Fork in the path
* This refers to the article Atal Modi versus Rajiv Rahul by Shekhar Gupta (National Interest,IE,March 9). Indira Gandhi was deeply influenced by the Fabian socialist thinking of her father and her advisors,who had known her since the 1930s,during the freedom struggle. Fabian socialism,now discarded worldwide,dominated her economic and social thinking. As a professional pilot,Rajiv Gandhi was only too aware of the shortcomings of the state-owned Air India/ Indian Airlines and favoured the opening up of the airlines sector. In his very first year as prime minister,he liberalised technology imports and economic growth surged beyond the Indira years. I once asked him why he was not,likewise,liberalising private foreign investment. His answer was that,after Bofors broke,he would have been accused of selling the country to foreigners. For the record,the then director of the CBI,Mohan Katre,told me that the Swiss authorities had repeatedly mentioned to him that nowhere in their investigations of bank accounts involved in the Bofors pay-offs did they find that the prime minister had any link with the kickbacks paid. Historically,rulers have quite often paid for the avarice and indiscretions of those claiming to be close to them. Incidentally,and my colleague in the then PMO,R. Vasudeven,who was also present,will vouch for this: Rajiv Gandhi firmly believed that Mandal would produce social discord and divide Indian society. In my last meeting with him in September 1990,during the anti-reservation agitation,he described V.P. Singh as the most divisive person in Indian politics after Mohammed Ali Jinnah. Moreover,while he introduced employment guarantees for the rural poor,he was clear that the scheme should be primarily geared towards training and motivating people to be self-reliant. He rejected a proposed loan waiver for farmers and appeared to prefer restructuring. In my perspective,Sonia Gandhi is perhaps closer in her economic thinking to Indira Gandhi than Rajiv Gandhi. Young Rahul Gandhi will have to decide which direction he wishes to take.
G. Parthasarathy
Former spokesperson,PMO
New rules for school
* DELHI Universitys plans to implement radical changes,moving closer to the American model,are welcome (Mix and match,IE,March 11). It would not only promote interdisciplinary study but also enable the all-round development of students,forcing them out of their comfort zones and introducing them to new thoughts and ideas. However,vague guidelines and methodology,insufficient infrastructure and resistance by the faculty could hamper the new system. DU must address these issues first,or it will be mired in controversy again,just like when it made the transition to the semester system.
Agam Dhingra
Delhi
