In a nutshell, Kasab deserves the Nation’s highest honour for doing more for India’s unity than any other living neta.

Publicly (or privately) beating women is our ‘Culture’.

Raping nuns, parading them naked is our ‘Culture’.

Burning Churches, demolishing mosques is our ‘Culture’.

Burning women for dowry or for not begetting sons is our ‘Culture’.

Burying girl-children alive is our ‘Culture’.

Case closed.

Hi all,

To start off, I apologize to all of you. To those who read my last post, to those who responded, and to those who didn’t.

Why the apology?

Because I’m not going ahead with what I’d proposed – the Indian vote bank (killed, dead, buried, dug up, cremated).

In terms of response, my plan elicited next to nothing. At the risk of wounding my already bruised ego, I realize that I was wasting time. Maybe what the honorable Mr Naqvi suggested is true after all – that a few women wearing lipstick and powder and a few men wearing suits do NOT represent the country. We saw this truth being driven home by the election results – the party that presided over the carnage in Bombay was voted back to power in Delhi and brought out of the wilderness in Rajasthan. Don’t get me wrong – I do not hold a candle for the other parties. Just that, I felt the people would vote against a party that had failed to protect its citizens, time and again. This should have been especially true in Delhi simply because of the affinity Bombay and Delhi share, by dint of being two of the largest cities in India. And it’s not as though Delhi has not been affected by terrorism. It has, in the very recent past.

Lest I be mistaken to be a BJP advocate, I’d like to clear my name here as well, though it is a conviction I hold that among the present parties, I think the BJP is our best bet based on their past record on infrastructure development – it is a fact that they ushered in an era that reaped rich dividends; cases in point - the golden quadrilateral highway project, the Bombay-Pune Expressway. In this context, they did in 5 years what the Congress failed to do in 50. Also, I think the BJP has a lot more nationalists than any other party, especially the Congress which has only Gandhians, and I don’t refer to the Mahatma here. What then equates the BJP with all the others?
• Dirty Games 1 – remember Tehelka and what happened to it? For years together we heard about how the Congress and the Gandhis made the CBI and IB their lapdogs, that they had no respect for the rule of Law where the netas were concerned. When Tehelka ran the sting operation on the BJP, the party did exactly the same thing. In fact, what happened to Tehelka and their promoters was eerily reminiscent of what Indira Gandhi had done with Indian Express and Arun Shourie. And the clincher for me – Mr Vajpayee was the PM, someone who was considered as one of the most liberal politicians in the country even by his opponents. All that much-proclaimed ‘difference’ went out the window, proving that beneath the khadi exteriors, they’re all made essentially of the same skin.
• Dirty Games 2 – remember Gujarat? I expect a whole lot of hate mails/comments on this, but here it is anyway. I’m sick and tired of hearing (yes, even from supposedly educated upper-crust friends) that it was a reaction to the train-burning incident in Godhra and that no-one talks about that. My dear, dear friends - the Godhra incident was perpetrated by criminals, period – catch them, hang them from the nearest lamp-posts. What happened in Gujarat thereafter was perpetrated by a government. There’s a difference between the two. I really don’t care about a party’s political beliefs – once it is in government, their responsibility towards the party ceases and their sole responsibility gravitates towards the people whom they govern, regardless of who voted for them. Once the BJP was in government, they ceased to be BJP, they were then the Govt of Gujarat, and that’s got to mean something. The security of each and every citizen of the state was/is their responsibility, and they failed to fulfill their responsibility. And it didn’t stop there – by all accounts, the so-called government was actively involved in the killing and pillage of its OWN people. We could argue forever about nothing having been proved, but that’s an argument for the birds, I would not want to get into it since we all know what the inquiry commissions are all about. Whether or not a govt accepts a committee or commission’s findings, is directly related to the convenience of the findings. And, surprise surprise – the BJP is not alone in this. What happened to the Sikhs in Delhi in 1984 is well known. And the greatest proof of all the netas being of the same pod, I feel, is what the Congress did about the Justice Shrikrishna Committee which submitted its report on the Bombay riots of 1992-93 – it’s quite reasonable to assume that all these guys get together in the evenings to laugh at OUR stupidity over a drink or two. So much for the ‘difference’.

Also, I realized (with inputs from a lot of you) that what I was doing by harping on the Pakistan angle so much (the main plank of my was-to-be website) was, being the proverbial ostrich, burying my head in the ground and ignoring reality – that WE must set OUR house in order first. In a country where you can get a driving license without being able to recognize the difference between clutch and brake, where you can get a graduation certificate without ever reading a single book, where you can get a ration card without being a citizen of the country, where you can hold multiple passports for a price – are we really surprised that any tom, dick, or jehadi harry can waltz in and use us for target practice? Isn’t it time to point fingers at ourselves instead of all around?

To make a long story short, I too had fleetingly joined the ranks of the myriad citizens who find that there’s no-one to vote for.

Happily, I can’t stay cynical for too long. I have recently been introduced to a new political party – the PROFESSIONALS PARTY OF INDIA or the PPI (www.ppi.net.in). They’re a group of educated citizens who decided to put their time and money where our mouths are and DO something. Their mantra is ‘CHANGE FOM THE TOP’ and tagline is ‘ACTION FOR CHANGE’. They’re fielding candidates for the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. To all the naysayers who would choose to express doubts over their absence of a track record - I’d urge you to have a look at the track records of the existing bunch. Come on now, you can’t convince me that a new, relatively young, educated, already successful group of Indians - who are (for a change) NOT asking for votes on the basis of religion, language, caste or community – can do any worse than our present lot!!

In abject apology, but still hopeful,
Bharatram Gaba
Bombay

I am trying to, but have been totally unsuccessful in ‘getting on’ with life after what happened to Bombay, and what continues to happen to my/our country.

Succeed or fail, I need to do SOMETHING to contribute, instead of just complain.

Towards this, I plan to initiate a movement. Yes, ‘another’ movement.

Where (I think) this is ‘different’ is in that, instead of complaining about the much abused ’system’, I want to use it. I do not believe in some of the emails that have been flying about, especially the ones that ask us not to vote, and the ones that demand military rule, dictatorship etc.

I believe that democracy is a wonderful blessing we have in India. That we have misused it is a fact, but I would not waste my time decrying the system, because I believe it can work.

If ‘VOTE BANKS’ are an inescapable part of an electoral democracy, so be it. Let us then CREATE a vote bank of our own - one that will shun the politics of religion, language, region, caste, one that will vote solely on the basis of what’s good for INDIA.

I have listed a few points which I think should be pursued aggressively - please visit http://bratgaba.webs.com/ - go through the tiny little website, then come back here and COMMENT.

Please note - this is a rough draft of the website I plan to start (in all major Indian languages), I want the maximum possible opinions before formalizing. Since I do not plan to ask for funds from anyone, this is at the moment entirely self-financed. I DO, however, require HELP - in terms of your time and effort - to spread the message (once the actual website is up and running), to publicize the idea (if, of course, you BELIEVE in it), to advise me and HELP me in using the media effectively, use your contacts, and generally in every way you can.

In numbers there is strength - we need to get the numbers in order that the powers-that-be take us seriously. And for it to have any effect, it needs to gather strength before the upcoming general elections.

AAMIR KHAN, one of India’s most respected film personalities, speaks.....

I think the first lesson to learn from this is that we MUST NOT NEGOTIATE. No matter what, the next time round around, and lets not fool ourselves we must be alert and prepared for more attacks, we MUST NOT NEGOTIATE. All potential terrorists must get a very clear message that INDIA DOES NOT NEGOTIATE WITH TERRORISTS. What that means is, that in the future if there is a situation where me or my kids are held hostage by a bunch of terrorists then I must be prepared to tell our government - to hell with me and my children just go in there and kill the terrorists. I am prepared to sacrifice myself and my loved ones for the larger safety and security of the country but DO NOT LISTEN TO AND NEGOTIATE WITH TERRORISTS.

I personally hold both these political parties, and in fact other regional political parties across the country, responsible in one way or the other, for fueling terrorism in the first place. And please remember that the definition of terrorism is not restricted to AK 47 toting maniacs. It includes the spread of terror by other means like stone throwing, beating up of innocent people on the roads, and rioting, etc. Any means, in fact, to spread terror in the hearts of ordinary citizens.

The other important thing we need to remind ourselves in this time of anger and hurt is to stay calm and take sensible steps, and not give in to thoughtless knee jerk reactions. I heard someone say on television that we should all stop paying our taxes as a show of protest. Haven’t heard of a more silly idea than that. If we stop paying our taxes then we won’t have an army and NSG to save us next time around!!! Instead we should all START PAYING OUR TAXES. We demand so much of our leaders but are we fulfilling our basic responsibility? Can we say with honesty that as citizens of our country we are all honestly paying our taxes? If we are not paying our taxes can we blame the government for being inefficient? If we are corrupt then how can we expect our politicians to be honest?

I have a very important thing to say to all the various people going around arbitrarily throwing accusations at the politicians. These politicians are not from Jupiter or Mars, they are one of us, from our very own society, selected by us through a democratic process. So now think for a moment, who really is to blame? We can only blame ourselves guys. Half of us don’t go to vote. The half that does vote has selected these guys.

In my opinion, you really want to change things? Change yourself. Each one of us needs to take a very honest look inwards and rectify and work on what we think is wrong with us. If each one of us does that individually then there will be a sea change in our society at large. I have to promise myself that I will not be corrupt, will play my role in society with honesty and sincerity. Doctors, lawyers, judges, people in the IAS, police force, media persons, businessmen, job workers, labour force, everyone. We have to stop thinking of our own individual gain and loss and do what is honest, true and right, and think collective. It calls for personal sacrifice in this time of chaos but from chaos will emerge clarity. Even if we don’t manage to achieve this for ourselves we will achieve it for our children.

Source - www.aamirkhan.com

M J Akbar is one of India’s best-known journalists and commentators, someone with a deep insight into the Indian people and their mindset. In this first-person, as-told-to piece, Akbar discusses the Mumbai attacks and their relevance for India.

Many people forget that India is a tough nation. Toothless leaders have turned India into a soft nation. People forget that India has fought back Muslim terrorism in Kashmir; Sikh terrorism in Punjab, Christian terrorism in Nagaland and Hindu terrorism in Assam, and amongst the Naxalites.

We have had everything thrown at the Indian nation State. Still, we have stood up. The people of India have shown the courage and ability to believe in their nation and to fight back. But the completely impotent leadership of five years have turned a tough country into a soft State.

I am very sad. I keep feeling that if they protect India as they protect their leaders - whether it is Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Congress President Sonia Gandhi - I think I would be safe. Today, India’s leaders are safe and India is in panic.

On what India’s response should be:

India’s proper reaction would be possible if we understand the extent of the disease. If the disease is cancer, you can’t apply band aid. After making a complete mess of security issues for five years by asking Shivraj Patil to go finally we may have a home minister who doesn’t comb his hair and change his clothes. But we want something more than that.

If it is cancer, we need chemotherapy, a much more serious exercise. It needs a legislative and executive framework. It needs political mobilization. People are numbed. The Indian people have no leadership. You have a Prime Minister. Did you see him when he addressed the nation? Nobody knew if he was addressing the nation or having a cup of tea?

He looked serious, but he didn’t talk to us about our anger and about our anguish. I think this administration is tone deaf to the anguish of the people. They just cannot understand what the people are going through. They just don’t understand our pain or our anger. The most important thing is that, perhaps, we have politicized not only the instruments of the State like the police but we have also politicized the understanding of the nature of the problem.

I think the very first thing to do is to ensure security so that it prevents the next attack. If any attack takes place under someones job should go. Don’t come to me with alibis.

On the terrorists getting local support:

I am an Indian Muslim and I am very proud of both, being an Indian and a Muslim. I do not see any contradictions. This is my land and I have nowhere else to go. But can I say because I am an Indian Muslim that no Indian Muslim is involved? Can you, because you are a Hindu, say that no Hindu is involved?

We have to behave like Indians first. Not as a Muslim or as a Hindu first. Because we need Hindu votes and Muslim votes and because this government thinks that it needs Muslim votes so it has been in complete denial. Do you think that these people came across from Pakistan and had no support in Mumbai? It is not possible. It was a huge operation. Ten people hit nine places and you killed nine of them.

You want to say that they went from place to place? Who knows some of them must have slipped away to create new sleeper cells to hit us six months later. They are hiding things. I would like to believe that there was an underworld connection. Because, Karachi and Mumbai are also linked by drug smuggling. The culture of criminals is aggression. It comes naturally to them. It is not easy for you and I to become aggressive, however angry we are.

It does not come naturally to us. These are people who are trained psychologically in aggression. They have no respect for the State. They have no love for the country. And they have no respect for authority. Why? Because the only face of authority is the corrupt policeman. The criminal gives money in the morning and money in the evening. Why should he have respect for somebody he gives bribes to?

For the guy from the underworld his understanding of the Indian State and authority is corruption. He has no patriotism to stop him. Why would he not join hands with the terrorists? In any case, he belongs to another world. We have not even begun to address and discuss this.

On the Pakistan factor:

I am tired of giving Pakistan a long rope on some excuse or the other. Everybody is saying this will happen if we do this, that will happen if we do this. Our relations with Pakistan will go, then, let them go. What has our relations with Pakistan brought us except violence and terror? Why should we be in charge of saving Pakistan? For what? Every time they turn around and they say they want evidence.

Now, finally we have evidence. I have been an editor for 35 years from the age of 23. From that time on, since the days of General Zia-ul Haq, I have been hearing ‘Pakistan is asking for evidence’. We asked for withdrawal of their support to the movement for Khalistan, they said, ‘Oh, we don’t know anything about it.’

On Kashmir, they kept repeating where is the evidence. Benazir Bhutto came, she asked for evidence. Nawaz Sharif came, he asked for evidence. I think Pervez Musharraf asked for less evidence. Now again, they are asking for evidence. There is a terrorist in Mumbai, captured and arrested. How much more evidence do you want?

If what he is saying is not evidence, then how can you get more evidence? This government is in its 11th hour. Now they will bluff the people to protect their votes. There is no time left for them. The agony of departure will be hard from this government.

On the reaction in the West:

The US and Britain have a vested interest in telling India to look within. Why? When Americans die then they can send their air force 7,000 miles and bomb every country to smithereens. But when Indians die, they tell us no, no, you must be patient. You must act like a swami and a yogi. Why? Is an American life more precious than an Indian life? Why should we keep listening to them? But we have a government that keeps listening to them all the time.

We don’t get tough. The last time we got tough was after the attack on Parliament. We took some tough actions under Operation Parakram and then there was a certain lull. Three years ago, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was able to tell President George W Bush that there are no terrorists amongst Indian Muslims. That means that lull continued.

Pakistan must be made to realize that it will have to pay a heavy price. Not necessarily through war, but a heavy price will have to be paid in loss in trade, in cancellation of orders and other engagements. They should pay a heavy price in terms of people to people relations. I am not saying you can freeze a relationship to death, but the message must go out that if there is a crime there will be a penalty. You just can’t get away with it.

Let the Pakistan government cooperate with us. But look at how the Pakistan government has buckled down and we are sitting here whimpering. They want to send some lowly officers to India. For what? Even Pakistan is treating the Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi government with total contempt. They know how weak it is.

De-link Hindu-Muslim relations and Pakistan:

Look, you must not confuse the Pakistan issue with the Indian Muslims issue. Their so-called alienation or their economic deprivation is not linked to the issue of Pakistan. Indian Muslims have nothing to do with Pakistan. They have absolutely no sympathy for Pakistan. They know that Pakistan was the biggest mistake committed in the history of Indian Muslims. They know it. You can ask anyone in Baroda, Bihar or Mumbai. They know how they are suffering the backlash of all the consequences of cross-border terrorism.

Today, they fear retribution from the government, they fear retribution from popular disenchantment and anger. They feel helpless. They feel afraid. We must understand finally that it is not so much the ‘local people’, it is the local underworld that is involved in anti-India activities. In 1993, who were involved in terrorism? The underworld. Why have you not done anything about it?

The State turns a blind eye to the police and corruption. I don’t know how many readers smoke hashish and other stuff, but I am accusing them of cross-border terrorism. Drugs come to India from Afghanistan via Karachi.

What we can do as individuals:

If whoever is responsible for protecting the nation fails, then he or she should not be allowed to continue in power. That is the toughest and sharpest message we can give. You can tell that you may be a soft State, but we are a hard people and we are hard voters. We are not going to forgive you for your lies and deception and for your waffling. How many blasts do we need to understand that? When Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Delhi happened no one who was genuinely guilty was caught. We have to understand now that corruption has eaten away vitals of this nation. It is the biggest danger to the security of India. It is not just the case of some spectrum being sold to someone by some minister in.

Everyone who is corrupt get out! It Is a failure all around. We have to be extremely practical and pragmatic. There is great deal to be depressed about as an Indian. Frankly speaking, I feel very angry and upset. I am never upset by the behavior of our enemies. I am only upset by the betrayal of those I trust.

M J Akbar, editor, Covert magazine, spoke to Sheela Bhatt

My suggestions:

(1)
I don’t want war with Pakistan or Bangladesh. I don’t even want peace with Pakistan or Bangladesh. I want NOTHING to do with Pakistan or Bangladesh. Break of ALL RELATIONS - social, diplomatic, economic, rail, road, air. Cut off ALL contact, telephone lines, post & courier, television, radio, internet & email. Close our
embassy/consulate in Pakistan/Bangladesh and throw their’s out from India as well. No visas to be issued to any Pakistanis/Bangladeshis, no Indians to go to Pakistan/Bangladesh.

Hereafter, treat any communication with Pakistan/Bangladesh as TREASON, punishable by death. Pakistani/Bangladeshi artists & sports persons in India to be given 24 hours to decide whether they want to stay here or go back, a one-time amnesty - if they want to stay, they have to give up their Pakistani/Bangladeshi citizenship and accept Indian citizenship in return, knowing fully well that they will not be allowed any contact hereafter. TWENTY FOUR HOURS. Seal our borders such that not even a dog (or neta) is able to get across, by land, sea or air, this way or that.

(2)Police force to be brought up to the level of our armed forces - in arms, modernization, pay scales, housing facilities, children’s education facilities. Politicians to no longer have control over the police force in terms of appointments, promotions, transfers.

Bureaucrats to have no control over supplies to any of these forces. A body of the best and brightest of retired defense and police personnel to oversee the forces with NO interference from either the Neta or the babu - a Security Council with a maximum tenure of two years. Three of the best of the country’s auditors to audit their accounts and submit their observations to the Supreme Court for perusal.

Accounts to be made public after a period of one year, particularly those relating to procurement. Likely or suspected irregularities to be probed by the Supreme Court and prosecution/punishment be initiated against the guilty regardless of whether they still serve at the time. Reservations on the basis of religion or caste to be phased out of any of these forces within a period of 4 years.

(3 Security cover to politicians and bureaucrats to be decided by above Security Council - whether or not it is required, and what level is deserved. A full stop to all unnecessary expenditures for the netas & Babus, e.g. new cars, servants, foreign jaunts, huge bungalows.

(4) Bureaucracy to be ruthlessly removed from the citizens’ daily lives, except where absolutely necessary (there are more people today going after the poor roadside vendor than after Dawood’s people). Remove ALL taxes including income tax, excise, octroi, professional tax, wealth tax etc. and resort to a SINGLE VAT of 20%, no more concessions, limits, deductions etc. - EVERYONE who buys anything or avails of a service, pays this tax - only food items, medicines, doctors, schools, colleges, to be fully exempt.

- Kolkata at the Maidan

KAM-THE, neta kuch kaam ke NA the.

in impotent protest,
Bharatram Gaba
Bombay

At the outset, pardon my French. I mean every word of it.

What is the difference between politicians and vultures?
(answer at the end)

As I sit to write this blog, I have this inescapable feeling, nay, knowledge that blogs like these, articles and write-ups from thousands of other humans will matter not a wee bit.

125 human beings – that’s ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE MOTHERS, DAUGHTERS, SISTERS, FATHERS, SONS, BROTHERS – 125 human beings have so far lost their lives in the latest terror attack on Bombay.

I just saw our khadi-clad b*****ds on TV and they was saying: “This is a dastardly and cowardly attack on India’s secular fabric. We will deal with it firmly. We will take up the matter very strongly with our neighbors.”

Our bastards after last time’s train bombs: “This is a dastardly and…..” After the Ahmedabad bombs: “This is a dastardly and…..”
After Delhi, Bangalore, Assam: “This is a dastardly and…..”

Tomorrow morning, we’ll see the assorted thieves-in-arms say that “no matter what the terrorists try to do, they can never kill the spirit of Bombay!” Except, they’ll call it Mumbai.

One or all of our illegitimate “Daamaads” (sun-in -laws)will get in on the action in a few days and ask for an inquiry into the police/army/NSG action against the terrorists – “Was too much force used?” - they will ask. “What was the need for the police to shoot?” – they will astoundingly ask!

The families of Mr Hemant Karkare, Mr Salaskar, Mr Kamthe, along with the families of the other policemen killed, will be given an ex-gratia payment of a few lakhs, which will be handed over by a minister at a public ceremony, while looking into the cameras.

Thereafter, the families will be forgotten and will spend the rest of their lives running from pillar to post and bribing their erstwhile colleagues to get their promised jobs or petrol pumps or school/college admissions or an appointment with the Mantri (Ministers). Unless they can be used at the next election.

The policy of ‘highest posting for the highest bidder’ in the police and other bureaucracy will continue as-was, merit be damned. The best and brightest of the forces will, naturally, be allotted to the netas’s (Leaders) security, yes, even two-bit ones. No matter who wins the next election, they will accord each other all manner of increased security cover ranging from A to Z and continue the obscenity of having a hundred men guard one person of their’s, and having one person guard a hundred thousand of our’s.

Debates will continue in parliament on the necessity of giving a dozen eggs to soldiers as part of their ration, or, whether it is necessary for policemen to get the latest bullet-proof jackets, while proposals to change the MP’s/MLA’s cars to Honda City’s will be passed without discussion, except possibly about the trim levels of the cars.

WE, THE PEOPLE.

We will forget the events of last night as soon as either the next killings happen, or Shahrukh Khan’s or Akshay Kumar’s next movies release, whichever comes first.

WE, THE PEOPLE.

We will go back to voting for our religion, our caste, our neta. The fact that he has done nothing for anyone except himself will cease to matter – it never has – “At least he’s from our community!” – we will say.

WE, THE PEOPLE.

We will turn our anger towards easier, more visible targets, example the bhaiyyas or the muslims or the christians or the hindus, anyone who can be identified and attacked – the assorted Thackerays and Yadavs and Singhs will thrive once again.

WE, THE F*****G PEOPLE!

We will live like rats, and we will die like rats, ‘cos that’s we’ve become.

Oh yes, to answer the question I posed at the beginning.

(Our netas have started coming into Bombay (in separate aircraft, mind you – we are encouraged to use public transport) to get into the action with photo-ops at the hospitals, pulling away even more policemen from the crime scenes.)

The answer – A vulture will not touch flesh that is still warm.

THAT, my dear fellow impotents, is the difference between a neta and a vulture.