Some Random Thoughts - On Joining the AAP

I remained a faceless diplomat for more than 35 years before my retirement from IFS in December, 2010. I decided in the beginning of 2003 to come back from Delhi to my roots in Jalandhar with a view to integrate myself with the community and repay the debt of

Ambassador Ramesh Chander speaking at DAV College, Jalandhar

gratitude I owe to the society in a humble way. In the process of my settling down, I chose to associate with the education sector to begin with. Sant Baba Bhag Singh University was gracious enough to nominate me on its Board of Governors.  I ventured to start an educational outfit – Jalandhar School of Careers and Opportunities to benefit the children of my native place Bootan Mandi and nearby localities. Given my background and interest, Doordarshan Jalandhar provided me a window to reach out to the wider audiences through its various programmes to which they invite me occasionally. Some of the leading schools and colleges in and around Jalandhar associated me with their activities and invited me to speak at various functions. I associated myself with the community functions, particularly pertaining to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Guru Ravidassji, to satisfy my social yearnings. These activities kept me busy as my post retirement engagement which, in a lighter vein, I termed as my ‘Second Innings'.

Some of my friends and also my immediate family, my brothers and sisters, have been suggesting me to join public life and share my wide experience with the society. But I remained reluctant because of my perceived temperament and training. Would I be able to withstand the dust and din of politics? Would I be able to go thick skinned, said to be an important attribute of a politician? Do I have the needed ‘killing instinct’ which a politician generally uses to deal with his adversaries? The increasing role of money, with my own scarce finances, in politics always remained a concern with me. But as an enlightened citizen, I remained fully live and informed of the changing political scenario, of late. Over the last three years or so, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) under the leadership

of Arvind Kejriwal has thrown open some new avenues and opportunities on the political firmament of the country. It started from the core issue of corruption which has eaten the vitals of the polity and society at large. The AAP opted for clean and transparent politics. It negated the VIP culture from which the common man on the road was suffering. It supports and pleads for social justice, as enshrined in the constitution, for empowerment of the weaker sections of the society. Above all, the AAP stands for power to the people as stipulated in the preamble of the constitution with a view to establish ‘Swaraj’ and an egalitarian society. I thought, perhaps, the time has become. The AAP, a party with a difference, appealed to me. It has come but is yet to reach. I seriously pondered over all these points. Meanwhile, my well wishers have been cajoling me to take a plunge into politics and join the AAP, an emerging party on the political landscape of India. Sometime in January, 2016, I did not tell anybody and enrolled myself online and became a member of the AAP. I sent an E-mail message to the Convener of the AAP, Arvind Kejriwal and to the Central Observer, Sanjay Singh and solicited their advice on making my joining the party public at an appropriate occasion and requested for an introductory and courtesy call on them during their next visit to Jalandhar. I waited for a response for a couple of weeks. There was no response which worried me a bit as I was sure that the AAP would respond and behave differently. In the second week of February, 2016, I took the liberty of writing again and requested for a suitable response. I also told them that I was a political novice and it was my maiden entry into public life. I also told them that I did not know anybody of the AAP leadership in Jalandhar. There was a quick reply by E-mail on February 21 from the AAP headquarters, to my satisfaction, telling me “Dear Rameshji Please give us some time. Our team will be in touch with you”. The process of my joining the AAP formally began with a telephone call from Delhi, on the evening of February 22, welcoming me into the AAP fold and advising the party leadership in Jalandhar to get in touch with me to make a formal announcement in this regard. The Central Zonal Observer, Rajiv Choudhary contacted me and we met on February 23 and decided to go ahead. Accordingly, my joining the AAP was formalized at a joint press conference at the Jalandhar Press Club on February 24, 2016 in the presence of Rajiv Choudhary and Dr. H.S. Cheema, Zonal Observer and other senior functionaries and volunteers of the AAP. Both Choudhary Sahib and Dr. Cheema offered me the AAP robe of honour and welcomed me to the party.

At the Press Conference on February 22, 2016

The Press Release issued at the press conference has been appended below. My journey from a faceless diplomat to a humble politician started in all earnestness. The local media, both print and electronic, took a good note of it. Almost all the daily newspapers being published from Jalandhar covered the event in the February 25 editions. I was flooded with congratulatory messages and calls from the cross sections of the society. The news became viral on my Facebook page. I was touched by the encouraging response and all the good wishes of my friends. I found Rajiv Choudhary, a young but mature political guide, friendly and caring. All the party managers and volunteers were very helpful and courteous. I was humbled further. Now, I am fully dedicated and committed to serve the society, particularly the weaker sections, under the banner of the AAP and able stewardship of my leader Arvind Kejriwal and the party hierarchy.

After my joining the party on February 24, my first brief and informal exposure came on February 28 at Hon’ble Arvind Kejriwal’s meeting with businessmen at Jalandhar. I bumped into and registered myself with Sucha Singh Chhotepur, Convener of the AAP in Punjab, Hon’ble MP Sadhu Singh and the AAP Spokesman Sukhpal Singh Khaira. It was also good to sit and talk with my friend Sat Paul Ahir, Retired Income Tax Commissioner who has also joined the AAP recently. I am to meet more people in the coming days to pick up the threads and educate myself to meet the challenges of my second innings as a politician. I will do my best and the rest is destiny. I firmly believe in this shabad from the Gurbani:

ਨੀਚੋਂ ਉਚ ਕਰੇ ਮੇਰਾ ਗੋਬਿੰਦ;

ਕਾਹੁ ਤੇ ਨਾ ਡਰੇ!

Tailpiece:

Some random comments on my Facebook timeline:

·       “Very interesting Bhaisaheb. I hope you have a strong conviction and thick skin for this politics business. I am glad that you would continue to cooperate with and contribute to society. I am actually happy for you and trust you would get your word out. 
I would be curious to know what would be your take on AAP Party's stand on reservations to be given on the basis of financial status rather than caste, and most importantly get rid of creamy layers from reservation category for dalits and OBCs...
I believe an educated and scholarly perspective from you would be looked at by masses.
Good Luck to you.”

·       “People like you are the need of hour in today's crisis ridden politics.”

·       “Wishing you all the best in achieving your lofty ideals. Don't forget the deprived sections of the society. They need all our attention as you well know.”

·       “Congratulations Sir. I know of you as a very good person with pleasing manners and helpful tendency. I hope you will succeed in serving the society.”

 Appendix:

Guru Ravidass Gurpurab and Bootan Mandi

Satguru Ravidass Dham at Bootan Mandi, Jalandhar

Today, February 22, is Guru Ravidassji’s Gurpurab. It is celebrated all over India and abroad wherever the followers of the great guru reside. As usual, this year also the Gurpurab is being celebrated and observed with pomp and show and desired solemnity at Bootan Mandi, a locality in Jalandhar where my roots are. Bootan Mandi is decked like a bride. Each and every house and building in and around Bootan Mandi is illuminated like Diwali. The glory of Satguru Ravidass Dham, as expected, gets all the more enhanced with the resultant gaiety. The entire Bootan Mandi becomes a splendid venue of a huge mela for three days. There was a mammoth Shobha Yartra (procession) in this regard on February 20, a regular feature of the celebrations. A sea of humanity, spontaneously, comes out with flags, bands, dhols, tableaus, dance and music, langars; make shift stages to welcome the Yatra which creates a spectacle of huge a mela covering the entire city of Jalandhar. Sometimes it tends to become a scene of traffic chaos but by and large people know this before hand and happily accept it as it comes as it has become an important date in the life of the city for almost 80 years. I was told that Shobha Yatra (earlier known as Jaloos) was taken out for the first time in 1937 under the leadership of Seth Kishan Dass and Seth Sunder Dass. It starts from Bootan Mandi with the huge drum (Tamak) on the lead

Drum (Tamak) at Shobha Yatra

as the fore-bearer of the Jaloos, covering the main thoroughfares of the city, after replenishing and raising the Nishan Sahib (flag) at the headquarters of Ad-Dharam Mandal at Mohalla Kishanpura. It terminates in the evening at Bootan Mandi from where it originated. Over the years, the event has gained much in size and content which is a clear demonstration of the increasing empowerment of the followers of Guru Ravidass.  I wrote about Bootan Mandi and the Gurpurab of Guru Ravidass in this blog many a times before. Today, I will write about this from a different perspective.

On the Gurpurab day, there was a tradition of hosting a Kavi Darbar (poetry recital) session in the evening. It used to be a good tradition. I vividly remember the kavi darbars in the late 1960s in which famous and renowned poets like Vidhata Singh Teer, Hazara Singh Mustak, Kartar Singh Balagan, Charan Singh Safri, Gurdass Ram Alam, Pritam Ramdasspuri, Chanan Lal Manik, Bhagmal Pagal among many others regaled the audiences year after year with their poetic renditions along with their singer counterparts like, inter alia, Piara Singh Panchi, Lal Chand Kamla, Narinder Biba, Mohan Bangar. In those years, these celebrations were conducted with spiritual dedication and sobriety. It was my honour to be one of the organizers of these functions as General Secretary of the then Guru Ravidass Welfare Society. Later, if I say so, with the further economic prosperity of the Seths, who came to the helm to manage such functions of Bootan Mandi, money got a higher

Shobha Yatra at Bootan Mandi

manifestation and they started to invite some of the highest paid professional singers who entertained the audiences with their well equipped orchestras. It will not be an exaggeration to say that if their names are listed it will become a Who’s Who of the top notch Punjabi singers. Hans Raj Hans remained on the lead for many years in this regard as he identified himself with the Bootan Mandi crowd as one of them and rightly so. His famous rendition “Do Patar Anaran De; je Sanu Milan Hove Behde Aajan Chamara De” sung in modified Punjabi folk style “Mahaiya” at Bootan Mandi became an instant hit. His famous number at Bootan Mandi was “Sohna Punjab da shehar Jalandhar Bootan Mandi Jisde Andar”. As the missionary songs like “Sare Kar Lao Eka Begumpura Vasauna Aa” sung by the vivacious and beautiful singer Miss Pooja and a young athletic K.S. Makhan’s “Sanu Babasaheb Ne Dite Laike Haq Barabar De”. My own kith and kin, my Chachaji Jai Ram Parwana and brother Paramjit also contributed positively to the process. Their songs were sung by famous singers like Hans Raj Hans and others at the celebrations of Gurpurab at Bootan Mandi many a times. Jai Ram Parwana’s song “Sare Nar Nari Karde Shingar Ji; Aj Bootan Mandi Lage Mutyar Ji” got much acclaim. Paramjit also remained the General Secretary of Guru Ravidass Educational and Charitable Trust for many years in the 1990s.

As I said, the growing clout and prosperity in and around Bootan Mandi and also its resultant awakening and empowerment, the character of these celebrations also saw a drastic change in content and style. The writers and singers vied among themselves to come out with new songs and albums every year invoking the name of Bootan Mandi in their songs and performances. I heard live last year at Bootan Mandi,  Sufi singers Nooran Sister, who also have their roots (grand daughters of famous Bibi Nooran of Bootan Mandi) in Bootan Mandi, their rendition “Bootan Mandi Aake Lag Janda Dil Bhagto”.  The legendry Kanth Kaler praising the spectacular illumination and fun and frolic at Bootan Mandi sang “Bootan Mandi Aajo Jihne Wekhna Nazara Eh.” K.S. Makhan performed at Bootan Mandi with élan “ Vich Bootan Mandi De Aj Laggiyan Ronkan Bhari “ and “Sajawat Karke Kar Gaye Jhandi lishka Mare Bootan Mandi.” Another son of the soil, Master Saleem, who will also perform today at Bootan Mandi, sang some years before “Aawo Sangte Aj Nachiye Te Gaayiye Aapan; Bootan Mandi Janam Dihada Khushiyan Naal Manayiye Aapan.”  He might come up with some other number invoking Bootan Mandi to please the devoted audience. Yet another young Bootan Mandian Sonu Sunil wrote and sang “Bootan Mandi Dhol Wajda; Dhol Wajda Te Naal Nagade.” Babbu Jalandharia has come out with his latest number “Bootan Mandi Mela Lageya; Painde Bhangre Te Lagde Jai Kaare Bootan Mandi Mela Lageya.” The majestic Satguru Ravidass Dham along with the entire area of Bootan Mandi and around has been fully illuminated today that is why it has been sung by Shashi Shahid “Jagmag-Jagmag Kardi Sadi Bootan Mandi.” There may be many more such compositions and songs on the celebrations of the Gurpurab of Guru Ravidassji at Bootan Mandi which have missed my attention.

 It is a matter of satisfaction and pride for Bootan Mandians like me on one hand and food for introspection and thought, on the other, as to how should the elated position of Bootan Mandi be protected and maintained. It worries me sometimes as what I see and witness, of late, is not very much encouraging. The people at the helm, it seems, have no vision. They are engaged in their narrow agendas and directionless pursuits. The community is on the upswing in general but the coveted status of Bootan Mandi, it seems, is on the path of erosion. It is a matter of concern. Bootan Mandi produced stalwarts like Seth Kishan Dass, who was an MLA before partition, Seth Khushi Ram who was the Vice President of Jalandhar Municipal Committee in the 1970s, Piara Ram Dhanowalia (though he belonged to Dhanowal village near Jalandhar yet he belonged to Bootan Mandi for his political career and business), Minister in the Punjab governments in the late 1960, Surinder Mahey, a self made man, rose to the coveted position of the Mayor of Jalandhar in mid 2010. Avinash Chander, a seasoned politician, is the Chief Parliamentary Secretary in the Government of Punjab for a long time. In the services and other careers, my fellow Bootan Mandians have done fairly well. Sushil Sheemar, ITS is the Director in the Ministry of Communications and IT, His wife, Jaswinder (Lovely) Sheemar is an Additional Sessions Judge, Babita Kler, PCS, wife of Steven Kler, leading businessman and his sister Anupam Kler, PCS are senior bureaucrats in Punjab. Yet another daughter of Bootan Mandi, Sunita, physically challenged vivacious young lady, is a senior Judge. Two young Bootan Mandian brothers, Sunil Kler and Pawan Kler have recently made it to the PCS. There are doctors and Engineers and other professionals like Jagdish Mahey, a senior Banker who belong to Bootan Mandi. I myself, a humble Bootan Mandian, ended up as an Ambassador in the IFS. Many families of Bootan Mandi did well in their leather business including that of Seth Satpal Mall who is the current President of Guru Ravidass Educational and Charitable Trust for many years. With the changing ground realities it is advisable, in my personal view, to hand over the reins to the upcoming and younger generation. Let us try our best to retain, maintain and enhance the glory of our Bootan Mandi, an unofficial capital of dalit community in the years to come as visualized and eulogized by the writers and singers. I think it will be a befitting tribute to the greatest Guru Ravidassji while celebrating his Gurpurab at Bootan Mandi.

With this, I conclude and pay my hearty greetings to all the followers of Guru Ravidassji on his Gurpurab. On the glory of majestic Satguru Ravidass Dham, I quote Allma Iqbal:

दुनिया के तीर्थों से ऊंचा हो अपना  तीर्थ ;

दामाने आसमां से इस का कलश मिला दें !

सुबह उठके गाएं मंतर वह मीठे मीठे;

सारे पुजारिओं को मय पीत की पिला दें !

C.L. Chumber – An Obituary

A Jalandhar based social and community activist, Chiranji Lal

C.L. Chumber

Chumber (1958-2016) passed away after a brief illness on February 6, 2016. Chumber Sahib was a close friend and associate of my younger brother Paramjit and as I had many opportunities to meet him and discuss matters of mutual interest and concern particularly with reference to Babasaheb Ambedkar,  Ad-dharam Movement, Babu Mangu Ram Mugowalia, Babu Kanshi Ram, inter alia, other issues pertaining to dalit communities. I found C.L. Chumber a very knowledgeable person with a great sense of history. He was totally dedicated, may be up to a fault and ignoring his own and family interests, to the community causes for the benefit of common people. He was a fearless and outspoken person, the habit which put him to difficulties many a times but he was not bothered at all. His keen interest in journalism and literature was evident from the shelves, tables, boxes at his house, as told and confirmed by many of his friends and co-workers.

C.L. Chumber was the son of Panjab Rai who was perhaps the first educated fellow of a remote village Hussainabad in Jalandhar with a coveted degree of MA in Economics.  Chumber was a graduate of DAV college Nakodar and from his college days itself he was a student activist for the causes of dalit empowerment. He was a thinker and an excellent orator. Keeping with his interest in journalism, he was the founder editor of Quomi Udarian, a Punjabi paper, editor of Bahujan Samaj Bulletin, a periodical started on the behest of Babu Kanshi Ram of BSP. Chumber Sahib brought out a well documented souvenir on Babu Mangu Ram of Ad-dharam Mandal. I had the honour of releasing a special issue of the Quomi

Ambassador Ramesh Chander with C.L. Chumber

Udarian at a function to celebrate the Gurupurab of Guru Ravidassji at Bootan Mandi, Jalandhar long back in the late 1980s. C.L. Chumber’s younger brother, Prem Chumber also inherited these intellectual traits and flare. He is the Editor-in-Chief of two periodical publications in California (USA), the Ambedkar Times and the Desh Doaba. Prem Chumber, paying tributes to his brother, said that C.L. Chumber was instrumental in motivating him to start these two, by now well established publications and was a friend, philosopher and guide in this venture.

The Antim Ardas of C.L. Chumber was held on February 14 in which I was in attendance along with my brother Paramjit. It was a well attended congregation by the cross sections of the society particularly by the intelligentsia and social activists. Some of the prominent speakers, inter alia, were Dr. Ronki Ram, Dean of Arts Faculty of Panjab University, Chief Editor of Nawan Zamana Shri Jatinder Pannu, Editor of Ambedkar Times and the Desh Doaba Prem Chumber, Dr. Ram Lal Jassi, a community activist and a politician, Comrade Mangat Ram Pasla of the Communist Party, Shri Harmesh Jassal of Malind Publications paid glowing tributes to C.L. Chumber. Representatives of Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall and Gurudwara 6th Patshahi also spoke and highlighted the various traits of the personality of the departed soul. I also paid my humble homage to C.L. Chumber and recognized his tireless efforts in the pursuit of his dreams and ideals as depicted in a poetic expression:

अपना मुकद्दर आप बनाते हैं एहले दिल;

हम वह नहीं जिन्हें ज़माना बना गया !

C.L. Chumber will remain in our memories for years to come. Thanking the congregation, wife of Chumber Sahib, Santosh Kumari, an intelligent and homely lady, said that she was touched by the words of the speakers about her beloved husband. She added in a choked voice that sometimes she did not take Chumber Sahib seriously for his idiosyncratic activities but today by listening to the speeches by his friends and associates, she had realised how much loved and respected he was among them. Santosh re-dedicated herself to the legacy of her dear husband, C.L. Chumber.

जिस धज से कोई मक़्तल में गया, वह शान सलामत रहती है;

यह जान तो आनी जानी है, इस जान की कोई बात नहीं !

Prof. M.L. Sondhi Memorial Lecture

D.A.V. College, Jalandhar hosted the first Prof. Manohar Lal

Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal on the College round

Sondhi Memorial Lecture on February 6, 2016 in cooperation with Prof. M.L. Sondhi Memorial Trust in honour of one of its illustrious alumni. The Trust was established to ‘promote the late Prof. M.L. Sondhi’s vision relating to the emerging of India as a strong but benign power in the family of nations’. Prof. M.L. Sondhi (1933-2003) belonged to a known and established family which came to Jalandhar from Lahore in the wake of partition in 1947. Prof Sondhi, a highly motivated in nationalistic lore and an intelligent youth, moved to Delhi in 1956 on qualifying the UPSC civil services examination and on being selected and appointed in the coveted Indian Foreign Service (IFS) in 1956. But, perhaps, the general regimentation which comes with the government service could not limit his intellectual and academic traits and he resigned from IFS in 1962. While pursuing his intellectual pursuits, Prof. Sondhi opted for public life and joined Bhartiya Jan Sangh Party in 1965. He got elected to Lok Sabha in 1967 from a constituency in Delhi.  A youthful, intelligent, tall and handsome Member of Parliament made waves not only in political circles but also in the corridors of many universities and motivated the youth. I was, as I narrated at the Lecture on February 6, one of them. On reading the Urdu print media like Hind Samachar of Lala Jagat Narain, Pratap of Shri Varinder and Milap of Shri  Yash which highlighted the youthful Manohar Lal Sondhi as a youth icon, my father used to mention him many a times. I vividly remember. I don’t know how far it is correct but it was said that Manohar Lal Sondhi resigned from the IFS registering his disagreement with PM Jawaharlal Nehru’s China policy.  He contributed positively in instituting East European studies in Indian institutions in the 60s. Later from 1989-1991 when I was the Under Secretary on the East European desk of the Ministry of External Affairs, I visited the School of East European studies quite often to attend various seminars and discussions at the JNU.  I have had an opportunity to visit Charles University in Prague (Czech Republic) and interact with some of the contemporaries of Prof. M.L. Sondhi, when I was the Minister Counsellor at the Embassy of India, where Prof. Sondhi studied the Czech language and East European politics in the late 50s as a young diplomat.

Ambassador Bal Anand, IFS (Retired), yet another alumnus of DAV College, Jalandhar, was instrumental in bringing together DAV College, Jalandhar and Prof. M.L. Sondhi Trust to arrange the annual lecture at the College in the memory of Prof. M.L. Sondhi. Principal J.C. Joshi and Prof. K.K. Ghai interacted with Principal B.B. Sharma to finalize the arrangements to host this important intellectual and academic event on a regular basis. It is a thoughtful initiative and should be appreciated.

Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal, IFS (Retired) and currently Central Information Commissioner was the Key Note speaker at Prof. M.L. Sondhi Memorial Lecture on the theme: India-Pakistan Relations – Challenges and Prospects. It was an excellent choice. Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal has been a keen Pakistan watcher and one of the finest diplomats of India who was posted in Islamabad for more than 8 years of his long diplomatic career both as Deputy High Commissioner of India from 1995-1999 and High Commissioner of India from 2009-2013. Ambassador Sabharwal gave an overview of India-Pakistan relations which is not, given the complexities and sensitivities of the relations from day one of independence of both India and Pakistan, an easy task. But a cool and dispassionate analysis given by Ambassador Sabharwal set the matter in right perspective which was appreciated and well received by the enlightened audience. There could have been many fireworks and excitements in the lecture but the speaker, like a good and seasoned diplomat, was able to say all with great ease. He was satisfied with slow and incremental gains with maintaining continuous dialogue to bring out Pakistan from “State Security Paradigm”. He stressed on increased economic and commercial interaction between the two countries and also on more people to people contacts. Ambassador Sabharwal listed a few “silver linings” between the tricky and difficult relations which have started emerging slowly due to resultant fatigue in maintaining adversarial relations. The interactive session with the audience was very good which clearly indicated that the thought provoking lecture was very well received.

Principal B.B. Sharma in his welcome address spoke highly of both Prof. M.L. Sondhi and Ambassador Sabharwal and also thanked Smt. Madhuri Sondhi and the Trust for choosing DAV College, Jalandhar for the prestigious lecture. Smt. Madhuri Sondhi in her brief but focused remarks thanked Ambassador Bal Anand for his initiative and Management of DAV College in hosting the lecture in the memory of her illustrious husband. Principal J.C. Joshi, a contemporary of Prof. M.L. Sondhi, in his poetic address re-lived the memories of life and values of Professor M.L. Sondhi. Prof. K.K. Ghai, a proud teacher of Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal and also mine, introduced the Key Note Speaker and became emotional in his brief but beautiful speech and said that one can imagine how happy he was when he found two of his students were adorning the dais, Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal as the Key Note Speaker and Ambassador Ramesh Chander as Chairman the Session. I could see, sitting on the high table, Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal was, like me, visibly moved with a sense of gratitude to the alma mater. I was fully choked with overwhelming emotions, while giving the Chair’s brief remarks and applauding Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal and Smt. Madhuri Sondhi, thanked Principal B.B. Sharma and the Management for inviting me to do the honours at

Ambassador Ramesh Chander deliverying the Chair's remarks

the dais and giving me generous respect and regard. Referring to the theme of the lecture, I floated a question whether there was any possibility in the near future to have an “Out of the Box” solution to the problems and irritants, particularly the Kashmir issue which is said to be the ‘jugular vein’ of Pakistan and ‘soul of India’? The “Out of the Box solution” is all the more needed when both the sides know that the status quo cannot be changed by force or military means. Prof. Ashwini Sharma conducted the proceeding with admirable flare as a good Master of Ceremonies. His appropriate rendering of Urdu couplets in his remarks was masterly.

I am confident that Prof. M.L. Sondhi Memorial lecture will become an annual feature and an important date in the activities of DAV College, Jalandhar in the years to come. It will be of an immense benefit not only to the intellectual and academic circles but also to the young students of international relations and diplomacy in and around Jalandhar.

Earlier in the morning before the lecture, Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal and other guests, particularly the teachers of Ambassador Sabharwal and his class fellows and friends were taken to a round of the campus to ‘relive memories of DAV life.’ It was really nostalgic. Ambassador Sabharwal was visibly happy to see and meet Prof. K.K. Ghai and his class fellow’s viz. Prof. Satish Verma now Head of the Economics Department at DAV

Amb. Sharat Sabharwal with teachers and class fellows

College itself, Shri Malkiat Singh, IPS (Retired), Former ADGP of UP and Chairman of UP Public Service Commission, Shri Ram Lal Das, a retired senior Bank Officer, Shri Dev Raj, Retired ACP of Delhi Police, Shri L.R. Nayyar, IRS (Retired) Former Income Tax Commissioner. Seeing them meeting and interacting, it was clearly established that it was difficult to forget the young and formative years of school and college even after the lapse of many long years. Visit to the Hall of Fame where a photo exhibition of old memories was put up revived my own old memories of the convocation in which I received my degree of BA in 1970. I could also see the photo of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s visit and lecture on the parliamentary democracy in 1951 along with some other photos of real importance. Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal inaugurated the interactive sessions of the Ecomania 2: The Enthusiasm, 2016 at the Economics Department of the College which were arranged by the Ambedkar Planning Forum. It was satisfying to note, from the name of the Forum, that besides Dr. Ambedkar’s recognition as the father of the Indian Constitution and a social reformer, his contribution as an economist par excellence, has increasingly started to be recognized, of late, and rightly so.

All said and done, let me conclude by saying that Prof. M.L. Sondhi Memorial Lecture at DAV College, Jalandhar on February 6, 2016 will remain live in my memory for years to come.

The Republic Day, January 26

India became a Republic on January 26, 1950 on promulgation of the Constitution of India. The day is celebrated as the Republic Day, a national holiday. I take this opportunity to congratulate my fellow citizens and wish them a Happy Republic Day.

January 26, Republic Day, is an important day in the journey of

Republic Day Parade at Rajpath at New Dehi

contemporary India. We have come a long way in this journey. It is a matter of great satisfaction, to my mind, that in spite of many problems pertaining to religious and cultural diversity and caste ridden society and also illiteracy and poverty, the constitution could withstand and face the challenges and succeeded in guiding us in our “tryst with destiny”.  It is a tribute to our founding fathers, particularly to Babasaheb Ambedkar, father of the Indian constitution. In commemoration of the constitution, Government of PM Narendra Modi rightly decided to observe November 26 as the Constitution Day. “We the people of India” enacted, adopted and gave ourselves the constitution in the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949. Some of the speeches and interventions made by the MPs both in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were worth listening to rededicate ourselves to the lofty ideals and philosophy enshrined in the constitution.

Of late, some of the issues of importance and concern which

Flag hoisting at Siver Residency at Jalandhar

engaged the attention of the governments, the political parties and the civil society really require in depth debate and decision to meet the challenges in the journey of the Indian Republic. Let us try to find and identify these issues. Two such issues emanate from the preamble of the constitution – the words secular and socialist. In their own wisdom, and I think rightly so, the constitution makers did not include these two contentious words in the preamble. They justified their conscious thinking, particularly by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar who piloted the constitution and replied to the debates, on the subject. There was no problem. The provisions of the constitution amply made the Indian Republic secular and socialist in spirit without the mention of these words. Subsequently, the Government of PM Indira Gandhi inserted these words in the preamble by an amendment in 1974 recommended by the Swaran Singh Committee. It was a shortsighted decision, according to many constitutional experts and political scientists and practicing politicians and administrators. Till date, these two words i.e. secular and socialist remain symbols of contention generating avoidable heat and strife in the polity and society. Let us admit and accept that India is a secular and socialist state and should remain so. We are a pluralistic society of social, religious and cultural diversity. There is no other way but to remain secular and socialist with a sense of “unity in diversity”.  The principles of state policy stipulated in the constitution are equally important as fundamental rights. Implementation of these principles will help in establishing the socialist and egalitarian spirit of the constitution. The goals of justice, equality, liberty and fraternity so thoughtfully visualized could only be achieved if the society comes out of the manuwadi mindset and endeavors to bring about a casteless society on one hand and fair treatment of the minorities and other marginalized segments of the society. There is no need to invoke the majoritarian point of view. There has been a long debate on intolerance recently. We shall mend our thinking and allow a sense of accommodation and understanding to prevail. No more Rohith Vemulas should be compelled to commit suicide. There is no place for narrow nationalism and re-writing of history. The question of reservations for the socially and educationally neglected sections of the society, particularly dalits should be addressed with compassion and understanding. We must understand these suppressed people have suffered social and political tyranny for centuries. It will take some time to bring them at par with the rest of the society. The claim to merit sounds very good but let us first provide a level playing field and equal opportunity and also equal economic leverage to these marginalized people and then talk of merit. They are no more ready to keep bearing the burden of manuwadi system of graded inequality. On the political front, we are a democratic country and that too the largest democracy of the world. But the political parties and the politicians, it seems, could not stand up to the expectations and requirements of a sound and pragmatic edifice which is needed to sustain the system. Our political outfits could not evolve and bring about polarization of political forces on the basis of ideology and programme. There is no difference among the parties like SP, JDU, RJD, NCP, TMC, BSP, among others. Only names are different. All of these have a limited and narrow agenda with self centered people at the helm. The regional parties like DMK, AIDMK, Akali Dal, BJD, Shiv Sena, National Conference, LJP etc. tend to generate and support divisive fissiparous tendencies which go against the underlying current of unity. Is it not possible to contain these political outfits to their respective regions? I don’t know how it could be done. But I think that these regional parties may not be permitted to contest Lok Sabha elections. It will bring in much needed stability and cohesion at the centre. In any case the views and representation of the states is assured in the Rajya Sabha. Last but not the least, it will be in order, if some guiding rules and directions to stage and demonstrate democratic public protest, are made. Right from the tehsil level to districts and the state capitals and also the national capital at New Delhi, some places and venues may be identified and fixed for such protests. There is no harm in regulating these erratic activities which put the common man to unnecessary inconvenience and damage to public property and peace. Babasaheb Ambedkar rightly warned that there was no place for unconstitutional methods to express democratic protest and disagreement. He termed it as “Grammar of Anarchy”. The same regulations may also be applicable to religious shoba yatras and processions. These tend to generate unnecessary social heat leading to tension and avoidable violence. These are some of the stray thoughts which could be considered to make our Republic glorious and a happy place to live.

With this let me close by quoting the worries of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar which he expressed on November 26, 1949 in his last speech in the Constituent Assembly. He said, “On the 26^th January, 1950, India would be a democratic country in the sense that India from that day would have a government of the people, by the people and for the people. The same thought comes to my mind. What would happen to her democratic constitution?  Will she be able to maintain it or will she lose it again? This is the second thought that comes to my mind and makes me as anxious as the first.” Let us put at rest the anxieties expressed by our forefathers by adhering to the constitution and constitutional methods to safeguard and ensure further progress and prosperity of our country.

TAILPIECE:

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On Republic Day, the Tricolour will be unfurled by our President in the national capital, by Governors in the state capitals, by Collectors in their district headquarters. The national anthem will be played or sung to salutes given and taken. “Jai Hind” will resound across the country in varying tones of patriotic self-persuasion.

But what should drown all these sounds and sights is “Jai Bheem”, the two-word salutation with which Rohith signs off his ‘letter’.

Does it invoke Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar? Of course it does. Does it castigate our times? Of course it does. Does it speak for Dalit India? But of course!

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Extract from an article from The Tribune of January 26, 2016 written by Gopal Krishan Gandhi, Professor of History at Ashoka University

Suicide of Rohith Vemula

The suicide of Rohith Vemula, a dalit PhD. student at Hyderabad

Central University is currently engaging the entire country and rightly so. It is a shameful tragedy which requires universal condemnation and immediate introspection both by the society and the government. But it seems that many of the stake-holders are merely doing a lip service to safe-guard their vested interests. They are not interested in addressing the root cause of the problem and the causes which led Rohith to take this extreme step. It is certain that the death of Rohith will haunt the society and the establishment in the years to come and polarize the society further which would not be good for the country and its polity.

The BJP government, BJP and its affiliates and masters in ABVP and RSS respectively are trying their best to control the damage caused by defending the alleged culprits belonging to the Hindutva forces and the university authorities. The opposition political outfits are interested in exploiting the situation to corner the government for political and electoral gains. The media and intelligentsia are equally divided and have not displayed any objective criteria to address the issues involved to ward off such unfortunate incidents in the future. The society at large, particularly the upper castes, is not, it seems, perturbed at all endorsing the saying “only the wearer knows where the shoe is pinching”. Dalits all over India seem to be extremely agitated with the happenings in Hyderabad and the protests are gaining pan-India involvement. It seems to me that the death of Rohith Vemula is potent enough to trigger the avoidable sequence of untoward happenings which could be detrimental to the unity of the country and integration of the society. The dalits are increasingly getting charged and perturbed with the changing ground realities. They are no more ready to sit and suffer humiliation and indignities heaped on them by the manuwadi society. Perhaps, this newly gained status and mindset by the suffering masses is not finding acceptance with the oppressors. They find it difficult to accept and associate them as equals. This conflict of interests is all set to gain further strength which may result in all out confrontation. Let us do something concrete to address the issues before it is too late to ward off the warning of the leader of the Congress Malik Arjun Khadge when he spoke of “bloodshed” in the recent debate in the Lok Sabha.

The pain of the dalit intelligentsia is writ large in the suicide note and other communications of Rohith Vemula. It is good and fortunate that Babasaheb Ambedkar, by upbringing, education and conviction, believed in the Buddhist philosophy of peace and harmony. He advised his followers and the suffering humanity and also the country to follow the constitutional means to make our democratic setup to work. Dr. Ambedkar warned that if the political democracy is not transformed into social and economic democracy, the people who are suffering from these inequalities and living life of drudgery will tear off the system and throw it out. A casteless society is the first step towards that end. But unfortunately, the Indian society is not ready to accept this. The upper castes want to have the cake and eat it too. It is no more tenable. The ensuing conflict and strife can lead to a situation which would put our country into further difficulties. We must consider and realize this, the sooner the better.

मेरे  आँसू देख कर न हंसा करो;

यह वह आंसू हैं जिस से तख्ते  सुल्तानी बदलती है !

Tailpiece:

 The last message of Rohith Vemula to his associates in Ambedkar Students Association (ASA) –

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To ASA family, sorry for disappointing all of you. You loved me very much. I wish all the very best for the future. For one last time, Jai Bheem

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