Tale of Two Sons In-Law
By Poonam I Kaushish
This is the tale of two sons in law, Feroze Gandhi and Robert Vadra. The first, a bête noir of his father-in law Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The latter, has become the Achilles Heel of his mother-in-law, Nehru-s granddaughter-in-law and Feroz’s daughter-in-law Congress President Sonia Gandhi. While Gandhi exposed corruption in independent India’s first Congress Government, Vadra has become the focus of alleged sleazy tales.
Recall, Feroze who married Nehru’s daughter and ex-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1942 is best remembered for spotlighting dishonesty in his father-in-law’s Government. Elected to Parliament in 1952, his exposure of la affaire Mundhra in 1957 wherein the LIC invested Rs. 1.24 crores in fraudulent shares of the industrialist company led to the resignation of then Finance Minister T.T. Krishnamachari, causing Nehru major embarrassment. The Justice MC Chagla one-man commission later sentenced Mundhra to 22 years in prison. Feroze also was the primary force behind industrialist Ram Kishan Dalmia’s imprisonment for defrauding his life insurance company in 1956.
Unlike Feroze, Vadra, an ordinary boy from Moradabad who wed Sonia’s daughter Priyanka hit headlines for all the wrong reasons when India Against Corruption (IAC) founder Arvind Kejriwal exposed his alleged “dirty linen”. It accused the country’s first son-in-law of receiving undue favours and wealth from India’s biggest reality firm Delhi-based DLF. And asked Vadra to clarify how his wealth jumped from Rs 50 lakh in 2007 to Rs 300 crore in 2012?
Citing from Vadra’s balance sheet, IAC sought clarification on how he purchased 7 high end apartments in one of DLF’s Gurgaon properties for a total of a mere Rs 5 crores when each flat alone is worth that, a penthouse valued at Rs 25 crores for a pittance Rs 89 lakhs in 2007 and a hotel in south Delhi for Rs 35 crores, no matter a shop costs more.
More. Why did DLF give Vadra Rs 65 crores as unsecured interest free loans which he invested back in the firm? Why did the Congress Government in Haryana give a 35 acre plot meant for a hospital to DLF for an SEZ? Was it on Vadra’s behest as he too had invested monies and what was the quid-pro-quo?
Complicating matters, Kejriwal & Co drew parallels between Vadra and DMK’s Kanimozhi and Dayanidhi Maran 2G cases. According to them, like DLF, another realty firm gave Karunanidhi’s daughter an unsecured loan of Rs.200 crores for which she was jailed, while Maran had to resign as Union Minister for a purported quid-pro-quo deal with another telecom company. If it is OK to attack Kanimozhi for corruption, why not Vadra?
A panicky High Command fielded Ministers from Finance Minister Chidambaram, Law Minister Salman Khurshid, Corporate Minister Moily and spokespersons to deny any hanky-panky by Sonia’s son in-law. All asserting, “This is politically-motivated, cheap publicity stunt and Vadra had done nothing wrong.” Yet, the controversy refuses to go away as it raises discomfiting questions which need to be proven.
Adding to Sonia’s discomfiture even as Party apparatchiks were defending Vadra’s malfeasance, he cocked a snook at the aam aadmi in whose name the Congress seeks votes, by posting on his Facebook page, “Mango people in banana republic.” Translated in English, aam has two meanings: ordinary and mango fruit. Worse, by implying India is a banana republic he seemed to be mocking Sonia. Or was he stating the reality? Look at the irony. It is only a banana republic which allows a ‘first family man’ to make money in so little time. Thanks to his right connections due to which he has the right kind of friends.
The moot point is not only whether Vadra has done any wrong but it brought three important issues to the fore. One, if Vadra is a “private citizen” why did Ministers defend him? And so clumsily? Two, as private person why does he enjoy SPG Z+ protection and is among 30 VVIPs who are exempt from frisking at all airports. Three, it has exposed the hypocrisy of “political maryada”, the unwritten code of honour among our netagan not to rake up crimes of omission and commission of their rivals families. All adhering to a “live-and-let-live” policy for fear of mutual destruction. The Congress deafening silence on Vajpayee’s foster son-in-law of Ranjan Bhattacharya, a case in point.
Alas, as various scams over the years from Mundhra, Bank scam, petrol pumps, CWG, 2G and Coalgate show, the maximum beneficiaries are netas, their relatives and cronies.
See how Congress turned the other cheek when Andhra Prince Jaganmohan Reddy minted millions. But as soon as he challenged the Party High Command he became personal-non-grata and his corruption omnipresent.
What to speak of the abuse of CBI by Government’s of the day to keep their rivals in line. Time and again both the Congress and BJP have used the investigation agency to keep Messers’ Mayawati (Taj Corridor scandal, disproportionate wealth), Mulayam (unproven money), Laloo (Chaara scam) et al in check, by going slow or accelerating corruption cases.
Wildcard or enfant terrible, call him what you may but the aam aadmi is applauding Kejriwal and IAC for over-turning the rules of the political game as it has so far been played. Either which way, the IAC googly has our netagan worried. Many wonder whose skeletons will be laid bare by it next. Specially against the backdrop that our politicians who have never worked a day in their life, start their political innings with a jhola but become multi-millionaires within five years. The tragedy of India is that we are not able to fight corruption in public life because the people who run the government are corrupt.
True, the cynics shrug off the IAC hue and cry over Vadra. “It will die down in a few days. Kejriwal and Co are one day wonders who will fade away once a new scandal erupts, remember public memory is short,” said a seasoned leader. Others feel the Government and Congress have shot itself in the foot. Instead of Ministers competing with each other to defend him, Vadra should have been left to defend his case. That way, whatever the outcome, the Party would have kept itself out of any embarrassment.
Needless to say, for us “mango people” to expect any sort of accountability from our netas betas-betis-damaads is nothing short of a pipe dream. Perhaps the time has come for a codification of this “honour among thieves” so that we are at least spared the mortification of watching elaborate and often brazen cover-ups of corruption by their families.
What next? Will IAC be the game changer India desperately wants and needs? Not a few are confident that the people will no longer remain mute spectators post the Anna Hazare Jan Lokpal campaign. The aam aadmi is aware that corruption has morphised from behind close doors to open loot. The only way forward is to overhaul political funding by ushering in transparency. One sincerely hopes Probity does not become the oxymoron to the Indian Politicians. Else, we will continue to live in a Banana Republic of mango people! —– INFA