Senior Congress leader and former minister Manish Tewari has returned to Parliament after defeating SAD stalwart Prem Singh Chandumajra. In an interview with The Tribune reporter  Aditi Tandon, the Lok Sabha MP from Anandpur Sahib spoke on a range of issues

You have termed your Lok Sabha win a personal vindication, why?

Because I have been able to bury the stigma that I was scared of fighting an election. In 2014, I was the Ludhiana MP and minister. Unfortunately after the 2014 Lok Sabha elections were announced a lingering health issue manifested itself in a rather virulent manner and on the advice of my doctors I was not able to contest. For five years, my opponents ran a campaign against me saying I had run away from elections as I feared being defeated. For someone who has been a fighter all his life it was painful to be labeled like this. That’s why I was keen on contesting the state Assembly elections in 2017, but the party decided otherwise. So Anandpur Sahib contest was a personal crusade and my victory a personal vindication.

Your plans for the segment?

Anandpur Sahib has tremendous religious and cultural diversity. It is home to Takth Sri Kesgarh Sahib, houses the city of Chamkaur Sahib where the elder Sahibzadas attainted martyrdom; has holy place associated with Guru Ravidas; has memorials for Shaheed Bhagat Singh and his mother. There is tremendous potential to develop the segment as a hub for religious and nationalistic tourism. We will try and institutionalise an annual literary-cultural festival in the constituency.

CM Capt Amarinder Singh has come down heavily on Navjot Sidhu for hurting party prospects. Your take?  

Capt Amarinder is the only leader of Punjab. If at all there is a contemporary in terms of leadership that he may have, it is Parkash Singh Badal. It is thus unfortunate that young ministers who are a part of his government rather than learning from him are trying to unnecessarily snipe at him. Sidhu or anybody else would really benefit by learning the way Capt Amarinder functions. Getting into a quibble with him is a no-brainer because the reality is that no one in terms of gravitas and leadership quality measures up to him.

Would you credit Congress’ Punjab’s performance to Capt Amarinder?

This is the 26th month of Capt Amarinder Singh’s government in the state. In the 2004 LS polls, we had won only two seats — Jalandhar and Patiala. This time we have won eight and lost Bathinda narrowly. The credit should and must go to Capt Amarinder because it is his leadership which made all the difference.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi is adamant on quitting his post. Can Capt Amarinder lead the Congress?

My personal belief is that Rahul Gandhi should continue as Congress president. In electoral politics, there are victories and defeats. While victory should not make you overly ecstatic, defeat should not put you down. Insofar as Capt Amarinder is concerned he has deliberately, not from today but stretching back the entire length of his political career, devoted himself to the service of the people of Punjab. He has always had his priorities clear. I think the discussion around who should succeed Rahul Gandhi is meaningless.

How do you read the 2019 verdict after Congress’ 2014 loss?

It is a defeat and there is no running away from it. But if you try and do an analysis you eventually come to wrong conclusions. So there has to be an honest assessment in terms of messaging as to where did we go wrong, what is the scope of improvement, how do we plan for 2024?

Why has Congress failed to convince people that it’s a viable alternative?

It has now been 38 years that I have been with the Congress. I have seen it going through highs and lows. I remember a time in 1987, when we won just five seats in Haryana. In 1991, we had majority there. The current electoral cycle is not a cause for disappointment although it is a cause of concern. The Congress has the resilience to bounce back but I agree there is need for tremendous amount of hard work.

Will we see you as leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha?

My ambitions have always been circumscribed by the diktats of the party. This is a decision squarely within the remit of the chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party and the Congress president. Any expression of desire or interest by anyone is a complete non-sequitur and meaningless exercise.

A day after the February 26 Balakot airstrike, an Mi-17 helicopter of the IAF crashed at Budgam in Kashmir. All six IAF personnel on board and a civilian on the ground were killed, including a young Squadron Leader from Chandigarh, Siddharth Vashisht. The tragic incident was reduced to a footnote amid the euphoria over the retaliatory aerial action and the release of Wg Cdr Abhinandan Varthaman from Pakistan’s custody. With the ongoing inquiry indicating that lapses led to the crash, the IAF has set the ball rolling by removing the Air Officer Commanding of the Srinagar air base.

The helicopter was downed by a surface-to-air missile of the IAF itself, even as the air defence system was on the highest alert after the airstrike. The incident happened around the time Indian and Pakistani jets were engaged in a dogfight over Nowshera in J&K. It is shocking that the IFF (Identification, Friend or Foe) system, which automatically transmits a unique identification signal, was switched off on the Mi-17. The probe should pinpoint who all were responsible for not following the mandatory procedures despite strict instructions from the Air Force Headquarters. It’s also imperative to ascertain whether it was just an accident that happened in the fog of war or someone misguided the pilot. Importantly, the Barnala-based node of the IAF’s Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS), which was tracking the aerial skirmish and collating information from radars, unmanned aerial vehicles and surveillance planes, had not marked this helicopter as an ‘intruder’.

The Budgam episode has remained shrouded in mystery for almost three months. It has been an agonising wait for the victims’ families, who want to know — as does the entire nation — what exactly went wrong that fateful day. As soon as the investigation is completed and accountability fixed at various levels, the truth — no matter how unpalatable — should be made public. Taking the disturbing matter to its logical conclusion is a litmus test for the IAF, whose credibility is at stake.

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre was the result of a well-planned conspiracy aimed at bringing together a crowd which could be killed by Dyer, says eminent historian VN Datta in conversation with Nonica Datta

Nonica Datta: You were born in Amritsar. What did you understand about the Jallianwala Bagh massacre as a child?

VN Datta: It was horrible… Our house was a 10-minute walk from Jallianwala Bagh at Katra Sher Singh in the walled city of Amritsar. My elder sister told me that she heard the bullets and that my mother began to beat her chest thinking that my father was dead. When I was about six years’ old, I used to walk in the Bagh and observe the bullet marks on the walls. Because of my family memory, I, too, became an indirect witness to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Later, I wrote extensively on the subject. My book, Jallianwala Bagh, appeared in 1969.

ND:Why do you think Brigadier General Reginald Dyer did what he did? 

VND: You have to think of the circumstances which led to Dyer’s action. After the victory in World War I, British confidence was at its peak. In addition, Punjab was ruled by the iron hand of Lieutenant Governor, Sir Michael O’Dwyer. He terrorised the troops and peasants. And then came the infamous Rowlatt Bills. There was political unrest in the province.

Dyer did not look upon Jallianwala Bagh massacre as an isolated event, but as an integral part of the Amritsar disturbances. Three days before, on the 10th, the city had been the scene of widespread violence following the arrest of local leaders from Punjab—Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew, Dr Satya Pal, Bugga and Ratto; five Europeans had been murdered; and a lady missionary, Miss Sherwood, had been assaulted. I would say that the assault on Miss Sherwood provided the context for Jallianwala Bagh incident to happen.

As a result, Dyer became furious and determined. He rushed from Jalandhar on 11 April. On 12 April, he moved around the city of Amritsar. On 13 April, from the Hathi Gate, he reached the narrow Jallianwala Bagh. He could not take the machine guns inside. With 50 troops on the platform—25 Gurkhas, 25 Baluchis—he shot about 1,650 bullets, and I calculated around 700 people died. He later told the Disorders Inquiry Committee that he realised his force was small and to hesitate might induce attack.

I believe Dyer’s decision in Jallianwala Bagh was partly influenced by his seeing Amritsar as a possible storm-centre of rebellion and partly by the circumstances of 10 April.

The Punjab Government feared that on the Baisakhi Day a large number of villagers would come to the city and their presence would make the situation sinister. On 12 and 13 April, Dyer issued two orders banning public meetings and processions in Amritsar city. When the massacre took place, martial law had not been introduced and the Brigadier General was not empowered to take charge of the city. But Dyer assumed full control of the situation and ignored the civilian officers. My argument is had he acted in concert with civilian officers, it is possible that the catastrophic episode might have been averted.

As soon as Dyer arrived in the Bagh, he stood on the raised platform and opened fire without warning. Not only this but, he fired continuously even when he could see that people were running for their lives. The Hunter Committee accused him of infringing the principle of minimum force, but failed to explain satisfactorily why he did so, maintaining that Dyer merely exceeded the bounds of his duty.

All these insights were possible because of my discovery of the volumes VI and VII of the Disorders Inquiry Committee (also known as the Hunter Committee) to which Dyer gave an account of his actions. I noticed that the previous volumes, I–V, did not contain the material that these two volumes possessed. These latter volumes included consolidated reports secretly maintained by the British government. I was the first to bring these volumes to the notice of scholars and able to discover hitherto unknown facts.

ND: It is evident that your pioneering work provides an altogether different historical perspective on 1919. Tell us how you would interpret the Jallianwala Bagh massacre? 

VND: I feel that the massacre was the result of a well-planned conspiracy aimed at bringing together a crowd which could be killed by Dyer. There was no martial law (in Amritsar and Lahore) till 15 April. There were no police present at Jallianwala Bagh. The Deputy Commissioner was absent from the scene. Dyer took no steps to prevent the meeting.

ND: Why do you call the massacre a conspiracy? 

VND: In order to understand the massacre, it is necessary to follow the movements of Hans Raj, the chief organiser of the Jallianwala Bagh meeting. At the time of the meeting, when some people began to move away, he urged the crowd to be seated and declared ‘the Government will never fire’. After a while, he waved his handkerchief and Dyer and his Indian troops appeared. When the shooting began, Hans Raj had already left. He was an agent provocateur. He was later spirited away to Mesopotamia and his house in Amritsar was burnt.

ND: Who was in the crowd? Who were the prominent leaders present in the Bagh? 

VND: Before the massacre, Jallianwala Bagh was a dumping ground of no political significance. In his testimony to the Disorders Inquiry Committee, Dyer said that the crowd was not innocent but hostile. He claimed it was a planned affair, with an organised mob assembled with the intent of defying authority.

But the crowd was an amorphous lot. Many had come to the city as part of a cattle fair on the Baisakhi festival and had wandered into the Bagh. There was no leader of importance present there. I talked to people who had survived the massacre. I interviewed Rattan Devi, Uttar Kaur and Uttam Devi, who rushed to the Bagh immediately after the firing. Their testimonies formed an essential part of my book, Jallianwala Bagh. I also had long conversations with Dr Kitchlew. Despite his failing health, he gave me valuable information. Hans Raj Mittal, a leading lawyer of Amritsar, told me that the Jallianwala Bagh episode was a conspiracy hatched by Hans Raj.

ND:  What is the legacy of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre? 

VND: After the massacre—as SK Datta, principal of Forman Christian College, Lahore, said—there was a parting of ways between the British and Indians. The massacre paved the way for the ultimate downfall of the British Empire and a new leadership by Gandhi appeared on the national scene.

In my works, I have tried to move away from a nationalist hagiography of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. However, there is no doubt that it proved a great asset to the nationalist cause. 1919 changed the political complexion of Punjab, which could never recover from that military violence.

— This interview is one of a series of interviews with VN Datta conducted by Nonica Datta between July 2018 and April 2019 in New Delhi.

Shyam Sood

Rajouri, March 10

The Army nabbed a smuggler from the fence gate on the Line of Control (LoC) at Basooni village in the Balakote sector in Poonch district on Saturday. The Army recovered Rs 10-lakh fake Indian currency and 2 kg of heroin-like substance from him.

The youth, identified as Mohd Zaffar, resident of Dabbi village, was directed to stop by troops of the Gorkha unit manning the gate no. 488.

“Instead of stopping, the youth tried to escape, but was apprehended,” said sources, adding that a bag was recovered from the spot. It had 2 kg of a heroin-like substance and Rs 10 lakh in fake Indian currency (in the denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000).

Poonch Senior Superintendent of Police Ramesh K Angral said, “A detailed investigation has been started and soon more arrests can’t be ruled out in the case.”

Dabbi village is the last Indian village along the LoC in the Balakote sector. Similar smuggling attempts have been reported from the area in the past also.

Military intelligence personnel questioned Zaffar who was later handed over to the police.

The police have booked Zaffar under Sections 8/21/22 of the NDPS Act and Section 489-C (possession of counterfeit currency notes) of the Ranbir Penal Code.

Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, April 12

A letter written by a group of retired military veterans, purportedly endorsed by eight former chiefs of the armed forces, to President Ram Nath Kovind has taken a new turn. Two of the former chiefs have denied having endorsed the letter or having signed it.

Gen SF Rodrigues and Air Chief Marshal NC Suri have distanced themselves from it saying they never signed any such letter. Gen Rodrigues was quoted by news agency ANI saying he was not aware of any such letter. Air Chief Marshal Suri said he had been misquoted and did not agree to whatever is written in the letter.

Maj Priyadarshi Chowdhary (retd) who had put out the letter in the public domain responded on Twitter saying “We have proof of their (Rodrigues’s and Suri’s) endorsement (of the letter).”

He said a Major General-rank officer was coordinating with the generals and senior officers. “Consent was there. We are an apolitical pressure group of veterans working on the issues affecting the forces.”

The letter expresses concern at the use of military operations for electoral or political purposes. Maj Chowdhary so far has not responded to the claims by the two former chiefs.

The letter appeals to the President to ensure that the ‘secular’ and ‘apolitical character’ of the armed forces is preserved.

Also read: Dedicate vote to airstrike men: PM to first-time voters

Reacting to the development, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, “Fake petitions are being signed. It is absolutely condemnable.”

Other signatories are claimed to have endorsed the letter.

The President is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.

The letter was sent on Thursday night to the official email ID of the Rashtrapati Bhawan with copies to the Election Commission.

The letter has the names of more than 150 signatories, including three former chiefs of the Army–Gen SF Rodrigues, Gen Shankar Roy Chowdhury and Gen Deepak Kapoor besides four former chiefs of the Navy–Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas, Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat, Admiral Arun Prakash and Admiral Sureesh Mehta.

It also has former Indian Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal NC Suri as a signatory.

Besides, the signatories include retired Army Commander-level officers, gallantry awardees and former fighter pilots, among others.

The recent developments have caused “some concern and considerable alarm and disquiet among both the serving and retired personnel of our forces”, says the letter.

They referred to the “unusual and completely unacceptable practice” of political leaders taking credit for military operations like cross-border strikes, and even going so far as to claim the armed forces to be “Modiji ki Sena”.

This is in addition to media pictures of election platforms and campaigns in which party workers are seen wearing military uniforms; and posters with pictures of soldiers, especially of IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, on them.

“Such misuse of the armed forces established under the Constitution and under the supreme command of the President, impinge adversely on the morale and fighting efficiency of the serving man or woman in uniform. It could, therefore, directly affect national security and national integrity,” the signatories have warned.

The letter urges the President to take necessary steps and asks all political parties to desist from using the military, military uniforms or symbols, and any actions by military formations or personnel, for political purposes or to further their political agendas.

The soldiers, sailors and airmen owed allegiance to the Constitution, of which you, as President, are the legal custodian, the letter says.