He, however, said that the BJP’s victory in the 2007 state Assembly polls changed it and made him break his self-imposed exile. “The re-election has meant that the majority has given its verdict. That’s reason enough for me to come back, but I still have my reservation against the entire 2002 episode and believe that most of the cases should be re-explored,” Desai said.

An outspoken critic of communalism, sectarianism and Indian government policies, Desai is in town as a special guest at a conference on human resource development, and spoke about his passion for Indian cinema as well as Gujarat’s and Vadodara’s progress.

He added that his confidence in the judicial system was rekindled following several convictions in cases, ranging from the 1984 anti-Sikh riots to 2002 Gujarat carnage. “It is a shame that those responsible managed to get away, but a sustained effort will always guarantee justice,” Desai said at a public function today.

Taking the spotlight away from the present and previous state BJP government’s about economic development and progress, Desai said the prosperity was due to the business acumen of the people of Gujarat. “Gujarat has always been a progressive state even before Independence. Making money in Gujarat was never frowned upon nor was entrepreneurship,” he said.

The BJP government, which has more or less remained in power post liberalisation, has just not put any obstacles in the path of business.

“Gujarat has always been developed and business and finance has always been its strengths. Profit is not a dirty word here and it has never been,” Desai said.

Desai, who is also known for his famed biography of Bollywood thespian, Dilip Kumar, said he is now working on another book on Indian cinema with his wife, Kishwar Ahluwalia. “This time the book is about the history of Indian cinema, which is important as cinema is a brilliant method of gauging Indias progress and history,” he said. When asked about the present state of cinema in India, Desai stated it’s still the most vibrant in the world, but filmmakers are taking fewer risks then they did earlier.

Desai lashes out at industry, govt for lack of proper HR policy
LORD Meghnad Desai today came down heavily on government policies, caste and religious bias and industries for failing to set a proper example of right use of human resources in the country.
At the inauguration of the national conference of NIPM on human resource development, he said, a large percentage of India’s able workforce is being wasted because of issues like malnutrition, improper or no education, and poor healthcare. He said every government that has been in power post-Independence, failed to follow a proper HR policy, and that too when the country’s population was so high.
“There is no lack of human resources in the country, but only 10 per cent of the population is regarded as a resource. Unless age-old barriers like caste, religion and creed are broken and equal opportunity is given to all, HR will remain a moot-point,” Desai stated.
He said that if attention is paid only to the upper creamy layer, while the disadvantaged sections remain neglected, than the latter would crumble one day taking with it the rich too. Desai also attributed the government’s poor policies, which he said were actually detrimental to business and economy. He said, India was recently ranked 135th on the list of countries where business could be conducted, and that this lowly rank had to be improved before HR issues could be discussed. “Good business has to be conducted for the actual growth of the populace, but Indian politics is designed to make business as difficult as possible,” Desai said. The seminar was also addressed by ONGC CMD R S Sharma and Bank of Baroda CMD, Anil Khadelwal among others.