In the
year 1991, I had interviewed veteran Naga leader Hokishe Sema on two occasions
– May and later in the month of July.
Of course, the relationship continued for many years later and I used to be a regular visitor to his Sema Tila House in Dimapur.
The second one turned quite explosive for in that interview – that was carried in Kohima-based ‘The Weekly Journal’ – Hokishe had called the ‘present leadership of Congress to step aside’. Hokishe’s bête noire of many years, S C Jamir was Leader of the CLP (Opposition) in the state assembly and Shikhio Sema was Pradesh Congress chief.
Here I will not discuss much about Nagaland politics because it may not generate as much interest as I expect from the blog piece in today’s context. I would like to refer to Hokishe’s grasp on national politics especially in the context of emergence of P V Narasimha Rao-Manmohan Singh duo in India’s politics.
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| Hokishe had handed over this snap with Rajiv |
Rajiv
Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991 and country’s economy was in ruins.
As a Congress veteran Hokishe
had good understanding of the functioning style of Rao. Thus, he obviously
hailed the return of the so called ‘old guard’ to the helm at the centre.
Hokishe was delighted that Rao as Congress president had announced organisational
elections. This was path breaking. Hokishe knew last time, the Congress had
intra-party polls was in 1972. In 1991, Sema was 70. He knew pretty well how
Congress functioned between 1972 and 1991. Despite all these, he remained a
Congress follower and as expected also a great admirer of Indira Gandhi.
But
Rajiv’s death and Sonia Gandhi not quite eager or ready for a political role
had forced Congressmen and women to think about life ‘beyond Nehru-Gandhi
family’.
“It has
no much relevance whether I am closer to the present leaders in the AICC or
not. Some of us have worked together. I know Narasimha Rao well, that’s one
issue,” he had said.
He also mentioned about several Congress leaders at the national level ‘reconciling’ to the reality that Rajiv had died prematurely and ought to adjust to the new challenges. “We are entering a new era and it would be challenging times,” he had said.
But at
later stage – after a year or so Hokishe was happy that gradually Rao was
trying to build up the Congress party at the grassroots level. Various regional
leaders in the Congress got encouragement and he said, they were also getting
‘freedom and autonomy’ to build up the party on their own.
He mentioned leaders like Digvijaya Singh in Madhya Pradesh and S M Krishna in Karnataka. Among others, he said the state leaders would do well or were already doing well were – Sharad Pawar (then defence minister and who later moved back to Maharashtra as the Chief Minister).
“I admire Rao’s style of functioning. All these state leaders are not nominated and are getting their positions elected and on their merits. This change is refreshing,” Hokishe had said adding, “Look here, the Congress is reviving and it’s happening on ground. This augurs extremely well for our party after two consecutive elections”.
Congress
had lost the polls in 1989 and in 1991 it emerged single largest party and
formed government, but Rao was heading only a minority government.
On a
different plane, I still recall an episode wherein he had reprimanded a group
of Congress legislators who had met him and urged him to take up with the Rao
government for replacement of M M Thomas as the Governor.
“I know
how important and significant the office of Governor is constitutionally. I was
a Governor in Himachal Pradesh myself”.
The argument I would like to push here is that likes of Hokishe believed that under Narasimha Rao, the Congress party was ‘reviving’. In contrast, Rajiv Gandhi had failed both as the Prime Minister and as the Congress president. It is also a fact of the matter that in 1984 after Indira Gandhi’s assassination, Rajiv had more than 400 MPs and a historic mandate. But all of it could not be sustained.
I had probed him on Dr Manmohan Singh as well. Dr Singh was certainly a newsmaker of post-Rajiv era Congress politics. Sema had said it would be premature to comment on an ‘official-turned-politician’. But he seems to be a talented economist. Singh’s expertise and experience would help the Rao government, he had said.
But Hokishe also knew that Rao had actually taken Manmohan Singh in the cabinet only after I G Patel had declined Rao’s invitation to join the government as the Finance Minister.
Of course, the description about Manmohan Singh – an overestimated economist and underestimated politician had not come into public debate yet.
I had quizzed
Hokishe saying, “Would you agree that sycophancy has (had) become part of the
Congress culture under Rajiv Gandhi?”
His
response was emphatic and candid. “It is true, sycophancy has become synonymous
with Congress culture. But don’t blame it on Indira or Rajiv Gandhi only. It is
not true that they demanded or preferred sycophancy. It was a handful of
people, your so called coterie who formed such circle....In fact, Rajiv Gandhi
was brought down because of this inner circle politics”.
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| Platform : News Clipping |
Hokishe, a leader from old school, was also critical of the manner the Congress party had brought down Chandrashekhar government. Post-Rajiv assassination, his observation was: “This was another act that showed our immaturity. Our leadership started suspecting everybody including two constables who were reportedly seen near Rajiv’s house. Politics is much beyond all these. A political party should be an instrumental force in serving the public interest”.
On the
hind side, Hokishe had said, “It was more unbecoming because Congress had brought
down the V P Singh government and pledged support to Chandrashekhar. We were
single largest party in the ninth Lok Sabha. We could have staked claim. We said we trust
Chandrashekhar and then we said - we don’t”.
Hokishe
claimed after V P Singh government was voted out, even the then President R
Venkataraman had weighed in his mind the option to invite Rajiv Gandhi to form
government.
Due to
Ayodhya-related violence and Advani’s arrest, there was unrest in north India
in particular and amid all these country’s economy was in bad shape. Hokishe
had claimed that during a meeting, he told Pranab Mukherjee to be ‘more
pro-active’.
I had asked whether, Pranab would have been a better Prime Minister (in 1991).
Hokishe's responded - “But
Pranab had his problems. After 1984 he had quit Congress for sometime and had returned just
around the time of 1989 elections. Pranab was doubly cautious now”.
Another
striking feature of India of 1990-91 was on the economy front. Hokishe
appreciated the manner Narasimha Rao-Manmohan Singh took the plunge and wanted to revive
the economy.
Ending of
license raj was historic, he said. “Of course, I don’t understand economy much.
I cannot tell you what is balance of payment, and so on. But political economy
as I understand told me Rao was on right track. Foreign investment was must and
we needed to create rooms for Indian industrialists to play”.
On this
front, Hokishe said the economic governance under Rajiv Gandhi was pretty bad
as media reports have been saying.
“I think Prime Ministership had come to Rajiv much earlier he had anticipated. He lost his mother and the country wanted him to be Prime Minister. But as a young man, he had his limitation. He had serious problems in man-management. He trusted friends and gave them all power, but did not know what exactly his friends should do in terms of governance”.
This was
a major problem area. “The economic collapse that came in 1990-91 was more to
do with our own failure. This is a lay man’s diagnosis”.
May 8, 1981, Forty Years Ago: Indira Exonerated
The Opposition did not participate in the four-and-a-half hour debate, having walked out after an uproarious 100-minute discussion in protest against the Speaker’s decision to admit the motion moved by Baliram Bhagat of the Congress.
The Lok Sabha unanimously passed a resolution rescinding the expulsion of Indira Gandhi from the sixth Lok Sabha and acquitted her of the charge of breach of privilege and contempt of Parliament. The Opposition did not participate in the four-and-a-half hour debate, having walked out after an uproarious 100-minute discussion in protest against the Speaker’s decision to admit the motion moved by Baliram Bhagat of the Congress. The House also wiped out from records the conviction by the sixth Lok Sabha of R K Dhawan, additional private secretary to the Prime Minister, BD Sen, former director of the CBI and Mrs Gandhi for the harassment of officials of the ministry of industry who were collecting information for Parliament in collection with the reported violation of the terms of licence issued to Sanjay Gandhi for the manufacture of the Maruti car.
Meghalaya Experiment
The Meghalaya Chief Minister B B Lyngdoh laid down office in favour of Captain Williamson Sangma, ending one phase of experimental politics in the state. His resignation will pave the way for the swearing in of Sangma, a unique way of sharing political leadership.
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