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  • Indian foreign policy and decline in soft power in neighbourhood

    op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Not much

    Mains level: Paper 2- India's declining soft power in the neighbourhood

    The article examines the issue of declining political capital in India’s neighbourhood and the factors responsible for this. 

    India’s standing in neighbourhood: Past

    • Not long ago, India was seen as a natural rising power in South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region.
    • It was the de facto leader of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
    • It has historical and cultural ties with Nepal.
    • It enjoyed traditional goodwill and influence in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
    • It had made investments worth billions of dollars in Afghanistan and cultivated vibrant ties with the post-Taliban stakeholders in Kabul.
    • It had committed itself to multilateralism and the Central Asian connectivity project, with Iran being its gateway.
    • It was competing and cooperating with China at the same time.

    India’s relations in with the neighbourhood: Present

    • India is perhaps facing its gravest national security crisis in 20 years, with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
    • SAARC is defunct.
    • Nepal has turned hostile having adopted a new map and revived border disputes with India.
    • Sri Lanka has tilted towards China.
    • Bangladesh is clearly miffed at the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.
    • When Afghanistan is undergoing a major transition, India is out of the multi-party talks.
    • Iran has inaugurated a railway link project connecting the Chabahar port, on the Gulf of Oman, to Zahedan.

    What are the factors responsible for this?

    When we dig deep, three problems can be found which are more or less linked to this decline.

    1) Alignment with US

    • As India started moving away from non-alignment, there has been a steady erosion in India’s strategic autonomy.
    • India’s official policy is that it is committed to multilateralism.
    •  When India started deepening its partnership with the United States, New Delhi began steadily aligning its policies with U.S. interests.
    • The case of Iran is the best example.
    • India’s deepening defence and military ties with the U.S.  probably altered Beijing’s assessment of India.
    • One of the reasons for the shift could be Beijing’s assessment that India has already become a de facto ally of the U.S.
    • The forceful altering of the status quo on the border is a risky message as much to New Delhi as it is to Washington.

    2) Domestic politics

    • The passing of the CAA is regionalisation of the domestic problems of the countries in India’s neighbourhood.
    • Bangladesh took offence at the CAA and the National Register of Citizens, there were anti-India protests even in Afghanistan.
    • CAA also drove new wedges between India and the countries that had a Muslim majority and were friendly to India in the neighbourhood.
    • The abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir was another such move.
    • But it damaged India’s reputation as a responsible democratic power and gave propaganda weapons to Pakistan.
    • The change of status quo in Jammu and Kashmir, could be another factor that prompted the Chinese to move aggressively towards the border in Ladakh.

    3) Misplaced confidence

    • Great powers wait to establish their standing before declaring that they have arrived.
    • China bided its time for four decades before it started taking on the mighty U.S.
    • India should learn from at least these modern examples.
    • If it did, it would not have used high-handedness in Nepal during the country’s constitutional crisis and caused a traditional and civilisational ally to turn hostile.
    • The updated political map which India released in November rubbed salt into the wound on the Nepal border.

    Consider the question “India’s standing in its neighbourhood has been on the decline for some time now. Examine the factors responsible for this.”

    Conclusion

    To address the current crises, India has to reconsider its foreign policy trajectory. It does not lack resources to claim what is its due in global politics. What it lacks is strategic depth.

    Original article:

    https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/needed-a-map-for-indias-foreign-policy/article32206877.ece

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  • Judicial Reforms

    Issues with contempt of court

    op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Executive & Judiciary

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Contempt of court

    Mains level: Paper 2- Contempt of court and issues

    The article discusses the issues that law for contempt of the court give rise to. The practice has monarchical origins. Its continuance conflicts with the ideals of democracy. 

    Objective

    • The objective for contempt is stated to be to safeguard the interests of the public if the authority of the Court is denigrated and public confidence in the administration of justice is weakened or eroded.
    •  Need to “respect the authority and dignity of the court” has monarchical origins.

    Issues in India

    • With adjudicatory role having been handed over to judges, showing extreme deference to judges does not sit well with the idea of a democracy.
    • But the definition of criminal contempt in India is extremely wide, and can be easily invoked.
    •  Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer famously termed the law of contempt as having a vague and wandering jurisdiction, contempt law may unwittingly trample upon civil liberties.
    • Criminal contempt is completely asynchronous with our democratic system which recognises freedom of speech and expression as a fundamental right.
    • Excessively loose use of the test of ‘loss of public confidence’, combined with a liberal exercise of suo motu powers, can be dangerous.
    •  It can amount to the Court signalling that it will not suffer any kind of critical commentary about the institution at all.

    Lessons from other democracies

    • Contempt has practically become obsolete in foreign democracies.
    • Canada ties its test for contempt to real, substantial and immediate dangers to the administration.
    • American courts also no longer use the law of contempt in response to comments on judges or legal matters.
    • In England, too, the legal position has evolved.

    Approach of Indian judiciary

    • Truth and good faith were not recognised as valid defences until 2006, when the Contempt of Courts Act was amended.
    • Indian courts have not been inclined to display the same maturity and unruffled spirit as their peers in the other democracies.

    Consider the question  “A law for criminal contempt is completely asynchronous with our democratic system which recognises freedom of speech and expression as a fundamental right. Examine the issue in India context and suggest the major to strike the balance.”

    Conclusion

    Besides needing to revisit the need for a law on criminal contempt, even the test for contempt needs to be evaluated. If such a test ought to exist at all, it should be whether the contemptuous remarks in question actually obstruct the Court from functioning. It should not be allowed to be used as a means to prevent any and all criticism of an institution.

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  • Internal Security Trends and Incidents

    Information war

    op-ed snap | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Social Media Networks & Internal Security

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Not much

    Mains level: Paper 3- Information war against India

    Information war waged against India from across the border needs consideration. Three factors have triggered the war in the realm of information. This article examines the way in which it is perpetrated.

    Factors

    •  Following three triggers are responsible for Pakistan’s information war.
    • 1) The Balakot attack of February 2019.
    • Balakot demolished Pakistan’s presumed nuclear equivalence that guaranteed that India would not retaliate against terrorist attacks
    • 2) The return of the BJP government in the May 2019 elections-which signalled that India would follow aggressive muscular policy.
    • 3) The August 2019 revision of Article 370.
    • The Article 370 decision demolished the centrepiece of Pakistan’s nationalism build on Kashmir.
    • The move also raised apprehensions about India’s plans for Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
    • These developments have forced it to shift the emphasis of its anti-India strategy from fomenting terrorism supported by an information war component to an information war supported by terrorism.

    How the information war is waged

    • The ISI and the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) two main instruments for the furtherance of this policy.
    • The ISPR has, over the years, recruited thousands of youth, trained them in the mechanics of social media and used them to project anti-India themes.
    • The core Pakistani objective is to demolish “Brand India” by attacking its key components — an inclusive and secular society, democratic polity, decisive government, a developing economic powerhouse and strong foreign policy.
    • The expectation is that such a strategy would adversely impact India’s secular and democratic credentials, scare foreign investment and lead to questions about its international image.
    • The key platforms for this strategy are Twitter, WhatsApp, YouTube and Facebook.
    • A large number of fake social media accounts, especially on Twitter, have been created.
    • The use of handles with phoney Middle Eastern identities is the latest addition to its bag of tricks.

    Themes of information war

    • Internal developments and dissent in India have been manipulated, packaged and used to develop a narrative damaging India’s social fabric.
    • On J&K, the key themes are: Kashmir is a “disputed territory” awaiting solution under the UN resolutions; India needs to talk to Pakistan to resolve the issue and since India refuses to talk, there must be international intervention, the Indian Army is violating the human rights of Kashmiris.

    Consider the question “Internet has made waging information war easier. Examine the threat posed by the information war to Indian polity. Suggest the measures to contain the threat emanating from the information war.”

    Conclusion

    Even though the Indian polity is strong, such persistent venomous attacks can temporarily damage our social fabric. We must not allow ourselves, wittingly or unwittingly, to fall prey to such machinations to polarise society, even temporarily.

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  • Digital India Initiatives

    Need for open protocols and networks in the realm of internet

    op-ed snap | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: API

    Mains level: Paper 3- Issues of dominance of some platforms on the internet and solution

    We are familiar with the dominance of some platforms on the internet. That dominance start to create problems. This article discusses the issues with dominance and suggests the solution drawing on the success of UPI.

    Platforms on the internet

    • Platforms are technology layers that leverage the internet to bring together producers, resellers and consumers.
    • Platforms reduce transaction costs by cutting out intermediaries.
    • Amazon started by selling books but became a profitable giant by creating the e-commerce platform called Amazon Marketplace.
    • The most valuable companies today are platforms for search, social interaction, advertising, insurance, travel, real estate, etc.

    Issues with the platforms

    • 1)The promise of the internet was disintermediation, but the process has hit a speed breaker with major platforms taking on the role of mediation. 
    • 2) There may be multiple platforms in the game to start with, but due to network effects and the non-portability/lock-in, only a few monopolies space.
    • 3) Big platforms have tried to create a sort of  cartel in which to trap the customers while fencing off the rest of the internet.
    • 4) The platforms amass data about users which is used to influence user behaviour, which is not limited to guiding the buying decisions.

    So, what is the solution?

    Let’s look at the success story of  the UPI

    • Unified Payment Interface (UPI) is a set of protocols that standardises the language of money transfer.
    • It is an interface: a simple and structured protocol for instructions and a clearinghouse that relays well-formed requests to concerned parties for execution.
    • Once the language is there, a user may choose any app to link their bank account to a UPI ID and make a pay or collect request involving any other bank account.
    • UPI handled 1.3 billion transactions in June 2020, overtaking the aggregate number of transactions of all legacy “platforms”.
    • UPI succeeded because it treated all players, big or small, equally.
    • This allowed third-party innovators to drive adoption by creating solutions that addressed the need of the people.

    Solution: Adopting of open protocols

    • Application Programming Interfaces (or API) are protocols that define the meaning of data exchanged between two computers.
    • Universally accepted API definitions could allow a cabbie to be discovered by any cab aggregator app the rider may choose.
    • In healthcare, it could facilitate finding a doctor, booking an ambulance, taking out insurance, filing a claim, sharing a medical report or purchasing medicines from a pharmacy.

    Advantages of open protocols

    • Open protocols create ecosystems that are non-rivalrous and non-excludable by design.
    • Even smallest of application developers or start-ups can offer low-cost, locally relevant solutions using the protocol.
    • We can address the needs of the diverse business community and achieve much greater penetration for e-commerce than the 10 per cent of today.
    • Open systems have the potential to transform education, food delivery, by enabling entrepreneurs to compete on their quality and reputation alone.
    • Portability from one application to another, privacy and data empowerment will be some of the issues taken care of.
    • We can reduce our dependence on foreign platforms.

    Consider the question “What are APIs? Examine the issues created by the dominant internet platforms and how the adoption of open protocols for API could address the problem?”

    Conclusion

    With such a huge potential in APIs open protocols, the government must bring out the policy for the creation of open protocols and realise the untapped potential it offers.

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  • Important Judgements In News

    Relations between judiciary and legislature

    op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Executive & Judiciary

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: 10th Schedule

    Mains level: Paper 2- Role of judiciary and Speaker

    The article discusses the relation between the judiciary and the legislature. Recent development in Rajasthan assembly serves as the backdrop.

    Context

    • The political tussle in Rajasthan entered the High Court and the Supreme Court.
    • The Supreme Court itself proposed to rule on the larger question of the jurisdiction of courts to entertain such pleas.

    Historical background

    • The President of India made a presidential reference to the Supreme Court on the relative powers of legislative assemblies and constitutional courts.
    • The Supreme Court held that there is a broad separation of essential powers of each organ of the State.
    • However, the Court went on to hold that a judge who entertains a petition challenging any order of the legislature does not commit contempt of the said legislature.
    • Since then court have restrained themselves from interfering in the workings of legislative assemblies or Parliament is concerned.
    • The sole exception is under the anti-defection law-after a final order of disqualification has been passed.

    Let’s look into Kihoto Hollohan’s case

    • Constitution bench of the Supreme Court in 1992 held that the Speaker acting in a disqualification matter acts as a tribunal and is subject to judicial review.
    • However, the same judgment makes it clear that the Court will not intervene at an interim stage.
    • The same judgment further holds the Speakers/Chairmen hold a pivotal position in the scheme of Parliamentary democracy and are guardians of the rights and privileges of the House.

    Let’s now look into Rajasthan episode

    • In this case, issuance of a possible disqualification notice by the Speaker, has been contested in constitutional courts.
    •  Even in routine petitions against notices of proposed administrative actions, the petitioner is told to answer the show cause notice and to challenge the final action only.
    • The Rajasthan High Court, however, entertained a petition to challenge the Speaker’s authority to decide, if MLAs had committed an act of defection.
    • The Rajasthan High Court reserved its judgment, requested the Speaker to defer further proceedings and proceeded to direct him to await judgment.

    Co-equality of Constitutional authorities

    • Rajasthan assembly Speaker moved the Supreme Court, questioning the court’s power to direct a Constitutional authority.
    • The principle of law applied is that Constitutional authorities cannot issue directions to each other.
    • They can, at best, make a polite request.
    • The single judge in Calcutta, recorded in his judgment that the Supreme Court was only co-equal with the High Court, as a Constitutional Court.
    • Appellate powers of the Supreme Court did not make it a superior authority to which the High Court was subordinate.
    • Ever since, the Supreme Court has been careful to couch its orders as requests to any High Court, or Constitutional authority.
    • Constitutional courts have followed the same principle, in addressing other Constitutional authorities.

    Role of judiciary in maintaining the balance

    • Unnecessary conflict between organs of state may well invite some Speaker, backed by a solid majority at State and Centre, to defy the courts.
    • Courts are apolitical but keep getting pulled into political thickets, especially in matters of mass defections resulting in regime change.
    • The walls of separation between constitutional organs, once breached, cannot be then repaired against future intrusions.

    Consider the question “Analyse fine balance Indian Consitution strikes between the various Constitutional authorities. Also examine how role of judiciary in dealing with the anti-defection law.”

    Conclusion

    Even under a sovereign Constitution, parliamentary and legislative supremacy in their areas of working must be respected.

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  • Economic Indicators and Various Reports On It- GDP, FD, EODB, WIR etc

    Gold and forex reserves cannot finance stimulus

    op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Debt monetisation, RBI balance sheet etc

    Mains level: Paper 3-Ways to raise funds to finance the stimulus package

    The article analyses the issues with suggestions like printing of currency and using forex reserves to finance the stimulus. They also lead to an increase in government debts.

    Context

    • Prime Minister announced a stimulus package of ₹20 trillion to fight the economic fallout of the covid pandemic.
    • Since then, several unorthodox ideas have been floated to raise funds for it without straining government finances.
    • Among the suggestions are the printing of currency, and using foreign exchange reserves or household gold.

    Let’s look at entries in the RBI’s balance sheets

    • On the liabilities side of it is the currency in circulation, commercial bank reserves  and government reserves.
    • On the asset side of it is forex reserves, government securities and gold.
    • The balancing item represents the central bank’s equity and accumulated surplus.

    Let’s look at 3 options suggested above and issues with them-

    1) Printing currency

    • Doing this would increase the liabilities of the RBI under “currency in circulation”.
    • But it first needs to acquire assets to offset this increase in liability.
    • These assets could be government securities, forex reserves or gold.
    • Thus, one way for the government to finance its expenditure would be to issue government bonds and ask RBI to print currency with which to subscribe to such bonds.
    • This is known as deficit monetization.
    •  It is important to note that for the central bank to print money, the government would have to issue bonds to it.
    • It will increase government debt.

    2) Monetisation of gold held by household

    • This would first involve the government buying gold from households in exchange for its bonds.
    • Then, the accumulated gold would be bought by RBI from the government with newly printed currency.
    •  In this case, instead of creating new money to acquire government bonds, RBI would be doing the same to acquire gold.
    • This too involves the Centre taking on additional debt.
    •  Moreover, gold monetization schemes in the past have yielded only mild success.

    3) Using RBI’s forex reserves

    • Against every dollar of forex reserves shown by RBI on the asset side, an equivalent rupee amount has already been created on the liability side.
    • This is because whenever RBI acquires foreign currency, it pays for it using the Indian rupee.
    • Thus, no additional currency can be printed against such already-acquired reserves.
    • The only way our forex reserves can be used for generating additional resources is by pledging them to a third party.
    • The pledging of RBI’s assets to raise funds is done only under extreme circumstances, for instance, during the 1991 balance of payments crisis.
    • We are certainly not in a situation that warrants a repeat of an exercise where RBI’s assets, be it gold or forex reserves, have to be mortgaged.

    So, what is the way out?

    • There are only three ways to finance government expenditure: taxes, debt and asset sales.
    • Taxes and asset sales can pitch in a bit towards the stimulus bill.

    Consider the question “Examine the ways in which government can raise the funds to finance the stimulus package and also discuss the issues with each move.”

    Conclusion

    There is no escaping the fact that we are staring at a higher build-up of government debt in the future. When we stop harbouring the notion that we can pay the stimulus bill without any deterioration in government finances, we will be able to see the bitter truth: There is no such thing as a free lunch.

    Read more about the issue here:

    India’s rising Forex Reserves

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  • Urban Transformation – Smart Cities, AMRUT, etc.

    False urban rural binary

    op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Urbanization, Their Problems & Remedies

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: AMRUT

    Mains level: Paper 1-Urbanisation and issues

    The article brings out the issues in the rural-urban binary, which leads to the disparity in the allocation of resources to the urban areas.

    Congestion and health issues in cities

    • The congestion in large cities has turned out to be their worst enemy during this pandemic.
    • Congestion is most evident in slums in large cities and poses a grave health and environmental challenges.
    • Yet, the Centre’s allocation for the rural component of the Swachh Bharat Mission is about seven times more than for urban areas.
    • Class I cities have 1.4 beds per 1,000 people. (with the population more than 1 lakh)
    • However, the urban support under the National Health Mission is just three per cent of the total allocation, while 97 per cent of the funds are set aside for rural areas.

    Issues with the present urban development programs

    • The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (2005-2014) allocated the bulk of funds to large cities: 70 per cent to large cities and 30 per cent to smaller towns.
    • Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and the Smart Cities Mission, focus on Class I cities.
    • Both these schemes provide funds for the more developed cities that already have relatively better infrastructure.
    • But these schemes overlook the nearly seven crore people who live in smaller towns.
    • These are towns that lag behind in services and infrastructure as compared to the big cities.

    Consider the question “The rural-urban binary has led to the policy formulation in which there is a huge disparity in the allocation of resources and attention on the urban area. Comment.”

    Conclusion

    The pandemic has forced us to reflect on the unequal and unplanned development of urban settlements and the absence of infrastructure to provide for the teeming millions.  The challenges of urban poverty and congestion cry for more attention, more government support.

    Original article:

    https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-india-urban-cities-6520574/

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Iran

    India should not jump to conclusion in dealing with Iran

    op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Jask Port

    Mains level: Paper 2- Iran-China deal and concerns for India

    Two events which happened in quick succession raised concern in India. Iran’s decision to continue the railway project on its own and the reports of deal with China, both the events weighs heavily on India’s interests. This article examines the future course of action which India must adopt in such a situation.

    Context

    • Iran and China are close to concluding a 25-year strategic partnership.
    • This is being linked to reports that Iran has decided to undertake the construction of the Chabahar-Zahedan railway line on its own.
    • The project has not been handed over to China — at least not yet — so the “India loses, China wins” narrative is premature.

    What does the China-Iran deal indicate?

    • China attaches importance to Iran, which is a key source of energy supplies, a part of Belt and Road Initiative, and a potentially lucrative market.
    • However, like India, China has also in parallel cultivated closer relations with Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
    • China continues to have a strong relationship with Israel.
    • As China’s economic, military and technological capabilities have increased, its profile in this strategically important region has also expanded.

    What should be India foreign policy approach towards Iran

    • While acknowledging changed regional geopolitical landscape, India should pursue continue the policy of maintaining positive relations with Iran, the Arab states and Israel.
    • India will have more room for manoeuvring in the region by continuing to maintain a strong and friendly relationship with Iran.
    • One should also not exclude the possibility of a Democratic US President reviving the Iran nuclear deal.
    •  The revival of the deal will open the door for US and European companies to resume business with Iran.
    • It is the reinstatement of severe economic sanctions that has led Iran to turn to China, but the latter has remained cautious.
    • The pursuit of a closer security partnership with the US does not mean that India should follow the US lead on its other important relationships.

    Concerns for India

    • While maintaining the relations, India should not monitor closely the development of relations between China and Iran, which could complicate our security interests on our western flank. 
    • Of particular concern is a reference to China constructing a new port at Jask at the mouth of the Hormuz strait.
    •  If the port were operated by China, India’s maritime security would be at further risk.
    • It would also be of deep concern to the Arab states who will suffer from any closing of the Hormuz Strait while Iran remains less affected.
    • This is an issue on which the Arab states may well react adversely to China.
    • India, too, should press its concerns on Iran while working on a counter-strategy.

    Consider the question “Balancing the contrasts has been the basis of India’s relations with Iran. Comment.”

    Conclusion

    India should continue its engagement with Iran while pressing for its concerns at the same time in particular when it comes to Iran’s relations with China endangering India’s interest.

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  • Anti Defection Law

    Time to revisit the practice of floor test

    op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Parliament & State Legislatures

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Provisions under 10th Schedule

    Mains level: Paper 2- Anti-defection law, 10th Schedule

    The growing trend of the toppling of the government by luring the MLAs of ruling party. The SC needs to reconsider the floor test usually ordered in such cases. The article analyses this issue here.

    Reading Article 191(2) and 10th Schedule

    • Article 191(2) declares that a person shall be disqualified from being a member of the legislative assembly or legislative council of a state if he is so disqualified under the Tenth Schedule.
    • The Tenth Schedule to the Constitution contains “provisions as to disqualification on ground of defection”.
    • Tenth Schedule also fixes the relationship between a member and a political party which selected him as a candidate.
    • It also provides one of the grounds for disqualification: “If he voluntarily gives up his membership of such political party”.
    • The decision as to disqualification is left to the absolute discretion of the Speaker.

    Constitutional morality and 10th Schedule

    • Tenth Schedule brings to the fore the need to emphasise “constitutional morality”.
    • Constitutional morality means “strict adherence to the core principles of constitutional democracy”.
    • So, Constitutional transgressions by MLAs coming through a “party platform” to serve the people for five years (Article 172), cannot be accepted.
    • In so doing, these MLAs forget the oath, taken under Article 188 of the Constitution to bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as established by law.
    • Legislators do not have absolute freedom to behave in any way they like.

    Issues with the floor test

    • When ruling party MLAs are lured with rewards, political or otherwise, then the “floor test” becomes constitutionally immoral and unjust.
    • This will amount to circumventing the Tenth Schedule through engineered defections through the judicial process.
    • It is high time the judiciary revisited the use of a “floor test” to prove a majority in a legislature.

    Consider the question “Examine the ways in which a member of the house is deemed to have given up his membership under the 10th Schedule as interpreted in the various judgements. Also, analyse the implications of conducting a floor test in a situation when members of the ruling party are lured with rewards.”

    Conclusion

    Judiciary must take note of the toppling of the majority government through luring of the MLAs and subsequent floor test by the courts. The floor test in such a situation needs reconsideration.

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-China

    Exploring options to tackle China

    op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: India & Its Neighborhood – Relations

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Not much.

    Mains level: Paper 2- Options in dealing with China

    There are several options which India could explore in dealing with China with less cost but significant effectiveness. Diplomacy is one of them. What are the other options? Read the article to know…

    Context

    • China’s aggression and Galwan valley incident dismantles the Border Agreements of 1993, 1996, 2005 and 2013.
    • Understanding China’s objectives become critical in this situation.

    Analysing China’s objectives

    • Humbling India in the eyes of Asia and the world was all important for China.
    • Despite China’s territorial aggression, it would be a mistake to think that China is preparing for a conflict over territory.
    • China is well aware that it cannot be certain whether it will emerge a victor from an all-out conflict with India.
    •  China cannot afford to jeopardise its future for the present.
    • China has been intent on transforming the Asian region in its own image, and, simultaneously, seeking to become a continental and a maritime power.

    What are the options to deal with China

    • India may well find non-military tools not only more cost-effective but also less risky.
    • 1)  Exploiting the current widespread opposition to China, India must try to create international opinion in its support regarding border violations.
    • 2) Cultivation of foreign leaders with a view to draw their specific attention to China’s aggressive policies and designs is the second option.
    • India’s involvement with the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) should prove invaluable in this respect.
    • 3) India must also overhaul its ‘messaging’ capacity.
    • It should make greater use of technology to send across its message and ideas in its vicinity and across the globe, highlighting its peaceful intentions in stark contrast to China’s aggressive policies and tactics.
    • 4)  India must pay particular attention to relations with countries in its neighbourhood, such as Nepal and Bangladesh, and allies such as Iran and Vietnam.
    • Relationship with these countries seems to have frayed at the edges, with India being more intent on strengthening relations with the West.
    • Smaller countries of Asia, which constantly face China’s aggressive interference in their internal affairs, have not received much support from India, and this needs India’s attention.
    • 5) India’s true strength is its unity in diversity. A truly united and resilient India is the best antidote to China’s attempts to humble India.
    • China has never been able to properly understand, the strength India seems to derive from its spiritual, religious and cultural attributes, which are a part of its civilisational heritage.
    • 6) India would do well to take pole position in propagating ‘Himalayan Buddhism’ which China has been seeking to subvert to achieve its ends.

    Consider the question “To counter the challenges manifested by China through recent events India needs to explore along with other options the subtler tools of power available to it. Examine the other tools available with India.”

    Conclusion

    Military no doubt project the country’s power but there are other options with less cost and significant benefits. India should focus on these options as well while dealing with China.

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