India Today Conclave 2017: Revoke AFSPA in phases if situation improves: Mehbooba Mufti

As editor-in-chief of India Today group Aroon Purie says, the conclave is a “celebration of ideas”. As the two-day India Today Conclave 2017 which is happening in Mumbai starts off, the first big discussion naturally was about the “new federalism” and what’s the position of the state chief minister in Narendra Modi-led India at present.

The discussants at the first big debate - The Great Debate: Cooperate and Compete | The New Federalism - were Devendra Fadnavis, chief minister of Maharashtra, Mehbooba Mufti, the CM of Jammu and Kashmir, and Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh. The moderator was India Today consulting editor and one of the most respected journalists in the country, Rajdeep Sardesai.

Here’s what they said about key issues:

On being part of ‘Team India’

According to CM Fadnavis, the agenda is transformation and reform, giving everyone an equal chance.

He said, “I have a huge task ahead of me, I have put Maharashtra on a growth trajectory, but I’m a true soldier of the party. I’m probably staying in Mumbai, not going to Delhi as defence minister.”

Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, “Team India is about the Centre, Cabinet of ministers and the chief ministers coming together. We need to work together. The state has a stake in implementing central schemes efficiently.”

J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, naturally, has a slightly nuanced take on the issue. When asked the question, “What about J&K, is there a Team India concept in J&K?” Mufti said, “Democracy is all bout sharing and caring."

Exactly as Mufti is vilified in some extremist quarters as an “agent of Delhi”, the CM warns about what the Centre and indeed the rest of India needs to do.

“We need to reach out to the people of Kashmir, its youth. Army must be more proactive in reaching out. We also need to think about revocation of AFSPA in phases, and see the outcome. It won’t happen soon, but we should think about it. You can’t ignore regional leaders, competition and cooperation is important.”

However, Mufti also said that her impressions of Narendra Modi are different from what’s expected. “Modi comes from the grass-root level, is open to ideas. He is bringing in true federal structure, has a huge endorsement from the people, big mandate,” she said. Now that’s really something coming from the J&K CM.

On bureaucracy

As Rajdeep Sardesai asked “if bureaucracy a stumbling block for true cooperative federalism”, Devendra Fadnavis had a brilliant answer. “Bureaucracy is a horse, you have to ride it, Modi is riding it now. Earlier governments didn’t give clearance for projects for 15 years, but one video conference from Modi changed everything.”

Do BJP CMs have an advantage over non-BJP CMs? Shivraj Singh Chouhan said there’s no partiality, even though CMs like Mamata Banerjee may think otherwise. “NITI Ayog subgroups have CMs from different parties."

Competitive federalism

Is competitive federalism working? Isn’t it about investment coming to the better-equipped states that would handle the challenge of implementation better? What happens to the smaller states?

Mehbooba Mufti said: “We are lagging behind for political reasons, we are a border state, we need hand-holding because we are on the border. We need help from all over the country. It’s not just Article 370, it’s not an impediment, even Maharashtra had a brush with Article 370.”

Mufti added a heart-felt plea: “Keep coming with your family, even with encounters going on, Kashmir is the safest place for women.”

On Pakistan, she said: “Of course, realities are different; we have a role in India’s relationship with Pakistan. We are the victim of skirmishes between India and Pakistan. But in my experience, no Union minister has said ‘no’ to us.”

On GST

Devendra Fadnavis expressed confidence that the single indirect tax – Goods and Services Tax – will be rolled out from July 1, and it is the real disruption.

“GST has overall agreement, now only political impediments possible, and GST will be directly benefitting the states,” he said.

Growth versus farmer suicides

When Sardesai asked if the BIMARU tag is now gone, Shivraj Chouhan said “MP has seen double digit growth."

But Sardesai interjected: “Your states grow agriculturally, but farmers are committing suicides.” Chouhan’s rebuttal was flimsy at best: “Suicides happen for a lot of reasons.”

On regional leadership

Mehbooba Mufti, despite the “saffron wave” for the BJP, sees a lot of hope for and scope for regional leadership. “Regional leaders may be down, but not out for good. Regional aspirations are the beauty of the country. India has a whole universe of regional realities in it.”

When Sardesai asked what about the legitimate fear that “the majority state can become the majoritarian state”, Fadnavis said, “No other party can finish off a political party; only the people and the public have the power to finish off a party. Modi has set high standards. We can fight the battle of ideologies with development and performance.”

Centre versus state?

Sardesai asked if the CMs are consulted during big decisions, and when they are not, for example in rolling out demonetisation, what happens then as CMs have to bear the brunt.

Chouhan had a sweeping reply: “No one was angry about notebandi. It was naïve of Congress which finished itself off by agitating on the issue.”