Assembly Elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh: Hat-Trick for Modi, Congress Returns to Power in Shimla

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has led the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to a third consecutive win in the state Assembly elections. The resounding victory of the BJP in the Gujarat Assembly election is an endorsement by the people of the politics of development and a rejection of the politics of hate. Modi has recorded a personal achievement by leading the BJP to a third straight victory in the just-held Assembly polls. There are very few examples of this nature in the country.

BJP captured 115 seats in the 182-member House, short by two seats from his 2007 performance of 117 seats. Surprisingly, the state presidents of both the Congress and the BJP were defeated.

While it was a hat-trick for Modi, a record by any chief minister in the state so far, for the BJP it was the fifth straight win since 1995. The Congress which again failed to dislodge the BJP, ended with 61 seats along with its ally, the Nationalist Congress Party, two better than 59 it won in the last elections.

The Gujarat Parivartan Party floated by former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel with the support of the disgruntled elements of the BJP to show Modi the “exit door,” ended up a cropper with only two seats, with Patel winning from Visavadar in Junagadh district in the Saurashtra region. Four seats went to Independents and others. In a tactical move, soon after the results were declared, Modi called on Patel at his Gandhinagar residence and sought blessing of the 84-year-old erstwhile stalwart of the BJP.

Modi retained his Maninagar seat in Ahmedabad city by a comfortable margin of over 86,000 votes, though a few hundred less than last time, while the Congress suffered serious setbacks with its state unit president Arjun Modhvadia and Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing state Assembly, Shaktisingh Gohil, losing the elections.

Keeping Gujarat’s results in view, one issue that will be hotly debated in the days to come is: Will Modi be the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate in 2014? The decisive win has certainly strengthened his case, though he himself is silent about it and the BJP too refuses to squarely face the issue.

As for the Congress, since Madhavsinh Solanki’s 148-seat victory in 1985, the party has not been returned to power in Gujarat. So disappointment, if any, was expected. The Congress has been saved from utter humiliation by a surprise win in Himachal Pradesh, where opinion polls had predicted a close contest. The drubbing it had got in the Uttar Pradesh and Punjab assembly elections had so unnerved the national leadership that it did not risk testing a new, younger leader in Himachal and chose to rely on the old warhorse, Virbhadra Singh, to lead the battle.

The fact that the BJP has not just secured an impressive victory but even won a record number of Assembly constituencies in Gujarat that have a high Muslim population, should silence critics of Modi who have been claiming that he does not enjoy the support and confidence of the minority community post-2002 violence. Of the nine Assembly seats which have a Muslim population of more than 25 per cent, the BJP has won seven. These wins have come with a vote share ranging from 45 per cent to 59 per cent. The constituencies include Bapunagar with a relatively low 28 per cent Muslim population and Jamalpur-Khadia which has a high of 60 per cent of the minorities.

Although the Congress, scared as it was after the 2007 experience, did not once raise the issue of the 2002 violence or the ‘persecution' of the minorities by the Modi-led Government, the fact remains that its workers had continued to spread venom against the chief minister throughout the election campaign at the grassroots level. But the results seem to suggest that even that strategy of the Congress has failed. The BJP has managed to make significant inroads into the minority votes as well, and which clearly indicates that the Muslims of the State are by and large disgusted by the hate propaganda unleashed by Modi's critics. They are willing to leave the past behind and move forward.

Himachal Pradesh

In Himachal Pradesh, where the polls were held along with Gujarat, the Congress Party has registered an impressive victory, displacing the ruling BJP although Modi, a Hindutva mascot these days, was the star campaigner sent in precisely to rally the faithful and convert the undecided. The Congress bounced back to power in the hill state winning 36 out of the total 68 seats, while the ruling BJP had to contend with 26. As expected, the Independents put up a good show to bag five seats. The BJP breakaway group Himachal Lokhit Party, which had floated the Third Front with the CPM and the CPI, could just muster a solitary seat.

The Congress, which had 23 members in the outgoing House, improved its tally by 13 seats, while the BJP’s score came down to 26 from 41. The margin of victory was not very big but it was a creditable performance by the Congress keeping in view the prevailing anti-party sentiment at the national level due to unfolding of various scams and measures.

From 1990, electors in Himachal Pradesh have voted out the incumbent in each election, replacing the BJP with the Congress and the Congress with the BJP. 2012 happens to be the turn of the Congress. Although the Congress campaign was managed by Virbhadra Singh, who is caught in a web of corruption charges, the overriding concern of the people seems to have been to vote out the Prem Kumar Dhumal government. After a full term in power, the BJP carried out a negative campaign trying to blame the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre for all the miseries of the commoners. While attacking the Centre for the diesel price hike, and the cap on LPG cylinders for domestic use, Dhumal had little to show in terms of his own achievements.

The political aware electorate maintained the three-decade old tradition of voting out the incumbent government and gave a clear verdict in favor of the Congress throwing aside all the predictions of a hung House. The strong anti-incumbency factor against the Dhumal government more than neutralized the impact of national issues such as price rise, corruption and FDI on which the BJP was banking on.

It has been seen over and over again in the past decade that the Congress Party places undue reliance on the strength of its policies to get past hurdles, downplaying other aspects of mass-level politics, and almost blanks them out. This is a path which is full of risks. This is specially so when the Congress is in power, and influential personalities in states cease to count, the emergence of strong regional leaders is not encouraged, and those that exist are sought to be laid low or brought on par with hangers-on of what has come to be known as the “Delhi durbar”.

In fact, it is plain to all that it is Virbhadra Singh who has single-handedly pulled the Congress’ chestnuts out of the fire in Himachal Pradesh and handed it a comfortable victory in the Assembly election. And yet half a dozen names of little consequence in the state party are being touted as possible contenders for the chief ministership through the media. Exactly this had happened when Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit won the Assembly election for the party for the third consecutive time. An air of needless suspense was permitted to cloud the mood of celebration among the rank and file.

Assessment

National issues did not figure in the two state elections. For much of its term UPA-II had distinguished itself by non-performance. September onwards it resumed governance. If corruption charges, inflation, diesel price hike and a cap on gas cylinders were to weigh on voters’ mind, then the Congress would have lost in Himachal too. The voters in the hill state did not care about graft charges against the UPA or Virbhadra Singh. Despite a late start, 77-year-old Virbhadra Singh has worked hard for the win, and reached out to dissidents, including Vijay Mankotia. Being from the state’s upper region has helped him.

The election results in these two states have brought down the BJP’s tally of controlling state governments by one and increased the Congress’ tally by the same number. A contest of a similar nature will take place between the two parties in Karnataka — where the BJP has been thrown on the back foot with former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, a name to reckon with in the state, forming his own party after leading a rebellion within the BJP — and Chhattisgarh in 2013. These, along with the recent Assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal, are likely to have a bearing on the framing of national politics ahead of the next Lok Sabha (lower house of the Parliament) elections due in May 2014.

3 Years of UPA2 Government: Crucial Political, Economic Policies Remain in State of Drift

The Congress-led UPA2 (United Progressive Alliance) Government completed three inglorious years in office in May 2012. Given the fact that it has all but abandoned the governance of the country, constantly harangued by allies and put on the mat by the Opposition, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s regime must consider it a miracle that it is still in power. The past three years of the government have been marked by a complete paralysis in decision-making and an erosion of stature of the prime minister. Crucial political and economic policies have remained in a state of drift because there is no leadership at the top. As Prime Minister, Singh should have been directing the battle to revive the government, but he is found nowhere in the front. That is because he now leads the government only in name, and his Ministers and allies know it well.

The prime minister is in charge of neither the political agenda of the country nor its economic agenda. In other words, he is a lame-duck prime minister biding his time before he is ousted by the electorate or replaced by his party’s high command led by Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Meanwhile, everyone in the UPA Government and outside is having fun at his cost. But the headless government’s continuance is not a matter of amusement for the country, which is paying a heavy price for Singh’s pusillanimity and inaction.

Political Front

On the political front, allies are regularly issuing threats and arm-twisting the government because the Congress as a party and Singh as the prime minister have failed to reach out to their partners or allay their apprehensions on several contentious issues. The growing lack of trust between the Congress and its partners in the UPA Government — not to mention the widening divide between the government and the Opposition — has led to key decisions being either kept on hold or rolled back. Many of these decisions which have become victims of the government’s incompetence relate to the economic well-being of the people and their security. 

No amount of chest-thumping by the UPA and its acolytes over its imagined achievements is going to change the reality that the Congress-led government has failed in every way that a government possibly can. Most importantly, the government has lost the people’s trust, which is clearly evident in the results of the recently held election to five States. UPA2 is on life-support — alive but not living.

Unattended Issues

However, as Congressmen across the board will tell you, there is no real sustained debate — or at any rate, any formal putting of heads together in party fora — on how to achieve all this. The big issues, freedom of expression versus community sentiments, market versus control, etc are never thrashed out to evolve a party view.

A senior party functionary pointed out that even the A.K. Antony Report, which analyzed the Congress' performance in recent Assembly elections to five States, including U.P., will be seen only by the Core Group (whose members include Singh, Sonia Gandhi, Pranab Mukherjee, P. Chidambaram, and A.K. Antony, and Sonia Gandhi's Political Secretary, Ahmed Patel) that meets once a week.

As for the Congress Working Committee (CWC), a more representative body, it seldom meets. It is little wonder then that the Congress is now a party where senior functionaries and ministers themselves scramble for information, where intrigue replaced any world view as ideology a long time ago, and ginger groups are a thing of the hoary past.

Optimism and Reality 

It was an acknowledgment that Dr. Singh had played a stellar role in the party's spectacular victory, drawing in support not just from middle class metropolitan living rooms but rural India as well: across Uttar Pradesh, I recall voters — cutting across caste and religious lines — saying they hoped the UPA, under Singh, would return to power and steer the country through the global economic meltdown.

But three years later, as the UPA readies itself to celebrate its eighth anniversary in power, the government and its Prime Minister have lost their sheen, swamped by a slew of financial scandals, the ham-handed response to the Anna Hazare campaign and rising prices. Congressmen, not Opposition leaders, are beginning to ask whether the Sonia Gandhi-Manmohan Singh partnership has run out of steam, and whether this unique power-sharing arrangement has led to ambivalence on policy issues, crippling effective decision-making. Finally, they are even asking whether the government needs a new face to lead it to the general elections scheduled just two years away, in 2014.

Pranab Factor 

That face could have been Rahul Gandhi, the Congress yuvraj, but his own lack of enthusiasm for taking on the job at this stage, compounded by the party's disastrous showing in the recent Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh has ensured that he will not be taking over the reins, anytime soon. It could have been Sonia Gandhi, but she made it clear in 2004, when the position was hers, that she was not going to take it. It could also have been the party's troubleshooter, its one man brains trust, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. But most senior functionaries and ministers rule out that possibility even though a majority agrees that of those available and no Gandhi willing, he would be the popular choice in the party for Prime Minister.

Of course, the finance minister's name is currently in circulation for another job — that of the next President, and he is certainly emerging as the Opposition's popular choice for a consensus First Citizen.

NCERT Textbook Issue 

Neither is there any system in the party that can respond to the challenges of the times. The recent NCERT textbook controversy, a cabinet minister stresses, should have evoked a considered response from the party: “Textbooks,” he said, “play a key role in a democracy. The response to the objections to the Ambedkar cartoon should not have been left to the HRD ministry.” If there is no serious internal debate, the minister said, people in the party are unlikely to own decisions: the problem with allowing Foreign Direct Investment in retail, he said, is not the opposition of allies or other parties: “We ourselves haven't made up our minds, so we talk of evolving a consensus.”

Eliminating Terrorism

The Congress-led government should not demonstrate softness in approach toward terror attacks. Unfortunately, that is what the UPA has been showing all these years. Its leaders speak in different voices on the growing terrorism menace.

How long will the current state of affairs continue? After every major terrorist incident, the instinctive response of the government is to constitute a committee or form a new investigative body on top of the existing, inefficient anti-terror set-up. In the aftermath of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, the government realized the need for a central investigating agency to combat terrorism. As a result, with the unanimous support of all political parties the National Investigation Agency (NIA) was created. However, this agency has proved ineffective in preventing terror attacks and tracking down terrorists in the country. The 2011 serial blasts in Mumbai followed by the Delhi High Court blasts and the German Bakery bombing in Pune the previous year could neither be prevented and nor were they properly investigated. The NIA was also accused of allegedly offering bribes to name RSS members in the Ajmer blasts case.

The UPA Government wants to create another anti-terror organization called the National Counter-Terrorism Centre. It is time the government realized that bad policing cannot be supplemented with more policing. The need of the hour is to improve coordination between investigative agencies and state governments, create a more comprehensive database of suspected terrorists and streamline the anti-terror operations, rather than encroach upon the powers of the States.

The current state of affairs makes it amply clear that these extremists have no concern for development and they intend to usurp power by first dominating the countryside and then moving toward the cities. And, hence, the soft approach being taken by the government makes India an even easier target. We cannot afford being the soft state that we are. Merely pumping funds into development is not the solution to the Maoist menace. Similarly, removing or diluting the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in Jammu and Kashmir would severely hamper the capabilities and morale of the Army.

The country is in dire need of a more nuanced approach to dealing with issues of national security. Mere half-baked policies will not succeed. Our security will continue to be compromised so long as this UPA Government tries to politicize and pressure the stakeholders in the crucial decision-making process.

Hillary Clinton’s India Visit: New Delhi Reminds Washington of Country's Interests in Region

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrapped up her three-day visit to India on May 8. Her trip came at a time when India and the United States are perceived to have taken somewhat different positions from each other on various issues. After two decades of increasing proximity, disagreements between the two countries over several key matters now seem to be slowing down the momentum of bilateral relations. Those who had hoped that Clinton’s visit would put the spark back in the ties will have been a bit disappointed as both parties have not done much, in addition to reiterating already-known positions.

During her stay, Clinton met key Indian leaders, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi. and discussed a range of issues, including China, regional security and civil nuclear cooperation.

Pakistan’s Role in Eliminating Terror

The US secretary of state has pressed Pakistan to do more to ensure its territory is not used as "launching pad" by terror groups for attacks and also said that Hafiz Saeed was "one of the "principal architects" of the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Hillary's comments came at a joint news conference after her talks with External Affairs Minister SM Krishna who spoke of the need for elimination of "terrorist sanctuaries" in the neighborhood.The two leaders nudged Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of the 26/11 attacks and pledged to continue to work together in combating the menace.

In his remarks, Krishna said the recent terrorist attacks in Afghan capital – Kabul -- highlighted the need for elimination of terrorist sanctuaries in the neighborhood and for Pakistan to take steps against terrorism, including bringing to justice the perpetrators of 26/11 attacks. He also stressed the need for stronger action from Pakistan on terrorism, including on bringing to justice the perpetrators of the Mumbai terrorist attack.

In April 2012, the United States offered a $10 million reward for information leading to the conviction of Saeed, the founder of the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

Afghan Problem

The vision for Afghanistan was also discussed at the meeting. India stressed the need for sustained international commitment to build Afghan capacity for governance, security and economic development, and to support Afghanistan with assistance, investment and regional linkages.

To ask India to “do more” on the Iranian issue, therefore, is not fair on the part of the United States. The US secretary of state should understand that if the US has to do all it can to safeguard its geo-political interests in the Afghanistan-Pakistan area, India, too, has its interests in Kabul which cannot be properly taken care of if New Delhi loses the Iranian link.

US Investment in West Bengal

Clinton’s offer to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to invest in West Bengal is, however, a welcome development. The state will also gain immensely once the issues between India and Bangladesh are settled conclusively. An agreement between the two neighbors on the Teesta River water issue could have been signed by now had Banerjee not taken a stand different from New Delhi’s line of thinking. But, as External Affairs Minister SM Krishna told his Bangladesh counterpart Dipu Moni, in New Delhi, efforts are on to bring the West Bengal Chief Minister to the view that the country’s overall interests must be given precedence over the state’s interest.

Earlier, the West Bengal chief minister had scuttled the United Progressive Alliance’s plans to allow Foreign Direct Investment in multi-brand retail, arguing that the move would destroy small businesses. The US secretary of state seems to have failed to force a change of heart in the feisty Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Issue of Oil Imports From Iran

The Damocles sword is still hanging on India. The United States gave no firm assurance to India that the proposed American sanctions will not apply to it for oil purchases from Iran even as New Delhi stated that the Iranian issue was not a source of discord between the two countries.

Continuing to resist American pressure over the matter, India also made it clear that it would abide only by UN Security Council sanctions against Iran and not those imposed by individual countries.

The US pressure on India regarding oil imports from Iran leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Does it not tantamount to interference in our internal affairs? As long as Manmohan Singh is the prime minister any directions of the United States in India's internal affairs and treaties like nuclear deal are cake walks.

In March 2012, the United States announced sanctions which threaten to shut out importers of Iranian oil from the US financial system unless they make significant and continuing cuts to their purchases by the end of June. Japan and 10 European Union nations have been granted exemption while India and China remain at risk.

In addition to its need for oil, there are two reasons why India must not take the US pressure lying down. India's only reliable land-route into Afghanistan and Central Asia runs through Iran. Moreover, the current US approach is likely to make the Iranian — and regional — security situation worse, not better. Saudi Arabia and Israel, which is already nuclear-armed, worry that a nuclear-capable Iran would tilt the regional balance and want the squeeze put on Iran. But too much financial or military pressure could backfire, goading the regime to commit to acquiring a strategic weapon — something it has not done until today.

India has demonstrated that it has come of age and stood its ground. Iran, despite its saber rattling, is a responsible power and we have a very useful conduit to their Leaders, which could be invaluable, when the World needs stability and growth. India must neither shut off Iran's oil imports nor Iran's access routes to Afghanistan and Central Asia. Pakistan can make overtures to a new relationship, but India cannot afford to alienate the country that can provide a counter balance to the Taliban-Pakistan nexus.

India has been firm in its foreign policy right since independence, and rightly so; we are a country with one of the fastest growing economy. We have recently done an arm deal which is considered world's biggest. We have to manage our allies ourselves. The Indian external affairs minister’s decision to disagree with Clinton and reminding her of India's interests in the region.

Assembly Elections in Five States

In a move that has apparently upset Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati’s electoral plans, the Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Assembly polls in five states, setting the stage for a key electoral battle that is bound to have a bearing on national politics.
The election to the 117-member Punjab Assembly will be held in a single phase on January 30 while Uttar Pradesh, which has a 403-member Assembly, will witness a seven-phase voting on February 4, 8, 11,15, 19, 23 and 28.
The elections in Uttarakhand will be held on January 30, Goa on March 3 and Manipur on January 28. Counting of votes will take place in all the five states on March 4.
The notification for the elections in Punjab will be issued on January 5, Uttarakhand on January 5, Manipur on January 4 and Goa on February 6. The notification for the elections in UP will be issued on January 10, 12, 16, 21, 25 and 28 and February 2 respectively, for the seven phases.
Model Code of Conduct
The model code of conduct has come into force with immediate effect. The election schedule is likely to affect the presentation of the Railway Budget and the Federal Budget for 2011-12. The budgets are normally presented in the last week of February, but this time the Model Code of Conduct will last till March 9. Asked whether the schedule will affect the budgets, Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi said: “That is something the government will have to take care of.”
In a first, the Electronic Voting Machine (EVMs) will have signs in Braille to facilitate the blind voters. The Election Commission has also introduced a toll-free number 1950 for redressel of complaints.
Cutting short the term of the Assembly by about two months could deprive Mayawati an opportunity to use her absolute majority in the House to boost her party’s strength in the biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha in April. The Congress is using all the forces at its command to improve its tally in the state.
The decision of the Centre to grant 4.5 per cent reservation to the minorities within the 27 per cent OBC quota is being seen as a clear move by the UPA government to woo the Muslims, who play a significant role in deciding the verdict in many constituencies in Uttar Pradesh.
The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), which wields considerable influence in western Uttar Pradesh, recently joined the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) which could boost the prospects of the Congress in UP.
In Punjab, it will again be a battle between the Congress and the Akali Dal-BJP combine while Uttarakhand will see a straight contest between the Congress and the ruling BJP, which had recently changed its chief minister to give an image makeover to the state government.
Misuse of Black Money
In an attempt to check the misuse of black money in the polls, the Election Commission has decided to appoint adequate number of expenditure observers and assistant expenditure observers who would exclusively monitor the expenditure of the contesting candidates.
For greater transparency and for easy monitoring by the Election Commission, candidates would be required to open a separate bank account and incur their election expenses for that very account. Comprehensive instructions for the purpose of effective monitoring of the election expenditure of the candidates, including formation of flying squads, video surveillance teams in the constituency and involvement of investigation directorates of the income tax department, have also been issued by the Election Commission.
To deal with ‘paid news’, monitoring committees have been set up at district, state and Election Commission levels and necessary instructions issued to the district election officers.
The Election Commission also conducted a meeting with director generals (Narcotics) of five states to prevent the use of drugs during voting period.
Quraishi said the election dates have been decided taking into consideration climatic conditions, academic schedules, festivals, law and order, availability of security forces, time needed for their movement and deployment and other ground realities.

Draft National Food Security Bill

The federal cabinet has approved the draft National Food Security Bill. It seeks to provide subsidized food grains to over half of India's 1.2 billion population. The bill is likely to be presented to parliament in the next few days and would be referred to standing committee. The food security bill promises 75 percent of rural population and 50 percent of urban households, the right to 7 kg food grains per person, at Rs.3 per kg for rice, Rs.2 per kg for wheat and Rs.1 per kg for coarse grains to the priority beneficiaries. The general category will be provided at least three kilograms of food grains per person per month at half the minimum selling price.The bill will also provide rations or cooked meals to children under 14 years of age, destitutes including women and persons on the margins of society. It is the pet project of the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council and was part of the Congress manifesto for the 2009 general election.The bill provides for cost-sharing to pacify the states, which will implement the law. The states have also objected over the authority to decide on the criteria to identify the beneficiaries.A three-tier grievance redressal mechanism at district, state and national level is also part of the legislation.Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar had expressed concern that food subsidy, currently at Rs.63,000 crore ($12 billion), may go up to Rs.1.2 lakh crore ($23 billion) if the bill is implemented. Rising fertilizer prices and the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of the grains was another concern. Sources said managing the fianances would not be a problem but procurement would have to be improved. It is estimated that against the current procurement levels of 54 millions tons, the requirement may go up to 62 million tons. Government food grain stocks in August 2011 were 61.27 million tons.
Benefit for Women and Children
About 2.25 crore pregnant women and lactating mothers are expected to benefit from the legislation that proposes to give Rs 1,000 per month for six months as maternity benefit. Maternity benefits that are available only in 52 districts will be extended across the country. All this is commendable but there is need for caution since the economy is showing signs of sluggishness. The budget deficit will need to be watched. Finding the money to fund the ambitious scheme would also be no mean task. With procurement of food grains required to rise from the current 54 million tons to 62 million tons, the Union government would be up against a major challenge especially in years of drought.
Aiming to empower women, the Bill also proposes that the ration card will be issued to the eldest female member of the family. The proposed Bill also holds great promises for children. Children in the lower and upper primary classes would be entitled to mid-day meals as per the prescribed nutritional norms.
The federal budget for 2011-12 had provided for Rs 55,586 crore for food subsidy. But while revised estimates are that the food subsidy bill this year will be around Rs 63,000 crore, the new law would require more food grains and a lot more money to implement.
Fears have been expressed that the new Bill, as and when enacted, will fuel both shortages and inflation. The fears are not misplaced because in August this year, the food grain stock with the government was 61.27 million tons, short of what will be required to implement the scheme. The annual procurement of food grains by the government stands at 54 million tonnes and will have to be raised to at least 62 million tons, if the scheme is to be implemented.
Antyodaya Anna Yojana
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar had warned that the government should be prepared for two successive years of drought before the scheme is rolled out.
The scheme was also opposed by several states, which apprehend food scarcity and higher food inflation as and when the Bill becomes the law. They had also objected to the discrepancy between the proposed central scheme and the existing Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAA) under which the poor are entitled to 35 kg rice at Rs 2 per kg. The Centre sought to go round the issue by raising the entitlement of everyone to 35 kg under the new, legal entitlement.
Other View
The proposed law aims to benefit 65 per cent of the population, which makes little sense unless the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government, by implication, is admitting that the vast majority, or two-thirds of the people of India, cannot survive without heavily subsidized food. Since that is not the case, it remains inexplicable as to why such a large number of beneficiaries are being targeted. While it makes sense to protect the poorest of the poor from hunger and malnutrition, it is absurd to extend the same benefit to those who can do without heavily subsidized food.
Moreover, there are three related aspects, apart from enhanced and ill-affordable subsidy, which merit comment. First, the demand for food grains will result in a shift in agricultural patterns across the country with farmers focusing entirely on rice and wheat. This is bound to cause a shortfall in pulses and cash crops. To meet that shortage, Government will have to resort to imports which, in turn, will fuel prices. Second, a scheme of this nature can be implemented only if there is a flawless storage and distribution system — since neither exists, implementation is bound to suffer. Third, the main problem with the NAC-conceived cockamamie schemes is that they are premised on the one-size-fits-all logic. There may be States which would rather spend the money on projects that can fetch long-term benefits and sustainable economic security for the poor.

New National Manufacturing Policy

Facing criticism over lack of decision making on economic issues, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government has approved its ambitious National Manufacturing Policy (NMP) that seeks to create a massive 100 million additional jobs in the manufacturing sector by 2025 as well as create large sized industrial zones with easier compliance and labor laws.
Enhancing Share of Manufacturing in GDP
The NMP seeks to enhance the share of manufacturing in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to 25 per cent within a decade and create 100 million jobs in manufacturing as part of the inclusive growth agenda of the UPA,
The new policy, cleared by the cabinet, seeks to boost the stagnating manufacturing sector to contribute at least 25 per cent of the national GDP by 2025. The policy has been discussed for almost a year but was stuck due to objections from the environment and labor ministries.
The share of manufacturing in India's GDP has stagnated at 15 to 16 per cent since 1980 while the share in comparable economies in Asia like China, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia is much higher at 25 to 34 per cent. Also, the manufacturing sector has a multiplier effect in creation of two to three additional jobs in the allied sectors.
The policy seeks to empower rural youth by imparting necessary skill sets to make them employable. Sustainable development and technological value addition in manufacturing have received special focus.
The policy envisages specific interventions broadly in the areas of industrial infrastructure development and improvement of the business environment through rationalization and simplification of business regulations. In addition, development of appropriate technologies, especially green technologies for sustainable development, and skill development of the younger population are envisaged.
National Investment and Manufacturing Zones
The policy will be a partnership between the central and state governments. The former will create the policy framework, provide incentives for infrastructure development on a public private partnership basis through appropriate financing instruments, while state governments will identify the suitable land and be equity holders in the National Investment and Manufacturing Zones (NIMZs).
Large scale China style industrial zones will be set up in the form of national investment and manufacturing zones — green field integrated industrial townships with a land area of at least 5,000 hectares. Industrial townships are proposed to be self governing and autonomous bodies and managed by a special purpose vehicle.
Seven regions under the Delhi Mumbai industrial corridor have been identified as NIMZ in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
While the NIMZs have been identified, the proposals apply throughout the country wherever industry is able to organize itself into clusters. The first phase of the NIMZ will be established along the Delhi Mumbai industrial corridor which will see early results in the next few years.
Improving Business Regulatory Environment
A defining feature of the policy has been the endeavor to improve the business regulatory environment by providing single window clearances. In order to protect the interests of labor in the eventuality of a closure of a unit, a suitable mechanism has been devised using innovative job loss policy and sinking fund to insure workers against such loss.
Green manufacturing has received a special attention. Also, small and medium enterprises will be given access to this patent pool up to a maximum of Rs 20 lakh for acquiring patented technologies.

Change of Reign in Uttarakhand: Khanduri Sworn in as Chief Minister

Major General Bhuvan Chander Khanduri (retired) has been sworn in as the sixth Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, replacing Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, who was dumped by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) high command, which is desperately looking to refurbish the party’s image for the forthcoming Assembly elections in the state.
Reason Behind Exit of Nishank
The departure of Nishank as the state’s chief minister of poll-bound Uttarakhand is a reminder that in politics, timing is everything, as is perception. It was primarily because of timing that the writer-turned-politician was shown the door so swiftly by the BJP. With Assembly elections just months away, the party thought a last-minute image makeover could turn the tide in its favor. Also, at a time when it is planning an all-out offensive against the UPA over corruption, the BJP felt Nishank could become a baggage, burdened as he is with an image of inefficiency amid allegations about corruption in his government.
Possibility of Midterm Polls
Senior BJP leader L K Advani is set to roll out his rath to take on the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) over corruption. The party hopes to build a nationwide movement amid a perception, right or wrong, that a midterm general election cannot be ruled out, and as such it cannot afford skeletons in its closet.
In the Uttarakhand BJP, known for infighting, many battles were fought between B C Khanduri and Bhagat Singh Koshiyari before Nishank took over -- ironically from Khanduri who has succeeded him now -- following the rout in the Lok Sabha elections. The two stalwarts have since buried the hatchet and joined hands in getting Nishank out of the way.
The 53-year-old debutant chief minister's style of functioning had led to many complaints. As for the allegations of corruption around his government, these range from irregularities in the award of hydroelectric power projects -- 56 of them had to scrapped after an uproar and resulted in a huge loss -- to a controversy over the change of the pattern of land use by a pharmaceutical company. There are, however, no allegations of corruption against Nishank specifically.
In the award of hydel projects, the allegation was that those who secured the contracts were not technically qualified and did not meet the terms and conditions. There were instances of some of them having allegedly furnished false addresses. Allegations of corruption also flew over Citurgia Biochemicals allegedly changing a land use pattern to facilitate a housing project.
"It is not just the issue of irregularities in award of hydro-electric projects. We have been alleging that there was misuse of funds allocated for organizing the Kumbh Mela and provided for disaster relief. Everybody knows about the land scam too," said T P S Rawat, who last month resigned from the BJP to float a regional outfit. Rawat said he had written to BJP chief Nitin Gadkari and Advani a year ago drawing their attention to corruption.
Nishank was called to Delhi several times and asked to work overtime to change the perceptions around him and the negative mood against the government. One complaint was that he had cornered most of the key portfolios. Nishank was directed to give up most of those and mend fences with Khanduri and Koshiyari, who wanted a person with an unblemished record at the helm.
The winds started blowing harder against Nishank about two months ago after Gadkari asked Rajnath Singh, aided by general secretary Dharmendra Pradhan, was sent to oversee election preparations in Uttarakhand. The feedback the two got was followed by a detailed survey. Sources said the findings were disappointing. The survey predicted "we would not fare well in the elections", a leader said.
The image of the BJP and the Nishank government had hit a low. He was inefficient, a Central leader said. Then there was the perception of corruption at all levels of government. "The common man had to pay a bribe at every walk of life. This is a reality," a party leader admitted.
Antyodaya Vikas Yatra
Yet Nishank, who has found support from Rajnath Singh and senior leader Arun Jaitley, as well as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, was confident. He had begun his campaign, launching his Antyodaya Vikas Yatra -- the third phase of which had begun just days ago. Amid all this came the exit of Rawat, an ex-servicemen who started attracting a large number of his supporters to his newly formed party.
When this was accompanied by speculation that Khanduri could follow suit, it forced the party to sit up and take notice. The party, which had already shown B S Yeddyurappa the door, acted at a time when Advani was set to start his yatra and Congress leaders were referring to Uttarakhand whenever the BJP attacked the UPA over corruption.
It is said that a change of guard would work in the party's favor, both at the national and at the state level.

New Land Acquisition Bill

Questions were often being raised with regard to the utility in present times of the 100-year-old act for land acquisition. Several efforts were made to change it, but those efforts could not take concrete shape.
The United Progressive Alliance government ruling at the federal level has taken a strong initiative in this direction. The draft of the Land Acquisition Bill was approved in the union cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on 5 September. Four major amendments have been made in it. The compensation for land acquired in urban areas has been made twice the market rate, while the same in rural areas has been made four times the market rate, whereas the National Development Council had recommended making it six times the market rate.
New Provisions
Projects linked to railways, canals, and power has been kept out of the bill's purview. It has also been provided that cultivable and irrigated land will not be acquired, and the same amount of land of the concerned district would be developed after acquiring. One important provision is also that if the acquired land is not developed within the stipulated time limit, the land would not be returned to farmers. Such land would be given back to state land authority.
The new provisions would also be applicable to past acquired land under dispute. Pressure from politicians and industrialists has also been paid attention to while preparing the draft of the bill. The stands of Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Bannerjee and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati have especially come to the fore. Mayawati had already prepared the draft of a separate bill, and she wanted it to be adopted at the national level. This did not become possible for several reasons.
Blows to State and Federal Governments
In fact, acquisition of land has become a sensitive issue. Agitations by landowners and farmers with regard to it and court verdicts have also dealt severe blows to the state and federal governments. Acquisitions were cancelled in many areas. The situation had become serious due to highhanded behavior of land mafia and state governments. Therefore, the necessity for a new law was being felt. The bill is yet to be discussed at length. We would also have to pay attention to interests of farmers and development works in it.

Assembly Election Results To Change India's Political Scenario

The assembly election results of four states and one union territory have been declared. These results can be harbingers of things to come. The results have proved to be good for the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), but they can prove ominous for the Congress. From the looks of it, except for Assam, the results of other states have not proved to be very good for the party, and not very successful. If this trend continues and the results of the coming elections in Uttar Pradesh (UP) turn out to be as disappointing, then it will be very difficult for the Congress to remain a major party. The reason for this is to maintain its strength in the states and have sufficient numbers.
Prestige Issue to Congress
The results of today's elections have given a blow to the Congress. This has been especially true of Andhra Pradesh (AP). Rajashekhara Reddy's wife and son have given a nasty shock to the Congress government and have exposed its tall claims. Only until yesterday the Congress was claiming that it will win the two seats in AP hands down. It was claiming these seats as theirs, especially the Cuddappa seat had become into a prestige issue to the Congress. But today, the election results have shattered its image. Keeping in mind to win these seats, Jagan and his mother Vijai Lakshmi played many tricks. They got many candidates with similar names of Jagan and Vijai Lakshmi to stand so that the voters got confused, and the Congress took full advantage of this confusion. But Jagan's immense popularity led to a large margin victory for Jagan and his mother.
In West Bengal, where the Left Front had been ruling for over three decades, the Trinamool Congress of Mamata Bannerjee sent Left parties packing and laid the foundation of a new history. Bannerjee, winning with a comfortable majority, has assured for herself the Chief Minister seat. She made a pact with the Congress. But for 90 percent of seats, the credit goes to her. Here also, the Congress was in the fray but it could not get much success.
Change in South
There has been a change in the administration in South India also, in the state of Tamil Nadu. Here Jayalalitha, by ensuring her victory over Karunanidhi, has made sure she becomes the chief minister. Here, A. Raja of the Dravida Munnetra Kazahagam (DMK) had to pay the price of being involved in the biggest scam of independent India, the 2G scam and other scandals. Otherwise also, Tamil Nadu had a trend of changing the government every five years, and the DMK and All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhakam (AIADMK) take turns in running the government every five years. While in West Bengal, the Left had to face defeat because of the mistake they have made in Nandigram and Sangrur, Left leaders have acknowledged the mistakes they have made.
In Assam, the Congress put up a good show, while in Puducherry, the party's record was not very good. In Kerala, the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) did not get any significant majority. In these elections, the most amazing aspect was that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been wiped out completely from these states and could not get even a single seat, except in Assam. The BJP has been wiped out clean from all these states though it proudly claims that it was the country's largest opposition party. This is a very embarrassing and shameful situation for the BJP. The biggest proof of this defeat is that people of this country have stopped thinking in communal terms in their agenda.
Constructive Opposition
Tamil Nadu took the blame for the defeat of the DMK and Karunanidhi's son, Abhigyan, resigned from the union government and has presented his resignation to DMK Chief Karunanidhi, the Left Front acknowledged its defeat and promised to work as constructive opposition.
During the elections, Mamata Bannerjee's fixation for the figure 13 was at its height. Coincidentally, this is the 13th year of the formation of the Trinamool Congress. Also 13 is the figure of Mamata's name numerological. She considers 13 to be lucky for her. Even the announcement of the election date was 13. All other predictions, except for West Bengal, turned out to be disappointing and the political scene changes. In such a situation, how all this would affect the federal government remains to be seen.

Anna Hazare's Movement Against Corruption

This second phase of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government is getting tough. Old issues started opening up soon after the beginning of the second phase. The BJP obstructed the winter session of Parliament. Budget session could continue because MP's had to draw their salaries. The cacophony of corruption to some extent got subdued by Manmohan Singh's cricket diplomacy. But since 5 April, social activist Anna Hazare set on fast-unto-death at the Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, crusading against corruption. Veteran activist Anna Hazare ended his 97-hour hunger strike on 9 April morning after the gazette notification constituting a joint committee for drafting the Lokpal Bill, printed at 0200, was handed over to him. Belonging to a small village of Maharashtra, Hazare has warned the union government to amend the draft bill relating to corruption.

Provision in Lokpal Bil

The draft bill says that the Lokpal (bill to prevent corruption) cannot function independently and cannot initiate probe at his own. He can dispose of cases referred to him by the Lok Sabha (Lower house of Parliament) and the Rajya Sabha (Upper house of Parliament) leaders pertaining to corruption and cannot impact on others.

It is also an irony that the recommendation of the Lokpal may not necessarily be accepted. Lokpal does not have powers to lodge First Information Report (FIR) for initiating investigation against the accused. Simply, the Lokpal can initiate investigation against MP's, ministers and even the prime minister but not against government officials. Whereas, the fact is that corruption moves on with active connivance of officials and politicians.

Another defect of the draft bill is that the prime minister's actions pertaining to defense, internal security, and foreign policies will be outside the ambit of Lokpal. History is evident that most scams take place in defense deals. It is amazing that the blackout has been done at a place where transparency is most required.

According to the Lokpal Bill, its members will come from retired judges and persons approved by selection panels. It gives room for suspicion that the government will fill up the office of Lokpal with people of its choice. On contrary, Hazare demands representation of people from the civil society to detect and address each aspect of corruption. The government denies any such instance where people outside Parliament have been involved in legislative work.

Demand of Situation

Since the country's independence, many big scams have taken place, but insignificant people were caught and the big fish went scot-free. For this, the government has lost the confidence of people in it. That is why in a split of seconds, Hazare's movement is being supported by the common men, intellectuals, industrialists, and other prominent personalities, even film stars.

In the past, no such movement was seen where people rose above the level of sections and groups.Corruption has become a trend in a country and common citizens are a tool for ransom in the hands of politicians. The country got a Messiah in the form of Hazare. The government should wake up and respond to the call of revolution.

WikiLeaks Revelations and BJP

The same Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which targeted the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government and demanded the prime minister's resignation, on revelations made by WikiLeaks relating to the cash-for-vote issue finds itself in a great quandary over the latest WikiLeaks revelations. While this provided great solace to the Congress, the BJP was forced to look the other way and to cut a sorry figure.

India-US Civil Nuclear Deal
In its latest expose, WikiLeaks has brought the BJP to stand trial. It can be safely assessed from the latest expose how greatly pro-United States the BJP is, which castigated the Congress and the UPA government toeing the US line. The fresh expose by WikiLeaks reveals that the BJP opposition to the India-US civil nuclear deal during 2008 was a mere ploy aimed at gaining political mileage out of the situation. According to WikiLeaks, BJP leaders had assured US officials that the BJP's opposition to the deal in public was only a political move, and the BJP was doing so to gain an upper hand over the UPA. The BJP leadership further assured the United States that should it come to power, it would do no harm to the India-US nuclear deal.

According to the expose, a member of the BJP executive committee and a prominent RSS leader Sheshadari, had told a US official in 2005 that the United States should not attempt to read between the lines to draw conclusion from the party's political resolution on foreign affairs. It is pertinent to note that the BJP in its above-cited resolution had accused the former UPA government of succumbing to US pressure, and following US dictates. While clarifying the BJP stand, Sheshadri told the US official that whatever was said in that resolution was merely to gain political mileage.

Deriving Political Mileage
One wonders that if the BJP was opposing the nuclear deal just for the sake of opposition, and to derive political mileage, was the BJP not misleading the country? True that after the Left withdrew support from the UPA on the issue of the nuclear deal with the United States, speculations on midterm election were rife, and the BJP was desirous of utilizing the opportunity to return to power at the central level. This attempt was clearly aimed at creating instability in the country, and forcing the nation to bear the huge expenditure of midterm election unnecessarily. At the same time, the BJP and the Sangh Parivar (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and its allies) continued to assure the United States clandestinely of their loyalty to the United States and support to the nuclear deal.

WikiLeaks has further revealed in the same vein that during 2009, the in charge of the US Embassy Peter Burleigh, after his meeting with L.K. Advani, informed Washington that the BJP leadership did not intend to pay greater attention to opposition to the nuclear deal yet again. The situation, emerging later, stands witness that though the BJP did not change its stance (of opposing the deal) in public, yet it never opposed it either.

This makes it clear that the same BJP, which goes all out against the UPA by accusing the government of being pro-United States, does not leg behind in US worship. The situation is a great solace for both the Congress and the UPA that it got an opportunity to beat the BJP with the same stick with which the BJP was beating it. It is, perhaps, because of it that the party (Congress) said, while reacting to the fresh expose, that it was the BJP's turn to be targeted. Congress spokesman Manish Tiwari sarcastically said that the BJP had taken the WikiLeaks expose as holy political scriptures, but the Congress attached no more importance to it than being mere speculation.

Matter of Grave Concern
It is, however, of no importance who won or who lost on this particular issue. The basic issue, however, is the WikiLeaks revelations, despite having several loopholes and contradictions. Some of the expose, despite having the possibility of being incorrect, is not entirely untrue.

If even an iota of the expose is based on fact or truth, it goes to prove that the BJP that cheated people on the nuclear deal, or the Congress may oppose each other, but both of them stand on the same plank in the matter of worshipping the United States. This kind of a situation is a matter of grave concern for the entire country indeed.

Popular Mind-Set on Corruption

After the complete washout of the winter session of Parliament, its budget session commenced on Monday. During the last session, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other opposition parties had created a ruckus on their demand for a probe in the 2G Spectrum scandal by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). The opposition did not let the two Houses of Parliament function. The entire session fell victim to chaotic din and uproar.

2G Spectrum Case
The government was endeavoring to ensure smooth functioning of the current session. It appeared almost certain that the government might concede the demand of a JPC to probe the 2G Spectrum case. With this in mind, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha convened an all-party meeting two days before the commencement of the session where, the prime minister, reportedly, accepted the demand of the opposition in principle. It is expected that on the very first day of the motion of thanks to the address by the president, the formation of the JPC may be announced and the budget session would be saved. If this takes place, it would certainly be a huge jolt to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), because the opposition may take it as its victory.

It is common knowledge that the opposition merely wanted to manifest its political strength and it succeeded in blackmailing the UPA in the name of the budget session. Further, it is clear that even if the JPC probes the 2G Spectrum case, it may not be able to give any major direction or make any startling revelation. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has already arrested former Communication Minister A. Raja in this case. Beside him, there are several other persons of high stature behind the bar. The Supreme Court, too, is rather active on the case. In this scenario, should a JPC be formed and commenced its probe, it would have an adverse impact on the corrupt and dishonest section in the country. Nor it would be able to prevent corruption in the future.

Preventing Malpractices
In a country where the society does not look down upon thieves and dishonest persons, such kind of malpractices cannot be prevented. In our society, people do not take a theft as a theft. One can see everywhere that power is being stolen as if the theft of water and power supply is no crime. Likewise, if traveling in buses and trains were considered, if there is no checking on a day, seventy percent people would travel without ticket. If there were a one Rupee coin lying on the road, dozens of persons would bend to pick that coin up. None would even think that the coin does not belong to him. In this country, things have come to such a pass that encroachment on public land is considered no crime; instead it shows one's muscle power. What one can expect then from public servants and officers? Even those considered to be honest use official phone for making personal calls free. They do not consider it a sin to take up private work during office hours and taking official stationery home for children. Coming late to office and sitting idle through the day, bureaucrats and the public servants take it as their birth right. In such a scenario, even if A. Raja were put behind bars for a few years, would it change the country?

The very same BJP, which is crying hoarse over corruption, is not clean itself either. One of its presidents was caught on camera while taking bribe. When the BJP was in power, taking commission in the purchase of arms and equipment had attracted limelight. The BJP appeared in its true color when it imprisoned journalists who had blown the lid off scandals. Recently, the Karnataka chief minister indulged in several malpractices. Yet, the BJP could not muster the least courage to take any action against him.

Only the future would decide whether the opposition members who stood up on their chairs during the last session of Parliament to raise slogans, were sincerely pained by corruption or they had demanded the JPC only to corner the government. There are no hopes that the country would be saved and no such scandal s would take place.

President's Address to Joint Session of Parliament
Addressing a joint session of the two Houses on the opening day of the budget session, President Pratibha Patil pointed out that a Group of Ministers (GOM) was considering the issue of tackling corruption, increasing transparency and using legal, administrative and other measures for the purpose. The GOM would submit its report soon. Referring to the black money stashed in foreign banks, the president stressed that the government would leave no stone unturned to bring that money back and to punish the guilty. She added that the government was fully aware of the bad effect the black money has on the economy. Such money relates to either avoidance of tax on money earned honestly or earned through illegal means. She said that to combat the menace, state governments and its agencies and the other agencies responsible for implementation of laws, would have to strive seriously and concertedly.

The president said that steps have been taken to facilitate exchange of information for tax purposes with countries where Indian nationals may have stashed their ill-gotten wealth. Yet, we all know it well that unless the deep-rooted dishonesty in the country is brought to an end, the government may not be able to combat such irregularities. There is the need to launch a concerted campaign against dishonesty in the country. There is need to inculcate a sense of honesty among the people. Unless this is done, we cannot get rid of corruption.

Railway Budget 2011-12

The Railway Budget for 2011-12 presented by Railway Minister Mamata Bannerjee for the next year is different in several aspects from the earlier budgets. Mamata, perhaps, set a record for her love for Bengal. Undoubtedly, former railway ministers also had paid greater attention to their respected states and constituencies. Prior to Mamata Bannerjee, Railway Ministers including Lalu Prasad Yadav, Ram Vilas Paswan, Nitish Kumar, Madhav Rao Scindia and others, had been gifting new trains to their states and constituencies. In this light, Mamata has done nothing wrong if she follows her predecessors.

Still, Mamata's her love for Bengal appears to have burdened her mind heavily. Perhaps, it is because the state assembly elections are due there shortly. Mamata appears to have prepared herself to uproot the decades old communist government in West Bengal and become the chief minister. The things have come to such a pass that she is being accused of carrying out work relating to her ministry from Kolkata. Under the circumstances, if Mamata has showered her love on railway passengers in West Bengal, it is not a surprise and is on expected lines.

Railways Income
Like all the previous rail budgets of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), there has been no increase in passenger fare this budget, too. While presenting the budget, Mamata claimed that the railways income would surpass all previous ones. As far as her proposals for West Bengal, are concerned, she has proposed to introduce fifty more local trains for Kolkata alone. Going by her proposal, Kolkata would enjoy the pride of having the largest number of local trains. In addition to these fifty local trains, she also proposed to make Kolkata the 17th zone for Metro rail, and expand its sphere of activity.

Mamata has further proposed to set up a coach factory in Kolkata. She has also promised to set up a similar coach factory at Singur. It may be noted that it is the very same Singur where Tata had proposed to set up his Nano small car factory. Mamata had, then turned it as an issue against the Communist government and had forced the Tata group to pack up from there. To make good the loss the people of Singur have suffered, she now announced to set up a coach factory there.

In addition, she also proposed to set up industrial parks at Bongaiguon (in Assam) and Nandigram (in West Bengal), a software center at Darjeeling and a track machine industry at Uluberia (West Bengal). A lion's share of the twenty hundred thousand new jobs, she has announced to create in her budget, would naturally go to West Bengal. Sixteen other trains would also pass through West Bengal. She has also announced to introduce new train service in the name of Swami Vivekananda and Rabindranath Tagore who happened to be from Bengal. She even included Bangladesh in her love for Bengal, when she announced a train up to Bangladesh. To give a fillip to the development activity in the Naxal (Maoist guerillas) infested areas, she announced to expand the rail network in these areas.

Attention to Vulnerable Sections
Despite her love for Bengal, Mamata has also paid attention to the vulnerable sections of the society in other parts of the country, the weaker sections, women folk, physically handicapped, former servicemen and their families, students and journalists and proposed numerous concessions for them. At the same time, she presented an attractive blue print to carry the railways forward. But, she is also accused of creating history by bringing the railways to the verge of bankruptcy.

Reportedly, the railways suffered a huge loss of Rs 250 billion because of her love of West Bengal. Senior Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Sita Ram Yechuri maintained that during the last 81 days, railways released 79 advertisements in West Bengal. These and her other such activities are causing loss to the railways.

In a nutshell, notwithstanding her several announcements for the rest of the country, if these proposals and announcements are compared with those for West Bengal, the balance would, naturally tilt in favor of West Bengal.

Wise, Brave Initiative of Congress

Communalism, corruption, terrorism and Naxalite (Maoist) violence are issues, which have not only hampered development and prosperity but have also vitiated national integration and unity. A country can be prosperous after passing through the process of development and burning issues like unemployment, poverty and backwardness can be solved when there is peace and fraternity and national unity. We can, in simple terms, call it our utter misfortune that despite the best efforts of the government some corrupt, vested interests and communal elements, are taking advantage of the weaknesses of laws and privileges of democratic rights, and spreading the venom of communalism in the country, which led to anarchy, civil war and disintegration.

Growing Problems
The country, at present, is passing though difficult times. New scandals, corruption, spreading violence and terrorism in the name of religion are coming to light almost every day. All this has not only brought Parliamentary system to an impasse, but has left the people are greatly frustrated and anxious. It is the bounden duty of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to salvage the country from this perilous situation and bring back on the right track, which has brought India a place of pride in the comity of the nations.

Since the present leadership, including the party president, Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, is extremely worried over the current situation, it had accepted the resignations of some ministers and chief ministers. It had even issued orders to get the 2G-spectrum allotment case investigated by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament under the supervision of the apex court. Yet, the opposition continued to insist on nothing short of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the issue and continued to create uproar so that Parliament could not transact any business for days.

All this demanded of the ruling party to take major measures. Going by the need of the hour, the ruling party did exactly the same thing. The party at its 83rd plenary session held at Delhi, not only sounded the bugle of war against corruption but accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Sangh Parivar, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its allies of striving to disintegrate the country, appealed to party activists and senior officials to be extra cautious about these forces and take them head on with al the might at their command. Calling for imposing a war on RSS activities, AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh, likened it with Nazis, alleging that it is indulging in massacre of Muslims. A political resolution was also approved at the plenary, which calls upon the government to deal with religious fundamentalism with a strong hand. It also demanded that the likes and relations between the RSS and its affiliated organizations with terrorists, be investigated thoroughly. Digvijay Singh alleged that the Rath yatra (chariot journey) undertaken by a senior BJP leader, L.K. Advani, was the bases of terrorism and accused both the BJP and the RSS that they "hate Muslims as much as Nazis, hates Jews."

Referring to the argument put up by the BJP that all the Muslims are not terrorists, but all the terrorist are Muslims, the AICC general secretary said that this logic can be advanced that all Hindus are not terrorists but all those persons arrested in the case of bomb explosions at various places are activists of the RSS. On Gujarat, the party has called on the government to get exemplary punishments announced in all perpetrators of irreparable genocide during Gujarat riots in 2002. The resolution maintains that the ruling of the high court does not condone those who brought down the Babari mosque in any way. They must be punished by all means.

2G Spectrum Scandals
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi alluding to the Commonwealth Games, Adarsh Housing Society and the 2G Spectrum scandals, said that Congress President Sonia Gandhi, has motivated us to fight against corruption. He added that any progress becomes meaningless sin, which the person standing at the last end of the queue does not get an opportunity to progress.

Describing the activists of the party as an important bridge between the Congress and the common man, Sonia Gandhi said that whether we are in power at the centre or in the states we must not forget that the government comes into existence through the party. Hence it devolves in the government and the officials in the government to pay greater attention to addressing the complaints of the workers. She maintained that corruption in such a menace, which is eating into the vitals of every section of our society it, is the common man who pays a heavy price for it.

Sonia Gandhi stressed that fast track courts must be set up to get the cases of corruption against politicians and bureaucrats. To bring transparency in contracts, she wanted that effective legislations and a clear line of action should be put in place. Complete security be provided to whistle-blowers in all such cases of corruption. She called on chief ministers and union ministers of the Congress to voluntarily surrender their right to allot land and. The government should fund elections.

Need of Common Man
Rahul Gandhi, general secretary of the party appealed that the party officials should give top priority to the need of the common man and added that the country's progress cannot be completed until we learn to respect the common man.

Though the top leadership of the Congress has strived to defuse the demand and the mood in the country on the demand of a JPC investigation it he case of recent corruption it remains a matter of conjecture as to how the union ministers, state ministers and others who are at the helm of affairs, succeed in implementing these directions and what stand does the opposition adopt in Parliament on the 2G Spectrum and other scandals.

Secular Pretence Exposes India's Weakness Before Pakistan

Pakistan is continuing its cunning maneuvers and India is constantly trying to improve relations under US pressure. Pakistan made the move for talks with US support in order to improve its image in the world.

It proved to be a mere sham in the long run. It was the Indian Government's weakness to deviate from its original resolve "not to have any discussions with Pakistan until it stops all anti-India activities on its soil."

Measures Against Terrorists
Pakistan's morale seems to have gone up by this change. It was elated that India had been caught in its trap. That is why Pakistan adopted a rigid stand in the dialogue. It neither gave up the Kashmir slogan nor did it make any commitment on taking stern measures against terrorists. Why does Manmohan Singh fail to realize that relationship with a country, which has always been hostile to India and has adopted the policy of humiliating and destroying it, can never be developed?

Because of India's weak policy and lack of determination, Pakistan repeatedly vents its anger on us and advises us to improve relations. A fitting reply can be given to Pakistan through determination and on India's own strength.

How can the United States pressure India into talks? No country can earn respect in the world by sacrificing its prestige for the sake of international relations. Has the prime minister forgotten this simple principle of foreign policy? Pakistan and the United States complement each other in their foreign policies and designs. Some time ago, US President Barack Obama had asked China to keep a watch on the situation in South Asian countries. Its direct implication was that China should mediate between India and Pakistan. Later, Pakistan's foreign minister said, during his visit to China, that Pakistan would welcome any role assigned to China to reduce tension between India and Pakistan. This mentality does not certainly go in India's favor.

Dancing to Tune of US
What is the point in dancing to the tune of the United States? It only reveals India's weakness. The United States is forming an equation with Pakistan to protect its own interests. But ignoring India's welfare and respect in this process can never be tolerated nor should the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government allow this.

That Pakistan had taken the dialogue lightly was evident from the meeting that Pakistani foreign secretary had with Hurriyat Conference leaders, blatantly just before the dialogue began. Was this not meant to irritate the Indian Government? What could be more ridiculous than the description of the dossiers handed over to the foreign secretary as "mere literature"? Pakistan was actually pretending to hold talks.

It was not at all serious about them. That is why, its foreign secretary had asked India not to make terrorism a part of the dialogue before he came to India. But terrorism and Pakistan's role in it are the main cause of tension between India and Pakistan. Having a dialogue without including them in the agenda can serve no purpose. Pakistan was not serious about the talks at any level nor was it eager for them to be conclusive. That is why the talks failed.

Resumption of Dialogue
Just two days before the resumption of the dialogue, Pakistan violated the cease-fire and started firing on the Samba region on the India-Pakistan border. Does this not prove that Pakistan's hostile mentality has not changed at all? On the other hand, the Taliban have beheaded two Sikhs for refusing to pay extortion money and to convert to Islam.

Another Hindu was abducted and a ransom of a hundred thousand rupees was demanded. The Manmohan Singh government did not refer to these atrocious activities in the dialogue. This silence exposes the secret of its "secular character."

As against this, the prime minister's reaction to the burning of churches in Orissa was quite different. After the ruthless murder of Swami Lakshmanand in Orissa, people went on a rampage and destroyed some churches and hurt Christians. The prime minister was in France at that time. But this did not stop him from describing these incidents as a "national shame". However, the same government fails to react to heinous activities like killings of Sikhs, demanding extortion money from them, compelling them to convert to Islam and abducting Hindus. What does it imply? Ignoring these happenings that occurred just before the resumption of the dialogue is in consequence with the government's secular thinking?

Its secular pretence was further exposed when the Congress party spokesperson stated that it was the government's responsibility to bring artist M.F. Hussain safely back to India, even though he paints obscene pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses! Contrary to this, the government compels Taslima Nasreen to leave the country repeatedly because she exposes the doings of fundamentalist clerics through her writings. How can such a hesitant secular government having a weak moral counter Pakistan's depravity?