A tragic hero called Parrikar
In days when emotions run high and melodrama defines politics, the country has lost a very astute gentleman and a simple leader for a politician. Parrikar was known for his simplicity and uncomplicated personality in political circles. At a time when educational qualification is not a must as far as becoming leaders in BJP is concerned, Parrikar had this rare credit of being the first IIT graduate to become a chief minister of a state.
Though he had RSS background, he never resorted to communally instigating speeches when addressing people. He was aware of the fact that he cannot run a state like Goa that is hugely dependent on tourism based on staunch Hindutva propagandist. Which is why he never gave emotional speeches on beef consumption.
He could manage his administration without banning beef while BJP did politics around beef in all other states. He knew that banning beef would have counter effects on Goa tourism and livelihoods. Parrikar was the main reason behind BJP retaining its identity in Goa. He turned into a national leader with Goa as his base. But his plans to become a national leader didn't bear fruit. Having made Modi's showmanship and loud rhetorics as it's hallmark, this country claimed the life of a simple leader such as Parrikar finally.
When he returned to Goa after a stint in national politics, the stains of allegations of misdoings of Modi's decisions were stuck to him permanently. He finally left the world with those blots on him. A man with clean record without any charges of corruption, he had to carry the blame of Rafael owing to Modi and his friend Anil Ambani on his shoulders. This bothered him a lot and that caused him to shun national politics as defence minister and return to Goa for good.
He could not manage the post of defence minister despite being a statesman . He carried the blame of wrong decisions of Modi Government regarding China and Kashmir. Terrorism increased and our soldiers were attacked repeatedly during his term as defence minister. China started border problems around the same time. Terrorists launched a gruesome attacked on our soldiers in Uri during those days. Parrikar also had to carry the blame of surgical strikes being used for politics for the first time. Army conducts operations often by crossing the border sometimes, and no country will declare it openly to admit it.
Indian army has done this in the past. But this is internal to the army and not related to politics of the country. Army keeps it a secret because it compromises India's position in international arena. But having been humiliated by the terrorist attack in Uri, the government held a press conference addressed by the army officers themselves. This was a shocking interference of politics into country's army. Parrikar went even a step further and attributed the credit of this attack to RSS. He failed to explain the link between Indian army and RSS. The biggest charge of having used the army for politics followed him to the end of his life.
Whether terrorists had died in surgical strike or not, the terrorist attack repeated in Kashmir a little while later. Kashmir began to burn. At the same time, Anil Ambani's illegal involvement in Rafael came to the forefront. Parrikar failed to take the pressure exerted by the situation. Around this time, Congress got highest number of seats in Goa. Having been thinking of leaving the central ministry Parrikar used this as a pretext and returned to Goa. He managed to become the CM of Goa again without allowing Cong to form the government. It raised a question about his commitment to the country at a time when he returned to Goa when the situation in the border was getting complicated with every passing day.
The defence portfolio remained vacant for a long time after he left. One does not know whether he had any direct role to play in Rafale deal, but he possessed a whole lot of inside information about this. He could have spoken the truth considering country's welfare during his last days. But he proved that RSS and BJP were bigger than the country. His decision to stay put in the chair of CM even when cancer had advanced inside his body was massively criticised. Goa government functioned from the ICU mostly. Opposition leaders said Parrikar staying put to his chair has something to do with Rafael. Parrikar is a classic case of how politics can consume a good person even before cancer can. A simple statesman is lost now.
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Assam to lift all cases against Koch Rajbongshis in Foreigners' Tribunals: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma
Guwahati, Apr 4 (PTI): The Assam cabinet has decided to lift all cases pending against people from the Koch Rajbongshi community in the Foreigners' Tribunals, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday.
They will also no longer carry the tag of 'D' or doubtful voters, he said.
''There are 28,000 cases pending in different Foreigners' Tribunals in the state against people of the community. The cabinet has taken a historic decision of lifting the cases with immediate effect,'' Sarma said at a press conference here after the cabinet meeting.
The government believes that the Koch Rajbongshis are an indigenous community of the state and they are an inextricable part of ''our social and cultural fabric'', he asserted.
The people of this community are poor and have suffered a lot over the years, he said.
''They will no longer carry the tag of foreigners or ‘D’ voters,'' the CM said.
Foreigners Tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies, particularly in Assam, established to determine if a person residing in India is a "foreigner" as defined by the Foreigners Act of 1946, based on the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order of 1964.
These tribunals are designed to address matters related to citizenship and the presence of “foreigners” in India, specifically focusing on cases where someone is suspected of being an illegal immigrant.
There are 100 Foreigners’ Tribunals across Assam.
The Koch Rajbongshis have a sizeable presence in Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, and parts of Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan, and they demand Scheduled Tribe status.
