Former BJP president Bangaru laxman has gone down in history as the man who was caught on the camera taking a bribe. Unfortunately, the incident overshadowed the good work he had done for the uplift of the Scheduled Castes
Bangaru laxman is dead. He should not go unwept, unsung and unhonoured for the services he rendered to the deprived classes. Whenever faced with accusations of multi-billion crore rupees worth corruption cases, Congress spokesmen glibly counter it by referring to the corruption case in which laxman was convicted for receiving a bribe of one lakh rupees. This, even after his death, is unfair. There is a more important side to him.
I knew him personally from 1987. We met first at an all-party meeting convened by then Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister with Opposition leaders to get their support for the bizarre idea of regularising acquisition of tribal area lands by non-tribals in violation of constitutional provisions, laws and regulations regarding the Scheduled Tribes, and to rehabilitate the displaced tribals outside tribal areas. I was present as Principal Secretary for Social Welfare. laxman represented the BJP at the meeting.
In view of my paramount loyalty to the Constitution and to the STs, I did some groundwork with CPI leader in the opposition ranks, CH Rajeshwar Rao, who personally attended the meeting pursuant to our prior discussions.
Before the Chief Minister’s arrival, laxman asked me what stand he should take. The CPI(M), CPI and the CMP representatives also asked me the same question. All of them trusted me because of my loyalty to the Constitution and its provisions for the protection and advancement of SCs, STs and other deprived classes. I suggested to them that they oppose the anti-constitutional proposal and the illegal occupants of tribal lands. I added that non-tribals must be rehabilitated outside tribal areas, restoring tribal lands to tribals.
All leaders opposed the Chief Minister’s proposal. laxman took an active part in explaining the rights of the STs and their plight and in opposing the proposal.
laxman, as president of the BJP’s Dalit Morcha, again met me in Delhi in 1988 when I was Special Commissioner for SCs (constitutional machinery) and discussed with me points in respect of SCs for the BJP manifesto, which was on the agenda of a BJP meeting at Agra. I suggested to him certain points including the inclusion of the proper formulation and implementation of Special Component Plan for Scheduled Castes, a plan instrumentality which I had designed and initiated in 1978 as Joint Secretary (SC & BC Development) in the Ministry of Home Affairs. If properly formulated and implemented, it could help bring about comprehensive, radical and integrated socio-economic development, advancement and empowerment of SCs, corresponding to the Tribal sub-Plan.
Thanks to laxman’s clarity, devotion to the cause of SCs and other deprived classes and efforts, the BJP became the first party to specifically mention the SCP in its manifesto. This has disappeared in the post-Bangaru laxman period, including in the party’s 2014 manifesto. It stands to his credit that he was one of the earliest political persons to understand the SCP.
In 1998, when the BJP emerged as the single largest party, laxman lost no time to come to my house to discuss issues to be put across to Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, shortly beforethe latter became Prime Minister. I gave him a copy of the Dalit Manifesto which I had formulated in 1996. laxman again came to me with Mr Sudheendra Kulkarni and Dalit BJP leader Suraj Bhan. Mr Kulkarni prepared a draft on the basis of the discussions. laxman arranged a meeting between Mr Vajpayee and me, where I explained these issues to Mr Vajpayee. He promised that he would implement many, if not all, the items listed. Subsequently also he arranged meetings with the leaders of the BJP. One of the outcomes of this was the re-naming the Ministry of Welfare as the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
There were many occasions when we met and discussed issues of SCs, STs, Backward Classes and BC minorities. One of the points I put across to laxman, with which he agreed, was that most Muslims of India are converts from deprived castes, who were seeking different ways of escaping the caste oppression.
This discussion took place at Dehradun just before a public meeting convened bythe National Action Forum for Social Justice in which Uttarakhand’s BJP Ministers participated. laxman, speaking on the occasion, unequivocally declared in chaste Hindi (he was one of the rare politicians who was fluent both in a major southern language and Hindi, apart from English): “Muslims are the flesh of our flesh and the blood of our blood”, and that their interests should be taken care of along with interests of Hindu backward classes. Soon after this, he became Minister of State for Railways in 1999, the first Union Minister from the Madiga community, the largest Scheduled Caste in south India.
He was made president of BJP in 2000. It is very difficult for leaders to come up from SCs and STs in major national parties. But when they do come up, more often than not, something happens that stymies them. There are many examples of this. All-out efforts have to be made by major political parties to nurture leadership among SCs and STs and allow them to gain in stature.If laxman had continued as party president, developments important for the SCs, STs, BCs and the BC minorities would surely have come about. This might have helped to change the course of India’s recent political history.
There is no doubt about laxman’s commitment to this cause. These possibilities were cut short by Tehelka’s sting operation in which he was allegedly shown taking a bribe of one lakh rupees. Many of us wondered whether in an ambience where bribes taken were in the range of multi-billion crores of rupees, would a major leader take a bribe of one lakh rupees. However, at present we have to go by a special CBI court’s judgement. The BJP is duty-bound to restore his honour by fighting his appeal pending in the High Court and/or helping his family to pursue it. Meanwhile, let laxman be remembered not for the corruption conviction but for his services to the SCs, STs and the BCs, including the BCs from the minority community.
I met him last on February 23, 2014, at Yashoda hospital, in Secunderabad, a few days before his death. His health had been shattered during his incarceration in Tihar jail. He could not speak as he was under respiratory support, but he recognised me. I returned in sadness. The best was yet to be, but could not be, since it was laxman’s fate to depart as a tragic personality.
(The writer is a former Secretary to the Government of India)