Tuesday, March 15, 2011

ब्लॉगरों का दमन करने और गरीब बीमारों को खसोटने सम्बन्धी दो खबरें… Proposed Ban on Blogging, Health Tax on Indians




सरकार ने कानून की शब्दावली में ऐसे शब्द डाल दिये हैं जिनकी मनमानी व्याख्या की जा सकती है, जैसे कि ब्लॉगर या फ़ेसबुक/ट्विटर लेखक 'हानिकारक', 'धमकी', 'अपमानजनक', 'परेशान करना', 'निंदा करना', 'आपत्तिजनक'(?), 'अपमानजनक', ‘अश्लील', ‘दूसरे की गोपनीयता भंग करने वाला', 'घृणित'(?), 'नस्ली टिप्पणी’, 'काले धन को वैध/अवैध करने की सलाह या जुआ से संबंधित' सामग्री होने पर सरकार कार्रवाई कर सकती है। कोई बेवकूफ़ भी समझ सकता है कि “आपत्तिजनक”, “घृणित” और “निंदा करने वाला” जैसे शब्दों की आड़ लेकर सरकार किसका मुँह दबाना चाहती है।

"THE MYTH OF RENUNCIATION" - KRISHEN KAK (I.A.S. - RETD) - Must Read

"THE MYTH OF RENUNCIATION" - KRISHEN KAK (I.A.S. - RETD) - Must Read: "
mar 13th, 2011 CE

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Subject: "THE MYTH OF RENUNCIATION" - KRISHEN KAK (I.A.S. - RETD) - Must Read
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The Myth of the Renunciation



Krishen Kak



13 March 2011


“The Big Lie is a propaganda technique. The expression was coined by Adolf Hitler, when he dictated his 1925 book Mein Kampf, for a lie so `colossal’ that no one would believe that someone `could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously’”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Lie, 26/2/11).


“…when one lies, one should lie big, and stick to it…” - Joseph Goebbels, Die Zeit ohne Beispiel, Jan 12, 1941.


“…people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it…” – “Hitler As His Associates Know Him”,

http://www.nizkor.org/hweb/people/h/hitler-adolf/oss-papers/text/oss-profile-03-02.html, para 26.


The Constitution of India is the defining text of the Republic of India . The Constitution states “There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President” (Art 74.1) and “The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People” (Art 75.3).


The Union Cabinet is the inner council of the Council of Ministers. The Indian Prime Minister is Dr Manmohan Singh. He heads the Union Cabinet and the Council of Ministers. The buck stops with him. This is the de jure position.


“Madam, what Cabinet are you talking about? You direct and everything would be done”.[1]



It is popularly acknowledged that “Madam” is Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and that she heads Dr Manmohan Singh. This is extra-Constitutional. She is responsible to no one. No buck stops with her. This is the de facto position in our country.[2] How did this come about?


Through the Myth of the Renunciation.


In Christian mythology (Luke 1.26-38), as also in Islamic mythology (Koran 3.45-51; 19.16-26), the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was going to bear a son, even though she was a virgin. Her son was to be called Jesus. Roman Catholics celebrate, nine months before Christmas, this story as the Annunciation. Protestants, however, call this story the Myth of the Annunciation. Nevertheless, this myth is accepted as true by an estimated 2.47 billion or more Catholics and Muslims the world over.[3] There is not an iota of factual evidence in support of the Annunciation.


Likewise, in India , we have our Nehru-Gandhi mythology and we have a hagiolatrous myth that is still broadcast and believed by millions not just in India but the world over. This is the Myth of the Renunciation, that “Santa Sonia, our Lady of Renunciation, so graciously handed the reins of power to her chosen subordinate…”[4] There is not an iota of factual evidence in support of the Renunciation.


In December 2010, Wikileaks reported Sonia Gandhi’s freewheeling confession to Maria Shriver that was claimed to “put the lie to cocktail party suggestions that she courts Manmohan Singh’s job”. No, as too is popularly acknowledged, she doesn’t need to court his job. Courtesy the Myth of the Renunciation, she can and does enjoy our country’s prime minister’s power and perquisites without any of its responsibility or accountability.


A Garrulous Sonia Gandhi Opens Up To Maria Shriver.



Maria Shriver, wife of the governor of California and Sonia Gandhi, the most powerful person in India and the head of the ruling Congress party, have a one hour meeting…For her visitors, Mrs. Gandhi is warm, even effusive, admirable, informed far from her normal reserved self, her “Italian” nature showing through.

Without prompting and at her own initiative Mrs. Gandhi then spoke at length about her personal life……



In a candid revelation of her personal political stance, Mrs. Gandhi stated that “the right was becoming strong in India and Congress weak,” tipping her hand and “compelling” her to enter politics to protect the Gandhi family legacy. She also revealed that her children were “not keen” about the idea, but eventually told her, “whatever you decide, we will back you.”

Mrs. Gandhi was reluctant to provide details regarding her decision to turn down the Prime Minister’s post after the UPA’s surprise 2004 electoral victory, stating that “I am often asked about this, but tell people that I will write a book someday with the whole story.” She would only say that she “felt better” that someone else became PM and “did not regret” her decision. Shriver congratulated Mrs. Gandhi for her resoluteness and described her as “courageous.” Clearly embarrassed by this adulation, Mrs. Gandhi made no response. She elaborated, at Karan Singh’s insistence, saying that she was under lots of pressure, as the “party workers” were “very upset.” They “could not understand” why she, as party President, was not taking up the post, since they had voted for her and won a majority……

Despite her carefully erected Indian persona, her basic Italian personality is clearly evident in her mannerisms, speech and interests.[5]

The Wikileaks report contains all the key elements of the Myth of the Renunciation, cunningly and assiduously constructed and broadcast by our Nehruvian-seculariat.

In the Year of Her Lord 2004, Edvige Antonia Albina Maino alias Sonia Gandhi[6] led her Congress Party to a much-debated win in our country’s general election. Among the first to revel were Italians. The “Cinderella of Orbassano” was preened as the Empress of India, and there was gloating in what “India’s National Newspaper” called her “native town”:



In Orbassano, the mainly blue-collar township where Ms Gandhi grew up, there was jubilation. Major Carlo Marroni, the Mayor of Orbassano told The Hindu: “We are extremely happy and proud that a daughter of our commune is poised to become the Prime Minister of India...”



Claudio Gallo of the Turin-based daily La Stampa said... “We welcome this development. It means we can hope for more secular policies from the new Indian Government...”....



Guido Rampoldi of the daily La Repubblica told The Hindu in a telephone interview: “We are very proud of the fact that Ms Gandhi has succeeded and India should be proud too. It shows an openness and maturity on the part of the Indian electorate that would be hard to find anywhere. I cannot, for instance see a woman of Indian origin becoming a head of government in Europe. But of course, she’s not really Italian any more. Quite understandably, she wants to cut ties with Italy, so as not to offer any ammunition that her enemies could exploit…”[7]

From the mouths of Italian horses you have it. They wanted “more secular policies” though neither the Vatican State nor the Italian State extend to Indians/Hindus the kind of civic and political rights the Indian State extends to Italians/Christians. They claimed “she’s not really Italian any more” and “wants to cut ties with Italy”, though the evidence is so convincingly to the contrary, and the Americans when she met Maria Shriver were certainly not fooled.

The evidence of the Indian contribution to the Italian economy through the Nehru-Gandhi connection, the evidence of the Italian contribution to Indian security strategy, the silence of Orbassano’s Cinderella over the Pope’s 1999 declaration in India to convert us to Catholicism, the evidence of Cinderella fleeing with her children - and the children are Italians under Italian law - to Italian hearths when India was under threat, and so on...

But the most telling comment came from Bruno Crimi of Panorama magazine, who covered the Indian elections for it. In the magazine “owned by Italy’s Prime Minister and media magnate, Silvio Berlusconi”, Crimi crowed: We both have Italian Prime Ministers now...



Only, of course, she still wasn’t the prime minister.

Sonia Gandhi, during her election campaign, had shrilled her pride at belonging to the family that had sacrificed so much, that had sacrificed its lives for the nation.

What sacrifice? An ordinary jawan and his family sacrifice more. Consider the facts.

If the Nehru-Gandhis died for the nation, then so does any public servant who dies while on duty. The nature or the emotion of the dying does not alter this principle. Sacrificing one’s life for the nation means going out to die for it - as a jawan does. Not one of the Nehru-Gandhis went out to die - on the contrary, they were heavily protected by jawans against such an eventuality. But a jawan off to war says his farewells first, because he knows - as does his family - that he may not come back. Whose, then, is the real sacrifice? Who, then, really dies for the nation?

Now consider what a “grateful” nation has given the Nehru-Gandhis for their so-called sacrifices for the nation...

Apart from Bharat Ratnas and numerous taxpayer-borne perquisites[8], there is the control over vast areas of prime Indian real estate. In Delhi alone, the family, protected at taxpayer’s cost, occupies, again at taxpayer’s cost, three centrally-located enormously valuable public properties. Through the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation it occupies and controls another enormously valuable piece of real estate; this Foundation has been the recipient of taxpayer largesse; the family’s private estate in Chattarpur has for years been secured at the taxpayer’s cost; and a sycophantic HRD minister changed the rules of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts to make Sonia Gandhi its head-for-life, IGNCA’s land alone reportedly being worth Rs 5,000 crores.[9]

Now consider what the family of a jawan gets when he’s sacrificed his life for the nation. There is an old story - Defence Minister Jagjivan Ram visited a northern town to distribute sewing machines to war widows. One widow took off her chappal and thwacked the Minister with it, asking if a sewing machine was all her husband had been worth. Okay, they may get more than a sewing machine now, but you get the point.

If you don’t, consider finally how many acres of prime public land in the Capital are reserved for memorials of the Nehru-Gandhis. And compare to that the handkerchief-sized space under India Gate for jawans who’ve actually died for the country.

Note it was the Italians themselves who said India had an Italian prime minister. And she has never broken off her Italian connection - not even in matters of Indian national security. She trusts her Italians more than us Indians.[10]


Sonia Gandhi’s election affidavit noted she has a house in Italy - and Italian law will always provide her and her children with a home. And therefore her “native town” jubilated. Only, of course, she still wasn’t the prime minister.


The Nehruvian-seculariat swung into action. “In the unfolding burlesque on succession to the throne of Delhi, the most enduring and funniest image was that of octogenerian Jyoti Basu, former West Bengal chief minister and veteran communist, rushing forward to push Ms Sonia Gandhi’s candidature for prime ministership... he had voluntarily decided to function as the spokesman for the Gandhi family”.[11]


Eminent lawyer Shanti Bhushan claimed the Indian Constitution does not distinguish between citizens ”on ground of place of birth”[12], no doubt inadvertently omitting to mention that Mrs. Gandhi did not acquire citizenship under the Constitution but under the Citizenship Act, and the Citizenship Act in its proviso to s.5(e) has “provided that in prescribing the conditions and restrictions subject to which persons of any such country may be registered as citizens of India under this clause, the Central Government shall have due regard to the conditions subject to which citizens of India may, by law or practice of that country, become citizens of that country by registration.”

In other words, under Indian citizenship law, there is a clear stipulation of reciprocity and, from all accounts till then, Italian law did not permit Indians marrying Italians to hold high public office.


There were, therefore, clearly in law what Sandhya Jain called “certain ambiguities” over Sonia Gandhi’s pretensions to prime ministership.[13]


There was also the incontrovertible fact that, during security threats to India, Sonia Gandhi had not chosen to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with other Indians in India, but ran away to Italian sanctuary. There was the incontrovertible fact that Sonia Gandhi, in India, as an Italian citizen married to an Indian, and from the Prime Minister’s House, broke this country’s electoral and foreign exchange laws.[14]


Recall that the President of India himself declared, in his April 18, 2004 address to the nation, that “in a democracy, an important principle is the equality of every citizen”.[15] If considerations of national security officially debar Indian citizens in certain official positions from marrying foreigners, surely such security considerations apply with the greatest possible force to Sonia Gandhi who by her acts had already shown her loyalty to our country was highly suspect.[16]


The Hindu reported the President of India had merely invited Sonia Gandhi “for discussions”[17] Nevertheless, NDTV announced Sonia Gandhi was to be sworn in on May 19, 2004 as prime minister of India.


Jubilation in India too. Vande Mata-Rome!

But we live, as the Chinese malediction goes, in exciting times! On May 18, 2004, the whole world saw why a handful of White foreigners could rule a subcontinent of Browns – and why a single White foreigner still can. It is not without reason she’s called the Empress of India. And, yes, she’s still very much a foreigner. More than 40 years in India, and recall the American confidential assessment of the Italian quite unchanged behind her Indian mukhota.


The Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) met in the Central Hall of Parliament – with non-MPs Mr and Mrs Robert Vadra in the front row - and put on a spectacular display of obsequious servility and mawkish sycophancy. Congress Members of Parliament lined up to grovel and abase themselves before Sonia Gandhi as she sat in regal disdain, haughtily nodding at some especially expressive presentation of vassalage. Mani Shankar Aiyar and Renuka Choudhary led the maudlin tears, as they begged their mallika-e-jahan not to orphan them. Jairam Ramesh scaled the peak of unctuosity by clubbing Sonia Gandhi with the Buddha and with Mahatma Gandhi. Uriah Heep could’ve taken lessons from these MPs.[18]


The spirit of Mussolini hovered in the air as the Congress (Indira) exposed for all the world to see its fascisticization into the Congress (Italy). And aptly so, for nothing in Italian law prevented Sonia Gandhi as Indian prime minister also becoming the Italian prime minister. [19]


A hagiographical myth was in active creation, scripted by Sonia Gandhi and her children. As Prabhu Chawla wrote of that tamasha that was that CPP meeting, “On one side...were over 200 Congress leaders, a wailing legion of the suddenly orphaned pleading to the Leader... on the other side. All the while, she maintained eye contact only with the family - son Rahul, daughter Priyanka and son-in-law Robert Vadra - who sat in the first row. Never before had family members of a prospective prime minister attended such a meeting...the privileged three were the only ones she completely trusted”.[20]


It was disgusting and demeaning, this total abandoning of personal and national self-respect before a White European - and I say “White” advisedly for, “if Sonia Gandhi had been black, had been a person of African origin, this problem would never have arisen”.[21]


Consider how the English-language mainstream media tried to influence our perceptions, presenting assumption as fait accompli: Sonia Gandhi invited to be PM, Sonia Gandhi to be sworn in on May 19, Sonia Gandhi rejecting the prime ministership...


Yet none of this was true at all.

Sonia Gandhi had only been invited by the President “for discussions”; she had not been invited by him to form the new ministry. How then could she “humbly decline this post” when it had still not been offered to her? That she had been elected CPP leader may have entitled her to stake a claim, but that was a far cry from that claim having been accepted. She and her party clearly assumed the President had no Constitutional discretion to exercise in this matter but should function as a Nehru-Gandhi flunkey, as KR Narayanan had[22], and as Zail Singh had too, swearing in Rajiv Gandhi even before the CPP elected Gandhi its leader.



Sonia Gandhi and her party and its fellow-travellers assumed that any Indian citizen who questioned her legal eligibility for the post was anti-national; that it was illegitimate, anti-secular, anti-Gandhian and anti-people to raise the issue of her foreign origin - all “a vicious campaign”, as The Hindu editorially pontificated, in a blanket bracketing of such citizens with “the sangh parivar”.[23]


Let us start from Sonia Gandhi’s own statement of her inner voice telling her (at least for the previous 6 years) never to aspire to prime ministerial office (highly suspect, as SUS instances more than once) and that she was only listening to this inner voice.[24] Let us try and believe her. Now, her flunkeys announced:

1. She was a renouncer in the true Indian tradition.


But how could she renounce what she never wanted and what, in any case, had not been offered to her. And if she truly was a renouncer, how about her renouncing the vast public property and purse she still controlled, and renouncing the 6 crores annually from the public exchequer “to provide her a home and security”.[25] That would be the real renunciation, because then she’d be giving up something she wanted and had.[26]


2. It was “the people’s verdict/mandate” that she be our prime minister.


This assumed that Indian laws did not apply to Sonia Gandhi as, indeed, she herself assumed.[27] Her own electioneering did not project her as a prime ministerial candidate and, in any case, the Congress did not win a majority on its own - it cobbled together one after the elections. But this “people’s verdict” or “people’s mandate” – and note, not for her party but for her and her children - is a fabrication of stunning mythicality.[28]

If Sonia Gandhi six years earlier had decided she never wanted to be prime minister, why didn’t she announce so clearly and unambiguously before the electioneering had begun? Then both her party and the Indian electorate would’ve known what’s what. Instead, as Barkha Dutt noted on NDTV, to a question to Sonia Gandhi on her election as CPP leader meaning she became the prime ministerial candidate, she said “aisa hi hota hai”.


If it was the people’s verdict that she be prime minister, why was she running away from the maidan-e-jang (the imagery of the battle was her own)? Was this her contempt for the vox populi expressed so weepily by her Party’s MPs?[29]

3. She was hounded by the BJP’s “vicious attacks” (this from NDTV’s Mumbai anchor) on her foreign origin.


Sitaram Yechury “said the main reason why Sonia opted out was the issue of her foreign origin” - and not any inner voice - and she apparently flip-flopped over her decision, with her children helping the allies make her relent, and then she changed her mind again.[30] But why did asking legitimate questions about her legal eligibility - as The Pioneer, May 19, 2004 speculated the President did - become “vicious attacks”?


4. Finally, Sonia Gandhi’s innocent children told Jyoti Basu that “they have lost their father, and now they do not want to lose their mother as well”.[31]

Yet it was their mother herself who had initiated the possibility of such a second loss with her “coup de toilette” against Sitaram Kesri[32], it was still the case when in 1999 she met President KR Narayanan to stake her claim to prime ministership with her mythical claim of “we have 272 and more are coming”[33], it was still the case when she began her electioneering in 2004, it was still the case when she and the Congress won in the elections, it was still the case when the CPP on May 15 with her present elected her its leader and prime ministerial nominee, it was still the case when the Congress began patching together a majority with letters of support from the Nehruvian-secular parties to her as prime ministerial candidate of the United Progressive Alliance, it was still the case when the Congress and these Nehruvian-secular parties were on May 16 hosted by her at her residence and unanimously decided she was their prime ministerial nominee, it was still the case when the media broadcast for May 19 her swearing-in as prime minister, it was still the case when she first went to meet the President.



It was only after she met the President that the media began to report the Congress contacting the supporting parties for Manmohan Singh as leader. For what happened at Rashtrapati Bhawan we may have to wait for the presidential memoirs, but The Pioneer, May 19, 2004, usefully speculated on a Presidential appreciation of the implications of Article 102 of the Constitution and s.5 of the Citizenship Act on the eligibility of Sonia Gandhi for prime ministership.


What is clear is that “the President applied different standards to Sonia Gandhi and Dr Manmohan Singh. The evidence of it is the appointment of Dr Manmohan Singh. On Wednesday evening at 6 o’clock Dr Manmohan Singh was elected as the leader and at 8.15 p.m. he was given the letter of appointment. The President neither asked him the evidence of majority nor did he ask him about the support...”[34] The CPP had now elected Sonia Gandhi’s nominee as its leader, and he promptly collected the President’s invitation that had been kept ready for him. No discussion, nothing. There had been no such invitation awaiting the previous CPP-elected leader Sonia Gandhi herself when she trotted with her confident claim to the President. He sent her back empty-handed.


It was after this that Sonia Gandhi’s children came out with their fears of being orphaned as the factor influencing their mother to change her mind about being prime minister. “Jyoti Basu said...that...Sonia Gandhi had been dissuaded from becoming Prime Minister by her children, who fear that she might be killed”.[35] Priyanka Gandhi later clarified that “her mother’s decision was the response to her inner voice” and “said she might think about it after seeing the reaction of the party. This further fuelled speculation that the plot may change again”.[36] “Security threat was not the reason for...Sonia Gandhi not taking up prime ministership, according to her son, Rahul”.[37] Rahul Gandhi said that she “did what an ideal Indian woman should have done”.[38]


The English-speaking media projected the innocence of Sonia Gandhi’s children. But “the Marxists do not believe that Sonia Gandhi was solely guided by her ‘inner voice’ in declining to accept the post... [Jyoti] Basu has described her stand as ‘funny’... ‘We have also seen how her son and newly elected MP Rahul Gandhi offered her flowers in the Parliament to congratulate her after being elected leader of the Congress Parliamentary party. Had Rahul and his sister Priyanka any objection to their mother becoming the prime minister, why did not they say so in the beginning? Why did they raise objections at the eleventh hour?’ the CPM leaders ask”.[39] Why indeed?


So perhaps the children were not so innocent after all but, as the haazri of the Vadras at the CPP meeting showed, they were very much part of the plot. Remember that Pinocchio belongs to their natal tradition.


This whole business of Sonia Gandhi and her “inner voice” and her “humbly declining” the prime ministership is pure unadulterated naatak-baazi. If Sonia Gandhi is arrogant[40], she has every reason to be - a “cinderella” from a village in Italy with the elected representatives of the world’s largest democracy fawning at her feet, personifying her as our country, deifying her a mother-goddess, all in the best traditions of a Bollywood tear-jerking mythological.



It was we natives ourselves begging a White European to remember it is her mission to civilize us. Thus, senior politician and MP Ram Vilas Paswan was “ready to sacrifice even [his] life, pledging his life to work under her leadership”. Not surprisingly, her fellow-Italian, journalist Paolo Pontoniere, could write proudly that “Europeans revel in the pleasure of having one of their daughters bringing new hope to another continent”.[41]


Sonia Gandhi says, “Mujhe lagata hai ki aaj ki rajniti mein sant bane rahana hi sabse mushkil kaam hai (It appears to me that remaining a saint in politics is the most difficult thing)”.[42]

Jairam Ramesh ‘umbled himself all over again: “A long line of renunciates have dotted India right from the days of Gautama Buddha to Mahatma Gandhi; and, Sonia Gandhi has now joined this pantheon.”[43]


Alas, but Sonia Gandhi is no renouncing saint. She hasn’t renounced anything at all, neither pelf nor power, both appropriated through the backdoor while her “inner voice” answers the front door. Such is the Myth of the Renunciation.


Rahul Gandhi said the value that he’d uphold in politics is “Truth. I have seen that in politics, especially in our country, truth has been the first casualty”.[44]


Truth as a first casualty?


As in the Myth of the Renunciation - a lie so `colossal’ that no one would believe that someone `could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously’.


As in the Myth of the Renunciation - “don’t be fooled,” says Rahul Gandhi, “once a Gandhi, always a politician.”[45]


The Renunciation. Fellow Indians, don’t be fooled. It’s a Big Lie.


Notes


1. Mulayam Singh Yadav and Lalu Prasad in Parliament (“The super boss”, Grapevine, The Pioneer, May 10, 2010). Some four years earlier, the Whites had already understood this - “The Economist had famously described Mr Singh as a Prime Minister in office but not in power.” (“In office, not in power”, edit, The Pioneer, May 25, 2010). “Dr Singh declared: `The government will be run under her guidance’“ (Harish Khare, `We will focus on the poor’, The Hindu, May 21, 2004) just ”as...Jawaharlal Nehru had needed the Mahatma’s benign hand on his shoulder” (Inder Malhotra, “Congress culture too needs reform”, The Hindu, May 23, 2004).

"

tamil nadu: Coalition Dharma at its brazen worst - BR Haran

tamil nadu: Coalition Dharma at its brazen worst - BR Haran: "
mar 13th, 2011 CE

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: HARAN BR
Date: Sat, Mar 12, 2011 at 12:21 AM
Subject: Coalition Dharma at its brazen worst - BR Haran
To:


http://www.dailypioneer.com/323833/Coalition-dharma-at-its-brazen-worst.html

OPED | Saturday, March 12, 2011

Coalition dharma at its brazen worst
March 12, 2011 12:07:19 AM

B R Haran

Less than a month since Manmohan Singh justified the mollycoddling of scamster ministers in the name of “coalition compulsions”, Indians watched this week as “seat-sharing” talks ahead of elections in Chennai barely concealed the political adhesive of UPA-2: blackmail.


We have often heard that ‘coalition dharma’ demands flexibility on the part of the principals. Last month, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh shamelessly admitted on national television that self-preservation is the highest goal of governance, not delivering the nation from corruption, poverty and inflation. Alliance partners, even if they are criminal enterprises masquerading as political parties, should be mollycoddled — the aam admi be damned.


This week, we Indians saw, how through little exercises in deceit this dharma plays out. The setting, as expected, was Tamil Nadu, where Singh’s party, the Congress, was seen doing a nice tango with its rogue partner, the DMK, for the benefit of an ignoramus national media.


Political analysts shed much perspiration ‘analysing’ the political equivalent of a fixed cricket match. Changing alliance arithmetic, prolonging seat-sharing talks, lack of trust amongst allies, factional feuds within parties and disgruntlement among the cadres, etc., have never been so brazen. For the first time in the history of Tamil Nadu both the major Dravidian parties showed their vulnerabilities vis-a-vis a party from the north. But, by end-week, it was all hunky dory again.


The 2G spectrum scam has led scamsters DMK and Congress to break their heads over resolving the sticky situation created by the mother of all thefts. With Assembly polls round the corner, the DMK is in a state of high anxiety, as unlike the Congress which has little by way of investment in the state, Tamil Nadu is the universe for Karunanidhi and his ilk. While the Congress could afford to occupy the moral high ground on the issue just because the investigating agencies are yet to knock on its doors, the DMK felt betrayed because it perceived its bigger ally had not done enough to save its leaders including the family members of supremo
M Karunanidhi.

With the Assembly election nearing, the Congress took full advantage of the issue and started squeezing the DMK to extract its own pound of flesh. The sudden increase of pace in the CBI’s probe, the sacking and subsequent arrest of Telecom Minister A Raja, and the anticipated interrogation of Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi and other women of the household put Karunanidhi on the back foot. The fact that he could not prevent the CBI from raiding his own TV channel’s office was weighing on his mind. This made him focus on the prevention of the interrogation of his wives and the possible arrest of his daughter, at least until the election.

Despite the Congress having an advantage over DMK as far as the 2G probe was concerned, Karuna played his cards quite well by threatening to withdraw from the Union government, thereby rocking the seven-year relationship which was mutually ‘beneficial’. Though bickering over seat-sharing was projected as the reason for the mess, the real cause was the failure of the two parties to arrive at an understanding over the 2G probe. This could be ascertained by two ‘giveaways’. The first was by Karunanidhi, through a statement that “hiccups” in seat-sharing was one of the reasons, and the other was by Pranab Mukherjee, who said, “We know how to create problems; we know how to solve them too”.

So, the drama on seat sharing proceeded while the actual scenes happened behind the screens at the Capital. Reliable sources say that the DMK had categorically told the Congress leadership that it cannot claim a moral high ground on the spectrum scam and arm-twist the DMK because if the latter sank, it could pull down the grand old party with it. It was amusing to follow the mainstream media peddling the theory that that Sonia ‘slammed’ DMK leaders, or that Sonia ‘snubs’ Karuna and she upheld the ‘prestige of the Congress’. In reality nothing of the kind happened.

Tamil Nadu is not an important state for the Congress. At first it seemed that sacrificing its minor stake there for the sake of a peaceful time in Delhi was the raison d’être of the Congress’ operations in Chennai. So, in the present scenario, even if the AIADMK’s Jayalalithaa offers only 40 odd seats, the Congress is confident it could swing 25-30 of them. That is preferable to the DMK’s offer of 63, as aligning itself with the tainted party could hurt the Congress deeply.

On the other hand, Jayalalithaa is concerned for her health and her party’s financial condition. She is quite understandably mulling over the prospects of having the Congress on her side instead of spent forces like Vaiko’s MDMK and the Communists. Moreover, the disproportionate assets case has been a big headache for her. She is worried that the DMK-Congress combine might try to prevent her from contesting the election using their leverage with the Judiciary.

Even as the DMK-Congress talks were on, Jayalalithaa waited with bated breath, preparing to dump the Communists and Vaiko’s MDMK for the sake of a tie-up with the Congress. Smelling imminent power in Chennai and reflected glory in Delhi, she began entertaining dreams of victimising Karunanidhi and his family. Though the Congress has not responded to her overtures yet, the possibility of post-poll ties is not ruled out.

Karunanidhi is at the fag end of his career. Since 1996 he has made it a point to cosy up to whichever party is in power in Delhi. But he was powerless to prevent the arrest of Raja or stop the CBI probe. As elections neared he developed cold feet, and reading his precarious situation, the Congress tightened its grip. The move by Jayalalithaa to offer her support to the Congress in the event of its dumping the DMK came in handy for Sonia Gandhi’s emissaries in Chennai.

But by midweek, the old warhorse finally prevailed over the Congress and saved the alliance. Reportedly, the Congress has agreed to slow down the investigations, delay the interrogation of Karuna’s family members and ensure that Kanimozhi is not harassed. After all, Sonia Gandhi has her own interests to safeguard. As a step in that direction, the DoT has sent a notice to the telecom companies who were beneficiaries of the scam, giving them a 60-day breathing space. Citing this and a few other ‘made-up’ reasons the CBI might pray for adjournments in the Supreme Court leading to the protection of the DMK first family.

For the Tamilian on the street, the dynamics of the political track are all too transparent. This is alliance politics in its most disgusting form. The ordinary party cadre has lost all respect for their leaders. Money power is set to overwhelm politics on an unprecedented scale. The aam admi is hoping that the Election Commission would be sincere and effective.

-- The writer is a Chennai-based columnist

"

a true comic project: 'secular' fundie describes black comedy known as 'secularism'

a true comic project: 'secular' fundie describes black comedy known as 'secularism': "
mar 13th, 2011 CE

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: sri
Date: Fri, Mar 11, 2011 at 5:03 PM
Subject: Communalism Explained in comic! - Book Launch and Seminar_17th March _Mumbai [1 Attachment]
To:


F YI --- Now comics get into the anti national act!

http://www.worldcomicsindia.com/andhrapradesh.html


Now, comic book on communalism
PTI | 12:03 PM,Mar 11,2011

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/now-comic-book-on-communalism/605688.html

New Delhi, Mar 11 (PTI) In an attempt to effectively educate the
masses about the complexities of communalism, a new graphical account
addresses this age-old sensitive issue."Communalism Explained! A
Graphic Account" penned by Professor Ram Puniyani along with founder
of World Comics India, Sharad Sharma, seeks to break the stereotypical
image of the minority community prevalent in the majority
community."After the Mumbai violence in 1993, there have been many
misconceptions about a particular community.

I felt that people need to be informed about it. Illustrated version
appeals more to people, specially the youth," says Puniyani, who took
voluntary retirement from IIT-Bombay in December 2004 to work full
time for communal harmony.Available both in Hindi and English, the
book has been published by World Comics India and Vani Prakashan with
support from Oxfam India, a rights-based NGO.The book, a graphical
representation in form of myths and reality touches upon history of
communalism, values of Gandhi, impact of communalism on weaker
sections and ways to deal with this problem."There is a lot of
knowledge about communalism in the academic world but we wanted to
inform the masses about it.Comical representation made this complex
issue lighter which is simple and appeals to eyes and mind of masses,"
says Sharad Sharma."It is an attempt to preserve the secular fabric of
this country and inform the younger generation about this issue.

The question answer form delineates the issues and prompts the reader
to think about the topic," says Puniyani.The book also has marginal
reference to the state of Hindus in Pakistan and Bangladesh and a
separate chapter on communal politics in India.To make it a nationwide
campaign against communalism, grassroot comics workshops, film shows
and discussions will be organised in different cities to mobilise the
masses for participation and to help bring out their inner most
voices."Our work is just a drop in the ocean and the problem at hand
is too big. The number of people taking this work forward to masses is
less but we will do our bit," says Puniyani."Mostly, in such sensitive
issues, people do not get a chance to express their views. We want to
change the direction of information flow - it will be from bottom to
top," says Sharma."We will come out with another book on the same
issue which will have graphics made by people themselves," he adds.PTI
RKM
____________

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ram puniyani <ram.puniyani@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2011 16:26:06 +0530
Subject: [india-unity] Communalism Explained-Book Launch and
Seminar_17th March _Mumbai [1 Attachment]
To: ram puniyani <ram.puniyani@gmail.com>

Dear Friends

Please do try to make it.

Best wishes

ram puniyani
(The invite is pated and also in the formal invite is attached.)
"

Humor: Various Classes of Indians

Humor: Various Classes of Indians: "
mar 13th, 2011 CE

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: sri


The new Caste system...
Kalyan



Most 'First Class' students get technical seats, some become Doctors and some Engineers.

* The 'Second Class' pass, and then pass MBA, become Administrators and control the 'First Class'.
Att00003

* The 'Third Class' pass, enter politics and become Ministers and control both.


* Last, but not the least, The 'Failures' join the underworld and control all the above.



Att00006

"

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Bharat-Dr Pravin Togadia-VHP

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Bharat-Dr Pravin Togadia-VHP: "
An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Bharat.pdf Download this file

mar 14th, 2011 CE

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Delhi vhp <vhprkp22@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Mar 14, 2011 at 5:12 AM
Subject: An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Bharat-Dr Pravin Togadia-VHP
To: anilmdogra@hotmail.com, vskguj@gmail.com


VISHVA HINDU PARISHAD

SANKAT MOCHAN ASHRAM, R.K.PURAM, SEC.-6, NEW DELHI-22

TEL.-011-26103495,26103495

An Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Bharat

By

Dr Pravin Togadia, International Secretary General, VHP

Shri Manmohan Singh ji March 14, 2011

Honourable Prime Minister, Union Government of India

New Delhi, Bharat

Hon. Shri Prime Minister ji,

Namaskaar. Sat Shri Akaal.

Generally, just like millions of people in Bharat, I nurtured a lot of hope that after 63 years from the freedom from the British Rule, Bharat & people of Bharat would be safe – both in Bharat & abroad. But to the utter dismay & shock to all of us, majority in Bharat & Bharatiyas abroad are victimized in many ways:

  1. A 24 yr Gujarati young & bright girl student of Accounting in an IT college in Australia was raped & brutally killed in Australia whose body has been found in a suitcase! Although Australian government always assured Bharat to ensure safety of Bharatiyas in Australia, the hate crimes have not yet stopped. Even in this case, they claim that they have arrested one Daniel & the court there has rejected his bail. This is not a mere case; it is a matter of an honor of a Bharatiya young lady student & therefore, it needs your immediate attention. We in Bharat have seen special fast track courts being set up to decide such cases against foreigners & minorities; but when it comes to majority & Bharatiyas abroad, there is no justice.
  2. Recently Bharatiya students in an American University were tagged with radio anklets as if they were terrorists on the run. If not for the noise in Bharat on this issue, even this matter would have been treated by the Govt of India as a routine visa & admission problems case.
  3. Many young sailors are in captivity of the Somalian pirates for over a long time now. Although their families have been suffering a lot back home in Bharat, until some noise has been made, no movement was seen from your side in this issue, knowing fully well that these are the Jehadi elements from the same Somalia where Al Qaeda was started by Osama Bin Laden & knowing fully well that Indian Coast Guards have captured many Somalian pirates with deadly modern weapons.
  4. Recently 2 elderly Sikhs were brutally killed in America. This is not the first time such a gruesome incident has happened about Sikhs in America.
  5. There also has been a spate of murders of Bharatiya Students in America especially from South India. Such crimes have gone up since the President of America Mr. Barack Hussein Obama has termed Bharat as ‘Job Snatcher’ & ‘Tax evader’. But Bharat has not seen you taking serious note of this degradation of Bharat & of crimes against Bharatiyas in America.
  6. Even in case of Sri Lanka, the total response from the Government of India re saving the lakhs of Tamil was extremely lukewarm. Had Govt of India taken a tough stand about Sri Lanka brutally killing Tamils en mass, such a gruesome genocide of Tamil Bharatiyas would not have taken place in Sri Lanka.

-2-

  1. Past few years we all have been noticing in shock the way Malaysian Govt has been jailing & beating up Tamil & other Hindus in Malaysia. Many ancient Hindu temples there have been razed completely by the govt. But rather that being tough on such dishonour to the Bharatiyas in Malaysia & also dishonour to Bharatiya cultural heritage, Bharat has seen you getting irritated with any questions related to this issue.
  2. For the past many years Bharat has been facing many Jehadi terror attacks. But rather than acknowledging it, like many other nations have already done & acted upon – you seem to be in denial for obvious reasons to appease minorities at the cost of the lives of majority. Bharat has seen it well clearly even in your predecessor’s time in 1990 when Kashmiri Pundits, Hindus & Sikhs were herded out of Kashmir – many losing lives & all losing all their earnings, lands, homes & businesses. But instead of restoring them where they belong, they are being treated as outsiders without even voting rights whereas the Jehadi elements from Kashmir & POK are being wooed by the state & Union governments. But even in the recent case of Jehadi attack on Mumbai’s prestigious places, a Pakistani Kasab has been convicted & yet the Union Govt under your esteemed leadership allows Pakistani authorities to interrogate Jehadi Kasab whereas the same Pakistan shuns Bharat’s request to interrogate the mastermind behind the attack Lakhvi & Hafiz Saeed. Hon. Mr. Prime Minister, Bharat still remembers how Sarabjeet’s family & the Union Govt were ill treated by Pakistan & here, the Union Govt has been bending before Pakistan as if there is some strange & strong compulsion which only a few in your govt know of & are hiding from Bharat because it obviously can only be political!

There are umpteen such incidents & happenings from Assam to Keral & from Maharashtra & Bengal spanning all Bharat & abroad, Mr. Hon. Prime Minister, and if one goes to list them, this document will be perhaps much bigger than what could be called a letter. Therefore, I restrain myself to a few of them. But the crux of the matter is that in Bharat, under your esteemed leadership, past almost a decade, majority is unsafe, victimized & has no basic protection given in the constitution! There seem to be no Human Rights left for Majority – Hindus - Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs, Tribals & so on – in Bharat. At the same time the Union Govt under your leadership does not care for the well-being & Human Rights of Bharatiyas abroad. Sometimes some Union External Affairs Minister or Hon Secretary are seen speaking sense, but at the same time it does not seem to reflect in actual action other than some highly charged flights for evacuation in ultimate disasters & obviously, it is your accountability, Hon. Shri. Prime Minister.

If our brothers & sisters are not safe in Bharat & abroad, we look forward to you to re-look at the policies – internal & external – rather than aiming at victimizing majority as has been going on in Bharat for almost a decade now. No nation would dare to touch any Bharatiya in such a demeaning way provided Bharat’s own Prime Minister treats majority in a dignified way.

-3-

Many people like me travel all over Bharat including the smallest villages, towns & cities where we come to know many such heart-breaking cases. This is my sincere attempt as a Bharatiya – a common citizen - to bring the nation’s broken heart to you, Hon. Shri. Prime Minister. The sea-change in internal & external policies is the need of the hour & there can not be any error of judgment in such policies as any such error can compromise nation’s honour & safety; so also the public judgment to such irreparable errors is always very bitter democratically. Therefore, this is my sincere plea to you not to take majority’s Human Rights in Bharat & Bharatiyas’ Human Rights abroad so lightly. The promptness that you showed in helping Dr Haneef when he was caught in Australia, the willingness you showed in saving a minority man’s eyes in Middle East when he was convicted & many such incidents are known to Bharat. Similar kind-hearted promptness from you, Hon. Shri. Prime Minister, in relations with the majority in Bharat & Bharatiyas abroad is what Bharat is looking forward to so that you do not at least look obviously discriminating between majority & minority in Bharat & abroad.

It is time that all well-meaning people who have been doing social service, social thinkers, finance experts, agriculturists, various professional & so on irrespective of their political lineage sit together & draw up fresh as well as proactive internal & external policies to keep Bharat safe & Bharatiyas abroad secured. Targeting majority to appease minority may help gain a few more votes & power for some years but when the nation’s boundaries are becoming unsafe day by day; Bharatiyas abroad are singled out & targeted; Jehadi terrorism is engulfing the entire world including Bharat, there is an immediate need to create a safety net in internal & external policies rather than singling out majority of Bharat & victimizing it or bending before foreign powers. In this open letter of mine, which I am writing to you Hon. Shri Prime Minister, as a common citizen of Bharat, I urge you not to succumb to international pressures in buying things & services at the cost of lives of Bharatiyas in Bharat & abroad. Hope you treat this as a democratic wake up call from Bharat. As a common citizen of Bharat, I & the majority expect you to seize to be a particular party man & be an all encompassing Prime Minister who is in charge of Bharat’s well-being in totality & does now allow contradictory statements, policies & actions from other ministers & also from any political party members.

Dhanyavaad. As a Cancer Surgeon I wish you & your family a good health in coming years & look forward to a meaningful dialogue AND POSITIVE ACTION from you rather than some sundry revengeful activities. Regards,

Sincerely,

Dr Pravin Togadia

"

Gen praises Gujarat CM Modi, raises eyebrows at Army HQ - The Times of India

Gen praises Gujarat CM Modi, raises eyebrows at Army HQ - The Times of India

Narendra Modi.jpg



Gujarat CM Narendra Modi and Maj-Gen IS Singha during the opening ceremony of an exhibition 'Know Your Army' at Shahibaug police stadium, Ahmedabad on Monday. (TOI Photo)
AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI: In a statement which sent ripples across the armed forces, a serving major general on Monday lavished praise on Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, attributing to him qualities of a top-notch army commander who sets targets and then goes all out to achieve them in time.

Maj-Gen IS Singha, who as general officer commanding of the Golden Katar Division in Ahmedabad is the seniormost Army officer in Gujarat, was speaking at the launch of the three-day 'Know Your Army' exhibition which was inaugurated by Modi at the police stadium ground.

"He (Modi) works like we in the Army do. He sets a deadline for completion of projects and then ensures that targets are achieved in time. These are qualities of a successful Army commander," said Maj-Gen Singha.

Praising Modi for his "vision of development for the state and the nation," Maj-Gen Singha also requested the CM to follow the example set by other states in providing land to the Army Welfare Housing Organization to help serving and retired military personnel. Modi, on his part, said his government would look into the request. He then went on to add that there was a need for theNational Cadet Corps to impart naval training in schools and colleges in Gujarat's coastal areas, which would ensure that some youngsters opted to join the maritime force.

It is certainly unusual for a senior officer of the largely apolitical Indian armed forces to publicly praise political functionaries. Asked about this, a senior officer at the Army HQ at New Delhi told TOI that an explanation had been sought from Maj-Gen Singha. "The statement has been made in his personal capacity. We are looking into it. If he indeed said so, its inappropriate. His comments have been sought," said the officer.

Another officer, however, said "too much was being read into a customary welcome speech" at the inauguration of a military function. "Maj-Gen Singha spoke in Hindi. It has been twisted out of context in its English translation," he said.

Pakistani Islamic Council to design Sharia-compliant lingerie and want to ban Colorful/Padded Bras as "Devil's cushions"

Pakistani Islamic Council to design Sharia-compliant lingerie and want to ban Colorful/Padded Bras as "Devil's cushions": "
mar 15th, 2011 CE

so where's nisha "pink panty loose woman" susan? no protests about the rights of women to wear falsies? would she like to send some green, padded bras to the mullahs and zakir naik?

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ravi
Date: Tue, Mar 15, 2011 at 8:52 AM
Subject: Pakistani Islamic Council to design Sharia-compliant lingerie and want to ban Colorful/Padded Bras as "Devil's cushions"
To:


Pakistani Islamic Council to design Sharia-compliant lingerie and want to ban Colorful/Padded Bras as "Devil's cushions"

http://www.sify.com/news/pak-council-protests-use-of-padded-bras-by-muslim-women-report-news-international-ldmlEmggjjb.html?
sifyoutbrainnewsrecco=obinsite

Pak council protests use of padded bras by Muslim women

March 12, 2011

French Senate Bans Wearing of Muslim Veil
The French Senate has voted overwhelmingly for a bill banning the burqa-sty...

Lahore: The Council of Islamic Ideology in Pakistan has protested the use of padded and colourful bras by Muslim women, and recommended that Pakistani Muslim researchers should try to invent an innerwear that makes female assets unnoticeable.

The council held a meeting late February in light of the protests held last month by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) and other religious parties against the increasing import and eventual use of padded and colourful bras, Roznama Jawani reports.

The council also invited shop owners who were in the business of importing and selling female underwear, advising them to bring lingerie samples, so that the council could see about what the protesters were angry.

After the meeting was over, the council released a recommendation to the media that said: "Padded bras are Devil's cushions and he likes to rest on them. The Council of Islamic Ideology is recommending that Pakistani Muslim researchers should try to invent a bra that makes the female chest area unnoticeable."

Zakir Naik, one of the leading Islamic scholars commented that if the Pakistan government approves of the funding grant for this research and if the country is successful at making such a bra that makes the chest of women unnoticeable, Pakistan might become the biggest exporter for Shariah compliant underwear.

It's a funny world

Naik said he would personally sign and send the first of these Shariah-bra to starlet Veena Malik and television host Ali Saleem, best known by his alter ego Begum Nawazish Ali.


"