DELHI DIARY, AUGUST 11-14

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 002234

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SUBJECT: DELHI DIARY, AUGUST 11-14

REF: A. 2005 KOLKATA 107

B. KOLKATA 229


1. (U) Below is a complilation of political highlights from
Embassy New Delhi for August 11-14, 2008, that did not
feature in our other reporting, including:

-- September 6 Deadline for Poll Schedules
-- Congress Dilemma in Jharkhand
-- No Change in Uttarakhand Leadership
-- Women Turn Career Soldiers
-- "Give Gays a Break," Says Health Minister Ramadoss

September 6 Deadline for Poll Schedules
---


2. (U) The Election Commission (EC) will announce the
precise schedule for Assembly elections in Delhi, Rajasthan,
Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram by September 6. The
EC on August 11 delayed the decision on Jammu and Kashmir
Assembly elections citing central government concerns about
the deteriorating law and order situation. The EC continues
to work closely with Jammu and Kashmir state government
officials, the Home Ministry and the Intelligence Bureau to
assess the political and security environment. General
consensus was that Jammu and Kashmir would go to polls in
October and the other states in November. With the current
unrest in Jammu and Kashmir, the GOI may be forced to
postpone elections. For the other states, the expectation is
still for November polls.

Congress Dilemma in Jharkhand
---


3. (SBU) Former Congress Party M.P. and political advisor
to the Gandhi family N.D. Patodia told us on August 14 that
political infighting in Jharkhand presents serious challenges
for the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) ahead
of national elections next year. According to Patodia, the
Jharkhand Mukti Marcha (JMM) chief Shibu Soren faces local
resistance from independents and other party factions that
oppose JMM's demands for additional state and national level
positions (reftels). Moreover, the UPA would have to remove
a Congress Party person from power in order to accommodate an
additional JMM cabinet member which would anger the political
base, Patodia said. The UPA faces a tricky political
challenge in satisfying both JMM and independent camps, while
retaining its slender majority (reftels). One school of
thought is that the independents will be compelled to fall in
line if UPA leadership decides to replace Koda with Soren as
Chief Minister.

No Change in Uttarakhand Leadership
---


4. (U) In a bid to keep controversy at bay ahead of
Panchayat (local) and national elections, Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) leadership on August 11 ruled out change of
leadership in Uttarakhand. 25 out of 36 BJP MLAs, with the
support of seven state ministers, met BJP President Rajnath
Singh August 10 urging the removal of Uttarakhand Chief
Minister B.C. Khanduri. The dissidents, led by former Chief
Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, complained of CM Khanduri's
"autocratic" leadership that excluded MLAs and senior
leadership from government decisions. They warned that the
"power vacuum" would negatively affect the BJP in upcoming
Panchayat elections next month and national elections due by
May 2009.


5. (U) Following two days of heated negotiations, state BJP
president Bachi Singh Rawat on August 11 told reporters that
the party should focus on elections, not political
in-fighting, and urged Koshiyari and Khanduri to sort out
differences. The Khanduri-Koshiyari rivalry is long-standing

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and well-known. Each aspires to be the Chief Minister.

Women Turn Career Soldiers
---


6. (U) On August 11, the Indian armed forces' Chief of
Staff Committee broke an age-old tradition when it announced
that women will be eligible for permanent commission.
Previously, the tenure for servicewomen was limited from five
to 14 years, excluding the Army Medical Corps. This historic
development resulted from two years of behind-the-scenes
consensus-building and negotiations, thanks in large part to
Defense Minister A.K. Antony, who has argued that the
military should increase the participation of women in the
forces to 20 percent. Moving forward, the military must
fine-tune the details and identify positions for women
officers, who currently comprise only 2.7 percent of the
armed forces and are not allowed to serve in combat.
Permanent commission will allow women greater access to
promotion opportunities and increased responsibilities not
possible during a limited tenure. Additionally, the National
Defense Academy (NDA) and similar training institutions will
open their doors to women, providing the opportunity to earn
a degree, as well as to become a commissioned officer.
Ranjana Kumari, a noted women's rights activist, welcomed the
announcement; however, she argued the military should go a
step further, "(women) should be treated as equals and should
be included in combat positions."


7. (U) Fifteen years after being first allowed into the
armed services, women finally have the opportunity to pursue
a career as permanent commissioned officers in the
traditionally male-dominated military. The recent trend of
women officers quitting the military in favor of private
sector careers with more promotion potential likely
contributed to the decision.

"Give Gays a Break," Says Health Minister Ramadoss
---


8. (U) Speaking at the 17th International Conference on
AIDS in Mexico City on August 8, Union Health Minister
Anbumani Ramadoss advocated legalizing homosexuality in
India. Ramadoss asserted, "Section 377 of the Indian Penal
Code (IPC),which criminalizes men who have sex with men,
must go." He warned, "structural discrimination against
those who are vulnerable to HIV, such as sex workers and men
who have sex with men, must be removed if our prevention,
care, and treatment programs are to succeed." In a
conversation with POL FSN, Shivangi Rai, a lawyer with the
HIV Section of the Lawyers Collective, confirmed that the
Health Ministry has consistently supported disposing of
Article 377 as it impeded efforts to reduce the prevalence of
HIV in India. Ramadoss will face opposition from the
Ministry of Home Affairs, which argues that abolishing
Section 377 would somehow weaken Indian culture and morality.
The Delhi High Court has asked the Central Government to
issue a decision on Section 377 by September 8.


9. (U) Minister Ramadoss' statement, the first at such a
high level forum, was a huge victory for India's gay
community. While legal hurdles remain, Ramadoss successfully
focused the world's attention on the GOI's handling of gay
rights.
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