Bhikhu Parekh and Shashi Tharoor are right in their critique of Nehru’s foreign policy due to which India is bleeding white in Kashmir and suffering in Tibet
Meira call to end militancy
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| Meira Kumar |
Shillong, Jan. 29: Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar today said insurgency in the Northeast should be declared a national problem.
Addressing reporters here today, she pointed out that the region was strategically located and accommodated people of diverse cultures.
Earlier, addressing the 12th conference of the North Eastern Region Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (NERCPA) here, she referred to the 36th report of the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs that focused on the problem of insurgency in the Northeast. The report had been presented to Parliament in 1997.
The Lok Sabha Speaker said the report had recognised insurgency in the region as a national problem and it needed to be tackled accordingly.
She also said the committee had emphasised the need for a two-pronged strategy for the region, dealing with insurgency on the one hand and working for development on the other. The country should treat insurgency as an important issue while focussing on the region’s development, the Speaker said.
“The Northeast is rich in natural resources and must have better air and rail connectivity,” she added.
She also said the nation should think about eliminating insurgency completely.
“Insurgency should not exist anywhere in the country where democracy thrives. Moreover, insurgency affects development and fundamental rights,” the Speaker said.
“Democracy and violence cannot go together and we cannot accept the thought process of militants who follow the path of violence”, she said.
She said it was the responsibility of the states in the region and the nation to address the challenges faced by the Northeast in terms of development.
Assam Speaker Tanka Bahadur Rai said, “There is a need to have concerted efforts by the northeastern states for development through peace.” Meghalaya Speaker Charles Pyngrope said the topic for discussion at the NERCPA meet was most relevant for all insurgency-hit states in the Northeast.
Meghalaya chief minister D.D. Lapang said insurgency had its roots in the socio-economic and political environment of the region.“It is impossible to abolish any such movement without winning the hearts and minds of the people,” he added.
Nehru, Parekh and Tharoor
By Pravin Sheth
Professor Lord Bhikhu Parekh recently stated in a seminar that “Nehru’s policies gave India an exaggerated sense of self-importance and moral self-righteousness. He even developed Indian foreign policy as though it was speaking for the whole of Asia, homogenising the entire Asia, ignoring internal conflicts.”
Seminar chairman Shashi Tharoor commented that Parekh’s was a lucid summary of the way in which Indian foreign policy drew from our civilisational heritage. Both commended the manner in which Gandhi-Nehru enhanced India’s standing in the world but Parekh said, Nehru “gave us the negative reputation for conducting foreign policy as a sort of moralistic overtones to other people’s behaviour.”
Congress spokespersons hinted that Tharoor should have been more deferential towards Nehru’s foreign policy. “The entire world appreciates it (Nehru’s foreign policy). It was a new idea in international relations.”
Reacting to media reports, the minister explained that his remarks on Nehru’s foreign policy being something like a “moralistic running commentary” were made in the context that some nations had viewed it in such a light.
In reality, Nehru’s foreign policy at operational level was quite chequered. He succeeded in making non-alignment a movement and initially carried many Afro-Asian nations with India. He steered India clear of the pressures of the two power blocks and thus insulated it from Cold War politics. But his policy was slanted towards Soviet Union that invited negative reaction in some countries for the ‘moralistic overtone’ of his statements and postures. They were not consistent either. Nehru was the first statesman to rightly condemn the tripartite Suez aggression in 1956 but he remained silent on Soviet aggression in Chechoslovakia in 1968.
The pricking of ‘Panchsheel’ by its co-signatory China, was a telling blow to his foreign policy. He committed blunder on Tibet as well Kashmir (ceasefire by the UN following Nehru going to the world body before Kashmir could be cleared of the Pak-sponsored aggression in 1948).
Chinese aggression of India in 1962 wiped out the arrogance of Nehru-Krishna Menon combine. The so-called non-aligned members remained silent spectators. Non-aligned champions like Egypt, Indonesia and Yugoslavia remained mum when Pakistan committed aggression in Chhamb (Jammu) and Sir Creek (Kutch) in 1965.
India’s foreign policy was not fortified by credible defence and diplomacy. Despite decreasing relevance of non-aligned policy, India did not come up with a conceptual breakthrough in foreign policy.
Nehru’s hubris first manifested when as prime minister he transferred Kashmir division from minister for states Sardar Patel to civil servant Gopalkrishnan, creating the impression that J&K was not an internal/state affair, and gave away Tibet to China without informing the Cabinet, or safeguarding the rights that colonial British enjoyed there.
His hometown booster of annexing Goa (1962) made India hear the moral sermons of the West that he used to give them. Mid-1950s were the years of international display of the peace angel’s ego, sometimes disguised as India’s cosmic worldview, till China pricked it. Nehru admitted, “We’re living in an illusory world of our own creation.”
Nehru failed to forge a judicious blend between India’s values of peaceful co-existence with careful pursuit of its vital national interests. He failed to entice neighbours like Nepal, Ceylon and Burma whom China could cultivate. His alter-ego Menon boasted that his lectures in the UN could win what military might would not — let India lose Aksai chin, and strategic border! Nehru’s eloquent lectures on Panchsheel and non-alignment make volumes, but fail in articulating the need for and meaning of India’s primacy in comity of nations while China-Pakistan forged a formidable front. His experience of Colonial Britain and socialist ideology inclined him towards communist nations, but alienated the rest.
Yet, the Congress gets habitually irritated if Parekh and Tharoor refer to his deficiencies even with empathy. Congress still guards its “tryst with destiny” (read “tryst with dynasty”!)
Foreign policy is a continuing process that adjusts to changing realignment of international forces. The reality is that Kashmir bleeds India white. Referring to Nehru’s Tibet gift to China, Patel wrote to Acharya Kripalani, “Jawaharlal royega.” It is not Nehru’s political successors but Tibet and India who weep. The moral and the prudence are, in reality, closely interconnected.
Seminar chairman Shashi Tharoor commented that Parekh’s was a lucid summary of the way in which Indian foreign policy drew from our civilisational heritage. Both commended the manner in which Gandhi-Nehru enhanced India’s standing in the world but Parekh said, Nehru “gave us the negative reputation for conducting foreign policy as a sort of moralistic overtones to other people’s behaviour.”
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| Shashi Tharoor had allegedly said that Nehru’s policies presented India in the light of moral self-righteousness |
Reacting to media reports, the minister explained that his remarks on Nehru’s foreign policy being something like a “moralistic running commentary” were made in the context that some nations had viewed it in such a light.
In reality, Nehru’s foreign policy at operational level was quite chequered. He succeeded in making non-alignment a movement and initially carried many Afro-Asian nations with India. He steered India clear of the pressures of the two power blocks and thus insulated it from Cold War politics. But his policy was slanted towards Soviet Union that invited negative reaction in some countries for the ‘moralistic overtone’ of his statements and postures. They were not consistent either. Nehru was the first statesman to rightly condemn the tripartite Suez aggression in 1956 but he remained silent on Soviet aggression in Chechoslovakia in 1968.
The pricking of ‘Panchsheel’ by its co-signatory China, was a telling blow to his foreign policy. He committed blunder on Tibet as well Kashmir (ceasefire by the UN following Nehru going to the world body before Kashmir could be cleared of the Pak-sponsored aggression in 1948).
Chinese aggression of India in 1962 wiped out the arrogance of Nehru-Krishna Menon combine. The so-called non-aligned members remained silent spectators. Non-aligned champions like Egypt, Indonesia and Yugoslavia remained mum when Pakistan committed aggression in Chhamb (Jammu) and Sir Creek (Kutch) in 1965.
India’s foreign policy was not fortified by credible defence and diplomacy. Despite decreasing relevance of non-aligned policy, India did not come up with a conceptual breakthrough in foreign policy.
Nehru’s hubris first manifested when as prime minister he transferred Kashmir division from minister for states Sardar Patel to civil servant Gopalkrishnan, creating the impression that J&K was not an internal/state affair, and gave away Tibet to China without informing the Cabinet, or safeguarding the rights that colonial British enjoyed there.
His hometown booster of annexing Goa (1962) made India hear the moral sermons of the West that he used to give them. Mid-1950s were the years of international display of the peace angel’s ego, sometimes disguised as India’s cosmic worldview, till China pricked it. Nehru admitted, “We’re living in an illusory world of our own creation.”
Nehru failed to forge a judicious blend between India’s values of peaceful co-existence with careful pursuit of its vital national interests. He failed to entice neighbours like Nepal, Ceylon and Burma whom China could cultivate. His alter-ego Menon boasted that his lectures in the UN could win what military might would not — let India lose Aksai chin, and strategic border! Nehru’s eloquent lectures on Panchsheel and non-alignment make volumes, but fail in articulating the need for and meaning of India’s primacy in comity of nations while China-Pakistan forged a formidable front. His experience of Colonial Britain and socialist ideology inclined him towards communist nations, but alienated the rest.
Yet, the Congress gets habitually irritated if Parekh and Tharoor refer to his deficiencies even with empathy. Congress still guards its “tryst with destiny” (read “tryst with dynasty”!)
Foreign policy is a continuing process that adjusts to changing realignment of international forces. The reality is that Kashmir bleeds India white. Referring to Nehru’s Tibet gift to China, Patel wrote to Acharya Kripalani, “Jawaharlal royega.” It is not Nehru’s political successors but Tibet and India who weep. The moral and the prudence are, in reality, closely interconnected.
Asom Gana Parishad hints at snapping pre-poll ties with BJP
Former Assam chief minister and Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) founder Prafulla Kumar Mahanta has indicated discontinuing the pre-poll understanding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
"We must maintain our secular image and also our regional character. We must understand the desire of the people of Assam in so far as political alignments or re-alignments (are concerned)," Mahanta told IANS.
The AGP-BJP alliance suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Congress party during the 2001 assembly elections and also in the 2009 parliamentary polls with the AGP winning just one seat and the BJP in four of the 14 seats in Assam.
He said the party would win the 2011 assembly elections only if internal squabbles are stopped and the leadership is able to put up a united fight to topple the ruling Congress.
"First of all, we have to unite and put up a spirited fight focussing on the main problems in the state, besides resolving any infighting or differences within the party," Mahanta said.
The AGP is desperately seeking power after being in political wilderness since the party lost the 2001 assembly elections to the Congress. The party again lost the 2006 state elections, miserably failed to make any mark in the 2004 and 2009 parliamentary polls and the local council elections last year.
"When a party remains out of power for a long period, obviously it becomes more difficult to bounce back. But I still believe the AGP would be able to win the support of the people of Assam if we are focussed," he said.
Mahanta, twice chief minister of the state, re-joined the party in 2008, four years after he was unceremoniously expelled on charges of anti-party activities.
He formed a splinter group called the AGP-Progressive after he was replaced as party president in 2001 on an alleged bigamy charge. Mahanta denied the charge.
There are indications that Mahanta is trying to claw back with a number of AGP leaders backing him for the president's post.
"I am ready to take up any position or responsibilities as desired by the party," he said.
"We must maintain our secular image and also our regional character. We must understand the desire of the people of Assam in so far as political alignments or re-alignments (are concerned)," Mahanta told IANS.
The AGP-BJP alliance suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Congress party during the 2001 assembly elections and also in the 2009 parliamentary polls with the AGP winning just one seat and the BJP in four of the 14 seats in Assam.
He said the party would win the 2011 assembly elections only if internal squabbles are stopped and the leadership is able to put up a united fight to topple the ruling Congress.
"First of all, we have to unite and put up a spirited fight focussing on the main problems in the state, besides resolving any infighting or differences within the party," Mahanta said.
The AGP is desperately seeking power after being in political wilderness since the party lost the 2001 assembly elections to the Congress. The party again lost the 2006 state elections, miserably failed to make any mark in the 2004 and 2009 parliamentary polls and the local council elections last year.
"When a party remains out of power for a long period, obviously it becomes more difficult to bounce back. But I still believe the AGP would be able to win the support of the people of Assam if we are focussed," he said.
Mahanta, twice chief minister of the state, re-joined the party in 2008, four years after he was unceremoniously expelled on charges of anti-party activities.
He formed a splinter group called the AGP-Progressive after he was replaced as party president in 2001 on an alleged bigamy charge. Mahanta denied the charge.
There are indications that Mahanta is trying to claw back with a number of AGP leaders backing him for the president's post.
"I am ready to take up any position or responsibilities as desired by the party," he said.
Congress lets Pawar take the rap for food inflation
In Arunachal Pradesh, the NCP has increased its vote share from 4.28% in 2004 to 19.23% in 2009 and it also won five seats in the 60-member assembly
New Delhi: The Congress party seems content to let Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar shoulder much of the blame for high food prices. Analysts and members of Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), one of the oldest partners of the Congress, see behind this a game of one-upmanship between allies.
Facing flak: A file photo of agriculture minister Sharad Pawar. A leader of Pawar’s party—the NCP—said the Congress wanted to hurt the NCP because ‘we share their support base in Maharashtra’. Atul Yadav/PTI
Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said allegations that the Congress is targeting the NCP leader are misplaced: “We are just articulating the concern of millions of Indians.”\Tewari said: “There is no ambiguity in the doctrine of collective responsibility, but within its ambit the responsibilities are divided into specific ministries which have specific remits. It’s obvious that the ministry of agriculture, food and consumer affairs needs to play up a proactive role in conjunction with the states.”
The NCP is part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government.
A top NCP leader, who did not want to be identified, said the Congress’ plan was “clear” to the party. “It is a part of its larger game plan to establish a single party rule,” added this person who also said the Congress has “gained in confidence” after its success in both the general election and subsequent assembly elections.
The Congress won 206 seats, more than it was expected to, in the general election in May, and has only built on this success in assembly elections held since in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh. An analyst said that Congress’ moves also indicated that it was working towards a “clear mandate” to form the government of its own in the future.
“Rahul Gandhi’s attempts to strengthen the organization in key states and efforts to rebuild party all across the country indicate this,” said B. Venkatesh Kumar, professor of political science, Mumbai university. The NCP leader added that the Congress wanted to hurt the NCP because “we share their support base in Maharashtra and are emerging as a strong alternative to it in many north-eastern states.
Citing the NCP’s poor performance in the general election—it won only eight of the 22 Lok Sabha seats it contested in Maharashtra, while the Congress won 17 of 26 contested—the Congress forced the party to contest only in 114 seats in the 13 October assembly elections in the state. This number was 10 less than the number of seats the NCP had contested in the previous assembly elections. The Congress contested 174 seats in the 288-member assembly and won 82. The NCP won 62.
In Arunachal Pradesh, the NCP has increased its vote share from 4.28% in 2004 to 19.23% in 2009 and it also won five seats in the 60-member assembly. In Meghalaya, the party has increased its share of votes to 24.38% in 2008 from 19.40% in 2003 and heads the Meghalaya Progressive Alliance that rules the state.
The NCP leader also claimed that the Congress had been trying to “demoralize” the party’s members and workers and cited Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh’s call, during the run up to the elections in Maharashtra, for a merger of the NCP and the Congress.
Mumbai-based political analyst Jai Mrug said big parties have typically tried to strong-arm smaller allies: “In 1967, when the CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) came to power in West Bengal, it gave troublesome ministries to its ally Bangla Congress; its party workers would protest before the(se) ministries to mount pressure on the ally.” Mrug added that despite Pawar being in a “weak” position, he and his party have a strong base in Maharashtra and that the Congress wouldn’t find it easy to swallow its smaller ally.
Not everyone is convinced the attacks against Pawar are orchestrated. Kumar Ketkar, editor of Marathi daily Loksatta described these as “routine antagonism”.
The NCP is part of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government.
A top NCP leader, who did not want to be identified, said the Congress’ plan was “clear” to the party. “It is a part of its larger game plan to establish a single party rule,” added this person who also said the Congress has “gained in confidence” after its success in both the general election and subsequent assembly elections.
The Congress won 206 seats, more than it was expected to, in the general election in May, and has only built on this success in assembly elections held since in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh. An analyst said that Congress’ moves also indicated that it was working towards a “clear mandate” to form the government of its own in the future.
“Rahul Gandhi’s attempts to strengthen the organization in key states and efforts to rebuild party all across the country indicate this,” said B. Venkatesh Kumar, professor of political science, Mumbai university. The NCP leader added that the Congress wanted to hurt the NCP because “we share their support base in Maharashtra and are emerging as a strong alternative to it in many north-eastern states.
Citing the NCP’s poor performance in the general election—it won only eight of the 22 Lok Sabha seats it contested in Maharashtra, while the Congress won 17 of 26 contested—the Congress forced the party to contest only in 114 seats in the 13 October assembly elections in the state. This number was 10 less than the number of seats the NCP had contested in the previous assembly elections. The Congress contested 174 seats in the 288-member assembly and won 82. The NCP won 62.
In Arunachal Pradesh, the NCP has increased its vote share from 4.28% in 2004 to 19.23% in 2009 and it also won five seats in the 60-member assembly. In Meghalaya, the party has increased its share of votes to 24.38% in 2008 from 19.40% in 2003 and heads the Meghalaya Progressive Alliance that rules the state.
The NCP leader also claimed that the Congress had been trying to “demoralize” the party’s members and workers and cited Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh’s call, during the run up to the elections in Maharashtra, for a merger of the NCP and the Congress.
Mumbai-based political analyst Jai Mrug said big parties have typically tried to strong-arm smaller allies: “In 1967, when the CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist) came to power in West Bengal, it gave troublesome ministries to its ally Bangla Congress; its party workers would protest before the(se) ministries to mount pressure on the ally.” Mrug added that despite Pawar being in a “weak” position, he and his party have a strong base in Maharashtra and that the Congress wouldn’t find it easy to swallow its smaller ally.
Not everyone is convinced the attacks against Pawar are orchestrated. Kumar Ketkar, editor of Marathi daily Loksatta described these as “routine antagonism”.
BJP will work honestly for minorities: Gadkari
NEW DELHI: Nitin Gadkari, the newly installed president of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP), Tuesday said the party would remove any misconceptions among minorities by working for them honestly.
Interacting with a group of mediapersons here, Gadkari said the party will reach out to the minorities, the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and workers in the unorganised sector to increase its vote percentage by 10 percent.
Without naming the country's main minority community, he said honest work by the party will increase its credibility among the community. "The Congress has defamed the BJP among minorities. We will work honestly. This will remove misunderstandings."
He also stressed that he had been instrumental in giving an engineering college to a Muslim educational organisation in Nagpur.
Gadkari, who took over as the BJP president last month, said he wanted party workers to see politics as an instrument of socio-economic reform and not a platform to attain personal ambitions.
"To stand in welcome queues and place cut-outs is not the right kind of politics. One should work for social change and development," he said.
The 52-year-old BJP chief, who is an entrepreneur with wide interests, said he had a roadmap to create one crore jobs in the country.
Emphasising the performance audit of office-bearers, he said they would be required to visit states in their charge for 10 days in a month. He also indicated that 33 percent party posts would be filled by women.
Gadkari said he was not "weak" and had a proven record of success. He also pointed out that the BJP-ruled states of Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh were the top three states in GDP performance in the country.
Interacting with a group of mediapersons here, Gadkari said the party will reach out to the minorities, the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and workers in the unorganised sector to increase its vote percentage by 10 percent.
Without naming the country's main minority community, he said honest work by the party will increase its credibility among the community. "The Congress has defamed the BJP among minorities. We will work honestly. This will remove misunderstandings."
He also stressed that he had been instrumental in giving an engineering college to a Muslim educational organisation in Nagpur.
Gadkari, who took over as the BJP president last month, said he wanted party workers to see politics as an instrument of socio-economic reform and not a platform to attain personal ambitions.
"To stand in welcome queues and place cut-outs is not the right kind of politics. One should work for social change and development," he said.
The 52-year-old BJP chief, who is an entrepreneur with wide interests, said he had a roadmap to create one crore jobs in the country.
Emphasising the performance audit of office-bearers, he said they would be required to visit states in their charge for 10 days in a month. He also indicated that 33 percent party posts would be filled by women.
Gadkari said he was not "weak" and had a proven record of success. He also pointed out that the BJP-ruled states of Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh were the top three states in GDP performance in the country.
FIR against Tytler for casteist remarks against Meira
New Delhi: Congress leader Jagdish Tytler is courting trouble again. An FIR was lodged against him on Thursday for making caste-based remarks against Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.
The FIR was filed against Tytler and Sharma here this afternoon by Dalit Kranti Morcha leader Vidhanchandra Rana. The duo faces charges under various sections of the SC/ST Prevention Act 1989, police said, adding an inquiry was ordered into the matter.
Besides Tytler, who is the Congress in-charge of Bihar, the head of party’s state unit Anil Sharma has also been made an accused in the case.
The use of caste names in the list of Bihar PCC office-bearers and dragging Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar into a controversy has deeply embarrassed the Congress leaders who have washed their hands off the issue pleading ignorance.
Sharma has been blamed for the row that has shown Congress in a poor light. The Speaker, a permanent invitee to the PCC, has her caste mentioned in the Bihar PCC office bearers’ list signed by Tytler.
Meanwhile, reacting to it Meira Kumar said, "I belong to a political party. As a Speaker, I believe in strict neutrality of the chair."
Congress leader and Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar is the daughter of the late Deputy Prime Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram- one of the tallest Dalit leader of his time.
Rana alleged that both Tytler and Sharma violated the act by naming castes of the leaders in the list and termed the act as "a constitutional crime."
Sharma had denied having released the list with caste details and described it as "handiwork of forces inimical to him."
The FIR was filed against Tytler and Sharma here this afternoon by Dalit Kranti Morcha leader Vidhanchandra Rana. The duo faces charges under various sections of the SC/ST Prevention Act 1989, police said, adding an inquiry was ordered into the matter.
Besides Tytler, who is the Congress in-charge of Bihar, the head of party’s state unit Anil Sharma has also been made an accused in the case.
The use of caste names in the list of Bihar PCC office-bearers and dragging Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar into a controversy has deeply embarrassed the Congress leaders who have washed their hands off the issue pleading ignorance.
Sharma has been blamed for the row that has shown Congress in a poor light. The Speaker, a permanent invitee to the PCC, has her caste mentioned in the Bihar PCC office bearers’ list signed by Tytler.
Meanwhile, reacting to it Meira Kumar said, "I belong to a political party. As a Speaker, I believe in strict neutrality of the chair."
Congress leader and Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar is the daughter of the late Deputy Prime Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram- one of the tallest Dalit leader of his time.
Rana alleged that both Tytler and Sharma violated the act by naming castes of the leaders in the list and termed the act as "a constitutional crime."
Sharma had denied having released the list with caste details and described it as "handiwork of forces inimical to him."
Want an RJD ticket? Go to jail first!
RJD chief Lalu Prasad. Photo: Ranjeet Kumar
RJD supremo Lalu Prasad has said he would reward party tickets to only those who would show certificates for spending time in jails.
“Being in jail for sometime will be the first criteria while deciding the candidature for the party,” Mr. Prasad said while addressing his party workers in Patna on Sunday evening.
“One has to come up before us with a certificate from jail authorities about the days they spent or still being in prison for the purpose of getting the ticket,” he said.
Mr. Prasad also spoke about the benefits of being in jail saying “you will get everything from free medicines, clothes to quilts and blankets and good beds as an advantage.”
“Those who are desirous of bodyguards need not worry after being in jails as security men will continue to escort them free of cost from prisons to anywhere they go may it be courts or hospitals,” he said in a sarcastic tone.
Mr. Prasad’s statement came barely a fortnight before his party’s call for State-wide bandh and fill the jail campaign.
His statement is being billed as an attempt to mobilise workers’ support for the agitation.
Implement land reforms: CPI (ML) to Government
BHUBANESWAR: The State committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist- Leninist) Liberation today called upon the Government to go for land reforms to prove its sincerity towards the tribals and the landless people.
Describing the package announced by the Government for the tribals as hoax, secretary of the CPI(ML) Liberation Khitish Biswal said that the tribals of the State are the worst victims of the industrialisation process.
Alleging that the Naveen Patnaik Government is for the industrialists, the Left leader said tribals are being displaced in all the districts where major industries are proposed to be set up. The firing incident at Kalinganagar in Jajpur district and the tribal unrest at Niyamgiri area in Kalahandi districts are the testimony to anti-tribal policy of the Government.
Now tribals of the mineral-rich Keonjhar district are also facing the threat of displacement as the Government had committed to provide land for several steel projects including the greenfield project of Arcelor-Mittal.
The Government has started getting nervous as some of steel projects, including Arcelor-Mittal which proposed to set up a 12 million tonne capacity plant, threatened to quit.
The special developmental package for the tribals is nothing but to hoodwink the gullible tribals, he said.
Describing the package announced by the Government for the tribals as hoax, secretary of the CPI(ML) Liberation Khitish Biswal said that the tribals of the State are the worst victims of the industrialisation process.
Alleging that the Naveen Patnaik Government is for the industrialists, the Left leader said tribals are being displaced in all the districts where major industries are proposed to be set up. The firing incident at Kalinganagar in Jajpur district and the tribal unrest at Niyamgiri area in Kalahandi districts are the testimony to anti-tribal policy of the Government.
Now tribals of the mineral-rich Keonjhar district are also facing the threat of displacement as the Government had committed to provide land for several steel projects including the greenfield project of Arcelor-Mittal.
The Government has started getting nervous as some of steel projects, including Arcelor-Mittal which proposed to set up a 12 million tonne capacity plant, threatened to quit.
The special developmental package for the tribals is nothing but to hoodwink the gullible tribals, he said.
Tharoor says media distorted his remarks on Nehru, demands correction
New Delhi, January 10, 2010
File photo of Minister of State for External Affairs, Shashi Tharoor.
Dr Tharoor was the chairman at the event on January 8 where British member of Parliament and well-known political scientist Lord Bhikhu Parekh had spoken on "India's Place in the World".
Some newspapers today said Dr Tharoor had joined Lord Parekh in debunking Nehruvian foreign policy as a "moralistic running commentary".
At a press conference in his office today, the Minister said Lord Parekh's speech was an hour-long and largely positive analysis of the trends in Indian foreign policy.
"While he exprssed some criticisms of past policies, these were not inappropriate in an academic setting dedicated to free discussion of global issues, and in any case were expressed in constructive terms," he said.
According to Dr Tharoor, in his chairman's remarks at the conclusion of the event, and while summarising Lord Parekh's main points, he had stated: "That Indian foreign policy drew from our sense of civilisation, and the extraordinary contribution by Mahatma Gandhi and Nehruji's articulation of our civilisational heritage, both enhanced India's standing in the world but also earned us the negative reputation of running a moralistic commentary on world affairs - that has come through very clearly in your speech."
He said that he had gone on to point out that there was more to Nehruvian policies than that, alluding to the use of force in Goa as an example of realpolitik in Indian policy.
"At no stage did I say what the Times of India, Mail Today and the Asian Age place within quotation marks. It is a basic tenet of good journalism that any quotations within quotation marks should be the exact words spoken. This was manifestly not the case. The Asian Age even quotes extensively from Lord Parekh's remarks and attributes them to me. This is not merely unprofessional, it is dishonest. I demand a correction," he said.
"I expressed my agreement with Lord Parekh's views of Indian civilisation, secularism and pluralism, which accord closely with my own - and indeed with the profound convictions of the Congress party and the UPA Government," he said.
Dr Tharoor said some television channels had even run stories on the basis of inaccurate press reporting, without even checking the tape of his remarks. "That reflects very poorly on their professionalism or lack thereof," he said.
He said there were other media outlets present at the event which had the integrity not to report a distorted version of his remarks and applauded those news channels and newspapers that saw the remarks in context.
"Not one among the large numbers of professional diplomats present found anything remotely contoversial in the event. I am sure the tape is available for verification. How many of those who have written or spoken about this matter have actually seen the tape or heard my remarks?" he asked.
"Irresponsible reporting may briefly gratify a few sensation-seekers in the media but they do no credit to the need for informed discussion of foreign policy issues in our democracy. India deserves better. So, frankly, do I," he added.
Congress spokesmen who appeared to be critical of the reported remarks by Dr Tharoor yesterday indicated they were satisfied with his clarification. Spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the party had nothing more to add after the minister's statement on the subject.
Dr Tharoor, along with External Affairs Miniser S M Krishna, had attracted criticism late last year after a newspaper reported that they had been staying in suites in two five-star hotels in the capital because the official houses allotted to them were not ready for occupation.
Though both ministers had paid for the suites and other expenses out of their own pockets, their decision to stay in five-star hotels did not go down well with the Congress leadership, which had launched an austerity drive because of the drought in many parts of the country at that time. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had publicly "requested" both of them to move out of the hotels immediately. Dr Tharoor had already moved out of the hotel before the media report had appeared.
In the same month, September, Dr Tharoor had got involved in another controversy with his "cattle class" remark about economy class air travel and had to tender an apology.
The remark was made by him on micro-blogging site Twitter when a journalist asked him, "Tell us Minister, next time you travel to Kerala, will it be cattle class?"
To this, the former United Nations Under-Secretary General had replied, "Asbolutely, in cattle class out of solidarity with all our holy cows." Though the remark caused an outrage among his party colleagues, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had made light of it, saying it was a joke.
More recently, Dr Tharoor seemed to have upset Mr Krishna and some other colleagues in the Government and the party with his Twitter comments on the restrictions placed recently by the Government on multiple-entry visas for tourists from abroad as a security measure. The comments were seen as a criticism of the Government's decision, prompting Mr Krishna to say that it was he who decided on policy in the Ministry and that others have to be on the same page.
Resentment in BJP, JMM over Jharkhand cabinet expansion
Ranchi, Jan 10 (IANS) Jharkhand government alliance partners Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) are facing resentment from within over cabinet expansion.
Chief Minister Shibu Soren expanded his cabinet Saturday evening and inducted nine ministers, taking the total strength to 12. Soren was sworn in Dec 30 along with a nominee each of allies BJP and the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU).
There is resentment over the upper castes not finding a place in the cabinet. "Our party has done wrong by not inducting any upper caste in the cabinet," a senior BJP leader told IANS Sunday.
The upper castes constitute nearly 13 percent of the state's population. In the 81-member assembly, eight Rajputs and two Brahmins were elected in the recent polls. None of them got place in the Soren cabinet.
Four BJP legislators got cabinet berths, including that of deputy chief minister. Two of them are tribals, one Dalit and one from the Vaishya community.
JMM is also facing resentment over the cabinet expansion. JMM has got four berths, including that of the chief minister. It has inducted two tribals, including Chief Minister Shibu Soren, and one each from Muslim and backward communities.
"In the Soren cabinet, Christians have not been given place. It seems that I was not given a berth as I belong to Christian community," said JMM legislator Simon Marandi. Christians comprise about four percent of the state's 26.9 million population.
The AJSU got three berths in the cabinet including one of deputy chief minister. Two of the three belong to the backward Mahto caste and one to the Dalit community. The lone JD-U minister, Sudha Chaudhary, is a Dalit.
Hussain Ansari of the JMM is the first Muslim to become a minister after Jharkhand was carved out from Bihar in 2000.
Chief Minister Shibu Soren expanded his cabinet Saturday evening and inducted nine ministers, taking the total strength to 12. Soren was sworn in Dec 30 along with a nominee each of allies BJP and the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU).
There is resentment over the upper castes not finding a place in the cabinet. "Our party has done wrong by not inducting any upper caste in the cabinet," a senior BJP leader told IANS Sunday.
The upper castes constitute nearly 13 percent of the state's population. In the 81-member assembly, eight Rajputs and two Brahmins were elected in the recent polls. None of them got place in the Soren cabinet.
Four BJP legislators got cabinet berths, including that of deputy chief minister. Two of them are tribals, one Dalit and one from the Vaishya community.
JMM is also facing resentment over the cabinet expansion. JMM has got four berths, including that of the chief minister. It has inducted two tribals, including Chief Minister Shibu Soren, and one each from Muslim and backward communities.
"In the Soren cabinet, Christians have not been given place. It seems that I was not given a berth as I belong to Christian community," said JMM legislator Simon Marandi. Christians comprise about four percent of the state's 26.9 million population.
The AJSU got three berths in the cabinet including one of deputy chief minister. Two of the three belong to the backward Mahto caste and one to the Dalit community. The lone JD-U minister, Sudha Chaudhary, is a Dalit.
Hussain Ansari of the JMM is the first Muslim to become a minister after Jharkhand was carved out from Bihar in 2000.
Left Alliance opposes prisoner swap deal with India
Dhaka, Jan 9 (bdnews24.com) – The Democratic Left Alliance has urged prime minister Sheikh Hasina not to sign any deal on anti-terrorism or prisoner exchange during her India visit this week.
The alliance leaders said there were fences across the border, so no Indian terrorist should be able to enter Bangladesh. The deals would serve no interest to Bangladesh, rather they might hamper the sovereignty of the country, said alliance leaders.
They said India showed interest in signing this deal, as Delhi wants to arrest what the Left Alliance termed "the liberal-minded valiant leaders of its seven provinces", referring to the separatists of north-east India.
"But we (alliance leaders) support the battles of the liberal-minded people as they supported us in our Liberation War in 1971. We will also become a target if India goes against them," Moshrefa Misu, co-ordinator of the alliance, said at a press briefing in the capital.
The left leaders also claimed that the Farakka water sharing agreement signed in 1996 was an incomplete one and Bangladesh is not getting its fair share of water.
They said that India's Farakka Dam has turned into an entrapment for Bangladesh.
The leaders said the issue of re-evaluation and removal of this dam also should be discussed during the prime minister's India visit.
The alliance leaders held the briefing at the Revolutionary Democratic Party's Segunbagicha headquarters.
Left-leaning leaders Tipu Bishwas, Abdus Salam, Saiful Haque, Bazlur Rashid Firoz, Badrul Alam and Mainuddin Chowdhury Liton also spoke and responded to queries from the reporters.
The alliance leaders said there were fences across the border, so no Indian terrorist should be able to enter Bangladesh. The deals would serve no interest to Bangladesh, rather they might hamper the sovereignty of the country, said alliance leaders.
They said India showed interest in signing this deal, as Delhi wants to arrest what the Left Alliance termed "the liberal-minded valiant leaders of its seven provinces", referring to the separatists of north-east India.
"But we (alliance leaders) support the battles of the liberal-minded people as they supported us in our Liberation War in 1971. We will also become a target if India goes against them," Moshrefa Misu, co-ordinator of the alliance, said at a press briefing in the capital.
The left leaders also claimed that the Farakka water sharing agreement signed in 1996 was an incomplete one and Bangladesh is not getting its fair share of water.
They said that India's Farakka Dam has turned into an entrapment for Bangladesh.
The leaders said the issue of re-evaluation and removal of this dam also should be discussed during the prime minister's India visit.
The alliance leaders held the briefing at the Revolutionary Democratic Party's Segunbagicha headquarters.
Left-leaning leaders Tipu Bishwas, Abdus Salam, Saiful Haque, Bazlur Rashid Firoz, Badrul Alam and Mainuddin Chowdhury Liton also spoke and responded to queries from the reporters.
