What Patel would have done and Nehru didn't

Whether India gained independence by a quirk of fate, or by distinct design or by the selfless sacrifice of martyrs or by the moral fortitude of the teeming millions who followed Gandhiji from Dandi to Delhi is a debate that will never tire.

But what is substantially clear is that the freedom was dearly bought and  that we cannot afford to pay the cost twice.

The leadership at the time of independence had caliber, commitment and a collective conscience, all of which seem so remote from the people who drive the country today that we are set to wonder if we are indeed the same country.

While the world is looking at the progress that India has made with some awe and significant amazement, not because the progress has been so rapid, but because, they believed, due to the perception of a post independence apocalypse created by the British, that India would plunge into anarchy and chaos, the moment she would be free.

While India did make her tryst with destiny, she at the same time, reigned in the chaos that the British so much expected her to inevitably plunge into, the moment they left.

Today, when a giant statue of Vallabh Bhai Patel is being erected, the marginalization of a stalwart by the Gandhian ecosystem once again became the hot topic of debates right across the country.

There was a very large section of people eg. my grandfather, who wished Vallabhai Patel had become the first PM of the country for reasons which varied from Patels understanding of rural India, of its malaise and their faith in his ability of executing to perfection. While this section found Nehru charming and magnetic, it would rather catapult Vallabhai Patel into lead the Cabinet and let Nehru be the quintessential foreign minister whose oratorical prowess would charm the international audience to a nascent yet resurgent India. But that was not to be, as Gandhiji’s preference for Nehru to a strong headed Patel was no secret.

A few things that I am sure Patel would have done far better than Nehru due to his background and superior understanding of what India stood for would perhaps been :

1. Maintaining a strong, motivated and modern defense force
2. Laying the foundation of a robust rural self governance model
3. Casting a cabinet with an immaculately clean reputation and government that was free of corruption
4. No dynasty

At Hamburg I referred to the Ancient Indian Rope Trick

I watched with relish, the interview of Raghuram Rajan, the new governor of RBI, who seems to have an uncanny flair for flirting with the stock market - a shoulder-shrugging demeanor that gives confidence to investors - despite India having slowed down to a 5 pct GDP growth - having stayed course for about 3 years with 8-9 pct. It is imperative for the Government to set up some corrective mechanisms, as without them, the country will dash asymptotically to the Hindu Growth Rate.

That, India would not lose it’s sovereign-rating, is an event, with much higher odds in its favor and far-fewer against it. The credence with which Rajan assertively stated that India could pay off its short term debt the next day was for sure, confidence giving.

While he was sensible enough not to sound pompous, he appreciated in full measure the propensity of the markets to react to cues which may not always be fully rational.

 

Few months ago, the Economist's cover page screamed if India had lost its magic. While presenting at Hamburg, to a group of Pharma professionals, I had shown this cover page to them as a barometer of mood of disappointment with the India Story.

Of the 9^th century India, the World believed, the Indians had a rope trick. The rope when beckoned by the magician, would rise vertically up into the sky. The Jhamoorah (the English language does not seem to have a parallel to this word) would climb up the rope and disappear, till his body, split in multiple pieces would drop down, and be re-assembled and spewed with life by the Magician.

While I have seen several Magicians and Illusionists, I have never witnessed this rope trick myself. But it has been chronicled in many ancient texts, the earliest being some Buddhist texts dating to 700 AD’s, And such references to the trick continued to appears even in British accounts of people of eminence of none less than Sir Ralph Pearson.

While the cover page of the Economist could in some measure be a barometer of the view of the international media, I still believe, India, under the right leadership, has the wherewithal to perform such tricks.