The emerging foreign policy of India

Foreign policy is all about securing the national and security interests of a nation. India’s foreign policy has transitioned from a near-isolationist and near-neutral approach during post-independent years to a more flexible and focused approach especially after the end of cold war era. The impact of globalization, technological changes and global problems like climate change have led to a convergence in thinking that a stable foreign policy is a pre-requisite for peace and prosperity of a nation. The BJP-led government at the centre,in its first year of coming into power has done exceptionally well in managing its foreign relations both at the regional and international level.

The salient features of India’s foreign policy as pursued by the present government at the centre deserves worth-mentioning.The government has accorded primacy to its neighbourhood policy wherein seeking better relations with India’s immediate neighborhood is a growing priority. The PM had chosen Bhutan as its first foreign destination followed by a high-level SAARC summit at Kathmandu later that year. The rescue and relief operation by India during the recent earthquake in Nepal was lauded by countries across the world.  

At the same time, the government is non-compromising on its national interests. Despite being surrounded by difficult neighbors like Pakistan and China, India has done well to engage with them at the highest level. India favors a peaceful and stable Pakistan in her vicinity.Nevertheless, India condemns the religious extremism and cross-border terrorism  emanating from the Pakistani soil.Similarly, incursions by the Chinese forces have dropped to zero after the visit of Chinese premier to India during the last year.

Another aspect of India’s foreign policy is to secure the economic interests of the nation. Against this backdrop, India’s engagement with the developed nations like the USA, France, Canada and Japan is likely to spur trade and investments into the country. Countries like China and Japan have pledged millions of dollars of investments in Indian infrastructural projects. Similarly, India is determined to act decisively on its ‘Look-East’ policy. The recent visits of Prime Minister to China, South-Korea and Mongolia is a part of its so called ‘ Act-East’ approach which is likely to bear fruit in the longer run.

Finally, the Prime Minister deserves credit for mobilizing the diaspora community as an integral part of its engagement with foreign nations. India has an overwhelming diaspora population in nations like the USA, Canada and Australia. Apart from remittances, engagement with the Indian diaspora abroad enhances the international standing of India in the world order of nations. Moreover,the provision of e-visa on arrival facility to various nationals across the world would increase people-to-people contact and boost tourism.

Despite the achievements on foreign policy front in a relatively shorter span of time, India should not repeat its past mistakes. That said, there should be adequate follow-up and better implementation of the policies formulated till date. Therefore, the foremost challenge for India is to take up necessary steps to implement the policies at the bureaucratic level. India cannot afford to become a super-power unless she conducts her foreign policy obligations in a pragmatic manner.

Expediting trial process

The long pending cases of under-trials is a blot on the Indian justice delivery system. According to an estimate, over two-third of the incarcerated people in the country’s jails are under-trials. Part of the reason is due to the fact that the undertrials are extremely poor and are unable to furnish bail-bonds or provide sureties. The article 39A of the Indian constitution is based on the socialistic principle which states that the state is obliged to provide free legal aid to the poor. In this context, institutions like National Legal Service Authority and State Legal Services Authorities have been institutionalized. Yet these institutions have failed to aware the prisoners of their rights, leave alone the provision of free legal aid.

The government needs to strengthen judicial infrastructure by creating more courts at the district and state level. The Alternate Dispute Redressal mechanisms have largely reduced the burden on the higher courts. Therefore, more such institutions need to be encouraged. There should be enhanced appointments of judicial personnel in district courts, high courts and supreme courts. Often, the judicial positions are reported to have lied vacant resulting in acute shortage of judges. Most importantly, it is the political will that matters the most when it comes to judicial appointments and promoting infrastructure requirements. The government needs to provide financial allocations for such initiatives. The legal services authorities should be given greater autonomy and financial assistance to pursue the pending cases to logical ends.

Tackling left-wing extremism

Left-wing extremism is one of the gravest internal security threat in our country. It is predominantly spread across the eastern, central and southern states of India and is popularly known as the ‘Red  Corridor’ states.

The conventional approach to deal with left-wing extremism since the early 1970s was to deploy security forces against the insurgents. But, this harsh measure could hardly tackle the security threat. Instead, the conflict between security agencies and the Maoists continued unabated culminating in greater reinforcement of Maoists’ cadre in 2004 when there was a merger of the former warring groups. The villagers in these Maoist strongholds were the hardest hit against the backdrop of the conflict between the insurgent groups and the state.

One of the critical factors promoting left-wing extremism is the perpetual poverty and unemployment among the masses. The people felt alienated from the State as industrial activities increased on their land without taking the original inhabitants into board. The loss of livelihood and rampant exploitation of these people drove them towards taking up arms against the State. The government has, of late, realized that a ‘development-centric’ model was a better way to tackle left-wing extremism apart from the militaristic approach.

It is a truism that equitable development led by the state is a potent tool to tackle the security threat. Better employment opportunities and addressing livelihood concerns would dis-incentivize the locals to taking up violence against the State. The state should promote skill development so that the youths could get productive employment even in the remote villages.

Moreover, the Centre should formulate a counter-insurgency doctrine encompassing also the development and security-related components. This would provide an unity of approach among the security agencies and the state irrespective of which political party is in power. Out of such a doctrine, area-specific strategies and tactics could be developed and implemented across states.

Granting citizenship to Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh

The BJP government has expressed its willingness to grant citizenship rights to Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh. This has created furore among the regional parties in Assam and civil society. Many have raised concerns about the credibility of India’s foreign policy and the government’s short-sightedness on the issue, probably driven by ideological-political considerations.

The implications of such a retrograde step are manifold. First, illegal immigration is a very complex issue in Assam and adjoining states. The Assam accord and the affidavit filed by the Assam government in Supreme Court mentions 24 March, 1971 as the defining date for determining the citizenship rights. Diluting this provision to accommodate the Hindu immigrants on religious lines is bound to complicate the issue further. Already, modalities are being worked upon to upgrade the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the government seems to be seriously considering efforts to curb illegal migration.

If at all, the government intends to accommodate the Hindu immigrants on the ground of persecution faced by them, it should specify the time-period during which they were unduly harassed. This would tantamount to casting aspersions on the ability of the foreign government(in this case, Bangladesh) to protect its minorities. All the Confidence Building Measures(CBMs) between the two countries achieved till date including the Land Boundary Agreement would come to naught as a result of deep mistrust between them.

It would be infinitely better should the government agree on a national policy for refugees for the betterment of persecuted minorities abroad. Alternatively, India could be a signatory to 1951 refugee convention under which the signatory countries are obliged not to send back the refugees on the ground of persecution and harassment. Such a coherent policy would do away with such ad-hoc decisions based on ideological-political considerations.

Shayri

Na Sangarsh Na Taklif,
To Kya Maja Hai Jine Mai.
Bade Bade Toofan Tham Jaate Hai,
Jab Aag Lagi Ho Sine Mai.

NGOs and controversies

Many NGOs operating in India have recently come under the scanner for their alleged anti-developmental activities. The Intelligence Bureau, in its report, mentioned that certain NGOs were primarily responsible for hurting India’s growth interests thus lowering the GDP growth rate by 2-3 percent. While the quantitative data of loss in GDP may or may not hold good in exact terms, but the functioning of NGOs in India, either domestic or foreign, needs a comprehensive relook.

However, most of the NGOs are involved in activities that augur well for protecting the interests of the poor and upholding the democratic values of the nation. Development does not necessarily mean just economic development, but reducing social inequity, promoting gender equality and improving social indicators like health, education and so forth. In such a complex situation, the government alone does not have the wherewithal to accomplish the tasks. Therefore, the role of civil society is of utmost relevance and NGOs, being the arm of civil society, can work in tandem with the government and other institutions in furthering social and economic goals.

As regards the NGOs that are alleged to have been involved in anti-development activities, the Government can provide for tighter scrutiny of their works in accordance with the provisions of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act,2010. In a nation where the sources of funds are poor and hurdles are galore in raising funds independently, freezing the accounts of the NGOs should be the last resort, when all the legal options are exhausted.

The government should categorise NGOs based on the funds sources. The NGOs should be held accountable for their spent funds and also for their acts of omission and commission. Moreover, it is necessary for the NGOs to improve transparency in the governance framework and board functioning. The NGOs are within their democratic rights to organize protests and mobilise people. But they should also function as ‘think-tank’ and provide alternatives to the Government.

The father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, had immense faith on the positive role of civil society. He, in fact, wanted the Indian National Congress to cease its role as a political organization and commit itself to the betterment of society as a Public Service Organisation. Although the Indian National Congress went against his wishes, but the civil society continued to remain extremely relevant in the Indian context. In the last decade, the efforts of NGOs were instrumental in the passage of legislations and programs like Right to Food, Right to Information, NREGS, ICDS etc.

Therefore, while the role of NGOs is crucial in a diversified nation like India, they should aid the development and growth of India by providing alternative measures and improving transparency and accountability in their functioning.

Goods and Services Tax

Goods and Services Tax(GST) is a comprehensive indirect tax regime which will subsume all indirect taxes such as excise duty, services tax, Value Added Taxes, sales tax etc. into a single entity. GST would be applicable on the supply of goods and services and is a destination-based tax system. GST is an unified taxation system wherein the centre and the states would legislate, levy and administer the taxes concurrently in the form of Central GST and the State GST. However, the taxes would be levied on a common base.

There are many advantages of rolling out the GST system of taxes. First, it will help in the creation of unified national market. It is because the goods would be charged uniformly across the states. For instance, commodity X will cost the same in states A,B or C. This will facilitate the ease of doing business and would incentivize the companies for greater investment. Second, there would be no cascading effect of taxes. The absence of multiple taxation on products by the centre as well as states would benefit the consumers eventually due to lowering of prices. It is estimated that the roll out of GST would spur the GDP growth rates by an additional 1-2 percent.

However, not all the states are satisfied with the GST model of taxes. The states are reluctant to include money-spinning sectors like Petroleum and alcohol products in the ambit of GST. As of now, the centre has agreed to exclude only alcohol from the GST system. Moreover, another problematic issue is that of compensation. As a result of abolition of Central Sales Tax(CST), the states are demanding adequate compensation from the Central Government. The Central Government, has assured the affected states that it would compensate the required amount fully(100 percent) for three years, 75 percent on the fourth year and 50 percent for the fifth year.

However, in the long run, GST would be beneficial both for the Central Government as well as State Government. The VAT regime introduced in the early 2000s too faced similar apprehensions from the states, but it ultimately benefited them in the long run.  However, the concerns of manufacturing states like Tamil Nadu in the form of reduced revenue needs to be adequately addressed by the Central Government.