Replace India's US ambassador with ex-military man for "strategic" relations with Trump: Modi's NRI protege

By Our Representative
A top Hindutva ideologue settled in the US has advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s national security adviser Ajit Doval to replace the present ambassador to the US, Arun Kumar Singh, with a top military personnel in order to deal with president-elect Donald Trump.
Rajiv Malhotra, known to be close to Modi, who two years ago praised him for “glorifying” India’s “priceless heritage”, has said that India should “consider appointing some ex-military person as its ambassador to the USA”, pointing out this would be a “top priority” for Doval insofar as India’s relationship with US is concerned.
Introduced as “Indian–American researcher, author, speaker” by a top right-wing online journal, Malhotra, considered by his votaries as one of the foremost theorists on Indian nationalism, has said in a commentary on the victory of Donald Trump as US president, that that not diplomats but “senior Indian military officials should lead strategic discussions with Trump.”
Also a wealthy NRI businessman, he insists, “India should avoid sending the standard team of Indian diplomats because Americans appreciate clear-cut, no-nonsense dealmakers rather than woolly-headed poets or ideologues. This pragmatism will be even more applicable in dealing with Trump.”
Titled “How India Should Deal with President Trump”, the commentary by Malhotra says, India should set aside what so far been “typical ideological approach” in international relations while “dealing with Trump”, adding, “India should formulate a totally pragmatic approach for dealing with Trump.”
Malhotra’s advice is, India should not “pigeon hole Trump into Left/Right categories”, adding, New Delhi should “understand his top priorities as president, and make concrete deals that are free of lofty ideologies.”
According to Malhotra, “India’s most important diplomatic offensive should be on Baluchistan.” He adds, India should “convince Trump that a game changer would be to free Baluchistan from Pakistan by supporting the Baluchi freedom movement.”
Underlining that this “will involve US military intervention”, Malhotra says, “And it will change the map of the region forever. Afghanistan will get access to the sea via Baluchistan, and the US will no longer have to suck up to Pakistan for supplying its troops. Afghans will love this freedom from the Pakis. So will the other Central Asian ‘stan’ countries that are presently landlocked.”
“A potential new sea access for Russia will also be a negotiating card to deal with Putin”, says Malhotra, adding, “Pakistan will lose its geostrategic positioning, a card it has played very skillfully for too long.”
“For its part, India should offer military help in Afghanistan, but only if USA guarantee’s an independent Baluchistan”, Malhotra thinks, adding, “This will be a win-win deal of a kind that is right up Trump’s alley. Russia may decide to join. A clandestine or indirect role for Israel should also be discussed.”
As part of India’s “diplomatic defensive deal” with the US, the Hindutva theorist thinks, the country’s leadership should “convince Trump to end US governmental support for Christian evangelism in India”, pointing out that Trump “was heavily backed by the evangelicals, and they are experienced in extracting foreign policy assistance from the US government.”
In fact, Malhotra wants Trump to know that “in the long run, a fragmented India would not become a Christian country, but rather a battleground for the return of Mughalstan”, adding, “It would be a worse nightmare for the USA than the entire Middle East is.”

Comments

Call to support IIM-Bangalore professor, censured for seeking action against Uniliver

Counterview Desk
Sections of the Indian Institute of Managements (IIMs) across India have strongly reacted to the decision to censure Dr Deepak Malghan, a faulty at IIM-Bangalore. Prabhir Vishnu Poruthiyil, who is faculty at IIM-Tiruchirapalli, has sought wider solidarity with Dr Malghan, saying, "The administration has censured Deepak for merely suggesting a meaningful action against Hindustan Unilever for their abysmal environmental record" by “disinviting” it for campus placement.

Actionable programme for 2019 polls amidst lynch mobs, caste violence, hate mongering

Counterview Desk
Reclaiming the Republic, a civil rights network, has released a document prepared under the chairmanship of Justice AP Shah (retired) -- and backed, among others, by Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan, bureaucrat-turned-human rights activist Harsh Mander, economist Prabhat Patnaik, Right to transparency activist Anjali Bhardwaj and social scientist Yogendra Yadav (click HERE for full list) -- with the "aim" of putting forth policy and legislative reforms needed to “protect” and “strengthen” the Constitutional safeguards for India’s democratic polity.

Noam Chomsky, top scholars ask NRIs to take stand on human rights violations in India

Counterview Desk
Renowned world scholars, including Noam Chomsky, James Petras, Angela Davis, Fredric Jameson, Bruno Latour, Ilan Pappe, Judith Butler, among others, have issued a statement castigating the Narendra Modi government for allegedly creating an environment of fear through arrests, intimidation and violence.

India under Modi "promoted" crony business, protected financial fraudsters, fueled bigotry

By Sandeep* and Rahul Pandey**
Narendra Modi's ascension to power was accompanied with jubilation and expectation. His supporters were expecting an end to era of corruption and initiation of good governance which was described as Achche Din. His party's adherence to idea of nationalism was believed to make India a vibrant country and guide India to be a world leader. He gave the slogan of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' conveying that his government was for all.
Corruption The government system is infested with corruption. A minimum of 10% is siphoned off from government schemes and projects, some of which goes back to political party in power and remaining is pocketed by various administrative, executive and political functionaries. This corruption continues and has increased. Now an additional Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) person working as Official on Special Duty or some equivalent position in every government department also has a share in this booty.
The Narendra M…

Inviting Rajapaksa to India "insult" to 1,40,000 Tamils killed by Sri Lankan army

Counterview Desk
In the context of Sri Lankan opposition leader Mahinda Rajapaksa being invited in India, about 75 human rights activists*, claiming to be concerned about rights violations during the civil war in Sri Lanka, especially in 2009, have joined together to express their dissent through a statement.

A Godse legacy? BJP rulers have "refrained" from calling Gandhi Father of the Nation

By Dr Hari Desai*
What an agony! On one hand, the entire India is celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but on the other side, so-called Hindu Mahasabha members have been found mock-enacting the killing of the Mahatma and celebrating the murder by distributing sweets!

No aadhaar, no ration? Hard blow by Gujarat govt on poor and marginalized

By Pankti Jog*
Only those who have aadhaar registration and linked it with ration card will get ration from a Public Distribution System (PDS) shop. This decision of the Gujarat government has hit very badly thousands of poor and marginalized communities of Gujarat, especially during the drought year.

Post-advisory, Govt of India appears reluctant to ban e-cigarettes, "harmful" to kids

By Rajiv Shah
Is the Government of India dilly-dallying over the issue of banning e-cigarettes, which have been declared by anti-tobacco activists across the world as providing “an entryway to nicotine addiction”, especially among the kids? It would seem so, if the latest developments are any guide.

Not just Indian women engineers, men too face sexual harassment at workplace: US study

By Rajiv Shah
A recent research, carried out jointly by two US-based non-profit organizations, Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Center for WorkLife Law (WLL), based at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, has found that 45% of women engineers as against 28% of men engineers complained that it was perceived as “inappropriate when women argued at work, even when it was work-related.”

Poser to Modi: Why is Gujarat not fulfilling Constitutional obligations to minorities?

Counterview Desk
In an open letter, Mujahid Nafees, convener, Minority Coordination Committee (MCC), a Gujarat-based civil rights organization, has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi on infringing upon MCC activists’ constitutional right to protest. Nafees says, they had no other demands except that the Gujarat government should move towards fulfilling the constitutional obligations towards minorities and international treaties to which India is a signatory.

Search This Blog