Sardar Patel and the Indian Administration

SARDAR PATEL AND THE INDIAN ADMINISTRATION

(lnaugural lecture in the.'sardar Patel Memorial lecture Series' delivered at the South Gujarat Universiry Sural on 15 December. 1986)

LP. Singh

. Under the Auspices of Centre for PolicY Research

UPPAL PUBLISHING HOUSE NEW DELHI.IIOOO2 UPPAL PUBLISHING HOUSE 3, Ansari Road Daryaganj, New Delhi-ll00OZ

@ Centre for Policy Research New Delhi-r10021 1987

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Published by B.S. Uppat for Uppal publishing Housq New Delhil10002. phototypeset by Esi Bee Printers, Bl7, Sector-8, Noida and printed at Efficient Offset Printers, New Delhi-11002g. FOREWORD

The formation of the post independence narion out of the loose political structure of India after the departure of the British was a crucial phase in the modern Indian History. Sardar Vallabhai Patel can truly be described as one of the key architects of this phase even though Sardar Patel's governmental tenure in Delhi was a relatively short one. In the present lecture Shri L P Singh describes Sardar Patel as "the greatest statesman-administrator of Independent India-" Shri Singh "rariks him with Ashoka.and Akbar, as a unifier of the country'. This interpretation of Sardar Patel's role covered in this brief lecture stands as a testimony to the emergence of the administrative state in India. The strength and weakness of the Indian States have been of some debate in recent years and perhaps the debate will occupy more space as the adequacies and inadequacies of the state in India begin to affect our national growth and performance. Shri L P Singh s lectu4e will be useful input in assuming both the role played by Sardar Patel and the evolution of the modern Indian state' May 1987 V A Pai Panandiker Director

SARDAR PATEL AND THE INDIAN ADMINISTRATION

I consider it a great honour to be invited to inaugurate a lecture series on Sardar Patel, who has been without doubi the greatest statesman- administrator of independent Indiq indeed the ' greatest in rnY view that our country has pro- iuced during the last four centuries. He ranks with Asoka and Akbar, as a unifier of the country. That is, the bulk of it, once the political for- cis set in motion towards the end of the last century strengthened by imperial policieg and finally fed by urge towards power, had led inex- orably to the creation of Pakistan' That the Sar- dar, ilready past seventy, should have had less than five years to accomplish his mission makes the achievement the more remarkable' Akbar, for instancg had ruled for more than four decades; and -the British had taken a hundred years to extend thcir direct rule over Indi4 and ititl wittr only paramountcy over a third of it And never 6eiote in our history since the Mauryan bureaucracy, did we have a uniform ry.t"- of administratiorl from which no part of tire country was excluded Nor was the country ever before unified as an unrestricted democracy' Even at the last election under British rute (1946) only about ten percent of the population had the ,franchise.

t To what the Sardar, the great statesman, achieved as a unifier, and as i principal con- tributor to the building up of the democratic constitutional structure, he adde{ as a superb administrator, signal contributions in meeting the formidable problems created by the violent upheaval accompanying the partitioq and the extraordinary enerry with which he attended to the complex and sensitive business of the partition council. While consenring the frame of tne administration in British India built through the experience of a century and a half, tre nia the creative imagination and the will to extend it to the princely states, which had had diverse patterns of administration, far removed. in the vast majority of cases from the system in British India. I have advisedly referred to Sardar patel as statesman-administrator., Even an outstanding administrator may not have vision; absorption in the mechanics, procedure, and minutae. and the achievement of immediate objectives tend to shackle the imagination and to limit projection of vision to the problems emerging on the horizon and requiring timely preparation for dealing with them. Curzon is an excellent exam- ple. Inspite of his exceptional administrative abilities he failed to see the progressive growth of Indian nationalism in a correct perspectivg or to deal with Indian aspirations with sensitivity and imagination Herbert Hoover is another exam- ple. He was perhaps the ablest administrator atrrong the Presidents of the United States during the present century; but he failed to appreciati the dimensions of his country's unprecedented economic depression, or to deal with it A states- maq in contrast, may have ideas and visiorl understanding of a country's historical and cultural traditions, and the social forces current and developing He may have all the right aims and perspectives; but he may not have mastery of the means, or a sound strategy of action; and he may not have the gift of getting the best out of his instruments-the bureaucracy. It is rare in history to have a combination of outstanding statesmanship with genius for administration It was India's good fortung at the most crucial stage of its modern history to have in Sardar Patel a combination of the vision of a statesman with the sagacity and practical outlook of an adminis' trator, without which the Indian administrative system might not have been revitalize4 and ils standards might well have fallen below what the critical times and the new nation required Recruitment to the Indian Civil Service and the Indian Police had been frrst slowed down and then stopped because of the war hnd ,i likelihood of constitutional changeg resulting in wide gaps in those services. In the meantime there had been considerable dilution of stan- t dards as a result of large numbers of ad-hoc appointments to the other services; and preoc- cupation with work connected with the war and civil supplies had caused neglect and dislocation of the normal activities of government The administrative structure was therq but in a wcakened statq and the administration was generally in a rundown condition. Uncertainty. about the picture that might emerge from the impending constitutional changes, and its effect on their own future had tended to affect the zest and self-confidence of the senior civil services. There was, further, the rising tide of com- munalism with ominus potential of violence. Such briefly was the background of the administrative situation which the Sardar as Home Minister in the interim government faced in 1946. As the year 19.45 advanced and the constitutional negotiations were taking their tor- tuous coursq Sardar Patel started thinking of the future. The first momentous step he took wag in October of that year, to have a resolution adopted at a conference of the Congress Chief Ministers (inspite of opposition initially from some of them) authorizing the setting up of two all-India services, the IAS and the IPS, to suc- ceed the ICS and I.P. The Muslim League's firm thinking was that if India was to remain united it could only be on the basis of a weak Centre, with its jurisdiction limited to External Affairs, Defence, and Communications,, with no scope in such a constiutional arrangement for any all- India Adrninistrative or Police Service. If there was partition the question of such services would obviously not aries. Going through the relevant documents of the period., one is left with the impression that by October 1945 Sardar Patel had corne to the conclusion that with the intran- sigent attitude-of the League partition was pro- bably unavoidable, and that India must have new seryices, as successors to the ICS and IP,

4, which, apart from filling the existing wide gaps in these services, would contribute to the unify of the country and the strength of the administrative structure, and make for a high standard of efficiency and uniformity. The Sardar had a deep understanding ofthe lessons of lndian history. Regional and other narrow loyalties, leading to chronic divisiveness, had had free play in periods of absence of a central authority or its weakness. He was convinced that all-India services for general and law and order administration would be valuable adjuncts of a strong constitutional authority at the Centre, which however was to be consistent with the federalism of our Constitution, of which he was to be one of the main architects. The contemporaneous documents also indi- cate that Sardar Patel was acutely conscious of the historical and cultural factors, and of the debilitating effect of a long period of subjection on the moral fibre of the Indian people, which were likely in combination to make India a "soft" state, prone to vacillation in critical situations or when faced with hard options. His experience of dealing with the Congress organisatiorl and of the Provincial Ministries had strengthened his apprehensions. (l may mention, in passing that a group of civil servants, asked by Wavell to study the relative pros- pects of India and China had reported even in 1944 that India would go for softer options; and as is well known many years later, Gunnar Myrdal categorized India as a "soft state"). The Sardar did therefore believe that it was essential for independent India's administrative machinery to have a strong frame. capable of withstanding stresses. and of maintaining dis- cipline in administration and peace and order in society. For decades the ICS and IP had been referred to pejoratively as the steel liame of imperial rule. This was a just enough description of their role as instruments for preserving nritish rule against the rising tide of lndian nationalisrn But the Sardar conceived of the successor services in a role fundamentally different in objectives and style of functioning but retaining the element of firmness. They were to be the seryants of the Indian people, unfaltering in their loyalty to the country and dedicated to executing with devotion the laws and policies of lndian governments. Hc laid down the broad principles on which entrants to the Administrative Service were to be trained. They were to be moulded into patriotic Indians, not as English country gentlemen oriented to working as agents of imperial ruie as had been the aim even for lndians in the ICS. They were to have an all-lndia and not a parochial outlook and they were to have understanding of our pasl and of Indian culture hnd social conditions. lt was these basic ideas

l0 no hesitation in saying that they are as patriotic' as loyal and 4s sinceri as myself" The compli- *"ni^uy have been over generoug but.I have quot"a ii for the effect it had on the minds ofl civil servants. In his own life time, and in the two decades after his death the inspiration and animation received from his personality and achievementq his public statements and the principles he had laid down, had an effect on th.e spirit and outlook of civil servants'servants, whichwnrcn isrs rarely recognized it -ui not be easy in the vastly changed atmosphere of recent years to appreciate the value of some of these intangibles or how decisive an element they were in Sardar Patel'sr contribution to Indian administration in those critical and formative years' One wonders whether these, and the rest of the Sardar's administrative credo and principles to which I refer later, were only transient influences' I do not myself think so. Anything of real value which is put into an administrative system in a formativjperiod becomes part of that administration s ..tltut", which may be pushed into the background or obscured in an unfavourable political and social environmen! but is not des- iroyed; with change of circumstances it reap- pears. lndeed even today there are numerous men and women in the administration who function with rectitude and dedication similar to those of the years immediately following Independence. If their spirit of independence has been dampened and there has been decline in courage and initiative, the causes are ll primarily political. At the heart of administration, indeed of the entire business of goverance lies the proliems of pow.e.r proper, its skilled and timeiy usg and avoidance of misuse and abuse. power obviously - is not the personal properfy of tn" wielder, available for untrammiled" use, as wielders of power not unoften p".r*a" in"_- selves ro believe. This is the point of ifr.ii"turr,, that power _currupts. Viewed lo*.. l, u trust and like any trust it "o.r."tty,can be i.giti_ut"ty used only according to the rules and cionJrtions governing it In administration, and the uitui., government of generally, power has to be used according to the constitution and the laws land; of the -and beyond thesg u."orAi"g io the ac.cepred norms of public ur,4 loeailyFf^":i-itl{ atso the unwritten moral laws"orido"t of a socicfy. Looking at our history during the last torty v"u.r. one.is led to patel think that Sardar. standi out as the person whcl both marle effective use ot, urrO aia not misuse or abuse state power. It is beyond the scope of this lecture to present a pictuie of the misuse and abuse of power, at aifferent levets and in various spheres, and the grave damage these have "urrO done to the country tt. ,uf_ ferings they have causecl We ai. uti too well, and most of us very painfully, u*u.""nfy oi rt ir. But I do wish to refer to ihe extensiv. fuiiu.. ,o use the powcrs available to protect the interests of society and the innocenr and the law_abiding or to punish the evildoers. Who can honestly claim. that powers rhat could be used ro grorvth 'black ,n. of money.. and a host of,.._lu*i."urf

t2 offences, have been adequately used (though one is happy to note that they have begun to be used recently), or that action has been taken to check political corruption? So many powers, legal and administrative are available to check corruption in the administration, but they have certainly not been used on a scale and with the determination commensurate with the dimensions of the problem. Non-use of power is certainly not comparable in culpability to its misuse or abuse; nevertheless, it can do great harm. F-or it does involve failure to discharge a responsibility entrusted by the constitution or the laws, or. the mandate of the electorate. Apart from its directly harmful consequences non-use of state power sets the general tone, and encourages inaction at all levels of the administration. The Sardar never faltered in using the powers he had in the government, and one could add, in the Congress organisation. There were. for instance^ cases in Bihar in which he took action undeterred hy the temporary damage to the reputation of the Con- gress Ministry which the action was likely to cause. Civil servants, as well as otheis in high authority knew that no corruption or departure from the path of rectitude which the eagle-eyed Sardar noticed. would be condoned' I vividly remember the expression of relief on the lhce of a Minister who was apt to misuse his pow'ers ibr narrow political and even personal ends' on this day thirty six years ago when the sad'news of the Sardar's passing away was received. Evidc'ntly, he felt that he no longer needed to live in l'ear of the Sardars powerful hand coming down on

t-) him. Such was the just fear and awe of the Sar- dar, the vigilant moral censor of governmental and political ethics, among those- disposed to depart from the straight path. Reflecting over the developments in the conduct of affairs in subsequent years, and their cumulative effect today, one cannot help feeling that the country seems to have lost one of the valuable legacies of the Sardar. We have had for many years a generally 'soft' administration reflecting the character of a 'soft' state. The Sar- dar did not live long enough 'endow after lndependence to the new state, and its administrative apparatus, with a durable toughness. We make laws and regulations in plenty but do not entbrce them with rigouq they are often allowed to be transgressed with impunity. One notices among many of our public functionaries a tendency to move from passiviry to over-reaction to situations, and to alternate between failure to use power and its abuse. In certain parts of the c<_run- try the Arms Act is virtually a dead letter. Even grave offences against person and property often go unpunished. Energetic action in a crisis, followed by a period of complacence only leads to another crisis, when a steadily lirm administration backed by a strong political will, and anticipation of likely developments are called for. That was the Sardar's way of doing things during those fateful, crisis-ridden iive years. I have personal knowledge of a case when ir political leader in eastern lndia who was organising a separatist movement leading to acts of violence, was called by the Sardar and told rhar

t4 a rnore powerful leader in north lndia had been detained in similar circumstances, and given a stern warning. The leadeE went back with the sobering knowledge that if he did not heed the warning unrelenting action would follow, and he stopped his disruptive activities. The point of the story is the importance of credibility of the strong will of the state, and effectiveness of its administrative machinery. A great deal is achieved by the moral authority of the government, and the influence that goes with it' often making action unnecessary. But moral authority is built over a perio4 and is lost if power is abuse4 and drained away if used only spas- modically. We have moved a long way from the Sardar Patel era and have over the years forgot- ten the experience that should have become an integral part of our governmental doctrine. The idea of a "committed" civil service, committed to the current social philosophy of the parry in power at the time, and not merely to carrying out loyally the government's program- me, was the doctrine canvassed in the seventies' That idea has no open supporters now but there is implicit in certain attitudes, and the desire that civil servants should identify themselves with their Ministers. Such an idea would have been an anathema to the Sardar. There certainly has to be commitment to the Constitution to which every civil servant has to swear loyalry and to dedicated service to the people; but this is not the sense in which the word 'commltment. was used There are some reports of a civil servant being expected on the pain of a disagreeable

l5 transfer, or worse, to tashion his advice or action to suit the wishes or interest of a Minister or a Ministry and one of the consequences is fre- quent changes of the incumbents of even key posts. A return to the. Sardar's concept of the civil service-and I use the word in tire broad sense whlch inlcudes the police and thosd in the te^chnical and p-rofessional b ranches- is neces sary if the administration is to prove caphble of cop- ing with the multitude of problems which the country is facing. Considerations extraneuus to the requirements of the law and the public interest ought not to be imported in the minage- ment of the civil services, or civil servants deflec_ ted from a non-partisan course. This certainly is not the position today. May I pause here for a moment and refer to some instances which bring out two balancing elements in Sardar Patel's attitude towards the senior civil servants. He had a tussle with Lord Mountbatten in 1946 in the appointment of a particular Indian of{icer to the post of Home Secretary but he did not hesitate to replace that officer after a couple of years, when hi did not prove entirely equal to his responsibilities. In another case the Sardar as Miniiter of Informa- tion and Broadcasting sent away the Secretary a talented Indian civil servan! who had procras_ tinated in giving effect to an order of the Sardar appointing a_ Mgslim poet and literateur to a key post under the Ministery. But on the other sidg the Sardar's harmonious relations with civil ser_ vants and his sensitivity towards their feelings is exemplified by his distress when H.V.R lengar.

l6 the Horne Secretary, feeling hurt because of be some mis-understanding requested . to uiio*"d to proceed on leave' The Sardar is repor- h";; remarked that never in his life had ;;; him he come across an ofhcial working under *iro t uO asked to be relieved out of dissatisfac' tion with his orders' In the event lengar was r"*r"i"a.-tt*"-."f"."d, Also in the other fwo cases to which I the offrcers were moved out with J""!i"""' The Sardar demanded efficient service u"a"Jit"iptine from civil servants' but also ir"ut"a thern with courtesy and consideration' In iilir *uv he got the besi out of them' Such a tufu"""A attiiude is as sound today as it was then, but is not generally in evidence'

The functions of the executive branch being regulated by the Constitution, laws and statutory judiciary' It -i"r, ut. enmeshed with those of the ir* o"ry to deal with most of the cases under the"oi laws made for administrative purposes i""f"Oi"g those for maintaining peace and order' ;;;;;t a'lso the function of reviewing the legality out oi executive actions' It will not therefore be ;i ;h* to touch upon the Sardars attitude towards the judiciary. There can be no better tes- tl.otty to his unqualified respect for tho ;Gpi"a"""e of thi judiciary than what H'J" Kania thrn Chief Justce said in the course of tris oUituaty-r"t, tribute: "By his death the Judiciary it"t chamiion of its freedom and "'greatIt is well known that at the time i"J"p""o""i"' judicial o] u ortu"g. in the:aititude towards. high upp"i"t.i"ts. What happened during the seven: '17 ties.is only too well kngwn. But even in a recent political or legislative control". It is within my personal tnoWledgg first as Chief Secretary of a State and later as Union Home Secretaf, that the p-olicy laid down firmly by the SaJur"io tfre late forties continued to Ui followed till towards th^e later part of 1970, when there was indication of a change in the attiruderowards t ign luAi.iut appointments. What happened during-the seventies is only too well known. But eve]n ir, ,"""ru speech before the Supreme Court Bar Associa_ tr.on the present Chilf Justice of India spote about the inaction of the Government in making appointments to the High Courts and the Suf, reme. Courl neglecting or not respecting the reactions of the Chief Justices of tne Higtr iourts and the Chief Justice of India with ihe result that there were large numbers of vacancies in those courts, while the arrears were mounting He proceeded to observe that the government not communicating the reasons for disasre+ "may Ten[ conceivably give rise to ,uspi-"ion that extraneous factors have -played a partin --isfhe rejections..... Moreover, if sulh practice allowed to^p-revail we might witness the sorry spectacle of those wishing to be appointed judgei or promoted to the higher eChelons of ite judigia_1y running about ihe corridors of power and lobbying the executives." The Sardar's aim was to establish a firm but yrr_ugTinjrrration and this required u, i.,J"p"rr_ n€nt Judlciary manned by persons of abilitv and character. It is not eno.rgh that there .t o,itO U" no interference by the eiecutive in judicial pro-

l8 ceedings; independence of the judiciary requires u ,.rri" of security' self-respect and self urrururr". among judicial officers' The state of affairs described by the Chief Justice of Indi4 and the feeling that a judge can be transferred from one High Court to another even if such transfer is not recommended by the Chief Justice of India in the interest of judicial administratiorl do not make for an ideal judiciary' Also, if there is unconscionable delay in disposal of cases, the effectiveness of the executivq for instance of the police is greatly reduced arrd the citizen loses Lope of gelting redress against injustice' One. can *.it imaginJ what the Sardar would have thought oi situations as in Delhi and Gujarat in which the Bar felt called upon to go on strike to have a deserving person appointed as Chief Justice or a Judgi' On the question of lobbying by aspirants to high judicial appointments' to *hi.tt the Chief Justice of lndia referred I am remainded of Sardar Patel's reaction to a senior judicial ofltcer in Bihar having invoked the help tf u tvti.titter in the Central Government in support of his representation. The Sardar not oniy turtted down the representatior\ but asked the State government to convey to the officer that the way lie had attempted to advance his claim had stiengthened the Sardar's judgement about the officeds total unfitness for ever being elevated to the High CourL His principles and methods of administration-the Sardir would not have approved of the words'administrative philosophy-were exemplified in his own way\gf conducting affairs'

l9 illumined occasionally by a pithy remark H.V.R Iengar who had wofked as Home Secretary with three successive Home Ministers described to me in a personal talk their diverse methods. One of thern, with a subtle intellecl revelled in his dialectical skill and pointed our the flaws in every course of action that was proposed But when requested to decide what should be done, he would tell Ienger, "Do, as you had initially proposed". Another Home Minister, with excep. tional accomplishments in a learned profession, had such an open mind that he found it imposs- ible in some cases to close it for months. IJnger would return intellectually humbled ar rhe cost of some of his timg in the first case, and with a feeling of helplessness in the second. In contrasl the Sardar with whom he had worked earlier would listen intently, go to the root of'the matter instantly, and either approve the proposed solu- tion with just a nod" or give another, and a soun- der solutiorl with the fewest words. And to reproduce the subsfance of what Iengar told mg he could then go forward to act with the feeling that the strength of the whole nation was behind hinr" and that the Sardar would stand by him whatever might come. The Sardar's capacity for taking what has been described by some who had close associa- tion with him as, lightning decisions was the product not only of the nafural endowments of an administrator of geniuq but also of the detailed knowledge of rnen and affairs, acquired by pro- digious industry over the years and kept upto date by a variety of means. The Sardar lived in an age when computers were not in wide use; but the working of his mind is comparable to that of an advanced computer with access to first-rate soffw,are. In administration, decisions have often to be taken quickly; in lndian administration" with its extensive responsibilities in matters of development and economic management generally, and for providing social services, speedy decrsions have particular importance. And yet, the decisions have to be sound The lesson from the Sardais life is that it is of vital importance for administrators, particularly at the higher levels, to systematically equip themselves with material relevant to their sphere of woriq but develop the capacity to discriminate between the important and the unimportant An eye for the signilicant detail, but not getting lost in the pursuit of minutae for its own sake is the mark of an able administrator. ' There was so much else in the Sarddfs style of functioning which reflected his concep- tions of how administration should be carried orl and which Could well be treated as Sutras-to use an expressive Sanskrit word-to guid,e lndian administrators even today. The Sardar had a powerful precise and piercing intellect with a I capacity to take infinite pains in the pursuit of national tasks. But he was not an intellectual. It is far from my intention to under-estimate, in this academie community, the importance of intellectuals-of persons devoted to pursuit of knowledge and dealing in ideas. As in academic life so in administratiorL one has to assemble and analyse the relevant facts, and be prepared

2I to accept the conclusion to which the analysis' leads. But there are some major differences between the two. A scholar has generally far more time to collect data than an administrator. who has often to take a decision on whatever material he can get within a short time, beyond which a decision cannot be postponed There is also another signilicant difference: in academic work once the test of intellectual rigour and internal logic has been mel the matter ends; but in administration the tests of practicability and public acceptance have to be meq even if viewed from a purely logical angle the proposed decision is flawed Critical situations had to be met and time was running oul More than any one else in that momentous period of our history the Sardar realized, that there is, in the words of Shakespeare "a tide in the affairs of men which taken at the flood leads to fortune". His decisions in the cases of Junagadh arld Hyderabad are examples. The Sardar's sight was set on action; time and again he emphasised the importance of implementation, without which even excellent plans and programmes could prove sterile. He had ideas, and was given to deep reflection on the country's Droblems, but he was not an ideologue-a trader rn ideas for their own sake. He had a vision of India's future as a strong and stable natiorl democratic and secular, with a united and prosperous people. And he worked on the practical plane with passionate zeal towards fhe realization of that visio4 b-ut he was not a visionary. He was a realisg who looked at

22 things with an eye unclouded by sentiment or illusive idealism. He is reported to have remarked *It will be folly to ignore realities; facts take their revenge if they are not faced squarely...... " He was rooted in principles, but flexible in the choice of methods, which he was prepared to adapt to the requirements of a situation. I shall presently provide some illustrations. The Sardar was close to the people, as you gentlemen and ladies in Gujarat know very well' He was a son of the soil,, who graduated into national politics through organising movements of peasant resistance, and industrial labour, and as a municipal administratoi. It is not widely known, in other parts of India that having dis- tinguished himself at the Bar examination in England built up a very flourishing practice as a Barrister and adopted a western style of life, once he joined Gandhiji, he not only gave up his legal practice and discarded the western style of life but took a yow not to own any personal property vow that he kept to the end dying without -aowning even a house. With such a background it was, natural for him to be close to the people, sensitive to their needs and problems, and with deep concern for their wellbeing But he was no believer in populism with all the purious elements that go into it-a lesson for politicians and administrators.

Rhetoric in public speeches, and cir- cumlocutiorl particularly in official writing are among our national characteristics. The Sardar was not an orator or a man of letters; at a univer'

,/1 siff function he described himself as a graduate of the university of life. Both in speech and in writing he was brief, incisive and direct And there could never be any doubt that he would stand by his word Even Liaqat Ali Khan, a political antagonist before partition could say after his death that "... he always meant what he said and he said what he meant". It has been my experience that trust in his word is a far greater asset of an administrator than cleverness or elegant expression. Something of the Sardar's wqy of working rubbed off on the civil servants who had opportunities to see his mind ai *ort 1t realise that I am holding out the Sardar's exam- ple of brevity in a lengthy speech! My only excuse is the embarrassment of riches, which his contributions to administratio4 accomplished and initiated and his many dimensional personality held). The Sardar has sometimes been described as a man of "blood arrd iron". and wholly inaptly compared to Sismaick He was certainlv a -a.t of iron in the struggle for Independence and its consolidation when it came. Watching the Sar- dar during the critical months of l94t-4g, with J the vast carnagg and movement of uprooted t humanity in the western part of Indi4 aggression in Kashmir and the problems of Hyderabad" General Bucher, the British Commander in Chief saw something "rock like in his demeanour" reminding him of "the pictures of Roman Emperors". He could not be deflected froni 'his principles or pursuit of the basic national pnrposes. But he was wholly averse to

24 blood-shedding unless the'circumstances, such as the security of the country in Hyderabad or facing aggression in Kashmir, made use of the ar-ed forces unavoidable. Save in the excep tional circumstances of Hyderabad and Junagadlr" he secured integration' leading to mergBr, through persuasion, adroit handling and co.,.t"ont dealings with the princeq .appeal to their patriotism as lndians, and offer of generous and honourable treatment He did not take recourse to intimidation, but if with the power of his personality -and moral authority he was held in awe he could not help it A cruder method of dealing with the princes might well have led to conflicts, with the danger of the country's Balkanisation in the still unsettled conditions. He did not want government servants to be rigid or authoritarian in their relations with ciiizens; he wanted them to be imbued will sym- pathy and compassion I quote his own words: "[ shall now say a word to those government s€r' vants to whom has fallen and will continue to fall the implementation of the many measures of control and of regimentation of everyday affairs we have to enforce. The ? of the citizen which r powers which they wield, if lehtlV used can t tring ttre nation heavy dividends' but abused 6.ittg not only harm but disrepute' They will veri"atr often find that a kind word, a sympathetic g"ti.tt. and an attitude of understanding integrity, will loupled with honesty and -enable them to do their work much quicker and much better than sriobbery a sense of superiority and such other departures from rectitude. No one has

25 done more to see that the services get their just rights, due meed of credit, than myself I therefore make a call upon them to do their part of natiolal duty.... lf the legislature and govern_ ment place such large powers in their handq they also place on them responsibility for using them properly..,.... Let thenl thereforq so conduct themselves that every action of theirs brines as much good to the nation as possible wit-hout lnJunng anyone except the evil doer," These are precepts of even greater validity in the present conditions than they were in 1950. ln the course of the same address he had expressed his views about the need for compassion in these "we wordg always speak of India's culturq of Indian civilization, but do we ever pause to think that the relief of the pooq natural among neighbourq charity to the helpless and kindnesJto the down- trodden have been the shining virtues of that culture and civilization?" To describe a man who could offer such advice to government servanrs and talk so feelingly about compassion, as only a TT of iron is a grossely unfair, and simplisiic, delineation of a rich, many-faceted personality. The Sardar had chosen to concentrate his energies on the country's internal affairs. But the t clariry of his vision and uncanny foresight even in regard to external security are indeediemark_ able. He advised against the Kashmir problem being referred to the United Nations or offer of a plebiscite under UN auspices. His fear oi such a course bringing in international politics into operation in a manner prejudicial to our interests, proved only too true. Sheikh Abdullah I himself told me in November 1950, when I was on a private visit to Srinagar, that all his pre' blems had their root in the uncertainfy created by the reference to the United Nations and that while he had the greatest respect and affection for Mr. Nehru he would prefer Sardar Patel to handle Kashmlr a{airs and to cut the tangled khot by his direct methods such as those he had adopted in certain other cases. As recorded in V. Shankar's 'Reminiscences of Sardar Patel' the Sheikh had earlier spoken to the same effect to the Sardar himself. The Sardar had also cautioned the Prime Minister about the dangers which China's occupation of Tibet presaged And on the policy adopted towards Nepal too the Sardat's advice, not accepted in 1950, was later proved to have been absolutely sound He thought that no attempt should be made to export democracy to Nepal, that sponsoring a movement for democracy from lndian ,soil would be ill-advised and that India ought to extend friendly help in promoting reconciliation of the main elements in Nepalese life, so that a government in keeping with that country's historical and cultural traditions, and suited to the existing conditions, could come into being. The policy followed in 1950 proved a failure within a few years and had to be reversed in the sixties, and completely changed in early seventies. Time often provides a far better test of statesmanship and administrative genius, than contemporary judgement In the Sardar's case his monumental achievements were acclaimed

27 have just I even in his life time.'But in the cases I mentioned it was left to history to prove the wisdom of his views. I may also add an instance relating to internal affairs. Some twenty years after thd Sardals death Jayaprakash Narayan made a public statement as follows: "Rajaji once unburdened his heart by publicly confessing to a wrong he had done to Sardar Patel. I find myself in a similar situation; the dominant feeling within me today is one of self'reproach because during his life I was not merely a critic but an opponenl of the great Sardar." It is only rarely in a country's history that a colossug such as Vallabhbhai Patel makes his appearance; and it was our great good fortune that he was there at a crucial period in Indian life. How one wishes that we had today a leader, cast even in a less heroic mould" who could turn the tide of corruptioq indiscipling violence and lawlessness, disunity and disruption, which now mark the national scene. Wtrit.....- t have said may be of little valug but in preparing this lecture I have myself derived great inspiration and felt immeasurably enriched