Back to the temple

It was humbling to learn that when Dara Singh was held guilty by the court of the murder of Graham Staines and his two sons, Staines’s wife was praying for Dara. She told the media she had forgiven him in her moments of peace. Such is the inner strength of religion. The Sangh brand of Hinduism is trying to take us away from the very ethos of an ancient philosophy.

Don’t doubt the CBI

Former CBI joint director N.K. Singh made a few points in response to one of my columns, in which I had asked for a probe against those who grounded the Airbus 320 fleet. I want to put a few things straight. First, Singh complains non-cooperation by a foreign government blunted the CBI probe. The universal standard of rule of law says no one is guilty unless proven so. For argument’s sake, even if we accept Singh’s insider version that the French government reacted coldly, I fail to understand how he attributes the non-cooperation to an attempt to shield Rajiv Gandhi?

Second, after 15 years of investigation, the CBI stated it had found no evidence of irregularities or kickbacks. I find no reason to doubt this statement. It is unfortunate that, though an old CBI hand himself, Singh seems to lack faith in the agency’s findings.

I had quoted the CBI statement only to drive home my point that no kickback was paid. But my case was against those who grounded the fleet — Indian Airlines’ backbone today — trashing the then technical committee’s report. The grounding cost the national exchequer Rs 1,500 crore. Later, the Chandra Shekhar government lifted the ban. But the grounding crippled Indian Airlines and the entire civil aviation sector for years.

More than the campaign against Rajiv Gandhi, it was this irresponsible decision to ground the fleet I wanted probed. Such fabricated allegations not only send the CBI on a wild goose chase but also mislead the nation. I hope Singh doesn’t feel differently.

Role model in Haryana

One didn’t expect Om Prakash Chautala to be the first chief minister to think up innovative incentives for family planning. And one certainly didn’t expect conservative Haryana to respond. But the state and its CM have set brave examples.

To stabilise Haryana’s population and check the declining sex ratio, the Chaudhury Devi Lal Rashtra Utthan Evam Parivar Kalyan Yojna (DEVIRUPAK) was launched in September 2002. It offers a monthly incentive of up to Rs 500 for 20 years to a couple accepting a terminal method of family planning (vasectomy or tubectomy) after the birth of the first child or after two girl children.

The scheme’s success is remarkable. Already 2,494 couples have been registered and 180 have undergone sterilisation. I feel job incentives can further popularise such schemes.

The state machinery has to be active to tackle the population problem and check the sex ratio. The two-child norm for candidates in panchayat elections is a good move. For the education of the girl child, the daily incentive of Rs 5 to attend school can also work wonders. The programme should now be extended to nomadic tribes.

(The author is a Congress MP)