West Bengal: A choice between a rock and a hard place

Saswat Panigrahi

Of the five provinces going to elections in April-May, West Bengal’s is the most interesting case. The election will be a tough test for the ruling CPI(M) as well as the opposition Trinamool Congress.

Till now West Bengal was seemingly immune to the anti-incumbency factor. With Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress emerging as a viable alternative force to the CPI(M), it is for the first time in over 33 years that the Left Front government is facing a strong anti-incumbency.

West Bengal’s present political scenario has its roots in its political history. To understand the difficult political calculus of the state, it is necessary to flip through the pages of the history.

The rise of Left

The year was 1977. Riding the anti-Emergency wave CPI(M) rode to the crest of West Bengal’s power centre ousting the Congress government led by Siddhartha Shankar Ray. Jyoti Basu, then 63, was sworn in as the Chief Minister.

Ever since the London-educated barrister Basu took over the reins of the state, West Bengal’s development graph continued to dip alarmingly, pushing the state into an era of decline and anarchy. The industrial slowdown in turn created a sizable number of unemployed youth who were often converted into CPI(M) cadre.

Under Jyoti Basu’s rule winning had become a habit for the Left. Under his leadership, CPI(M) tasted six consecutive victories in Assembly Elections.

It is not to dispute that Jyoti Basu built the Left citadel in West Bengal. Basu has to his credit the fact of being the longest serving Chief Minister of not just the state, but also in India, as he held the post for 23-long-years till he resigned on health grounds in 2000.

A vertical shift in CPM

The year 2000 proved to be the beginning of a new chapter in West Bengal politics. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, a liberal among the Marxists, who was considered as a viable alternative to Jyoti Basu within the CPI(M), was sworn in as the Chief Minister. In sharp contrast to Marxist ideology Bhattacharjee opened West Bengal’s door for industries and investments. Some called him ‘CPI(M)’s renaissance man’ and others termed him ‘anti-Marxists’. But, Buddhadeb’s mega industry plank clicked in 2006, as CPI(M) swept the Assembly Elections.

A boomerang on CPI(M)

Post 2006, Buddhadeb brand of industrialisation began to have few takers. There is no denial that Bhattacharjee regime brought a number of investment projects to the state. But the other side of the story, of course, is the plight of thousands of displaced people who have been denied the benefits of these projects. Singur and Nandigram are two cases in point.

Ever since Buddhadeb took over the reins of CPI(M) in West Bengal, it has not been the same party with the same ideology. CPI(M) leaders in the state are no longer committed comrades. The party betrayed the bourgeois, the very section it claims to fight for. CPI(M) in Bengal is now battling the allegations of championing the cause of capitalism at the cost of the poor. Its so-called claim of being a ‘people’s party’ has turned out to be a facade. Years of grievances have produced growing disenchantment in the party cadres.

The Mamata phenomenon

Here Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, who was earlier lacking stability as a political leader, saw a ready-made opportunity. She closely identified the Left issues, hijacked them in a Left bastion and used them against the Left. She carefully toed a Communist line to woo people who are predominantly supportive of the Left. A sizable chunk of CPI(M) cadres, which was feeling uncomfortable with the changing ideology of the party, switched sides.

Mamata instilled a new Left thunder. Her formula of targeting Communists with Communism did wonders for Trinamool. The party swept the 2008 panchayat polls. In the 2009 General Election, Trinamool won 19 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats. And in 2010, it won the Kolkata municipal elections.

Rakta Charitra of Bengal

Looking at the rise of Mamata Banerjee, CPI(M) mobilised its cadres for a ‘stop Mamata campaign’ in a desperate bid to retain power. On the other hand, Trinamool Congress brainwashed its cadres against the ‘misgovernance’ under CPI(M) rule. The result: a macabre fight between the cadres of the two rival parties.

The CPI(M) and Trinamool cadres were up in arms against each other in the run-up to the Assembly Elections. In the last few months a number of carefully orchestrated political killings took place in the state. In what could be rightly termed as ‘body politics’ both CPI(M) and Trinamool paraded dead bodies of their party workers. The state of political rivalry was at its ugliest.

Maoists in West Bengal

Charu Majumdar, the architect of Maoism in India, was a CPI(M) comrade till he broke away from the party to launch Naxalbari uprising. It is said that CPI(M) maintained close links with the Maoists during the initial years of their movement. There is no doubt that the Marxists and Maoists share a common ideology that is Communism. In the course of time, the CPI(M) distanced itself from the Maoists realising a potential danger. By raising Communist issues against CPI(M), Mamata stepped in to fill that void. Maoists now see a new friend in Mamata.


It won’t be wrong to say that Maoists boiled Mamata’s Singur and Nandigram pots. The Trinamool supremo has openly sided with the Left-wing terror by paying homage to Maoist leader Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad in Lalgarh where she described his encounter as murder.

The Maoist-Trinamool nexus is certainly a poll issue with both CPI(M) and BJP flaying Mamata for romanticising Left-wing terror. But will that have a bearing on the poll result?

The minority card

Both CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress have a grip on minority vote bank. Both have understood that minority votes are crucial to the calculations of victory and hence are playing the minority card by doling out sops.

CPI(M)-led Left Front government has already announced 10 per cent reservation in government jobs for backward Muslims. In addition to that Buddhadeb government has extended reservations for Muslim students in higher educational institutions.

On the other hand, in an apparent bid to woo Muslim votes, Mamata Banerjee recently supported minority’s share in women’s quota. In addition, she has given tickets to a good number of minority candidates.

The coalition equation

The constituents in the Left front -- CPI(M), CPI, Forward Bloc and RSP comfortably decided to share seats for the Assembly Elections. But all was not well between the two UPA constituents, Congress and Trinamool, as far as the seat-sharing equation is concerned. After days of hectic political negotiations to break the impasse both the parties agreed to a seat-sharing pact. As expected, Mamata Banerjee turned out to be a hard bargainer and Congress surrendered to Mamata’s tough stance. As per the deal, in the 294-member Assembly, Trinamool will contest in 229 seats while Congress will contest in 65. The seat-sharing script appears to have been written by Mamata. The Congress is a junior coalition partner of Trinamool Congress in the state. The grand old party has only a fractional presence in the state and is desperately looking forward to share a victory after a gap of 33 years. It has no other choice, but to settle for a small share of the cake.

On the other hand, Mamata had her own arithmetic. She wants to come to power on her own, so that she could be less dependent on Congress after the polls. Trinamool made an official seat-sharing arrangement with Socialist Unity Centre of India (SUCI) and gave two seats from its kitty. The party could make a similar arrangement with other smaller players like Adivasi Mukti Morcha, Indian Muslim League, Jharkhand Disom Party, Gorkha Mukti Morcha and Chhatradhar Mahato-led pro-Maoist outfit People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities(PPCA) to add small pockets of support.

BJP, the new X-factor in West Bengal

BJP has played nationalism to the public gallery of West Bengal by launching its Rastriya Ekta Yatra from Kolkata, the birthplace of Shyama Prasad Mookerjee. By doing so the saffron party has tried to tap the ‘nationalist sentiments’ in West Bengal. In its election campaign BJP will certainly draw lines between nationalist leaders, the saffron party and West Bengal. The party is capitalising on the prevailing anti-Left sentiments in the state and claims its stake as a “serious political alternative”.

The real fight

In the battle ground West Bengal, the real fight is ironically between a ‘capitalist’ CPI(M) vs a ‘communist’ Trinamool.

There is a growing discontentment against the CPI(M) in both urban and rural pockets of the state. In the division of anti-Left votes Trinamool would be the biggest gainer. Trinamool is essentially an urban party with a strong base in South Bengal, particularly in Kolkata. Hence there is a clear cut possibility that Trinamool will score an edge over CPI(M) as far as the urban votes are concerned.

Buddhadeb’s pro-industry plank has significantly alienated CPI(M)’s rural vote bank. On the other hand, there has been gradual erosion in rural vote base of Trinamool. Reading between the lines, CPI(M)’s rural votes have shifted to Trinamool.

It’s now a changed Bengal. The writing is on the wall, “Didi is marching towards Writers’ Building. Bye bye Left Front”. But still, it would be too early to predict the election result at this point in time because the ballots are yet to be cast. Wait, watch and wonder!

-- Published in Zee online

State elections 2011: The title contenders

Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee (CPM-led Left Front)

Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, the second time Chief Minister of West Bengal, is considered as a liberal among the Marxists. He started his political career as a primary member of CPM. He was elected as a MLA from Cossipore constituency in 1977, the year CPM came to power in West Bengal and became a minister for information and culture. He continued to maintain his profile in the rank and file of both CPM and Bengal politics. In 1993, Buddhadeb tendered his resignation from the state cabinet due to a significant difference of opinion with then chief minister Jyoti Basu. Within the CPM, Bhattacharjee was always considered as a viable alternative to Basu. That eventually led to him to become the chief minister in 2000.

In sharp contrast to Marxist ideology Bhattacharjee opened West Bengal’s door for industries and investments. Some called him ‘CPM’s renaissance man’ and others termed him ‘anti-Marxists’. But, Buddhadeb’s mega industry plank clicked in 2006 as CPI(M) swept the assembly elections.

Post 2006, Buddhadeb brand of industrialisation faced criticism. Buddhadeb’s pro-industry programme at the cost of livelihood of the people boomeranged on CPI(M). CPI(M) in Bengal could not remain the same party with the same ideology. It is now battling allegations of championing the cause of capitalism at the cost of the poor.

Mamata Banerjee (Congress supported Trinamool candidate)

Mamata Banerjee started her political career with Congress and quickly rose to the rank of general secretary of the All India Youth Congress. In 1984 she was elected to Lok Sabha defeating CPM strongman Somnath Chatterjee from the Jadavpur parliamentary constituency. She was one of India’s young parliamentarians in 1980s. Banerjee was made the Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development, Youth Affairs and Sports, and Women and Child Development in the Narasimha Rao government in 1991.

In 1997, Mamata Banerjee left the Congress alleging that the party was behaving as a stooge of the CPM in West Bengal and floated Trinamool Congress. Trinamool quickly became the primary opposition to the long-standing Communist government in the state.

In 1999, Banerjee joined the BJP-led NDA government and became the Railways Ministry. In 2001 she walked out of the NDA cabinet and allied with the Congress Party in West Bengal Assembly elections held in the same year.

She again returned to the NDA fold and joined the cabinet as a Coal and Mines minister in 2004. In 2009 general elections she formed an alliance with Congress-led UPA. Mamata, the leader of the second largest party of UPA coalition became the Union Railway Minister again. But due to West Bengal elections, Mamata remains indifferent towards the crucial ministry and eyeing for the chief minister’s chair in Writer’s building.

The fluctuating political profile of Mamata Banerjee tells a story. Mamata was earlier lacking stability as a political leader. But, with the emergence of a ‘capitalist CPI(M)’ under Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s rule, she found a ready-made opportunity. She has closely identified the Left issues, hijacked them in the Left bastion and used them against the Left.

M Karunanidhi (DMK)

Karunanidhi began his career as a screenwriter in the Tamil film industry. He thoroughly used both Tamil literature and Tamil cinema as medium to propagate fanatic Dravidian movement.

He entered to the foray of politics by anti-Hindi agitations. He was first elected to the Tamil Nadu assembly in 1957 in a DMK ticket. He became the DMK treasurer in 1961 and deputy leader of opposition in the state assembly in 1962.

When the DMK came to power in 1967, he became the minister for public works. Karunanidhi has been the leader of the DMK since the demise of the party founder CN Annadurai in 1969. He took over as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in 2006 after DMK defeated its main opponent AIDMK.

In this election, Karunanidhi’s DMK is facing the biggest ever threat to its position. With the DMK patriarch’s blue eyed boy and former telecom minister A Raja under CBI custody for 2G spectrum scam, investigations are haunting Karunanidhi, his party and his family. There is no doubt that 2G scam issue will bring a negative swing against DMK in this election. But Karunanidhi is all set to fight it out with his money power.

There are other issues like Lankan Tamil issue and fishermen’s killing adding to Karunanidhi’s anti-incumbency woes.

In addition, there is infighting in his family. With Karunanidhi on the verge of calling it a day, a neck and neck battle between his children for his succession has erupted. The family feud has also created fissures in the party.

J Jayalalithaa (AIADMK)

After a successful career in Tamil film industry as an actress J Jayalalithaa joined AIADMK in 1981. Her association with politics grew because of her proximity to Late MG Ramachandran (popularly known as MGR) and that helped her to become his political heir.

In 1988, she was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. In 1989, Jayalalithaa won the elections to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly and incidentally became the first woman to be elected as the Leader of the Opposition.

In 1991, following the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, just days before the elections, her alliance with the Congress paid off as a sympathy wave propelled the coalition to a massive victory. She was re-elected to the legislative assembly and became the first elected woman chief minister of Tamil Nadu.

In 1996 assembly election, AIADMK lost to DMK in a landslide defeat. In 2001 Tamil Nadu polls, defying the pre-poll predictions Jayalalithaa returned to power with a huge majority and mustered a bigger coalition. In 2006, Tamil Nadu assembly elections, her AIADMK had to relinquish power to DMK.

VS Achuthanandan (CPM led LDF)

VS Achuthanandan is the senior most leader of CPI(M) in Kerala. He started his political career as a Congress trade union leader in 1930s. In 1940 he joined the CPI. During 1957 Indo-China war, he was amongst the handful of Communist ‘nationalists’ to support India. Remember, he was demoted in the party rank after participating in a blood donation camp to help Indian soldiers? In 1964, CPM was carved away from CPI and Achuthanandan joined the CPM. He served as a CPM state secretary between 1980 and 1992. Since 1985 he is the member of the CPI(M) politburo, the highest policy making body of the party.

Achuthanandan served as an editor of CPI(M)’s Malayalam mouth piece Deshabhimani.

As a Chief Minister he made tall promises for industrialisation but hardly manage to keep them.

In 2009 Achuthanandan was suspended from the politburo for his tussle with state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan.

In July last he hurled a political bombshell by saying “an attempt is going on to convert Kerala into an Islamic state”. Very obviously, his ‘Islamic Kerala’ byte faced the ire of his party. His comment was slammed by Muslim organisations. Congress flayed Achuthanandan by saying it was part of CPI(M)’s strategy to play the ‘Hindu card’.

For this election like the last, CPI(M) state committee first denied Achuthanandan a party ticket to contest poll, but following huge outcry by his supporters, CPI(M) politburo intervened and the state committee had to reverse its decision.

The 87-year-old CPI(M) patriarch is contesting Kerala polls and hopes to retain power.

Oommen Chandy (Congress led UDF)

Oommen Chandy ventured into political arena as an activist of Kerala Students Union (KSU) and soon became its president.

In 1970, he was elected as the president of the State Youth Congress. Chandy served as a labour minister, home minister and finance minister of Kerala in between 1977 to 1994.

Oommen Chandy became the Kerala CM in 2004 after senior Congress leader AK Anthony vacated the post to take up a national assignment.

Since 2006 he has been serving as the Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Legislative Assembly.

Tarun Kumar Gogoi (Congress)

Gogoi started his political career as a Youth Congress leader. Late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi spotted his promising young talent and entrusted him with the responsibility of organising the Youth Congress in Assam. In 1971, Gogoi was elected to Lok Sabha.

Gogoi was the joint secretary of All India Congress Committee in 1976. The six-time Lok Shabha MP served as a Union Minister from 1991 to 95. In 2001 he assumed the Office of Assam’s chief minister. In 2006, Gogoi beat the anti-incumbency and came back to power.

In this election, an anti-incumbency storm is brewing against his decade-long government. Tarun Gogoi government is battling allegations of various scams quantified to the tune of Rs 20,000 crore. In addition to that, there are issues like illegal immigration and tea garden issue which adds to Gogoi’s anti-incumbency woes.

Prafulla Kumar Mahanta(AGP)

Prafulla Mahanta is regarded as the other most powerful and influential politicians of Assam. Mahanta is credited for becoming the youngest chief minister in the country`s history.

He started his political career with All Assam Students Union, a student organisation that spearheaded the Assam Movement between 1979 and 1985. After serving as the president of All Assam Students Union, Mahanta joined the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP).

He served as the chief minister of Assam for two terms -- 1985–1990 and 1996–2001. In 2005, his membership in the AGP was terminated and he floated a new political party, Asom Gana Parishad (Progressive).

But his need in AGP was largely felt before the 2009 Lok Sabha Elections to fill the void of leadership. He was re-inducted into the AGP and became an integral part of the party again. In 2010, he was unanimously elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly.

V Vaithilingam (Congress)

V Vaithilingam is a Congress strongman in the union territory of Puducherry.

Vaithilingam contested for the 1980 assembly election with a Congress ticket and lost with a close margin. He won the 1985 assembly election and became a public works and power minister. Vaithilingam was sworn in as the chief minister of Puduchery in 1991.

When Congress in the union territory was marred by a rift within, the party high command asked the elected chief minister N Rangaswamy to resign in 2008 and Vaithilingam became the Chief Minister.

Vaithilingam advocates smaller government and greater participation of private sector. It seems Vaithilingam-led Congress government faces little opposition in the union territory of Puducherry.

N Rangaswamy (All India NR Congress)

N Rangaswamy started his political career from the Congress party and soon rose in party’s rank and file.

He held important portfolios like agriculture minister and PWD minister in the union territory in between 1991 and 2000.

It was under his leadership Congress had grown by leaps and bounds in Puducherry. In 2001 after Congress won another term, Rangaswamy was sworn as the Chief Minister. In 2006 the Congress-led Democratic Progressive Alliance(DPA) came back to power and Rangaswamy was re-inducted as the chief minister.

As a chief minister, Rangaswamy was largely instrumental in developing the infrastructure of Puducherry. He introduced free education in government schools and fee reimbursement for college students.

It was under his tenure as chief minister that Puducherry was recognised as the best in the small state category.

In 2008, Congress in the Union territory was marred by internecine infighting. The party high command asked Rangaswamy to resign.

After resigning from Congress, Rangaswamy floated his political party called All India NR Congress.

He is known for his down-to-earth life style.

-- As it appeared in the Battle for states 2011 coverage of Zeeonline

JPC all set to probe 2G

Saswat Panigrahi

The government finally gave in to the Opposition’s demand. A 30-member Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) will probe the 2G spectrum scam.

It was for obvious reasons the Congress-led UPA government didn’t want to sanction a JPC earlier, and hence desperately manoeuvred to avoid being on a collision course with the Opposition; but there was no escaping the predicament in a parliamentary setup.

The wash out of the entire Winter Session of Parliament, causing a loss of over Rs 146 crore to the national exchequer, was a strong enough reason to force a rethink but what seems to have tilted the scales in favour of a truce seems to be the serious strain that the standoff inflicted on the entire system.

A “functioning” democracy where the opposite poles only repel each other and not maintain a fine balance between love & hate; agreement & disagreement, was not in anybody’s interests – although lately, but everybody agreed; they had to, there should be no other way. “We couldn’t succeed to persuade the Opposition not to insist on a JPC probe despite our best efforts.... It is in these special circumstances that the government agrees to the setting up of a JPC,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at the fist working day of the Budget Session, while announcing the setting up of a JPC to look into the allocation of second-generation spectrum.

So what is a JPC?

The Joint Parliamentary Committee is an ad hoc committee constituted under Article 118(1) of Indian Constitution, which is mandated to inquire into and report on the prominent questions concerning the country on a specific subject. The subject for which it is constituted is known as “the terms of reference”. A Joint Parliamentary Committee, as the name suggests is constituted by members of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, drawn from different political parties. For a political party, the representation in JPC is decided as per its ratio of representation in the Parliament.

The JPC on 2G is finally in shape. The JPC motion has been passed in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. All eyes are on what JPC will bring out in its probe.

To obtain evidence on its ‘Terms of reference’, the JPC will now consult experts, public bodies, associations, individuals and even interested parties suo moto or on requests made by them. The JPC can ask any individual or agency to appear before it and the non compliance of the summon amounts to a contempt of the House. Although the proceedings of the JPC are by and large confidential, but in a matter related to “widespread public interest” like serious irregularities in securities and financial transactions, the chairman of the committee could brief the press about the deliberations.

Generally, the JPC does not summon the Prime Minister or a minister during the course of its inquiry. But in matters involving “widespread public interest” the JPC has the discretionary power to summon ministers, including the Prime Minister to testify.

Although it is yet unclear whether the 2G issue would be considered as a matter of “widespread public interest”, but there is every possibility Prime Minister may be summoned.

The supposed chief architect of the scam, DMK leader A Raja resigned in November last and was arrested in this February and is spending time in Tihar Jail since then.

However, the fact that he was the telecom minister in Manmohan Singh’s cabinet and the decision to allocate 2G spectrum licence at prices far below what an open auction could have ensured, is something for which the accountability would seep till it reaches the last door.

The Comptroller and Auditor-General (CAG) of India exposed serious irregularities in the allocation of 2G spectrum and pegged the revenue loss to the national exchequer at a staggering Rs 1.76 lakh crore, thereby dubbing it as country's biggest corruption scandal to date.

Although, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is scrutinising the CAG report and conducting an audit, but the 2G spectrum scam surely goes beyond accounting and the fact is that JPC does have a broader remit of investigation.

The JPC will examine the policy prescription and their interpretation by successive governments, including decisions of the Union Cabinet and the consequences thereof, in allocation and pricing of telecom licences and spectrum from 1998 to 2009.

The Supreme Court is already monitoring the 2G scam probe and directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate(ED) to investigate the scam. Interestingly, the CBI is facing the heat from the apex court for dragging its feet on the probe.

The SC’s observations do make the government squirm but what is of more consequence – in the long term- is the political fallout of the entire episode.

Ever since the scam broke, Congress has been trying to sweep it under the carpet. New Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal questioned the findings of the CAG report, resplendent with his bizarre ‘zero loss’ arithmetic.

“We are extremely pained at methodology adopted by CAG for arriving at 2G spectrum allocation loss figures”, Sibal said, without affording even a thought about the damage he is doing to the credibility of the very institutions that form the pillars of his government .

JPC on 2G scam is fifth of its kind. Let’s take a look at the JPCs formed earlier and their findings. Of the previous four JPCs, two JPCs were constituted during Congress’ rule and two during the rule of BJP-led NDA.

JPC on Bofors

The first JPC was constituted in 1987 to inquire into the Bofors pay off case by the Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress government. A year after the Bofors gun deal was signed between the Indian government and the now defunct Swedish arms company AB Bofors in 1986; Swedish radio reported that Bofors paid kickbacks to ruling Indian politicians and key defence officials to clinch the Rs 1,437 crore deal Howitzer gun deal.

In sharp contravention of the established policy guidelines which prescribes against the presence of middlemen in defence deals, Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi played the role of a broker. Moreover, all kickback amounts added to the cost of the guns purchased; for which India paid an excess amount of 242.62 million Swedish kroners.

As the skeletons began to tumble out of Congress’ closet, the opposition stepped up pressure for a JPC. After months of denial the Rajiv Gandhi government finally conceded opposition demand for a JPC.

A motion on the JPC was moved by then defence minister KC Pant in Lok Sabha on August 6, 1987. B Shankaranand, a ‘trusted loyalist’ of the Gandhi family was chosen as the chairperson. The Congress had 410 members in Lok Sabha and hence very obliviously the committee was packed with Congress MPs. It won’t be wrong to call it a “Congress JPC”. However, in order to give the committee an ‘all-party’ colour some MPs of friendly parties were hand-picked as members. The JPC did not summon a single minister, let alone the prime minister. The committee never bothered to record the testimonies of witnesses in Bofors case. The opposition boycotted the committee. But it went ahead with its ‘lame duck inquiry and held as much as 50 sittings and came out with its report.

The JPC report was tabled in Parliament on April 26, 1988. The report exonerated everybody. No middleman was involved in the Bofors gun deal and no evidence of kickbacks been paid, said the report.

JPC on Harshad Mehta scam

The year was 1992. Media reports exposed how stock market broker Harshad Mehta illegally dipped into the banking system to finance his stock buying spree. PV Narasimha Rao-led Congress government announced a JPC to probe the multi-billion rupee stock market scam. The JPC motion was moved by then parliamentary affairs minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in Lok Sabha on August 6, 1992. Former Congress leader Ram Niwas Mirdha presided over the JPC. This time the JPC faithfully did its duty because there was minimal interference from the Congress party.

The JPC which probed the irregularities in securities and banking transactions between August 1992 and December 1993 came out with a comprehensive report which was tabled in Parliament on December 21, 1993.

But, after submission of the JPC report, it took five long years to prosecute the accused. Though many of the recommendations in the report were never implemented, it is said that those recommendations paved a way to clean up India’s financial sector.

JPC on Ketan Parekh scam

Year 2001; yet another stock market scam broke. Following the footprints of Harshad Mehta, another stock broker called Ketan Parekh skilfully manipulated the Indian stock market between 1999-2001 by rigging up the stock prices and swindled crores of rupees from the banks.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government agreed to a JPC to investigate the nexus between Parekh, banks and corporate houses.

The JPC motion was moved by then parliamentary affairs minister Pramod Mahajan in Lok Sabha on April 26, 2001. The JPC was presided by senior BJP leader Lt Gen Prakash Mani Tripathi.

The committee held 105 sittings, completed its probe in eighteen months and came out with a report which called for a sweeping change in the stock market regulations. The report was unanimously accepted cutting across party lines and implemented in letter and spirit.

JPC on pesticides residues

In 2003, media reports brought out the presence of pesticide cocktail in soft drinks, fruit juice and other beverages. Atal Behari Vajpayee-led NDA government announced a JPC to look into the pesticides residues in soft drinks.

As against the norm, the JPC was presided over by a leader from the opposition -- NCP chief Sharad Pawar. The committee held 17 sittings and came out with its report. The report was tabled in the Parliament on February 4, 2004. The report confirmed the presence of pesticide residues and suggested safety standards for beverages.

Looking at the outcome of all the four JPCs, it could be concluded that apart from the Bofors JPC, the rest three JPCs yielded result.

Was it because the Bofors was the only case where the political class was directly involved? Was it because the case involved Rajiv Gandhi and that the JPC was Congress controlled? Answers to these questions are open to debate but the fact remains that more than any other party, the Congress has the most to answer, especially now that the damning 2G scam has exploded.

Undoubtedly, the political lexicon has dramatically changed from those gun powder filled days of 1987 to today’s era of coalition fixing.

No single party, not even the Congress can claim politics as its exclusive fielded. An aggressive Opposition – mostly made of those with whom there’s no foreseeable scope of rapprochement - will track every move.

The tax payers’ money has gone into the coffers of “unknown” scamsters. Rs 1.76 lakh crore pocketed by Raja and his cronies alone? Not possible. For one single individual or even a small group to digest such huge sums of money, to say the least, is impossible.

In the system we live in, they won’t be allowed to have such large appetites, sharing is the rule of the game here. Everybody knows it.

Whosoever has attempted to digest hard currency in such large amounts will have to cough it up; if this is not a matter of public interest, then what is?

The citizens have the right to know, let’s hope they get to “know” atleast this time.

Playing nationalism to public gallery

Saswat Panigrahi

In a meek surrender to separatists, Omar Abdullah-led Jammu and Kashmir government succeeded in foiling BJP’s effort to hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk on Republic Day 2011.

It was for the second consecutive time in the last two decades, the Jammu and Kashmir government broke a convention trying to unfurl the national flag at Lal Chowk.

In 1991-92 then BJP president Murli Manohar Joshi took out the Rastriya Ekta Yatra from Kanyakumari to Srinagar. Breaking the separatist writ, he hoisted the Tricolour on January 26, 1992 for the first time ever at Lal Chowk amidst rocket attacks by militants. Remember, the flag hosting ceremony lasted precisely 13 minutes, surrounded by 80 yatri s and conducted under the chill gaze of an estimated 1000 security men. It was Narasimha Rao-led Congress government at the Centre that provided security for the historic flag hosting ceremony during the height of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. Since then, the security forces had been hoisting the national flag on Republic Day and Independence Day at the clock tower till 2009.

Much has changed. Last year, the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre was a mute spectator to Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s move to suspend the unfurling of Tricolour by security forces at Lal Chowk. This time the Congress-led Union government went a step ahead and threw its weight behind Omar Abdullah government in foiling BJP’s proposed program to hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk.

BJP’s march to unfurl the Tricolour at Lal Chowk was part of its Rashtriya Ekta Yatra launched by party’s youth wing Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). It was a sequel of the same yatra undertaken by Murli Manohar Joshi in 1991-92. This time Anurag Thakur, the president of BJYM, was spearheading the second edition of the Ekta Yatra.

“Kashmir belongs to India and the whole India belongs to Kashmiris. The pain of Kashmir is the pain of India. We need to feel it,” Anurag said in an exclusive chat with this writer in New Delhi before he left for Kolkata to kick start the Ekta Yatra.

But what prompted the saffron party to replay the Ekta Yatra amidst opposition demand for JPC on 2G scam. Perhaps the present row over Kashmir is the best answer for this. The yatra was launched at a time when anti-national forces are openly endorsing the idea of disintegrating Kashmir from the rest of India. The likes of Arundhati Roy and Syed Ali Geelani continue to make seditious speeches on Kashmir and thoroughly use the right to freedom of expression against the country. And when the secessionists make merry, the Congress-led UPA government is napping. At that point in time BJYM’s Rastriya Ekta Yatra and its proposed flag hoisting program at Lal Chowk was indeed a challenge to the separatist forces.

Rastriya Ekta Yatra-II was flagged off on National Youth Day in Kolkata, the birthplace of legendry Syama Prasad Mookerjee. The two-week long yatra covered 3037 kilometres and traversed through nine states. It was peaceful from the beginning to the end. The yatra was supposed to culminate at Mookherjee’s martyr place Srinagar where BJYM had plans to hoist Tricolour at Lal Chowk. But the yatris were stopped on their way to Srinagar at Punjab-Jammu boarder of Lakhanpur and arrested under Section 144 of IPC by J&K Police for defying the “prohibitory orders” imposed by the state government. The result: Flag was not hoisted at Lal Chowk this year keeping with the writ of the separatists.

It would however be unfair not to see the context. J&K has been passing through a very tumultuous time recently. Looking at the present situation, the flip side of the argument is that would it be correct to rock the J&K boat? Those who believe in that line argue that BJP’s programme could have an adverse impact on the peace of the Valley which has seen an upsurge in violence recently.

Having stated that, we must also remember that last year separatists had flown the Pakistani flag atop Lal Chowk. The Omar Abdullah government was a silent observer to those anti-national crescendos. The state government also preferred to remain mum when Tricolour was burnt in full public display on a number of occasions.

Rashtriya Ekta Yatra has brought the other side of the Kashmir story to the limelight. There is no denial that Kashmir problem is the result of historic blunder committed during the early days of post independence era.

Those in know of political history of Kashmir must be aware of the fact that Kashmir was never under direct British rule. It was a princely state which acceded to India by virtue of a constitutional document called ‘Instrument of Accession’ under the Indian Independence Act, 1947.

Maharaja Hari Singh, then supreme ruler of Jammu and Kashmir signed the Instrument of Succession on October 26, 1947. Though the format of the Instrument of Accession applied to Jammu and Kashmir was the same as was executed for other princely states, then interim Indian government led by Jawaharlal Nehru agreed that ‘final decision’ with regard to the accession would be taken by the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir and in the intervening period ‘a temporary provision’ was made in the Constitution of India.

BJP was possibly the first party to voice the national perspective on Kashmir. it. The party is a descendant of erstwhile Bharatiya Jana Sangh founded by Syama Prasad Mookerjee. It was Mookerjee who scripted an uprising with his famous slogan on Kashmir-- Ek desh mein do Pradhan, do Vidhan, do Nishan nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi (The country will never accept a system which allows two Prime Ministers, two Constitutions and two National flags). He went to Kashmir as an Indian citizen but was arrested and jailed in a dilapidated house. He died while in custody.

But when BJP was in power, did the party really remember the sacrifice of Mookerjee from whom it takes inspiration from? Do not forget, it was BJP which backtracked on its ‘commitment’ to abolish the Article 370 with an excuse of ‘compulsion of coalition politics’.

Now, out of power the saffron party sees the need to pick up the issue of abrogation of Article 370.Perhaps of late, the saffron party has realised its mistake of not going with the majority sentiments of Jammu and Kashmir after reeling under two successive Lok Sabha poll defeats. But is BJP really committed to its demand on Article 370?

BJYM’s Rashtriya Ekta Yatra has no doubt made it to the headlines. But will it be able to contribute in real terms to bringing peace, wiping out the tears of the hundreds of thousands voiceless of the Valley or promoting national integration?
-- Appeared in my blog ‘The Right Way’ in Zeenews.com

Remembering Swami Vivekananda

Saswat Panigrahi

The nation on Wednesday is celebrating the 148th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. An authoritative spokesman of Indian culture, Swami Vivekananda introduced the message of Indianness to the international audience. He was a major force in the revival of Hinduism in modern India and helped restore a sense of pride amongst the Hindus. He taught the world that in essence all religions are true, and service to mankind is the most effective form of worship of God.

India commemorates Swami Vivekananda’s birth anniversary as National Youth Day. I am sure many young Indians, especially those who never forget to celebrate the Valentine’s Day on February 14, are not even aware of the significance of January 12. Hope, they would celebrate the National Youth Day with the same enthusiasm.

Swami Vivekananda’s ideas have had a great influence on Indian youth for generations. His message to the youth is still as invigorating as it was a century ago. In his words, depression, weakness, fear, selfishness and jealousy are the greatest enemies of young people. “The greatest sin is to think yourself weak. The remedy of weakness is not brooding over weakness, but thinking of strength,” he said.

Vivekananda firmly believed that youth is the most potent catalyst for changing the fate of the country, and hence the future of the nation rests in their hands. His words have continued to inspire the young people for generations. His message is replete with infinite encouragement for young minds to achieve great things. “All great undertakings are achieved through mighty obstacles. Keep up the deepest mental poise. Take not even the slightest notice of what puerile creatures may be saying against you. Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached,” was his message to the young people. Swami Vivekananda called upon the youth to fully participate in the modern world while upholding nation’s ancient values.

His comment on education will always be relevant for both the teachers and the students. “Education is not information that is put into your brain and runs riot there. It is the manifestation of perfection already in man... That education by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, and the intellect is expanded and by which one can stand on one’s own feet. We must have life-building, man-making, character-making assimilation of ideas,” he stated.

Swami Vivekananda injected patriotism in the veins of the youth and thereby inspired India’s freedom movement. His lines -- "What we want are some young men who will renounce everything and sacrifice their lives for their country's sake" – was a wake-up call to the youth of pre-Independence India to join the freedom movement.

Vivekananda will always be remembered for his model speech dated September 11, 1893 at Parliament of Religions held in Chicago. He had begun his speech with, "Sisters and brothers of America?” The opening line was greeted by a standing ovation from a crowd of 7,000 which lasted for three minutes. Representing India he introduced the greatness of Hindutva and the eternal values of Indianness to the West. Hundred and eighteen years after he delivered his starling speech on the platform of Parliament of Religions, its content has an irresistible appeal even today. The message is still relevant to the present society marred by religious chauvinism. "Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilisation and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced than it is now,” he said. It was in that speech he stressed upon the essence of interfaith awareness and religious tolerance. Moreover, he presented the ancient teachings of India in its purest form.

His elocution voiced the spirit of Parliament and its sense of universality. Dr Barrows, the president of the Parliament said, "India, the mother of religions, was represented by Swami Vivekananda, the orange-monk who exercised the most wonderful influence over his auditors."

The American press dubbed Vivekananda as the "Cyclonic monk from India", "the greatest figure in the Parliament of Religions" and "the most popular and influential man in the Parliament". The day after he delivered that speech, The New York Critique wrote, "Swami Vivekananda is an orator by divine right, and his strong, intelligent face in its picturesque setting of yellow and orange was hardly less interesting than those earnest words, and the rich, rhythmical utterance he gave them." The New York Herald wrote, "Vivekananda is undoubtedly the greatest figure in the Parliament of Religions. After hearing him we feel how foolish it is to send missionaries to this learned nation." The speech marked the beginning of Western interest on Indian values. The world celebrates World Brotherhood Day on September 11 as a mark of respect to that model speech.

Addressing the final session of the Parliament of Religion on September 27, 1893 Swami Vivekananda said, “Holiness, purity and charity are not the exclusive possessions of any church in the world, and that every system has produced men and women of the most exalted character.” Today, there is a need to revisit those words.

After the Parliament of Religions, Vivekananda toured extensively in the West for nearly two years preaching the essence of universal brotherhood. It was during a lecture in America, he said, "I do not come to convert you to a new belief. I want you to keep your own belief; I want to make the Methodist a better Methodist; the Presbyterian a better Presbyterian; the Unitarian a better Unitarian. I want to teach you to live the truth, to reveal the light within your own soul."

Returning back home he set up the Ramakrishna Mission – an organ for social service – in 1887 at Calcutta (now Kolkata). It was named after his spiritual guru Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa. This was the first organised socio-religious movement to help the masses through educational, cultural, medical and relief work. Today, the Ramakrishna Mission continues with carrying Vivekananda’s message forward.

Swami Vivekananda’s writings inspired a whole generation of freedom fighters including Subhash Chandra Bose, Sri Aurobindo and Bagha Jatin.

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose said, “Vivekananda is the maker of modern India.” Sri Aurobindo wrote, “Vivekananda still lives in the soul of his Mother (Bharat Mata) and in the souls of her children.” The first Governor General of independent India, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari wrote, "Vivekananda saved Hinduism, saved India."

"His words are great music, phrases in the style of Beethoven, stirring rhythms like the march of Handel choruses," wrote French Nobel Laureate Romain Rolland on Swami Vivekananda.

Visva kabi Rabindranath Tagore said, "If you want to know India, study Vivekananda."

Living for a short span of four decades, Vivekananda left his foot-prints on the sands of time. His teachings will inspire the lives and times for generations to come. His legacy will stay on to guide the nation, nationalism and nationhood. Let’s salute the Prophet. Let’s cherish his legacy. Happy National Youth Day.

-- Appeared in my blog ‘The Right Way’ in Zeenews.com

Congress leaked by WikiLeaks

Saswat Panigrahi

Julian Paul Assange is giving sleepless nights to world leaders by releasing a series of ‘secret’ US diplomatic cables on his whistle blower website Wikileaks. A few of those cables on India hit the Congress party hard. Let’s read those ‘secret cables’ between the lines.

US cable dated August 3, 2009

A secret US diplomatic cable dated August 3, 2009 released by the whistle blower website quoted Congress general secretary and party’s ‘potential’ prime ministerial face Rahul Gandhi as saying ‘Hindu radical groups’ pose a much bigger threat to India than Pakistan-based terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba.


Look at the context in which the senior Congress leader made such comment. According to the diplomatic cable, the observation was made on July 20, 2009 -- less than eight months after 26/11 – when Indian establishment was busy in pressurising Islamabad to bring the perpetrators of Mumbai attacks to justice and US’s support was crucial to bend Pakistan internationally.

Gandhi made those observations during a conversation with US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer at a luncheon meeting hosted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at his residence in honour of visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

While making such sweeping observations, the senior Congress leader forgot that he was talking to the Ambassador of that country whose support India sought to bring the perpetrators of 26/11 to justice. The reckless comment had the potential to weaken India’s 26/11 case internationally. Rahul Gandhi’s statement outlines his deficit of knowledge in international diplomacy. Well, America has its own counterterrorism agencies to make their assessment. Hope, it did not pay much heed to Rahul’s ‘sensational’ claim.

Remember, Rahul Gandhi is the man on whom Congress pins bundle of hopes. The party sees him as the ‘rightful claimant’ for the top job.

Gandhi’s comment demonstrates his half-baked knowledge on the subject of terrorism. Dangerously ignorant about India’s national security concerns, he has failed to recognise the real challenge the country is facing. What is more outrageous is that Rahul went to the extent of singing a ‘popular’ Pakistani tune on terrorism that could give a big leverage to the propaganda of terror groups operating from its soil.

Such rumblings undermine national interest. It will encourage terrorists and weaken India’s fight against terrorism.

LeT is a threat to India as well as to the world. It executed the Mumbai terror attacks which snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. By suggesting Lashkar is a lesser threat than ‘Hindu radical groups’ to score some brownie points, Rahul Gandhi has sarcastically compounded his serious mistake.

It is pertinent to mention that over the few years, allegations have been made against a few splinter Hindu groups about their involvement in bomb blasts. But nothing has yet been proved against any one of them. At the same time, counter allegations are also being labelled against the Congress-led UPA government. It is said that the allegations against those Hindu groups aim at satiating a narrow political goal. It is also argued that there is a deliberate effort to paint terrorism in secular colour and hence some Hindu organisations are being dragged to make that ‘balance act’.

Hindu organisations now have the reasons to read the veracity of those allegations from Rahul’s statement. Prof Surendra Jain, All India Secretary of VHP while talking to Zeenews.com said, “Rahul Gandhi’s comment was part of a well calculated move to defame the Hindus. This vindicates the fact that Congress is deliberately implicating Hindu organisations with terror allegations. The Hindu society out rightly rejects Gandhi’s claim. The strategy of tarring Hindu organisations with fictions will definitely boomerang on Congress”.

He added, “Rahul’s comment smacks of a politics of desperation. To woo Muslim vote bank he has stooped to the level of a LeT spokesperson”.

There is a chasm in the magnitude of threat perception between front line terror outfit LeT and a splinter Hindu organisation accused of being involved in a bomb blast. But Rahul Gandhi brushes aside the reality and went on to the extent of calling ‘Hindu radicalism’ a greater threat than jihadi terrorists. His statement was deliberate and smells of his hatred against Hindu organisations.

Earlier, WikiLeaks revealed that how Congress played communal politics post 26/11 to garner the Muslim vote bank ahead of the 2009 general election.

US cable dated December 23, 2008

According to a confidential memo by then US ambassador to India, David Mulford dated December 23, 2008 released by WikiLeaks, a section of Congress leadership was seen playing religious politics post 26/11, after one of its leaders, AR Antulay, implied that Hindutva forces may have been involved in the Mumbai terror attacks.

"The Congress party, after first distancing itself from the comments, two days later issued a contradictory statement which implicitly endorsed the conspiracy," Mulford wrote in his secret cable to the state department by adding “Hoping to foster the support (of Muslim community) for upcoming national elections, the Congress party cynically pulled back from its original dismissal and lent credence to the conspiracy”.

There was a row over that revelation when Congress general secretary and a known ‘Hindu-basher’ Digvijay Singh claimed that just two hours before the Mumbai attacks the slain ATS chief told him in a telephonic conversation that his life was “under threat” from ‘Hindu radical groups’. Singh first claimed “Karkare called him”, then claimed “he called Karkare” but Maharashtra government says there was no existence of record of the purported telephonic conversation between Digvijay and Karkare.

The sum and substance of Digvijay Singh’s remark suggest that “Hindu groups were also linked to the 26/11 terror seize." Such comment is utterly disgusting and has embarrassed the country. Rahul Gandhi’s comment is no better and was just a flow from the same thought.

As Digvijay continues with his baseless claim, Congress distanced itself from his comment and called it a “private conversation between two individuals” and “the party has no role in it”. But those in know of inside out of Congress strategy say Digvijay was simply endorsing his party’s stand. But, Congress party does not have the guts to disassociate it from Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Hindu terror’ fetish.

It is not for the first time that the Congress party is seen playing communal politics to garner vote bank. The country is witness to minority pandering by Congress ever since India’s partition. But with WikiLeaks reveal Congress’s communal politics has now found its way into the public domain.

US cable dated Aug 4, 2006

Ever since Sonia Gandhi took the baton of Congress, minority appeasement is very much synonymous with the Congress brand of politics.

The reason: Congress is bitterly paranoid by the rise of BJP. WikiLeaks has reiterated the very fact by releasing another US diplomatic cable dated Aug 4, 2006. In the cable titled 'A Garrulous Sonia Gandhi opens up to Maria Shriver', marked 'confidential' which details Gandhi's meeting with the first lady of California, she stated, “The right (wing) was becoming strong in India and Congress weak, tipping her hand and compelling her to enter politics to protect the Gandhi family legacy”

Stung by Wikileaks revelations Congress scurries for cover. The party now says the discloser “is not worth to be dignified”. But imagine, had it been against BJP, the Congress’ reaction would have just been the opposite.

East: Year ender 2011

Nitish Kumar: New mascot of development

Riding the wave of development, Nitish Kumar-led JD(U)-BJP coalition stormed back to Patna’s power centre with an overwhelming majority. Remember, Bihar was at crossroads when Nitish took over the reins of the improvised state five years back? He promised a naya Bihar and the state has surely changed for the better. Coupled with a drastic improvement in law and order situation -- kidnapping is no more an industry in Bihar and jails are not comfort zone for criminals -- massive investments in creating infrastructure has ensured an upward swing in the state’s economy, making it the fastest growing one in India.

The mechanical engineer in Nitish Kumar also did dabble in social engineering. By forming a new social group called ‘Maha Dalits’, he tried to bring into the fold all those classes and subclasses which had been hitherto left behind during the first wave of social change. Nitish Kumar has awakened the Bihari sub-nationalism and the Bihari asimta by providing good and clean governance.

But with this consecutive victory of his coalition has come the rising burden of expectations of people. Only time will tell, whether Nitish Kumar can meet those aspirations.

Humanitarian crisis in Manipur

The year 2010 saw Manipur cut off from the rest of India for 70-long-days because of the blockade by Naga groups. The bandh was called by All Naga Students Association of Manipur (ANSAM) and the United Naga Council (UNC) to protest against Manipur government`s decision to hold elections in the tribal dominated hill districts. The blockade gathered further fuel when the state government refused entry to Thuingaleng Muivah, a Naga rebel leader and general secretary of National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN). The blockade was the second in recent times. In 2005, a similar blockade called by Nagas continued for 50-long days.

The relentless seize by separatist outfits and indefinite curfew imposed by government crippled Manipur and threw daily life completely out of gear. The price of essential commodities shot up. Life-saving drugs ran into short supply. Surgeries at hospitals were suspended due to non-availability of oxygen cylinders. Manipur was on the brink of a severe humanitarian crisis.

The situation worsened due to the decision of the Transporters` and Drivers` Council, Manipur that they would not ply trucks/public carriers/oil tankers/buses and any public vehicles on NH-39 passing through the State of Nagaland, unless their pre-conditions were met.

The unrest in Manipur continued unabated as the Centre failed to break the impasse. The Government sent in troops to end the standoff a tad too late. On the same day the Naga separatists suspended the blockade.

A triumph of humans and nature

The year 2010 turned out to be a green year for Odisha, newly named so. The state saw the cancellation of two proposed mega projects -- $1.7 billion bauxite mining project in Niyamgiri and $3.5 billion university project on the Puri-Konark marine drive. Both the projects belong to the London listed Vedanta group, were nixed on grounds of serious violation of law.

Environment ministry cancelled the Niyamgiri project following the NC Saxena Committee terming it illegal. The Committee in its report stated that Vedanta had flagrantly violated environmental and forest laws in active collusion with the state officials. The proposed project could hit the rights of two of the most endangered primitive tribal groups -- Dongria Kondh and Kutia Kondh.

In a second setback to Vedanta, Orissa High Court quashed the process of acquisition of 6,000 acre of agricultural land -- which includes 1,300 acre of arable land belonging to the Jagannath Temple -- for the Vedanta university project. The court made it clear that state government’s notifications made to award the land for the university project “illegal” and “bad in the eye of law”. The proposed project could hit at least 50,000 people across 22 villages of Puri district who depend primarily on agriculture. The project would have an extreme impact on eco-system.

The fate of Rs 54,000 crore POSCO project -- which happens to be the largest Foreign Direct Investment of the country -- hangs in balance on similar grounds. The majority view in Environment Ministry proposed for the cancellation of the project.

Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik and his BJD are battling the allegations of selling the state’s riches to private firms at the cost of livelihood of the people. The Opposition knives are out with ugly scenes occurring in the state assembly recently. A Congress lawmaker climbed onto the Speaker’s podium and lay down on it during an agitation in the well of the House.

Political instability in Jharkhand

JMM and BJP together formed the government following the hung Assembly that the election results threw up as the year 2009 came to a close. But in a stunning political twist, Shibu Soren-led JMM voted for UPA in the cut motion in Parliament on price rise in April. Political instability was the price that Jharkhand then paid as BJP withdrew its support from the state government.

In September, Nitin Gadkari-led BJP inked a fresh power-sharing deal with JMM, brushing aside the resentment expressed by a section of party top brass. JMM, BJP and AJSU came together and formed the new government under Arjun Munda. But how long the ‘rainbow coalition’ will last remains a question.

-- As it appeared in the yearender 2011 coverage of Zeeonline

A victory of development

Saswat Panigrahi

Riding the wave triggered by “development”, the JD(U)-BJP alliance stormed back to power in Bihar with a three-fourth majority. Of the total 243 Assembly seats, the JD(U) and its coalition partner BJP managed to win a staggering 206.

But before understanding the nitty-gritty of numbers and percentages that constitute the landslide victory let’s try and decipher the reasons that led to Nitish Kumar being anointed as the newest mascot of development.

Ever since his victory, most commentators have hailed him for turning Bihar into a success story. His vision, determination and action to rebuild Bihar are indeed commendable.

Surely, Bihar has changed and Nitish has fit in as the prime catalyst to the entire process.

In 2005 Assembly Elections the state hoped for the change and hence voted for JD(U)-BJP coalition. In this election people of Bihar have recognised the change and hence voted back the incumbent government.

“Bihar mein vikas jeet gaya hai. (Development has won in Bihar)”, the victorious chief minister said humbly in wake of the massive show of support by the people of his state.

Much water has flow down the Ganges in Patna in the last five years. Bihar was at crossroads when Nitish took over the reins of the improvised state. Situation was topsy-turvy to say the least but he promised a naya Bihar (a new Bihar).

A naya Bihar sans its negative image - a state which would stop making headlines for its poor infrastructure, where crime would no longer be a career option and kidnapping an ‘organised industry’… a state where citizens would not be forced to go elsewhere in search of prosperity and safety.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar started his work from the scratch with, initially, a two-point agenda - improvement of law and order and development.

And soon enough, the chief minister along with his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi were able to kick start a non-functional state.

The Economics

Coupled with a drastic improvement in law and order situation - kidnapping is no more an industry in Bihar and jails are not comfort zone for criminals - massive investments in creating infrastructure has ensured an upward swing in the state’s economy.

From 2004 to 2009, the state’s economy registered an impressive annual growth rate of 11.35 percent in sharp contrast to a mere 3.5 percent growth in the previous five years term.

The per capita income has been increased from Rs 7,443 to Rs 13,959 in between the same period. The state’s development spending on construction-related projects has grown from Rs 2,000 crore to Rs 16,000 crore per year. In tune with the economic prosperity the migration rate of the state has come down drastically.

The Politics

Nitish is being credited for awakening the Bihari sub-nationalism and the Bihari ashimta (Bihari pride). Caste seems to be losing its relevance in Nitish Kumar’s naya Bihar.

However, it would be missing the point to suggest that caste calculations are entirely out of the window.

The fact: apart from the focus on development, the mechanical engineer in Nitish Kumar did dabble in social engineering.

By forming new social group called ‘Maha Dalits’ (most backward classes) out of the existing Dalits, he tried to bring into the fold all those classes and subclasses who had been hitherto left behind during the first wave of social change.

With a whopping 35 percent vote share in the state, the ‘Maha Dalits’ turned out to be, as results suggest, the sure-shot recipe for success at the hustings.

With a measly tally of 22 seats, the lantern of Lalu Prasad Yadav seems to be flickering and his brother-in-arms Ram Vilas Paswan, with just three seats, appears to be headed for political oblivion.

On the coalition side, clearly, the Bihar election result has thrown some animated signals. Let’s read the figures between the lines and try and decipher the import of the Nitish Kumar-led NDA’s landslide victory.

JD(U) and BJP won 115 and 91 of the 141 and 102 seats they contested, respectively. In 2005 Assembly Elections JD(U) and BJP won 78 and 55 seats with the same seat sharing equation. This implies JD(U)’s tally has been increased by 26 percent in comparison to the last election while that of the BJP has increased by 35 per cent.

Undoubtedly, the improvement of tally of the saffron party - better in comparison to its coalition partner JD(U)), which was marred with internal rifts in the run up to the polls - has surprised many.

Apart from the Nitish magic – which undeniably worked in its favour too- the other reasons which seem to have aided in the stunning show by the BJP include the fact that the BJP contested the poll purely on development agenda.

Ably managed by two general secretaries – Ananth Kumar and Dharmendra Pradhan – who skillfully managed the war room, the BJP approached the voters with a clean slate - track record of Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Sushil Modi - that hastened the development work done by the coalition government.

BJP would be hoping to replicate its success in Bihar in other states, especially because it feels that the Congress is on the backfoot over corruption scandals that have rocked the nation, but the fact remains that they cannot claim to be completely “clean” given the Yeddyurappa taint.

Congress trouble

There are sound lessons for the Congress in view of its worst ever drubbing as it has managed to net only four seats.

The party needs to understand that poor organisation can’t be covered up by high-profile election campaigning by Sonia, Rahul and the Prime Minister.

Moreover, targeting Nitish Kumar on the issue of development seems to have backfired.

Challenges ahead

With this consecutive victory of JD(U)-BJP coalition has come the rising burden of expectations of the people.

Bihar is India’s least industrialised state. To set the speed of development Nitish Kumar needs to bring exponential investment and for that to happen, the new government needs to continue with its focus on infrastructure.

For industrialisation the state needs to allot land. Here Nitish Kumar needs to be extremely cautious. Hope, he won’t do a Naveen Patnaik by giving a go ahead to industries at the cost of livelihood of the people.

Other important challenges: concerted efforts are needed to tackle the acute power shortage in the state.

Moreover, keeping in view of the gap between the consumption of agricultural products and their production, the state needs to improve its agricultural productivity.

Nitish has history on his side, but whether he along with his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi – both products of Sampoorna Kranti movement launched by legendary Jayaprakash Narayan – would be able to bring in sampoorna kranti(total revolution) Part II in Bihar is something only time will tell. Here’s wishing them best of luck.

-- Published in Zee online

26/11: Two years on

Saswat Panigrahi

It’s been two years. The scars of a 60-hour-long terror siege which scripted a gory tale in blood is very much alive. The fidayeen style attacks were coordinated shootings and blasts on multiple targets across India’s financial capital unleashed by Pakistan based jihadi elements.

The attacks took place at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, Nariman House, Metro Cinema and a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier's College. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and another one in a taxi at Vile Parle.

The unprecedented terror strikes, which startled India and the world -- started on November 26, 2008 and ended on November 29, 2008 -- snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. Among the dead were 136 Indians and 28 foreign nationals from 10 countries.

Mumbai police, Rapid Action Force personnel, Marine commandos and National Security Guards commandos performed their duties with remarkable bravery and professionalism in their battle with the terrorists. 15 policemen and two NSG commandos sacrificed their lives in the counter-offensive. Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Tukaram Omble (who succeeded in capturing a terrorist alive), Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad Chief Hemant Karkare, Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte, Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar, Senior Inspector Shashank Shinde were among the 15 policemen killed in the operation. NSG Commandos Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan, Hawaldar Gajendra Singh were also killed during the counter-offensive.

What may be the most well-documented terror strikes of the recent times, the attacks which were carried out by ten trained Pakistani young jihadis, were meticulously planned several months ahead of time. The attacks were executed by the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) inside Pakistan. Reports say former officials from the Pakistani Army and its ace intelligence service Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) helped training the Mumbai attackers. The sophistication in the design of the terror strike also clearly points to an official backing from Pakistani agencies. However, a possible involvement of local elements in the role of facilitators can’t be ruled out either.

Indian investigations reveal that the ten jihadis, who travelled to Mumbai from Karachi via Porbandar across the Arabian Sea, hijacked Indian fishing trawler 'Kuber', killed the crew and entered Mumbai on a rubber dinghy. They had a detailed lay out plans of their targets. To navigate to Mumbai by sea and to find their targets, the terrorists used Global Positioning System handsets. They also used Google Earth to familiarise themselves with the locations of their targets. Moreover, the attackers were constantly directed by handlers from inside Pakistan via mobile phones and Voice over Internet Protocol.

The investigation further reveals that each jihadi carried a dozen hand grenades, a 9 mm handgun with two 18-round clips and an AK-47, seven to nine 30-round magazines and more than 100 rounds of loose ammunition. Each attacker also carried a 17.6-pound (8 kg) bomb. Type 86 Grenades made by China's state-owned Norinco were used in the attacks.

Reports say the terrorists used at least three SIM cards purchased on the Indian side of the border with Bangladesh, pointing to a local involvement. Reports further suggest that one SIM card was purchased in New Jersey, US.
Blood tests of the jihadis indicate that they had taken cocaine, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide drugs and steroids during the attacks to sustain their energy for long hours.

Investigations revealed that the attackers were in their twenties. Nine of the ten attackers were from the Pakistan’s Punjab province and one was from the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Nine of the ten gunmen were shot dead during the counter offensive by security forces while one captured alive.

After a series of denials to India’s dossier on Mumbai attacks, Pakistan which continues to be a safe haven for terrorists buckled under tremendous international pressure. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik finally agreed that "some part of the conspiracy" did take place in Pakistan and promised to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.

The Pakistani authorities have also admitted to their Indian counterparts that the LeT plotted and financed the attacks. Pakistani investigations conducted on LeT camps in Karachi and Thatta revealed diaries, training manuals, maps of India and operational instructions relating to 26/11. "The investigation has established beyond any reasonable doubt that the defunct LeT activists conspired, abetted, planned, financed and established [the] communication network to carry out terror attacks in Mumbai," said a report of Pakistani investigation handed over to India.

However Pakistan which is not abandoning its policy on supporting terror groups, lets Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba and the mastermind of the terrorist siege in Mumbai, continue to make hate speeches and incite jihadis. Saeed, against whom an international arrest warrant was issued by Interpol, was freed by a Pakistani court from detention on the ground that the “Pakistani Government did not have enough evidence against him”, outlining Islamabad's lack of seriousness in its ‘commitment’ to bring the perpetrators of 26/11 to justice.

Obviously, behind the doors diplomacy of the Congress-led UPA Government has failed to bend Pakistan. Moreover, it had shocked the nation by delinking terrorism from composite dialogue in the Sharm el-Sheikh Indo-Pak joint statement, issued by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani in July, 2009, replicating a Charles De Gaulle line. It is to recall that after 26/11, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had categorically stated that there was no question of holding dialogue with Pakistan unless it gives enough proof of taking action against its nationals who masterminded Mumbai attacks, and initiate steps to dismantle terror infrastructure on its soil.

Date after date has been set for Pakistan to display action against the perpetrators of 26/11. Home Minister P Chidambaram held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Rehman Malik in Islamabad on the sidelines of SAARC Home Ministers' conference in June, 2010. “Time for giving dossiers is over. It is time to act and bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai carnage swiftly to justice,” Chidambaram said. But, two years after 26/11, there is zero progress by Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the carnage to justice.

David Coleman Headley, an American citizen of Pakistani origin plotted the Mumbai attacks along with his associate Tahawwur Rana, another Pakistani origin Canadian citizen. Headley, who is a step brother of Danyal Gilani, the Public relations officer of Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani was formerly known as Daood Sayed Gilani and changed his Muslim name to Christian. The LeT operative, many believe was a CIA agent once. The FBI investigations reveal that Headley had attended militant training camps in Pakistan between 2002 and 2005. Between 2006 and 2008 he made several surveillance trips to India scouting targets for the Mumbai attacks. He was also plotting similar terror strikes in strategic locations of the country.

Pakistan had confirmed the arrest of a retired army major for his links with Headley and Rana. Reports indicate that the notorious Pakistani intelligence agency ISI could be linked to Headley. There are reports which also suggest Headley’s link to Bollywood.

Both Headley and Rana are currently in FBI custody. Headley has pleaded guilty for his role in 26/11. The US has promised to share the outcome of findings of 'full review' on Headley. But, India is yet to get a chance to interrogate the 26/11 plotter.

Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone 26/11 terrorist captured alive was sentenced to death by a special court in Mumbai in May, 2010. Now Kasab is facing another trail on the same case in Bombay High Court. His lawyer says he is not even interested in the case. Reports suggest that the cost of keeping the lone gun man alive is as much as Rs 60 crore and counting.

At a time the country is paying tribute to the heroes and victims of Mumbai terror attacks, let’s discuss the naked truth. 26/11 has laid thread bare an abysmal intelligence and a spineless security, which helped the terror siege to succeed. Further, there are questions which continue to haunt the Government. How bullets traversed through the bullet-proof jacket of three top Mumbai cops -- ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, ACP Ashok Kamte, and Encounter Specialist Vijay Salaskar. Intriguingly, Hemant Karkare’s bullet-proof jacket reportedly went missing, and so did the file on the procurement of those jackets. An inept RR Patil, ‘famous’ for his utterly ridiculous remark right after the terror siege -- “Bade shehron mein aisi choti baatein hoti rehti hai” – enjoys his old portfolio of Maharashtra Home Minister. Two years after 26/11 rehabilitation still elude scores of victims and their families.

In the larger reckoning, the problem remains. India is being systematically targeted by jihadi elements. Two years on, is India alert and prepared to thwart future terror attacks?

-- Published in Zee online

Hope Obama keeps his words

Saswat Panigrahi

American President Barack Obama is facing the heat of a bruised economy which casts its shadow on the US mid-term polls. It is at this juncture when Obama has succeeded in carving out his Mission India plan. His India visit was skilfully calculated and the agenda carefully scripted.

Obama has understood India’s potential as a robust economy and its growing advancement in the field of science and technology. This is precisely the reason the ‘brand’ America is now attracted towards the ‘brain’ India. “India is not simply emerging; India has already emerged”, Obama lauded while addressing the majestic Central Hall of the Indian Parliament. The US President said, “Instead of resisting the global economy it became one of its engines unleashing an economic marvel.”

The US President accepted India as a civilization that has been shaping the world for thousands of years. Saluting the ancient civilization of science and innovation he admitted, “Indians unlocked the intricacies of the human body and the vastness of our universe,” adding, “Instead of becoming dependent on commodities and exports, it invested in science and technology. And the world sees the results, from the supercomputers you build to the Indian flag that you put on the Moon.”

Obama’s new understanding of the idea of India and its potential to deliver for the world is welcome. With its growing economic clout, India understands that it can play an important role in shaping a new world order.

Obama has recognised India’s emergence as a rising global super power. In a diplomatic gesture, he supported India’s bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council, which many consider as the high point of Obama visit. “In the years ahead, I look forward to a reformed UN Security Council that includes India as a permanent member”, the US President promised. It is another matter that the US later stated that UNSC reforms were not happening anytime soon.

America will now remove several Indian organisations from its “so-called entity list” and realign India in export control regulations. It also intends to support India's full membership in the four multilateral export control regimes -- Nuclear Suppliers Group, Missile Technology Control Regime, Australia Group, and Wassenaar Arrangement -- in a ‘phased manner’.

This implies India will have a say in determining global export control, which could give our country an edge over China. Looking at India’s technological advancement, the US also sees its interest in inducting India in the multilateral export control regimes. America is keen to sell its defence equipment to India. But India needs to be careful and selective. In return, the US should open gates for transfer of technology to India.

It was during Obama’s visit, the Indo-US joint statement outlined cooperation in civil space, defence, and other high-technology sectors. Here India needs to be extra careful because the move could compromise nation’s communication secrecy.

Obama-led America sounds soft on Pakistan, the epicentre of international terrorism. But, why hasn’t the US labelled Pakistan a terrorist state, Obama was quizzed by a student at St. Xavier College, Mumbai. “Pakistan is an enormous country; it is a strategically important country not just for US but for the world. Within Pakistan there are some extremist elements…US is working with the Pakistani government in order to eradicate this extremism”, Obama responded.

However, while addressing Indian Parliament, the US President spoke in a changed tone. “We will continue to insist to Pakistan’s leaders that terrorist safe-havens within their borders are unacceptable, and that the terrorists behind the Mumbai attacks be brought to justice.” Chinese aggression against India and Kashmir issue were apparently missing from Obama’s Mission India plan.

Obama’s India visit clinched as much as 20 business deals, carried business worth USD 10 billion and a whopping 50,000 jobs to his country. Perhaps that was the reason, a visibly pleased American President -- who desperately needs New Delhi to curb the rising unemployment of his country -- struck a chord different from American ‘national’ line on the raw nerve that is ‘outsourcing’.

Whenever I’m asked about Indians taking away our jobs, I want to say: You know what, they’ve just created 50,000 jobs,” he said addressing a joint press conference with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Tearing apart the baseless allegations that Indian IT industry is making a growing number of Americans unemployed, the Prime Minister firmly retorted, “Indians are not in the business of stealing jobs.”

There are reasons that the US has accepted India as an indispensable partner. Remember, it was former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee who had first famously declared India and the US to be “natural allies”. Now American President Barack Obama has asserted that India and US will be “one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century”.

So far, there has been a perception in India that America always backs the wrong horse. It is true to an extent that the oldest democracy has never really supported the worlds’ largest democracy. Instead, it has yet to get rid of its Sino-Pak obsession. Obama’s India visit has shown promise. However, it remains to be seen to what extent Obama delivers on his promises, especially helping us get the UNSC seat and putting pressure on Pakistan to crackdown on terror.

World politics is no more America’s fiefdom. It a multi-polar world and India-US relationship should be based on mutual interest, trust and respect. For Indian leadership, it is a litmus test to play an incremental diplomatic ace to showcase India as a true world leader.

Appeared in Zeenews.com on November 23, 2010

Nitish Kumar in pole position

Nitish Kumar’s development agenda seems to have brought Bihar back on track. Will the wily Lalu Prasad prove the poll pundits wrong, or will Ram Vilas Paswan play the role of king maker? Saswat Panigrahi examines the strengths and weaknesses of the title contenders

Steering a new social engineering

“Bihar ki gaadi patri se utar chuki hai. Usko patri par lana hoga” (The train of Bihar has derailed. It needs to be brought back onto the track.)

Those were the words of Nitish Kumar in response to a huge public mandate in support of JD(U)-BJP coalition before five years. That time he had the unenviable task of reviving a topsy-turvy Bihar.

The development indicators painted a bleak picture. Data of 2004-05 showed 41.4 per cent of Bihar’s population was below the poverty line. A staggering 53 per cent of State’s population was illiterate -- just double the national average -- the highest rate of illiteracy in the country. Bihar had a per capita income of Rs 7,443 -- the lowest in the country -- a one-third of the national average. The State was languishing in the bottom echelons of the national development index.

Bihar was making headlines for all the wrong reasons- its poor infrastructure, low delivery of services and large scale scams. Crime, ignorance and anarchy were the key features of a paralysed Bihar. The State was utterly failing to utilise central funds.

Five years have passed since Nitish Kumar took the reins of Bihar. Showcasing a new miracle economy the State has changed fast. The State registered a high growth rate for the first time in the post-Independence period. According to the Bihar Economic Survey 2009-10 State’s economy registered an impressive annual growth rate of 11.35 per cent over a five-year from 2004-05 to 2008-09. This is in sharp contrast to a mere 3.5 per cent growth rate in the previous five years. The survey also shows a rise in per capita income from Rs 7,443 in 2004 to Rs.13,959 in 2009. Now Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has earned the right to flay the Congress-led Central Government’s for its apathy in granting funds for Bihar’s development.

The sea change vindicates Nitish Kumar's claims of a naya Bihar (a new Bihar) in which his coalition partner BJP has an equal share. Under the leadership of Nitish Kumar and Sushil Modi, the JD(U)-BJP coalition has successfully shaped Bihar’s social engineering. The coalition is again headed to the polls where Bihar’s electorate will give their verdict.

Before taking over the reins of the State, Nitish Kumar had a successful stint as a Union Minister for Railways and Agriculture during the NDA regime. Kumar, a mechanical engineer, is a product of the Sampoorna Kranti movement launched by legendary Jayaprakash Narayan.

If election is the index of performance and popularity, then the JD(U)-BJP coalition seems poised to storm back to power.

On a comeback trail?

"Jab tak samosa me aalu, tab tak Bihar me Lalu (As long as there is potato in the samosa, Bihar will always have its Lalu)", once proclaimed Lalu Prasad Yadav that became a smash hit over night. Hate him, love him, but you just can’t ignore him. That aptly sums up the enigma that is Lalu Prasad.

Political observers have marvelled at his mastery over playing with the complex permutation and combination of caste, class and religious equations in politics. His ‘Lantern age’ was fuelled by blatant use of caste and communal politics, often camouflaged under dubious slogans in the garb of ‘social justice’ and ‘secularism’.

A product of the Sampoorna Kranti movement launched by legendary Jayaprakash Narayan -- as his rival Nitish Kumar and his foe-turned-friend Ram Vilas Paswan -- Lalu Prasad positioned himself as a messiah of Dalits and minorities. He successfully nurtured the Muslim, Yadav and Dalit (MYD) combine at different periods of his political reign.

Lalu stoked the Mandal fire and rode to the crest of Patna’s power centre, to head a Janata Dal government in 1990. Five years later in 1995 Assembly elections he made a clean sweep by winning a staggering 165 of the 324 assembly seats. But a year later, Lalu was embroiled in the chara ghotala (fodder scam) estimated at Rs 950 crore. The Janata Dal was divided, and Lalu formed his own party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal by virtually taking with him all the Janata Dal legislators in the Bihar assembly. The opposition knives were out for a cornered Lalu resulting in him relinquishing his chief ministership. In a political masterstroke, he anointed his wife Rabri Devi as CM.

Lalu spent 103 days in custody. From the ‘comfort zone’ of the jail he remote controlled the functioning of Patna darbar. It was during those days the state’s crime graph witnessed a steep rise. Crime suddenly became a lucrative career option in Lalu’s Bihar, and kidnapping became an ‘organised industry’.

It was during the Lalu era that Bihar’s development graph dipped alarmingly. In those days the State utterly failed to utilise central funds. Bihar witnessed a zero growth in his fifteen year legacy. Bihar was at the crossroads. But Lalu managed to hog headlines by promising to make the roads of the state ‘as smooth as Hema Malini's cheeks’.

When the Congress-led UPA government came to power in 2004, Lalu Prasad got the lucrative Union Ministry for Railways though he was eyeing the Home Ministry. Reports suggest that Prasad had misused his position as the Union Railway Minister to help his relatives acquire land. As the Railway Minister he appointed Justice UC Banerjee Commission to ‘investigate’ the Godhra train carnage. Banerjee commission came out with a report in 2005 just before the last Bihar election. “The Sabarmati Express burning was an accident,” the report said. The politically motivated report was to score brownie points with Lalu’s minority voters. But in the 2005 Bihar elections his lamp lighter era flickered.

After UPA-II came to power in 2009 Congress derailed Lalu from the cabinet. Lalu suddenly finds himself out in the cold and politically isolated. The maverick politician is making a desperate bid to reclaim lost ground. But the ghosts of the past still haunt him.

Political opportunist par excellence

He wears different hats, he changes his friends with even greater alacrity. A firm believer in the dictum -- there are no permanent friends or enemies in politics there is only permanent interest.

You have seen him in the United Front camp. He was there in National Democratic Alliance. You have seen him in United Progressive Alliance. You have also seen him in Fourth Front camp. He has served as Union Minister under as many as five different Prime Ministers. He could emerge as a possible king maker in case of a fractured mandate. Meet the Lok Janshakti Party supremo Ram Vilas Paswan, a man for all seasons, and opportunistic ally.

A product of Sampoorna Kranti movement launched by legendary Jayaprakash Narayan -- as his rival Nitish Kumar and his foe-turned-friend Lalu Prasad Yadav -- Paswan also stakes his claim as a messiah of Dalits and minorities.

Paswan who started his political career under the aegis of the United Socialist Party later joined the Janata Dal. When the Janata Dal was split, Paswan jumped to Janata Dal (United). In 2000 Paswan then broke away from the Janata Dal (United) and formed the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP).

Paswan served in lucrative portfolios of Railways, Communications, Coal and mines, Chemicals and Fertilizers and Steel, Labour and Welfare in the Union Cabinet. But his
Stints in the cabinet meant precious little for Bihar.

In the 2005 Bihar elections Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) performed poorly. In the 2009 general election Paswan forged an alliance with Lalu Prasad whom he once accused of being extremely corrupt. The foes-turn-friends duo formed Fourth front dumping their erstwhile coalition partner UPA. LJP drew a blank in the 15th Lok Sabha. But a shameless Paswan rushed to New Delhi to provide what he described as ‘moral support’ to UPA.

Paswan, like his new found friend Lalu languishes in political oblivion. He is desperately eyeing plum ministeries in the hope that the LJP-RJD combine might prove political pundits wrong and upset Nitish Kumar’s applecart.