Reading Nani Palkhivala - contd

I seem to have been bitten by the writing bug(I didn’t think it had any liking at all towards me, whatsoever), I can’t seem to stop writing or raving about Palkhivala for that matter. That is why you find me sitting at my desk at work after a weeklong vacation… and writing!

I have completed devouring “We, the people” by Nani Palkhivala. The title “We, the people” is the first words of the Preamble of our Constitution that seeks set out the vision set for the Republic of India under the auspices of the Constituent Assembly. So, true to the title, the book is a collection of Nani’s thoughts, assembled as a compilation of his speeches and writings(already published in newspapers/magazines) on what we have managed to make out of our noble Constitution. True that what we have made of it can be summed up in one word – “mockery”, yet Palkhivala goes beyond. He pulls apart the curtains of darkness we have put upon ourselves and reaches deep within to grasp the shining fabric of our civilization, and exhort us to realize our potential. His voice throughout the book beckons “We, the people” to relate to “We, the people” who framed our Constitution and their vision.

An eminent jurist, who has contributed vitally to safeguarding our Constitution through the Kesavananda Bharati case, he talks passionately to look at the Constitution as an enduring body, not to be interfered with at every step and stumble. On the ever-running conflict and debate on the supremacy of Fundamental Rights vs Directive Principles of State policy, he captures the essence in a few words(not quoting verbatim), – “Directive Principles of State Policy are indeed the end goals, the Fundamental Rights provide the means by which to realize the ends. A determined government can achieve the ends while observing the limits on the means”

On problems of governance, especially centre-state relations, he urges us not to fall into “the fallacy of legal solubility”, but to develop conventions that align with the constitutional spirit, and the discipline to abide by the conventions.

The book is not for people who are looking for a narrative of sorts. It is a bundle of thoughts in various contexts – speeches delivered in convocations, business forums, articles written in magazines, etc. As a package, it is resonant of the heartbeats of the first decades of the Indian Republic. It touches upon the numerous issues that faced a very young modern republic – some of the issues have been firmly resolved, some have faded into insignificance in the evolving world, and some, have compounded over the years.

The book is not an easy read either – the versatile genius of Palkhivala requires work to comprehend in entirety. Personally for me, it has been the single most informative and insightful book on India after independence.


P.S : This short piece took me over three days to complete. I had to put it on hold minutes after I started writing. I had completed more than half the content in those few minutes, but I could never get the flow quite right again and it took me over three days and many aborted attempts to finally complete it :( That teaches me to try to write at work.