The Huddle 2020, Day 2: Kashmir decision was not taken suddenly: Ram Madhav

The two-day event features 15 sessions and 32 speakers from the world of politics, business, academics, sports, entertainment and the arts.

February 23, 2020 10:02 am | Updated 06:09 pm IST

Ram Madhav, National General Secretary of the BJP speaking at The Huddle in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Ram Madhav, National General Secretary of the BJP speaking at The Huddle in Bengaluru on Sunday.

The second day of the fourth edition of the Huddle 2020, organised by The Hindu Group of Publications, begins with a keynote address by the former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe. The event was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday.

The two-day event will feature 15 sessions and 32 speakers, showcasing some of the best minds from the world of politics, business, academics, sports, entertainment and the arts. The sessions are designed to be interactive, and they take place before an invited audience.

Watch the live coverage here:

 

Sad to equate Usain Bolt to kambala: Ashwini Nachappa

In this session, 'Athlete, Actor, Activist' , former India athlete Ashwini Nachappa is in conversation with Sports Editor of The Hindu KC Vijayakumar. 

"For me it was always about standing out, in terms of performance, behaviour everything. It was just my personality. It just felt good to be different on the field," she says.

Asked about Srinivasa Gowda and the hype surrounding Kambala, she says, "Sad to equate Usain Bolt to kambala. Both are about sprinting and speed. What these two boys have achieved is commendable. But it is unfair to ask them to come for a race."

Speaking on her rivalry with PT Usha, Ashwini Nachappa says, "On the field, everybody is a rival. Off field, everyone is a friend. Usha is one the finest athletes India has ever produced. It is true even today. To beat Usha, one needed to train dfferently. I always came second to Usha. Sports psychologist from US asked me if i would go in for a session of mind training. After that training, there was one difference. The difference was that I never ran against Usha; I ran against myself."

 

Kashmir decision was not taken suddenly: Ram Madhav

In this session BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav speaks to The Hindu 's Associate Editor Narayan Lakshman.

Speaking on the BJP's decision regarding Article 370, Mr. Ram Madhav says, "Kashmir is not a gambit, it's a decision taken with full thinking. It's not brought about suddenly. We have been consistently seeing for the past 70 years that we will do away with Article 370. From 1954 successive governments have diluted it.

"Based on security assessment the detention of former CMs has been extended. We want them also to resume political activity as soon as security assessment is favourable.

"All political parties should start engaging in normal political activities in Kashmir. Our focus is on early restoration of activities... There are traffic jam in Kashmir today, which means [there is] absolute normalcy.

"Next vacation, spend it in Jammu and Kashmir. If you want to go on a pilgrimage, go to Amarnath or Vaishno Devi. If you want to go on your honeymoon, go to Gulmarg."

Speaking on the Ayodhya issue, he says "It has been reported extensively. Let us now leave it to Supreme Court. Five acres of land has been allocated for the mosque. Babri Masjid Action Committee has no objections. Let us not reinvent problems where they don't exist."

Speaking on CAA, he says "There are a lot of misconceptions about CAA. It is just an amendment to the existing ACT. It does not discriminate. It is only for fast-tracking of the provisions. Governments in Pakistan and Bangladesh have realised that they have to take care of their minorities"

He says, "It is wrong to say that NPR is discriminatory. There is nothing controversial about it. No state govt has constitutional provision to say they won't implement it. PM has stated that no discussion on NRC has happened. Even if it happens, govt will take feedback from all states.

"Assam NRC was not done by us. It was done because court wanted it to be done. It was an unfinished agenda in Assam. Delayed for six decades If any future NRC happens in the country, what will happen to this NRC?"

He says the Government has a performance-centric approach. "Steps were taken for demonetisation with good intent, but Indians are more intelligent than the government.

"Our focus is on boosting GDP growth, greater GDP output, more exports, more jobs and investments in infrastructure," he says.

 

Thanks to OTT platforms, we are finally telling stories that are not just about heroes

Actor Mithila Palkar speaking at The Huddle in Bengaluru.

Actor Mithila Palkar speaking at The Huddle in Bengaluru.

 

The next session titled  'The Netflix Session: Creating stars in the digital age' includes actors Manisha Koirala, Mithila Palkar, Priyanshu Painyuli

"Platforms like Netflix have increased freedom for the film industry by allowing us to be less worried about ticket sales, by allowing a greater variety of talent," says Ms. Koirala.

Thanks to OTT platforms, we are finally telling stories that are not just about heroes, says Mithila Palkar

 

'Open, free and fair elections are the essence of democracy'

(From left) Max Rodenbeck, South Asia bureau chief of 'The Economist', Maria Abi-Habib, South Asia correspondent of 'New York Times', Nirupama Rao, former Foreign Secretary, and N. Ravi, Publisher of The Hindu Group of Newspapers, in conversation with Suhasini Haidar (centre), Diplomatic Editor of 'The Hindu' during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia, in Bengaluru on February 23, 2020.

(From left) Max Rodenbeck, South Asia bureau chief of 'The Economist', Maria Abi-Habib, South Asia correspondent of 'New York Times', Nirupama Rao, former Foreign Secretary, and N. Ravi, Publisher of The Hindu Group of Newspapers, in conversation with Suhasini Haidar (centre), Diplomatic Editor of 'The Hindu' during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia, in Bengaluru on February 23, 2020.

 

This session 'Age of the strongman: The rise and rise of illiberal democracies' includes Nirupama Rao, Former Indian Foreign Secretary; N. Ravi, Publisher The Hindu ; Maria Abi-Habib of the New York Times and Max Rodenbeck.

Open, free and fair elections are the essence of democracy, Ms. Rao says.

Maria Abi-Habib says, "The first thing we see of a person with autocratic tendencies democratically elected is intimidate the media, squeeze advertisement or threaten journalists.  In Syria and other places where media was controlled by the regime, rebel media came up. We saw this in Egypt. Many journalists are in jail. Turkey also has a large number of journalists in jail. In Sri Lanka, during the coup in 2018, those allied to Rajapaksa stormed the broadcaster."

 

I was fortunate to have someone like Azhar as my first captain, says Anil Kumble

Anil Kumble, former Indian cricketer, in conversation with K.C. Vijaya Kumar, Sports Editor of The Hindu, during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia in Bengaluru

Anil Kumble, former Indian cricketer, in conversation with K.C. Vijaya Kumar, Sports Editor of The Hindu, during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia in Bengaluru

 

In a candid conversation with The Hindu Sports Editor K.C. Vijayakumar, former cricketer Anil Kumble spoke about his initial days being part of the Indian team. "When I first came into the team, there were a lot of doubts, reports suggesting that I could just restrict a batsman. That I needed doctored pitches.... these questions were always there. Even post retirement, in Delhi someone asked me how it feels to have 600 wickets without spinning the ball.

"When I look back, I am satisfied with what i have been able to do."

Speaking on latest trends, he said "Thanks to T-20, there's lesser room for orthodoxy, we're looking for diverse bowlers and players. It's a lot more open today."

 

Ranil Wickremesinghe's keynote address at The Huddle 2020

Former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe opened the second day of The Huddle 2020, The Hindu ’s annual thought conclave, at the ITC Gardenia in Bengaluru on Sunday.

N. Ram, Chairman, THG Publishing Pvt. Ltd., with Ranil Wickremesinghe, former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia, in Bengaluru on February 23, 2020.

N. Ram, Chairman, THG Publishing Pvt. Ltd., with Ranil Wickremesinghe, former Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, during the fourth edition of The Huddle 2020 at the ITC Gardenia, in Bengaluru on February 23, 2020.

 

The two-day event will feature 15 sessions and 32 speakers, showcasing some of the best minds from the world of politics, business, academics, sports, entertainment and the arts. The sessions are designed to be interactive, and they take place before an invited audience.

 

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