Time to protect the citizen

It is just amazing that the government can even think of keeping the report of the Subrahmanyam Committee, which was set up to probe intel...

It is just amazing that the government can even think of keeping the report of the Subrahmanyam Committee, which was set up to probe intelligence failure preceding the intrusions into Kargil, away from public gaze.

The committee was set up in response to criticism by the opposition pa-rties and the media. Implicit in its constitution was the promise to make the facts gleaned by a group of independent and impartial people public. If it wanted to educate itself about where things we-nt wrong, the government could have set up an in-house inquiry and without such a fanfare. After all, the need to constitute such a committee arose when there was scepticism about what the government was saying in its defence.

Now that the report is ready, to be told that the government will decide whether or not to make it public only after studying its contents will naturally fuel the suspicion that it is withholding facts to save its skin.

And it makes nonsense of the concept of public opinion in a democracy. If there arequot;sensitivequot; bits of information, like operational details, they can be withheld. But this should be done by the committee and not by the government. The committee members have already stated that they have excised these bits and expressed the hope that the report will be tabled in Parliament and discussed widely.

The trouble is that anything even remotely to do with quot;securityquot; is a holy cow in India, no matter which government is in power. One would have tho-ught that the committee8217;s probe and recommendations would be used as an opportunity to educate the peop-le. The mood in the country has ch-anged during the last one year.

There is greater realism about Pakistan and the need to address the problem of cross-border terrorism. Ka-rgil or Kandahar, it is the institutions which are not wo-rking as they should. As terrorism and its other manifestations like narco terrorism or mafia activity become a reality Indians increasingly have to contend with, ordinary people have to be readied to respond to thesesituations. In Iran, for instance, if there is a gun shot sound, people are trained to lie down on the ground. In India they look out of the window.

Fear of creating panic often prevents the government from preparing a long range plan. But the solutions have to go beyond creating yet another body with a new name.

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The NSG was set up as a crack force in 1987 against terrorism and hijacking. Used in Operation Black Thunder in 1988, it was conce-ived after the realisation that the government did not have a commando force it could have done with during Operation Bluestar. But in recent years, it has found itself doing jobs, other than the on-es it was meant for.

Unable to beef up security, the go-vernment is equ-ally immobilised when it comes to cutting down the security of the VIPs. L.K. Advani had made a valiant attempt but somewhere down the line, the effort ran into rough weather, even though a quot;continuous reviewquot; is supposed to be on.

It is time to review VIP security. The cars with quot;red lightsquot;, theconvoy before and behind them, have become a status symbol. There is nothing more ludicrous than to have three carloads of commandos accompany a leader when he goes for his morning walk. There are hordes of legislators who are given personal security and escorts for reasons other than security.

Air marshals on planes is now being suggested. But why should a VIP be allowed to board a plane without the normal checks? Why should he be received on the tarmac and whisked away without the usual drill. These are very simple things to remedy.

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The need-cost ratio has also to be reassessed. If a former prime minister travels outside Delhi, and the state government is not able to provide him a bullet proof car, the vehicle is flown out there. The former PMs are yet to pay the Defence ministry something to the tune of Rs 15 crore for aircraft used by them during elections for security considerations, and a PIL is still pending in the courts.

The concept of individual security is a feudal one. There was a time whenthe raja8217; had to be protected whether or not his subjects felt safe. Today the government8217;s apparatus is being used to protect members of the government more than the citizens who have el-ected them and for whose welfare it is supposed to exist.

And, what is the criteria for deciding whose life needs more protection? In an age of privatisation, why sh-ould not the VIPs pay for their security, beyond a point? If the government feels they have to be protected, such politicians and officials should be allotted houses in one area to reduce the security expenditure, instead of being housed in sprawling bungalows dotted all over the city.

The country8217;s security is an aspect which needs a full blown debate now. It cannot be pushed under the carpet.