This book – THE BHISHMA WAY : Ancient Dharma For Modern Business and Politics – authored by N Balasubramanian embodying a unique blend of holding senior positions in the private corporate sector and switching to academia believes that Bhishma Pitamah in the ever timely epic Mahabharata comes to the rescue of the modern day manager, politician or bureaucrat. As the upholder of truth and dharma, Bhishma’s life has been shaped by the difficult choices he makes. Even when his decisions are questionable, he serves as a role model. 

Justice in a civilised commonwealth depends upon three constituents: the value systems of the realm, the standards of dharma or righteousness, and the emphasis placed on the practice of truth. The impression Bhishma proffers is one of a man of great dignity, forbearance, courage, integrity, justice and above all selfless service for a chosen cause. In a business context many successful companies in India have said no to corruption and bribery as it goes against their value system. This has denied them growth opportunities, but they have withstood the temptation of rationalising corruption. 

The former Chairman of Tata group J R D Tata was once asked how he would define their set up. He said they felt a certain pride that they were ‘somewhat different from others’. He wondered “what would have happened if our philosophy was like that of some other companies which do not stop at any means to attain their ends. I have often thought of that and come to the conclusion that if we were like other groups we would be twice as big as they are today. What we have sacrificed is a 100 per cent growth, but we wouldn’t want it any other way.” 

Likewise, among the values that Azim Premji had learned and wished to implement in Wipro was the total commitment to integrity in operations and anti-corruption in corporate relationships. Bribery was anathema, whether it was direct or indirect through intermediaries. Although profit making is considered a legitimate human objective — being included as one of the four Purusharthas (objectives of human life) of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha — it is interesting to note that not many business corporations articulate shareholder wealth maximisation as their primary purpose in their vision statements and codes of values. 

A big challenge faced by companies is how they adhere to their corporate values while finding appropriate means to achieve desired ends. Bribery is perhaps the most common that companies and business leaders have to cope with. Corruption of course need not always be in monetary terms, although most often it is. On his part the author says “I have trained myself never to be concerned about the result. What I should be concerned about is the means and when I am sure of the purity of the means, faith is enough to lead me.” 

Then fundamental values of protecting the dignity of women, and that too a princess, were breached by Duryodhana and his associates in the presence of the blind, but all knowing Dritharashtra and other elders. That disgraceful act should have been stopped and Duryodhana and his colleagues chastised but that did not happen. Instead Bhishma told the pleading Draupadi that morality was subtle. There is also the overarching value principle of respecting a woman’s honour. Bhishma that great repository of wisdom, obviously could not decide and did the next best thing under such circumstances — pass the buck to another. He referred the matter to the accused himself. 

Considering his compromised position, Yudhishthira remained silent and the question remained unresolved. But often, a non-decision, or silence, is a decision in itself; in the absence of an affirmative instruction from Bhishma to ‘cease and desist’ from the proposed act of disrobing. However, when Draupadi prayed for divine intervention she was supplied a never ending stream of cloth thus protecting her modesty. Quite often upright people choose the path of indifference or least resistance. It is an area of serious concern where politicians in public service and individual directors in corporations perhaps need to introspect and if what they are doing is not in sync with their own conviction, they need to address that issue head on only to ensure their credibility. 

Raja Dharma or the principles of governing a Kingdom or a country keeping in mind the interests of its people seeks to strike a balance between an overly-powerful state and the preservation of order and peace. Coalition dharma is perhaps to the family of unique dharmas, popularised in modern day governments with more than one power centre operating concurrently. The alleged irregularities in 2G Spectrum scam or the coal mines allocation are classic examples of inappropriate handling of dharmic conflicts. 

Conflicts are not uncommon between different dharmic principles applicable to individuals and corporations. A major contribution of Bhishma in the field of governance is his detailed postulations in the duties of the king or the state. Every society be it a large country or a tribe, needs a framework to survive, sustain and grow. Everything rests on truth, a categorical imperative. Truth is knowledge and it is the ordinance. Truth is the observance of vows and fasts. It is on truth that the heaven rests. Forgiveness is the quality that comes into play when one has the largeness of heart to ‘forgive’ an exposed person, both for his action and inaction, as the case may be. Thus forgiveness is seen as a concomitant attribute of truth; otherwise, there may be little to differentiate between truthfulness and vindictiveness, if one’s aim in being truthful was only to gain satisfaction by exposing some other person or entity. 

The Mahabharata is focussed on the eternal battle between the just and the unjust, between good and evil. In many ways Bhishma has been an integral part of the many decisions and momentous events in the epic. In conclusion the author stresses there is a core of substantive contribution which is relevant to contemporary governance, possibly with some adaptations. Some of these are of eternal relevance to suit the needs of changing civilisation. 

Nothwithstanding his faults Bhishma stands out. Overall, he stands out as a giant offering wise counsel to the world on statecraft, in running a welfare commonwealth and personal qualities that are necessary for success in every walk of life. “Bhishma is India’s offering to the world to study and appreciate, to adapt and follow, or, where necessary to critique and discard, but under no circumstances can we afford to ignore the principles he expounded.” The book is both instructive and thought provoking having been derived from an unusual perspective. It focusses on governance in business and governments and demonstrates how governance and justice are inextricably connected. 

Senior IPS officer Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar has been appointed as new DG of CRPF. He is currently serving as Director General of the Narcotics Control Bureau  (NCB) – an ADG rank post which has temporarily been upgraded to a Special DG rank. Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar belongs to the 1983 batch of the Indian Police Service (IPS). 

Bhatnagar will be replacing acting DG Sudeep Lakhtakia.

CRPF was functioning without head since February 28, 2017.

MOSCOW: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday conveyed India’s strong solidarity with Russia in the wake of the recent terror attack in St Petersburg, he said the scourge of terrorism remains the primary security challenge for all peaceful countries.

Having successfully addressed the threat of terrorism for over three decades, he said, India will steadfastly partner all friendly countries confronted with the challenge of terrorism. Mr. Jaitley said India will continue to strengthen ongoing cooperation in counter-terrorism with its partners. 

Cautioning that terrorism was being reinvented in newer and even more dangerous manifestations, Mr. Jaitley said the manipulation of young minds by fundamentalist groups using new technologies and social media has already caused long-term damage to our societies. “One manifestation of this is the recent string of lone-wolf attacks in many countries,” he said. 

Addressing the 6^th Moscow Conference on International Security in Moscow today, Mr. Jaitley described as a “positive” development the territory acquired by ISIS in the Middle East has begun to be effectively challenged by several countries. “This is reassuring and should be taken to its logical conclusion. Cooperation between major powers in this effort can become a template for similar steps elsewhere,’’ he said.

Without naming Pakistan, Mr. Jaitley said that opportunistic efforts by some states should be resisted which go on to support terrorist proxies by training, funding or providing safe havens to such groups for their limited objectives. 

“Distinctions are still sought to be made between good and bad terrorists, despite all the evidence and experience to the contrary. Terrorism will recoil on those who nurture it,’’ he told the conference. The Defence Minister stressed upon the need for a coherent and sustained international response to the global nature of terrorism which was now widely acknowledged. 

Describing the Moscow Conference has one of the most important global forums for discussions on contemporary security matters, Mr. Jaitley said that Moscow is one of the key centres for decision-making on global security issues in keeping with Russia’s significance and influence in world affairs. 

Even as the government on Tuesday announced that it would `review’ and `revise’ its Left Wing Extremism (LWE) policy in the wake of the killing of 25 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans in Chhattisgarh, the National Human Rights Commission also condemned the attack saying that the a loss of life of any innocent person, whether in force or a civilian, was a matter of violation of human rights. 

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh who announced that a high level meeting would be convened in New Delhi on May 8 to review and revise—if need be—the government’s policy on LWE. Chief Ministers and Chief Secretaries of 10 States and District Magistrates from all Naxal-affected districts have also be invited for this crucial meeting. Mr Singh made this announcement at Raipur this morning after paying homage to 26 CRPF jawans who were killed in a Naxal ambush in Sukma. 

The National Human Rights Commission, in a statement issued here, said it stands for upholding human rights of all in the country and is consistent in its firm belief that the acts of violence are an anti-thesis to the struggle for protection of human rights, a statement issued by the NHRC said. As part of a civilized nation, every citizen should stand up in condemning all such incidents that lead to death and destruction in place of development, peace, progress and prosperity. As part of a civil society, if we can question and make the security forces accountable for failing in their duties, we are also accountable for our duties towards nation building, the statement added. 

The human rights panel has described the attacks on the security men as a cause of worry and said there was a need for self-introspection on part of all the stakeholders in the interest of the country.  

It is expected that the State will take note of the sacrifices made by the personnel of CRPF in maintaining the rule of law and creating an environment of peace and security in the country, and the aggrieved families would be suitably compensated, the panel has said. 

Meanwhile, the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister N. Venkaiah Naidu has questioned the silence of the human rights activists over the CRPF killings and accused them of tacitly supporting the naxals.

In a statement, Mr Naidu said while the nation was shocked by the killing and violence, the so-called sympathizers and proponents of human rights had maintained baffling silence. These activists raise voice and react violently if an extremist or a terrorist is killed by police but take shelter in silence when large number of jawans and innocent people get killed by those who operate underground, kill and run. 

“Are Human Rights only meant for those who chose violence in furtherance of their outdated ideologies and not for security personnel and common people? “Why are the Human Right activists silent when such inhuman acts are mindlessly committed by outlawed elements,” the Minister sought to know.  
“I am constrained to infer that such motivated acts of violence are being resorted to with tacit support from the so called human rights advocates in desperation to derail the positive narrative emerging from the ongoing efforts by the Central and State governments to ensure that fruits of development reach the last of the poor there by enabling rapid economic development,”he said. 
There is an urgent need to build strong public opinion against such violent acts by outlawed elements and the so called human rights activists who have double standards and do not uphold similar rights of security personnel, their families and the innocent people who fall victim to such anti-national activities, the Minister added. 

Kashmir… This word has emotive connotations in two big South Asian nations, India and Pakistan. Whenever this word is uttered, a part of their conscience-sentiment gets stirred up. They start feeling as if they have been cheated by someone. Who? Answer does not have a definite article. It’s complex. People become staunch nationalists, get angry and confused at the same time for they don’t understand what’s Kashmir.

So, what’s Kashmir?

Kashmir is a part of Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes Laddakh and Aksai Chin captured by China during 1962 war. Geographically speaking Kashmir consists of high mountains in the Himalayan and trans-himalayan ranges hosting several highest peaks and a beautiful vale of Kashmir. It includes Pak occupied Kashmir as well. Aksai Chin forms part of Laddakh, a different geographical expression from Kashmir.

History

Kashmir finds mention in ancients texts of India and Tibet. Mythology goes that it was founded by a sage called Kashyap, who is said to have drained a lake to reclaim the valley or land. So, the name Kashmir. During Chandragupta Maurya’s time or during Alexander’s invasion Kashmir was a political entity and part of the expanding Magadh Empire. 

A few years later, Ashoka is credited with quelling a rebellion there. Like all ancient political unit, the history of princely Kashmir is fraught with wars and bloodshed. This continued till 1860 when the present geographical denomination of Kashmir came into existence. The British recognised this.

The Partition

The India Independence Act, 1947 paved way for creation of India and Pakistan. At that time India had over 550 big and small princely states. They were given option, under the Act, to go either side or remain independent. Most of the states signed treaties and merged with India or Pakistan. A couple of Kings showed resistance or reluctance. The King of Kashmir, Hari Singh was not willing to join either. And, he made it clear. So, technically speaking at the Independence, three countries came into existence: India, Pakistan and Kashmir, which comprised Jammu and Laddakh as well.

The Problem

Pakistan sponsored militia-invaded Kashmir in September 1947 under the guidance of Major General Akbar Khan of Pakistani Army. Hari Singh did not have enough means to protect his state or himself. He asked the Indian government to come to his rescue. The Indian leadership headed by Pt. Nehru and Sardar Patel did not accept the request immediately. They first asked the King to sign a treaty for merger with India saying that similar treaties had been signed by other princely states. This treaty with the King is known as the Instrument of Accession, which was signed in October 1947. 

Now, Indian forces landed on the territory of Kashmir. But by then Pakistan backed forces had occupied almost one-third of Kashmir. Indian government decided to protect the capital of Kashmir and the princely house there. It did not wish to push Pakistani forces beyond Kashmir, by now the territory of India. Perhaps, the Indian leadership could not understand the meaning of Kashmir’s merger with India. Here lies the core political problem of status of Kashmir.

(POK- Pak Occupied Kashmir; COK- China Occupied Kashmir)

Going to the UN

India took the matter to United Nations. India filed the case under Article 37 instead of Articles 36 and 51 of the Charter. Simplified, Article 36 refers to the invasion of a sovereign territory by an outside power. While Article 37 refers to the invasion of a territory disputed between the two countries, by one of them. Lodging the complaint under Article 37 was negation of the India Independence Act. Simply put, despite Kashmir having become an integral territory of India, the government of India admitted at the UN that a part of it was not surely under its sovereignty.

The Resolution

The UNSC Resolution 47 on Kashmir was passed. It asked for the appointment of two neutral observers by the UN and holding a plebiscite in Kashmir to determine the democratic will of the resident population.

The Two Conditions

The UN clamped two conditions.

1. That Pakistan should withdraw its troops from Kashmir

2. Having seen that India should do the same before actual plebiscite could be held.

The Follow Up

Pakistan never thought of going back from Kashmir. And, so India was not bound to either withdraw or hold plebiscite. Though, India has been holding parliamentary and state elections there and it is forwarded as a sort of plebiscite by the Indian think tank.

But, technically nothing could be done on the UN Resolution. And, this is where the Kashmir issue stands today. 

Violence in the Kashmir Valley is a by-product of internal and international politicking (not politics).

(Courtesy- sindhustan.blogspot.in- The blogger currently works for India Today)

Veteran Bollywood actor Aamir Khan received the prestigious ‘75th Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award’ for his film Dangal, on Monday. He was invited on a special request by the nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar, the eldest daughter of Deenanath Mangeshkar. The ‘Vishesh Puraskaar’ was presented by Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat, the Chief of the Hindu nationalist organisation, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Apart from Aamir Khan, the Haryana Hurricane and 1983 World Cup winning-team Indian Captain legendary Kapil Dev was also conferred this prestigious Vishesh Puraskaar for his contribution to the Indian Cricket. Referred as the first Bollywood female superstar, Vyajayanthimala Bali was also honoured with the award for her outstanding achievement and contribution to the Hindi Cinema.

Widely believed reason behind Aamir’s boycott of Awards

In the past, Aamir had constantly boycotted to be a part of any Bollywood-organised award ceremony. 16 years ago, he went on to visiting Oscars after the nomination of Ashutosh Gowariker directed film ‘Lagaan’ in 2001. Aamir played the role of Bhuvan in that film, which portrayed the British-India suppressed under harsh revenue system and the deficit of rain at that time. It was the then blockbuster of Bollywood. Few film critiques and experts are opined that the reason behind Aamir’s boycott of award-ceremony was the negligence of juries towards his film ‘Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak’ competing with Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit starrer film, ‘Beta’. In 1993, Anil Kapoor won the best actor award and Madhuri won the best actress award for Beta. Later on, some of the major Aamir Khan films as ‘Hum hain Raahi Pyaar ke (1994)’ and Rangeela (1996) went unrecognised due to the emergence of then star Shahrukh Khan in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Baazigar. Aamir Khan once said, “My personal experience about award ceremonies is that I don’t trust them so I would prefer to stay away.” Since mids 90s, Aamir made a rare appearance in any award ceremony apart from National Awards.

Aamir Movies Controversy and His ‘intolerance’ Statement Uproar

At the Ramnath Goenka Award in 2015, Aamir Khan quoted a statement of his wife, Kiran Rao, where she allegedly said to leave India due to rise in intolerance. It created nationwide uproar by the right-wing activists and some political parties. He was widely criticised by many hardcore Hindu nationalists. Time to time, Aamir Khan becomes a soft target for them to gain political mileage out of his alleged controversial statements. BJP Firebrand leader Sadhvi Prachi once appealed to Hindus to boycotting his movie PK, as the film allegedly attacked religious sentiments, and advocated to send Aamir to Pakistan. The worldwide collection of PK was 700 cr. 

 
About the ‘Deenanath Mangeshkar Awards’

The Master Deenananth Mangeshkar Awards are organised in the fond memory of Deenanath Mangeshkar, a renowned Natya Sangeet musician, a Marathi theatre actor, and a Hindustani classical vocalist. Some of his famous works are Maanapmaan, Randudhumbhi, Punyaprabhaav, Sanyasta Khadag, Rajsanyaas, Deshkantak and Ramrajyaviyog. He died at the age of 41. He was also the father of famous vocalist Usha Mangeshkar, singer Asha Bhosle, composer Hridaynath Mangeshkar and Meena Khadikar. A commemorative postal stamp on his name was also issued in 1993. 

NEW DELHI : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed an FIR against its former Director Ranjit Sinha in Coal block allocation scam. On January 23rd, the Apex Court had ordered CBI to constitute Special Investigation Team to probe the role of Ranjit Sinha in the Coal block allocation scam.

“We are prima facie satisfied that Ranjit Sinha had abused his position as CBI director and it must be probed,” the Supreme Court had said in January 2017.

Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan had claimed Sinha had been meeting individuals connected to 2G and Coalgate scam. Bhushan had produced the visitors’ diary at Sinha’s residence as evidence that time.This is the second time in the CBI’s history that a former director, facing criminal allegations, will be probed by the agency.
In February this year, the CBI had filed an FIR against its former Director A P Singh on allegations of extending favour to meat exporter Moin Qureshi, who is an accused in a money laundering case.

The Bombay High Court today granted bail to Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur in 2008 Malegaon blast case but rejected a similar bail plea of Lt. Col. Prasad Purohit. 

The High Court granted bail to the Sadhvi on three terms, a personal bail bond of 5 lakh rupees, she should not influence the witnesses and tamper with the evidence, and that she should submit her passport to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). 

Sadhvi’s counsel argued that although NIA court had rejected her bail plea last year, it had dropped all charges against her in its charge sheet.

“Welcoming the court decision, Sadhvi’s counsel said the case was politically fabricated and justice has been done. Now Sadhvi Pragya will be released from jail. He also added that the restrictions imposed by the court would be adhered to. 

Earlier, the NIA had informed the HC that it had no objection if Sadhvi was granted bail as the provisions of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) were not applicable in Sadhvi’s case. The 2008 Malegaon blast had killed seven people and injured 101 persons. 

NEW DELHI: In one of the deadliest attacks in recent years, well armed Maoist cadres ambushed Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) men, killing 25 of them and injuring six in Naxal-infested Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Monday. The injured have been airlifted to the State capital Raipur for treatment. 

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Dr Raman Singh cut short his visit to New Delhi and rushed back to Raipur. He is presiding over an emergency high-level meeting to take stock of the situation. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said, he has asked Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir to visit Chhattisgarh to review the situation. 

According to reports, Maoist cadres were armed with automatic weapons like AK 47, INSAS rifles and numbered nearly 200 when they executed the ambush which was preceded by some blasts carried out by planting improvised explosive devices. Reports said that around seven to eight CRPF jawans were still missing. 

President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have condemned the attack on the CRPF personnel. Mr Modi described the attack as cowardly and deplorable. The Prime Minister said the Centre was monitoring the situation closely and the sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain. Last month Naxals had killed 12 CRPF men in an ambush when the jawans of para-military force were providing security cover for road construction on the Bheji-Gorkha-Injiram Axis area.

In a series of tweets, he expressed condolences to the CRPF families saying the country is proud of their valour. He also wished for early recovery for those injured in the attack.In a tweet, President Pranab Mukherjee conveyed  his condolences to the families of deceased and prayed for quick recovery of the injured.

NEW DELHI: Going a step forward in realising the goal of making India a complete digital economy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked all public sector undertakings (PSUs) to make cashless transactions mandatory in all its townships across India.

Top PSUs like BHEL, NTPC, NHPC, Coal India Ltd, ONGC, SAIL, GAIL, besides other oil and metal sector PSUs have big and small townships spread across the country which houses families of lakhs of employees working there. It is learnt that Mr. Modi is very keen on making such townships completely cashless where payments for all types of goods and services should be done through digital mode.

The idea of converting such townships and colonies completely cashless has gained ground following success of similar experiment by Essar Steel where it converted its Nand Niketan township at Hazira in Gujarat’s Surat district cashless.

Nand Niketan is the first private township to go cashless with the help of The Mobile Wallet (TMW), a Mumbai-based financial technology company. The pilot project involved adoption of TMW’s twin offering — the smartphone-based TMW App and the Mastercard-enabled TMW and RBL Bank co-branded pre-paid card, which has almost universal acceptance at all outlets and billers that accept Mastercard in India.

While the TMW App has had more than 15,000 downloads, over 10,000 TMW-RBL Bank pre-paid cards have been issued to a wide range of users in Surat, including Essar employees and their families residing in the Hazira township, merchants and shopowners operating within its precincts, as well as contract labourers working at various Essar facilities. All of the 40-odd merchants at Nand Niketan accept payments made through the TMW App and pre-paid card where digital transactions worth around Rs.3 lakh are done everyday.

It is this model that the Prime Minister wants to be replicated across India beginning with smaller townships. Government sources said Mr. Modi wants that no cash transactions should be done while making payments in places like government offices or schools etc or in doing daily shopping in townships run by PSUs. If this experiment succeeds the model would be replicated in towns and cities across India. Apart from cutting costs and dealing with handling of cash, this initiative will also tackle the problem of blackmoney and circulation of unaccounted money.

(Courtesy: ictflash.com)