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Sardar Patel at his fiery best


Guest dada_rocks

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Guest dada_rocks

Leave it for voters to decide: Swapan Dasgupta [One of my favourtie bongs]

The Constituent Assembly witnessed some interesting debates on the reservation of seats in legislatures for minorities. The demand for the retention of communal quotas in independent India had been championed by those Muslim League MPs who either chose to remain in India or, like Choudhury Khaliquzzaman, delayed their departure to Pakistan.
In his reply on August 28, 1947, the then Home Minister Sardar Vallabbhai Patel responded to the Muslim proponents of communal quotas. "I once more appeal to you to forget the past", he said. "You have got what you wanted. You have got a separate state and remember, you are the people who were responsible for it, and not those who remain in Pakistan... What is it that you want now? I don't understand. In the majority Hindu provinces you, the minorities, you led the agitation. You got the Partition and now again you tell me and ask me to say for the purpose of securing the affection of the younger brother that I must agree to the same thing again, to divide the country again in the divided part. For God's sake understand that we have also got some sense... There will be generosity towards you, but there must be reciprocity. If it is absent then you take it from me that no soft words can conceal what is behind your words... (L)et us be one nation."
It is fortunate that Sardar Patel made his remarks in Parliament 60 years ago. Had he, for example, repeated his remarks at an election rally in Uttar Pradesh this week, it is more than likely that he would have faced prosecution on the sinister charge of promoting sectarian conflict. Had he, by some remarkable oversight, continued to be a Congressman, there may well have been demands by the likes of VP Singh and the editor of The Hindu for the Congress to be derecognised. In matters of political correctness, truth is not a defence. Just as in life, Indian politics is riddled with sectarian conflicts and awkward assertions of identity. The political process involves setting out prescriptive remedies to cope with the many faultlines. Many in the Congress, for example, feel that socio-economic entitlements must be packaged along religious lines and Muslims conferred special privileges. The BJP thinks the suggestion is preposterous. The Congress feels that every resident of India must be a voter; the BJP feels that illegal migrants from Bangladesh shouldn't be conferred the privilege. Elections are the time when these issues are taken to the people for a possible resolution. That's the way a democracy works. Naturally, the articulation of issues varies enormously. Sardar Patel's intervention in the Constituent Assembly was passionate but decorous; a street corner orator making the same points about Muslim separatism is almost certain to use more colourful imagery. Yet, in a country where living standards are uneven and cultural norms so different, both expressions of political sentiment have a place. To try and define the parameters of taste and correctness means conferring discretionary powers on an Election Commission whose primary job is to ensure accurate voter lists, free elections and correct tabulation of votes. It will be a sad day if an infamous upholder of the Emergency is asked to determine political content. This argument should not be construed as an endorsement of the infamous CD released by some BJP leaders or even the party's controversial advertisement which has raised secular hackles. One is tasteless, the other lacks sophistication. Indeed, I am appalled that a national party should descend to such base levels. For a party that conducted a hard-hitting but dignified campaign in Delhi, the lowering of standards in Uttar Pradesh warrant an internal debate. At the same time, the underlying concerns of this crude propaganda are real. It is for voters and not the ombudsmen to say what are "real" issues and what are emotive distractions. It is patently undemocratic to hope for elections where the electorate is not presented with a full range of options because some of them offend cosmopolitan sensibilities.
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Guest dada_rocks

Re: Sardar Patel at his fiery best So many peopel will have u believe those wanted pakistan left india for good .. sardar patel's words in august parliament house should show them some light...... U know who u are read it and be informed,next time when u start on those lines remember patel's words.. yes no speaker expunged sardar's words so ur supposed claim of that beig unparliamentary won't hold much water...

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