@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 1:04

In conversation with Kalikesh Singh Deo

article image placeholderKalikesh Singh Deo is an eminent MP and law maker
He's also uniquely placed as he doesn't belong to either of India's main national parties, the Congress and the BJP and is a member of the regional party called the Biju Janata Dal. And folks, if this wasn't enough, he was also a former investment banker at Enron as well as an athlete and played national level basketball at an earlier Avatar. I'm stoked to be in in in in in in in conversation with Kalikesh Singh Deo this and welcome to Swell

Kalikesh Singh Deo is a renowned politician in India and belongs to a regional political party called the Biju Janata Dal.

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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 0:37
Thank you, Karen, for calling me and thank you very much for giving me this opportunity. It's a pleasure to talk to you. 2021 has been difficult year. Unusual year for many, many people. We've had majority of the year being under lockdown, a chance to rekindle connections with what's important, what our roots are, to discover our families and face the challenges of COVID both on a social and economic level
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:27
I think that's a very good point. You know, this has been a year of introspection. And broadly, there's been a lot of suffering in the world. But for the few of us who are privileged, I suppose it did give us the opportunity to really reassess and figure out what's important. And like you said, go back to our roots
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 3:35
For example, the lockdown. Now it is possible that lockdown was the only answer, given the conditions of the society and economy in India, it's possible that without the lockdown, we would have had to face a huge number of more cases. And we understand that India's health systems are not as well as equipped as many of the other countries that have experienced this crisis
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:58
You definitely can't argue with the enormity of the crisis. I think I mean, you know, the falling out post, the announcement of the lockdown is widely known. I think you pointed it out very accurately. And I think a lot of commentators have also argued, dude, that the plight of the working class was probably the worst in India compared to the rest of the world. But that also speaks to how much inequality has risen. I think these issues did come to the surface
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 3:38
I was told that Lisa government hadn't given permission as yet, but on my request to the Chief Secretary here, they managed to start taking trains in and the first few trains came into bolangar. I found the arrangements after people landed was extremely good and it made complete sense that these trains would start earlier than later because people were coming in anyways. They started walking, taking cycles, taking lifts and trucks
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 2:17
From whatever I gather and the common thread between the States of Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, which you pointed out, is that they are governed by regional parties and as a member of a regional party yourself, do you still believe that national relevance and growth is a prospect given the current situation in India? And I suppose the larger question is whether you think the relationship between the center and States have deteriorated more so now than any other sort of time in India's political history
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 3:28
In Agari Jeep, India has always been a very strong, centralized federal system, with the central government enjoying more power both constitutionally and in practice than what a normal federal system would envision. You look at the US. The central government basically focuses on a few major issues such as national security or foreign relations, and leaves the rest of governance to state governments
@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:54
There are so many questions to be asked about this whole issue, and I wanted to sort of shift the conversation and focus on this for a couple of minutes. What is your stance on all of this and especially the government's reaction to the American celebrities tweeting on the controversy? Do you believe that it was outlandish and how do you think we should, as a society generally react to people from outside of India commenting on the internal issues of India
@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 3:12
I personally think that some of the farmers laws or the agricultural sector needs major reforms and sometimes it would amount to a little bit of shock to the existing stakeholders holders. But I don't think it's going to survive very long given the fact that the government's actions are encouraging protests by itself
@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:15
Thank you for bringing up the point about Sedition. You know, it is a law which has been misused by state and central governments, Kalikesh, and at the risk of sounding rhetorical. Do you think the time has come for a significant reform measure for freedom of speech in India
@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 2:29
Similarly, again, let me repeat that this addition law is misused not only by the current government. It's been misused by many governments in the past and will be done in the future in an environment where social media carries freedom of speech to another level where you can reach directly to your recipients or the people who want to hear you. I don't believe the citizen law has any place in the nation's formation for the next decade or so
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 1:20
The historical perspective you just provided makes one think if India has truly realized its place in the world, you know, it makes me wonder what our relationships are like with the powerful countries of the world, particularly the United States. We evolved from a mixed economy to a free market system, which gave rise to a lot of inequality. And as a young Indian myself, I am a beneficiary of those reforms. It exposed me to globalization
@Taylor
Taylor J
@Taylor · 1:27

@Kalikesh a couple of questions for you. Thank you so much for your time!

I obviously do not want you to incriminate yourself, but I would love to pick your brain for a second at any rate. Thank you so much for dedicating some time to this. I've really learned a lot and appreciate it
@sudha
Sudha Varadarajan
@sudha · 2:56

Education Revolution

Is there a way and means by which we can look at providing this education in a much more compressed time frame? Given the digital revolution that has happened and given the pandemic has exposed people to educating themselves offline without going in person? Is it the right time to look at really revolutionizing education in India?
@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 1:41
Karan, you know, India's relationship with America has always been not very easy. In the initial few years during the Cold War, India, as a film in Russia affected the interpersonal relationship between been ten Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and various presidents of the US. However, it's taken a turn for the better ever since 1991, when the economy started to liberalize and India actually made a general attempt and effort to reach out to the US
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 2:51
I think to the extent that the government can influence which companies get access to finance and get access to permissions, I mean, that's something which is going to be bad for any economy. It's become obviously a lot better than what it was in the earlier years. But there is still a long way to go
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 1:48
I feel that politics should be devoid of caste and devoid of religion. But in a country like India, maybe that's not possible. To the extent that the courts can play a role and other institutional mechanism can play a role to control it. And the fact that ultimately the people of this country are going to realize that it's jobs which matters. The economy which matters is not religion and caste
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 4:23
And you've seen politics become very extreme for you. The Democrats are becoming more and more to the left, whereas the Republicans have gone far right. And that was probably the Genesis of Donald Trump coming in as the President of the United States. We've seen the effect of that, the impact of that. And there are comparisons to Mr. Modi in terms of how right the BJP has gone in his to know so far
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@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 3:54
So, yes, education is extremely important and needs to be looked at more effectively and probably by people who are not just bureaucrats, but people who have an expertise and experience in the sector and who understand the local situation and local circumstances so that it can be more effective, more qualitative, and have better access to all and maybe even be tailor made to the requirements of the current population, which may not all want to become doctors and engineers
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:45
To further add to all of the reforms that you pointed out, I think if we implement the director principles of state policy listed in the Constitution in its truest sense, it would really set India up to effectively compete in the world economy. We've covered a lot out of ground, and I think you've given the audience deep insights about many important questions and issues. But on a personal note, I watched a Ted talk at Dune School many years ago about why young people should join politics
@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 2:11
But having said that, I still do firmly believe that this big and massive change can only come from younger people coming into politics, having leaving and lasting impact. And I certainly hope and I certainly pray that young people like you and others I will always hold an interest towards politics and will work and find their way into politics and leave a lasting legacy of change
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@ThinkTank
@ThinkTank · 0:51
Well on that optimistic note, I want to Firstly, thank you for being so candid. The presence of people like yourself in the political system serves as a real Ray of hope. Swell is all about authenticity and trying to have interactions which don't conform to the polarization and toxicity that is so rampant everywhere else on all of the other platforms
@Kalikesh
@Kalikesh · 0:40
Karen, it's been an absolute pleasure to talk to you on Swell. I think Swell has been an interesting experience for me to be able to reach out through the audio, to you and to others who may want to get on in the conversation. Think it's a fabulous platform for people like me and others to directly interact with each other about meaningful issues and maybe escape the kind of patriotic toxic environment that sometimes exists on social media get these days
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