P. N. Haksar

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Purshottam Narayan Haksar (1913-1998) was one of the earliest and most important political strategists in the political democracy of independent India. His most important role was in the political ascent of Indira Gandhi, as the Prime Minister in her own right and personal political strength, and the evolution of Indira as an Indian icon and leader. He was an advocate of centralization and socialism.

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[edit] Early life

P. N. Haksar was born to a Kashmiri Brahmin family, same community as the family of Motilal Nehru and Jawaharlal Nehru, prominent figures of the Indian Independence Movement and India's premier political family, whose influence began with Motilal Nehru in the 1910s and pervades right into the first decade of the 21st century with Sonia Gandhi's Congress Party. Haksar was an Indian student activist who worked as an aide to the Nehrus and grew close to the family. When he was a student in England, he became good friends with Nehru's daughter Indira and her prospective husband Feroze. Haksar took part in the Quit India Movement and was arrested for months by the British.

While in England, Haksar developed a strong interest in socialism, akin to Jawaharlal Nehru's own loyalty to the cause of the downtrodden millions of India. After independence in 1947, he joined the Indian Administrative Service, but developed alongside a strong political savvy and acute knowledge and understanding of the Indian political system and the mindset of the masses.

[edit] With Indira Gandhi

When Indira Gandhi became the unlikely Prime Minister in 1966, Haksar was selected to serve as her Personal Private Secretary, a position akin to a chief of staff. Haksar's friendship with Indira and links to the clan gave him a special and influential place, and the ear of the Prime Minister.

When Indira's administration hit political difficulties after the 1967 election, where the Congress Party's majorities were greatly reduced, Haksar and P. N. Dhar were amongst a small coterie of Indira's most trusted and loyal advisors, known as the Kashmiri Mafia. Fearing that Indira would be made a scapegoat by the Congress establishment, Haksar crafted an ingenious political strategy for Indira to develop a public base of support akin to her iconic father.

Under Haksar's strategy, Indira moved sharply to the left. She became the icon of hundreds of millions of India's poor, by adopting socialist economic policies. She eliminated the privy purse to India's ex-royalty and demanded the nationalization of the banking system. The latter was seen as the disempowerment of India's industrial and capitalist elite by putting their money supply under Government control, even though it had no benefit to average, poor citizens. Between 1967 and 1969, Indira held several important rallies, speaking to literally millions of people on the whole, cultivating Nehru's legacy and her personal zeal to fight for India's poor. Instead of being the dummy doll of the party establishment, Indira went independent and to the radical left of the party's only other vigorous leader, the conservative, pro-business Morarji Desai.

A charismatic young heroine that Indira became, took the political steam out of the party establishment, popularly known as the Syndicate, an ageing coterie of Congress machine bosses identified best with government inefficiency and corruption, with only their work in the freedom struggle keeping them politically important and at the top of the party. Her support amongst individual Congress members of Parliament increased, as political survival deemed it wise to be associated with her. Haksar cultivated ties with individual MPs and Congress Party officials, especially the youth wing. Haksar also pushed Indira's views and attitudes amongst Indian journalists, labour union leaders, student leaders and young Indians who had not seen the freedom struggle.

[edit] The split of 1969

The death of President Zakir Hussain in 1969 created an opening to the Syndicate to re-assert their control over Indira as party bosses, Haksar carved out Indira's political dominance. The Syndicate chose Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, while Indira supported Vice President V. V. Giri, a man with impeccable leftist credentials and labour ties. The All India Congress Committee voted to bind lawmakers to vote for Reddy, while Indira appealed to lawmakers to follow her and vote for Giri.

Enraged, the Syndicate called an AICC meeting to censure Indira and expel her from the Congress. But at Indira's residence met half of the AICC and many lawmakers, who called themselves the real AICC and expressed loyalty to Indira. P. N. Haksar encouraged Indira to split the Congress Party, the Godfather of Indian nationalism and the freedom struggle. Forming a thin parliamentary majority, Indira's loyalists called themselves the Congress (R). (R) stood for "Ruling." The Syndicate called themselves the Congress (O), standing for Organization, but often referred to as the "Old Congress".

P. N. Haksar then planned out a massive political campaign under the slogan of "Garibi Hatao" (Eradicate Poverty), a direct call to war for over 300 million poor Indians. Haksar's strategy made Indira travel all over the country, seeing tens of millions of people on the whole, and the Congress (R) Party to sweep the 1971 elections with a powerful majority.

[edit] End of the Congress

P. N. Haksar, the silent architect of the greatest political crisis and revolution in India's free history, was also the man who tore down the mighty Indian National Congress, the temple of Indian nationalism and the Indian Independence Movement, built and defined by men like Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira's own father.

But this perhaps infamous achievement was most beneficial to India's young democracy and millions of its people. Mahatma Gandhi himself had been in favor of dissolving the Congress after Indian independence. According to Gandhi, the Congress mission and raison d'etre was Indian independence and nothing more. But after Gandhi's death in 1948, the Congress Party became vital to plug the gap in leadership, as well as protect the culture of democracy and republicanism in a young country.

But by the end of the 1960s, the Congress Party was a moribund organization without any definitive agenda or leadership of integrity. It was riddled with inefficiency, corruption and machine politics. The party attempted to control both the frustrated right-wing and the restless left-wing, and failed to eradicate poverty, illiteracy or grow the economy. It had become moribund after years of dependence on Jawarharlal Nehru's charisma.

[edit] Bangladesh war

See Also: Bangladesh Liberation War

Haksar is also attributed by some for having helped organize the Bangladesh government-in-exile and training of the Mukti Bahini. Haksar is credited with having constructed India's policies on the affair, and planning for war.

[edit] Retirement and legacy

Haksar's daring strategy created a new era of vigorous politics which regenerated enthusiasm and faith in the Indian population for deliverance through democracy. At the same time he created a political icon who would lead the nation through a period of great tumult, disaster, glory, redemption and drama. See Indira Gandhi for more information of this new Indian political age.

Haksar retired in 1974, having fallen out of favor of Sanjay Gandhi, Indira's youngest son who had become personally close to the PM and politically involved. Haksar's retirement came just a year before Indira's worst years began with the Indian Emergency. Only now, not a veteran political wizard, but the deranged Sanjay Gandhi was steering the wheel.

Years after his death, Haksar remains a legend in Indian politics and political academia.

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[edit] See also