Pratim Ranjan Bose
“Some books should be tasted, some devoured, but
only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly.” ― Francis Bacon
Writing memoirs with explosive “stories” is an
established trend in the West for many years now.
The wave has hit the Indian shores, in 2014.
The list includes some high-profile names – from Sanjaya
Baru, celebrity editor and media adviser to the former Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh between 2004 and 2008, former bureaucrat P C Parakh, career
diplomat-turned-politician K Natwar Singh to former CAG Vinod Rai.
Baru’s The Accidental Prime Minister: Making and Unmaking of Manmohan Singh and Parakh’s Crusader or Conspirator? Coalgate and Other Truths hit
the stands in April this year, followed by Natwar Singh’s One Life is not Enough and, Not Just an Accountant: The Diary of the Nation’s Conscience Keeper by Rai.
The common thread between them is the no-holds-barred
broadside against the former Congress-led UPA government (2004 -2014).
Unsurprisingly, these books kicked up widespread controversies, and, as a
corollary, attracted considerable media attention.
On the brighter side, these inspired many – including Manmohan
Singh, former Supreme Court judge and chairman of the toothless Press Council
of India, Markandey Katju, and last but not the least, the Italian-born
Congress President Sonia Gandhi – to write their own accounts sooner or
later.
Katju, often in the news for controversial remarks, is
expected to talk on corruption in the high levels of the judiciary.
Singh is apparently provoked by Baru’s
portrayal of a “defanged” Prime Minister.
And, Sonia is upset because Natwar, who had once enjoyed
easy access to her household, has now turned against her, virulently
castigating her for her autocratic style of functioning.
Totalitarianism in the guise of democracy
I haven’t read Rai’s memoir yet.
Baru is an accomplished writer and his book is a nice
read indeed.
But, the show is definitely stolen, or a little more than
that, by Parakh and Natwar.
As the former coal secretary (2004-2005) Parakh left all
those import marks on government files that helped Rai stitch together a case,
in 2012, against the Manmohan Singh government for arbitrarily distributing
hundreds of coal mining assets, free of cost, to private parties.
The scandal not merely paved the way for the corrupt
Congress-led government’s exit from power earlier this year but also had a
crippling effect on the Indian economy. It was in 2012 that Rai brought the
skeletons out of the cupboard in his audit report.
Their efforts have not gone in vain. The corruption
ridden UPA was shown the doors by voters in May this year. And,
in September, the Supreme Court cancelled all coal block allotments.
Parakh in his book has not only reflected on the making
of the scandal but, he went much beyond that.
It is a handbook to understand how Indian democracy is
transforming itself into a banana republic - where unscrupulous politicians are
increasingly trying to grab every opportunity to fulfil their narrow interests.
Take tour through his 36-year long career, from a
sub-collector of Asifabad in Andhra Pradesh to the coal secretary in Delhi
That corruption breached the tolerable limits is known to
every Indian. But not many had the guts to chronicle it, with specific details.
He guides you to look at the “the other side of
simplicity” of BJP-led NDA government’s (1998-2004) coal minister Mamata
Banerjee (now Chief Minister of West Bengal), forcing the national miner to recruit
her party-men, donate generously to choicest NGOs.
UPA coal ministers – Sibu Soren and Dasari Narayana Rao –
were demanding graft from coal officials. An MP from Jharkhand is a coal mafia.
Parliamentary committee head, Ananth Kumar, (now fertiliser minister in the
Narendra Modi government) was holding the brief of an errant junior officer in
Coal India
The man who walked the lions
Parakh is an outsider in politics. He talks about issues
concerning basic governance that directly touches the lives of the commonest of
common Indian citizens.
But, the octogenarian Natwar belongs to a world which was
known for class, charm and elegance.
Son of a Maharaja (prince), Natwar grew up in the company
of the high and mighty, and always remained close to them. He enjoyed walking with lions and lionesses of this world.
Husband of a Princess; Natwar knew India
For the next five decades, he not merely worked in the
Indian missions in China ,
the UN, USA , Poland , Africa
and so on; but also struck up a warm relationship with the Nehru-Gandhi
dynasty.
As a diplomat, Natwar was one of the closest aides of
Indira Gandhi, arguably the most powerful and charismatic Prime Minister
Independent India has seen. He had quit diplomatic career to join the Rajiv
Gandhi cabinet in 1984, and was a close confidante of Sonia Gandhi, till 2005.
He would discuss literature with Jawaharlal and E M
Forster with as equal ease, as he guided Rajiv in striking a landmark treaty
with China
His book has little to do with
corrupt district magistrates or MPs.
It’s about the untold stories of Prime
Ministers and Presidents, top leaders intellectuals.
His book poignantly captures, how silly decisions by
Morarji Desai almost jeopardised India ’s
long-term interests in Africa , or why Sonia
picked P V Narsimha Rao as the country’s Prime Minister in 1991 and eventually fell
out with him.
It gives deep insights into India ’s
diplomatic successes and faux pas – while dealing with Beijing ,
Islamabad , Washington ,
Moscow or Colombo
The best part is it offers a 360-degree tour of the
issues that dominated global politics for five decades - the stories concerning
the decolonisation of Africa or sabotaging of Pakistan’s interests in East
Pakistan (now Bangladesh), by its own diplomats in 1971.
It’s an effortless narrative adroitly filled with nuggets
of humour. I will rate it as an almanac of India
On the same boat
Parakh and Natwar’s views on life are as different as
chalk and cheese. Yet there is one commonality between the two.
Parakh took up writing, after the country’s investigating
agency (CBI) accused him of involvement in coal block allotment scam in October
2013
The accusation didn’t quite stand. But Parakh saw it,
rightly so, as an attempt to victimise him for playing a whistleblower.
One Life is not Enough generated media attention chiefly because of Natwar’s
takes on Sonia and the Paul Volcker Report on the “Oil-for-food scandal” in Iraq
The UN enquiry panel concluded that the erstwhile Iraqi
dictator Saddam Hussein bribed many influential people across the world with
barrels of oil worth millions of dollars.
From India
Everyone, but Natwar, was spared the rod. Subsequently,
he lost his portfolio, and was eventually found himself hounded by central
investigative agencies.
Natwar now blames Sonia for making him a scapegoat!
Volcker Report, he says, primarily accused the Congress. Natwar’s
name was included at the later stage.
The Congress-led government set up an inquiry commission
to probe the validity of Volcker’s claims. But, he says, the documents on the
case, as collected by Indian mission in the UN were not submitted to the
commission.
The hint is clear. The administration worked overtime to
bail the Congress out. And to make sure its public image unsullied, they needed
a scapegoat.
Natwar says it was him.
***
(Disclaimer: Graphics are collected from web. Will be withdrawn in case of any objection)
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