call,Red Herringby Arti Sharma

There has been so much bad news around Kingfisher Airlines inrecent months that it would not be surprising if most consumersassume its end is near. But then, seemingly defying all odds,Kingfisher continues to fly. While this has naturally generatedcontroversy, it has also raised many relevant questions about theway we do business in India. Outlook seeks some answers:

Photograph: AP



Disproportionate LogicThe court of the land gifts Mayawati some unexpected breathing room

THE Supreme Court last week quashedthe CBI’s first information report (FIR)against former Uttar Pradesh chief

minister Mayawati in the disproportionateassets case against her on technical grounds,even pulling up the investigating agency for initiating sucha probe without specific directions from the court. Really?

Way back on September 19, 2003, the Supreme Courtordered the CBI to investigate the Taj corridor scam. At thesame time, the court further directed, inter alia:

“(g) The CBI shall take appropriate steps for holdinginvestigation against the chief minister Ms Mayawati and Nadeemuddin Siddiqui,former minister for environment, UP andother officers involved;

(h) the I-T department is also directed tocooperate in further investigation which isrequired to be carried out by the CBI;

(i) CBI would take into consideration allthe relevant Acts i.e. IPC/Prevention ofCorruption Act and the Water (Preventionand Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 etc.”

Pursuant to this, FIR No. 18, dated Octo-ber 5, 2003, was lodged with respect to theTaj corridor case. And FIR No. 19, alsodated October 5, 2003, was lodged aproposMayawati’s disproportionate assets. May-awati immediately filed a writ petition inthe Allahabad High Court challenging thedisproportionate assets FIR on the groundsthat the CBI had no jurisdiction to investigate this in theabsence of permission from the state government.

The high court, vide judgement and order dated October22, 2003, rejected Mayawati’s challenge holding that the FIR

had been registered on the direction of the Supreme Courtbut directed the CBI not to arrest her till the conclusion ofits investigations. She let the matter rest there and did notchallenge the high court’s order in the Supreme Court.

Regular status reports in respect of both FIRs 18 and 19were regularly filed in the Supreme Court. Nine monthslater, on July 19, 2004, the apex court passed the order: “CBI

is permitted further eight weeks’ time to complete the inv-estigation in respect of FIR No. RC 0062003A0018. As faras FIR No. RC 0062003A0019 is concerned, three months’time is granted.” In 2006, Mayawati applied to intervenein the Supreme Court which was monitoring the Taj cor-

ridor investigation. The court permitted her to do so. By 2008, the CBI, after having found Mayawati in posses-

sion of over a ̀ 100 crore worth of disproportionate assets,finalised the FIR 19 chargesheet, but didn’t file it. Instead,they kept it hanging over Mayawati to keep her in line withthe ruling Congress: consistent with the government’s pol-icy of using the CBI for its own political purposes. Mayawatifiled a writ petition directly in the Supreme Court challen-ging the CBI’s investigation on the same grounds on whichshe had challenged it in the Allahabad High Court in 2003.

It is this writ petition that the Supreme Court allowed onJune 6, 2012, by holding that there was no specific SupremeCourt order asking the CBI to investigate the DA case and

that the CBI cannot investigate a case in astate without the permission of either thestate government or the court. Instead ofasking the CBI to file the chargesheet onthe basis of the enormous evidence foundagainst Mayawati, the court quashed theFIR and the investigation done by the CBI!

Though the investigation into dispropor-tionate assets was undertaken under thenose of the Supreme Court for severalyears—the court had as far back as 2004asked the CBI to complete its investigationwithin three months—and though Maya-wati’s petition challenging the CBI’s FIR hadbeen dismissed in 2003 (that order hadbecome final), the Supreme Court allowedher fresh writ petition filed directly in theSupreme Court several years later. It qua-shed the FIR and the investigation which

had been completed and which had turned up evidence ofhuge disproportionate assets. Just because the court hadnot passed a specific order asking the CBI to register the FIR

in the disproportionate assets case! What kind of signal hasthe court sent by this judgement? That the apex court willuse every available technicality to help powerful and influ-ential corrupt public servants to evade accountability?

Coming after the seminal 2G and CVC judgements whichhad shored up public confidence and expectations from thejudiciary, this decision comes as a severe blow. It again und-erlines the importance of judicial accountability and theneed for an independent Judicial Conduct Commission. 4

(Supreme Court advocate and social activist PrashantBhushan, a member of Team Anna, appeared against

Mayawati in the Taj corridor case with his father, former Union minister Shanti Bhushan)


PRASHANTBHUSHAN

OPINION

Out from a hole A win for Mayawati

NIRALA TRIPATHI

Col Prashant Bhushan (F) 7/12/12 10:41 PM Page 1





Bengali admirer quickly bought her thearticle to take back to Islamabad.

The gift is an Indian silk sari scarffrom the House of Wandering Silk(HOWS). Khar could drape it around hershoulders, matching it with her silkshalwar kamizes, fashionably wear itaround her neck while wearing jeans,or even pair it with breeches, when sheis riding her favourite horse. One shouldthink a larger one, tied across her head,could even keep her warm on one of hertreks to K2 or Nanga Parbat.

Little known to Khar, even as herunderstated Japanese pearls might nes-tle in the folds of the scarf, these prod-ucts change lives for the better.

Fabrics from the New Delhi-basedHOWS, a fair trade organisation, is aimedat “adjusting...some of the inequalitiesaround us...while respecting the naturalenvironment in which we work”. It

seeks to provide dignified employmentto disadvantaged women, and proceedsfrom sales benefit marginalised womenfrom cooperatives and NGOs which trainand support them. A portion of the pro-ceeds funds a school in West Bengal;another portion supports a school fortribal children in Madhya Pradesh.

In Islamabad’s drawing rooms, HOWS’ssilk scarves turn heads; it’s the latestmust-have ethnic chic. Invisible bor-ders are crossed as Pakistani women tryto find out if they can order online forthe products from New Delhi.

Posh Pakistani begums in Islamabad,Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar maydrool over the exquisite fabrics, but,unbeknownst to them, the productiontrail ends in Murshidabad district, WestBengal, with a woman artisan whospends hours filling in the exquisiteembroidery that adorns these sari

scarves. As buyers, they indirectly helpher and others, but the Pakistani afi-cionados would know her name, emb-roidered in Bengali on each scarf, onlywhen it is translated into English in anaccompanying tag. Many, if not all, the‘ikat’ saris come from Orissa andGujarat. Orissa, in particular, weaves alot of ‘ikat’, and many of the most beau-tiful scarves also come from there.

The brainchild behind HOWS, thissilken bridge between the two coun-tries, is a Czech-Australian woman,Katherine Neumann, a humanitarianaid worker with experiences in Africa,Asia and the Middle East. The ideabehind HOWS, she says, is simple: topromote high quality, unique and sus-tainable products, to prove that “fairtrade” doesn’t have to be limited tolower-quality “gift items”.

“I was in Pakistan from 2005-2007,following the earthquake in Kashmir. Iwas based mostly in Mansehra, in theformer NWFP. I just loved it; though itwasn’t so easy living there, Pakistan hasa very special place in my heart,”Katherine tells Outlook.

Katherine has worked extensivelywith impoverished and vulnerablecommunities in disaster-hit areas in


by Mariana Baabar in Islamabad

HINA Rabbani Khar, the elegantly coiffed, scarved and attiredforeign minister of Pakistan and a leading fashionista of thecountry, has a present waiting for her from New Delhi that is

bound to delight her. She has already admired a specimen on aPakistani journalist, and as news reached India of her interest, a

Katherine Neumannholds up a House Of Wandering Silk creation in New Delhi

CRAFTINDIA-PAKISTAN

WrappersParadiseSilk raiments from rural India sethearts aflutter in posh Pakistan

Wrappers’Paradise

TRIBHUVAN TIWARI



the past, helping in their rehabilita-tion as well as the long-term devel-opment of their villages.

“I’ve been witness to the hugeresources committed to develop-ment, and while often there are suc-cesses, especially in disaster reliefwork, I also see the lack of sustain-ability in much of it, with gains lostonce the NGOs leave, which inevitablymany do and indeed should. I startedbecoming interested in the morelong-term tools of development, such asmicrocredit and social enterprise,which in my experience and opinionoffer a much more sustainable way outof poverty,” she explains.

ON a blazing June day,the influential andbeautiful thronged to

Nomad’s Art Gallery, on aleafy Islamabad avenue, to geta glimpse of the Indian scarves fromHOWS. Nomad’s director, Nageen Hyat,told Outlook: “This is the first time weare stocking Indian merchandise.” Sari,Silk, Scarves, India—these are the fourmagical words that prompted one ladyat the exhibition to snap up five scarveseven before they could be displayed.Some of the scarves display the tradi-tional ‘kantha stitch’ from Bengal, andbrighten up shelves stocked with workof leading Pakistani artists.

“My first reaction to the greatresponse accorded to our fare so far inPakistan was one of joy: the country isspecial to me and it’s very satisfying to

think of these products being worn bywomen on the other side of the border.I remember the interest among many ofmy Pakistani friends in the saris, how-ever, and so I wasn’t so surprised at theinterest shown in up-cycled sari prod-ucts,” says Katherine.

Katherine sees a bigger market for herproducts emerging in Pakistan, as wordhas spread and there is interest inPeshawar, Karachi and Lahore.

“We are presently only stocking inIslamabad but would like to look forretail partners in the other key cities inPakistan to meet demand. Pakistanisaren’t yet purchasing online; I think ittakes time for people to know the prod-uct and trust the brand before they arewilling to purchase online. I believethere is a genuine and deep interestamong many Pakistanis in Indian textilesand embroidery. After all, it is to some

degree a shared heritage,” she adds.Of all her sources, a collective of

hundreds of women from the ruraldepths of Murshidabad in WestBengal has impressed Katherine themost for the high quality of artistryinvested in the work. The collectivewas started by the inspirationalShabnam Ramaswamy from Mur-shidabad. Most of the artisans underher would not be allowed by theirfamilies to do any other work.

“They take the material home to workon the scarves, and do the work alongwith all their household chores. Tradi-tionally, women in Bengal do ‘kanthastitch’ on old, damaged cotton saris andrecycle them into light blankets fordomestic use. These women have beencreating new kantha products for sev-eral years now, and you can already seesigns of prosperity, such as mud housesbeing turned into pucca houses. Part ofthe proceeds earned from their work gotowards supporting the local school,also set up and managed by Ms Ramaswamy’s organisation, IndiaStreet Survivors,” says Katherine.

HOWS intends at some point in thenear future to start working with Pak-istani cooperatives and NGOs to createproducts that could, conversely, beexported to India and other countries.

“I see the exquisite textile-relatedskills existing in Pakistan as a largelyundervalued—at least internationallyso—cultural resource. ‘Justi’, from theHazara region, ‘Swati’ embroideredcushions, ‘Balochi’ kameezes and hand-woven lungis from Sindh will sell verywell internationally,” says Katherine. 4


Katherine was most impressedby the high quality of work ofa collective of women fromMurshidabad in West Bengal.

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“LATER, I’m taken to the priest’sroom for coffee. While I’m having

coffee sitting on the cot, the only place inthe room to sit, he comes and embracesme hard, almost suffocating me. When Istruggle to escape from his clutches, hesqueezes my breasts and asks me to show them to him.‘Have you seen a man?’ Stunned, I shake my head ‘no’.In no time, he undresses himself.”Sister Jesme in her book Amen: The Autobiography of a Nun

“THE convents and nunneries arebeing converted into brothels.

The priests have sex with the nuns atnight in these convents. Because of theseacts, the chastity of the priests and nunshas come under suspicion. Their love forGod has shrunk...some of the clergy protect theirchastity by watching pornography and reading porno-graphic material. They lose themselves in this habit.These books and DVDs are kept in secret places andcan’t be found easily.”Father Shibu Kalamparambil in his memoir OruVaidikante Hrudayamitha (The Heart of a Priest)

“THE cry of a baby came from thebathroom of one of the inner

rooms along with the sobs of a woman.We used our might to force open thebathroom door and what we saw wouldbreak anyone’s heart. A nun who hadgiven birth to a child was pushing the head of the babyinto the closet. The bathroom was filled with blood.The legs of the child, which were sticking out of thecloset, were kicking for life.”Sister Mary Chandy in her autobiography Nanma Niran-javale Swasthi (Peace to the One filled with Grace)

KERALATHE CHURCH



To Cast The FirstStoneSex, violence, corruption, insiderexposes rock the Kerala church

by Minu Ittyipe in Kochi and Wayanad

ON the gentle slopes of Pulpally, Wayanad,where the Naxal movement once sentterror into the hearts of the land-owning

gentry, a lone ex-nun, Sister Mary Chandy, israising the hackles of the Catholic church. Herautobiography, Nanma Niranjavale Swasthi, a no-holds-barredaccount of her life in the convent, is littered with pregnant nunsand wayward priests. The 67-year-old Sister’s memoirs comesa good 14 years after she walked out of the congregation of theDaughters of Presentation of Mary in Chevayur, Kozhikode, innorth Kerala. The Church was quick to proclaim that SisterMary was never a nun in any of their convents and asked thelaity in Wayanad not to associate with her.

So what happened after she saw the nun trying to kill hernewborn baby in a convent in Mananthavady in Wayanad, asshe has described in autobiography? “After I broke open thedoor with the help of another nun, I grabbed the child andheld it to my chest. I thought I was doing the right thing butthe sisters turned against me. I want to know why. In a pre-vious incident, when I hit a priest on his head with a stoolwhen he tried to grab me, the nuns sympathised with thepriest. From then on, I was watched carefully.” After 40 years,Sister Mary fled the convent life.

Photographs: SIVARAM V.

A nun at the Little Flower convent in Narakkal, Kochi



Mary Chandy’s book has many more such harrowing tales.Like the nun who had tried to commit suicide many times overtelling her of priests coming to the convent well past midnightand taking nuns out to the nearby schools. When this nun wascalled, she would not open the door. She was terrified thepriests would break down the door and come for her. She saidshe hated this life of fear and wanted to end it. In one chap-ter, Mary Chandy recounts how porn magazines and CDs arecommonplace among the priests. In one instance, she says ayoung nun came to her crying as another senior nun was forc-ing her to watch these videos with her. Elsewhere, Marydescribes feast days in the seminaries when wine flows freelyand there is dancing and much else. Once a father asked herto join in the revelries saying life is meant to be enjoyed. Whenshe refused, he threatened her with dire consequences.

Tell-all memoirs are not new in Kerala, nor are church scan-dals. The Sister Abhaya murder case (1992) has still not seenclosure and in the last five years there have been three othercases of alleged nun ‘suicides’. But a nun coming out, writ-ing an autobiography, warts and all, was a first even for Ker-ala. Sister Jesme’s autobiography three years ago causedquite a stir and embarrassed the church no end. Followingclose behind was Father Shibu Kalamparambil’s effort in2010, which described in excruciating detail the depravedlives that many priests and nuns led. And now comes SisterMary Chandy’s memoir, about nuns who got pregnant bypriests and aborted foetuses and other such horror stories.

Noted writer and feminist Sara Joseph, whose novel Oth-appu incidentally explores the life of a nun who leaves theconvent, says, “Most of the nuns and priests suffer in silencefor suffering is a quality that they are conditioned to acceptas a virtue. What you see here is the expression of the individ-ual’s conflict with the establishment. They did not have thecourage till now to take on the establishment but now theyare openly questioning it.” Joseph Pullikunnel, editor of Hos-anna and director of the Indian Institute of Christian Stud-ies, says he hasn’t heard anything like this against the Catho-lic church, in such an open manner, ever before. “Perhaps thechurch was ‘whitewashing’ itself,” he says hesitantly.

Ex-MP and commentator Dr Sebastian Paul is a bit moreunabashed about the sociological implications of these revel-ations: “These autobiographies have become bestsellers butthe allegations they make have not been publicly debated. Sothere is not much impact on the organisation. The CatholicChurch is a highly centralised organisation and there is verylittle criticism happening within.”

So will a soon-to-be-released film, aptly titled Father, Sonand Holy Ghost, on the hardships and dilemmas faced bynuns, put things in perspective? “The Church is traditiona-lly patriarchal. I have explored the lives of two nuns in a nun-nery in my film and have touched on various aspects, includ-ing homosexuality and abortion,” says director T. Deepesh.

That doesn’t sound like things are going to get better. FatherPaul Thelakat, spokesperson of the Syro-Malabar CatholicChurch, says the fathers and nuns who have left the order andare writing books now are the ones who could not cope with


KERALATHE CHURCH

Sixty-seven-year-old SisterMary Chandy walked out ofthe Congregation of the Daug-hters of Presentation of Maryin Chevayur, Kozhikode, 14years ago. She wrote her auto-biography, Nanma NiranjavaleSwasthi (Peace to the One Fil-led with Grace), in April 2012.Excerpts from an interview:

What did you do after you left the convent?I only had the clothes that I was wearing. I did not haveany money. I remember envying men for they can sleep atnight under a tree but a woman cannot do that. I wouldvisit houses and ask for donations. My dream was to openan orphanage and look after unwanted children. Is there one incident that made you quit the order?There are so many incidents that hurt me. After I left theconvent, I went through many trials and tribulations. Ithas been a long journey outside.You have said that the priests drink during festiveoccasions?Yes, both the priests and nuns drink wine and foreignliquor. When the priests drink, what spews from theirmouths is absolute filth.The Church says that you were only a cook for a briefperiod and not a nun in the convent?If that is so, why have they kept my baptism certificate? Itis now in their hands to prove I was not a nun.What you say about the priests...does it hold for themajority of them? No, there are many good priests and nuns who do a lot ofgood work. But then there are also the bad ones. Myadvice to young Catholic girls is to not to go for counsellingor confession to the priests. 4

“When the priestsdrink, what spewsout is absolute filth”

“Earlier, most of the nuns, priestssuffered in silence. Now some areopenly questioning the church.”

Sara JosephFeminist author



the spiritual life. As he puts it, “If one cannot stay celibate, it isbetter to get out, marry and live happily. One is called to a dif-ficult way of life; it needs an ascetic’s will to live a life of celib-acy happily. It is always better to marry than to ‘burn’ menta-lly. I do not appreciate those who make a hue and cry of some-thing they fail to live up to and then blame others for their fail-ures. It is too naive to say, ‘since I could not, nobody can’.”

Kerala, incidentally, has now around 50,000 priests andnuns. And, incredibly, there are about 1,35,000 of them out-

side the state, serving in various institutions in India and abr-oad. Malayalis constitute a sizeable 15 per cent of the world’sCatholic priests and nuns. For the past few decades, theirstrength has been growing while the reverse is the case in theWest. Brother Mani Mekkunnel, national secretary of theConference of Religious India, points out that one cannot dis-regard the importance of Catholic institutions and the yeo-man’s service they do to society. He feels the media picks onstray incidents and “unsubstantiated accounts” to judge the


Father Shibu Kalamparam-bil, 40, was defrocked from theVicentian Congregation after12 years as a priest. His mem-oir Oru Vaidikante Hrudaya-mitha (The Heart of a Priest)was published in 2010.

Why did you decide towrite the book?I had aired my views about the sexual misconduct ofpriests and financial irregularities many times but theywere not willing to correct themselves. So I wrote thisbook and for four years I showed it to near and dear onesand to those inside the Church. They advised me not topublish it, they said it would be catastrophic. They keptsaying that things will be corrected but they never wereso I published my book.What is the Church establishment’s response when apriest makes a complaint?The complaints are dealt with by the bishops and theyinfluence the laity. If a woman among the laity becomespregnant because of a priest or a bishop, they build hou-ses or give money to them and hush it up. What happens when a nun gets pregnant?A life is not born in the church. When it comes to the nuns,they either make her abort the child or she is sent out ofthe church. If the nun tries to take it up, then she isostracised by society.What about the financial irregularities?Financial irregularities are rampant. The priest collectsmoney in the name of reconstruction of the church. Thelaity who come to church donate in good faith. But someof the priests, they never reveal the exact amount to theparishioners...they take their share and hand over theremaining to the church. 4

“A life is not born inthe church. The nunis forced to abort...”



entire edifice of the Church and millions of its devout follow-ers. “Why don’t you focus on the hundreds and thousands ofpriests and nuns who are living for a noble cause? Today, Eng-lish education is synonymous with convent education.Catholic institutions have contributed in an immense way toIndia’s economic growth. Why not highlight that?”

Sara Joseph too stresses the unsubstantiated clause, sayingif these writers want to be taken seriously they must revealnames. “Only if they are exposed can they be questioned,” shesays. Take, for instance, Sister Mary’s book. It takes no namesnor are dates clearly mentioned. Fr Stephen Mathew, directorof Neethivedi, an NGO in Wayanad, points out, “We are suspi-cious because they haven’t revealed everything. A small minor-ity may be behaving like this...but it is not good to generalise.”

The Church’s critics, though, offer a different view. Theyfeel even if it’s only a handful of priests and nuns who havespoken out, it’s still a brave effort as it is unthinkable for themajority to speak against the strict order. There is both fear

and subservience. Those who dare to leave this cloistered lifeare often not accepted by even their family and are ostracisedby society. And most don’t even have a place to stay.

“Judas! Fallen Angel! Mad! These are some of the epithetsbeing hurled my way by the church,” says Sister Jesme, 56, aformer principal of St Mary’s College, Thrissur, fully at ease ina pair of red tights and a black T-shirt, enjoying her freedomin her tiny flat in Guruvayur. “I am foisted as an example toquell dissidents within the nunneries and seminaries. Theypreach that I have been disowned by my family and by theChurch and the same would befall anyone who dares to beanother Sr Jesme.” Fr Shibu says his parents were threatenedby the Church. They were even told that they would not beburied in the church cemetery if they accepted him back home.

Curiously, this comes at a time when the Vatican itself isunder attack. A tell-all bestseller, Sua Santita, has outed con-fidential personal letters between the Pope and his associatesrevealing many embarrassing details. Last month, the head ofthe Vatican bank was sacked on money-laundering charges.Many connected with the Church say the kind of depravity pre-valent among the priests and nuns in Kerala and abroad is beca-use of the arcane rules and practices. This perhaps is the timeto usher in some much-needed reforms in the Catholic Chu-rch. As Dr Valson Thampu, principal of St Stephen’s College,Delhi, puts out, “Every institution stands in need of continualreform. What is not reformed or renewed is headed for death.Only those who are spiritually insensitive will resist reform.”So will the Church let more light into its pews or wait for anot-her book by one of its own to rake up another scandal? 4

KERALATHE CHURCH


DO nuns and priests have civil rig-hts? The canon law and the Cath-olic Church say the professed

people have no right to sue the Church.It took six brave sisters of Little FlowerConvent, Narakkal, in Ernakulam distr-ict, to prove it otherwise. They createdhistory of sorts when they sued a Syro-Malabar bishop of the Ernakulam dio-cese and the priest of St Mary’s Churchfor criminal intimidation and forgery.

In the normal course, the sisterswould have had to take up their probl-ems with the ecclesiastical forums and,under the precept of obedience, listento them. What made the sisters take thisdrastic step? The sisters run two sch-ools and a poor home on three acres of

land in Narakkal. From the late 1930s,successive parish priests of St Mary’schurch had been helping them to man-age the school. The sisters knew thepriests collected money illegally as don-

ations but they kept quiet for awhile. In1971, unknown to the sisters, the priestof St Mary’s church forged documentsand transferred the management of theLittle Flower School to the church.Then, after over 30 years, in 2007, thesisters were asked to shift their secondschool, St Joseph’s, to another location.They refused and filed a complaint withthe department of education and wereallowed to keep the school. But thisriled the priests. Soon hoodlums, insti-gated by them, began harassing the sis-ters. They were not allowed into church,some of them were roughed up, and inone incident, were held hostage by overa hundred men. The sisters could notbear it anymore and sued the church.The lower court ruled in their favourbut it has been appealed. Sister AnnieJaise says, “Traditionally, the CMC sis-ters, brides of Jesus, are quiet...but wehad to stand up for the truth.” 4

Sins of our FathersThe Little Flower convent nuns who took the church to court

“You can’t make a hue and cry oversomething you can’t live up to, then

blame others for their failures.”

Fr Paul ThelakatSpokesperson, Syro-Malabar Catholic church

Big bully St Mary’s church, Narakkal




THE Catholic church is an ancientmonolith and has been in thegame of power, wealth, cadre- and

institution-building for so long thatnothing can change it except its ownperceptions of survival. It is an inflexible iron-frame with a cold sense of history that can rebuffits enemies with a bizarre patience. At the sametime, it is also a highly malleable—almost amoe-bic—system that bends to the times with strategiesso subtle that they remain invisible for centuries. It is thecanniest self-perpetuating bureaucracy of the world. Thatis how it has withstood the turbulent forces of history eversince Emperor Constantine transformed it into the mas-ter of the Roman Empire in AD 313 through the Edict ofMilan. One signature made the underdog top dog. TheChurch has never looked back.

It survived the tempestuous challenge of Martin Lutherand the Reformation. Its expertise in conductingimmense and long-standing wars is simply mind-bog-gling. The Crusades are just one exam-ple. It emerged unscathed from the sec-ond world war thanks to the notoriousneutrality it maintained with the twohorrendous dictators: Hitler and Muss-olini. In fact, few remember today thatthe papal state of Vatican City was gran-ted to the Church by Mussolini in returnfor its acceptance of fascist authority.

The point is, the Church is a tough nutto crack. It remains doubtful if it can bereformed even if the Pope were inclinedto try. Because, its empire is today flungfar across continents, nations, culturesand civilisations, and there are themachinations of countless vested interests at work. ThePope might be able to ensure that the cardinal principlesof faith remain uniform and sacrosanct. But even that isnot easy. For instance, saints deposed by the Vatican yearsago are still venerated in Kerala. The Kerala church findsthem useful. As for celibacy, if a priest gives it up, whatcan the Church do? Next to nothing.

Like all religious hierarchies that have gained influencein the modern world, the Catholic church too, by andlarge, keeps word and deed apart. By word, I mean theword of Jesus, which is the bedrock of the Church. Per-haps it isn’t possible at all to make the two one if you wish

to obtain and retain great power and great wealth.For who can live today the beggarly life that Jesuslived and expect to be taken seriously by presidentsand prime ministers?

The Church is as worldly an institution as—acomparison to aid clarity—the United States ofAmerica, holding monopoly over an unbeatablebrandname: Jesus. The J-brand, sedulously builtup over 2,000 years, is so powerful that the blatantaberrations of the Church go unnoticed under itsoverpowering spiritual glamour. Without itscharisma, the Church would collapse like a house

of cards. Therefore, the last thing the Church wants is tolet people find the real Jesus: a poor, wandering dream-er and revolutionary who just lost out.

But somewhere in the glitzy interior of this behemoth,Jesus’s civilising messages—love and mercy, for example—continue to survive in their many guises. That is how theChurch continues to be able to legitimise its materialisticgoals. It’s a simple question: if you are poor, can you helpothers? The answer is, no. You need to be wealthy to becharitable, to build educational institutions, hospitals,

orphanages, old people’s homes. Not tomention, the churches, seminaries, con-vents, pilgrim-centres and so on.

But there comes a point, as with thechurch in Kerala, when the goal of pro-fit-making overrides all else, as happenswith any heartless business empire. Andthe spiritual message becomes just agaudy, conspicuous robe to cover the cur-rency bundles. But luck is with theChurch. Because the faithful don’t seethis as a problem. The more the glitterand the pomp, the better. For them, thechurch is more status symbol than spirit-ual center. Without the splendour of the

rituals and ceremonies, their weddings and funerals willturn into shabby, boring affairs. The Church for them is agrand event-producer.

The Church can be reformed only from the inside bec-ause it is a closed and closely guarded system—and aff-orded further protection by its minority status under theIndian Constitution. The Church’s most consistent criticin Kerala, Joseph Pulikunnel, calls for all church assets—thought to be worth a few billions—to be transferred to thelaity. But his is a utopian dream. For, the laity are no saints.They are, on the other hand, congenital sinners! And theyhave more use for money than the priests! 4

PAUL ZACHARIACOVER STORY/

OPINION

Peter’s House Is BrokenThe meek shall inherit the earth? Not if the Church has its way.

SORIT



OLYMPICSBEHIND THE LENS

by K.N. Shanth Kumar

MY father was a passion-ate sports fan. He was alsothe managing editor of anewspaper house—a com-bination that took him to

four Olympic games. I inherited mylove of sports from him and, havingtaken an interest in photography in myteens, I indulged both passions on thesidelines of various local sporting eve-

nts. I knew that one day I would go tothe Olympics to click pictures. Despiteprotests from a section of the ‘profes-sional’ sports journalists, I got mypress accreditation for the SeoulGames. They thought I was on a joy-ride. The noise promptly died down bythe end of the Games’ first week as thesports pages of Deccan Herald and Pra-javani carried my photographs daily.

Back in 1988, newspapers in India,and for that matter in most parts of

the world, were in analog and in blackand white. My preparation for Seoulincluded packing an entire darkroom(portable enlarger, trays, chemicals,paper and so on) into a suitcase. Inever had to open it. Kodak, the spon-sor, had provided a state-of-the-artfilm processing unit and a commondarkroom to make prints. They wouldreplenish my film stock at almost thesame rate at which I was consumingfilm! It was the only Games I shot

LensmanMinstrelsyTo shoot the Olympics is toturn its rarified air into gold

1988 Seoul ‘I caught Flo-Jo’ Track legend Florence Joyner in the 100 m

2000 Sydney Eternal Cathy Freeman lights the Olympic flame

1992 Barcelona Mid-air contortions Chinese diver

23 July 2012 OUTLOOK54 WorldMags.netWorldMags.net


(almost) entirely in black and white. Beginning with the Atlanta Games in

1996, the analog to digital revolution—and then the advent of the internet—brought about major changes in pho-tojournalism. Digital cameras madetheir appearance towards the end ofthe 1990s, but they were very expen-sive and bulky, among other things.Nevertheless, the time and effort theysaved was a great relief. The Games atAthens in 2004 and then at Beijing in

2008 have been completely digital. A multi-sport gala like the Olympics

presents unique challenges to thephotojournalist. With numerousevents taking place simultaneously,taking a call on what to cover can beagonising. Opting to cover an Indiahockey match instead of the women’sweightlifting event at the SydneyGames in 2000 was a bad one. Indiadrew the match at the Olympic Park,while Karnam Malleshwari took the

bronze medal in downtown Sydney. The world’s greatest sporting event is

very special, in many ways. Experienc-ing just one Games was exhilarating.Going to six as a photojournalist issomething I had never dreamt of. WithLondon 2012 fast approaching, I canfeel the butterflies aflutter in my stom-ach again. The excitement grows. 4

(K.N. Shanth Kumar is the publisher ofthe Deccan Herald and Kannada publi-

cations Prajavani, Sudha and Mayura)

2008 Beijing Springboard Michael Phelps sets the ‘Water Cube’ alight

Fu Minxia takes off from the 10 m platform into an open-air pool Taking wing Xiang Liu hurdles to a record victory 2004 Athens

We for victory Bronze medallistLeander Paes takes the podium with Andre Agassi

1996 Atlanta

OUTLOOK 23 July 2012 55WorldMags.netWorldMags.net


THE notion of soft power is relati-vely new in international dis-course. The term was coined by

Harvard’s Joseph Nye to describe theextraordinary strengths of the UnitedStates that went well beyond Americanmilitary dominance. In the informationage, Joseph Nye has argued, it is oftenthe side which has the better story thatwins. India must remain the “land of thebetter story”. As a society with a freepress and a thriving mass media, with apeople whose creative energies are dailyencouraged to express themselves in avariety of appealing ways, India has anextraordinary ability to tell stories thatare more persuasive and attractive thanthose of its rivals. This is not about pro-paganda; indeed, it will not work if it isdirected from above, least of all by gover-nment. But its impact, tho-ugh intangible, can be huge.

To take one example:Afghanistan is clearly a cru-cial country for India’snational security, as it is forthe United States’. PresidentObama has spoken of rein-forcing American and NATO

military capacity there. Butthe most interesting assetfor India in Afghanistandoesn’t come out of a mili-tary mission: it doesn’t haveone. It comes, instead, fromone simple fact: till a coupleof years ago, you simply

couldn’t try to telephone an Afghan at8.30 in the evening. Why? Because thatwas when the Indian TV soap operaKyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, dubbedinto Dari, was telecast on Tolo TV, and noone wished to miss it. It was reportedlythe most popular television show inAfghan history (at least until the onset ofAfghan Idol in 2009), considered direc-tly responsible for a spike in the sale ofgenerator sets and even for absencesfrom religious functions which clashwith its broadcast times. (This had pro-voked visceral opposition to the showfrom the mullahs, who clamoured for itto be shut down.) But until the seriesended in 2010, Saas so thoroughly cap-tured the public imagination inAfghanistan that, in this deeply conser-vative Islamic country where family

problems are usually hiddenbehind the veil, it was anIndian TV show that hadcome to dominate society’sdiscussion of family issues. Ihave read reports of weddingbanquets being interruptedso that the guests could hud-dle around the television forhalf an hour, and even of anincrease in crime at 8.30 pmbecause watchmen aresneaking a look at the TVrather than minding thestore. One Reuters dispatchin 2008 recounted how rob-bers in Mazar-e-Sharief

stripped a vehicle of its wheels and mir-rors during the telecast time and wroteon the car, in an allusion to the show’sheroine, ‘Tulsi Zindabad’ (long liveTulsi). That’s soft power, and India doesnot have to thank the government orcharge the taxpayer for its exercise.Instead, Indians, too, can simply say,‘Tulsi Zindabad’.

This helps explain India’s growingconsciousness of its soft power. I do notargue that hard power will become irrel-evant, merely that its limitations are app-arent, whereas soft power lasts longerand has a wider, more self-reinforcingreach. For China and Russia, kung-fumovies or the Bolshoi Ballet will winmore admirers internationally than thePeople’s Liberation Army or Siberian oilreserves, even if in each case the latter iswhat the state relies on. But of course,New Delhi knows that its soft power can-not solve its security challenges. After all,an Islamist terrorist who enjoys a Bolly-wood movie will still have no compunc-tion about setting off a bomb in a Delhimarket, and the United States hasalready learned that the perpetrators of9/11 ate their last dinner at a McDonald’s.To counter the terrorist threat there is nosubstitute for hard power. Hard powerwithout soft power stirs up resentmentsand enmities; soft power without hardpower is a confession of weakness. Yethard power tends to work better domes-tically than internationally: an autocra-tic state is surely not concerned about

BOOKSEXCERPT


Tulsi HealsEverything

PAX INDICAINDIA AND THE WORLDOF THE 21st CENTURY

by Shashi TharoorPenguin/Allen Lane |

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In this extract from his book, SHASHI THAROOR talks of India’sneed to leverage its soft power in pursuit of its global strategy



having a ‘better story’ to tell its own peo-ple, but without one, it has little withwhich to purchase the goodwill of therest of the world. Whether it is theAmericans in Guantanamo, the Chinesein Tibet or the Russians in Georgia, it canin each case be said that a major militarypower won the hard power battle, andlost the soft power war. Where softpower works in security terms is in att-racting enough goodwill from ordinarypeople to reduce the sources of supportand succour that the terrorists enjoy, andwithout which they cannot function.

But every time there are reports of sec-tarian violence or a pogrom like the sav-agery in Gujarat in 2002, or a nativistattack like those by a fringe group inFebruary on women drinking at a pub inMangalore, India suffers a huge setbackto its soft power. Soft power will notcome from a narrow or restricted ver-sion of Indianness, confined to the sec-tarian prejudices of some of the self-appointed guardians of Indian culture(‘Bharatiya sanskriti’). It must insteadproudly reflect the multi-religious iden-tities of our people, our linguistic diver-sity, the myriad manifestations of ourcreative energies. India must maintainits true heritage in the eyes of the world.

And that will mean acknowledging thatthe central battle in contemporary Ind-ian culture is that between those who, toborrow Walt Whitman’s phrase, ack-nowledge that we are vast, we containmultitudes, and those who have pre-

sumptuously taken it upon themselves todefine (in increasingly narrower terms)what is “truly” Indian. Pluralist Indiamust, by definition, tolerate pluralexpressions of its many identities. Toallow any self-appointed arbiters of Ind-ian culture to impose their hypocrisy anddouble standards on the rest of us is topermit them to define Indianness downuntil it ceases to be Indian. To wield softpower, India must defend, assert andpromote its culture of openness againstthe forces of intolerance and bigotryinside and outside the country.

It helps that India is anything but theunchanging land of timeless cliche.There is an extraordinary degree ofchange and ferment in our democracy.Dramatic transformations are takingplace that amount to little short of anongoing revolution—in politics, eco-nomics, society and culture. Both poli-tics and caste relations have witnessedconvulsive changes: who could haveimagined, for 3,000 years, that a womanfrom the “untouchable” community ofoutcastes (now called ‘Dalits’) wouldrule India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh,

as Kumari Mayawati did for five yearswith a secure majority? It’s still truethat in many parts of India, when youcast your vote, you vote your caste. Butthat too has brought about profoundalterations in the country, as the lowercastes have taken advantage of the bal-lot to seize electoral power.

These changes are little short of revo-lutionary. But the Indian revolution is ademocratic one, sustained by a largeridea of India—an India that safeguardsthe common space available to eachidentity, an India that celebrates diver-sity. If America is a melting-pot, then tome India is a thali, a selection of sump-tuous dishes in different bowls. Eachtastes different, and does not necessarilymix with the next, but they belongtogether on the same plate, and theycomplement each other in making themeal a satisfying repast. India’s civilisa-tional ethos has been an immeasurableasset for our country. It is essential thatIndia does not allow the spectre of reli-gious intolerance and political oppor-tunism to undermine the soft powerwhich is its greatest asset in the world ofthe twenty-first century. Maintain that,and true leadership in our globalisingworld—the kind that has to do with prin-ciples, values and standards—will follow.

This will require the more systematicdevelopment of a soft power strategythan India currently has. So far, suchstrategic advantages as have accruedfrom India’s soft power—goodwill forthe country among African, Arab andAfghan publics, for instance—have beena largely unplanned byproduct of thenormal emanations of Indian culture.Such goodwill has not been systemati-cally harnessed as a strategic asset byNew Delhi. It is ironic that in andaround the 2008 Olympics, authoritar-ian China showed a greater determina-tion to use its hard power strengths tocultivate a soft power strategy for itselfon the world stage. India will not needto try as hard, but it will need to domore than it currently does to leverageits natural soft power into a valuableinstrument of its global strategy. 4


Till 2010, you couldn’t callan Afghan at 8.30 pm. Why?Kyunki Saas Bhi KabhiBahu Thi was being aired.

India abroad A hoarding of the BalikaVadhu serial on a Kabul street

TRIBHUVAN TIWARI



by Narendar Pani

THE narratives on Gujaratover the last decade havebeen among the most polar-ising in India. The 2002 riots

made Gujarat the centrepiece of thesecularism versus Hindutva divide. TheHindutva response of projecting thestate as a model of development laid theground for an understated widening ofthe growth versus inequality divide.More recently, Gujarat chief ministerNarendra Modi’s ways have brought tothe fore the conflict between authori-tarianism and democracy.

In the midst of such sharply polarisedviews, it is easy to slip into simplisticunderstandings of what is happening inGujarat. These views are often led moreby predetermined conclusions ratherthan a calmer analysis of evidence.Against this backdrop, Nikita Sud’swork is refreshing. Going beyond casualcontentions, Sud takes us into the und-erlying complexities with a great deal ofcompetence, even if she falls somewhatshort of providing us with an alternativeperspective that will help us understandthe larger processes in Gujarat’s andIndia’s recent political economy.

Shaking off any need to be committedto a single model, Sud feels free to drawfrom a variety of very different acade-mic analyses of the liberalisation

process in India. She takes this openanalytical approach to the two criticalelements of Gujarat’s recent story: land,and relations between religious groups.Sud first explores in considerable detailthe process through which land is beingliberalised and the multiple roles thestate plays in that process. She capturesvividly the manner in which the state, inpursuit of privatised economic growth,has actively allied with national andinternational big business.

The government’s unrelenting pur-suit of privatised growth has beenmatched by its determination to alterofficial interaction with different reli-gious communities, particularly intimes of communal violence. Sud’saccount highlights the political processthrough which a state gradually movesfrom championing secularism, at leastin official statements, to the extensionof Hindutva to all levels of government.

Implicit in this elegant academic rec-ounting is a critique of the way we tendto look at the last two decades of Indianpolitical economy. There has been a ten-dency to focus on precise cut-off pointswhich mark transformation: 1991 for theeconomy and the 2002 riots for Gujarat’spolity. As Sud traces the economic andpolitical processes in Gujarat over thelast two decades, she brings out the ele-ments of continuity in the changes tak-ing place, instead of focusing on dra-matic transformational moments. Thereis much in her argument that liberalisa-tion began before Manmohan Singh wasfinance minister, and Gujarat had adeteriorating communal situationbefore Modi became chief minister.

The more significant critique is of thewidely held belief that liberalisation

necessarily implies a massive decline inthe role of the state. Sud is convincing inher argument that “...contrary to neo-lib-eral presumptions about its recession,the state is not absent from a liberalisingeconomy, nor is it merely on the regula-tory sidelines. It is critical to the currentgrowth story in many ways”. It has to berecognised that the state has latent com-petencies unavailable to other actors,such as the market or civil society.

What is disappointing about Sud’s‘biography of Gujarat’ is that havingcome right up to recognising that the lib-eralisation process is not about the decl-ine in the importance of the state, shechooses to go no further. The fact thatthe old state-versus-free market percep-tion does not explain India’s liberalisa-tion process raises a number of ques-tions. If liberalisation leaves the statewith a direct role in the economy, is theentire post-1991 process a mere modifi-cation of the Nehruvian strategy? Doesthis new combination of the state andprivatised growth lead to crony capital-ism? And does the Gujarat experiencesuggest that sustained crony capitalismcan contribute to authoritarian trends?

Sud unfortunately does not discard theacademic’s straitjacket long enough toattempt even a preliminary answer tothese questions. All she is willing to con-clude is that “the state is critical to theindependent trajectories of liberalisa-tion and Hindu nationalism, and it is animportant factor at points of their mer-ger (p 200)”. Sud’s work undoubtedlyadds to the growing evidence that liber-alisation has been a process of the statechanging its role, rather than handingthings over to the market. It’s a pity sheserves no more than an appetiser. 4

Memo On The Nano Motor

LIBERALISATION, HINDU NATIONALISMAND THE STATE: ABiography of Gujaratby Nikita SudNew Delhi: Oxford University Press |249 pages | `695


A study of Gujarat sees it as an exemplar of an evolvingtriad—State, liberal market, communalised governance

booksAFP



Unromantic Ruins

PANKAJ Mishra is back with a bigbook—From the Ruins of Empire:The Revolt Against the West andthe Remaking of Asia. It’s about howthe marauding West was gun-ning down the last heirs ofthe Mughals, burningdown Beijing’s SummerPalace and ravaging theOttoman Empire. And howgroups of intellectuals everywherestood up to this onslaught with cre-ative ideas like Indian nationalism,the Chinese Communist Party andthe Muslim Brotherhood. After hisrun-in with Niall Ferguson overCivilizations: The West and Rest,when his criticism led to a lot of badblood, is this Pankaj’s way of match-ing him book for book?

That’s Amore

IN this fickle world, it’s heart-warm-ing when middle-aged authors are socompletely head-over-heels in lovewith their wives. ‘For Sunanda,the love of my life and the lifeof my love’, reads ShashiTharoor’s dedication of his newbook Pax Indica: India and theWorld of the 21st Century (excerptedin this issue). Sometime ago, therewas a buzz that Tharoor was keen towrite a book about their love, and hehad tweeted that it was the publish-er’s idea, not his. After this treatiseon Indian diplomacy, time for a frothyrecent autobiography?

Pull From The Eye

CRICKETER Yuvraj Singh is comingout with an “open, candid, intimate”account of how he fought cancerwith In Different Form, to be pub-lished by Random House in Decemberthis year. Yuvraj will reveal howdebilitating the disease was—cough-ing fits that left him vomitingblood—and how he finally won. Hehopes the book will inspire millionswho suffer from cancer to fight back.

BIBLIOFILE

OUTLOOK 23 July 2012 59Illustrations by SORIT

by Saikat Niyogi

INDIA was the first colonisedAsian nation to take part in theOlympics, in Antwerp, 1920. Assuch, the story is worth telling.

Sports scholars Boria Majumdar andNalin Mehta set about the task with imp-eccable research, in workman-like prose.

The story starts with the early sportingclubs, their role in shaping the Olympicsmovement in India, and the founding ofthe Indian Olympic Association. Pio-neers like Sir Dorab Tata get a look-in, asdo princely intrigue and a consciousattempt at nationalistic identity-making.

Quite fittingly, Indian hockey gets spe-cial treatment. The Games from 1924-32were magical; equally glorious was1936—held in a nation where only onevoice was heard, and only one arm

raised—but after much angst at theteam’s fallibility. The authors show howdecline had set in by the early ’50s, bef-ore the blows of astro-turf and new rules.

One of the most satisfying aspects ofthe book is its emphasis on how sportsand politics are braided. Two chaptersput Indian Olympism in its post-Inde-pendence socio-political and nation-making contexts. The competitive poli-tics of the newly independent nations ofAsia unfolded through the AsianGames—itself a part of the Olympicsmovement. The Delhi Asiad of 1951 isseen through the prism of the Nehruvianidea of India’s centrality in a new worldorder. Likewise, the 1982 Asiad is minedfor the transformative energy it unlea-shed—the creation of a new national net-work led to a revolution in advertising,helped create a new consumer class, andbuilt a base for the satellite TV boom.

The statistically inclined ought to beexcited by the appendix—a record of allour Olympians and their performances.It’s quite a feat of collation. The authorsgrapple with a huge cast—players, adm-inistrators, patrons—over nine decades.Thematically arranged and cogently arg-ued, their central task of recreating eachrole is admirable. 4

Playing OnOLYMPICS: The IndiaStoryby Boria Majumdar andNalin MehtaHarper Sport | 391 pages | `499

by Geeta Doctor

THE name sticks in your throat.‘Chennaivaasi’ feels like anidli Ravi the rebel son swall-ows at breakfast, watched by

Appa, the dad in this family saga. Tirumurti tells his story with verve. His

Appa is a character out of a Sivaji Gane-san flick. There are vignettes of him wal-king bare-bodied in the morning dew,

collecting flowers for the puja in the gar-den ordered by Ravi’s American partner,the Jewish Deborah; teaching her to flykites and instructing Ravi on how to eathot idlis so as to soothe the aesophagus.

He is representative of the old guard ofTam-Brahms—the Brahmin elite whoruled the roost in Tamil Nadu. With theirstrictures on purity, they are losing out astheir children travel to the West, leavingthe parents to wither away. In manyways it is a farewell song that Tirumurtisings to the Tam-Brahm way of life. It isdone with the delicate warbling of a con-cert musician, as depicted by Amma toDeborah in her attempts to become aChennai native. There is a subtext aboutsurvivors. Jews and Tam-Brahms areadept at adapting. Sivaji Ganesan warmsto Deborah, drinking coffee to soothe theirritable aesophagus. 4

MylaporeansCHENNAIVAASIby T.S. TirumurtiHarperCollins | 268 pages | `299



A walk in the wild

WILDLIFE LOVERS, PENCIL IN A ‘NATURE INTERPRE-tation’ course on your must-do list. Athree-month course conducted over week-ends will pack in eco-walks led by expertsin and around Mumbai—Sanjay GandhiNational Park, Maharashtra Nature Park,Byculla Zoo, Vasai Fort, TungareshwarWildlife Sanctuary, etc. You get an insightinto the study of birds, trees, reptiles, nat-ure photography, man-animal conflict, roleof media in environment. From Jul 22, San-jay Gandhi National Park, `3,000-4,000

Go straight for the shoes.Researchers at the University ofKansas say thatfootwear is a walk-ing resume,revealing thewearer’s age, eco-nomic status andpersonality. Soankle boots are asign of aggression,while boring shoesare usually foundon the feet ofrepressive, alooffolks. The most uncom-fortable shoes belongto the calmest specimens of humani-ty (hear! hear! Lady Gaga), while lib-eral thinkers wear scruffy, lessexpensive shoes. And you thoughtshoes were mere style statements.

100. The trick is to work backwards.

ANSWER

MIND

What is the value of 1/2 of 2/3of 3/4 of 4/5 of 5/6 of 6/7 of7/8 of 8/9 of 9/10 of 1000?

60

DELHI PHOTOGRAPHYMUMBAI NATURE


Gongs In The Evenings

FROM DAILY PRAYERS TO STREET PROTESTS

against the Chinese occupation of Tibet,football matches to tourist trips, foreignjournalist and photographer Jaime LeonRos portrays the lives of Buddhist monks.For the exhibition The Color of Buddhism,he finds inspiration around India, andthrows his net wider to China, Vietnam,Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Nepal, andBurma to capture moving pictures ofyoung men in orange, in quiet, candidmoments. Jul 19-31, Instituto Cervantes

The Rolling Stones

CULTURE VULTURE

WHAT The legendary British rockband turns 50. They landed their firstgig in July 1962, playing at theMarquee on Oxford Street. Fiftyyears later, the London club doesn’texist anymore, but the band stillrocks on, undimmed by years.

WHY Senior citizens though theyare, their passion for what they dobest hasn’t greyed. Mick Jagger,Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood andCharlie Watts are all set to release anew album and go on tour next year.A documentary looking back on theircareer releases this autumn. Yeah,yeah, these rockers still can’t get nosatisfaction until they’ve made moremusic. And then some.

Read a Person

HOW TO

recommendations

CHENNAI FILM

SORIT

THE FIFTH EDITION OF THE SAMSUNG WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL,curated by the Indo-Korean Centre, will feature 120 short and documen-tary films from India, Korea and 50 other countries. The selection is

eclectic: from India, there is Tale of the Night Fairies by Shohini Ghosh, Same-era Jain’s Mera Apna Sheher, Unknown Woman from Finland, and films fromKorea, including Moonwalk, My Sweet Baby. Mani Kaul and Shyam Benegalclassics also feature. Accompanying the films is a photo exhibition, screeningof films on art forms, a documentary filmmaking workshop and spirited inter-actions with filmmakers. July 14-21, various venues. www.inkocentre.org 4

Through The Eyes Of Women




For a Berry Flavourful Pulao

by Sumana Mukherjee

MULTI-CUI-sine is dead,

long live multi-cuisine. No, not Gobi Manc-hurian, the new ‘multi-cui-sine’ is all about the chef’sability to tweak both tikkasand tortillas. Monkey Barcalls itself a gastropub.While the ambience isbuzzy, the get-up witty, theplaylist sing-aloud-friendly(or loud, as a few complain)and some of the cocktailsvery good, the food is thewinner. Working throughthe list of starters and small-plates is fun: Tikki of Joy(Bhetki cutlets served withBengali kashundi, `220) andSpiked Nachos (`220) arefavourites, but the TigerBeef (beef slivers dressed upthe Thai way, `180), theGalouti Killer (melt-in-the-mouth kababs, `220) andthe Dabeli (an upscale ver-sion of the street hit, `160)are a big success. There are

a few organ meats (braincutlet, lamb heart, chickenliver) for the adventurous,but the so-pretty ButterflyChicken (an open-faced takeon spring rolls, `200) didnot make my heart go a-flut-ter. The burgers (`230-440),however, are moreish: In-house baked buns encasesuper-juicy hand-processedpatties—mine was custom-grilled to a medium-rare—mayo and lettuce at thebasic level, and cheese,bacon, onions, tomato at themost decadent. Most of the

menu is designed to go withdrinks but the mains call usback: the richly texturedChilli Corn Carne (`350),the seafood-generous Thaigreen curry (`400) and theBerry Pulao (`400), theclosest Bangalore gets to theMumbai Irani special. TheLemon Meringue (`120)doubles up as a sign-off andcome-back-soon. Go toMonkey Bar post-sundownwith a big gang and a biggerappetite. And, if a twosome,for a quick—if not quiet—lunch. Lingering optional. 4

BANGALORE RESTAURANT

WHEN CHRISTIANO RONALDO’Ssizzling pile-driver foundthe back of the net in Euro ’12, we wereawestruck. What power,mate! It’s a combination ofshooting technique andquality strength training.For that, 1) Form a solidbase. 2) Move the base tostrength. 3) Convert thestrength into power. Foreach phase, devote 4-6weeks. In soccer, a lot ofplyometrics (jumps) isdrilled in as part ofstrength training duringthe power phase. Boxjumps are a great option.Take a 24-inch box. Standon it. Land on the ground,and instantly take off fora split jump. It’s similar tojump with lunge. Do 6-8jumps. Rest. Repeat 4times. 4

—CChhiinnmmooyy RRooyy,, FFiittnneessssCCoonnssuullttaanntt,, CCAABB

Monkey Bar14/1 (Krishna Manere), Wood Street, AshoknagarBangalore 560025. Tel: 41116878/9.Meal for two: `1,500

SPORTS TIP

Ronaldo’s Secret

SO

RIT

NILOTPAL BARUAH



REVIEW10

On his latest film, Miss Lovely, whichscreened successfully at Cannes

1Films/filmmakers you were influenced by?Growing up in Bombay, I watched anything

that came to the cinema. Amitabh and FerozKhan movies, B. Subhash films like Tarzan andDance Dance. I watched the Ramsay Brothersand some sleazy Malayalam adult films too.

2Is Miss Lovely entirely fictional?There are a lot of real things, places and

people in the film, so in that sense, it’s not like a typical fiction film.

3How important is the film’s period, setting?It begins in the mid-’80s and ends in ’92—a

period where more things changed overnight.So period and history is really important.

4Is Miss Lovely based on real events?I came across many amazing characters and

stories in the industry’s depths and I workedthem into the semi-fictional screenplay.

5Inspired by the Ramsays? Or Kanti Shah?Neither. The Ramsays aren’t C-grade, they

are serious about their horror. And Kanti andKishan Shah are really everyday guys.

6Do you admire C-grade horror films?The films are pretty horrible, but I admire

the rebellious spirit in which they are made.

7Do you like the horror genre? Favourites? I don’t like Indian horror films much. I prefer

the Italian style, filmmakers like Dario Arge-nto, who make lavish and atmospheric cinema.

8Would you attempt to make a horror film?Not unless I could do something different.

9Is the film about the industry, the genre orabout individuals and their relationships?

It’s kind of about all of the above.

10The reason for casting Nawaz and a bitabout your other actors...

I didn’t want anyone recognisable. Nawaz wasabsolutely perfect for the part—he is just oneof the many talented but neglected actors inthis country, so it’s time he gets his due. Allthe actors in the film were people whom I hadno idea about, but they just fit the script.

Namrata Joshi

QUESTIONS

Ashim Ahluwalia


HRISHIKESH Mukher-jee’s Golmaal, a movieabout confusion of iden-tities, made us laugh outloud by piling onehumorous situation onanother. Rohit Shettyseeks inspiration fromthe classic. In fact, helifts some incidents andsituations straight fromthe original, then addssome tacky sets, kitschycolours, over-the-topacting and loud jokesand gags to deliver a crit-ic-proof blockbuster.One that’ll certainly rakein crores, but is unlikelyto find a respectableplace in history or bec-ome stuff that our collec-tive nostalgia is made of.

The movie begins on aboring note. Long back-stories introduce thecharacters and set up thescene. Some self-right-eous, deliberate Hindu-Muslim bhai-bhai pos-

turing plays (“Ramzanmein Ram aur Diwalimein Ali hota hai”).Abhishek steps intoAmol Palekar’s shoes,but the likeable lad staysentrapped in his illustri-ous surname—right fromthe movie title and open-ing song—instead offinding his own space.

Moreover, his gay actfeels desperate, a rathershoddy way of bringingthe house down. Devgan(Utpal Dutt in the origi-nal) plays to the gallerywith his bad English,some of it sublimely sillybut most very contrivedand juvenile (“chhatti kadoodh yaad dila doonga”becomes “I’ll make youremember Milk No. 6”).Shetty gives enough scr-een space and time to hisComedy Circus compat-riots—Archana PuranSingh and Krishna. Thepretty girls—Asin andPrachi—are little morethan pretty props. 4

Namrata Joshi

YOU will never be ableto swat a housefly againafter watching Eega.Director Rajamouli’s bri-lliance will make you fallin love with the littlepest. The story of a mur-dered hero (Naani) rein-carnated as a fly (eega)which seeks revenge inthe most funny ways istoo good to pass up.

Kannada star Sudeepplays the rakish busines-sman whose obsessionfor Bindu (Samantha)consumes him, leadingto Naani’s death. Frombuzzing inside Sudeep’sears all night to makinghim crash a car and beh-ave like a buffoon duringa presentation, the flyunleashes a laugh riot.

It takes imagination toget an animated houseflyto exhibit joy, relief, fear,victory, agony, rage andact heroic. My personalfavourites were of the flyusing a toothpick as ahandweight to buildmuscle and sipping cof-fee at Cafe Coffee Day.And when the tiny thingloses a wing, the collect-ive moan in the theatretells you why Eega hasbecome a runaway hit.

Sudeep is excellent inthe role of a violent manwho is reduced to comi-cal self-destruction, witha ‘Hit’ insect spray hismain weapon. Keera-vani’s music and backgr-ound score advance thetheme considerably.

Eega, with its lion-hearted fly, reminds usthat love is in the soul. 4

Madhavi Tata

Eega(Telugu)

Starring: Housefly,Sudeep, Naani,

SamanthaDirected by

S.S. Rajamouli

BolBachchan

Starring: Ajay Devgan,Abhishek Bachchan,Asin, Prachi Desai

Directed by Rohit Shetty

✪✪✪✪ Must See ✪✪✪ Good ✪✪ Watchable ✪ Avoidable

✪✪✪

✪✪

movie



63

The Pitch Is TrueTHE advance down the track to flay a tennis ball mightnot warrant that second Arjuna award nomination hecovets, but it isn’t without merit. Note with relief Yuv-raj’s balanced form, footwork and follow-through. Hisbrandishing that on-drive to further his Youwecan can-cer awareness foundation, too, is cause for felicitation.

Drumming Your PointsTAKING presidential hopeful P.A. Sangma at his wordwhen he talks of marching to no one else’s drumbeatand conscience voting might have been easier were itnot for Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj SinghChouhan. Though, when your voice is being drownedout, you’d bang on drums with a greater urgency too.

Chasing Down The Good Life MIXERS make natural points of confluence for the liquored-up. So it holds,on the Cocktail promotional tour. It takes by definition two or more liqueurs,in weighted harmony, to make the ideal blend. Going by Deepika and debut-ante Diana Penty’s spirits (Saif’s the bitter), they had a right rum time of it.

Ticking The Boxes THE list of Bollywood’s foreign imp-orts has variety. Their bodies of work,however, largely don’t. But not forWardah Khan the one-off item numb-ers and scraps of dialogue. The Saudimodel (by way of London) makes her

debut in Marksheet. Fromwhat we’ve seen, she

ticks all the check-boxes on our list.

glitterati

OUTLOOK 23 July 2012

Photographs: PTI



diaryDELHIVINOD MEHTA

Vinod Mehta is editorial chairman, Outlook, and its founding editor-in-chief

64

Last week...

Season of Memoirs Rejoice. Suddenlythree memoirs (Abdul Kalam’s Turning Points,Arjun Singh’s A Grain of Sand and Kuldip Nayar’sBeyond the Lines) are upon us. While journalistslike Kuldip Nayar and Khushwant Singh providethe first rough draft of history, prime ministersand presidents in our otherwise argumentativerepublic shy away from performing this funda-mental task. If I am not mistaken, Abdul Kalam isthe first president to have written an autobiogra-phy. With prime ministers, after Nehru, I.K.Gujral is the only one to have put pen to paper.Why this reticence? In the US and UK, among thefirst things a departing president or prime min-ister does is get down to memoir writing. Not onlydo they earn huge sums of money, they also pro-vide crucial material for historians, scholars andordinary folk to help understand the past.

In India, a great lacuna exists. The players’ ver-sion is missing while the observers’ account (likeKuldip Nayar’s) is available. Thus, what is leftbehind is incomplete. The responsibility of thoseholding high public office is not just to do theirjob but also to record for posterity their years inpower. Naturally, there will be competing ver-sions. Happily, that only adds to the richness ofmaterial in the public domain.

On more than one occasion, I asked K.R.Narayanan whether he was going to write abouthis time in Rashtrapati Bhavan. He told me he hadhis notes ready. So, what held him back? He saidif he wrote his memoirs, he would upset somepeople, and he did not wish to cause offence.

A criticism often levelled at us as a nation is thatwe have no sense of history, no perspective on thepast. How can we? When the people who couldhelp the writing of history remain silent.

Ravages of Time What is it about Timemagazine which makes us go weak in the knees?The extraordinary wall-to-wall coverage in theIndian media of what is seen as the definitive jud-gement on Manmohan Singh is decidedly over thetop. Could it be that we are so much in awe of whatforeigners think of us—especially if those foreign-ers happen to be American—that we automaticallyassume every word printed in the magazine aboutour PM is written on stone? I am an admirer ofTime. How can I not be when Outlook has “slavi-shly” followed its formula? Neither do I have anyquarrel with the thrust and tone of ‘The Underach-

iever’ narrative. I am just uncomfortable with theunderlying assumption that once Time has spoken,all other voices are superfluous, if not irrelevant.

For at least half a year, we local hacks have offeredvarious versions of the Underachiever theme.Many of us have been considerably harsher in ourcritique—not merely ‘The Underachiever’ but ‘TheFailure’. So, the question to ask is: does the verdictonly gather resonance and credibility if it is deliv-ered by the inheritors of Henry R. Luce?

Grey’s Anatomy I am half-way throughthe publishing sensation of the year. It has outsoldthe Potter books, Da Vinci Code, John Grisham...critics, booksellers, trend-spotters and analystscannot figure out why rookie author E.L. James’sFifty Shades of Grey, or ‘Mommy Porn’ as it is beingcommonly labelled , is such a rage. When I went toBahri’s at Khan Market, they had just two copiesleft. Mommy Porn is flying off the shelves, withwomen being the chief consumers.

It’s a silly novel. The carnal activity between thetwo protagonists, Christian Grey and AnastasiaSteele, is detailed and graphic but well short ofexplicit. Therefore, it certainly is not selling due toits erotic content. Then why? Ironically, the bookturns conventional wisdom—women want equalityin bed or better still, want to be on top—on its head.Women, according to James, yearn to be at the bot-tom, preferably tied up in chains and occasionallyflogged. The principal female character in thenovel signs a contract drafted by the man in whichthe woman is referred to as the ‘Submissive’ andthe man ‘Dominant’. The document says: “The fun-damental terms of this contract is to allow the Sub-missive to explore her sensuality according to thecommands of the Dominant.”

Fifty Shades of Grey is anti-feminist and anti-equality, wherein lies the source of its appeal.Mummies in their mid-30s and early 40s are byall accounts lapping up this reactionary piece ofliterature. Of course, I am reading it in the inter-ests of professional duty!

The Boringest The great Irish journal-ist, Claud Cockburn, won a prize when he sub-mitted for the most boring newspaper head-line of the year: ‘Small earthquake in Chile, notmany dead’. My candidate for the same prizewould be, ‘Paes and Bhupathi break up’. Theirsoap opera is well past its sell-by date.

an old schoolchum, now inCanada, rang toask if I was thesame VinodMehta who wassuch a dunce inclass


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