Political Diary
New Delhi, 13 October 2012
Tale of Two Sons
In-Law
OF MANGO PEOPLE,
BANANA REPUBLIC
By Poonam I Kaushish
This is the tale of two sons in law, Feroze Gandhi and
Robert Vadra. The first, a bête noir
of his father-in law Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The latter, has become
the Achilles Heel of his mother-in-law,
Nehru-s granddaughter-in-law and Feroz’s daughter-in-law Congress President
Sonia Gandhi. While Gandhi exposed corruption in independent India's first
Congress Government, Vadra has become the focus of alleged sleazy tales.
Recall, Feroze who married Nehru’s daughter and ex-Prime
Minister Indira Gandhi in 1942 is best remembered for spotlighting dishonesty
in his father-in-law’s Government. Elected to Parliament in 1952, his exposure
of la affaire Mundhra in 1957 wherein
the LIC invested Rs. 1.24 crores in fraudulent shares of the industrialist company
led to the resignation of then Finance Minister T.T. Krishnamachari, causing Nehru
major embarrassment. The Justice MC Chagla one-man commission later sentenced Mundhra
to 22 years in prison. Feroze also was the primary force behind industrialist
Ram Kishan Dalmia’s imprisonment for defrauding his life insurance company in
1956.
Unlike Feroze, Vadra, an ordinary
boy from Moradabad
who wed Sonia’s daughter Priyanka hit headlines for all the wrong reasons when
India Against Corruption (IAC) founder Arvind Kejriwal exposed his alleged
“dirty linen”. It accused the country’s
first son-in-law of receiving undue favours and wealth from India’s biggest
reality firm Delhi-based DLF. And asked Vadra to clarify how his wealth jumped
from Rs 50 lakh in 2007 to Rs 300 crore in 2012?
Citing from Vadra’s balance sheet,
IAC sought clarification on how he purchased 7 high end apartments in one of DLF’s
Gurgaon properties for a total of a mere Rs 5 crores when each flat alone is
worth that, a penthouse valued at Rs 25 crores for a pittance Rs 89 lakhs in
2007 and a hotel in south Delhi for Rs 35 crores, no matter a shop costs more.
More. Why did DLF give Vadra Rs 65
crores as unsecured interest free loans which he invested back in the
firm? Why did the Congress Government in
Haryana give a 35 acre plot meant for a hospital to DLF for an SEZ? Was it on
Vadra’s behest as he too had invested monies and what was the
quid-pro-quo?
Complicating matters, Kejriwal &
Co drew parallels between Vadra and DMK’s Kanimozhi and Dayanidhi Maran 2G cases.
According to them, like DLF, another realty
firm gave Karunanidhi’s daughter
an unsecured loan of Rs.200 crores for which she was jailed, while Maran had to
resign as Union Minister for a purported quid-pro-quo deal with another telecom
company. If it is OK to attack Kanimozhi for corruption, why not
Vadra?
A
panicky High Command fielded Ministers from Finance Minister Chidambaram,
Law Minister Salman Khurshid, Corporate Minister Moily and spokespersons to
deny any hanky-panky by Sonia’s son in-law.
All asserting, “This is politically-motivated, cheap publicity stunt and
Vadra had done nothing wrong.” Yet, the controversy refuses to go away as it raises
discomfiting questions which need to be proven.
Adding
to Sonia’s discomfiture even as Party apparatchiks were defending Vadra’s
malfeasance, he cocked a snook at the aam
aadmi in whose name the Congress seeks votes, by posting on his Facebook page,
“Mango people in banana republic.” Translated in English, aam has two meanings:
ordinary and mango fruit.
Worse,
by implying India
is a banana republic he seemed to be mocking Sonia. Or was he stating the
reality? Look at the irony. It is only a banana republic which allows a ‘first family
man’ to make money in so little time. Thanks to his right connections due to
which he has the right kind of friends.
The moot point is not only whether
Vadra has done any wrong but it brought three important issues to the fore.
One, if Vadra is a “private citizen” why did Ministers defend him? And so
clumsily? Two, as private person why does he enjoy SPG Z+ protection and is
among 30 VVIPs who are exempt from frisking at all airports. Three, it has
exposed the hypocrisy of “political maryada”, the unwritten code of honour among our netagan not to rake up crimes of
omission and commission of their rivals families. All adhering to a
“live-and-let-live” policy for fear of mutual destruction. The Congress
deafening silence on Vajpayee’s foster son-in-law of Ranjan Bhattacharya, a
case in point.
Alas, as various scams over the years from Mundhra, Bank
scam, petrol pumps, CWG, 2G and Coalgate show, the maximum beneficiaries are netas, their relatives and cronies.
See how Congress turned the other
cheek when Andhra Prince Jaganmohan Reddy minted millions. But as soon as he challenged
the Party High Command he became personal-non-grata
and his corruption omnipresent.
What to speak of the abuse of CBI by Government’s of the day
to keep their rivals in line. Time and again both the Congress and BJP have
used the investigation agency to keep Messers’ Mayawati (Taj Corridor scandal,
disproportionate wealth), Mulayam (unproven money), Laloo (Chaara scam) et al in
check, by going slow or accelerating corruption cases.
Wildcard or enfant terrible, call him what you may but the aam aadmi is applauding Kejriwal and IAC for over-turning the rules of the political game as
it has so far been played. Either which way, the IAC googly has our
netagan worried. Many wonder whose
skeletons will be laid bare by it next. Specially against the backdrop that our politicians who have never
worked a day in their life, start their political innings with a jhola but become multi-millionaires
within five years. The tragedy of India is that we are not able to fight
corruption in public life because the people who run the government are
corrupt.
True, the cynics shrug off the IAC hue and cry over Vadra.
“It will die down in a few days. Kejriwal and Co are one day wonders who will
fade away once a new scandal erupts, remember public memory is short,” said a
seasoned leader. Others feel the
Government and Congress have shot itself in the foot. Instead of Ministers
competing with each other to defend him, Vadra should have been left to defend
his case. That way, whatever the outcome, the Party would have kept itself out
of any embarrassment.
Needless to say, for us “mango
people” to expect any sort of accountability from our netas betas-betis-damaads is nothing short of a pipe dream. Perhaps
the time has come for a codification of this “honour among thieves” so that we
are at least spared the mortification of watching elaborate and often brazen
cover-ups of corruption by their families.
What next? Will IAC be the game changer India desperately
wants and needs? Not a few are confident that the people will no longer remain
mute spectators post the Anna Hazare Jan Lokpal campaign. The aam aadmi is aware that corruption has
morphised from behind close doors to open loot. The only way forward is to
overhaul political funding by ushering in transparency. One sincerely hopes Probity
does not become the oxymoron to the Indian Politicians. Else, we will continue
to live in a Banana Republic of mango people! ----- INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature
Alliance)
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