My Opinion

Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s close confidante R. K. Dhawan passed away at the age of 81, mourned by his admirers and relatives. He worked as Special Assistant to the then PM Indira Gandhi for 19 years. During those years, R K Dhawan was a power centre, who wielded enormous clout. He was then considered the second most powerful person in India after Indira Gandhi, but Dhawan never misused his clout. His strength lay in the fact that he used to help needy persons, and because of this, he had a large number of admirers.

The biggest tragedy that took place in his career was when fingers were pointed at him in the 1984 Indira Gandhi assassination case. I was at that time the Editor of Onlooker magazine and had exposed the manner in which Justice Thakkar Commission report was prepared in order to nail him.

At that time, R K Dhawan cautioned me that there were some powerful people behind this report and they could harm me. Undaunted, I exposed the entire game plan hatched by Arun Nehru, who was then wielding enormous clout during Rajiv Gandhi’s rule. R K Dhawan later returned to the centre stage of politics. He became a Union Minister. He used to publicly tell people how a magazine cover story washed off the darkest blot on his career.

Dhawan was penning his autobiography during the last days of his life. He had discussed some of the chapters with me before he fell ill. This autobiography may never be completed in the near future.

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The passing away of the DMK patriarch Muthuvel Karunanidhi will not only have a big impact on Tamil Nadu politics, but will also affect national politics. The 94-year-old politician was adept in maintaining a fine balance, both in his personal life and in the realpolitik space. He was at times closer to the Congress and at other times, he came close to the BJP.

Politics in Tamil Nadu has witnessed the passing away of two giants – J. Jayalalithaa and M. Karunanidhi – within a short span of one year. Jayalalithaa’s passing away immediately caused a big split in the AIADMK, it resulted in the purge of Jayalalithaa’s close confidante Sasikala, and the party is now being run by a mix of both EPS and OPS factions.

There are differences in Karunanidhi’s extended family too. His sons – M K Stalin and M K Azhagiri were at loggerheads. But the old patriarch, in the autumn of his life, stood like a giant banyan tree giving shade to both the factions. The party stood as one and the old man anointed his son Stalin as his political successor. He sent Azhagiri to the Centre as minister, but his son was unhappy and he protested. Karunanidhi sent him out of the party. The patriarch then sent his daughter Kanimozhi to the Centre as MP, and thus paved the way for his favourite son Stalin to take over the party’s reins. But now, with the passing away of the titan, it will become a big challenge for Stalin to keep the party united. This is bound to impact Tamil Nadu politics in the near future.

Karunanidhi stood like a colossus in Tamil Nadu politics for several decades. At the Centre, he was the oldest living politician in the front ranks, who had witnessed the freedom movement right up to the alliance politics at the Centre, rivalled only by Akali Dal supremo Parkash Singh Badal.

Karunanidhi was a writer, orator and leader par excellence. He fought against casteism all through his life – first through his writings, his plays, his oratory and then through agitations. He was chief minister of Tamil Nadu for five terms. In his 62 years of legislative career, he never lost an election. To lead a political party for 50 years and still keep his popularity intact, was no mean achievement. It is because of this, that he was affectionately called ‘Kalaignar’ (artist, scholar) by the people of Tamil Nadu.

The artiste has now taken his last bow, and his memory will remain through his creations, his writings, and his work among the downtrodden as their chief minister. On behalf of India TV family, I offer my sincere condolences to his family and pay my tributes to the departed leader.

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A concerted move has begun among 17 Opposition parties, as disparate as Congress and Aam Aadmi Party, Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress, Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party, Trinamool Congress and Left Front, Samajwadi Party and BSP, to press for the demand for replacing EVMs (electronic voting machines) with ballot papers in next year’s Lok Sabha elections. A joint meeting will be held on Monday, which will be followed by a debate in Parliament, and then a joint delegation will meet the Election Commission. AIADMK, Biju Janata Dal and Telangana Rashtra Samithi have chosen not to support this demand.

It is not a fact that use of EVMs have always resulted in victories for ruling BJP. Congress had been in power at the Centre for ten years when EVMs were in use, it won the assembly polls in Punjab, the Congress-JD(S) came to power in Karnataka, the anti-BJP Mahagathbandhan defeated the BJP in Bihar on the strength of EVMs. At that point of time, none of these parties raised issues over EVMs, but when they lost the assembly polls in UP, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, Assam and Manipur, they have started questioning the reliability of these electronic machines.

Detection of technical flaws in a few EVMs does not mean that all the EVMs are faulty. Last year, after the UP assembly polls, the Election Commission had thrown an open challenge to any party which can prove that EVMs can be tampered with. The EC even conducted a demo in front of political parties to show that these machines cannot be tampered with. And yet, questions are being raised.

The world in the 21st century is moving fast with the use of latest technology. It is , therefore, surprising that the opposition parties are trying to put the clock back to the 20th century, by demanding that EVMs be scrapped and paper ballots be used.

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Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee has made the National Register of Citizens (NRC) a big issue in national politics, but few people know that it is her government in West Bengal, which failed in verifying the legacy documents of Bengalis settled in Assam.

Most of these Bengalis had given their ancestral addresses in Bengal. Five months ago, during the NRC exercise, 1,14,000 documents were sent to Bengal government for verificationm out of which only 6,800 documents were sent back as verified. Those whose documents were not verified found their names missing in the NRC. These documents are still lying with the WB government. Unless these are verified, these names cannot be included in NRC. Mamata Banerjee has a lot of explaining to do.

On the other hand, one should praise the Assam policewomen who showed presence of mind in detaining six TMC MPs when they landed in Silchar, Assam, and created a drama. They were not allowed to enter the city as it could have caused linguistic tensions.

Mamata Banerjee may not trust the Centre’s Narendra Modi government, she may not trust the BJP government in Assam, but her own Assam state unit chief, who resigned on Thursday, nailed her lies. Mamata may allege that BJP might have ‘bought off’ the TMC leader, but this politician has himself said that Mamata’s remarks can cause unnecessary tension in Assam.

The same Mamata Banerjee during the Left Front rule in West Bengal had raise a hue and cry over illegal Bangladeshis staying in her state. She had torn papers inside the Lok Sabha and had then created a drama. Today she has taken a complete U-turn. During Left Front rule, she had demanded that the illegal Bangladeshis should be thrown out of the state, and now she is speaking the opposite.

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A raging debate is on between BJP and Opposition over the detection of more than 4 million foreigners after the second and final draft of National Register of Citizens was made public on Monday in Assam. The opposition parties, particularly Congress and Trinamool Congress, are alleging that people belonging to a particular religion have been deliberately left out from NRC.

India TV on Tuesday telecast soundbites of local people in Dhubri, Assam, whose names are missing from NRC. Most of them are Hindus. This negates the allegation that only Muslims in Assam have been targeted. The reality is that illegal immigrants from Bangladesh are being identified in Assam, and that too, on the direction of Supreme Court, which has prepared guidelines for detection. So, there is very little scope of politicizing the issue.

As far as lacunae in NRC are concerned, manual verification of an estimated 3.30 crore people in Assam is a gigantic task, and we should understand that those trying to verify documents are human beings too, and they can commit errors. The government has clarified several times that two months’ time will be given for people to file claims. The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the government to prepare SOPs (standard operating procedures) to dispose of these claims, so that the final draft can be published by 31st December this year. Opposition parties may not trust the government, they may not trust the BJP, but they should at least trust the apex court, and instead of politicizing the issue, they should wait for the final publication.

There are no two opinions among major political parties that illegal migrants and foreigners should be detected and sent back, and yet there are no two opinions that almost all political parties are trying to gain political advantage from this issue.

The Congress and TMC believe that those whose names are missing are their supporters, and they are trying to project the entire exercise as anti-Muslim. The BJP, on the other hand, is raising the issues of national security and national resources. Since this is an emotional issue, the BJP believes that this will benefit the party in electoral terms. But to say that people from other states settled in Assam are being identified and will be thrown out, or to say that similar demands for preparing NRC in other states may arise, is not correct. This is not an issue between states. This issue relates to the detection of foreigners staying illegally in India. BJP President Amit Shah is right in alleging that efforts are being made to divert public opinion from the main issue, and some parties are trying to create an atmosphere of fear.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has been warning of ‘bloodbath’ and ‘civil war’. She is alleging that efforts are being made to divide the people in the name of NRC. This is politically incorrect, and untenable from the point of view of national security and peace. Mamata Banerjee should understand that if violence does take place, who will be held accountable for making such statements. She is an experienced leader and knows how intemperate remarks can cause harm to the nation.

There is no denying the fact that there are large number of illegal Bangladeshi migrants staying in her home state, West Bengal. Many of these illegal migrants have spread to Bihar, UP, Maharashtra and Delhi. There have been incidents in some states, where some of these illegal migrants carried out crimes and fled to Bangladesh.

Illegal migrants from Bangladesh can cause a big problem in future, and this has to be addressed soon. The Supreme Court has taken a hard decision, and all political parties should sit together and find out viable solutions for sending these foreigners back to their homeland, so that our own citizens get their rights over our national resources.

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On Monday, when the second and final draft National Register of Citizens was made public in Assam, more than 40 lakh applicants found their names missing. Though the Centre and state government has allowed these people enough time to file their objections, one thing stood out clear. Several million foreigners may have to leave India.

Just think: can any nation in the world allow millions of foreigners to settle? It would amount to encroaching the rights of our own citizens. That is why, if foreigners are being detected, nobody can oppose it in principle. Whether the Congress, or Trinamool Congress, or Badruddin Ajmal, nobody is opposing this exercise, but most of them are busy finding out lacunae. Somebdy is alleging that a particular religion is being targeted, another is alleging that people speaking a particular language is being targeted.

This citizenship issue should have ended 70 years ago. The first work on NRC began in 1951, but was not completed. More than 100 tribunals were constituted. When Bangladesh became free, a huge imbalance was noticed in Assam’s population. In 1983, the then PM Indira Gandhi brought in the IMDT (Illegal Migrants Detection Tribunal) Act to detect foreigners in Assam. In 1985, the then PM Rajiv Gandhi signed the Assam Accord with All Assam Students’ Union, but it was implemented in such a haphazard manner that the then AASU president Sarbanand Sonowal went to court.

In 2005, the Supreme Court quashed the IMDT Act and ordered completion of work on the NRC. When nothing moved forward, the apex court decided to monitor the work, which began in March 2013 and has now come to a conclusion. The final NRC will be published on 31 December this year. The government has made it clear that any Indian residing in India before 24 March 1971 has nothing to fear.

Take my example. I was born in Delhi, but if somebody asks my origin, I will say that my father migrated from Rajasthan to Delhi in 1950. Our family hails from Sadas village of Rajasthan. My grandfather’s name was Pandit Gouri Shankar. The same questions are being asked from people in Assam. Those who are outsiders, those who do not have roots in post-Partition India, those who have migrated from Bangladesh, will have tough questions to answer. Therein lies the problem.

The question is: where will these 40 lakh people go? One cannot expect our neighbour Bangladesh to take them back. Where will they reside? The government has not yet revealed its reply. This question needs an urgent reply.

The death of 36 cows at a cow shelter run by a private trust in South Delhi on Friday exposes the hollow claims of those who are advocating cow protection day in and day out. Fringe groups have been lynching individuals in the name of cow slaughter and cattle smuggling, triggering fierce debates on social media. Leaders who indirectly condone lynching often cite cow slaughter as the main reason for such attacks, but I personally feel that death of cows in cow shelters is nothing short of cow slaughter.

The cow shelter in South Delhi was being run by a trust, and the South Delhi Municipal Corporation staff used to dump stray cows at this shelter. These cows were not being fed at all at the shelter. When India TV reporter visited the cow shelter sprawling on 20 acres of land, he found the conditions pitiable. It was surprising how cows were alive without food in such conditions.

Those who proclaim themselves as ‘gau-rakshak’ and consider cow as their mother, frequently speak out against cow slaughter, but they fail to notice the number of stray cows walking on the roads, dying after consuming plastic bags from heaps of garbage.

The first and foremost duty of such people should be to ensure that the cow shelters are run properly. This work is more important than stopping trucks carrying cattle and bashing up the drivers. If ‘gau-rakshaks’ look after the cow shelters properly, they will be doing a great service to the nation. They will be saving the lives of thousands of cows, and mob lynching incidents will come to an end.

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Imran Khan’s life has been a turbulent one, full of struggles. He struggled a lot, but never bowed. I remember Imran Khan was at the height of his popularity after winning the World Cup, and then he suddenly took retirement from cricket. In 1994, he came to my show Aap Ki Adalat, where he revealed, for the first time, his intention to join politics. I had then asked him how he would play on a political pitch, where all things are surreal and are not what they appear to be. Imran had then replied that when he was first selected for the national team, he went to the field to play with high hopes, but crashed. He was thrown out of the team for three years, but he did not relent. He toiled hard, made a comeback and the rest is history. Citing this, Imran told me, I will fight to the last in politics, and win.

For 22 years, Imran Khan toiled hard in the political wilderness, and at last he won. After his victory, Imran spoke about Kashmir, about China, advocated an open border with Afghanistan, also spoke about US and Saudi Arabia, but spoke only a few words about India. He particularly mentioned Kashmir. If what Imran said about Kashmir during his campaign speeches are true, then it is quite clear that he has the support of the army, and the army played a role in his victory. For India, an elected and stable government in Pakistan, backed by the army, should be a better situation, because at least Indian leaders and bureaucrats will know whom to talk to. There is a chance that this could help in normalizing relations.

During the press conference, Imran smirkingly spoke about a section of the Indian media, saying he was being portrayed as a Bollywood-type villain. Imran may be unhappy with the Indian media, but the fact remains that the amount of love Imran has got from people in India, could make any Pakistani envious. No other Pakistani has got the same amount of affection that Imran has got in India.

Imran is a newcomer to governance. He has practically no experience of governance. He was an MP, but was never a minister or a Chief Minister. The people of Pakistan have high hopes from his leadership. Imran has promised to fulfill their expectations, but the road ahead is not so easy. My best wishes to Imran Khan on his new journey.

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Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his party have been demanding details of the Rafale aircraft deal from the government for the last several months. The opposition party is planning to make this a big issue eight months before the Lok Sabha elections are due. Rahul Gandhi has been asking why the Modi government agreed to a price much higher than the price fixed by the previous UPA government.

On Wednesday, sections of media accessed a document prepared by the Defence Ministry and the Indian Air Force, which clearly shows that each Rafale aircraft being bought by the NDA government was Rs 59 crore cheaper than what the UPA government agreed to pay. After taking into account, the cost of aircraft, weapons, systems, simulators, maintenance, repair support and technical assistance, each Rafale aircraft bought by the present government would amount to Rs 1,646 crore compared to Rs 1,705 crore that could have been paid during the UPA regime.

The entire issue relates to national security. Secrecy is the essence of any defence deal, and the Congress party clearly knows that the government would abide by the secrecy clause of the agreement. It will not make the details of the deal public, as it would harm our national security.

To speak more about the finer points of the deal, as to the state-of-the-art systems that will be fitted to the aircraft, will amount to playing with national security. The sooner this controversy is put to rest, the better. There are many other issues for politicking and it would not be proper to politicize the Rafale deal. Let us keep national security above politics.

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The Maratha Krantikari Morcha’s state-wide agitation in Maharashtra has entered the third day today with a bandh call in Mumbai and its suburbs. On Tuesday, several vehicles, including ambulance and fire brigade vehicles, were set on fire by agitators in several parts of the state. When the Maratha reservation agitation began last year, I had praised the peaceful manner in which rallies were brought out, but this time, the protests have resulted in violence and arson.

It is sad to note that the agitation leaders have chosen the violent path in order to get their demands accepted. The Morcha is demanding that the Maratha community be declared Other Backward Class (OBC). It is not demanding reservation because if 16 per cent reservation is given to Marathas out of the 27 pc OBC reservation, other backward communities may start agitations. The Maratha leaders feel that getting OBC status will give a tool to their community to get reservation benefits in jobs and education.

Moreover, the agitators should understand that granting of OBC status to Maratha community does not lie with the state government alone. The only way out is talks so that a solution can be found. Setting fire to vehicles, smashing up ambulances and stoning media vehicles and public properties, will not yield anything. It will only tarnish the image of the community. The leaders should understand that it is a complex issue and a way has to be found out.

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On Friday last, a Muslim man Rakbar Khan was lynched by a group of self-styled cow vigilantes in a village near Alwar, Rajasthan. This incident took place even as the Centre and the Supreme Court were grappling with the issue of mob lynching in several parts of the country. Friday’s incident in Alwar resulted in the Congress and BJP leaders trading accusations through harsh tweets and statements.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted that ‘hatred has replaced humanity in his (Modi’s) brutal New India”. Union Minister Piyush Goyal hit back tweeting “You (Rahul) divide society for electoral gains and then shed crocodile tears. Enough is enough. You are a merchant of hate”. Several other senior ministers like Smriti Irani, Ravi Shankar Prasad too hit back at the Congress.

Last evening, the Centre constituted a Group of Ministers to deal with rising incidents of mob lynching. It also formed a high-level committee, headed by Home Secretary which will submit its recommendations to the GoM headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh. The committee will study the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court last week, speak to state governments and then submit its report to the GoM.

All this will surely take time, but for the time being, one immediate step can be taken. All leaders of major political parties like the BJP and Congress, should stop issuing statements on this issue, because their remarks can ignite passions and encourage ‘mobocracy’. For example, if an MLA says that a war has been waged against cattle lifting and cow slaughter, and if another leader speaks on ‘Hindu Taliban’ , and if a third says that those advocating cow protection are ‘terrorists’, then all such remarks can give rise to undue tension, and this must be curbed at the earliest.

It has been noticed that in most of the mob lynching incidents, fake news spread through social media play a major role, and government alone cannot stop this. Local leaders will have to step in and timely prevent such mobs from going on a rampage. Social media platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook have taken some steps to curb the spread of fake news, but there has been no favourable impact on the ground level. It is surprising that fake news circulate fast and mobs gather to bash up the victims, but the local police intelligence units are blissfully unaware of this. The local intelligence machinery has to be on its toes to prevent such incidents from occurring.

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Opposition parties in Lok Sabha gave notice for a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and the Speaker, on the first day of Monsoon Session of Parliament, has allowed a debate on Friday, which will be followed by voting. Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi was later asked by reporters whether she was confident of getting the required numbers to topple the government. Her reply itself was in the form of a question. She asked, who says we don’t have the numbers? Nobody knows on what basis Sonia Gandhi said this, but the numbers speak for themselves.

In a House of 543, ten seats are presently vacant, and a support of 264 MPs is required to get the motion through. The ruling BJP has 273 MPs, and its allies add up to 313. Probably, the Congress leaders assumed that many of the NDA allies, particularly Shiv Sena, were unhappy with BJP, and the main ally Telugu Desam Party has left the NDA. The Congress wanted to use this tool to embarrass the government, at least to show to the world that Prime Minister Modi does not command the majority that he used to in 2014. Probably the Congress leaders are unaware that BJP chief Amit Shah had been meeting almost all the NDA allies recently, and the ruling party is not at all worried.

There is no doubt that the no-confidence motion will fall through. On the other hand, the voting on the no-confidence motion will prove to be a test for Opposition unity, and Prime Minister Modi will get the chance to reply to all questions and criticisms that are being made against his government.

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