Leadership during Crisis

Many Whatsapp posts are defining anyone who is raising questions on the Government statements on the Chinese standoff as Gaddars. This irrespective of whether the posts are sincerely concerned with the welfare of the country & are apolitical or if the intention of  post is just to score a point against the ruling dispensation. Even the dissenting veterans are being called names. This binary further alienates the critics and the divide between the supporters of government and ones questioning is widening. Many of the so called supporters of the government are actually supporters of a leader and are more concerned with the image of the leader than the country. The argument that “During these troubled times it is the responsibility of every citizen to stand behind the leader and not question him.” It definitely is a strong argument and particularly when we have an enemy as strong and cunning as China where every Chinese by force has no right to question the leader.  The predicament in this situation is what to do if someone feels strongly about the miscalculations of the leader and want him to correct it for the benefit of the country? Should one speak or should remain silent?

A few examples from past come to memory and let us see if they can help solve this problem.

 In Ramayana, Raavan the King of Lanka kidnaps Sita. Raavan has two brothers Kumbhakarna and Vibhishana. Both are against the kidnapping of Sita & both of them advise Raavan to send back Sita but Raavan does not listen. Kumbhakarna still keeps on supporting his brother the King Raavan while Vibhishanis  not able to tolerate adharma & he follows what his conscience tells him. At the end Raavan is defeated and killed, Kumbhakarna also dies in the battle and the country Lanka loses to Ram. Vibhishan becomes the new king of Lanka. In Mahabharata, after winning  Draupadi in the game of dice , Duryodhan orders his brother Dusshasana to disrobe her and to make her sit on his lap. Many stalwarts like Bhishma, Dronacharya are present but none raises any objection as they don’t want to go against the leader Duryodhana. Only Vidura, the son of a maid and Vikarna a younger brother of Duryodhana try to advice Duryodhana against this. The advice is not taken. Later Mahabharata happens, Duryodhana is killed and the country is lost to Pandavas. Should we be calling Vibhishana, Vidura & Vikarna Gaddars or well wishers? They had good of the establishment and their leader in their thoughts and so in spite of arising ire of the respective kings, they voiced their opinions which later turned out to be correct.

 Not that every advice by the well wishers turns out to be correct and the results are in favour of  state. A recent example is 1962 Sino India war. Before the buildup to the war the entire opposition, Jan Sangh, PSP, Swatantra Party… were all against any diplomatic parleys with China and even wanted India to aggressively establish its authority on the disputed areas. The then PM of India, Nehru employed the forward policy without any back support &this led to a bloody war between India and China and where India lost decisively.

The difference in the two scenarios from mythological texts and the recent independent India of 1960s is clear. While the advisors in Ramayan and Mahabharat were from the same party and so must be privy to the situation and strength of the country, in the Independent India the leader Nehru was not giving them full information to the opposition parties who were advocating aggression without proper knowledge of the situation. The lack of important information may lead to incorrect advice and if the leader is taking decision based on such ill informed advices, the results will be disastrous. Should we be calling the opposition parties of 1960s gaddars?  No, definitely not, they had welfare of the country at the back of their advice.

When a country is in crisis, it is important that all work together, not just the opposition giving full support to the Government but also the Government taking the opposition into confidence and taking them along. The opposition leaders also have to keep secret any sensitive information they are privy to. Presently we are in trouble due to the border dispute with China, the Covid-19 pandemic and the crisis due to economic slowdown. It is important for the country to fight all the three problems together without any party calling the other names and hiding or using information for the benefit of the party or self. Leader’s role becomes much more crucial during these times as he has to carry opposition parties along and at the same time keep his/her supporters calm and disciplined.

Jai Hind