Women TV professionals impress

Navjot Sidhu

PUNJABI ANTENNA
By 
Randeep Wadehra

She started her career with The Tribune in 1996 and went on to work for The Hindustan Times before switching over to electronics media in India and abroad. After working as journalist for Asia News International (ANI), an electronics media news agency, Navjot Kaur Sidhu joined Aaj Tak as bureau head. She has several important news stories to her credit viz., hijacking of Indian Airlines plane IC 814 from Amritsar airport for ANI, talks between Kashmiri militants and the central government for Aaj Tak, exclusive interview with dreaded terrorist Gajjinder Singh, chief of Dal Khalsa (now reported to be in Pakistan) & Queen Elizabeth’s visit to the Golden Temple for The Hindustan Times etc. Similarly, during her stint abroad she had impressed with such stories as deportation of the Indian Sikh Lhembar Singh, plight of illegal immigrants, and condition of women who had migrated to Canada on marriage basis etc.

A TV personality in her own right, Sidhu has been wowing the regional audience for quite some time now. On Face to Face (PTC News) she has been impressive as anchor/interviewer – well informed questions, intelligent conversation and telegenic presence. Although she has interviewed Punjabi intellectuals and artistes for the show the one with Harsimrat Kaur Badal was outstanding both for its content and conversation style. Sidhu was able to draw Badal on the issue of female feticide without letting the talk stray or ramble. Like a true professional she refrains from monopolizing conversation.

Talking of telegenic anchors, the talented, pretty and young Jassi used to appear with Babla Kochchar on Good Morning Punjab till some time back. Although a greenhorn she has striking screen presence and a perfect foil for the seasoned Babla. She has reportedly gone over to some other channel and has been replaced with Preet, who anchors a music show as well and is very good at it – vivacious on Music News and incisive on Good Morning Punjab.

Rhythm Arora impresses with her chirpy compering – both on the sets of First Look as well as Miss PTC Punjabi. However her attempt at wowing viewers with couplet recitation is really old hat – others like Satinder Satti have done that. Rhythm should explore new ideas to fashion a distinct style of her own. Nevertheless, her flamboyance is going to stand her in good stead in the profession. Beautiful Puneet on Chal Mere Naal uses evocative expressions from Hindi, Punjabi and English while describing various architectural and cultural aspects of a tourist spot.

Another female anchor who is a remarkable mix of talent and experience is Jasmine Bhatti. Arguably the most glamorous among current TV personalities she was seen recently on the sets of Dreams with astrologer Prem Kumar Sharma. Although she seemed quite comfortable one wonders whether she should be there as mere prop. Jasmine can be more useful as solo anchor in a show more suitable to her persona and talent (already she is a judge for Miss PTC Punjabi). In this respect Satinder Satti has fared better. Besides hosting a new phone-in show she has bagged two other shows including PTC Punjabi’s forthcoming Masters that features prominent singers from the region. Looks like women and television are made for each other.

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Peace in terror’s backyard By Randeep Wadehra

Marching towards peace edited by Ramesh Yadav & Talwinder Singh

Folklore Research Academy, Amritsar. Pages: 144. Price: not mentioned

Imperiled peace has become a hot topic among South Asia’s eggheads. As this volume points out the entire region has fallen prey to variegated conflict situations caused by different factors, viz., ethnic, religious, ideological and socio-economic. However, the specter of ever lengthening shadows of terrorism has overshadowed other forms of conflicts. Although terrorism is as old as history its modern form is a reaction to propagation of secular ideologies and nationalism in 18^th and 19^th centuries. Thus, after the departure of colonial rulers from South Asia and formation of nation states terrorism began to make its presence felt in India’s northeastern states and Kashmir. Later on Punjab and, now, the entire country is facing it in one form or another. Other countries in similar situation are Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In this volume various thinkers have pinpointed communalism, maladministration political intrigue, ethnic and socio-economic divides as causal factors. And, since this discourse reflects leftist worldview, the villain of the piece has to be capitalism with the United States as arch-villain. Interestingly, the Maoist brand of terrorists – PWG, Naxalites etc – has not been factored in as threat to peace. This book also contains articles on promoting Indo-Pak peace, but, in today’s context, it would be like lighting candles in a raging storm.

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Focus on women’s perils in Punjab

 PUNJABI ANTENNA

By 

Randeep Wadehra

Punjab’s women are facing untold perils. The state’s record in fighting female foeticide has been rather shameful. However, tokenism prevails, viz., every episode of the ongoing Miss PTC Punjabi dedicates itself to fighting bhroon hatya. Again, on Face to Face Harsimrat Kaur Badal underscored the need for protecting Punjab’s girl-child. Realizing the state’s dismal record vis-à-vis environmental degradation, gender ratio and female foeticide, Punjab Government and SGPC have intertwined the issues by launching a campaign throughout the state whereby gurdwaras distribute saplings as symbols of protection for trees as well as girls. Harsimrat appeared upbeat about the campaign’s success. But what about those females who are born and living in the state?

Government teachers in Punjab’s villages have to take their salaries from the local panchayats. This puts women teachers in a near-the-knuckle situation as they are often asked by the concerned panchs to meet them at the tubewell to collect their salaries (Adhyapak Diwas…adyapak bebas – PTC News). Often the panchs are drunk. Situation in private institutions is no better. Teachers – majority of them women – are forced to sign on salary registers showing government prescribed amounts, but are paid a pittance ranging from Rs. 1400 to 1800 – trifling, even by a peon’s standards. The attitude of Punjab School Education Board Chairman as well as of the state’s education minister was callous to say the least. Both wanted written complaints and “proof” to initiate investigations!

Can legislated rules, procedures and laws be flouted? Punjab’s cops do it with impunity. You learn this while watching Police tuhaddi sewa ch hamesha hazir, a bloodcurdling expose on atrocities perpetrated by Punjab Police personnel – innocents are picked up from their homes and given the third-degree only to be released in a crippled and half-dead condition later on, casually remarking that it was all a mistake; a SHO mercilessly whips a lad with pata in public on a mere suspicion of having stolen ashes/body parts from burning pyres; a five-month pregnant woman is punched and kicked in the stomach, till her baby is aborted, by cops right inside a thana – it takes great effort to keep watching as the camera pans on her traumatized face; even as TV cameras are rolling policemen mercilessly beat up three women, suspected of theft, in public; cops enter a shopkeeper’s house in his absence and thrash the household’s women, killing one of them on the spot. As per law and Supreme Court directives only women police personnel are to arrest/interrogate female suspects. But Punjab’s cops clearly hold a different view. Official response? Mealy mouthed justifications by the minister and DGP Aulakh’s very “understanding” attitude (of police actions, not of the wronged citizens’ plight). The fact that poor men, women and children are being increasingly exploited and brutalized brings the entire system of governance under scanner. The expose reveals that the force has 1388 policemen – right from constables to DGPs – on its rolls, doing active duty, who are facing criminal charges ranging from smuggling to rape and murder (perhaps extortion and bribery are too mundane to be mentioned). Such a situation needs much more than perfunctory inquiries and eyewash investigations. It needs systemic overhaul, pronto.

Will such TV shows usher in the required transformation? Your guess is as good as mine.

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Power Play in Punjab Congress

By 

Randeep Wadehra

Rahul Gandhi’s recent yes-yes-no-no visit to Punjab baffled the state’s Congress leaders as much as it did the Akalis. When reports of the visit’s cancellation came in the Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal had termed it as an insult to Punjab and lamented the step motherly treatment meted out to the flood ravaged state by the central government. But when Rahul landed in the Golden Temple on the morning of 22 September a flustered Sukhbir called it a vote-catching gimmick. The plight of Punjab Pradesh Congress leaders was no better. Till the last moment not many knew of his arrival. This has been interpreted as an indication of the Congress High Command’s disapproval of the state of affairs in the Pradesh Congress.

With Lok Sabha elections looming large, the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee is in disarray. Saddled with a weak PPCC president, a sulking convener and an election campaign chairman who has been unseated from the state assembly following an indictment on corruption the party is not exactly battle-worthy. But this does not come as a surprise to those familiar with the ways of this faction-ridden entity. Although intra-party rivalries are a habit with the Pradesh Congress – Darbara Singh versus Zail Singh being the most notorious and debilitating – the current tussle between Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and Captain Amarinder Singh is proving to be quite destructive.

Amarinder has few friends among the party’s rank and file. His stand-offish demeanor has earned him quite a few enemies within and without the party. Moreover, he has always been looked upon as an interloper – someone who has been thrust upon the Punjab Congress by 10, Janpath. The fact that he made no effort to connect with the grassroots level worker did little to endear him to the foot-soldiers who play a vital role during elections. It was not uncommon for him to snub district level party leaders by refusing to meet them let alone attend to their problems. This is something a Chief Minister would do only if he had no intention of continuing in politics. Rumors of his bohemian lifestyle, “friendship” with a Pakistani journalist and frequent visits abroad came in handy for his rivals as propaganda ammunition.

On the other hand Bhattal is looked upon as a genuine Congress person who is connected to the state’s grassroots. However, although her tenure as Chief Minister was short – January 21 1996 to February 12 1997 – she drew flak for the Congress debacle in the 1997 General Assembly elections. When Congress returned to power five years later it was Amarinder who became the Chief Minister while she had to remain content with the Deputy CM’s post. This only intensified rivalry between the two. Things came to such a pass that on more than one occasion the AICC chief had to intervene. But faction fights continued in one form or another with allegations of corruption and favoritism flying thick and fast.

Even as late as April this year the feud sustained its unseemliness with Amarinder dubbing Bhattal as a friend of the Akalis and the latter hitting back by alleging a nexus between him and BJP. On more than one occasion Bhattal had cited the corruption cases and Arusa Alam as causes of major embarrassment to the party. Both sides buttress their charges with “circumstantial evidence” and prima-facie cogent arguments. The Amarinder camp points out that during the 2007 Assembly elections the Bhattal led faction had behaved like Akalis’ “Trojan horse” – not only she and her supporters refrained from campaigning for Congress candidates belonging to the Captain’s faction, but also encouraged dissidence within their ranks. This is cited as a major contributing factor to the Congress electoral defeat. In fact the unseating of Amarinder is being looked upon as a quid pro quo of sorts, courtesy the Badals, as Bhattal is a major beneficiary of his mortification.

On the other hand the Bhattal camp points out that during his tenure as CM Amarinder did not file a single case against former BJP ministers even as he went hammer and tongs after the Badals. Worse, they point out, during his tenure “36 false cases” were filed against Congress workers, which came in handy for the Akali-BJP combine to embarrass the Congress party both during the assembly elections and debates in the house. They further allege that since K. Natwar Singh – formerly a Congress Union Minister who was virtually pushed out of the party after charges of corruption were leveled against his son – is his close relative. But how does this establish the BJP-Amarinder nexus? There are no answers as yet. But they point out that, given the Captain’s propensity for changing parties to protect/promote his personal interests one cannot overrule the possibility of him striking some sort of deal with BJP through Natwar Singh.

Be that as it may, it is evident that the faction-fights have done immense damage to the party’s image as well as interests as these have enabled the Akali BJP combine to consolidate their hold on the state’s political space. In fact it was this faction fight that has now culminated in the unseating of Captain Amarinder Singh. During the Congress regime, the atmosphere of one-upmanship and back-stabbing had reached such levels that the Congress MLA and former Deputy Speaker Bir Devinder Singh’s charges of corruption against his bête noire and Amarinder loyalist Chaudhry Jagjit Singh – then Local Bodies Minister – came in handy to push the Captain on the back-foot. Among the various charges it was the one involving 32.5 acres of prime land in Amritsar that has proved to be a time bomb, which exploded on 10 September leading to Amarinder Singh’s unseating as MLA.

If the last Assembly elections were lost by the Congress due to charges of corruption, faction fights and Amarinder Singh’s image as an elitist outsider (despite his belated attempts to reach out to the masses as well as ordinary party workers just before the last assembly elections) then its campaign for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections is already in jeopardy thanks to the additional blot in the form of indictment of Amarinder Singh and his loyalists. Mind you, he is presently the chairman of the party’s election Campaign Committee; and Bhattal is its convener, which does no good to the party’s image or electoral prospects. The current PPCC president Mohinder Singh Kaypee is considered as too weak to “manage” the two strong rivals.

Another fallout of the rampant factionalism has been in terms of hijacking of the party’s secular-developmental agenda by the Akali-BJP combine. Even as the Congress got bogged down in petty politicking its traditional vote-bank comprising Hindus, urban and non-Jat Sikhs as well as the marginalized sections of society melted away to a significant extent. While the BJP has won over huge chunks of Hindu voters the Akalis have begun accommodating urban Sikhs in the Jat Sikh dominated panthic hierarchy. Moreover, eschewing communal rhetoric, the coalition is focusing on such issues as power generation, infrastructure, education and employment. The intellectually bankrupt PPCC appears to be bereft of any ideas to counter these moves. All they can think of is how to checkmate each other in their efforts to gain ascendancy within the party.

One can gauge the state of affairs from the fact that the AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi scrupulously avoided the state party’s senior leaders during his maiden visit to Punjab. If it is an expression of disapproval it may not do much in reining in rampant factionalism. The party’s image has been irreparably tarnished at least for the foreseeable future. Belated efforts by Rahul Gandhi to charm Punjab’s youth and the marginalized sections of society may not cut much ice with the electorate.

However, Rahul must have been perceptive enough to realize that the present lot of Punjab Congress leaders need to be consigned to history’s trash-bin, and replaced with young men and women with unimpeachable character and strong commitment to the state’s welfare. This cannot be done in a kneejerk fashion, yet certain urgency needs to be displayed. In order to discover such leaders one requires an insight into human nature and a vision for the future. Since the Gandhi scion is still discovering India, one hopes he comes up with the right sort of talent during his quest.

Refashioning a mindset By Randeep Wadehra

Indian Police… As I See by Kiran Bedi

Sterling Paperbacks, N. Delhi. Pages: vi+154. Price: Rs. 150/-

Although there are countries where policing is looked upon as 24-hour social service, the force is not exactly loved universally. The twentieth century Irish playwright Brendan Behan had once reportedly remarked, “I have never seen a situation so dismal that a policeman couldn’t make it worse.” Unfortunately, the Indian police’s image is much worse than what Behan projects. Today, police is looked upon as the single largest organized predatory force in the country. Even a law-abiding citizen would avoid visiting a thana if s/he can help it. Police-citizen interface invariably generates unpleasantness, with the latter at the receiving end.

A product of British colonialism, the Indian Police is still governed by the archaic 1861 Act under which it was meant to be an instrument for controlling the natives of a slave country and not for serving the citizens of a free and democratic nation. This mindset persists simply because the politician-IAS combine wouldn’t allow professionalization of the police force. Kiran Bedi goes further when she points out that apart from the burden of historical baggage our police force suffers from drawbacks that are both systemic and societal in nature. Our polity is getting increasingly criminalized – and not just in Bihar and UP – which enables the likes of Mohammad Shahabuddin getting away with armed confrontations against policemen, wherein the latter suffer casualties. Nepotism, favoritism, corruption and political patronage demoralize and marginalize upright officers. On the other hand employment in the force is looked upon as a passport to easy money, lucrative marriage alliances and unbridled power by the more worldly wise. Expectations from a cop by his kin are always materialistic like raking in filthy lucre thru bribes, and never idealistic like serving the society etc. Kiran Bedi’s diagnosis of what ails the police is sympathetic but accurate. However, adverse service conditions, poor pay packets and work related stress tell only a partial truth. And, the solutions offered by her (Vipassana, self-improvement courses for police personnel and moral suasion at the individual level) though exemplary, will remain peripheral unless wholesale changes are wrought in the system through politico-administrative action.

As indicated in the chapter Foundations or Furniture there is a need to inoculate the khaki against interference by the khadi. Not only should the force be fully professionalized but also allow investigation and crime prevention activities to be conducted without unnecessary interference by top brass who should show confidence in the professional acumen of their juniors. At the macro level there is a need to enact laws more in tune with the requirements of today’s society, and political will to implement these. Police force’s worldview should be refashioned so that it behaves as friend and not master of the citizenry. And yes, a system should be put in place that encourages officers like Kiran Bedi who are firmly of the view, to quote the British statesman Alfred Milner, “If we believe a thing to be bad, and if we have a right to prevent it, it is our duty to try to prevent it and to damn the consequences”. Any takers?

On the trail of trailblazers By Randeep Wadehra

Trailblazers of Gujarat by Kamlendra Kanwar

Harmony Publishers. Pages: 270. Price: Rs. 495/-

One of the qualities a trailblazer is blessed with is the awe-inspiring capacity of taking trouble to achieve preset goals; another is vision. Gujarat has been particularly blessed with such personages, and one is not referring to Mahatma Gandhi who bested the British at their own political mind-games, nor does one need to recall Sardar Patel who hammered an amorphous entity into a viable and vibrant Union of India. There have been others whose contribution as nation builders is invaluable. While they are idolized within the state many of them have gained national and international fame.

Take, for example, Verghese Kurien who was a government servant posted to a government creamery in Anand. Contrary to the sarkari stereotype, he went beyond looking-busy-while-doing-nothing routine. Against all odds and prejudices he not only pioneered the milk cooperative movement in Gujarat but also ushered white revolution in the country, catapulting it to the rank of number one milk producer in the world. Then there is Ela Bhatt whose awesome tenacity has transformed the outlook of women from the lowest socio-economic stratum. Having lived sheltered childhood as a judge’s daughter she was timid by temperament but had a strong sense of the right and the wrong. The combination of compassion and love of justice infused in her the desire to empower vulnerable women. Breaking tradition she set up Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) – which now has 687,000 members. This is a first in the history of trade union movement, especially when you learn that it happened in the unorganized sector consisting of head-loaders, bidi rollers, seamstresses, vegetable and garment vendors etc. SEWA also boasts of its own bank.

Strategic vision and talent for innovation are the other salient traits of trailblazers. Bakul Dholakia helped IIM Ahmedabad transcend political shenanigans and become an example for other IIMs to follow. He introduced innovative courses that helped wannabe managers acquire skills more relevant to the present needs of industry. The cardiologist Tejas Patel is the only Asian to have patented in his name a catheter for angioplasty. Moreover, he has to his credit 45,000 cath lab procedures with about 25,000 of these done through the trans-radial route, i.e., inserting the catheter through the wrist to reach the coronary arteries. All this requires tremendous discipline and a genius for innovation. Similarly, Pankaj Shah pioneered chemotherapy in India and is revered for his strong professional ethics. The octogenarian Shroff couple – Kantisen and Chandaben – has helped revive Kutchi hand embroidery, empowering thousands of women in the process.

Then there are others: Pranlal Bhogilal, the owner of largest number of vintage cars in India; Sudhir Nanavati, lawyer and educationist; Balkrishna Doshi, the architect described by Fortune magazine as the ‘only Indian to become a world force in design’; and Mukesh Patel, a multi-faceted personality. Not all of the persons chronicled in this book may be trailblazers in the literal sense, but their contribution to society is enduring indeed.

Modern day parables By Randeep Wadehra

M.O.D.E.L.: the return of the employee by Mukul Deva

Response, N. Delhi. Pages: 227. Price: Rs. 270/-.

How does one slot this humorous page-turner? Self-improvement? Nah, the tone, tenor and content are neither preachy nor pompous enough. Corporate management? Ah, but where’s the systematic development of concepts backed with well researched data, cogently argued theses or new ideas pertaining to administration, production and distribution processes? Deva has invented a collection of ten new age corporate parables that elucidate ten new age commandments. The protagonist, Model, is a social misfit with uncertain professional future. Academically brilliant but a rather irritating character, he is a highly opinionated prude, prone to egotism and whingeing. Friends suffer him and put up with his ceaseless whining only because they haven’t mastered the art of avoiding him, but his employers have.

One day Model disappears and nobody really misses him. But in due course he returns a transformed man. Not only has he become top honcho of a MNC but also a much quieter, wiser and dignified person. How did this come about? This is where the author introduces an ingenious narrative device: There were two sets of Ten Commandments in the hard disk of God’s computer. Only one of them survived a disk crash, otherwise “Mr. Moses” would’ve been the first ever beneficiary of both the sets of divine precepts. However, when the Lord retrieved the second set He chose Model as medium to convey the Ten Commandments–II to the humanity that’s running the soul-sapping corporate gauntlet.

The narrative has too many clichéd adages, viz., ‘no gain without pain; spruced up to the nines’ etc. Moreover, usage of double adverbs like “really smartly” and “really sharply” could’ve been avoided. Am I whingeing?

Since the parables may benefit employees this can be a valuable handbook for HRD managers. Ha, at last I’ve slotted this one!

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