Atal Bihari Vajpayee
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SPECIAL ISSUE Covering developments on policy responses, policy implementation and policy distortions on a quarterly basis. PPoolicyWatchlicyWatch Comments are welcome. Commemorative Edition – Atal Bihari Vajpayee Atal Bihari Vajpayee The Statesman who Instilled Confidence in the Nation Pradeep S Mehta* The passing away of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, our former Prime Minister, was an unfortunate event. The only succour - this ended his decade- long suffering. He has departed, but his presence is felt through his ideals, his statesmanship and his stature. I have fond memories of the inspirational, one-to-one interaction with Atalji. I recall him telling me that we should strive to create and nourish a questioning society. Gram Gadar, a rural wall newspaper, launched in September, 1983 proved to be one such tool of creating a questioning society; and on 9th November, 1983, while on one of his political tours, Atalji blessed Gram Gadar (see photo). Gram Gadar was a precursor to CUTS. In what was going on, that citizens and taxpayers ways more than one, Vajpayee influenced the are consumers of government services. There formation of CUTS. was a situation, wherein the government was During Rajiv Gandhi’s regime in 1984-89, an bringing about an alteration which could destroy amendment was made in the Commission of an institution engaged in promoting Inquiry Act. This allowed the government to transparency and accountability. Such withhold Inquiry Commission reports. People tumultuous changes warranted a public were enraged. discourse. I also reminded him of our three- We decided to hold a public debate in year-old conversation at Alwar. Calcutta, my place of dwelling those days. I Atalji could not make it due to prior invited the then Minister of Law and Justice, engagements, but he sent a very encouraging Ashoke Sen, who was glad to visit and expound message. Nowadays, one rarely runs into such on the topic. I asked Atalji if he, too, could join happenings. It is a tragedy that many of our the public forum. He asked a very innocent institutions have been eroded and degenerated. question, “What has a consumer group to do This generation may not be aware of the with the Commission of Inquiry Act?” I institutional culture which prevailed during explained that the people needed to know Jawaharlal Nehru’s and Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s Contd... “The reformer has enemies in The Unimaginable Vajpayee ........ 3 What young India can learn all those who profit by the old from Vajpayee ............................. 12 order and only lukewarm A Titan of Indian Politics ............... 5 Let us not Whitewash Vajpayee’s defenders in all those who Hindutva is Liberal ....................... 8 Failures....................................... 13 would profit by the new”. Machiavelli in The Prince HIGHLIGHTS Published by Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS), D-217, Bhaskar Marg, Bani Park, Jaipur 302 016, India Phone: 91.141.228 2821, Fax: 91.141.228 2485 Email: [email protected], Website: www.cuts-ccier.org Also at Delhi, Kolkata and Chittorgarh (India); Lusaka (Zambia); Nairobi (Kenya); Accra (Ghana); Hanoi (Vietnam); Geneva (Switzerland); and Washington DC (USA) EDITORIAL times, two of our great Prime Ministers, both The statement is provocative. Are Hindus liberals. Of course, Vajpayee’s propensity for suffering from a complex in which they feel like reforms was way greater than Nehru’s. second-class citizens because many Nehru believed in the Soviet model of governments or political parties pamper the centralised planning and socialism. And this minorities for vote politics? centralised planning was the system until, C R Irani, the Editor of The Statesman Shri P V Narasimha Rao, the introduced Vajpayee as the Prime Minister in 1991, “Silver Tongued Orator” of India. I emancipated the country from asked Atalji, “Aap kya Hindi me this highly centralised system. bhashan denge ya angrezi mein?” Soon after him, Vajpayee He said that he would speak in became the Prime Minister and Hindi since he was not carried on with the reforms comfortable delivering a public vigorously. He was thrice speech in English. The audience, appointed as our Prime Minister which comprised people who did - once only for 13 days. An not speak Hindi, followed and exemplary leader, a gifted enjoyed Vajpayee’s brilliant speaker, a consensus-builder, speech, in which he supported and a great unifier – Vajpayee the motion. There is a lot of belonged to a rare breed of discrimination against the philosopher politicians. It is distressing that his majority. For example, if you are a Muslim, you own followers, disciples and acolytes are not can legally have four wives. This particular able to follow his ethics, ideologies and deeds. debate topic was selected to urge questioning The righteousness of those days greatly on such prevailing norms – drawing forth the outweighs today’s saddening, insubstantial public sentiments. rectitude. Be that as it may, there was a high sense of A sound parliamentarian and an eloquent maturity when P V Narasimha Rao was the orator, Vajpayee once told Nehru in the Prime Minister. He requested Vajpayee to head Parliament that he was a combination of the country’s delegation at the United Nations Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain - two Commission for Human Rights convention in British Prime Ministers with personalities which Geneva. The meeting’s contentious agenda was were poles apart. Churchill was known for his human rights violation in Kashmir. Vajpayee tireless spirit while Chamberlain for his policy of agreed to go and the Pakistanis were surprised appeasement. Such criticism of Nehru was quite to see an opposition leader representing India harsh. Later on, Vajpayee wrote, “I met him later at such a crucial forum. at a banquet in the evening and he just laughed Atalji led the delegation with utmost tact, it off.” and the Pak resolution failed. A remark of that sort today would result in The story goes that Narasimha Rao, an astute mayhem. Shoes will be hurled, offensive words politician, would remain unharmed had India hollered, parliamentarians will be seen resorting failed, and Vajpayee would be blamed. If India to vandalism – and there will be no end to such succeeded, the credit would have gone to chaos. Atalji endeavoured to uphold the Narasimha Rao - integrity of the institutions – this virtue of his, is Vajpayee knew “You can choose your something we should foster. this. He said that Friends, but you can’t I had several interactions with Vajpayee, it did not matter including a 45-minute one-to-one meeting. He as long as Rao choose your Neighbours” had come to Calcutta for a public debate had put his – Atal Bihari Vajpayee sometime in 1987-88. Calcutta has the tradition confidence in of The Statesman’s annual public debate which is him to represent the country. followed by other newspapers such as The On many of these issues, say on human rights Telegraph. The public debate topic was: “Is the in Kashmir, there has been a national consensus majority suffering from a minority complex?” - there is no distinction between parties. A few might make some silly remarks but there exists * Secretary General, CUTS International a national consensus. 2 PolicyWatch LIFE HISTORY The Unimaginable Vajpayee The Iconic Leader of BJP Atal Bihari Vajpayee was an iconic leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), known for his cultural moderation, liberalism and political reasonableness. He became the Prime Minister of India thrice. The Modi government has declared his birthday, i.e. 25th December to be celebrated as ‘Good Governance Day’. Early Life Vajpayee was born in a middle-class Brahmin family to Krishna Devi and Krishna Bihari Vajpayee on December 25, 1924 in Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh). His father was a poet and a school teacher. Vajpayee completed his schooling from the Saraswati Shishu Mandir, Gwalior. Later, he graduated from Victoria College, Gwalior – now Laxmi Bai College. It was at Dayanand Anglo-Vedic College, Kanpur that Vajpayee completed his post- graduation in Political Science. Joining as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker in Retirement 1939, Vajpayee became a pracharak in 1947. He The 2004 General Election brought about the also worked for Rashtradharma a Hindi monthly, downfall of the NDA, which lost almost half its seats, Panchjanya a Hindi weekly and the dailies Swadesh and the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and Veer Arjun. Vajpayee chose to stay bachelor assumed the reins of power. Vajpayee refused to take for entire life. He adopted the daughter of up the Leader of the Opposition’s position paving the longtime friends Rajkumari Kaul and B N Kaul and way for his closest friend, Lal Krishna Advani’s raised her as his own child. leadership of BJP. Political Journey Awards and Achievements th Vajpayee was the 10 Prime Minister of India. Top seven awards conferred upon former Indian His Prime Ministerial tenure includes three non- Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are: consecutive terms – the first for 15 days (from May • Padma Vibhushan in 1992 16, 1996 to June 01, 1996), the second for a period • D. Lit. from Kanpur University in of 13 months (from March 19, 1998 to April 26, 1993 1999) and the third for five years (from October • Lokmanya Tilak Award in 1994 13, 1999 to May 22, 2004). Over the course of • Best Parliamentarian Award in 1994 his political career he was elected nine times to • Bharat Ratna Pandit Govind Vallabh the Lok Sabha and twice to the Rajya Sabha or the Pant Award in 1994 Upper House of the Parliament. He was a member • Bharat Ratna in 2015 of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh party started by Shri • Liberation War Award (Bangladesh Muktijuddho Syama Prasad Mookerjee in 1951. Vajpayee won Sanmanona) in 2015 his first election from the Balrampur Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituency of Uttar Pradesh in 1957.