Agnipath – Agniveer Scheme – Join Indian Armed Forces – A good opportunity for the weaker sections of the society

 

Agnipath – Agniveer Scheme – Join Indian Armed Forces – A good opportunity for the weaker sections of the society

Soutth Block New Delhi - Ministry of Defense

India is a big country, an emerging power, with an army of 1.4 million strong, the second biggest armed forces of the world. Even before independence in 1947, Indian army was one of the best armies of the world with unimpeachable credentials of valour and discipline.
The role of the Indian army and its men (Jawans) in the two World Wars remained a saga of bravery and sacrifice not only in and around India but in the war theaters of Europe, Asia and other regions under the command of Britain on one side and also of the Azad Hind Fauz of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on the other. The partition and independence in 1947 brought the Indian army to the fore to quell and repel the Pakistani aggression on J&K and succeeded in thwarting the dirty designs of Pakistan. With hostile neighbors like Pakistan and China with a land frontiers of thousands of miles in

inhospitable terrain, remained on toes for most of the years with full-pledged wars in 1962 with China, in 1965, 1971, 1999 (Kargil) with Pakistan, and recent skirmishes and standoffs in Doklam and Galwan with China and continuing cross border terrorism in Kashmir and North East of India. India being a big country in South Asia, Indian armed forces were called upon to do its part in controlling the security situations in Sri Lanka and Maldives in the 1980s which remained an experience with lessons to learn in the process. As regards the international profile of the Indian armed forces, India is the largest contributor to the Peace Keeping Forces of the UN and the role and conduct of the IndianPeace Keepers, under the aegis of UN, earned laurels for both the Brass and the Boots of the Indian Armed forces and rightly so. With the changing situations and requirements, changes both in the structures and functioning are a must. Most of the structures of the Indian army, like caste based regiments, marshal or non-marshal distinctions, light infantries (to accommodate low caste Sikhs and other denominations), command structures remained as these were in the colonial times. Obviously, it is difficult and undesirable to sustain these outdated and outmoded formations in a democratic, secular and diverse society. Not abruptly, because of sensitivities involved, but slowly and steadily under the evolutionary process, all the governments at the Centre have been alive to the changes. Command structures came under a big change more recently with the introduction of Commander of Defense Services (CDS) to head the Department of Military Affairs. The change was accepted and received well. Now the Government of India has come with a new recruitment scheme called ‘Agnipath and Agniveers’ which has attracted mixed reactions of ‘Yes and No’. Unfortunately, it has also resulted in uncalled for violence as the young aspirants who were already in pipeline to join the army felt that the new scheme would deny them an opportunity to realize their goal. Let us hope the

With Raksha Mantries of India and Belarus

situation settles down and the Government succeeds in convincing the stake holders about the benefits and desirability of the new scheme of ‘Agnipath and Agniveer’ to make the Indian Armed Forces a dynamic and vibrant machine to meet the challenges of the future which are formidable. While I endorse the new scheme, I would confine my take to one or two aspects of it which I think have a direct bearing on the socio-economic fabric of the society at large not as an expert but a layman and a common citizen.

The Agnipath scheme was announced on June 14, 2022. Online registration for recruitment under the Agnipath scheme will start from July 2022, according to a notification issued by the Army on June 22. The online registration on the force's recruitment website: joinindianarmy.nic.in is mandatory for all job aspirants under the

new model. The Agnipath scheme, announced on June 14, provides for the recruitment of youths between the age brackets of 17-and-half years to 21 for four years with a provision to retain 25% of them for 15 more years. Later, the government extended the upper age limit to 23 years for recruitment in 2022. The Army stated that the 'Agniveers' would form a distinct rank and a "distinctive insignia" will be worn by the Agniveers on their uniform during their service period. All the relevant details on the eligibility criteria to become an Agniveer - Education, health criteria; written test etc. are available on the scheme’s website. Let us proceed further:

·       The new scheme appears to be more accessible and transparent, prime facie.

·       It should make a good beginning to dismantle and discard the regiments based on religion and marshal and non-marshal considerations. Some vested interests and mindsets with so-called racial ‘superiority complex’ syndrome did not like this and the Government under the societal pressure appeared to be non-committal on the issue, unfortunately, against the secular and democratic credentials of the polity and the state.

·       Towards merits of the Agnipath scheme, one may count – early start for as young as 17.5 years particularly for those who does not have the wherewithal to go beyond 8th or 10th standard due to socio-economic reasons – for those who has already done 10 or 10+2 – they would not only be able to do their further study from the IGNOU while in service as Agniveer but also start earning to support themselves and their families – by the time they retire at 21, they would be equipped with not only an appropriate educational certificate/degree but also skills as trained workforce to continue as a working and earning member of the society with a handsome amount in hand as savings to start their own businesses.

·       After completion of tenure as Agniveer, 25% of the lot would be absorbed in the armed forces and would continue in the army. The rest would be available in the open market – some would love to start their own as ‘self employed’ – some would like to find a suitable slot in the para-military and police forces of the centre and the states – some would try to join the PSUs – some would try their luck with the private sector as skilled man force. The Government and the State Governments have made special provisions with reservation and other preferential arrangements to accommodate the young Agniveers in recruitment for various jobs under their per-view.

·       With these arrangements, Indian Armed Forces would get the desired age profile and fully trained and motivated cadre to defend our frontiers and the country would get a semi skilled and skilled young manpower to contribute the wellbeing and prosperity of themselves, their families and the society at large. Is it not good and beneficial rather than producing young school and college graduates with no skill and motivation to swell the figures of unemployment? In the developed countries, education aims at to make one ready to enter life with work skills rather than harping on the academic aspect just for the sake of school or college graduation.

With these off the cuff considerations, I would tend to add that the scheme of Agnipath would prove to be good launching pad or spring board for the youth belonging to the weaker sections of the society, who does not have much say and influence to get suitable training and placement otherwise, to start their careers. I would particularly recommend the Agnipath to the young aspirants of the socially weaker sections as it would give them a sense of elation as a part of the prestigious Indian Armed Forces on one side and added opportunities to join the para-militiay forces, police forces and PSUs on preferential basis on the other. Some of them, who tend to be a ‘job giver rather than a job seeker’, would have necessary skill and training with seed money to be an entrepreneur.

With this, I would urge the youth of the socially weaker segments of the society and their parents and guardians to kindly look into these new opportunities offered by the scheme of Agnipath to

Defense Minister Jgjivan Ram with Army Chiefs

become Agniveers. It would give them a sense of ‘Empowerment’ to get their due space in the polity and socio-economic structures of the country as equal partners. Indian Armed Forces ought to represent a ‘secular and a casteless democratic India’ as visualized in the constitution of India. Agnipath is the right Path for the poor and under-privileged of the country.

 The only caution which I would like to mention here for the consideration of the Governments or Administration is; what one of my friends, Retired IAS Tilak Sarangal, made in one of his video chats on the subject in his Facebook status – Government should ensure that 75% of the released Agniveers at the age of 21, are catered and accommodated in the mainstream of the economy and the society. If not, they would be too venerable to join the forces ‘inimical’ to the national interests; including security and integrity of the country. We should take a duenote of this danger.

Chupa Kar Asteen Mein Bijliyan Rakhi Hain Gardoon Ne
Anadil Bagh Ke Ghafil Na Baithen Ashiyon Mein
(The sky has kept thunderbolts concealed up its sleeve
Garden’s nightingales should not slumber in their nests)

 

 

 

 

 

Some Random Thoughts on the office of – President of India, Governor of a State and Member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament)

 

Some Random Thoughts on the office of – President of India, Governor of a State and Member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament)

India is a democratic country with parliamentary system of government. It is also a ‘Union of States’ with Federal structures in normal times and with a sort of Unitary bias in times of constitutional emergency. In its 72^nd year after the promulgation of the Constitution, India has come a long way on the path of constitutional governance. It is a matter of sati

Raisina Hills in Delhi

sfaction. Of late, with the changing times, it appears that some reforms and transformation in the organs of the state has become due in the process of keeping the lofty idea of ‘Tryst with destiny’ rolling for further progress and prosperity of India The forthcoming Presidential elections in July,2022, the recent elections to Rajya Sabha Membership and issues pertaining to the conduct of Governors (with reference to Governors of West Bengal and Maharashtra) and related matters gave me an opportunity to think and say my mind, not as a constitutional or legal expert but as a common citizen of India. It is in the interest of India to make and maintain the polity of India as a dynamic and functional parliamentary system of government on one hand and a robust and functional federal state on the other.The aspects which I would touch have a direct bearing on the subject.

President of India -  

Keeping with the tenants of parliamentary form of government, President of India, the first citizen of the country, is the ‘Head of the State but not of the Executive. He represents the nation, as a symbol of the nation, but does not rule the nation’. These provisions in the
constitution have stood the test of time. So far, it is so good. It is a matter of gratification to note that over the years philosophers, scholars politicians, statesmen, diplomats, scientists from Rajendra Prasad to Ram Nath Kovind representing various religions, different ideological belief, both the gender, diversified socio-economic and cultural backgrounds adorned the high office of the President of India – The Mahamahim of India that is Bharat. It is my pleasure and honour to add here that during the course of my diplomatic career, I have had the opportunity to see, meet and interact with some of the Mahamahims – Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Dr.Shankar Dayal Sharma, Giani Zail Singh, K.R.

Greeting President Pratibha Patil at Rashtrapati Bhawan

Narayanan, Pratibha Patil, APJ Abdul Kalam and Ram Nath Kovind - and I cherish those moments and memories. President of India ought to be a non-party, secular, non-biased, democratic leader of stature with high social and moral standing who is able and capable of upholding and defending the constitution of India in its letter and spirit. May be our forefathers, the constitution makers, were too idealistic, as there was no other way, thought that our political system and the players in it would be men of substance and committed to the constitution values. Babasaheb Ambedkar rightly said, “However good a Constitution may be, it is sure to turn out bad because those who are called to work it, happen to be a bad lot. However bad a Constitution may be, it may turn out to be good if those who are called to work it, happen to be a good lot.…The Constitution can provide only the organs of State such as the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary. The factors on which the working of those organs of the State depends are the people and the political parties they will set up as their instruments to carry out their wishes and their politics.”

 Anyway, I have no point in going to the negative side of the matter. The fact is that the office of President has increasingly become a tool in the hands of the Executive. The moral authority of the incumbent office holders, which is considered as an important element of the powers and functions of the President, has increasing come under scanner, as has been observed in the past experience; be it Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed for signing the declaration of emergency in 1977 without any question or Sanjiva Reddy discriminating again Jagjivan Ram for not giving him chance to prove his majority on the floor of the Lok Sabha when Charan Singh resigned without facing Parliament, Giani Zail Singh appointing Rajiv Gandhi as PM in 1984. There may be many more instances when Presidents might not have acted as was expected of them. As already said, I am not writing this as a political analyst but as a layman. Political forces are getting polarized not only on the basis of hardcore and ill-placed ideologies but also on communal and narrow sectarian considerations. The ruling political dispensations tend to have their own man in the Rashtrapati Bhawan who could be used in case of need to further their own scheme of things. Generally, such nominees to the highest office of the country lose the will and standing to be the ‘guardian and custodian’ of the constitution. It is no aspersion on the acumen and integrity of individuals to occupy the august office but the fact remains as asserted by Babasaheb Abedkar ‘the man is vile’. With a view to ward off the inherit likelihood of reaching a ‘less desirable’ to the Raisina Hills and smoothen the process, I have the following to say:-

·       Most of election procedure laid down in the constitution to elect the President of India seems fine except the nomination of candidates based on political considerations vested motivation. It may be changed with a view to screen the suitability and ability of the candidates to occupy the highest position.

·       Let there be no direct nomination. We may consider forming a High Power Committee under the administrative control of the Cabinet Secretariat who would consider the nomination to be a candidate for the Presidents’ office. The Committee may be headed by the Vice President with Prime Minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Chief Justice of India, Leaders of Opposition in both the Houses of the Parliament, Secretary Generals of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as Ex-officio Members. Cabinet Secretary may be made the Executive Secretary of the said Committee who would be responsible to make all administrative and procedural arrangements to make final nominations with the Returning Officer appointed by the Election Commission for the purpose.

·       Who can make a nomination to the said Committee? – All recognized national political parties, all political formations in both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha having 5 or more members in the relevant House of Parliament, Any five independent and nominated members of Lok Sabha.

·       The High Power Committee would consider all the nominations made and short list three suitable nominees who could be nominated for the election of President. Accordingly, Cabinet Secretary/Executive Secretary of the Committee would complete the nomination procedure with the election machinery for election.

·       Voters in the Electoral College would vote and indicate their three preferences, as they please. The rest of the procedure remains the same as per the existing practice.

·       There should be no consecutive second term for the office of President.

This nomination procedure would obviate the chances of getting, a partisan or not-suitable aspirant, nominated to be a candidate for the highest office of the land, I hope.

 Governor of a State: - The constitutional provisions for the office of Governor of a State are: - The executive power of the State shall be vested in the Governor and shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinated to him in accordance with the Constitution of India (Article 154). The Governor of a State shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal (Article 155). In simple formulation one can say that ‘Governor is an agent or representative of the President of India and his Government headed by the Prime Minister in his Council of Ministers.

The office of Governor remained an issue of debate and contention in the last 7 decades. It has been observed most of the time that Governors, allegedly, carried the dictates of the Central Government, rightly or wrongly, on political considerations without caring for the wishes of the duly

Governors of West Bengal and Maharastra 

democratically elected Government of the State. The problem comes to head when the State Government belongs to a party other than that of the Central Government. Keeping in view the federal system of the polity, the conduct of the Governor becomes all the more important to avoid the acrimonious tussle or friction recently seen in Maharashtra and West Bengal. The mode and procedure of appointment of Governor, to my mind, could not evolve a functional and fair edifice for the working of Governor. I suggest the following to bring about some relief from the existing avoidable friction and slugfest between the Governor and the concerned State government:-

·       Governor should be appointed (by the President) on recommendations of the High Powered Committee headed by the Prime Minister with Home Minister, Chief Minister of the concerned State, Vice Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha as Ex-officio Members. Home Secretary may be appointed as the Executive Secretary of the High Power Committee.

·       Governor may not get consecutive second term of the same state or any other state.

·       Nominations for appointment of Governor may be made by Home Minister of the Central Government or Chief Minister of the concerned State or the outgoing Governor of the concerned State.

·       Governor once appointed may be removed only by a Resolution, moved by the Home Minister of the Central Government or Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha passed with two third majority by Rajya Sabha and sent to the President of India.

These suggested reforms may streamline the appointment procedure and help in getting suitable nominees avoiding the temptations to appoint defeated candidates and inconvenient political competitors to park them in Raj Bhawans on one hand and discouraging the incumbent Governors blindly following the dictates of the ruling outfit at the Centre.  

Members of Rajya Sabha: - The Upper House or the House of Elders or the Council of States or Rajya Sabha, paradoxically, is neither Upper as the Lok Sabha has more powers nor Elder as, of late, as young members below the age of 30 are becoming the Members of Rajya Sabha nor Council of States as quite often Members of Rajya Sabha do not belong to the state concerned from where they get elected.

Recently elected Rajya Sabha Members of AAP

These aspects of the membership of Rajya Sabha are becoming a matter of controversy increasingly. The recent case of non-domiciled nominees of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) got elected from Punjab brought the issue to focus. Some of the objections and criticism appears to be valid, in this regard. I have the following suggestions to make:-

·       Rajya Sabha Members should represent the State of their domicile or origin, generally, to justify the name of Rajya Sabha or Council of States in the Federal structure of the country as stipulated in the Constitution of India.

·       With a view to not to deny ‘political expediency or available talent’ to the mandated ruling outfit, Prime Minister or any Minister who is not a member of any House may continue, as PM or a Minister, beyond 6 months and may be made an Ad-hoc member, by the President of India, of either Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha without voting rights and other entitlements of a regular member till he or she remains the PM or a Minister.

·        The minimum age to become a Member of the Rajya Sabha may be fixed at 40 or more to make it a House of Elders with experience and maturity.

These are some of my off the cuff suggestions which may be considered and polished to introduce reforms in the polity to catch with the changing times in the 75^th year of Independence – Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.

Communal Divide – Where are we heading?

 

Communal Divide – Where are we heading?

In the 75th year of independence, India is rightly celebrating “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ – a lofty catchword given by the current Government of PM Narendra Modi, representing and symbolizing the Hindu school of thought of the right wing, BJP and RSS, in its 8th year in office. Ever since independence in 1947, India has come

a long way in ‘wiping the tears” of millions and millions of its poor and under-privileged and it seems after more than 7 decades, we are on rails. But we are to go a long way still to reach. India’s success or failure story, as one chooses to see, is an interesting and fascinating experience which ‘We the people of India’ ought to read, understand and prepare ourselves to meet the challenges of the future to ward of the dangers and doubts expressed by our forefather, especially the chief architect of the constitution of India, Babasaheb Ambedkar in his last speech in the Constituent Assembly on November25, 1949, expressed. Referring to historical events such as the invasion of Sind by Mohammed-Bin-Kasim, the invasion by Mohammad Ghori to fight against Prithviraj Chauhan, as well as disunity among Indians in the fight war against the British colonial rule in 1857, Ambedkar noted, “…not only India has once before lost her independence, but she lost it by the infidelity and treachery of some of her own people.”  In this context, he went on to remark, “Will history repeat itself? It is this thought which fills me with anxiety. This anxiety is deepened by the realization of the fact that in addition to our old enemies in the form of castes and creeds we are going to have many political parties with diverse and opposing political creeds.

Will Indian place the country above their creed or will they place

Babasaheb B.R. Ambedkar

creed above country?

I do not know. But this much is certain that if the parties place creed above country, our independence will be put in jeopardy a second time and probably be lost forever. This eventuality we must all resolutely guard against. We must be determined to defend our independence with the last drop of our blood.”

  The story of development and progress of India is a unique story with many facets and aspects. But I would focus on only one which has come to fore and threatens us to go berserk and leave the path of harmonious living under the lofty ideals of ‘Equality, Justice, Liberty and Fraternity’ as a ‘Secular and Socialist’ as enshrined in the very Preamble of the Constitution – Communal Divide - in multi-cultural and multi-religious and diversified society of more than 1.4 billion people. The immediate provocation to write this note is the ongoing slugfest and acrimonious debate on Mandirs and Masjids, Minority and Majority, Freedom of Religion and belief, Role and conduct of Muslim or Mughal rulers and so on. Of late, it has been observed that this mindless and non-sensible acrimonious debate has the potential to create avoidable difficulties which would be detrimental to the peace and harmony and also much needed economic and social wellbeing of the county, if not checked immediately and deftly.

The allegedly blasphemous remarks on Prophet Mohammad by BJP National Spokesperson, Nupur Sharma and endorsement and support by the Delhi Chapter of BJP, Naveen Jindal resulted in obvious fallout both in India and abroad. There were violent protests in Kanpur and other places. The Muslim clergies and political leadership were up in arms and protested the assertions of BJP spokespersons and others. The so-called ‘Godi Media’ as always

appeared to be biased and lop-sided against the minority community not only in the episode of ‘unacceptable remarks’ by Nupur Sharma but also in the ongoing ‘Tamasha’ of TV debates on Gyanvapi Masjid in Varanasi and other related issues. The TV channels are no more news channels but has become noise channels. The things came to boil only when some countries namely; Qatar, Kuwait and Iran summoned Indian Ambassadors and registered their dis-pleasure and protest on the said insult and blasphemy done by the BJP leaders against Prophet Mohammad and demand unconditional apology from India. It was just a co-incident that Vice President Venkaiah Naidu was there on an official visit to Qatar on the day of summoning to the Foreign Office of the Indian Ambassador. It was an additional embarrassment. The other countries of West Asia and beyond like UAE, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkey, Malaysia, Maldives, Afghanistan, Jordan, Libya, Pakistan, Bangladesh and organizations like GCC and OIC followed suit and vehemently criticized and protested the uncalled for and undiplomatic statements of the senior BJP leaders which amounted to hate speeches generating animosity against Muslim minority of the country. I have no intension to name and find faults as to who was wrong or who was right. While the diplomatic machinery of India is doing the fire fighting to salvage the situation and safeguard our national interests, the action back home appears to be only cosmetic by the BJP by suspending Nupur Sharma and dismissing Naveen Jindal from the party. There is no official action by the government under the law, except initiating FIRs against more than thirty people including Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal many days after the allegedly blasphemous remarks.  Just a few days before the authorities showed remarkable hurry in arresting Prof. Rattan Lal in Delhi. It seems that the FIRs excercise was only to assuage the ruffled sentiments of our counterparts abroad.  Nevertheless, I said the purpose of my humble submission is that things are going bad and the communal situation is deteriorating increasingly which perturbs me, as a citizen of India. MEA has termed the ominous culprits as ‘fringe elements’ who do not represent the government and its policy. These are the diplomatic jargons but who does not know the status of the two high-ups in BJP hierarchy and their backing by the hard-core Hindutva elements. The doyen of Indian diplomacy T.N. Kaul advised in one of his books ‘Ambassadors need not lie’, Indian diplomats have their own limits to undo the harm done by our loud-mouthed politicians and priestly class. The Muslim leadership both politicians and Mullas are, obviously, charged and tend to voice their protest and concern as loudly as possible. It is also a fact that the majority community was in no mood to listen and address the problem till the diplomatic boil. It is a serious issue which MEA and its diplomatic establishment alone cannot address. It is rightly said that the foreign policy is an extension of internal situation. Yet another fact remains that the Muslim majority countries, as it has been demonstrated, would not keep quiet, if the communal situation back home is not handled tactfully and in accordance with the law of the land in its letter and spirit. The media in these countries and also in some of the countries from the developed world has become vocal on these issues of communal tension and human right and religious freedom. We cannot afford to live in isolation. We the people of India and our government cannot afford to ill-treat its minority as strong as 210 million with more than 16% share in its demography. The civil society and intelligentsia, though lying low in the given situation, is ill at ease, my gut feelings tell me, on the emerging situation. They need to be alert and vocal. We, the society and the polity, would ignore these hard ground realities at our own peril. The warning of Babasaheb Ambedkar – Will we lose our independence again?’ must ring bells of caution in our ears. It is becoming all the more worrisome that besides tensions and animosity among the Hindus and Muslims other federates of the diversified society like; Sikhs and Dalits (both among Sikhs and Hindus) are, it appears, not at peace. Jathedar of Harminder Sahib, Giani Harpreet Singh openly pleaded the case of owning weapons and training to the Sikh youth by setting up ‘shooting ranges’ as the others have been doing it secretively. Who are these others? It requires no elaboration. He also mentioned about the churches and mosques coming up in Punjab. Dalits are concerned and perturbed about the demolition of Guru Ravidass Temple at Tughlakabad in Delhi and also about the ongoing saga of Bhema-Koregaon case. The things are really getting bad resulting in avoidable communal strife and standoff.

Much has been written on the subject in the wake of these recent developments. I have a couple of humble suggestions to make in this regard not as an expert but as a concerned citizen who tends to support the lofty idea ‘Samrasta’  which the RSS  talks about in a secular and democratic state like India:

·       Top leadership of all political parties and top priestly big-wigs of all religious denominations should sit together and think of some ‘CBMs’ to bring about much needed trust among the communities, particularly the Hindus and Muslims before it gets too late.

·       Rightly or wrongly the cry “Savidhan Bachao – Desh Bachao” is gaining strength, it seems. Both the BJP governments and their ‘Mentor’ RSS who enjoy brute majority and unbridled power under the system should come forward and negate this perception that they intended to change the constitution though I am personally of the view that it is not that easy to change the basic edifice and fundamentals of the constitution, including secular and democratic character of the society and polity, without inviting further trouble and danger to our country, if anybody tried to do so.

·       It seems that the national media in India has become blind. Let us not go into the details how it has happened and who did it? Most of the TV channels and the Anchors or so called journalists run acrimonious debates on Hindu - Muslim issues throughout the day without any norms and code of conduct. It must be stopped or regulated without delay. Less said the better. There should be some sort of ‘self– regulatory’ mechanism so that the freedom of the media is not harmed.

·       The political parties, particularly BJP, and organizations like RSS and its field agencies should categorically stop talking of ‘Hindu Rastra’. India is a union of states with diversified languages, cultures. Food habits, religious beliefs. It should remain a secular state as stipulated in the constitution.

·       We should stop digging the past and do not try to rewrite history – Buddhism was here but was destroyed and  vanished,  Foreigners, including Mughals, came and conquered and assimilated here, British, French, Portuguese etc. came and were sent back. The

invaders, conquerors and imperialists did what pleased them. The fact is that we could not stop them. Were we no match to them? I don’t expect an answer. History would judge us. Why are we digging the graves now as a sovereign, independent country and a member of the comity of dignified nations? We can build as many Mandirs, Mosques, Gurudwaras, Churches and so on as we like. Who would stop us? Let us pray for peace and respect for each other rather than getting dogmatic.

·       Let us respect the minorities and their rights and in turn minorities should respect the ethos of the main stream of the society that is the majority Hindus. Dalits should not be counted as Hindus or Sikhs only for vote banks or countering Muslims; they should be given their due space in the society and polity. Ishwar Alla Tero Naam; Sab Ko Sammati De Bhagwan.

As I said that we have come a long way but we are still to go a long way. The slogan and agenda of the Government of PM Narendra Modi, who enjoys the democratic mandate of the people of India –
Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas ad Sab Ka Vishwash, is the right approach to bring about peace, harmony, fraternity and further prosperity of our country. I conclude here with a famous quote to caution ourselves:

Chupa Kar Asteen Mein Bijliyan Rakhi Hain Gardoon Ne
Anadil Bagh Ke Ghafil Na Baithen Ashiyon Mein

(The sky has kept thunderbolts concealed up its sleeve
Garden’s nightingales should not slumber in their nests)

Watan Ki Fikar Kar Nadan! Musibat Ane Wali Hai
Teri Barbadiyon Ke Mashware Hain Asmanon Mein

(Think of the homeland, O ignorant one! Hard times are coming
Conspiracies for your destruction are afoot in the heavens)

Postscript: Without comment:-

Quote – The rise of narrow nationalism, the deliberate stoking of communal discord – devalue the very assets which made India distinctive..I believe that India has a better chance to meet the Chinese challenge by remaining committed to values enshrined in the constitution - Unquote

(From the book of Ambassador Shyam Saran, Former Foreign Secretary’s book: How China sees India: The Authoritative Account of the China-India Relations)

                                                                                                              

 

 

 

         

Honouring and Recognition of Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia

 Honouring and Recognition of Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia

With regard to the forthcoming anniversary of the founding of Ad-Dharam Mandal on June 11-12, I wrote an Open Letter to the CM of Punjab on June 8, 2022 and requested him to kindly consider and take decision to honour and recognise Gadari Baba Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia by naming roads, schools, colleges after the name

of Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia, a son of the soil of Punjab. I also suggested that the building in Kishanpura Jalandhar, which hosted the first office of Ad-Dharam Mandal and where Babuji started living too, may be declared a historical and heritage site. The building is now used as a school in the name of great Guru Ravidass ji. It may continue as its present character as far as the school is concerned. 

I would be happy if the concerned and interested individuals and organisations take due note of my submissions to the Hon'ble CM of Punjab and support my suggestions by writing to the CM and passing resolutions and forwarding it to the Government and Hon'ble  Governor of Punjab.

Babu Mangoo Ram ji along with his associates launched Ad-Dharam Mandal on June 11-12, 1926 at his village Mugowal in Garhshankar Rehsil of Hoshiarpur district of Punjab.

Text of my letter to CM of Punjab:-

June 8, 2022      

                               

An Open Letter to Chief Minister of Punjab

(Honouring Babu Mangoo Ram, Founder of Ad-dharam Movement)

 

Respected CM Bhagwant Mann Sahib,      

It is a matter of gratification to say that after a long time Punjab has a Government which claims, and rightly so, that it belongs to the people (Aam Aadmi) standing at the grass roots of the society. That is what, I think, our founding fathers visualized at the dawn of independence in 1947.

I take the liberty of writing this on an obscure subject of public important, particularly to the weaker sections of the society. You may not know, Sir, Ad-dharam Mandal, an outfit of dalits of the society, was founded on June 11-12, 1926 by Gadri Baba Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia (January, 1886 – April, 1980) and his associates at a congregation held

at village Mugowal in the district of Hoshiarpur of our beautiful Punjab. Babu Mangoo Ram was a great social reformer and became a voice of the under-privileged sections of the society in his life time. With his efforts, dalit masses of Punjab, the land of great Sikh Gurus who visualized establishing an egalitarian and casteless society, got political consciousness and learnt to stand and demand their due share and space in the society at large. Later as an associate of Babasaheb Ambedkar and other like minded leaders, Babu Mangoo Ram played a sterling role in the freedom movement while struggling to find a rightful space and say for the underdog both in the polity and the society.

All India Ad-dharam Mandal under the stewardship of Sant Satwinder Hira of Khuralgarh Sahib in Gargshankar in District Hoshiarpur, known as Charan Cho Ganga,  is the flag bearer of Babu Mangoo Ram’s mission and legacy is fully engaged in the empowerment and upliftment of the weaker sections of the society. The purpose of this letter, CM Sahib, is to propose and request you to kindly consider and name a Road, School, and College in Garhshankar (Hoshiarpur) or in Jalandhar after the great leader, Babu Mangoo Ram. It may be added that the first Headquarter of Ad-dharm Mandal was located in Mohalla Kishanpura (near Railway Station) and Babu ji started residing there which is school now named after the great Guru Ravidass. The School Building may be declared a historical and heritage monument in recognition of Babu Mangoo Ram and his contribution in the much needed social and political awakening among the poor masses. This gesture on the part of the Government of Punjab under your leadership will go a long way in strengthening our resolve to do our every best for the recognition of our icons and will to bring about empowerment as an affirmative agenda of the government and the people.

It may not be out of place to mention here that the Province of British Columbia of Canada has declared the month of April as the “Dalit Month of History’ in honour of Babasaheb Ambedkar, Jyotirao Phule, Babu Mangoo Ram Mugowalia and Sant Ram Udasi. Punjab should not lag behind in honouring and recognizing our heroes. You have already started on a right note by picking up the threads by recognising Shahed Bhagat Singh and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.

I am confident, Sir, that my submissions will find a fair consideration and a favorable decision as a befitting tribute to Babu Mangoo Ram, a son of the soil of Punjab.

With the assurances of my highest consideration,

 

Yours truly,

                        (Ramesh Chander)      

Sardar Bhagwant Mann,

Hon’ble CM of Punjab,

Chandigarh

Jathere (ਜਠੇਰੇ ) – What It Means To Me – Knowing and Respecting Ones Ancestry

 

Jathere (ਜਠੇਰੇ ) – What It Means To Me – Knowing and Respecting Ones Ancestry

I belong to the Mahey clan (Gotra – ਗੋਤਰਾ) of Punjab pertaining to the ‘untouchable denomination’ of Hindus. I don’t know exactly but I was told that there were Maheys in Jaat community (Sikhs) in Punjab also who are (Shudras) in accordance with the Hindu Varna system. This requires further research and verification, however. I know that both Hindus and Sikhs in Punjab and beyond venerate their ancestors or perform Jathere worship. My family is no exception and tends to go with the main stream of the community and the society not as some special effort or connotation but as obvious and natural corollary to follow the famous saying ‘While in Rome do as Romans do’ being a a small cog in the big wheel. 

For good or bad, I don’t know, it is a matter of some relief or satisfaction for me that at least for the last two generations of my family starting from my grand-parents (Rulda Ram and Nandi) and down to my parents (Sodhi Ram and Preeto) and my brothers and sisters and also our children, at present, are not ritualistic or dogmatic about religious matters consciously or otherwise. We are God fearing people by upbringing and day to day living. I and wife Vidya tend to stand with the family and the community in their thick and thin without giving any consideration to this ‘ism’ or that ‘waad’ for social interaction be it at Home, Gurudwara, Mandir, Vihar,

Sharaad ceremony at our ancestral home

Masjit, Church and so on. We are neither theist nor atheists by thinking and conduct but are more inclined to be agnostic at the back of our minds.  I and my wife Vidya always felt like joining our extended family to stand with them through thick and thin including ‘Jathere’ or ‘Sharaad’ events not that we tend to be ritualistic or superstitious but as a matter of harmony and peace, as we please, in the family. We are not alien or opposed to the concept or thought of veneration or remembrance of elders or ancestors. I thought of this explanation to put the matter in its perspective without getting dogmatic about this social interaction.

With this background, I come to our visit to Mahey Gotra Jathere in a remote Village Ryatpur Jattan in District Nawan Shehar (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar in Punjab along with my brothers, Krishan Lal and Paramjit with our families on May 28, the day of annual congregation (Mela) at the site. My brothers and their families go there every successive year. This year my daughter-in-law Sulekha

was keen to go to pay respects to our elders and in turn I informed my brothers that my son Rupesh and Sulekha would also accompany them. Kishan, knowing well my mind and inclination of generally not doing these rituals, suggested that it would be good if also joined them, if not anything else let it be a family outing. I agreed and joined them. Instead of our cars, we decided to hire a Tempo where all of us could be accommodated for easy logistics. Thanks Kishan, it was a good fun.

 Ryatpur is situated about 5 kms in the interior on Anandpur Sahib Road from Garhshankar. In fact, it was my second visit to our Jathere – the first was in March/April, 1983-84, at the time of the marriage of our sister Maya and we were in India on Home-leave from Sana’a (Yemen) to seek blessing of our ancestors. I don’t remember much as there was nothing much built or erected at the non-descript site at that time except some tid-bits with our co-passengers of the extended family namely; Buja Ram and Dalipa Ram among others on the tractor-trolley which was our transport mode. Buja Ram kept us going with his earthy wit and art of storytelling. There are some interesting anecdotes of the visit with Bujha Ram which I would share separately at some other occasion. Excuse me for saying the truth; I was not much impressed by the Jathere site, management and their functioning. We started early to avoid the rush of the Mela and return back before it gets crowded. But it was not to be. We reached there at around 8 in the morning after about 1.30 hours travel from Bootan Mandi Jalandhar. The temporary parking arrangements in the nearby fields were made but it was chaotic. Hundreds of the Mahey clan was already there on bikes, cars, hired vehicles etc. The bandovast like sound system, drinking water, sitting (squatting) were still underway. The long queues of faithful to venerate their Jathere were already in the making. But there was hardly any pre-planning, it seemed, by the management and nobody was bothered or perturbed visibly. I met many of our known people like; Senior

Executive of BSNL Hemant Mahey, Senior Banker Sita Ram Mahey and my other fellow BootanMandians Bawa Mahey among others with their families. Thousands of thousands were likely to come and the crowd by swelling by the minute. I could feel that this trend of visiting or worshiping Jatheres was getting strong over the years. The reasons for this, to my mind, are increasing economic profile of the community and inherited belief to ‘respect and regard of the Jatheres’ rarely with a sense of conviction but as a ‘Bheddchall’ - camp follower in the given social structures of the main stream of the society or Hindu or Sikh social and spiritual norms. The management, I could guess, was interested only in collecting money and offerings in kind. Let us hope they learn from others of the upper strata of the society and conduct themselves. I was told that on the Mela day on May 28 every year a Mahey Family from Delhi comes and undertake the expenses on the Langar (community meal). There may be many more like them waiting in the wings or doing something or the other to venerate and please their Jatheras. Just to satisfy my curiosity as to how come somebody thought of fixing or locating the Mahey Jatheras to this non-descript place at village Ryatpur, I enquired about this from many but could not find any plausible answer. Nobody could inform that why May 28 was fixed for the annual Mela. I think Jathera culture will remain and would rather get strengthened in the years to come. There is no point in making it an issue, if people get some peace of my in the process, let it be. More so, remembering ones ancestors may not be considered bad by any social norm.

I took help of the ‘Google Baba’ to know more about the Jathere tradition and culture and found this, “What is meant by ancestor worship? - Ancestor worship refers to rituals designed to commemorate and venerate the spirits of one's deceased forebears. While it is often associated with the Confucian notion of filial piety, ancestor worship crosses the boundaries of religious traditions, geographical regions, and socioeconomic groups. In certain societies, the veneration of ancestors whose spirits are frequently held to possess the power to influence the affairs of the living is in vogue. It further explains, “Ancestor worship is a religious practice based on the belief that deceased family members have a continued existence, that the spirits of deceased ancestors will look after the family, take an interest in the affairs of the world, and possess the ability to influence the fortune of the living.”

With my personal information and experience gathered during my call of diplomatic duties in various countries, I found that ancestor veneration is also prevalent in many countries of Africa, China, Japan, Vietnam and many countries of Europe. There is no harm in
remembering ones elders and ancestors to invoke their blessings for the good and further well-being. But it does not make any sense and is rather immoral to worship Jatheras, if one tends to ignore, neglect and trouble his or her parents while they are alive. Respect for elders and parents should become a social norm and we all would be at ease and happy. I conclude this with a poetic assertion of Allama Iqbal:

“गुज़र गया अब वोह दौर साकी, कि छुप के पीते थे पीने वाले।

बनेगा सारा जहान मयखाना, हर कोई बादहख़्वार होगा।

तुम्हारी तहज़ीब अपने ख़जर से आपकी खडुदकशी करेगी।

जो शाख़े नाज़ुकपै आशियाना बनेगा, नापाएदार होगा।

ख़ुदाके बन्दे तो हैं हज़ारों, वनोंमें फिरते हैं मारे-मारे।

मैं उसका बन्दा हनूँगा जिसको, ख़ुदा के बन्दों से प्यार होगा।” 

Postscript:- With regard to Jathere and Sharaad, I have no believe in offerings of food and clothes which might go o my ancestors. These are superstitions only without any logical explanation, to my mind. But still sometimes tend to do certain thing which does not conform to your thinking. I narrate a story to support this. Khuswant Singh, a famous writer and columnist and an authority on Sikhism and Sikh scriptures was not a religious person as such. He wrote that he found ‘Guruvani’, many a times, self contradictory or illogical but he always found solace by listening to its recital or singing in the Kirtan (musically sung Guruvani). It explains the unbiased human psyche. No further explanation is called for.