Tarun Tejpal and Tehelka
Tarun Tejpal is a true patriot and I think Indian media needs to be bold like Tehelka. We have one of the highest publications in the world and yet the politicians have free rein to do and say what they feel like and without facts. Fundamentalist organisations like RSS and Bajrang Dal are made up of rogue elements or at least that’s the impression they leave. They are always busy spreading false propaganda about other religions, thus, creating an environment of distrust and fear. If they talk about real nationalism and have an agenda for development may be people irrespective of their religion will join them. However, their motive seems to be to entice people to hate people of non-Hindu religion. They misconstrue ‘Hindutva’ according to their needs and it’s this misinterpreted ‘Hindutva’ that they fight for and not united India.
Therefore organisations which marginalize sections of society should not be taken seriously as nation builders. A stable nation can only be built on the basis of trust, respect and tolerance. If these people spew venom all the time about other religions, sooner or later India will disintegrate. In such circumstances the work done by Mr. Tejpal is praiseworthy to say the least. So I thank Mr. Tejpal for his courage, conviction and integrity. As he says, when all the machinery of NDA government was after him why couldn’t it prove anything against him? I think some people who thrive on spreading false propaganda, just can’t digest the hard facts.
It is time for us to take religion out of politics if we want to be a true democratic country. Let’s not blindly follow any party because they say what we like to hear. It is time we open our eyes before it is loo late. Blind hatred will take us back to Stone Age. It takes more courage to reconcile and build a united community than to belittle someone.
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Like every election, recently concluded Uttar Pradesh assembly election might well go as just another lost cause for Congress. The “lessons to be learnt” based on post-election analysis are only for the media to ponder over. Congress appears to be never really interested in analysing its own short comings in terms of reaching out to people and getting the message across. Given the number of talented MP’s and MLA’s at its disposal, it seems that the Congress party easily attracts lots of youth adherent to secular principles. Yet, they never really exploit the human capital in terms of reaching out to the masses with their ideas of administration. Recently one of the leading Indian News magazines, Outlook, questioned: “The Rahul Problem” - He can't plough a lonely furrow. Where are the party's other young MPs?” ( National \ Opinion : Magazine May 28, 2007, OPINION: The Rahul Problem by Vinod Mehta)
It goes further to state: "What does the Congress have that other parties do not? It owns five, if not more, new-generation MPs who have the potential to connect with the 70 per cent of India aged under 30. If they teamed up under the leadership of Rahul (so that he is the first among equals) and criss-crossed the country carrying the message of modernity and development, the impact would be dramatic. Imagine the effect of Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Milind Deora, Jitin Prasada and Rahul Gandhi on one platform! The party would then hold an extraordinary bunch working collectively instead of Rahul ploughing a lonely furrow".
And that's my point precisely. Why can’t young and upcoming talent travel the length and breadth of the country and get a first-hand feed back on policies of their respective parties? It is also the only way to build bridges between communities, which are strained under the tidal wave of communalism being spread by distructive forces. It is high time that Indian political parties behave like they are a public organisation and not running a family business. The democratic values should be first practised by the parties who preach them. Let all the positions and portfolios both within the Government and party circles be filled by men and women of merit so that people represented by these leaders have a direct influence on India’s growth and prosperity.
The Elephant Riders
The recently held Assembly elections in UP, India’s most populous state evokes mixed emotions. There are reasons for elations and enough room for concern. On the one hand, the clear majority for Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) means that at least this time the government could last for the full term of 5 years, a rarity these days owing to coalitions or power sharing. However, given the uncertainties of Indian politics, this aspiration could easily turn to blind optimism. The reason being, once elected, the parties disregard their manifesto and ideologies and often infer the mandate as per their convenience. Indeed, it is a momentous victory for a party representative of dalits, although this time, BSP supremo Mayawati, has broadened her appeal to include candidates from upper castes and Muslims. The greatest significance of this victory, however, should be labelled as victory of secularism. The fact that a secular party got clear mandate suggest that one cannot fool the electorate anymore with false propaganda and divisive politics even in the Hindu heartland of UP. However, more than the battle of ideologies, the mandate for a single party may have been a simple consequence of the yearning for the speedy development - minus corruption- in this region.
Once the euphoria of a trendsetting election victory wanes, there will surely be wrangling and haggling for important portfolios within BSP. And given that the party has many a non dalit candidates, other parties who are preying for power could entice them with the lure of power and position. Given the record of previous administrations in UP it is not a far fetched idea. Ms. Mayawati herself would be too aware of this fact to wield absolute power and cause defection of her party men. Even if this Government survives all the trappings of the opposition, one hopes that the administration works towards public development and do not succumb to corruption. After all it wasn’t that long back when Mayawati celebrated her birthday with all pomp back in 2003, probably at the expense of tax payer. Now that the elephant- the symbol of BSP- is back in power, one hopes it doesn’t fatten up and damage its short sight and renowned memory.
Parliament of India or ?
Parliament of India is an institution where all the issues related to common man should be discussed and debated. However the atmosphere in our Parliament -most of the times- is worst than a fish market. In the past one year Indian Parliament has seen so many adjournments; one wonders if our politicians are concerned at all about our country and common people?
Most of the issues resulting in slogan shouting and adjournments are of the political nature. In the recent past, Opposition NDA has hit out at the UPA over rising prices, Bofors issue, Bihar and Jharkhand fiasco etc., often bringing the two houses of Parliament to a standstill to get their message across. But it’s perhaps time for politicians to realise that this means a lot of money down the drain. The impact from these adjournments is directly felt by the Indian taxpayers. As Parliament continues to face multiple adjournments these issues, it’s the common man’s money that goes down the drain. As per a report from a news channel, Parliament disruptions cost the taxpayers Rs 20,000 a minute.
In the recent past, our politicians have been seen involving in moral policing of people. Examples include: beating up poor couples in the parks, cancelling the licenses of ladies bars, Banning TV channels for vulgarity etc. So the question is who will police our politician’s moral conduct in a bid to end unnecessary squabbles?
Politicians are free to discuss and debate any political issues in the Parliament. However, shouting slogans and hurling abuses to one another, poorly reflects our Indian culture and the civic sense of our society. We are the oldest civilization, yet our attitude in public places is not fitting enough to keep up our same old tradition in this 21st century.
With rising inflation, if our elected leaders are wasting Rs.20, 000 per minute over some political issues instead of finding a solution to common man’s problem, then they should be held accountable as well should be punished for the contempt of the institution of parliament. The media should help in channelling the public’s frustration into a movement against the behaviour of our leaders in parliament at the behest and the interest of the public.
The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Ordinance, 2007
In the first week of February, 2007 the President of India promulgated an ordinance making it mandatory for private broadcasters in India to share the live feed of important sporting events with public broadcaster, Prasar Bharati. Millions of cricket lovers- who do not have cable facility and radio listeners - would receive live coverage of Indian team's upcoming one-day matches. Private broadcasters now left with little choice but to share live feed of important sporting events with public broadcaster Prasar Bharati. This means, from now on it will be mandatory for private broadcasters to share live feed of all "sporting events of national importance" with the government-run Doordarshan and All India Radio.
This is a popular ordinance by the Government. While the cricket lovers in the country will definitely benefit, the private broadcasters might decry this ordinance. However, as every sports channels operating in India wants 'Cricket' for its survival it might not be bad idea for BCCI to produce the Cricket on its own and then sell it to more than one sports channel to be telecast. In that way, there won't be an "exclusivity" factor and also millions of cricket lovers will be able to enjoy the game.
Today the game of cricket in India is popular because of its widespread distribution and traditional interest of people in this sport. By distributing cricket signals to all the channels cricket lovers will have the option of choosing the channel they want to view cricket on. This way BCCI will be able to sell the cricket production to many channels and will be able to keep control on any such scenarios where the public may suffer because of disputes between sports channels.
If not for a long term, at least on a trial basis, this idea should be tried out. India can not only innovate and show the world of this new style of Cricket marketing but also may be able to stop all the bickering over telecast rights between state controlled and private channels, thereby helping to popularise this game further in India.
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