Desperately seeking Manmohan

The PM was expected to strike these notes but did not. The Gujarat factor8212;Narendra Modi or Ahmed Patel or both8212;seems to have influenced him more than was necessary.

Modi, like him or not, managed to turn the situation to his advantage8212;moving politically, not managerially. For some time now Modi has been trying to overcome his anti-Muslim credentials by trying to project himself as the messiah of development in Gujarat, and he used the Medha Patkar fast to reinforce this image. Even his detractors concede that he is a good administrator, hard working and not known to be personally corrupt. Having lost successive elections to Modi, the Congress will not find it easy to dethrone him in the next state polls, and this is something it is worried about.

Modi is also emerging larger than the party to which he belongs; Advani was dependent on him for his yatra leg in Gujarat. The Sangh treats him with kid gloves. The Narmada controversy has now given the Chief Minister an opportunity to come across as champion of a cause which is dear to the enterprising Gujaratis. Aware of the overwhelming sentiment in favour of the dam in the state, Congress leaders had no choice but to jump on the Narmada bandwagon to plead with the PM that construction work not be stopped.

While the Gujarat Congress leaders took a clear stand, this cannot be said of those belonging to Madhya Pradesh. Whether it was former state chief minister Digvijay Singh, or Jyotiraditya Scindia, or Kamal Nath, they chose to keep silent. Arjun Singh is believed to have made an impassioned plea only behind closed doors that the Congress could not afford to do anything that was seen as anti-poor.

It is not just Madhya Pradesh, but the Maharashtra government is also aware that it has not done rehabilitation work as it should have. This is the finding of the agency officially commissioned by the state government to assess the rehabilitation work in the state, and Medha Patkar reportedly has a copy of this report.

Clearly the government was not on the ball on the political implications of the Narmada controversy when the Narmada Control Authority NCA cleared raising of the dam height to 121 meters on March 8, 2006. It seems that the ministers were not in the loop either about the decision. First the clearance was given by the two sub-committees of the Environment and Social Welfare Ministries, headed by their secretaries, who have to be satisfied that rehabilitation has taken place. After this the NCA, chaired by the Water Resources Secretary, met and decided to increase the height of the dam. Saifuddin Soz, it seems, was caught by surprise when journalists questioned him about it.

Even as the Supreme Court has bailed out the PM, it has lobbed the ball back into his court with the warning that if rehabilitation does not take place, it will order a halt to construction of the dam. Manmohan Singh has called for squarely addressing the issues of development, displacement and environment, but the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.

There are wider implications of the recent impasse. The Narmada Bachao Andolan has won the battle in focusing attention on the plight of the oustees and rising the question: 8216;Development at whose cost?8217;. Medha Patkar8217;s fast has also underlined the role of non-violent protest as a means of redressing grievances. The pros and cons of the issue apart, it is of immense value, when Naxalism is getting a grip over large tracts of the country.

By turning to courts time and again, politicians have chosen to take the line of least resistance for getting out of a tricky situation. But then they should not complain that the judiciary is becoming proactive. It goes without saying that when the executive abdicates its role, the judiciary steps into that space.

The most disappointing role in all this has been that of the Prime Minister, more so because people see him as a sincere politician. We heard from Medha Patkar, we heard from Soz, and from Modi. But where was Manmohan Singh in all this? He just played safe.

Tony Blair had reached out to his people, caught in the Iraq controversy. George Bush may not be very popular at the moment but he talks to the American people. Narmada was an issue when the PM could have reached out to the people and informed them about its ramifications, affecting lakhs of people.

There is a feeling that Manmohan Singh chooses to communicate with us only on GDP figures. A PM has to give not just an administrative lead but also political leadership. He must shape the direction of the political and social debates. Nobody expects the PM to speak on every issue but this was an issue on which the country cried for leadership. And silence this time, Mr PM, was not golden.