"I forced Finance Minister to delete the word rape"

The feisty Hindutva sanyasin and Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs Uma Bharati has, after seven long months of self-imposed ...

The feisty Hindutva sanyasin and Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs Uma Bharati has, after seven long months of self-imposed isolation, finally deigned to attend office. This change of heart came immediately after she was given independent charge of her ministry, a decision she gladly accepted. For, her long-standing feud with Union Human Resources and Development (HRD) Minister Murli Manohar Joshi, is hardly a secret.

Officials in her ministry are also naturally pleased as they don’t have to troop to her residence every day for orders (the PM had allowed this), they now have a “real” minister in office rather than a “shadow.” The minister’s vast office is spartan except for a gleaming, white, marble idol of Lord Ram which dominates her table. That she is comfortable in her new environ is confirmed as she waves her staff away, skips across the room and curls up on the sofa to chat with VRINDA GOPINATH. Excerpts from an interview:

You must be the most pampered minister as you got whatyou wanted after a seven-month-long sulk?
All I can say is that I began attending office from March 4. I did not ask for independent charge, it was in the Prime Minister’s own wisdom that I was given it. I am happy and I want to live up to his expectations.

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Has your work begun in right earnest?
I always discharged my duties but now I am in the process of announcing my projects within a week.

What is the fate of the National Reconstruction Corps which you announced with much fanfare?
On January 12, we launched a drive for volunteers in Lucknow and we are confident of reaching our target by the year end. These volunteers will be given a stipend of Rs 800-1,000, and they will be involved in work like sanitation, water resources, health etc. Budget is no problem as the Finance Ministry had announced it in its first budget too.

Do you share the sentiments of your party’s one-year anniversary bash?
We had a lot to celebrate — Pokharan, settling the Cauvery dispute and thebus to Lahore. It is of true Indian character that we shake hands only when we are in a position of strength. However, the anniversary party could have been better, it did not do justice to the occasion — more inspiring, shaleen (dignified)… it did not match up to the Prime Minister’s grace and the respect he commands.

The BJP organisers did not even take Hauz Khas MP Sushma Swaraj into confidence? They upset her constituents much to her chagrin?
I don’t want to comment on that. You should ask Sushma.

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The PM did have a rough year with his allies, especially with the women. Do you get along with them?
I worship Mamata (Banerjee), she is like my elder sister. She is an ideal for Indian women who want to enter politics. See, there are two ways to move in — either through sycophancy or through mettle. Mamata is a street fighter, like me, we both rose from the ranks. So, handling men is not a problem, which most women are afraid of.

What about Jayalalitha?
No comments…well, even Jayalalitha has emerged as a woman of her own. Earlier, she had MGR’s protection and leadership but she definitely stood her ground when MGR was no longer there to protect and support her…

With your confidence, is it not a surprise that you want special reservation for OBC women in the Women’s Reservation Bill?
It is a natural way of doing natural justice. I don’t want wives of MPs and businessmen coming into Parliament because they have the clout. The real women toil in fields, work in the open, at home, they should be represented… I have been called a party dissident, but I share the views of my party in toto. We have said introduce the bill, have a debate, and if there is a consensus in the House for special reservation for OBC women, then so be it. My Prime Minister has said so too. I definitely differ with Mulayam (Singh Yadav) and Laloo (Prasad Yadav), who do not even want to introduce the Bill in the House without an OBC quota.

Your party has always been accused of beingupper caste. People like Kalyan Singh have always had to fight for their place…
Yeh to samaj ka jhagda hai (this is an age-old struggle in society)…it happens in every party, Congress, Left etc. It is a class struggle. Whether it is the upper castes vs the lower castes, blacks vs whites, sexual harassment…

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Do you approve of insurance against rape?
I was really angry when I read about it, and asked my office to immediately get a copy of that policy. After reading it, I realised that rape was just one labz (word) in the policy while it covered a whole lot of other injuries to a woman.

However, it is shameful that it appeared at all. Can you imagine a woman going to the company and saying that my izzat (honour) is worth Rs 1 crore, and I want a premium on it? Who will fix the price?
So, I walked into the Finance Minister’s office and forced him to delete the word “rape” and put “physical assault” instead. It could be of any kind — like acid throwing, disability due toeve-teasing etc. Yashwant Sinha agreed and did the needful. The offensive word is no longer there.

How do you harmonise sanyas and power play in your life? Are they contradictory?
Sanyas is a personal choice. It is like choosing a husband or toothpaste. And every sanyas takes on responsibility… like Swami Vivekananda, for instance. He took the responsibility of social change. Rajniti is a responsibility I’ve taken. Sanyasi achi rajniti hoti hai (sanyasis can make good rulers) because we can be detached and look at things objectively. Of course, we fail in conspiracies, plotting and intrigue because it goes against the spirit of sanyas. I think I am doing well because I am a sanyasi.