Politicians who shouldn't appear on TV....

Desi Pundit, India, Politics, Society 21 Responses »
Oct 042009

… because  they evoke violence in non violent people.

I am mostly non violent.

But, there are times when i watch or hear TV – not often, because I have severely curtailed news viewing since 26/11 – that I have this desire to reach through the screen and ‘bajaofy some poeple, kaan ke neeche “. I can’t help it. It is instinctive. It has nothing to do with their politics or the parties that they represent. It has more to do with who they are and the ‘snake oil salesmanship’ that oozes out of their entire being.

I am sure that I am not alone in finding the bulk of the political class unbearable. But, these especially get me thinking of violence against my poor TV set. So in no particular order of their ability to irritate are my top nominees

Ravi Shankar Prasad – ‘let me tell you my good friend ” he starts, and then the whole conversation derails. He is patronizing, dogmatic and just the kind of person you don’t want to listen to. the kind of older uncle you have, who says ‘what do you know – when i was your age….”

Rajiv  Pratap  Rudy – if I was casting, he would be the used car salesman. His handling of Tharoor and Parrikar have been seriously bad – reeking of envy rather than opinion & have ended up making his party seem even more inept.

Manish Tiwari – I am quite sure that every time this man turns up in public and opens his mouth – he loses his party supporters. He is seriously irritating, ill informed and blunders where idiots fear to tread.  The first search result when you search for him is this, and what it says is apt for him :

Content will come here.Content will come here.Content will come here.Content will come here.Content will come here.

Abhishek Singhvi : the kid in class who wants to get the eye of the teacher, the one who will bring her a flower or an apple. Smart, the way a school debater is, and just as blinkered. Life is not about scoring points, nor about defending the indefensible – it is about the courage of conviction.

Brinda Karat : EVerytime I hear her, i have the urge to throw something heavy at the TV screen.  The kind of person who, along with her husband, has destroyed the ideological ingrity of the Communists.  When I hear her on China, I want to ask her “where do your loyalties lie ”

Ram Vilas Paswan - His desire for power has been so great, that he can fight on any side of the issue; maybe even simultaneously . He epitomizes the line ” how do you tell a politician is lying; his lips are moving” – more than anyone else i can recall in polity

Which of them get your goat ?

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Elections 2009 - Negativity Loses

Desi Pundit, India, Politics, elections 25 Responses »
May 172009

So, it is over. And, the Congress is the single largest party and how :) I can’t stop smiling.

What is incredible, is the maturity of the Indian voter. They saw saw through all the crap, the political cynicism, the power grabbing dash of the third and fourth front, the negativity of the BJP – and they voted. They voted out those who were harping on irrelevant issues, those who ran negative campaigns and those who cynically exploited their sentiments. So BJP is down, AIDMK is out, the Left is out, Laloo and Paswan are out – and development is in.

The man who has never run for Parliament – Dr.Manmohan Singh – has had a bulk of the country voting for him. It’s good to know that my vote counts :) . I am not sure that the Congress would have done so well if they did not project him as the next Prime Minister.

But, the Congress victory cannot be discussed without discussing the BJP campaign. This is the second election that they have lost on their campaign.

Didn’t they learn from last time? India is not the USA. negative campaigns don’t work here. Calling MMS names possibly put off BJP voters, and propelled Congress supporters to brave the heat and vote. Just as last time around personal attacks on Sonia Gandhi worked in her favour, this time around personal attacks on the PM worked in the PM’s favour – especially when he retaliated.

Funnily enough, at the end of this Campaign I still don’t know what the BJP was promising. I don’t have the time to trudge through miles of policy documents – most of the electorate doesn’t. I knew what the Congress was promising. I didn’t read their policy documents either – but their advertising was fairly precise. I knew that the BJP was promising us Advani as PM -at least the campaign that stalked me on the web did. They were promising that they weren’t the Congress – but what did they stand for ? The only thing I heard was Ram Mandir, and Varun Gandhi – the first reminded me of why I have always found the BJP dangerous – their leadership cannot control their own mobs. If anything the latter put me off the BJP more than ever before. And, towards the end when they started saying Modi next PM – I began wondering if the BJP was sabotaging its own campaign.

Why did they use Modi so much – he may gather crowds, he may even entertain crowds – but it will be interesting to see if those are converted to votes, or are people turning up to get entertained ! Rahul Gandhi obviously converted shows to votes, did Modi ?

Why didn’t the BJP harp on Development more? Especially, the development in the states of HP, MP and Gujarat – and the fact that these are honest administrations. Why did they run such a negative campaign on rising prices. Why didn’t they tell us how they would have cut prices or simple things, for example, like LPG under Rs.50 or Rice at Rs.20 – and communiatec this effectively.

Finally, the BJP needs to understand that India is changing. Caste, religion may be important, but in the personal space. I am not sure that people want it in the public space. I don’t want a Party that targets my fellow citizens on their beliefs. I don’t want to see mosques being destroyed and churches being burnt. I don’t want to see fellow citizens being murdered because they pray differently. I don’t want to see women getting beaten up because they live their life as they see fit. I don’t want imposed morality ! and, that is what I perceive the BJP to stand for. Against personal choice and freedom. To be electable they need to move back to the inclusive middle ground that Vajpayee had created

Ultimately the election comes down to this – who are we, and what do we – as the people – stand for. and, we voted for the Party that stood for us.

I am so proud of the Indian voter ! and I think that we will have a Good Government :)

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Posted by gargi at 7:39 am Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Why I am Voting Congress ...

Desi Pundit, India, Politics, elections 90 Responses »
Apr 252009

Manmohan Singh
Because of only one man, and that man is Dr.Manmohan Singh

Elections 2009 is not about televised debates, it is not about grandstanding, it is not about security, and it is not about black money. It is a level playing field for all parties on these issues, as far as i am concerned. If the UPA faced 26/11, the NDA had the Parliament attacks; if the Congress has the Sikh riots, the BJP has Gujarat, if the Congerss is accused of black money, the BJP has the Pramod Mahajan issue.

So what does it boil down to? why does Manmohan Singh get my vote, even if he is not contesting :

…because it is the economy stupid ! and there is no other person I trust more to navigate us out of the financial whirlpool created by Wall Street greed and White House stupidity.

The trioka of Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie – the best BJP brains in economics – don’t really inspire confidence. They didn’t when they handled the finance/disinvestment portfolios in the last Government, and they didn’t when they were in opposition. Their flip flop policies are not what the country needs at this time. The only BJP person who comes across as a competent manager of the economy – tho’ not at Dr.Singh’s level – is Mr. Narendra Modi, but his politics scare me. I am terrified of fascists – and he is one.

I would not vote for the communists if you held a gun to my head – seriously. It is better to die instantly than to have West Bengal happen to you.

That leaves Mayawati. I don’t think that she knows what her economic policies are.

Samajwadi Party does not exist for me. It stands for crooks, terrorists and murderers.

So that leaves me with a Party that i am deeply disappointed with, but not enough to punish myself by voting for the rest. I am hoping that the next 5 years give me alternatives that are worth voting for.

( I haven’t mentioned Mr.Advani – that’s because i think that he is uniquely inept. Nero level inept. And, i seriously don’t know how someone who is so not there has ended up leading a major political party. And it is tragic for the BJP that the only person who inspires confidence is also a person who makes people like me very, very nervous – Modi!)

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Posted by gargi at 4:57 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Stalked by Advertising

Advertising, Desi Pundit, Diary, India, Media, TV, propaganda 7 Responses »
Mar 202009

HyperActiveX - came up with that title on a conversatin thread on FB.
And, this was in context of Mr.Advani – the leader of the BJP – who has decided to use the net to reach out to audiences that extensively use the net. (‘younger audiences’ :)

In typical desi style, they have gone in for overkill. Have money, will spend – and will appear on every site you visit, at any point of time, with reference to any kind of content – omnipresent…

On Wednesday, i was up at 5. Was supposed to leave for Shirdi at 5.30 – but that has got pushed slightly. So i was catching up with news for the day. And bingo pops up Mr.Advani. at 5 in the morning. I almost choked on the coffee and then i saw the irony of it, and laughed

The omnipresent mr.advani

The omnipresent mr.advani

Somehow the advertising seemed to endorse Varun Gandhi … I am sure that it was not the intention. I am also sure that Mr.Advani and the BJP are fairly embarrassed by this immature and public outburst of what is the hidden philosophy. But that is not the issue. The issue is bad placement. It’s a bit like a Cola Ad appearing after a story on cola damaging the teeth or whatever, or a mobile ad appearing in a cricket match everytime India loses a wicket… it is bad media strategy. Very bad !

It is primarily bad, because it reminds people who are on the fence, the issues that make them uncomfortable with the BJP.

It kind of brought home all the one single reason why i find it difficult to consider the BJP as a party to lead the Government at the centre … despite my acute disenchantment with the Congress. The BJP attracts every psychopathic nutcase – and this kind of rhetoric thrives. Every time a church gets burned, a woman gets beaten up, silliness like purification ceremonies occur at temples because people of ‘lower’ castes have entered it .. check to see the State Government in power .. it is either directly the BJP or a party with BJP support.

There are a whole bunch of very eminent bloggers who have come out to endorse the BJP on account that the Congress has failed to guarantee our security. You know what, i am more scared of marauding hoardes beating me up because I fail to live up to their definition of “Indian Culture” than i am of nutcases planting bombs. Somehow, my main issue with the BJP is internal security, and their ability to hold back their saffron cousins.

And of course, do i really want the trioka of Yashwant Sinha, Jaswant Singh and Arun Shourie handling the economy ?

And finally, the great Indian electorate does not elect a Prime Minister. It elects Members of Parliament. The largest party or the largest coalition nominates its PM candidate. Maybe, it is time that advertisers took their heads out of their colonised butts and realised that, thankfully, we don’t have an American set up for choosing either our representatives or our Leader.

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Posted by gargi at 8:14 am Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Remembering December 6th

India, Politics, Society, propaganda 6 Responses »
Dec 062007

Today is the anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition…… it is also the anniversary of a particularly unpleasant personal failure, that was ignited by the demolition….

I was a student in London when the Mosque came down with a whole bunch of Hindutvadi’s baying for blood. Do you remember Sadhvi Rithambra screeching “ek aur dakha do …. Babri Masjid Tod Do”.

I remember the sheer sense of numbness…. not just because I witnessed desecration, not just because a bunch of ‘civilized’ people were in the throes of a blood lust, but also because it was committed in the name of my religion. And, I have always been spiritual… and this action, for me, was as much blasphemy …… as someone breaking down a temple….

The reaction from assorted friends and family was diverse. There were those as appalled as me (and many of them were the older generation). But for others it was seen as ‘teaching them a lesson’. Many my age — cousins, brother, friends told me that i had become westernised because i lived ‘there’ and didn’t really see why the mosque had to go… Today 15 years later, i have been back for 13….. and am as desi as they come… and I still can’t see why..

Today, 15 years later … not much has changed….the views expressed by a whole bunch of guys on the Hindutvadi side has not changed…… except that today it is being justified in the name of terrorism..Read this and mourn the death of the Indian values of ‘tolerance’ and co-existence…..

Malhotra also criticised induction of Muslims in the Army and Paramilitary forces through special drive claiming that it gives terrorists a chance to penetrate into armed forces.

This was part of the press conference where Malhotra was defending Modi on his utterances on Sohrabuddin .

Two very different posts on December 6th…. both worth reading:

Read Mohib on how to Get Ram back to Ayodhya; a readerwords on it is still 6th December and read about the loss of innocence here.

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Posted by gargi at 3:24 pm Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Scavenging as Spirituality 101 by Narendra Modi

Caste 7 Responses »
Nov 262007

Narendra Modi has done it again…….This is his latest gem:

In a recent book written by him and published by the state information department Modi says, “Scavenging must have been a spiritual experience for the Valmiki caste”.

The book titled Karmayog is yet to hit the stands.

In the book, he goes on to say, “At some point in time somebody must have got enlightenment in scavenging. They must have thought that it is their duty to work for the happiness of the entire society and the Gods.”

As Atrocity News rightly asks — is this the BJP stand.

And, my answer to that question is that it is possibly the Sangh Parivaar’s collective stand. And, this is the kind of stand that one would take if one was brainwashed with the Manusmriti from childhood and internalise it to a point of no return.

Dalits were considered to be beyond the pale of Arya society, which was made up of the 4 varnas (chaturvarna) or castes. The Brahmins – teachers / Administrators/ Priests – were at the top of the pile, followed by the Kshatriyas – the warriors, the Vaishyas – the Merchant Class – and the Shudra’s – the serving class. The Dalits were not part of the Chaturvarna system. They were beyond that……The Dalits were called Chandalas or Dasyus’ – terms that were very much in vogue, until Gandhi dubbed the community as Harijan.

And this is what the Manusmriti - the set of Laws that the Sangh Parivar is committed to — has to say about the Dasyu’s :

  • Manu has declared that the flesh (of an animal) killed by dogs is pure, likewise (that) of a (beast) slain by carnivorous (animals) or by men of low caste (Dasyu), such as Kandalas. (manu chapter 5, 131)
  • Nor one wholly dependent, nor one of bad fame, nor a Dasyu, nor one who follows forbidden occupations, nor an aged (man), nor an infant, nor one (man alone), nor a man of the lowest castes, nor one deficient in organs of sense, – on who can bear witness (Manu chapter 8,66)

This on who can beget what on whom – and I shan’t even go in to the sexist aspect of Manu Smriti in this post…. This From Manusmriti chapter 10,

  • A Dasyu begets on an Ayogava (woman) a Sairandhra, who is skilled in adorning and attending (his master), who, (though) not a slave, lives like a slave, (or) subsists by snaring (animals).
  • A Vaideha produces (with the same) a sweet-voiced Maitreyaka, who, ringing a bell at the appearance of dawn, continually. praises (great) men.
  • A Nishada begets (on the same) a Margava (or) Dasa, who subsists by working as a boatman, (and) whom the inhabitants of Aryavarta call a Kaivarta.
  • Those three base-born ones are severally begot on Ayogava women, who wear the clothes of the dead, are wicked, and eat reprehensible food.
  • From a Nishada springs (by a woman of the Vaideha caste) a Karavara, who works in leather; and from a Vaidehaka (by women of the Karavara and Nishada castes), an Andhra and a Meda, who dwell outside the village.
  • From a Kandala by a Vaideha woman is born a Pandusopaka, who deals in cane; from a Nishada (by the same) an Ahindika.
  • But from a Kandala by a Pukkasa woman is born the sinful Sopaka, who lives by the occupations of his sire, and is ever despised by good men.
  • A Nishada woman bears to a Kandala a son (called) Antyavasayin, employed in burial-grounds, and despised even by those excluded (from the Aryan community).
  • These races, (which originate) in a confusion (of the castes and) have been described according to their fathers and mothers, may be known by their occupations, whether they conceal or openly show themselves.
  • All those tribes in this world, which are excluded from (the community of) those born from the mouth, the arms, the thighs, and the feet (of Brahman), are called Dasyus, whether they speak the language of the Mlekkhas (barbarians) or that of the Aryans.
  • Those who have been mentioned as the base-born (offspring, apasada) of Aryans, or as produced in consequence of a violation (of the law, apadhvamsaga), shall subsist by occupations reprehended by the twice-born.
  • To Sutas (belongs) the management of horses and of chariots; to Ambashthas, the art of healing; to Vaidehakas, the service of women; to Magadhas, trade;
    Killing fish to Nishadas; carpenters’ work to the Ayogava; to Medas, Andhras, Kunkus, and Madgus, the slaughter of wild animals;
  • To Kshattris, Ugras, and Pukkasas, catching and killing (animals) living in holes; to Dhigvanas, working in leather; to Venas, playing drums.Near well-known trees and burial-grounds, on mountains and in groves, let these (tribes) dwell, known (by certain marks), and subsisting by their peculiar occupations.
  • But the dwellings of Kandalas and Svapakas shall be outside the village, they must be made Apapatras, and their wealth (shall be) dogs and donkeys.Their dress (shall be) the garments of the dead, (they shall eat) their food from broken dishes, black iron (shall be) their ornaments, and they must always wander from place to place.
  • A man who fulfils a religious duty, shall not seek intercourse with them; their transactions (shall be) among themselves, and their marriages with their equals.
    Their food shall be given to them by others (than an Aryan giver) in a broken dish; at night they shall not walk about in villages and in towns.
  • By day they may go about for the purpose of their work, distinguished by marks at the king’s command, and they shall carry out the corpses (of persons) who have no relatives; that is a settled rule.
  • By the king’s order they shall always execute the criminals, in accordance with the law, and they shall take for themselves the clothes, the beds, and the ornaments of (such) criminals.

Given Modi & his ilk’s support of the agenda of the Manusmriti – it is hardly surprising that he has made a statement like that. And, i would not at all be surprised if he actually believed that to be true.

Maybe, given the amount of blood on his hands, and adharma that he has committed he should take up scavenging to attain spiritual bliss…..

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Posted by gargi at 6:07 pm Tagged with: , , , , ,

Tasleema Nasreen Stays

India, Politics, Society 1 Response »
Nov 252007

It is not often that one gets the chance to praise the Central Government. This is one of the rare times, and the reason is their conduct on the Tasleema Nasreen issue. This is the Government position :

“The right to grant permission to stay in India is a Central government prerogative that has been given by UPA government to Taslima. Once granted, the person has the right to reside anywhere in India,” party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said.

Noting that the West Bengal government had no jurisdiction to force anyone to change their place of stay from West Bengal to anywhere else, Singhvi said Rajasthan government had no jurisdiction to force her relocation.

“Those who practise arbitrarily cannot preach to us. It is the Central government which has now given Taslima appropriate facilities,” he added.

I think that one of the the fallouts of both Nandigram & the aftermath of the Calcutta violence, has been the blurring of lines between the terror tactics of both the Fascists & the Communists. The BJP & the CPI (M) have become mirror images of each other, and the veneer of ‘national interest’/'interest of the poor’ has been stripped away to reveal them for what they truly are, bully boys with an agenda as an excuse.

It was truly funny to see the BJP claim the moral high ground for freedom of expression in the Tasleema Nasreen case. As Amit points out in India Uncut

“Does this mean you no longer have a problem with MF Hussain?”

The Congress is coming out of the cesspool that has been the last six months of Politics, smelling of roses!

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Posted by gargi at 12:12 pm Tagged with: , , , ,

What could Mr.Vajpayee have Meant?

India, Politics No Responses »
Mar 122007

George Fernandes, ‘honourable’ minister for Defence in the NDA administration claims that he was prevented from investigating Bofors by the then PM, Atal Behari Vajpayee. Now he tells us that it was a joke

He did ask me not to rake up the issue… But it was all said in a very light-hearted manner. And you know about Atalji… He does make such remarks,”

(aside – can we consider Ajit’s line – "usse liquid oxygen mein dubado…." to be said in a very light hearted manner ) So what could the then PM have meant:

  • Option 1 – Don’t investigate Bofors’ because there is nothing to investigate. It was all smoke without fire.
  • Option 2 – Don’t investigate Bofor’s because if you do the Congress will investigate coffins, telecom licenses etal.
  • Option 3 – Don’t Investigate Bofor’s because everything that was made in Bofor’s is part of the political parties’ mutual fund, and it pays for all our retirement benefits.
  • Option 4 – Vajpayee was joking when he said that don’t investigate it

If i had to choose one option of these four, then option 1 to 3 will be top of my list. Somehow, i find it difficult that the BJP which has had such an anti-Sonia policy, would give up the chance to investigate Bofors. And, I doubt that a man like Atal Behari Vajpayee – would joke about not investigating something like this. Fernandes trying to clarify his ‘Vajpayee told me not to investigate Bofors’ statement, digs him self further in :

He was telling me not to take any decision on whether to go ahead with the purchase (of the Bofors guns) and whether the money paid for them should be got back or any such issue, since no decision had been taken (by the party). As is normal for Vajpayeeji, he may have expressed it in a joking manner, saying ‘Don’t touch the file’,” said Fernandes on Sunday

I am not sure what is worse from the POV of the Indian citizen — a bunch of elected individuals deciding to return money without going through due process, or a Political Party taking a decision – on whether or not to buy guns – that should be taken by the Executive, or the fact that the PM jokingly tells one of his senior ministers’ not to investigate the biggest bribery scandal in the last 3 decades. Is it just me, or does it seem that the entire political establishment is trying to cover this and all other corruption scandals up!!

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Posted by gargi at 11:21 am Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

The Sanitization of Rahul Mahajan

India, Media, TV 5 Responses »
Aug 132006

There is something very disturbing about media houses falling over each other to sanitize the image of Rahul Mahajan. For someone who indulged in an orgy of excesses, with his father’s urn lying in the next room, and who ended up in hospital OD’ing on some narcotic or the other, and in whose party someone lost their life – Rahul Mahajan seems to be treated not as someone who fucked up beyond measure but as a poor lost boy.

The Financial Express tells us that Rahul Mahajan is off to Seychelles on his honeymoon – the FE not page 3 of the ToI. The Bombay Times shows us Rahul Mahajan getting a Rakhi tied on his hand by his sister The BT today carries an interview on Rahul, his life and his take on his uncle.

Any where else in the world, the media does not make excuses for people charged of crimes. While there are many who will argue that drugs should not be banned – and it is a view that i don’t disagree with – for now narcotics is illegal. Lobby to change the law, instead of making a law breaker into a role model. The same happened with Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja, Fardeen Khan, Sunjay Dutt, Salman Khan – the message that the Indian media is putting out is so long as you are attractive and glamourous, it is ok for you to break the law, and even be caught breaking it. And oh don’t worry, if you break the law and are caught, for the right amount we will set about whitewashing your image. I hope that media houses are getting paid and paid well for this kind of a whitewash job. I would hate to think that journalists and editors were abandoning the basic principals of good & responsible journalism for free.

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Posted by gargi at 9:45 am Tagged with: , , , , ,

Random Thoughts

And Finally ..., Media 3 Responses »
May 152006

Assume that there are two brothers in the West (UK or US) called Peter & Paul Matthews. Peter is a Politician & Paul is a builder. One bright and chirpy Sunday morning in suberbia – Paul shoots Peter dead. In three days time there would be four movies announced

A channel like Hallmark would run a nice linear movie on the lives and times of Peter – shot beautifully with diffusers – until a violent tragedy scars the lives of the entire family. A channel like c4 will probably end up making a film where Paul is the good guy who kills Peter – who is the face of evil. A channel like BBC would make a film where there is a global conspiracy to prevent Peter from becoming the supreme leader – and Paul is a brainwashed tool. And Oliver Stone would make an incomprehensible film based on a convoluted conspiracy theory – where Paul isn’t the kiiller – the second gunman is.

While, in India, producers wring their hands and say – shit if i make this film it will never get released in a theatre :)

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Posted by gargi at 11:44 pm Tagged with: , , , ,
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