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THE TRIBUNE

OPINION

08

CHANDIGARH | TUESDAY | 28 FEBRUARY 2017

Crises in banking

THE TRIBUNE

Private investment not looking up either

established in 1881

Jayshree Sengupta

Subversive, who? Jaitley mistakes violence for free speech

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PEAKING to students of the London School of Economics on Saturday, Finance Minister Jaitley sought to turn incidents of student violence — in which ABVP highhandedness comes out clearly in various media reports — into a case of free speech. He even discovered a threat to the nation’s sovereignty from an “alliance of subversion” and went on to conclude “the separatists and the ultra-Left are speaking the same language in certain university campuses”. The facts do not justify the interpretations made. The violence at Ramjas College was over two JNU students being invited to a seminar. When the ABVP objected, the college cancelled the invitation. It is here the right to free speech is involved. Injuries to students, teachers and journalists and charges of police complicity point to a different narrative. Being on a power high, the BJP leaders, including a moderate Jaitley, see political virtue in the unruly ABVP boys. Nor have they cared to tell the Delhi Police to enforce the rule of law without bias. The lawyer in Jaitley shifted to a free speech bhashan: “If you believe, you have free speech to assault the sovereignty of the country, then be ready to concede free speech to counter that.” It is the ABVP that does not seem “ready to concede free speech”. If he meant those who raised anti-national slogans at JNU, well they have never been arrested. Both Kanahiya Kumar and Umar Khalid are out on bail. The leftists and Kashmiri separatists are ideologically apart. Where is the alliance? The ABVP hurry to penetrate universities with or without state power is understandable. From Hyderabad to JNU, to Allahabad, Jodhpur and now Delhi University, it is the same story. Force and arrogance of authority rather than argument sometimes produce an unintended backlash, the kind seen in the popularity of the Facebook post of a Kargil martyr’s daughter which said: “I am a student from Delhi University. I am not afraid of ABVP”. Marxist-Leninist and Kashmiri groups have pockets of influence but none that should drive the country's Finance Minister to make alarmist proclamations on foreign soil. He ended up prettifying the ABVP boorishness.

Moonlight and sunshine 89th Academy Awards toast the best

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OOF-UPS, several firsts and Trump jokes, Oscars has to have a bit of entertainment and drama. Predictably, politics had cast its shadow much before the 89th Academy Awards ceremony actually began. Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, whose film The Salesman won the foreign language film Oscar, boycotted the function as a mark of protest against Trump’s travel ban. His victory message explaining his absence reinforces that art and artistes cannot be divorced from political reality. The show’s host, Jimmy Kimmel, too did not shy away from taking sardonic digs at the US President. However, beyond the political overtones and chaos that followed after the wrong film was named as the best picture, the mother of all awards still managed to salute the best. The top favourite La La Land, which was nominated for record-tying 14 categories, bagged six trophies. However, the Best Film award went to the more insightful Moonlight. As the Oscarssowhite debate has been raging for quite a while now, the Moonlight win is being hailed as a “powerful affirmation of gay black men”. Mahershala Ali winning the Academy Award for the best supporting actor for his portrayal of a drug dealer in Moonlight was bad news for the Indian-origin actor Dev Patel, also in the reckoning for the same award. Yet as Ali became the first Ahmadiya Muslim to pick up the golden statuette for acting, Oscar baiters and haters can rest easy. In these divisive times the world over, the academy awards also saw Syrian refugee Hala Kamil walk the red-carpet in hijab. A moment of sensitive symbolism. We in India, however, have little reason to rejoice. As it is, India’s Oscar tally is a meager six, four out of which have come its way via British drama Slumdog Millionaire. Whereas a country as small as Iran continues to wow the Oscar jury time and again, Indian films fail to make the cut in the foreign language category. Our creative film community needs to look into reasons why Oscar glory remains out of its grasp, considering the positive buzz many Indian films generate at international film festivals.

Thought for the Day The world needs banking but it does not need banks. — Bill Gates

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HERE are two serious problems facing the Indian economy today. One is the sharp fall in private investment over the last few years and second is the huge amount of non-performing assets in the banking system which is crippling the supply of credit to the private sector. The rate of investment is at 26.5 per cent of the GDP, which is the lowest since 2004-05. Yet, the RBI kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.25 per cent in its recent Monetary Policy Review (February 8, 2017). Instead of bringing down the interest rates to encourage investment, the RBI stuck to a ‘neutral’ policy stance and it has been nudging banks to lower lending rates. Many banks like the SBI have already done so with a marginal costbased lending rate (MCLR) down to 8 per cent, but in the face of a big rise in deposits post-demonetisation and hence in liquidity, they may not be able to reduce lending rates any further. A lower rate would have helped the real estate business and eased borrowing costs for house buyers. Housing demand across key cities has already declined by 3 per cent, largely due to uncertainty post-demonetisation which led to very few transactions materialising in both primary and secondary market between October and December 2016. The RBI’s cautious move can be attributed to inflationary expectations due to the hike in international oil prices which will affect fuel costs in the Indian economy dependent on oil imports (India imports 80 per cent of total oil requirements). The WPI has already nudged up recently to 5.25 per cent in January 2017 on the back of higher fuel costs. Secondly, the US economy is on the path of recovery and there is bound to be another upward revision of interest rates which will attract footloose capital (FIIs) back from the emerging markets to the US. Already, there was an exodus of FIIs at the end of 2016. Lowering the interest rates further in India would not help in attracting them back as there would be a wider rate differential between the two countries. Thirdly, metal prices are bound to shoot up after President Trump’s announcement of a big fiscal stimulus and an increase in infra-

NOT ADDING UP: Decline in credit growth has made matters worse. structural spending that will lead to the hardening of metal prices. On the other hand, industrial production in India needs revival urgently in which private sector investment is important for which a rate cut would have been important. Private sector investment has also not been given an impetus in the Budget because tax relief, which was expected, did not come through. The IIP sank to 0.4 per cent

sector was 1.9 per cent in Q2 of 201617 as compared to near-stagnant growth of 0.1 per cent in 2015-16. Clearly, demonetisation has affected industrial growth adversely and it came at the wrong time when the production of capital goods had declined sharply. To make matters worse, there has been a decline in credit growth to 10 per cent in 2015-16 as compared to 13.2 per cent 2014-15. This was due to problems of worsening balance sheets of corporate

The RBI’s decision on rates has not been welcomed by industry. Inflation and slow economic growth is a bad combination leading to job losses .

between April and November 201516. Due to low base, the IIP, however, rose to 5.6 per cent in November 2016 but in December 2016, it contracted again by 0.4 per cent. It showed a fall in factory output and 2 per cent decline in manufacturing. Overall, the consumer goods segment declined by 3 per cent and 17 out of 22 industry groups in the manufacturing sector showed negative growth. According to an RBI report (January 2017), growth in sales of corporate

sector which borrowed less and postponed investment decisions. The growth of credit flow to the manufacturing sector was at a low of 2.5 per cent in 2015-16. Without an increase in manufacturing growth, the job creation that India needs will be stalled and there will be widespread discontent. Credit demand will remain muted in the near term because it takes time for remonetisation effects to materialise and retail activity to pick up. The capital goods

sector has to grow faster for which private investment is needed, but it is not coming forward due to the ‘wait and watch’ scenario present on account of excess and unutilised capacity in industry. Credit growth has been adversely affected by the state of public sector banks which are burdened with huge NPAs (around 20 per cent of their total advances). To nurse them back to health is a difficult task and the allocated amount of Rs 10,000 crore in the Budget is not sufficient to recapitalise them in the next one year. PSBs have been asked to use UDAY (Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana) to reduce their loan loss provisioning for bad loans towards power DISCOMs. This will unlock Rs 20,000 crore of capital. UDAY will allow states to take over 75 per cent of the debt of power distribution companies by issuing bonds which are subscribed by banks, mutual funds and insurance companies. Some of the loans disbursed by PSBs during December 2015 to September 2016 through UDAY were classified as NPAs. PSU banks had already made provisions of 15 per cent, but from now on, they will not be required to make any provision against bonds issued under the scheme. It would be free up capital which was lost due to RBI’s provisioning norms regarding bad loans. Even so, the immediate impact on fresh lending may not be great when the total NPAs of all listed banks amount to Rs 4.4 lakh crore. On the whole, the RBI’s decision to keep rates unchanged has not been welcomed by industry or the stock market. It is, however, true that a rate cut could also have fanned inflation, especially cost push inflation, due to rise in wages and the demand boost which is likely to come from good monsoons and after the rewards of the Seventh Pay Commission take effect. Inflation and slower economic growth is a bad combination leading to job losses. Yet, it will be a long time before actual consumer demand picks up substantially because consumer confidence has been shaken and many will postpone spending in favour of saving. In addition, the problem of NPAs will keep credit offtake at lower levels. The government has to address the twin problems of low private investment and huge accumulation of NPAs soon, otherwise the GDP growth will be lower than 6.6 per cent predicted by the IMF.

One with khadi, one with nature I Parambir Kaur

N winter I am reminded of khadi.

The reasons for this coincidence are related to my parents and friend, Jhikki. I often heard from my parents that this fabric occupied a prime place in the winter wardrobe of people in times of yore. In that age of utmost simplicity and limited availability, there were not many options to keep cold at bay. Jhikki adored khadi. With winter, her designer khadi suits emerge. Knowing her for over four decades, I can safely say, ‘If winter comes, can Jhikki’s khadi collection be far behind?’ I have admired her for her views on almost everything. She has never become part of the rat race, but fol-

lows her own ingenuous and a life style worth emulating. There is so much to learn from her! She cites many reasons for her love for this cloth. One need not presume that her dressing style is unprogressive, or staid. Not at all, she is sophisticated and fashion savvy. Her friends and acquaintances have a high opinion of her sartorial sense and sometimes even take a cue from her choice of clothes. She exudes an air of understated, quiet elegance! Even her general disposition blends well with her appearance. ‘This organic stuff, besides keeping my skin healthy, keeps me naturally warm. Its mere touch is so soothing; somehow it always has a positive effect on me, a stress reliever of sorts!’ she states.

‘So, this is the secret of your cheerful demeanour,’ I could not help observing. Sometimes she says, ‘Khadi is an environment-friendly cloth, ensuring a safe future for us all.’ When Jhikki is busy eulogising this native creation, a stranger might presume that she has a personal interest in promoting its sales. A few days ago, Jhikki arrived, donning a new, becoming khadi dress; a splendid combination of bright and pastel colours. Seeing her, I was reminded of a comment about one’s attire, made by my parents, long ago. — ‘Choice of a suitable cloth topped with fine quality tailoring makes a dress perfect and enhances the wearer’s personality. ’ My beaming friend said: “Imagine,

my five-year-old granddaughter complimented me today, saying, ‘Nani, you are looking like a princess in this new dress!’” Laughing heartily, she further divulged: ‘My tailor has told me that out of all his clients, a chosen few take pride in wearing khadi. Still, he charges me extra for this! And the man who irons our clothes also commented in the same vein!’ ‘Now that’s quite something; you can be proud of your unique identity, ’ I remarked. Jhikki also mentioned the great khadi showrooms she had been to in Delhi and Mumbai. ‘One just has to go there to see the superb variety of this magic fabric, adding in a resolute tone, ‘wearing this natural cloth is akin to becoming one with nature itself!’

implementation.

one should have the audacity to thwart the process of its completion. Rather, they should respect the law of the land. Politicians have been invoking the issue for their vested interests. Much politics has already been played out over it. The construction of the canal should be completed without further loss of time, so as to enable the masses to reap its benefits. Otherwise too, in such matters, a humanitarian approach is required.

letters to the editor Justice system Apropos ‘Revamping justice system’ (February 27), the delay in the dispensation of justice is bad for society. Both the judicial system as well as the government are responsible for this mess. In fact, there should be a law of ‘right to justice’. The government should be legally bound to appoint the required number of judges. The judges should be held responsible for delay in the delivery of judgment and must be punished for delay in dispensation of justice. All facilities being extended to such judges should be withdrawn. Only very harsh laws can remove this mess in the judicial system. JB SINGH, GURGAON

ISRO scientists PM Modi has rightly congratulated the dedicated scientists of ISRO (‘PM lauds ISRO, tells youth to take up sciences’ February 27). Their efforts have enabled India to occupy a place of prestige and recognition among scientifically advanced nations. However few years ago, before India’s Mars mission, a section of society deliberated if it was necessary to indulge in the luxury of this costly space mission ignoring the

deplorable conditions of millions of rural Indians, as the money spent could have been used for development in rural areas. But investment in space science must continue. Patience and foresight are needed. Those who look for immediate returns on investment may fail to see the long-term benefits. TS KARTHIK, CHENNAI

Censor board did right The film Lipstick Under My Burkha has rightly not been passed by the censor board as it reportedly has vulgar scenes and abusive language (‘Thoughtless censor’, February 27). The demand to pass it as an adult film is absurd. This kind of vulgarity is not even fit to be watched by adults as it corrupts their minds too. Strangely, it is true that maturity does not come to a person by age alone. What is shocking is the support of such films by the media and the attitude of people who talk of their freedom of right to watch! Morality should prevail over such a cheap show in the name of reality. It is a wonder of wonder how such films are considered for awards. M KUMAR, BY MAIL

China dead-end

Rewarding rioters

Refer to ‘A dialogue without strategy’ (February 27), I agree with the writer that instead of taking a rigid stand on China’s refusal to support our move in the UN to blacklist Pakistan terrorist Masood Azhar and acknowledge our sensibilities on the CPEC, India needs to understand the ground realties and mend fences with China to take advantage of its One-Belt OneRoad project. India was ready to soften its stand on the CPEC if China was ready to agree to blacklist Azhar. But what has happened is beyond reversal. Diplomacy also teaches us to make the most of of a worse situation.

The middle ‘Law of leverage’ (February 24) reveals the law and order situation in Haryana. Every day there were vivid pictures of the damage done by hooligans during the Jat stir last year, but no action was taken against the rioters who held the state to ransom. Prakash Singh, former DGP, has lamented that no action was taken against indicted officials. It is ironical that jobs and rewards are being offered to the kin of the deceased who indulged in arson. It will encourage blackmailers who may continue to create crisis situations in the state.

TARSEM SINGH, MAHILPUR

KRISHAN MALHOTRA, AMBALA CANTT

Humanism lost

Green counter

I was disturbed to read the news ‘Dera followers say no to cremation’, February 27). This is the land of Guru Nanak and Buddha, who taught us the lesson of non-violence, toleration and humanism. Why have we become so intolerant and inhuman? We do not seem to understand the value of human life. It is above everything else.

The SGPC deserves applause for setting up a counter in the newly built entrance plaza of the Golden Temple for the free distribution of plants to devotees (‘Ray of light for ‘Nanhi Chhaan’ at Golden Temple’, February 27). This innovative idea will go a long way in creating awareness regarding environment at the grassroots in Punjab. One hopes that lack of funds will never be an obstacle for its successful

AMAR JIT SINGH GORAYA, AUSTRALIA

Letters to the Editor, typed in double space, should not exceed the 200-word limit. These should be cogently written and can be sent by e-mail to: [email protected]

JAGDISH CHANDER, JALANDHAR

A thought to martyrs Apropos the article ‘The martyr-soldier from Kashmir’, February 27), the writer narrates the ultimate sacrifice our warriors have made in a 28-year-old proxy conflict in J&K, and brings forth the supreme sacrifice of Lance Naik Ghulam Mohiuddin who was recently martyred. We must pause for a moment and remember these warriors. What better way than to remember our soldiers through Michel De Montaigne’s words in an essay on glory: ‘Of the scores of valiant men who have died over the years not a hundred have come to our knowledge. Why amid so many writers and so many witnesses so few have come down to us? Those valiant people are those whom a darkened fame has hid.’ DEEPAK RIKHYE, AMBALA

SYL verdict Once the apex court has rendered its verdict to complete the SYL, no

SHADI LAL, BY MAIL

No toilet, no nikah A progressive step has been taken by maulvis and muftis in Haryana, Himachal and Punjab that nikah will not be conducted in houses where there is no toilet. The secretary-general of Jamiat Ulema-eHind has said toilet has been made a mandatory condition for Muslim weddings in the three states, and will soon be applied to other states too. This benchmark for cleanliness and sanitation will contribute in a big way towards Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. SANA FARHEEN, MOHALI

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OPED

CHANDIGARH | TUESDAY | 28 FEBRUARY 2017

No change, Aadhaar remains voluntary

09

The Baloch problem: A question of answers A no-holds-barred intervention in British Parliament by the exiled Amir Ahmed Suleman Daud, the Khan of Kalat State, put alleged war crimes by the Pak army in Balochistan under the spotlight. Ashis Ray

A

N Indian involvement in the Balochi

The existing legal provisions do not provide for seeding of UID/Aadhaar with any scheme or project. TRIBUNE PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH

Gopal Krishna

The law doesn’t provide for linking of UID/Aadhaar with either the bank account or biometric profiling. While the US, Australia, China, France and the UK have abandoned such biometric identification, it is underway in India in an illegitimate manner.

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HOSE who wittingly or unwittingly promote biometric profiling-based 12 digit-Unique Identification (UID)/Aadhaar number must remember that the old maxim — “If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear” — has been given a very public burial. This maxim, attributed to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, has been debunked. This myth is never questioned when it is advanced as an argument to support whatever draconian surveillance measure is being pushed out. These assumptions include existence of a benign government. It ignores the fact that no single entity can securely withhold information amidst massive pressures to share information within and beyond government. Information flow is akin to water flow which is getting monetised by the private sector of all ilks. In its counter affidavit in the Supreme Court in Lokniti Foundation vs Union of India case, the Union of India has stated that UID/Aadhaar is voluntary. This submission has been reproduced in the order of CJI headed two-Judge Division Bench on February 6, 2017 that stated “currently Aadhaar card or biometric authentication is not mandatory for obtaining a new telephone connection.” In its petition, Lokniti Foundation, had prayed that “the Aadhar card or such other biometric identification may be made compulsory for verification of the mobile phone subscribers.” After the Attorney General’s submission, it is apparent that the Bench decided to adhere to the Constitution Bench’s order that keeps biometric UID/Aadhaar Number voluntary. This position has been repeated by the High Courts of Karnataka, Jammu and Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh. In a glaring case, Punjab and Haryana High Court bench headed by the then Chief Justice A K Sikri (currently a judge of the Supreme Court) heard a matter challenging a circular making UID/Aadhaar number mandatory. The moment the Court raised questions of laws, the Centre withdrew the circular. The decision underlined that the UID/Aadhaar project is illegitimate

on this day... 100 years ago

and indefensible. When it is made mandatory, it is legally assailable. Notably, the West Bengal Assembly passed a unanimous resolution against the UID/Aadhaar numberrelated scheme in supreme public interest. The current CJI headed Division Bench made a slight departure from its observation on January 5, 2017, wherein a CJI headed threeJudge Bench, including Justice N V Ramana and Justice D Y Chandrachud, observed that there is no urgency in setting up a Constitution Bench as per the request of Chief Justice of India headed 5-Judge Constitution Bench including Justice M.Y. Eqbal, Justice C. Nagappan, Justice Arun Mishra and Justice Amitava Roy. The order of the Constitution Bench reads: “Since there is some urgency in the matter, we request the learned CJI to constitute a Bench for final hearing of these matters at the earliest.” Over 15 months have passed but the order remains unresponded. This order puts on record that: “This Bench is constituted only for the purpose of deciding the applications filed by the Union of India seeking certain clarification/modification in the orders passed by a Bench of three learned Judges of this Court dated 11.08.2015.” It is germane to note that this August 11, 2015 order of the threeJudge Bench of Justice Chelameswar, Justice S.A. Bobde and Justice C. Nagappan observed, “We are also of the opinion that the institutional integrity and judicial discipline require that pronouncement made by larger Benches of this Court cannot be ignored by the smaller Benches without appropriately explaining the reasons for not following the pronouncements made by such larger Benches.” Its order reads: “By a reasoned order, the matters are referred to a Bench of appropriate strength.” The order of the Bench of appropriate strength dated October 15, 2015 passed by the CJI headed 5-Judge Constitution Bench of Supreme Court in the “UID/Aadhaar” matter reads: “We impress upon the Union of India that it shall strictly follow all the earlier orders passed by this Court commencing from 23.09.2013. We will also make it clear that the Aadhaar card Scheme is purely voluntary and it cannot be made mandatory till the matter is finally decided by this Court

one way or the other.” The Court reiterated its order on September 14, 2016 after the passage of The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 underlining the fact that the last order of the Supreme Court is the law of the land. Indian residents or agencies which are facing problems due to any order which are making biometric UID/Aadhaar Number compulsory can use the Court’s orders to save oneself from illegitimate, illegal and unconstitutional instructions or circulars. Notably, the existing legal provisions do not provide for seeding of UID/Aadhaar with any scheme or project. Nor does it provide for biometric profiling which is underway in an illegitimate manner. Meanwhile, the USA, Australia, China, France, UK and the Philippines have abandoned biometric uniqueness-based national identification exercises. It is quite evident that repeated Court’s orders issued till February 6, 2017 make it clear that UID/ Aadhaar remains voluntary. While it can be safely inferred that the hearing by CJI headed 3-Judge Bench on January 5, 2017 was not done by a Bench of appropriate strength, but the hearing by the Division Bench on February 6, 2017 is compliant with “institutional integrity and judicial discipline”. Notably, Supreme Court’s website continues to refer to Writ Petition (Civil) 494 of 2012 and related cases under the “Subject Category: Five Judges Bench Matter”, making it abundantly clear that Supreme Court’s Registry has not complied with the order of the Justice Chalmeshwar-headed Bench wherein it observed, “We, therefore, direct the Registry to place these matters before the Hon’ble the Chief Justice of India for appropriate orders.” There is a logical legal obligation for government and non-government agencies that are implementing Aadhaar-related schemes and systems to use the order of the Election Commission (August 13, 2015) as a template to revise their orders and circular to comply with Court’s order in letter and spirit. There is hope that Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench will be set up in right earnest before it is too late. The writer is with Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties (CFCL)

quick crossword Across 1 Cogent, 4 Academic, 9 Climax, 10 Flamenco, 12 Sulk, 13 Of use, 14 Ache, 17 Recreational, 20 Intelligence, 23 Evil, 24 Revel, 25 Logo, 28 Inferior, 29 Rankle, 30 Solitude, 31 Nearly.

The Habit of Tea Drinking MR. Harodl W. Newhy made an interesting speech at the half-yearly meeting of the Indian Tea Cess Committee on the 31st January, 1916, when he gave certain important facts relating to the spread of tea drinking habit among Indians. He calculated that the lowest estimate of last year's consumption of tea in India alone was 30 to 40 million pounds and India was the third largest country in the world to patronise tea-growers, the first two being the United Kingdom and Russia. He said that in future India would prove the largest consumer and the Tea Cess Committee would endeavour to introduce tea drinking into their modest corner of his country for which a sum of £15,000 was sanctioned for the current year. He justified this work not only on health grounds, by pointing out that the tea industries would benefit a large number of Indian employees besides improving public health.

Protesters torch the US flag after Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in US drone strikes in Balochistan in May 2016. AFP

Amir Ahmed Suleman Daud, the Khan of Kalat State. His ancestors once ruled Afghanistan. aim. Senior civil servants cautioned Modi not to mention Balochistan in his August 15 address. But he opted to align with hot-headed hawks. His jab at Pakistan lends the latter ammunition to accuse India of meddling. Disappearances and killings have occurred in the thousands. The freedom fighters' best case before the international community is to highlight the crackdown by Rawalpindi. Clearly, historical evidence suggests the Balochi demand for a homeland is not unjustified. There are unlikely to be too many takers for overturning an accession treaty, however contentious it may be. Moreover, an independent Balochistan is difficult to envisage in the foreseeable future. Therefore, a disproportionate investment of resources by India to encourage fissiparous tendencies would be long-drawn out and, arguably, not of any benefit even in the medium term. The writer is a London-based journalist

su do ku YESTERDAY’S SOLUTION

Lahore,Wednesday, February 28, 1917

separatist campaign is debatable. Balochistan is not East Pakistan. There is no refugee or any other crisis afflicting India because of the troubles festering in the region, which in any case does not border India. Besides, there is no strategic advantage in destabilising a nuclear-armed, terrorist-infested neighbour. The freedom of Balochistan and alleged war crimes by the Pakistani army are, however, back in the spotlight after a no-holds-barred intervention in Britain's Houses of Parliament recently by an exiled Amir Ahmed Suleman Daud, the Khan of Kalat State. His ancestors ruled much of Balochistan before the British chiselled away at the territory, eroded the Khans' control and facilitated its annexation by Pakistan. Kalat or Balochistan was not an Indian princely state. It was a south-west Asian expanse. Its treaties were with the British crown, not with either the East India Company or the Raj. It, though, increasingly leased its land, which effectively became British Balochistan. Balochistan can be traced back as an independent country to the 12th century, when its capital was Bampur, now in Iran. The British invaded Kalat in 1839, killed its ruler, Khan Mehrab Khan, and installed a 14-yearold relative of his as his successor and began its fragmentation. But the Balochis revolted and installed Mehrab's son, Nasir Khan II, on the throne. This resulted in the first AngloBaloch agreement in 1841, ratified in 1854 and thereafter in 1876. The Mastung Treaty was signed the same year. British records establish "the territories did not pass so as to become part of British India but remain part of Kalat State". After the announcement of the British withdrawal from India, the Khan of Kalat stressed the lease agreements would lapse and the areas so granted to the crown would revert to Kalat. Article 3 of the 1876 treaty bound the British government "to respect the independence of Kalat". On the other hand, the Government of India Act of 1935 held Kalat to be a part of India. Finally, a four-point communique was issued on August 11, 1947 by Viceroy Lord Louis Mountbatten, on behalf of the crown, Mohammad Ali Jinnah as the representative of the future state of Pakistan and the Khan of Kalat, one of which said: "The Government of Pakistan recognises Kalat as an independent sovereign state in treaty relations with the British Government with a status different from that of Indian States". It also confirmed a "standstill agreement" between Pakistan and Kalat “with a view to reaching decisions in Defence, External Affairs and Communications”. On August 11, Kalat declared independence from 15 August. Interestingly, Jinnah had been Kalat's lawyer since 1933. He even pleaded its case at the Privy Council in London. Besides, the Muslim League leadership was in favour of an independent Kalat. But within a month of the tripartite pact, Mountbatten emitted a contradictory signal, which said, because of Balochistan's location, it would be too dangerous and risky to allow it to remain independent and the British High Commission in Pakistan was advised to "guide the Pakistan government away from making any agreement with Kalat which would involve recognition of the state as a separate international entity". Daud accused Jinnah of deceit. "He had inside information, which undermined us," he asserted. On second thought, the British were keen to use

Balochistan against the Iranian government which had nationalised the —Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and which was in due course to be unlawfully toppled — as a valuable staging post for their West-Asia policy in general and the great cold war game of denying communist Russia access to the warm waters of the Arabian Sea. Negotiations between Pakistan and Kalat spluttered. On March 28, 1948, Kalat, systematically subverted by the British for more than a century and a victim of geo-politics, acceded to Pakistan. Balochistan is presently in the throes of a fifth uprising by secessionists since 1948. Last year, Narendra Modi added fuel to the fire with a reference to it in his Independence-Day speech. Daud predictably welcomed the support. "I will go to India," he said, to realise his goal. He has made common cause with Baloch nationalists, such as Hyrbyair Marri (also based in the United Kingdom), to pursue his

Down 1 Cocksure, 2 Gridlock, 3 Neat, 5 Cold-shoulder, 6 Dime, 7 Monaco, 8 Chosen, 11 Off the record, 15 Feint, 16 Gauge, 18 Onlooker, 19 Recovery, 21 Remiss,22 Wilful, 26 Grit, 27 Fake.

forecast

V. EASY

7 1 1 4 3 5 8 6 6 3 9 1 9 1 2 4 3 5 1 8 2 4 6 3 8 7

SUNSET: SUNRISE:

2

6 4 9 4 1 5 3 8 2

ACROSS 1 Wild confusion (11) 9 Word of opposite meaning (7) 10 Out-and-out (5) 11 A fortified wine (4) 12 Cajole (8) 14 A silvery-white metal (6) 16 Not immediately obvious (6) 18 Having much free

time (8) 19 Give up (4) 22 A tropical fruit (5) 23 Shrewd (7) 24 Far from (7,4) DOWN 2 Daisy-like garden flower (5) 3 Refuse to acknowledge (4) 4 Importance (6)

5 Sickening (8) 6 Nervously tense (7) 7 Art of bell-ringing (11) 8 Lack of due respect (11) 13 Hand down (8) 15 US city on Lake Michigan (7) 17 To moderate (6) 20 Additional (5) 21 Detailed scheme (4)

Sunny Partly Cloudy Cloudy

Rainy

CITY MAX Chandigarh 25 New Delhi 30

MIN 13 13

PUNJAB

Amritsar Bathinda Jalandhar Ludhiana Patiala

26 27 26 25 26

11 10 11 11 13

25 27 28 25 26

13 13 11 09 11

HARYANA

Ambala Bhiwani Hisar Karnal Sirsa

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Discovery of a Precious Stone in Kashmir. MR. Joti Parlhad, Geologist and Prospecting Engineer, Kashmir State, made last summer a valuable and far-reaching discovery of the extensive occurrence of aquamarines in the Bahistan and Karakoram districts of the State. This is a discovery on which both he and the Kashmir Durbar are to be heartily congratulated. Aquamarine is a stone of the emerald variety found in the midst of hard rock, and is allied to that stone in formation, etc., with the difference that it is of sea-green colour, and clear as crystal-qualities which are highly esteemed and prized by Europeans and Americans. The stone is largely used by ladies as ornaments. The discovery means a mine of wealth to the State which will add to its already valuable mineral resources.

TUESDAY 18:20 HRS WEDNESDAY 06:49 HRS

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February 28, 2017, Tuesday

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Shaka Samvat 1938 Phalgun Shaka 9 Phalgun Parvishte 17 Hijari 1438 Shukla Paksha Tithi 2, up to 5.21 pm Sadhya Yog up to 1.08 pm Uttrabhadarpad Nakshtra up to 4.44 am Moon in Pisces sign Shri Ramhansh Jayanti.

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Jammu Leh Srinagar

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UTTARAKHAND

Dehradun Mussoorie Nainital TEMPERATURE IN OC

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