The 2G ruling may deliver an even bigger loss of credibility because it shows everyone, from the ministry down to the auditor and investigator, in poor light.
If exit polls are right, which they should be as Yogendra Yadav says so, Modi will win. The 27% headstart of 2014 is handy but there is fraying of the wall.
Narendra Modi government has taken this problem on in his inimitable style -- head on -- and completely, studiously avoided the short-cut temptation to restructure.
While releasing 'India Employment Report 2024', V Anantha Nageswaran said govt can't solve 'all social, economic challenges'. Congress leader Kharge says CEA protecting 'dear leader'.
In an interview with Gulistan News this week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the government would leave law and order to J&K Police and slowly withdraw troops.
The ‘idea’ Kejriwal's politics grew around was a no-holds-barred fight against corruption. That is the reason Modi govt has now tarred him and his entire party with the same paint.
Sometimes feel having so many regulators – although TRAI is needed – is a cop out. It outsources decisions competent bureaucrats and principled ministers – A Raja does not fall in that category – are equipped to take. Does Indian Railways really require an external entity to fix the price of tickets or freight charges, normal commercial decisions it should be taking, day in and day out. I think in 2 G, Raja became an unstoppable force. If the PM and FM could not resteain him, he was hardly likely to listen to Secretary, DoT or Chairman, TRAI. Coalition compulsions have been a fact of political life in several governments, but some red lines should be enforced.
Now the “cover up”of what is a motivated and incredibly poor judgement starts as does the cover-up of Raja and the politicians – and if anything this article represents poor journalism at best, and motivated false analysis at worst. Some basic points
1. Are we denying that the process by which the allocations were made were wrong ie. sudden change of conditions, suddenly people with foresight that would rival the best soothsayers having drafts in hundreds of crores all prepared, even the camera evidence of assorted lalas pushing their way through. Answer – CANNOT BE DENIED
2. Is the circumstantial evidence of the money flows (much of which was “reversed” rather extraordinarily again with foresight of soothsayers), the trail of organisations, the “flips”of ownership all to be denied. Answer – ONLY IF ONE WANTS TO PRETEND NOTHING HAPPENED
3. Instead of casting blame where it really lies ie. at Mr. Raja, Mdm Kanimozhi and Mr. Behura along with their crony industrialists, we are blaming the people who may have been imperfect at worst but atleast highlighted the daylight robbery. Trying to cast the regulator’s objections as a predecessor-successor tiff is juvenile, and frankly a lie. Trying to cast Mr. Binod Rai’s efforts in poor light is motivated. Even if the number is wrong – and the number for the sake of argument is the lower one the CBI talked of ie. 20 or 30000 crores, we are talking of the BMC budget here. Answer – questioning the scale of a crime does not make a crime a non-crime
4. The “red herring”of hurt investors – guess what Mr. Dhal Samanta – if investors are coming into the country (take for the sake of example a Telenor who have pretty much failed in every market they entered barring the home market as a monopoly) do not perform the necessary due diligence and count on what are “questionable means” involving regulatory “arbitrage” (for the lack of a more polite word for what has been done here) and infact choose a cash strapped partner with NO telecom experience only for their ability to influence sweet deals out of the government – they have NO BUSINESS ENTERING THE COUNTRY. We need real investors, smart investors adn dedicated players – NOT FLY BY NIGHT CARPETBAGGER MNCs. Answer – Get real. If investors are upset that we actually enforce laws and stop crime, then you are perhaps canvassing the wrong investors.
My humble suggestion – dont’write for the sake of writing (or again worse motivations). Read up, and at the very least TRY to be objective and truthful
Sometimes feel having so many regulators – although TRAI is needed – is a cop out. It outsources decisions competent bureaucrats and principled ministers – A Raja does not fall in that category – are equipped to take. Does Indian Railways really require an external entity to fix the price of tickets or freight charges, normal commercial decisions it should be taking, day in and day out. I think in 2 G, Raja became an unstoppable force. If the PM and FM could not resteain him, he was hardly likely to listen to Secretary, DoT or Chairman, TRAI. Coalition compulsions have been a fact of political life in several governments, but some red lines should be enforced.
Now the “cover up”of what is a motivated and incredibly poor judgement starts as does the cover-up of Raja and the politicians – and if anything this article represents poor journalism at best, and motivated false analysis at worst. Some basic points
1. Are we denying that the process by which the allocations were made were wrong ie. sudden change of conditions, suddenly people with foresight that would rival the best soothsayers having drafts in hundreds of crores all prepared, even the camera evidence of assorted lalas pushing their way through. Answer – CANNOT BE DENIED
2. Is the circumstantial evidence of the money flows (much of which was “reversed” rather extraordinarily again with foresight of soothsayers), the trail of organisations, the “flips”of ownership all to be denied. Answer – ONLY IF ONE WANTS TO PRETEND NOTHING HAPPENED
3. Instead of casting blame where it really lies ie. at Mr. Raja, Mdm Kanimozhi and Mr. Behura along with their crony industrialists, we are blaming the people who may have been imperfect at worst but atleast highlighted the daylight robbery. Trying to cast the regulator’s objections as a predecessor-successor tiff is juvenile, and frankly a lie. Trying to cast Mr. Binod Rai’s efforts in poor light is motivated. Even if the number is wrong – and the number for the sake of argument is the lower one the CBI talked of ie. 20 or 30000 crores, we are talking of the BMC budget here. Answer – questioning the scale of a crime does not make a crime a non-crime
4. The “red herring”of hurt investors – guess what Mr. Dhal Samanta – if investors are coming into the country (take for the sake of example a Telenor who have pretty much failed in every market they entered barring the home market as a monopoly) do not perform the necessary due diligence and count on what are “questionable means” involving regulatory “arbitrage” (for the lack of a more polite word for what has been done here) and infact choose a cash strapped partner with NO telecom experience only for their ability to influence sweet deals out of the government – they have NO BUSINESS ENTERING THE COUNTRY. We need real investors, smart investors adn dedicated players – NOT FLY BY NIGHT CARPETBAGGER MNCs. Answer – Get real. If investors are upset that we actually enforce laws and stop crime, then you are perhaps canvassing the wrong investors.
My humble suggestion – dont’write for the sake of writing (or again worse motivations). Read up, and at the very least TRY to be objective and truthful