EXTRADITION OF A PAKISTANI TERROR PROXY: SEEING THE ISSUE FROM THE PRISM OF STATECRAFT

DIMINISHING THREAT OF TERRORISM: NO INDICATOR OF ITS ERADICATION

The threat of terrorism has eased globally. But it has not yet been eliminated and probably can never be eliminated at least in the foreseeable future. However, most states are today better prepared to handle terrorism than at any other point of time in the past. Terror sponsors on the other hand have been facing a bit of boomerang impact but in the larger global geopolitical equilibrium, they have their own utility for certain forces. Hence, they continue to receive protection and empowerment from their visible and invisible patrons and masters.   

Nevertheless, human race has paid a heavy cost both in terms of lives lost and opportunities missed for economic development, industry, enterprise and innovation. This may not be confined to regions impacted by terrorism. Security counter measures necessitated by terrorist threats have slowed our lives and diverted a huge quantum of resources on such security measures that do not contribute to material and social advancement of societies.

 As per Global Terrorism Index (GTI), India used to be one of the most impacted states from terrorist violence for over a decade and half, since the turn of the century, when GTI started mapping terrorist violence. Over the last few years, it has been experiencing relative peace and security. 

Scores of our nameless, faceless and unsung security personnel, across all divides, have made huge sacrifices to salvage the nation from relentless terrorist attacks that had become a norm for over two decades almost since 1993 Mumbai attacks. Role of large sections of our civilian population and resilience of our society too has to be respected in this fight. We also have the second largest Muslim population and the largest as minority. Despite sustained efforts to radicalise them by both internal and external quarters for their own varying objectives, overwhelming majority of our Muslims are not radicalised. Importantly, a small but significant section of Muslims are resisting radicalisation and they are more appreciative and respectful of traditional Indian or Hindu symbols than most Hindus themselves.   

However, the threats terrorism, organised crime and radicalism in name of Islam are not yet over. Probably a stronger strategy, wider approach to refine all principles of statecraft and focus on infusing integrity and excellence in all our institutions could have enabled us tame and even nearly eliminate this threat. The resultant dividends would have contributed to optimising our developmental potentials.

But ignorance about this complex subject among many of our stakeholders, perception of corruption and subversion in several of our institutions, including criminal-justice system, politics, media, civil service and financial world among others, has always hindered a cohesive and robust approach on part of Indian state towards all issues of national security, especially covert wars.

MEDIA HYPE OVER EXTRADITION OF A TERROR PROXY?

Over the last few days, unusual media hype with chest thumping and hysterical reporting of extradition of a US based Pakistani Canadian terror facilitator only exposes absence of a robust strategic psyche among our media and intelligentsia. Sadly, all these media men, and women, have been unwittingly providing succour and nourishment to Pakistani terror networks and their patrons by providing unnecessary publicity to a terror proxy. Terrorist networks, and their patrons, rely upon publicity to shore up their recruitment and propaganda.

Amidst these, silver lining has been a frank and forthright observation by a former Union Home Secretary, who has described the extradited fugitive as a minor player. Some sound former practitioners and few professional journalists, with solid understanding of the subject, have also underplayed the issue calling for stronger focus on the bigger issues of terrorism, radicalism and organised crime.  

While terrorists or their collaborator must be severely punished to make a deterrent example out of them, we need requisite tact and caution, as part of smart national counter-terror strategy, to win this war at minimal costs. We must appreciate that terrorists are not normal people. 

More often, foot soldiers in terrorism are used as fodder fuel by the real terror patrons with their own agenda. Any publicity for terrorists amounts to their glorification, at least among their ilk. It can drive more confused and psychologically volatile youth towards radicalism and eventually terrorism. 

In name of free speech, terror apologists always use such issues to further subvert an already subverted population.

 TERRORISM IS A COMPLEX WAR

A little over a decade back, I had been requisitioned by an esteemed senior colleague in larger fraternity of securocracy for concept papers on containing insurgency and terrorism on the basis of open inputs and my own understanding.

 I did it. I was subsequently told that some of the contents of these papers were utilised in the larger policy frameworks.  I do not know what all was used.

But years later, I modified both the papers, deleting all the contents that could be considered sensitive, despite these being my own ideas or known facts, and placed the papers in public domain for larger intellectual or conceptual discussion. The version of paper on insurgency is available on this very blog Jitendra Kumar Ojha on Democracy, Governance, Geopolitics, National Security & Leadership : Understanding and Tackling Irregular Warfare : A Concept Paper. The modified version of paper on terrorism was published by Faultline journal and can be accessed on: Jitendra Ojha on indigenous strategy on terrorism. What I emphasized most as a newer approach, among others, was denial of large-scale publicity to terrorists or their activities.  

 CLARITY IS KEY FOR A WINNING STRATEGY

In both the papers, as well as my informal discussions as a practitioner, or a classroom teacher or adviser on strategy, I have always, among others, emphasized that:

a)     Terrorism, as well as insurgency and state patronized organized crime, are not crime of passion or rage. These are acts of war- although covert and indirect. These require elaborate planning and extensive support structure, which is not possible for small groups of individuals in the present context (lone wolves are a different category of threats but they too are inspired by radical propaganda);

b)    Radicalized, subverted or alienated population, unrestrained flow of active fighters, direct collaborators, passive approvers and conscious/unconscious propagandists, besides easier access to funds, weapons, logistics for training, sanctuary and succour from powerful state or non- state trans-national networks give a lethal potency to terrorism; 

c)     Objective of this war is to slowly bleed the targeted nation, or civilisation; Even if a victory is secured at exorbitant material-human cost, it may have the same consequences as defeat; Disruption in normal activities, impact of threat, drain on resources for security purposes or interference of security counter-measures collectively cripple optimal rise of the impacted state, making its people vulnerable to various other direct or indirect threats, challenges and even exploitation;

d)    Insurgency, terrorism, organised crime and subversion share a symbiotic relationship with each other; Corruption and bad governance amidst fragile institutions and poor principles of statecraft, provide most conducive condition for determined adversaries to succeed;

e)     Bad governance and corruption enable adversaries to create an empire of organised crime to raise funds on home soil of the impacted by subverting its institutions (it is assessed that no insurgency or terrorism has ever been funded by tax payers money by the sponsoring states on sustained basis);

f)      Real masterminds of covert war and organised crime are able to run an elaborate network of a parallel system where they generate huge quantum of underhand funds, which can be infused into legitimate businesses; Simultaneously, their control and patronage over a host of clandestine network enables them to interfere with integrity of political, administrative and judicial processes of most states;

g)    It would not only be futile but even counter-productive to chase total victory against terrorism, especially through direct and legal-bureaucratic channels; Its overall costs in long run may turn unsustainable and interfere with both civil liberties and economic enterprises to negatively impact progress;

h)    Counter terror or anti-terror or security professionals of state must also be equally, if not more, committed to decimate and pulverise the entire terror networks; They must use a variety of indirect, innocuous and undetectable yet innovative means, to neuter possible support, recruitment or propaganda in favour of terror networks to make their sustenance impossible;  

i)      Brilliance of a smart counter-terror or anti-terror strategy lays in its ability to hit the adversary hard with minimal resources or through most innocuous and invisible means;

j)      While  certain degree of clerical, legal and bureaucratic approaches are essential but over reliance on these is a certain recipe for disaster in long-run (the success of Indian strategy has emanated more from innovation and selfless service from a large number of security professionals  and leaders, who have defied bureaucratic and legal constraints; But India’s inability to eradicate the menace of Islamic radicalism emanates larger systemic disorders and an ecosystem of corruption and subversion).

k)    Alongside all other strategies for securing victory, media has to be tactfully managed as part of psychological dimension of warfare;  Publicity must be denied to terrorists, in every possible form, and state must appear unfazed and unperturbed to send a signal to terror perpetrators and terror master minds that we are strong and capable of decimating them (over reaction or media hype over relatively minor issues is always a sign of nervousness/weakness);

EXTRADITED FUGITIVE: A MINOR PROXY AND NO MASTER-MIND

Let us be very clear that the extradited fugitive was neither the master-mind of 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, or for that matter any other attack anywhere, nor he had the potential to be one.

He was one of the multiple proxies planted by Pakistani ISI all over the world. He did a lot of spade work and yet he was not smart enough to evade detection by agencies.

There may be many more such proxies all over the world who continue to operate and threaten us as well as the rest of the humanity. 

 It is shocking that law enforcement agencies of the most powerful state had remained oblivious of activities of such Pakistani proxies on their own soil. It is also shocking that they have not been trace links of these proxies with their master controllers, sitting in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

It is impossible that such a proxy could operate in United States and Canada on its own. There would be an elaborate network of radical elements and multiple shades of organised criminals and various other support groups and they have been using these Western hubs only to deflect attention of counter terror professionals.

Until 9/11 terror attacks on US soil, all indicators suggest that the Western authorities have been insufficiently receptive, if not hostile, to repeated Indian pleas on Pakistani efforts to build a world-wide network of terrorism and organised crime. Even after 9/11 attacks and multiple attacks all over the world, sections of Western government somehow resisted stronger action or sanctions against Pakistan citing their role and relevance in larger war against terrorism.

The real master-minds of Mumbai terror attacks were clearly Pak Army and ISI. But they too could never have survived and succeeded for so long on their own. 

A former diplomat friend pointed out a few days back that how extradition of Iqbal Mirchi was brazenly sabotaged by a cartel of Indian officers in 2011. This fugitive was a declared terrorist and his role was clearly established in Mumbai terror attacks of 1993. Certain court records state that no formal request for his extradition was ever handed over by Indian authorities to their concerned counterparts where this fugitive had escaped. In 2011, when an Indian diplomat tried to extradite this fugitive, the IO in the case had apparently refused to provide the formal extradition paper and all hell had broken loose on this diplomat who had attempted this extradition.

Later, this official was expelled, defamed and his all-round security was jeopardized through criminality and fraud. Attempts were made, apparently by incumbents by India state, to clandestinely kill him, with all relevant institutions acting either as active collaborators or passive approvers in the entire conspiracy. And those in the Indian system who helped this fugitive escape Indian laws were handsomely rewarded.

Though Mirchi is dead, but unlike others, this fugitive was still running an elaborate infrastructure of organised crime on Indian soil when his extradition was foiled. His extradition could have made serious exposure of clandestine networks that were utilised even in 26/11 attacks. 

The entire episode only exposes fragility, if not hypocrisy, of our tall claims regarding our commitment to fight the larger civilisational war waged against us in name of Islam by perverting even some of its noblest teachings.

WHY INDIA NEEDS A COMPRHENSIVE APPROACH TO TACKLE TERRORISM AS PART OF ITS LARGER GOVERNANCE AND SECURITY OBJECTIVES

A large democratic India must be conscious of the fact that externally sponsored terrorism, that it has been facing for far too long, is a form of all out covert, criminal, inhuman and perverse identity driven war. It targets unarmed civilian population with stealth and deception, which is not possible without subversion of certain arms of state and sections of society. A somewhat hostile external geopolitical equilibrium further multiplies our challenges.

Let us be very clear that the world is least bothered about our security. Our large size and latent potentials must be compelling others to use a variety of indirect, covert and clandestine techniques to check our optimal rise as a state and civilisation. 

We need to build all round defensive and offensive capacities, at sustainable costs, in this direction to deny space for covert war against us on our own soil that our adversaries may utilise. Simultaneously we must shape or influence our external surroundings to decimate not only hostile actors and entities but even their support structures. 

These can never be a stand-alone mission. We need a comprehensive strategy on national security and restructuring of governance.

We cannot afford to be either lulled by decline in terror attacks or lose focus from real challenges and threats. 

While we must derive pride from successes of our counter-terror leaders, strategists and professionals, we must be clear that this form of indirect and covert war-fare has been constantly evolving. Many of its symptoms, modes and instrumentalities keep changing depending upon a host of internal and external variables. We must anticipate and proactively deal with threats, challenges and opportunities in this direction. This is a science beyond capacity of legal and administrative clerks, which our systems, all over the world, mostly churn out.

Corruption and criminality within the ranks of terror sponsors, apart from a host of global factors (viz; decline in US support to Pakistan following 9/11, stronger terror  counter-measures globally, modernisation drive in Saudi Arabia, boomerang impact of terror patronage for some) have worked to our advantage. But we have not been able to capitalise upon these. 

India needs an effective model of Indocratic governance that can optimise our governance and national security output as per our own context and priorities. It must be driven by a robust and viable science of statecraft with inbuilt capacity to prevent, preempt and deter all shades of organised crime, subversion and irregular warfare at sustainable costs on continuous basis. It must flow from our overall framework of governance of state and society. The strategy cannot be delinked with governance reforms for optimising economic development, technological innovation, social and national cohesion as well as improving quality of our human resource. 

We have to aspire and attempt to optimise health of both state and society and yet explore a mutually empowering equilibrium between the two. This has been my pet theme that I have always repeated every time when I speak of my idea of Indocracy. 

A healthier society and a robust state, with an inbuilt synergy between the two, are possible. The details and instruments need to vary as per context. We need a wider global leadership and a movement driven by innovation, courage and integrity. This appears a pipe dream in the prevailing global ambience where our systems appear so vulnerable to lunatic pirates who appear to be masquerading, and even, succeeding as leaders. 

But all big ideas start only as dream.  

PS: This piece has been edited more than once. Last being on April 16. 

CASHHGATE AT DELHI HIGH COURT: SEEING THE ISSUE BEYOND LEGAL, CLERICAL AND MORAL PRISMS

DIMINISHING PUBLIC INTEREST

Public outcry over cash discovery at residence of a Delhi High Court Judge is slowly dying down. Even though the Chief Justice of India has assured to hear a writ filed on the matter by an activist lawyer, there is little hope of any substantive action. 

Public memory has always been short. But in era of infotainment, is far too shorter. 

Media has got busy with more exciting news.     

Lawyers of the Allahabad High Court had tried hard to keep the issue alive for a while. They have been remarkably brave and they have not lost as yet. Still there is little of hope that the rot in judiciary can be cleansed in the near future.   

In fact, lawyers, social activists and intelligentsia across the country had appeared genuinely outraged over Cash-gate on the doorsteps of judiciary. Some may be just seeking public attention. 

But the issue at stake is far deeper than what appears at the surface. 

If we care for our state, society as well as our own individual security and overall destiny of our future generations, we must try to see the entire matter beyond legal-clerical prisms or even simple moral outrage. 

NEED TO SEE THE ISSUE HOLISTICALLY

Corruption in judiciary may be a global reality even though the degrees may vary. One of the former CJIs had stated that after all judges come from the same society where corruption had increasingly become an acceptable way of life.  

Our slow, sluggish and expensive judicial processes make justice an expensive commodity to an extent that there exists an apprehension whether our systems have been rigged to erode rule of law. But when corruption becomes rampant in judiciary, it implies that most other institutions have already been compromised and corrupted.  

A functional and transparent criminal justice system is a prerequisite for not only security and dignity of every Indian but also our optimal progress as a state and society.   I have explained in the previous post that how corruption in judiciary shall kill quest for excellence in every sphere of life and destroy societal cohesion and trust.  Additionally, a corrupt system in a globalised world offers our external adversaries a powerful weapon to subvert our optimal progress in every sphere and permanently cripple us even without war.   

A STREEAK OF INSENSITIVITY UNDERMINING CREDIBILITY OF JUDICIARY

In recent times, a substantial section of our judiciary has displayed a streak of brazen human insensitivity. It has raised doubts about its integrity as an institution and its commitment towards society. Many of its judgments appeared driven by something entirely different than the nobler ethic of law or justice or defence of integrity and cohesion of society or even long-term security of this nation. Listing these out shall distort the focus of this write up. 

But a closer examination suggests that the underlying conditions may be far too deep-rooted and complex. But the potential consequences appear too dangerous for entire society and all our aspirations for great power status, if the same is not detected and dealt with.   

    We all have read details in media on how Allahabad High Court inflicted incalculable pain and trauma on a minor - who had already been traumatized by forcible grabbing of her private parts and breaking of strings of her pyjamas -by observing that such actions by her tormentors did not amount to attempted rape. It is difficult to believe such conclusion is possible for any human mind without psychological pathology, or capitulation to underhand pressures or allurements. 

 This is not an isolated incident. There would be scores of these, unreported in media, which undermine popular trust in credibility and ability of Indian judiciary to protect unarmed citizenry who trust laws and institutions of state.  

A SYTEMIC DECAY OF JUDICIARY AS AN INSTITUTION

Even a speculation on what drove such observation shall make citizens liable for punishment for contempt of court. But what is undeniable is that the Indian society is suffering from serious pathological disorder that are beyond capacity of legal-clerical framework of rules and laws to correct.  

 Public uproar over judicial assault on the minor victim saw the Supreme Court descend in damage control mode. It overturned the decision of the High Court. It brought down levels of public anguish. But that is still not sufficient to restore credibility of judiciary as an institution or popular trust in its integrity to protect laws.  

Whether a district court or a High Court or the highest court, they all must have substantially same or similar interpretation of law. This is what differentiates an institution from a motely crowd, where each pursues its own private agenda. 

An institution of a state is expected to act in the most impartial manner, irrespective of individual outlook or orientation of an incumbent. Its collective approach on issues has to be uniform, consistent and logical, in most cases.  

NO PRE-JUDGING ANY ISSUE OR INCUMBENT

When I wrote the previous post, a well-known author and former journalist confronted me with questions:

a) whether I felt that the judge at the centre of this controversy was really guilty of a big offence? This is especially given the depth of corruption in judiciary and society both? 

b) should anyone be punished without due process of law? 

c) Aren't there bigger sharks in judiciary or elsewhere?

He also charged me with jumping on the bandwagon of perennial attention seekers.   

I responded that the issue was not about an individual. It was symptom of a deeper systemic malaise with dangerous implications for security of every individual. 

It is sheer bad luck for an individual that he or she got exposed as symptom of a disease. 

While, disease has to be addressed, the tactical management of symptom became critical for the same.

even if the entire societal realities or institutional realities were bad, such symptom of disease, who get exposed, should not be ignored. Of course, there should be stronger focus on containment and prevention of this disease.    

Of course, no one should be punished without due process of law. But the entire process of law is so slow and sluggish that popular trust in the same is declining. 

But at the same time, our police and enforcement agencies are strong enough to detect people who planted cash at residence of such a judge. Hence, the excuses offered by that Hon'ble judge, purportedly in a letter making rounds on social media, appear laughable.   

Many among the Delhi's legal circles, are vouching absolute innocence of the incumbent in question. But I doubt anyone not involved in the matter trusts them. 

CORRUPTION: AN ALL PERVASIVE REALITY

Corruption has sadly turned into an unwritten and yet near universal fact of life for every successful Indian. Our systems appear rigged to an extent that even breathing can become challenging for anyone seeking to adhere to absolute norms of absolute incorruptibility. This may be reality in almost all post-colonial fragile democracies.   

In the largest, and the most cacophonous democracy of the world, we cannot avoid professional attention seekers. In their quest for publicity, they land up trivializing even the most sensitive matters impacting our society and its people. 

But this does not take away the enormity of shock over disclosure of suspected vulgar underbelly of the most venerable and trusted institution of any open society. 

Whatever may be the underlying compulsion, administration of justice appears to be losing consistency, fairness, impartiality and transparency at least up to the level of High Courts. It has been sluggish in any case. 

But now it seems to have reached a level where justice appears increasingly an illusion for most citizens. Cash gate episode probably offers an explanation and cue in this direction. It is more important that as a society we discuss the issue with candor to explore remedial measures.   

WHY BLAME JUDICIARY ALONE WHEN ENTIRE SOCIETAL ECOSYSTEM IS PERVERTED?

While we cannot blame judiciary alone for the larger societal rot, because its incumbents are as much outcome of society as those in other wings of the state, their position is different. 

They are virtually like deities in temples of justice. There is need for ensuring their dignity and security at one level. But at another, they must be guarded from larger evils of society. For the sake of security and stability of society, judges need to appear superior and more virtuous than the rest of the society. Their decisions impact society and systems, including long-term behavioural pattern of people. 

It is ironical that entire justice system in our society often appears a legal clerical match between two sets lawyers. It is time to break through this model and push for larger quest of truth and justice.  

NEED FOR RADICAL RESTRUCTURING OF ALL INSTITUTIONS BEGINNING WITH JUDICIARY

Given serious psychological malignancy within ranks of all institutions, including judiciary, there is need for large-scale purge in most as the first step towards institutional restructuring. It would be naive to expect that such malignant lot shall change its ways by an administrative order. 

Corruption is behavioural disorder and psychological disease, which can be partially attributed to genetic make up and partly to upbringing and substantially to larger societal and institutional ecosystem. Their disease can turn into epidemic if institutional safeguards turn weak and fragile and societal ecosystem is perverted. We need a large-scale societal transformation.  

While specific reforms in other institutions is a separate matter, we need to focus on judiciary here.

Without serious threat to such people and their total expulsion from the system, judiciary stands no chance to regain its credibility, efficiency and integrity, which is critical for integrity for all institutions. 

We also need total transformation in procedures. From induction and training of judges to procedures for their promotion and continuation in service. Without solid professional knowledge, output, courage and character, no one should be allowed to continue, leave aside rising high in the profession.  

Elevation of lawyers, who have been defending rich criminals, to position of judges may have done far more harm to judiciary than any other factor. 

Psychologically, they are already conditioned to endorse criminality and corruption. They are not to be blamed for this. Their moral fabric has already stretched to treat corruption and criminality as normal and not so dishonourable. It will be few rare individuals who may change once they become judges.

Only genuine leaders with exemplary character can build a wider culture of integrity, innovation and excellence in judiciary. For this there is need to identify a crop of genuine leaders, known for integrity, empathy and professional knowledge. We need not one or two but an army of leaders in judiciary from benches to bars and registry. But they too should be kept under strict impartial watch or public scrutiny, lest they are overwhelmed by the societal surroundings and circumstances.

HARNESSING STRENGTHS OF DEMOCRACY 

Democracy, with freedom for enterprise and free speech, provides the biggest possible space for powerful ideas and initiatives from society itself. Its energised and enlightened members should not be deterred from floating powerful ideas for collective wellbeing of all or comprehensive advancement of entire society. 

But this freedom for enterprise and free speech is also vulnerable to abuse by self-seeking ignorant or malignant elements. This freedom has been increasingly abused in most open societies. Without making it a precondition for institutional and structural reforms in judiciary, there is need for exploring ways in which the wisest of the wise can make laws, and intelligent and honest can enforce laws and again people with divine level of integrity can adjudicate or decide on laws. This is aspiring too much.

We have to remember that any distortion in legislature and executive can be managed, deterred and corrected by judiciary. But if judiciary itself is subverted and distorted then the challenges get multiplied. Hence, institutional, structural and procedural reforms in judiciary to speed up the process of justice and bring down its cost for masses as well as ensuring integrity of the entire process can go independent of all other priorities.

STAKEHOLDERS OF STATE AND SOCIETY MUST COME TOGETHER   

However, stakeholders of Indian state and society must come together in this direction. For long-term security of Indian state and people as well as their own future generations. 

The biggest violators of rule of law and justice often appear incumbents of state, enjoying patronage from the highest level.  The other elements appear the richest and the most powerful of India. Most poor appear victims of their circumstances or ignorance. 

Our society is probably not ready for this change 

Probably this is what that has paralysed our capacity as a state to fix or cure this societal cancer. 

 Punishment for subversion of justice must be deterrent. This may be necessary in few glaring cases. And yet it may be insufficient to contain the entire menace.  

 We need serious leadership with credibility and integrity to salvage not only our judiciary but entire with minimal collateral damages. 

As a society, our focus has to be on guarding our people and society from the societal cancer of corruption. Courts and police can fix few cases of aberration in society. But if our systems and psyche are designed to psychologically condition people to breed corruption, no amount of judicial or police reforms can contain this societal cancer.

We need far bigger scale of systemic and psychological transformation. We need to come out of colonial psychological conditioning. Where we find solace in punishing people over every issue. 

We need deep wisdom, which is impossible for majority or most, in devising legislation or procedures of criminal justice or building larger societal ethic of trust and integrity. 

 Our rules, laws and procedures should be such that these must foster the highest quality of trust in society at one level. At another, these offer freedom for constructive enterprise and ideas to optimise our collective material and moral or intellectual wealth. 

We can never be perfect overnight. But as we travel in this direction, gradually we are bound to get better. 

CAN WE RESURRECT THE FINEST PRINCIPLES OF STATE-CRAFT AS OVERARCHING FRAMEWORK OF ALL DIMENSIONS OF GOVERNANCE?

This was the essence of ancient Indian statecraft that had withered away long before Muslim invasion. This is what that had differentiated India from Rome, Greece or Egypt, Persia and Iran. This what that had brought about remarkable peace and prosperity in almost of whole of Asia, making this continent the centre of both material and intellectual wealth for several millennia than what the colonial history would like us to believe. 

Can we make few modest moves to resurrect those scientific and yet eternal principles of Indian statecraft? By adapting these to our contemporary context and incorporating wider access to far more credible and advanced knowledge or information that is available today? 

I have no confusion that despite all freedom of a cacophonous democracy, our systems remain partly conditioned and partly rigged to keep us intellectually and materially a supplicant of bigger forces of the world. Our biggest enemies in this direction are people psychologically conditioned to such levels of dishonesty and self-interest that nothing may appear more important to them.     

We can break through this mode.  But this would not be possible without whole-hearted support of most, but not necessarily all, key stakeholders of our state and society.  The watch word shall be persuasion, integrity and trust amidst credibility of persuaders. 

Corruption, especially large-scale and rampant, is symptom of larger societal and governance disorder. It shows absence of adequate trust within society and poor credibility of state. 

A solid approach shall seek to address both the symptom and the disease. 

There will be multiple obstacles in this direction. We cannot entirely eradicate this disease from society. But we can certainly eradicate it from judiciary in a decade or two. 

There will be opposition from spirited vested interests from within the country and their external patrons whose geopolitical agenda involves keeping us with such dysfunctional level of governance where we remain vulnerable to exploitation and our progress remains sub-optimal.     

Cash Bags On Doorsteps of Judiciary: A Symptom of the Highest Stage of Societal Cancer

Cancer Kills. Whether it is individual cancer or societal cancer. Both inflict a slow and painful death to their victims. Death of a society is not in terms of physical annihilation. It leads to destruction of security for its members, erosion of trust towards the state or even among its members and a general debilitation of all organs of state and society. This may make the concerned society, far more vulnerable to clandestine external subversion and even direct military aggression.   

2. Corruption is no less than a cancer for society. But if this societal cancer of corruption takes over even the judiciary in its grip, it implies that all other organs of state and society have already been afflicted by this dangerous cancer. At this pace, everything in that society is certain to be doomed. It is death of hope. 

3. Indian intelligentsia, and especially the legal fraternity of Allahabad High Court, has gone gung-ho to appear saviors of a rotting and sinking institution that used to be the biggest beacon of hope in this country and inspiration and envy for people beyond our borders. They are expressing outrage over exposure of a known secret: serious corruption in Constitutional courts of India.  

4. Until a decade and half back, or at least by the turn of this century, Indian judiciary was held in very high esteem almost globally. Indian judges were marveled across all divides for their brilliance, courage and wisdom.  Our judiciary often overshadowed its counterparts not only in the developing world but even in some of the most established democracies through brilliance, innovation and moral courage to interpret laws beyond finer legal-clerical technicalities to push the state and society towards higher norms of justice, equity and fair-play. But we seem to have somehow lost the direction. We cannot blame the judges alone for this.  

5. I remember a decade and half back, I was addressing students of London School of Economics. My co-panelist was a Law Professor of German origin named Werner Menski. He had married a highly gracious and accomplished lady from Gujrati speaking community of Indian diaspora. This may have played only a minor role in what appeared his unusually deep academic interest in Indian laws, our traditional schools of jurisprudence and more importantly our judicial traditions, practices and principles. He was so well-versed with so-many landmark judgments of our courts, at different levels, during 1950s to 2000 that he explained finer nuances of so many of the judgments and their larger ramifications. It had never struck me earlier. He opined that Indian judges were often able to find innovative solutions to most vexed constraints of legal technicalities to arrive at judgments that adhered to the highest principles of justice and fair-play. It had simply left me in awe of brilliance and integrity of first few generations of jurists of post-independence India.  India still boasts of great judges. But they are too far and few. 

6. Such passionate respect for Indian judiciary was not confined to few academics alone. It was quite widely prevalent. I was also pursuing legal-consular matters on behalf of Indian mission in UK. These involved Govt of India's extradition requests as well as all matters under Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty. More than me, it were the eminent legal experts of UK, including the then Attorney General (with whom I had co-addressed members of Indian diaspora on quite a few occasions representing my High Commissioner) who expressed outrage at the largest democracy of the world, with a judiciary that, despite being a bit sluggish, had impeccable credibility, being placed in the same list  as countries like Somalia, Rwanda, DRC or Pakistan. These were countries in the so-called list-II for the purposes of extradition requests. It was assumed that integrity and autonomy of judicial institutions in these states were doubtful or suspect. Hence, when an extradition request came up from these states, the entire offence and the entire process was examined rather than the extraditable grounds of the offence. 

7. This appeared a clear conspiracy. It also hinted at a degree of racial prejudice. Many experts and veterans of diplomacy argued that the larger powerful opaque forces of the world, who continued to indirectly or clandestinely interfere in post-colonial world, did their best to resist a mechanism of rule of law on soil of the largest democracy of the world. Hence, they wanted an escape route for mega criminals, or even others, operating on Indian soil. They have always been determined to destroy popular trust in the ability of Indian institutions. It was also clear that amidst all constraints, if some insane members of Indian police, enforcement and intelligence agencies decided to chase any mega criminal, irrespective of the clout and might of the latter, who invariably were proxies of these opaque forces, the Indian judiciary was more or less sure to do the right thing. Hence, an escape route to evade Indian laws for such mega proxies was essential part of strategies. Many such experts opined that corruption was deliberately fused in Indian systems and psyche as a well thought out and well-calibrated geopolitical and geostrategic strategy. Of course, external forces may have had a very powerful role. But dynamics of a poorly regulated market, a long history of external occupation, cartelisation of political space of the country, and absence of a strong vision and traditions of statecraft created lethal cocktail. Certain degree of corruption may be tolerable or unavoidable. It is more like a minor infection from which society or institutions can get better. Absence of total corruption is utopia and thus impossible. But normalisation of corruption was outcome of sustained covert war and serious interference in our systems and institutions to shape our psyche with help of our own people. It was a silent but complex weapon by which our optimal rise as a state and civilisation has been scuttled. There were multiple indicators that indirect assault on rule of law was not an innocent and indigenous matter even though immediate villains were locals only. Notwithstanding these, I remember during 2011-12, friends of India in the British legal system did suggest that we make an effort to move out from list List-II to List-I in the British legal extradition regime. London had always been the first refuge of every legally wanted scoundrel in India, and last refuge for people who have lost hope in integrity and efficacy of our legal systems. At that point of time, United Kingdom was part of EU. Hence the friends of India stated that India cannot be placed at the same pedestal as EU or USA but it deserved to be at par with other commonwealth states like Canada, New Zealand and Australia whose judicial processes were not as suspect as that of Somalia or Pakistan.

8. Something has gone wrong since then. We shall never ever be able to establish the real cause and pin-point to anything specific that has ushered in such down-turn in integrity of nearly all our institutions. Credibility of Indian judiciary, especially the public perception about it, has particularly nosedived. 

9. Even before cash-gate episode hitting the Hon'ble Delhi High Court, one was horrified at the kind of orders/judgments and conduct of many judges that one came across. Many could see through the entire picture. A personality no less than a former CJI has openly conceded in media that corruption had increasingly gained acceptance as way of life in India and judiciary was as much impacted by this malaise as any other component of society. Hence, instead of pretending to be scandalized or outraged over the cash-gate, or attempting to cover up the same, or deflect public attention, Indian judiciary and other stakeholders of India need serious introspection.      

10. Corruption in judiciary, or for that matter in any component of state, in not merely a moral issue. It is the most serious threat to national security. As a committed former practitioner of national security, and sustained innovator in this sphere, I can say that corruption kills both society and state. It drastically impacts quality of governance, social trust or community cohesion. It seriously dents war waging and war winning capacities of state. Because it scuttles potential for optimal progress and innovation in every sphere of our existence. Corruption kills the quest for excellence in every human endeavour except perversity. The primary focus or priority of all ventures - private or public- turns into illegitimate, dishonest and unfair profit in collusion with anyone and everyone at any cost. Any society whose majority of elite are suspected to be corrupt, shall lose its basic human empathy. Despite outward aggression and bullying and moral pretensions of its leaders, the national character of a corrupt society turns cruel and yet cowardly. 

11. I am not saying so as part of some moral polemic or spiritual rant. A sound behavioral biologist or evolutionary psychologist shall confirm that how we behave can be assessed, influenced and shaped and not merely predicted by shape and contours of neuroanatomy as well as social and physical ambience. People with certain types of neuroanatomy are likely to behave in certain ways under certain conditions. A scientific examination of neural circuitry or finer contours of human brain, including overall orientation for hormonal balances, shall demonstrate that unusually corrupt and cruel people, despite showing undue aggression towards the weak, are far more likely to capitulate in face of the stronger.  When great American statesman Abrham Lincoln observed that bullies are always the first lick, he had no access to such knowledge but he was definitely endowed with exceptional power of observation.   

12. A high threshold of tolerance to corruption is the surest route to decimation of any society. It will bring in such genetic alterations in neural anatomy of people over the succeeding generations that it shall push an entire civilisation on a downward spiral of moral and psychological weakness. If one wishes to decimate a society or civilisation, all that is required is to patronize such leaders at the top, in any sector, who will institutionalize corruption and cowardice as moral and psychological attribute. Oppressive and corrupt leaders have always destroyed institutions, states and societies. I do not wish to say any further about the so-called nexuses in this direction. 

13. There can be no bigger horror for any society that aspires greatness or pretends to be Vishwa Guru to stumble upon brazen, rampant and naked corruption in its judiciary. Shamefully, the highest court of the country just chose to transfer the judge rather than investigate the matter. This is grossly unfair for amazingly honest and upright people in nearly every sphere, especially the judiciary. Over the years, judiciary in open societies have suffered bigger setbacks. Deep states, with enormous capacity of surveillance and coercion, have become globally powerful. They are suspected of not merely aggregating and patronizing corruption and crime but have attained far higher degree of sophistication and clout in this direction. No major corruption or institutionalized subversion can ever be possible in any major society on its own or without an organised and institutionalized patronage.    

14. Law has never been perfect anywhere in the world. Law is designed or enacted by supposedly wise people with a vision or aspiration for a just and fairer world and better society. This used to be the truth in the past. But this appears a big lie today if we look at character of legislators in nearly most democracies. Politics and legislation are no longer about total commitment to service. It is more about power grab rather than any deep ideological or principled commitment to anything. It is true that people, especially powerful ones or certain institutions, cannot always be decimated. Hence, a degree of public morality is not yet dead, especially in open societies.

15. As far as law is concerned, there has always been, and there shall always be, multiple gaps or  ambiguities and grey areas. In absence of public pressure, or pressure of moral and legal accountability, or right psychological conditioning, incumbents in judiciary shall always interpret the law or deliver verdicts as it suits them. Professional caliber, quality, integrity and wisdom of judges did impact their interpretation of law in the past. Those endowed with clerical mind-set, were always unempathetic and mechanical in their decisions, oblivious of the larger picture. Those with sluggish brain and lack of courage avoided judgments (Though it is possible that some wiser judges may delay decisions on contentious issues on which a decision, either way, is likely to evoke public unrest). Those with negative and vicious psyche are likely to act with cruelty and vengeance towards anyone. Those who are intellectually and ideologically opposed to the state or distrustful towards the executive, are likely to ignore even the most logical and rational considerations of national security to browbeat the executive on almost every issue.  

16. But today, all my friends in the legal circle state that barring few very rare judges, no one in the entire judiciary of India ever dares goes against the Executive on any serious matter. Interestingly, on important contentious issues, more often the matters up to the High Court level often lands up with such benches that are perceived to be loyal to the Government rather than the law or their own institution. Probably the roaster system software is also scared of the executive. Hence, there are such verdicts that are described as day light murder of justice. Justice in any case has never been equitably accessible to all citizens of our state. But today, we are at an entirely different level. It is not the victims but even the conscientious insiders within judiciary, have described Indian courts, in private, as the biggest slaughterhouse of justice. Only the mode of slaughter varies. Justice has appeared to have turned into more as exception rather than the norm. It is natural that if there is compromise at the behest of, or on behalf of, an all too powerful a patron, the incumbents shall extract their own pound of flesh.  

17. Hence, the Cash-gate of Delhi High Court has not surprised many. It is considered as an open secret of not only judiciary but entire society, especially the high and mighty. Probably, psyche of average successful Indian has been rigged, alongside all our systems. Being corrupt is not disapproved. But if you get caught, you are considered a fool. But many observe that you longer need to be corrupt to get indicted. Our criminal justice system has reached a level where anyone can be established as corrupt and there exists no recourse. Some worldly wise have observed on the cash-gate episode that the era of cash is over. Only the weak and unconnected or unsmart take recourse to cash. The smart or wise avail of services of those in Dubai, London, Hongkong or Singapore or even BVI or so many smarter havens through professional and reliable service providers. Many so-called greats in the legal fraternity have descended on Indian TV channels, whom I doubt anyone takes seriously, to pontificate over their own great virtues. I am sure if some upright incumbents in some of the institutions decides to confront them with proof, these great legal eagles may have to rely only upon their clout and connections and capacity to subvert, rather than moral virtues or knowledge of law, to wriggle out of embarrassment or indictment.      

18. Wise statesmen have always maintained that it is extremely important that judiciary in an open state and society is filled by incumbents with reasonable and rational mind. Unquestionable professional wisdom, moral courage, unqualified commitment to larger norms of justice and absolute financial integrity was part of the larger expectations of reasonableness from incumbents of judiciary. Else, the judiciary itself shall turn into the biggest noose to strangle and choke a society to its eventual death. It is absence of justice or assault on integrity of judiciary that has always destroyed internal virility and resilience of any great society. 

19. However, one has to go beyond cynicism, to commend the stance of Allahabad Bar Association. If handled well, the nascent movement initiated by legal fraternity of the Allahabad High Court has all the potential to turn into harbinger of something far bigger. Any effort to even marginally cleanse the rot in judiciary shall have its reverberations impacting not only other institutions of India but can go beyond our borders. Hence, agencies of Indian state would be on high alert to contain the damages, lest the fire engulfs far too many high and mighty. in any case, corruption is considered virtue, despite all our pretensions. 

20.. Idealism of youth is probably the biggest treasure of hope that a nation or civilisation can possess. There are far too many young lawyers of Allahabad Bar Association and elsewhere, who have shown immense fire and passion.  Similarly, in absence of wisdom of experience, the energy of idealism has the tendency to lose direction and momentum. Hence, there are many experienced lawyers also in this movement. Still, I have very little hope of something bigger and better. Yet, I take this opportunity to commend many good souls and upright members of Indian judiciary and Indian legal community. They are in plenty. I hope, they don't face extinction. But a stand-alone change in judiciary is not viable. A legal action, or impeachment, howsoever tactical, shall have at least a degree of deterrence. But it would never be sufficient to protect the judiciary and entire society from the monster of corruption. I have paid a heavy personal price for advocating comprehensive restructuring of institutions to eliminate space for corruption, cowardice, perversity and human malignancy, by altering institutions and influencing psyche of our people. 

21. A sturdy rule of law is not a luxury but necessity for security of our people and society. This is especially given our larger external ecosystem and internal constraints as a state. A corrupt judiciary threatens everyone. It destroys hope. It is the biggest weapon of silent and undetectable war against state, society and civilisation. But it would naive, myopic and even perverse to expect that a corrupt societal ecosystem can produce honest and upright judges. Corruption is believed to be as rampant among successful Indian elite as fishes needing water to survive or humans breathing oxygen to live. 

22. But all is still not yet lost. Honest Indians are not characters of fiction. They do exist. Average Indian does not get an option to stay clean or turn corrupt. They are compelled to court varying degrees of corruption as fait accompli for sheer survival.  But then there are those, who have turned incorrigibly sick and malignant. They can't breathe without harming people. The entire dynamics has been pushing more and more people to turn corrupt and hypocritical. Is there mass-criminalization of society? I very often wonder whether our systems have been designed to compel people to turn corrupt and oppress those who refuse to do so? Is this the surest recipe to push us in a Hobbesian state of nature, where each is at war with the other, if not individually then at least collectively as part of their identities? 

23. Yet, there are people in every sector, in all parts of the world who wish to fight for an honest system. They wish to breathe free air and enjoy complete freedom and yet act with total integrity and contribute towards building a better society for the sake of their inner strength. Can we bring some of them with a little brain and perspective together? So that they can persuade the entire society that this cancer of corruption is going to eventually destroy all of us including future of our children?   And explore an option, going well beyond simplistic solutions of the past? We need transformation of our outlook as society as well as large-scale restructuring of all our institutions to foster higher quality of social trust, integrity and human empathy.  This will neither be easy nor quick. This is going to test our character as a state and society.      

GANDHI: AN ICON OF PEACE & YET AN OBJECT OF HATE?

GNADHI: AN ICON  OR A SUPER SOUL?

   In recent centuries, no other man, or woman, has influenced human consciousness as profoundly as an English educated Indian Barrister - Mohan Das Karam Chand Gandhi - turned Mahatma or messiah. The title Mahatma given to Gandhi ji by eminent poet, intellectual and Nobel laureate Rabindra Nath Thakur stuck as forename of the man who was later hailed as father of the Indian nation. 

    Gandhi Jayanti or birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, popularly referred as Bapu, has always been a very special day in history of independent India. Mahatma Gandhi has been acknowledged and respected by last few generations of Indians and others as an apostle of peace, an icon of truth, a practitioner of non-violence, a proponent of universal justice, and an advocate of compassion towards all living beings. 

    Still, he was not perfect. Many have always questioned him; some had even defied him. But, of late, few have charged Mahatma with malice. Social media of 2023 is full of hate towards a man who was once loved, adored and respected by generations of Indians and non-Indians in a way that no other man has ever been in recent history of human race. 

    Gandhi himself never claimed to be an embodiment of absolute perfection and infallibility.  

    He is believed to have always reminded people around him of his own follies. Despite receiving huge adulation during his life-time, Mahatam Gandhi never lost his psychological balance to behave like an incarnation of divinity. 

        No human can ever be absolutely perfect and infallible. Even the most brilliant scientists can't create an absolutely perfect artificially intelligent robot. Hence, expectation of perfection itself is flawed.

    It particularly sounds like a cruel joke when it comes from those who themselves appear morally, ethically and intellectually challenged and spiritually disabled.  

   It is true that Mahatma Gandhi's legacy was hijacked and usurped by people who had no respect for Gandhian principles.  In retrospect, inheritors of his legacy, who were not his biological progenies, were psychologically weak and insecure. They fiddled with democracy and discarded integrity to survive in power.

    Consequently, Mahatma, that Gandhi was, has been attributed with sins that he may never have imagined.  

 GANDHI: AN UNAPARLLELED MASS MOBILISER 

     The generation that had seen Bapu in blood and flesh and had experienced the phenomenon named Mahatma is almost gone. Hence, what we hear, read and understand about Gandhi depends upon who says and writes and with what intent. It also depends upon orientation and capacity of the listener or reader to interpret the same.  

    Probably, the larger social and political context of India itself has undergone such drastic transformation that it would require enormous cerebral energy to even attempt understanding Gandhi and draw right lessons from his life and ideals. 

    To be fair to Mahatma, despite all his flaws and imperfections, he remains peer-less as mass-mobiliser of recent centuries.  He was able to rally nearly one fifth of humanity against the most oppressive, unethical and formidable imperial power in whose domain sun never set. His example inspired not only his own followers, but many a times overwhelmed even his opponents. 

We live in an era, where people all across the world are scared to stand up for truth and justice or utter a word even against their own elected Governments in relatively open societies. Many dread the prospect of foregoing even minor comforts of life.

    His idea of Satyagraha -embodying truth, non-violence, courage and compassion - emerged as the most powerful political weapon of democratic politics. His principles and vision entailed universal and comprehensive well-being of entire humanity and malice towards none. No politician of mass leader had imagined and espoused something like this, which could unify entire human race. 

    Gandhi's ideals of peace and justice gave a big fillip to the very idea of decolonization and democratization. His impact on Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was more than visible, even though he himself did not contribute to the same.   

    Without Gandhi, world may not have experienced the phenomenon of either Martin Luther King, and his racial equality movement, or that of Mandela and his anti-apartheid movement. It is doubtful that without Martin Luther, an Obama could have reached anywhere close to US Presidency or without sacrifices of Mandela, abolition of apartheid was possible.  

  Whether peaceful movement helped India win independence or the British left India out of fear of Subhash Chandra Bose, and his impact on British Indian soldiers, is irrelevant discourse at this juncture. Of course, Azad Hind Fauz and Subhash Bose left a strong impact and generated fear in minds of the British. But Bose, despite all his defiance to Gandhi, had remained respectful towards the latter. Without a unifying mass movement that Gandhi ji spearheaded in a diverse and divided India, Bose or so many other freedom fighters may not have reached the stature or generated the impact for which they are known. 

GANDHI: A SOCIAL TRANSFORMER? 

    It is logical to contend that Mahatma Gandhi and his ideals helped relatively peaceful transition of post-colonial India towards a stable and relatively humanist democracy. We need to cover a lot of distance to build a society that Gandhi had envisioned. But still there is no other example in human history where such a diverse, plural and huge country, with such formidable challenges, has not only held together, defying predictions of naysayers, but emerged as one of the key stakeholders of the global order while staying an open society. 

    Ideals of Gandhi ji had a role in this. But Gandhi ji had also acted as a big unifying force, of course with some imperfections, shortfalls and failures. He did it both during his lifetime and even after his death.

     Most of the first-generation leaders of independent India were proteges of Gandhi ji. They could curb their personal aspirations for the sake of national good to a great extent.  It is true that Gandhi ji could not persuade a large section of Muslim leaders led by Jinnah. But it must be kept in mind that a significant section of Muslim leaders too remained equally committed to Gandhi ji and his ideals of peace, non-violence and universal fraternity among mankind.  

    Had India attained freedom through an armed revolution, or even a military campaign, we may have struggled to build not only a democracy but even political stability or unity. India has suffered in the past on account of hordes and hordes of invaders and even local oppressors.  Strategic myopia of domestic rulers and social decay and generation had built its own momentum. But yet resilience of its values and ethos were manifest in its spirit of defiance, regeneration and resurrection. Violence and coercion on their own are insufficient towards building a trust-based political order that we associate with open, transparent and stable states and societies.   

    French revolution of 1789 was probably the biggest landmark of its kind that fueled the idea of democracy in Europe. There is no bigger example of violent mass resistance to exploitative oppression and coercion by rulers. It had brought almost entire French masses together in fight for a just and fairer society and inspired nearly rest of the mankind. For the first time in recorded human history, it had reminded rulers of limitations of their power. 

    But what followed, in the immediate aftermath of revolution, was the worst possible orgy of violence in form of 'reign of terror". Luckily, rise of Napoleon and his military exploits helped the French stay cohesive for a while. But it took more than a century for France and Europe to transition towards mass democracy, enduring multiple convulsions like 1848 revolutions.  

        Africa, yet another home of Gandhi, where he had perfected "satyagraha" and "non-violent resistance" as political weapons, witnessed far too much of conflict and violence following decolonization. Yet, from Mandela to Desmond Tutu, to a host of idealist leaders, claimed to have drawn inspiration from Gandhi. White races had remained reluctant, for a long time, to relent their grip on resource rich states of the region and induced innumerable domestic squabbles and conflicts. But Gandhian ideals have helped fuel voices for truth and justice. British newspaper -The Guardian - had filed a report a few years back in which it had quoted many African leaders who described Gandhi as their spiritual grandfather. Hence, Mahatma Gandhi remains a powerful symbol of truth and justice even now.   

    It is true that violent partition of the country that accompanied independence, marked a big failure of Mahatma Gandhi and his ideals of truth and non-violence. A receding imperial force unleashed some of the dirtiest principles of covert mass warfare against Indian people and Indian civilisation. It ignited medieval Arab and West Asian identity-based xenophobia and hatred by Muslims against Hindus to script one of the worst man-made carnages, genocides and mass rapes in human history. 

    It created a monster way bigger than any Frankenstein that human mind could conceptualize in the form of Pakistan. Principal collaborator of the British designs in this direction was not an Arab or Turkic Muslim. It was a malignant lot of converts from Hinduism and Sanatan only - like Jinnah- who unleashed mass murders against followers of faith of their own ancestors.  

GANDHI'S SOFTNESS TOWARDS MUSLIMS: AN OUTCOME HUMANIST IDEALS 

    Gandhi's repeated gestures of protecting or even favouring Muslims had no malice. Gandhi never favaoured his own biological children. How do we expect him to act like a parochial Hindu? 

    Gandhi always indulged in practices that involved sacrifices on part of those who were closer to him. This is not considered fare in our era and time. But that was the era, where most respected elders of joint families often promoted their nephews and nieces at the cost of their own biological children.  

    This was a flawed notion. But it was probably necessary for protecting extended families in the prevailing values of that time. This was considered test of benevolence of family heads, who often made such sacrifices to keep their extended families together. 

    We have become wiser with passage of time. Families have become smaller and we acknowledge value of every life. We have evolved. We realise that such measures for fostering artificial cohesion was neither fair nor sustainable. 

    Fairness and equity are more important than appeasement and unfair concessions for keeping families and communities together. Because, there may not be a limit to sacrifice for a few. Simultaneously, no amounts of concessions, privileges and entitlement can satisfy people addicted to these. Besides, this is the surest route to cripple a society, nation and family and make them seriously vulnerable in a competitive world.    

      There is no doubt that India needs firm rule of law and Indian secularism must not be equated with tolerance to Islamic radicalism. We need to find a mutually empowering equilibrium between Sanatan and Islamic values, beliefs and practice systems for a stronger India. A lot of scientific research on anatomy of human mind, human behaviour and evolutionary course of cultures is required alongside actions with integrity to reconcile these. Our Muslim friends must be persuaded that cannot go back to past and Hindu majority should be convinced that all Muslims are not terrorists and radicals. Islamic concept of Iztema may be useful in persuading or even forcing changes in obscurantist forces of Islam and Hindus too need a scientific reconstruction of their beliefs and practice systems.  

    A society that squabbles on follies or failures of the past, instead of learning lessons from the same, digs a hole for itself. Statesmanship is not about exploiting these fissures but about finding ways to building cohesion among societies and states in pursuit of comprehensive excellence.    

     GANDHI: NOT A FUZZY UTOPIAN BUT A ROBUST THINKER

    Mahatma Gandhi was not merely communicating through symbols and actions or simply mobilising masses. He has been acknowledged as a profound thinker and philosopher as well. His world view may appear simple and idealist. But it was based on robust intellect. Given normal human vulnerabilities to lies, deception and selfishness, most may find it too utopian. But these definitely constitute the bedrock of an ideal society.   

    Gandhi's truth, as popularly known, was not a weapon of the weak or timid. His truth required enormous courage and self-belief. Gandhi's ideal of non-violence was not the choice of a helpless timid. It required exceptional psychological strength not to get provoked. This remains relevant for all real and aspiring leaders at any level. 

    But somehow, one feels that his message of non-violence has been badly interpreted. There are many sources that suggest that Gandhi ji is believed to have told that when it came to prevent certain types of violence, especially from rapists and molesters who harm dignity and safety of women, even murder was justified.  He had maintained that violence was preferable over cowardice and in certain contexts violence may become necessary. But still he never faced such extreme and exceptional situation himself and hence it could never be tested.   

    Hence, Gandhian concept of non-violence is neither absolute nor a rigid ritual. 

    One also has to appreciate that Gandhi was a social reformer and not a Military General or a statesman wielding state authority. He never considered anyone as his enemy. He had repeatedly asserted this. To reach a psychological stage where you don't find even your worst detractors or haters as your enemy is simply super-human.

    Gandhi's ideal of trusteeship of public property pushes him closer to socialist ideals. But at the same time, it appears more in tune with ideals of both a healthy social order and even what we describe the most contemporary principles of corporate governance or corporate probity. 

    Only a great society, driven by the highest principles and practices of national or civilisational security has wisdom to invest in quality of human resource. From physical health of people to their education, skills and values as well as ability to harness human energy to both material and moral strength constitutes the bedrock of national security. Gandhi's emphasis on character building, besides cognitive and technical skills, could probably be a game changer. Education is not about memorising information. Education can be real tool only if it empowers people to do what is right for society as a whole or to stand up against what is bad for society.    

    Integrity and truthfulness remain eternally relevant for any great society. Without empathy, altruism and kindness we can never ever have social trust or social cohesion or even a healthy family or community. Violence begets violence. Gandhian philosophy of countering violence through non-violence was not about surrender of a meek with humiliation. What he said may have been relevant in a lawless society where he was seeking a wider transformation. But countering violence from a position of psychological strength and self-belief and not anger or revenge appears a stronger option. 

    Gandhi ji may not have had access to knowledge about working of human brain or role of genes, environment and social practices on human behaviour. We are far more aware today on these issues. But Gandhi ji's contribution did push us in direction of trust-based social order where all could thrive better. 

DOWNSIDE OF GANDHI

    Mahatma Gandhi was one of the greatest among the great. He was looking at world from his own unique vantage point. He was trapped in his own context and may be his own priorities. Hence, he too appears to have faltered. But these were  on far too fewer occasions and issues compared to most mass leaders. 

    Gandhi ji definitely does not appear fair to Subhash Chandra Bose. He may have sensed a penchant for a militant armed struggle in Bose. Hence, he wanted to keep Bose away from Congress. But as Mahatma and father figure, he was expected to stay fair and impartial. During Haripura Session of Congress in 1938 when Pattabhi Sita Ramaiah challenged Subhash Bose, Gandhi ji should have stayed neutral. His decision to throw his plight with Pattabhi  projects him in poor light. 

    The Charisma that Subhas Bose enjoyed, especially among youth of his time, was much bigger. Bose won the election but still Gandhi ji made it so difficult for Bose that the latter had to quit Congress and explore independence of India through different means. 

    Gandhi ji also kept quiet on judicial murder by the British of the most romanticist revolutionary and hero named Bhagat Singh. This lapse of Gandhi ji appears unpardonable for most Indians. There cannot be a more romantic ideal image of an innocent young man who decides to happily give up his life for the same cause for which Gandhi ji was spearheading mass movements. Gandhi ji's silence remains baffling and dents his saintly image. 

    This was especially after disclosure that Bhagat Singh was not involved in any murder and the bomb that he had thrown in the Assembly was only for drawing attention to important issues like passage of a draconian Public safety bill besides protests over Simon Commission, Govt inaction over Jallianwalla bagh massacre and killing of Lal Lajpat Rai by police. His actions had not killed or harmed anyone. Bhagat Singh became a more towering persona in death and left a profound impact in the process. 

    Gandhi ji is also seen as someone who made too many concessions to Islamist radicals and restrained and curbed Hindus far too much. From his indulgence with Khilafat to concessions to Jinnah and efforts to appease Muslims and tolerance to genocide by Muslims in Noakhali in East Pakistan and Kolkata in West Bengal to nearly whole of West Punjab and Sindh generated a sense of dejection and pain among large sections of Hindus and his followers. Many believe that Gandhi ji's decisions brought huge sufferings to Hindus and encouraged rabid Islamists with a sense of entitlement to slaughter Hindus and rape their women with impunity. 

    There is no doubt that Gandhi ji's presence gave a sense of security to Muslims in India. But he could not equally persuade Muslim masses either in India or Pakistan to refrain from violence. Even his comrades like Khan Gaffar Khan were largely rendered irrelevant in Muslim majority ideas of Pakistan.

        Alongside these, the most prominent politically family of India has been charged with usurping surname of Gandhi and virtually monopolized his legacy. Earlier also Gandhi ji was considered instrumental for overruling Congress party's internal decision to appoint Sardar Patel as Prime Minister of India and foist Pandit Nehru in his place. There may not have been any devious personal agenda in the same. But in retrospect, Gandhi ji also held responsible for all the ills identified with rule of this family and their associates.  

    Another issue that has invited controversy for Gandhi ji is his so-called experiments to test his own celibacy with much younger women, especially his grand nieces. This appears horrendous from our contemporary sensibilities. Whether Gandhi ji took consent from those young women are not is neither known nor relevant. But that was the era, when a great and even the most empathetic appears to have failed to show enough empathy. Yet we do not know the entire story but something of this nature whether correct or incorrect, remained wrapped up under the cover and none knew or spoke about these.  

  GANDHI: NOT PERFECT AND YET THE GREATEST MASS LEADER OF THE MILLLENNIUM 

     The extent to which Gandhi ji should be hailed as an icon of peace or treated as target fit to be vilified depends upon political orientation of individuals concerned. 

    But his ideals and practices do command a romantic appeal cutting across boundaries of state, civilization and culture.

    But Gandhi ji was a hardcore Indian and nationalist who was not liked by the West. Incidentally, the West never conferred Nobel Peace prize on Gandhi even though the same was given to his proteges like Martin Luther King and Mandela. One can say that Gandhi ji was disliked and distrusted by white colonial powers.  

    Gandhi ji lived in an era and what he contributed in the most selfless manner is exceptional and inspirational. We can neither reject Gandhi nor adopt his values universally. For an individual living in society, both means and ends need to be pure. But when it gets down to use of instruments by state for protection of entire the test of purity rests with their efficacy. 

    Gandhi is one of our greatest icons. He is probably most well-known too in recent times. But we have had far too many other icons too. We must not supplant Gandhi as the sole icon. Each of the icons from the earliest times have shaped and influenced our civilizational journey.  

     Gandhian principles must not be rituals. Whatever we do, we cannot be driven by anger or greed. If an Indian soldier kills a Chinese or Pakistani counterpart or a terrorist, it is a moral and otherwise duty. But after killing the enemy soldier or terrorists, Indians hand these over to family of deceased or perform their last rituals with dignity. Violence of a soldier or deception of a military leader or espionage master is a professional necessity, which too has to be performed without anger, hatred or greed. If a Gandhian state vanquishes the hell created by some criminal lackey of the white imperialists, it must be for ushering in civility and Gandhian society in that land. 

    Hence, without Kautilyan principles of Dharma or protective cover of  Kautilyan State, Gandhian principles can't survive. But without Mahatma Gandhi and his ideals, world and society would indeed be a dangerous and unsafe place for all. Hence, we must progress, howsoever incrementally, towards a Gandhian society protected by a Kautilyan state. 

BBC AND HINDENBURG MUST BE IGNORED BUT INDIA NEEDS SERIOUS INTERNAL DISCOURSE & REFORMS

    Over the last two weeks, two incidents have dominated the discourse in Indian media. One concerns controversial BBC documentary indicting PM Modi of Gujrat riots of 2002. The second concerns Hindenburg report on an Indian tycoon whose wealth has meteorically risen over the last few years defying all logic.  

    Reaction in India’s political and media space has been on the expected lines. People have taken positions depending upon their political loyalties and personal preferences. Entire public domain resembles a psychological or propaganda warzone. 

Under these conditions, I am not sure how an attempt to place a sane perspective in public domain shall go down. 

    The timing of BBC documentary after two decades of a forgettable incident certainly arouses suspicion. It has reopened wounds that had healed over time. Given the track record of BBC, and certain forces in the Western world, especially those known for supporting Pak linked organised crime networks, it would be fair to suspect that the documentary is not driven by noble professional intentions. It has attempted to drive social and political wedge in India and undermine credibility of its institutions, including the apex court. But at the same time, I do not endorse panic bans. Ideally, our institutions and credibility should have been strong enough to prevent something like this. Simultaneously, a strong Supreme Court of India could have hauled up BBC to deter such psychological warfare.  

    While it will be disaster for political dissidents in India to seek solace in such malicious propaganda by a media institution whose sections have always been under influence of Islamic organised crime networks, it will not serve our interests if we ignore deficiencies in our own institutions. Ideally, the twin attacks must inspire our stakeholders to come together to address our deficiencies in this direction. However, it looks improbable at this stage.  

    Over the last few decades or since independence, India has been facing a pernicious psychological warfare from sections of Western media and even their state establishments. They have always sought to put India on the same pedestal, or at times even lower than, as the Pakistani state controlled by a notoriously criminal Army. The objective appears undermining and scuttling rise of a powerful democracy. This is not to say that we do not have strong pockets of support in these states. Unfortunately, most Western democracies themselves have been divided. It is influence of slush funds and lobbying as well as larger organised-crime networks on some of the Western democratic institutions that is worrying.   

    From the turn of 21st Century, there had been noticeable abatement of hostility from the Western states. This is largely due to protests in these states over increasing disclosures of Pakistani involvement in terrorism and organised crime in their territory in the wake of 9/11 attacks. However, the situation is far from satisfactory. Simultaneously, the world has increasingly witnessed a difference in the quality of Indian and Pakistani diaspora. The latter has dominated prisons and ranks of organised crime, whereas the former have been gainfully contributing almost everywhere to economic and technological empowerment of host nations.  

    Over the last many centuries, Islamic identity has been frequently abused not only by hardy marauders but even neo converts to Islam to unleash violence, terrorism, extortion and crime against so-called non-Muslims. Near complete exodus of non-Muslims from Kashmir or prior to that complete cleansing of Hindus and Sikhs from Pakistan have been cited as examples of violent parochialism inbuilt in Islamic practices on the subcontinent. These have been backed by pernicious propaganda to paint Hindus negatively all over the world. Indian state remained a moot spectator not only to what has continued to happen against non-Muslims in Pakistan but also in most Muslim majority areas of independent India.

    It was extension of same tendency when 59 Hindu pilgrims were burned alive in a train in Godhra on Feb 27, 2002 without any provocation. The perpetrators had the audacity to do so even in an overwhelmingly Hindu majority state where a Hindu nationalist Government was in power. It would be insane to claim that the Government of the day had colluded in a pre-planned gruesome killing of these train passengers, as state police had failed to detect and prevent. 

    This was not an isolated incident. Terror attacks from Mumbai (1993) and Surat (1993), besides violence in the Kasmir Valley (since late 1980s), had built a momentum of their own. A strong clandestine infrastructure of Islamist terrorism and organised crime networks had come up in different countries as well as in different parts of India, including the economically important and peaceful state of Gujrat. Innocent civilians were regularly killed in such attacks.  It is no surprise that India had remained the second most impacted state by terrorism as per Global Terrorism index (GTI) since 2001. 

    The Godhra train carnage had outraged people in the state. Tempers were running high as Indian state had appeared incapable of protecting Hindus from violence in name of Islam. Ideally, the Indian state should have acted promptly and arrested all the culprits involved in this mass murder and launched a massive hunt for such Islamic terrorism and crime networks in the state and beyond. Probably our institutions were not strong enough to do so. 

    The media reports stated that the then Gujrat Government had sought reinforcement of security forces from neighbouring states and Government of India. Bureaucratic procedures and political considerations appear to have delayed the process. These gave opportunity to malignant sections of society to take law into their own hands. Whatever happened was a shameful chapter in history of India. It was one of the rare episodes in independent India where spontaneous gangs of thugs came up killing scores of innocent people. But it would be unfair to assume that Muslims alone were killed in this so-called retaliatory violence. Against 790 Muslim killed, 254 Hindus were also killed. However, none of the Western or even secular media at home have ever highlighted this fact. Would 250+ Hindus have been killed if the entire state machinery was partisan and 90%  Hindu population of the state were communal? 

    The rampaging mobs did not spare even some of the high-profile privileged Muslim families who had traditionally enjoyed wider respect and influence in their localities. This was reminiscent of attack on wealthy Hindus in West and East Pakistan before partition. But the scale was much lower. Such failure of police institutions drew immense flak from all concerned including their Hindu friends and civil society groups. There were some gruesome attacks that could have been easily avoided and social cohesion could have been protected. Despite such allegedly state-backed violence against Muslims, vigilante and criminal groups were also able to do the same thing in name of their Muslim identity against Hindu families right under the nose of a "biased" police institution. Efforts were made to use these episodes for political gains. In the process, the larger failure of the state and even pain of ordinary masses - both Muslims and Hindus - never received due attention.

Another unfortunate part of 2002 episode was emergence of a few criminals and rioters as mass heroes and saviours of people. Some of them have joined politics even though a large number of them were indicted and sentenced.  But on a positive side, a large number of Muslims have also been in the inner circle of PM Modi. 

    There is absolutely no justification for any mob-killing of anyone- whether a Muslim or Hindu. It was shameful that our police institutions failed to protect innocent train passengers and subsequently they looked the other way when approached by Muslim civilians for help. Malignant lot in Indian police and security forces have had a long history. Some of them have been suspected of collaborating with organised crime networks linked with Islamist groups and act otherwise only to protect their turf or themselves. But large sections of them definitely protected all people irrespective of their identity. But a credible democracy like India needs absolute levels of impartiality and efficiency from its police institutions. 

    Political opponents of Shri Modi, who was Chief Minister of Gujrat at that point of time, targeted him individually. As head of the government, he was responsible for collapse of state institutions. But none of the agencies could ever establish his direct role in abetting violence against Muslims. It is pertinent to mention that a different political party had ruled at the centre for 10 years. Rather, it was his resolute handling of the episode that helped near complete elimination of well-entrenched organised crime cartels in Gujrat. No major communal violence ever recurred in that state. People praised him for securing public spaces and eliminating crime. But the damage had already been done. 

    It was a Catch 22 situation for the Indian state.  Enemies waging all out covert war against India seemed to be mocking: “Heads I win; tails you lose”. If the CM had allowed the situation to drift and terrorists to have their sway, he may have been doomed. If he acted decisively, he could still be discredited with charges of excesses. 

     But people of India gave him a resounding mandate. The Indian state has also been able to significantly fend off sustained covert war from Pakistan, which was eventually exposed globally over its complicity in terrorism and organised crime. Simultaneously, several clandestine cartels are believed to have quietly changed their colour in quest of state patronage, without which they just can't survive. They are suspected of sabotaging any transition to real rule of law for which reforms in political parties and criminal justice system are unavoidable. Indian PM has consistently spoken of these, but such strategic reforms are nowhere on the horizon. 

    Dysfunctional and subverted institutions have remained a long-term reality in India. These have given rise to powerful forces with strong vested interest in status quo. Most astute politicians have been cautious in dealing with them to avoid risk of public disorder and unmanageable levels of turbulence. But visionary statesmen do find ways and means to address such difficult challenges.  A robust security and dynamic criminal justice system is a fundamental necessity for a stronger India. 

        Simultaneously, corporate sectors all over the world have been battling varying degrees of erosion in integrity and transparency. Only the means and methods have varied. Congressional Research Committee of United States to various Nobel prize winning economists have alleged that mega corporates have rigged the entire regulatory capacity of state even in the West. Ill-effects of unrestrained privatisation or unhealthy nexus between politicians and corporates, to the detriment of collective interests of the communities, is a global reality. However, the entire process is too discreet and sophisticated in the West compared to what we have in India. Democracies need to find an answer to this both for the sake of their credibility and optimal governance efficiency.  

    If we adhere to the strictest levels of probity and integrity, probably no mega corporate entity anywhere in the world can come clean. Some of the local detractors of PM Modi have been flagging that crony capitalism has been a longstanding reality in India but the scales were never that high and mode never so direct. We all know that crony capitalism and opaque political funding share a symbiotic relationship. Many political and corporate leaders have admitted in private that high levels of integrity and transparency were simply not viable in our ecosystem. This is neither a new nor an isolated phenomenon. With onset of strict anti-graft laws in the West, Indian corporates run the risk of being targeted by their global rivals over such soft underbelly. Sharp decline in stock prices of such entities, directly hits average consumers or investors for no fault of theirs. Govt is duty bound to protect such people for which it needs to build a much broader consensus and understanding among various stakeholders.  

    I have always maintained that an economy of our size cannot afford so many billionaires. Such sudden rise in wealth of any individual does not appear possible under normal circumstances.  Real economic strength of a nation like ours does not rest on number of mega corporates and billionaires. It needs a larger culture of industry, enterprise and innovation where several smaller enterpreneurs rise on the strength of innovation and excellence in multiple niche areas. 

     Under-performing institutions and deficient criminal justice systems have remained a perennial reality in India. But at the same time, India is the only stable democracy in the entire post-colonial world whose rise is often linked with larger stability and security of this region and beyond. Hence, both BBC and Hindenburg reports do not deserve the kind of attention that they are enjoying. But we shall ignore need for serious reforms in both political parties as well as corporate sector of India, only to our own peril. These reforms are not luxury but critical necessity for optimising our economic strength and external security.   

    I am also posting a clip of part of a lecture of Jan 2020 during which I had emphasized on centrality of reforms in political parties and private sector.