A Decade of Shame Victims of Gujarat’S Anti-Muslim Pogrom of February 2002 Are Still ﬁghting for Justice Against a Powerful State Machinery Led by Narendra Modi

FRONTLINEMARCH 9, 2012 WWW.FRONTLINE.IN INDIA’S NATIONAL MAGAZINE RS.25 ENVIRONMENT FLAMINGOES RESERVATION MUSLIMS INTERVIEW RICHARD STALLMAN Halting the pink tide 64 For a fair deal 90 Freedom & software 111

A decade of shame Victims of Gujarat’s anti-Muslim pogrom of February 2002 are still ﬁghting for justice against a powerful state machinery led by Narendra Modi

VOLUME 29 NUMBER 4 FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 09, 2012 ISSN 0970-1710 WWW.FRONTLINE.IN

ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS COVER STORY A decade of shame Terminal trouble 130 Uttar Pradesh: Interview: Advantage Mulayam 25 Victims of the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in K. Mohandas 132 the State Gujarat are still to get justice but Interview: DEFENCE Rizwan Soomar 134 Interceptor missile: they are determined to continue the ﬁght. 4 Successful launch 29 COLUMN C.P. Chandrasekhar: CONTROVERSY The Chinese way 39 ISRO/Antrix-Devas deal: Bhaskar Ghose: Procedures & lapses 31 Democracy in action 99 Praful Bidwai: SCANDAL Reining in Israel 104 36 Spectrum shocks R.K. Raghavan: WORLD AFFAIRS Murder in school 109 Maldives: Jayati Ghosh: A President’s exit 41 Capital concerns 115 Iran: War of nerves 46 UPDATE Syria: Gen. V.K. Singh: 49 Skewed resolution The waiting game 28 U.S.: Austerity of hope 52 Ghosts of Iraq 55 Hungry & homeless BOOKS 73 in Greece 59 Myanmar: A new chapter 61 LETTERS 126

ENVIRONMENT Flamingoes in Mumbai: RELATED STORIES Halting the pink tide 64 A tale of two reports 10 The police diary 18 OBITUARY ‘SIT too works Interview: Whitney Houston: Every woman’s diva 87 for victims’ 12 Sanjiv Bhatt 20 The trailblazer 88 Standing up to High Court the state 13 censure 22 RESERVATION Interview: Negligence and A fair deal for Muslims 90 R.B. Sreekumar 16 inaction 23 LIVELIHOOD ISSUES Karnataka: Woes of nomadic tribes 95 ENVIRONMENT The Sewri mudﬂats in Mumbai, GENDER ISSUES home to a rich biodiversity, On the Cover Narendra Modi and Zakia Jafri. Diluting Domestic including ﬂamingoes, is under Violence Act 101 threat from a development PHOTOGRAPHS: ROHIT JAIN PARAS AND PTI project. 64 COVER DESIGN: U. UDAYA SHANKAR SOCIAL ISSUES Tamil Nadu: RESERVATION Published by K. BALAJI, Kasturi Buildings, Quarries of exploitation 106 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600 002 and No one can complain that too Printed by P. Ranga Reddy at Kala Jyothi INTERVIEW much has been given to the Process Private Limited, Survey No. 185, minorities, in particular Muslims, Kondapur, Ranga Reddy District-500 133, Richard M. Stallman on Andhra Pradesh on behalf of Kasturi & Sons Ltd., the future of free software 111 through the sub-quota for B.Cs among the minorities. 90 Chennai-600 002. FOCUS: DRDO EDITOR: R. VIJAYA SANKAR (Editor responsible Indian eye in the sky 118 INTERVIEW for selection of news under the PRB Act). All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or Microwave masters 120 Richard M. Stallman, founder of the GNU in part without written permission is prohibited. MARITIME TRADE project, speaks on the e-mail: [email protected] Waiting for cargo future of the free software Frontline is not responsible for the content of in Kerala 128 movement. 111 external Internet sites.

FRONTLINE 3 Cover Story MARCH 9, 2012 A DECADE OF The victims of the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat are still to get justice but are SIDDHARTH DARSHAN KUMAR/AP The Zakia Jafri case symbolises the SAIRABEN SANDHI and Rupa Mody sit quietly on the back benches at the Metropolitan Magist- struggle for justice and is reaching a rate’s Court in Ahmedabad watching the proceedings in the Zakia Jafri case. Both the women have crucial stage. It is the only case in witnessed immense tragedy. One saw her son killed, while the other has been searching for her missing which Chief Minister Narendra son for the past 10 years. In the courtroom, there are others too who survived the gruesome massacre at Modi is named as an accused and is, Gulberg Society in Ahmedabad in 2002. All of them have gone through the trauma of seeing immediate therefore, seen as critical in nailing family members hacked or burnt to death. The judge eventually postpones the hearing to another day and the perpetrators of the pogrom. the survivors ﬁle out. They seem used to this routine.

4 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 SHAME determined to continue the ﬁght. BY ANUPAMA KATAKAM IN AHMEDABAD

perpetrators of the pogrom. Coinci- dently, as the tenth anniversary of the Gujarat riots approaches, the case has taken a significant turn. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has filed a “closure report” saying there is not enough evidence to prosecute Modi. Zakia Jafri’s legal team has gone in appeal. Its main contention is that the riots were meticulously planned and those in seats of power deliberately turned a blind eye to the attacks on Muslims across the State. In the past few years, Modi has tried hard to get rid of the taint of the riots and get what he calls a “clean chit”. However, each time the “clean chit” has been within grasp, the law has intervened to thwart him. With As- sembly elections in Gujarat scheduled for later this year and national politics beckoning him as an aspirant for the prime ministership, Modi appears desperate to get the riots-responsible label off his back. Furthermore, he has worked the corporate sector to project himself as a forward-thinking leader who is interested in bringing prosper- ity and development to his State – and not as a saffron politician interested only in communal politics. Getting the Tatas to shift their Nano small car plant to Sanand from Singur in West JANAK PATEL Bengal was clearly a part of this agen- GULBERG SOCIETY IN Ahmedabad today. Sixty-nine people died in the da, say observers. arson and massacre at the Society in the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom February 28, 2012, will mark a dec- (picture at left). Of the 30 homes and approximately 20 families, only one ade since the Gujarat riots, undoubt- family continues to inhabit what is now virtually a ghost colony. edly one of the worst chapters of communal violence in the country’s There is a level of tension and dis- even if it takes another 10 years,” says history. Official estimates put the appointment among them, but they Rupa Mody. death toll, of both Hindus and Mus- are not entirely disheartened. The Zakia Jafri case has begun to lims, at a little over 1,000, while un- “We come for every hearing in this symbolise the struggle for justice for all officially it has been pegged at more case. Until we are alive we are not the riot victims and is reaching a cru- than 2,000. At least 600 children were going to give up. We are not going to cial stage. It is the only case in which orphaned and more than 400 were leave him [Chief Minister Narendra Modi is named as an accused and is, reported missing. Modi]. We know we will get justice therefore, seen as critical in nailing the Ten years later, the wounds are still

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to heal. The investigation into the riot single-handedly. Eventually, he lack of prosecutable evidence against cases are plodding along with no clo- stepped out of his house in an attempt Modi. Zakia Jafri’s legal recourse is to sure in sight. The only case to reach a to placate the mob. They killed him appeal for the report. On February 15, conclusion is Sardarpura, where a mob and then burnt his body in front of his she was told the report would be given burnt alive 33 Muslims trapped in a family and neighbours. within a month. This could mean the house. Thirty-one people were impris- Zakia Jafri remembers vividly ev- end of her case but she does have the oned for life in this case. There are ery moment of those two horrific days. provision to appeal in the higher eight other cases that are pending trial. As many as 69 people died in Gulberg courts and eventually in the Supreme For many victims the memories of Society and 28 went missing, one of Court. the violence are still fresh in their them was Azhar, Rupa Mody’s 13- In 2006, Zakia Jafri petitioned the minds. “Only justice will help heal. But year-old son. To date they remain mis- court alleging that Modi and 61 others, nothing they do can bring back my sing. including politicians, policemen and son,” says Rupa Mody. Zakia Jafri, along with several ac- bureaucrats, had colluded to ensure If the nightmares of the 2002 vio- tivists and members of the Citizens of that the victims of the mob attacks lence were not bad enough, the minor- Justice and Peace (CJP), a non-gov- during the riots did not receive help. ity communities have had to cope with ernmental organisation, has main- Zakia Jafri, along with other witness- severe marginalisation. Thousands of tained that the Gujarat riots were a es, testified in court that Ehsan Jafri families have been hounded out of the pogrom and that there is enough evi- repeatedly called Modi when they State, and they have moved with just dence to prove this. Leading a pro- were under attack. But no help came. the clothes on their back to areas such tracted legal fight for justice for the She accused Modi of abdicating his as Mumbra in Maharashtra. On issues past eight years, the feisty 70-year-old duty as the constitutionally elected relating to the minority community, says she will not back down until the head of the State government to pro- the dominant view is that over the past perpetrators and killers of her hus- tect the right to life of all its citizens decade Gujarat has become more po- band and thousands of other Muslims regardless of their caste, community larised than ever before. Access to edu- are punished. and gender and becoming the archi- cation, employment, housing and “Now, at this stage, we won’t let tect of a criminal conspiracy. other fundamental needs is becoming them close the case so easily. We will In 2007, the Gujarat High Court increasingly difficult. What is worse is keep it going for however long it takes rejected her petition for a first infor- that there are few rays of optimism – to get justice,” says Zakia Jafri, who mation report (FIR) to be filed. Zakia there is only a sense of helplessness. lives with her son in Surat. “You cannot Jafri and the CJP then filed a special say that in 10 years nothing has hap- leave petition (SLP) in the Supreme ZAKIA JAFRI, A BIG HOPE pened. Modi’s name is linked to ter- Court, which appointed Prashant Zakia Jafri saw her husband, Ehsan rible communal riots. His name is Bhushan amicus curiae. In 2009, the Jafri, a former Member of Parliament, badnaamed (sullied) all over the court appointed a Special Investiga- being hacked to death. Ehsan Jafri world. Everyone knows his true col- tion Team led by R.K. Raghavan, for- thought that his house in Gulberg So- ours since this case has got so much mer Director of the Central Bureau of ciety offered the best protection to oth- attention. The fact that he has blood on Investigation (CBI), to probe the Zakia er residents of the locality from the his hands… he cannot wipe that off so Jafri case. rampaging mobs. Unfortunately, in easily,” she said to Frontline. In 2010, Zakia Jafri and thousands spite of several phone calls to the police Zakia Jafri’s case reached a critical of others saw some manner of justice and senior politicians, help never ar- juncture in February, when the SIT when the SIT summoned Modi for rived and Jafri had to handle the mob decided to file a “closure report” citing questioning. This was the first time in

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the country’s history that a Chief Min- ister was questioned in a criminal complaint that dealt with communal violence. But two years later the SIT in its report cited lack of substantial evidence to prosecute him. In an interview to Frontline, at that time she said: “Yes. It has been a long time. But when I heard Modi had been summoned, I said, ‘Insaf ho jayega’ [Justice will happen]. Someone like Modi cannot be accused of such a major crime without adequate evidence. We have persevered at collecting every relevant detail to implicate him. One day it will pay off. If he admits his guilt, that itself would be a punishment for someone like him.” In what seemed like a victory for both parties, in September 2011 the Supreme Court sent the Zakia Jafri case back to the trial court in Ahmeda- bad as it chose not to pass judgment on whether Modi should be prosecuted or not. Modi celebrated the order, saying this essentially let him off the hook. Zakia Jafri and Teesta Setalvad, activist and lawyer with the CJP, too, welcomed the order and saw it as a move in the right direction. “This is part of the judicial process and we welcome and respect the Su- preme Court’s directive. It has not, by any length, given Modi a clean chit. They are just following the correct procedures,” said Teesta Setalvad. “Of course, we couldn’t expect the Su- preme Court to make a major decision, but this is as good. The reason why it is ASAM PANTHAKY/FP a victory for us and not for Modi or the CHIEF MINISTER NARENDRA MODI speaking at a BJP rally near BJP is that it has gone past the FIR Ahmedabad on September 25, 2011. stage,” she said. This February the SIT, however, took what is now being seen as a predictable step and filed a “closure report”. Activists and those involved in the case exploded at the move. Sanjiv Bhatt, a suspended police officer who was named as a witness by Zakia Jafri and who testified against Modi, said: “In spite of substantial direct evidence and overwhelming circumstantial evidence to establish Modi’s complicity in the anti-Muslim pogrom of 2002, the SIT says they do not have enough to prosecute him.” He added: “The SIT

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has deliberately suppressed and con- cealed data which would implicate Modi.” In 2010, Raju Ramachandran was appointed amicus curiae as Prashant Bhushan stepped down. Informed sources say Ramachandran’s report is damning and ﬂies in the face of the SIT’s “closure report”. The next few weeks will determine where this case goes, says Teesta Setalvad. “But we will pursue it relentlessly. The Zakia Jafri case has become a symbol of justice and we have to keep it going.”

GULBERG SOCIETY – A MOTHER’S STORY Rupa (Tanaz) Mody, her husband Da- ra Mody, and two children were the only non-Muslims living in Gulberg Society. Her son Azhar has been missing since February 28, 2002. Until she sees his body, she says she will not be convinced he is dead. He is among the 28 persons missing from this colony, which was ravaged by a mob that set it on fire by throwing chemical- filled vials that burst into flames once they hit a surface. Eyes brimming with tears, she says she has searched for Azhar for 10 years and will continue searching for him. The family has gone through every morgue in the city, every police station, and put up posters too. A film, Par- zania, has been made on her son. They have done whatever it takes to locate a missing person, but there is absolutely no sign of the boy. Distraught and an- gry, she says: “I will fight until my dying day to see that Modi and his band of rogues are nailed. I was in Jafri Sa- heb’s house and saw how our cries for help were ignored by Modi and the police. I want them to pay.” On the eve of the Zakia Jafri closure report case, Rupa Mody spoke to Frontline about what happened at Gulberg Society 10 years ago. Her story is only one of many horrific incidents that took place during the pogrom. She summoned the courage to speak out where others could not: “My children were at tuition when we heard of the train burning in God-

INFOGRAPHICS: V.S. WASSON hra. The TV was on in my house but I

8 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

didn’t pay much attention to it at that find him. We finally made it up to the and violent the riots were, one has to time. My husband, who is a film pro- terrace, but even there we couldn’t find walk through the Society compound jectionist, called from his office to say Azhar. I tried going back down but today. The houses are burnt shells. there were reports of violence and we everyone told me the mob would kill Walls are broken and covered with should be careful. I got the children me. Still Zakiaben said, ‘Let her go – soot from the fires started by the mob. home. Then we began to see our neigh- she is a mother.’ Finally, when help There are no windows on any of the bours come out looking concerned. came, we were told a boy matching houses, and the ones that remain are Ours was a small enclosed colony of Azhar’s description was at the Saibagh either shattered or have fallen. The houses and from my flat I could see police station. I rushed into the police floors are covered with mud and ash. people gathering on nearby terraces. station shouting ‘Azhu! Azhu!’ but it Here and there are burnt remnants of That is when I saw one man holding a wasn’t him. I haven’t stopped search- household materials – a painting, gupti [axe] pointing towards us – then ing since then. some slippers. It is an eerie feeling I became concerned. “We went back to Gulberg Society when one wonders how many dead “We started gathering in Jafri Sa- almost two weeks later. The entire col- bodies would have been found on these heb’s house. He was an MP and we ony had been burnt down. Ironically, floors. were sure he would organise help. Sud- my house was untouched. Perhaps be- Gulberg’s compound is filled with denly there were hundreds of men cause I had a picture of Mata on the weeds, overgrown foliage, garbage and scaling the walls and entering the So- wall they thought it was a Hindu stagnant water. Stray dogs have made ciety. They had hundreds of little vials house. Sometimes I wonder if I hadn’t it their home, and one can see a few of chemicals – resembling nail polish left my house we would have been safe passers-by stopping to ease themselves bottles, which they threw into our and I would still have Azhar.” on the walls of what was once some- house. As soon as they hit a surface one’s home. A watchman from the they would explode in flames. The mob nearby bakery is allowed to use one of had cleverly cut the water supply from The houses are the rooms of a bombed-out home, to the overhead tanks ,so we had no way sleep during the day. When awake he of putting out the fires. They began burnt shells. keeps an eye on the property. The gheraoing Jafri Saheb’s house and de- property cannot be sold or developed manding that he come out. We were The walls are as it is under litigation, testimony to a 30-40 of us hiding, and we tried to terrible crime and a numbing remind- hide the gas cylinders so that the broken and er to those who survived. chemicals would not hit them. They Of the 30 homes and approximate- were using the cylinders to blast walls. covered with ly 20 families, only one family contin- Meanwhile, outside, our neighbours ues to inhabit what is now virtually a were being butchered by the mob. We soot. ghost colony. Kasimbhai Alanoor could hear women shrieking – later I Mansoori lost 12 family members, in- was told many were raped. Rupa Mody says Zakia Jafri’s case cluding his wife, daughter and a son. “By the evening almost every room is very critical to all the riot cases. This Occupying the first house, he says he was on fire. There was a ladder leading case names Modi as the prime accused. does not live here anymore but uses the to the terrace at the back of the house. She says everyone in Gujarat will agree premises for business. We started climbing towards that es- that Modi controls everything, and “We built these houses with so cape. By then many people had fallen this violence could not have taken much difficulty. The houses must be unconscious because of the smoke. I place without his consent and worth a least Rs.50 lakh. But that could hear Jafri Saheb say, ‘Let me die knowledge. doesn’t matter. We have lost so much if it saves you.’ That was the last line we “What do you tell a mother who more,” says Mansoori. “The Gulberg heard from him. He was killed by the cannot find her child?” says Father Ce- Society case is very important because mob. At this point I had both my chil- dric Prakash, who heads Prashant, a of Modi’s involvement. We have to dren with me. In the commotion, I fell. human rights organisation in Ahme- keep fighting,” he says. “As I fell I could hear my daughter dabad. “Modi won’t allow Parzania to Every year on February 28, mem- shout: mummy get up, mummy get up. be screened in Ahmedabad. Why? bers of Gulberg Society gather in the My daughter had been holding my son What is he afraid of?” compound and pay homage to those Azhar’s hand right through the time who were killed. This year will be no we were hiding in Jafri Saheb’s house. A GHOST COLONY different. It can only be hoped that the She had to let go of it to save me. When Located in Meghaninagar, a suburb of Zakia Jafri case moves in the right di- I managed to get up I only saw my Ahmedabad, Gulberg Society is a tiny rection. Anything other than that daughter Binaifer not Azhar. We kept colony of half a dozen houses and 18 would be unfair to those who have lost shouting Azhu! Azhu!, but could not apartments. To understand how cruel so much. २

FRONTLINE 9 Cover Story MARCH 9, 2012 A tale of two reports

There are two serious points of disagreement in the reports of the SIT and the

amicus curiae, Raju Ramachandran. BY V. VENKATESAN IN NEW DELHI

According to reliable sources, the There are seemingly intractable disagreements between the SIT’s report and that of the amicus curiae, which the Magistrate will have to apply his SIT and amicus reports disagree mind to during this period. The disagreements are, among other things, on the nature of the investiga- essentially on the treatment of the tion undertaken so far and the degree of culpability of those named in a complaint on the horrendous suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt’s events of February 2002. Zakia Jafri, wife of Congress leader Ehsan Jafri testimony and on the who was killed along with 68 others in the Gulberg Society massacre, had, in her complaint, made 32 recommendations against specific allegations against 62 persons, including Chief Minister Narendra Modi, functionaries of the two senior police officers. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), civil servants and po- THE Ahmedabad Metropolitan Magistrate, lice officers. M.S. Bhatt, on February 15, rejected pleas seeking The most serious allegation was that Modi had copies of the Supreme Court-appointed Special In- convened a meeting at his bungalow in Gandhinagar vestigation Team’s (SIT) report on the 2002 Gujarat on February 27, 2002, in which he instructed the carnage until March 15 on a technicality – that the Director General of Police (DGP), the Chief Secre- SIT needs more time to submit its full report along tary, and other senior officials to allow Hindus to with all documents, evidence and other details, be- vent their anger at Muslims for the Sabarmati Ex- sides the report of the Supreme Court’s amicus cu- press train tragedy in Godhra. riae, Raju Ramachandran. The SIT, in a “summary closure report” filed JANAK PATEL OUTSIDE THE AHMEDABAD Metropolitan Magistrate Court on February 13 when it heard a plea from Zakia Jafri and the Citizens for Justice and Peace for access to the SIT report.

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before the Magistrate’s court on Feb- ruary 8, reportedly said there was no “prosecutable evidence” against Modi. The SIT’s report is yet to be made public though leaked portions of the report have been carried in the media. The Supreme Court handed the charge of Zakia Jafri’s complaint to the SIT in April 2009. After the SIT submitted three interim reports to it, the court felt the need to appoint an am-

icus curiae to assess the reports inde- N. SRIDHARAN S. SUBRAMANIUM pendently. Thus, in November 2010 it R.K. RAGHAVAN, head of the RAJU RAMACHANDRAN, WHO was appointed Raju Ramachandran, Se- Special Investigation Team. The SIT appointed amicus curiae by the nior Advocate of the Supreme Court, has time until March 15 to submit its Supreme Court in November 2010 in the amicus and gave him a wide man- full report along with all documents, the Zakia Jafri case after the SIT had date, including permission to talk to evidence and other details. submitted its report. the witnesses and arrive at an independent conclusion, uninfluenced by According to reliable sources, the SIT who all were present at the meet- the SIT reports. SIT and amicus reports agree on most ing on February 27, 2002, Modi After the amicus submitted his re- aspects of the investigation. They dis- named seven officers but added, with- port, the Supreme Court, on Septem- agree essentially on two issues. One out any prompting, that Bhatt was not ber 12 last year, sent the case to the trial pertains to the treatment of the sus- present as this was a high-level court along with the SIT and amicus pended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt’s testi- meeting. reports. mony. Bhatt corroborated Zakia Jafri’s Bhatt was the Deputy Commis- As Raju Ramachandran explained allegation against Modi, as to what he sioner of Police in the State Intelli- in interviews he gave to the media at told the officers present at the meeting gence Bureau at that time. Since the that time, the Supreme Court did not held at his residence on February 27, State intelligence chief, G.C. Raigar suggest lack of trust in the SIT when it 2002. Bhatt claimed he was present at was on leave, the DGP wanted Bhatt to appointed him the amicus. The court, the meeting, and presented evidence be present at the meeting. he said, only wanted an alternative to corroborate it. Of the seven officers Modi claimed view to be available to the Magistrate The SIT, in its report, considers were present at the meeting, only one for consideration. Bhatt an unreliable witness. But the denied Bhatt’s presence, while the re- He had told The Hindu: “Under amicus, according to sources, has sug- plies of three officers were vague. the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, it gested that Bhatt should be cross-ex- Three officers pleaded loss of memory is the investigating agency which in- amined before any conclusion can be owing to passage of time. They neither vestigates and files a report in the reached. The SIT’s reluctance to cross- confirmed nor denied Bhatt’s pres- court. On the other hand, the Supreme examine Bhatt is inexplicable, espe- ence. The SIT itself, according to re- Court – in exercise of its powers under cially because it has cast doubts about ports, found these officers unreliable, Articles 136 and 142 of the Constitu- other senior police officers who were as three of them had secured post-re- tion – has made the report of the am- present at the meeting. tirement jobs from the Modi govern- icus curiae a relevant factor to be taken Bhatt had filed an affidavit in the ment. Yet, the SIT appears to have into consideration.... This is an addi- Supreme Court in April last year stat- concluded that Bhatt’s presence at the tional safeguard which the court has ing that he had informed the SIT about meeting could not be proved, and found fit to introduce, which is not his presence at the said meeting at the therefore, his statement had to be done as a matter of course. The SIT Chief Minister’s residence and that he ignored. would be entitled in law to disagree was willing to testify after a criminal Bhatt had made serious allegations with the amicus curiae, but... the am- case was registered. He had also al- against the SIT in his affidavit to the icus report will also be before the leged that the SIT was not conducting Supreme Court. One is that the SIT court. If there is a conflict, it is the an impartial and thorough probe into was disinclined to follow up important court which has the final word, after the allegations of a larger conspiracy leads he provided on the cover-up op- hearing the complainant.” and administrative complicity behind erations of high officials of the State The magistrate, therefore, has the the carnage. administration to undermine the in- onerous responsibility of having to When the SIT examined Modi on vestigation. consider the conflict between the SIT March 25, 2010, he knew what Bhatt Second, he alleged that the SIT and amicus reports carefully. had told the SIT earlier. Asked by the chose to intimidate certain witnesses

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‘SIT too works for victims’ AN informed source close to the Spe- dence Act. In a criminal case, unless of that. We are under no compulsion cial Investigation Team (SIT) was there is conclusive evidence, guilt to take everything. The amicus cu- unwilling to confirm to Frontline cannot be pronounced. riae’s report is an observation or im- whether its report filed with the Ah- “The general impression is that pression of the case, not a probe like medabad Magistrate’s court was a the SIT is bad. Some people have an the SIT’s investigation. So it has to be “closure report” in the Zakia Jafri agenda and so they say it. But we will treated in that manner,” said the case. That information remains be- go on doing our duty in a fair-mind- source. tween the court and the SIT, was all ed way. The Supreme Court has not “What no one seems to realise is that the source would say. scrutinised us and that is a tribute to that the SIT is also working for the “The envelope was sealed and our work.” victims and not against them. We are given to the court,” said the source. However, an amicus curiae was equally interested in getting them “How do you know it was a closure appointed. The source said this was justice. Two cases have seen convic- report?” standard procedure in a complicated tion – Godhra and Sardarpura. We With regard to the allegations case. “It is no reflection on the SIT’s are working on the other cases and against the SIT and its functioning, work. In fact, the Supreme Court or- are confident they will be handled the source said it had followed the der allows the SIT to take into ac- well. But nobody acknowledges this law of the land. Every piece of evi- count whatever it wants from the work of the SIT,” the source said. dence is tried against the Indian Evi- amicus curiae’s report and make use Anupama Katakam and coerce them into refraining from port has seemingly revealed, referred SIT report differ on another crucial stating the facts. to Modi’s several communally provoc- finding. It is about two senior police The SIT, according to reports, ap- ative statements, which are hate officers, P.B. Gondia and M.K. Tan- pears to have treated Bhatt as an un- speeches punishable under the law. don, against whom serious allegations reliable witness simply because he now Section 153A relates to promoting have been levelled. The SIT has found has pro-Congress leanings. The am- enmity between different groups on that Tandon, who was then the Joint icus, on the contrary, has seemingly the grounds of religion, race, place of Commissioner of Police, Ahmedabad, suggested that the weight of the evi- birth, residence, language, and so on, did not help the victims in Gulberg dence favoured Bhatt, and therefore, and doing acts prejudicial to the main- Society and Naroda Patiya even his statements ought to be examined tenance of harmony. Section 153B per- though he knew that massacres were with an open mind. The relevant factor tains to offences such as imputations taking place in those places. to test his reliability would be whether and assertions prejudicial to national The SIT has found evidence that he enjoyed Modi’s confidence before integration. Tandon had false cases registered in that fateful meeting, and the SIT has Section 166 prescribes imprison- other parts of the city (where he apparently found nothing to suggest ment up to one year for public servants claimed he had gone) to justify his ab- that he did not. Secondly, there is no found guilty of disobeying the law with sence in Gulberg Society and Naroda evidence to suggest that Bhatt was intent to cause injury to any person. Patiya. Besides, Tandon was in tele- elsewhere and not at the Chief Minis- Section 505 will apply to anyone phonic contact with the accused poli- ter’s residence during that meeting. who makes or circulates any statement ticians Jaideep Patel and Mayaben Reports carried by Tehelka suggest with intent to incite any class or com- Kodnani, according to previous SIT that the amicus has found prosecuta- munity of persons to commit any of- reports submitted to the Supreme ble evidence against Modi in the SIT fence against any other class or Court. reports. The evidence, according to the community. It prescribes imprison- Gondia was deputy to Tandon and amicus report as accessed by Tehelka, ment up to three years. faced similar allegations. Still, the SIT may not be sufficient to charge Modi Only when the SIT’s closure report did not find it necessary, apparently on for criminal conspiracy with the riot- becomes public will one know why it the basis of dubious legal advice, to ers. But it does point to prima facie disagrees that these provisions cannot proceed against Tandon and Gondia. commission of offences under Sections be invoked against Modi although it The amicus, informed sources told 153A, 153B, 166 and 505 of the Indian found overwhelming evidence against Frontline, however, had advised crimi- Penal Code. These offences are puni- him to justify these charges. nal prosecution of these two police of- shable with imprisonment up to three Informed sources have told Fron- ficers since these were grave years. The SIT reports, the amicus re- tline that the amicus report and the allegations. २

12 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Cover Story Standing up to the state Police ofﬁcers who have stood up for the truth are made to pay for it.

BY ANUPAMA KATAKAM AND LYLA BAVADAM

in the riots and the degree of brutality and negli- They believe that the SIT probing the gence of duty that marked their conduct. Unfortunately, in the 10 years after the riots, riots has chosen to ignore or suppress those who decided to tell the truth have been ruth- lessly targeted and sidelined. Worse, evidence sub- their voices despite repeatedly being mitted by them is not accepted in prosecuting the perpetrators. These officers say they have repeatedly told that there are phone records, told the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the riots that there are phone records, documents documents and their own testimony and their own testimony that can nail the culprits, but they believe the SIT has deliberately chosen to that can nail the culprits. ignore and suppress their voices. IF there is anyone who can nail the perpetrators “Here is information that should be treated as of the anti-Muslim riots of 2002 in Gujarat, it is the valuable evidence, but it is not accepted,” says Father State’s police officers. Witness to the worst commu- Cedric Prakash, who heads Prashant, a human rights nal violence seen in recent times, these officers have organisation. “The SIT wants to close the Zakia Jafri first-hand knowledge of the complicity of politicians case because of the lack of evidence to prosecute AFP MARCH 1, 2002: A policeman looks on as a row of shops burns in Ahmedabad. Former Additional DGP R.B. Sreekumar says he has proof that the riots were backed by sections in the administration.

FRONTLINE 13 MARCH 9, 2012

Modi. But there is evidence glaring at targeted after they raised their voices is ness in her case against Modi, he got them in the form of Sanjiv Bhatt’s dep- Sanjiv Bhatt. This Indian Police Ser- his chance. But, in spite of several ses- osition. Obviously, the investigating vice (IPS) ofﬁcer, who has an unblem- sions with the SIT, where he reported- agency is choosing to turn a blind eye,” ished reputation, told Frontline that ly provided substantial direct and he says. he had been waiting for an opportunity circumstantial evidence, his testimony to prove Chief Minister Narendra Mo- has not been accepted (see interview). SANJIV BHATT di’s culpability in the 2002 riots. When Bhatt was charged over a custodial The latest casualty in the list of po- Zakia Jafri, a victim of the Gulberg death that took place in 1990. He was licemen from Gujarat who have been Society massacre, named him as a wit- also charged with coercing a colleague

14 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 VIVEK BENDRE SHAKILA PATHAN, A survivor of the riots, breaks down while narrating her story at a press conference in Mumbai in March 2011. accepted by the investigating agency. “We will keep up the pressure,” he says. There are others on the growing list.

R.B. SREEKUMAR R.B. Sreekumar, former Additional DGP (Intelligence), was among the first to face the administration’s wrath. Soon after the riots, Sreekumar filed six affidavits before the Nanavati- Mehta Commission, providing details from the diaries he had maintained during his tenure as intelligence chief, which was when the riots took place. These were reportedly filled with explosive data on the role played by the Chief Minister and his foot soldiers in PARAS SHAH fuelling the violence. The State gov- ARSONISTS IN ACTION at Khokhara in Ahmedabad. Suspended IPS ernment denied him his promotion. officer Sanjiv Bhatt has claimed that the police had instructions to go He took his case to the Central Admin- slow on the rioters. istrative Tribunal, which ruled in his favour. into filing a false affidavit in support of the burning of the Sabarmati Express Sreekumar said that when posted his claim that he attended the meeting train at Godhra. Bhatt was suspended, as Additional DGP, Intelligence, he on February 27, 2002, where Modi is then arrested, and finally released on had a run-in with “encounter special- said to have asked the police to go slow bail. He is now fighting for his rein- ist” D.G. Vanzara on the day of the on the rioters. It was held hours after statement and for his evidence to be infamous rath yatra held in July 2002.

FRONTLINE 15 MARCH 9, 2012

‘SIT followed state’s road map’

Interview with R.B. Sreekumar, former Additional DGP, Gujarat. BY LYLA BAVADAM

R.B. SREEKUMAR, former Addi- terrorists.” The 65-year-old retired tional Director General of Police (In- top police officer spoke to Frontline telligence), Gujarat, has provided the about the events of the past 10 years Special Investigation Team (SIT) and his continuing fight for justice for with consistent and detailed records the 2002 Gujarat riot victims. Ex- of evidence of government complicity cerpts from the interview: in the 2002 riots. He has filed nine affidavits in connection with the It is 10 years since the riots and riots; made public a register of official there is no action. Given the body of meetings where illegal orders were evidence that you have provided to issued but not recorded in the min- the SIT, what do you have to say utes and two audio recordings of in- about the closure report? timidatory briefings; and made We were at first full of expectation various written appeals and also sug- from the SIT, but now I feel that they

gestions to aid the case. Many of his VIPIN CHANDRAN have travelled on a road map provid- open letters have been published in R B. SREEKUMAR, former ed by the state. Closing the case on newspapers. He has also deposed be- Additional DGP, Gujarat. He has Mrs Jafri’s complaint and FIR against fore the SIT, but says he is frustrated made unceasing efforts to make Modi and 62 others confirms the ex- over its functioning. himself heard. oneration of nearly all culprits for Following media reports about want of evidence. It is flabbergasting the likelihood of the SIT filing a clo- Procedure (CrPC), 1973, for ensuring and frustrating for those who value sure report in the Jafri case, Sreeku- their sound legal foundations, higher the rule of law, social cohesion and mar says many riot victims met him degree of credibility, acceptability unity of our motherland. In effect, the and “expressed their severe shock and and appreciability”. He has had no riot victims who survived and those frustration over the SIT filing a clo- response. officers who risked their careers will sure report to the court exonerating Explaining the reasoning behind have no justice. Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his renewed demand to the SIT, he 62 others from culpability in the writes in his letter: “In my view, your Where do you feel the SIT has failed? 2002 anti-minority riots”. Anticipat- [that is, R.K. Raghavan’s] act of exon- A vast body of evidence has been ing the “closure report”, Sreekumar erating Shri Narendra Modi and his presented not only by me but by other submitted “numerous suggestion re- collaborators in the anti-minority officers like Sanjiv Bhatt and Rahul ports [in the hope of] expecting mid- carnage will be celebrated by all ene- Sharma, but aside from that there are course correction measures from mies of our motherland, particularly other issues. The SIT has been reluc- SIT”. He was disappointed, but, not Hindu and Muslim extremists. Hin- tant to draw any adverse inference one to give up, he wrote one more du radicals and the Sangh Parivar will from incriminating facts like the gov- when he heard about the “closure feel that they can continue to enjoy ernment not keeping minutes of report”. total impunity and immunity from meetings chaired by the Chief Minis- In the latest letter, dated February legal action and accountability for ter and other senior officers, position- 9 to R.K. Raghavan, Chairman, SIT, their crimes during riots, while the ing of Ministers in the control rooms he summed up the data on major evi- Muslim terrorists and jehadis can re- of the DGP and Commissioner of Po- dence submitted by him and again double their false propaganda about lice, Ahmedabad, on February 28, made a fervent appeal to him to assess the so-called prejudice of the Indian 2002, which was the day of a bandh the “vast magnitude of my evidence”. administration against the Muslims, called by the VHP [Vishwa Hindu He also urged the SIT “to arrange for who are allegedly denied justice in Parishad], and the transfer of officers recording the whole cluster of my evi- Gujarat riots cases. Consequently, in- like Rahul Sharma, Vivek Shrivasta- dence and assortment of inputs on creasing number of misguided Mus- va, M.D. Antani, who took action riots provided by me to SIT, under lim youth will come under the grip of against the rioters. Neither did the Section 164(1) of Code of Criminal internationally organised Muslim SIT take note of the government re-

16 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

warding those who collaborated in but they said it was not an official the riots or of the CM characterising document, that it was a motivated the riots as an operation of Newton’s register. Yes, definitely, it was a moti- Law [Modi had said that the riots vated register of events. I kept it to were a reaction to an action]. The SIT show that I was not a part of that also turned a blind eye to the Gujarat gang. The orders that were being is- government’s failure to take action sued at those meetings were criminal on communally inciting media re- and unconstitutional. This is why I ports. Nor did the team take into con- started documenting everything. sideration the fact that existing Then I was accused of being mali- regulations on riot control in the Guj- cious… that I was submitting evi- arat Police Manual and other govern- dence because I was superseded. ment documents were not These are typical government argu- implemented by the government at ments. the time. All these things the SIT deems as mere administrative omis- Was the SIT prevented in any way sions without any malicious motive. from carrying out its mandate of The SIT is not a judicial body. It is an investigating the post-Godhra riots? investigation team. It has to draw in- For instance, did it have the ferences. It cannot expect Modi to authority to summon witnesses, sign an affidavit saying “I carried out search and attach documents, the riots”. recover property and evidence, especially in relation to Zakia Jafri’s The volume of your evidence is vast petition? – a total of nine affidavits plus a No. Since the SIT did not register written register of events in 2002 any case in a police station of relevant and two audio recordings. jurisdiction under Section 154 of the

Yes, I have given a lot of evidence. CrPC, it had no authority of an in- PARAS SHAH The SIT should have picked it up, vestigating officer. The SIT conduct- FATIMABEN ISABHAI GHACHI with nugget by nugget, and carried out its ed only an inquiry – a process not what remains of her home at Mora own investigations. The evidence of recognised as legal action under the village in Panchmahal district. The Rahul Sharma and Sanjiv Bhatt and CrPC. Initially the SIT recorded compensation she received from the myself has been dismissed on tech- statements of witnesses and took government was so meagre that she nical and flimsy grounds. Rahul their signatures. Under Sections 161 returned the cheque. Sharma’s electronic data linking BJP and 162 of the CrPC, statements of leaders, police officers and other ac- witnesses recorded during an investi- Vanzara declared he had made a dra- cused were declared invalid for want gation subsequent to the filing of an matic haul of country-made weapons of original material and his failure to FIR and registration of criminal from the Daryapur area of Ahmeda- report to higher officers. All this has cases are not signed by them but only bad. However, when Sreekumar told worked to the advantage of the ac- the investigating officers. Please note the Ahmedabad Commissioner of Po- cused. The unconditional offer by that the SIT did not arrest anybody in lice that his intelligence network said myself and Sanjiv Bhatt to undergo relation to Mrs Jafri’s complaint, nor the weapons came from a factory in narco and brain fingerprint tests were any searches made. The Su- Sabarkantha that had links with the were ignored. Then there have been preme Court in its order of Septem- Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), he many other things. Witnesses have ber 12, 2011, did not direct the SIT to was ticked off and issued a memo that been threatened. People have come treat material collected in the inquiry questioned how Sreekumar could dare to me to persuade me not to speak. relating to Mrs Jafri’s complaint as to raise such questions when the Chief When I was still in service, I was told I evidence – under the criminal case Minister’s office had rewarded Van- was about to be promoted… all sorts registered by the Gujarat police on zara for his work in unearthing the of things have been happening. That February 28, 2002 – and present the hoard of weapons. register I kept in which I noted every- entire evidence to the court con- Sreekumar also recalled how G.S. thing that was said at meetings – it cerned under Section 173 of the Subbarao, the then Chief Secretary, should have been taken as evidence, CrPC. told him that Modi wanted a few encounters carried out. “I told him the

FRONTLINE 17 MARCH 9, 2012

moment we decide to carry out an en- conﬁning a man illegally for 24 hours. counter it becomes a conspiracy and After contesting his appointment, he for that we can both be arrested. He was shifted to the Bureau of Police still tried to persuade me, but I refused Reforms and Development in New and told him that if any are carried out Delhi. I will uncover the truth behind them.” Soon after this, Sreekumar was posted RAHUL SHARMA as Additional DGP Police Reform, As Deputy Commissioner of Police, considered in police circles as a non- Bhavnagar, Rahul Sharma saved the descript posting. lives of 300 Muslim orphans from a Hindu mob during the riots. Instead of KULDIP SHARMA being lauded for his effort, Sharma was Kuldip Sharma, Additional Director transferred to the Ahmedabad Police General of Police (CID), shunted to the Control Room, a post meant for an Gujarat State Sheep and Wool Devel- inspector. opment Corporation after he played a Rahul Sharma had been asked to key role in exposing State Home Min- help with the probe into the Naroda ister Amit Shah’s role in the Sohrabud- Patiya massacre of February 28, 2002. din Sheikh fake encounter case. Shah While in the control room he collected had to resign eventually. Kuldip Shar- ma was charge-sheeted in a nine-year- SHAHRUKH, A RIOT survivor from old case, in which he was accused of the Naroda Patiya area.

of the government against me result- A police diary ing in denial of promotion to me (February 2005) on account of my EVER since 2002, R.B. Sreekumar, cases investigated by the SIT, espe- refusal to comply with the illegal ver- former Additional Director General cially inputs on the culpable role by bal orders of the CM and other higher of Police (Intelligence), Gujarat, has Shri Khursheed Ahmed, IPS (Guj. officers, not obeying the illegal in- been collecting information and for- 1977), the then Commandant of the struction for speaking in favour of the mulating it into letters, affidavits and SRPF Group II, in Saijpur, Bogha, government before the Commission suggestions, which he has been send- Nr. Naroda Patiya. But till today I was on 31.08.2004, verbatim of the coming on to the authorities in the hope of not called by the SIT to record my munally inciting speech of the CM, getting justice for the victims of what statement u/s 161/162 CrPC. Along the unlawful verbal directives by two he calls “the minority genocide in with this statement I had submitted Home Department Officials, copy of Gujarat”. copies of my four affidavits to the Jus- my Register recording the illegal ver- The latest such salvo was sent on tice Nanavati Commission inquiring bal directives from higher authorities February 9 to R.K. Raghavan, the into the riots. … etc… Chairman of the Special Investiga- i. The first affidavit, dated iv. The fourth affidavit dated tion Team. The letter was a last-ditch 15.07.2002 with the statement of my 27.10.2005 (86 pages) on the truth effort in the hope that the investiga- cross-examination on 31.08.2004 behind nine unwarranted charges for tions into the Gulberg Society mas- (232 pages) by the Nanavati Commis- dismissal from service on me by the sacre would not be closed. He collated sion… It contained data on alert no- Modi government, information on data summing up the major part of tices, actionable preventive DGP, Shri K. Chakravarti revealing the evidence that he submitted over intelligence and remedial measures the CM’s instructions to give a free the years and appealed to the SIT to suggested to the government by the play to Hindu revengefulness, blame- record his statement under Section State Intelligence Branch (SIB). able role of the Central IB Joint Di- 64 (1) of the Code of Criminal Proce- ii. The second affidavit, dated rector Shri Rajendra Kumar, etc. dure, 1973 (CrPC). 06.10.2004 (33 pages) with evidence B. Shri V.V. Chaudhary, Supt. of Excerpts from the letter: relevant to expanded terms of refer- Police, SIB Gujarat State, recorded A. 9th May 2008 I submitted de- ence to the Commission… my detailed statement (48 pages) in tailed statement (6 pages) with rele- iii. The third affidavit, dated July 2009 in the presence of SIT offi- vant information on major carnage 09.04.2005 (128 pages) covering bias cers Shri Paramvir Singh and Shri

18 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

explosive phone data record showing Mathur. Rai has said that Pande, then that rioters on the streets were in touch a DIG, in connivance with Amit Shah, with policemen and politicians. conspired to kill Tulsi Prajapati, a key He was charge-sheeted by the Guj- witness in the Sohrabuddin encounter. arat government in August 2011 for He has reportedly been asked to passing on call records to the Nanavati “check” with his superiors before mak- Commission without informing the ing any further arrests. State administration, which it said was a breach of the Official Secrets Act. The REACTION OF COLLEAGUES government has alleged that some of The Gujarat Police Officers’ Associ- these records are inaccurate and that a ation has expressed its support for CD given by Rahul Sharma to the Bhatt. In an emergency meeting held probe panel is a doctored one. soon after Bhatt’s arrest, 35 members of the association passed resolution RAJNISH RAI supporting him. This is significant be- Rajnish Rai, Deputy Inspector Gener- cause of the unholy connection be- al of Police, is another casualty. Rai tween the police and politicians in was removed from the fake encounters Gujarat. They were sending out a clear probe following the arrest of three se- message that they were uniting against nior police officers, including D.G this kind of persecution. Vanzara. He later indicted two retired Officers like Sreekumar have often

PARAS SHAH top police ofﬁcers, P.C. Pande and O.P. spoken about the rot that has permeat-

A.K. Malhotra, relating to Mrs Jafri’s “Hitherto untapped and unexplored terms on my evidence against the complaint. information on witnesses to Godhra Modi government (Frontline maga- C. I submitted a note to the SIT train fire incident on 27.2.2002”. This zine, dated May 6, 2005). (33 pages) entitled “Suggestion to was a request for recording state- I. I submitted copy of my eighth SIT” dated 3rd August, 2009, propos- ments of U.P. Police and agents of IB, affidavit (dated 15th September, ing further action on the probe relat- who had seen the Godhra train fire 2011) (63 pages) in which I presented ing to FIR by Mrs Jafri against CM incident on 27th February, 2002. the details of misuse of government Modi and others. The note contains (This formed my Fifth Affidavit dated funds to the tune of Rs.10 lakhs by the 60 points of suggestions and feed- 3rd May, 2010, to the Commission.) CM to undermine the judicial process back from the riot victim survivors G. A third suggestion letter (24 of Ms Mallika Sarabhai’s writ petition about the SIT investigation so far. pages) captioned “Suggestion to SIT”, in the apex court. This was submitted D. A suggestion letter dated 6th stressing upon the need for recording on specific orders from the November, 2009 to record the state- statements of relevant officers from Commission. ment of Shri P.G.J. Nampoothiri, for- Central Para Military Forces and Ar- J. I submitted copy of my ninth mer DGP, Gujarat, as he revealed my, who assisted Gujarat Police in affidavit to the SIT (20 pages) (dated important information about the riot 2002 riots, and attachments of their 12th January, 2012) regarding inter- in his autobiography written in Ma- relevant documents, was submitted action between me and Mr Ashok Na- layalam language. to you. (This formed my Sixth Affida- rayanan, the then Addl. Chief E. Knowing that the SIT is report- vit to the Commission.) Secretary, Home Department, about edly accepting the State government’s H. In the light of media reports his admission that he had shown all version about my evidence in my 4 about the SIT marginalising my evi- my intelligence reports suggesting re- affidavits, a letter captioned “Rejoin- dence, I submitted a letter (33 pages) medial measures to remove bias of der to malicious campaigns to mar- to SIT captioned “An appeal to ob- the administration against the Mus- ginalise my evidence to the Justice jectively appreciate and acknowledge lims, to the CM Modi, but CM did not Nanavati Commission and SIT” dat- the evidential merit of my six affida- act on it. ed 30th March, 2010 (16 pages) was vits to the Judicial Commission prob- K. A copy of my open letter cap- submitted to the SIT. ing into the 2002 Gujarat communal tioned “An appeal to the real sover- F. A second suggestion letter dat- riots”. In this I included the excerpts eigns of India dated 2nd February, ed 9th April, 2010 (5 pages) was sub- from your [R.K. Raghavan] article 2012 (10 pages) to the SIT on the mitted to the SIT, captioned about me, praising me in laudable same date.

FRONTLINE 19 MARCH 9, 2012

‘We will not let it happen again’

Interview with Sanjiv Bhatt, suspended Gujarat-cadre IPS ofﬁcer.

BY ANUPAMA KATAKAM

SANJIV BHATT, the Indian Police If you were at the meeting on manner and approach of the SIT per- Service (IPS) officer of the Gujarat February 27, 2002, and were privy to sonally experienced by me during my cadre who was suspended from ser- all the facts that could incriminate interaction with the SIT. One of these vice, has played a critical role in the Chief Minister Narendra Modi, why was real-time leakage of my deposi- Zakia Jafri and Gulberg Society riot did you not speak up earlier? tion. Some of the matter appeared in a cases of 2002 relating to, among oth- I am a police officer and at that well-known weekly. I have always er things, the murder of former Mem- time was with the State intelligence kept all the matter spoken with the ber of Parliament Ehsan Jafri (Zakia’s bureau. When the riots took place, I husband) and 68 others. was the designated nodal officer for Bhatt has been at the receiving sharing intelligence with various end since his explosive declaration Central agencies and the armed that he was present at a meeting on forces of the country. We are privy to a February 27, 2002, where Gujarat lot of confidential information and Chief Minister Narendra Modi re- sensitive data. We cannot volunteer portedly did not react to the antici- information unless we are summoned pated communal violence alerts and by a court of law or a body with legal instead told his close aides and the status. I cannot speak unless I am police that they should be “indiffer- called. Everyone in Gujarat, including ent” and let Hindus “vent their anger”. the investigators, knew what I stood Old cases against Bhatt were raked for post-2002 [riots]. I was able to up. He was suspended, arrested and give my testimony in April 2009 eventually let out on bail. when I was called by the SIT in con- Bhatt has consistently main- nection with the Zakia Jafri case as tained that the Special Investigation she had named me as a witness. Team (SIT) has suppressed and, perhaps, even destroyed crucial evi- After you got an opportunity to dence. He has also said that he can speak, the floodgates opened. Could prove that the carnage was a conspir- you tell us what has happened since? acy and not a spontaneous reaction as When Zakia Jafri named me as a Modi claims. witness in her case to prosecute Modi The SIT has tried hard to deflect for the 69 killings at Gulberg Society, his testimony, he says. Yet, Bhatt says, I got my window to reveal the in- he will do whatever it takes to bring formation I had. the perpetrators of the Gujarat car- The SIT investigating her case nage to book even at the cost of his summoned me several times – the career. On the eve of the SIT present- first was in November 2009. The JANAK PATEL ing its closure report on the Zakia most recent was [in] March 2011. SANJIV BHATT: "THE wheels of Jafri case, Bhatt spoke to Frontline However, there were certain disquiet- justice grind slowly. We will about the case and his role in it. ing aspects and inadequacies in the ensure they keep grinding." ed the force and the nexus between the nor an MLA when he was killed, re- found dead at the wheel of his car at a police and politicians. portedly told the Concerned Citizen’s place where he normally went for his In a shocking example of systemic Tribunal headed by V.R. Krishna Iyer morning walk. He had been shot five corruption, Haren Pandya, a high- in May 2002 that the violence was times, but there was no blood splat- profile BJP leader was killed in 2003. engineered by Modi and several offi- tered in the car. Clearly he had been Pandya, who was neither a Minister cials of the administration. He was killed elsewhere and his body was

20 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

SIT confidential, so somebody was destroying crucial evidence. They are The wheels of justice grind slowly. leaking the information. The other not providing access to log books, We will ensure they keep grinding. was that my case was [relating to] documents and message registers. We will not let 2002 happen again. Zakia Jafri’s, but the SIT began in- These should be kept in safe custody – The perpetrators will be exposed. The vestigating me for the Meghaninagar which is not what the SIT is. SIT’s investigations have been a sub- case [Gulberg Society] under the There is no question of a clean chit version of justice. Code of Criminal Procedure [CrPC]. anywhere. Modi has to be prosecuted. The Zakia case encompassed the There is substantial direct as well as Gujarat is notorious for police larger conspiracy. So when I began to overwhelming circumstantial evi- encounters. As a police officer, what explain the larger conspiracy, they dence to establish his alleged com- are your views on this? said I could not [do so] because the plicity in the anti-Muslim pogrom of The encounters expose this man’s Meghaninagar case did not include 2002. [Modi’s] mask. Unfortunately, we this. have a weak Prime Minister, and coa- In April 2011, I filed an affidavit in Could you tell us about the February lition politics does not allow harsh the Supreme Court providing the fac- 27, 2002, meeting and the issue on decisions. tual information on the difficulties I the fax? The Tulsi Prajapati fake encoun- faced with the SIT and submitting my I was in the intelligence [bureau] ter case could have nailed Modi. Simi- concerns and apprehensions. This in- at the time. We had met Modi twice larly, the Haren Pandya murder was a cluded the harassment meted out to on February 27, 2002. By the second classic case where a deeper probe K.D. Pant, a constable whom I had meeting the Gulberg Society mas- would have revealed a larger conspir- named as a witness to the February sacre had begun. Numerous situation acy. 27, 2002, meeting. reports and alert messages were reac- I was suspended in August 2011. hing the Chief Minister’s office. I had In the past decade, Modi has In September 2011, I was arrested on even sent a fax [a copy of which Fron- attempted to move away from the the allegation of forcing K.D. Pant to tline has in its possession] alerting saffron agenda. He is very popular file a false affidavit against Modi. I Modi to the anticipated communal with the corporate sector. Your views was released on bail on October 17, violence. Modi was not interested. In- on this. 2011. stead he asked [about] past instances The bigger picture here is that where Ehsan Jafri had supposedly Modi is a liability for the BJP at the You have repeatedly said that you opened fire on Hindus during earlier national level. They cannot use him as have no faith in the SIT. What are communal riots in Ahmedabad. a mascot, but the party needs the your comments on the “clean chit” it money he has. Modi is able to bring in is apparently giving Modi? How do you plan to take the battle funds the way no other politician in Yes, absolutely. The SIT is pursu- forward? What are your demands the party can. ing [its] investigation with a precon- now? Corporates like to deal with au- ceived line. I don’t trust R.K. We are asking for due process of tocratic governments, that is why Raghavan [SIT chief] or the team at law. Zakia Jafri is asking to arraign they like Modi. He is also guaranteed all. Under the stewardship of Ragha- Modi. If you are not guilty, then allow to be at the helm because of the lack of van, the SIT has not been able to dis- the law to take its course. an opponent, so it makes sense for charge its duties in a fair and just I have also told the SIT that my them to invest in him. manner. He is a highly influential statement should be recorded before After all, he will be around for person in Gujarat. While my affidavit a magistrate under Section 164 of the another decade at least. Unfortunate- submitted to the Supreme Court Cr.P.C. It has to be legally binding. ly, some significant corporate houses clearly details all the discrepancies, I have started singing his praises and have also gone on record in the media It has been 10 years since the riots. are contributing to his war chest. This saying that the SIT is concealing and Do you see justice in sight? is shocking. brought to this location. The location not known. There are numerous sto- officers and bureaucrats who kept was possibly chosen because it was a ries of police officers across Gujarat quiet and went on to get plum posts place that he regularly went to, though who have suffered because they stood and even lucrative post-retirement his footwear indicated that he had not up to the State’s ruling politicians. jobs. The silver lining is that there are planned to exercise when he left home. Most of them have shattered careers. many who will play their part in the Who pulled the trigger on Pandya is Then there are also stories of police fight for justice. २

FRONTLINE 21 Cover Story MARCH 9, 2012 Building conﬁdence

The Gujarat High Court directs the State government to pay for the restoration of

religious places damaged in the 2002 riots. BY V. VENKATESAN IN NEW DELHI

In view of the inadequate endeavour public exchequer for the restoration of all religious places, including those of worship irrespective of of the government to handle the religion, such decision a would in no way be in conﬂict with Article 27. situation effectively, which resulted The court also held that the fact that the riot continued for several days suggested lack of adequate action on the part of the State in handling the in the destruction of more than 500 situation. The court considered the fact that the religious places belonging to one annual report of the National Human Rights Com- mission (NHRC) on the issue had not been placed community, it was the government’s before the Legislative Assembly for discussion. The State government had got the report in early 2005. duty to restore them, the court said. THE judgment delivered on February 8 by a Gujarat High Court Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J.B. Par- diwala in defence of secular values will have a significant impact on State governments conniving at wanton attacks on religious property owned by minority communities. The Gujarat government admitted that approximately 535 places of worship had been damaged in the violence after the Godhra incident on February 27, 2002, and out of them, 292 places of worship had been repaired by the end of that year. The Islamic Relief Committee of Gujarat, a public charitable trust, however, disputed the government’s claim regarding the number of places repaired. It sought a direction from the court to the State to make a detailed survey of the mosques, dargahs, graveyards, khankahs and other religious places and institutions desecrated, damaged or destroyed in 2002 and to compensate suitably the trusts and institutions that were in charge of them to restore them. The government said it had taken a policy decision not to spend any public money for the restoration of places of worship as it would violate Article 27 of the Constitution. Article 27 states that no person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are speciﬁcally appropriated in payment of

expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any PARAS SHAH particular religion or religious denomination. How- RAM BEING WORSHIPPED at the site of a ever, the High Court concluded that if the State mosque destroyed in the 2002 riots, at Raipur government had decided to spend money from the in Ahmedabad. A ﬁle photograph.

22 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

Negligence and inaction

Excerpts from the High Court’s remedy. incident of Sabarmati Express at judgment: Paragraph 23: If in the above Godhra as disclosed in its affidavit, Paragraph 19: The State has no situation, huge numbers of persons such fact should have been known to responsibility to compensate the have suffered injury for such inac- the police intelligence and they person wronged for the illegality tion of the State government but should have taken appropriate pre- committed by the wrongdoer unless they are unable to come to court for ventive action well in advance. at the time of committing the of- various reasonable grounds, a pub- Paragraph 35: Failure on the fence, the person wronged was in the lic-spirited person can surely es- part of the police intelligence to lawful custody of the State. Howev- pouse their cause and pray before gather such general reaction in time er, the position will be different this court for appropriate remedy. and to take appropriate timely ac- when due to incidents not arising out Paragraph 30: It is the specific tion definitely come within the ex- of any personal vengeance but solely case of the State government that pression ‘negligence of the State’ based on religious beliefs or senti- due to the said communal riot, the even if we, for the sake of argument, ments, persons belonging to two religious places of both the commu- accept the defence of the State that communities involve in riotous acts nities have been destructed. There- the cause of riot was the ‘general re- and cause destruction of property fore, in our opinion, for the action from the incident of Sabarma- belonging to the innocent members restoration of all the religious places ti Express’. Similarly, the fact that of the other community. including those of worship irrespec- the riot continued for several days Paragraph 20: In the latter type tive of religion, if the State govern- itself suggests lack of appropriate ac- of cases, the State government has, ment decides to spend money from tion or adequate action, if not in- however, a constitutional obligation the public exchequer, such decision action, on the part of the state in to take all possible steps to stop such will in no way be in conflict with the handling the situation. illegal activities lest for its inaction provision of Article 27. Paragraph 56: On considera- or inadequate action, the life and the Paragraph 33: After taking into tion of the entire materials on record liberty of innocent citizens of this consideration the enormity of the we, therefore, hold that for the in- country are jeopardised in any way situation where more than 500 reliability or negligence on the part of only because they belong to one of gious places of worship of only one the State administration, the reli- the communities of the persons in- community have been destructed, gious and other places of worship in volved in the riot. even if we do not take into consid- State having been destroyed during Paragraph 22: The State has a eration the number of such destruct- the riot of the year 2002… the policy duty to protect those fundamental ed places belonging to other adopted by the State government, rights of the citizens conferred by the community, the State government not to spend any money from public above mentioned Articles (14, 15, 16, cannot shirk its responsibility by as- exchequer for the restoration of the 21, 25 and 26) (of the Constitution) serting that it had no negligence or religious places which were de- and if by any inaction or inadequate inaction in protecting the life and the structed during the said period, but action, which is nothing but inac- property of the citizen. restricting the compensation only to tion, a person suffers, for no fault on Paragraph 34: ….the facts re- the places of residence and the busi- his part resulting in injury to his life main that the anarchy continued un- ness, is violative of the fundamental and property, he can approach the abated for days. When, according to right guaranteed under Articles 14, High Court under Article 226 of the the State, the riot broke out as a gen- 25 and 26 of the Constitution of Constitution for appropriate eral reaction from the unfortunate India.

Such inaction, the court said, was a ment to effectively handle the ernment was bound to reimburse the grave deﬁance by the State of Section situation, which resulted in the de- amount spent by the persons in charge 20 of the Protection of Human Rights struction of more than 500 places of of those religious places, the Bench Act, 1993. worship belonging to one religious added. community, it was the duty of the gov- The State government contended ‘GOVERNMENT’S DUTY’ ernment to bring them back to their that the court should not interfere with The court held that in view of the inad- condition before the riots. In the case the policy decision of the government equate endeavour of the State govern- of structures already restored, the gov- not to spend public money for the res-

FRONTLINE 23 Cover Story MARCH 9, 2012 toration of religious places. The Bench, the territorial limits of their respective however, pointed out that the State courts. The aggrieved persons are to government had already accepted its lodge their claim with these Special liability to compensate the affected Officers within two months of the or- persons for its failure to protect resi- der, with documentary and oral evi- dences and places of business under dence in support of their claim of Article 21 of the Constitution, guaran- damages. teeing the right to life and liberty. The State government is allowed to Therefore, the Bench reasoned, the contest such evidence, but the Special same failure to protect the right of citi- Officers will decide and fix the amount zens to freedom of conscience, free of compensation within six months of profession, practice and propagation the lodging of the claim by the ag- of religion and freedom to manage re- grieved persons, which will be con- ligious affairs, as protected by Articles firmed by the High Court. The State 25 and 26, would enable the persons government is entitled to recover the who are in charge of the religious plac- amount to be spent for such repair es to get compensation for their from the persons found guilty of de- restoration. struction of those religious places by The Bench said it was preposterous the competent criminal court. to suggest that the State government, in spite of its failure to protect the FUDGING FACTS rights under Articles 25 and 26, was The Modi government told the High entitled to take a policy decision not to Court during the hearing of the case restore the religious places damaged. that it was bound to compensate Mus- Such a policy, the Bench reasoned, lims only for the losses they suffered in would give a wrong signal to citizens their residences and business estab- that for the protection of religious lishments during the riots. However, places from the attack of ruffians, they as the proceedings before another should take up arms in their own Bench of the High Court showed, the hands because in the event of destruc- government was not at all committed tion, no financial help would come to fulfilling even this undertaking. from the government. This would en- PARAS SHAH A Bench comprising Justices Akil courage religious bigots to destroy reli- A TEMPLE IN the making at the site Kureshi and C.L. Soni, on February 15, gious places of the economically of another demolished mosque, at sought an explanation from the State weaker sections of other communities Paldi in Ahmedabad. government why contempt proceed- in order to establish their superiority ings should not be initiated against it over them because the poor would not taken in tackling an incident of an act for not complying with a court order be able restore these places from their of God cannot be applied to handling a on compensating a group of riot vic- own resources. situation arising out of culpable in- tims. Fifty-six victims had applied for action, inadequate action, or negli- compensation for their uninsured FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS gence on the part of the State shops, which were burnt down at the On the grounds that fundamental government in protecting the funda- Rakhial area in Ahmedabad in 2002. rights cannot be waived, the Bench mental rights of citizens. The High Court, in September 2011, dismissed the suggestion that the The court made it clear that if at ordered the State government to pay damaged property had already been the time of repair further additional compensation according to the addi- restored at the cost of the persons construction had been made in excess tional relief package announced by the wronged and that the State govern- of the one existed at the time of dam- Centre in February 2008. ment was not bound to reimburse the age, no amount should be payable by However, the Ahmedabad Collec- cost of its restoration. the State government for such addi- tor informed the victims that the gov- The State government argued that tional construction. ernment had dismissed their claims in at the time of the Gujarat earthquake The court appointed all Principal August 2011. In their petition seeking in 2001, many religious places were District Judges and Principal Judges to punish the government for con- destroyed, and the government had in City Civil Courts as Special Officers tempt of court, the victims alleged that not spent anything for their restora- to decide the amount of compensation the government had fudged facts be- tion. But the Bench dismissed this ar- for the restoration of the damaged reli- fore the court in order to deny them gument, saying that a policy decision gious places of worship situated within due compensation. २

24 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Assembly Elections/Uttar Pradesh Advantage Mulayam

As Brahmins switch loyalty to the S.P., the BSP’s battle against a strong

anti-incumbency sentiment becomes difﬁcult. BY VENKITESH RAMAKRISHNAN IN LUCKNOW

The Congress seems to be in a weak Sentiments of anti-incumbency against the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and some new twists position as voters perceive the S.P. in the form of caste polarisation and caste alliances are helping the trend. Vinod Pandey, a landlord- to be a better bet for a stable cum-small-time businessman in Karchana near Al- lahabad, summed it up thus: “Yeh to Baspa hatao government. Its stand that it will abhiyaan hain, is mein tarah tarah ki nayi saamoo- hik sameekaran ho raha hain.” (This is basically a movement to remove the BSP government. And in not take the S.P.’s help to form the this movement, there are a number of new social government may have turned permutations and combinations.) Pandey, like scores of others that this correspondent interacted the middle classes away. with in different parts of the State, has no doubt that the single most important beneﬁciary of what is ARE the diverse perceptions on post-election going on will be the principal opposition in the State, instability as well as the multiple layers of anti- Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (S.P.). incumbency at work across the State impelling a Travelling across central and eastern Uttar Pradesh, large majority of Uttar Pradesh voters to make an over a stretch of nearly 100 constituencies, one could expedient choice that may ensure some sort of politi- detect a clear edge for the S.P. cal stability, at least in the medium term? As some A new and sudden community-caste combina- regions of the country’s tion seems to reinforce the tilt towards the S.P., most populous State wit- especially in the eastern region of Uttar Pradesh, ness polling and some oth- which accounts for approximately 150 of the 403 er parts go through intense Assembly seats. The combination comprises the campaigning as part of the S.P.’s core caste support base of the Other Backward seven-phased, month-long Classes (OBC) Yadav community, the Muslim com- election process, this ques- munity in which the party has deep and widespread tion is acquiring an in- roots, and the Brahmin community, which had con- creasing relevance. The sistently adopted an anti-S.P. position in almost all ﬁnal outcome of the elec- the elections held in the State until now. It is this new tions would depend largely shift of the Brahmins to a party that they have for on how far and to what de- long perceived as a primary enemy that has raised gree this trend gains visions of an expedient movement towards an electo- strength in the course of ral outcome that is expected to provide post-election the polling process, which stability or something close to it. is to be completed on Pandey and some of his friends at Karchana March 3. There seems little pointed out that the Brahmins’ shift to the BSP gave doubt that the trend is Mayawati’s party the majority in 2007. “At that time

PTI gathering momentum with the mission was to oust the Mulayam Singh Yadav SAMAJWADI PARTY CHIEF each passing day. Polling government and the goonda raj it had unleashed in Mulayam Singh Yadav wearing a in Uttar Pradesh began on the State. We accomplished that aim. This time, the crown presented by a supporter at February 4 and will con- objective of the new Brahmin-Yadav-Muslim (BYM) a rally in Bakshi ka Talab, clude on February 28, combination is to oust the high-handed Mayawati, Barabanki, in Uttar Pradesh on completing the seven- her administration and the BSP’s party machinery. February 11. phased process. This time, too, we hope to achieve the result that we

FRONTLINE 25 MARCH 9, 2012

best suited for that,” he said. It might have been expected that the Brahmins disenchanted with BSP rule would gravitate towards the Congress or the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). But as Pandey and Tiwari and scores of others like them pointed out, these parties are perceived as not having enough grass-roots support to strike decisive blows on the electorally well organised BSP. “This conviction and the process related to this has been further streng- thened by the moderate and yet charis- matic political personality of Akhilesh Yadav,” said Mohammed Idris, a small-time shopkeeper from Bhadohi. The S.P.’s young State president, who is also Mulayam Singh Yadav’s son, has indeed turned out be a facilitator of the movement of these other castes to the essentially Yadav-oriented party. And this shift is exactly why observers get to hear about an S.P.-BSP ﬁght in almost all regions of the State, barring

PTI western Uttar Pradesh, where the AKHILESH YADAV, WHO heads the State unit of the Samajwadi Party, is the Congress has struck an alliance with star of the party’s campaign. Ajit Singh’s Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), a regional force with a predominantly want,” one of the group told Frontline. shows that communities other than Jat support base. Jats are a numerical- The sentiment was evident over Dalits are also coming out in large ly large community in this region. large tracts of central and eastern Ut- numbers to vote,” Tiwari told Here, the fight is between the Con- tar Pradesh, but those who held it were Frontline. gress-RLD combine and the BSP. not very sure how effective the strategy What made the Brahmins switch Rahul Gandhi’s statement that the would prove. To start with, the Yadavs, their loyalties from the BSP to the Congress would not support or join who form the S.P.’s core support base, S.P.? Brahmins across central and any other party to form the govern- are numerically weaker than the Ja- eastern Uttar Pradesh have similar ment if it does not get a majority on its tavs, a Scheduled Caste community, stories to tell. For nearly a year follow- own may have turned away sections of and some other related castes that ing the impressive 2007 victory, the the middle classes, of which Brahmins form the BSP’s base. By informal esti- Mayawati government did try to pur- form a sizable section. In the early run- mates, the Yadavs comprise about 8 sue the professed objective of sarvajan up to the elections, there was a percep- per cent of the State’s population, hitaya, sarvajan sukhaya and gave tion that there would be an S.P.-Con- whereas the Jatavs and related Dalit Brahmins sufficient representation in gress government in Uttar Pradesh, communities form approximately 11 governance and related matters. But leading to a national-level coalition, per cent. this upset her core constituency, and too. By the time Rahul Gandhi made “Moreover, the Jatavs and other by the latter half of 2008 the govern- the statement, there were already Dalit communities are much more ment turned decidedly pro-Jatav. whispers in political circles across the committed when it comes to voting Since then, Brahmins have been alleg- State that there would be no govern- than the other castes,” said Rajneesh edly harassed in various ways. Crimi- ment in Uttar Pradesh if the Congress- Tiwari, a Brahmin who supports the nal cases were slapped on them on the RLD alliance got more than 80 seats. new BYM combination in Gasper, a basis of complaints of atrocities filed The Congress would find itself unable town in eastern Uttar Pradesh. Sup- by Dalits. According to Pandey of Kar- to form the government without the porters of the new combination, how- chana, there were thousands of such S.P.’s help, and the perception was that ever, were happy that the polling cases across the State. the party would prefer President’s percentage was in the range of 55 to 60 “So we need to stop this blind pro- Rule to sharing power with the SP. per cent in the first three phases. “This Dalit aggression. And the S.P. seems “This has not gone down well with the

26 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

Yet many BSP activists admit in private that things could have been better. “Behenji has done a lot for us. But the mandate could have been used more carefully and forcefully. Clearly, she lacked the advice and guidance of somebody like Manyawar [Kanshi Ram],” said a BSP activist from Mee- rut who has been associated with the Dalit empowerment movement from the DS4 (Dalit Shoshit Samaj Sang- harsh Samiti), one of the first organisations founded by Kanshi Ram. A colleague of his in Ghosi pointed out that the governance track record of the last five years had turned everybo- dy against Mayawati: “Behenji’s Dalit empowerment initiatives are not acceptable to other parties and communities. That is why they have ganged up. It is as though she is being electorally martyred for us. But the social and economic gains made by the op- pressed communities need to be protected. Our fight in this battle is

RAJESH KUMAR SINGH/AP primarily to ensure that.” CHIEF MINISTER MAYAWATI at an election rally in Allahabad on February By all indications this battle to 9. The Dalit-Brahmin bhaichara (brotherhood) that paid her rich dividends in “protect” what has been gained in the the 2007 elections has collapsed. last five years hinges heavily on ensuring that there is a hung Assembly in electorate in general, the middle class- chinery had been gearing up under the the State and that there is not a big es in particular. Why are we having collective leadership of Rajnath Singh, difference in the number of seats with elections if the point is to finally have Kalraj Mishra and Uma Bharati and the S.P., even if the BSP is pushed to President’s Rule?” asked a doctor be- making considerable impact in the ur- the second spot. According to BSP in- longing to the minority Muslim com- ban and semi-urban constituencies siders, the party hopes that the march munity at Bhadohi in Mirazpur before the Khushwaha episode upset of the S.P. will be hindered by Muslim- district. everything. The BJP rank and file now backed parties such as the Peace Party The BJP has not been able to get have no great hopes of returning to and the Ulema Council in eastern Ut- over the organisational confusion power. Still, there are sections in the tar Pradesh and by the Congress-RLD caused by the Khushwaha effect. State leadership who are convinced combine in western Uttar Pradesh. Across the State, one could hear BJP that the BJP, as an individual party, “Once that happens and the result is a workers lamenting that the aborted will do better than the Congress and hung Assembly, the BSP will seek to entry of Babu Singh Khushwaha, a get to the third position behind the S.P. align with either the Congress alliance Minister dismissed from the BSP over and the BSP. or the BJP,” said a bureaucrat close to corruption charges, had damaged the The BSP, aided by its core support the BSP regime. party’s electoral prospects. The issue base of the Dalit Jatav community and The sentiment against the ruling generated much controversy in the related Dalit and Most Backward dispensation seems to be gaining larger Sangh Parivar itself, and senior Caste (MBC) communities, is putting ground. It remains to be seen whether leaders such as Uma Bharati and Ma- up a spirited fight. At meeting after the trend will be taken to its logical hant Avaidyanath announced that meeting addressed by Mayawati and political conclusion. After all, not ev- they were withdrawing from the cam- her close associate Naseemuddin Sid- ery political or social movement in Ut- paign. Khushwaha was ultimately de- diqui, one hears the rhetorical ques- tar Pradesh is taken to its logical nied membership, but the dust that tion: “Koyi naheen takkar mein, kyon conclusion, as the collapse of the was kicked up by the row is yet to pade ye chakkar mein?” (Nobody else promise made by the Dalit-Brahmin settle. In constituency after constitu- is in the fight, why are our opponents bhaichara (Dalit-Brahmin brother- ency, BJP workers said the party ma- under an illusion?) hood) of 2007 has shown. २

FRONTLINE 27 update MARCH 9, 2012

The waiting game official. But Gen. V.K. Singh’s contin- uation as Army chief has become ten- THE Defence Ministry and the uous following the court’s verdict. He Chief of the Army Staff, Gen. V.K. and his close aides have avoided the Singh, seem to be keeping each other media and refused to answer ques- guessing about their next move after tions. Although his counsel, Puneet the February 10 judgment of the Su- Bali, said immediately after the judg- preme Court on the government’s re- ment that his honour and integrity had jection of the Army chief’s statutory been maintained, it is not exactly clear complaint on his date of birth in the how. The Supreme Court stopped official records. The court held that the short of dismissing his plea and re- general’s date of birth in the official minded him that having accepted 1950 records would be May 10, 1950, which on three occasions he had to honour was also the government’s position, those commitments and not make it and not May 10, 1951, which Gen. V.K. an issue now. Singh claimed was his date of birth. The court observed that the gov- Up until the time of writing this ernment’s insistence on May 10, 1950, (February 16), the Defence Ministry as his date of birth “does not suffer was yet to issue any order for the “rec- from any perversity” and was not onciliation” of its records. The Minis- “grossly erroneous” because it was try has to direct the Adjutant General’s based on dates written by him in pa- (A.G.) branch of the Army to correct pers at the threshold stage. The court the date in its records and reconcile it reminded him of the three letters he with the date – May 10, 1950 – in the had written, two in 2008 and one in records of the Military Secretary’s PTI 2009, accepting his date of birth as (M.S.) branch. It was the discrepancy ARMY CHIEF GENERAL V.K. Singh. May 10, 1950. The court maintained in the dates in the records of the two After the Supreme Court upheld the that the government’s insistence was branches that led to the controversy. government’s position on his date of based on the date filled by the chief Informed sources in the Army told birth, it is speculated that he will himself in all the papers at the “thresh- Frontline that so far the process for the resign rather than wait until May 31 old stage”, that is, the National De- reconciliation of the records has not when he retires. fence Academy application form and been initiated. “We are still awaiting the subsequent documents of the word from the Ministry,” said a senior The Ministry, in fact, is not in a Union Public Service Commission Army official. The Ministry, on the position to declare the name of the (UPSC), in which the date of birth was other hand, seems to be moving with next Army chief because Lt. Gen. Bik- given as May 10, 1950. caution. Amidst speculation that the ram Singh is embroiled in a fake en- The court, after these observations, Army chief may resign before his offi- counter case of 2001 in Jammu and directed the chief to withdraw his pet- cial date of retirement, May 31, 2012, Kashmir’s Anantnag district. This case ition, which he later did. The only con- the Ministry would like to wait a bit is being heard by the Jammu and solation the chief could take away from more before making its stand clear. Kashmir High Court, which, on Febru- the entire court proceedings was the The Ministry, said the sources, was ary 15, issued notice to the Defence statement of the Advocate General caught in a bind because, ideally Ministry asking it why the case should that the government never doubted his speaking, it would want the Army’s not be re-investigated. The Ministry honour and integrity at any time dur- Eastern Command’s chief, Lt. Gen. has to reply within one month. ing the controversy. Bikram Singh, to become the Army “Clearly, even as this case is going Logically speaking, the controver- chief, but that can only happen if V.K. on we cannot make any announce- sy should have been laid to rest by now, Singh retires on May 31, 2012. If he ment,” said a Defence Ministry official. with the Army chief pronouncing his resigns before that, then two other Ar- This explains why the Ministry is in no stand clearly and not keeping it a se- my Commanders will have to be con- hurry to move on the issue of the next cret. But that has not happened so far, sidered: Lt. Gen. V.K. Ahluwalia Army chief. “These are routine matters and the guessing game of “will he, (Central) and Lt. Gen. Shankar Ghosh and can be decided in no time. Where won’t he” goes on. (Western). is the hurry?” said a Defence Ministry Purnima S. Tripathi

28 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Defence PICTURES: DRDO THE “ENEMY” MISSILE, a modiﬁed Prithvi, which took off from Chandipur-on-sea, Odisha, and the interceptor missile, launched from Wheeler Island, which killed it in a direct hit. Mission success The February 10 interceptor missile launch was the sixth successful one out of

seven carried out since 2006. BY T.S. SUBRAMANIAN The latest success means that India INDIA now has a credible ballistic missile defence (BMD) capability if the successful launch of an interceptor missile on February 10 is anything to go can destroy in mid-flight Hatf and by. As a modified surface-to-surface Prithvi missile took off at 10-10 a.m. from the Integrated Test Range Ghauri missiles coming from (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea off the Odisha coast and mimicked the trajectory of a ballistic missile coming Pakistan. India is the fifth country from an enemy country towards India, the interceptor, called Advanced Air Defence (AAD-05), rose to have ballistic missile defence majestically from a mobile launcher on Wheeler Is- land, also off the Odisha coast, and destroyed it in capability after the U.S., Russia, mid-flight at an altitude of 15 km over the Bay of Bengal. The AAD-05 used a longer range seeker to France and Israel. inch close to the intruder and “kill it in a direct hit”.

FRONTLINE 29 Defence MARCH 9, 2012

It was a dream come true for mis- mission was the sixth successful one tack the intruder in the exo-atmo- sile and software technologists at the out of seven launches carried out since sphere. Defence Research and Development 2006. The first three launches, in When on February 10 the single- Organisation (DRDO). “We saw the 2006, 2007 and 2009, were success- stage Prithvi took off, radars at Ko- tracks of a large number of fragments ful. The fourth ended in partial failure nark, Puri and Paradip swung into ac- form on the monitor, confirming that as the attacker did not reach the re- tion within 30 seconds and tracked it it was destroyed,” V.K. Saraswat, Sci- quired altitude and range because of a when it was in ascent mode. The radars entific Adviser to the Defence Minis- snag in its control system. It did not communicated the attacker’s velocity ter, told Frontline from Wheeler come into the “kill corridor” and fell and position to the Mission Control Island. “The mission was done in the into the Bay of Bengal. Therefore, the Centre (MCC) at Hyderabad, situated deployment mode, close to the final Launch Control Centre (LCC) on 1,000 km from the attacker’s launch user [Army] configuration…. Its suc- Wheeler Island did not give the com- point. The MCC received the data in cess confirms that the country is ready mand to the interceptor to take off. real time, identified it as an enemy to take it to the next phase of produc- ballistic missile and issued orders to tion and induction.” the LCC to engage it. The LCC asked D.S. Reddy, Programme Director, Now India AAD-05 to lift off and destroy the tar- AAD, said the DRDO had proved that get missile in mid-flight. At 10-15 a.m., India had graduated “from experimen- needs ship- the interceptor collided with the at- tal mode to deployment mode” in the tacker after the latter had re-entered BMD programme. He added: “This ve- based platforms the earth’s atmosphere, and destroyed hicle [the interceptor] is capable of it. intercepting ballistic missiles with a to launch The new elements in this mission range up to 2,000 km. It is for the included a seeker with a longer range government to give the necessary interceptors than the seeker used in the earlier in- clearances and directives for future ac- terceptor. This took the interceptor tivities leading to deployment of the far away from close to the attacker. A radio proximity system.” The attacker missile belonged fuse erupted close to the target, ensur- to the 600-km-range class. the shore. ing that the warhead hit the target and Avinash Chander, Chief Controller killed it. The MCC, the LCC, the radars (Missiles and Strategic Systems), The latest success means that India and the data links functioned in uni- DRDO, said that “the entire operation can destroy in mid-flight Hatf and son. The mission proved, said Saras- was close to the deployment config- Ghauri ballistic missiles coming from wat, that the system’s design was good, uration”. Pakistan. India felt the requirement the software was robust and the radars V.G. Sekaran, Director, Advanced for a BMD shield in the late 1990s were reliable. Systems Laboratory, Hyderabad, when Pakistan test-fired Ghauri mis- The entire interception was auto- which had contributed to the mission, siles with ranges far enough to threat- mated, Avinash Chander said, with the called it “a good flight”. en Indian cities. radars tracking it all the way. “We had The launch confirmed yet again no knowledge when the attacker that India had the technological skills TWO-LAYERED DEFENCE would take off,” he said. to bring down enemy satellites in orbit. As an immediate solution, a two-lay- A DRDO missile technologist said G. Satheesh Reddy, Associate Di- ered air defence system was conceived that “the interceptor can be inducted rector, Research Centre, Imarat, Hyd- to protect the country’s vital assets in straightway” into the Army. There erabad, was the architect of the the shortest possible time. Of the two were consecutive successes with a near navigation systems used in both the layers, one was endo-atmospheric and hit and direct hits. Directional war- missiles, the attacker and the intercep- the other exo-atmospheric. Out of six heads, which exploded in all directions tor. While the navigation system in the interceptor missile successes, five have and pulverised the intruder, were attacker ensured that it came within been in the endo-atmosphere, that is, used. the kill zone, its counterpart in the the attacker was destroyed at altitudes An informed source in the DRDO interceptor guided it towards the at- below 45 km. The sixth one was in the said that although the interceptor used tacker. In both the missiles, the navi- exo-atmosphere: the interception took in this mission was capable of inter- gation systems used were close to the place at a height of 80 km. (The alti- cepting missiles coming from 300 to final configuration, Satheesh Reddy tude between 50 km and 90 km is 2,000 km away, India needed ship- said. called exo-atmosphere). While the in- based platforms for launching inter- India is the fifth country to have terceptor used in endo-atmospheric ceptors far away from the shore. “We BMD capability after the U.S., Russia, missions was a single-stage missile, a are planning to realise such platforms France and Israel. The February 10 two-stage interceptor was used to at- in the near future,” he said. २

30 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Controversy Procedures & lapses

The two committees that looked into the ISRO/Antrix-Devas deal arrive at

roughly similar conclusions but differ on details and emphasis. BY R. RAMACHANDRAN

One of them identifies the violations 6A, which were to be built and launched by ISRO. This contract was annulled by the government in of norms and the persons February 2011, citing the need for the said frequencies ostensibly for national strategic and societal applications. The real reason was perhaps the flawed responsible for them but does not contract and reports of massive loss to the exchequer pronounce anyone guilty of criminal based on draft observations on the deal by the Comp- troller and Auditor General of India (CAG), which wrongdoing. The other seems to had been leaked to the media. That the apparent loss to the exchequer reported believe the officials concerned are had no basis whatsoever was quite clear from the beginning (Frontline, March 11, 2011). If indeed the “guilty unless proved innocent”. CAG had made such an observation of huge financial loss to the country, then it must be said that it too had FROM what was originally projected in the grossly erred in this respect, betraying a lack of prop- media last year (Business Line/The Hindu, February er understanding of the rationale behind the differ- 7, 2011) as a major financial scam bigger than the 2G ent pricing of space spectrum and terrestrial spectrum case, resulting in a loss of Rs.2 lakh crore to spectrum. In this context it is interesting to note that the national exchequer, the controversial ISRO/An- in the recent media report based on the final CAG trix-Devas deal has turned out to be something en- report (again leaked!), there is no longer any men- tirely different today. The focus is tion of “loss to the exchequer”. The now on the acts of “omissions and final CAG report is expected to be commissions” by the officials of the tabled during the Budget session of Indian Space Research Organisa- Parliament. It must, however, be tion (ISRO) and Antrix Corpora- pointed out that the wide-of-the- tion Ltd (the marketing arm of mark reports in the media earlier ISRO) in arriving at an agreement certainly had the salutary effect of seven years ago with Devas Multi- bringing to light the problems with media, a Bangalore-based private the contract and several procedural company, for leasing out space irregularities committed by ISRO/ spectrum (transponders) in the S- Department of Space (DoS) in band (2.5-2.69 GHz) and the con- meeting its terms and obligations sequent action taken against them in the contract (Frontline, March by the government. 11, 2011). The Antrix-Devas agreement of A significant fallout of the con- January 2005 was for leasing near- troversy and the consequent inves- ly 90 per cent of 80 MHz band- K. MURALI KUMAR tigations into the deal by two width in the S-band from the space G. MADHAVAN NAIR, former committees constituted by the gov- segment allocated to ISRO for Secretary, Department of ernment last year is that on January space-based services. As part of this Space, and Chairman, Space 13, the DoS, under directions from agreement, Devas brought to the Commission. He and three the government, ordered that four table technology for Digital Satel- others have been barred from former senior officials of the de- lite Multimedia Broadcasting (D- “re-employment, committee partment, namely G. Madhavan SMB) services across the country roles or any other important Nair, former Secretary, DoS, Chair- using the satellites GSAT-6 and role under the government”. man, Space Commission, and

FRONTLINE 31 MARCH 9, 2012

Chairman, ISRO; A. Bhaskaranaraya- Antrix/ISRO to build two satellites were due to errors of judgment or there na, former Scientific Secretary, ISRO, (GSAT-6 and 6A) to the specifications was a deliberate, concerted attempt to and Director, SATCOM Programme of a single client for whose planned conceal and deceive the statutory bod- Office (SCPO); K.R. Sridhara Murthi, services almost the entire S-band ies. That needs to be established by due former Managing Director, Antrix; space segment was to be leased out for process of inquiry before any punitive and K.N. Shankara, former Director, the lifetime of the satellites (or 12 action is taken, unless it has been ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC), be years) with the attendant risks of a new deemed by the government that even barred from “re-employment, com- unproven technology venture that the errors of judgment are so serious mittee roles or any other important weighed heavily against ISRO. that they warrant such action as has role under the government” and they been pronounced. Indeed, V. Naraya- be “divested of any current assign- ACTS OF ‘OMISSION’ nasamy, the Minister of State in the ment/consultancy with the govern- The failure to keep the Space Commis- Prime Minister’s Office, has categor- ment with immediate effect”. But as sion, of which Madhavan Nair, as Sec- ically stated that the pronouncement Madhavan Nair has repeatedly told retary, DoS, was Chairman, apprised will not be revoked. the media subsequent to the ban order, of the contract and not informing the Only the main report (Vol. 1) of the there has been neither a formal charge Cabinet of it while obtaining financial HPRC, or the Chaturvedi Committee, sheet served on the accused nor a for- sanction for the two satellites in De- has been released, and not annexures mal inquiry, to give the accused a cember 2005 and October 2009 re- to it or Vol. 2, which contains the depo- chance to be heard and to present their spectively are certainly serious sitions by various experts and ISRO defence. That certainly seems unusual. procedural lapses. The Space Commis- officials to the committee. Curiously The two committees that examin- sion, according to the background note enough, even the full main report of ed the details of the agreement were: of the DoS, got to know of the contract the HLT, or the Pratyush Sinha Com- (1) the High Powered Review Commit- only in its meeting of July 2, 2010, mittee, has not been made public; only tee (HPRC), constituted on February during which it recommended the an- the Conclusions and Recommenda- 10, 2011, comprising B.K. Chaturvedi, nulment of the contract, given the tions part has been released. In fact, Member, Planning Commission, and many problems with it, in particular even the Terms of Reference (ToR) of former Cabinet Secretary, and Rod- the high risks that the contract en- the HLT have not been revealed. On dam Narasimha, Honorary Professor, tailed for ISRO. Equally serious is the the other hand, the ToR of the HPRC Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Ad- fact that the INSAT Coordination were “(i) To review the technical, com- vanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Committee (ICC), the inter-ministe- mercial, procedural and financial as- and Member, Space Commission, and rial body that approves the allocation pects of the Agreement… taking into (2) the five-member High Level Team of transponders on the INSAT system account the report of internal review (HLT), constituted on May 31, 2011, for different services, had been ren- conducted by DoS [instituted in De- and headed by Pratyush Sinha, former dered defunct, having not met at all cember 2009 under B.N. Suresh, for- Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC). between 2004 and 2009. mer Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Significantly, the HLT included K. The responsibility for these acts of Centre (VSSC), and former Member, Radhakrishnan, the present Secretary omission rests squarely on Madhavan Space Commission]; (ii) To suggest of DoS, and in addition R. Chandrash- Nair, the first two as Secretary, DOS corrective measures; and (iii) To fix ekhar, Secretary, Department of Tele- (vide Article 299 of the Constitution), responsibility for lapses, if any.” It is communications (DoT); Sumit Bose, and the last as Chairman, ISRO. But not clear why the Suresh Committee Secretary, Department of Expendi- there would seem to have been mainly report, which, according to Madhavan ture; and Namita Priyadarshee, Offi- only acts of “omission” by the indicted Nair, is very positive on the agreement, cer on Special Duty and Director officials. The only act of “commission” has also not been made public. (Legal), DoS. The HPRC submitted its would be the contract with Devas it- While both the reports are roughly report in March 2011 and the HLT in self. Both the committees have similar in terms of general observa- September 2011. deemed certain terms of the contract tions and broad conclusions, there are Both Madhavan Nair and Sridhara to be in violation of government policy. some crucial differences with regard to Murthi have maintained that what This is, however, arguable. If at all, the details and emphasis. More pertinent- they did was no different from the ear- contract was well in accordance with ly, in fixing responsibilities for “omis- lier procedure for leasing out trans- the SATCOM policy but badly drawn sions and commissions”, the HPRC ponders on satellites to private parties up with terms that entailed high risks has identified the violations of proce- in accordance with the SATCOM pol- and penalties for ISRO if the satellite dural norms and the individuals re- icy of 2000. But the 2005 Antrix-Dev- failed. The question is whether the ac- sponsible for them. However, it as contract was a good deal more than tions of the indicted officials, in partic- refrains from pronouncing anyone mere leasing of transponders (Fron- ular the non-disclosure to the ICC, the guilty of criminal wrongdoing war- tline, March 11, 2011). It committed Space Commission and the Cabinet, ranting punitive action. The HLT, on

32 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

Standing Committee. Pointing out fer of Forge Advisors, USA (FA-USA), that the use of ground spectrum is far which, according to the HPRC, had more efficient than that of space spec- many good professionals of Indian ori- trum – even as much as 10,000 times – gin, including those who had worked the HPRC has clarified that the pricing in ISRO, to provide digital multimedia of the satellite-based use of spectrum mobile services was a major attraction had to be considered differently. “Con- for ISRO as it was difficult to get the cerns on cheap selling of spectrum to technology, especially the chip design Devas [thus] have no basis whatsoev- for compact hand-held devices, from er. Space spectrum is not comparable other sources at that time. The agree- to terrestrial spectrum,” it concluded. ment was, the HPRC report notes, mo- However, pointing out that there were tivated by the fact that FA-USA would certain financial and strategic gaps in bring both equity funds and hand-held the agreement, the HPRC has accord- receiver technology to Antrix. ingly held the DoS Secretary , the SAT- Appreciating ISRO’s efforts to COM Director and the Member meet these technology challenges (Finance) of the Space Commission re- when there were major developments sponsible for these. in the world in D-SMB services, the Interestingly, however, the HLT HPRC has noted that the decision to did not even consider it important to source the technology through a part-

K. MURALI KUMAR re-emphasise this point even though nership with FA-USA “was consistent BANGALORE, JULY 9, 2011: this is what triggered the entire con- with the goals that had been set out for K. Radhakrishnan (right), troversy, thus leaving the impression Antrix operations”. The goals set out Chairman of ISRO and Secretary, in the public mind that the nation for Antrix included – as the committee Department of Space, greets would have suffered a huge financial has noted – promotion of joint ven- V.S. Hegde, who was appointed the loss if the contract had not been tures, encouraging ISRO employees to new CMD of Antrix Corporation, at a scrapped. On the contrary, it could be set up enterprises in high-technology press conference. argued that if the contract itself was areas, investment in share and loan the problem, the Space Commission capital of companies promoted for tak- the other hand, would seem to have could have recommended its renego- ing up production for space and ven- prejudged mala fide, or criminal in- tiation to safeguard ISRO’s interests ture capital funding. tent, on the part of certain individuals rather than its annulment and enabled The committee has, however, also who were responsible for the agree- the organisation to introduce new commented on the strategic gaps and ment and, accordingly, its conclusions space-based communication technol- risks that were associated with the and recommendations appear to be ogy in the country irrespective of the agreement that Antrix eventually en- from the standpoint that the officials action envisaged on the erring offi- tered into with Devas, which was the concerned are “guilty unless proved in- cials. Indian company that FA-USA estab- nocent”. There are also some contra- Indeed, even as it has pointed out lished in 2004 following the memo- dictions between the two reports. the serious procedural lapses on the randum of understanding (MoU) with part of senior ISRO/Antrix officials, ISRO/Antrix signed in 2003 when K. CONTRADICTIONS IN REPORTS the HPRC has noted a lot of positives Kasturirangan was ISRO Chairman. Take for instance the issue of apparent in the whole affair and has recom- The MoU had originally envisaged the loss to the national exchequer with mended measures and reforms that possibility of cooperation in very ex- which the entire story of Antrix-Devas, would go towards further strengthen- tensive fields; it was narrowed down to in fact, began. Noting that the satellite ing ISRO as a driver of space tech- multimedia services in the agreement. would continue to be owned by DoS/ nologies. Consider the following “[W]hile professionally FA-USA ISRO and that the spectrum was ear- observations of the HPRC: “ISRO was had consultants with excellent experi- marked for DoS/ISRO, the HPRC has at that time seeking opportunities to ence in the field of space and were well pointed out that in the Antrix-Devas develop or acquire innovative technol- qualified at that point of time, their case, ISRO adopted the same business ogies, consistently with its policies and ability for developing the new system model it had used in the past for leas- past experience in developing space- was not on record or proven. It was ing out transponders as per DoS pol- related technologies in different ar- also not clear whether they had any icy. The said policy was to lease out eas…. ISRO was also looking for a ser- intellectual property rights (IPR) over transponders at the best negotiated vice provider possessing technologies these technologies. It was, therefore, amounts beyond the specific cost com- for hybrid digital communications” not a case of mere technology transfer, putations made by the instituted (emphasis added, throughout). The of- but one that involved development of

FRONTLINE 33 MARCH 9, 2012

innovative technology, which always possible alternative uses in S-band.” including launch and insurance costs. has an associated element of risk…. With regard to the last point, the Only expenditures beyond Rs.150 ISRO took risk in selecting FA-USA HPRC has noted that while in Japan, crore require Cabinet approval. “This,” and planning its satellite launch on Korea and the U.S. only 20-25 MHz says the HPRC report, “raises the ques- unproven technological capabilities. bandwidth is used for providing satel- tion whether this was done to avoid While the Antrix Board approved the lite services in the S-band, it was not having to seek Cabinet approval…. The proposal (in June 2004), primary re- clear why Devas was being given such a responsibility for the above lay primar- sponsibility lay with Secretary, DOS, large bandwidth. Though the Shanka- ily with Director, SATCOM, who for this decision,” says the report. ra Committee had not gone into this placed the notes before the Commis- While the final agreement is only issue in any depth, it held that “these sion and Secretary, DoS, who had full for the lease of transponder capacity, frequencies are mostly unused, and, knowledge of the above, being ex-offi- the original FA-USA proposal was for hence, may be beneficially used for cio Chairman of Antrix.” a joint venture with ISRO. This pro- providing Devas services”. The Shan- In fact, the HLT too has alleged posal was considered in 2004 by a kara Committee had also argued that that non-disclosure of the agreement committee under K.N. Shankara, who the use of Devas MSS spectrum had to the Space Commission even later, was then the Director of Space Appli- been limited to a “certain bandwidth” while seeking approval for GSAT-6A, cations Centre (SAC), Ahmedabad, and therefore these, including MSS was deliberate. “This act of dissimula- and is one of the officials named in the services on other INSAT systems, tion,” the HLT has remarked, “extends government’s ban order. The Shanka- could coexist. From this perspective, it also to the calculation of the cost of ra Committee looked at the proposal in is, therefore, not clear what sudden GSAT-6A resulting in the proposal not detail from the perspectives of tech- strategic and societal applications going to the Cabinet.” It has further nology, risk management, financial as- have emerged to make use of the S- pointed out that the agreement was pects and the use of frequency band. band that had been planned to be not disclosed to the Technical Adviso- The positive observations of the HPRC leased to Devas and had been lying ry Group (TAG) at the time of consid- in this regard are worth recalling. unused until now. ering the experimental trials. “In several areas,” says the HPRC Contrast the above with what the The HPRC has also noted that report, “[the Shankara Committee] HLT had to say with regard to the from the national security perspective, made good recommendations which Shankara Committee: “[Shankara] the allocation of a large part of the reduced the risk for Antrix/ISRO. went about his job with a clear in- spectrum and the running of a service These included the recommendation tention of suggesting an arrangement by a private player such as Devas was to move from joint venture to leasing that would be acceptable to Devas. To an unjustified risk and that this issue of transponders… [as] the technology that extent he was guilty of not consid- was completely overlooked. The com- and the patents and copyrights for ering all the implications of the agree- mittee has held Secretary, DoS, and technology were not very clear at that ment he was recommending.” In fact, Director, SATCOM, primarily respon- point of time…. In respect of space the HLT saw no positives in the deal. sible for this imprudent decision to segment they suggested use of optimi- allocate almost the entire band to one sation of spot beam coverage to enable OTHER LAPSES company. In addition to the above vio- better use of frequency… satellite fail- Besides the procedural lapses of non- lation of procedural norms, the com- ure criteria, where the original propos- disclosure of the Antrix-Devas agree- mittee has identified the following as al for a failure to be defined as a one ment to the ICC, the Space Commis- violative of government policy: (1) beam failure, was improved to two sion and the Cabinet, the HPRC has Earmarking of GSAT capacity for the beam failure. They also… recommend- identified the following other signif- Antrix-Devas project, without the as- ed that Devas was to procure licences icant lapses. It has noted that when the pects of the Antrix-Devas agreement and approvals required for operating agreement was made operational in having been considered by the ICC, their services at the consumer end, February 2006, there were no funds which is the body for recommending thereby insulating ISRO from these with the DoS for building the second utilisation of satellite capacities by issues. In financial terms also the origi- satellite. But the DoS committed itself non-government users and (2) the ex- nal suggestion for $5 m[illion] up- to building a second satellite clusive use by one player of a large part front was improved to $20 m and the (GSAT-6A). The expenditure on it was of the S-band spectrum as provided for annual fee for the lease period from $9 without any financial authorisation by the Antrix-Devas agreement was m to $11.25 m when Devas became because the Antrix-Devas agreement against the “non-exclusive” principle cash positive. These were certain posi- never went before the Space Commis- adopted in the INSAT policy. tive features which they were able to sion where the Finance Secretary is a With regard to the second, the negotiate. In respect of certain other Member. It did not even go to the Cab- HLT has said: “While the SATCOM areas… there were gaps. One of them inet because the cost of the satellite Policy/ICC guidelines allow for leasing was the availability of frequency and was understated at Rs.147 crore by not of satellite on ‘first-come-first-served’

34 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

basis, this did not prevent Antrix/IS- that the blacklisting of the four former This deal was apparently discussed RO from following a transparent proc- ISRO scientists is a consequence of in all its aspects at the Council and ess of adequately publicising intent of this recommendation. there had never been any objection supporting such services… and there- From among the senior bureau- from Radhakrishnan or, for that mat- after applying the ‘first-come-first- crats of ISRO/DoS, the report has ter, from any other head of ISRO cen- served’ principle. In the absence of identified S.S. Meenakshisundaram, tres or bureaucrat. But, more such a declaration of intent, choosing Veena S. Rao, G. Balachandran and intriguingly, even after the apparent Devas seems to be lacking in transpar- R.G. Nadadur as being responsible recommendation of annulment by the ency and due diligence.” “for the acts of omissions by not paying Space Commission in July 2010, An- Commenting on the clarifications enough attention to details and not trix and ISRO officials, including Rad- provided by the officials to the com- ensuring that the various notes that hakrishnan himself, were talking to mittee, the HLT has said that there is were put up for decision to the compe- Devas officials until as late as January an attempt at obfuscation by key play- tent authorities included all the neces- 2011. In September 2010, Radhakrish- ers as they have remained silent on sary details”. Even though the report nan met Devas officials in Prague dur- issues such as the arbitrary selection, has called for action against them as ing an international aeronautics lack of proper financial and technical well, interestingly, the final ban order conference and discussed technical de- evaluation, undue favours at govern- is only against the scientists. tails about the satellite GSAT-6 and its ment’s cost to Devas, lack of transpar- What is curious in all this is that K. scheduled launch. According to a letter ency and finally exposing Antrix and Radhakrishnan, the current Secretary from Devas to Radhakrishnan, dated the government to unwarranted com- of the DoS and a member of the HLT, October 11, 2010, Radhakrishnan had mercial risks. “We, therefore, conclude was a member of the Antrix board dur- written to Devas on August 25, 2010, that there have been not only serious advising Devas to speak to the Manag- administrative and procedural lapses ing Director of Antrix. This meeting but also suggestion of collusive beha- The Antrix- with Sridhara Murthi did take place on viour on the part of certain individuals September 14, 2010, in the presence of and, accordingly, responsibilities have Devas deal did other Antrix officials. to be fixed for taking action under rele- It is learnt that Antrix had not been vant service rules,” says the HLT re- not even go to informed by the Chairman of the pro- port, without any evidence. posed annulment of the Antrix-Devas Similar is the remark by the HLT the Cabinet contract and had not been advised suggesting monetary gains made by against any further dealing with Dev- the officials, without any evidence. “In because the cost as. In fact, on January 10, 2011, sub- order to get a clear picture of the sequent to the GSLV failure in changing pattern of ownership of Dev- of the satellite December 2010 that upset the sched- as, the non-legitimate financial/pecu- uled launch of GSAT-6, the new exec- niary interest, if any, of various was understated. utive director informed Devas that individuals and officials concerned, GSAT-6 could be ready for launch in the extent to which the increase in ing the period when the Antrix-Devas three to four months and spoke of pos- share value has been encashed by indi- agreement was in the process of being sible Critical Design Review in March viduals, the shareholding of the com- implemented in terms of satellite fab- 2011. pany and of the Mauritius-based rication, experimental trials, and so Following the constitution of entities and any illegitimate financial on, and he apparently did not raise any GSLV/Satcom Programme Review gain by officials concerned needs to be issue over the deal. and Strategy Formulation Committee looked into by appropriate agency.” But as soon as he took over in under Kasturirangan to arrive at al- “There is no doubt that,” says the 2009, he initiated an inquiry into the ternative launch strategies following HLT report, “in this matter the re- agreement by constituting the B.N. the GSLV failure, Devas, in fact, responsibility is spread over a number of Suresh Committee. Also, as the Direc- quested that GSAT-6 be put on a pro- officials…. However, [Madhavan] tor of the VSSC, he was a member of cured launch and that it be planned Nair, Bhaskaranarayana and Sridhara the ISRO Council, which comprises well ahead of all other satellites in the Murthi were the individuals who were heads of all the ISRO centres as well as pipeline given the 18 months’ delay mainly responsible for leading the DoS the Additional Secretary and the Joint that had already happened. and Antrix into this arrangement. We Secretary of the DoS, and where feed- It is thus not clear why this game would like the government to take nec- back from all ISRO centres on the pro- was being played even as the govern- essary action against them under the jects being pursued by ISRO are ment was planning to annul the con- relevant sections of Pension Rules or sought and issues thrashed out virtual- tract soon and institute an inquiry into any other provisions of law.” It is clear ly like an internal review. the deal. २

FRONTLINE 35 Scandal MARCH 9, 2012 Spectrum shocks

The recent Supreme Court judgments in the 2G cases will have a lasting impact

on anti-corruption jurisprudence in the country. BY V.VENKATESAN IN NEW DELHI

The court cancels the 122 licences vants was Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), 1988. This section makes it mandatory issued by A. Raja on or after January for a court to take cognisance of an offence punishable under the Act and committed by a public 10, 2008, and directs TRAI to make servant only after the government concerned sanc- tioned it. fresh recommendations for the grant This provision was enacted to prevent frivolous and vexatious litigation against public servants. However, governments, both at the Centre and in the of licence and the allocation of States, often misused the provision to delay inordi- spectrum in 2G band in 22 service nately a decision on the grant or refusal of sanction, in order to protect corrupt public servants. areas by auction. In the landmark Vineet Narain case in 1998, the Supreme Court had held that governments must FOUR judicial verdicts delivered within the span adhere to the time limit of three months for grant of of a week from January 31 have the potential to leave sanction for prosecution. The court allowed an addi- a signiﬁcant imprint on the anti-corruption crusade tional time of one month where consultation with of civil society activists in the country. the Attorney General was required. On the basis of A major challenge faced by these activists when- this and other related High Court judgments, the ever they tried to expose corruption by public ser- Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) framed certain guidelines in 2005. These guidelines made it clear that while granting or refusing sanction, the Compe- tent Authority should only see whether the material placed by the complainant or the investigating agency prima facie disclosed commission of an offence and that a detailed inquiry was not required at that stage. In the 2G case, the Central government did not comply with either the Vineet Narain judgment or the CVC’s guidelines while disposing of Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy’s petition for sanction to prosecute the former Telecom Minister A. Raja. Swamy ﬁrst made his representation to the Prime Minister on November 29, 2008, when he sought sanction to prosecute Raja under the PCA; he kept sending one reminder after another until 2010. Swamy had alleged that Raja had allotted new li-

UNION HOME MINISTER P. Chidambaram with former Telecom Minister A. Raja (right), in June 2010. Special CBI Judge O.P. Saini has dismissed the petition to include Chidambaram, who was the Finance Minister at the time of the scam, as an

R. SENTHIL KUMAR /PTI accused along with Raja.

36 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

cences in 2G mobile services on a first- charge sheet to commence come-first-served (FCFS) basis to nov- prosecution. ice telecom companies, Swan Telecom Observers and legal experts are and Unitech, in clear violation of the convinced that no government in fu- guidelines issued by the Ministry of ture will ignore this recommendation Communication and Information even if Parliament does not immedi- Technology in 2005 and thereby ately amend Section 19 on the lines caused a loss of over Rs.50,000 crore suggested by Justice Ganguly. to the government. The Bench’s clean chit to the Prime However, the government chose to Minister, however, has confounded respond to Swamy’s petition only on critics who point to its second judg- March 19, 2010. The Department of ment, delivered on February 2, when Personnel and Training wrote to him Justice Ganguly retired from the Su- saying that the Central Bureau of In- preme Court. In this judgment, the vestigation (CBI) had registered a case Bench cancelled the 122 licences is- on October 21, 2009, and therefore, it sued by Raja on or after January 10, would be premature to consider grant 2008, and directed the Telecom Regu- of sanction for prosecution. latory Authority of India (TRAI) to It was at this stage that Swamy make fresh recommendations for filed a writ petition in the Delhi High grant of licence and allocation of spec-

Court seeking issue of mandamus to RAMESH SHARMA trum in 2G band in 22 service areas by the Prime Minister to grant sanction. JANATA PARTY PRESIDENT auction, as was done for allocation of The High Court dismissed his petition. Subramanian Swamy outside the spectrum in 3G band. The Bench did Meanwhile, Raja resigned as Supreme Court building after the so by following the reasoning that the Union Minister, and the Supreme verdict on the 2G scam. FCFS principle was inherently non- Court admitted Swamy’s appeal transparent, and unfair. The Bench against the High Court order. Despite ment in the country. It held that all had no doubt that if the method of Raja’s subsequent resignation and citizens had a right to seek sanction to auction had been adopted for grant of prosecution, the issue of grant of sanc- prosecute a public servant accused of licence, which could be the only trans- tion needed to be examined in order to corruption and that every Competent parent method for the distribution of fix accountability at the highest levels. Authority should take appropriate ac- national wealth, the nation would have On January 31, a Bench compris- tion on the citizen’s representation for been richer by many thousand crores ing Justices G.S. Singhvi and Asok Ku- sanction of prosecution of such public of rupees. mar Ganguly reminded the servant in accordance with the Vineet However, by quoting from the cor- government that investigation against Narain judgment and the CVC’s guide- respondence exchanged between Raja Raja had begun only with the Supreme lines. To this, Justice Ganguly added, and the Prime Minister, the Bench Court’s intervention and that the delay in his separate opinion, that Section 19 sought to imply that the Prime Minis- in the grant of sanction by the Prime of the PCA must be construed in such a ter knew that his Minister was against Minister was impermissible. However, manner as to advance the causes of auctioning spectrum to new appli- the Bench did not hold the Prime Min- honesty and justice and good govern- cants and that he was in a position to ister personally responsible for that. It ance as opposed to the escalation of stop Raja from going ahead with the said that he was not expected to look corruption. Delay in granting sanction grant of Letters of Intent (LoI) to the into the minute details of each and for prosecution thwarted the purpose applicants on January 10, 2008. But every case placed before him and had of a speedy trial, and the absence of a the Prime Minister did not do so. Yet to depend on his advisers and other time limit in granting sanction was the Bench did not find it necessary to officers, and that they had failed to against the requirement of due process indict him or pass strictures for this provide the full facts to him. Had the of law, he said. lapse. The Bench, curiously, has also Prime Minister been aware of the fac- He, therefore, recommended that brought out how Raja ignored the con- tual and legal position, he would surely Parliament amend Section 19 to pro- cerns expressed by the Law and Fi- have taken an appropriate decision vide that , if no decision is taken at the nance Ministers over the adoption of and would not have allowed the matter end of a four-month period after a citi- the FCFS principle, but the question to linger for more than a year, the zen submits a recommendation seek- why the said Ministers did not protest Bench said. ing sanction, sanction will be deemed against Raja’s defiance is not discussed The Bench, however, laid down to have been granted for prosecution in the judgment. two significant principles to be strictly and the complainant/prosecuting The Bench said that the manner in adhered to in future by any govern- agency will be free to file complaint/ which the exercise for grant of LoIs to

FRONTLINE 37 Scandal MARCH 9, 2012 the applicants was conducted on Janu- scam took place on January 10, 2008: Swamy’s appeal to avoid influencing ary 10, 2008, left no room for doubt “I have seen the notes. The issue re- the pending matter in Saini’s court. In that everything was stage-managed to garding new LoIs is not before any his February 4 order, Saini concluded favour those who were able to know in court. What is proposed is fair and that the evidence submitted by Swami advance the change in the implemen- reasonable. The press release (the did not, prima facie, attract any crimi- tation of the FCFS principle. Raja ar- draft which was released by Raja’s nal charges against Chidambaram. bitrarily advanced the cut-off date for Ministry on 10.1.2008) makes for Swami has said that he will appeal the receipt of applications from Octo- transparency. This seems to be in or- against Saini’s order. ber 1, 2007, to September 25, 2007, der.” This provided the necessary legal Saini held that Chidambaram was and did not make this public until Ja- cover for Raja. party to only two decisions – of keep- nuary 10, 2008. This was intended to The judgment also suffers from a ing the spectrum prices at the 2001 benefit some real estate companies serious inconsistency. The Bench jus- level and dilution of equity by two which did not have any experience in tified the quashing of the licences is- companies, Swan and Unitech, even telecom services and which had made sued in 2008 to protect institutional before the roll-out of their services. applications only on September 24, integrity but left the licences issued However, the judge said both these 2007. The Bench did not consider the before 2008 on the basis of the FCFS acts were not illegal per se. But such question whether Raja could have act- principle untouched, because it said acts may acquire criminal colour/over- ed alone in this manner, totally by- there was no challenge to it and there tones when done with criminal intent, passing the concept of collective were no aggrieved parties before it. he said. In the case of Raja, these acts responsibility underlying the cabinet Those dissatisfied with this flaw ask were accompanied by further acts of system of government. whether the court could have allowed subverting an established policy and The court justified its interference illegal licences issued before 2008 to procedure for grant of Unified Access in policy matters in terms of the doc- continue merely because of a technical Service licences and the payment and trine of judicial review. It said: “When ground. receipt of bribe by other accused, who it is clearly demonstrated before the stand charged and are facing trial. In- court that the policy framed by the nocent and innocuous acts done in as- State or its agency/instrumentality The Bench’s sociation with others did not make one and /or its implementation is contrary a partner in crime unless there was to public interest or is violative of the clean chit to the material to indicate otherwise, which constitutional principles, it is the duty was lacking in this case, Saini said in of the court to exercise its jurisdiction Prime Minister his order. in larger public interest and reject the Observers wonder whether Swamy stock plea of the state that the scope of has confounded could have got a favourable order from judicial review should not be exceeded the Supreme Court on the Chidamba- beyond the recognised parameters…. critics. ram issue had he not approached the It is the duty of the court to ensure that trial court. The two issues were differ- the institutional integrity is not com- Special CBI Judge O.P. Saini’s or- ent – directing the CBI to investigate promised by those in whom the people der of February 4, however, has dis- the role of Chidambaram and making have reposed trust and who have taken appointed those who believed the him a co-accused in the criminal case oath to discharge duties in accordance Supreme Court’s three judgments on the basis of prima facie evidence. with the Constitution and the law would have an impact on the likeli- Clearly, in the eyes of the trial court, without fear or favour, affection or ill- hood of Union Home Minister P. Chi- there is no prima facie evidence to will and who, as any other citizen, en- dambaram’s prosecution in the 2G make him a co-accused. To unearth joy fundamental rights but is bound to case. Judge Saini dismissed Subrama- necessary evidence, there is the need perform duties.” nian Swamy’s application to include for further investigation, which the Observers expect these observa- Chidambaram as a co-accused under CBI alone can undertake. Saini’s court tions will inspire public-spirited citi- the PCA in the ongoing criminal trial could not have directed the CBI to in- zens to consider judicial remedy as a of the accused in the 2G case. Swamy vestigate as it was beyond its juris- reliable mechanism to ensure good had earlier filed an appeal petition in diction. On the other hand, the governance. the Supreme Court against the Delhi Supreme Court could not have direct- A glaring omission in the judg- High Court’s dismissal of his plea for a ed the CBI to do so when the trial court ment is the role of the Attorney Gener- direction to the CBI to probe Chidam- was about to pronounce its order in a al, Goolam Vahanvati. As Solicitor baram’s role. On February 2, the Su- related matter. In the end, it appeared General then, Vahanvati provided the preme Court Bench comprising that the overenthusiastic Swami had legal justification for Raja. He wrote Justices Singhvi and Ganguly re- jumped the gun by seeking redress in on the file just three days before the frained from passing any order on two forums simultaneously. २

38 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Column The Chinese way

Though the banking system is used as a development instrumentality in China, a host of new problems may make the government strike a new path.

MONG the many inade- they adopted innovative schemes. quately understood facets Principally, these involved the creation of China’s post-reform of financial vehicles – such as urban economy is the role of its development investment corporations banking system. Before the – separated superficially from the pro- reform,A the country’s banking assets vincial government, which were made were concentrated in a few banks, es- to borrow from banks to finance these pecially the top four. The system itself projects. was a secondary instrument in macro- The problem now is the inability of economic policy, implementing the these institutions to meet their loan overall cash and credit plans of the commitments. Many of the projects state, besides providing working cap- were financed with non-recourse loans ital support to state-owned backed by collateral of uncertain or enterprises. little commercial value that could not The consensus is that the role be easily cashed in case of default. The played by these institutions has future cash flows associated with other changed dramatically in recent years, Economic projects such as toll-based roads, with their involvement in credit provi- bridges and subways are difficult to sion for investment purposes having Perspectives estimate. increased substantially. That transfor- C.P. CHANDRASEKHAR And some are social sector projects mation came to the fore after 2008 with an implicit guarantee of a pro- when the Chinese government decided vincial investment holding corpora- to launch a huge stimulus package to sponsored, but off-balance sheet, enti- tion, but no explicit commitment to address the effects of the global crisis ties. Second, in a reflection of the de- pay. on the Chinese economy. centralisation of decision-making and The resort to the stimulus was in implementation, a substantial part of DEBT BURDEN itself not surprising. Ramping up do- the additional spending was undertak- Though the stimulus shored up Chi- mestic spending in order to neutralise en at the provincial level by entities na’s remarkable growth rate even in the effects of a global slowdown on an associated with provincial the midst of the crisis, doubts were economy that was an export power- governments. soon being expressed about the way it house made sense. It also served the One problem was that provincial was financed. According to an audit rest of the world well by keeping Chi- government could not issue bonds to conducted in the middle of 2011, in the nese growth going at close to 9 per borrow money to finance expendi- aftermath of stimulus spending, local cent. tures. In a drastic response in 1994 to government-associated debt had risen evidence that provincial governments to $1.65 trillion or around 27 per cent UNUSUAL FEATURES were finding it difficult to service their of Chinese gross domestic product OF STIMULUS debts accumulated by indiscriminate (GDP). In comparison, central debt There were, however, two features un- borrowing, the central government was estimated at around 20 per cent of usual about the Chinese stimulus. To imposed a ban on local governments GDP. The audit showed that outstand- start with, the stimulus package did running budget deficits and issuing ing local government debt rose by 62 not rely on an increase in government bonds. per cent in 2009 alone, when Rmb spending financed directly with its Hence, when called upon to spend 9,600 billion was pumped into the sys- own receipts. Rather, banks were en- as part of the stimulus effort, and hap- tem as part of the stimulus. The in- couraged to offer huge volumes of debt py to do so to launch big, “prestige ability of provincial governments to to finance spending by government- projects” backed by provincial leaders, meet their implicit commitments

FRONTLINE 39 Column MARCH 9, 2012 seems to be dawning on the centre reflecting the hunger for government fears of a speculative bubble that can with about a third of the loans set to bonds. But that once again raises the go bust have increased. This would im- mature by the end of this year and possibility that provincial govern- pact on bank balance sheets and around a half falling due over the comments in pursuit of the special inter- solvency. ing three years. Sensing repayment ests of their leaders will resort to This problem has been exacerbat- problems, the government has report- excessive borrowing backed inade- ed by structural changes induced by edly initiated a huge programme of quately by revenue generation. liberalisation. Besides the state banks, rollover of debts owed to the banks. especially the top four, that dominated The argument seems to be that in time the financial system as a whole in Chi- these projects will yield adequate reve- na, the Chinese financial structure nues so that an extension of maturity is now includes a host of private banks the way to go. and a significant shadow banking sys- With the economy still strong and tem consisting of trusts and other in- the government in command, there is vestment companies. little fear of the problem leading to a In the initial flush of the transition crisis of the kind precipitated in the that saw banks becoming important West by the over-indebtedness of lenders, the big state- controlled banks households and the high debt to GDP lent to state-owned enterprises and ratios of governments. The centre the private banks lent locally, especial- would in all probability recapitalise ly to the small and medium enterprises these banks as and when required to that have been an essential part of Chi- keep them solvent. Even early critics of na’s success story. the policy of restructuring debt by ex- But recent developments appear to tending maturities, such as the China have taken the system in three direc- Banking Regulatory Commission, now tions. First, as noted above, the state- admit that there is no immediate REUTERS owned banks have hugely increased option. AT A BRANCH of China Minsheng their exposure to projects launched by But the wisdom of concealing a Banking Corp., Ltd in Nanjing provincial government-sponsored en- proactive fiscal policy, by making in east China’s Jiangsu province. A tities that have yet to show adequate state-owned banks lend to state-spon- file photograph. returns. Second, the private banks and sored financing vehicles, which in turn trust funds have moved on from fi- lend to state-backed projects, is now in The problem is that, though con- nancing small and medium enterpris- question. The problem is that though strained by the ban on borrowing im- es to financing and fuelling a real these are infrastructure projects with posed by the central government, most estate bubble. an uncertain future revenue stream, provincial governments rely on trans- And, finally, through their engage- those revenues have to meet the ac- fers from the centre and the sale of ment with the shadow banking system, quired interest and amortisation com- lands they control or commandeer to the larger commercial banks, too, are mitments. finance their expenditures. They are exposed indirectly to the property That is clearly not feasible at the yet to establish any degree of financial market bubble. moment, necessitating the restructur- independence based on taxation de- These are all the result of the gov- ing. If the governments had financed spite the increase in incomes and in- ernment choosing to use the banking the projects directly, they could have, equality in the system. system as a development instrumen- in case of a revenue shortfall, used oth- tality, even while relaxing controls on er receipts they were eligible to receive PROPERTY MARKET BUBBLE and supervision of financial firms as or new revenue sources to cover the There is cause for concern elsewhere as part of a “Chinese way” of restructur- difference. well. Encouraged by easy liquidity, the ing the financial sector. In the event, Thus, the experience seems to sig- credit-financed spending boom has af- while growth promoted by the huge nal the need for a change in the policy fected other sectors. Chinese financial stimulus was a beneficial outcome, of financing the large investment un- institutions have overextended them- there are a host of new problems sur- dertaken directly or indirectly by the selves in the property market in partic- facing. This could possibly encourage state in China. Over the last year, gov- ular. the government to retrace its steps and ernments in a few provinces and cities The exposure of Chinese banks to strike a new path. Unless membership starting with Shanghai have been giv- the property market is placed at more of the World Trade Organisation and en permission to issue bonds for the than a fifth of their advances. Since the the conditions that the government ac- first time in close to two decades. The escalated lending has resulted in a spi- cepted at the time of entry prove to be Shanghai issue was hugely successful, ral in housing and real estate prices, obstacles. २

40 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 world affairs A President’s exit The Maldives: The nation gets a new President as political unrest forces

Mohamed Nasheed to quit. BY R.K. RADHAKRISHNAN IN MALE

Soon after his resignation on February 7, Nasheed alleged that he had been ousted in a coup and demanded fresh elections. But the international

SANKA VIDANAGAMA/AFP community has welcomed the new government. SOMETIMES it takes just one mistake for the nal Court, Mohamed Abdulla, on January 16. The whole world to come crashing down around you. opposition pounced on the opportunity and Male, Mohamed Nasheed, the ﬁrst democratically elected the capital, witnessed protest marches every single President of the Maldives, made that singular mis- day after the arrest. Abdulla, who was until then on take when he arrested the Chief Judge of the Crimi- the fringes of the establishment, became the new DINUKA LIYANAWATTE/REUTERS OUSTED PRESIDENT MOHAMED Nasheed is carried by his supporters during the Maldivian Democratic Party’s meeting in Male on February 8.

FRONTLINE 41 MARCH 9, 2012

rallying point. On February 7, Nash- “encourage” MDP men to join the coa- eed made way for Vice-President Wa- lition, it arrested a Member of Parlia- heed Hassan Manik, a former top ment from Addu on what MDP men official in the United Nations Chil- said was an old charge. But the police dren’s Fund (UNICEF), to be sworn in said that his arrest was in connection as President. Educated at Stanford with the recent rioting. This again University in California, Waheed was brought MDP MPs and people on to the first television anchor in the Mal- the streets. The MPs lodged a com- dives and the first person to be shown plaint with the Speaker on the night of live when its local TV went on air in February 12, and their supporters oc- 1978, says his official biography. He cupied the roads leading to the Majlis. has headed the country’s Education The police struggled until late in the Department, was elected to Parlia- night to keep the MDP men away from ment (People’s Majlis) in the late the Majlis roads. 1990s, and later joined UNICEF. He rose to be the UNICEF representative THE GENESIS in Afghanistan, helping rebuild A vicious campaign to force Nasheed schools and providing health services out of office had begun last year. The after the fall of the Taliban. He also opposition found that he could not be served in Myanmar. faulted on welfare and development Nasheed never spoke about the measures or accessibility. So they be- events except when he gave a televised gan attacking his brand of moderate address announcing his resignation on Islam, saying that Nasheed would al- February 7. “I resign because I am not low Israelis to come in and also allow a person who wishes to rule with the the streets, Nasheed, after talks with the practice of other religions. use of power. I believe that if the gov- Indian, British, U.N. and Common- Nasheed’s response to these charg- ernment were to remain in power it wealth officials, changed his stance es left a lot to be desired. He tried would require the use of force which and demanded fresh elections. But af- paying the opposition back in the same would harm many citizens…. I resign ter talks with United States Assistant coin, by organising rallies that were because I believe that if the govern- Secretary of State for South and Cen- larger than the opposition’s and by ment continues to stay in power, it is tral Asia Robert O’ Blake, who was a meeting smear campaign with smear very likely that we may face foreign former Ambassador to Sri Lanka and campaign. influences,” he said. He did not clarify the Maldives, and with the Indian en- But each of his acts only served to what influences he was referring to. voy, M. Ganapathi, who flew down unite the opposition. It finally led to It appeared to be a peaceful transi- from Delhi, Nasheed appeared to have the overnight formation of a non-gov- tion within the mandate of the Maldi- accepted the opinion that early elec- ernmental organisation, the Decem- vian Constitution. The new President, tions were not a possibility. ber 23 Forum, which served as a upon taking charge, told the interna- platform to bring all shades of the op- tional media that he wanted to form a WAHEED CABINET position together. From then on, Male national unity government, and began With widespread international sup- witnessed competing rallies. working towards that objective. port for a rainbow coalition to run the The last nail in the government’s Out of the blue, Nasheed lashed country until the next elections in coffin was the arrest of the judge. The out at Waheed the next day. He end-2013, Waheed began the process opposition then shifted focus to more claimed he had been ousted in a coup, of Cabinet formation. First, he ap- earthly matters: mainly to the exec- that Waheed had knowledge of it and pointed a Home Minister and a De- utive impinging on the powers of the demanded that he resign. In Male, fence Minister, both known for their judiciary. where Nasheed’s Maldivian Demo- anti-India stance. On February 12, he The Maldivian Foreign Ministry’s cratic Party (MDP) is in a majority, appointed an Attorney General and six spin on the arrest did not help either. It Nasheed’s supporters clashed with the more Ministers. “It was as if much of explained that the criminal court police on the streets that day, leading the [Maumoon Abdul] Gayoom Cabi- judge Abdulla Mohamed had been “ar- to a baton charge and use of tear gas. net has come back with a vengeance,” rested for corruption, in particular for Many MDP men were arrested in said an MDP politician. “I would not allowing his judicial decisions to be Male. Another MDP stronghold, Addu be surprised if Gayoom himself came determined by political and personal City in the southern-most atoll of Ad- back.” affiliations and interests. His repeated du (formerly Seenu), witnessed arson. Then the government made its first failure to comply with constitutional Buoyed by the support he saw on mistake. In what appears to be a bid to requirements regarding the individual

42 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

allegations of political bias after he appeared on TV saying ‘this government is a dying government’, but the JSC’s move was overturned by Abdulla Mo- hamed’s allies in the lower courts. “With the JSC unwilling or unable to act, responsibility to rein in judges who break the law should fall to higher judicial authorities. However, senior judges have proved time and again that they are not willing to take action against one of their own – destroying, in the process, public conﬁdence in the judiciary. “All the time, Abdulla Mohamed’s actions are becoming more blatant – from asking children who have been sexually abused to act out the crime in court, to repeatedly releasing opposition ﬁgures brought before the courts

REUTERS for serious crimes including assault NEWLY APPOINTED PRESIDENT Mohamed Waheed at a news conference and incitement to hatred or violence. at the President’s Office in Male on February 11. “As the ultimate guarantor of the Constitution, the President could no integrity and competence of judges has ment of individual competence and in- longer sit by and watch as a minority of been compounded by the failure of tegrity by judges in their proceedings: judges destroy public trust in the judi- normal constitutional checks and bal- including issues of actual or perceived ciary and make a mockery of the laws ances to hold him accountable to the bias, prejudice, or conflicts of interest of the country. Abdulla Mohamed has society he is supposed to serve.” and ethical behaviour outside of office, therefore been arrested. This is not a The government put out more jus- requiring continuous responsibility to move against the judiciary of the Mal- tifications, but none washed. A typical demonstrate high moral character. dives – but rather against an individual one ran like this: “Unfortunately, it is clear, in con- who has repeatedly broken the law and “The Government of the Maldives travention of the Bangalore Principles, who should be held accountable for his fully supports and will always protect that Abdulla Mohamed considers ju- actions,” the Foreign Minister said. judicial independence,” said former dicial independence to mean that he Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem. can do whatever he likes, and can act STATE OF JUDICIARY “However, judicial independence does with total impunity. While it was clear that the judiciary in not mean that judges are above the law “The 2008 Constitution empowers the Maldives is in urgent need for re- and can behave as they see fit – con- the Judicial Service Commission as the form, the justification for the arrest of trary to the laws of the land. A judge is independent guardian of the values of one judge could easily have been ap- a citizen of the Maldives – no more or competence and integrity – and thus of plied to another. This is because most less important than any other citizen.” individual accountability of judges. of the judges were appointed during “As the Bangalore Principles make Sadly, as we have seen time and again, the Gayoom regime. Many were not clear, judicial independence is, rather, the JSC has not been able to fulfil its educated. Al Jazeera television a responsibility and a means to ensure constitutional task of holding judges claimed that nearly 50 per cent of the that judges are able to decide cases like Abdulla Mohamed – who is repre- judges had not studied beyond Stan- based only on the law and facts of the sentative of a small minority of judges dard VII. Of course, Gayoom himself case before them without fear or fa- who abuse their position to protect had set in motion a programme of vour. As the International Commis- themselves and their political allies – sending youngsters abroad for legal sion of Jurists made clear following to account. education. But this was not their recent assessment of the state of “For a long time, the JSC – which is streamlined. the Maldives judiciary, judicial inde- itself dominated by judges and opposi- Nasheed, who wanted to make his pendence is a responsibility requiring tion politicians – refused to take any country a modern multiparty democ- accountability – a point clearly reflect- disciplinary action against judges. racy with a progressive and erudite ju- ed in the Constitution of the Maldives. More recently, the JSC did try to take diciary, tried to take shortcuts to This accountability includes a require- action against Abdulla Mohamed over achieve this. When Nasheed took on

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the entire judiciary, threatening it with The base of the monument depicted a series of measures, the judiciary did several religious symbols; such display not react. But opportunity presented is forbidden by law in the Maldives. itself in the middle of 2010. During Protesters set fire to the Pakistani one of the many crises that the Nash- monument, vandalised the Sri Lankan eed government faced, most judges de- monument, and attempted to take clared themselves as judges for life. down the Indian one. Pakistan, an Is- But legal and constitutional ex- lamic nation, was left red-faced. perts say that regardless of what the The government firmly dealt with judiciary did, there was still no justifi- the protesters at first but changed tack cation for the arrest. Though Nasheed later. The Islamic Ministry ordered the was repeatedly told that the arrest of a removal of the monuments; later it judge would make him look like a dic- changed course and held that the local tator, he apparently did not listen. municipality could decide on the issue. People close to him say that intuition Nasheed first treated the protests as a governed his style of functioning. It law and order issue, and then tasked had got him out of prison to the corri- the local council, run by the MDP, to dors of power. handle it.

DINUKA LIYANAWATTE/REUTERS The third act of impulsiveness was IMPULSIVE ROBERT O’BLAKE, United States during the SAARC summit. Nasheed, Despite occupying the highest office in Assistant Secretary of State for in his address, stressed the need for the Maldives, Nasheed never shed his South and Central Asia, in Male accountability and human rights, and impulsive behaviour. Three recent in- on February 11. stances demonstrate how he could alienate his best friends. For one, he ment requested all member-countries raised the contentious issue of Minicoy to bring the replica of a monument Islands with Indian Prime Minister that best represented their nation and Manmohan Singh during their bilater- which was to be displayed in a public al meeting last November. This was space in Addu. completely out of the script, and offi- “We did not know how to react or cials of the Ministry of External Affairs what would represent India. These (MEA) from India were left red-faced. monuments last forever and usually a Manmohan Singh, himself a former lot of thinking and discussion go into international bureaucrat, sensing the planning something like this. This discomfort of everyone around, han- could not happen in three months,” a dled the situation tactfully. He gently senior MEA official said. India finally but firmly told Nasheed that the issue decided on a bronze Asoka Chakra, could be examined in other fora, and and Sri Lanka a granite lion, while not in a bilateral meeting. Pakistan wanted to show its transition Minicoy, the southern-most Indi- to Islam. an island in the Lakshadweep archi- Soon after the unveiling of the pelago in the Arabian Sea, is closer monuments, the protests began. In Is- culturally and geographically to the lamic Maldives, by law, no other reli- Maldives than to India. Diwehi, the gion can be practised and the display of Maldivian national tongue, is widely the monuments provided the ideal spoken here. Abdul Gayoom, soon af- platform that extremist elements in ter becoming President in 1978, de- the country were looking for. They clared that retrieving Minicoy from seized upon the Pakistani monument, India was his top priority. Curiously, kept in Hithadhoo, to show how Nash- he did not utter the word Minicoy for eed was allowing other religions into the next 30 years. the Maldives through the back door. The second instance was three months before the 17th South Asian DEMONSTRATORS CALL FOR Association for Regional Cooperation the release of the criminal court (SAARC) summit in Addu City in No- judge Mohamed Abdulla, in Male vember 2011. The Maldivian govern- on January 29.

44 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

that left Sri Lanka miffed. The periodic to ensure that it did not end up in The High Commissioner here has been ‘lecture tours’ of Robert O’Blake to the anarchy. talking to everyone there and this en- island nation and the not-so-subtle India sent M. Ganapathi, who is gagement has been appreciated in my noises made by India are reasons why the Secretary (West) in the MEA, as a meetings also with Nasheed and the Sri Lanka is touchy about these topics. special envoy. He described the sit- other political leaders, including Pres- Sri Lanka was dismayed that Nasheed, uation as “complex” and that India ident Waheed.” a close friend of its President Mahinda wanted this to be resolved “in an atmo- As the calm gave way to a crisis, Rajapaksa, had let him down in an sphere of calm and peace so that it does India, which did not have a dedicated international forum. not affect the common person”. expert on the Maldives at the senior Ganapathi met the “widest possi- level, reacted fast. It asked a senior INDIA’S ROLE ble cross section of stakeholders in the MEA official, then in Jaffna, to move to Soon after Waheed’s takeover, MEA Maldives in view of the recent devel- Male. It then picked its best perform- spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said opments”, who all agreed that there ing officer – who was earlier in the that it was an internal matter “to be should be no violence. “The political Maldives – from Kenya and put him in resolved by the Maldives”. process will continue to evolve and we Male for additional support. Even as the MDP kept insisting it would continue to monitor the situa- was a coup, the Indian establishment tion,” he said. THE FUTURE called it a change of power. India’s Asked if India lost out in not sup- With Nasheed’s demand for fresh elec- High Commissioner to the Maldives porting Nasheed, he said: “This is not a tions not finding acceptance with all Dnyaneshwar Mulay, held meetings cricket match. We will continue to en- parties concerned, he has instead de- with Nasheed, Waheed and a host of gage Nasheed and his team. We have cided to pressure the international players in the country’s affairs in a bid had discussions over the last two days. community to ask for an investigation into the circumstances that led to the change of power and also to work the streets with his band of loyal supporters. Nasheed scored a major victory when the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) decided to send a ministerial team to investigate the circumstances leading to the change of regime. The U.S., India, the United Kingdom and a few other countries have also called for an investigation. Waheed said that he was willing to hold any kind of investigation. As the Maldives blinks on the edge, there is a lot more than politics that is cause for concern. The well-heeled 900,000 or more tourists who come every year to visit the desert islands that pop out of the turquoise blue waters may decide to stay away. Already, the U.K. has issued a travel warning. Others in the European Union could follow suit. Already there is a severe dollar and resource crunch in the Maldives. Res- taurants in Male are running empty. Retailers are complaining of a serious drop in sales since December 23. Over one lakh expatriate workers are contemplating their future. The sands be- neath the country’s feet are shifting

DINUKA LIYANAWATTE /REUTERS fast. २

FRONTLINE 45 World Affairs MARCH 9, 2012 War of nerves The West, along with Israel, is racheting up threats of an attack, but Iran

appears unfazed. BY JOHN CHERIAN

The neighbouring Arab monarchies Iranians brought down a sophisticated U.S. drone. The Israeli media are full of stories about the are tacitly supporting the build-up of American troops in two small Gulf islands near the Strait of Hormuz. Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, one of the architects of the psychological and economic war massacre in Gaza three years ago, said in early Feb- being currently waged by the West ruary that “the window” for an effective military strike on Iran was rapidly closing because of the against Iran, but they realise that continuing development of uranium enrichment centrifuges by that country. Israeli Vice Prime Min- Iran too has many cards to play. ister Moshe Yaalon declared that his country was confident of hitting any facility in Iran it chose to, REPORTS appear every other day in the West- saying that he was speaking from his experience as a ern media about an imminent Israeli strike against former head of the Israeli armed forces. Iran. The Barack Obama administration keeps on French President Nicolas Sarkozy added his bel- repeating that “all options are on the table” against ligerent voice to the war discourse by saying that an Iran. The United States armed forces have begun attack on Iran would be justified if the country “con- their biggest amphibious landing drill in the Persian tinues its senseless race to get the bomb and threaten Gulf region in more than a decade. The Pentagon its neighbours”. Sarkozy seems to have conveniently recently doubled the number of aircraft carriers in forgotten that in the modern era, Iran never started a the region. U.S. military and spy drones have been war. It has always been a victim of aggression. It was flying over Iran for some time now. Late last year, the West and the Arab monarchies that encouraged Saddam Hussein to attack Iran in 1980, leading to the eight-year war, which led to the loss of more than a million Iranian lives. Teheran appears to be unfazed by the ratcheting up of threats from the West. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking on the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of the Iranian revolution, said that the Islamic Republic would soon announce some “very important” achievements in the nuclear field. The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, also reiterated that Iran would never give up its “rights” to a peaceful nuclear programme. Iran has been consistently stating that as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) it has every right to pursue a peaceful nuclear programme. All of Iran’s nuclear facilities, including those engaged in uranium enrichment, are monitored by the Interna- tional Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to ensure that

ATTA KENARE/AFP weapons-grade uranium is not produced. PRESIDENT MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD at a rally to mark the Khamenei warned the West against undertaking 33rd anniversary celebrations of the Islamic revolution, at a military adventure, saying that if hostilities broke Azadi Square in Teheran on February 11. He said that Iran had out, “it would be 10 times deadlier for the Americans” broken the "idol" of the Holocaust underpinning the creation of than it would be for Iran. Reacting to threats from the Israeli state. Israel, he said the country was a “cancerous tumour”

46 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 ATTA KENARE/AFP IRANIAN WOMEN HOLDING portraits of the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and anti-U.S. placards at the Azadi Square celebrations. in the region, which had to be know that Iran is not like neighbour- tive and are demanding their removed. ing Iraq, which they could occupy in a democratic rights. Senior Iranian offi- U.S. Secretary of Defence Leon Pa- couple of weeks. President Obama, cials have warned that if war breaks netta told the media in Brussels in trying to tone down the talk of immi- out, the Iranian army will target the early February that there was a strong nent war, said in the first week of Feb- U.S. military bases littering the Gulf likelihood of Israel attacking Iran by ruary that the Israelis had not yet countries. If shipping is affected in the the middle of the year. On December decided their course of action against choke point of the Strait of Hormuz, 20, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Iran. He emphasised that the two global oil prices are bound to shoot Gen. Martin Dempsey told CNN that a countries would “work in lockstep, as through the roof. Even the American whole range of options were being ex- we proceed to solve this, hopefully dip- consumer could be left with a big hole amined for military action against lomatically”. Meanwhile, the Repub- in his pocket during an election year. Iran. “I am satisfied that the options lican contenders for the U.S. This will be detrimental to Obama’s that we are developing are evolving to a presidency, with the exception of Ron chances of winning a second term. point that they would be executable if Paul, are carrying on with their refrain On a parallel track, the U.S. has necessary,” he said. The right-wing of “bomb, bomb Iran”. been trying desperately to arm-twist government in Israel would like noth- On the nuclear issue, the Iranian traditional friends and trading part- ing better than precipitating a war people are united as never before. The ners of Iran, like India, to implement with Iran. The hawkish government in neighbouring Arab monarchies are no the unilateral sanctions imposed by Israel has coldly concluded that the doubt tacitly supporting the psycho- the West. When India’s Foreign Secre- Obama administration, readying itself logical and economic warfare being tary, Ranjan Mathai, was in Washing- for re-election later in the year, will currently waged by the West against ton recently for talks, the U.S. State have no other option but to finish the Iran, but they realise that Iran too has Department spokesperson, Victoria war that Israel wants to start. But the many cards to play. The Shia popula- Nuland, told reporters that “how India realists in the Obama administration tions in these countries are already res- might find alternative sources of ener-

FRONTLINE 47 MARCH 9, 2012

ISRAELIS FROM DIFFERENT organisations holding banners calling on the government not to attack Iran, during a protest in front of the Ministry of Defence in Tel Aviv on February 9. ODED BALITY/AP gy” was among the important issues flation and rise in the prices of basic more successful with New Delhi on the discussed. She said that the U.S. was imported goods such as medicines. gas pipeline issue. Under pressure trying to implement a “two-track pol- India is among Iran’s biggest from the Bush administration, India icy, both to encourage countries to buyers of oil and gas. Senior Indian had withdrawn from the Iran-Pakis- wean themselves from Iranian oil, but policymakers say that though the tan-India (IPI) project, saying that it also to work with suppliers around the country’s dependency on Iranian oil is was economically unfeasible and world to help countries find alternative decreasing, Iran will continue to be a would give Islamabad undue leverage sources of energy”. major supplier. Twelve per cent of In- on the country’s energy security. Un- The Saudi Arabian government dia’s crude imports are from Iran. In der American pressure, many major has promised to ramp up the produc- January, India became the biggest im- private Indian companies such as Re- tion of oil in order to meet any shortfall porter of Iranian oil, displacing China. liance suspended their contracts with in case Iranian oil is forced out of the The announcement by the Indian gov- Iran for the supply of refined gasoline. international market. Iran has de- ernment that it was planning to send a The Obama administration is nat- scribed the unilateral sanctions im- large trade delegation to Iran to urally unhappy with India’s decision to posed by the West as part of the strengthen economic ties has angered broaden economic ties with Iran at “psychological warfare” being waged Washington. Commerce Secretary Ra- this juncture. U.S. Congressmen have against it. In the first week of February, hul Khullar told the media in Delhi started raising the issue. Senator Rob- the Obama administration gave more that India was implementing the Unit- ert Menendez, a Democrat speaking at powers to U.S. banks to freeze Iranian ed Nations-mandated sanctions the confirmation hearing for the Oba- assets and close loopholes that would against Iran but emphasised that the ma administration’s nominee for the make it even more difficult for the Ira- sanctions did not apply “to a vast range Ambassador’s post in New Delhi, Nan- nian government to transfer funds of products India supplies to Iran”. cy J. Powell, said that India “seems to through international banking chan- With Iran agreeing to payment in be rebuking the sanctions” imposed by nels. Iran’s Vice-President, Mo- rupees and other unconventional the West on Iran. hammed Reza Rahimi, defiantly methods like barter trading, Indian of- Senior Indian officials insist that reacted to the latest set of sanctions by ficials made it clear that India would they will continue dealing with Iran. saying that Iran would make “the sanc- not be pressured by the West into tak- They point out that until recently the tions ineffective, as it has done in the ing steps that would have an adverse West was urging India to cut economic past, and will continue selling oil”. impact on the national economy. For ties with Myanmar in order to isolate The sanctions, meanwhile, are be- that matter, even Pakistan has struck a the government there. Today, it is the ginning to affect the lives of ordinary defiant note. Despite open warnings West which is leading the charge to Iranians. The Iranian rial has regis- from the U.S., Pakistan has announced invest in that country. Indian officials tered a steep decline against the dollar that the work on the gas pipeline with predict that this situation will replicate in recent months, leading to high in- Iran will continue. Washington was itself in Iran within a couple of years.२

48 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 World Affairs/Syria Skewed resolution Russia and China veto a resolution in the Security Council for a forced regime

change in Syria. BY JOHN CHERIAN

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that Russia and China bore “the responsibility for the horrors that are occurring on the ground in Syria”. The West is using the Arab League to institute a

regime change in Damascus. HO/SANA/AFP THE veto exercised by Russia and China on Feb- PRESIDENT BASHAR AL-ASSAD (left) with ruary 4 in the United Nations Security Council on a Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov upon the resolution calling for the resignation of Syrian Presi- latter’s arrival at the presidential palace in dent Bashar al-Assad has put paid to the prospects of Damascus for talks on February 7. an open foreign military intervention in Syria. With the encouragement of the Western powers, a host of that the resolution did not envisage the use of mil- nations led by Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have itary force, but he went on to add that other “mea- been supplying money, training and heavy weapons sures will be considered” if there was no immediate to rebels fighting against the Syrian state, who are end to the violence in Syria. Surprisingly, India sided confined to the city of Homs. As in the case of Libya, with the resolution sponsored by the Arab League. Western capitals are using the Arab League to institute a regime change in Damascus. INDIA’S STAND The Arab League’s resolution presented to the India and Syria have had a strong bilateral relation- Security Council was ostensibly to bring a peaceful ship for the past four decades. But recent instances end to the violence that has gripped Syria since have shown that when it comes to crunch situations, March last year. But it was, in fact, a blueprint for India sides with the West. It happened earlier in the regime change as it demanded the resignation of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on the Bashar al-Assad and the holding of multiparty elec- resolutions censuring Iran. Again, India abstained tions. The resolution stated that the Security Council from voting in the Security Council when a resolu- would review Syria’s implementation of the key tion on Libya was adopted. clauses within 15 days of it being passed. It also said Indian officials said that abstention was not an that in case of Syria’s non-compliance, “further mea- option this time. According to them, India had sures” would be adopted in consultation with the worked overtime to include clauses in the resolution Arab League. that the will of the Syrian people would be the deci- United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, sive factor and not outside military intervention. while pronouncing from the rooftops that “Assad has They said that the Arab League’s stand on Syria was to go”, kept on insisting that there were no plans “to an important factor that had led to India voting for pursue any kind of military intervention”. French the resolution. Foreign Minister Alain Juppe, who played a big role South Asian diplomats in Damascus told this in unleashing the dogs of war on Libya, said that the correspondent late last year that Assad was popular talk of foreign intervention in Syria “is a myth”. among ordinary Syrians and would get around 60 British Foreign Secretary William Hague also said per cent of the votes if the opposition agreed to the

FRONTLINE 49 MARCH 9, 2012

holding of fair and free elections. Re- grand strategy to weaken the resist- cent reports in the Western media ance to U.S. hegemony in the region. If have admitted that Assad continues to Assad falls, the Lebanese resistance have the support of the minority movement – the Hizbollah – will be the groups and the secular members of the next in Washington’s cross hairs. After majority Sunni community. that it will be the turn of Iran. War clouds are already hovering over Iran, ‘LIBYA-LIKE INTERVENTION’ with the U.S. military significantly bol- According to Russian Foreign Minis- stering its presence in the Persian ter Sergei Lavrov, the passing of a Se- Gulf. curity Council resolution on Syria would inevitably lead to another Li- WEST’S CRITICISM bya-like military intervention. He After the resolution failed at the Secu- pointed out that the call in the resolu- rity Council, Western leaders were tion “to withdraw all Syrian military sharply critical of Russia and China. and armed forces from cities and Hillary Clinton said that Russia and towns and return them to their origi- China bore “the responsibility for the nal home barracks” was an ultimatum horrors that are occurring on the no sovereign government could ac- ground in Syria”. cept. Moreover, in the case of Syria, the Significantly, the U.S. has wielded insurrection was being aided and abet- the most number of vetoes in the Secu- ted by the West. He said there was no rity Council, most of them on behalf of justification for raining bombs on Sy- its closest ally in the region, Israel. The ria just because the opposition there massacres of Palestinians and Leba- was refusing to engage in a meaningful nese by Israeli forces through the years dialogue with the government. have gone uncensored and unpuni- Li Baodong, China’s Ambassador shed with the connivance of Washing- a regime change in Damascus. The to the U.N., told the Security Council ton. As for the U.S. itself, it has been Arab League monitoring mission’s re- that his country was opposed to “push- responsible for the worst instances of port said the government alone was ing for forced regime change in Syria human rights violations. The massacre not responsible for the continuing as it violates the U.N. Charter and the of civilians in Fallujah, Iraq, is only a bloodshed. Unhappy with the report, basic norms guiding the practice of recent illustration. Saudi Arabia, the main financier of the international relations”. In the past couple of months, the mission, withdrew its observers. The Washington and its allies had Syrian government has made several mission was forced to cease its work worked overtime to convince Russia gestures to show the international and withdraw from Syria. On February and China to go along with the Arab community that it was serious about 12, the Arab League forced al-Dabi to League resolution. Behind the scenes, ending the bloody cycle of violence in resign as head of the monitoring mis- assurances were given that their in- the country. The Arab League was al- sion. terests in Syria would not be affected lowed to send in its monitoring mis- After that the Arab League re- by the regime change. Syrian opposi- sion despite misgivings about its quested Damascus for the observer’s tion leaders were dispatched to meet motives. The head of the Arab League’s mission to be allowed in once again. Russian diplomats to assure them that mission, Mohammad al-Dabi, a for- This time the Syrian government re- Russian interests would be preserved mer intelligence chief of Sudan, while fused permission as the Arab League in a post-Assad era. addressing a press conference in Cairo in its meeting in Cairo on February 12 Syria has been a long-standing ally in the third week of January, even crit- had also called for a joint peacekeeping of Russia. Much of the weaponry for icised the foreign media for exaggerat- force of the U.N. and Arab League the Syrian security forces is provided ing the violence in Syria, stressing that states to Syria. by Russia. Recently, it sold 36 Yak the situation inside the country had The Arab League monitoring com- fighter jets to Syria. Moscow has also improved since the monitoring mis- mission’s report categorically stated deployed Russian warships in the Syr- sion began its work in December. He that there was no organised, lethal at- ian port of Tartus, where it has basing also said that the Syrian government tack by the Syrian government against rights. China also sells military equip- cooperated fully with the mission. peaceful protesters. Instead, the report ment to Syria. But Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which stated that armed gangs were respon- Both Moscow and Beijing are well are backing the opposition Islamist- sible for carrying out terror attacks aware that the regime change envi- dominated Syrian National Council against civilians, leading to thousands saged by the West in Syria is part of a and the Free Syria Army, are fixated on of deaths, including over a thousand

50 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

ous regime” in Syria. But the Western media still give credence to allegations that all terror attacks are the hand- iwork of the government. A report from Tripoli quoted the Libyan Foreign Minister as saying that the interim government would not stop Libyans from joining the fight against the Syrian government. The interim government in Libya installed under the supervision of the North At- lantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) has already recognised the Syrian Na- tional Council and has formally handed over the Syrian Embassy in Tripoli to the rebel group. The Libyan Islamist leader Abdul- hakim Belhadj, who now occupies a top position in the government, met with leaders of the Syrian Free Army in Istanbul recently. According to reports, Libyans were among the first foreign fighters to reach Syria and fight alongside the Syrian rebels in hotspots such as Homs and Hama. There are AP also unconfirmed reports about Qatari SYRIAN REBELS FIGHTING the government forces in the Rastan area in and British Special Forces helping the Homs province on January 31. Free Syrian Army. Washington has called for the establishment of a “hu- Syrian troops. The report gave specific which dominates decision-making in manitarian corridor” to assist the anti- instances of bombing of civilian buses the Arab League, and the West on the government rebels in Syria. and trains and the sabotaging of gas issue of regime change in Syria. The Syrian government on its part pipelines. The five-member ministe- It has been evident for some seems determined to flush out the re- rial committee of the Arab League ap- months that sections of the Syrian op- bels from their remaining strongholds. proved the report, with only Qatar position are aligned with terror Bashar Jaffari, the Syrian envoy to the voting against it. groups. The suicide bombings in Da- U.N., while presenting his country’s Qatar has now assumed the chair- mascus followed by the attacks in the case to the world during the debate on manship of the Arab League though it hitherto peaceful Aleppo, Syria’s sec- the Security Council resolution, said was the turn of the Palestinian Author- ond biggest city, are indications that that the government had no other al- ity (P.A.). The P.A. vacated the post in the opposition is in cahoots with jeha- ternative but “to respond to the calls of favour of Qatar. Qatar has since an- dist elements. Twenty-five people were citizens to save them from the criminal nounced $400 million in aid to the killed in Aleppo and nearly 50 in the terrorist groups and to restore public cash-strapped P.A. The Emir of Qatar twin suicide bombings in Damascus in order throughout Syria”. He also had issued an appeal for open military early January. In mid-February, a se- pointed out that the Syrian govern- intervention in Syria saying that his nior Syrian army officer, who was in ment had conceded almost all of the country was willing to deploy troops charge of the military hospital in the major demands of the opposition soon there. Qatar, along with France and capital, was killed by armed gunmen after the violent protests started in Britain, was among the first countries as he was leaving for work from his March last year. The “state of emer- to send special forces clandestinely to home. gency” has been lifted and the Syrian Libya when the counter-revolution Al Qaeda has claimed credit for the State Security Court has been abol- against Colonel Muammar Qaddafi three big terror attacks in Damascus ished. A legislative decree, which al- began early last year. and Aleppo. In a video recording re- lowed the staging of peaceful protests, New Delhi, too, ignored the Arab leased in the second week of February, was passed. Importantly, a national League monitoring mission’s report its chief, Ayman al-Zawahiri, called on committee was formed to draft a new and preferred to cast its lot with the Muslims in the region to join the up- Constitution and hold general elec- Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), rising against “the pernicious, cancer- tions. २

FRONTLINE 51 World Affairs MARCH 9, 2012 Austerity of hope

As austerity cuts into the social lives of Americans, the full range of issues that debilitate the well-being of Americans is likely to return to the table.

But neither of the two mainstream parties is capable of holding a real debate on these issues. The right wing has tried to shift the debate to what are known as “social issues” such as abortion rights and marriage rights for gays and lesbians. POOR Mitt Romney. He is worth “somewhere between $190 and $250 million”. Even he is not sure of his net worth. He cannot account for the gap of $60 million. CNN asked the multiple-millionaire about his economic policy. He said, “I’m in this race because I care about Americans. I’m not concerned U.S. did not have the resources to buy food (that is about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it about 14.5 per cent of all households). needs repair, I’ll fix it.” He has been pilloried for his Additionally, about 6.4 million households re- callousness not only by the Democratic Party but duced or disrupted their eating habits because of a also by his own Republican primary rivals. lack of access to food. To seek food, the U.S. Depart- Rick Santorum, who has been a steady challenge ment of Agriculture showed, people had sought ref- to Romney, said that Romney’s comments about the uge in emergency food pantries. During the poor “sent a chill down my spine”. Romney, who not recession’s early years, 2007 to 2009, use of these only comes from the world of finance capital but also pantries increased by 44 per cent. The Agriculture is its preferred candidate, has been unable to grasp Department’s September 2011 report on “Household the deep crisis of everyday life for millions of Food Insecurity in the United States” showed that Americans. one in six Americans do not have the money to feed The “safety net” that Romney mentioned has themselves. The problem is acute. been frayed beyond recognition since the 1980s. One Charity fills in the gap left by an inadequate of the most grotesque problems is hunger. Last year, governmental response. But here the challenge is the United States Department of Agriculture report- enormous. With anxiety about the economy, char- ed that in 2010 about 17.2 million households in the itable giving has dropped significantly (by 11 per cent to the big charities). Donations to organisations that help the very poor have dropped even further. Ac- Letter from America cording to the Nonprofit Research Collaborative, the charities with less than $3 million to spend saw their VIJAY PRASHAD donations fall the most. These charities, such as homeless shelters and food pantries, are the ones

52 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

PRO-CHOICE AND PRO-LIFE activists argue and on sexuality, with a morality that is outside the U.S. Supreme Court on January 23 out of touch with the everyday lives of in Washington, D.C. The vigil was held to mark people. No wonder that one of the the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision problems for the Right has been the that legalised abortion. constant eruption of scandals among its leadership, with this or that spokesperson for an anachronistic morality found with sex workers or with pornography. Hypocrisy is the touch- stone of an obsolete morality. As part of his health care overhaul, President Barack Obama announced a rule that all health care providers (including religious hospitals) needed to provide free contraception for their employees. They did not have to provide contraception to their customers, but their employees had to be covered by federal mandates. A 2010 study in Vital and Health Statistics showed that 99 per cent of women aged 15 to 44 in the U.S. had used at least one contraceptive method. In other words, contraception use is universal among women in the U.S. It seemed as if the Obama policy was, therefore, quite straightforward and of great use to the 62 million women of childbearing age in the U.S. Nevertheless, the Right went ballistic, calling the Obama policy an infringement on religious freedom. This BRENDAN HOFFMAN/AFP is fairly typical of the Right, which that serve the very poor. They are in Revolution. The French had a three- masquerades its social suffocation as dire straits. part slogan, two of which Santorum freedom. Santorum’s linkages be- The children’s TV show “Sesame was happy with: Liberty and Equality. tween liberty and equality with the Street” has introduced a new puppet, The third, Fraternity, was not appro- sanctity of God’s Law is an example of Lily, whose task is to speak on the priate because it suggested that people this unhappy marriage. problem of food insecurity once a week in community would be able to create With Obama having been painted to the children who tune in. She does codes to live by. Santorum preferred as anti-religion, it was impossible for not get enough to eat. She will share Paternity to Fraternity, with the Fa- the White House to stand firm on its her story with children who are in her ther being God. God’s law should pre- principle. Harder for Obama to navi- predicament. At least the puppet is cede human law. No one amongst the gate this issue with one in five Amer- concerned for the very poor. Republicans challenged this anti- icans of the erroneous view that democratic tendency towards Obama is a Muslim. Instead, Obama PATERNITY theocracy. had to compromise with the Right and Building on his surge in the Repub- Rather than deal with the serious allow religious health care providers to lican primaries, Santorum went to give problems of hunger and homelessness, sidestep this provision. Despite Oba- a big speech in Colorado Springs, the the right wing has tried to shift the ma’s surrender to the Right, Romney heartland of the new American con- debate toward what are known as “so- tried to fan the fire of this issue, “I will servatism. Santorum, who went on to cial issues”. These include abortion reverse every single Obama regulation win the primaries in Colorado, Mis- rights, marriage rights for gays and that attacks our religious liberty and souri and Minnesota, told the thou- lesbians, discussions about birth con- threatens innocent life in this sand people in the Biggs Centre that he trol and sexuality in schools, as well as country.” wanted to distinguish between the the teaching of diversity in schools. The Right has gone ballistic on French Revolution and the American The Right remains fixated on the body contraception but is virtually silent on

FRONTLINE 53 MARCH 9, 2012

the home foreclosure crisis and on the ber 2011. It is a ridiculously small encampments. The Occupy movement criminal activity by banks. Millions of amount of money both from the banks has now shifted its focus towards Americans have been turned out of and to the victims of the foreclosure much more focussed, local political en- their homes as a result of the collapse epidemic. That means the government deavours (including fights against in the home mortgage market. believes that the fine to banks for forg- eviction). As part of the neoliberal transfor- ing and fabricating documents is no One year ago, in Wisconsin, a mas- mation of the U.S., low-rent, govern- more than $2,000. The government sive social upsurge promised to open ment-provided homes disappeared decided to settle with the banks (in- up a new dynamic in America. With from the 1980s, with the private sector cluding the worst offender, Bank of the labour movement as its backbone, coming in as the main provider of America) without any serious investi- the Wisconsin demonstrations that homes. But with wage incomes stag- gation of their offences. began in March 2011 showed what was nant since the 1970s, and with little Foreclosures slowed down in 2011 possible when the people refused to wealth in the hands of ordinary people, in anticipation of this bank deal. back down before the politics of cruel the only way for them to get the keys to “Foreclosures were in full delay mode austerity (the story is captured in a a home was through no-money-down, in 2011,” notes Brandon Moore of Re- new book edited by Mari Jo and Paul balloon payment mortgages. Banks altyTrac, which follows the housing Buhle, It Started in Wisconsin: Dis- devised these schemes to ensnare des- market very closely. patches from the Front Lines of the perate people into homes, and then “The lack of clarity regarding many New Labor Protest, Verso, 2012). One moved their mortgages into the sec- of the documentation and legal issues hundred and fifty thousand people, ondary and tertiary financial markets plaguing the foreclosure industry mainly those affiliated with trade as securities to be traded. These securi- means that we are continuing to see a unions, stood in the cold and occupied ties were given good bond ratings from highly dysfunctional foreclosure proc- the State House against their Gover- Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, whose ess that is inefficiently dealing with nor Scott Walker. culpability has not been fully ad- delinquent mortgages – particularly in Seven months later, in New York, dressed. States with a judicial foreclosure proc- the Occupy movement took off and When it became clear that these ess. There were strong signs in the sec- spread across the country. It was securities were built on unsustainable ond half of 2011 that lenders are finally grounded in the many facets of social dreams, the housing market collapsed. beginning to push through some of the distress in the U.S. Banks received bailouts (along the delayed foreclosures in select local The initial position of both the grain of the neoliberal view that the markets. We expect that trend to con- Wisconsin protests and the Occupy government must make sure to re- tinue this year, boosting foreclosure movement was to change the conver- move Bad Money from the financial activity for 2012 higher than it was in sation from the defence of the banks system and replace it with Good Mon- 2011, though still below the peak of and the question of “social issues” to ey). There was no bailout for the mil- 2010.” the broad questions of freedom and lions of Americans. They were evicted This is a very chilling thought, that justice in the country. When the state from their homes. the bank deal will not stem the fore- decided to respond to these protests Popular outrage at the criminal be- closure crisis but intensify it. with police pressure, the immediate haviour of the banks forced an investi- issue before the protesters was to deal gation of financial activity. Banks were OCCUPY MOVEMENT with the forces of repression. The con- afraid that they would face a series of Police action against the Occupy versation around social suffocation lawsuits from public interest litigants movement has cleared out most of the and economic distress had to be set and from those among the foreclosed aside. that might be gathered together into The battle lines were drawn be- class action lawsuits. This was the spur tween the police and the protesters, for the banks to begin negotiations when the real contradiction is between with the government for a deal. the people (the 99 per cent) and the The Obama administration and powerful (the 1 per cent). As cruel aus- several Attorneys General of the differ- terity cuts into the social lives of Amer- ent States sealed a bargain with the icans, it is likely that the full range of banks in early February, where the issues that debilitate the well-being of banks promised to pay $5 billion into a Americans will return to the table. The fund, which would include $21 billion LARRY DOWNING/REUTERS tragedy is that neither of the two main- taxpayers’ money. This fund would be A FORECLOSURE NOTICE on the stream parties is capable of holding a used to pay out between $1,500 and front door of a house in Fairfax, real debate over these issues. They $2,000 per borrower foreclosed upon, Virginia, outside Washington, have other obligations, other priori- between September 2008 and Decem- in May 2011. ties. २

54 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 World Affairs

MARCH 23, 2003: Crew members of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter of the 101st Airborne Division at Camp Udairi in Kuwait, shortly before commencing its ﬁrst air assault against Iraq that day.

Ghosts of Iraq AP A death in a RAF helicopter and a secret prison camp in the Iraqi desert raise

questions about the legality of British and U.S. operations. BY IAN COBAIN

A review of Operation Raker, the ning for mile after mile towards the border with Jordan. RAF police investigation into the As they approached their destination, the crews assumed they were on an operation that would be death, is nearing completion, and a uneventful. Two days earlier, Saddam Hussein’s statue had been toppled after American tanks rolled into the Iraqi capital; three weeks later George Bush report is expected at the end of would stand in front of a banner saying “Mission February. The Ministry of Defence accomplished”. The helicopter crews had been told that a num- says it is not going to be published. ber of detainees were under armed guard at the side of the highway. They were to pick them up after dark ON the evening of April 11, 2003, a pair of Royal and take them to a prison camp. What followed was Air Force (RAF) CH-47 Chinook helicopters swept far from routine: before the night was out, one man over Iraq’s western desert towards a remote had died on board one of the helicopters, allegedly rendezvous point beside Route 10, the highway that beaten to death by RAF personnel. begins life on the outskirts of Baghdad before run- The incident was immediately shrouded in secre-

FRONTLINE 55 MARCH 9, 2012

cy. When I heard about it and began to peared sometimes reluctant to answer. of eight and ferried to the prison camp. ask questions, the British Ministry of One of the few that it answered As a result of what might be de- Defence (MoD) responded with an ex- promptly – within hours – concerned scribed as a legal sleight of hand, the traordinary degree of obstruction and the location to which the prisoners men were never recorded as prisoners obfuscation, evading questions not were being taken. They were going to of the 20 Australians. On paper, at just for days but for weeks and months. Umm Qasr, the MoD said: this was the least, the lone American was said to The RAF’s own police examined the town on the Kuwaiti border where have captured them. This meant that death in an investigation codenamed British and American forces had con- the Australian government could con- Operation Raker, but this ended with structed a large prisoner-of-war camp, sider itself not to be bound by a Geneva some of the most salient facts remain- a place that came under the super- Convention clause that obliged it to ing deeply buried. The alleged culprits vision of military lawyers and was in- demand the return of any prisoner it faced no charges. spected regularly by the Red Cross. transferred to the U.S. if it became Asked where the men were being More information about the inci- apparent that U.S. forces were not taken, the MoD initially indicated that dent was to be found in a number of treating them in accordance with the they were en route to a prisoner-of-war documents released in Australia under Convention. camp, one inspected regularly by the that country’s freedom-of-information Red Cross. Later it became clear that laws. The deceased had been one of 64 ‘APPROPRIATE’ METHODS this was not correct: they were being men detained at a roadblock set up by At this point in my inquiries, a report transported to an altogether more se- soldiers of the Australian Special Air written by the squadron leader com- cret location. The truth about the mis- Service (SAS). Working alongside a manding the 2nd squadron of the RAF sion raises some searching questions solitary member of a U.S. Air Force Regiment was leaked. This document, about the legality of some of the British unit, the 20 Australians were attempt- prepared as part of a brief U.S. field forces’ operations carried out in close ing to capture so-called “high-value inquiry into the incident, showed that cooperation with United States allies. targets”, former high-ranking mem- the Australians had bound the prison- One of the first hints that some- bers of the deposed regime attempting ers’ thumbs together before handing thing untoward had happened aboard to flee the country. them over. The RAF Regiment gun- one of the RAF Chinooks came six Seven days earlier, Saddam had ners then placed hessian bags over the years later when Lieutenant Colonel appeared suddenly in the middle of a prisoners’ heads as they were being led Nicholas Mercer was giving evidence crowd of cheering supporters, an event aboard the Chinooks, despite a ban on at the public inquiry into the death of that was filmed and broadcast on Iraqi hooding imposed on the U.K.’s armed Baha Mousa, the hotel receptionist TV, along with a speech he was said to forces more than four decades earlier. tortured to death by British troops in have made in which he exhorted his Each prisoner was forced to lie face September that year. Mercer, who had countrymen to “fight them brothers, down on the floor of the aircraft, and been the British army’s most senior hit them day and night”. The coalition those who “refused to adopt the re- lawyer in Iraq, told the inquiry that by forces were determined to find him. quired position” were forced to the the time of Mousa’s death, several oth- Three of the prisoners at the side of floor and knelt upon. One man who er people had died in U.K. military the highway were suspected of being slipped out of his thumb restraint and custody. Asked about these mysterious officials of Saddam’s ruling Baath par- flailed his arms around was said to deaths, the MoD named one of the ty. Four were held because they were have been “lowered” to the floor and deceased as Tanik Mahmud and said Iranians and in possession of an enor- “subdued”. By the time the helicopters he had “sustained a fatal injury” while mous sum of cash – more than had reached their destination, two of travelling aboard an RAF Chinook. $600,000 – and a letter offering a the prisoners “were found to be unre- Perplexingly, the Ministry added that bounty for each American killed. The sponsive”, according to the squadron the cause of his death remained un- remainder of the prisoners appear to leader, while “there was some commo- known. Asked how they could be sure have fallen under suspicion because tion at the front of the aircraft” because he had suffered a fatal injury when the they were travelling together on a a third prisoner, a disabled man, had cause of his death was not known, the coach. Some were Iraqis and others somehow parted company with both MoD took five weeks to answer. were Syrians, and all were to be in- his prosthetic legs. Eventually, officials admitted that terrogated about Saddam. However, It was a windy night, the sand was the RAF had received a complaint – none of the 64 were armed and none being whipped up by the Chinooks’ anonymously, they said – that “three were in uniform. A number of them rotor blades, and visibility was down to RAF Regiment personnel on board the were middle-aged, and at least one was 1.5 metres. The American troops who helicopter had kicked, punched or oth- severely disabled. Despite this, the received the prisoners say the British erwise assaulted Mr Mahmud leading men were to be detained as EPWs, appeared to be rushing, anxious to to unlawful killing”. This raised many enemy prisoners of war. They were to transport them all before dawn. The other questions, which the MoD ap- be loaded into the Chinooks in groups two “unresponsive” men were loaded

56 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

U.K. who were investigating an allegation of assault leading to death.” He says an examination of the hard tissue may have revealed evidence of an assault before the prisoner died: ribs, for example, sometimes fracture in a dis- tinctive manner when kicked. Asked whether a copy of the pathologist’s advice would be made available, the MoD said no copy could be found in its ﬁles. After this advice was received, the case was passed to RAF’s prosecutors, who advised that there was insufﬁcient evidence to bring any charges. They also concluded that any further investigation was pointless. Asked why the men had been taken as EPWs when none were armed and all were wearing civilian clothes, the MoD appeared to be stumped. “U.K. forces did not detain these individuals, they transported them,” the Ministry

AP said. “This is not a question we can SADDAM HUSSEIN IN this image from a video that was shown on Iraqi answer. This question should be di- television on April 4, 2003. Iraqi television showed footage from Baghdad in rected to the detaining country.” which the Iraqi President appeared to be walking in the street with a small Eventually, we obtained a copy of entourage. the passport that had been in the dead man’s pocket, and the death certificate into the back of a Humvee vehicle, face investigators “did not know Mr Mah- that had been issued by the U.S. mil- down and on top of each other, while mud’s place of burial”. itary authorities. The passport showed the man with no legs was placed in the Once the location was disclosed by the dead man was a Baghdad odd-job front passenger seat. All three were the U.S. military, officials explained, man aged 36. It also showed that his driven to a “holding facility”, where “Discussions took place on the feasi- name was not Tanik Mahmud but Ta- one was declared dead. The bag had bility of accessing Mr Mahmud’s re- riq Sabri al-Fahdawi. The RAF police been taped so securely over his head mains, taking into account serious investigation appeared to have been so that it needed to be cut off. security concerns and obtaining per- superficial that it had failed to estab- The U.S. inquiry concluded that mission from the local imam.” At this lish the dead man’s identity. The certif- “appropriate” methods had been used point, according to the MoD, the RAF icate recorded Sabri’s cause of death as to subdue the man who died. The RAF pathologist “indicated that given the unknown. It also showed that the made no attempt to contact the next of climate and the degree of decomposi- whereabouts of his grave, far from be- kin to inform them of his death, how- tion since the death, it would be ex- ing uncertain, could be pinpointed ever. Were it not for the anonymous tremely difficult to establish cause of precisely. The American officer who complaint, this would have been the death”. As a result, no post-mortem completed the certificate had gone to end of the matter. examination was ever carried out. considerable lengths to ensure it could The complaint is understood to This advice surprises one eminent be found, beyond the airfield perim- have been made by a member of the civilian pathologist, who says that only eter: “700 m out front gate to first Chinook’s crew, unhappy at what he exhumation could reveal the state of culvert, 191 degrees for 50 m, next to saw happening in the helicopter’s ca- decomposition. Derrick Pounder, pro- grave with stacked stones in same loca- bin as they were flying to the camp. fessor of forensic medicine at the Uni- tion ...” After receiving the complaint, the RAF versity of Dundee in Scotland, who has But of greater significance was police moved slowly. According to the experience of exhumations and post- what the death certificate revealed MoD, they waited more than a year mortem examinations in West Asia – about the location of the airfield. It after the death before asking a RAF including cases of deaths in custody – showed that the 64 prisoners had not pathologist whether the body should said: “That advice would be contrary to been flown to the prison camp at Umm be exhumed and examined. Asked to the advice that any U.K. forensic scien- Qasr at all. They had been taken to an explain the delay, the MoD said the tist would offer to any police in the airfield codenamed H1, described on

FRONTLINE 57 World Affairs MARCH 9, 2012 the certificate as the forward operating describes as “other authorities”. Could tinuing. The MoD was also asked base of a U.S. Special Forces unit this explain why the police investiga- whether it was satisfied that U.K. known as Task Force 20. H1 was an tion into the alleged killing of Tariq forces serving at H1 had never been in airfield built next to an oil pipeline Sabri ended with some of the most breach of the Geneva Conventions or pumping station. It was 560 kilo- basic facts – such as his name and the any other international humanitarian metres north-west of Umm Qasr, in cause of his death – remaining law. It replied by stating only that the middle of Iraq’s western desert, a unknown? IHAT would consider the actions of vast and desolate expanse of sand and According to one well-placed only those who came into contact with scree. The nearest settlement was source with knowledge of Operation Sabri. many miles away: it is difficult to see Raker, there were some at the MoD how there could have been a “local who were concerned about the pos- CIA INVOLVEMENT imam” whose permission needed to be sible consequences of a more thorough Nor would the MoD comment on an- sought before exhumation, or how inquiry: people who were filled with other claim made by the source with anyone in the vicinity could pose “seri- dread at the thought that it could lead knowledge of Operation Raker: that ous security concerns”. to accusations that British forces and both Central Intelligence Agency others had been involved in crimes (CIA) and MI6 officers were involved BLACK SITE against humanity. in the interrogation of prisoners flown The holding facility at H1 was not in- When the MoD realised that the secretly to H1, and that these were the spected by the Red Cross. Moreover, location to which the prisoners were “other authorities” whom RAF Re- its existence was not disclosed to Lt. flown was known to us, it quickly apol- giment troopers were told would be Col. Mercer. Mercer says he was “ex- ogised for previously stating that they taking possession of their prisoners. tremely surprised” to learn of its exist- had been flown to Umm Qasr. This The Ministry’s only response to ques- ence. He said: “This matter potentially had been an innocent mistake, one tions about non-military interrogators raises very serious questions. Stren- that a spokesman said could be attri- at H1 was a terse: “No further uous efforts were made at all times to buted to “admin/human error”. At this information.” ensure that all prisoners were accord- point the MoD also released a copy of The involvement of the CIA with ed the full protection of the Geneva the U.S. field inquiry report, which had Task Force 20 is no secret in the U.S. Conventions and vigorous objections been withheld from us for more than a The unit changed its name repeatedly would have been raised if there was the year. The report showed that a British over the next three years, becoming TF slightest possibility of a breach of the Special Forces unit known as Task 121, then TF 6-26, and finally TF 145. conventions. It appears from the in- Force 14 and an Australian unit known U.K. Special Forces remained an information disclosed that some prison- as Task Force 64 were an integral part tegral part of the unit. A discreet Pen- er operations were being conducted, of operations at H1. Both units were tagon investigation found that the unit deliberately or otherwise, outside of under U.S. tactical control. had used a secret interrogation centre the chain of command.” The Ministry also volunteered an to conceal its activities, and subse- The holding facility appears effec- admission that the investigation into quent inquiries by The New York tively to have been a secret prison – a Sabri’s death was not conducted Times found that prisoners had been so-called black site. It is entirely pos- quickly enough. But it said that this water-boarded, beaten or shot with sible, according to international law could not happen today as its proce- paintball guns. Posters around one of experts, that taking prisoners to H1 dures had changed. It added that Op- the unit’s bases were said to have de- could amount to “unlawful deporta- eration Raker was now the subject of a clared “no blood, no foul”: if the pris- tion or transfer or unlawful confine- review by a team of military police and oners did not bleed, their interrogators ment”, and that the prisoners were former civilian detectives known as could not be prosecuted. subjected to “enforced disappearanc- IHAT – the Iraq Historic Allegations When one British member of TF es”, both of which are war crimes un- Team. 6-26, SAS trooper Ben Griffin, quit the der the Rome statute of the Asked whether there was any truth army and went public about what he International Criminal Court. in the suggestion that officials had in- had seen, the MoD obtained an in- One former RAF Regiment troop- terfered with the investigation into Sa- junction to silence him and warned er who was based at H1 for several bri’s death in order to suppress that he faced jail if he said any more. months has described being involved information about the U.K.’s involve- The review of Operation Raker being in a number of similar missions in ment with H1, the MoD replied that conducted by IHAT is nearing comple- which prisoners were collected from IHAT was “giving consideration to any tion, and a report is expected to be coalition special forces. This always involvement with the investigation of handed to the head of the RAF police happened “under total darkness”, he MoD officials who were external to it” at the end of this month. The MoD says says. On arrival at H1, the prisoners and that it would be “inappropriate to it is not going to be published. २ were handed on to people whom he comment” while that review was con- ©Guardian News & Media 2012

58 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 World Affairs/Greece Hungry & homeless

Austerity has exhausted the Greeks, and anger is mounting over the prospect

of more E.U. and IMF-dictated belt-tightening. BY HELENA SMITH IN ATHENS

Educated professionals, too spending that has been accompanied by higher taxes. And that, undoubtedly, will mean more custom- shamefaced to want to speak, now ers at Klimaka, a red building in the heart of the capital that is a shelter for the homeless. Few institutions have better first-hand experi- stand in line with immigrants ence of the impact of Greece’s austerity measures – waiting for food handouts from the and few have better first-hand knowledge of Klima- ka – than Lambros, an out-of-work plasterer who town hall as the country edges closer joined the ranks of Greece’s unemployed when poverty caught up with him last year. to a full-blown humanitarian crisis. “From one day to the next, the economic crisis hit me,” says the 55-year-old father of two. “Suddenly I THE eurozone Finance Ministers’ message to was fired without any compensation from the com- Greece on February 9 was stark: there will be no new pany I was working at. Two months later, I couldn’t bailout – and the Greek nation will go bankrupt – even afford my rent,” he sighed. “All my savings had unless Athens makes a further €325 million of bud- gone on paying medical bills for my late wife.” get cuts, on top of the €3.3 billion of austerity mea- Evicted from his flat, the soft-spoken plasterer sures already promised. joined the thousands of Greeks who have been hit by There will have to be yet more cuts in a country job losses, wage cuts, tax rises and runaway prices already reeling under an unprecedented squeeze on and forced to move outdoors. YANNIS BEHRAKIS/REUTERS A HOMELESS MAN sleeps on the metro vents at Omonia square in central Athens.

FRONTLINE 59 MARCH 9, 2012

“I didn’t want to burden my chil- Austerity has not only exhausted dren with my problems because they the Greeks. Anger is also mounting, as have problems, too. I didn’t want to evidenced by the protest on February sleep on the streets either. So for four 10. The prospect of more cost-cutting months I slept in my car,” he says reforms – required, say creditors, to pointing to a battered, bag-filled Toyo- avoid a default in March when the ta outside the shelter. Until, that is, he country has to repay €14.5 billion in could no longer afford petrol for the maturing bonds – recently prompted vehicle that had become his home. Greece’s spiritual leader, Archbishop “Then I heard about Klimaka. But it Ieronymos, to warn of a “social was a big step asking them for a bed. I explosion”. felt very ashamed.” Making a rare public intervention A new underclass has emerged in in a letter to the Prime Minister, Lucas Greece. A recession that began with Papademos, he said: “Homelessness the global financial downturn in 2008 and even hunger – phenomena seen but which has worsened dramatically during the Second World War have as a result of European Union and In- reached nightmare proportions. The ternational Monetary Fund-dictated medicine we are taking has proved fa- austerity in the past two years, has left tal for the nation. More painful and 20,000 Greeks without a roof over more unjust measures are now set to their heads, according to social work- follow along the same, hopeless ers and non-governmental REUTERS course.” organisations. DURING THE COUNTRYWIDE Unions, too, have predicted that In a nation where joblessness is protests on February 10, a protester the reaction to yet more austerity will now more than 20 per cent, with no hurls a stone at policemen at be “uncontrollable”. family untouched by it, the sight of Athens’ Syntagma (Constitution) But in adversity, there has also people sleeping on pavements and Square. been an extraordinary outpouring of park benches, in metro stations and solidarity. Klimaka’s courtyard, like shopping arcades, doorways and cars, fifth of its population lived under the that of the municipal shelter, is brim- is the most visible sign yet of an econo- poverty line. Now over a third can be ming with boxes of blankets, clothes my in freefall. More than 10,000 peo- considered officially impoverished, ac- and food dispatched by other Greeks ple have been decanted on to the cording to the statistics agency wanting to help their countrymen in streets of Athens, home to the vast ma- Eurostat. need. jority of Greece’s 11 million popula- As temperatures plunged to some “The troika [debt inspectors from tion. The government has announced of the lowest levels in living memory the E.U./the IMF and the European emergency aid for the destitute ,and recently, municipal officials rushed to Central Bank] come and go,” said Spy- the Greek Orthodox Church has re- accommodate the homeless in hostels, ros Grigoratos, one do-gooder emerg- vealed it is feeding 250,000 people a hotels and other emergency centres. At ing from his BMW with sleeping bags day. night, groups of doctors and social and jackets for the refuge. “They fiddle “Before the crisis, homelessness workers took to the streets offering with numbers and don’t know or care wasn’t visible in Greek society and was blankets and first aid. about the real situation on the ground. very low compared with other E.U. Educated professionals, too sha- The real answer is not more austerity. countries,” explained Ada Alamanou, mefaced to want to speak, now stand in That way lies chaos.” Klimaka’s spokeswoman. “But in the line with immigrants from developing For Greeks such as Lambros the last few years it has increased by 25 per countries waiting for food handouts latest measures are a wake-up call, but cent. We call them the ‘new homeless’ from the town hall. not for those who will suffer from them because it is a rise that can be attribut- “We are very close to this becoming most. ed solely to economic reasons,” she a full-blown humanitarian crisis,” said “If they want to take the last ten said. “They are not people who have Giorgos Apostolopoulos, who heads cents away from us, which they have psychological problems or are suffer- Athens’ municipal homeless shelter. clearly shown they want to do, they will ing from drug and alcohol abuse. They “If these economic policies contin- have to pay the consequences. One fine are people who haven’t been able to ue the situation will get a lot worse. day nothing will be the same again pay off their credit cards and mort- It’s shocking. Well-dressed people because people like me and them,” he gages. The crisis is hitting the middle who own laptops and mobiles are find- says pointing to others in the shelter, class.” ing themselves with nothing, out on “will act”. २ Even before Greece’s debt drama, a the street.” ©Guardian News & Media 2012

60 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 World Affairs/Myanmar A new chapter

Myanmar is now the “new frontier” for American aid and businesses as the U.S.

prepares to lift sanctions against the country. BY JOHN CHERIAN

Apart from the U.S. decision to lift the European Union’s (E.U.) policy towards Myan- mar. Many of the economic sanctions, applied uni- economic sanctions, the events of the laterally by the West, are on the verge of being lifted after United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton i visited the country in November-December last year. Arab Spring could have nfluenced It was the first high-profile visit to the country by the military government’s decision to an American official in more than 50 years. The visit came immediately after President Barack Obama cosy up to Washington. announced that the U.S. would back the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries in their territorial disputes with China. While announcing the visit of his Secretary of State at the Bali ASEAN summit in November, Obama said Hillary Clinton “would explore whether the United States can empower a positive transition in Burma [Myan- mar’s former name] and begin a new chapter between our two countries”. Obama and other senior administration officials have openly proclaimed since late 2011 that the U.S. considered China the main challenger to its status as the sole superpower. The Pentagon’s latest war doc- trine lays great emphasis on containing China in the Asia-Pacific region. Hillary Clinton’s visit was widely interpreted in the American media as being part of the Obama administration’s efforts to check the rising power of China in the region. Hillary Clinton was soon followed by Foreign Minister Alain Juppe of France, Foreign Secretary William Hague of the United Kingdom, and Japan’s Trade Minister Yukio Edano. The E.U. has lifted the travel sanction on senior Myanmarese officials. Until recently, only countries in the region such as China, India, Thailand and Singapore engaged meaningful-

AP ly with the Myanmarese government. The West, led by the U.S. had, on the other hand, PRESIDENT THEIN SEIN with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the President’s Ofﬁce in imposed draconian economic sanctions on the coun- Nay Pyi Taw on December 1, 2011. try and also exerted pressure on India and the other countries to distance themselves from the military- THERE is more to the West’s sudden embrace of led government. Hillary Clinton, before reaching the military government in Myanmar than meets the Yangon, had said that developing countries should eye. Until last year, Myanmar was among the coun- be “smart shoppers” and should be careful about tries that the West targeted for regime change. After taking assistance from countries that were more the ruling military junta sent emissaries to Western interested “in extracting resources than in building capitals promising accelerated democratic reforms, capacity”. there was a dramatic volte-face in Washington’s and The U.S. Secretary of State had two well-publi-

FRONTLINE 61 MARCH 9, 2012

cised meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi, just after the military government had points such as the Malacca Strait the icon of the struggle for democracy cancelled a multi-billion-dollar deal where the U.S. Navy has a strong pres- in Myanmar. Suu Kyi was released with China to build a hydroelectric ence. Interestingly, gas from the im- from house arrest in 2010 soon after project. The Myitsone dam was to be mense Shwe reserves off the coast of the country went to the polls super- built on the Irrawaddy river. The gov- the Arakan State was first offered to vised by the army. The election, though ernment, while announcing its deci- India by the Myanmarese authorities. far from being free and fair, was the sion to cancel the project, said the India dragged its feet on the offer and first to be held in 20 years. The Nation- construction of the dam would go China came into the picture. China in- al League for Democracy (NLD), Suu “against the will of the people”. vested $11 billion in Myanmar in Kyi’s party, which was banned from The proposed dam had come un- 2010-11 alone. contesting two years ago, has since der criticism from environmental The decision to cancel the dam been allowed to participate in politics groups and there were a few scattered project was made during the visit of openly. demonstrations against it. The $3.6 Myanmarese Foreign Minister Wunna Under the 2008 Constitution, Par- billion dam, China’s biggest single in- Maung Lwin to Washington in Sep- liament has very little power. The mil- vestment in the country, was supposed tember. He is the first senior official to itary continues to have a constitutional to be part of a network of seven dams visit Washington since the military veto on decisions made by Parliament that would provide power for industry junta took power. or the President. The military is guar- in southern China. anteed 25 per cent of the seats in Par- China is involved in other impor- WESTERN AID liament. Suu Kyi’s decision to contest a tant energy-related projects too. Chi- Hillary Clinton, during her visit, in- parliamentary byelection in April is na’s National Petroleum Corporation dicated that Washington would no being viewed as a tacit endorsement of is building a gas and petroleum pipe- longer stand in the way of Internation- the 2008 Constitution. Many in her line from Myanmar’s southern coast al Monetary Fund (IMF) and World own party have criticised her decision. into China, bypassing potential choke Bank loans to Myanmar. The U.S. it- Hillary Clinton harped on Amer- ica’s abiding support for the struggle for democracy and said that she was visiting the country to gauge the “true intentions” of the junta. After meeting President Thein Sein in the new administrative capital, Nay Pyi Taw, Hillary Clinton welcomed the new steps taken by his government. She had come with a list of demands, which included freeing of political prisoners and cessation of hostilities with rebellious ethnic groups such as the Karens and the Kachins. Hun- dreds of political prisoners, including a few high-profile ones, have since been freed. A ceasefire agreement was reached with the Karen National Union (KNU) in January. The Karen insurgency has gone on for more than 60 years. The government has ordered a general ceasefire. Ethnic minorities make up around 40 per cent of Myan- mar’s population. Hillary Clinton’s visit took place

THE IRRAWADDY RIVER in Kachin State, northern Myanmar, where the Myanmar-China Myitsone hydroelectric project was to come up. Myanmar has decided to cancel the project.

62 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

self has loosened its purse strings. lations. In January, Washington American officials have started visiting announced that it was sending an am- the country in droves to earmark aid bassador after a gap of 10 years. Since for development projects. American Hillary Clinton’s visit, three separate business views resources-rich Myan- delegations of U.S. officials have vis- mar as the “new frontier”. ited the country. The military government has al- Reports from Washington in the ready offered generous terms for second week of February said Central Western investors and has advertised Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director the country as “the most attractive in David Petraeus, would visit Myanmar the region”. The military government later this year. is all set to approve a law that gives American officials in Bangkok, investors tax exemption up to eight where the CIA Director went on an years. Myanmarese workers are official visit recently, told the media among the lowest paid in the region that Petraeus would be making the vis- and trade union activity is severely cur- it on the instruction of the Secretary of tailed by the government. State. A trip by Petraeus is an indica-

Thein Sein declared Hillary Clin- SOE ZEYA TUN /REUTERS tion that the two countries are heading ton’s visit a “historic milestone” and PRO-DEMOCRACY LEADER AUNG for greater cooperation in security-re- expressed the hope that it would “open San Suu Kyi after receiving France’s lated issues. The two countries had a new chapter in relations” between highest award, The Legion of cooperated in the 1980s when the mil- the two countries. Nay Zin Latt, a se- Honour, from French Foreign itary was combating various insurgen- nior political adviser to the Myanma- Minister Alain Juppe at the French cies, including one led by the Burmese rese President, told Time magazine, embassy in Yangon on January 15. Communist Party, which at the time had the tacit support of China. that because of the sanctions, the The Myanmarese military and po- country had no option but to “take litical establishments have historically what China had to offer”. He said that tried to remain equidistant from China if the sanctions were lifted, “it will be and India. Now, with China outpacing better for everyone in Myanmar”. India economically, sections of the Ko Ko Hliang, another senior ad- Myanmarese elite could have come to viser to the President, was candid the conclusion that the U.S. would be a enough to admit that the events of the better bet to counterbalance the grow- Arab Spring had influenced the gov- ing Chinese influence. ernment’s decision to cosy up to Wash- Washington, too, has tried to cash ington. The military men currently in in on India’s apprehensions about Chi- power are well aware that they will not na’s growing clout in Myanmar. Suu be able to crush popular revolts as eas- Kyi, from available indications, has be- ily as in the past. They also know about come particularly close to the West in the West’s propensity to use street pro- recent years. tests to intervene militarily and bring It is no secret that she was upset about regime change. with New Delhi after the latter estab- Suu Kyi warned against an Arab lished close relations with the junta in Spring in the country and called for the mid-1990s. New Delhi had openly “change through peaceful means”. She stated that the sanctions were counter- virtually rubber-stamped the mili- productive. The two countries have al- tary’s transition plan to democracy so established strong security links, when she gave the go-ahead for the cooperating closely in anti-insurgency re-registration of the NLD. According operations along the 1,640-km-long to reports in the Western media, the unfenced border. Obama administration had made Suu In July 2010, during the visit of Kyi’s release the first precondition for President Than Shwe to India, the two the lifting of sanctions and the eventu- countries signed a “mutual legal assist- al normalisation of relations. ance” agreement that provides for the A new chapter seems to have in- repatriation of Indian insurgents held २ KHIN MAUNG WIN/AP deed opened up in U.S.-Myanmar rein Myanmar.

FRONTLINE 63 Environment MARCH 9, 2012 Halting the pink

The Sewri mudﬂats in Mumbai, home to a rich biodiversity, including ﬂamingoes, is under threat from

a development project. BY LYLA BAVADAM

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority sounded the death knell for the mudﬂats and the ﬂamingo haven when it resurrected the Sewri-Nhava Sheva road-cum- sea bridge project.

IT is low tide and the mess of humanity is on full display on the mudflats at Sewri in Mumbai. Tin cans, bottles, torn fishing nets, waste oil and, of course, the ubiquitous polythene bags make the landscape an industrial wasteland. In the far distance are signs of heavy industry – chimneys of oil refineries and a power station. The middle ground is an expanse of grey sea bobbing with rafts of rubbish from the urbanised coast. The foreground has mangroves festooned with plastic bags and rags. On the jetty, it is business as usual for the small ship-breaking industry. Metal clangs against metal as hammers rise and fall, and workers shout above the sound of roaring motors and hissing acetylene torches. Expertly sidestepping the rubbish and seemingly oblivious to the noise are flocks of birds which are VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY

feeding busily. Treading lightly on the mudﬂats, they pick up molluscs, crustaceans, mudskippers, worms, algae, seaweed, and so on. Life, it seems, can survive in this poisoned environment. Apart from the local avian residents such as pond herons, marsh sand- pipers, little stints, common gulls and white-breast- ed kingﬁshers, there are the winter visitors – black-headed ibis, black-tailed godwits, purple herons, brown-headed gulls, eastern imperial eagle, curlews, whiskered terns and many such. However, for the eager birdwatchers on the jetty,

64 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 tide

A SHIP SLATED for demolition frames a flamingo flock on the Sewri mudflats in central Mumbai. The long-legged, pink birds are annual winter migrants to this shallow wetland.

the star of this early morning show is perhaps, even Africa. A rough estimate lesser flamingoes, or Phoeniconaias undoubtedly the flock of tall, long- by naturalists is that about 15 per cent minor, a name that aptly translates as legged, pink birds about 300 metres of the lesser flamingo population in crimson water nymph since they are away. Systematically working their South Asia spends about six months of pinker than their cousins, the greater way through the slush and sewage are the year on the Sewri mudflats, a coast- flamingoes, or Phoenicopterus roseus. the flocks of the greater and lesser fla- al wetland formed when mud is depos- Moving slowly, the flock feeds on the mingoes that the Mumbai coast at- ited by tides. That totals to about rich nutrients in this polluted marsh. tracts every year from Kutch or, 15,000 birds. Most of these are the Flamingoes are filter feeders, which

FRONTLINE 65 MARCH 9, 2012 VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY TERNS, WHICH SHY away from human habitations, have found their niche in the mudflats. explains why their graceful long necks tent though, undoubtedly, they had continuously sway from side to side, more mangroves and biodiversity ear- their large beaks probing the mud and lier. Habitat losses have been miti- simultaneously sifting out what is not gated because the environment has food. had some chance to adapt to changes. Despite their cesspool-like nature, This slow development is also the the Sewri mudflats continue to sustain reason why this part of central Mum- an amazing biodiversity. There are bai continues to be a haven for birds more than 150 bird species, including like the flamingoes. It needs to be un- the winter migrants. The annual total derstood that the flamingoes did not wader count (distribution of wading randomly select the spot. The condi- birds) is about 500,000 birds. BirdLife tions in Sewri are ideal for the birds. International, a global alliance of con- The slight indentation in the coastline servation organisations working for brings a degree of safety. The shallow the world’s birds and people, has des- mudflats make for easy feeding. Ironic, ignated the Sewri mudflats as an Im- it may seem, but the human waste and portant Bird Area and has also nitrogen-rich organic pollutants from identified it as a potential Ramsar site nearby industries promote the healthy (wetlands of international impor- growth of algae, which is the primary tance). The mudflats are also home to food of the flamingoes apart from 53 species of vascular plants, 10 man- small insects, crustaceans, molluscs, grove species and 13 mangrove-associ- and small fish. This ideal combination ate species as well as many types of is something that has occurred gradu- crustaceans, molluscs and algae. ally over time and cannot be replicat- ed. Therefore, the birds cannot be IDEAL SPOT expected to resettle themselves a few Sewri, which is on the eastern sea- kilometres north or south of their pre- board of Mumbai, has been relatively sent location. It would not only be un- untouched by the city’s race for devel- realistic but also unjust. opment. This is largely because it Sadly, however, the mudflats have comes under the security blanket of the Port Trust. This is one reason why A WESTERN REEF egret in an the mudflats are preserved to some ex- abandoned boat.

66 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY

FRONTLINE 67 MARCH 9, 2012

68 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

DESPITE THEIR CESSPOOL-LIKE nature, the mudﬂats sustain an amazing biodiversity ranging from algae, crustaceans and molluscs to large migratory birds. PAUL NORONHA

FRONTLINE 69 MARCH 9, 2012 PAUL NORONHA

70 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

come under threat from a Rs.8,500- crore mega project called the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, a 22-km road- cum-sea bridge that will link Sewri on the Mumbai island to Nhava Sheva on the mainland. The six-lane road, 16.5 km of which will be a sea bridge, will also make provisions for an independent twin-track Metro in its second phase. The Sewri-Nhava Sheva bridge has been in the pipeline for more than two decades. Now the Mumbai Metropoli- tan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has resurrected the project VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY by inviting applications for prequal- THE POND HERON, a common shore bird. ification for the construction of the bridge. In the process, it has begun the countdown for the destruction of the mudflats and the flamingo haven. As before, objections and compromise solutions to the project have been raised by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) but the MMRDA shows no signs of accepting them. Dr Asad Rahmani, the Director of the BNHS, said: “We are not against development, but at the same time, we want the environment to be protected. A realignment would save the flam- ingos and the mudflats, and the goal of development and conservation will be achieved.” The BNHS had written to the

MMRDA’s Chief Engineer and sug- VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY gested realigning the start of the AN EGRET WAITS for prey. (Below) A red shank explores the waters. bridge 700 m south of the proposed point. The MMRDA rejected it out- right saying that a) there is no land available to realign the bridge, b) that any change will mean applying for fresh clearances and c) that all delays will mean an increase in costs. But the fact is that land is usually made available when a government agency such as the MMRDA is involved, and fresh clearances should, in any case, be applied for because the project has been on and off for about two decades. The Environment Im-

(FACING PAGE) FLAMINGOES feed, against the backdrop of oil reﬁneries and a power station. They are ﬁlter feeders and can sift out what is not food in the polluted marsh. VAIJAYANTHI CHAKRAVARTHY

FRONTLINE 71 MARCH 9, 2012 VIVEK BENDRE AN IBIS NEAR the murky waters. pact Assessment Report, for instance, the habitat will adapt as it has done drainage, configuration of the mud- is from 1992 and is outdated. Soaring before. But it is not just the chaos of the flats and, ultimately, the way life can or project costs because of failed tender- construction activity that will be dis- cannot be sustained. In its reply to the ing over the years should not be a bur- ruptive. The bridge will alter the hab- BNHS, the MMRDA has said that it den that the natural habitat has to itat drastically and suddenly. The will ensure that the environment is bear. construction will affect the tidal pat- minimally impacted. But the assur- Some people say that once the tern, which in turn will affect the circu- ance seems to be little more than pay- bridge is built the birds will return and lation and flow of water, siltation, ing lip service to the environment. २

72 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 books Horrors of Partition In addition to the loss of human lives and property, the near-fatal blows on

cultures mark Partition’s distinctively hideous features. BY A.G. NOORANI

INFOBOX TAG WITH HE partition of the subcon- BOOK FACTS tinent of India deserves to rank as one of the 10 great tragedies in recorded human history. That is saying a lot.T It is not only the loss of human lives and property but the near-fatal blows on cultures that mark its distinctively hideous features. Urdu and the com- posite Ganga-Jamuna tehzeeb (culture) suffered grievously. People were uprooted, leaving an impoverished culture behind them. Of all the provinces, Punjab suffered the most. The massacre that preceded and followed its partition, along with that of India, The Punjab: Partition Observed: Partition and was predictable and was predicted. Bloodied, British Official Locality: Violence, “Pakistan would mean a mas- Partitioned and Reports from South Migration, and sacre,” the Premier of Punjab Sir Si- Cleansed: Asia; Volume One, Development in kandar Hyat Khan predicted to the Unravelling the 14 August-15 Gujranwala and distinguished civilian Penderel Moon 1947 Tragedy October 1947, Sialkot, 1947-1961 as early as in October 1938 (Divide and through Secret Volume Two by llyas Chattha; Quit, page 20). That was well before British Papers and 16 October- Oxford University the Muslim League adopted the Pakis- First Person 31 December 1947; Press, Karachi; tan resolution on March 23, 1940, in Accounts by Ishtiaq edited by Lionel pages 304, Rs.825. Lahore, radically altering Sir Sikan- Ahmed; Rupa & Co.; Carter; Manohar; dar’s draft just 24 hours before it was pages 754, Rs.995. pages 985, Rs.2,950. passed. He repudiated it because it dropped the organic link between the two parts of India, which he had pro- “nations” ensured a flawed, dented sec- the Muslims in East Punjab and West vided. He told the Punjab Legislative ularism. He protested to Mountbatten Bengal. The Pakistan resolution itself Assembly, on March 11, 1941, “We do in 1947 when the Congress decided, envisaged “such territorial readjust- not ask for freedom that there may be rightly, to retain the name India, rath- ments as may be necessary” in the Muslim Raj here and Hindu Raj else- er than accept the name he would have boundaries of the two zones it de- where. If that is what Pakistan means I liked it to adopt – Hindustan; but this manded. As early as on January 17, will have nothing to do with it.” time within a communal connotation. 1942, Jinnah confided to Prof. Regi- But that is precisely what Pakistan His concept left little room for self- came to mean, regardless of Moham- respecting minorities in Pakistan. The mad Ali Jinnah’s initial tactical con- Sikhs, in particular, dreaded the pros- Series siderations. His two-nation theory pect of being forced to live in an avow- implied two majoritarian states. It edly Muslim state. This is the first part of was to be a flawed secularism. His bo- Jinnah gave short shrift to them, to a two-part article. gus theory of “homelands” of the two the Muslims in India and, not least, to

FRONTLINE 73 MARCH 9, 2012

nald Coupland, adviser to Stafford on interviews rivals his volume in Cripps, his readiness to concede Am- range and depth. He is scrupulously bala division “to U.P.” and for Bengal objective. to cede its Hindu-majority western The rival narratives are fairly set districts to Bihar, provided Pakistan out: “The late Harkishan Singh Sur- acquired Assam (R.J. Moore; Escape jeet, of the Communist Party of India from Empire; Oxford University Press, (Marxist), witnessed the events and 1983; page 54, footnote 47). The Com- said in our interview: ‘The communal munist Party of India’s pamphlet They attacks on the minorities were defi- Must Meet Again, written by P.C. nitely planned. I know more about the Joshi, its general secretary, one of the persons involved in the eastern wing ablest pamphleteers, carried maps of because I was there. I saw those dread- Punjab and Bengal showing large com- ful acts with my own eyes. In that con- pact zones of contiguous majority dis- spiracy, the Maharaja of Patiala was tricts in the two provinces which had involved. The idea was that if the Mus- Muslim majorities (1944). So did maps lims were driven out, the Sikhs could published in B.R. Ambedkar’s work form their own state in eastern Pun- Pakistan or Partition of India (1946). jab.’” The attacks on Sikhs and Hindus Jinnah’s Canutian edicts flew in in March 1947 in Rawalpindi are re- the face of the realities. He was pri- garded as one of the major crimes that vately negotiating the terms of refer- triggered off others. ence of the Radcliffe Boundary The lunacy that convulsed Punjab Commission on the partitioned Pun- is dissected calmly in each of its phas- jab and Bengal while publicly assert- es. Before 1947 the communities did ing that he would not yield on the mingle; but in the main they led paral- partition of the two provinces. He mis- lel lives. The first to advocate partition led his followers. of Punjab was Lala Lajpat Rai. In No- As Ambedkar suggested, Jinnah vember-December 1924, he wrote in would have been better off conceding The Tribune: “My suggestion is that that publicly. But, then, in that event the Punjab should be partitioned into he would have lost the support of the two provinces, the Western Punjab Muslim League landlords in East Pun- with a large Muslim majority to be [a] jab and the influentials in West Ben- Muslim-governed province; the East- gal. The question arises: Why did not ern Punjab with a large Hindu-Sikh the Congress and, for that matter the majority to be [a] non-Muslim-gov- British, publicise these realities widely erned province.” He also suggested

in 1945 ahead of the general elections that Muslim provinces be established THE HINDU ARCHIVES for all the world to know? in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Sindh and East Bengal. potency as a political slogan. The un- VALUABLE CONTRIBUTION By the end of 1945, partition had informed Muslim will be told that the These works by scholars of distinction entered the realm of the probable. On question he is called on to answer at are a valuable contribution to the his- December 27, 1945, the Viceroy, Lord the polls is – Are you a true believer or tory of Partition. Their industry is Wavell, proposed a “breakdown” plan an infidel and a traitor? Against this matched by integrity and a commit- to London followed by a paper demar- slogan the Unionists have no spectac- ment to the truth. Ishtiaq Ahmed, cating “genuinely Muslim areas”, on ular battle-cry… if Pakistan becomes born in Lahore, is Professor Emeritus February 7, 1946. It was based on a an imminent reality, we shall be head- of Political Science at Stockholm Uni- partition of Punjab and Bengal. ing straight for a bloodshed on a wide versity and Honorary Senior Fellow, The Governor of Punjab Bertrand scale; non-Muslims, especially Sikhs, Institute of South Asian Studies, Na- Glancy wrote to Wavell on August 16, are not bluffing, they will not submit tional University of Singapore. He has 1945: “[T]here is a very serious danger peacefully to a government that is la- not only consulted extensively the pub- of the elections being fought, so far as belled ‘Muhammadan Raj’. Hence it lished material, especially material Muslims are concerned, on an entirely appears to me to be of vital importance compiled from the archives by Lionel false issue. Crude Pakistan may quite to take action, before it is too late, to Carter, but painstakingly conducted illogical, undefinable [sic] and ruin- deflate the theory of Pakistan…. interviews with Punjabis on both sides ous to India and in particular to Mus- In Punjab there were two neigh- of the divide. None of the books based lims, but this does not detract from its bouring divisions (Ambala and Ja-

74 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

DURING PARTITION, WHICH witnessed perhaps the biggest migration in recorded history, a scene of trains in East Punjab.

landhar) out of our total of ﬁve, in aggravated by the Unionist Ministry’s happenings, political and murderous, which there was no single district with ban on the Muslim National Guard, in a disciplined chronological order a Muslim majority. He would add to the League’s civil disobedience move- based on the records and interviews. them the very important district of ment, and Britain’s announcement on The leaders had lost control over their Amritsar. “The citation of this practi- February 20, 1947, that it would quit followers. cal illustration might be of great help. India by the end of June 1948. The Swaran Singh, leader of the Pan- Action on these lines would at least Cabinet Mission’s plan based on a thic Party in the Assembly, told Gover- provide the Unionist Party with a ral- united India had collapsed. In March nor Evan Jenkins on February 27, lying cry against Pakistan – something 1947, the Congress demanded the par- 1947: “The Sikhs have been profoundly on which the elector could deﬁnitely tition of Punjab and Bengal. Sikhs and moved by the obvious desire of the bite. No Punjabi, however, unin- Hindus were determined to split Pun- Muslims to seize the Punjab for them- formed, would contemplate with equa- jab. The League was determined to av- selves and would not permit them to nimity so shattering a ert that. By then riots had spread. In do so. The agitation has shown Pakis- dismemberment of the province in- 1946, 400 Hindus were killed in Noak- tan in all its nakedness and was a fair volving in effect the disappearance of hali and 5,000 Muslims in Bihar. As example of the kind of treatment that the word ‘Punjab’” (emphasis added, well as communal hate, political ob- the minorities, including the Sikhs, throughout). This was sound advice. jectives fuelled frenzy in Punjab. might expect from Muslim extremists. Tense as the situation was, it was Ishtiaq Ahmed documents the He [Swaran Singh] admitted that civil

FRONTLINE 75 MARCH 9, 2012 THE HINDU ARCHIVES

MUSLIMS AT A transit camp. war would lead to widespread misery, attitude towards Sikhs. “Muslims in and I visited some of the villages in the but he could not see how the Sikhs their stupidity disgraced Sikhs, singled Rawalpindi district that were attacked could be partners with the Muslims on out Sikh policemen for their attacks in 1947. We avoided visiting Thoa any terms in the absence of some effec- and brutally murdered a Sikh consta- Khalsa, whose story has been made tive sanction. He disliked the idea of ble. The effect of this was grave in the unforgettable by Urvashi Butalia in partitioning the Punjab, but felt that a extreme and, as has already been her classic work The Other Side of Si- partition with all its disadvantages stated, communal strife between Sikhs lence (2000). Thoa Khalsa is located might prove to be the only remedy.” and Muslims was almost inevitable if close to Kahuta, where the principal The author records that in his fort- the League movement of defiance had Pakistani nuclear enrichment plant is nightly report of March 4, 1947, cov- continued.” located. In Freedom at Midnight, Lar- ering the second half of February, Sikhs were led by a man devoid of ry Collins and Dominique Lapierre de- Chief Secretary Akhtar Hussain wrote sense, who was to make a mess of picted the agony of Kahuta – a rather that the agitation had affected all dis- things even after independence. On large village of 2,000 Hindus and tricts, creating serious situations in March 3, 1947, Master Tara Singh Sikhs and 1,500 Muslims – in the fol- some places: “The campaign is of de- came out on the steps of the Assembly, lowing words: liberate disobedience and defiance of accompanied by other Sikh leaders, to ‘A Muslim horde had descended on law conducted with a definite undem- meet the crowd. He unsheathed his Kahuta like a wolf pack, setting fire to ocratic political motive.” In his report kirpan and waved it in the air. The the houses in its Sikh and Hindu quar- of March 24 (covering the first half of incident instantly acquired notoriety ters with buckets of gasoline. In min- March), he remarked: “Although and unleashed wild passions. utes the area was engulfed in fire and many were shocked by the vulgarity of entire families, screaming pitifully for the League’s tactics and behaviour, the MASSACRE IN RAWALPINDI help, were consumed by the flames. agitation undoubtedly attracted the March 1947 was a defining month. The Those who escaped were caught, tied sympathy of most Muslims.” author reconstructs the outbreak of vi- together, soaked with gasoline and He noted: “Of all reactions, howev- olence in Rawalpindi on the basis of burned alive like torches.’” er, the most marked, and the most interviews. The initial clash was pro- Around 3,000 people were killed. dangerous, were those of Sikhs. Their voked by Hindu and Sikh protesters on In a special report to Mountbatten resentment was bitter and their feel- March 5, a fact that Justice G.D. Khos- dated April 16, Jenkins wrote: “The ings inflamed by their understanding la’s disgracefully partisan report does communal proportions have not been of the League’s objective and by in- not mention. The author writes: “The accurately reported, but I should say cidents involving Sikhs and furnished attacks began on the evening of March that among the dead are six non-Mus- what they accepted as proof of Muslim 6, when the Muslims turned away lims for every Muslim. Mr Liaquat Ali mass animosity directed against the from the city because the Sikhs were Khan can hardly realise the terrible Sikh community.” Akhtar Hussain heavily armed, and instead headed to- nature of the rural massacre. One of blamed the Muslims of Amritsar par- wards the nearby villages. Between my troubles has been the extreme ticularly for their brazenly aggressive December 11-14, 2004, Ahmad Salim complacency of the League leaders in

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the Punjab, who say in effect that ‘boys are boys’. I have no doubt that the non-Muslims were provocative in the cities, but the Muslims had been equally provocative during their agitation and had in particular murdered a Sikh constable in Amritsar.” The author notes that “at the outbreak of rioting in Rawalpindi the Sikhs enjoyed the upper hand for a couple of days until the tide turned on March 6. That evening, Muslim raiders headed towards predominantly Sikh villages surrounded by a sea of Muslim villages and hamlets. Such villages were attacked by large mobs, sometimes running into several thousands, which

easily overwhelmed the resistance that THE HINDU ARCHIVES was offered. The pogroms and carnag- AT A CAMP in East Punjab, evacuees from West Punjab. es that took place were undoubtedly genocidal – well-planned and execut- much earlier, but remained in abey- Such an objective necessitated the use ed with the intention of killing. That ance till such time that the conditions of brutal force and the Sikhs had made the Sikhs killed their own women only were ripe. The attacks took place much preparations accordingly. The weap- makes that episode more tragic; it is in the same way that Sikh villages were ons they used in some cases included the code of honour of those times that raided in March 1947; only the scale even machine guns and other auto- dictated such behaviour, which out- was many times bigger. No doubt Hin- matic weapons. The transition from siders might describe as ‘bizarre’.” dus were involved in ﬁnancing the at- colonial to Indian rule provided the The complacent assumption that tacks, but it was mostly Sikhs who took opportunity to quickly realise ethnic the partition of Punjab would not en- part in them. cleansing in a matter of a few months.” tail massacres and migrations was to- In the Hindi-speaking eastern dis- tally unrealistic. By the second week of tricts, Hindu Jats also took part in the JINNAH’S FAILURE May, violent attacks increased. Intelli- attacks on Muslims. The lawless Hob- Jinnah very well knew that the parti- gence agencies reported it and the besian state of nature materialised in tion of Punjab was a logical conse- Punjab Governor passed on that in- the fullest sense in the Sikh princely quence of the partition of India. Had formation to Mountbatten. Predict- states, where preparations to expel he accepted that publicly, the Leaguers ably administrative measures proved Muslims had been under way for a of East Punjab, some of whom were grossly inadequate. long time. The PBF [Punjab Boundary landowners, would have deserted him. Force] had no jurisdiction in the prin- The author records his parleys with the ROLE OF SIKH RULERS cely states and that made it easier to Sikh leaders, especially the Maharaja The author records: “There is no rea- attack Muslims.” of Patiala, in May 1947; but the offers son to doubt that the Sikh leadership The partition of Punjab was inevi- were based on a united Punjab as part involving the Akalis as well as some table if India was to be partitioned, of Pakistan, a Muslim State. The Sikhs rulers of princely states had made up and massacres were inevitable once demanded its partition. their mind to empty East Punjab of all Punjab was partitioned. The Sikhs Had Jinnah conceded that even at Muslims. It was put into operation im- faced what they perceived to be an ex- that late hour and forged a pact with mediately after August 17, when the istential threat. “They did have a con- the Congress, the massacres might Radcliffe Award became known to the tingency plan if the Punjab was have been averted. In his hour of tri- general public. Next day, which coinci- divided and it was based on the use of umph, Jinnah lamentably failed in ded with the Islamic festival of Eid, force and terror to make the Muslims statesmanship. proved to be the day when all hell run for their lives from East Punjab. Contrast his attitude with the broke loose on the nearly six million Therefore, the Sikhs in particular had stand adopted by Sir Edward Carson, Muslim minority. Most of the Muslims a special interest in expelling Muslims the architect of Ireland’s partition, in were unarmed peasants, who had no – if not Hindus at that time – in order the House of Commons on May 18, clue that they would be forced to leave to concentrate their co-religionists in 1920. He himself excluded from Ulster their ancestral abodes. The attacks on those parts of the Punjab they wanted (Northern Ireland) three overwhelm- them, no doubt, had been planned to become a Sikhistan or Khalistan. ingly Catholic counties and was con-

FRONTLINE 77 MARCH 9, 2012

tent with the six that had a Protestant Chattha notes the class dimension majority. Enlarging territories on false of the carnage and rejects much con- premises was “a system of land grab- ventional wisdom. “Partition violence bing”, he remarked. had clear class and gender dimensions. Loss of the minorities accentuated Politically astute members of the up- the Muslim character of Pakistan and per-middle class Hindus and Sikhs undermined Jinnah’s commitment to had started to migrate months and secularism. His dream was shattered. weeks before the actual Partition took The imposition of the permit system in place. They had begun to sell their March 1948 and the erection of bar- properties and shift assets to ‘safer riers wrecked the rest of his plans. zones’. Poor people who lacked not on- They were based on two fatal flaws; THE HINDU ARCHIVES ly the resources, but also were unaware one in concept – the two-nation theory MASTER TARA SINGH, the most of the rapidly evolving political scena- – and the other in its execution – an prominent leader of Sikhs. On March rio, were driven out from mid-August abrasive offensive rhetoric. Both ren- 3, 1947, he came out on the steps of onwards.” Urvashi Butalia deserves dered impossible a friendly accord, the Assembly, accompanied by other high praise for her work on the crimes which alone could have mitigated the Sikh leaders, to meet the crowd. He committed against women. cost of Partition. Ishtiaq Ahmed, a unsheathed his kirpan and waved it Since Sialkot shares a border with Punjabi himself, describes eloquently in the air. The incident instantly Jammu “violence in Jammu had many but realistically the emotional wrench acquired notoriety and unleashed parallels with that in Sialkot. What which is still felt by Punjabis. wild passions. gives the Jammu massacres a special character is that they were mainly or- INSIGHTS INTO PARTITION by his objectivity. “The strongly com- dered by the Maharaja of the State of VIOLENCE munalised local press exacerbated ten- Jammu and Kashmir, and involved Illyas Chattha, now based at the Cen- sions. The newspapers Ajit and Rajut political motives to ethnically cleanse tre for Imperial and Post-Colonial instigated the Sikh community to be the Muslim population. This was in- Studies, University of Southampton, ready for sacrifices to maintain unity tended to ensure a non-Muslim major- offers a unique, locality-based per- and the existence of the Panth. The ity in the Jammu region. Violence was spective on the process of collective Muslim newspapers Azad and Inqui- undertaken in the main by the State violence and mass migration. He has lab wrote against the division of Pun- troopers. They received support from consulted all that there was to read and jab with the heading ‘Fragmentation disgruntled Hindu and Sikh refugees conducted fieldwork intensively, re- of the Punjab’. They reported with an from West Punjab. The danger for trieving neglected first information re- expression of ‘grim determination’ the Muslims multiplied ‘every hour’, as ports (FIRs) in police stations. need to resist partition of Punjab, hordes of Hindu and Sikh refugees “Partition violence has only recent- warning the Sikh leaders of the conse- started pouring into Jammu from ar- ly been considered in terms of general quences of playing into the hands of eas that were going to become Pakis- theories. Why was this violence not the Hindus. The paramilitary organi- tan. In many ways, Kashmiri Muslims featured in broader accounts of geno- sations had mushroomed and pene- were to pay a heavy price in Septem- cide or ethnic cleansing? This academ- trated every corner of the Punjab. ber-October 1947 for the earlier vio- ic neglect was not only because of the “By June 1947, it was estimated lence in West Punjab. These killings Eurocentric character of the post-Sec- that the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamse- had created a motive for revenge. ond World War debate on mass vio- wak Sangh] had opened seventeen “‘A large flock’ began to arrive after lence overshadowing India’s Partition new branches and its membership had the March 1947 Rawalpindi massacres violence, but also because the state’s risen to 59,200. The Muslim League of Hindus and Sikhs. By late 1947, over nation-making accounts downplayed National Guards (MLNG) had accu- 160,000 Hindus and Sikhs had mi- the darker side in order to bolster the mulated 43,200 members, not to men- grated from the western districts of achievement of freedom. For a long tion the members of a variety of Punjab. In Jammu city alone, by mid- time, standard accounts of the 1947 miscellaneous bodies such as the Ah- September, they numbered over communal violence observed this vio- rar razakars, Khaksar militia, Shahidi 65,000. They carried with them har- lence as summer madness, ‘slaughter’, jathas, Volunteer jaishes, Hindu rowing stories of Muslim atrocities, ‘mass killings’, ‘massacres’, and the Scouts Volunteer Corps (HSVC), and which were retold in the press and giv- like.” The author has delved into the Akal Shiana…. Preparations for vio- en official sanction by the state media. archives for original research and not lence were made to pre-empt the Their arrival brought the communal confined himself to published compi- boundary award. With the appoint- tension to ‘the breaking point’ and fur- lations of archival material. ment of Radcliffe to map the boundary ther intensified the killings of Muslims The scholar’s industry is matched lines a ‘sudden flare-up’ was noted.” and their exodus.” २

78 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 books/review Policing problems

Three books by serving police ofﬁcers throw light on law enforcement problems

vexing the police force in the country. BY R.K. RAGHAVAN

INFOBOX TAG WITH EN years into retirement IN REVIEW from the Indian Police Ser- vice, I am happy I still get a chance to wrestle with problems of law enforcement, bothT in domestic and in international forums. The obvious temptation on these occasions has been to reminisce about times gone by as also to indulge in comparisons. Such an exercise has convinced me that the current generation of police officers is fortunate to be exposed to a much wider spectrum of issues than before and also has the opportunity to Policing Delhi: Permission to Neo-Naxal remit them to a variety of groups (in- Urbanization, Shoot: Police Use Challenge: Issues cluding the media) for some useful Crime, and Law of Deadly Force in & Options by brainstorming. The resultant hard- Enforcement by Democracies by Giridhari Nayak; hitting debates over strategies and O.P. Mishra; Oxford Jyoti Belur; Pentagon Security styles of policing are valuable in a dy- University Press, Springer, 2010; International, namic world where respect for law is pages 269, Rs.545. pages 226. 2012; pages 324. dwindling and social tensions are becoming sharper by the day. The unabashed venality that has thorship. It is unfortunately uneven three. It proceeds like this: whether it crept into government and the govern- and indicates the need for greater fo- be the demanding and vulnerable ur- ment’s tight control over police orga- cus on honing the average policeman’s ban citizen, or a gangster operating for nisations are other factors that call for powers of articulation while he or she money, or a naxalite spurred by ideol- new approaches to policing. This is is being trained. A policeman in the ogy acting against the state, the police why I think that unquestioned accept- supervisory ranks who cannot speak or will have to deal with them on the basis ance of how the police function in the write with clarity can hardly defend of a well-planned strategy. Gone are country is nothing beyond being po- himself in a crisis. It is also dangerous the days of ad hoc policing when bran- lite. Carried beyond limits, such ur- to one’s career because there is a con- dishing a lathi won unquestioned obe- banity hardly helps improve the troversy over police actions each living dience. That is, it calls for a well-oiled quality of a profession as critical to day. The handling of Salman Rushdie’s and intelligently trained organisation, society as law enforcement. aborted visit to Jaipur by the Rajas- a fearless leadership and a willingness This is why I am pleased that se- than Police is one example. to admit to mistakes. Sans these, a po- nior policemen are increasingly choos- Three books – two by serving and lice force will be constantly pushed ing to put down their thoughts in one by a former police officer – re- around by the formidable velocity of writing without much inhibition. Po- ceived my attention recently. On first public opinion. lice literature is certainly burgeoning. look, they deal with apparently dis- This is a sure sign of a march towards parate subjects, such as urban polic- CHALLENGES IN DELHI enlightenment and transparent policing, use of lethal force on citizens by Policing Delhi by O.P. Mishra, a Depu- ing. the police and naxalite violence. When ty Commissioner of Police, places be- However, I am not exactly satisfied read with great care, one will see a fore the reader the intricacies of with the current quality of police au- common thread running through all maintaining law and order in a mega-

FRONTLINE 79 MARCH 9, 2012

MUSTAFA QURAISHI/AP

DELHI POLICE PERSONNEL practising ahead of Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi, in January 2012. The enormous diversity of the capital city’s population renders policing a demanding task for the Delhi Police. lopolis that is in many ways a universe Metropolitan Police faces in London – position prevents him from being crit- in itself. Statistics are awesome, and renders policing an even more de- ical of the many flaws that the Delhi they can hardly overstate the case for manding task. Police are believed to suffer from. grant of more manpower and equip- Mishra brings out all this in clear These include a certain insensitivity to ment to the Delhi Police. The latter do language. The statistics he furnishes the common man’s plea for help, espe- a very difficult job reasonably well, un- show that equating the challenges that cially in crimes relating to property. der stressful conditions. the Delhi Police face with those faced The inability to check violence against The assassination of a serving by the police forces of other cities in the women is another stick with which the Prime Minister in 1984 and the anti- country would be preposterous. Delhi Police are often beaten. But the Sikh riots that followed, and the ter- leadership of the force may stoutly re- rorist attacks on the Parliament House TOO MANY GENERALISATIONS fute these impressions. Nevertheless, in 2001 and in the heart of the city in This well-conceived book, however, it is difficult to ignore this image of the 2005 and 2008 give one an idea of the has a major limitation. It is merely Delhi Police. challenges before an extremely adapted from the author’s postdocto- Mishra gives the impression that stretched police force. The dimensions ral thesis, with some extra material. If everything is hunky dory with his and complexity of protecting the huge you expect any incisive analysis of force, when it is actually not so. Mishra number of diplomats stationed in the known issues and the intangible char- will probably be better qualified to capital and safeguarding the President ter of the Delhi Police, you are in for write a more objective report of the of India, the Prime Minister and a host serious disappointment. Generalisa- capital’s policing system after his re- of other dignitaries could overwhelm tions by the author are far too many tirement. The many controversies that even the most professional police orga- and may not be agreeable to the dis- the Delhi Police have witnessed need nisation in the world. (The élan with cerning reader. These are actually dis- an insider’s candid account, or else which the Delhi Police manages the tracting. they will remain shrouded in mystery, Republic Day Parade each year is ad- Mishra also has the disadvantage much to the disappointment of schol- mirable.) The enormous diversity of of being an insider. He runs the risk of ars and researchers. the city’s population – akin to what the being branded subjective. His official Talking of controversies and the

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Delhi Police, the one that figured in Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, public debate recently is the Batla Policing calls and a few other States. Apart from House encounter. In this episode (on civilian casualties, the Central Reserve September 19, 2008), a Delhi Police for a well-oiled Police Force (CRPF) and State police team entered Batla House in Jamia forces have lost a large number of their Nagar and challenged some members organisation personnel in the fight. The problem is of the Indian Mujahideen (I.M.) who extremely complicated. The theorising were reportedly hiding there. In the and a about its genesis and how it can be exchanges that took place, two sus- handled – through economic develop- pected I.M. men and Delhi Police In- willingness to ment of and strong law enforcement in spector Mohan Chand Sharma, known the affected areas – has not brought to be an “encounter specialist”, were admit to about any qualitative change. It looks killed. Several local residents were ar- as if we will have to reconcile ourselves rested. mistakes. to many more years of violence and To this day there is a dispute terror in the affected areas. whether the encounter was fake or re- that protects unbalanced police offi- Naxalism has spawned a lot of lit- al. Former Madhya Pradesh Chief cers who shoot from the hip are not erature. The latest addition is Neo- Minister Digvijay Singh recently necessarily to be found only in devel- Naxal Challenge: Issues & Options by claimed in public, in Azamgarh (Uttar oping countries such as India. Police- Giridhari Nayak, an IPS officer in Pradesh), that it was not a genuine men in the West do not behave very Chhattisgarh. This comprehensive ac- encounter, and the allegation was differently. count of a deadly movement is the promptly refuted by Union Home Jyoti Belur devotes a whole chap- product of years of the author’s famil- Minister P. Chidambaram. This is the ter to police response to organised iarity with the issue. A number of an- kind of controversy that is generated crime in Mumbai, whose underworld nexures, including the 1970 Report of on most occasions when the police use has been romanticised by many novel- the Central Committee of the Commu- lethal force. Undoubtedly, this is a sub- ists as well as Bollywood, the Hindi nist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), ject of absorbing interest to police movie industry based in the city. In the or CPI(ML), and maps of operational researchers. decade of 1993-2003, the city wit- areas, are a welcome feature of the nessed more than 400 encounters in book. The final chapter, “What needs ENCOUNTERS which 589 criminals were killed. to be done”, throws up a few valuable Jyoti Belur, a former IPS officer now The author avoids making value ideas. teaching and researching at University judgments but suggests that all en- Those in the higher echelons of po- College, London, handles the subject counters officially chronicled should lice administration would possibly dis- adroitly. Her Permission to Shoot: Po- be viewed against the abnormal rise of miss the author’s recommendations as lice Use of Deadly Force in Democra- crime syndicates and the turf wars be- nothing new or highly impractical. cies is a well-written account of all the tween them. More significantly, it This would be unfortunate. There is problems associated with the police must be remembered that the growth nothing wrong in reiterating what has using firearms on those who deviate of Hindu fundamentalism, the arrival generally been agreed upon by a wide from the rule of law and create dis- of terrorist elements in the city and the spectrum of politicians and civil ser- order in society. injection of outside forces into Mum- vants. Nayak’s suggestion that agricul- Case studies from three cities – bai’s socio-political landscape all serve tural schools based on rural New York, London and Mumbai – give to confound an already overstretched technology could greatly bring down an insight into situations in which the police department and influence it to unemployment in the areas where police are compelled to use force believe that the use of lethal force naxalites are active appears valuable against individuals or gangs, often through encounters is the only way to and practical. His plea for exclusive provoking a public controversy. Mis- get out of a difficult situation. Jyoti high-security jails to lodge arrested takes are occasionally made by the po- Belur’s book is a valuable contribution naxalites, in response to a number of lice as was believed to have happened to the understanding of a complex jailbreaks, needs to be considered in all in the cases of Amadou Diallo (New phenomenon that dogs civilian gov- seriousness. York, 1999), Juan Charles de Menezes ernments and police organisations all On the whole, the book reads well. (London, 2005) and Javed Fawda over the world. Some tight editing with an emphasis (Mumbai, 1997). on correct and simple English would Jyoti Belur effectively demon- THE NAXAL CHALLENGE have further embellished what is oth- strates that overreaction to a prevail- A current major challenge to the Indi- erwise a professional account borne ing difficult crime and public order an police is naxalism, which has taken out of personal handling of the prob- situation and the culture of secrecy a heavy toll on lives in Chhattisgarh, lem. २

FRONTLINE 81 books/review MARCH 9, 2012 The book of Jobs It is easy to ﬁnd articles and analyses about Steve Jobs’ life and work, but it

needed a book like this to tell us what he was as a man. BY N. NAGARAJAN

HAT can one write school included computer science as a about a man who rede- compulsory subject in the mid-1980s, fined industries? A and the computer laboratory had a few man who was loved dozen BBC microcomputers for and hated simultane- younger students and five IBM PCs for ouslyW by many people who did not even older students. No one in the students’ know him? Walter Isaacson shows one families or among their friends’ or what. Steve Jobs is a book that is an neighbours’ circle had a clue what entertaining read even though it is a these things were, how they worked or little too long. The story of Jobs’ birth what they could do. In three years, and childhood to the cracking success many people in their twenties wanted of the Apple IPO (about a third of the to do a computer course, learn pro- way into the book) would make a very gramming and earn tons of money. nice movie; the Apple Macintosh, the At this point, Apple lost the plot. John Sculley saga and the return of the The whole argument over whether Ap- prodigal would make another one; the ple should have licensed its operating “Think Different” campaign to the end system, or OS (which it did for some would make yet another. All three time), and Microsoft’s takeover of the parts have everything a movie needs: desktop computers market are part of love, power, greed, heartbreak, failure, the lore of computing. Who knows a rise from the ashes, triumph and where Apple would be if it had taken death. another of the many forks in the road. The book is so obviously a labour of The book does not cover the business love by the former Time magazine edi- IN REVIEW aspects of Apple or Jobs so much, but tor that one has to appreciate the hon- Steve Jobs by Walter one can see that Isaacson is sympa- esty with which he has covered his Isaacson; Simon & Schuster, thetic to Jobs’ concept of complete subject. It is difficult not to get in- 2011; pages 656 (hardcover). control over the entire computing ex- volved. There are the little details – perience, that is, complete control over such as the phrases Jobs used, refer- hardware and software. ences to Jobs’ weaker side even where ing, to a large extent popularised by In the mid-1980s, some of the rich- he comes across as particularly ruth- Apple contemporaneously with IBM, er children with relatives abroad had less or cruel, and the obvious props like changed computers, computer science Sinclair ZX Spectrums or Commo- the subtitles of each chapter – that and computing. Air-conditioned dores. One typically had to hook the show that the biography, while frank, rooms were needed not just for com- computer up to a television set for the also invites one to appreciate what puters but for the people who operated monitor. One also had to use cassette Jobs has done. and managed them as well. Those over tapes for storage. The user interface And Jobs did many things. He re- 40 will surely remember that the elec- was largely text-based, or what is defined the way computers were tronic data processing (EDP), or man- called command line interface. For looked at, for instance. To appreciate agement information system (MIS), other children, their exposure was what Jobs did to personal computers department alone was housed in com- pretty much at the school laboratory (PCs), one just has think back to the fortable offices. unless a parent happened to work in early 1980s. Computers were then very But the change went deeper than the MIS or EDP department of a bank large installations housed in special that: households could have comput- or a large company. air-conditioned rooms; one had to be ers. Not many households in India did, At that time, it was a privilege to someone or know someone to even get but one could dream of the possibility, have access to computers and learn to see a computer. Desktop comput- and many people did. My progressive how to work with them. We were fast-

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tracked by our schools from the BBC micros to the IBM PCs and allowed two hours a week. I remember the monitors casting a green glow on the faces of my classmates. Lines and lines of code, handwritten and debugged in advance, and the huge hurry to type everything in and get the programme running to save it at the end of our session drove us crazy. For us, the computer opened up a new world with unlimited possibilities. I came across the Apple Macin- tosh while flipping through a magazine that a friend had brought over from his holiday in Singapore. What was this futuristic contraption, with its disk drive and its graphical user interface (GUI) and mouse? I realised that it was the embodiment of what one wanted in a computer. This was not science fiction; this was real. That is what Jobs did to desktop computing. He showed us what a desktop computer could and should be. The funny thing was he did not satisfy just the nerds: he showed their parents what computers could be and how the world might change with their advent. There was a rush for computer science courses. Did it sell Macs? No. Did it capture one’s imagination about computing? Yes, it did. The book does a wonderful job of describing Jobs’ early days and his friendship with Steve Wozniak, co- PAUL SAKUMA/AP founder of Apple, and how it was Woz- STEVE JOBS, CHAIRMAN of the board of Apple Inc., with the then new niak’s product that Jobs sold really Macintosh personal computer in Cupertino, California, on January 24, 1984. well. But that is only part of the story. Very, very quickly Jobs seems to have Sculley and subsequent exit were fore- mouse had wheels, not a ball, which had a clear vision for the product and a shadowed by incidents with the Apple meant that the mouse could move only clear idea of what Apple should do. All Lisa team and the Macintosh team. He linearly. The GUI that Apple engineers of that is beautifully captured in the was not above appropriating someone made was far superior to the one book – how ruthless Jobs could be one else’s projects as his own if he had a shown to them by Xerox. Jobs appro- moment and how infectious his enthu- vision for that idea. priated not just technologies but also siasm could be the next. He certainly On the technology side, there has concepts and philosophies. He cer- appears to have been wilful, wanton been a comment that he appropriated tainly adopted Alan Kay’s recommen- and bratty with a tendency to throw stuff and designed them well. That is dation on having complete control tantrums. He could also cry to get far too simplistic an argument. Xerox over hardware and software to create something he wanted. The funny thing had a GUI and mouse package as part the perfect experience. is this: Jobs’ arrogance and trait of not of computers for some time and had After Jobs’ exile from Apple, his accepting no for an answer did not released an expensive product that stint with Pixar and with NeXT refined develop after he became rich; that is flopped in the market. Jobs and an and rounded off his skills in the cre- how he always was. At one point, Mike Apple team identified the key parts ative, design and the experiential side Scott was hired as president just to and refined the concepts to make them of his thinking and vision. This is clear- manage Jobs. Jobs’ showdown with successful. For instance, the original ly and cleanly brought out in the book.

FRONTLINE 83 books/review MARCH 9, 2012

Jobs’ commitment to design meant design. This did not happen suddenly. dows phone stable. Android currently that he, on more than one occasion, One can see this from the time he in- has more users in the smartphone cat- sent people back to the drawing board terfered with the creation of the Ma- egory than Apple mainly because when they were close to the finish line. cintosh to the point he was driving the many of the handsets sold are on the iPad design. cheaper end of the smartphone spec- RETURN TO APPLE Jobs’ take on computing hardware trum. Android was also the cause of His return to Apple after the exits of and software and his desire to control the famous falling-out between Jobs Sculley and Gil Amelio was like the the experience to a great level of detail and Eric Schmidt and the consequent return of the prodigal son. And he did translated into two other classes of de- war between Apple and Google. The not disappoint. By then, he had turned vices that changed two different rivalry is stoked to such an extent that into a creative hotshot with a very keen industries. users of iOS and Android argue over sense of marketing and design along There were MP3 players before the not just the experience but also the with a keen insight into presentation. iPod; there are MP3 players now from very basis of the platforms’ existence. It looks like it was during his exile that companies other than Apple. But Ap- Android users argue that Android is he actually took to heart Mike Mark- ple’s take on portable music players so “open” and that iOS is a “walled gar- kula’s one-page Apple philosophy pa- defined the market that a suitable Ap- den”; iOS users retaliate that Android per, which was written close to the ple product is always the benchmark is fully controlled by Google and not time Apple was founded. The philoso- for any given MP3 player. The iPod is really “open” although it is free and phy was empathise, focus, and impute. identified so much with the MP3 play- that the iOS’ walled-garden approach Impute in other words is presentation er that one often hears people saying makes for a better user experience. The and to be in context. The “Think Dif- “get me an iPod” when they actually truth, as always, lies in the middle. ferent” campaign and the “i” series, mean “get me a portable music player”. But there is another aspect to the which revolutionised desktop comput- I got my first MP3 player about five whole argument where there is no clar- er design, were the fruits of his tri- years before the iPod came out. I never ity: Jobs’ belief that Google got into umphal return to Apple. used it because it had low capacity and Android and smartphones because it For a long time in India, Macs were one needed to look at the manual if one could see Apple moving forward more expensive than PCs and were wanted to do anything much with it. I quickly to capture the smartphone mostly used by designers for desktop bought the iPod classic second gener- market without much opposition. publishing, artwork and multimedia ation, and suddenly a then-state-of-art There seems to have been some rap- creation. My first experience with a 250 gigabyte hard drive was not prochement after Jobs agreed to speak Mac was only in the mid-1990s in the enough for my music. I started sub- to Larry Page before Page took over as art department of the publishing scribing, downloading and listening to CEO of Google from Schmidt. group I work for. It was odd using a a lot of podcasts. One does not get to redefine and mouse with only one button, but I used Along the iPod journey, Jobs trans- change industries if one is a nice guy. to enjoy and admire the far superior formed the digital music industry, but Jobs was a very tough manager; he graphics capabilities and the range of Indians did not get to see or experience could throw ideas and people out of his design programmes available it as much as those in the United office in a cruel fashion. But he was The original Mac was a dream States. Isaacson’s coverage of iTunes passionate about the vision he believed come true. The iMac all-in-one con- and iTunes Store captures that battle in, committed to providing the best cept then and now is a design icon, so and transformation very well. user experience, and utterly convinced much so that a highly graphic version Jobs actually changed – disrupted that he knew better than the consum- is typically used to indicate a desktop might be a better word – not one but er. Along the way, if one looks at his version of a site or an application. The three other industries: the iPhone and personal life, he seems to have been Power Mac is the most butch design handset manufacturing, telecom, and like just any other man. Unreasonable; for a high-powered workstation. The consumer electronics industries. The cruel one moment, contrite the next; Macbook Pro is the perfect premium iPhone disrupted all three: changed lots of regrets and could’ves, should’ves laptop design. The Macbook Air is the the way phones are designed, changed and would’ves. The book captures his design that other lightweight note- the way people consume data and humanness very well. The Internet books aspire to and are compared changed the way people perceive and makes it easy to find articles and analy- against. The iPad is the tablet that tab- interact with electronics. ses about Jobs’ company, products and let computers are for a long time to Any new smartphone is compared business decisions. But it needed a come going to be measured against. to the iPhone and most iPhone-killers book like this to tell us what he was as a Isaacson captures the vision, the drive, until now have turned out to be rather man. २ the energy and Jobs’ non-compromis- suicidal. The few phones that have N. Nagarajan is Senior General ing attitude towards men, material compared favourably with the iPhone Manager, New Media, at Kasturi and and money in the quest for a great are, ironically, from Microsoft’s Win- Sons Limited.

84 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 books/in brief Dilli & New Delhi A unique glimpse into the heart of the imperial palace at Red Fort before much of

it was destroyed after the Mutiny in 1857. BY A.G. NOORANI

T is a century since King George V BOOK FACTS pierced only by the domes and mina- announced at the Delhi Durbar rets of its many mosques. Mazhar Ali on December 11, 1911, that India’s Khan’s panorama is more than an im- capital would be transferred from portant historical document. It is also Calcutta to a new city to be built a masterpiece of the ﬁnest topograph- nearI the ancient city of Old Dilli. On ical artist of late Mughal Delhi. The February 10, 1931, New Delhi was incomplete panorama along with all the augurated by the Viceroy with much Persian and Urdu inscriptions have pomp and ceremony. Until 1947, the never been published before. Its publi- southern end of the new city was South cation in this volume is accompanied End Road. The rest of the sprawling by essays by Losty that put it in histor- hybrid grew after Partition. Incongru- ical and artistic context and a com- ously, it is still called New Delhi. The mentary on the inscriptions that mania of name changing, which en- Delhi 360°: Mazhar Ali brings them to life. gulfed other cities, stopped short of Khan’s View from the Lahore The work reﬂects the author’s eru- correcting this obvious absurdity. Gate by J.P. Losty; dition. J.P. Losty, formerly curator-in- After Partition, Dilli, now referred Concept: Pramod Kapoor; charge of the extensive Indian visual to as Old Delhi, suffered grievously. A Lustre Press, Roli Books; collections in the British Library, has culture was all but wiped out. There is pages 92, Rs.1,295. published books and papers on many little in common between this seat of aspects of paintings of India from the Urdu Ganga-Jamuna tehzeeb (culture) 12th to the 19th centuries. The paint- and the bastard city of New Delhi with ings of late Mughal Delhi are central to its bureaucracy, carpetbaggers and his interests. He puts the paintings in nouveau riche. One must be fair. There their historical context. History owes a is greater intellectual ferment in Delhi debt to two antiquarians who lived now than, say, in Bombay, named during this period. Thomas Theophi- Mumbai. It has acquired an ethos of its lus Metcalfe (1795-1853) and Sir Syed own, and a good many there own up to Ahmed Khan (1817-1898). Metcalfe’s the heritage of Dilli. These books will “Reminiscences of Imperial Delhi” had enrich their perceptions. All three are over a hundred paintings which he ob- excellently produced with lavishly rich tained from Mazhar Ali Khan. Sir illustrations. Syed’s Asar as – Sanadid traced the In 1981, the British Library in Lon- history of Delhi and its monuments. It don acquired an exciting discovery was illustrated with nearly 130 wood- about Mughal India and about Delhi Delhi: Red Fort to Raisina cuts by the artists Faiz Ali Khan and in particular. It is a previously un- edited by J.P. Losty; Salman Mirza Shah Rukh Beg. It was dedi- known painting, a “panorama”, nearly Khurshid, Ratish Nanda and cated to Metcalfe. 5 metres in length, of the palace and Malvika Singh (contributors); Losty’s book is much more than a the Mughal city of Delhi as seen from Roli Books; feast for the eyes. It contributes a lot to the Lahore Gate of the Red Fort. It is pages 248, Rs.2,975. the history of that period and places signed by the artist Mazhar Ali Khan Delhi Darbar 1911: The the panorama in the context of 1846. and is dated 1846. It provides a unique Complete Story by Sunil There is a good account of the artist glimpse into the heart of the imperial Raman and Rohit Agarwal; Mazhar Ali Khan and his studio with palace before much of it was destroyed Roli Books; informative comments on the draw- in the Mutiny in 1857. It reveals the pages 176, Rs.495. ings. appearance of the city, its skyline Losty writes: “The majority of Del-

FRONTLINE 85 books/in brief MARCH 9, 2012

MAZHAR ALI KHAN’S paintings of Old Delhi before the 1857 Mutiny, collected in the volume conceptualised by Pramod Kapoor and containing essays by J.P. Losty.

jahanabad. Some traces of the cuisine linger still in old Delhi’s homes and restaurants. Ratish Nanda, Conservation Ar- chitect, is the Project Director for the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in India. He was earlier responsible for Humay- un’s Tomb Garden Conservation undertaken by the Aga Khan Trust. For the Indian National Trust For Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), he prepared an inventory of historic buildings for Delhi, published in two volumes as Delhi, the Built Heritage. His essay on the architecture of Shah- hi’s monuments had never been drawn Pramod Kapoor deserves credit for its jahanabad amply lives up to one’s ex- before and these drawings had to be conceptualisation. pectations of his work. started from scratch.” The entire pano- Losty has edited a work of able Malvika Singh, publisher of the ex- rama of Delhi is described by the au- essays by Salman Khurshid, Ratish cellent monthly Seminar, leads the thor and spread out by the artist. Add Nanda and Malvika Singh. Profusely reader from Delhi’s transition to New to these his 94 Notes on Inscriptions, a illustrated, it has an essay by Losty on Delhi. In between came the Durbar of glossary and a bibliography, and you the drawings and photographs of the 1911, clearly a turning point in Delhi’s have a work on Delhi that has few Mughal capital which represent the history. Sunil Raman and Rohit Agar- parallels. It is all the more valuable for city of old. Salman Khurshid traces the wal provide a deﬁnitive account of the the fact that it is about Delhi before it history of the capital built by Shah- event in text and in the many rare pho- was devastated in 1857 in the Mutiny. jahan and life as it was lived in Shah- tographs which illustrate it. २

86 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Obituary Every woman’s diva

Whitney Houston (1963-2012) is credited as the ﬁrst ‘pop diva’ and greatly

admired for her impeccable technique. BY CAROLINE SULLIVAN

Houston was lauded for her qualities that elevated her above almost every other star of her era. Her talent lost to drug addiction comes as a sad contrast to her gilded years as America’s sweetheart. FEW pop singers have been gifted with a voice as glorious as Whitney Houston’s and even fewer have treated their talent with the frustrating indifference she did towards the end of her life. She sold more records and received more awards than almost any other female pop star of the 20th century, but spent most of her last years mired in a drug addiction that sapped her will to sing and left her in a shambolic state. Her death at the age of 48 will send her albums back into the charts and introduce her music to a generation who knew her only as a troubled character whose commercial success peaked in the 1990s. Though never edgy as a musician – her skills were often wasted on bland adult-contemporary songs – she was more than just a purveyor of anodyne hits. Houston was lauded for her impeccable technique and polish, qualities that elevated her above almost every other star of her era. Whitney Houston was gospel-trained, but her PHIL MCCARTEN/REUTERS voice also lent itself to R&B (rhythm and blues), pop WHITNEY HOUSTON AT the Pre-Grammy Gala in and ballads, and she was adept at each style. It was a Beverly Hills, California, on February 12, 2011. ballad that provided her with her biggest hit, a 1992 cover version of Dolly Parton’s I Will Always Love and has been credited with inventing the “pop diva” You. Her melodramatic rendition, featuring one of genre that has inspired singers to the present day. her most powerful vocals, sold 12 million copies She was also the first black woman to break through worldwide, making it one of the biggest singles of all the colour bar at the all-important MTV, which hith- time. Her total record sales topped 170 million, put- erto had played white artists almost exclusively. The ting her in an elite group of female superstars that station’s heavy rotation of her videos made her a included Mariah Carey and Celine Dion, both of familiar face to middle America, and her mix of whom were heavily influenced by her emotional, glamour, talent and approachability turned her into vibrato-laden style. an aspirational figure for millions of teenage girls, Whitney Houston often gravitated to dramatic both black and white. A U.S. magazine editor songs with lyrics about triumphing over the odds, dubbed her “the first black America’s sweetheart”.

FRONTLINE 87 MARCH 9, 2012

The trailblazer

FOR little girls in the 1980s and vibe Whitney had is something that unprecedented. Here was a black 1990s, Whitney Elizabeth Houston has more or less disappeared from woman, a singer no less, making a was everything. Her big hair, the the pop scene in the last 15 years. worldwide smash hit movie like it seemingly heartfelt lyrics, her skinny Child and teenage stars endure, sure, was a normal thing to do. little knees in a denim miniskirt, her but not like her. She was pretty – It was Whitney’s famously clean powerhouse of a voice – she was the enough to be a successful model – living that made her subsequent supreme living doll. I have not met a but she was also sweet. Her persona troubles – a relationship with R&B single woman of my generation – did not seem like an act to shift more bad boy Bobby Brown (immortal- white, black, brown or whatever – units, though it undoubtedly helped. ised in their duet Something in Com- who did not want to be her at some It reflected her upbringing, her roo- mon), drug use, a reality TV point. She was perfect. tedness in a certain kind of black programme, finally divorce – seem And now, with her passing, a cer- culture. I remember my mum re- all the sadder. tain kind of pop star is gone forever. ferring to her as a “good girl” – a In many ways, her life was the Her mix of gospel vocals with un- ringing endorsement if ever there inverse of today’s female singers. threatening girly looks and attitude was one. But her safeness as a pop While they play wild and dangerous made parents comfortable – more star did not mean she was boring on stage, they seem to lead focussed, than can be said for the likes of Ri- because that voice made one thing driven, business-led lives off it. No- hanna. The gospel in her voice was very clear: “I may look like a Mil- where is this more apparent than in the legacy of an early life spent sing- quetoast, but have you heard me the case of Beyonce. She is Sasha ing in church and the illustrious line sing?” Fierce while performing, but of female gospel vocalists she came You very quickly run out of words Beyonce the CEO at all other times. from: her mother is the great Cissy to describe Whitney’s voice. In her Like Michael Jackson before her, Houston, her cousin Dionne War- heyday – basically a large chunk of Whitney defined the pop landscape wick, her godmother Aretha Fran- the 1980s and 1990s – it could stop of her time and influenced it for klin. It meant that Whitney was you in your tracks. Today’s pop stars years afterwards. Every time you probably singing in church as she bandy vocal pyrotechnics about re- hear Beyonce drag out a single syl- was learning to speak, perfecting the gardless of their capacity to really lable over three or four beats, that is vocal acrobatics heard among black pull it off. They are all-knowing sex- Whitney. And when Mariah Carey congregations everywhere. By the uality and casually orchestrated does her little hand movements to time she was making her first forays middle-finger salutes. Whitney ex- accompany a ridiculously high note, into pop, she was already a seasoned isted in a world before all of that. She that is Whitney too. This was a talent performer with a weekly audience. was marketed as America’s sweet- that others can only imitate. And for The gospel training also allowed heart, previously the domain of all her troubles in later life, her lega- her to straddle genres to powerful blond white girls: a huge cultural cy is secure: come “The X Factor” effect, as anyone who remembers her shift. When she co-starred in The this autumn, you will hear it by the cover of Dolly Parton’s I Will Always Bodyguard opposite Kevin Costner, truckload. Love You – who doesn’t? – will attest. one of the most famous Hollywood Bim Adewunmi That ineffable girl-next-door actors of the time, it was virtually ©Guardian News & Media 2012

Whitney Houston’s success made She was unable to get through concerts Warwick and goddaughter of Aretha her rich, enabling her to maintain a without breathlessness and frequent Franklin. She began singing in her cocaine habit that kept her from mak- halts. Her comeback tour in 2010 was church choir at the age of 11, and as a ing records for years at a time in her marred by reviews claiming she was young teenager occasionally perform- 30s and 40s. Looking back on her ad- unﬁt to be on stage, and a clip of her ed at her mother’s concerts. Her voice diction after kicking it in the late sounding wobbly at a gig in Birming- attracted attention, and when she was 2000s, she said paying for it had been ham was played on the television news. 15, she and Cissy sang backup on Cha- easy as “there was so much money”. Whitney Houston was born in Ne- ka Khan’s 1978 hit I’m Every Woman. But she “didn’t think about the singing wark, New Jersey, to a musical family: She went on to provide vocals for part anymore”, and when she did re- she was the daughter of the gospel star Lou Rawls and Jermaine Jackson, and turn to touring, the neglect showed. Cissy Houston, a cousin of Dionne simultaneously developed a sideline in

88 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

modelling. Her fresh-faced prettiness TV paved the way for other African- it” at rehearsals, was arrested for mari- made her a success in front of the cam- American singers and groups such as juana possession and looked skeletal era, and she was the second black mod- Mary J. Blige and Destiny’s Child. at a Michael Jackson tribute in 2001. el to appear on the cover of the Her accessibility to all ages and Promoting her 2002 album, “Just American magazine Seventeen in 1981, cultural backgrounds helped less eas- Whitney”, she told a TV interviewer, when black faces were a rarity in fash- ily marketed artists such as Blige, but “Crack is cheap. I make too much mon- ion magazines. Even Seventeen hedged as culturally significant as she was, ey to ever smoke crack. We don’t do its bets by putting a white model next Whitney Houston was primarily an crack. Crack is whack.” But she was to her in the photograph. entertainer. Despite occasional invol- freebasing cocaine, and as the decade By her late teens, Houston had vement in issues such as apartheid, went on she was photographed look- been a featured vocalist on albums by which saw her appear at the concert for ing dishevelled and haggard. She and the disco songwriter Paul Jabara and Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday, she Brown would spend a week at a time the avant-garde New York funk outfit was not an activist. taking drugs and watching TV, she lat- Material. By then, her style was fully Whatever her private views on pol- er said. formed; on the Material track Memo- itics and race, her public self was al- In her addled state she agreed to ries, the richness of her tone was bal- ways poised and wholesome. appear on a reality show called “Being anced by a poise and precision that was Ironically, a venture into a more ur- Bobby Brown” (2005) and succeeded uncanny in a teenager. Inevitably, she ban, soulful sound on the 1990 album in losing the last remnants of her dig- was offered record deals and signed “I’m Your Baby Tonight” elicited a nity, telling her husband in one epi- with the Arista label, where she stayed sceptical reaction from some black sode: “I need to poop a poop.” for the rest of her life. critics. Even in a decade in which celebri- Convinced that she had what it Commercially, her most barn- ties regularly suffered humiliating falls took to be a blockbusting star, Arista’s storming project was the 1992 film The from grace, Whitney Houston’s was influential president, Clive Davis, per- Bodyguard. Kevin Costner played the shocking. Narcotics and her toxic rela- sonally oversaw the recording of her titular guard while Whitney Houston tionship with Brown ravaged her looks first album. He also turned up with her was a film star and sang on the sound- and robbed her voice of its ability to in 1983 on the Merv Griffin chat show, track. Her acting won her a Razzie soar. where she was introduced to the award for worst actress (which did not Her mother forced her into reha- American public. deter her from making several more bilitation in 2006, and the following She sang Home, from the sound- films), but the soundtrack became the year Houston divorced Brown. Her track of The Wiz, and her vocals were biggest album of her career, selling 44 last album, “I Look to You”, came out flawless, but her frumpy dress and nat- million copies and spawning I Will Al- in 2009 to positive reviews. Her name ural hair did not project what Arista ways Love You. The song was inescap- still retained enough star-power to sell considered the right – saleable – im- able, spending 14 weeks at No. 1 in the out most of the gigs, but fans com- age. By the time her first album came U.S. and roosting at the top of nearly plained that her voice was no longer up out, in 1985, she had been given a ma- every other pop chart in the world. to the rigours of touring. keover: the cover photograph showed The same year, she married ex-boy In May 2011, Whitney Houston a sleek-haired, golden-skinned sylph band member Bobby Brown, who underwent a further period of rehabil- wearing an elegant white gown. came to be widely blamed for her itation. Last autumn she returned to “Whitney Houston”, as the debut downward spiral. “The princess mar- acting for a remake of the 1976 film was titled, was praised not for the mu- ries the bad boy,” Whitney Houston Sparkle with the American Idol win- sic, which was unexceptional dance- wryly described the union years later. ner Jordin Sparks. Filming of the story pop, so much as for the promise the The marriage produced her only child, of the effect of fame and drugs on a 21-year-old singer showed. “Obviously Bobbi Kristina, but Brown was jealous singing group of three sisters was com- headed for stardom,” predicted Roll- of his wife’s success and was emotion- pleted recently. ing Stone magazine. It sold three mil- ally abusive. Her drug use began Whitney Houston was found dead, lion copies in the U.S. in its first year around that time, and by 1996 she was the cause not immediately clear, in a and eventually about 25 million glob- a daily user. She made one other album hotel room in Los Angeles, where she ally. It also won a Grammy award, the that decade, the well-reviewed “My had gone for Davis’s pre-Grammy par- first of six in her career. Love Is Your Love” (1998), but by the ty. That this should happen after so The next few years saw her break turn of the century, stories about her many wasted years comes as a sad con- the Beatles’ record for the greatest behaviour were rife. trast to her gilded years as America’s number of No. 1 singles in a row – she Whitney Houston turned up late sweetheart. managed seven – and become Amer- for events or missed them altogether, Her mother, two brothers and her ica’s highest-earning black female en- was dropped as a performer at the daughter survive her. २ tertainer. Her ubiquity on radio and 2000 Oscars because she was “out of © Guardian News & Media 2012

FRONTLINE 89 Reservation MARCH 9, 2012 A fair deal for Muslims No one can complain that too much has been given to the minorities, in particular

Muslims, through the sub-quota for B.Cs among the minorities. BY P.S. KRISHNAN

In the Mandal judgment, the them were identified solely on the basis of social and educational backwardness as prescribed by the Con- Supreme Court has recognised the stitution. The religion of castes/communities was not a factor at all – neither a qualification nor a ground for disqualification. differential levels of backwardness A scheme of reservation can be criticised as one among B.Cs and clarified that the based on religion only if all members/castes or communities of that religion are included in toto and distribution of sub-quotas among given reservation. In the State-wise Central List of B.Cs, Muslim castes/communities such as Syed, them within the 27 per cent is not Pathan, Mogul, Arab, Irani, Cutchi-Memon, Bohra and Khoja, and Christian castes or communities unconstitutional. such as Syrian Christian, and Sikh castes such as Jat Sikh and Khatri Sikh are not included because they SOME reactions to the Union government’s de- are not socially backward just as certain castes of cision to provide 4.5 per cent reservation for the Hindus that are not socially backward are not in- Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (B.Cs) cluded in the list. Obviously, castes/communities among the minorities within the 27 per cent quota that are in the B.C. list and provided reservation are for Backward Classes are based on ignorance and not included on the basis of religion, and what has confusion. The inability of some in the media to been done is not at all unconstitutional. distinguish between this sub-quota and the provi- The inclusion of non-Hindu castes/communities sion of reservation of not less than 50 per cent in in the list of B.Cs is not a newfangled innovation of Lokpal for the Scheduled Castes (S.Cs), the Sched- vote-hungry politicians. Even before Independence, uled Tribes (S.Ts), the minorities and women has in the southern States, Muslims or certain castes/ confounded this further. communities of Muslims were included in B.C. lists Four criticisms made by many commentators on along with Hindu and Christian backward castes. the 4.5 per cent sub-quota are unjustified. This was also done post-Independence by State (i) It is a quota of reservation based on reli- Backward Classes Commissions and the national- gion and, therefore, unconstitutional. level Kalelkar (1953-55) and Mandal (1979-80) This is not correct. It is not reservation for the Commissions. The national commissions also iden- minorities or for Muslims. It is reservation for certified the B.Cs among Sikhs and Buddhists (before tain B.Cs identified on the basis of social and educa- the S.C. converts to Buddhism were recognised as tional backwardness. This is not new reservation. S.Cs). They were only recognising the social reality The B.Cs among the minorities have already been without factoring in the religion of the members of identified State-wise in the Central List – many in castes/communities that were found to be socially 1993, on the basis of commonality between each and educationally backward. State List and the Mandal List for each State, and others, mostly in 1993 and 2000, on the statutory THE BASIC DICHOTOMY advices of the National Commission for Backward (ii) Reservation for B.Cs among Muslims is basi- Classes (NCBC) set up on the direction of the Su- cally wrong because Islam does not recognise preme Court in the Mandal judgment of 1992. All of caste.

90 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

the social ideology of Islam is uncom- promisingly egalitarian and upholds equality and fraternity. But the social system among adherents of Islam is based on various social and economic factors. On account of socio-economic factors, Muslim society in India (and also in some other parts of the world) presents a picture of social inequality. The Indian caste system is so all perva-

ARUNANGSU ROY CHOWDHURY sive that J.H. Hutton, the scholarly AT A RALLY for job reservation for Muslims, in Kolkata. Census Commissioner of 1931, rightly observed: “Caste was in the air, and From this premise, two opposite tional Indian social system, namely, neither the followers of Islam nor of and extreme positions are taken. One the caste system with “untouchability”. Christianity could escape the infection is that because Islam does not recog- The Constitution does not permit res- of caste; even the change of religion nise caste, no Muslim should be given ervation on an individual basis. There- does not destroy the caste system, for reservation and the other is that all fore, reservation for individuals who Muslims who do not recognise it as Muslims should be given reservation. are economically poor but do not be- valid are found to observe it in practice The latter position is not permissible long to the systemically deprived and there are many Muslim castes as either under the Constitution or the castes/communities is constitutionally well as Hindus” (Hutton, 1980 social logic underlying the social jus- contraband and socially unjustified. (1946)). tice policy of which reservation is a The other extreme position is The dichotomy between the egal- part. Social justice, including reserva- based on the inability to distinguish itarian social ideology of Islam and the tion, is required and, therefore, per- between the ideology of a religion and existence of a caste-like stratification missible only for castes/communities the social structure, social system, so- with hierarchy, linkage with a tradi- that have been kept in varying degrees cial stratification and social inequal- tional occupation and endogamy in of subordination/deprivation/disad- ities prevailing among people who Muslim society in India has been no- vantage by the operation of the tradi- adhere to that religion. It is true that ticed by numerous scholars, historiog-

FRONTLINE 91 MARCH 9, 2012

raphers, archaeologists, census de- mographers and socially knowledgeable administrators. All this has been discussed elaborately in my “Report on Identiﬁcation of Social- ly and Educationally Backward Class- es in the Muslim Community of Andhra Pradesh” (June 2007, which was the basis for 4 per cent reservation for identiﬁed B.Cs among Muslims in Andhra Pradesh) and in my article

“Understanding Backward Classes of V. RAJU Muslim Society” (Economic & Politi- IN VIJAYAWADA, A protest by Muslim students in February 2010 against cal Weekly, August 21, 2010). In this the Andhra Pradesh High Court judgment quashing the 4 per cent context, the eloquent and perspective reservation for the community. observation in one of the Lectures of Swami Vivekananda (1897), whose tified B.Cs among Muslims, Christians of the Indian population; 43.7 per cent 150th birth anniversary is being cele- and Sikhs are as much entitled to their in 83.84 per cent is the same as 52 out brated from January 12, 2012, is rele- share of the 27 per cent reservation as of 100. Therefore, the commission ap- vant to bring out the social character of the identified Hindu B.Cs. They were plied a rule of thumb and assumed that most converts to Islam: covered by the 27 per cent reservation the percentage of B.Cs among non- “The Mohammedan conquest of ab initio. But, on account of different Hindus would also be 52 per cent of India came as a salvation to the down- levels of backwardness among B.Cs, the population of the minorities. At trodden, to the poor. That is why one- some categories of B.Cs have not been that time, the population of the minor- fifth of our people have become Mo- getting their due share out of the 27 ities was 16.16 per cent; 52 per cent of hammedans. It was not the sword that per cent reservation. 16.16 per cent is 8.4 per cent. The total did it all. It would be the height of Differential levels of backwardness population of B.Cs of all religions was madness to think it was all the work of among B.Cs is a social reality and it has estimated by aggregating 43.7 per cent sword and fire….” been recognised by the Supreme Court plus 8.4 per cent, which is equal to 52 This is not different from the sit- in its Mandal judgment, which clar- per cent. uation of adherents of other religions ified that the categorisation of B.Cs The rule of thumb is not quite ac- also. The Vedas and the Upanishads and distribution of sub-quotas among curate. But the Mandal Commission proclaim the universality of the same them within the 27 per cent is not had to take recourse to it because the soul permeating all beings, human and unconstitutional and is even necessary Census establishment has persistently even non-human. But notwithstand- to fulfil the purpose of B.C. reserva- turned a blind eye to the need for esti- ing their lofty spiritual positions, a vir- tion. In fact, many States have had mating the population of B.Cs in the ulent caste system emerged in Hindu schemes of sub-categorisation and country as it has been doing in the case society. The landmark Mandal judg- sub-quotas among B.Cs for many dec- of the S.Cs and the S.Ts from the be- ment of the Supreme Court also no- ades. ginning. While it gives the population tices the prevalence of the caste system The Centre has now taken a step in of each religious community, it has among adherents of non-Hindu reli- the right direction, though belatedly stoutly refused to count B.Cs within gions. Therefore, it is illogical and fac- and incompletely. Since B.Cs among each of them. tually incorrect to say that because Muslims, Christians and Sikhs are al- The Mandal Commission recom- Islam does not recognise caste, there ready in B.C. lists and are covered by mended a reservation of 27 per cent for are no castes or caste-like social collec- 27 per cent reservation, making a sub- 52 per cent of the B.Cs mainly to stay tivities within the Muslim society. category of them and giving them a safely within the overall limit of 50 per (iii) A portion of reservation pro- share out of the 27 per cent does not cent – a limit set by the Supreme Court vided for Hindus has been snatched mean snatching it away from Hindus according to its interpretation of the away from them and given to and giving it to Muslims. Constitution. The Government of In- Muslims. (iv) What has been now given is dia accordingly provided 27 per cent This is also not correct. Reserva- too much for Muslims and or too reservation for B.Cs. tion has not been given to Hindu B.Cs little for Muslims. The 4.5 per cent reservation for the only. It has been given to all B.Cs irre- According to the Mandal Commis- Mandal-estimated 8.4 per cent minor- spective of their religion and without sion, B.C. Hindus formed 43.7 per cent ity population, out of the 27 per cent discrimination against those B.Cs who of India’s population. At that time, the for 52 per cent of the whole B.C. pop- follow non-Hindu religions. The iden- Hindu population was 83.84 per cent ulation, is all right arithmetically and

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proportionately. This cannot be called component. B.Cs of these three togeth- against the long-delayed introduction excessive. er would, therefore, constitute 13.1 per of reservation for B.Cs in Central edu- Taking into account information cent, which is approximately one- cational institutions. Some of them are available subsequently and estimates fourth of the total B.C. population, and today the leading lights of the media as based on my long-standing experi- the share of B.Cs of the minorities out well as other movements, and none of ence, what has been provided is on the of the 27 per cent should be around them has yet expressed regret for what lower side. According to the 2001 Cen- 6.75 per cent. Muslim B.Cs constitute they did and for the self-immolations sus, the population of the minorities about one-fifth of the total B.C. pop- of young people they provoked. In the and Hindus is 18.53 per cent and 81.47 ulation. The due share of Muslim B.Cs surcharged atmosphere of that period, per cent. Among the minorities listed alone out of the 27 per cent should be when there was a very narrow window by Mandal, the Jain community (0.5 around 5.4 per cent or 5.5 per cent. of opportunity for B.Cs to be given per cent) has no B.Cs; they are almost Certainly, no one can justifiably com- their rights before that government entirely Vaishya-Bania followers of plain that too much has been given to fell, it was not possible to take up this Jainism. Of the Buddhists (0.7 per the minorities, in particular Muslims. fine-tuning. That would have resulted cent), no B.Cs are left after S.C. con- only in the basic decision to extend the verts to Buddhism were accorded S.C. JUSTIFIABLE CRITICISMS recognition of and introduce reserva- status in accordance with their long- (a) This is belated. It should have tion for B.Cs not going through. standing demand. Thus, other than been done much earlier. Categorisation could certainly Hindus, there are only three religious It would not be quite fair to find have been done in 1993 after the Su- communities that have got B.C. com- fault with the government for not pro- preme Court judgment of 1992. An ex- ponents, namely, Muslims (13.43 per viding sub-quotas in 1990. The Man- pert committee was appointed on cent), Christians (2.4 per cent) and dal Commission itself by a majority of February 22, 1992, of which I was a Sikhs (2 per cent). Together these 4:1 ruled out categorisation of B.Cs on member, to recommend within 15 days three account for 17.83 per cent. the basis of its understanding of the the criteria for the identification of So- Of these three, Sikhs have got an Balaji judgment. [Delivered in 1961, cially Advanced Persons/Sections S.C. component and a substantial up- the judgment is about the principle (“Creamy Layer”) of identified B.C. per-caste component. Christians have that overall reservation should not ex- castes and their exclusion, as directed substantial S.T., B.C. and upper-caste ceed 50 per cent.] On that basis, the by the Supreme Court, as a precondi- components, while Muslims have an majority overruled the suggestion of tion for the commencement of reserva- insignificant S.T. component, a large one of its members, the late L.R. Naik, tion for B.Cs. This was a rare instance B.C. component, and a relatively small that B.Cs should be divided into B.Cs of a committee accomplishing its task component of upper castes/communi- and Depressed B.Cs, with separate within the period laid down by the ties. Neither Christians nor Muslims sub-quotas in the 27 per cent. At that government and not seeking extension have an S.C. component though there time, L.R. Naik had held detailed dis- of time, to the discomfiture of impor- are among them castes/communities cussions with me. The subsequent tant persons in government who that are identifiable as converts from Mandal judgment of the Supreme hoped that the committee would tie Hinduism or as counterparts of Hindu Court clarified in 1992 that the cate- itself up in a never-ending exercise, S.Cs. Like Hindu S.Cs, they are the gorisation of B.Cs on the basis of rela- thereby delaying B.C. reservation in- victims of “untouchability” – “un- tive backwardness is constitutionally definitely. After this task was complet- touchability being the basic criterion permissible and may even be neces- ed, the committee was asked to for inclusion in S.C. schedules. Howev- sary. recommend the categorisation of B.Cs er, they are not recognised as S.Cs on The earliest time that such cate- in light of the Supreme Court’s Mandal account of Clause (3) of the Presiden- gorisation could have been made was judgment. tial Order, which schedules the S.Cs. 1990 or 1993, that is, after the Mandal While the committee was actively On the other hand, S.T. schedules and judgment. In 1990, it took all the ener- at it, the government withdrew this B.C lists do not exclude Muslim and gies of the government to see that the mandate abruptly. Why this was done Christian S.Ts and B.Cs. Such identi- long-delayed B.C. reservation was can well be understood. Suffice it to say fiable S.C. converts to Islam and Chris- launched on the basis of my note. here that the will and pressure of those tianity are also listed as B.Cs. There were heavy odds against it and who would benefit in an undifferen- I would estimate the B.C. compo- there was a tremendous outburst in tiated single-category list at the cost of nents of Christians and Muslims to be northern India, provoked by ill-in- the “More”, “Most” and “Extremely” 1.4 per cent and 10.5 per cent, after formed, distorted and exaggerated and Backward Castes of the B.Cs prevailed. excluding their S.T. and upper-caste grossly one-sided presentations in the The government can certainly be fault- components. Backward Class Sikhs print and electronic media. Some lead- ed for not introducing categorisation are likely to be 1.2 per cent after ex- ers and activists of this misinformation in 1993 and all the years subsequent to cluding their S.C. and upper-caste campaign became active again in 2007 that. All the governments that came to

FRONTLINE 93 Reservation MARCH 9, 2012 power at the Centre after 1993 owe an these three are the “Backward” castes ficiencies mentioned above, be wel- answer to the people for this. who are the least backward of B.Cs but comed, but as the first step. The (b) The categorisation is who are nonetheless backward, con- government should immediately un- incomplete sisting of castes/communities with rel- dertake necessary exercises for the Nobody has raised this issue, atively substantial asset base. complete categorisation into four or though this is an important aspect of There cannot be equal competition five categories with sub-quotas. It is the government’s default. The B.C. cat- among the four. States such as Kerala, possible without much difficulty to ob- egory consists of castes and communi- Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh recog- tain objective data to accomplish this ties that are at different levels of nised this reality long back and ab in- in a month or two. If this is done, it can backwardness. If the support of reser- itio provided a number of be introduced after the ongoing As- vation is to be equitably distributed sub-categories with sub-quotas. This sembly elections. Along with this, the among them, these castes and commu- has helped to distribute the benefits of government should utilise this interim nities have to be objectively identified reservation and other social justice period and the period before the com- on the basis of social realities, unpol- programmes more equitably, thereby mencement of the Twelfth Plan to luted by electoral considerations. In eliminating/minimising heartburn- evolve a package of schemes and pro- my opinion, they consist of four cate- ing, though some fine-tuning is re- grammes of social justice to bridge the gories, namely, the “Backward”, the quired in these States too. Some other gaps and create equality. “More Backward”, the “Most Back- States also introduced categorisation ward” and the “Extremely Backward” later, but it is not as thoroughgoing as RIGHT TIMING (Pichade, Ati Pichade, Atyant Pichade that of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka There seems to be an impression in the and Sarvadhik Pichade). The “Ex- and Kerala. The Centre and some of minds of leaders of political parties tremely Backward” are those castes the north Indian States have, as usual, that people will remember what is which have neither skills nor assets. been laggards in this, the Centre being done for them and vote for them only if They include nomadic communities, the hindmost of the laggards. The it is done just before elections. Such Vimukta Jatis, that is, those who were NCBC and the Planning Commission’s calculations are not only unethical but earlier stigmatised as “criminal tribes/ Tenth Plan Working Group, of which I also cynical in their assessment of peo- communities” and those linked with was the Chairman, have recommend- ple, who have grown in consciousness stigmatised occupations such as scav- ed that such complete categorisation and awareness in the past decades. enging. Some of them are classified as with sub-quotas should be introduced The right time to undertake any S.Cs if they are Hindus. Examples are among B.Cs. But the government has measure genuinely required not only Halalkhor (the Muslim counterpart of paid scant attention to this. for B.Cs among Muslims and other Hindu Balmiki and Sikh Mazhabi), (c) Reservation is not the be all minorities but also for B.Cs as a whole Muslim Lalbegi, Muslim Mehtar, and end all of social justice and for S.Cs and S.Ts and their women Muslim Nat, Muslim Jogi, and the Reservation is no doubt important, and children and for the really poor large number of beggar/mendicant/ but it is only part of a package of mea- among non-S.Cs, non-S.Ts, non-B.Cs entertainment castes among whom sures of social justice encompassing and their women and children is when there are Hindus, Muslims and Chris- economic, educational, health-related it becomes clear that the measure is tians in the Central and State B.C. lists. and child-survival- and-growth-relat- necessary and adequate data are avail- “Most Backward” castes are those ed schemes and programmes neces- able. There are, in fact, many measures who have no asset base but have skills – sary to remove inequality in every of social justice that are long overdue their skills are traditional and outmod- parameter of development and welfare for all these deprived classes and for ed and have not received the benefit of between the S.Cs, the S.Ts and B.Cs which all necessary information has technological upgradation, modern- compared with the advanced castes. long been available. It is hoped that the isation, direct market linkage and fi- The government has a duty not to con- government will take action on these nancial support. Most of the artisan fine to reservation itself. Also it should measures without any delay after the castes and artisanal/artisan-like not confine discourse and action to present round of elections and without castes, and castes which provide lowly reservation. cynically waiting for the next round of services, among whom are Hindus, State elections or the next parliamen- Muslims, Christians and Sikhs, would WHAT THEN? WHAT NEXT? tary elections. २ come under this category. Most Mus- What has been done will certainly im- P.S. Krishnan retired as Secretary, lim B.Cs would come in this category prove the share of B.Cs among the mi- Government of India, in 1990 and and a few also would be in the “Ex- norities, especially Muslims who until has been active for more than six tremely Backward” category. now have got much less than their due decades in the field of Social Justice & The “More Backward” castes in- in competition with the category of Empowerment of S.Cs, S.Ts and B.Cs, clude castes of small peasants, espe- B.Cs who are the least backward. This including B.Cs of religious cially tenantry without rights. Above should, therefore, despite the three de- minorities.

94 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Livelihood Issues Tenuous lives Conservation measures have taken away the traditional livelihoods of nomadic

tribes in Karnataka. BY VIKHAR AHMED SAYEED IN KOPPAL

Implementation of the Prevention (1336-1646 C.E.) and the seat of a local lord. Today it is home to a semi-nomadic tribal community that of Cruelty to Animals Act and the tamed bears and used them for street performances. These tribal families are believed to have ﬁrst settled Wildlife Protection Act has resulted in Hulihaidar during the Vijayanagara period. They would travel around, plying their street trade, for 10 months in a year. For the remaining two in the Qalandars and the Havadigas months – before and during the Islamic month of being denied the freedom to work Moharram – they would stay put in Hulihaidar, having grand religious and cultural celebrations with bears and snakes. with their brethren. The community is known as the Qalandars, and similar communities of Qalandars AT a short distance from the world famous mon- are spread across the country. (Qalandar, in Islamic uments at Hampi is the village of Hulihaidar in the terminology, usually refers to a Suﬁ saint, but it fertile region of the “rice bowl of Karnataka” in Gan- seems to have been used by this community histor- gavathi taluk in Koppal district. Local residents say it ically. Sometimes it is also spelt as Kalandar.) was an important town in the Vijayanagara empire The street performers were forced to settle down PHOTOGRAPHS: G.P. SAMPATH KUMAR AT HULIHAIDAR VILLAGE in Karnataka’s Koppal district, which has been home to Qalandars for several centuries. The community is in limbo with bear-taming made illegal and no new jobs in sight.

FRONTLINE 95 MARCH 9, 2012

when their bears were seized under the harassed by wildlife officials. The list, which is anomalous because sever- Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972. largest community of these snake al thriving castes in Karnataka are list- The confiscations began in the 1990s, charmers in Karnataka lives in Banga- ed as OBCs. when the issuance of licences was stop- lore, in a slum called Havadiga colony. Some civil society activists say the ped, and continued until 2006 when They told Frontline that they were wildlife laws are insensitive to tradi- the last bears were taken away. Mem- not being allowed to work even with tional trades and do not address the bers of the community say that they are rat snakes, which are aplenty in wood- issue of livelihood for communities barely able to survive. Almost all of ed areas across Bangalore. Abdul Mas- that lose their traditional means of in- them are illiterate and do not possess tan, a young man in his late twenties, come. The right to livelihood, they any agricultural land and have become said: “We are basically magicians, us- point out, finds mention in the Direc- casual agricultural and factory labour- ing sleight of hand tricks to entertain tive Principles of State Policy. Besides, ers. “We understand that we are not audiences, but we need snakes to at- the rights of indigenous people have supposed to work with bears and have tract a crowd.” He later did an im- been recognised under the United Na- surrendered them, but we have not promptu performance using minimal tions Declaration on the Rights of In- been offered any support from the gov- accessories, including a large basket digenous People, which was adopted ernment in the form of alternative live- and a bedsheet, in which a child was by the General Assembly in 2007. lihood,” said Shamad Ali, a Qalandar made to disappear and then reappear. A journalist who grew up in the city from Bear Lane in Hulihaidar. Ac- The snakes were missing, of course. of Bellary remembers the Qalandars cording to Shamad Ali, there are 125 Syed Shabeer, another Havadiga, well. He said: “As a child, I remember households of Qalandars in the village said they did not have pucca houses to them bringing their bears to jatras with their family sizes ranging from live in. “We have been living in this plot [fairs], and they were surrounded by five to 18. The largest community in of land allotted by the Bangalore Slum an excited crowd of children and fam- the village is that of the Nayaks, a nu- Development Authority for the past 10 ilies. They also distributed amulets.” merically strong Scheduled Tribe years. Before that we were a nomadic The plight of these two communi- (S.T.) community spread across the re- community,” he said. There are 100 ties is part of a larger struggle by the gion. Relations between the Qalandars households in the colony. Significant nomadic and denotified tribes across and the Nayaks are nor particularly clumps of Havadigas reside in other Karnataka and India, and they should amicable. The Qalandars allege that parts of Bangalore and elsewhere in be offered commensurate benefits. the Nayak-dominated panchayat has Karnataka. Informal estimates put The main grouse of activists is that meddled with the issuance of Below their number at 371 households. Many members of the nomadic tribes do not Poverty Line (BPL) cards to them. Havadigas have become street vendors have a sense of identity as they are Qalandars also reside in Mangal- and sell flutes and crude dotaras grouped under a number of categories pura village in Gangavathi taluk of (mandolin). in different States for the sake of af- Koppal district (30 households ac- According to a report titled “Law firmative action benefits. Many severe- cording to a report by the Centre for and Loss of Livelihood: The Havadigas ly backward communities who are the Study of Social Exclusion and In- and Qalandars of Karnataka” by Ajit essentially nomadic have not been cat- clusion Policy, or CSSEIP, at the Na- Kumar and Nadim Nikhat, both re- egorised as S.Cs, S.Ts or even OBCs. tional Law School of India University, searchers with the CSSEIP, the strict or NLSIU, in Bangalore) and in Ham- implementation of wildlife laws has CONSERVATION VERSUS pinakatte village (54 households) in left these two communities high and LIVELIHOOD Hospet taluk in adjoining Bellary dis- dry. Rehabilitation has been inade- Implementation of two important trict. In all, there are an estimated 489 quate, and members of the community Central acts – The Prevention of Cruel- Qalandar households across have now become part of India’s vast ty to Animals Act, 1960, and the WPA Karnataka. informal market economy with irreg- – has resulted in the Qalandars and the ular incomes. To add to their woes, Havadigas being denied the freedom THE HAVADIGAS these two communities, who are Mus- to work with bears and snakes. Sub- Similar is the plight of the Havadigas, lim, are not classified as Scheduled section 3 of Section 39 of the WPA a nomadic community that works with Caste (S.Cs) or S.Ts though their socio- declares wild animals to be govern- snakes (the word havu means snake in economic condition and their histor- ment property and does not allow Kannada). In other parts of India, ical lack of access to avenues for devel- “possession, custody or control” of wild tribes working with snakes are known opment should mark them out as animals without the permission of the as Saperas and they are in a similar targets for policies of affirmative ac- Chief Wildlife Warden of the State. situation. With the strict implementation and other state benefits. While the According to the CSSEIP report, the tion of the laws to protect wildlife, Havadiga community is listed as an Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, their snakes are regularly confiscated, OBC (Other Backward Classes), the 1959, which makes it illegal for anyone and community members say they are Qalandars do not even figure on this to possess wild animals, is also invoked

96 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

to book cases against members of these communities. Police and Forest De- partment officials use these legal provisions to seize animals with the assistance of non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In fact, some NGOs have been instrumental in leading the campaign against Qalandars and have also provided an alternative home for seized bears in Bannerghatta in Karnataka. According to an article in the Eco- nomic & Political Weekly of October 20, 2007 (Meena Radhakrishna, “Civil Society’s Uncivil Acts: Dancing Bear and Starving Kalandar”), the campaign against Qalandars in Haryana had left the community in the dol- drums. It also points out how there have been campaigns against the Sap- eras, the Bahelias (tribes who work with birds) and the Madaris (tribes who work with monkeys). These communities are not on the S.C. or S.T. list but are categorised as OBCs in many parts of the country. Kartick Satyanarayan, co-founder of the NGO Wildlife SOS, said it was wrong to blame conservationists for the plight of the Qalandars. Speaking to Frontline, he said: “We informed the Qalandars that working with bears was illegal and helped many of them to secure bail when they were arrested for possessing bears. As an NGO involved in conservation issues, we were concerned about bears but we have done a lot for the welfare of the Qalandar community.” To every family that surrendered a bear Wildlife SOS provided Rs.50,000. The Qalandars of Hulihai- dar acknowledge this help but point out that the amount was inadequate and is long gone. Satyanarayan said neither the State nor the Central government had done anything to aid the rehabilitation process. Over the past few years, Karnataka has seen a fledgling movement to organise nomadic tribes such as Qalandars and Havadigas and even those that do not use animals. Each tribe has a few HAVADIGAS, WHO LOST their livelihoods after possessing snakes became thousand members, and the tribes are illegal, at a demonstration outside Aranya Bhavan, Karnataka’s Forest spread across various reservation cate- Department office, in Bangalore demanding that all cases filed against gories; physically, they are spread members of the tribe be dropped. A file photograph. thinly across the State. This movement

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Semi-Nomadic Tribes (NCDNSNT), which submitted its report to the Prime Minister in 2008. The commission also recommended reserving 10 per cent of government jobs for the DNSNT (on the basis of their population, which was estimated to be 110 million). However, the Ministry of So- cial Justice, under whose aegis the Na- tional Commission was set up, expressed “strong reservation” against a new quota.

B.C. PANEL REPORT The rights of nomadic tribes were en- A QALANDAR HOME at Hulihaidar. Members of the tribe do not have dorsed by C.S. Dwarkanath, former agricultural land, and most of them work as casual labourers. Chairman of the Karnataka Backward Classes Commission, who submitted a is part of a broader national movement make them aware of their rights. He is report in 2010 to the State government to organise nomadic, semi-nomadic the first graduate from the Budga Jan- towards the end of his tenure. The re- and denotified tribes. (Denotified gamma nomadic tribe in Karnataka. port was written after a detailed study tribes are those tribes that were classi- He also points out another serious of 15 nomadic tribes, including the Qa- fied as criminal under the Criminal problem that exacerbates identity is- landars and the Havadigas, which was Tribes Act, 1871.) sues. Some nomadic tribes are known undertaken for the first time. While According to several scholarly by several synonyms, and while one of pointing out how traditional liveli- studies, peripatetic communities of them might be on the S.T. list, their hoods of many of these communities traders, artisans and entertainers have synonyms may have found their way to were under threat, it made several rec- always existed on the Indian subconti- the OBC list. “When benefits are ommendations, including the setting nent. Endogamous in nature and stub- sought under the S.T. quota, they are up of a State Commission for Nomadic born legatees of ancient vocations, told that they are OBCs,” he said. He Tribes. It also made out a strong case these nomadic tribes still live on the cited examples of nomadic tribes that for a detailed socio-economic survey, margins of modern societies. Accord- find mention in both the S.T. and OBC grant of agricultural land and the pro- ing to an article in the Economic & lists in Karnataka – the Shillekyata vision of special packages to address Political Weekly of January 12, 2002 (performers with puppets), Budga the specific problems of these tribes. (Milind Bokil, “Denotified and No- Jangamma (street musicians), Hakki- A careful consideration of the re- madic Tribes: A Perspective”), the pikki (bird trappers), Sudugadu Sidda port, which is lying idle with the State foremost problem of this group of peo- (street magicians), Sindollu (self-fla- government, may be useful. As a first ple is that of correct classification and gellators), Chinnadasar (conch blow- step, the Central government needs to categorisation as they do not make it to ers), Gantichor (pickpockets) and undertake a through enumeration and any of the scheduled constitutional Handijyogi (pig rearers). classification as it would help commu- categories. It also mentions how, be- “There was an enumeration done nity members gain a sense of homoge- cause of their itinerant nature, they do in 1965, on the basis of which these neity and identity. A clear estimate not have a link with the social space of nomadic tribes have been classified, would also help in drawing up policy settled society, a fact that needs to be but that classification is useless and measures. taken into account for any rehabilita- outdated now,” he said. He added that Back in Hulihaidar, Qalandar S. tion plan to work. the problem of the nomadic tribes, Ismail was despondent over the ab- Balagurumurthy, president of the who number close to 150 million sence of income opportunities. “Please Nomadic Tribes Mahasabha, Karnata- across the country, could be solved on- write that we need some land that we ka, agrees that the foremost problem is ly if a proper census of the communi- can call our own so that we can grow a that of ‘identity’. “With incorrect clas- ties was undertaken and the few crops,” he pleaded. The Havadigas sification across the country and scat- Constitution was amended to incorpo- had a different request. “All we need is tered members, there is no sense of rate a separate schedule for nomadic a licence from the wildlife department belonging for the people of these com- tribes. for possessing one rat snake so that we munities,” he said. Balagurumurthy is The demand echoes the recom- are not harassed any more. Our lives trying to organise a collective of 33 mendation of the National Commis- have become hell,” said Babe Saib, an nomadic tribes in Karnataka and sion for Denotified, Nomadic and elderly snake charmer. २

98 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Column Democracy in action

During elections, phrases such as booth-capturing appear dated, but the process of governance itself is becoming less about freedom and more about control.

LECTIONS to some State Hence my sense of amazement, an Assemblies are under way, amazement that verges on awe, at the and the results will be vast exercise that millions go through known on March 6. One is in the process of comprehensive con- not, however, concerned sent. This, to me, represents the real Ewith the results so much as the whole strength of the country – the collective process itself. consent behind the process of govern- From the publication of the list of ance in the States and at the Centre. candidates to the campaigning and Of course, there are blemishes in then to the setting up of thousands of this manifestation of collective con- polling stations, and the voting itself, sent. Some have been mentioned here, involving millions coming to polling and there are others that often charac- stations and casting their votes, all terise the process of governance after these have a signiﬁcance that tran- the elections are over. The bribery, scends the process itself. Simply put, it horse-trading, arm-twisting, and ma- is the comprehensive consent of the Point of View noeuvring that leads to the formation people in the process and, even more of governments in most States, to importantly, the manifest trust they BHASKAR GHOSE mention a few. have in it. These have become so much a part One can tick off all that is wrong of the democratic process in the coun- with it; the fact that many of the candi- means of governance but it is all we try that it has ceased to surprise. But dates have criminal records, the fact have. The candidates may have, the structure survives, in whatever that many are sons or daughters or among them, persons who are of rath- fashion. And I am willing to predict wives or brothers or relatives of some er questionable backgrounds, but they that it will continue to survive even kind with the local strongman, that in are all we have. though the nature of the structure may some cases money is distributed. All The people’s hope in Uttar Pradesh cause more surprises than one may this and more. or Uttarakhand or Punjab is not that legitimately expect, not all of them Nonetheless, let us look at the they will get governments of saints but pleasant. process; the frenetic campaigning, the that they will get governments that That, however, is not the factor huge numbers of people who come to work. In other words, governments that is as worrying – worrying though vote, leaving aside their work, in spite that are effective parts of the total sys- it is, undoubtedly – as the fact that of physical handicaps or extreme old tem, that is, the democratic system. most of the evils stem from one fact age and notwithstanding inclement One is conscious that this view will that we simply do not seem to be able weather. What do these indicate? That invite not only disagreement but rid- to get rid of. The evil of over-govern- there is a deep-seated cynicism or apa- icule. People are, it will be said, not all ance, something that was a part of the thy to the electoral process? An aver- that clever; they vote for someone be- colonial government. sion to the candidates? A conviction cause they like that person or, as is In spite of very vocal and at times that democracy is a ridiculous process? equally likely, because they dislike intrusive media, new laws such as the The answers to these questions are someone more. That may be a motiva- Right to Information Act, and a very clear to everyone except the exceeding- ting factor, but no one stands in a watchful judiciary, the nature of gov- ly foolish. Not that there is a general queue for a long time to stamp a piece ernment remains surprisingly what it reverence for the process or the candi- of paper merely because he or she likes was in 1947. If anything, it has become dature, but much as Winston Church- someone or dislikes someone. There is a system that has found more areas to ill said, there is an awareness that deﬁnitely a consciousness of the link bring under governmental control. democracy may be the worst possible one’s vote has with governance. Evidence for this exists in the pro-

FRONTLINE 99 Column MARCH 9, 2012 liferation of the number of ministries sed. All it needs is a casual instruction in store for them, a single threat is and the offices under those ministries, from a member of the political exec- enough. Compliance follows almost an even greater proliferation of what utive, usually the head himself or her- instantly. We have been seeing the are known as attached offices, subordi- self. handstands and somersaults and other nate offices and “autonomous” bodies. There have been other, uglier and acrobatics that police officers in Guj- Not only have offices proliferated; more dangerous ways of dealing with arat are going through to establish a the control of the government over the the few officials who have some cour- simple fact – whether there was gov- vastly increased number of govern- age and do stand up to dishonesty and ernment connivance in the fact that ment employees has become even thievery. A number of officers have the police did not act, or acted ineffec- more absolute than it was, ensuring been beaten, often to an extent that has tively, in dealing with the pogrom in servility and a general reluctance to left them maimed for life, and in some 2002. offer frank, honest advice, however un- cases they have been murdered. Most And all the while all governments, palatable it may be, to the political of us know that no less than three Chief in the States and at the Centre, seek executive. Medical Officers in Lucknow were more and more areas to bring under Officials can not only be trans- murdered, though the last one, it is governmental control, in the garb of ferred, they can be suspended, now claimed, is a case of suicide. social development, infrastructure de- stripped of their work, demoted, have In some States, where officials are velopment, protection of the environ- their pay stopped, and also be dismis- only too aware of what they may have ment and other such laudable issues. Concern is professed for the environment; the result is, in some cases, laws and orders being passed that pauper- ise tribal people who make their living from forests. So, in the process of seeing democracy in action when elections are held, and held more or less peacefully in the present times, while one is relieved that phrases such as booth-capturing appear dated, there is an uneasy feeling that the process of governance may be moving away from allowing greater freedom to more control. Recently, there was a report that a Ministry is moving the Cabinet to introduce a procedure that reduces, substantially, the industrial liberalisation ushered in by the present Prime Minis- ter when he was Finance Minister. And what is disturbing is that the proposal is being put forward with confidence, clearly presuming the present Prime Minister can or will do nothing to stop it. To preserve democracy one needs to be eternally watchful; all one can hope for now is that there will be non- governmental organisations and rightfully suspicious media that expose the attempts to undermine democracy, much as they exposed the 2G spectrum scam, and the mass thievery that happened during the Common- wealth Games.

SUBIR ROY It is with them, not with the gov- VOTERS AT A booth in Ambedkar Nagar on February 8 during the ﬁrst ernment, that the democracy we are so phase of the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. proud of will remain safe. २

100 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Gender Issues Diluting a law

The Law Commission recommends making Section 498A, IPC, compoundable, and

women’s groups say that would affect women’s interests. BY T.K. RAJALAKSHMI

They have argued that women The report suggests that a doctrinaire and isolat- ed approach cannot be adopted while dealing with the issue. Also, the sensitivity of a family dispute and victims of abuse are often forced to individual facts and circumstances cannot be ig- compromise, accepting conditions nored. In sum, the argument is that there is little social good to be achieved by criminalising 498A. that are unfair to them, either for the The argument against making offences under the sake of their children or for their own economic survival. A REPORT of the Law Commission of India on “Compounding of (IPC) Offences” suggesting that Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, which prescribes punishment for a husband or his relatives for subjecting a woman to cruelty, be made compoundable with the permission of the court, is fraught with several implications. The report explains compounding in the context of criminal law as “forbea- rance from the prosecution as a result of an amicable settlement between the two parties”. The deﬁnition of cruelty as given in the clause covers conduct that can drive a woman to suicide or cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (mental or physical), or cause harassment of the woman by coercing her or her relatives to meet an unlawful demand for property or valuable security. Thus, dowry-related harassment and violence are covered under the scope of the clause. The Law Commission report observes that quite often prosecution under Section 498A of the IPC is coupled with prosecution under Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. The argument in favour of compounding an offence is that if a woman is prepared to condone the ill-treatment and harassment meted out to her, either because her husband is repentant or because she has received some reparation for the injury caused to her, the law should not stand in the way for terminat- ing the criminal proceedings. The section should not be allowed to become counterproductive and a bal- S. RAMBABU anced and holistic approach is called for in “handling A VICTIM OF domestic violence, with injuries on a sensitive issue affecting the family and social rela- head and ear, at Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh. tions”, the report observes. A ﬁle photograph.

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section compoundable is that dowry is active role while dealing with an appli- served that it was time the legislature a social evil and the law designed to cation for compounding the offence took into consideration the pragmatic punish those who harass their wives under 498A. It has also recommended reality and made suitable changes in with a demand for dowry should be the introduction of a subsection, (2A), existing laws. allowed to take its full course and pri- into Section 320 of the Criminal Pro- vate compromises should not get a seal cedure Code (CrPC), laying down the IN THE NAME OF FAMILY of legal approval. procedure for dealing with an applica- The Commission then circulated a Women’s groups have argued that tion for compounding an offence un- questionnaire eliciting opinions. It re- often women victims are forced to der Section 498A. ceived representations from many or- compromise either for the sake of their The issue is a problematic one. ganisations claiming to stand up for children or for their own economic Women’s organisations, at least those the institutions of the family and mar- survival. The conditions of compro- that are closely identified with the riage and demanding that 498A be mise and reconciliation are often un- women’s movement, have repeatedly made compoundable. It also received fair to the victims. Women’s spoken out against the dilution of the representations from women’s orga- organisations also find that women section. They point out that laws nisations seeking that the clause be facing violence in their marital homes meant to protect women are seldom retained as it was. do not seek recourse under 498A as put into effect, and misuse is a bogey Sporadic statements issued from frequently or as indiscriminately as it that should be addressed as a separate government sources and vociferous is made out to be. issue. There is a provision for the campaigns by groups claiming to be quashing of criminal proceedings un- working to save the Indian family MARITAL HARMONY AND der the section. So the argument that emerged in this period. Among the or- WOMEN’S WELFARE estranged couples wanting to get back ganisations that sent in their views to The Law Commission’s view is that together will be left with no recourse if the Commission over the last one year undesirable consequences will follow Section 498 is not made compounda- were outfits such as the Save India if compounding is not allowed. Social ble seems overstretched. Harmony, the National Family Har- harm or societal interest cannot be Government reports showing low mony, the Mothers and Sisters Initia- considered in a vacuum and that a ho- conviction rates, low reporting of tive, the Bharat Bachao Sangathan, the listic and rational view needed to be crimes by women victims and an in- Pirito Purush Porishad, the All India taken, the report says. “While no im- crease in IPC crimes against women Forgotten Women’s Association and pediments shall be placed against the seem to bolster the arguments of wom- the Members of Million Women Ar- effective operation of law enacted to en’s groups. The fifth periodic report rested Campaign. curb a social evil, it should not be for- “Staying Alive”, prepared by the Wom- To add meat to its argument to gotten that society is equally interested en’s Rights Initiative of the Lawyers’ make 498A compoundable, the Law in promoting marital harmony and the Collective, reviewing the implementa- Commission report used the Justice welfare of the aggrieved women,” it tion of the Protection of Women from Malimath Committee’s report on re- says, arguing for a rational and bal- Domestic Violence Act, 2005, indicat- forms to the Criminal Justice System, anced approach where more avenues ed that knowledge of the law was poor which held that the section helped nei- are open to the aggrieved couple to put and implementation by the state tardy. ther the wife nor the husband. It said an end to the criminal proceedings. The process of looking into the al- that since the charges brought under “If a wife who suffered in the hands leged misuse of 498A began in the the section were non-bailable and of the husband is prepared to forget 1990s. But it has picked up momen- non-compoundable, it was possible for the past and agreeable to live amicably tum in recent years. In 1996, the 154th innocent persons to undergo stigmati- with the husband or separate honour- Report of the Law Commission es- sation and hardship. It also called the ably without rancour or revenge, the poused the inclusion of the section un- provision heartless, recommending society would seldom condemn such a der the list of compoundable offences. that “it is therefore necessary to make move nor can it be said that the legal The Law Commission reiterated the this offence a) bailable and b) com- recognition of amicable settlement in stance in its 177th report in 2001. poundable to give a chance to the such cases would encourage the for- The Department of Legal Affairs spouses to come together”. bidden evil, dowry,” says the report. sought the Law Commission’s view in The National Family Health Sur- It dismisses as non-substantive the December 2010; the Home Secretary’s vey 3 (2005-06) detailed the frequency argument that uneducated women office had sought its view a year earlier, and propensity of domestic violence with no means of livelihood may be in September 2009. The rationale for faced by women in India. It said that forced to withdraw the legal proceed- seeking a view on making the said one-third of the women in the age ings and purchase peace even if the clause compoundable is rooted in the group 15-49 years had experienced grievance remains unaddressed. The premise that the law is being misused. physical violence; one-tenth had been report argues that courts will play an A Supreme Court order in 2010 ob- victims of sexual violence; and only

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one among four women had sought for the Planning Commission accept Economic independence and ac- help. A shocking 54 per cent of the that gender discrimination will not be cess to credit for women are also found women surveyed justified wife-beat- corrected automatically by develop- to be limited. For instance, women ing. The latest figures of the National ment. The working group was man- own only 20.8 per cent of total deposit Crimes Record Bureau reveal shocking dated to review, analyse and evaluate accounts in scheduled commercial statistics. In the period 2006-10, the existing programmes and provi- banks. They have access to only 19.8 crimes against women went up by 29.6 sions for women and make recommen- per cent of small borrowal accounts in per cent. dations to the Planning Commission. scheduled banks. Legal commitments, Violence, says the working group re- too, have not translated into concrete BARRIER TO EMPOWERMENT port, is a major social and structural action and the enforcement of women- Recent government documents such barrier to women’s empowerment. A specific laws has not been at the desir- as the Report of the Working Group on sharp fall in household income levels ed levels, the report notes. There are Women’s Agency and Empowerment has led to an increase in unpaid do- reports of denial of registration of to the XII Plan prepared by the Wom- mestic work for women and an in- cases by the police, inadequate investi- en and Child Development Ministry crease in domestic violence, it says. gation and lack of prosecution in court. Court procedures themselves lead to delays in the delivery of justice. The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, which came into force on October 26, 2006, did not provide for financial assistance to State governments and Union Territories for the implementation of the Act, the report notes. The report has recommended several procedural amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2008, to make procedures more women- and child-friendly, including the abolition of the two-finger test to determine whether sexual assault or rape had taken place. The report has also recommended amendments to the Dowry Prohibition Act, relating to the definition of dowry and penalties for the parties concerned. It has recommended a ceiling for marriage costs. Quoting NCRB data, it has noted that dowry deaths have continued unabated in the 28 years since the amendment of the Dowry Act. It has recommended a stand-alone law to deal with honour crimes, a Marital Property Act to give women rights to their husbands’ property, and a review of maintenance laws. “It has also been seen that even where rights have been given to women through specific legislations such as right to residence under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence R. ARIVANANTHAM. Act or inheritance rights in ancestral M. PALANIAMMAL WITH HER parents in Odasalpatti Pudur near property, women have not been able to Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu. Her family was ostracised by a kangaroo court access these rights for a variety of rea- for complaining against her husband and his family under the Domestic sons,” observes the working group re- Violence Act. port. २

FRONTLINE 103 Column MARCH 9, 2012 Reining in Israel

The real challenge is to prevent Israel from embarking on a misadventure against Iran so that diplomacy gets a chance.

N a typical Israeli knee-jerk reac- trove of new evidence”, concludes that tion, Prime Minister Benjamin “Iran has carried out activities relevant Netanyahu instantly blamed Iran to the development of a nuclear de- for the bombing of an Israeli em- vice”, and that they may still be contin- bassy staffer’s car in Delhi. This is uing. This was seen by many Western richI coming from a leader whose secret governments as reason enough to agency the Mossad is notorious for toughen sanctions against Iran and ruthlessness and lack of scruple, and is wink at Israel’s cloak-and-dagger widely suspected to have been respon- tactics. sible for killing four scientists related However, a careful analysis of the to Iran’s nuclear programme and a bri- report shows that while there is evi- gadier connected to its missile pro- dence that Iran carried out clandestine gramme, in the past two years. activities in the past to develop a nucle- The former Mossad chief Meir Da- ar weapons capability, there is no cred- gan, says a largely sympathetic New ible evidence that it is continuing with York Times magazine story (January Beyond the them and that it is in breach of its 25), “has praised the hits against Ira- obligations. Nor has Iran come any- nian scientists… saying that beyond Obvious where near amassing enough weapon- ‘the removal of important brains’ from grade uranium needed for a single the project, the killings have brought PRAFUL BIDWAI atomic bomb. It is probably two years about what is referred to in the Mossad away from doing so. as white defection”– frightening other The 25-page report consists of an scientists into requesting that they be nians travelling abroad as agents and 11-page main body and a 14-page an- transferred to civilian projects. financed and armed Muhjahedin-e- nex on “Possible Military Dimensions These tactics are clearly part of a Khalq (MEK) – designated a terrorist to Iran’s Nuclear Programme”. Most of “five-front strategy” which, the story organisation by the U.S. State Depart- the “evidence” cited to highlight the says, Dagan detailed in secret meet- ment – Jundallah, and the Kurdish imminent danger of Iran crossing the ings with United States officials in minority. threshold – what Israeli Defence Min- 2004-07, involving “political pressure, All this should have caused grave ister Ehud Barak calls the “zone of im- covert measures, counter-prolifera- international concern, even outrage. It munity” beyond which its capacity to tion, sanctions and regime change” all has not because the International acquire nuclear weapons would be- being pursued simultaneously. A de- Atomic Energy Agency has legitimised come immune to military attacks – bate is raging in Israel on what will the view that Iran is in serious breach comes from the annex and uses ques- best stop Iran from becoming a nucle- of its obligations under the Nuclear tionable sources. ar weapons state: tougher sanctions, Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and The past “evidence” came to light sabotage, ethnic disaffection, or mil- its agreements with the IAEA. Many in 2004 after a laptop computer was itary action. Western analysts believe that Iran has spirited out of Iran to U.S. agencies. Its The Mossad is also believed to have made a decision to acquire a nuclear provenance is attributed to an MEK infiltrated the lethal Stuxnet virus into weapons capability and may only be and the Mossad and its authenticity computers at Iran’s nuclear installa- months away from doing so. questioned. At any rate, the material tions and supplied defective compo- pertained to 1998-2003. A U.S. na- nents to them through third parties to IAEA REPORT tional intelligence estimate concluded retard uranium enrichment activities. The agency’s latest report (November in November 2007 that Iran stopped The virus destroyed several centrifug- 8), hailed in many Western newspa- these activities in 2003. The allegation es. Israel has reportedly recruited Ira- pers as a “game-changer”, based on “a that Iran has resumed them has not

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been established through independent some 1,000 pages of information figured to produce 3.5 per cent en- corroboration. It remains just an shared with the IAEA by U.S. intelli- riched uranium, which is only fit for allegation. gence in 2005, contained in the laptop use in civilian power generation. More important, there is no evi- computer mentioned above, on which (Weapons-grade uranium is 90-per dence that Iran ever crossed the legal the agency relies despite its extremely cent enriched.) “red line” specified in the “Comprehen- dubious nature. This is supplemented Some centrifuges also produce sive Safeguards Agreements” it signed with data from more than 10 member- smaller quantities of uranium en- with the IAEA – diverting materials states, and what the IAEA says are its riched to 19.75 per cent, to feed the from a civilian to a military nuclear own investigations. As is bound to be small Teheran Research Reactor. This programme. Iran has placed the most the case with classified intelligence, too is considered Low Enriched Urani- important component of its nuclear this is not fully documented or sup- um by the IAEA, as distinct from programme, namely uranium enrich- ported by references, names, dates, weapons-grade uranium. ment at two facilities, besides a reactor and so on. Nor is there a satisfactory Iran has primarily deployed cen- it is building with Russian assistance explanation as to why the IAEA took trifuges of the IR-1 type, believed to be at Bushehr, under IAEA inspections. six years to analyse the data. based on a crude first-generation P-1 It has substantially complied with the The annex says: “The informa- design developed by the A.Q. Khan agency’s demands for information. tion… [cited]… is assessed … to be, Laboratories in Pakistan. It has also Yet, while Iran did try in the past to overall, credible.” But we only have the deployed a small number of somewhat explore or develop the ability to turn agency’s word for this. The IAEA con- more advanced IR-2m and IR-4 ma- enriched uranium into weapons, it is cludes that Iran in the past made “ef- chines. However, the performance of not credibly established that it is con- forts, some successful, to procure the IR-1 centrifuges is not stable and tinuing with such efforts. Even haw- nuclear-related and dual-use equip- reliable and has declined recently, ac- kishly anti-Iranian analysts, such as ment and materials by military related cording to the ISIS. those with the Washington-based In- individuals and entities”; “to develop The IR-2m and IR-4 centrifuges stitute for Science and International undeclared pathways for the produc- are based on Khan’s P-2 design, which Security (ISIS), believe that “there are tion of nuclear material”, acquired is less prone to breakdowns. But the no indications that Iran has made a “nuclear weapons development infor- original uses maraging steel, which is decision to actually construct a nuclear mation… from a clandestine nuclear impossible to procure. So Iran has weapon”. supply network; and worked “on the tried to substitute it with carbon fibre. development of an indigenous design But, says an ISIS report, “building a IRAN COMPLIANT of a nuclear weapon…”. reliable carbon fibre bellows may pose The main report confirms that Iran These efforts were halted in 2003, technical challenges that increase the has been compliant with its obliga- but the IAEA says that some of them risk of centrifuge failure”. Iran’s car- tions. Iran has “declared to the agency may have been resumed. “While some bon fibre is of poor quality. 15 nuclear facilities and nine locations of the activities… have civilian as well Seymour Hersh, the investigative outside facilities where nuclear mate- as military applications, others are journalist, wrote in The New Yorker in rial is customarily used”. The IAEA has specific to nuclear weapons…. There June quoting former IAEA Director found no evidence that Iran has hid- are also indications that some activ- General Mohamed ElBaradei as say- den any facilities from it. The report ities relevant to the development of a ing: “During my time at the agency… repeatedly states that “all nuclear ma- nuclear explosive device continued af- we haven’t seen a shred of evidence terial” there remains “under the agen- ter 2003, and that some may still be that Iran has been weaponising, in cy’s containment and surveillance” ongoing.” terms of building nuclear-weapons fa- and the agency “has concluded that the However, there is no independent cilities and using enriched materials.” facility has operated as declared by corroboration of this. There are seri- Iran in the Design Information Ques- ous doubts about the authenticity and AMENABLE TO DIPLOMACY tionnaire” sent to it. credibility of the “evidence”. For in- Iran still remains amenable to diplo- As regards the two most important stance, the annex makes much of macy. This must be explored. Israel installations that can potentially pro- Iran’s experiments with “exploding would be singularly ill-advised to duce fuel for nuclear bombs, the fuel bridge-wire detonators” (EBWs) and strike Iran’s nuclear facilities. It can enrichment plant and the pilot fuel says it recognises that “there exist non- best damage, not destroy, them while enrichment plant, both at Natanz, nuclear applications, albeit few” for risking serious counter-strikes. Be- south of Teheran, the report lists their these. But Robert Kelley, a U.S. nucle- sides strong militias such as the Hiz- capacities and operational histories – ar engineer and former IAEA inspec- bollah, Iran has missiles with a range although this information is tor, says: “The agency is wrong. There of 2,200 kilometres, which can reach confidential. are lots of applications for EBWs.” U.S. bases and Israel. This would ig- The annex is based primarily on Most of Iran’s centrifuges are con- nite a huge conflagration. २

FRONTLINE 105 Social Issues MARCH 9, 2012 Pits of horror The alleged incident of two quarry workers in Tamil Nadu’s Villupuram district

being forced to swallow faeces draws attention to larger issues. BY S. DORAIRAJ

The episode has brought to the fore court and were lodged at the Central Prison in Cud- dalore on February 8. They reportedly handed over the appalling living conditions, the the cellphone used to capture the incident. They accused, who allegedly said at the time of the crime that the two men were being awarded “exemplary hazardous working environment, punishment” so that they could be taught a lesson, and the absence of social security have since pleaded not guilty. Vellaiyan and Veerappan left the village on the that quarry workers put up with. same day. Vellaiyan returned on February 9, but local residents said they still did not know where NORMALLY the villages and hamlets in and Veerappan, a migrant from Tambaram near Chen- around Thiruvakkarai in Tamil Nadu’s Villupuram nai, was. district are woken up by the loud noise and vibra- Vellaiyan told Frontline shortly after his return tions caused by the blasting of rocks and the pound- to Thiruvakkarai that he had fled the village because ing of boulders with sledge hammers, apart from the rattling sound of tipper lorries transporting stones from 40-odd stone quarries. But on January 31, the VELLAIYAN, WHO residents of M.G.R. Nagar in the area had an even WAS allegedly forced more terrible experience. Much before the routine to swallow human activities in the quarries began, they woke up to the excreta, with his wife screams of a neighbour who was dragged out of his and daughter at his house and beaten up with sticks by the henchmen of M.G.R. Nagar home at a local quarry owner who suspected his involvement Thiruvakkarai in in the alleged theft of a sledge hammer. Villupuram district. As blows were rained on S. Vellaiyan, the 40- year-old victim, the other residents watched help- lessly. Shortly afterwards, he was taken to the stone quarry owned by T.S.P. Durai, also known as Palani- yandi, along with another quarry worker, Veerap- pan. There, they were forced to swallow human excreta in the presence of fellow quarry workers, including Vellaiyan’s wife, Bhoopathi, says a complaint lodged with the police. The quarry owner allegedly recorded the obnoxious scene on his cellphone. Vellaiyan’s nine-year-old daughter, V. Vi- jayalaksmi, a Standard III student at the government school in the village, was also at the quarry. She could not speak coherently when she tried to recall the incident. Clearly, it will take a long time for her to recover from the trauma. The first information report (FIR) filed in the Vanur police station on February 3, on the basis of the complaint lodged by Bhoopathi, gives a graphic description of the crime allegedly committed by the quarry owner and his two accomplices, Praveen and Suresh. All the three accused surrendered in a local

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he could not stand the ignominy. On done was to find Veerappan, whom he the quarry owner captured it in a mo- February 10, he was admitted to the had met recently, a buyer for a sledge bile phone camera,” Bhoopathi al- Villupuram Government Medical Col- hammer that he wanted to sell. He leged. When she filed her complaint, lege Hospital. Vellaiyan, had been introduced Veerappan to a local resi- she also requested the police to look for working in the quarries as a stone dent who bought it for Rs.300. her husband, who had not yet come crusher and truck driver. His father Enquiries revealed that quarry back. The complainant also sought po- and grandfather, migrants from Ven- workers had their own sledge ham- lice protection for her family and the nanampatti in Salem district, had set- mers, which weighed from 8 to 9 kilo- entire habitation. According to the tled in Thiruvakkarai to work in the grammes and cost Rs.600 to Rs.800. FIR, a case was registered under Sec- stone quarries. “The quarry owner, Durai, and his men tions 341, 323, 355, 448 and 383 of the The incident of January 31 might did not stop beating me though I Indian Penal Code. not have come to light but for the ef- pleaded innocence. All my appeals fell forts of the Tamil Nadu Untouchabil- on deaf ears. At one stage, I even said HORRIBLE, BUT IS IT ity Eradication Front (TNUEF) and that I would ensure that the sledge UNPRECEDENTED? the Communist Party of India (Marx- hammer was returned. I suffered According to the Tamil scholar and ist), some local residents said. The CPI blows from chest to toe. I was forced to folklorist A. Sivasubramanian, though (M) came up with posters condemning eat faeces. With pain caused by the there is no historical or literary evi- the human rights abuse and sought blows and nausea becoming unbear- dence that any such incident occurred action against the perpetrators of the able, I fainted and fell on a rock close to in ancient Tamil land, Baltazar da Cos- crime. The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal a huge quarry pit,” he said. ta, a Portuguese Jesuit priest, recorded Katchi (VCK) also organised protests Bhoopathi, a mother of three, said, a brutal punishment meted out to a demanding action against the culprits. “What they have done is unpardon- man in the 17th century in Madurai. Vellaiyan insisted that he had no able. I requested the quarry owner not Tirumalai Nayak, appointed by the Vi- part in any theft and that all he had to harass my husband as he was not jyanagara king to govern Madurai, involved in any theft. I even suggested crushed a revolt against him. The sus- that the quarry owner could extract pected brain behind the plot was made work from my husband to compensate to mount a donkey, holding over his for the stolen tool if he was not pre- head a pot filled with human excreta, pared to believe his innocence. The trio which spilled on his face as he was did not spare me and my parents for taken in a procession. supporting my husband. They took Even during the days of the barbar- away my household articles and locked ic feudalism practised in the then com- my house and that of my parents. Be- posite Thanjavur district, at present fore dragging my husband and the oth- comprising Thanjavur, Nagapattinam er worker to the quarry, they hurled and Tiruvarur districts, the landlords abuses on us.” stopped short of this kind of puni- Bhoopathi said that she had given shment, though “erring” farm workers all these details in her complaint to the were forced to drink water laced with Vanur police. According to her, the cow dung. Such atrocities came to an quarry owner emptied his bowels and end in 1942, after heroic battles asked Veerappan to collect the excreta launched by the kisan movement led in an earthen pot. Then he asked Vel- by communists. laiyan and Veerappan to swallow it. However, some observers have Vellaiyan fell at his feet and begged to pointed out that making suspects be spared. But the quarry owner swallow faeces was part of a third-de- kicked him saying that the likes of him gree torture method adopted by the would reform only with such puni- police in the Madras Presidency in the shment. “Disgusted, I started moving pre-Independence era. More recently, away from the place. But the quarry two Dalits were forced “to feed each owner hit me on my face and my back other” human excreta at Thinniyam and forced me to witness the horrible village in Tiruchi district on May 22, scene. He also asked the workers in his 2002 (Frontline, October 25, 2002). quarry to assemble at the venue to view In another incident reported on Janu- the execution of the punishment. Just ary 14, 2010, a Dalit was allegedly as my husband and the other worker forced to eat human excreta for walk-

C. VENKATACHALAPATHY started swallowing the human waste, ing with his footwear on in a residen-

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workers was also not uncommon, he said. Besides, as the workers migrated ONE OF THE from one place to another, education quarries owned of their children became a casualty, he by the person pointed out. The only residential who allegedly school for the wards of the quarry forced Vellaiyan workers, with a strength of 159, was and another started in 2001 at Rasakkapatti in quarry worker to Dindigul district, but it was wound up swallow human last year because there were no funds. excreta, at Workers usually found themselves Thiruvakkarai. borrowing sizable amounts as advance from the quarry owners, and with their repaying capacity being poor, they lost C. VENKATACHALAPATHY their freedom to move over to another tial area of upper-caste Christians in minimum wage, membership of the quarry. Gnanamani said that quarry Meikovilpatti village in Dindigul Employees’ State Insurance Scheme owners had put up makeshift hovels district. and housing, have not been imple- with thatched roofs on poramboke Some four years ago, in Thiruvak- mented sincerely. The workers had no lands for workers without basic amen- karai itself, a relative of a quarry owner title deeds for their house sites though ities such as electricity and drinking reportedly threatened a worker with they had been residing in areas such as water. Expressing dismay at the nexus an electric shock if he refused to con- Anna Nagar and M.G.R. Nagar for between politicians, officials and quar- sume human waste for not repaying a more than 40 years, Muthukumaran ry owners irrespective of the party in loan taken from him, a resident of said, adding that most of their children power, he urged the government to M.G.R. Nagar alleged. dropped out of school even before protect the rights of the workers and On September 22, 2003, a group of completing Standard V. Poverty often curb the plunder of natural resources, caste Hindus splashed water mixed forced the workers to borrow from pri- by taking over all the stone quarries with faeces on the face of a Dalit wom- vate moneylenders at high rates of and creating a separate board for quar- an at Urappanur village in Madurai interest. ry workers. district (The Hindu, September 30, According to the founder of the The travails of these workers in the 2003). She had protested against at- Tamizhnadu Kalludaikkum Thozhila- unorganised sector was captured on tempts by an upper-caste man to sub- lar Sangam (Tamil Nadu Stone Crush- camera by the poet and documentary ject her to sexual assault. ers Union), S.P. Gnanamani, who has film-maker Kutti Revathi in Kal Ma- However, in the recent incident at been working among stone quarry nithargal (Stone Humans) for the Thiruvakkarai, both the victims and workers from the 1970s, out of 7.5 lakh Dindigul-based Quarry Workers De- the accused belonged to the same Most families depending on the stone quar- velopment Society a couple of years Backward community, local residents ries in the State, 5.5 lakh families work ago, he said. said. as bonded labourers. “Though the K. Ravi, deputy general secretary State government implemented a of the State unit of the All India Trade THE LARGER PICTURE scheme in the 1990s to give a certain Union Congress (AITUC), said there The Thiruvakkarai episode has also number of quarries in lease to the were 15,000 stone quarries spread brought to the fore the appalling living workers freed from bondage, many of over 20 districts providing employ- conditions, the hazardous working en- them have become defunct, owing to ment to 4.5 lakh workers. About 20 per vironment, and the absence of social lack of adequate support from the au- cent of the quarries were unauthor- security that quarry workers put up thorities,” he said. The workers had ised. Both men and women were work- with. S. Muthukumaran, convener of been paid “piece rate wages”, he said, ing in inhuman conditions, and they the Villupuram district unit of the adding that the minimum wages were were not even provided proper treat- TNUEF, said there were over 100 fixed six years ago. In the absence of ment in the event of accidents at the stone quarries in the district and proper monitoring by the authorities workplace. They would lose their jobs around 40 were located in Thiruvak- concerned, labour laws and safety if they protested, he said. karai. A sizable number of the workers, measures are not enforced in the quar- V.A. Rameshnathan, director of who live in grinding poverty, are mi- ries. The workers had to face the on- Tindivanam-based Social Awareness grants from Salem and Dharmapuri slaught of the authorities as they were Society for Youths, urged the govern- districts. entrusted the job of purchasing explo- ment to order a probe into alleged sex- Labour laws and statutory bene- sives for blasting the rocks, he alleged. ual assaults against women workers in fits, which would include an assured Sexual harassment of women the stone quarries of the State. २

108 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Column Murder in school Unless there are enlightened parents who play their roles when their wards are very young, such crimes will recur.

OR quite some time, there every parent and teacher is likely to have been signs that India is demand administrative and police ac- fast becoming a dangerous tion to ensure that such an incident place to live in. Far too never repeats itself. There are no mag- many homicides and rapes ic bullets to achieve this. The incident inF relatively well-protected urban cen- is very much in line with what has been tres have become a matter of great con- happening periodically on campuses cern. The incident of February 9, in in the United States. There are, howev- Chennai, when a schoolteacher was er, differences. The weapon used there stabbed to death by her student right is invariably a gun that makes the mad inside the classroom, took the cake for adventure more dramatic, one that exits utter savagery. Like many places in tracts more number of lives. We must the rest of India, Chennai has lost its thank our stars that in our country it is earlier sheen and its image as a placid less easy to gain access to guns. But, for and conservative city where life was so how long? I have my own fears because low-paced that there were few charac- Law and Order international travel has become rela- teristically urban perils. tively easy and our borders are dis- The following strike me readily as a R.K. RAGHAVAN tinctly porous, as many acts of Chennaiite as reasons for this appar- terrorism in the recent past have re- ent transformation: growing af- vealed. It requires extraordinary vigi- fluence, with information pride of the Indian police establish- lance to curb the flow of weapons from technology-related jobs nearly wiping ment. Still that does not wholly explain across the border and also the domes- out unemployment among the tech- the sheer monstrosity of the school- tic availability of crude firearms. The nically qualified youth and casual jobs boy’s crime. The teenage offender, now task is extremely difficult in the con- for the unskilled so easily available; an remanded to a juvenile home, is a boy text of a political scene that is becom- escalating influx of diverse population, who was generally well behaved, and a ing increasingly volatile. Citizen especially from the eastern and north- recluse by many accounts. That he awareness alone can be effective. We eastern regions; and a political ambi- should be so incensed by a stern teach- cannot expect a corrupt police force to ence of unrivalled animosity and bit- er who was merely trying to make her bring the professionalism that is called terness between three or four principal students focus on academics without for here. players, none of whom hesitate to use distraction baffles us. Further investi- Like many developing countries, violence at the drop of a hat. Also, gation could throw up facts that might India has placed the right accent on Chennai is the seat of Kollywood, change theories which are normally mass education. We need at least a which makes a large number of movies touted when such a ghastly crime takes modestly educated population and an each year. Apart from a few exceptions, place. For now, this is the case of a even more qualified workforce. This a majority of them depict sex and vio- youngster whose emotions were unat- brings in huge numbers from a diverse lence with abandon. This is a cocktail tended to and who had to give vent to population into our schools and colleg- that can be explosive and lethal. It has his fury arising out of his inability to es. There is, therefore, an uneven men- indeed proved to be so. cope with the somewhat stern aca- tal make-up and diverse family values. The brutal incident at the Chennai demic demands. This phenomenon brings its own school was only waiting to happen. The incident will certainly demor- problem of varied responses to aca- Why it happened is only partially ex- alise students and teachers alike. Rela- demic rigours. If the Chennai boy was plainable. Policing standards in the tions between the two groups are likely unequal to the demands made on him , State have no doubt declined some- to be marked by circumspection for a it was no fault of his. He may have tried what. This is attributable to the utter while before they can come back to to do better but in vain. This is the politicisation of what was once the normal. In these days of quick fixes, tragedy of a nation that wants to gallop

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were about 26,000 cases registered against juveniles in 2010. Of these, 90 per cent were under the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The rest were under special and local laws. This would highlight the gravity of the scene, even if the overall ﬁgures show a declining trend (2010 saw a 5 per cent fall in IPC cases). Offences committed by juveniles included murder as well as rape. Violations of the Arms Act also came to notice, resulting in more than 150 registered cases. About 30,000 juveniles were arrested during the year. This

S.S. KUMAR represented 1 per cent of the total OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL in Chennai where the teacher Uma Maheshwari numbers arrested by the police in the (below) was murdered inside a classroom. whole country. More than 60 per cent of the juveniles arrested in 2010 came to reach standards talking here of keeping from families that earned less than achieved by the advanced track of the abnormal be- Rs.25,000 a year. nations in the West, with- haviour of individual stu- The Juvenile Justice (Care and out building a strong foun- dents. Protection) Act, 2000, is the principal dation in terms of basic The Chennai boy who legislation that aims at prevention of education. killed his teacher does not delinquency and treatment of offend- Two aspects of the in- seem to have come to ad- ers. It contemplates creation of district cident call for introspec- verse notice prior to the welfare boards and child welfare com- tion. They relate crime. It is doubtful mittees. Courts in the country, includ- respectively to the quality whether psychiatric ing the Supreme Court, have had of policing in the country screening would have re- occasion to come down heavily on the and the efficacy of our juve- vealed anything abnormal governments’ lack of sensitivity in nile justice system in pre- about him. The sheer tending to children who had lapsed venting recidivism among S.S. KUMAR magnitude of the task is into deviance because of a variety of juvenile delinquents. First, will a more forbidding. The idea of providing some adverse domestic circumstances. honest and professional police force be fundamental training to students on The media have also been faulted able to prevent such gory happenings? how to look for aberration in fellow several times on this score. The train- My answer is in the negative. A police students seems sensible. This may not ing that policemen receive in the area force can hardly prevent individual be a foolproof measure. Yet it is better is at best token, which hardly help aberration from manifesting itself as than the current situation where ab- build a humane criminal justice sys- conventional crime. It can at best tack- normal behaviour remains unnoticed. tem. Without a major change of mind- le group violence with some success. Ultimately, therefore, the responsib- set among all the members of the Even here the track record of the Indi- ility is solely that of the family. This is system, India cannot truthfully claim an police is patchy. where we are slipping very fast. The in international fora that it has a posi- Communal clashes in different slide will continue unless there is en- tive perception of the tasks which are parts of the country and the apparent lightenment within the next genera- mandated to it to ensure that a stray lack of objectivity in handling them tion of parents. If they do not play their child is handled differently from an through quick and impartial responses role at a very young age of their wards, adult criminal. There is no doubt a are a part of the country’s history, espe- we will have many more episodes simi- refreshing approach on the part of cially since Independence. There is the lar to the Chennai one. some non-governmental organisa- obvious issue of making our schools tions dedicated to the task. It is any- and college campuses more secure. It JUVENILE CRIME SCENE body’s guess, however, as to how far is preposterous to believe that one or How grave is the problem of juvenile they will be able to bring about a cul- two policemen posted in select institu- delinquency in the country? For a tural change among their peers. This is tions prone to violence will keep at bay broad assessment of the problem, we where lies the crucial role of enlight- elements identified as potential mis- must turn to Crime in India (CII) 2010 ened citizens, who need to be innova- chief mongers in the locality. Even if (the official publication of the Ministry tive and not look to the government for such deployment is possible, we are of Home Affairs). Altogether, there assistance and inspiration. २

110 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Interview ‘Social inertia the main obstacle’

THULASI KAKKAT Interview with Richard M. Stallman, founder of the GNU project and free

software campaigner. BY PRASANTH RADHAKRISHNAN

“A lot of computers can’t run with a variety of software packages and tools that are being used by millions of people all over the world free software either because part and have wide-ranging applications ranging from governance, education and health care to animation. of the hardware specs is secret or The central idea of the free software is that users should be free to run any version of a software program for any purpose, modify the source code and because these computers are tyrants create a new version and distribute the program. and they won’t allow users to choose In India, organisations such as FSF-India and the Free Software Movement of India (FSMI) have their own software.” been active in spreading awareness of the ideology and practical beneﬁts of free software. The FSMI is RICHARD M. STALLMAN has been an indefat- an umbrella organisation of 16 regional and sectoral igable campaigner for the cause of free software for movements and aims to “bridge the digital divide nearly 29 years now. Stallman founded the GNU based on free software and mobilising the underpriv- project in 1983 and established the Free Software ileged”. Stallman was in Chennai recently to deliver a Foundation (FSF) in 1985, and was the brain behind lecture at IIT Madras on “Free Software, Freedom the GNU General Public Licence – one of the ﬁrst and Education” organised by the Free Software instances of a ‘copyleft’ licence – which has revolu- Foundation, Tamil Nadu, which is a part of the tionised the perception of “ownership” and “intellec- FSMI. Excerpts from an interview he gave Frontline: tual property rights”(a term Stallman despises). There are many in the academic community and GNU (a recursive acronym for GNU’s not Unix) industry who use terms such as Open Source, FOSS programs in combination with the Linux kernel have

FRONTLINE 111 MARCH 9, 2012

(Free and Open Source Software) and lots of people use one and lots of people FLOSS (Free/Libre/Open Source “I know how to are contributing to it. Software) while referring to free software. How exactly do you say ‘free’ as in What do you see as the main differentiate them? challenges for the GNU project? Let me explain the differences and ‘freedom’ in There are several. A lot of comput- relationships between these terms. I ers can’t run with free software either launched the free software movement quite a few because part of the hardware specs is in 1983 for freedom for users of soft- secret or because these computers are ware. The idea was that users deserve languages.” tyrants and they won’t allow users to to control their computing. Proprie- choose their own software. So those tary software subjugates users. It’s an know how to say gratis in quite a few are the main direct obstacles. injustice and should not exist. So we languages too. So I can make the dif- At a deeper level, the biggest obsta- wanted to develop a free software spe- ference clear to as many people as cle is social inertia – the fact that so cifically to enable people to escape pro- possible. many people use proprietary software prietary software. The first thing we and by doing so pressure many others did was to develop a free operating Often students or even activists ask into using the same proprietary soft- system called GNU. what is so special about a name as ware; the fact that many social institu- As GNU, in combination with the long as you are using the same tions that are influential push people Linux kernel, had some success in the product. to use proprietary software. And often, 1990s, there were many people who A name has a meaning. You use a that is because proprietary software did not agree with the free software different name and it has a different developers have made deals with movement or who had not heard its meaning. Besides, it’s not just about them. Thus, when Microsoft and Ap- ideas but used free software only for using the same program. I do not like ple and AutoCad make deals to put practical purposes. So, in 1998, these to refer to free software as a product. A their software into schools, they know people coined the term “open source” product is something you make to sell. what they are doing. They are planning and they set up a different discourse I think of the GNU system as some- to purchase schools’ influence as part raising different issues. They did not thing that we make so that we can live of their end-plan, which is to maintain raise the issue in ethical terms at all or in freedom. their colonial empire. say it was a matter of the good vs evil So I don’t normally call it a prod- ways to distribute software. They said uct. But if others do, it reflects the “LIBERATION OF CYBERSPACE” the issue was only about practical ben- philosophical way they look at the efits. So these are two philosophies question. They think of it as merely In one of your essays, you have which differ at the deepest possible something they can get from some- written that “the interest in free levels – namely values. where and use. And, that’s true but software is growing faster than the Then there were those who wanted that’s not all of it. However, that is all awareness of the philosophy it is to study the practical methods of the they might be aware of. based on and this leads to trouble”. community and to avoid choosing a So they would not know why it Why is this so? side between two political camps; matters. When they see there is an idea Our goal was the liberation of cy- some of them began using FLOSS, a of free software and that people who berspace. We would like everyone to name that gives equal weight to the advocate open source do not agree use free software and only use free soft- two names. Others use the term FOSS, with that idea, they will see why there ware because then they will have free- and they tend to direct attention main- are different names here; they are dif- dom. However, the goal is not how ly towards open source. In addition, ferent names for different uses. many people use a particular set of there is nothing to indicate that the software. It is how many people have term “free” is used here as in “free- The GNU project is almost 30 years freedom. And that goal is long term. dom”. So people end up thinking it is old. What do you think has been its We are not aiming to maximise the free as in gratis. So if you want to use a biggest success? number of people who have freedom a term like that, use FLOSS not FOSS. Our biggest success is that there is year from now. We are aiming to liber- However, I do not want to be neutral now a free operating system and that ate cyberspace, and that will take more between these two political stands. I in various machines you can more or than a year. All things being equal, it is want to call attention to freedom. less replace proprietary software. probably better if more people use free Therefore, I don’t say FLOSS or FOSS. That’s our success. In fact, that was programs a year from now than fewer. I say free, libre, swatantra software. what I was aiming for at the beginning. But that’s not the whole goal. But peo- I know how to say “free” as in “free- But, in fact, we have gone beyond just ple who develop programs have a tend- dom” in quite a few languages and I having a free operating system because ency to take that as a goal. They think,

112 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

in the United States and the ongoing court case in India against Internet giants such as Facebook and Google have had people drawing parallels between the two instances. How far is it accurate? SOPA/PIPA was meant to set up a censorship system speciﬁcally for the purpose of stopping people from sharing. But as a side-effect, false copyright claims, which are already frequently used to censor information, would have become more signiﬁcant and it would have become very easy to shut down a site based on an accusation of copyright infringement. Now what India is doing is very different. Here, we are talking about explicit, undisguised censorship. Cen- sorship is tyranny and the worst kind of tyranny is the censorship of ideas. And it is based on the idea that some people are not to be offended, that others don’t have the right to say anything that offends them. Now, this is an injustice in itself because nobody can have that kind of privilege and it’s tyranny even to give somebody the kind of privilege that forces people to keep quiet. Freedom of speech means the right to criticise and even offend anybody. Whatever your views are, people

K.K.MUSTAFAH have the right to say – that’s drivel! THE FREE SOFTWARE Foundation has been active in spreading awareness Governments are slowly turning of the ideology and practical beneﬁts of free software. Here, a stall put up themselves into tyranny and that’s a by its India chapter at an IT fair in Kerala. A ﬁle picture. worldwide tendency.

“I want to have as many people using opportunity to support the valuing of There is, of course, the issue that my program in a few years from now” freedom. some of the arguments being raised and they seek more users by doing against censorship in India are by things that hurt users’ freedoms. And “CENSORSHIP IS TYRANNY” Internet giants who have earlier because in the long run having free- collaborated with governments in dom depends on demanding freedom One major advantage of free software deleting “offensive” content or do not and valuing freedom, anything that is the possibility of localisation. How have that good a record when it suggests to others that freedom is not significant a feature is it? comes to users’ privacy. the goal will mean less freedom. Localisation is one purpose for When it comes to the fight against So if your main concern is how which users can change free software. censorship, I am happy to see anyone many people use your program in the That they can do so is one of the conse- join in. When we are fighting a difficult short term and maybe you make a site quences of the freedom for which we fight and someone shows up to help, it to distribute add-ons to your program developed free software. Although, to is a mistake to say, “Their help is not and let people give non-free add-ons, be honest, I would be the wrong person pure and it’s not good.” It is help and if you basically kill the idea that freedom to answer this question as I have no it helps win that battle, we should not is a goal. So, there you are not contrib- need for localisation. reject it. Now, that does not mean that uting to educating people about free- we should pretend they are pure; they dom. Your program might be free and The recent SOPA(Stop Online Piracy might be hypocritical or inconsistent it may be useful but you missed an Act)/PIPA (Protect IP Act) controversy but at least they helped us that day.

FRONTLINE 113 Interview MARCH 9, 2012

platform for other services, and some most everyone in Congress voted for of them are bad for other reasons. I this Bill. What this means is human would recommend that people use a rights in the U.S. are almost dead. peer-to-peer social networking system They are partly still in existence, just so that there is no central server and, drifting along. But whenever there is thus, nobody collecting a lot of infor- an opportunity to attack them, they get mation about people and passing that attacked. And most Americans appar- on to Big Brothers. ently support this. They do not appreciate their own rights. They must be The issues of censorship and telling themselves, “Nobody would ev- government restrictions on free er call me an Al Qaeda supporter.” speech have larger implications on They must be telling themselves, “No- demands for transparency from the body in my government would ever government…. lie.” I do not demand transparency. I campaign for freedom. Transparency It seems government policy in the U.S. is useful, but I see that as a smaller is curiously bipartisan on this issue. thing compared to stopping the really Yes, it is surprising. And there may horrible things we know the govern- be something behind that. I cannot say ment is doing, such as torture, impris- for sure. But, apparently, in the case of

M. SPENCER GREEN/AP onment without trial, killing people this law, in the Senate it was the Demo- U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK Obama. arbitrarily, launching wars of aggres- crats who were in favour and in the "Obama is very hostile towards sion. Sometimes we need investigation House of Representatives, it was the whistle-blowers," says Stallman. to find out what is going on, but often Republicans. I cannot say why this they are happening right in front of us. happened at this specific point of time, You have been a vocal critic of the though. risks of social networking. What are “HUMAN RIGHTS ALMOST DEAD” they and can there be an alternative? The Occupy Wall Street movement I do not use any social networking I was also referring to a case like that tried to organise a sustained protest and I won’t because it is inconvenient of Bradley Manning (a U.S. soldier against such tendencies. Do you think for me. All I will do is point out some of who was arrested in May 2010 in Iraq it could be the origin of a viable the things that are bad about existing on the charge of having passed solution? social networks. First of all, social net- classified data to WikiLeaks), where I cannot really say. There are a lot working sites should not encourage civil society in America seems quite of things that could work but how to people to think that they have any pri- powerless to do anything about it. make them work is the hard part. A lot vacy. If you put something on a social Well, [President] Obama is very of people try things and sometimes, networking system and you let some hostile towards whistle-blowers. Oba- they work somewhat. But things often people see it, any of them might pub- ma protects torturers, so I am not sur- keep getting worse. Occupy Wall lish it. And it’s not the fault of the social prised that he does not want people to Street tried medium-sized protests, networking system, it’s just the nature know what is happening. But there is camping in places. But the govern- of it. However, an ethical social net- nothing much that people can do. Per- ment took this as an opportunity to say working system ought to remind users haps, if millions of people stand up and that camping in places as a protest is frequently that this is possible and if say ‘Bradley Manning, if he is guilty, is not allowed. Basically, that’s now pro- they were embarrassed by something a hero and deserves a medal,’ then hibited in the U.S. I’m afraid that this that might appear in a newspaper, they Obama might listen. But the number move will turn out to be the main ef- should not put it in that system. of people who say it is quite small. So fect. It became an opportunity for the Now there are other bad things support for human rights is weak in U.S. to further ban protests. And, this that are being done actively. For in- the U.S. too. is what it has done because the govern- stance, surveillance – collecting infor- For instance, a law was passed ment does not advocate democracy or mation about what people do even as about a month ago permitting impris- human rights. It works for the mega- they do not know this information is onment without trial. All that the state corporation. A lot of what the protes- being collected; not letting people get has to do is to call a person a supporter ters condemned was the government back all their data, etc. Facebook does of Al Qaeda; it obviously does not have subservience to mega corporations. other nasty things, such as use people’s to prove this. It can put the person in And if the government can reduce the faces for paid publicity. It also distrib- prison and that person has no rights at possibility of protests, that will be con- utes video and flash. Facebook is a all. And Obama supported this. Al- sidered a victory by our government.२

114 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 Column Capital concerns

The rapid political and economic changes taking place in Myanmar have led to worries of lopsided development and spread of inequality.

HE white elephants in the also a testament to the escalating in- enclosure at the foot of the equalities in Myanmar. In a country shining new pagoda are not where only around one-fifth of house- really white but tan coloured holds have access to electricity, this with rosy pink hues. There newly built city is a glittering example areT three of them, shackled in iron of how to waste resources. It was obvi- chains to prevent too much movement. ously designed when ecological con- One of them – an adolescent that had straints were not considered probably behaved too friskily for its important, as it is hard to think of a own good – has both front feet tied so more gas-guzzling and carbon-emit- that it presents anything but a digni- ting way of organising urban life. fied sight. These constrained animals The city is not near any major wa- are still highly valued as showpieces ter source, so it will have to draw water and seen as sacred in Myanmar, but from below ground or elsewhere. Dis- their weird and unhappy condition tances between any relevant locations somehow serves as a metaphor for the Preoccupations are long, making it difficult to walk to country’s extraordinary new capital: most places people will need to go to. very expensive to acquire and main- JAYATI GHOSH Since thus far there is no public trans- tain, and with uncertain and dubious port, private cars are the main (and advantages for both owner and owned. often the only) means of transport, Nay Pyi Taw (literally translated as Parliament Hall is humongous and while those who cannot afford them “The capital”) is a new city, still very rather beautiful, seen from the dis- can at best use bicycles to go long dis- much in the process of becoming one. tance that ordinary observers must tances. Apparently, it was conceived nearly maintain. There is a vast International Floodlights illuminate the main two decades before the move from the Convention Centre (built by the Chi- edifices even when there is hardly any- previous capital, Yangon, occurred nese) and a bright new Uppatasanti one around to see them. The gigantic around seven years ago. Rumour has it Pagoda, not quite as amazing as the official buildings and resort hotels are that the new capital was chosen be- magnificent Shwedagon in Yangon or generally designed to be ridiculously cause of astrological warnings to the even the newer replica of Shwedagon extravagant in power use. ruling junta of dangers coming from in Lashio in the Shan State but impres- At present, the capital is relatively the sea. Built in secrecy in the waste- sive nonetheless. A major new interna- underpopulated as even most civil ser- lands of central Myanmar, the would- tional airport is planned. vants have left their families behind in be metropolis was suddenly inaugu- The city’s design also reflects a Yangon, and the cheerful congestion rated in 2005 as civil servants in rather militaristic view of urban life, and urban detritus of most other Asian Yangon were told without any prior with strictly compartmentalised dis- cities have not had a chance to accu- warning to move to their new destina- tricts for different activities. Besides mulate. No doubt in a few more years tion within the week. the official zones, there are residential there will be more signs of life as the Certainly its design reflects grandi- areas with hostels for civil servants and city inevitably develops, though the ose ambitions. The roads are vast di- villas for senior officials; separate ar- initial coldly imperial legacy may be vided avenues, well paved and very eas for hotels, almost all of which are hard to shake off. wide, appearing to be even wider be- built resort-style with little golf carts This is not the first shift of capitals cause they are mostly empty. The large for internal transport; a different zone in Myanmar. As Thant Myint-U points official buildings are spaced far apart, for restaurants and “entertainment”; out in his wonderful book The River of each set back from the road with its and so on. Lost Footsteps: A Personal History of own gate and private inner road. The In some ways the new capital is Burma (Farrar Strauss and Giroux),

FRONTLINE 115 MARCH 9, 2012

every major dynasty or regime through discovered offshore natural gas re- time has seen fit to move to its own serves). Much of this investment came capital – even though often that move from countries where the sanctions was short-lived as those rulers were dictated by Western powers did not defeated within a few decades. apply, particularly China. In many ways the new city, with its This was growth that many other rigidly imposed and hierarchical rules, countries have experienced in the form seems curiously out of step with the of a “resource curse” with little diversi- momentous changes under way in the fication or improvement in general liv- country. A military regime that had ing standards. The people have mostly obsessively chosen severe external iso- remained very poor, and the abysmal lation and harsh internal control over development of basic infrastructure in many decades now seems to be moving much of the country testifies to the quite rapidly in the opposite direction. unequal spread of the benefits of that Because of the tumultuous past, ob- expansion. servers are inevitably cautious since Elections in early 2010 were widely crackdowns can still occur at any time. expected to be a charade, especially But this time the reforms do seem to when the main opposition political al- have much more momentum. liance, the National League for De- mocracy (NLD) led by Aung San Suu Kyi, chose to boycott them. In any case, The pace of the army retains significant control, nominating a quarter of the members the change of Parliament in the context of a Con- stitution that requires three-fourths is startling majority for significant legislation. But the newly elected government led by and even President Thein Sein (with implicit support from the generals) has moved promise of a still unspoilt but exotic disconcerting. much faster to transform the polity location full of architectural marvels, than anyone had expected. natural beauty and friendly people. The outside world often sees politi- In the past few months alone, cea- The pace of the change is startling cal change in Myanmar in simplistic sefire agreements have been signed and even disconcerting, as economic terms as a contest between the army with several rebel groups and impor- policies get rapidly devised and revised and the democratic movement led by tant political prisoners have been to fit in with the new openness. Local the much-revered Aung San Suu Kyi, freed, including pro-democracy cam- residents and foreigners who have but the reality is more complex. Long- paigners. The NLD will fight the April lived for some time in Myanmar seem running civil wars with a variety of byelections for 48 seats and has started to be equally amazed at the rapidity often changing enemies – not just re- its campaign. with which major policies are being gional secessionist movements but in- transformed and even laws are being surrectionist struggles supported by “GOLD RUSH” changed. There is cautious optimism, foreign powers – have defined the fears The international community has along with old and new concerns. and repressive tendencies of the ruling been quick to respond, and what has Myanmar must be the only country elite perhaps even more strongly and been described as the latest “Gold where even the International Mone- driven the progressive militarisation of Rush” is well under way. United States tary Fund representative worries that the polity, the economy and society. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the economic liberalisation process is Changes have been occurring for a just one among the steady stream of too rapid and needs to be more cau- while, of course. By the early 1990s, the international leaders visiting Myan- tiously worked out and paced. There regime had abandoned any preten- mar. Chinese investors have been ac- are real dangers that the sudden inflow sions it may have had about “the Bur- tive for a while, but now other of global capital will put the economy mese way to socialism” and opted for businessmen are rushing in as well, on a trajectory that will provide imme- military-backed economic expansion eager to get a piece of the resource pie diate enrichment of a few in the initial based on foreign investment in extrac- before it is shared out by the early phase but then lead not only to even tive industries (including not just birds. International aid agencies are more inequality and unbalanced de- plantation crops but oil, minerals and setting up or expanding their offices. velopment but also to destruction of precious metals, and then the newly Even tourists are coming, lured by the traditional livelihoods without enough

116 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

new jobs being created, instability, crises and environmental damage. Fortunately, there are also those in government who seem to be aware of these dangers and of the need to tread carefully. A conference organised in mid-February by the United Nations and the Myanmar government on development policy options brought together many economists from different parts of the world, including two famous economists of Myanma- rese origin who were returning home after four or five decades. As they pointed to these dangers and suggested ways of avoiding them, Ministers and senior bureaucrats took notes. The most important latecomer advantage of all was identified: the ability to learn from the mistakes of others. Recently, construction was stopped at a major dam on the Ayeyarwa- dy, or Irrawaddy, river at Myikyina that was being built by the Chinese, at the personal intervention of the Presi- dent. This was remarkable in a country that still has no environmental laws KHIN MAUNG WIN/AFP and regulations and where respect for IN THE NEW capital, Nay Pyi Taw. Since there is no public transport, private the concerns of displaced peoples has cars are the main means of transport, while those who cannot afford them been haphazard as best. Issues such as can at best use bicycles to go long distances. (Below) Workers being taken poverty, inequality and corruption, from a construction site in Nay Pyi Taw. which could at best be whispered about some time ago, can now be discussed and debated openly at government-sponsored conferences, a first step towards greater official concern and maybe even accountability.

AN EXCITING TIME This is an exciting time for Myanmar, with all sorts of possibilities opening up after decades. Certainly, things could go in either direction, and there is no dearth of external interests push- ing for particular types of policy movement. The country’s strategic location between China and India and its abun- dance of relatively unexploited natural bounties make things even more complicated. It may be too much to hope that Myanmar can very quickly move away from the imbalances exempliﬁed in its new capital, but there is no doubt that its political economy is moving into

DAMIR SAGOLJ/REUTERS uncharted waters. २

FRONTLINE 117 FOCUS DRDO MARCH 9, 2012 Indian eye in the sky

The CABS is the DRDO’s nodal agency for developing an indigenous airborne early

warning system for the IAF. BY T.S. SUBRAMANIAN

On December 6, 2011, an Embraer which is a unit of the Defence Research and Devel- opment Organisation (DRDO). He has been at the EMB-145 fitted with the Indian helm of affairs since January 1, 2007. Elsewhere inside the “aircraft” was an Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) system sim- AEW&C System made its maiden ulator. “You can simulate any kind of aircraft, radars, flight in Sao Paulo, Brazil. It had and emitters in the form of radars, which can be airborne or ground-based,” said Reena Sharma, sci- about 1,000 mission system entist, CABS. In OWS-3 is the electronics support measures (ESM) system, which provides the bearing components developed by the CABS. and location of hostile emitters and analyses their characteristics. The communication support measures (CSM) intercepts communication signals and analyses them. The Mission Systems Controller (MSC), the heart of the AEW&C system, integrates the data from all the sensors and facilitates the airborne surveillance operations. All the five OWSs were developed in-house by CABS scientist Rekha Sinha and her team. On December 6, 2011, an Em- braer EMB-145 fitted with the Indian AEW&C system made its maiden flight at Sao Jose dos Campos at Sao Paulo in Brazil. It had about 1,000 mission system components developed by the CABS, including the critical Active Electronic Scanning Array (AESA) developed by the Electronics and Radar De- velopment Establishment (LRDE), Bangalore, a

K. MURALI KUMAR DRDO laboratory. While the antenna called Active IN THE SYSTEM Test and Integration Rig at the Centre for Antenna Array Unit (AAAU) is made by CABS, the Airborne Systems (CABS) in Bangalore. AESA radar, which is the processor part of the AAAU, is made by the LRDE. A MODEL on a table of a Brazilian Embraer “The flight is a major milestone towards realising aircraft with an “antenna” mounted on its fuselage the dream of developing an AEW&C system indige- caught the eye as we entered a hall in the System Test nously, which will put India in a select club of coun- and Integration Rig (STIR) unit at the Centre for tries,” said V.K. Saraswat, DRDO Director General Airborne Systems (CABS) in Bangalore. Inside, and Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister. women software specialists were busy in front of While this aircraft will now undergo a full certifi- computer screens. A few feet away, a life-size model cation process over the next two years, India will of the fuselage of the Embraer EMB-145 aircraft had receive two more Embraer aircraft by the middle of been modified into five operator work stations next year to be integrated with the AEW&C System. (OWS) where Indian Air Force (IAF) officers were The Indian AESA radar is the primary sensor for simulating combat situations on computer screens. the indigenous AEW & C. The radar can look 240 “In an air battle, it is the pilot-controller coor- degrees within a short time and has a range of 350 dination and trust that will win the battle. This km; it can track more than 500 targets simultane- software is one of its kind and has been developed by ously. the CABS,” said S. Christopher, Director, CABS, The DRDO is spearheading the indigenous

118 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 FOCUS DRDO

AEW&C programme with the CABS as the nodal agency. The latter is execut- ing it in association with DRDO laboratories such as the LRDE; the Defence Avionics Research Establish- ment (DARE), Bangalore; the Defence Electronics Research Laboratory (DLRL), Hyderabad; and the Defence Electronics Application Laboratory (DEAL), Dehradun. Each of these laboratories is developing subsystems for the AEW&C programme. The IAF has stationed an Air Force Project Team at the CABS to interact with the in-house team and convey the IAF’s requirements. Air Commodore indigenous development of 2,700 IFF aircraft and configured it for the flight. A.I. Mehta is the Project Director of systems and the Services want a single- Embraer’s engineers also received the the team. box solution in the IFF system. The air-worthy certification for the aircraft The Brazilian Embraer aircraft government has the option of buying from the Agencia Nacional de Aviacao EMB-145 was chosen because Brazil, the remaining 500 IFF systems in the Civil, the Brazilian agency responsible Mexico and Greece had based their global market. for overseeing the safety of civil avia- AEW&C systems on this aircraft. The It was a challenge for the CABS to tion in that country. DRDO was tasked with the mission. integrate the AEW&C system compo- In the second level, when the three The primary radar mounted on the nents in the Embraer transport air- aircraft with the Indian AEW&C sys- Embraer aircraft is the AESA radar. craft. While the aircraft’s payload tems are delivered in India after flight The secondary surveillance sensor is capacity was four tonnes, the AAAU trials in Brazil, the remaining mission the Identification of Friend or Foe alone weighed 1.5 tonnes. Besides, systems will be integrated inside the (IFF) system. Two radiating planar ar- there were five OWSs with electronic cabin and the IAF will do the flight rays assembled back-to-back and systems inside, crew seats, special pro- trials again. The CABS will be respon- mounted on the fuselage in an AAAU tection suites, and so on. sible for having the AEW & C system will provide 120 degrees coverage on The AAAU had to be mounted on certified for mission functions and either side of the AAAU. “The impor- the fuselage without affecting the air- flight safety in association with the IAF tant modes of operation of the system craft’s structure and stability. If the and the Centre for Military Airworthi- are surface surveillance and air sur- aircraft were to crash, the AAAU ness and Certification (CEMILAC), veillance,” Christopher said. should not get detached. The attach- Bangalore. The IFF system has been devel- ment had to be capable of bearing nine Massive facilities that the CABS oped entirely by the CABS. Christoph- times the weight of the AAAU, that is, has built on its premises include an er said, “The IFF determines whether 13.5 tonnes, said Christopher. The at- anechoic chamber, a lightning test fa- the target determined the primary ra- tachment is done with only four bolts, cility, and highly accelerated life test- dar is a friend or foe. The interrogator which should be able to carry all the ing (HALT) and highly accelerated emits a message querying the target in weight. Each bolt, made of titanium, stress screening (HASS) facilities. The a particular sector. has a diameter of one anechoic chamber is a huge shielded Replies from the tar- inch. facility, 35x15x18 metres. The AESA get are automatically There are two lev- radar is tested here. associated with the els of operation here. In the lightning test facility, artifi- primary radar detec- In the first, the aircraft cial lightning of four million volts is tions. This informa- is modified in Brazil created to test the effect of lightning on tion is then used by and the DRDO sent all aircraft and ensure that the electronics the AEW&C system to the components, in- inside are not affected. The AAAU un- identify friendly and cluding the antenna, derwent qualification here. S.K. Ven- unfriendly aircraft in the AAAU with dum- katesh, scientist, CABS, is the architect the area and deal with my electronics, and so of the facility. In the HALT and HASS them appropriately.” on for integration with facilities, different components are

The Defence Ac- K. MURALI KUMAR the aircraft. M/s Em- “hammered” or subjected to freezing quisition Council has DR S. CHRISTOPHER, braer Engineers or scorching temperatures to ensure given approval for the Director, CABS. mounted them on the they are robust. २

FRONTLINE 119 FOCUS DRDO MARCH 9, 2012 Microwave masters The MTRDC’s work on microwave tubes puts India in an elite club of countries

engaged in developing this tough technology. BY T.S. SUBRAMANIAN

MWTs find applications in civilian ment and brazing, thin-film coating, high-frequency measurements, high-voltage testing and environ- systems, high-end communication mental testing for reliability,” said Lalit Kumar. “The state-of-the-art J.C. Bose Microwave Tube Facility, systems and many defence systems. inaugurated recently at the MTRDC by V.K. Sa- raswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, willboost research and development of MWTs,” he The MTRDC develops microwave added. Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Banga- power modules, electronic power lore, is the production agency for the MWTs and radars, electronic warfare systems and data links. conditioners and high-density The MTRDC is situated inside the BEL complex. It was the vision of V.S. Arunachalam, former Scien- cathodes for defence systems. tific Adviser to the Defence Minister, that led to the establishment of the laboratory. Former heads of the “OURS is a unique laboratory. Only about 15 MTRDC, such as K.N. Tiwari, M.D. Rajnarayan, countries in the world are engaged in research in K.U. Limaye nurtured it. The MTRDC’s goal is “to microwave tubes, which is a tough technology area,” facilitate Em-power to empower the defence”. says Lalit Kumar, Director of the Microwave Tube The modern name for MWTs is vacuum electron Research and Development Centre (MTRDC), Ban- devices (VEDs). But all VEDs are not necessarily galore. Microwave tubes, or MWTs, find applica- MWTs. VED is the family name, while MWT forms tions in civilian systems, high-end communication the subset. MWTs are VEDs capable of generating or systems and many defence systems. In fact, it is the amplifying high-frequency signals for various de- MWTs onboard satellites that send signals to ground fence and civilian applications in communications, stations. Each satellite carries 30 to 40 travelling radars, electronic warfare and integrated support wave tubes (TWTs), which have high channel width, measures (ISM) systems. Microwaves travel in mat- efficiency and life. ter in the same way light waves do but can penetrate The MTRDC is one of 52 laboratories of the most materials other than metals and other electrical Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) across the country. Its mandate is to work in the development of MWTs for the DRDO’s Elec- tronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), the Defence Electronics Research Labora- tory, the Defence Avionics Research Establishment, and the Defence Avionics Application Laboratory (which develops radar, electronic warfare equipment and communication and data link systems for the military). The MTRDC also develops microwave power modules (MPMs), electronic power conditioners (EPCs), high-density cathodes, and so on for various defence systems. “The technological capability necessary for making these devices include computer-aided design and simulation, ultra-high vacuum, special purpose precision machining, protective atmosphere heat treat-

IN THE ASSEMBLY room at the MTRDC.

120 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012 FOCUS DRDO conductors. Motion of point metals and pre- race, with the first half of the race (for electrons in vacuum is cious metals. They are low power) won by the former and the most critical in MWTs, expensive because they second half (for high power) won by which also find applica- cannot be mass pro- the VEDs. MPMs are used in flight- tion in deep space com- duced. For instance, a level radars (FLR) manufactured by munication, energy magnetron used in a BEL, Bangalore. The weight and vol- generation by fusion, microwave oven may ume of these radars, which earlier em- sintering of ceramics in cost about Rs.500. But ployed big high-power amplifier racks, industry, processing of a military magnetron have come down by ten times after the materials and in med- will cost not less than employment of MPMs. ical applications such as Rs.500,000 because so The MTRDC is also working on imaging and hyperther- much sophistication vacuum micro-electron devices, which mia. goes into its microwave will combine the best of solid state and vacuum devices. The MTRDC has also The purpose behind K. MURALI KUMAR tube. We have made de- using MWTs is to am- vices that will sell at mastered the development of high- LALIT KUMAR, MTRDC plify power. They can Director. Rs.50 lakh to Rs.60 density dispenser cathodes. A cathode, amplify microwave lakh a piece.” the emitter of electrons, is the most power a million times more, that is, TWTs are MWTs of special design, important part of any MWT and is the one milliwatt into 100 watts and one made using a broadband circuit in component that determines the tube’s watt into a megawatt. They are rugged which a beam of electrons interacts life. “Several batches of cathodes for devices. Some of these devices, used in continuously with a guided electro- helix TWTs, CCTWTs and magnetrons satellites, last in space for about 15 magnetic field to amplify waves. Two have been developed and tested in the years. The MTRDC did not develop the major classes of TWTs – the helix TWT actual tube environment. Their per- MWTs used in satellites but contrib- and the coupled cavity TWT (CCTWT) formance has been at par with import- uted to the design of the high-efficien- – have been developed. ed equivalents,” Bhat said. There are cy multistage collector for the first K.S. Bhat, Associate Director, not more than five manufacturers of Indian space-qualified TWT devel- MTRDC, said developing VEDS re- cathodes in the world. oped for ISRO by the Central Elec- quired a coming together of a number The MTRDC has been successful tronics Engineering Research of disciplines: vacuum technology, in developing highly compact EPCs, Institute (CEERI) and BEL. electronics, high-power technology, which deliver conditioned power to Lalit Kumar said: “The devices we material science, high-voltage engi- various electrodes of the TWT and sol- make work for about 10,000 hours. neering, and so on. The MTRDC has id state amplifiers. “In layman’s terms, Military systems are much more de- developed a number of devices, mostly the EPCs are called power supplies. manding. Military devices typically TWTs, which are broadband ampli- But power supply is simple technology. work from 1,000 to 10,000 hours. fiers. They have a large market share What we are doing is highly sophisti- Each of these devices is handcrafted among the MWTs. TWTs contribute cated, state-of-the-art, most compact, using exotic materials, high melting- to almost half the share of the MWT 95 per cent efficient power converters market in the world, with all the other for specific devices such as TWTs and devices such as magnetrons and klys- solid-state amplifiers. They also mon- trons, contributing the rest. Lalit Ku- itor the health, control the operation mar said: “So we have chosen to work and communicate with the host sys- in this field, and this is important. We tem of these devices to carry out com- have already made a high-power X- mands,” explained Lalit Kumar. band CCTWT for the airborne radar, He is happy that the Indian capa- an S-band CCTWT for the ground- bilities and achievements in vacuum based radar surveillance radar and electronics were highlighted to the en- broadband helix TWTs for electronic tire international VED community warfare applications.” from 15 countries when the MTRDC Apart from these tubes, the hosted the 12th Institute of Electrical MTRDC is now making complete and Electronics Engineers’ (IEEE) In- MPMs, which are highly compact, effi- ternational Vacuum Electronics Con- cient amplifier modules combining the ference (IVEC-2011) in Bangalore in best attributes of solid state and vacu- February 2011. It was lauded as the um device technologies. Lalit Kumar largest IVEC gathering outside the likened the clubbing of solid state and United States and had several first-

K. MURALI KUMAR vacuum device technologies to a relay time events. २

FRONTLINE 121

letters MARCH 9, 2012

Hindutva’s war their religion is in jeopardy. thing, it enriches the reader. SUSHIL KUMAR ABHISHEK PRAKASH THE Cover Story (“Hindut- AURANGABAD, BIHAR BHOPAL va’s war by other means”, THE article “Communal SOME of the positive February 24) gives a true Curriculum” in the Cover RSS initiatives have been and vivid picture of the Story is quite prejudiced. It totally ignored in the Cover Sangh Parivar’s strategies. paints all the education re- Story. Its work in areas such It reminds one of the In- forms of the Gujarat and as tribal development can- dia’s first Prime Minister Karnataka governments not be ignored. The Ekal Vi- Jawaharlal Nehru’s warn- with the same brush. While dyalaya scheme is working ing about Hindu commu- it is unwise to describe the wonders in many tribal nalism. He said: “Muslim A.M. FARUQUI minorities as India’s “fore- areas. communalism is much ological bankruptcy. most problem” in textbooks, The charge of saffroni- worse and stronger than The radical outfits that there is nothing wrong in in- sation of education in the Hindu communalism. But create communal dishar- troducing the Bhagvad Gita BJP-ruled States is debat- Muslim communalism can- mony should be tackled by in schools. Language and able. In that case, we should not dominate Indian society ensuring the rule of law. literature should not be the also be debating the ques- and introduce fascism. That P. SENTHIL SARAVANA sole preserve of any religion. tion of reservation for the only Hindu communalism DURAI To quote the renowned Ur- minority communities. can.” Your Cover Story has VAZHAVALLAN, T.N. du poet Mirza Ghalib: “Lan- AMEYA PHADKE proved it right with various HINDUTVA elements are guages aren’t the properties THANE, MAHARASHTRA examples. playing a dirty and danger- of a single religion. A Hindu BIDYUT KUMAR ous game. They do not want has as much right to learn CHATTERJEE to accept the fact that India and speak Urdu as Muslims Age row FARIDABAD is a multi-religious and mul- have to learn Sanskrit.” UNDERLYING socio-eco- ticultural country. Also, there is nothing nomic tensions are the root While the Cover Story wrong in opening cow pens cause of all sectarian clashes reports deal with the bigot- (“Sacred Cow”). So long as worldwide, be it in North- ed interventions in the cur- the animals are given the ern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq, riculum, they do not speak kind of care and protection Sri Lanka or India. of teachers’ role. A preju- they need, even if it is in the When there were com- diced teacher is more dan- name of religion, it is good. munal clashes a few decades gerous than a communal But the Madhya Pradesh SHAHABZ KHAN/PTI before 2002 in Gujarat, the curriculum. Such teachers government’s allocation of media reported that the will carry their personal be- huge funds for these pens THE controversy over the problem was the result of liefs and prejudices into the and the neglect of other ani- Army chief, General V.K. the clandestine return of classroom and interpret les- mals should be condemned. Singh’s, age is most unfortu- Muslims who had migrated sons accordingly. But the RITVIK CHATURVEDI nate (“Age of controversy”, to Pakistan during Parti- question is who will monitor NEW DELHI February 24). Dragging the tion. With the population teachers. FRONTLINE seems to have issue to the court has not growing, the conditions will S.S. RAJAGOPALAN taken up cudgels on behalf only lowered his prestige only get worse. Genocide is CHENNAI of pseudo-liberals trying to but also undermined the au- not a civilised solution. OUR Constitution gives us show that cow protection is thority of his office. This al- CHUDAMANI RATNAM the right not only to follow “divisive” and “communal” so shows that all is not well NEW DELHI our religion but also to re- and teaching the Gita is within the defence estab- THE political parties are be- fine it. So outfits such as the some Hindutva agenda. The lishment. hind communal violence. RSS should focus on better- Gita is taught in famous One fails to understand They play the communal ing the lot of the community management institutes why he raked up the issue card to strengthen their vote they claim to represent rath- abroad. Does this make when he was about to retire. banks. Most political parties er than inflaming the minds them communal? The Gita It would be better that the suffer from moral and ide- of the youth by saying that has lessons for life. If any- General quits gracefully in

126 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

the larger interests of In- fact of his appointment. The ling’s contribution to the dia’s most disciplined force. age determines his date of promotion and preservation K.R. SRINIVASAN retirement and the opportu- of the State’s natural trea- SECUNDERABAD nity for others to succeed sures and traditional cul- THE age row has exposed him. ture must be appreciated. what transpires within the Having two dates of JANGA BAHADUR hallowed corridors of the birth and not providing the SUNUWAR Army headquarters. One correct one with evidence or BAGRAKOTE WEST BENGAL fact that is strikingly clear is failing to get the correction ANJUM NAVEED/AP the role of his predecessors done in time amounts to in the episode. On the one misconduct. An age dispute in the history of Pakistan on hand, they kept Gen. V.K. should not result in injustice the issue of reopening graft India Singh suitably mollified by to others. It is quite improp- cases against President Asif JUSTICE Markandey Kat- not denying him his due er to demand a correction in Ali Zardari. ju’s essay “What is India” promotions and, on the oth- the date of birth with a view The court seems to be (February 10) is based on er, ensured that his tenure to extending one’s tenure. overreaching itself on this the erroneous assumption was truncated in such a S. RAGHUNATHA PRABHU issue. The Swiss authorities that “India” has been a manner. ALAPPUZHA, KERALA have already closed the country since the beginning. ANIL JOSHI cases of graft. Under the Na- The essay does not deal with NAINITAL tional Reconciliation Ordi- the nation-state which came UTTARAKHAND Farmers’ suicides nance (NRO), 2007, into existence on August 15, FOR an ordinary citizen if THE cases of suicide by Zardari enjoys immunity 1947, but with the subconti- the exact date of birth is not farmers in West Bengal are from prosecution not only nent, which is a rather ge- known or if it is not in the unfortunate (“Distress & in Pakistan but all over the ographical concept. Indian records, then the admissible Death”, February 24). The world. history books are full of in- evidence is an affidavit filed exact cause is not known, The Chief Justice of the stances where terms such as before a magistrate duly but the issue needs urgent Pakistan Supreme Court India, Bharat and Hindu supported by someone pre- attention. The Chief Minis- himself is a beneficiary of an are used carelessly. sent at the time of his/her ter has called it a conspiracy amnesty deal. He was rein- The impact of the Islam- birth. This rule could have to defame the government. stated by the Zardari gov- ic invasions after A.D. 1191 been applied here, but un- The need of the hour is ernment. If the Supreme and the British rule later is fortunately the matter has to support farmers by pro- Court has struck down the felt today in the large Mus- taken a political turn. viding financial assistance, NRO, then the Chief Justice lim (and small Christian) MAHESH KUMAR offering loan waivers, free- and other judges should also population. Even then, the NEW DELHI ing them from the clutches resign on moral grounds. non-Muslim, non-Christian FINALLY, the Supreme of moneylenders and, more DEENDAYAL M. LULLA population (collectively Court has endorsed the importantly, providing MUMBAI called Hindus) is more than stand of the government on seeds and other agricultural 80 per cent. the date of birth controver- inputs at subsidised rates. And this diversity is not sy. The General’s step of ap- JAYANT MUKHERJEE Sikkim unique to India. Major proaching a civil court may KOLKATA countries such as the U.S., act like a precedent for fu- Russia and China have siz- ture trivial Army problems. able minority populations. This should be put to an Pakistan They are secular out of end. THERE is a new player in choice, not compulsion as is Either the general the power game in Pakistan emphasised in the article. should resign voluntarily for – the judiciary (“Breathing Otherwise, the essay is very not getting what he wanted Easy”, February 24). It is ac- A.J.T. JOHNSINGH informative. or the government should cused of working at the beh- “A WALK in Sikkim” was an VINOD K. ask him to go on leave for est of the army to dethrone engaging read (February JHUNJHUNWALA the rest of his term. the elected government. 10). The pictures of rhodo- DELHI S.R. DEVAPRAKASH The Supreme Court of dendrons were captivating. TUMKUR, KARNATAKA Pakistan deciding to charge Sikkim’s rich biodiversity ANNOUNCEMENT THE correct age of an em- Prime Minister Syed Yusuf has always attracted tourists Letters, whether by surface mail or e-mail, must carry the full postal ployed person, whatever be Raza Gilani with contempt in all seasons. Chief Minis- address and the full name, or the his position, is a material of court is the first of its kind ter Pawan Kumar Cham- name with initials.

FRONTLINE 127 Maritime Trade MARCH 9, 2012 Waiting for cargo

The Vallarpadam container transhipment terminal in Kochi is struggling for a

place on the world maritime trade map. BY R. KRISHNAKUMAR IN KOCHI AND VALLARPADAM

Many stakeholders have appealed to ready running five other facilities in the country. A transhipment terminal is a port to which the Central government for a mother vessels that cannot enter smaller ports bring container cargo from various parts of the world. The cargo would be taken in smaller feeder ships to their relaxation of the cabotage law so as destination ports in a region. Similarly, containers to let foreign vessels carry EXIM brought by feeder vessels to the terminal from several regional ports are loaded on to the mother vessel to cargo freely between Indian ports. reach transhipment ports elsewhere. Such hub-only mother ships offer shipping lines a great saving in Bureaucratic and infrastructural costs because of the scale of operations, and eventually help bring down freight rates. bottlenecks also beset the terminal. But, as the ICTT crossed its first anniversary on February 11, transhipment (“transfer of containers WILL a change in cabotage restrictions on for- from one vessel to another for getting them to their eign vessels alone be enough to help India’s first final destination, as different from a direct service container transhipment terminal? from a load port of origin to a destination port”) had It was in July 2011 that Maersk Sembawang, the virtually come to a stop at the terminal, and the largest container vessel to call at a south Indian port, expected numbers of mainline vessel visits were not came to Kochi and docked at the newly commis- forthcoming. sioned International Container Transhipment Ter- “Transhipped cargo was only 6 per cent of minal (ICTT) at Vallarpadam. throughput at the ICTT. Consequently, the ICTT The ship had a length of 319 metres and a capac- would have transacted less than half of the targeted ity of 6,478 TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit, a seven lakh TEU in 2011-12. The Rajiv Gandhi Con- unit of measurement equivalent to one twenty-foot tainer Terminal (RGCT) – which had been operated container), and was bigger than Maersk Kalamata by the Cochin Port Trust (CPT) originally and whose (303.83 m/6416 TEU), the largest container vessel container operations had since been taken over by to visit any port in the southern peninsula until then. the ICTT – had a throughput of 3.15 lakh TEU in the That was in Chennai, the busier major port in the preceding year. At best, in 2011-12, the ICTT would south-eastern coast. have registered only about 3.25 lakh TEU,” Paul The ICTT had been dedicated to the nation by Antony, Chairman of the Cochin Port Trust (CPT), Prime Minister Manmohan Singh barely five told Frontline. months earlier, in February 2011, and the arrival of “ICTT is continuing to function like the same old Maersk Sembawang – owned by one of the world’s container terminal (RGCT) without the tranship- leading shipping companies, flying a Singaporean ment function, whereas had it become a successful flag and captained on that Europe-China sail by a hub port with facilities for efficient consolidation man who hailed from Kochi – was a symbolic event, and ‘feedering’ of containers, the share of tranship- viewed as an endorsement of the new terminal’s ment would have been 80 per cent or more,” he said. capacity to handle large, mainline container vessels. This poor showing has been despite the terminal The ad hoc arrival of the vessel generated expec- boasting of one of the best facilities in India to act as a tations that similar mother vessels of other shipping strategically located, dedicated container tranship- lines would visit the ICTT, which was developed with ment hub port, the first port terminal in India to be the intention of serving as India’s first container operating within a special economic zone (SEZ). transhipment hub by Dubai Port World (DP World), Kochi lies very close to the East West trade routes a prominent marine terminal operator that was al- and, compared with any other port in India, offers

128 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

WHEN MAERSK SEMBAWANG, the largest container vessel to call at a south Indian port, docked at the Vallarpadam terminal in Kochi, Kerala, on July 21, 2011. K.K.MUSTAFAH the shortest deviation from both West ensuring faster loading and unloading sult in “savings of between Rs.6,000 Asia (only 11 nautical miles away) and from ships, 15 Rubber Tyred Gantry and Rs.16,000 per TEU for the Indian Suez trade routes (76 nautical miles Cranes (RTGCs), three Reach Stack- exporter”. away) – a key location in India, ideally ers, automated yard management, and suited to attract international tran- so on – facilitating faster vessel and IDLING FACILITY shipment traffic. truck turnaround (time between arriv- The ICTT’s first anniversary has, The Rs.3,200-crore project, meant al and departure). therefore, been marked by a robust de- to be completed in three phases, has The quay cranes have an outreach bate on why such a facility, intended to more or less accomplished its first- of 56 m, which, according to DP handle one million containers by now phase infrastructure targets, including World, enable them to serve large ves- and reduce India’s long dependence a 605-m-long quay with a maximum sels carrying 22 containers across the on regional hub ports such as Colombo draught (the vertical distance between deck. With regard to the number of (Sri Lanka), Singapore, Salalah the waterline and the lowest edge of moves per hour of the quay cranes – (Oman), Jebel Ali (DP World’s flag- the keel of a ship) of “approximately” another measure of port efficiency ship port in Dubai) and Tanjung Pele- 14.5 m and with a capacity to handle along with ‘turnaround time’ – the pas and Port Klang (Malaysia), is one million TEU. ICTT is reported to be getting 28 literally idling, as far as its primary The Government of India had moves an hour, and on certain days to objective of transhipment is spent about Rs.1,700 crore to provide have achieved 30 moves or more an concerned. rail and road connectivity. A link road hour, “depending on the vessel”. (The A majority of the stakeholders say now joins Vallarpadam island with international benchmark in major ter- that foremost among the reasons is National Highways 47 and 17, and an minals is 25 moves an hour.) India’s policy on cabotage, which re- 8.5-kilometre rail line, with the longest The capacity of DP World’s Kochi stricts the operation of foreign ships in rail bridge right at the gates of the terminal is scheduled to be expanded coastal trade (see interview with Riz- terminal, connects it with the national subsequently “in line with market de- wan Soomar, Maersk Line’s Managing network. mand” to around 1.5 million TEU in Director, India & Sri Lanka, and spo- The Vallarpadam terminal claims the second phase and four million kesperson). There are related issues, “state-of-the-art” infrastructure – TEU eventually. But market demand including the inadequate number of among them, four Super Post Pana- has been found wanting, despite esti- coastal shipping vessels in India and max quay cranes, two mobile harbour mates that transhipping containers the comparatively higher charges on cranes both capable of “twin lifts” and through an Indian terminal would re- them as a result of a number of taxes

FRONTLINE 129 MARCH 9, 2012

imposed by Central and State govern- would not be allowed to carry its con- ments. Such taxes are not applicable to tainers further from there to any other foreign vessels undertaking feeder ser- port in India. To do that, the foreign vices to individual Indian ports from ship will need to depend on “infre- transhipment hubs such as Colombo quent, costlier and unreliable” Indian- and Singapore. ﬂagged ships. Section 407 of the Merchant Ship- Therefore, instead, a foreign shipping Act, 1958, which came into effect ping line would logically prefer to sail much before container transhipment to a transhipment hub in a country through hub ports became a reality in outside India (say, Colombo), where the world, reserves coastal trade for Indian cabotage laws will not apply Indian-ﬂagged vessels, permitting for- and it will have the option of distribut- eign ships only when Indian vessels are ing its containers to any destination not available. As in many other coun- port in India through its own (obvi- tries, it is a policy that was originally ously cost-effective) feeder services. meant to support and encourage do- The provisions of the Merchant mestic shipping. Shipping Act as interpreted to include In simple terms, for example, an export-import (EXIM) trade is an im- implication of the cabotage regime in portant reason why transhipment hub India is this: if a foreign ship takes its ports did not evolve in India. It led to cargo directly to the ICTT at Vallarpa- ports such as Colombo and Singapore dam, as a result of cabotage restric- and Dubai, for example, taking away tions (and irrespective of whether it all the potential Indian transhipment operates a feeder or mainline vessel), it business. According to a recent esti- Terminal trouble

IT was in 2004 that DP World won per cent) share of the revenue earned suffering for no fault of ours. We were the bid to take over the operations of by the IGT. And therein lies the clue forced to implement cost-cutting the Cochin Port Trust-run Rajiv to understanding the troubles that measures, among them a dearness al- Gandhi Container Terminal (RGCT) the CPT and its employees ﬁnd them- lowance (D.A.) freeze, curtailment of and develop and operate the Interna- selves in because of the mega project. allowances and a lot of redeployment tional Container Transhipment Ter- In the agreement, the CPT prom- of staff. The employees are cooperat- minal (ICTT) through a special ised to deepen and maintain the ing, but these are things that should purpose vehicle, the India Gateway channel and the berth to provide a never have happened,” CPT Chair- Terminal Pvt. Ltd (IGT). DP World depth alongside of “16.5 metres”. man Paul Antony said. took an 81.63 equity holding in IGT, Consequently, the CPT’s dredging Trade unions have already de- the Container Corporation of India charges went up substantially – from manded a review of what their leaders (CONCOR) 14.56 per cent, Chakiat Rs.35 crore a year when the riverine describe as the “unilateral clauses” in Pvt. Ltd 2.75 per cent and Transworld port did ‘maintenance dredging’ to the licence agreement between the Group 1.07 per cent. maintain the depth at 12.5 metres, to CPT and the IGT. They argued that The Cochin Port Trust (CPT) and Rs.110 crore a year because it had to DP World had “deceived the Port the IGT signed an agreement to oper- undertake capital dredging involving Trust” by projecting an unrealistic ate the RGCT for a “maximum peri- excavation to increase the depth to throughput target and offering only od” of eight years within which the 16.5 m, this alone with Central sup- 33.33 per cent of that revenue. ICTT would be developed, and to op- port, and to maintain it at that depth. The Cochin Port Staff Association erate the ICTT for 30 years on a BOT With the targeted returns from is one of the major trade unions at the (Build Operate Transfer) basis. The the new terminal failing to come in, port. Its leader, P.M. Mohammed Government of India invested the CPT has been forced to introduce Haneef, said: “Let us look brieﬂy at Rs.1700 crore in the project. several austerity measures and has the evolution of this agreement. The In return for leasing out its assets, sought a Rs.100-crore subsidy from original proposal of the CPT Board in the CPT was to get one-third (33.33 the Government of India. “We are 2000[(when the National Democrat-

130 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

mate, about 75 per cent of the annual THE 8.5-KM RAIL link to the volume handled at the Colombo port is terminal. through container transhipment. Of this, nearly 70 per cent (about 1.99 million TEU) a year is transhipment from Indian ports, 60 per cent of which (1.19 million TEU) is to or from south Indian ports – the business that ICTT would have been expecting to divert. In the wake of the ICTT’s failure to attract much transhipment business so far, many stakeholders have now appealed to the Central government for a relaxation of the cabotage law so as to let foreign vessels carry EXIM cargo freely between Indian ports (see interview with K. Mohandas, Secre- tary, Ministry of Shipping).

OTHER ISSUES But attention is now turning also to other issues related to the port. “Even if

H. VIBHU cabotage laws are relaxed, unless you

ic Alliance was in power at the Cen- World could operate the RGCT for a construction of an LNG Receiving, tre] was to develop such a terminal as ‘maximum period’ of eight years Storage and Regasification Terminal a joint venture, with the Port Trust while the ICTT was being developed, is progressing fast. Under Petronet having a 26 per cent share. The then they chose the path of ‘premature LNG Ltd’s agreement with CPT, the government sat on it for two years shifting’, after completion of a single Port Trust is expected to get a share of claiming it would lead to a monopoly, berth at Vallarpadam – a good busi- the revenue for every tonne of gas even while it allowed such monopo- ness strategy that saved them the re- handled there. The dredging costs are lies in other ports in India. The new sponsibility to otherwise pay, among to be shared by the LNG terminal and agreement meant retendering and other things, an upfront fee, cost of the CPT. more delay. In 2003, we understand, labour and equipment they were us- Said Haneef: “We expect the LNG the initial proposal in the first draft ing, and so on. About 500 people who terminal to solve a lot of our prob- was that the wharf frontage, the berth were working at the RGCT do not lems. But by the time we make real base, should be dredged by the licens- have their jobs now. They have been profit out of it, there will be very few ee himself. In 2004, without any pub- redeployed and are doing sundry employees left in the port. India’s ma- lic discussion about it, this clause was jobs. Now they say they do not have jor ports had two lakh workers in changed to make dredging the re- the money to pay our salaries. D.A. 1980; now there are only 50,000 em- sponsibility of the port. Why was this has been frozen. Port workers have ployees. In Kochi port, out of the change made, even before we set out become the victims of the develop- 3,000 people, 500 are ready to take our bid condition? Who is responsib- ment at Vallarpadam. We are soon VRS [voluntary retirement scheme]. le for this? We are having a close look starting an agitation on this. Earlier, By 2015, 715 people will retire. Then, at the agreement and there are sever- the port had registered a profit of only about 1,700 people may remain. al provisions which we find as about Rs.4 crore every month. The But that is when the income will start strange. Our demand is that it should additional expenditure on dredging is coming in. The port will be flush with be reviewed.” now Rs.75 crore. And they are asking funds. And it is foreseeing such a pos- Haneef, who is one of the labour us to forego our salaries for it. What itive scenario that capitalists and trustees on the CPT Board, said the type of development is this?” multinational companies are clam- CPT and its employees had been left In Puthu Vypeen island, a 10- ouring for the privatisation of ports.” with most of the burden: “Though DP minute drive from Vallarpadam, the R. Krishnakumar in Kochi

FRONTLINE 131 MARCH 9, 2012

‘Change in policy essential’

THE Union Ministry of under the active con- tial for container transhipment to Shipping has been consideration of the gov- prosper in India. All ports will bene- sidering a possible relax- ernment. In fact, it fit – Kochi, Chennai, Visakhapat- ation of the cabotage may not be correct to nam, JNPT, all will benefit. In fact, policy in order to permit term the issue as ‘re- such a change was contemplated foreign flag vessels to car- laxation’ of cabotage much earlier. When JNPT was first ry export and import laws. We have re- privatised, cabotage relaxation was transhipment containers ceived legal opinion allowed there for a while. Without between Indian ports. that the domestic leg such a change in policy, “feedering” Though discussed initial- of the export-import will not work. If mainline vessels do ly in the wake of the trade would not come not have the freedom to decide on K.K. MUSTAFAH opening of the ICTT at K. MOHANDAS, under the cabotage the feeder vessel, they will not be Vallarpadam in Kochi, SECRETARY, Ministry laws. So there is no bound to come to an Indian port. industry sources claim of Shipping: “Domestic need for ‘relaxation’ They need identical facilities for the the step is likely to give a shipping is under a as such. But since it is domestic part of the journey too. boost to other major high tax structure.” contrary to the prac- Otherwise they will seek greener ports in the country with tice followed so far in pastures, and foreign ports will con- ambitions of becoming tranship- India, we have to consider it careful- tinue to benefit from Indian ment hubs. The recently announced ly and take a decision. business. National Maritime Policy contemplates such a change in policy in the Does it mean that you are brushing There are complaints that domestic wake of the government’s decision to aside the objections reportedly shipping is now under an unequal develop three hub ports in addition raised by domestic shipping tax structure, which makes it less to the ICTT. In this telephone in- companies? competitive in the emerging terview, K. Mohandas, Secretary, No. They feel concerned. But, the scenario vis-a-vis foreign feeder Ministry of Shippingindicated to fact is very little transhipment is tak- vessels, if they are allowed in. Frontline that a decision on allowing ing place in India at present, and It is true that domestic shipping foreign shipping lines, too, to handle very little transhipment business is is under a high tax structure. The containerised export-import cargo taking place using Indian ships. Ministry of Shipping has recom- between Indian ports may just be mended that as shipping is a global around the corner. Excerpts: Is the proposal before the business it should get adequate con- government now for a change in sideration in this regard. But, of What is the government’s stand on cabotage policy only for the ICTT at course, decisions on taxation are not the demand for relaxation of Kochi, or are you contemplating it made on the basis of the recommen- cabotage laws? only between certain Indian ports? dations of the user Ministries alone. All I can say now is that it is Such a change in policy is essen- R. Krishnakumar provide better services with lesser TEU, much below the targeted maxi- Kochi, but occasionally,” a Port Trust costs, a terminal will not be able to mum of one million TEU throughput official told Frontline. attract business. If you get better ser- that the ICTT is ready to handle. This According to the CPT Chairman, vice for a lesser cost in some other port, has often led to detention of contain- Indian shipping is subjected to 12 di- why should anyone come to Kochi, ers; because ‘feedering’ by train would rect/indirect taxes apart from tonnage with its weak industrial hinterland?” mean only 90 containers can be sent at tax, increasing the effective tax rate of P.M. Mohammed Haneef, a Trustee at a time. The Colombo port has no such around 2 per cent under the tonnage the CPT and Working President of the limitation. In fact, of the 13 Indian- regime, to around 9 per cent. “The tax- Cochin Port Staff Association, a major flagged container ships reportedly ation of coastal shipping makes it trade union at Kochi port, said. available for coastal run and entitled to highly uncompetitive vis-a-vis for- “There are frequent complaints of cabotage benefit, four have reportedly eign-flagged shipping. Consequently, insufficient feeder services here. The been decommissioned, and only nine freight rates on foreign ships are only available total feeder capacity is 8,354 ships are available. All of them touch half that on coastal ships,” Antony

132 FRONTLINE MARCH 9, 2012

said. What this means for tranship- “Therefore, as a trade union leader ea to conduct the required inspection. ment is that though the ICTT may working in this sector for the past 40 The argument of the Customs depart- claim to match the vessel-related years, I feel that cabotage relaxation ment, on the other hand, was that charges of the Colombo port, for exam- alone will not help improve the though the ICTT was meant as a tran- ple, it cannot compete effectively, as throughput at the Vallarpadam con- shipment terminal, “it was handling ‘feedering’ rates from Indian ports to tainer terminal. In fact, other termi- domestic cargo too”, which the depart- Kochi are double the rates to Colombo. nals in the south, especially Chennai, ment had every right to inspect and For example, freight rate for ‘feeder- which handle more containers and violated the ICTT’s claim as an SEZ. ing’ one TEU to Kochi and Colombo where charges are not so high, are like- A whole set of legal and logical ar- from three Indian ports are as follows ly to benefit more from cabotage relax- guments have been put forth by the according to the CPT, with the rates to ation than the ICTT in Kochi,” Haneef two sides and matters seem to have Colombo given in brackets: from Tut- said. been temporarily settled after a meet- icorin $100 ($80); from Jawaharlal (Local officials of DP World were ing convened by the Prime Minister in Nehru Port, Mumbai, $250 ($120); unavailable for an interview at “short New Delhi recently. from Kandla $250-300 ($140-150). notice”, though Frontline was offered a Exporters and trade union leaders tour of the facilities at the tranship- TRIPLE E SHIPS have also been complaining about the ment terminal SEZ.) Container ships plying the world’s “high additional costs” associated with oceans are reported to have undergone container movement through the SIMMERING TUSSLE several major expansion phases so far, ICCT terminal, where, they allege, cus- Another misfortune that struck the with each stage creating ships de- tomers are forced to pay “hidden costs” terminal in its first year is the simmer- signed to transport more and more over and above the ceiling on tariffs set ing tussle between the Customs De- numbers of containers, in order to by the Tariff Authority for Major Ports partment officials on the one hand, achieve economies of scale. The long- (TAMP). and the ICTT/Port Trust authorities est and widest container vessels ever – Haneef, who is also the general on the other, following an incident in the 18,000 TEU ‘Triple E’ ships secretary of the All India Port and November last year. (“Economy of scale, Energy efficient Dock Workers’ Federation, said: Customs officials reportedly forced and Environmentally improved”) – are “TAMP has declared terminal hand- the offloading of 20 of the 60 contain- scheduled to roam the world’s trade ling charges at the Kochi port as ers from MV Thuringia Express, a lines very soon, from 2013, by initial Rs.7,500 per container. But recently mainline vessel sailing directly to Eu- accounts. seafood exporters in Kochi submitted rope. The containers were originally They have been described as con- before the Kerala High Court that they exported from Tuticorin after customs tainer ships that would be “as large as are being forced to pay around or over clearance there and brought to Kochi the Empire State Building [New York] Rs.18,000, a rate unheard of in any for transhipment in the vessel. Howev- and as wide as an eight-lane motorway other terminal in the country. In Tut- er, as per allegations subsequently that is able to carry more than 860 icorin, PSA International of Singapore raised by CPT authorities, Customs of- million bananas or 18 million flat is charging Rs.3,000 per container. In ficials had refused to give port clear- screen televisions in 18,000 contain- Chennai, it comes to around Rs.4,000, ance to the vessel unless they were first ers”. The ships are designed to have “a whereas in Kochi, it is declared as allowed to enter the SEZ and inspect length of 400 m, a height of 73 m, Rs.7,500 but ultimately comes to the containers. beam (breadth) of 59 m, maximum around Rs.18,000 when hidden charg- “Considering that the 60 contain- draft of 16 m, deadweight of 165,000 es are included – a fact found to be true ers had been cleared by the Customs tonnes, reefer (refrigerated contain- in a subsequent inquiry. Who will from Tuticorin and could have been ers) capacity of 600 and a top speed of bring containers to such a place?” transhipped at Colombo, where the In- 23 knots”. The basic terminal handling dian Customs would not have had any There can be no doubt about what charges (not including additional role, the Customs action was unwar- such longer, broader ships would con- charges) as quoted by the shipping line ranted and has dented the credibility tinue to demand: a corresponding im- CMA CGM India’s website for Kochi of the ICTT as a transhipment port,” provement in infrastructure in major are as follows (those for Tuticorin and Paul Antony said. transhipment hubs to accommodate Chennai are given, respectively, in The result was a grand turf war their needs – mother ports that offer, brackets): for 20-feet containers over an issue that ought to have been for example, deeper drafts, bigger Rs.6,300 (Rs.3,700/Rs.3,791); for 40 settled much earlier: whether Customs turning basins and longer terminals; ft containers Rs.9,300 (Rs.5,200/ authorities continued to have jurisdic- quay cranes that have the necessary Rs.5,687); for 20 ft reefer Rs.13,600 tion inside the first SEZ port in India, outreach and which can lift those loads (Rs.3,700/Rs.9,366); for 40 ft reefer and especially after they had ample “to the uppermost and farthest tiers” of Rs.18,800 (Rs.5200/Rs.13,009). opportunities outside the terminal ar- their huge container stacks, and still

FRONTLINE 133 MARCH 9, 2012

‘Huge loss for Indian ports’

MAERSK LINE is the liner shipping This affects the ‘Just In Time Lo- competitive and if the law allows? arm of the A.P. Moller-Maersk gistics concept’ to an extent as it in- Reduced restrictions on export- Group, the world’s leading shipping creases the cost of the end product import cargo flow along the coast company with a fleet of over 500 and burdens the associated infras- will definitely help Indian cargo in- vessels and a total container capa- tructure. Allowing transhipping ex- terests ultimately. Without the ca- bility of 3,400,000 TEU (twenty- port-import cargo at Indian ports botage law relaxed at all ports in foot equivalent unit) and a much would also put a lot less pressure on India, including Vallarpadam, we sought after customer by terminal the road and rail transportation in will not be able to give a competitive operators worldwide. In this e-mail India, thus allowing for lower emis- edge over Colombo or other neigh- interview to Frontline, Rizwan Soo- sions and more efficient bouring foreign ports. mar, the Company Spokesperson transportation. Today, it is cheaper for us to tran- and Managing Director, India & Sri ship export-import cargo at the Lanka Cluster, Maersk Line India What are your views on why neighbouring foreign ports rather Pvt. Ltd, shares a shipping line’s per- Colombo is preferred by major than using Indian Flag operators for spective on the ICTT at Vallarpadam shipping lines over Vallarpadam? shipping export-import cargo be- in Kochi and its prospects on its first Today, Indian export-import tween Indian ports. These services anniversary. cargo is being transhipped exten- are largely unscheduled and there is sively through foreign ports like Col- also not enough capacity and spread Can you give us the details and a ombo, Dubai and Singapore. The to meet the high demand of the ex- review of Maersk’s involvement at port costs at these ports are much port-import business, thus causing Vallarpadam so far? lower, which makes shipping lines undue delays and incremental costs We are already present at Vallar- prefer calling majority of their ser- within the logistics chain. padam terminal through our feeder vices at these ports, and onward con- service. nections are then made on India How far do you think will a services. This is a huge loss in busi- relaxation in cabotage laws help Why do you think the ICTT has not ness with regards to both through- Vallarpadam? been as successful as it was put and revenue for the Indian ports. The port costs in India are very expected to be as a transhipment Furthermore, relaxing the cabotage steep for foreign flagged ships as hub port? law and making the port tariff com- compared to the three ports men- Currently, the cabotage law does petitive with nearby foreign ports tioned above (Colombo, Dubai and not allow a foreign flag ship to carry would assist in getting more main- Singapore), while it is subsidised for export-import cargo between Indian line vessels calling India, as it will coastal shipping. If foreign flag ves- ports which has been transported on provide better parcel sizes and econ- sels are allowed to carry their cargo the same shipping line. The law does omies of scale. between the various Indian ports, it not even allow for empty containers We would definitely consider brings in greater economies of scale to be transshipped between Indian transhipping export-import cargo for the shipping line and, in turn, ports on a foreign flagged sipping coming to and from India at Indian lower costs for the customer. line. ports if the tariff at Indian ports is R. Krishnakumar provide improved berth productivity portant commercial and other rea- tion’ and ‘environment and safety and faster turnaround time. sons, among them: ‘size and growth records’. It is against such a backdrop that outlook of cargo volumes’, ‘network A cursory reading of such consid- leaders of the world’s leading shipping cost of servicing a new port’, ‘availabil- erations alone would be enough for a lines constantly talk about the key fac- ity and cost of feeder connectivity’, lay person to understand what, indeed, tors that influence their decision in ‘road and rail links’ ‘the customs re- it would take for a latecomer Indian choosing container terminal hubs. ‘Ef- gime’, ‘availability of warehouses’, transhipment terminal to come into ficiency’, ‘reliability’ and ‘competitive ‘productivity, reliability and flexibility reckoning, compete with Colombo, tariffs’ are the most frequently quoted of operations at the terminals’, ‘ability Singapore or Dubai, and claim a place themes. to accommodate vessels’, ‘nautical ac- for itself in the contemporary world And then, a long list of equally im- cessibility’, ‘technology and innova- maritime trade map. २

134 FRONTLINE

Published on alternate Saturdays.WPP No.CPMG/AP/SD-15/WPP/11-13 & MH/MR/South-180/2012-14.Postal Regn. No.TN/ARD/22/09-11. RNI No.42591/84