Lizards For Lunch!

By Manuwant Choudhary

The other day I was driving to get urgently to the Patna airport when I came across a roadblock. In Bihar roadblocks are common but the reasons could vary..from accidents to settling private family disputes...everything can be achieved by blocking the road...and sometimes for people in remote areas its the only way to get governments attention.

But this day as my car slowed down a man said, "Sirr...pooora paanh ghanta lagega...(sir you will have to sit here for a full 5 hours..)

But by then I'd miss my flight I explained to the man.

So I asked him whats the matter and he replied, "Sirrr, girgit mar gaya!" (A Lizard has died)

I could not understand why villagers would block a road for the death of a simple lizard. Surely a lizard is not Laloo Prasad Yadav!

So I asked again, "Girgit marne se kahin road jaam hua hai...Where in the world have you seen a road blockade for the death of a lizard?"

The villager then replies, "Sirrr, khane mein girgit mar gaya hai..." (sir, the lizard died in the food).

Aah I said, even then I took my chance I crawled to the point of the blockade taking my chance. Surely, they wont throw stones
for something like this...I found women, children and stainless steel cooking utensils sitting on the road, found a gap..and sped away.

Not realising what the fuss was all about....but the other day another piece of news caught my attention where 150 children were in a Sasaram hospital because they consumed food containing a dead lizard. Poison.

But surely, parents how can they serve lizards to their own children - their life and blood.

You guessed wrong. Its not parents who feed India's children but the `Mai-baap-sarkaar' (Mother-father-government.)

And they do this not with a view of providing clean food and water to the poor but only to give them something so that they in turn vote the Congress Party back to power.

I searched the net for Lizards for Lunch and I found such stories across India - from Kanpur to Kerala - children being served Lizards for Lunch!

But our Supreme Court thinks its only an `academic issue'.

Food from our public distribution system rots under the open sky because there are not enough godowns..while India's poor go hungry. But for the Supreme Court its an academic issue.

Prices soar and all that our MPs can do is bring a `sthagan' prastaav...`adjournment motion'...but they cannot arrest the rising prices. But this too is an `academic issue' for our courts.

And today The Times of India has a story on how the CBI has found that three High Court judges spent the Employees Provident Fund on paying grocery bills to buying furntiture..to renovating their own sons homes. This too will be only of `academic interest' to our courts.

The reason I oppose socialism tooth and nail is because it destroys my country everyday.

Socialism destroys the ability of Indians to cherish hard work.

I oppose socialism because socialism breeds corruption...a system favouring the goons and the powerful..and discouraging honesty.

My father used to say there are only two castes in India - the first caste is the politician and the second caste is the people.

I oppose socialism because it prevents India from finding its rightful place under the sun.

Socialism is poisonous.

Supreme Injustice!

Supreme Injustice

By Manuwant Choudhary

India’s Supreme Court falters once again….this time on a petition challenging the oath of allegiance by political parties to the word `socialism’…recently the petition had to be withdrawn as the judges felt that while it was an important issue it was only of `academic’ interest presently and that they would hear the case as and when the time came.

In effect what this means is that the world’s largest democracy is not a democracy…since only socialist political parties can be registered with India’s Election Commission and hence only they can contest elections. A liberal cannot have a political party.

The petition was filed by Good Governance Foundation India and individually by Mr. Sanjiv Agarwal and their lawyer was constitutional expert Fali Nariman.

So I called up Mr. Sanjiv Agarwal to find out his understanding of the Supreme Court view and he said, “There are two aspects. One is that our case was not thrown out at the first instance and we were heard. The Supreme Court also recognized that the issue we were raising was an important one but that it was only of `academic’ interest right now. I am happy with this part of the view but the Supreme Court goes on to say that we will hear it when the time comes. God forbid but I fear that when the time comes it may be too late…a despot will do what he wants in such a scenario…”

There are again two interpretations to this court view …one is that the judges want liberals to first form a political party and seek registration and when they are denied registration they can come back to it and file a fresh appeal. The second part is more serious in that the present view means that citizens and NGOs who file public interest petitions have no bona-fide to do so vis-à-vis democracy and that only a political party who has been denied registration has a cause of action.

This latter view worries me ….but Mr. Agarwal says, “Its one interpretation but who can question the highest court in the land? The Supreme Court in India is not as great as western courts but its still better than Africa or many Asian courts. Although I do not agree with their view that a citizen cannot question the preamble.”

Mr. Agarwal has challenged both the 42nd and 44th amendments to India’s constitution. “By introducing the word socialism to the constitution and then by quietly removing private property from a citizens fundamental rights our politicians have destroyed the very constitution we gave ourselves at independence. You see whats happening in Bengal it is the small farmers who are suffering because their land is being taken over by the State and given to private industry.”

He said, “At least I have succeeded in raising the issue.”

My own association with this campaign goes longer…as a student at St. Paul’s School Darjeeling I came across an interview of Mr. Minoo Masani in Imprint magazine. A photograph of Mr. Masani sitting on Marine Drive looking at the sea and a para saying…`I have always swum against the tide…’ caught my attention. I said to myself if I ever go to Bombay I would like to meet this man…

Living away from the heat and dust of the plains amidst the majestic Himalayas with the sun rise and sunset over Kanchenjunga one would normally forget the mess India was in…but coming from backward Bihar I always felt education is worthless if one cannot bring about any change.

So while most of my colleagues aimed to go to America I had a different dream…my dream was to find a link to India’s past..to its greatness…to Mahatma Gandhi.

Chance took me to Bombay and as a student of history at St. Xavier’s College I was assigned a history project. I picked up a telephone directory and searched for Mr. Minoo Masani, found a number and called. The voice at the other end said, “Yes, this is Masani speaking”. I introduced myself and asked for an appointment as I wanted to interview him.

Mr. Masani, “Whats the issue?”

I replied, “Economic Policies of Jawahar Lal Nehru.”

Mr. Masani, “Disastrous. Come and see me tomorrow at 10 a.m..”

I recall three of going to the Army & Navy Building 15 minutes before 10 and Mr. Masani spoke extempore for more than an hour and it was an education that one cannot get at India’s best educational institutions.

My association with liberals begins and my years in Bombay working with a youth association and then accidently walking up a rickety stairs at Kala Ghoda and discovering a Swatantra Party office…

Its only later that I met Mr.S.V. Raju and 15 years ago when Mr. Raju and others tried to register the Swatantra Party Maharashtra they were faced with a roadblock…they were asked to swear by socialism and which Mr. Raju rightly refused. So going to court was the only option which the party did.

I remember in those early days calling oneself a liberal was not yet fashionable and in fact there were very few liberal NGOs although we believed that India’s people are by and large liberal and if a credible liberal party is offered to the Indian people..Indians would vote for it.

But as things stand the Bombay High Court has not heard the case even once in 15 years! The Swatantra Party lawyer is now a judge of the Bombay High Court!

Another brave attempt was made by the veteran Shetkari Sangathana leader Mr. Sharad Joshi who appealed to Mr.T.N. Seshan, the then Election Commissioner of India, to at least give him a common symbol to contest but Mr. Seshan refused and said he would only get that if he swore allegiance to a socialist constitution.

Mr. Joshi refused and fielded some 180 or more candidates all contesting as independents with different symbols. Two won the elections.

Mr. Joshi is now a Rajya Sabha member and he has placed a private member bill challenging this very clause that makes it mandatory for political parties to swear by the socialist constitution.

This Supreme Court view in effect means, `Where is the party?"

For the past five years I have been speaking to liberals individually to form a party but the response has been poor. There are many many more liberals in India today than there were 15 years ago..most run successful NGOs...but at best they are competitive and at worst self-centred ..happy to run NGOs instead of running India. Liberals lack unity.

If India fails I would blame us liberals.

India slammed as Than Shwe visit looms | Democratic Voice of Burma

India slammed as Than Shwe visit looms | Democratic Voice of Burma

Shame - Bihar politicians get violent

By Manuwant Choudhary

For two full days now Bihar's assembly has been witnessing unprecedented scenes with politicians throwing tables, chairs, shoes and even flower pots at each other...the reason...the detection of yet another scam ! But whats new? Whats new is that this scam covers three years regime of Laloo-Rabri and three years of Nitish Kumar but the irony is that both the ruling and opposition parties blame each other instead of blaming themselves. Mobocracy! Both Nitish and Laloo are leaders of the mob.

There is a criminal case filed on the corruption issue and the Patna High Court has already ordered a CBI inquiry....so why this ruckus? Yes, we all know elections are around the corner but again why this?

It is scenes like this that convince me only an alternative political party with alternative work culture can solve India's problems..hence indiavikalp.

Lohan Cries in Court, Gets 90 Days in Jail

Is Lindsay Lohan's punishment too severe? The judge says she has a history of drug abuse and did not attend a drug program once a week but Lindsay claims she was working in Morocco with children.

Catherine Jones - Good night my dear

Catherine Jones's self-composed lyrics and her debut album dedicated to her husband who works in Iraq. She says she wrote and sung this song only because of this feeling as to how you have to let someone go even when you know you may never see the person again...

Sacred Hoop

Beautiful Brigitta Callens & Shanti

By Manuwant Choudhary

Just chanced across beautiful Brigitta Callens and she reminds us of one of India's most beautiful word - Shanti...Peace.

He favourite quote:

“A true, rich yoga practice is not necessarily expressed in the execution of one’s most challenging asana. It is seen in the face of a yogi: in the eyes, the way one views the world. It is evidenced in the way one shines light toward other beings.”

Just watch the last youtube video by Sacred Hoop alongside this blog and you will know what I am talking about.

And listen till the end..you will smile...i promise.

BBC reports India's 8 states poorer than Africa!

By Manuwant Choudhary

Its an irony that the truth about India's poor is told in England, and not in India. BBC Hindi reports a study by Oxford University and UNDP which uses the multi-dimensional poverty (MDP) index to discover that 8 Indian states are poorer than Africa.

MDP simply means that one should not judge how rich a person is simply by the salary he earns but by other indicators like the quality of life he enjoys..roads, electricity, food, schools....

The study finds that 42 crore 10 lakh people in India's 8 states are poorer than the 41 crore people living in 26 African countries.

The 8 Indian states are Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgrah, Rajasthan and West Bengal.

This report is a telling reminder that despite figures and growth rates and an economist Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, India's poor remain poor.

It also is a challenge to all those who believe in real liberalisation, not the kind implemented by the Congress and the BJP, to come forward and present a true alternative with right priorities to solve India's problems.

Only a party like the old Swatantra Party can solve India's poverty because the party understood India's problems better than most.

Even the poor want freedom.

Forget the Commonwealth Games, I dream about Shakira performing for India...`This Time India'.

Peepli Live - Touching The Right Note

By Manuwant Choudhary

Forget the strikes against price rise called by opposition political parties in India, its this Aamir Khan produced film `Peepli Live' that will touch the right note.

Set against an upcoming election two farmers are about to lose their lands as they owe money to a government bank and when they seek advice from a local politician he tells them the best solution is they commit suicide so the government will instead have to pay them money. This leads to a media frenzy as to which farmer will commit suicide.

The plot only partly reflects the crisis being faced in rural India and although Dr. Manmohan Singh can get re-elected Prime Minister there is a simmerig discontent that could well get out of control despite Narega and all government doles.

Thousands of farmers in Maharashtra have committed suicide while India's agriculture minister Sharad Pawar spends his time sorting cricket controversies and being on the International Cricket Board.

Its a song in Peepli Live sung in a local dialect that really strikes a chord..."Hamaar Saiyaan bahut kamaat hai...lekin sab dayan kaa jayat hai..." (My husband earns a lot but all of it is eaten by a witch..." You can watch an edited YouTube version alongside this blog.

Of course, the witch referred to here is `Price Rise' but who is the witch of Indian politics. Any guesses?

Five Star Buffalo Milk !

By Manuwant Choudhary

The best stories are not those which you look for and find but those that are just told by someone you have just met.

Like I met Abhimanyu Kayastha, a Nepalese working in Bangalore. Abhimanyu studied at Goethals at Darjeeling and did a hotel management course from New Delhi before joining the Oberoi Group. He worked at the Soaltee Oberoi, Kathmandu, for many years. Soaltee was owned by the now dethroned monarch Gyananendra.

Abhimanyu in that sense is a King's Man.

Yet, when i say that I am wrong. Abhimanyu respects the institution of manarchy but like a fiercely loyal Nepalese he does not tolerate corruption and yet I could sense a sadness at how events have turned out in Nepal.

"You know I have even been in politics but I got out because its so corrupt. I wanted to build a cycle stand at Dharan and some businessmen donated bags of cement but when they arrived at the site I found a few bags missing ! They were stolen on the way by those entrusted to bring them."

Is this then the story of Nepal? A country so steeped in corruption, so steeped in poverty and so steeped in debt.that even the Maoist Prachanda imports an expensive Chinese bed to sleep on.

But Abhimanyu knows poverty since he comes from a rural background. His father was a farmer and so he knows the importance of growing one's own food and how every year the problems in rural Nepal multiply..while food supplies dwindle.

He said, "You know whenever I am asked to speak to young hotel recruits I ask them the difference between aata and maida and you know not one can answer me..It worries me.."

Abhimanyu's father spent his precious resources to give his son the best boarding school education but Abhimanyu was like other Nepalese boys not knowing what to do in life until one day his father called him "Are you a Man Abhimanyu?"

Abhimanyu, "yes, I am."

Father, "Let me see. Take this (giving him a third class railway ticket)..I want you to go to Bangalore and only call me when you get admisions at a college there..."

That train ticket changed his life.

Abhimanyu experienced life like very few Nepalese..always serving...always respectful...and always concerned.

He served Kings and commoners alike..never being swerved by personal or social prejudices. King Gyanendra, Paras...Manisha Koirala...and why even our own Laloo Prasad Yadav.

Abhimanyu worked at the Ashoka Hotel in Bangalore (the hotel owned by Lalit Suri) when Laloo came calling there..

"I went to Lalooji's room and asked him what he would like for breakfast."

Lalooji replied, "Main Cornflakes Khaoonga."

Abhimanyu then served Laloo some cornflakes but as he poured the milk into the bowl Laloo observed, "Yeh to gai ka doodh hai..main to sirf Bhains ka dhoodh peeta hoon ....(This is Cows Milk..I only drink Buffalo Milk). Aapke paas bhains ka doodh hai kya? Do you serve buffalo milk?"

Abhimanyu replied, "yes sir."

Abhimanyu, "You know what I did. 5 star hotels dont have Buffalo Milk but what we do have in our kitckens is malai..cream..so I added some extra cream to the cows milk and whipped it up and brought it to Lalooji. As I poured a thicker milk into the cornflakes Lalooji exclaimed, "Wah, maan gaye yeh Lalitji (owner of Ashoka Hotel) bhee ajeeb cheez hai..bhains ka dooh bhee rakhta hai! (This Lalitji is so amazing he even keeps buffalo milk in his hotels!).

Nepal and Bihar share a large common border..our problems are similar too and so are our politicians and as Abhimanyu expressed concern at how Nepal can be saved I wondered why others in Nepal are not doing anything.

As Laloo brings Bihar to a standstill against the fuel price hike..while Bihar doctors have their salary stopped by some bureaucrat because they have failed to spend 33 crore rupees allocated for the polio program. A doctor said, "Should we just spend that money and then go to jail?" I wonder how both Nepal and Bihar are difficult regions in every way.

Todays Times of India has an interesting quote in its Sacred Space by Lewis Grizzard, "The game of life is a lot like football. You have to tackle your problems, block your fears, and score your points when you get the opportunity."

Being A Page 3 Photographer

By Manuwant Choudhary

Forget Delhi and Bombay if you want to be on Page 3 you should head to Bangalore, yes you got that right not Bengaluru ...thats what it is called by the saffron brigade who attack women in public only because they drink alcohol.

I first visited Bangalore in 1994 as a reporter with the Afternoon Despatch & Courier, Bombay. We were invited to cover a very important technological development in the country - the launch of pagers !

Bangalore airport then could be any other airport...Patna..Guwahati....Bagdogra....but girls welcomed us at the airport with red roses in their hands as we were taken to stay at the Taj.

We saw how pagers were going to change the way India is run and we also saw how a single company made it possible for women to do night shifts without fear. Company buses would take them home at any hour under full security.

But Bangalore was still a very sleepy town...all the desire was on Mahatma Gandhi Road (MG Road)...the rest of Bangalore could be like Benares or Patna.

I loved the stay at the Taj and hoped that more Pagers would come to India so journos like us could get more junkets.

I recall I was the only journalist who actually wrote an article on the visit.

Pagers are history.

This time however I was invited by a friend who was to celebrate his 40th birthday. Not having wished him for 40 years I decided to fly to Bangalore.

A swanky new airport and a dedicated corridor to take people to the city without road hold-ups is a plus and one feels it is possible to change India.

But Bangalore has changed already and it has lead the technological leap in India. Plus the launch of two airlines by men who live here shows the city has an energy of its own. Deccan by C Y Gopinath and Kingfisher by Vijay Mallya - the King of Good Times.

But the Bangalore Metro is not underground. They have built a huge concrete flyover..bang in the middle of MG Road..over which the train would run...completely overshadowing posh MG Road.

My friends birthday bash was at a place called `Opus' a local club...where they serve food and drinks and it has live musical programs.

His wife is a pilot with Kingfisher so the crowd would generally be pilots, airhostesses, aircrew, relatives and business associates and my task was to take their photos with a powerful Nikon.

As the gliterati arrived I took a few photos...when suddenly I noticed I had competition...another photographer grabbed a few quick shots and introduced himself as a photographer with Indian Expresss..thanked us profusely and ran out saying we would see the photo tomorrow on Page 3.

And then I noticed there were a battery of photographers from all the national newspapers - their editors had all sent them for Page 3 photos!

But what exactly is a Page 3 photo. Well, the shorter the skirt the better the photo. Simple.

I now understand why even Bollywood actresses wear less and less these days...look at Deepika Padukone.

So I had the most interesting job - Being a Page 3 photographer - some women love it...others hate it...and some run away from it only to be drenched by 40 bottles of champagne!

But there are perils in being a Page 3 photographer...men steal each others wives..but one thing they are still scared of is being on Page 3...so they would even attack a Page 3 photographer.

A walk on MG Road...coffee and dinner at `The Only Place Restaurant' and the beautiful weather makes Bangalore a worthwhile destination. Forget the Sri Ram Sene, being in Bangalore and meet up with so many pilots and my autopilot friend who can never grow old is worth it.

How else could I have seen a pretty 21 year old pilot who cant drive a car!