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Political scene: A blurred mosaic

Rasheeda Bhagat

Solving the Kashmir issue remains the greatest challenge before Mr Vajpayee. He believes in speaking his mind, even if he has to take flak for it, as he did after his recent controversial comments on the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. There is an unspoken, unsta ted hope in Kashmir that if he can find the political will, he has both the stature and the credentials to solve the Kashmir problem.

THE initiative taken by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, to find a solution to the Kashmir logjam -- first by inviting the Kashmiri militants for talks, and then declaring a unilateral ceasefire in the Valley during Ramzan -- was clearly the most distinguished feature of the political mosaic of year 2000.

This is only the beginning, and many hurdles must be crossed before the mist can clear over the Valley and meaningful dialogue begin on this contentious issue. Pragmatism, political maturity and generosity of heart without prosaic mathematical calculatio ns on one wrong from across the border deserving another, are required to bring peace to the strife-torn Valley.

If the main agenda of the Narasimha Rao Government of the early 1990s was to throw out the control regime and usher in economic reforms, solving the Kashmir issue remains the greatest challenge before Mr Vajpayee. He is no less a statesman than Mr Narasi mha Rao. But in contrast to Mr Narasimha Rao's pouty silence in the most critical of situations, Mr Vajpayee believes in speaking his mind. And he faces flak for it too, as he did after his recent controversial comments on the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.

Strangely, there is an unspoken, unstated hope in Kashmir that if Mr Vajpayee can find the political will, he has both the stature and the credentials to solve the problem. The same optimism and euphoria were seen in Lahore after his February 1999 bus jo urney -- that, finally, here was an Indian Prime Minister who had the courage to extend his hand of friendship to Pakistan.

But the Kargil offensive, masterminded by the present military ruler of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, derailed that initiative, and Indo-Pak relations slid back.

Stormy beginning

For the BJP-led NDA government, the dawn of the new millennium was through the dark clouds of the Kandahar hijack episode. Passengers of the Indian Airlines flight from Kathmandu to Delhi, that was hijacked by Pakistani terrorists, could only be released by exchange with dreaded Islamic ultras. It was a sad day for India when its External Affairs Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh, had to accompany the dreaded militant, Maulana Azhar Masood, on a flight to Kandahar to secure the release of the hostages.

The Government was criticised roundly for giving in to the hijackers' demand, and a debate began on how it should evolve a strategy to deal with such events.

Typically, this was not done. As the dust settled, all demands for a national policy on response to hijack incidents were forgotten. Till the dreaded sandalwood smuggler Veerappan struck in the forests of Tamil Nadu-Karnataka, kidnapping the Kannada thes pian, Rajkumar.

For a hundred days, the entire nation watched in part horror and part disgust, the two State governments of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu bending over backwards to give in to every one of Veerappan's whims. Had the bandit and the two State governments had the ir way, they would have emptied all their prisons of all the Tamil extremists held in connection with various acts of terror and crime.

But resistance came from an unexpected quarter. The Supreme Court put its foot down, saying that not a single TADA detenu could be released. This despite the plea that if they were not released, Rajkumar might be harmed. And if Rajkumar was harmed, the T amils in Karnataka would be harmed.

Scoffing at this argument, the apex court said it found it hard to believe that the Kannadigas could kill or harm Tamils in Karnataka over this issue. That does not speak too well for the people of the State, was the wry comment by one of the judges. Tur ning down all arguments of the Government counsel of the two States for releasing the TADA detenus, as demanded by Veerappan, the Supreme Court came down heavily on the two governments for their failure in nabbing the bandit.

It even asked the Karnataka Government to put the task of governance in more competent hands if it could not prevent, or suitably handle, such crises. Ultimately, Rajkumar was released, for what consideration and at what cost, we shall never know. But th ere was a deal, or so one heard, with only the amount having changed hands varying from one tale to the other.

Didi's tantrums

The award for throwing tantrums would undoubtedly go to the Trinamool chief, Ms. Mamata Banerjee, who did not hesitate to play the politics of blackmail. Off with Jyoti Basu's government, she demanded. She sought Article 365 for West Bengal for the viole nce which she alleged the CPI(M)-led regime had unleashed on Trinamool workers and supporters.

The Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes, came to her support and after a whistle-stop tour of Bengal, grandly declared that the law and order situation in Bengal was worse than Bihar. Without saying it in so many words, he endorsed Didi's stand on the dismissal of the Basu Government. But with Mr Vajpayee refusing to comply, Didi went into a long sulk. The hike in oil prices became a convenient issue over which she and her colleague, Mr Ajit Panja, resigned from the Union Council of Ministers.

A promise from the Prime Minister, then nursing his brand new knee in Mumbai, that he would consider a roll-back, and Ms. Banerjee returned to Rail Bhavan, though, of course, she spends more time in Calcutta preparing for the elections ahead. Her job sho uld become easier with the exit of Mr Jyoti Basu.

The year saw one of the country's veteran politicians and longest-serving Chief Ministers step down. Mr Jyoti Basu demitted office after ruling West Bengal for 24 years. A great loss for the State and the Left Front, even if the Marxist leaders were take n aback by his `gaffe' about the missed chance to become Prime Minister in a Left-led coalition government.

Bully of the pack

While hers was only a partial victory, the real bully of the political pack, the Shiv Sena chief, Mr Bal Thackeray, walked away with the honours when it came to terrorising an entire State and making the bourses plummet.

In July, the Democratic Front Government in Maharashtra gave the green signal to the State police to prosecute Mr Thackeray under Section 153 (a) of the IPC for writing inflammatory editorials in Saamna in 1992, even as the metropolis was being torn apar t by communal carnage following the destruction of Babri Masjid.

The moment the green signal was given, the Sena chief repeated his evergreen threat: Touch me and the whole country shall burn. This was taken as a signal by the Sena goons to terrorise residents of the city by stoning buses and shops and creating mayhem .

Finally, the whole issue was settled by Mr Thackeray's token arrest. With the Maharashtra Government having goofed up -- whether there was a deal here too we shall never know -- in preparing a proper case against him, the court let off the Sena chief, Mu mbaiites heaved a sigh of relief, and the equities on Dalal Street bounced back.

An indirect fallout of this episode, and one of the tragedies of the year, was the unseemly fashion in which the erstwhile Law Minister, Mr Ram Jethmalani, had to make his exit from the Union Cabinet. The irrepressible jurist gave his opinion that Mr Tha ckeray could not be prosecuted, even while a case was before the Supreme Court.

As being a man of few words is certainly not a virtue he possesses, he had to volunteer to teach the Chief Justice the law of the land. The apex court hit back; Mr Jethmalani spoke some more against the Solicitor-General, Mr Soli Sorabjee, and the whole mess was finally cleared by Mr Vajpayee demanding the minister's resignation, which was promptly given. And the Union Cabinet lost one of the few truly learned politicians it could boast of.

The year also saw the demise of two young, dynamic and promising politicians from each side of the political divide -- Congress(I) leader Rajesh Pilot died in a road accident, and the former Union Power Minister Rangarajan Kumaramangalam died of cancer. The nation grieved all the more because while the first death was not due to natural causes, the second was clearly linked to Kumaramangalam's indifference and carelessness about his health.

Visitor of the year

The Visitor of the Year award would undoubtedly go the outgoing US President, Mr Bill Clinton, who mesmerised the nation with his quick wit, charm, willingness to seek knowledge about India and Indians, leaving the superior-Uncle-Sam bit back home. While the Leftists went into a tizzy about Mr Clinton being given a red carpet welcome here, the nation ignored their criticism and tuned in to various television channels to watch the charmer.

Mr Clinton dancing with the belles of Rajasthan -- they gheraoed him -- amidst a shower of rose petals will remain a strong visual image in many minds for a long time.

The year ends with the incorrigible Laloo Yadav continuing to rule Bihar via spouse Rabri Devi, and a very worried BJP not looking forward at all to the Assembly elections in UP. Down south, the law of the land finally caught up with the AIADMK supremo, Ms Jayalalitha. Her conviction in the TANSI land deal case does not look too promising when it comes to her being allowed to contest the coming Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu. To twist the adage a bit, one woman's poison is another man's meat, and the DMK chief, Mr M. Karunanidhi, hopes to make it once again to Fort St. George, unless the Tamil Nadu voters will otherwise.

(Feedback can be sent to

rasheeda@thehindu.co.in)