THE VERDICT

ANGER SIMMERS…UNCONTROLLED

2009-05-09T00:07:00.000-07:00

Obviously, giving tickets to the so-called architects of Anti Sikh riots had taken on a political hue, so, on this issue, the Congress Party too liked to respond politically rather than taking shelter after court verdict so, it instantaneously cut off the tickets of Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar, not only to balm the wound of victims of riots, but also eyeing on the Sikhs voters of Punjab, Haryana & some parts of Delhi, writes Ashwini Ahuja

No one ever can forget the day of utter misfortune when the entire world had heard the saddest ever and tear jerking news of the mindless murder of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, the glorious Prime Minister of India by two of her Sikh bodyguards- S. Satwant Singh & S. Kehar Singh on 31st October 1984. The senseless assassination of one of most world famous political leaders by two turbaned youths had then shaken not only the country but the entire world also.

The country had then reacted sharply in attacking on Sikh masses in retaliation in Delhi and adjoining areas as the killers of the Mrs. Indira Gandhi were Sikhs security guards. The nastiness of the reaction was that the hundred of innocent & naive Sikhs families who actually had nothing to do with the assassination of great PM of India then had to face the fury of aftermath reactions of angered mob including the killings by various groups of goons. According to Sikh Community, it was nothing but a sort a brutal killings of innocent Sikhs backed by several Congress leaders. Among of them- who led the mob were Jagdish Tytler & Sajjan Kumar to whom now Congress Party has given tickets rubbing the salt onto the wound of Sikhs Community.

Also, it is sheer ironical that even after the 25 years in a row; the victim Sikh families didn’t seek justice. Several enquires were made. Nanavati Commission also, in its report, showed probable involvement of some Congress leaders and also held responsible some police officers for showing their negligence in duty during the riots but there always had been some lacunas in the enquiries and finally the case was given to CBI.

Needless to mention, in Punjab, the issue of 1984 anti Sikh riots has always been poignant but now, at the crucial juncture of Lok Sabha election, a CBI giving clean chit to both Jagdish Tytler & Sajjan Kumar (H K L Bhagat and Lalit Maken are long gone) who are supposed to be directly accused of inciting the mob that killed hundreds of Sikhs after Indira Gandhi’s assassination has enormously heated up the emotions of the Sikhs across country. Moreover, the incident of lobbing shoe onto finance minister P. Chidambaram by a Sikh journalist of a Hindi Daily in a press meet at Congress Party headquarter, Delhi added fuel to the fire.

Although the journalist has realised his folly and the newspaper itself has expressed the regret (despite a Sikh body has given him Rs two lakh reward for his bravery and promised to offer him job if the newspaper where he now works dismisses him), yet the incident has galvanised the entire political opposition including SAD, BJP; Left & JD and all the political parties have come out to condemn the Congress Party over the issue of allotment of tickets to culprits. Punjab CM PS Badal dubs the shoe-lobbing incident an eye opener for both the centre and Congress Party. He says that the Congress should sense the ‘enormity of pain and angst’ among Sikhs regarding the exoneration of culprits.

Not only the political opponents, but most of the Sikhs of the state also rue that it’s utter shameful the victims of riots still have been waiting for the justice for the last twenty five years. They looked forward to seeking justice but now the CBI has rubbed salt onto their wounds by giving clean chit to those who were observably involved in the acts of butchery. Deputy Chief Minister & son of CM, Sukhbir Badal also says that the Congress should sense the simmering anger within the Sikhs.

Consequently, Punjab witnessed a series of wild protects in almost all major cities like Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Patiala; Sangrur and Beas. The agitators blocked the trains to Punjab, burnt the effigies of Tytler and other Congress leaders. Even some groups of protestors, in Jalandhar, ransacked the head office of Congress Party openly brandishing their swords and it was obvious if the Congress Party had not withdrawn the candidatures of two of its alleged leaders, it certainly would have given huge gain to the opposition SAD-BJP alliance in Punjab so the leaders of Punjab Congress had begun to build huge pressure on party high command to roll back the two leaders.

The analysts say, for Congress, it was the time of embarrassment; hence, it was sure the party would replace their candidates. It didn’t want to lose seats in Punjab, moreover. The party knew that Sikh anger might severely dent their hopes in the state. Recent opinion polls had even suggested a reversal in favour of the Congress. Congress has an eye on the significant Sikhs votes in all Punjab, four Haryana constituencies and Delhi as well. At present, the SAD-BJP combine has 11 seats while the Congress has just two seats in the13 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

For a while, the All India Riot Victim Relief Committee had submitted a memorandum to Sonia Gandhi regarding the pulling out of alleged candidates from contesting election as the court cases regarding their palpable involvement in the riots were still going on. The group had also threatened if the Congress didn’t axe the candidatures of both leaders, they would start agitation against the party in Delhi to ensure their defeat. Then, the gruesome incident of show-throwing happened, the government then internally planned to withdraw Tytler’s candidature from Lok Sabha elections to heal the wounds of Sikh minority.
Rahul Gandhi, General Secretary, All India Congress Committee, Youth Congress is also of the view that the strong sentiments of the Sikh Community should not be ignored. He was pained to see that the issue had been dragged on for too long. A political analyst says that the pressure on Congress was to withdraw only Tytler, but Party well knew that it might be futile to replace only Tytler as the focus then would swing to Sajjan Kumar and it would benefit the opposition particularly Maneka Gandhi who had been sharply vocal after the act of slapping NSA against her son Varun and unambiguously, she had been speaking in favour of Sikh Community to reap the yield. A group of media is of the opinion that it is the politics more than justice which is behind the withdrawal of Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar from the Lok Sabha fray.

If we look back, the issue of riots was in the backburner but the clean chit to both leaders gave the signal to Sikh community that the Congress just wanted to disregard their sentiments. The election of 1992 in Punjab which was after the anti Sikhs riots had no impact as the low percentage of voting and boycott by Akali parties led the formation of Congress government under the headship of CM Beant Singh.

Then ten years later, again, the Congress won under the leadership of Capt Amarinder Singh. Years back when Sonia Gandhi visited the Golden Temple, there was a remarkable change in the mindset of people as it appeared no sign of hostility towards her stay in Punjab. Rahul Gandhi too visited Golden Temple twice and gave the statement about the riots-“unfortunate and condemnable”. He was enormously appreciated by his statement.

In Punjab, never a single leader hailing from radical party could win or save security deposit. The Sikhs of Punjab were proud of having the first Sikh Prime Minister of India who too called the riots a “national shame” in the parliament. It is pertinent to mention that when he went through heart surgery, an Akhand Path was organized in the Golden Temple for his speedy recovery and before it, when he visited Golden Temple; he was honoured with a saropa and welcomed hugely by all sections of Sikhs.

But, now the question is: might the axe on Tytler & Sajjan Kumar diminish the anger of Sikh Community against the Congress Party. Dal Khalsa Convener S. Kanwarpal Singh states that they are not satisfied with just taking back the tickets. Our struggle will continue until we see the culprits behind jail. Former Punjab Deputy Speaker Bir Devinder Singh, who has resigned from Congress on the issue of giving tickets to Tytler and Sajjan Kumar, also dubs the withdrawal of tickets- “an interim relief”.

Deputy CM of Punjab Sukhbir Badal says the cancellation of tickets to the butchers of thousands (nearly 3000) of Sikhs is a direct acceptance of guilt by the Congress of their active role in organizing the riots. Kanwar Pal Singh Dhami, former President of Akal Federation says that it is the duty of the government to take stern action against the culprits to repress the increasing frustration among the Sikh community of the state. Just cancellation of tickets will not suffice their purpose while Youth Akali Dal President K S Kang dubs the cancellation of tickets a ‘useless exercise’ and ‘political gimmick’

This article was published in the Mumbai based The Verdict

Gandhi is deprived of Nobel yet, why?

2009-05-08T06:20:00.001-07:00

Ashwini Ahuja
Doesn’t a common question sometimes haunt you- why Mahatma Gandhi- an apostle of non-violence has not been considered for a Nobel Peace Award so far? Did he not deserve the accolade for his contribution in making India an independent country through his agitation of non-violence? Even after the fifty nine years of his death, he is still deprived of the worldwide credit of Nobel which he deserved even in his life time.

Recently, the UNO has commemorated his birthday as a non-violence day. No doubt, the codes of belief which Mr. Gandhi had instilled into his countrymen are now more relevant than the period of his life time. Not only India but the whole world also feels the need of his inspiration at a time when the entire humanity is suffering from the threat of terrorism.

If we peep into the history of Nobel Award, we notice that sometimes, this most worldwide prestigious award had gone to those who really didn’t deserve for it. And those who deserved the acclaim were deprived of it. Mahatma Gandhi was one of them.

Apart from Mahatma Gandhi, there are so many others deserving the award but they were not given it. Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Graham Greene, Anton Chekhov and Kafka are a few to name. One of the greatest Russian novelists, Tolstoy from whom Mahatma Gandhi drew inspiration was also not given Nobel either for peace or for literature.

As for Mahatma Gandhi, he was nominated for Nobel five times- in 1937, 1938, 1939, 1947 and 1948- the last a few days before his assassination- but never awarded the prize. Although, the members of the Nobel committee later publicly expressed their regrets for not crowning him with Nobel. But does mere showing of regret do justice to the great man of India- who is known as the father of nation.

In the year of 1989 at the time of awarding Nobel for peace to Dalai Lama, the chairman of the committee had said that this award was "in part a tribute to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi" But the chairman of the committee was failed to spell out as to why Gandhi was not awarded so far.

The question is: if the members of Nobel committee were unable to appreciate the struggle for freedom among non- European people? Why was the horizon of Norwegian Nobel Committee so much narrow? If some people blamed that the members of Norwegian committee were afraid of spoiling their relationships with Great Britain, they were not mistaken in their estimation. For whose panic, the Norwegian Nobel Committee could not develop its unanimity, the same UK government in 1969 after 21 years of Gandhi’s martyrdom, issued a United Kingdom double sized postage stamp to commemorate his birth centenary.

In the early 1930s, a group of pro-Gandhi diplomats namely “Friends of India” has been actively established their identities in Europe and USA. In the year of 1937, a member of labour party in Norwegian Storting (Parliament) Ole Colbjørnsen nominated Mr. Gandhi for that year’s Nobel Peace Award and he was duly included among the thirteen candidates in the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s shortlist. Under the guidance of Colbjørnsen, the nomination was forwarded through the leading women of Norwegian branch of “Friends of India”

If the adviser of the Norwegian Noble Committee professor Jacob Worm had submitted his positive report on Gandhi’s nomination, Gandhi might have been bestowed on the award. Mr. Jacob played the trick. On the one hand, he expressed his admiration for Gandhi- “He is undoubtedly a good, noble and ascetic person- a prominent man who is deservedly honoured and loved by the masses of India. On the other hand, considering the worth of Gandhi as a political leader, he wrote critically- "sharp turns in his policies, which can hardly be satisfactorily explained by his followers. He is a freedom fighter and a dictator, an idealist and a nationalist…an ordinary politician"

The infamy of Chauri Chaura- the first non-co-operation movement in the year of 1920-1921 under the command of Mahatma Gandhi when a crowd attacked a police station killing many cops and setting fire to the police station was also one of the reasons of his omission from Nobel Peace prize that year. That incident had slurred Gandhi’s image of peace-loving leader.

The Nobel Committee adviser Professor Jacob Worm lost no opportunity in mentioning in his report that “He was not consistently pacifist that he should have known that some of his non-violent campaigns towards the British would degenerate into violence and terror.” But the question is: did Mr. Gandhi really intend to unleash terror and violence to oppose the attitude of British regime towards Indian? It was a mistake on the part of crowd for which Mr. Gandhi had the deepest regret.

The second reason for the omission that year was the frequent criticism from non-Indians. They asserted that Gandhi was too much of an Indian nationalist. Hence, Mr. Jacob Worm expressed his own doubts regarding Gandhi’s ideas: whether his ideas were meant to be universal or primarily Indian. And in his report, he also mentioned that Gandhi’s well known struggle in South Africa was on behalf of the Indian only. It was not for the blacks whose living conditions were even worse.

After that, Ole Colbjørnsen renominated Gandhi both in 1938 and in 1939 also but Nobel did not come his way.

In 1947, Mr. B.K Kher from Bombay, Mr. Govindh Bhallabh Pant and Mr. Mavalankar sent nomination for Gandhi from India through Norwegian Foreign office via telegram. "Recommend for this year Nobel Prize Mahatma Gandhi- an architect of the Indian nation, the greatest living exponent of the moral order and the most effective champion of world peace today” Consequently, Mr. Gandhi was shortlisted. Among six, he was fortunately one of them.

That year also, the report of the Nobel Committee’s adviser historian Jens Arup Seip was much supportive. Seip wrote, "From 1937 up to 1947 led to the event which for Gandhi and his movement was at the same time the greatest victory and the worst defeat – India's independence and India's partition"
Although, Seip’s report was not critical in the same way as the report written by Mr. Jacob Worm ten years earlier yet the members of committee were unanimously of the opinion that Nobel Peace Prize should never awarded for that sort of struggle and they saw India’s partition as worst defeat which achieved India under the command of Gandhi.

But if we view in the larger perspective the partition was unpreventable to end the violence between the Hindus and the Muslims. During the last months of his life, Gandhi worked very hard to end the violence which followed the partition of India.

Although two acting members- the Christian conservative Herman Smitt Ingebretsen and Christian Liberal Oftedal were in favour of awarding Gandhi but they could not convince the other members. Moreover, a politician Martin Tranmæl from The labour party and a former foreign minister Birger Braadland were not in favour of awarding the prize to Gandhi in the midst of Indian Pakistan conflict.

Moreover, once at a prayer meeting, Mr. Gandhi had made a statement indicating that he had given up his consistent rejection of war. “The Time” on September 27, 1947 had reported under the headline- “Mr. Gandhi on war with Pakistan” where they had published Gandhi’s statement- "Mr. Gandhi told his prayer meeting to-night that, though he had always opposed all warfare, if there was no other way of securing justice from Pakistan and if Pakistan persistently refused to see its proved error and continued to minimise it, the Indian Union Government would have to go to war against it. No one wanted war, but he could never advise anyone to put up with injustice. If all Hindus were annihilated for a just cause he would not mind”

The chairman of the Nobel Committee Mr. Gunnar Jahn quoted in his diary that "while it is true that Gandhi is the greatest personality among the nominees – plenty of good things could be said about him – we should remember that he is not only an apostle for peace; he is first and foremost a patriot. Moreover, we have to bear in mind that Gandhi is not naive. He is an excellent jurist and a lawyer.” Indeed, three of the five members were against awarding the 1947 Prize to Gandhi but after Gandhi’s statement in ‘The Time’ it was unanimously decided to give the award to Quakers.

In 1948, 1st February was the last date for Nobel nominations that year but unfortunately Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated on 30 January 1948, two days before the closing date. The Committee received six letters of nomination naming Gandhi. With three names only, Mr. Gandhi that year also came on the Committee's short list.

Seip wrote a positive report on Gandhi's activities during the last five months of his life. He said that through the course of his life, Mr. Gandhi had put his profound mark on ethical and political attitudes inside and outside India.

So far, nobody had ever been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize posthumously. But according to the statutes of the Nobel Foundation the Nobel Prizes could, under certain circumstances, be awarded posthumously. Thus, it was possible to award Gandhi the prize but Mahatma Gandhi did not belong to any organisation and he left neither property nor will behind him.

The question was: who should receive the Prize money if the prize was given? The Director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute consulted with a battery of lawyers. Before they could think of a way out, the Swedish prize awarding institution released its decision- “posthumous awards should not take place unless the laureate died after the Committee's decision had been made” So, that year, the Norwegian Nobel Committee decided to make no award on the grounds that there was no suitable living candidate. Chairman Mr. Gunnar Jahn wrote in his diary: "To me it seems beyond doubt that a posthumous award would be contrary to the intentions of the testator"

But the bitter truth is: Norwegian Nobel Committee did not want offering the prestigious Nobel award to any south Asian. Upto 1960, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded almost exclusively to Europeans and Americans. Gandhi was very different from earlier laureates. He was no real politician or proponent of international law.

The question is: Had Mahatma Gandhi been alive a few months more, he might have been awarded noble for peace? The prize of 1948 could not have found a living suitable candidate but it was not conferred on Gandhi who truly deserved the prize. It is really nothing more than an indifferent attitude of the members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee towards South Asian achievers.

Kidney Robbery

2009-05-08T06:18:00.001-07:00

Ashwini Ahuja

Five years back when a kidney scam at holy city Amritsar had surfaced, one of my doctor-friends had remarked, “India is a repository for fresh kidneys”. He had the apparent reason in saying so- hassle-free availability and proper care- after its transplant. Due to low cost and immediate availability, most of the NRIs prefer visiting India for kidney transplants from all over the world. Apart from NRIs, recipients from USA, UK, Greece, Lebanon, Dubai, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Nepal etc. too seek protection in kidney transplants in India because of the no-risk availability if you have enough cash to buy one. Before 1970, kidney transplants rarely occurred in India because there was a lot of risk if the body of the recipient might accept the foreign object? After the availability of anti rejection drug cyclosporine in the market, renal transplants became common in the country and then India gradually turned out to be a big kidney bazaar. Legally, the commercialization of the kidney is banned not only in India but almost every country except for Iran. USA had banned kidney sales in the year of 1984. At that time, there were reportedly more than eight thousands patients on the transplantation waiting list. Now, as per United Network for Organ reports, it has reached to whopping nearly seventy five thousands. Global demand for kidney is day by day soaring but supply is comparatively low. Yawning gap between the demand and the supply is the boom of kidney black-marketing. India is a country where poor and destitute are mostly uneducated and naive. By coercion or by offering them paltry money, it is not difficult to woo them for kidney donation. And surgeons like Dr. Amit who is dubbed as Dr. Horror and kingpin of the Gurgaon kidney racket, Jeevan and their coterie have been shamefully doing such acts by hook or by crook to heap up millions for the last twenty years. Police reports say that he has clandestine connections with Canada touts for that country’s recipients. Years back, he had sent his family to Canada when police arrested him in another illegal kidney scam. Now, he regularly visited the country for kidney transplants of the patients of that country. Dr. Amit Rout and his accomplices had reportedly made more than 500 illegal kidney transplant operations and continued hoodwinking police and health administration for about two decades, thanks to the bribe and nexus between criminals and police. A patient at PGI, Chandigarh says it happens only in India where police and criminals are friends.However, if we look back, nearly twelve years back, a kidney scam had surfaced in Andhra Pradesh also. After a severe drought which occurred in the year of 1995 in Palnadu area of Guntur district of the state, farmers in thousands have lost their livelihood and had forced by themselves to sell off their kidneys and blood to earn some money. Several farmers had then committed suicides due to utter misfortune and poverty. Doctors like Amit (who is shamefully the son of a freedom fighter) alias Santosh Raut then had played the role of Dr. Horror to coax poor and destitute farmers through brokers and touts to pile up their wealth like now.

The tout was then paid Rs. eighty thousands for each kidney from which he retained 25-30 thousands for himself as commission and remaining amount was honestly paid to the kidney donor. There were reports that that time, the poor farmers had sold their kidneys to gather dowry for their marriageable daughters or build a house for their families.

At that time, moneylenders too had forced misfortune, penniless farmers who had borrowed money from them to buy fertilizers or pesticides, to sell off their kidneys paying off their debts and they too fleeced commissions from surgeons.

Some farmers who were conned by the touts that time even did not know what was going to be happened with them. Doctors would tell them that it was a minor surgery for their good health. But after a year or two, it came to their notice that they had lost their kidneys through touts and gained nothing. Similar swindling has also come to notice in Gurgaon kidney scam where labourers, rickshaw pullers and small farmers are deceived either at the gunpoint or through handing out scanty money to the victims.
Dr. Amit Sachdeva, a surgeon from Govt. Medical College & Hospital, Faridkot (Punjab) says that nothing is more heinous than such illegal practice. Donating kidney to someone needy is really a good gesture if it does not relate to commercial trading. Law too does not allow organs to be removed for other purpose except therapeutic. If your relatives- daughter, mother, son, sibling etc. donate you a kidney, it is quite generous and lawful too. But the demand for kidney is higher than supply. He further says that you can remove organs from cadavers or brain-stem dead but in India where people are generally religious and god-fearing, such practice is strictly hampered. But, for money, to remove kidney from a live donor is utterly illegal and unethical, Dr. Sachdeva concludes. He says that for kidney robbing, law should be more stringent. Lawyer Sher Singh of Ganga Nagar (Rajasthan) says that selling kidney or an organ is punishable by up to seven years’ imprisonment or a fine of Rs. 10,000 or both if it proves. But, due to legal loopholes, it is quite difficult to prove. That is why, the trade is recklessly flourishing as both buyers and sellers feel that it’s a paltry punishment considering lacs change hands in every illegal operation. Moreover, they take benefits of the legal loopholes with the help of legal experts. Have you heard about any kidney seller who had been sentenced due to its trade? Even, doctors generally come out safely despite their illegal practices. Mr. Sher Singh further says that example of Dr. Raut is before us who has been running his illegal shop for several years. No doubt, he had been arrested two three times but escaped through bail, thanks to legal loopholes, he concludes. Mr. Harish Bhateja, a lecturer in Biology says that not only in India, China is also a global centre of kidney availability. Poor and needy people do not hesitate in donating kidney to earn some money to mete out their needs as its removal does not impair health and working condition of the body. If one of your kidneys is removed, the other automatically began to work with more vigor and dynamism. Sometimes, it does not pain in abdomen after removal, Mr. Bhateja says with poise. Mr. Vivek, a medical representative mocks- you can not stop kidney rackets in India. Let me know the name of any state where the sales of kidney is not rampant. Bangalore, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Gurgaon etc. In the year of 1995, custom officers in Delhi had unearthed a ‘kidney tour racket’ in which donors were lured to visit abroad to donate their kidneys for money, he recalls. And, in the same year; some leprosy ridden patients of a place near Madras had offered their kidneys to earn money through touts. Money allurement offered by touts is detestable for kidney removal, he objects. Sometimes, victims have been lured with offers of good jobs and cheatingly in the pretext of proper health check up, their kidneys are robbed. In the year of January 1995, the police had busted a massive racket in Bangalore also, he concludes. A medical girl student Shilpa at Rajendra Medical College & Hospital, Patiala says that if a victim claims that he or she has been cheated without his or her knowledge, it is definitely a lie. Removing kidney without the consent of patient is not possible as it involves a series of different tests administered over a period of a week or more. If one is caught in selling kidney he pretends that he has been hoodwinked, actually the picture is different, she reveals. But, on being queried, she accepts, it is true that mostly poor donors are not paid as they are promised before kidney removal. Moreover, India has a hot climate which makes it hard to preserve kidneys, she says finally. Dr. Anju Setia of Govt. Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot reveals that there are more than eighty thousands patients of renal failure and dialysis units are in hundreds. Bad acts never yield good results, she lastly emphasizes.

This article was published in THE VERDICT, MUMBAI

Corruption, security lapses lead to ominous situation

2009-05-08T06:14:00.000-07:00

Ashwini Ahuja
First time, after the independence of India, our politicians are somewhat worried over the grim situation of the country. Before this, they always showed off their worry & regret whenever terrorists’ activities happened in any part of the country but the recent terrorists’ attack on Mumbai, which was so far the biggest ever aggression has awaken them from long slumber and they actually felt that the country is experiencing the worst time. They really worried.

According to some media reports, now, they realize that there is definitely something shameful on their part because of their failure in check security lapses and mend them timely.

It is utterly shocking to mention that the Mumbai attack by Pakistani terrorists was well planned, meticulous, involving the acquisition of large quantities of arms & ammunition and a ship for transport from Karachi to Mumbai through sea route but the intelligence agencies, shamefully or sloppily, didn’t get the hint of their planned attack. A worst shamefully happened under the nose of big security.

What is the purpose of such corroded, thoroughly incompetent and internally subverted system of governance? Why we spend thousands of crore on them at Mumbai if they are not able to take on one small bunch of terrorists. It is discernible to feel that how ten young Muslims defeated the might of India’s armed forces?

Second point, if our security personnel knew about the terrorist plan and didn’t deliberately take an urgent preventive step because of having the taste of bribery grease on their palm, it is totally a criminal negligence on their part. Such corruption, casual behaviour ought to be wiped out at its nascent stage. It is explicable that it is political interference and corruption at high-level which is directly linked to ministerial corruption also which leads to the birth of terrorism in the country.

The question is: why the leadership of the country always remains failed to comprehend the internal situation of the country? Why the intelligence agencies didn’t gather the clues before the gigantic, unpleasant incident? It is quite simple to understand that once the culture of bribery corrodes the internal security apparatus, none can stop the enemies of nation finding their way with ease to strike the targets of their choice. First parliament, second Taj and next what?

In 1993, the gang of Dawood Ibrahim had smuggled huge quantities of RDX & ammunitions by greasing the palms of key personnel in the security & custom. The situation has not changed even after 15-16 years. However, politicians first time ever felt the sense of to be shamed. It is the first time when the word “SHAME” began to haunt them and they are haphazardly trying to hide themselves. They promise to the country people with terrible shivers in their body and frustration in their sound that they will take on terrorism. In fact, they are feeling themselves totally unsuccessful to control over the situation which has gone out of their hands only because of their vote-bank reasons.

After the terrorists’ attack in Mumbai’s different locations- Taj hotel, Oberoi/Trident hotel & Nariman house and the death of nearly two hundred people including some top police officials, the politicians of the country thought that the situation would pacify with the time gone but it did not, rather the anger among country men went on increasing day by day. Then, the politicians have no other ways but for trying to escape themselves from people’s anger. Our two ministers have to say sorry to Mumbaikars when he realized their teeth gnashing in the head of politicians and government. Newly Home Minister P. Chidambaram too realized a mistake on government part.

It is no hidden thing that there were several security lapses. And these were because of widespread corruption in different government departments which allowed the situation to become so depressing and dismal. People of the entire country are now angry in view of the irresponsibility of the politicians and they have the every right to express their ire.

Over the week of terrorist attack, the rallies and candle-light processions are being organized across the county even in small towns and villages following the Gateway of India’s gathering. The overwhelmed & wild anger of common men of India has realized the politicians that they are nothing more than an object of their contempt and hatred.

India has now shivered only because of those who let the county down fostering corruption & allowing hooliganism and terror free on run for just garnering votes. The protestors in different cities refused to pay taxes as a first step if the government remains failed to protect the common people of the country. No security, no tax was the slogan. It was a kind of non-cooperation movement as Mahatma Gandhi had launched in 1942 against British Regime.
If we look at the expenditure of our leaders’ security, we will definitely shudder. The expenditure on the security of Sonia Gandhi and her family is approximately 117 crore while for other leaders it is gone beyond 250 crore. Only leaders need security? Why the common men of India are derived from appropriate security?
We shame to hear that the budget for NSG (National Security Guard) whose commandos had saved several people from Taj, Trident & Nariman House had decreased from 159 crore to 150 crore a year before. People of the country well understand that politicians are provided special security at the cost of common men’s money. If the government remains failed to give the public full security, why should the people pay taxes to the government? And the people have the every right to oppose the government.
Pragmatically, it’s time to think over the genesis of crisis and act sternly. It is not a time to just speak rhetorically- “the terrorists will be brought to justice”. When they will be brought to justice? After the massacre of more thousands? After one more attack on Taj? Why the government of India delaying in action despite knowing they are the enemies of India’s diversity & secular fabric and playing worst with India at the behest of Pakistan.
“Action, not words” was a message from aggrieved public which the TV channels displayed. The government of India should well understand the public mood. What they actually want? By action means- they want concrete action against Pakistan, nothing else. They want to know what will the next step of the government of India if the rulers of the neighboring country denied extraditing the hardcore terrorists to them. Should the rulers of the neighboring country be taught a lesson for fostering terrorism as a low cost, low risk proxy war against India? Should India needs more evidences after the Mumbai mayhem.
One will be surprised to know that Pakistani security experts and media men of that country are of the opinion that the attack on Mumbai was the work of Hindu Zionists and they rather complained that whenever some attacks happens in India, the government of India always blames the Pakistan government. The reality is: the jihadis are strong-willed to destroy the very idea of India and they have the enormous support of moderate Pakistanis also.
It is time to strengthen & reconstruction of the security institutions and to modernize the creaking antiquated justice system. The huge security flaws which the Mumbai attack has exposed should be finished off forthwith. This attack was a 60 hours war-like situation. The next if it unfortunately happens may be biological or even nuclear. Can we afford such attacks? Indian politicians should mend their ways and work with solidarity to curb the menace of terrorism without playing the game of blaming on each other. Presently, it is no shame to say that we have been cheated by all those to whom we have trust.

This article was published in "The Verdict", Mumbai