india needs a real leader, not the pusillanimous pygmies on offer.
which is the reason they are so scared of modi.
india's curse is that its self-proclaimed leaders are nobodies being manipulated by shadowy puppet-masters in the background. full marks to such handlers for decimating india.
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From:
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Nation needs his iron will
Jagmohan
Sardar Patel: A rare constructive genius
We, as a nation, do not realise that great questions of the day are not settled by speeches and slogans but by sound and solid action. Ideas are important. But it is the constructive work alone that can "inject meaning into the veins of history and civilisation".There is no one in modern India who has achieved so much in so many directions and in such a short time as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. At the time of his death, the Manchester Guardian wrote: "Without Patel, Gandhi's idea would have less practical influence and Nehru's idealism less scope. He was not only the organiser of the fight for freedom, but also the architect of the new state when the fight was over. The same man is seldom successful both as rebel and statesman. Sardar Patel was an exception." Integration of States Sardar Patel's integration over 560 princely states was really a great triumph for the sense of realism and responsibility. In respect of this great task, he has often been compared with Chancellor Bismarck who unified Germany in the late 19th century. But Patel's achievement is far more remarkable than that of Bismarck. The latter had only to deal with about a dozen states; Patel had to handle 561. While Bismarck resorted to the policy of 'blood and iron', Patel brought about a bloodless revolution. He showed an amazing capacity to size up men and moments and strike when the iron was hot. Without splattering any blood, he caused about 800,000 sq km of land to be added to the Indian Union, besides a population of 86 million. Both Gandhi and Lord Mountbatten warmly recognised Patel's great contribution. Gandhi observed: "The task of dealing with the princes was truly formidable, but I am convinced that the Sardar was the only person who could have coped with it." Lord Mountbatten, in his letter of June 19, 1948, to Patel, wrote: "There is no doubt that by far the most important achievement of the present Government is unification of the States into the Dominion of India. Had you failed in this, the results would have been disastrous. But since you succeeded, no one can see the disastrous consequences that you avoided. Nothing has added to the prestige of the present Government more than the brilliant policy you have followed with the States." Patel first formulated a great design for a well-knit India and then proceeded to materialise it on the ground. He aroused the patriotic sentiments of the princes and reminded them: "We are at a momentous stage in the history of India. By a common endeavour, we can raise the country to a new greatness, while lack of unity will expose us to fresh calamities." At the same time, Patel took care not to allow any grass to grow underneath his feet. He scotched Nawab of Bhopal's idea of grouping a few States and securing a separate dominion status. And when compulsive denigrators of India, like Winston Churchill, tried to complicate the Hyderabad problem by propping up the divisive game of the Nizam, "an old and faithful ally of the Empire", Patel responded clearly and firmly: "It is only in goodwill spirit and not on the malice and venom of Mr Churchill's tongue that an enduring relationship can be built between India and Britain and other members of the Commonwealth." The message went home and the browbeating of India stopped. Patel's approach to the highly complex issues of integration of a wide variety of princely states was marked by an inspired vision, tact, magnanimity, inflexible will and 'resolute practicability'. When Nikita Khrushchev visited India in 1956, he significantly observed: "You Indians are a remarkable people. You have liquidated the princely states without liquidating the princes." It was, by implications, a great tribute to the remarkable work of Patel. Patel and Kashmir If Patel had handled Jammu & Kashmir, the subsequent confusion and contradictions would have been avoided and we would not have found ourselves in the bloody and brutal mess of the present day. Patel had correctly sized up Sheikh Abdullah and sensed his proclivity to bully. His practical sense forbade him to believe that all Indian eggs could be safely placed in the Sheikh's basket. He bemoaned India's reference of the Kashmir case to the United Nations. He tried his best to secure deletion of the words, "plebiscite under the UN auspices", from Jawaharlal Nehru's radio broadcast on October 28, 1947. In his private conversation, he sometimes satirically referred to the 'expertise' of the two votaries of the UN in the Government of India -- Lord Mountbatten and Nehru. Patel was also against Gopalaswamy Ayyangar being sent as leader of the Indian delegation to the UN and Sheikh Abdullah as member. He preferred Sir Girja Shankar to the former; about the latter, he feared that the "Sheikh's flamboyant personality might easily swamp the boat". It was unwise to agree to many of Sheikh Abdullah's unreasonable demands and bolster his ego to such an extent that he started nursing illusions of carving out a virtual 'Sheikhdom' for himself and his coterie. Had Patel remained on the scene, he would have halted the appeasement in time. To the extent Patel was able to influence the course of events in Jammu & Kashmir, his contribution was fruitful. When the raiders were on the outskirts of Srinagar and Lt Col Ranjit Rai and Major Som Nath Sharma of the Indian Army had been killed, being heavily outnumbered, Patel, accompanied by Defence Minister Baldev Singh flew to the State capital, assessed the situation on the ground and on return to New Delhi ordered stoppage of all airline services and diversion of all planes for flying troops to Srinagar. The timely arrival of reinforcements enabled Brigadier Sen to lure the raiders in the net of Indian forces, near Shaltang, and attack them on November 5 from three sides. The raiders were routed. Three hundred of them were killed. The battle of Shaltang (November 7) proved decisive. Three days afterwards, advancing Indian troops recaptured Baramullah. If Patel had his way, he would not have allowed Maharaja Hari Singh to be humiliated. Left to himself, he would have struck a proper balance between the requirements of the Union and the State and also harmonised, within a sound and truly secular and democratic framework, the aspirations of Sheikh Abdullah, Maharaja Hari Singh and those of the people of three main regions -- Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. Reorganisation of Civil Services During the freedom struggle, the Indian Civil Service was on the other side of the fence and incurred the wrath of the Congress leaders. Nehru berated it as "neither Indian nor civil nor service". As the freedom movement gained momentum and the spectacle of Partition loomed larger over the Indian horizon, the members of the Indian Civil Service became uneasy about their future. Thanks to the constructive genius of Patel, the tangle was satisfactorily resolved. Patel's approach was that of a statesman. He did not allow the past rancour of the Congress against the ICS to blur his vision. He firmly believed that the All-India Services had a vital role to play in building a strong and united India. He advocated the retention of ICS and IP and proposed the constitution of two new All-India Services -- the Indian Administrative Service and the Indian Police Service. Patel explained his reasons for favouring the continuance of the institution of the ICS during the debate in the Constituent Assembly. A few members criticised his proposals. Saxena reminded the Assembly: "It was the steel frame of the ICS that had enslaved us." Ayyangar said: "It means that they were the rulers under the old regime and that they will continue to be so in this regime." But Patel defended the ICS vigorously. In a speech, which must be reckoned as historic in the arena of public administration in India, Patel said: "In point of patriotism, in point of sincerity and in point of ability, you cannot have a substitute... As a man of experience, I tell you, do not quarrel with the instruments with which you want to work. It is a bad workman who quarrels with his instruments." Patel's acknowledgement of the role of the Indian Civil Service boosted the morale of the officers and gave them a new sense of confidence and purpose. They saw in him a "great guardian of their legitimate interests". He, with the enthusiastic support of the officers, not only completed the integration of the states and steered the country through a critical phase, but also put the Indian administration on a secure foundation. Developing a New Model of Civic Governance Though little known, Patel's work in the field of civic administration was no less remarkable. In 1948, the Bombay Corporation held a civic reception in honour of Patel. On the occasion, he was asked what he considered to be the 'finest hour' of his illustrious career. Nobody expected him to say what he said. Inviting attention to his work first as chairman of the Sanitary Committee (1917-22) and then as president of the Municipal Board (1924-28). Patel reflected: "To cleanse the dirt of the city is quite different from cleansing the dirt of politics. From the former you get a good night's rest, while the latter keeps you worried and you lose your sleep." Patel's approach was direct and dynamic. He often combined his morning walks with the inspection tour of the city. In the company of GV Mavalankar and civic officers, he moved into the narrow streets, ascertained the problems from the people and took prompt remedial measures. e constructed a model which solved many of the acute problems of sanitation, health, water supply, waste disposal and traffic. Sometimes Patel appeared on the streets, himself leading the sanitary team. This created a new fervour not only among his staff, but also the youth who joined his campaign.
Taking cue from Patel's selfless work in the streets of Ahmedabad, Gandhi advised the municipal councillors all over the country "not to seek honours or indulge in mutual rivalries, but to have real spirit of service and covert themselves into unpaid sweepers and road-makers and, above all, take pride in doing so." Protector of True Interests of Minorities Patel has been accused of being anti-Muslim. Unfortunately, in the present-day India, this accusation has to be faced by all those who are the real benefactors of Muslims, but have the courage and commitment of calling a spade a spade, and making a distinction between appeasement and fairness, between whetting the appetite of a trouble-maker and telling him to behave. Patel, it is often forgotten, was the chairman of the Minorities Sub-Committee of the Constituent Assembly. The liberal provisions which our Constitution contains for the protection of linguistic and cultural rights of the minorities speak volumes about his catholicity. Gandhi's unflinching faith in Patel's secularism comes out clearly in a letter of October 24, 1924, written to him by Mahadev Desai, during Gandhi's famous 21-day fast for Hindu-Muslim unity. Mahadev said: "Whatever may happen on Hindu-Muslim front in Gujarat, as long as you are there, Bapu is at peace. If a storm occurs despite your presence, Bapu will assume that it was not possible to prevent it." Sizing-up of China Patel was a realist to the core. He was the first to see through Chinese aggressive designs. In a letter of November 7, 1950, to Nehru, he had observed: "The final action of the Chinese is little short of perfidy. The tragedy of it is that the Tibetan put faith in us, and we have been unable to get them out the meshes of Chinese malevolence. Chinese irredentism and Communist imperialism are different from the expansionism or imperialism of the Western Powers. The former has a cloak of ideology which makes it 10-times more dangerous." Patel's warning proved prophetic. We all know what a humiliation India suffered at the hands of Chinese in 1962. Standard of Probity Patel was an embodiment of probity in public life. The only property he left comprised a few dhotis and kurtas and a suitcase. He did not tolerate malfeasance anywhere. Even a minor impropriety by his partymen was sternly dealt with. Today, when things in India are falling apart and the Union is tottering, the national leadership ought to take a leaf from Patel's book and show the same constructive vision and iron will which he showed at a critical juncture of our history.
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1 comment:
I could only cry reading this most wonderful tribute to Sardar Patel. Thankyou Governor Jagmohan ji for helping us understand the most invaluable part of our modern history so clearly.
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