Atithi Devo Bhago!

A word of caution: I am in a vitriolic worst. Any offence to anyone living or dead is not intentional.
Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) CEO Mike Hooper is hopping mad, frustrated, irritated and annoyed with India for what has happened, or not happened. He said India had got seven years to prepare for the games, but its constant missing of deadlines had been a “frustrating” experience. Senior government officials’ flippant comparison of the Games to that of an Indian wedding, where everything “seems” wrong till the groom arrives, and then they work well till the end has not gone down well with the CWG officials.
It is a moment of shame for all of us in India. We are driving out our atithi (guests) before they arrive.
Just thinking aloud: When a non-Indian comes here and passes such uncomplimentary remarks, we feel insulted. But when non-resident Indians pass such comments, we feel double insulted. Why? Because we feel they have been part of this system at some point of time.
We, the resident Indians, fume when our non-resident family members from the West and Far East come here for their annual shot of India vaccine and vilify everything that is India: water, weather, health, hygiene, education. They say our airports are dirty, our stations dirtier and we have no systems in place. They name a superbug after our national capital. They blame our doctors for prescribing antibiotics without a flutter, making them responsible for the superbug in a Western body. They say we have no method of administering checks on prescription drugs as they are available over the counter. They say we Indians have no civic sense and spit red betel juices all over. They say we do not know how to follow traffic rules on the roads, and therefore do not deserve so many automobile manufacturing units. They say our banking mechanisms are bad. They say our education system is worse with children forced to cram before examinations. They say India stinks, it is dirty. Its people lack discipline. They have no sense of time…. In short, after that long one: A lot of India is bad.
But a little of India is good too: For shopping; for clothes; for mathris, murukkus and masalas; for festivities and the accompanied goodies (we never disappoint them on that); for chivda and chaats (better be “hygienic”); for the Karan Johar-Shah Rukh Khan brand of candy floss Hindi films and the accompanying red-hot pop-sufi music.
Today, our NRI annual guests will have another lovely weapon to badger the morale of the resident Indians: The shame and the sham of the Commonwealth Games.
We know many of this is true. But it hurts. When our children make mistakes, we chide them. But when someone else scolds them, we get upset.
Thank you, the Government of India. Thank you, Shiela Dikshit. Thank you, Suresh Kalmadi. Thank you, all the officials who have managed to keep our NRI tongues wagging for ever and ever and ever. They will never stop now. We, the poor resident Indians, have no choice but to lick our wounds.
Atithi, devo bhago!

Once upon a time in Madurai...

Once upon a time in Madurai, Kovalan, an aristocratic landowner, went to pawn his wife, Kannagi’s anklet, when they fell in bad times. The pawn broker, who had stolen the anklet of the Pandyan king’s wife, decided to make Kovalan the scapegoat as the anklet looked identical. The Pandyan king immediately sentenced Kovalan to death. Enraged, Kannagi stormed the palace gates and proved to the king that her anklet had diamonds by breaking open the other pair. Diamonds rolled all over the palace court, making the Pandyan king ashamed of his deed. His queen’s anklets had pearls in them.
Today, a few elements in our democratic India are bending backwards to shame us with their autocratic ideas of the judicial system. The Pune Bar Association exposed its hollowness by trying to dissuade an advocate, Mr Sushil Mancharkar, when he declared his intention to take up the case of Himayat Mirza Baig, prime accused in the German Bakery blast case. There have been more appeals, requests and even warnings from political parties to shun the case. Their argument: Mr Mancharkar should not fight the case of an anti-national who has “killed” 17 people by his gruesome act. They have already passed the sentence in their private court that Baig was indeed the one who planted the bomb that devastated the bakery and shook the calmness of Punekars.
The BJP, Shiv Sena and the like have held demonstrations outside Mr Mancharkar’s house and even threatening him of “serious trouble” if he took up Baig’s case.
In another development, Advocate A. Rehman, Baig’s lawyer, was made to resign from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). He was general secretary of the party’s minority wing. The NCP does not want to be left behind in this race for political mileage as it clipped the wings of its lawyer-member so that the party could be in league of the sentimental public in the aftermath of the blast.
But, does not our constitution guarantee us our a multiple-tier legal system to prove our innocence?
Baig is an accused, not yet proved guilty. By mounting political and muscle pressure on people willing to give Baig a chance to prove himself in the court of law is an assault on democratic ideals. Why do we have a legal system if the suspects are not given a chance to prove their innocence? We could easily have the autocratic/despotic system where a suspect is sentenced and sent to the guillotine without a trail.
Our politicians do not want to left behind in this mad race to guard their vote banks, but at what cost?
Our legal system too ensures that cases drag for years, decades. What justice are we talking about? When it is delayed, it certainly is denied. People are getting impatient over the lethargic legal machinery. They need results, they need decisions. Therefore, their speedy conclusion that Baig “is” indeed guilty the moment he is arrested is a psychological satisfaction for them. They are fed up with cases of Mumbai blasts dragging on. They are fed up with an Afzal Guru or a Kasab trial dragging on. Therefore, this knee-jerk response.
Is it possible to clear the blocks in the legal machinery and oil it well enough to win over the confidence of the citizens who ride them? This will ensure they stop making such reckless statements.

Hey Ram!

The Ayodhya verdict is creating more waves in the media than in the Indian political ocean. Political parties and religious groups are maintaining an uneasy silence a few days before the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court delivers the judgment in the Ayodhya dispute on September 24. The parties are nervous on the outcome of one of post-colonial India’s most explosive issues. The Sangh Parivar and Muslim groups are edgy, but are not showing any signs of getting flustered over the verdict. Both sides have given generous bytes on the possibility of knocking the doors of the Supreme Court.
The Centre has urged the leaders and the people to exercise restraint. A lot of responsibility lies on Mayawati ‘s shoulders to keep the epicentre of the emotional quake intact. She had requisitioned for additional troops, but the Centre has parted with three-fourth of the number she asked for.
The bitter memories of December 6, 1992, and the aftermath of the darkest deed in post-Independent history have remained just that, a bitter memory. It is almost two decades now. The youth of today, those who were born after 1992, have not been through the trauma of the unending dark curfew nights and terror-stricken winter mornings. The enormous time the case has dragged in the courts has left us anesthetised. Saffron leaders, who remote-controlled people’s religious sentiments for their political gains, seem to have themselves pressed the mute button. L.K. Advani, who took out the rath yatra, as purely an election strategy to whip emotions in 1990, appears weary. Sadhvi Rithambara with her hollering of “ek dhakka aur” that energised the kar sevaks to bring down the Babri Masjid to dust, is nowhere in any frame. Uma Bharti, the other key saffron anti-Babri player, is languishing in Madhya Pradesh politicking.
Let us hope people do not take seriously the few stray bytes of the Parivar. RSS strongman Mohan Bhagwat has said his team will await the court verdict, but laced his controlled demeanour with the statement, “Of course, the aspirations of the Hindu society is that there should be a temple at Ram Janmabhoomi.” Shiv Sena’s Bal Thackeray has also meowed about the right to mandir in Ayodhya.
The court decision, whatever it may be, will be nothing more than an ego issue between the leaders of the two religious communities. It has ceased to be an election plank anyway. Those born post-1992, the post-liberalisation youth, who will never feel the hurt of the 1992-93 communal bruises, have other issues to grapple with. Environment, health, education, employment and inflation are more pressing than Ram.
Even if an elaborate Ram temple does come up, how many will be willing to take Ram’s blessings in that premises, having stepped on the rubble of an erstwhile mosque and trampled over countless victims of communal hate? Do we need a temple at that cost?
Ram might prefer to be in our hearts, and not in a temple, built on death and destruction.

Yes, Prime Minister

Our Prime Minister has ruled out free lunch for people below the poverty line. Fair enough. He has taken on the Supreme Court for “straying into the executive’s domain by ordering distribution of free food grains for the poor”. But isn’t the Supreme Court the conscience-keeper of the executive and legislature? After all, in our democracy, we are at the mercy of the executive and legislature, apart from the fourth estate. Mercy, yes, we are at their mercy.
The Supreme Court had banned bandhs to help the ubiquitous common man, the aam admi, to commute, to earn his daily wage. But our political parties continue calling for such bandhs. The latest one was today to protest price rise that is seemingly hitting the common man the most. Thank you very much. They have managed to throttle the day’s earning for their aam admi. The government, against which such reckless shows are performed, has even stopped thinking about the bandh as a major pressure move aimed at coercing any reversal of decisions. And, at the end of the day, it is the daily wager who is denied of that day’s earning.
Mr Manmohan Singh has given a wonderful solution to narrow down the income imbalances in our country. He has suggested shifting to industrialisation from agriculture, citing low returns in food production. But, Mr Prime Minister, is there an alternative solution to our nation’s food security? Who will grow our food? Or are we planning to import rice and wheat in exchange for other favours we will have to dole out to the lenders.
Mr Manmohan Singh has also been very vocal about rearranging priorities. He feels the country’s poverty could not be solved by leaving the nation’s rich mineral resources, which happen to be in tribal areas, untapped. Yes, Mr Prime Minister, the country’s poverty levels will not drop. Rather, if these mineral resources are untapped, the billions in the conglomerates’ bank accounts will drop. That will be sad. India will not be able to showcase the growing number of billionaires in Forbes. So what if the country’s poverty line keeps getting altered according to statistical juggling?
But Mr Prime Minister, your party’s dashing poster boy, Rahul Gandhi, has told the tribals that he is their sipahi in Delhi, who will fight for their rights. The aam aadmi would like to know who is the party’s ‘right’ face?

'Cheques' and balances

Shall we corporatise our polity? Can our MPs then learn corporate etiquette, now that they have arm-twisted the government into handing them fatter pay cheques?
The MPs are now officially and legally a well-paid lot. The Cabinet approval of a 300 per cent hike closely followed by another hike in the already revised constituency and office allowances to Rs 25,000 will now be denting the exchequer of over Rs150 crore. Their take home, or to use a corporate jargon, CTC, includes Rs 50,000 salary, daily allowance of Rs 2,000, constituency allowance of Rs 45,000 and office allowance of Rs 45,000. However, the bungalows in Lutyens Delhi or the free air and train travel are beyond the purview of the CTC.
The second increase in the constituency allowance was when a dissatisfied Laloo Prasad Yadav and Mulayam Singh Yadav clamoured for more. And in their quest for a pay hike, they stalled the proceedings in the Lok Sabha last week. Obviously, they felt the Cabinet must have followed the House panel’s recommendation of a five-fold hike to Rs 80,001. The ruling party had to keep in mind the stubborn price rise, hitting consumers. A large, blatant pay hike would not have gone down well among voters.
But let us try to look at the sunny side. We are suddenly thinking about spiraling prices when it comes to paying our MPs. We do not think twice about throwing obscene amount of money into the Commonwealth Games. Or the innumerable official `dos’ that eat into our coffers. Or the extensive use of official vehicles, in the name of security. Or the “official” frequent flier miles they gather. These are anyway the perks that come with power.
It is nice to argue that the pay hike might encourage young talent into politics. It might streamline the process of entry into politics, irrespective of the dynamics of dynasties and godfathers.
Second, it might try and teach a lesson or two on morality and ethics to our political leaders. A full stomach will never ask for more food. There is, however, a fundamental difference between food and money. You can stuff food and fall sick, but you can never stuff wads of notes and fall sick.
Probably, we can justify this hike by involving a few corporate mechanisms. There could be an annual, foolproof performance appraisal system for MPs. Then there could be a strong, apolitical vigilance system that could rap the MPs on their knuckles whenever their long arms dip their hands into dirty money. If the government is parting with a significant amount of the tax payers’ money, it better be responsible for the accounting.

Salaam Mamata!

Mamata Banerjee dared to keep her date with Lalgarh, and how. One of the most underdeveloped parts of West Bengal, covering Midnapur, Purulia and Bankura, yesterday rallied for a face of democracy.
Mamata swept Lalgarph off its feet by simply stepping on a terrain “left” virtually untouched for very long. She spoke the language of development and peace. She did not elaborate on both. But at least she rolled her dice in one of the most dangerous gambles, both political and personal. And, she has come out unscathed. She attracted members of the People Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA), including activist, Medha Patkar, whose presence is a giant endorsement for her. The swelling crowd in the Marxist stronghold and Maoist hotbed, bitter with government apathy, was probably giving Mamata a chance.
The left is crying foul, of course. The party’s top leaders are resorting to puerile rhetoric, obviously fearing Mamata’s march into the hitherto Marxist stronghold. Calling her Trinamool Congress as Trinamool Maoist Congress, the CPM leader, Mr Sitaram Yechury, has alleged, “Mamata can go to Lalgarh without arms because Maoists are carrying the arms for her.” He said the rally would hamper the peace process in the area, and allow the Maoists to regroup. (source: The Times of India). Earlier, Prakash Karat had slammed Mamata Banerjee for her rally plans. Obviously, these meek voices of protest are natural for a party that fears losing its three-decade-old grip on Bengal soil.
The August 9 rally not only brought villagers from Punnapani, Bamal, Gohomidanga, Lakshmanpur and Jharnadange, but also from nearby towns like Haldia, Dispur, Garbeta, Ghatal, Midnapore and Tamluk. (source The Telegraph).
A neutral skeptic would easily see Mamata’s rally and rhetoric as a pre-election gimmick, and her desperate attempt to get rural Bengal divorce its Left affiliation, and fall for her hook, line and sinker. Mamata has played her political card like a shrewd poker player. She has used the Lalgarh unrest well to her political advantage to batter the already-bruised Left in Bengal.
But at the same time, Lalgarh had almost fallen off the map of Left Front’s governance. So the neglected people of Lalgarh were all the more interested in lapping up the attention of a Central government minister. They have nothing to lose anyway. Rallying behind Mamata would give them some positive mileage in the media, which has always painted them with a black brush. They have been seen as villains of peace and democracy by the home ministry and the elite holding forth drawing room discussions while tinkling champagne glasses. No wonder that the elite news media uses the derogatory expression for Maoist strongholds: they call them “Naxal-infested areas”. The media discusses them with disdain, without even caring to devote an inch of newsprint to the other side of the story where the rich are mining into the villagers’ right to livelihood, and displacing them in return.
It is high time to test the sincerity of politicians to assure the Maoists of their humane face.
Salaam Mamata! Whatever is her gameplan. At least, she has inadvertently gifted the Maoist struggle an element of credibility.

Dry ideas

The monsoons arrived in Pune on time, but somewhere lost its way. So the initial promises of wiping off the dry spell waned as June and almost the first three weeks of July were bone dry. I procrastinated the replacement of our worn-out umbrella as it would just be lying without work on our empty lobby bench or overflowing shelves.
Then the media woke up to the receding water levels in the dams near Pune. And the municipal corporation, too, announced severe water cuts fearing scarcity of the precious liquid. The media began running stories on ways to save water now. The usage of the word, now, bothered me. Why now? Why not always? Predictably, citizens rose to the occasion, saying they used clothes-rinsed water to clean their bathrooms and vegetable-washed water to water their garden etc etc “now” that the water levels have hit bottom markings in the catchment.
The day after the papers carried these fancy save-water campaigns, with elements of citizen activism thrown in, down came the rain and washed these campaigns out. The corporation then decided against water cuts as dams were getting filled up. The stories on saving water dried up, too.
Why is it that we wait for a crisis to react and act? Water is most easily available to us, and most easily misused. And the media, too, projects any save-water campaign only with reference to its crisis during that period, convincing its readers that water had to be used carefully only in times of a shortfall.
I remember, when there was a petrol supply strike in Chennai, the newspapers were full of stories on how to save petrol. There were generous inputs from residents on how they saved the pricy and precious liquid in times of that crisis. People heaved a sigh of relief that they did not “have to drive” and could spare themselves the “horror” of manoeuvring the traffic. They all claimed they loved taking the public transport system, including the MRTS trains. They said the air they inhaled was better as more and more people relied on walking or cycling to their nearest grocery store or vegetable vendor, ignoring their long-time partner-in-crime, their gas-gurgling four-wheelers. The media romanticized the spirit of the people and how they handled the crisis.
Water or petrol, we have limited resources of both. The person using petrol has the added guilt of leaving behind carbon footprints. Is it not the responsibility of the media to not restrict themselves to select occasions, but familiarize the reader regularly with the need to save water and petrol? Now that the rains have lashed Pune, and water is back in the dams, will those responsible citizens who used clothes-rinsed water for bathrooms, and vegetable-washed water for the gardens continue to do so? Or will they keep their taps on while scrubbing their utensils, which is unnecessary anyway as we need water only for rinsing them.
We are approaching the time when wars might be fought over water. It is better we save that for those rainy days.