27 June, 2007

Why Pratibha Patil should not be president

I had mentioned my misgivings about Pratibha Patil in a post yesterday (“Wretched”), and today, while I was too busy in the morning to blog, as many as eight readers wrote in to point me to this bizarre news about the lady:

Close on the heels of the veil controversy, United Progressive Alliance-Left presidential nominee Pratibha Patil has kicked up another row having claimed that she had a ‘divine premonition’ of greater responsibility coming her way after speaking to a late spiritual guru.

“I had a pleasant experience,” Patil told a gathering in Mt Abu in February recounting her meeting with the head of Brahma Kumaris World Spritual University, Hridaymohini, also popularly known as ‘dadiji.’

”Dadiji ke shareer mein baba aye (Baba came in Dadiji’s body),” she said. Her reference was to Dada Lekhraj who founded Brahma Kumari sect. Lekhraj died in 1969.

Patil claimed the late Baba spoke to her indicating that she should be prepared to shoulder greater responsibility.

Haysoos! So now we will have a president who can speak to spirits. But there is more reason to worry about Patil than just the likelihood that she is delusional. Here’s a list:

1] She supported Indira Gandhi during and after the emergency, and once made a statement as health minister:

We are also thinking of forcible sterilization for people with anuvaunshik ajar (hereditary diseases).

2] She ran a bank that had its license revoked in 2003 for “alleged financial irregularities.” Among the reasons: Waivers of loans to her relatives.

3] A sugar factory started by her allegedly defaulted on a loan of Rs 17.70 crore. It’s only fair to ask: Where did the money go?

4] Her knowledge of history is severely flawed, almost simplistically so. (She did provide us with the ironic image of a woman with her head covered asking for the abolition of the purdah. Heh!)

5] There are allegations against her that she protected her brother from a murder charge.

There’s more on the subject from Nitin Pai and Yossarin. Nitin also urges us to put up a banner on our websites asking for answers to all these allegations: I’m carrying it below, and if you want to as well, you can pick it up from here.

Given the gravity of these charges, I think it is reasonable to ask for at least an explanation before she becomes president. And an apology for her role during the emergency. No?

Update: On the subject of Patil’s nomination, do read my piece “The Politics of Division.”

Posted at 2:42 PM by Amit Varma in India | News | Politics