MONTH-IN-PERSPECTIVE
UTTARKHAND: “The lawlessness of a police force, which is what fake encounter represents, is symbolic of the cynicism with which police themselves view the efficacy of the criminal justice system” ruled the Delhi High Court, while adding “Police in this perception, are not just the accusers, but the prosecutor, the judge and the executioner”. The court was confirming the conviction of policemen who had killed a 22 year old MBA graduate in a staged shootout in Dehradun in 2009.
What was the objective of this senseless and macabre killing of a blooming young man, who had arrived in the town to take up a job, has not been established by the prosecution. But apparently prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt about the culpability & guilt of those 7 policemen in the offence of abduction and illegal detention of the victim and his murder.
The Delhi High Court was unequivocal in confirming the conviction of those 7 policemen by the trial court in Dehradun by reiterating that “Fake encounters have no place in legal system governed by the rule of law”.
On July 3, 2009, Ranbir Singh, an MBA, a resident of Ghaziabad had come to Dehradun to take up a job. A group of policemen conspired and kidnapped this youth, full of hope of his future and snuffed his life out. Probably to amuse themselves policemen shot him dead, with all of them probably shooting him, since there were multiple bullet wounds in the body of this unfortunate youth. It was in ‘self defense’ that they shot him, was the police story since, he and his two accomplices shot at them. According to those killer policemen “he was attempting to commit crime”. It was the over confidence of these policemen that they thought some bullet marks on the trees in the forest is enough to prove their innocence. Mercifully even trial court saw through the game of the killer policemen and charged them with unprovoked murder.
Looking back, court should have awarded death sentence to at least to the main conspirator among these policemen. This could have sent a strong message of deterrence among trigger happy uniformed killers masquerading as protectors of law and order.
HARYANA: We are all privy about the happening in Ryan International School in Gurgaon. A small child of II standard, 7 year old Pradyuman Thakur, was found dead with throat slit in the washroom of the school.
A student of XI was supposed to have committed the crime and reportedly have confessed to the crime and is in Juvenile Home.
Indians are also privy to the kneejerk reaction of Gurgoan police in arresting the conductor of the school bus immediately after the crime was found out and police came into the scene.
This conductor, Ashok Kumar, was released on bail after languishing in jail for 72 days.
Reportedly Ashok Kumar was tortured no end by the police to extract a confession of the crime which in all probability he has not committed.
According Ashok Kumar, he was hung upside down, drugged to sleep when his screams wouldn’t stop and even given electric shocks until he repeated what they wanted him to say. According to an exclusive report by TV channel, he seems to have lost partially the use of his legs because of beating followed by electric shocks.
Why do the police do what they do to get a ‘confession’? With their regular experience of handling alleged criminals, suspected or real, police are in a position to fairly assess the personality of an arrested person and therefore wait and observe for some days the persona of the suspected criminal before they start their 3rd degree methods. But like most people police too seem to go for easier and faster methods since those who suffer are neither from police nor their kith and kin.
Now what will happen to the future of this Ashok Kumar with psychological trauma induced depression coupled with job loss due to the police arrest and of course the mental and physical scar that he is forced to endure due to the police high handedness? Will the police ever be made answerable to such wanton tragedies?
NEW DELHI: On 8th February, a New Delhi datelined report informed “Tendulkar bats for CABI”.
Here everybody knows, the one and the only Tendulkar- Sachin tendulkar, but not many would know what is this acronym ‘CABI’ stands for!, CABI is, Cricket Association for the Blind in India. Surely many Indians would not know that India is a member of the World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC) and the Blind Cricket Team is managed by CABI.
They were in the news for having won a tournament against Pakistan recently. And cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar decided to draw the attention of Vinod Rai, the CoA Chairman, and we quote “As we celebrate the fourth consecutive victory of the Indian team in the Blind World Cup, I urge you to consider recognition of CABI by the BCCI. You may also consider bringing these champions under the BCCI pension scheme towards their long term financial security”.
Tendulkar was referring to the recent 2018 victory by the Indian Blind Cricket Team.
Thank God, so late in the day, someone like Sachin Tendulkar took up the issue of CABI and its players, although it was long overdue.
However it was in August 2015, ISSUES & CONCERNS had carried the story-BCCI, BCCI & BCCI, urging the moral obligation of BCCI, as the big brother in the Indian cricket, to support CABI and its players.
This article was published after the victory of Indian Team beating England in England in the World Cup Final that year.
For those uninformed, members of the Indian Blind Cricket Team are very poor cousins of our main stream cricketers.
We are reproducing two statements from players of that winning team that won in England. Ajay Reddy, the then “Man of the Tournament” had this to say. Quote “All Blind Cricket playing nations are recognized by their respective boards, but only we are not. We don’t expect crores of rupees for playing for India, all we expect is a decent and respectful treatment and proper cricket equipment. While Indian normal cricket players are getting paid in lakhs and crores, we get just nothing and we are also playing for the country. May be BCCI thinks that they cannot make money out of blind cricket, but unless you give us a chance, at least for a year invest in us, and then see.”
And senior player Jafar Iqbal expressed his frustration while saying “We toured England with a torn kit and no proper equipment. Our players sweat their heart out and are winning without proper equipment. In fact we white washed England in England. So you can imagine how good we are. Yet for BCCI we aren’t worthy enough.”
This clearly sums up the helplessness of these players in the midst of plenty. This too is another dimension of Yeh Mera India.
NEW DELHI: After days of silence, the Union Finance Minister has finally spoken on the alleged Rs.11500 crore fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB), country’s second largest public sector bank after SBI, involving one Nirav Modi. Headline in the print media, datelined NEW DELHI informed ‘FM blames auditors and bank officials’.
Primarily he is not wrong, since it is the bank’s officers who sanction loans and advances and auditors are the watchmen on the receipts and payments, to and from bank. Thus they are privy to all the information about rights and wrongs. But there are those who have the responsibility of overseeing what these above mentioned functionaries are doing. Are they - officers & auditors- acting in accordance with the norms set by the board of directors and operating within the set limits of discretion in acting independently? In the given case, clearly the senior management was found sleeping, since reported wrong-doings dates back to 2011 and we are in early 2018, almost 7 years late.
Immediately after the alleged scam became public, the CMD of PNB went public telling what are the actions that have been initiated, post the public knowledge of the scam. But my dear Sir, where were you and your members of the board all these years? Its apparent, CMD and his board have abdicated their role and therefore RBI, if it is within its power, should recommend the dismissal of the board. Probably this and only this, can send right signal to all wrong and irresponsible functionaries in the banking sector.
Now that this Nirav Modi scam has become an everyday news since it broke out over a week ago, there are other skeletons appearing to be at the door of banks cupboards peeping out to pop out. But it is not surprising at all, with Banks’ latest gross NPA being around Rs.9.5 lakh crores, as per the recent joint study of Assocham & Crisil. If 11500 crore has five digits. 9.5 lakh has 6 digits to the right, that is over 10 times. In fact it is close to 100 times. So can we fathom the gravity of the mess the banking sector is in?
And we end up blaming minor functionaries at brach office level for their alleged lack of application, fallibility etc, when in fact, in most cases, of anything more than a crore of rupees of commitment involves very higher ups like General Managers. And beyond 10 crores, it is always the board which is fully aware of what it is doing and is always kept in the loop. Therefore it is important that some heads must roll for the message to go loud and clear on the accountability aspect. After all Board members, who are paid their air tickets and fees for attending the board meetings are not there only to warm the seats! If they don’t perform they should not be there in the board. This dictum has to be applied pari passu and in all seriousness.
Here it is interesting to note a recent report in the press regarding PNB. On completion of its31st December 2017 workings, it had a press release informing “PNB crosses Rs.11 lakh crore in total business”. While informing about this ‘milestone’, it had also mentioned that from 1st January 2018, bank raised interest rates on fixed deposits of selected maturities by up to 1.25 % , so also bank has waived off documentation and processing fees on housing loan, car loan and two wheeler loan.
Clearly there is a message in this press release to all stake holders. PNB is running short of cash. It has given out more than it should have by its Credit/Deposit ratio. Figures are stressed and therefore PNB is now trying to attract more deposits and to give loans at lower income to bank. Who make these decisions, if not Board of Directors, presided over by the Chairman & Managing Director?
NEW DELHI: When the information technology worldwide, especially in India, is talking about recession and therefore resultant reduction in the work force and decreasing employment of fresh IT engineers comes an incredible news of our very own, the biggest Indian IT company, the TCS or the Tata Consultancy Services Ltd of having landed with a contract of $2 billion.
This is the biggest deal TCS ever received in its entire lifetime as a service provider in information technology. Transamerica, a US insurance conglomerate, is a leading provider of life insurance, retirement and investment solutions. This is a multiyear contract.
Being so big a contract it will surely have multiplier effect starting with more employment of qualified persons from both the United States as well as India.
This is indeed very good news on two fronts. There shall be huge employment opportunity for Indians, besides US citizens.
So also this contract, for its sheer size: US$2 Billion, equal to some Rs.13000 crore, is a clear recognition of the technical capability of Tata Consulting Services (TCS) which in turn is a huge honour for India too.
TCS is India’s first and foremost IT solution provider. Wish it continues to be globally recognized for its immense potential and technical competence.
UTTAR PRADESH: It was a startling news report datelined Faizabad in UP. “Muslim opposing Ram Temple must go to Pak”. For a second, thought that it could have been from Sadhwi Ritambar or her ilk in Sangh Parivar who must have stated thus, crossed the mind. It is fairly known that there are motor mouths among Sangh affiliates, who could mouth such aberrations.
Another look at the print told another story. For a change the report was attributed to UP Shia Waqf Board Chief Waseem Rizwi. Not that what he said is appropriate or right. But certainly, it may not be an irresponsible statement driven by sectarian consideration. Surely some considered thought must have gone into the making of such a serious statement.
According to report, Rizwi had said “Those who are opposing Ram Temple in Ayodhya and want to build Babri Mosque there, such people with fundamentalist mentality should go to Pakistan and Bangladesh. Such Muslims do not have any place in India”. According to him, “Fundamentalist Muslim clerics are trying to destroy the country and they must join ISIS chief Baghdadi”.
Coming from the chairman of a Waqf Board, its indeed difficult to believe, but truth can be stranger than fiction. Reportedly, Shia clerics have demanded his arrest.
Thus there is a clear churning within the community. There are forces within the country advocating settlement out of the court. Apex court is seized of the matter right now, but only for the title of the land. There are members of the Muslim community who too think, it is OK to have the Masjid in Lucknow and Temple in Ayodhya. In the larger interest of the country this should pave way for settlement of a long pending emotive issue to be amicably fixed. Hope it happens.
MAHARASHTRA: Never one can expect from NCP chief Sharad Pawar an even handed statement! He is a politician to the core and very opportunistic at that. Hence it is no wonder that he made a statement in Aurangabad “No government has right to interfere in talaq laws’.
First of all, the issue pertains to Muslim women. Muslim women went to court and court pronounced its judgement. All that court wanted was a backing of a statute by the parliament. A statute has been debated and cleared by the Loksabha but presently held up in Rajya Sabha due to some politics of compulsion. This Sharad Pawar just represents this unholy compulsion.
Surely Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule is aware of it, and so are these Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Bangladesh who have banned triple talaq.
Sharad Pawar is a person who had nursed the ambition to be PM of India, and probably given up once Narendra Modi became the unlikely Prime Minister some 4 years ago. Now that Sonia has replaced herself in favour of her son Rahul Gandhi as the Congress President, Sharad Pawar feels he can’t play second fiddle to Rahul Gandhi, a much junior, in both experience and age. With some electoral reverses for BJP, opposition parties are seeing blood and trying all kinds of coalition. Just in case, the coalition makes it in May 2019 and BJP sits in the opposition, Sharad Pawar is perhaps having repeat visions of being the Prime Minister of India and therefore trying all tricks to keep himself relevant by making pro Muslim-men statement.
So that, in the event of opposition staging a coup of sorts, in the next Loksabha election, ‘I am ready’ is the stand that he wishes to convey. He wants to be PM even at the cost of helpless Muslim women who have suffered at the hands of unreasonable Muslim men for far too long.
KARNATAKA: Tuesday, 13 February, THE HINDU had this ad THE HUDDLE 2018, ‘Conversation for Change’. The ad informed about some 25 speakers from diverse field, from politics, to films to economics to technology to sports, also included was Sri Lankan Prime Minister. It was to be held on 17th and 18th February at ITC Gardenia, in Bengalooru. Participation in the event was by INVITATION ONLY. The ad indicated, ‘for enquiries: the huddle@thehindu.co.in
It appeared to be attractive for me to attend since it was ‘a huddle for change,’ it was a huddle to talk about ideas that would drive change. And why not? Since I had a question to ask at THE HUDDLE called up a friend, who in turn called up THE HUDDLE 2018 office, to enquire if we could attend! Although it was not entirely unexpected, my friend was told ‘Sorry! list if invitees is already made’. In other words, we were told to ‘take a walk’. Indeed the organizers, THE HINDU had not only decided, who will share their ideas, but they had also decided who will be the audience too. What are the criteria? or consideration for invitation was not mentioned in the ad.
Clearly, it was a captive affair, between invited speakers and a captive audience. Why were they doing so? Was it to promote their publications or to promote some set kind of ideas? A televised portion was shown in NDTV channel, an interview with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu, appeared with an agenda to drive a wedge between AP and NDA in the centre for the perceived failure of centre to keep its promise of funding infrastructure in the new capital Amravathi of Andhra Pradesh.
But, if allowed entry this writer had some thoughts to share “TO ENGAGE WITH THE VOICES THAT WORLD LISTENS TO”, as the ad in THE HINDU on 16th February, a day before the THE HUDDLE was to start.
While, it is nobody’s case to tell the organizers as to who should be called, a suggestion could have been made by the audience interlocutors.
Personally, this writer felt, someone like our very own Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi could have been an ideal thinker who also happens to be a doer. He would have lot to share about the issues of poverty and malnutrition among growing children of the country and the world, and why India need a population policy, purely as a socio-economic measure. Unfortunately this did not happen. Wish these media houses become more open with their approach and thoughts on national issues.
KARNATAKA: Patrick D’sa is the national Vice President of PUCL (Peoples Union for Civil Liberties). He has been active in and around Mangalooru for a fairly long time. As usual when you are in a public space there are people who like you and admire you so also there are people who do not see eye to eye with him. It is a part and parcel of being in public life.
Other day he made a pertinent comment on the Ramakrishna Mission in Mangalooru doing Swacchata Abhiyan drive. Early this month there was a print media report “Ramakrishna Mission carries out 14th Shramadan at Morgan’s Gate”. On 4th February, some 250 volunteers divided into 6 groups undertook cleanliness work in Mahakalipadpu area, near railway crossing, informed the print media. There were 6 names in the report: Prof Dr. Ishwara Bhat, Prof Shesappa Amin, Dinesh Karkera, Vittaldas Prabhu, Mukesh Alva and Anand Adyar, who guided the students of different colleges. They cleaned and removed some 2 tipper loads of garbage. They even repainted a bus shelter after removing illegal wall posters and cleaning the shelter.
According to the report, after talking to residents of the area and conducting a survey by the volunteers, they are even planning to put road divider to help smooth running of traffic at the railway crossing there. These are surely positive development involving citizens’ participation.
For a socio-cultural organization Ramakrishna Mission is doing a great service. This aspect of the Mission came in for a high praise from Mr. D’sa. He had a pertinent question. “Why not Churches and Masjids take such initiatives to keep the city and its surroundings clean?” It is a good question and begs for an answer. Wish his desire that both Churches and Masjids in and around Mangalooru join hands with Ramakrishna Mission in making the city responsible and responsive towards a clean Mangalooru.
WORLD: Western World and Human Rights watch, generally targets Asian countries for violation of human rights. But in their neighborhood, such violations particularly against women are rampant. According to United Nations, ‘Latin America is World’s most violent region for women’.
A latest report by the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) and UNWomen, informs that Latin America and the Caribbean is the most violent region in the world for women and highlighted Central America and Mexico as particularly dangerous. And this is despite there being severe legal provisions in place in the region.
Eugenia Piza-Lopez, head of UNDPs gender mission in Latin America feels that the rate of sexual violence against women, outside of relationship, is the highest in the world in the region. ‘Three of the 10 countries with the highest rate of rape of women and girls were in the Caribbean’, tells the report, while adding, ‘Femicide occurred on a devastating scale in Central America’. It explained that two out of every 3 women murdered died because of their gender.
“In some countries it has become a severe crisis. In the Northern Triangle (Honduras, EI Salvador and Guatemala) and Mexico, the problem of killing women and violence against them has reached epidemic levels in many cases with links to organized crime” stated Piza Lopez.
Clearly, there is something rotten about these countries where females are not safe.
Indians always thought, that some of our cities like Delhi and Bengalooru were unsafe for women. But to learn that these Latin American countries, just next door to super power US and the so called champion of human rights, to think that they could be so bad, exposes the double standard of these agencies and media in the west in portraying India as a violator of human rights in general.
This report by the UNDP and UNWomen needs to be studied in all seriousness for the benefit of all nations of the world, for its programme of gender equity.
WORLD: Raza Rabbani, is the chairman of Pakistan Senate, informs the media. Some weeks ago he was addressing the Parliamentary Union of Islamic countries (PUIC) in Tehran. And he has reportedly remarked ‘US, Israel, India nexus major threat to Muslim World’, so tells print media from Islamabad.
That, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu came to India was an important global news. Israel is a small country right in the middle of Islamic countries, surrounded by mighty Saudi Arabia and equally powerful Iran, so also smaller nations like Jordan, Palestine and others. Despite knowing fully well its existential dangers, Israel is living there on its own terms without compromising.
Although, it is for the first time that an Israeli PM has come to India and Indian PM visited Israel, both countries have a long standing relationship. Israel values India’s relationship deeply, since they believe, rather very rightly, that only in India there have been no anti-Semitic feelings among Indians and Jews lived peacefully in India for generations.
It is true that Israel & India are closer and US is a great supporter of Israel. But for Pakistan to feel threatened is clearly misplaced especially to ‘Muslim World’.
World also knows that Indian PM Narendra Modi has also visited Palestine weeks ago without stopping at Israel. It was a measure of maturity in India’s international relations that since Palestine did not have a regular airport, Jordanian helicopter flew PM Modi, with Israeli gunships escorting the helicopter. And now comes Iranian president Rouhani visit to India to strengthen bilateral ties. Thus clearly the fear of Pakistan is misplaced.
It could be true that Indian & Israeli friendship may be of concern to Pakistan, but surely not to Muslim world. In recent times it is to be noted that Middle Eastern Muslim countries are in close liaison with India to improve their bilateral relationship with New Delhi. This is good for the region. But Pakistan certainly feels uncomfortable with rising bonhomie of India with Arab nations. It is an emerging reality which Pakistan must recognize. Hope it does in the larger interest of peace in the region.
WORLD: Sometime early February, “Chinese national shot dead by unidentified assailants in Karachi”, was a news in the print media. Knowing Pakistan more than China, Indians knew, it was not surprising at all. A day later “Beijing tells Pak to improve security” was another print media news. One was datelined Karachi and the other Beijing.
What if the killing of a Chinese was somewhere in India? What and how China would have reacted? Authorities in Beijing would have allowed its state media, the ‘Global Times’ to go berserk with warning that the killer should be immediately tracked down and handed over to Beijing for further punishment. But with Pakistan, China is fully aware that they cannot afford to be tough with Islamabad with its huge financial stake inside Pakistan.
No doubt, China wants to expand its sphere of influence across the globe. It wants to be a super power to check- mate United States as the sole super power in the world. It has both money and people power. Right now, the growth in China is not the same as in the past, for many socio-political & economic reasons, and therefore it is in search of newer pastures by investing its huge financial clout. But in the process of having stakes in different countries China probably has not bothered to address the sensitivities of affected nations. They have come to Pakistan with their Money & Muscle power which is not liked by many in Pakistan. The killing in Karachi was described in the local media as a ‘targeted killing’, reflecting the anger of assailants. Chinese high handedness was clearly seen when their CPEC (China Pak Economic Corridor) has passed through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir despite Indian protest as ‘POK is a disputed area’. Reactions as it happened in Karachi can find resonance in different parts of Pakistan so also in other parts of the world. Chinese leadership should be prepared to face such hostilities if it doesn’t check its hegemonistic tendencies.
However around the same time the killing took place in Karachi, Pakistan’s interior ministry has informed Gilgit- Baltistan’s home department that India has made a plan to attack the CPEC installations on Karakoram highway; reported the Pak English daily DAWN. This was clearly with the intention of diverting the Chinese attention from the Karachi killing of a Chinese, so also to get Chinese worked up against India. Surely China has enough of its own inputs to know the Pakistani bluff. India simply does not have such plans, purely as a matter of policy of non-interference. Thus the report attributed to Agencies within Pakistan, titled “Pak suspects India may target CPEC installations” was purely a figment of Pakistan’s imagination. But clearly China is in for a long drawn restlessness from unhappy Pakistanis against their $50 billion CPEC mega project.
WORLD: This man, a senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, who got the boot from his boss Rahul Gandhi, walks in and out of controversy like Anant Kumar Hegde of BJP. But, mercifully the kind of controversy both these politicians revel in, are not same.
All Indians are privy to the fact of Aiyar’s suspension from Congress and the reason there of, so also the controversial dinner get-together that he arranged in honour of his Pakistani friends and diplomats at his Delhi residence. He is rabidly anti BJP and anti Sangh Parivar. But he is also an anti Indian was a little known dimension of his utterances.
Reportedly this Aiyar was in Karachi, attending some literary festival. He is reported to have spoken at the event in endearing terms to the attending Pakistani audience. He is reported to have said “Thousands of people, whom I do not know, hug me, wish me. I receive much more hatred in India than the love I receive in Pakistan. So I am happy to be here”. If this is true he is clearly speaking to the gallery. The last sentence “I am happy to be here (Karachi)”, Indian authorities must hold on to. Since he is unhappy, with India and Indians, he must be told in clear terms that he should stay back in Pakistan. Of course, it has to be seen, if he will be accepted by Pakistan, for all his professed love for Pakistan and Pakistanis. According to Aiyar “There is only one way of resolving India Pakistan issue and that is by uninterrupted and uninterruptible dialogue. And I am very proud and half very sad that this sentence of these three words (uninterrupted and uninterruptible), have been accepted as Pakistan Policy, but has not been accepted as Indian policy”.
It is a very unfortunate coincidence that while he was speaking in Karachi literary festival, eulogizing ‘peace loving’ Pakistan, Indian side of Kashmir was under incessant attack by ISI-run terror net works in Kashmir. An Indian editorial asked “Kashmir. How long the slow bleed?” Clearly it was the continuation of the Zia ul Haq inspired policy of causing ‘thousand cuts to India’, for all these years. “The seemingly unending series of attacks on army camps and posts in the valley has taken a heavy toll of human life and have certainly impaired the morale of the country for it to be able to neutralize the ISI run terror net works in Kashmir”, commented the editorial.
Irony was around the same time, a report datelined Washington, attributing to Director of US National Intelligence Dan Coats as having stated that ‘Pakistan supported terrorist groups would continue to carry out attack inside India, amid a spike in terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir’.
And we have our former diplomat intellectual mouthing garbage in praising Pakistan and deriding India on Pak soil. That is clearly seditious. For as long as 70 years of free India and free Pakistan, India has been espousing the cause of co-existence and Pakistan attacked India three times and lost all the times. Pakistan simply does not understand peace. They have been a bad neighbour. Pakistan attacked Indian Parliament. It was an act of war. They attacked Mumbai. It was an act of war. They attacked Akshardham temple, it was an act of war. What has India done Mr. Aiyar? No, you do not deserve to remain an Indian. Yes the country’s leadership in talk with Congress party must decide the future of this Mani Shankar Aiyar for good or for worse.
What was the objective of this senseless and macabre killing of a blooming young man, who had arrived in the town to take up a job, has not been established by the prosecution. But apparently prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt about the culpability & guilt of those 7 policemen in the offence of abduction and illegal detention of the victim and his murder.
The Delhi High Court was unequivocal in confirming the conviction of those 7 policemen by the trial court in Dehradun by reiterating that “Fake encounters have no place in legal system governed by the rule of law”.
On July 3, 2009, Ranbir Singh, an MBA, a resident of Ghaziabad had come to Dehradun to take up a job. A group of policemen conspired and kidnapped this youth, full of hope of his future and snuffed his life out. Probably to amuse themselves policemen shot him dead, with all of them probably shooting him, since there were multiple bullet wounds in the body of this unfortunate youth. It was in ‘self defense’ that they shot him, was the police story since, he and his two accomplices shot at them. According to those killer policemen “he was attempting to commit crime”. It was the over confidence of these policemen that they thought some bullet marks on the trees in the forest is enough to prove their innocence. Mercifully even trial court saw through the game of the killer policemen and charged them with unprovoked murder.
Looking back, court should have awarded death sentence to at least to the main conspirator among these policemen. This could have sent a strong message of deterrence among trigger happy uniformed killers masquerading as protectors of law and order.
HARYANA: We are all privy about the happening in Ryan International School in Gurgaon. A small child of II standard, 7 year old Pradyuman Thakur, was found dead with throat slit in the washroom of the school.
A student of XI was supposed to have committed the crime and reportedly have confessed to the crime and is in Juvenile Home.
Indians are also privy to the kneejerk reaction of Gurgoan police in arresting the conductor of the school bus immediately after the crime was found out and police came into the scene.
This conductor, Ashok Kumar, was released on bail after languishing in jail for 72 days.
Reportedly Ashok Kumar was tortured no end by the police to extract a confession of the crime which in all probability he has not committed.
According Ashok Kumar, he was hung upside down, drugged to sleep when his screams wouldn’t stop and even given electric shocks until he repeated what they wanted him to say. According to an exclusive report by TV channel, he seems to have lost partially the use of his legs because of beating followed by electric shocks.
Why do the police do what they do to get a ‘confession’? With their regular experience of handling alleged criminals, suspected or real, police are in a position to fairly assess the personality of an arrested person and therefore wait and observe for some days the persona of the suspected criminal before they start their 3rd degree methods. But like most people police too seem to go for easier and faster methods since those who suffer are neither from police nor their kith and kin.
Now what will happen to the future of this Ashok Kumar with psychological trauma induced depression coupled with job loss due to the police arrest and of course the mental and physical scar that he is forced to endure due to the police high handedness? Will the police ever be made answerable to such wanton tragedies?
NEW DELHI: On 8th February, a New Delhi datelined report informed “Tendulkar bats for CABI”.
Here everybody knows, the one and the only Tendulkar- Sachin tendulkar, but not many would know what is this acronym ‘CABI’ stands for!, CABI is, Cricket Association for the Blind in India. Surely many Indians would not know that India is a member of the World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC) and the Blind Cricket Team is managed by CABI.
They were in the news for having won a tournament against Pakistan recently. And cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar decided to draw the attention of Vinod Rai, the CoA Chairman, and we quote “As we celebrate the fourth consecutive victory of the Indian team in the Blind World Cup, I urge you to consider recognition of CABI by the BCCI. You may also consider bringing these champions under the BCCI pension scheme towards their long term financial security”.
Tendulkar was referring to the recent 2018 victory by the Indian Blind Cricket Team.
Thank God, so late in the day, someone like Sachin Tendulkar took up the issue of CABI and its players, although it was long overdue.
However it was in August 2015, ISSUES & CONCERNS had carried the story-BCCI, BCCI & BCCI, urging the moral obligation of BCCI, as the big brother in the Indian cricket, to support CABI and its players.
This article was published after the victory of Indian Team beating England in England in the World Cup Final that year.
For those uninformed, members of the Indian Blind Cricket Team are very poor cousins of our main stream cricketers.
We are reproducing two statements from players of that winning team that won in England. Ajay Reddy, the then “Man of the Tournament” had this to say. Quote “All Blind Cricket playing nations are recognized by their respective boards, but only we are not. We don’t expect crores of rupees for playing for India, all we expect is a decent and respectful treatment and proper cricket equipment. While Indian normal cricket players are getting paid in lakhs and crores, we get just nothing and we are also playing for the country. May be BCCI thinks that they cannot make money out of blind cricket, but unless you give us a chance, at least for a year invest in us, and then see.”
And senior player Jafar Iqbal expressed his frustration while saying “We toured England with a torn kit and no proper equipment. Our players sweat their heart out and are winning without proper equipment. In fact we white washed England in England. So you can imagine how good we are. Yet for BCCI we aren’t worthy enough.”
This clearly sums up the helplessness of these players in the midst of plenty. This too is another dimension of Yeh Mera India.
NEW DELHI: After days of silence, the Union Finance Minister has finally spoken on the alleged Rs.11500 crore fraud at Punjab National Bank (PNB), country’s second largest public sector bank after SBI, involving one Nirav Modi. Headline in the print media, datelined NEW DELHI informed ‘FM blames auditors and bank officials’.
Primarily he is not wrong, since it is the bank’s officers who sanction loans and advances and auditors are the watchmen on the receipts and payments, to and from bank. Thus they are privy to all the information about rights and wrongs. But there are those who have the responsibility of overseeing what these above mentioned functionaries are doing. Are they - officers & auditors- acting in accordance with the norms set by the board of directors and operating within the set limits of discretion in acting independently? In the given case, clearly the senior management was found sleeping, since reported wrong-doings dates back to 2011 and we are in early 2018, almost 7 years late.
Immediately after the alleged scam became public, the CMD of PNB went public telling what are the actions that have been initiated, post the public knowledge of the scam. But my dear Sir, where were you and your members of the board all these years? Its apparent, CMD and his board have abdicated their role and therefore RBI, if it is within its power, should recommend the dismissal of the board. Probably this and only this, can send right signal to all wrong and irresponsible functionaries in the banking sector.
Now that this Nirav Modi scam has become an everyday news since it broke out over a week ago, there are other skeletons appearing to be at the door of banks cupboards peeping out to pop out. But it is not surprising at all, with Banks’ latest gross NPA being around Rs.9.5 lakh crores, as per the recent joint study of Assocham & Crisil. If 11500 crore has five digits. 9.5 lakh has 6 digits to the right, that is over 10 times. In fact it is close to 100 times. So can we fathom the gravity of the mess the banking sector is in?
And we end up blaming minor functionaries at brach office level for their alleged lack of application, fallibility etc, when in fact, in most cases, of anything more than a crore of rupees of commitment involves very higher ups like General Managers. And beyond 10 crores, it is always the board which is fully aware of what it is doing and is always kept in the loop. Therefore it is important that some heads must roll for the message to go loud and clear on the accountability aspect. After all Board members, who are paid their air tickets and fees for attending the board meetings are not there only to warm the seats! If they don’t perform they should not be there in the board. This dictum has to be applied pari passu and in all seriousness.
Here it is interesting to note a recent report in the press regarding PNB. On completion of its31st December 2017 workings, it had a press release informing “PNB crosses Rs.11 lakh crore in total business”. While informing about this ‘milestone’, it had also mentioned that from 1st January 2018, bank raised interest rates on fixed deposits of selected maturities by up to 1.25 % , so also bank has waived off documentation and processing fees on housing loan, car loan and two wheeler loan.
Clearly there is a message in this press release to all stake holders. PNB is running short of cash. It has given out more than it should have by its Credit/Deposit ratio. Figures are stressed and therefore PNB is now trying to attract more deposits and to give loans at lower income to bank. Who make these decisions, if not Board of Directors, presided over by the Chairman & Managing Director?
NEW DELHI: When the information technology worldwide, especially in India, is talking about recession and therefore resultant reduction in the work force and decreasing employment of fresh IT engineers comes an incredible news of our very own, the biggest Indian IT company, the TCS or the Tata Consultancy Services Ltd of having landed with a contract of $2 billion.
This is the biggest deal TCS ever received in its entire lifetime as a service provider in information technology. Transamerica, a US insurance conglomerate, is a leading provider of life insurance, retirement and investment solutions. This is a multiyear contract.
Being so big a contract it will surely have multiplier effect starting with more employment of qualified persons from both the United States as well as India.
This is indeed very good news on two fronts. There shall be huge employment opportunity for Indians, besides US citizens.
So also this contract, for its sheer size: US$2 Billion, equal to some Rs.13000 crore, is a clear recognition of the technical capability of Tata Consulting Services (TCS) which in turn is a huge honour for India too.
TCS is India’s first and foremost IT solution provider. Wish it continues to be globally recognized for its immense potential and technical competence.
UTTAR PRADESH: It was a startling news report datelined Faizabad in UP. “Muslim opposing Ram Temple must go to Pak”. For a second, thought that it could have been from Sadhwi Ritambar or her ilk in Sangh Parivar who must have stated thus, crossed the mind. It is fairly known that there are motor mouths among Sangh affiliates, who could mouth such aberrations.
Another look at the print told another story. For a change the report was attributed to UP Shia Waqf Board Chief Waseem Rizwi. Not that what he said is appropriate or right. But certainly, it may not be an irresponsible statement driven by sectarian consideration. Surely some considered thought must have gone into the making of such a serious statement.
According to report, Rizwi had said “Those who are opposing Ram Temple in Ayodhya and want to build Babri Mosque there, such people with fundamentalist mentality should go to Pakistan and Bangladesh. Such Muslims do not have any place in India”. According to him, “Fundamentalist Muslim clerics are trying to destroy the country and they must join ISIS chief Baghdadi”.
Coming from the chairman of a Waqf Board, its indeed difficult to believe, but truth can be stranger than fiction. Reportedly, Shia clerics have demanded his arrest.
Thus there is a clear churning within the community. There are forces within the country advocating settlement out of the court. Apex court is seized of the matter right now, but only for the title of the land. There are members of the Muslim community who too think, it is OK to have the Masjid in Lucknow and Temple in Ayodhya. In the larger interest of the country this should pave way for settlement of a long pending emotive issue to be amicably fixed. Hope it happens.
MAHARASHTRA: Never one can expect from NCP chief Sharad Pawar an even handed statement! He is a politician to the core and very opportunistic at that. Hence it is no wonder that he made a statement in Aurangabad “No government has right to interfere in talaq laws’.
First of all, the issue pertains to Muslim women. Muslim women went to court and court pronounced its judgement. All that court wanted was a backing of a statute by the parliament. A statute has been debated and cleared by the Loksabha but presently held up in Rajya Sabha due to some politics of compulsion. This Sharad Pawar just represents this unholy compulsion.
Surely Sharad Pawar’s daughter Supriya Sule is aware of it, and so are these Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Bangladesh who have banned triple talaq.
Sharad Pawar is a person who had nursed the ambition to be PM of India, and probably given up once Narendra Modi became the unlikely Prime Minister some 4 years ago. Now that Sonia has replaced herself in favour of her son Rahul Gandhi as the Congress President, Sharad Pawar feels he can’t play second fiddle to Rahul Gandhi, a much junior, in both experience and age. With some electoral reverses for BJP, opposition parties are seeing blood and trying all kinds of coalition. Just in case, the coalition makes it in May 2019 and BJP sits in the opposition, Sharad Pawar is perhaps having repeat visions of being the Prime Minister of India and therefore trying all tricks to keep himself relevant by making pro Muslim-men statement.
So that, in the event of opposition staging a coup of sorts, in the next Loksabha election, ‘I am ready’ is the stand that he wishes to convey. He wants to be PM even at the cost of helpless Muslim women who have suffered at the hands of unreasonable Muslim men for far too long.
KARNATAKA: Tuesday, 13 February, THE HINDU had this ad THE HUDDLE 2018, ‘Conversation for Change’. The ad informed about some 25 speakers from diverse field, from politics, to films to economics to technology to sports, also included was Sri Lankan Prime Minister. It was to be held on 17th and 18th February at ITC Gardenia, in Bengalooru. Participation in the event was by INVITATION ONLY. The ad indicated, ‘for enquiries: the huddle@thehindu.co.in
It appeared to be attractive for me to attend since it was ‘a huddle for change,’ it was a huddle to talk about ideas that would drive change. And why not? Since I had a question to ask at THE HUDDLE called up a friend, who in turn called up THE HUDDLE 2018 office, to enquire if we could attend! Although it was not entirely unexpected, my friend was told ‘Sorry! list if invitees is already made’. In other words, we were told to ‘take a walk’. Indeed the organizers, THE HINDU had not only decided, who will share their ideas, but they had also decided who will be the audience too. What are the criteria? or consideration for invitation was not mentioned in the ad.
Clearly, it was a captive affair, between invited speakers and a captive audience. Why were they doing so? Was it to promote their publications or to promote some set kind of ideas? A televised portion was shown in NDTV channel, an interview with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandra Babu Naidu, appeared with an agenda to drive a wedge between AP and NDA in the centre for the perceived failure of centre to keep its promise of funding infrastructure in the new capital Amravathi of Andhra Pradesh.
But, if allowed entry this writer had some thoughts to share “TO ENGAGE WITH THE VOICES THAT WORLD LISTENS TO”, as the ad in THE HINDU on 16th February, a day before the THE HUDDLE was to start.
While, it is nobody’s case to tell the organizers as to who should be called, a suggestion could have been made by the audience interlocutors.
Personally, this writer felt, someone like our very own Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi could have been an ideal thinker who also happens to be a doer. He would have lot to share about the issues of poverty and malnutrition among growing children of the country and the world, and why India need a population policy, purely as a socio-economic measure. Unfortunately this did not happen. Wish these media houses become more open with their approach and thoughts on national issues.
KARNATAKA: Patrick D’sa is the national Vice President of PUCL (Peoples Union for Civil Liberties). He has been active in and around Mangalooru for a fairly long time. As usual when you are in a public space there are people who like you and admire you so also there are people who do not see eye to eye with him. It is a part and parcel of being in public life.
Other day he made a pertinent comment on the Ramakrishna Mission in Mangalooru doing Swacchata Abhiyan drive. Early this month there was a print media report “Ramakrishna Mission carries out 14th Shramadan at Morgan’s Gate”. On 4th February, some 250 volunteers divided into 6 groups undertook cleanliness work in Mahakalipadpu area, near railway crossing, informed the print media. There were 6 names in the report: Prof Dr. Ishwara Bhat, Prof Shesappa Amin, Dinesh Karkera, Vittaldas Prabhu, Mukesh Alva and Anand Adyar, who guided the students of different colleges. They cleaned and removed some 2 tipper loads of garbage. They even repainted a bus shelter after removing illegal wall posters and cleaning the shelter.
According to the report, after talking to residents of the area and conducting a survey by the volunteers, they are even planning to put road divider to help smooth running of traffic at the railway crossing there. These are surely positive development involving citizens’ participation.
For a socio-cultural organization Ramakrishna Mission is doing a great service. This aspect of the Mission came in for a high praise from Mr. D’sa. He had a pertinent question. “Why not Churches and Masjids take such initiatives to keep the city and its surroundings clean?” It is a good question and begs for an answer. Wish his desire that both Churches and Masjids in and around Mangalooru join hands with Ramakrishna Mission in making the city responsible and responsive towards a clean Mangalooru.
WORLD: Western World and Human Rights watch, generally targets Asian countries for violation of human rights. But in their neighborhood, such violations particularly against women are rampant. According to United Nations, ‘Latin America is World’s most violent region for women’.
A latest report by the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) and UNWomen, informs that Latin America and the Caribbean is the most violent region in the world for women and highlighted Central America and Mexico as particularly dangerous. And this is despite there being severe legal provisions in place in the region.
Eugenia Piza-Lopez, head of UNDPs gender mission in Latin America feels that the rate of sexual violence against women, outside of relationship, is the highest in the world in the region. ‘Three of the 10 countries with the highest rate of rape of women and girls were in the Caribbean’, tells the report, while adding, ‘Femicide occurred on a devastating scale in Central America’. It explained that two out of every 3 women murdered died because of their gender.
“In some countries it has become a severe crisis. In the Northern Triangle (Honduras, EI Salvador and Guatemala) and Mexico, the problem of killing women and violence against them has reached epidemic levels in many cases with links to organized crime” stated Piza Lopez.
Clearly, there is something rotten about these countries where females are not safe.
Indians always thought, that some of our cities like Delhi and Bengalooru were unsafe for women. But to learn that these Latin American countries, just next door to super power US and the so called champion of human rights, to think that they could be so bad, exposes the double standard of these agencies and media in the west in portraying India as a violator of human rights in general.
This report by the UNDP and UNWomen needs to be studied in all seriousness for the benefit of all nations of the world, for its programme of gender equity.
WORLD: Raza Rabbani, is the chairman of Pakistan Senate, informs the media. Some weeks ago he was addressing the Parliamentary Union of Islamic countries (PUIC) in Tehran. And he has reportedly remarked ‘US, Israel, India nexus major threat to Muslim World’, so tells print media from Islamabad.
That, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu came to India was an important global news. Israel is a small country right in the middle of Islamic countries, surrounded by mighty Saudi Arabia and equally powerful Iran, so also smaller nations like Jordan, Palestine and others. Despite knowing fully well its existential dangers, Israel is living there on its own terms without compromising.
Although, it is for the first time that an Israeli PM has come to India and Indian PM visited Israel, both countries have a long standing relationship. Israel values India’s relationship deeply, since they believe, rather very rightly, that only in India there have been no anti-Semitic feelings among Indians and Jews lived peacefully in India for generations.
It is true that Israel & India are closer and US is a great supporter of Israel. But for Pakistan to feel threatened is clearly misplaced especially to ‘Muslim World’.
World also knows that Indian PM Narendra Modi has also visited Palestine weeks ago without stopping at Israel. It was a measure of maturity in India’s international relations that since Palestine did not have a regular airport, Jordanian helicopter flew PM Modi, with Israeli gunships escorting the helicopter. And now comes Iranian president Rouhani visit to India to strengthen bilateral ties. Thus clearly the fear of Pakistan is misplaced.
It could be true that Indian & Israeli friendship may be of concern to Pakistan, but surely not to Muslim world. In recent times it is to be noted that Middle Eastern Muslim countries are in close liaison with India to improve their bilateral relationship with New Delhi. This is good for the region. But Pakistan certainly feels uncomfortable with rising bonhomie of India with Arab nations. It is an emerging reality which Pakistan must recognize. Hope it does in the larger interest of peace in the region.
WORLD: Sometime early February, “Chinese national shot dead by unidentified assailants in Karachi”, was a news in the print media. Knowing Pakistan more than China, Indians knew, it was not surprising at all. A day later “Beijing tells Pak to improve security” was another print media news. One was datelined Karachi and the other Beijing.
What if the killing of a Chinese was somewhere in India? What and how China would have reacted? Authorities in Beijing would have allowed its state media, the ‘Global Times’ to go berserk with warning that the killer should be immediately tracked down and handed over to Beijing for further punishment. But with Pakistan, China is fully aware that they cannot afford to be tough with Islamabad with its huge financial stake inside Pakistan.
No doubt, China wants to expand its sphere of influence across the globe. It wants to be a super power to check- mate United States as the sole super power in the world. It has both money and people power. Right now, the growth in China is not the same as in the past, for many socio-political & economic reasons, and therefore it is in search of newer pastures by investing its huge financial clout. But in the process of having stakes in different countries China probably has not bothered to address the sensitivities of affected nations. They have come to Pakistan with their Money & Muscle power which is not liked by many in Pakistan. The killing in Karachi was described in the local media as a ‘targeted killing’, reflecting the anger of assailants. Chinese high handedness was clearly seen when their CPEC (China Pak Economic Corridor) has passed through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir despite Indian protest as ‘POK is a disputed area’. Reactions as it happened in Karachi can find resonance in different parts of Pakistan so also in other parts of the world. Chinese leadership should be prepared to face such hostilities if it doesn’t check its hegemonistic tendencies.
However around the same time the killing took place in Karachi, Pakistan’s interior ministry has informed Gilgit- Baltistan’s home department that India has made a plan to attack the CPEC installations on Karakoram highway; reported the Pak English daily DAWN. This was clearly with the intention of diverting the Chinese attention from the Karachi killing of a Chinese, so also to get Chinese worked up against India. Surely China has enough of its own inputs to know the Pakistani bluff. India simply does not have such plans, purely as a matter of policy of non-interference. Thus the report attributed to Agencies within Pakistan, titled “Pak suspects India may target CPEC installations” was purely a figment of Pakistan’s imagination. But clearly China is in for a long drawn restlessness from unhappy Pakistanis against their $50 billion CPEC mega project.
WORLD: This man, a senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, who got the boot from his boss Rahul Gandhi, walks in and out of controversy like Anant Kumar Hegde of BJP. But, mercifully the kind of controversy both these politicians revel in, are not same.
All Indians are privy to the fact of Aiyar’s suspension from Congress and the reason there of, so also the controversial dinner get-together that he arranged in honour of his Pakistani friends and diplomats at his Delhi residence. He is rabidly anti BJP and anti Sangh Parivar. But he is also an anti Indian was a little known dimension of his utterances.
Reportedly this Aiyar was in Karachi, attending some literary festival. He is reported to have spoken at the event in endearing terms to the attending Pakistani audience. He is reported to have said “Thousands of people, whom I do not know, hug me, wish me. I receive much more hatred in India than the love I receive in Pakistan. So I am happy to be here”. If this is true he is clearly speaking to the gallery. The last sentence “I am happy to be here (Karachi)”, Indian authorities must hold on to. Since he is unhappy, with India and Indians, he must be told in clear terms that he should stay back in Pakistan. Of course, it has to be seen, if he will be accepted by Pakistan, for all his professed love for Pakistan and Pakistanis. According to Aiyar “There is only one way of resolving India Pakistan issue and that is by uninterrupted and uninterruptible dialogue. And I am very proud and half very sad that this sentence of these three words (uninterrupted and uninterruptible), have been accepted as Pakistan Policy, but has not been accepted as Indian policy”.
It is a very unfortunate coincidence that while he was speaking in Karachi literary festival, eulogizing ‘peace loving’ Pakistan, Indian side of Kashmir was under incessant attack by ISI-run terror net works in Kashmir. An Indian editorial asked “Kashmir. How long the slow bleed?” Clearly it was the continuation of the Zia ul Haq inspired policy of causing ‘thousand cuts to India’, for all these years. “The seemingly unending series of attacks on army camps and posts in the valley has taken a heavy toll of human life and have certainly impaired the morale of the country for it to be able to neutralize the ISI run terror net works in Kashmir”, commented the editorial.
Irony was around the same time, a report datelined Washington, attributing to Director of US National Intelligence Dan Coats as having stated that ‘Pakistan supported terrorist groups would continue to carry out attack inside India, amid a spike in terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir’.
And we have our former diplomat intellectual mouthing garbage in praising Pakistan and deriding India on Pak soil. That is clearly seditious. For as long as 70 years of free India and free Pakistan, India has been espousing the cause of co-existence and Pakistan attacked India three times and lost all the times. Pakistan simply does not understand peace. They have been a bad neighbour. Pakistan attacked Indian Parliament. It was an act of war. They attacked Mumbai. It was an act of war. They attacked Akshardham temple, it was an act of war. What has India done Mr. Aiyar? No, you do not deserve to remain an Indian. Yes the country’s leadership in talk with Congress party must decide the future of this Mani Shankar Aiyar for good or for worse.
J. Shriyan
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