I am a common Indian man and I do not support Ramdev Baba

While the world is pretty much busy is supporting or opposing the fast by the yoga guru Ramdev Baba and a pretty small section of people creating hype over it on the net and social media, I can find the voice of the common Indian man almost neglected in all this chaos. Supporting Ramdev Baba, or for that matter, Anna Hazare has been a craze in the tech-geeky, and often misleaded, youth. Though no one is expecting a magical change in situations, everyone is expecting something to change, without knowing exactly what. The supporters of Ramdev Baba, though a very small fraction of the huge Indian population, are succeeding to make their voice loud enough to seem true, and the majority of Indian population is left as a dumb spectator of all the events passing.

When I see the over-enthusiastic youth to propose support for these protests, have they ever thought about the consequences of it? These protests are nothing but the means for creating an anti-government sentiment in the country. The UPA has been in power for the last seven years. For the first-term, the BJP-lead NDA could not even find an agenda for the polls and lost the elections even without fighting wholeheartedly. This time they cannot afford to do so. The extreme right-wing Hindutva ideology cannot be successful each and every time. They needed something as an adjunctive to the Hindutva ideology.

Baba Ramdev and Sangha Pariwar:
BJP (or for that matter RSS) has a very small, but every strong and loyal, core support group. In the democracy of “one vote per head”, they can never ascend to power depending only on this core support group and they know it well. To overcome this factor, the Sangh Parivar always tries to spread its wings as wide as possible to cover a second-line support from the society which would increase the headcount. Organizations like Bharatiya Janata Party, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajarang Dal, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and so on are just the spread wings of the Sangha Pariwar where the top leadership comes from the core group and the headcount come from the second-line supporters.

Where does Ramdev Baba come to the scene? He is just a bonus that the Sangha Parivar can have. He is not in any way officially affiliated to the RSS (though the support and think-tank support is apparent). Rather, he has kept himself aloof only to say people that “Look, I am not attached to any political party.” He has already gained much follower support from his yoga activities and now he is trying to turn this follower group to the third-line support group of the Sangha Parivar. Sangha needs as much as support from their core circle as they can gather and that’s why they are supporting Ramdev Baba.

Why not Saffron?
People may ask why am I being a saffron-phobic? The congress has ruled over this country for most of the time? What if we ask for a change now? Before going to the answer, I want to make a disclaimer that I am a common India man, I happened to be a Hindu, my father used to go to daily shakha of the Sangha (in the late 1980s and early 1990s when the Ram Mandir issue was on hype), and I am not attached to any political party in any slightest way. I am no more involved in politics more than casting my vote when election comes. My interests are far nonpolitical – reading, music, films, etc. – then why should I bother who is there ruling on top?

I am a common Indian young man, 27 years old. I hold the Constitution of India to the top. I cannot segregate people (as the saffron group tends to do) based on their cast, creed, or religion. I am a firm believer of “We, The People of India.” I cannot think myself as a Hindu, Maharastrian, or anything for that matter. Nothing can come between me and my Indian-ness.

We live in a secular democracy. We know it is the best type of state for the varied culture of India. The ideology of Saffron Pariwar is exactly opposite to this. They cannot gain power with what limited support they have from their core group. All their efforts are to increase their outer circles using fascist means: Vociferous propaganda, continuous advertising, favorable use of media, and now effective use of social media. Baba Ramdev and other are just puppets to create a headcount in outer circles. They will promise everything and even implement on it. But isn’t it what Hitler did to achieve powers. We can certainly give him credit for blowing new life in the then Germany, which was going through serious economic crisis and post-war depression. He promised people of good governance, and he worked for it, but then he also used his hatred policy against Jews as the means to polarize the vote bank and he succeeded. Can India afford to let the saffron parties succeed? Can India afford oligarchy, if not dictatorship? Think once again, think thousand times, you may not have the freedom to think and express in that regime.

Tragedy of Indian democracy:
This is just an update to what I have written above. All the day, as I was keeping an eye on the events, I could see BJP people openly in support of Baba Ramdev. I cannot understand the logic behind this. BJP is the largest party in the opposition. The people of India have elected them to ask question to the government. The constitution of India has given them the platform of parliament to ask questions. The government is responsible to them for any of their action; and what the opposition does, walks out of the parliament during the sessions and sets up and joins the protests on road! And people go behind them, what else can be the tragedy of India democracy?

Parsis in India: On the verge of extinction

While we are looking forward at the national census of 2010, a striking fact from the last census of 2001 caught my attention yesterday.  In the enormously growing trend of population, there is one community, which is literally on the verge of extinction compromising just 0.006% of the Indian population.  And it is not any tribal community from the islands of Great Nicobar, but a highly civilized community from the economical capital of India:  The Parsis.  This community, not only in India but also in all over the world, is undergoing a sharp quantitative decline and immediate measures are the need of time to save the rich civilization of the Zoroastrians and its people from being disappeared from the planet.

As per the 2001 census, the Parsi population in the country is 69,601 (33949 males and 35652 females) down from their population of 76,382 (37,736 males and 38646 females) in 1991.  This is a clear but unfortunate decline.

The Parsis have always been contributing their best for the Nation.  From the Great Old Man Dadabhai Naoroji to former Attorney-General of India Soli Sorabjee, along with many others, Homi Bhabha, one of the greatest scientist India has very produced,  Major General Manekshaw, one of only two Field Marshals of Indian Army, and many other who lived and are living for this country being a part of Indian Nation.  Now this is time for the Nation to save the community through immediate appropriate measures in the best of the Parsis.

Parsi

Technorati code: QQB76PCEDQYS

The story behind Bandit Queen

India is celebrating 50th anniversary of commencement of Indian Constitution. Though the Constitution was commenced on January 26, 1950 and India was proclaimed to be a Republic from that day, the constitution was adopted and enacted by the people of India on November 26, 1949. India celebrates Constitution Day on this day. In accordance to that, here is a very popular case in the Supreme Court of India, which illustrates the role of the Apex Court in assuring the Fundamental Rights of the citizens, right to freedom of speech and expression (article 19-a) in this case.

In 'Bobby Art International V Om Pal Singh Hoon' [(1996) 4 SCC 1], popularly known as 'Bandit Queen Case', the respondent filed a writ petition in the court for quashing the certificate of exhibition given to the film "Bandit Queen" and restraining its exhibition in India. The film "Bandit Queen" is the story of a village child (Phoolan Devi) exposed to from a very early age to the brutality and lust of men. Phoolan Devi was married to a man old enough o be her father. She was beaten and raped by him. Further few village boys made some advances, which were repulsed by her, but the village Panchayat found her guilty of the enticement of that boy, because he was of high class and she was forced to leave village. She was arrested by the police and subjected to indignity and humiliation in the police station. Furthermore, she was kidnapped by dacoits and raped by their leader, Babu Singh Gujjar. Another member of the gang, Vikram Mallah, shot Babu Gujjar dead while he was assaulting Phoolan Devi, and she found an allay in her secure. With his assistance, she took revenge from her husband. Shortly after that, her rescuer Vikram Mallah was shot dead by the leader of a gang of Thakurs who made advances and was spurned. Phoolan was gang-raped by the leader and his colleagues. She was humiliated in the sight of village, stripped naked, and was made to fetch water from the village well under the gaze of villagers, but no one came to her rescue. To take revenge from her prosecutors, she joined a dacoit gang headed by Babu Mustkin and killed 20 Thakurs of the village of Bahmain. Ultimately, she surrendered and was in jail for number of years.

The film was presented for certification to the Censor Board. The Examining Committee of the Censor Board referred it to the Revision Committee, which recommended that the film be graded an 'A' certificate (for adults only) subject to certain modifications and cuts. Aggrieved by the decision of the revision committee, an appeal was filed before the Appellate Tribunal. The Tribunal consisted of a chairman and three other members who were ladies. The Tribunal granted the film an 'A' certificate. The respondent, then, filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court seeking to quash the certificate granted to the film and restrain ti exhibition in India. He contended that though the audiences were led to believe that the film was depicted the character of "a former queen of ravines", also known as Phoolan Devi, the depiction was "abhorrent and unconscionable and slur on the womanhood of India." The respondent and his community has been depicted in a most depraved way especially in the scene of rape by Babu Gujjar, which scene was "suggestive of the moral depravity of the Gujjar community." The High Court held that the film was obscene and quashed the order of the Tribunal. The Supreme Court, allowing the appeal, held that the certificate issued to the film bandit queen upon conditions imposed by the appellate tribunal is valid and is therefore restored. The court held that the film must be "judged in its entirety from the point of view of its overall impact."

The story of the film is a serious and sad story of a village-born female child becoming a dreaded dacoit. The film levels an accusing finger at the member of society who compelled her to become a dreaded dacoit. The scene where she is humiliated, stripped naked, paraded, made to draw water from the well within the circle of hundreds of men, the exposure of her breasts and genitals to those men is intended by those who strip her to demean her. This does not arose the cinema-goer's lust, but arouse in him sympathy for the victim and disgust for the perpetrators. Nakedness does not always arouse the baser instinct. Bandit Queen tells a powerful human story and to that story the scene of Phoolan Devi's enforced naked parade in central. It helps to explain why Phoolan Devi became what she was, her rape and vendetta against the society that had heaped indignities upon her. It shows what a terrible and terrifying effect rape and lust can have upon the victim. A film that illustrates the consequences of a social evil necessarily must show that social evil. The guidelines in the Cinematograph Act must be interpreted in that light. A film that carries the message that the social evil is evil cannot be impermissible on the ground that it depicts the social evil. The Tribunal is a multi-member body. It consists of persons who gauge public reactions, and except in cases of stark breach of guidelines, should be permitted to go about its task. In the present case, apart from the Chairman, three member of the Tribunal were women. It is hardly to be supposed that three women would permit a film to be screened, which denigrates women, insults Indian womanhood, or is obscene or pornographic. Instead, the tribunal took the view that it would do women some good to see the film. The tribunal had viewed the film in its true perspective and had, in compliance with the requirement of the guidelines, granted to the film 'A' certificate. The High Court ought not to have entertained the respondent's petition challenging the grant of certificate to the film.

The Supreme Court, accordingly, set aside the judgment of the high court and restored the order of appellate tribunal.

(Ref Source: Constitutional law of India: Prof. J. N. Pandey)

Obama, Elections, and Greenland

Lot of issues are in mind to discuss, but cannot find time to think over them. Just trying to keep them in front of you:
1. Elections in Maharashtra. Counting on November 13. Shivsena/BJP has no issues and Congress/NCP has 10 years of anti-incumbency. Maharashtra is waiting for results this Diwali.
2. We had talked about Greenland. We talked about how can such a big territory remain under sovereignty of some other state (Denmark)? It is an autonomous state under the Kingdom of Denmark with the queen of Denmark as the Head of State.
3. The topic of Greenland gave rise to thoughts about many other united dominions that form a state collectively. UAE consists of seven separate Emirates: Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi are well known to us. Each Emirate is ruled by a separate Amir.
4. Nobel prize of peace for Obama. Obama states: I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.
5. Nobel prize of literature to Herta Muller, Romanian-born German novelist and poet.
6. Nobel prize to Venki Ramakrishnan, Indian-American molecular biologist.
7. Problems on permutation and combination, I find them very tough.

Waiting for you views. ~~Ganesh.

Buddham Saranam Gacchāmi

Today is VijayaDashmi, the day of great joy and celebrations for the Indians. The Hindu population of India celebrates this day for some mythologic reasons, but we, the Buddhists in India, celebrate this day with a more strong and more historic reason. This is the day of resurrection of Buddhism in India after hundreds of years of suppression. On this day in 1956 (October 14, 1956 according to Gregorian calendar), Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar embraced Buddhism with his millions of followers at Deekshabhoomi, Nagpur.

Thousands of people visit Deekshabhoomi every year on this day from what distant states and unknown regions to pay tribute to that great man. Let us join them. They are the part of us. Let us say from the deep of our heart: Buddham Saranam Gacchāmi.

That magic touch has lost!

This is the work of perfection. This is the work of complete dedication to, and a lot of homework in, a particular subject. With this letter on Ghalibana, you can tell yourself confidently: Gone are the days of depression. Gone are the days of darkness. Here is a new dawn waiting for a bright morning…
I went through the last letter in a little bit hurry. I read it completely but did not have much time to swallow and digest it. I will read it again and again. This work deserves to be read again and again. I have not had a chance to get the complete book yet, but I can read it now with your help. I have always been fascinated by the idea of a father to write such letters to a daughter who was just 13.
While going through it, it stopped to the line “But the days of that faith are gone, and gone with them is that magic touch in stone.” On this note, I just want to make you aware of a sharp contrast to this line. Just last week, stone-pelting ritual at Pandhurna claimed about 50 casualties. This year, the ritual was banned by Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission and the district administration. When people came to know that they couldn’t hurl stone at each other, they targeted the police vans and the journalists covering the event. The administration needed to bow before the vandalists. The age-old ceremony was celebrated with bloodshed. Who says the days of faith are gone? Just that magic touch is nowhere now. The stones are used as weapons nowadays behind the name of religion.
Let’s discuss it later. Till then, keep writing…

Ganesh

Let's hope for a better future!

Working from Wikipedia seems to be very useful. When you can't get things straightforward, get them by hook or crook. (Its just a saying not my whole life philosophy.)
I just wanted to share a few things with you on which I have been thinking for the last few days. The things may sound trivial to you but I believe these things have some importance and you should know them.
The first thing is the issue of Imran Hashmi's house. Last week media has got a sensational news when Imran asked,"Do I look like a terrorist?" The real issue was he was denied a house in Pali Hill area of Mumbai just because he is a Muslim. He registered a formal complaint in State Minority Commission and thus the news came to media. Media covered both the aspects of the issue. The Saffron Brigade held Imran guilty that he brought his religion in just a minor issue of getting or not getting a house. The secularist held that Imran's example is just a part of a huge iceberg. People must not be discriminated on the basis of caste, creed or ethnicity. Arguments and counter-arguments went on for the whole week and when they seem to calm down, ShivSena came in. In Saamna, it's own publication, Sena started a maligning campaign against Imran. He was referred to as "Chindhi actor", "dum hilau actor(tail moving actor)", etc.
This is not for the first time that a Muslim was rejected a house. Few years ago, Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi were also rejected only because they are Muslims. And also, this is not the first time when Shivsena took such a derogatary stand in a delicate issue like this.
Let it be. I told you the whole issue because you should know what is happening in your home state.
Now let's go to another news. And fortunately, it is a good one. Government of Maharashtra has sanctioned the first engineering college in Gadchiroli district. This is an important news, because the district was always neglected when it came to developmental decisions. Gadchiroli is still far away from the lightening fast speed of 21st century. This decision could help it to become somewhat familiar to the new world. Establishing new college does not mean everything. We would hardly get students from district own for the first few years, because we dont have that quality of primary and secondary education in Gadchiroli in present situation. But with the college, outside people will go to Gadchiroli. It would help to minimise the stigmata of naxalism from the district. New opportunities of employment would be created for the native people. They would get something to think over rather than just sitting idly all over the day. There are chances that the situations may turn towards good basic education, and that's all what the district needs badly.
LET'S HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE!
By Ganesh.