Thursday, April 2, 2026
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Karnataka – One election and much needed learning for almost everyone

scbanaras
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Karnataka – One election and much needed learning for almost everyone

One election and much-needed learning for almost everyone (exceptions apply)

For NOTA Voters – the core BJP supporters who wanted to teach a lesson to BJP, will now have to learn a lesson under JDS + Congress for next few years or for 5 years or may be more or may be less. This was one of the best chance BJP had in Karnataka.

I agree BJP may not have done much for the Hindu cause but when the same BJP made a poll promise for addressing temple’s issue in Karnataka then some BJP core supporters didn’t support the cause and went for NOTA. BJP generally works based on their “Pole Promise” document and 4 years of performance is evidence of that but It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be doing other things.

I think – one thing should be clearly understood – the congress didn’t build the ecosystem in 4-5 years, so, BJP core supporter expecting BJP to create it in 4+ years is laughable. BJP alone needs majorities in lower and upper house both then you can expect faster and positive outcomes and for that, BJP needs to have the footprint across all states to create the ecosystem that can work faster and positively.

It’s good that the lesson has come in the Karnataka election otherwise it would have hurt badly in 2019. So, vote wisely and think long term because congress can do certain things because they have the ecosystem but BJP still need time for this and hence the longer rope.

For Voters – In all the democracies in the world – nowhere a single family has ruled the country for more than 60 years and yet get away with all the responsibilities and accountabilities on one name.

Historically, the voters have voted based on whatever they like (candidate and/or party or some other factor) but with the emergence of a multi-party system – it is exploited and now horse-trading decides the government and not the votes. Karnataka is the best example.

For example – JDS voters always knew that the JDS can’t form the government on its own and, JDS might end up supporting BJP to form the government. That’s the reason you will see in most of the straight fights between JDS and Congress – the JDS voters gave the mandate against the Congress. Now, JDS (against the people’s mandate) has horse-traded with the Congress. And, Congress is still in power even after being completely rejected by the voters. So, what is happening here? – people are asking for change but they are not getting the change because of the horse-trading.
So, my appeal (a lesson may be too) to the Indian voters is – please vote wisely. Don’t let the political parties decide the change for you. No matter who you want to choose (BJP or Congress or someone else) but choose wisely and decisively with full numbers. The fractured mandate promotes blackmailing and horse-trading and both are not good for democracy.

For BJP – BJP need not look at the larger picture all the time but also (sometimes) narrowed view, it will go a long way in managing and assuring your voter-base and will also help build upon it. I think BJP should have a team of people who should look after the grievances of their core voters and the Opindia.com could be a beginning point to learn about and address them.

For Congress – Congress (a family party) generally don’t want to learn a lesson but anyway. In Karnataka – they are now reduced to supporting and standing behind regional parties and do not act like a national party. Perhaps, Regional (North-South) divide is one of the (many) reasons for your debacle. Stop dividing the societies and regions. Don’t be mistaken – Karnataka is not your victory but Democracy (fractured) lost. It would be wise to select a new Congress president (that too a non-Gandhi) and make a comeback – opposition is very important in a democracy. There are many capable leaders in Congress.

Wishes to voters, BJP, Congress, and all the political parties.

शुक्र है, EVM की इज्जत बच गई…

Chetan Prinja
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शुक्र है, EVM की इज्जत बच गई…

लंबे सियासी घटनाक्रम के बाद कर्नाटक में बीजेपी के मुख्यमंत्री ने इस्तीफा दे दिया और इसके साथ ही नरेंद्र मोदी विरोधी गैंग ने शोर डालना शुरू कर दिया ये लोकतंत्र की जीत है, और उससे भी ज्यादा मोदी और अमित शाह की हार है। जीत का श्रेयः लेने और मुबारकबाद का सिलसिला शुरू हो गया।

कुछ लोग तो इतने जोश में थे और अपने अपको कांग्रेस पार्टी का सबसे बड़ा भक्त दिखाने की कोशिश में माननीय राज्यपाल के पद की गरिमा को भी भूल गए और राज्यपाल की तुलना कुत्ते से कर दी। एक भूतपुर्व मुख्यमंत्री तो इतने जोश में थे क़ि उन्होंने ने तो मोदी सरकार के इस्तीफे की मांग कर दी।

खैर इस तरह की मांग पहली बार नहीं हुई राजनीति में ऐसी मांग उठती रहती है, लेकिन सवाल यह है कि कितने नेताओं ने इस मांग को मान कर इस्तीफा दिया है मुझे याद नहीं। राजनीति सिर्फ सत्ता प्राप्ति का खेल है और इसमें जो भी नेता लोग करते है उनका अंतिम उद्देश्य सत्ता प्राप्ति ही होता है और कोई किसी के कहने पर अपनी इतने साल की मेहनत से प्राप्त की सत्ता की कुंजी छोड़ देगा इस पर मुझे संदेह है। अगर आपको याद हो तो इंदिरा गांधी ने इमरजेंसी सिर्फ सत्ता खो जाने के डर से ही लगाई थी और इस का उद्देश्य सिर्फ अपनी कुर्सी बचाना था।

इस सब शोर में एक आवाज़ सुनाई नहीं दी वो ही मशहूर डायलॉग EVM से छेड़ छाड़ की गई है।

शायद इसलिए क़ि नतीजे आते आते कांग्रेस को महसूस होने लगा था कि शायद हमारी सरकार जोड़तोड़ से बन सकती है। तभी यह मशहूर लाइन इस बार के चुनाव दृश्य से नदारद दिखी।

खैर वापिस चुनावी घटनाक्रम की तरफ बढ़ते है इस बार कांग्रेस को सुप्रीम कोर्ट भी पूरी तरह से निष्पक्ष दिखाई दी। चलिए कल तक चीफ जस्टिस जो कांग्रेस के हिसाब से निष्पक्ष नहीं थे उन्हें कांग्रेस की तरफ से निष्पक्ता का प्रमाण पत्र मिल गया। लेकिन यह प्रमाणपत्र सिर्फ तभी तक वैध होगा जब तक सुप्रीम कोर्ट कांग्रेस के पक्ष में फैसले देती है और जब भी उसके खिलाफ कोई फैसला आया तो लोकतंत्र ख़तरे में है यह वाक्य आपको सुनने को मिल सकता है।

चलिए अब आते है राज्यपाल के फैसले की तरफ तो यकीनन यह फैसला में लोगों को शक की बदबू आ रही थी। लेकिन सवाल तो यह भी उठ रहे है कि इस फैसले के बीज तो कांग्रेस ने ही बोए थे जिसकी फसल आज उसे काटनी पड़ रही है। कांग्रेस ने कई बार विपक्ष की सरकार गिराने के लिए महामहिम राष्ट्रपति और माननीय राज्यपाल के पद का दुरूपयोग किया। और आज विपक्ष भी उसी नीति को आगे बढ़ा रहा है।

इस सब में एक बात आश्चर्य जनक थी नतीजे आने के समय से लेकर आज तक राहुल गांधी का मौनव्रत धारण करना। और सोनिया गांधी का इस मुश्किल समयः में पार्टी की कमान संभालना और राहुल गांधी की युवा ब्रिगेड को पीछे करके अनुभवी और पार्टी के पुराने नेताओं को आगे करना।यह भी अपने आप में काफी सवाल खड़े करता है।जैसे राहुल गांधी चाहे पार्टी अध्यक्ष पद पर हो लेकिन पार्टी अभी भी अहम् मुद्दों पर उनकी योग्यता पर संदेह करती है। अहम् मसले पर उन्हें पीछे करके सोनिया गांधी का दुसरे नेताओं को आगे करना इस डर को दर्शाता है क़ि शायद पार्टी समझती है कि राहुल की लीडरशिप में बीजेपी बाज़ी मार सकती थी।

सियासी हलकों में यह विचार भी है कि शायद यह बीजेपी की आगे की रणनीति हो सकती है आने वाले आम चुनावों के लिए। कि शायद आने वाले साल तक यह सरकार की लोकप्रियता कुछ कम हो जाएगी और तब बीजेपी विक्टिम कार्ड और लिंग्यात कार्ड खेलेगी। ताकि आने वाले आम चुनाव में उसे कैश किया जा सके। और उसके बाद में कांग्रेस जेडीएस के लिंग्यात विधायकों की मदद से अपनी सरकार भी बना लेगी। लेकिन यह अभी दूर की कौड़ी लगती है और यह इस बात पर निर्भर करता है कि यह सरकार की लोकप्रियता में कमी आएगी और यह सरकार कोई लोक लुभावन वादे नही करेगी।

लेकिन यह सरकार पाँच वर्ष का कार्यकाल पूरा कर पाएगी। इस बात पर संदेह है क्योंकि अमित शाह शायद मन में वह डायलॉग दोहरा रहे होंगे कि “कब तक छिपाओगे खंभे की आड़ में, कभी तो आयोगे भिन्डी बाजार में”। यह काफी मजाकिया हो सकता है लेकिन अभी तो विधायक कांग्रेस की कैद से आज़ाद हो जाएंगे और बीजेपी के संपर्क में आएंगे। लेकिन आने वाले वक्त में कर्नाटक की राजनीति में और भी हलचल देखने को मिल सकती है खास कर बाकी दो विधानसभा के चुनाव नतीजों के बाद। कल क्या होगा यह तो भविष्य की गर्भ में छिपा है और यह जानने के लिए हमें अभी और इंतज़ार करना होगा।

Democracy and the vague opposition

navneet
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Democracy and the vague opposition

Intentionally or unintentionally, the game which is being played in Karnataka is a win-win situation for BJP, no matter what happens in the floor test:

  • Congress went to the same C.J.I. whom they proposed to impeach a few days ago, C.J.I. heard the plea and they seem to be thankful for it. They can’t really say something about S.C. at least for some time now.
  •  No E.V.M. tampering accusation from any of the parties now; they think that people are not observing it. Everyone is watching this and people will laugh because they will start bringing this E.V.M. bullshit as per the result and convenience. Then they wonder that how come, people are still voting for the same party.
  •  B.J.P. wins or loses, they are getting benefited anyways in R.S.(upper house). If they win, their government here and if they lose, how long JDS+CONG alliance will survive, one can sense. No one is naive here.

It’s our bad luck that we don’t have a real opposition. We deserve a constructive opposition who can question on real issues but the parties who are habitual of power, think that public is so foolish that they can get away with anything.

C.J.I. is bad, E.C. is bad, Governor is bad, EVM is tampered, fake news peddling and so much. They have become so blind in hating one person and one party that they start criticizing each and everything about them, circulate useless memes and they don’t realize that when even a single lie when gets uncovered, BJP and Modi gets the sympathy. It’s not them, it’s their haters who are making them big. This is the only reality today.

The only victim is us, the public. Horse trading, resorts politics and all this bullshit game, who is paying for all this? We, the taxpayers but we have become so comfortable with all this that this doesn’t matter to anyone now.

We deserve a real constructive opposition who can debate on issues, who not only questions but provides a road-map or advice to current bills, who can actually do politics and get benefits/funds from center to work on their constituency rather than uselessly questioning the integrity of all the institutions like Judiciary, Election Commission and all the possible entities and later going to the same place for favor and making fool of themselves.

Parliament or Assembly doesn’t have only ruling parties’ representatives but have opposition, regional, independent as well who still get paid and who still holds the responsibility of their constituency, they feel that their only work is to put allegations. If they win, Democracy wins and if they lose, EVM is tampered. The public cannot be fooled, they choose to observe the selective outrage, accusations as per convenience and then they reply while voting. Some people make things easier for BJP. Even if the BJP does not work for a single day, these people(opposition) will turn the public into BJP supporters. Is it so tough to accept the defeat and start working on it?

It seems we can never get a proper and constructive opposition and the people who think they are manipulating people by saying just useless things about BJP and Modi, may sense prevail. the opposition is trying to defame others for 16 years, still have been unable to understand the nerves of people. If you’re really concerned, then work on the facts, rebut the question on education, railway, jobs, if a bill is not proper, give a blueprint for change, work in your area and there are a thousand things but all this seems a dream. Or else, keep on doing the same thing and keep wondering about the results after every election.

Sustainable development of Indian Butter Tree towards protecting environment and traditional knowledge

shardul
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Sustainable development of Indian Butter Tree towards protecting environment and traditional knowledge

Initiatives to conserve bio-resources having traditional and economic value for its sustainable use have been very few when it comes to protecting certain tree borne edible oil species like The Indian Butter Tree (Scientifically known as Aesandra butyracea) grown by locals under the guidance of renowned environmentalist Padma Awardee Sunderlal Bahuguna in small farm holdings of Uttarakhand in a nondescript village known as Ghansali 171 km from state capital Dehradun.

The tree species which is now on the verge of extinction needs to be sustainably grown in clusters in the forest and non-forest areas of Uttarakhand in its 11 districts based on the recommendations of Planning Commission, Government of India through a field survey done by apex national financial institution NABARD in Uttarakhand during 2002 to 2003.

NABARD’s field survey based cost-benefit analysis stated that growing 10 lakh trees seeds from which 60, 000 litres of edible oil can be extracted per year can fetch Rs 120 crore annually based on the premise that 10 lakh hectares of land be made available for the purpose in Uttarakhand. It has been estimated that growing 100 trees can produce 3,000 litres of edible oil per year per hectare basis on the 15th year giving an income of Rs 3 lakh annually.

The tree locally known as Chyur in Uttarakhand produces edible oilseeds, which are rich in oil content and is a potential substitute for hydrogenated oil or Vanaspati Ghee commonly consumed in Indian households. Interestingly, it is being used as a substitute of hydrogenated oil in many parts of Nepal, Kumaon Division of Uttarakhand and tribal areas of Chakrauta hills in Uttrakhand for the past many centuries. Grown at an altitude of 2,000 to 5,000 feet in the sub-Himalayan tract covering the Himalayan region, which encompasses regions like Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Bhutan, Nepal and Manipur, the tree is also known as Kalpabriksha, which means, ‘the tree which fulfils every human need’.

Indian Butter Tree as a Tree Borne Oil Species (TBOS) bears relevance when it comes to overcoming India’s import dependency for edible oil which is currently at Rs 74, 000 crore projected to be Rs 2 lakh crore by 2020.

There are only a few TBOS species which are sources of edible oil like Coconut Oil, Sal, Avocado and Indian Butter Tree. NABARD did a comparative analysis of 13 edible oil yielding species out of which Indian butter tree is amongst the highest edible oil yielding variety which gives the maximum yield of 3000 litres per hectare. Other 8 noteworthy edible oil yielding varieties are Mustard, Soybean, Rice Bran, Sunflower, Groundnut, Castor, Tung and Coconut.

Though ASSOCHAM report may give a ringside view of the edible oil scarcity in the country, the scenario is however grim in the hilly region of not only Uttarakhand but the Himalayan region as well due to poor land availability. The reason attributed is urbanisation and large-scale migration.

India has been importing edible oil to the tune of Rs 74 thousand crores as per the estimates of ASSOCHAM and is poised to grow at a rate of 6% so much so that by 2020-21, the import bill is estimated at Rs 2 lakh crore. Therefore there is a need for a renewed focus on the sustainable use and conservation of TBOS, which is a viable solution for the country’s over-dependence on the import of Palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia among other countries like Argentina and Brazil for Soyabean oil.

A promising bioresource of edible oil like Indian Butter Tree and a great subject of traditional knowledge is today facing neglect due to government’s apathy and hence is on the verge of extinction. Further, it bears a lot of relevance when we talk about areas of concern like global warming, groundwater table depletion, forest fires, indiscriminate exploitation of bioresources for animal fodder, dwindling rural economy and above all a challenge to conserve the environment and our biodiversity.

Certain initiatives have been taken by other academic institutions like High Altitude Plant Physiology Research Centre (HAPPRC) affiliated to HNB Garhwal University, Uttarakhand and by individuals like Uttarakhand based Social Worker Ramesh Gairola and Entrepreneur Kundan Singh who planted 200 trees in 2011 is indicative of the belief that collective efforts towards conserving bioresources like Indian Butter Tree and ecology can be a feasible idea to tackle the challenge towards protecting environment and traditional knowledge.

Dear Bangaloreans you have taken us and the state backwards

deepakrao
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Dear Bangaloreans you have taken us and the state backwards

So the Nataka in Karnataka is over. From the euphoria of the initial counting when BJP was leading in 120 seats to the despondency when they ended up at 104; from the joy when B S Yeddyurappa took oath to the poignant moment, when he tearfully did a Vajpayee and resigned before the trust vote – the state saw tumultuous political developments in one week.

Proving most journalists and some pollsters wrong, the BJP performed extremely well in the elections with landslide wins in Coastal Karnataka, Central Karnataka and Mumbai-Karnataka. To everyone’s surprise, they did creditably well in Old Mysore when they are expected to get almost nothing there. In Hyderabad-Karnataka they almost drew even with Congress, which was creditable considering the area was a stronghold of Congress. But the shocker came in Bangalore, where the Congress outdid the BJP and emerged on top. This in spite of the woes Bangalore has faced over many years.

As PM Modi so aptly put it, the trio of George-Baig-Harris has demonstrated the ugly side of the Congress party to the hilt. The rise in crime rate exemplified by the rowdyism of Harris’ son, the blatant corruption, the suicides of honest officers are all a blemish thanks to this trio. But shockingly all three of them won comfortably. Bangalore’s name was tarnished by the foamy Bellandur lake which even caught fire. The maladministration of the city corporation (ironically run by a CON-JDS coalition), water problems, electricity problems, traffic problems, road problems – the city had problems galore. A day before the elections, rain-lashed Bangalore causing endless misery taking the city’s civic woes to its peak. It was expected that Bangalore, furious with the with the way Congress had ruined the city, would respond strongly and boot out the Congress. But surprisingly, Congress won 13/28 seats with BJP settling for 11. Constituencies of ministers Baig and Gundu Rao are most pathetic in terms of development, but yet they won comfortably! How did this happen?

This happened because Bangaloreans neglected their responsibility; when the entire state recorded a 72.36% voter turnout, Bangalore put up a pathetic show with only 54.72% of the voters turning up to vote. This has been a perennial problem with most urban areas, where citizens rant and rave throughout the area about how governments have failed them, but on voting day they don’t bother to discharge their responsibility.

Why did Bangalore record such a poor voting percentage?

1. The date of the election – fixed on a Saturday ensured a two-day holiday and many Bangaloreans, particularly from the MNC/IT sector took off to Coorg, Ooty and other places for a holiday – their logic being: a) All are crooks, why should I vote for them b) My one vote doesn’t matter

2. There were problems with the voter’s list and few voters found that their names had been deleted. The voter list is published and available on the EC website. But IT savvy Bangaloreans didn’t bother to check the list and woke on voting day to find out that their name was not there in the voter list.

3. Many just didn’t bother to leave the comforts of their homes to stand in the hot sun. Basic apathy and don’t care attitude of ‘let-them-fight-it-out-what-do-I-get’.

It is very clear that most of those who didn’t turn up to vote were BJP supporters. Those who turned out to vote were very clearly Congress supporters and there were many incidents of blatant voter bribing. Not that BJP are saints who don’t do this, but Congress is historically better at corrupting voters.

The end result is that BJP which could easily have won 15+ in Bangalore ended up with 11 only. The 7 seats would have changed the situation and we would have a BSY government in the state.

Now the state will see a JDS-CON coalition with the likes of George and DKS who have a dubious reputation back at the helm of affairs. When Congress-JDS who are running the city corporation could not do anything for the city, it is highly unlikely they will do anything for the city. Bangaloreans who don’t spare any occasion to outrage about the civic deterioration of the city will now have to sit back and watch the city sink as the ruling coalition would be more worried about managing their majority than development.

What have you done Bangaloreans? Your apathy and irresponsibility have led us to a situation wherein we are ruled by an unprincipled coalition which has no ideology, no philosophy and no development vision. Your failure to discharge your civic duties has resulted in a situation wherein we are likely to see the city and the state going backwards. And you can’t do anything now, you can only keep ranting and raving on social media and TV – your irresponsibility has hurt the state. Hopefully, at least in future elections, the city residents will realise how their apathy has hurt the state and put up a better show next time.

Karnataka 2018: A case for Govt formation by BJP

kaaka_Angadi
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Karnataka 2018: A case for Govt formation by BJP

Since the Governor of Karnataka invited B.S.Yedyurappa to form the Govt, I have been seeing a section of the public and intellectuals, unaligned to any of the parties, say that BJP shouldn’t form a Govt since it doesn’t have a majority in the house. This view has reached a crescendo after it was evident that BSY hasn’t been able to garner the support of any opposition MLAs. I also see some people arguing that BJP should have allowed the Cong-JDs combine to form the Govt and it would disintegrate sooner than later.

Probably I would have endorsed the latter opinion in any other situation, but not this time.  It was still early on the counting day, the trends were just starting to settle and not even 1/4th of the results were declared. The message of the results was fairly evident and that being, anti-incumbency had caught up with the Siddaramaiah Govt. and people’s will was towards a BJP Govt. Congress sensed that the results were according to one of the scenarios they had predicted. In desperation, they surrendered to the JDs. I don’t see much of a fault in it and the Congress wish of keeping the BJP out of power. But I was aghast at the response of the JDs. Maybe it was due to my expectation that, H.D.Kumaraswamy is different than his father and he would accept the mandate of the people, rather than play by his father’s wily tricks.

For people who think, there was no moral option in this mandate, sorry, but there were few. A BJP govt supported by JDs (as a coalition or from outside) or vice-versa. If JDs was really concerned about secularism, they could have just made that a red line and pull out support whenever BJP crossed it and then go with Congress.

Now coming to the issue of BJP forming the govt after being the SLP. I think it was their duty to the people who have voted for them. A party so close to a majority needs to honour its mandate and try to form the Govt. For those asking about the shortfall required to get a majority, I don’t see why or what’s so inherently wrong about BJP luring MLAs with the promise of ministries. I would like to make it clear here that I don’t endorse bribing with money or threatening them, as that’s illegal. But a share in the power or the MLAs dislike for the post-poll alliance, are legitimate reasons. After all similar reasons were used to prop up the post-poll alliance.

Some people may opine, if luring MLAs is allowed, then no Govt in the country can be stable and isn’t that why the anti-defection law was put into place. It’s my belief that, a system and set of laws, are required to provide a level playing field and to protect weak from being exploited by people with resources. But none of our political parties is weak and each of them would have used illegal or unethical means to fight elections. It can be using casteism or sectarianism or muscle power or money exceeding the EC limits. Hence, when there are such strong players in the political system, I don’t see why they need to be protected. It’s good and ideal if everyone follows the law and there is order. But you can’t and should not expect one side to follow it, while the other side violates it. Once parties realize, their MLAs can’t be controlled, they will start finding candidates who are loyal to the party ideology and who need not be controlled.

This would bring about a change in our system, rather than trying to make more laws, which create other grey areas and loopholes, to be taken advantage of by a future govt. Yes, there may be a period of further degeneration, but I think we need to see it as a case of creative destruction.

Ambedkar vs India’s Freedom

myancientaryavarta
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Ambedkar vs India’s Freedom

AMBEDKAR: A FREEDOM FIGHTER?

The degree of India’s misfortune is such that people have now begun to consider Ambedkar, a freedom fighter, which is much contradictory to the truth.

Ambedkar is his entire life never participated in a single freedom struggle movement.

I understand, not participating in any freedom struggle is not a matter of ample botheration, but what about opposing India’s freedom? Yes! Ambedkar opposed India’s freedom.

Former Viceroy of India, Archibald Wavell, records that Ambedkar went on to say [1]:

if India became independent it would be one of the greatest disasters that could happen.

How Ambedkar Opposed India’s Freedom?

I find 4 ways in which Ambedkar, the member of Viceroy’s council, opposed India’s Freedom:

I

The first way in which Ambedkar opposed India’s freedom is by disassociating ‘untouchables’ from Indian Freedom Struggle.

When the mass of India was striving for freedom, Ambedkar instead of backing them, accepted to be the member of viceroy’s council (In current terms, a minister in British cabinet in India). India was batting for freedom and Ambedkar was bowling for British. He left no opportunity to discharge India’s mass which was struggling for freedom.

Congress under the leadership of Gandhi ji was gaining momentum in its course of striving for freedom, the mass of India was with them, and this heavy mass which was batting for India’s freedom was immense enough to tremble the British government.

To aid British, Ambedkar thought of a creative idea. He divided the people (who were protesting against British) into ‘caste’ fragments.

Ambedkar projected such an image to Britishers that the heavy mass of people demanding India’s freedom consists of only governing class* (Brahmin and Baniya). He said [2]:

In the light of what has been said, it will be found that the Fight for Freedom led by the governing class is, from the point of view of the servile classes, a selfish, if not a sham, struggle. The freedom which the governing class in India is struggling for is freedom to rule the servile classes.

* Ambedkar used to refer “Brahmin and Baniya” class as “governing class”. For reference check: Dr BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.168

In one his speech while addressing Prime Minister, he said [3]:

Prime Minister, permit me to make one thing clear. The Depressed Classes are not anxious, they are not clamorous, they have not started any movement for claiming that there shall be an immediate transfer of power from the British to the Indian people. They have their particular grievances against the British people and I think I have voiced them sufficiently to make it clear that we feel those grievances most acutely. But, to be true to facts, the position is that the Depressed Classes are not clamouring for transfer of political power. Their position, to put it plainly, is that we are not anxious for the transfer of power ; but if the British Government is unable to resist the forces that have been set up in the country which do clamour for transference of political power—and we know the Depressed Classes in their present circumstances are not in a position to resist that— then our submission is that if you make that transfer, that transfer will be accompanied by such conditions and by such provisions that the power shall not fall into the hands of a clique, into the hands of an oligarchy, or into the hands of a group of people, whether Muhammadans or Hindus ; but that that solution shall be such that the power shall be shared by all communities in their respective proportions. Taking that view, I do not see how I, for one, can take any serious part in the deliberation of the Federal Structure Committee unless I know where I and my community stand.

Disgusting! Ambedkar weaved such a perception in the minds of British that untouchables (which he addressed as “depressed classes”) are not demanding for freedom (‘Freedom’ is referred as- Transfer of Power).

Not just once, but repeatedly Ambedkar made such remarks which will leave an impression in the minds of British that untouchables are not seeking freedom.

Ambedkar went on to call our Freedom Struggle “a dishonest agitation” and repeated that untouchables are not part of it [4]:

Untouchables have refused to take part in such a dishonest agitation, elevated though it may be by such high sounding name as “Fight for Freedom” !

II

After his attempts to disassociate untouchables from freedom movement, he did a similar experiment with Muslims.

Now, the loyal minister of British, Ambedkar, was trying to convince his masters (Britishers) that even Muslims are not part of Freedom Struggle. He commented [5]:

While it is not possible to discuss the gains resulting from the use of sanctions, the fact must be mentioned that this “Fight for Freedom” has been carried on mostly by the Hindus. It is only once that the Musalmans took part in it and that was during the shortlived Khilafat agitation. They soon got out of it. The other communities, particularly the Untouchables, never took part in it.

So now, along with untouchables, Ambedkar brought Muslims into the picture. He projected that it is only Hindus who are striving for Freedom whereas Untouchables and Muslims are not part of it.

III

Just ponder! What could have been the most effective way to discharge Indian Freedom Struggle? Probably, it is to attack those individuals and organisations who are leading it. And this is exactly what Ambedkar did. He launched a terrible verbal attack against Gandhi ji and Congress.

Ambedkar painted “Gandhi ji and Congress” as ‘Hindu’ and aspired to draw an image that Congress Party under Gandhi ji is fighting only for ‘Hindu causes’ and not for ‘all’. Ambedkar was further building a perception that if Congress wins, it will establish Swarajya or Hindu Raj, which will be terrible for minorities and untouchables.

He said [6]:

The Hindu Communal Majority is the back-bone of the Congress. It is made up of the Hindus and is fed by the Hindus. It is this Majority which constitutes the clientele of the Congress and the Congress, therefore, is bound to protect the rights of its clients.

He even said [7]:

The reason which has led the Untouchables to non-co-operate with the Congress has been popularly expressed by them when they say that they do not wish to be placed under Hindu Raj in which the governing class would be the Bania and the Brahamin with low class Hindus as their policemen, all of whom have been the hereditary enemies of the Untouchables.

And [8]:

The Congress promises to do wonders for the servile classes— the Congress speaks of masses, it ought really to speak of them as the servile classes held in bondage by the governing classes—when Swaraj comes. It says that it would like to make revolutionary changes but it has no power to make them and it must wait for Swaraj. It is this glib talk which goes to deceive the gullible foreigner. Leaving aside the boast and bluster which lie behind the statement, one may ask what really can happen if India does become a sovereign and an independent state ? One thing is certain. The governing class will not disappear by the magic wand of Swaraj. It will remain as it is and having been freed from the incubus of British Imperialism will acquire greater strength and vigour. It will capture power as the governing classes in every country do. In short, Swaraj will not be government by the people but it will be a government run by the governing class and in the absence of Government by the people, government for the people will be what the governing class will choose to make of it.

As illustrated above, Ambedkar was making every possible attempt to convince Britishers that if Freedom is given to India, it will be captured by governing classes (Brahmin and Baniya), hence it should not be given to them.

IV

Apart from convincing Britishers that it is only governing class [Brahmin and Baniya] which is fighting for Freedom, now Ambedkar started convincing Britishers that there could be no better democratic government for Indians than British government. He said [9]:

if Indians are wanting a government which is democratic, which excludes autocracy, and which by law—not by convention only—imposes upon those who are in charge of the administration a collective responsibility, then my submission to the House is this : that you cannot devise a better form of government than the one we have.

BRITISHERS PRAISING AMBEDKAR:

As I have illustrated, one of the ways in which Ambedkar opposed our Independence was by attacking Gandhi ji and Congress.

And when Ambedkar launched his massive attack against Congress and Gandhi ji, his masters– The Britishers, were quite happy with him. And this is very evident when we read the communication of Lord Linlithgow, the viceroy, with the secretary of State, Lord Zetland. He (The viceroy, Lord Linlithgow) said [10]:

I had a talk with Ambedkar whom I found very interesting.He appears to be emerging as a sort of rival, though at the present stage of not too important a type, to the Congress ministry and told me bluntly that he believed they would lose the next election and that he would be in. Lumely tells me that he thinks Ambedkar is, In fact beginning to emerge to a degree which his ministry find slightly embarrassing, and [BG.] Kher [Prime Minister of Bombay] has, it appears, instructed the police to keep a very close watch on his speeches, which have been of a somewhat violent character. With me he was cynical and amusing, and I should have said, realist. On the [ Princely ] States side, he did not conceal that he was in no way concerned with that problem, save to the extent that it directly reacted on his own, and that if it suited his own politics, the obligations of the Crown Representative to the States would carry very little weight with him. He is perhaps a little of a swashbuckler, but I should have said he was of good quality, and would be a useful colleague if he could be harnessed. Incidentally, he vouchsafed the view that Congress will suffer a sharp setback in the elections for the Bombay municipality which are due to take place about February 7. Ministers, on the other hand, assured me that Congress will for the first time achieve an independent majority in the Council, or at least go very near to securing a majority. By the time you read this we will know who has been right in their estimate.

By reading the above-quoted communication, you may estimate how happy Britishers were with what Ambedkar was doing for them.

But that communication is not an alone instance which reflects that Ambedkar was plotted by Britishers against India, there are many more.

Sir Samuel Hoare, the secretary of state on 28th December 1932 wrote [11]:

Ambedkar had behaved very well at the [ Round Table ] Conference, and I am most anxious to strengthen his hands in every possible way. Coming from a family whose members have almost always been in the [ British ] Army, he feels intensely that there are no Depressed Class units left. Could you not induce the Commander-in-Chief to give them at least a Company? Ambedkar tells me that the Depressed Class battalion did much better in the Afghan War than most of the other Indian battalions. In any case, I feel sure that at this juncture it would be a really valuable political act to make a move of this kind.

Just observe the language of Sir Samuel Hoare and look at how happy he was with the performance of Ambedkar in Round Table Conference. This doesn’t leave even an iota of doubt that Ambedkar was plotted by British to counter India.

And we all know what Ambedkar did in 2nd Round Table Conference. Whenever Gandhi ji and other leaders raised the demand of Independence, Ambedkar disrupted entire debate by raising the issue of “Dalit Rights which includes separate electoral”. And as we have read above, Sir Samuel Hoare was so happy about what Ambedkar did in 2nd Round Table Conference, it seems the so-called concern of Ambedkar for “Dalit Rights” on those moments was just a well-planned tactic of Britishers to suppress the demand of Independence.

Now let me provide another direct evidence which establishes the fact that Ambedkar was helping Britishers to extend their rule over India.

Sir Samuel Hoare, secretary of the state, said [12]:

During the last two or three years I have seen a great deal of Ambedkar, and, like most of my friends, I have been impressed by his ability and his manifest desire to support the British influence in India. He has had a
big fight, first of all with Gandhi and secondly with caste Hindus, and on the whole he seems to me to have come out of it well.

What else is needed to conclude that Ambedkar was a British agent when Sir Samuel himself accepted that Ambedkar is working to support British influence in India by making fights against Gandhi ji and caste Hindus!

Not just that, but Britishers willingly accepted that Ambedkar has been the most effective tool of theirs against Congress (which was leading India’s freedom struggle). Leo Amery said [13]:

One of the aspects of your enlarged Executive which has been most helpful, at any rate at our end, has been the way different Members have spoken up and stated the case either for the Government or against the Congress Ambedkar has been most effective more than once and so at an earlier stage was Firoz Noon. Even Jogendra was quite useful. I am sure the more they are encouraged to speak in public or to broadcast and to feel they are defending their own case and the justification for their continuing in office, the better they will get at it themselves, and the greater the cumulative effect both in India and outside. So I hope you will keep them steadily at it.

AMBEDKAR & JINNAH VS SARDAR PATEL, GANDHI JI & MAULANA ABUL KALAM AZAD:

On 3rd September 1939, The Viceroy of India, Lord Linlithgow declared India at war with Germany. Congress held a strong objection against British for not consulting them before setting India on such a dangerous stage. The Congress working committee stated that it would cooperate with Britain only if a central Indian national government is formed.

Lord Linlithgow gave his response to Indian leaders, but Indian leaders considered it totally unsatisfactory and decided to tender the resignation of all its ministers.

This was going to be a huge step by Congress but before it would have become successful, Jinnah on behalf of Muslim league counted his support to the British government. And even announced that Muslim league will celebrate the resignation of Congress ministers as “Day of Deliverance”.

Muslim league appealed all Muslims of the nation to join the celebration of “Day of Deliverance”. To counter this, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad on behalf of Congress appealed Muslims not to join the celebration of Day of Deliverance.

Nationalist leaders of the country were opposing the celebrations of “Day of Deliverance” by Jinnah but Ambedkar extended his support to Jinnah and joined the celebrations of Day of Deliverance which laid down a strong foundation for the creation of Pakistan. How Pathetic!

But nationalist leaders like Sardar Patel were not surprised with what Ambedkar did. They knew that Ambedkar can go beyond any extent to support Britain and oppose India. Sardar Patel said [14]:

We cannot forget how Sir Samuel Hoare set the Muslims against the Hindus when the unity conference was held at Allahabad. The British statesmen in order to win the sympathy of the world, now go on repeating that they are willing to give freedom to India, were India united. The ‘Day of Deliverance’ was evidently calculated to make the world and particularly the British public believe that India was not united and that the Hindus and Muslims were against each other. But when several sections of Muslims were found to oppose the ‘Day of Deliverance’, the proposed anti-Hindu demonstrations were
converted into a Jinnah-Ambedkar-Byramji protest against the Congress Ministries and the Congress High Command.

This was a Satire by Sardar Patel against Jinnah and Ambedkar.

In fact, it seems that Sardar Patel was well-versed with the fact that Ambedkar is a threat to the nation, so he said [15]:

The question of Scheduled Castes candidates in your province and in Nagpur requires careful consideration. The Mahar community is largely found in these areas and hence we must particularly [ take ] care to see that no one of the followers of Dr. Ambedkar succeeds…

Last words: Ambedkar did much more harm to India than what I have listed out. But I have maintained my focus around “Freedom Struggle” for some good reasons. Just ponder how unfortunate India is! The man who opposed India’s independence in every possible way and worked as a British agent is now “Bharat Ratna”. Not just “Bharat Ratna” but unfortunately, India’s most worshipped icon.

I express my deep gratitude towards Mr Arun Shourie, whose book “Worshipping False Gods” inspired & helped me to write this article.

References:

[1]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 17 (2), p.192

[2]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.231

[3]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 2, p.662

[4]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.178

[5]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.167

[6]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.172

[7]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.168

[8]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 9, p.212

[9]: DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES, Vol 10, p.26

[10]: MSS.EUR.F/125/7 p.48

[11]: MSS.EUR.E.240(10) Volume II

[12]: MSS.EUR.E.240(10)

[13]: Transfer of Power, Vol 3, p.314

[14]: The Collected Works of Sardar Patel, Vol 8, pp.194-197

[15]: Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Durga Das (ed.), Vol 2, pp.344-345

A Word to the Nationalists

Srinath Mohandas
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A Word to the Nationalists

It is amusing to see the sense of jubilation among some of our friends at the turn of events in Karnataka, where a barefaced HD Kumaraswamy- whose party lost deposits in 116 of 222 (52%) seats contested, will swear-in as the CM, with the support of a Congress party defeated fair and square.

Even more amusing is the sense of disappointment among few of our nationalist friends! While one can understand the former (the friends and family of a dying patient have every right to feel jubilant about the faintest feel of the pulse in the failing body), the latter is inexplicable. Therefore, we need to talk.

1. Whose victory?

– If you can’t find the heart in BJP under BS Yeddyurappa winning 104 out of 222 seats (that is 2.5 times more seats than what they secured in 2013 and just 8 seats short of an absolute majority) across caste, religion and demography of Karnataka.

– If you can’t find the heart in Congress under Siddharamaiah decisively losing on all fronts (16 ministers lost, 75% of Lingayat ministers who supported Siddharamaiah’s minority game lost) and being reduced to 78 seats.

– If you can’t find the heart in JDS under HD Kumaraswamy winning just around 10 seats in 5 of the 6 regions of Karnataka.

You do have a problem! The problem is that you suffer from a narrow vision and lack the big picture. The problem is also that you don’t have a narrative of your own, but depend on others (media?) to endorse your views.

Forming a government is important. That is the logical conclusion of an electoral battle won. Even if we go by that logic, we should accept that we may have to lose a battle or two to win the war (2019). Having said that, the battle for Karnataka is not over yet. It is just a matter of time before JDS and Congress will cut each other’s throats.

(In that context, all this talk about “moral victory” and “democracy winning” is a joke. It is plain bad poetry resorted to by losers and rascals to hide their shame. Every single strategy and tactic imaginable should be used, as long as it doesn’t violate the letter and spirit of the Constitution. Btw, who will decide what is fair and unfair? Not the media, not the intellectuals, not even the general public. It is the judiciary and judiciary alone! Therefore we need many more Subramanian Swamy-s and Amit Shah’s.)

2. Are you a nationalist or a loyalist?

Many of us forget that we support a Modi led BJP for actualising our justified national dreams. Be it the repeal of Article 370 (special status to J&K), implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, Ram Janmabhoomi Ayodhya and the likes. However, it should be explicitly stated that all of these need to be actualised with full blessings of our sacred Constitution, in a manner that upholds the values of a democracy.

Tomorrow, if Congress (minus Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi) comes forward to actualise all these demands.. why not? We should wholeheartedly support them! Isn’t it our dream that a day will come when all Indians and the political parties representing them, uphold a national narrative that not only acknowledges and take pride in our glorious civilisational past but also take wisdom from it to build a peaceful, progressive and prosperous India?

3. Not a fanboy/girl

Lastly, you aren’t a fanboy/girl of a franchise in the Indian Political League. If you are, you can celebrate/get dejected at your team’s wins/losses, lionise/demonise your Dhonis and Kohlis, troll the losers and go sleep well with a satisfaction that you did something great. In reality, you are a nobody. Your contribution to the cause you believe in is Zero.

Therefore, roll up your sleeves. If you believe in the cause, do something that contributes to the efforts of the leader/political-social party that represent your cause.

Forest Rights Act 2006: how the recent policy interventions are helping salvage a badly drafted law?

Dr Shekhar Tankhiwale
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Forest Rights Act 2006: how the recent policy interventions are helping salvage a badly drafted law?

In early March this year some tribal farmers from north Maharashtra region took out a long-march from Nasik to Mumbai, demanding among other things, the expeditious transfer of forest land rights to them as promised under Forest Rights Act 2006 [1]. Ever since the long-march started, the political overtone was very evident but even then, accepting their demands with an open mind, Maharashtra CM proposed to set up a committee to look into land rights claims related issues and ensure hand over of ownership of land, currently notified as forests, to tribal (Adivasi) farmers tilling them. It was one of the primary demands of the farmers and tribal who participated in ‘long march’.

FRA being in place for 10 years now and for the large part of its life, the party which championed it in the parliament, being in power at the center, one would think that the substantial part of benefits delivery under the act would be a done deal. But clearly, the long march said something different. In a way, it was an acknowledgment by the parties which brought this act in first place of their failure to implement it in an effective manner and pass on the benefits to the intended beneficiaries.

In February 2004, just before the parliamentary elections, Vajpayee Govt’s Ministry of Environment & Forest (MoEF) gave a major impetus to the process of handing over forest rights to tribals by issuing two circulars: one titled ‘Regularization of the rights of the tribals on the forest lands’ that extended the cut-off date for regularization for tribals to December 1993 (from October 1980 under the first 1990 circular) and the other titled ‘Stepping up of process for conversion of forest villages into revenue villages’. Subsequently, UPA came to power and built on top of it by way of bringing in the act called ‘Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights)’ act [2]. The rules for the implementation of the act were notified from 1st Jan 2008 and the act came to be known as Right to Forest Act 2006 (RFA).

As per UPA, the law was needed to redress the “historical injustice” committed against forest dwellers, while including provisions for making conservation more effective and more transparent. The law was meant to recognize and vest individual forest-dwellers with forest rights to live in and cultivate forest land that these communities (scheduled tribes primarily) were cultivating /occupying and using forest produce since ages.

In summary, RFA in its original avatar set out to achieve three key objectives [2] stated below:

(a) to empower and strengthen local self-governance. Towards this, the act envisioned a three-tier quasi-judicial system of authority for verifying and adjudicating the claims with an empowered Gram Sabha being the first level of adjudication to decide of forest land claims by the inhibiting tribal communities
(b) to address the livelihood security of the people, leading to poverty alleviation and pro-poor growth. The act set out to achieve this by granting forest land as well as minor forest produce (MFP) rights to the tribals.
(c) to address the issue of conservation and management of natural resources and conservation

If one looks at the data [4], it is evident that the implementation has been uneven across the states. However, there are some common issues that have been observed which have really made the implementation of RFA very ineffective. These pertain to rejection of a large number of claims at Sub Divisional Level Committees (SDLCs) and District Level Committees (DLCs) levels, tensions between forest departments and tribals pertaining to their rights, lack of end of end value chain for MFPs leading to minimal benefits to the tribals in terms of improving their incomes etc.

Clearly, the act has failed to deliver on its promise, what next? Is there a way to amend it and address lacunae that are there to make it more effective?. Ideally this would have been the preferred way but the govt seems to have chosen the path of least resistance by way of building a web of supplementary policy interventions around RFA legislation. Let’s take a closer look at the policy interventions by the current dispensations in the center as well as the states aimed at ameliorating the act and aligning it to key stakeholder’s expectations.

Interventions to empower local self-governance and improved forest governance

Here the real issue is that of forest governance in India which is swinging between centralized forest management to de-centralized/participatory model to a devolution model of forest governance now under RFA. Having toed different governance models ranging from Van-Panchayats to Joint Forest Management to Gram Sabha led management, this issue remains central to the success of RFA. PESA (Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act 1996) has also had its share of influence on the forest governance

There is a growing realization amongst the experts that the multi-stakeholder ecosystem of forests like in India requires a multilayered governance framework in which the regulatory, funding and operational roles are separated and democratized [5]. The RFA in its original form appears to have taken a lop-sided view of the forest governance leaning heavily in favor of Gram Sabhas and cutting out other stakeholders with knowledge and competence of forest management from the equation. This has created tension and confusion between newly “empowered” Gram Sabhas and the other stakeholders notably the forest departments undermining the smoother implementation of the act.

National Forest Policy 2018 tries to address this lacuna in RFA by proposing a parallel community forest management arrangement along the lines of joint forest management [6]. The draft National Forest Policy 2018 also underlines a need to further strengthen participatory approach by way of proposing to set up a National Community Forest Management (CFM) Mission. NFP proposes the mission to have a legal basis and an enabling operational framework and ensures efforts to create synergy between Gram Sabha & Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) for successful community participation in forest management.

Interventions to help tribals improve their livelihood and incomes from forest produce

It became amply clear from the initial implementation audits itself that RFA—though a step in the right direction so far as vesting forest rights with the tribals goes—hasn’t proven itself to be particularly effective in addressing the livelihood issues of the Adivasis. Firstly because of the flawed 3-tier adjudication model that this act proposed where ill-trained, ill-equipped and political vulnerable Gram Sabhas/Forest Rights Committees (FRCs) were designated as the competent authority to adjudicate the claims at the first level. Robust institutional mechanisms to address issues (such as conflict of interest by Gram Sabhas, conflict resolution, coercion especially in Naxal infested areas and allurements from foreign-backed green NGOs and religious organizations with vested interests) pertaining to granting of individual forest rights(IFR) and community forest rights (CFR) were left unaddressed.

This has resulted in a very skewed metric at the ground level with a significantly higher rate of acceptance at the Gram Sabha level and a higher rate of rejections at Sub Divisional Level Committees (SDLCs) and District Level Committees (DLCs). The claims at SDLC and DLC level are normally expected to be evaluated in an objective manner as per the rules notified in the law. The current rejection rate in Maharashtra is @36% [8] which is lower than the rejection rates prevailing in other states like Kerala, West Bengal etc.

To address this issue of high rejections, the tribal department of Maharashtra govt in March 2018 has tasked field officers from 16 tribal dominated districts to prepare an action plan in the next three months for the settlement of 1,06,000 individual claims made by tribals for the transfer of forest land. Further, the tribal development department has started to leverage Google Mapping of land where individual claims were rejected in the past. The very fact that a special committee outside the governance structure suggested by the act had to be set up by the state govt alludes to the failure of institutional mechanism suggested in the act.

A superficial view of forest produces value chain appears to have resulted in no concrete remedial and actionable policy measures being prescribed in the act, which otherwise could have immensely benefited the tribals. The act mandates Gram Sabhas to be the sole ‘competent authority’ to decide on matters of MFP, cutting out other key stakeholders notably the forest departments, state tribal departments with deeper knowledge and capabilities from having any say in forest produce management. This lack of know-how & professional competence on part of Gram Sabhas for developing the value chains and effective market linkage mechanism for Minor Forest Produce (MFP) has resulted in very limited income growth opportunities for tribals.

The Ministry of Tribal affairs’ ‘Van Dhan Vikas Kendra’ scheme (a pilot has been established in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh) for providing skill up-gradation and capacity building training and setting up of primary processing and value addition facility for MFP is a path-breaking intervention not only from the point of view of providing subsistence to tribals during lean season but also for women’s financial empowerment as most of the MFPs are collected and used/sold by women. MFP sector has the potential to create about 10 million workdays annually in the country [7]

Interventions to address concerns about forest/environment impacts due to FRA and effective management of natural resources

Right since its inception, the environmentalists across the board have been voicing their deep concerns about the likely damage the RFA would cause to the forest ecology. The concerns primarily were around the loss of green cover due to the vesting of land rights to forest dwellers, who the environmentalists feared would use it for farming and other such purposes by removing the forest trees. Their fears about loss of forest cover have in fact been corroborated by a High-Level Committee that was set up in 2014 [8] to review various Environment acts, which observed that quality of forest cover has declined between 1951 and 2014, with poor quality of compensatory afforestation plantations being one of the reasons behind the decline.

Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act which was enacted in 2015 sought to address these concerns [9]. This act mandated the funds to be primarily spent on afforestation to compensate for the loss of forest cover, regeneration of forest ecosystem, wildlife protection, and infrastructure development. The act also establishes the National and State Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authorities to manage the National and State Funds. More than Rs. 50,000 crores collected from users of forest lands for development projects have been allocated for plantations to replace forests lost due to a variety of reasons including RFA.

In another supplementary policy intervention, recently the government has merged National Mission for Green India–which aims afforestation at 10 million hectares of land over the next decade–with MGNREGA with an objective to increase and improve the country’s forest cover [10].

In summary, with these recent interventions, an attempt has been made to get an erstwhile ineffective and a badly drafted piece of legislation that RFA has come to be known as back on track. These interventions will go a long way to restore the balance between the need for tribal welfare and forest & environment conservation. Most importantly, in days to come these interventions should see improved outcomes in terms of the right to forest land and forest produce for the forest-dwelling tribals and hopefully they wouldn’t need to toil in long-marches demanding effective and efficient implementation of the act

References:

[1] Tribal long march http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2018/mar/13/maharashtra-government-accepts-farmers-demands-kisan-long-march-ends-1786259.html
[2] Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights)’ act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scheduled_Tribes_and_Other_Traditional_Forest_Dwellers_(Recognition_of_Forest_Rights)_Act,_2006
[3] The Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers (Recognition of forest rights) Act, 2006
[4] Uneven implementation of FRA www//fra.org.in
[5] Democratizing Forest Governance in India, book edited by Sharachchandra Lele and Ajit Menon
[6] Draft National Forest Policy 2018 http://www.moef.nic.in/sites/default/files/Draft%20National%20Forest%20Policy%2C%202018.pdf
[7] Van Dhan Vikas Kendra http://pib.nic.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1528048
[8] High-level committee to review environmental laws http://envfor.nic.in/sites/default/files/press-releases/Final_Report_of_HLC.pdf
[9] Compensatory Afforestation Act http://www.prsindia.org/billtrack/the-compensatory-afforestations-fund-bill-2015-3782/
[10] National Green Mission merged with MNGRES http://www.moef.nic.in/sites/default/files/MGNREGS-GIM.pdf

Winners and Losers of the Battle for Karnataka

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Winners and Losers of the Battle for Karnataka

There is no boring day in Indian politics but the last few days have been particularly exciting. The drama that ensued after the people of Karnataka delivered a hung verdict for the fifteenth assembly would be a worthy plot for a Hollywood political thriller. It involves: sworn enemies coming together to keep out a stronger enemy (the single largest party), midnight courtroom drama, elected representatives hoarded in resorts and transported to ‘safer’ havens overnight from fear of losing them to the stronger enemy and finally the leader of the single largest party resigning just before the trust vote in the assembly failing to cause any defection in the rival ranks.

For anyone who has just woken up from cryosleep and missed the events of the last week, the sworn enemies are Congress and JDS which got 78 and 38 seats respectively and the single largest party is the BJP with 104 seats in a 222-seat contest with the remaining 2 seats going to Others.  The magic number to obtain simple majority in the assembly is 112. With neither party getting a clear majority after the announcement of results, the Congress machinery set the wheels in motion to team with JDS- a party that their President pronounced to be the B-team of BJP during the campaigning. The campaigning for the elections was as vile as ever, with all the three major parties in fray confident of obtaining clear majority and ruling out post-poll coalition all together. But it wasn’t really a surprise to see the so-called secular parties coming together to keep the ‘communal’ forces out of power. It was very reminiscent of the time after the 1996 Lok Sabha. The resemblance with the landmark elections didn’t end there. After the Governor of Karnataka invited leader of the single largest party, BS Yeddyurappa, to form the government and prove the majority on the floor of the house, Congress uncharacteristic with its recent torpor swung into action. They fielded the legal luminaries in their ranks and eventually obtained a favorable verdict which reduced the time given to BS Yeddyurappa to prove his majority from 15 days to less than 48 hours. BS Yeddyurappa did a Atal Bihari Vajpayee by delivering a fiery speech followed by his resignation even before the trust vote could begin.

A clear victory for Congress you would think? After all they put their entire might against Amit Shah’s proven acumen of making something out of nothing. Whereas this time his party did have the most number of seats but still could not form the government. With HD Kumaraswamy of the JDS- the smaller party in an unnatural coalition, invited to form the government and given 15 days to prove his majority, the drama is hardly over. But let’s see who the winners and losers are of this roller-coaster so far.

BS Yeddyurappa at 75, got a rare exemption to lead the campaign for BJP as a chief ministerial candidate from his party which have retired people from active politics at his age, albeit unofficially. Balancing party’s corruption-free image and hype around the campaigning and tickets to Reddy brothers was no mean feat but the veteran politician did a decent job. Bringing the party to 104 seats from the tally of 40 in 2013 elections, when he had ceded from the party and fought the elections separately with his own new party would certainly qualify for abundant praise. However, being unable to obtain a clear majority, the popular Lingayat leader has lost his last chance of completing a full term as a chief minister of the state after being unceremoniously sacked during his previous term for being charged of corruption. The reasons for this failure would certainly be dissected by BJP, and one of the reasons may as well be that he was sold short by the party leadership at the center by not allowing him a free hand in critical decision making like ticket distribution.

However, that seems like an unlikely possibility. As much as the opposition and a section of media would like to see these results as sign of a receding Modi wave, there is no denying the fact that the BJP campaign came to life only during the last phase when Narendra Modi started his rallies in the state. The party even decided to increase his number of rallies hoping that it would be enough to tip the scales. It was not to be. While the jury is still out on the strength of the Modi wave, no one can deny that the Modi-Shah’s BJP is still a force to reckon with and will continue to be in the near future. BJP proved that by staking claim to form the government despite being short of the required numbers. Amit Shah may have lost this hand eventually but has once again proved that BJP can and will be cutthroat. This would certainly invigorate the party cadre who are now used to winning.

Sri Siddaramaiah, the incumbent chief minister who spearheaded Congress’s campaign for the assembly election seeking another term to govern the state. However, even before the election results were announced, he had to make statements withdrawing his claim for the chief minister’s post. These were clearly overtures made to JDS anticipating a hung verdict. This may have helped open channels of communication with JDS, headed by the veteran HD Dewe Gowda whose history with Siddaramaiah, his former protégé, was one of the many hinderances for an alliance. With Dewe Gowda’s son, Kumaraswamy slated to head the alliance government, Siddaramaiah, just like one of the two seats he contested, has lost the chief minister’s office. After leading Congress to a tally 36% lower than the 2013 results, Siddaramaiah has certainly emerged as one of the clear losers of Karnataka elections 2018.

Same cannot be said about his national president Rahul Gandhi. Even though he has led his party into another defeat (people who are keeping a count can fill in the number), his cronies in the party and cheerleaders in the mainstream media won’t fall short of crediting him even for formulating Abhishek Manu Singhvi’s arguments in the court. Any small victory – moral or otherwise, for the Congress will be seen and portrayed as a clear indicator of Rahul Gandhi’s growing prowess. So, unless it is an obvious defeat, with absolutely no chance to offer a spin, it is a win for Mr. Gandhi. Even when Congress will be playing second fiddle to a party which has less than half the seats than they do.

I think there is little doubt about who the clear winner of this election is. HD Kumaraswamy, with 17% of the seats in the assembly will be the next chief minister of Karnataka thanks to the post poll alliance with Congress. JDS won 2 less seats compared to their tally in 2013 and have still managed to emerge a clear winner. This triumph is going to give a new lease of life for his father, HD Dewe Gowda –  former Prime Minister of India, in the nation’s politics with the calls for a third front now intensifying. What remains to be seen is if the once mighty Congress would be willing to be treated as equals amongst half a dozen regional parties, some of which were formed and have been sustaining on anti-Congress agenda. Perhaps, Karnataka is a first sign of Congress accepting its diminished power in the national politics and willing to be a part of a coalition led by another party. Mamata Banerjee, who didn’t have a dog in this fight, might emerge as a surprise winner once the dust settles around the grounds of Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru.

In the middle of this political cross-fire are the people of Karnataka who may have been thrust into a political uncertainty for the next few years. Even if the coalition of JDS and Congress can form a government, it is anybody’s guess as to how long these parties will be able to keep their differences at bay and run a good and stable government. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, the real losers of the assembly elections of 2018 might end up being the people of Karnataka.

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