Political Dramas Occupy Centre-Stage

Referring to the new development in the 2G spectrum scam in the light of the revelation made in the note of the Finance Ministry (which is now known to be an inter-ministerial background paper on 2G), a pertinent query was raised in these columns last week: “Does this presage a brewing conflict within the UPA?†Thereafter it was observed:

“Perhaps a new drama is about to unfold in New Delhi’s corridors of power.â€
That is precisely what happened in the last few days. From all available indications it was turf war between the Union Finance and Home Ministers against the backdrop of the 2G scam.

As we go to press, there have been several high-level meetings in the Capital today to defuse the crisis. The Finance Minister has clarified that what was considered to be a note of the Finance Ministry was actually a background paper on 2G prepared not by the Finance Ministry alone since there were important inputs in it from the Prime Minister’s Office and Cabinet Secretariat as well as the Law Ministry. Pranab Mukherjee had a two-hour meeting with Congress President Sonia Gandhi in the morning; this took place in the presence of Defence Minister A.K. Antony and Sonia’s Political Secretary Ahmed Patel.

In the afternoon Pranab and P. Chidambaram together met the PM at 7 Race Course Road after which Pranab read out a statement outside the North Block; the statement was nothing new—a reiteration of what he had said earlier: (a) the so-called note was an inter-ministerial background paper on 2G; (b) the paper was prepared not just by his Ministry but jointly by other Ministries and departments including the PMO; (c) the Telecom policy of UPA-2 is the same policy as that crafted by the previous NDA Government in 2003-04. After Pranab read out the statement Chidambaram said he accepted it and opined that the matter stood closed for now. However, observers feel that the issue would continue to haunt the UPA-2 Government in the coming days, especially when the matter comes up before the Apex Court on October 10; it is then to be seen what position the highest court in the land takes on the subject. In the meantime the Opposition, notably the BJP, has only sharpened its attack on the government at the Centre concentrating attention on the need for Chidambaram to tender his resignation from the Home Ministry at the earliest.

So contrary to what the Home Minister has stated, the matter has not been closed. The Congress and the Union Government, which have enormously suffered in the last few days on this count, would have to face more music in the immediate future. The drama promises to persist. As a well-known TV anchorperson pointed out, “You can’t heal a fracture by applying band aid.†And some analysts believe, this is the beginning of the end for those currently in power.

Meanwhile procrastination by the Centre is causing immense harm to Andhra Pradesh were the mass demand for a separate Telangana State has assumed serious proportions with strikes and dharnas spearheading the demand entering the 17th day; this movement has crippled life and affected livelihood in large parts of Andhra, including the capital Hyderabad. The latest news from the ruling Congress at the Centre is that the party High Command will take a call on the issue shortly; but this is no guarantee that the ruling party and Central authorities would not henceforth continue to drag their feet on this crucial decision.

At another end of the spectrum the drama in the J&K Assembly on September 28—when a resolution urging for clemency for death-row convict Afzal Guru, involved in the terrorist assault on Parliament at the end of 2001, could not be adopted due to the BJP and Congress members almost coming to blows on account of their political differences (while the National Conference and PDP passively watched the fracas)—has led to public protests outside the State Aseembly today with the mover of the resolution himself sitting on a dharna in protest against the behaviour of all the parties which, in his opinion, had conspired to block the resolution. Incidentally, the views of State CM Omar Abdullah on the subject are highly noteworthy—he felt the execution of Guru will give a renewed spurt to militancy in the Valley as had happened after the hanging of militant leader Maqbool Butt in Delhi’s Tihar Jail in the mid-eighties. He also stressed his opposition to capital punishment as it lends an aura of martyrdom to the victim as was the case with Butt.

In this connection what needs to be brought into focus is the fact that Afzal did not get adequate legal assistance in the initial stages of the hearing when the case took shape. Secondly, he was convicted on the basis of prima facie evidence with the judge asserting that in order to satisfy the “collective conscience†of the nation Guru’s sentence must be carried out!

As such dramas on the political front occupied the centre-stage, they overshadowed the PM’s UN speech which sounded refreshingly new; after ages one heard the voice of Gandhi and Nehru’s India which had solidly stood behind the Palestinian cause without any measure of equivocation. Dr Manmohan Singh’s advocacy of a strong and effective UN without giving any quarter to other forces to act on its behalf (as had happened in Iraq and Afghanistan in the recent past) was also most timely and useful. His decision to visit Iran too was welcome in the prevailing circumstances. The PM’s pronouncements were of utmost significance; these were definitely comparable with the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas’ outspoken observations in the General Assembly that have been widely commented upon.

September 29 S.C.