Open India-19 Feb 2024

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CONTENTS
19 FEBRUARY 2024
5 6 7 8 10
LOCOMOTIF OPEN DIARY GAME, SETH BYLINE NOTEBOOK

LK Advani, By Swapan Dasgupta AND MATCH Come what May Guarding the gates
Bharat Ratna The carnival season By MJ Akbar of the Northeast
By S Prasannarajan By Suhel Seth By Siddharth Singh
14 16 18 20 22
INSIDER COMMENT COMMENT INSIGHT OPEN ESSAY

The reform rush The man of Déjà vu in Pakistan The south is not
By Dhiraj Nayyar India’s destiny By Shuja Nawaz another country
By Vijay Chauthaiwale By Sandeep Balakrishna
26
26 CAN ANYONE STOP TRUMP II?
Donald Trump is the favourite to win
America’s looming presidential election
By James Astill in Washington DC
34 ONE NATION ONE LAW

Uttarakhand’s uniform civil code aims to
introduce the same provisions for marriage,
divorce and succession for all communities and
reduce the divisiveness inherent in different
personal laws
By Rajeev Deshpande
38 GOD’S ADVOCATES
The father-son legal team of Hari Shankar and
Vishnu Shankar Jain is already looking beyond
the Gyanvapi case
34 38 41 By Amita Shah
41 TILL THEY COME HOME

A women-led protest in the heart of Pakistan
highlights Baloch suffering
By Rahul Pandita
44 IT’S COOL TO BE A HINDU

A young breed of social media influencers is
on a cultural mission
By V Shoba
50 A DOCTORS’ MALADY
Odisha wants them to write their prescriptions
in capital letters
By Lhendup G Bhutia
44 50 54
54 58 60 62 64 66
THE MYTHOMANIAC A GANDHI IN MEMORY WEATHERING THE STORM CRIME CANON INDIAN ACCENTS STARGAZER
Manjunath Kamath’s Mani Shankar Aiyar Understanding climate Tricks of The mother of By Kaveree Bamzai
terracotta sculptures speak provides a friend’s perspective change through humour the thrillers all battles
of gods and epics, the eternal on Rajiv Gandhi’s legacy By Rati Girish By Shylashri Shankar By Bibek Debroy
and the ephemeral By Ullekh NP
By Noor Anand Chawla
Cover by Saurabh Singh
Disclaimer ‘Open Avenues’ are advertiser-driven marketing initiatives and Open assumes no responsibility for content and the consequences of using products or services advertised in the magazine
19 FEBRUARY 2024 www.openthemagazine.com 3
OPEN MAIL
editor@openmedianetwork.in
EDITOR S Prasannarajan
MANAGING EDITOR PR Ramesh
CONSULTING EDITOR-AT-LARGE
C LETTER OF THE WEEK
Rajeev Deshpande Karpoori Thakur’s legacy may resonate at a pan-

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Ullekh NP India level once the recommendations of the
EDITOR-AT-LARGE Siddharth Singh Rohini Commission are implemented by the Union
DEPUTY EDITORS Madhavankutty Pillai
(Mumbai Bureau Chief), government (‘The Karpoori Thakur Effect’, by
Rahul Pandita, Amita Shah, Sajjan Kumar, February 12, 2024). Bihar’s icon
V Shoba (Bengaluru),
Nandini Nair, Sudeep Paul Karpoori Thakur had never let himself be tied down
ART DIRECTOR Jyoti K Singh by any issue. The political equation in Bihar recently
SENIOR EDITORS Lhendup Gyatso Bhutia
(Mumbai), Moinak Mitra, Aditya Iyer
changed within a week of the Union government
SENIOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR deciding to confer India’s highest civilian honour, the
Antara Raghavan
Bharat Ratna, on Thakur on January 23, 2024.
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Vijay K Soni (Web)
ASSISTANT EDITOR Soumava Haldar
JD(U) chief and Bihar Chief Minister
SENIOR COPY EDITOR Neelabh Raj Nitish Kumar, the prime architect of the I.N.D.I.A.
CHIEF OF GRAPHICS Saurabh Singh bloc, quit the alliance five days later and rejoined
SENIOR DESIGNERS Anup Banerjee,
Veer Pal Singh NDA. No one matched the political acumen of Minister Narendra Modi
PHOTO EDITOR Raul Irani Thakur, who always operated in layers, facing two announced a new scheme,
DEPUTY PHOTO EDITOR Ashish Sharma
hostile blocs: Congress and his own party, mainly the Pradhan Mantri
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
the upper and the backward castes. Nitish Kumar Suryoday Yojana (PMSY),
Preeti Sahni has attempted to inherit the legacy of Karpoori Thakur. as part of which, he said
CFO Raas Taneja He has demonstrated the centrality of EBCs the government envisages
HEAD FINANCE & IT Anil Bisht in Bihar, wherein lies the victory of the Karpoori placing rooftop solar
NATIONAL HEAD-ADVERTISING model of egalitarian backward-caste politics installations in 10 million
Swastik Banerjee and the defeat of the BP Mandal model of homes on a war footing.
NATIONAL HEAD–EDUCATION
Virender Singh Bhati feudal backward classes. This will lead to a reduction
GENERAL MANAGER–EVENTS INITIATIVES TV Jayaprakash in electricity bills for the
Ashutosh
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GENERAL MANAGER poor and middle class. The
Uma Srinivasan (Chennai) scheme is not only expected
Jyoti Handa (West)
SOREN SAGA before finally emerging to ensure huge savings
NATIONAL HEAD -CIRCULATION
Dhanpreet
Hemant Soren was in Ranchi on January 30. annually for houses with
Amol Joshi (West & East) arrested by the Directorate During Soren’s rooftop solar panels but also
Ranjeet Kumar Yadav (North)
N Kishore Kumar (South)
of Enforcement (ED) questioning, JMM to provide employment
HEAD–PRODUCTION Maneesh Tyagi
on January 31, 2024 in workers protested near opportunities for the youth.
HEAD DESIGN–ADVERTISING Liju Varghese connection with a land the chief minister’s house KR Srinivasan
scam case, shortly after he and Raj Bhavan. Tribal
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Published from 1st Floor, Tower 3A,
2024). The resignation senior member of JMM, has of utter happiness, the day
DLF Corporate Park, DLF City, Phase-III, came after ED questioned replaced Hemant Soren for the consecration of the
MG Road, Gurugram, Haryana - 122002.
Editor: S Prasannarajan him at his official as the new chief minister Ram temple came on
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Volume 16 Issue 7 was not found there. He was consecration of the Ram the consecration.
For the week 13-19 February 2024
Total no of pages 68 ‘untraceable’ for 32 hours, temple in Ayodhya, Prime Swati Pandey
4 19 FEBRUARY 2024
LOCOMOTIF
By S PRASANNARAJAN
LK ADVANI, BHARAT RATNA
A
FTER THE CONSECRATION, the consolation. self-assessment. India, or his party, never assessed him as
As the new Ram temple in Ayodhya, built on the the rightful prime minister BJP never had. He, inflaming the
grief and patience of faith validated by law, baggage of hurt he collected along the way, assessed himself as
opened its doors to the devotees, Lal Krishna Advani a mentor who had not been rewarded by his protégés. And he
was elsewhere. He was the one who turned the never wanted this self-inflicted wound to heal.
cultural hurt of the Hindu into a political swell and took the Blinded by resentment, the traveller took routes he thought
message of the displaced god to the electoral arena and beyond, would gain him a place in a history that was otherwise
into the drawing rooms of middle-class India. He dared, and, unbearably cruel. At Jinnah’s mausoleum in Karachi in 2005,
challenging the cosy assumptions of “pseudo-secularism”, by paying tribute to the essential humanism and secularism
his word, tapped into geography and history, mythology and of Pakistan’s creator, he hoped to be feted as a reconciler, and it
memory, to make Ayodhya the epicentre of Hindu nationalism. only brought out what distance he was prepared to cover for
The demolition on December 6 in 1992 solace and sunshine. It was more than the
“saddened” him, for it was a terrifying case of a desperate traveller trapped in the
finale to a journey undertaken by Indian wilderness finding himself one day in the
politics’ most ambitious nationalist, but wrong place with a wrong epigraph to a
deep
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remain only partially fulfilled. The first pause in his travels, seeking validation
BJP government in India was indebted from history. It was, in retrospect, a failure
to the traveller who covered the longest to see that history had never denied him
distance in cultural nationalism, but he his due. It was a failure to realise that his
was not destined to lead it. And the God struggle for power was bigger than the
of Ayodhya, too, is indebted, but he could rewards he expected from his party. Advani,
not have been there to bask in the glow in his autumnal isolation, allowed himself
of Ram’s homecoming, even though to be weighed down by the memories of
for so long that was the leitmotif of his political ingratitude when nobody was
politics. Then the Bharat Ratna. The ungrateful. His legacy was intact. It still is.
consolation meant a lot. LK Advani during his Rath Yatra, The bestowal of the Bharat Ratna, in
Irony followed him. LK Advani, the October 1990 the afterglow of the consecration, is not
man who brought the power of grief a displaced god felt to an act of forgiveness by a government whose genealogy can
the ballot box, was the politician who could not hide his own be traced to his original revolt against the presumptions of
grievance as the eternal Number Two. And when he thought secularism, but certainly not against secularism itself. It is not an
his moment had finally come in the General Election of 2009, act of gratuitousness or gratitude. It is an act of acknowledging
his campaign for his own redemption, unlike the one he led his contribution to the most epochal transformation in Indian
for the restoration of his god, didn’t work either. Still, he could politics, the worth of which he himself seems to have failed to
have been in power, as the patron saint of the Indian Right. comprehend in the onrush of disillusionment. It was he who
He should have accepted the honour that rightly belonged to began the project of New India with a Hindu cultural accent,
him: the ideological guru of the new establishment. Instead, which is currently taken to new heights by his erstwhile protégé.
he withdrew into a shell of resentment, a metaphorical return An India where a Narendra Modi was made possible is indebted
journey of Indian politics’ long-distance traveller, and it was the to the man who dared to hit the long road to Hindutva, defying
loneliest of retreats. It showed what an overwhelming sense of the received wisdom of the “pseudo-secular” state. For Advani
unfulfilment could do to a man who could not reconcile with the the nationalist, to be a political Hindu was not a badge of anti-
incompatibility of his ambition and the altered reality of Indian secularism but a cultural correction of secularism itself.
politics. The isolation that he preferred to the power of the Lal Krishna Advani, Bharat Ratna, is a reminder of the origin
original proselytiser on the Right was the result of a wrong story of the India Narendra Modi is rebuilding.
OPEN DIARY
Swapan Dasgupta
I T IS REMARKABLE how a little

time can play clever tricks with
political memory. Around the time
Throughout the period after the
demolition of the Babri structure
in 1992, Advani sought to persuade
Atal Bihari Vajpayee successfully Lutyens’ Delhi and its counterpart
but narrowly pushed the Bharatiya in Mumbai that he wasn’t quite
Janata Party (BJP)-led National the ogre they imagined him to be.
Democratic Alliance (NDA) past the I don’t know if he succeeded, or
finishing line in the election of 1998, whether it was worth the effort,
there was concern among the chatter- but his bid to become ‘secular’ by
ing classes over the man who invari- positing Muhammad Ali Jinnah as
ably appeared next to him in ‘secular’ proved very damaging. It
the party’s posters. suddenly earned him new admirers
Lal Krishna Advani, the man who eyebrows. Others compared him to among those who wouldn’t be
became deputy prime minister in Hitler and those who spoke up for caught dead saying anything nice
the Vajpayee government, and the him were dubbed stormtroopers about BJP, leave aside voting for it.
man who, alas, was not destined to and banished from polite society. In the process, it also offended those
ever occupy the topmost political Today, all that has been who had stood by him through the
post, was an unlikely monster. forgotten. In the aftermath of the struggles of the past.
When he began his innings in huge emotional churning that On the strength of his past
electoral politics by winning the the country witnessed on January contributions, BJP didn’t cast him
New Delhi parliamentary seat in 22, it was only right that Advani’s aside. However, as became evident
1989, people often equated him to monumental contribution to the during the election of 2009, the
the common man in RK Laxman’s Ayodhya movement was formally rank and file of the party respected
cartoons. A self-effacing Hindu recognised through a Bharat Ratna. him, but no longer idolised him.
nationalist who thought in English, It was also reassuring that this There were facets of his career,
rather than Hindi, Advani seemed time, the venom poured on him particularly in the last few years
more at home in the dining room was limited to a few recalcitrant of his innings in active politics,
of the India International Centre souls who saw themselves in the that are best forgotten. As they
than in the rough and tumble of lofty role as the last decent Indians surely will be.
agitational politics. left on this planet. Those who Advani deserved the Bharat
Yet, in just a year’s time, this cast stones at him for two decades Ratna. He was, of course, one of the
gentle and shy individual was after 1990 were either dead or had most decent men in politics and one
transformed into the public reinvented themselves. Those who who valued his honour. How many
face of the Ram Janmabhoomi remained sceptics now saw Advani people can match his determination
agitation that redefined Indian as the good Sanghi and pitted him to stay away from Parliament until
politics unrecognisably and set against the evil Sanghi that was he was exonerated in the Jain hawala
in motion a mindset change that Prime Minister Modi. For Advani, case? He created a new vocabulary
was to culminate in the election it was a reversal of roles. During of politics. Terms such as pseudo-
of Narendra Modi in 2014 and the the first NDA government, he was secularism and minority appease-
inauguration of the grand temple always the ‘hardliner’ against the ment acquired common currency
to Lord Ram in Ayodhya. As his ‘moderate’ Vajpayee. only because of him. He took Hindu
famous (some would say infamous) As someone who saw him at nationalism from the rarefied heights
Rath Yatra moved across different very close quarters from 1990 to his of Savarkar’s thought and the fringes
parts of India in September and ill-fated visit to Pakistan in 2005, of shakha existence and brought it to
October of 1990, Advani’s public I never bought this projection of the forefront of national politics. He
image changed unrecognisably. As Advani. However, it is undeniable was the face of what was undeniably
his speeches became more forceful that this unending vilification by the greatest mass movement of post-
and direct, Laxman recast him as the all-powerful English-speaking Independence India, a movement that
an angry leader with menacing elite affected the man deeply. redefined the soul of Bharat. n
6 19 FEBRUARY 2024
GAME, SETH AND MATCH Suhel Seth
The Carnival Season

Festivals of arts and literature have already lost their purpose
U
LTIMATELY, EVERYTHING IN India becomes inaugurations or weekly qawwalis at some mausoleum, or
a mela. A grand carnival, a melee of gigantic for that matter, langar at a gurdwara are par for the course.
proportions where meanings alter and focus shifts. Even the Blind School Mela during Diwali has not been
This is true of everything in India. spared by our desire to flood places. I really don’t know if
Take the world of books, for example. When the trio this is because of FOMO (fear of missing out) or the fear of
of Sanjoy Roy, Namita Gokhale, and William Dalrymple being social media pariahs.
began the creation of the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), The world of art is no different. 2024 was the 15th edition
it was a simple festival that began quite accidentally with of the India Art Fair: once a haven for spotting and savouring
a bunch of Japanese tourists stumbling onto what the the best art, today, in the words of my school friend (who
trip now describes the ‘Greatest Festival’ or ‘Carnival’ wishes to remain anonymous as he may be starting an art
in the world. You would imagine gallery), it’s about aunties and uncles
a literature festival would only who have money but no taste, and
attract those who love books. That where galleries are making money,
used to be the case. I still remember THE TRUTH IS WE INDIANS even though this year there was
I would ask all the dainty aunties LOVE A FESTIVAL. IT COULD hardly any shining sun. I used to
and uncles when I would see them BE ANYTHING. YOU love the India Art Fair because it was
at JLF as to which was the last book a serious fair about serious art. But
they read. I had to quickly change
COULD HAVE A ‘FESTIVAL I guess, like everything else about
the question to: “When was the last OF PINEAPPLES’ OR A us, this too has suffered an invasion
time you read?” A lot of these folks ‘FESTIVAL OF GNOMES’ AND of people over panache, which by
would arrive at the festival (at that the way is fine as long as we know
THE CHANCES ARE SLOWLY
time, in the quaint Diggi Palace) just it. Apparently, at this year’s India
in time to be seen for the morning IT WILL PICK UP PACE AND Art Fair, the focus was more on the
bit, and depart quickly when the THEN ONE DAY, YOU WILL food and the Bollywood blokes in
shops in Jaipur opened, only to ACTUALLY WONDER attendance, rather than the art. And
return for the evening soirées. Such one barometer of an event’s demise
was their confidence that they’d WHAT THE FESTIVAL WAS is when you start getting Bollywood
quote Groucho instead of Karl Marx ORIGINALLY ABOUT people to comment on things that
and get away because none was they have no clue about. I am not for
the wiser. And the organisers tried a moment suggesting that Bollywood
every trick in the book: they started charging money; is culturally decadent but surely the artists deserve more
they offered delegate passes with lunch thrown in; they prominence than actors at an art fair. My worry is not about
began charging for packages, but nothing would deter the the population explosion at these events or festivals: my
festival lover. For them, it was another festival, and this concern is will we continue to dilute some of these focused
was even before reels became real. Such was their love of special purpose events only because we have the desire
being seen that everything else paled in comparison. More to make them more popular, and where does that leave the
recently, a columnist in one of the pink papers referred to purist or the aficionado?
the venerable Calcutta Book Fair as the Calcutta Food Fair. I Music festivals are no longer what they used to be:
wouldn’t be surprised in the least. people want ATMs (any time music) and couldn’t care
The truth is we Indians love a festival. It could be less about the alaap, or for that matter, the aria. Such is
anything. You could have a ‘Festival of Pineapples’ or a the desire to be seen at these events that the promoters
‘Festival of Gnomes’, and chances are slowly it will pick themselves are presiding over the demise of the
up pace and then one day, you will wonder what the purposefulness of these festivals. But then if we could
festival was originally about. And this affection for melas bombard weddings and funerals, not to mention temple
transcends everything: from spirituality to spirits. Temple runs, all of this is kindergarten. n
BYLINE MJ Akbar
Come What May

How interesting can a race with one runner be?
O
NE SHOULD NOT confuse astrology with Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, and only scrambled into office
commentary, but what else is there to do when in Telangana despite handsome early advantages. During
the drama has gone flat, the tension has gone dry the current discovery of India from east to west, Congress
from our constitutionally guaranteed political seems to be sliding down in the Lok Sabha polls.
excitement, a General Election? Even social media, not An astrologer, therefore, can be our only source of some
necessarily constrained by facts or sense, is tepid. Wake up, excitement. Full disclosure: this astrologer is a friend from
everyone. This is February. The Republic has been feted on Bengal. I shall not name him since I do not have his permission
January 26, an interim Budget has been greeted by the requisite to do so. He is more certain about the credibility of his art, or
solemnity, Parliament has made its farewell speeches, the science, than I am, but of this I can vouch: many weeks before
great sprint to power is about to start. We are on the brink of the 2023 Assembly elections, when every opinion poll was
another General Election, but no one is on the edge of the seat. predicting a Congress sweep in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh,
Well: how interesting can a race with one runner be? and a positive edge in Rajasthan, this friend calmly predicted
The I.N.D.I.A. bloc of opposition parties, touted that Kamal Nath would never become chief minister of
excitedly by acolytes as the brainchild of Rahul Gandhi Madhya Pradesh. He had seen Kamal Nath’s charts.
when it seemed a glow on the horizon, has been clouded I pointed towards opinion polls, which were saying the
by a rancorous confrontation between inflated Congress opposite. He shrugged, smiled, shrugged again. You don’t argue
assumptions and the ground knowledge of its allies. with the stars. Well then, Digvijaya Singh might get the job.
Mamata Banerjee, a much-wooed heavyweight last year, Repeat shrug-smile-shrug. Then came a more startling prediction.
now believes that Congress cannot win more than 40 Lok Congress would be routed in Chhattisgarh. He reeled off a
Sabha seats in 2024. With every putative yatra in a modern series of planetary positions beyond my comprehension,
caravan Rahul Gandhi seems to bring down the Congress and consequent numbers. Game over, Congress.
tally. After his south-north trip in 2023 Congress was Till about 11 in the morning on the day of the Assembly
wiped out in the Assembly elections of Rajasthan, Madhya results, Madhya Pradesh had proved him right but
Chhattisgarh was signalling a
Congress triumph. Then the
ruthless wheel of fortune went
into reverse gear in Raipur.
So, what did he say in
early January about the 2024
General Election?
BJP would get between 335
and 337 seats in Lok Sabha;
Congress around 65 or a bit
Illustrations by SAURABH SINGH
less. The rest would go to

regional parties, largely to soft
or hard allies of Prime Minister
Modi. NDA would grow.
Prime Minister Modi’s new
government in the summer
of 2024, however, would be
literally new.
8 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Experience tells me that the tide of victory swings the
marginals onto the winning side raising its numbers by a
rough 10 per cent. We shall know in May.
A S I WRITE, polling for the election of the 24th prime

minister of Pakistan is an hour old and the ousted-
imprisoned Imran Khan has issued his first bulletin of the
morning. Citing the sudden and mysterious coma into
which the internet had fallen on polling day, Imran Khan
alleged that the establishment (polite codename for the
army) was rigging the ballot heavily to defeat his candidates.
Irony is always the first casualty in a tortured farce.
Imran Khan has perhaps forgotten that in the last Pakistani
elections, the same establishment had switched off the
same internet as the first part of a process to rig him into
office. The whirligig of time is spinning through the
windmills of the kind, to paste a line from 16th-century
Shakespeare to a song from that brilliant 1968 film The
Thomas Crown Affair. Imran Khan would know the song. in the Republican party process. The place was Nevada.
Imran the cricket-legend-cum-variable-politician has Haley was the only candidate. Donald Trump had refused to
one advantage. Unlike most of his predecessors he will be contest. But there was a second option on the ballot paper,
remembered, if only because of his personality rather than labelled ‘None of the Candidates’, equivalent to NOTA
his politics. He was and is a good human being. He meant (None of the Above) in Indian elections.
well but understood late. When results were declared, Nikki Haley had 33.2 per
He was fortunate to have lasted as long as he did. No cent of the vote. ‘None of the Candidates’ had 60.4 per cent.
Pakistan prime minister, elected or anointed, has completed To be defeated by an opponent is one thing. To be defeated
a full term. Army dictators have ruled for decades, because by anonymity is loss on an industrial scale. Perhaps Haley
their institution is in permanent power in a country without will continue her campaign in the vain or vague hope that
a past and, possibly, without much of a future. The future American courts will disqualify Trump. That might be
should not be defined by geography for that will last. If the hoping for too much but each time one sees the curious and
future includes the welfare of the people and the fortunes of a sometimes cruel vagaries of democratic politics there is only
nation, then the terrain becomes more difficult. one message for ambitious hopefuls. It is from Dante’s epic
Imran Khan should also know by now that in Pakistan on hell and heaven: Abandon all hope ye who enter here.
it is more sensible to ask an army general to predict the
outcome of an election than an astrologer.
F
ROM THE REALM OF excessive hard work for
transitory reward to the empire of leisure. The best place
T HERE HAS BEEN no election result, at least in my

knowledge, quite as humiliating as the one suffered by
the American presidential aspirant Nikki Haley this week
to work in the world is Vanuatu, the cluster of some 80 idyllic
islands in the South Pacific. You need to clock in only for 24.7
hours a week or about five hours a day. Ditto nearby Kiribati,
which asks for only 27.3 hours of your presence. Such glorious
statistics remind me of a story. Bill Gates, determined to enjoy
his retirement, was fishing in a Greek village. A few yards away
sat a wizened Greek also with his fishing line. Conversation
was inevitable. Gates explained that he had come to fish so
that he could finally relax and enjoy himself after the ardour
of making billions. The wise Greek pointed out that he had
been relaxed all his life without the need for any billions.
There will never be a billionaire from Vanuatu. Why do
you need a billionaire in Paradise?
Maybe enough people in the rich world have also heard
the Bill Gates joke. In Denmark you work only 33.1 hours
a week if you are a man and 29.5 if a woman. This has done
little harm to its GDP. The dawn of the New Age may be in
Vanuatu, but sunrise is in Denmark.
OPENINGS
NOTEBOOK
Guarding the Gates of the Northeast
E
VER SINCE THE coup d’etat of February 1, 2021 in of Home Affairs (MHA) ordered the recording of biometric
Myanmar, the danger of turmoil in that country spilling details of illegal migrants in Mizoram and Manipur. The
over into India’s Northeastern states has been expressed process was to be completed by September. While Manipur
time and again. These fears came true after a series of started the process in late July, Mizoram did not comply with
events in Manipur and Mizoram over the past one year. The the orders. Manipur requested an extension as conditions in
Centre has finally begun taking steps to ensure that these events the state did not permit a timely completion of the process.
do not pose a threat to India’s internal security and stability. In Mizoram, however, the state government did not agree to
On February 8, Union Home Minister Amit Shah an- record the biometric details of illegal migrants. As reported
nounced in a post on X that his ministry was recommending by The Indian Express on September 29, the then Minister of
the scrapping of the Free Movement Regime (FMR) between Information and Public Relations Lalruatkima, said: “The
India and Myanmar “to ensure the internal security of the people who have come from Myanmar are our relatives. When
country and to maintain the demographic structure of India’s borders were drawn during the time of the British, some of our
North Eastern States bordering Myanmar.” Shah said that since brothers and sisters got left on the other side. This is the condi-
the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is in the process of scrap- tion of the Mizo. When the military coup happened, they came
ping the FMR, his ministry has recommended the immediate to take shelter here.” He went on to say that his government
suspension of FMR. On February 6, Shah had posted on X that would not collect biometrics as after these had been collected,
the Centre had decided to construct a fence along the entire “the Centre, after taking it, will push them out.” This was an
1,643km-long Indo-Myanmar border. He added that a 10km alarming statement that did not go unnoticed in New Delhi.
stretch in Moreh, Manipur, had already been fenced. Shah It is one thing to offer humanitarian assistance to a people but
further said that two pilot projects of fencing through a Hybrid something entirely different to place ethnic affinities above
Surveillance System (HSS) are “under execution.” Fence works considerations of national security in sensitive zones. It is
covering 20km in Manipur have also been approved and work worth emphasising that Mizoram witnessed a long-drawn and
on them will start soon. painful insurgency in the 20th century, one that was brought to
The FMR system dates to the 1970s under which citizens of a close after a particularly harsh—but successful—counterin-
India and Myanmar who reside in a surgency campaign.
16km belt on either side of the border The Mizo people are closely related
could travel freely across the border. to the Chin people of Myanmar as are
In recent times, this system has been Amit Shah said that since the the Kuki people of Manipur. These
abused greatly and has caused havoc ethnic affinities often cross national
Ministry of External Affairs is in
in Manipur even as massive inflows of borders. For a long time, the Centre
people from Myanmar into Mizoram
the process of scrapping FMR, under its liberal “people-to-people”
were reported in the past two years. his ministry has recommended contact policy—of which the FMR
These numbers, dangerously high its immediate suspension. On was a part—took a benign approach to
for small states in the Northeast, February 6, Shah had posted on these affinities. At that time, Mizoram
have now become an acute threat to X that the Centre had decided was in election mode for the state
the demographic stability of these to construct a fence along the assembly elections that were held on
states. This is especially true for entire 1,643km-long November 7 last year. Probably, that
Mizoram and Manipur. was one reason why the issue did not
Alarmingly, the approach to the
Indo-Myanmar border. get traction beyond a point.
problem in the two states is very He added that a 10km stretch But the situation in Mizoram—
different and is now a serious security in Moreh, Manipur, had the influx of illegal migrants there—
threat. In April last year, the Ministry already been fenced cannot be seen in isolation from
10 19 FEBRUARY 2024
The Indo-Myanmar bridge
at Moreh, Manipur
REUTERS
events in Manipur. There, the Meitei people, the state’s major- incidents were reported at the western and eastern extremities
ity community but one that is concentrated in a very small of that country, in Rakhine and Shan states. This was as early
area in the Imphal Valley, is at the receiving end of massive as mid and late-2020. At that time, Chin and Sagaing regions
illegal migration of Chin people in different districts of the were wholly quiescent. The first incidents from the conflict
state. The Chin people are close ethnic relations of the Kukis. were reported from the Sagaing region in March and April of
The picture in these two states should be seen from the per- 2021. These were in areas adjacent to Tengnoupal and Kam-
spective of events in Myanmar. Mizoram and Manipur share jong districts of Manipur. The border of Myanmar adjacent
a border with the Chin state of Myanmar. This border extends to Mizoram—Chin—was silent at that time. This timeline is
all the way from the edge of Lawngtlai district, effectively a necessary to keep in mind as the real influx of migrants began
tri-junction of Bangladesh, India and Myanmar. The Chin state sometime closer to the internal disturbances in Manipur. While
border extends all the way to the south-eastern edge of Chandel there is little doubt that conflict in Myanmar has a role to play
district. The restive Churachandpur district also shares a in the flow of migrants, it would be a mistake to view them as
border on its southern edge with Chin state. From the edge of solely driven by conflict. The danger of demographic changes
Chandel all the way north to Changlang district of Arunachal driven by the politics of ‘buttressing numbers’ in Mizoram and
Pradesh, another region of Myanmar—the Sagaing region— Manipur are very real and cannot be ignored. There will be un-
has a border with Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. predictable consequences if this sort of politics goes unchecked.
It is worth pointing out that conflict data shows these bor- The Union Home Minister’s February 8 post on X shows an
der regions of Myanmar—classified as Northwest Myanmar in acute awareness of this aspect of the difficult situation in these
data gathered by the International Institute for Strategic Stud- states. There has been some scattered commentary about how
ies (IISS)—while subject to the post-coup conflict, are much this will lead to a fraying of India’s Look East Policy. This is a
less affected when compared to Myanmar’s other four regions. shibboleth. If a country cannot secure its borders and preserve
In fact, data for six months from July 2023 until December 2023 the demographic balance of its sensitive border states—and
shows that the number of violent incidents due to the conflict they are two faces of the same coin in India’s Northeast—it
only range from 9 per cent to 17 per cent of overall incidents can do precious little to further economic prosperity. Regional
reported during this time. The theatre of major conflict lies else- connectivity has a place in India’s economic progress but not
where. The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project as a trade-off with the security of its borders. The two work as
(ACLED) database—another major independent conflict complements and not substitutes. That is the category mistake
reporting database—show a similar trend even if its methodol- which afflicts some analysts of India’s geopolitics.
ogy of data collection and classification is different.
When conflict broke out in Myanmar, the first clashes and By SIDDHARTH SINGH
OPENINGS
PORTRAIT ZAKIR HUSSAIN Grammy. Hussain, McLaughlin and Company won

it for This Moment, their first album in many decades,
THE VIRTUOSO in the Best Global Music Album category. Shankar

Mahadevan, who is a part of the band, would later
tell journalists, “They [Hussain and McLaughlin]
His three new Grammys are a triumph are the pioneers of the concept of fusion. The seed of
for not just Indian but world music thought was put in people’s heads by them. Nobody
could have thought about that.”
B ACK IN 1974, Zakir Hussain, then a 20-something tabla virtuoso, joined

the jazz guitarists John McLaughlin, ghatam player Vikku Vinayakram
and violinist L Shankar, to form what would be regarded as one of the
Many other Indians also picked up Grammys
that night. But for Hussain, it was a particularly
special one. He picked up two more Grammys, the
most iconic fusion groups. The interest in so-called world music hadn’t yet first time any Indian has won so many in a single
exploded then, and such a collaboration wasn’t viewed as an instant route to night. Hussain, who has been collaborating with the
success. “Everyone thought I flipped out. It was not well-received at all by the banjo legend Béla Fleck, the bassist Edgar Meyer, and
record company or my agent and manager,” McLaughlin recalled in a recent Indian flautist Rakesh Chaurasia for several years,
interview. Many connoisseurs of the respective traditions even found the idea picked up the Best Contemporary Instrumental
of such a group outrageous. “The most important fact was that we, the Shakti Album for their Indian classical-meets-jazz album
team, were young enough to allow for musical ‘sacrilege’,” Hussain would As We Speak, and Best Global Music Performance for
tell the writer Nasreen Munni Kabir, in the book Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music. the track ‘Pashto’, which is framed as a tribute to the
“And so we could ignore the restrictions imposed on us by our respective tradition of Indian classical musicians playing with
traditions in the interest of finding a road towards oneness.” British imperial bands in the early 20th century.
The two found common ground, they would say, in the improvisational For a musician who has always sought to be, in
quality of jazz and Indian classical music. People took their time to warm up Hussain’s words, “a student, not a master”, he has
to the group. But its unique sound—a coming together of the Carnatic and spent a lifetime seeking new sounds, and blurring
Hindustani music traditions, and a hybrid of Western jazz and blues with the lines that exist between various musical
Indian traditional melody—became a sensation over time, and opened the traditions. He probably owes a lot of this to his
doors for other musicians keen on this emerging category of ‘world music’. The father and guru, the legendary tabla exponent Ustad
group released a few albums, played concerts, got disbanded, then reunited (as Alla Rakha, who often collaborated with other
Remember Shakti, with some new members), and continued playing on and off. musicians, and used to travel and perform with
Given the reverence with which it is held now, the band has never been in Pandit Ravi Shankar on the latter’s world tours.
need of a seal of approval. But it did come a few nights ago when it won its first Hussain has been collaborating with celebrated
REUTERS musicians from different traditions for decades now,
from his work with Shakti, his collaborations with
jazz sax greats like Charles Lloyd and John Handy,
to his work with rock legends like George Harrison,
Van Morrison, and Grateful Dead’s drummer
Mickey Hart. His collaborations with Hart, as a part
of the percussion-based world music band Planet
Drum, have also brought him two more Grammys
in the Best Global Music Album category. The first
came in 1992 (the award was known as Best World
Music Album then), and the second in 2009.
All these wins make Hussain, along with
Shankar and the conductor Zubin Mehta, among
the most lauded Indian musicians by the Grammys.
But for someone like him, such numbers probably
hold little value. The ideals his music represents
means more. In a time of much global strife and
factitious discourse everywhere, as he walked up to
the stage to pick the award for ‘Pashto’, he probably
sought to remind us: “Without love, without music,
without harmony,” he said, “we are nothing.”
By LHENDUP G BHUTIA
12 19 FEBRUARY 2024
ANGLE IDEAS
REALITY 2.0
Apple Vision Pro
and the great leap forward
By MADHAVANKUTTY PILLAI
ALAMY
I T HAS BEEN BARELY a week
since the Apple Vision Pro was
released in the US to the public.
is in three dimensions using more
of our senses. Even those who bought
an iPhone when it first came out PREJUDICE
Orders got delivered and soon the would have been hard put to imagine The Goan town of Mapusa
online world was replete with the what the Vision Pro does. You can see recently banned the sale of
kind of things that this virtual/ a movie in a phone but with this the Indian-Chinese dish ‘gobi
augmented reality headset, that headset, you can be in the middle manchurian’ from stalls during
Apple calls spatial computing, of a theatre watching a movie. Or you a popular festival in the locality.
can do. Arthur C Clarke, the can be on top of a mountain watching The reasons given were those
science fiction writer, once said it. You can have a screen with a work of health, and about how its
that any sufficiently advanced presentation nearby and just next to it, vendors prepared the dish in
technology is indistinguishable also be part of a conference call. Every- reportedly unhygienic ways. The
from magic. We, who live in the thing can be done all together within a real reason of course was quite
present, don’t perceive it as magic field of experience that inches close to
evident. The dish is seen as one
because it comes to our consciousness the real thing.
that isn’t native to the state. You
in graded degrees. Imagine going It is a clunky device as of now and
occasionally see this ire towards
back just 50 years, say 1973, in India. it might even be an open question
food from what is seen as alien
Phones were around but not many whether Steve Jobs, the founder of
could afford it and even they had Apple, who was a fundamentalist cultures in India, from concerns
to wait for years to get a connection. when it came to aesthetics and simplic- over the popularity of momos,
If you gave one of them even ity of usage, would have allowed the which a Jammu & Kashmir
a rudimentary smartphone, Apple Vision Pro to be launched in its legislator once wanted banned,
which every second person in current form with a dangling battery to the Goan government asking
India has, from cities to villages, that needs to be put in the pocket if you shacks last year to serve fish
and they can see the face of someone want to be mobile with the headset. curry and rice (to combat, it is
from hundreds and thousands of kilo- But this is the first iteration and it is believed, the growing popularity
metres away talking in real time plus far ahead of other Virtual Reality of north Indian food). Seeking
see movies, pay the local grocer, find headsets, and the richest company in food bans isn’t just foolhardy,
out whether it will rain tomorrow, the world is doing it and every one of it goes against the grain of how
and so on, it would be magic to them. the other competitors with bottomless food cultures develop.
The period required for this pockets, like Meta and Alphabet, will
phenomenon is getting scrunched. now be following suit and Apple
To the person in the 1970s, a plane itself will be improving on it every
in the sky is not magic but it is year. And then, in a few years, maybe a WORD’S WORTH
to someone in the 1870s. The Apple decade or two, we will be in the world of
Vision Pro will look like magic science fiction with maybe just contact ‘ To eat is a necessity, but to
to even those a decade ago. lenses that do all these things. Except eat intelligently is an art’
Because, now, the reality that is that it will seem all too natural to us FRANÇOIS DE LA ROCHEFOUCAULD
being manipulated and captured by then. french writer
INSIDER
AJIT PAWAR STAKES HIS CLAIM
T
he gloves are off in organiser will now be tested.
the NCP vs NCP fight. He is determined his faction be
The majority endorsed as the ‘real’ NCP so that
faction’s leader his clout and utility in the ruling
Ajit Pawar left no one in doubt coalition could be established.
that the political fight with His quest has received a boost
his uncle Sharad Pawar was with the Election Commission
for real, irrespective of their granting the NCP clock symbol
“cordial” meetings. There to his faction. The unrest over the
is a difference between the issue of Maratha reservation does
personal and the political and not seem to have made Dada too
while Ajit ‘Dada’ Pawar might uneasy, another indicator that
be happy to accommodate any the patchwork peace arrived at
request—even as he urges both with quota activists may hold.
groups to support the NDA Dada’s objective is to dominate
coalition in Maharashtra— the western Maharashtra
the stakes are high. Having sugar-belt constituencies that
successfully retained his Assembly the battle is one of influence on his will, in effect, result in whittling down
segment in Baramati over several home turf. Dada has decided to make a his uncle’s legendary influence in the
elections, he has warned voters not to serious play for the Baramati Lok Sabha region. Working in his favour also is
fall for emotional appeals about the seat and his references to his proximity the opposition to Sharad Pawar within
forthcoming Lok Sabha polls being to the BJP brass indicates he will not Congress. Though Congress is now
Pawar Sr’s “last” electoral battle. It only be part of NDA but feels this is in reduced circumstances, some of its
has, of course, been some time since where his political future lies. The leaders from western Maharashtra are
Sharad Pawar announced he would deputy chief minister has never, unlike firmly opposed to Pawar Sr, a factor the
not contest the Lok Sabha polls his uncle, fancied a national profile nephew will take into account while
(opting for Rajya Sabha instead), but and his reputation of being a grassroots planning his moves.
THE LOST
YATRA
C ongress spokespersons are finding the going difficult as the party
struggles to contain the fallout of JD(U)’s exit from the I.N.D.I.A.
bloc and the continued hostility of Trinamool Congress. Despite jibes
that the party may find it hard to touch the 50-seat mark in the Lok
Sabha polls, Congress spokespersons are showing exemplary restraint about Trinamool,
averring that the party continues to be part of the opposition alliance and committed to
opposing BJP. All this means Rahul Gandhi’s second Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra has fallen
off the radar. It had a rough beginning when attempts to create controversies by provoking
clashes with Assam Police not only failed but resulted in a counter-offensive with Chief
Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma directing law enforcement agencies to lodge complaints for
the violation of administrative orders and breaches of law and order. The Yatra is currently
in Jharkhand where, again, circumstances have conspired against Congress plans. JMM is
concentrating on survival after the arrest of Chief Minister Hemant Soren and neither the
government nor the media has much mind space for the Nyay Yatra.
14 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Illustrations by SAURABH SINGH
DRONES TRUMP PANNUN

Reports in a section of the media about US Congress members having
“doubts” about the sale of Predator drones to India turned out to be over-
blown. Though Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Ben Cardin confirmed he had raised the issue of the alleged plot involving
Indian nationals to assassinate Khalistani leader Gurpatwant Singh
Pannun, reports missed out on the import of what the US government
conveyed to the committee. The Biden administration’s view that India is
committed to a thorough investigation makes it clear that New Delhi’s expla-
nation has been accepted and the Pannun matter is not a hurdle in relations.
While the matter required some attention, the overriding assessment that
India is a key strategic and security partner has prevailed. After having made
BUDGET suitable noises on the Pannun affair, Cardin acknowledged the role of the
partnership in stabilising the Indo-Pacific. The US administration has now
WALKOVER notified Congress about the impending sale. The exaggerated reports of a US
A n unusual aspect of
the presentation of
the interim Budget, which
Congress “block” on the sale had a shelf life of just a day before the committee
greenlighted the deal. The view
in the Indian government is that
happened just ahead of the the alleged plots will be inves-
Lok Sabha election, was tigated in the light of evidence
the lack of any heckling in provided. As another instance
the House. Union Finance of shooting at the residence of an
aide to slain Khalistani leader Hardeep
Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
Singh Nijjar (shot in June last
Meyear)
seemed
This PDF to have
was uploade To braced
Telegramfor
channel_https://t.me/Magazines_8890050582(send Message telegram ya WhatsApp This number 8890050582)
in Canada shows, murky criminal
the expected jeers and hoots rivalries within extremist groups
but there was none. A large don’t require much external impetus.
section of the opposition Canada continues to be a happy hunting
sat in sullen silence as the ground for all manner of criminal gangs
minister went through her involved in arms and drugs who
speech, with even assertions are busy settling scores in
of vast improvements over the absolute disregard for their
erstwhile UPA government host nation.
failing to elicit protests. One
reason could be the recent
turmoil in the opposition
OBC SEATS IN J&K
I
I.N.D.I.A. bloc, with exits amid
n keeping with the removal of Article 370’s provisions with regard to Jammu and
public bickering. Another
Kashmir (J&K), the government brought to Parliament the Jammu and Kashmir
could be the preoccupation of Local Bodies Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 to ensure representation to OBCs for
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi the first time since Independence. The Bill, according to its statement of objectives,
with the Bharat Jodo Nyay seeks to amend certain provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act,
Yatra. Typically, Congress 1989, the Jammu and Kashmir Municipal Act, 2000 and the Jammu and Kashmir
benches take a hint from Municipal Corporation Act, 2000 (the Acts). This is to ensure consonance with the
party managers who convey provisions of Part IX and Part IX(a) of the Constitution. These sections of the Con-
messages on behalf of the stitution relate to “the Panchayats” and “the Municipalities” while certain other
leadership. A combination clauses empower state legislatures to make provisions for reservation of seats in
any panchayat or municipality in favour of backward classes. The statutes govern-
of events and circumstances
ing the Union territory of J&K have no provision of reservation of seats for OBCs. In
meant the Budget speech order to do so and bring about consistency in local body laws of the Union territory
sailed through smoothly and provisions of the Constitution, it has become necessary to amend certain provi-
and it was left to the treasury sions of the Acts and to introduce a Bill in Parliament, the Bill states. The Jammu
benches to thump desks and Kashmir Local Bodies Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 will ensure justice to OBCs
in approval. after 75 years of independence, the government has said.
COMMENT
The Reform Rush

How Modinomics scripted a globally competitive economy
By DHIRAJ NAYYAR
A
FTER THE TRIUMPH of the temple, an interim India’s reforms took a different path. Trade liberalisation
Budget or vote on account (its blandest moniker), took primacy in the years after 1991, along with some capital
was never going to be a high-voltage affair. But it market reform on the equities side. Banking, labour and
provided ample evidence of the crux of Modinomics: focus land were left as they were. The building of a world-class
on infrastructure, fiscal prudence, delivery of welfare. infrastructure never made it to the priority list except in the
The political genius of India’s 14th prime minister is well interregnum of the Vajpayee government when highways
acknowledged. In time, his economic philosophy will also and rural roads got attention. India’s reforms of 1991 were
be recognised as transformative. important and unleashed India’s potential in several sectors,
It is quite common to hear of an equivalence drawn between most notably, services. However, they were never planned out
China in 1978 and India in 1991. And there is much in common, strategically or implemented comprehensively with the aim
with the two most populous countries in the world changing of replicating the earlier East Asian success stories of Japan,
the trajectory of their economic ideology in the respective Korea and Taiwan. They left manufacturing, the key to catch
years. In 1978, China’s leader Deng Xiaoping turned his back up, languishing. China captured the entire merchandise
on Maoism/communism as an economic export market vacated by the earlier
philosophy and embraced markets. His industrialisers and indeed created more
saying “it doesn’t matter whether the BUILDING A WORLD-CLASS for itself. Today, China’s per capita income
cat is black or white as long as it catches INFRASTRUCTURE FINALLY is 35x of what it was in 1991. India’s is 7x,
mice” summed up the U-turn. In 1991, BECAME A TOP PRIORITY with a considerable increase since 2014.
Manmohan Singh ended India’s embrace AND THE GOVERNMENT When Modi took over in 2014, the task
with socialism and invoked Victor Hugo: HAS COMMITTED of creating a globally competitive economy
“No one can stop an idea whose time has INCREASING AMOUNTS was harder than in 1991. But Modinomics
come.” But while change can be signalled OF EXPENDITURE TO IT took up the challenge. Building a world-
in a moment, success is a much harder trudge. class infrastructure finally became a top
It needs a well-thought-out strategy and priority and the government has committed
immaculate execution. That is where Modinomics is different increasing amounts of expenditure to it. Even in the interim
from Manmohanomics. Modi is Deng in a democracy. Budget, the allocation for infrastructure went up by 11 per
For a market economy to succeed, there are certain cent, after tripling in the last four years. At the same time,
prerequisites which may not be in place at the time of the government has reversed some of the trade liberalisation
change. First, there is need for a world-class infrastructure of the two decades until 2014, raising tariffs moderately to
(roads, ports, airports, power) to build a world-beating give space for domestic manufacturing to build its capacity.
economy. Second, successful reform requires an Realising some of the political economy challenges in land
unbundling of an entire gamut of state-controlled markets, and labour reforms, the government has tried to give industry
product markets, of course, but also land, labour, and capital a level playing field via production-linked incentives and
markets. Third, there may be a transition period required lower taxes. The government believes that private sector
where domestic entrepreneurs get some protection from must lead. So, it has to be fiscally responsible to allow more
global competition while the government builds the funds to go to entrepreneurs at a lower cost and cut red tape.
prerequisites. Fourth, need for the state to deliver basic It has realised that a market economy cannot have legitimacy
needs to all to build support for a free economy. unless everyone gets a basic standard of living, which is why it
Deng understood this. And China took its time. So much has relentlessly focused on improved delivery of welfare, and
time, in fact, that in 1991, its per capita income was the same not just spend more on a leaky sieve.
as India’s, around the $350-mark. So much time that its trade Modinomics is committed to building the prerequisites
liberalisation on imports began in earnest only in 2001 when for the kind of economic success China
it acceded to the World Trade Organization, 23 years after it and East Asia witnessed. It is bound to yield
signalled a new path. By then, all the necessary conditions rich dividends.
for the flourishing of the economy had been implemented
and China just pulled away from India in the 2000s. Dhiraj Nayyar is Chief Economist, Vedanta
16 19 FEBRUARY 2024
COMMENT
The Man of India’s Destiny

Modi’s empathy and credibility make him an authentic leader
By VIJAY CHAUTHAIWALE
R
ETAINING POPULARITY RATINGS is a example. There was a significant capacity-building in India’s
challenging task for any elected leader and 2023 healthcare infrastructure and success in the manufacture and
was no different with leaders of most major supply of critical medicines and vaccines. India achieving 200
democracies like the US, Germany, Japan, and the crore vaccinations is irrefutable evidence of his leadership.
UK seeing a slide in rankings. The only exception to this A consistent facet of Modi’s leadership style is ’empathy’
trend is Prime Minister Narendra Modi. After more than for common people. This sensitivity to the last woman in
nine years of being in office, just ahead of his bid for a third the queue (Antyodaya) leads to the envisioning of multiple
term, his popularity ratings are consistently above 70 per scenarios in any decision-making process and this increases
cent, a measure of approval any political leader will envy. the chances of success. This process enables him to listen to
Leadership is not just a popularity contest and consistent feedback from the grassroots and accordingly select the right
ratings reflect a connection with citizens based on trust and policies. An exposure to privations due to a lack of means and
credibility. Effective leadership requires tough decisions that his extensive travels through India give Modi the ability to
may cause short-term pain but are needed in the national seize the essentials of a situation. This is why he understood
interest. A crisis, such as the critical foreign exchange the need to deliver basics to the underprivileged by way of
situation of 1991, can make such decisions easier. But banking, housing, electricity, health, water, and cleanliness.
implementing such decisions during peace time requires During any natural calamity, Modi is the first to discuss
courage and vision, and is a test of leadership. A true leader preparations and requirements. In many cases he has spoken
can detect the perils of a status quo attitude and initiate with chief ministers from opposition parties and immediately
transformative political, economic, and social changes. delivered what was needed on the ground. During Covid, he
An attribute of effective leadership is a preparedness to personally called hundreds of people to inquire about their
deal with chaos or disruption. Leadership is about creating, health. When the Ukraine-Russia war began, he was not
leading, and coping with change. Any transformative only worried about airlifting Indian students but also their
change is bound to create some uncertainty and it is here wellbeing in transit in countries like Romania and Poland.
that a leader like Modi excels in not only coping but also He called several people (including myself) after midnight
establishing a new paradigm anchored in a national vision. and directed that arrangements be made for fresh, hygienic
Dealing with change involves convincing people about the food and warm shelters for students. The Vaccine Maitri
need and merits of the decisions taken. Two decisions in programme is a fine example of selflessly extending a helping
Modi’s first term—demonetisation and implementation hand to needy countries beyond diplomatic considerations.
of the Goods and Service tax (GST)—are good examples. At the same time, Modi is careful not to allow emotions to
The first (demonetisation), despite the disruption, won the blur his vision. Empathy in his heart is complemented with the
support of the poor as they believed in Modi’s war against toughness required to implement decisions, remain focused
black money and corruption. While GST implementation and chart the course of action. Robert Goffee and Gareth
was disruptive for businesses, the new tax regime made the Jones in Why should Anyone Be Led by You? (2006) describe
Indian economy efficient and modern. In both instances, this as “tough empathy” which they define as “Giving people
the prime minister did not hesitate to put his political what they need and not what they want”. This distinction
capital on the line because he felt the decisions were needed. between needs and wants helped Modi to devise policies that
Modi’s strength is his direct communication with people, provide the right mix of financial, food and health security
explaining the rationale behind major decisions, and the to vulnerable sections of society, without abandoning fiscal
humility with which he asks people to tolerate short-term prudence. Modi calls uncontrolled populist doles “revdi
pain. At the same time, he converted a crisis (non-availability culture”, itself a bold stance on populist giveaways.
of cash) into an opportunity by launching the Unified Another feature of tough empathy is balance between
Payments Interface (UPI) and encouraging people to use the task at hand and respect for the individual. He doesn’t
digital payments. India’s emergence from the Covid crisis hesitate to convey tough messages, both in public and in
has much to do with Modi’s ability to impose a national private. At the same time, he has an ability to discriminate
lockdown and then keep public morale up by leading by between issue-based tough messaging and taking care of not
18 19 FEBRUARY 2024
emotionally hurting an individual. This is because he has an contradictory even, from diverse sources and synthesise
enormous ability to remain in touch with literally thousands them into a coherent theme creating a “rich picture” that is
of people across the world. Those who have watched videos implemented meticulously. Many people in Gujarat who
(on modistory.in) can feel the genuineness of the accounts. His worked with him narrate how Modi paid attention to every
letters on occasions of celebration and tragedy are not dry little detail. This is the reason why the targets he set, which
notes but reflect a personal connection with the person. appear daunting and very ambitious, are achieved on time or
Vasantrao Chiplunkar was a senior RSS pracharak in Gujarat even in advance. Jan Dhan Yojana is a classic example.
who was well known for a jovial and ever-smiling nature. Setting the pace by his own actions is a hallmark of Modi’s
After a long illness, he died the very day Modi was sworn in as leadership style. He made an appeal for a national cleanliness
chief minister a second time in 2007. He wrote an emotional drive and joined the campaign by cleaning roadside waste.
tribute in Gujarati titled as ’Spring without Fall’ (vasant means In a public programme of unveiling a book, he unwrapped
spring). Later, paying tribute to the book, carefully folded the
Vasantrao, rather than making wrapper, kept it in his pocket,
a tearful speech, he said, “One and then showed the book
cannot talk about Vasantrao to the audience. Such simple
without smiles and laughter. gestures set an example. At party
Let’s celebrate his life rather meetings, after a break, he is often
than being sorrowful about his the first to return to his seat so
departure.” He recounted several that next session starts on time.
anecdotes from his interactions He is careful to draw a line
with Vasantrao. between confidence and over-
There are numerous confidence. Confidence infuses
examples of his personal touch. energy into followers and over-
Before his recent Sydney visit, confidence leads to complacency.
we were asked to locate an He will campaign till the last vote
elderly lady who had moved to is cast. At the same time, from
Australia to live with her sons. the very next day, he will start
Hers was a common Gujarati planning for the future, even
name and after considerable Illustration by SAURABH SINGH
before the results are declared.
effort, local contacts discovered Modi untiringly meets
she was no more. Modi still met her family members. And different sections of society. And at every such event, he
why was he keen to meet the family? Because, during gives 100 per cent of himself. People feel he is genuine and
Emergency (1975-77), when he was underground, he had sincere. For a leader of his stature, it is impossible to confine
stayed with this family in Vadodara. In Nairobi, Kenya, him to one frame or scenario. But he is always authentic.
during a photo session with community leaders, he saw Authenticity is not inherited; it does not depend on the
an old lady walking in slowly with someone supporting family one belongs to or on power and wealth. One cannot
her. He quickly walked to her and holding her hand, asked, be authentic by self-proclamation. People want to be led
“Kem Chho Arunaben? (How are you Arunaben?)”. Again, by someone ‘real’ and are not gullible in this regard. This
several years earlier during a Kenya visit, he had had lunch is the prime characteristic that differentiates Modi from
with her family. It was their first meeting after many his opponents. It also explains why ‘Modi ki Guarantee’
years. Even while meeting grassroots workers for the first is credible in the eyes of the people—because it is backed
time, Modi makes people feel that they have known each by a solid record of work.
other for years. During a meeting with a karyakarta from Narendra Modi could achieve his goals with sheer hard
the UK recently, his opening line “Suresh, kya chal raha work, exposing himself to the toughest of situations, and
hai?” helped put the other at ease. A couple in Switzerland continuously learning and absorbing lessons. He never
had enthusiastically celebrated Yoga Day at the Jungfrau shied from expressing his true self; there is no pretence
summit in the Swiss Alps and earned swift praise when they about the man. Amid success, he never detaches himself
met Modi who said, “Yoga ke liye to bahot hi accha kaam kiya from his roots. India has the right leader to lead it into
aapne (You have done very good work for yoga).” its Amrit Kaal, a process that involves the
Modi can balance many such informal meetings with discovery of its destiny.
individuals from all walks of life and pressing official business
because he wants to receive honest feedback, inputs, and new Vijay Chauthaiwale heads BJP’s foreign affairs
ideas. The prime minister’s qualities of being a patient listener department. Views are personal. Read a longer
help him pick up multiple ideas, sometimes divergent and version of this article at openthemagazine.com
INSIGHT
Déjà Vu in Pakistan
Economic recovery will be slow amidst political instability no matter who wins the election
By SHUJA NAWAZ
A
S 128.58 MILLION registered voters got compared with the 6 to 7 per cent needed for it to
ready to go to polls on February 8, many inside stay ahead of its rapidly rising population. Inflation is
Pakistan and abroad were wondering if around 40 per cent, with food inflation near 50 per cent,
this would be a fraught exercise yet again. and the poorest segments suffer the most since they
Would the election be fixed, as it appears to have been spend half their income on food. The size of the middle
done in the past? And what will be the end result for the class, the expected engine of Pakistan’s growth, has also
people of Pakistan? fallen from around 50 million to around 22 million.
The last time Pakistan went to polls in 2018, the The country also desperately needs the remaining
military’s reported favourite was Imran Khan and his $1.2 billion of its current International Monetary
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). His principal rival, Fund (IMF) programme that expires in April. The new
former Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif government will have to rapidly move to curb spending
of the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz Group (PML-N), and increase tax revenues to qualify for a fresh programme
was disqualified. Khan won the most seats in the National that will help bring ancillary funding from multilateral
Assembly and went on to form the government with a and private sources.
coalition of smaller parties at the centre as well as in the Power shortages have hurt the economy by
major Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. constraining exports, despite the deep devaluation of the
While no rigging was substantiated on election day in Pakistani rupee that could have fuelled an export surge
2018, there were reports of intelligence officials offering by making Pakistani products cheaper for foreign buyers.
candidates in key constituencies, especially in Punjab, Foreign direct investment (FDI) has been slowing down.
choices of either running on PTI tickets, as independents, Remittances from overseas Pakistanis have dropped from
or not running at all. Many chose the first option. a height of $31 billion a year to close to $22 billion. And
Others hedged their bets as independents and later joined Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves are hovering around
the PTI government. the $8 billion mark, while it will need to make repayments
This time round, it is Khan who is disqualified, having in the period of January to June 2024 of about $9 billion,
been convicted and sentenced in several cases while with another $4-5 billion in the period of July to December.
facing scores of others. His party has been ripped It will need to rely on the continuing pity and largesse of
apart after the public unrest and attacks on military friends like China and countries in the Arabian Peninsula
installations of May 9, 2023; party leaders and social media to roll over previous debts or deposits with the State Bank
influencers were taken into custody and later emerged of Pakistan to keep its head above water.
to either publicly break with him or to retire from So, winning this election may be a mixed blessing for
politics. Street unrest followed the arrest of Khan by the whichever party manages to garner the most votes at the
paramilitary rangers. centre and in the major provinces of Punjab, Sindh, and
Such a wild and manipulated swing of the election Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Early prognostications pointed the
pendulum from one party to the other in Pakistan way for a PML-N win with the possibility of Nawaz Sharif
portends uncertainty and political conflict for the becoming prime minister for the fourth time, heading a
foreseeable future. All this, against the background coalition yet again. The Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) was
of a dire economic situation. Pakistan has not been widely expected yet again to retain its control over Sindh.
able to emerge out of the depths of Covid-19 followed It had damaged its base in Punjab over the past decades.
by devastating floods. Nor has it recovered from the Balochistan will likely remain seriously divided among its
profligate spending during the latter part of Khan’s own traditional smaller parties who will then align themselves
term, as he prepared for the next elections. Or from the with the winner at the centre. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
mismanagement of the exchange rate by the coalition might see a coalition yet again of the religious parties,
government that succeeded him after his removal through either with PML-N or the independents of PTI.
a vote of no-confidence. But several factors may yet upset the pundits’
Pakistan’s annual growth rate is around 2 per cent predictions. A major determinant will be the turnout.
20 19 FEBRUARY 2024
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AFP
WINNING THIS
ELECTION MAY
BE A MIXED
BLESSING. EARLY
PROGNOSTICATIONS
POINTED THE
WAY FOR A PML-N
WIN WITH THE
POSSIBILITY OF
NAWAZ SHARIF
BECOMING PRIME
MINISTER FOR
THE FOURTH
TIME, HEADING
Former Pakistan Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif casts his vote A COALITION
in Lahore, February 8, 2024 YET AGAIN
A larger turnout might help the shadow PTI candidates, other parts of the country. That may affect turnout. And
including those still in prison. The average turnout in given Pakistan’s first-past-the-post system of winner-takes-
six of the previous 11 general elections has been around all, small differences in totals might swing seats one way
45 per cent, much lower than the turnout in neighbouring or the other in these marginal seats, thus confounding
India, Iran, and distant Bangladesh. As cited by the pundits and those who may have tried to manage the
columnist Maleeha Lodhi, independents form over elections one way or the other.
60 per cent of the candidates for the 266 general seats in The Pakistani population is largely young and
the National Assembly and double the number of party unpredictable. Its political parties are largely dynastic and
candidates in the provincial assembly elections this year. doddering in comparison. They have created a culture
How many of these independents will remain faithful of entitlement and privilege for their benefit. The voter
PTI followers may be a powerful element in the results occasionally surprises them. This happened in 1970, in both
of this election. West and East Pakistan. Pakistani leaders need to remember
Young voters are also a powerful new bloc, rising from their history to avoid the mistakes and miscalculations
46 per cent in 2018 to some 57 per cent in 2024. PTI has of the past. Economic challenges loom large. Political
been counting on its social media campaign to galvanise instability caused by short-term political games following
most of the youth vote. If they come out to vote on these elections will threaten recovery and growth for the
February 8, they could become a deciding factor. Youth longer term. It will harm Pakistan not only domestically
often sleep in on election day in Pakistan with some 25 per but also in its ability to create a better neighbourhood for
cent coming out to vote, according to one Gallup Pakistan improved trade development, and peace.
poll. No different than their counterparts in the developed
world! To make a difference this time, they must wake up Shuja Nawaz is the founding director and Distinguished Fellow
and walk their talk by voting. at the South Asia Centre of the Atlantic Council
Finally, security will play a role in determining in Washington DC and the author of The Battle
who wins in the huge number of so-called sensitive for Pakistan: The Bitter US Friendship and a
constituencies subject to security threats. Early reports Tough Neighbourhood and Crossed Swords:
of terrorist attacks in Balochistan might scare people in Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within
OPEN ESSAY
By SANDEEP BALAKRISHNA
THE SOUTH IS NOT

ANOTHER COUNTRY
The political desperation behind DK Suresh’s separatist rhetoric
K
ARNATAKA DEPUTY CHIEF MINISTER DK Shivakumar’s younger brother and Lok Sabha MP
DK Suresh echoed a variant last week of a separatist narrative that has a history of more than a century. He
couched it in pseudo-economic terms claiming that “southern states would be forced to demand a separate
nation if the ‘injustice’ in distribution of funds is not rectified by the Centre.”
However, even this economic angle is nothing new. In recent memory, former chief minister of Andhra
Pradesh, N Chandrababu Naidu, ran a shrill and ugly campaign against the Modi government for its
alleged failure to deliver the “special status” to the state. It culminated in a botched no-confidence motion
that he led in 2018.
Common sense tells us why DK Suresh has invoked the funds allocation ploy. Barely six months into its
tenure, the Congress government in Karnataka is reeling under the inferno of freebies that it had recklessly
promised during elections. The state exchequer is depleting at 5G speed, reminding us of Margaret Thatcher’s memorable
phrase that the problem with such ultra socialistic schemes is that “eventually you run out of other people’s money.” And so,
DK Suresh’s implicit threat-cum-blackmail is a demand for more funds to endlessly fund the same freebies.
But on the national canvas, there is another factor at play. Congress has clearly realised that not only can it not challenge the
Modi government on any issue but it has absolutely nothing to offer either as a better alternative in the fast-approaching General
Election. This desperation among others is also at work behind the separatist statements issued by the likes of DK Suresh.
Even as I watched the prime minister reprimand his dangerous utterances in his presidential motion of thanks, I couldn’t help
feeling wistful at the sorry pass that my state has come to. That a sitting MP from a highly cultured state like Karnataka could
publicly call for a “separate south Indian nation” was not even in the realm of my wildest imagination. By giving it, DK Suresh
has joined the gallery of luminaries populated by the ilk of EV Ramaswamy Naicker, Karunanidhi and Jyoti Basu, who had infa-
mously thundered that Bengal would secede from India if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power at the Centre.
This phenomenon is also the unofficial herald of the Dravidification of Karnataka politics, which had been immune to and
had resisted such separatist tendencies. The first attempt to Dravidianise Karnataka politics was made during the early 1920s
by a ragtag group named Praja Mitra Mandali (Organisation of the Friends of the People), which morphed into a political party
named Praja Paksha (People’s Party). EV Ramaswamy Naicker and the Justice Party were the inspiration for this party. However,
it proved to be a short-lived experiment thanks largely to the tempering political and social climate of the Mysore State, which
absorbed its fissiparous tendencies.
22 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Illustration by SAURABH SINGH
COMMON SENSE TELLS US WHY DK SURESH HAS INVOKED THE FUNDS

ALLOCATION PLOY. BARELY SIX MONTHS INTO ITS TENURE, THE CONGRESS
GOVERNMENT IN KARNATAKA IS REELING UNDER THE INFERNO OF FREEBIES THAT
IT HAD RECKLESSLY PROMISED DURING ELECTIONS. THE STATE EXCHEQUER IS
DEPLETING AT 5G SPEED. AND SO, DK SURESH’S IMPLICIT THREAT-CUM-BLACKMAIL
IS A DEMAND FOR MORE FUNDS TO ENDLESSLY FUND THE SAME FREEBIES
On a tangential note, it will be an interesting exercise to south Indian nation” are recent. The roots of all such divisive
trace the history of the states that have repeatedly called for demands are in the 1928 Nehru Report, a fact that the selfsame
secession from India in the last seven decades. But that is a DK Suresh posted on X (formerly Twitter) without revealing
story for another day. the full story.
Whether or not DK Suresh was aware, he was merely A key element of the Nehru Report was its complete exclu-
echoing the full essence of the ‘United States of South India’ sion of the 562 Princely States from the new Indian Union that
script that was floated in 2018, which I explained in my would be formed after the British departed. DV Gundappa, a
essay ‘An Existential Threat’ (Open, September 18, 2023) on contemporary of Motilal and Jawaharlal Nehru and other Con-
Udhayanidhi Stalin’s attack on Sanatana Dharma. This script gress stalwarts, gave one of the most learned critiques of this
is a revival of an old narrative that combines the worst ele- report in The Bombay Chronicle. Here is a sample: “…the Congress
ments of the spurious Aryan Invasion Theory, the so-called “National” [with a big “N”] is not less punctilious than its very
Dravidian movement, the toxic Adhikari Thesis, and the 1928 adversary, the bureaucracy of the Indian Government, in taboo-
Nehru Report. ing the [Native] States as ‘foreign territory.’” (Emphasis added)
The dashed political fortunes of the purveyors of such To make a long story short, the Nehru Report explicitly
narratives are the only factor that prevents them from giving called for a reorganisation of (British) Indian provinces along
practical shape to these nation-breaking theories. It is time to linguistic lines for the first time.
put such narratives to a permanent rest if we are serious about That reorganisation became a reality in 1956. It remains
preserving our national integrity. the unparalleled blunder that has led to the fragmentation
It is also a mistake to assume that clamours for a “separate of Indian polity and society. For all their faults, our Princely
OPEN ESSAY
States had acted as a sturdy and enduring bulwark against British, when they created new provinces and administrative
separatist feelings by preserving the continuity of local units, had largely left these old boundaries and local
cultures, traditions, customs, and festivals. Both earthly and traditions untouched. Indeed, even the British historian
riverine borders were fluid, and disputes were settled, say, over Michael Edwardes had a better grasp of this Indian reality
a stately dinner on amicable terms. than the Nehruvian establishment when he wrote the follow-
Linguistic reorganisation undid this timeless harmony ing: “The commission most strongly criticized the creation of linguis-
through legislative fiat, which in turn, was the consequence tic states on the grounds that they would inspire linguistic and
of Jawaharlal Nehru’s fear and weakness. therefore local patriotisms which would inhibit the growth
In practical terms, the linguistic reorganisation of India of a national consciousness… which was fundamental to such
was a redrawing of India’s political map and it was achieved growth.” (Emphasis added)
on the carcasses of the Princely States. It is also a subject that But Nehru went against the commission’s recommen-
needs a thorough and urgent re-evaluation if we are really seri- dations for cynical reasons. In 1952, Potti Sriramulu, who
ous about preserving India’s unity and integrity. agitated for a separate Telugu-speaking state, went on a fast
The commission set up to examine the linguistic reorgan- and died. The Telugu-speaking regions were instantly
isation issue delivered its unambiguous verdict in late 1948: transformed into a fire pit. Unable to take the heat, Nehru
things should be left as they are. For a fundamental reason. buckled and inaugurated the formation of Andhra Pradesh in
Existing boundaries had been sanctified by the informal October 1953—the first state to be formed entirely along
agreements and usages and customs over eons. Even the linguistic lines.
It also sent out an unambiguous message to the rest of
the country: the prime minister was susceptible to violent
blackmail. A national wave of mass agitations erupted, and
soon enough, the States Reorganization Commission was
formed. It submitted its report in October 1955 which upheld
the earlier findings. In its immediate aftermath, widespread
rioting and violence followed in Odisha, Bengal, Bihar,
Bombay, Ahmadabad, and Punjab. And once again, Nehru
caved in. New states based solely on language were created
at breakneck speed.
A LL THIS HAPPENED in less than a decade after India

was supposedly united politically.
With that, the first of a long series of language wars within
Hindu society had begun. ‘Uniting’ India by dividing it along
linguistic lines is an unprecedented marvel in the political his-
tory of the world. But the unprecedented is also a precedent.
By the early 1960s, Congress had emerged as the
mothership of divisiveness. In the process, it had also begun
to create clones that learned quickly. This is the short version
of the origin of the so-called regional parties. Over time, this
divisiveness was not restricted to language alone… caste, sub-
caste, religion, sect, sub-sect, tribe, right hand, left hand, spe-
cial interest groups… the engineered faultlines were infinite.
It was divisiveness for its own sake, divisiveness as an end in
IT IS A MISTAKE TO ASSUME THAT itself. Divisiveness was the vote-getting mantra. It still is.
CLAMOURS FOR A ‘SEPARATE SOUTH This wound has festered and grown to almost incurable
INDIAN NATION’ ARE RECENT. THE proportions because the root cause is elsewhere. History
ROOTS OF ALL SUCH DIVISIVE reveals to us the truth that at no point did Congress have a truly
national vision after Nehru became unchallengeable both
DEMANDS ARE IN THE 1928 NEHRU
within Congress and in government. Till his very end, he kept
REPORT, A FACT THAT THE SELFSAME issuing only vague generalisations whose primary purpose
DK SURESH POSTED ON X (FORMERLY was to keep winning elections repeatedly. To quote Edwardes
TWITTER) WITHOUT REVEALING THE again: “Nehru…talked of broad and mostly incomprehensible is-
FULL STORY sues… It was always Congress the liberator from British rule,
24 19 FEBRUARY 2024
the Congress the hope of the future,
never the Congress of the present…
the whole elections [were] a travesty of
democracy. ” [Emphasis added]
A national vision stems from
an innate and wakeful recognition
of national integrity on the plane
of spirit and culture. Its outward
expressions encompass all spheres
of our national life: politics, society,
economy, religion, education, and
culture. It is what fuses all of them
as a harmonious whole. When we
THAT A SITTING MP FROM KARNATAKA COULD CALL
regard each of these elements in
isolation, integrity suffers damage.
FOR A ‘SEPARATE SOUTH INDIAN NATION’ WAS NOT IN
Which is exactly what occurred. THE REALM OF IMAGINATION. DK SURESH HAS
By way of contrast, we can once JOINED THE GALLERY OF EV RAMASWAMY NAICKER,
again turn to DV Gundappa who KARUNANIDHI AND JYOTI BASU, WHO HAD THUNDERED
graphically describes what happens THAT BENGAL WOULD SECEDE FROM INDIA IF BJP
on the ground if age-old social and CAME TO POWER AT THE CENTRE
political harmony is disrupted by a
brute legislative power, which does
not impose restraints upon itself:
“In the end, what united the Princely States and British The old attachment to one’s local geography has been shattered.
India was not the efforts of the Rajas and Maharajas. Neither The new feeling of regional-love has remained elusive. “The root
was it the efforts of their subjects. It was the haughty blow of a Princely State as an institution is a kind of affectionate
delivered by the Congressites who had come to power. In reality, it bond. Today, it has no place. While everybody is eager
did not occur in a smooth fashion that had the consent of both parties. to grab the benefits of such an institution, nobody wants
[Congress] did not think that the patient…path of due process the quiet contemplation that births such an institution.”
was appropriate. [Emphasis added]
“Did Princely States ever exist in India? The fact that this DV Gundappa wrote this about two years after the Princely
question is even being asked shows the extent to which they States were liquidated. He wrote as a patriot and conscientious
have been deformed and liquidated. If this was not enough, citizen who had actually lived his life in such an integrated and
the regional borders that had continuously existed for centuries have harmonious social atmosphere.
been chaotically littered under the guile of linguistic brotherhood. And today, we have reached a stage where almost every
state has become a war zone, and these estranging forces are
waging an unhinged, all-out war against the Indian Union.
On the one hand, we have the extraordinary growth of
DV GUNDAPPA India’s stature on the global stage accompanied by sweeping
DESCRIBES WHAT economic changes, whose fruits will be enjoyed by the future
HAPPENS IF SOCIAL generations. On the other, we have this dogged cabal of sepa-
HARMONY IS ratist elements who won’t blink even if India splintered.
The profound civilisation of Bharatavarsha is at a tipping
DISRUPTED BY A
point because the Nehruvian Indian state has eaten into its
BRUTE LEGISLATIVE innards. My sincere hope is that I will still continue to live in
POWER: ‘WHAT a Bharatavarsha of the near future which allows me to write
UNITED THE pieces like the one you just read. n
PRINCELY STATES
AND BRITISH INDIA Sandeep Balakrishna is founder and chief editor of
WAS THE BLOW The Dharma Dispatch. He is the author of, among other
DELIVERED BY THE titles, Tipu Sultan: the Tyrant of Mysore and Invaders and
Infidels: From Sindh to Delhi: The 500-Year Journey of
CONGRESSITES’ Islamic Invasions. He has also translated SL Bhyrappa’s
Aavarana from Kannada to English
COVER STORY
TRUMP II
Can
Anyone
Stop
Him?
DONALD TRUMP IS THE FAVOURITE TO WIN
AMERICA’S LOOMING PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
By JAMES ASTILL in Washington DC
26 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Donald Trump at a
campaign rally
in New Hampshire,
January 16, 2024
GETTY IMAGES
G
COVER STORY
RINDINGLY,
SEEMINGLY
INEXORABLY,
America is heading
towards a political
rematch that hardly
any American
wants. Joe Biden, an 81-year-old who seems
old for his years, is the most unpopular
president at this point in the cycle since
surveys began. Yet, defying advice from his
fellow Democrats that he should retire, he
will, his health allowing, seek re-election in
November. His Republican opponent,
in a repeat of the Covid-19-blighted and
violent contest held in 2020, will be
Donald Trump. That is assuming the
77-year-old former president’s heart bears

the strain of his steak and cheeseburger
diet—and that the courts do not stop him.
The second eventuality is not much
easier to predict than the first. Trump is Trump with his rarely seen core group of advisers—
Chris LaCivita, Susie Wiles, Jason Miller,
beset by scores of law suits and over 91 John Brabender—and other campaign officials
felony charges, in four cases, including two
REUTERS
in Des Moines, Iowa, January 15, 2024
federal ones, one in New York, and another

in Georgia. They concern his business prac- What would a second Trump term look like?
tices, efforts to overthrow Biden’s electoral aides Trump would visit more hardline
victory in 2020, mishandling of classified
documents, involvement in hush money $5m after he was found guilty in a civil case last year of having
payments to a porn-star former lover, and sexually abused her.)
A judge in New York is meanwhile expected any day to an-
other alleged crimes and misdemeanours. nounce the penalty that Trump’s business must pay, after it was
Last month, Trump was ordered by a jury found guilty last year of fraudulently inflating the value of its
assets by billions of dollars. The city’s attorney general, who
in New York to pay $83.3 million to a jour- prosecuted the case, has asked for a fine of $370m and a ban
nalist, E Jean Carroll, for defaming her. (He on Trump conducting business in the state where he made his
name. The fact that Trump has called the judge in question, Justice
had already been ordered to pay Carroll Arthur F Engoron, “deranged” may not help him.
28 19 FEBRUARY 2024
A more extreme version of the first iteration. Having dispensed with his former mainstream
policies upon a more divided America and on a more conflict-ridden world
Even for a billionaire such penalties would be painful. And wind up in the Supreme Court. It may hear the first of them this
Trump, who is estimated to be worth around $2.5 billion, is a fa- week—concerning an effort by Colorado to bar Trump from its
mous penny-pincher. The New York ban, if it transpires, would ballot on the basis that he is an “insurrectionist”. How the court,
force him to sell his iconic Manhattan buildings, including Trump deeply divided between conservative and liberal jurists, might rule
Tower. And these are only a couple of his recent legal blows. Last is a matter of hot debate. Yet it is likeliest to try to keep itself outside
week, a federal court of appeals in Washington DC dismissed his the political fray, to Trump’s advantage. Indeed, even if he ends up
claim to immunity from prosecution for any acts he undertook as in prison before the election, the law might not prevent him con-
president. “Former President has become citizen Trump,” the rul- testing it. Eugene V Debs, a trade unionist from Indiana, famously
ing read, “with all the defences of any other criminal defendant.” campaigned for the presidency from a jail cell in 1920. There is no
That is among several recent rulings against him that could clear constitutional reason why Trump could not emulate him.
COVER STORY
That is one of several reasons behind a growing conviction, half-dozen swing states that will decide the election—Arizona,
among American newspaper columnists, political operatives Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—his
and not a few Democratic politicians, that Trump is on his way lead is bigger, 3.8 points on average. To be sure, the election is still
back to power. Another is that remarkably few Republican vot- nine months away, and such early polling has a poor record of
ers seem dismayed by that prospect. Trump easily won the first predicting the winner. But Trump is no ordinary challenger.
two Republican primary contests, held in Iowa and New Hamp-
H
shire last month. His presumed main rival, Florida’s governor,
Ron DeSantis, dropped out of the race after Iowa, broke and hu- E IS THE FIRST president to have tried to regain
miliated, and promptly endorsed Trump. It was clear, he said, that the White House in the history of modern polling,
most Republican voters “want to give Donald Trump another which means he is far better known to voters than
chance.” Nikki Haley, the Indian American former governor of comparable candidates. Betting markets suggest he
South Carolina, the next primary state, is now Trump’s only re- is the clear favourite. This puts him in the best position he has
maining serious opponent. Betting markets give her around a ever occupied at this point in an election year. Certainly, he looks
9 per cent chance of victory, which seems generous. far better-placed to win than he did in 2016, when he squeaked a
Trump’s supercharged fan base was always likely to carry him victory over Hillary Clinton, or in 2020, when he lost by a similarly
through the primaries, for which only a small minority of the narrow margin to Biden. And this is despite his many mount-
most politically committed Americans turn out. More surprising ing scandals—including his disastrous, clownish handling of
is how well he is polling with the general electorate—which is Covid-19, his support for a bloody insurrection, as well as his legal
the second big reason why many think he is on his way back. woes. How is this possible?
An aggregate of national polls modelled by The Economist gives Most of the explanation is structural. Despite the microscopic
him a lead of 2.3 percentage points over Biden. And across the attention paid to rival political strategies and characters in an
election season, the reality is that most vot-
REUTERS
ers—perhaps 95 per cent of the total—are
not up for grabs. And in a freak of partisan
arithmetic, these monolithic American vote
banks are split fairly evenly. If Trump is the Re-
publican presidential nominee in November
he is virtually assured 45 per cent of the vote.
The Republican candidate, and for that matter
the Democratic one, always is. Only a minority
of Republicans, albeit a large one, are hardcore
Trump devotees. But if most of the rest do not
love the loudmouth populist, they will disap-
prove of his Democratic opponent more.
Adding to that advantage, Trump faces in
Biden an exceptionally weak incumbent. In
2020, the veteran Democratic moderate was
the anti-Trump. His blandness, folksiness and
Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner
grandfatherly inoffensiveness were according-
with Lara and Eric Trump listening ly more reassuring than annoying to persuada-
to Trump as he announces his decision ble voters. But as a leader in tough times, Biden
to run for the 2024 presidential election has come across as weak and hapless. That is
despite the high plaudits his administration
has won on many fronts. Though it had at best
Trump’s supercharged fan base was only the thinnest of Congressional majorities
to work with, it passed major climate and oth-
always likely to carry him through the er legislation in 2021-22. In foreign policy, it has
primaries. More surprising is how well been forthright and at times successful. It was
quick to mobilise the Western coalition to de-
he is polling with the general electorate, fend Ukraine against Vladimir Putin. It is now
another big reason why many think battling to prevent the war in Gaza spiralling
he is on his way back into a regional conflagration. Much good has
this done it politically.
When Americans are feeling the pinch, as
30 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Joe Biden at a campaign stop
in Michigan, February 1, 2024
AP
An aggregate of national polls modelled by The Economist gives Trump a

lead of 2.3 percentage points over Biden. And across the half-dozen swing
states that will decide the election—Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada,
Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—his lead is bigger, 3.8 points on average
in recent years they have due to high inflation and other pandem- weeks. Analysis by The Economist also suggests that the pollsters
ic aftershocks, they blame the president. And Biden’s manifest with the strongest track records are finding slightly more support
weakness, as an elderly politician prone to meandering thoughts for Biden than the industry average. Moreover, the economic fun-
and embarrassing memory lapses, has made them all the more damentals, which have weighed heavily on his presidency, could
contemptuous. Ominously for his party, Biden is polled especially yet do him a favour. America’s economy is growing faster than
badly with groups that are considered essential to the Democratic that of any other G7 country, buoyed by a strong labour market
coalition, including Hispanics and younger voters. Unless he can and household spending. Inflation is meanwhile falling rapidly,
turn this around, he risks leading his party to a crushing defeat. raising a prospect of interest rate cuts and cheaper mortgages.
There are a few signs that the race could yet turn in his favour. If Biden is lucky—and it would make a change—he may find
Trump’s lead in the swing states has faded slightly in recent himself presiding over a ‘Goldilocks economy’, neither too hot
COVER STORY
He has pledged “on day one” to close America’s southern bor-

Eugene V Debs, the Indiana trade unionist who had der with Mexico. After basking in the diplomatic, economic and
campaigned for the presidency from prison in 1920 humanitarian chaos that would then certainly ensue, he would
no doubt set about juicing the economy, one of his first priori-
ties last time round. He has promised to make permanent and
increase the tax cuts he passed in 2017. A self-styled “king of debt”,
he has no interest in prudence: America’s enormous deficit would
yawn and growth perhaps tick up.
H
E WOULD ALSO double down on the import tariffs
he imposed in his first term—the most by any presi-
dent in almost a century. “I am a Tariff Man,” he once
famously declared. He is said to be mulling an across-
the-board levy of 10 per cent on all products entering America.
This would more than triple the average American tariff, rep-
resenting a steep tax on American consumers. It would also do
terrible damage to America’s alliances—undoing in a single blow
a lot of remedial work undertaken by the Biden administration.
America’s adversaries would revel in that. But they would also
suffer. Trump is also said to be mulling an effective suspension
of “normal trade relations” with China.
When he first took a wrecking ball to America’s trade ties, a
few Republican Senators demurred. The party had for decades
been in favour of free trade, after all. Trump would encounter
little or no repeat resistance from his party. Its former Trump
ALAMY
sceptics have been terrorised into silence or driven from poli-

tics. Mitt Romney, a former presidential candidate and the only
Even if Trump ends up in prison, Republican Senator to vote against Trump in two impeachment
proceedings, will retire this year. This would assure Trump of
the law might not prevent him Republican acquiescence to even more controversial measures.
from contesting. Eugene V Debs He would almost certainly end America’s support to Ukraine.
This week, House Republicans provided a foretaste of that by refus-
famously campaigned for the ing to vote for a deal—though they had long demanded it—which
presidency from a jail cell in would have married increased border security with fresh funding
1920. There is no constitutional for Ukraine. Having left America’s European allies in the lurch over
Ukraine, Trump would probably then go a couple of steps further,
reason why Trump could and withdraw America from NATO. Already badly degraded, the
not emulate him post-1945 American-led order might then be considered over.
What would India and the many countries neither of the West
norpro-Chinamakeofthisdissolution?Somewouldfindadvantag-
es in the more ad hoc trade and other partnerships it would give rise
to. India, given its economic heft and history of vigorous non-align-
nor too cold, by the time of the election. ment, would be especially well-placed. But the destabilising effect
But even in that case no one should discount Trump’s of an abrupt American retreat from global leadership under Trump
chances. America’s national elections are only a little more load- would be widespread and immense. Even America’s adversaries
ed than a coin toss. So, it is necessary to ask, what would a second must look on that prospect with a certain trepidation. n
Trump term look like?
According to the former president’s advisers and public state-
ments, it would be a more extreme version of the first iteration.
Having dispensed with his former mainstream aides—the retired James Astill is a senior editor at
generals and Wall Street types that staffed his first administra- The Economist. He has previously
tion—Trump would visit more hardline policies upon a more di- headed the magazine’s bureaus in
vided America and on a more turbulent and conflict-ridden world. Washington and New Delhi.
He is a contributor to Open
32 19 FEBRUARY 2024
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POLITICS
ONE
NATION
ONE
LAW
Uttarakhand’s uniform civil code aims to introduce the same
provisions for marriage, divorce and succession for all communities
and reduce the divisiveness inherent in different personal laws
By RAJEEV DESHPANDE
I
t was entirely predictable that provisions of the Uniform tendencies need to be checked,” the state has said. The clauses
Civil Code, Uttarakhand, 2024 Bill dealing with live-in re- relating to live-in relations are also seen in the context of deci-
lationships which stipulate that such arrangements must sions taken by people at a relatively young age and which may
be registered and also notified in the event of a break-up lack more mature consideration. This, says the state, can result in
held the attention of the media, activists, and commenta- differences relating to faith and methods of worship, individual
tors. The immediate questions that generated heat were thinking processes and differing social norms and lifestyles. More
whether such provisions were coercive and intrusive and, thought before the initiation of such relations, the state feels, can
therefore, violative of the right to privacy granted by the Supreme protect participants from the detritus of failed relationships. “[I]t
Court. Is the provision of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) paternal- has been found that after break ups there are instances of black-
istic, offering protection that the current generation, particularly mail, self-harm and even murder… Through the new provisions
women, do not desire or require? Live-in relationships are just of the UCC we want our sons and daughters to be provided mental
one part of the voluminous Bill adopted by the Uttarakhand As- and social protection from such ills,” the state has said.
sembly on February 7 but serve to highlight the web of political, The UCC itself and certainly provisions like the ones dealing
social, and legal issues the legislation seeks to address in order to with live-in relations are bound to be tested in court for their con-
provide an even-handed approach to matters such as marriage, stitutionality. A detailed examination of the live-in relations aspect
divorce, and succession by superseding personal laws. is required not just because of obvious arguments that will criticise
The Uttarakhand government does not dodge the question on the UCC law of being invasive and prescriptive but also because
live-in relationships in its explanatory notes released along with of the social vision or balance the legislation advocates. The hill
the text of the Bill. Rather, it provides a detailed rationale stating state of Uttarakhand is seen as conservative in its adherence to
that the implications of growing social recognition of live-in re- social norms even as it is progressive in terms of the vigorous par-
lationships need careful consideration in the context of family ticipation of women in economic activity. The small state has been
structure, marriage and inheritance. The state frames the issue buffeted by polarising debates over migration and inter-faith rela-
as one that acknowledges both individual consent and social and tions have been a cause of social tensions. There are no prizes for
ethical norms. “The rights of all citizens need to be protected, but guessing which side of the debate the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
there is a need for a balance between rights and social order,” the is on and the state government was sensitive to apprehensions
state has argued. For one, the UCC states that women in a live-in about the apparent ease—and pitfalls—of live-in relations. As of
relationship must be 18 and men 21 years of age and registration now, such relations are recognised under laws dealing with do-
of such couples must be made available to parents of both par- mestic violence but the UCC seeks to provide certain guide rails by
ties. “[P]arents need to know who their children are living with asserting that fundamental rights, including those set out under
and where are they located… Utta- Article 19, are subject to reasonable
rakhand’s youthful chief minister restrictions to ensure social order is
Pushkar Dhami’s government has IN BRINGING UNIFORMITY not upended. “The practice of live-in
decided on this provision after con- relationships should not endanger
siderable thought,” the note states.
TO THE RECOGNITION OF the prevalence of established social
A live-in relationship needs hon- MARRIAGES ACROSS practices,” the state says.
esty and disclosure so that those COMMUNITIES, THE UCC In bringing uniformity to the
entering such a bond are not vul- process of recognition of marriages
nerable to adultery committed by a INVALIDATES PERSONAL across communities, the UCC in-
dishonest partner or misrepresenta- LAWS THAT MAY CLASH validates personal laws and reli-
tion of religious faith. In stating this, gious interpretations that may be
the UCC grasps the political hot-
WITH THE LEGISLATION. IT at a variance with the legislation.
button issue of love jihad. “There are WILL ALSO END THE Religious readings or edicts that
instances where false information DIFFERENTIATION BETWEEN claim that puberty, rather than age,
is provided in inter-religious rela- make a girl eligible for marriage
tions or identity is concealed and a AGE OF CONSENT AND AGE will not be recognised. The law will
partner is subjected to fraud. These OF MARRIAGE also extinguish the differentiation
POLITICS
between age of consent and age of marriage that courts have taken 370 with respect to Jammu and Kashmir. As with Article 370 and
recourse to for recognising marriages where the girl is between the Ram temple, there is a broader, sweeping vision behind the
16 and 18 years of age. The number of such marriages continues UCC that goes much beyond administrative and political dimen-
to decline steadily but a significant number of such unions pose sions. It is a move to deal with the continuing consequences of Par-
a test for courts and governments. The UCC law draws a line and tition and a step towards one nation, one law. The UCC is an effort
underage marriages will no longer be recognised in Uttarakhand. to generate a social and emotional convergence that defines na-
The registration of marriages is compulsory and cannot include tional identity. BJP and its predecessor, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh,
relationships banned under law. Similarly, the dissolution of mar- have held personal laws and unequal rights for different classes of
riages will be governed by a uniform law. “It has been made clear citizens to be divisive rather than an accommodation of diversity
that a woman will not be subjected to any conditions after talak as argued by its ideological opponents. Doubts have been raised
(divorce) in order to marry the same man or someone else… such over the utility of a Central law, though this is not ruled out, as
an instance will be punishable by a jail term of three years or a some experts argue that UCC defies a one-size-fits-all design. It is
fine of Rs 1 lakh… By doing this, social malpractices like halala also felt that the passage of the UCC in Uttarakhand is an easier
and iddat will be ended.” Similarly, polygamy is banned and a initiation for such a code and provides a model for other National
second marriage without the dissolution of the first is illegal. Ad- Democratic Alliance (NDA) states. The UCC needs to be seen not
ditionally, if either husband or wife converts to a different religion just in the context of the other BJP core agendas but alongside
without the consent of the other, the aggrieved party can seek other decisions like operationalising amendments to the citi-
divorce and maintenance. There is a zenship act that provide a path to
strong incentive to ensure registra- citizenship for minorities (people
tion of marriages with the Bill stat- who do not belong to the majority
ing that this will be a precondition THE STATE GOVERNMENT religion) and who have fled India’s
for accessing government welfare DOES NOT DODGE THE neighbouring countries due to reli-
benefits even though unregistered gious persecution. There is a political
unions will not be held illegal. QUESTION ON LIVE-IN and social vision that wants to erase
The Bill and its explanatory RELATIONSHIPS. IT ARGUES laws that—due to the distinctions
notes state there is no bid to inter- THAT THE IMPLICATIONS OF they draw between social groups
fere or alter traditions of marriage and individual citizens—give rise
as per various faiths. The Bill aims GROWING SOCIAL to divisive mindsets.
to ensure a level playing field for RECOGNITION OF LIVE-IN The UCC debate will be part of
all citizens when it comes to the ex- the political discussion in the Lok
ercise of their rights. “[T]here is no RELATIONSHIPS NEED Sabha polls although it is not likely
place for ill-conceived practices in CAREFUL CONSIDERATION to receive undue primacy. The issue
a progressive society and we must IN THE CONTEXT OF FAMILY, will be one in a bouquet. Going by the
gradually use the law to get rid of short films released by BJP, seen as an
them,” the state has said. The UCC MARRIAGE AND INHERITANCE early indicator of the party’s cam-
seeks to iron out inequalities and paign, the stress will be on the Modi
asymmetries with regard to suc- government’s delivery of basic needs
cession inherent in most personal laws. The right to property of andpromotionofeaseofliving.Thegovernmentisfarfromreticent
the deceased is denied to a father in some instances and in other in claiming it has implemented far-reaching economic reforms to
situations there is discrimination in the rights of children on the boost growth. The days of reform by stealth are over. However, in
basis of gender. The UCC provides a share in inheritance to both doing so, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken care to under-
parents and ends the practice of sons and daughters being treated line the link between reforms and the generation of resources for
differently. “There is differentiation in the Hindu succession rules the welfare of the unprivileged. The emotive content of the UCC is
as it is found that the rights of sons and daughters are not equal evident as it is presented as a rebuttal of the ‘appeasement’ politics
even in the case of agricultural land,” the note says. In an impor- of BJP’s rivals who are dependent on minority votes. The Hindutva
tant specification, the UCC brings clarity to the rights of children element in enactment of the UCC is evident as debates over the code
born out of wedlock. The law recognises that the children of such andrelatedmattersgetdistilledtotheirrawessenceonsocialmedia.
unions are not responsible for their circumstances and should not Though the legal challenges to the UCC lie ahead, it is difficult to
be deprived of their inheritance. see how the legislation can be overturned given several pronounce-
The UCC Bill is based on a voluminous 750-page four-part re- ments of high courts and the Supreme Court supportive of such a
port submitted by a committee headed by Justice Ranjana Desai code.Oncethecodeisimplemented,notwithstandingthesectarian
and its adoption certainly has political overtones. The enactment discussions that can be anticipated, it may result in a fairer legal
of a UCC is one of a triad of “core” BJP issues, the others being con- system that reduces disparities and, therefore, the edginess that
struction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya and abrogation of Article has often marked inter-religious relations since Independence. n
36 19 FEBRUARY 2024
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LAW
GOD’S ADVOCATES
The father-son legal team of Hari Shankar and Vishnu Shankar Jain
is already looking beyond the Gyanvapi case
By AMITA SHAH
38
glass-covered shelves are lined with books on Indian history and
law. “What is it you want to know? Everything is in the public
domain,” he says, turning around to give an interview.
The advocate, 69, and his lawyer son Vishnu Shankar
Jain, 38, have been in the spotlight ever since a civil court or-
dered a survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises in Varanasi.
Hari Shankar, who filed six cases relating to it, decided after the
fifth case that Hindu women should be involved in seeking
worshipping rights to goddess Shringar Gauri. His search for
the plaintiffs led to five women, who in their complaint in the
Varanasi trial court on August 16, 2021, sought restoration of their
right to perform puja and rituals within the Gyanvapi mosque
complex, arguing that it held carvings of Hindu deities Shringar
Gauri, Ganesha, Hanuman, and other visible and invisible deities.
“I felt there was a need for nari shakti (woman power) to fight for
darshan of Maa Shringar Gauri. I prepared the case and searched
for suitable women to be plaintiffs.”
The other five suits seek right to worship the five Hindu deities,
Vishnu Shankar Jain including Adi Vishweshwar (Shiva). In May 2022, when a court-
and Hari Shankar Jain
appointed advocate commissioner along with others went to the
complex for a survey to ascertain the presence of Hindu deities,
Hari Shankar accompanied the team. “On May 15, as the proceed-
ings were about to be completed, I requested that they continue
the survey the following day as there was a pond that needed to be
surveyed. The Muslims resisted, but on the next day the water of
the pond had to be reduced, and thereafter the shivlingam came to
light.” While the Hindu petitioners claimed that the oval object in
the wazu khana (the reservoir used for ablutions before prayers at
the mosque) was a shivling, members of the mosque management
committee said it was part of a fountain in the tank. The Varanasi
court, however, ordered that the wazu khana be sealed.
Recently, the Varanasi district court allowed the Hindu side to
offer prayers in the Vyas ka Tehkhana, a sealed cellar inside the Gyan-
vapi complex, reversing a 1993 state administration order barricad-
ing it and barring worship there. Vishnu Shankar Jain has argued
that the site was a temple until 1993, two years after the enactment
of the Places of Worship Act in 1991, making it ineligible for altera-
tion. He also argued that the Places of Worship Act was unconsti-
tutional along the same lines as J Sai Deepak, lawyer and author of
India that is Bharat. In a recent article in Open (‘Places of Worship or
Prisoners of War’, February 5, 2024), Sai Deepak wrote that because
the Act would not apply in its entirety to Ram Janmabhoomi, legal
proceedings in relation to the ownership of the site were allowed to
continueevenafteritcameintoforce:“Thequestionthatthenarises
is: Why was such an exemption made only in relation to Ayodhya
I
GETTY IMAGES
while denuding the claimants of other occupied Dharmic sites, not

N A LIVING ROOM turned into an office, wearing a just Kashi and Mathura, of the basic legal remedy to seek reclama-
muffler around his head and a long vermilion teeka on tion through a peaceful and evidence-based judicial process? How
his forehead, Supreme Court advocate Hari Shankar can owners of property, especially religious property, be deprived
Jain dictates to a young lawyer from the Code of Civil of their rights to seek redress through courts?”
Procedure. He is working on his next case to ‘reclaim’ a When Hari Shankar decided to become counsel for the Hindu
demolished temple. Mahasabha in the Ayodhya case in 1989, it looked like a far-fetched
On one shelf are models of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya and pursuit. It was on a low-key note that he began his crusade to re-
the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. On the other wall, claim temples, a mission he had set his heart on since he was a
www.openthemagazine.com 39
LAW
child. Born prematurely, he was As Hari Shankar narrates the

physically weak and educated at story of his life, pausing only to
home by his mother till he turned
HARI SHANKAR, 69, AND HIS take calls, each of which he an-
10. “She had read a lot about In- SON VISHNU SHANKAR, 38, swers personally, disconnecting
dia’s history and was a staunch HAVE BEEN IN THE onlythepre-recordedones,hehas
Hindu, and told me to work to- the dates of each case and event
SPOTLIGHT SINCE A CIVIL
wards getting back all the temples at his fingertips. He goes chrono-
demolished over the years. Since COURT ORDERED A SURVEY logically—the cases against the
she was the one who educated OF THE GYANVAPI MOSQUE Mulayam Singh Yadav govern-
me, I also became a radical Hindu IN VARANASI. FATHER AND ment in the 1990s, filing for dar-
and decided to do something for shan in the makeshift temple
the community,” he says. SON DO ARGUE BUT ONLY after the demolition of the Babri
His “secular” father wanted ABOUT THE APPROACH TO Masjid in 1992, challenging the
him to take the civil services ex- BE TAKEN TO STRENGTHEN Hajj subsidy and imposition of
amination but his mother want- president’s rule in Uttar Pradesh
ed him to become a lawyer to pur-
A CASE, NOT OVER in 1996. “The Mulayam govern-
sue the reclamation of temples. WHICH CASE SHOULD ment was livid with me and
He followed his mother’s advice. BE TAKEN UP many times offered me posts in
He waited for the right time. It government. I refused,” he says.
came in 1989, a decade after he His diehard stance made
had become an advocate. The Al- him a pariah among his friends
lahabad High Court passed on all Ayodhya suits pending in the and relatives. “I had to face a lot of humiliation. I was known as a
civil court to the high court. Hari Shankar started looking for a sampradayik vyakti (communal person). My friends and relatives
copy of the civil court’s order, but nobody could make it avail- avoided me.” This did not deter Hari Shankar, a dyed-in-the-wool
able to him. He then asked Zafaryab Jilani, counsel for the Sunni believer in Hindu supremacy.
Central Waqf Board, one of the plaintiffs in the case, with whom His fight against the Samajwadi Party continued after
he had good relations, and got a copy of the order within two days. Mulayam Singh’s son Akhilesh Yadav became chief minister in
“Somebody came to me and requested me to become advocate for 2012. He challenged the Akhilesh government’s order to release
the Muslim side. I was offered a bungalow, lakhs of rupees and the accused of the 2006 serial bomb blasts in Varanasi; in 2013 he
other benefits. That person said take up our case and you need not filed a case seeking a survey of the Tile Wali Masjid in Lucknow;
worry about anything. It was astonishing to me that a Muslim and in 2015 filed a case questioning the ownership of the Taj
was thinking I would fight for their side,” he recalls. Mahal built by 17th-century Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan as a
tomb for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Hari Shankar claims it was
B
‘Tejo Mahalay’, a Sanskrit term signifying a temple with a shiv-
Y THEN HARI SHANKAR had been active in the ling, built by Raja Paramardi Dev of Jaipur. In 2019, the year the
Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the socio-religious wing Supreme Court ordered the disputed land to be handed over to a
of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He got in trust to build the Ram temple, he filed a suit claiming title over the
touch with the Hindu Mahasabha and from then on till 2019 was land where the Shahi Eidgah stands, adjacent to the Shri Krishna
its counsel, as part of the legal team that fought the case for over temple complex in Mathura. A plaintiff in the Qutub Minar case,
three decades. Vishnu Shankar joined his father in 2010 after fin- he has claimed that the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque located on the
ishing his law studies. After passing the test to become a Supreme monument site was built in place of a temple complex.
Court attorney in 2016, he made his first appearance in the court As he winds up, Vishnu Shankar enters the office, taking a few
in the Ram Janmabhoomi case. moments off his busy schedule between hearings on the Gyanvapi
“He has also taken a vow to work for Hindutva without fear, case. Too preoccupied with the case, he is in no frame of mind to
or getting lured by anybody,” says Hari Shankar. Sporting a beard, take questions. “We pursue a case when we get the facts. We do our
like his father, often seen with a vermilion teeka, he has followed research. There are glaring facts and history. The challenge is before
in Hari Shankar’s footsteps, taking his Hindutva line to his profes- you take up a case, not once it’s filed,” he says. Father and son do
sion, chasing his ideological goals in court. His Facebook tagline get into intense arguments, but these are about the approach to be
says “dear friends I am Vishnu Shankar Jain practising at the SC of taken to strengthen a case, not over which case should be taken up.
India. I am proudly a Hindu”. On X, he describes himself as “Lawyer At the end of the day, for Vishnu, his father is his guru.
(AOR) Supreme Court of India. Politically Right. I want restoration Hari Shankar says they are taking up cases where temples
of Kashi and Mathura”. A spokesperson for the Hindu Front for have been demolished and mosques built in their place. How
Justice, Vishnu Shankar, together with his father, is fighting around many cases of temples are they targeting? Hari Shankar smiles:
120 cases representing Hindus. “Wherever we find one, we will fight for it. There’s no limit.”
40 19 FEBRUARY 2024
NEIGHBOURHOOD Baloch activists with photographs
of their missing family members
at a sit-in protest in Islamabad,
December 25, 2023
TILL THEY COME HOME

AP
A women-led protest in the heart of Pakistan highlights Baloch suffering

By RAHUL PANDITA
S
AMMI DEEN BALOCH WAS 10 when her fa- has been no official confirmation of his whereabouts.
ther, a government doctor, was abducted from the “I have very little memory of him,” said Sammi, speaking to Open
hospital he worked at in Khuzdar, Balochistan, on from Quetta. “For years, I could not say whether I am an orphan or
June 28, 2009. The abductors, Pakistani secu- not, and my mother wouldn’t know if she is a widow or not.”
rity forces, or their mercenaries, came in two The only news Deen Mohammed’s family has of him has come
vehicles at around 11PM. They went to the room which Deen from jailed Baloch people who are among the lucky ones to have
Mohammed Baloch had just entered after doing a round of pa- been freed from Pakistani jails. One of them, Ehsaan Arjumandi,
tients he was treating. They beat him up, and after he was hand- released after 13 years from a prison, told the family that he had seen
cuffed and blindfolded, they threw him into the back of one of DeenMohammedinacellinaPakistanicantonment.Fromthetime
their vehicles and took him away. It has been 15 years and there of her father’s abduction, since that tender age, Sammi has been on
NEIGHBOURHOOD
marches, walking thousands of kilometres with other family mem- He was charged with carrying explosives. A day before his bail plea
bers of disappeared people, in the hope that the authorities would was to be heard, CTD said it had killed four Baloch insurgents in an
be forced to release her father and that she would be able to see him. encounter in Turbat city. Baksh was found to be one of them.
In December, Sammi and other affected Baloch women It is Baksh’s cold-blooded murder that prompted hundreds of
marched to Pakistani capital Islamabad for a sit-in protest. March- women like Sammi to begin a march from Turbat to Islamabad,
es have happened before, but this time it has sharpened the fo- a distance of roughly 1,500km. They arrived in Islamabad and sat
cus on the issue of human rights in Balochistan. However, it is a in front of the National Press Club, hoping to get media coverage.
long fight, which Baloch activists like Sammi are well aware of. They faced a lot of intimidation from the authorities apart from
Over the last two decades, there have been 7,000 cases of recorded silently suffering the vagaries of a cold winter from which they
disappearances of Balochis, which activists say is a conservative did not have enough protection. “They tried to cut our rations,
estimate. In many cases, the families do not come forward because block roads. But we kept at it,” said Sammi. Pakistani authorities
of intimidation by Pakistani forces. “They are scared because some- were hoping that they would lose traction. But this time it did not
one will come to their door and say they would harm other family happen. The news of the protest got more attention than ever.
members if they reported the disappearance,” said Sammi. Among the women who sat in the almost-freezing tempera-
Enforced disappearances are quite common in Balochistan, tures was Najma Baloch, Baksh’s sister. “We refused to bury my
done in the name of fighting insurgency (for a separate Baloch na- brother for seven days,” she said. “For us, he was not only my broth-
tion). Victims have included political workers like Sammi’s father er but all of Baloch people.” As they sat with his body in Turbat,
and journalists and students. Officially, the Pakistan government hundreds of people joined them. It is this protest that later resulted
has repeatedly denied its hand in these disappearances. Pakistan’s in the march on Islamabad that has created a formidable ground
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar (who is from Balo- to show the extent of Baloch suffering.
chistan himself) has in the past called these numbers “exaggerated”.
In many cases the disappeared are later found dead. Journalist
Declan Walsh describes such bodies surfacing “like corks bobbing
up in the dark”. They are found in desolate locations, badly tortured,
with a gunshot wound to the head. Many of those abducted are later
B
ALOCH JOURNALIST MALIK SIRAJ AKBAR believes
Pakistan’s suppression in Balochistan stems from its fear that
the country’s largest province may become another Bangladesh.
branded as terrorists and killed in fake encounters. In a recent case, After its forced accession to Pakistan in 1948, as Tilak Devasher,
a man called Balaach Mola Baksh was picked up from his home by member of India’s National Security Advisory Board writes in his
Pakistan’s Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on October 29. book Pakistan: The Balochistan Conundrum, the situation became
REUTERS
Mahrang Baloch
BYC
Along with Sammi and

others, Mahrang has been
able to bring international
attention to the Baloch
cause. They have been
involved in collecting data
more rigorously. They
were able to collect data
on almost 600 individuals
Sammi Deen Baloch addresses
for whom no earlier
a seminar in Karachi, record had existed
June 28, 2022
42 19 FEBRUARY 2024
accentuated as Pakistan treated the prov-
ince as its colony. With over 40 per cent of Nawab Akbar Bugti with his
tribal guards in Dera Bugti
Pakistan’s landmass, Balochistan’s impor- district, Balochistan
tance also lies in its strategic location. Years
ago, journalist Selig Seidenman Harrison
had written of the Baloch land: “If it were
not for the strategic location of Balochistan
and the rich potential of oil, uranium and
other resources, it would be difficult to
imagine anyone fighting over this bleak,
desolate and forbidding land.” It has two-
thirds of the country’s coastline and three
of its naval bases are located there. Big
economic projects like the development
of Gwadar port, done with Chinese help,
has made it tougher for the Baloch people
as Pakistan toughened its stance against
separatism. As Pakistan kept extracting
its pound of flesh from the province, its
people continued to suffer. Balochistan has
the highest infant and maternal mortality
rates. It also has the least literacy and the AFP
highest rate of poverty in Pakistan. The situation became dire especially after the
The situation became dire especially
after the killing, in 2006, of Nawab Akbar killing, in 2006, of Nawab Akbar Bugti, a popular
separatist leader of Balochistan. He was killed
Bugti, a popular separatist leader of Balo-
chistan. He was killed in an air force strike
along with several others on his hideout in
in an air force strike along with several others on
theMarrihillsofBalochistan—anassassina- his hideout in the Marri hills of Balochistan—an
tion ordered by Pervez Musharraf. Political assassination ordered by Pervez Musharraf
observers like Akbar call this Balochistan’s
9/11.Inresponsetotheassassination,Baloch
insurgents targeted several locations in Pakistan, leading to even others, Mahrang has been able to bring international attention to
further killings. Many of these were committed by what came to the Baloch cause. They have been involved in collecting data more
be known as “death squads”, a name given to private militias nur- rigorously. During the march alone, they were able to collect data
tured and supported by the Pakistani army. These squads would on almost 600 individuals for whom no earlier record had existed.
abduct people and in many cases kill them, dumping their bodies In Balaach’s case as well, it is the pressure exerted by them that
sometimes as far as Karachi. In July 2011, a report published by Hu- forced the suspension of four CTD personnel who may have been
manRightsWatchquotedaseptuagenarianBalochactivistdetained involved in his killing. Last month, they were able to speak to the
a year earlier, who was told by an anonymous officer that even if United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human
the president or chief justice told them to release the activist, they Rights Defenders, Mary Lawlor, about the possibility of sending a
wouldn’t. “We can torture you, or kill you, or keep you for years at fact-finding mission to investigate the disappearances and killings.
our will. It is only the Army chief and the [intelligence] chief that we Even as Pakistan goes to polls, it is clear that it is a long way
obey,” the officer had told the activist. from a real democracy. No matter who wins the election, political
observers maintain it is the military that will continue to call the
shots. But Sammi is hopeful. Amidst allegations that their protest
T HE CURRENT PROTEST That reached Islamabad has been

led under the umbrella of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee by
31-year-old Mahrang Baloch. A doctor by profession, like Sammi,
is supported by India, Sammi believes that the sit-in in Islamabad
was a game-changer. “Even with the crackdown, we could manage
a lot of coverage. Social media has also been a turning point. We
Mahrang’s entire childhood was spent on protest marches after had ordinary Pakistanis coming to us and apologising to us, telling
her father was abducted in 2009. Two years later, Abdul Gaffar us they had very little idea about the human rights violations,”
Baloch was found dead with visible signs of torture. He had been she said. She hoped that the international community, including
a leftwing political activist. In 2017, Mahrang’s brother was also India, would support them in getting justice.
abducted and detained for a hundred days. Along with Sammi and “My father is my inspiration,” she said.
SOCIETY
IT’S COOL TO A young breed of social media influen
S
HE IS THE TAYLOR SWIFT of the folk-devo- and Lata Mangeshkars of Hindi film music. Despite the fame and
tional music world. Wherever she goes, be it the laurels, Maithili Thakur has retained her sense of humour. “I
the Surajkund Mela or an arts festival in Mum- think 90 per cent of the work I do comes from the government,”
bai, she holds up a small economy on her slight she says. She is only half-joking. Ahead of the consecration of the
shoulders. With over 4.5 million followers on Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22, both the Centre and the
Instagram, a single picture of hers, dressed in a Uttar Pradesh government went on a massive promotional spree,
demure yellow Banarasi silk salwar kameez for a wedding in the sponsoring junkets for influencers, producing films, releasing
family, draws tens of thousands of likes in a matter of hours. She books, and backing young devotional singers. Prime Minister
lives out of suitcases more than at home—Delhi, for the past sev- Narender Modi himself took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to
eral years, after her family moved from rural Bihar for the sake share a playlist of over 60 bhajans in various languages, besides
of her musical career—and at 23 years of age, has reached the singing praises of a select few artists, including Maithili Thakur,
peak celebrity status usually reserved for the Shreya Ghoshals in individual posts. “The occasion of Pran Pratishtha in Ayodhya
“God has been the soundtrack of my life. There has been a flurry
of bookings this year because of the prana pratishtha”
GEETA RABARI Me Message telegram ya WhatsApp This number 8890050582)
This PDF was uploade To Telegram channel_https://t.me/Magazines_8890050582(send
KAMLESH
BE A HINDU
cers is on a cultural mission By V SHOBA
is reminding my family members across the country of every (There was always an atmosphere of bhajan-kirtan at home),” she
incident related to the life and ideals of Lord Shri Ram. One such says, speaking on the phone from Ahmedabad airport while wait-
emotional incident is related to Shabri. Listen to how Maithili ing for a flight to Jaisalmer. “I started my social media accounts
Thakurji has put it in her melodious tunes,” he wrote in his post after nearly winning Rising Star (a televised singing competition
on X, sharing a link to the bhajan. Thakur has 4.44 million sub- in Hindi that airs on Colors TV) in 2017 because I wanted to stay
scribers on YouTube—more than many Bollywood singers. She relevant; I did not want to disappear like so many singers do. I first
attributes some of this success to the government’s active promo- wondered what to post. Enough people were doing Bollywood
tion of folk artists. Growing up in Urain, a village in Bankatta pan- covers, but no one was exploring the variety of songs we have in
chayat, Benipatti block, Madhubani district, in Bihar’s Mithila Maithili, like sohar and sandauni. I posted a kirtan in Maithili and
region, she learnt to sing from her grandfather and her father, a as expected, it didn’t do well. Those were the days when I would
music teacher, but never imagined her music would become pop- dress up and post a picture, posing like a heroine and imagining
ular. “Humare ghar mein hamesha bhajan-kirtan ka mahaul raha hai that I would get a lot of views, but I didn’t have many followers.
“I don’t believe I am a saviour or a changemaker. I am a lover of

stories who connected with deities almost as a friend”
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SELVAPRAKASH LAKSHMANAN
SOCIETY
Then I tried doing a cover of a popular Bhojpuri song and that childhood dream of becoming a playback singer because now
clicked. Then onwards, there were likes on every song of mine. I was getting a chance to be myself. Singing of god, playing the
Soon, people started texting me to ask how to become famous. harmonium, with my brothers Rishav and Ayachi backing me
Artists began to send links to their songs asking me to do my own on vocals and tabla—this is the life I had known before I began to
version and post it on my channel—this made me sit up. Now I try out for reality shows,” she says. Why did a classically trained
felt, everyone knows Maithili Thakur.” musician, who had obviously put in thousands of hours in riyaz
By chance, she stumbled upon a fast-growing segment in and impressed the judges on Rising Star and Indian Idol Junior
online entertainment, but devotion had always been a way of life with the aesthetics of her taans, give up artistic pursuit to sing
for a young Maithili Thakur. “I was only too glad to give up my popular bhajans? How did she not get swayed by the glamour of
Bollywood? “I get immersed when I sing
of god. When I read a page of Bhagavatam
or Ramcharitmanas, I am fascinated; I want
to read the next page. This kind of music is
the most fulfilling for me personally,” says
Thakur, who did not attend school till the
age of 11, preferring to spend all her time
at home learning music. There was a brief
period when she studied to be an IAS of-
“We live in times ficer— “Bihar mein bahut craze hota hai”—
when people want but that dream too crumbled against her
rapidly advancing singing career. A youth
to get to the icon, Thakur sings in Maithili, Bhojpuri,
ideology of an artist Gujarati, Punjabi, and other languages,
before the art itself. dresses in saris and salwar suits, and often
I am not here to wears a tilak and a tulsi mala. “A few decades
thrust my values
ago, all families in Bharat used to pray to-
on anyone” gether, observe vrats and perform rituals.
This culture died out, but now there’s a
SIVASRI
SKANDAPRASAD new wave among the youngsters,” she says.
“Five years ago, as a new stage artist, I would
notice that 90 per cent of my audience was
middle-aged or older. Now, wherever I go,
90 per cent of the audience is made up of
youth. This is a drastic change and I never
expected it,” says Thakur.
Parallel to Thakur’s rise, and instrumen-
tal to it, the cultural narrative in India has
migrated into the newer media of social
networks, shaping and being shaped by
the Hindu efflorescence that has marked
Narendra Modi’s two terms in office. De-
votional music, while always a large and
profitable industry, has now reached a
crescendo with the frenzy around the
Ram temple, with artists known and
unknown—including passengers on an
Indigo flight—taking a stab at virality by
putting out versions of popular bhajans. If
there is someone yet who hasn’t heard Meri
jhopdi ke bhaag aaj khul jayenge, Ram aayenge,
they may well be living under a rock the
size of Ayodhya.
Down south, there is a perceptible surge
in interest in Carnatic music and its vast
AMAR RAMESH
46 19 FEBRUARY 2024
GETTY IMAGES
“For five years now, 90 per cent of my audience was middle-aged or older.
Now, wherever I go, 90 per cent of the audience is made up of youth.
This is a drastic change and I never expected it”
MAITHILI THAKUR
repertoire of compositions about Lord Ram. Among the songs Lord Venkateshwara,” she says. “We live in times when people
shared by Modi on X is an old Kannada film classic, Poojisalende, as want to get to the ideology and the activism of an artist before
rendered by 27-year-old Sivasri Skandaprasad, an up-and-coming the art itself. I am a proud Hindu, I have always been one, but I am
Carnatic musician from Chennai—she moved to Bengaluru a not here to thrust my values on anyone.” While Skandaprasad
couple of years ago—who, like Thakur, dresses in Indian cloth- claims to be politically neutral, she runs an organisation named
ing, wears a bindi, and represents a dharmic way of life. “I grew Ahuti that aims to promote “Bharatiya art and culture” through
up in a conservative family, learning music and dance. It did not classical music and dance classes and public discussions featuring
take me long to realise that art, for me, came from a place of sur- leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party, among others.
render to god. When I practised Varugalaamo Ayya (a composi-
tion from the 19th-century musical opera Nandanar Charitram
M
by Gopala Krishna Bharathi, where Nandanar, a devotee of Lord UCH OF INDIA’S traditional art and culture, though
Shiva, asks for permission to come closer to him) every day for my not all, is intertwined with religion, and the idea of
arengetram at the age of 10, that sadhana left quite an impression bhakti. To be sure, bhakti is in vogue now. On Insta-
on me. It became a pooja,” says Skandaprasad, who has given up gram, it takes the form of songsters in resplendent silk saris, dhar-
dancing professionally to focus on music. Her schedule has been mic toys for children, Krishna devotees spinning with abandon
packed of late. Close on the heels of a successful Marghazhi music in Vrindavan, and beatific young preachers who are referred to
season in Chennai in January, she has toured Hyderabad and Mau- with an honorific or two—as in ‘Devi Chitralekhaji’ and ‘Jaya
ritius, and yet, to her, the most satisfying performance of all was Kishoriji’, both incredibly popular ‘motivational speakers’ with
the one at the ISKCON temple in Bengaluru where the garland 2.4 million and 10.7 million followers, respectively, on the social
fell from the deity as she was singing. “It felt like a blessing from media platform. (Both declined to be interviewed.) Bhakti is no
SOCIETY
longer simply personal prayer, or chants spilling from temple

loudspeakers and satsangs, it is also an idea filling the streets—
take, for instance, the silent revival of nagarasankeertana, a tradi-
tion of singing hymns in a procession about town, in Karnataka—
and young minds. “Rama is not even my ishta daiva—Krishna
is—but the Ram temple consecration triggered emotions in
me and brought tears to my eyes,” says Bhargavi Venkatram, a
28-year-old classical musician from Bengaluru. “Because of
platforms like Instagram, many Hindus are finally able to ex-
press their beliefs because they think it is important to do so.”
Venkatram, who has trained from an early age to be a serious con-
cert musician, says that music, for her, is a marga (path) to bhakti.
“I enjoy singing compositions with an aspect of bhakti rather than
the purely technical facets of classical music,” she says. While she
grew up a practising Hindu, she says it was during the pandemic
that she began to make sense of traditions like bathing before
cooking, not touching serving vessels while eating, and washing
one’s feet before entering the house. “I realised that much of what
my grandmother followed was really just basic hygiene,” she says.
Venkatram’s rendition of Ramanai bhajithal, a popular Papanasam
Sivan composition in raga Maand, was shared by Modi’s account
and she was also called upon by news channels to sing the ‘Hindu’
version of Raghupati raghava rajaram, a bhajan that, until now,
has been taught to children as a secular prayer synonymous with
Mahatma Gandhi.
For generations, Carnatic musicians have dressed in tradi-
tional finery, performed in temples, and lent their voice to pious
sahitya extolling Rama and Krishna. From MS Subbulakshmi
to Sudha Raghunathan, vocalists have more often than not
launched devotional albums to reach a wider audience, making a quest to answer their life’s profound questions. It was a part of
them household names. It is through their music that many of us their journey to self-actualisation. When we dissociate the sen-
absorbed, by osmosis, the devotion of the great poet-composers sory aspect from its devotional core, we are decontextualising the
of the Carnatic tradition. But never have so many Carnatic musi- composition. Often, when you listen to Carnatic classical music,
cians openly articulated their bhakti as they are doing today. For you are touched by it and you don’t know why. And as a singer,
rising classical musicians like Rahul Vellal, Spoorthi Rao, and even if you are singing an alaap without words, or striking a shad-
Suryagayathri, their first taste of success and renown have come ja, if you haven’t internalised the spiritual core, you are missing
not from the concert stage but from singing musician-composer the point.” Gayatri says there is a resurgence in interest in classical
Kuldeep M Pai’s devotional songs that have been widely shared on music corresponding to what she calls the “revival of dharmic
Instagram and YouTube. Some of these also made it to Modi’s bha- consciousness”, with charismatic practitioners like Abby V, who
jan playlist. Vellal and Rao are students of the veteran vocalist duo happens to be a student, taking social media by storm.
Ranjani-Gayatri. Gayatri, who calls herself a proud Hindu and
eschews the term ‘secular’, admits that devotional music has
I
become an easy launchpad and fallback for classical musicians N FAR-AWAY Bhavnagar, Gujarat, Geeta Rabari is busier
today. “Earlier, artists entered the classical space, made their name than ever before. “God has been the soundtrack of my life
in it, then branched out to sing in films or put down devotional and now this track is louder than ever all around us,” says
albums—we too have done so. Now, as classical music has be- the 26-year-old. Along with her husband Pruthvi, who is also
come increasingly technical and challenging, and devotional her manager, she is headed to Jamnagar and Ahmedabad, her
songs have assumed a brand value of their own—and film songs home, for back-to-back performances. “There has been a flurry of
have lost all connection with classical music—young musicians bookings this year because of the pran pratishtha,” she says. With
are cashing in on the new Hindutva wave to gain followers. It 4.4 million followers on Instagram, @geetabenrabariofficial is
is an interesting trend, but devotional lyric is only one side of a folk icon from Kutch who has toured the world. She says she
Carnatic music, a profound art form with many aspects like has much to thank Modi for. “I first met him at Rann Utsav when
melody, creativity, bhakti and rhythm,” she says. “This music is I was very young and he was chief minister. In 2019, when one
connected to the land. For the great composers, this music was of my songs became a hit, he invited me to visit Delhi with my
48 19 FEBRUARY 2024
“Because of
platforms like
Instagram, many
Hindus are finally
able to express
their beliefs
because they think
it is important
to do so. I
enjoy singing
compositions
with an aspect
of bhakti rather
than the purely
technical facets of
classical music”
BHARGAVI
VENKATRAM
family. His blessings have always been with me—even before in Bengaluru, has been contextualising stories from myths
he shared my bhajan, ‘Shree Ram ghar aaye’, ahead of the pran and epics for varied, often young, audiences through collabo-
pratishtha. It is special to me because it is from my first Hindi rations with dancers, musicians, and artists. In a series of his
album. Not only me, many folk artists from villages and small talks, he attempts to look at ancient temples through the eyes of
communities have made it big because of his person- well-known bhaktas associated with them—for instance,
al involvement in promoting Indian culture.” Rabari Kanchi and Shankaracharya, Tirupati and Annamacharya. “I
sports elaborate Kutchi outfits that have become her don’t believe I am a saviour or a changemaker—Sanatana dhar-
identity and prefers devotional songs to other folk ma does not need saving. I am a lover of stories who, while grow-
melodies. “Rabaris are nomadic pastoralists who have ing up, happened to connect with deities not at an esoteric level
traditionally been devotees of Lord Ram. On Holi day, Rabaris but almost as a friend. As I realised that a story was not just about
from all around the country meet at the Vadvala temple to pray a plot, but about communicating an idea, I began looking at
to Ram. Even today, while I awaited my turn to go on stage, I ways to tell stories without dumbing them down.” Growing up
began to do Ram naam jaap with my prayer beads,” she says. in a fairly liberal Hindu household—his mother is a linguist and
Pruthvi, a civil engineer who quit his career to accompany Geeta, his father, a scientist—he attended an Anglo-Indian school. “My
says she is an inspiration to young Kutchi women who, if at all, parents taught me to pray and taught me shlokas but never forced
are only supporting artists in local gigs. “The men are the lead me to follow any rules. It took me a while to accept that I could
singers. Women would just fill in the gaps. Geeta has turned this s wear vibhuti on my forehead and go out,” he says. A couple of
tereotype around.” While rural India has always preferred years ago, at a workshop in a school, someone remarked to him
devotional and folk music, more and more urban youth are that he hadn’t expected a man sporting a kurta and Vibhuti to
returning to their roots, says Pruthvi. “This reversal of trends is be fluent in English. “I am used to being judged based on how I
obvious from the sheer number of likes, follows, and shares we look, but I am okay with it because my Hindu identity wants to
have been getting from urban centres in recent times.” be seen. A lot of young people support my work, thanks to social
Other young artists are creating spaces for conversation and media, which is how I have been able to do this full-time,” says
engagement around Hindu dharma. For the past four years, Varanasi, who is currently designing deeper dives into “what is
Vinay L Varanasi, a 30-year-old architect-turned-storyteller based human about our deities and what is divine about us.”
HEALTH
A DOCTORS’ M
50
ALADY By LHENDUP G BHUTIA
Odisha wants them to write their
prescriptions in capital letters
A
FEW YEARS AGO, Prakash Gadgil’s wife was the Odisha government for such incidents had not come through.
found to be suffering from partial retinal detach- The hurdle was the post-mortem report. The doctor had listed
ment in her left eye, a fairly serious condition that snakebite as a cause of death, but nobody could read it. Not even
can even lead to blindness. An eye drop was pre- the judge. “... he has written something which is not legible and
scribed by an ophthalmologist along with other cannot be comprehended in ordinary course of reading unless the
medicines. Later, Gadgil had only just squeezed a few drops, when writer himself or handwriting expert is invited to examine such
her body suddenly experienced something like a seizure, even as description,” the judge went on in his order.
she complained of a burning sensation in her eye. Thiswasnotthefirsttimeaphysician’sillegiblescrawlhadcome
“We had to take her back to the doctor, and ask why she was up in the courts. Four years ago in the same court and under the
reacting this way,” says Gadgil, who runs FEQH (Forum for En- same judge, a man seeking bail to go and take care of his ailing wife,
hancement of Quality in Healthcare), a non-profit organisation had produced her medical records as evidence, including prescrip-
in Mumbai that works with the medical fraternity to improve the tionswithnear-illegiblehandwriting.“...oneissuewhichthiscourt
quality of healthcare. The doctor heard out the couple, consulted isconstrainedtoarticulateisthatconsiderabletimeandfrustration
his prescription, and told them he had not prescribed the eye drop associated with detective work in so far as medical reports/doctors’
that Gadgil had administered. prescriptions are concerned. Such illegible scrawls composed by
After overcoming his initial surprise, he realised what had doctorscreatesunnecessarynuisance...”JusticePanigrahihadsaidin
happened. The doctor had barely legible handwriting and the hisorderthen.Therehavebeenseveralsuchcaseselsewhere,too.An
pharmacist whom Gadgil had handed over the prescription had irked Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court—after having had
successfully prised out the names of all the medicines listed, ex- to summon doctors numerous times in different cases to explain
cept one. What the pharmacist had interpreted as ‘cineraria’—a theirprescriptionsandreports,andinsomecasesevenfiningsome
homoeopathic eye drop that is often prescribed for eye inflamma- of them—had in 2018 stipulated that all handwritten documents
tions—was in reality meant to just read ‘to continue medication’ by doctors like prescriptions and post-mortem reports, when sub-
of an already prescribed drop. mitted in court, must come along with a computer-printed report.
“The whole prescription was just very difficult to read. You What compounds the issue of a doctor’s poor penmanship is
could hardly make out the words,” Gadgil says. “In fact, the doc- the nature of medical science today. In the past, only the attending
tor took more than two minutes himself to read [the words ‘to doctor, a few nurses, and maybe a pharmacist had reason to read a
continue medication’] what he had written.” patient’s medical record. Today, because modern medicine is a lot
The Gadgils, of course, aren’t alone. The physician’s chicken more complex, the size of a medical team that cares for a patient
scratch is a well-worn joke, but its pinch is probably felt most in has expanded to include many more specialists, not to mention
countries like India, where doctors on an average see more pa- health insurance professionals who examine these notes for re-
tients in a single day than their counterparts in other countries imbursement purposes. More people have been contributing to
probably do in a week, continue to cling on to their pen and paper, and reading a patient’s medical record. So, every time someone
even when there is the option of e-prescriptions. scribbles to save time, many others end up wasting theirs trying
An illegible prescription is more than just an irritant or incon- to comprehend what has been written.
venience. This was brought to the fore recently, when the Orissa So, why don’t doctors write more clearly? “Well, I don’t think
High Court directed the state government to ask all doctors in the any doctor does this on purpose,” says Dr RV Asokan, the president
state to fill their prescriptions and post-mortem reports in capital of the Indian Medical Association. He points to the large volume of
letters or in legible handwriting. “... the tendency of writing such patients that Indian doctors have to attend to as the primary reason.
zig zag handwriting, which cannot be read by any common man “We [the Indian Medical Association] always encourage doctors
or by judicial officers, has become a fashion among the doctors of and ask them to write legibly. In fact, many doctors are also mov-
the state,” Justice SK Panigrahi said in his order passed last month. ing to computerised prescriptions to resolve this issue,” he says.
“Substantial number of doctors in the state resort to such hand- “But I don’t think anyone can ask us to write in capital letters. It
writing which cannot be read by any ordinary person.” The judge’s might be desired, but I don’t think you can ask all doctors to do so.
exasperation could perhaps be excused as he was presiding over a It is just difficult and not possible,” Asokan says, when asked about
case where the petitioner, Rasananda Bhoi, a resident of Odisha, theOrissaHighCourt’sdecisionandtheincreasingdemandfordoc-
had lost his son to a snakebite, but the ex gratia payment due from tors to write in capital letters or in writing that is legible. According
HEALTH
CHILUKURI
“I had also PARAMATHMA;
SCRAWLED
read about the PRESCRIPTIONS
(INSET)
case where a
three-year-old
had died from a
prescription error”
CHILUKURI
PARAMATHMA
pharmacist
to Asokan, such a rule would further burden the doctors. in which notes about a patient can be filled out clearly. Over 200
In many hospitals, while the senior doctor might examine a nursing homes, he claims, are currently following the format.
patient, it usually falls on the medical student or the junior doctor “Writing legibly isn’t difficult,” says Gadgil. “But I feel it’s an issue
to write out the report. Made to write multiple such reports in a of habit and an attitude problem.”
day, perhaps it is no surprise that most of these reports get reduced Some other published surveys have also looked at the magni-
to illegible scrawls. tude of the issue. A 2011 study published in Australasian Medical
And a prescription written in barely-legible handwriting Journal, which focused on a tertiary-level hospital in a rural area of
can be dangerous. In the US, it is estimated that more than 7,000 Maharashtra, found 17.6 per cent of the prescriptions to have been
people die annually because of medication-related errors caused written in illegible handwriting. Another study, which analysed
by a doctor’s sloppy handwriting. Another study claims about 1.5 the quality of prescriptions, both handwritten and computerised,
million Americans suffer from adverse reactions because of such in Anand in central Gujarat, found legibility to be a major issue.
preventable medication errors. It is difficult to get an estimate of Dr Anuradha Joshi, the lead researcher who currently serves as
how much harm this causes in India, because very few studies have creative medical educator and a professor of pharmacology at
been conducted on this subject. One case, however, did get the spot- Parul Institute of Medical Sciences and Research in Vadodara,
light, when the National Consumer Forum awarded `17.5 lakh in collected a total of 749 prescriptions (549 handwritten and 200
compensation to a couple whose child had died because of an error computerised), from three pharmacy stores in Anand over a pe-
inaNoidanursinghomein1993.Thechild,athree-year-oldgirl,had riod of nearly two years—2008 to 2010.
been diagnosed with typhoid, and the paediatrician had written
out a prescription that included an injection of Chloromycetin to
be administered intravenously. The nurse had read the injection as
chloroquine, and the child died a few days later.
Gadgil expects the number of people harmed from errors stem-
M
ANY OF THE prescriptions, especially the handwritten
ones, when evaluated against the World Health Organiza-
tion’s standards of prescription writing, were riddled with errors or
ming from poorly written prescriptions to be huge, given the large incomplete details. When calculating each type of error in clinician
number of prescriptions an Indian doctor writes daily. A few years and patient details, for instance, which included errors and omis-
ago, Gadgil had begun carrying out an informal survey to under- sions in the name, age, weight, or other such details of the patient,
stand the scale of the issue. He had individuals associated with his or that of qualification, registration number and similar details of
NGO sit at around six of the busiest pharmacies in Chembur, a the clinician, she found a total of 4,384 miscues in 549 handwritten
locality in Mumbai, for a day-and-a-half, and collect prescriptions prescriptions and 501errors in the 200 computerised prescriptions.
that would be handed there. They would then call back the doc- In the category of drug item details, which encompasses informa-
tors whose numbers were listed on the prescriptions to check if the tion like generic and brand names of the drug, the dosage form and
pharmacists had provided the right medicines. In all, out of the over its unit, the process of how it is to be administered, and a few more
200 prescriptions they had collected, pharmacists had handed out details, she spotted a total number of 5,015 and 621 errors in hand-
the wrong medicines in 15 to 20 per cent of the cases. Out of these, written and computerised prescriptions, respectively. When she
10 per cent were medicines that belonged to a brand different from checked the prescriptions for legibility, she found 24.41 per cent of
theoneprescribedbythedoctor.“Thisisn’tpermitted.Inmostcases, the handwritten ones to illegible. “The issue of legibility was worse
the person who gets the licence to run a pharmacy doesn’t even in prescriptions from rural areas,” Joshi adds, over the phone.
sit in it,” Gadgil says, pointing to how in many places, unqualified She did not look at how pharmacists worked around this is-
individuals were found to be managing pharmacies. sue, or if any guesswork was involved, since this was beyond the
Gadgiloftenspeaks out about this issue in medical conferences. scope of her study. But she found, disturbingly, that many of the
To cut out these errors, since his non-profit FEQH works with a pharmacists dispensing medicines hadn’t studied beyond class
vast number of nursing homes, he has also developed a format seven or eight in school. “There is an urgent need for education
52 19 FEBRUARY 2024
A HANDWRITTEN PRESCRIPTION
IN ALL CAPS AT SHANTAGIRI HEALTH
CARE IN BENGALURU
“I feel it is my responsibility
as a doctor to write in a way
on appropriate prescription writing and maybe inclusion of tu-
torials on prescription writing in medical schools,” she says. “In my patients can understand”
my classes, I always push my students to write more, and to write DR SHANTAGIRI MALLAPPA general practitioner
clearly. That is very essential.”
Joshi’s study points to a drastic reduction in errors when doc- year-old had died [in Noida] from a prescription error. It made me
tors opted for e-prescriptions. “The benefits of doctors filling com- really sad because I know this is a big issue,” Paramathma says. He
puterised prescriptions are very clear. But I understand this isn’t began writing to various government departments and officials,
always feasible. You will need to be tech-savvy, need good internet and even filed a PIL in the Andhra Pradesh High Court. This even-
connectivity, more manpower,” she says. tually led to the Medical Council of India (MCI) issuing guidelines
Most large hospitals in major metros have now entirely in 2014 that doctors must write their prescriptions only in capital
switched to e-prescriptions. Increasingly, many doctors in private letters. In 2016, the government also amended the Indian Medi-
clinics now also hand out such prescriptions. But this is just a drop cal Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette, and Ethics) Regula-
in a large ocean, when one considers the many nursing homes, tions, 2002, stating that “every physician should prescribe drugs
private clinics and hospitals across the country. with generic names legibly and preferably in capital letters and
DrShantagiriMallappa,ageneralpractitionerinBengaluru,con- he/she shall ensure that there is a rational prescription and use
tinues to write his prescriptions by hand. But he does so in capital of drugs.” Paramathma continues to push for more awareness.
letters.“I’vealwayswrittenitthisway,”hesays.“Ifeelitismyrespon- He has distributed over 200 white coats that pharmacists wear
sibility as a doctor to write in a way my patients can understand.” among pharmacies in Nalgonda, with the phrase “Ask your doc-
Mallappa had always possessed a good handwriting, something tor for prescription in capital letters” embroidered upon them.
that earned him praise even before he became a medical practi- Sometimes, a badly handwritten prescription will land up at his
tioner. He switched to writing in capital letters for greater clarity, pharmacy and he will call up the doctor to confirm the name of
he says, once he became a doctor. When he entered the medical the drug and to advise him to write in capital letters.
profession, he realised however that he was a rare exception. He The issue, however, will at some point probably become a thing
established the Karnataka State Doctors’ Handwriting Improve- of the past. Optical Character Recognition (OCR), which is the tech-
mentAssociation15yearsago,somethingwhichhestillruns.Every nology behind the electronic conversion of images with typed,
six months or so, he ropes in handwriting improvement coaches handwritten or printed text into digital text, is known to be making
to run day-long workshops for doctors from both allopathic and progressinleapsandbounds,andmanysmartphonestodaycanrec-
alternative forms of medicine. According to him, over 1,500 doctors ognise and even translate texts in photographs. Google announced
have enrolled for these classes over the years. at an event in Delhi in December last year that it is using artificial
“I know about the challenges doctors in India face, the work- intelligence and machine learning to develop a tool that can help
load they have. But if you want to, you can write in capital letters. people identify medicines within handwritten prescriptions.
It is very possible,” he says, referring to how on an average he sees In Thane, a locality on the outskirts of Mumbai, the conversa-
around 80 to 90 patients daily, and still finds no difficulty in writ- tions around such a technology is far from the minds of a doctor
ing prescriptions in capital letters. seated in a clinic today. A general practitioner for over 20 years, he
The burden of decoding the scrawls on a prescription primarily movedtocomputerisedprescriptionsduringthepandemic.“Some-
falls on two individuals —the patient and the pharmacist he takes times, some of my old patients find this a bit disorienting, and I feel
his business to. In Nalgonda, a city in Telangana about a couple they probably think the computer comes between me and them,”
of hours from Hyderabad, a pharmacist named Chilukuri Para- he says, referring to the look that appears on their faces as he fills in
mathma grew so tired of being handed prescriptions in almost their details on the computer while they narrate their issues. “Even
illegible handwritings, that he began a decade-long campaign I found it a bit awkward in the beginning. But I will stop sometimes
to fix the issue. “I had also read about the case where a three- and tell them, it is a lot better this way.” n
ART
The
Mythomaniac
Manjunath Kamath’s terracotta
sculptures speak of gods and epics,
the eternal and the ephemeral
By Noor Anand Chawla
SALON
S
hakekthu Shalpaka—a title that concept of ascribing meaning to things, objects
rolls off the tongue in a pleasant or works of art is manmade. We impose mean-
manner, even as it evokes images ings on them based on what we have been told.
of grandeur and times gone by. Why can’t we let our imaginations determine a
However, this title, despite its meaning of our own choice for what we see?”
grandiosity, means nothing. These queries first entered Kamath’s mind
“It’s gibberish and even the indigenous script in his childhood. Growing up in Mangalore,
it’s written in is completely made up,” says south Karnataka, his first exposure to art was at
its creator, artist B Manjunath Kamath. This the temples and churches he visited. The myth-
bold move questions the need for humans ological images of gods and goddesses he saw
to ascribe meaning to everything. “I want to in these places of reverence had a deep visual
question the ideas that we take for granted. impact on him. “I ascribed my own meanings
Things like what is the meaning of art? Or the to them because at that age, I wasn’t reading
meaning of anything for that matter?” That is any scriptures. I didn’t know what to make of
the driving force behind Kamath’s latest solo them except what came as explanations to my
show, presented under this moniker. mind, and I was fascinated. That is what I hope
The exhibition, by Gallery Espace that is people feel with this exhibition as well.”
currently on display at the Centre for Contempo- That early exposure to religious sculptures,
rary Art at Bikaner House, Delhi, is a collection of frescoes and carvings was coupled with the
terracotta sculptures of varying sizes, large-scale imagery he saw at local Yakshagana plays, the
paintings on canvas and silk, and intricate stories from Indian epics he listened to, and
painted drawings on paper. His first solo exhibi- later, with more exposure and knowledge,
tion after five years, it has been conceptualised the works of Raja Ravi Varma, Michelangelo,
around the architecture of its venue. Inspired by and Rembrandt that he was inspired by. These
the neo-classical spaces and arched doorways of diverse cultural influences were instrumental in
Bikaner House, Kamath imagined and created shaping Kamath’s mixed-media practice ranging
his works specifically to fit into this complex and from the more traditional offerings of sculptures
layered arena. The work is a distinct departure and paintings to experimental digital art.
Photograph by ARUN THAKUR
from his creations of the past. As a keen student of all creative mediums,
From the titles—both of the exhibition and he is constantly absorbing skills from others.
the works—and the haphazard nature of the He has in the past been influenced by the art of
creations, it’s clear that Kamath’s works defy Persian miniatures, the intricate architecture
the need for an explanation. He explains, “The of the Middle East, Victorian motifs and even
54 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Manjunath Kamath
with
This PDF was uploade To Telegram channel_https://t.me/Magazines_8890050582(send Me Message telegram ya WhatsApp This his sculpture
number 8890050582)
Yugalachooda,
Bikaner House, Delhi
“USUALLY, WHEN ARTISTS ARE GIVEN A CHANCE TO GO ABROAD,

THEY ARE FASCINATED BY CONTEMPORARY ART, BUT MY FASCINATION WAS ALWAYS WITH
ANCIENT ART. I ISOLATE MYSELF FROM THE CONTEMPORARY SPACE EVEN NOW”
Manjunath Kamath, artist
ART
Bojh
“I OBSERVE NATURAL SEEPAGE IN WALLS AND SEEK TO RECREATE THAT IN MY WORK.

PIECES. ORIGINALLY THESE PIECES WERE AN ARTIST’S CREATION, BUT WITH THE
Chinese pottery. His most recent muse, fragmentation in his own works to closer inspection, he observed numerous
which makes an appearance in some of mimic the work of nature in the ancient dislodged heads of people. They were
the works in Shakekthu Shalpaka, is sculptures he has seen. What results is, the vanquished who had died in the war
Buddhist thangka art, which he is drawn “a hand here, a foot there, the curve of and were now recounting their stories.
towards owing to its meditative nature. a cheek or a portion of a bird”, and the The king decides to pluck this branch
Mythological figures have always overall piece ends up being an amalga- and wear it on his head to listen to them
impressed him and he is an avid collec- mation of distorted figures, unusual all the time. I wanted to question if this
tor of objets d’art from around the world. patterns, prints, and decorations that image was real or was it just a magical
His large personal collection includes seem haphazard but meld together manifestation of his guilt? As for the crea-
popular religious and classic iconogra- perfectly. It is a puzzle which he leaves tures on his feet—I wanted to emphasise
phy as well as interesting variations of to his audience to decipher, while also a kind of uncertainty. If these creatures
pop culture figures. His biggest inspira- highlighting the numerous influences decide to leave, he will fall.” He hopes
tion, however, is the beauty of ancient that together make India. that these myriad elements will invite
art. “Usually, when artists are given a A fine example of this is the showstop- viewers to interact with the sculpture.
chance to go abroad, they are fascinated per piece at Shakekthu Shalpaka called Kamath never makes preliminary
by contemporary art, but my fascination Vikatonarva. Clocking in at nearly 11.5 sketches, instead preferring to create
was always with ancient art. I isolate feet, this gigantic sculpture was made in something from scratch, which grows
myself from the contemporary space six parts and then assembled, as is the case on its own. Having seen a large sculp-
even now,” says the recipient of the with most of Kamath’s terracotta works. ture at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Charles Wallace India Trust grant. The grand figure wears an imposing in New York, he felt inspired to create
headdress comprising dozens of smaller his own imposing beings that would be
heads arranged in the manner of grapes timeless and would belong to no
T HIS FASCINATION with ancient

art, and more specifically, the way
it manifests today with its numerous
on vines. His costume and limbs flit
between various established sculptural
styles. One can see the influence of Greek,
particular era.
His medium-sized sculptures, though
smaller in scale, follow similar themes
erasures and distortions, plays out in Italian, Chinese and Indian schools from and are equally impressive. Of these,
his work. He reproduces the effect of different time periods, with hints of oth- an elongated and narrow one called
time-ravaged materials on his canvases ers peeking through. The figure stands Extended Tale is an allusion to the fact that
through several layers. Speaking of the in motion atop two strange creatures— history is constantly extending in linear
painstaking process, the artist says, “I ob- animals in form, but not adhering to the motion. The indeterminate figurine
serve natural seepage in walls and seek body of any recognisable animal. shown standing on a platform here has
to recreate that in my work. Another Even as he invites the viewer to create no defined shape or form, though it
thing that really interests me at ancient a story of this figure, Kamath narrates seems covered in a variety of garments.
sites are the missing pieces. Originally the story that came to his mind when It is also missing a head with the space
these pieces were an artist’s creation, he created it. “I pictured a king who had deliberately left vacant so that its history
but with the missing parts, they have conquered a country, and when he vis- can continue to build upon itself.
become nature’s creation.” ited the site of the war after many years, Another interesting work titled
Kamath deliberately introduces he heard whispers from the trees. On Yugalachooda is an amorphous form that
56 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Courtesy GALLERY ESPACE
ANOTHER THING THAT REALLY INTERESTS ME AT ANCIENT SITES ARE THE MISSING
MISSING PARTS, THEY HAVE BECOME NATURE’S CREATION” Manjunath Kamath
seems to morph from a human male to a especially be seen in the series of eight Kamath created these symbols and
human female to an animistic creature. small busts titled Bojh—the Hindi figures as a language of his own after
Viewed from different angles, this word for burden. Here, male torsos are studying dozens of other languages to
three-dimensional work seems to have individually crafted in cement, and they veto any similarity. “I wanted to go be-
numerous stories to share. A point to carry the burden of intricate terracotta yond creating a simple image. In certain
note is though their forms are apparent, sculptures, which mimic thought bub- religious faiths like Islam and Sikhism
they have no faces or distinguishing bles. The inversion of the materiality where holy texts are revered, the script
marks. “In traditional Indian mythology, where the delicate and light terracotta itself becomes an image. We treat it as
the king and queen or the god and god- prove to be too unwieldy for the sturdy human. I wanted to create my own text
dess are always shown standing or sitting and strong cement is Kamath’s playful but keep it meaningless,” he shares.
next to each other, and the figures are of a way of highlighting opposites. It’s also The remainder of the larger paintings
particular size,” says Kamath. His figure, perhaps an insightful commentary on are massive triptychs and diptychs en-
however, defies this notion and is seen as how human worries and thoughts are sconced in ornately shaped frames. They
one, with the female mounting the male often the biggest burdens we carry. look like salvaged artworks discovered
torso from one side, even as the animal In To Be Continued, Kamath painstak- from an ancient archaeological site, yet
bears their collective weight underneath. ingly recreates an anthill-like structure by they have been made afresh with the
“My works are inspired by Indian perforating the terracotta with a pin thou- artist’s keen eye recreating details of
motifs such as Nandi carrying Shiva sands of times. The artist explains this as ruination painstakingly. Styles, periods,
or Hanuman carrying Rama on their an ode to the fact that everyone must one and even mediums collide to create the
shoulders. Similarly, this animal is day go back to nature. He says, “Nature is effect that he desires.
carrying our god and goddess amalga- the tool to end everything. Even our own On similar lines are his smaller
mation. Here, animals and humans gods, such as Lord Jagannath of Puri, die untitled painted drawings on paper.
merge,” he says. every 25 years. Whatever comes to These intricately detailed works are
Made on similar lines is the earth must end at some point.” reminiscent of decorative tiles from
piece titled Preeth Vahana where Of Kamath’s paintings, a homes of centuries past. They were
a headless figure sits large piece called Ajathakalpa envisioned and completed last by the
atop a strong cross-leg- is truly striking—not artist, as he enjoys the meditative state
ged bull and carries a least because it’s made on their creation puts him in. “It’s like tak-
time-ravaged goat on a wash of gold leaf. The ing a break because they are so relaxing
its shoulders. It is unclear rich backdrop is offset by to make. When I have had too much of
where the lifting of the burden strategically placed signs of the physically intensive act of creating
begins and where it ends. ruination—which Kamath the larger works, I turn to the painted
The idea of ‘carry- achieves through layers drawings,” he says.
ing the burden’ is an of paint—and a series
oft-explored theme of prominent letters. Shakekthu Shalpaka by
in this exhibition. It can These letters, however, do B Manjunath Kamath, curated by
not belong to any alphabet Gallery Espace, is on display at
Sravaka you may be familiar with. Bikaner House, Delhi, till February 16
BOOKS
A Gandhi in Memory
Mani Shankar Aiyar provides a friend’s perspective on Rajiv Gandhi’s legacy
By Ullekh NP
T
HIS BOOK UNDER review, Aiyar spoke about the first five decades
and scholarly. You often leave feeling
The Rajiv I Knew: And Why He of his life until 1991, covering his child-
intellectually refreshed, better informed,
Was India’s Most Misunderstood hood, youth, life as a career diplomat,
and glad to have met him.
Prime Minister (Juggernaut; stint in the PMO under Rajiv Gandhi, Reading Aiyar is a rewarding experi-
336 pages; `799), is a sequel, or as author entry into politics in the late 1980s and
ence, even when you know that his
Mani Shankar Aiyar says, “a companion so on. You find the quintessential Aiyar
stance about certain people or subjects
volume” to his Memoirs of a Maverick: in there, regaling us with anecdote after
is predictable, you don’t want to put the
The First Fifty Years (1941-1991) anecdote and riveting prose. Even in book down. An apocryphal story goes
(Juggernaut; 400 pages; `899) in which private conversations, he is charming that when Aiyar was asked to write a
column in 1,000 words, he quipped, “It
Photos GETTY IMAGES
takes me 1,000 words just to clear my
throat”. Perhaps he is only too aware of
his capability to hold the reader’s atten-
tion, irrespective of the word count of an
article or the size of a book.
Memoirs of a Maverick explains the
trajectory of Aiyar’s growth and gives a
fair idea of where he comes from and why
he is what he is: a secular fundamentalist.
He admits that his best stint was as consul
general in Karachi where he was a celeb-
rity, and still has life-long friends.
In the introduction to The Rajiv I Knew,
which he dedicates to his three daughters,
Aiyar explains how this sequel came
about, and how it became a separate
book. “I believe that what makes my life
a possible matter of public interest is my
six-year association
with Rajiv Gandhi. To
remove these reflec-
tions on what made
him India’s most
misunderstood prime
<< RAJIV GANDHI
minister would, I felt,
mean a disservice to
the central catalytic
relationship in my
public life. I also felt
that I should stand
up for him and be
counted rather than
pretend all was hun-
ky-dory during those
turbulent times.”
58 19 FEBRUARY 2024
Aiyar puts the spotlight in how and when he uses anecdotes
this book on many issues that to substantiate his arguments
Rajiv Gandhi had to face in his only over a range of issues that
term as Prime Minister, as head of Rajiv Gandhi had to handle and
a government that had the biggest the information and meetings to
majority to date in the Lok Sabha, which Aiyar had access. Glimpses
411 seats out of 542, before he was into how the author played a
voted out in the next election. They crucial role in drafting speeches
include problems in Assam, for Gandhi, which the prime min-
Kashmir, Sri Lanka, the Bofors ister was gracious to admit even
scandal, the Shah Bano case, the among friends and colleagues at
unlocking of the gates of the Babri times, makes the book a valuable
Masjid, myriad rebellions within, a reference resource for scholars
resounding electoral loss and so on. and writers alike.
Interestingly, Aiyar refuses to There are some insights, too.
find much fault in Rajiv Gandhi’s For instance, Aiyar says that
decision to yield to the Muslim among the colleagues
clergy in 1986 when he pivoted MANI SHANKAR AIYAR’S BOOK IS Rajiv Gandhi inducted into
the Muslim Women (Protection of GRIPPING THANKS TO HOW AND politics, only one let him down.
Rights on Divorce) Act 1986, which WHEN HE USES ANECDOTES TO He names Arun Singh here. “He
nullified the Supreme Court’s SUBSTANTIATE HIS ARGUMENTS inherited from her (slain mother
progressive judgment in the OVER A RANGE OF ISSUES THAT Indira Gandhi) all those who let
Shah Bano case a year earlier. Aiyar RAJIV GANDHI HAD TO HANDLE him down (and formed a new anti-
writes, “RG’s (Rajiv Gandhi’s) han- Congress government later): Arun
dling of the Shah Bano controversy Nehru, Arif Mohammed Khan,
typified his style of working, that VP Singh, Gopi Arora, et al.” Aiyar
of carefully listening to all points of view the PM indicated that he had nothing to also has numerous complaints about
and only then rising to his responsibility do with this tragic farce and was deeply several people who had worked closely
as PM to make a final decision. It is a disturbed.” Finally, the suspicions of all with Rajiv in his early days in power.
decision that was endorsed by the misdeeds fall on the likes of Arun Nehru, The last chapter should be read
Supreme Court’s judgement in 2001. That ML Fotedar, and others. between the lines. It is a brief evaluation
ought to have been the end of the matter.” The problem here is not about Aiyar’s of Rajiv’s political life by his friend and
Aiyar avers that Rajiv was fully convinced secular beliefs but about his obstinacy colleague Aiyar, who, unfortunately,
he would gain no electoral advantage in projecting Rajiv Gandhi as someone was not treated well by those who
from doing what he did. Then why did he who shared those values. Let’s bring into survived Rajiv in the Congress’s first
do it? Rajiv told him, Aiyar recalls, that it context politician Arun Nehru’s state- family. He was instead relegated to being
was done to “preserve the secular ethos ment in this regard in 1989—and his a Congress backbencher.
of the nation”. Well, it is for the readers to pointing of fingers at Rajiv Gandhi who Aiyar writes, “Rajiv Gandhi’s brief
decide how convincing that sounds! never responded to those accusations. five-year stewardship of the nation,
Following that, Rajiv Gandhi made a Nehru said in an interview published in followed by eighteen months as leader
desperate move to appease the Hindus the Statesman in August 1989, “In early of the Opposition before he was cruelly
by green-lighting the opening of the 1986, the Muslim Women’s Bill was assassinated, is but a wink in historical
gates of the Babri Masjid for Hindu passed to play the Muslim card; and then time. I have dealt in detail in this book
prayers. It had remained locked since came the decision on Ayodhya to play with the accords he signed, the contro-
1949 on the orders of his grandfather the Hindu card. It was supposed to be a versies he waded through, his foreign
Jawaharlal Nehru. package deal. I knew it was a dangerous policy initiatives, and his innovative do-
Aiyar comes to his Prime Minister thing to do and I did not agree.” He went mestic initiatives, above all, Panchayati
friend’s rescue: “Since it was in power, on, “When I asked Mr Rajiv Gandhi who Raj. I propose in this concluding chapter,
the Congress was responsible for the is showing the worship in the disputed to sum up the main points of the events
unlocking of the gates. But who in the shrine at Ayodhya on Doordarshan two of his time, in and out of office, and my
Congress? The Congress chief minis- days after it was unlocked, he did not impressions of the man himself.”
ter of UP (Veer Bahadur Singh) or the reply; he merely smiled and observed it The book doesn’t disappoint as a
Congress president and prime minister, was tit for tat the Muslim Women’s Bill.” former aide and friend’s chronicle of a
Rajiv Gandhi? Stray remarks to me by Aiyar’s book is gripping thanks to former prime minister. n
CHILDREN’S LITERATURE
Weathering the Storm

Understanding climate change through humour
By Rati Girish
I
F THERE IS anything we have editor Bijal Vachharajani chooses well- Every resident in Fairyland journeys to
learnt from various climate change known fairytales as the perfect medium the end of the world to find the origin of
summits, it is that the time to act to talk to children about the inevitable a strange hum that all fairyland animals
is now. We cannot shield our chil- change in our environment. How does can hear. There they notice a rip in the
dren from the reality of climate change, climate change affect our beloved fairy fabric of their world and realise pollut-
and we need to educate the young about tale characters? Rapunzel can wash her ants and harmful gases from the human
the world they will be inheriting. Cli-fi hair only once a week, the Big Bad Wolf world are entering their realm. As the
or climate fiction is a genre that is fast cannot stalk Red Riding Hood any- human world fills up with smoke and
gaining popularity. Three recent Indian more because there are no trees to hide toxins, a little bit seeps into Fairyland ev-
children’s books approach the conversa- behind, there are no poisoned apples ery time someone opens a book. Now the
tion for climate change in an interesting for Snow White because apples (and residents of Fairyland need to find a way
manner that makes it engaging for Cinderella’s pumpkins) are extinct, and to restore their world to its former state.
young readers. These books highlight unseasonal weather is marked by The magic in this book is layered
the urgency of the situation but do so rising sea levels meaning and manifold. Vachharajani
without scaring young readers. everyone is bobbing in boats gives her characters an Indian
trying to get from one castle twist and steeps them in pop
WHEN FAIRYLAND to another! culture making it relatable and
LOST ITS MAGIC Enter plucky siblings Hansel relevant to Indian children, all
by Bijal Vachharajani and Rajiv Eipe and Gretel with a plan to mobil- while inducing a chuckle (or
(HarperCollins Children’s; 120 pages `499) ise everyone in Fairyland to find two) from parents. She chooses
Nothing says children’s story more than out why their world has taken characters based on how
a fairytale and that’s why author and such a dark and smoggy turn. climate change affects them
60 19 FEBRUARY 2024
personally, for example, the Ammini spends so Ammini against Radha Rangarajan,
Little Mermaid talks about rapidly heat- much time studying the Storm by which sets the con-
ing oceans and whitening coral reefs. when her future is tied Vishaka George is set text and background
Readers will enjoy the casual tone and to the farm.
against the devastating for drying lakes and
plot twists connecting characters. Black- The story also dying forests. It is
and-white illustrations by Rajiv Eipe force highlights the changing
floods in Kerala in brilliantly illustrated
the reader to revisit pages to take in all the landscape of Wayanad 2018. Through the by some of India’s
gorgeous little details like fairies flitting through the point of medium of leading picture book
in between palm fronds, or the print on view of the farmer who storytelling, the book illustrators, such as
Fairy Nani’s sari as she placates Cinderella. is now forced to replace gives statistics and Arati Kumar-Rao and
The illustration showing all the residents traditional crops like news reports a name Archana Sreenivasan,
of Fairyland holding hands to form a paddy and coffee with and a face giving each spread its
chain as they bestow ‘gifts’ exudes a silver more profitable ones like own unique identity.
lining of hope, leaving readers with the vanilla and pepper. Over The illustrations give
feeling that change can be brought about the years, these modern flesh and blood to
if everyone works together. As with cash crops have altered the balance of the a child’s observation. For example, a
Vachharajani’s previous books on the soil and are responsible for worsening 13-year-old from Dhanora, Maharash-
climate, in this one too she uses humour the destruction during the floods. These tra, writes, “There is no water in our vil-
and hope to drive home an important nuances lead children to understand that lage taps. I have to walk long distances
message. By the end, it is clear that if sal- climate change isn’t just about melting with my mummy to fetch water.” This
war kameez-clad Cinderella, Fairy Nani glaciers and rising temperatures, and line comes to life with a black-and-
and No-White can come together to turn shows how it affects people closer white illustration of stick figures bent
their Disenchanted Not a Forest into a to home. over walking to a distant well with the
Once Enchanted Forest, then we can too. For this book author Vishaka George silhouette of build-
has adapted an article that she wrote for ings, and chimneys
AMMINI AGAINST THE STORM
People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI) spewing smoke in
by Vishaka George (Karadi Tales into a fictional story highlighting the the distance.
in partnership with PARI; 110 pages; `295) effects of climate change as seen and We Hope has an
How often do we read news stories about understood by children. Ammini against easy-to-read qual-
storms and inclement weather across the Storm is one of the books in Stories of ity and brings us
the country? Floods Rural India (StORI), a series published by stories and voices
and cyclones are Karadi Tales and veteran journalist from the Himalayas
words our children P Sainath’s publishing house PARI. The to Karnataka, from Haryana to the
are now all too books highlight stories of people living in Chambal Valley, and from Nagaland to
familiar with. rural India, disenfranchised communi- Maharashtra, allowing us to learn about
But what does it ties, and the challenges they face daily. issues that affect people living in the
mean to be caught Through the medium of storytelling, the region. Using interesting anecdotes like
in the eye of a storm books give statistics and news reports a how the shortage of rainfall affects the
and watch your name and a face. Malabar gliding frogs in Agumbe,
entire life being washed away? Karnataka, or how the weather in
Ammini against the Storm by WE HOPE: CHILDREN ON Dahanu’s (Maharashtra) beaches
Vishaka George is set against the devas- CLIMATE CHANGE determines the gender of the Olive
tating floods in Kerala in 2018. Ammini edited by Radha Rangarajan Ridley turtle—this book drives home
is a coffee farmer’s daughter who is des- (Pratham Books; 32 pages; `100) the message of climate change for curi-
perately trying to fit in with friends at What is the best way to understand how ous young minds.
her new private school. Her family can much our children know about climate The quotes from children are relat-
barely afford the school but is convinced change? We turn to them, of course. We able and will remain with you long
that’s where she will get a good educa- Hope: Children on Climate Change asked after you are done reading the book. It is
tion. Ammini is worried her friends do children 10-16 about what climate difficult to not empathise with
not understand her background but she change means to them. This bold experi- 15-year-old Atharva Raut from Mumbai
is thrilled to have formed close friend- ment resulted in a picture book, which who simply proclaims that his “lungs
ships. She spends her days playing and brings together varied voices that will are tired”—making this picture
fighting with her cousin Matthew, who spur meaningful conversations. book a must-read for children and
is more practical and wonders why The book has additional text by adults alike. n
CRIME CANON Shylashri Shankar
Tricks of the Thrillers

Masters strike the right balance between action and emotion
W
HAT’S A THRILLER? them to delve deeply into the emotional core of the story, a
David Morrell says disconnect some tackle better than others, and in some books
thrillers strive for better than others in their series. Also, the thriller structure as-
heightened emotions and sumes the reader has read the previous books in the series and
emphasise the sensations the author is forced to summarise the backstory, that often,
of what might be called an fails to create the emotional connect of the main character
obstacle race and a scavenger with new readers. These writers have adopted present day em-
hunt. Something has already phasis on a thrilling first chapter. A chase, international hit-
happened or is about to men, a victorious hero. This is the curse of Amazon’s Kindle
happen, and it is up to the where the first chapter can be read for free. However, much of
protagonist to make sure all the book may have little to do with the heart-pounding action
is well with the world, by in the first chapter, and may even be a letdown.
answering the heart-pounding high-tension questions: will We can see these trends in the books by the authors re-
they stop the bomber in time, will they save the world, will viewed below, all doyens of the thriller genre with a prolific
they nab the arch villain before more innocents die? output. David Baldacci has the Amos Decker, Atlee Pine and
Unlike a mystery, which centres on solving the puzzle of Travis Devine series, Robin Cook has the Jack Stapleton and
whodunnit, in thrillers we already know the identity of the vil- Laurie Montgomery, and the Pia Grazdani series, and
lains. Many thrillers inhabit a particular profession — law Jeffrey Archer has the Clifton Chronicles and the
(John Grisham), medical (Robin Cook), political (David Baldacci), William Warwick series, among others.
ex-military (Lee Child). Others like Thomas Harris, Stephen King, David Baldacci, whose political thriller, Absolute Power (an
Riley Sager, and Dean Koontz, have popularised the serial killer, absolute favourite of mine) was a ripping, heart-pounding cat
horror, and genre bending variety. and mouse game between a burglar (played by
In the past, thriller writers focused on espionage and inter- Clint Eastwood in the movie version) and the highest levels of
national intrigue, reflecting the global preoccupation with the the American Presidency, and yet remained deeply embed-
Cold War. But now, as society’s fears and interests have ded in a father-daughter emotional tussle. In his new
changed, so has the thriller writer’s beat. Recent ones book, The Edge, a sequel to The 6:20 Man, the protago-
include a range of techno-thrillers (Michael Crichton’s nist Travis Devine is an ex-Special Ops Army man,
Jurassic Park is an early avatar), psychological thrillers now part of an elite undercover team in Homeland
mainly focusing on the domestic drama (Gone Girl, Security. The Edge (Macmillan; 432 pages; `750) begins
Girl on the Train varieties), and nordic noir (serial killers on a high octane note — a face-off between Travis and
popularised by Jo Nesbo and Stieg Larsson), spy thrillers a hitman trio on a bullet train between Geneva and
(Mick Herron), to name a few. Milan. Then Travis is asked by his boss as a personal
With this huge influx of sub-genres and writers into favour to investigate the murder of a senator’s daugh-
the thriller domain, how have the old-timers coped ter, Jennifer Silkwell, near the senator’s family home
with it? They’ve done it in three ways: first, by creating a series in Maine. Jennifer was a CIA operative and a rising star, privy
character such as Michael Connelly’s Lincoln Lawyer series to high-level secrets. Was she murdered because of her job
with Harry Bosch. Second, the old-timers have tapped into the or was there a different and more personal reason? As Travis
goodwill created by their name recognition and loyal reader investigates — the thriller now morphs into domestic sus-
base to branch out into writing several series. Third, they’ve pense and mystery — he meets and falls in love with Jenny’s
adopted the structure of present-day thrillers — short chapters, younger sister Alex, an artist who lives in the gothic family
short sentences, fast pace, few descriptions, and a focus on action home with her tattoo-artist older brother, Dak, an ex-soldier
rather than emotions. who has been dishonourably discharged.
The problem is that these seasoned writers know that The deeper he digs, the more Travis realises that small
emotion trumps action any day with the reader who, more towns and the families who live there harbour horrific secrets,
than anything else, wants to identify with the main character. for which the killer will kill again.
However, the present day thriller book structure doesn’t allow Baldacci follows the structure of present-day thrillers —
62 19 FEBRUARY 2024
troubled resident, is on a one-month rota-
tion in Laurie’s office. He notices that six
suicides in six months have commonali-
ties and decides to investigate. A parallel
story is seen through the eyes of a
former Navy SEAL-turned-assassin
Hank Roberts who has been hired by a
healthcare company to bump off patients
angry about wrong test results: the com-
pany tests for cancer and gives a false posi-
tive result. Each of the homicides is staged
as a suicide. While Laurie is steeped in
bureaucratic minutiae and Jack is recover-
ing from an encounter with a killer in
the previous book, it is Ryan who leads
the show in this book. The doctors find
themselves in the line of fire as the com-
pany killers try to shut them up. Cook
uses the trick of building up suspense
by showing the reader the killer’s plan,

and then making us hope that Ryan and
Laurie can somehow escape unscathed.
The writing is old-fashioned—with few
contractions—making for a mannered,
almost stilted dialogue. But Cook delivers
fully on the ‘educating the reader’ front by
explaining the workings of the medical
DAVID BALDACCI FOLLOWS THE STRUCTURE OF PRESENT-DAY examiner’s office. An enjoyable read.
THRILLERS — FAST-PACED ACTION SCENES AND SHORT CHAPTERS
TO APPEAL TO READERS WHO WANT TO FINISH IT DURING
THEIR PLANE OR TRAIN RIDES. HERE TOO, LIKE IN HIS EARLIER
BOOKS, THE DRIVING FORCE IS TRAVIS’ EMOTIONAL WORLD —
J
EFFREY ARCHER’S Next in Line
(HarperCollins; 384 pages; `499) is
set in 1988 London, when royal fever has
HIS ATTRACTION TO THE VICTIM’S TROUBLED YOUNGER SISTER reached fever pitch.
AND HIS QUEST TO BRING JUSTICE TO HER TRAUMA Detective Chief Inspec-
tor William Warwick
and his Scotland Yard
squad are sent in to
fast-paced action scenes and short chapters to appeal to readers investigate the elite Royal Protection Com-
who want to finish it during their plane or train rides. Here too, mand entrusted with protecting the British
like in his earlier books, the driving force is Travis’ emotional royal family. As Britain and the world fall in
world — his attraction to the victim’s troubled younger sister love with the “people’s princess,” maverick
and his quest to bring justice to her trauma. Those who enjoyed ex-undercover operative Ross Hogan is
The 6:20 Man will cheer Travis on in his second outing. charged with a very sensitive — and unique—responsibility.
But it soon becomes clear the problems in royalty protec-
R OBIN COOK, THE king of medical thrillers with clas-

sics such as Coma and Contagion, has a
new one out in Manner of Death
tion are just the beginning. A renegade organisation has the
security of the country — and the Crown — in its sights. Can
Hogan and Warwick outwit the master criminal, (another
(Macmillan; 352 pages; `750). Featuring his series character) who wants revenge on them for imprison-
series characters, Laurie Montgomery, the ing him? And what a clever revenge it is. This book has all the
chief medical examiner for New York city ingredients of a light-hearted caper: art theft, split-second
and her medical examiner husband timing, a race against time, and a history-soaked solution.
Jack Stapleton, the book focuses on how Brings back a faint echo of Archer’s Not a Penny More, Not a
far healthcare companies can go to make Penny Less. Readers familiar with the William Warwick series
money. Ryan Sullivan, a brilliant but will enjoy this one. n
INDIAN ACCENTS Bibek Debroy
The Mother of All Battles

When death came with the splendour of a thousand suns
F
ROM BRAHMANDA creates giant asuras). Thousands of them were born, giant in
Purana, in an earlier form and immense in strength. There were Madhu, Kaitabha,
column, I described Mahishasura, Dhumralochana, Chanda and Munda,
the setting for an imminent Chikshura, Chamara, Raktabija, Shumbha, Nishumbha, the
battle between Bhandasura extremely strong Kalakeyas and Dhumra, and others. All
and Lalitaa Devi. these excellent danavas arose from the weapon, with their
Interesting though they tough weapons. They roared in hideous tones and crushed the
are, I will skip details about Shakti soldiers, who sought refuge with Devi. Devi became
the slaying of Bhandasura’s extremely angry. She laughed loudly in rage.
brothers, sons and generals. At this, Durgaa arose. Her form was devised from the
Shri Lalitaa Devi energy of all the devas. The universe was her form. Shiva
attacked Bhanda. The eyes gave her a trident. Vishnu gave her a chakra. Varuna gave
of Bhanda danava turned red with great rage. He released her a conch-shell and Agni gave her a javelin. In the great
the great weapon known as Andha-tamisraka (blinding battle, Vayu gave her a bow and two inexhaustible quivers.
darkness). Maheshvari severed it with the arrow of Maha- The wielder of the vajra gave her the vajra. Kubera gave her
tarani (the great ship, the sun). Bhanda released Pakhandastra a goblet. Kala gave her a great staff. Varuna gave her a noose.
(weapon of heresy). Lalitaa Devi released Gayatriastra and Brahma gave her a water-pot, while Airavata gave her a bell.
severed it. Bhanda released Andhastra (weapon of blindness), Mrityu gave her a sword and a shield. The ocean gave her
which could destroy the vision of the Shaktis. She pacified a necklace. Vishvakarma gave her radiant ornaments. Her
it with the great weapon of Chakshushmat (weapon that limbs dazzled, like thousands of suns with their rays. This
bestows sight). Bhanda released the weapon known as Shakti- made all the weapons shine even more. Others bestowed
nasha (destructive of Shaktis). Using the weapon known as beautiful equipment on her. Astride her mount, the lion,
Vishvavasu, she robbed it of its insolence. Enraged, Bhanda Narayani advanced to fight. She brought down the danavas,
danava released Antakastra (weapon that destroys). She the one known as Mahisha and others.
destroyed its strength with the weapon of Maha-mritunjaya The wicked danava released Mukastra (weapon that leads
(great weapon that conquers death). Bhanda released the to dumbness) towards the Shakti soldiers. Devi released the
weapon known as Sarvastra-smriti-nasha (weapon that weapon named Maha-vagvadini (great and eloquent speech).
destroys memory of all weapons). Lalitaa Devi destroyed The immensely brave Bhanda daitya released Arnavastra
its strength with the weapon known as dharana. Bhanda (weapon in the form of the ocean). This filled everything
released Bhayastra (weapon that causes fear), which caused up with water and the Shakti soldiers submerged in this.
fear to the Shaktis. Lalitaa Devi released Aindrastra, which Lalitaa used the nail on the index finger of her right hand.
grants freedom from fear. The danava released Maharogastra She created the primordial Kurma, extending for one yojana.
(weapon that causes great diseases), directed against He held them up on the shell on his back. The Shaktis were
the Shakti soldiers. Thousands of ailments, pulmonary filled with delight and gave up their fear of the weapon that
consumption and other ailments, manifested themselves. created an ocean. The illustrious one drank up all the water
Lalitaa Parameshvari released a great weapon, consisting of in the ocean. The wicked danava released the great weapon,
a great mantra with the three names of Achuyta, Ananta and Hiranyaksha. Thousands of Hiranyakshas were generated
Govinda. Achyuta, Ananta and Govinda arose from the arrow. from this, wielding clubs as weapons. Struck by them, the
Through their humkara alone, they burnt down the diseases Shakti soldiers were terrified and agitated. Shri Lalitaa
and ensured that all was well. She ordained that they would used the nail on the middle finger of her right hand. A great
be used in the three worlds to crush all ailments devotees Varaha arose from this and he resembled Kailasa. He used
suffer from. Thus engaged, they left for their own abodes. his snout, which was as tough as the vajra, to rout them.
Bhanda danava released the weapon of Ayurnasha (destructive Crores of Hiranyakshas were crushed and conveyed to their
of a long life). The queen released the weapon of Kala- destruction. At this, Bhanda furrowed his eyebrows in great
samkarshani (weapon that drags away death). Bhanda danava rage. Hiranyakashipus, numbering crores, were generated
released the terrible weapon of Mahasurastra (weapon that from this furrowing. They blazed like dazzling suns and
64 19 FEBRUARY 2024
their weapons also blazed. They crushed the Shakti soldiers The garment on his limbs was blue and he sparkled like
and also crushed Prahlada. For the Shaktis, this Prahlada Kailasa. He destroyed all the monkeys who had originated
was the mark of supreme bliss. Though he was only a small from Dvividastra. The immensely strong one released the
boy, he was oppressed by Hiranya. He sought refuge with great weapon known as Rajasura. Many danavas, who were
Lalitaa and the queen showed him her compassion. She kings, originated from this weapon. They were Shishupala,
wished to protect Prahlada, who was bliss personified for Dantavakra, Shalva, the king of Kashi, Poundraka
the Shaktis. Therefore, Maheshvari twirled the tip of the Vasudeva, Rukmi, Dimbhaka, Hamsaka, Shambara,
ring finger on her right hand. Janardana arose from this, Pralamba, Banasura, Kamsa, the wrestler Chanura,
with the face of a lion and the torso of a man. His three Mushtika, Utpalashekhara, Arishta, Dhenuka, Keshi,
eyes blazed and he shook his thick mane. Talons were his Kaliya, Yamalarjuna, Putanaa, Shakata, and Trinavarta.
weapons. Using his talons, which were as firm as the vajra, There were other asuras too. There was the immensely
he shattered the Hiranyakashipus in an instant. Bhanda valiant one, known as Naraka. There was the asura Mura,
then released the extremely terrible Bali weapon towards who assumed Vishnu’s form. Many other soldiers arose,
Lalitaa Devi. This was capable of Illustration by SAURABH SINGH
holding weapons in their hands. To
destroying all the devas. From the destroy all of them, from the nail
tip of the little finger on the right on the ring finger of Shri Devi’s left
hand of the immensely energetic hand, the eternal Vasudeva arose. He
great queen, thousands of Vamanas assumed Chaturvyuha, with four
originated, so as to destroy the forms—Vasudeva, Samkarshana
insolence of that weapon. They were Pradyumna and Aniruddha. All of
immensely strong and increased in them raised up their weapons. They
number every instant. They held destroyed all those evil-doers who
nooses in their hands. They used increased the burden of the earth.
these nooses to restrain and bind all When they were destroyed, Bhanda
the Balis who had originated from danava became angry. He released
the weapon. Bhanda daitya released the terrible Kalyastra (weapon that
Haihayastra. Thousands of Arjunas leads to Kali Yuga) which causes
(meaning Kartavirya Arjunas) transgressions in dharma. Kings
were generated from this and each were born from Kalyastra—Andhras,
possessed one thousand arms. From LALITAA KAMESHVARI USED THE Pundras, Kiratas, Shabaras, Hunas,
the nail on the thumb of Shri Lalitaa’s WEAPON MAHAKAMESHVARA, and Yavanas. They were wicked in
left hand, Bhargava Rama arose. WHICH POSSESSED THE conduct. From the nail of the little
He blazed in rage and roared like SPLENDOUR OF ONE THOUSAND finger on Shri Lalitaa’s left hand,
a lion. Using his sharp and tough SUNS. USING THIS, THE MOTHER which was like a lotus, Janardana
battle-axe, he splintered them. In an ROBBED BHANDA OF HIS LIFE originated, under the name of Kalki.
instant, the one thousand Arjunas He was astride a horse and blazed in
were annihilated. Bhanda daitya his prosperity. He laughed loudly.
became angry and roared in his rage. Ravana arose from The sound of his laughter was like a bolt of thunder. All
this roar, holding a chandrahasa sword in his hand. He was the Kiratas lost their senses and were destroyed. Those ten
surrounded by one thousand akshouhinis of soldiers. Taking avataras performed an extremely difficult deed.
his younger brother, Kumbhakarna, and son, Meghnada, When all these weapons were destroyed, Bhanda’s hopes
with him, he crushed the Shakti soldiers and flung them were also dashed. He released the weapon Mahamoha (the great
far away. From the nail on the index finger of Shri Lalitaa’s delusion) and the Shaktis lost their senses. Ambaa released
hand, Rama originated, wielding his bow. Lakshmana Shambhavastra (Shambhu’s weapon) and destroyed the
was with him. Rama’s crown consisted of matted hair. weapon Mahamoha. Devi Laliaa Ambikaa used Narayanastra
Using divine weapons, he destroyed the rakshasa soldiers to reduce all the akshouhinis to ashes. The great queen then
in an instant. He crushed Poulastya and his brother, used Pashupatastra, which blazed like the fire of destruction.
Kumbhakarna. Lakshmana destroyed the immensely This crushed the forty commanders. With all his relatives
brave Meghanada. Bhanda danava released the immensely killed, the wicked one was the only one who was left. Bhanda
terrible Dvividastra. Many monkeys, possessing tawny possessed great spirits and was terrible in valour. He blazed in
eyes, were born from this. Their faces were coppery with rage. Lalitaa Kameshvari used the weapon Mahakameshvara,
rage and each one of them was Hanuman’s equal. From the which possessed the splendour of one thousand suns. Using
nail on the middle finger of Shri Lalitaa’s left hand, Talanka this, the mother robbed him of his life. When Bhanda was
manifested himself. His middle eye was red with rage. destroyed, the three worlds danced in delight.
STARGAZER
KAVEREE BAMZAI
RAHUL CHITTELLA TALAT AZIZ JANHVI KAPOOR
➲ Talat Aziz’s Second Act with the greats. And then due to looks at the city as the home of
Talat Aziz’s voice has always been an various kinds of politics, he had to give the rich or the aspiring rich—
ocean of calm, honed to perfection up the sport. He went into a shell and whether it is the small businessman
under the guidance of two of the finest for months was depressed. He would in Dharavi who is making plastic
ghazal singers in the subcontinent, listen to Mehdi Hassan songs during pouches by the thousands or the
Mehdi Hassan and Jagjit Singh. His this period, locked up in his room. He young girl from the slums who
kind of music may have disappeared was then taken to Canada by his family wants to become a supermodel.
from Hindi cinema but of late, Aziz where he decided to travel by road and As for the super rich, they seem
is often seen on screen as an ageing around that time, at a home mehfil, he to be partying ceaselessly, carelessly,
father or the friendly family guest. saw Mehdi Hassan perform live. He and cheerfully. The stark difference
It all started with Rahul Chittella’s became his student. That’s how he in the quality of life that would
Gulmohar in 2023 where he played started singing. And never stopped. have bothered earlier generations
a family friend who sings a typical is feted, no doubt as Mumbai is
party song. “I wanted a jovial man ➲ Mumbai Bling the city of dreams for Indians,
for the part, ideally who could sing “Can you please turn on the air and the world. Of course,
himself so we could have the actor/ conditioning in the lounge? We’re the figure who is shown as
singer perform the part and the song. melting,” asks a swish Mumbai having kicked the door open
The best thing I loved about Talatji is socialite. “They have a habit of to all this is former Prime
that despite all that he’s gone through washing utensils just when cameras Minister Manmohan Singh.
in his life, he remains an optimist who are rolling,” says another, pulling up
genuinely loves himself, much like her domestics in the kitchen. And ➲ Scene and Heard
the character. And it helped that he a self-satisfied, smirking designer A chance encounter in a flight
hadn’t sung a film song for a long time says, without irony, “We have three with actor Janhvi Kapoor who
so the nostalgia box was ticked for people in the staff whose only job is to was escorting her sister Khushi
me as the song that we composed was polish our antiques in batches.” BBC to the sets of the latter’s new film
such,” says Chittella. “I don’t think I Two’s three-part documentary Streets with Ibrahim Ali Khan got me
discussed the role much with him. I of Gold: Mumbai looks at India with thinking. Janhvi has talked often,
met him [for the first time] and loved rose-coloured glasses with a glass of with regret, about missing out on
his personality and thought it would rosé in its hand. There’s Nadir Godrej her mother Sridevi’s guidance
be great to have him as the family guffawing about how the old rich on the sets of her first film Dhadak,
friend. He had the warmth, nostalgia lived in bungalows but the new rich because she was so conscious
and optimism that we needed for the live in highrises. There’s Yash Birla of her star stature. Clearly, Janhvi
story,” Chittella adds. Aziz has also pointing to the carelessly clashing has decided to help her little sister
been seen in Scam 2003 as well as in luxury labels on his person. And Khushi, whose debut in Zoya Akhtar’s
Fighter in the role of Hrithik Roshan’s there’s Gautam Singhania alighting The Archies was a tad underwhelming.
father. He lives in Mumbai, does from a helicopter (“It beats the traffic”) Janhvi is also increasingly going back
shows throughout the year and also to play with his race cars. Thoroughly to her roots, and this is nowhere more
trains youngsters. Aziz, who is well spoilt, utterly excessive, this is the evident than in her forthcoming film
kept at 66, has acted briefly onscreen world of Mumbai’s one per centers, Devara, where she is cast opposite
before on TV and had a small role in where being rich is cool. While the Junior NTR. His grandfather
Fitoor (2016). He’s had quite a life story. world’s documentarians have so NT Rama Rao was a co-star with Sridevi
He was a serious cricket player in his far focused on a ground-up view of in at least 10 films. This is one legacy
home city, Hyderabad, and practised Mumbai, Streets of Gold pair worth waiting for.
66 19 FEBRUARY 2024
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w w w. o p e n t h e m a g a z i n e .

RNI NO. DELENG/2009/27862

OR Visit your nearest Nature’s Basket or Spencer’s store

LOCOMOTIF OPEN DIARY GAME, SETH BYLINE NOTEBOOK

INSIDER COMMENT COMMENT INSIGHT OPEN ESSAY

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I T IS REMARKABLE how a little

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Guarding the Gates of the Northeast

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PORTRAIT ZAKIR HUSSAIN Grammy. Hussain, McLaughlin and Company won

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A LL THIS HAPPENED in less than a decade after India

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By JAMES ASTILL in Washington DC

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77-year-old former president’s heart bears

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federal ones, one in New York, and another

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An aggregate of national polls modelled by The Economist gives Trump a

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Illustration by SAURABH SINGH

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