LETTERS

Brigadier Surinder Singh

The dismissal of Brigadier Surinder Singh is a tragedy at three levels: personal, organisational and national ("The sacking of a Brigadier", July 6).

Here, a soldier who was showered with praise the other day has suddenly become "incompetent". He is victimised probably because he spoke the truth. What a reward to get in the Mahatma's own country!

An organisation can achieve its goals only if it continuously improves itself by taking corrective action whenever a problem arises. However, it should acknowledge its mistakes, if any, in the first place. Otherwise the solution will turn out to be a farce. The Army's action in Brigadier Surinder Singh's case will end up creating a breed of "yes, sir" officers.

As a nation we shy away from truth. No wonder the rulers did not want to know the reality on the border. Even those who conducted an "independent" inquiry into the Kargil affair did not want to tell the disturbing truth.

I am sure people who genuinely love this country are with the Brigadier. The truth will prevail, ultimately.

R. S. Babu
Navi Mumbai

People's Front

This has reference to "A document of promise" (July 6). The situation in Uttar Pradesh may be favourable to the People's Front and it may receive support in various other States also. Yet it will have to go a long way before coming to power on its own at the Centre. This is because the Congress(I) is also on a comeback trail in several States. The People's Front will have to remove the shortcomings of the United Front government (like its dependence on the Congress) if it wants to give a stable government and implement its "programme of action".

A. Jacob Sahayam
Karigiri, Tamil Nadu

The Governor's role

The constitutional issues involved in Governor M. Fathima Beevi's decision to appoint Jayalalitha Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu will be analysed by the Supreme Court soon ("The Governor's prerogative", June 22). But there is a controversy in Kerala over the advice reportedly given by Governor S.S. Kang to Chief Minister A.K. Antony not to include R. Balakrishna Pillai in the Cabinet. Balakrishna Pillai, a former Minister who was convicted in a corruption case, has questioned Antony's decision to drop him from the list of Ministers and claimed that the Governor did not raise any such objection. The Governor has not commented on this issue. If Balakrishna Pillai's version is correct, it would be improper to compare the Kerala developments with those in Tamil Nadu.

K.A. Solaman
Alappuzha, Kerala

Kashmir

In his essay "Illusions of Indian foreign policy" (June 8) Aijaz Ahmad wrote "... in the spirit of the times... people are often ready to fight for their rights; at least some of the Kashmiri boys do watch television and they do see Palestinian boys throwing stones on Israeli military convoys." In 1994, a Kashmiri whom I interviewed recalled how in July 1970 he and 150 schoolboys pelted stones at Indian troops for eight hours at Bud Shah Chowk, Srinagar. Long before the 1988 Palestinian intifada and the appearance of AK-47s, AK-56s, Chinese pistols, rocket-launchers, all that the Kashmiri youth had were stones. They turned to AK-47s and so on only as a last resort, after their peaceful rallies and demonstrations were often fired upon by India's combined forces. Only in 1988 did the members of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front go over to Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir for training. Since Kashmiris do not recognise the Line of Control, it meant that they were training on Kashmiri territory, on Kashmir's soil.

The rise of militancy during 1988-2001 was not the result of a well-planned proxy war by Pakistan as the Indian officials and press say. Islamabad seized the opportunity only later on, after droves of desperate Kashmiri youth sought its support.

Zariani Abdul Rahman
Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

West Bengal and Kerala

The outcome of the recent elections to the legislatures of West Bengal and Kerala have revealed two different trends, which are yet to be adequately analysed. Comparisons can be odious; however, realism is hopefully not yet a lost art. The fact remains that in the snakes-and-ladders game of electoral politics, the Left Front in West Bengal made a steady climb in the past 25 years whereas the Left Democratic Front's (LDF) record in Kerala is a mixed one. The LDF needs to learn some important lessons from the Left Front. The interview with West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee contains some of these ("Of continuity and change", June 22).

Over the last two decades and more the Left Front has ensured that 70-80 per cent of the cultivable land in the State belonged to the poor. Through land reforms and various other development programmes and the panchayati raj system, the Left Front won the support of the majority of the rural people. The Front also ensured that there was no cause for disaffection among the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. The Left Front consolidated its success in agriculture and rural development. Now it is planning to turn its attention to the task of creating jobs by speeding up industrialisation, paying special attention to the small and medium sectors.

The LDF did pay attention to the preparation and implementation of a People's Plan, despite many impediments. But the fact remains that it did not endeavour to analyse dispassionately its strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats, when the going was good. Instead, it was busy fighting infructuous political battles with the Congress(I)-led United Democratic Front. It is only after losing power that it has tried to analyse the causes of its electoral setback. And even here, it is yet to do a substantive and credible introspection. It must analyse the causes of its defeat objectively, without confining itself to self-justification.

In West Bengal, one witnessed a healthy blend of intellectualism and activism among the ranks of the Left Front. This is absent in Kerala, especially after the demise of E.M.S. Namboodiripad.

K. John Mammen
Thiruvananthapuram

Astrology

Human Resource Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi's move to introduce "Vedic astrology" as a subject in universities deserves condemnation ("Vedic astrology and all that," May 25). Astrology has no scientific basis and it is not possible to impart practical knowledge to students who might take up the astrology course. Flattery and deception are the secrets of success in astrology. In spite of its claim to being older than science subjects, astrology has not progressed because it is not rooted in science.

If astrology could achieve the status of genuine science, the future of mankind would better be left to the stars. The achievements of mankind so far are the result of the intelligence and industry of human beings and not their luck.

If religious fundamentalism propagates such a nonsensical idea, then the Ramayana and the Mahabharata should also be included in history books. At a time when supercomputers and other products of advanced technology have invaded our society, introduction of astrology in the curriculum will make us a laughing stock internationally. Here is a tale that illustrates the hollowness of astrology. A palace astrologer predicted that the king would die very soon. The king was worried. The Prime Minister summoned the astrologer and ordered him to predict the date of his (the astrologer's) own death. The astrologer mentioned a date a few years from then. Then the Prime Minister ordered the executioner to kill the astrologer. He thus proved his prediction wrong.

Buddhadev Nandi
Bishnupur, West Bengal

It is interesting to note that the scientist A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is not against practising "astrology" as an art, but Dr. T. Jayaraman, a scientist, and Alladi Kuppusami, a former Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, have shown their aversion to astrology. The question is whether they are experts in Vedic Astrology and have come to this conclusion after making a detailed study of the subject.

According to the Vedas, everything is "science" - Darsana Sastram. 'Darsana' is sensory perception and 'sastram' is meditative perception. The results must be tested only through reason and experience. Swami Vivekananda said: "Of course, we have the right to challenge these facts, to put them to the test of reason." But not in the court of law. In fact, the test has to be done by dispassionate research, study and debate. Utilisation of some amount of public money for this purpose cannot be considered unreasonable.

S. Subramaniam
Kadayanallur, Tamil Nadu

The legal system

With his tribute to the German jurist Professor Dietrich Conrad ("Behind the 'basic structure' doctrine", May 11) A.G. Noorani has done a great service to the law and the legal community in India.

Owing to our close connection with the English law and the language, we rarely turn to continental legal systems for support. Similarly, not many continental scholars get attracted towards the Indian law and legal system. Perhaps Professor Dietrich Conrad is the only exception. He has undertaken a study of the legal system of not only India but the entire subcontinent. His writings on these countries, particularly on Pakistan, are as important as those on India. They are not confined to the basic structure doctrine or constitutional law but extend to diverse issues such as federalism, the rule of law, human rights, canon and dharma. Above all, his works on Gandhiji's legal philosophy are unique and pioneering. Perhaps no scholar has studied Gandhiji's approach to law and the legal system as deeply and thoroughly as Professor Conrad has.

Some of the major writings of Professor Conrad have now been collected in a volume entitled Zwischen den Traditionen, published by Franz Stiner Verlag, Stuttgart, in 1999 for the South Asia Institute, University of Heidelberg, under the editorship of Professor Luett and myself. Every piece in that collection is a wealth of knowledge of law and related issues and of deep understanding of society. Most important, like the basic structure doctrine, all these writings are constructive and provide workable solutions to the problems faced by India and Pakistan. The courts, lawyers and lawmakers can get guidance from these writings for resolving legal issues.

Professor Conrad has also encouraged many scholars in the subcontinent, including me, and in Germany to study and understand each other's legal systems and cultures. Such studies acquire special importance in the globalised legal world and must be encouraged.

M.P. Singh
Professor of Law,
University of Delhi.
Delhi