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Khalistan-II
Made in Canada
Sikh religious secessionism threatening the
Indian Constitution assumes proportions
of official policy status in Ottawa as Punjab
Police books four Canadian residents for
gun-running and terror-funding.

R N I N O. 7044/19 6 1

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O
Volume LVIII, No. 6 Comment

Saluting the DM
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Rajesh Ramachandran
gROup CREaTIVE DIRECTOR R. prasad
DEpuTY maNagINg EDITOR Sunil menon
CHIEF OF BuREau pranay Sharma
pOLITICaL EDITOR Bhavna Vij-aurora

I
WRITERS Satish padmanabhan (Deputy Editor),

f you are willing to forget the criminal past of the author, Shantaram, a thriller
arindam mukherjee, Lola Nayar, Qaiser
mohammad ali (Senior associate Editors),
g.C. Shekhar (associate Editor),
Dola mitra (Sr asst Editor), pragya Singh, prachi
set in Mumbai, can legitimately be rated far above the “clunky” stuff churned out
pinglay-plumber, minu Ittyipe (asst Editors),
ajay Sukumaran, Naseer ganai (Senior Special
by the Lutyens’ elite. A few passages of the novel still remain vivid in my clut-
Correspondents), ushinor majumdar (Special tered, rapid-access-memory. It is about the narrator’s train journey from Mum-
Correspondent), arushi Bedi, Siddhartha mishra
(Correspondents) bai to Shantaram’s village in an unreserved compartment. In the dirty railway
COpY DESk giridhar Jha (Senior Editor), coach, everybody fights everyone else to get a perch. There is no compassion, no
civility, no frail-strong considerations; the only law is that of the jungle and the
Sreevalsan Thiyyadi, Saikat Niyogi, Satyadeep
(Sr asst Editors), martand Badoni (Sub Editor)
pHOTOgRapHERS S. Rakshit (Chief photo stronger ones grab the better slot. If somebody falls off the footboard from the mov-
ing train into the grinding wheel, so be it. But once the train starts running and
Coordinator), Jitender gupta (Deputy photo
Editor), Tribhuvan Tiwari, Vijay pandey (Chief
photographers), Sandipan Chatterjee, apoorva
Salkade, amit Haralkar (Sr photographers),
everybody gets settled somewhere in the strong-weak, fast-slow, mighty-meek hier-
J.S. adhikari (Sr photo Researcher),
u. Suresh kumar (Digital Library)
archy, there suddenly blossoms a bonhomie, inexplicable and irrational. The same
DESIgN Deepak Sharma (Chief art Director), menacingly vicious people start sharing a meal, a story and begin to care for the
Saji C.S. (Chief Designer), Sajith kumar (Chief
Illustrator), Leela (Senior Designer),
weak and the needy. The unreserved compartment of the Indian Railways is actual-
Devi prasad, padam gupta (Sr DTp Operators) ly a metaphor for India. We have very little resources for
DIgITaL anoop george philip (Executive Editor),
aniruddha Dhar (Senior Copy Editor), Thufail
so many people. So, we fight like strays for the crumbs of
p.T. (Senior Correspondent), Rama Dwivedi comfort, but once we settle down with our crumbs, we
are probably the most generous people in the world.
(Senior Sub Editor), Saswat anupam Singhdeo
(Correspondent), Yamini kalra (Sub Editor),
Suraj Wadhwa (Chief graphic Designer),
Rupesh malviya (Video Editor)
Nobody understood this better than Gandhi. Our col-
EDITORIaL maNagER Sumanta Sen onial masters tried their best to make us fight. from 1909
LIBRaRY alka gupta (Chief Librarian) onwards, they wanted to create separate nations of caste
BUSINESS OFFICE Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and Dalits. They did
CHIEF ExECuTIVE OFFICER Indranil Roy
puBLISHER Sandip kumar ghosh
succeed in tearing apart the Indian soul to create a sepa-
VICE pRESIDENTS abraham uthup, rate Muslim nation (now, two actually). But in 1947, Gan-
meenakshi akash, Sam Ben Samuel,
Shrutika Dewan dhi thought that the train has started its journey and
NaTIONaL HEaD archana Browne (Special once everybody settles after the mad rush for space, there could be truth and recon-
projects)
SR gENERaL maNagERS kabir khattar (Corp), ciliation. His threat to starve to death to ensure peace in Delhi succeeded and he
V. Sridhar (South)
gENERaL maNagERS Debabani Tagore,
wanted to visit Pakistan to sew up the torn tissues of the Indian soul. But a disciple
Sasidharan kollery, Shashank Dixit, Siddhartha of V.D. Savarkar (an acolyte of the colonial masters) pulled the trigger and the light
Chatterjee, Shailender Vohra
aSSISTaNT gENERaL maNagER
went out of our lives. Unfortunately, those who pulled the trigger to help establish
Diwan Singh Bisht separate electorates and separate nations still live among us. They call Gandhi a
casteist. They also drive bikes and jeeps into Muslim-dominated neighbourhoods to
CHIEF maNagER Shekhar kumar pandey
maNagERS Shekhar Suvarana, Sudha Sharma
CIRCuLaTION & SuBSCRIpTION Raj kumar establish a Hindutva Rashtra. They do it without even understanding that they are
undermining the very nationhood they are claiming to uphold by waving the tri-
mitra, anindya Banerjee, g. Ramesh (South),
Vinod kumar (North), arun kumar Jha (East)
DIgITaL amit mishra
color. They seem to be still trying to prove the Minto-Morley working papers right
HEAD OFFICE on the “nations of India”. But where the idea of India survives and where Morley’s
aB-10, S.J. Enclave, New Delhi - 110 029
Tel: 011-33505500; Fax: 26191420
ghost gets exorcised is when suddenly a district magistrate puts up a facebook post.
Customer care helpline: 011-33505533,
33505500
“A strange trend has started of late. Take out processions through Muslim-dominat-
e-mail: outlook@outlookindia.com ed localities and raise anti-Pakistan slogans. Why? Are these people Pakistani? The
For editorial queries: edit@outlookindia.com
For subscription helpline:
same thing had happened in Khailam village of Bareilly? Then stones were pelted,
yourhelpline@outlookindia.com fIRs lodged,” wrote Raghavendra Vikram Singh (in pic). I salute you, DM of Bareilly.
OtHEr OFFICES Sure, Chandan Gupta shouldn’t have been killed in Kasganj and we grieve for him,
mumBaI Tel: 022-33545000; Fax: 33545100
CaLCuTTa Tel: 033 46004506; Fax: 033 46004506
but there is no need to bully our fellow citizens, just to prove the colonialists right.
CHENNaI Tel: 42615224, 42615225; Fax: 42615095 The liberal prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, seems to accommodate
BaNgaLORE Tel: 080-43715021
some cabinet colleagues and other politicians who want to partition India again on
printed and published by Indranil Roy on
behalf of Outlook publishing (India) pvt. Ltd. religious lines, this time for a separate Sikh nation. Sikhs are less than two per cent
Editor: Rajesh Ramachandran. printed at
International print-O-pac Ltd, C 4-C 11,
of the Indian population, but we have had a Sikh President, a prime minister for 10
phase-II, Noida and published from aB-10, years, many armed services chiefs and much else. Canada has over four per cent abo-
riginal people whose lands were stolen by the ancestors of Trudeau. A true liberal
S.J. Enclave, New Delhi-110 029

published for the week of February 06-12, 2018

Released on February 03, 2018
would have given up his privileges for a person with an aboriginal identity.
Total no. of pages 76, Including Covers Rajesh Ramachandran

12 February 2018 OutlOOk 5

 Vellore
VIT
Vellore Institute
Institute of
of Technology
Technology
(Deemed to be University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956)
(Deemed to be University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956)

READY.
READY. STEADY.
STEADY.

VITEEE
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POLICY
India’s new hydrocarbon
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by BHAMY V. SHENOY

POLITICS
“No reason for the BJP to be
thrilled, Jay Panda is only
a twitter tiger in
SEPARATE WAYS A pro-Khalistan march in London, June 3, 2007 Orissa politics.”
by ASHOK SWAIN

18 Nowhere Road Still

With the repatriation process frozen due to the current political climate, the lakhs of
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have their fate put on hold

24 Badlands Bypass
The Khattar government’s report card in Haryana goes from bad to worse with each
NATIONAL
passing crime reported from the state. A look behind the factors enabling such violence.
What do gifts by Modi and
Manmohan Singh to the US
28 The Bottled Ghosts of Khalistan tell us about them
Long after the Khalistan militancy days, repressed anger finds shelter elsewhere in a globalised by KUMAR SHANKAR ROY

world. Canada as the new frontier of the radical Sikh movement foments trouble back home.

48 Money, Money, Money

Making sense of the much-awaited, post-DeMo/GST, budget of the government

64 Writer Tide
What is behind the growing demand for scriptwriters in Bollywood? In India, our larger
problem is not so much fake
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 letters
No Kings In This Court
ON E-MAIL Nitin M. Majumdar:
This refers to your cover story The Chief
and His Court (Jan 29). While the rebel­
lion of sorts by four Supreme Court
judges may settle down sooner or later,
it is important that the higher judiciary
should show utmost respect to the dem­
ocratic political system’s two cardinal
truths: responsible government and the
sovereignty of people or popular will.
The bureaucracy is answerable to the
political executive, which in turn is res­
ponsible to the people through the
members of Parliament and state legis­
latures in matters of policies, pro­
grammes and other executive actions
and even inaction. The role of the courts
pertains to ensuring justice, the most
important duty of a society towards its
people. Under the doctrine of separa­
tion of powers and checks and balances,
the Supreme Court and the high courts
should keep their hands off matters
involving the responsibility of the exec­
utive and sovereignty of people and
refuse to subject them to judicial scru­
tiny and review. It would also considera­
bly reduce the pile of pending cases.
DEHRADUN Rakesh Agrawal: Our
Supreme Court is among the last few
remaining institutions in the country in
which people still haven’t lost faith. The
citizens look up to the apex judicial insti­
tution as a last resort for justice (there
have been some exceptions, of course,
like the case of raising the height of the
Sardar Sarovar Dam). Sadly, even the
reputation of this honoured institution
is at risk now. The four senior SC judges
have alerted the people about this risk so
that future generations cannot accuse
them of selling their souls. The current
Chief Justice seems to be treating the SC
as his own court and not as the highest
court of the country. There is an urgent
need to check this. The other judges
aren’t his subordinates. In the US
one-liner
NEW DELHI Anshuman Vyas
Supreme Court is the last refuge for the oppressed of the country, save it at all costs!
10 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
January 29, 2018
Supreme Court, all nine judges sit on
one bench. However, given the fact that
millions of cases are pending in our
courts, including in the SC, this may not
be a pragmatic step, but there is an urg­
ent need to address this problem and
make the position of the CJI what it is: a
first among equals. Testing times lie
ahead for the last bastion of the people’s
hope and one particular case—that of
‘unnatural’ death of Justice Loya, will
tell us if this bastion still holds or has
fallen. For, not only must justice be done,
it must also be seen to be done.
ON E-MAIL Buddhadev Nandi:
Needless to say, the dissent by the top
four, in the form of a press conference,
over the alleged misuse of adminis­
trative power by CJI Dipak Mishra, is a
matter of grave concern. Certain
observers might be terming this act of
dissent a politically motivated consp­
iracy, but the incident has undoubtedly
rocked the democratic base of our
country. The CJI, as master of the ros­
ter, is entitled to decide the com­
position of benches and allot judicial
work. According to the four senior
judges who held the press conference,
the CJI is misusing his prerogative by
playing ‘master of judges’ instead of
master of roster. Their letter suggests
that the CJI has deviated from conven­
tions and flouted clear guidelines reg­
arding the strength and composition of
benches of their preference. However,
the public exposure of the administra­
tive crisis within the judiciary has ulti­
mately cast a mist over the integrity of
the Supreme Court, which is extremely
unfortunate. As it is, the government at
the Centre has tried to bend the judici­
ary in the past regarding the question
of judicial appointments. Thankfully,
the judiciary was able to reject those
proposals. Now the million dollar ques­
tion is whether the CJI will submit to
the demands of the rebels. Considering
the sanctity and reputation of the judi­
ciary in Indian democracy, the matter
should be settled immediately without
the intervention of political parties or
even the government.
HANAMKONDA Seetharam
Basaani: An independent and honour­
able judiciary is indispensable for a
just society. A judge should maintain
and enforce high standards of conduct
and should personally observe those
standards, so that the integrity of the
judiciary is preserved. The Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court of India
is the ‘first among equals’. His deci­
sions should not proactively seek to set
policy in the institution. Four senior
judges of the Supreme Court have
made a scathing attack against Chief
Justice Dipak Misra. Unprecedented
in Indian judicial history, the entire
issue was made public. In support of
the charges, they have cited two

cases—the curious case of the former
chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh
and the revival of an impounded
license to a medical college.
LUCKNOW M.C. Joshi:The ‘mutiny’
happened because CJI Dipak Misra is
said to have allotted the case supposed
to probe judge Loya’s death to ‘selective’
judges. But were these judges, to whom
the case was allotted, incompetent or
corrupt? If not, then why was there a
cause for alarm? How is it that by
non­allotment of certain cases to these
four judges (the ones who held the
press conference), democracy was
thought to be in danger?
SECUNDERABAD K.R. Srinivasan:
The allegations that the CJI showed bias
in allocating vital cases to benches of his
preference and to junior judges show
that the judiciary is slowly losing its
credibility. As there is no place for nep­
otism, favouritism, casteism and other
extraneous considerations in courts, the
time has come for the CJI to rectify the
situation by urgently introducing reme­
dial measures; otherwise, the dangerous
precedent set by the four judges will
only pave the way for more dissent, ult­
imately leading to the collapse of the
rule of law. Finally, to preserve judicial
independence, it is important that the
issue be resolved internally without
succumbing to the diktats of other
wings of the government.
HYDERABAD J.S. Acharya:
Independent India hasn’t seen a judicial
crisis as severe as this. The manner in
which things have unfolded in the past
one year in the Supreme Court have
DELHI CM ARVIND KEJRIWAL MEETS
SHOP OWNERS ON THE SEALING ISSUE
VIDEOS
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INBOXED
Significance and Context
GOA M.N. Bhartiya: One wonders why
“upper­caste” people went from Pune to
nearby Bhima Koregaon just to insult and pro­
voke the Dalits on the annual commemoration
of the valour of the “lowly” Mahars, an event
that Dalits have been celebrating for several
decades (Why not Srirangapatna?, Jan 22).
Dalit leaders Jignesh Mewani, Prakash
Ambedkar and Chandrashekhar Azad ‘Ravan’
are far off from justifying the merits of fighting
for or against Peshwas or colonial British; but they are certainly concerned
with the undeclared tyranny and fear generated by the Hindutva brigade to
subdue minorities including Dalits, OBCs and tribals and, polarise society.
Bheemrao Ambedkar’s contribution of giving us a secular Constitution
stands sabotaged by supporters and enablers of Hindutva nationalism.
undermined citizens’ confidence. If the
seniormost judges in the collegium
could not sort out their differences on
certain issues, they could perhaps have
called a full court of all the judges to
evolve an institutional mechanism to
deal with such situations.
The Blues in the Red
MUMBAI Kamal Anil Kapadia:
It’s a myth that the issue of women’s
hygiene and menstruation is a problem
only in the villages (Bleeding Heart, SUPER MAN! PadMan’s machine
Murugan’s Pads, Jan 22). The problem
prevails in urban spaces of the country, ON E-MAIL K.C. Varghese: A very
including its highly populous metros. interesting read. One truly appreciates a
We need our children to be educated man’s courage to undertake this amazing
more on this subject in schools, which journey of providing relief to common
should also promote open discussion women. He deserves recognition.
on it. The government should impose
no GST on this product. We now have Goodbye Fishy Ban!
dynamic entrepreneurs bringing out CALCUTTA Lt Col Ranjit Sinha
low­cost sanitary pads; a phenomena (ret’d): Apropos of ‘No Borders for
in which even Bollywood has found a Hilsa’ (In and Around, Jan 29), I would
theme for a film. like to point out that Bangladesh
DELHI COPS LATHICHARGE AAP MLAS
PROTESTING AGAINST SEALING
PLUS
REPORTER’S DIARY
WEB COLUMNS
BLOGS
AND, YES,
ALL THE NEWS
MORE THAN JUST THE NEWSMAGAZINE
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 11
 letters
imposed its ban on Hilsa exports in
response to the failure, due to disagr­
eement from Bengal’s CM, of Indo­
Bangladesh talks about sharing water
from the Teesta river. Bangladesh
intended to use Bengalis’ love for the
fish as leverage in the negotiations,
but this did not pay off and thus they
have now lifted the ban. This is a posi­
tive development for relations
between the two countries.
Rape and Riot
MUMBAI K.P. Rajan: This refers to
your editorial comment Rani Nirbhaya
(Jan 29). Haryana, notorious for hon­
our killings, khap panchayats, female
foeticide and fringe elements of all
hues roaming the streets, has added
one more feather to its infamous cap, as
the rape capital of India. A rape and
murder a day has become the norm in
this state neighbouring the national
capital, which itself is no better when it
comes to women’s safety. It’s incom­
prehensible that while Haryana’s
Rajputs want to protect the honour and
valour of Padmini, said to be a fictional
character, they have no respect for the
honour and life of girls and women who
are alive. The BJP leadership should
show CM Khattar the door to save
Haryana’s name and the BJP’s image.
MUMBAI Pragmulji: I read your
comment on Rani Nirbhaya and found
it most disturbing. I agree with your
observations.
ON E-MAIL M.B.: The entire
Padmaavat fiasco is a crude political
game to polarise and poison the social
milieu with hatred and misogyny, in
order to revive medieval feudalism
under the saffron flag. The way the gov­
ernment has dealt with the violent and
disruptive Karni Sena protests gives
out a clear message that freedom of
expression, guaranteed in the
Constitution, will henceforth be regu­
lated by the likes of self­styled, Right­
wing vigilante groups and not the
courts. In many cultures, women are
revered as goddesses, yet violence
against women is an everyday reality in
our society. Turning a blind eye to the
actions of fringe­groups like Karni
Sena and failure to curb violence
against women certainly canot be
termed as good governance.
12 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
MYSORE J. Akshobhya: Four rapes in
two days must have jolted Haryana’s
collective conscience. The unfortunate
fact is, the state is witnesses an alarming
number of well over a 1,000 rapes in a
year, around 200 of them gang rapes,
according to reports. That is about three
rapes a day. There are also around 4,000
kidnappings a year. It is about time chief
minister Manohar Lal Khattar realised
that ‘divine intervention’ is not going to
help him run the state. He must recog­
nise the imperative of governance and
take strict steps to end violence against
women. This is not to say the state was
much better before the BJP took charge.
All that has been as much due to the
self­serving ruling elite as the caste­rid­
den moribund structure of society.
BAN SENA Protests against Padmaavat
Dominator Digital
CHENNAI M.Y. Shariff: This refers
to the cover story Click G for Media
Monopoly (Jan 22). Google, with its
Chrome browser, search engine and
news provision, is now utterly domi­
nant on the world wide web. Whatever
our apprehensions about it, we simply
cannot do without it, so thoroughly has
it crushed its competitors; its necessity
is a fait accompli. The internet without
Google would be like a world without
oxygen or food without salt.
PUNE G.L. Karkal: May I kindly be
allowed to congratulate the person who
designed the Outlook cover on Google—
How to Gobble Up Indian Media? (Jan
22). I also want to mention how effec­
tive the informative graphics under the
headings ‘Decline of the Maratha
Empire’ and ‘The British, The Marathas
and the Mahars’ were. They gave a
comprehensive picture of the history
behind the present conflict in
Maharashtra. Keep it up Outlook.
Hit Back History
ON E-MAIL Ayushman: The article
Bloody Scrum, Glorious Victory (Jan 22)
looks at the Battle of Koregaon from a
historian’s perspective. However, he
does not point out that the Peshwas’
oppressive policy towards the Mahars
had its roots in the Mahars of Vadhu
village performing the last rites for
Sambhaji, Shivaji’s son and successor,
after he had been killed by the Mughals.
The Peshwas, a Brahmin dynasty that
rose to power afterwards, took this as
an affront and persecuted the Mahars
near Pune. The battle was ultimately
not the result of the British divide and
rule policy but of the Brahminical pol­
icy of caste segregation.
ON E-MAIL Simon John: If the
British mistreated Dalits for a few
hundred years, the casteist forces have
humiliated and subjugated them for
thousands of years. And they continue
to do so. How many generations were
lost in terms of the Dalits’ physical
and psychological growth?
Brahminical domination persists in
the media, judiciary, administration
and education. How long and how far
this would go on is anybody’s guess. As
of now, the average dominant­caste
person doesn’t even acknowledge the
crimes of his ancestors.
Callous Meds
HYDERABAD J.N. Bhartiya: Refer
to Misery as a Terrific Biz Opportunity
(Jan 15). I have also had bad experi­
ences with private hospitals. Two dec­
ades back, my wife had a mild stroke for
which a stent had to be placed in her
heart. But she was still in pain after the
procedure and the doctors couldn’t
provide a clear picture of what had hap­
pened. This led to a lot of dreadful con­
fusion. In another case, my nephew was
diagnosed with TB. He was just a kid
then. We went for further consult­
ations and, eventually, a doctor
(non­corporate) cured him
alternatively.
The crux of the problem is that the
medical syndicate that treats health­
care like a total business. This needs to
be regulated. I feel that alternative sys­
tems of medicine must be encouraged.
A lot of our ailments can be treated
with these systems, without the need
for vector allopathic intervention.

THE SUBCONTINENTAL MENU
ABSOLUTELY HARAAM
W OMEN are forbidden to
watch football, and this is
even worse than the abominable
act of eating prawns. Mufti Athar
Kasmi of Darul Uloom Deoband
issued a fatwa, saying, “What’s the
point of women watching football
matches? What is the benefit?
They’ll be looking at footballers’
thighs and all their attention will
be on that. They would not even
care about the competition or
CASH COW TOURS
T OURISTS in Gujarat can now
go on a two-day guided tour
of some of the state’s leading cow
shelters and official ‘gauchars’
(grazing land), where they can learn
about raising cows and making
useful products from the animals’
waste. Gujarat State Gauseva Ayog
chairman Vallabh Kathiria was
quoted as saying, “Cow tourism is a
step towards making people under-
stand the economic benefits of
D OGS are taking big bites
keeping cows. Most people are not
aware that we can earn good income
by preparing some basic products,
such as bio-gas and medicines, using
cow dung and urine. Cow tourism
is all about combining the religious
aspect with the economical aspect
attached with the cow.”
14 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
IN & AROUND
scores.” He went on to flay men who
let their wives watch such material:
“Do you have no shame? Do you not
fear God? You let her watch these
kinds of things.” He cited a Saudi
Arabian fatwa which classed
women watching football as haraam
(unlawful), which is one step above
makruh (abominable). The latter
classification was extended to
prawns recently by a Hyderabad-
based cleric’s fatwa, on the grounds
that they are arthropods.
A DOG NAMED TIGER
U P police buried a hero recently.
Over the course of a 14-year
career, he had cracked 150 cases by
himself and risen to the rank of DSP,
the apex rank for a canine officer.
Tiger, a sniffer Labrador, believed
BITING OFF in taking the initiative. He would
MORE THAN often run to crime scenes and dig
WE CAN FUND up vital evidence by himself. Once,
he found the body of a murdered
out of Kerala’s coffers.
The state government has
child dumped in a canal 500 metres
from the crime scene, dashing in
complained to the SC that a when the flow of water was stopped.
committee appointed by the On another occasion, he found the
latter is giving out overly gen­ body of a woman by walking three
erous compensation for dog kilometres into a jungle. Tiger’s
bites, with awards as high as colleagues honoured him with a
Rs 20,25,000. The government ceremonial funeral, during which he
has pointed out that treat­ was wrapped in the national flag and
ment in public sector hospitals accompanied by a guard of honour,
is free and that the committee with the DGP himself calling to
hasn’t found any problems
enquire about the
with the healthcare system.
arrangements.
They argue for capping the
awards at Rs 5 lakh—equal
to the amount awarded by
the CM’s Disaster Relief
Fund to disaster victims. The
government also emphasised
that this money comes from
the funds of local bodies (also
responsible for dealing with
strays) which are now strug­
gling under the burden. A
total of Rs 1.73 crore has been
awarded at the committee’s
behest thus far.
Illustrations by SAJITH KUMAR
BHARATIYA MANAGEMENT

E NGINEERING
students may soon
both engineering and man-
agement students. With
begin their college days
with a yoga session at 6
almost 100 VCs having
agreed to implement the
Embarrassing (T)error

am, followed by classes on
environmental science,
human values, traditional
Indian knowledge and the
Constitution. This
comes as part of a
new curriculum
that the All India
Council of Tech-
nical Education
has just rolled
out, covering
DE-STRESSING IN DHAKA
curriculum with modifica-
tions, it is expected to gain
widespread acceptance.
The ethical part of Bhara-
tiya management draws
on the Bhagavad Gita and
the Upanishads, says the
document, while the
Arthashastra contains
much that could be
applied to the mod-
ern economy.
A
FGHANISTAN’S ambassador to Islamabad, Dr Omar
Zakhilwal, was astonished to learn this week that
Pakistan had apparently handed over 27 suspected
members of the Taliban and the Haqqani network to
his country last year, The Express Tribune reported.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office had made the announcement
only the previous day. Kabul’s subsequent categorical
denial that any such transfer took place has spiralled into
a major embarrassment for Islamabad, which has been
under pressure from the US and Afghanistan over alleg­
edly dragging its feet when it comes to moving against
terrorists operating from its soil.
Pakistan claimed the handover took place in November
2017, just weeks after the maiden visit of Army Chief
General Qamar Javed Bajwa to Kabul. The extradition
was supposedly kept confidential until now.

A
However, with the ambassador
38-acre oasis of tranquillity amid the expressing surprise over the Astonished,
fever and fret of metropolitan life, with a news, it seemed that even he the Afghan
lake, calming music, snack corners and giant was not aware of the move. He ambassador
TV screens, all made possible by a $7 million took to Twitter on Wednesday could only
and said that if this had indeed
tweet that, if
investment. This is the vision for an ‘anger happened, it would be a huge
this transfer
management park’ in Bangladesh’s capital. step forward for relations bet­
had indeed
ween the two countries.
Residents and commuters certainly need a bit He did not explain what had occurred, it
of stress relief; they have to deal on a regular prompted the government to would be a
basis with dust and noise pollution, crime, make the announcement at this huge step
heavy rain and traffic jams which can trap stage. But officials familiar forward.
with the development told The
them in their cars for hours. Work on the park Express Tribune that Pakistan had to release the informa­
has just begun, despite detractors calling it tion in order to brush aside the impression that it was
not doing enough in the fight against terrorism.
wasteful and a potential crime haven. On Wednesday, the Afghan government issued its
public denial that any such transfer had taken place.
“Pakistan has not handed over any members of these
groups,” a credible source told TOLOnews.
IN THE WAKE OF GLUTTONOUS WAVES Following the string of terrorist attacks that have

M
Y house was over
there,” said Zainal
Abedin, a farmer from
Kutubdia island in Bang-
ladesh,. “At low tide, we
can still see signs of our
house.” The waves have
been relentless in recent
years, leaving many
destitute. Another farmer,
who lost all his land, was
thinking of pulling his
13-year-old daughter
out of school and marry-
ing her to an older man
looking for a second or
third wife, because he can
no longer support her.
“In Bangladesh, millions
of children and families
are at risk of losing their
homes, their land and
their livelihoods from
rising sea levels, flooding
and increased cyclone
intensity,” said Justin
Forsyth, deputy executive
director, UNICEF.
taken place over the last few days in Kabul, Pakistan
has once again been accused by senior Afghan officials
of providing shelter to both the Afghan Taliban and
the Haqqani network.
Meanwhile, a high­level Afghan delegation arrived in
Islamabad on Wednesday and is expected to hold talks
with Pakistani officials today about cooperation between
the two countries.
The delegation, comprising Interior Minister Wais
Ahmad Barmak and National Directorate of Security
chief Masoom Stanekzai, has come with a message from
President Ashraf Ghani and will hold discussions about
cooperation, reports suggest.

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 15

 deep throat
Holding out for a Hero
The DMK has seen the arrival
of one more son—Udayanidhi
Stalin , who announced at a
party function that he would
play a more active role in poli­
tics. The entry of Udayanidhi, a
film producer and hero in half
a dozen passable films, is all­
eged by some family members
to be aimed at checking the
rise of Kanimozhi, who has
found greater acceptability
after her acquittal in the 2G
case. If Stalin expects
Udayanidhi to take on
Rajnikanth and Kamalahaasan
as well, he should recall how
his step­brother M.K. Muthu
flopped badly when
Karunanidhi fielded him
against MGR in the ‘70s.
OVERHEARD The BJP is obsessed about a one-point agenda where UP is concerned—“Amethi
mein Rahul Gandhi ko harana hai”—to defeat the Congress president in his family fortress.
16 OutlOOk 12 February 2018
Paradoxical Bedfellows
Even as NDA allies at the Centre
are complaining about not being
treated well by the dominant
partner, the BJP, the ruling coali-
tion in J&K is working around the
disagreements. Both the PDP and
the BJP continue to cater to their
respective—and mostly contradic-
tory—constituencies, and yet run
the government together. Chief
Minister Mehbooba Mufti has
promised to take the FIR filed
against the Army over the killing
of three civilians in Shopian to its
logical end; her deputy Nirmal
Singh of the BJP claims that
nothing will be allowed to demor-
alise the Army, saying it has pro-
tection under the AFSPA. Yet
both parties assert that the gov-
ernment is running smoothly and
gearing up for Panchayat elec-
tions in tense South Kashmir.
family-friendly foreword
Here’s something the lit fests
won’t tell you about publish­
ing. A photo book on one of
India’s premier business fami­
lies, including its dynamic
patriarch, is expected to be
released this year. The draft
has gone through various bra­
nches of the family for app­
roval, and the authors are not
exactly complaining. A retired
politician, one who held a top
constitutional post till rec­
ently, is writing a foreword for
the book. For years, while this
politician held several posts,
there were whispers of his
proximity to this industrious
family. The foreword­writing
presents a good occasion for
these whispers to resurface.
 BhaRaT
Bhushan

T
he Bangladesh government has
put the repatriation of nearly
7.5 lakh Rohingya refugees from
Myanmar on hold by a month
because of protests in the ref­
ugee camps and international
pressure against a hasty deal. The rep­
atriation process follows from a bilat­
eral “arrangement” signed by Bangla­
desh and Myanmar in November last
year to send back the Rohingyas cross­
ing into Bangladesh after October 2016.
Two refugee leaders or majhis, who
favoured repatriation, have been mur­
dered in the refugee camps in Cox’s
Bazar. Those whose names they had put
on a repatriation list are being blamed.
The fact remains, however, that Bang­
ladesh has neither the financial res­
ources nor adequate public support to
host the refugees for long.
Myanmar on its part has claimed that
it was ready to receive 1,500 Rohingyas
per week after verification of their resi­
dent status. Being ready may not mean
much more than corralling the return­
ing Rohingyas into ‘transit camps’. The
government has made no promises to
return or compensate property lost or
prosecute those who committed vio­
lence. The refugees are wary of living in
‘grouped villages’ designed for monitor­
ing and punitively controlling the
Rohingya population. rohingyas
Bill Richardson, former US ambassa­

Ripples Turn
dor to the United Nations, resigned from
an international panel the Myanmar
government formed to help organise
the return of refugees from Bangladesh.

Into Waves
Saying he had no intention of becoming
a member of a “cheerleading squad for
the (Myanmar) government”, he has
accused Aug San Suu Kyi of lacking
“moral leadership”.
Since August 25, 2017, nearly 6,88,000
Rohingya refugees fled Myanmar’s Rak­ Changed public sentiment puts Dhaka in a cleft
hine province for adjoining Bangladesh.
The Myanmar Army burned down Rohi­ stick on hasty repatriation of Myanmar refugees

18 OutlOOk 12 February 2018

dark hour an aged rohingya pair Army on August 30, 2017, asks, “Where
gets down from a boat on the Naf bank should we go? Three out of my four sis­
ters were killed along with one of my
ngya villages, shot dead young adults and three brothers. Seven of us fled here after
raped, tortured and abducted Rohingya walking for three days. If there is no
women while ostensibly searching for peace in Myanmar, what should we do?”
extremists who had attacked 30 police Mohammad Ameen of Urbi village ad­
posts and one military outpost on the mits that he will want to go back only “if
August 24/25 night in north­west there is assurance of peace and security
Rakhine. The UN has described these based on Myanmar­Bangladesh under­
army operations as a “textbook example standing and if our property is returned.”
of ethnic cleansing”. He adds, “But we also want justice
The new influx of refugees joined nearly against the atrocities of the Myanmar
1,00,000 Rohingyas who had fled due to army. Our children were killed and our
army excesses in October 2016 to women raped.” The question remains
Bangladesh’s border district of Cox’s unanswered on where the unaccompa­
Bazar. A majority of the refugees are nied and orphaned children, besides
children (54 per cent) and women (52 per members of women or child­headed
cent). About 14 per cent of the refugee households or raped women with possi­
families are headed by single mothers ble ‘war babies’, will return to.
with husbands missing or dead. Nearly 4 The Bangladesh government had deci­
per cent of the refugee families are ded that the Hindu refugees would be
headed by children, with repatriated first. The
separated children consti­ Hindu refugees, housed in
tuting 3.31 per cent of the The locals, who a separate camp, say that
population—and vulnera­ had initially the violence against them
ble to trafficking. was not from the army but
welcomed the
The refugees are housed from militant Rohingyas,
in makeshift bamboo and refugees, have possibly of the Haraqah
tarpaulin shelters in spo­ of late become a­Yaqin, better known as
ntaneously formed and resentful. the Arakan Rohingya
government­run camps in Many complain Salvation Army (ARSA).
the Teknaf and Ukhiya Aashirbad Pal, a Hindu
of rising prices.
sub­districts of Cox’s refugee, standing outside a
Bazar. Some 3,000 acres ramshackle long bamboo
of forest land has been earmarked for a and tarpaulin shelter housing an incred­
massive refugee camp in Balukhali and ible 60 families, explains, “ARSA wants
Kutupalong in Ukhiya. It is run by the freedom. They wanted us to join them.
army along with the local district ad­ We refused and they attacked us. We have
ministration. Except for 450­odd Hindu Myanmar citizenship, while the Muslim
refugees, the Muslim Rohingya refugees Rohingyas don’t.”
are apprehensive of returning without He adds, “We are willing to go back right
guarantees of safety, and assurances of now but only if the Myanmar and Bangla­
citizenship and justice. desh governments provide us security.”
At the Kutupalong refugee camp, ARSA is believed to have killed 187
Ghulam Nabi (all names of refugees have Hindus, burned down houses and tem­
been changed), a majhi, sums up the di­ ples and local Rohingya Muslims alleg­
lemma of being stateless, “We are edly stole their cattle.
‘Bengalis’ in Myanmar and Rohingyas A senior official of the United Nations
here. We are not accepted in either coun­ High Commission for Refugees
try. But how do we go back if there is no (UNHCR) in Cox’s Bazar puzzled over
peace in Myanmar?” Sayeda Khatun, a Dhaka’s rush to repatriate the refugees
woman, interrupts the majhi with all the says, “At the moment the refugees just
anger she could summon, “Both my need to settle. Some are still trying to find
husband and son were killed. I don’t want their missing family members within the
to go back at all.” Other women joined camps. They need to form community
her in refusing to go back. links and get over their trauma.”
At the adjoining Balukhali camp, Ali At the core of the repatriation efforts is
Mamun from TulaToli village, the scene Bangladesh’s refusal to recognise the
of a ghastly massacre by the Myanmar Rohingyas as “refugees”. Termed as

Photographs: AlAmy 12 February 2018 OutlOOk 19

 r oh ingyas

“Displaced Myanmar Residents”, they
are at best “migrants” who do not enjoy
any strong protection under the law.
As “refugees”, they would be protected lief material.
by a consolidated international law. They
would be allowed to seek employment
in the host country, apply for asylum
and protected from forced repatriation
to a country where they could face dis­
crimination (principle of non­refoule­
ment). Bangladesh, however, is neither
a signatory to the 1951 Convention
Relating to the Status of Refugees nor
the 1967 Refugee Protocol (incidentally, are cut and deforested. The indigenous and uncivilised. Nothing good will come
nor is India). With no refugee policy,
Bangladesh deals with the Rohingyas
under the Foreigners’ Act of 1946 and
local administrative mechanisms, al­
though most policy decisions up to now
have favoured the refugees.
The turning of public opin­
ion against the refugees is an
added reason for the govern­
ment’s determination to rep­
atriate them. The local
community which initially
welcomed the refugees has
slowly become resentful. In
Ukhiya sub­district, the refu­
gees already outnumber the
locals. A Rohigya Pratirodh
Committee exists in Cox’s
Bazar since the 1990s.
desperate for Bangladesh citizenship Rohingyas is palpable. They are seen as
and local men think marrying them “culturally backward”. Soeb Said, a jour­
would mean access to free food and re­ nalist with AmaderRamu.com, says,
“We understand the Rohingyas are also
Damage to the local environment and human beings. But their lack of educa­
ecology are also a concern. Mohammad tion makes them barbaric and aggres­
Junaid of Shomudrobarta newspaper sive.” The Imam of the central mosque
said, “Our forests and agricultural land at Ramu Upzila observes, “Despite being
has been taken over by the refugees.” Muslims, they do not know how to offer
Elephant populations in the adjoining prayers. Their behaviour is in conflict
forests have already moved away. with local Muslims.” Sajalkant B.
Environmentalists warn of the possibil­ Choudhury, a Brahmin leader of Ramu,
ity of water sources drying up as hillsides says, “They are uneducated, backward
tribes of the Chittagong Hill Tracts fear by their staying here.”
further ingress into their territory as There are also fears of Rohingya extre­
Rohingyas from previous waves have mists making inroads among the refugees.
settled illegally in their area. Although Several hitherto­unknown Islamic gro­
Cox’s Bazar Assistant Superintendent of ups are active in the camps. There were
reports of night­long meetings
in the camp mosques. An app­
rehensive administration has
banned the entry of outsiders
to the camps after 5 p.m. “Up to
now,” says Tutul, “we haven’t
found any presence of ARSA
locally, but we have teams of
police detectives keeping a
close watch.”
Mohammad Nikaruzaman,
the Upzila Nirbahi Officer of
Ukhiya, acknowledges the
shift in the public sentiment:
“The resentment among the

L
OCAlS complain that the locals is growing and there
price of daily commodities could be an outburst soon.”
is rising because of the refugees and camp guard an armed soldier at Relief workers and the UN agencies also
that they were being undercut in kutupalong camp in November 2017 do not seem to be against repatriation
the labour market where daily wage per se, but they do not want the refugee
rates have fallen from Bangladesh Police Muhammad Afrujul Haq Tutul situation to recur as in the past.
Taka 400­500 to less than half. “local denies a rise in crime rate, he concedes A UNHCR official says, “We should
employment is not allowed but in reality that “one should take the apprehensions be involved in the repatriation talks
we cannot prevent that. The refugees of the local population into account”. as we bring the refugee voice to the
have undercut the daily­wage rates, Even UN officials agree that an inc­ table. We should also have access to
as they are willing to work for less,” rease in trafficking and trade in drugs Rakhine. Otherwise, how can we say in
says Mohammad Wahidur Rehman, and small arms is possible because of good conscience that conditions exist
the Additional Deputy Commissioner the “movement back and forth” across for the refugees to return voluntarily
General of Cox’s Bazar. the border. Drug trade—almost exclu­ with safety, security and dignity?”
The local people also feel that refugees sively in Yaba (tablets containing a In 1992, the two governments had
get priority in accessing services such as mixture of methamphetamine and caf­ signed separate memorandums of und­
healthcare, as government doctors have feine)—has gone up and is a $2­billion erstanding with the UNHCR, leading to
been deployed in the camps. Schooling industry today. the repatriation of 2,30,000 Rohingya
too has been largely disrupted as the While the local police claim to control refugees. As of now, however, neither
army is yet to fully vacate school build­ refugee movement from the camps, aid country has involved the UNHCR in the
ings occupied when it was drafted to workers say that Rohingya refugee repatriation process. O
manage relief distribution. women were engaged in ‘survival sex’ at (The writer was in Cox’s Bazar and
local women are apprehensive that bus stops and hotels in Cox’s Bazar. Dhaka as a member of a fact-finding
their husbands might take younger Despite linguistic similarities between mission on the condition of the Rohingya
Rohingya women as a second, third or spoken Rohingya and the Chittagonian refugees, organised by South Asians for
even fourth wife. Rohingya women are dialect, the cultural dislike for the Human Rights, Colombo)

20 OutlOOk 12 February 2018

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 vortex oF v iolence
Nero Plays A Veena
Called Saraswati
A sudden spurt in Haryana’s crime points to an administration that lacks in
political will and is pressured by caste politics. The CM, though, will ‘remain’.
by Bhavna Vij-Aurora
B
Arely 40 kilometres from
where a Haryana school princi-
pal was shot dead by a student
on the weekend before this rep-
ublic Day, hundreds of spirited
people gathered on a mission at
two villages sitting cheek by jowl along
the northern Indian plains. A chunk of
them are sadhus and their followers—
and remotest in their minds is a mur-
der that had happened in the nearest
town only the other day. In fact, the
24 OutlOOk 12 February 2018
entire belt has of late been reporting
gruesome crimes besides the January
20 instance at an educational institu-
tion, named after a 19th-century
monk-philosopher who held his guru
in high esteem. Swami Vivekananda
School in yamunanagar had on that
wintry Saturday seen an enraged
class-12 boy spraying bullets at the
headmistress in her room.
The saffron-clad men and their hordes
of disciples had converged at Mugalwali
and its twin Adi Badri as part of the state
government’s multi-crore mission to
getty images
revive an ancient mythical river that has
always generated ripples of reverence
among Hindus. The Saraswati Heritage
Project did also bring into the crowd a
handful of historians and some mecha-
nised earth-diggers. It was on January 18
that Haryana chief minister M.L. Kha-
ttar launched a five-day International
Saraswati Mahotsav by performing a
yagna, along with Union transport min-
ister Nitin Gadkari. Since then, hunt has
intensified to retrieve the Rigvedic
Saraswati that is believed to have dried
up some 4,000 years ago.
 THe KHATTAr goVerNmeNT rePorT CArd
Law and order has never been good. Of late, it has clearly worsened. Here’s how:
NoVemBeR 2014
Violence and pitched battles
between security forces
and supporters of ‘godman’
Baba Rampal in the run-up to
his arrest in Barwala, Hisar.
Some 200 people, including
policemen, were injured.
FeBRuaRy 2016
auguSt 2017
Court termed the situation
“war-like” following the arrest
and conviction of ‘godman’
gurmeet Ram Rahim. the
ensuing violence claimed
Violence during the Jat 36 lives, injured scores.
agitation over demand for
reservations. Reported
gang rape of nine women
in murthal during the
agitation. the protests
caused a loss of Rs 34,000
crore in north India and
death of 30 people.
JaNuaRy 2018
10 rapes reported in as
many days from across
Haryana including gang
rapes-cum-murders of
Dalit and minor girls.
Cases include rape and
mutilation of a 15-year-
old Dalit girl in Jind,
abduction and gang-rape
of a woman in a moving
car in Faridabad and the rape of a woman in gurgaon
after she was pulled out from a car and her husband
and brother-in-law held captive.
Ritu Chhabra, 47, the principal of Swami
was sitting in her Vivekananda Public School
office room on in yamunanagar was shot
January 20 dead by a Class XII student
School bus attacked
in gurgaon, allegedly
by Karni Sena
members protesting
against the release
of Padmaavat

Not all are amused with the Bharatiya vehicle were probably the tipping point. end Aradhana Gupta reportedly found
Janata Party regime’s focal engagement. The perpetrators, alleged to be members his presence at the official function a
Especially, the Opposition Congress. of the Karni Sena, were protesting the disgrace. “He must have been an invitee.
“Wish the government had shown so release of Padmaavat. That act by the It’s so shameless on the part of the local
much enthusiasm in hunting down crim- fringe Hindutva group in the name of a administration,” she is reported to have
inals and making the women of Haryana controversial movie outraged even cer- said. “By endorsing such criminals, the
feel safe,” says party leader Bhupinder tain right-wing political commentators. administration is giving direct encour-
Singh Hooda, who was CM for two Someone like Kanchan Gupta felt the agement to such crimes.”
consecutive terms before Khattar took need for the prime minister to act. So, is the administration not just
charge on October 26, 2014. With 10 rape The foggy month was to end with unable to firmly act against miscreants
cases reported from different parts of the another image that disgusted many. In but is even somehow being complicit
state in as many days—including three of Panchkula of Haryana’s capital Chan- with them? Retired IPS officer Prakash
brutal gang-rape and murder—questions digarh, occupying a proud place on Singh believes the crux of the problem
are being raised over Khattar’s ability the dais during district-level Republic is lack of political will to enforce law and
to control the law and Day celebrations was a order. The former Uttar Pradesh DGP,
order situation in general former top cop who the who headed a probe into “the role of of-
and the crimes against
Haryana police Supreme Court had con- ficers of civil administration and police
women in particular. is very strong, victed in a molestation during the Jat reservation agitation” in
The disturbing visuals but it is poorly case. S.P.S. Rathore, ear- February 2016, finds the Haryana admi-
of little schoolchildren guided, ex-top lier director general of nistration taking a strange viewpoint.
crouching and sobbing cop Prakash police, was found guilty “During any law and order situation, it
inside their bus when of molesting tennis pla- tends to look at the cost equation in
vandals hurled stones at
Singh says. “An yer Ruchika Girhotra, terms of the vote bank, political colour
it after burning down army of lions driving the 14-year-old of the villains, their caste, community
another public transport led by sheep.” to suicide. Ruchika’s fri- and religion,” he adds.

12 February 2018 OutlOOk 25

 vo rtex oF violenc e
Prejudices towards communities refl-
ect in all investigations, including those
of rape and murders. Breaking down his
analysis, Singh, 82, says, in case of the Jat
agitation, for example, caste bias pre-
vented the government from taking
timely action. “The state administration
is dominated by Jats. They comprise
more than 40 per cent of the police con-
stabulary,” he says. Singh’s report had
indicted 90 civil and police officials, in-
cluding IAS and IPS officers, for failing to
act during the Jat agitation that killed 31
people. There are also reports of nine
women being gang-raped during the agi-
tation period in Murthal.
The Haryana police,
Singh tells Outlook, has
tremendous potential.
“If properly trained, it
can even take on the
Taliban. It has the best
human element, but no
leadership—neither
from the IPS officers nor
the politicians,” he rues.
“It’s an army of lions led
by sheep. That is why
Haryana has been trip-
ping up badly for past
three years.”
As for the situation
leading up to Gurmeet
Ram Rahim’s arrest in
August last year, Singh says it’s clear that
no action was taken since the powerful
guru-actor had supported the BJP in the
polls. About the Karni Sena’s anti-
Padmaavat stir, he believes that the ruling
party is going soft on the Rajputs owing to
elections in Rajasthan where they are a
dominant community. “No preventive
action was taken. It does not reflect well
on the government,” adds Singh.
t
HE attitude of Haryana government,
according to him, has been “chhe-
doge toh badhega (if you try to con-
trol the situation, it will aggravate).”
This finds some resonance with BJP
general secretary Anil Jain, in charge of
the party’s Haryana affairs. Considering
the history of Haryana, “one can’t be
careful enough”, he says, giving the exa-
mple of another ‘godman’ Baba Rampal,
who was apprehended in 2014 from his
Barwala ashram amid heavy security.
That arrest had followed a fortnight’s
standoff between his followers and the
police, injuring over 200 people. “The
26 OutlOOk 12 February 2018
government couldn’t implement the nabbed 15 persons, who “prima facie do
court’s order for nearly two weeks, be- not belong to the Karni Sena”.
cause it would have led to deaths,” Jain BJP’s Haryana spokesperson Raman
says. “That’s why we were being careful Malik talks about an improved sex ratio in
in the Ram Rahim case.” the state under Khattar administration.
Hooda counters the “being careful” “Our schemes like ‘Beti Bachao, Beti
theory. According to him, the govern- Padhao’ have been hugely successful and
ment is direction-less and ineffectual in the 2017 sex ratio of 914 women to 1000
handling law and order. He says the ad- men is the best-ever,” he says. Each dis-
ministration does not act timely and trict will have a women’s police station
then calls in the army. “Army cannot be and more women officers are being in-
used for routine law and order situations. ducted. “As many as 850 women have
Will it call in the army to control crimes been inducted; another 1000 will be added
against women too,” he questions. by next year,” he says, blaming the “brown
Hooda says the number of rapes and sahibs” or the bureaucracy for a slowdown
in the process.
Also, the Haryana
government is imple-
menting a new ‘Shakti
Pari’ (Power Angels)
scheme in some villages.
Under this, five girls
from each village will be
identified and trained
so as to keep vigil on
miscreants. “They will
identify the trouble-
makers and report to
the sarpanch. The local
police constable will
also be a part of the ex-
ercise. The miscreants
will be counselled, their
Pti parents informed and,
ire Social organisations hold a march if need be, arrested,” Malik explains.
in Delhi against the Haryana violence “This scheme effectively combines com-
munity participation, policing and so-
other crimes against women has gone up cial rebuilding.” Further, for improved
in the past three years. According to the social fabric, schools have begun moral
National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), science lectures, as has the teaching of
Haryana reported 1,189 cases of rape in the Bhagwad Gita, which “is the GPS to
2016. These include 518 cases of sexual life and life situations”.
violence against minor girls. Jain coun- Hooda snubs all of it, calling the
ters it, saying sexual violence existed Khattar government a mere event man-
when the Congress was in power too. agement company. “It has spent crores
“Society actually has a vital role to play (in of rupees organising the International
reforming),” he says. Gita Mahotsava in Kurukshetra city
According to Jain, rapes by persons (November-December, 2017). It is spe-
known to the victim don’t reflect a law- nding big in the name of Saraswati and
and-order breakdown. “Ones, like the cow protection,” notes the septuagenar-
Gurgaon rape (where on January 21 night ian ex-CM, who has been demanding
a woman was dragged out of the car and dismissal of Khattar government (for
raped in front of her husband and bro- which he met state governor Kaptan
ther-in-law), involve dabangayi (brute Singh Solanki recently). “The CM is the
bullying). Such cases have come down. head but no minister listens to him. That
The government is alert and quick to take is why there is no coordination and cohe-
action,” he insists. About the school bus sive action,” Hooda says. The BJP seems
attack, Jain insists it was accidental to be standing firmly behind the CM.
stoning. “The target was the state trans- “Khattarji will remain the CM,” reiterates
port bus,” he says, adding the police have Jain. “No change in that.” O
 COVER STORY

PANTH
AND A
FOREIGN
HAND
A new real threat of Khalistani
terror, fuelled and funded by foreign
gurudwaras patronised by liberal white
politicians, has revived memories of a
blood-drenched era of Punjab’s history

28 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 by Ushinor Majumdar

F
OR those who believe history moves
in a straight line, and what’s past is
past, some signs can set you think-
ing. Like you’re being awakened to
a bad dream—a strangely familiar
one—and bits and pieces of memory
flash by, brought back to life. Words that
recall a time of great tumult—Khalistan,
Sikh radicals, Bluestar, 1984 pogrom—are
abuzz again. If your attention has been
focused elsewhere, little pieces of news
are recalling an epoch filled with thou-
sands of unknown victims, marking out
new stirrings full of old forebodings.
‘The foreign hand’…rings a bell? It was
one of the oft-heard phrases of the 1970s—
both bogey and shadowy reality. Is it mak-
ing a comeback of sorts, in a new avatar?
Why are overseas gurudwaras banning
Indian authorities—not just politicians,
even diplomatic functionaries? Is there a
new mistrust on all sides? What exactly
is going on in Canada and the UK, two
countries that host the Sikh community’s
busiest hubs outside India?

SECESSIONISM 2020
Sikh protestors in Canada
demanding a referendum on
‘independence’ from India

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 29

 COVER STORY
MAPLE TWIST Canadian PM Trudeau sits behind Harjit Singh Sajjan (front row, centre) at a Sikh gathering in Ottawa
The ban came, like a fort’s gates
clanging shut, in December 2017, when
the management committees of 14
gurudwaras in Canada issued a terse
statement: “Pursuant to the Trespass to
Property Act (1990), the management
of these gurudwaras reserves the right
to bar entry to officials of the Indian
government, including but not limited to
Indian elected officials, Indian consular
officials and members of organisa-
tions who seek to undermine the Sikh
nation and Sikh institutions.” The word
‘nation’, of course, floats ambivalently
between the old sense of community and
the more modern meaning.
Soon, similar declarations followed
in the UK—forming a rather unprec-
edented chain of events. Apparently,
these firmans formalise a soft ban that
was already in place. Hardliners mince
no words, saying it’s meant to prevent
Indian mission officials from “running
pro-India and anti-Khalistan propaga-
nda”. That speaks of a much higher level
of ideological hardening—and counter-
engagement—than may have been
30 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
suspected by common Indians. Even so,
a ban is more of a statement, since no
one could have addressed a gathering at
gurudwaras without permission from
the management anyway. And it’s a
delicate line: despite the ban, an Indian
official in the UK paid a personal visit to
a gurudwara, which has not been barred.
What set off this new drawing of
borders, if you like? One immediate
provocation was the November arrest, in
Punjab, of Glasgow-based Sikh activist
Jagtar Singh Johal (Jaggi), who had
come down for his wedding in October.
Police suspect him of involvement with a
Punjab Police
have found links
between two terror
modules busted
in 2017 and four
Sikhs currently
living in Canada.
AP
series of political murders over the past
two years, including of RSS/right-wing
figures, but talk of Jaggi being implica-
ted in a false case and custodial torture
soon spread among the diaspora. Some
UK gurudwaras protested the arrest: as
British media kept up a sharp focus, even
premier Theresa May had to mention it.
The first physical ban was in Mel-
bourne where a Sikh stopped an Indian
mission official from entering a guru-
dwara to protest Jaggi’s arrest. Then
came the ban in Canada, followed by a
similar ban by 96 gurudwaras in the US,
which also extended it to members of the
Shiv Sena and the RSS. The ‘Free Jaggi
Now’ campaign is truly global.
Not all these voices are radical or seces-
sionist—many Sikh rights groups openly
disavow extremism—but it’s part of the
spectrum, and a growing part. What lies
behind this resurgence of Khalistani
politics? Several factors. At one level,
deep anger over the thwarted justice for
the 1984 pogrom blends with the radical
charter that predated it. Canadian
politics, where migrant Sikhs are now
major players, offers a hospitable space
to cultivate this hard dissent towards
India. If one end of it articulates genuine
human rights issues, at the other there’s
a whole ecology built around Khalistani
politics and activism; indeed, an econ-
omy too. The UK differs perhaps only
in the concentrated pitch of voices. Into
this mire come accusations that Indian
officials are into spying and manipula-
tion of events in gurudwaras.
This offshore radicalism is also organi-
cally linked, and bleeds right back, to the
narrative unfolding in Punjab. An ext-
reme, religion-tinged language is never
too far away from mainstream politics
in the state—and this sector of opinion
links back to Canada and the UK. Since
the mid-1990s, when militancy faded
out here, the public sentiment backing
it also largely petered out. Strands sim-
mered in the fundamentalist corners of
panthic politics, occasionally manifest-
ing itself—such as in incidents targeting
the many Dalit religious and cultist
movements. The recent killings too fall
into these shadow zones. Some non-vio-
lent activist groups such as the Dal Kha-
lsa have officially aligned with Kashmiri
separatists in common demands for a
referendum on self-determination.
In India, news of the ban was received
with dismay. It’s being read as coming
out of a view that equates Indian officials
with Hindutva footsoldiers: an unfor-
tunate collapsing of categories because
the Indian State, while it has security
concerns that are real and as valid as
any other country’s, flows from a secular
constitutional code. But its rejection
is fairly pointed: the Canadian ban was
declared on a day when gurudwaras
were observing the death anniversary
of Indira Gandhi’s assassins. Though, to
be sure, some other gurudwaras have
started to question the ban, saying places
of worship are not meant for politics.
Yet, Khalistani separatism is no
covert creed: its activists operate both
underground and “overground”. Jaggi’s
website neverforget84.com, an online
database, is a regular haunt for sym-
pathisers. It has no direct espousal of
violence—only history, protest songs/
poetry, writing on Sikh issues—but it’s
coloured by Khalistani themes and a sec-
tion describes slain militants as “Khal-
istan shaheeds” (martyrs). The roster
features fallen members of the Babbar
Khalsa International (BKI), Bhindran-
WANTED FROM CANADA
Named in May 2017 FIR
(Amritsar dist) for alleged
gun-running and terror funding
GURJIT SINGH CHEEMA
Brampton
In charge of gun-running module
SULINDER SINGH
Brampton
Suspected Babbar Khalsa
International member, frequently
visits Pakistan, coordinates
with chief of banned ISYF,
arranged gun-running through ISI
GURJINDER SINGH
Brampton
Canadian handler who helped
fund target-killing module
GURPREET SINGH
Vancouver
Handler-cum-recruiter
for fresh modules
wale Tiger Force of Khalistan, Khalistan
Commando Force (KCF), Khalistan
Liberation Force (KLF), Sikh Students
Federation and ISYF, Khalistan Liber-
ation Army and so on—many of them
proscribed terrorist organisations.
Such online exhortations for solidarity
also help create sentiment in favour of
families of the slain extremists and those
in jail, serving sentences or awaiting
trial. Hardliners in gurudwaras rou-
tinely pass around donation boxes to
raise money for their “welfare”. That’s
the benign end; the keener edge moves
below the radar. Its GPS map has to be
inferred from piecemeal lines.
Sources in the police claim Jaggi was
linked to Gursharanbir Singh, an alleged
BKI member, and the two had met in
France in 2014 shortly after the arrest of
KLF chief Harminder Singh ‘Mintoo’ in
Delhi. Gursharanbir regarded Mintoo’s
arrest as a loss and decided to become
more active in India. He is believed to
have planned many of the recent attacks.
Jaggi’s family and lawyers vehemently
deny he had any direct or indirect links
to terror activities.
Anyway, hardliners soon decided
Jaggi’s arrest was a result of Indians
spying on Khalistani sympathisers at
offshore gurudwaras. Neutral observers
believe RAW spooks do keep a watch on
activities in these zones because of the
extremist presence, but linking that to
Jaggi’s arrest may be flawed reasoning.
Punjab Police seems to have relied on
traditional policing, ploughing its trail
through arrests and interrogations. The
police do not, as yet, think Jaggi was a
“mastermind”, but are keenly following
the spoor. A vital element that links the
stories, with usual ingredients like han-
dlers in Pakistan, is also money.
Follow the Money
The old terrorism was fuelled
differently—an ex-RAW man calls it
a “simpler” matter of Afghan drug
money funding the guns, logistics and
livelihoods. Now, police tracking the
flow of funds into Punjab’s radical
circles trace it back to small donations
in gurudwaras abroad, raised during
regular cultural events: martial arts
displays, kabaddi, wrestling, tur-
ban-tying competitions et al.
“Radicals have taken over most
gurudwaras in Canada, the US and
the UK, and organise events where
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 31
 COVER STORY
MARKED BY A VIOLENT TIME
The Khalistan years recalled through a woman’s life
S
HE has raised more than 400
orphans, of whom around 25 per
cent are postgraduates now. No
wonder Kulbir Kaur Dhami is
an inspiration to many. She runs a
girls’ home, while her husband K.S.
Dhami runs a separate shelter for
boys, both in Mohali. These are no
ordinary orphanages, though, as they
house children who lost their parents
in police encounters, most of which,
Kulbir Kaur alleges, are fake. The
couple’s personal history is marked
by the violence of the times they
lived through—they spent years in
jail before they were acquitted.
On June 1, 1984, Kulbir Kaur claims
she was in Amritsar on a pilgrimage
with her kin when the Indian Army
stormed the Golden Temple. To the
21-year-old’s eyes, it was an act of
unprecedented sacrilege, worsening
the distress she had felt since the
1978 Nirankari massacre.
She hid for 17 days in Amritsar. Her
family told her not to return to her native
village in Hoshiarpur because the police
had detained her sister. They tried taking
shelter in the border villages near Amrit-
sar, but combing operations made them
switch shelters many times until they
eventually crossed over to Pakistan.
“Many had crossed the border hoping
tanks from Pakistan would invade Punjab.
Khalistani militants were also being
trained for the armed struggle that fol-
lowed,” says a senior lawyer who defended
many accused in terror cases.
Kulbir Kaur claims she and her compan-
ions were held in a detention camp for
illegal immigrants near Lahore. It could
well have been a training camp. She recalls
being the only woman there. She married
her brother-in-law (K.S. Dhami) and gave
birth to a son. It is unusual to get married
and have a child without the help of the
authorities. Those in detention camps
were able to return to Punjab only after
diplomatic negotiations. It was six years
before the Dhamis could return. Kulbir
Kaur started teaching at Baru Sahib, while
her husband moved to Gujarat. “I was
picked up in 1992, spent 11 months in
illegal detention and spent a total of three-
and-a-half years in jail,” she says. The
whole family was charged, including the
then six-year-old son, under TADA for sub-
versive activities, and later exonerated of
32 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
T.S. BEDI
all charges. She narrated her experiences—
including the tortures and fake encounters
she claims to have witnessed—in a book.
A former intelligence officer says many
had been trained in Pakistan to indoctrin-
ate other Sikhs in extremism. “Their
mission,” he says, “was to parrot the
‘historical wrongs’ done to the Sikhs and
preach how a new nation would bring them
religious freedom, while sentiment burned
in Operation Blue Star’s aftermath.”
In 1996, she registered the trust for the
orphanage and has been running it since,
with a mission to care for orphaned chil-
dren of encounter victims. She says they
have had to look for funds locally despite
offers of funds from across the globe.
An application for an FCRA licence was
rejected with a remark that the foreign
funds would be used to fund a separatist
agenda—even though the funds were
meant for orphans’ welfare and the FCRA
has a very critical audit process.
“The children, when they grow up,
marry into whichever community they
want to. There is no religious or comm-
unal message in the orphanages,” says
Kulbir Kaur, who also feels strongly about
the “self-determination of Sikhs”. “It is a
matter of our rights,” she says.
“There is unresolved anger that has been
brewing for decades. I have seen many of
the children in my care suffer depression
for years,” is all she says when asked
whether she supports the use of arms in
seeking “self-determination of Sikhs”. O
the themes of Khalistan and perse-
cution of Sikhs in 1984 are a running
refrain,” says a senior police officer.
The “cultural glorification of slain
terrorists as martyrs in films and
songs” is routine, he says.
The funds thus raised, he adds, go
into supporting the families of those
arrested in Punjab for terror activi-
ties—covering their education needs,
livelihood and legal costs. “This is
indirect support for terror. We have
had some bank accounts seized and the
NIA has filed an FIR against the Sikh
Organisation for Prisoner’s Welfare
(SOPW),” says the officer.
The taint hardly touches all Sikh
support organisations: some are purely
humanitarian, and play straight. The
officer cites the globally active Kha-
lsa Aid. Its separate wing for Punjab
(Focus Punjab) did not kick off because
it eliminated middlemen who made a
cut, the cop says. “Khalsa Aid provides
material help, not cash. It directly
engages contractors to build/renovate
houses, pay school fees…. Since it does
not give cash doles that enable a payout
to brokers, they didn’t find much popu-
larity here,” he adds.
The more targeted donations flow in
through charities, often evading man-
datory FCRA clearances by using direct
bank transfers. The UK-based Sikh
Relief, for instance, runs a programme
called the SOPW, which is currently
under an NIA probe. Parminder Singh
Amloh, who runs SOPW’s Punjab wing,
has been summoned thrice to the NIA
HQ in Delhi. A former stuntman, he was
arrested in 2008 under the Arms Act
for carrying bullets meant for Gurmeet
Ram Rahim—he spent four years in jail.
In 2013, a former prison inmate
introduced Parminder to UK citizen
Balbir Singh Bains, who launched the
UK-based Sikh Relief and SOPW. They
have never met each other, Parminder
discloses to Outlook. Both Parminder
and Bains choose the beneficiaries.
Including Jaggi? “We help those who
approach us and verify who really needs
help,” says Parminder. “The NIA is yet
to close the FIR. It should go and talk to
Bains in the UK to clear things up.”
At the bare minimum, SOPW Punjab
is caught in a regulatory tangle. “We
applied for registration and were told
categorically there were ‘instruc-
tions from upstairs’ that it would not
be permitted. There’s no option but
to approach the High Court,” says
Parminder. And he has a clean line to
offer. During his time in jail, he claims,
drug-runners offered him work as a
mule or peddler, but he declined.
Canadian Politics and Separatism
The Sikh rise in Canadian politics has
been fairly visible over the years. It’s a
rainbow-hued presence: Ujjal Dosa-
njh, as outspokenly moderate as they
come, rose to be a provincial premier.
But now, more striking than the four
faces in Justin Trudeau’s cabinet, is
the newly ascendant Jagmeet Singh of
the opposition New Democratic Party
(NDP). The first non-white figure to
head a federal party, Jagmeet is a man
of sharp politics: he was the one who
proposed the motion to declare 1984 a
“genocide”. But not just that.
The motion is yet to succeed federa-
lly; its big moment came in April 2017
when the Ontario legislature adopted
it. But clouding the moment was its
celebration at a gurudwara where pho-
tos of Talwinder Singh Parmar, mas-
termind of the 1985 Kanishka bomb-
ing, adorned the walls as a “martyr”.
If there was any doubt, Jagmeet has
maintained a studied silence when-
ever asked to condemn Parmar. Con-
text: the NDP lost 59 seats in the 2015
federal elections and fell to third place
nationally. The Sikh population, less
than two per cent of Canada’s total but
with significant concentrations across
constituencies, is a real factor.
Canada has not played straight with
its stand on terror, particularly in the
context of the Kanishka case (see V.
Balachandran’s column). It has made
some token gestures like proscribing
some Khalistani terror organisations.
(ISYF chief Lakhbir Singh Rode, for
one, had to shift from Canada to Lahore,
where he runs a meat business.) This
forms a delicate, controversial back-
ground ahead of Trudeau’s visit to India
this month, which will include a stop at
the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar.
Punjab CM Amarinder Singh, often
the target of ire at ‘cultural’ events in
Canada’s gurudwaras, takes a no-non-
sense stand (see interview) against
both Sikh radicals and politicians soft
to them. He has not minced words
in reproaching Canadian ministers
publicly—last year, he even called Can-
JUST MARCH Sikhs march in London protesting ‘state violence’ in Punjab
ada’s defence minister, Harjit Singh
Sajjan, a Khalistani sympathiser and
announced on TV that he would avoid
Sajjan on his India visit.
Sajjan, for his part, said Canada
would help with crackdowns on any
terror outfit based on real intelligence
inputs and assist in evidence-based
probes. That statement is set to be
tested. Punjab Police have found links
between two terror modules busted in
2017 and four Sikhs currently in Can-
ada—Gurjit Singh Cheema, Sulinder
Singh, Gurjinder Singh in Ontario
and Gurpreet Singh in Vancouver—all
wanted in connection with a May 2017
FIR lodged in Amritsar.
Article 25 Revisited
In a way, Canada only shows a mirror
to Punjab’s own old-new politics,
where mainstream patronage to
radicalism waxes and wanes with the
In 1984, Parkash
Singh Badal
burned a copy of
Article 25, which says
references to Hindus
“shall be construed
as including” Sikhs.
ALAMY
season. In January, ex-deputy CM
Sukhbir Badal reprised the demand
for amending Article 25—the one that
says any “reference to Hindus shall be
construed as including” a reference
to Sikhs. In 1984, his father Parkash
Singh Badal had first burned a copy
of the document. Why now, after 34
years? Last year’s assembly poll, of
course. The Akalis were ejected from
power and clipped to 15 seats in a
117-strong house. Why not when Badal
Sr was CM three times, a full 15 years?
No answer. Even now, Sukhbir’s wife,
Harsimrat Kaur, is a Union minister,
sworn to protect the Constitution.
If that’s the mainstream, harder pos-
itions can be inferred. This is a zone
where local and global blends seam-
lessly. There is, for instance, the Ref-
erendum 2020 demand, now backed
by the Dal Khalsa, for the political
and religious “self-determination
of Sikhs”. (The year 2020 marks the
centenary of the historic referendum
of 1920, when Sikhs voted to eject
Brahmin priests who controlled the
Nankana Sahib gurudwara.) The
referendum was first mooted in 2014
by the secessionist Sikhs for Justice
(SFJ). The NY-headquartered advo-
cacy group had presented its petition
to the then Canadian PM Stephen
Harper, asking him to share it with his
Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi,
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 33
 COVER STORY
during his 2015 Canada visit. As the
2020 campaign picks up heat, five SFJ
men (including its legal advisor from
NY, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun) have
been charged in Punjab for sedition.
Earlier, the SFJ has filed a complaint
in Canada against Modi for his alleged
role in the 2002 Gujarat riots. It also
filed a suit in the US to proscribe the
RSS for its alleged bid to convert India
into a homogenous Hindu country,
based on the ‘ghar wapasi’ campaign.
Hindutva is seen with hostility by Sikh
groups as an ideology partial to treat-
ing Sikhism as a sect of Hinduism.
Bullets Flying
It didn’t take long for ideological
arguments to start flowing from the
muzzle of the gun. The first incidents
were in Ludhiana—a firing at an RSS
shakha in January 2016, and an att-
empt to gun down Shiva Sena leader
Amit Arora. Then came the killings:
of Durga Das Gupta (Shiv Sena) in
Khanna, Brigadier (retd) Jagdish
Gagneja (state vice-president, RSS),
Amit Sharma (preacher, Hindu Takht),
Satpal Kumar and Ramesh Kumar
(Dera Sacha Sauda followers), Sultan
Masih (Christian pastor) and Ravinder
Gosain (RSS functionary). In all, there
were eight incidents in 22 months.
The CBI is probing Gagneja’s murder;
the other seven cases have been handed
over to the NIA. Punjab Police, says a
source, would have found it tough to
deal with authorities in other countries.
Especially in the case of KLF operational
head Harmeet Singh ‘PhD’, believed to
be the handler of the two arrested sus-
pects, Ramandeep and Hardeep ‘Shera’.
PhD was a research scholar in Guru
Nanak Dev University in 2008 when
he skipped across the border to Lahore
after getting mired in a drugs and arms
smuggling racket in Amritsar.
Police zeroed in on Ramandeep after
40-odd arrests, and thence to the
mysterious Shera: a muscular, six-foot-
tall, Italian-speaking youth, who had a
lion tattooed across his chest. For the
killings, Ramandeep rode a mobike,
while Shera rode pillion and shot at the
targets. Yet the two were apparently
never in direct contact. Shera would be
merely picked up or dropped off at loc-
ations specified by PhD, via encrypted
smartphone apps like Whatsapp, Signal
and Telegram. Since Ramandeep had
34 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
no details on Shera, it took a laborious
manhunt (including across various
gyms) before the shooter was nabbed
on November 10, 2017.
It’s into this scenario that Jaggi
Johal had walked in. “In April 2017,
Jaggi was here to get engaged, but we
weren’t aware of his activities,” says
Dinkar Gupta, D-G (Intelligence),
Punjab Police. “Information about his
role in funding the procurement of
HT
SFJ petitioned
then Canadian PM
Stephen Harper on its
Referendum 2020
demand in 2015,
asking him to share it
with the Indian PM.
weapons from J&K for terror activi-
ties in Punjab had been confirmed by
Taljit Singh ‘Jimmy’ in October-Nov-
ember 2017.” Arrested after being dep-
orted from Coventry, Jimmy told the
police Jaggi had allegedly passed on
1,000 pounds for the guns. That led to
Jaggi’s arrest in late October, just days
after his wedding, while he was out
shopping with his wife in a mall. His
family and lawyer deny such links and
say he’s being targeted only because of
his advocacy for Sikh rights.
The police put in some hard yards
on the probe—first mistakenly
treating it as pure crimes. But then
they worked outwards—through the
shadowy area of operational overlap
between criminal gangs and radical
groups—till they hit upon what they
say are disturbing signs for Punjab.
They speak of fresh recruits lying low
in sleeper cells and eight new modules
busted with the 45 arrests.
Meanwhile, according to Amritsar-
based social scientist Harish Puri, “an
SFJ video asking gangsters in Punjab
to support separatism has gone viral”.
The resurgence of extremist violence
has caught many by surprise. Outright
Sikh radical politics had long been in
hibernation in Punjab, showing up
only occasionally, say in attacks on
religious leaders around a decade ago
or the 2009 killing of Rulde Singh, then
chief of Rashtriya Sikh Sangat, the Sikh
wing of the RSS. Militancy had fizzled
out by the mid-1990s though a pow-
erful sentiment lingered in the minds
of Sikhs, harking back to the army’s
storming of the Golden Temple and the
massacre of thousands in 1984.
Panthic orthodoxy, which has a Jat
Sikh core to it, was also at loggerheads
with many cults that emerged from
the subaltern castes. Baba Bhaniare-
wala, for example, created a separate
cult and even attracted politicians
looking for Dalit votes in the early
2000s. His cult published an alter-
native text of the Sikhs’ holy book,
with photos of him in Guru Gobind
Singh’s attire. Angry reactions from all
sections of Khalsa Sikhs—clergy, laity,
an Akali regime—followed. Hardliner
outfits carried out unsuccessful assas-
sination attempts on the godman.
After 2007, the pattern repeated with
Gurmeet Ram Rahim, and amid the
sectarian heat, radical groups such as
the KCF and the Khalistan Zindabad
Force (KZF) made their presence felt
with assassination attempts. The 2009
attack in Vienna by the KZF on the
Ravidassia saints, Ramanand Dass and
Niranjan Dass, which led to the death
of the former, also eventually saw the
Ravidassia order declaring themselves
separate from the Sikhs.
With an aggressive Hindutva on one
flank and rebellious ranks among its
subaltern castes, the Sikhs have rea-
sons to be anxious. Then there’s the
history—the original issues, Blue Star,
and yes, the memory of a pogrom. The
Indian State has done little to restore
the community’s faith in the justice
delivery system. The maple syrup is
exacerbating the wounds. O
 COVER STORY I NTERV IEW

On returning as Punjab chief minister last

‘Sikh extremists
year, Captain Amarinder Singh found
the state reeling under a drug problem and
attempts to revive Khalistani extremism.
In this interview with Ushinor Majum­
dar, he explains the role of the ‘foreign
hand’ and how the state is dealing with it.

in Canada, the
Edited excerpts:

Is there a resurgence of Khalistani ext­

remism, considering the number of
recent incidents and killings?

UK and Italy are

There has been no resurgence. In fact,
since the Congress took over, the Pun-
jab Police has cracked the “targeted
killings” and busted several terrorist
modules, with no fresh cases in the past
several weeks. For the supply of weap-

working with ISI or

ons and other logistics, the radicals had
started using the criminal gangs that had
mushroomed over the past decade. Vicky
Gounder, killed in a recent encounter,
was an example. Unemployment and the

drug menace emerged over the past 10
years, making Punjab’s youth vulnera-
ble to external influences and pressures.
Various external forces are constantly
trying to ruin our nation’s peaceful fab-
ric. As a border state, Punjab is particu-
larly susceptible to forces such as the
ISI. The Akalis were too busy promoting
their vested interests to secure Punjab.
The police were pressured not to act
against organised crime.
Was there an intelligence failure?
The gangster-radical nexus is not new; it
grew during the Akali regime. So there’s
no question of there being an intelli-
gence failure. The Vicky Gounder oper-
ation shows that intelligence has been
strengthened multifold in the past few
months. To break the nexus, we issued
strict instructions to prison officials to
prevent gangster activities. We have ins-
talled mobile jammers in jails, conduc-
ted surprise prison raids to seize mob-
ile phones and installed more CCTVs.
When I took over, we gave an option to all
criminals to surrender, but I also made it
clear that anybody who uses firearms will
independently’
We need development, for which we
must have stability in law and order for
investments and industries to come in.
Doesn’t the proposed PCOCA law give
the police too much power?
PCOCA doesn’t grant unbridled powers
but enough authority to the police to take
action against criminals and gangsters.
It is targeted at criminals and gangsters,
and we have ensured sufficient checks
and balances under the Act to prevent
misuse or excesses. Tough problems
need tough solutions and PCOCA is our
answer to a festering problem that has
grown out of proportion in the past 10
years of Akali misrule.
One cannot blame the ISI alone. Is it
clear which ‘foreign hand’ is driving
this entire nexus?
It is not about blaming the ISI or anyone
else. Evidence gathered by the police and
other agencies points to the ISI as the
key perpetrator of extremism in Punjab.
Increasingly, as investigations have rev-
ealed, the ISI is using foreign soil to pro-
mote its anti-India agenda. So we have
seen the names of countries such as the
UK, Canada and Italy crop up in connec-
tion with probes into various cases. Ext-
remist groups in these countries could be
working in tandem with the ISI or inde-
pendently. These things are under inves-
tigation by Punjab and national agencies.
Is there a clear link to Canada?
In one case currently under investiga-
tion, the police have found a link for
money that was used to buy an Uzi sub-

be met with firearms. As a result, most
criminals are off the streets now. Weapon
supply is being choked. We cannot undo
the problems of the past 10 years in just
10 months, but things are under control
and will improve in the months ahead.
My government will not allow this nexus
to grow. I have personally ensured that
the police and other agencies have a free
hand in cracking down on such elements.
“
machine gun for extremists. It will be
revealed once foreign authorities cooper-
ate with Indian and Punjab agencies. On
On the face of it, the face of it, there seems to be evidence
there seems to be that there are Khalistani sympathisers in
evidence that there are (Canadian PM) Trudeau’s cabinet.
Khalistani sympathisers Why are youth in Punjab today attrac­
ted towards religious extremism?
in (Canadian PM) I would not say that the youth are attr-
Trudeau’s cabinet. acted to religious extremism. They have

36 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018


become vulnerable due to drugs and
unemployment. History shows that
unemployment is likely to lead to drug
addiction and provokes fascist tenden-
cies among youth. We have broken the
back of the drugs network in the state
and have successfully weaned away
most of the youth who had become
addicted to drugs during the rule of
the Akalis. We issued 25,000 job letters
through job fairs and more will follow in
the coming months. Industrial develop-
ment is a prime focus area for us and it
will also help end unemployment.
Important issues that need to be
worked out—labour, agriculture and
farm loan waiver, river water­sharing,
language—are being drawn into the
larger demand for Khalistan....
While these issues trigger passion, the
majority of the people do not see them
from the Khalistani lens, but as prob-
lems that their elected government
should resolve. People know how to dis-
tinguish between Punjabi identity and
extremism; and between issues of indi-
viduality and of livelihood. Language,
for instance, is an issue of identity and
individuality, while labour and agricul-
JITENDER GUPTA
ture are relevant for survival. All these
issues cannot be clubbed together to
generalise on that basis.
Water-sharing, which once aroused
passions, is today an issue related to the
survival of Punjab and its people. We
cannot share what we don’t have; hence,
for our survival, we are fighting on every
possible forum, be it legal or dialogue, to
protect the water rights of our citizens.
At our behest, and on the directives of
the court, the central government is
facilitating talks on the issue among all
stakeholders, and I am hopeful of its res-
olution in our favour.
There is a strong demand for a sepa­
rate religious identity for Sikhs....
The Akalis raise the pitch on Sikh reli-
gious identity every time they are out
of office. But we are all Indians and the
Sikhs, with their five ‘Ks’, are already
recognised with a separate identity
among Indians. So what new will a leg-
islation do? This is just a way to disturb
peace. Had Sikh identity really been an
issue, why did the Shiromani Akali Dal
not pursue it when they were in power
in the state? In fact, they are in power at
the Centre right now.
Trudeau is scheduled to visit in Febru­
ary. Will you personally welcome him
or accompany him during his visit?
Neither I nor my government has recei-
ved any official communication so far
from Canada or from our own Ministry
of External Affairs on such a visit. But I
have made it clear on several occasions
that if and when we received any such
communication, I would be happy to
meet Justin Trudeau or welcome him as
per the protocol accorded to any state
guest of his stature.
You have reached out to the Sikh dias­
pora to “connect with your roots”. At
the same time, you have spurned Sikh
political leaders such as the Canadian
defence minister last year....
There is no question of spurning genu-
ine Sikh political leaders. It is only the
radicals and the Khalistani sympathis-
ers with whom I have a problem, just
as every person who loves Punjab and
India should have.
The “connect with your roots” pro-
gramme has no political agenda. It is
aimed at specifically connecting with
the Punjabi youth settled in other coun-
tries, whom we want to apprise about
their or their ancestors’ historical links
and rich cultural traditions. I do not
see how protesting against extremist
elements sends a wrong message to the
Sikh diaspora. In fact, it sends the cor-
rect message–that Punjab is a strong
state that is fully capable of protecting
its people from disruptive forces.
The day may not be far when an
Indian­origin Sikh is elected as the
PM of Canada. Can we afford to have a
less­than­warm relationship between
Canada and Punjab?
Tomorrow, if an Indian-origin Sikh bec-
omes the prime minister of Pakistan,
would that be a good enough reason
for us to change our approach towards
the neighbouring country? Relations
between two countries are guided not
by the colour of the skin or the turbans
on the heads of their leaders. They are
guided by mutual trust. Every Sikh
settled in Canada does not have pro-
extremist leanings. So if an Indian-
origin Sikh who is concerned about the
interests of India takes over, I see no
problem in forging close relations with
him. But if the person has antagonistic
approach towards Punjab or India, then
naturally I will not engage with him, be
it a Sikh or anyone else. O
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 37
 COVER STORY

by Pranay Sharma

E A FEW
VEN before Barack Obama’s
famous, good-natured doff of the
hat at his northern neighbour,
many in the world had begun to
acknowledge young Canadian
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

QUERIES,
as the new, charismatic face of global
liberalism. Over the past few years,
this image has been both trendy and
also a claimant to real substance
behind the form—winning him friends
and admirers in different corners of
the world, especially in thriving or

aspiring democracies.
A show of the same warmth will fill
the airwaves when India receives the
47-year-old Trudeau as he embarks on
his week-long, maiden visit to the coun-
try on February 17. The precise instincts
may be a tad divergent between the poli-
tical leadership of the two democracies,
but there’s enough overlap of interests—
and core ethos—for them to earnestly
try and smoothen over any potential
wrinkle on the texture of bilateral ties.
Of course, the routine diplomatese—
behind which lies a lot of real-world
activity—will roll off the tongue of official
spokespersons. To wit, the two countries
will look to boost trade ties and expand
their cooperation in a host of domains
such as science and technology and
education while also upgrading people-
to-people contact.
But behind all the bonhomie, space
may be found to subtly articulate one
question that bothers sections in the
Indian establishment: what price would
a country like India have to pay for
Trudeau’s brand of liberalism? For, there
is a growing opinion among strategists in
New Delhi that his policies—unwittingly
or otherwise—have ended up offering a
conducive space for a strain of armed
religious secessionism and radical
politics that pose a challenge to India’s
territorial integrity, security and sover-
eignty. The moot question is whether a
liberal policy that guarantees “freedom
of speech” can be pursued to an extent
where it may foster hard religious iden-
tity-based sentiments that may be inju-
rious to other valued ideas: the idea of
India, for instance. Ottawa has long
argued that as long as no violence is com-
mitted on Canadian soil, such expres-
sions—that can include hate speeches
and death threats—can be tolerated.
JUST IN...
India will want the visiting PM to reconsider his
soft line on resurgent Sikh radicals in Canada
“It’s time for Trudeau to decide if he
wants to run with the hares or hunt with
the hounds,” says a South Block offi-
cial, referring to the Canadian leader’s
seeming softness to Sikh radicals and
pro-Khalistanis in his country while
attempting to foster ties with India.
Over the decades, separatist outfits
proscribed in India—Kashmiri groups
or pro-Khalistan ones—have found
shelter in many western democracies.
The latter’s welcoming policy cites
human rights violations and lack of
space for dissent in the home country as
convincing arguments, but this pleasant
liberalism can also be a cat’s paw: it falls
in piece perfectly with an old western
strategy of keeping post-colonial nations
perennially unsettled. The Cold War
India’s initial
outreach to Sikh
hardliners has proved
counterproductive:
they didn’t change
tack, and moderates
didn’t appreciate it.
chessboard, segueing from the old Great
Game, kept alive the West’s special
interest in India’s border zones. Indian
diplomats recall how those days western
countries always gave free space to Kha-
listani or Kashmiri activists to articulate
their separatist cause, and how no action
would be taken even when they disrup-
ted India’s national day rallies or burnt
the Indian tricolour in protest.
The December-end ban by a number of
gurudwaras in Canada on Indian officials
and elected representatives has raised
the spectre of a new revival of the Khali-
stan spirit. Though many gurudwaras in
Canada and elsewhere have ignored the
ban and questioned its validity, several
have enforced, sparking off serious dis-
quiet in the Indian establishment.
A UK-based Indian diplomat argues
that the ban was, ironically, a reaction
to New Delhi’s NRI Sikh outreach. “Our
success in engaging meaningfully with
the community is making radicals nerv-
ous,” the official says. The ban also came
in the wake of British citizen Jagtar
Singh Johal’s arrest last year during
a visit to Punjab. Specifically, its link,
presumed by the radicals, to ‘espionage’
by mission officials. A senior MEA official
says events in British and US gurudwaras

38 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 KANISHKA FORGOTTEN
Questions we sent to Canadian government, and drew a blank on:

There is a lot of disquiet in India and elsewhere over the

decision of some gurudwaras in Canada to ban the entry of
Indian officials and elected representatives. Most see this
as a move initiated by Sikh hardliners and pro-Khalistani
elements. How does your government view these developments?

There are some sections who believe that the Trudeau

government is turning a blind eye to such developments
and giving a long rope to the pro-Khalistani elements
because of its dependence on the Sikh vote-bank. To what
extent is that correct? Are these developments contributing
to the revival of the Khalistan movement from Canadian soil?

Last year, Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh was issued

death threats by these elements from a meeting that was also
attended by Canadian politicians and ministers. What steps have
been taken by the Canadian authorities against such elements?

Can religious intolerance be encouraged in the name of

“freedom of speech” by the pro-Khalistani elements,
especially since many of them were allegedly involved
in the Kanishka bombing case, a still-unresolved tragedy in
which a large number of Canadian nationals were killed?

With PM Justin Trudeau scheduled to arrive in India later in the

month, how much will these developments impact the visit?

SAT SRI AKAL Justin Trudeau at a
Toronto gurudwara on Khalsa day ’17
do warrant that a keen eye be kept on
them. The real hub, though, he says, is
Canada—with a government sworn to its
liberal credentials, courtesy relatively
freer of terrorist incidents that have
become regular in elsewhere in the West.
There are about 12.5 lakh people of
Indian origin in Canada, of whom the
Sikhs occupy a third: about 4.5 lakh.
Immigrants from around the world have
formed important diaspora in Canada—
and their support is often solicited by
major political parties. In the Canadian
system, victory margins are very slen-
der—often in two digits—and micro-
trends are thus of vital importance. So
Canadian politicians look for en bloc
support from diasporic groups.
Historically, Canadian Sikhs have had a
close, cordial relation with the Liberals.
It was during the 1980s premiership of
Pierre Trudeau—Justin’s father—that an
open-door policy on immigration helped
a large number of Sikhs come and settle
in Canada. Non-Sikh voters of Indian ori-
gin are less loyal to the liberals; the vote
often gets split with the conservatives.
The Sikhs have also been smarter in
understanding the political system in
Canada and leveraging it to their adva-
ntage. Sixteen of the 26 Indian-origin
politicians who entered Canada’s par-
liament in the 2015 election are Sikhs.
Of them, four found a berth in Trudeau’s
cabinet (and one holds the key defence
portfolio). Trudeau has often flaunted
this fact with remarks like “I have more
Sikhs in my cabinet than Modi has.”
This newfound clout and proud visibil-
ity had a corollary. A space that rightly
allowed free articulation of human rights
concerns—such as over lack of justice in
the 1984 pogrom—also gave free rein to a
more fundamentalist language. A radical
capture of key gurudwaras meant voices
for a separate Khalistan state could atte-
mpt to give themselves a new sanctity.
Initially, the Indian authorities tried
reaching out to the hardliners, gener-
ously granting them visas to visit Punjab.
This proved counterproductive: it had
no effect on their political attitudes,
while it began to alienate the vast mass
of moderates who had supported India
and felt miffed at Sikhism being equated
with the radical strain.
Complaints in the past about openly
hostile Khalistani propaganda emana-
ting from its soil—and the potential
radicalisation of the youth that could
grow apace—have met with lukewarm
response from Canada. “Every time we
raised it, we were assured they would
look into it. No action ever ensued,” says
a former high commissioner to Canada.
Given India’s sensitivities, and the poli-
tical inclinations of the present regime,
it’s hardly a long bet that the issue could
crop up when Trudeau and PM Naren-
dra Modi discuss bilateral ties, including
cooperation in counter-terrorism and
other security-related issues.
If domestic political compulsions had
forced Trudeau to go soft on radicals,
one major development may force him
to revisit that line. This has to do with
the election of Jagmeet Singh, a young
and vocal lawyer, as the first non-White
leader of the opposition New Democra-
tic Party. Charismatic, he unabashedly
speaks a ‘Sikh’ voice, and has threatened
to contest against Trudeau next year.
Observers feel Trudeau now has two
options: either he woos radicals, or he
distances himself from extreme voices
and looks for support from moderate
Sikhs and Hindus. As he waltzes through
his India itinerary with all his easy
charm, including a visit to Punjab, will he
drop hints of his future moves? O

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 39

 C OV ER STO RY O P IN IO N

A Neo-Colonial Project
Called SDM Syndrome
A spurt in ‘separatist diasporian movement’ gives Canadian Khalistanis new impetus

I
T took 20 years for the Canadian govern- tist diasporian movement” (SDM). She says all
ment to acknowledge that the July 23, 1985 such SDMs try to maintain the momentum
Air India Kanishka (Flight 182) bombing even in the absence of support from their cor-
that snuffed out 329 lives was a national responding home ethnic segment due to “str-
tragedy. Till then, it was considered as an ong material and emotional ties to their lands
Indian problem “tied to alleged grievances of origin”. Like the American Jews who streng-
rooted in India and Indian politics”. It was thened the pre-Independence Zionist movem-
not even acknowledged as a “terrorist act” ent in Israel, they do this through arms, money
although it had killed 268 Canadian nationals. VAPPALA and political activities in their host countries.
It was only on May 1, 2006 that a commission BALACHANDRAN Gunawardena, who had published an illumi-
of enquiry under former Justice John C. nating study on Khalistan in 2001, feels that
Major was appointed to probe failures by government agen- the original catalyst for the “separatist” or “superior” feelings
cies in preventing this mass murder. This delay led to allega- among the Sikhs was the British Colonial administration itself.
tions of “racism” in handling this grave issue. It took another She quotes Harry Goulbourne (Race Relations in Britain
four years for Commissioner Major to submit his report list- Since 1945) saying that the British Raj strove to cultivate
ing the glaring failures by Canadian government agencies. He “special relationships with certain groups of her multi-ethnic,
rejected charges of racism, but remarked that “both the multi-linguistic, and multi-religious subjects as part of
Government and the Canadian public were slow to recognize broader colonial policy”. This they did, by giving more privi-
the bombing of Flight 182 as a Canadian issue”. leges to certain groups while denying it to others. They
Are we now seeing a rerun of the same trend in Canada with thereby intentionally exploited “longstanding pre-colonial
a reverse dynamics of patronising militant Sikhs due to elec- divisions in some cases and created new ethnic rifts in others”.
toral compulsions? Jagmeet Singh of New Democratic Party For example for army recruitment they defined the category
(NDP), the first non-White to be elected as a national party “Sikh” to mean a Khalsa Sikh. The British “did not merely
leader, is canvassing support for the “Khalistan 2020 encourage the observance of the five “Ks” by Sikh soldiers, but
Referendum” idea put across by Sikhs for Justice (SFJ). compelled them to conform to the Khalsa code”. Several Sikh
He is also seen refusing to criticise some contingents were detailed in Burma, Hong
Canadian Gurudwaras that are exhibiting Kong, Malaya, China, East Africa and other
portraits of Indrajeet Singh Reyat, the con- areas of Southeast Asia to protect British
victed Kanishka bomber. On October 19, imperial interests. This spurred Sikh emi-
2017 the Canadian Globe & Mail ran a story gration and subsequent settlement in vari-
underlining Jagmeet’s “support for the crea- ous far-flung places within the British
tion of a theocratic Sikh state” and his “ven- Empire. Gunawardena quotes Darshansingh
eration” of Talwinder Singh Parmar, the Tatla (The Sikh Diaspora: The Search for
prime suspect in Kanishka bombing. The Statehood) that “the Sikh migration during
paper said that this was his electoral ploy on this initial early phase was thus directly
a subject “that bitterly divides the Sikh linked to British colonial military policy”.
Community in Canada….Many Canadian The Diaspora migrated in large numbers
Sikhs (many of whom undoubtedly sup- Jagmeet Singh to Canada as well as the US when these
ported Mr. Singh’s leadership bid) hold mili-
tant views”. And it is the same Jagmeet who of Canada’s countries relaxed their previous exclusion-
ary immigration policies. In the United
is being seen by Washington Post (August
24, 2017) to “Out Trudeau Justin Trudeau”
NDP is gathering Kingdom, they enjoyed a powerful voice
and attentive audience on issues pertaining
in the 2019 elections. support for the to their homeland in view of their special
So, why is the Khalistan movement able to ‘Khalistan 2020 historical relationship and the size of the
sustain itself abroad when it has lost its current Sikh population.
steam in India? Therese Suhashini Guna-
Referendum’ idea As a result, Khalistan activities are increa-
wardena, a scholar at University of Texas put across by the sing abroad. The fulcrums of activities are in
(Austin), calls this phenomenon as “separa- Sikhs of Justice. Canada, UK and Europe. The effects are felt

40 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018


in Punjab. Along with this, intelligence on a fresh Khalistan-
Radical Islamist axis catalysed by Pakistan is being received.
Our intelligence agencies have already forewarned on this
emerging axis. This was confirmed in the Rajya Sabha by our
minister of state for home on December 27 last year. Political
killings in Punjab and arrests of foreign-based Sikhs, including
Jagtar Singh Johal, are indicators.
We should not underestimate the Khalistan-Lashkar-e-
Taiba alliance being cobbled up by Pakistan. In 1991-92, we
escaped by a whisker the possible ravages of a similar
Khalistan-SIMI axis grafted by Pakistan. This will be apparent
if we study the Supreme Court judgment in 2001(1) Crimes
115(SC) Lal Singh etc Vs State of Gujarat. A SIMI convention
was held in Bombay in 1991, during which active SIMI activist
C.A.M.Basheer, an aeronautical engineer from Kerala, suc-
ceeded in organising this tie-up. As a result: Toronto-based
Khalistani activist Lal Singh entered India on December 11
that year with a bogus Pakistani passport as “Choudhri
Mohammad Iqbal”. He was accompanied by an ISI operative,
Mohammad Sharief, whose passport name was Manzoor
Ahmed. Although their visas permitted them to visit only
Bombay and Calcutta, they happily travelled all over India for
six months, meeting co-conspirators, storing arms and explo-
sives, hiring safe houses and organising a ‘recce’ of Madras
Stock Exchange (MSE) building that they wanted to blow up.
This period coincided with the post-Babri Masjid demolition
riots in Bombay (December 1992-January 1993) and the
Bombay serial blasts of March 12, 1993. The judgment reveals
glaring gaps in our intelligence sharing. Lal Singh, who was
arrested by chance on July 16, 1992 by Bombay Railway Police
on suspicion, would have been released had not Gujarat Police
(Baroda Commissioner of Police Hiralal) intervened. The
judgment reveals that Dadar Police had submitted final report
in RCS/92 as “No case is made out”. Why did the IB or MHA
DANGER TIES ISI conspiracy to use
Khalistanis to do a repeat of Bombay
blasts in Chennai got exposed after
Toronto-based secessionist Lal Singh
was nabbed in ’92; left, Madras Stock
Exchange that he wanted to blow up
fail to inform Bombay Police earlier that one Khalistani “Inder
Pal Singh” alias Lal Singh was operating from Gujarat, which
they knew? With Gujarat Police’s intervention, the other con-
spirator Mohammad Sharief was arrested on June 18, 1993.
The CBI took over the investigation on August 4, 1992.
H
OWEVER it was astonishing that the CBI which took
over investigation on August 4, 1992 did not reveal any-
thing to the then Bombay Police Commissioner about
Lal Singh’s intention of blowing up MSE. The late
A.S.Samra, the then commissioner, had blamed LTTE as the
initial suspect on March 14, 1993 after Dawood’s serial
Bombay blasts on March 12, 1993 which included Bombay
Stock Exchange also. Would the Bombay Police have sus-
pected the LTTE in March 1993 had they been privy to Lal
Singh’s plans of bombing MSE the previous year? This raises
another question: why were the CBI, which had taken over Lal
Singh’s investigation in August 1992, and the IB, which must
have pursued the investigation, unable to detect a brewing
parallel conspiracy to cause serious blasts in March next year
in Bombay after Lal Singh had spilled the beans in July 1992
(leading to recoveries of arms dump in Gujarat)? Both were
planned by Pakistan on a similar modus operandi.
Pakistani intelligence would have planned such blasts on
parallel tracks much earlier, one using Lal Singh and the other
by Dawood for similar targets for which advance planning was
required. While Bombay conspiracy worked, the other by Lal
Singh aborted through the chance good work by Bombay/
Gujarat Police. This case study of this incident would thus
indicate that we need to be much more vigilant on the
possibility of the present Khalistan-Lashkar axis. O
(The writer is a former special secretary,
Cabinet Secretariat. His latest book is
Keeping India Safe: The Dilemma of Internal Security.)
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 41
 COVER STORY
PUNJAAP
TRIPPED
ON A FUSE
An ambitious AAP flirted with the wrong
sentiment in Punjab last year—separatism
by Pragya Singh
A
year ago, the Aam Aadmi Party
won only 20 seats in Pun-
jab’s 117-member assembly,
surprising itself and everyone
else. It was supposed to be a
near-walkover. After seeing
its national ambitions dashed for the
time being, the party resigned itself
to playing a good opposition. But so
far, it has occupied two alarmingly
divergent orbits. Petty factionalism
and looming obscurity at one level,
and on the other, a contrarian stand
on the one issue that cost it an elec-
tion: Sikh radicalism.
The spectre had extracted a heavy
price in the polls—80 seats less than
what was predicted by AAP leaders till
just before voting on March 11, 2017. In
the context of a Punjab that looks back
at the ’80s-90s with an overload of pain,
dread and exhaustion, even allowing a
whiff of separatism was akin to walking
into a trap—and one not entirely lain by
opponents. Yet, it walked right in with
eyes wide open and got singed.
The experience should have served
as a permanent cautionary note. After
all, AAP had come as an alternative to
the identity-peddling Akalis, with a
42 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
blueprint for governance, not to rouse
sleeping demons. And it should have
returned to its core areas. But no such
luck. Presently, some in AAP’s Punjab
unit are accusing the mothership in
Delhi of nothing less than sabotage, of
letting stray leaders shoot their mouths
off on separatism until the unit collap-
ses. The charge is unproven, but that it
even exists shows the state of play.
How did this happen? Basically, via the
enthusiastic support (and funding) it
had received from its new NRI converts,
AAP waded into the grey swampy zones
of radical Sikh politics—and got stuck.
The Sikh diaspora has fraught, com-
plicated sentiments towards India and
Punjab. “There’s a culture of competi-
tive radicalism among overseas Sikhs.
They have prospered but something ins-
ide them is unsettled, perhaps because
they feel uprooted,” says social scientist
Harish K. Puri. This restlessness they
seek to assuage with dollar-contribu-
tions and by spreading the message that
they know what’s better for Sikhs in
India than those in the homeland.
“Ambitious NRI Sikhs also openly fight
over who will control gurudwaras. To
do this, they raise controversial issues,”
adds Puri. The diaspora is least immune
to communal propaganda for they
live in a kind of vacuum, getting their
information from TV news or social
media spaces that are so hospitable to
false propaganda. “We saw how even our
crowds behave on the Padmaavat issue.
People didn’t even want to see the film
and just believed rumours. This is how
the Sikh diaspora too is misled.”
AAP, during its Punjab campaign,
garnered much support from NRI
Sikhs. Political observers say liberal,
secular Sikhs interested in a genuine,
modern alternative predominated here.
But rival parties successfully conveyed
the sense that AAP had turned into
a party of ‘radicals’. It’s a standing
accusation—that it has not distanced
itself from this politics—and the cause
of much anxiety and confusion within.
Some recent statements from within
the ranks drove the wedge deeper:
the Akalis and the ruling Congress
presented it as fresh evidence of AAP
flirting with extremists.
“The win in Delhi had enamoured
AAP to all Punjabis and they wanted
Kejriwal, but the party didn’t under-
stand the basics of Punjab,” says an
AAP insider who was very active during
the elections. “Gurudwaras, temples,
deras, panj pyaras, we went every-
where. In the process, some leaders

GETTY IMAGES
ended up cozying up to radical types
too. We were afraid that if we speak
out against radicals, we’d lose people’s
support. This fear persists.”
AAP has repeatedly denied charges of
fraternising with the ‘Khalistanis’. Yet,
the smear has stuck. There’s a touch
of irony here because AAP’s appeal in
Punjab lay in being the outsider—it did
not exist before 2012 and hence has not
even the remotest link to Punjab’s past,
the least baggage among all parties.
“AAP’s outreach to this section cost
it in 2017 but even now their advisors
seem to think Punjab is of Sikhs only
and that only radical politics appeals
to Sikhs. This perception is contrary
to reality,” says Puri. At the same time,
according to him, Sikh identity overseas
has been reshaped of late. “I’ve noted in
recent years that overseas they rarely
talk about being Indian first. They say
they are Sikh first. This is a new way of
looking at identity among NRI Sikhs.
This way of seeing themselves has not
come to Punjab, except among those in
(radical) politics.”
Both AAP leaders recently in the eye
of the storm—Sangrur MP Bhagwant
Mann and Kharar MLA Kanwar San-
dhu—questioned the recent arrest of
British national Jagtar Singh Johal aka
FEVER PITCH An AAP rally in
Muktsar, Punjab, 2016
Jaggi (see Panth And A Foreign Hand).
Both explain why they did so. “I don’t
say Jaggi should be set free. I say the
state should contact the UK High Com-
mission. That’s what any Indian would
want if arrested overseas,” says Mann.
Mann also asks why the ‘radicalism’
debate targets AAP while neglecting to
record similarities in political cul-
ture here and in other states. “See the
Padmaavat issue. Across the country
there was no law, only a culture of
blood-for-blood. Such impunity exists
among Punjab’s authorities too. They
are trying to scare people with talk of
terrorists,” he tells Outlook.
In Mann’s view, contrarian positions
are increasingly difficult to take—the
Shiv Sena burned his effigy last Nov-
ember—and targeting such voices
offers an excellent distraction from
promised development works for any
regime. “That does not mean we should
be quiet on what is right. We help
Indian nationals trapped in Bahrain,
Libya, Saudi Arabia. I feel Punjab
should reciprocate.”
Sandhu, who was for long a main-
stream journalist with no radical creden-
tials, has now, as a politician, taken a
tough line. He did not find the Punjab
Police version of Jaggi’s arrest “convinc-
ing”, and said so. “In case there is no sub-
“The authorities
of Punjab are
trying to scare people
with the talk of
terrorists,” says AAP
MP Bhagwant Mann,
also a singer-actor.
stantial evidence against him, he should
be freed and an apology tendered. In
case there is evidence…the information
should be shared with UK police and the
government,” he wrote on Facebook.
“We don’t toe the Khalistan line,”
Sandhu explains. “The issue is that a lot
of Punjabis feel alienated. Nobody got
justice in 1984, yet they talk of radical
fringe. The difference is we believe you
can bring peace using legal means—a
probe, proof, then punishment through
courts.” Sandhu finds it tough to choose
silence while the police are charged
with torturing Jaggi. “Politically
motivated agencies do catch people and
torture them,” he says. One Canadian
minister of Sikh origin spoke last year
about being illegally detained in India
during his youth, a story that circulated
widely on social media.
I
N the highly charged pre-poll atmos-
phere in Punjab, a bomb had exploded
near a Congress rally at Maur. This
tipped the scales decisively against
AAP, which was already under pressure
after Kejriwal was accused of having
used the house of an ex-militant (who
was in London) to spend a night in Moga.
“Nobody knows yet who was responsible
for that lethal bomb—the police have not
solved the case,” says Sandhu.
“AAP is in the past now,” says Ronki
Ram, professor of political science at
Panjab University, though he disagrees
that the ‘radical’ tag cost it. “It lost its
ground as an alternative by doing what
other parties do. Sikh radicalism is being
hyped up now—there is no feeling of
separatism in Punjab.”
Observers say it’s not the way AAP
presses the buttons on Sikh issues, but
their lack of cohesion that spoils the
pitch. Recently its Punjab unit deman-
ded a separate bank account. The state
leadership is also a virtual merry-go-
round. “We told Delhi to give more ind-
ependence to the local leadership but
they don’t trust us. They feel Sikhs have
a soft corner for separatists and ignore
how parties like Simranjit Mann’s Akali
faction are routed in every poll,” says
an insider. “Maur was a trap. Yet, if they
don’t denounce radical elements, people
will get scared and opponents will use
this against us.” In a potentially volatile
context, it would make sense for AAP
to come out and, well, separate ‘separa-
tism’ from genuine justice issues. O
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 43
 C OV ER STO RY O P IN IO N

The British Seeds of

The Sikh response to Indian nationalism was complex—loyal soldiers of the colonial army, they

A
S the mutiny of 1857 dissipated into Sikh soldiers “their willingness to shoot
massacres of Indians by the British, down (Indians)” was what enabled the
the British began to sing paeans to the British to rule India. It would have been a
Sikhs as loyal soldiers who could be disaster for the British if the Sikh soldiers
depended upon to do the bidding of stopped shooting Indians.
their imperial masters. Memoir after Earlier, in 1906, Morley had initiated the
memoir, written by the victorious officers of process of electing Indians to the various leg­
the East India Company, recalled how the islatures of India. He was at great pains to
Sikhs entered Delhi or Lucknow and massa­ explain that Indians were made up of differ­
cred the defeated sepoys. Their “love for the M. RAJIVLOCHAN ent religions, races and people, and that the
excitement of war” came in for particular principle of ‘one man, one vote’ could not be
praise. This was much in line with what army surgeon followed here. Each race, in his view, needed separate rep­
McGregor had noted in 1846, as the then popular view resentation. However, it was only the English­educated
among the British, that the Sikhs “loved war and strife bec­ Muslims, the first generation of the Mohammedan Anglo­
ause of the teachings of their gurus, particularly Guru Oriental College (which would become Aligarh Muslim
Gobind Singh”. Over the next 50 years, the idea of Sikhs as a University in 1920), who put forth a claim for separate rep­
martial race would become a favourite principle of the resentation. The Sikhs did not. The Morley­Minto refo­
British Indian army. By 1912, Sikh soldiers constituted some rms—the popular name given to the Indian Councils Act,
20 per cent of the British Indian Army. Its most important 1909—thus provided for separate Muslim electorates.
ideologue, Lt. General George MacMunn, could say with It was almost as if the British government was grooming
great confidence in praise of the Sikhs that although
“slow­witted, they were doggedly courageous and loyal”.
In the 1860s, it was decided to recruit Sikhs in the British
Indian army in preference to others. In an economy shorn
of any gainful employment, the army provided one of the
best job opportunities—and with an assured pension too.
Historian Mridula Mukherjee has calculated that at one
point military pensions made up almost half of the money
being lent out in rural Punjab. The retired soldier was not
just a peasant, but also a moneylender—and hence a big man
in his village. No wonder every Hindu peasant family in the
Sindh Sagar Doab region of Punjab, the land between the
rivers Sindh and Jhelum that was the largest supplier of
cannon fodder to the colonial army, began to raise at least
one son (usually the eldest) as a Sikh.
In 1907, however, this carefully crafted narrative of the
“martial, dim­witted but courageous and loyal” Sikh took a
severe beating. As peasants in 27 of the 29 districts of
Punjab rose up in protest against unfair taxation, the gov­
ernment noticed with particular concern the participation
of Sikhs. ‘Pagdi sambhal Jatta, lut gaya maal oye’ became
the song of the rebellion that quickly spread across Punjab.
“Spreading sedition,” the authorities noted as they prepared
to deport Sardar Ajit Singh, the agitation’s leader, to
Mandalay. Two decades later, Ajit Singh’s nephew Sardar
Bhagat Singh would inscribe his name in India’s history for
even greater deeds of opposition to the colonial govern­
ment. In June 1907, however, the Secretary of State for
India John Morley, a Liberal, pro­Indian, former newspaper
editor, was mainly concerned that the agitators were telling
ALAMY

44 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

Secession
didn’t fall for the ‘separate electorate’ idea
the Muslims of India to form a separate nation. A similar
exercise was already in the offing in Europe with the British
promising the Jews a religion­based nation of their own, to
be called Israel. The British were sowing the wind. Indians,
Pakistanis and Palestinians have since been reaping the
whirlwind. Historian Mushirul Hasan says the Muslim sep­
aratist claim was an entirely artificial construct, made con­
trary to the observed reality. He points at the colonial effort
to deny an identity to India by ignoring the commonalities
between Muslims and Hindus of the region, and also the
dissimilarities among the Muslims of India.
Meanwhile, the imperial capital was shifted to Delhi. Edwin
Lutyens and Herbert Baker were commissioned to plan the
new town and design its buildings. As the British went to acq­
uire land for the construction of New Delhi, there faced a lot of
pressure from local farmers, who demanded a better deal. The
Sikh community at Rakabganj and Raisina reminded the aut­
MEN OF WAR Sikh soldiers proved their loyalty to the East
India Company in 1857 (opposite page); Sardar Baghel Singh
LINEAGE OF REBELS Sardar Ajit Singh (left) was deported
to Mandalay by the British; his nephew Bhagat Singh
horities of the special relationship with the British ever since
they helped the government put down the rebellion of 1857.
They managed to obtain for themselves 750 acres of land in
the Lower Bari Doab area and also a promise that the guru­
dwara at Rakabganj would not be demolished.
The gurudwara at Rakabganj was one of the seven con­
structed in and around Delhi, in the early 1780s, by Sardar
Baghel Singh after his troops entered Red Fort and sur­
rounded Mughal emperor Shah Alam. The emperor then
granted Baghel Singh many privileges, among them the privi­
lege to construct as many gurudwaras as he liked, wherever he
wanted. The one at Rakabganj commemorated the cremation
of Guru Tegh Bahadur, who had been beheaded at Aurangzeb’s
orders for refusing to convert to Islam.
Trouble began in the 1910s with the layout that Lutyens cre­
ated for the Viceregal Palace (currently Rashtrapati Bhavan)
and Baker’s design for the Central Secretariat. To ensure sym­
metry for the roads to these great symbols of imperial power,
the engineers demolished a boundary wall of the Rakabganj
gurudwara. There was an immediate outcry from the resi­
dents of Rakabganj and other neighbouring settlements. At
Amritsar, the Chief Khalsa Diwan convened a meeting of the
various Singh Sabhas and petitions were sent to the govern­
ment underlining the great sacrifices the Sikhs had made in
service of the empire. Police reports from Punjab indicated
that rumours were afloat about the British planning to demol­
ish the Rakabganj gurudwara for constructing the Viceregal
Palace. On one occasion, an assembly at Rakabganj, of some
700, promised to lay down their lives for protecting the guru­
dwara. Finally, things were brought to a peaceful end with
Ripudaman Singh, the Sikh Maharaja of Nabha, convincing
the town­planners to give up their dream of symmetrical
roads. Ripudaman Singh then went on to reconstruct the
demolished walls at his own expense, earning the gratitude of
the government as well as the congregation of the gurudwara.
Having burnt their hands at Rakabganj, the town planners
did not insist on meddling with the layout of another guru­
dwara that stood in the way of their symmetrical plan. The
plan for the shopping district, Connaught Place, was changed
to accommodate the Bangla Sahib gurudwara, which was
housed in the bungalow of Rajputana chieftain Jai Singh,
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 45
 COVER STORY OPINI ON

while the rest of the compound of

Jaisinghpura, the settlement that had come
up around this bungalow, was demolished.
On June 25, 1914, the singed planners of
Delhi issued a public statement that the
plan for the new city would take due con­
sideration of all the sacred places of
Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs. They reiter­
ated that the plans for the new buildings
and roads were drawn up in such a manner
as to leave the holy places untouched. If
this called for making a street serpentine,
that would be done. An effort would also be
made to not cramp a holy place were it to
fall close to a public road or building, giving
it ample surrounding ground for a public
garden. The idea, it was said, was to form a
picturesque link between past and present.

L
ORD Roberts, one of the major propo­
nents of the martial race theory, did rec­ GETTY IMAGES

ognise that a heavy dependence of the imperial army on ASYMMETRY Maharaja of Nabha Ripudaman Singh (left)
Sikhs may prove counter­productive in the future. The got Edwin Lutyens’ Viceregal Palace layout modified
Sikhs, it was feared, may turn out to be not “dim­witted” as the
colonials thought. Towards the end of his life as an imperial urned from the US after doing two MAs, roundly defeated the
militarist, Roberts did try to identify other ‘martial’ races that grand old Congress leader of Komagatamaru fame, Sardar
may be used by the imperial army. Tribals from the Northeast Gurdit Singh. The defeat was even more humiliating because
was an option that was discussed. At one point, he even rec­ Pandit Nehru had twice visited the constituency to campaign.
ommended the inclusion of Zulus from Africa to dilute the Tara Singh now defined Sikhs as distinct from the Congress,
Sikh presence. Nothing much came of it. Instead, when the which, he insisted, was a ‘Hindu’ organisation. When the
time came for reviewing the role of Indians in government in Congress decided to boycott the war effort and demanded that
1935, the British recognised the Sikhs as a distinct race that the British ‘Quit India’, Tara Singh rejected the call. The
needed separate representation. Akalis, he would say, would wholeheartedly
The Akali Dal, by this time the most visible participate in the war. After all, Tara Singh
political grouping of Sikhs in Punjab, was explained, the war provided a grand oppor­
vociferous in its rejection of this communal tunity of employment and social advance­
award. It even managed to convince Sikhs ment to the Sikhs, martial as they were.
from across political groupings to condemn A few years later, when it became clear
the award. They declared it would only acc­ that independence was just round the cor­
entuate communal bitterness, sowing seeds ner, Tara Singh did make a claim for an ind­
of discord and strife. However, the Congress, ependent Sikh state, much like Pakistan for
with Nehru wary of upsetting Muslims, ref­ Muslims. The small size of the Sikh popula­
used to issue any strong condemnation of tion—just 15 per cent of the population of
this new round of separatism that had been Punjab in the 1940s, while Muslims were
foisted by the British on India. close to 53 per cent—and the fear that
A dejected Akali leadership, now led by Pakistan might try to overwhelm an inde­
Master Tara Singh, stood by helplessly, left pendent Sikh country made Tara Singh
with no option but to participate in elections Tara Singh give up that demand. He pitched his future
on the basis of the communal award. In
these elections, where the electoral college rejected the
with India. In the years to come, even while
he was fighting against the Congress gov­
was made up of the propertied and salaried, Quit India call and ernments of Punjab, he would be at great
the landowning voters from the villages of said the WWII pains to emphasise his commitment to
Punjab—mostly Sikh—preferred the Akalis, India. But by now an idea had taken root
while the townspeople—mostly Hindu mer­ gave Sikhs a grand that if religion could be the basis for nation
chants—gravitated towards the Congress. opportunity for formation, then there could be a Sikh state
The greatest shock to the Congress hap­ for a Sikh people. O
pened when Sardar Partap Singh Kairon, a employment and (The writer is professor in department of
young Akali leader who had recently ret­ social progress. history, Panjab University, Chandigarh.)

46 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 BUDGET 2018

VOX POPULI
A pro-poor, pro-farmer language dominates. Even if the
the middle class, the BJP’s core constituency, is alienated.

n New National Health

Protection Scheme to provide
health insurance cover of
Rs 5 lakh to 10 cr poor families
n 24 new medical colleges
and hospitals, at least one in
each state
Rs 3,794 cr allocated for
n
MSME sector as credit
support, capital and interest
subsidy on innovation
n Corporate tax on MSMEs
with turnover of up to Rs 250
cr reduced from 30 per cent
to 25 per cent
n Compulsory EPF contribu-
tion for women reduced from
12 per cent to 8 per cent for
first three years
n Disinvestment target for
2018-19 set at Rs 80,000 cr
n No change in income tax.
Standard deduction of
Rs 40,000 to be reintroduced;
medical, travel benefits to go
n Tax exemption on interest
income, medical insurance,
up to Rs 50,000 to benefit
senior citizens
n Long-term capital gains tax
on gains above Rs 1 lakh
n Education, health cess up
from 3 to 4 per cent
n Housing for poor by 2022
n 18 new schools of planning
and architecture in IITs
n Rs 3 lakh crore allocated
for Mudra Yojana
n 99 cities selected under
Smart City plan
n Fiscal Deficit target for
2018-19: 3.3 per cent of GDP
 BUDGET-18
MODICARE:
INSURANCE
POLICY 2019
Jaitley promises succour,
belatedly, to aggrieved
sectors. But is it too thin
a supply of oxygen for
India’s distressed?
Infrastructure
Allocated Rs 5.97 lakh crore against
2017-18 estimate of Rs 4.94 lakh crore
Education
Up from Rs 79,686 crore in 2017-18 (BE)
to Rs. 85,010 crore (BE), a 6.7 per cent
increase; but share in Union Budget dips
to 3.5 per cent in 2018-19 (BE).
Health
Allocations rise from Rs 47,352 crore in
2017-18 (BE) to Rs 52,800 crore in ‘18-19
(BE), a 12 per cent increase
Sanitation
The total Swachh Bharat Mission outlay
is Rs 17,843 crore, slightly down from
Rs 19, 248.27 crore in 2017-18 (RE)
National Rural Drinking Water
Programme (NRDWP) allocation dips
marginally from Rs 7,050 crore in ‘17-18
(RE) to Rs. 7,000 crore in ‘18-19 (BE)
Nutrition
Compared to 2017-18 RE, outlays dip for
MBP/PMMVY (universalised last year to
all pregnant/lactating women) by 7.5 per
cent, for NHM (3.7 per cent), NRDWP
(0.7 per cent), and SBM (7.3 per cent).
Fund utilisation under Anganwadi
services (or ICDS) schemes dips further
from Rs 16,683 crore in 2014-15 to Rs
14,735.6 crore in 2016-17.
Women and Child
Allocation up from Rs 22,095 crore in
‘17-18 (BE) to Rs 24,700 crore in ‘18-19
(BE). Budget for child-related schemes
rises in absolute numbers but dips from
3.32 per cent to 3.23 per cent of Budget.
48 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
by Lola Nayar
T
HERE’S a loud attempt to woo
back a critical community the
Narendra Modi government is
widely alleged to have alienated
country-wide. Farmers are now
being offered a raised minimum
support price, while there’s a promise
of heavy investment in the agricul-
ture markets. Budget 2018-19 also
proposes to aid the MSME sector that
provides the bulk of employment.
In all, the priorities remind one that
this is finance minister Arun Jaitely’s
last full Budget ahead of next year’s
general elections.
Alongside is a major sop for the poor
through a new health insurance scheme
that is expected to cover 10 crore fam-
ilies or people five times more that fig-
ure. Whether it will replace the Rashtri-
ya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) or be a
parallel scheme is not yet clear. Even ex-
perts aren’t sure about the selection of
the families eligible for the Rs 5 lakh per
annum health insurance. “The National
Health Protection Scheme is not backed
by any budgetary allocation other than
that for RSBY,” points out Subrat Das of
the Centre for Budget and Governance
Accountability. “There is a lot of stress
on insurance where allocation for RSBY
has increased from Rs 470 crore in 2017-
18 (revenue estimates) to Rs 2,050 crore
in 2018-19 (budget estimates).”
As people await details on schemes
to boost the farm sector and to impr-
ove education and healthcare that
figure among the key thrust areas in the
Budget, alongside a continued push to
infrastructure, the common man finds
nothing new on the plate. In fact, he
will be picking up part of the tab for a
promised improvement in health and
education facilities through a one per
cent higher cess.
Dr D.K. Srivastava, chief policy advisor
with EY India, says the Budget is on
expected lines except for a “slippage in
the fiscal deficit target”. That, he says, is
entirely due to a revised estimate of rev-
enue expenditure, which has exceeded
the budgeted estimate by more than
Rs 1 lakh crore. “A rise in tax revenue or
in disinvestment returns couldn’t acc-
ommodate it. Result: a significant rise in
the base for next year also in percentage
terms.” On capital expenditure, the
estimate is “much less” than last year’s.
“Had it been the other way round, it
would have been a healthier trend.”
The focus on the farm sector is not
enough to revive agriculture growth,
says S. Mahendra Dev, vice-chancellor
of Indira Gandhi Institute for Develop-
ment Research. It won’t lead to doubling
of farm income, as measures like fixing
the MSP at 1.5 times the input cost are
not clear, he tells Outlook. “Nor is it clear
how the government is to implement the
price deficiency payment programme.”
For, firstly, MSP is fixed only for 24
crops, and the government anyway pro-
cures only enough for the PDS or food
security, Prof Dev points out. “Secondly,
the rural market plan has been in the
making for last several years, including
during the UPA tenure. So far, institu-
tional mechanisms for farmers—whe-
ther in case of pricing or warehousing,
food processing, exports or extension
services—have all been lacking, whether
through the public sector or PPP.”
Farmer leader Sudhir Panwar says for
agriculture, the Budget is high on decibel
Photographs: JITENDER GUPTA
CAUTIOUS Finance
minister Arun Jaitley
arrives at Parliament to
present Budget 2018
 B U D GET-18
RUPEE COMES FROM
Goods and Non-Tax Non-Debt Capital
Service Tax & Revenue 8p Receipts 3p
Other Taxes
23p
Union Excise
Duties 8p Customs 4p Income Tax 16p
but poor in gains. “As expected, the
finance minister touched all issues faced
by farmers but without any implemen-
tation mechanism,” he adds. He mocks
at the minister’s claim of fulfilment of
the election promise of 50 per cent of
profit on input costs, rubbishing Jaitley’s
statement of having already implemen-
ted it for the rabi crop allegedly provid-
ing a profit margin of 112 per cent on
wheat and 72 per cent on gram. “Such
calculations will hardly benefit farmers,”
Panwar notes. “Similarly, increase of
credit from Rs 10 lakh crore to Rs 11 lakh
crore will enhance only private invest-
ment and add to farmers’ indebtedness.”
Dr Shashanka Bhide, director, Mad-
ras Institute of Development Studies
(MIDS), feels the Budget continues ear-
lier initiatives, especially in the case of
priorities for expenditure. For instance,
the reforms relating to direct benefit
transfers are set to strengthen, which
will bring efficiency to programme impl-
ementation. “The initiatives on health,
education, affordable housing and rural
infrastructure are within the overall
framework followed over the years, with
specific new emphases,” he says. “On the
revenue front, there are no major chan-
ges after the major GST reform of the
previous year. This major reform needs
greater attention to make it work.”
Mritiunjoy Mohanty, who teaches
economics at IIM-Calcutta, points out
that the Economic Survey 2018-19 did
note the economy is yet to emerge from
a historically unprecedented investment
slowdown since 2012. “The Budget has
rightly focused on rural output and inco-
50 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
RUPEE GOES TO
Borrowings & States’ share Pensions
Other Liabilities of taxes &
19p duties 24p
Corporation Finance Commission
Tax & Other Transfers
19p 8p
mes,” he says. “Whether this will spur
rural investment without addressing the
severe debt overhang is anybody’s guess.
If not, expenditure on railway and air-
port infrastructure may not be sufficient
to spur investment growth.”
Jaxay Shah, president of real estate
developers’ apex body CREDAI, is
confident that the government’s infra-
structure push right from rural roads to
affordable homes, metro connectivity,
smart cities, housing for poor, among
others will prove a shot in the arm. The
plans rolled out by the government
include building 31 lakh homes in urban
areas and 51 lakh in rural areas, besides
completion of 9,000 km of highways and
doubling of 18,000 km of railway track.
On the socio-economic front, Jaitley
focuses on the health needs of the poor
and the pensioners. Development expert
N.C. Saxena says one area the minister
could have done more was enhance-
ment of the National Social Assistance
Programme payout of Rs 200 per month,
which has remained unchanged for last
several years. Currently, the poor not
only suffer due to inadequate healthcare
infrastructure but also find it tough to
meet the expenses.
“The health insurance
will do good to the 50
crore people if only the
beneficiaries get cards
and healthcare facilities
are improved overall.”
Other Centrally Central
5p Expenditure Sponsored Sector
8p Schemes 9p Schemes
10p
Interest
Subsidies 9p Defence 9p Payments 18p
Source: Union Budget 2018-19 documents
Graphics by SAJI C.S.
The new health insurance is expected
to benefit 50 crore people. To Saxena, the
promise holds meaning only if the gov-
ernment acts quickly in not just identify-
ing the beneficiaries and distributing the
cards but also improving the healthcare
facilities. Also, even as Jaitley acknowled-
ges poor learning outcomes in a large
number of schools at all levels, Saxena
underlines that education, and all other
areas, including farm insurance and
other government-run schemes, require
more supervision and impact evaluation.
“Unless you look at implementation and
evaluation with naming and shaming,
it is not going to yield any results,” he
says. “Agriculture for instance has a large
number of schemes but not enough
review. Similarly, education needs more
focus as outcomes show lack of quality.”
The ruling BJP’s trade union arm is
fuming. The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh
has threatened agitations, starting with
a countrywide demonstration immedi-
ately. The Budget has totally neglected
the woes of labour, even though it has
“for the first time” given more thrust to
rural development, agriculture, health
and infrastructure. “Anganwadi workers,
ASHA karmis and other scheme workers
who belong to the poorest-paid workers
appointed under the central govern-
ment have nothing as relief,” says BMS
general secretary Virjesh Upadhyay.
“Middle-class employees are unhappy
with no increase in their ceiling for tax
exemption; at the same time the cess on
income tax is increased from 3 per cent
to 4 per cent,” he says. “This was done
at a time when the budget claims 41 per
 GLUED Industrialists view Budget
presentation live on TV at CII-Delhi
KEY
Budget NUMBERS 2018-19
it implies is that even as government
dis-saving remains high, overall there is
a continued fall in the savings rate,” he
2017-2018 2017-2018 2018-2019
2016-2017
Budget Revised Budget
adds. “The two sectors responsible for
Actuals
estimates estimates estimates this are the household sector and the
public sector. When the savings rates
Revenue receipts 13,74,203 15,15,771 15,05,428 17,25,738 fall, the corresponding investment rate
Capital receipts 6,00,991 6,30,964 7,12,322 7,16,475 also falls and this does not augur well for
Total Receipts 19,75,194 21,46,735 22,17,750 24,42,213 our long-term or potential growth rate.”
Prof Dev lauds government efforts to
Revenue account boost fisheries and animal husbandry
16,90,584 18,36,934 19,44,305 21,41,772
expenditure through allocation of Rs 10,000 crore,
Capital account but points out that mere allocation is not
2,84,610 3,09,801 2,73,445 3,00,441
expenditure enough unless supported by proper imp-
Total Expenditure 19,75,194 21,46,735 22,17,750 24,42,213 lementation. Agriculture investment—as
a proportion of agriculture GDP—has
Revenue deficit 3,16,381 3,21,163 4,38,877 4,16,034 declined to 15 per cent in 2015-16 from
Effective revenue deficit 1,50,648 1,25,813 2,49,632 2,20,689 18 per cent in 2011-12. How the govern-
ment proposes to revive it is not clear
Fiscal deficit 5,35,618 5,46,531 5,94,849 6,24,276
even as the old debate on investment
Primary deficit 54,904 23,453 64,006 48,481 versus subsidy remains unresolved.
Figures are in `cr, Source: Union Budget 2018-19 documents One area of concern Bhide of MIDS
voices is the maintenance of a balance
between public investment in infra-
cent increase in the tax payers’ net.” as against Rs 72,500 crore in 2017-18, structure and resources to meet the
The government’s plans to merge the which is now expected to reach Rs 1 lakh basic needs of the more vulnerable
four public sector general insurance crore by this fiscal end sections of the population. For, the
companies has greatly upset the BMS, Overall, EY’s Srivastava says the net expenditure growth in 2018-19 over the
which fears retrenchment. Having ben- impact on infrastructure development previous year is 10 per cent compared
efited from the energy major ONGC’s will be limited even as the fiscal deficit to the growth of 12 per cent in 2017-18.
acquisition of the HPCL in exceeding target of 3 per cent has been shifted to “Essentially, private investment revival,
its disinvestment targets, the plans for FY 2021. Reason: the overall capital with the improved ease-of-doing-busi-
listing following a merger of the four expenditure is coming down even as its ness metric in place, now will require
insurance companies is expected to help focus is on infrastructure. “These reflect clear signs of accelerating growth, both
the government meet its disinvestment budgetary compulsions mostly driven by domestic and exports, although some tax
target of Rs 80,000 crore for 2018-19 non-asset-forming expenditure. What measures may have helped,” he adds. O

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 51

 B U D GET-18
THE SAME
OLD TAXING
TIMES
A low fiscal deficit on his
mind, the FM plays it
safe with taxes. Only the
old have reason to smile.
No change in personal income tax;
standard deduction of Rs 40,000
reintroduced, but medical and
travel benefits to go
Education and health cess
increased from three to four
per cent, which will affect all
taxpayers and neutralise gains
from standard deduction
Long-term capital gains tax on
gains above Rs 1 lakh reintroduced;
markets react—both Sensex and
Nifty fall; investment in markets
likely to be affected
Senior citizens to benefit from
increase in tax exemption on
interest income and on medical
insurance, both up to Rs 50,000
Corporate tax on MSMEs with
turnover of up to Rs 250 crore
(excluding proprietorships and
partnerships) reduced from 30 per
cent to 25 per cent
52 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
by Arindam Mukherjee
U
NION Budget 2018 has been
on expected lines, aimed at
appeasing farmers and others
in rural areas, as well as small
industry. When it comes to
most tax proposals, though, it
has disappointed everybody except
senior citizens and Micro, Small &
Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). In
its last full budget before the next
general elections, the BJP-led NDA
government targets its votebanks in
rural areas and the agriculture sector,
promising them a lot. In direct taxes,
however, where it was expected to
bring in a lot of reforms and exemp-
tions, it has done precious little.
Of all classes of taxpayers, the salaried
employee has been left almost high and
dry with finance minister Arun Jaitley
announcing there would be no change
in the personal income-tax rates. From
a taxpayer’s perspective, there was a
lot of expectation that the personal
income-tax exemption limit would be
raised. That has not happened. With
GST becoming a reality, most citizens
are being made to pay taxes on almost
every purchase and, in most cases, the
taxes are higher than before. That’s
why there were expectations that
the finance minister would put more
money into the taxpayer’s hands by
lowering personal taxes. To encourage
higher compliance, simplification of
direct tax laws was also expected. None
of these has happened.
“This is a political budget,” says
Daksha Baxi, partner at Khaitan & Co.
“They really needed to reach out to
those who suffered because of demone-
tisation and GST. They have been given
a largesse. Apart from this, senior citi-
zens, who suffered because of reduced
SENIOR’S GIFT This Budget has been
kind to pensioners most of all
interest, have got a lot. These are peo-
ple who needed to feel that something
is being done for them.”
It is clear that the salaried taxpayers
are not the government’s priority, and
so nothing much has been done for
them. While there is no change in the
personal income tax rates or slabs, the
government has reintroduced the old
standard deduction—a flat amount ded-
ucted from the salary income before
calculation of taxable income. It was
discontinued by former finance minis-
ter P. Chidambaram in Budget 2005-
06. It’s back, in lieu of exemptions for
medical and travel expenses—so no
more bills to claim reimbursement.
According to Budget 2018, there will
be a standard deduction of Rs 40,000
for all salary earners who pay tax.
However, the catchis—the existing
benefits of medical allowance, where
Rs 15,000 was tax-free, and transport
allowance, of which Rs 19,200 was tax-
free, have been removed. The net gain
for salary earners is thus a little over
Rs 5,000 only—and even that they may
well not be able to get and instead end
up paying more in taxes. That’s because
the government has increased the
education and health cess from three

BHUPINDER SINGH
to four per cent, which is expected to
neutralise all gains arising out of the
standard deduction.
The prospects look up only for pen-
sioners, who are set to benefit substan-
tially as they did not get any standard
deduction earlier, nor any of the other
allowances given to salaried employees.
They would be saving the tax payable on
this entire amount of deduction.
Experts feel the government’s hands
were tied as far as raising the threshold
limit for taxes for salaried employ-
ees was concerned. “Increasing the
threshold limit has been a challenge for
the government and is against the goal
of expanding the taxpayer base,” says
tax expert Mukesh Butani, who is the
founder of BMR Legal. “It would have
immediately taken a chunk of taxpay-
ers out of the tax net. That is something
the finance minister did not want.
Hence, it has not been touched.”
There is more bad news for salary
earners and investors, especially those
investing in the markets. Long-term
capital gains, which had been exempted
from taxes in 2004, will now be taxed at
10 per cent as the government has rein-
troduced the long-term capital gains tax
on gains arising from the sale of listed
equity shares exceeding Rs 1 lakh, with
no indexation benefit. This will affect
everyone who has invested heavily in
market instruments that fetch returns
in excess of Rs 1 lakh, and is expected to
have a significant negative impact on the
mutual fund industry, besides adversely
affecting inflows from foreign investors.
“Introduction of long-term capital
gains tax on equity gain exceeding Rs 1
lakh at 10 per cent without indexation
will impact the equity market and the
corpus that people need to create for
meeting their financial and life goals,”
says Sanjay Sanghvi, partner at Khaitan
& Co. “There is another catch—this
change is, in effect, a retrospective
amendment since only capital gains
made until January 31, 2018 will not
attract this new tax. This is against
the stated policy decision of NDA
government not to make retrospective
amendment in tax laws.”
As expected, the markets reacted neg-
atively to this and the BSE benchmark
Sensex closed 58.36 points lower than
yesterday’s close at 35,906.66, after los-
ing about 400 points in intraday rallies.
The NSE Nifty also closed 10.80 points
“Raising the threshold
limit for the salaried would
have taken a chunk of
taxpayers out of the net.
The FM didn’t want that.”
Mukesh Butani
Tax expert and founder, BMR Legal
lower than its previous close at 11,016.90.
“There is a similarity between the
tax proposals in this year’s budget and
what was there in last year’s,” says Gokul
Chaudhary, partner at Deloitte India.
“Last year, tax for people at the lower
end of income was brought down from
10 per cent to 5 per cent. This year, too,
there is a Robin Hood approach of red-
ucing tax burden at the lower end of the
pyramid, but increasing it at the upper
end. People at the lower end will get the
benefit of standard deduction, while
those with higher income will be taxed
for long-term capital gains.”
It is towards senior citizens that the
budget has been very kind. The finance
minister has proposed to increase the
limit of deduction under section 80D
for senior citizens for medical insurance
from Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000. Exemp-
tion on interest income has also been
increased from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000.
These measures have been brought in
because senior citizens had suffered due
to reduction in interest on deposits.
Keeping his word of bringing down
corporate tax in a phased manner, the
finance minister has brought it down
for MSMEs. According to Budget 2018,
the threshold limit for MSMEs—for
which tax has been brought down
from 30 to 25 per cent—has been
raised from a turnover of Rs 50 crore
to Rs 250 crore. This is also because the
government looks up to this sector for
employment generation.
Explaining the reason why the govern-
ment did not raise the threshold limit
for the entire corporate sector, experts
point out that the 2015 announce-
ment of phased reduction in corporate
tax was predicated on a reduction in
exemptions, which have not happened.
Chaudhary, however, feels that given the
higher cess and surcharge, even after
bringing down the tax for MSMEs from
30 per cent to 25 per cent, the effective
tax rate would be 29-34 per cent.
From an indirect tax standpoint, as
expected, the focus has been on customs
duty. There is a clear change in policy
to increase customs duty to encourage
domestic manufacturing. Accordingly,
customs duties on products like mobile
phones, television sets and furniture
have been increased by 10-20 per cent.
“The FM wants to promote Make in
India by taking a protectionist app-
roach,” says Butani. “There had been no
upward rejigging of customs duty in the
recent past, which has been done now.”
Suresh Nandlal Rohira, partner at
Grant Thornton India LLP, says, “With
the powers being disseminated to the
GST council, there were no significant
expectations on the indirect tax front,
although a broad-level roadmap on
bringing the petroleum sector under
GST could have brought some relief to
the surging prices in that sector.”
Overall, besides addressing the
rural and agrarian sectors, the finance
minister has given little to most
people, barring some sections. But
considering that he has pegged fiscal
deficit for 2018-19 at a low 3.3 per cent,
there was little he could give out. O
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 53
 B U D GET-18
TAKE ME
HOME,
COUNTRY
ROADS
Rural development
schemes have been
allocated record sums
by Pragya Singh
B
UDGET 2018-19 lives up to
its buzz—overall spending
on “rural infrastructure and
livelihood” will cross Rs 14
trillion, FM Arun Jaitley said
in his speech. While details
will emerge later, the government has
clearly provided for the biggest leaps
in funding for schemes that direc-
tly cater to rural development and
employment. It plans to build 51 lakh
new rural houses in the next year, con-
struct 1.88 crore toilets and provide
1.75 crore new electricity connections.
With this massive allocation spanning
ministries, departments and a variety
of schemes, the gap between rural
development, infrastructure-building
and agriculture as separate heads of
government expenditure is narrowing.
The National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (NREGA) and Pradhan
Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) have got
some of their biggest hikes ever—14.5
per cent and 13.5 per cent respectively.
NREGA will get Rs 55,000 crore—
Rs 7,000 crore more than last year. For
the PMAY, under which homes are built
for the poor, the government plans
to raise Rs 12,000 crore of the overall
allocation of Rs 33,000 crore from
extra-budgetary resources. This means
state and central government resources
(PSU profits, interest income etc.) will to
an extent determine the funds available.
The demand-driven NREGA will get
allocations from the Budget itself.
This is in sync with heightened
54 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
ROLLED OUT Roads being laid on the outskirts of Lucknow
demand for work under NREGA in rural
areas last year, when expenditure on it
grew to 25 per cent over allocation. As
the consequences of demonetisation
wane, this year’s hike is expected to
cater to most of the demand growth and
keep rural distress at bay. Keeping the
effect of droughts and other factors in
mind—such as the electoral promise of
housing for all by 2022—NREGA and
PMAY remain mainstays of the govern-
ment’s rural push as the country looks at
elections in the near future.
The “Rs 14.34 trillion” windfall will
also include existing and new schemes
for employment generation, irrigation,
housing, sanitation, livelihood, electri-
fication and other farm-based and rural
projects by ministries and departments
at the Centre and in states. It is not a
completely rosy picture, as there have
been droughts, and farmers have failed
to realise prices for crops several times
over the last two years.
“This year’s food subsidy bill is almost
Rs 30,000 crore higher than the previous
year’s, although food prices are lower.
This gives some indication of the
situation in rural areas and the kind of
development that is needed,” says farm
The thrust is on wages,
infrastructure and
logistics. 3.17 lakh km of
rural roads will be built,
and there are allocations
for agricultural logistics.
NAEEM ANSARI
leader Ajay Vir Jakhar.
“The government has allocated its
available resources the best it could.
Even the finance minister’s hands are
tied as a result of many years of econo-
mic mismanagement,” says Jakhar. “The
massive allocation for rural devel-
opment combined with the massive
scheme for medical insurance for the
poor will provide a big relief to rural
India, where medical costs have been
tearing families apart,” he says.
Experts have been reiterating that
the rural economy is in need of sup-
port, and this Budget is an effort to
address this. The thrust, even as the
FM declared that GDP had crossed $2.5
trillion, was on rural wages and improv-
ing small farmers’ access to markets
by building logistics near panchayats.
Accordingly, 22,000 rural haats (wee-
kly markets) and ‘Operation Green’ for
agriculture logistics have got modest
allocations of Rs 2,000 crore and Rs 500
crore respectively. Farmer-producer
organisations (FPOs)—collectives of
small and marginal farmers (who own
less than 5 acres )—will be exempt from
income tax as well. The biggest effort,
however, is to link village and rural roads
to these new haats, villages and FPOs.
Around 2.6 lakh km of a target of 3.17
lakh km of rural roads will be built
through NREGA, and the rest through
the PM Gram Sadak Yojana, generating,
as per the FM’s speech, 28.35 crore man-
days of work. Funds for loans to rural
women’s self-help groups grew by 37 per
cent to Rs 42,500 crore last year, and will
rise to Rs 75,000 crore this year. O
 BUDG ET-18 O P IN IO N

Late Seeds of Illusion

Suddenly, ryots get false hopes. In poll year, harvest isn’t all about field crops.

S
O is this an election-year budget? In terms
of packaging, absolutely. Arun Jaitley’s
Budget speech was full of terrific promises
for farmers, for marginalised groups like
SCs and STs, for around half of the popula-
tion to government-funded health insura-
nce, for poor rural women to get free gas
connections, for homeless people to get public
housing or financial assistance for it. Just listening JAYATI GHOSH more than what was promised in the previous
to the finance minister’s speech would make you
think this government is donning its “common
man” garb in the effort to generate support from people prior
to what could possibly be early general elections.
But when you look the actual allocations (quite apart from
the eventual spending, which is usually less), what emerges is
a different picture. The big takeaways from the Budget speech
that are being described as “populist” or at least are likely to be more—will now extend this to cover rabi crops. But farmers
popular with the masses—and relate to the offer of publicly-
funded health insurance to nearly half the population, sops to
farmers, various measures for micro and small enterprises and
increased funds for rural housing.
Consider the health insurance scheme first. Here’s the
promise in the Budget speech: “We will launch a flagship
National Health Protection Scheme to cover over 10 crore
poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore benefi-
ciaries) providing coverage up to 5 lakh rupees per family per
year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation. This will
be the world’s largest government-funded healthcare pro-
gramme. Adequate funds will be pro-
vided for the smooth implementation
of this programme.”
If this were true, it would be amaz-
ing—even though it would mean an
unfortunate and problematic shift
away from direct public provision to
enriching the coffers of insurance
companies and private health provid-
ers. But what would be “adequate
funds for smooth implementation”
for this? The current Rashtriya Swa-
sthya Bima Yojana provides annual
coverage of only Rs 30,000 to poor
families: the idea is to multiply the
insured amount by six times, and extend Allocations to agriculture by extension, for the government as a
the coverage from less than 100 million ministry have risen by
people at present to around 50 crore
just 11.5% vis-a-vis the
people. This would require additional
budgetary allocation of at least Rs 60,000 2017 Budget. No wonder
crore to begin to be meaningful. farmers have again given
So how much has Jaitley put aside for Jaitley a thumbs-down.
this grandiose scheme in this Budget? An increase
of Rs 672 crore only, compared to last year’s
Budget! Is this supposed to be seed money to
develop the idea? Or just a joke?
Now consider farmers, who are supposed to be
offered procurement prices 50 per cent above the
cost of production. Presumably for this purpose,
there is an allocation of nearly Rs 24,000 crore
year’s Budget. But even this is definitely insuffi-
cient to bring about such a large increase in pro-
curement prices unless the plan is to restrict procurement or
use a lower definition of the cost of production.
There is a suggestion that the latter move is exactly what the
government is planning—Jaitley claims that the government
has already implemented this for kharif crops, and—what’s
across the country have been complaining that the announced
procurement prices do not cover their full costs of production,
and that in any case the procurement operations are so limited
and inadequate that they are forced to sell their produce in the
open market at prices well below that because of the govern-
ment’s open trade policies.
Meanwhile, total allocations for the ministry of agriculture
are to be increased by only 11.5 per cent compared to last year’s
Budget, barely higher than the projected nominal rate of GDP
growth of around 11 per cent. No wonder, most farmers who
were asked to provide immediate reactions to the Budget have
responded with thumbs down.
The measures for micro, small and
medium enterprises are similarly
sorcerer’s tricks rather than real bud-
getary allocations. In any case, most of
the declared benefits are supposed to
come through off-Budget items like
bank credit for which the fiscal policy
of the government can take no credit,
especially as there is no evidence of
increased allocations to support or
subsidise this.
These are just some examples of the
ways in which talk is substituting for
SAJITH KUMAR action for the finance ministry—and
whole. So, is this an election-year budget?
Only if this government believes that it
can continue to fool most of the people in
the country most of the time. O
(The writer is a development economist
and professor at JNU, Delhi)

56 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 BUDG ET-18 O P IN IO N

Doldrums and
Derailed Schemes
Investment in Railways needs careful monitoring in light of poor performance

T
HE Budget’s limited paragraphs on Indian of even 100 km stretches, running parallel to the
Railways (IR) are sufficient indicators of main lines, would have given IR a business lead. In
important changes on the anvil. The all- 2006-07, the Board had planned a phased imple-
time-high investment of Rs 146,500 crore mentation of DFC. An early start will give credibil-
in IR, projected for 2018-19, is financed ity to the project and help create the investor
by substantial commercial borrowing of confidence needed to build logistics around rail.
Rs 54,940 crore (37.5 per cent). This is double the What applies to DFC also applies to the large
sum of Rs 25,744 crore which was borrowed in shelf of projects opened across IR. The delay in
2016-17 and which came to 23 per cent of planned R. SIVADASAN implementing most of them is partly due to the
spending. This change must be evaluated against thin spread of funds, the un-remunerative nature
several critical trends that face IR today. of the projects, and lack of sharp monitoring. This
The top line of the Railways is threatened by failure to match poses a serious concern when we consider the manner in which
the changing consumer profile. The conventional passenger coal-traffic-related lines are also languishing. Paragraph 84 of
services do not meet the expectations of reserved accommoda- the FM’s budget speech highlights the personal monitoring of
tion passengers, who are gradually sliding en masse to air and projects by the PM. IR needs to leverage this and address on a
luxury bus travel. This is facilitated all the more by state-of- war footing the lag in all revenue-critical projects in order to
the-art expressways and schemes like UDAAN, modern facili- save the static top line revenues. This is particularly necessary
ties at airports etc. The unreserved high-volume, low-revenue for commodities like coal and ores, where there is a serious
passengers are also far from satisfied with the exposure to dust, threat of logistics building itself around inland waterways and
heat and cold travel conditions, and are not happy to pay more coastal shipping due to the Railways’ lack of alacrity .
for the service. Thus, the passenger services, a major breadwin- The heavy reliance on other earnings—land-related revenues,
ner for the Railways, are hovering at a bit over Rs 50,000 crore, advertisement etc.—is pitched at Rs 20,790 crore. Clear-cut,
reflecting a low growth of less than four per cent in passenger approved policies will be needed for real results. The real estate
earnings in the 2018-19 budget estimate. value at and near railway stations has been seriously impacted
Coming to freight business, though the Railway Board does by the shift of central business districts to less congested areas.
satisfactorily in tonnage manage- Another concern is the failure of the
ment, in the more important organisation to tackle the political
lead   (distance hauled/ travelled) leadership on fare increases. The
management, they appear to have much-touted benefit of containing
been pipped by CIL, the coal and and reducing traction costs is far from
power ministries and electricity evident in the numbers. It is good that
boards, and also by states in minerals. the excellent ideas of the Shivir have
Commodity leads tumbled down- found roots in the introduction of AC
wards by more than 100 km.  Thus, coaches to the Mumbai Suburban
despite an increase in loading, the Railway. But unfortunately, the
growth in freight revenues projected business model is once again missed.
is less than four per cent in 2018-19. The tariff should be linked to the
With two core sectors, accounting dominant form of urban transport;
for 87 per cent of top-line reve- that is, the Metro, rather than the
nues, reflecting such poor growth, the PTI Railways’ tariff table. Nonetheless,
increase in commercial borrowing needs Passenger rail and one hopes to see this as a trigger for future
close monitoring for efficacy. A related freight—87 per cent of rationalisation in the rail passenger
trend that is out of sync is project deliv- business, on the theme of giving better
top-line revenues—are
ery. The freight model was to be driven by services and charging realistic fares. O
dedicated freight corridors (DFC). A seeing little growth, while (The author is a former financial
meaningful start is nowhere in sight. planned projects show commissioner (Railways) and ex officio
Priority completion and commissioning no sign of starting. secretary to the Government of India)

58 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 BUDG ET-18 O P IN IO N

The Direct Line

This year’s Budget throws in some original reforms with regard to direct taxes

P
ITCHED against a bunch of hopes and tion Cess” at the rate of 3 per cent.
expectations from industry and individuals The 1 per cent increase in cess is slated to inc-
alike, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley pre- rease the domestic maximum marginal corporate
sented his last full Budget before the general tax rate to 35 per cent (from the existing rate of
elections. While Union Budget 2018 brings 34.61 per cent) and at the same time marginally
about an array of direct tax amendments, dilute the benefit of lower corporate tax rates on
two among them stand out: the re-introduction of micro, small and medium-sized companies.
capital gains tax on long-term listed equity securi- Measures to promote trading in IFSC
ties and the extension of the lower corporate tax RAJESH In order to promote trading in the International
rate to a much larger group of corporations. H. GANDHI Financial Services Centre or IFSC (at present
Here are some key takeaways from the Union there is only one IFSC in India i.e. GIFT city in
Budget 2018 from a direct tax standpoint: Gujarat), the Union Budget provides for a complete tax exe-
Capital gains tax on long-term listed equity securities mption for capital gains derived by foreign investors from sale
Union Budget 2018 introduces a new regime to tax long-term of derivatives, rupee-denominated bonds and GDRs. This has
capital gains sale of equity shares, units of equity-oriented been done to encourage relocation of trading in offshore
funds and units of business trusts, which are exempt under the markets such as Singapore and comes in the backdrop of a
existing regime (provided that securities transaction tax is paid recent announcement by the Singapore stock exchange per-
on the same). From April 1, 2018 onwards, long-term capital mitting trading in futures of 50 Indian stocks.
gains arising on these securities shall be taxable at the rate of Impact on Individual taxpayers
10 per cent (on gains in excess of Rs 1 lakh). Proposals include an increase in deduction for the medi-
The move to bring in the long-term capital gains tax is a cal insurance premium of senior citizens from Rs 30,000 to
major amendment impacting all investors including foreign Rs 50,000 and a new section to provide a deduction of up to
portfolio investors as well as retail investors. The manner in Rs 50,000 against their interest income from deposits.
which long-term capital gains will be taxed is novel since the A marginal relief in the form of standard deduction of Rs 40,000
accretion in the value of the shares/equity-oriented mutual substituting the existing transport allowance and medical rei-
funds as on January 31, 2018, will be available as the cost of mbursement, leading to a maximum tax benefit of Rs 1,740 has
acquisition, thus giving some investors a cost step-up. It is been proposed for the salaried class. But this could be offset by
important to clarify that long-term capital gains tax is effective the additional 1 per cent increase in health education cess.
from April 1, 2018 and so shares sold up to 31 March 2018, will Other key amendments
continue to be exempt from tax. Recently, the Delhi High Court had struck down certain
Lower corporate tax rate for companies having a turnover Income Computation and Disclosure Standards (ICDS) as
up to Rs 250 crore ultra vires the income-tax law. The Union
As part of his commitment to a phased Budget, however, has brought about
reduction of corporate tax rates from 30 more amendments in the law to bring it
per cent to 25 per cent over four years, the in sync with the ICDS.
finance minister has widened the benefit Benefit of deduction has been extended
of the corporate tax rate of 25 per cent for to start-ups incorporated up to April 1,
the financial year 2018-19 to domestic 2021, and the scope of eligible business
companies having a turnover of up to has been extended to include scalable
Rs 250 crore in the financial year 2016-17. business models with a high potential of
All other domestic companies will con- employment or wealth creation.
tinue to be taxed at the rate of 30 per cent. A dividend distribution tax of 10 per
Interestingly, this benefit has not been cent is to be levied on income distributed
PTI
extended to Limited Liability Partner- by equity-oriented mutual funds.
ships (LLP). The coming in of the Overall, from a direct tax perspective,
The increase in education cess long-term capital gains the government has tried to achieve a fine
To fund health care and education pro- balance against the backdrop of a high
tax is a major amendment
grammes, benefiting rural and BPL fam- direct tax collection pursuant to the ame-
ilies a “Health and Education cess” at the impacting foreign ndments and actions undertaken in the
rate of 4 per cent replaces the existing portfolio investors as last couple of years. O
“Secondary and High Secondary Educa- well as retail investors. (The writer is partner, Deloitte India)

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 59

Photo Frame

An
initiative
for better
farming
income

Welcoming chief guest:

Outlook CEO Indranil
Roy and Outlook Hindi
Editor Harvir Singh
Receiving Union Minster
of Agriculture and Farmers
welfare Radha Mohan Singh

Vijay Pandey
 Jitender Gupta

Vishal Kaul

Making a point:
Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra,
DG, ICAR
Secretary (DARE)

Jitender Gupta

Point of discussion: S.K. Pattanayak, Secretary,

Department of Agriculture Cooperation &
Farmers welfare (left) and Dr. B.S. Siddhu,
Agriculture commissioner, Punjab

Big Start: Lamp-Lighting

Co-operative answers:
R.S. Sodhi, MD,
GCMMF (AMUL)
Great concerns: Farmers and other
audience of different sections Vishal Kaul

Jitender Gupta
My point: Indranil Roy, CEO, Outlook

Jitender Gupta
Photo Frame

Vishal Kaul
Talking point:
S.K. Pattanayak,
Agriculture
secretary and
Rajiv Relan,
VP (sales and
marketing), Swaraj
Division

Theme address: Viren Popli, Vijay Pandey

COO, Swaraj Division
Vijay Pandey

In deep thought: R.D. Shroff,

Executive Chairman, UPL
Awarding innovation: Minister
presenting the award to
members of Mahismati farmer
producer company ltd.
Jitender Gupta

Our concerns: Farmers arriving at venue

 Achievements: Winners Agri business: Atul Chaturvedi,
of Outlook Agriculture CEO, Adani Agrifresh ltd.
Innovation Awards
Vijay pandey

Vote of thanks: Sandip Ghosh,

Vijay Pandey
Publisher, Outlook Vijay Pandey

Success of co-operation: Minister

felicitating Vilas Shinde of Sahayadri
farmers producer company ltd.
Jitender Gupta
 SCROLL WONDERS

They’re Calling It
‘Storyteller’s
Jackpot’!
Scriptwriters come out of the shadows as Bollywood,
its formulas failing, hunts for quality content

by Giridhar Jha such movies last year—Newton, Bareilly

ki Barfi, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan and

H
INDI cinema is on an unusual Lipstick Under My Burkha, to name a
hunt these days, desperately few. This has consequently made the
looking out for scripts that can writers, always a neglected, underpaid
pass muster with the new-age and exploited lot (except for the heady
audiences, a burgeoning tribe Salim-Javed days) a much sought-after
that is increasingly conscious fraternity all over again.
about content and loath to digest any Nonetheless, it’s not box-office per-
star-spangled kitsch dished out in formance alone that led to the resurrec-
the name of entertainment. Faced tion of writers. Multiple factors—ran-
with the debacle of several vacuous ging from the advent of online
extravaganzas at the video-streaming giants
box-office at a time Amazon Prime and
when meaningful cin- Billed as the Netflix and the popular-
ema is raking in prof- ity of short films and
its and plaudits in biggest-ever web series across all
equal measure, the mediums to the prolifer-
Hindi film industry
event of its ation of satellite chan-
appears to be gradu- kind, the nels—have contributed
ally waking up to give to turning a good script
its screenwriters their Cinestaan into a most precious
long-standing due. contest offers commodity again.
This widespread buzz But, there is a glitch
for content has made Rs 50 lakh in yet. It’s not exactly rain-
writers the new toast of prize money. ing good scripts at the
B-town with the best of moment. The demand
film-makers eating out for a hat-ke (different)
of their palms, expecting them to deliver script is exceeding the supply. This
something refreshing...something out-of- deficit has the industry exploring all
the-box—anything that steers absolutely kinds of options to bring good story-
clear of the worn-out formulas manufac- tellers to the fore. Cinestaan Digital
tured by the film industry itself over the Private Ltd, a Mumbai-based internet
years. Suddenly, small-budget movies media company, has even launched a
with fresh subjects are making immense
sense to producers, especially after the KHAN ACADEMY Actor-producer
surprising box-office showing of many Aamir Khan has a nose for script

64 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018


major scriptwriting contest. Billed as
the biggest-ever event of its kind, with
prize money of Rs 50 lakh in total, the
sole objective of the contest, according
to the organisers, is to provide a platform
to talented writers from where they
“will attract the attention of production
houses and studios”.
Of course, this contest is not really the
first of its kind. Reputed banners like
Subhash Ghai’s Mukta Films, Farhan
Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani’s Excel
Entertainment, Manish Mundra’s
Drishyam films among others have or-
ganised similar contests in the past. But,
in addition to the big cash prize, a lot of
curiosity is building around the
Cinestaan contest because of its
THIS WAY, PLEASE! (Clockwise
from left) The Dirty Picture, writer
Rajat Arora (inset); Masaan,
producer Manish Mundra (inset)
star-studded jury, which comprises
credible names such as superstar Aamir
Khan, director Raj Kumar Hirani of 3
Idiots (2009) fame, Juhu Chaturvedi, the
writer of Vicky Donor (2012) and Piku
(2016), and veteran scenarist Anjum
Rajabali, who has penned hits like
Ghulam (1998) and Raajneeti (2010).
According to Aamir, the scriptwriters’
contest will not merely give away cash
prizes to the winners but also provide
them with an opportunity to pitch their
stories to production houses. “It’s a great
opportunity not only for newcomers but
also for experienced writers,” he says in a
video message released to lure prospec-
tive screenwriters to participate in the
contest, the deadline for the preliminary
round of which closed on January 31.
B
UT is this contest really going to be a
game-changer for Bollywood as the
organisers are claiming? Amit V.
Masurkar, writer-director of the
widely-acclaimed Newton, says that it
will definitely bring some fresh stories to
the fore but adds that the demand for
good content is not unusual in the
industry. “People have always wanted
good stories over the years,” he tells
Outlook. “Still, I think it will take a few
more years before Hindi cinema starts
banking solely on content.”
Masurkar, who won the Filmfare award
for best story for Newton recently, says
that the ‘content-is-the-new-king’
refrain that he has been hearing quite
often of late “has got a nice ring to it,” but
he believes that “it is still in its nascent
stage” in the industry.
Masurkar, whose dark comedy on the
unusual subject of Indian elections
earned it an entry in the race for the best
foreign films category at the Oscars last
year, admits that a few producers such as
Manish Mundra and Anand L. Rai are
open to fresh ideas but it is not something
widespread yet in the industry.
As a matter of fact, Mundra, the Nigeria-
based founder of Drishyam Films that
produced Newton and many other offbeat
movies like Masaan (2015) and Kadvi
Hawa (2017), had launched a script con-
test sometime ago and subsequently
selected two such scripts from the sub-
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 65
 SCROL L WOND ER S

TOUCH DOWN Newton and its

writer-director Masurkar (inset)

missions. Mundra, however, had given

the nod to Newton while Masurkar
pitched its idea to him during a half-an-
hour ride together in a car in Mumbai. “I
had been told to write something set in
an urban setting for young people,” he
recalls. “But when I met Manish
(Mundra), I realised that he was far more
open to new ideas. When I pitched the
idea for Newton, he really liked it.”
The fact that Newton’s subject had
never been tackled in films in the past
evidently worked in Masurkar’s favour.
Experts believe that a novel story will
always have takers, regardless of the
channel through which it comes.
Scriptwriter Rajat Arora, who has arisen with the emergence of Amazon he is not sure whether the script contest
written blockbusters like Once Upon A Prime and Netflix.” will ultimately provide any real opportu-
Time In Mumbaai (2010), The Dirty Still, it may be premature to say that nity to new Hindi scriptwriters. “There
Picture (2011), Kick (2014) and Gabbar is every film writer is headed for the rosy are certain preconditions for participat-
Back (2015), says that the audience days. Dinkar Sharma, executive coordina- ing in this contest. Firstly, the contestant
never overlooks a good film. “Whether it tor of the Mumbai-based Screenwriters has to be a member of the Screenwriters
is made on a big or small scale is Association, formerly known as the Film Association and is required to get his
immaterial,” he says. “Ardh Satya (1984) Writers Association, believes things have story registered before submitting it.
was a small movie but it ran to packed improved for writers. “But we cannot say Secondly, the script has to be written in
houses and so did the movies of that we have arrived yet,” he adds. the Roman script as a rule. This is a big
Hrishikesh Mukherjee Sharma, who repre- negative for the writers from the hinter-
and Basu Chatterjee, sents the largest organi- land, most of whom write in the
which were never lav- “Even when sation for screenwriters Devanagri script,” says Anupam.
ishly mounted,” he adds. in the country, states a Moreover, all entries have to be submit-
But now Bollywood is satellite TV new audience has defi- ted in a particular format, a formality
finding a range of ways channels came, cannot nitely come up but one that many new writers aren’t familiar
to rise above the stere- say that eve- with, he rues. “All these riders around the
otypes and creating people said the rything has changed. contest put a new writer at a dis-
space to do things that “Nonetheless, it is heart- advantageous position compared to
were unacceptable in change would ening that many produc- those who are already familiar with the
the past, says Arora. benefit the ers are now backing rules in Bollywood,” he adds.
“Cinema is getting bigger content-rich projects,” Anupam further emphasises that Hindi
by the day and it is und- writer the he says. “In fact, apart cinema needs to come out of its fixation
ergoing many changes. most.” from the Cinestaan con- with the Roman script and connect with
With these changes, new test, established banners the Hindi writers at large in their own
thoughts are also com- like Excel Entertainment script if it is really interested in tapping
ing into the industry,” he adds. “Any and Drishyam Films have had their own fresh plots from across the landscape.
competition aimed at bringing good contests to lure new writing talent, which Else, this linguistic bias will not do justice
content will always benefit cinema at augurs well for the industry.” to a large pool of talent, rendering such
large. Besides, it will fetch good remu- Everybody, however, does not agree contests ultimately useless.
neration to the writers.” that such contests will result in a sea of Whatever be the outcome of the contest,
opportunities for new scriptwriters. it has definitely given a fresh stimulus to

A
RORA, who scripted the Ajay Devgn- Film writer Vinod Anupam believes that writers, having opened a new window for
starrer Baadshaho last year, says script competitions reflect the despera- those who want to make it big with their
that the writers have always been tion of the industry for fresh content. ideas and art of story-telling. With people
important but their value invariably “But the moot point remains whether it is like Aamir and Raju Hirani, known for
increases whenever any new medium ready to come out of its formulaic rut,” he having an eye for good scripts, lending
comes up. “When satellite television says. “After all, it is not as though there their names to its jury, who knows it
channels came, people said the change has been a dearth of stories from the rich might prove to be the ultimate stepping
would benefit the writer the most,” he Hindi literature pool over time.” stone for an unknown pen-pusher aspir-
states. “Today, a similar situation has The national award-winning critic says ing to be a celebrity cinema writer. O

66 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 One IndIa: SM HOax Slayer -
debunkIng Fake newS aS a HObby
O
ne India, an initiative by
Facebook on Republic
TV, is a series that
showcases stories on
how communities are
empowering themselves to solve issues
by leveraging the strength of digital
platforms. On the episode telecast on
January 27, the spotlight was on SM
Hoax Slayer, started by Pankaj Jain who
was tired of fake articles shared by his
friends and family and actively engaged in
correcting them.
Social media has given the common man
the platform and power to communicate
directly with their network, and their
network’s network. However, even though
freedom of expression is a fundamental
right for a democracy, in the age of Social
Media it has created a haven for fake news to
wreak havoc. Today, pranksters and negative
social elements take advantage of this very
freedom of expression to spread fake news
to benefit from it financially or otherwise.
Recognizing the need to debunk
multiple circulating fake news, Pankaj
Jain, a 39-year old businessman from
Mumbai, started a personal project to
verify online content in 2015. Today, even
though there is no official stand on what
he does being a boon for our society,
he has a huge fan following. He started
Facebook and Twitter pages under the
name ‘ SM Hoax Slayer’ and a website
in August 2015, all of which are running
as pure social work, with him pumping
his money, effort, and invaluable time to
crusade the cause of common sense. The
website has as wide a spectrum of topics as
the hoaxes do – from religion, to politics,
scams, nationalism, medicine, etc. The
page has a total of nearly 34,000 likes on
Twitter. The website currently has a daily
visitor count of 2,000-3,000 people.
On the episode, Pankaj Jain, Founder,
SM Hoax Slayer was joined by Pawan
Duggal, Cyber Crime Expert; Karnika
Seth, Advocate, Supreme Court; Sanjay
Singh, Editor, First Post; KG Suresh,
Director General, Indian Institute of Mass
Communication (IIMC) and Arti Jerath,
Political Commentator.
The panel discussed that we are all
prone to trusting WhatsApp & Social
media as credible news sources, however
awareness on the importance of individual
responsibility to verify news items before
forwarding them to their networks should
be raised, so that we all feel accountable
and this indiscriminate dissemination
of fake news can be stemmed. They
concluded that with the increasing
inroads of Artificial Intelligence into our
daily lives, verification of news items
would become machinated and faster,
however till the time this percolates
through society, individual responsibility
will be key to ensure that inauthentic news
does not get spread.
WATCH: This week’s episode
of #One India, an initiative by
Facebook on Republic TV throw
light on an initiative to debunk
fake news called Check4Spam.
Tune in at 1600-1700 on 3rd
February, Saturday and at 1800-
1900 on 3rd February, Sunday to
watch the full episode only on
Republic TV.
 BOOK EXCERPT
Big Brother
and a Little
Black Goat
Perumal Murugan re­enters the world
of letters with a novel that depicts an
outlier's struggle to live and love in
a society where privacy is history
T
HE main problem with getting
Poonachi’s ear pierced was the
set of questions it would pro­
voke. ‘Where was she born?
What was her mother’s name?
Who raised her mother? How
much was she bought for?’ The couple
who owned Poonachi would have to
respond to such questions. If they rep­
lied that they had received the new­
born as a gift, that a man who looked
like Bakasuran, the gluttonous demon,
had given her away, the authorities
might register a case of false testimony.
‘Bring that Bakasuran here,’ they would
say. ‘Has he got his ear pierced? He could
be a spy from a foreign country; are you
his accomplice?’
Accusations would be flung at the cou­
ple like arrows. ‘If he was in possession of
a kid whose ears were not pierced, he
might be an enemy of the regime,’ the
authorities would declare. If they were to
ask, ‘How did you come into contact with
him? What else have you received from
him?’ the couple would have no answer.
The regime had the power to turn its own
people, at any moment, into adversaries,
enemies and traitors.
After taking everything into account,
they decided to wait for ten or fifteen
days. In that time, the pregnant goat in
their yard would have delivered her litter.
Her first pregnancy had yielded just one
68 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
kid; the next few uniformly yielded two
kids each. They could easily club
Poonachi with two newborns and claim a
litter of three. Her puny shape would
support that claim. Her black colour was
a problem, however. Most of the goats in
the state were white. A few were brown,
but black ones were rare. Once upon a
time, so the lore went, the state teemed
with black goats. Since they could not be
recognised in the dark when engaged in
any criminal activity, the regime had, it
was rumoured, deliberately wiped them
out. Even so, black goats could still be
spotted here and there. Their colour
provoked instant hostility. When they
saw Poonachi, the officials would go on
Poonachi or The Story of a Black Goat| Perumal
Murugan | Translated by N. Kalyan Raman |
Westland/ Context | 180 pages | Rs 499
Illustrations by SAJITH KUMAR
the alert immediately.
From that day on, Poonachi got a
reduced quantity of even the thin gruel
she had to live on. The old woman was
intent on not letting her grow fat. They
would take the kids to the authorities
four or five days after the pregnant goat
delivered her litter. At that time, there
should be no visible difference between
Poonachi and the other two newborn
kids. The old woman had deferred the
idea of feeding Poonachi oilcake water.
Even the spot where Poonachi usually
slept at night was changed. She was
locked up inside the goat hut. The old
woman kept a wooden stick on her basket
for extra protection.
For a few nights following the raid in
which Poonachi had been nearly carried
away by a wildcat, the old man and his wife
didn’t sleep a wink. They expected the
wildcat to come again. When one of them
caught a nap for a few minutes, the other
stayed awake. Fortunately, old people
don’t need more than a few hours of sleep.
Poonachi had become frightened of the
dark. Even though she was caged inside
the shed, she felt reassured only when
she heard the old woman’s voice. She had
a recurring dream of hanging from the
maw of a grotesque figure, and often
wailed aloud unexpectedly.
The old woman took a vow of supplica­
tion to Mesagaran, their clan deity. ‘If
this Poonachi reaches puberty and has a
litter, the first male kid will be yours,
Mesayya,’ she vowed.
Eleven days after the wildcat had tried
to snatch Poonachi away, their nanny
goat delivered her litter: two kids, just as
they had expected. Both were male. Male
kids were always somewhat robust at
birth; the females turned out a little weak.
If they claimed that Poonachi was born
following the two kids, the authorities
might believe them. The couple were
pleased with the situation.
The two kids started jumping about and
playing from the day they were born. It
was decided that all three would be taken
to the authorities on the third day to get
their ears pierced. The old man was
usually eager to step out of the house, but
this time he told his wife, ‘I can’t do it.
You go ahead.’ She didn’t try and compel
him. How could a lone woman take a
nanny goat and three kids all by herself ?
How would she manage once she reached
there? But who else was there to acc­
ompany her anyway? She had no option
but to suffer the ordeal, so she set out
alone from her village.
Before she left, she made sure that the
two kids were well fed by their mother.
They were tender newborns; once they
were fed, they went to sleep. She put
Poonachi in the basket with them. She
also kept the food container in the basket,
covered with a cloth to keep the kids from
toppling it.
She started before sunrise when it was
still dark. Since the nanny goat was used
to the old woman, there was no problem:
she went along wherever she was led.
Every now and then, she would cry out
for the kids. If the kids responded with a
cry from inside the basket, it was enough
to appease the nanny goat. She walked on
quietly. At dawn, the old woman had fed
her a bunch of groundnut leaves and
filled her belly too. With the basket on her
head and the nanny goat in tow, the old
woman crossed the fields, reached the
road and continued her trek.
The ear­piercing office was at a distance
of three miles from their home. When
she arrived there, she found a very big
crowd waiting ahead of her. She couldn’t
tell exactly how many people there were,
but somehow she found herself a spot in
the queue. She had to be vigilant and
watch out for anyone trying to join the
line out of turn. Whenever someone app­ As time went by, the queue grew longer
roached a person ahead of her, she sus­ and longer. The office compound was in
pected that they might be trying to a state of permanent uproar with the
infiltrate the queue. She was suspicious bleating of goats and the endless chatter
of them all. The officers were expected to of those waiting. There was a hullaballoo
arrive only at ten o’clock. If she had arr­ when some people entered the queue in
ived later, she would have been pushed the middle, claiming that they had res­
further back in the queue. Even so, she erved their spots earlier. A couple of men
could see that her work might not be from the office came out and warned the
done that day. If she actually managed to noise­makers, then led them to the back
get a token in her hand, she could be of the queue. They also arranged for
confident of getting done before nightfall. some who were at the back to go up to the
She could start the next morning and front. No one could question what they
make her way slowly back to the village. were doing. They would simply say, ‘The
Some people who were ahead of her in officer told us to bring them in.’ Moreover,
the queue had sheep with them. Since these men would pick on whoever dared
sheep deliver only one lamb at a time, to ask questions, purposely delay the
their work was done quickly. The old work when their turn came and give
woman assessed the situation. There them the run­around. It was clear that
were about a dozen goats and a lot of the work would proceed only if those
sheep ahead of her in the queue. Most of who were waiting held their peace and
the people happened to be familiar faces. behaved humbly with the officials.
She sat down in the queue and chatted Everyone was well versed in how they
with them. When the sun had climbed a were expected to behave towards the
little higher, she mashed some soft rice regime. They had mouths only to keep
into gruel and drank it up. Since she shut, hands only to make obeisance,
knees only to bend and kneel, backs only
to bend, and bodies only to shrink before
the authorities. But they had a difficult
time doing all this while trying to keep
their goats under control. They had to
safeguard their place in the queue as well
as protect their goats and possessions. As
the sun rose higher and higher, everyone
covered their heads with a cloth. There
were many different kinds of people
around that compound. Poonachi grew
frightened and took refuge in the old
woman’s lap.
‘Lie down without butting your head
against me. Don’t be scared, baby. It will
be no worse than being pricked by a
thorn.’ The old woman stroked Poona­
chi’s body to calm her nerves. ‘Why are
would need to eat at least twice more, she they piercing the ears of these goats,
made sure that she ate just enough to ayah?’ asked a young girl behind her in a
quench her hunger and had a sufficient secretive whisper.
amount left over. She lifted the kids out of ‘So it will be a marker for each goat,’ the
the basket and set them down. They were old woman replied the way she knew it.
suckled by the nanny goat. Enlisting the ‘They will pierce an ear and hang a hoop
help of a girl beside her, she made sure from it. There is a number embedded in
that Poonachi also got a couple of feeds. it, they say. With that number, they can
The girl asked, ‘Isn’t she the goat’s kid?’ find out everything about the goat. Goats
‘Yes, she is, but the mother won’t look at have horns, don’t they? Suppose they get
her, it seems.’ Some nanny goats had the a little angry and point them at the reg­
tendency to ignore their own kids and ime? Such goats have to be identified,
push them away. The old woman used right? That’s why they all have to get
this fact to her advantage. their ears pierced.’ O
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 69
 books Edited by Christophe Jaffrelot and Laurence Louër
THE ISLAMIC CONNECTION: SOUTH ASIA AND THE GULF | Penguin Random House India | 303 pages | Rs 699
The Mingled Light of Two
Wahhabism is transforming Indo-Islamic civilisation. A scholarly yet accessible essay collection
by K.P. Fabian
T
HIS book explores the religious
interface between the Gulf and
South Asia. By “Gulf” the edi-
tors mean West Asia, not just
the 6-member Gulf Coopera-
tion Council. South Asia has the
largest Muslim population of any reg-
ion in the world—500 million. In the
course of Islamisation, which began
with the 8th century invasion of
Sindh by Muhammad bin Qasim, the
region developed a distinct Indo-Isl-
amic Civilisation culminating in the
Mughal Empire. While paying lip ser-
vice to the religious centres in the
Gulf, including Mecca and Medina,
this civilisation cultivated its own
variety of Islam based on Sufism.
Over the last five decades or so, pan-
Islamic ties between these two regions
have intensified. Eleven scholars from
different continents have contributed
to this volume which explores “the ide-
ological, educational, and spiritual net-
works, which have gained momentum
due to political strategies, migration
flows and increased communications.”
It also examines the “cultural proxy war”
between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
A five-page glossary right at the begin-
ning is very useful to the non-scholar
reader. For example, ’aql means ‘rat-
ional reasoning’ whereas akhlaq means
‘morality, values’. Keeping in mind the
international readership, even kurta
pyjama is explained. This book is per-
haps primarily meant for the scholars,
but most helpfully there is a ‘conclusion’
at the end of most chapters. The non-
academic reader might perhaps read the
‘conclusion’ first before the text.
The range is impressive: Pakistani
madrasas, Jihadism, the Salafi Emirate
of Kunar, the Haqqani network, the Gulf
connection of the Taliban, Pakistani
Sufism in the Gulf, the Sunni hub in Iran,
and Shi’a networks of learning in India.
70 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
Jaffrelot, who writes often in the Indian Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia gave a loan of
media, begins his essay ‘South Asian $20 million to Pakistan. Pakistan’s
Muslims’ Interactions with Arabian President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who took
Islam until the 1990s’ with three quota- over after the surrender of his country’s
tions. Tellingly, the one from General armed forces, went on a ‘journey of
Zia-ul-Haq reads: “There is no such resistance’ to Muslim countries seeking
thing as South Asian Islam. There is only money to build an ‘Islamic bomb’. The
one true Islam, based on the Qur’an and Saudis responded handsomely and later
the Prophet Muhammad.” in 1974 Bhutto hosted the second
In 711, the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid summit of the OIC (Organisation of
ibn Abd al-Malik, upon hearing that Islamic Cooperation). The Wahhab-
some Arab traders had been captured by isation of Pakistan would begin soon
the ruler of Sindh, asked the governor of afterwards during the rule of Zia ul-Haq.
Baghdad to send an army to liberate The Saudis now concentrated their
them. This led to Muhammad bin Qasim attention on the education system by
capturing the whole of Sindh, marking funding madrasas and universities.
the entry of Islam to the subcontinent. Ayesha Siddiqa in her essay ‘Pakistani
However, it was not the sword that Madrasas’ points out that it was the 9/11
attacks in the US that compelled the
world to take note of the harm that the
Saudi-funded madrasas madrasas could do by encouraging ext-
remism and violence. But Saudi-
have reduced the hold Pakistan relations go back to the 1950s
of Sufi Islam. Pakistan’s when, prodded by Britain, Pakistan
government has no reliable drew closer to Saudi Arabia. However,
religion did not play an important role
figures for the number of then. Jinnah was seen in Saudi Arabia as
madrasas, nor for the an “English-speaking orientalist” with
inflow of Saudi money. his Parsee wife. It was geopolitical inter-
est, specifically the need to counter
Soviet influence and Nasser’s pan-
brought Islam “in a sustainable man- Arabism, that prompted Saudi Arabia to
ner”, but the Sufis who came from out- grow closer to Pakistan. The 1960s saw
side Arabia. They made India “a sacred the start of large-scale Pakistani migra-
land for Muslims”. The Muslims in tion to the Gulf. Saudi-funded Deobandi
India distanced themselves from the madrasas reduced the hold of Sufi Islam
holy cities of Arabia and initiated in south Punjab. The Pakistan govern-
spiritual relations with the Hindus. ment does not have reliable statistics on
Deciding not to convert the latter, the the number of madrasas in the country;
Sufis started a spiritual dialogue with different agencies give different figures.
them. The culmination was the secular Nor is there good information on the
policies of Akbar, which saw spiritual flow of money from Saudi Arabia.
treatises being translated from Sanskrit Samina Yasmeen in her essay
to Persian and Arabic. The reader might ‘Narratives of Jihad and Islamic Identity’
find it difficult to suppress the thought deals with the “transnational links
that some of the anti-secularist lobbies between Salafi thinking in the Gulf and
active now need to read this essay. Pakistan.” The reader might be struck by
At the time of the 1971 India-Pakistan some of the poems quoted. For example,
war, which resulted in the liberation of Umm Hamad writes:
Bleeding Moons
analyses the interface between West and South Asian Islam.
I am a poet of Jihad
My words bleed
The sound of my voice bleeds
This story bleeds
The setting moon across the
horizon bleeds
The early morning rays bleed
Oppressors occupy the land of
Kashmir
This heaven on earth is
smoldering and bleeding.
Vahid Brown’s essay is on ‘The
Salafi Emirate of Kunar’, which
was founded in Afghanistan in
1990, predating the Islamic
State that is now nearing its
‘territorial’ end in Syria. Brown
gives a good deal of useful
information, but a map would
have been helpful. Antonio
Guistozzi’s piece ‘The Arab Gulf
Connections of the Taliban’ cog-
ently refutes the common not-
ion that the Taliban and other
radical groups have been getting
funding only from non-state
actors in the Gulf. The author
demonstrates that the Taliban’s emirate
did get money from Saudi Arabia and
Qatar in 2003-04. It was Pakistan that
persuaded the Gulf states to make these
donations. The funds were initially
routed through Pakistan, but later the
two monarchies started giving money
directly to the Taliban.
Radhika Gupta’s essay ‘Seeking knowl-
edge from the cradle to the grave’ is
about the Shi’a networks of learning in
India. The title of the essay is a quote
from the Qur’an. After the 1979
Revolution, Iran started ’exporting’ the
ideology of the revolution across the
Shi’a world, including India. Networks
of learning extend beyond the madrasa
and maktab (Qur’anic school) and
include religious classes outside, as well
as ‘technologically mediated avenues’.
The violent anti-Shi’a movement in
Pakistan has its origins in Saudi Arabia.
PRODIGY Muhammad bin Qasim
was 16-17 when he conquered Sindh
In the 1970s, Ihsan Ilahi Zahir returned
from studying at the Islamic University
of Madinah and campaigned to exclude
the Shi’a from the house of Islam.
The editors have in the last chapter
summed up their conclusions. Since the
1980s, with the support of Jama’at-e-
Islami, Pakistan has been promoting
Regionalism has been
an antidote to Salafism in
South Asia. G.M. Syed said,
“I am Sindhi for 5,000
years, I am Muslim
for 1,400 years, I am
Pakistani for 63 years.”
Muhammad bin Qasim as a role
model celebrated on the ninth
and tenth of Ramadan. In
Pakistan there is a state-driven
Saudisation. According to US
intelligence, Mahmoud Moha-
mmad Ahmed Bahaziq, a Saudi,
is the chief financier of Lashkar-
e-Toiba. Saudi Arabia has been
using Sunni extremists who it
funds to put pressure on Pakis-
tan to agree to its demands, such
as troops for Yemen.
Regionalism, often mixed with
Sufism, has been an antidote
to Salafism in South Asia. For
example, Sindhi nationalists
look at them themselves as
descendants of the Indus Civi-
lisation. Their ideologue, G.M.
Syed (1904-95) used to say, “I
am Sindhi for 5,000 years, I am
Muslim for 1400 years, I am
Pakistani for 63 years.”
Saudi Arabia has been sending
millions of Riyals to the Islamic
Mission Trust in Malappuram
and similar organisations in Kerala
where Salafism is gaining strength. The
rise of Hindu nationalism is turning
Indian Muslims into ‘second-class citi-
zens’. The final conclusion is that Indo-
Islamic civilisation will transform itself
into something new in the 21st century.
The writers do not say in which way.
The book will be of more interest to
scholars than to the general public. It
should be read by policy-makers across
the world, especially in the West. Even
the general reader interested in the
religious interaction between the
Indian subcontinent and West Asia will
benefit from reading this well brought-
out edition written in a jargon-free style.
The notes are exhaustive, though an
index might have been useful. O
(Ambassador K.P. Fabian’s book The
Arab Spring That Was and Wasn’t is
slated to be out later this year.)
12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 71
 glitterati

GETTY IMAGES
Not Quite The Liar’s Paradox
Attending a session on his upcoming film Manto at the
Jaipur Lit Fest alongside director Nandita Das,
Nawazuddin Siddiqui was asked how he had prepared to
play the title role. He answered that he’d had a hard time
getting into character as Manto spoke only truth while he
himself was a frequent liar. He said, “I am not like Manto
and that was a challenge.” We praise him for his honesty.

One Way to Earn Your Spurs

Established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802, the Legion of
Honour has survived the rise and fall of many regimes to
remain France’s highest honour. And now another knight
joins the order’s serried ranks. In a ceremony held in
Calcutta, the French ambassador conferred the honour on
Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee, who thus follows in the
footsteps of his mentor Satyajit Ray.

To Weather a Storm in Cloud Country

A Burberry jacket: Rs 63,400. A Twitter storm: priceless. Rahul
Gandhi’s attire at a rock concert in Meghalaya caused heated
debate on social media, with the price being slightly inflated to
Rs 70,000 at some point in the great game of Chinese Twitters.

A YouTube compilation of James Bond’s questionable behaviour towards women over decades, titled
‘Inappropriate Moments in James Bond Movies’ has gone viral. It has resulted in Twitter giving 007 a
THIS TOO lot of flak, with even think pieces now slamming a hero who doesn’t seem to fit in during #MeToo times.
HAPPENED

72 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018

 This Is Your Life
“I played for the love of the game,” said sporting
legend Prakash Padukone on receiving the
Badminton Association of India’s first ever
Lifetime Achievement Award. His daughter
Deepika, no mean achiever herself, couldn’t
suppress her tears as she watched alongside her
mother Ujjala and sister Anisha.

PTI

Lofted Shot to Lakhs of Hearts

Hitting explosive sixes for Kings XI Punjab
will fetch a rather higher rate than the Rs 60
Manzoor Ahmad Dar used to earn as a daily
labourer in his J&K village. His signing in the
IPL auction as the only player from the state
was a big moment, with some 30,000 people
visiting to offer their congratulations.

The Naked Truth

To “make people...immerse them­
selves in a sea of sexual joy.” That’s
the manifesto behind Ram Gopal
Varma’s new short film God, Sex
and Truth (GST), a “philosophical
treatise” released online rec­
ently, in which pornstar Mia
Malkova expounds on sex. The
mandatory FIR has already
been filed against Varma.

“I don’t know, did I? That does not look like my signature, does it?”- Pornstar STORMY
DANIELS seemed to deny a denial issued in her name over an alleged affair with Donald
Trump more than a decade ago. She’s just started a tour to ‘Make America Horny Again’.

12 February 2018 OUTLOOK 73


Gandhi and I
You could say politics too is a form of
theatre—an enactment or performance.
And if you grant that, I could justifiably
take pride in having been inspired by one
of its supreme practitioners! At least in a
roundabout way. This is how it happened. I
used to consume the biographies of great
people even as a boy. I must have been in
GOVIND NAMDEV
Class V or VI when Gandhiji’s autobiography
(The writer is a veteran theatre, film and
left a deep impression on me. And this is
the train of thought it produced: I asked
myself, if the Mahatma could leave his
motherland and work abroad, why couldn’t I too get out of
Sagar, my birthplace in Madhya Pradesh? Perhaps I had it
early, that outbound instinct, the small-towner’s innate desire
to go out to the world and make it big. As luck would have it,
by class VIII I found myself in Delhi, enrolled in a school at
a stone’s throw from another school—the National School of
Drama! Things then unfolded like scenes in one act: acting
in school, getting appreciated (someone even suggested
professional training), and after school my desultory, daily
sightings of cheerful NSD students wafting in and out of their
gate. Eventually, after college from DU, I too managed to get
footprints going into that gate. It was 1975.
Bombay Can Wait
When our class trooped out from NSD in 1978, my batchmates
Anupam Kher, Satish Kaushik and Anang Desai made no
bones about their plans: they would join the film industry.
I wasn’t yet ready to take that train. I assessed my acting
abilities and asked myself hard questions: would I really pass
muster if I were to be pitted against the big guns? An Amitabh
or a Vinod Khanna or any of the others? I thought I needed
to improve and decided to spend at least a decade with
the NSD repertory company to hone my acting skills,
learning the nuances of my craft from veterans
such as Manohar Singh. It would be 11 more
years before I finally landed in Bombay.
Ashwatthama, the Undead
Those 11 years were immensely
fruitful, and gave me a kind of cre-
ative satisfaction that I never got
elsewhere. Roles of all and sundry
types, under the best national and
international directors. Whenever
I travelled abroad as part of the
repertory, it was always there at
the back of my mind: we were
representatives of a deep, old
culture, and we had to give it
our best shot. Perhaps the best
memory came at an international
theatre festival in Berlin. I’d
74 OUTLOOK 12 February 2018
ACT 2 diary
played Ashwatthama, crazed with rage
and confusion after the war, in Andhaa
Yug. An interpreter was at hand,
translating each line, but I’m sure the
spell came from somewhere beyond
the words, an essentially non-verbal
realm. At the end of the play, we took
in the standing ovation, emotionally
exhausted but overwhelmed, as the
auditorium rang with applause. They
television actor) kept clapping even after we returned
backstage, forcing us back on stage in
gratitude…and it went on for another
seven to eight minutes! For a while, that seemed like a uni-
verse in itself. Moments that will likely remain unsurpassed
for me. Andhaa Yug was, of course, an anti-war play. It had
tapped something deep in the German mind.
Work, Not Worship
Let me crib like an old-timer: theatre is no longer the same.
Those days, there was just one TV channel. Theatre artistes
treated their work as worship. The tiniest nuance was the out-
come of hard work: actors were like sculptors, chiselling away
at themselves. Now, social media distractions consume them.
You don’t see a Naseeruddin Shah, an Om Puri or an Amrish in
theatre these days…or hear those voices. Yes, theatre’s reach
has expanded manifold; it’s no longer restricted to Delhi and
Maharashtra. But dedication levels have halved.
That IMDb Page
My own little filmography began with Ketan Mehta’s Sardar
Patel. It was my first break, though David Dhawan’s Shola Aur
Shabnam turned out to be my first release! Shekhar Kapur’s
Bandit Queen, however, was the real turning point in my film
career. It helped me get Prem Granth of RK Films. My
performance there was highly appreciated and
earned me four big films on the very day of its
release. In later years happened Virasat, Satya,
Sarfarosh, Kachche Dhaage, Lajja, Sarkar Raj, Oh
My God…roles I can show to my grandkids with
pride, and with some inspirational value I hope.
Guru Namdev
One day, the conveyor belt will run empty. I’ll
grow old; offers will stop coming. But there’s this
intense desire to pass on the freight: whatever
I have learnt in theatre, films and television
so far, to convey it to a future generation. It’s
my dream to set up an acting school in Bhopal.
No government help; I’ve always worked
independently and wish for no encumbrances
or procedural hassles. I don’t need acres…only
the limitless pastures of fresh, inquisitive minds.
It’s that NSD gene, I guess. You don’t need
shaan-o-shaukat to teach acting.
SAJITH KUMAR