Thinking aloud

  Dussehra has been celebrated with much vigor and piety by devotees across the world.  Celebrations in West Bengal were more spectacular than previous years. The state was under the communist rule, desi version, from 1977 to 2011. Then followed 15 years of Mamata Didi's tyranny which suppressed Hindu traditions and festivals. With the BJP's Suvendu Adhikari wresting power this summer, the Bengali Hindus went overboard with their biggest celebration, Durga Puja.  However, the recurring tragedies involving stampede have marred many such festive occasions across the country over the years. Some of these happen due to lack of proper crowd management measures while some are caused by miscreants, the stampede during 2025 Maha Kumbh is an instance. Disaster Response has been streamlined to a big extent by the Modi Government in recent years. But many factors on the ground, like narrow galis, dilapidated decades old buildings, corruption at local body level and general apathy ar...

The honorable judge said, "Be reasonably reasonable when you decide who has a reasonable locus standi to decide what is reasonable and what is not reasonable. After all, we are reasonable enough to all who reasonably come to us for all reasonable and non-reasonable reasons. Yea, we have a huge back log. But we are reasonably sure that it cannot be reasonably blamed on us by any reasonable mind." "Sure, My Lordship. But, how do we identify that reasonable mind and what will be a reasonable definition of reasonable restrictions?" The counsel was reasonably cautious in his response. "Well. elementary, learned Counsel. Supreme Court has to be reasonably kept out of the area in which a curfew, article 144 is imposed. This is because unlike other reasonably mundane institutions, ours is visited by reasonably large number of people on any given day, including Sundays when we decide to conduct special sittings for reasonably urgent hearings." The Judge pronounced ...

Jai Bajrang Bali!  By heroically averting a 9/11-style terror attack, Gujarat-rooted Captain Smit Machchhar has rightfully earned global acclaim . His self-less act saved 174 lives.  Facing imminent death at 30,000 feet, Captain Machchhar revealed that chanting the Hanuman Chalisa granted him the singular focus and fortitude needed to unlock the reinforced cockpit door—even as co-pilot Hammam Al-Hammani continued his violent assault . Through unflinching duty and faith, Chiranjeevi Bajrang Bali found another modern chapter of valor . The world took notice . From Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum visiting him personally in the hospital, global leaders recognized courage under fire . Alarmingly yet predictably, Indian opposition leaders have not come out with any response other than a customary statement from Mallikarjun Kharge Ji, the President of Indian National Congress....