EASTERN ENTERPRISE
CONVERSATIONS AT THE INDIA TODAY CONCLAVE EAST 2019 WERE WIDE-RANGING, BUT CITIZENSHIP REMAINED THE HOTTEST TOPIC
Great minds came together at Kolkata to debate some of the most pressing issues of our time
“PLAYERS NEED TO BE GIVEN AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY CAN PLAY WITHOUT FEAR” SOURAV GANGULY Former cricketer and BCCI president
Taking place in the shadow of the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) and the uncertainty over the National Register of Citizens (NRC), the issue of citizenship, but naturally, became the foremost subject of debate at the third edition of the India Today Conclave East. As Aroon Purie, Editor-in-chief of the India Today Group, asked most pertinently in his speech—“Will citizenship in 2024 be the Ram Mandir of the 1990s?”
This question set the tone for the two-daylong conclave that took place in Kolkata, West Bengal, on December 6 and 7.
Lawmakers, corporates, former members of the judiciary, icons from the worlds of sports, cinema and theatre, congregated to debate and discuss the key issues the nation, and especially the Northeastern states, are grappling with—identity politics, religion and exclusion, the economic downslide, the safety and security of Indian women, regional cinema and Bollywood and the existential crisis in the age of the multiplex.
West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankar spoke about the breakdown of democracy in the state and the insults and name-calling he has been subjected to by West Bengal chief minister
Banerjee’s ministers, whom he described as “loose cannons”. Since assuming office earlier this year, Dhankar and the Trinamool government have clashed over several issues and the governor spoke about his position being continuously belittled by the TMC matriarch. However, he reserved comment when asked if the situation warranted imposition of president’s rule.
While Bengal and its allegedly crumbling state of democracy surfaced intermittently, it was concern over citizenship that dominated the conclave.
A day before the CAB, which seeks to give citizenship as well as constitutional rights to persecuted Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Sikh, Parsi and Christian refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, was set to be discussed in Parliament, the sessions at the conclave, such as ‘Citizen Kaun?’ and ‘The Agony of Illegal Existence’, inspired some intense debate on the subject. There were many who thought the passage of the bill will divide 1.3 billion people along religious lines yet again.
While Assam finance minister
Himanta Biswa Sarma was blatant about the goal of the CAB—to target Bangladeshi, Afghani and Pakistani Muslims “who came here as economic infiltrators”—BJP leader and saffron hardliner Kailash Vijayvargiya went one step ahead, saying that illegal immigration from neighbouring Muslim countries is responsible for terrorism and illegal activities such as circulation of fake currency and cultivating illegal poppy.
Vijayvargiya also came down heavily on those who saw the CAB as an attempt to play vote bank politics. “Where will a Hindu go if not in his own country?” he thundered. “There is no Hindu country and that’s why we are welcoming Hindus.” For Sarma, the NRC and CAB are the means to a greater end. “If you want to see a secure India for your future generation, you have to pay a price,” he said.
Senior advocate of the Supreme Court, Upamanyu Hazarika, questioned the motive behind the CAB, saying that the urgency behind it was “the immediate need to correct the imbalance of 12 lakh Hindu BengaMamata
“There has been a massive change in Bihar between 2005 and 2019. I challenge anyone to deny this” SUSHIL KUMAR MODI Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar “If you want to see a secure India for your future generation, you have to pay a price” HIMANTA BISWA SARMA Minister of Finance, Assam “When Bengal grows, the region grows, and I hope Bengal reclaims the pre-eminent position it enjoyed in the last century—a gateway and a growth engine for its 11 neighbouring states and the entire Northeast” AROON PURIE Chairman & Editor-in-chief, India Today Group “People in Bengal who wanted parivartan (change) now want paritran (salvation)” BABUL SUPRIYO Union minister of state for environment, forest and climate change
from the Left regime, now, having got a taste of it, want paritran (salvation). But how will that be possible when the party is yet to throw up a leader and a face in Bengal—“Mamata versus who?” he was asked. “Mamata versus development,” said Supriyo, “she’s the big road-block and the speed-breaker.” The singer-turnedpolitician also dropped subtle hints that Sourav Ganguly, former cricketer, now president of the BCCI and “Dada” to all of West Bengal, could possibly be the antithesis to Didi in the state. Dada, also a speaker at the conclave, however, had only this to say about it: “Running for cricket and standing for election is not easy. A strong personality is a requisite for that position.” For the game, be it politics or otherwise, he added, the players need the right atmosphere and freedom to perform because “only then winning is possible”.
Another topic that generated much debate at the conclave was the growing tendency of the ruling party to misuse its power to slap sedition charges against its critics. Mental health activist Ratnaboli Ray, one of the 46 signatories to the open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi against mob lynching, cow vigilantism and the use of ‘Jai Shree Ram’ as a war cry, said that it amused her that a mature democracy like India could consider such a letter as sedition and admit it as such in the court of law. “It was a dhamki (threat) and the counter letter that followed was nothing less
“Businessmen never speak out...have you seen anyone criticising any budget ever?” ASHWANI MAHAJAN National Co-convenor, Swadeshi Jagran Manch “I think you are cleaning the financial sector by trying to improve the credit culture which will only prolong the slowdown” D.K. JOSHI Chief Economist, CRISIL “I’m not at loggerheads with the government, they are at loggerheads with me” JAGDEEP DHANKAR Governor, West Bengal “THE MODI GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN REACHING OUT TO THE COMMON MAN LIKE NO OTHER GOVERNMENT” SANJIV GOENKA
Chairman, RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group
than that,” Ray said. Former Supreme Court judge Ashok Ganguly agreed saying that even though sedition wasn’t a cognisable offence in British India and has, over the years, been removed as that from developed countries like the UK and the US, it is sadly being used by the government to silence its critics. “Even [Bal Gangadhar Tilak] couldn’t be arrested for criticising the British, whereas according to this rule Kanhaiya [Kumar] can be and was arrested,” he said. The BJP panelists, fashion designer Agnimitra Paul and the party’s general secretary Sayantan Basu, dismissed the intellectuals’ outrage as selective and deliberately ignoring the times Hindus have been lynched and arrested. They hit back with stories of repression in Bengal where a young BJP worker was arrested for 10 days for posting a meme of Mamata Banerjee.
Speaking on crimes against women, theatre thespian Usha Ganguly brought up the recent Hyderabad rape case and the killing of the alleged rapists by the police in an early morning ‘encounter’. “I did not believe the news when I heard that the Hyderabad rape accused were shot. As a woman, honestly, I am happy, but as a citizen, I am sad,” said Usha, who also enacted a portion from her play Hum Mukhtara, inspired by the story of Mukhtaran Mai, a victim of rape in Pakistan.
The women on the podium for the
“India will give shelter to all Hindus who are tortured and thrown out of other countries” KAILASH VIJAYVARGIYA BJP In-charge, West Bengal “We can’t afford to antagonise Bangladesh, who have handed over to us prominent insurgents”
GEN. (RETD) BIKRAM SINGH Former Army Chief “NRC is not changing any existing rules...it is not aimed at any particular religion”
SHAMBHU SINGH Additional Secretary, Ministry for Road, Transport and Highway “There are serious geographical challenges in policing the borders of the Northeast”
LT GEN. (RETD) SHOKIN CHAUHAN Chairman, Ceasefire Monitoring Group “Where is the change and urgency in the judiciary? Why is the justice delivery system not going digital?” SREERUPA MITRA CHAUDHURY Activist
session titled ‘Why is India Unsafe for Her Daughters?’ discussed the failure of the judicial system to deliver justice. Miss Universe India 2010, Ushoshi Sengupta, herself a victim of molestation, pointed out that “the police are being celebrated for shooting, but this is the same police that failed to provide protection”.
Interspersing the political sessions were cultural ones, like ‘I am Das’, where the panelists—sportsperson Hima Das, filmmaker Rima Das and actor Lima Das—spoke of their triumphs in their respective fields. The 20-year-old gold medallist sprinter Hima has earned laurels for India, while Rima’s Village Rockstar was India’s official entry to the Oscars in 2018. Lima’s performance in the film Aamis, too, has created a stir in the world of films.
The economic slowdown was another topic of discussion at the conclave and the economists and businessmen on the panel argued that a solution to the “big slowdown” can only be arrived at if there’s acknowledgement that there’s a recession. “Everyone knows there’s a lack of demand in the economy. [Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman] woke up too late,” said economist P.N. Vijay.
Sanjiv Goenka, chairman of the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, suggested that companies invest in research and innovations and bring about changes in the macro level. Goenka also talked about the Modi government, saying that
“The police in the Hyderabad case are being celebrated for shooting, but this is the same police that failed to provide protection” USHOSHI SENGUPTA Miss Universe India 2010 “THE SHOOTING WAS PERFECT, I APPLAUD IT. WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM HAS FAILED? SHOULD WE WAIT FOR SEVEN YEARS LIKE NIRBHAYA’S PARENTS?” PRIYANKA TIBREWAL
Advocate
“It has taken so many generations to reach a stage where ‘women-centric’ films are being written.” YAMI GAUTAM Actor “Bengali cinema has become too politically correct. We have forgotten to be pugnacious” ARJUN CHAKRABARTY Actor “IT’S NOT ABOUT YOUR BODY OR MUSCLES, IT IS ULTIMATELY ABOUT THE ACTING” RAJKUMMAR RAO Actor “There needs to be some protectionism for regional cinema, but we need to pull up our socks” PARAMBRATA CHATTERJEE Filmmaker
he sees will and determination in the NDA government like in none other before. “This government is reacting to the common man like none has. It is instituting huge social and corporate structural changes”, he said.
Representing Bollywood were actors Yami Gautam, Taapsee Pannu and Rajkummar Rao, sharing their individual tales of struggle, patience and grit to script their own success stories in the industry. Gautam of Vicky Donor, Kaabil and Bala admitted that it took her many years to find her place in Bollywood, while Rao talked about how he thought it was only muscle and abs that could get him roles in films. Talent, he discovered and has proved, trumps all.
Amid the excitement at the conclave, striking a calmer note were Balkrishna and fitness guru and author Deanne Panday. The former focused on the benefits of yoga and meditation, while Panday talked about the benefits of food cooked at home with “vitamin L (love)” over fad diets. Panday also shared her mantra to live by in these dissonant times: “Be happy from inside.” Who could possibly quarrel with that? ■
“The only way to address crimes against women is to look at how we bring up our sons” TAAPSEE PANNU Actor “Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen and Shyam Benegal also made films in Hindi but they were not Bollywood” ANIK DATTA Filmmaker “ALL KINDS OF CINEMA HAS EXISTED IN OUR COUNTRY. THE PROBLEM IS WE TAKE HINDI AS THE MAIN LANGUAGE IN INDIA” SAYANI GUPTA Actor