The deceptive arithmetic of election results

TAKE an early morning train out of Delhi, and within seconds you will face a seemingly endless stretch of squalor where the capital’s most dispossessed citizenry ekes out a miserable existence that is perhaps not very different from that in a sub- Saharan township.

Men squat over railway tracks and around filthy stagnant ponds for their morning ablutions. Women have gone through the routine earlier under the cover of darkness. Pigs, stray cattle, dogs criss-cross through a maze of rubbish heaps, sniffing and tearing at hazardous plastic bags. Malaria, typhoid, cholera, surely AIDS too, must be lurking in the hapless looking, precariously built dwellings.

Multi-coloured flags adorn rooftop clusters at regular intervals. They represent the locally influential political parties. The open palm of the right hand, symbol of the Congress party, flutters atop one clutch of shanties, while the lotus, emblem of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, has cornered vast stretches of the slum elsewhere. The low-caste Dalits, migrants from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, are represented by a blue elephant, symbol of the Bahujan Samaj Party. Their flags are numerous too.

However, despite all the flags, and regardless of the inducements that are offered for their votes, the turnout of the voters in last week’s elections to the Delhi assembly was an unimpressive 53 per cent. Far-flung Mizoram in the remote northeast recorded a 70 per cent plus turnout in similar polls a day earlier.

Anyhow, the Congress party retained its hold against the BJP in Delhi. But it lost Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and the newly created Chhattisgarh. Everyone was surprised. Prime Minister Vajpayee confessed that he had in fact expected the BJP to win just two assemblies, if not one, but certainly not three states. The surprising verdict, which flew in the face of all the forecasts, including pre-poll and exit poll surveys, has resulted in a plethora of interpretations, none of them very convincing.

It was a vote for Mr Vajpayee’s statesmanship, claim the best known of analysts from the BJP’s corner. Yes, but it was also a vote for a moderate face of the BJP, ad-lib others. In view of the fact that the BJP did not harp on its standard communal themes in these state elections, it is easy to accept Mr Vajpayee’s imprint on the BJP’s massive victory. The trouble starts when the media begins its own spin on why the verdict went the way it did to suit its own interests.

Thus, you get to hear amazing conclusions. The vote was a clarion call for issues like roads, electricity and water, for progress and development, thundered quite a few mainstream newspapers and TV channels. Now I am not trying to argue that these things don’t matter or that India is frozen in time. No. It isn’t as if these basic necessities don’t matter to the people.

Sure, everyone could do with regular, uninterrupted supply of electricity, metalled roads and, needless to add, a daily supply of wholesome potable water. But to say that Indians have suddenly stopped voting for parochial issues like temples, caste- based politics, or to say that the BJP, which had mastered the electoral exploitation of these emotive and volatile fault-lines, has discarded them for a sudden new vision of all-encompassing social progress is a bit thick.

The fact is that it was a mere two per cent swing in votes that got the BJP its extra seats in Chhatisgarh and Rajasthan against the Congress. And the Congress by no stretch of imagination could be considered hostile to the idea of the development agenda which is supposed to have won the day for the BJP. A dispassionate look at the vote break up shows the results were influenced by better management of the caste arithmetic by the BJP.

However, the political pundits and pollsters — hired by the top media companies — who called the elections incorrectly, and not for the first time, are now trying to interpret the mandate as a vote for economic development. But this raises an interesting question. What kind of development is it that the government, the cheerleading economists and media pundits are advocating? According to one school of thought this is nothing but a devious attempt to slip in an economic model that is based essentially on privatization — privatized electricity, privatized water and privatized road networks, now on the government’s anvil as mega projects. It’s not just non-government organizations (NGOs) that think so; even politicians and a vocal band of economists fear this.

If the average Indian has to pay for the increasingly expensive if acutely unsteady power supply, and if he has to cough up money to get piped water, through private suppliers, how are the teaming millions of dispossessed Indians going to be excited about such development?

The clusters of Delhi’s slums symbolize this challenge to the so-called mandate. Not one of the flags fluttering atop their ramshackle dwellings represents an economic agenda other than the one projected by all the finance ministers since the advent of Dr Manmohan Singh in 1991.

Whether the Dalits vote for the BSP or the secular middle classes opt for the Congress, or large segments of the tribes people integrate with the BJP or whether Muslims vote for Mulayam Singh Yadav, there is not one party in parliament today that appears to be coming close to cleaning up the mess and the squalor in which at least 26 per cent of Indians live in. The politicians’ economic agenda, by and large, is one that favours privatization. It is therefore only a matter of time before everyone goes looking for the much-needed emotive issue to drive Indian politics through a crucial phase next year when the next parliament is elected. No ‘development’ issue is likely to give either the BJP or its strongest rival, the Congress, the right numbers in the next Lok Sabha to form the new government. I wonder what the opinion poll wallahs and the election pundits will have to say just 11 months from now.

INDIA’S Punjab state is celebrating a week-long cultural festival putting on display the best acquisitions in art and music, fashion and theatre. But the Heritage Festival in Amritsar is not confining itself to the Indian half of Punjab alone. Adorning some of the key events will be guests from Pakistan. When it was announced that a mushaira was on the menu, the biggest round of applause went to Ahmad Faraz, the celebrated poet from Pakistan, who takes the stage on Monday.

The city that was

THE following is an account of the city of Lahore as given by people visiting the place in the 19th century and as excerpted by M. Hanif Raza in his book, Lahore, Past and Present:

Reproduced below are extracts from the diary of an English officer, who visited Lahore in 1809.

“24th May —- I visited the ruins of Lahore, which afforded a melancholy picture of the fallen splendour. Here the lofty dwellings and masjids, which, fifty years ago, raised their tops to the skies and were the pride of a busy and active population, are now crumbling into dust, and in less than a half a century more will be levelled to the ground. In going over these ruins, I saw not a human being, all was silence, solitude and gloom”.

Henry Edward Fane, who accompanied the British commander-in-chief to Lahore, on the marriage of Prince Naunehal Singh, in 1837 writes of Lahore:

“28th March: I left Lahore, passing under the walls of the town, and marched ten miles chiefly through ruins of the ancient capital, which, in the time of the Moghal emperors, must have rivalled Delhi and Agra themselves in extent. Lahore was formerly the capital of India, previous to the Mohamedan conquerors settling themselves at Agra and Delhi; and in those times was celebrated for its great size and magnificence, both now departed from it. Its modern grandeur (of which the ruins of some few fine buildings still remain to show that it once existed) it owes to the Emperor Humayun who established his capital here for some years, and made it his favourite residence”.

The traveller Masson writing of Lahore in 1838, or one year before Ranjit’s death and seven years before annexation, says:

“Lahore, the capital of the Punjab and of the territories of Ranjit Singh, is a city of undoubted antiquity, and has been long celebrated for its extent and magnificence. The extravagant praises bestowed upon it by the historians of Hindustan, must, however, be understood as applicable to a former city, of which now only the ruins are seen. To it must also be referred the current proverb which asserts that “Isphihan and Shiraz united would not equal half of Lahore.” The present city is nevertheless very extensive, and comprises many elegant and important buildings. Without the walls are scattered on all sides the ruins of the ancient city which are still wonderful, and convey vast ideas of the extent of ancient Lahore. Numerous tombs, and other structures are still standing, some of them nearly entire, and such is their solidity that they seem, if not absolutely to foil old Time to yield to him almost imperceptibly”.

Another English writer wrote around 1885: “Modern Lahore falls far short of the flowing descriptions given by early writers. In size and population it is inferior to Lucknow and Delhi and Agra. The circuit of its walls does not exceed 3 miles and its population in the last Census (1881) was given at about 107,000. The streets are narrow and wormlike and the general aspect of the city with the exception of its northern front, is neither imposing nor picturesque. But a close acquaintance with the city and its environs will tend considerably to modify the first impression referred to above.

Lahore formerly covered a far larger area than it does at present as is at once apparent from the number and extent of the ruins which cover the face of the surrounding country. From the city walls to Shalamar, Mian Mir and Ichra —- a circle with a radius of some four or five miles, one is constantly coming across crumbling mosques, tombs, gateways and gigantic mounds.

Some conception of the extent of Lahore in its palmier days as compared with its present state may be formed from the fact that of thirty-six guzars or quarters into which Lahore is known to have been divided, only nine are included within the modern city; but a more vivid picture of the desolation which has passed over Lahore will be obtained by a view of the surrounding country from a minarat of the Imperial mosque or of the mosque of Wazir Khan.”

It is easier to form an idea of the size and extent of the old city of Lahore than of its magnificence. Few cities have suffered more from desolating hordes and anarchy than Lahore during the last 120 years previous to the inauguration of English rule. Eight time did the troops of Ahmed Shah passed through Lahore; Mahrattas and Sikhs have done their work of destruction, and the buildings being for the most part built of brick, have perished and are perishing rapidly.

From the number and importance of its tombs, the profuse use of glazed tiles and enamelled frescoes as an architectural decoration, the recurrence of the bulb-like domes and semi-domed gateways, we have all the characteristics of the Mughal or what may be termed as the florid style of Indo-Muslim architecture.”

Vet hospital being turned into plaza

THE bane of commercialization has ruined civic life and marred the architectural beauty of the city. Government agencies, too, are accelerating the trend, destroying the centuries-old offices and institutions merely for generating funds.

This time the target of the menace is the Civil Veterinary Hospital, located on Liaquat Road, providing treatment to thousands of animals and housing offices like the District Veterinary Hospital, District Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Society for Prevention of Cruelty of Animals (SPCA), Liquid Nitrogen Gas and Semen Supply Centre, Chairman Livestock Monitoring Committee Faisalabad and Store for supply of vaccine, medicine and other veterinary equipment.

The district government is reportedly trying to convert it into a multi-storey building for generating permanent income by renting out shops and offices. Already, the Zila Council has, without lawful authority, set up many shops in front of the Veterinary Hospital and hired out space to various parties, including Nadra.

According to official statistics, the District Veterinary Hospital has provided treatment and vaccination to 37,669, 42,083 and 4,7557 animals during the years 2001, 2002 and 2003, respectively. Similarly, the District Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, a component of the provincial government, provides diagnostic facilities to thousands of animals not only of the city but also of the whole district.

The Livestock Department is bound to provide site to the Society for Prevention of Cruelty of Animals as on the one hand it is performing its task in collaboration with the veterinary staff of the hospital and on the other, is generating thousands as revenue to the government every month. During the last financial year, its contribution was Rs820,000.

The Liquid Nitrogen Gas and Semen Supply Centre has recently been shifted to this place from a very odd site on the direction of the department for smooth and easy supply from Lahore and onward distribution in the district.

The local Livestock Department is planning to expand and strengthen the diagnostic facility in accordance with the WTO needs for certification and different kinds of dairy and poultry products (milk, meat, beef, by-products, eggs, poultry meat and by-products). The diagnostic laboratory is affiliated with the National Veterinary Laboratory, Islamabad, which has planned to establish its sub-units here for the same purpose.

The Pakistan Veterinary Medical Association has also contended that the shifting of the District Livestock Complex posed a threat to the livestock, adding that such a plan should not be allowed in the interest of livestock production.

The District Livestock Officer, Faisalabad, in an SOS call addressed to the District Coordination Officer, raised a number of objections over the shifting of the veterinary hospital from this site, requesting that the hospital and its allied units should not be shifted for smooth running of departmental activities.

He said the site was centrally located and well known to the public and all involved in breeding livestock and poultry. It is easily accessible to all. That is why the main supply centres of the department are established there.

He apprehended that the government would sustain financial loss of millions it had been generating annually from the revenue of SPCA presently functioning at the site. Establishment of departmental sub-units will suffer badly and probably the department will not be in a position to fulfil the WTO requirements for export of livestock products.

He pointed out that the Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, offices of SPCA, Semen receipt and supply and other stores were housed in building constructed from provincial funds by the Livestock Department. As those assets of the Livestock Department were not devolved, therefore, the consent of the department would also be required in the matter.

Similarly, the District Livestock authorities opposed the shifting of the hospital for smooth running of Departmental activities, claiming that people would face innumerable problems.

Under the devolution of power plan, one of the prime functions of the district government is to protect old buildings and to make arrangements for treatment of animals and livestock at a central place. It is a pity that it is acting otherwise as it is adamant to build a commercial plaza by demolishing the historical Veterinary Hospital.

The site is of precious commercial importance and land-grabbers are out to occupy it on one pretext or the other. Attempts to grab it have been made in the recent past.

Foiling the attempt, the Livestock and Dairy Development Department, Punjab, took serious note of the decision of the district government about the transfer of the District Veterinary Hospital for establishment of the office of Tehsil Municipal Administration (Sadar) and termed it illegal, unlawful and beyond jurisdiction.

The district government had decided to allot a portion of the land of the District Livestock Hospital to the TMA (Sadar) for setting up its secretariat without seeking approval of the Board of Revenue and the Livestock Department.

Additional Secretary, Livestock Department, Bashir Ahmed Chaudhry, in a letter communicated to the District Coordination Officer, clearly stated that the land under the utilization of the Livestock Department could not be used or allotted by the district government and decision in this regard should be withdrawn immediately.

He further pointed out that as per revenue record, the owner of the site was the provincial government. This site was given to the then district council for establishment of veterinary hospital. Since its establishment, the site is in the use of the veterinary hospital and its related offices like the District Veterinary Hospital, Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Offices of SPCA, Deputy Livestock Officer, Chairman Livestock Development Committee, Semen/Liquid Nitrogen Gas Supply Centre, Stores of medicines and vaccines.

The letter also pointed out that according to the instruction of the Board of Revenue, Punjab, and the provincial cabinet decision, the land leased out or reserved for veterinary purposes could not be utilized for other purposes without prior permission of the Board of Revenue.

Pakistan Veterinary Medical Association has also opposed the move of the district government for setting up TMA Complex and threatened to launch a protest movement if the decision to allot the land of the veterinary hospital for the offices of TMA Sadar is not withdrawn.

The PVMA alleged that the district government failed to provide funds for the veterinary sector and now it planned to grab the precious land earmarked for the veterinary hospital. It warned that such steps of the district government would be opposed at all levels.

The question is, when would the agencies responsible for protecting national heritage discharge their fundamental duties?

Let peace prevail

Will 2003 go down in history as the year when peace “broke out” in South Asia? It might be too early to say anything at the moment, given the history of mistrust and acrimony that have marked relations between India and Pakistan. But the olive branch has been extended from both sides in the last few weeks. Hence the euphoria that has pervaded the circles that are keenly interested in seeing an end to conflict in South Asia.

Like Lahore, Karachi is agog with excitement about the improved prospects of Indo-Pakistan detente. The city is to play host to an Indo-Pakistan convention to be held on December 12-14. This may turn out to be a big event. Nearly 500 delegates from the two countries will be participating in the moot, the biggest of its kind. The bonhomie in the air is enlivening, even though the cynics who are there in abundance do not hide their reservations. The convention — the sixth in the series — comes after a lapse of more than three years. And this was a period characterized by severe tensions in the region when the two sides came to the brink of a war on at least one occasion.

The convention is being organized by the Pakistan-India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy, which was set up in late 1993 through the first Lahore declaration in a bid to promote people-to-people contacts between the two countries. The organizers — human rights activists, trade unionists, environmentalists, feminists, artists, writers and social workers — believe that the common man in South Asia stands for peace. Their aim is to convince their governments to heed the voices of sanity which are now becoming louder and louder.

The convention will focus on peace and demilitarization, Kashmir, democratic governance and religious intolerance, subjects which are incidentally closely interrelated. The previous exercises have been of a similar nature. They have adopted resolutions calling on the governments to enter into a dialogue and reverse their military build-up. Similar resolutions can be expected this time too.

No one really expects the convention to supplant the normal channel of inter-state diplomacy. But the Karachi meeting will give expression to a growing popular feeling that war can bring no good.

Among those expected to attend from the Indian side are lyricist and film director Gulzar, the actor Naseeruddin Shah, his playwright wife Ratna Pathakshah, economics professor Shushail Khanna, Osmania University professor Dr Anand Raj Varma, peace activist Syedda Hameed, secretary general of the Forum Tapan Bose, and editor of The Kashmir Times Ved Basin.

What price education?

Inspector Mazhar Ali Shah is a highly educated police officer. He has taken three Master’s degrees in Islamic studies, mass communications and law. Moreover, he has a PhD in Shariat laws. It was his well-researched thesis on the controversial Hudood Ordinance that earned him his doctorate. His doctoral thesis has been published. Much to his chagrin, he recently discovered that the police department offers no incentive to those who pursue higher studies in service.

Mr Shah joined the police department in 1980 as prosecution subinspector. He was in time promoted to inspector. He will shortly be promoted to deputy superintendent of police, not in acknowledgement of a higher qualification achieved on the job but as a matter of course.

The case of Mr Shah shows that the police department is not too enamoured of education. If it was it would have offered some monetary incentive to those who wish to pursue higher studies while in service.

Police investigation teams often handle sensitive cases in a slipshod manner because of their ignorance of the finer points of the law. Sometimes mistakes committed by the police during investigation weaken the prosecution case with the result that crimes go unpunished.

It is no secret that experienced police officers adept at writing out FIRs are privately engaged by police stations after their retirement. Clearly, there is a dearth of competent policemen who possess the legal knowledge necessary for the registration of an FIR.

There is a good case for encouraging police personnel to study the law in their spare time.

Road divider

Gizri is sandwiched between Defence and Clifton. Gizri Road is called Khayaban-i-Hafiz on the Defence side and Chaudhury Khaleequz Zaman Road on the Clifton side. Residents of Defence, Phase V and VI, who use this road frequently, must have noticed that the road divider between the Total petrol station and PNS Haider has been pulled down.

Work on the removal of the concrete road divider began one and a half months ago. People using the road thought that the concrete road divider would be replaced by an iron divider which would occupy less space and would be more difficult to cross. However, this was not to be.

The government department tasked to remove the divider has left in its wake broken slabs of concrete strewn along the road through which runs the dug-up foundation of the road divider like a furrow in a field. Previously, the motorists using Gizri Road had to keep a wary eye on jaywalkers who used to jump over the low concrete road divider without paying attention to the traffic and appear on the road out of the blue. Now the motorists have to exercise extra caution because road-hogs could do a U-turn anywhere on Gizri Road.

The residents of the adjoining localities would have stoically reconciled themselves to chaos on Gizri Road had they not found the following slogan inscribed on a wall: “Sarak ke darmian deevar namanzoor: Shabab-i-Milli.”

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