Personal View

US example shows countries need good leaders more than the strong ones Alok Tiwari “…however good a constitution may be, it is sure to turn out bad because those who are called to work it happen to be a bad lot. However bad a constitution may be, it may turn out to be good if those who are called to work it happen to be a good lot,” said Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in his final speech to the Indian Constituent Assembly on November 25, 1949. In the over seven decades since then his words have turned out to be prophetic, not just for India but for many countries around the world. The architect of Indian Constitution was emphasising the importance of human spirit in everything that we do. Dr Ambedkar’s words ring truer than ever today for the birthplace of modern democracy, the United States. This column already noted how Donald Trump managed to degrade the American democracy in an astonishingly short time since his assumption of office. Today, as his actions bring unprecedented turmoil i...

Justice Varma case shouldn’t be used to erode judicial independence Alok Tiwari The alleged discovery of cash, reportedly worth over Rs 15 crore, by firefighters at the residence of Justice Yashwant Varma of Delhi High Court last month has left the judiciary singed. The entire institutional set up of judiciary has appeared slow, almost reluctant, to pursue the matter. Initially, Delhi fire service chief denied his men had come across any cash pile and Justice Varma was quietly shunted to Allahabad HC. The SC collegium at first called the transfer routine. The wheels began moving only when a video of the incident became public. Justice Varma denied that he or his family members had anything to do with the money and that it was found in a part of the property not used by the family. SC then confirmed the transfer and set up an enquiry panel. Hopefully it will unearth the facts, and the case will reach its logical end. It better do so, because prima facie it looks bad. Like they say...

Lack of transparency around goings on in largest private lender is worrying Alok Tiwari Lost in the recent market mayhem caused by the US-Israel attack on Iran was an event that was enough to cause a cataclysm by itself. It was the cryptic resignation of Atanu Chakraborty, the non-executive chairman of country’s largest private sector lender HDFC Bank. His exit caught everybody by surprise. But what caused the country’s financial tectonic plates to start sliding was the reason he gave for it. Chakraborty wrote in his resignation letter that there were things happening at HDFC Bank that were at variance with his personal values. He did not give any details. Not to the public, not to regulators like RBI or SEBI, not even to his own board. The board seemed just as perplexed as the customers. What further muddied the water was exit of three senior executives over what was called misselling of Credit Suisse AT-I bonds in Dubai a few years ago. Financial commenters are coming up with sev...

The Aurangzeb tomb issue is just to prevent us from raising tough questions that matter Alok Tiwari In the 11 years of Modi regime, the country is used to occasional stirring of communal cauldron. This usually happens just before major elections are due either nationally or in big states. So, it is a bit surprising to see the ruling party leaders raise the Aurangzeb bogey now. Modi government is safely ensconced at the Centre. His party has won major states too. No significant elections are due in next few months. Lighting communal fires now defy the usual experience. But make no mistake the fires are as deliberate as they are diabolical. There is no earthly reason why a Mughal emperor who ruled centuries ago should become an issue now. Such issues are systematically planted in popular mind. Movies like Chhava create the ground and then seemingly casual remarks by politician throw the seeds. The minds already conditioned and consumed by prejudices are enough fertilizers for them ...

State’s curbing of uncomfortable opinions diminishes Shivaji’s legacy and vision Alok Tiwari Time was when Maharashtra prided itself on its progressive ethos. Those lie in the dust today, trampled by a revanchist and revisionist regime. Just last week a legislator was suspended from the state’s legislature for what the powers that be thought was praise of late Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. It did not stop there. There were calls for demolition of Aurangzeb’s tomb that lies in what used to be Aurangabad. This was supported by none other than state’s CM Devendra Fadnavis raising the possibility of the government actually going through with the move. If it does happen it would bring the state closest to the regime of Taliban in Afghanistan that blew up the magnificent Buddhas of Bamiyan. It did not erase the history of Buddhism in Afghanistan, it merely underlined the brutes that the Taliban were. At that time we thought, foolishly it turns out, that such things will never come to pass ...

Maharashtra’s anti-conversion bill furthers erosion of civil liberties Alok Tiwari As far as anti-conversion laws are concerned, Maharashtra has been a bit late to the party. This is understandable as chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was preoccupied with things of far more importance. But the state has made up for the delay by bringing a law that is far more stringent. It will no doubt help the chief minister gain some distance in the race for being next Hindutva icon. One suspects another law on uniform civil code must be in the pipeline. Like many laws pushed under the Modi regime, this one too seeks to kill two birds with one stone. One, it keeps the communal pot boiling. And second, it gives another tool to the government to curb freedoms. Make no mistake, it may be named Freedom of Religion bill, but its real purpose is exactly the opposite. It aims at appeasing the Hindutva base by empowering the state to poke its nose into what should be completely private affairs—religion...

Within weeks, the new US President has set America on a long road to decline Alok Tiwari There is little doubt the world has fundamentally changed since the inauguration of President Donald Trump in USA. There have been many examples of popular movements swiftly overthrowing dictators—sometimes bloodlessly, often accompanied with bloodshed. There have been very few when a functional democracy descended into a functional autocracy so quickly sans a military coup or suspension of legal process by a wannabe dictator. Usually, this process is long drawn as a populist demagogue steadily chips away at individual rights and adds to state power. Who could have thought this would happen in a country that used to see itself as a leader of the free world? But exactly this has happened in the US in a matter of weeks. Trump, in his second coming, looks less of a head of state known for its checks and balances and more of an autocrat in a tinpot republic. His power over the government seems ab...

Indian citizens have been travelling on broken, uncomfortable seats all their life Alok Tiwari Among Air India’s many embarrassments was a Tweet last week by Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union minister for agriculture and rural development, that he found the seat on his flight from Bhopal to Delhi broken. It was uncomfortable enough for him to post a lengthy Tweet expressing his disappointment with the airline even after being taken over by Tatas. When he brought this to the notice of the crew, he learnt the seats have issues and this was conveyed to the management. Yet, these seats continued to be sold. Many co-passengers immediately offered their seat to Chouhan but, everyone’s favourite Mamaji that he is, he humbly declined and continued the journey in the same seat. Since the Tweet was by a Union minister, it evoked immediate response from the airline. Apart from usual apology, Air India declared it was launching a probe into the matter. Chouhan’s colleague the aviation minister ...

There are no good sides in current middle eastern conflict Alok Tiwari Like practically everything these days, the US and Israeli war on Iran too has divided the world. In India as much as elsewhere. You could be a typical Hindutva nut and applaud the aggression simply because those getting killed in large numbers are Muslims. You could be a typical liberal and go to your default anti-American setting and condemn the unprovoked violation of Iranian sovereignty and killing of its supreme leader. You could be a typical Islamist hothead and chant death to Trump and America just because a Muslim country has been attacked. Anything more nuanced than that and you risk being called names, not just by those opposed but even by those otherwise on your side. The age of social media and trolls thrives on easy choices. We are getting programmed to see everything in black and white. There is little space for grey. Everything is us versus them. As former US President George W. Bush so memorabl...

NYC mayor’s case shows the importance of probity in public institutions Alok Tiwari Amid the upheaval caused by Donald Trump in the US there is also a side show going on that is just as significant. It is related to New York City mayor Eric Adams. He is a Democratic politician serving as mayor of US’s biggest city for three years. In September last year, after a series of investigations by the US Justice Department, notably under the Democratic administration of President Joe Biden, he was charged with bribery, fraud, wire fraud, and taking illegal favours from foreign governments. Adams has pleaded not guilty and has refused to resign even as public pressure, including by peers in his party mounted, for him to quit. But that is not important. What is important is what happened once Trump was elected president, and it has lessons for India as well. Politicians everywhere are thick-skinned and rarely quit office voluntarily. Adams is no different. As Trump began a new era of going...

Instead of being angry at others, Indians need to start respecting themselves Alok Tiwari Last week when a plane load of Indians who had entered US illegally were sent home, Indians were outraged. Mainstream and social media were full of how they were treated. How their hands and feet were cuffed and how they had to endure a 30-hour flight only on scant nourishment. Many took the opportunity to put Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the mat over his alleged failure to ensure the Indians were treated with dignity. They questioned the value of his friendship with President Donald Trump and his vaunted status as a global statesman. His supporters, instinctively, jumped to his defence saying the illegal entrants got just what they deserved. Weren’t they being unpatriotic in deciding to leave India? And they had no business sneaking into another country illegally. I think the outrage as well as defence in this case were misplaced. It would have been a matter of shame for India even if ...

Stifling discussion would not make issues facing the judiciary go away Alok Tiwari When the world is transfixed with happenings in the middle east, it does seem a little odd to return to a kerfuffle that occupied India in the preceding days. India’s supreme court absolutely blew its top when it was reported that a new version of class VIII textbook mentioned corruption in judiciary as one of the factors affecting delivery of justice in the country. The court took judicial cognizance of the paragraph. It banned the book and ordered all physical and digital copies be prevented from circulation. Not just that, Chief Justice Surya Kant saw in it a deep-rooted conspiracy to malign and undermine the judiciary. Senior counsels like Kapil Sibal (who, ironically, has rightly been lamenting about erosion of civil liberties in the country) and Abhishek Manu Singhvi brought up the issue before the court. Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, who normally has no hesitation is defending the...

The band’s message of love and diversity was the balm for the host city’s wounds Alok Tiwari Before last month I had barely heard of Coldplay. Actually, I have never had an ear for western music, popular or classical. My loss, of course. I am among those whose appreciation of music never went much beyond the Hindi film songs of 50s and 60s. Most of the music I have enjoyed is from a time before my birth or from my childhood. So the buzz around the British band’s concerts in India was a bit of a puzzle for me. I wondered how could tickets for the concerts be sold out in minutes and then be resold for astronomical sums in the black market. I read about hotel tariffs in Mumbai going berserk for those days. Are there really so many and so passionate fans of the band in India? That was just the dinosaur in me thinking. The band may deserve all that and more. But among the things that caught my eye me was the second venue of their concerts announced later—Ahmedabad. Mumbai one could un...