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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2016

The pivot through Kabul India’s growing arms footprint in Afghanistan points to an important future aspect of its regional power projection power to support Afghan ofensives, not just repel insurgent attacks, and for U.S. troops to embed with regular Afghan infantry, not just special forces. From January to October, there were 700 air strikes — 200 more than in the whole of last year — dropping about 1,000 bombs. While we should not ignore the important progress made in shrinking the Islamic State’s presence considerably, the Afghan National Security Forces have been rolled back by the Taliban in no less than three major provincial capitals: Lashkar Gah in Helmand, Tarin Kot in Uruzgan, and Kunduz in the north. Two other capitals, Baghlan and Farah, are also under serious pressure.

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SHASHANK JOSHI

Caught in the crossfire

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xchange of fire between Indian and Pakistani forces on the Line of Control and the International Boundary has rendered the 2003 ceasefire ever more fragile. On October 29, the Army said it had destroyed four Pakistani posts in Keran sector along the LoC and inflicted heavy casualties. This came a day after Sepoy Mandeep Singh was killed in the Machhal sector and his body mutilated by a terrorist who fled across the LoC thereafter. In a social media post, the Army’s Northern Command had warned that the atrocity would invite an appropriate response, and the reprisal followed. This represents a major escalation in the ongoing exchange of fire. Ceasefire violations have become a daily occurrence since the terrorist attack on the Army camp in Uri in September and the subsequent “surgical strikes” by the Army. The use of 82 and 120 mm mortars in addition to small arms and light machine guns has become routine, a significant scale-up during peacetime. The firing has also spread to the IB, especially a 192-km stretch in Jammu that Pakistan refers to as the working boundary. In 2014, about 430 incidents of ceasefire violation were reported along the IB; in 2015 this dropped to 253. In contrast, till mid-October only four incidents had been reported along the IB — but that calm has been broken since the Uri attack. After the surgical strikes, there have been 60 ceasefire violations. The brunt of these exchanges is borne by the civilian population in the border villages. Hundreds have been shifted to shelters and bunkers for safety. The density of civilian settlement is much higher on the Indian side in comparison to Pakistan’s. As a result, the increased firing across the border creates more pressure on India. In fact, after the two countries agreed to a ceasefire in 2003, the resultant calm had won the confidence of local residents. Villagers began farming right up to the fence, tourism picked up, and even informal border trade increased. The current spiral of violence threatens this peace dividend. After the surgical strikes, the security forces retain a free hand in responding to infiltrations and instances of firing. No senior government functionary has publicly addressed the issue. Pakistan too is playing the incidents in large part on domestic considerations. However, the latest incident underscores the need for an urgent political initiative to prevent the cycle of brutality and reprisal from acquiring its own momentum, as happened in the early 2010s. It is time the government gathered the reins to address the issue politically and have peace restored on the border.

“We have a wish list that we have put before the government of India,” declared the then Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, on a visit to New Delhi in May 2013. “It is up to the government now to provide us according to their means.” Over the next year, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government decided its means were to be modest. It dithered, wary of provoking Pakistan further, concerned by where its weapons might end up, and pleading a shortage of stocks. In April 2014, it agreed to the curious expedient of paying Russia to supply small arms to Afghanistan. This was, perhaps, not so strange in light of a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)-Russia agreement that same month to maintain Afghanistan’s crumbling helicopter fleet, building on earlier American purchases from Moscow. But it highlighted India’s cautious approach to over-militarising its engagement in Afghanistan. The arrival of President Ashraf Ghani later that year, and his outreach to Pakistan, rendered the question moot. Bolstering Afghan forces But with that outreach now in tatters, the Taliban rejecting peace talks, and Mr. Ghani turning back to New Delhi, the question of arms has come back on the agenda. Three Indian-built transport helicopters were donated in April 2015. Over the winter of 2015-16, several attack helicopters followed. General John Nicholson, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, spoke in August of an “immediate need for more”, perhaps the most enthusiastic imprimatur ever given by a U.S. oicial. And now, Indian press reports suggest that New Delhi is “firming up” plans to send artillery, trucks, and — if you believe the headlines — T-72 tanks. There may be some arms inflation at work here. In fact, the Afghans seem to have asked not for Main Battle Tanks (MBT), which would be overkill for fighting the

Arms generate revenue but can also transform the balance of power, and as India has discovered to its cost, provide leverage during crises and wars Taliban, but Russian-designed BMPs, which are quick, versatile, and lightly armoured vehicles for infantry. India has been phasing out its older variants and they would be understandably useful to an army haemorrhaging over a dozen soldiers a day. Will this change anything? Since Afghan forces took the lead in fighting, the Taliban have gained more territory than at any other point in the last 15 years. This is despite the high level of foreign support that remains in place — 9,000 U.S. troops remain in the country. In June, U.S. President Barack Obama expanded authorisation for air

The political signalling At the strategic level, arms cannot compensate for more fundamental problems. Last week, General Nicholson highlighted the “failure of leadership” in the police and army, leaving young police oicers and soldiers dying on isolated checkpoints without adequate food, water, or ammunition. These failures extend to the political level. This month, the Vice President himself, the controversial warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, attacked President Ghani for favouritism towards Pashtuns over the former’s own Uzbek constituency and threatened to “gather my people”. Mr. Ghani’s oice retaliated with a threat to investigate Mr. Dostum’s personal militias operating in the northern Faryab province. In the context of these profound military and political failings, no injection of arms — whether from India, NATO, Russia, or China — will turn the situation around. They are band-aid on a flesh wound. Arms can make a diference at the margin, afording protection to some units where previously there might have been none. For an isolated patrol outnumbered by insurgents, the prospect of air support by an Indian-supplied helicopter should not be overlooked. But their real purpose is to serve as political signals of support, lubricating Mr. Ghani’s pivot back to New Delhi and ensuring that India — left out of the four-nation Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) on peace talks comprising Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and the

CARTOONSCAPE

Reign in Spain

“R

ajoy is the only creature that advances without moving,” noted a former socialist premier caustically, just ahead of the return on Saturday of the conservative leader as Prime Minister after an unprecedented 10-month political impasse in Spain. Mariano Rajoy not only endured the uncertainties and frustrations of his inability to put together a coalition after his conservative People’s Party polled the largest number of seats in the two inconclusive elections since December 2015, but patiently watched his opponents’ prospects fade away. But despite his instinct for political survival, he heads a government that nobody really wants. As Prime Minister, Mr. Rajoy enjoyed an absolute majority during his first term (2011-15). The clear mandate enabled him to push through a round of painful economic reforms after the country’s housing and credit bubble went bust by the end of the last decade. He now leads a minority government in alliance with the centrist Ciudadanos, facing a diicult but definite prospect of continued gridlock over every legislative initiative. His biggest test will be to win parliamentary backing to meet the fiscal deficit targets that Madrid has agreed with Brussels. A threat to call fresh elections is the only real trump card in his pocket. Mr. Rajoy’s rivals are too weak to be able to fully capitalise on his woes. Recently the principal opposition party, the Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), was forced to eat humble pie when it decided, not without internal diferences, to abstain in a parliamentary vote on Mr. Rajoy’s candidacy, only to breathe life into the minority government of its ideological opponent. Had the PSOE adopted such a course after the elections in June, it might have salvaged its image somewhat by being seen as acting in the national interest. The option the party pursued instead, that of a coalition with the extreme left Podemos party, only prolonged the gridlock. Podemos once rode the wave of popular anger against economic austerity. For now, it must rest content with the accomplishment of breaking Spain’s two-party dominance. The party’s hopes lie in a consolidation of its base as the platform of the genuine left, as distinct from the centrist PSOE. The scenario is reminiscent of another imbroglio, that of Belgium going without a government for more than 18 months a few years ago on the question of regional autonomy between Flanders and Wallonia. Political fragmentation is an inescapable fact in the evolution of democratic governance. Peaceful reconciliation of competing interests is the art and imperative of political practice, as Mr. Rajoy is now finding out.

Growing Indian clout India is a small fish in this pond. But its clout is growing. Indian arms exports doubled by value from 2012-13 to 2014-15 to over $200 million. The recipients included Afghanistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Vietnam, South Korea, and even major exporters like Russia, Israel, and Britain. Most of these have been spares and minor equipment. Last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a $500 million line of defence credit to Vietnam during his trip to Hanoi, building on an earlier line of credit two years ago for Indian patrol boats. Over the past decade, other Indian transfers to neighbours have included patrol boats, maritime patrol aircraft, radar, armoured vehicles, anti-tank weapons, and helicopters. India directly operates some of these assets, notably part of the coastal surveillance radar chain unfolding across the Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives, and Sri Lanka. Beneficiaries have included every single member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) except, of course, Pakistan. How far will this grow? India has a long history of modest arms provision and training in South Asia and Africa, but by and large it has held back from game-changing sales that would have strategic ripples. Indian tanks went to South Africa and Singapore in the 1970s, but there’s little evidence they have been sent to anyone since despite reports of a transfer to Myanmar. There have been murmurs that BrahMos might be exported to nearly a dozen diferent countries, including Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. This would be extremely consequential, not least if the missile’s range can be doubled as easily as suggested. India has also discussed potential sales of its Light Combat Helicopter and has ambitions to export the much-maligned Tejas combat aircraft. All of these platforms would afect the military balance more than a handful of patrol ships. India’s growing arms footprint in Afghanistan points to an important future aspect of its regional power projection. Shashank Joshi is a Senior Research Fellow of the Royal United Services Institute in London.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Initiating peace

Trivial pleas

The article, “An invitation to peacemongering” (Oct.31), reminded me of the story of Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, one of the greatest secular Indians. He narrates in his autobiography, I Am Not an Island: An Experiment in Autobiography, the absurdity of fearing and killing each other to get rid of the fear of the other. In this case, two brothers, each of them suspecting a marauder, had killed each other. I don’t know why this story comes to my mind when I read about conflict between India and Pakistan. The point is: fear leads to hatred; hatred leads to violence of language and of temper; and violence leads to a loss of lives. Sukumaran C.V.,

Hardly anyone grudges the filing of public interest litigation but one wishes that they should be meaningful, sustainable and tenable (“Armed forces are answerable to govt.: SC”, Oct.29). Courts need to dismiss flimsy and trivial litigation at the stage of admittance itself besides levying a hefty fine on those who waste its precious time. This may even act as a deterrent. Courts have an avalanche of cases to deal with and trivial PILs will only add to the clutter. H.P. Murali,

Palakkad

The problem in India today is that we have a bountiful crop of critics who churn out volumes of armchair patriotism and also criticise the government of the day. Apart from trying to use a dictionary to comprehend some of the words the writer used, I was also wracking my brain trying to understand what he was ofering as the solution to the problem. It reminded me of an incident where Lala Amarnath once went on to bitterly criticise the Indian cricket captain for lacking winning skills, which provoked Kapil Dev to invite him to come and play in his place. It is a laughable idea if the writer wants India to keep holding out an olive branch to Pakistan, almost indefinitely. He seems to suggest that everything is right with Pakistan the rogue nation, and that it is India alone which lacks large-heartedness. Sivamani Vasudevan, Chennai

CM YK

U.S. — retains influence over the direction of the conflict. However, the three-year journey from Mr. Karzai’s wish list to India’s incremental gift giving also points to a broader trend. “We are well positioned,” noted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh three years ago, “to become a net provider of security in our immediate region and beyond.” Net security provider is a slippery term. Indian oicials have emphasised soft security missions, like disaster relief and evacuation, rather than full-blown military intervention. Arms sales and donations are a halfway house, an arm’slength instrument of national power. During 2011-15, the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council collectively supplied almost 70 per cent of all international arms exports. Arms generate revenue, of course, but they can also transform the balance of power, cement alliances, and — as India has discovered to its cost through its history — provide leverage during crises and wars. They are not without risks. Arms can be waylaid or even turned on their provider, especially where regimes change suddenly, and can render the providers awkwardly complicit in their use. Arms can also fuel conflicts, reducing the incentive on one side or another to negotiate with adversaries.

Bengaluru

ignominy on the part of the Centre that it should be advised by the Supreme Court to ensure that the anthem is ‘respected’? Is it not the duty of the Centre to widen the scope and possibility of ‘Jana gana mana’ being sung by all Indians often, and in situations wherever feasible and practical? One should first understand what a patriotic song is all about. It is one which evokes strong nationalistic emotions and fervour. When a group sings the national anthem aloud, with heads held high and shoulders steady, there should be no place for confusion or misinterpretation. The feeling of oneness should prevail. R. Sivakumar,

Deepavali at the U.N.

Chennai

It appears as though the festival of lights has caught even the eye of the United Nations (“In a first, U.N. celebrates Deepavali”, Oct.31). It has accepted the power of light over darkness, of hope over despair, of good over evil, and of knowledge over ignorance. However, the pertinent question is: how serious is the U.N., a “toothless body”, in helping to usher in peace across the world? The multi-billion-dollar worth of trade in arms and ammunition can destroy the earth in minutes. Given such a scenario, will there be anyone left to watch the festival of lights? Victor Frank A.,

The Net and knowledge

Chennai

Respecting the anthem Controversies around the singing of the national anthem have often been hitting the headlines; they are unwarranted (“National anthem: Supreme Court issues notice to govt.”, Oct.29). First, is it not an

led to a situation where objectivity has been undermined. S. Indhumathi, Chennai

Chennai

Gold for culling The report that an alumni association of a prominent college in Kerala is to give gold coins to civic authorities who kill the most number of stray dogs till December 10 in the State is not in good taste and cannot be justified on any count (Oct.31). No doubt stray dogs have become a threat to people but what we need are humane alternatives. Such moves go against the principle of “live and let live”. Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, Hyderabad

The article, “Ignorance that isn’t bliss” (Oct.31) reflects the current cyber milieu. While the spread of one-sided information is a blind spot, it is equally true that the receivers of such information (Internet users) seldom research and read about the topic on hand. They just forward or share the information without a second thought. The writer mentions that it is easier to avoid opinions and information that do not necessarily fit one’s world view “in the Internet” than books. It is equally easier to read only partisan books. Further, he says that the one who reads books doesn’t spread misinformation (relatively). Be it books or online content, it is the attitude of the person that matters. Even if a person wary of one-sided information wants to publish a well-researched document, such a lengthy article doesn’t sell on social media. The quest for short and crisp content has

industrial activities (Chennai editions, “Air pollution peaks during Deepavali”, Oct.31). N. Ramanathan,

Killing stray dogs is not a logical solution. While some dogs behave in an aggressive manner, there are many others which continue to remain man’s best friend. People have been destroying nature at an alarming rate and are heading towards impending disaster. Let us learn not to dominate but to respect and live in harmony with other living beings. The world is as much theirs as it is ours. Debi Chatterjee, Kolkata

Air pollution peaks Does it require great scientific knowledge to know that pollution levels go up on Deepavali day? It is an age-old practice to celebrate Deepavali by setting of fireworks and there is bound to be pollution. Instead, the authorities should be focussing on how there is grave air pollution every day caused by growing vehicular density and

Football coverage As an avid fan and follower of global football clubs such as Manchester United, Real Madrid and players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel Maria, it is disheartening that this daily does not pay much attention to publish news related to these clubs and players. The ‘non-selection’ of brief reports on other league matches is also a matter of concern and gives the reader a feeling that football is inferior when compared to cricket and tennis. Bhavadas K.C., Chennai

Debate on personal law A letter writer in this column (“Letters to the Editor”, Oct.29), alleged that while citing data from the 2011 Census on married women I may have overlooked the fact “that even widows call themselves married when posed the question whether they are married or not”. There was no mix-up of information. Chart ‘C-3’ of the 2011 Census, which has details on “marital status by religious community and sex” inter alia lists five distinct categories — ‘Never married’, ‘Married’, ‘Widowed’, ‘Separated’ and ‘Divorced’. The data I have used in my article were from the ‘Married’ category. The ‘Widowed’ category lists the number of widowed Hindu males and females as 1,03,74,794 and 3,56,77,567 respectively. A. Faizur Rahman, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2016

Winking at the States The Central government’s attempt to dilute the land acquisition law by encouraging States to enact their own versions is a pernicious misuse of a constitutional provision lash which unified opposition parties across the ideological spectrum. In 2014, the Supreme Court refused to entertain challenges to various provisions of the 2013 law. Thus, two things became clear: the law was constitutionally sound and the public mandate was overwhelmingly against such amendments. It is a settled proposition that what the government cannot do directly, it cannot do indirectly. This oft-reiterated maxim has been used by the Supreme Court of India to strike down the attempts of the government to pass of what is known as “colourable legislation” (laws the government is not qualified to pass, disguised as other laws). A creative attempt to weaken a state law against the larger public interest is nothing short of such an abuse.

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Questions about an ‘encounter’

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he killing of eight prisoners belonging to an outlawed group hours after their escape from the high-security Central Prison in Bhopal has set of a controversy that is unlikely to die down soon. The eight undertrials, belonging to the Students’ Islamic Movement of India, had been charged with serious offences and were alleged to have been involved in the murder of policemen and in armed robberies. While escaping, they killed a police guard who had tried to stop them. The murder of their colleague may have goaded the police to pursue the suspects and zero in on them within hours on the city’s outskirts with the help of the public. However, the dramatic events that took place subsequently are clouded in doubt as the oicial narrative does not quite hang together. The State government and the police have failed to provide a cogent explanation for the events of the day. The circulation of footage purportedly recording some moments before and after the encounter has invited charges that the encounter was ‘fake’. Doubts have been raised whether the eight men were carrying any weapons or posed an imminent danger to the police party that closed in on them. Were they about to surrender, having run out of options, when they were killed? One police oicer’s claim that they had firearms and had attacked the police contradicts another oicer’s version that they had no weapons. The Madhya Pradesh government is understandably keen on an inquiry into the jailbreak to find out crucial details — such as who masterminded the escape, and whether there was any support from others in the prison or outside. Further, it should be investigated how CCTV cameras, watchtowers and searchlights all mysteriously failed while the undertrials were scaling two high walls one after another. There can be no justification, however, for the government’s stand that the encounter itself does not require an investigation any deeper than a routine magisterial inquiry. The Supreme Court has laid down that every police encounter has to be probed by the Criminal Investigation Department or any other independent police team. In this context, the condemnation by members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party of all those who doubt the official version is troubling. Such doubt cannot be interpreted as support for either the ideology or the violence perpetrated by those who escaped from prison. Instead of expecting unquestioning acceptance from all quarters when issues of human rights and the rule of law are involved, the State government would do well to institute a thorough probe into the episode to quell all doubts and suspicions.

JAIRAM RAMESH

MUHAMMAD A. KHAN

Last year, faced with its inability to amend the historic Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre devised a constitutionally pernicious alternative. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, speaking after the second meeting of the governing council of NITI Aayog on July 15, 2015, encouraged States to draft and pass their own laws for land acquisition and get them approved by the Centre. Following this unambiguous oicial sanction, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat have moved ahead with their amendments, Rajasthan has a Bill ready and Telangana is working on its version. These laws allow for the acquisition of land in the States without having to satisfy any of the crucial safeguards built into the 2013 Central law, such as the right to consent, social impact assessment and, in the case of Tamil Nadu, even rehabilitation and resettlement. Spirit behind the exceptions As per the doctrine of “occupied field” enshrined in Article 254(1) of the Constitution, if there exists a Central law on a concurrent subject, then a State law cannot override it. However, Article 254(2) provides that if a State law receives presidential assent after due consideration, then it can apply in contravention to the Central law in that particular State. This use of this provision to permit States to pass land acquisition laws in conflict with the 2013 Act gives rise to three grave jurisprudential concerns. First, Article 254(2) was never intended,

The newly enacted State laws on acquisition suspend the statutory right to give consent to acquisition and the need to carry out a social impact assessment even in its broadest interpretation, to weaken Central laws merely because they were found to be inconvenient. It was intended to bring in changes to Central laws if there was a genuine hurdle in implementing them in a particular State due to challenges peculiar to that region. Consider this. The 2013 law was sought to be amended by the BJP-led government as it felt that the Centre’s power of eminent domain had been curtailed. It argued that the 2013 law was making the acquisition of land harder by empowering those whose land was previously forcibly acquired. This move was followed by a massive nationwide back-

Presidential assent not a formality Second, it is pertinent to examine the nature of the presidential power envisaged under this Article. Is the President required to act mechanically on the advice of the Council of Ministers or is he to apply his own mind? The Supreme Court in a landmark Constitution Bench decision in Kaiser-I-Hind Pvt. Ltd. v. National Textile Corporation (2002) held, in relation to Article 254(2), that the words “reserved for consideration” would “definitely indicate that there should be active application of mind by the President to the repugnancy… and the necessity of having such a law, in facts and circumstances of the matter… The word assent is used purposefully indicating airmative action of the proposal made by the State for having law repugnant to the earlier law made by the Parliament. This cannot be done without consideration of the relevant material.” Constitutional scholar Durga Das Basu in his seminal commentary on Constitutional Law reairms this interpretation. He further

CARTOONSCAPE

School’s out in Kashmir

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t is almost four months since the unrest in Kashmir began following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen ‘commander’ Burhan Wani. Protests, intermittent violence and long stretches of curfew have continued to put normal life on hold. Delegations of civil society representatives as well as politicians have attempted to reach out to separatists and find a way tobring calm to the streets, but to little avail. In fact, the opposite is happening with increasing mindless arson attacks on schools over the past two months. By one count, 27 schools, most of them government-run, have been set afire so far in the Valley over this period. No one has yet claimed responsibility for these attacks. The government has blamed the separatists for encouraging the arson. In turn, the separatists charge the administration of failing to protect the schools. Amidst all this blame-shifting, it is disturbing that separatist leaders such as Syed Ali Shah Geelani have not condemned the acts of violence outright. Their equivocation must be called out, even as the Jammu and Kashmir High Court has directed the government to reopen all the schools despite the separatists’ shutdown call. It is against this backdrop, of life thrown out of gear and specific targeting of school buildings, that students have been rattled by the government’s plan to conduct State Board examinations in the second half of November. The government needs to assure them of adequate security to address their anxieties. The situation is reminiscent of the early 1990s. Hundreds of schools had been targeted then. Disrupting the school calendar is one of the oldest tricks in the insurgents’ playbook. It sends out the signal that the administration is not in full control. And it heightens anxiety among the local population that their children’s life chances are doubtful, thereby reinforcing popular disafection and alienation. However, the occasional occupation of school buildings by the security forces also makes them a symbol of the state, and a soft target for militants. The government must abandon the practice of using schools to solve logistical problems. Moreover, while the State government focusses on getting students back to school, to be successful this efort must be embedded in a purposeful, urgent plan to return normalcy to the State, especially south Kashmir that has been the epicentre of the protests and violence. The disruption in the academic calendar in the Valley is an outcome of the prevailing unrest. Resumption of the rhythms of normal life is essential to end this disruption. Something has to give. The people of Kashmir need a break from this long and tragic season of protests, shutdowns and curfew. CM YK

argues that the words “reserved for consideration” used in Article 254(2) “cannot be an idle formality but would require serious consideration on the material placed before the President”. Therefore it is clear that the President must act deliberately and consciously and not merely on the advice of the Council of Ministers. The newly enacted State laws on acquisition curtail and suspend the statutory right to give consent to acquisition and the need to carry out a social impact assessment. The President is required to examine if compelling reasons to sanction such a significant deviation exist. But can the President’s exercise of his power under Article 254(2) be subject to judicial review? The Supreme Court in the Kaiser-i-Hind case, while relying on several precedents, held, “We further make it clear that granting of assent under Article 254(2) is not exercise of legislative power of President such as contemplated under Article 123 but is part of legislative procedure. Whether procedure prescribed by the Constitution before enacting the law is followed or not can always be looked into by the Court.” In other words, the court may review whether the procedure which requires thorough reflection and conscious application of mind by the President was observed. Undermining Parliament Third, in an alternative scenario, if one were to argue that presidential approval is merely a formality which can only be delayed, not denied, then it leads to the worrying conclusion that Central laws on any subject contained in List III of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution (“Concurrent List”) like forests, electricity, family planning and education are, in efect, pointless. Wherever a Central government lacks the numbers to pass a law (on a concurrent subject) in Parliament or is faced with public opposition, it will concede the authority to States to pass the laws as they see fit and get the President to approve them. This is happening not just for land acquisition but also for labour laws, with Rajasthan having shown the way. Here we must also make a distinction between Parliament and the Central government. The 2013 law is an Act of Parliament that occupies the field but the Centre wishes to dilute it. Instead of upholding its sanctity (as required by the Constitution) the government wishes to undermine the role of Parliament by actively encouraging States to bypass the law. Therefore it is breaching the provisions of Article 254(1) which give supremacy to laws made by Parliament unless States have a genuine necessity to deviate. Such pernicious misuse of a constitutional provision cannot and should not go unchecked. Parliament passed a law in the exercise of its sovereign power bestowed on it by the Constitution. A hardfought consensus was achieved that was widely held to be in the larger public interest. It cannot be diluted by creating halfsmart loopholes and too-clever-by-half shortcuts which make a complete mockery of the very idea of a Concurrent List in the Constitution, which must be considered as an integral part of its basic structure. Jairam Ramesh is a Member of Parliament, and Muhammad A. Khan is an advocate; they are the authors of “Legislating for Justice: Making of the 2013 Land Acquisition Law” (OUP, 2015).

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Bhopal ‘encounter’ The Madhya Pradesh government’s version of the incident where eight alleged members of the banned Students’ Islamic Movement of India were shot dead by police in the State under suspicious circumstances on Monday after they escaped from Bhopal’s central jail (Page 1, Nov.1) raises several doubts. How did the men escape despite high security arrangements in the prison and systems and gadgets installed? Was it negligence on the part of the prison authorities or a case of connivance? Why was it necessary to shoot the men when some of them were injured? There are many loose ends. Were Supreme Court guidelines in such cases followed by the police? S.V. Venkatakrishnan, Bengaluru

(M) are now demanding a probe into the incident despite being well aware that the men were involved in terror cases and escaped after killing a jail oicer. There is a limit to politicising such issues. Ajay Kulkarni, New Delhi

It is upsetting that there are quite a few political elements that are more interested in practising appeasement politics than in praising the police. The Madhya Pradesh State police acted swiftly but had they failed to act, these elements would have been quick to change track and blame the government. Surinder K. Narula, New Delhi

Places to do business

The oicial version just does not add up. Footage of the purported encounter has only added to the discomfiture of the State police and their political masters. While no responsible citizen can hold a brief for elements indulging in acts of terror, one cannot at the same time let the law enforcement agencies run amuck and act in a manner not consistent with the rule of law. The charges against those killed were yet to be proved before the trial court. There have been innumerable instances where the persons initially arrested for acts of terror were later found to be innocent, the Malegaon bomb blast cases of 2006 being an example. Given the sensitivity of the case, any investigation by agencies answerable to the executive of the day would lack credibility. It is a fit case for suo motu intervention by the Supreme Court. S.K. Choudhury,

The report, “A.P., Telangana top in ease of doing business” (Nov.1), shows that low income levels of States are no longer a constraint for poorer States to successfully implement reforms and improve the business environment. The cascading efects of capital inflows to these backward States would be: enhanced income, employment, growth and overall development. It might also help wean away youth from left-wing extremism and violence. There is a need to ponder further on the nature and causes of the low level of business reforms implementation by States with an already advanced level of infrastructure, human and material capital. It appears that the root cause is the inadequacy in carrying out necessary governance reforms including the removal of bottlenecks in investment created by regulatory departments of the States. Joseph Abraham,

Bengaluru

Gurugram, Haryana

It is pathetic that political parties such as the Congress and the CPI

It is painful and disheartening to note that Tamil Nadu, once a

progressive State, has slipped far below in the all-India rankings. An almost non-functioning government, an indiferent attitude towards fostering a friendly industrial climate, and a total lack of competitive spirit are some of the major reasons. Initiative and entrepreneurship, which were once a strong feature of the State, are no longer in evidence. People are happy to enjoy the freebies, and the government is happy to keep them content this way. The movie culture, the tendency to plump for persons with no vision for the State in the elections and the culture of violence and hired goons are additional drawbacks. People in the State will have to look elsewhere for employment opportunities which in turn will afect its already withering talent pool. This is certainly not the State which visionaries such as Kamaraj, C. Subramaniam, R. Venkataraman and Rajaji had chalked out for its people. R.V. Easwar, New Delhi

What is noteworthy in the list is that four States with some of the lowest income levels have found a place in the top 10 ranks. The point that Andhra Pradesh and Telangana rank highly in ease of doing business is not a surprise as they are continuously engaged in implementing pro-investment policies. That Karnataka, once the ‘darling of investors’, hasn’t been able to find a place in the top 10 shows that things are going wrong. N. Sadhasiva Reddy, Bengaluru

The major roadblock for businesses is delayed approvals and clearances. While it takes half a day to start a new business in New Zealand, it could take even months in India. To reform this, a “positive silence” model, under which an application is deemed to be approved if a decision

is not taken within prescribed time, can be introduced as a pilot project as recommended by the Second Administrative Reform Commission. This will help to eliminate bureaucratic delays by quicker disposal of applications along with reasons for rejection. V. Sai Teja Reddy, Kavali, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh

Growth as jobs The writers of the article, “Still seriously hungry and poor” (Oct.31), claim that “newer skills will hold the key for translating growth into jobs”. Are we not turning out millions of trained youth from our countless polytechnics, vocational training centres, engineering colleges, teacher training institutes, paramedical training centres, agricultural and engineering institutes? These are the people on whom educational and training investments have been made by the poor and middle-class families in the hope of getting them out of poverty and hunger. These youth are rotting due to jobless growth in India gifted to us by the multinationals and corporate giants. They sufer due to unemployment, underemployment and disguised employment. The solution lies in the resurrection of labour-intensive, small and medium industries which showed huge job generation potential in the 1970s and 1980s. Rameeza A. Rasheed, Chennai

Tackling dirty air Notwithstanding the fierce public campaigns run every year by environmentalist groups and NGOs exhorting citizens to celebrate Deepavali in an eco-friendly manner, the bitter truth is this: Nothing is going to change until the Central government takes a call on amending the Explosives Act, 1884

and/or Explosives Rules, 2008, by explicitly banning the manufacture of a category of fire-crackers which are duly certified for causing air and noise pollution above a permissible limit (“Pollution cloud hangs over northern cities after Deepavali”, Nov.1). A certified mechanism ought to be put in place and only lowintensity and non-hazardous firecrackers be allowed for use on such festive occasions. Hemant Kumar, Ambala City, Haryana

When the spouse is away The article, “A blast from the past, and a little mischief in the air” (‘Open Page’, Nov.1) reminded me of a Tamil film where actor Janagaraj plays a character who is delighted that he has unbridled freedom when his wife is away from the house. After he sends of his wife, he returns home shouting loudly, “En Pondatti Urukku Poyitta (my wife has gone to her hometown).” Times have changed now. G. Purushothaman, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu

India’s hockey win The pulsating final in which the Indian hockey team prevailed over Pakistan’s and won the Asian Champions Trophy title was indeed vintage stuf. The win, which brought back golden memories of the heyday of Indian hockey, can be attributed to sheer professionalism, a clear-cut game plan, cohesiveness, and team spirit along with the indomitable will to succeed. Despite the memorable win, it was disappointing to note that there have hardly been any rewards/cash incentives. One could well imagine the royal treatment ofered to our cricket players under similar circumstances! B. Suresh Kumar, Coimbatore ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2016

A tale of two Americas Thirty years ago nobody took Donald Trump seriously. Today many people do. Because, in America, the future is no longer what it used to be York papers on the “stupidity” of American politicians and spoke to CNN’s Larry King in an interview. What he said proves that what has not changed in the last 30 years are Mr. Trump’s world view, words, and style. He told Mr. King: “Looking at our own stupidity, other countries are laughing at us. This is a great country. But we have stupid leaders… The country is losing $200 billion a year [in trade deficit]… Japan, Saudi Arabia… these are countries that would be wiped of the face of the earth if it were not for the U.S.A. This country will go bust in a couple of years. Japan and all these countries must pay for protection.” He was asked whether America should protect its trade through protectionist policies or by making its businesses more competitive. “There is no free trade in the world, it is virtually impossible for an American company to go and do business in Japan or Saudi Arabia. In the meantime Japan is coming to this country and buying up all of Manhattan,” he said. He added: “Our farmers are dying, the homeless are all over the streets of our cities… We give so much money to the wealthiest countries of the world, but we can’t take care of our own people — the poor, the sick, homeless, the farmers, those people we are not helping.”

T H U R S D AY , N O V E M B E R 3 , 2 0 1 6

VARGHESE K. GEORGE

Tight race in a divided country

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few weeks ago, many Americans would have gufawed at any suggestion that there could be a nail-biting finish to the November 8 presidential election. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had a comfortable lead in the polls, around 12 percentage points in some surveys. The campaign of Republican nominee Donald Trump had been dealt multiple blows stemming from the “Access Hollywood” tapes, where he was caught boasting about groping women without their consent. His popularity plummeted further after at least nine women alleged he had sexually assaulted them years ago. However, with less than a week to voting day, the race has tightened. For the first time since May, Mr. Trump is leading in one major poll. The game changer is FBI Director James Comey’s announcement that his agency was reopening inquiries into Ms. Clinton’s email record after discovering correspondence relating to her in the computer of Anthony Weiner, estranged husband of her aide Huma Abedin. There are multiple undercurrents to this vicious election battle that need to be parsed. In the blue corner, Ms. Clinton still enjoys an overwhelming statistical probability of winning the 270 electoral college votes required to secure the presidency. She maintained a statesmanlike poise throughout the presidential debates, and in Emailgate the FBI has failed to unearth any evidence of criminality against her so far. Yet her problem lies in the perception of untrustworthiness created by her use of a private server while she was Secretary of State, her proximity to deep-pocketed donors on Wall Street and her hard line on a fiscallyexpansive welfare agenda for the middle class. In the red corner, Mr. Trump has refused to tone down his abrasive rhetoric against women, Latinos, Muslims, African-Americans and the diferently abled despite the expected backlash from these demographics and growing alienation from mainstream Republican Party leaders. He has similarly hurled defiance in the teeth of those demanding that he release his tax returns. His brazen invitation to Russian hackers to go hunting for Ms. Clinton’s emails, and allegations about his shadowy financial connections to associates of Vladimir Putin raise troubling questions. That 21 months of feverish campaigning have ended not with a bang but a collective groan of disappointment in two such untrusted and uninspiring candidates says a lot about how bitterly polarised the electorate is. No matter who wins this ugly election, America’s leaders will have to initiate an honest national conversation about reconciling its social mores. Else, the world’s only superpower will find itself diminished.

“Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” — U.S. President Ronald Reagan, speaking in what was then West Berlin, June 12, 1987. “There’s a great big beautiful tomorrow.” — Theme song to ‘Carousel of Progress’, the longest running stage show at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. The show started in 1964 and runs to date. “Future ain’t what it used to be.” — Graiti at a restaurant in the Ohio countryside. “Build that wall.” — The most heard slogan at the rallies of Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump. It is not a coincidence that we get to repeatedly hear about “the last 30 years” in political rhetoric in many parts of the world. Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, who lost out on the Democratic presidential nomination to Hillary Clinton, are two prominent critics of America’s involvement in the tradedriven global capitalist system, and they frame all their arguments in the temporal framework of the last three decades. To cite an example closer home, Prime Minister Narendra Modi repeatedly points out that this is first time in three decades that India has a single party with a parliamentary majority. The three decades in question roughly start with the Reagan speech quoted above and end with the last slogan — the journey of America, from yearning to “tear down that wall” to the war cry of “build that wall”. Understanding what has happened in America in these three decades is essential to understanding what has happened in India, and anticipating what may happen. Because, America remains and will remain in the foreseeable future the global centre of capital, technology and ideas that will influence the rest of the world. Two Americas cheek by jowl America under Reagan, seen from a critical Democratic perspective, was summarised in a soaring piece of political rhetoric by Mario Cuomo, then Governor of New York. At the 1984 Democratic National Convention, as Reagan was seeking re-election, Cuomo made the speech that became famous as the ‘tale of two cities’ speech. He said, referring to an equally famous Reagan speech: “President Reagan admitted that although

Understanding what has happened in America in these three decades is essential to understanding what has happened in India, and anticipating what may happen some people in this country seemed to be doing well nowadays, others were unhappy, even worried, about themselves, their families, and their futures. The President said that he didn’t understand that fear. He said, ‘Why, this country is a shining city on a hill.’ And the President is right. In many ways we are a shining city on a hill. But the hard truth is that not everyone is sharing in this city’s splendour and glory. A shining city is perhaps all the President sees from the portico of the White House and the veranda of his ranch, where everyone seems to be doing well. But there’s another city; there’s another part to the shining city; the part where some people can’t pay their mortgages, and most young people can’t aford one; where students can’t aford the education they need, and middle-class parents watch the dreams they hold for their children evaporate.” Three months after Reagan made his Berlin speech, on September 2, 1987, Mr. Trump — then a 41-year-old real estate tycoon — made his first move that could be called political. He took out an advertisement in the New

The establishment takes all In the last three decades, post-Reagan, there have been two Republican presidents and two Democratic Presidents. It was a Bush who became President from the Republican side both the times; a third Bush was the favourite of the party establishment and U.S. corporations for this year. From the Democratic side, a Clinton was the President for eight years and another Clinton, who has been a Senator and then the Secretary of State, is running to be the next President. Meanwhile, diferent versions of the Cuomo speech got repeated in Democratic Party conventions over the years, even as the policies of both sides became increasingly indistinguishable. Also, among the next-generation Cuomos — the elder one, Andrew Cuomo is now New York governor and his younger brother Chris Cuomo is highly rated anchor on CNN. When Mr. Trump and Mr. Sanders speak about “establishment”, people know who they mean. Mr. Trump has his own version of what’s happened to the average American in the last thee decades, but let’s us turn to Elizabeth Warren, former Harvard academic, Democratic Senator, strongest of all Trump critics, and the most credible of all Hillary Clinton supporters. Speaking at the Democraticleaning Center for American Progress recently, she summarised the change in the last three decades. “The average two-income

CARTOONSCAPE

Green farms and clean air

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he massive pollution cloud enveloping northern India every year is a good example of the disconnect between oicial policy and ground realities. It has been known for long that burning of agricultural waste in the northern States significantly contributes to the poor air quality in large parts of the Indo-Gangetic Basin, with local and cascading impacts felt from Punjab all the way to West Bengal. Harmful fine particulate matter measuring 2.5 mm in diameter (PM2.5) is among the pollutants released. Punjab responded to the issue with a prohibition on the burning of paddy straw, and the launch of initiatives aimed at better utilisation of biomass, including as a fuel to produce power. Yet, there is no mission mode approach to the annual crisis. The eforts do not match the scale of agricultural residues produced, for one, and fail to address farmers’ anxiety to remove the surplus from the fields quickly to make way for the next crop. The national production of crop waste is of the order of 500 million tonnes a year, with Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and West Bengal topping the list. Again, 80 per cent of straw from paddy is burnt in some States, impacting air quality and depriving croplands of nutrients. It is an irony that the national capital and several other cities sufer crippling pollution in the postmonsoon and winter months partly due to biomass burning, when demand for fodder is rising and the surplus material could be used productively. Pilot projects to produce power using biomass demonstrated in Rajasthan, and mechanised composting and biogas production units of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute could be scaled up, and farmers given liberal support to deploy such solutions. Given the twin benefits of pollution abatement and better productivity, conservation agriculture needs to be popularised. This would encourage farmers to use newer low-till seeding technologies that allow much of the crop residues to remain on site, and curb the release of a variety of pollutants. Burning residues add greenhouse gases that cause global warming, besides pollutants such as carbon monoxide, ammonia, nitrous oxide and sulphur dioxide that severely afect human health. Sustained work is called for, given that higher agricultural productivity to meet food needs is inevitable, with a cascading increase in biomass volumes. The challenge is to identify measures to utilise it. By one estimate, if India can reach its own air quality standards for fine particulate matter from all sources, annual premature deaths can be cut by almost 10 per cent. A programme to cut pollution from waste-burning would be a good start. CM YK

family in America is far worse of than a oneincome family in just a generation ago. One in three Americans with a credit file is dealing with a debt collector; 70 per cent of college students are in debt by the time they turn 18. Last year, 8,20,000 American families filed for bankruptcy,” she said. “The American economy may look great from the outside, but for the families living inside, this economy is very diferent. Why did they get so squeezed, so hard?” She ofered the answer: “What has changed is the policy. We went from being a country that strengthened its middle class to one that bets on its wealthiest.” Result? “From 1935 to 1980, 70 per cent of all the new wealth that was created went to the lower 90 per cent of the population and the top 10 per cent of the population took 30 per cent. From 1980 to 2016, the top 10 per cent took almost all of the new wealth created, and the 90 per cent got almost nothing.” Big squeeze for average Americans How has this afected the life of average Americans in the last 30 years? “They spend 13 per cent less on food, 46 per cent less on clothing, 48 per cent less on appliances (iPhones and all fancy gadgets included, after adjusting for inflation).” At the same time, fixed costs are going through the roof. Americans spend “11 per cent more on transportation, 57 per cent more on shelter, 104 per cent more on health insurance, 275 per cent more on college education, 953 per cent more on child care,” compared to 30 years earlier. The change in U.S. politics over the same period, measured by a particular matrix, is also notable: in the early 1980s, interest groups spent $200 million for direct lobbying of American politicians; in 2002 they spent $1.8 billion and in 2012 they spent $3.3 billion. Adjusted for inflation, it is a seven-fold increase in 30 years. When Barack Obama breezed into the scene with the promise of hope, ‘Yes, We Can’, eight years ago, average Americans of all backgrounds thought he would rescue them. He tried to tinker with the existing economic order without seeking to fundamentally change the system. For a man who promised hope and change, he spent considerable time in the last year trying to convince agitated supporters of Mr. Sanders and Black Lives Matter (a movement against systemic racism) that they should be patient, and change comes slowly and incrementally. Why Trump’s pitch resonates ‘Carousel of Progress’ features the material progress that a typical American family makes year after year — new gadgets, comforts, leisure and fun. For the most part of the 20th century, that “there’s a great big beautiful tomorrow” was true. That promise of tomorrow began to eclipse through the recent decades. Former Disney World employee Leo Perrero has experienced that untimely sunset in his life. In 2015, Mr. Perrero made national headlines when he broke down before a Congressional hearing while relating his story. Disney World contracted an Indian company the entire division in which Mr. Perrero used to work. He told The Hindu recently that he and most others who lost their jobs have not been able find a new IT job even a year later. He joined his family’s small business that pays him much less than what he used to earn. He has appeared with Mr. Trump on stage a few times. “It’s very hard to say what will happen if somebody gets into oice,” he said, but believes that Mr. Trump will be better for American workers. Mr. Trump said the same thing that he says today 30 years ago too — same words, same insults, same half-truths. Ms. Clinton is also making roughly the same speech that Cuomo made over three decades ago. “Tale of two cities” is today “an economy that works for all.” Thirty years ago nobody took Mr. Trump seriously. Today many people do. Because, in America, the future ain’t what it used to be. [email protected]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

The Bhopal encounter Any encounter by the police, military or other state agencies attracts the attention of a multitude of persons and institutions (Editorial – “Questions about an encounter”, Nov.2). The reactions are equally divergent. Since we are in a democratic society and the Supreme Court has clear instructions on how to deal with encounters, we need to temper our views accordingly. The Madhya Pradesh government seems to have displayed alacrity in dismissing the need for a probe while the political Opposition has been equally swift to question the circumstances leading to the “encounter”. The impression created by the State government is that the encounter is a form of poetic justice. Somewhere in the middle of all this lies buried adherence to due process, the law, taking into confidence all stakeholders, and of course a speedy trial of the suspects, be they from SIMI or any other outlawed outfit. P.S.S. Murthy, Hyderabad

Courts need indisputable evidence which is next to impossible to find especially when the police have the power of the state behind them. Witnesses can be made to turn hostile and the case will time itself

out. In this case, one foresees walking down a long, dark alley. The ends of justice will never be met. After all, the SIMI men were no film stars or businessmen with political connections. This is a fit case for the toothless body, the National Human Rights Commission, to take up. A.V. Narayanan, Tiruchi

Undertrials are easy prey when there is a need to close complex cases. Once they are safely out of the way, irritants in the form of civil rights organisations, frank journalists and freedom-loving intellectuals can be tackled by labelling them as traitors and antinationals. The episode in Madhya Pradesh played out perfectly till the point when amateur footage was leaked. Will a fair investigation bring out the truth? Varghese George, Secunderabad

It is strange that there are some who still brand those who are associated with SIMI as hard-core terrorists. Most of those arrested have possessed only leaflets or notices which the state brands as evidence of being “anti-national”. Hashim K.T., Kozhikode

It is shocking that some in the BJP

have lashed out against the Opposition for raising questions about the “encounter”. Who was responsible for escorting dreaded terrorists to Kandahar? B.P. Sharatchandran, Chennai

Some in the political class appear to be in a hurry to get into the good books of certain communities. Though one can argue that any loss of human life is unacceptable, this particular incident has to be accepted. The so-called secular parties should be fair and object to the loss of lives in all instances. Why focus on a particular religion? Prakopa Arya, Bengaluru

The way The Hindu has covered the incident shows how biased the newspaper has become. It is yet another instance of its lopsided reporting. The daily has been empathetic towards those who perpetuate crime yet never bothers to report the loss of lives of our soldiers or policemen. Has it ever thought about what must be going through the minds of the families of those killed by terrorists while discharging their duties? I read the daily these days only for language. It is just a mirage as far as fair coverage is concerned. Sridhar R., Hyderabad

Land acquisition Land acquisition has become a contentious issue especially when the aim is industrialisation and the landowner becomes sandwiched between the government and buyer (“Winking at the States”, Nov.2). It is imperative to have a robust land acquisition law because this is the main concern which all investors confront. Another minefield lies in the labyrinthine land dispute resolution system. We have also seen a plethora of cases where land has been acquired from tribals or farmers which leaves them at a loose end. Social impact assessment must be made more meaningful and given more teeth. Gagan Pratap Singh, Noida, Uttar Pradesh

involved in the use of provisions under Article 254(2). Karanveer Singh Shekhawat, Jaipur, Rajasthan

Disrupting school It is shocking that targeting educational institutions lists high on the agenda of antisocial elements in Kashmir, severely afecting local Kashmiris who already face severe diiculties (Editorial – “School’s out in Kashmir”, Nov.2). It is high time that the government took strong note of this and put an end to their nefarious activities which are being supported by Pakistan. They claim to be the voice of the Kashmiri but act otherwise. S.P. Sharma, Mumbai

In the paragraph under the subheading “Undermining Parliament”, the writers ignore the crucial point that if a bill passed by the State legislature is reserved for the President’s consideration, the President has the power not to give assent to it even if it has been sent back to him after reconsideration by the State legislature, provided it is not a money bill. This is not the case with bills passed by Parliament. As far as State legislation is concerned, the President has considerable autonomy to check the intentions

It is obvious that frustration runs high among separatist leaders as their agenda does not seem to be finding resonance in the Valley. These attacks show the level dirty politics has sunk to, which will further escalate problems. An already stressed society in Kashmir does not need further problems. Children need to get back to school and every efort must be taken to see that this happens. It is their right. Mudit Katiyar, Lucknow ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2016

The siege that wasn’t It is still unclear why Imran Khan suddenly withdrew plans to ‘lock down’ Islamabad: whether the military did not support him, or he did not have enough manpower F R I D AY , N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 6

S. AKBAR ZAIDI

Getting real on OROP

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he suicide of Subedar Ram Kishen Grewal, allegedly over delay in receiving arrears under the One Rank, One Pension scheme, has set of a political storm. In a related move, the ex-servicemen groups demanding unconditional OROP have resumed their protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar; it had been called of six months ago after assurances from Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. Amidst all this, the real issues in the implementation of OROP have been lost sight of. The veterans are demanding OROP in its rightful form, which going by the accepted definition implies uniform pension to armed forces personnel retiring with the same rank and length of service regardless of the date of retirement. Among the major concerns highlighted by the veterans are: annual equalisation as against the approved five years; exclusion of those who opt for premature retirement (PMR) from the ambit of OROP; implementation from April 2014; and adoption of the highest pay scale of 2013 for revising pension. The government’s predicament is obvious. Except for PMR, all these are financial issues and have budgetary implications. Annual pension revision for over 20 lakh people would also be an administrative challenge. The big issue is PMR, as it has consequences for the armed forces that go beyond extra pension money. The Centre’s OROP notification said “personnel who opt to get discharged henceforth on their own request” will not be entitled to its benefits. This made a distinction between those who opted for PMR in the past and those who may do so in future. There is still no clarity on the criteria of PMR, which has created confusion in the rank and file, particularly among those who are looking to leave the service after completing the pensionable service or have been superseded and have no further chances of promotion. It is debatable whether oicers opting to leave the service on their own for better prospects and drawing regular pension should be given the additional benefit of OROP. However, there needs to be clarity to the PMR criteria, else it could push back eforts to build a younger Army and improve promotion opportunities. As for the implementation status, about Rs.5,500 crore had been disbursed; of the roughly 20.6 lakh pensioners, only one lakh are still to get the money. That the protests in Delhi have dwindled reflects the larger mood among the veterans. It is a welcome step that OROP has been granted after 40 years of demands, but the Centre must quickly iron out the remaining wrinkles.

Imran Khan has a lot to answer for. At one level, it is quite diicult to comprehend why Mr. Khan, who had been threatening to ‘lock down’ Islamabad on November 2, did a complete volte face on the evening of November 1 and changed the threatened one million protesters march on Islamabad into an eventual wimpish rally of a few thousand, by announcing to observe a thanksgiving day, a Youm-e-Tashakur, instead. Such has been the surprise of the unexpected climbdown from one who continues to claim that he never gives up and is a born fighter, and who claims that he holds the world record for the longest dharna of 127 days, that his opponents have had an even greater opportunity to chide him further. His climbdown was likened to a surrender similar to 1971, with a prominent Pakistan Peoples Party leader saying, “one more Niazi surrendered in November”, referring to the surrender by General A.K. Niazi in Dhaka in December 1971. Benazir Bhutto’s daughter, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, called him “U-turn Khan”, as did the daily newspaper Pakistan Today with its morning headline of “Déjà U”. A former Imran Khan supporter and party member Javed Hashmi said that Mr. Khan should instead observe a “day of humiliation”, while others called it a “day of retreat”. Many of the workers of his Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), who had been dodging rubber bullets and dealing with tear gas in battling the police a few hours earlier, were disgusted and disappointed by their Kaptaan’s unexpected decision. Unlike 2014 Mr. Khan had been threatening to lock down Islamabad for some months now as a sequel to his long dharna in Islamabad from August to December 2014, which ended involuntarily after the Taliban attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar. The first round in 2014 was on account of Mr. Khan’s

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

This time around, the stakes had been higher than in 2014, with Mr. Khan insisting that he would not back down till the Prime Minister resigned allegations that there had been extensive rigging in the 2013 elections, and he forced the Election Commission of Pakistan to look into these allegations — proofs, he called them. Eventually the Election Commission did take a very close look at the election results and found that there had not been any significant or systematic irregularities to annul the elections overall, but did insist on re-voting in a few constituencies. Mr. Khan was seen as a big loser at the end of that round, Dharna 1.0 as it was being called, since much of the four months of the dharna were spent abusing and vilifying Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and little else. This time round, Dharna 2.0 as some were calling it, the stakes were higher, with Mr. Khan insisting that he would not back down till the Prime Minister resigned. In April this year, when the Panama Leaks story of numerous politicians from around the world having ofshore companies broke,

and it was revealed that Mr. Sharif’s daughter and son had such companies in their name, Mr. Khan, along with other opposition political parties, decided to launch a movement against the Prime Minister, accusing him of corruption. For many months, there were intense negotiations between a collective opposition and the government about setting up a commission to investigate the alleged corruption of Mr. Sharif and his family. As often happens, the opposition was worn down by the government and eventually the pressure was lifted of the Prime Minister who, in the meanwhile, spent eight weeks in London for a bypass procedure. For most politicians, the Panama leaks story had died its unsurprising end. Not so for Mr. Khan, who claims he never gives up. He didn’t, and continued his verbal protests, finally culminating in the ultimatum of a November 2 lockdown and ‘million march’ unless the Prime Minister resigned. In the meantime, soon after announcing the lockdown date, the Supreme Court of Pakistan agreed to hear five constitutional petitions seeking the disqualification of Prime Minister Sharif in the wake of the Panama Papers revelations, and announced, almost magically, to hear the petitions on November 1. This was dismissed by Mr. Khan as yet another ploy and delaying tactic, and he continued to rally his party workers and other opposition political parties to join his campaign and dharna of November 2. A few thousand party faithful started making their way to Islamabad from the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, overcoming barriers and numerous road blocks, tear-gas shelling, and confronting large battalions of the police. A showdown appeared imminent and it was being anticipated in Islamabad that ‘something big’ was about to happen, and this time Imran Khan would actually push the government over the edge. Appeals to the Army chief While Mr. Khan was egging on his supporters, a battalion of television journalists on a few (supposedly) private television channels were adding a great deal of fuel and fire to a potential explosion. Some par-

CARTOONSCAPE

Failing the electoral test Having lost numerous by-elections since 2013, as well as having been trounced in elections in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and by continuing to boycott Parliament including key sessions such as those on Kashmir, Mr. Khan continues to be Pakistan’s biggest loser politically, precisely because he does have large support, though clearly not enough to win elections outright. His political base continues to be the mainly urban-middle-class, conservative youth, both men and women, of the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. For his singular obsession to become Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Khan will need to change his agitational posture and politics and transform it into one which could help win elections through party reorganisation, rather than by empty threats which remain just that. If only his hubris allowed him, perhaps he could even learn from a young man less than half his age, who is in the process of rebuilding his mother's party.

How to balance our gigs

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n employment tribunal ruling in London last week that Uber drivers are “workers” and not “self-employed”, and therefore entitled to a minimum wage and paid leave, could have implications not only for Britain’s 40,000 Uber drivers but for others associated with the ‘gig economy’ in Britain and beyond. Uber’s business model is predicated on calling itself a platform that connects those who want transportation services to those who provide them. The ruling held that Uber sells rides, not software, despite its legal and corporate structure and licensing agreements attempting to suggest otherwise. The gig economy is driven by algorithms and technology. It extends beyond ride-sharing applications to food delivery, car rental and hosting services. Earning money as an independent contractor — that is, through a gig — is not new. But the changing nature and growth of such business models and their inextricable linkages to technology, often via a smartphone app, is making it hard for regulators to keep up. From the consumer’s perspective, app-based transportation services have been beneficial: increased clarity on pricing, speedy redress of complaints, decreased waiting times via eicient driver-passenger match algorithms, and so on. The business model has brought more drivers into the workforce by ofering flexible hours and gigs to anyone who meets certain criteria. From the service provider’s perspective, the ability to work flexible hours can be a way to earn supplementary income. The British ruling, where the complainants were Uber drivers, focusses on the producer. It has ruled that clever use of legal and technological instruments cannot circumvent basic work-related rights. Thus it has begun the overdue process of determining the producer’s obligations. In India, with its vast unorganised labour force and patchy social protection, piecemeal work, such as that ofered through apps in the for-hire transport market, holds the possibility of earning a livelihood that is above the minimum wage. The issues in India, for now, are likely to be diferent from those in the U.K., such as ensuring that algorithms do not incentivise drivers to work beyond the permitted maximum number of hours. There are, however, broader themes shared across borders and the range of oferings in the gig economy — including the need for companies to be transparent about their policies and practices so that regulation can be crafted in the first place. Such regulation should be streamlined, responsive to changing ground realities, and easily understandable by users. Any successful way forward will nurture innovation while protecting the rights of all stakeholders.

S. Akbar Zaidi is a political economist based in Karachi. He also teaches at Columbia University in New York, and at the IBA in Karachi.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Politics over a suicide The ruckus following the suicide of a retired Army Subedar over the one rank, one pension scheme is disgraceful (“High drama after veteran commits suicide over OROP”, Nov. 3). It is absurd that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being blamed for the suicide. Hundreds of suicides take place everyday for various reasons; can he be held responsible for all of them? There is no doubt that the ex-jawan’s suicide is unfortunate, but the problem of non-disbursement of the amount is reportedly because of implementation hassles which need to be sorted out. The fact is that it is the present government that actually implemented the OROP. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and others should have avoided visiting the hospital where the body was taken for post-mortem. They could have met the family members, if they wanted to, later at the exjawan’s residence. Perhaps the police could have showed greater restraint and avoided detaining these top leaders, but it also true that these leaders are unable to command respect. While one appreciates Mr. Gandhi, Mr. Kejriwal and others for being present at Ram Kishen Grewal’s funeral, one wonders why they did not attend the funerals of soldiers killed at the border. K.R. Jayaprakash Rao, Mysuru

The Modi government has CM YK

ticularly notorious TV anchors started urging the Pakistan military to intervene, often using God’s name, calling out to the soon-tobe-retiring Army chief, General Raheel Sharif, to impose martial law, and as always ‘to save the nation’. While the usual suspects were at this game, some prominent ‘lifestyle liberal’ political analysts were also singing the praises of the ‘most popular army commander in Pakistan’s history, popular amongst his own force and the population at large’, urging him, before he retires on November 29, to render his ‘farewell service to the nation’. Pakistan’s two-decade military curse (1958, 1977, 1999) looked imminent, at least to some. But just a few hours before a probable confrontation, Mr. Khan withdrew. The ostensible reason given publicly was that as advertised and announced days ahead, the Supreme Court of Pakistan simply asked the Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz and PTI to submit their terms of reference for the formation of a commission to probe the Panama Papers leaks, and as simply, Mr. Khan called of the threatened lockdown. If things were ever so simple. During the 2014 dharna, Mr. Khan kept looking towards General Sharif, hoping that the latter would intervene and send Mr. Sharif packing on account of allegations of electoral fraud. When General Sharif summoned Mr. Khan during the sit-in, it was clearly not to inform him that he was going to be ordained as Pakistan’s next Prime Minister, and a disappointed Mr. Khan returned to a doomed container in Islamabad. However, Mr. Khan persisted with his never-giving-up dharna. This time, in 2016, it is still unclear why he suddenly closed shop, holding a jalsa instead, and one can merely speculate until more is revealed. Whether it was the military which did not support him this time with the retirement (or extension) of the Army chief due in four weeks, or whether he just did not have the basic support he had in 2014 when Tahir-ulQadri provided much manpower, or whether the government did hamper any movement towards Islamabad, the lockdown was abandoned, making Mr. Khan look politically inept, immature and very foolish. Equally foolish have looked the many TV anchors who surpassed even their most belligerent of anxieties, repeatedly begging the military to step in, undermining all semblance of neutrality.

blundered in its handling of a retired Army Subedar’s suicide over the non-implementation of OROP. In the process, the government’s cultivated jawan-friendly image has taken a severe blow. The incident shows how a ruling party can commit political suicide when it overplays its hand. The BJP’s accusation, that the Opposition leaders are trying to make political capital out of the tragedy by attempting to meet the deceased soldier’s family members, cuts no ice with the people. If the Army has been made a political football, the credit (or rather the discredit) for it should largely go to the ruling party. The BJP can only retrieve this situation, albeit partially, by apologising to Grewal’s family and fulfilling the ex-jawan’s last wish. G. David Milton, Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu

Despite repeatedly failing to make any impact with his strategies, Rahul Gandhi’s attempt to meet the family of the ex-serviceman is nothing but cheap politics over a death to show the ruling government in poor light and score some brownie points. The drama enacted by him and the Delhi Chief Minister clearly shows that they wanted to meet the family members of the veteran for electoral gains rather than real love for the soldiers. We must remember that when the Congress was sitting on the OROP file for years, none of the Opposition parties were serious enough to see its implementation. K.R. Srinivasan, Secunderabad

Whether it is the OROP issue, the surgical strikes, or the SIMI encounter, all the political parties are trying to push forth their own agendas in order to obtain maximum political benefit, keeping aside the gravity of these events. With these kind of selfish visions, how can they focus on ground realities faced by the common man? Mudit Katiyar,

acting tough by also by acting smartly. Allowing Mr. Gandhi, Mr. Kejriwal and other leaders to meet the grieving family of the Army ex-jawan could have been a peaceful afair. These detentions have led to more law and order problems, exposing the incompetency of the police to gauge the situation. Manzar Imam,

Lucknow

New Delhi

It is shameful that an ex-serviceman committed suicide over the OROP issue at a time when our Prime Minister is reminding us of the sacrifices that our soldiers make for our security. Ram Kishen Grewal allegedly committed suicide on being denied permission to submit a petition to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. Minister of State for External Afairs and former Chief of Army Staf General V.K Singh’s statement that Grewal’s “state of mind” should be investigated is provocative. B. Prabha, Varkala, Kerala

To stop Rahul Gandhi from meeting Ram Kishen Grewal’s family and detain him is shameful, unwarranted and reflects the Centre and Delhi Police’s highhandedness. It is equally shameful to detain Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. If the police falls under the Central government, that does not mean that it should go around disrespecting leaders of other parties and rough them up wherever and whenever it wishes. The police are supposed to maintain law and order not just by

The final lap This season seems more like a soap opera than a time of the U.S. presidential election (“Tight race in a divided country”, Nov. 3). With less than a week to go, polls show the competition growing closer in the wake of the FBI’s revelations. The U.S. is set to elect a leader whom it either deeply dislikes or distrusts. It is no wonder then that a survey by the American Psychological Association has found that this election has caused a significant amount of stress to 52 per cent of Americans. Padmini Raghavendra, Secunderabad

The article, “A tale of two Americas” (Nov.3), is a brilliant analysis uncovering the struggles of the American middle class to cope with the rising cost of living in the midst of inflation, unemployment, and recession. The overall sluggishness in the U.S. economy has exposed the vulnerability of a market economy to business cycles. It is unfortunate that the U.S., which once led the free trade ideology, has itself turned into one of the most

vociferous proponents of protectionism in international trade. Further, with the impact of recession and economic slowdown, the middle class and the poor in America have emerged as a major vote bank, reducing the clout of the rich and powerful in the U.S. presidential elections to a great extent. The desperate eforts of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to win a major chunk of this new vote bank are no doubt a victory for the working classes and poor in the country. This also shows that various marginalised sections of American society appear to be uniting and regrouping as a separate class, rising above their racial, ethnic and religious ailiations. This class convergence is bound to bring a radical change. The results of November 8 will certainly reflect this transformation. Joseph Abraham, Gurugram

Newsworthy? It is a pity that so much of media attention has been given to the Gautami-Kamal Haasan split. It is all the more painful that The Hindu, known for its high standards of journalism, has allotted excessive space for this news, which is definitely unwarranted (“Gautami announces split with Kamal Haasan”, Nov. 1). There are plenty of important issues in our country that demand spacious coverage in print media more than celebrities. R. Sivakumar, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2016

Piecing together an encounter There is a crying need to impress upon our young oicers that there is no gallantry involved in shooting at people who cannot shoot back S AT U R D AY , N O V E M B E R 5 , 2 0 1 6

P.K. HORMIS THARAKAN

Still unwieldy but just in time

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inance Minister Arun Jaitley has managed to break the stalemate with States at the Goods and Services Tax Council’s fourth round of deliberations over the contentious issue of tax rates for the new tax regime. He did this by retaining the standard rates of 12 per cent and 18 per cent proposed at the Council’s last meeting, but tweaking the highest and lowest tax slabs from 26 per cent to 28 per cent and 6 per cent to 5 per cent, respectively. Concerns of States that levy Value Added Tax at 5 per cent on items of mass consumption were met by lowering the threshold GST rate. Foodgrains and other items considered essential, that together constitute roughly half the consumer price inflation index, have been exempted from GST. Since inflation is a tax on the poor and indirect taxes are regressive, this would help check worries about inflationary repercussions. But raising the highest tax slab to 28 per cent to balance the fiscal books is a surprise, especially since it would be levied on items such as consumer durables and cars that are now taxed at 30-31 per cent. Even if producers do pass on this rate diferential to customers, this is hardly likely to spur the kind of consumption that could drive more manufacturing investment, create jobs and bolster economic growth. The cess on top of GST to be levied on luxury and sin goods is neither desirable nor eicient. Unless its levy is restricted to end-use products at the point of sale, it would further distort the eiciency gains from GST as input credit for cess paid on intermediary goods is unlikely. The government has argued that the cess will help compensate States for five years and that the Council can take a call on doing away with it thereafter. Similar visibility should be provided on dovetailing the multiple tax rates into two or three in the coming years, if not the international norm of a single GST rate. Multiple rates will not just pose an administrative challenge but also spur ugly corporate lobbying of the kind that the Finance Minister wanted to nix by phasing out exemptions in direct taxes. Days before he became Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman, Arvind Panagariya had flagged the cost of focussing too much on one reform, which spills over into other reforms being delayed. That the recently constituted GST Council has covered much ground with unanimous consensus augurs well for the GST deadline, including refining the model GST law and ensuring industry and the tax department are ready to make the GST switch by April 1, 2017. But the proposed rate structure is still too complicated to meet the objective of radically simplifying tax compliance.

The true hero of the momentous events of October 31 in Bhopal relating to the prison break-out and eventual killing of the eight undertrials belonging to the banned organisation, Students Islamic Movement of India, was Head Constable Ramashankar Yadav. He was a proud representative of that tribe of uniformed men who wear khaki and carry out some of the most diicult and despised jobs day after day hardly noticed by the public and the press unless they commit an error. Though his job was to keep under control some of the most violent people in the country, he was lightly armed, if at all. He represented the might of the nation as he endeavoured to stop eight dreaded prisoners who were seeking to escape. He and his colleague were overpowered and he was killed, but Ramashankar Yadav upheld the glory of the khaki uniform that he wore that Deepavali night, as the rest of the country celebrated the festival of lights. Murky episode What followed was also truly noteworthy. The eight prisoners are reported to have scaled the walls of the high security prison in the very early hours of the morning. Local villagers were alerted and the fleeing desperadoes were located before mid-day. The police killed them in an encounter. Upto this point, the story unfolds as a glorious operation based on people-police cooperation, which is the ideal model that the police and civil society have been seeking for decades to put in place. If this kind of amazing police-public cooperation could be replicated in every village of India, the hands of the police would be immensely strengthened and would-be escapees from prisons would realise the futility of attempting such misadventures. However, the story gets somewhat murkier thereafter, casting shadows on what should have been a glorious chapter in the history of Madhya Pradesh Police. Doubts are being expressed about the police claim that the eight fugitives were killed in a genuine encounter. These doubts are being expressed on the basis of some video recordings that are mak-

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Those entrusted with the task of conducting inquiries too are rarely familiar with the pressures under which police officers in the field function ing the rounds. In the days after, there is not much clarity about the facts of that eventful day. Hence it may still be early days for pronouncing judgment. I would only look at some of the principles that seem to be emerging as we try to understand this complicated business involving the death of a prison guard, escape of dreaded criminals from a prison, their death at the hands of the police and the consequent debate which has legal, administrative, intellectual and political ramifications having a bearing on the nation’s internal security policy. Working at the grass-roots I think the first lesson is that as we seek to ensure the nation’s security, we need to strengthen the lowest rungs of the national security architecture, namely, the police stations and prisons. These are institutions that are firmly in the civilian, and not in military, arena where the focus on national security

mostly falls. Strengthening does not necessarily mean giving more powerful arms to policemen and prison guards, but ensuring that security measures put in place are enforced properly. The former Chief of the Madhya Pradesh Prisons Department is on record saying that clear standard operating procedures (SOP) had been laid down in the Bhopal Central Prison for the operation of the CCTV system, for keeping the barracks of the SIMI undertrial prisoners under surveillance, for not allowing them to mingle, for locking of individual cells, etc. Obviously, these SOPs were very clear but not followed scrupulously. This raises questions about the quality of leadership, and whether the right person had been posted to superintendent the prisons. Ironically, Bhopal Central Prison is ISO-certified for the correctional and rehabilitation facilities, besides the standard of living conditions it provides to the inmates. Though the certification does not cover high-tech security infrastructure required to ensure expected standards for a high security detention centre, it is a matter of great regret that such an incident happened in a prison of such high reputation. All the more reason to check whether the State government had taken suicient care to find the right person to manage the afairs of the Bhopal Central Prison. The point I am trying to make is that if a State wants to be known for its proactive approach to national security, it is such apparently trivial matters that it must pay close attention to. Now, on the defensive At the same time, it is clear that at least some of the doubts that are being raised about the genuineness of the breakout need to be dismissed outright. In an incident where a prison guard was done to death, it is heartless to raise an allegation that he was killed in a staged jailbreak. As I said earlier, the speed with which the police managed to track the fugitives down with the help of local people was truly remarkable. But the doubts expressed regarding what happened thereafter certainly need to be looked into, especially in view of the reported assertion of the chief of the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) that though the fugitives were unarmed, the police were legally empowered to kill them. He is obviously relying on Section 46 (2) and (3) of the Criminal Procedure Code which says that if and when a person forcibly

CARTOONSCAPE

Ominous curb on media freedom

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he order of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, directing that Hindi television channel NDTV India be taken of air for 24 hours on November 9, is a serious violation of media freedom. Coming as it does from a regime that seems to disapprove of any diference in opinion on issues concerning national security, the suspension smacks of a disturbing inclination to impose restrictions on journalistic content. The decision arises from the telecast of developments relating to the terrorist attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in January. The news channel is accused of airing sensitive information that compromised the safety of military personnel and civilians even as operations were on to neutralise the attack. According to the inter-ministerial committee that inquired into the charge, the disclosure of details relating to the location of the ammunitions depot, the range of weapons and military assets available there and the presence of civilian residences in the vicinity could have been used by terrorists to their advantage. The broadcaster’s defence was that nothing was disclosed that was not published or aired by other media outlets, that its reportage was largely based on oicial briefings and that it was done in a responsible manner. Ever since media coverage of the terror attacks in Mumbai in November 2008 created a controversy, it has been accepted that there is a need for restrained and responsible coverage of anti-terrorism operations and potential hostage situations. The News Broadcasting Standards Authority, set up by the News Broadcasters Association, came up with a set of rules. The Ministry could have either approached the authority, which is headed by a former Supreme Court judge, or formed an independent panel to adjudicate the question. Instead, it has invoked a rule introduced in June 2015 that imposes a blanket ban on all live coverage of any anti-terrorist operation until it ends. It has cited statutory provisions that empower the government to regulate or prohibit the transmission of TV programmes. There is no mention of any provision for appeal. None can reasonably argue that irresponsible live coverage of an ongoing operation should attract no penalty. A problem arises when the penalty is decided by a government panel. Taking a channel of air for however brief a period is a serious decision that could be read as a signal to other newsrooms to self-censor. A committee of officials is not the ideal body to make an independent assessment of what constitutes information that poses an imminent danger to military personnel or civilians. That is the job of an independent forum. CM YK

resists the endeavour to arrest him, or attempts to evade the arrest, such police oicer or other person may use all means necessary to efect the arrest, including causing the death of a person if he is accused of an offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life. Hence the ATS chief’s defence is probably that it would not be against the extant law if force has been used to the extent commensurate to the requirement in the given circumstances, as perceived by the policemen on the scene and their assessment. However, it is inevitable that the judgment of the oicer on the spot would be called up for review either in an inquiry or a judicial proceeding. In the instant case, conflicting claims by various people in authority about the fugitives having been armed with guns lead to confusion about what exactly is the defence of the police. Handling the pressure But the real pity is that in a case such as this, where the police could have covered itself entirely with glory, it seems to have been forced to be on the defensive. Facing an inquiry, whether by an executive or a judicial body, is an ordeal for any policeman. Yes, when loss of lives is involved, it is only natural and just that there be an inquiry to ascertain the facts. But, those entrusted with the task of conducting inquiries are rarely familiar with the pressures under which police oicers in the field function. There are certain occasions when passions run high, especially when one of your own has been killed. In a war situation, a nation’s army avenging a colleague’s death is perfectly permissible. In an internal security situation, you have to abide by the law of the land, which limits the extent or the scope of your reaction. The problem of the oicer in charge is to ensure this compliance in a heavily charged atmosphere, which cannot be understood or grasped by those who have not been in the field under conditions of immense pressure. Hence in most inquiries the police oicer finds it immensely diicult to answer questions as to whether he complied with every little letter of the law as he led his men into an encounter with an enemy who observes no rules. There is a growing impression in the government that it is necessary to encourage policemen and security personnel in general to be more aggressive in dealing with terrorism. If the government wants the police to take strong action against terrorists, it should empower them through legislation, and not leave them to fend for themselves in courts after eliminating them through questionable encounters. There are many young oicers who have had their careers cut short in recent years on account of their misplaced sense of valour. We must also remember that one of the most significant breakthroughs in criminal investigation of terrorist cases happened because Ajmal Kasab, who had killed hundreds in Mumbai, was caught alive through the supreme self-sacrifice of ASI Tukaram Gopal Omble. Had at least one of the escapees in Bhopal been captured alive, so much of intelligence regarding their means of escape and the help, if any, they received from outside could have been generated, which would have contributed immensely to the pool house of information which is the backbone of national security. In the ultimate analysis, there is a crying need to impress upon our young oicers that there is no gallantry involved in shooting at people who cannot shoot back, either because their hands are already tied behind their back, or because they are already dead. P.K. Hormis Tharakan is a former chief of the Research and Analysis Wing.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Death of a soldier While the alleged suicide of Ram Kishen Grewal, an ex-serviceman, over the ‘One Rank, One Pension’ issue is tragic, the reaction of some politicians is opportunistic (“Kejriwal grants Rs.1 crore to veteran’s family”, Nov.4). Did Rahul Gandhi find time for the families of farmers when they committed suicide in Maharashtra due to bad crops or poverty? People are smart enough to see through the crocodile tears of leaders. The sooner politicians understand this, the better for Indian polity. Y.G. Chouksey, Pune

What did the grand old party do as far as the ‘One Rank, One Pension’ principle was concerned for the nearly five decades it ruled the country? Therefore, how can the party talk about the issue when considerable progress has been achieved on the issue under the present government? Rahul Gandhi is only shedding crocodile tears and wants to play politics after the unfortunate demise of an ex-soldier. Raghavan Sampath, Chennai

It is not only some political leaders but even the family members of the soldier were roughed up and detained by the police. Heavens would not have fallen had these leaders been allowed to meet the bereaved family members to express their sympathies. It is not the first time that the Delhi police have acted in such a fashion. The BJP

government should shun its policy of fooling the people with empty slogans (“Parrikar promises solution soon”, Nov.4). S.K. Khosla, Chandigarh

Off the air, 24x1 The move by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting ordering a private television channel to go of the air for a day for having revealed strategically sensitive details during the Pathankot terror attack in January this year is welcome (Nov.4). While the media should contribute its bit to keeping people well informed, it should not become overenthusiastic; it has the moral responsibility to ensure that it doesn’t cross the line as far as security and maintaining peace are concerned. S. Ramakrishnasayee, Ranipet, Tamil Nadu

It is perhaps the highly competitive environment in which the media works that is responsible for the channel having gone a bit too far. It is good that the proposed ban is only for a day rather than the earlier contemplated 30 days. The move should be a lesson for all in the electronic media. Commercial interests are important but not at the cost of national security. Bal Govind, Noida

It appears as though India is facing an undeclared Emergency. Curbing the freedom of the media will weaken democratic values. It is a

shame that non-violence and tolerance are hardly valued in Gandhi’s own country. Sanjay K. Bissoyi, Gudra, Odisha

Whatever was apprehended by senior BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani two years ago appears to be becoming a reality. We seem to be moving towards a state of Emergency, where censoring the freedom of speech and expression is the first step in this direction. The channel in question is known for its genuine and rational news and analysis. It is definitely being punished for following its independent journalism. Amit Kumar Singh, Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh

With more examples of the ideological and authoritarian ways of this government coming to light, one sees it being no diferent from previous Congress governments. What ever happened to the vision our forefathers had for Indian democracy? D. Davidson, Tiruchi

When the UPA demitted oice, it left behind a legacy of social programmes as well as a slew of corruption scandals that we are still recovering from. People voted for change — for a better economy and less corruption. Now, there is hardly any scandal, or it could just be that the media is suppressing things. The suppression of freedom of expression is next. When the BJP was in the opposition, it attacked the

Manmohan Singh government at will, and as many would add, rightly so. But did he respond by arresting or suing all and sundry? Press freedom seems to be facing grave danger. No one can or should breathe a word disagreeing with the right wing. Tagore’s exhortation to all Indians “where the mind is without fear...” seems a distant dream. Ordinary Indians need to start speaking up. Dr. Thambu Sudarsanam,

stoke fears among senior citizens about their safety and security. The increase in crimes against the elderly is a reflection of the law and order situation in Tamil Nadu and is a blot on the Tamil Nadu police. One hopes that the plan to protect residents is not knee-jerk and continues (Chennai editions, “Police to collect details of senior citizens”, Nov.4). Tharcius S. Fernando, Chennai

Vellore, Tamil Nadu

GST levy Though against the idea of uniform tax rates, the multiple tax rate structure as recommended by the GST Council is inevitable in addressing the federal and diverse socio-economic structure of India (“Council fixes 4-level GST tax structure”, Nov.4). The aim of policymakers should be to create a national seamless market to avert any undue advantage to any company due to location and distance from the market. This will not only raise competitiveness domestically but also make our exports more competitive in the international market. Employment opportunities generated will boost income and consumption levels, which will have a multiplier efect on growth and development. Gagan Pratap Singh, Noida, Uttar Pradesh

Seniors’ safety The murder of a senior citizen in a posh area of Chennai is bound to

After the demolition It is ironic that the 11-storey structures in Moulivakkam in Chennai, one of which was demolished on November 2 after the collapse of the other structure, were named “Belief” and “Faith”. In reality, all the belief and faith of the buyers were destroyed thanks to the corrupt manner in which the builder and oicials acted (Chennai editions, “Dust, debris and a day of high drama”, and “Left stranded by an investment that was not safe as a house”, Nov.3). Though the structure was razed without any damage to men and materials, a pertinent question that arises is how the project was sanctioned by the local authorities especially on soil that was unsuitable. One empathises with the buyers who have been left in the lurch. The incident should be the last of its kind and the authorities concerned should learn a lesson or two in strictly implementing the rules on issuing building licences. S. Nallasivan, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2016

Gazing at a longer horizon A national security doctrine, with political consensus, can prevent the unnecessary politicisation of national security issues. But is the government invested in drawing it up? M O N D AY , N O V E M B E R 7 , 2 0 1 6

HAPPYMON JACOB

Looking for a humane solution

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he agreement between India and Sri Lanka on establishing a Joint Working Group on fisheries is a small step forward in resolving the dispute between fishermen of both countries. In fact, such a mechanism had been in place until a few years ago to address problems that arose whenever fishermen from Tamil Nadu were arrested by Sri Lanka. The points agreed on are important: a hotline between the Coast Guards of both countries, a meeting of the JWG once in three months, and a meeting of the fisheries ministers every six months. Welcome too is the commitment that there would be no violence or loss of life of fishermen. These measures are useful in getting Indian fishermen or their boats released from custody, but they are unlikely to have any immediate impact on the livelihood crisis facing the fishermen of northern Sri Lanka. Such a crisis may grip Tamil Nadu fishermen too one day, after the fishery resources in the Palk Bay are exhausted. The real issue is how long trawlers from Tamil Nadu will continue to fish in Sri Lankan territorial waters, and how soon bottom trawling is ended. The oicial statement after the talks between the foreign ministers refers to “expediting the transition towards ending the practice of bottom trawling at the earliest”. An agreement on this is crucial, but in the absence of a time frame there remains a question mark over a solution emerging. Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen are firm on an immediate end to all incursions and are against seized Indian boats being released without legal process, even though they agree that the arrested fishermen should be released. In talks between representatives of fishermen held a few days earlier, Tamil Nadu fishermen had asked for a three-year phase-out period for their trawlers, and a deal under which they would fish for 85 days a year until then. This was rejected outright by the Sri Lankan side, which holds that the Indian vessels cause serious economic and ecological damage. One way of preventing boundary transgression is to find a livelihood alternative for Tamil Nadu fishermen. Equipping them for deep sea fishing is an option. For now, Tamil Nadu should show greater understanding of the plight of the Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen, who are economically weaker and yet to fully recover from a devastating war, and agree to a more reasonable phase-out period. Sri Lanka, then, can look at a licensing system under which fishermen from both sides can fish on specified days using sustainable methods and permissible equipment. It is important that all sides recognise that there is a humanitarian dimension to the issue.

New Delhi’s decision to get back at Pakistan by raking up Balochistan in various global fora goes to demonstrate how tactical considerations continue to trump strategic thinking in India. New Delhi, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s stewardship, has displayed an exceptional, often admirable, amount of enthusiasm for foreign and security policy, and yet the country’s strategic thinking continues to be guided by bureaucratic ad hocism, tactical considerations, and political expediency. Mr. Modi’s ‘energetic’ foreign policy has not gone significantly beyond catchy rhetoric and fanfare. Take, for instance, some of the early objectives of this government: neighbourhood first, selling India’s growth story globally, and getting Sino-Indian relations on track. Half-way through its term, most of these objectives lay in tatters. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership continues to argue that having completed over 50 foreign trips in this period, Mr. Modi has energised India’s foreign policy. But how does “energising” become a foreign policy achievement if policy and strategy are to be judged on the basis of outcomes, consistency and followup? Beyond these obvious issues, there is, however, a fundamental lacuna inherent in the country’s strategic behaviour and choices today: it functions without a grand strategic blueprint. Boxed up in South Asia Despite its stated global ambitions, India behaves like a country confined to its South Asian geopolitical space. By enhancing our involvement in a never-ending battle with Pakistan and directing diplomatic and political energy towards fighting it, we have efectively withdrawn ourselves into our little favourite box called South Asia. Increasing Sino-Indian disafection would further prompt Beijing to do what it can to confine India to where the former thinks it belongs. New Delhi’s new-found outrage about human rights violations in Balochistan is suggestive of misplaced priorities. Not only that, doing so is invariably running a fool’s errand but more importantly, it is a sheer waste of India’s diplomatic energy, limited as it is due to the acute lack of diplomats in the Ministry of External Afairs (MEA). Yet, ‘human rights violations in Balochistan’ was Mr. Modi’s profoundest policy announcement from the ramparts of the Red Fort this year. Paradoxically, even as India is increasingly getting boxed up in the limited geo-strategic sphere of South Asia, its influence within it is steadily weakened by Chinese economic and military power. The diminishing of American power and consequent strategic realign-

While this unrelenting focus on terror might benefit the political agenda at home, it is not in keeping with the country’s long-term national interest ments in the region are bound to frustrate India’s influence in the region furthermore. Terror-fixated foreign policy New Delhi’s diplomatic eforts increasingly seem to revolve around the issue of Pakistan-backed terrorism, and it leaves no stone unturned to talk about it at every major international forum. Getting the U.S. to say something about Pakistan-based terror seems to be an ego-trip for New Delhi. It is a diferent matter that the Americans unhesitatingly make well-rehearsed statements about terrorism from Pakistan and then go back to doing business with Rawalpindi. But then, all we ask for is a statement! Notwithstanding the fact that India’s foreign and security policy concerns are far more than just terrorism, reducing India’s foreign policy focus to terrorism to such an extent demonstrates how tactical we are in our approach. While this unrelenting focus on terror might benefit the BJP’s political agenda at home, it is not in keeping with the country’s long-term national interest: terrorism, let’s face it, is not India’s most pressing strategic or existential challenge. Second, New Delhi’s disproportionate focus on terrorism has compromised India’s strategic relationship with China. China’s unwillingness to agree to India’s line on Pakistan-based terror has made Sino-Indian relations thornier than ever. Is it smart to damage an important, though complicated, relationship with China because Beijing is

unwilling to buy our line on Pakistan? Third, the undue focus on Pakistan-based terror has also damaged Mr. Modi’s global image as a leader focussed on governance, trade and growth. All attention has suddenly shifted to self-generated tactical concerns, instead of larger issues such as foreign direct investment, global partnerships, institutional reforms, economic diplomacy, etc. Much of the latter set of goals has, of course, remained merely well-worded rhetoric. Consider, for instance, the fact that India is still ranked 130 in the World Bank Group's annual report on the ease of doing business. To think that growth and development are possible without institutional reforms is to daydream. Fourth, by going on about Pakistansponsored terrorism in Kashmir, New Delhi has managed to facilitate what it has traditionally cared to avoid: internationalising the Kashmir issue. Finally, and most importantly, making terrorism the mainstay of the country’s foreign policy can hardly ever lead to any tangible outcomes, except of course, in domestic politics. Messy alliance behaviour New Delhi’s foreign policy engagements in general and alliance choices in particular continue to sufer from a certain degree of ‘attention deficit hyperactivity disorder’. It began by reaching out to China (with which it continues to have a strategic partnership) and then the focus shifted to China’s rivals, namely the U.S. and Japan. Over the past two and a half years, it sure covered a lot of ground, but much of it seems impulsive than well-thought-out. New Delhi’s relationship with Washington, especially the signing of the ‘Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement’ (LEMOA) in August this year allowing the two militaries to work closely with each other and use each other’s bases for repair and supplies, is a clear departure from its traditional policy of not getting into military alliances. While LEMOA, technically speaking, is not a military alliance, it’s pretty close. What is New Delhi’s grand strategic rationale behind it, and does it in anyway compromise India’s traditional desire to maintain strategic autonomy? This question deserves to be asked especially because such a close military relationship with a declining power should not undermine India’s ability to navigate the rough waters of the region’s shifting balances of power. Even if New Delhi overlooks China’s concerns, it can’t aford to dismiss Russian apprehensions at a time when Moscow is opening its doors to Islamabad. Shouldn’t India develop its own grand strategy, rather than become a cog in the U.S. one? India’s recent eforts at counterbalancing China, especially through Vietnam, may also prove to be pointless. While India’s interests in the Indian Ocean region should be articu-

CARTOONSCAPE

Back from the brink in Lebanon

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he election of Michel Aoun, the 81-yearold former general, as Lebanon’s President ends a two-and-a-half-year political stalemate. It signals hope that the country’s fractious political class will come together to form a government invested in addressing the many challenges it faces, from basic civil issues to threats coming from neighbouring, civil warstricken Syria. The length of time it took to elect a President in itself shows the complex nature of the political system. Under a long-standing arrangement, the President has to be a Maronite Christian, the Prime Minister a Sunni, and the Speaker of Parliament a Shia. The major political parties represent these sects, and reaching a consensus on key issues is tricky. What makes matters worse is external intervention. Hezbollah, which represents the Shia community, has Iran’s backing, while the Sunni political faction led by Saad Hariri is supported by Saudi Arabia and the West. President Aoun, a Maronite politician, is aHezbollah ally. His election is the result of an agreement among the Shia, Sunni, and Christian factions. Mr. Hariri backed Mr. Aoun’s election in Parliament, while the President, in return, named Mr. Hariri as Prime Minister. The Hezbollah chief, Hassan Nasrallah, has declared that he won’t oppose Mr. Hariri’s appointment. However, Mr. Hariri may find it diicult to form a truly representative government that can survive in Lebanon’s confessional system. His acceptance of Mr. Aoun as President could be a tactical move given the Sunnis’ diminishing political clout in the country. He may also face pressure and resistance on foreign policy from Hezbollah, which runs a militia that is stronger than the national army. Hezbollah fighters are arrayed alongside the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, while Mr. Hariri’s regional patron, Saudi Arabia, backs the antiAssad rebels. The animosity between Mr. Hariri and Mr. Nasrallah has a personal side as well. Mr. Hariri accuses the Hezbollah of assassinating his father, the former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. But despite these fault-lines, there are many areas of cooperation. The country saw deadly bombings, claimed by the Islamic State, over the past two years, reviving memories of the 1980s civil war atrocities. Fighting between Sunni armed groups and Hezbollah is common in certain pockets. Lebanon also faces a huge refugee crisis — a million Syrians have crossed the border since 2011. Unless these issues are addressed quickly, Lebanon could also plunge into civil strife. The leading political groups need to set aside diferences and expand the scope of the understanding they have now reached. CM YK

lated with more vigour, it should rethink the strategic rationale of its forays into the South China Sea. Even Vietnam might not want to get into an open squabble with China. In short, it is wise to avoid alliance-games when charting strategic partnerships: fidelity is not a time-tested virtue in international politics. New Delhi also needs more diplomatic subtlety when aiming to play a major role in the international system. Sustained and mature negotiations, for instance, are necessary for the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) membership: public spats with countries like China won’t help. Absence of long-term vision Long-term strategic thinking requires intellectual depth and an ability to look beyond the tactical considerations of everyday security policymaking so as to simulate alternative futures and potential responses. Besides, there needs to be institutional coordination and follow-up action on the government’s key initiatives. This, of course, is easier said than done in an atmosphere where next State Assembly election, or the latest ceasefire violation, matters more than the next quarter century. In New Delhi, despite the Prime Minister’s Oice’s monopolisation of all strategic-security decision-making, there are hardly any attempts at intellectual investment in long view strategic planning. Generalist defence ministry bureaucrats and an understafed MEA are clearly not in a position to do so. This shortage of clarity on fundamentals has led to a lack of focus and prioritisation of the government’s goals and objectives. Looking at the many things that the government is engaged in, one wonders whether there is actually a sense of purpose to them at all. Previous governments, including the earlier BJPled regime, regularly set up highly specialised groups to generate policy reports and perspective planning for policymakers. Successive governments recognised the importance of such intellectual inputs, and actively sought them. Not any more. This government revels in blitzkrieg tactics than strategic planning. There don’t appear to be any carefully puttogether structures within the government (over and above the regular bureaucratic apparatuses) tasked with grand strategic thinking in a purposeful manner, whose inputs are then taken on board. India also does not have a comprehensive national security doctrine which could help pacify insurgencies, manage borders better or fight cross-border terror. Sure, governments have a host of daily security related issues and crisis management to worry about, but in the absence of overarching strategic guidance they stick to ad hoc measures and firefighting, habitually missing the big picture. On the other hand, if there are well-articulated strategic doctrines or a grand strategic vision in place, institutions will learn to refer to them and adjust their policies accordingly, leading to a lot more coherence in the country’s strategic behaviour. Sometimes, however, governments find it useful not to have any well-articulated grand strategy as it would be helpful when acting out of political expediency. A national security doctrine would require a great deal of political consultation, careful scenario building, and net assessment by experts. Such a carefully articulated national security doctrine, if generated by political consensus, can prevent the unnecessary politicisation of national security issues as we have seen in the recent past: but then would the government want depoliticisation of security, especially when it knows it can derive parochial benefits out of such politicisation? The incumbent regime in New Delhi lacks “the art of the long view”, to borrow Peter Schwartz’s phrase. If it is serious about the long-term stability and security of the country, it needs to think beyond the wisdom generated by the ‘specialised desks’ in the ministries, and invest in grand strategic thinking. Such thinking can only flourish if and when the political class commits to institutional reform, intellectual investment and consensus building. Happymon Jacob is Associate Professor of Disarmament Studies, Centre for International Politics, Organization and Disarmament, School of International Studies, JNU.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Delhi is choking With both the Central and Delhi governments passing the buck and engaged in a political duel, the National Green Tribunal should push the Central Pollution Control Board and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to take firm steps in controlling and curbing air pollution that appears to be smothering large parts of north India (“Delhi smog: Centre blames lax enforcement”, Nov.5). Perhaps the Delhi Chief Minister needs to pause a little and concentrate on the health emergency at hand. Sambhu Nath Chowdhury, Kolkata

The alarming levels of pollution in the National Capital Region (NCR) have been aggravated by growing numbers of vehicles. Despite excellent public transport facilities in Delhi, and the Metro in the NCR region, it is unfortunate that people are reluctant to make sacrifices. As emissions from power stations add to the pollution, there is a need to generate power from non-polluting sources. Burning of waste can be efectively controlled by local

government authorities. Public awareness campaigns and increasing the use of the media to enlighten people on the need for pollution control are also required. Long queues at gas stations (CNG) reveal the shortfall in supply chains for CNG which discourages people from adopting CNG technology. There is also a need to go in for large-scale tree planting. NGOs and schools can also volunteer in this efort. Dr. Joseph Abraham,

This is a self-perpetrated disaster and the result of our folly. Rising numbers of automobiles, mindless felling of trees, biomass burning and senseless celebrations with fire crackers at the cost of our health are issues that need to be resolved on a war footing. The young and old are sufering even more. We cannot allow Delhi to become a gas chamber. Dr. Sandeep Bharti,

Gurugram, Haryana

Encounter in Bhopal

With this kind of air in Delhi, almost like living in a gas chamber, how is a young mother of two young girls supposed to react? When my daughters grow up and have health problems, I would never be able to forgive myself for not having tried to give them a good life. They are already breathing air which is the equivalent of smoking 20 cigarettes or more a day and I feel very guilty that I am unable to stop this from happening. What are the authorities doing? Ankur Gulyani Panda,

The writer’s view that there is no gallantry involved in shooting at people who cannot shoot back should serve an eye-opener to fake encounter specialists (“Piecing together an encounter”, Nov.5). There are many unanswered questions about the jailbreak theory. There are also many contradictory versions being put out by the police. Under the circumstances, the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government must come clean on the episode despite agreeing to a probe. H.A. Jainulabdeen,

Gurugram, Haryana

New Delhi

Chennai

One is not sure how many of those in the field or in positions that are a part of the system responsible for ‘encounters’ will dispassionately ponder over the issues raised Mr. Tharakan. Men in uniform, especially those in the field, are by training expected to obey orders and hardly allowed to apply their own mind in many situations. Civil service oicials are often under pressure to decide against what their conscience dictates. I can think of an example, of a confession by a police oicer, post-retirement, in connection with a ‘encounter death’ case in Kerala. It was debated for a long time. Hopefully, cool and balanced analyses like Mr. Tharakan’s will lead to further development of investigation procedures and methods of operation to combat terrorism without always having to use the command “shoot to kill” or settling of scores in terms of lives lost. M.G. Warrier, Mumbai

OROP issues The recent statement by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

blaming “administrative lapse” by a bank in connection with OROP for a veteran is hard to accept (“Lapse of bank: Jaitley”, Nov.5) . Are not banks a part of the financial set-up of the government? There are instances where I — as Member (Legal), Armed Forces Medical, Dental and Veterinary Oicers’ & Family Pensioners’ Association — have referred extant government orders of some veterans and their family pensioners to the grievance cells of various ministries and subordinate oices including banking ombudsmen regarding non-revision of pension. The responses, in most cases, have been akin to passing the buck. The Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Pension) in one instance wrote to the bank advising it to to pay the family pension of an army captain (of about Rs.11,000) when the pensioner was a naval captain (equivalent to an army colonel) and eligible for an amount of around Rs.21,000. The ministries appear reluctant to investigate the matter. What is the use of approaching the higher-ups? G. Kameswara Rao, Secunderabad ND-ND

10 |

EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2016

It’s not about just national security ‘National security’ must mark the beginning of the debate over the one-day ban on NDTV India, not the end of it. Our broadcast laws allow the government sweeping powers of censorship with negligible attendant costs or decency”, or present “half-truths”, or “criticise” any individual, or reflect a “snobbish attitude in the portrayal of certain ethnic, linguistic and regional groups”. Such exquisitely vague language not only permits, but positively invites censorship and abuse of power. Not only that, it goes far beyond Article 19(2) of the Constitution, which allows the state to limit the freedom of speech only through “reasonable restrictions” in the interests of specific, narrow-drawn categories such as “public order”, “defamation”, or the “security of the State”.

T U E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 6

GAUTAM BHATIA

Chasing a grand alliance

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ver since the Mahagathbandhan, or grand alliance, successfully stared down a resurgent Bharatiya Janata Party in the Bihar elections last November, speculation about a possible replication in Uttar Pradesh has been rife. The buzz has grown over the past week, after Congress election strategist Prashant Kishor’s meeting with Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. Even more recently, at the SP’s silver jubilee festivities in Lucknow, the air rang with calls for “unity of socialist parties” from assembled fellow-travellers from the Janata Dal days — including Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad; former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, now of the Janata Dal (Secular); Sharad Yadav of the Janata Dal (United); and Ajit Singh of the Rashtriya Lok Dal, which has a significant support base in western U.P. Through all this, Mr. Mulayam Yadav has been enigmatically tight-lipped, as have been Congress leaders. The other two big forces in the State, the BJP and the Bahujan Samaj Party, have been uninhibited in talking down the threat such a CongressSP-Lohiaite alliance would pose. This is not surprising as there are big challenges such a grand alliance would face in U.P. as compared to Bihar. A pattern had taken shape in U.P. over the past many Assembly elections, that of the four main parties in the fray fighting from their corners, with smaller, more fungible parties including the RLD going with the best pre-poll deal they could get. In the four-cornered contest, each political party essentially aimed to maximise its outreach to its traditional vote base, and hoped to strike the best deal in government-formation in the event of a hung Assembly. The previous two elections, in 2007 and 2012, broke this pattern with voters giving one party a clear majority, first the BSP and then the SP. In fact, the Congress and the BJP remained hopeless also-rans in this scenario — in 2012 they won just 28 and 47 seats respectively in the 403-member legislature. In the 2014 general election, the BJP did better than even its most optimistic projections by getting over 42 per cent of the vote compared to 15 per cent in 2012. In Bihar, after the BJP efected a similar sweep in 2014, its two main opponents, the RJD and the JD(U), buried their diferences and put up a united secular front, pulling the Congress too in their embrace. In U.P., the BSP and the SP show no signs of striking any working understanding — and in its absence it is unclear how formidable an SP-led alliance can be, especially while the Yadav family feud keeps up the surround sound.

The Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s direction requiring NDTV India to go of air for a day because of its coverage of the Pathankot terror attack in January has generated a storm of controversy, even though the government said on Monday that it was putting the decision on hold. Supporters of the government have accused their opponents of irresponsibly sacrificing national security at the altar of freedom of speech, and have pointed to Rule 6(1)(p) of the Cable TV Programme Code, which sensibly proscribes live coverage of anti-terrorist operations. Supporters of NDTV India, on the other hand, have protested that the channel’s broadcast took place long after the operations were over, that the footage was already available in the public domain through Google Maps, and that the government’s singling out of NDTV India, which was just one among many channels broadcasting similar footage, smacks of both arbitrariness and vindictiveness against an entity perceived to be “anti-establishment”. This conversation is essential. Democracy thrives upon intense scrutiny of governmental action, especially action that infringes upon basic liberties such as freedom of speech and freedom of the press. “National security” must mark the beginning of the debate, not the end of it. And ultimately, the issue might be taken to court, for an independent judiciary to hear both sides and to decide whether, all things considered, the government’s decision was necessary and proportionate. All this exemplifies a healthy, functioning democracy, committed to security, individual rights, and the rule of law, without allowing one to swallow the others. Wide berth for the state However, this conversation remains incomplete. NDTV’s location at the heart of the national capital, and its primary channel’s broadcasts being in English, the lan-

By shifting the costs of censorship entirely to the speaker, who must move the courts to get a ban overturned, the Cable TV Act rewards state overreach guage of economic and political power, has cast a particularly acute spotlight upon the government’s actions. The truth is that Central and State governments, past and present, have regularly forced TV channels to “go of air” for flimsy, and often politically motivated, reasons. The fault lies with India’s broadcast laws, which allow the government sweeping powers of censorship with negligible attendant costs, and in the perennial clash between the freedom of speech and the state’s regulatory power, almost entirely subordinating the former to the latter. The law that governs cable broadcasts is the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act of 1995. Section 5 of this Act prohibits any cable TV transmission that is not “in conformity with the prescribed programme code”. The Programme Code contains a bouquet of blissfully vague, boundlessly manipulable, and entirely subjective terms. Programmes may not “ofend against good taste

Judicial reluctance The Programme Code constitutes a serious infringement of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution, and is evidently unconstitutional. Unfortunately, however, the prospects of having it struck down by the Supreme Court look bleak. In 1970, the court upheld the Censor Board guidelines, which were equally vague when it came to film certification. For example, the guidelines prohibited “sensuous” postures and “dual meaning words as obviously cater to the baser instincts”. However, the Supreme Court was too caught up in its desire to ensure that Indian film-goers were exposed to good, “wholesome” cinema, and perfunctorily dismissed the constitutional challenge to both the Cinematograph Act and the guidelines. It is yet to show any inclination to revisit that ruling. Furthermore, in the intervening years, even the court’s speech-protective judgments have been based more upon the belief that films running into hot water with the censors — such as Bandit Queen (1994) — serve socially useful purposes, rather than a conviction that the rights of artists and viewers to choose what kind of film they want to create, or watch, is paramount. The Programme Code is likely to survive as long as this judicial attitude continues to predominate. If the provisions of the Programme Code are destructive of the freedom of speech, then the procedure contemplated by the Cable Television Act creates problems of a diferent — yet equally severe — kind. Section 19 of the Act authorises the government

CARTOONSCAPE

Solutions after the smog

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f Delhi’s crippling pollution crisis is to end, at least in the coming years, the Centre and the States concerned need to adopt a two-pronged approach: make policy changes to help farmers stop burning crop waste and tackle problems created by urbanisation. Every measure to curb the release of pollutants is important since the weather pattern in the post-monsoon months causes smog to persist. The capital experiences the inversion effect of air pressure retarding the dispersal of the foul cloud. There has to be strong political will to implement a time-bound programme that will stop the burning of crop residues — by one estimate about 90 million tonnes is burnt on-farm — and put them to commercial use. As the eminent agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan has pointed out, farmers are not at fault for trying to remove the waste from the land, and they need help. In the northwestern States, they resort to burning straw to prepare for a wheat crop weeks after harvesting rice. The Indian Agricultural Research Institute published a guidance report four years ago on ways to use the residue, with an emphasis on converting paddy straw into livestock feed, compost, raw material for power generation, biofuel production and as substrate for mushroom farming. State support is vital for straw to be used as fodder, and farmers should be assisted with supplemental stocks of urea and molasses, green fodder and legume waste. The air quality in Delhi and other northern cities is under severe stress alsoowing to factors linked to urbanisation. Smoke-generating brick kilns around the national capital need to be cleaned up through a state-guided modernisation programme, since they become active during the period when the weather is unhelpful. It is also important to pave all roads well to curb dust, and show zero tolerance to civic agencies leaving exposed mud after executing projects. A more difused problem is the burning of waste and other materials by the poor who do not have access to cleaner forms of heating in the winter months. If that is unavoidable in the short term, it is certainly possible to clean up the transport sector. Delhi’s bus fleet should be augmented, preferably doubled, with modern high-capacity zero emission electric vehicles of the kind being introduced in Europe. Higher parking fees for private vehicles can pay for this. The capital — indeed, all Indian cities — can achieve better eiciencies if transport data are opened up to build smartphone apps giving users real-time service information. The Delhi government has responded to the crisis by shutting schools and banning waste burning. It now needs a sustained pollution control strategy to keep life normal throughout the year. CM YK

to prohibit cable operators from transmitting programmes or channels that are not in conformity with the Programme Code. The Act efectively vests the power of banning television with the government, without any judicial oversight. Once the prohibitory order has been passed, the burden is then upon the TV channel or cable operator to approach the courts and attempt to have it invalidated. Apart from the substantive content of speech that a legal regime might aim to restrict, the regulatory procedure that it establishes can end up causing far greater damage to free expression. Regulatory procedure determines how and where the costs and burdens of censorship are located. For instance, if you think that I have defamed you, then it is your prerogative to file a case against me, and satisfy an independent court that I have violated the law. The burden of proceeding against me — the speaker — lies upon you, the person who considers herself to have been harmed by my speech. The Cable Television Act, however, reverses this burden by giving a carte blanche to the government to ban channels or programmes which, in its subjective assessment, have violated the Programme Code. The most well-intentioned of governments tend to be wary of criticism, prone to over-regulation, and (understandably) sensitive about the possibility of public disorder. Governments whose intentions are less noble — and there have been such governments — can be paranoid, malicious, and unforgiving towards political opponents. By shifting the costs of censorship entirely from the government to the speaker, who must move the courts to get a ban overturned, the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act rewards state overreach. This is not only a problem with cable television. The Code of Criminal Procedure allows the state to ban books in a similar manner, and the Cinematograph Act contains an even more stringent regulatory regime for films. Need for judicial vetting There is an easy way to remedy this. The Cable Television Act (and similar laws in other domains) should require that if the government wishes to ban something, it must first convince an independent court, in adversarial proceedings, that its request is justified. The court ought to carefully scrutinise the government’s arguments, refuse to accord it undue deference, and grant its request only if it is convinced that a ban is both necessary and proportionate in the circumstances. In this case, the debate that is now raging in the public sphere over the correctness of the government’s action in taking NDTV India of air would first be had within the courtroom. There may, of course, be emergencies where time is of the essence, and the government must act. In such circumstances, it must be nonetheless be called upon to justify itself in court after the fact, and compensate speakers if it is found that it acted wrongly. No reasonable person would argue — in the words of the American Supreme Court in the famous Pentagon Papers case — that the freedom of expression extends to “publishing troop movements in wartime”. However, reasonable citizens should also be wary of vague and ill-defined laws that confer censorial powers upon the state without any effective oversight. If one might damage national security, the other will certainly lead to tyranny. And what good are secure borders without the security of the basic rights that transform us from subjects to citizens? Gautam Bhatia is a Delhi-based lawyer.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Choked capital The slew of emergency measures adopted by the Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi, including reintroducing the odd-even vehicle scheme, banning construction work for five days, and watering the streets, will all help curb pollution in the capital, but only temporarily (“Govt. shuts schools as Delhi chokes, November 7”). Unless short- and long-term measures are adopted, the National Capital Region will not be habitable. Unfortunately, most of the directions to curb pollution specified by the Centre to States like Haryana, U.P. and Rajasthan remain inefective due to lack of coordination and the divergent interests of stakeholders. The Central Pollution Control Board must identify air sheds — places where air quality could reach levels higher than the national air quality standards — and monitor air quality in these areas. It is a matter of grave concern that according to a recent report released by the World Health Organisation, half of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are in India. So the problem doesn’t lie with Delhi alone. State Pollution Control Boards must also address the problem seriously. Buddhadev Nandi, Bankura, West Bengal

If Delhi has become a gas chamber today, other metros are not far behind in reaching a similar breaking point. Poorly maintained vehicles emit copious amounts of black smoke. Even government-

owned vehicles, like the Metropolitan Transport Corporation buses in Chennai, are no exception. Many commercial vehicles use adulterated fuel. Using combustible material like wood, waste paper, etc. as fuel for cooking is common among poor people living in slums, on pavements and in construction sites. The real estate boom, which has taken place at the expense of the already depleted green cover, has led to further environmental degradation. Authorities and the general public should take Delhi’s woes as a wakeup call and begin remedial measures in their cities and towns in right earnest. K. Srinivasaragavan,

residents themselves cleared and disposed of leaves falling within their own property. Leaves were composted along with other garden waste to help improve the soil, or were removed as part of the garden waste collection service. Similarly, after heavy snow, residents cleared the snow to ensure safe access to pedestrians. It is important for people to provide full support to the government for successful implementation of schemes to reduce pollution. They can do so by strictly adhering to rules, by not burning waste, using plastics, etc. A.J. Rangarajan,

Chennai

Faster trains

The literal shutdown of Delhi due to high levels of smog is not surprising. In fact, the city had it coming. The government has failed to combat air pollution with practical solutions and concrete planning. It has either resorted to the usual blame game or has engaged in piecemeal acts like introducing the odd-even vehicle scheme. Instead of planning ‘smart cities’, governments should try to make cities and towns free of pollution. The day is not far of when oxygen masks and oxygen cylinders become the order of the day in cities. D.V.G.Sankararao,

It is good to know that the Indian Railways is planning to increase the speed of trains on the DelhiHowrah and Delhi-Mumbai routes (“Trains to clock 160 kmph on way to Delhi from Mumbai, Howrah”, Nov. 7). At the same time, the people in south India feel neglected. The Railways has ignored our request to quicken the speed of trains between Chennai and Delhi, for instance. It would be more heartening if such measures were taken in places far away from the capital too. N. Hariharan,

Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh

No dignity in death

After Hurricane Sandy ripped through the U.S., carpooling was efected for some days because of shortage of gas. During that period,

The picture and story about a man with leprosy taking his wife’s body in a pushcart to conduct her last rites was heartbreaking

Chennai

Chennai

(“Telangana man takes wife to final abode on a pushcart,” Nov. 7). I can’t imagine the agony and trauma he must have undergone. The only consolation in this horrible story is that there were people willing to help him along the way. The help extended by a circle inspector in Vikarabad is praiseworthy. This is not the first time that such an incident is coming to the fore. In Odisha some months ago, a man walked with his wife’s body on his shoulder as he could not aford to hire a vehicle. Authorities at the panchayat, block and district levels must formulate plans to make ambulance and healthcare services more afordable. M. Dinakaran, Edappal, Kerala

A new Cold War The collapse of the erstwhile Soviet Union naturally left Russia bitter and fuming. Since then, Russia has been making use of every conceivable opportunity to needle Uncle Sam, especially following the ascendancy of an aggressive nationalist like Vladimir Putin to power (“Obama’s tricky legacy”, Nov. 7). If the U.S. and Russia happen to be on the same page on world afairs, the latter presumes that the world may think that it is merely following the U.S. lead. Deviating from the U.S.’s path keeps Russia in the limelight. It is obvious that Russia under the leadership of Mr. Putin is striving to step into the past role of the Soviet Union and reclaim Russia’s lost awe and standing. Should Hillary Clinton become the

next U.S. president, Mr. Putin is likely to find a hawk in her dealings with Russia. Mr. Putin might be under the impression that he might have more room for negotiating with the U.S. if Donald Trump comes to power. As things stand today, a revival of the Cold War is very much in the oing. In that case, the UN and the West will be presented with ample opportunities to play the role of brokers between the two belligerent countries. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam, Kerala

Ban on NDTV India The government’s 24-hour ban on NDTV India raises questions, especially because the concerned channel is considered an eloquent critic of the government (“When the screen goes blank”, Nov. 7). It would have been better if the notice had been issued on the basis of an investigation carried out by an independent committee, or the News Broadcasting Standards Authority, rather than by an Information and Broadcasting Ministry panel. The action then would have appeared credible and reasonable to the general public. As observed by Law Commission in 1955: “… the Executive may not, in a belief in its monopoly of wisdom and its zeal for administrative eiciency, overstep the bounds of its power and spread its tentacles into domains where the citizen should be free to enjoy the liberty guaranteed to him by the Constitution”. Ashutosh, Gaya, Bihar ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2016

The politics of perceptions Material change matters, but perception too determines a feeling of deprivation. Prosperity, good governance and a focus on fairness, rather than electoral pandering, often elicit greater political support W E D N E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 9 , 2 0 1 6

SONALDE DESAI

Waiting for Rahul

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ith Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, it is diicult to say who needs the other more. Indeed, it is not clear whether the party is shielding him from the risk of electoral failure or whether it is looking to him for political leadership and guidance. In any case the seemingly never-ending wait for his ascension as the president of the party was not doing either him or the Congress any good. If the decision of the Congress Working Committee to ask Mr. Gandhi to take up the top post was a surprise, it was only in its timing. Ever since the Lok Sabha election of 2014, Mr. Gandhi was being prepared for this very job; also, his mother and Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, had not been keeping good health. But two factors stood in the way. Members of the party’s old guard were unsure of his leadership skills, or were apprehensive of being left out if the order changed. More important, Mr. Gandhi himself wanted time. He wanted to make sure he did not appear to be hankering after power and position, and he did not get blamed for electoral defeats that were, by any reckoning, inevitable. But just as the seniors in the party reconciled themselves to the changing times, Mr. Gandhi too seems to have become more responsive to the requirements of an organisation such as the Congress: that he would have to deal with the party as it is, and that he would not be able to readily mould it to the form he would like it to take. Quite possibly, Mr. Gandhi would not have had a shot at becoming the party president were it not for his lineage. But the nature of the faction-ridden Congress is such that it needs a leader whose right to lead is not questioned at every step. Mr. Gandhi meets this requirement. While the fractious nature of the party grants him greater legitimacy as a leader, it also makes his task more diicult. At the CWC meeting, he expressed his willingness to take on the assigned role of party president to “fight for the preservation of the idea of India”. This is a phrase that the Congress believes captures its engagement with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Congress does have its place in India’s political landscape, but it cannot aford to define itself solely as the antithesis of the BJP. Mr. Gandhi will have to take the plunge wholeheartedly, with a readiness to carry on the struggle for political change and economic development over the long term. He will have to be ready to get his hands dirty in the everyday politics of bringing about positive change, incremental or otherwise, whenever and wherever possible. There are no shortcuts. Taking blame and sharing credit are synonymous with assuming responsibility.

Public discontent is like a chameleon. When we see it, we know it must have been hiding in plain sight for a while; but until we spot it, we are not even aware of its existence. Until Donald Trump catapulted onto the American political scene, it would have been hard to imagine poor workers uniting behind a billionaire who has specialised in taking advantage of the system to avoid paying taxes and fair wages to his employees. Similarly, no one took Brexit seriously until election results tapped into lower-class discontent among the British voters. It would be easy for us to say that poverty and declining economic conditions lead to frustration among the poor and revolt against the political elites. But is it really true? India and Pakistan — a contrast Poverty in Pakistan fell from nearly 35 per cent in 2001 to 10 per cent in 2013-14. Although Pakistan has recently adjusted its poverty line increasing the poverty ratio to 30 per cent, as Ghazala Mansuri of the World Bank notes, by all objective standards, even the poorest in Pakistan are better of today than a decade earlier. Paradoxically, according to the Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement Survey, about 21 per cent of the households felt that their economic condition had declined over the preceding 12 months while only 12 per cent felt it had improved. India has experienced a roughly similar magnitude of poverty decline, from 37 per cent in 2004-05 to 22 per cent in 201112. However, as the India Human Development Survey (IHDS), organised by researchers from the University of Maryland and the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) found, the proportion of households that felt that their economic condition declined between 201112 and 2004-05 was much smaller (about 10 per cent) compared to those who felt it had improved (about 37 per cent). How do we explain that with similar

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Living in a society that is well governed creates a sense of security that is equally, if not more, important than actual economic advancement economic improvements, the Indians perceived that their fortunes were improving while the Pakistanis did not? Could this be because there was greater income inequality in Pakistan than in India, making individuals keenly aware of their relative rather than absolute poverty? Empirical data does not show that Pakistan was more unequal. World Bank data show that in 2011, 42 per cent of the income was held by the top 20 per cent of the population in Pakistan; the comparable figure for India was 44 per cent. At the bottom of the distribution too, Pakistan seems marginally better with 9.4 per cent of the income in the hands of the bottom 20 per cent for Pakistani versus 8.3 per cent for India. This suggests that inequality in Pakistan and India was more or less on a par, with Indian inequality being marginally higher. Clearly something else was going on, something that related to perception, a subjective feeling of deprivation rather than objective conditions.

My guess is that this sense of economic deprivation is closely linked to the social and political conditions in which individuals live. Living in a society that is well governed creates a sense of security that is equally, if not more, important than actual economic advancement. This is where India probably has an edge over Pakistan. While lack of comparable data do not allow us to compare Pakistan with India on these subjective factors, the IHDS data suggest that at least within India, experience of bad governance and grievances about fair treatment shape a feeling of economic marginalisation. Using data from the IHDS, the only large panel survey in which the same households were interviewed in 2004-05 as well as 2011-12, we found that even after we took into account objective changes in income and factors such as education and place of residence, the nature of governance and social policies played an important role in enhancing or diminishing feelings of economic insecurity. Physical insecurity spills over into feeling economically insecure. Individuals who have been victims of crime — theft, break-in or intimidation — are far more likely to feel that they are downwardly mobile. After we took into account income changes over time and the household’s education as well as place of residence, crime victims in the IHDS were about 56 per cent more likely to feel economically worse of in recent years than non-victims. Good public service delivery also created a feeling of well-being. Households that experienced frequent power cuts and did not have power supply for at least 18 hours in a day were 43 per cent more likely to express a feeling of economic insecurity than those who enjoyed consistent power supply. Fairness and prosperity A sense of fairness in economic outcomes is also strongly related to perceptions of prosperity. In recent years, we have seen an upsurge in the grievances expressed by forward castes who feel that the Other Backward Classes (OBC) are unjustifiably stealing their jobs and opportunities for college

CARTOONSCAPE

The long battle for Raqqa

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he operation to recapture Raqqa in Syria launched by a U.S.-backed coalition of Kurdish and Arab fighters is bound to increase the military pressure on the Islamic State, which is already under attack in Mosul, its power centre in Iraq. The Raqqa ofensive has long been on the cards. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) finally moved their troops to the city’s defence lines after getting weapons and the clearance from the U.S. As in the case of the battle for Mosul where the U.S. provides air cover to the Iraqi forces and Shia militias, in Raqqa it will provide assistance to the SDF. The U.S. strategy is to choke the IS from both sides, and its partners on the ground seem ready to take the high risk of attacking the group’s strongest bases. Over the past year the Kurdish fighters have been consistently effective in ground battles against the IS. Most of the major territorial losses of the IS in Syria — be it Kobane, Tal Abyad or Manbij — were at the hands of the Kurds. The jihadist group, which once had direct access to the Turkish border, has now retreated to its core in Syria, stretching from Raqqa to Deir Ezzour. Against this background, the SDF clearly has an upper hand. The IS will also find it challenging to defend two of its most important cities at the same time. But that doesn’t mean that the SDF will have an easy walk into Raqqa. The SDF is certain to face strong resistance. Raqqa is one of the first cities the IS captured; it has in place a ferocious, ideologically charged and battle-ready team to build a strong defence. As the ongoing Mosul battle shows, breaching the IS defence lines will take time and also lives. Raqqa has a population of about 2.2 lakh. Major air-borne campaigns to help the SDF advance on the ground will be risky and could result in large civilian casualties. The IS also uses human shields to stop ground advances of enemies. But the most pressing challenge the SDF faces is the response from Turkey. Raqqa is a Sunni-populated town. Turkey is opposed to the SDF taking over Raqqa as a major constituent of the coalition is the Kurdish militia, the People’s Protection Units (YPG). Turkey sees the YPG as the Syrian unit of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which it calls a terrorist force. The dilemma that the U.S. faces is one of bringing both the YPG and Turkey on the same side of the battle for Raqqa. Turkey had in the past played dubious games with the IS. If it decides to do that again now, the war on the IS could be derailed. CM YK

admission. Holding household economic status and education constant, forward castes were about 30 per cent more likely to feel that they were worse of in 2011-12 than in 2004-05. In this case it is not surprising that we see greater demand for OBC classification from well-of groups such as Jats, Patels and Gujjars. This is not to suggest that material changes don’t matter and perception alone determines a feeling of deprivation. The IHDS found that after controlling for other factors, households whose incomes declined by at least 20 per cent in constant terms between 2004-05 and 2011-12 were 35 per cent more likely to feel that they are worse of compared to those whose incomes stayed the same and 51 per cent more likely than households whose incomes grew by 20 per cent or more. However, the magnitude of the impact of actual economic decline on subjective feeling of deprivation was on a par with the governance and fairness concerns enumerated above. American sociologist Andrew Cherlin notes that a feeling of relative deprivation is what shapes the support for Mr. Trump. Lower class whites acutely feel the loss of privilege their parents enjoyed in a bygone era where black-white diferences were large and being white brought greater rewards while the African-Americans were shut out of good jobs. With declining premium of whiteness, these same individuals feel beleaguered and support the Republican presidential candidate who capitalises on anti-immigrant and anti-black feelings. Trust as a defining factor The IHDS also found that individuals’ perception of their economic progress is associated with a more favourable opinion of politicians. The IHDS asked how much trust and confidence individuals had in each of the three institutions — politicians, state government, and local government. If individuals responded that they had hardly any confidence in at least one of these three institutions, we define them as having an unfavourable opinion of government. Among those who believed that their households were in better economic condition than in the past, 56 per cent had an unfavourable opinion of the government; among those whose view of their own economic condition did not change, 58 per cent had an unfavourable opinion of the government; and among those who felt they were doing badly, 65 per cent had an unfavourable opinion of the government. These results suggest that prosperity, good governance as well as focus on fairness, rather than electoral pandering, are likely to bring rewards in the form of political support and increased confidence in government. India may well be doing well on these compared to Pakistan, at least if we judge by the feeling of economic prosperity among the population, but it is of small comfort. When 57 per cent of the population holds an unfavourable opinion of political institutions, it is time to re-evaluate what can be done to increase this confidence. If not for the sake of the nation, then in the interest of political survival. The diference in confidence in the political system between those who feel they are doing economically well and those who feel left behind is relatively small; but in a climate of political disenchantment this small diference is perhaps enough to create an electoral tsunami. Sonalde Desai is Professor of Sociology at University of Maryland and Senior Fellow, NCAER. Views are personal.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Rahul Gandhi’s elevation It is ironical that Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi lashed out at the Modi government for being “obsessed with power” and that he said that the government is “seeking to silence” all those who disagree with it (“Modi govt. is obsessed with power”, Nov. 8). Mr. Gandhi should perhaps be reminded of the days of the Emergency. No Congressperson has the moral right to lecture anyone else on the virtues of democracy and speak against the abuse of power before denouncing the Emergency. This might be a big challenge for the party but it’s high time for them to do this in order to sound more credible. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam, Kerala

The Congress party seems eager to erase the general perception that the old guard was loathe to have the straight-speaking Rahul Gandhi at the helm (“Congress asks Rahul to steer the party ship”, Nov. 8). Mr. Gandhi, who has a significant following among the youth in the party, has to cash in on his image of being pro-poor, secular, and not hungry for power. Though tags such as ‘inefectual communicator’ and ‘non-assertive politician’ may haunt him, he has the opportunity to change for the better the party’s prospects. Many Pradesh Congress Committees are in disarray and Mr. Gandhi has to groom able leaders at the State level. He also has to expand the party’s youth base and ponder why the youth in the country have shifted their allegiance to the BJP. The onerous task of making the party more lively,

bringing in accountability, and fixing responsibilities cannot be stressed more. Sonia Gandhi’s strength was her ability to carry the non-BJP parties along with her and stitch alliances. Mr. Gandhi should learn from his mother. Ganapathi Bhat, Akola

The Congress has been lying low in practically every State due to lack of leadership and loss of confidence. Rahul Gandhi’s proposed elevation as president may bring cheer to his supporters but may not change the party’s fortunes in the immediate future. In fact, Mr. Gandhi has squandered too many chances to rebuild and rejuvenate the party. Nevertheless, if made party president, he should first revamp the party at the grass-roots level. He should induct new blood while elevating dedicated workers in each State. Otherwise his elevation will be futile. K.R. Srinivasan, Secunderabad

After the smog In order to improve the quality of air in any city, the first thing that is required is a change in people’s behaviour and mindset (“Solutions after the smog”, Nov. 8). Pollution and garbage disposal are often related to people’s livelihoods. While people think of their livelihoods as their own, the pollution or waste that is generated from the same is seen as the government’s headache. People criticise the government for its inefectiveness in checking poor air quality and pollution while

forgetting that they themselves are part of this menace. If we take examples from highly polluted cities in other countries, we see that the governments and the people undertook joint eforts to control pollution. The Indian government should frame polices that require the active participation of citizens in controlling pollution. Mudit Katiyar, Lucknow

Delhi alone does not have polluted air, the whole of India does. The introduction of CNG-run vehicles, which emit nanocarbon according to some studies, and relentless aforestation have been some of the causes of pollution in the capital. The present scenario calls for more sustainable initiatives with shortand long-term perspectives. Bolstering the public transportation network is an immediately plausible solution. People should carpool, follow the odd-even scheme, use cycles as a mode of travel (for which roads, pavements and general infrastructure need to improve), and so on. The burning of crops can be checked only through administrative intervention involving farmer-support measures. Schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, which is aimed at providing clean fuel, are laudable. Anjali B.,

much to ofer to it in the U.P. battlefield (“Chasing a grand alliance”, Nov. 8). The main reason for the Bihar victory was that both Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad buried their diferences and consolidated anti-BJP votes to hand out a shocking defeat to the BJP. If the SP wants a similar story in U.P., party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav must first approach Mayawati. This is the only way he can hope to win this election, especially after the Yadav family feud, because the Congress is still a fringe player. Bal Govind, Noida

Stunt gone wrong That two Kannada stunt actors Anil and Uday drowned in a lake after jumping of a helicopter during a fighting sequence for a film made for sad reading (“Stunt goes of script during Kannada movie shoot”, Nov. 8). It is made even more tragic by the fact that Anil said just before the stunt that he barely knew how to swim! The incident smacks of sheer madness and irresponsibility on the part of the film producer, director and the whole crew. That a boat was not nearby to haul them up after the rescue makes it all the more bizarre. S. Ramakrishnasayee, Ranipet

Thiruvananthapuram

A Bihar-like alliance There is no harm in contemplating a Bihar-like grand alliance in Uttar Pradesh. But the SP should not forget that parties like the JD(S), JD(U), RLD and RJD have nothing

Food and nutrition Although the public distribution system has provided poor households across the nation accessibility to regular and subsidised food grains, it fails to fulfil nutrition standards. Hidden

hunger in India is created due to paucity of essential micronutrients in the body even if a large amount of food is consumed (“Linking food and nutrition security”, Nov. 8). The rice that is distributed is polished and lacks nutrition-rich barn. Diversification of food distributed in the PDS is the need of the hour. Cereals fulfil our carbohydrates requirement, but protein is required for overall physical and mental development. It is time to increase pulse production and distribution through the PDS. The most important step is biofortification, a process through which the nutritional quality of crops is improved through biotechnology or selective breeding. Gagan Pratap Singh, Noida

D-Day in the U.S. The U.S. presidential election has been one of the most debated events in recent times as the future President will not only impact the lives of Americans but of people across the world (“America goes to polls today”, Nov. 8). Even if the U.S.’s hegemony has come under challenge, whether due to rising anti-Americanism in West Asia or due to what Fareed Zakaria calls the “rise of the rest”, the election is still important. With the global economy still not fully healthy, the EU facing a crisis, the Middle East in a state of chaos, and with threats from the Islamic State, who becomes President will determine how these issues are tackled. Abhilash Thimmaiah, New Delhi ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2016

November thunderbolt Donald Trump tapped into the mother lode of basic grievances of the wide swathe of white Americans, particularly the non-college-educated, rural, blue-collar population other nations,” he said after his victory. Only time will tell whether his promises to the people of his country and the world will be fulfilled. But looking at the map of the U.S., populated in the red of the Republican Party, with the groundswell of popular will being expressed in favour of Mr. Trump, it is diicult to deny the fact that a legitimate victory has been won. The Democratic Party’s “blue wall” came crumbling down today, and with both Houses of Congress being largely Republican too, one sees the party of Franklin Roosevelt and John Kennedy shrunken. The legacy of President Barack Obama is also jeopardised as Mr. Trump has long expressed his determination to undo it.

T H U R S D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 0 , 2 0 1 6

NIRUPAMA RAO

Understanding Trumpocalypse

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onald Trump will be the 45th President of the United States. These words will echo in the hearts of 324 million Americans today, some shell-shocked and downcast, others delirious with joy. The sheer divergence of emotions over the surprise result is a poignant signal of how deeply divided the nation is, after a polarising two-year election campaign. Bigotry, patriarchy and racist rancour, which reared their ugly heads throughout this season of incivility, may find no welcome catharsis with the apotheosis of Mr. Trump. According to the exit polls, 58 per cent of whites and 21 per cent of non-whites voted for Mr. Trump, whereas 37 per cent of whites and 74 per cent of non-whites voted for his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. He also scored higher with men than women, and with those voters who did not have a college degree. In other words, bluecollared white men and women thronged to Mr. Trump in droves, angry about their perceived impoverishment and disenfranchisement inflicted by the country’s political and financial elites. It had left them with only one option: to throw a metaphorical grenade at these power centres. At the heart of the shock result is the shock itself, which stemmed from what most analysts have been calling the vote of the “silent majority”. Why did the U.S. media and pollsters fail to see which way the wind was blowing? They apparently did not suspect, when poll results suggested that Ms. Clinton was the more acceptable candidate, that some of the respondents to these polls may have been unwilling to admit to being supporters of Mr. Trump. It is likely for instance that women, 42 per cent of whom voted for Mr. Trump, were reluctant to reveal their preference after Mr. Trump was exposed for boasting about sexual assault and faced allegations of the same. What was not taken proper note of was that in almost every swing State, there were between 11 and 18 per cent “undecided” voters in late October — a significant number of people that tilted the election in favour of Mr. Trump. Insofar as this election reflected expressions of frustration that went against the grain of political correctness, the Trump victory resembles Brexit. However, in his victory speech Mr. Trump has appeared to quickly move past campaign recrimination, the conciliatory tone of which may go a little way in calming nerves at home as well as of anxious world leaders watching the election from afar. If indeed he presents a softer, more collaborative face at home and abroad, the Divided States of America may yet hold firm and lend strength to the global order, as it has done in the past.

The dramatic, widely unexpected outcome of the U.S. presidential election has stunned all the pundits and prognosticators who had placed very little faith in a victory for Donald J. Trump. It is clear now that the thinking, privileged elites of Washington, D.C. and New York were way of the mark in their predictions and poll analyses. The widely forgotten, disinherited and disadvantaged who inhabit the rural interiors of the United States, who have seen their lives grow steadily more arid and unanchored, spoke through what has been called “the election of our discontent”. That howling at the moon, that anger — a kinetic force in American democracy today — was ignored on the radar screens of celebrity television and media channels of the country. Instead, the Republican candidate was projected as a maverick iconoclast — a misogynist and xenophobe, among other traits, to boot. And as for Candidate Clinton, could anybody have been more out of sync with the popular mood of the country? History’s verdict on her will not be kind. Tapping into America’s angst For Donald Trump, the road from Trump Taj Mahal, the failed casino, via numerous Trump Towers, to the White House has been a long and winding one that he negotiated as a self-propelled wayfarer, with little or no faith being placed by the world on his ability to achieve his ambitious goal. On the journey, he captured the mood of the “unprotected” classes among the American people, their anger, frustration and disillusionment with the government in Washington, and he became the messenger for that mood of America. The country thus saw a presidential candidate who called his campaign a “movement” in near-messianic mode — a movement whose slogan was “Make America Great Again”, ofering the angry multitudes hope for the future. There was no ideology here, no overflowing of new and revolutionary ideas, but only simplistic, repetitive incantations about how his com-

Mr. Trump’s policy and attitude to India is expected to be positive, continuing the trends and direction in the relationship established over the last decade petitor, Hillary Clinton, was corrupt and inefectual, that the legacy of the Obama administration, especially Obamacare, needed reversal, that immigration required to be checked and reversed, and that Muslim entry into the U.S. should be rigorously monitored and even prevented. In all this, he tapped into the mother lode of basic grievances of the wide swathe of white Americans, particularly the non-college educated, rural, blue-collar population. It was Brexit on the other side of the Atlantic. “Something has happened. It is revolutionary”: these were the comments describing the events of the evening of November 8 in what has turned out to be the biggest political upset in U.S. election history. Mr. Trump’s acceptance speech has been described as inclusive and humble, he promised to bind the wounds of the nation as also promising respect for and friendship with other countries. “I want to tell the world community that while we will always put America’s interests first, we will deal fairly with everyone... all people and all

Foreign policy of a Trump presidency The Trump administration’s foreign policy will be of special interest and relevance globally. Mr. Trump’s vision of America in the World is yet to be spelt out in any granularity, and while he is expected to appoint seasoned and experienced individuals to his team, going by his campaign pronouncements, the Iran nuclear deal will go under the scanner (whether it will be reversed is the question) and America’s alliance relationships in Europe and Asia will be scrutinised more closely. His Democratic Party opponents have long stressed that Mr. Trump questions basic premises of U.S. strategic and security policy in place since 1945. In their view, the American Century will change with Mr. Trump coming to power. However, American institutions and the American system will constrain him and are expected to prevail over ad hoc or impulsive tendencies in the new President. But more importantly, potential crises situations are not alleviated because of a Trump victory. For instance, the North Korean regime’s intractability and renegade tendencies will need careful and urgent focus (the failure of “strategic patience” with Pyongyang will most likely be acknowledged) as also the relationships with China and Russia. Mr. Trump came across during the campaign as having a much more rational and less prejudiced approach to the situation in Syria and Russian involvement in the region, and it is hoped that his advent to oice will see more collaborative, well-

CARTOONSCAPE

A method in the shock therapy

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rime Minister Narendra Modi’s move to curb unaccounted cash, or black money, circulating in the Indian economy by withdrawing the highest-value currency notes of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 as legal tender within threeodd hours of the announcement, is a bold one. He invoked provocative imagery to explain the measure — of corrupt oicials stashing kilos of illgained cash under their mattresses, and such illicit black money fuelling inflation as well as terrorism. He pointed out how diicult it is for honest taxpayers to buy a house as the real estate sector seldom operates without a cash component, some of which finds its way to political funding. The increase in the circulation of these notes in the past five years has been disproportionate to the economy’s growth. The introduction of new Rs.500 and Rs.2,000 notes, the government argues, would not only check counterfeit currency, a problem that has assumed serious dimensions, but also purge India’s economy of the black wealth amassed in the form of high-value notes. Any decision like this needs to be sudden, and it is not surprising that it has caused hardship as people scramble to get notes of smaller denomination for daily expenditure. The only defence for this is that the larger public purpose outweighs the immediate diiculties. Having promised during the 2014 election campaign to bring back black money worth lakhs of crores supposedly stashed abroad, the NDA government has been under pressure to do something dramatic. The two amnesty schemes it launched over the past year, including one for foreign assets, didn’t yield anything near the 23.2 per cent of GDP that the World Bank had estimated India’s shadow economy to be in 2007. Today that would be nearly $479 billion in unaccounted wealth, according to rating agency Crisil. While there will be pain and confusion in the short term for common people and the economy, a disruptive measure was perhaps the only way to shake up the system to a new compliance normal. But the Centre must ensure that no poor person is saddled with old, useless notes due to the lack of oicial identity documents or a bank account, and avoid putting to disadvantage older citizens unable to visit a bank repeatedly to exchange high-value notes. It should find ways to check black money parked in benami properties (possibly through a digital land and realty inventory) and gold. There must also be administrative and electoral reforms to advance digital payments and eliminate the prospect of the new currency regime spawning the ghost economy afresh.

The Asian amphitheatre The pivot or rebalancing to Asia announced by Secretary of State Clinton in a speech in Chennai in 2011 was never fully elucidated or efectively deployed by the Obama administration. The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade arrangement will be another aborted deal since the Trump government will not support it or take it forward because, in his view, free trade deals have destroyed working-class America. A challenge for the new President will also be how to pursue a more stable and intelligent relationship with a militaristic China that sees diminished U.S. economic power and military capability as an opportunity to advance its territorial claims in maritime Asia. Mr. Trump is a proclaimed opponent of terrorism and his approach to Pakistan and its support of terror groups will be no-nonsense and adversarial. His policy and attitude to India is expected to be positive and welcoming, continuing the trends and direction in the relationship established over the last decade. His ties with the IndianAmerican community and his general view that “India is doing great” suggest that he is well inclined to further cement the IndiaU.S. partnership. Immigration into the U.S. is a pet peeve for Mr. Trump. It remains to be seen how he will tackle the issue (he has made draconian promises to build a wall on the Mexican border and also deport immigrants) because there is widespread resentment at the grass roots in the country to foreign immigrants with the focus during the campaign on Mexico and the numbers of Mexicans in the U.S. (It is not acknowledged that the number of Mexicans entering the country has gone down from 2009 onwards.) India and its diaspora There are numbers of Indian and Chinese recent immigrants or new entrants into the U.S. whose status may be called into question. The issue of H-1B visas for IT professionals from India has been a vexed one also in recent years mainly due to nativist politics practised in the U.S. Congress by both Democrats and Republicans. There is no indication to suggest that as president Mr. Trump will advocate a new and altered approach to this issue. On issues of labour and trade, he is a protectionist and has come to power on a platform of restoring livelihoods for unemployed Americans rather than advocating solutions to visa issues for foreigners. The American President-elect is generally not acquainted with the salient details of the India-U.S. strategic partnership. Among these, the issue of India’s entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group remains unresolved and the continued advocacy, support and diplomatic push required from the U.S. for the Indian case will be critical for its satisfactory resolution. At the earliest opportunity, it will be advisable for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take the initiative to reach out to Mr. Trump so that the American President-elect is sensitised to the strategic interests that bind India and the U.S., and the multifaceted nature of the relationship between the two nations including its regional and global relevance. The ‘golden hour’ to do this may be even before the inauguration of the new President in January 2017. Nirupama Rao, a former Foreign Secretary, was also Ambassador of India to the United States.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

President-elect Trump The rise of Donald Trump comes as a surprise to not only a large chunk of Americans but also to the world. This U.S. presidential campaign saw a lot of mud-slinging and vilification. The U.S. media, which was palpably biased towards Hillary Clinton and wrote of Mr. Trump as a result, must be red-faced. Practically all the opinion polls predicted Ms. Clinton’s win. Mr. Trump’s anti-migrant, anti-Muslim stance and his sexual scandals were cited as his Achilles’ heel. Yet the voters have chosen him to lead the country because of their disenchantment and deep frustration with the Barack Obama administration, rising unemployment, the inability of the government to implement Obamacare efectively, frequent racial attacks, rising inequality, etc. R. Badri Narayanan, Bengaluru

It is phenomenal that Mr. Trump managed to win despite the media and the establishment’s rebukes against him for his vile remarks throughout the campaign. Also it seemed like there was overwhelming support for Hillary Clinton even from celebrities. It is evident that Mr. Trump’s policies and proposals resonated with a large section of people across regions. However, it is ironical that the United States, which stands for liberty and equality, failed again to elect its first female President. Paul Jom, Palakkad

CM YK

reasoned policy approaches and dialogue with Moscow to defeat the Islamic State instead of just pursuing the prospects of regime change in Damascus.

Silent voters have finally spoken and made their choice clear. In every election, it’s not supporters of parties or candidates who swing the election in the party or candidate’s favour but the fence-sitters. Mr. Trump seems to have understood well the anger against the establishment. The wave of movements against the establishment seems to be sweeping across nations. If Mr. Trump has won, it is largely because people were against Hillary Clinton; people did not trust her as she was part of the establishment. Rahul Nair H., Thiruvananthapuram

Has the American public overlooked the high moral values and standards expected of the President of their country by electing Mr. Trump? I am interested to know how many women voted Mr. Trump to power, given all the scandals surrounding him. It is said sometimes that women are their own worst enemies. The rejection of Hillary Clinton seems to ring true in this context. P. Ranganathan, Chennai

It is still too early to predict how Mr. Trump’s presidency will impact India but given his strong views on immigration, India might not have much to cheer about. What is important to know is the Presidentelect’s view on India-Pakistan relations. Mr. Obama had proved to be a strong ally in India’s eforts to curb Pakistan’s support to terrorism. The onus is now on

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to establish a friendship with Mr. Trump to ensure that the U.S.’s backing of India’s interests continues. C.V. Aravind, Chennai

I’m utterly flabbergasted. How can a man like Donald Trump be elected as President? It is incomprehensible to me how he can be given the most powerful job in the world. It is also ironical that his ascendancy follows the stint of an intelligent and able President, Barack Obama. Democracy works in such strange ways. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam, Ernakulam

Mr. Trump’s victory may be unexpected to many but it really is not that surprising. Indications of American fatigue with Mr. Obama’s policies were visible even in 2012. Mr. Obama rode to power in 2008, promising to end all the wars that he had inherited. But the U.S.’s interference in Libya, Syria and Yemen were unnecessary. There is also a link between the birth and rise of the Islamic State and America’s intervention in Syria. I hope Mr. Trump does not make the same mistakes as his predecessor did. Prem Kumar Gutty,

Modi, Vladimir Putin, or now Mr. Trump, the odds seem stacked in their favour despite the fact that attempts are made to bring them down before they come to power. People also seem inclined towards those leaders who are firm in their views against terror and forces inimical to national security.

Sivamani Vasudevan,

there are fake notes in circulation and this decision will eradicate the menace for some time, we can’t ignore the fact that this is a political move, coming as it does before the elections. Also, any person who has become wealthy illegally may not store all of it in hard cash. In the battle against black money, I hope the informal sector is not in trouble. Karthik G.,

Chennai

Chennai

Mr. Trump’s victory shows that Americans are not in favour of a woman President. The verdict also underlines the U.S.’s passion for Americanism, as propagated by Mr. Trump. It categorically refutes practically all the pre-poll predictions of the media. The U.S. has declared that it would rather prefer a leader who stands for a better economy and more job opportunities than a full-time politician like Hillary Clinton. This is also a vote against family dynasty. B. Prabha,

If Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes cease to become legal tender and new notes of the same denomination are introduced, is there a guarantee that duplicates of the new ones will not be out in the market sooner or later? And what if a customer deposits his old notes in a bank and they turn out to be fake? What will a poor wage labourer, who has earned, say, Rs. 500 today do? How will he or she buy anything? I wish the government did not thrust this decision upon us overnight and cause this chaos. N.R. Raghuram,

Varkala, Kerala

Hyderabad

If there has to be one reason why Ms. Clinton lost, it is the FBI’s bringing up of the email case at a crucial time in the election. It damaged her prospects. Srinivasan B., Chennai

Delhi

Fight against black money

A discerning trend can be seen emerging across the world. People seem to favour leaders who are aggressive, assertive and authoritative. Whether it’s Mr.

The popular notion that demonetisation will curb black money is misleading (“Rs. 500, Rs. 1,000 notes no longer legal tender”, Nov. 9). While it is correct that

The government’s intention may be good, but people have been subjected to a lot of stress. I know people who were waiting to buy train tickets last night, but were turned back even though the government has exempted the rule in railway counters, airports and hospitals. The government should have made the announcement early morning on November 8 so we could have all been prepared. M. L. Raghavan, Chennai ND-ND

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The forgotten war The Maoists are far from diminished. While operations like the one in Malkangiri last month help, the government needs to recognise that the movement cannot be approached only from the law and order perspective Bengal, where economic and developmental measures appear to have weakened the Maoist stranglehold, elsewhere in the country there are few signs that the movement is in retreat. The entire Dandakaranya region, which includes vast areas of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, considerable parts of Chhattisgarh, especially southern Chhattisgarh, as also large spaces in Odisha and, in addition, Jharkhand and parts of Maharashtra, show signs of a Naxalite revival. The strategic importance of this entire region is quite obvious when one looks at the map of India.

F R I D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 1 , 2 0 1 6

M.K. NARAYANAN

Making climate rules at Marrakech

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he United Nations conference on climate change now under way in Marrakech, Morocco, has the ambitious task of drawing up the first steps on enhanced finance and technology transfer, which is vital to advance the Paris Agreement that entered into force on November 4. India’s negotiating positions at the ongoing Conference of the Parties 22 (CoP 22) must ensure that on both these aspects, the basic principle of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities laid down by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change are upheld. Mitigating greenhouse gas emissions is central to the effort to contain the rise of the global average temperature in the current century to well below 2° Celsius since pre-industrial levels. But that goal is considered impossible even if sincere action is taken on all pledges made so far, necessitating a higher ambition. Moreover, the Paris Agreement does not have a carbon budget system that gives weightage to the emerging economies taking their historical handicap into account. The imperative therefore is to demand suitably high financial flows to both mitigate emissions and prepare communities to adapt to climate change. Such a mandate should be seen as an opportunity, since CoP 22 will discuss ways and means for countries to integrate their national commitments submitted for the Paris deal into actual policies and investment plans. In India’s case, new developments in sectors such as construction, transport, energy production, waste and water management, as well as agriculture, can benefit from fresh funding and technology. Adopting green technologies in power generation, which has a lock-in effect lasting decades, and other areas like transport with immediate impacts such as reduced air pollution has a twin advantage. The local environment is cleaned up, improving the quality of life, and carbon emissions are cut. It is imperative therefore that the national position raises pressure on rich countries for technological and funding assistance under the Paris Agreement. In parallel, India would have to update its preparedness to meet the new regime of transparency that is to be launched under the climate pact. The preparatory decisions to write the rules and modalities for such a framework, and assist developing countries with capability building will be taken at Marrakech. There is some apprehension that the U.S. could exit the climate consensus since the President-elect, Donald Trump, has vowed to cancel the Paris Agreement. Yet, business and industry today see a strong case to take a new path, as energy costs favour renewable sources over fossil fuels. States and cities are also charting their own course to curb emissions. These are encouraging trends.

On October 24, the Communist Party of India (Maoist) lost around 30 of its cadres in a covert operation jointly organised by the Greyhounds of Andhra Pradesh and the Special Operations Group of Odisha. This occurred in the densely forested region of Malkangiri district in Odisha. Many in the establishment, including some among the security forces and the media, have since claimed that it marked the beginning of the end of the Naxalite movement in the country. Unfortunately, this may be far from true. Euphoria of this kind is usually the result of a lack of understanding of the true nature of the Maoist movement. The phenomenon is much more than a mere militant movement. It partakes of an idea, pernicious though the idea might appear, which cannot be destroyed merely through a militarystyle setback. In the past half a century of its existence, the Naxalite (now Maoist) movement has weathered many such ‘setbacks’. Down but definitely not out In its initial stages, the movement had strong ideological moorings, receiving guidance from leaders like Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal, Santosh Rana, Kondapalli Seetharamaiah, Nagabhushan Patnaik and T. Nagi Reddy, to mention just a few. This kind of grounding enabled the movement to withstand changes in methods adopted by the authorities, including techniques such as ‘cordon and search’ and counter-terrorist operations such as ‘Operation Green Hunt’. Over the years, the trajectory of the movement, as also its character, changed and it became more brutal and sanguinary. Nevertheless, it still maintained a veneer of being true supporters of the poor and the downtrodden, especially the tribal people. It did lose some of the support it previously enjoyed among sections of the urban intelligentsia, but Maoism still resonates with some of the more ideologically oriented ele-

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Maoism today suffers from a lack of tall leaders — the present party general secretary ‘Ganapathy’ can hardly measure up to the ‘giants’ of the past ments in universities and colleges. The movement consequently still has considerable depth. It would, hence, be highly invidious to liken it to movements such as the Boko Haram in Africa — as obliquely hinted recently in a submission by the Chhattisgarh government before the Supreme Court. It is a sign of the times to be blasé about almost anything and everything. Slogans such as ‘China’s Chairman is our Chairman’ may no longer reverberate in the country, but the Maoist movement has not entirely lost its elan. It is less visible in the urban areas, but in many pockets of the country, especially in the more remote areas in the heartland States of the country, the Maoist movement is still a force to reckon with. It is only kept in check by a large security presence. A dip in violence levels during 2013-2014 has been followed by signs of a Maoist revival in 2015 and 2016. Apart from West

Fashionable once again Recent reports further indicate that from this core, the movement is now radiating out to other parts. This includes the crucial trijunction of the three southernmost States of India, viz. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. Both in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, there is growing concern at the manner in which the movement seems to have resurfaced. Adilabad, Warangal, Nizamabad and Khammam are the areas in Telangana where signs of such revival are currently evident. Naxalite ideas have once again become fashionable among college and university students. In Andhra Pradesh, re-emergence of Naxalite activity in the Araku Valley after nearly two decades is causing a great deal of concern among the authorities. Charges are being raised that leaders in Andhra Pradesh are siding with mining barons against the interests of the local tribal people. Threats to politicians and their backers are being freely held out. In Chhattisgarh, Dantewada, Bastar, Bijapur and Sukma are the main centres of Maoist activity currently. Many areas within these districts remain out of bounds for the local administration, the police and the security forces. This is despite years of efforts devoted to ‘pacifying’ the belt. Ambushes of security force personnel occur at regular intervals. In March this year, seven Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans were killed in Dantewada by a skilfully concealed Improvised Explosive Device (IED). During the same month, three members of the

CARTOONSCAPE

Theresa May’s underwhelming visit

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ndia and the U.K. have many reasons to have close relations. They are two pillars of the Commonwealth, sharing democratic values and a world view on many political issues including terrorism. The Indian community that has settled in Britain has helped deepen ties. Today India is the third largest investor in the U.K., and the U.K. is the largest G20 investor in India. It stands to reason that for her first foreign visit outside Europe after taking over as Prime Minister, Theresa May chose India. As long as British courts don’t stand in her way, she will work to engineer the U.K.’s exit from the European Union in early 2017, and her visit to India was seen as a way of exploring a trade path outside of the EU, with preliminary talk expected on reviving negotiations for a free trade agreement that were first started in 2007. For the past few months, British ministers, including key advisers to Ms. May, have emphasised that the Brexit movement would benefit India-U.K. ties. Given this backdrop, it remains a mystery why, in the event, Ms. May’s visit turned out to be devoid of any substantial measures that would put India-U.K ties on a new trajectory. The two MoUs signed in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ms. May, on improving the ease of doing business and on intellectual property rights, did little to add any shine to the lacklustre visit. Worse, Ms. May seemed more comfortable with her previous role as U.K. Home Secretary when she had announced strictures on immigration and student visas that have led to a 50 per cent drop in Indian students enrolling in British universities. Just three days before her visit to India, London announced new restrictions on overseas students, including two-tier visa rules based on the “quality of courses”, and a crackdown on work visas to control migration. Quite oblivious of the impact of these measures on her hosts, Ms. May chose to announce during her first day in Delhi that not only could she not consider India’s demands for relaxation, but that the U.K. could not do so unless India did more to assist in the return of “Indians with no right to remain in the U.K.” The irony is that London has refused to budge on facilitating the “return” of the likes of Vijay Mallya and Lalit Modi. It was odd that the Modi government chose to rejoice that Ms. May offered visas on a short notice scheme only for the extremely wealthy Indian as part of a “Grand Club”, which even British newspapers have criticised as a racist, colonialist and elitist measure. CM YK

highly trained ‘CoBRA Battalion’ of the CRPF were killed in an ambush in Sukma. Both Dantewada and Sukma also figured prominently in terrorist attacks on security forces during 2015. The same pattern is being witnessed in Bastar. Several of the attacks take place even when anti-terrorist operations are being conducted. Descent from high ideology We are, hence, hardly at an inflection point in the battle against Maoists. Major strides have undoubtedly been made over the years to improve the condition of the ‘poorest of the poor’ and the ‘wretched of the Earth’ (to quote Frantz Fanon). Nevertheless, the gap still remains wide, enabling movements such as those of the Maoists to exploit the situation. Admittedly, there is little in common between today’s Maoists who indulge in unbridled and often gruesome violent acts and the erstwhile purist revolutionaries of the Charu Majumdar era who had hoped to bring about “A Spring Thunder over India”. Yet, there is still more than an umbilical link between the latter and today’s Maoists. This cannot be ignored. Between the first phase of Naxalism (1967 to 1972) and today’s Maoist movement, vast changes have occurred in the taxonomy of Naxalism. Till the turn of the century, the movement retained at least some of its original ideological underpinnings and intellectual effervescence. Today, it has metamorphosed into a highly rigid and militaristic movement, more intent on terrorising segments of population than on supporting people’s causes. It maintains its own small arms factories where it fashions much of its weaponry. It has a well-established arms trail to obtain state-of-the-art weapons from sources outside the country. It is extremely adept in the use of IEDs, and in resorting to unconventional methods to deploy them. This had led to large-scale security force casualties (in 2010 in an IED explosion in Dantewada, 76 CRPF personnel were killed). Over the past decade, the Maoists seemed to have had the better of the exchanges with security forces/civilians in terms of casualties — averaging a ratio of three security forces/civilians killed for every Naxalite. The jury is still out whether — in part at least — this transformation is a reaction to a shift in tactics on the part of the administration of employing a combination of counter-terrorist and counter-insurgency techniques. Twenty-first century Maoism cannot obviously claim to be a legatee of the ideological movement launched half a century ago. At its inception, it had proper credentials to be listed as a true Marxist-Leninist movement. No longer. It today suffers from a lack of tall leaders as well — the present party general secretary ‘Ganapathy’ can hardly measure up to the ‘giants’ of the past. Nevertheless, the movement cannot be written off. It still has reservoirs of support in many rural pockets, and still more so in the more neglected and forgotten tribal regions of the country. It is still able to convey an impression that the Maoists are the ‘torch bearers’ of ‘an idea’ whose time is about to come. Central and State governments, the administration and the security establishment need to recognise that the movement cannot be approached from a purely law and order point of view. The process of improving the conditions of the poor and the tribals clearly need to be speeded up if the movement is to be effectively checked. M.K. Narayanan is a former National Security Adviser and former Governor of West Bengal.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

The triumph of Trump Donald Trump’s win in the U.S. presidential election lays bare two facts (“Shock and awe win for Donald Trump”, Nov. 10). The first is the unreliability of poll predictions. We’ve seen many cases in the recent past where pre-poll surveys have gone off the mark. In the U.K., in 2015, many pollsters predicted a Labour win or said it would be a close call, completely underestimating the Conservative vote. Again in June this year, pollsters predicted that Britain would remain in the European Union. Brexit happened. And now again, Mr. Trump’s win has taken us by surprise. In this election, no poll agency seems to have bothered to find out what was going in the mind of the average citizen. Instead, pollsters have gone by media reports about a candidate’s level of support. While all were shouting themselves hoarse about Mr. Trump’s comments on women, what the average American really cared about clearly was perceived loss of jobs due to immigration. Sharada Sivaram, Chennai

Mr. Trump’s win was America’s Brexit moment. He trumped Hillary Clinton’s Democratic leviathan, which was backed by media moguls and Wall Street, and secured the much-coveted job. Mr. Trump was demonised by his opponents and the media in such a way that people even in other countries thought his election would precipitate the apocalypse. Do the election results

indicate an endorsement of Mr. Trump’s so-called negative attributes? No. They should be seen as the people’s desperation for a leader who would hoist their country out of the morass it finds itself in. Americans were left with no alternative. Hopefully, this sobering political reality will have a mellowing effect on Mr. Trump and he will prove his critics wrong by conducting himself responsibly. J.S. Acharya, Hyderabad

One thing that was in favour of Mr. Trump was his ‘America First’ policy. This primacy is important to Americans. And what is of importance to other countries is Mr. Trump’s tough stand against terrorism and his position that religious fundamentalism is the cause of terrorism. Mr. Trump seems averse to dictatorial regimes like the one in North Korea. When asked once what he would do if Kim Jong-un came to the U.S., Mr. Trump said he would welcome the North Korean dictator for negotiations but without the fanfare generally given to other world leaders. This is a positive sign for the world. India has something to cheer about too, as Mr. Trump has no love lost for Pakistan’s policy of promoting terrorism. K.R. Jayaprakash Rao, Mysuru

Not only China’s but Russia’s power too will grow if Mr. Trump has a new vision for Asia (“If Trump shifts Asia policy, China’s power will grow”, Nov. 10). Prime Minister Narendra Modi did some fast

diplomatic footwork with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Goa to put India-Russia relations on an even keel. As many as 16 agreements were signed between the two countries. Mr. Putin also condemned the cross-border terror attack in Uri. Russia has stood by India since the days Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolai Bulganin visited India in the 1950s. Besides, Moscow exercised its veto in the United Nations Security Council in 1962 to thwart the West’s attempt to pass a resolution on Kashmir.. At a time when our relations with China and Pakistan are strained, and Mr. Trump’s foreign policy towards Asia is yet to take shape, Mr. Modi has acted wisely in strengthening India’s strategic relationship with a time-tested friend like Russia. India can rely more on Russia to broker peace with China and Pakistan than on the U.S., which employs double standards in its dealings with India and Pakistan. Russia can also nudge Islamabad to shun cross-border terrorism and improve trade and investment with India. Kangayam R. Narasimhan, Chennai

Flushing out black money While the move to demonetise existing Rs.500 and Rs.1000 notes looks sensible, it is proving to be a hindrance to common people. The rich and powerful, whose money is stashed in tax havens outside the country, are leading hassle-free lives. More importantly, if the Finance Minister is more worried about

India’s security, why hasn’t any action been taken against all the black money flowing to cricket, business, etc.? What action has been taken against those whose names appeared in the Panama Papers? Supporting big sharks and catching small fish does not augur well. Devadas V., Kannur

The media is full of reports about serpentine queues outside banks. But when some of my relatives and friends and I went to the bank, we did not face any difficulty. The bank had made appropriate arrangements for smooth conduct of transactions. I think the queues are exceptions. In matters like this, the media should focus on general cases rather than on exceptions so that undue panic is avoided. M.D. Ravikanth, Chennai

Since morning, TV channels have been showing long queues in banks. Some showed senior citizens waiting patiently to exchange old notes. The most heart-rending scene I saw was of a frail 80-yearold woman standing with great difficulty in a queue in a Mumbai bank. Is it not the duty of bank officials everywhere to ensure that senior citizens stand in separate queues and are not inconvenienced for long hours? This doesn’t seem to be the case. In a society where old age homes are becoming a necessity, does anyone even care about how senior citizens are treated? A. Mohan, Chennai

On the day after the announcement, there were mixed reactions from people. But many common people I spoke to cheered this decision despite the fact that they are facing problems in the short run. This shows that people can tolerate some inconvenience if it’s for the right cause: for national security and the betterment of the country. Hope this decision is the right one and curbs the menace of black money. Sandeep Yadav, Jaipur

One may disagree with the Prime Minister on a hundred issues, but one cannot deplore this move. The bold stroke of demonetisation may rattle people but it will definitely inject dynamism in the moribund economy. Such a shock is warranted as the rich and influential have had too long a honeymoon. M.A. Siraj, Bengaluru

This move cleanses the economy of fake currency but not all black money. There may be unaccounted money in overseas banks and some may have invested in assets. To make the transition smoother, the government could have issued a circular of what the common man should do and what options are available for traders in small towns and villages where a cashless system barely exists. Nevertheless, this replacing of notes should be a regular exercise. Perhaps it can be carried out every 30 years or so so that there is no counterfeit cash. Praveen Kumar T.B., Hyderabad ND-ND

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THE HINDU SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2016

The short arc that led to Donald Trump We have lost our ability to understand that politics in the West need not only be about economic issues, it can also be about identity, ethnicity, and race — and it can be ugly S AT U R D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 1 6

NEELANJAN SIRCAR

Punjab’s legislative adventurism

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here was never any doubt that Punjab’s legislative adventurism in enacting a law in 2004 to terminate all previous agreements on sharing the waters of the Ravi and the Beas with its neighbours would not survive judicial scrutiny. Answering a Presidential reference on the validity of Punjab’s action, the Supreme Court has declared the State’s law illegal. It has ruled that Punjab reneged on its solemn promises by terminating its 1981 agreement with Haryana and Rajasthan to discharge itself of the obligation to construct the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal. Its objective was to overcome the 2004 decree passed by the Supreme Court directing it to complete the canal work expeditiously. The court’s reasoning draws from previous verdicts relating to the Cauvery and Mullaperiyar disputes, reiterating the principle that “a State cannot, through legislation, do an act in conflict with the judgment of the highest court which has attained finality.” It is another matter if legislation takes the form of a validating Act to cure specific illegalities or one that removes the basis for a particular verdict. The verdict by a five-member Bench is a timely reminder that it would be destructive of the rule of law and federalism if a State were to be allowed to usurp judicial powers by nullifying a verdict that has rendered findings on both fact and law. As Punjab heads for the Assembly election, this issue has already led to posturing by all major parties on which among them is the best protector of the State’s interests. This attitude leads to a disturbing tendency among States to be judges in their own cause, especially when it comes to water disputes. Political parties in power increasingly resort to legislation or Assembly resolutions rather than negotiation. The Opposition parties collaborate in this with equal zeal, lest they be seen to be wanting in passion for the cause. Punjab may well have had legitimate grievances, historically, in the sharing of waters. This was, in fact, the reason the Rajiv-Longowal accord of 1985 contained clauses relating to river-water sharing too. Earlier, diferences were first settled by a notification by the Centre in 1976. When the matter led to litigation, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi brokered an agreement in 1981. In effect, the present arrangements, which Punjab seeks to wriggle out of, are backed by three agreements. The Supreme Court ruled against Punjab in 2002 as well as in 2004. The State’s obligation to allow the completion of the SYL Link Canal, so that Haryana can utilise the share of water allocated to it, cannot be frustrated any more. If Punjab feels aggrieved, there may be scope for negotiation and conciliation even now, but it cannot take action unilaterally.

My father came to America from India in 1967, and my mother came soon after in 1972. America was diferent then. These were the early days of American immigration, as President Lyndon B. Johnson had opened the America’s “gates” to foreigners in 1965. Yes, there was discrimination, but there was also a sense of opportunity. Growing up in America, my brother and I were taught to believe that if we studied and worked hard enough, we would do well for ourselves. Unlike India, with its rigid caste system, or Western Europe, with its entrenched bourgeoisie, anyone could make it in America. Indian-Americans, making full use of these opportunities, soon became the wealthiest and most-educated social group in America. But it wasn’t just economic success for immigrants and for the country as a whole, this period of enhanced American immigration led to a cultural elorescence that would brand American pre-eminence in terms of openness and diversity. Yet, little did we realise there was growing resentment against people like us that, decades later, would culminate in the election of Republican Donald Trump. Unlike Goldwater This wasn’t the first time America was faced with a Trump-like candidate. In 1964, Barry Goldwater emerged from the multicornered primaries as the Republican nominee, defeating, among others, the more moderate Nelson Rockefeller. Goldwater’s coalition included members from the paranoid, anti-communist organisation John Birch Society that opposed civil rights legislation (for the equal treatment of black Americans) on the grounds that it was aimed at creating a “Soviet Negro Republic” in the American South. Much as in this election, moderate Republican leaders baulked at supporting such an extremist candidate. A significant share of Republican Party members defected and voted for Goldwater’s opponent, Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. Goldwater’s electoral coalition crumbled; he garnered just 38 per cent of the vote, compared to Johnson’s 61 per cent, while winning only six out of the 50 states. Emboldened by a major electoral mandate, President Johnson introduced the “Great So-

Mr. Trump’s mandate is to ‘take back’ American institutions, and, as a populist, he is expected to do it. There is little incentive for him to moderate his position now ciety” civil rights legislation to address racial discrimination, as well the immigration reforms that would allow my parents to come to America. Faced with a paranoid, racist social force in the 1960s, the American electorate responded to keep the country on the path of liberty and equality. In this election, Donald Trump had open associations with white supremacist groups and wrapped the banks, the President, and the media into one large conspiracy narrative. But this time American democracy failed, and we are left seeking answers as to why. When my parents immigrated, America was building its Great Society; today they face the prospect of seeing it unravel in front of their eyes. The decisive voter To understand this outcome, one must begin with America’s electoral system, which structures the set of viable political appeals. In this system, (in all but two states) the candidate who receives the support of a plurality of voters in the state wins all of that state’s “electoral votes.” The candidate who re-

ceives a majority of these electoral votes (270) wins the election. If a voter resides in a state in which one of the candidates will likely receive a plurality, his/her vote is effectively useless. For instance, in California, where it was certain that Hillary Clinton would win a plurality, an extra vote for either Ms. Clinton or Mr. Trump would have had zero marginal impact on the candidates’ electoral fortunes. Accordingly, candidates and parties focus on winning the support of voters in a small set of “swing states” that are not committed to either candidate. This further implies that the optimal political appeal to win an election is driven exclusively by the demographics and issues in the swing states, like Michigan and Pennsylvania, as opposed to the preferences of the entire American electorate. American voters now exhibit severe party polarisation. Even in an election that saw Bernie Sanders split the Democratic Party, and several key Republican leaders abandon Mr. Trump, most members of the Democratic and Republican parties fell into line. The CNN exit poll shows that about 90 per cent of each of Democrats and Republicans voted for their party’s candidate in this election; by contrast, a Gallup exit poll found that 20 per cent of Republicans defected from the party to vote for Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. Furthermore, about 70 per cent of the American electorate is registered with either the Democratic or Republican Party. The decisive voters are thus the small number of uncommitted voters in a few swing states. Nativism in the swing states Many have termed Donald Trump’s victory as a revenge of the working-class white voter, as the Rust Belt swing states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, with large working-class white populations, all swung toward Mr. Trump in this election. The Rust Belt was once the manufacturing hub of the U.S., but these jobs gradually disappeared due to the pressures of globalisation and job automation. Indeed, the proportion of the U.S. workforce in manufacturing had declined from about one in four in 1960 to about one in 10 in 2010. But a simple narrative of those afected by globalisation voting for Trump due to economic grievance does not fit the empirical facts well. According to CNN’s exit poll, Ms. Clinton posted an 11 percentage point lead for voters with annual salaries less than $50,000, while

CARTOONSCAPE

The Tower of Song

A bleak future It will get worse before it gets better. Mr. Trump’s electoral mandate is to “take back” American institutions, and, as a populist, he is expected to do it. His promises include filing charges and jailing Ms. Clinton, banning Muslim immigration, nominating ultra-conservative Supreme Court judges, and, most of all, imposing nativist control over the country’s institutions. There is little incentive for him to moderate his positions now. I now live in India. On Wednesday morning, I woke up at 5.30 a.m. to find out about the election results in America. I found out that I am no longer welcome in the country in which I was born and raised because of the colour of my skin.

“I

was born like this, I had no choice. I was born with the gift of a golden voice,” wrote Leonard Cohen in “Tower of Song”, suggesting he was sentenced to a life of imprisonment in music. It was a life in which he fused pain and passion, blended the sacred with the profane. Among the greatest of the singer-songwriters to emerge from the sixties, Cohen spoke of extreme passions in liturgical phrases and with biblical references. The Canadian troubadour, who found inspiration in Greece and fame in the U.S., was a successful novelist and a poet before turning to lyrics “to slash your wrists by”, rendered almost conversationally in a brooding and arrestingly sensual bass. Unlike other musicians, he didn’t fade away as he grew older, or when “he ached in the places where he used to play”. His last two albums were sufused with witty, self-deprecatory humour and intimations of his own mortality. Cohen also remained a spiritual seeker in his verses all his life, his songs often deviating from the narrative to ask questions about the divine, as he wandered from Zen Buddhism to Advaita Vedanta while staying Jewish by faith. Along with Bob Dylan, who called him “No.1 to his Zero”, Cohen blurred the line between poetry and lyric in the sixties and seventies. They spoke the language of the time using words of rebellion and spirituality. The words of “Suzanne” and “Closing Time” dive into religion and morality, cutting just as deep without the music. “Bird on the Wire” was where he hit peak, the simplicity of the rhyme serving to ram home the complexity of the emotion. He retained his edge even in his last album, speaking with the same voice and shifting only in theme to death and leave-taking. Cohen used chords sparsely, not allowing the music to drown the words. However, his music was no lesser a feat. The rises and falls of “Hallelujah” draw listeners to emotions of accomplishment and dejection in the gap of a few notes; the soft sensuality of “Dance Me to the End of Love” is rendered with a tinge of sadness that befitted the link in his mind between the song and the Holocaust. “So Long Marianne”, ode to his muse and lover, is an overture that steps beyond the words and the music into a higher emotional realm. Cohen’s death is a loss to all who look for reason in the rhyme and rhythm. Always a perfectionist, he often described his masterpieces as “incomplete”. Cohen may be no more but he will, for many years from now, be speaking to us softly from his window in the tower of song. CM YK

Mr. Trump led with voters who made more than $50,000 a year. This pattern also holds in the Rust Belt states that Mr. Trump won. For instance, in the swing state of Pennsylvania, Ms. Clinton held a 12 percentage point lead among voters making less than $50,000 a year, but Mr. Trump held an 11 percentage point lead among voters with annual salaries above $50,000. Furthermore, if this was about economic loss, one would have expected these voters to support higher taxes, more redistributive policy, and stronger social programmes. In fact, Mr. Trump is promising the opposite: severe tax cuts and a repeal of nationalised healthcare. The economic grievance narrative is appealing to those who have a commitment to class struggle as an organising principle of politics. Much of this is a post-World War II construction that voter preferences are primarily driven by economic instrumentality. As the World War II generation, and those who fought for civil rights in America, have largely passed on, we have lost our ability to understand that politics in the West need not only be about economic issues, it can also be about identity, ethnicity, and race, and it can be ugly. In my previous piece (‘Why Donald Trump has already won’, The Hindu, October 29), I explained that the rise of Mr. Trump was directly linked to the rise of “nativism,” an aggressive reaction by white Americans to take back the country’s institutions. This isn’t just conjecture; Nigel Farage, who championed Britain’s exit from the European Union (Brexit), was a guest at the Republican National Convention and hit the campaign trail with Mr. Trump. This was a powerful message in the largely white Rust Belt, where decades of job loss had precipitated a loss of “importance” and “prestige” for those living in these states. Outside of the mainstream, the nativist movement created a world of conspiracy-spouting, fear-mongering talk show hosts and blogs in the “altright” media that none of us took seriously enough. Much like the John Birch Society decades before, this was a paranoid, angry reaction by white Americans fuelled by racial tensions to take back American institutions. Except this time the movement was successful. This narrative of severe racial polarisation in this election is borne out in the data. The CNN exit poll data show that Mr. Trump had a 21 percentage point lead, 58 per cent to 37 per cent, among white voters, the largest gap seen among white voters in a long time. Even the pollsters failed to pick up the level of racial polarisation in the electorate, which led most of them to wrongly predict Ms. Clinton to win the election. The last CNN/ ORC poll released just before the election had Mr. Trump winning white voters in Pennsylvania by 9 percentage points, 50 per cent to 41 per cent. The CNN exit poll for Pennsylvania showed that Mr. Trump carried white voters by 16 percentage points, 56 to 40 per cent. Given that 80 per cent of Pennsylvania’s voters are white, this diference alone predicted a 5-6 per cent shift in the vote towards Mr. Trump from the preelection poll.

Neelanjan Sircar is a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Cleaning up the economy The writer has misread the intention behind demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes (“The new colour of money”, Nov. 11). A decision like this is not always taken to spruce up the economy. Unaccounted wealth is a black mark on our society. If the salaried class pays taxes through its nose, the same is expected of the wealthy. The argument that such a step will not discourage corruption fails to impress the reader. When new currency notes are required for future transactions, it automatically means that there is no free circulation of currency notes for paying bribes. The next argument that nothing will change drastically as demonetised notes will be replaced by fresh ones is fallacious since all the unaccounted cash will never be replaced. There are restrictions in the exchange process entailing huge tax. What is in the account book alone will be exchanged. The whole nation is happy with the move. V. Lakshmanan, Tirupur, Tamil Nadu

It is too far-fetched to see any cultural angle, as the writer does, in the introduction of Devanagari numerals in the notes. Notes have

‘Reserve Bank of India’ written in Hindi, for instance. Does that also constitute a cultural attack? Pallav Kumar, New Delhi

The situation is not as smooth as claimed by some people in this space. Many are sufering. Some banks are refusing to exchange money, saying they are short of funds. Common people feel that the economy will no longer be tainted and feel like they are contributing to cleaning up the mess. But the government must explain what it has done to catch the big sharks. K. Muhammed Ismayil, Kozhikode, Kerala

In Bengaluru where I live, most ATMs and cash deposit machines are out of order. This needs to be sorted out without any delay as this crisis is causing long queues. Also, separate queues for deposits and exchanges would make it easier. G. Padmanabhan,

make deposits. This move is also compelling people to open accounts to deposit their cash, thus bolstering financial inclusion. This is good for the reeling banking sector and for the economy as deposits help in lending loans. Higher deposits may lead to lowering of interest rates. However, the logistics make things diicult. When most of the ATMs are dry in cities, including the national capital, one can well imagine the situation in villages. The banking machinery must deal with this task on a war footing. Anshu Patel, Dhanbad. Jharkhand

I am an Indian citizen living in the U.S. While demonetisation seems like a welcome measure, we do not know how people abroad, who are not visiting India any time soon and who don’t have non-resident ordinary rupee accounts, will exchange the currency they have. Venkatesan N., California, U.S.

Bengaluru

This master stroke will eliminate the counterfeit notes in circulation and bring black money-holders under the scanner to a large extent. It will also help us move towards a cashless economy. People are thronging banks to exchange and

A heartening interview Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena appeared sincere and straightforward in his interview (“Reconciliation can’t be done in a few days”, Nov. 11). His remark that he has an obligation to solve the

problems of the Tamils, as most of them voted for him, is reassuring. The road to reconciliation, though a daunting task, is possible with a spirit of accommodation, understanding and empathy. The President appears to be well intentioned. If the Tamils are assured of peaceful living conditions and equitable treatment, there should not be any reason for reconciliation talks failing. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam, Kerala

severely afect India. But there are also some silver linings. Mr. Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire for stringent pecuniary and commercial action against China and Pakistan for using the U.S. for decades as a cash cow. If the U.S. imposes heavy tarifs on trade with China, this may open new avenues of trade and commerce between the U.S. and India. Mr. Trump seems against Pakistansponsored terrorism, so this may be good for India too. Buddhadev Nandi,

A new era in America

Bankura, West Bengal

Going by the history of India-U.S. relations, Republican Presidents have succeeded in strengthening ties with India more than Democratic Presidents (“If Trump shifts Asia policy, China’s power will grow”, Nov. 10). But under the Obama presidency, India-U.S. relations have been stable. Many are apprehensive that Donald Trump’s hawkish policy of ‘America first’ and his plans to renegotiate all foreign trade deals may hit India’s trade treaties with the U.S. Mr. Trump’s election promise of bringing back American jobs is also a matter of grave concern for India’s IT sector. Besides, his plan to reduce corporate tax rate from 35 to 15 per cent to lure multinationals may

Winston Churchill said something to the afect of democracy being the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time. This summarises the post-election commotion in the U.S. Voters must not reject the outcome just because it is contrary to what some of them wanted (“‘Not my President’: Protests erupt in the U.S.”, Nov. 11). People are taking to the streets even before Mr. Trump sets foot in the Oval Oice. Though their concerns are justifiable, given Mr. Trump’s populist and surreal campaign, they should not assume that his presidency will be apocalyptic. Dharmpreet Singh Khaira, Patiala, Punjab ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2016

Watering the green shoots More than ever, non-economic factors will play a key role in determining whether the investment sentiment is sustained or not. Policymakers need to be conscious of this, and keep away from divisive and disruptive issues M O N D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 4 , 2 0 1 6

C. RANGARAJAN

The big deal with Japan

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hen India conducted its nuclear tests in 1998, Japan was the country that took it the hardest: it put all political exchanges with India on hold, froze aid and announced economic sanctions within hours. A thaw in ties didn’t come until 2001, when sanctions were lifted. And then, in 2009, the two countries began an annual strategic dialogue. This has now come to fruition with the signing of the nuclear cooperation agreement in Tokyo during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit. The deal is critical to India’s renewable energy plans. Japanese companies that produce cutting-edge reactor technology were previously not allowed to supply parts to India. In addition, Japanese companies have significant holdings in their U.S. and French partners negotiating for nuclear reactors now, and that would have held up the deals. This is Japan’s first nuclear deal with a non-signatory to the Non Proliferation Treaty, and it recognises India’s exemplary record in nuclear prudence. It is indeed a muchneeded moral boost as New Delhi strives for membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). The move will boost the meagre, and dipping, bilateral trade of $15 billion, and lift the strategic military and defence relationship. There are several riders to this rosy prognosis, however. First, the nuclear deal has to be approved by Japan’s Parliament. This will not be aided by unhelpful references such as those made recently by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, about revisiting India’s no-first-use nuclear weapons policy. In Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may face criticism that he extracted too few assurances from India on a nuclear test ban. In India, Mr. Modi may be criticised for giving in too much, as a note slipped into the agreement now accepts an emergency suspension of the deal if India tests a weapon. The clock is ticking, and Mr. Abe must bring the deal to Parliament in early 2017 to ensure that the commercial agreement for Westinghouse’s six reactors in Andhra Pradesh that is due in June 2017 comes through. This will also coincide with the next plenary of the NSG. Both New Delhi and Tokyo must also be wary of the impact on Beijing of this new stage in their ties. China has been hedging against deeper Japan-India ties in Asia by investing in its relationship with Russia and Pakistan. As the two Asian rivals to China, India and Japan might need the partnership even more in the days to come, as the U.S. President-elect has indicated a lower level of interest in “playing policeman” in the region.

We are now in the middle of the fiscal 201617. The main monsoon is also over. This is an appropriate time to take a look at the economy and assess where we are headed. Two important questions that spring up are: are there green shoots which show a decisive revival of the economy, and have we laid the foundation for a faster rate of growth of the economy in the medium term? In analysing the trends in the economy, we continue to be plagued by conflicting sets of data. National income data are available only for the first quarter (April-June). These data show that GDP grew by 7.1 per cent and that value added in manufacturing grew by 9.1 per cent. However, according to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) during this quarter, manufacturing fell by 0.6 per cent. The Central Statistics Oice (CSO) now uses IIP data for measuring only a small segment of manufacturing. It uses the corporate data for estimating 75 per cent of the manufacturing sector. While one cannot fault the CSO for the new methodology, it has to carefully cross check the data it relies upon. Analysts need some amount of reassurance from the CSO. All the same, an attempt can be made to find out whether the current year will be better than the last year by looking at the performance of diferent segments. Agricultural production Looking at the problem from the supply side, the one segment that will do better is agriculture. This is based purely on the better performance of the monsoon. In the short run, rainfall is an important factor influencing agricultural production. The rainfall during the monsoon over the country as a whole was 97 per cent of the long period average (LPA). This is somewhat lower than what was originally predicted. But this is distinctly better than last year when the rainfall was only 86 per cent of LPA. The Southwest Monsoon rainfall in the current

The positive signs are an improved agricultural performance and a pick-up in rural demand, some increase in private consumption and enhanced capital expenditure year is 100 mm higher than last year, which is approximately 13 per cent higher than last year. Based on a study of the impact of rainfall on agricultural production, this should lead to an increase in value added in agricultural and allied activities by 2.7 per cent. Demand side perspective From the demand side, there are four elements that we need to examine: private consumption expenditure, government expenditure particularly on investment, private investment particularly corporate investment, and external demand. As far as private consumption expenditure is concerned, a major factor contributing to a push is the implementation of the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission. Government’s salary and pension expenditures are expected to rise by 20 per cent. As those recommendations were made efective only from August 2016, the impact

on the production of consumption goods will be seen only in the second half. There is evidence of some sectors like two-wheelers growing fast. The impact of the good monsoon on rural demand may also show up in the second half. Total Central government expenditures in the first half were 52.0 per cent of the budgeted expenditures for the year. This is only a shade higher than previous year. Capital expenditures have shown a rise of 4.6 per cent over the previous year. Increase in capital expenditures is welcome as they lead to greater investment. In September 2016, capital expenditures grew by 20 per cent on year-on-year basis. However, this was mainly due to the increase in loans disbursed. It is to be noted that the bulk of the public investment comes from public sector enterprises. As of now, there is no information how much additional investment has been made by PSUs. Roads and railways seem to be doing well. The third important segment is corporate investment. In the last several years corporate investment has been roughly one-third of the total Gross Fixed Capital Formation. Therefore it is critical to watch its behaviour. The Reserve Bank of India has been making a forecast of corporate investment based on a methodology outlined by me. In the September 2016 issue of RBI Bulletin, it has provided the outlook that emerges for 2016-17. Bulk of the investment expenditures in any year are the result of the projects initiated in the previous two to three years. With the slowdown in new projects undertaken in recent years, it is unlikely that investment expenditures by the corporate sector in 2016-17 can be higher than in 2015-16. The study by RBI staf indicates that substantial investment in the projects initiated in 201617 will be required to equal previous year’s total investment expenditures. The total cost of projects initiated with institutional assistance in 2015-16 was Rs.954 billion, and Rs.878 billion in 2014-15. All this is a far cry from the figure of Rs.2,754 billion in 2006-07. External environment The external demand is largely a reflection of the world economy which shows a

CARTOONSCAPE

Punjab’s politics of defiance

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ith the Supreme Court responding to the presidential reference and terming illegal the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004, politics in the State has predictably acquired a defiant edge. Amarinder Singh, who was Chief Minister when the legislation was passed more than a decade ago in order to deny the neighbouring States their determined share of river waters, lost no time in announcing his resignation as a member of the Lok Sabha and that of all Congress MLAs from the Punjab Assembly. As an act of protest it has an absurd edge, but with Assembly elections due in early 2017, the party obviously wants to raise the stakes by identifying itself with the emotive water issue. In fact, it allows Mr. Singh the ideal launch pad to take on not just the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government, but also the Congress campaign strategist, Prashant Kishor, with whom he has been at odds. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had upped the ante earlier this year by shepherding a law in the Assembly to return to the original owners land acquired decades ago for the Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal meant to enable sharing of river waters. Even as the State Governor refrained from giving consent to the legislation, bulldozers were employed to fill part of the canal with uprooted trees and soil to mark the Punjab government’s defiance. In response to the Supreme Court’s advisory on the 2004 law, Mr. Badal has called a session of the presumably Congress-less Assembly. If there is a case for recalculating what may be a fair sharing of river waters given the changes in water availability, then Punjab’s government and politicians are unwilling to even consider this. It is an all-or-nothing game in an election season in which the established political coordinates have been scrambled. Over the past couple of decades, Punjab politics had settled into a two-party/alliance dynamic, the Congress versus SAD-BJP. The 2014 Lok Sabha election changed that, with the Aam Aadmi Party taking four of the 13 seats. The implication of the AAP record for the Assembly elections is not clear, whether it was a one-of that put the older parties on notice, or whether it signalled a search for a party that would break the State’s fossilised, often vengeful, politics that has eschewed attention to grassroots issues of agrarian distress, drug addiction, corruption, and discrimination. It is unclear whether the SAD’s or the Congress’s high defiance on water agreements will help them electorally in this landscape. But it would amount to further undermining the larger national profile that both Mr. Badal and Mr. Singh have built over the decades if they rallied passions so irresponsibly. CM YK

sluggish recovery. All forecasts indicate a slowing down in the world growth rate in 2016. The expectation is a slight improvement in 2017. World trade is also slowing. Exports of India started declining in 2015-16. For the year as a whole, the decline was 15.5 per cent. Much of this was due to the fall in the value of oil exports. However, some improvement in the current year is seen. The decline in exports during April-September was 1.26 per cent. This is on a base which had already declined. In the month of September 2016, exports grew by 4.03 per cent. In an environment of declining world trade, it is not surprising that India’s exports fell. However, data for 2015 showed that the India’s share in world exports has had a small decline, which indicates our exports are slowing down more than world exports. But as indicated earlier, India’s exports are doing a little better this year. We need to maintain this momentum. India’s current account, however, has been comfortable because of the sharper decline in imports. The external environment may not provide much stimulus by way of demand. Green shoots Thus, the positive signs in the economy are an improved agricultural performance and a pick-up in rural demand, some increase in private consumption expenditure primarily due to the implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations and an enhanced capital expenditure by government. The negative indicators are a continued stagnation in corporate investment and a poor external environment. The growth rate of GVA (gross value added) at basic prices in 2015-16 was 7.2 per cent. This year it may be slightly better at 7.6 per cent mainly because of improved agricultural performance. This estimate of the growth rate will undergo a downward revision if the disruptions caused by demonetisation persist for a long time. The Indian economy has acquired a certain amount of stability. Prices are under control. Both CPI (consumer price index) and WPI (wholesale price index) inflation are below 5 per cent. Improved agricultural performance may further moderate food prices. The fiscal picture has been under control, even though as of now the fiscal deficit is running high. The current account deficit remains subdued. For the current year, it may be lower than last year’s level of 1.1 per cent of GDP. All these are favourable factors for sustained economic growth. The banking system is however under stress. On the reforms front, there has been some improvement. Initially, there was the amendment to the Insurance Act to facilitate larger foreign investment. The Bankruptcy Act has been enacted. The real estate sector now has a regulator. Finally, the goods and services tax is becoming a reality. All of these are enabling legislations. The impact of these legislations on the economy will take some time to come. But they are moves in the right direction. To maintain a high growth rate in the medium term, a kick start in investment is imperative. This is yet to happen, even though the investment sentiment is slightly better today. But more than ever, non-economic factors will play a key role determining if this sentiment will be sustained or not. Policy-makers need to be conscious of this and keep the focus on growth, and away from divisive and disruptive issues. C. Rangarajan is former Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister and former Governor, Reserve Bank of India.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Show me the money The government’s sudden decision to demonetise Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes has led to an unprecedented rush to banks, causing panic in many places (“Stocking of ATMs with new notes to take longer: Jaitley”, Nov. 13). But a word must be said about the bank employees because of whom exchanges are going on smoothly in a lot of places. The policemen who are posted at these branches are also doing an excellent job of managing the crowds. In some branches, shamianas have been put up to guard people against the sun. Some people are even ofering drinking water, buttermilk, biscuits and tofees! Last year, in Chennai, we had the generosity to commend the services of volunteers during the floods. Similarly, this year, we should commend the bank stafers for doing a great job in a diicult time like this. V. Hemavathy, Chennai

Some politicians have discredited themselves by their repeated fulminations against the demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes. Their anger should be directed at generators of black money, black marketers and those funding terrorist activities with unaccounted money. Political dignitaries such as the Chief Minister of Delhi and the former Union Finance Minister are revealing their prejudices through their comments. There is no doubt that this government did not do its homework thoroughly before

springing this surprise, but the public, though inconvenienced to a large extent, is not unhappy. It would be more appropriate to focus on how to make smooth and rapid the exchange of old notes. The credibility of the government can be ensured only if these long queues gradually disappear. S. Vasudevan,

chaos would have largely been contained. People have Rs.2,000 notes now, but others don’t have change to give them! The way this whole process has been mismanaged will have an impact on India’s reputation as an economic power. S. Kamat, Santa Cruz

Secunderabad

There has been absolute chaos all over the country since the announcement. As many people are still in possession of cash that is no longer legal tender, their daily lives are getting afected and they are unable to procure necessities. The poor are the hardest hit since many of them are illiterate and are confused by the whole procedure. Trade and commerce have been hit. Perishable food items like fruits, vegetables, meat and fish are rotting in some parts of the country. There is no end in sight to the chaos for at least another week. In all this uncertainty, the Finance Minister has been trying to calm the public by saying there is no need to rush; that people have time to exchange their notes. He has also been trying to reassure people that their money is safe in the banks. Arun Jaitley fails to understand that people are not worried about losing their money; they are rushing to get legal tender so that they can buy their daily necessities. Furthermore, many people are being given Rs.2,000 notes when they go to a bank. This does not solve their problem since the new Rs. 500 notes are not available. If these had been made available, the

Introduction of Rs.2,000 notes was unwarranted. Instead, the government could have introduced new Rs.1,000 and Rs.500 notes with changes in design, and without changing the size of the new notes. This would not have necessitated reconfiguring the ATMs. C. Amarasekaran, Thiruvananthapuram

The Finance Minister has asked the public to use online transactions to reduce overcrowding at ATMs and banks. Despite India being the third largest Internet user in the world and the reported growth in the use of smartphones in rural areas, it is estimated that penetration of smartphones in the market is less than 30 per cent. There has been an increase in the number of bank accounts, but further increase has been plagued by issues like dormancy and duplication. Not everyone knows e-banking either. Given this scenario, one can only say that the Minister’s recommendation finds a parallel in history: Marie Antoinette saying, “Let them eat cake!” Ilavenil. K, Tiruchirapalli

While some things are entirely

under the control of the RBI, the banks can take steps on their own to mitigate the suferings of customers to some extent (“Diferent banks, diferent rules”, Nov. 13). For instance, I had gone to a bank to exchange my old notes. The exchange was over in ten minutes thanks to a separate queue for senior citizens. In contrast, at another bank, there was only one queue which I was asked to join. P.G. Menon, Chennai

It is a known fact that a large chunk of illegal money is not hoarded in the form of cash. It is generally converted to real estate, gold, jewellery, etc. Further, a large amount of such amassed wealth is stashed abroad, which comes back into the economy through tax havens. Only a portion of black money held in the form of cash re-enters the economy through banks. To unearth that minuscule amount by putting the entire population through all this hassle is not a wise step. How do we know that all the black money stocked in the Indian economy will be recovered in this manner? Even if we assume that a person has unaccounted wealth to the tune of Rs. 10 crore, and that too in the form of Rs. 500 and Rs.1,000 notes, how do we know that he or she will deposit all this money in the bank himself/ herself? The person may take his/ her family’s help and deposit small amounts in diferent banks. It is also said that demonetisation will help avert the circulation of fake currency notes printed across

the border to finance terrorist activities in India. This argument seems only partially correct. No doubt, in the short run, it may help prevent circulation of counterfeit currency. But in the long run, the new notes may also turn black. S.K. Khosla, Chandigarh

The move has been hailed by most financial experts and by the common man. Experts have said that it will help the fight against terrorism and eradicate black money. However, many political leaders who are against the move are using unparliamentary and abusive language to criticise the Prime Minister. These statements do not suit the stature of any civilised Indian citizen. K.A. Solaman, Alappuzha, Kerala

The rise of nativism The writer has provided a very intelligent analysis of the American electoral system and has rightly conveyed his frustration at not being welcome in the U.S. now because of the colour of his skin (“The short arc that led to Donald Trump,” Nov. 12). Looking at the world right now, it seems like nativism is dominating. Whether it is Nigel Farage in Britain or Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines, a new era has risen. The fall of a liberal economist like Dr. Manmohan Singh and the rise of a right-wing government in India was an early sign of the times to come. Ritesh Raj, Bihar ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2016

The trail Trump’s blazing The Trump phenomenon will play out in Austrian, Dutch, French and German elections soon, and the prospects of uncertainty are only going to grow paign style and kept his loyalists with him. He was an unlikely candidate for the middle-aged, worried, white American male, scared of and unprepared for the future. Mr. Trump symbolises the moneyed elite, an inheritor of family wealth (his father was estimated to be worth more than $200 million in the 1950s), a real estate mogul who schmoozed with the bold and the beautiful, the owner of the Miss Universe pageant (1996-2015), a reality TV star, thrice married, living in a three-storey penthouse apartment on the Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, partying and jetting to his various palaces and casinos. How did this group adopt someone like Mr. Trump as their representative?

T U E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 5 , 2 0 1 6

RAKESH SOOD

Demonetisation and after

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he long, anxious, and frustrating wait by people outside banks and ATMs across the country over the last five days is an inevitable consequence of the decision to demonetise notes of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000. When 86 per cent of the value of notes in circulation turns suddenly invalid, as it did with Prime Minister Modi’s ‘surgical strike’ last week, a certain degree of disruption and pain is unavoidable. But the question is whether this chaos could have been anticipated and managed better than it has been. Replacement of the demonetised notes is a time-consuming exercise that requires planning of the highest order. The experience of the last few days shows that preparation was lacking and the transition could have been handled much better. ATMs are running out of cash quickly while banks are dispensing more of the Rs.2,000 notes than those of lower denominations. What use is a highvalue note if there is not enough smaller currency to make an exchange? Of course, it was never an easy task for the Reserve Bank of India and the Centre to strike the right balance between secrecy and storing adequate quantity of notes for quick distribution. All the same, there are at least a couple of issues that could have been addressed differently. The new Rs.500 notes that hit the market on Monday could have been released immediately after the announcement last week. Putting out new Rs.500 notes along the Rs.2,000 notes would have placed much less strain on those of the Rs.100 denomination, which are anyway in short supply. Second, it appears that officials woke up a little late to the issue of recalibrating ATMs. At least a day, if not more, was lost as banks realised the ATMs would not be able to dispense the new notes. The communication with the public, who were in a state of panic, could have been better, too. Thankfully, the Centre has woken up to ease the pressure on the system by increasing withdrawal limits, allowing for petroleum outlets and hospitals to accept the old series of notes until November 24 and pushing more cash through post offices. The worst-affected are people in rural areas and villages where cash is king and the banking system’s penetration is poor. The decision to relax cash-holding limits for banking correspondents, the crucial link between banks and villages, to Rs.50,000 and allowing them to replenish multiple times a day should help in faster distribution. This ought to have been done much earlier. The cash crunch of the last few days is certain to have an adverse impact on consumption spending, especially in the rural areas, with the resultant effect on the economy in the third quarter.

Fifteen years ago, on the eleventh day of the ninth month in 2001, the U.S. mainland was attacked and a stunned world watched as history took a new turn. The two numbers came together, this time on the ninth day of the eleventh month in 2016 and once again, the world watched spellbound as Donald Trump was declared the President-elect of the U.S., wondering how it would change American engagement with the rest of the world. Clearly, there is something about the combination of 9 and 11 and the 21st century in the U.S. that needs to be investigated by the numerologists! Both events were a shock; in 2001, the aircraft slamming into the World Trade Centre were a bolt from the blue; and in 2016, while it is true that Mr. Trump was the Republican nominee, in terms of probability, his chances of winning had receded dramatically after the Access Hollywood tapes emerged in early October, even though these referred to a conversation in 2005, which he tried to play down as “locker room banter”. Mainstream media endorsements were strongly in favour of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton; in print media, the ratio was running at 57 to 1! In terms of TV advertisements at a national level, she enjoyed a definitive edge — the Clinton campaign numbered 3,21,748 spots while the Trump team was reduced to 99,141. U.S. elections are often funding driven, and here too, the Clinton election fund contributions were in excess of $680 million compared to a war chest of $307 million for the Trump campaign. Given these odds, it is not surprising that the U.S. think tanks, media and polling pundits gave a Clinton victory a high probability of over 80 per cent. Therefore, the Trump victory is no less of a shock than the 9/11 fifteen years ago. A brutal campaign As election campaigns go, this was the most brutal and polarising campaign ever seen in the U.S. Marred by scandals and name-calling, coloured by invective and character assassination, tarnished by corruption, sex, lies and videotape(s), this election has shaken the faith of the people in the American electoral process. It surpassed the spectacle of the 2000 election which had

Donald Trump’s support base had been Bill Clinton’s support base (‘it’s the economy, stupid’) but Hillary Clinton could no longer claim that as hers thrown up ludicrous images of poll enumerators looking at hanging chads in ballot papers in Florida to discern voters’ intentions, till the Supreme Court stopped the manual recount, took back the Florida electoral votes from Al Gore and confirmed George W. Bush as the 43rd President of the U.S. Then too, Mr. Gore had received a higher percentage in terms of popular votes, just as this time Ms. Clinton is around a percentage point ahead of Mr. Trump. This year’s was a campaign that demolished the idea of the innately decent and wise aam aadmi, at least in the aggregate. The irony is that even though during the campaign Mr. Trump came across as arrogant and vain, used offensive language for women, the disabled, Hispanics and Muslims, and was unable to present coherent policy programmes in his speeches or in the presidential debates, he felt little need to apologise for his gaffes, revelling in his political incorrectness. He fractured the Republican Party whose nomination he had secured in a bruising primary. Nothing mattered because he was convinced that he had tapped into a deep vein of resentment running through U.S. society that would propel him to the White House. In fact, he could not have changed his cam-

Divided States of America Mr. Trump’s skill was to overcome his background and invoke a mix of populism and majoritarian nationalism. It did not matter if he sounded sexist, xenophobic or even hateful. He was guessing (and rightly, as it turns out) that this would serve to energise and cement his support base. Mr. Trump is not the first politician to take recourse to populism. In his fight for the Democratic nomination, Senator Bernie Sanders also took recourse to populism, of a different kind. He too wanted to restore American democracy but by increasing welfare through progressive economic tax reform that would impact the rich. It was a populism that had a strand of liberalism woven into it. Mr. Trump replaced the ‘liberal’ strand with a narrowly defined ‘nationalism’, which appealed to his support base that was scared; scared of immigrants, of globalisation, of new technologies; scared that in their old age, their life would be less certain than it had been for their parents. Mr. Trump’s support base had been Bill Clinton’s support base (remember –‘it’s the economy, stupid’) but Ms. Clinton could no longer claim that as hers, and in the final analysis, she remained unable to inspire and energise the African-Americans, Hispanics, women and the immigrant communities that would have helped her break the glass ceiling. Today, the U.S. is a society in turmoil. A look at the electoral map shows the extent of the divide. Barring a handful of exceptions like Illinois and New Mexico, it is the states on both the east and west coasts that have voted staunchly for Ms. Clinton. California, at $2.46 trillion, is the sixth-largest economy

CARTOONSCAPE

Hope floats in Colombia

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he fresh peace deal announced by Bogota and the rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) may look no less fragile than the previous accord that Colombians rejected in a referendum in October. But signs that the gathering economic momentum depends on lasting reconciliation could trump other outstanding concerns. The current endeavour to secure peace has been four years and more in the making. It involved political heavyweights in Latin America and beyond, whose influence should make a reversal of recent gains especially difficult. The Nobel Peace Prize, awarded days after the referendum reversal, has enhanced the stature of President Juan Manuel Santos as a relentless crusader for peace in the midst of formidable if not insurmountable hurdles. But it is not inconceivable that having had the earlier accord rejected in a vote, the risks of a repeat referendum, or alternatively the moral and political deficit likely to arise from dispensing with one in this instance, will cast a shadow over the current effort. Foremost is the question whether the leaders of the FARC should be allowed to participate in the political process. President Santos has defended the retention of the provision in the revised deal, arguing that the promise of a legitimate route to politics for rebel groups has been the hallmark of any peace process the world over. Those opposed to the deal contend that according political eligibility to criminals who have not been brought to justice amounts to a violation of the rule of law. In fact, the popular perception that the government was seeking to reward top FARC leaders with public office had decisively tilted voter sentiment against the deal in the October vote. The mere provision to obtain an inventory of the assets of rebels, with a view to compensate victims, or to elicit disclosures on the drug mafia, may not be enough to placate the people. Former President Alvaro Uribe, who spearheaded the No campaign, has yet to pronounce on the new agreement. But Mr. Santos and Mr. Uribe, erstwhile allies, must be acutely sensitive to the economic implications of continued political instability, in their search for a reasonable compromise. The commodities downturn has hit Colombia’s economy hard, and the government has already scaled down expectations of a boost to the tourism and agriculture sectors from the peace accord. Yet, the President’s proactive engagement with the international community to attract investment, and Washington’s backing for the peace accord, hold out the promise of a return to prosperity. A peace deal would help win over investors. CM YK

in the world, having overtaken France. On the east coast, New York State boasts of the 12th largest global economy at $1.44 trillion (and third among the states within the U.S., after California and Texas). Add to it the other half a dozen states on the two coasts like New Jersey, Massachusetts, Virginia, Maryland, Washington and Oregon, and it is clear that these coastal economies account for nearly half of America’s $18-trillion GDP. These states play host to large immigrant populations, support globalisation, invest in R&D and are in the forefront of cutting-edge technological developments. Waiting to happen While every election is local, the Trump phenomenon reflects a trend which is straining the Western, liberal, international order that emerged after World War II, supported by the U.S. Since then, political trends in western democracies have reflected certain convergences. For the first quarter century, the focus was on economic growth, creation of international institutions, expansion of social security and welfare systems, prevention of conflict in Europe and finally, a convergence around the political middle. The oil price hike and the inflationary trends in the 1970s led to a rightward shift in western politics. President Ronald Reagan (Republican) in the U.S. and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Conservative) in the U.K. reflected this shift. In Germany, Chancellor Helmut Kohl (Christian Democratic Union) was in office for an unprecedented 16-year term, from 1982 to 1998. The successful unification of Germany contributed to his long innings. The French enjoy being different and though President Francois Mitterrand (Socialist) was bucking the trend from 1981 to 1995, from the mid-1980s, France enjoyed cohabitation with a right-of-centre Prime Minister in Jacques Chirac who eventually succeeded Mitterrand as President. The 1990s saw the growth of the new left. In the U.S., President Clinton (Democrat) came to power in 1992 and Tony Blair (Labour) was PM in the U.K. from 1997 to 2007. Both shifted the politics and the economics to the right of centre. In Germany, Gerhard Schroeder (Social Democratic Party) replaced Mr. Kohl. France remained the odd man out with President Chirac continuing till 2007 and it is only in 2012 that a Socialist President Francois Hollande regained the Elysee. By this time, the art of finding the political middle had started coming under strain, in the west. Post the Iraq invasion and the 2008 financial crisis that gripped first the U.S. with the sub-prime mortgages and then the Eurozone, there has been a persistent questioning of existing political structures and governance systems. Four phenomena have added to the uncertainties. Ageing of populations in a number of western countries, rising immigration being seen as a threat, growing inequality particularly in the Anglo-Saxon world as vividly brought out by French economist Thomas Piketty, and finally, a diffusion of authority under the twin onslaughts of globalisation and the technologies spawned by the Internet. Like Brexit, the Trump phenomenon is a sign that the centre of gravity of political discourse is shifting away from the predictable and orderly towards fragmentation and disorder. Within the U.S., the Trump voter is part of the shrinking share of the population but because it sees itself as threatened, it is ready to come out, vote and assert itself. The Trump phenomenon will play out in Austrian, Dutch, French and German elections soon and the prospects of uncertainty are only going to grow in the years to come as politicians in democracies (and elsewhere) increasingly take recourse to the rising tides of nationalism. Rakesh Sood, a former diplomat, is currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, Delhi.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Economy without cash Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emotional appeal to the nation, asking for a time of 50 days to weed out black money, needs to be considered favourably (“Teary-eyed Modi appeals for support from people,” Nov.14). It will be appropriate to wait for some time before passing judgments on the efficacy of the bold step taken by the government. The politicians in the Opposition need to exercise restraint and not present themselves as being against this war on black money. N. Ratan Prasad Reddy, Warangal, Telangana

It is commendable that the Modi government planned the bold move to ban high-value currency notes in secret and implemented it at jet speed. However the chaotic incidents at various banks in the following days could have been avoided had the government anticipated beforehand the woes of the poor. It is a fact that more than 85 per cent of the cash in circulation was in the form of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes and it was impossible to replace this with Rs.100 and other low-value notes in such a short period. Further, it is also unfair to punish 99 per cent of

the population on the pretext of targeting the other 1 per cent holding black money. Nevertheless, the demonetisation measure gives a valuable message that the common people need to be well-versed in non-cash transactions and also that stores and outlets need to install swiping machines to enable transactions through electronic means. Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, Hyderabad

The objections raised by some Opposition parties against the demonetisation of high-value currency notes betray an implacably adversarial mindset towards the Prime Minister (“Parliament storm brewing over demonetisation,” Nov.14). At a time when the government has embarked on a major economic reform that will benefit the nation, the economy and the people in the long run, the minimum the Opposition parties can do is to stop trivialising the move as political conspiracy. Amidst this, the endurance and forbearance demonstrated by the common people, the daily wage workers and the small traders is inspiring. The wisdom of the masses has shamed the recklessness and lack of statesmanship of

sections of the political class. However, the government must not take the people’s support for granted. Their patience has started to wear thin because alternative currency notes have not been pumped into the system at the expected speed. V.N. Mukundarajan, Thiruvananthapuram

Reconfiguring over two lakh ATMs across the country to enable them to dispense newly introduced Rs.2,000 notes is not desirable. It will only aggravate the problem being faced by people across the country owing to the prevailing shortage of smaller denomination notes. The Central government and regulatory authorities need to take into account the fact that many of the users of ATMs draw cash to meet their daily needs, which involve lower-value currency notes. Following a uniform procedure across the banking system of loading ATM machines to dispense currency notes of Rs.500, Rs.100 and, if possible, of Rs.50 denominations will mitigate the hardships. Higher denomination notes should be dispensed through bank branches only. Valluri Janaki Ram, Hyderabad

Bank staff could be asked to work 24x7 for a few days, on rotation basis, for the purpose of exchange of currency notes (“Many ATMs dry; bank employees face the heat,” Nov.14). For nearly a week now, people from all walks of life — rich and poor, young and old — have had to stand in long, serpentine queues, extending to outside the bank premises, for hours together for exchanging their bank notes. As the Narendra Modi government plans to have a vibrant economy at night by keeping businesses open 24x7, we could think of adding more bank staff on a rotation basis. T. S. Karthik, Chennai

Green shoots The editorial page article “Watering the green shoots” (Nov.14) lacked a holistic outlook. The agriculture sector, the foundation of food security, suffers due to the indebtedness of farmers and recurring incidents of drought. Regarding crop production, it may be observed that though India is the largest producer, consumer and importer of pulses, domestic production has remained almost stagnant, causing a steep rise in prices. This is due to inadequate

Minimum Support Price for pulses, unlike that for rice and wheat. Cultivation of pulses is primarily in dry, semi-arid and rain-fed areas, and there is a lack of technological and financial support to pulsegrowing farmers. Consequently, pulses, the main source of protein for the poor, have become unaffordable. Joseph Abraham, Gurugram, Haryana

India-Japan cooperation India and Japan have historically, enjoyed cordial trade, cultural and economic relations (“The big deal with Japan,” editorial, Nov.14). The cooperation that has emerged in the last year in areas like nuclear trade, bullet train technology and infrastructure reflects broad convergence of interests. Now, by agreeing to the nuclear cooperation agreement, Japan has not only recognised India’s exemplary record in nuclear prudence but also strengthened its strategic military and defence relationship with India. However, Indian policymakers should be circumspect in deepening the country’s partnership with the Asian giant further. Shreyans Jain, Delhi ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2016

Searching for an equilibrium Questions recur about the rightful limits of judicial intervention in the matter of policy choices in the executive and legislative domains W E D N E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 6 , 2 0 1 6

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Back to the collegium

here has been, in recent times, an unusually public conflict between the judiciary and the executive over the shortage of judges in various high courts. Amidst the perception that the situation has reached crisis proportions and is threatening to cripple judicial functioning, it is somewhat disconcerting that as many as 43 names out of a list of 77 recommended for appointment have not found favour with the Centre. It has informed the Supreme Court that these names require reconsideration by thecollegium. The Centre contends that it has cleared 34 appointments, and that there is no file pending with it. It appears to have taken the cue from the remarks of the Chief Justice of India, T.S. Thakur, that it is better to send back the names it is not happy with rather than keep the entire list pending. The collegium is now obliged to return to its recommendations and examine the government’s specific objections about the suitability of each candidate. This may further delay the filling up of vacancies, which have been well above the 400-mark at the high court level for some time now. The executive, of course, is bound to make the appointments if the collegium reiterates the recommendations, but it is quite unusual that such a large number of names should be returned. It raises the question whether larger differences between the judiciary and the executive are playing out in this form. Chief Justice Thakur has been quite vocal and unsparing in his criticism of the delay on the part of the executive in filling up vacancies. In open court as well as in public forums, he has highlighted the grim situation as the judicial branch is grappling with an enormous work burden, on the one hand, and an exploding docket on the other. The executive feels it is being blamed for delays that are not entirely of its making, and contends that high courts have contributed to this situation by letting vacancies lie unattended. Another possible undercurrent is that the Centre is unhappy over the Supreme Court collegium delaying its nod to the revised Memorandum of Procedure for judicial appointments sent on August 3. Despite the obvious difficulties in the task, the judiciary and the government should attempt to forge a quick consensus on the revised procedure and avert the crisis reaching a flashpoint. The Centre should not be seen as delaying appointments or seeking to dilute judicial primacy, while the judiciary should not be seen as stalling improvements in the appointment process. An agreement is vital to institutional reform.

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diction to domains hitherto regarded as the exclusive preserve of the executive and legislatures. Protagonists of a wide judicial review jurisdiction argue that it subserves the rule of law (Dicey, 1956), advances the cause of justice, is consistent with democracy and rules out only those choices that are obviously unreasonable and inconsistent with democracy (Ronald Dworkin, 1986). Socrates’s condemnation to death by Athenian democracy is recalled to argue that liberal democracy needs to protect itself against “the rule of the mob”. James Madison had argued for “auxiliary protections” to secure the fundamental liberties of citizens (The Federalist Papers).

ASHWANI KUMAR

In the 67th year of the Republic and 70th year of freedom, we find ourselves engaged in a heightened debate on the imperatives of preserving the constitutionally ordained jurisdictional equilibrium between the legislative, executive and judicial branches of the Indian state even as we celebrate the expansion of constitutional freedoms and the resilience of our democracy. At the heart of this debate is the reach of judicial review power exercised by the Supreme Court. Given the tenuous relationship between the executive and judiciary, the subject is increasingly relevant to the functioning of our constitutional democracy. While the sterling contribution of the court in asserting the inviolability of and expounding the right to dignity as the core constitutional value has been universally acclaimed, questions recur about the rightful limits of judicial intervention in the matter of policy choices in the executive and legislative domains. The foundational principles Some of the court’s transformative judgments are recalled to indicate the evolution of our constitutional order, premised on protection against the arbitrary exercise of power, non-discrimination and “constitutionalisation of socio-economic rights”. Establishing the procedural fairness and reasonableness test in Maneka Gandhi (1978) to determine the constitutionality of the exercise of executive power and declaring in M. Nagaraj (2006) that Articles 14 (right to equality), 19 (right to fundamental freedoms) and 21 (right to life) “stand at the pinnacle of the hierarchy of constitutional values, the court recognised that human dignity, equality and freedom were “conjoined, reciprocal and covalent values” (Sandra Liebenberg, 2005). While expanding human rights jurisprudence and recognising as fundamental the citizens’ right to food, health, education and clean environment, etc., the court in an expansive interpretation in V. Markendeya (1989) recognised the Directive Principles of State Policy as “the conscience of the Constitution” which give shape and meaning to fundamental rights. Having thus established the foundational principles for the exercise of a wider judicial review jurisdiction traceable to Articles 13, 32, 136, 142, 147 and 226 of the Constitution, the court de-

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

The decline of Parliament and loss of faith in the integrity of the political class partially account for an expanded remit of judicial review clared that judicial review was a “constituent power” and an integral component of the unalterable basic structure of the Constitution (Kesavananda Bharati, 1973). Expanding review jurisdiction However, moving beyond the socioeconomic rights, the court’s review has been invoked in “public interest” to question major decisions of the government concerning policy choices, for instance in what are now known as 2G spectrum and coal mine allocations cases. Challenge to proceedings of legislative assemblies and decisions of the Speaker have also been entertained by the court (Nabam Rebia, 2016). Recent decisions of the court voiding a constitutional amendment approved by Parliament to alter the procedure for appointment of judges (National Judicial Appointments Commission or NJAC judgment, 2016), exercising review powers in what is popularly known as the AFSPA — Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act — case to hold that the use of excessive force by the Manipur Police or the armed forces of the Union was not permissible, has extended the courts’ review juris-

Limiting the ambit Even so, questions abound as to the rightful ambit of the court’s judicial review jurisdiction within the framework of parliamentary democracy premised on the assumption that people exercise their sovereignty through elected representatives and not through the unelected judges. “Judicial supremacy”, “judicial excessivism” or “judicial despotism” are seen as antithetical to democracy and contrary to its first principles. It is argued that representative democracy is as much a part of the basic structure of the Constitution and that judicial review, although constitutionally sanctioned, cannot be exercised to negate or subordinate other fundamental features of its basic structure. In some of its recent judgments, the Supreme Court has itself cautioned against ever increasing expectations from it. In a substantive judgment in Santosh Singh (2016), a Division Bench of the court declined to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a mandamus for the inclusion of moral science as a compulsory subject in the syllabus of school education. In an eloquent exposition in the NJAC case, Justice J. Chelameswar in his minority judgment rejected a distrust of the legislators in securing the constitutional fundamental and argued: “To assume or assert that judiciary alone is concerned with the preservation of liberties and does that job well is an assumption that is dogmatic, bereft of evidentiary basis and historically disproved.” In its opinion in a Presidential Reference, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court had earlier opined that “Parliament and the legislatures, composed as they are of the representatives of the people, are supposed to know and be aware of the needs of the people and what is good and bad for them.

CARTOONSCAPE

Gathering Team Trump

ven as protests continue to swirl across the U.S., the President-elect, Donald Trump, has embarked on the first and arguably most important project of transitioning to a new government: picking the White House team that will carry out his policy agenda. The exercise acquires added significance given the earthquakelike impact of his election victory on a variety of constituencies, including different segments of the American people, and the U.S. Congress. In an ideal world, the team that he picks to run the White House would have to be capable of helping him balance the deep anxieties of liberal America with the irresistible demand from his conservative backers and independent supporters that he deliver on the promises made during the campaign. His task is more straightforward with regard to Capitol Hill as both the Senate and the House of Representatives are now controlled by the Republican Party. However, Mr. Trump’s messy rise through the primaries divided the party’s leadership over their acceptance of him as their nominee, and thus this relationship is also in need of healing. Mr. Trump’s initial stab at West Wing appointments is off to a start that could be characterised as astute yet polarising. In picking Reince Priebus as his Chief of Staff, Mr. Trump has signalled to House Speaker Paul Ryan his desire to put the nastiness of the campaign behind them. Mr. Priebus and Mr. Ryan are Wisconsin politicians who go back two decades. As the longstanding head of the Republican National Committee, Mr. Priebus walked a tightrope over the fraying ties between Mr. Trump and party heavyweights during the darkest days of the campaign. Having thus proved his organisational acumen and loyalty to Mr. Trump, it is fitting that Mr. Priebus will soon be tasked with negotiating with Congress, executive branch agencies, and external political groups to implement Mr. Trump’s agenda. The other high-profile choice will be harder to swallow for many: Steve Bannon, the CEO of the Trump campaign and the former CEO of the “alt-right” media house Breitbart News, as his Chief Strategist and Senior Counsellor. Under Mr. Bannon, Breitbart was accused of being racist, antiSemitic, misogynist and prone to conspiracy theorising. Yet Mr. Trump has indicated Mr. Bannon and Mr. Priebus will be “equal partners to transform the federal government”, a possible hint of a plan to create a multipolar power structure within the White House. Mr. Bannon’s appointment, a likely nod to the far-right constituencies that were so strongly with him, has been balanced by a more practical-minded and mainstream-focussed Mr. Priebus. Other key appointments will provide a clue to which way this balance may tilt. CM YK

The Court cannot sit in judgment over their wisdom”. In a recent order, the court declined to entertain a PIL seeking the court’s directions to restrain the Union government from incurring security and other expenses in respect of certain individuals in the State of Jammu and Kashmir on the ground that these writs are “judicially unmanageable”. Looking for the middle Benjamin Cardozo, the celebrated American jurist, had cautioned years ago that “there is no assurance that the rule of majority will be the expression of perfect reason when embodied in the Constitution or in statute. We ought not to expect more of it when embodied in the judgment of the Courts”. Nor can we forget that “… the great tides and currents which engulf the rest of men do not turn aside in their course and pass the judges by” (The Nature Of The Judicial Process, 1921). Scholars supporting limited judicial review have argued that courts are at best ‘platonic guardians’ of democracy and that “it is entirely incompatible with democracy for courts to define their mission as one of correcting elected officials who have strayed too far either from what the judges think is right or from what they claim they know (and the legislators do not) that the people really think is right” (John Hart Ely, On Constitutional Ground, 1996). The ongoing debate concerning the limits of judicial review in a parliamentary democracy is anchored in profound philosophical issues concerning the nature of representative democracy and the inalienable fundamental human freedoms that need to be insulated against the “impulses of transient majorities”. In the light of our own experience of the political and judicial processes, it is legitimate to ask: • Can the original justification for the court’s anti-majoritarian role be used to equate constitutional supremacy and judicial independence with “judicial supremacy”? • How do we resolve disagreements over “constitutional-interpretative judgments” in the framework of a functioning democracy, given the disclaimer of judicial infallibility by the court itself? • Assuming a decline in credibility of the political executive, can the judiciary act as “co-governor” of the nation? • Where do we locate the “equilibrium between the Scylla of insensitive detachment suggesting indifference and the Charybdis of unwarranted intrusion” to fix the frontiers of judicial power in a constitutional democracy without being on the wrong side of the “democratic faith”? As we reflect on these questions, it seems self-evident that in the articulation of constitutional principles, Pascal’s spirit of “selfsearch and self-reproach” reflected in recent judgments of the Supreme Court will best subserve to strengthen the institutions of India’s liberal democracy and sustain over time the otherwise wide ambit of judicial review, so that the judiciary remains “a light unto the nations” without being a “sheriff unto the nations” (José A. Cabranes, 2015). For the moment, we must accept that the weight of the court’s authority and acceptance of the extensive reach of its judicial imprimatur is best explained in terms of popular trust in its moral and intellectual integrity rather than in a stretched philosophy of constitutionalism. The decline of Parliament as the highest forum of our democracy, the perceived insensitivity on the part of the bureaucracy to the pressing priorities of the people at large, a general distrust of executive power and loss of faith, generally speaking, in the moral and ideological integrity of the political class collectively account for an expanded remit of judicial review. Ashwani Kumar is a Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court and former Union Law Minister

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

One week after

formidable task, and should have implemented the decision to scrap the old notes only after the new ones were issued. The least the government can do now is accept this mistake and apologise to the people for all the chaos. M.K.B. Nambiar,

One of most unexpected spin-offs of the demonetisation saga is that people are learning to live frugally (“Demonetisation and after”, Nov. 15). Long accustomed to reckless purchases, many are now trying to limit their spending. By and large, it seems like people are facing difficulties, but with patience. Bank employees, who have been called upon to undertake this gigantic task at short notice, have risen to the occasion without complaining. Bank managers have aided senior citizens and worked during the weekend. Many tea-sellers and storekeepers have sold wares solely based on trust. Demonetisation remains a testament to the idea that progress can happen only when people cooperate. Jayatheertha S.A.,

The government’s proposal to use indelible ink to identify people who have exchanged notes is a step in the right direction. This will prevent repeated conversion of notes for the same person, prevent long queues, and help others withdraw money. With the government taking concrete steps to restore normalcy in the banking system, it is hoped that people will heave a sigh of relief sooner than later. M. Jeyaram,

Hyderabad

Sholavandan, Madurai

Had Rs.500 notes been available along with Rs.2,000 notes, there would not have been such a heavy demand for Rs.100 notes. The ATMs and banks would not have run out of cash frequently. Also, the public would have got change for Rs.2,000 easily. The government should have known that making available the new Rs.2,000 and Rs.500 notes across the country is a

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been delivering every one of his promises since being elected to power while also taking criticism from the opposition in his stride. One wonders why only Rahul Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee are directing tirades at Mr. Modi when many other opposition parties have appreciated this bold move. Mr. Modi has graciously given credit to

Mahe

party members, alliance groups, and the general public for their wholehearted support for demonetisation. He has said that the Reserve Bank of India is making arrangements to ensure that enough cash is made available in banks. It is thus the duty of every citizen to cooperate with the government, given the huge effort it is making to eradicate black money and fake currency from circulating. It is time that both these leaders acted responsibly by strengthening the hands of the Prime Minister instead of indulging in propaganda to the detriment of the nation and its interests. K.R. Srinivasan, Secunderabad

I have run from one ATM to another for the past six days and I have visited three banks. Yet I’ve failed to withdraw money. Today, though I was happy to see a separate queue for senior citizens at a bank, I came back home after waiting in that long queue for more than four hours. I am 71 years old. Like me, there must be many senior citizens who are victims of this unplanned and irrational move. The Prime Minister must understand that those with black money are always two steps ahead of the government, so only the aam

aadmi suffers. He says we must give him 50 days to fight black money; some sections of the media say it will take four months to replace demonetised notes. He also says those with black money are the ones standing in queues; the rest are at home. This is a slap on the face for people who are honest, for people who genuinely need money for daily use. Is standing in a queue a price for honesty? If he has any respect for the people, Mr. Modi must regret this comment. Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee, Faridabad

Panic has gripped people everywhere but we need to ask the question: is this a step taken towards realising India’s dream of becoming a major driver of the future global economy? I believe the pros of this initiative outweigh the cons. There are many who are complaining about having to stand in long queues. We are stronger than that. We must stand together as a nation. Shivam Nath, Dehradun

Some political leaders have said that the Centre is trying to impose Devanagari/Hindi through the new currency. How does the usage of Sanskrit or Hindi numerals amount

to imposition when the note contains other Indian languages too? And how does this impact the common man? Will the leaders stop using the notes? This is nothing but politicising a non-issue. V.S. Jayaraman, Chennai

Contempt notice It is rare for a contempt notice to be issued against a retired judge of the Supreme Court itself (“Supreme Court issues contempt notice to Katju”, Nov. 12). Many have expressed doubts about the continued existence of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, as being anachronistic in a democracy, a relic of the past. This Act was used to punish E.M.S. Namboodiripad, a former Chief Minister of Kerala and a great crusader for human rights. Then it was used against Arundhati Roy, an intellectual of the highest order. Now it is Justice Katju’s turn. He perhaps felt strongly about the court’s decision in the Sowmya murder case. He might have expressed his feelings in strong language on which there could be two opinions. But could Mr. Katju be charged for contempt for that reason is the question. N.G. R. Prasad, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

THE HINDU THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2016

White is the new black Even as the common man gets in line for fifty days of pain, the affluent have found innovative ways to launder their hoard of cash T H U R S D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 1 6

A

Against the odds

day after Class 12 students turned up in large numbers for their school-leaving examinations in the Kashmir Valley, attendance for the Class 10 tests too crossed the 95 per cent mark. Successful conduct of these tests is crucial not just as a signal that normalcy could be returning to Jammu and Kashmir after the months-long unrest, but equally importantly, to secure the school year for students. In the event, given that classes had been disrupted since the July 8 killing of Hizbul Mujahideen ‘commander’ Burhan Wani, the syllabus had been reduced by half for students opting to appear for the examinations now. But their successful start, amid demands that they be summarily postponed, should also allay fears caused by a series of arson attacks on school buildings across the Valley. More than 30 schools have been attacked in recent months — in fact, on Monday teachers managed to prevent serious damage when a school in Baramulla district was set ablaze. The attacks are a clear signal of the determined plan by miscreants, their identity yet to be established, to hold classes hostage. It is critical that, going forward, the State government rally teachers and parents sufficiently to build a constituency to firewall the school calendar from disruptions imposed on the Valley. After a long summer when too many children were caught in the crossfire, with some killed or blinded due to the security forces’ unconscionable persistence with pellet guns, a curtailed syllabus for examinations must serve as a reminder of the risks to the aspirations of yet another generation. To bring back calm, more needs to be done to use the tenuous calm on the street to normalise the daily transactions among local communities. If anger spilled over on to the streets in unexpected and disturbing ways after Wani’s death, as the weeks and months passed it led to maximalist rhetoric on the part of the separatists, expectedly, and the government, unnecessarily. It is bewildering, for instance, why Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar would choose to commend the demonetisation measure by linking it to a decline in protests in Kashmir. A larger-hearted acknowledgement by New Delhi of the distress in the Valley is essential. Getting past the protests and shutdowns of 2016 will require far more than was done in 2010. In this fractious Parliament session, the government needs to foster an all-party initiative to reach out to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Taking careful note of their inordinate hardships this year would be a good beginning.

PULAPRE BALAKRISHNAN

A week into the demonetisation drive, we are in the midst of a painful transition. In a televised speech on November 13 delivered in Goa, the Prime Minister sought 50 days’ reprieve, though he did not tell us what exactly we should expect. Perhaps we are en route to a better state but in the interim we are left to ponder an unedifying transition. Much of the evidence of what is taking place in the economy since the fateful night of November 8-9 is anecdotal, but no less valuable for that is all we have. News from different parts of the country indicate two developments. On November 8 itself, there had been frenzied late-night shopping till midnight especially in the upmarket malls. This indicates that some sections of the populace had money hoarded from unaccounted activity and wanted to get rid of it while it was still legal tender. From the next day on, there has been a rush to the banks to exchange currency notes and to deposit money into savings accounts. The experience of those attempting the former has not been a happy one. Reports speak of long waits, scuffles, bank employees favouring relatives over fellow citizens and banks running out of cash. The mind is drawn to accounts of the life of the people of Delhi in the reign of Mohammad-bin-Tughlaq. Accounting for oneself The other development is the reported spurt in deposits in Jan Dhan accounts. As these accounts mostly belong to persons with low incomes, and often showed a nearzero balance, it suggests that these deposits may be black income being distributed among many agents. We have heard of benami titles to property, could we have just witnessed the emergence of benami deposits? Could the facility of allowing deposits of up to Rs.2.5 lakh without attracting income tax have unwittingly acted as a conduit to the laundering of black money? Accounts have also come of gold sales rising. How can this be possible when highdenomination notes, which as we shall see

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

If the PM does check all records going back to 1947, he may also want to investigate the role of the government machinery in generating unaccounted income constitute the overwhelming part of total currency in circulation, are no longer legal tender? We are told that this is made possible by pre-dating sales. Of course, where stock movement is verifiable this would be difficult. But it does speak of many loopholes that have been suggested as means of sabotaging the intent of the demonetisation. Yet more exist. We have actual statements made by party bosses in Tamil Nadu that they have distributed old notes to their workers before a by-election to come. So, in Uttar Pradesh where elections are due only in 2017, there is no reason why money cannot be distributed right away, a form of advance payment. One would expect that the Rs.4,500 limit on the exchange of notes is just the right magnitude in the context. A slowing of commerce Demonetisation had targeted the stock of illegally accrued wealth held in the form of money. Where disgorging of it in the forms suggested above is not possible, demonetisation would be successful in punishing

the guilty. This view of the role of money as a store of wealth is appropriate. But the demonetisation can also affect the flow of income in the future even when it is to be earned legally. If this happens, it also punishes the innocent. This it can do as money is also the medium of exchange without which the overwhelming majority of transactions cannot occur. It is not hard to imagine the impact on transactions when over 85 per cent of the country’s money stock — that is, the share of high-denomination notes in the total — is sucked out of circulation. The economy has responded predictably. The pre-midnight shopping spree of the day on which demonetisation was announced was followed by a slowing of commerce not only in the bazaars but also in the upmarket shopping malls themselves. Where transactions involving employment of persons cannot be undertaken, there is an irretrievable loss of output. It cannot be made up after the currency shortage has been ended. The national political leadership and the technocrats of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) appear to have missed this possibility. The Prime Minister has expressed his confidence that the people of India will bear the inconvenience of the transition for the sake of purifying the country. But engineering a loss of employment is not inconvenience, and this could hardly have gone unnoticed by those affected. The RBI’s stance is worthy of Marie Antoinette. It is quoted as exhorting Indians to turn to Internet banking as it would “also enhance the experience of living in the digital world”. This is somewhat brazen as the RBI has been granted the monopoly of note issue precisely so that it facilitates economic exchange. There are unlikely to be many takers for the government’s propaganda on public radio which has a kirana store owner say that he is not worried as his money is clean and he has till the end of the year to change it. This misses a trick as it ignores the many who cannot earn an income as the system does not have enough money to enable transactions to take place. Thus views on the transition are likely to be influenced by how one is placed in relation to the income generation process. So, for instance in Kerala, where many live directly or indirectly on monthly remittances

CARTOONSCAPE

A challenge and an opportunity

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year and a half after China and Pakistan announced plans for an Economic Corridor, the CPEC, to connect “Kashgar to Gwadar”, the two countries operationalised the trade route this week, with the first shipment moving to Gwadar port and on to the Gulf and Africa. Many of the infrastructure and energy projects that are part of CPEC, worth an estimated $46 billion, are already under way. Of this, $35-38 billion is committed in the energy sector, in gas, coal and solar energy across Pakistan, with the combined expected capacity crossing 10,000 MW. This is roughly double the current shortfall the country experiences. In addition, the 3,000-km rail and roadway project is expected to generate 700,000 jobs by 2030. While Pakistan sees CPEC as a game changer, there are many challenges. There are some misgivings domestically, with critics questioning the project’s viability, and some accusing China of launching a second “East India Company”. There are the security challenges too, especially in the western areas near the key Gwadar port, where militants ranging from Baloch nationalists to the Taliban and the Islamic State have carried out attacks. Systemic challenges include project delays in the CPEC’s first year, which the World Bank warns could prove to be an impediment to Pakistan’s overall growth. Pakistan-India tensions, unless contained, too could endanger sectors of the project where Pakistani troops are engaged in providing security. Finally, the economic slowdown in China and the political instability in Pakistan could impact the project’s future as well. However, these internal considerations for Pakistan shouldn’t blur the bigger picture for India: CPEC is now a reality. In the past India’s reaction to the project, announced a few weeks before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China in 2015, had turned from dismissal and disdain to disapproval and then to outright opposition. India even raised concerns over projects in disputed GilgitBaltistan at the UN General Assembly. Not only has the project gone ahead despite the objections, but China now sees CPEC as a physical link between its One Belt, One Road (OBOR) project and the Maritime Silk Route (MSR). India has refused to be a part of either. That Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are all on board the OBOR and the MSR should give India pause. It is important for Delhi to also take a closer look at the security implications of the China-Pakistan clinch that is fast drawing in Russia in the north, all the way to the Arabian Sea, while China plans a floating naval base off Gwadar.

What could have been done Could this have been foreseen? Yes, absolutely, were the policy intelligently designed. The central bank could have started replacing the larger denomination notes with smaller denomination ones much earlier. This would have isolated those holding unaccounted income in the form of high denomination notes, the unspoken premise of the demonetisation. There is of course a case for secrecy, but the RBI has long shown itself to be unmindful of the need to facilitate transactions in any case. This is the only conclusion that one can draw from the fact that so large a part of the money stock was constituted by high denomination currency. It reflects a complete disregard for the low-value transactions that dominate the economy. It is not hard to see that a very large number of Indians must earn less than Rs.500 a day. Given this, it reveals a monumental lack of sensitivity to withdraw the Rs.1,000 note and bring in one of Rs.2,000. Given the average daily income of an Indian, and the average value of transactions, a move to a money stock far more balanced between the denominations is absolutely essential now. The issue of a shortage of small denomination notes in the economy was brought to the attention of the RBI some years ago. Stemming the rot within The Prime Minister has brought the issue of corruption centre stage. But it is important to recognise that there is more than one narrative on the issue. One is that a few rich entrepreneurs have evaded the rules laid down by the state and got ahead of the rest of the people. At one level, this cannot be denied and this line of argument can be whipped up to some political advantage. But there is a counter-narrative, and it is that the entrepreneur in India is forced to generate ‘black money’ to gratify the political class and the civil service who are the gatekeepers of all activity. This is hardly a novel argument. It is what underlay C. Rajagopalachari’s imagery of India being governed by the ‘licence-permit raj’. His only mistake was to see this as entirely due to Jawaharlal Nehru’s economic policy. Actually this is India’s inheritance from colonialism, zealously guarded by its beneficiaries, again ranging between the political class and the civil service. So if Prime Minister Narendra Modi does go on to check all records going back to 1947, as he has said he is willing to do to root out corruption, he may also want to investigate the role of the government machinery in the process of generating unaccounted income. One should not be surprised if this role is quite substantial. Of course, one hopes he does not do this as it not only carries more than just a whiff of ‘retrospective taxation’, it can leave us mired in a transition longer than the one we are in now. We are told that our Prime Minister admires Lee Kuan Yew. We know that in building his country the late Singaporean statesman started with the civil service. He is known to have treated its members well, but is unlikely to have countenanced their being corrupt themselves. Pulapre Balakrishnan teaches economics at Ashoka University, Sonipat, Haryana. The views expressed are personal.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Exchanging notes The demonetisation move is no doubt creating distress for the people, especially senior citizens and the poor, but many economists have praised the government’s effort to curtail the flow of black money (“Artificially created distress”, Nov.16). People are cooperating with each other and with the banks. I have seen students help golgappawalas use mobile phones to accept payments so that businesses aren’t affected. In my locality, more and more shops are now putting up posters saying ‘Card accepted’, ‘Paytm accepted’, etc. In small shops where there is no pointof-sale machine and customers do not have access to the Internet, shopkeepers are sitting with dataenabled mobile phones asking customers to add money to their e-wallets using cards. These are healthy changes. The situation is not that distressing that the move needs to be revoked. The government is coming up with an extra measure every other day to reduce discomfort. But immediate steps need to be taken to help mandiwalas, small retailers, rural labourers, artisans and farmers so that their livelihoods aren’t affected. Saurav Kumar, Bihar

CM YK

from West Asia and where undeclared income is rife, a relatively aware local population is likely to see the demonetisation as justified and hurting the rich. They may well see it as a ‘surgical strike’. However, in small-town northern India where households are dependent upon daily earnings from the local economy, the populace is likely to be energised less by schadenfreude at the discomfiture of the rich as much as the loss of their own livelihood, about which we presently read in the press. They are likely to see the demonetisation as a form of bloodletting.

The response of the better-off sections, including those who write in these columns, to demonetisation makes me wonder who the present Indian nation really belongs to. A nation, if it is to claim a sense of belonging among its members, should require all sections of people to make equal sacrifices for national well-being. Instead, one is witness today to members of the privileged elite reposing faith in the current regime by making grand shows of support and loyalty to the nation while implicitly demanding that the poorest bear the burdens that such nation-building imposes. In the chaos unleashed by the illconceived move — which is little more than the replacement of currency notes — it is the poor who are suffering greatly. Loss of daily incomes can only push the poor into vicious cycles of indebtedness, which the larger policies of the government have really done nothing about. The hard-earned savings of those who, for very many reasons, have not been able to open a bank account stand liquidated. For all the fine talk, senior citizens who are not Internet-savvy and familiar with plastic money are also suffering. What is striking is that all this needless suffering was totally avoidable with better planning.

This has a parallel with the elites’ constant reference to the sufferings of the Indian Army to feed rampant jingoism that keeps public attention away from their rapacity. Any such critique is immediately met with mindless accusations of disloyalty to the nation, which is what makes one wonder, who constitutes the nation? Is it the minuscule minority of the Indian population that wields plastic money alone? The praise that these favoured elites now heap on the ‘patience of the people’ is nothing but rank cruelty. This section of the Indian population resembles the blind aristocracy that drove ancient Rome into utter ruin. May that not befall this country; yet one cannot help telling such people who now stumble towards their own historical doom: Remember, the Mills of God grind slowly. J. Devika,

troubles, but its results will be known only after some time. Since the Rserve Bank of India and the Finance Ministry are burning the midnight oil to tide over the temporary crisis, everyone should cooperate with the government and should try not to nitpick. Previous governments did not even attempt any such measure for reasons best known to them. S. Nallasivan, Tirunelveli

I am 74 years old. I could withdraw Rs.10,000 from my bank account within 10 minutes of reaching there by issuing a self cheque without any hassle or paperwork. The long wait is only to exchange demonetised notes. There is no trouble in depositing/ withdrawing cash from your own bank account. M.N.S. Thampi, Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram

The author has been very critical of the government’s move. A friend of mine, a senior bank manager of a leading nationalised bank, told me how some hoarders brought bundles of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes to the bank counter without even knowing how many notes there were in the bundles. Any radical step may see some teething

It is true that our normal routines have taken a hit. It is also true that daily wage labourers, poor peasants and the poor in general are the worst hit. Valuable man-hours are being wasted in long queues; people are often returning empty-handed even after standing in queues. Many ATMs don’t work. So, yes, the overall situation looks grim. But the demonetisation measure is no evil

and there is no need to demonise it. The government and opposition parties must not fight at this crucial moment; they can hold consultations with the people to solve the crisis. In the end, if there is transparency, corruption will come down. Kush Mehndiratta, New Delhi

The decision to apply indelible ink to check repeated exchange of money is done without forethought (“Now, ink to deter repeat cash swap”, Nov. 16). What if a person has demonetised currency worth more than Rs.4,500? Should he or she forgo the balance amount even if it is a legal amount? During elections, voters are inked as per the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961. According to which legal provision is the government inking the fingers of those who exchange notes? The various restrictions that the government is imposing now are justified in the event of a financial emergency. Let the government declare a financial emergency under the Constitution. This would give it the legal authority to impose restrictions on all monetary transactions. K.R. Jayaprakash Rao, Mysuru ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

The morality of binaries Narendra Modi’s political opponents stand no chance against him unless they can script a powerful counter-narrative that resonates with the masses and isn’t about him F R I D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 8 , 2 0 1 6

After the storm

W

hen 86 per cent of currency notes in a country of 1.3 billion people are rendered illegal tender in a matter of hours, it is bound to create a shortterm disruption in daily lives. Particularly so, since much of India’s economic activity still takes place in the informal sector with no cheque payments, resulting not just in widespread direct and indirect tax evasion but also an inability to assess the true state of the economy. For instance, while farmers’ income is not taxed, most of them now have a Kisan Credit Card, first launched in 1998, and no-frills bank accounts whose creation has been scaled up by the present government. But the agricultural economy is still controlled by middlemen and traders who only make cash payments to farmers while reaping a profit from the difference in prices from farm-gate to fork. The introduction of the Goods and Services Tax will make it tougher for such intermediaries to remain below the tax radar, though foodgrains will be zero-rated under the tax regime. Just as paying taxes on their profits is uncharted territory for such traders, the government too is navigating uncharted waters with the demonetisation drive, necessitating adjustments on the go. Rural Indians, like their urban peers, may be in a tizzy for now over the currency swoop and face challenges in transactions, but there doesn’t seem to be a threat to the rabi crop as the Opposition has sought to suggest. By last Friday, the total area sown was significantly higher than at the same time last year, except for coarse cereals. The latest relaxation, allowing farmers to withdraw Rs.25,000 a week, should assuage any concerns on this front. However, the Reserve Bank of India and the Central government were clearly not prepared for the cash crunch in bank vaults and post offices, that has become evident a week after the demonetisation. So, even soiled Rs.100 notes have been brought back into circulation to tide over the scarcity. Given our abysmal public health infrastructure, a thought should also have been spared for people’s healthcare costs. Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet had cleared measures to push non-cash payments in February, but little has been implemented — using credit cards still involves high transaction charges, for example. Tweaking the exchange limit for old notes from Rs.4,000 to Rs.4,500 and then down to Rs.2,000 has created confusion, often leading to ugly scenes at banks. Afterthoughts may be inevitable in emergency situations, but the government also needs to address popular anxieties by constantly, and publicly, updating its road map.

few. But as encapsulated in Mr. Modi’s tearyeyed appeal, the significant aspects are three: the moralisation of politics, the infusion of emotion into policy debates, and the reduction of all debate into a single question, are you in support of Mr. Modi or not? If yes, support him. If no, then it’s hardly surprising that you are criticising what he has done.

G. SAMPATH

Demonetisation has been done many times before, without it disrupting the lives of ordinary Indians. Not this time though. Could it have been done in a less disruptive manner? Yes. Then why wasn’t it? While there is no answer to this question from the government, some have blamed it on lack of adequate planning, and others on the necessity of secrecy. But the real answer may lie in the political rather than the economic or logistical realm. One could debate the merits and demerits of demonetisation as the best strategy to curb the black economy. One could also debate the merits and demerits of a ‘fast’ demonetisation versus ‘slow’ or gradual demonetisation. One could debate the manner of execution, in view of the known incompatibility between the newly printed notes and the ATM machines that could not dispense them without recalibration. One could debate the impact of this demonetisation — the instant elimination of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes, which constituted 86 per cent of the currency in circulation — on ordinary people’s lives. I, me, myself All these aspects have indeed been widely debated. And it was eagerly anticipated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was away on a visit to Japan, would address these issues on his return. Some were even hoping that he might roll back the move to ease the pain, at least until the logistics are in place. Instead, the rhetorical turn in his speeches the day after his return took everyone by surprise. Addressing public functions in Goa, Belgavi and Pune on Sunday, he sought to turn the entire narrative about demonetisation into one about himself, his political career, and the unfairness of being persecuted by powerful enemies. “I know what kind of forces and what kind of people are against me now… They will not leave me alive. They will destroy me,” he said. In other words, the one who truly deserves sympathy in the present scenario is not the mass of daily wagers, street vendors, and

For Indian democracy to remain healthy, it needs political leaders who can challenge the Prime Minister as an equal. Right now there seem to be none. farmers whose already precarious livelihoods have been disrupted, but Mr. Modi. His rhetoric not only painted a sinister picture of anyone who dared to question his government’s moves, in one stroke, it rendered all criticism suspect. Anyone familiar with the tropes of Mr. Modi’s speeches would recognise his invocation of “those who looted the country for 70 years”. In this populist narrative that he has constructed and strengthened through hundreds of speeches over the years, the Congress equals the corrupt equals the black money hoarders equals the elites equals the liberals equals the Modi-critics equals the anti-nationals equals the bad people who want to destroy India. At the same time, the good people equals the true nationalists equals Modi equals Modi supporters equals the Congress-haters equals the proud Hindus. Neither of these concatenations is fixed — they are liable to be extended to include new categories or shrunk to focus on a select

Sacrifice for the nation While this may be a crude summary of the dynamic at play, there is no denying that it is working for Mr. Modi. Anyone who has been out in the past few days queuing up outside ATMs could not have failed to come across people from every strata, but especially the lower middle classes, who, while acknowledging the hardship they are going through, nonetheless believe that Mr. Modi has taken a bold step for the good of the country. When he says, “I promise you I will give you the India which you desired… I am doing what I was asked to do by the people of this country”, not only do a large number of Indians believe him, their words supply meaning to their hardship by wrapping it in a narrative that connects them to a larger cause, and makes them feel good about themselves. One would have to be really small-minded to complain about 50 days of hardship if this hardship could help make India a great nation by cleansing it of black money, no? But Mr. Modi’s narrative doesn’t stop at seeking the people’s support for demonetisation or for fighting black money. He wants them to save the country by saving him — from his enemies. And speaking of his “enemies”, Mr. Modi said, “They thought if they pull my hair, I will stop and do nothing. I will not be cowed down. I will not stop doing these things, even if you burn me alive.” These are the words of a person who holds the most powerful post in the country, of a person who is supremely in command of a party that enjoys a brute majority in Parliament. Cult of the leader Could there possibly be an objective basis for such utterances? One may recall his response when cow vigilantes were on the rampage. “Shoot me if you want, but not Dalits,” he had said. In a democracy, why must anyone shoot anyone else? Was it not pos-

CARTOONSCAPE

A chance to recalibrate ties

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he 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control has clearly now ceased to hold, with daily exchange of fire between Indian and Pakistani soldiers. The DGMO channel has failed to quell exchanges that include artillery and mortar fire. There are no bilateral talks today at any level, and the only contact between the governments in Islamabad and New Delhi is when one country’s foreign ministry summons the other’s High Commissioner to issue a demarche about the growing casualties along the International Boundary and the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir. The two countries have even dispensed with routine niceties: Pakistan is yet to condemn the Uri attack in which 19 soldiers were killed, and India has not put out a statement on the spate of terror attacks in Balochistan. Meanwhile, fears about the LoC firing spiralling out of control have grown. In Pakistan, that worry has increased because of the impending decision on who will be the next army chief, and owing to tensions between Army Headquarters and the Nawaz Sharif government. India, having announced its ‘surgical strikes’ as a new red-line of response post-Uri, is concerned about a terrorist build-up across the LoC, with 18 infiltration attempts reported in the past week. It is against this backdrop, with confidencebuilding measures dismantled and dialogue dead, that Sartaj Aziz, Foreign Affairs Advisor to the Pakistan Prime Minister, has indicated that he will visit India for the Heart of Asia donor conference on Afghanistan in early December. A year ago, when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj attended the Heart of Asia meet in Islamabad, she had announced the resumption of bilateral talks, called a “comprehensive dialogue”. This year no such announcement appears to be even remotely on the cards during Mr. Aziz’s trip to Amritsar. It is, however, a window of opportunity to take the current tensions firmly in hand, and assure regional leaders gathered at the conference — who will include Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and ministers from China and Russia — that India and Pakistan can in fact sort out the concerns bilaterally. The Heart of Asia conference will no doubt reinforce India’s message to Pakistan on terrorism on the need to dismantle all groups including those that target its neighbours such as India, Afghanistan and Iran. However, in discussing the protracted violence in Afghanistan, leaders at the conference may also drive home the point that the current levels of tension and violence between India and Pakistan will benefit no one, but only worry the region at large. CM YK

sible for him to simply condemn the attacks on Dalits? But had he done so, he would have ended up acknowledging anti-Dalit atrocities as an authentic issue during his regime. By asking people to shoot him instead of attacking Dalits, he flipped the narrative of Dalit atrocity into one about Narendra Modi. His response to the ongoing currency note crisis follows the same pattern. The demonetisation is the first bold, decisive step — one with immediate, nationwide impact — that Mr. Modi has taken since becoming Prime Minister. He did it in the most dramatic fashion. Days after the move, the nation is reeling under the impact. What used to be financial arcana has become a televised national spectacle. Above all, it has underlined in no uncertain terms his power as a leader, as someone extraordinary, and who towers above every other luminary in the national political landscape. This brings us to the reason why he does not engage in a dialogue on equal terms with anyone — be it from politics or the media — on any of his moves. It’s because it runs the danger of diminishing his stature. It also carries the risk of elevating the status of those he parlays with as an equal — which is another way of diminishing him in relative terms. Hence the importance of frequent foreign trips. It is as if the only individuals he can be seen to interact with on equal terms are leaders of other countries, especially countries that command a bigger say than India on the international stage. Hence the bear hug of Barack Obama, Francois Hollande, Tony Abbott, and their ilk, extendable to other larger-than-life members of the global power elite such as Mark Zuckerberg or Hugh Jackman. The only modes of interaction open to ordinary interlocutors in India are supplication, obedience, and unquestioning acceptance. Dominating the discourse For Indian democracy to remain healthy, it needs political leaders who can challenge the Prime Minister as an equal. Right now there seem to be none. Hence his manoeuvre — which has now become standard operating procedure — of addressing his response from a podium, directly to the people of India, every time he is challenged on any of his policies. Ever since he became the Prime Minister, Mr. Modi has been firmly in control of the national political narrative, with not a little help from the media. The way his demonetisation drive has unfolded reveals his willingness to leverage this control to evacuate all possible alternatives to his helmsmanship of the country’s destiny. He will continue to do so as long as the narrative that conflates national interest with Mr. Modi’s interest remains unchallenged. His political opponents have been quick to talk about the businessmen who bankrolled his election campaign and are thus invested in his success. But there doesn’t seem to be adequate recognition of the fact that a large number of ordinary, lower-middleclass Indians are emotionally invested in Mr. Modi’s political fortunes. It is they who appear ready to undergo any hardship if it promises positive outcomes for their leader — not unlike a battalion of soldiers ready to sacrifice their lives for their general. Going forward, we can expect more from this playbook of turning every issue into one about Mr. Modi. What should concern those who cherish democratic values is the absolute lack of imagination or ideas among what passes for the Opposition in the country. His opponents stand no chance against him in the 2019 elections unless they can rise to the challenge of scripting a powerful counter-narrative that would resonate with the masses, and also, most critically — would not be about Mr. Modi. [email protected]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Black and white The editorial page article, “White is the new black” (Nov.17), fails to highlight the positive and long-term benefits of demonetisation to the Indian economy. The quantum of black money was so enormous that it had created a parallel economy, making monetary policy ineffective. Black money acts as a conduit for terror funding, economic offences, drug peddling, and other illegal activities. We needed shock therapy to deal with the problem. The present turbulent phase is only transitory but will be beneficial in the long run. Joseph Abraham, Gurugram

The dark reality is that the money hoarders have found an escape route. There are already incidences of a spurt in the sale of gold. Also, many of those with black money are making those employed under them deposit it in their ‘Jan-Dhan’ accounts. These activities need to be checked. Also, the move is likely to promote plastic money but the big question here is: How confident are we about cybersecurity after the recent breach that resulted in the security of nearly 3.2 million debit cards being possibly compromised? These aspects need attention. Nonetheless, demonetisation is a

positive measure that will help in wiping out black money and fake currency, curbing terror funding. The Opposition’s demand for a rollback is absurd. Had it truly cared so much about the poor people, it would have demanded a smoother conduct of the overall demonetisation process. Rimjhim Singh, Delhi

The government should utilise the services of employees in revenue, police and education departments and open counters in educational institutions in our country to enable quicker distribution of cash. The government can adopt the approach it resorts to while conducting general elections every five years by having more channels of distribution. The issues faced by the daily wage labourers can be tackled better this way. Narasimha Charyulu Gomatam, Markapuram, Andhra Pradesh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has drained the entire pond of water to catch a handful of fish. The result is a massive drought. ‘Modinomics’ does not target a Lalit Modi or a Vijay Mallya but it conducts a surgical strike on the poor and the middle class people. Black money is used to fund political parties, nourish real estate businesses and keep the coffers of private schools

and hospitals awash with cash. However, the government chooses to attack poor people, those in dhoti and pyjama, and spares the unscrupulously wealthy, those with offshore accounts in Panama! Sanjay K. Bissoyi, Nabarangpur, Odisha

Money power The lavish wedding conducted by G. Janardhana Reddy, among the Bellary mining tycoons facing serious corruption charges, makes a mockery of our legal systems and shows the audacity of money power (”An opulent wedding that wasn’t in the least taxing,” Nov.17). This display of wealth was taking place when the common people of our country — some of those with no knowledge even of the definition of black money — were standing in queue for hours to collect their hard-earned money. Both uneven distribution of the country’s riches and the tendency of the rich to indulge in ostentation were in play here. A.G. Rajmohan, Anantapur

Trump’s trail The editorial page article, “The trail Trump’s blazing” (Nov.15), compares the victory of Donald Trump on November 9 to the

horrific terror attacks of September 11, 2001, showing disregard for those who lost their loved ones on that tragic day. It is preposterous to compare the election of a candidate through democratic means to the killing of thousands of people in terrorist attacks. It is even more absurd to categorise the Americans — nearly 50 per cent of them — who voted for him as racist and bigoted. Mr. Trump won the elections despite the mainstream media portraying him largely in a negative light. His victory reflected the choice of a section of disaffected Americans, not all of whom were racists or xenophobes or homophobes. Also, the media gave disproportionate coverage to the indiscretions of Mr. Trump, ignoring the lies and follies of Hillary Clinton and her campaign. Christy Dorcas, Hyderabad

The victory of Mr. Trump is in continuation of the Right-wing wave that resulted in the victory of the ‘Leave’ campaign in Britain, propelling Brexit. This wave can also result in significant electoral gains to far-Right leaders like Geert Wilders (Netherlands) Marine Le Pen (France) and Frauke Petry (Germany), drawing parallels to the popularity of the Nazis in the 1930s. The election of these leaders to

public office will undoubtedly give a carte blanche to the hate-mongers. The people living in the interior regions of the United States did feel deprived due to a loss of livelihoods, contributing to Mr. Trump’s victory. However, the President-elect will have to make a break from the past by giving up on his campaign rhetoric if he truly cares about their welfare. Akshay Viswanathan, Thiruvananthapuram

It came as a stunner that all major news media organisations failed to predict the result of the recent U.S. presidential polls. While experts have provided erudite, academic explanations for this failure, the real reason could be that a majority of the American voters either held back their true preferences or lied to those conducting the opinion and exit polls. It would have been politically incorrect to declare support for Mr. Trump once he got branded by the media as nonprogressive and racist, one with no respect for social justice. However, the voters also felt pulled towards him because he tapped into their insecurities with promises of a better future. Whether he will be able to keep up with his grand promises made to the American public is doubtful. Saikat Kumar Basu, Alberta, Canada ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2016

A new idiom of Dalit assertion There’s a new turn in Dalit politics that entails taking charge of afairs in their own hands, and a widening of the terrain of struggle rather than restricting it to political power or religious conversion workplace rather than enablement and camaraderie. The Hindutva agenda of inviting all Hindus to the banquet table but assigning lower castes to their predestined places has further exacerbated the sense of being unwanted. ‘The fatal accident of birth’ connects all the sites that have witnessed Dalit upsurge in recent days, from Tughlakabad to Una, from Hyderabad to Udupi. But it also runs through the distinction between skilled and unskilled, organised and informal, rural and urban, and male and female labour. This cleavage also links much subtler forms of exclusion and relative marginalisation to more cruder forms of atrocities.

S AT U R D AY , N O V E M B E R 1 9 , 2 0 1 6

VALERIAN RODRIGUES

Saying no to jallikattu, again

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t is no surprise that the Supreme Court has declined to review its 2014 judgment banning jallikattu, the popular bull-taming sport held alongside annual harvest festivities in rural Tamil Nadu. The original judgment had drawn on sound legal principles to conclude that the need to prevent cruelty to animals overrides the consideration that conducting the sport was necessary to preserve culture and tradition. More particularly, the court had found that a 2009 State law that sought to regulate jallikattu was repugnant to the 1960 central legislation to prevent cruelty towards animals. The former Act did contain stringent provisions, but animal rights activists contended that the element of cruelty could not be eliminated altogether. Despite evidence that the game caused distress and pain to the animals, and even led to injuries and occasional fatalities, political leaders in the State and sections of the public often make the claim that jallikattu has cultural and religious significance for the Tamil community. Jallikattu is construed as a macho sport in which intrepid young men demonstrate their valour by pouncing on fleeing bulls. It is also associated in the popular imagination with cultural pride. Over the years, the tradition was kept alive in many villages under the belief that not conducting jallikattu would invite divine wrath. As a result, the bull-baiting sport was invested with religious significance too. It was unlikely that the court would have entertained a review merely on a claim that popular sentiment favoured the conduct of jallikattu and that its purported religious and cultural significance would provide constitutional protection to it. The Bench has rejected attempts to invoke the right of religious freedom guaranteed in Article 25 of the Constitution. It was unfathomable that there could be a connection between jallikattu and religious freedom, the court said. And it was held mainly for human entertainment at the expense of the animal. Apart from the State government’s review plea, the Centre had embarked on a misadventure in January by issuing a notification aimed at permitting jallikattu. The action was stayed immediately and a verdict on its validity is expected to come separately. However, given that the court is sticking to the stand that it would not allow any cruelty in the name of holding a rural sport, it is unlikely to survive judicial scrutiny. The Tamil Nadu government and like-minded sections at the Centre would do well to accept this ruling as final and stop espousing the cause. If there is one takeaway here, it is the futility of pursuing measures to preserve feudal traditions in the teeth of reasoned judicial opinion.

There is a new swing in Dalit politics today. Its signs are palpable in the way Dalits have reacted to atrocities on them, the modes of struggles devised, the kind of alliances forged, and the nodal concepts and norms invoked for action. While old ways of doing Dalit politics — paternalism, quotas, subcaste appeal, conversion, bahujan (including sarvajan) — are still around, more in a client-patron mode, Dalits are increasingly taking charge of afairs in their own hands. A few features of this turn are noteworthy: caste is back into reckoning; the use of social media to network and communicate has proliferated; Left politics and its limitations are under scrutiny; Babasaheb Ambedkar has reinforced his presence as the flagpole; there is a highly literate Dalit leadership deeply aware of historical injustice and electorally decisive numbers in support; a thick notion of Brahmanism is highlighted as the enemy; a search for a new civil society-state axis is on; and a new body of concepts and slogans are being deployed as the battle cry. Dalits have begun to dig deep into layers and layers of folklore and alternative nationalist imagery to forge skilful use of signs, symbols and representations. While one can say that all these features were part of the Dalit movement at one time or the other, it is their combinatory which is proving itself lethal. Above all, this stir is situating itself on the terrain of India’s distinct democratic politics, employing its resources as much as possible. There is no single political party at the head of this movement although many political parties will have much at stake in it. Reaction to atrocities The continuing, large-scale and disdainfully executed atrocities on Dalits were largely confined to police records and the bulky records of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes for long. But incidents such as a suicide note by a research scholar, Rohith Vemula, that stated, “My birth is my fatal accident”, has connected all of them and much more to the social fact of caste: his suicide is seen as a witness to the squeezing out of the life of millions of youth — bright, daring, and with dreams to reach out to the sky — on account of caste and all it means in context. Dalits increasingly feel that the opportunity to access the legal and institutional resources of a democratic polity has

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Dalits feel that the opportunity to access the institutional resources of a democratic polity has gone hand in hand with relocating them into a caste grid gone hand in hand with relocating them into a caste grid, consigning all their efort, again in Vemula’s words, to “immediate identity and nearest possibility”. Their life prospects are much inferior to those of its other beneficiaries. This sense of ‘unfair inclusion’ connects them to the vast numbers in the Indian subcontinent who are kept, in Ambedkar’s cryptic phrase, “outside the fold”. The denial of access to equal opportunities and rewards is not merely economic but ways of life, and abilities to define one’s own and collective futures. Such a state of afairs may not be played out in the open but built into the common sense of everyday life. Therefore, in all sectors, even in public enterprises, Dalits tend to crowd those levels that are insignificant, prone to routine and imitation rather than inventive and decision-making. In institutions of higher learning Dalits crowd social sciences and humanities that are endowed with very little institutional outlay or vision, and can generate very few sought-after jobs or opportunities. The efect of land reforms and agrarian transformation — while reinforcing the hold of landed castes and communities in the countryside — has pushed Dalits and social segments akin to them further to the margins. There is a new enslavement and recrudescence of gradation and ranking at the

Modes of struggle The social relations in which Dalits are caught calls upon them to struggle not merely against external dominance, be it capital, caste or power, but also against denial of their very humanity. The latter forms of struggle are pitted against subtler forms of human degradation and enslavement of one’s very self. The new turn in Dalit politics is precisely calling for a widening of the terrain of struggle rather than merely restricting it to political power or religious conversion. Given this task, there are new instrumentalities in place in Dalit struggles: the social media does not become merely a site to network, but also to inform, to criticise, to assess as well as redefine concerns. In fact the social media has emerged today as the backbone of the new Dalit awakening as could be seen in the solidarity movement with Rohith Vemula across the country, in ‘Azadi Koon’ (March for Freedom) from Ahmedabad to Una in Gujarat, or the ‘Udupi Chalo’ walk that brought thousands of Dalits from diferent parts of Karnataka to the temple town, Udupi. The great marches and rallies winding across distant villages and small towns and uniting people around a set of core demands are connecting people physically and emotionally. There are slogans asserting pride in being a Dalit, with a sub-caste enumeration as an add-on, not infrequently. There is a resurgence of folklore, sites of atrocities have become places of pilgrimage, traditional musical instruments of Dalits have thrown up fusion with rhythmic dances of great power and poise, and broadsheets, songs and street plays, evocative posters and imaginative slogans challenge dominant perception and sensitivity. Women and men are found shoulder to shoulder with one another in this ‘long march’, something that

CARTOONSCAPE

Justice beyond borders

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ussia’s move to quit the International Criminal Court (ICC) is the outcome of the political undercurrents that have of late strained its relations with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). More ominous could be the ramifications of the exit, the fourth within the last two months, from the established world arbiter. The collective vision of that global pact was to bring the impunities of political leaders to justice before a transnational body when all domestic remedies were exhausted. Russia’s announcement was predictable as a reaction to the court’s report on Tuesday, stating that the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine amounted to an occupation. Moscow has denied any role by its military, maintaining that Crimea’s accession was authorised in a popular referendum. NATO’s continued eastward expansion explains at least some of President Vladimir Putin’s belligerent rhetoric. Not only has the western military alliance extended into the countries of the former Eastern bloc, it has also brought some member states of the erstwhile Soviet Union within its fold. Moscow’s approach to the world court is far from ideal. But the constraints of initiating punitive action against the U.S. and its allies for the war crimes committed during the Iraq war would have further eroded Russia’s diminishing faith in the liberal world order. South Africa’s decision to walk out of the Hague court in October symbolises its abdication of a regional leadership role. Africa still remains hostage to the machinations of traditional tribal warlords, who systematically subvert democratic institutions and squander the rich natural wealth in league with big corporations. South Africa’s regressive step came at a time when politicians in neighbouring countries, faced with legal proceedings for perpetrating heinous crimes, have successfully projected the impression that the ICC was biased against the whole continent. The current stance of Pretoria is a far cry from that over a decade ago when the country incorporated crimes of genocide from the ICC statute into its domestic laws. When Washington refused at the turn of the century to be bound by the jurisdiction of the Hague court, there were concerns that the nascent body would be left sorely wanting in legitimacy and authority. Those anxieties have, if anything, been amplified by the unprecedented war crimes being perpetrated in the Syrian conflict and the humanitarian catastrophe being witnessed there. To enforce justice beyond the barriers imposed by domestic borders is a noble aim. But its realisation is that much harder when nationalism is resurgent. CM YK

the late Sharmila Rege portrayed in her writings. Ambedkar makes a rich and exemplary presence across such performances, and there is almost none beside him in stature. Today, sites of Dalit rallies are crowded with a rich display of books and publications, a widespread practice in Left rallies of yore. Hitherto, cleavages between Dalits and backward castes, Dalits and Muslims, and the gender divide have come in the way of optimising the democratic dividend from their overwhelming numbers. The decisive support of Dalits to the backward castes in the Mandal agitation did not beget enduring political alliances. The Dalit and Muslim alliance never took of the ground at any time in right earnest. And, less said the better with regard to the alliance between backward castes and women. In recent years, faced with Hindu consolidation under the aegis of Hindutva, the targeting of Dalits and Muslims by the cow-brigades or Gau Rakshak Dals, the growth in civil society surveillance and moral policing, and the relative marginality of these groups in the market, there is a growing realisation among sections of them that they need to politically draw closer. The slogans that resound in the Dalit movement today indicate such a thaw: The banners read, and slogans echo: ‘choice of food’, ‘right to land’, ‘Swabhiman’ and ‘Atmabhiman’ (self-respect), ‘Azadi’ (freedom) and ‘dignity’. They pronounce death knell to historic oppression, and freedom to define their own self-hood. Dalits also proudly announce the equality of women and their right to choose the kind of life they wish to live and denounce the surveillance of Hindutva brigades on them. The dragging out of Mohammad Akhlaq from his house and his killing by a local Hindu mob on the charge of storing beef at his house in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, has become an important issue in Dalit struggles, woven around the right to food. As a result, we find the bonding together of a large number of associations of these groups and communities. Nodal concepts and norms The registry of norms that are invoked by the current Dalit movement to explain and justify its objectives and actions has much to distinguish it from its earlier expressions. It is increasingly human dignity and worth, and the capacity to be what one can be, that occupy the high ground. The reduction of freedom to one’s birthmarks, and the social structures, institutions, prejudices and interactions that sustain such a state of afairs are seen as new forms of enslavement. A patch of land of one’s own, a home where one can live on one’s own terms, not to be condemned to certain occupations, or be treated as low and defiled stir Dalit imagination today as never before. The term Brahmanism that Dalits have employed to rally against a specific mode of dominance from the time of Jyotirao Phule and Iyothee Thass has acquired new connotations of sustaining a social order based on graded inequality, servility and deference, and self-aggrandisement at the expense of misery and inhumanity meted out to others. India’s so-called modern and democratic institutions are increasingly perceived as sustaining a Brahmanical dispensation. The central concerns of Muslims, women and backward castes are perceived as being consonant with these concepts and norms. What electoral dividends this new sensitivity will bring at the hustings or in foisting party alliances is diicult to anticipate at present. The new Dalit politics feels that it holds the key to some of these concerns and strivings. While there is much that unites the social groups and communities enumerated above, there is much that divides them too. Bridges connecting these divides are yet to be built. Dalits are yet to reach out to Adivasis in a meaningful way. Valerian Rodrigues is formerly Professor at Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and currently National Fellow, Indian Council of Social Science Research.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

The ongoing ‘demonetisation drive’ has touched its tenth day, with no relief to people. Politicians have played vote-bank politics while people sufer on the streets. Instead of placing the blame on the Narendra Modi government, the Opposition can come forward and help the people on the streets. Here, banks are playing a valiant role in bringing parity to the distribution of money. The inconvenience caused to the public is likely to continue for a month or so. The government, the Opposition and the people need to find ways to unite in the national interest. C.K. Subramaniam,

meagre amount of Rs.2,000? Further, the government has pushed the hapless citizenry into another trap with middlemen ofering to exchange old notes, opening another conduit for black money. It is surprising how the Centre hoped to have a smooth transition without having an adequate stock of Rs.50 and Rs.100 notes. A decision taken with the noble intention of fighting black money and invalidating counterfeit currency has taken a bizarre turn. It is only hoped that the Prime Minister, who initiated the entire scheme, will now come up with a comprehensive strategy to deal with the cash crunch faced by the common man. S.V. Venkatakrishnan,

Navi Mumbai

Bengaluru

The Centre seems to have initiated the massive economic exercise of demonetisation without doing adequate homework. The number of reversals and U-turns taken by it do not speak well of its preparedness. Initially, exchange of Rs.4,000 at a time was permitted; the ceiling was later raised to Rs.4,500 and now it has been slashed down to Rs.2,000. Does the government expect individuals not having a bank account to carry on for the next six weeks with a

The November 2016 demonetisation decision will be remembered as a kadak (strong) move by the Prime Minister. As correctly pointed out in the article, “The morality of binaries” (Nov.18), Mr. Modi has projected the image of a ‘cult’ leader due to which the latest surgical strike has found resonance among a section of the public. The political Opposition, rather than providing criticism, is engaging only in mudslinging. The

Country without cash

poor people are sufering not due to the decision per se but because of the logistical and operational diiculties in its implementation, a factor that is true for any major policy decision taken with the interests of our diverse country in mind. Mr. Modi is currently dominating the national scene and his performance will be evaluated in due course. But his larger-thanlife image has made sure that the common man has taken this bitter tonic without much resistance. Dwaipayan Chakraborty, Kolkata

Ever since the government made the demonetisation move, many economists and political leaders have given opinion regarding its demerits, giving examples of hardships faced by their own drivers and house helps. It will be pertinent to ask them: Why didn’t they help the poor of the country open bank accounts when the Prime Minister announced the opening of ‘JanDhan’ facilities? It appears that the sole aim of a section of the commentators is to discredit the Prime Minister by spreading misinformation. However, the common man is ready to face hardships, provided this war against

corruption is taken to its logical conclusion. Not only small ofenders but also the white-collar culprits should be brought to justice. Varun Rajsingh, Delhi

I come from a town in eastern Uttar Pradesh surrounded by many villages, some in remote locations with a population of about 5,000. People from these villages don’t have access to banking facilities and have to migrate to neighbouring cities and towns for those purposes on a regular basis. Needless to say, they have been at the receiving end of the government’s ‘war on black money’. To compound their sufering further, they don’t get adequate coverage in our mainstream media. I am concerned about this huge information gap due to which urban India, instead of empathising with a large section of our rural population, is totally indiferent to it. Azmat Ali Ansari, Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh

The problems faced in the last ten days make me wonder if the government had a serious road map on the exercise. We can say for

certain that every Indian is against corruption. However, the big picture is that in a country of 1.3 billion the bulk of black money is in the hands of a small percentage of people. Further, many day-to-day transactions are still made using hard cash. Is it fair to inconvenience an entire country to target a handful of people? Donald D’Cruz, Kollam

It is apparent by now that the unorganised sector, one comprising over 90 per cent of the workforce, has been worst afected by the decision. A government that was so passionate about bringing greater vitality to the handicraft industries has suddenly left scores of artisans, weavers, women entrepreneurs in rural parts of the country penniless. Disposable cash forms the backbone of the livelihoods of self-help groups (SHGs), producer groups and artisans. These segments, even if they have access to bank accounts, need money supply to take care of their working capital. The government should have focussed on its promise of financial inclusion before making such a major move. Swasti Pachauri, Delhi ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2016

In an age of disruptive politics Donald Trump might have been the wrong man, but he was at the right place at the right time. His victory has a message for democracies elsewhere and for Indian foreign policy M.K. NARAYANAN

M O N D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 1 , 2 0 1 6

Getting real on climate

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he UN conference on climate change held in Marrakech, with an emphasis on raising the commitment of all countries to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is particularly significant as it provided an opportunity to communicate concerns about the future climate policy of the U.S. It would be untenable for the U.S., with a quarter of all cumulative fossil fuel emissions, to renege on its promise to assist vulnerable and developing nations with climate funding, technology transfer and capacitybuilding under Donald Trump’s presidency. As the Marrakech Action Proclamation issued at the close of the conference emphasises, the world needs all countries to work together to close the gap between their intended reduction of carbon emissions and what needs to be done to keep the rise of the global average temperature well below 2°C in this century. The Paris Agreement on climate change was forged on the consensus that manmade climate change does have a scientific basis, that the developed countries are responsible for accumulated emissions, and that future action should focus on shifting all nations to a clean energy path. Not much progress was made at Marrakech on raising the $100 billion a year that is intended to help the poorer nations. Political commitment and resource mobilisation will be crucial to meet targets for mitigation of emissions and adaptation. India is in a particularly difficult situation as it has the twin challenges of growing its economy to meet the development aspirations of a large population, and cutting emissions. National GHG levels are small per capita, but when added upthey put India in the third place, going by data from the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center in the U.S. As a signatory to the Paris Agreement, which has provisions to monitor emissions and raise targets based on a review, pressure on India to effect big cuts is bound to increase. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change will hear from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2018 on what impact an additional warming of 1.5°C could have on the planet and what can be done to ensure it is pegged at this level. The pledges made so far are well short of this target, and even if they are all implemented, a minimum rise of 2.9°C is forecast by the UN Environment Programme. India has no historical responsibility for accumulated GHGs, but smaller, more vulnerable countries such as island states and Bangladesh are demanding action to cut emissions. A strategy that involves all State governments will strengthen the case for international funding, and spur domestic action.

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ulism and nationalism have become more important. The determination to reverse policies of recent decades, viz., that of benefits accruing from an open economy and an open society, has become all-embracing, since jobs were at risk and outsiders were disrupting their way of life.

Volumes have been written these past few days on the success of Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential elections. Less has, however, been said about the reasons for Hillary Clinton’s eclipse. Democracies, perhaps, need to take somewhat greater note of what actually caused the Clinton ‘meltdown’, which was contrary to all optimistic forecasts. This is the age of uncertainty, the era of disruption. British physicist Stephen Hawking has called the 21st century “the century of complexity”. This decade began with the Arab Spring and its traumatic aftermath. The message of the upheaval was, however, conveniently ignored, and it was viewed as a mere West Asian phenomenon. The implications of the rise of dangerous ideologies such as the Islamic State were again ignored, and treated as a mere terrorist interregnum. The massive refugee influx into Europe in the wake of Syria-Iraq quagmire was similarly underestimated, including how it was altering people’s attitudes and perceptions, and provoking deep-seated feelings of both xenophobia and anti-establishmentarianism. It should have been evident that the world was changing, and was becoming more disruptive. Not the worst of times These may not be the ‘best’ of times. Nor, however, are they the ‘worst’ of times. Technology and the economy have outstripped policies in recognising the value of disruptive ideas, and how if properly channelised, they could lead to spectacular results. Politics continued to lag behind, though in certain countries political parties had begun to discern the ‘winds of change’. The Indian elections of 2014 are a case in point. Older democracies in the West, nevertheless, continued to remain inured to ‘new age politics’. Ms. Clinton’s campaign was a victim of this adherence to erstwhile ‘marketable’ labels. Middle America, meantime, had become convinced that more of the same would only consign them to an uncertain future, even worse perhaps than their situation under the present dispensation. This

India would do well to hedge its bets, for it is unlikely that under Mr. Trump the U.S.-India relationship will remain the defining partnership hardly means that the Trump campaign had ‘real’ answers for all the problems that the U.S. confronts, but that compared with Ms. Clinton’s campaign, which promised little by way of solutions, Mr. Trump at least offered hope. There are important lessons in this for all democracies. If in a mature democracy like the U.S., an ‘Outsider’ (Donald Trump) could upstage an ‘Insider’ (Hillary Clinton) in this fashion, then it could be open season for similar upsets elsewhere as well. Consequently, it may be important to not ignore events and developments, even if they take place far from a nation’s borders. The Clinton campaign failed to recognise that Brexit (in the U.K.) reflected a tectonic shift in people’s and the electorate’s attitudes, and that this could impact the electorate in the U.S. as well. The failure to correctly ‘read the tea leaves’ thus proved to be a costly mistake. All democracies are being buffeted today by the rapid advances made by technology. ‘Network groups’ are dominating the intellectual, political, and economic space. Large segments of the electorate — made up of ordinary people — tend to feel threatened by this. Faced with ‘the reality of indeterminate complexity’, their answer has been to revolt against the system. Pop-

Right candidate, wrong time Ms. Clinton was the right candidate at the wrong time. The U.S. currently confronts a ‘confidence deficit’ about its place in the world of the 21st century — possibly due to the determination of President Barack Obama and his administration to step back from being the gendarme of the world. In some of the interviews given while still in office, Mr. Obama had made this clear, stipulating that his priorities were to strengthen the U.S. economy. He, however, seemed to overlook the fact that for most Americans the image the U.S. presented to the world was of considerable significance. Consequently, in answer to the blistering attack on Mr. Obama’s foreign legacy (its failures in West Asia, limited progress in the U.S. pivot to Asia, Russia’s incursions into Eastern Europe, and the inability to counter Chinese militarisation of the South China Sea), Ms. Clinton had few answers. It only seemed to confirm that the U.S. had, indeed, ceded position as the world’s leading power. It would have required someone in the Lider Maximo mould to have countered this, and Ms. Clinton certainly did not fit the bill. On the other hand, Mr. Trump with his exaggerated claims and bombast seemed to signal hope with his slogan ‘Make America Great Again’. Defending Mr. Obama’s domestic legacy might have been easier (Obamacare notwithstanding), but Ms. Clinton was greatly hobbled by the surfeit of charges levelled against her regarding her role in Benghazi (Libya) during her term as Secretary of State and the e-mails controversy. Matching vitriol was clearly beyond Ms. Clinton and her campaign team. In reality, the battle turned out to be a contest between a ‘status quoist’ (Ms. Clinton) and the ‘new unknown’ (Mr. Trump), who demonstrated considerable chutzpah. In U.S. Politics 2.0, the status quo hardly finds many takers, given the highly restive and unhappy electorate. A successful presidential candidate necessarily needed to carry conviction that he/she would be in a

CARTOONSCAPE

Rising dollar, falling rupee

onald Trump’s surprise win in the U.S. presidential elections has lent the dollar new wings. It has soared against most currencies, including the rupee, on the expectation that his economic policies will spur growth and inflation in the world’s largest economy. The prospect of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates provided an updraught that helped the dollar extend a record appreciating streak against the euro last week and pushed the rupee past 68 to a dollar. In Congressional testimony last week, Fed Chair Janet Yellen signalled that the central bank was close to a decision to raise rates again. Some economists predict U.S. GDP growth could see appreciable acceleration in 2017 — with one projection positing even a doubling of the pace by the fourth quarter — if the new administration delivers on some of its promises, including tax cuts, deregulation and infrastructure spending. In fact, with a Republican majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, Mr. Trump could benefit from smoother Congressional backing for policy initiatives to boost economic activity. U.S. stocks and bonds have also reflected the optimism over the outlook for U.S. growth and prospects that increased fiscal spending will help reflate the economy, with the S&P 500 Index adding gains for the second straight week and benchmark bond yields climbing in anticipation of faster inflation. For the rupee, which has slumped 2.3 per cent from its 66.62 a dollar close on November 8, the flight of capital from emerging market assets has inflicted significant pressure that has been exacerbated by the Centre’s decision to withdraw higher denomination currencies. Foreign institutional investors have sold more than $2.5 billion of Indian equity and debt holdings so far this month, compared with the about $1.5 billion they offloaded through October. With the demonetisation move infusing a surge of liquidity into the banking system, domestic interest rates are expected to decline, making the rupee less attractive to investors seeking to benefit from an interest rate arbitrage. And with consumption and broader economic activity predicted to take a hit on account of the shortage of cash in the wake of the currency move, GDP growth may slow sharply. That in turn could weaken overseas investor appetite for rupee assets. The task before policymakers, and the monetary policy committee that is set to meet on December 7, a week before the Federal Open Market Committee’s rate decision, will be to reassure markets and investors that India’s economy remains robust. CM YK

position to assist the white majority overcome their primordial fears of being ‘ghettoed’ in their own country, and elbowed out of opportunities and jobs, most of which at present seemed to go to outsiders. Arguments about open borders and immigrant flows leading to growth tend to fall on deaf ears when the perception is that the bulk of the benefits from growth go to the new elite, viz., the outsider. The politics of identity (essentially symbolised by the white under-class) thus gained prominence. Changes in policies of the past were equated with a change in leadership. The pressure was on ‘shaking things up’, and not allowing matters to continue as in the past. A complete break was considered necessary and, hence, every negative fact or incident concerning Ms. Clinton was dredged up — and often times exaggerated (the e-mail issue and the FBI’s investigation into the matter) — to strengthen the case for a change. Mr. Trump might have been the wrong man, but he was at the right place and at the right time. The mood in the U.S. among the ordinary electorate was to reject much of what had transpired during the past decade, and reach out to a new future, even though the future may be difficult to discern as of now. Mr. Trump’s success derived from the fact that he was the man of the moment. He had a message to give and the ability to sell the message. He skilfully discerned the angry mood of an economically threatened majority. He positioned himself as someone who could reverse the trend of recent years, in marked contrast to a Democratic President who could be expected to persist with the same policies that had let America down. India in a changed world If, indeed, this is the age of disruptive politics, anything is possible. The likelihood of a Russia-U.S. understanding, though not an entente, is now within the realm of possibility. Despite his election rhetoric, Mr. Trump is unlikely to distance himself from NATO, but he is likely to refashion and circumscribe its role. This should assuage Europe’s fears that the U.S. would abandon it in order to placate Russia. In turn, this would reduce much of the present tensions that are affecting the European region. Since his election, Mr. Trump has been enigmatic in his references to China. Both the U.S. and China now have messianic leaders — Mr. Trump and Xi Jinping. The spectre of G-2 could well return, but in the context of a new framework, viz., in return for U.S. overtures to China, the latter would at least for the time being refrain from aggravating existing disputes in the South and East China Seas. Speculation about the U.S. backing China’s One Belt One Road initiative appear farfetched, but the U.S. may not interfere with the programme, as long as the ‘status quo’ in East Asia is not disturbed. India may well find itself in a kind of no man’s land, given these permutations and combinations. India’s current ‘Obamamania’ could well prove to be a hindrance to better U.S.-India relations. Mr. Trump is unlikely to pursue many of the policies initiated by the Obama Administration, including a possible joint India-U.S. initiative to contain China in East Asia. On the economic front, given that under Mr. Trump U.S. priorities are to ensure that American jobs are not at risk and lost to China or India, India might again find itself at a greater disadvantage than China. In the triangular relationship between the U.S., China and India, India may hence find itself as the ‘outlier’. India would do well to hedge its bets, for it is unlikely that under Mr. Trump the U.S.-India relationship will remain the defining partnership of the 21st century. M.K. Narayanan is a former National Security Advisor and former Governor of West Bengal.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Not yet developed The horrifying visuals of the derailed Indore-Patna Express reveal a stark truth: India is still far, far away from becoming a developed nation. A country that dreams of bullet trains cannot even keep its railway lines safe. The condition of the derailed coaches provides enough reason to suspect that substandard material was used in their construction. In India, every accident is followed by an enquiry commission, which submits findings but is not able to prevent another accident. Neither are people held responsible for such mishaps and punished. Kiran Babasaheb Ransing, New Delhi

Economy demonetised Though the apex Court has gone slightly overboard in saying that there may be riots if the present suffering caused by the government’s demonetisation move goes on, the anguish and apprehension of the honourable judges is understandable (“People are affected, there may be riots: Supreme Court,” Nov. 18). It is clear that the decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demonetise the old Rs.500 and Rs.1000 notes, though bold, historic and well-

intended, was hasty and taken without contemplating its shortterm implications, especially on the poor and the downtrodden. When 86 per cent of the notes in circulation were about to be sucked out, was it not the responsibility of the powers-that-be to make alternate prior arrangements? Further, any banker in the know of things would vouch for the fact that the statements of the government and the RBI that adequate supplies of alternate cash/currency have been made to meet the demand are wrong and misleading. It is clear that most of the bank branches and currency chests have not received the new notes or notes of smaller denominations. Instead the RBI has given instructions to re-circulate old, soiled and damaged notes. The government’s decision to send teams to different States for a spot assessment is belated and doesn’t serve any purpose as the officials constituting those teams cannot be expected to give any realistic, impartial and independent report. B. Harish,

country have been standing up to the task of handling the shortage of cash, in the wake of the demonetisation move, to mitigate the resultant inconvenience caused to the public. Incidentally, it has given banks a great opportunity to touch people belonging to different walks of life. They should use this chance to refurbish their oftmaligned and derided customer service. C.G. Kuriakose, Kothamangalam

The recent claim by our Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, regarding the demonetisation move as one having been executed after comprehensive planning, lacks genuineness, given the arbitrary changes with regard to the exchange cap on the old denomination notes. The Indian public needs to be lauded for putting up with the hardships and coming up with a plethora of impromptu measures. Jobin Rajan John, Pathanamthitta

Mangaluru

It was very thoughtful of The Hindu to have covered a day in the life of a bank (”Drowning in illiquidity: A day in the life of bank,” Nov. 20). There is no gainsaying that bank branches across the

War on the common man The demonetisation move was a measure at waging war on the common people of our country, instead of a war on black money. Crores of workers, farmers, small

traders, shopkeepers and all those who are dependent on cash transactions across the nation have been aggrieved. To make matters worse, another draconian order has been passed by the RBI according to which, district and primary cooperative banks which cater to the needs millions of farmers are not allowed to exchange notes (”Untold misery as coop. banking takes a hit,” Nov. 20). Farmers are unable to get payments for their crops, which is the only hope for their livelihood. Rabi sowing operations have to be started, but they have no money to pay for seeds and fertilizers. There is no money to pay agricultural workers. The claim that this is a step to fight corruption is a hollow one. As long as the nexus between big business, ruling politicians and bureaucrats continues, corruption will thrive. S.K. Khosla, Chandigarh.

Moscow’s exit from ICC Russia’s decision to quit the ICC (“Justice Beyond Borders,” editorial, Nov. 19)) does not come as a surprise. Some African nations have already done this. There have always been two world orders with different names — like ‘ Global North’ and ‘Global South’ and

‘Developed world’ and ‘Developing world’. At one side, there is a dominance of the ‘Global North’, led by organisations like NATO, and at the other side is the submission on the part of the ‘Global South’. The ICC is becoming another UN Security Council, perpetrating the dominance of the former. Amit Kumar Singh, Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh

Towards a meaner world U.S. President Barack Obama’s warning about the possible emergence of a “meaner, harsher and more troubled world” is clearly linked to the election of Donald Trump. The fact that America has always been a land of immigrants and that the history of humankind is a history of immigrations does not seem to have dissuaded Mr. Trump from issuing a threat to deport up to three million immigrants. He has also exhibited ignorance on climate change by asserting that it is a “Chinese hoax”. This when it is predicted that 2016 will be the hottest year in recorded history. Mr. Trump’s protectionist economic policies, if implemented, are sure to result in America’s complete isolation. G. David Milton, Maruthancode ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2016

The age of post-truth politics It isn’t just the U.S., the climate of blatant lies has permeated politics worldwide. Perhaps it is not that truth is irrelevant for politics but what is needed is a theory of truth that fits politics there is also a cynical use of truth to ground these lies — this is the contemporary condition which has been to a large extent caused as much by media and technology as by a fall in standards of public probity.

T U E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 2 , 2 0 1 6

SUNDAR SARUKKAI

Lessons from a disaster

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railway network that caters to about seven billion passenger trips a year poses extraordinary management challenges, the most important of which is to ensure that all journeys end safely. The derailment of the Indore-Patna Express in Kanpur Dehat, with the death toll at least 146, is a stark reminder that India’s strained railway system can be unpredictably risky. The distress of the families of passengers who died and those left injured can never be fully compensated by the announcement of ex-gratia compensation by the Railway Ministry, the Prime Minister’s Office and State governments; at the same time, confidence in the system has suffered a severe blow. The Ministry, which has recorded an average of 50 derailments a year over the past four years and a peak of 63, needs to engage in a sustained effort to win back public confidence. There are several elements to safety, of which the integrity of the tracks, signalling, engines and coaches need to be rigorously audited. Internal investigations by the Commissioners of Railway Safety have found human error to be responsible for 70 per cent of serious rail accidents, which underscores the importance of training and adherence to strict operational discipline. In the Patna Express accident, the focus is on whether there were flaws in the track, the speed at which the late-running train was being driven, and the role played by coach design in leading to high fatalities. Millions of people board a train in India every day. They need an assurance from the Ministry that it is learning from its mistakes. Specialist committees headed by Anil Kakodkar on safety and Bibek Debroy on restructuring have recommended major reforms, such as the creation of a statutory safety authority, speedy replacement of ageing coaches with modern LHB design, and revamped management that keeps its focus on core train operations. In his budget this year, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu promised that all zonal railways would have ultrasound flaw detection machines by March 2017 to test track quality. It is important to know whether such a test was done on the Indore-Kanpur-Patna route. After an accident it is the quality of medical facilities that determines a victim’s chances of survival. Many terrible mishaps occur in rural areas that have no hospital facilities worth the name, no trauma specialists or intensive care. Upgrading district hospitals should be a priority. More immediately, the Railway Ministry should ensure that bureaucratic procedures do not come in the way of victims getting the best treatment and aid.

I

Looking at the theatre of politics around us today, it is difficult not to give in to a sense of cynicism. Perhaps more than any other theme in contemporary politics, it is the prevalence of lies that characterises the current condition. This is not restricted to the multiplicity of lies that defined the American election; the climate of blatant lies has entered into the way politics is conducted across the world today. The proliferation of public lying The U.S. election was explicitly about brazen lies and also about the indifference of the voters to obvious lies. We seem to be more used to lies in the Indian political scene but here too the scale and the obviousness of lies seem to be increasing. In Bengaluru, in response to the massive ‘Steel Beda’ movement against a proposed 6.7-km steel flyover, the government and a minister repeatedly offered obvious obfuscation, those which they well knew could be disproved in a matter of minutes. By brazenly misrepresenting facts, the minister was acting as if politics could not be expected to speak truth. Mechanisms which seemingly would have afforded protection against public lying have failed. Audio and video recordings of crimes are quickly dismissed by claiming that they are fabricated. Perhaps never before has it been so difficult to retain any meaningful notion of truth in the public space. The public discourse of politics is increasingly fractured. There have been violent disagreements over the truth of the ‘surgical strikes’ across the border and although the public is supposed to consume these reports,

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Engagement with truth and politics was very much a part of the freedom movement in India and also of the early stages of politics in our country they are not expected to have a judgment on their veracity. We have had the spectacle of not knowing whether leaders of the government and leading political parties are alive or not, or what kind of illnesses they suffer from. Ironically this world of lies and deception is supported and made possible through assertions of one truth or the other. Each party bases their lies on claims that they are speaking the truth while their opponent is lying! Thus not only is there a cynical use of lying,

An inbuilt incompatibility? But then politics has always had a close relationship with lies. Politics and truth apparently do not go well together. Harold Pinter in his Nobel Prize in Literature lecture in 2005 spoke on “Art, Truth and Politics” and argued, “The majority of politicians, on the evidence available to us, are interested not in truth but in power and in the maintenance of that power. To maintain that power it is essential that people remain in ignorance, that they live in ignorance of the truth, even the truth of their own lives. What surrounds us therefore is a vast tapestry of lies, upon which we feed.” A report by an advertising agency with inputs from the U.S., U.K. and India in 2012 found that 72 per cent in these three countries agreed that truth was hard to find in politics these days. In all these countries, politicians as a group came last in a list that ranked different professions in terms of speaking the truth. Interestingly, just above them in the list of truthful people are car salesmen and the advertising community. In 1967, the philosopher Hannah Arendt wrote an influential essay in the The New Yorker titled “Truth and Politics” where she powerfully articulated the problem in the following manner: “No one has ever doubted that truth and politics are on rather bad terms with each other, and no one, as far as I know, has ever counted truthfulness among the political virtues. Lies have always been regarded as necessary and justifiable tools not only of the politician’s or the demagogue’s but also of the statesman’s trade… Is it of the very essence of truth to be impotent and of the very essence of power to be de-

CARTOONSCAPE

CM YK

Shrinking space for debate So what really is the problem between politics and truth today? Is truth really anathema to politics? Perhaps politics has nothing to do with truth. The main purpose of democratic politics seems to be only to convince others of something or the other. Politicians have to convince the citizens but the citizens also have to be prepared and ready to be convinced of that position. Almost always, the obstacle to being convinced is not something called the truth but only one’s commitment to certain beliefs. All the public debates in recent times illustrate this most powerfully. It was impossible to even conduct a conversation about certain topics without it degenerating very quickly into a shouting match. In recent times, the reaction to the Jawaharlal Nehru University incidents, the Rohith Vemula case, the discussion on uniform civil code and many such instances shows clearly that public reasoned debate is impossible in our country if such debate is to be based on some notion of truth. It has become impossible to convince the other side by invoking notions of evidence and truth. However, these public disagreements and taking positions are as much a part of what it is to be political. What is ironic is that political disagreements are couched almost always in the language of truth. We disagree with each other because we do not want to rethink our fundamental beliefs but express this always not in terms of ideology but truth. Our fights get out of control because we make it a fight about two opposite truths and not about two opposite opinions. Rethinking truth for politics We not only think truth is essential when we discuss politics but we also tend to think that the truth we hold is the only truth that is possible. The answer to this conundrum is simple: it is not that truth is irrelevant for politics but what is needed is a theory of truth that fits politics. Each domain of human action creates its own notions of truth and we often use different types of truth in our social transactions. The nature of factual truth, scientific truth, religious truth, artistic truth is different and we negotiate around these truths in each of these domains. Thus, the problem about truth in politics is not that there is no possibility of truth, but that we have to come to an agreement as to the nature of truth that we need in order to ‘do’ politics. Perhaps that truth is a deep sense of personal truth based on principles of compassion and attempts to understand our ‘opponent’ instead of a truth based on so-called factual judgments of the other.

DRS clears the test

ndia has a fascinating history with the Decision Review System. It was involved in its conception, was one of the first two countries to put it to trial, and then became the only nation to refuse to use it in bilateral engagements. The DRS was a result of the Sydney Test of 2008, in which consistently poor umpiring created a fractious atmosphere, leading to some of the ugliest scenes cricket has seen. The administrators realised that the umpire, the person with the greatest responsibility on the field, was the least empowered. Television had begun to provide access to information the umpire would have benefited from, but did not; yet he was judged on it. India and Sri Lanka were the first to audition it in a three-Test series in 2008. But it was this very experience that shaped much of India’s opposition: the argument was that the technology wasn’t faultless and it allowed room for unskilled human intervention. While the rest of world cricket embraced the DRS, with a vast majority of players and virtually every umpire taking the view that it improved the game beyond measure, India held out for perfection. This it was able to do because of the influence it wielded in the sport’s administration. But a change in the power equation at the top and the generational turnover of cricketers saw the position soften. The agreement to trial the DRS during the series against England was viewed by many as a welcome end to intransigence. But to make so sweeping an assessment is to be dismissive of India’s reservations. Two significant developments altered matters. The technology grew more sophisticated: the frame rates of the cameras improved manifold, from 75 frames a second in 2011 to 340 now, providing more data for the path of the ball to be predicted; a sound-based edge detection system, allied to slow-motion cameras, helped establish the first point of impact on the pad, greatly reducing human intervention. These were direct answers to India’s questions. The clincher was an independent audit of the system by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It helped to a great extent that Anil Kumble was involved in a lot of this. He was India’s captain in Australia and Sri Lanka in 2008, the head of the ICC’s cricket committee when the process of evaluating the DRS began, and later the national coach. An intelligent, open-minded man with a degree in engineering, Kumble’s voice carried great weight. It remains to be seen if India continues to use the system after the England series. But the signals are that it has accepted it. There is no doubt that the DRS needs even more refinement and greater standardisation. But with India now on board, the chances are better of the evolution of an even more robust system that protects cricket from umpiring errors.

ceitful?” Arendt’s suspicion that “it may be in the nature of the political realm to be at war with truth in all its forms” was particularly true of the fascist Nazi regime which she had first-hand account of but was also extended to politics in general. In contrast, there was Gandhi for whom politics was primarily defined through truth. Gandhi also showed how a fundamental engagement with truth could lead to profound political action. This engagement with truth and politics was very much a part of the freedom movement in India and also of the early stages of politics in our country.

Sundar Sarukkai is Professor of Philosophy at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Off the rails The ghastly train accident in Kanpur Dehat district of Uttar Pradesh shows that the railway bureaucracy has ignored most of the recommendations of earlier committees that were set up to look into the issue of safety (“121 killed in early morning accident near Kanpur”, Nov.21). For example, the Anil Kakodkar committee that was set up in 2012 came up with 106 recommendations on safety; these included the creation of a railway safety authority. It is inexcusable that the accident can now be blamed on either mechanical or manual flaws. Having trains travel at an average speed of around 60 kmph appears to be reasonable and heavens will not fall. We do not need bullet trains that entail huge investments of crores of rupees. A sizeable amount of the Railway budget must be spent on passenger safety in terms of creating more passenger terminals, computercontrolled track maintenance and supervision, and the extensive use of Linke Hofmann Busch coaches to reduce accidents. P.S.S. Murthy, Hyderabad

At a time when India is gearing up to move into the bullet train era, the derailment of the IndoreRajendranagar Express presents the cold reality of the state of the Indian Railways. It is imperative that those in charge of Asia’s largest rail network focus on improving its existing infrastructural health.

Vineela Rongali, Hyderabad

Repeated incidents of freak rail accidents raise serious questions about safety. Offering compensation and ordering “a high-level probe” have not really yielded results. An

aspiring global power like India cannot afford to make compromises on the safety of its rail passengers given the range of services offered by the Railways to the common man. It is high time that the government ordered a safety audit of all tracks. The Railways plays a vital role in connecting and uniting the nation. Let us not spoil its constructive role through negligence and carelessness. Ivin Tomy, Thiruvananthapuram

China and Japan are rail technology superpowers and India needs to tap their expertise. From 2009 to 2015, there were a series of fatal rail accidents in India with their causes more or less the same. It would be wise for the government to address deficiencies in the system and assure travellers of their safety rather than keep craving for technology. B. Vinutna, Ongole, Andhra Pradesh

Train accidents are not uncommon in a country where 11,000 trains run per day across its length and breadth. But despite the sheer number of such mishaps and the investigations that have gone into them, neither have those guilty been identified and punished nor has any probe report ever been made public. That the Indian Railways fails to take stock of what have become perennial issues is shocking. R. Prabhu Raj,

make this insurance scheme mandatory for all travel booked online, through counters and for even unreserved passenger travel. T.K.K. Thatha Chari, Chennai

The derailment raises critical issues in respect of railway modernisation in the country. The possible cause is an outcome of track overage, poor rail quality and neglected maintenance routine. Of late, we observe a spurt in such incidents. But the Railways does not bestow the requisite attention on this aspect. It is time it introspected its priorities. Instead of aping the West, we have to devise strategies to improve grass-root level operations. N. Sadasivan Pillai, Kollam, Kerala

Behind demonetisation Demonetisation was to strike at the roots of black money, counterfeit notes and terror funding. But the fact is that an all-cash currency economy is not evil or bad but essential for our type of economy. Demonetisation must strike at the roots of those who have accumulated wealth through corrupt practices. It will be a success when the common man gains, the middle class is confident, the corrupt are struck by fear and the wealthy know they have to abide by the laws of the land. Mathew George, Thiruvananthapuram

Bengaluru

Some time ago, the Indian Railways had introduced a scheme for rail passengers — an optional insurance scheme booked online by paying 92 paise. Many travellers may not be aware of this insurance scheme started by IRCTC. As we read about the accident, I request the IRCTC to

The popular explanation is that demonetisation is a surgical strike to remove black money, to paralyse the terrorist and to weed out fake currency. This argument is very convincing but the purpose appears to be multifold. The main benefit is to increase the value of rupee relative to other international currencies such as the dollar, the

euro and the yen. In a cash economy, currency is parked and the Reserve Bank has to keep printing more money to keep the economy going. The total value of national wealth must be declared regularly and accounted. One waits for the day when the Indian rupee can be floated as an international currency. But for this, there has to be an attempt to raise productivity. Mohammed Yousuff,

still remember her visit to North Malabar in Kerala where the Congress party was not so popular those days. The Left had arranged a black flag demonstration but there was a real surprise. The moment the women in the gathering saw her, they dropped the black flags and chanted the slogan: “Indira Gandhi Zindabad!” P.U. Krishnan, Udhagamandalam

Glen Waverley, Victoria, Australia

“Politicians behind chit fund scams are now attacking me, says Modi” (Nov.21) may be a catchy heading but the Prime Minister cannot forget that in a democratic set-up, the Opposition plays an important role in raising genuine issues/ concerns regarding ongoing policies. Specific answers should be given to the Opposition. The Opposition has collectively raised a genuine concern and citizens expect a specific and relevant answer to the point raised. Lalita Ramakrishnan, Gurugram

It is shocking that black money hoarders are now heading to temples to make those they worship partners in crime (“Demonetised notes pour into TTD temple hundis”, Nov.21). The TTD administration should send all such notes to the Enforcement Directorate where they should be destroyed. It should also make an announcement that demonetised notes will not be accepted. V. Srinivasan, Chennai

Remembering Indira Indira Gandhi was no doubt bold and practical in her political approach and a trendsetter too (“Indira was a key architect of modern India: Pranab”, Nov.21). I

Sabarimala clean-up It is disconcerting to read that the elite RAF commandos were deployed to remove garbage strewn by pilgrims heading to the Sabarimala temple (“RAF commandos clean the path for pilgrims in Sabarimala”, Nov.21). The force is a specialised wing and is meant to deal with riot-like situations and rescue and relief operations. I am sure that garbage disposal does not form a part of their mandate. Instead, pilgrims should be strictly warned not to litter the track. There should be strict enforcement of cleanliness and hygiene by the temple board. A central force should not be deployed to do the housekeeping of those who are deeply irresponsible. V. Srinivasan, Chennai

Sindhu on a roll It is heartening that P.V. Sindhu has now scaled the Great Wall of China by winning the China Open and continues to keep building on the success of her Rio medal quest (‘Sport’ – “Sindhu wins maiden Super Series Premier title”, Nov.21). The fact that she didn’t give up and held her nerve to stave off the Chinese player’s challenge shows that she is true champion material. R. Sampath, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2016

Melodrama on the campaign trail Politics sometimes has to be understood more as a performative act than a rational argument or an ideological battle W E D N E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 3 , 2 0 1 6

SHIV VISVANATHAN

I

Pitching reform at the BCCI

t is disconcerting that the administrative affairs of Indian cricket should continue to be embroiled in controversy in the midst of a packed and interesting home season. Not many can complain about the manner in which cricketing matters are being managed, but the intransigence shown by the office-bearers of the Board of Control for Cricket in India in not constructively accepting the reforms recommended by the Supreme Court-appointed R.M. Lodha Committee is getting to be tiresome. These recommendations, including those barring ministers, bureaucrats and anyone above the age of 70 from holding office in cricket’s administrative body, are now binding on the BCCI after the Supreme Court accepted the report. The Justice Lodha Committee has been grappling with a set of reluctant officebearers who claim they cannot force the State units affiliated to the BCCI to accept all the norms. Some associations are said to be unwilling to accept the age ceiling and the one-State, one-vote norm. In its latest report, the Committee has asked for the removal of all those who fall foul of its bar on various grounds. In addition, it has asked for an observer to be appointed to ‘guide’ the Chief Executive Officer in running the BCCI, particularly with regard to contracts, transparency norms and the audit of domestic, international and IPL matches. The question arises whether the Lodha Committee should have named G.K. Pillai, a former Union Home Secretary, as the observer. As it is up to the Supreme Court to decide whether an observer is needed, the recommendation of a specific name was both unnecessary and puzzling. While the time may have come to enforce the norms accepted by the Supreme Court, any suggestion that the Committee favours drastic action rather than appealing to reason should be avoided. It is apparent that some unsavoury developments have upset the panel. These include the BCCI taking decisions out of sync with the panel’s recommendations at its Annual General Meeting in September, interpreting a directive to stop the disbursal of funds to State associations as the demand for a total freeze on its bank accounts, and allegedly trying to goad the International Cricket Council into raising the question whether there was governmental interference in the BCCI’s functioning, a situation that may come with the threat of derecognition. Yet, the situation is not beyond rescue. The Board’s president and secretary have until December 3 to report compliance with the Committee’s norms. While the BCCI leadership will have to shed its seeming reluctance, the Supreme Court has to find a way to bring in transparency and reform without resorting to heavy-handed action against a body that must function with a measure of autonomy.

Decoding politics is not easy, especially after election time. The calculus of victory and defeat creates a virtual reductionist effect, vitiating the complexity of events to the inevitability of a score. It is not just, as Camus said, that statistics do not bleed, but that number is too rudimentary a portrait of the complexity of politics. Watching Donald Trump convinced me that it is not Mr. Trump that we need to understand, but the way we construct him. At a recent college election, I heard a candidate describe himself as the Trump of the college. The candidate was shrewd. He sensed in actuality there was little to recommend him. But as a caricature, a Rorschach, an inflatable version of himself, he made sense. People realise today that politics is virtual. The image makes more sense than the real. The battle is between virtual realities, of metaphors caught in dialects. Words like immigration, unemployment are mere triggers, the pictures we construct must go beyond the real and the measurable. The real Mr. Trump would be quite boring in real life. It is like meeting Arnab Goswami in a bus. After a minute, you wonder if it is the same man. Without TV, neither Mr. Trump nor Mr. Goswami seems real. TV shows that the real is inflatable, that exaggerations are more true than empirical sentences. They tap into an unconscious that virtually picks the candidate. Simply put, it is only as part of dream works that American politics makes sense. Collapse of three concepts Yet politics is caught between the reality of exaggeration and the devastating way it interrogates key concepts. Three concepts collapsed in recent times, or rather were reworked to suit the current state of the imagination. The American elections reworked the idea of politics, Brexit demanded a re-

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

Globalisation had introduced a fear of the expert. An expert truth lacks a sense of the vernacular and the dialect. It lacks inclusiveness. definition of economics, and the BJP victory in India showed us that some democracies need to be more authoritarian than others. American politics, despite evidence to the contrary, was not a battle of left and right. The right won but the Republican right had very little to do with strategies and trajectories. The party was pushed into victory as a part of the Trump caravan. His top leaders treated Mr. Trump as an outsider. They made little sense of a man who, while rich, did not convey the snootiness of the elite, the inclusiveness of club membership, the quiet snobbishness of Ivy League genealogy. Mr. Trump looked like something out of folklore, a combination of a Barnum circus and a peddler of patent medicines, promising quick and understandable solutions to problems neither he nor the voters understood. But Mr. Trump realised that the ordinary citizen is a combination of a hard hat and a hypo-

chondriac. As a hard hat, his solutions are violent; and as a hypochondriac, he incessantly talks about pain and his helplessness. The latter conveys the message that politics is no longer a process of empowerment. The citizen’s message does not reach the people in power, and if it does, it has a distorted quality which alienates him further. Mr. Trump realised that politics is Shakespearean in an epic world. In everyday politics, it’s the Charles Lambs that capture the prose of the world, to simplify and bowdlerise it so that reality, even if distorted, becomes recognisable. The world of globalisation and finance capital is full of gobbledygook, technical terms which make no sense of the feeling and experiences of the people. Mr. Trump simplified things by showing you do not have to summon a Henry Kissinger and an Alan Greenspan to explain things to people. A village idiot could do it provided he spoke the right language. Mr. Trump did. His homespun American sermons were a combination of Playboy shorthand and salesman’s smooth talk. One merely spun it out like Old Testament spoof, and Americans loved it. In fact, his bawdiness gave people a sense that he was being inclusive, like a millionaire who was a street fighter. This was an immediacy Hillary Clinton could never create. She was the ice maiden and if she thawed, she was the bumbler. She sounded like a textbook, or some forgotten piece of catechism located in a development handbook. Ms. Clinton often sounded like an embalmed text. She might have the right answers but to use local idioms, she sounded like a prissy first class first addressing a chorus of also-rans. They wanted to cut her to size, make her smell defeat, fade into anonymity, while they gloated over her defeat. Ironically, Ms. Clinton won the majority, that is custodian of the great American repressions. Intriguingly, she was like the great American text, ponderous, sophisticated, correct, but it was Mr. Trump’s oral eloquence which rang true. Orality and Populism go together. In the age of digital competence and textual hermeneutics, people play down the drama of orality, its invocation of

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T

CM YK

A psychological ritual Three factors contributed to that consequence. Firstly, globalisation had introduced a fear of the expert. An expert truth lacks a sense of the vernacular and the dialect. It lacks inclusiveness while Mr. Trump’s bawdy jokes and coinages which sounded like proverbs made an effort to create an inclusive public. Secondly, language becomes important. When politics seeks to be empowering, it need not be correct. It can be folksy, bawdy-body talk. It conveys he is one of us, rather than someone outsourced by the establishment. Thirdly and more critically, this election went beyond political correctness to include both the idiom of physical threat and menace and the sense of symbolic violence. Mr. Trump’s bully boy language pretended to be the language of everyday exorcism. There is a psychological ritual here that we must emphasise. Today the American election, or even Brexit, appears more like an act of emotional catharsis than a campaign around ideologies, arguments, platforms and facts. It is as if the nation becomes the public couch, where all manner of dreams, jokes, repressions and fantasies are paraded. It is more an emotional outpouring than the national arguments that deliberate democracy boasts of. Ms. Clinton appears cold and frozen in such a crowd while Mr. Trump not only appears at home, he realises that it is a homecoming into American politics where the second best is always more endearing, human, than the imperious front runner. It is as Indian voters would say “everyone has to have a chance” and Ms. Clinton already had one. It was Mr. Trump’s turn, and it provided a sense of poetic justice, that the establishment was pipped at the finishing line. There is a sense of populist ambush as most of the media and the Ivy League finds it difficult to utter the words “President Trump”. It sounded like history’s favourite oxymoron till yesterday. Not ideology alone Politics sometimes has to be understood more as a performative act than a rational argument or an ideological battle. If one reads it as an ideological war, one sees it as a victory of the right, but the right was as surprised by victory as the left. It was actually a semiotic war where symbols, languages which were more empowering won. In an odd way, it was not the party the citizen voted for. It was for a politics which was more empowering, and which made him feel assured about the future. Ideology was important, but a semiotic war, a politics of the symbolic, became more important than the ideological tussle. The symbolic ease of Mr. Trump’s stand beat the cold communications of Ms. Clinton. Semiotics trumped ideology to leave American pundits even more confused than before.

No complacency on Zika

he World Health Organisation has declared that the Zika virus no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. This brings to an end the heightened global focus on the virus that has caused about 2,300 confirmed cases of microcephaly (a birth defect manifesting in a smaller head size) since May 2015. The WHO had declared the Zika virus a public health emergency on February 1, considering the high number of neurological disorders reported in Brazil and a similar cluster in French Polynesia in 2014. Among the reasons cited were the unknown causal link between the virus and microcephaly and neurological complications, the possibility of its global spread, lack of vaccines and diagnostic tools, and the lack of immunity to the virus in newly affected countries. The link between Zika and microcephaly was established in May, the hunt for a potent vaccine and reliable diagnostic tool has begun, and scientists have been able to find the routes of transmission. However, the global risk assessment has not changed. The spread of Zika to 67 countries and territories is a grim reminder of the lack of immunity against the virus and the abundance of mosquito vectors. A dozen countries have reported local transmission. Despite the link between the Zika virus infection and microcephaly being well established, the entire spectrum of challenges posed by the disease is not known. The WHO Emergency Committee has called for sustained research and dedicated resources to address the long-term challenges posed by babies born with microcephaly, but signalling the end of the global emergency may lead to lowering of the global alert. There should be no setback to funding, the global search for effective vaccines and diagnostic tests, and creating awareness about the risk of sexual transmission. For instance, it is not clear why more babies were born with microcephaly in northeast Brazil compared to the rest of the country or why the country had a higher caseload than others. This information is crucial to understanding the link between Zika infection and microcephaly, and thereby to containing incidence where the mosquito vector is predominant. Medical journals should continue to provide free and immediate access to papers on the Zika virus, which played a crucial role in information-sharing. The WHO has said it is “not downgrading the importance of Zika” and that its “response is here to stay”. It now needs to ensure that vigilance remains high despite the decline in incidence.

memory, its ability to catch the core tropes of a citizen’s world. Orality, as folk wisdom or a caricature of it, allowed Mr. Trump to trump Ms. Clinton’s text with facility. American elections are always a performative tour de force. But what changed this time was the logic of reading a performance. It was not the standard critic’s choice of a classic and correct performance with a full sense of ritual and recitation. Ms. Clinton had shades of it. She sounded like wellgroomed recitation with most of the right references. She was correct but never rang true to the American audience, while Mr. Trump produced a version of the idiots’ wisdom.

Shiv Visvanathan is Professor, Jindal Global Law School, Sonipat, Haryana.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

A creaking railway? A great infrastructural legacy handed over to us by the British has now grown into a system that carries the equivalent of the population of Australia on a daily basis (23 million). But now, with the demand for more trains and routes growing, what has been left behind is concern for security and quality. A close look at the growth of the Railways will explain that the provisions made in Budgets do not translate into improvements in management, infrastructure building and accident relief. The accident also shows that there was a lack of preparedness for relief or technical support (“Toll in derailment near Kanpur touches 146”, Nov.22). Donald D’Cruz, Kollam, Kerala

Most trains appear to be still using the older Integral Coach Factorybuilt coaches which are difficult to stop in an emergency. It is time that the Railways thinks in terms of using Linke Hofmann Busch coaches which are built for safety and higher operational speeds. These coaches also have disc brakes. Rather than invest in projects such as the bullet train, the Railways should start manufacturing safer coaches. Ashutosh Dalal, Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh

Demonetisation and after There are no major setbacks to the demonetisation process which is going on smoothly (“Rs.35,000 cr. to ease rural cash crunch”, Nov.22). Therefore, parties such as the Congress, the AAP and the TMC

queering the pitch has no meaning. Rahul Gandhi’s tirade that 15-20 people close to the Prime Minister will benefit from demonetisation is a preposterous statement. The Congress vice-president should know that the UPA lost a golden opportunity to set demonetisation in motion. Had it happened, the country would have been better prepared to now be on the growth path. A.V. Narayanan, Tiruchi

With both the ruling dispensation and the Opposition remaining firm on their stated positions in connection with demonetisation, the functioning of both Houses of Parliament has come to a standstill. It is beyond one’s comprehension as to why a Prime Minister who departed from the past practice to personally make the ‘earth-shaking’ announcement of the withdrawal of Rs.500-Rs.1,000 notes — throwing the entire economy into an unprecedented level of turmoil — is now fighting shy of facing Parliament which he himself has repeatedly described as a “ temple of democracy”. S.K. Choudhury,

transaction cost must be reduced and tax benefits extended. Gagan Pratap Singh, Noida, Uttar Pradesh

This is the right time for the government to promote more digital payments and get businesses to start moving online. There should be plans to mandate digital payment for high-value transactions and also announce incentives such as tax concessions for payments in digital mode. Krishnakumar Kanniappan,

Chicago, U.S.

Chennai

I was reminded of the article in this daily, “At Akodara, India’s first digital village” (July 14, 2015), which was about how villagers who are not so highly educated or tech-savvy are managing to get on with life. If this is the case, why cannot the rest of India be trained for a cashless economy? When Bangladesh and Kenya use mobile wallets with ease for financial activities, why not us Indians? A cashless economy will take care of evils such as black money, hoarding and aiding and abetting terrorists. S. Nallasivan, Tirunelveli

Bengaluru

In today’s world, India is nowhere close to becoming a robust, cashless economy (“Quick fixes for deeprooted issues”, Nov.22). With only 15 per cent of the population having access to the Internet, rural India cannot be left out. Continuous security breaches in electronic transactions are what have made people suspicious of e-payment methods. If it is to gain currency, the

NRIs like me are in a fix. How do we exchange these notes? Even the State Bank of India’s Chicago branch refuses to accept them. An email reply said: “We are not authorized to exchange Indian Currency at SBI, Chicago.” On the contrary, the Reserve Bank of India’s website says: “You can deposit the specified banknotes to your NRO account”. The problem is that not all NRIs have NRO accounts. India cannot ignore our plight. Vidyut Desai,

I am an NRI in Chicago and my family travels to India every year. Each of us brings in anywhere between Rs.10,000 to Rs.15,000 for use in travel from the airport to home. It is estimated that in the U.S. alone, NRIs have about Rs.300 crore worth of Indian currency notes in Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 denominations. This is not black money but hardearned money. Ever since these denominations were withdrawn,

The immediate impact of demonetisation is that production, consumption and consumer spending will come down drastically, leading to shortages and consequent inflation. Of course, with chests full of freshly deposited money, banks will reduce interest rates but few will show interest to avail of loans and invest in an atmosphere of economic uncertainty. The government’s fight against black money is turning out to be a revenue-maximisation drive, and with multiple taxations eroding individual earnings, much less purchasing power will be left with the people. Thus, a stage is set for economic activity to shift to the government, and not to the people as it should be in any liberalised economy. Unless this trend is arrested, we will soon be slipping back into the old socialist economy. Jose Augustine, New Delhi

Those who blindly support the demonetisation “master stroke” don’t seem to have heard of the infamous Pavlov Reform undertaken

in the USSR in 1991, announcing the invalidity of fifty and hundred rouble denominations from midnight. With a restricted exchange of old notes for only thousand roubles and a heavily rationed withdrawal of other valid notes from banks, what followed was utter chaos that saw unpaid wages, days of long queues at banks, closed workplaces, and an eight-fold increase in prices that brought the Soviet economy to its knees. In the similar Indian attempt now, there is a deliberate attempt to falsely equate black money with fake money to justify the sudden withdrawal of the Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes. This is where the move takes on a political dimension, dramatised to ‘show’ the removal of tainted ‘black money’ notes from the public domain as being the fulfilment of a political promise made. A wider and sensible consultation devoid of political exigencies would certainly have thrown up better as well as more fruitful and tactful methods than this one. K.C. Menon, Cherayiyil, Kerala

HIV Bill The amendments to the HIV Bill will only focus on prevention and its associated measures (“Diluted HIV Bill leaves activists shocked”, Nov.22). This will affect the rights of the HIV positive population of two million-plus. They are already fighting against discrimination at work and study, and this Bill will leave them facing more insecurity. Lavanya Bakthavatsalam, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2016

Close out the war on corruption Demonetisation done, the government must now draw up a firm strategy to show the door to the corrupt and lax in higher bureaucracy T H U R S D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 4 , 2 0 1 6

Restore the ceasefire

A

s the most powerful and cohesive power in the region, India needs to chart a road map to restore the ceasefire on the Line of Control. The brutal killing of three Indian soldiers, one of them beheaded, in the Machhil sector in Jammu and Kashmir must alert both India and Pakistan to the danger of the retaliatory cycle spinning out of control. After decades of hostilities, the formal ceasefire of November 2003 had come as a big boost to peace at a time when India was grappling with militancy, state-sponsored terrorism and political disaffection. Starting that winter, the guns fell silent along the International Boundary and the LoC, thousands of residents of border villages on both sides returned to their farms, and India was able to complete its fence along the LoC. Militancy in J&K declined significantly, and normalcy gradually returned to the Valley. It is a matter of debate if the ceasefire was a contributing factor in the reduction in militancy in Kashmir, but cover fire provided by Pakistani military posts along the border had been regularly used by militants to sneak into India. This is reportedly how the terrorists who killed Indian soldiers on Tuesday managed to get across the LoC. It is clear now that the ongoing, almost daily, exchange of fire has rendered the ceasefire meaningless. Ever since the terrorist attack on an Army camp in Uri in September, tensions have bubbled over. Ceasefire violations have become routine, and thousands of villagers have shifted to safer locations. Small arms, light machine guns, various kinds of mortars and artillery are being used by both sides. In the fog of hostilities, it is not easy to distinguish who is the guilty, and who started the firing. What is clear is that this race to the bottom could get out of hand. Contributing to the uncertainty is the power struggle in Pakistan, with the civilian government of Nawaz Sharif trying to hold its own vis-à-vis the army. The expected exit of Army chief Raheel Sharif may add to the confusion, as the new chief settles in. However, in New Delhi, the picture is far clearer. Given India’s regional status and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unchallenged hold over political power, it is incumbent on him to initiate steps to restore the ceasefire that worked well for over a decade. It is not only that peace is an absolute requisite for his government’s grand economic plans, including demonetisation, to work; India and Pakistan must guard against adventurism in an increasingly unpredictable world.

I

R.K. RAGHAVAN

The Modi government has set the cat among pigeons by demonetising two high-value currency notes. I am alive to the criticism that this ‘surgery’ could have been undertaken with greater finesse and after sustained preparation. There seems to be some merit in the argument, even after factoring for the need to keep the entire operation under wraps so as to protect its confidentiality. I am equally conscious of the assessment that the impact of the shock treatment might not last long. In such a case, the government could at best be accused of overestimating demonetisation as a weapon against black money, and not of malice or malevolence. If the objective was to shake up dishonest elements in the country — especially those ensconced in industry and the bureaucracy — I believe that it has been achieved. This flexing of muscle should more than convince the unscrupulous that the scope for dishonesty in the Government of India has considerably shrunk. Demonetisation should go hand in hand with a merciless hounding of those who had either underpaid taxes or did not pay at all. Here, there are neither friends nor enemies. A majority of those affected by demonetisation are people outside government, either self-employed or in organised industry, who had prospered with the help of a conniving bureaucracy. This is why a well-coordinated post-demonetisation offensive has to tackle both the groups. Go after the big fish Black money is definitely generated through corruption. Having said this, I would advocate that the government should not — at least for a while — fritter away its valuable energy getting distracted by the petty corruption that is part and parcel of the

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

The scene in the States remains appalling. There is no hope of a change as long as the authority to enforce honesty remains with the State administration cutting edge of the administration. This is somewhat of a reversal of my earlier stand that it is this phenomenon of lack of integrity at the level of a police constable or a lower division clerk at a government office that needs to be addressed first before we move up the hierarchy. This change of perception is influenced by the rising graph of graft among Class I officers who are recruited through a stiff competitive examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and are well paid, after the last Pay Commission recommendations, even by private sector standards. Their lack of inhibition is abominable and is traceable mainly to the shameless and unforgivable greed in tune with the times in which we live. It is also due to a declining fear of the law arising from the tortuous judicial processes which take an enorm-

ous amount of time in establishing conclusive proof against the guilty. I am not pushing the case for making the existing penalties stiffer. I am only looking for plugging obvious loopholes in the procedure to discipline those who deviate from the law by making punishments certain over a reasonable period of time. There needs to be evidence within government of an application of minds and a resolve to weed out corrupt elements swiftly without waiting for the wheels of the justice system which are notoriously slow to grind. There was a lot of criticism during the Emergency days in the mid-1970s of the misuse of the provision in the Conduct Rules for compulsory retirement of those civil servants who had either reached the age of 50 or had put in 25 years of service, and who had ceased to work effectively or whose integrity was suspect. Some complaints of arbitrariness and vindictiveness in those eminently forgettable times were unfortunately genuine. There is now an urgent need to resort to this rather draconian scheme to send down the message that neither sloth nor dishonesty would be permitted in the superior civil services. Purge sloth and dishonesty We have fortunately more than a handful of senior officials at the Centre who can be expected to be objective in drawing up the list of those who should be shown the door. The margin of error in identifying those who deserve to be axed is minimal if this list is vetted by a committee of officers known for their integrity. This should be followed by vetting by another group, before being agreed to by the Prime Minister and one or two of his senior Cabinet colleagues (such as the Home and Finance Ministers in the present dispensation). In a modified form such a drill is currently in place to make sure that there is no arbitrariness in empanelling officers to the rank of Secretary in the Government of India. Interestingly, this is being implemented with the assistance of retired

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His voice carried across barriers

n the demise of Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna on Tuesday, the world of Carnatic classical music has lost a multifaceted artist whose work defied neat definitions, as his popular appeal transcended barriers of geography and language. Through her captivating and meditative performances across the country and overseas, it was M.S. Subbulakshmi who had represented the southern tradition for the better part of the last century. But it was Balamuralikrishna, the child prodigy from Andhra Pradesh, who emerged as the national face of this genre over the past half century. A combination of a richly gifted voice, sheer individual brilliance and an incessant penchant for eclectic experimentation saw the maestro cut through the conventional limits of compositional form and style of presentation at a rather early age. The distinctive identity he carved out would define his formidable reputation over the subsequent decades. When such innovations sometimes did not find particular favour with the cognoscenti, the composer-vocalist began to revel in the controversy they occasioned and the popular appeal that resulted from his performances. But despite all the maverick-like qualities, Balamuralikrishna remains, to date, among the few musicians to have been conferred the highest honour of The Music Academy, Madras, the Sangeetha Kalanidhi, at a relatively young age. By the time he was awarded the nation’s second highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan, in 1991, Balamuralikrishna’s acclaim as a playback singer and music director had been reinforced. Arguably, the great master’s imprint on the panIndian stage was put irreversibly through the national integration track ‘Mile sur mera tumhara’ on Doordarshan in the mid-1980s. The explicit purpose behind this joint production with, among others, the doyen of the Kirana gharana, the redoubtable Bhimsen Joshi, was to foster a sense of unity and harmony in those troubled times. But the venture, perhaps unwittingly, also heralded a new era in classical duet singing, hitherto largely a characteristic of instrumental ensembles. The vocal jugalbandis between Joshi and Balamuralikrishna brought home to the lay public the fundamental commonalities inherent to the southern and northern ragas, as much as they emphasised the distinctive styles in rendition across the country. This exposure was no mean feat considering that classical music remained, and maybe still is, a pursuit of the privileged in society. The void that Balamuralikrishna leaves at the all-India level may be felt more, therefore, in sustaining interest in this larger musical canvas. But the tremendous mobility of recent years among artists, and a degree of cross-cultural appreciation, promise the continuity of this legacy. CM YK

officers who had earned a name for honesty and effectiveness. Even at the risk of being considered brash, I would strongly urge that the process of purge should begin with key organisations such as Income Tax, Customs and Central Excise, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). In the wrong hands, these become instruments of harassment and torture. There have been several recent instances of officials from one or more of these organisations being hauled up by the CBI for direct receipt of bribes or accumulation of assets disproportionate to their known sources of income. The most shocking of these is the reported communication from the ED giving adverse information against two former CBI chiefs. If this report is true, nothing can be more damning to the pursuit of integrity in the higher echelons of government. While the situation has vastly improved at the Centre following the arrival of the Modi government, the scene in the States remains appalling. It is tragic that there is no hope of a change as long as the authority to enforce honesty in state apparatuses remains with the State administration. State Anti-Corruption Bureaus (ACBs) are a joke in many States. In one southern State, a lady officer who had given new dimensions to corruption was appointed to head the ACB. If foreign investment in some States has lagged behind the others, it is directly attributable to the expectation of ‘speed money’ at the highest levels. Such money is invariably an astronomical figure that drives away a potential investor. There is an undeniable consensus over the need for a political will to transform this scenario. As long as political power remains in the hands of a dynasty or those who form an enduring clique, there is hardly hope for things to improve. The need to stay the course Who will be the change agent? These are undoubtedly crucial moments in Indian history, when faith in democracy as an effective and honest machinery to upgrade the lives of millions who live below the poverty line is under challenge. The government cannot therefore afford to lose the plot by succumbing to the machinations of those who already stand discredited for their unabashed corruption. The Modi government is under test and scrutiny by many commentators within the country and outside. A few of them are well meaning and would like him to succeed. There are also a substantial number of those who are not so well motivated. The situation is exacerbated by the critical comments of scholars and administrators like Larry Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary, who seem convinced that there is utter chaos in India, and corruption in the country is so deep that it is irreversible. In a recent cowritten piece posted on his blog, Mr. Summers said: “Without new measures to combat corruption, we doubt that these currency reforms will have lasting benefits. Corruption will continue, albeit with slightly different arrangements.” The impulse therefore of some in government will be a desire to produce quick results through half-baked measures, just to score over detractors. An ad hoc approach, however, requires to be spurned if we are to place on ground a firm strategy to combat corruption. There is enough expertise in the country for seeing through this laudable scheme. R.K. Raghavan is a former CBI Director.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

A dose of demonetisation Nearly a fortnight has passed since the “demonetisation experiment” began; the required denominations of currency notes are still unavailable in banks and ATMs. In many instances, banks are issuing tokens and asking customers to return days later. What a terrible situation due to poor administration and faulty planning of ‘a move with good intentions’! Rules for withdrawals are being changed every day and honest citizens are being made to almost beg for their own money deposited in good faith in banks. The long-term plan may be to move towards a cashless society, but it is a western concept which is impractical to implement in India. We seem to be moving backwards especially as interest rates are already low. What is the government trying to achieve? Mahesh Kumar, New Delhi

Demonetisation has undoubtedly caught the imagination of sincere taxpayers who often fret about the parallel economy, but the current exercise calls for smart measures to ease the impending cash crunch. ‘Bank account porting’ must be encouraged to help people on the move. Most migrant workers have accounts only at their home locations and rely on ATMs for regular cash withdrawals. This is what has now contributed to long queues one sees outside ATMs. J.M. Pradeep Kanth, Chennai

As a company secretary, I often browse through the websites of the RBI, SEBI and MCA. Recently I analysed data on overseas direct investment from India on the RBI website and was amazed to find a

huge outflow of funds from India in the past few months. It’s obvious that most of these funds have been routed through legitimate routes but one cannot rule out the use of illegal channels. One needs to check this. Akshay Thattarakkal, Kozhikode

A fallout of demonetisation has been the increasing use of plastic money and online payments. However, one still needs cash for small purchases such as groceries. Moreover, small shops and vendors do not have the facility to accept plastic money. This is more so in the villages where barter and cash still dominate dealings. It would take many years before we can hope to catch up with advanced economies, where cash transactions are rare. But there is no excuse for the government to suddenly demonetise high-value banknotes and deny citizens the right to withdraw their own money. Are top leaders in the government even aware of the hardship being caused to the common man? D.B.N. Murthy, Bengaluru

Instead of drawing meaningless parallels between the Japanese tsunami and his own demonetisation plan, the Prime Minister should acknowledge that insufficient preparation has gone into the demonetisation plan (“Note ban just start of battle against black money”, Nov.23). People are not only unable to have access to their own money earned by honest means but are unable to spend the new currency. Of what use are Rs.2,000 notes? Most of us need smaller amounts to keep going. No one is willing to accept such notes. Surely common sense dictates that more Rs.100 and

new Rs.500 notes be printed and disbursed first. Sherna Gandhy, Mumbai

The Prime Minister’s hyperbolic pronouncement of rooting out black money within 50 days needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. Political parties are funded with black money and there are enough laws in the country to prevent the generation of black money. Things would not have got this bad without the complicity of a supine enforcement mechanism. Unless corporate funding of political parties is stopped and corrupt elements who abound in the system are weeded out, there is every possibility that the current dose of demonetisation will end up as a flash in the pan. Manohar Alembath, Kannur, Kerala

Getting back on track The unfortunate incident where the Patna Express met with an accident brings to mind an anecdote about Sir M. Visvesvaraya, erstwhile Diwan of Mysore. The scholar, statesman and engineer was once on a train which happened to cross a bridge. At the next station, he called the divisional engineer as he was certain that there was a fault with the railway line after hearing an unusual sound. It turned out that he was right; it was a major fault. Monitoring our rail lines should be done with such astuteness to prevent disasters (“Rerailing the Indian Railways”, Nov.23). Vishnu Vahan Prasan, Chennai

In 2012, the safety review committee headed by Anil Kakodkar came out with a stinging indictment of the “operational gaps posing safety

risks”. In its 160-page scathing report, the panel not only questioned the “quality of metallurgical and chemical solutions in the steel being used for tracks” but also held the Research Designs and Standards Organisation responsible for a lack of technological innovation. It explicitly warned against introducing new trains without commensurate infrastructure, including maintenance of rail corridors. The panel was equally critical of the state of the ageing 3,000-plus rail bridges, which “are not monitored scientifically and are a perennial safety hazard each time a train passes over”. While the idea of bridging the gap between rail and air travel in terms of the travel experience is welcome, such measures cannot be a substitute to structural and administrative reforms. Shreyans Jain, New Delhi

Creative and versatile M. Balamuralikrishna’s singing mesmerised listeners (“Balamuralikrishna, versatile maestro, passes away”, Nov.23). A remarkable feature of his singing was his clarity in diction. For him, “Bhavagaayanam” and “Sahitya Shuddhata” were equally important. I still remember the time when he was at a concert in Ballari, Karnataka. The audience asked him to sing raga “Amrutavarshini” and we were in for a surprise when it began to rain heavily. What can we call this? To me it was the sheer power of pure music.

Jayashree G., Mysuru

I first saw the maestro in Sandur,

Karnataka, back in 1975. Since then I have been his ardent admirer. The most striking feature about him was his diction and range of expressiveness. He was a great orator as well and made witty speeches. Great men leave their footprints on the sands of time, as H.W. Longfellow once said. Mayurnath Ganti, Kolkata

Mother music has lost one of her most celebrated sons. Music lovers can never forget his mellifluous renditions and his compositions of various thillanas, kritis and varnams. The vacuum he has now left will be hard to fill. Tharcius S. Fernando, Chennai

His most memorable rendition, “Mile sur mera tumhara”, was remarkable; his was a voice that united Indians irrespective of religion, language or region. The Hindu’s supplements on music and culture are what help laymen like me get a glimpse of the men and women like Balamuralikrishna who keep alive the vibrant traditions and cultures of India. S.K. Sareena Nafeesath, Kannur, Kerala

Name change No purpose will be served by changing the name of the Sabarimala temple to Sri Ayyappa Swami Temple (“Row over move to change name of Sabarimala temple”, Nov.23). There are many wellestablished Ayyappa temples outside Kerala too and to avoid confusion one has to add “Sabarimala” while referring to the hill temple. S. Rajagopalan, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2016

The new abnormal in Kashmir Continued repression is likely to intensify the alienation in Kashmir. It would be much wiser for the government to realise the futility of stonewalling and initiate unconditional talks with all concerned knowledge, there are no calls to stone-pelting in the calendars, though it is perhaps taken as read that protests in Kashmir often end up with stone-pelting for one reason or another. The spirit of these protest calendars was well expressed by Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq in a “preface” published on August 24 in Greater Kashmir: “As a war has been waged against us by a mighty force, our only means of resistance against the oppression is peaceful protest. The space for that is also highly constricted. Yet individually and collectively we have to find ways and means of registering our protest. The protest calendar is our collective voice. Each one of us especially our intelligentsia, artists, poets, writers, painters have to come forward and use their skills and creativity to express our pain and sentiment. Every Kashmiri’s contribution to the movement counts.”

F R I D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 5 , 2 0 1 6

JEAN DRÈZE

By-elections as pointers

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uling parties enjoy an inherent advantage in by-elections, especially in States where Assembly elections were held only months earlier. Voters see little point in antagonising their rulers when there is no immediate prospect of a change in government. West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry had all gone to the polls in April-May this year, and the by-elections of last week were not expected to deviate from the general election trend. Even so, the huge victories of the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, the BJP in Assam, the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, and the Congress in Puducherry speak to renewed levels of enthusiasm for the ruling establishment. That ruling party legislators are better equipped to deal with constituency-level issues would not have been lost on the voters in the Assembly by-elections. In the by-elections to the Lok Sabha, the BJP won one each in Madhya Pradesh and Assam, but lost to the Trinamool in West Bengal. But even here, the BJP increased its vote share considerably, finishing ahead of the Left Front in Cooch Behar. While there is no doubt that the people have reposed their faith in Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, there was no logical basis to her explanation of the electoral outcome as a “people’s revolt” against the demonetisation move of the BJP-led government at the Centre. Regional factors related to the performance of State governments seem to have influenced the results, rather than any overarching theme. The results are no endorsement of the demonetisation decision either, as the BJP would like people to believe. Besides the byelection in Thiruparankundram, Tamil Nadu had polls in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur, where elections had been deferred by the Election Commission following widespread distribution of cash for votes. Whether due to the demonetisation or the lower stakes in the deferred elections, there was reportedly a reduced flow of currency notes, and a less intense campaign. In Puducherry, the election was more important for the Congress than for any other party, as Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy was in the fray. A loss would have forced him to resign, and caused acute embarrassment to the party. In Tripura, which is under the rule of the Left Front, the CPI(M) had no difficulty in picking up Barjala and Khowai, wresting the former from the Congress. Amid the gloom induced by the results in neighbouring West Bengal, this provided some solace to the Left. But if there is one lesson to be drawn from this round of polling, it is that by-elections are not pointers to how an Assembly or Lok Sabha election will turn out, but the latter are usually good pointers to how by-elections will turn out.

Sixteen years is a long time to do something about a situation that causes immense suffering to millions of innocent people. But when I returned to Kashmir last month, after a gap of 16 years, I found that people’s agony and anger had — if anything — intensified. Deciphering the shutdown As in 2000, I found an intense popular aspiration for azadi (freedom). The Indian Army is perceived, almost unanimously, as an occupying force, and people are fed up with the controls, crackdowns, searches, arrests, beatings, torture and pellet guns. The most common graffiti found around the towns and villages of Kashmir is “Go India, go back”. The latest expression of this anger is the popular uprising that has rocked Kashmir during the last few months. The Indian media commonly refers to it as a “shutdown”, an ambiguous term that fails to clarify who is shutting what. This so-called shutdown is actually a general strike (hartal). Ever since Hizbul Mujahideen ‘commander’ Burhan Wani was killed in early July, shops have been closed in Kashmir, traffic has been halted, and schools have been deserted. There have been thoughtful exemptions from the strike, say for street vendors, chemist shops and specific times of the week. Some public services, notably health care and the public distribution system, were not only allowed but encouraged to keep going. For the rest, the strike has brought public life to a halt for months on end. That, at any rate, was the situation until I visited Kashmir in late October. So far as I can tell from many discussions with students, farmers, workers, businessmen, intellectuals and others over a whole week, the strike has overwhelming popular support. It is difficult, of course, to believe that public life can be paralysed to this extent without an element of coercion or pressure. Sometimes the pressure is explicit: anyone who drove a car in Kashmir (outside privileged areas of Srinagar) during the last few months ran the risk of a broken wind-

The conformist nature of public opinion in India, when it comes to Kashmir, does not help matters. It is hard to understand how civil society has remained silent screen. But this traffic control was not the work of armed squads or antisocial goons. It was the job of local residents and youngsters who support the strike. In any strike, there is a difficult question of how to deal with potential strike-breakers and free-riders. Protest calendar for the people Along with the strike, a series of protests took place all over Kashmir during this period. A “protest calendar” was issued every week (with varying effect) by Hurriyat leaders, who seem to have wide popular support. Examples of suggested protests include occupying the roads, freedom marches to the district headquarters, converging to the United Nations office in Srinagar, performing namaz (prayers) on the road, sit-ins in various locations, visiting those injured by pellet guns, boycotting government offices, reading collective pledges, wall painting, playing resistance songs or music, sending letters to the armed forces, holding conventions on the right to self-determination, displaying banners and placards saying ‘We Want Freedom’, and more. To my

State clampdown on protests So-called “anti-India” protests, however, are effectively banned in Kashmir, no matter how peaceful they may be. The authorities have sweeping powers to prevent protests, not only under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, but also under Jammu and Kashmir’s draconian Public Safety Act. Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, prohibiting assemblies of more than four persons (an old tactic of the British Raj to prevent nationalist protests), is in force throughout the Valley. Assemblies, marches, graffiti, pamphlets, even silent vigils — all these are banned if there is any trace of a demand for freedom. Further restrictions on civil liberties ensure that this state of affairs goes unchallenged. Student politics is banned. International human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Human Rights Council are not allowed to visit Kashmir. Local human rights activists are also on a short leash — the arbitrary detention of Khurram Parvez during the last two months is the latest warning that they should not go too far. Similarly, when Kashmir Reader (one of Kashmir’s leading dailies) was banned on September 30, other media outfits “got the message”, to quote a prominent Kashmiri editor. Kashmir, in short, has been turned into a kind of open jail.

CARTOONSCAPE

No country for the Rohingyas

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new humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Myanmar after the military crackdown on “Islamist jihadists” in the Rakhine State, home to more than one million Rohingya Muslims. The military claims it began the counter-terror operation after three border security posts came under attack on October 9. But since then more than 130 people have been killed in the State and 30,000 displaced, triggering a new wave of migration of Rohingyas to neighbouring countries. The army denies targeting civilians, but satellite images taken after the start of the crackdown indicate that hundreds of buildings were burnt down; reports suggest that even those who tried to flee the country were shot dead. The migrants are not welcome in Myanmar’s neighbourhood either. The violence itself is not surprising given the record of persecution of the Rohingyas in Myanmar. Many in the Buddhist-majority country call them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh though they have been living in Rakhine for generations. Myanmar’s military started a systematic persecution of the Rohingyas in the 1970s when thousands were deported to Bangladesh. The rest were stripped of citizenship by the junta, which often used the Rohingya problem to drum up support for itself among the Buddhist majority. What is surprising this time is the silence of the government led by Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy. Ms. Suu Kyi, the country’s de facto ruler, has not said much about the military operation in Rakhine, or spoken for the Rohingya cause. When her party took power in April, ending decades of military rule, many had hoped that it would signal the dawn of a new era of peace and democracy in Myanmar. But the government has been largely ineffective in tackling internal security and humanitarian issues. The operation in Rakhine shows the change of guard in government hasn’t brought any meaningful difference to Myanmar’s most disadvantaged sections. True, the army still remains a powerful institution. It controls the security, defence and border ministries besides wielding considerable economic power. It is also possible that the generals are escalating the conflict on their own. Even so, the government cannot remain in denial about the atrocities. Ms. Suu Kyi bears responsibility for what is happening in Rakhine now because her party rules, not the junta. For decades, Myanmar persecuted the Rohingya people while the world ignored their plight. By all accounts, that situation has not changed. CM YK

In an insightful article (“Address the ‘new normal’ in Kashmir”, The Hindu, October 10), former National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan candidly acknowledged that the current unrest in Kashmir is a “homegrown” popular uprising which cannot be blamed on Pakistan or outsiders. He did not comment, however, on the “new abnormal” that accompanies this uprising — an extreme suppression of civil liberties. When all forms of dissent are banned, the line between peaceful protest and armed resistance becomes blurred. The main difference, it may appear, is that violent deeds receive more attention. Everyone in India has heard of stone-pelting, but daily acts of peaceful protest — or attempted protest — in Kashmir have been ignored. The refusal to engage Today, the towns and villages of Kashmir are peppered with “Burhan Wani chowks”, often marked with slogans such as ‘Burhan Wani is in our heart’ and ‘We are all Burhan Wani’. Those who remember Burhan are not hot-headed guerrillas — they are ordinary people who aspire to a peaceful life. If they admire him, it is not because he killed anyone (quite likely, he never did), but because he gave his life, at a tender age, for the freedom struggle. It is for the same reason that we remember and admire Bhagat Singh. Gandhi himself urged us to “bow to them [Bhagat Singh and his associates] for their heroism”, even as he criticised their acts. There is, possibly, an insightful paradox in the fact that it took the death of an armed militant to spark a largely non-violent uprising across the Kashmir Valley. Many people proudly told me that the strike would continue “to the finish”. Yet they realised that azadi may not come any time soon. Thus, they often added that other uprisings would happen if need be. Indeed, it is not the first one — similar events happened in 2010. The response of the Indian government to this uprising is to stonewall: refuse any concessions (even just a ban on pellet guns), arrest the leaders (Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Yasin Malik, the lot), and wait for people to lose hope. This strategy, however, perpetuates the repression, and every act of repression intensifies the yearning for freedom in Kashmir. Nothing unites people like shared persecution. If the current policy of inflexible suppression of the freedom movement persists, the brutality will continue for decades. Continued repression is likely to intensify the alienation of the Kashmiri people from India, and could also foster a revival of armed resistance in Kashmir and beyond. It would be much wiser to realise the futility of stonewalling, and initiate unconditional talks with all concerned. Atal Bihari Vajpayee (then Prime Minister of India) had taken significant steps in that direction, and seems to be remembered for it in Kashmir. Today, however, the iron fist is back. The conformist nature of public opinion in India, when it comes to Kashmir, does not help matters. It is hard to understand how opposition parties, civil society and social movements have remained silent on Kashmir for so long. There have been no major demonstrations of solidarity with the people of Kashmir anywhere in India during the last few months. Even public discussions of the situation in Kashmir are extremely rare in India. As veteran journalist Kuldip Nayar observed many years ago, “When it comes to Kashmir, the conscience of most in the country becomes dead.” If anything, the situation is worse today, as the Indian media further dull our conscience with a barrage of distorted accounts of the situation in Kashmir. The new abnormal threatens to engulf us all. Jean Drèze is a Visiting Professor at the Department of Economics, Ranchi University.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

The demonetisation move The exercise of demonetisation has only resulted in unbearable pain and untold misery for the common man. Uncertainty about the availability of notes of key denominations has resulted in a shortage of Rs.50 and Rs.100 notes. Most of us are stuck in bank branches and ATMs waiting for money, resulting in unpleasant situations. The planners in the government seem to have grossly misread the situation on the ground. What is worse is that most ATMs are now closed from the evening. Bank officials need to work extra hours to help citizens. A. Lawrence, Chennai

Since available data on the extent of support for the demonetisation of high-value notes appears to be largely from the better-off strata of society — and one which uses Android phones — independent cross-sectional assessments of people’s views are needed (“‘Ayes’ carry the day in NaMo app survey” and “Take note, the fault lies within the system”, both Nov.24). As part of our research on welfare delivery in the National Capital Region, we held focus group discussions in a village near Meerut and at a slum on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border between November 23 and 24 and found substantial class, caste and gender differences in responses on the issue. While Muslim artisans and peasants and to some extent elder women seemed most perturbed by the cash crunch, middle peasants,

especially from the middle castes such as the Jats, Gujjars and Kumhars, seemed emphatic in their support for the Modi government’s policies in general. Devesh Vijay, Pooja Srivastava, New Delhi

It is reported that in the government’s app survey, more than 90 per cent of those who responded have supported the move. Most of those who have downloaded the app are bound to be supporters of the government. The framing of the questions in the survey such as the one ‘on whether black money exists in India’ has been done to elicit only a favourable response. It is also disappointing that most of the questions did not focus on issues such as the nature of difficulties faced by the common man. S.V. Venkatakrishnan, Bengaluru

In his article, “Close out the war on corruption” (Nov.24), R.K. Raghavan says that post-demonetisation, strict action should be taken at the highest level starting with the bureaucracy. Surprisingly he has ignored the political class which is at the top of the pyramid. Often it is the ministers, MPs and MLAs and their acquaintances who pressurise officers into taking such decisions. If the BJP-led government is sincere and intent on tackling corruption, it should start by taking action against the political class. Saugaat Yashvardhan, New Delhi

I am neither a votary nor an opponent of the demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes of the series issued by the Reserve Bank of India prior to notification No.2652 dated November 8, 2016. Of course the whole process could have been executed by causing less pain to the public. I have been struck by the wording in the notification. It reads: “Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by subsection (2) of section 26 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (2 of 1934) (hereinafter referred to as the said Act), the Central Government hereby declares that the specified bank notes shall cease to be legal tender with effect from the 9th November, 2016 to the extent specified below....” It goes on to state that the notes demonetised held by a person other than a banking company may be exchanged till December 30 for an aggregate value of Rs.4,000 for any denomination of bank notes having legal tender character; the demonetised notes can be credited to the account maintained with a bank without any limit on quantity or value till December 30 and any person who is unable to exchange or deposit the demonetised notes on or before this date shall be given an opportunity to do so as may be specified by the Reserve Bank of India. It should be clear that all the series of banknotes of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 denomination issued by the Reserve Bank before notification No.2652 ceased to be legal tender from the next day. It should have read: “The

Central Government hereby declares that the specified bank notes shall cease to be legal tender with effect from the 9th November 2016 save to the extent specified below” or “... with effect from the 9th November 2016 except to the extent specified below”. Insertion of the word “save” or the word “except” after “9th November 2016” and before “to the extent specified below” is essential. Otherwise the meaning conveyed is not what the notification intends. S. Bapu,

when the High Court ruled in R(Miller) v Secretary of State for exiting the European Union, the political and media vitriol against the judges was swift and relentless and designed to denigrate the judiciary rather than criticise the substance of any case. They have significantly damaged the standing of the judiciary in these countries. India cannot have a situation where public figures abuse the judiciary when things do not go their way. Inba Rajendran, Bengaluru

Chennai

On contempt The article, “Treat contempt with contempt” (Nov.24) argues that the “scurrilous abuse” of judges should not attract punishment under Indian law and such abuse should be ignored. How injudicious and misguided this is. The Oxford dictionary defines post-truth as “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”. In a post-truth world, the statements designed to question the independence of the judiciary made by Justice Katju are dangerous. We should not to blindly follow the West and abolish such a law. In the U.S., Donald Trump deliberately caused confusion about the ethnicity and nationality of a U.S. district judge in an attempt to discredit the judge who was to rule in a case involving Mr. Trump. In the U.K.,

Name change The plan to change the name of the Sabarimala temple is a result of members of the board, appointed by government/legislature, on a political basis and to manage affairs for short periods of time interfering with age-old rituals and practices in temples (“Row over name to change of Sabarimala temple”, Nov.23). Exercising their clout, they act as if they are the owners of the temple. The original owners, namely the Pandalam Palace, have been deprived of many of their rights and duties connected with the Sabarimala temple and the pilgrimage. The ever-changing boards have been treating Sabarimala as a milch cow; inefficiency and corruption are also rampant. There has to be a move to remove political interference in temples and decentralise the administration. P.R.V. Raja, Pandalam, Kerala ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2016

When ministers think aloud A ‘no first use’ nuclear weapons policy suits India’s interest. Shifting to a first-use policy would mark a shift from deterrence towards nuclear war fighting launch function in Delhi on November 10, 2016, reopened the issue when he said about India’s no-first-use policy: “Why should I bind myself [to it]? I should say I am a responsible nuclear power and I will not use it (a nuclear weapon) irresponsibly.” He added that these were his individual views, but since he is a member of the Cabinet Committee on Security as also a member of the Political Council of the Nuclear Command Authority, the Ministry of Defence felt it necessary to follow up with a statement that this “was his personal opinion”, and not oicial position: “What he said was that India, being a responsible power, should not get into a first use debate”.

S AT U R D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 6 , 2 0 1 6

RAKESH SOOD

Appointing a Lokpal

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y admonishing the Union government for delaying the appointment of a Lokpal, the Supreme Court has sent across a timely message that eforts to cleanse the economy must be matched by equally strong measures to cleanse public life too. There can really be no excuse for the failure to establish an institution even three years after passing the relevant law. The only reason for the delay in the appointment of the Lokpal is that a minor amendment to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, to enable the leader of the largest party in the opposition in the Lok Sabha to join the five-member selection committee, is yet to be passed. A parliamentary committee has endorsed the amendment, which is on the same lines as the mechanism for the selection panels for the Central Vigilance Commissioner and the Chief Information Commissioner. The court has indicated that it will not allow the institution to remain inoperative indefinitely, evoking apprehension on the Centre’s part that a judicial direction may be given to get the amendment passed or an ordinance promulgated. The Centre needs to re-examine its own options on implementing the Lokpal Act. The law now provides for a five-member panel to select the anti-corruption ombudsman, comprising the Prime Minister, the Lok Sabha Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition, the Chief Justice of India and an eminent jurist. The hitch is that there is no recognised LoP in the lower House. The question now is whether the Centre is right in claiming the Congress floor leader cannot hold that post because its bench strength is well short of the required 55. The rule that the Speaker can recognise as LoP only the leader of the principal opposition party that has 10 per cent of the total number of Lok Sabha seats is based on precedent. It was a ruling by Speaker G.V. Mavalankar, cited in the ‘Directions for the Functioning of the Lok Sabha’, with respect to recognising a group as a ‘parliamentary party’. The only legal provision defining the ‘Leader of the Opposition’ is a 1977 law concerning the oiceholder’s salary. The definition says the LoP shall be the leader of the party in opposition with “the greatest numerical strength” and “recognised as such by the Speaker”. Therefore, there is nothing in law that prevents the Speaker from recognising the present Congress Parliamentary Party leader as the LoP. Instead of waiting for the amendment, the Speaker can adopt the solution of recognising the CPP leader and expedite the Lokpal’s formation. It just needs political will and some magnanimity.

The gathering crisis in Seoul

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undreds of thousands of angry citizens have been taking to the streets every weekend in South Korea, against the continuation in oice of President Park Geun-hye. The crisis of confidence in Ms. Park’s leadership exploded after her aide Choi Soon-sil was arrested over allegations that Ms. Choi covertly exercised illegal authority over critical government decisions. She has also allegedly extorted $69 million from the giant industrial conglomerates, or chaebols, in the form of donations to two charitable foundations. Ms. Park has stood her ground and clung on to the presidency, even as she sacked at least eight of her aides in an unsuccessful attempt to regain public trust. Yet, pressure is mounting as the opposition parties are circling the wagons over impeaching her for breach of the Constitution. An impeachment motion would require two-thirds support in the 300-seat National Assembly. Opposition parties enjoy a combined majority there, and say they have secured the backing of more than 29 lawmakers of the ruling Saenuri party, the minimum number required to push this through. If they succeed, this would be the first time in 12 years that South Korea’s National Assembly has impeached a president. History also matters in the broader context of the unravelling relationship between the South Korean government and the chaebols. What began as a storied macroeconomic strategy of “picking winners” from amongst competing industrial groups, a paradigm that produced the Samsungs and Hyundais of today, is under a cloud. On November 8, prosecutors raided the Samsung oices over allegations it had transferred $3.1 million to a company owned by Ms. Choi in Germany. The hard-fought democracy that South Koreans won in 1987, driven by “people power” protests similar to the ones seen in Seoul this month, is in need of revitalisation. The pressure to establish a more sustainable model of governance is immense, not least because South Korea finds itself at a strategic crossroads on the global stage. Whoever succeeds Ms. Park as President — and it might well be soon-to-retire UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon — would have to address sky-high tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea, and manage an economy that is at risk of slowing. Ties are cooling with China, South Korea’s largest trading partner, and Beijing is hostile to the prospect of deploying the U.S.-made antiballistic missile system THAAD in the peninsula. Further, the rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on economic protectionism and reviewing relationships with treaty allies does not help the South Korean cause. One way or another, the ball is in Ms. Park’s court, and she has the opportunity to bring the turmoil to a quick end. CM YK

Since the dawn of the nuclear age in 1945 there has been an ongoing debate centred on defining an appropriate role for nuclear weapons. Everybody agrees that these weapons are enormously destructive and should not be used. The question is whether the best way to prevent their use is to consider these as weapons for war fighting (just like conventional weapons but only more destructive), or to see them as qualitatively diferent, meant exclusively for deterrence. Diferent countries possessing nuclear weapons have evolved their doctrines based on the historical experiences shaping their world views, their threat perceptions and security obligations. Indian conceptualisation of weapons India is no exception and on January 4, 2003, it issued a statement regarding the decisions taken by the Cabinet Committee on Security on operationalising India’s Nuclear Doctrine. This statement summarised the key principles: “a) building and maintaining a credible minimum deterrent; b) posture of ‘No First Use’, nuclear weapons will only be used in retaliation against a nuclear attack on Indian territory or on Indian forces anywhere; c) nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage; d) non-use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states; however, in the event of a major attack against India, or Indian forces anywhere, by biological or chemical weapons, India will retain the option of retaliating with nuclear weapons....” The two key elements — a “credible minimum deterrent” and “no first use” — were first articulated by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Parliament on May 27, 1998, days after India had undertaken a series of five nuclear tests in Pokhran and declared itself a nuclear weapon state. Mr. Vajpayee stated that India did not see nuclear weapons as weapons of war; that their role was to ensure that India is not subjected to nuclear threats or coercion; that India will not engage in an arms race; and that India believes in a “no first use” policy and remains ready to discuss this with other countries, bilaterally or in a collective forum. These elements were further developed in the draft

CARTOONSCAPE

Deterrence is a product of ‘technical capability’ and ‘political will’... Ultimately, it is a mental construct which requires clarity in its planning report of the National Security Advisory Board released by then National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra on August 17, 1999. The 2003 statement, with some minor (but significant) changes, was consistent with what India had maintained since 1998. These were reiterated in Parliament on September 5, 2008 by the then External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, and were critical to the Nuclear Suppliers Group’s decision to grant an exceptional waiver to India. The BJP manifesto in 2014 had declared that it would “study in detail India’s nuclear doctrine and revise and update it, to make it relevant to the challenges of current times, (and) maintain a credible minimum deterrent that is in tune with changing geostrategic realities”. This generated speculation that India was preparing to change its “no first use” policy but it was put to rest in August 2014 when in a series of interviews, Prime Minister Narendra Modi categorically stated that there was no change in policy and “no first use” remained India’s nuclear doctrine. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar’s unexpected response to a journalist at a book

Debating the ‘No First Use’ A nuclear doctrine serves multiple uses — it determines the nuclear posture, provides guidance for deployment and targeting, chain of command and control, communication and signalling to adversary and, in the ultimate, the use of nuclear weapons. Naturally, the last would happen once deterrence has failed. So far, the nuclear triad (aircraft, land-based mobile missiles and sea-based assets) which is to guarantee India’s assured retaliation remains a work in progress. Mobility for the land-based missiles is being ensured through canisterisation but the sea leg of the triad will take time before India is able to field adequate numbers of nuclear submarines with long-range nuclear-tipped missiles (SSBNs and SSNs). Some delays are inevitable as we seek to master the complex technologies involved. India’s doctrine does not mention any country, but it is no secret that the Indian nuclear arsenal is to counter threats from China and Pakistan. China has maintained a ‘no first use’ policy since 1964 when it went nuclear, and the Chinese leadership has always considered nuclear weapons as political weapons. Pakistan has adopted a first-use policy to ensure full-spectrum deterrence; in other words, it envisages a tactical, operational and strategic role for its nuclear weapons. Since it maintains that its nuclear arsenal is exclusively against India, it seeks to counter India’s conventional superiority at all levels. Recently, it has developed tactical nuclear weapons to hedge against a conventional military strike under the Cold Start doctrine. The conventional criticism against a ‘no first use’ policy is that India would have to sufer a first strike before it retaliated. This criticism is valid but only highlights the need

for India to ensure that deterrence does not fail, and that there is a clear communication to the adversary of the certainty of punitive nuclear retaliation. This can happen when India’s nuclear arsenal, its delivery systems and its command and control enjoy assured survivability. Does this imply that till then, it is preferable for India to shift to a first-use policy? That might be an attractive option if India was certain that in a first strike, it could take out all of Pakistan’s (or China’s) nuclear assets so that it would escape any nuclear retaliation. That is highly unlikely, today and in the future. Even the U.S. with its vast arsenal, both conventional and nuclear, is unsure about denuclearising North Korea which has a much smaller arsenal and capability. Implications of a policy change Shifting to a first-use policy also has implications for the size of the arsenal, deployment posture, alert levels, delegation of command and control, defining redlines which would trigger a nuclear response and escalation management along the nuclear ladder. In short, it would mark a shift from deterrence towards nuclear war fighting. Further, declaring a first-use policy would create an incentive for either side for preemption because of the ‘use it or lose it’ syndrome brought on by hair trigger alerts. In short, it would lead to greater instability. The same instability would govern a situation of nuclear ambiguity. Given the short distances, it is impractical for India to envisage a ‘launch on warning’ posture even it developed and deployed a highly efective early warning system. A shift towards nuclear war fighting also blurs the dividing line between conventional and nuclear. Today, the biggest conventional bomb in the U.S. arsenal is the Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) with an explosive yield of 15 tonnes equivalent of TNT. This is one-thousandth of the 16kt bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, and today’s nuclear devices are hundreds of times larger. Tactical nuclear weapons can be smaller but will remain much larger than the MOP, with the addition of long-lasting radiation fallout. Weapons designers are working on ‘dial-ayield’ systems and pure fusion devices without radiation fallout, but till that time, blurring the nuclear and conventional dividing line is inadvisable. The diference with Pakistan There is another key diference. Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal is totally under the military’s control, and by and large, the military approach to any weapon system is to find a use for it; it is diicult for the military to possess a weapon system and then conceive of a doctrine that aims at deterring its use. Deterrence is a product of ‘technical capability’ and ‘political will’. In dealing with Pakistan, India has to define who is to be deterred and find ways of demonstrating the requisite political will even as we build up our technical capabilities. Israel is a classic example of a state possessing advanced technical capabilities and also having demonstrated political will. Yet, this has failed to deter rocket strikes and terror attacks on Israeli territory. This is not to suggest that India’s nuclear doctrine cannot be changed. It should be periodically reviewed and updated, possibly every decade or so, taking into account technological developments and changes in the security environment. This is, however, not a simple issue of changing a few words here or there and casual remarks can only add to confusion. Ultimately, deterrence is a mental construct which requires clarity in its planning. Even ambiguity needs to be a calculated ambiguity. Only then will the doctrine serve to reassure the Indian people even as it deters the adversary in order to safeguard India’s security. Rakesh Sood is a former diplomat and served as the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Disarmament and NonProliferation till May 2014; he is presently Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation.

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NOIDA/DELHI

EDITORIAL

THE HINDU MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2016

The centralising instinct Narendra Modi’s 2014 victory challenged the idea that the States serve as the primary unit of political affiliation. Demonetisation presents an opportunity to refocus debates on Centre-State relations M O N D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 8 , 2 0 1 6

LOUISE TILLIN

Cuba after Fidel

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he life of Fidel Castro, Latin America’s last revolutionary leader and towering and charismatic anti-imperialist torchbearer, came to signify the high point of Cold War ideological hostilities of the 20th century. At home, his policies to promote affordable and accessible health care, housing and education, as well as his standing up to global hegemony, endeared him to the majority, even as his record on human rights came in for serious scrutiny. But these domestic issues played out in the larger shadow of his defiance of American power, which has outlasted that of the Soviet Union. When Castro captured power in 1959, there were few signs that the Marxist radical would emerge a global champion of Third World countries in his nearly fifty-year rule. But the failed 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, by Cuban exiles trained by the U.S., to overthrow his regime began a pragmatic partnership between Castro and the Soviet Union, bringing the Cold War into the western hemisphere. This was the context to Russian preparations to house nuclear missiles in Cuba to threaten the U.S., which took the world to near-catastrophe in 1962. The U.S. misperception of the threat posed by Castro led to CIA plots to assassinate him. As it turned out, he lived long enough to see the rollback of Washington’s decades-long sanctions that crippled the Cuban economy. The clearest example of Castro’s global standing was the clout he commanded in the Non-Aligned Movement. In more recent times, his slogan of “socialism or death” inspired the nationalisation of natural wealth by governments across Latin America as a counter to the appropriation of oil and mineral resources by corporations. Changes in the global economic climate may have exposed the deficiencies of an economic model reliant on riding the commodity cycle. But the process of resumption of diplomatic ties between Havana and Washington under the stewardship of his designated successor and brother, Raúl, is still fragile. U.S. President Barack Obama, who undertook a historic visit to the Caribbean nation earlier this year, sought to build the new rapprochement between Washington and Havana based on the relative distance of current generations in both countries from the painful memories of the past. Clearly, this is the path for President-elect Donald Trump to pursue, assuming that his pre-poll rhetoric would make way for a more reasoned approach once in office. Meanwhile, with incumbent Raúl Castro having announced his intention to step down by 2018, it will be a long transition in Havana.

The shock and awe of demonetisation has left no one in India untouched. Equally no one has been left with any doubt as to the fact that the policy originates with the Prime Minister, and that they are being asked to bear with short-term inconvenience in order to advance the longer-term national interest. Reams of newsprint have been devoted to the economics of demonetisation. Here I take stock of the questions raised by demonetisation for the direction of Centre-State relations. Unmediated by the States As a policy initiative of the Central government, demonetisation is unique in recent times for reaching everyone in the country directly, unmediated by the filter of State governments. State governments do not appear to have been consulted ahead of the announcement, and in many cases demonetisation has directly undermined the routine administration of policies under their purview. Many have expressed frustration that they are powerless to address hardships faced by people unable to pay for treatment in private hospitals or of farmers unable to access loans from, or make repayments at, cooperative banks. Unsurprisingly, a number of States have complained that the way in which the policy was enacted violates the spirit of cooperative federalism about which Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken so often. Furthermore, the design of the new Rs.500 and Rs.2,000 banknotes issued by the Reserve Bank of India include new national symbols that challenge regional sensibilities. For the first time, the new banknotes include Devanagari numerals, threatening to reignite old settled compromises over the national language within India’s federal union. The use of Devanagari numerals is already the

An outspoken critic at a regional level has been Mamata Banerjee, who was complaining of the violation of cooperative federalism even before demonetisation subject of a PIL in the Madras High Court. The back-side of the new banknotes also carry the logo of the Union government policy, Swachh Bharat. All of this is in line with broader attempts to refocus political debates around national questions since 2014. Mr. Modi has consistently called for the strengthening of cooperative federalism, recognising that he is reliant on the cooperation of State governments to achieve national policy goals. A matter of identification For decades as India’s polity and economy became more decentralised and the States became the centre-ground of political life,

they have been the primary level of political identity for most voters. In a situation where voters found it difficult to correctly identify which level of government was responsible for any given policy and chains of electoral accountability became quite opaque, State governments became adept at claiming the credit for Central government initiatives. Voters frequently give the credit for programmes such as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) or the National Rural Health Mission to their State governments rather than to the Central government. In the post-poll National Election Study conducted by Lokniti, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) during the 2014 Lok Sabha election, 42 per cent of voters who had benefited from MGNREGA gave the credit for the programme to their State government and only 27 per cent to the Central government. This looks vastly different to the situation in Brazil’s federal setting, for instance, where over 80 per cent of voters in 2010 attributed the country’s flagship social programme, Bolsa Familia, to the President. Mr. Modi’s election victory in 2014 challenged, although it has not displaced, the idea that the States serve as the primary unit of political affiliation. It was an election campaign that had a more national character and Mr. Modi’s candidacy and populist leadership style extended the reach of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to farther-flung parts of the country. Once in office, ‘Brand Modi’ has involved the projection of the Prime Minister’s presence and authority across areas of government activity. Programmes have been carefully rebranded in an effort to better enable the Central government to claim credit for them and to limit the ability of the States to do so. Mamata Banerjee’s challenge States have had different reactions to this. The most outspoken critic of Mr. Modi’s style of government at a regional level has been West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Baner-

CARTOONSCAPE

A deeper debate needed The time is right to engage in a deeper debate about Centre-State relations and the operation of federalism. There are major constitutional innovations in the offing such as the GST Council, designed to realise a more cooperative model of federalism in which the Central government and the States pool their sovereignty in order to pursue national economic goals. The counterpart to this platform of cooperation should be a deeper discussion about Centre-State relations and a focus on enhancing the incentives for States to cooperate with the Centre while preserving their autonomy.

Demonetisation and its discontents

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emonetisation seems to have made friends of foes, and foes of friends in the political firmament. If Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar differed from his allies while heaping praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for embarking on demonetisation, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray was critical of his party’s senior partner in government for “bringing tears in the eyes of the people” who had voted it to power. In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress showed a readiness to join hands with arch-rival Left Front to fight the demonetisation drive. While the withdrawal of high-denomination notes can hardly be expected to trigger a political realignment anywhere, political parties seem to be rising above mundane political calculations while reacting to the demonetisation. A cynical view might be that Mr. Kumar is keeping his political options open by building bridges with the BJP, and keeping his politically junior but numerically stronger ally, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, in check. Arguably, he could be trying to recover his assiduously cultivated anti-corruption image, which took a beating following his electoral pact with Lalu Prasad of the RJD. But a simpler explanation cannot be ruled out: that Mr. Kumar saw some merit in the demonetisation drive, even as he recognised the difficulties in implementation. Similarly, the Sena cannot afford to break with the BJP at this juncture. Quite likely, Mr. Thackeray was prompted not by the possibilities of political realignment (of which there is practically none), but by the realities on the ground, in distancing himself and his party from the demonetisation decision. In West Bengal, an alliance between the Trinamool and the Left Front is inconceivable, but that did not stop Ms. Banerjee from reaching out to the CPI(M) in her fight. If political parties have thus reacted unpredictably, it could just be on account of the mixed results seen on the ground. None can afford to be seen as directly opposing measures to clean up black money and weed out counterfeits. However, stories of cashless banks and shuttered ATMs seem to have given some life to opposition parties looking for an issue to pin the government down on. Reports of the BJP having made huge cash deposits in banks in West Bengal, and land deals in Bihar days before the demonetisation, have provided some ammunition to opposition parties that were initially reluctant to criticise the move for fear of being labelled supporters of black money hoarders and counterfeiters. Demonetisation might not have changed political equations, but it has shaken up the political scene. What they cannot oppose in principle, parties have opposed in practice. CM YK

jee, who was complaining of the violation of cooperative federalism even before demonetisation. Just a day earlier she had raised objections to the fact that the Central government now makes MGNREGA payments directly into workers’ bank accounts. She has also railed against the naming of Central programmes after the Prime Minister, for which State governments are required to provide matched funding. In August, her counterpart in Bihar, Nitish Kumar, explained that his State was right to drag its heels over the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojna (Prime Minister’s Crop Insurance Scheme). He called for the scheme to be renamed the “PMCM farmer insurance scheme”, or “KendraRajya Fasal Bima Yojana (Centre-State Crop Insurance Scheme)” if the States were expected to bear half the financial burden. Last month, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav distributed ration cards along with bags of wheat and rice — under the National Food Security Act — that carried pictures of him. The BJP’s State spokesperson complained bitterly that the State government was playing politics by trying to claim credit for a policy of the Central government. There has not, however, so far been a resounding critique of the Modi government’s version of cooperative federalism from most States. Demonetisation itself has been welcomed by Chief Ministers of both BJP and non-BJP ruled States alike, including Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Odisha and Telangana, although some have criticised elements of its execution and potential to hit State revenues. For those critical of the centralising instincts of the Modi government, demonetisation presents an opportunity to refocus debates on Centre-State relations. Yet at the moment, many regional parties seem more intent on continuing a pattern of Centre-region bargaining rather than building new cross-State alliances that would act as a counterweight to the Central government. Even in the absence of a coordinated interState opposition alliance, for the Central government there is the risk that the centralisation of credit claiming for government policies could start to reduce the political incentives of opposition-ruled States to cooperate with the Central government in achieving national goals or implementing Centrally designed policies. This matters since State governments remain crucial for policy implementation. It is even more significant after the enhanced fiscal devolution to States following the Fourteenth Finance Commission recommendations which gives States greater flexibility to decide priorities for government expenditure.

Louise Tillin is Senior Lecturer in Politics at the King’s India Institute, King’s College, London.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Viva Fidel! That the passing away of Fidel Castro is a personal loss for many of us living far away from Cuba speaks volumes about the influence of the man (“Castro, Cuban revolutionary who defied U.S., dies at 90”, Nov.27). Those of us who grew up in times when there was only Doordarshan, and which used to cover international happenings — with some empathy for the countries of the South and those coming out of the shadows of colonial rule — still hold fond and vivid memories of giants such as Nelson Mandela, Yasser Arafat, and Fidel Castro. They symbolised the struggle of the oppressed and were the icons for justice on the world stage. As a student then, one felt great pride in those times in India’s expression of active solidarity with the struggles for self-determination and the freedom of people elsewhere in the world. Occasions such as the NAM summit held in 1983 in Delhi provided one glimpses of international solidarity against imperialism. I remember being gifted by my paternal uncle a cardsize photo of the revolutionary leader when I was in school. It is a gift I hold dear for more than one reason. Firoz Ahmad, New Delhi

Whatever our travails, our generation and the ones before us were fortunate to live in the decades in which there were great leaders, visionaries who combined their ideals with action and who changed the world they inherited. My own generation lived in the time of Mao, Tito, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. Castro was the last of them all. And, he was the greatest of them all. At 90,

he died old and frail, but undefeated and unbroken, standing up till the very end to the world's mightiest power that ceaselessly tried and unendingly failed to snuff him and his tiny great nation out. For the millions who mourn his death, he stood for something very basic — the ability and the will to stand up to a force infinitely larger and more powerful than oneself. And that he managed to do so till his last breath — unflinching and unblinking — makes him a real-life David that the world has seldom seen. K.S. Padmanabhan,

his rationalistic outlook than his communist affiliation. B. Gurumurthy,

Chennai

Chennai

Fidel Castro was a revolutionary leader with great moral courage and personal charisma in the mould of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara and Nelson Mandela. His majestic look which were enhanced by the trademark beard, military fatigues and cigar he sported will be deeply etched in our minds. The numerous attempts by the CIA to assassinate him are part of folklore. He survived explosives concealed in a packet of cigarettes, poison pills, exploding mollusks and chemically-tainted diving suits. It was not for nothing that the Cubans looked up to him. Cuba has registered impressive domestic achievements, especially in selfsufficiency in food production, education and health care. We salute Fidel who needs no adjectives to describe his greatness. G. David Milton,

Like it or not, Fidel Castro strode like a lion in the latter half of the 20th century even among the communist countries of the world. In the 1950s, he influenced the young with his charismatic persona thanks to the Soviet land magazine which was available either freely or at a subsidised cost. He will always be remembered for the way he stood up to the U.S. Kulasai Yaaman,

Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu

He strode the world stage for half a century. Though the island nation still faces economic problems, Fidel Castro, as a champion of social justice, transformed the banana republic into a nation with sovereign status. He will be judged more for

Madurai

In a way, Castro belonged to the stock of Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and even Mahatma Gandhi as they were the champions of human rights; he was the voice of the voiceless. Castro carved a niche for himself in world history. Present day communist leaders are no where near Castro in the context of his ideology. K. Pradeep,

Tuticorin

The demise of Fidel Castro is a major loss to the world. As an international statesman and humanist par excellence, he was at the forefront of international efforts to fight oppression and undemocratic practices the world over. In an era where conflicts and military aggressions have become the norm, Castro’s diplomacy, which was grounded in pacifism and human dignity, will be a constant reminder to the international community that values, ethics and international relations can coexist. On the domestic front, Cuba, with its enviable track record in health care, education, women’s representation

and sporting success, affords a model of emulation for many developing nations. India has lost a major friend. Abraham Joseph,

worthless. If this is our plight in the city, what about those who live in towns and villages? H. Mohamed Azarudeen, Chennai

Gurugram

The world has lost an iconic hero as he stood as a bulwark against attempts of economic invasion and also physical elimination. The little David stood his ground, against Goliath, with the logistic support of the USSR and moral backing of non-aligned nations such as India. We stand united in saluting the great revolutionary. S.V. Venkatakrishnan, Bengaluru

“I want to be a writer, in my next life,” Fidel Castro confessed to one of his best friends, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. His hours long speeches were in fact Cuba’s sound-track. C.V. Venugopalan, Palakkad

The Prime Minister’s comment that the critics of demonetisation had “no time to prepare” — implying that they all have black money — is uncalled for and unacceptable. Has he forgotten that these critics include common people of great integrity such as non-political observers, economics experts, foreign dignitaries, judges, the political Opposition and even some allies of the government? In a democracy, there is a right to dissent. One fails to understand why the Prime Minister is incapable of facing criticism on policy matters and executive orders. The widespread chaos, confusion, frustration and anger are there for all to see. P.R.V. Raja, Pandalam, Kerala

Even though Cuba was subject to an economic embargo by the U.S., no one can deny that Fidel Castro made Cuba a leader in health care. He encouraged Cubans to work for Cuba and make the nation selfreliant. The success of a nation lies in the vision of its leader, and Castro proved this. J. Bharath, Thanjavur

The demonetisation move The Central government’s move to demonetise high value currency in an attempt to snuff out black money is welcome. But there is a severe shortage of new notes. Even in a major metropolitan city such as Chennai people are struggling to live as the new Rs.2000 notes are

A lot has been said about demonetisation. No doubt, per se, it is laudable, perhaps necessary too. However, an exercise of this kind requires meticulous planning and execution so that the public faces minimum inconvenience. This is where so-called “good governance” lies; the government has failed miserably on this count. Given the situation, what has happened is borne out of a political desperation rather than out of any economic compulsion. Having committed itself to the agenda of bringing back black money and having failed in all other routes, the government has announced the current measure in an almost sensationalist mode. M. Radhakrishnan, Bengaluru ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2016

From one Sharif to another As Pakistan’s army chief retires on schedule, its Prime Minister has an opportunity to consolidate the slow process of democratisation under way in the country since 2007 T U E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 1 6

Lessons from another jailbreak

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he daring escape of six prisoners, including the self-styled commander of a Khalistani militant group, from the Nabha Jail in Punjab is another wake-up call for the security establishment. This is the second major jailbreak in the country in the space of weeks involving high-profile prisoners jailed on terrorism charges. Both were well planned and executed. While the jailbreak by members of the Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) from the Bhopal Central Prison last month was planned inside and executed largely by the prisoners on their own, the incident in Nabha was aided by a group of armed men from outside wearing police uniforms. Shortly after the Bhopal jailbreak, all those who had escaped were gunned down in an alleged encounter. And a day after the Punjab incident, Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, while the alleged mastermind, Parminder Singh, was arrested in Shamli district in western Uttar Pradesh. Apart from Mintoo, the five others who escaped are still at large. They are identified as Kashmira Singh, an alleged terrorist, and Vicky Gaundar, Amandeep Dhotian, Gurpreet Sekhon and Nita Deol, all described as dreaded gangsters. It is not clear if the plan was to release the militants or the gangsters, or all of them. Whatever the aim, it is evident that the so-called high security prisons are hardly fool-proof. Those incarcerated have enough scope to hatch a conspiracy, keep in touch with accomplices outside and finalise escape plans in meticulous detail. What is also troubling is that even before the jailbreak has been thoroughly investigated and as the hunt for the escaped men is still on, the incident has taken on political overtones. With Punjab due for an Assembly election early next year, the suspicion that these men were breaking out of jail to disturb the peace in the run-up to the polls will naturally arise. However, while voicing this suspicion, Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal has alleged a Pakistani hand. State Director-General of Police Suresh Arora has voiced suspicion of official connivance, noting that retaliatory firing by the police at the armed men was completely ineffective. Former Chief Minister and Congress leader Amarinder Singh has called the incident a sign of breakdown of law and order and alleged official complicity at the highest level. While a high-level probe is necessary to unravel the entire plotand establish any laxity or connivance on the part of the authorities, the real issue is that there are too many shortcomings in the security arrangements in our jails. Introducing a new security regimen that will plug all loopholes ought to be a national priority.

One, a democratically elected Prime Minister who won an unexpected majority in an election seen as the most free and fair since 1970, which in Pakistan means that it was without military interference or influence; and the other, appointed by the incoming, Prime Minister following the May 2013 elections. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appointed General Raheel Sharif to what many still consider to be Pakistan's most important and powerful office, that of the Chief of Army Staff, although the latter is meant to report to the former. However, much public discourse over the last three years has been in assessing and obsessing over which one of the two Sharifs has been the more powerful, which of the two would oust the other, and so on.

S. AKBAR ZAIDI

Anyone familiar with Pakistan’s history knows that most of the last 70 years since Independence have been dominated by the country's military. Pakistan’s history and its politics have been more about the military than about its civilians or about society more broadly. Whether the military has governed directly under dictatorial military generals, as it has for 32 years, or whether it has ruled through other indirect, but equally intrusive, means, as it has when not directly running government, much of what Pakistan has become has been moulded by, and on account of, Pakistan’s military and its various interests and institutions. Whether it is Pakistan as a (failed) national security state, or a breeding ground for various forms of Islamic jihad, much credit goes to Pakistan's military. Moments of change This is not to suggest that the civilian and political actors are innocent in any way, beyond agency, accountability or reproach. But having been constrained in numerous ways by the overly-dominant and overly-invasive military, for whether Pakistan has been a failed or failing state, a rogue state involved in nuclear proliferation, or a state which allowed the world’s most wanted man to live well-protected for five years in Pakistan, responsibility on civilians and politicians, in the absence of any real power, must be rather thin. Moreover, it is well recognised that whether it is Pakistan’s nuclear policy, Afghan policy or policy towards India, whether in terms of peace or trade, real power rests not with the civilian elected political body, but with the military, particularly the army. Yet, there have been moments of change in this dominant narrative as well, such as fol-

Such has been the precarious nature of Pakistan’s democratic transition that civilian actors have had to literally thank the army chief for not taking over lowing the 1971 war when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto took over a demolished and defeated Pakistan. Or, more recently, when led by a group of civilian and political actors in 2007 and 2008, an arrogant military general dictator was eventually ousted, to the extent that he was put under trial for treason — although he’s now an absconder allowed to live freely (and in great comfort) in exile abroad. It was this opening, in 2007 and 2008, that gave many Pakistanis a fleeting hope of a stronger, and perhaps more permanent, nature and direction of democratisation, than perhaps at any time ever before. While some of those expectations have been postponed, many still remain and, in fact, show signs of maturing. Since 2013, much of the political discourse in Pakistan has been about the two Sharifs.

A mixed legacy General Raheel Sharif retires as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) today, with his successor already announced by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif a couple of days ago. In January of this year, General Sharif had announced that he would not seek an extension in his post, making him the first Pakistani Army Chief to leave office on time in two decades. But there had been much speculation and greater insistence by the many who were backing him, and hoping to see the end of the elected Sharif, that General Sharif would be granted an extension and stay in command not just over the military, but over much else in Pakistan. General Sharif became the most popular and beloved man in Pakistan, also probably the most powerful, such was the hyped message constantly churned out by a Raheel-obsessed media. He was the defender of Pakistan’s international borders and its security, as well as the prominent guarantor of Pakistan’s only economic and investment project known as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He led the Pakistan army’s war against jihadists and Islamic militants in North Waziristan, hounding out and eliminating the various morphed

CARTOONSCAPE

The other Sharif Now that the military Sharif has retired, perhaps this opens the way for the other, democratically elected Sharif, to consolidate his position and, in the bargain, to strengthen democracy and the slow process of democratisation under way in Pakistan since 2007. Following the 2013 elections with just the second democratically-sanctioned government transition and handover just 17 months away, this is an opportunity too good to be wasted.

Two-pronged war in Iraq

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he blast in Hilla that killed over 100 people, mostly Iranian pilgrims, reinforces the fear that the Islamic State remains a potent force in Iraq despite recent military setbacks. By attacking a town located between Najaf and Karbala, two of Shia Islam’s holiest places, at a time when Shia Muslims around the world travel to Karbala to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the IS has left no doubt about who it is targeting. Besides, the attack came nearly six weeks after Iraqi government troops, aided by Iran and the U.S., started a massive operation to retake Mosul, which has been under IS control since June 2014. It is not difficult to understand the IS’s strategy. In the past, when its bases came under attack, the group had used terror to strike faraway civilian centres. Needless to say, this is a major security failure for the Iraqi government. When the pilgrimage season began, many had warned that the IS would make an attempt to attack around Karbala. What is more worrisome for the government troops is the battlefield flexibility the IS is demonstrating. It is fighting a conventional war against the government troops in Mosul while unleashing guerrilla attacks elsewhere. More than a month after the battle for Mosul began, government troops are yet to make any substantial territorial gains. On the other side, civilian casualties are relatively high. According to the UN, around 20 per cent of the injured in Mosul are civilians, compared to the average 5 per cent in other recent anti-IS operations. Once Iraqi troops, largely Shia, enter the city that is home to a million people who are mostly Sunni, casualties could be higher. The IS, given its history of exploiting ShiaSunni sectarian tensions to its advantage, may be waiting just for that. Against this background, the Iraqi government faces huge challenges. First, it has to make real battleground advances in Mosul with minimum civilian casualties to raise the pressure on the IS while boosting its capability to fight potential terror strikes. In the last two major terror strikes alone, the IS has killed over 400 people in Iraq. If it continues to terrorise civilians, the already feeble Iraqi government would suffer a further loss of credibility among the public. Second, the government has to guard against falling into the sectarian trap that the IS has set. In previous anti-IS battles, Iraqi troops were accused of targeting Sunni civilians. If Baghdad doesn’t win over the Sunnis living in its war-ravaged north and northwest, it will not get a grip on the cycle of terror. CM YK

factions of “the Taliban”, many created as a consequence of the policies of a former COAS, and of international Islamic groups. He even became the face of peace and prosperity in Karachi, by ensuring that militancy, crime and extortion were eliminated from Pakistan’s economic centre. In the three years he was COAS, General Sharif was also thanked by many pro-democracy observers for not undertaking a coup against the elected democratic set-up, for which he might have had at least two opportunities: once in 2014 during Imran Khan’s Islamabad dharna, and again in 2016. Banners across many cities in Pakistan urged the Army Chief to take over, or at least to rescind his decision to retire. Such has been the precarious (and reversible) nature of Pakistan’s democratic transition that civilian actors have had to literally thank the army chief for not taking over, as if he was doing us a favour. General Sharif has been overly praised and celebrated for his three years in power even by liberal commentators who have conveniently ignored or overlooked many shortcomings and failures during his tenure. While the military action against Islamic militants and jihadists in North Waziristan has been much celebrated, what has seldom been stated by the same gushing analysts, columnists and mediapersons is that many banned terrorist groups in Pakistan are still allowed to function with relative ease and impunity, quite publicly. The likes of Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, and many said to be involved with jihadi groups roam free and often get protection. The Pakistan military’s war against domestic terrorism in Pakistan has been highly selective. Similarly, not pointed out by the same gushing supporters have been the many security failures, especially in Quetta. If the military has had hegemony over all security issues, especially in Balochistan, the hundreds of deaths in terrorist attacks have been on account of military lapses, not civilian. Importantly, the possibility of building peace between India and Pakistan, something that most civilian groups and political parties have been striving for for many years, has also been indefinitely postponed. The most powerful man in Pakistan over the last three years and the most powerful institution in the country do need to account for such failures. However, such failures will be quickly forgotten and Raheel Sharif is likely to gain even more prestige for simply deciding to leave office when his time came due. His successor will need considerable time, patience and sagacity to gain respect and similar levels of authority, even given the large social media teams and media interests openly and aggressively supporting Pakistan's military.

S. Akbar Zaidi is a political economist based in Karachi. He teaches at Columbia University in New York, and at the IBA in Karachi.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Less cash to cashless The demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes is now forcing people to use plastic money for essential day-to-day purchases. However, most shopkeepers and small and medium business establishments do not accept cards as they claim that they do not have POS or swiping machines. It is even worse when it comes to issuing cheques. When I joined a bank in the 1960s, I was proud to have a cheque book facility account but soon became disillusioned when it was not accepted by a store owner. Even after 60 years, the situation continues to be the same. The Prime Minister’s ambition of ushering in a cashless economy is laudable, but it requires drastic measures to discipline traders and business establishments (“Now PM bats for mobile payments”, Nov.28). For instance, the Prime Minister’s Swachh Bharat campaign has not yielded results as the people in charge were not committed enough to enforce the project. On the other hand, had officials gone about it in a systematic manner and imposed heavy fines, the “Clean India” project would have been immensely successful. This needs to be thought of in moving to a cashless economy. P.V. Suresh Babu, Chennai

The Prime Minister unilaterally announced demonetisation, advocating it as part of a war against tax evaders. But the exercise is going off the rails as the worst hit are now the unintended targets — poor daily wage earners and unorganised workers. It is clear that the chaos will stretch well beyond the 50-day window that the Prime Minister has estimated it to be. Why else are Secretary-level officials now being

asked to tour the country and report ground realities? Agricultural activities have been paralysed, and with a failed Northwest monsoon, the situation is bound to get worse. The need of the hour is to print and release smaller denominations. People cannot continue to suffer. Alagirisamy Muppidathiraj, Coimbatore

It is 20 days or so since demonetisation was announced and accessing even modest amounts of cash has become distressing. I am a senior citizen and have been an account holder in a major public sector bank for over 50 years. I need a modest amount of Rs.5,000 from my own money and the banks do not have in Rs.100 notes as the supply is inadequate. Contrary to assurances, the new Rs.500 is yet to reach banks. Instead, the bank is offering me Rs.10 in coins and Rs.2,000 notes though its acceptance is not widespread. How is one to tide over this state of affairs? H.N. Ramakrishna, Bengaluru

If reports that the current demonetisation exercise was planned 10 months ago are correct, and there is now a scarcity of notes as Indian presses are struggling to meet deadlines — a move that is also resulting in half-printed notes and with even typographical errors — the government could have thought of printing the new notes overseas. The element of secrecy would have been even greater. In the past, India has got mints in Korea, the U.K., Canada, Russia, South Africa and the Dominican Republic to mint coins. Gopal Subramaniam, Chennai

The complete mess in implementing

the demonetisation drive — evident from the full page newspaper advertisements where the Prime Minister is now urging us to go in for online banking and asking youngsters to help in this — also shows the abject failure of the Reserve Bank of India in ensuring its institutional autonomy. How long will we have to bear the chaos being sought to be sold to us as ‘worth the pain’? The fact that the Prime Minister is now driving much of policy changes shows the dangers of the concentration of power and authority in one man. The Opposition is right in questioning him about his aim to project himself as a messiah. Rajan Mathew, Bengaluru

If the Indian media is often accused of being biased against the Modi government, policy planners should look at the headlines in the foreign media: “Demonetisation: ‘Penniless’ foreigners resort to street performances for cash”, “Anger intensifies over India’s demonetisation move”, “India’s demonetization ‘shock therapy’: state sponsored financial repression”, “In India, black money makes for bad policy” (New York Times), “India: Demonetisation takes its toll on the poor” “Modi’s money medicine: Kill or cure?” Surely, even if taken with a pinch of salt, there could still be a grain of truth in these reports. V.S. Ganesh, Hyderabad

Mr. Modi has called for a movement to turn India into a cashless society, asking youth to teach their families, mobile and e-commerce technology. How can a Prime Minister and his colleagues miss the simple and basic point that most of India is in the

rural areas and decide to go in for e-commerce technology? Even in cities such as Madurai, the ecommerce facility is not available everywhere. It is common sense that when an amount of over Rs.50,000 crores in the Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 denominations is withdrawn from public use, the same amount in Rs.100 denomination should have been made available instantly. A.P. Ravichandran, Madurai

Centralising instinct To construct demonetisation as an issue that impinges on Centre-State relations is disingenuous (“The centralising instinct”, Nov.28). The so-called centralising instinct is a bogey borne out of political and personal opposition to the Prime Minister. Nothing has happened that portends the dilution of the powers that the States enjoy in the constitutional scheme of things. The States are being consulted wherever it is warranted, such as the Goods and Services Tax regime which is being installed only after holding widespread consultations with the States. The naming of Central schemes after the Prime Minister and the ruling party’s icons is nothing new. In fact, it was the Congress party that started the trend. However, the Central government could have held postdemonetisation consultations with the States to minimise hardship. V.N. Mukundarajan, Thiruvananthapuram

Castro’s Cuba There have been so many views and letters on the demise of Cuba’s Fidel Castro. Are there lessons for India from his life? At a time when

unbridled capitalism is making strides even in Communist China, what we see in India is a widening chasm between the haves and the have-nots. Castro was not a hardcore communist in the strict sense of the word. He put in place a regime which brought about equality such as free education and medical care. Though an average Cuban’s salary was $30, there was widespread contentment. Castro articulated Cuban socialism as a “humanist alternative to extant capitalism”, unlike the exploitation of the weak by the wealthy as seen in India. K.P. Prabhakaran Nair, Kozhikode

Mood of a nation The arguments in the article, “Lured by the angry campaigner” (Nov.28), are a bit off the mark. The writer laments the “swing of the pendulum, away from inclusive, tolerant paradigms of socio-economic life in the greatest democracies of the world” and is also quick to condemn the “horror of military brutality” along the LoC. It is our soldiers whose bodies have been mutilated! It is ironic that the writer should also bemoan the eclipse of the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government, which in his own words was “engulfed by a series of mega scandals, which he and Congress President Sonia Gandhi did not eviscerate and rectify, leading to a hopeless morass of failed governance”. Does he want a return to that “glorious” era? The Modi-led NDA government may not have all the answers to the myriad problems of this complex country but it deserves a fair chance to right the evils that have bedevilled us for decades. T.T. Ramesh, Chennai ND-ND

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EDITORIAL

NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2016

Dashed expectations While demonetisation can result in lower interest rates over the long run, there are good reasons to not expect lending rates to fall quickly W E D N E S D AY , N O V E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 6

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A last chance for amnesty

he amendments to the Income Tax law passed by the Lok Sabha now offer those with unaccounted cash a last shot at amnesty. They can pay half their cash as tax and deposit a quarter into a new Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana. Those who fail to do this voluntarily for bank deposits made since November 8 would end up retaining about 15 per cent of the total amount if they cannot establish a legitimate source for the funds. There is a Robinhood-esque edge to the PMGKY approach, directly linking the war on black money to welfare of the poor. Essentially an extension of the recent Income Disclosure Scheme that cleaned up about Rs.65,000 crore of undeclared income by levying 45 per cent tax, the December 30 deadline for bank deposits in demonetised notes gives a more purposeful push to the effort to clean out all the cash in the grey economy. The scheme for disclosing foreign assets last year had yielded just about Rs.2,400 crore in taxes, so a tougher approach was perhaps necessary to instil real fear among habitual tax evaders. Since the demonetisation of currency notes worth an estimated Rs.14.18 lakh crore, nearly Rs.8.45 lakh crore has been brought back into the system. If the proportion of notes deposited or exchanged is in line with their circulation prior to November 8, about Rs.2.56 lakh crore in Rs.1,000 notes and Rs.3.17 lakh crore worth of Rs.500 notes (that can be spent on exempted categories till December 15) is still out there. Many clever ploys have been attempted to subvert this drive and convert black money into white: hiring people to exchange currency; tapping cashin-hand entries of firms to launder illicit cash; pumping funds into bank accounts for the poor; purchasing goods in bulk where old notes are still allowed; even tipping off the taxman to conduct search-and-seizure operations on one’s own premises to avail of a provision that allows individuals to pay a mere 10 per cent penalty on such income if they admit to it. The government is trying to close the door on such ingenuity, and the latest tax law changes should be seen in this context. By early January, it will be clear how much money has been mopped up by the demonetisation operation. There is, however, no doubt that this tax manoeuvre is a neater way of gaining fiscal headroom than extinguishing the Reserve Bank of India’s liabilities to the extent of unreturned old Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes, and turning that into a special dividend to the exchequer.

so much of the deposits coming to them in government securities in the first place. Why would they not want to use the extra deposits to give out more loans? According to reports in the media, as much as Rs.4 lakh crore out of the Rs.6 lakh crore that has come to banks after demonetisation has been invested in government securities.

T.T. RAM MOHAN

The government’s move to demonetise highvalue currency notes is imposing significant costs on the economy. No matter, its advocates say. There will be benefits, some immediate and some that will show up over the long run. The costs are becoming apparent. Millions standing in queues to get cash, individuals unable to buy essentials, the disruption of small business, trade, transport and agriculture. Many analysts think GDP growth will drop below 7 per cent in 2016-17. Some think it will be significantly lower. The important question is whether the move will deliver benefits that outweigh the short-term costs. Let us focus for now on one immediate benefit we were asked to expect: a decline in lending rates in the economy. Banks have been flooded with deposits. Most of it will be withdrawn for use. But even if 10 per cent of the deposits were to stay, it was argued, it would suffice for banks to cut lending rates. Lower rates would boost spending and help offset the huge shock to aggregate demand caused by the withdrawal of 86 per cent of currency from the system at one stroke. Dealing with plenty With its decision on November 26 on incremental cash reserve ratio (CRR) for banks, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has poured cold water on such hopes, at least for now. Banks will have to park with the RBI, at zero return, all the deposits they got in the period September 16 to November 11. The period mostly pre-dates demonetisation, which was announced on November 8., 2016 The RBI wants to ensure that deposits that have flowed into the system thereafter do not lead to “excess liquidity”, that is, more funds

ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA

If the difference between the rate on Indian securities and that on dollar securities becomes wide, foreign investors will want to exit. There could be capital outflows than banks know what to do with. As a result of the RBI move, the banking system will be left with lesser deposits than thought earlier. This diminishes the prospects of a cut in lending rate, and it certainly limits the extent to which lending rates can be cut in the near future. The reason given for the move is that the RBI does not have enough stock of securities to absorb the excess liquidity. The RBI says that issuing additional Market Stabilisation Scheme bonds in order to absorb liquidity can’t be done in a hurry. But we need to ask why banks want to park

Capital position and lending The answer, quite simply, is that public sector banks (PSB), which account for nearly 70 per cent of banking assets, are unable or unwilling to sharply increase loan growth. They are unable to give out more loans because many are constrained by lack of capital. Some PSBs are operating close to the minimum capital requirement of 9 per cent. The average capital at PSBs has fallen well below the level of 13 per cent they had only a few years ago. Regulations limit loans to a certain multiple of the capital that banks hold. The lower the capital that banks hold, the lesser their ability to make loans. Even PSBs whose capital position is relatively comfortable are unwilling to sharply increase loan growth. All PSBs are wrestling with high levels of non-performing assets (NPA). They lack the appetite for making fresh corporate loans, certainly big-ticket project finance. In such a situation, it is unrealistic to expect that a surge in deposits would translate into higher credit growth. We need to fix the problems of capital and NPAs at PSBs first — and little has happened on those fronts. Most of the incremental deposits in recent months has gone into government securities (G-Sec). This has caused yields on G- Secs to plummet. Before the RBI move, the yield on 10-year G-secs fell to below 6.25 per cent, a drop of over 1.2 percentage points from a year ago and 2 percentage points from two years ago. Given that rates on loans tend to be at a certain premium over risk-free G-Secs, you would think that a decline in G-Sec yields was welcome.

CARTOONSCAPE

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CM YK

Selling Indian debt Trends in Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) in debt in the current year are already a cause for concern. In 2015-16, there was a net outflow of Rs.4,004 crore from FPI investment in Indian debt. In 2016-17, up to November 29, the outflow has increased to Rs.12,842 crore. FIIs have been selling Indian debt furiously after demonetisation. They turned net sellers on November 15, a week after demonetisation was announced. They have continued selling since. Total outflows from the debt market between November 15 and November 28 amounted to a staggering Rs.19,089 crore. These huge outflows have offset the net inflows of some of the previous months. A widening of interest rate differentials between India and the U.S. would lead to even heavier selling. The RBI’s worry must be especially acute following Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential polls. Mr. Trump’s ambitious spending plans and tax cuts spell a higher U.S. fiscal deficit and higher interest rates. In anticipation of this, there have already been large inflows into the dollar. The expectation is that the U.S. Federal Reserve will announce an increase in its policy rate at its next meeting on December 14. With this in mind, the RBI should be treading warily on any cut in the policy rate at its monetary policy announcement on December 7. Consequent to the CRR announcement, some analysts have revised their forecast for an RBI rate cut downwards from 0.5 per cent to 0.25 per cent. Others are betting that there will not be a rate cut at all. This, of course, does not take away from the fact that demonetisation can result in lower interest rates over the long run. Greater financial inclusion and digitisation of payments will cause deposits to swell and help lower lending rates once the problems in the banking sector are fixed. Tackling black money Demonetisation can potentially confer other benefits as well. There could be changes in behaviour, not just of individuals but of businesses, which leads to better tax compliance and a higher tax to GDP ratio. Cash and black money are not synonymous but, yes, a lower use of cash can indeed help reduce black money in the economy. A serious assault on black money, however, would require measures aimed at real estate, gold, holdings abroad, donations to political parties and significant improvements in the tax, law enforcement and judicial systems. The short-term costs of demonetisation are steep and plain enough. Whether it turns out to be a transformative measure that delivered substantial long-term benefits and whether those benefits were worth the shortterm pain is too early to judge.

Finally, a step towards change

ith the CPN(Maoist-Centre)-led government in Nepal approving amendments to the Constitution that will be tabled in Parliament, a first step towards positive change has been made in addressing federal concerns. The amendments include federal redrawing of boundaries that will allow for at least two Madhesi-dominated Terai provinces, substantial recognition of rights of naturalised citizens, especially women, and some degree of proportional representation in the Upper House. All these were major demands raised by Madhesi and other groups in agitations that lasted months and disrupted life. But with the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (Unified-Marxist Leninist) refusing to countenance any change, the Nepali Congress not providing adequate support to the government and the Madhesi parties refusing to budge from maximalist positions in the run-up to the move, it remains to be seen whether these amendments will pass. A failure would mean the political battle to honour the commitments made in the interim Constitution in 2007, which followed a series of agitations seeking a federal democratic character to Naya Nepal, is lost to the status quoists. Last week marked the tenth anniversary of the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) between mainstream political parties and the Nepali Maoists. It formally ended the decade-long civil war and paved the way for a constitutional republic. The initial achievements, painstakingly won, secured the peace process and mainstreamed the Maoists to bring a measure of stability to a country emerging not only from civil war but also a disastrous spell of rule by the palace. However, these last ten years have not quite seen the substantive change people had hoped for, with political parties abandoning the bipartisan approach to the CPA. Far from rising to the responsibilities of the new compact, the polity reverted to its default position of the 1990s, with short-termist power grabs and spells of political instability. This abdication resulted in a failure to forge consensus on the contentious issues of state restructuring and amendments to the Constitution to address the concerns of the Madhesis and other ethnic groups. The naysayers have cynically used the ‘nationalist’ line to resist the amendments, suggesting that these are directed by a foreign hand (read India). This ploy has been frequently used to resist democratic change. Unlike what the ‘nationalists’ claim, a truly federal Nepal is not a recipe for instability. Provinces sharing the power that is currently concentrated in Kathmandu would stabilise Nepali politics and empower marginalised communities. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ took office promising momentum to the political process. Months later, he has taken the first step.

It is, but only up to a point. In an economy that is open to capital flows, we have to take into account the effect of a decline in interest rates not just on domestic investors in the real economy but also on foreign investors in Indian debt securities. Any decline in interest rates has to be carefully managed, taking into account the differing preferences of the two constituents. If the difference between the rate on Indian securities and that on dollar securities becomes too wide, foreign investors will want to exit. There could be large, destabilising capital outflows. This must be the RBI’s big worry now.

T.T. Ram Mohan is a professor at IIM Ahmedabad. E-mail: [email protected]

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

Living with demonetisation It is painful to read almost every day letter after letter in this column criticising the demonetisation exercise, though the concerns are genuine. Whether one likes or not, the Modi government’s decision cannot be reversed. Why can’t one see the positive side? Organising bandhs and engaging in lengthy debates in television studios will not serve any purpose. What is needed is a step to allay the fears of low income citizens and small businesses and educating them about the need to think of a cashless economy. Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, Hyderabad

With the Prime Minister himself extolling the use of e-banking and mobile apps for payment in lieu of cash, it is now evident that the stated agenda of eliminating black money is definitely morphing into a strategy to channelise revenue to select payment gateways. Currency is the very identity and pride of a nation’s economy. Why is the Prime Minister obsessed with promoting the interest of private players instead of defending the nation against such avoidable exploitation and harassment? The only way to eliminate all this remains the same — reduce income tax for wider compliance. Anand Aravamudhan, Chennai

Although the government has decided to increase the limit of cash available to foreign tourists, many are still facing undue hardship. These tourists come to “Incredible India” to enjoy our Indian hospitality. We should do

everything to make their visit a memorable one. The least the government can do is to allow them to exchange their converted money on arrival (in old currency, and without any upper limit, once they produce the relevant documents. Raja Narayan, Chennai

While I am not against demonetisation, I am dead against the fact that the government does little to mitigate the sufferings of its unintended targets. Why should these people suffer for the sins of the elite and the corrupt? There is no guarantee that black money will vanish after this futile exercise; it will only take a new form in the shape of new notes! A cashless society may be the government’s newest idea, but how can somebody, the government included, force me to go cashless? Just as I want to feel newsprint and the smell of a fresh newspaper every morning, without a care for online versions of any newspaper, I would also like to conduct my small transactions in cash, and cash alone. What’s wrong with that? A.R. Ramanarayanan, Chennai

One more incentive for black money holders has been announced (“Tax defaulters get another chance”, Nov.29). While such incentives are welcome, the honest tax-payer too needs to be given some incentive. The woes of citizens running from bank to bank and ATM to ATM continue. To add insult to injury, the Reserve Bank of India has released mostly Rs.2,000 notes and very few Rs.500 notes; Rs.100 notes are in short supply. It shows how poorly the post-

demonetisation changeover has been handled by the RBI and the Central government. D.B.N. Murthy, Bengaluru

It is shocking that the BJP-led government has now chosen to come up with legislation to help black money hoarders. Does not this bring to nought all the highdecibel moral shouting from the rooftops to calm down a nation reeling under an unprecedented crisis? All the while, the government and its drum beaters chose to harp on the need for patience despite citizens being put to unimaginable hardship. Now those who have been cornered by a surgical strike have been shown an escape path. The moral of the story seems to be that the corrupt will get a system of their choice. N. Sekar, Salem, Tamil Nadu

The government’s dictatorial moves need to be countered only through fair and constructive criticism. The bitter truth is being suppressed in an atmosphere of fear where most people are unable to air liberal views. During the demonetisation debate in the Rajya Sabha, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh mentioned people dying while waiting to exchange their old currency notes. Neither the Prime Minister nor any other Central Minister appears to have expressed their empathy. The media should continue to report on the plight of those who cannot switch over to a digital banking system immediately. Sukumar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

The Editorial, “Demonetisation and

its discontents” (Nov.28), was interesting as it looked at the political divide. As a non-resident Indian, I feel that most NRIs support the move despite the lack of measures to exchange demonetised notes overseas. The situation is bad in Nepal, where Indians are facing hostility. The Foreign Exchange Regulation Act should be modified. Suddapalli Bhaskara Rao, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman

It is unfortunate that the Prime Minister is trying to convey the message that the decision taken by the government is the only way to fight corruption. Does this mean that people do not have a right to ask or even criticise decisions. If Mr. Modi is still certain that his decision is right, he should have explained and justified his decision in Parliament with solid data. A constructive debate would have enlightened us. Why do things that induce a mob mentality? Akshay Sarjerao Kamble,

temporary hardships, it had better think of good ideas. Jayasree Thampi, Oachira, Kerala

On strongmen The writer is completely off track in comparing Mr. Modi to the likes of Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump (“Of statesman and strongmen”, Nov.29). Mr. Modi’s election was never contested and, unlike Mr. Trump, he was always the first choice to lead India in 2014. It is a known fact that many of the heavyweights in the United Progressive Alliance government did not contest the election gauging public mood before the general election. The BJP won its massive mandate based on the promise of economic development and better governance. So-called “right wing troubles” began much before Mr. Modi arrived on the national scene. K.S. Roy, Patna

Mumbai

Off the mark The cold reaction towards the bandh called for by a united Opposition in protest against the “inconvenience caused by demonetisation” shows that the Opposition has run out of ideas and failed to understand the mood of the people (“Oppn. holds protests against demonetisation”, Nov.29). The message is clear. The political mileage accrued to the BJP is immense. If the Opposition thinks that it can fight the government in its bold war on black money and the dangers posed by a parallel economy by exaggerating

Change in Pakistan The matter-of-fact article, “From one Sharif to another” (Nov.29), shows that two factors will continue to haunt Pakistan — military hegemony and fundamentalism. The military stranglehold over any ruling establishment in Pakistan will always suppress it. The absence of far-sighted, courageous political leaders will compound the misery of Pakistan. Unless the military is contained and militant outfits propagating fundamentalism eliminated, real democracy will remain a distant dream for Pakistan. R. Ramanathan, Coimbatore ND-ND