Should we take a lenient view of Arvind Kejriwal?

The following is an excerpt from my email written to India Against Corruption about a year ago following Arvind Kejriwal’s decision to join politics. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was not formed then.

“I think we can effectively challenge a system from outside. Once we become part of the system, we become prone to do compromises on our stated principles or agenda for surviving in that system." 

In the above excerpt the term system implies to politics. Over the past few months, I have noticed many compromises by AAP which may be OK according to the phrase ‘All is fair in love and war’ but are not in tune with the politics of principles which AAP professes to follow. Here are some examples:

1. AAP has been publicizing two sets of contradictory poll   survey data through huge flex posters hung over many foot bridges (a violation of traffic rules) in Delhi and in small posters behind many autos. A discerning person would question the authenticity of this data as no name of the agency which conducted these poll surveys has been given. The data details are follows:

The following are the Delhiites choices for Delhi CM following the Nov 2013 polls:

(i) Arvind Kejriwal      41% 

(ii) Sheila Dikshit         20% 

(iii) Vijay Goel             14%

The following are the Delhiites choices for a particular party's govt following the Nov 2013 polls:

(i) AAP        46% 

(ii) BJP        29% 

(iii) Cong     25%

The obvious contradiction in the above two sets of data is that more people want Sheila to be CM than those who want the Cong to form govt in Delhi. How can it be possible? 

2. On Sept 10 last, the Hindustan Times carried a picture of  Arvind Kejriwal campaigning inside a Delhi Metro coach. Delhi Metro doesn’t allow photography, marketing or campaigning inside its coaches.

3. "5 saal ki gudiya ko bachaya" (He saved a five-year-old innocent girl). Kejriwal used this sentence below his picture on posters at the back of three-wheelers. Adjacent to this picture there was a picture of Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit who was blamed for the rising crimes against women. I found it in bad taste that Kejriwal, who claims to be a selfless leader, is asking votes in the name of a five-year-old innocent rape victim. 

As AAP has limited resources to counter the huge poll campaigns of Congress and BJP, we may overlook the above diversions of AAP from the principles-based politics. But I think this the beginning of compromises which may grow once AAP becomes a player to reckon with in Delhi politics. 

A silver lining from Mumbai

I begin with my following comment published yesterday (Sept 26) on the NDTV website on a news item:

Salute to Vaishali Mhaskar, Rahul Rai and seven other Mumbaikars for living up to the high morals for which India is traditionally respected. Hope we the masses and our politicians learn from these selfless souls and start giving importance to morality, which we direly need to cleanse public life.

The news was about a Reader’s Digest a survey conducted in 16 cities worldwide to measure the level of people’s honesty in these cities. While Finnish capital Helsinki came out as the world's most honest city, our own Mumbai was declared second-most honest city in the world. Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, proved to be the least honest.

For the survey, researchers left 192 wallets in parks, near shopping malls and on sidewalks, in 16 cities in Europe, North and South America, and Asia. Each wallet contained a cell phone number, a family photo, coupons, business cards and the equivalent of 50 dollars in cash.

Overall 90 (47 per cent) of 192 wallets were returned. In Helsinki, 11 out of 12 wallets were returned, and Mumbaikars returned 9 of the 12 wallets. Two of these Mumbaikars, as mentioned in my comment, were Vaishali Mhaskar and Rahul Rai.

However, some of my fellow netizens did not find anything great in this survey and made fun of it through these comments: 

• Good joke!
• Ha ha ha , 1st April is still far away , Indians and honest , i say NEVER ....
• When people are busy making money through corruption, where is the necessity to steal wallets!!!!!!
• If you lose your wallet don't expect it back by this survey, Indians and honesty are two opposite poles. If you don't believe it leave your wallet in one of the locals.

Despite the above comments, I feel common Indians try to behave honestly and are ready to help each other if they are able to keep themselves aloof from the political and bureaucratic machinations. I give two personal examples:

1. Sometimes I travel in a normal auto-turned-into a passenger share auto for a short distance, with each passenger paying Rs 10. One day I was sitting alone in that auto, and the young driver was waiting for two more passengers. Then a child came and wanted to travel by that auto. The driver thought he won’t be able to pay Rs 10, so he refused to take him. A little later when the two remaining passengers got into the auto, the driver rued refusing  the child. So he went looking for the child to whom he now seemed giving a ride for less fare or even for free. However, he could not find the child. So, he started the auto but on the way he expressed his regret for refusing the child. Then one of my fellow passengers, a youth in his mid 20s, consoled the driver, 'Yeh ahmiyat ki baat hai ke tumhe tumhari galti ka ehsaas ho gaya’. (It’s important that you have realized your mistake.) Since both the driver and my fellow co-passenger were young, I think for India not all has been lost yet. 
2. For the last 15 years, a physically challenged lady is a regular fixture on the pavement in our colony in the morning. I often extend her small monetary help. Sometimes it happens that she doesn’t turn up for days together. So, when I meet her after the interlude, I give a little more money than my usual daily offering. And, the next day when I try to give her some money, she refuses to take it, saying “Kal apne diya  tha” (You helped me yesterday.)  Doesn’t this physically challenged lady, with nobody to look after her, have a honest realization that as she has already received  a lump sum amount, so she is not entitled to get more money from me for the next few days? 

     Wish our politicians and bureaucrats also have such honest  realization about caring for the money which the masses earn  the hard way and of which they are the custodians.

   

    The NDTV news is available on the following link:

    http://www.ndtv.com/article/cities/mumbai-named-world-s-  second-most-honest-city-study-424053

Now, he reminds us of Mahatma Gandhi's principles, and exhorts us to celebrate democracy

Common Indians and Indian politicians have not yet finished pondering over Narendra Modi's lesson in secularism given at a Haryana rally on Sept 15. But yesterday (Sept 22), he came out with more lessons for the world and Indians while addressing the annual national convention of Overseas Friends of BJP in Florida via video conferencing. So, efforts have begun for an image makeover to appear as a world leader and statesman!!!

According to the NDTV website, some of the lessons preached and thoughts expressed during the video conference by Modi (and my reactions in brackets) are:

• Gandhi's principles and message shout out to us that we should spread peace and fight terrorism. (Was there a short-term memory loss about Gandhi's message in his own Gujarat in 2002?) 
• Under the NDA, not only Indians but across the world it was believed that 21st century was India's time to shine. (But Indians didn't believe in NDA's Shining India poll campaign in 2004 and voted it out.) 
• It is necessary to collectively move forward. (So, then why these frequent disruptions of Parliament on issues which are either under investigation or just can't be raised in Parliament?)    
• We owe everything to India, our achievements. (If it is so, then shouldn't Modi give Pt Nehru credit for laying the foundation for a pluralist, democratic India? After all, India had such socio-economic and democratic conditions which enabled people with humble backgrounds like Modi and Mayawati to use their karishma to realize their dreams.) 
• 2014 is a year of big decisions. (Here I am on the same page with Modi. Yes, I am eager to see whether aam Hindustani's decision at the EVM  is in tune with the Modi hype created on social and main media.) 
• There is a lot of hue and cry about who will become the PM. (Isn't this hue and cry only centred on Modi and limited to BJP?) 
• Leaders will come and go, elections aren't for a post — its for the dream that Indians hold. (Is there any change of heart regarding allowing LK Advani to sport potential PM tag?) 
• Like 1977, 2014 will be the voice of the people. (My reaction given below.) 
• I appeal to all in India and across the world: let us prepare for this democratic celebration. (My reaction given below.)

Modi  has this habit of telling people, particularly young Indians, half truths. It's not in 2014 that we would get a chance to celebrate democracy. We have already had many democratic celebrations in the past, like when we voted out Indira Gandhi, who many today consider a very powerful PM, in 1977 despite her surname Gandhi. Or, when we defeated Rajiv Gandhi in 1989 despite his Gandhi surname and despite his landing a historic win of 400 plus seats for the Congress five years earlier in 1984.

Now, about the half truth concerning 1977. We had voted out Indira Gandhi, and India got the golden opportunity of establishing a two-party system with the newly-formed Janata Party coming to power. But because of individual political aspirations of the leaders of Janata Party with which BJP's erstwhile avatar Jana Sangh had also merged, Janata Party split into many parties. Seeing the fate of Janata Party, Indians had another democratic celebration by bringing Indira back to power in 1980. 

Young India should also know that great leader Jaya Prakash Narayan, who was the inspiration behind Janata Party, died a sad man seeing the Janata Party infighting. 

Awaiting for next lessons from Modi. By the way, one Netizen informs that to bring Tata's Nano to Gujarat every Gujarati was burdened with Rs 66,000, and in GDP growth Gujarat is at No 5 among Indian states with Maharashtra topping the list. 

Blower chal raha hai, bhai!!!

ब्लोअर चल रहा है, भाई. आप लोग समझ रहे हैं ये कुदरती हवा है, लेकिन हवा ब्लोअर से दी जा रही है!!!   (There is a blower at work. You might think this wind is real, but it’s coming from a blower.) — This is how Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar dismissed Modi blitz sweeping social and main media as hype, while delivering the annual lecture of the National Commission for Minorities on Sept 20.

An impartial analysis of facts proves Nitish Kumar right and also underlines people's, particularly the youth's, ignorance of Gujarat's 'real development' story. That's why in an Urban Youth Poll, aired recently by NDTV, majority of youth termed Gujarat as the best administered state and Bihar as the worst administered state. 34% youth voted for Gujarat and 23% voted against Bihar. However, an impartial review of the development of resource-poor Bihar over the last 4-5 years won't find the state as worst administered.

Human development index (HDI) is a measure to judge how beneficial is a development model to the masses. In India, on the HDI parameter, Kerala ranks No. 1 while Gujarat is at No. 9. Here are some facts which pick holes in Gujarat's 'development' model, taken from an article in the Indian Express by Christophe Jaffrelot, professor of Indian Politics and Sociology at King's India Institute, London:

Gujarat in debt trap?

• The state's debt increased from Rs45,301 cr in 2002 to Rs1,38,978 cr in 2013. In debt, Gujarat gives company to UP (Rs1,58,400 cr) and West Bengal (Rs1,92,100 cr).
• In the current fiscal, the Gujarat government plans to raise loans of Rs26,009 cr. Of this amount, 76 per cent will be used for debt servicing. If this figure reaches 100 per cent, then Gujarat would fall into the debt trap.

Business friendliness bleeding exchequer: The price the Gujarat exchequer paid to get Tata's Nano to Sanand: 

• 1,100 acres of land sold to Tata Motors at Rs900 per sq.m against the market rate of Rs 10,000 per sq.m 
• Rs20 crore exemption on stamp duty levied on the sale of land
• 20-year deferral in the payment of value added tax on the sale
• Loans amounting to Rs9,570 cr against an investment of Rs2,900 cr (330% of the investment) at 0.1% interest over 20 years.

Filling the Adanis' coffers: gulail.com, an investigative journalism website, reports a loss of Rs 23,625 cr over the next 25 years to Gujarat due to the Modi government’s unfair power purchase agreements (PPAs) with the Gautam Adani power companies. See how discriminatory are the PPAs signed with the Tatas and the Adani group, both producing power using the imported coal:

• First, a PPA was signed with the Tata Group company Coastal Gujarat Power Project at the rate of Rs 2.26 per unit.
• Then a PPA was signed with the Adani group at the rate of Rs 2.89 per unit. So, the Adani group has been paid 63 paise more per unit.
• Smaller producers are ready to supply electricity at the rate of Rs2.30 per unit.

Don't the above facts remind you of the Haryana govt allegedly helping Robert Vadra make money? I think it is described by letter 'd' in Modi's English primer. 

'Benefits' to common man:

• Gujarat has among the lowest average daily wages (Rs144.52) for casual labour in urban areas. The national average is Rs 170.10.
• Only about 43% Gujarat children under ICDS are the normal weight.
• In 1993-94, the average MPCE (monthly per capita expenditure) was 49% higher in towns and cities in comparison to villages. In 2011-12, this gap rose to 68.1%, that is, the urban MPCE was  68.1%, higher than the rural MPCE. So, the rural Gujarat is still looking to Modi to get purchasing power. 

As the above figures show, the benefits of the tall claims of the infrastructure and industrial development of Gujarat have not reached the poor in the state. On the contrary, they seemed to have depleted the state exchequer. But Modi's social media army has succeeded in making the people, particularly urban  Indians, believe that Modi's Gujarat 'development' model is something very very very... great great great...

Christophe Jaffrelot  article is available at: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/no-model-state/1165249/

The gulail.com article is available at: http://gulail.com/adani-modi-nexus-to-result-in-loss-of-rs-23625-crore-to-gujarat-in-one-deal-alone/

Will truth ever come out?

My answer is no. Because the issue is quite sensitive and also involves the country’s security. I  am talking about yesterday's (Sept 20) exclusive report in the Indian Express about the alleged irregularities committed by the Technical Services Division (TSD), a military intelligence unit set up by former Army Chief General VK Singh in May 2010. The alleged irregularities (including attempted covert political interference in J&K, attempt to block Commander Bikram Singh's promotion as the Army chief, and misuse of funds worth crores) were found following a secret Board of Officers inquiry into the functioning of the TSD.

The inquiry into TSD, led by Lieutenant General Vinod Bhatia, DG Military Operations, has recommended that the functioning of TSD should be probed by an external agency like CBI. (The inquiry was an internal exercise by the Army.) 

Today the Hindustan Times added a new angle to the TDS issue by stating in a news that TDS was involved in covert operations in Pakistan and was even on the trail of 26/11 mastermind and LeT chief Hafiz Saeed. It’s this angle which makes me doubt whether the govt would order a CBI inquiry into the alleged TDS irregularities. Because if TDS’s Pakistan connect is true, then the govt won’t like the CBI going into TDS’s operations in Pakistan.

A good number of Narendra Modi supporters in their online comments on the Express report are blindly supporting Singh and criticizing the  govt. (Recently Singh had shared the dais with Modi at the latter's rally in Haryana.) But an impartial person, while looking at the events in the recent past concerning Singh, will also find fault with his conduct. For example, he went back on his word about his date of birth given to the army establishment and wanted to continue as the army chief for one more year. Honest, brave soldiers don't do this.

When the Supreme Court advised Singh to withdraw his petition on the date of birth issue, the government to pacify Singh offered him for one year all the emoluments, perks and privileges of the army chief even without his holding the office. Had Singh been true to the cause espoused by Anna Hazare, with whom he has appeared a couple of times, he would have refused to touch the army chief's emoluments, perks and privileges which he was not entitled to post-retirement.

The Express report had another startling revelation. When the newspaper failed to get Singh's response to phone calls, text messages, and an emailed questionnaire on the inquiry report, it tried to approach him through a mediator. But Singh reportedly told the mediator, "... should the newspaper write anything about me, they will get in the neck".

The Express report is available on this link: 

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/unit-set-up-by-v-k-singh-used-secret-funds-to-try-and-topple-j-k-govt-block-bikram-singh-army-probe/1171601/0

The HT story is available on this link: http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Army-spook-unit-carried-out-covert-ops-in-Pakistan/Article1-1125008.aspx

ONLY 7 per cent? Strange!!!

Corruption may not be an important poll issue in the 2014 polls if the results of a C fore poll published today (Sept 19) in the Hindustan Times (HT) are any indication. According to the poll, only 7% Delhiites consider corruption to be a poll issue.

Few months back, I had gone through two all-India poll surveys, conducted by the HT and The Week magazine. In these surveys also, only 10 per cent people (The Week survey) and 18 per cent people (HT survey) considered corruption to be a poll issue. So, corruption doesn't bother us much unless an Anna Hazare sits on a dharna at Jantar Mantar or Ram Lila Maidan.

The current C fore survey lists the following order of importance of poll issues as viewed by Delhiites:

• Price rise — 35% 
• Law/order and women security — 8% 
• Corruption — 7%
• Increased power tariff — 7%   

An obvious conclusion from the C fore poll survey is that Delhiites, like Indians in other states, have accepted corruption as a necessary evil of public life. 

The poll findings are a major setback to Delhi BJP as it predicts Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party spoiling its November poll party. For Kejriwal the happy news is that he is the choice of 22% Delhites for the CM post after the first choice Sheila Diskhit who may return as a fourth-time CM with 29% Delhites willing to give her the job.

A rider on this poll is that it was conducted before the naming of Narendra Modi as BJP's PM candidate. So, Modi's naming may enhance BJP's votes in Delhi if people are not going to give any importance to the recent Muzaffarnagar riots.

Another revelation from the C fore poll is that only 7% Delhiites consider increased power tariff to be a cause for concern. But sadly, both the Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP have plastered Delhi walls with lakhs of posters promising 50%/30% cuts in power tariffs if voted to power.

In my July 7, 2013 post in this blog also I had written, "In Delhi the inflated power or water bills are not the real issues." And, now this poll shows the  AAP and BJP disconnect with the people on the power tariff issue. Their anti-power tariff campaign also falls flat if viewed against the Delhi govt ads which proclaim that among major metropolitan cities (even Modi's Ahmedabad), Delhi has the lowest power tariff.



The C fore survey report is available at the following link:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/specials/coverage/MyIndia-MyVote/Chunk-HT-UI-MyIndiaMyVote-Delhi/Delhi-CM-Dikshit-set-for-4th-term-Kejriwal-gains-over-BJP/SP-Article10-1123959.aspx

For a change, lessons in SECULARISM from...

Just read Narendra Modi's speech at the Rewari (Haryana) rally today (Sept 15) at the NDTV website. The rally was largely attended by ex-servicemen. The man knows how to touch a chord in his audience. But for the discerning the contradictions are too obvious to miss.

At the Rewari rally, Modi said he has been in love with the Army since he was in Class VI. Then he gave a lesson in secularism to politicians: "I would like to tell the politicians who want to divide India into small groups... there is no bigger example of secularism than the armed forces".

Now see the contradiction, despite his life-long love for the Army and its secularism, he did not seem to have learned how to truly implement Army's secularism in governance. Otherwise, the post-Godhara riots (2002) would not have happened. Another reflection on Modi's 'secular' thinking: His government has gone up to the Supreme Court to justify its decision of not implementing the Centre's pre-matriculation scholarship scheme for students from minority communities. The Supreme Court has refused to stay Gujarat HC's order to the Gujarat govt to implement the scheme.  

One also finds it difficult to digest Modi's advice on secularism in view of his justification of voter polarization in his July 12 interview to Reuters. To the question "Allies and people within the BJP say you are too polarizing a figure", Modi had replied: "In America if there is no polarization between Democrats and Republicans, then how would democracy work?" But here, an obvious poser is: Have we ever seen the Democratic-Republican polarization leading to riots like we have just winessed in Muzaffarnagar (UP)?

I have another poser to the  new 'secularist avatar' of Modi: Why all these 60 years, BJP did not embrace Muslims? Because it made it easy for Saffron leaders to charge non-Saffron political parties of Muslim appeasement.

At the rally, Modi also congratulated the Indian scientists for the successful test-firing of the Agni-V ballistic missile in the morning. Here the discerning would have a poser: Was it possible for India to become a nuclear power and successfully launch many Agni series missiles without the suitable policies and encouragement of scientists by successive Congress governments. Modi, please give the credit to the 'Devil' where it is due.

To touch a chord in the Rewari audience, Modi also presented the following appealing facts of his humble background:

• I was in Class 6 and belonged to a poor family. I had not seen 2 rupees together. I saw an advertisement in the newspaper for a sainik school
• I saved Rs. 2 , and went to the post office for the first time. I got the prospectus from the school. Serving the country meant joining the Army
• I asked my father for money to travel to the sainik school, but my father said  we did not have the means.

Believing the above facts, one expects Modi to be well aware of the miserable life of the poor. But he and his party criticized the Congress govt for its haste in bringing the Food Security Bill for ensuring two square meals to the poor. This was pure politicization of a much needed legislation, which resembles in great measure with the Food and Nutrition Act 2012 passed by BJP government in Chhattisgarh. This act covers almost the entire Chhattisgarh — 90 per cent of its population. Though this Act was passed only last year, the Chhattisgarh government has been providing highly subsidized food to the poor, as has been envisaged in the Central Food Security Act, for many years now.

Today as the common man is reeling under high inflation, and most urban Indians seem to detest the Congress because of the alleged UPA–II scams, whatever Modi says is taken as gospel truth. The Congress attempts to put record straight mostly fall on deaf ears. 

Do you want to make money?

Why not? I expect this reply from most of the Indians to the poser in the headline. But author Amish Tripathi of the Shiva Triology thinks otherwise. In his piece "To make money is glorious" (Hindustan Times, Sept 9) he writes:

“Today, we live in an Age of Money. The most efficient currency of change is money, the way of the Vaishya… . Has India shifted from the Age of Violence to the Age of Money? I think we’re in a muddle... . We have a complicated relationship with money. Many, especially among our older, decision-making generation, hold that money leads to corruption.”

I beg to differ with Amish's views. I think we Indians very much want to make money. The greatest example of our love for money is that many 'spiritual' gurus and swamis, who are not supposed to be enamoured of any material thing, end up managing wealth worth billions. Actually, a good number of we Indians want to make money quick and fast through shortcuts. That's why scams happen, and sometimes we are also forced to pay for chai-paani to get work done.

Regarding China, Amish says, “China has used money as a tool for change.” We must not forget China has become the economic power the hard way. It has successfully combined its white collar talent with its blue collar muscle to manufacture all types of mediocre and quality products to cater to different markets of the world. That's why it is called the 'workshop of the world'. And, today leading international economists and scholars underline the importance of China growth story. They feel if “China grows, the world prospers.” 

But what about India? Here electoral politics (which the Chinese rulers need not play) takes precedence over everything.

Amish's article is available at the following link: http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/Amish/To-make-money-is-glorious/Article1-1119333.aspx

Kejriwal caught on wrong foot!

Yesterday (Sept 10), the Hindustan Times carried a picture of Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal campaigning inside a Delhi Metro coach on Page One Plus, a tear sheet. Delhi Metro has publicized it well that photography, marketing or campaigning is not allowed on its property and inside its coaches. So, Kejriwal by campaigning for his party and getting himself clicked inside a Metro coach has broken rules. Will now other politicians be allowed to campaign inside Metro coaches? I request Kejriwal that as he professes to live by principles and rules, he must not set such precedents that violate rules or encourage indiscipline. Better if he campaigns outside Metro stations.