India need not hanker after talks with Pakistan

Why should India run after Pakistan for talks ? They say for good relations and to stop terrorism and border intrusion. It will never be achieved with Pakistan as those 66% people surveyed in India too feel there is not hope for it. Sartaj Aziz has shown true colors by threatening that they are a nuclear country. Pakistan will not give up its terror agenda as it is criminal enterprise to use the words of V.S.Naipal.The survival of Pakistan is not due to its economic or military power but its ability to convince the international community that it has enough terror explosive and if world wants to control it they should pay for it. Obviously they get aid on the pretext of eliminating terror and divert it to defense to torture India on its borders or through sending directly or indirectly jehadis. Will they sign agreement with Narender Modi for suicide and nab all terrorists they are harboring? It is now also clear that Dawood Ibrahim wanted for Bombay terror attack is also coolly relaxing at Karachi home. So was Osama Laden in his safe heaven with wives watching erotic CDs. US may give warnings as recently hinted but it is all in vain since Pakistan knows that they need it for dealing with problems created and likely to be created in Afghanistan. Pakistan has very deep labyrinthine strategy like a glacier which is only visible in small surface but underwater in its massive underbelly.

Pakistan wanted to steer clear of this bilateral meeting from very beginning. As soon as the date was announced the firing started and terrorist attack took place. The questions meeting Kashmiri terrorists were an excuse. When there is democratically elected Government who were these separatist chosen by Pakistan representing? Who had elected them? These self-styled leaders have been given undue weightage by all governments in India due to their nuisance power. People Pakistan in a poll too stated that meeting was more important than meeting separatists. While Pakistan press has criticized India for not allowing the talks to go on and even one paper declaring that it is clear stand against India , Indian papers response is interesting. Hindi and other Language papers sharply criticized Pakistan for backing out but English media papers have taken a hazy middle path some thinking more maturty needed on both sides and others hoping for resumption soon.

India needs to control strongly its internal security and defense. We have to put up with occasional firing on border and explosions in the sensitive areas. All this is costly business of high tech equipment and espionage that can be learnt from Israel and used for internal defense. There is no purpose of asking Pakistan to stop it as they will not push button to stop it. If they agree they will utilize the non-state actors alibi and continue to bleed the fringes or sensitive areas of India. They will also subvert the development of Indian industry and technology. All intrusions on border need retaliating with force so that the attackers pay a price.

As was expected some media and opposition critics were constantly needling the process but it was baffling why the BJP leaders themselves were bragging or blowing their own trumpet differently and there was no discipline. No doubt Shatragun Sinha is an actor and was doing his antics what happened to Yashwant Sinha who too started lamenting that he was not made Minister and offered unsolicited advice on the proposed meeting. Disgruntled leaders of BJP have not been shown the red flag to stop such talks when crucial events are scheduled like election or bilateral talks. They seem to be living in their own paradise. While Shanta Kumar was silenced many others continue to voice their frustration.

India should stop hoping in near future any fruitful dialogue with Pakistan on security or terror but it can open private channels for people contact as trade, commerce and social meeting of art literature, sports and culture. It will build confidence as public on both sides is friendly on individual level. Mr Anuag Thakur should forget that Pakistan will hand over Dawood for a cricket match. There is no use waiting for Pakistan to fall in line with expectations of India as they have their own compulsions and goals which they will pursue at any cost. It also furthers their jehadi agenda and clandestine operation in Afghanistan or butchering citizens of Blochistan. People to people, non-government contact be made open but with proper security check. It is possible as population of Pakistan is not hostile to Indians on personal level and there is mutual desire to know and meet each other. This could ease avoidable tensions between two countries.

---Prof N.K.Singh former Chairman International Airports Authority of India 

Leaders of nation without responsibility

It is strange that while everyone is supposed to have duty and responsibility for the salaries paid to one but a Member of Parliament has no duty or responsibility as indicated by the Government since no provision exists in the Constitution about it. This was the information given to RTI activists by the Secretariat. But how they are law unto themselves when everyone has some indication of what one is supposed to do and for which one is accountable?

Recent logjam in Parliament when both houses remain paralyzed has raised many pertinent questions about the role and responsibility of the law makers. For this stalemate both parties are responsible as earlier BJP too indulged in similar tactics to hold the house to ransom when UPA was in power. Many informed critics say that the government is getting taste of their own medicine. But looking at it from the view point of national interest both wrong do not make one right. It is not only sheer waste of time and money it is biggest fraud played on nation by the politicians when they are paid high remunerations and perks and they do nothing to further the economic and social progress of the nation and simply heckle each other.HT survey of Indian readers showed that 84% respondents feel that the deadlock will hurt economy of the country. 74% voted for suspension as positive step to change the situation. Nevertheless Congress is unmoved for all these days and the kind of conduct shown by all members is condemnable as we are regressing in our standards and norms of dignity.

India is  paying these legislators fabulously and considering the economic conditions of poor this is offensive to treat their representatives so lavishly. Each MP costs 1,40,000(total with free perks and other facilities cost 35 lakh perannum) in salary prior to pending revision besides lucrative pension even if the service is one day. They have frèe medical and travel in train and air.  Their average salary is 68 times of what an average person earns and Lalu Yadav had already demanded 500% increase in this. Even small state legislature like Himachal that is highly under debt pays 1.5 lakhP.M. to legislatures while most of the CMs are getting near once lakh, except P.M. who is getting 50,000 under revision and Mamta who receives meager 8000 per month.  It is national crime to pay so much to these people who have no duties and responsibility and can afford to be absent any time. Three things are must First is ‘No work No pay’ must be applied to them as it is applied to all other working people. Second their remunerations should be decided by independent commission not by themselves. Third they should be barred from any other business or job. In Switzerland all the law makers are professional or working people who get free holidays during the sessions to attend to work. In UK there is independent commission to fix their salaries.

When the disruptions of Parliament for which no right has been conferred on the law makers in the Charter of the country, are condemnable it is necessary to have a code of conduct for the member in the house. Speaker of Rajya Sabha has no powers like the Lok Sabha to take action and  even the need to have an upper house consisting of those who have lost the elections is not very justified. Originally it was for the eminent persons of science and scholars or artists or seasoned wise thinkers of political party but now it is simply a house of those who  lost the elections. Even then there is nothing wrong in nominating political people with high esteem in the public life but the way it is composed and acts as break on the Government without acting as check and balance as in US constitution is worth debating again.

Bus Stand

First passenger: My son failed in all admission tests for high institutions and I want him to earn a lot of money. What to do ?

Second Passenger: Ask him to join politics.

--Prof N.K.Singh former Chairman International Airports Authority of India