Shivaji & Suraj by Anil Madhav Dave released

Shivaji is role model for good governance

—Mohan Bhagwat?

Pramod Kumar

“Shivaji may have ruled over a very small portion of the country but he had national outlook. That is why the administrative standards set by him are relevant even after 400 years. Those who are engaged in administrative activities or are expected to join in near future must read Shivaji,” said RSS Sarsanghachalak Shri Mohan Bhagwat while releasing a book, Shivaji & Suraj, in New Delhi on April 29.

Prominent among those who were present on the occasion included former Deputy Prime Minister Shri LK Advani, former Union HRD Minister Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Smt Sushma Swaraj, former Governor of Sikkim and Goa Shri Kidarnath Sahni, RSS Sahsarkaryavah Shri Suresh Soni, senior BJP leaders Shri Ravishankar Prasad, Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Smt Najma Heptullah, former Union Minister Suresh Prabhu. etc. Many MPs, MLAs and newly elected MCD Councillors of BJP also attended the function.

Published by Prabhat Prakashan, New Delhi, the book has been written by Rajya Sabha MP Shri Anil Madhav Dave. Introduction to the book has been written by RSS Sarsanghachalak Shri Mohan Bhagwat while Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Narendra Modi wrote the Forward. The 335 pages book is priced at Rs 500.

Describing Shivaji as a true visionary and role model for good governance, Shri Bhagwat exhorted the present rulers to win confidence of the people. He said through his exemplary valour and administrative acumen Shivaji inspired generations. “He always thought of the future. Some of the decisions taken by him in those days prove his foresight. He abolished the zamindari system. But before taking this decision he took all the concerned people of the society into confidence. That is why there was no resistance from anyone during the implementation of the decision. This shows that we should first mentally prepare the society before taking any drastic step, which is necessary for the nation. This is just an example of the excellent administrative acumen of Shivaji. There are many policies designed and implemented by Shivaji at that time which can be implemented in toto today,” Shri Bhagwat added.

“Shivaji is equally popular even outside Maharashtra. We must think how he gained so much popularity. He always fought for victory and not to rule. He had no ambition to be a king. Even if he became a king after much persuasion, he only lived like a yogi. He never thought for selfish gains. He wanted to liberate the entire country from slavery. Despite ruling a few districts of present Maharashtra he had bigger vision. That is why after the demolition of temple in Kashi he wrote a strong worded letter to  the then Moghal ruler Aurangzeb. His rule was based on dharma. Shivaji created a team of honest and dedicated people who were always ready for supreme sacrifice on his call,”
the RSS chief said.

Shri Bhagwat also said Shivaji did not hesitate to accept the technology from other countries. “What was good he took without hesitation and transformed that as per his needs and requirements. In those days he even created a navy unit and also started work for adopting printing technology,” he added.

Speaking on the occasion, former Union Minister Shri Suresh Prabhu said one of the prime specialties of Shivaji was his innovativeness. He was very serious to many of the issues like environment protection, water conservation etc, which have today emerged as major problems, though there was no any such threat of environmental degradation or water scarcity in those days. “This shows his farsightedness and makes his thoughts relevant today. His war strategy was unique, which basically helped him winning majority of the battles he fought,” Shri Prabhu said. He said by collecting the administrative strategies of Shivaji, Shri Dave has done a great job. “Whatever problems we see today in the country are due to only bad governance. This book is a manual and should be a must read for all present and future rulers,” he added.

Earlier, introducing the book, Shri Anil Dave said the reason why the country is not able to achieve the desired results despite having sufficient resources is that we lack able leadership. Shivaji symbolises a healthy and perfect system—how should be the government, how should be the ruler, how should be the administration, how should be one’s individual life, etc. The imbalance that we see in the system today is only due to the lack of national vision among our present rulers, he said.

Underlying the administrative qualities of Shivaji, Shri Dave further said one should always be alert and conscious and national interest should always be supreme. That is why Shivaji is role model for good governance. He said the book is a result of in-depth research and objective analysis of historical facts. Shivaji was a meticulous planner who planned everything in great detail. His acumen in military strategy is well known across the world, but he had great insight in administrative and financial matters as well. He said the book does not talk about the wars fought by Shivaji rather focuses on the values set by him as a ruler. That is why everybody who wants to join the administration in any form should learn from Shivaji. Despite being the ruler Shivaji did not appoint any of his relatives as head of any Fort or a Samant, whereas all the prominent posts during the regime of his contemporary Aurangzeb were occupied by his relatives. Unfortunately, today also we are following the same bad governance that of Aurangzeb.

Shri Dave specially mentioned an incident of selling a horse. “Shivaji had over 20,000 horses. One of them got injured. The officer looking after the horses sought the permission to sell the horse. Shivaji permitted him. After some days when that officer came to Shivaji, he immediately asked him whether he sold the horse or not. When the officer said yes, Shivaji again asked him whether he deposited the entire amount in the treasury. The officer said yes. This is an example of the transpired and accurate financial system followed by Shivaji. The owner of over 20,000 horses had the detail of even one horse. On the contrary the recent CAG report under UPA government mentioned crores of rupees in miscellaneous account, which means no detail is available about the expenses. Not only this, Shivaji had clear policies on environment protection, women empowerment, minority welfare, punishment to corrupt, etc. He was particular about not only the financial corruption but also the character and ideological corruptions.?