Monday, March 31, 2014
Secular Front
AK Anthony asks left parties to join (support?) the Congress. Anything to deny Modi the PM's chair. To do that the Congress would have to get MSY, Behenji, Didi, Amma... on board? Who does the Congress have in mind to project as the prime-ministerial candidate? Is Rahul Gandhi stepping aside?
The Congress is saying, "You think 2009-2014 was bad? Wait till you see what we will do in 2014-2019. You ain't seen nothing yet!!!"
Ab Ki Bar, Modi Sarkar.
Uske Baad, Bar Bar Modi Sarkar!
The Congress is saying, "You think 2009-2014 was bad? Wait till you see what we will do in 2014-2019. You ain't seen nothing yet!!!"
Ab Ki Bar, Modi Sarkar.
Uske Baad, Bar Bar Modi Sarkar!
Friday, March 28, 2014
Should there Be A Modi-Kejriwal Debate?
The TV channels want it. No Surprise there. Modi's name will send TRP thru the roof.
Kejriwal wants it. Again no surprise. With Modi's name pulling in the audience, it will allow him to get his message at no cost. Of course, if he comes off second best, that will be because the media has been purchased.
But why should Modi want it?
Large crowds turn up for his rallies. He has a team that is out in the field, getting his message across. What more reach can a TV debate get him?
Modi is directly addressing the voters. The voters are the real judges. The Congress and the APP too are making their pitch. There is already a 24 x 7 debate taking place across media, across the country. So why have a 60 minute TV "debate"? On voting day the people of Varanasi will decide who won the debate.
Kejriwal wants it. Again no surprise. With Modi's name pulling in the audience, it will allow him to get his message at no cost. Of course, if he comes off second best, that will be because the media has been purchased.
But why should Modi want it?
Large crowds turn up for his rallies. He has a team that is out in the field, getting his message across. What more reach can a TV debate get him?
Modi is directly addressing the voters. The voters are the real judges. The Congress and the APP too are making their pitch. There is already a 24 x 7 debate taking place across media, across the country. So why have a 60 minute TV "debate"? On voting day the people of Varanasi will decide who won the debate.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
India-China War of 1962: The Maxwell Papers
The Henderson-Brooks report has once again been selectively leaked by Neville Maxwell - an Australian journalist. The report was authored by Lieutenant General Henderson-Brooks and Brigadier (later Lieutenant General) Bhagat, VC. The inquiry was commissioned in 1963, by the then Chief of The Army Staff, General JN Chaudhuri.
The contents of the report, even today, are described by the Government of India (GoI) as " ... not only extremely sensitive but are of current operational value, ...".
Of what operational value could it possibly be? I am sure the report talks of the state of our lack of training for high altitude warfare, our weaponry, our equipment, our lack of logistic support, the politicization of the chain of command, ... These could only be of "current operational value", if India's operational state and plans remained as they were 50 years ago! In any case these have been known and written about by many people. Its hard to imagine what possibly the Henderson-Brooks report could add to what is already known about operational details. The higher command and control deficiencies too have been written about. An assessment of the current deficiencies is the K. Subrahmanyam Committee report on the Kargil war. That report is in the public domain. So why not declassify the Henderson-Brooks report?
Is Nehru's reputation being protected? Even an admirer like MJ Akbar says, "The humiliation of 1962 was primarily the fault of Jawaharlal Nehru" (pg 535 of "Nehru: The Making of India", Roli Books). The quote is the second sentence of the chapter titled, "China: A Stab from the Front". MJ Akbar does not consider that Mao stabbed Nehru in the back. Whatever is being talked about the "forward policy" today is covered in the chapter. It is also covered in today's ToI.
Nehru, Menon, Kaul, Mullick, all have had their reputations tarnished. All are dead. If there are still any hidden culprits, they would be insignificant players. Besides, they too would be nearing the end of their days. Reputations are not being preserved by not declassifying
Nehru has been held guilty of the debacle for a long time. The Henderson-Brooks report could not make him any more guilty. Will it affect the Congress Party? I doubt it. If it could damage the Congress, the BJP would have declassified it when they were in power. The BJP is now saying that they will declassify the report once they are in power. I doubt if they will.
I suspect, the report contains, or points to, material that is inimical to our position on the border issue. That is why the BJP too will not declassify the report.
AG Noorani, in his book "India-China Boundary Problem, 1846-1947 History and Diplomacy", provides a well documented history of the problem. After reading the book, I for one am convinced that Nehru should not have treated the border as having any historical sanctity. The Indian nation, as we know it today, did not exist prior to 15Aug1947. The Chinese government came to power in 1949, after defeating the KMT government of Chiang Kai Shek. Any boundary agreements made between predecessor states would just be pieces of paper. More so, if we took no measures, or were not capable of taking measures, or did not intend to take measures, to demonstrate that we held the border. We should have negotiated in good faith.
It is time we revisited the border problem. Today's first editorial in the ToI says: "Declassifying the report, following recommendations of the 2006 Veerappa Moily commission, will be an opportunity to revisit past China policy which should now hinge on a more flexible approach to the border dispute. Instead of displaying unbending cartographic nationalism, New Delhi must take up the old Chinese proposal on a territorial swap involving eastern and western sectors. A pragmatic negotiating position, built by political consensus, should settle the dispute once and for all."
The catch is in "political consensus". I think "unbending cartographic nationalism" will prevent the declassification of the Henderson-Brooks report.
The contents of the report, even today, are described by the Government of India (GoI) as " ... not only extremely sensitive but are of current operational value, ...".
Of what operational value could it possibly be? I am sure the report talks of the state of our lack of training for high altitude warfare, our weaponry, our equipment, our lack of logistic support, the politicization of the chain of command, ... These could only be of "current operational value", if India's operational state and plans remained as they were 50 years ago! In any case these have been known and written about by many people. Its hard to imagine what possibly the Henderson-Brooks report could add to what is already known about operational details. The higher command and control deficiencies too have been written about. An assessment of the current deficiencies is the K. Subrahmanyam Committee report on the Kargil war. That report is in the public domain. So why not declassify the Henderson-Brooks report?
Is Nehru's reputation being protected? Even an admirer like MJ Akbar says, "The humiliation of 1962 was primarily the fault of Jawaharlal Nehru" (pg 535 of "Nehru: The Making of India", Roli Books). The quote is the second sentence of the chapter titled, "China: A Stab from the Front". MJ Akbar does not consider that Mao stabbed Nehru in the back. Whatever is being talked about the "forward policy" today is covered in the chapter. It is also covered in today's ToI.
Nehru, Menon, Kaul, Mullick, all have had their reputations tarnished. All are dead. If there are still any hidden culprits, they would be insignificant players. Besides, they too would be nearing the end of their days. Reputations are not being preserved by not declassifying
Nehru has been held guilty of the debacle for a long time. The Henderson-Brooks report could not make him any more guilty. Will it affect the Congress Party? I doubt it. If it could damage the Congress, the BJP would have declassified it when they were in power. The BJP is now saying that they will declassify the report once they are in power. I doubt if they will.
I suspect, the report contains, or points to, material that is inimical to our position on the border issue. That is why the BJP too will not declassify the report.
AG Noorani, in his book "India-China Boundary Problem, 1846-1947 History and Diplomacy", provides a well documented history of the problem. After reading the book, I for one am convinced that Nehru should not have treated the border as having any historical sanctity. The Indian nation, as we know it today, did not exist prior to 15Aug1947. The Chinese government came to power in 1949, after defeating the KMT government of Chiang Kai Shek. Any boundary agreements made between predecessor states would just be pieces of paper. More so, if we took no measures, or were not capable of taking measures, or did not intend to take measures, to demonstrate that we held the border. We should have negotiated in good faith.
It is time we revisited the border problem. Today's first editorial in the ToI says: "Declassifying the report, following recommendations of the 2006 Veerappa Moily commission, will be an opportunity to revisit past China policy which should now hinge on a more flexible approach to the border dispute. Instead of displaying unbending cartographic nationalism, New Delhi must take up the old Chinese proposal on a territorial swap involving eastern and western sectors. A pragmatic negotiating position, built by political consensus, should settle the dispute once and for all."
The catch is in "political consensus". I think "unbending cartographic nationalism" will prevent the declassification of the Henderson-Brooks report.
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