Storm the jails?

Justice Markandey Katju has concluded his blog post thus:

I, therefore appeal to the people of India, and particularly to the Media, to avoid doing anything which may fan or promote communal hatred and animosity, and exercise restraint in reporting cases of bomb blasts and other terrorist activities.

Fine. 

And he also says the following:

The recent case of Amir who was arrested when he was 17 years old and kept for 14 years in jail until he was found innocent by the Court, illustrates the gross injustice which is often done to Muslims in India.  There are a large number of such cases of false implication of Muslims in bomb blast cases.  

The whole country knows that all Muslims are not terrorists. And in my opinion the public has shown much restraint after each blasts.

As for the media, it was only doing a job: how mean or cruel it seems to be. But no riots ensued because of the same and in fact even Muslims were killed in the recent cowardly attack.

But my angst is as to why a retired judge is telling the public all this, since it is neither the media nor the public who nabs people and put them in jail. The only role the public plays is fall prey to terror attacks whenever it happens.

But while as a Judge has he done anything to ensure justice to those arrested wrongly? Since I am not sure, let me assume he did. And now that he is retired can he do more to change the attitude of the police and the judiciary? Maybe hold classes and repeat whatever he has penned on his blog? Do a bit more and get the "police reforms " that is only paper now into action? Else I shall never understand what he hopes to achieve by preaching to the public and the media. 

For the public it only matters that there has been no let down from the terrorists and how much ever the media white washes there lives among them a few hell bent on continuing with their acts. And the public also does not want any innocent to languish in jails. But what role does the public play in this game of arrests and detainment?

So tell me esteemed Judge.. what do you really want?

Do you want the public to storm the jails and free the prisoners whenever they are jailed?

Aman Ki Tamasha

Yes.. I should be writing about rape since nothing concrete has been done and even our Supreme Court recently noted that women are not safe in the capital city. 

“There is no safety in Delhi. We are concerned about providing a safe environment for women to live with dignity,” the top court said while expressing concern on the issue as it issued notices to the central government, the National Commission for Women and the Delhi government’s State Transport Authority.

Maybe it is time to shift the capital? But to where? In which part of India is women really safe? If the capital with a constant presence of security personnel is not safe then where else. And to top it all a few idiots continue to cite ridiculous reasons for rape. Even our Judges have fared no better. Anyway let me get back to the topic that I intended to write.

A few in Pakistan has yet again showed us how brutal they can be! Their brutality during the Mumbai carnage is still fresh in our minds and at least a few found some peace when Kazab was hanged. Yet our government went ahead with peace talks and our cricket crazy junta enjoyed cricket as usual. It was last year that an updated list of wanted men were handed over to Pakistan but yet nothing has been done. 

Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Haafiz Saeed tops the list which was given to Pakistan during the Home Secretary level talks between the two countries in March. Saeed was followed by Major Iqbal, a suspected serving ISI officer who also figures in the FBI indictment in a Chicago court in connection with the Mumbai attack.

These men continue to spew hatred against India and also against those in Pakistan. They even accuse India for the recent bombing of the Shias in Quetta!

Since the year 2000, over 2000 Shia Hazara community members including many women and children have been killed or wounded in attacks perpetrated by Sunni Muslim terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaedaand Taliban in southwestern town of Quetta.

A fact recognised by all in Pakistan is that the people of the country are not sectarian-minded. Before jihad took hold of Pakistan and extremist clerics became threatening, there was considerable harmony between the sects. Muharram was not the season of sectarian violence and mayhem. Today, the world understands that the intensification of the sectarian feeling among the clerics is actually a result of a war relocated from Pakistan’s neighbourhood in the Gulf.

—The Express Tribune, 2012^[17]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sectarian_violence_in_Pakistan

Terrorism in Pakistan has become a major and highly destructive phenomenon in recent years. The annual death toll from terrorist attacks has risen from 164 in 2003 to 3318 in 2009, with a total of 35,000 Pakistanis killed as of 2010.^{[citation needed]} According to the government of Pakistan, the direct and indirect economic costs of terrorism from 2000-2010 total $68 billion.^[1] President Asif Ali Zardari, along with former President ex-Pakistan Army head Pervez Musharraf, have admitted that terrorist outfits were "deliberately created and nurtured" by past governments "as a policy to achieve some short-term tactical objectives".^[2][3]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_Pakistan

And yet there are people in India who have total memory loss when it comes to Pakistan. They call themselves “Peaceniks” (A political activist who publicly opposes war, a particular war, or the proliferation of weapons; a pacifist) and keep talking of peace with no solution for the same. I am a peacenik too since I oppose war. But war is not the only solution. Since the international community is well aware of the militant training camps and the number of wanted terrorists hiding in Pakistan, it can very well exert pressure and ensure that they discontinue their business of hatred. India can afford a complete stop in public discourse with Pakistan but can Pakistan afford the same? It will be further alienated and will have more terrorists attacks in it’s own soil. So it is time to put more pressure on Pakistan once and for all. India should not continue to tolerate a Pakistan who refuses to acknowledge it's weakness. A Pakistan whose government has no control over it's army. Whose people has a false sense of pride over their army.

When will the people of Pakistan rise up and dislodge those who are tearing up their country?

When will they stop listening to those who know only to spew hatred in the name of religion?

When will they recognize those who urge them to kill in the name of a compassionate and merciful God?

When will they rise en mass to protect the minorities among them? 

Until then let India remain mum. No more peace talks and cricket. Let us remember that we have our own to protect.

MJ Akbar has brilliantly described our government's failure to reign in Pakistan and in his own words:

Pakistan’s Army concluded that if it could get away with Mumbai, it could get away with anything. It has.

Nevertheless I cannot help but copy this cry for peace that is coming from the Civil society of Poonch. The signatures are few but let those who are spewing hatred remember that they shall be cursed throughout history for their role.

Also cannot help copy this from Ajit Ninan.

Edited to add the following:

http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/dec/10mumterror-8-things-india-inc-govt-must-do-against-pakistan.htm
http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/dec/11mumterror-12-steps-to-shock-and-awe-pak-economy.htm
http://www.rakeshjhunjhunwala.in/2013/01/how-not-to-do-anything-when-your.html

Justice will be done.

When this comes from the President of the United States of America, we believe it. Obama stated this in response to the brutal killing of the US ambassador to Libya yesterday. 

Barack Obama vowed on Wednesday to hunt down the killers of US ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans during an assault on its mission in Benghazi as suspicion grew that the diplomat was the victim of an organised attack by an Islamist group.

Yes, they will avenge the killing for sure. But if I am to shift this scenario to India my mind refuses to conjure such an image. Can you imagine MM Singh uttering such words and even if he ever utters them will you believe him? We are yet to punish Kasab. We don’t have even have any clue of the Indians who helped him. Never mind terrorism, let us talk about the other burning issue: corruption. Scan after scam has eroded every Indian’s trust in our democracy, yet has he done anything to restore the trust. Instead of assuring us that justice will be done, he discredits the institution that was only doing it’s job. It is similar to a company’s CEO ranting against the auditors whose only job is to set accounts straight.

Yesterday MM Singh was in Kerala to inaugurate “Emerging Kerala” and did open his mouth to give nothing to Kerala. He only promised yet again (this was promised 8 years ago) that he shall give an IIT. God knows when! 

Prime minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said the proposal to set up an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Kerala was under Centre's consideration

 

But our much ‘beloved’ economist who asserted that 32 RS is enough to live in India said that Kerala should not look for food security and but use the paddy fields and import food from other states! It really proves that he knows nothing about Kerala.

Vice-Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia, speaking at the end of the session, said that Kerala could as well forget paddy cultivation as the State’s food security requirement could well be met by import from other States.

 

For Kerala the low lying lands are necessary for many other reasons, ground water table being the main one. If one is to raise land and construct concrete structures it will be a total disaster. As for food security, Kerala has not forgotten what happened when Mullperiyar Dam issue was at its peak. Tamilnadu stopped sending vegetables and milk and there was none from the center to intervene. In fact one wondered if Tamilnadu was not part of the Indian states but from Pakistan!

Anyway like every other Keralaite let me dream of a Kerala which shall indeed emerge from its lethargic state. Let me also hope that India will one day have a leader like Obama.

Tall dreams I am sure!

The stale news.

Terrorist-turned-informant says Pakistan agency worked closely with terror group


Headley has confessed; and now that the Americans have authenticated what the Indians have been saying since many years, India may take any of the following stance:

And is there a leader in India who can replicate the following:

Hiding the elephant

Couldnt help posting the following that I came across on the comment section of the article "Did Paskitan know ...." by David Ignatius in the Washington Post.

Someone has brilliantly summed up the situation.


Questions have been raised how bin Laden could be in Abbottabad without the Pakistan government knowing about it.

But actually I can perfectly understand the situation of the Pakistani government because I have had a similar situation.

For a long time now, an elephant has apparently been living in my apartment. I did not know it because every time I came home, the elephant would hide under the refrigerator.

But somehow the neighbours heard the elephant's trumpeting and called the city. The city called the cops who entered the apartment and enticed the elephant out with peanuts. I am now being asked to testify.

The punishment for having an elephant illegally could be heavy. Instead of giving me a magnum of champagne which the mayor gives me every year, he might only give a bottle of Merlot.

I am outraged! First the police entered my apartment, and now I am being threatened with Merlot! I might end my relationship with the mayor...

But mayor Obama likes me and has put me in charge of the investigation of the elephant. After all, it is MYapartment and who is better equipped to investigate than me? So my first question is, "Could it be the mailman who brought the elephant to my apartment and taught it to hide under the refrigerator?" "Or is it the cleaning lady?"

I really can't think of a third person!!

The government of Pakistan, which has a similar problem, has my full sympathy!

Let us pray..

Let us pray with the Americans.

God, please take care of Pakistan for they know not whom they hide. And they know not what happens in their country. It is not their fault that Islamabad/Abottabad is in Pakistan, neither is it their fault that Bin Laden built the biggest mansion in a quiet neighbourhood, right next to their Military Academy. Why should we find fault if Bin Laden found Pakistan safe. Is it their fault that some of the most wanted terrorist find Pakistan a heaven on earth?

Let me also pray for Obama since he continues to forgive Pakistan and is happy that Pakistan is his best buddy. Pakistan does deserve all prayers for did they not give Obama the much needed boost in the ratings. Did they not hide Osama all these years to give him up when Obama needed him?

The Seattle Times reports thus:

The latest poll --completed four days before the assassination of Osama bin Laden that handed the White House a political coup -- showed Obama's approval rating plummeted by 21 percentage points among registered voters in the state. Just 39 percent of the respondents rated the president's job performance as excellent or good, while 59 percent said he was doing only a fair or poor job.

Obama's speech:

But it’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding. Indeed, bin Laden had declared war against Pakistan as well and ordered attacks against the Pakistani people. Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts. They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.

Should not forget Mrs. Clinton too, for she continues to praise Pakistan for all their deeds.

In year 2007:
Pakistan is a key ally of the United States in its war on terror.


Yesterday, Clinton emerged from the State Department twice to speak of Pakistani "cooperation."

"Cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to Bin Laden and the compound in which he was hiding," she said.

And Indians, there are no prayers for you; even God seems to have given up on us. But as a penance for having got a few killed in Mumbai and elsewhere, we may continue to take care of the terrorists in our jail and elsewhere and feed them more biriyani; and not forget to send some (maybe dossiers and mangoes too) across the border for our good friends in Pakistan, especially the ones in the ISI. (Wikileaks is wrong to say that ISI is a terrorist organization, instead they are the bravest and deserves all praise)

US authorities described Pakistan's ISI intelligence agency as a "terrorist" organisation, according to a leaked US document.


We may ask our dear PM to do this task of biriyani distribution. He would be more than happy and maybe we can hear him praise Pakistan too just like how those in Pakistan praises him.


Source:


http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/05/02/2011-05-02_bin_laden_death_secretary_of_state_hillary_clinton_tells_taliban_leaders_you_can.html#ixzz1LGWxxda4
http://english.pravda.ru/news/world/15-01-2007/86412-clinton_pakistan-0/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13191241
http://www.dawn.com/2011/04/18/singhs-comment-spurs-hopes-for-peace.html
http://www.pkarticleshub.com/2011/04/19/the-rise-and-fall-of-manmohan-singh/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10146278
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/india-vs-pak-gilani-to-meet-zardari-to-decide-on-pms-invitation/767688/

What the !!!!!!!

Missiles, guns and robotic bomb-disposal units will be deployed in and around Mohali ahead of the diplomacy-laced India-Pak cricket encounter.


Thus screams TOI and other main stream media.

What are our leaders expecting?

When the match ends tomorrow, with no unpleasant incidents (let us all pray!), either India or Pakistan will win.

If Pakistan wins, will they arrest LeT founder Hafiz Muhammad Saeed or hand over to India the wanted terrorists?

And if Pakistan loses, does it mean they secure the right to export more terrorists? After all, we hurt them again did we not?

Has the whole nation gone bonkers over cricket or is it only me?

Code of Ethics?

Today, I read with interest the following news:

Like doctors and lawyers, teachers may soon be subject to a “code of professional ethics”, which includes clauses for disciplinary action over corporal punishment, private tuitions and other “anti-community” activities.

This led me to think not about the teaching profession but about the other two professions which are already under the “code of ethics”. Are our doctors and lawyers always operating with ethics? Has this code done any good? If this code of ethics was a deterrent factor how did our CJI get embroiled in the current scam?

Trouble is brewing for former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan, with allegations of amassing of property worth crores of rupees sufacing against his son-in-law and former Supreme Court judge V R Krishna Iyer today demanded a judicial probe into it.

What is professional ethics?


Professional ethics concerns the moral issues that arise because of the specialist knowledge that professionals attain, and how the use of this knowledge should be governed when providing a service to the public.


The professional carries additional moral responsibilities to those held by the population in general and in society.

One of the most far-reaching recommendations of the code is setting up of a professional body like the Indian Medical Association or Bar Council of India, which applies to professionals in their respective fields and imposes penalties in case of reported violations of ethical practices.

As stated above, is it because violations are not reported?



I guess, in the end it all depends on the individual when it comes to integrity and honesty. No amount of “codes” can make one perform ethically if one puts more value to money and power above “professional ethics”.




Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_ethics http://www.indianexpress.com/news/scams-embroil-top-exjudges-balakrishnan-and-krishna-iyer/729883/1 http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-professional-ethics.htm

The leaks...

Against the backdrop of wikileaks and after reading the following from Pioneer, thought I would re-post what I had posted earlier.

Secret cables, which were leaked by WikiLeaks, show that US diplomats and spies believe Pakistan army and its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) continue to quietly back four militant groups -- the Afghan Taliban, its allied Haqqani and Hekmatyar networks on the western Afghan frontier, and LeT on the eastern border with India.


Some ISI officials "continue to maintain ties with a wide array of extremist organisations, in particular the Taliban, LeT and other extremist organisations," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrote in December 2009.

Resolving the 63-year-old Kashmir conflict "would dramatically improve the situation", Patterson said.

Click to read the full article.

As for wikileaks, I continue to believe that nothing new has been revealed. Whatever is in black and white now has been leaked earlier in the media. Some believed while some did not. And now one can either take the stand of Mrs. Clinton and call them terrorists or one can call them a whistle blower. But even if it is late, America can now publicly acknowledge what they really think of Pakistan and it's leaders.

I also believe that the ones on the banks that are yet to come may be of help to the US citizens themselves. Are they not interested in knowing how the financial crisis came about and how those who are responsible for it are still being protected? As an Indian citizen, I would love to have the same leaks on my own government especially after the recent scams.

The following was a comment from my friend when I posted on FB that if US has done nothing wrong then why they should fear the leaks. 

That is very easy for you to say. It is like you having a frank, private discussion with your husband about all your neighbors and then find out that someone has recorded the conversation and given it to the whole neighborhood. The point is that the cables are and were meant to be confidential communications and diplomatic missions require such internal information to function well.

I did respond thus and further chat did not reach anywhere

Well, you can put it thus if you think you have been given the moral right to control every neighbour that lives around you..



nd feels it is right to maintain diplomacy/silence as you deem, even when you know that one of your neigbour is s...ending a dagger right through the heart of the other :)

___________________________________________________________________________________
My earlier posts on US's obsession with Pakistan and Kashmir.

For the carrot - dated 2-Feb 2010

Thus blogs the great enlightener of the masses..


Wow!

Nd why in the world should India be obsessed with Pakistan?

Oh yes… they have an answer to that too.. The much coveted seat in the great UN besides the great US.

And hence, US is dangling this carrot and sweet talking to India so as to end its stand with Pakistan since the great citizens in the US thinks and is made to think that all the problems in Pakistan ( Afganisthan , Bin Laden, Islamic terrorism) is only because of Kashmir (India). Literally speaking, every Pakistani wakes up in the morning and was waking up since Pakistan’s independence and thinks and was thinking only about Kashmir and the myriad ways to save the multitude of suffering souls in Kashmir. And now it seems US is also thinking along these lines!

And it is only we stupid Indians who is yet to realize this great truth… but let us not be discouraged since our government has realized it too..

Did anyone say that Bombay.. sorry Mumbai was attacked?

Another one posted on India Tweets

What an idea! (Dec 14, 2009)


Pakistanis should thank their government for their brilliant idea of nurturing terrorists; if their soil had not bred them would the US part with so much money?

Would their houses light up and would their thirst be quenched if not for the terrorists?

WASHINGTON - Electricity and water projects will be an early priority for nearly $1.5 billion a year in new U.S. non military aid for Pakistan expected to be passed by the Senate on Sunday, senior U.S. officials said.

The aid is included in a $7.5 billion, five-year package proposed by President Barack Obama as one tool to combat extremism in Pakistan. He has called the region the "epicenter" of violence and Pakistan is seen as critical to U.S. efforts to fight the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan.

Kasab can have a few friends.. if not Biriyani or the noose.

Tomorrow would be yet another anniversary of that terrible day in November.


All is well, says State home minister R R Patil and opposition leader Eknath Khadse who visited Kasab yesterday. His mood swings continues to keep the media engaged. If one day he lunges at the camera, another day he complains of the food served to him and was heard asking for mutton biriyani. Yesterday he seems to have said “I have reaped what I sowed.”

But then, he was only a petty criminal willing to kill for a few more dollars. He had already made his pact with the devil. But now I am glad that he survived, else like many other confused Indians, it would have been hard to believe he was not made in India.

I know I am blabbering, but hasn’t the events that unfolded the last 2 weeks reduce us Indians to blabbering fools. What else should we call ourselves when we are robbed of Rs 1,76,000 crores! (not including the CWG, the flat and now the Mumbai land scam) Like a swishing sword, scam after scam has wounded us left and right and one has never felt so low in life. Should we continue to believe in our honest Prime Minister when he is more interested in being meek? The Congress needs to go, along with the Sonias and Rahuls even if the next could be BJP with the Yedurappas, Reddy’s and Modi’s. But let it be so. The country badly needs a change. But before you step down, if you still believe you are a man of integrity, please clean up the mess. Mess would be a mild word, with the media and even the judges now being implicated.

"With the CVC headed by former telecom secretary P J Thomas non-suited to supervise CBI in 2G spectrum scam, the SC should choose an officer of unimpeachable integrity to monitor the probe," he said. Upset at his offer being spurned, senior advocate K K Venugopal said he would rather argue for dismissal of petition than make any further concession.


You may bring back a few crores if you can, but more than that, it would heal the wounded nation if one could see a few give Kasab company. Kasab murdered Indians in cold blood while the elected leaders have killed the spirit of millions of Indians.


Edited to add the following:

Corrupt India: $462 billion illegally transferred overseas between 1948 and 2008



The poor state of governance is reflected in a growing underground economy which in turn has fueled more transfers of illicit capital from India. This analysis is cast in terms of a pre- and a post-reform period spanning a total of 61 years since independence.

Headley shall also be "cherished"

One of the major news that we read in the Indian newspapers yesterday was that Headley will be now pleading “guilty” instead of his earlier plea of “not guilty”.

In the American criminal justice system, defendants in federal court can be convicted one of two ways -- by pleading guilty or after a trial.

Those who choose to admit their guilt are often "rewarded" with lesser sentences.

The concept of the plea is one of the major differences between criminal procedure under common law and procedure under the civil law system. Under common law, a plea of guilty by the defendant waives trial of the charged offences and the defendant may be sentenced immediately. This produces a system under American law known as plea bargaining.
A plea bargain is an agreement between a prosecutor and defendant whereby the prosecutor provides incentive for the defendant to plead guilty in order to avoid going to trial. Plea bargains can benefit defendants by guaranteeing particular outcomes. The two most common types of plea bargains are charge and sentence bargaining, where the first type reduces the charge(s), and the latter, the sentence(s). Fact bargaining is a less common type of plea bargain.

As we know now, Headley used this same plea to escape from his earlier offense of smuggling heroine into the US soil. He was not only “awarded” but he got a perfect opportunity to tie up with the elements in Pakistan.

Mr Headley came to the attention of the US security services in 1997 when he was arrested for heroin smuggling in New York. He earned a reduced sentence by working for the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) by infiltrating Pakistan-linked narcotics gangs.

In fact, there are people who wonder if he was working as a double agent for US. If not, one wonders why Headley has not been given access to Indian authorities even after the Pune blast. During Headley’s “high profile visits” (he rubbed shoulders with the high and mighty of Bollywood) which happened even after the Mumbai blasts, he did visit Pune too. Recently Cochin was at high alert since the “Karachi Project” is still being manned by those who continue to run scot free.

Today the news reads thus...

Also his being proven guilty and convicted in the US courts makes him inaccessible to Indian investigative agencies.

I guess now Headley shall escape capital punishment and will now be “rewarded” with a lighter sentence.

But will his admitting to certain offense aid in getting Kazab punished or shall we have one more deadly criminal to “cherish”.


Source:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06086/677199-85.stm
http://www.answers.com/topic/plea-bargain
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article7026599.ece
http://news.in.msn.com/international/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3716625

Still clueless..

Senior police officials, requesting anonymity, opined that bullet-proof jacket is the first line of evidence which should have been taken into the custody by the investigators. However, Mumbai police found this blooper only after slain IPS officer's wife, Kavita Karkare, filed an RTI plea in which the police admitted that the jacket was not traceable.

Are our police clueless or made to be clueless?

Are the Mumbai police so naïve?

And have any of them been taken to task?

Not likely, since as usual they have selected the right candidate to pave the escape route.

“On the night of November 27, after Karkare's body was brought to JJ hospital for autopsy, I had mistakenly put the jacket along with bio-medical and non-medical waste in polythene bags which was sent to the Deonar dump grounds for disposal”, the sweeper had said in the statement on December 22, 2008.

I am angry

For so many reasons…

Today’s headline read thus:

Pak officers working with jihadis, Headley confirms to FBI

The FBI interrogation of David Coleman Headley has revealed a Lashkar training project involving jihadi fugitives from India. The youth, after they are trained by Pakistani army officials, are sent back to India as part of the game plan to conceal the Pakistani involvement and pass off the terror in India as a home-grown phenomenon.

Is it not frustrating to read this now when the same was being conveyed by the Indian side over and over since many years?

Was it not for the same reason India has been demanding that Dawood and the rest of the scums be turned over? It was frustrating when US did nothing to persuade Pakistan to hand over him then and one wondered why.

And now that US have discovered Headley to be behind the Mumbai attacks will he be turned over or should we just watch the same old drama being enacted? For India, will Headley also rest on the Fact Sheet pages just like Dawood? (The only difference being that Headley has been captured while Dawood still reigns)

Anyway let me leave US out since one cannot compel them to discard their own interests for the sake of another country.

But what is happening in God’s own country?

Why did it turn out to be terrorists own abode?

One was hoping against hope that at least at this juncture when things have taken a serious turn our politicians would act in a mature manner. Alas.. all they want to do is throw mud at each other while the public are left wondering if they all had indeed joined the Dawood network.

Both the Congress and the Communists parties have governed, dutifully taking turns, while the terrorist networks flourished. They have obliged enough and more for votes. And now every terrorists attack in the country is being linked to someone from Kerala. Nazir used to be a name loved and cherished by Keralites since it was the name of the beloved cine actor who ruled the Malayalam Cinema for years and more so since he deserved the adulation in every way; on or off the screen. The new Nasir has thrown it all away for reasons which we are now tired of listening. He has left many families in despair and a whole state in utter confusion.

Will Kerala be left unscathed after the dust has settled?

The ultimate source for many!

The latest campaign in the name of terror is from Idea and one may have seen Junior Bachan urging the nation to talk for India.

I guess the entire nation has been talking much on terror and even major police officers are busy doing their talks.

As for Idea, are they out for publicity?

Will the fund thus collected go for the purchase of safety gears or will the public be left in the lurch as usual?


If their main site shows the following:

*The campaign is an initiative of mobile operator, IDEA Cellular, which has a subscriber base of over 53 million across the country. The campaign will be supported across print, television, digital and outdoor media space. The funds accumulated from calls initiated from the network during the 'Talk for India Hour' will be donated to the Government.

Their terms and conditions shows thus..

Talk for India

Terms to be displayed on www.talkforindia.in
1. Idea will contribute an amount equal to Net Income from all voice calls originating from Idea numbers and made within India between 8:36pm and 9:36pm on 26/11/09 towards procuring safety gear for the police force.
2. Idea reserves the right to disburse the amount to a body / entity/ organization / person or to divide it amongst a number of bodies / entities / organizations / persons suitably identified by Idea for the purpose.
3. The process and time of disbursing the amount shall be solely at the discretion of Idea.
4. The time and manner of contribution will be decided solely by Idea.
5. Subject to Mumbai jurisdiction only.

Why did Idea Cellular chose to put the second condition if the money is going to the government of India?

Should one care?

Just keep talking....

The road to terror .......

Soon it will be one year since we viewed the shocking scenes from Mumbai and there still remains many questions unanswered. The following news caught my eyes this morning.

According to top officials, the bigger concern for the government is to crack the sleeper cells that both Headley and Rana were in touch with to conduct attacks here. While the arrests may have delivered a blow to those plans, the fact remains that trained terror cells were here for this purpose and they have not yet been busted.

What a reassuring report! Even after a year we still haven’t discovered those Indians who helped the terrorists and now because of Headley we have this exercise just to satisfy the nation’s curiosity.

and..

There is no record of Rana’s departure from Kochi but a few days later, there is evidence of him surfacing in Mumbai.

Does this happen only in India?

Recently when we went to UAE, our passports were kept at the hotel reception and we could have it only when we vacated the hotel. I am sure this is the law in many countries and while applying for a Visa it is mandatory to supply the address of the hotel / place of residence.

I am aware that even in India we have similar laws but do we really have the luxury of not following it even after so many incidents?

Please take a look at a travel advice given to US citizens..

At the Hotel

Foreign security services have well-established contacts with hotels that commonly host conferences and meetings with international participation. Some even have their own office within the largest hotels. If the local intelligence service considers you a significant intelligence target, you are likely to be assigned a room that is equipped to monitor your in-room conversations and phone calls. To avoid this, it may help to make your own room reservation in a smaller hotel less frequented by foreigners.

In many countries, you will be asked to surrender your passport when registering at a hotel. This is a routine procedure, as hotels must submit a daily report to police on all registered guests. Although a routine police procedure, be aware that this information may also be reviewed by a local intelligence service looking for targets of opportunity. Don't forget to get your passport back at the earliest possible time.

But then if one thinks that our government has been sitting idle in all matters then no. We have now signed the world largest defense deal with US worth $ 10 billion which may bring in 126 fighter aircraft to our Air Force.

The Indian Air Force Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) Competition, commonly known as the MRCA Tender, is an ongoing competition to supply the Indian Air Force with 126 Multi-Role Combat Aircraft. The Defence Ministry has allocated Rs. 42,000 crore for the purchase of these aircraft (Approx. US$10.5 billion).[1]

While I do agree that our fighter pilots deserve the best aircrafts and that our Air Force needs to be strengthened, I wish the same enthusiasm is shown in every other aspects of our security.

Can we leave our internal monitoring / governing in shambles and expect our armed forces to secure our country?

The road to terror..

David Coleman Headley (until 2006 he was Daood Gilani) caught my eyes yet again this morning and while reading about him, I landed on the Chicago Tribune’s page which gives the Federal Complaint against David and his accomplice Rana. One can check this too which is on David alone.

I could not finish the material since it is very long and I understand how much training one would need to decipher so much from normal conversations and emails. If deciphering is difficult can one imagine how harder it is to mask these activities?

If only one would engage their brains and time in more useful pursuits.

But yet again I wonder how the Indian intelligence agencies missed David. Are their antennae’s up only for certain names?

I hope our agencies are being trained at least now to tackle future such ventures.

But then haven’t we already forgotten 26/11?

Haven’t our governments and babus managed to turn the attention away from it so that they can continue with their own personal pursuits.

If not, why is Kasab still not punished?

Why does Kavitha the wife of Hemant Takare need to file an application for the right to information for her husband’s missing vest? Has the nation forgotten this hero already?

The Elite

Elite (also spelled Élite) is taken originally from the Latin, eligere, "to elect". In sociology as in general usage, the élite is a relatively small dominant group within a large society, which enjoys a privileged status envied by individuals of lower social status.

The position of an elite at the top of the social strata almost invariably puts it in a position of leadership and often subjects the holders of elite status to pressure to maintain their position as part of the elite. However, in spite of the pressures, the existence of the elite social stratum is usually unchanged.

I have been reading much after the Mumbai tragedy; and have sensed the helplessness felt by a common Indian like me (the common Indian is not elite I presume). I have always felt that unless the sensibility of the rich and the powerful in our country is awakened, nothing positive can happen. In a sense it was woken by the Mumbai tragedy since they were more shaken than the rest. Nothing they relied upon was able to save them from the onslaught. One can continue blaming Pakistan, Islamic militant etc. but deep down we all know (but continue to deny) that the problem is not just that, but much more. It is also time that for those who can make a change, realized that protecting themselves is not going to solve the problem if they want an India free from hatred and fear.


I am not going to waste my time in writing eulogy on the elite, who are present across the country; and in every religion, but somehow the article in rediff.com, "Death of a salesman and other elite ironies" by Tarun J Tejpal, editor-in-chief, Tehelka magazine, who calls himself an elite appealed much to me. I have copied some excerpts.

For me there is a deep irony in his death. He was killed by what he set very little store by. In his every meeting with us, he was bemused and baffled by Tehelka's obsessive engagement with politics. He was quite sure no one of his class -- our class -- was interested in the subject. Politics happened elsewhere, a regrettable business carried out by unsavoury characters

It is time each one of us understood that at the heart of every society is its politics. If the politics is third-rate, the condition of the society will be no better. For too many decades now, the elite of India has washed its hands off the country's politics. Entire generations have grown up viewing it as a distasteful activity. In an astonishing perversion, the finest imaginative act of the last thousand years on the subcontinent, the creation and flowering of the idea of modern India through mass politics, has for the last 40 years been rendered infra dig, dclasse, uncool. Let us blame our parents, and let our children blame us, for not bequeathing onwards the sheer beauty of a collective vision, collective will, and collective action. In a word, politics: which, at its best, created the wonder of a liberal and democratic idea, and at its worst threatens to tear it down.

And let no one tell us we need more laws. We need men to implement those that we have. Today, all our institutions and processes are failing us. We have compromised each of them on their values, their robustness, their vision and their sense of fair play. Now, at every crucial juncture we depend on random acts of individual excellence and courage to save the day. Great systems, triumphant societies, are veined with ladders of inspiration. Electrified by those above them, men strive to do their very best. Look around. How many constables, head constables, sub-inspectors would risk their lives for the dishonest, weak men they serve, who in turn serve even more compromised masters?

Back in business

Sadly we are back into business in the shortest time.

I thought the issue with the “dog’ would die within the mallu world, but no, even the national mainstream newspapers seem to have forgotten the horrible days the country just left behind. I am not providing any links to the news papers since none has been fair. Keralites are not new to their CM and their own colloquial language. In my opinion the ‘dog’ word is the mildest word that the mallu uses in his day-to-day dealings. But like me there are many who respect the CM even for his quirks. Everyone accepts the Father’s feelings too and if the media is to be believed, he had no issues with the CM during the telephone talks. The same media and citizens who shouted foul when Major Unnikrishnan was identified as a Malayalee, in the same tone whined when there was no ministerial representation, except for the political secretary from the Kerala ministry.

We tolerated the electronic media during those dark moments with utmost patience although it was not easy at times, but I believe it is time the media stopped short and did a self study. We lost brave men and there is nothing the country can give their family in return except gratitude. Nothing will suffice since only those who have lost their loved ones can understand the feelings. But for the sake of their utmost sacrifice for the country, this not the time to lose focus on the main issue. This is not the time to aid the parties to take political mileage and knowing well our politicians, it is up to the citizens and the media to get them into running the nation. Sadly we need them all at this moment to govern the country and not to fill the roads with “protestors” for insignificant issues.

For once, India is not alone in her pursuit of terrorism. Pakistan, though reluctantly is ready to cooperate. War is not the answer for any issue and we have all learnt our lessons. We do not want history to give us a repeat. Even in the battle of Kurukshetra in Mahabharata, diplomacy was given a chance until the end even when there were mighty warriors ready to give up their lives. We need every resources and the help of the citizens to root out the menace the nation is facing. If the media is to be believed there were more terrorists and they might be still in the country aided by our own worthless citizens. These terrorists did not work alone and cannot work alone in the future. There needs to be meaningful discussions in the main stream media on this issue. So far I have seen none.

Is it over?

It has been very depressing the last 3 days and I could not control the way the events affected me. Maybe I should have just stopped watching the news.

Let me take my frustrations on my blog.

The media has been comparing the Mumbai blasts to the Sept 11 attack. But for the Americans, their anger and frustration were quickly directed to the military assaults that Bush began. They had a vent for their feelings. It might not have been difficult for them to watch their planes bombard a far of land which most of them had never heard before.

But for us Indians the frustration has only begun. For a few hours, we thought Pakistan was serious when they agreed to sent the ISI chief over to India to help with the investigations. But, it was just another one of their feeble attempt in bravado; the ISI and many other elements are not under the control of the government. Pakistan continues to be a failed state. As for an assault, it will only take the life of the innocents. But then I remember that Obama wanted to take on Pakistan, for reasons I am sure he had plenty.

The Indian media was kind during the last 3 days I should say, by keeping the appearance of the politicians to the barest minimum. How can one watch the arrogant faces of those who had a say over the security aspects? As for the Home Minister, I had only a morbid interest on his suits and he has not let the viewers down on that aspect. I am also tired of watching our PM being ushered in by Sonia. Does he still not know his way around? Our politicians, including Modi will only continue their games.

But as citizens, it is time we raised our voice for our heroes. When the nation is ready to spend millions for the economy in 'deals', can’t they not equip our soldiers and task forces with proper gears? If there is no security, is there are an economy?

As for the ideology of the cowards, it is from the devil himself. One need not give a second thought on that. They shoot indiscriminately on a helpless crowd and then ask for specific Passport holders.

I pray that this event unites our nation and we learn valuable lessons. These events should not repeat and those precious lives that were lost should not be in vain.

Black Day

Why oh Why?

How many more black days do we have to see before we see an end? Or is this only the beginning?

Where are our leaders? What other issues are occupying their times?

It is time you stepped down from your seats since you have all failed.

You sent brave men to take bullets in their hearts and in spite of repeated warnings there was no preparation.

You have let innocent people die without a cause. If our main cities cannot be protected from these cowards called terrorists who hide behind black masks and guns, then what are you governing?

Words fail me.. let me shed silent tears for my bleeding nation.