Muharram: The Faith and the Following

It is Muharram today. The day of remembrance for the Muslims of the world. On this day Muhammad Paigambar and his whole family was killed by his enemies. They died martyrs' death. And, in death as well, hey did not deviate from their beliefs.

This may be a great sacrifice for Muhammed Sahib and his family. The Paigambar was trying to set up a civil society in what might have been a chaotic community. One would like to believe that what He called caphir is not the believer of another faith, but the non-believer, in His commands towards a civil society.

However, what is astonishing is, besides Hinduism, most of the other religions demonstarte their heroes as martyrs! The Hindu Gods and deities have always won wars against the evil. The gods won against the demons in Dev-Asur Sangram, even if they needed help from the Gods (Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh). Ram killed Ravan, and Krishna helped decimation of Kauravas. Narsinh Avatar also killed the Hiranyakahyap, and the Varah avatar salvaged the earth from the deep sea.

It has always been the proverbial victory of good over bad. Not so in the Islam or even in the Christianity. While we see the Paigambar sahib facing all sorts of trouble and pain and fnally being killed, Jesus also is hanged. He resurrects not to defeat the evils but to tell the world He was the Son of God.

Is it not strange that these faiths do not highlight the victory of good over bad but only pain in the oath of good, and God? It is rather shocking. Some mythological error at some time in History?

Hope anyone reading this post has an answer.

Bihar Election Results: The Directives and the Fallouts

All the hungama of electioneering in Bihar has now come to rest. The next in line is the hungama of victory and comments and counter comments on the results.

Meanwhile, many exit polls have given their estimates what many observers, from common man to political pundits, have been saying. The results are for the ruling alliance. Exit polls show that the margin between the victorious and the vanquished is too great. The results are likely to be one-sided.

If this is so, it is going to hit the Laloo-Paswan duo very hard. It is nearly the last chance for them. For, in the next four years they are not gong to face any elections and therefore shall have no job at all till then. They need crucial oxygen to survive which they are likely to loose.

The results will also set the records right. The development will be the agenda of India in the coming years, and elections. A state, construed and painted all over as the most caste ridden in India will have walked away, loud and clear, from caste politics. It will also deny the success of Dr. Goebbels's theory. Despite Laloo and Paswan harking themselves hoarse from top of heir roof, that Nitish raj was bad, was inefficient and corrupt, people believed their own eyes. Caste and religion shall no longer sway them.

There is a message for the powers that be in Bihar also. Nitish seemed to have no confidence on his development agenda and apparently had enough faith on caste ridden Bihar society. That is why he hesitated t meet Narendra Modi in Bihar. He tried to build an image of a secularist by not having met Modi. Narendra Modi, on the other hand, is the trusted and recognised icon of development in modern India.

Nitish should now concentrate more on work without considering what is the image of whom. Within a few days he himself will prove that work speaks not the symbols.

The Ayodhya Decision

Yesterday, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court gave its decision on the ill-famous Ayodhya case. It was a long drawn case, and certainly no judge would expect a case like this in his or her career. The whole country was tense yesterday, but did any one ever tried to know what was going on in the heads and hearts of the three judges? Their decision was likely to cause hell. It did not. And that probably was the greatest relief to all.
I was coming home from my College at around 4.30 pm and I was shocked. I have been witness to assassinations of both Indira and Rajiv Gandhi. I have been witness to many communal riots during my student life in Bihar. Even curfews were imposed. But yesterday it was different. It was self proclaimed curfew by the people. The railway station, the bus stand and the roads were deserted. Shops were closed. And on roads were only those who could not reach home. All the faces were tense.
I have heard the cliched term : Tense but under control. Yesterday, there was no tension, only fear, and the fear of unknown. Chhattisgarh is a peaceful state, much more peaceful than Bihar. Still there was fear. What might be going on in Bihar or UP?
And who created the fear? All those who have earned bread from the Ayodhya dispute. The central government first came up with the public appeal, "to maintain peace and not to be swayed by rumours". Neither there were rumours nor rumour mongers. Then there were the parties to, and beneficiaries of, the dispute who claimed they would accept the verdict. I remembered a film dialogue in which the Captain of a crashing aircraft shouts "Don't panic! Don't panic!" And a passenger assures him that there was no crash on sight and that he was creating panic!
The best thing that happened was, at least a decision was taken, howsoever that may or may not please someone. And that is natural. In any litigation, ultimately one party shall remain aggrieved. As they say, even God cannot please everyone. The other good thing was that no unwanted reaction was reported from any part of the country.
Probably it proves many thing. The country has come a long way from the days where a riot could be instigated on a, literally, drop of a hat. Second, people have come to realise that the litigation was between some litigants and not a war between two communities. And above all, and may be I am wrong, common today realises that a tample or a mosque can not earn him or her a bread. There are far more important engagements than fighting for a religious place.
At this juncture I recall a couplet by an unknown poet from Sagar (Madhya Pradesh) quoted by Bashir Badr. "bachcha bola dekh ke, masjid alishan; Allah! tere ek ko itna bara makan?" And in this litighation, see who was the litigant 'Ramlala virajman'himself!
I had sent an sms to many of my friends yesterday: "Puri quaynat jiski hai, ye brhmand jiska hai, wo plot aur makan ke jhagde me uljhega? Ye ladai kisi aur ki hai." (HE who owns the whole universe, will indulge in litigations involving a housing plot or a house? This is the fight of other people."

What Sibbal Is Upto?

Indian education system, both at the school level as well at higher levels, has always been controlled, rather than guided by, bureaucrats and politicians, both at times pretending as scholar-intellectuals. Time and again new experiments are taken up, with results never verified.
Mr. Kapil Sibbal is the Terminator Part-n. He is hell bent to make Indian education what it should never be - making teddy bears out if kids; keeping them always in suicide queue as and when they face a failure in their life for the first time, may be aroun age 24!?
It is understood that the word Graduation originated from the word Grading. Thus the word Graduation implies that it is a method of grading the people in a given society on the basis of their knowledge, intellect and skill by some capable institutions or authority. Examinations are only a method for graduation.
What Mr. Sibbal wishes to do is that all the methods of grading be either fully removed or so diluted as to be practically redundant. Is it not amazing that all the organisations take their own exams/tests to select skilled people, no one relies the ability of a University or a board in graduating the people.
First Mr. Sibbal commanded - No exams at schools, and even if exams are there, no marking and percentage shown in results, then no homework no projects, no beating and scolding.
I very well remember beaten by my teachers even when the whole class made a mistake. I used to be annoyed from him. But today I have great regard for them, because whatever I am today, I am due to their wooden rods and sticks. Not that I think beating is compulsory, but it should neither be a crime.
If you are not taking exams you and the child both do not know what the child is ignorant of. If he or she is just being promoted to a next higher class, he or she never feels like learning.
Giving grade in schools is equally confusing. Two children, who could be more than 10 stages apart in percent-based marking system, might just be only 2 grades apart! The loosers feel happy but what about winners? Should we design our Education system with the loosers in mind or with the winners in mind?
Recently Barrack Obama acknowledged that Indian and Chinese students are smarter than the Americans.Sometime ago a similar statement was given by George Bush. The reason to this new found mental bankruptcy is the outcome simply of their experimenting. They had started with grade system in their schools much earlier. Now they are paying the price. We should have learnt not to follow them much earlier.

The Hypocrisy of Our Politicians

Todays newspapers at Raipur screamed in their headlines about a bar-feud that involved a local Shiv Sena leader. This leader, Dhanajay Parihar, is basically, and more of, a criminal. He was behind bars in a murder case, though acquitted lately. These days he is busy capturing the cable business at Raipur and uses his goons for the purpose.
He has started a restraunt on the outskirts, and is known for its pub, bar dance (in the name of DJ) and flesh trade as the media reported.
Saturday night's story was a little different. Some engineering college students were in the restraunt to celebrate a birthday party. They had their stint at the pub and were now at the (so called) DJ where allegedly they tried advantage towards the bar girls. A feud started and soon Parihar with others reached there and the students were thoroughly treated.
Unfortunately for Parihar, one of the students happened to be the son of Mr. Prabhat Jha, an MP from Madhya Pradesh and also the state head of the MP BJP unit. The son promptly reported his powerful father and the action was taken at Raipur. The police amazingly reached the site even as the action was on. Parihar with his henchmen was arrested and th Court sent him to 14 days' Judicial Remand.
But the real story is not this. The story dates nearly a year back. Vijay Mallaya, the liquor baron of India sent a bottle of wine to each of his MP colleagues, to celebrate New Year. Prabhat Jha was one of the recipients who not only refused the gift from Mallya, but also admonished him for the overture, that did not conform to his Indian culture, Indian ethos and Values.
Did Mr. Jha even once asked his worthy son even once, what was he doing in a pub and a dance bar at nearly mid-night? Did this behviour conform to his Indian ethos, culture and values? Or was the previous overture of Mr. Jha was intended to merely hog the media Headlines.

The Khaps and the Gotra Syatem of Marriage.

Have you heard of Khaps? You must have, by now if you are in India. Primarily they are social institutions linked to castes. They are supposed to be the highest bodies to decide on matters concerned with that particular caste. In older times, they had much relevance because then the castes were important. In fact all social institutions were relevant then. India was primarily an agrarian society.

With the changing times, all social institutions are loosing relevance. The society is changing the economic activities of the people. More and more people are going for jobs. At least the urban population has acquired a service class character. Many typically caste oriented compulsions and rules are being ignored. Untouchability is one of them. So is the inter-caste marriage.

However, the Khaps are in the news a different issue. It relates to Gotra identity. Gotras are the lineage of a person. Here in India, it matters in marriages. A person is supposed not to marry in one's own gotra, as it tantamounts to incest.

Even as khaps have themselves been defamed and so has the gotra system, traditionally the mediators in marriages have ensured, and it used to be a matter of special attention, that lineage on both father's side (in fact grand mothers' and their mothers' side) and mother's side were not common, at least upto 5-7 earlier generations.

In that sense, the khaps are not wrong. Their demand of prohibiting marriages within a gotra by law is not baseless or useless. It should neither be seen as old fashioned or retrograde step. It saves the Hindu society of many endogamous diseases. Government should oblige by adding this provision in Hindu Personal Law.

However, what goes against Khaps is their method. They should not act as whimsical 16th century social bodies. They are ordering murder, and openly. They have ordered a couple to live as brother and sister. The couple has grown up children! The khaps must act judiciously. They should not traumatise a family after so many years.

They could have put up their case in a sensible manner and there was no reason why they would not be heard, and hailed.

Whither Parliamentry Ettiqutte in India

We had, till recently, the tweeting Shashi Tharoor, the intellectual. Now we have Jairam Ramesh, self-styled intellectual. The two have one thing in common. They never think twice before they speak. And every time they fell, or continue to fall, in trouble. They both are part of the parliamentary system in Indian governance. (Let us assume that Shashi Tharoor is still, though he has been removed, in the Cabinet)
Shashi Tharoor once tweeted that Indian democracy lacks tolerance to free views and opinion. He forgot, or rather pretended to forget, that like the Great(?) Britain, India also has Parliamentary form of government where there happens to be a Cabinet. This Cabinet, in Constitutional parlance is a Unitary Executive, as against the Plural Executive of Switzerland.
This is not the place to discuss the differences between the two, but in nutshell, the Cabinet is one single UNIT, and acts as such. In effect, the decisions of a Cabinet are supposed to be taken by voice vote, and no minister is supposed to disagree with a Cabinet decision.
Tharoor grossly failed to appreciate this basic concept and it is unfathomable that he did not know this.
Ramesh did a Tharoor in China by casting aspersion on his colleague P. Chidambaram. That also on a foreign affair matter. Even in the US, where the executive committee is not exactly like a cabinet, this type of public differences is not seen in good light.
Long ago, even Arjun Singh had claimed disagreement with a cabinet's decision he was part of. And he was criticised even by his political opponents who could easily benefit by this disagreement.
Indian politicians should take a lesson or two on their form of government. One, particularly those of political ilk, must keep in mind that the democratic right to free expression is not available to members of the armed forces and those of the ruling elite. Ignorance on this front may be detrimental to the nation at large.

Happy Earth Day! How did it all begin, why you must take charge.. « Green Blog : Take Care Take Charge

Happy Earth Day! How did it all begin, why you must take charge.. « Green Blog : Take Care Take Charge

Is really there anything to be happy about this Earth Day, or for that matter any Earth Day? It is one of the many similar moron, formal days that come and go with some seminars being organised and write-ups published in the media.
It is much hyped concern by a handful of activists. Not that the threat is not real. The hype is unrealistic. How many literate persons think in their daily routine that they are damaging the environment? Ask, and they will pour down data. But the bahaviour and habits are unchanged. The threat is unreal to them.
The activists must come to the people not with scientific data and jargon like carbon foot print, green house gases, temperature of earth rising by 0.5 degree, they are blah blah to common man. Just tell them what it implies, how they are already affected, why there is food scarcity, why the prices are soaring. And they will understand, they will behave, they will contribute.

Tackling the Naxal menace

Here, in Chhattisgarh, we are aface to heightened Naxal menace. We recently lost more than 75 security personnel in a Naxal trap. It was shocking but not at all unexpected.
Without any disrespect to the loss of life by soldiers who did not belong to this area (may be a strong reply to those who keep raising the talk of outsiders in Chhattisgarh), one must admit that the tragedy was long slated to happen.
Reports have been saying that the local deployment of CRPF was a reluctant player in the naxal field. Their units avoided venturing in the field deep enough and kept close to their camps. They were never proactive. The local police, on the other hand, is ill-equipped to handle the situation.
What makes a bad scenario worse is the lack of coordination among the forces. This has been a problem in India on all occasions. Whenever there is a multiplicity of forces to tackle a problem, one-up-manship starts. Various forces don't share their intelligence reports, hardly coordinate on expeditions, seldom rely on each other, and nearly invariably fail.
Chhattisgarh presently has CRPF, BSF and the ITBP besides its own police force to fight with the naxals. In this multiplicity, the lack of coordination looms large among them. And, the tragedies like Chitalnad are more probable.
The opinion that comes out then is that the situation should be handed over to the Army. It may be pointed out that the Indian Constitution does not rule out a martial law. So, the Government of India should declare martial law in areas like the borders of Chhattisgarh-Andhra Pradesh-Maharashtra-Orissa, Jharkhand-Chhattisgarh-West Bengal, Bihar-Jharkhand and such areas and should be handed over to the army for action.
People may object that it may be undemocratic, that it may violate human rights etc. Let it be so. The people we wish to eliminate are not humans. They have waged a war on the State of India. We need special powers, and efforts, to fight it and to fight it out.

Remembering Bhagat Singh

It has been a huge huge gap of time since I last posted. There were engagements and some lethargy. Hopefully, it will be regular, again. And, what a date to resume. Today is 23rd of March, the date on which Bhagat Singh with two of his allies Sukhdev and Rajguru was hanged by the British at the tender age of 23 years.

Bhagat Singh is considered the revolutionary by the people in general as well as the intellectuals and scholars. Was he? Was he only a revolutionary of India's struggle for freedom? Probably not. Probably definitely not.

Bhagat Singh was a visionary. He was only 23 when he was hanged. Still he was not immature. Neither mentally, nor ideologically. He definitely was a freedom fighter. But, for him freedom of the nation was only a means rather than a goal. Most of the political leaders of the time, including even Gandhiji, of the Indian National Congress did not visualise India after independence. Jawahar Lal Nehru was one leader who, only later, came to terms in this regard.

Bhagat Singh was miles ahead of his contemporaries in his thoughts and vision. He did fight for India's freedom. But has he been labelled a revolutionary only because he was associated with Hindustan Repulican Army which he renamed Hindustan Socialist Repulican Army? He never wielde gun to kill any British (this does not mean the likes of Chandrashekhar Azad were killers) and even if he exploded bombs it had a design.

Bhagat Singh was more of a philosopher than a freedom fighter, a revolutionary. I bow before his greatness and remember him in great spirit on this day.