MONTH-IN-PERSPECTIVE
HARYANA: A Chandigarh datelined report in the print media informed about a raid by I.T. department into the premises of a group of hospitals. Normally I.T raids take place, when they suspect income tax evasion by people or firms in their financial returns. Unaccounted incomes and therefore unaccounted expenditures are quite in vogue in all societies, which include India. Of course in India it may be of a higher scale and therefore tax authorities are generally active all through the year. Some time they do hit jack pot. Such raids routinely take place round the year. But this one became news because owners of this group of hospitals are relatives of former Aam Aadmi Party senior functionary and renowned psephologist Yogendra Yadav, who accused PM Narendra Modi of political vendetta.
However in this case, the report informed, there were two particulars of interest. One, I.T officials reportedly found Rs.22 lakhs cash during the raid. Another was regarding the purchase of jewellary from the notorious fraudster Nirav Modi’s Outlet (NMO). According to the report it was the purchase of jewellary at the NMO for cash that really triggered this I.T raid. By hindsight, it is apparent, that, if the owners of this hospital group, had not purchased jewellary from Nirav Modi outlet (NMO), for all you know, it would have remained undetected, even if jewellary was purchased for cash. It is their misfortune that Nirav Modi and his firms are under high pressure investigation for the loot of public sector banks to the tune of over Rs.11000 crores. And the chances are, there may be many, who may have similarly bought their jewellary from Nirav Modi Outlets. Will their cases too shall follow, is not known. But as Yogendra Yadav accuses Modi for this raid as the owners turned out to be Yadav’s sisters. While, it may be true, as Yogendra Yadav alleges that this raid is politically motivated by PM Narendra Modi, what Yogendra Yadav failed to state whether the allegation of cash find of Rs.22 lakhs is true and it is not true that his sisters bought jewellary from Nirav Modi Outlets. As a reasonable person Yadav must come clean on this aspect of the raid and then blame PM Modi, rightly or wrongly, for his alleged role in the raid.
NEW DELHI: The Lokpal is coming back to haunt NDA II, whether its PM Narendra Modi likes it or not. The COMMON CAUSE, the NGO, is in the apex court again, knocking its door, on the delaying tactics of the central government. Since 5 years, the enactment, Lokpal & Lokayukta Act 2013, is in place and yet the central government which came in May 2014, has failed to appoint the Lokpal, despite promises to act. The standard excuse of NDA II government has been, there is no leader of opposition member, since the main opposition did not have the requisite 10% (54) member strength in the Loksabha. This excuse was God sent to be misused by the NDA II.
Thus for all the 4 years, since May 2014 to June 2018, the incumbent government has failed to appoint the Lokpal. Knowing the potential of Lokpal to create problems for all political parties, no member of parliament has so far questioned with all seriousness, why the government is not appointing Lokpal and why it is indulging in delaying tactics to appoint the Lokpal?
In the past, Supreme Court had intervened, how the question of leader of opposition requirement can be circumvented for the committee to select the Lokpal. But the clear intention of the government of delaying the inevitable has been on display.
After all, the incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is reputed to have stone-walled appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat, during his term as the chief minister. And he was Chief Minister of Gujarat 3 times!
However, this time round the apex court is in no mood to allow this delaying tactics by the union government. They have insisted that in 10 days the government has to come back with a time bound road map to see that Lokpal is appointed without any further delay.
There could even be a possibility, as Common Cause lawyer Prashanth Bhushan demanded that the higher court of the land has powers to appoint Lokpal, until central government appoints one, could be enforced.
Clearly, the days of delaying tactics of NDA II government at the centre is clearly marked. Hope the authorities in the corridors of power in Delhi acts, before Supreme Court forces its way to appoint the much delayed Lokpal.
NEW DELHI:Sometime in July 2018, the central government of the day is expected to file its response to the PIL that sought to bar candidates from contesting more than one seat.
The issue of Indians standing or contesting election to either Legislative Assembly or LokSabha has been there since 1990s. The provision to have this opportunity for contestants has been there in the People’s Representation Act. It was debated for the first time in mid 1990. However a Parliamentary Committee in 1998 rejected the idea of not allowing contestants to stand for election in more than one seat. Reportedly this was after all political parties met to discuss the issue and favored the retention of the clause that allowed the practice of contesting multiple seats.
Surely, no political party, or rather every political party would want to have it as easy as possible, to get elected to have power and to enjoy the perks of power. However the churning had gone on in the nation’s body politic and one Ashwini Kumar Upadhyaya, a BJP leader, had filed this PIL in the Supreme Court asking direction to bar this contest from multiple seats. While, this PIL is a welcome development, the question was why now? The Karnataka election was due around the time of filing this PIL in late March. The then Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah had planned to stand for election from two constituencies. Mercifully he managed to win only one of the two seats. If he had won from both seats, one more election had to be conducted for the seat he would have given up. But this Upadhyaya did not think of filing such a PIL in 2014 when Narendra Modi stood for election in both Vadodra in Gujarat and Varanasi in U.P. and he won both seats. So there had to be another election in Gujarat for the seat he decided to forgo that is Vadodra, since Modi decided to represent Varanasi in the parliament. Here the question is, any election is a huge exercise, especially so for a parliamentary constituency. It involves huge expenditure, deployment of men methods and machinery all involving monetary implication. Why should the nation pay for the whims and fancies of a politician or a political party? Whether, the central government takes the call or not, Apex Court must take a suo-moto stand and act to ban this multiple seats syndrome. Parliament may say, it is an executive prerogative and hence no role for the court. May be Apex Court must call for a public referendum to decide the issue. Only then political parties would have their lessons. Hope the highest court of the land acts decisively.
NEW DELHI:For some time now this talk about No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against the central government led by Narendra Modi has been on the card. It appeared loud thinking. Since it was the number game, and that some opposition parties were thinking of making the incumbent government fall on the floor of parliament, it was clearly stupid to think that way. The numbers were clearly with the ruling dispensation, whether the arrogant ally Shiv Sena is with it or not. Hence getting the government out was simply not there.
In the event, NCM did come by, signed by some of the opposition parties. Although not much of fireworks expected, except the TDP with its massive complaints of denying Andhra Pradesh development funds to build the new capital of the new Andhra after Telangana was carved out to be become the 29th State of India. But unexpectedly this NCM of 20th June provided Rahul Gandhi to come on his own. Suddenly there was a new Rahul Gandhi unseen and unheard earlier. It is true that, ever since he took over from his mother the president ship of Congress Party, he has displayed and shown that he is different. His chance came to prove his decisive ability when the ever suffering foot-in-month syndrome, Mani Shankar Aiyar spoke disparagingly against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rahul Gandhi suspended a very senior Congress man, a former IFS diplomat to boot, forthwith. This ability to act against motor mouths within Congress was certainly better than the BJP leadership.
Thus this NCM has proved him to be an extempore speaker without the help of any note or prompters sitting next to him. It was really good, while reminding the ruling combine that they had ridiculed him in the past as Pappu, but he bore no grudge or anger against the treasury benches with whole of innovative verbose claiming that the New Congress under his leadership has no hatred, but only love which is the language of their politics. Then came up with an entirely unexpected act, after his speech on the NCM, Rahul Gandhi walked upto PM Modi, shook hand and hugged him. It was an act, for which he will be remembered. But the wink that followed after he got back to his seat was uncalled for, which was a bit negative. All in all it was a creditable performance.
NEW DELHI:There was this New Delhi datelined report in the print media “Supreme Court ask Kerala Government for status report”. Court was referring to the so-called Church Scandal.
Since some weeks now, this sex scandal involving the clergy, laity and of course nuns have been making its round with fair regularity. A section of the print and electronic media, have been talking about it at irregular intervals. Of course, it was not earth shattering news and hence probably did not deserve too much time. Of course, like all else, even media too have its own priorities, rightly or wrongly.
Now that it has knocked on the doors of apex court, perforce it will become news and will find more exposure. Two of the four accused priests had approached court for protection from arrest and court had no problem with it. Be that as it may, what was intriguing was the observation by the top court. During the hearing, bench apparently surprised, and expressed its wonderment at the “Sudden upsurge in number of rape cases involving church priests”.
But the observation of the highest court of the land is squarely misplaced. It has been always there. Ask the current pontiff at Vatican, he will reel out the history of the attack on celebrated celibacy by its own clergy. Incidents of sex within the portals of Church, has been there since time immemorial. But, the Church and the vested interest within and without had always succeeded in keeping it a well guarded secret. It was only when it spilled over the brim, at times, it made some news. It is because of the over confidence of parties involved in the physical freedom, that they will remain protected, since it was fairly common. At least there is a catholic gentleman who had accused a priest in Mangalore who became a Bishop, of keeping condom in his office. So the surprise expressed by the court is clearly misplaced. This is also because media, in its wisdom tries to under play some section while over playing some other section. For them what sells matters, not necessarily the truth.
While being about the issue of celibacy in the portals of religious outfits, it is patently wrong to force celibacy on clergy whether Christian or any other. Because, sex is a very normal activity of all living beings just like hunger, and has to be accepted thus. Therefore all courts, should look at the issue of sex in religious bodies where celibacy is a forced condition, has to have a different yard sticks so that it need not be seen as sin. Hope courts take the rational stand.
UTTAR PRADESH: U.P is the largest state of India with maximum number of Members of Parliament (80) with some 400+ MLAs. The Chief Minister of this state has a special place for this singular contribution. It has history of being an important centre for nationalist movement, especially during independence struggle and immediately thereafter. Most Prime Ministers have come from this state. Banaras Hindu University was a kind of prime mover in independence movement. This state also has the maximum number of districts that is 75. Every state has number of districts. Chief Minister of every state should necessarily visit every district of the state to appraise himself about the development status of the district. That is the only way to have a firsthand knowledge of the state. But how many Chief Ministers really made it a point to make official visit to these districts? Certainly not all of them, more so in a state like UP with 75 districts! But Yogi Adityanath with all complaints regarding his ability to govern a state, as huge and complex as UP, has at least reported to have visited all 75 districts within the short span of just 16 months. Reportedly he is the 1st CM to have visited all districts of UP. As a Yogi, with no personal desire for aggrandizement, and other visible weakness he can really do wonders, if only he is open to learning and open to correction. He can even have bigger role if he proves himself better in administering the state, not just visiting all districts. Of course he should also remain free of divisive sectarian politics he is known for, which can truly propel him to national role someday. Hope Yogi evolves as a good administrator for the better of Uttar Pradesh.
UTTAR PRADESH:A BJP MLA, Surendra Singh clearly has his head in the wrong place. Why in the first place he was allowed to become an MLA is clearly questionable, although, he is there as an MLA to serve his constituency. But he is well known for making stupid barbs.
He had said in the past, “Those who do not say Bharath Maata Ki Jai are Pakistanis”. “Even Lord Rama would not have been able to stop rising rapes in the country”, was another gem of brain wave from this joker. And comes this latest wise crack, “Hindus should have at least 5 children to keep the Hindutva alive and the country strong”.
This idiot of an MLA has to know, that world has suffered only because of exploding population. Africa is suffering due to excessive population. Rohingyas are suffering due to their no holds barred production of children. Why Rohingyas are not wanted in Myanmar? It is only because of their growing number. Why Europe is having better standard of life for its people, it is only because of controlled number. Even India is talking about population control but not very seriously. If the country has to progress we have to reduce number of children per married couple not five as suggested by this MLA. Of course there has to be population control policy for India of giving all support for small families and make government services expensive for larger families. This will encourage small families.
Thus it is important that all law makers, whether states or central should talk about population control and not about increasing the number of mouths to feed.
RAJASTHAN: Close on the heal of Supreme Court asking the central government to “Make lynching a separate offence” while terming such killings as “horrendous mobocracy”, comes this story of another macabre killing from the same infamous Alwar in Rajasthan.
Disposing a petition for curbing self styled vigilantes, Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Deepak Mishra condemned a spate of lynching in recent times observed “The litany of spiraling mob violence, their horror, the grim and gruesome scenes of lynching are made worse by the apathy of bystanders, numbness of mute spectators, inertia of police and finally the grand standing of the incident by the perpetrators of the crime on social media”, in their 45 page judgment.
Clearly disturbed at the growing menace of mob violence and the apathetic citizenry and the system, court asked the parliament to actively think and try to bring about a separate legislation to deal with such senseless violence. The court made these remarks only four day ago and sadly it seem to have been wasted as pouring water on rock.
On suspicion of cow smuggling, a group of five attacked one Rakbar Khan and beat him up so badly that he succumbed to his serious injuries, while police took an irresponsibly long time to take him to the hospital. Sadly he had died before reaching the hospital.
It is extremely sad and worrying that these kinds of attacks on Muslims are taking place in the name of smuggling cows in Rajasthan, so very often, with police being seen clearly partisan. If Muslims in Rajasthan feel unsafe it is very real. Vasundhara Raje’s government has lot to explain why law and order is so poor when it comes to cow vigilantism. This is seriously going to dent the record of the government which is going for election shortly. Law must ruthlessly take action on such anti-social elements, roaming freely as cow vigilantes.
JHARKHAND: Jayant Sinha, the suave son of former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha, we are told is Harvard returned IIT graduate. There cannot be two opinions that he belongs to the Crème De La Crème of the society. Senior Sinha, using his clout and the academic attainment of his brilliant son manages to get him a seat in Jharkand’s Hazaribagh Lok Sabha constituency. He wins the seat in 2014 election and becomes a minister in Abki baar Modi Sarcar. Although nothing superlative was heard about him, he was a performing minister.
After 4 years of handling different portfolios, junior Sinha is in the news, unfortunately for some very controversial reasons. In Jayant Sinha’s constituency, sometime last year, cow vigilantes had attacked a meat trader and had beaten him to death, on suspicion of transporting beef. After dilly-dallying, law took its course and police arrested some people, they were handed down life imprisonment by the court.
In India getting bail depends upon varieties of reasons although it is the right of all accused and it is up to court to grant this bail. As luck would have it, 8 among the accused were granted bail and they walked out of the jail after necessary formalities. Of course, one of the reason cited for granting the bail was, that these 8 men were bystanders without participating in the beating of the meat trader. It is another matter, why they didn’t intervene to stop it? Or what were they doing there? Etc.
Now that these 8 accused who have been granted bail, are still accused in the eyes of the law, but our honorable minister Jayant Sinha garlands these accused in celebrating their being out an bail. That’s clearly incredulous. Is it because they called on you, and they are your party workers?
It is alright to receive them when they call on you but to garland and to take a celebratory photograph with them make no sense at all. In fact it speaks of something terribly wrong. What is the purpose of garlanding someone who may be innocent but still not cleared by the court? They are still accused according to the courts. Such actions send very wrong signals to law enforcing agencies and clearly bad in law. As a law maker, he needs to differentiate his actions as a law abiding citizen as opposed to law breakers. And he is a minister at the centre. This act of garlanding accused out on bail is absolutely irresponsible and very unfortunate.
MAHARASHTRA: A Mumbai datelined press report informed ‘Kingpin of fake note racket arrested’. Reportedly, a week after Thane rural police unearthed a counterfeit currency racket in the western suburb of Bhayandar arrested one Mohammed Idris Shaikh, report informs, that this Idris has confessed to printing of fake notes on a desktop printer and used to circulate them in the market with the help of his son Faisal and his helpers. Reportedly on June 25, police had nabbed Faisal and four others with some Rs.120000/- in fake notes.
During the course of interrogation and investigation, it transpired that this same Idris was earlier caught by Mumbai police and is currently on bail.
While police are trying to give all kinds of stories of their skill as to how they managed to catch son Faisal and then father Idris, what is not clear is how a man caught for the offence of fake note printing and circulating can be allowed on bail in the first place! Having been on bail, it was purely fortuitous that police managed to re-arrest this habitual criminal. Fake note printing is anti-national and there are provisions of law available to put such criminals behind bar without bail. So how such criminals are allowed a free run, and allowed to print fake notes again and hoodwink police, with law enforcement taking a back seat?!
Besides, if our currency notes can be printed easily on a desktop printer, what are the security checks available for the protection of legal tender? Also police have not informed about the denominations of these fake notes. So how are general public forewarned of such circulation? This is a very serious matter, but nobody, I mean nobody, seems to be disturbed about this dangerous development! Print media reported this matter in a corner of page no.4. Clearly this is very worrying!
TELANGANA: a report datelined Hyderabad was published in the print media, “Amit Shah rules out advancing LokSabha election”, a week ago. Now who is Amit Shah? A national president of a national party, presently with the highest number of seats in the LokSabha and with highest number of seats in Legislative Assemblies across India! But the LokSabha election or any election for that matter is the business of Election Commission. LokSabha election is due sometime in May 2019, still more than 9 months to go. Of course, the incumbent government in New Delhi can prepone the election by dissolving the parliament. But who can dissolve the parliament? Only the leader of the ruling combine. In this case Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He hasn’t said a word, about the preponement of LokSabha election! It is true that there have been speculations in the media, since there are about seven states or so, which are due for assembly elections before May 2019, usual speculators have started rumour mongering about the possible LokSabha election along with these states.
In 2004 too, the then NDA I led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee too had preponed the LokSabha election and lost it. Once bitten is twice shy. The incumbent PM Narendra Modi will not prepone the election since he is aware that right now the report card of his governance is not too much to harp about, although he is aware that he is only talking to the gallery at present. He has to make most of the remaining 9 months before May 2019, to improve his acceptability or rather the acceptability of NDA II.
He simply cannot afford to lose. Therefore there is no possibility that he will call for the dissolution of the parliament for the LokSabha election. We will have to wait until May 2019. So Amit Shah is only showing off that he is the know all, which he is not!
KERALA: That Malayalees are there in the middle-east, U.S, U.K and of course far eastern countries like Singapore etc, is very well known. Probably they are the most mobile and migrating Indians and they are into all kinds of activities from unskilled jobs to that of CEO’s of corporations. But they could also be there in Japan into running Indian restaurant simply did not cross the mind. But that’s exactly what is reported from Kasargod, the northern most town in Kerala, bordering Karnataka.
Of course the story is rather sad. It happened over 10 years ago. On 23rd March 2008, to be exact, informs George Poikayil, the story teller in the print media. On that day one VK Mahendra Kumar, who was running an Indian restaurant Himalaya, in the town of Isesaki, unfortunately got into conflict with Japanese law. ‘It was an Easter Sunday’ informs KV Laxmi, mother of Mahendra Kumar, “He was at his home and received a call that another group of Malayalees had come to the restaurant and had attacked his friends there. He rushed there to mediate. He found them all armed and at each other. Police arrived and all ran away, except the four injured persons. Mahendra was taken into custody and charged of attempt to murder the injured four. He was jailed for 12 years in Tochigi, some 100kms from Tokyo.” For all the 10 years she tried with ministers in the union government so also President Pratibha Patil, but nothing happened tells his mother KV Laxmi. His father PV Kumar is in 70s and she herself 64. Immediately after the incarceration of Mahendra Kumar, his elder brother VK Venugopal travelled to Japan with a pledge that he will return only with Mahendra. Thus, both mother and father of the duo have not seen both their sons for all these 10 years. Father, a former auto rickshaw driver, reportedly is not in good health.
But sadly, why the present dispensation, where the external affairs ministry is headed by the most active lady minister Sushma Swaraj couldn’t do anything since last 4 years to attend to this possible miscarriage of justice! Surely some affirmative steps could have been taken. However, what is sad is the usual insensitive approach of the Indian embassy staff. According to the story, Japanese authorities are prepared to release Mahendra in accordance with an available provision in Japanese law for him to undergo the remaining balance of imprisonment period in India. But strangely Indian embassy, do not seem to think this way. This is the primary negativity of Indians in general and embassy officials in particular. If Japanese prison officials are prepared to let him go and suffer the balance jail term, near his parents in his own country, what should stop Indian authorities to take it up there and pursue it further in India? After all an Indian is being helped out by a foreign country, but Indians are not ready! They are suffering from mental blocks. This is Yeh Mera India.
KERALA: In the independent India’s criminal justice system, police, all across India, played their villainous role, hundreds of time, besides of course their role as protectors of law and order. But, it is the first time that an old lady, Prabhavathi Amma, a septuagenarian, the mother of Udaykumar who was brutally tortured by the police to extract a confession of a crime he did not commit, could get justice for her dead son which could truly be path breaking. Uday Kumar had died in police custody. From September 27, 2005, it took 13 long years for the case to travel and come to a concluded state on this 24th July. The CBI special court in Thiruvananthapuram on 25th July sentenced to death, by hanging, two police officers, K. Jithu Kumar and S.V Sri Kumar, both serving senior civil police officers.
CBI Judge, reportedly said, he found no mitigating circumstances to reduce the quantum of punishment while adding, “Law enforcers are protectors of life and property and not death dealers. The accused had killed an innocent person in their custody. They deserve no clemency” while ruling that “the crime fell in the rarest of rare category”.
Reportedly, the accused officers wept when they realized the gravity of the order. The question was why didn’t these perpetrators of brutal killing thought even for a moment that the innocent man they killed also had an old mother, who pined for 13 long years for the soul of her dead son, only 26 then, when killed by these barbarians, called police officers? This judgement, was a first of its kind.
It was a justice delayed alright, but certainly not denied. Hailed by the media as a watershed moment in the history of cases relating to police brutality, hope this judgement will do signal service in the annals of criminal justice delivery and leave a definite trail of accountability by policemen, who so far remained largely untouched by the system.
WORLD: Some weeks ago, there was a report in the print media, datelined Beijing asking to raise national flag of China on all Chinese mosques. China is a communist country, absolutely regimented, with hardly any freedom worth mentioning. There is no scope even for a dissent. World is privy to the Tiananmen Square shooting of native crowd chanting for democracy, decades ago.
China has an Islamic regulatory body, which declared that “to promote a spirit of patriotism among Muslims, all Chinese Mosques should raise national flag”. The website of China Islamic Association insisted that ‘flags should be hung in a prominent position within the mosque courtyards’.
The China Islamic Association (CIA) is a government entity with the sole power to accredit Imams in China. According to this CIA the raising of national flag would strengthen the understanding of national and civic ideals and promote a spirit of patriotism among Muslims of all ethnic groups. ‘Mosque staff should organize the study of Chinese classics and set-up courses on traditional Chinese culture' while being sure to 'focus only on Muslim sages of Chinese origin rather than foreign’ the letter in the website added.
This report had appeared over six weeks ago, but strangely none in our social media reacted. What if government in India had, even remotely suggested any of the above prescriptions, not all of them?
Can we imagine the reaction of our very respectable print media members, not to name any in particular! And social media furor would have been full of bad mouthing and abuses. We have witnessed the reaction of all and sundry, when the apex court proposed that national anthem should be played in Cinema halls and all should stand respectfully when it’s being played. And it was taking a mere 52 seconds! However, all those who opposed standing for 56 seconds while the national anthem is being played, must hang their head in shame, seeing an entire village standing still when our national anthem was being played. Abhainagar, in Nadia district, in West Bengal bordering Bangladesh has a government primary school. At 10.50 am, everyday of the week, except Sunday, students of the school would sing the national anthem amplified through loudspeakers. People at home and those on the roads, on bikes, rickshaws, cycles and pedestrians would stand still wherever they are and start singing. Headmaster of the school Safikul Islam, thinking this would instill patriotism among the students and the people, had requested villagers, wherever they are, to sing the national anthem along with their children at the school. “They agreed and the practice continues”, he is reported to have said to PTI. Echoing similar sentiments, a 50 year old farmer Maijuddin Biswas had remarked “I and two others were passing by the school with crops on our head. We heard the national anthem in the loudspeakers. We stopped walking and started to sing along. It felt good”. Shouldn’t we salute such unsung souls for their patriotism, when people like Asaduddin Owaisi, an MP to boot, and there are many such intellectuals and their ilk, who have great problem standing while national anthem being played in Cinema Halls. This is the tragedy of Yeh Mera India.
J. Shriyan
However in this case, the report informed, there were two particulars of interest. One, I.T officials reportedly found Rs.22 lakhs cash during the raid. Another was regarding the purchase of jewellary from the notorious fraudster Nirav Modi’s Outlet (NMO). According to the report it was the purchase of jewellary at the NMO for cash that really triggered this I.T raid. By hindsight, it is apparent, that, if the owners of this hospital group, had not purchased jewellary from Nirav Modi outlet (NMO), for all you know, it would have remained undetected, even if jewellary was purchased for cash. It is their misfortune that Nirav Modi and his firms are under high pressure investigation for the loot of public sector banks to the tune of over Rs.11000 crores. And the chances are, there may be many, who may have similarly bought their jewellary from Nirav Modi Outlets. Will their cases too shall follow, is not known. But as Yogendra Yadav accuses Modi for this raid as the owners turned out to be Yadav’s sisters. While, it may be true, as Yogendra Yadav alleges that this raid is politically motivated by PM Narendra Modi, what Yogendra Yadav failed to state whether the allegation of cash find of Rs.22 lakhs is true and it is not true that his sisters bought jewellary from Nirav Modi Outlets. As a reasonable person Yadav must come clean on this aspect of the raid and then blame PM Modi, rightly or wrongly, for his alleged role in the raid.
NEW DELHI: The Lokpal is coming back to haunt NDA II, whether its PM Narendra Modi likes it or not. The COMMON CAUSE, the NGO, is in the apex court again, knocking its door, on the delaying tactics of the central government. Since 5 years, the enactment, Lokpal & Lokayukta Act 2013, is in place and yet the central government which came in May 2014, has failed to appoint the Lokpal, despite promises to act. The standard excuse of NDA II government has been, there is no leader of opposition member, since the main opposition did not have the requisite 10% (54) member strength in the Loksabha. This excuse was God sent to be misused by the NDA II.
Thus for all the 4 years, since May 2014 to June 2018, the incumbent government has failed to appoint the Lokpal. Knowing the potential of Lokpal to create problems for all political parties, no member of parliament has so far questioned with all seriousness, why the government is not appointing Lokpal and why it is indulging in delaying tactics to appoint the Lokpal?
In the past, Supreme Court had intervened, how the question of leader of opposition requirement can be circumvented for the committee to select the Lokpal. But the clear intention of the government of delaying the inevitable has been on display.
After all, the incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is reputed to have stone-walled appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat, during his term as the chief minister. And he was Chief Minister of Gujarat 3 times!
However, this time round the apex court is in no mood to allow this delaying tactics by the union government. They have insisted that in 10 days the government has to come back with a time bound road map to see that Lokpal is appointed without any further delay.
There could even be a possibility, as Common Cause lawyer Prashanth Bhushan demanded that the higher court of the land has powers to appoint Lokpal, until central government appoints one, could be enforced.
Clearly, the days of delaying tactics of NDA II government at the centre is clearly marked. Hope the authorities in the corridors of power in Delhi acts, before Supreme Court forces its way to appoint the much delayed Lokpal.
NEW DELHI:Sometime in July 2018, the central government of the day is expected to file its response to the PIL that sought to bar candidates from contesting more than one seat.
The issue of Indians standing or contesting election to either Legislative Assembly or LokSabha has been there since 1990s. The provision to have this opportunity for contestants has been there in the People’s Representation Act. It was debated for the first time in mid 1990. However a Parliamentary Committee in 1998 rejected the idea of not allowing contestants to stand for election in more than one seat. Reportedly this was after all political parties met to discuss the issue and favored the retention of the clause that allowed the practice of contesting multiple seats.
Surely, no political party, or rather every political party would want to have it as easy as possible, to get elected to have power and to enjoy the perks of power. However the churning had gone on in the nation’s body politic and one Ashwini Kumar Upadhyaya, a BJP leader, had filed this PIL in the Supreme Court asking direction to bar this contest from multiple seats. While, this PIL is a welcome development, the question was why now? The Karnataka election was due around the time of filing this PIL in late March. The then Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah had planned to stand for election from two constituencies. Mercifully he managed to win only one of the two seats. If he had won from both seats, one more election had to be conducted for the seat he would have given up. But this Upadhyaya did not think of filing such a PIL in 2014 when Narendra Modi stood for election in both Vadodra in Gujarat and Varanasi in U.P. and he won both seats. So there had to be another election in Gujarat for the seat he decided to forgo that is Vadodra, since Modi decided to represent Varanasi in the parliament. Here the question is, any election is a huge exercise, especially so for a parliamentary constituency. It involves huge expenditure, deployment of men methods and machinery all involving monetary implication. Why should the nation pay for the whims and fancies of a politician or a political party? Whether, the central government takes the call or not, Apex Court must take a suo-moto stand and act to ban this multiple seats syndrome. Parliament may say, it is an executive prerogative and hence no role for the court. May be Apex Court must call for a public referendum to decide the issue. Only then political parties would have their lessons. Hope the highest court of the land acts decisively.
NEW DELHI:For some time now this talk about No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against the central government led by Narendra Modi has been on the card. It appeared loud thinking. Since it was the number game, and that some opposition parties were thinking of making the incumbent government fall on the floor of parliament, it was clearly stupid to think that way. The numbers were clearly with the ruling dispensation, whether the arrogant ally Shiv Sena is with it or not. Hence getting the government out was simply not there.
In the event, NCM did come by, signed by some of the opposition parties. Although not much of fireworks expected, except the TDP with its massive complaints of denying Andhra Pradesh development funds to build the new capital of the new Andhra after Telangana was carved out to be become the 29th State of India. But unexpectedly this NCM of 20th June provided Rahul Gandhi to come on his own. Suddenly there was a new Rahul Gandhi unseen and unheard earlier. It is true that, ever since he took over from his mother the president ship of Congress Party, he has displayed and shown that he is different. His chance came to prove his decisive ability when the ever suffering foot-in-month syndrome, Mani Shankar Aiyar spoke disparagingly against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rahul Gandhi suspended a very senior Congress man, a former IFS diplomat to boot, forthwith. This ability to act against motor mouths within Congress was certainly better than the BJP leadership.
Thus this NCM has proved him to be an extempore speaker without the help of any note or prompters sitting next to him. It was really good, while reminding the ruling combine that they had ridiculed him in the past as Pappu, but he bore no grudge or anger against the treasury benches with whole of innovative verbose claiming that the New Congress under his leadership has no hatred, but only love which is the language of their politics. Then came up with an entirely unexpected act, after his speech on the NCM, Rahul Gandhi walked upto PM Modi, shook hand and hugged him. It was an act, for which he will be remembered. But the wink that followed after he got back to his seat was uncalled for, which was a bit negative. All in all it was a creditable performance.
NEW DELHI:There was this New Delhi datelined report in the print media “Supreme Court ask Kerala Government for status report”. Court was referring to the so-called Church Scandal.
Since some weeks now, this sex scandal involving the clergy, laity and of course nuns have been making its round with fair regularity. A section of the print and electronic media, have been talking about it at irregular intervals. Of course, it was not earth shattering news and hence probably did not deserve too much time. Of course, like all else, even media too have its own priorities, rightly or wrongly.
Now that it has knocked on the doors of apex court, perforce it will become news and will find more exposure. Two of the four accused priests had approached court for protection from arrest and court had no problem with it. Be that as it may, what was intriguing was the observation by the top court. During the hearing, bench apparently surprised, and expressed its wonderment at the “Sudden upsurge in number of rape cases involving church priests”.
But the observation of the highest court of the land is squarely misplaced. It has been always there. Ask the current pontiff at Vatican, he will reel out the history of the attack on celebrated celibacy by its own clergy. Incidents of sex within the portals of Church, has been there since time immemorial. But, the Church and the vested interest within and without had always succeeded in keeping it a well guarded secret. It was only when it spilled over the brim, at times, it made some news. It is because of the over confidence of parties involved in the physical freedom, that they will remain protected, since it was fairly common. At least there is a catholic gentleman who had accused a priest in Mangalore who became a Bishop, of keeping condom in his office. So the surprise expressed by the court is clearly misplaced. This is also because media, in its wisdom tries to under play some section while over playing some other section. For them what sells matters, not necessarily the truth.
While being about the issue of celibacy in the portals of religious outfits, it is patently wrong to force celibacy on clergy whether Christian or any other. Because, sex is a very normal activity of all living beings just like hunger, and has to be accepted thus. Therefore all courts, should look at the issue of sex in religious bodies where celibacy is a forced condition, has to have a different yard sticks so that it need not be seen as sin. Hope courts take the rational stand.
UTTAR PRADESH: U.P is the largest state of India with maximum number of Members of Parliament (80) with some 400+ MLAs. The Chief Minister of this state has a special place for this singular contribution. It has history of being an important centre for nationalist movement, especially during independence struggle and immediately thereafter. Most Prime Ministers have come from this state. Banaras Hindu University was a kind of prime mover in independence movement. This state also has the maximum number of districts that is 75. Every state has number of districts. Chief Minister of every state should necessarily visit every district of the state to appraise himself about the development status of the district. That is the only way to have a firsthand knowledge of the state. But how many Chief Ministers really made it a point to make official visit to these districts? Certainly not all of them, more so in a state like UP with 75 districts! But Yogi Adityanath with all complaints regarding his ability to govern a state, as huge and complex as UP, has at least reported to have visited all 75 districts within the short span of just 16 months. Reportedly he is the 1st CM to have visited all districts of UP. As a Yogi, with no personal desire for aggrandizement, and other visible weakness he can really do wonders, if only he is open to learning and open to correction. He can even have bigger role if he proves himself better in administering the state, not just visiting all districts. Of course he should also remain free of divisive sectarian politics he is known for, which can truly propel him to national role someday. Hope Yogi evolves as a good administrator for the better of Uttar Pradesh.
UTTAR PRADESH:A BJP MLA, Surendra Singh clearly has his head in the wrong place. Why in the first place he was allowed to become an MLA is clearly questionable, although, he is there as an MLA to serve his constituency. But he is well known for making stupid barbs.
He had said in the past, “Those who do not say Bharath Maata Ki Jai are Pakistanis”. “Even Lord Rama would not have been able to stop rising rapes in the country”, was another gem of brain wave from this joker. And comes this latest wise crack, “Hindus should have at least 5 children to keep the Hindutva alive and the country strong”.
This idiot of an MLA has to know, that world has suffered only because of exploding population. Africa is suffering due to excessive population. Rohingyas are suffering due to their no holds barred production of children. Why Rohingyas are not wanted in Myanmar? It is only because of their growing number. Why Europe is having better standard of life for its people, it is only because of controlled number. Even India is talking about population control but not very seriously. If the country has to progress we have to reduce number of children per married couple not five as suggested by this MLA. Of course there has to be population control policy for India of giving all support for small families and make government services expensive for larger families. This will encourage small families.
Thus it is important that all law makers, whether states or central should talk about population control and not about increasing the number of mouths to feed.
RAJASTHAN: Close on the heal of Supreme Court asking the central government to “Make lynching a separate offence” while terming such killings as “horrendous mobocracy”, comes this story of another macabre killing from the same infamous Alwar in Rajasthan.
Disposing a petition for curbing self styled vigilantes, Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Deepak Mishra condemned a spate of lynching in recent times observed “The litany of spiraling mob violence, their horror, the grim and gruesome scenes of lynching are made worse by the apathy of bystanders, numbness of mute spectators, inertia of police and finally the grand standing of the incident by the perpetrators of the crime on social media”, in their 45 page judgment.
Clearly disturbed at the growing menace of mob violence and the apathetic citizenry and the system, court asked the parliament to actively think and try to bring about a separate legislation to deal with such senseless violence. The court made these remarks only four day ago and sadly it seem to have been wasted as pouring water on rock.
On suspicion of cow smuggling, a group of five attacked one Rakbar Khan and beat him up so badly that he succumbed to his serious injuries, while police took an irresponsibly long time to take him to the hospital. Sadly he had died before reaching the hospital.
It is extremely sad and worrying that these kinds of attacks on Muslims are taking place in the name of smuggling cows in Rajasthan, so very often, with police being seen clearly partisan. If Muslims in Rajasthan feel unsafe it is very real. Vasundhara Raje’s government has lot to explain why law and order is so poor when it comes to cow vigilantism. This is seriously going to dent the record of the government which is going for election shortly. Law must ruthlessly take action on such anti-social elements, roaming freely as cow vigilantes.
JHARKHAND: Jayant Sinha, the suave son of former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha, we are told is Harvard returned IIT graduate. There cannot be two opinions that he belongs to the Crème De La Crème of the society. Senior Sinha, using his clout and the academic attainment of his brilliant son manages to get him a seat in Jharkand’s Hazaribagh Lok Sabha constituency. He wins the seat in 2014 election and becomes a minister in Abki baar Modi Sarcar. Although nothing superlative was heard about him, he was a performing minister.
After 4 years of handling different portfolios, junior Sinha is in the news, unfortunately for some very controversial reasons. In Jayant Sinha’s constituency, sometime last year, cow vigilantes had attacked a meat trader and had beaten him to death, on suspicion of transporting beef. After dilly-dallying, law took its course and police arrested some people, they were handed down life imprisonment by the court.
In India getting bail depends upon varieties of reasons although it is the right of all accused and it is up to court to grant this bail. As luck would have it, 8 among the accused were granted bail and they walked out of the jail after necessary formalities. Of course, one of the reason cited for granting the bail was, that these 8 men were bystanders without participating in the beating of the meat trader. It is another matter, why they didn’t intervene to stop it? Or what were they doing there? Etc.
Now that these 8 accused who have been granted bail, are still accused in the eyes of the law, but our honorable minister Jayant Sinha garlands these accused in celebrating their being out an bail. That’s clearly incredulous. Is it because they called on you, and they are your party workers?
It is alright to receive them when they call on you but to garland and to take a celebratory photograph with them make no sense at all. In fact it speaks of something terribly wrong. What is the purpose of garlanding someone who may be innocent but still not cleared by the court? They are still accused according to the courts. Such actions send very wrong signals to law enforcing agencies and clearly bad in law. As a law maker, he needs to differentiate his actions as a law abiding citizen as opposed to law breakers. And he is a minister at the centre. This act of garlanding accused out on bail is absolutely irresponsible and very unfortunate.
MAHARASHTRA: A Mumbai datelined press report informed ‘Kingpin of fake note racket arrested’. Reportedly, a week after Thane rural police unearthed a counterfeit currency racket in the western suburb of Bhayandar arrested one Mohammed Idris Shaikh, report informs, that this Idris has confessed to printing of fake notes on a desktop printer and used to circulate them in the market with the help of his son Faisal and his helpers. Reportedly on June 25, police had nabbed Faisal and four others with some Rs.120000/- in fake notes.
During the course of interrogation and investigation, it transpired that this same Idris was earlier caught by Mumbai police and is currently on bail.
While police are trying to give all kinds of stories of their skill as to how they managed to catch son Faisal and then father Idris, what is not clear is how a man caught for the offence of fake note printing and circulating can be allowed on bail in the first place! Having been on bail, it was purely fortuitous that police managed to re-arrest this habitual criminal. Fake note printing is anti-national and there are provisions of law available to put such criminals behind bar without bail. So how such criminals are allowed a free run, and allowed to print fake notes again and hoodwink police, with law enforcement taking a back seat?!
Besides, if our currency notes can be printed easily on a desktop printer, what are the security checks available for the protection of legal tender? Also police have not informed about the denominations of these fake notes. So how are general public forewarned of such circulation? This is a very serious matter, but nobody, I mean nobody, seems to be disturbed about this dangerous development! Print media reported this matter in a corner of page no.4. Clearly this is very worrying!
TELANGANA: a report datelined Hyderabad was published in the print media, “Amit Shah rules out advancing LokSabha election”, a week ago. Now who is Amit Shah? A national president of a national party, presently with the highest number of seats in the LokSabha and with highest number of seats in Legislative Assemblies across India! But the LokSabha election or any election for that matter is the business of Election Commission. LokSabha election is due sometime in May 2019, still more than 9 months to go. Of course, the incumbent government in New Delhi can prepone the election by dissolving the parliament. But who can dissolve the parliament? Only the leader of the ruling combine. In this case Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He hasn’t said a word, about the preponement of LokSabha election! It is true that there have been speculations in the media, since there are about seven states or so, which are due for assembly elections before May 2019, usual speculators have started rumour mongering about the possible LokSabha election along with these states.
In 2004 too, the then NDA I led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee too had preponed the LokSabha election and lost it. Once bitten is twice shy. The incumbent PM Narendra Modi will not prepone the election since he is aware that right now the report card of his governance is not too much to harp about, although he is aware that he is only talking to the gallery at present. He has to make most of the remaining 9 months before May 2019, to improve his acceptability or rather the acceptability of NDA II.
He simply cannot afford to lose. Therefore there is no possibility that he will call for the dissolution of the parliament for the LokSabha election. We will have to wait until May 2019. So Amit Shah is only showing off that he is the know all, which he is not!
KERALA: That Malayalees are there in the middle-east, U.S, U.K and of course far eastern countries like Singapore etc, is very well known. Probably they are the most mobile and migrating Indians and they are into all kinds of activities from unskilled jobs to that of CEO’s of corporations. But they could also be there in Japan into running Indian restaurant simply did not cross the mind. But that’s exactly what is reported from Kasargod, the northern most town in Kerala, bordering Karnataka.
Of course the story is rather sad. It happened over 10 years ago. On 23rd March 2008, to be exact, informs George Poikayil, the story teller in the print media. On that day one VK Mahendra Kumar, who was running an Indian restaurant Himalaya, in the town of Isesaki, unfortunately got into conflict with Japanese law. ‘It was an Easter Sunday’ informs KV Laxmi, mother of Mahendra Kumar, “He was at his home and received a call that another group of Malayalees had come to the restaurant and had attacked his friends there. He rushed there to mediate. He found them all armed and at each other. Police arrived and all ran away, except the four injured persons. Mahendra was taken into custody and charged of attempt to murder the injured four. He was jailed for 12 years in Tochigi, some 100kms from Tokyo.” For all the 10 years she tried with ministers in the union government so also President Pratibha Patil, but nothing happened tells his mother KV Laxmi. His father PV Kumar is in 70s and she herself 64. Immediately after the incarceration of Mahendra Kumar, his elder brother VK Venugopal travelled to Japan with a pledge that he will return only with Mahendra. Thus, both mother and father of the duo have not seen both their sons for all these 10 years. Father, a former auto rickshaw driver, reportedly is not in good health.
But sadly, why the present dispensation, where the external affairs ministry is headed by the most active lady minister Sushma Swaraj couldn’t do anything since last 4 years to attend to this possible miscarriage of justice! Surely some affirmative steps could have been taken. However, what is sad is the usual insensitive approach of the Indian embassy staff. According to the story, Japanese authorities are prepared to release Mahendra in accordance with an available provision in Japanese law for him to undergo the remaining balance of imprisonment period in India. But strangely Indian embassy, do not seem to think this way. This is the primary negativity of Indians in general and embassy officials in particular. If Japanese prison officials are prepared to let him go and suffer the balance jail term, near his parents in his own country, what should stop Indian authorities to take it up there and pursue it further in India? After all an Indian is being helped out by a foreign country, but Indians are not ready! They are suffering from mental blocks. This is Yeh Mera India.
KERALA: In the independent India’s criminal justice system, police, all across India, played their villainous role, hundreds of time, besides of course their role as protectors of law and order. But, it is the first time that an old lady, Prabhavathi Amma, a septuagenarian, the mother of Udaykumar who was brutally tortured by the police to extract a confession of a crime he did not commit, could get justice for her dead son which could truly be path breaking. Uday Kumar had died in police custody. From September 27, 2005, it took 13 long years for the case to travel and come to a concluded state on this 24th July. The CBI special court in Thiruvananthapuram on 25th July sentenced to death, by hanging, two police officers, K. Jithu Kumar and S.V Sri Kumar, both serving senior civil police officers.
CBI Judge, reportedly said, he found no mitigating circumstances to reduce the quantum of punishment while adding, “Law enforcers are protectors of life and property and not death dealers. The accused had killed an innocent person in their custody. They deserve no clemency” while ruling that “the crime fell in the rarest of rare category”.
Reportedly, the accused officers wept when they realized the gravity of the order. The question was why didn’t these perpetrators of brutal killing thought even for a moment that the innocent man they killed also had an old mother, who pined for 13 long years for the soul of her dead son, only 26 then, when killed by these barbarians, called police officers? This judgement, was a first of its kind.
It was a justice delayed alright, but certainly not denied. Hailed by the media as a watershed moment in the history of cases relating to police brutality, hope this judgement will do signal service in the annals of criminal justice delivery and leave a definite trail of accountability by policemen, who so far remained largely untouched by the system.
WORLD: Some weeks ago, there was a report in the print media, datelined Beijing asking to raise national flag of China on all Chinese mosques. China is a communist country, absolutely regimented, with hardly any freedom worth mentioning. There is no scope even for a dissent. World is privy to the Tiananmen Square shooting of native crowd chanting for democracy, decades ago.
China has an Islamic regulatory body, which declared that “to promote a spirit of patriotism among Muslims, all Chinese Mosques should raise national flag”. The website of China Islamic Association insisted that ‘flags should be hung in a prominent position within the mosque courtyards’.
The China Islamic Association (CIA) is a government entity with the sole power to accredit Imams in China. According to this CIA the raising of national flag would strengthen the understanding of national and civic ideals and promote a spirit of patriotism among Muslims of all ethnic groups. ‘Mosque staff should organize the study of Chinese classics and set-up courses on traditional Chinese culture' while being sure to 'focus only on Muslim sages of Chinese origin rather than foreign’ the letter in the website added.
This report had appeared over six weeks ago, but strangely none in our social media reacted. What if government in India had, even remotely suggested any of the above prescriptions, not all of them?
Can we imagine the reaction of our very respectable print media members, not to name any in particular! And social media furor would have been full of bad mouthing and abuses. We have witnessed the reaction of all and sundry, when the apex court proposed that national anthem should be played in Cinema halls and all should stand respectfully when it’s being played. And it was taking a mere 52 seconds! However, all those who opposed standing for 56 seconds while the national anthem is being played, must hang their head in shame, seeing an entire village standing still when our national anthem was being played. Abhainagar, in Nadia district, in West Bengal bordering Bangladesh has a government primary school. At 10.50 am, everyday of the week, except Sunday, students of the school would sing the national anthem amplified through loudspeakers. People at home and those on the roads, on bikes, rickshaws, cycles and pedestrians would stand still wherever they are and start singing. Headmaster of the school Safikul Islam, thinking this would instill patriotism among the students and the people, had requested villagers, wherever they are, to sing the national anthem along with their children at the school. “They agreed and the practice continues”, he is reported to have said to PTI. Echoing similar sentiments, a 50 year old farmer Maijuddin Biswas had remarked “I and two others were passing by the school with crops on our head. We heard the national anthem in the loudspeakers. We stopped walking and started to sing along. It felt good”. Shouldn’t we salute such unsung souls for their patriotism, when people like Asaduddin Owaisi, an MP to boot, and there are many such intellectuals and their ilk, who have great problem standing while national anthem being played in Cinema Halls. This is the tragedy of Yeh Mera India.
J. Shriyan
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