Time to get angry...

The demise of Delhi gang rape victim has evoked sharp reactions from both within and outside the country. What made the Indian Netajis to sit up and take notice is the fact that this incident roused the youth - student community across the nation. Over the decades, the worthy souls that run the country have taken this cross section of the society for a ride time and again. Populist gestures and hollow but clever slogans, which kept selling the dream of ‘India on the move’, were employed effectively to keep the middle class rooted in their comfort zone.

However, the internet and social media sites have finally enabled the educated, urban middle class to actually make their voice heard loud and clear. In an era of paid news and “event management”, the internet has emerged as a more credible source of information gathering. It is a shame that the ruling class can only think of curbs, bans, police case and persecution as the means to counter this new phenomenon.

I often felt that the Indian society became more or less stagnant after the independence as far as political and social reforms are concerned. We are all happy as long as we are able to live the ‘Indian dream’ – a spouse, house, automobile, gold, cricket and bollywood. It is time for India to wake up and take a good look in the mirror. Time for the young men and women to get angry and act…

God’s own country continues to be ignored…

Two under-trial Italian naval officers are allowed to fly home for Christmas, thanks to the Central Government’s stand on the matter. This is a classic example of the continued marginalization meted out to Kerala. 

While we have many ‘key national leaders’ including A.K Antony, the state has little influence over the Central Government. This is evident in a series of issues ranging from Kochi Metro to callous treatment meted out to Keralites by the Air India. Imagine what someone like Jayalalitha or Mamata would have done if the same indifference was showed to their states. 

News about crimes related to sex rackets and human trafficking have become a routine for this small state. Yet, it took a Delhi rape case to awaken the national leaders. With every passing year, Kerala is getting farther from the collective consciousness of the nation… 

Cricket – all of us are ‘experts’…

As expected, India’s humiliating defeat against a brilliant English team has once again raised the demand for Dhoni to be removed from captaincy. The bunch of former cricketers has come out all guns firing at Captain Cool.  However, I haven’t come across a realistic analysis of what happened in this series.

When India went into the series, Dhoni had these resources at his disposal.

India’s top batsmen: Sachin, Sehwag, Yuvraj, Gambhir, Kohli.

Top bowlers: Zaheer, Harbhajan, Ashwin, Ojha.

How many among these have made ‘useful’ contribution to India’s cause during this series? The numbers speak for themselves. It was collective failure in all departments of the game for India. Equally important is the fact that one didn’t see the ‘seniors’ like Sachin, Sehwag, Yuvraj assisting the captain or the younger players on the field.  Experience is of no value unless it is used to guide the team along when the going gets tough.  

It was really painful to watch the captain cool struggling hard to maintain his composure and come up with some kind of no-brainer in presentation ceremony. Unlike others, the captain does not have the luxury of naming anyone.

I agree it is time to try new captain for shorter versions of the game. However, it will be disastrous to try a ne captain in test cricket at this juncture. Better groom someone in T20s and ODIs before handing over the test team.

And, of course, it is time for the God to retire from the game. Not only because of the string of failures, but also because he do not have anything to prove or achieve in a cricket ground. All good things must come to an end…sooner or later….

How absurd can it get …

"The government should put the hanging of Guru in abeyance to avoid strengthening separatists in Jammu and Kashmir," Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh president Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar, told IANS over the phone on Saturday.

"We should understand that we are not ruled by fundamental Hindu nationalists. India is a secular country and it is run by secularists," he said.

The full report I here: http://newindianexpress.com/nation/article1381141.ece

I am appalled by this absurd argument. Let me tell you why. As per the statements given above, it seems that if India chooses to execute a terrorist, the separatists in Jammu and Kashmir will be angry. One may be tempted to ask, so what? Don’t we boast of being tomorrow’s super power? Aren’t we been trying to get a permanent seat in the UN Security Council? Do we not have the obligation to protect our citizens and nation from these terrorists and separatists?

Or should we continue to be docile and petrified whenever our sovereignty is in question? Should the country tread farther down the road that will get India more marginalized and inconsequential in international socio-political arena?

If the system is incapable of protecting the nation from terrorists, naxals, separatists etc, one should be thinking about changing the system rather than surrendering to the anti-nationals.

Even more irresponsible and shocking is the second part of the statement. It seems to suggest that a ‘secular’ government in India should not punish a terrorist. I wonder why? Will the state be deemed as fundamentalist if it chooses to execute Afzal Guru? If we execute the assassins of Rajiv Gandhi, will India become anti-Tamil or anti-Hindu? If India’s secular credentials are so fragile, I would rather live in a nation “ruled by fundamental Hindu nationalists.”

It is exactly the kind of logic and argument that has allowed a Pak Interior Minister to meddle in the internal affairs of our country even while his nation continues to be a failed and rogue neighbor. It is high time that the elite 'secularists' in India showed some amount of sensibility while making such ‘enlightening’ statements. We live in an era when people protest if a commercial film happens to have villain characters from their community. Where are we headed???

The Congess party – ungrateful as always..

With the Ommen Chandy government deciding not to act against the police officers who initiated the police investigation in the infamous palmolein scandal, the Congress party has demonstrated it’s ungratefulness once again. The case and the controversy that followed caused the Leader, K.Krunakaran to resign from the Chief Minister’s post, never to regain it. More importantly this case which smacked of conspiracy from within the party was a big psychological blow to the Leader as it was a result of a grand conspiracy hatched by many of his party colleagues. K.Karnukaran was no longer the center force in the UDF.

We have witnessed Congress party adopting a similar approach towards P.V.Narasimha Rao as well. Ironically, it was Rao’s indifference that forced the Leader to succumb to pressure from within the party during the palmolein scandal. One can only wish that the grand old party could learn from it’s past mistakes and start rectifying them. 

The mockery continues…

We are in the midst of yet another parliament session, this one coming at a time when state elections are around the corner. Predictably, the political parties are playing to the galleries. However, the vote over FDI issue has once again exposed the untrustworthiness of our so-called leaders. Our political parties have long been in a very comfortable position as far as any policy decisions re concerned. They can oppose the policies even while sharing the fruits of power from within or outside the government. They can hold protests against many policies and then support the government within the parliament at the time of voting, either by abstaining or by staging a walkout. In fact, all parties enjoy this great convenience, thanks to the “secular than thou” plank. 

No wonder the issues ranging from Ayodhya to Afzal Guru are dragged on and on while the nation bleeds. Even as India languishes at 94^th position in Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index (CPI), scams continue to hit the headlines every single day. The parliament has been reduced to nothing more than another live TV show, offering much to amuse the viewers. A shame indeed…