Daily Excelsior... Editorial

EDITORIAL

A terror tool?

Dig them out

Caste conundrum

By Kedar Nath Pandey

Strength and weakness
of Cong, BJP

By Arun Nehru

To the last man

By Maj Gen Goverdhan Singh Jamwal

EDITORIAL

A terror tool?

The Kot Bhalwal jail in this city had got extraordinary attention in 1999. It was from this high-security prison that Maulana Masood Azhar, the Pakistan-based high priest of terrorism, was set free to secure the release of hijacked passengers of Indian Airlines (now Indian) Flight 814. Off and on this well fortified lock-up makes news for one misadventure or the other by its inmates the majority of whom are believed to be terrorists. Presently the alarm bells are ringing with the recovery of two mobile telephones --- one from a militant and the other from an undertrial in a murder case. The authorities are reported to have directed prisoners to surrender their instruments and other undesirable material including drugs. It is intriguing that they should wait for the festival season to end before carrying out frisking operations. Such an advance notice is unnecessary in the case of those who have no respect for human life. There can be no sympathy for perpetrators of terror and dealers in narcotics. They ought to be dealt with firmly. One hopes that the misuse of cell phones does not lead to any hasty decision to impose a blanket ban on them in sensitive places. There is need instead to study the phenomenon in depth. The world is already seized of the matter and is veering around to the view that a mobile phone is a double-edged weapon: it may come in handy for a criminal but it can also pave the way for his immediate exposure. Quite a few experts think that it is more an anti-terrorism device than the one prone to abuse. What should be remembered is that it is an essential component of the current information age. The citizens require it to stay connected in a life that appears to have no full stops. As they can't stop walking on roads for fear of militants they can't cease to employ cell phone for any reason --- real or perceived.

An adverse situation can be tackled with a little more care. Security and intelligence agencies, for instance, have already done well in the State to sound a warning that these tiny implements may be fitted with guns, remote-controlled bombs and biological agents. These threats can be overcome by using anti-sabotage check and access control (ASCAC), X-ray and Restriction-based Mobile Use (RBMU). With advancement of technology in the country the militants may also conceive its exploitation for their wicked end. They have already done it elsewhere. It is generally believed by now that the terrorists had used remote-controlled cell phone bombs in Bali (Indonesia) to kill 202 people, create panic at a hotel in Jakarta (also in Indonesia) and trigger serial train blasts that had eliminated 191 persons in Madrid (Spain). The Israeli army is said to have twisted cell phones to its advantage to get the better of its bitter rivals in the Hamas militant group. There has been a stunning disclosure about affiliates of terrorist organisation Hezbollah cloning the mobiles of senior executives of a Canadian communication operator. This is a telling example of audacity and capability of terror groups. In the State the militants particularly the foreign mercenaries may be learning a trick or two from their better equipped and trained counterparts in other countries. Who can deny this?

However, there should not be any cause of despair. Like every technical innovation mobile phones cut both ways. But for them many innocent persons and moving tales would have remained buried in the 9/11 debris of Manhattan. People and the security forces can overcome the challenge by mutual trust and cooperation. It would help if occasional sessions are held to brief the citizens about the features of mobile phones and changes they undergo regularly with the progress of expertise. It entails that the uniformed men themselves are in touch with the latest developments in this behalf. Often it is said that the militants step up infiltration when the snow melts in summers. One should not overlook the fact that the snow melts for the security forces too to stop them in their tracks. The same logic applies to mobile phones. They may be terror tools. But they can be terror killers too. They can be only as good or bad as their users.

Dig them out

The curtain has not yet been rung down on the process of recovery of unauthorised weapons on either side of the Pir Panjal. This week has begun with security forces finding a large quantity of arms and ammunition from three different places in Rajouri, Poonch and Udhampur districts. Chinese pistols, grenades and Kalashnikov ammunition are among the armaments that have been seized. In addition, five detonators wrapped in a newspaper have been found near Patnitop on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. There is every possibility that by the time these lines are published more such material may have been discovered. It has been widely acknowledged that the quantity of deadly objects detected in the State during the last 16 years may be enough to fight at least two if not more "mini wars". It is not for nothing that Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil has asked the country to be prepared to meet any eventuality in the war against terrorism. Foreign mercenaries pursing a global agenda continue to get their supplies from forces inimical to this country and their motivated patrons. There are no conflicting opinions about this. One does not notice any let-up in Pakistan's scheme to keep using the local youth as cogs and fodder in its terror machine. It is evident from the benefaction it has extended to Hizbul Mujahideen supremo Syed Salahuddin. Ironically it has done so even while completely disagreeing with him on the approach to be adopted vis-à-vis the State. A silver lining is that the other "homespun" militants have become wiser. No more are they enamoured of Pakistan and its sops in the name of "freedom" and "religion". They have clearly seen through the game of those wielding influence in Islamabad and Muzaffarabad in their name. Their wire-pullers revel in luxuries while pushing them into death trap.

Nevertheless the arsenals around us --- hidden or otherwise --- pose a serious problem. They may be used to settle mutual scores. Their availability can tempt contending parties to literally fight for lucrative contracts. Already a grave suspicion persists that they have been used during the militancy to benefit one business person or the other by imposing indiscriminate bans. Therefore, it is absolutely essential to dig them out. There is no place at all for them in a civilised society.

Caste conundrum

By Kedar Nath Pandey

There is the clamour by the 'social justice parties' for challenging the Supreme Court order barring the "creamy layer" among scheduled castes and scheduled tribes from the quota regime. At the same time, since the present Congress-led government at the Centre has many social justice parties - sensitive to quota politics - as its crucial allies, the establishment managers are mentally prepared to face strong demands for a legal challenge or legislative counter-move in the form of a constitutional amendment bill to nullify the court order. In fact, the electoral compulsions of the Congress itself have already resulted in a section of its leaders asking the Government to take on the court. Those amongst the SC/ST who really deserve the benefits of the quota regime have been sidelined, and the beneficiaries are from the "creamy layer".

Is there a secular trend of decline in the strength of caste in Indian society? My assessment is that there is, although one cannot be categorical because there are many counter-currents that act against the main current. Further, I believe that the trend of change towards the weakening of caste began during the British rule around the middle of the 19th century and has continued, with many ups and downs, till the present. This view is at odds with the current enthusiasm for identity politics in which signs of the growing importance of caste are seen as indications of a progressive movement towards the attainment of social justice.

Of course, the desire for upper caste status waned after 1950 when the constitution granted 22.5 per cent reservations in government jobs to SC/STs. Forward castes disapproved of reservation as they were denied a chunk of sinecures that would have been theirs in an open competition; but they nonetheless tolerated quotas as necessary to balance the historical resourcelessness and disabilities of these groups.

However, public disaffection grew when reservations were extended to prized seats in prestigious engineering and medical colleges, and merit was compromised by sharply reducing the qualifying marks for SC/ST candidates. This made a mockery of degrees and did not empower the SC/ST candidates, as they often failed in the examinations and had to drop out of the courses midway.

Public anger at the chicanery of politicians came to a boil with the acceptance of the Mandal Commission Report by the then prime minister VP Singh, which overnight doubled the quantum of reserved posts. In the dozen years since, several leaders have feebly mooted extension of reservations to the economically needy among the forward castes.

Even as political parties struggle to articulate their stands, social scientists would do well to examine the issue before we are pushed through another round of vote bank appeasement. It would be pertinent to remember that when the Mandal Commission Report finally became public after a decade-long hibernation, all leading sociologists and experts associated with the Commission dissociated themselves from the report's conclusions and questioned its methodology. The scientific classification of social groups is too sensitive a matter to be left to politicians.

As reservations are intimately linked to caste, a deeper understanding of the working of caste in its contemporary setting is necessary before we aggravate social discontent by willy-nilly expanding the reservation pie. One can see several potential sources of disaffection on the horizon. For instance, given the fact that government jobs are shrinking and the privatisation of the public sector has gone too far to be reversed, politicians may be tempted to spring a nasty surprise in the form of reservations in the private sector.

In the intensely competitive global environment, such a short-sighted move could do untold damage to commerce and industry. The large multinationals would instantly quit the country unless exempted from this Indian disease. The already unimpressive FDI inflows would dip further, as managers fumble with caste certificates in place of the good old marks or grades. Literally, every shopkeeper would be open to harassment from "caste inspectors", and the confusion in the economy would rival the legendary Tower of Babel. Obviously, the situation would be too terrible to countenance.

In principle, reservations for the economically needy seem unexceptionable, but they would be impossible to implement in practice. Prima facie, every young man or woman eligible and desirous of a job is economically needy, for the simple reason that even affluent middle class families do not have the resources to indefinitely support adult children who do not work.

In the case of the upper castes, how is economic need to be defined? Would we simply identify certain gotras among Brahmins and Rajputs as needy, or would we include all families that fall outside the criteria identified by the Finance Ministry for filing income tax returns (such as ownership of a telephone for pun)? And who will certify the candidate as genuine? A new mountain of corruption will open up in the form of a "certificate industry," which will be utterly disproportionate to the number of upper caste youth securing government employment through reservations. It is a completely unworthy exercise.

The time has also come to re-examine the whole issue of social and educational backwardness as a criterion for reservations. The very term "educational backwardness" is an anachronism in a nation committed to the goal of universal education. Since jobs are ultimately given to individuals and not to groups, and no one can hold a job for which he/she is not qualified, the claim of educational backwardness is odd, to say the least. Yet it is a claim bandied without embarrassment by families and groups that wilfully refrain from taking the benefits of available educational opportunities. It is high time we put paid to such perfidy.

The claim of 'social backwardness' by the OBCs is equally phoney, and several studies have ably documented the political and economic power of leading castes in this category. In the modern world, caste is no longer the organising principle of society - it does not determine occupation; it does not restrict the choice of marriage partner. At best, it bequeaths a surname, a sense of identity/community, and an assured vote bank during elections.

In the past few years, new States have been carved with tribals constituting the majority population and thus wielding political clout. Their historical problems of neglect and exploitation can thus be expected to be taken care of over a period of time. 'Social backwardness' then may be said to be confined to SC individuals who are still denied entry to village temples. But they are seldom the beneficiaries of reservations. INAV

Strength and weakness of Cong, BJP

By Arun Nehru

We have three crucial Assembly elections in UP, Uttaranchal Pradesh and Punjab and as we analyze these states it is also necessary to assess the strength and weakness of the two major players [Congress and the BJP] as they struggle with leadership issues. The Congress have 'Dynastic' issue and sadly Dynastic rule has everything to do with the interest of family members but little in terms of competence, ability and political skill and clearly Sonia Gandhi is 'struggling' and Rahul Gandhi shows reluctance to move forward and identify himself with the masses. The Congress has 135 MP's and for the other 135 MP's necessary for governance it needs the Left, RJD, NCP, DMK, JMM and as we reflect on the future it would be necessary to follow the political moves of Sharad Pawar and Lalu Yadav along with the DMK leaders and each one exerts their influence and the 'Dynastic' shadow and influence does not extend to area's controlled by their 'partners'!

Cabinet expansions and other political appointments are delayed as the 'allies' want a equal share and Coalition politics is all about 'power' sharing and distribution of assets.

There are also dangerous floaters like the BSP who can travel in any direction [acceptable to all] and clearly if the Congress is unable to expand beyond 135 seats and the BJP dip to below 100 seats we are looking at a situation where the PM will come from the Third Front. The Congress struggle with mediocre leaders [ability will be tested in UP] and the BJP struggle with their inability to deciede on leadership issues for the future. Intense power struggle in the 'second rung' has little value as most lack public support and I think the BJP will have little option but to select one of their successful CM'S to lead for the future. Narender Modi in Gujarat and Vasundra Raje in Rajasthan will head the race for the future as 'probables' and the Gujarat CM will be the favorite in terms of ability and competence.

The Uttaranchal Pradesh election is a classic situation where the Congress/BJP fight for 'honours' but I think both parties may well be surprised by the BSP and the UKD numbers [last election they won 7 and 4 seats out of 70 and this time they could win 12 and 6 seats] and we may well see a 'Coalition' pattern emerging in the State. Election trends favor the BJP as anti incumbency trends persist and the CM Narain Dutt Tewari is a very 'reluctant' campaigner and his constant attempts to 'resign' indicate that all is not well with the Congress. The trend in the last Lok Sabha election were dismal with the Congress trailing in 49 out of 70 seats and this performance may well repeat. The Congress have Harish Rawat MP who has considerable influence in the Hill area's and the Congress won 29 out of 49 seats in Almora, Bageshwar, Pitthoragarh, Chamoli and Tehri but differences between him and the CM have persisted over two decades and this is unfortunate. The future is relevant and Harish Rawat MP has a very decisive role if the Congress is to come within 30 out of the 70 seats in this Hill state. The BJP have several leaders and internal dissension within their ranks and much will depend on correct and fair 'ticket' distribution. Mayawati and the BSP have a important role here and if her share increases from 7 to 12 then little will happen without her consent and she can travel in either direction! The BJP/Congress cannot take the situation for granted and events in UP may influence events in the State as the BSP/SP fight for control.

Punjab and the situation is critical for the Congress and the pattern emerging for the 117 member Assembly is changing rather quickly in favor of the Akali Dal . My earlier assessment was a 'close fight' but the Congress may well be heading for a 'rout' and estimates of the tally vary from 20 to 30 seats! The Congress have a tradition of internal dissent [Akali Dal have a similar problem] but the assessment of 30 seats comes from the hard core loyalists and this is disturbing. The BJP have a limited role but they have a super star in Navjot Singh Sidhu and Vinod Khanna has won three hard fought elections from Sukhban Kaur of the Congress who is a formidable opponent [ currently in the Rajya Sabha] and will have a role to play in his area. The CM Amarinder Singh is clearly under 'siege' and sadly financial scandals linked to close associates can lead to present and future complications and hopefully we will not be witness to a series of future vendetta's if the Government has to change. A more detailed survey is necessary but things look difficult for the Congress and things can worsen if the BSP fights elections in the State.

Security issues dominate the public mind and it is sad that there should be confusion on the role of the ISI as contradictory statements are issued by those in governance and it is apparent that global pressure is being exerted to continue the 'peace talks' with Pakistan.

We now see infiltration in the Armed forces by the ISI and as we continue with our policy of a 'soft state' things will get worse by the day and infiltration levels will increase by the day in other fields of governance. We are taking security issues for granted and it is not the Government alone who is responsible for this inaction. Hundreds are killed and thousands injured and sadly these incidents will become a part of a negotiation agenda in future peace talks. Pakistan is a ally of the USA for their security needs but will the USA follow a similar policy if their security is threatened? We are a weak Government and our 'softness' will continue to attract terrorist activity and we will keep talking in terms of giving compensation to those killed and wounded instead of taking the attack to the sources of these terror attacks. There is a limit to vote bank politics.

To the last man

By Maj Gen Goverdhan Singh Jamwal

Maharaja Hari Singh ordered "Brig Rajinder Singh is commanded to hold the enemy at Uri at all costs and to the last man". On 27 Oct. 2006 the grateful nation pays homage to the saviour of Kashmir, Brigadier Rajinder Singh who had laid down his life on 27 Oct 1947 while fighting the invaders at Rampur Buniyar in Uri Sector but ensured the State was saved within a few hours of his death the Indian Army had landed at Srinagar Airport and continued the task he had undertaken on 23 Oct.1947. He had provided four days to Maharaja Hari Singh to arrange accession to the Indian Union and also to move the Indian Army to Kashmir. He thus became the recipient of the first gallantry award of Independent India, a matter of pride for the State.

Although sixty years have passed yet the people of the State are embroiled with Kashmir problem. The whole of India has been bleeding through the wars of 1947-48, 1962,1965,1971 and the Kargil war besides the present militancy perpetrated since 1989 without an end. It may be worthwhile to recount the 1947 scenario when Brig Rajinder Singh was ordered by Maharaja Hari Singh to hold the enemy at Uri at all costs and to the last man.

Brig Rajinder Singh had taken over as Chief of Army Staff of J&K State which was an independent country after 15 August 1947, from Maj Gen HL Scot. When Pakistan suddenly attacked Muzaffarabad on the night of 21/22 Oct 1947 he decided to lead from the front at the head of a small force of a company, the smallest fighting units as his ancestors, General Zorawar Singh and General Baj Singh had done in the mould of Nepoleon and Rommel to first identify the spot and be there. He knew the political situation as well as total military scenario at that time. His entire state forces, all the nine battalions, had been deployed from Kathua to Ladakh along 800 Kms of border. He had no reserves (compare it with the present deployment of armed and Para military forces in the State). He could no fall back upon any other country, for India had refused to enter into a stand still agreement and Pakistan, who had accepted it, had attacked the State, what could he do? It was a Jafna like situation of today. Under the circumstances the only option he had was to go as far forward as possible and delay the enemy long enough to enable the Maharaja to accede to the Indian Union and arrange reinforcement from the Indian Army not only for Uri front to save Kashmir, which was, of course, of prime and immediate concern being the summer capital and seat of the Govt. at that time, but also to save the entire State. He chose the right course.

On 22nd Oct'47 whens the news came that Muzaffarabad had fallen without a fight due to the treachery of his own men and there was nothing to stop the enemy reaching Srinagar, he collected soldiers from the rears left by the units at Badami Bagh Cantt and proceeded with eighty men of Ist J&K Infantry on the same day towards Muzaffarabad. The rest is a history. It was this decision that turned the tables against Pakistan. It was revealed in an enquiry held by Pakistan about the failure of the invasion that Pakistan had never thought that Chief of Army Staff will himself lead an adhoc force of 80 people to change the course of the history, in fact the geography of the Sub Continent as George Fernades, Defence Minister of India put it in his inaugural address on the Brig Rajinder Singh's Birth Centenary Celebration at his native village Rajinderpura in Tehsil Samba, Jammu on 14 Jun 1999.

Brig Rajinder Singh managed to delay the Pakistani invaders numbering 6000 for five days offering four battles is a saga of courage, bravery, leadership, supreme sacrifice and above all brilliant and masterly withdrawal converting defeat into victory in four days what Field Marshal Slim had done against Japanese in Burma in World War II in one year.

His sacrifice thus stands out in the annals of military history for never before, so few had held so many for so long so as to defeat them in their mission without actually inflicting a military defeat, that it called stratagem in military parlance. The battle of Uri, frozen in time has fructified in the success of Kargil. Can we think of Kargil without Uri?

Coincidentally Pakistan chose to attack Kargil during the centenary celebration of Brig Rajinder Singh, MVC who had then denied Pak the Valley in Oct 1947. Even then as now Pakistan had created a situation where it was made out that it was not the Pakistan Army but tribals and locals attacked Kargil. Even then it was made out to be tribal attack which later on became a Pakistani attack on J&K in 1947, subsequent conflicts in 1965 and 1971 and now more than one and a half decade long militancy including Kargil conflict should alert us about the Pakistan's designs. Musharraf has just admitted that Pakistan Army was totally involved in Kargil war.

When viewed with this background remembering Brig Rajinder Singh becomes even more relevant in the context of the defence of our sensitive border state which has been an area of conflicts for centuries in the present millennium and is likely to continue in the next millennium also.

How can we forget Brig Rajinder Singh who is spite of heavy odds kept on fighting with handful of gallant soldiers of the State and delayed invaders for four vital days between Garhi and Rampur a distance of over 80 KMs from 23 to 27 Oct 1947. He was a great soldier of vision who could appreciate the situation. It is perhaps the only example in the military history where a professional head of the Armed forces (C-in-C) of an independent country chose to fight at the head of a company worth soldiers and laid down his life as commanded by his ruler to defend Kashmir at all costs and to the last man. Any country which has military leaders of his vision cannot be defeated. It is for this reason that we celebrate their days so that our younger generations can imbibe the same spirit and emulate their great deeds.

Brig LP Sen Commander of the 161 Infantry Brigade who landed in the valley on 29 Oct 1947 had made an assessment of the situation and concluded that one complete division was required to deal with the invaders to protect the Valley and throw them out. Such was the magnitude of the invasion and the forces thrown by Pak to annex the State which was magnitude of the invasion launched by Pakistan and the role played by Brig Rajinder Singh to save the Valley and the State. Brig Rajinder Singh will be remembered as one of the greatest generals of the 20th century which has seen maximum conflicts in the world.