I am worried about terrorism in India. Not just Islamic, which without any questions and doubts does get addressed and taken adequate action against, but also Hindu terrorism, which always escapes from the grip of authorities for lack of hard evidence. Honestly, if nothing is done about the situation in Orissa we shall probably have yet another terrorist group, but this time participated by Christians.

The ‘gorious’ work of the Bajrang Dal in Orissa is not a figment of anybody’s imagination. Innocent people are murdered in cold-blood, burnt alive, nuns raped…do we really need more facts to take a call against the religious group? PM Manmohan Singh wants to ban the group immediately but defiance within his party is problematic because they fear the BJP may reap dividends out of it. So, in the political plotting nobody really suffers but people like the Armyman who fought for our country in the Indo-Pak and Kargil War; his paralysed brother gets torched by fanatics chanting “Jai Hanuman” in Orissa.

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According to international nuclear inspectors, a Russian scientist helped the Iranians with technical know-how and also helped them conduct complex experiments on ways of detonating a nuclear weapon. The fact that this information was revealed excitedly on the New York Times has more political reasons  than any real danger from either the Russian scientist or the Iranian nuclear hounds.

The U.S. has been trying to create the image of an impending calamity due to Russian aggressive behaviors when the real reason why Russians are growing increasingly aggressive is because they have their own fears. The Iranians may or may not pose a threat to the world, but a bigger threat to the world lies in the form of American foreign policies and propaganda such as the one about the Russian scientist. What appalls me is that a venerable newspaper like the New York Times is also not immune to prejudice and, directly or indirectly participates in the dissemination of American propaganda.

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If you had been wondering from where all the heroin of the world comes, it must not be too difficult to guess. It’s from the most troubled nation on earth, Afghanistan. The country depends literally on the money that comes from the sale of homegrown opium and poppy and also the derivatives like heroin and morphine. These narcotics make way to Western Europe through the neighboring Tajikistan.

Just 13 hours ago, many afghan smugglers were killed in a shootout in Tajikistan when they were caught red handed smuggling heroin into Tajikistan’s borders. These drugs after reaching France, Germany and elsewhere, are sold at exorbitant prices. What I fear is that the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan has actually encouraged the Afghan opium farmers to grow more as lawlessness has increased many folds after the Americans have entered.

Only through proper negotiations with the U.N. and afghan government can the drug route and trade be blocked. I wonder how things will go in the near future. Though listening to the news of the smugglers being shot dead isn’t a very pleasant one, it may just have the right thing to do, for the Tajik forces, whose land is being used as a transit for drug delivery to Europe.

Via: AfghanConflictMonitor

After facing intense rounds of filthy mudslinging at the hands of Bengal (or should I say Mamta Bannerjee?), Tata Motors finally gave in to the demands. It is ready to move out of the state and take its much-awaited small car ‘Nano’ to more welcome pastures. Now that one party (one that could have brought about a change in the state’s economy) has forfeited, the question remains to be seen is that will industrialisation in Bengal be able to recover? We are aware how religiously it is pursuing investors, so will the Tata pullout send across negative vibes?

The whole situation was made just so complicated (thank god, it did not end like Nandigram) with meaningless netagiri. Now, the 1000 acres land vacated by Tata is rendered useless even for farming. Any scope for jobs and development in the area is nothing but a haze.
Yes, petty politics led to this downward movement of Bengal’s developing future. And they were saying it was a fight between industrialisation and agriculture! A sad situation indeed, but I’m sure Bengal shall recover and hopefully will not kick out any possible means of prosperity.

Rahul Gandhi says his possible elevation as the prime minister of India is an open question. On a ‘not much hyped about’ trip to Punjab, Rahul did not negate any speculation arising with regard to his future as the premier of the country though he did say that he just wants to make his party strong. All that said, the students he met at the different universities just could not get enough of him. Well, it’s a rare opportunity to speak to a politician who belongs to the young generation. In fact the students were well informed about the current affairs and did not let Rahul get away before answering their incessant questions. During one such session, a student well aware of the finer points of the Nuc deal stumped the youth leader on one of the nitty-gritty. Rahul very smartly said that why is he being asked all this when the student probably knows more than Rahul himself does.
Issues like terrorism, corruption and reservation were also discussed, and the young Gandhi came across as an intelligent, sincere and grounded leader. In fact, there was one more episode when he was passing through Sangrur that someone told him about Udham Singh. Forgetting about security concerns, Rahul ran to the martyr’s statue to pay homage.
Well, Rajeev Gandhi’s son seems to be following in his father’s footsteps. The question is that will he get to lead the country as well?
Via thetimesofindia

When the film industry was keeping mum about the Marathi manoos complex, it took only an Aamir Khan to come forth and take a stand. I don’t consider the Bachchan approach worth appreciating. First Jaya makes an irresponsible statement, her tenor and choice of words could have been more responsible and then Big B like always covering up with an apology. Well, Aamir’s little speech on ‘don’t let anyone divide us on the basis of culture’ actually reached out. He shunned politicians for creating tremors in Indian unity without taking any names.
Though he called himself a Marathi, he said that any film whether in Hindi, Marathi or any other language has the right to be released. We should not let anybody mess with our belief of ‘unity in diversity’. He said that we should only support leaders who keep us all together and promote peace.
I can’t help but like the sensibility of this man. I wish there were some more responsible actors in our country.
Via indianexpress

We have to thank the self-proclaimed preservers of the Maratha culture like Bal Thackeray and the offsprings of his fundamentalist ideology, please read Maharashtra Navanirman Sena, to further divide our already divided country. The division of Indians on the basis of Maratha and non-Maratha and the exodus of many thousand north Indians from the state in the recent past is a shame to the much celebrated belief of ‘unity in diversity’. I seriously wonder why don’t they remove it from the school textbooks, isn’t the concept almost redundant?

Once again, the state of Maharashtra has attracted attention with the MNS asking shopkeepers in the state to write the name of their shops in Marathi. Don’t take me as anti-culture. I am as proud of our rich Indian culture as you are, but I am not for imposition. Why are we forcing everyone to do as we like? Don’t we live in a democracy where we can do as we please as long as we are not crossing anybody else’s right? The fundamentalists negate both, they impose and they interfere with the fundamental rights of others. Shouldn’t the MNS be writing the name of their office in Marathi with a hope that others will follow? I thought that was the correct, Gandhian way to do things.

do check out http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Now_MNS_trains_guns_on_cable_operators/articleshow/3414650.cms

Being as objective as I can, I think the Bal Thackerays and MNSs suffer from an inferiority complex. How else will you explain their infantile obsession to force others to play along with their whims and fancies?

Via timesofindia

It’s scary to even think of the mindset behind protests like the VHP chakka jam that took over the nation yesterday. Apparently, it was a support agitation for the brothers in J&K angry over the Amarnath row. We know what happened there. And it wasn’t fair. But why spread the virus of hatred emanating from the political situation in J&K to the rest of India. Former CM of J&K, Farooq Abdullah expressed his “fear of communal hatred” that is generating from this issue across the country.
But I haven’t come to the most frightening aspect. An agitator in Delhi claimed on national television that he and his peers realise the inconvenience and hardships the common man has to face due to the protests but they are for the larger good (which he claimed was to awaken the Hindu brotherhood). “Sometimes, you have to go through difficult times to be enlightened,” he shared without batting an eyelid. Ram’s family would disagree. The 70-year-old heart patient died in Ambala yesterday when he could not reach the hospital in time due to the roads blockage by the VHP.
Is this the kind of enlightenment that religious fanaticism is leading to?
Via hindu

When Newton concluded that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, he would have never thought that Indians would defy it in the most nonchalant way, almost on a daily basis.  

Looking at the Amarnath land row, the reaction to which has held the common man of J&K to ransom for so many days and refuses to die down, I find that reaction is an overreaction in all definitions. A lyricist (Piyush Mishra-Aaja Nachle), singer (Prashant Tamang), Sportsman (Monika Devi), Painter (M.F. Hussain), Writer (Taslima Nasreen/Salman Rushdie), cricketers (most of them) to immigrants, quotas, lands, etc. etc, nothing is spared and suddenly we find that a crowd gathers, creates havoc, vandalizes National property, raises loads of slogans and then disappears. Absolutely anything can trigger a riot in India. And when there are no issues, we have the ability to create issues and then go on a rampage.

How else would you explain the actions of the fundamentalist in our country? The latest Akhsay Kumar starring blockbuster ‘Singh is Kinng’ has invited the wrath of the Sikh community because it presents Sikhs in a poor light. The matter has reached such heights that even the newly-appointed Akal Takht jathedar Gurbachan Singh lent his support to the agitators, who charged into a cinema hall screening the film, saying that “objectionable” scenes in the movie should be removed. Akshay and the producer of the film have been asked to apologise for hurting the sentiments of the Sikh brothers. Apparently, the scene that caused all the trouble is where Akshay, who plays a sardar in the film, is shown dancing with semi-nude girls.

Well like the instances mentioned above, petty issues are manipulated/escalated/magnified to issues of National/Regional/Communal Pride or Religious sentiments. Lo and behold, here comes the mob! I wonder if a sneeze from one of the politicians will lead to a riot some day, and believe me it won’t come as a surprise to me.  

Sir Isaac Newton surely must be rolling in his grave. Please don’t bother Sir as we usually defy logic. 

Via dnaindia 

Democratic White House contender Barack Obama has given a chance to his critics to bad mouth him as he decides to take a week-long vacation in his place of birth Hawaii. Apparently, the Obama family is going on a holiday to recharge before the November’s election. “I am going to see my Grandma after so long,” the Illinois senator exclaimed.
The Beijing Olympics start today and Obama has the support of polls that suggest Americans are thirsting for a break from a year and a half of non-stop politicking on the White House trail. But even then John McCain’s spokesman Tucker Bounds didn’t leave an opportunity to accuse Obama of sunning himself while his voters suffer from an economic squeeze. Obama, in his defence, said, “According to a poll by the Pew Research Centre for the People and the Press released Wednesday, 48 percent of voters feel they have been overexposed to news about the Democrat. We are going to correct that this week.” Obama quipped. A smart choice indeed.
Via afp