OVER STORIES CBRAJESH MISHRA PRAMOD PUSHKARNA The Sangh, key ministers and NDA allies hold the principal secretary responsible for the crisis in the Government. Yet, he enjoys Vajpayee’s trust. The inside story.

■ by Prabhu CHAWLA RAJESH MISHRA LOVES PRESS CONFER- ences and there was more than a trace of the usual imperiousness on his face as he strutted into Delhi’s Shastri Bhavan last week. The rele- vant and irrelevant sections of the Prime Minis- ter’s Office (PMO) in tow,the 72-year-old principal secretarytotheprimeministerwasn’tinanexplainingmood.B His bulbous eyes gleaming defiantly, jaw jutting out and lips curled in a half sneer, Mishra was not just addressing the press, he was taking them on. Furious at the accusations lev- elledathimaftertheTehelka.comtapesshooktheGovernment, he wasn’t protesting his innocence, he was asserting it. Few politicians would have got away with such pugnacity. ButMishradid.Notmerelybecausehewassureof hisfactsbut because he had the full backing of the prime minister.His mes- sage was simple and forthright: I will stay as long as the prime ministertellsmeto;Iwillgoif itstrengthenshishands.Theun- statedtheme—IremainindispensabletoAtal BihariVajpayee. Then,beforethestunnedhackscouldrecovertheircomposure, Mishra walked off, in triumph. Itcouldwellbethebravadoof amaneffectinghislaststand. But Mishra, frankly,couldn’t give a damn. At the best of times he is cocky and adversity doesn’t change him much. If Vajpa- yee represents the benign face of the Government, Mishra epitomises its raw abrasiveness. For a man who has been a dip- lomat for 34 years, there is nothing diplomatic about Mishra. Asprincipalsecretary,nationalsecurityadviser,thespecial envoy to France for strategic dialogue and member of count- less committees established by the prime minister, Mishra is arguably one of three most powerful individuals in the NDA The Importance Government. Some would say the most powerful. No other principal secretary—not even the redoubtable P.N. Haksar who served Indira Gandhi—has acquired such an awesome profile or been at the centre of such controversy. Last week, Mishra was not only targeted by the Opposition but also by sections of the Government and the Sangh Parivar. of Being RSS chief K.S. Sudarshan called for “competent” people to be appointed to the PMO; two Samata Party MPs tried to link the party’s return to the Government with Mishra’s removal; and Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna wanted both Mishra and Offi- ceronSpecialDuty(OSD)N.K.Singhsacked.Manycabinetmin- isters met Vajpayee and, without specifically seeking Mishra’s removal, urged him to take a serious look at his office. The disorientation in the ranks was understandable. Since he joined the PMO on March 19, 1998 as Vajpayee’s personal nominee,Mishrahassethisownrules: thathewon’tbeyetan- BRAJESH other faceless bureaucrat. He is the voice of a prime minister who, despite his legendary communication skills, has inex- plicably lost his voice. Mishra doesn’t merely speak for the PMO, he speaks for the prime minister. Somewhere along the line, Vajpayee allowed the two to become indistinguishable. Mishra first made it so on May 11, 1998, by being the only manintheGovernmenttoaddressthemediaafterthePokhran blasts. According to the PMO, he did it on Vajpayee’s instruc- ALTER EGO: Mishra virtually makes up tions. It set the tone of an uninterrupted innings that has di- MISHRA Vajpayee’s mind for him on major issues vided the Government, strained Vajpayee’s relations with his partyandtheSanghParivar,andcreatedanimageproblemfor

INDIA TODAY ♦ APRIL 2, 2001 OVER STORIES CBRAJESH MISHRA COURTESY HT ON AND OFF AGAINST FOR L.K. ADVANI RAM VILAS PASWAN THE RECORD Home Minister Communications Minister Resents Mishra’s open inter- Mishra has backed him on BRAJESH MISHRA’S CV ference in security matters. policy shifts like telecom. Age: 72 JASWANT SINGH PRAMOD MAHAJAN 1951: Joins the IFS. Is sent to Cambridge University as a trainee. Foreign Minister Parliamentary Affairs Minister Believes Mishra torpedoed Had Mishra’s backing on all 1951: Returns to India and joins the his foreign policy initiatives. administrative matters. Pakistan desk in the MEA. 1957-60: Works in Indian missions K.S. SUDARSHAN R. BHATTACHARYA in Rangoon and Brussels. RSS chief PM’s foster son-in-law Thinks Mishra Is totally depen- 1960-64: Deputy secretary, HQ. represents MNCs. dent on “uncle”. 1964-69: Deputy permanent represen- tative in Indian mission to the UN. Y. SINHA M.M. JOSHI 1969-73: Charge d’Affaires, Indian Finance Minister HRD Minister Embassy, Beijing. Mishra posted key He inducted 1973-77: Permanent representative officers in ministry. Mishra into BJP. to the UN, Geneva. G. FERNANDES S. YADAV 1977-79: Indira Gandhi shunts him Ex-defence minister Aviation Minister out as ambassador to Jakarta. Dislikes Mishra’s Took Mishra’s help 1979-81: Foreign minister A.B. Vaj- parallel HQ. to fight Fernandes. payee appoints him permanent representative to the UN. 1987: Retires from service. Principal secretary National PM’s special 1991: Joins BJP, appointed convener of the party’s foreign affairs cell. coordinates with security envoy on foreign 1998: Becomes principal secretary to all ministries adviser affairs Prime Minister Vajpayee.

Graphic by YOGESH CHAUDHARY ishra hasn’t made the PMO WOESOME TWOSOME: Mishra (left) is the one-man super-MEA with Ranjan Bhattacharya, Vajpayee’s foster son-in-law. PAST PRINCIPAL SECRETARIES M and with Singh’s induction economic policy too is under the PMO Mishra is the principal secretary but in an act of Brahmanical the expert body it should be. bonding,hehasalsobecomeapartof theVajpayeehousehold. P.C. ALEXANDER 1981-1985 He has brought in largely middling taken full advantage of Vajpayee’s introvert and laidback per- No one questions Mishra’s loyalty to Vajpayee or his in- Served both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi as sonality and has gradually usurped his public role. He has be- tegrity.NoristhereanydoubtthatbyfreeingVajpayeefromde- principal secretary.In mid-1985, he was forced to officials who play second fiddle. come the public face of the Government. Since Vajpayee rarely tails, he leaves him free to focus on the big picture. But there is resign after it was discovered that two members speaks his mind in official meetings, it is Mishra who makes up a perception he also exploits Vajpayee’s trust to ram through of his personal staff were involved in a spy ring. the prime minister’s mind on crucial issues. Says a senior cab- an agenda that is at variance with the collective wisdom of the the Government. Powerful Union ministers, including Home inet minister: “Sometimes we get the impression it is Brajesh, Government.Seniorministersaremiffedthathekeepsthemin B.G. DESHMUKH 1985-1990 Minister L.K. Advani, Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, Ex- not the prime minister who has the final say.” the dark even on subjects relating to their own ministries. Among the most durable of senior bureaucrats, ternal Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and NDA convener and That’s not an inaccurate assessment. If Vajpayee doesn’t Jaswant has been most affected by this unilateralism. He he served under three prime ministers—Rajiv, former defence minister George Fernandes have at various knowhowtosayno,Mishraisincapableof takingnoforanan- and Mishra have strong disagreements on key issues involving V.P. Singh and Chandra Shekhar. Resigned in times let their displeasure with Mishra be known to Vajpayee. swer.He has definite views that he insists others must endorse. India’s relationship with the US and China. Officials have wit- 1990, a month before he was due to retire. It hasn’t made an iota of difference. An unmoved prime If there is resistance, he does the next best thing—take charge nessed verbal exchanges between the two in Vajpayee’s pres- minister has let it be known he would rather quit than suc- himself by riding roughshod over departmental niceties. ence. During the prime minister’s visit to the US last year, A.N. VERMA 1991-1996 cumbtopressuresforMishra’sremoval.Hehasharpedonhis Jaswant wasn’t shown the texts of his speeches. It was only af- Wielded awesome power during P.V. Narasimha unfettered right to choose his personal staff, a principle no T is this cockiness that is at the heart of an ongoing tus- ter Jaswant made an issue of it that Vajpayee asked Mishra to Rao’s tenure. Vetted his boss’ appointments and onecanfault.Unwillingtopresshomethepoint,Mishra’sde- sle between two parivars: the Sangh Parivar and the send the speeches to him before they were finalised. was known to keep even ministers waiting for tractors have effected a tactical retreat. But once the din of prime minister’s parivar. Mishra hasn’t been able to es- The problem is Mishra considers foreign affairs to be his days for a meeting with Rao. Economic czar. the Tehelka scandal recedes, the issue is certain to reappear. tablish a comfortable relationship with the majority of own turf. He has got Vajpayee to reverse diplomatic appoint- Why does Mishra invite such hostility? The answer lies in cabinet ministers. His former colleagues in the BJP have ments made by Jaswant. Recently, it was decided that SATISH CHANDRA 1996-1997 his overweening desire to grab the limelight, so far the prero- stoppedI dealing with him because he has been insensitive to N.K. Singh would be sent to Canada as high commissioner. As chief secretary of Karnataka, he had a good gative of elected politicians. Mishra is the only principal secre- their compulsions and denied them access to their leader. But within 24 hours of Jaswant leaving on a foreign tour, rapport with chief minister H.D. Deve Gowda. tarywhocan’tresistmediaglare.Helovesappearingon TV talk Yet, his position remains secure. What is the reason? Mishraorderedthefiletobekeptinabeyance.Previously,there Known for his integrity and honesty, he shifted to shows and holding forth on subjects ranging from economic The uncharitable version is that Mishra has been able to weredifferencesbetweenthetwooverthechoiceof India’sam- South Block when Deve Gowda moved to Delhi. reforms to nuclear diplomacy.After becoming principal secre- feed on Vajpayee’s sense of vulnerability. He appears to have bassador to the US, with former foreign secretary Lalit Mans- tary,hehasaddressedthreepressconferencesandappearedon successfully convinced the prime minister and his family that ingh becoming the compromise choice. Two years ago, when N.N. VOHRA 1997-1998 TV talk shows on more than 150 occasions. During Vajpayee’s hisjobisonlytolookaftertheirinterests.HeclaimstokeepVaj- Vajpayee appointed Jaswant, the then Planning Commission The former home and defence secretary was foreign tours, it is Mishra who briefs the media, never mind the payeefullyinformed.Consequently,heenjoysunhinderedand deputy chairman, as his special envoy to the US, Mishra had to director of the India International Centre in Delhi presence of even the foreign minister. He exudes the confi- unlimited access to the prime minister’s household, including be placated with the post of special envoy to France. when fellow Saturday Club mate I.K. Gujral beat dence of a man who thinks he was born to rule. its dining table. He visits the Vajpayee home at 3 Race Course During the past three years, Mishra has made several trips all odds to become the prime minister. Political and bureaucratic circles believe that Mishra has Road at least twice each day and even shares an evening drink abroad without any prior consultation with the foreign min-

INDIA TODAY ♦ APRIL 2, 2001 OVER STORIES CBRAJESH MISHRA

PRIME FAILING ATAL Five joint secretaries, 13 deputy secretaries, a manpower of 400. BIHARI The PMO is huge. But Brajesh Mishra has packed it with in- VAJPAYEE experienced juniors rather than Prime Minister tested hands. So other than him, few PMO men influence policy.

R. RAGHAVAN

JS (NSC & 4 ministries)

ASHOK TANDON A. BISARIA V. ANANDRAJAN BRAJESH MISHRA Addl Secy (Media) PS to PM PS to PM Principal Secretary

S. KULKARNI Director (Media)

ASHOK SAIKIA H.K. DUA N.K. SINGH A.S. DULLAT JS (Admn & Cab Sec) Media Adviser OSD, Economic Affairs OSD, Kashmir Affairs ARCHANA RANJAN IAS (Director) JARNAIL SINGH JAVED USMANI CHATTAR SINGH PRAVESH SHARMA JS (Home +14 ministries) JS (Power +11 ministries) JS (Telecom + 9ministries) IAS (Director) RASHMI VERMA IAS (Director) PUSHPA SUBRAMANYAM SANJEEV SAHAI R.P.SINGH IAS (Director) IAS (Director) IAS (Director)

Graphic by YOGESH CHAUDHARY ister. He runs his own innovative diplomatic channels that inthestatewithoutgoingviatheministry.The PMO,however, bypass existing institutions. In 1998, he used the Hinduja claims that Advani has always been kept informed. But two brothers to organise a meeting with British Prime Minister months ago, the Home Ministry came to know of the ap- Tony Blair. He has been conducting his own back-channel pointment of A.S. Dullat as OSD to the prime minister on diplomacy with Pakistan without taking either Advani or Kashmir affairs from the newspapers. It was interpreted as Jaswant into confidence. He has even utilised the help of the Mishra’s bid to bring Kashmir under his direct charge. Reliance Group to establish his links across the border. Mishra has also annoyed Sinha by pitting Singh against Using his position as national security adviser, Mishra him and packing his ministry with PMO-nominated officials. has tread on Advani’s toes. He has packed the National Se- In October last, when Sinha wanted to change key officials, curity Advisory Board with his own people. Though the De- he wasn’t given a choice. He argued his case with Mishra for partment of Kashmir Affairs was reverted to the Home three hours but finally accepted Ajit Kumar, Mishra’s candi- Ministry in 1998, Mishra has been taking an undue interest date, as finance secretary. The PMO also prevailed in the

INDIA TODAY ♦ APRIL 2, 2001 OVER STORIES CBRAJESH MISHRA SHARAD SAXENA ajpayee’s family believes only V Mishra is beyond reproach.

fromministriesandinfluencetheirdecisions.Italsoprovided Mishra the luxury to focus on politics and diplomacy. Ironically, apart from Singh, Mishra never encouraged theinductionof otherseniorofficialsintothe PMO.Vajpayee’s PMO is perceived as one institution that lacks both talent and expertise. Under Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, the PMO was manned by stalwarts like Manmohan Singh, Gopi Arora, R. Vasudevan, H.Y. Sharada Prasad, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Ronnen Sen and Arjun Sengupta. All were ex- perts in their own fields. Now barring IAS officer Ashok Saikia, who enjoys Vajpayee’s trust, Mishra has drafted a motley crowd of ex-journalists and middle-level civil ser- NEPAL AND BEYOND: Mishra is obsessed with foreign policy vants. By keeping the PMO weak, he has emerged stronger. The Tehelka tapes may have stirred Vajpayee but it has- choice of heads of various financial institutions. n’t shaken his confidence in Mishra. The principal secre- Initially, Mishra dabbled in foreign policy, a subject he tary’s show of defiance last week was shrewdly prefaced on was familiar with. However, with the induction of Singh in the belief that no responsible section of the NDA would seri- the PMO in1998,Mishrafoundinhimapowerfulallyinman- ously press for his removal now because it would affect Vaj- aging politics and the civil service.The PMO soon became the payee’sstanding.EvenhisdetractorswanttodelinkMishra’s fulcrum of all activities on the economic and diplomatic removalfromtheTehelkaissue.Whichexplainsthewhispers front. Singh persuaded Vajpayee to head various working about a Rajya Sabha seat and a cabinet berth. Depending on groups on economic matters. Over six such groups were ap- the pressure on Vajpayee, it may or may not happen. But for pointed and both Singh and Mishra became its members. Mishra, that’s the breathing space he needs to successfully ThismovegaveSinghalegitimateexcusetosummonofficials conduct his business as the prime minister’s hit man. ■

SHARAD SAXENA N.K.SINGH Supercrat in his LABYRINTH The economic policy wizard gets defensive

■ by Prabhu CHAWLA HERE ARE 240 SECRETARIES TO THE GOV- ernment but he is always a cut above—in style, networking and power.The subdued lighting and rich Persian silk carpets distinguish his room on the first floor of the PMO at South Block from the staidT top chambers of the capital’s bhavans.There is a classy casualness about everything on him, be it the Hermes tie or the Patek Philippe watch. Nand Kishore Singh, secretary to the prime minister till January and Officer on Special Duty (OSD)atthePMO, is too powerful a man to be seen telling be- fore television cameras: “I am clean.” A 1964 batch IAS offi- cer of the Bihar cadre, son of Sir T.P.Singh, ICS, and married into the Jodhpur princely family, he is perched too high to stoopanddefendhimself beforethemedia.Yet,thegreatlev- eller of egos that the Tehelka aftershocks became, last week

A CUT ABOVE: ingh is a survivor par excellence Singh is classy, S and a consummate power player. casual and powerful

INDIA TODAY ♦ APRIL 2, 2001 OVER STORIES CN.K. SINGH

“Nandu” goose-stepped in tow with his boss Brajesh Mishra roar against cellular operators. toappearbeforethemediainajointself-exonerationbid.And A consummate power player, and known to be an that despite his name figuring nowhere in theTehelka tapes. efficient officer, Singh loves flattery, particularly from cor- At the press conference, Singh was evidently proxying porate czars who never tire of complimenting him as the for Mishra on economic issues, of which he (Singh) is in “truearchitect”of everybudget.Singhacceptsthetoastwith charge at the PMO. Much of Singh’s arguments were rebut- a Bonaparte-like chin-raising, which, in turn, creates heart- tal of the charges hurled at the Government by former sec- burn amongst his colleagues. If he has still survived in retary E.A.S. Sarma, which were lapped up by the media. It power, it is because of his great capacity to outsmart even is not true, as Singh said, that the Centre was planning to powerful enemies. In 1998, when Finance Minister Yash- accord a counter-guarantee to the Hirma power project in want Sinha was eager to see him out of his ministry as rev- Orissa, promoted, among others, by Reliance Industries enue secretary,he triumphantly walked across Vijay Chowk Limited (RIL). Nor was there any hanky-panky in awarding to enter the most powerful office of the land. Since then he the national highway project contracts, and the PMO was in andAhluwaliahavebecomeapermanenttargetof criticism no way involved in setting up a fertiliser project in Oman, fortheinnercoreof theSanghParivar,notablytheSwadeshi which was “initiated by the previous government”. Jagran Manch. The duo was accused, among other things, However, it was while defending the PMO against the of cosyingupto MNCs.Ahluwaliathengotshuntedoutof the charge of bending the telecom policy to the advantage of its Finance Ministry to the nondescript Planning Commission. “friends”thatSinghtiedhimself inknots.Theallegationwas But Singh was too high for the Sangh’s reach. that the PMO had allowed the fixed telecom service providers He proved his power of survival as recently as January, limited mobility through when Prime Minister A.B. wireless-in-local-loop(WLL) HIS MASTER’S CHOICE: Singh (left) lobbied to stay on in the PMO Vajpayee announced to his technology, thus exposing ministers that Singh the cellular service wouldn’t be seen at the PMO providers to unexpected after his retirement on Jan- and unjust competition. uary 31. A “Save Nandu” Their loss on account of lobby immediately sprang the old licence fees was into action. Commerce computed at Rs 7,500 Minister Murasoli Maran crore. Singh argued that was sounded out by Mishra the PMO had no hand in it. if he could recommend The facts are some- Singh for ambassadorship what different. The de- to the WTO, but Maran’s re- mand for limited mobility ply was a resounding “no”. of fixed phones was in- External Affairs Minister deed turned down by the Jaswant Singh was then Telecom Regulatory persuaded to send him to Authority of India (TRAI) Canada as the high com- in June 1999, when Jus- missioner. But Singh, re- tice (retd) S.S. Sodhi was luctant to leave India, at the helm of the regula- sought the help of Disin- tory body. Subsequently, vestment Minister Arun TRAI members got the Shourie to plead for him marching orders and a with L.K. Advani, the pow- new body was set up un- erful home minister. Ad- der the chairmanship of vani gave his nod to SIPRA DAS former State Bank of Shourie for appointment of India chief M.S. Verma. ontrary to his assertions that Singh to an innocuous While the brand-new TRAI C post in India. Much to was toying with policy the PMO had no hand in his dismay, he saw Singh changes, Singh called, on changing the telecom policy, the backinthe PMO,inthesame October 11 last year, a room as before, and with meeting of the Group of move had been initiated by Singh. the same power. Secretaries on telecom. It A survivor par ex- was on the recommenda- cellence, Singh served as tion of this group operating within the PMO that the recast special assistant (SA) to the late L.N. Mishra when he was TRAI gave the green signal to WLL use. It took just four weeks in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Trade (later renamed for the decision taken in Singh’s room to be processed in CommerceMinistry).TheTulmohanRamscandalbrokein the DoT and reach TRAI for consultation. The main benefi- that period, but it didn’t touch Singh. In the Emergency he ciaries of this decision include RIL, the largest player in the was SA to pro-Sanjay Gandhi commerce minister D.P.Chat- emerging basic-service market, and Himachal Futuristic topadhyay and hit it off famously with Indira Gandhi’s Communications Limited (HFCL), which tied up with a host powerful SA R.K.Dhawan.However,inthepost-Emergency of foreign telecom companies to provide basic services. huntforDhawan’slieutenants,Singhremainedunnamed. The Government decision was decried by all major cellu- He flitted with practised ease in the Finance Ministry un- lar operators, though nobody had the courage to point a derManmohanSingh,P.ChidambaramandevenSinhafor finger at the PMO. On his part though, Singh asserts that a while. It is to be seen if he can do an encore when he’s the he never directed the DoT to refer to TRAI the issue of Short target of not only the Opposition but also a sizeable section Distance Charging Area (SDCA) which has created an up- of the ruling BJP. ■

INDIA TODAY ♦ APRIL 2, 2001