K ABBAS DODHIYA
Hi all,
It gives me great pleasure to know that our network of liberal thinkers in the form of IFAN is alive and wants to spread the liberal message through a convention. Going by the current political situation in Mumbai we the members of the liberal network need to play a proactive role in promoting and advancing liberal values.
Last week was indeed an unfortunate period for Mumbai and Maharashtra when a group of citizens of the so called advanced and most modern city of India took to the streets and beat up hapless cab drivers and hawkers and caused damage to public property and disrupted the normal lives of more than 1.5 crore people of the city on the grounds that the cabbies and hawkers were not original residents of the state and were migrants from North India.
The disturbing events of last week have raised a pertinent question on the usefulness and practicality of democracy wherein people belonging to a particular community harass and harangue people on the basis of ethnicity. In such a scenario the imporatnce of the ideas and values of liberalism come to the fore.
In the light of the past week's disaster that Mumbai witnessed, the liberal convention would be able to provide plausible solutions and also discuss ways and means of spreading the liberal messsage.
The proposal to start a fresh liberal youth movement -Liberal Youth Forum of India would go a long way in creating awareness of liberal values at the grass root level which can be also leveraged upon in the long run to create a group of peace makers.
With regards to the convention I would like to contribute in the form of inviting the man behind changing the face of the largest slum of Asia Dharavi into a beautiful suburb of Mumbai - Mr Mukesh Mehta. Mr Mehta is the man who was scoffed by the media and the general masses when he suggested ways in which the slum dwellers of Dharavi could be integrated in mainstream Mumbai. However his plans and ideas of sustainable development based on liberal values has been largely accepted and will see the light of the day by the end of this year. His thrust has always been on alleviation on poverty and making the city and country slum free. His ideas are based on public-private participation and he has been appointed as advisor to the governments of Maharashtra and Karnataka. He is also a successful businessman and has been in the business of making luxury homes in Louisville, USA. He is the most sought after man by governments of various countries across the world and had recently been invited by the South Africa government to share his slum redevelopment ideas.
Looking forward to your feedbacks. Thank you.
K ABBAS DODHIYA
Mumbai
+91 9820036543
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Comments on Manali's suggestions on IFAN meeting
I couldn't not post my comments on the blog so I am writing an email
instead. I agree with Mana in that we must seek ways to make the
network valuable to the members. I am not sure how it can be done but
sharing one's interest would be a way forward and eventually we may
find constructive way for members to derive value from this liberal
network. Since this might be the only one of its kind in India, I am
sure there are many activities that are waiting to happening through
it.
My interest in the network is mainly in understanding the importance
of 'Rule of Law' in a free market society. Since I have got an
opportunity to pursue an LL.B degree, I am interested in developing a
strong understanding of the importance of law in a liberal society and
how the some of the current laws are putting impediments to individual
and economic freedom. I particularly curious about property rights and
competition law. I am also keen on critically evaluating
'rights-based' approach to social change. It would very informative to
to know what the great liberal thinkers like Hayek, Mises etc have
said on these issues and also to discuss them in today's context with
other liberals. All this may feed into my interest in free-market
litigation (the kind of work the Institute of Justice does in the US).
I look forward to meeting more people with similar interests at the IFAN.
Regards,
Makarand
instead. I agree with Mana in that we must seek ways to make the
network valuable to the members. I am not sure how it can be done but
sharing one's interest would be a way forward and eventually we may
find constructive way for members to derive value from this liberal
network. Since this might be the only one of its kind in India, I am
sure there are many activities that are waiting to happening through
it.
My interest in the network is mainly in understanding the importance
of 'Rule of Law' in a free market society. Since I have got an
opportunity to pursue an LL.B degree, I am interested in developing a
strong understanding of the importance of law in a liberal society and
how the some of the current laws are putting impediments to individual
and economic freedom. I particularly curious about property rights and
competition law. I am also keen on critically evaluating
'rights-based' approach to social change. It would very informative to
to know what the great liberal thinkers like Hayek, Mises etc have
said on these issues and also to discuss them in today's context with
other liberals. All this may feed into my interest in free-market
litigation (the kind of work the Institute of Justice does in the US).
I look forward to meeting more people with similar interests at the IFAN.
Regards,
Makarand
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Suggestions on agenda for IFAN 2008 meeting
I am not sure how to give my inputs to this since I will not be physically around to do anything here. I have been thinking about this for a while and I do feel strongly about what a network should do and should not do which I thought I will share with you.
A network by definition is a web that connects members [individuals, groups, organisations etc]. Before anything, we need to have a aim for a network, why does a network exist? What is its core purpose? In this case IFAN exists to connect and build capacity of liberals especially those who have been FNSTalumni.
A network has to have the following core functions
a) Build membership: Connect and expand member base: identify the potential members, reach out to them, get them to become members, engage them in network activities and RETAIN their membership;
b) Regular communication across the members: through a website, blog, newsletter, resource directory etc, a network has to have a place where members can go to, to access information about members and other shared resources;
c) Improve capacity and effectiveness of members: a network basically enhances synergy of all individual members’ efforts and can thereby be a stronger force in terms of advocacy or representation at public fora.
The network needs to first identify the needs of its members, match those needs with resources which may exist within the network itself, and if not bring in external resources. This process of needs assessment and resource sharing has to be active and ongoing so that all members take ownership in doing this along with the network secretariat.
The main thing to remember is that it is a two-way relationship. A network can truly success only if the members derive the needed benefit from it and the network also gets something from the members. Membership needs to be dependent on something concrete inputs which members must provide to the network.
To this end, I think IFAN first needs to concentrate on activities (a) and (b) before it can even think of (c) if it intends to be a strong and effective network.
Manali Shah
CCS, New Delhi
A network by definition is a web that connects members [individuals, groups, organisations etc]. Before anything, we need to have a aim for a network, why does a network exist? What is its core purpose? In this case IFAN exists to connect and build capacity of liberals especially those who have been FNSTalumni.
A network has to have the following core functions
a) Build membership: Connect and expand member base: identify the potential members, reach out to them, get them to become members, engage them in network activities and RETAIN their membership;
b) Regular communication across the members: through a website, blog, newsletter, resource directory etc, a network has to have a place where members can go to, to access information about members and other shared resources;
c) Improve capacity and effectiveness of members: a network basically enhances synergy of all individual members’ efforts and can thereby be a stronger force in terms of advocacy or representation at public fora.
The network needs to first identify the needs of its members, match those needs with resources which may exist within the network itself, and if not bring in external resources. This process of needs assessment and resource sharing has to be active and ongoing so that all members take ownership in doing this along with the network secretariat.
The main thing to remember is that it is a two-way relationship. A network can truly success only if the members derive the needed benefit from it and the network also gets something from the members. Membership needs to be dependent on something concrete inputs which members must provide to the network.
To this end, I think IFAN first needs to concentrate on activities (a) and (b) before it can even think of (c) if it intends to be a strong and effective network.
Manali Shah
CCS, New Delhi
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Suggestions for the next IFAN Meet
Nice to see your mail. I am very much delighted after
hearing about the proposed IFAN Meeting during April
2008. This meeting will provide us an opportunity to
discuss in detail about the issues and challenges in
advancing liberal movement. It also helps us in
deciding the Theme and sub themes for the proposed
National Liberal Convention.
I strongly feel people from politics, civil society,
government, NGOs, academicians should be invited for
the convention.
I suggest Dr.Jaya Prakash Narayan, Lok Satta, National
Convenor as one of the speakers as he being former
civil servant and as leader of several movements will
provide different perspective for the delegates.
I would like to associate with other members of the
IFAN network in identifying the theme and sub themes
for the same.
Looking forward to meet you and all our members in the
meet.
With regards
Dr Jampala Rajesh Choudary
hearing about the proposed IFAN Meeting during April
2008. This meeting will provide us an opportunity to
discuss in detail about the issues and challenges in
advancing liberal movement. It also helps us in
deciding the Theme and sub themes for the proposed
National Liberal Convention.
I strongly feel people from politics, civil society,
government, NGOs, academicians should be invited for
the convention.
I suggest Dr.Jaya Prakash Narayan, Lok Satta, National
Convenor as one of the speakers as he being former
civil servant and as leader of several movements will
provide different perspective for the delegates.
I would like to associate with other members of the
IFAN network in identifying the theme and sub themes
for the same.
Looking forward to meet you and all our members in the
meet.
With regards
Dr Jampala Rajesh Choudary
Suggestions for the next IFAN Meet
It is great to hear about the Liberal Convention that FNSt plans to organize in Delhi. I would personally love to get involved - feel free to call upon me for any assistance with regard to Congress leaders, the media or anything else.
However, kindly keep one thing in mind - 4 major states (including Delhi) will be facing elections in October/November. Any clash of dates from the run up to the final results (a period of 5 odd weeks) will make it virtually impossible for any political leader to get involved.
regards,
Ashish Talwar
However, kindly keep one thing in mind - 4 major states (including Delhi) will be facing elections in October/November. Any clash of dates from the run up to the final results (a period of 5 odd weeks) will make it virtually impossible for any political leader to get involved.
regards,
Ashish Talwar
Suggestions for the next IFAN Meet
Thank you so much for you email. I went through the report and here are my suggestions. See if any part of this is helpful -
Since the document already makes clear the overall agenda and general aims, what i have tried to do is to fill it in with specific events and more focused areas that you could look at:
1. Focus on students - through a campus liberal paper to begin with. this could be a small magazine, journal or even just a spreadsheet that is published once a month by the students of DU and circulated just to create a forum to disseminate liberal ideas. once this is done on a monthly basis we can have an annual issue - a culmination of all these 12 journals. this could be a stock taking even for us to see how far we have go in the process of publishing these ideas. then once this is an annual affair we could build around this or make this event coincide with other events like the Convention (that you are planning this year) etc. i began with a small journal spreadsheet bec it is viable - ppl will be wiling to work and commit , it doesn't need too much labour AND it really has an impact.
The content of this can be worked on some creative lines. i have looked at some campus papers but they all seem to be lacking in one thing - they do not address issues that concern the students directly. we could refocus on that. show liberal approaches to univ-students problems and solutions; draw inspiration and information from liberal movements around the world and be able to spread information. This could be one channel of access to students. If we try in DU and it works then im sure the 'movement' can also spread to other cities and universities. it will also bring like minded people on campus together
2. freedom weekends - we could have alternate weekends as 'freedom weekends' and tap students' attn - those who live on campus. a HUGE number of students live in hostels or accommodations around the univ area. if we could organise films/book readings or other events on alternate weekends then we could create space for people to come together and discuss issues. Slowly this group/groups might also want to evolve and take up events/projects on their own - but at least we can provide a forum for people to come together
3. of course the association with LYFI is tehre to tap - events for this will concretize i think once the plan of action has met and come up with the final agenda.
4. we all seem to only react to 'current events'. after a thing has happened we all tend to draw out solutions to it. but it would be interesting to see what can come out of being proactive. we could have a research team who will look into budding problems and devise methodologies of liberal responses to these problems. we can run a project of this sort and show people how IN EXPERIENCE a liberal approach will take you further than just trying to treat symptoms of problems. the project could be anything even minor - like deforestation in one small area in delhi or traffic regulation in one route anything small or big - but if we are able to show the importance of being proactive AND having a realistic liberal approach to it; we will be able to prove many points i think. this exercise will do good for everyone - those who undertake it and those who witness it.it will be interesting to hear people's responses at least.
5. the annual convention can be a forum to being all global friends of FNSt together - we could have sessions where global interns can present their experiences; it can be a meeting point of various kinds of experiences and information and see what india can learn from it. this will be a good forum for the indians to interact within themselves and also have a global experience of what will and what wont work in india. a stock taking of sorts.
this is what occurs to me right now. if any more creative thoughts come my way i will certainly email you. hope this helps...im not sure if this is the line of response you were expecting...let me know!! this is also a very informa documentation of my thoughts...hope that is alright.
best regards,
manvitha.
Since the document already makes clear the overall agenda and general aims, what i have tried to do is to fill it in with specific events and more focused areas that you could look at:
1. Focus on students - through a campus liberal paper to begin with. this could be a small magazine, journal or even just a spreadsheet that is published once a month by the students of DU and circulated just to create a forum to disseminate liberal ideas. once this is done on a monthly basis we can have an annual issue - a culmination of all these 12 journals. this could be a stock taking even for us to see how far we have go in the process of publishing these ideas. then once this is an annual affair we could build around this or make this event coincide with other events like the Convention (that you are planning this year) etc. i began with a small journal spreadsheet bec it is viable - ppl will be wiling to work and commit , it doesn't need too much labour AND it really has an impact.
The content of this can be worked on some creative lines. i have looked at some campus papers but they all seem to be lacking in one thing - they do not address issues that concern the students directly. we could refocus on that. show liberal approaches to univ-students problems and solutions; draw inspiration and information from liberal movements around the world and be able to spread information. This could be one channel of access to students. If we try in DU and it works then im sure the 'movement' can also spread to other cities and universities. it will also bring like minded people on campus together
2. freedom weekends - we could have alternate weekends as 'freedom weekends' and tap students' attn - those who live on campus. a HUGE number of students live in hostels or accommodations around the univ area. if we could organise films/book readings or other events on alternate weekends then we could create space for people to come together and discuss issues. Slowly this group/groups might also want to evolve and take up events/projects on their own - but at least we can provide a forum for people to come together
3. of course the association with LYFI is tehre to tap - events for this will concretize i think once the plan of action has met and come up with the final agenda.
4. we all seem to only react to 'current events'. after a thing has happened we all tend to draw out solutions to it. but it would be interesting to see what can come out of being proactive. we could have a research team who will look into budding problems and devise methodologies of liberal responses to these problems. we can run a project of this sort and show people how IN EXPERIENCE a liberal approach will take you further than just trying to treat symptoms of problems. the project could be anything even minor - like deforestation in one small area in delhi or traffic regulation in one route anything small or big - but if we are able to show the importance of being proactive AND having a realistic liberal approach to it; we will be able to prove many points i think. this exercise will do good for everyone - those who undertake it and those who witness it.it will be interesting to hear people's responses at least.
5. the annual convention can be a forum to being all global friends of FNSt together - we could have sessions where global interns can present their experiences; it can be a meeting point of various kinds of experiences and information and see what india can learn from it. this will be a good forum for the indians to interact within themselves and also have a global experience of what will and what wont work in india. a stock taking of sorts.
this is what occurs to me right now. if any more creative thoughts come my way i will certainly email you. hope this helps...im not sure if this is the line of response you were expecting...let me know!! this is also a very informa documentation of my thoughts...hope that is alright.
best regards,
manvitha.
Masani s Manifesto
Book Review: Minoo Masani, by S. V. Raju
Published by National Book Trust, Rs 40
Masani s Manifesto
Atul Chaturvedi
Indian Express
10 February 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/270692.html
When Minocher Rustom (Minoo) Masani died in 1998, just seven years short of his centenary, it was the end of an era. For Masani was the last of a particularly unique brand of politician — an intellectual to whom principles mattered, and one without the faintest hankering for power.
S.V. Raju, an associate of Masani's, has filled the huge gap in our knowledge of his life, and brought him to life for a generation that has, sadly, not even have heard his name. The field till now had been held by Masani's own vivid, two-volume account, Against the Tide, now unjustifiably out of print.
Masani was a lawyer who joined the freedom struggle, and was imprisoned in 1932 and 1934. At 38, he was elected as Bombay's youngest mayor. Masani also worked for J.R.D. Tata. It speaks volumes about the two of them that when Masani courted arrest, he first told Tata, who told him to get in touch once he was out of jail!
Politically, Masani was a radical who espoused socialism. In the Congress, he was a member of a ginger group, the Congress Socialist Party, and counted among his colleagues Jayaprakash Narayan, Achyut Patwardhan, and Ram Manohar Lohia. Masani was an admirer of the Soviet Union, but not an uncritical one.
He began to distance himself from the Soviets after examining all the information he could get about the purges. This, in turn, led him to warn against the Communist Party of India, its call for a United Front, and its policy of infiltrating the Congress.
Masani's disenchantment with Socialism grew apace, especially after he came into personal contact with Gandhi. By the early 1950s, we can safely say that Masani's political stance was an interesting combination of political liberalism and Gandhian ethics. For a former socialist, he was unique in stating that a mixed economy was a necessity for India. What, then, was the difference with Nehru? Masani believed that Nehru's was a statist economy, in which individual liberty was subordinated. The story goes that an offer was made to Masani to join the government, conditional on whether he would support Nehru or Patel. His replied that he would support anyone who supported his principles. Result — no ministry.
Masani entered Parliament in 1957, and soon became general secretary of the newly founded Swatantra Party, under the leadership of the venerable C. Rajagopalachari. He was the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, and for almost a decade opened the debate on the budget from the opposition benches. In Parliament, he refused to oppose for the sake of opposing. When the rupee was devalued, he supported the move after consulting economists. He insisted that a no-confidence motion should be moved only if a viable alternative was available.
After the failure of the Swatantra Party in the 1971 polls, Minoo Masani left politics. He, however, became active again during the Emergency, supporting his old comrade JP. He won a landmark case against the government when it tried to put fetters on his journal, Freedom First. For the first and only time in his life, he occupied an official position as Chairman of the Minorities Commission, but quit after deciding that the Janata government had no interest in it. To the end, principles prevailed over power.
Published by National Book Trust, Rs 40
Masani s Manifesto
Atul Chaturvedi
Indian Express
10 February 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/270692.html
When Minocher Rustom (Minoo) Masani died in 1998, just seven years short of his centenary, it was the end of an era. For Masani was the last of a particularly unique brand of politician — an intellectual to whom principles mattered, and one without the faintest hankering for power.
S.V. Raju, an associate of Masani's, has filled the huge gap in our knowledge of his life, and brought him to life for a generation that has, sadly, not even have heard his name. The field till now had been held by Masani's own vivid, two-volume account, Against the Tide, now unjustifiably out of print.
Masani was a lawyer who joined the freedom struggle, and was imprisoned in 1932 and 1934. At 38, he was elected as Bombay's youngest mayor. Masani also worked for J.R.D. Tata. It speaks volumes about the two of them that when Masani courted arrest, he first told Tata, who told him to get in touch once he was out of jail!
Politically, Masani was a radical who espoused socialism. In the Congress, he was a member of a ginger group, the Congress Socialist Party, and counted among his colleagues Jayaprakash Narayan, Achyut Patwardhan, and Ram Manohar Lohia. Masani was an admirer of the Soviet Union, but not an uncritical one.
He began to distance himself from the Soviets after examining all the information he could get about the purges. This, in turn, led him to warn against the Communist Party of India, its call for a United Front, and its policy of infiltrating the Congress.
Masani's disenchantment with Socialism grew apace, especially after he came into personal contact with Gandhi. By the early 1950s, we can safely say that Masani's political stance was an interesting combination of political liberalism and Gandhian ethics. For a former socialist, he was unique in stating that a mixed economy was a necessity for India. What, then, was the difference with Nehru? Masani believed that Nehru's was a statist economy, in which individual liberty was subordinated. The story goes that an offer was made to Masani to join the government, conditional on whether he would support Nehru or Patel. His replied that he would support anyone who supported his principles. Result — no ministry.
Masani entered Parliament in 1957, and soon became general secretary of the newly founded Swatantra Party, under the leadership of the venerable C. Rajagopalachari. He was the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, and for almost a decade opened the debate on the budget from the opposition benches. In Parliament, he refused to oppose for the sake of opposing. When the rupee was devalued, he supported the move after consulting economists. He insisted that a no-confidence motion should be moved only if a viable alternative was available.
After the failure of the Swatantra Party in the 1971 polls, Minoo Masani left politics. He, however, became active again during the Emergency, supporting his old comrade JP. He won a landmark case against the government when it tried to put fetters on his journal, Freedom First. For the first and only time in his life, he occupied an official position as Chairman of the Minorities Commission, but quit after deciding that the Janata government had no interest in it. To the end, principles prevailed over power.
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