Dr. Kiran Bedi needs no introduction. The former Lieutenant Governor and retired IPS officer leaves a mark wherever she goes. Be it Puducherry or Tihar, she made news for her proactiveness and desire to bring about change. She is upfront, and just as she likes to work outside her comfort zone, she believes in pushing others out of their complacency to perform to their full potential.
In Puducherry, while she managed to establish good relations with the people by being easily approachable, her tenure also had its fair share of conflicts with the state government.
While she opened the Governor House to the public, she was also accused of establishing an alternative power center at the Raj Nivas. She chose to maintain a dignified silence then but meticulously kept notes.
Once she was free from constitutional obligations, she decided to shape those notes into a book to laid bare the truths, so that people know her side of the story as well.
Her book is titled, Fearless Governance, a not-so-subtle connotation of her fearlessness in the face of stiff opposition while discharging her duties as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
In an exclusive interview to Indian Masterminds, Dr. Kiran Bedi talks about her book and, also, her time in Raj Nivas, Puducherry.
Excerpts from the interview:
Conflicts with the state government marked your tenure as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry. So, is the book, Fearless Governance, your way of putting out your side of the story?
The expectation from the Lieutenant Governor by the political class was one to be a ceremonial head and a ‘rubber stamp’. Whereas the Act, the Business Rules and Financial Powers gave an executive responsibility to the office of the Lt Governor.
Hence, it was a conflict between the political expectations and the legally laid down responsibilities.
The political classes also loathed that Puducherry is a Union Territory and not a full-fledged state. On the one hand, they agitated for statehood for Puducherry. On the other hand, they refused to accept the executive role of the Lt Governor as given in the UT.
They wanted to have the cake and eat it too.
Every time they challenged the powers of my office, the Hon’ble Supreme Court upheld the law. They lost but wanted to keep the pot boiling to keep supporters in an illusion.
The book documents these developments. And how they were defended at a considerable cost of time, energy, and state money.
The mission of Prosperous Puducherry remained uppermost. These are facts. The book is based on factual evidence, also in QR code for video and documents.
A fearless leader you have always been. In hindsight, do you feel that you have been a responsible leader as well?
A fearless leader takes and, also, steps up to take full responsibility for the performance of laid down duties and delivers them without fear or favor.
It is easy to be a rubber stamp but very challenging to reclaim and protect the legitimate and legal responsibility which belonged to the office of the Lt Governor.
In your book, you imply that because the elected government and the governor’s office were working at cross purposes, the administration suffered. In essence, are you saying that a good leader should know to work as a team?
Teamwork is most desirable and happens only when there is a common purpose and selfless intentions. When it’s a cross purpose, the conflict remains alive and simmering.
As a governor, you set a precedent in many ways. One of them is having one-on-one interaction with the bureaucrats at Raj Nivas. Did it help in forging a good bonding with the officers and winning their trust?
All authentic conversations bond.
Yes, it built a bond. I got to know their professional strengths, also about their state of mind.
I asked If I could do more for them. I addressed them by their first name. Kept no minutes of our meeting. I had a photo with them and sent them a copy.
We became friends and softened the hierarchy.
This is the first part of the interview with Dr. Kiran Bedi. The second part will feature the video interview, where she talks about the towing away of Indira Gandhi’s car, her relations with the Late Prime Minister, her views on leadership, and more. Her book, Fearless Governance, is available on Amazon, Flipkart, Kindle, and Diamond Books website.
Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3v73TJL
Flipkart link: https://bit.ly/3s8NnHb
