By resigning last week as India’s Prime Minister Chander Shekhar proved one point: despite his being in a hopeless minority in the country’s lower house he was no rubber stamp of either Mr Rajiv Gandhi or his Congress (I) party. This distinction was the result of a personal trait in the erstwhile socialist sufficiently senior and mature in politics than any one among the supporting party. But his coming to power four months ago was no revolution. He had no experience of governance prior to his current tenure as Prime Minister.
He had started on a clean slate of sorts. However it did not help him. Instead he became far more dependent on India’s entrenched Brahaman-Bania establishment than any of his predecessors.
Mr Shekhar then was merely an instrument in the hands of the ruling elite to prevent the growing polarisation of the Indian society along caste-class lines. The phenomenon was unleashed by the Janata Dal headed by Mr V.P Singh. The Ramjanambhumi agitation was one counter front. The Supreme Court’s hearing of the reservation ordinance was the other front. Mr Shekhar’s desertion from the Janata Dal and his formation of a minority government was the third front. He listed disengagement of social forces during the past four months as an achievement. Be that as it may the ensuing poll is being welcomed by the principal actors in the emerging new Indian drama: the V.P Singh-led coalition on the one hand and the B.J.P. R.S.S. combine on the other. The Congress (I) is finding it hard to cope with the new constellation of forces.
Shekhar essentially belonged to the Congress (I) culture. His difference with Gandhi centered round personal ambitions and temperaments. There were hardly any differences of a basic nature. Both favor and defend the present centralization in India’s polity.
This polity sub-serves the combined regional interests of the Hindi heartland to which both these leaders belong. If the Nehru dynasty shaped and executed Operation Blue Star and Operation “Woodrose” in Punjab it was left to Shekhar to step up State violence against Sikhs in Punjab through the scarcely known new operation codenamed “Rakshak” and against the Assam tribals through the operation “Bajrang” and against Tamils and Kashmiris through similar operations. These operations are a natural requirement if the neo-colonialism is to be sustained.
What distinguished Shekhar from Gandhi was the style rather than the substance of politics. Gandhi in his governance was ambued with arrogance because he took power for granted in the family tradition. Shekhar on the other hand wanted time to consolidate himself He Maunted the carrot and used the stick. He was soft-spoken but was ruthless in action as Punjab Assam Kashmir and Tamil Nadu amply proved. This deceptive style worked wonders in Punjab and everyone showered praises on the man militants included.
Extension of refueling facility to the U.S. airplanes by the Shekhar government similarly marked no substantial change in India’s foreign policy. The facility was in the realm of maneuver rather than a policy shift. Simultaneously the Shekhar administration paved the way for a further 20-year extension of the Indo Soviet treaty. There is no letup in the feverish militarization of India with the Army and para-military forces getting more and more powers perk and say in the running of the State. A policy of reconciliation is not just on India’s agenda whether in dealing with dissidents at home or small neighbors in south-east Asia. The ensuing election is a silver lining in the black clouds. A new social polarisation promises a more humane Indian society and perhaps a vital step towards resolving India’s knotty problems.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 15, 1991
