Saffron surge in Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh which sends 29 MPs to the parliament and is traditionally known for its bipolar politics is experiencing a changed sceanrio as lesser parties like Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) have started making their presence felt in the central state.

In the previous 2004 general election, the BJP riding on a popular wave and a strong anti-Congress feeling won 25 of Madhya Pradesh's 29 seats with the rest going to Congress. Prominent winners of Congress included Kamalnath and JyotirAditya Scindia.

This time too, experts feel that BJP will romp home quite comfortably. This so called positive feeling for BJP is not being attributed to any national issues like internal security or job opportunities but local issues on which BJP is on a strong platform.

The state government under Shivraj Singh Chauhan has grown stronger with each passing day. His simple yet effective way of governing and his emphasis on development has made sure that the BJP cadre has enough related ammunitions to deal with any congress tirade.

The different state of affairs which the state saw under Digvijay Singh and the scenario under the present CM is quite stark.

In the previous general election the state was virtually nil when it came to good roads and regular electricity supply. But that has changed. Similarly the CM who himself comes from a rural background has made amply sure that the rural segment is not ignored due to which the state has witnessed an all-round development.

The party faced many a discontent during the previous assembly election but most of them were settled amicably as every party leader knows that in the present time BJP is going through a golden period in the state and it would be suicidal to go against the party wish, especially against the CM.

The BJP is functioning so well in the state that former Union minister Sushma Swaraj - the BJP's Election in charge for Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand - is in the fray from this Vidisha constituency. Call it the real ‘feel good’ factor.

Out of the 29 seats there are more than at least half a dozen seat where the contested is expected to be one sided. Most of them in favor of BJP. Congress though can safely bet their money only on Kamalnath and Scindia.

The only million dollar question that one can speculate on is whether the BJP will be bale to improve on its previous tally of 25 seats or not. Politically it is very difficult, maybe next to impossible. In the previous election the mass came out to vote for two reasons; First to remove Congress and secondly to install BJP.

This time the first factor is irrelevant.

Secondly the region that is attached to UP is an area where SP and BSP do exercise some influence. Now it remains to be seen how much of that influence will be transformed into votes.

The lesser parties may not appear as a very big issue , but still they have kept both BJP and Congress busy.

Bihar braces up for elections

Congress president, Ms Sonia Gandhi’s decision to walk away from the RJD and LJP in the Lok Sabha elections in Bihar was a historic action of the party.

Though it is a different thing that it was the RJD and the LJP leaders,Lalu Prasad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan who provoked the Congress to announce its candidature in all the 40 seats from the state.

The two parties formed their alliance and left only three seats for the Congress-the largest partner in the UPA. The LJP-RJD left Aurangabad(Nikhil Kumar),Sasaram(Ms Meria Kumar) and Madhubani(Shakeel Ahmad),all sitting Congress MPs for the Big brother in the UPA. The decision was unilateral and the Congress was not consulted.

In 2004 elections,Lalu had allotted six seats to the Congress,three were successful.Even in the assembly elections,Congress candidates were selected by Lalu Yadav in Bihar.The party which ruled Bihar since 1937(Sr Krishna Sinha days) was reduced to just ten legilaslators in the House.

Back in 2000 elections, all the 20 Congress MLAs were made ministers in Rabri Government when the Congress decided to extend support to the RJD’s minority ministry.

Though,Yadav and Paswan have extended their alliance by inducting the Samajwadi Party of Mulayam Singh Yadav into their 134 seats fold(UP,Bihar and Jharkhand),they have refrained from attacking Ms Sonia Gandhi or the Congress in their election speeches. They are in fact reiterating they are still in the UPA.

The same gesture has been reciprocated by the AICC general secretary, Rahul Gandhi,who addressed several election meetings in the first round in Bihar. Rahul did not attack either Lalu or Paswan,but severely criticized the chief minister, Nitish Kumar, alleging the NDA government in Bihar misused the central funds allotted to Bihar .

Paswan and Lalu are claiming they have got nothing to do with the Third Front. They have also denied any links with Sharad Pawar and did not include the NCP in their electoral adjustments of constituencies in Bihar.

By concentrating in 134 seats during the campaign, the Dalit-MY (Muslim-Yadav) leaders are trying to strengthen their bargaining power in the post-election scene at the Centre. They want to keep Mayawati and the Third Front in check ,they have little option in the post –result scene. They can not align with the NDA led by the BJP nor can go with the Third Front,which has no existence in the three states.

The Left Parties have little impact in Bihar,Jharkhand or Uttar Pradesh. They can ignore the NCP,Third Front or Maywati in Bihar and Jharkhand, but they can not ignore the Congress.

The 40 seats from Bihar are witnessing multi-cornered contest every where with the presence of the Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party candidates in the fray.

The Congress which has fielded all the three sitting MPs,nominated children and relatives of the senior Congress leaders and also allowed Lalu Yadav’s brother-in-law Sadhy Yadav,to contest from Bettiah against LJP’s Prakash Jha,a film producer.

The party kept the caste considerations while selecting the nominees and admitted Lovely Anand,wife of Ananad Mohan Singh, currently in jail following his conviction in Gopalganj District Magistrate murder case. Lovely too was convicted by the Fast Track Court but acquitted by Patna High Court. She has been nominated from a Rajput dominated constituency of Sheohar which was once represented by her husband.

The current trends of electioneering indicate, the Janata Dal(U)_ BJP combine may get more than what they got in 2004 elections. Together,they are expected to capture between 25 and 30 seats and the RJD-LJP may get 10-12 seats. The Congress may be confined to one to three seats only. In 2004,RJD had 24 seats, LJP four and the NDA 12 MPs from Bihar.

A marred educated young class called MPs

Interesting facts make for interesting reading.

We generally believe that our existing lot of aged politicians should make way for the younger breed that we assume is waiting in the wings to take India to its grand success.For the young guys will bring with them energy and a vision that is best suited to take our country into the future.

Lets sample some facts. Never a harm in looking at ‘figures’, especially if they are well drawn out.

The average age of elected members in the current 14th parliament is 52.6 years. But the surprise comes when we look at our new found partner USA, where the average age is 55.9 years. Japan too has a not so young average age of 52.3.

Is 52 too old an age to be sitting in the parliament?

Various assumptions can be drawn if we compare, say, the US average and Indian average. But if we simply go by the figures, the theory that old legs make the whole system go slow will not hold much weight here. For if that was true, than both US and to some extent Japan would be on par with , if not lagging behind, with where our political structure stands.

My point is that, age, is not the sole criterion which decides how a political structure of the country functions. Agreed that young leaders will be more in sync with today’s demands, outlook, perspective and need but they will also be lacking in experience, teachings that only comes with time, one which is not taught in universities or schools.

So my take is age, rather over- age, is not the ill that ails the Indian parliament. Then what is it ? Maybe Education?

In the just concluded 14^th Lok Sabha, 22 MPs had a Doctoral degree, 166 were post graduates and 250 were graduates. This implies that more than 77 % of the total MPs that we elected had a graduate or a higher degree. Is not that a healthy average? Add to it 104 members who are matriculates or diploma holder. And you say ‘Wow’.

Were not we yesterday night grumbling that we are paying the price of an illiterate political class?

Is being educated the only criteria for being a good leader? No, it is not. If it was, then we would have one of the best behaved, visionary political class. And I would bet my every paisa that all of you will agree that they are anything but ‘well behaved and visionary’.

Some may be there, but collectively they appear what they are known as, i.e, ‘politicians”.

It is among there educated MPs, who cry for ‘Z’ security when even a local thug would not even look at them forget about assassination threat and its among them who were caught taking bribe and it is among them who try to fight it out physically and verbally rather than politically.

But they might have a reason. They always do. Yes they have. Their only alibi; they are also humans, prone to ‘occasional’ fits of greed, anger, and similar other vices. Maybe they are more human less political or is it the other way round?

When it all started…

Things were changing too quickly for them to react. A moment ago it was he who was seeking answers and the very next moment it was she who was asking questions.

Questions and answers; answers that were hard to come were by and even harder to absorb. And in between all this reasoning and explanation, love, that used to be the soul that connected both of them, was laid into oblivion.

The trust that still was in its blossoming stage trembled as every step taken by both of them to resurrect appeared to be like lighting a candle in a windy night. The hope that the candle would not extinguish once it was lighted, and the belief that it would give enough light and love to extinguish the stark recent days and nights of darkness was pushing them to try more and more. But the darkness prevailed. Darkness that was because of the other forms of love; Jealousy and insecurity.

No longer words inspired trust and no longer was expressing of love the response to all bitterness. The tomorrow that was built of love, of dreams, of moments that were inspired by looking into each other’s eyes, and of innocent touch, was slowly crumbling. Also ignored were the many love-filled ‘yesterdays’.

One was not willing to forget the past and the other was not ready to accept that past as a part of the present. The past that had come back brought with itself the unknown, the invisible yet a powerful poison due to which a love that was still adolescent and vulnerable started withering away.

What he asked of her was to forget the past. But for her this was too difficult 'choice' to make.

Suddenly the so promising future appeared a distinct reality as everything was forgotten in some hours of clash of emotions.

As one of them tried to walk the thorn strew path to the others heart, the painful journey was compounded by words that made the pain even more unbearable. A solace, a silent succor was all that was required to reach home. It never came.

In times of love they would talk about who loved other the most. Sometimes she won and many times he lost. This time no one won.

As Chunmun, the only living being that was mutually attached to both of them, tried hard to fight off an imminent death, the mutual love between the two, too was fading away .

Jaanu and Doggy will never be just a pair of words for them. They never were.

As one of them developed love in dogs, the other one found an added interest in the latest songs.

As is said, good things come in small packages. Four months fifteen days was small indeed. And it was sweet and a little bit of sour.

Memories that will come back will be hard to describe or to let go. Metro, Airport, Delhi haat, morning alarm, sleep calls, Raj Thackrey, CCD, Bhopal,Wadala,Nizamuddin,Bandhavgarh, Patel chowk, Republic day, Bournvita and the not so warm Maggi will sometimes bring fond,warm memories that will make them steal a concealed smile or a twinkle in the eyes.

Memories of time that was felt only by them and no-one else. Of standing in cold nights and watching the sun rise and of witnessing the many a toothless smiles. Moments of winking and waiting, of laughing and crying. Of sweet apologies and a world of happiness. Sometimes eyes may give away the extent of ‘happiness’. They always do.

Who loved whom the more is something that no one will be able to ever answer. Perhaps the saddest part of this tale was they even they themselves were not able to make each other understand how much they loved each other.

Maybe both of them loved each other equally, but some things should be left upon god to decide, for he sees what we may never even imagine.

It was the month of October or perhaps even before when it all started …

Bihar Congress- now the only way is forward

Until now the Congress party in Bihar had failed to make any ‘visible’ impact on the streets of Bihar. As you roamed the city you will find smiling, bearded, tired, jovial, all kinds of faces of different leaders of all parties except Congress.

But now that has changed as Rahul Gandhi has finally found a place in the political space of Patna. Hoardings depicting him as the future leader of the country have come up at various points in the city.

Though Rahul Gandhi has still not taken up any ‘Bihar specific’ discovery of India tour yet his ‘supposed’ charismatic affect is being used by the party organization to motivate the party cadre and to galvanize supporters.

I find it very strange that India’s biggest political party, Congress, has a very negligible stake, share and presence in a politically active state like Bihar, which historically has been the birth place and play ground of national leaders. I can assure you that this is one place were politics comes before cricket.

Knock on the doors of any house and you are sure to find a political connection that goes either directly to the CM house or in most cases to the political corridors of Delhi. Poke anyone, be it a retired professor, a bank employee, an executive engineer or a street fruit vendor, and they will come out with political stories and development that are hard to imagine. Maybe once can doubt their truthfulness, but then they will say “it may be false now but who knows by the time you finish your dinner it will turn true”. Agreed.

A Delhi based Congress party functionary who was recently in Patna said that the ‘AC culture’ has made the senior leaders of Patna sensitive to sun and insensitive to political requirements. Now they find it hard to come out on street, stage protest, voice demands of the mass which ultimately has led to the downfall of the party presence in the eastern state.

Political vultures have not failed to take notice of this poor state of Congress in the state. Till recently leaders from other regional parties like RJD and LJP decided on which seat should be Congress granted concession so that its nominee may contest.

Also, the Congress been not able to find any local leader who can act as the face of the party. Every state has a leader who represents the party in his region. In Madhya Pradesh there are Digvijay singh, Kamal Nath, in Delhi it is Sheila Dixit, in Chhattisgarh it is Ajit Jogi and so on. Most of them were popular even before they became CM or MPs. But unfortunately the party has no such luxury in Bihar.

Party old timers understandably find this painful and blame the national leaders who in order to run their horses in Delhi mortgaged the party interest in the state. This demotivated the party workers, forcing them to switch loyalties. As a result Bihar Congress has been reduced to a political widow.

Some months back when the MNS goons were beating Bihari and UP migrant workers and making news all over the Country none of the Congress leaders including Rahul Gandhi thought it was required to come out and say some words denouncing the act. I have never been able to comprehend the reason behind this insensitivity.

So much for a comprehensive Indian political dream.

The party cannot sink further anymore in Bihar. With nothing to lose but everything to gain, state leaders should begin its revival through small slow steps. First sit, then stand and then fight.

What the Congress needs in Bihar is to focus on long term gains, ignoring the short term losses. Giving itself 5 years and in the meantime strengthening the party cadre and increasing its reach among the mass and will turn true the seemingly impossible possibility of forming the government by its own.

Rahul Gandhi may be short of time but as he embarks on mission to make Congress a pan India party he should not forget that Bihar too figures on his political map.

Why...

Why do I walk the path that takes me to the destination I won’t go
Why I start with not so faltering steps only to stop and look back

why do I trample the flowers that I sowed with years of trust and love
and why do the flowers refuse to come to life again

why do I close my eyes choosing not to see the obvious
and why do I wish to dream the not so obvious

why does my heart plays truant with me
and why I ignore the brain which tries hard to stay with me

why have I to decide who and what is right
why have I to wonder and fear
and why have I to be fearless again

why can’t everything remain the same
the same moon, the same night
the same you the same me

I miss...

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The early morning days of being woken up by smiling mom,

The small walk to the bus stop accompanied by smiling dad

The bus ride to the imposing gates of the monster school

The clinging of bells, the voice of the teacher in specs

The sharing of foil wrapped maggi with a friend so close

The drinking of hot water from the bottle in blue

The last period and the smile on face so cute

The evening prayer and the bus queue

As I grow up, I miss those days in small shorts

heavy sweaters, caring teachers, and a play time that was always short

In came the 12^th and we found the world too small

no more small walk, no more wake up calls

A world of friends and flames

an evening of hangout spots and watching birds

an age of dreams to weave

an age of expressing love that was deep

an age of flying aspirations,

of worldly flavors and neighbour hood inspirations

the demon that was 12^th board

the angel that was the subsequent result

as I grow up, I miss those days of attendance and rules

a life with friends, concerned teachers

of merry time that will never come back again

Ah Rail...

Everyone of us have some tale to tell when it comes to the great Indian railways.

Right from the days when we use to uggle and guggle and when a train journey in itself was a holiday, we have had fond memories of the black circle engine that pulled the red boggies.

When we use to travel with out parents to far off destinations we would wonder when we would graduate from staring out of the coveted window seat to the much exciting standing at the pedestals of the door.

The Giant bridges that stood on surging gigantic rivers,the dark long tunnels that appeared to be a gateway to the other world, the urge to stick out the neck so as to witness the breathtaking sight of the train in curve, all have left an indelible mark on our mind.

The long hours of the blissful journey gave ample opportunity to develop relations and friends. It was not very uncommon to share numbers and address of co-passengers and part with promises to keep in touch. Rarely were those promises broken.

The Majumdars,the Pandeys, the Singh, all would become part of one family as right from toothpaste, water, lunch,seats and even towels were shared.

Love stories too flourished in those not so small compartments. Eyes met,glances exchanged and a love story was all yours to talk, experience and write about. In winters of 1991 I was fortunate enough to be a part of one such tale. The fifteen hours journey was too small to even think of talking to her. But as we sat and waited for the inevitable to happen, love did flourish. And the epic love story ended sweetly with the colorful 'James choclate ' acting as the parting gift.

The urge to get down at stations, the craving to have tea from the station vendor, and the expectation of getting window seat, all added to the already jumping excitement. Those days the neighbor hood would know one month in advance that one of the near by family is going off for a hoilday. And 3 days before the actual journey, people would flock at homes, offering advice, giving eatables and clothes that was to be given to someone who would be waiting at one of the the station.

People come and moments go...some of them are remembered some of them are missed.

Bihar diary January

Political equations are changing fast in Bihar as the Lok sabha election approaches.

The once bitter enemy , LJP party president Ram Vilas Paswan and the RJD President Lalu Prasad yadav have now come closer. Paswan has said Laluji has run his full course in Bihar and now it his time to lead the UPA to power in Bihar. Paswan described Lalu as his good friend and Yadav called the LJP leader a senior leader of India.

Yavav reciprocated by saying he would support Paswan as the next dalit prime minister and welcomed Paswan's decision to lead the UPA in Bihar. He also said he has no problem in Paswan's demand for 20 out of 40 lok sabha seats in Bihar.

Though both the leaders are a part of the UPA yet the relationship between them has never been too friendly. But with Nitish Kumar emerging stronger and popular with every passing day, the two leaders who call themselves as the messiah of the backward class find themselves sharing common platform and both of them have now accepted the fact that in order to stop a repeat of the previous state assembly election , they will have to compromise their personal agendas.

The biggest gainer in this political game will be Paswan who has nothing to lose when compared to Lalu.

If Lalu is routed in the coming elections, his entire political career would be at stake.Ranjan Prasad Yadav,now vice-president of the LJP and a close associate of Lalu for the last several years commented “Lalu knows, his future is sealed, hence he has come to the shelter of Ramvilas Paswan.”

He alleged that in the 2005 election campaign Lalu yadav used to tell people “ Burn the hurt”(Election symbol of paswan) and “Arrange funeral of Paswan”

Graph of Nitish Kumar has considerably improved in the last four years. He is working on development plank only and this won him the Politician of the Year award sponsored by a premier English daily and a News Channel. Nitish is camping in the villages to oversee the development works. He has also launched a campaign against corruption in the government offices and announced reward upto Rs five lakhs for the informers about corrupt officers.

Political observers of Bihar admit,Nitish Kumar will have a definite advantage in the Lok Sabha elections over his rivals-Lalu and Paswan.Lalu has become weaker with the Congress general secretary,Rahul Gandhi ,supporting the demands of the Bihar Congress leaders demanding more seats to the party nominees.

In the past, even the Congress candidates were decided by Lalu. Recently Lalu himself admitted “What Can I do if the Congress decides to contest all the seats.”

The Lok Sabha elections have upset the calculations among the BJP leaders.The film star turned politician, Shatrughan Sinha has announced his candidature from Patailputra constitutency.

The party spokesman,Ravishankar Prasad and vice -president of the state unit,R K Sinha,too have also announced their plan to contest from the same seat.

Visible Inner discontents are harbingers of an election mela. Surely the mela is all set to arrive in Bihar

MP Digest January

As with other states, MadhyaPradesh too has started to feel the effects of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections as both the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress have started to galvanize their supporters to visit the electorates and woo them.

The results of the recently concluded state assembly elections have come as a booster for the ruling BJP, as a result of which many of the central leaders of the party who were searching for a safe seat have now turned their attention towards Madhya Pradesh.

Prominent leaders including Sushma Swaraj and Smriti Irani have been vying for a seat from Madhya Pradesh. The party high command in New Delhi is also facing lots of resistance against name of some sitting MPs due to inner discontent. Those leaders who created hurdles for their own party members during the assembly election are now themselves facing the heat now.

MP from Indore Sumitra Mahajan is facing inner revolt from one of her party colleague and Minister Kailash Vijawargiya who commands a strong hold in Indore. During the recent assembly election, Mahajan and Vijaywargiya were engaged in bitter feud over whose supporter will get the tickets.

In between all the political games, Shivraj Singh Chauhan has not lost his focus and is working on selling his image of a “Development” intensive leader. He has roped in management gurus to teach good governance to ministers and bureaucrats.

Chauhan has also decided to train his cabinet colleagues and officers in good governance. He may be taking a leaf out of Bihar Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar’s book, who too had invited management experts to teach the ministers and officers.

Chauhan held a three-days training camp for his ministers at the tourist spot, Panchmarhi, where management experts taught them lessons in good governance. He has decided to arrange similar training camps for the Babus next month.

Shivraj Singh Chauhan, has also engaged himself in mobilizing support of the unorganized sector in the state. He is regularly inviting members of these sectors at his CM bungalow on Shyama Hills and telling them about the different welfare schemes for them.

Last week, he called over 2500 rickshaw pullers and vegetable vendors of the streets to his house on lunch and asked them to take advantage of the different schemes of the state government . He announced Rs 800 subsidy for purchasing their own rickshaw and trolleys. Chauhan showed his skill by pulling rickshaws outside the CM house too.

Unlike his predecessors, Babulal Gaur or Ms Uma Bharti,Chauhan is keeping himself projected as good administrator and also a smart politicians, which he proved by getting the BJP re-elected for the second term in the December assembly elections.

He got the vice-chancellor of Bhopal's Barkatullah university, Bhupal Singh, a retired IAS sacked by the chancellor as the VC was facing several charges of corruption. Ravindra Jain,a professor succeeded him.

Chauhan who had earned a bad name during the infancy stage of his chief minister-ship two years back because of murder of a professor of Ujjan by the Vidhyarthi Parishad activists, has repeatedly sent out a message that he wants to keep the campus clean.

Some BJP leaders of the state who were trying to bring back former Union minister Prahlad Patel back into the party fold so as to use his stature in the Mahakaushal region of the state where asked to keep low as after many leaders of the party from the Mahakaushal region revolted. Patel had left BJP when Uma Bharti launched her own party. Later he was removed by Uma Bharti for not following her directions.

Congress on the other hand as is trying to reach out to the minorities by inducting former parliamentarian Aslam Sher Khan in the state Congress body as Vice President. Besides Aslam, several other local Muslim leaders have also been inducted in the state body. Post assembly elections postmortem revealed that the minority class had deserted Congress and this has led to a stronger thrust towards this section.

Love requires Love

We all have the habit of taking things for granted. And when things go wrong then we start ruing that why we didn’t realize its importance when it was still with us. This is more true when we talk about Love.

For some it’s a kind of cycle. They start neglecting the same person for whom they did whatever they could do to come closer. This neglect is because of this realization that that thing is ours now. Gradually but surely this neglect leads to distances, and by the time any of the two realize, things change. Distances become unfathomable.

And then the same cycle begins. Regret and ruing for not being able to keep the relationship safe.

Is it not better that we give our hundred percent when we are together rather than giving more than hundred percent when we will be apart?

Coming closer, developing mutual love is more difficult than going apart. Something that is with us right now doesn’t asks for anything but attention and more attention.

One must not forget that it is not necessary that since it is with us, it won’t leave us.Complacency in relationship is more harmful than one can imagine.

When we are feeling upset, we seek more love and affection from our partner, but it becomes difficult for they boy/girl to express care and concern if we are snubbing his /her efforts and care. What if someone tells us that one more snub and love dies. Will we rebuke his/her advances again?

A call that is not answered, a sms that is not acknowledged, or a message that was being eagerly awaited but one that did not arrive, are small things. But they go a long way in strengthening love or weakening it. They represent a feeling that was felt for the receiver, only for the receiver.

A feeling that someone is very important to the other’s life is very pleasing and soothing but a feeling that inspite of his/her being there the partner is still not feeling any difference is very much saddening and it hurts deep.

Do not let your one of those moments of bad mood swings destroy your relationship.

Don't expect love to withstand everything. Maybe it will, but why take chance again and again. If love requires hundred collective steps from you and your partner to reach it's home, try to take all those hundred steps by yourself, maybe your partner will also think the same and you will have more love. Why wait for him/her to take the first step or why to assume that since you have covered your part of fifty steps, he/she will cover the rest fifty steps?

Good times are all yours, take it. Don't compare the earlier times with the present time. Who knows, looking back to these very times we will regret for being too busy in ruing and complaining .

Wishing everyone a very happy Valentines day. Love seeks more love, nothing else.

Who is right?

In Mangalore, pub goers are assaulted by an unknown group which calls itself the Ram sene. Their “crime”; spreading indecency and promoting pub culture.

Moral policing in our country, which traditionally has been called a tolerant culture that prides in accepting every thing with open arms, is not a new phenomenon. Every year one or the other group emerges in a part of this country and purports an ideology that violates the rights of the very individual that they seek to protect.

Ram Sena, Shiv Sena, Maharastra Navnirman Sena all these ‘sena’ follow the same ideology; to somehow impose their ideology on the common mass.

One of them is against the pubs, one of them is against the westernization of expressing love and one of them finds the concept of regionalism too hard to resist.

When these conglomeration of chauvinist come out on street to show and pursue their intent the result is trampling of rights; rights that accrue to a human being because he/she is a human being, not because they are prescribed under any law.

Right to enjoy life, right to express feelings, right to interact with members of the opposite sex, right of not to be manhandled, right of not being degraded and humiliated and many such innumerable rights are violated, trampled in the most bizarre way.

The surprising and the sad part is that it’s just not the illiterate section of the society that are associated with such chauvinism but these groups have supporters from the educated class too. Working class, students support this ideology and find nothing offensive in whatever they do. So is the theory that education opens the mind, a myth?

Is this not like the classical scenario of a fight between the ‘right’ and the ‘wrong’. The good and the evil? For followers of the 'Senas' the moral and the regional policing that they are practicing is correct. Their critics will give them hundred reasons to put forward their point but in the same breath the supporters will point out hundred and one reason to prove that they are right.

It is the personal perception that defines what is right and what is not. And then it is personal sensitivity that determines which of the two ‘right’ one will veer towards. But sometimes we ignore the fact that it’s the personal sensitivity that shapes up the sensitivity of the society and the nation as a whole.

Empowerment means the right to decide. Let everything be decided by those who have to take the call. The concept of state and citizens right emerges from this very notion; the right to choose without fear and without favour.

Last week of December in Bhopal

Flaunting a fishing rod all the way from Char Imli to Kerwa despite knowing that neither of us would really catch a fish is something that doesn’t happens in life so often. Similarly having a simple coffee at CCD has never been a rare affair but this time it was something that I will remember for a long time.

In the last week of December, absolutely mundane things like ‘doing nothing’ seemed so purposeful.

Questioning two children who were bicycling whether they were lost, in spite being aware that their home was just few steps away, hiding from know eyes and unknown stares, the two cats on the street, the white maruti with a very vintage music player, everything appeared so significant.

The sun that went down on the 25th of December, was beautiful ;like it always is. But why it looked more prettier that day is something that can only be understood by those who have been there where we were.

I was never aware that a blink can cause so much mixed emotions. When someone was blushing the other was smiling. And when someone blinked the other could not control her laugh. Yes, maybe it was the funniest thing that was happening at that time in the whole restaurant.

I say it so because even the not so funny pony tailed guy sitting on the nearby table with his wife found it hard to resist having a word about us, which he quietly whispered into her ear.

Moving from the dense forest to open fields, from a crowd filled hotel to a lonely road that had nothing but a security guard who according to some was not a human but a ghost, are some simple moments that I experienced when I was in Bhopal. And if it was not for the other person, the fields, the forest and the roads would not have appeared so significant.

In the last week of December in Bhopal, unknown strangers became important and the known friends and acquaintance where lost somewhere .

I discovered that if not handled well, the same level of jealousy can be caused by a 50 years old white haired guy and a 20 something restaurant boy. Also discovered was that blue-green eyes have the power to stimulate the same level of jealousy, specially if the eyes are that of a girl.

Kinship with two of my friends witnessed a new level of trust being reached. One which was expressed by words that cannot be written here. Strange are the ways of expressing care.

They are Friends. They understood everything.

The vibrancy that someone displayed, be it the blue color on her soft nails, the red cap that was apparently borrowed from a child and or the many a different shades of clips delicately inserted into her hair, made me experience colors of life through a new-never before seen perspective.

Missing the moments even as they were passing was so much painful to the heart. And painful was to let go off those moments that were built by those beautiful hands and the sparkling eyes.

I sometimes feel that we all cling to the past for too long or desire for the future so much that we are not able to enjoy what the present moments offer.

One day we all realize this. The only difference being that some realize it soon and some not so soon.

Bihar analysis -December

With the focus shifting to the forthcoming general elections, the atmosphere in Bihar saw enhanced political activity.

CM Nitish kumar taking the cue, decided to embark on a 1 month Vikas yatra under which he will stay in villages so that he personally oversees development related work and interacts with the voters.

In the past, various other CMs from different states like Raman Singh, Digvijay Singh, Suderlal patwa , CM of Uttarakhand BC Khanduri and the present CM of Andhra Pradesh YSR Reddy have embarked on similar yatra with mix results.

The spotlight in the state has now shifted to development as was evident with both the major parties, the ruling JD(U) and the opposition RJD announcing various new projects in the state.

The 6^th pay commission was implemented in the state giving the huge number of government servants a reason to smile. The CM also announced starting of work on 6 major roads of Bihar, a project that is being financed by the Asian development bank.

Similarly construction of a major bridge across the river Sone which was long overdue was also announced.

Nitsih kumar also tried to reach out to the minority section of the population as he laid the foundation stones of three buildings to be constructed in the memories of Muslim leaders late Maulana Mazharul Haque, late Abdul Qayyum Ansari, and late Ghulam Sarwar.

CMs commitment towards the uplift-ment of the minorities has irked Lalu yadav as traditionally they have always supported him and the present endeavor on the part of Nitish has created insecurity in the mind of the RJD leader.

Not to be left behind, Lalu too announced many a new trains from Patna so as to woo the voters. Speculations are, that after delimitation Lalu Yadav will contest from Patna and his recent added interest towards the capital is being seen in this light.

The Kosi tragedy too continued to play its part as both the JD(U) and the RJD indulged in blame games over the distribution of relief money. On one hand, Nitsh kumar blamed the Center for not distributing the required promised relief amount and on the other Lalu Yadav accused the state government of not utilizing the money that was sent by the Center.

Will Kosi be a political issue is anyone’s guess. But it should not be forgotten that it was tragedy that affected millions and still millions are facing difficulty. Political games and gains in times of tragedy are inevitable. But one should not forget that in midst of everything even a loss of single human life is unpardonable.

A major political showdown between the coalition partner JD (U) and BJP was seen after JD(U) spokesperson Shivanand Tiwari asked the BJP to follow the Nitish kumar model of development.

This infuriated the state BJP leaders and soon it became a show of strength with both the parties praising their respective model of development. On one side was Nitish model of development and on the other side was the Modi and Raman Singh model of development.

The winds have started to blow, but they have yet to gain strength and the political storm that is bound to arise, like always will give us many things to write.

Madhya Pradesh analysis-December

The result of the recent assembly elections came out with no real surprise as the predictions of BJP coming back to power in the central state of Madhya Pradesh came true.

This time the BJP won 143 out of the total 230 assembly seats. In the previous election the saffron party had bagged 171 seats. Political Pundits have attributed this win to Shivraj singh Chauhan and his development oriented approach which was more than sufficient to cover the corruption charges that was synonymous with his previous government.

With the BJP top brass giving Chauhan complete charge of the state, he followed the Gujarat model whereby he denied tickets to many sitting MLAs and brought new faces.

It is also important to note that the difference between many of the winning candidates and those who lost was not much and it is quite true that on some another day BJP would have struggled to gain majority.

With the state witnessing a high polling percentage of more than 68%, both Congress and the BJP experienced contrasting emotions before the final results were announced as the general perception that a high polling percentage indicates resentment of the common mass against the incumbent government started doing the round.

But in the end, it was the Congress supporters who were left disappointed as internal squabbling and dissent left the party short of the number of seats that it was expecting.

The party under the state leadership of Suresh Pachori won 71 seats, up from the 38 seats which it won in the previous election. And it is no secret that if the selection of candidates was managed in a better way, the Congress could have definitely won more seats.

The bipolar political nature of the state was further strengthened amidst speculations of the lesser parties playing a bigger role as none of these parties could make a dent. The BSP came third winning 7 seats while Uma Bharti led BJS begged a poor 5 seats with the former CM herself losing her seat.

The disappointing performance of SP led to its state party chief being removed by SP supremo Mulayam Singh yadav. Madhya Pradesh state president Narayan Tripathi was removed and a new state president from Uttar Pradesh, Deep Narayan Yadav was appointed. Yadav is an MLA from Moth in Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh.

State Congress party president Suresh Pachouri, was the man who was the most disappointed of all the Congress state leaders as of the 50 plus candidates that he had recommended only 8 of them could secure win.

On the other hand, Kamalnath emerged as the tallest of all, as 22 of his supporters made it to the Assembly. Former chief minister Digvijay Singh came second with 17 MLAs and Jyotiraditya was third with 13 MLAs.

Post the casting of votes and before the actual results came in, Congress was more ecstatic than the BJP as the high polling percentage gave Congress a reason to hope that it would win more than 90 seats which was what some experts had predicted.

Looking back to this election, BJP will breath a sigh of relief as the majority that it has secured is not that comforting as it appears. On the other hand Congress would curse their luck and their leaders as a better poll management and coordination among the senior leaders would have given BJP a run for their money.

Mumabi is not just about Taj

After the 26-11 seize of Mumbai ended, the post mortem going into the conduct of the electronic media during the whole sixty hours of operation began to surface.

There are two thought process which have gained wind as we move more into analyzing the way media reported the whole incident. The first one says that the media did its duty in a commendable way and the second one which also has equal followers, says that they were inherently biased. And even in that time of ‘War on India’ as they described it, they were not able to move away from the magnetic force of TRPs.

The first notion is out there in the open for anyone to judge. We all were glued to the TV, we watched every second of the operation. And we can all make out what was happening.

The second one though needs to be elaborated. The terrorist before being surrounded in The Taj and Trident caused mayhem at the CST railway station. But none of the media personnel were present at the CST to bring out the details of those who died. Some people will attribute this to the great socio-economic difference that separates someone walking in the Taj and someone at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus

The other reason which comes into mind is that perhaps at CST the action was already over, those who had to die, were dead. The marauders had moved to the Taj. And I can well imagine that an editor instructing his reporters, for obvious reasons, would have told his crew to focus on Taj where the action was still unfolding.

As we watched in disbelief, reporters and cameraperson waited for hours, ducked for cover whenever a blast occurred as they brought out the real picture to us. Even if nothing was happening, the news-anchor, would move to the reporter on-site and ask him to update on the current situation. While people were searching for their dead ones at the CST, the media continued its focus on Taj. According to those who were entrusted with the job of bringing out the news, Taj was a more visible face of Mumbai, known to the world, visited by the ‘elites’. Is not CST a part of Mumbai? I am sure that the ordinary Mumbaikars have spent more hours in and around CST then they have in Taj.

In the midst of all this, the idea of unbiased reporting was forgotten. And also lost was the sense of empathy and compassion. Perhaps overtaken by other materialistic consideration.

Questions about how long will the Taj be shut, who will renovate it, will MF Hussain’s painting don the walls again, will the guest be able to forget 26-11 once they enter Taj , every such questions were asked. But not even a question about who died in CST was ever heard.

The who’s and who’ of the electronic media, seasoned journalist, and veteran editors found themselves moving with the more vibrant side of the whole incident.

It was not an operation that got over in matter of minutes or a couple of hour, but as we all know, it lasted sixty hours. Taking every practical consideration, the networking with the authorities, the sound bytes, the updates, Sixty hours was more than enough for one to focus on CST and VT Hospital. Only if they wanted to.

In one of the articles that appeared in the Washington post after the Mumbai attacks, the writer has emphasized on this very disparity, which even in such testing times, failed to corrode. The article talks about the serial blast in the Mumbai trains that took place more than 2 years ago and says that since if affected the common people, the media sensitiveness was subdued. Even we as common citizens were subdued, no candle light protest, no ‘awaken India’.

Have we started perceiving things as perceived by the media? Does the media’s response decide our response?

Was 26-11 more deadly than 11-07 just because electronic media thought it that way?

India as we all know has more number of the poor and the voiceless. And it is always unfortunate that it is the rich and the vociferous, however less in number, get the attention. 26-11 was no different.

In an open letter to all those who are concerned, one of the journalist who has been on the line of fire, says that “Surely, India has bigger lessons to learn and larger points to mull over, than to expend energy over which television journalist tops the charts or falls to the bottom.”

I sincerely hope that the media too has learnt its part of the chapter and hopefully they will practice what they preach and see the bigger picture.

But then it has never been about the common Indian. Or is it?

http://desicritics.org/2008/12/11/102451.php

The siege

It all started when Delhi, as the media had put it, was under siege. A young writer who was also into freelancing, Abhimanyu could not stop himself from rushing to India gate where a fierce gun battle between the terrorist and the security forces was still raging on.

India gate, like the country itself, had been a witness to many a different vibrant colors. It was a place which saw everything and had seen everything. The peace march, the solemn martyr remembrance, the glory of Republic day, the display of awareness for many a human rights spirit. And now a mindless gun battle. The end of which will be culminated by bodies and blood.

In spite it being a Monday morning, the black and yellow autos synonymous with the streets of Delhi were missing. He decided to walk. The presence of the khaki clad police personnel in the sprawling greens had increased, but the morning joggers with shapes of various contours were missing. The vibrant Delhi was now transformed into a vulnerable child. The silence was strange yet peaceful.

The tranquility was suddenly shattered by the hoarse sound of a security man who was vainly trying to stop a girl from jumping over the barricades that were erected to stop people like her from going too close to the actual spot where the firing was still going on.

The girl was in a white colored suit, with a red duppata that draped her head. An identity card swinging from her neck proclaimed her as a journalism student and read “Meghna”. Nothing was too striking about her, except, perhaps her voice, which was too intense, completely in contrast to her fragile appearance. Abhimanyu had no intention of meddling into what was happening and he deliberately changed his direction so as to avoid the ‘argumentative Indians’.

Soon he was where he wanted, behind a police Gypsy, from where he could get the perfect view to observe and to write, a spot, which could justify the use of word ‘on-the-spot- reporting’ which he would use in his blog. The sound of gun fire had decreased, a sign that the final stand was being taken up by the terrorist who were holed up inside the secured perimeter.

A flock of pigeon flew over the large monument as a loud blast echoed through the area. The earsplitting sound made him loose his ground and he fell. The fall was interrupted by another body; that of a girl whose head was covered by a red duppata. As both flirted with the last few moments of their life their eyes met for the first and the last time. And then without any protest their eyes closed.

The siege had ended.

A party of, for and by Madam

The home minister was finally persuaded to have an honorable exit. Its not that Shivraj Patil knew when or where was the next strike going to take place, I am sure that if he was aware of any such details, like all of us, he would have tried his best to see to it that the bomb blasts, the Mumbai attack are not executed. But where he failed was in doing his best and leaving the rest to the god.

We have the concerned head of ministries so that an accountability and responsibility is visible. A horse chariot even with the finest pair of horses needs a good charioteer so as to make sure that the horses do not run aimlessly. Our former Home minister in this context behaved as if he was trudging on a bullock cart.

A stricter law was being demanded by everyone. Maybe he opposed it personally or maybe his party members were against him. Whatever the case he should have made it clear. But then maybe he would have lost his chair, but ultimately that happened and he was asked to leave, an exit which he would not have hoped for when he sat on that position four and a half years back.

He had the political wisdom to equate Sarabjeet and Afzal Guru, he had the personal wisdom to change clothes when Delhi was still reeling under the after shocks of the blast, but the only thing that he did not have was the courage to come out with why he was opposed to a stricter law.

Critics argue that stricter laws have resulted in violations of human rights. Is not there the Judiciary to take care of it? We have more than belligerent human rights activist and organization in Indian who are forever on street. We have the NHRC and most importantly we have a media that is heavily loaded against any human rights abuse. So we do have the right kind of checks to stop rampant violations.

No one can demand a lax law just because a stricter law will curtail human rights. Is not living under the sound of guns and watching Ak 47 totting terrorist causing mayhem on the streets violation of human rights? And what about those who lose their near ones? I guess their human right of being happy is taken away the moment their dear one fall dead.

Since the present government has come into power it has always been a reactive one. That too would have been acceptable had they reacted on time , but they stopped this ‘reactive’ tendency months back.

After the Mumbai attack, announcements for a federal investigative agency was done and also was announced a stricter law. What is new? Has not the county demanding this for a long? When the MNS goons were rampaging on the street, for days the Congress high command did not react, and when ultimately it did, the vandalism stopped immediately. By the time they reacted the damage was already done. What were they waiting for?

Exactly has been the present case. Too little may be too early to say but too late; definitely.

That brings me to the larger issue. While watching the news of Mr.Patil being removed, the driver at my home said “ Lagat ba Madam khisiyan gayil” ( seems Madam is angry). He was referring to Sonia Gandhi.

I guess 8 out of 10 if not 9 will tell that it is Sonia Gandhi who decides how the present machinery will function. We have a president who has been handpicked by her and who is as good as non-functional. The benchmark that the previous president had set has been thrown into oblivion. We have a PM who wakes up in the morning wondering whether he is still the PM or not. And we had a Home minister who was more interested in having the blessings of the high command rather than figuring out why the terror strikes had gone up.

It is time that Sonia Gandhi is also brought into focus. At least she can dispel the myths if any about her stand. Whether she wants a tough law or not ? or whether the ministers are only accountable to her and not to the people who have elected them? How does she intends to tackle terrorism?

She may be working in the background but is it not true that even the kingmaker should also be held accountable?

Considering everything, what have we to bank on? BJP? It might have some individuals who can deliver, maybe someone like Arun Shourie. But as and when the power arrives people shift their focus on how to retain that power. The promises that are made, the expectations that are nurtured, all are left to wither away.

The past week has left me perplexed and it is because of these very questions that are so hard to answer.

A hung assembly in offering?

The fortunes of many a leaders from the major various parties including 1369 independents who are contesting for the 230 state assembly seats is now decided and, Who will win and who will not will be clear on the 8^th of December when the counting of ballot paper begins.The elections were marred by violence as a former minister and sitting BJP legislator,Sunil Nayak,was gunned down outside a polling booth allegedly by brother of his Congress rival.

The ruling BJP and the opposition Congress had different aspirations before going to the poll, but all that seems to have changed now. The BJP which was earlier hoping to win comfortably is now nervous that whether it will be able to reach the magical mark of 116 or not. For the Congress it is the opposite as political pundits who earlier gave it no chance to form the government are now divided and are of the view that Congress may just sneak in.

According to surveys conducted by various bodies post-polling, Congress will perform better than expected and will be able to win in more than 90 constituencies. The Congress leaders drawing heart from the above assessment are working on formulas and alliances which they might have to use in case they fall just short of the majority.

The lesser parties have done too much damage for the BJP. All predictions point out that the gap between the number of seat won by the Congress and the BJP will be too less for any of them to draw comfort.

Candidates of Uma Bharti’s BJS may well emerge in more than 10 seats. Similarly BSP is also expected to win more than 5 seats. If we count the Gondwana Gantantra party the expected loss of seat to non BJP and non Congress may well be in the region of 35- 45 assembly seats.

In some areas the vote share of the BJP candidates in particular has been eaten away by BJS candidates and this may well have a large bearing on the final picture.

With no party gaining majority one cannot rule out a scenario where the state witness a hung assembly or not will be decided by the independents and the lesser parties.

Independents have played crucial role in government formation in Madhya Pradesh once before, in 1969, when the Independent legislators helped Govind Narain Singh to form a government. The outgoing assembly has only two independent legislators, though it should not be forgotten that they still managed to garner 7.7 per cent of the total votes polled.

The BJP might seek the help of the estranged Uma Bharti and Mayawati in case it needs support. For Congress it will be Mulayam Singh Yadav’s SP, and the independents if the need arises to look for partners.

The last ditch, whirlwind campaigning taken-up by Pachori is sure to help his party’s and his own cause. For he alongwith Union minister Kamalnath is a front runner for the post of chief minister. Similarly the general perception of the BJP leaders among the voters, specially the working class, is that of being corrupt which political pundits say has dented the party’s image.