Satyamev_Jayate_India

India is being gang raped every day

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

Usually, I cite numbers and data while putting my point across. However, that’s not how I want to say things here. In a country like India, where most of the cases of rape or for that matter, any other crime go unreported as well as under-reported (media), numbers won’t help us reach anywhere. We, the people of different religions, castes, states, and political affiliations, might be able to congratulate ourselves over lower rates of crimes when compared to the other competing groups. So far, it seems that data has been used only to impress upon others that things are worse elsewhere and hence, we have nothing to worry at present. Yes, we are waiting for our hell to be as terrible as that of the second person on the street. Once we provide equitable distribution of hell to everyone, we will perhaps start thinking of the ways out of it.

In any case, a lot of data has been cited over the last few days by sections in the media to bring home the point that Hindustan is Rapistan in disguise. Should I contest such claims? You don’t have to go very far. That some people who never used the name Hindustan for India, find a sudden spike in their love for it, is not a coincidence. That most of these part time activists continue to spawn wealth showing misogyny, glorifying eve-teasing, and encouraging the pursuit of unrequited love on screen, makes it all the more ironical. The question ends there. They are not to be trusted. You can’t look up to them. You should not look up to them.

If you are sound of memory, you should remember how the protesters were subjected to lathicharge during the Nirbhaya Case protests at Raisina Hills. Bengaluru mass molestation evoked a response to the effect of blaming the molestation on western culture by the then Home Minister of Karnataka. In case the media didn’t tell you, he is currently the President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee. What did you expect, that he would be suspended from the party? Politics doesn’t work that way. So, it is beyond any doubt that we can’t look up to the politicians of the opposition party at the centre.

The apologists for the party in power at the centre have only one agenda at every unfortunate incident in the country – “Where were you when this happened to a Hindu?” So, they are fighting the leftist liberals from the media establishments and the party in opposition tooth and nail over their hypocrisy when the fight should have been about something else. Not that it’s a bad thing but our Prime Minister who remembers the birthdays of all the leaders of the world and wishes them religiously on twitter, talks to the country so passionately when he has to count the achievements of his government but doesn’t consider speaking to the people of his country directly in such times, particularly when members from his own party are in the dock, paints a grim picture for us. When a government stops talking to its people and engages only the opposition, the country should be worried. We have nothing to look up to here either.

There were sections from the media who didn’t have their dinner after the conviction of Salman Khan in the Blackbuck poaching case. In a parallel world, I would have imagined them to have demanded swift action on such cases in contrast to about 20 years our judiciary has taken, however, that cannot be the case in India. Do remember, this is the same media that zoomed in on the father-son feud of Akhilesh Yadav and Mulayam Singh Yadav for weeks. Nothing strikes strange about it? Well, Mulayam Singh Yadav is the same person who once said – ‘Ladke hain, galtiyaan ho jaati hain (after all they are boys, mistakes do happen)’. In a parallel world, I would have imagined a complete boycott of this man from our television screens, sound boxes, and printed papers. Well, not in India. We can go to the extent of feeling sorry for one Mr. Lalu Prasad Yadav, the single most important factor for the miseries of the state of Bihar. In all likelihood, the media of this country stands confused about its role. Is media just a messenger? In that case, the stakeholders won’t be able to peddle their personal agenda and bias in the name of news. Can media also do activism? Yeah, but please let me do my activism from my dinner table watching twitter live feed. Also, let me do my activism when I am tired talking about Virushka wedding and Saifeena wedding. Also, let me do my activism after I have told the world how Taimur missed his poop today. Also, let me do my activism when the accused or the victim falls into my self-concocted definitions of Hindu, Muslim or Dalit. Also, let me do my activism when the establishment stops distributing me sops or declines my invaluable services on offer. In all other times, my activism will be holidaying in the Bahamas.

I have been reading all kinds of reports in the last few days, from blind narratives to depraved decoction of toxic minds. One of the reports mentioned that Indians are looking for the video of the kathua rape on porn sites. There exist other videos with hashtags on the victim’s name. If the report is correct, who are these people – Politicians? Media? Bureaucrats? Hindus? Muslims? Part-time activists? Dalits? We know these categories are born from us. We know the ones deriving voyeuristic pleasures from rape are walking amongst us. Where is the blame to be fixed then? On us! The truth is we have taken sides, right from our personal lives to social, we tolerate and encourage gender discrimination and gender crimes. Not that this is a foolproof example, but it may act as a cursory indication of how deep the rot is within us, here is what I am talking about – पिलपिलाते-हुए-आम-लोग. The truth is India is being gang raped every day, after administering the sedatives of politics, religion, fake journalism, lazy intellectualism, and a deep support for personal and social nepotism in all these spheres. The truth is the ones who are changing the world the good old way of changing themselves have been silenced by design. The truth is that all the potential agents of change have disappointed our country once again and on top of that list sits the sorry figure of the most crucial agent of change – the Individual – dejected and degenerated.

I hope something comes out of this chaos. I hope we understand that unless we choose to join politics en masse, our politics will remain rotten. I hope that someday we will create more movies like Pink or Parched instead of maintaining a consistent irony between our speech and action. I hope that as journalists, we will report the everyday hearing of a rape case for 20 years if it comes to that and not wait for the survivors’ father to die to spring into action. I hope that we get the basics of our religions right which have love and peace as their fundamental tenets. I hope India learns that the narrative of its religions is being hijacked by mercenaries across the spectrum who force us to keep looking outside for validation.

I hope Indians stop helping the TRPs of news channels that have brought one entire community in the dock for the crime of few. I hope that Indians stop becoming the business pastures of the actors from the film industry who get deaf and mute when one of their own stands as the accused but obsess over shaming Hindustan over ‘Devi’sthan. I hope India learns that the online narrative is fast eating up the real space of this country. I hope we realize that we have started believing that our responsibility ends with a post, a placard, a tweet, a blog, a day’s heartache, or a month’s shock. I hope Indians learn to look away from the light-hoggers and give a chance to the voices of thousands of activists who are working every day of their lives to prevent rape and help the survivors. I hope that when I reflect upon my action or inaction every day, I don’t find myself to have encouraged crimes of any nature, sexual or non-sexual in any way. I hope that someday as a human being, I will be able to look inside my being before pointing accusatory fingers at others – people or institutions. I hope this country sees through this and sees this through.

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Open defecation is migrating to cities. And how!

TheSeer TeamLeave a comment

You step out of your home for a walk. The temperature around dawn is just perfect, especially in the suburbs and residential areas. The greenery has a revitalizing effect on the eyes and the mood alike.The breathing in of a lung full of fresh air and exhaling it out consciously seem refreshing. The birds have just started waking up, you can hear them yawn. You find your fellow early-risers jogging, sitting in parks and trying to assimilate the beauty of the surroundings, walking their cute, little, lovely dogs. Friendship has no better definition. Life seems good. All seem to be gearing up for a challenging every day. Then you find poop.

 

Most often you find it beneath the step that you were about to take or have already taken. If you are a regular, you catch them in the act quite frustratingly often. Those little furry fellows that you were adoring moments ago, peeing against some unlucky chap’s car tyre or taking a dump, in full public view. And then you get to see what is truly bizarre but seems ridiculously normal. The pet lovers, most of whom have their pets on leash, walk right ahead and without feeling the need to do anything about the nuisance their pets have created. This normalization of risk is so tragic that it is almost comical. Well, almost, because a single gram of dog faeces contains 20 million E. Coli bacteria known to cause diarrhoea, intestinal illness, and serious kidney disorders in humans. It also carries parasites like hookworms, ring worms, salmonella and tapeworms. That should be enough data to wake you up from your lazy slumber.

 

Your invigorating early morning walks suddenly aren’t so invigorating anymore, are they?

 

Evenings are worse.

 

The solution to most human-related problems is always binary – either the carrot or the stick. Of course, exceptions exist to this rule. There is Kashmir issue for example, purely man-made, where neither of the two approaches seems to be working right now. But let us not digress and come back to the poop.

 

To solve every problem that we face, we look for inspiration from outside. Innovation is just not our thing. So let us have a look at our more western counterparts. In Ireland, one can complain to the court against any owner who allows a dog to foul public places. In the UK, local councils can levy penalty ranging from £75 to £1,000. If New York dog owners fail to clean up after their pets have done their shit, and a city agent sees the ‘crime’ taking place, they are issued a ticket (challan) under Pooper Scooper Law. Authorities in Italy, Spain etc. have introduced DNA testing of the poop and matching with the database that they have compiled while registering dogs. Of course, we can not expect such rigorous rules in India where we don’t even remember when the last dog census was held and where there is no working database or registry of pets. Not that it hasn’t been tried before but imposing fines in India usually doesn’t work. If you penalize spitting or smoking at public places, people find places where ‘no one is looking’. A fine of a meagre Rs. 500 was imposed on owners who let their dogs relieve themselves on the Marine Drive stretch without cleaning up after them. Within a week there was a decline of 99% in dog owners taking out their dogs for a ‘walk’ in the aforementioned stretch. So, what did people do? They just started taking their pets elsewhere.

 

So what do we do? We can spread awareness, inspire people, and most importantly lead by example. Be the change. In fact, it is not very difficult. We just have to carry a pair of hand gloves, a scoop, and a disposable bag. One can find all the three items online. When the dogs are done with their business, just put on your hand gloves, scoop the poop and bag it. We can take it back to our toilets and flush them. That’s what the toilets are for, aren’t they? I have seen some really nice people carrying a bottle of water with them to pour it over the soiled area. Such people give hope. Let us give each other a little more of that, shall we? At the community level, a number of designated poop disposal facilities need to be constructed, especially in parks. People need to be encouraged to use them because it’s the people who need to be made aware.

 

Of course, not all dog poops that you find on the streets and pavements are from domesticated pets. There are stray dogs which are almost exponentially more dangerous than their better-off vaccinated counterparts but just because the municipal corporation is not doing their job, does it absolve us from our duties as responsible citizens?

 

We have to start at an individual level, inspire, spread awareness and help each other out in the community. What we seek, more than anything else, is a clean India. More than 67 million toilets have been constructed to that effect since 2nd October 2014 when Government of India started its most ambitious Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. But are we as urban citizens doing our bit to achieve the goal of an Open Defecation Free India? If we are not, shouldn’t we? India is a vast country with every demographic entity having different problems but whether it is a rural area or an urban one, quite obviously open defecation is a problem that affects all of us. It is an extreme health hazard and needs to be tackled with awareness, infrastructure and a change in mindset. So, wherever we live, let us join hands with our fellow citizens and strive to achieve the goal of a clean nation by making our locality open defecation free. Dogs cannot do that, humans can.

 

 

References – 

Times of India – Article 1

Times of India – Article 2

Swachh Bharat Mission

 

Guide – 

https://www.wikihow.com/Take-a-Dog-Out-to-Poop

 

 

About the Author : Ambikesh Kumar Jha is a social writer and a sailor, presently ashore.

Stigmatizing Capitalism is a problem in India

Abhishek Jha2 Comments

In the preface to the Economic Survey of India, 2017-2018, Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India, Arvind Subramanian writes, “The Survey strives to combine rigour with readability, a challenge that increases in the same proportion as attention spans shrink (from absorbing op-eds to scrolling down tweets). The Survey’s aim is always to build a portfolio of contributions, combining description, new data creation, deep-dive research, and provocative policy ideation.”

Continue reading “Stigmatizing Capitalism is a problem in India” →

जो पुल बनाएंगे | Agyeya

Abhishek Jha1 Comment

कवि होते हैं। उनकी कृतियाँ होतीं हैं। कई कवियों की कृतियाँ कालजयी होती हैं। पर क्या ऐसा होता है कि किसी कवि की सभी कृतियाँ कालजयी होतीं होंं? नहीं। कई गणमान्य, सर्वसम्मानित कवियों ने भी बहुत सारी साधारण कृतियाँ रची हैं। कालजयी कृति की छाया में उनकी साधारण कृतियाँ भी अनमोल लगने लगतीं हैं।

कई बार नाम का वज़न होता है। इस नाम का वज़न इतना होता है कि हम मोहान्ध हो जाते हैं। अगर मोह नहीं हुआ तो इन चमकते सितारों की चकाचौंध में हम अंधे हो जाते हैं। जब कोई चित्रकार बड़ा बन जाता है तो उसकी खींची एक रेखा भी लाखों में बिकती है। पंडित और टीकाकार उस रेखा के अलग अलग मतलब भी निकाल लेते हैं। एक नाम जो मुझे बार बार सोशल मीडिया पर परेशान करता है, वो है सच्चिदानंद वात्स्यायन अज्ञेय का। उनका सादर अभिनंदन। तथापि आज कल उनकी एक कविता वायरल हो रही है जिसका मेरे अनुसार कुछ खास मतलब नहीं है।

जो पुल बनाएंगे
वे अनिवार्यत:
पीछे रह जाएंगे। 
सेनाएँ हो जाएंगी पार
मारे जाएंगे रावण
जयी होंगे राम,
जो निर्माता रहे
इतिहास में
बन्दर कहलाएंगे।

वैसे बंदर एक अपमानजनक शब्द कब बना, ये भी विचारणीय प्रश्न है। इस कविता की नीयत भले ही अच्छी हो पर यहाँ जिस रूपक का प्रयोग हुआ है, वह प्रमादजन्य बौद्धिकता का परिचायक है। अज्ञेय जी सामने होते तो एक और प्रश्न पूछता –

जो पुल बनाएंगे
वे स्वतः
उस पार जायेंगे।
यदि उस पार नहीं जाएंगे
तो पुल कैसे बनाएंगे?

पता नहीं अज्ञेय जी इसका उत्तर देते या मज़ाक में टाल जाते पर चूंकि उन्होंने रामायण को उद्धृत किया है, तो उस पर थोड़ा और कहना पड़ेगा –

जो पुल बनाएंगे
वे स्वतः 
उस पार जाएंगे।
राम की सेना के
नल और नील कहायेंगे
जो निर्माता रहे 
योद्धा रहे
इतिहास में
सब वानर हनुमान हो जाएंगेे।
जो रह न सके राम
संग में
लंका तो जला ही आयेंगे।

*****

पढ़ने के लिये धन्यवाद। कुछ भी शेयर मत करिए।

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Empty-Benches

Unlike Pondicherry

JeevaNayagiLeave a comment

1: Sunrise

I alight from my bus and it was still dark. I look at auto drivers buzzing around me. My destination shows 4 km away and he quotes a 100. I smile at him for I had somewhere else to go and something else in mind. I picked my bags and started walking. My new destination is only 3 km away. My love for google maps isn’t rock solid. I stop at a tea stall and confirm the route. At the end of a 30 minutes long walk laden with nostalgia, I arrive at this beating the morning sun to it. Strangely, it feels like home.

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Sunrise
 

2: Anna

As I grabbled for my route in the dark, I kept looking at the statues at every circle. I had to find Anna Circle to ensure I was on the right path. I could barely recognise the faces of the leaders or their names from my side of the road. Yet I knew, I would know Arignar Anna from distance. And I was right. There he was in his signature style hands raised and his fingers indicating victory and his party’s symbol. Some stereotyping is good!

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Anna-Statue

3: Empty Benches

Early mornings and empty benches are so irresistible. These seemingly empty benches are anything but empty. They are full of stories. Stories of love, stories of loss, stories of betrayal, stories of  longing, stories of a zillion kind. They hoard the secrets of  every passerby and I wait by them to steal some or more!

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Empty-Benches

4: Homeless in Pondicherry

I am no stranger to Pondicherry. The first time I visited the place was about 15 years ago. Since then, my association with the place has been bittersweet. Every time I tried rewriting my memory of Pondicherry, it would eventually end up being bittersweet. Nevertheless, I remember being smitten by the place right from the first time. I had even considered settling down here. Although I had grown out of that idea, this solo-trip to Pondy gave me the liberty to ponder over what made me fall for it in the first place. The first thing that occurred to me was that I love the roads there, at least those roads adjoining the beaches and the areas around. I did happen to witness a lot of the city, as I kept walking about these roads, but this one thing was a repeating scene. I was surprised to see  elderly people sleeping on footpaths and verandas of uninhabited houses. Not that it is an uncommon sign in Indian cities, but the number of such people seemed unusually high. This being a union territory with its own legislative assembly, one would expect better administration and social welfare. Add to it the fact that the place is now governed by one of the most decorated administrators of this country. What was even more shocking was that I found a few old women sleeping on the road right next to the Secretariat building. Its been almost a week now since I returned from Pondicherry and I can barely wrap my head around the whole thing. I believe its high time we formulate a better policy nationwide for geriatric care and not leave the elderly to the mercy of footpaths.

 

5: Colours

Some green, some  blue, some bright, some beautiful, some with darker shades and some with dual colours. These sacred threads decorating the temple streets of Thiruvahindapuram  reminded me of human bonds. No matter how sanctified they are made to sound, they are meant to  keep you bound. Bound to wishes , bound of promises, bound to expectations. And no matter how sanctified they are, when it’s time, you ought to break free of them; sometimes to make way for new ones and sometimes just because you are done with it.

 

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Colours

6: South Indian Meal

Ever wondered how does happiness smell? I think it smells like food. And what might disappointment look like? I would say it looks like a bowl of delicious looking dish that you had to forgo because you are too full. Which do you think is sweeter? An extra serving of your favourite dessert or a stolen kiss? I was going to go with the kiss, but I must say a sound sleep after a meal like this beats them both.

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-South-Indian-Meal

7: Stranger in Beach 

The beach was buzzing with crowd but a lone bench was waiting for me. I sat there  training my eyes to the growing darkness while trying to spot the faintest stars up on the January sky. She called out to me. “Didi, buy one of these to help me”. I told her I had no use of it, but I would still buy if she can tell me a story. She laughed and sat down in front me. She said she spoke only Hindi and  asked what did I want to listen to. I asked for hers. Mother of six, four boys, two girls. Eldest is fourteen and youngest just turned a year old. Been ten years in Pondichery since she moved from Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow to Barabanki, another bus from there to village. That is how far she is from. No electricity, no jobs, no means of survival. Why all the way to Puducherry? Why did she skip all the places in between?

“They are not good. I like it here in #Pondy”, she says. She compliments my broken Hindi and I, her unbroken smile. I asked if I could click a picture to remember her and our conversation. “I don’t look good in pics”, she adds shyly. I promised to click a good picture and we clicked. She seemed happy when I showed it to her. I kept the other  promise too. “Forty for others, thirty for you”. I laughed but I was her Bohni for the evening. So, we sealed the deal at forty and I let her pick one for me. As we said our goodbyes, Shakina touches my shoulder gently and says “Go home safely. Tonight seems colder than usual and your clothes aren’t warm enough. Don’t stay out for long”. “Take care and be safe”, she repeated, more than a couple of times. I assure her with a smile and then she called out to the next didi.

Bookstalkist-Pondicherry-Didi

Falling of Lenin in Khmelnytskyi park

The Eccentric Tripartite for BJP’s Congress Mukt Bharat

TheSeer TeamLeave a comment

After a staggering 25 years, Left Front was booted out of office in Tripura, paving the way for BJP which won 35 seats in a house of 60. It marked an increase in the vote share of the right-wing party from a mere 1.5 percent to 43 percent which came as a deadly setback for the incumbent CPI(M) which has now been reduced to just one state in the entire Indian Union i.e. Kerala.

This also reiterates the fact that BJP is now in power, independently or in alliance, in 20 out of 29 Indian states. The win in Tripura is a landmark victory especially because the BJP came out winners against their arch-rivals, the CPI(M). The people of India have now deliberately and progressively alienated the Left from the political discourse of India and the Right has been filling the vacuum, the so called centre being a hapless, clueless and docile spectator.

From Tripura (Photo : Reuters)
From Tripura (Photo : Reuters)

However, what should have been a cause for positive reinforcement and celebrations in the BJP has turned out to be the harbinger of mayhem, disruption, and anarchy. A day after the ground-breaking win in Tripura, alleged workers of the saffron party instead of celebrating their win with integrity, composure and the proverbial laddoos, chose vandalism instead and demolished the statue of Lenin, considered to be the fore-father of Communists world over. This mala fide activity, no doubt gave rise to much mayhem among the left front and was akin to rubbing salt on a freshly inflicted wound. Naturally, ‘Liberals’ from all sections berated this act of utter shamelessness and indiscipline from a party which has always taken pride in being called ‘disciplined and cadre-based’. The right presented the initiative to the left on a platter and the left did not disappoint. A statue of Dr. Ambedkar vandalized by unknown miscreants in U.P. a couple of days ago was immediately saffronized. People from the cabal immediately set out to find a pattern and in a large country like India finding selective patterns has never been a tough task. All was going well, the narrative was firmly with the left when some imbecile left novices in Jadavpur University decided to dismember a statue of Dr. Shyama Prasad Mookherjee. Although I don’t believe in bans but whoever gave them that idea should definitely be banned from politics.

All these disruptive and unsettling developments were slowly coming to the end of the very short attention span of Indian public when they were given a fresh lease of life by BJP’s Mr. H. Raja. He wrote on his Facebook page:
“Who is Lenin? What is the connection between him (Lenin) and India? What connection between communism and India? Lenin’s statue was broken down in Tripura. Today it is Lenin’s statue in Tripura and tomorrow it will be the statue of caste fanatic EV Ramasamy.”

For the uninitiated, the “caste fanatic EV Ramasamy” that he talks about is none other than Periyar and before one terms Mr. Raja as another fringe element in BJP, let it be known that he is one of the national secretaries of BJP. What is interesting though is the alacrity with which PM Narendra Modi and Party Chief Amit Shah have denounced the statement and the vandalism. They seem to know the reverence with which Periyar is seen in Tamil Nadu, and although the BJP’s neo-nationalism is in stark contrast with the regional nationalism of Periyar, they have no qualms in bargaining that for a better outreach in the region.

The 21st century has been BJPs century so far. From Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Mr. Narendra Modi, the hierarchy of BJP has truly aged and evolved. Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah have forged a formidable partnership to the chagrin of the opposition. Their combination has worked wonders for the saffron outfit pan India. However, there are pockets of opposition still left especially in the southern states, where an eccentric alliance is being touted. This peculiar tripartite consists of communists, ambedkarites and periyarites who have historically disagreed vehemently with each other on matters of ideology. But as they say, politics makes strange bedfellows. Having come to touching distance of Modi’s dream of “Congress-Mukt Bharat”, it can therefore be argued that the main challenge that lies ahead for him is this tripartite. And the irresponsible statements and actions of his peripheral leaders is only making this amalgamation a lot easier than envisaged.

About the Author : Ambikesh Kumar Jha is a social writer and a sailor, presently ashore.

Modi’s Pakoda Politics for 2019 and Chidambaram’s Joblessness

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

“Mitron, humne pakode khaane chaie ki nahi khane chaie?”
“Modi! Modi!”

“Mitron, pakodon ke saath chai peeni chaie ki nahi peeni chahie?”
“Har Har Modi! Ghar Ghar Modi!”

“Mitron, wo chai mmain aapko pilaauunga kyunki mmujhe chai pilaane ka experience hai! Platform pe chai bechne ka dard kya hota hai, ye mmujhe maloom hai!”

 

Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi in one of his recent interviews asked if a pakoda-seller earning 200 rupees a day could be considered unemployed. Mr. P. Chidambaram who held the finance ministry in the UPA rule has suggested that by Mr. Modi’s logic, beggars should also be considered employed. The twitter town is abuzz with exchanges between sides.

Mr. Modi on his part is frying his pakodas like he always does – well in advance. Like for everything else he does, he also becomes the first Indian Prime Minister to bring pakoda-sellers into the national discourse. However, one may ask, why pakodas singularly? There are other things sold by the street-side entrepreneurs, say, pav-bhaji, vada-pav, 99 types of dosas, etc. Shiv Sena has already laid its claim on vada-pav politics by offering free vada-pavs to Shobha De earlier. Let’s leave pav-bhaji for Uddhav’s cousin in the name of Marathi-Asmita. Dosas would have obviously offended the Dravidian parties for it would have meant Gujarati appropriation. Modi had already used up the khakhra card by waiving off the GST before Gujarat elections. Here, I summon the spirit of Shekhar Gupta of the Walk the Talk, The Print, the NDTV, and the Lutyen’s Dhaba to answer this. Pakodas are eaten across the country in varying forms and with different names. The country is 80% Hindus, so naturally, most of the pakodas prepared are consumed by the Hindus of this country. Mr. Modi being the Hindutva icon that he is, used the case of pakodas to polarise the electorate and gain Hindu votes in 2019 elections. 

 

To be honest, this is the closest thing to confession that voters of this country can get from both the leading parties. Confession 1 – the present Government is selling pakodas in the name of job creation. Confession 2 – the opposition sits unemployed in the sixth row waiting for pakodas. The stage for 2019 elections is set. After spilling chai all over the kurtas and suits of the opposition leaders in 2014, Mr. Modi is all set to play with some pakode ka tel in 2019. P. Chidambaram is making things difficult for Rahul Gandhi by protesting against pakodas. At a time when Rahul Gandhi is looking to increase his pakoda tally from 44 to 545, P. Chidambaram should just fall in line and start begging for more pakodas right away. He will at least have a job that way. All the watering attempts at pakodas are going to cost the Congress party a lot of oil in face with no pakoda in hands.

 

 

Image Source – Karnataka for Employment (KFE)

Rahul Gandhi and the Politics of Defeat

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

Almost every time Rahul Gandhi starts campaigning before the elections, he seems to be aspiring for a loss. His speeches sound like appealing for a thumping defeat. Every time I hear him appeal for votes, his sentences get autocorrected in my head to sound something like this – “Hamein vote na dekar bhaari maton se haraayen!” (By not voting for us, inflict a massive defeat on us). After all, when you get rewarded after every loss, why would you want to win?

Thanks to our enslaved mindset, there was a time when ‘Gandhi’ fetched votes. That is no longer the case with the majority of the country. On the contrary, in our time, Gandhi ensures failure. The love affair between the Nehru-Gandhi family and the Congress party could be defended till Rajiv Gandhi on the basis of our love for nepotism. This love for dynasties and surnames converted into votes for the party and though the culture could be termed as immoral and undemocratic, they had a reason to stick with Gandhi. Although in a feebler tone, even for Sonia Gandhi, such an orchestra of populism could be explained. Today, I doubt if there is a sane mind on the planet to explain the current love story between the Congress party and Mr. Rahul Gandhi.

Dynasties taking control of a political party in India that should otherwise be a democratic entity with equal opportunity for everyone, is a matter that should shame our nation whose constitution wishes to provide equal opportunity and equal right to every citizen. Rahul Gandhi’s control over the congress party defies all logic. He hasn’t been able to win elections, he is popular only as a meme subject, he doesn’t exude confidence in public, and he doesn’t have a plan for the country or himself. What makes congress stick to him then? Dynasty politics is a phenomenon that banks upon the popularity of the existing/deceased member and family’s name to fetch votes for the new entrant. It is perhaps impossible to understand how the party and the soon to be anointed don’t see that the family’s name has lived its shelf life. I might be wrong and Rahul may manage a turnaround for the party after becoming the President but that won’t be necessarily a good thing for the country. The child of undeserved favoritism cannot promise equality or equity to the nation.

It is important to understand the position Rahul Gandhi is going to assume. It is the same position that has been in the past occupied by Dadabhai Naoroji, SN Banerjee, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Madan Mohan Malviya, Annie Besant, Lala Lajpat Rai, Sarojini Naidu, Mahatma Gandhi, and Subhas Chandra Bose. A leader of the stature of Subhas Chandra Bose had to fight an election against Gandhi-backed Pattabhi Sitaramayya to become the President of this party. Today, a group of sycophants have almost managed to unanimously elect Rahul Gandhi as the President. It is a tragic scene that the party which accuses Mr. Modi of running a dictatorship has not one contender for the position of the President opposite Rahul Gandhi. Sonia Gandhi is passing the mantle of autocracy to her son. One of the two major national parties of a country that claims to be the world’s largest democracy is either one of the longest running dictatorship empire of the world or a group of sycophants who clearly do not possess any spine and serve the Gandhis to insure the political future of their own dynasties.

Politics of dynasties has been a long-living tradition in India, Congress of the present has mastered the politics of inheriting and procreating incompetence and failure.

A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings

JeevaNayagiLeave a comment

It was the 10th Chennai International Film Festival. I surprised myself during the film festival that year by managing to watch a respectable number of films despite a hectic schedule at work. Michael Haneke’s Amour, which later went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, was also scheduled to be screened that year. It was on my must-watch list. I made it on time for the show and the movie was surely beautiful. However, I could not sit through the entire movie and had to walk out.

I am the kind of person who might cry through the entire movie giving my friends enough reasons to make fun of me, but walking out of a beautiful movie did not sound like me. Yet, I did. I walked out not because it was boring, but because the emotions captured in the movie was too painful and disturbing. It wasn’t that I fear difficult emotions or movies. In fact, I used to be one of the very few females among the audience during the screening of movies on subjects of violence, yet Amour was too much for me to take. All these years, I never once thought of watching it again, until recently.

‘A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings’ was screened this week at IIHS, in Bangalore. The event caught my attention probably because the title seemed to have been borrowed from Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I reached ten minutes late, sneaked in, took a seat at the darkest corner of the room and settled into what seemed like silent poetry. It is a feature film on the 4-feet 11-inches tall grandeur dearly known as ‘Pocket Hercules’. Like any traditional documentary films, this did not have a dozen people talking about the greatness of the much-celebrated Mr Universe Monohar Aich. Instead, Prateek Vats, the director of this film, takes you to the man himself. It is as if you were given the privilege to sit beside him, watch him from close quarters as he goes on about his day, and hear him breathe through a 102-year-old body.

Thirty years, and I have so much to complain about life. And there was Mr Aich who had spent a 100 year and more, but his eyes still seemed to have their twinkle. There was a certain charm about him that makes you smile. Even when he seemed to have forgotten a lot of things and hardly speaks, every now and then he does something that reminded you of his flamboyance.

I do not have the expertise to comment on the cinematic excellence of the movie but I can talk to you about the emotions that this movie stirred within me. Every time the camera captured sound or music, there seemed a certain watchful silence underneath it just like a calmer ocean beneath a stormy sky. Every time the camera captured the stillness in his life, there was something distressing about it that I squirmed in my seat, restlessly. However, I must thank the director or probably the editor for making this beautiful blend of storm and calm. It was as if they knew, that I wouldn’t be able to survive another minute of that stillness or that noise, that they decided to cut to move to the next frame. An old footage of Monohar Aich’s interview along with his wife was a surprise addition. Sorry about the spoilers, but that, I believe, gives a quick insight into the kind of person he was, even for people who did not know him.

There were moments during the film when that familiar feeling of discomfort, which happened during Amour was coming back to me. This was because both these films bring you the reality of old age in very intimate details. It’s a terrifying to even think that someday you will forget who you were. You will have no memory of your life’s deeds and will become entirely dependent on people around you. While I thoroughly empathize with the frustration and helplessness of any family that is taking care of an elderly person, it’s petrifying to learn that despite everything that you have accomplished, your own people will be disappointed in you. You might have to spend every minute of every day looking forward to nothing. But, somewhere the film also gives me the courage to deal with my fear of growing old and helpless. I might as well watch Amour soon.

The timing of the movie’s screening can’t get too perfect since it has been only a few days since Manushi Chillar brought home the Miss World Crown. It is amusing to watch our leaders wage war over twitter about how she must be rewarded. For all the gender equality we talk about, it is interesting to note that we as a nation have celebrated all our Miss World and Miss Universe winners. How many in our Mister Universe or Mister World winners do we even know about? That brings me to the next point about which the movie doesn’t talk about directly but gently nudges you to ponder upon. We are a young and dynamic nation, but we seem to have forgotten to plan on taking care of our elderly. We have left them at the mercy of their children who too, are caught up in the troubles of life, with less or no time to attend to the needs of the older generation. The life of Monohar Aich is a classic example of institutional negligence. The movie reminds us of how it’s about time we think about a wholesome plan for geriatric care in the country and also set up a standard procedure to acknowledge the accomplishment of people who represent the country in the International arena.

At the end of the screening, I wanted to thank Prateek and his team for having done this because this is going to be a very significant artefact for anyone who wants to study Mr Monohar Aich. But then the movie was too overwhelming for me, to talk then. So, I decided to write.

To Prateek Vats and his team – Thank you very much for doing this. I can only imagine the amount of labour and patience this would have needed. Hats off to the sensitivity and compassion your guys displayed throughout.

To my readers – Watch out for the screening of this movie in your city. This is a movie you might want to sit tight and watch, irrespective of whether you knew Mr Aich. I say so because the movie is not merely about Mr Aich but also about life in flesh and blood.

Here is a two-minute-long excerpt from the movie.

Crime Vs. Politics

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

अपराध बनाम राजनीति।

अपराध क्या है? राजनीति क्या है? क्या दोनों एक दूसरे के पर्याय हैं, या फिर पूरक हैं? अपराध के बिना राजनीति के क्या मायने हैं और राजनीति की अनुपस्थिति में अपराध के क्या मायने हैं? इन बातों पर सोच रहा हूँ। सुबह का समय है। बेंगलूर का मौसम अभी बेतुका सा है। वो जो बच्चा होता है घर में, जिसे किसी ने बताया नहीं कि मेहमान के आने पर क्या करना होता है, मौसम का हाल अभी कुछ वैसा ही है। बारिश हो रही है और नहीं भी। हैइसेंबर्ग साहब को यह मौसम ज़रूर भाता।

हैइसेंबर्ग साहब की बात चली है तो उनको अपराध और राजनीति के पहलू पर भी तौल कर ही विदा करते हैं। ऐसा लगता है जैसे अगर आपने अपराध पर उंगली रख दी और कहा कि ये अपराध है, तो शायद आप राजनीति को कभी न समझ पाएँ और अगर राजनीति पर हाथ रख कर कह दिया कि यही राजनीति है तो शायद कभी अपराध न समझ पाएँ। प्रतिसाल रेलवे दुर्घटनाओं में हज़ारों लोग वीरगति को प्राप्त हो जाते हैं, वीरगति इसलिए कह रहा हूँ क्योंकि ये लोग जो ऐसी दुर्घटनाओं के बारे में सुनकर-पढ़कर भी रेल यातायात का त्याग नहीं करते, ये किसी वीर से कम तो नहीं। बात ऐसी हो गई है कि हाँ भई चलो, दुर्घटना होती है तो क्या, देश तो अपना है, मोदी जी अपने हैं, कुछ एक लोग मर भी जायें तो कौन सी आफत हो जाएगी। हर दुर्घटना के बाद पीड़ितों को कुछ मुआवज़ा मिलता है, कुछ एक मंत्री त्यागपत्र भी प्रेषित कर देते हैं पर कोई ऐसा माई का लाल पैदा नहीं हुआ जो इन दुर्घटनाओं को रोक दे। अब आपसे एक सवाल है, रेल दुर्घटनाएँ अपराध हैं या राजनीति? सोचिये।

मेरे पल्ले तो इतनी ही बात पड़ती है कि अगर किसी व्यक्ति ने रेल के डिब्बेे में घुसकर उतने ही लोगों को किसी हथियार से मार दिया होता तो हम सब उसको अपराध मानते। पुलिस केस इत्यादि झटपट शुरू हो जाते। दूरदर्शन पर ये देख कर कि हत्यारे को धर दबोचा गया है, हम चैन की साँस भी लेते। पर रेल दुर्घटनाओं में ऐसा कुछ नहीं होता क्योंकि वहाँ पर राजनीति इतराने लग जाती है। हमारी चुनी हुई सरकार और उस सरकार के चुने हुए अफसर यहाँ हमारे अपराधी हैं। इतना ही नहीं, पटरी की जांच करता लाइनमैन शायद हम जैसा ही कोई होगा जिस से कोई भूल हुई और कुछ अमंगल घटित हो गया। हमारी चुनी हुई सरकार को हमने देश के कल्याण हेतु कुछ अपराध करने की भी छूट दी हुई है।

इसको शायद डॉक्टर-रोगी रिश्ते के चश्मे से भी देखा जा सकता है। एक अच्छा डॉक्टर रोगी को चंगा देखना चाहता है और उसका इसी सोच के अनुसार उपचार करता है। पर ऐसे वैद्य अल्पसंख्यक ही होते हैं। हम सब रोगी हैं और हमारे देश की राजनीति दूसरे किस्म का वैद्य है जो चाहता है कि रोगी रोगी ही बना रहे ताकि वैद्य के घर का चूल्हा सूर्य की तरह निरंकुश जलता रहे। इस किस्म के वैद्य रोगी को स्वस्थ करने के वादे तो करते हैं पर असल में रोगी को बद से बदतर बनाते चले जाते हैं। ये वैद्य हमारे सरकारी कार्यालयों, दफ्तरों, मंत्रालयों में आपको मिल जायेंगे।

हमारी शिक्षा प्रणाली को ही ले लीजिए। जहाँ जहाँ सरकार ने पैर पसारे हैं, वहीं हमारे विद्यार्थियों का भविष्य क्षत-विक्षत हुआ है। देश में बहुत सारे सर्वे होते हैं, एक सर्वे ये भी किया जाये कि कितने नेताओं के बच्चे सरकारी स्कूलों में पढ़ने जाते हैं। उधर उच्चतर शिक्षा के लिए बैंक से ऋण लेने के लिए एक गरीब विद्यार्थी को 11-12 प्रतिशत का ब्याज चुकाना पड़ता है। वहीं कार ऋण 9 से 10 के आसपास घूमता है और घर के लिए ऋण 8 से 9 के बीच मे रखा गया है। ये तो सिर्फ आंकड़े हैं पर पढ़ाई के लिए ऋण लेने में कितने पापड़ बेलने पड़ते हैं, ये विद्यार्थियों से पूछना चाहिए। अगर बिना पैरवी के आपको शिक्षा ऋण मिल जाता है तो आप खुद को एक दिन अमरीका के राष्ट्रपति के रूप में देख लें तो कोई आश्चर्य नहीं। राजनीतिज्ञ कौन है, ये तो मुझे नहीं पता पर इतना ज़रूर पता है कि ये पूरा राजनैतिक ढांचा हमारा अपराधी है और इसको कटघरे में खड़ा करना हमारा धर्म।

कुछ लोग कोशिश करते हैं पर चूँकि वे अल्पसंख्यक ही हैं, उनको डंडे से चुप करा दिया जाता है। इन सब अपराधों के बीच में अगर कोई कार्टूनिस्ट अपना विरोध अपनी कला के माध्यम से व्यक्त करता है तो सरकारी गलियारों में खलबली मच जाती है और उसे ‘पल में परलय होयगी, बहुरि करैगा कब’ के सिद्धांत पर अविलंब बंदी बना लिया जाता है। सवाल ये उठता है कि बंदी कौन होना चाहिए। कारागार में वो कार्टूनिस्ट होना चाहिए या वो नेता और अफसर जिन्होंने एलफिंस्टन पुल के ख़स्ता हालत पर सारी सूचनाओं और चेतावनियों को हवा में उड़ा दिया?

आप सोचें। मैं भी सोचता हूँ। कुछ समय बाद फिर मिलेंगे कुछ और विचार लेकर। लोकतंत्र को प्रणाम।

Image Credits – https://www.justpo.st/post/7181

The Plumbing Problem in India’s primary education

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

Pablo Picasso famously said, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” While Picasso would have thought of any child of any nationality in general while having to make such a statement, citizens of Bangalore had a more localized version of it to mull over on the evening of 26th of October, 2017 inside the premises of Alliance Francaise. Eminent Historian and Author Ramachandra Guha extended a warm welcome to American French economist Esther Duflo, who is the Co-founder and Director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) and Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was delivering the 11th New India Foundation Lecture titled – ‘Every Child Counts; How to fix Primary Education in India?’ Continue reading “The Plumbing Problem in India’s primary education” →

Firecrackers are Anti-Hindu, not the Supreme Court of India

Abhishek JhaLeave a comment

The Supreme Court has prohibited the sale of firecrackers in New Delhi and NCR region and daggers have been drawn. The noise on twitter post the decision has been shriller than any of the crackers sold during Diwali season can produce. For many, like every other debate in our country today, this has become a Hindu identity versus other religions. There are others who are pitching 364 other days against this 1 day and defending the sale and usage of fire-crackers. There are also people who are rationally calling for bans on a lot of other pollutants that are more poisonous and hence more harmful. I stand by the last lot.

Continue reading “Firecrackers are Anti-Hindu, not the Supreme Court of India” →