By Redefining Role ..... Power & Politics/ The Sunday Standard/October 13, 2013

By redefining role, interventionist President proves he is no rubber stamp

Is it a constitutional catastrophe or a constitutional crisis? Or is part of the constitutional mechanism, which has accidentally been set in motion to prevent the collapse of democratic institutions? For the first time, the President is seen as the saviour of democratic traditions; sensitive to public emotions in the wake of Cyclone Phailin, he cut short his West Bengal visit during Pujo. On the other hand, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet which advises the President portray themselves as bulldozers of ethical governance. The spotlight has shifted from a non-performing PM to a pro-active President.

For the past few weeks, Pranab Mukherjee, India’s 13th President, has been active in restoring a semblance of balance in the age of confrontationist politics. As the countdown for the crucial General Elections begins, he is formulating his role and reactions to various surprises, which elections may throw up. If his recent actions are any indication, Mukherjee is emerging as the President who doesn’t confine his role to ceremonial talks, but also speaks forcefully. He nudged the UPA leadership to reconsider the ordinance on criminals in politics. He changed his pre-scheduled Bihar programme to avoid being caught in a conflict between the JD(U) and BJP over Narendra Modi’s visit to the state at the same time. Mukherjee’s recent weeklong sojourn to Denmark and Turkey left his signature mark on diplomacy, which led to the signing of many agreements pending for over a decade. Before launching the premier visit by an Indian President to Belgium, he told all ministries to prepare a proper agenda so that his visit doesn’t turn out to be just another junket. Just before he left, the Rashtrapati sprang a surprise on diplomats by almost blaming Pakistan directly for cross-border terrorism by remarking, “terrorists don’t come from heaven”. Of late, Congress managers have been sifting through Mukherjee’s speeches and comments to decipher his frame of mind. They suspect that he is acquiring the role of both a titular Head of State and an invisible influence on the institution of PM. The buzz in the corridors of power is that President is now doing what he would have done as the Prime Minister of a coalition government.

If Mukherjee continues with his assertive constitutional agenda, he would perhaps earn a place in history as the best prime minister the Congress party failed to choose.

It is too early to define his definitive identity, but Mukherjee seems to possess massive energy to shake and shape the future contours of Indian politics and governance. If Dr APJ Kalam earned the sobriquet of “People’s President”, Mukherjee is carving out his own niche of an interpositionist President who wouldn’t mind asserting his constitutional rights to correct any impropriety in governance and misuse of Constitution. L K Advani, the National Democratic Alliance chairman, embarrassed the President when he gave full credit to Mukherjee and not Rahul Gandhi for the premature demise of the ordinance. Mukherjee seems to be finding ways and means to provide face-saving devices to ruling establishment at the Centre and in the states to bail out of ugly situations. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was determined to use the President’s visit as a ploy to prevent crowds from reaching the venue of Modi’s rally on October 27, but Mukherjee understood the trap and decided to return to Rashtrapati Bhavan the same day. Such politically correct moves are indicative of Mukherjee’s attempt to redefine the role of the Head of State, since his purpose is not merely to avoid being stereotyped as a rubber stamp or an activist President.

Mukherjee asserts himself with authority and dignity. Since he is the first President who has held all the important portfolios of defence, finance, commerce and external affairs previously, he knows better than most about how decisions and policies are formalised in a Cabinet system. For example, when the PM sent him the file seeking his approval for the ordinance, Mukherjee didn’t return it after signing on the dotted line, as most of his predecessors would have done. He summoned three important ministers—Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath, Law Minister Kapil Sibal and Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde. All of them have been his colleagues in the party for decades. They weren’t expecting his probing questions. Never before has a President asked ministers to produce minutes or records of Cabinet discussions or political confabulations. Mukherjee asked them to produce the proceedings of both the Cabinet meeting and the all-party meet where the decision to promulgate the ordinance was taken. He discomfited them by asking for the reason behind their hurry. They did not return with answers. Instead, the Cabinet approached him to withdraw its request for his approval.

It is quite evident that Mukherjee is arming himself with infallible arguments to face any situation. He is marshalling his facts to disarm those who challenge his formulations. As an avid reader of history, the Rashtrapati has already retrieved the files from the archives concerning the formation of various past coalition governments. Three previous Presidents—R Venkataraman, Shankar Dayal Sharma and K R Narayanan—had taken different positions on how to choose a party to form the government. Mukherjee has found inconsistencies in each. According to Rashtrapati Bhavan watchers, the President has been interacting with numerous legal luminaries, including former chief justices, social activists and even sane political leaders to seek their views on many complex issues concerning security, political stability and economic crises. The limitations of the geographical boundaries of Raisina Hill haven’t deterred its latest incumbent from reaching out to those whose voice is gagged and who are denied access to India’s high and mighty. If Mukherjee continues with his assertive constitutional agenda, he would perhaps earn a place in history as the best prime minister the Congress party failed to choose or spot after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.

Prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com; Follow me on Twitter @PrabhuChawla

Power & Politics / The Sunday Standard/ July 15, 2012

The aam aadmi’s voting finger is way stronger than any foreign hand

Policy paralysis seems to have vanished. The buzzword in the corridors of power in Delhi is ‘Just do business’. Talk to businessmen, listen to them and keep them in good humour. Ignore the aam aadmi. Pamper only the khas aadmi. North Block’s market-friendly mandarins have been instructed in no uncertain terms that the health and wealth of the nation is safe only if they can bring broad smiles to the sullen faces of corporate leaders heading for bankruptcy or looking to roll back their mounting losses and shrinking ratings in Fortune’s list of richest Indians.

As Pranab Mukherjee indulges in votepiling in various state capitals, his previous ministry has been instructed to demolish his left-of-the centre legacy. Fast-tracking reforms means allowing the rich and the famous to have easy access to bank funds, policy-making institutions and to formulate India’s economic diplomacy. Photographs of top corporate honchos lining up in front of the new finance ministry bosses reflect the change in Delhi’s business environment. The mandate and message are quite clear. All ministers and the civil servants have to win a war of perception even if they fail to deliver. It doesn’t matter if no decision is taken at any of the meetings; they must meet, discuss and disperse to tell the world that things are moving in the right direction. Last week, when important ministers from Mauritius and Singapore visited India, they didn’t ask for land to set up new plants. Instead, they pleaded for their investors to be given preferential treatment in tax concessions. It sounds quite ridiculous but is sadly true. Our ruling establishment, both in the Opposition and the government, fumes over any domestic criticism of their policies and leadership. But when it is a foreign-based institution or an individual who makes adverse comments, they rush into intensive care to identify faults in their vital organs. Suddenly, the government seems to be in hurry to revisit its environment regulations, GAAR guidelines, undertake massive disinvestment of public sector undertakings, reduce interest rates for corporate borrowings and prune subsidies on foodgrains and petroleum products. These measures are aimed at building foreign investor confidence. Even after losing elections in the states and local bodies, the UPA leadership is desperate to win back the endorsement of the non-voting elite class based in India and abroad—the retention of a seat on the high table of international economic diplomacy and corporate forums provides better dividends for individuals, even it means marginalising its presence in the hearts of the masses.

When a foreign magazine termed our Prime Minister an underachiever, the Congress party went into overdrive to dismiss it as a motivated charge. The magazine had made no startling revelations about the achievements or failings of the UPA government that were not known earlier, or exposed by the Indian media. But it was a shocker for the Congress, which had taken foreign institutions and media as its permanent admirers for the past decade. Many Congress leaders have been copiously quoting the foreign media in the past to bolster the India Growth story. But the party has forgotten that the only permanent interests of foreigners in India are commercial. As long as the ruling party was able to give them unlimited access to the Indian power system and markets, they were unsparing in singing paeans of fulsome praise for our great ‘reformist’ government. Since most of the so-called developed economies are failing due to wrong policies, they, along with their lobbyists, are blackmailing the Indian establishment to surrender. Never before has the government met with such negative publicity abroad as it has in the past few months. In what appears to be a coordinated move, most Western media has been making uncharitable remarks about India’s politics and economics. Instead of admitting their lack of understanding about our complex coalition politics, they are determined to paint India as a banana republic. Most foreign think-tanks have badly misread the contours of India’s urban and rural economy. They have been projecting a rosy picture about the fundamentals of Indian corporates. Since their reports were based on inputs received from their own kind, they proved totally false as the UPA came under coalition pressure.

Indian politics is all about winning votes, and not getting a few positive editorials in foreign publications. Do leaders like Obama, Merkel, or others bother about what the Indian media thinks of them? They don’t even read us. But not only do our leaders get heart attacks over such reports, they buckle under pressure and resort to solutions which force their parties to pay for their follies. Those with stakes in the future of their parties have now realised that pandering to videshi sentiments is perilous. They want politics and economics for the desis, of the desis and by the desis. Those who differ may be shown the door by aam aadmi.

prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com; Follow me on Twitter @PrabhuChawla

UPA's Stars Reflect the Light of Their Company/The Sunday Standard/February 12, 2012

POWER & POLITICS

UPA's Stars Reflect the Light of Their Company, Not Aam Aadmi

A leader is known by the company he keeps. Or by the company he avoids. Last week, two prominent pillars of the UPA betrayed the nature of the company both have been keeping lately. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is one of the most respectable political leaders who rarely spoke for the classes and kept the company of the masses. Salman Khurshid, the Oxford-educated legal eagle and Union law minister, is known for his secular and pragmatic approach to politics. But both Pranabda and Khurshid sprang a surprise when one spoke for the classes and the other for a community.

As India’s beleaguered Chief Financial Officer, Pranabda is expected to plan national expenses according to income. He, however, seems to be less concerned with raising income by withdrawing concessions from the rich and mighty and taxing them heavily. Instead, he seems to be plumping for the easy option of making the poor poorer by cutting subsidies on food, petroleum products and fertilisers. There is no doubt that subsidies, which now account for `2.25 lakh crore, need to be rationalised and pruned. But what stunned Pranabda’s admirers was his emotional opposition to the principle of subsidies. “As finance minister, when I think of the enormity of subsidies to be provided, I lose my sleep,” he announced at a recent official meeting. If the finance minister was spending sleepless nights over rising subsidies, the law minister was invoking emotional appeal in the name of his leader, Sonia Gandhi. Khurshid took Uttar Pradesh voters by surprise when he claimed the Congress President actually wept over the Batla House encounter in which a couple of youngsters and a decorated cop were killed. Khurshid claimed: “I was not a minister at the time, but still took the issue of the Batla House encounter to Sonia Gandhi. When we showed photographs of that incident to Mrs Gandhi, she wept bitterly.” Since the Congress hasn’t taken to his statement kindly, it is clear Khurshid was speaking for his votebanks. For the party, the Batla House deaths were as much a matter of concern as those of the securitymen who were also killed by terrorists during the 2001 Parliament attack. Moreover, Khurshid conveniently forgot even Home Minister P Chidambaram has ruled out any investigation in the Batla House matter and made it clear that the Government doesn’t subscribe to any fake encounter theory.

Both Pranab and Khurshid are known for their articulation and intellect. However, Pranabda seems to be under pressure to speak the language of the marketwallas who don’t want him to target them for the purpose of raising resources. For the past 15 years, corporates has gained from both the NDA’s and the UPA’s policies. The finance minister doesn’t lose his sleep when his revenue department gives tax concessions worth over `4.6 lakh crore to India Inc as against just `2.25 lakh crore worth of subsidies. During the UPA’s last six years, `21 lakh crore has been gifted to corporate India as concessions in customs and excise duties. The finance ministry wrote off `90,000 crore as corporate tax last year alone.

A study of returns filed before 2010 by 4.27 lakh companies shows the effective tax rate was only 23.53 per cent as against the statutory rate of over 33 per cent. Moreover, smaller companies end up paying higher taxes than industry giants. While companies with profits up to `1 crore ended up with an effective tax rate of 25.52 per cent, the ones with profits of over `500 crore paid 22.05 per cent on an average. The finance minister should actually be losing sleep over the rising death of infants, burgeoning unemployment, the rare availability of drinking water and the hopelessly low quality of health facilities for the rural and urban poor. A recent FICCI study on healthcare infrastructure revealed India barely has 0.9 beds per 1,000 people.

The finance minister should be spending more and more sleepless nights over the growing number of unemployed youth in India. During the past seven years of the UPA rule, the unemployment rate has risen from less than 7 per cent to almost 10 per cent now. The number of people living below the poverty line has gone up. While the number of Indian billionaires listed by foreign publications may have gone up to 300, the per capita availability of foodgrain is much lower now than what it was five decades ago. The law minister should be crying over the denial of justice to the poor because of poor legal infrastructure and killing of innocent poor people by terrorists and Naxalites. Unfortunately, both august ministers seem to prefer speaking the language of only those who have easy access to them, than of those who put them in power.

prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com Follow me on Twitter @PrabhuChawla

Race Course Road/The Sunday Standrad Magazine/September 25, 2011

PM's Frequently Flying Ministers Do NY Duty

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is known for unlimited levels of tolerance. So much so, that he allows his ministers not only to skip Cabinet meetings but also to derail one another. Bills and important economic decisions have been postponed because of vociferous objections from just one minister. Now, the Prime Minister has allowed colleagues to earn extra air miles by frequently travelling abroad on one pretext or the other. Last week, over half a dozen ministers were in the US on various official missions. Besides the Prime Minister himself, others spotted in New York include Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, Minister for Heavy Industry Praful Patel, Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia, who was present along with another member. A couple of senior government officials like Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai and National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon were also around. An official accompanying Manmohan joked: “Why should the Prime Minister appoint someone else to handle his responsibilities in his absence from Delhi, when all ministers are with him in the US?” Jokes apart, many ministers who aren’t even part of economic diplomacy have been merrily defying the Prime Minister’s advice to avoid unnecessary foreign travel; in June 2008, the PMO had issued a missive to all ministers in this regard. Obviously it has had no impact because the total government expense on foreign travel exceeds over `200 crore so far. Manmohan repeated this order again in August 2010, which has been ignored with even greater impunity. These frequent fliers are becoming a big headache for Indian diplomats, as they have to organise everything from cars to hotels. Hundered vehicles have been hired by our missions in the US to ferry powerful VPVIPs (Very Powerful Very Important Persons) so far. But the Prime Minister is helpless since he needs their support to stay on in office.

Suffering DMK Tries Solo Ride

If senior DMK insiders are to be believed, a frustrated M Karunanidhi, former Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK paterfamilias, has revived contact with Congress President Sonia Gandhi after her return from the US. But he hasn’t got a positive response about an early end to daughter K Kanimozhi’s woes yet. This has led him to question the UPA’s motives behind letting DMK ministers and leaders suffer, both at the Centre and in the state. He has joined the ranks of other allies who suspect the Congress is out to defame its regional partners by witch-hunting them. With over a dozen former ministers and MLAs in jail on charges of land grabbing, Karunanidhi appears to have lost all patience and is now willing to bite the bullet. His decision to dump the Congress in the Tamil Nadu Municipal Elections is meant to test the waters. If the DMK does fairly well, it will set the tone for finally ditching the UPA. Since Karunanidhi doesn’t expect any support from the Centre, he would like to further weaken the coalition led by Manmohan Singh.

Jaya Puts Manmohan to N-test

If ministers can dictate terms to the Prime Minister, powerful chief ministers can’t be far behind. After West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, it is the turn of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to show her political clout. And she hit the UPA where it hurts the most—a Russian-made nuclear energy plant in Tamil Nadu. It is for the first time that the Prime Minister’s resolve is being sorely tested in the southern state. In 2008, he risked his government for nuclear energy’s sake. Of late, many people have been rising in protest against the construction of N-plants in various parts of the country. These protests were promptly silenced. Apart from Tamil Nadu, in other states, too, all voices against setting up nuclear power plants were quelled through force—for example, Jaitapur in Maharashtra. But when villagers from Koodankoolam in Tamil Nadu went on a fast against nuclear power, not only did the state government support their demands but also refused to take any action. Jayalalithaa then demanded that work on the site be stopped and asked the Prime Minister to send one of his ministers to deal with the agitators. She hasn’t withdrawn her own objections to the plant. Now, the Nuclear Suppliers Group is watching the outcome of the standoff between the Prime Minister and the chief minister with great concern. The outcome will decide not only the future of many multinationals trading in power plants, only but also the Prime Minister’s control over the states.

Babus Deal With Yatra Fears

Though law and order is a state subject, it is the Central government which is losing its sleep over the series of political yatras beginning during festival season next month. According to known plans, nationwide yatras led by Anna Hazare, L K Advani and Baba Ramdev will criss-cross the country almost around the same time. The Prime Minister is worried about the fallout of at least two: the ones led by Ramdev and Advani. Since a major part of the yatra routes fall under states ruled by non-Congress governments, both the PMO and the home ministry are getting ready to gauge the political impact on both state elections and a possible realignment of political parties. Though it is Cabinet Secretary Ajit Kumar Seth’s primary responsibility to coordinate the monitoring, it is Home Secretary R P Singh who has been entrusted with the job of collecting information and passing it on to the PMO and even to the chief ministers. Seth, as usual, seems to be satisfied with being the back room operator as he always has been. Unlike many of his predecessors, he doesn’t throw his weight around.

Race Course Road/ The Sunday Standared Magazine/ September 18, 2011

Manmohan Set to Fly, But who'll Play PM?

It’s quite amazing that many Union ministers are more interested in who will perform the duties of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when he is out of India, rather than how is he doing at home. The Prime Minister is leaving for the US to attend the United Nations General Assembly session early this week. He will be away for almost a week. At the same time, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will also be in the US to attend the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Though there is no constitutional provision for an acting prime minister, it has always been Mukherjee, however, who calls emergency Cabinet meetings in Manmohan’s absence. Now with both away, various ministers are speculating on who will be authorised by Manmohan to stand in for him. According to convention, the Prime Minister nominates one of his Cabinet colleagues, in writing, to coordinate on his behalf with all other ministries, and preside over full Cabinet meetings to discuss and decide on matters of importance. So far, the finance minister was performing this role. Now the Prime Minister appears to be in a dilemma as he has to choose between Home Minister P Chidambaram and Defence Minister A K Antony. Since the Prime Minister’s decision has political implications for both the party and the Cabinet, he has to consult Congress President Sonia Gandhi before taking a final call. In normal circumstances Chidambaram would have been a normal choice. Since he was nominated as one of the four members of the committee to deal with political affairs during Sonia’s absence, the Prime Minister may find the decision justified. But Manmohan isn’t sure whether he will be able to meet Sonia before his departure. He also has the option of not nominating anyone, and leaving it open until a situation that needs a stand-in arises.

Will the CAG be gagged?

The Congress party already stands accused of subverting various constitutional institutions like the judiciary, the Chief Vigilance Commission and even the Election Commission of India. Now an attempt is being made to undermine the authority of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Vinod Rai, a 1972 batch IAS officer from the Uttar Pradesh cadre, has rubbed the ruling establishment the wrong way with his highly critical reports on 2G, Reliance, and CWG. He has made the CAG the country’s most feared and respected audit agency. Stung by Rai’s reports, a section of the ruling party is encouraging some of the smaller parties to mobilise MPs for moving an impeachment motion against him. Rai, who was appointed in 2008 has three more years to go and can be removed only with the consent of both Houses of Parliament. A legally correct representation is being drafted to collect at least 80 signatures, which is to be submitted for discussion during the Winter Session of the Lok Sabha. What angered the Congress was the CAG’s greed for excessive publicity and the premature leakage of some of its reports. Only extraordinary precautions taken by the Government ensured that the last two reports on Reliance and Air India didn’t find their way to the media until the last day of Parliament. However, some others smell an attempt to intimidate the CAG so that his reports don’t make headlines in the near future.

Uncle Sam trains India spooks

It’s surprising that both Indian and Pakistani counter-intelligence agencies are being trained by the US to tackle terrorism. Last week, American spooks concluded a two-week-long counter-terrorism programme at the Indian Detective Training School in Chandigarh. They trained agents how to decipher and decode digital evidence. The training was partnered by the US Embassy and the Home Ministry and led by US State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security under its Anti-terrorism Assistance (ATA) programme. Over two dozen officials from the National Investigation Agency and other covert organisations from the Indian Central and state police participated. More importantly, senior diplomats from the US Embassy, New Delhi, were allowed to address the Indian security establishment. The US has been conducting similar training sessions in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Though the course was altered to fit Indian needs, the excessive access given to the US by the Indian counter-terrorism establishment has raised eyebrows, since the US has failed to contain terror emanating from Pakistan. Indian officials also suspect that it may use the information collected from India to its advantage in dealing with Pakistan.

Didi shows her might to Pranab

After snubbing the PMO by withdrawing from the Indian delegation to Bangladesh, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is now setting the tone for dealing with the next man in command at the Centre. According to the bureaucratic grapevine, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee wanted a particular junior officer from West Bengal to replace Manoj Pant, his private secretary in North Block who is due to retire soon. But when the name was sent to the chief minister for the final relieving orders, she decided to put it on hold. Suddenly, the concerned civil servant serving as a district collector in Birbhum had become indispensable to the state Government! The suspicious Banerjee was given the impression that the officer was being rewarded for services rendered to Abhijit Mukherjee, the finance minister’s son, who won the election from that district. If a section of the local Congress is to be believed, Didi’s decision is aimed to cut the stature of the finance minister to size in his own state, where he still commands more respect than she does. Didi’s message is clear: ‘When it comes to West Bengal, I am the reigning deity’.

Power & Politics / The Sunday Standard Magazine/ June 19, 2011

UPA POWERHOUE PRANAB IS

RUNNING OUT OF ENERGY?

The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) seems fated to slip into fatal political darkness. For the past seven years, communal harmony and sustained economic growth were the pride of the UPA. It was also credited with having some of India’s best administrators as Cabinet ministers. They delivered on promises and also solved many predicaments of the Government. One of them is Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee—the short man with the tallest stature in the UPA—who is finding himself in the middle of everything and every mess. The joke doing the rounds in the corridors of power is that the UPA without Pranab is like a powerhouse without energy. Take him out of the equation and the coalition will collapse like ninepins. Excessive deployment of its most productive asset has started to affect Pranab’s capacity and capabilities to deal with crises. Pranab is the fire hydrant used to douse sparks from the DMK. Pranab is the main Congress draftsman on party policy. Pranab is the right man to talk to the Americans during the upcoming strategic steps meet in July.

Drafted to douse raging fires everywhere, his own courtyard is engulfed in a fierce conflagration. For the first time in years, the economy is floundering, with high inflation and policy slowdown dragging it down. Pranab spent over three months keeping feisty ally Mamata Banerjee in good humour and fighting the West Bengal elections. The ace minister, who usually spends over 12 hours a day in his North Block office dealing with fiscal policy, was asked to forget good economics in favour of bad politics. As chairman of the Cabinet Committee of Parliamentary Affairs, he was burdened with the onerous task of keeping the entire opposition on the Government’s right side to enable legislative business to function smoothly. Once the Congress chose confrontation instead of dialogue, it was Pranab’s thankless job to play Field Marshal. He is the chairman of over 50 Groups of Ministers; never before has a Union minister been chosen by a prime minister to head so many GoMs. Now the law of diminishing returns is catching up. Average inflation has risen to over 9 per cent and food inflation to 13 per cent. Lacking a magic wand, banks have raised lending rates for homes and education to around 11 per cent to contain inflation; two years ago, it was it was less than 8 per cent.

The finance minister is harried to find extra funds to finance the populist schemes floated by the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council, which is insisting on a Food Security Bill with a higher populist quotient. To add to Pranabda’s woes, the Rahul Brigade is demanding the inclusion of more districts and money to be paid to the jobless under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. Another quandary the finance minister faces is keeping petroleum product prices under control. The Government has raised diesel and petrol prices 11 times in the past one year; oil producing companies are seeking yet another raise, citing rising global crude oil prices. His next worry is his old friend and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar asking for extra money to raise the minimum support prices for agricultural products. As the Uttar Pradesh poll countdown begins, the Rahul Brigade will demand special packages for various backward regions in the state as the Congress plank to take on the mighty Mayawati.

Pranabda’s worst dilemma is convincing the naivé opinion-making classes that bringing back black money is chasing a mirage. Since the finance minister has been too busy in political firefights, he lacks the time to discuss with advisers and present a viable course of action on the issue. Instead he announced panel after panel, committee after committee. At present over half a dozen groups have been asked to assess the scale of hush money abroad— ignoring data already available with the Government. Adding to Pranabda’s burdens are the Posco, Vedanta and Air India messes.

Another headache is persuading all political parties to agree on fixing a General Sales Tax Bill and new direct tax code. All child’s play for a seasoned leader like Pranabda— if only he isn’t dragged away from North Block periodically for disastrous missions like the Ramdev airport fiasco. Pranab can contain rising inflation if he is allowed to work uninterrupted rather than wasting time on arguing for and against Team Hazare on the Lokpal Bill and burning midnight oil formulating the Government’s response to aborted negotiations with civil society leaders. Since success has many fathers and failure has none, some of his colleagues are raising doubts about Pranab’s problem-solving skills. Digvijaya Singh, the Congress General Secretary with a difference, indirectly questioned the propriety of Pranabda’s airport visit, saying the finance minister had put his career on the line. Sooner or later, Pranab’s adversaries are bound to complain that the economy is in a mess because its Chief Financial Officer was messing around with minding all other businesses except his own.

The time has come for Dada to return to what he does best—managing the economy. prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com

Power & Politics /Mail Today, March 01, 2010

FOR A long time now, Pranab Mukherjee has been the Congress- led UPA government’s Miracle Man. He is many parts rolled into one: the main troubleshooter, a great unifier and the man to get the most improbable job done. “ The man for all seasons and all reasons,” they called him. But even miracle men are human and prone to errors. On Budget Day, he made a misstep whose effects are likely to be felt on our politics for a long time.

His decision to hike Customs and excise duties and remove the existing concessions on petrol has created history for more than one reason: for the first time ever, the entire Opposition walked out of the Lok Sabha during the Budget presentation. We also saw something we haven’t seen in a long time — MPs from the CPM, BJP, RJD, SP, JD( U) and many smaller parties grouping together outside Parliament, hands linked and pledging to fight the government collectively.

Perhaps, Pranab da and the Prime Minister didn't bargain for the backlash when they went through the formality of approving the Budget proposals in a 15- minute cabinet meeting on Friday morning. It wasn’t that the Budget was a letdown. The prime minister has congratulated Pranab da for a “ job well done” which he feels would take the country back to the 9 per cent growth trajectory.

Even sections of the Opposition were seen thumping desks when Pranab da rolled out a series of measures for the social, agriculture and infrastructure sectors. But in the end, petrol’s inflammable properties spoilt the party. It is quite likely that faced with the backlash from the united Opposition and even a section of the ruling coalition, the petroleum cess will be rolled back. But the damage has already been done. The UPA which is still a minority government in power with outside support of the BSP, SP, RJD and some smaller parties will be alarmed as some of them begin to find better options across the aisle.

If anything, this Budget reflects the crises and the lack of political consensus within the UPA. With Sonia opting to stay out of the government, there is no tall leader who can iron out the differences within the coalition.

Though Madam is the chairperson of the UPA, there has been no formal meeting of the coalition convened in a long time. The Telangana fiasco best sums up the collapse of the consultation process in the coalition when each coalition partner talked a different language. Of course young Rahul Gandhi offers hope but he is busy— and rightly so— creating a Congress party for the future and has left it to the current establishment to handle its own affairs.

The Prime Minister ought to be commended for giving full autonomy to most of his minis- Sonia Gandhi ters to deal with their departments as they deem fit. But some ministers, particularly those handling fertilisers and telecom portfolios have milked this autonomy to deviate from acceptable norms and policies.

When the Centre tried to rein them in, it couldn’t, because the ministers rushed to Chennai to complain to M. Karunanidhi. With the Prime Minister’s mind focused on economic diplomacy and forging strategic international alliances, the UPA’s internal political management leaves a lot to be desired. The Opposition seems set to take full advantage of the disarray. The new found political unity is not the outcome of a preplanned strategy.

The decision to walk out of the Lok Sabha was taken on the spot by the BJP leaders; the others found common cause and joined. The Congress’s problems will only mount with the political authority of Pranab da , its tallest leader, taking a beating. So far, his cross- party friendships and acceptance ensured that the government was able to take allies along and take its legislative agenda forward.

Till recently, the BJP too had been playing the role of a “ constructive, friendly” Opposition since it found ideological and social affinity with the Congress on many economic issues. But now the BJP sees an opportunity and may no more be content being the “ loyal opposition”. For the Congress and the UPA, the only remedy now is course correction.

It has to take the alliance partners more seriously and revive the spirit of the UPA. And oh yes, it has to help restore the credibility of the Man for All Seasons.

Through his budgetary exercise, Pranab da has tried to paint a scenario of ‘ short- term pains for longterm gains’. But the experienced warhorse didn’t seem to have anticipated the political realignments.

The assault from the joint Opposition could leave the government not just in pain; it could even leave the government crippled to reap the long- term gains it set out to do.

Power & Politics / Mail Today, September 14, 2009

F OR most ordinary Indians who have the tough task of balancing their family budgets every month, these are testing times. Just when the aam aadmi began to tighten his belt by another notch, our ministers put up a tasteless display of their own importance last week. It just proved how much they are out of touch with the common man whom they claim to represent.

If you watched TV or read the papers last week, you may have been led to believe that all it takes to cut government expenditure is to ask all ministers and MPs to travel economy class on airliners. MPs were interviewed and straw polls conducted to find out if our honourable ministers should indeed be dumped on cattle class. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is not silly to believe that symbolic austerity measures will set the government’s finances right. When he asked two of his ministerial colleagues to move out of the 5- star hotel suites they had been occupying since May — because the bungalows allotted to them weren’t to their liking — he was not seeking publicity.

He was merely asking them to follow the rule book. It’s almost two decades ago, but it is hard not to reflect back on those muggy days when we Indians had to pledge our gold reserves to buy the next month’s ration. Since then, we have been on austerity drive. The Rao government started the trend in 1991 by initiating several cost cutting measures including — don’t laugh, I am being dead serious — asking ministers and bureaucrats to surrender one official phone each! Later governments did not abandon the austerity drive.
In 2005, even when the economy was booming and the government’s coffers were overflowing, the then Finance Minister P Chidambaram laid out guidelines for government spending. That however did nothing to stop our ministers and bureaucrats from accumulating frequent flyer miles on first class. Early last year, in a cover story on jet- setting ministers, India Today magazine had reported that in their first four years in office, 71 of the 78 ministers in UPA1 had logged enough miles to circle the earth 256 times. At least one minister had spent one out of every three days away from home.

This is extravagance that the country can ill afford. That ministers intend to continue with their bad old ways was evident at last week’s cabinet meeting when Pranabda was heckled by his colleagues — some of whom I assume are wide-bodied — who insisted that the economy class seats even in the widebodied Airbus airplanes were not big enough to ensure them a pleasant and comfortable journey. But Pranabda cocked a snook at them the next morning by flying abudget carrier to Kolkata.

Measures like 10 percent cut in non- plan expenditure on things like ministerial and bureaucratic travel expenses, advertising and publicity, office and administrative expenses, buying new vehicles and conducting seminars and conferences are at best symbolic.

How much does the government expect to save through such measures? Rs 100 cr? 200 crore? What about the tens of thousands of crores that could be saved if the government cut down on major expenditure by, say, downsizing its machinery. Instead of downsizing, each year sees the creation of new ministries and departments. Start from the top, at the council of ministers which is the largest ever in the country’s history. Each minister and his establishment costs the exchequer a minimum of Rs 2 crore annually. A notch lower come secretaries to the government.

Two decades ago, there were about 80 secretaries; now there over 400 people who hold the rank of secretaries, including dozens of bureaucrats who have been reemployed following superannuation. One of the perks of being minister is that you get what you want. This is all the more so in a coalition set up where every minister — even from a one MP party — throws his weight around. One cabinet minister recently refused to accept the house allotted to him even though his predecessor had spent about Rs eight lakhs just months before moving out.
You’d think the CPWD officials are a hassled lot, having to tinker with the same things again and again when they should ideally be taking care of civic amenities.

On the contrary, nothing makes them happier. They love ministers coming and going because every new incumbent means another round of renovation and another slice of the pie. I sometimes wish the RTI had a clause under which public spirited citizens could find out about money wasted by the government on needless expenditure. The figures would be revealing. And shocking.

Power & Politics / Mail Today, June 22, 2009

EVEN after spending close to half a century in politics, Pranab Mukherjee still appears to have the enthusiasm and energy of a long distance runner who can’t wait for the marathon to start. Twenty five years after he presented his last Union budget in 1984 as finance minister in the Indira Gandhi government, Pranabda is back in the same office. On July 6, he will present the first budget of the UPA’s second innings. It is a personal milestone for him as well, since it will be the fourth time that he will present the annual national housekeeping statement that is eagerly looked forward to by corporate czars and the aam aadmi alike.

Mukherjee is no flash in the pan artist, so it would be foolish to expect him to come out with a financial spectacular. After nearly twenty years, we have for the first time a finance minister who is a dyed in the wool politician whose BP levels are not tied to the wild fluctuations of the Sensex. That is why there is widespread expectation that this budget will not merely carry the stamp of a politician, but one of Pranabda’s class and stature. And fortunately for him, unlike his immediate predecessor, Pranabda will not have to peek back every now and then to see if the Left is watching over his shoulders.

During the last couple of weeks, he has been holding consultations with a cross section of people, including bureaucrats, politicians both from the Congress and major opposition parties, corporate honchos, trade union leaders, bankers and the like for political and financial inputs for the many initiatives that he plans to unveil. So while both the aam aadmi and the corporates are keeping their fingers crossed on the actual contents of the budget, my information is that he is placing a premium on the political inputs. All of which leads to me to believe that, with the Congress still in election victory mode, the budget document may turn out to be a voluminous Thank You note to the poor and the lower and middle classes who stood massively behind the UPA. Knowing the general mood in the country and to some extent Pranabda’s own strong beliefs, I have the feeling that when he unveils the budget, the corporates may not exactly be whistling with joy. Pranabda will, in all probability, focus on placing more money in the hands of the lower and middle classes so that they have the power to purchase. A firm nonbeliever in the “ supply creates Predecessor: PC its own demand” theory, his emphasis will instead be on demand creation which has always been a guiding testament for him. He is said to have identified over a dozen sectors where he is likely to unleash a multi- crore spending spree to create lakhs of jobs. The tax cuts and other such incentives that business leaders are looking forward to may not materialise to the extent of their liking and you can be sure India Inc will not be sending him Thank You notes on the evening of July 6. He won’t mind either. From experience spanning half a century, he knows corporates are not the best allies.

Power & Politics / Mail Today, February 16, 2009

EXTERNAL affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee and railway minister Lalu Prasad do not have much in common except for the fact that both are senior ministers in the UPA government. Both are also law graduates, though in case of one of them, familiarity with the law seems to have had no effect on complying with it. They are a study in contrast.
Pranab da, among the senior most politicians in the country, is a stickler for political and constitutional proprieties, while Lalu, blessed no doubt with the common touch, has no use for such niceties and does not mind playing to the gallery as long as there is some political mileage to be drawn.

Last week, the 14th Lok Sabha convened for its last sitting, to pass a few pending bills. And of course, the not so small matter of the Union Budget and the Railway Budget. Technically, the government’s term expires on May 23, 2009 and it is well within its rights to present a regular budget. Mukherjee, who was nominated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to prepare and present the budget — remember, there is a vacancy at the finance ministry after P. Chidambaram was moved to home — was under pressure from his party colleagues as well as alliance partners to present a regular budget. Elections are due soon and some of the senior most ministers of the UPA felt a regular budget would enable the government to roll out dollops of doles, which in turn would get them the votes. Cut indirect taxes, make goods cheaper, announce centrally sponsored schemes which will come in handy for the UPA when its leaders begin the poll campaign, went the argument.

As chairman of the Congress election manifesto committee, Pranab da should have found such logic appealing. But the stickler in him didn’t allow him to buy the idea which would have involved committing new expenditure without levying fresh taxes that would have been binding on the next government. “ I am not a confidence trickster to do that,” Pranab da told a close associate and made it clear he would seek nothing more than a vote on account seeking approval for meeting government expenses until July 31, 2009.

Over at Rail Bhavan, Lalu clearly had other ideas. He has already presented five Rail Budgets during this government’s tenure and set a record of sorts with the latest, his sixth in a row, which was termed an “ interim budget” but was one that was basically a please- all exercise with an eye on the polling booths.

It had all the ingredients of a regular budget. Apart from reductions in passenger fares, he announced several new trains, electrification of thousands of kilometres of railway lines. Fresh from his visit to Japan where, while travelling on one of the famed Bullet Trains, he is said to have been as ecstatic as a kid taking his first train ride, he announced feasibility studies will be conducted to run such trains — which travel at speeds in excess of 300 km/ hr — between New Delhi and, that’s right, Patna. The costs involved are humongous and unless the railway minister in the next government comes from Bihar, the enthusiasm is likely to wane. It’s clear why Lalu has no problems winning elections while for a whole lot of others, it’s always a problem.

Seedhi Baath Aajtak, January 18, 2009

We have given proof to Pak

Says Pranab Mukherjee , Minister for External Affairs on Seedhi Baat. His government's objective is that the perpetrators of terror attacks should be punished.
Video Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5


कूटनीति में हम पीछे नहीं: प्रणब मुखर्जी

आज तक के साप्‍ताहिक कार्यक्रम 'सीधी बात' में विदेश मंत्री प्रणब मुखर्जी ने कहा कि मुंबई पर हमले के बाद हमने पाकिस्‍तान को सारे सबूत सौंप दिए हैं और हमारे पास हर तरह के विकल्‍प मौजूद हैं.

INTERVIEW / PRANAB MUKHERJEE/India Today, January 26, 2009

India has said that it will not sign Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) or Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) even if the Barack Obama administration presses it to do so. In the midst of a busy diplomatic calendar when India is using coercive diplomacy against Pakistan, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told me in Seedhi Baat programme on Aaj Tak and Headlines Today, "We will not sign CTBT or NPT. We are committed to the bilateral agreement with the US and India-specific safeguards with the IAEA."

In response to a question related to remarks made by US Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton that the US may insist on reviving the CTBT, Mukherjee said that India will continue to maintain its independent foreign policy. Mukherjee’s remarks came just ahead of the inauguration of the new US President Barack Obama on January 20. During her Senate confirmation hearing, Hillary had reportedly stressed that the US will make CTBT and Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT) as the priority of the US administration.

Analysts believe that the Democrat regime under Barack Obama would strongly advocate a more hawkish approach on CTBT and New Delhi and Washington may cross swords over this.

read ......

Power & Politics / Mail Today, January 12, 2009

THERE are few certainties in Indian politics but one that can be taken for granted is that young Rahul Gandhi will follow in the footsteps of his father, grandmother and great grandfather and become the Congress president. He could even emulate them and become prime minister if the voter doesn’t stand in the way. But these are in the realm of the future. So is there some sort of a cold war at the top levels in the Congress and the government that should make senior partymen suddenly revive speculation about a Rahul prime ministership at a time when the party is readying for the Lok Sabha election? Pranab Mukherjee and Digvijay Singh are two of the seniormost Congress leaders, yet it is difficult to understand the rationale of the foreign minister’s espousal of the Rahul ticket and its instant seconding by the general secretary.

Both are seasoned politicians not prone to indulging in inappropriate, much- less reckless statements. I feel it is an ill- timed statement which has merely undermined the position of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Of course, both may feel they deserve more. Pranabda has been a loyal foot soldier of the family for over three generations in an illustrious career that has seen him reach the gates of Race Course Road and Rashtrapati Bhavan. But he hasn’t got to occupy either. After being soundly defeated in 2003 after 10 years in power, former Madhya Pradesh chief minister, Digvijay has chosen to rebuild his career around the dynasty, quite like the way his mentor Arjun Singh did during the Indira and Rajiv era.

Many feel that Pranabda and Digvijay are reflecting the opinions of a section of Congress which feels that the party cannot afford to approach the voter in April/ May under the leadership of Manmohan. In the Obama era, they say, the party needs a leader who will do to L. K. Advani what Obama did to McCain. They have a point. But do senior leaders have to stoop so low as to take upon themselves the role of kingmakers. A few months ago it seemed different.

Asked if Manmohan would be the party’s prime ministerial candidate, Sonia’s answer wasn’t a Yes or a No but “ Why Not?”, which I would think is the equivalent of an emphatic “ Yes”. Mercifully, though it took 48 hours, Sonia put a lid on the controversy by having Shakeel Ahmed, the AICC spokesman, state that she stood by her earlier statement that Manmohan continues to be her choice.

Rahul has been away for a while, even skipping the swearing- in of his good friend, Omar Abdullah, in Srinagar. His silence makes me think he is in no hurry to bring the speculation to an end. The only conclusion that can be drawn from the different voices being heard is that Sonia has one set of spokesmen and Rahul another.

Only Manmohan has none. The country is going through an economic downslide, terror is on the upswing and these are times when talk of a leadership change can unsettle and even harm any leadership’s ability to deal with crises. But for some, national interest is never delinked from personal stakes.

Interview /Pranab Mukherjee/India Today, January 26,2009

Excerpts from the interview.

Q. Mr Foreign Minister, you have tried coercive diplomacy to isolate Pakistan but it’s not working. You seem to have lost the diplomatic war against Pakistan.
A. I do not believe in the use of words like coercion. It is not a diplomatic war, it is diplomacy. The issue here is effective action against terrorism to prevent further outrages
and to neutralise and eliminate the infrastructure of terrorism. A definite de-hyphenation of the perpetrators of terror and its victims has to take place. We are doing what every other responsible country would do after a situation like this.

Q. But what is your threshold? Will you wait for another attack to take action?
A. No, this will not happen. You should understand that diplomacy takes time. It’s not a quick-fix method that one has to just switch on or off. Sometimes, it can be a delayed
process, but it has to be tested.

Q. Sometimes one feels that you have outsourced your diplomacy to the US and the West.
A. That’s not correct. We are telling everybody that you must put pressure on Pakistan as this is not about Indo-Pak relations. These issues need not be seen through the prism
of this relationship. In fact, they are a part of global terrorism and should be confronted collectively.

Q. You gave them evidence spanning 40-50 pages. And yet their President says this is merely information.
A. I must tell you candidly that Pakistan has been in denial mode till now. Information is collected on the basis of evidence. When a crime takes place, the first thing that the police records is an FIR. Only after that is the investigation carried out. We have not given them mere information but material from where they can proceed for further investigation. These are tactics to divert attention from the main issue.

Q. What do you want from Pakistan?
A. We want them to hand over those Indian fugitives who have run away from here. They should try the perpetrators of Mumbai. A fair and transparent trial should be held, not
a sham. The prosecution should be done properly. They should punish them. Only then will we be satisfied.

Q. Are you saying that Pakistani nationals who are involved be tried over there? Won’t you try them here?
A. Yes, this can happen. The trial should be transparent. We have caught Ajmal Kasab. But there were others who were a part of the conspiracy. They should be caught and tried
there. The authorities there should not let them go scot-free.

Q. Don’t you want them to be brought here?
A. If they can hand them over to us, we will only be too glad. But if they don’t, at least they should hand over those other criminals who have committed offences here, escaped
the law and taken shelter there.

Q. But did you really expect Pakistan to do anything?
A. I hope that pressure will help Pakistan discharge its responsibility which it is obliged to do as a party to various international norms and decisions.

Q. You are saying that everyone is putting pressure, but the US is planning to triple its civilian aid.
A. I can’t explain the conduct of other countries. This is a reality we have to live with.

Q. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband came here and disagreed with you on the Pakistan Government’s support to terrorism.
A. I told him that we disagree with his perception.

Q. Pakistan says it wants a joint investigation.
A. I would ask the Pakistani leadership this question because President Zardari himself wanted international agencies to investigate Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. I don’t think any joint investigation will work.

Q. Do you think the international community will allow India to go in for a military option?
A. All options are open. I will only say that the appropriate option will be exercised at an appropriate time.

Q. Is Pakistan a failed state?
A. I will not use the specific word, but there are various centres of power in Pakistan and there is a lack of coordination.
Q. Your junior colleague E. Ahamed has said that we should snap all diplomatic ties with Israel.
A. A man has various identities. Ahamed is an important leader of his political party. He has just expressed his views.

Q. A.R. Antulay also gave a handle to Pakistan by questioning the things that happened in Mumbai.
A. Firstly, he did not give a handle to Pakistan. He merely explained his own doubts. Once the home minister replied to the issue, and explained the situation, he was satisfied.

Q. All your ministers speak in different languages at some point of time. For instance, the home minister talked about curtailing visas, snapping off commercial relations. Didn’t he speak on the issues concerning your ministry?
A. For him the question of options was theoretical. I have chosen not to spell out the options and this is a policy which I am going to adopt. If somebody theoretically explains these options, I don’t think it is against the policies.

Q. Mr Mukherjee, the Left parties withdrew support to your Government, but do you think the Congress and Left can form a post-poll alliance to keep the NDA out?
A. It has been said that politics is the art of the possible. Therefore everything is possible.

Q. So will you be open to new coalition partners?
A. So far as the pre-elections coalition is concerned, those who are currently a part of the UPA Government are expected to stay. The post-election partners will depend on the numbers. But we will choose them without compromising the basic principles of the party.

Q. What issues will dominate in these elections? Will terrorism be a major one?
A. Performance, development and leadership will be the key issues in the upcoming polls.

Q. Leadership plays an important role, but questions are being raised about your statement about Rahul Gandhi being the candidate for the prime minister’s post.
A. I was responding to the questions at the Pravasi Bharatiya Sammelan. Someone asked me why India has an aging leadership. I gave a number of examples, like that of Praful Mahanta, Omar Abdullah, and I said Rajiv Gandhi became prime minister when he was 40 and then I said, who knows Rahul Gandhi may one day follow in the footsteps of his father.

Q. So you are not ruling out Manmohan Singh as the next prime minister.

A. Of course some of the UPA partners have stated that we will fight under the leadership of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Congress President Sonia Gandhi has also said that.

Q. So are you saying that the next elections will be fought under the leadership of Manmohan Singh and there is no doubt about that?
A. Yes, positively.

Q. What is the future of the omnipresent Pranab Mukherjee
A. I am reminded of a line from an old song, Whatever will be, will be, the future is not ours to see.

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