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| Manmohan sets healthy precedence | | | | What happened in Jammu and Kashmir in the summer of 2008 and left a deep scar on the public psyche could have easily been avoided if the political leaders had adopted a course as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did in briefing the leader of Opposition LK Advani on Malegaon blast probes. It is a good and useful practice in a democracy for the leader of the government to be in consultation with other key players of the political system on matters of importance. It was therefore heartening to see Prime Minister get in touch with Leader of the Opposition L.K. Advani to share thoughts and exchange ideas on the issue of the arrest and investigation of individuals associated with the Hindutva ideology in the high-profile Malegaon bomb blast case. This investigation and the judicial process associated with it marks a new turn in the understanding of terrorism in India. In the recent past, individuals bearing the Islamic faith have been in the spotlight on terrorism-related offences. Their actions were invariably presumed to tie up with the aspirations of international groups linked to the Al Qaeda movement. With the backdrop of negative India-Pakistan relations, exacerbated by the play of terrorism over the years, almost every act of terror in the country was construed to be a jihadist undertaking. The details of the investigation in the Malegaon case are slowly bringing to light motivations other than jihadism that might animate disgruntled elements within the system to cause the death and injury of innocents to further their political cause. Mr Advani, to be fair to him, appeared cognisant of this, and was content to let the law take its course. It appears he was obliged to shed his reserve with pressure growing on him to strike a blow for the proponents of Hindutva. Sadhvi Pragya’s allegation that she was tortured by the Maharashtra ATS investigators made it virtually impossible for him not to do so. With the process of Assembly elections on in several states, and the Lok Sabha polls looming on the horizon, it may have been impolitic for Mr Advani to avoid taking a position on a matter that has so exercised the Sangh Parivar, on whose mobilising capacity he is crucially dependent if he has to make a match of it in the Lok Sabha election. It is a good augury that the Prime Minister chose to see the issue for what it was and agree to alleviate Mr Advani’s misgivings on the putative issue of Pragya Thakur’s torture if indeed there was a case to do so. However, the manner in which the Prime Minister has proceeded lays itself open to questions. The despatching of the national security adviser and the Intelligence Bureau chief to the Leader of the Opposition to look at allegations made by an accused in an important case suggests that the normal judicial process has been circumvented. It should come as no surprise if others cite this as a precedent. Notwithstanding the fact above, the Prime Minister’s initiative of keeping the leader of opposition informed needs to the emulated by the political leaders elsewhere also for a healthy political discourse. |
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