Relax! I am not the one to write a fifty-thousand word essay here. Apart from the obvious that I lack enough knowledge to write so much about Sardar Patel, I too have things to do. However, I would like to ramble on a few things for my own sake more than anyone’s. I am currently reading India after Gandhi by Ramchandra Guha. I have never quite been a fan of Ramachandra Guha for his incessant attempts of purporting to be an intellectual historian, if such a thing exists. Yet, this book makes a mark. It’s probably the most unbiased piece of history I have come across in a long time. I had become completely disillusioned by history and historians after the likes of Irfan Habib, K.N.Panikkar and Romila Thapar, probably the most noted historians in India. It is indeed our great fortune that Arun Shourie, an intellectual in true sense, gifted us with Eminent Historians – Their Technology, Their Line and Their Frauds that has helped us expose the black hole of Marxist historians. Interestingly, I am yet to hear of a rejoinder, except these kinds written by K.M.Panikkar stating that Shourie has sold himself in flesh market – a language that even Indian politicians, let alone intellectuals, refrain from using in a public discourse. It must have been a nasty jar for Mr.Panikkar.
Enough of digressions. So, while I was reading India after Gandhi that I came across a couple of lines from Sardar Patel’s letter to Nehru dated as back as 7th Nov, 1950. Out of curiosity, I googled up and I found the letter online. It’s an astonishing piece of foresight. If there is any irony in that letter it has to be the fact that he wrote it to Mr.Nehru, an architect of most failed policies ranging from non-alliance, pseudo-secularism and many others. I was simply awestruck to see the vision of a man who, if had been the PM, would have taken our nation to an entirely different platform. And I say this not without a reason. Apart from the fact that he envisaged the dangers of Islamic terrorism, he stands out for pointing out the spectre of communist terrorism emanating from the pockets of rural India with the covert support of CPI(M) and China. This is incredible! Simply put, phenomenal. To quote Mr.Patel –
Chinese irredentism and communist imperialism are different from the expansionism or imperialism of the western powers. The former has a cloak of ideology which makes it ten times more dangerous. In the guise of ideological expansion lie concealed racial, national or historical claims. The danger from the north and north-east, therefore, becomes both communist and imperialist. While our western and north-western threat to security is still as prominent as before, a new threat has developed from the north and north-east. Thus, for the first time, after centuries, India’s defence has to concentrate itself on two fronts simultaneously. Our defence measures have so far been based on the calculations of superiority over Pakistan. In our calculations we shall now have to reckon with communist China in the north and in the north-east, a communist China which has definite ambitions and aims and which does not, in any way, seem friendly disposed towards us.
The year is 1950. As sated in the book, Nehru sent a note to Patel saying he thought it extremely unlikely that India would face an attack from China. He also stated that Patel’s idea of Chinese communism meaning expansion towards India was rather naive. Patel died soon after. Nehru had full control over the Congress party. He went on to craft the Hindi-Chini bhai bhai in the following years. And in 1962, the bhai greeted us with kind brotherhood. Sadly, it was too late. Patel was vindicated.
Today it is 2011. China now lays claims on parts of Arunachal and Leh (as far as I know). There could be other areas in the north-east too. So who was being naive and who was a visionary is anyone’s guess.
Patel wrote further –
Side by side with these external dangers, we shall now have to face serious internal problems as well. I have already asked Iengar to send to the External Affairs Ministry a copy of the Intelligence Bureau’s appreciation of these matters. Hitherto, the Communist Party of India has found some difficulty in contacting communists abroad, or in getting supplies of arms, literature, etc., from them. They had to contend with the difficult Burmese and Pakistan frontiers on the east or with the long seaboard. They shall now have a comparatively easy means of access to Chinese communists and through them to other foreign communists. Infiltration of spies, fifth columnists and communists would now be easier. Instead of having to deal with isolated communist pockets in Telengana and Warrangal we may have to deal with communist threats to our security along our northern and north-eastern frontiers, where, for supplies of arms and ammunition, they can safely depend on communist arsenals in China.
The whole letter is stunning. It’s a piece of passion, vision, foresight, astute understanding of International relations and unadulterated patriotism.
We must be one of the biggest cursed nations. We had Nehru as the first PM. He left a “legacy” that still haunts us. And a few good men like Patel couldn’t live longer. Patel died in 1950. May his soul rest in peace. May we get another Sardar Patel in 2011. We honestly deserve better than this.
RSS - Posts
