DELHI - A year after creating political history by becoming India's first woman
president, Pratibha Devisingh Patil's tenure in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, which
with five acres (two hectares)of gardens and 340 rooms is arguably the world's
largest presidential palace, has been largely quiet, with a sage, hands-off
approach helping her to coast past political melees unscathed.
Even recently, as the Indian parliament was engulfed by a raucous confidence
vote - following the left front coalition's withdrawal of support for the
United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government over a US nuclear deal - many
expected Patil to become embroiled in the ensuing political kerfuffle. Yet
nothing of the sort happened and Patil sailed through without needing to
entangle herself in any complex constitutional mediating.
Ironically, this serenity is not quite how the 73-year-old
lawyer-turned-politician's campaign and nomination could be characterized. Both
were initially fraught with controversy and generated some highly unsavory
media attention. Her husband's name linked to a suicide scandal, allegations of
her siphoning off millions of rupees from her charitable trust, and her alleged
shielding of a brother accused of murder, all did nothing to add luster to her
stature as a presidential nominee.
Over and above, Patil emerged as a prime compromise candidate when the left
were divided on all the others.
In no small part due to staunch backing from UPA chairman Sonia Gandhi -
perhaps in reward for her past loyalty to the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty - Patil not
only managed to bag the big ticket, but marched triumphantly into the
presidential palace in July 2007 with a resounding victory over nearest rival,
84-year-old former vice president Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, by 300,000 votes.
So what has the Indian president brought to the table in her first year? Well,
there's no denying that unlike her immediate predecessor - A P J Abdul Kalam -
a highly "visible" president, Patil has so far been spectacularly low profile.
But that should come as no surprise considering a president has only a
constitutional role to play in the Indian polity.
Yet interestingly, Patil has not donned the fashionable mantle of firebrand
female activist, considering this would have been easy for India's first female
president. Unlike many of India's other "political" presidents (Giani Zail
Singh, for instance), Patil has steered clear of being on back-slapping terms
with fellow politicians. But at the same time she stays clued into political
developments and insists on regular briefings from Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh on important national matters.
Although she has avoided the political spotlight, Patil has not flinched from
voicing her opinion on a slew of sensitive social issues. For instance, in the
wake of spiraling crimes like rape and molestation against Indian women, the
president has emphasized the need for women's security at work places and
insisted on strict penalties against sexual harassment. She insists women
should work "for their own empowerment by learning self-defense techniques like
judo and karate to build their self-confidence to face life's challenges".
Communist Party of India-Marxist member Brinda Karat said that as
constitutional head Patil obviously cannot intervene in policy matters. "But as
a woman president, she has displayed sensitivity on important social causes by
focusing on women's and children's rights, gender equity, rights of the girl
child and women's safety."
The environment is another issue the president feels strongly about, and she
has reiterated the need for every Indian citizen to carry out their
"responsibility to conserve the environment and pass it on to future
generations".
There were some interesting moments when Patil, also the commander in chief of
India's armed forces, visited the ceasefire line and a bunker located at 3,000
meters in Jammu and Kashmir. As snaps of a smiling Patil brandishing an AK-47
assault rifle were splashed across newspapers they drew a sharp political
reaction for not quite being "politically correct".
The photos even led National Conference leader Omar Abdullah to comment on his
blog: "Patil brandishing an AK-47 and smiling ... I know she's the commander in
chief of the armed forces, but the photograph reminded me of a rather
forgettable Sylvester Stallone movie - Stop or My Mom Will Shoot. I'd
have been happier to see a photograph of the president talking to kids, as a
grandmother would."
Regardless of such incidents, there's no denying that India's first woman
president has whipped up immense curiosity among the masses. According to
sources at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the president's official website has emerged
as the second most popular portal in the country, receiving more than 43,000
readers daily and welcoming some 1.4 million visitors since it was designed a
few months ago.
Patil is also a great one for meeting people and has to date met about 22,000 -
from heads of states to sex workers - in her presidential capacity. She met
with 18,000 people at Rashtrapati Bhavan and another 4,000 during her visits to
10 states and two union territories during her first year in the office.
Fond of children, on the eve of her first anniversary as president, Patil
invited underprivileged kids for a special meal at the presidential palace's
high-ceilinged, chandelier-lit banquet hall. She has also shown special concern
for rural children and makes a point of asking state government representatives
about school safety measures. A blaze at a primary school in Tamil Nadu claimed
the lives of 94 children in 2004 when its thatched roof fell in, a tragedy
attributed to lax building standards and overcrowding.
This is not to say that the president's first year has been entirely
lackluster. There were some dramatic moments during Patil's maiden trip abroad
- a fortnight-long visit in April to Brazil, Mexico and Chile. Though her visit
gave a major boost to Indian and Latin American ties, her son - Rajendra Singh
Shekhawat - embarrassed her by making a detour from the trip to make a private
visit to a US university, breaching diplomatic protocol. Even though both the
Foreign Office and Rashtrapati Bhavan were quick to deny that there was any
procedural violation, it provided some fodder for Patil's critics.
Another embarrassing moment transpired in Mexico when Patil inadvertently
walked passed the Mexican flag at the ceremonial reception without bowing and
had to retrace her steps after attention was drawn to her gaff by a Mexican
guard commander. While inspecting a guard of honor, Patil again walked past the
nation's flag without realizing that her Mexican counterpart - Felipe Calderon
- had stopped to his pay respects to it.
However, this is trivial considering the president's visit helped India snag 10
agreements and a memorandum of understanding - four with Brazil, two with
Mexico and four with Chile. She was also accompanied by a business delegation,
a first for an Indian presidential tour.
In other words, while there is no disputing that Patil has so far had a quiet -
even effective - first year as president, the same cannot be predicted for the
months that lie ahead as the world's largest - and perhaps most rambunctious -
democracy goes to the polls. And as some political pundits are already
predicting, India may well be headed for a hung parliament.
Indeed, it'll be during those politically explosive times that India's first
lawyer's jurisprudence and political expediency will face their first true
test.
Neeta Lal is a widely published writer/commentator who contributes to
many reputed national and international print and Internet publications.
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