Rajiv according to Jain

This encomium is sycophantic writing, says a Supreme Court advocate. 8220;Never before has a judge written in this manner.8221; In fact, critics cite Justice J.C. Kapoor8217;s probe into Mahatma Gandhi8217;s assassination and the Justice Chandrachud panel inquiring into the death of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya. 8220;These people were certainly worthy of praise. But the judges refrained from any comment since commissions of inquiry are not platforms for opinion.8221;But then Rajiv was no Mahatma and maybe that8217;s why Jain breaks tradition.So he begins his chronological account of his life with his birth in a family of 8220;freedom fighters, great leaders and statesmen.8221; And he ends on a note almost tragic and lyrical: 8220;But, alas, in a split of a second, his life was snuffed out by an explosion of a human bomb.8221;

Jain is certainly entitled to his grief and his opinion but legal experts say a commission of inquiry is not. To be fair to Jain, however, he says so. In his introduction which prefaces the profile, he writes in Para V: 8220;The Commission is a fact-finding body entrusted to give its honest and impartial view of truth. Its function is to find facts or real truth based on materials before it. The Commission is a statutory body which acts as eyes and ears of the Government.8221;

And, also, perhaps some hearts.

For, Jain8217;s Rajiv was a man who could do no wrong, who was caught perhaps against his wishes in the oh-so-inexorable currents of fate. 8220;Tragedy overtook him,8221; writes the judge.

On the fateful day when Indira Gandhi 8220;fell by the bullets of her own security guard,8221; Rajiv was 8220;far, far away from her8230;When he was extremely grieved and undergoing trauma, he dashed to Delhi and the nation8217;s responsibility fell on his shoulders.8221;

It may be that he was 8220;not cut for politics,8221; Jain tells us but 8220;nevertheless, by his charismatic personality, he won the hearts of his countrymen.8221; And what an admirable job he did, says Jain. He signed accords all over the place, Punjab, Assam, Mizoram and the Indo-Sri Lankan accord in 1987. So what if later volumes of Jain8217;s own report show how the accord was signed and how India played the bully.

This doesn8217;t matter since Jain8217;s Rajiv was a 8220;champion of human rights and was opposed to oppression and exploitation.8221; The judge also credits Rajiv with the terribly original insight that 8220;apartheid was a blot on civilization.8221;

Jain announces that though Rajiv lost power in December 1989, come campaign time and he was 8220;on the crest of popularity and seen as if destined to be the future Prime Minister of India after the May 1991 general elections.8221; However, in one brief moment of caution, Jain guards his flanks. 8220;He was so projected by the media,8221; he says.

Jain doesn8217;t dwell too much on Rajiv8217;s legacy except for wrapping up his profile on his typical heart-felt, caring note. 8220;He is survived by his widow Sonia, daughter Priyanka and son Rahul who too are leading their traumatic lives under constant fear and extreme threat.8221;

Jain8217;s Honest and impartial view8217;
8220;From the childhood, Rajiv Gandhi had immense interest in technology and he had a passion for machines and had developed keen interest in aviation. He used to learn flying during his holidays in England and India8230;He loved flying and was leading a happy family life as a professional commercial pilot.8221;