Times Of India
Thursday October 15, 2009
Tarun Vijay
Rajneesh was a small trader from Jammu often going on business trips to Srinagar. He fell in love with a girl and married her.
He wanted to be faithful to his beloved from Srinagar, who was beautiful and had unflinching trust in her life partner. It’s difficult, if not impossible, to have love bloom between Jammu and Srinagar. But it was more than that. The boy from Jammu was a Hindu and the girl from Srinagar, a Muslim. Ameena was her name and she changed her name to Anchal Sharma after marriage.
A month after the marriage the boy was picked up from his Jammu house by the Kashmir police and taken to Srinagar for "investigation". The police never registered his name, Rajneesh Sharma, as the accused who is being taken to Srinagar, but instead named his brother Pawan Sharma in police records, to confuse and hide the real identity.
The smell of a plot was there the moment they took the boy hustled in a jeep and covered with a blanket.
The boy never returned home to celebrate his first Diwali with Anchal nee Ameena.
He was found dead hanging with an iron grill in his Srinagar cell. Police said he committed "suicide". An inconsolable Anchal alleged that her parents bribed police to murder her beloved because he dared to marry a Muslim girl from the valley. Anchal’s father works in Srinagar’s police department, hence the influence was obvious.
This week Anchal would have been celebrating Diwali with her husband Rajneesh but for if this ultimate Taliban act. Surprisingly the incident, so brutal and tragic hasn’t found an echo in the elite human-rightist circles of Delhi and the self-righteous media which had taken up the Rizwan case of Kolkata at a greater war footing than it has shown regarding Chinese incursions.
Rajneesh's "murder" in a police post in Srinagar wouldn’t have occurred if Rajneesh was a "Rizwan" and the girl had remained an Ameena.
The writerati, who declare love’s supremacy whenever the boy is someone else and the girl is a Hindu (the final test one has to pass to be declared secular in this land of self-flagellation) are maintaining a studied silence. None has spoken so far. None has tried to invoke the wrath of the Women’s Commission, none has bothered to take a delegation of women to Jammu in the name of secularism and its prophets. And none has found it a deserving case for a heated debate on the sparkling channels discussing who should win — love or the colour of your faith?
Why?
Because the girl was a Muslim turned Hindu and the boy, unfortunately happened to be Hindu. Because the culprit in this case is Srinagar, the reservoir of all that is sacred in secular pantheon and the boy belongs to the Hindu Jammu and hence anything that would demand a condemnation of the Taliban in Srinagar must be held back and forgotten?
The girl, Anchal nee Ameena, said sobbingly in Jammu that the Srinagar police tortured her husband just for his crime of marrying a Muslim girl. The mother of the girl knew about the affair but insisted the boy convert to Islam, which Rajneesh refused. Anchal says Rajneesh was tortured in the police custody putting pressure on him to convert and when he refused consistently, he was murdered. The Jammu papers have reported quoting the postmortem report that police tortured the boy in custody, broke his legs, crushed his knee, gave him electric shocks and peeled his nails before declaring his "suicide". In cold blood.
In Srinagar. In a police post. He was married on August 21, "picked up" without an arrest warrant on September 29 and was found dead in police custody on October 4. Though a magisterial inquiry was ordered, no FIR was lodged till yesterday, that is, October 14, when a chief judicial magistrate in Jammu ordered an inquiry against 11 accused persons in Srinagar.
The Buddhists of Ladakh and the Hindus of Jammu have been complaining for long that Srinagar has become an alien land for them. It discriminates against them on the basis of religion. The Amarnath Shrine agitation is a recent pointer to what Srinagar does to its minorities. The forced exile of half a million Hindus from the valley is another example of the attitude that the only Muslim-majority state of India has exhibited towards non-Muslims. For a detailed factsheet regarding Srinagar’s blatant communal bias against Jammu, please see my column.
A couple of years before, the Buddhist Association of Ladakh gave a memorandum to the central government. A part of it said:
1. During 1992-99, 24 Buddhist girls from Leh district were converted to Islam and a majority of them were taken to Kargil and Srinagar.
2. Twelve villages with hamlets of Buddhists, comprising 651 families (numbering approximately 5,000) located at 40km to 60km from Kargil town were targeted for conversions. Till 2002, 72 boys and girls were converted to Islam, according to the survey conducted by the Ladakh Buddhist Association.
3. Muslims of Kargil are not allowing the LBA to repair and reconstruct a 40-year-old Gompa comprising three rooms and lying in a shambles.
4. Cremation of dead Buddhists is not allowed at Kargil and the body has to be moved at a remote Buddhist area.
5. No Buddhist sarai is allowed to be constructed at Kargil though there has been a demand for the last 35 years.
6. Kargil has 20% Buddhist population. Yet (a) only one Buddhist was appointed patwari out of 24 patwaris, the rest were all Muslims. (b) In 1998, 40 employees for Class IV were appointed in the education department; out of these only one was Buddhist, that too after his conversion to Islam.
Similar complaints, with proven statistics were given regarding discrimination against Buddhists in the area of Kashmir Administrative Services (KAS), admission to medical and engineering colleges and allocation of development funds received from the central government.
That’s Srinagar.
So who is going to help Anchal? She seems to be a courageous beloved of her "slain" husband and has been facing media crews with grit. She has refused an ex gratia grant by the state government and has demanded a CBI inquiry. The state leaders, who made a beeline to Shopian, have not bothered to say even a word of sympathy, leave aside visiting her.
Her only "crime": she loved Rajneesh.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
Let Indians become genuine Indians
By Dr Jay Dubashi
When you imitate the West, as we have been doing for the last two hundred years ever since they conquered us, you first start imitating their dress. This is how one culture drives the other culture out.
Unlike Gandhiji, Nehru had a complex about Britishers and he simply had to dress like them. Neither Gandhiji nor Lokmanya Tilak dressed like Englishmen. They were genuine Indians and Tilak was a genuine Hindu. It is because of this complex that Nehru made a mess of everything he touched—Kashmir, China and relations with the West—and annoyed everyone without making a single friend.
We Indians are a simple people. We dress simply—just a dhoti and a kurta or a kurta-pajama will do for most of us men; sometimes, particularly in the South, just a dhoti will do, with nothing over it, as I found to my great surprise when I called on a famous writer in Bangalore. We live simply too, often in a house with little or no furniture. I am talking about the average Indian, not those who live in five-star hotels at taxpayers’ expense. Then, of course, there are no limits to what you spend, or somebody else pays for you.
I went out recently to buy a dhoti for me, a simple hand-spun dhoti, such as Gandhiji used to wear. I could not find one. I walked through dozens of lanes in the crowded alleys of Pune—but no dhoti. They could give me fine-spun three-piece polyester suiting, the kind Dhirubhai Ambani used to wear, but no dhotis. And this in Pune, where until recently elderly people used to go about with the headgear known as pugdi, which Lokmanya Tilak used to wear, and so did his arch-rival, Gopal Krishna Gokhale. About sixty years ago, when I was a student in Pune, I used to see many people wearing pugdi, especially the Poona pugdi, and even I purchased one for my grandfather, who, for some reason, refused to wear it—I never could understand why.
Now, there are no pugdis in Poona and no dhotis either. The only people who wear dhotis are fruit-sellers in bazaars and priests in temples. I often go to temples in the evenings and listen to priests singing kirtans. If reminds me of my younger days when, as a child, I used to accompany my grandmother to temples. The Poona temples are still very crowded and the priests, handsome in their silken finery, regularly sing their kirtans, but the younger generation has taken to shirts and trousers, many of them imported, and they wouldn’t know a pagdi, if they saw one.
When you imitate the West, as we have been doing for the last two hundred years ever since they conquered us, you first start imitating their dress. This is how one culture drives the other culture out. After all, you ask, what is the harm wearing a shirt, and maybe a tie, instead of a kurta? Why not wear a pair of shoes instead of a pair of chappals? If you are wearing a shirt, why not a necktie to go with it? And so on and on, until you find you have gone totally Western, not only in your dress but also in your thinking. You not only dress like them, you also think like them. And ultimately you succumb as completely that you become a caricature of the Western man, as Pandit Nehru became and almost destroyed himself and the country.
Nehru’s grandfather was a kotwal of Delhi and worked for the last remnants of the Delhi Sultanate. Go and see his picture in an old Nehru book. He is dressed just like a moulvi from Lucknow, complete with churidar pajama and Fez cap. He also looks as a Muslim, which probably his forefathers, who came from Kashmir, were. I am quite sure he and his family spoke Urdu at home, just as today’s babus speak English at home. Their food was probably no different from those of the Muslim rulers. For all practical purposes, they were Muslims, and Nehru himself once said that he was born a Hindu by accident. Nehru was an accidental Hindu, just as his grandchildren and other brood are accidental Britishers. Nehru had also said that he was the last Englishman in India, just as his grandfather, a minor functionary of the fading Moghuls, would no doubt describe himself as the last Moghul in India.
It is this cultural dislocation that is responsible for most of our troubles today. Though most of us know who we are, our leaders, particularly the Nehru types, do not. These are men who have nothing of their own, neither dress nor culture, nor even food, who imitate those who rule over them, and who follow slavishly one conqueror after another, who are neither Indians, nor Muslims nor Westerners, but a horrible mixture, a hybrid lot with nothing genuine about them.
Whatever you might say about Gandhiji—and I am not one of his great admirers—he was, with all his faults, a genuine person. Like all great leaders, he was simplicity personified. Gandhiji had simple tastes and his meals were simple—often raw vegetables and fruits, and goat’s milk to go with it. His dress was the simplest anybody could think of—the dress of an Indian farmer. The only costly thing he used to have was his watch, which must have cost a few rupees. Even when he visited London, the imperial capital, and saw the British King in his Buckingham Palace, he wore the same clothes as he did back home in Wardha, and he washed and pressed them himself, just as Abraham Lincoln, another genuine person, shined his own shoes and peeled his own potatoes.
Nehru was entirely different, not at all a genuine person. When I first saw him in London in 1948, a year after Independence, he looked so funny in his suit and tie, I failed to recognise the great leader we were used to. Krishna Menon was our High Commissioner in London then, so he had asked some of us to receive Nehru at the embassy, as he himself was unable to come down to receive him. Nehru arrived in a Rolls-Royce—an embassy-owned car which we used to ferry special guests like Nehru around town—and had to walk a few paces as the car was parked a few yards away from the entrance. Nehru looked like Charlie Chaplin—but for his polished shoes and his hat. It was the first time many of us were seeing Nehru in that kind of dress—and I doubt whether he would have had the guts to appear before Gandhiji in that ugly dress.
Unlike Gandhiji, Nehru had a complex about Britishers and he simply had to dress like them. Neither Gandhiji nor Lokmanya Tilak dressed like Englishmen. They were genuine Indians and Tilak was a genuine Hindu. It is because of this complex that Nehru made a mess of everything he touched—Kashmir, China and relations with the West—and annoyed everyone without making a single friend. Unless Indians become genuine Indians, not always imitating the West as they do, will India demand and receive the world’s respect, which it deserves
When you imitate the West, as we have been doing for the last two hundred years ever since they conquered us, you first start imitating their dress. This is how one culture drives the other culture out.
Unlike Gandhiji, Nehru had a complex about Britishers and he simply had to dress like them. Neither Gandhiji nor Lokmanya Tilak dressed like Englishmen. They were genuine Indians and Tilak was a genuine Hindu. It is because of this complex that Nehru made a mess of everything he touched—Kashmir, China and relations with the West—and annoyed everyone without making a single friend.
We Indians are a simple people. We dress simply—just a dhoti and a kurta or a kurta-pajama will do for most of us men; sometimes, particularly in the South, just a dhoti will do, with nothing over it, as I found to my great surprise when I called on a famous writer in Bangalore. We live simply too, often in a house with little or no furniture. I am talking about the average Indian, not those who live in five-star hotels at taxpayers’ expense. Then, of course, there are no limits to what you spend, or somebody else pays for you.
I went out recently to buy a dhoti for me, a simple hand-spun dhoti, such as Gandhiji used to wear. I could not find one. I walked through dozens of lanes in the crowded alleys of Pune—but no dhoti. They could give me fine-spun three-piece polyester suiting, the kind Dhirubhai Ambani used to wear, but no dhotis. And this in Pune, where until recently elderly people used to go about with the headgear known as pugdi, which Lokmanya Tilak used to wear, and so did his arch-rival, Gopal Krishna Gokhale. About sixty years ago, when I was a student in Pune, I used to see many people wearing pugdi, especially the Poona pugdi, and even I purchased one for my grandfather, who, for some reason, refused to wear it—I never could understand why.
Now, there are no pugdis in Poona and no dhotis either. The only people who wear dhotis are fruit-sellers in bazaars and priests in temples. I often go to temples in the evenings and listen to priests singing kirtans. If reminds me of my younger days when, as a child, I used to accompany my grandmother to temples. The Poona temples are still very crowded and the priests, handsome in their silken finery, regularly sing their kirtans, but the younger generation has taken to shirts and trousers, many of them imported, and they wouldn’t know a pagdi, if they saw one.
When you imitate the West, as we have been doing for the last two hundred years ever since they conquered us, you first start imitating their dress. This is how one culture drives the other culture out. After all, you ask, what is the harm wearing a shirt, and maybe a tie, instead of a kurta? Why not wear a pair of shoes instead of a pair of chappals? If you are wearing a shirt, why not a necktie to go with it? And so on and on, until you find you have gone totally Western, not only in your dress but also in your thinking. You not only dress like them, you also think like them. And ultimately you succumb as completely that you become a caricature of the Western man, as Pandit Nehru became and almost destroyed himself and the country.
Nehru’s grandfather was a kotwal of Delhi and worked for the last remnants of the Delhi Sultanate. Go and see his picture in an old Nehru book. He is dressed just like a moulvi from Lucknow, complete with churidar pajama and Fez cap. He also looks as a Muslim, which probably his forefathers, who came from Kashmir, were. I am quite sure he and his family spoke Urdu at home, just as today’s babus speak English at home. Their food was probably no different from those of the Muslim rulers. For all practical purposes, they were Muslims, and Nehru himself once said that he was born a Hindu by accident. Nehru was an accidental Hindu, just as his grandchildren and other brood are accidental Britishers. Nehru had also said that he was the last Englishman in India, just as his grandfather, a minor functionary of the fading Moghuls, would no doubt describe himself as the last Moghul in India.
It is this cultural dislocation that is responsible for most of our troubles today. Though most of us know who we are, our leaders, particularly the Nehru types, do not. These are men who have nothing of their own, neither dress nor culture, nor even food, who imitate those who rule over them, and who follow slavishly one conqueror after another, who are neither Indians, nor Muslims nor Westerners, but a horrible mixture, a hybrid lot with nothing genuine about them.
Whatever you might say about Gandhiji—and I am not one of his great admirers—he was, with all his faults, a genuine person. Like all great leaders, he was simplicity personified. Gandhiji had simple tastes and his meals were simple—often raw vegetables and fruits, and goat’s milk to go with it. His dress was the simplest anybody could think of—the dress of an Indian farmer. The only costly thing he used to have was his watch, which must have cost a few rupees. Even when he visited London, the imperial capital, and saw the British King in his Buckingham Palace, he wore the same clothes as he did back home in Wardha, and he washed and pressed them himself, just as Abraham Lincoln, another genuine person, shined his own shoes and peeled his own potatoes.
Nehru was entirely different, not at all a genuine person. When I first saw him in London in 1948, a year after Independence, he looked so funny in his suit and tie, I failed to recognise the great leader we were used to. Krishna Menon was our High Commissioner in London then, so he had asked some of us to receive Nehru at the embassy, as he himself was unable to come down to receive him. Nehru arrived in a Rolls-Royce—an embassy-owned car which we used to ferry special guests like Nehru around town—and had to walk a few paces as the car was parked a few yards away from the entrance. Nehru looked like Charlie Chaplin—but for his polished shoes and his hat. It was the first time many of us were seeing Nehru in that kind of dress—and I doubt whether he would have had the guts to appear before Gandhiji in that ugly dress.
Unlike Gandhiji, Nehru had a complex about Britishers and he simply had to dress like them. Neither Gandhiji nor Lokmanya Tilak dressed like Englishmen. They were genuine Indians and Tilak was a genuine Hindu. It is because of this complex that Nehru made a mess of everything he touched—Kashmir, China and relations with the West—and annoyed everyone without making a single friend. Unless Indians become genuine Indians, not always imitating the West as they do, will India demand and receive the world’s respect, which it deserves
President Obama, an appraisal
By OP Gupta IFS (Retd)
So far as India is concerned Obama has continued to behave as a non-proliferation Ayatollah neglecting outstanding self-imposed restraints and non-proliferation roles of all Indian Governments.
The unemployment rate in US is running high and is expected to keep rising to 10 per cent by 2010. This coupled with continued returning of body bags from Iraq and Afghanistan has adversely affected popularity of Obama in opinion polls.
In article ‘Obama makes a welcome History’ in the Organiser of November 16, 2008 this writer had opined that Democratic US Presidents had in general been less friendly to India than Republican Presidents; and, only time would tell whether Barack Hussein Obama would be able to reverse this trend. Actions taken by Obama so far show that he has continued with the democratic trend of tilting against India though we Indians remain warm hearted towards USA.
So far as India is concerned Obama has continued to behave as a non-proliferation Ayatollah neglecting outstanding self imposed restraints and non-proliferation roles of all Indian Governments.
The G-8 nations at their July 10, 2009 meeting held at L’Aquila, Italy adopted a resolution welcoming (vide Para 8) the progress that continues to be made by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on mechanisms to strengthen controls on transfer of enrichment and reprocessing items and technologies to Non-NPT countries. NPT means Non Proliferation treaty. India is a non-NPT country. No doubt, India was given exemption by NSG but whether this exemption will be applicable to subsequent NSG procedures remains a debatable point.
At its 6191st Meeting held on September 24, 2009 at New York presided over by US President Obama and attended by 14 other Presidents/PMs the Security Council vide Resolution 1887(2009) unanimously decided to end nuclear weapons proliferation and ensure reductions in existing weapons stockpiles as well as control on production of fissile materials for explosion. Para 4 reads: “Calls upon all States that are not parties to NPT to accede to the Treaty as non-nuclear weapon States” Para 7 of this resolution reads: “calls upon states to refrain from conducting a nuclear test explosion and to sign and ratify CTBT.” Para 8 reads: “calls upon the Conference on Disarmament to negotiate a Treaty banning production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.” Among others this SC meeting was attended by Presidents of China, France and Russia and British PM. So pressures on India to sign NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state and sign CTBT (Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty) and FMCT (Fissile Material Control Treaty) are going to build up courtesy our ‘strategic partner’ USA. These multilateral irritants in bilateral Indo-US relations have been created by the Obama Administration. India has been called upon to join NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state.
India does not find place in the inner financial core of the G-8.
Addressing the Indian-American community in early 2008 Obama had said: “I believe that India is a natural partner for America in the 21st century and that the US should be working with India on a range of critical issues from preventing terrorism to promoting peace and stability in Asia... And that is why I will move forward to build a close strategic partnership between the US and India when I am President of the United States.” Well Obama is seen lacking on his these promises.
Here it is pertinent to recall that Obama has strong views on non-proliferation, which was evidenced by two killer amendments he had moved in the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee while approving the infamous Hyde Act. In this Committee he had suggested (Senate Amendment 5169) that supply of nuclear fuel to India should be actual need based of an imported nuclear reactor (Section 103(b) (10) of the Hyde Act) so that India is not able to create its strategic reserves from imported fuel. Obama also suggested ensuring that US should not facilitate nuclear exports by other countries to India if such US exports were terminated. This second Obama amendment is reflected in Section 102(13) of the Hyde Act.
The unemployment rate in US is running high and is expected to keep rising to 10 per cent by 2010. This coupled with continued returning of body bags from Iraq and Afghanistan has adversely affected popularity of Obama in opinion polls.
In his Cairo speech (June 4, 2009) Obama very correctly said that America is not and will never be at war with Islam but will relentlessly confront violent extremists extensively. We did not go (to Afghanistan) by choice; we went because of necessity.
His Pak-Afghan policy has got stalemated with fears of Afghanistan turning into another Vietnam with scenario of exit in disgrace. Re-take of Afghanistan by Taliban secretly supported by Pakistan will weaken India in that part of the world. Pakistan is playing double game with US in war against terror. Obama has followed a wrong policy in Afghanistan which has potential to escalate violence in India sooner than later in case inglorious exit of US and NATO from Afghanistan materialised. Thereafter Taliban and jihadis would be free to deploy all their resources and focus on kafir India. Therefore, it is in long term interest of India to see that USA and NATO are not militarily defeated in Afghanistan. A section of Pakistan establishment wants defeat and exit of US from Afghanistan. Pakistan will not be interested in quick defeat of Al Qaeda as its defeat would dry up flow of US dollars. On Afghanistan, therefore, Obama and India must think out of box solutions.
Obama should not fall in well laid out Pakistani trap of linking Afghanistan with India’s Kashmir as by doing so USA would gain nothing except losing goodwill of Indian people. Merger of J & K into India in 1947 was also supported by its the then local popular leaders. People living in J & K have participated in State Assembly and Indian Parliament elections a number of times since 1947.
Since 2001 about 1442 NATO soldiers have already been killed in Afghanistan including 867 US, 219 British and 131 Canadian casualties with no light in the tunnel. 68 per cent Americans believe war in Afghanistan is a military stalemate. 61 per cent Democrats want to reduce US troops but Republicans want to send more troops. NATO commander US General McCrystal said the war would end in failure without additional troops of 30,000 to 40,000. Vice President Joe Biden is reported to favour narrowing down US role in Afghanistan. There are about 32,000 US troops in Afghanistan.
Obama should explore the possibility of inducting troops from such developing countries where returning body bags do not pose much problem to governments. This option should be explored more vigorously as hilly terrain of Afghanistan demands that for military victory armed strength should be at least four times that of enemy and in this case NATO soldiers in field do not know who is enemy. So even after adding another 40000 US troops the NATO strength would be below this basic military requirement of four times superiority.
The US has approved civilian and economic aid of USD 1.5 billion a year for five years to Pakistan for democratic, economic and social programmes and also such sums as are necessary for military aid. The US claims that aid aims at alleviating poverty and reducing economic allurement of jihadis to unemployed youth. Well attackers of 9/11 were neither poor nor uneducated. Jihad against kafirs is not poverty driven but Qur’an and ideology driven. Senator John Kerry has clarified that there is no conditionality attached to civilian and economic aid. One is not sure whether this Kerry clarification would not further alienate the ethnic groups (Baluch, Pashtuns, and Sindhi) from US as one does not see any US public statement that an equitable part of this aid will be spent in their regions too.
In order to succeed in Afghanistan Obama must make politico-military use of ethnic differences to defeat Al Qaeda as locals know better than NATO soldiers who is their enemy in fields. On one side of Durand line it is Pashtuns vs Hazara etc., and, on the other side, it is Baluch, Pashtuns, Sindhis vs Punjabi elite of Pakistan. Somehow or other USA is seen by respected leaders of these ethnic groups more as friend and protector of Punjabi hegemony.
It may be recalled that Baluchistan and the North West Frontier were merged by force and fraud over ruling local leaders (Nabab of Kalat and Frontier Gandhi) into Pakistan which keeps the pot boiling and is the root cause of unrest in this region.
An assurance by US and the EU to Pashtuns, Baluch and Sindhis that their democratic aspirations shall no more be overlooked by them coupled with stronger military action in Afghanistan as at present may go a long way to decisively defeat Al Qaeda in its den. Victory cannot be achieved only by military divisions of US and NATO as it is not a pure military war. It is two pronged war, military and political.
(The writer retired in the rank of Secretary to the Govt of India in the Indian Foreign Service (1971 batch). He has served as Ambassador to Finland, Estonia, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Tunisia and Tanzania and; as Consul General, Dubai and Birmingham (UK). Contact: www.opgupta.org
So far as India is concerned Obama has continued to behave as a non-proliferation Ayatollah neglecting outstanding self-imposed restraints and non-proliferation roles of all Indian Governments.
The unemployment rate in US is running high and is expected to keep rising to 10 per cent by 2010. This coupled with continued returning of body bags from Iraq and Afghanistan has adversely affected popularity of Obama in opinion polls.
In article ‘Obama makes a welcome History’ in the Organiser of November 16, 2008 this writer had opined that Democratic US Presidents had in general been less friendly to India than Republican Presidents; and, only time would tell whether Barack Hussein Obama would be able to reverse this trend. Actions taken by Obama so far show that he has continued with the democratic trend of tilting against India though we Indians remain warm hearted towards USA.
So far as India is concerned Obama has continued to behave as a non-proliferation Ayatollah neglecting outstanding self imposed restraints and non-proliferation roles of all Indian Governments.
The G-8 nations at their July 10, 2009 meeting held at L’Aquila, Italy adopted a resolution welcoming (vide Para 8) the progress that continues to be made by the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) on mechanisms to strengthen controls on transfer of enrichment and reprocessing items and technologies to Non-NPT countries. NPT means Non Proliferation treaty. India is a non-NPT country. No doubt, India was given exemption by NSG but whether this exemption will be applicable to subsequent NSG procedures remains a debatable point.
At its 6191st Meeting held on September 24, 2009 at New York presided over by US President Obama and attended by 14 other Presidents/PMs the Security Council vide Resolution 1887(2009) unanimously decided to end nuclear weapons proliferation and ensure reductions in existing weapons stockpiles as well as control on production of fissile materials for explosion. Para 4 reads: “Calls upon all States that are not parties to NPT to accede to the Treaty as non-nuclear weapon States” Para 7 of this resolution reads: “calls upon states to refrain from conducting a nuclear test explosion and to sign and ratify CTBT.” Para 8 reads: “calls upon the Conference on Disarmament to negotiate a Treaty banning production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.” Among others this SC meeting was attended by Presidents of China, France and Russia and British PM. So pressures on India to sign NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state and sign CTBT (Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty) and FMCT (Fissile Material Control Treaty) are going to build up courtesy our ‘strategic partner’ USA. These multilateral irritants in bilateral Indo-US relations have been created by the Obama Administration. India has been called upon to join NPT as a non-nuclear weapon state.
India does not find place in the inner financial core of the G-8.
Addressing the Indian-American community in early 2008 Obama had said: “I believe that India is a natural partner for America in the 21st century and that the US should be working with India on a range of critical issues from preventing terrorism to promoting peace and stability in Asia... And that is why I will move forward to build a close strategic partnership between the US and India when I am President of the United States.” Well Obama is seen lacking on his these promises.
Here it is pertinent to recall that Obama has strong views on non-proliferation, which was evidenced by two killer amendments he had moved in the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee while approving the infamous Hyde Act. In this Committee he had suggested (Senate Amendment 5169) that supply of nuclear fuel to India should be actual need based of an imported nuclear reactor (Section 103(b) (10) of the Hyde Act) so that India is not able to create its strategic reserves from imported fuel. Obama also suggested ensuring that US should not facilitate nuclear exports by other countries to India if such US exports were terminated. This second Obama amendment is reflected in Section 102(13) of the Hyde Act.
The unemployment rate in US is running high and is expected to keep rising to 10 per cent by 2010. This coupled with continued returning of body bags from Iraq and Afghanistan has adversely affected popularity of Obama in opinion polls.
In his Cairo speech (June 4, 2009) Obama very correctly said that America is not and will never be at war with Islam but will relentlessly confront violent extremists extensively. We did not go (to Afghanistan) by choice; we went because of necessity.
His Pak-Afghan policy has got stalemated with fears of Afghanistan turning into another Vietnam with scenario of exit in disgrace. Re-take of Afghanistan by Taliban secretly supported by Pakistan will weaken India in that part of the world. Pakistan is playing double game with US in war against terror. Obama has followed a wrong policy in Afghanistan which has potential to escalate violence in India sooner than later in case inglorious exit of US and NATO from Afghanistan materialised. Thereafter Taliban and jihadis would be free to deploy all their resources and focus on kafir India. Therefore, it is in long term interest of India to see that USA and NATO are not militarily defeated in Afghanistan. A section of Pakistan establishment wants defeat and exit of US from Afghanistan. Pakistan will not be interested in quick defeat of Al Qaeda as its defeat would dry up flow of US dollars. On Afghanistan, therefore, Obama and India must think out of box solutions.
Obama should not fall in well laid out Pakistani trap of linking Afghanistan with India’s Kashmir as by doing so USA would gain nothing except losing goodwill of Indian people. Merger of J & K into India in 1947 was also supported by its the then local popular leaders. People living in J & K have participated in State Assembly and Indian Parliament elections a number of times since 1947.
Since 2001 about 1442 NATO soldiers have already been killed in Afghanistan including 867 US, 219 British and 131 Canadian casualties with no light in the tunnel. 68 per cent Americans believe war in Afghanistan is a military stalemate. 61 per cent Democrats want to reduce US troops but Republicans want to send more troops. NATO commander US General McCrystal said the war would end in failure without additional troops of 30,000 to 40,000. Vice President Joe Biden is reported to favour narrowing down US role in Afghanistan. There are about 32,000 US troops in Afghanistan.
Obama should explore the possibility of inducting troops from such developing countries where returning body bags do not pose much problem to governments. This option should be explored more vigorously as hilly terrain of Afghanistan demands that for military victory armed strength should be at least four times that of enemy and in this case NATO soldiers in field do not know who is enemy. So even after adding another 40000 US troops the NATO strength would be below this basic military requirement of four times superiority.
The US has approved civilian and economic aid of USD 1.5 billion a year for five years to Pakistan for democratic, economic and social programmes and also such sums as are necessary for military aid. The US claims that aid aims at alleviating poverty and reducing economic allurement of jihadis to unemployed youth. Well attackers of 9/11 were neither poor nor uneducated. Jihad against kafirs is not poverty driven but Qur’an and ideology driven. Senator John Kerry has clarified that there is no conditionality attached to civilian and economic aid. One is not sure whether this Kerry clarification would not further alienate the ethnic groups (Baluch, Pashtuns, and Sindhi) from US as one does not see any US public statement that an equitable part of this aid will be spent in their regions too.
In order to succeed in Afghanistan Obama must make politico-military use of ethnic differences to defeat Al Qaeda as locals know better than NATO soldiers who is their enemy in fields. On one side of Durand line it is Pashtuns vs Hazara etc., and, on the other side, it is Baluch, Pashtuns, Sindhis vs Punjabi elite of Pakistan. Somehow or other USA is seen by respected leaders of these ethnic groups more as friend and protector of Punjabi hegemony.
It may be recalled that Baluchistan and the North West Frontier were merged by force and fraud over ruling local leaders (Nabab of Kalat and Frontier Gandhi) into Pakistan which keeps the pot boiling and is the root cause of unrest in this region.
An assurance by US and the EU to Pashtuns, Baluch and Sindhis that their democratic aspirations shall no more be overlooked by them coupled with stronger military action in Afghanistan as at present may go a long way to decisively defeat Al Qaeda in its den. Victory cannot be achieved only by military divisions of US and NATO as it is not a pure military war. It is two pronged war, military and political.
(The writer retired in the rank of Secretary to the Govt of India in the Indian Foreign Service (1971 batch). He has served as Ambassador to Finland, Estonia, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Tunisia and Tanzania and; as Consul General, Dubai and Birmingham (UK). Contact: www.opgupta.org
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Why did Hinduism never become an 'organised' religion like Christianity or Islam?
http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report_why-did-hinduism-never-become-an-organised-religion-like-christianity-or-islam_1294838
Monday, September 28, 2009
Love, Sex and the Position of Women in Bangladesh
As Bangladesh goes increasingly religious, sex-crime against women and children bursts. Why is it so, and what we need to do to create a world for women to live a dignified life...
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Sex and love are forces that, every day, lead to new problems and new possibilities around the world. In male-dominated societies, like Bangladesh, women can often be treated as sexual objects. Women experience sexual harassment, abduction, rape, and even murder. The natural desire for sex and love has brought women unknown misery. The fact is, when a woman gets raped, it is not the woman who has sex, but the man who was the active person having sex; yet, in societies like Bangladesh, all the shame goes to the woman. The woman is the one, who is oppressed by sexual violence, may experience depression afterward, and have to bear all the shame; but the man remains unaffected.
The Sikh holy book Guru Granth Sahib says, "Sexual desire and anger are diffused throughout the universe. Coming and going, people suffer in pain."
Religions strictly limit people’s freedom in sex and sexuality, especially in the Indian Subcontinent. The major world-religions have a highly conservative stance on sex and love. The Bible starts with a simplistic idea of humankind’s beginning: how Adam, the first man, felt lonely; how Eve, the first women, was created from Adam’s rib as his consort; and how Adam felt satisfied as he saw his mate. This is how Abrahamic religions make women property of men, materialize the woman for man’s pleasure: the woman must make the man happy, and act as a tool for procreation to populate the world. Similarly, most other religions have, more or less, a degrading view of woman.
In Bangladesh, sex-related crimes against women and children are increasing. Crimes result from mentality of the criminal. People normally argue that people, who commit such crimes, are smaller in number than those, who oppose it.
But, then, the question is: Why does this majority, who overwhelmingly outnumber the criminals, fail to bring an end to crimes against women and children?
Why is it that we come across unsavory news-headlines like---"A juvenile girl raped by an imam in rural Bangladesh?" or, "Bangladesh: Newly married minority woman raped and killed by Muslim thugs"---on a daily basis?
Some people argue that a criminal’s mentality can be improved through the practice of religion, but, historically, and even at our present time, religions have failed to make people less criminal, including their propensity toward sexual violence.
In Bangladesh, the conservative religion of Islam dominates lives of the majority. As the country becomes increasingly religious, it runs into increasingly chaos, with bursts in sexual crimes. And the reason could lie in the fact that Islam views women as men’s property and object for their sexual pleasure. A hadith says (Tialissi):
The right of the husband is that when he calls his wife to have sex, she should not deny him herself.
The root of the problem of bursts in sexual crime in Bangladesh lies in the society’s mentality. It is not only the mentality of men that must change, but also the society’s understanding of woman that needs to become more positive, especially in regard to their role in sex and love. Many special laws have been introduced and many criminals were sentenced to death, but, in the end, there has been a failure in deterring sexual crimes against women.
We need to dig out the rotten root of religions that inspire men to be inhumane towards women. We need a global campaign to create a free and fearless world for women, where women will be equal and dignified partner of men. Only then will come the day, when women we will be able live in peace, love and dignity alongside men, not as being degraded and violated by their opposite number.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Religion is to do right. It is to love, it is to serve, it is to think, and it is to be humble."
We need foster a religion that inspires us to think of men and women, first and foremost, as human equal and dignified beings, before our sexual differentiation.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sex and love are forces that, every day, lead to new problems and new possibilities around the world. In male-dominated societies, like Bangladesh, women can often be treated as sexual objects. Women experience sexual harassment, abduction, rape, and even murder. The natural desire for sex and love has brought women unknown misery. The fact is, when a woman gets raped, it is not the woman who has sex, but the man who was the active person having sex; yet, in societies like Bangladesh, all the shame goes to the woman. The woman is the one, who is oppressed by sexual violence, may experience depression afterward, and have to bear all the shame; but the man remains unaffected.
The Sikh holy book Guru Granth Sahib says, "Sexual desire and anger are diffused throughout the universe. Coming and going, people suffer in pain."
Religions strictly limit people’s freedom in sex and sexuality, especially in the Indian Subcontinent. The major world-religions have a highly conservative stance on sex and love. The Bible starts with a simplistic idea of humankind’s beginning: how Adam, the first man, felt lonely; how Eve, the first women, was created from Adam’s rib as his consort; and how Adam felt satisfied as he saw his mate. This is how Abrahamic religions make women property of men, materialize the woman for man’s pleasure: the woman must make the man happy, and act as a tool for procreation to populate the world. Similarly, most other religions have, more or less, a degrading view of woman.
In Bangladesh, sex-related crimes against women and children are increasing. Crimes result from mentality of the criminal. People normally argue that people, who commit such crimes, are smaller in number than those, who oppose it.
But, then, the question is: Why does this majority, who overwhelmingly outnumber the criminals, fail to bring an end to crimes against women and children?
Why is it that we come across unsavory news-headlines like---"A juvenile girl raped by an imam in rural Bangladesh?" or, "Bangladesh: Newly married minority woman raped and killed by Muslim thugs"---on a daily basis?
Some people argue that a criminal’s mentality can be improved through the practice of religion, but, historically, and even at our present time, religions have failed to make people less criminal, including their propensity toward sexual violence.
In Bangladesh, the conservative religion of Islam dominates lives of the majority. As the country becomes increasingly religious, it runs into increasingly chaos, with bursts in sexual crimes. And the reason could lie in the fact that Islam views women as men’s property and object for their sexual pleasure. A hadith says (Tialissi):
The right of the husband is that when he calls his wife to have sex, she should not deny him herself.
The root of the problem of bursts in sexual crime in Bangladesh lies in the society’s mentality. It is not only the mentality of men that must change, but also the society’s understanding of woman that needs to become more positive, especially in regard to their role in sex and love. Many special laws have been introduced and many criminals were sentenced to death, but, in the end, there has been a failure in deterring sexual crimes against women.
We need to dig out the rotten root of religions that inspire men to be inhumane towards women. We need a global campaign to create a free and fearless world for women, where women will be equal and dignified partner of men. Only then will come the day, when women we will be able live in peace, love and dignity alongside men, not as being degraded and violated by their opposite number.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Religion is to do right. It is to love, it is to serve, it is to think, and it is to be humble."
We need foster a religion that inspires us to think of men and women, first and foremost, as human equal and dignified beings, before our sexual differentiation.
BJP MP Varun Gandhi wows Houston
By Dinesh Agrawal
The 2009 annual gala of Houston’s Indo American Charity Foundation (IACF) drew more than just some concomitant applause towards its annual goal of raising about a quarter million dollars to support US-based charity organisations. It also drew more than 500 of the most prominent Houstonians, including US Congressman Pete Olson and Indian Consul General Shri Sanjiv Arora, who thronged the Inter Continental Hotel to welcome a dynamic, young politician from India.
IACF, which supports scholarships and programmes in the areas of education, healthcare, children and families, invited Shri Varun Gandhi, the youngest member of the Nehru family, because it felt he best represents young and new India. IACF President Ms. Rachel Varghese said, seeing a vibrant, articulate speaker with an interest in doing something for the underprivileged is what the new generation of Indian Americans will relate to. Their knowledge of India is through their parents’ eyes. The chance to hear something positive from a young person who will be in the forefront of India’s growth as a true democracy is of great interest to the young professionals who live here. IACF-Houston, founded in 1988 by a group of Indian-Americans, is a non-profit organisation that raises funds for various humanitarian endeavours helping those in need of health, education and human services. "There’s no mistaking the lure of the Gandhi name, the family generated enough interest similar to what I had seen here in US with the Kennedy family," said Varghese.
29 year-old Varun Gandhi, the first Indian parliamentarian to be called to this prestigious annual gala, has been recently elected as a Member of the Lok Sabha with an unprecedented victory margin of nearly 281,501 votes in his maiden election campaign from Pilibhit constituency. Varun Gandhi is the great-grandson of the late Jawahar Lal Nehru, who was India’s first Prime Minister of India, and his grandmother is the late Indira Gandhi, a popular Indian Prime Minister who ruled India for 15 years. He is the son of the late Sanjay Gandhi and Maneka Gandhi, an Indian parliamentarian and animal rights activist. Varun Gandhi is a Law & Economics graduate from the London School of Economics and a post graduate in Public Policy from the University of London. A prolific and precocious reader with excellent literary taste, he has authored his own volume of poetry titled The Otherness of Self besides a variety of articles on issues of National Security and External Affairs.
In his key note address, Varun Gandhi spoke lucidly and thoughtfully about India’s place in the new global order charity and social services in the emerging, economy. Varun Gandhi started off his speech with subtle humour that drew wild cheers from the audience. Upon hearing a guest’s request to speak louder, Varun chuckled, it is for the first time that somebody accused me of being soft-spoken and remarked that he was so used to facing brickbats in India that he was expecting some bouquets in Houston. He spoke passionately about India’s progress and challenges, underling a positive message of hope and change. He rooted firmly in favour of youth participation in nation building, believing that one must participate in the system in order to change it.
His speech was superbly articulated, extremely profound and deeply moving-proving beyond doubt that inside this soft-spoken young man, there lie a heart of immense compassion, a boundless intellect and a grassroot activist’s dedication to serve India. In his address, Varun shared his views about a young and resurgent India and talked about India’s development challenges and the importance of economic growth through scientific development and adoption of intelligent policies. Noting that 40 per cent of the world’s malnourished children live in India and that 77 per cent of India’s population has been classified as being poor, he recommended education, health and poverty-alleviating policy guidelines in his address. He also addressed the issues of environmental pollution, prolongued monsoon delays that is crippling the agricultural sector and the rapid melting of the Gangetic glacier that affects drinking water supply for 400 million Indians.
Repeatedly stressing that India is a country abundant in human and natural resources, Varun maintained that India is not a poor country but a poorly managed country. He urged the proper use of technology, adoption of skill based training and efficient utilisation of the world’s greatest workforce and India’s greatest resource viz. the 60 per cent of India’s population who is under the age of 30, totally 630 million people double the US population. He pointed numerous schemes and ingenious inventions pioneered by ordinary Indians and NGOs that have reduced maternal mortality by 50 per cent, addressed the rural populations needs for eye-care, disaster management, technology and eco-friendly vehicles.
Varun’s refined appeal calling for Global Atruism and the need for NRIs to pitch in and help their motherland resonated well with the Indian-American audience who clapped vigorously when he reminded them that no matter how far they have come, both in terms of distance and knowledge, they are essentially Indians, a people who ate with their hands and spoke from their hearts. And speak from his heart, he certainly did. Verily, Varun Gandhi was described in glowing terms by the next speaker at the gala, Dr. Najma Heptullah, veteran Indian parliamentarian and former Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. Dr. Heptullah, who explained that her family has known Varun Gandhi’s family for four generations, stressed in her speech that India’s future looks very bright with dynamic leaders like Varun Gandhi on the horizon.
The 2009 annual gala of Houston’s Indo American Charity Foundation (IACF) drew more than just some concomitant applause towards its annual goal of raising about a quarter million dollars to support US-based charity organisations. It also drew more than 500 of the most prominent Houstonians, including US Congressman Pete Olson and Indian Consul General Shri Sanjiv Arora, who thronged the Inter Continental Hotel to welcome a dynamic, young politician from India.
IACF, which supports scholarships and programmes in the areas of education, healthcare, children and families, invited Shri Varun Gandhi, the youngest member of the Nehru family, because it felt he best represents young and new India. IACF President Ms. Rachel Varghese said, seeing a vibrant, articulate speaker with an interest in doing something for the underprivileged is what the new generation of Indian Americans will relate to. Their knowledge of India is through their parents’ eyes. The chance to hear something positive from a young person who will be in the forefront of India’s growth as a true democracy is of great interest to the young professionals who live here. IACF-Houston, founded in 1988 by a group of Indian-Americans, is a non-profit organisation that raises funds for various humanitarian endeavours helping those in need of health, education and human services. "There’s no mistaking the lure of the Gandhi name, the family generated enough interest similar to what I had seen here in US with the Kennedy family," said Varghese.
29 year-old Varun Gandhi, the first Indian parliamentarian to be called to this prestigious annual gala, has been recently elected as a Member of the Lok Sabha with an unprecedented victory margin of nearly 281,501 votes in his maiden election campaign from Pilibhit constituency. Varun Gandhi is the great-grandson of the late Jawahar Lal Nehru, who was India’s first Prime Minister of India, and his grandmother is the late Indira Gandhi, a popular Indian Prime Minister who ruled India for 15 years. He is the son of the late Sanjay Gandhi and Maneka Gandhi, an Indian parliamentarian and animal rights activist. Varun Gandhi is a Law & Economics graduate from the London School of Economics and a post graduate in Public Policy from the University of London. A prolific and precocious reader with excellent literary taste, he has authored his own volume of poetry titled The Otherness of Self besides a variety of articles on issues of National Security and External Affairs.
In his key note address, Varun Gandhi spoke lucidly and thoughtfully about India’s place in the new global order charity and social services in the emerging, economy. Varun Gandhi started off his speech with subtle humour that drew wild cheers from the audience. Upon hearing a guest’s request to speak louder, Varun chuckled, it is for the first time that somebody accused me of being soft-spoken and remarked that he was so used to facing brickbats in India that he was expecting some bouquets in Houston. He spoke passionately about India’s progress and challenges, underling a positive message of hope and change. He rooted firmly in favour of youth participation in nation building, believing that one must participate in the system in order to change it.
His speech was superbly articulated, extremely profound and deeply moving-proving beyond doubt that inside this soft-spoken young man, there lie a heart of immense compassion, a boundless intellect and a grassroot activist’s dedication to serve India. In his address, Varun shared his views about a young and resurgent India and talked about India’s development challenges and the importance of economic growth through scientific development and adoption of intelligent policies. Noting that 40 per cent of the world’s malnourished children live in India and that 77 per cent of India’s population has been classified as being poor, he recommended education, health and poverty-alleviating policy guidelines in his address. He also addressed the issues of environmental pollution, prolongued monsoon delays that is crippling the agricultural sector and the rapid melting of the Gangetic glacier that affects drinking water supply for 400 million Indians.
Repeatedly stressing that India is a country abundant in human and natural resources, Varun maintained that India is not a poor country but a poorly managed country. He urged the proper use of technology, adoption of skill based training and efficient utilisation of the world’s greatest workforce and India’s greatest resource viz. the 60 per cent of India’s population who is under the age of 30, totally 630 million people double the US population. He pointed numerous schemes and ingenious inventions pioneered by ordinary Indians and NGOs that have reduced maternal mortality by 50 per cent, addressed the rural populations needs for eye-care, disaster management, technology and eco-friendly vehicles.
Varun’s refined appeal calling for Global Atruism and the need for NRIs to pitch in and help their motherland resonated well with the Indian-American audience who clapped vigorously when he reminded them that no matter how far they have come, both in terms of distance and knowledge, they are essentially Indians, a people who ate with their hands and spoke from their hearts. And speak from his heart, he certainly did. Verily, Varun Gandhi was described in glowing terms by the next speaker at the gala, Dr. Najma Heptullah, veteran Indian parliamentarian and former Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. Dr. Heptullah, who explained that her family has known Varun Gandhi’s family for four generations, stressed in her speech that India’s future looks very bright with dynamic leaders like Varun Gandhi on the horizon.
Navratri-The festival of Good versus Evil
By Achyut Railkar
Navratri festival means Goddess Shakti (the female divinity) or the various forms of mother Goddess Durga or Jagadamba. During the festival she is prayed with fervour and devotion. Every year, these Navratri days (the first nine days of Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashwin) are followed according to the lunar calendar. Dussehra (ten days) or Dasera is the culmination of Navratri.
Our Indian culture is a way of thinking, a way of life and a way of worship. The philosophical thinking is conveyed in our famous Vedas. It was later transformed into pratik (symbol or idol) and festivals. If the true meaning of pratik and festivals are realized, our culture will flourish and be preserved for ever. The Navratri festival means Goddess Shakti (the female divinity) or the various forms of mother Goddess Durga or Jagadamba. During the festival she is prayed with fervour and devotion. Every year, these Navratri days (the first nine days of Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashwin) are followed according to the lunar calendar. Dussehra (ten days) or Dasera is the culmination of Navratri.
The festival is celebrated throughout India and among the Indian community all over the world including UK, USA, Mauritius, Nepal etc. In North India, Mother Goddess is worshipped in different forms and culminates in Durga puja. The pilgrim place Kulu of Himachal Pradesh is particularly famous for the festival. The last four days are celebrated as the biggest festival of Durga puja in West Bengal and the idols are immersed in the river on the last day. In Western India, particularly in Gujarat, Navratri is celebrated with the famous dandiya dance. In South India too the Goddess Shakti is worshipped during the festival. The people set up steps and place idols on them known as golu-Navratri.
Legends of Navratri are mentioned in different ways in the scriptures Ramayan, Devi-Bhagvatam and in Puranas. The story as found in the Markandeya Purana is reproduced below from the Hindu Blog:
The two sons of Danu called Rambha and Karambha performed penances to gain more powers. Rambha stood amidst panchagni (five ritual fires) and Karambha stood in neck-deep water. Indra, the Lord of the gods felt threatened by such intense austerities and took the form of a crocodile and killed Karambha. When Rambha came to know the death of his brother, he increased the intensity of his austerities and won several boons from gods to achieve great brilliance, beauty and invincibility in war. The boon that he cannot be killed by humans, Gods or Demons was most important. While he was roaming in the garden of a Yaksha, he fell in love with a female-buffalo and took the form of male-buffalo for copulation. But soon the real male-buffalo discovered Rambha and killed him as his boon didn’t include protection from animal killing. The female-buffalo, who was pregnant decided to kill herself in the funeral pyre of Rambha. Surprisingly a mighty Asura (demon) called Mahishasur with the head of a buffalo and human body took birth. He defeated the gods and the demons. He captured trilokas (earth, heaven and nether worlds), made all the Devas as slaves and proclaimed himself as the overlord of Indra.
The gods led by Brahma approached Vishnu and Shiva for help. They created a beam of fierce light from each of their bodies and through this sea of light Goddess Durga emerged. The anger emerging out of Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesha) combined to take the shape of a terrible form, Durga to get rid of the mighty demon Mahishasur. Captivated by the awe-inspiring Durga, the gods bestowed on her their own characteristic weapons as Shiva - the trident, Vishnu - the discus, Varuna - the conch, Agni - the spear, Yama - the cudgel, Vayu - the bow, Surya - the arrows, Indra - the thunderbolt, Kuber - the mace, Brahma - the water pot, Kala - the sword, and Vishwakarma - the axe. Himavan gifted a mountain lion as her vehicle.
When the Goddess Durga was seen by Mahishasur,, he fell in love with her and sought to marry her. The Goddess promised to marry him, if he defeated her in the battle. A terrible combat ensued and continued for nine days. Finally, Durga assumed the terrifying form of Chandika and pinned Mahishasura down with her foot and pierced his neck with her spear. Durga astride a lion fought in a horrible manner and cut off Mahishasura’s head and demolished him on the 9th day. As a commemoration of Durga’s victory over Mahishasur and representing good deeds over evil, Dasara or Vijaya Dashami is celebrated on the tenth day by all.
During first three days of Navaratri, the spiritual force of Durga is prayed as Maha-Kali to destroy all evils. She has During next three days, Mother Goddess is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth known as Maha-Lakshmi the Goddess of wealth, the final three days are spent in worshipping Goddess of wisdom, Maha-Saraswati to have all-round success in the life. On the 9th day Ayudh (weapons) puja is performed by every one by worshipping the tools of their trade like pen, machinery or books.
Goddess Durga (the inaccessible or invincible) can redeem the situation of utmost distress. She also got the name as Mahishasurmardini (killer of Mahishasur). Everyone thus likes to celebrate the Navaratri by worshipping the Goddess Durga and enjoy the festival.
Navratri festival means Goddess Shakti (the female divinity) or the various forms of mother Goddess Durga or Jagadamba. During the festival she is prayed with fervour and devotion. Every year, these Navratri days (the first nine days of Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashwin) are followed according to the lunar calendar. Dussehra (ten days) or Dasera is the culmination of Navratri.
Our Indian culture is a way of thinking, a way of life and a way of worship. The philosophical thinking is conveyed in our famous Vedas. It was later transformed into pratik (symbol or idol) and festivals. If the true meaning of pratik and festivals are realized, our culture will flourish and be preserved for ever. The Navratri festival means Goddess Shakti (the female divinity) or the various forms of mother Goddess Durga or Jagadamba. During the festival she is prayed with fervour and devotion. Every year, these Navratri days (the first nine days of Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashwin) are followed according to the lunar calendar. Dussehra (ten days) or Dasera is the culmination of Navratri.
The festival is celebrated throughout India and among the Indian community all over the world including UK, USA, Mauritius, Nepal etc. In North India, Mother Goddess is worshipped in different forms and culminates in Durga puja. The pilgrim place Kulu of Himachal Pradesh is particularly famous for the festival. The last four days are celebrated as the biggest festival of Durga puja in West Bengal and the idols are immersed in the river on the last day. In Western India, particularly in Gujarat, Navratri is celebrated with the famous dandiya dance. In South India too the Goddess Shakti is worshipped during the festival. The people set up steps and place idols on them known as golu-Navratri.
Legends of Navratri are mentioned in different ways in the scriptures Ramayan, Devi-Bhagvatam and in Puranas. The story as found in the Markandeya Purana is reproduced below from the Hindu Blog:
The two sons of Danu called Rambha and Karambha performed penances to gain more powers. Rambha stood amidst panchagni (five ritual fires) and Karambha stood in neck-deep water. Indra, the Lord of the gods felt threatened by such intense austerities and took the form of a crocodile and killed Karambha. When Rambha came to know the death of his brother, he increased the intensity of his austerities and won several boons from gods to achieve great brilliance, beauty and invincibility in war. The boon that he cannot be killed by humans, Gods or Demons was most important. While he was roaming in the garden of a Yaksha, he fell in love with a female-buffalo and took the form of male-buffalo for copulation. But soon the real male-buffalo discovered Rambha and killed him as his boon didn’t include protection from animal killing. The female-buffalo, who was pregnant decided to kill herself in the funeral pyre of Rambha. Surprisingly a mighty Asura (demon) called Mahishasur with the head of a buffalo and human body took birth. He defeated the gods and the demons. He captured trilokas (earth, heaven and nether worlds), made all the Devas as slaves and proclaimed himself as the overlord of Indra.
The gods led by Brahma approached Vishnu and Shiva for help. They created a beam of fierce light from each of their bodies and through this sea of light Goddess Durga emerged. The anger emerging out of Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesha) combined to take the shape of a terrible form, Durga to get rid of the mighty demon Mahishasur. Captivated by the awe-inspiring Durga, the gods bestowed on her their own characteristic weapons as Shiva - the trident, Vishnu - the discus, Varuna - the conch, Agni - the spear, Yama - the cudgel, Vayu - the bow, Surya - the arrows, Indra - the thunderbolt, Kuber - the mace, Brahma - the water pot, Kala - the sword, and Vishwakarma - the axe. Himavan gifted a mountain lion as her vehicle.
When the Goddess Durga was seen by Mahishasur,, he fell in love with her and sought to marry her. The Goddess promised to marry him, if he defeated her in the battle. A terrible combat ensued and continued for nine days. Finally, Durga assumed the terrifying form of Chandika and pinned Mahishasura down with her foot and pierced his neck with her spear. Durga astride a lion fought in a horrible manner and cut off Mahishasura’s head and demolished him on the 9th day. As a commemoration of Durga’s victory over Mahishasur and representing good deeds over evil, Dasara or Vijaya Dashami is celebrated on the tenth day by all.
During first three days of Navaratri, the spiritual force of Durga is prayed as Maha-Kali to destroy all evils. She has During next three days, Mother Goddess is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth known as Maha-Lakshmi the Goddess of wealth, the final three days are spent in worshipping Goddess of wisdom, Maha-Saraswati to have all-round success in the life. On the 9th day Ayudh (weapons) puja is performed by every one by worshipping the tools of their trade like pen, machinery or books.
Goddess Durga (the inaccessible or invincible) can redeem the situation of utmost distress. She also got the name as Mahishasurmardini (killer of Mahishasur). Everyone thus likes to celebrate the Navaratri by worshipping the Goddess Durga and enjoy the festival.
Jehad’s New War-Love Bombs, Islamic Bank
For long, the RSS and the ABVP has been warning the ‘Hindu society’ of Kerala, that NDF’s (jehadi outfit) student wing ‘Campus Front’ has been entrusted the task of luring Hindu college girls into the love web and eventual conversion to Islam and jehadi terror network. IB and RAW has also been warning of more women, forthcoming to become ‘Human Bombs’.
Malayala Manorama on its August 31st issue revealed startling Police investigations of jehadis using money, flashy cars, dresses, etc. to lure ‘Hindu Girls’, into love, marriage, conversion and eventual disappearance or transportation to Kashmir for jehad.
The police report says that almost 500 Kerala girls have gone missing during the past two years. Even now 30 ‘girl missing’ cases are registered in police stations across Kerala every month. National media reports that almost 4,000 girls are missing every year.
That jehadis from Kerala, are in Kashmir, is an accepted fact with three Keralities shot dead by Indian Army in Poonch - Rajauri Sector.
But despite this startling and grim situation, the CPM regime of Kerala is not acting on Madhani, NDF, SIMI, etc. for ‘Vote Bank’ politics. Both the Congress and the CPM are pampering Madhani/ NDF. Despite their clear role in export of terror to Kashmir, blasts in various parts of India and love bombs, not even a little finger is lifted against them.
Now added, is the threat of a Gulf NRI promoted ‘Islamic Bank’ with the active backing of CPM. This bank is a cover for jehadi operations like money laundering, Pak printed counterfeit currency flowing into India, pipe money operations, drug trafficking, arms buying, jehadi blasts, and active intervention in stock markets. The CPM will get ‘throw away bone pieces’ for licking.
The women’s organisation of Sangh organisations like the Mahila Morcha, the Hindu Aikya Vedi, etc. have called for central probe into the mysterious disappearance of Hindu girls and the VHP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan has called for banning of Islamic Bank. -SC
Malayala Manorama on its August 31st issue revealed startling Police investigations of jehadis using money, flashy cars, dresses, etc. to lure ‘Hindu Girls’, into love, marriage, conversion and eventual disappearance or transportation to Kashmir for jehad.
The police report says that almost 500 Kerala girls have gone missing during the past two years. Even now 30 ‘girl missing’ cases are registered in police stations across Kerala every month. National media reports that almost 4,000 girls are missing every year.
That jehadis from Kerala, are in Kashmir, is an accepted fact with three Keralities shot dead by Indian Army in Poonch - Rajauri Sector.
But despite this startling and grim situation, the CPM regime of Kerala is not acting on Madhani, NDF, SIMI, etc. for ‘Vote Bank’ politics. Both the Congress and the CPM are pampering Madhani/ NDF. Despite their clear role in export of terror to Kashmir, blasts in various parts of India and love bombs, not even a little finger is lifted against them.
Now added, is the threat of a Gulf NRI promoted ‘Islamic Bank’ with the active backing of CPM. This bank is a cover for jehadi operations like money laundering, Pak printed counterfeit currency flowing into India, pipe money operations, drug trafficking, arms buying, jehadi blasts, and active intervention in stock markets. The CPM will get ‘throw away bone pieces’ for licking.
The women’s organisation of Sangh organisations like the Mahila Morcha, the Hindu Aikya Vedi, etc. have called for central probe into the mysterious disappearance of Hindu girls and the VHP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan has called for banning of Islamic Bank. -SC
Kandhamal probe brings out the plot against Hindus
From Debasis Tripathy in Bhubaneswar
Truth is coming out, gradually unravelling all the state-created mysteries and dispelling the confusion regarding the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and Vanvasi unrest in the troubled Kandhamal district. It is the time for inquiry by the special inquiry commission headed by a former judge of Orissa High Court and former Lokpal of Orissa, Justice Sarat Chandra Mohapatra.
The then top cop of Orissa, Shri GC Nanda (as he was at the time of Swamiji’s murder) has courageously deposed some revealing facts before the commission, which he had suppressed while he was in the uniform.
"We had information that Swami Saraswati was under threat from some quarters. But we did not have information that he was on the target of Maoists, so the security provided wasn’t of the scale to counter such an attack," said Shri Nanda contradicting his earlier statement given at 9.30 pm on August 23, 2008, when Swamiji was murdered. In the same night and afterwards, Shri Nanda had categorically stated that the murder had been committed by Maoists and the state government had no prior information regarding the same. It may be recalled here that in the night of Swamiji’s murder, his Personal Security Officer (PSO) was withdrawn from duty by the police administration, though there was a serious threat to Swami Laxmanananda’s life and the same was reported to the local police. If this present statement of Shri Nanda is to be believed, then it is a matter of utter surprise as to why he had been giving false and confusing statements and that too, at the instance of whom? Was he trying to save somebody?
Likewise, former District Collector of Kandhamal district, Shri Gangadhar Singh said unlawful conversions had taken place in Kandhamal district without following the statutory provisions of the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act (OFRA), 1967.
Shri Singh, while appearing before the commission informed that till January 2, 2004, the district administration had received only two informations regarding conversions. According to him, illegal conversions without following the provisions of OFRA were done, though he refused to agree that such conversions took place on a large scale.
Shri Singh, who was the Collector of Kandhamal from September 15, 2004, to October 3, 2007, disclosed that during his tenure nobody was ever prosecuted under OFRA. In cross-examination, he said there is massive encroachment of government lands, including forest lands, in the district, but he did not say anything about whether any church has been constructed illegally on such encroached government lands.
Shri Singh, in his affidavit submitted to the commission, also stated that as the Collector he had received oral complaints relating to illegal transportation of cattle and cases of fake caste certificates. But he avoided questions regarding what actions were taken in those cases. It is a fact that now the authorities concerned are admitting illegal proselytisation, cattle slaughter and encroachment of government forest lands, which they had been neglecting to sort out.
Kandhamal is a shining example of the casualty of truth caused by the fraternity of power-centre and English media, hand in glove with some unconfirmed forces. The probe is unveiling the truth, the bitter truth-why, how and by whom Swami Laxmanananda was murdered.
Truth is coming out, gradually unravelling all the state-created mysteries and dispelling the confusion regarding the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and Vanvasi unrest in the troubled Kandhamal district. It is the time for inquiry by the special inquiry commission headed by a former judge of Orissa High Court and former Lokpal of Orissa, Justice Sarat Chandra Mohapatra.
The then top cop of Orissa, Shri GC Nanda (as he was at the time of Swamiji’s murder) has courageously deposed some revealing facts before the commission, which he had suppressed while he was in the uniform.
"We had information that Swami Saraswati was under threat from some quarters. But we did not have information that he was on the target of Maoists, so the security provided wasn’t of the scale to counter such an attack," said Shri Nanda contradicting his earlier statement given at 9.30 pm on August 23, 2008, when Swamiji was murdered. In the same night and afterwards, Shri Nanda had categorically stated that the murder had been committed by Maoists and the state government had no prior information regarding the same. It may be recalled here that in the night of Swamiji’s murder, his Personal Security Officer (PSO) was withdrawn from duty by the police administration, though there was a serious threat to Swami Laxmanananda’s life and the same was reported to the local police. If this present statement of Shri Nanda is to be believed, then it is a matter of utter surprise as to why he had been giving false and confusing statements and that too, at the instance of whom? Was he trying to save somebody?
Likewise, former District Collector of Kandhamal district, Shri Gangadhar Singh said unlawful conversions had taken place in Kandhamal district without following the statutory provisions of the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act (OFRA), 1967.
Shri Singh, while appearing before the commission informed that till January 2, 2004, the district administration had received only two informations regarding conversions. According to him, illegal conversions without following the provisions of OFRA were done, though he refused to agree that such conversions took place on a large scale.
Shri Singh, who was the Collector of Kandhamal from September 15, 2004, to October 3, 2007, disclosed that during his tenure nobody was ever prosecuted under OFRA. In cross-examination, he said there is massive encroachment of government lands, including forest lands, in the district, but he did not say anything about whether any church has been constructed illegally on such encroached government lands.
Shri Singh, in his affidavit submitted to the commission, also stated that as the Collector he had received oral complaints relating to illegal transportation of cattle and cases of fake caste certificates. But he avoided questions regarding what actions were taken in those cases. It is a fact that now the authorities concerned are admitting illegal proselytisation, cattle slaughter and encroachment of government forest lands, which they had been neglecting to sort out.
Kandhamal is a shining example of the casualty of truth caused by the fraternity of power-centre and English media, hand in glove with some unconfirmed forces. The probe is unveiling the truth, the bitter truth-why, how and by whom Swami Laxmanananda was murdered.
Jehad’s New War-Love Bombs, Islamic Bank
For long, the RSS and the ABVP has been warning the ‘Hindu society’ of Kerala, that NDF’s (jehadi outfit) student wing ‘Campus Front’ has been entrusted the task of luring Hindu college girls into the love web and eventual conversion to Islam and jehadi terror network. IB and RAW has also been warning of more women, forthcoming to become ‘Human Bombs’.
Malayala Manorama on its August 31st issue revealed startling Police investigations of jehadis using money, flashy cars, dresses, etc. to lure ‘Hindu Girls’, into love, marriage, conversion and eventual disappearance or transportation to Kashmir for jehad.
The police report says that almost 500 Kerala girls have gone missing during the past two years. Even now 30 ‘girl missing’ cases are registered in police stations across Kerala every month. National media reports that almost 4,000 girls are missing every year.
That jehadis from Kerala, are in Kashmir, is an accepted fact with three Keralities shot dead by Indian Army in Poonch - Rajauri Sector.
But despite this startling and grim situation, the CPM regime of Kerala is not acting on Madhani, NDF, SIMI, etc. for ‘Vote Bank’ politics. Both the Congress and the CPM are pampering Madhani/ NDF. Despite their clear role in export of terror to Kashmir, blasts in various parts of India and love bombs, not even a little finger is lifted against them.
Now added, is the threat of a Gulf NRI promoted ‘Islamic Bank’ with the active backing of CPM. This bank is a cover for jehadi operations like money laundering, Pak printed counterfeit currency flowing into India, pipe money operations, drug trafficking, arms buying, jehadi blasts, and active intervention in stock markets. The CPM will get ‘throw away bone pieces’ for licking.
The women’s organisation of Sangh organisations like the Mahila Morcha, the Hindu Aikya Vedi, etc. have called for central probe into the mysterious disappearance of Hindu girls and the VHP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan has called for banning of Islamic Bank. -SC
Malayala Manorama on its August 31st issue revealed startling Police investigations of jehadis using money, flashy cars, dresses, etc. to lure ‘Hindu Girls’, into love, marriage, conversion and eventual disappearance or transportation to Kashmir for jehad.
The police report says that almost 500 Kerala girls have gone missing during the past two years. Even now 30 ‘girl missing’ cases are registered in police stations across Kerala every month. National media reports that almost 4,000 girls are missing every year.
That jehadis from Kerala, are in Kashmir, is an accepted fact with three Keralities shot dead by Indian Army in Poonch - Rajauri Sector.
But despite this startling and grim situation, the CPM regime of Kerala is not acting on Madhani, NDF, SIMI, etc. for ‘Vote Bank’ politics. Both the Congress and the CPM are pampering Madhani/ NDF. Despite their clear role in export of terror to Kashmir, blasts in various parts of India and love bombs, not even a little finger is lifted against them.
Now added, is the threat of a Gulf NRI promoted ‘Islamic Bank’ with the active backing of CPM. This bank is a cover for jehadi operations like money laundering, Pak printed counterfeit currency flowing into India, pipe money operations, drug trafficking, arms buying, jehadi blasts, and active intervention in stock markets. The CPM will get ‘throw away bone pieces’ for licking.
The women’s organisation of Sangh organisations like the Mahila Morcha, the Hindu Aikya Vedi, etc. have called for central probe into the mysterious disappearance of Hindu girls and the VHP leader Kummanam Rajasekharan has called for banning of Islamic Bank. -SC
The continuing tragedy of Kashmiri Hindus
Kashmiri Pundits observe 20th Martyrs Day
From Khajuria S Kant in Jammu
Kashmiri Pundits observe September 14 as "Martyrs Day" after their exodus from the land of their origin by remembering Pt Tika Lal Taploo who was the first Kashmiri Pundit assassinated by the terrorists in the valley, this day 20 years ago.
On this day, 20 years ago, a veteran KP leader and vice president of J&K BJP, Tika Lal Taploo, was killed in broad daylight by separatists outside his residence in Srinagar, four months before the community members were forced to leave the Valley at the height of terrorism.
Sarla Devi, who is settled in Delhi now, had come here to attend "Amar Balidan Diwas" organised by the All-State Kashmiri Pundit Conference (ASKPC) to pay tributes to those Kashmiri Pundits who attained martyrdom since 1989-90.
Tears rolled down the eyes of Sarla Taploo as she remembered her husband Pt Tika Lal Taploo, who was the first Kashmiri Pundit assassinated by the terrorists in the valley, this day 20 years ago.
Remembering that awful day, Sarla said, "different groups of terrorists used to give life threats to him but he did not bother because he was a brave man."
"Before his death, he took a promise from me that I should continue his work as a social activist and I am doing it. The BJP gave me ticket and I contested the assembly and general elections but unfortunately I couldn’t win."
Expressing the pain, Kavita Saraf (daughter) said, "When I went out of my home, I saw my father’s body surrounded by hundreds of Muslims of our area. I can not forget that scene in my life."
"Two days before his assignation he gave a daring speech at Haba Kadal and suddenly after that we received a threat from terrorists to leave the valley within 15 days. On that very day one agent called him out and said that he had to go to the court for an important case. That was a conspiracy for his assassination."
The ASKPC honoured the family members of few such persons who were killed by the terrorists in the valley since 1989-90 by presenting "Tika Lal Taploo Shaheedi Puraskar".
Protests, public meetings, performance of hawans marked the observance of Martyrs Day.
Continuing its series of protest demonstrations, JKVM paid homage on roads to the martyrs who fell to the bullets and onslaught of Jehadi terrorists.
Addressing the demonstrators JKVM leaders said that Kashmiri Hindus have only been given false assurances and empty promises from the government since their exile. Though different governments have talked of honorable return of Kashmiri Hindus but they have proved only bare words.
They said if Government was sincere towards Pundits it should have directly talked to those who were protesting on roads. They also accused the government of burying the Kashmiri Hindu Shrines Bill.
Panun Kashmir (PK) organised a function at Abhinav theatre in which rich tributes were paid to the martyrs. Two minutes silence was also observed in their memory. The function started with hoisting of PK flag on the dais by a team of organising secretaries. Floral tributes were paid to the martyrs and on the occasion a framed picture with 20 chinar leaves depicting the 20 years of exile was showcased.
While in Delhi, as a symbolic protest to mark the anniversary, 20 Kashmiri Pundits tonsured their heads and offered prayers for thousands of unfortunate victims. Each of the persons who underwent tonsuring symbolically represented each year of their life in exile.
In another programme held at Jantar Mantar here activists of various KP organisations staged a demonstration to mark the 20th Martyrs Day. On the occasion rich tributes were paid to Mr Tika Lal Taploo. Around 80,000 Kashmir Pundits are "living in exile in Delhi and its suburbs and all of them have expressed solidarity with the initiative".
From Khajuria S Kant in Jammu
Kashmiri Pundits observe September 14 as "Martyrs Day" after their exodus from the land of their origin by remembering Pt Tika Lal Taploo who was the first Kashmiri Pundit assassinated by the terrorists in the valley, this day 20 years ago.
On this day, 20 years ago, a veteran KP leader and vice president of J&K BJP, Tika Lal Taploo, was killed in broad daylight by separatists outside his residence in Srinagar, four months before the community members were forced to leave the Valley at the height of terrorism.
Sarla Devi, who is settled in Delhi now, had come here to attend "Amar Balidan Diwas" organised by the All-State Kashmiri Pundit Conference (ASKPC) to pay tributes to those Kashmiri Pundits who attained martyrdom since 1989-90.
Tears rolled down the eyes of Sarla Taploo as she remembered her husband Pt Tika Lal Taploo, who was the first Kashmiri Pundit assassinated by the terrorists in the valley, this day 20 years ago.
Remembering that awful day, Sarla said, "different groups of terrorists used to give life threats to him but he did not bother because he was a brave man."
"Before his death, he took a promise from me that I should continue his work as a social activist and I am doing it. The BJP gave me ticket and I contested the assembly and general elections but unfortunately I couldn’t win."
Expressing the pain, Kavita Saraf (daughter) said, "When I went out of my home, I saw my father’s body surrounded by hundreds of Muslims of our area. I can not forget that scene in my life."
"Two days before his assignation he gave a daring speech at Haba Kadal and suddenly after that we received a threat from terrorists to leave the valley within 15 days. On that very day one agent called him out and said that he had to go to the court for an important case. That was a conspiracy for his assassination."
The ASKPC honoured the family members of few such persons who were killed by the terrorists in the valley since 1989-90 by presenting "Tika Lal Taploo Shaheedi Puraskar".
Protests, public meetings, performance of hawans marked the observance of Martyrs Day.
Continuing its series of protest demonstrations, JKVM paid homage on roads to the martyrs who fell to the bullets and onslaught of Jehadi terrorists.
Addressing the demonstrators JKVM leaders said that Kashmiri Hindus have only been given false assurances and empty promises from the government since their exile. Though different governments have talked of honorable return of Kashmiri Hindus but they have proved only bare words.
They said if Government was sincere towards Pundits it should have directly talked to those who were protesting on roads. They also accused the government of burying the Kashmiri Hindu Shrines Bill.
Panun Kashmir (PK) organised a function at Abhinav theatre in which rich tributes were paid to the martyrs. Two minutes silence was also observed in their memory. The function started with hoisting of PK flag on the dais by a team of organising secretaries. Floral tributes were paid to the martyrs and on the occasion a framed picture with 20 chinar leaves depicting the 20 years of exile was showcased.
While in Delhi, as a symbolic protest to mark the anniversary, 20 Kashmiri Pundits tonsured their heads and offered prayers for thousands of unfortunate victims. Each of the persons who underwent tonsuring symbolically represented each year of their life in exile.
In another programme held at Jantar Mantar here activists of various KP organisations staged a demonstration to mark the 20th Martyrs Day. On the occasion rich tributes were paid to Mr Tika Lal Taploo. Around 80,000 Kashmir Pundits are "living in exile in Delhi and its suburbs and all of them have expressed solidarity with the initiative".
US the wrong place to go to talk about Pak terror
By Dr. Jay Dubashi
The Chinese fooled even Nehru, for, he called all such incursions cartographic aggressions-Nehru was a master of words, for didn’t he spend time in Eton and Cambridge, where such words are coined?-meaning they were no problems at all and not worth fighting over. The Chinese didn’t think so. They may have invented paper two thousand years ago, but they have more faith in their armies than that in their fancy paperwork.
Our friend, Home Minister P Chidambaram is back from the US after reporting to his bosses over there that Pakistan is not behaving properly and India is deeply dissatisfied with progress of ‘investigations" into 26/11 supposed to be conducted by Pakistan. Read that sentence again and you will start laughing. Firstly, it was the Home Minister who was reporting to Washington, not the Foreign Minister. Now, why should a home minister, or any minister for that matter, report to anyone outside the country? Are we a colony of the United States? Do we have to report to them every now and then as the Viceroy used to do to 10 Downing Street from time-to-time when we were indeed a colony?
Then comes the bit about investigations. Who says that Pakistan is conducting investigations? The Pakistan government’s writ does not run beyond a few miles outside Islamabad. How long since we had any news about Asif Ali Zardari, who is supposed to be Pakistan’s President? Is he still alive, maybe reading that book about Jinnah by his favourite author, or has he been bumped, as most Pakistani presidents are? And if he is out of action, who exactly has taken his place?
The fact is that if Chidambaram was in the US to complain about Pakistan, he went to the wrong place. Pakistan, the little bit that still exists on paper, and America are allies, and have been allies ever since the birth of that country. The two allies collaborate closely on everything from nuclear energy to missiles, and while Pakistan pretends to fight the terrorists, America pretends to believe it is really doing so. America has had bases in Pakistan for the last 50 years and will continue to do so till kingdom come. And currently it provides a big base for their forces in Afghanistan.
In fact, Barack Obama has realised that he has lost the fight in Afghanistan and the American people are tired of sending their young men to fight all over the world from where they return home in caskets. They do not know why they are fighting in Afghanistan just as they did not know why they were fighting in Vietnam. The Vietnam war was over long before it was officially declared closed and so is the Afghan war. Actually, almost the whole of Afghanistan is now under the Taliban, except a few bits around Kabul and it is a matter of time before that falls too.
When Chidambaram goes to Washington to complain against Pakistan, he will be complaining to the wrong party, for, as I said, Pakistan is an ally of America, and nothing happens in Pakistan without the knowledge of the United States. I am quite sure Washington has a copy of the list of complaints he has taken with him. America is not a neutral party in the affair; it is very much involved in everything that is happening in Pakistan. If Chidambaram does not know this, he has a great deal to learn, just as he had a great deal to learn about finance when he became Finance Minister. If Chidambaram is so keen on the Washington trip, let him have one, but let him not pretend that he is doing anything useful. The Americans in the State Department, or to whoever he will be reporting, will be laughing behind his back and saying under their breath what a foolish lot Indians are, as our minister goes from office to office asking for a hearing.
Then there is another colleague of Chidambaram’s in the cabinet, the so-called Minister of External Affairs, so-called because we rarely hear about him, and who, one would have thought, would be doing what Chidambaram proposes to do. But SM Krishna, that is what his name is in case you do not know, seems to be the least informed Foreign Minister in this part of the world. He told reporters in Delhi that the India-China border is the most peaceful around India and our relations with China have never been friendlier.
You can say that again. Krishna feels that China’s incursions into India-and this is what our air force has said in so many words-are no incursions at all and in any case, there is a committee of experts to look into such problems. "I don’t think", said the man who is more interested in his wardrobe than in the goings-on in Ladakh, or wherever it is that the Chinese are massing, and called for his tailor to stitch another band-gala for his next outing in, where else, Venezuela.
If small-time committees could tackle problems of incursions, you would not need armies and navies at all. All wars start when nations intrude, often with their armies, into other nations’ backyards. This is how the Second World War started. Right up to the start of the war, Neville Chamberlain was saying that everything was under control, that all committees, to tackle border disputes were in place, and everybody could switch off lights and go to sleep. Incidentally, Chamberlain was fond of natty suits too, except that they were of the wrong cut, just like Krishna’s suits!
Actually it was Chamberlain, like Krishna, who was going to sleep, while Hitler was cooking up maps and alerting his cronies. Krishna is basically a babu; he thinks that all problems can be solved if you have proper files with proper notings and nothing can go wrong as long as the files are there. And that is precisely what Krishna is saying. He says that there are proper border dispute committees with a joint secretary, a deputy secretary and maybe a couple of peons, and as long as they have not reported anything, everything is fine. And if the Chinese are really intent on creating trouble, they will first inform the committee-in triplicate-and then we shall see what to do.
The Chinese fooled even Nehru, for, he called all such incursions cartographic aggressions-Nehru was a master of words, for didn’t he spend time in Eton and Cambridge, where such words are coined?-meaning they were no problems at all and not worth fighting over. The Chinese didn’t think so. They may have invented paper two thousand years ago, but they have more faith in their armies than that in their fancy paperwork. They came over the Himalayas, firing from all sides, and in no time at all, had Nehru running for cover, looking for help. And there was no trace of the border committees and, of course, Nehru’s faithful but useless servant, Krishna Menon.
We have another Krishna who operated from Maurya Sheraton at a cost of Rs one lakh per day, and he is going about mumbling the same nonsense. Surely, the least Manmohan Singh can do is get another foreign minister and send this Maurya Krishna back to wherever he came from!
The Chinese fooled even Nehru, for, he called all such incursions cartographic aggressions-Nehru was a master of words, for didn’t he spend time in Eton and Cambridge, where such words are coined?-meaning they were no problems at all and not worth fighting over. The Chinese didn’t think so. They may have invented paper two thousand years ago, but they have more faith in their armies than that in their fancy paperwork.
Our friend, Home Minister P Chidambaram is back from the US after reporting to his bosses over there that Pakistan is not behaving properly and India is deeply dissatisfied with progress of ‘investigations" into 26/11 supposed to be conducted by Pakistan. Read that sentence again and you will start laughing. Firstly, it was the Home Minister who was reporting to Washington, not the Foreign Minister. Now, why should a home minister, or any minister for that matter, report to anyone outside the country? Are we a colony of the United States? Do we have to report to them every now and then as the Viceroy used to do to 10 Downing Street from time-to-time when we were indeed a colony?
Then comes the bit about investigations. Who says that Pakistan is conducting investigations? The Pakistan government’s writ does not run beyond a few miles outside Islamabad. How long since we had any news about Asif Ali Zardari, who is supposed to be Pakistan’s President? Is he still alive, maybe reading that book about Jinnah by his favourite author, or has he been bumped, as most Pakistani presidents are? And if he is out of action, who exactly has taken his place?
The fact is that if Chidambaram was in the US to complain about Pakistan, he went to the wrong place. Pakistan, the little bit that still exists on paper, and America are allies, and have been allies ever since the birth of that country. The two allies collaborate closely on everything from nuclear energy to missiles, and while Pakistan pretends to fight the terrorists, America pretends to believe it is really doing so. America has had bases in Pakistan for the last 50 years and will continue to do so till kingdom come. And currently it provides a big base for their forces in Afghanistan.
In fact, Barack Obama has realised that he has lost the fight in Afghanistan and the American people are tired of sending their young men to fight all over the world from where they return home in caskets. They do not know why they are fighting in Afghanistan just as they did not know why they were fighting in Vietnam. The Vietnam war was over long before it was officially declared closed and so is the Afghan war. Actually, almost the whole of Afghanistan is now under the Taliban, except a few bits around Kabul and it is a matter of time before that falls too.
When Chidambaram goes to Washington to complain against Pakistan, he will be complaining to the wrong party, for, as I said, Pakistan is an ally of America, and nothing happens in Pakistan without the knowledge of the United States. I am quite sure Washington has a copy of the list of complaints he has taken with him. America is not a neutral party in the affair; it is very much involved in everything that is happening in Pakistan. If Chidambaram does not know this, he has a great deal to learn, just as he had a great deal to learn about finance when he became Finance Minister. If Chidambaram is so keen on the Washington trip, let him have one, but let him not pretend that he is doing anything useful. The Americans in the State Department, or to whoever he will be reporting, will be laughing behind his back and saying under their breath what a foolish lot Indians are, as our minister goes from office to office asking for a hearing.
Then there is another colleague of Chidambaram’s in the cabinet, the so-called Minister of External Affairs, so-called because we rarely hear about him, and who, one would have thought, would be doing what Chidambaram proposes to do. But SM Krishna, that is what his name is in case you do not know, seems to be the least informed Foreign Minister in this part of the world. He told reporters in Delhi that the India-China border is the most peaceful around India and our relations with China have never been friendlier.
You can say that again. Krishna feels that China’s incursions into India-and this is what our air force has said in so many words-are no incursions at all and in any case, there is a committee of experts to look into such problems. "I don’t think", said the man who is more interested in his wardrobe than in the goings-on in Ladakh, or wherever it is that the Chinese are massing, and called for his tailor to stitch another band-gala for his next outing in, where else, Venezuela.
If small-time committees could tackle problems of incursions, you would not need armies and navies at all. All wars start when nations intrude, often with their armies, into other nations’ backyards. This is how the Second World War started. Right up to the start of the war, Neville Chamberlain was saying that everything was under control, that all committees, to tackle border disputes were in place, and everybody could switch off lights and go to sleep. Incidentally, Chamberlain was fond of natty suits too, except that they were of the wrong cut, just like Krishna’s suits!
Actually it was Chamberlain, like Krishna, who was going to sleep, while Hitler was cooking up maps and alerting his cronies. Krishna is basically a babu; he thinks that all problems can be solved if you have proper files with proper notings and nothing can go wrong as long as the files are there. And that is precisely what Krishna is saying. He says that there are proper border dispute committees with a joint secretary, a deputy secretary and maybe a couple of peons, and as long as they have not reported anything, everything is fine. And if the Chinese are really intent on creating trouble, they will first inform the committee-in triplicate-and then we shall see what to do.
The Chinese fooled even Nehru, for, he called all such incursions cartographic aggressions-Nehru was a master of words, for didn’t he spend time in Eton and Cambridge, where such words are coined?-meaning they were no problems at all and not worth fighting over. The Chinese didn’t think so. They may have invented paper two thousand years ago, but they have more faith in their armies than that in their fancy paperwork. They came over the Himalayas, firing from all sides, and in no time at all, had Nehru running for cover, looking for help. And there was no trace of the border committees and, of course, Nehru’s faithful but useless servant, Krishna Menon.
We have another Krishna who operated from Maurya Sheraton at a cost of Rs one lakh per day, and he is going about mumbling the same nonsense. Surely, the least Manmohan Singh can do is get another foreign minister and send this Maurya Krishna back to wherever he came from!
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