What is India up to with Iran?

The old adage runs: "You cannot please everyone". No one understands this better than Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. For four years now, he has had to represent the world's largest democracy; all the while groveling at the feet of the dynasty that rules his party. He has had to fight terrorism (or give the appearance thereof) and appease Muslims at the same time. He has had to pursue free market policies for India's economic future and listen to Communists as well. But, for once, he has had it easy.

It all made perfect sense: the Bush administration, as a matter of habit, went too far in its criticism of Indo-Iran relations; and New Delhi snubbed the Americans in no uncertain terms. So many of us, who feel that India's ambitions of gaining respect and influence in the world are often frustrated by the soft spoken servility of our leaders and diplomats, were ecstatic at this sudden turn of events. The idea of a confident India standing up to the world's reigning superpower is so exhilarating a thought that it drives our reason over the edge. Today, public sentiment in India is driven by high hopes and high growth, as a young, ambitious nation pines for validation as a world power. In our eagerness, it is all too easy to clutch on to straws such as these and play right into the hands of the Nehru-Gandhi family. You will notice that most of the public reaction to this now famous "snub" has focused on the apparent arrogance shown by India; and too little thought has gone into whether India's position on Iran is justified at all.

An emphasis on national pride and sovereignty is a wonderful thing; but it would be a pity if we let the UPA government play with those sacred sentiments. It would be even greater crime to let India do the wrong thing just so it can assert its "sovereignty". Before we let Dr. Singh and his stool pigeons amass the credit for standing up for India's pride, we must examine his motives and positions more carefully: Is this uncompromising desire for an independent foreign policy part of a pattern, or just one of a kind? Let us see: Dr. Singh has just made it clear that while we are friendly towards the US, India is not bound by American interests. But wait, isn't he the same Dr. Singh who went to town a couple of months ago, explaining sanguinely to the Indian people "Of course, there will be problems if India tests a nuclear weapon; an overwhelming number of NSG members have already signed the NPT"! The same sense of national pride was not so apparent when China publicly expressed an objection to the Prime Minister's trip to Arunachal Pradesh. Or for that matter, when the BJP proposed that Parliament adopt a resolution asserting that Arunachal was an integral part of the Indian Union. It is possible to take this criticism to a whole new level by reminding ourselves that Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, so revered by the Congress, repeatedly frittered away the advantage our troops had won in the battlefield by referring all disputes to the UN and other do-nothing "international bodies". Just how dumb do you think we Indians are, "Dr." Prime Minister?

The decision to snub the Bush administration is an all round winner for the Congress. By standing up to America, aka, the "Great Satan", the party has enhanced its image among the Muslims. The Indo-US nuclear deal and Manmohan Singh's passionate advocacy for the same had created doubts among Indian Muslims as to whether the Congress was sufficiently sympathetic to their brethren in the Middle East. Apparently, it wasn't enough that Sonia Gandhi wrote personally to the Danish government demanding an apology for the Prophet cartoons (for the de facto leader of the world's largest democracy, Sonia Gandhi's understanding of the notion of a free press is remarkably poor; or else she would not have called on the Danish government to apologize for a bunch of cartoons they had neither created nor publicized!) Besides, prior to this, most of the urban middle class, which understood the obvious benefits of the Nuclear agreement, had been accusing the Congress of giving in to the demands of its Communist allies. By choosing a sudden bold position and painting the US as heavy handed, the Congress might have succeeded in shaking off some of the blame for losing the nuclear deal. Dr. Singh has also given the restive Communists a small victory to savour and this should keep them content for a while. And of course, the business community and even the middle class love the prospect of Iranian oil flowing down India's parched throat. It is indeed amazing, but it seems that one size fits all!

It is all very well to have the Iranian President over for dinner once in a while; but India needs to be very careful in its dealings with Iran. It is only fair that India should be able to participate in the mad scramble for oil; but there can be no debate on the fact that India and Iran are fundamentally incompatible in the modern world. While most Indians seek to be a "free people" in all aspects of life, Iran is a medieval theocracy. India should take cognizance of the fact that Iran imposes inhumane restrictions on its people, carries out untold atrocities on women and homosexuals and that President Ahmedinajad has not only denied the holocaust, but also celebrated the genocide against Jews and publicly called for the destruction of Israel. In a lowly, selfish sense, these are not "India's immediate concerns", but if we Indians abandon the culture of the free world and try to live in a cocoon, we should not expect to achieve the status of a world power. As such, we should understand that India's future, in the long run, lies in prolonged cooperation with the United States and Europe and not with rogue nations like Iran. And we should also understand that India does not run the risk of becoming a "satellite state". Just the fact that the British managed to overpower a few squabbling Indian princes roughly two hundred and sixty years ago, does not mean that this could be repeated. Economic realities govern this new world and those who doubt the indomitable potential of India are seriously deluded.

India, as always, is a paradox. While surveys show that India is one of the most pro-American countries in the world, it takes only a small, scratchy episode like this to bring out a defensive anti-American stance. For one, Indians should note that our nation was colonized by Britain and not by America; in fact, except for a few unpleasant moments at the height of the Cold War, India and the US have rarely been at cross purposes. To hold grudges of the colonial era against England and, by extension, against all "white" nations; is both ignorant and racist. Building deep economic ties with Iran is like consorting with the devil. India needs to view this as a strictly temporary measure for the sake of energy security and make sure that this does not overshadow our international image or sour our democratic future.