WHAT IS SHE?

Sometimes she is a

naked, transparent lass

serene and tranquil

like an unveiled portrait,

or like her soft inner

palm pure and unblemished

or like a silently flowing stream

revealing the fishes,

crabs, water-snakes even

the pebbles rolling ahead underneath

with the silent flow of water

too clear like a transparent mirror.

There are moments when she

evolves into a charming

blonde attired in a translucent

silk costume with little, little blooms

appearing on her costume or

like a river partially

revealing the wonder world underneath.

At other times

she is like a forlorn lover

with dark clouds of thoughts of her lover enveloping her

or clad in dark costumes hiding

everything underneath

or muddied like a river violently

flowing revealing nothing underneath

or like an opaque mirror

which can’t reflect anything………...

THE BILLION DOLLAR PROBLEM

Battle lines are drawn,

forces put on high alert,

across both sides of the border,

by the two rival nations,

national emergency declared by both,

emotions run high and,

patriotism at its peak,

across both sides of the border,

now an issue should be needed,

to cross swords against each other,

now an issue should have to be discovered.

That is the billion-dollar problem.

           

US’s PLAN TO INTERVENE DIRECTLY IN SYRIA

US seems to be at it again. Contrary to what Barack Obama, US President’s stated stand, a direct intervention in Syria seems to be an emerging possibility. Though President Obama perhaps drawing lessons from Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan preferred to tread cautiously in the case of Syria, US’s intelligence establishment  exert more and more pressure on him to intervene in Syria where the ruling regime and rebels are locked in a no-holds-barred battle since the last two years consequent to which approximately 80000 lives have already perished.

As an observer noted, unlike Libya under Muammar Gaddafi, Syria possesses sophisticated Russian-made radars, airplanes and surface-to-surface missiles and a more or less loyal army at Dr.Assad’s command. US will have to face a more determined Syria which incidentally has the support of Iran, which too supplies generous aid to the former so as to enable the latter to unleash a counter offensive against a formidable enemy like US.

Obama’s initial reluctance to intervene in Syria seems to be giving way to directly take on Assad’s forces on the pretext of Syria unleashing chemical weapons like nerve agents, sarin and vx which could result in seriously harming the innocent civilians. Relying on heresay reports would cause serious repercussions since the ultimate authority on the issue is that of United Nations.

Defence Secretary of US, Chuck Hagel, during a visit to Abudhabi hinted at a ‘game-changer’ in the case of Syria throwing the former’s ‘wait and see’ approach, seems to have resulted in ‘aggravating’ the situation.

US is already providing training to rebel forces camping in Turkey and thus preparing them to launch fierce attacks against the forces of the ruling regime under Dr.Bashar-Al-Assad. US is not content with that alone.

US apprehends the stock-pile of chemical weapons falling into the hands of militant entities like Al-Nusra and Al-Quaida elements who have connection with the hard-core militant elements of Pakistan. US is very well  aware that Al-Nusra and Al-Quaeda elements have sneaked into Syria in large numbers with the ultimate motive of capturing power fighting along with the rebels forces. Such an eventuality according to US, should have to be got rid of at any cost.

With Russia and China taking sides with Syria, US, with the support of Arab League countries will have to launch an all-out war in Syria, the repercussions of which are hard to imagine.

Plunging straight into a such an eventuality, US might find it hard to wriggle out of the situation if and when Assad is deposed. Unlike in Libya, US will have to deal with militant outfits like Al-Nusra and Al-Quaeda on the one hand and the powerful forces of Dr.Assad, on the other hand. Added to it, once intervened how long US forces would take time to achieve its aims of ousting Bashar-Al-Assad from power is anybody’s guess. Syria is not Libya and in the case of Libya UN had passed a resolution authorizing NATO forces to directly intervene in Libya. Accordingly the NATO forces along with Libyan opposition could effect a regime change though it took more time than anticipated. With the dust settling down in the general elections held in Libya, the power fell into the hands of an Islamic dispensation where peace in its true sense is still evasive. US had to pay dearly for its intervention in Syria with its Embassy falling under the attack of Ansar-Dine elements killing its Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other US employees.

The spectre of terrorism taking upper hand in Syria in the event of Assad’s fall from power haunts Syria too which US would find it difficult to deal with.

US’s strategy, it is reported, is that of creating a no –fly-zone over Syria first and launch aerial attacks which too could prove costly since unlike in Libya where certain areas are deserted, in the case of Syria most places are thickly populated where thousands of civilians could turn out to be the ultimate victims.

Put it mildly, wherever US had intervened in the past directly, it couldn’t bring about a durable solution be it in the case of Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. With domestic opposition turning more intense, US had to willy-nilly retreat after making a mess of the situation. In the case of Syria too the case will not be much different.      

RAINS OF MEMORIES

Rains of memories continue to pour down

into the vast reservoir of my mind.

The more the rains of memories

the larger the reservoir of my mind

as it’s of unlimited capacity

still the fears and anxieties of

the reservoir of my mind crossing the red mark

needles me incessantly whether it would cause

floods inundating an infinite area

with this torrential rains

showing no signs of abating

realizing fully well that the vast reservoir of mind

is of unlimited capacity.

See how baseless my fears and

anxieties are

for no apparent reason….? 

NEVER ENDING CYCLE

After waking her up

with his thousand luminous arms

he held her close to him

planted thousands and thousands of

cool and warm kisses on her body

to find her fresh and happy

to cheer her up

like her papa showering

thousand kisses of love and affection on her cheeks

every morning

--------------Upon his incarnation from

a cool,  warm and affectionate friend

into a fire-spitting demon

he squeezed her forcibly

planted thousands of

of warm kisses sending a burning sensation

down her body

making her convulse in his hot embrace

which made her feel like

kisses of death.

-----------With the ticking away of time

she found him

full of remorse for his

thousand kisses of death

he planted around her in the noon.

She saw his face

turn pale-yellowish to crimson -red

a sort of helplessness

reflected in his thousand eyes

before going down for the day

with the promise of coming back

and wake her up

to hold her in his arms

and plant thousands of

cool and warm kisses

to make her fresh and delighted 

to cheer her up 

to find her in good spirits

by heralding a new dawn ……  

IDEAL COUPLE

The ailing old man

remained happy and contented

forgot all his pains and worries

with her always by his side

as his shadow

showering copious rains of love and care.

With their children far, far away

and the feeling of being left alone

she always took extra care to

see him forget all his worries

and pains and the feeling of being left alone. 

Weaving a pleasant smile on her lips

she attended to all his needs

without him asking her and derived pleasure

to find him in good humour always

in the sunset of his life.

Though old age helplessness, illness

worries and pains needled  her

she always cared to conceal her gnawing pains

which even in her old age

remains like a scar in her life. 

All nights, after ensuring

him plunging into deep slumber

an outflow of pent-up emotions followed.

She recalled the days

she spent, cocooned in a shell

 the agonizing pain of being an unrequited lover

haunted her.

Despite her sincere wish

to wipe out from her memory that bitter past

‘HE’  always came to her uninvited

and made her sob like a child.

With tears pouring down her cheeks profusely.

NARENDRA MODI’S KERALA VISIT AND THE PROTESTS LAUNCHED BY OPPPOSITION PARTIES

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s Kerala visit kicked up an unnecessary controversy by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and United Democratic Front (UDF) leaders rendering the man undue publicity. By raising a hullaballoo by these leaders, it was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and in particular Mr.Modi who took advantage of the situation most. His visit to inaugurate the 51^st Sree Naryana Dharmameemsa Parishath in response to the invitation of the Sanyasins of Sivagiri could have been treated as a trivial matter, if not a non-issue. The political leaders, belonging to LDF and UDF rightly boycotted the function to mark their protests over his presence at the function. Though it was right on their part, by invoking widespread protests and political mudslinging between BJP on the one hand and UDF and LDF on the other hand actually helped in raising the stature of Mr.Modi. It also helped BJP cash in on his much touted visit.

Right from V.S.Achuthanandan, A.K.Antony and Rahul Gandhi representing Left and Right – declined to participate in the function attended by Mr.Modi. That was their discretion and their conviction and ‘courage’ are laudable. True. But by opening the Pandora’s Box the shrewd politician in Modi gained much prominence among the majority community across Kerala.

Ever since the 2002 pogrom – the large-scale slaughter of a minority community allegedly by the covert or overt support of Chief Minister Modi. Mr.Modi has not yet apologized to the Quitbudheen Ansaris, Sakia Jeffreys of Gujarat which gave him the image of a ruler whose hands are tainted with blood of innocent victims. As long as he is not ready to sincerely atone for his alleged sins the politician in Modi will find it difficult to wash his hands off the blood of innocent human beings.

Why the Sanyasins of Sivagiri took the unanimous decision of inviting Mr.Modi? It is for them to respond. Mr.Modi had no qualms in quoting Sree Narayana Guru’s Oru Jathi Oru Matham Oru Daivam Manushiyanu (One Caste, One religion, One God for mankind) and those so-called devotees and other audience who listened to his speech in rapt attention and frequently clapped their hands throughout his speech. In other words ‘it was like Devil preaching scriptures’ others might have felt who are well aware of his tainted political past.

Be that as it may, to make a mountain out of a mole hill by the UDF and LDF leaders was absolutely unwarranted. Modi is after all an Indian citizen and he has the freedom of speech and expression as long as it won’t lead to chaos and he is vested with the right to travel across India. If Narendra Modi has been raised to the stature of the supposed Prime Ministerial candidate in the coming General Elections scheduled to be held in 2014, part of the blame rests on the shoulders of the both leftists and rightists like Indian National Congress and regretfully by the media. Modi drew more and more strength from their gratuitous “political” utterances often crossing the limits. His ‘national stature’ is partly because of his much trumpeted development programmes by unrolling the red carpet to the business and industrial tycoons. The sorry truth is that rural Gujarat especially the rural Saurashtra is still reeling under poverty.

Modi’s Kerala visit and the resultant controversy helped a lot in polarizing two major communities of Kerala which could tilt the scales in his and his party’s favour with the approach of general elections. 

CITY OF HARMONY

City of Harmony

is a city where

harmony never exists. 

Embers of anger

embers of violence

embers of religious conflicts

refuse to die down

instead

the more the quest for harmony and peace

the more intense the clashes and blood-shed

city of harmony experiences.               

MY NEW NOVEL

MY NEW MALAYALAM NOVEL PUBLISHED - "DECEMBER ORU THUDAKKAMANU"

BRIGHTNESS IN THE DARKNESS

Under the dark cloudy sky

in the thick frozen darkness

enveloping the land

how come this  garden

this garden alone

shines as in the day-time

displaying its world of colours

while the whole lush greenery

of the land

has turned dusky robbing off

the greenery of leaves, rivers and ponds

and colours of flowers............?

In the vast sprawling garden

shining under the frozen darkness

an angelic beauty is seen

tending her plants and flowers

unmindful of the thick darkness in her

brightly attired

star-studded white flowing dress.

Is this because the angelic beauty

radiates her luminous presence

exclusively for her garden of colours?

Wish she could radiate her brightness

all around the land

in the thick and dark cloudy skies….

MYSTERY OF LIFE

Like a kingfisher dives down to a pond

from nowhere

and carries its victim

between its beaks

and makes a vanishing

appearance with lightening speed,

like a mentally deranged

youth on a sudden impulse

loses his senses and

guns down innocent kids,

like a dictator shoots

down his innocent subjects cold-bloodedly

with no qualms whatsoever,

like an airplane

nosedives into a sea or an ocean

killing hundreds of passengers

on board instantly,

death snuffs out human lives each day

irrespective of young or old in split-seconds.

How ephemeral is human existence on earth?

THE OUTSIDER

The sense of alienation,

the angst,

agony,

sorrow,

and anger,

one undergoes,

in a metropolis or an alien country.

The sense of alienation,

one undergoes,

in his/her home,

which is more painful,

and agonizing,

which one would you prefer?......

Which one would you prefer?.....

Which one would you prefer?.,…

  

GUN CULTURE – THE DAILY NIGHTMARE OF AMERICANS

Gun-lobby in US had the last laugh when it came to the issue of Gun Bill. In spite of President Obama’s earnest efforts to ensure that the ongoing menace of Gun culture prevalent in US be contained, he couldn’t convince all Senators, both Republicans and a minority of Democrats, as they were determined to defeat it at any cost and they made it sure that it was defeated. It needs only commonsense to surmise that those Senators who voted against the Bill had done it to appease the National Rifles Association (NRA).

The government couldn’t garner the much needed 60 votes for its passage, instead the bill was voted down with 54 Senators in favour and 46 against.

The irony is that as President Obama said while 90 percent of the American citizens are in favour of controlling the Gun-lobby, it was quiet sad that the bill couldn’t go thru in the Senate owing to the stubborn attitude of a few Senators. As a result of the Bill not getting passed Obama got furious over the way certain Senators voted and reminded those Senators of the trauma, pain and sorrow, the parents, friends and relatives of 20 students of Newton school, Sandwick, Connecticut and 6 elders who were gunned down by Adam Lanza, a 20 year old juvenile, underwent. Gun-culture like a hydra squeezing America of its very essence baring its tentacles and prey on its victim. It has become common and prevalent - this gun-culture across USA - the blood-chilling incidents of gunning down teenagers, youth, old men and women by mentally deranged or  those acting on the spur of the moment, which could sent shivers down the spines of others.

Without taking this to account still the National Rifles Association (NRA) with the leg-up provided by certain politicians actively campaigning for the non-passage of the bill in the Senate.

Not because each US politician is quite aware of the dire consequences this gun culture poses to the society as a whole, but because he needs them in the long run especially when elections are round the corner. If they had the security and welfare of their citizens in mind they would not have sided with the Gun lobby. Instead they have certain ulterior motives. From the very day Obama was sworn in as President of America, right from 2008, Republicans had/have wasted no opportunity in putting blockades in his way. As a result his every good intention was is thwarted by Republicans in US Congress where Democrats are only a minority compared to the former.

With the bill getting defeated the National Rifles Association and a few Senators could very well have the last laugh. The Gun lobby can’t even imagine a situation of them being controlled by the govt since it would ultimately harm their business interests. 

As long as this abhorrent and reprehensible mindset prevails, US’s Gun culture is there to stay and the Newton School Sandwick type massacres are also there to stay. And Obama will have to learn with the filibustering tactics of Republican members, both in Senate and Congress.     

THE THOUGHTS

Like commuters rush into a local train

or

like rivers in spate overflowing, inundating

vast areas making the land a sea

thoughts rush in handy

following no pattern.

The arduous task of arranging them in order

or brick by brick is time-consuming

forcing our nerves stretch to its limits.

No wonder

to impart a shape to this shapeless world

is something testing our patience

but the truth is, it though painful

is delighting as well, exhilarating as well

after everything is arranged and given a shape.

To derive the pleasure and sweet pain

we indulge in arranging our thoughts

in the cells of our minds throughout our life.

INDIA – IS THIS COUNTRY EVOLVING INTO A RAPE-TORN NATION?

Unlike the war-ravaged countries of Middle-East and African countries we Indians draw immense pride in being a democratic country. Unlike the war-torn countries where rapes are occurring in lakhs and lakhs, our’s is a democratic country  and is believed to be a peace-loving one where everything is moving along a smooth plain and if one thinks along that lines it is utterly ludicrous, if recent developments are an indication.

India, the largest democracy, thus we are taught to believe on a daily basis witness mind-boggling, blood-chilling and outrageous rapes of women and children. In bringing out such cases our media plays a pro-active role and makes one ponder over the intensity and immensity of the menace. ‘Look, such things are happening in our country, See India has turned out to be rape-torn country where under the very noses of ruling mandarins, we mean the capital of India, Delhi, rapes are mounting in hundreds as the days move along compared to the menace occurring across other States’. True, India is evolving into a rape-torn country if not a war-torn country where incidents of rapes are running in lakhs.

Only four months have passed since a 23-year old physiotherapy student of AIIMS was brutally raped on a running bus by six thugs which forced thousands of citizens across the country especially Delhi spilling out into the streets where the girl-student was based who later succumbed to death in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore.

For the authorities it was business as usual who were ‘shocked’, ‘alarmed’ and crocodile tears shed profusely and to placate the fuming citizens appointed a commission, with Justice J.S.Verma, as the Chairman,  known for his ability to stand by his principles and also renowned for his legal acumen. Justice Verma realizing the gravity of the problem submitted his report within a record time of one month which if implemented could have helped a lot in rooting out the evil. On the contrary India govt introduced and passed a Bill on Crime Against Women in Lok Sabha diluting the Verma Commission’s recommendations which provided many loop-holes for the criminals to escape the clutches of the law.

The incidents of rape didn’t come down as the govt had many other business to concentrate which helped the thugs roam freely through the streets of Delhi non-chalantly. They too went on with their businesses as usual.

This week, our nation witnessed two brutal rapes, one in UP and the other in Delhi. The UP girl after being raped was brutally murdered and her bereaved mother who gave vent to her anger was seen on television screens being kicked and thrown away by the men in khaki.

Whither our country is drifting to?

We are compelled to ask this question on listening to and witnessing the chain of rapes occurring across our country.

After Nirbhaya, the 23 year old physiotherapy student who was sexually assaulted on a moving bus and thrown away to the streetside along with her lover, now comes another equally shocking incident of rape of a five year old girl by a sex-starved demon in a locked room for two consecutive days badly damaging her sexual organs. 

If the residents in the first floor had not heard the child’s cries of pain, she would have been done to death and thrown away somewhere. The residents on hearing the girl child’s cries duly informed the so-called low enforces, so-called in the sense that with the enraged crowd spilling out into the streets to protest and raise slogans, a shouting lady was slapped by the Assistant Commissioner of Police who has since been put under suspension. With dust settling down don’t be surprised if he is reinstated with promotion in future.

The girl-child whose inner parts were grievously damaged was first admitted in Swami Dayanand Hospital where the treatment facilities are reported to be insufficient was later transferred to AIIMS after widespread demands by the citizens to get her admitted to a super-specialty hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Her condition is reported to be precarious and doctors have set 24 hrs to inform if there is any progress in her state. She has since been shifted to a hospital in Nagpur, it is learnt.

Has India evolved into an accursed country? Has democracy turned out to be a liability rather than an asset? Are people losing faith in democracy? On going thru the ‘developments’ in various walks of life we don’t see anything to be proud of. Scams, scandals, industry-bureaucrat-politician nexus, poverty, corruption, unemployment and the so far hidden curse of rapes everything erodes our faith in our 66 year-old democracy.            

FOR EVERY SUNSET, THERE ‘S SUNRISE

If life is an endless

train with umpteen compartments halting at every station

we are the travellers.

If life is a mirror

hold it up towards ourselves

and watch our countless manifestations.  

If ‘life is a tale told by an idiot’

we are all idiots.

And if life is not a bed of roses

it is not the rose plants to blame.

We should keep in mind the eternal truth while

plucking sweet-scented rose blooms

we might have to suffer the needles of thorns

piercing our skin, with blood oozing out,

if not careful.

For each rose flower

there are hundreds of thorns

in a rose plant.

I wonder whether there is a

rose plant without thorns ….

sometimes yes, sometimes no…

SHE

Her mind a

fathomless sea,

Her patience unlimited

like infinity,

Her love so intense, 

and deep but hidden like, 

an invaluable treasure no one,  

will be able to locate which,

anyone can’t ever make out from her looks

appearance or demeanor.

Her revenge so intense that, 

it is a fuming volcano about to erupt any time,

spewing red hot lava and ashes, 

spreading a vast, unlimited area.

THE MEDIA

Media,

be it newspaper, radio

television or internet

is a cocktail of news

which makes you shake

with sadness, shock and sorrow

it makes you

ponder over the way the

the world we inhabit moves along

it makes you

cry, laugh, sizzle, giggle

frown, excite and frighten, fret and fume.

Media

be it newspaper, radio

television or internet

is a cocktail of news and we like a

group of confirmed drunkards, get inebriated

forcing us to

go deep into the enormity

and seriousness of

the problems confronting whole world

it makes you

it stretches your nerves to its limits

or makes you relax

on going thru a variety of items

like gossip and rumours,

that which persuades

you burst out laughing

aloud or whisper in the ears of

others the hot news flowing from the

tinsel world.

Enlightening news

from the world of art and literature

like music, melodious or rocking

an array of

different kinds of dances,

literature which

interpret various manifestations of human life

painting, sculpting and artisanship

which makes you

marvel at the beauty and

the blessed hands behind

their creations simultaneously.

In the end you get intoxicated with

multiple emotions you undergo

like the pace

with which the scenes

in a celluloid poem flashes along.

Media

be it newspaper, radio

television or internet

is a cocktail of news

forcing you to cry, ponder,

worry, laugh, sizzle and

giggle simultaneously.

All said and done,

agonizing and frightening news

gains the upper hand over the

delightful news in the world we live in.

THE DOVE

Don’t nurture the illusion that

I’m oblivious of your dark pursuits.

Don’t have the foolhardiness

to believe that

in the event of an encounter

you can take on me with your

arsenal of lethal weapons.

I never keep lethal weapons

will never keep them

they don’t have any place in my life

still you can’t score over me

you might feel it incredible

and utter foolery on my part

and might laugh at me

believe it or not

thru my dove of

peace, love and harmony

I am sanguine about conquering you.

It is my ultimate weapon

my one and only weapon.

Wish you could realize it

even at this late hour.  

THE SHADOWS

From the sunrise of my life

 I had a hobby of

watching and enjoying  shadows

my shadows, others’ shadows

even the shadows of plants and trees

and their leaves and flowers engaging in

dancing on the whitewashed walls of my home.

Lengthened shadows,

shortened shadows,

and medium shadows, 

all shadows

in the sun and night.

Whenever my grandmother

saw me watching shadows

in the night or during the day

she wasted no opportunity

to admosnish me

not to look at shadows .

‘It is not a good habit, my child

watching shadows’ – she reminded me, reprimanded me

even pinched my ears frowning at me.

It was my pleasure to

run my fingers through

her silvery hairs reminding one of cotton wools

which looked like her pure white village dress.

She was too fond of me that

whenever she got something

new to taste, chew and swallow

mouth-watering mango fruits, bananas,

oranges, sweet and tasty eatables.

She would call me to the kitchen

while playing with my friends

would whisper to me – ‘Don’t

tell your friends, have it’

mango fruits, grapes, oranges ,

bananas, eatables…..

Despite her sweet advices and cajoling

reprimands and even pinching

when it came to the habit of watching shadows.

I continued to indulge in the hobby stealthily

without her being aware of.

It was something mysterious

the shadows moving to and fro  

watching them playing and

imitating me on the whitewashed walls of 

my home.

I began to hate shadows

and to fear shadows

of myself and others

since my grandmother’s death.

Though I hated them, feared them

since her death

once in a while my

eyes would cajole me to

watch my shadow

but in the next second

I turned back in hatred and fear.

But now in my middle-age

with remorse

I realized

I was running after shadows

still run after shadows

and as long as  I am alive

I have no escape from shadows.

Sometimes I feel

I am chasing shadows

since the sunrise of my life

which is true?...... I know not…

NICOLAS MADURO SCRAPES THROUGH WITH A SLENDER MARGIN IN VENEZUELA

Contrary to expectations of a brutal majority, Nicolas Maduro, the Vice President of Venezeula whom Hug Chavez had chosen as his successor, scraped thru with a slender margin over his formidable rival Henrique Capriles represented by the coalition of Democratic Unity (MDU) in the elections held on Sunday to be the incoming President of Venezuela. While Nicolas Maduro polled 50.66% his nearest rival Capriles polled 49% plus giving a slender margin of one and half percent. 78.6% of Venezuelans exercised their franchise where the population is almost nineteen million. Henrique Capriles has disputed the result and has demanded a recount. It is worthwhile to recall here that in the previous election Mr.Hugo Chavez had scored 56% while Mr.Capriles, his rival polled nearly 40% a victory margin of 11% for Chavez over his nearest rival Capriles.

It is not only embarrasing, but alarming that even while riding on a sympathy wave soon after Chavez’s death Mr.Maduro could win the election with a wafer thin majority. It is a pointer and also a warning to the United Socialist Party of Venezeula of which Maduro is the leader Venezeuleans expect more from the current dispensation or else the Maduro’s party will have to clear the way for the opposition which has proved beyond doubt that it is a formidable rival which is in hot pursuit of power in Venezuela since more than a decade.

It is an open question that whether Mr.Maduro could come up to the level of his leader who since 1999 was in the saddle riding the crest of a popular wave. It is better we may throw the question to the future.

No doubt a huge chunk of elites of Venezuela must have tried hard to elevate Mr.Capriles to power whose interests, he represents with the generous support of a nation like USA which since Hugo Chavez came to power in 19999 is bent upon toppling his government at any cost. If US had failed in its attempts it was only because of Chavez’s huge popularity among the Venezueleans especially the toiling masses in the lower strata of the country and the lower middle class. His charisma played a greater role in snatching the love and plaudits from the afore-mentioned classes. Venezuela’s elite class but abhorred Mr.Chavez because he was an obstacle to their dreams of cornering vast resources of Venezuela. It is quite certain that they did extend massive support to these elites to ensure that the regime is toppled from the seat of power both overtly and covertly.

We must not but forget the sad truth that massive debt, rampant crime, devaluation of the currency resulting in inflation rate running beyond 25% and frequent black-outs also are reasons for the drop in popularity of the current dispensation. But that never eclipses the vast contributions to the downtrodden and lower middle classes of Venezuelan society by Chavez’s regime and currently led by Nicolas Maduro. For the upliftment of the masses Chavez initiated a slew of reform measures and we need not list out each of them here since political observers had written about them which I had mentioned in one of my blogs. And his love and sympathy for the suffering masses endeared him to them.

If Mr.Maduro is determined to follow in the foot-steps of his mentor with much more vigour, determination and courage a bright future awaits the entire Venezuela or if he deviates from the people- friendly policies adopted by his mentor, the future of Venezuela will be bleak. No doubt.

Let’s hope, this fifty year old former bus driver would do a lot for the betterment of Venezueleans with him taking up the mantle.       

THE TRAUMA FACED BY WOMEN IN WAR-TORN COUNTRIES

At a moment the entire world is getting more and more concerned about the hardships and sufferings of the women in distress, last Thursday, in London G8 countries held a historic summit on the hot topic which should have got adequate coverage by the media the subject deserved but didn’t get it and it got drowned in the avalanche of the fears about a nuclear war erupting in the Korean Peninsula between the North and South Koreas and USA and in addition to it the ongoing blood-spilt in Syria which is threatening the very stability of entire Middle East.

The G8 Summit was held in London to discuss and deliberate over the hot topic of women being subjected to brutal rape and sexual menace, torture and murders across the world especially in the war-torn countries.

William Hague, British Foreign Secretary, a week before the summit had written about the subject which needs immediate and urgent attention of everybody concerned. It is unfortunate that the Summit couldn’t get adequate coverage by the media which had got drowned due to the looming war clouds over North and South Koreas and USA.

William Hague in his article points his fingers to the plight of women being raped, sexually assaulted, tortured and even murdered across the war-torn nations, majority of them inhabitants of  African continent where poverty, education, clothes, health and basic amenities of life badly needed by them. They are deprived of these on account of the devastating wars among different nations.

Mr.Hague had conducted a tour across the African countries to get first hand information on the trials and tribulations being faced by the suffering masses especially women and children.

He is very much concerned over the wretched situation prevailing among the women who always live in panic due to the threat of rape, sexual abuse and torture inflicted by the war criminals and the anti-social elements.  

He travelled from Rwanda to Congo (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Libya to Sierra Leonne where lakhs and lakhs are undergoing this trauma. He adds that since 1996 in the Democratic Republic of Congo over 500000 rape cases were reported during the war.

Here he dwells on the immediacy with which these threats are to be attended to by all countries especially the developed nations like Britain and US.

He doesn’t hide the tragic fact that, in the search for a formula to bring to an end to the devastating wars and its aftermaths, the women’s issues of rape, sexual abuse, torture and murders are being relegated to the background. He is of the categorical opinion that without finding a solution to this burning issue which needs to be treated as a case of acute emergency, no lasting peace in the war torn countries is possible.

Turning a blind eye and deaf ears to the cries for help by these tragic figures would result in failure and no amount of efforts would help to bring about a durable solution. Unfortunately the issue of traumatized women is being overlooked.

Mr.Hague’s cites four reasons why the matter is not being given a proper attention which is badly needed at this critical juncture.

According to Mr.Hague the first reason is nothing other than the label of stigma attached to rape and sexual abuse. The womens’ fear of being ostracized by the society in which they pull on prevents them from coming forward, mustering courage, determination and will.

The second reason according to Mr.Hague is lack of evidence that if and when the issues reach a court which is vested with the ultimate authority to bring the culprits to book. Consequently the culprits always escape the scene and roam freely through the streets.

And the painful reaction according to Mr.Hague is the lack of funds to the UN agencies, local organizations and human rights institutions to extend a helping hand to the hapless women for whom life on earth is a chain of nightmares.

Besides the women’s issue is being treated as a secondary issue which should have got urgent and foremost attention. In order to meet this acute emergency a Summit represented by the foreign secretaries of eight nations to discuss and deliberate upon how to find a lasting solution to this perennial problem to cater to the needs of the suffering women whole developed nations reportedly have decided to create a foundation by generous contributions and also to create an International protocol with UN co-operation are essential. Mr.Hague sought a ‘wide set of practical commitments that include recognizing that rape and serious sexual violence are grave breaches of Geneva Conventions; greater funding and long term support for survivors and support for a new International Protocol that will set out agreed standards for investigating and documenting sexual violence’.  

The Summit wound up on a confident note representing eight foreign secretaries of eight nations (G8). Let’s hope for better results.

                      

ACCUSTOMED EARTH

One’s life is a bridge

over which he/she alone

has the monopoly

or put it mildly

the sole ownership

bestowed upon him/her which is  

already decided by one’s destiny

so be it.

-------The sunrise as a baby girl

attired in birthday suit 

then with the river of time flowing

evolve into a child

clad in baby frocks.

As a village lass in skirt and jacket

sometimes extending up to the ankles

sometimes getting shortened up to the knees

she was a village lass with

anklets tingling, tingling and tingling

with her every movement.

With her friends

most of them girls in their teens

the period

they indulged in colourful dreams, fantasies and

teenage love.

Time never stops

time keep on racing ahead

with lightening speed

and with the destiny demanding

she be uprooted from the sylvan surroundings

and be planted on the soil of metropolis.

She missed her childhood friends,

the wonderful world of greenery

where ponds, streams, rivulets

rivers and lakes, steep hills

and thick forests all she

lost badly.

During her first few months she felt like

a fish out of water

at the outset,

nostalgia, home-sickness

anything you might call it

natural it was.

Without she being

aware of a series of developments

on a daily basis  

and ear-splitting surroundings

she got evolved into a sophisticated girl

and she got accustomed with the way the

city moved ahead

surrendering to the fatal charm of the metropolis.

She had already bid goodbye to 

the glorious days she spent

in the sylvan surroundings she was blessed with once.

The  skirt and jacket gone

the everyday pilgrimage

to the rural temple gone

the anklets which

gave her movements tinkling

tinkling and tinkling gone

everything the village

had gifted her profusely  gone

now she,

you see 

she is a typical, sophisticated city girl

with her once long flowing hairs cut to size

she frequented the beauty parlours

and in the place  of jackets, skirts and sarees

her sartorial elegance underwent

incredible changes.

Now she is seen in

tight jeans and T-shirts, churidhars, salwar and kameez

pants and shirts, all colourful

and a number of friends,

all typical city youth.

She cares not what all she has lost

with she being planted on the

city soil

she cares not, cares not

cares not,

either pretending to be unaware of

or she gets no time

to reflect upon those old glorious days

while she was a rural lass….     

IT SO HAPPENS IN LIFE….

Believe it or not

such  things are possible in life,

Believe it or not 

anything is possible in life.

Would you believe me

or take it with a pinch of salt

if I disclose a secret in my life?

Believe it or not it so

happened in my life, sorry our life.

In the prime of my life 

I happened to meet a blonde

in her twenties

while both of us happened to be in

the same compartment of a

long distance train.

Though I wished to

inquire many things to her

she too might have

attempted to share her

countless feelings with me.

Both of us

thru innumerable glances

conveyed abundant messages

the initiative didn’t come forth from both of us

a barrage of inquiries

for reasons unknown to both of us

got locked in our tongues unable to

come forth

though both of us

hoped to nurture the plant of love

and hoped to see our sweet dreams

bearing flowers, if not fruits

both of us shrugged away

from watering the plants of mutual attraction.

It was not because of

lack of courage or

anyone being discouraged

or due to shyness or

the apprehension of someone

eavesdropping, so I believe.

While our train

raced ahead thru a long dark tunnel for more than

five minutes

I and she like magnets

locked in a passionate embrace and

innumerable kisses

feeling each others lips

which spoke of thousands and thousands of love

we did care to utter anything.

With the train coming

to the world of light

both of us like

two strange bed fellows

pulled away from

each other of course

with smiles on our lips.

Still we desisted from

uttering even a single word

to each other.

Both of us might have

had a notion than

love or mutual attraction never

needs words.

Somewhere along the way

she conveyed goodbye

by waving her hands at me

and forgot not to gift me flying kiss.

I too responded

by waving hands and a flying kiss.

Deep down in my heart

I silently conveyed my heartfelt wishes.

Believe it or not

it so happens in life

and for that matter

anything could happen

in our life.

Both remain unaware

of each others’ whereabouts

perhaps she must be my neighbour in

the suburb  

or else she might be

in a faraway land.

Such things could

happen in our life

believe it or not…

THE FLAME OF MADNESS

From the day

I was blest with the

boon of thinking

from the day I was blest

with the boon of

imagination

from the day, I got

sensitive to the happenings

around me

from the day

I started mixing my

fantasies and realties

from the day

my thoughts, imaginations

and fantasies

evolved into a pattern

from the day

I was blest with the rare virtue of

putting my feelings into white sheets

from the day

I started scribbling

little little things first

then big, big and big things

I have always cared

to ‘keep a flame of

madness’ in a corner

of mind

and am extra-conscious

to keep that flame intact…….  

PS : Courtesy to Paulo Coelho     

THE BEASTLY KILLLING OF AN SFI ACTIVIST IN WEST BENGAL AND ITS REPERCUSSIONS

Sudipta, you were a budding flower nipped in the bud

by ruthless elements

Sudipta, you too had cherished umpteen dreams

of a nation being led by a compassionate dispensation

in the corridors of power in Delhi.

You dreamt an egalitarian society

where everyone is treated as equal

you always kept a flame of revolution intact in your mind

you need not worry as lakhs are there

to see that one day

your dreams would be fructified.

Red Salute to you, my friend.

In West Bengal, Mamata Banerji came to power riding the crest of a popular wave two years back. It was a historic win since she could bring down Left Front Government which had ruled the State for 34 years uninterrupted. Fed up with the rule of Left Front Government of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee the masses voted enmasse to Trinamool Congress led by (Mamata Banerji)  bestowing her party with a huge mandate which was looked upon with surprise, astonishment, embarrassment and prolific plaudits.

Since Jyoti Basu became Chief Minister of West Bengal in the year 1977 - he too entered the Writer’s Building riding on the crest of a popular wave - West Bengal was under the control of Left Front led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) for more than three decades. The Left Front could enjoy massive popular support for a long period both under Jyoti Basu and his successor Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee for a prolonged period till the latter went out of his way to bring in corporates like a multinational, Salim Group of Indonesia and Ratan Tata to set up shops in Nandigram and Singur against the wishes of peasants and farmers who were the backbone of the Left Front for a long time. Bhattacharjee’s overzealousness to bring to the State industrialization at any cost resulted in the forcible evacuation of these toiling farmers from their lands which forced them to turn against the LF govt led by the former. Before plunging into a decision by holding consultations with the representatives of farmers, peasants and share croppers he naturally invited the wrath of the former and which forced them to organize large- scale protests and rallies against the alleged move which was responded by brutal suppression unleashed by the law and machinery under the control of the State govt, which resulted in rivers of blood spilling down the streets both at Nandigram and Singur.

When the situation turned bad to worse the whole of Bengal erupted in anger and protests which was whole-heartedly supported by the writers like Mahasweta Devi, intellectuals, film personalities like Mrinal Sen and Aparna Sen and people from all walks of life who came forward to join the deprived ones and the farmers which was capitalized by Ms.Mamata Banerji taking up the cause of evacuees who were evacuated from their lands where they and their children were pulling on since generations.

It was natural that the people, the ones who worked tirelessly for the left parties, who stood with the leftists thru thick and thin since decades reposed their full faith in the latter who sent the leftists to the Writer’s Building turned tables on the latter and swore to bring down their ‘enemies’ at the first available opportunity and ensured the fall of the govt on the day of reckoning. That moment came and they did what they ought to have done ie, they brought down their ‘enemies’ and elevated the new found protector to the seat of power. And that protector was Mamata Banerji who took up their cause when they needed it badly. Unfortunately,soon after Mamata came to power her blind opposition to (Communist Party of India[Marxist]) led her to go on a witch-hunt against her enemy, which resulted in mass arrests incarcerations and even murders.

Without she being aware of herself she was turning to be an authoritarian which made her act ruthlessly against whoever indulged in innocuous criticism.

Soon after occupying the saddle she turned against the Communist Party of India (Maoists) who she had befriended during her movement on the issues of Nandigram and Singur and went on a massive hunt which resulted in the killing of a number of Maoists who were hiding in their safe havens in West- Midnapur, Lalgrah. She saw caricatures on her as unpardonable insult to her and displayed the audacity to arrest the caricaturists by assaulting them and even imprisoning them for weeks. A college Professor Ambikesh Mahapatra was incarcerated for drawing a caricature on her in a social networking site.

Another instance was while addressing a rally a poor farmer stood up and asked her, what all good measures her govt had done for the poor farmers like him. The poor farmer had never ever imagined even in his wildest of dreams, he would be branded as a maoist. Mamata threw tantrums and asked the security personal to arrest him then and there and take him into custody. He was even denied bail for him ‘crime’ of inquiring such an innocuous matter.

While addressing a group of college students with CNN IBN’s Sagarika Ghosh acting as moderator she walked out in a huff, fretting and fuming while facing questions by the students. Sagarika Ghosh’s effort to pacify the lady didn’t pay off.

Of late the alleged beating up and subsequent death of Sudipta Gupta, an SFI activist under police custody shook entire Bengal. The State witnessed massive protests by the students and they flocked into the streets in thousands demanding an independent enquiry. Mamata’s expected reply was it must have been an accidental death. The cavaliar approach of a Chief Minister to such a sensitive issue enraged the entire student community and soon the State plunged into chaos .

Adding insult to injury was her petty remark that  Sudipta’s family would be extended adequate compensation.

On hearing such an offer Sudipta’s father and his sister got enraged and responded angrily by saying that what they wanted was an enquiry by an independent agency and they had even knocked on the doors of West Bengal Governor M.K.Narayanan as they didn’t expect justice from Mamata. It was like a slap on Mamata’s face when Sudipta’s sister told the former that Sudipta was not the bread winner of her family. And her father mocked the Chief Minitser asking whether she could bring back his son alive.

Within two years, Mamata’s rule is getting on the nerves of the Bengalese if she is bent upon going on like this what would be the future of West Bengal where luminaries like Rabindranatha Tagore and Satyajit Ray lived?

As a repercussion to Sudipta’s alleged murder, Amit Mitra, West Bengal’s Finance Minister was manhandled by the alleged activists of Students Federation of India at Delhi Mamata too was heckled by them while they came out after finishing the annual plan for the State which had a domino effect in West Bengal resulting in massive violence allegedly by the activists of Trinamool Congress. Now it is free for all in West Bengal.     

THE POND

Sitting by the side of

the rectangular pond

filled to the brim

with calm, quiet and serene water

the pond resembled a prism

or to be more apt a mirror

reflecting the blue sky up above

in the afternoon

I bent over and saw myself

being mirrored by the pond.

I hoped and wished

for a transparent, pure, tranquil mind

which unlike the  

calm, serene, quiet pond

without any ripples

 is unfortunately a  tumultuous

roaring sea

since a prolonged time.

I saw fish and

water-snakes

coming to the surface and

diving to the bottom intermittently

like children playing pranks

but without disturbing

the serenity of the lucky pond

I recalled the days

while I was a child

throwing pebbles at the water 

creating multiple ripples

which I later repented.

Enjoying the cool

breeze flying over

the green paddy fields

I sat beside the pond

atoning for my innocent sins.

Sitting beside the pond

to my shock and arrant confusion something

heavy fell into the pond from nowhere.  

My eyes  went moist

 on watching the

multiple ripples in the pond

disturbing the serenity of it.

My eyes wandered around

in annoyance to find out the culprit.

I saw a child running faster

to nowhere like a butterfly

fluttering its wings flying away.

My mind travelled back to the city

from where I came to my home

the other day for one month.

traversing long distance

and the sea where the whole time

life is like a turbulent sea with

countless waves speeding to the shore,

hitting the rocks and speeding back

with double the force

only to return with much vigour  and strength

I waited for the mild ripples to vanish

as I wished to see serene pond again

which could soothe

my tormented, agonizing mind at least

for a while….

But what baffled me was

the little child who played with prank

by throwing something heavy into the pond

who disappeared with lightning speed……

Was he myself of the yester years…………..?     

THE RESPITE

The city was literally burning

and the citizens literally melting

with an angry, agitated Sun

showering fire over

the city through his thousand

red-hot eyes.

These are his times

I mean, the searing Summer.

With the atmospheric temperature

gaining the upper hand

over the body temperatures

Sun was literally striking

with citizens convulsing with

Sun burns and Sun strokes.

Our prayers turned to 

the Rain God

to have some mercy on us

by spreading a thick dark

blanket of clouds

thus obstructing the

unrelenting sun

from raining fires thru

his thousand eyes

which are red-hot

and blinding.

Rain God must have

heard our months long

non-stop prayers

after a long spell

he showered

his cool, loving

and caring honey drops

over our city lavishly.

Through the windows

mind you, all windows

and doors are kept on

these days

since the sun began to

cast his fiery spell

with fans contracting

madness by showering

hot waves over us

not affectionate and cooling embraces.

I watched with delight

the drops of love

cooling the city as a whole

four hours together.

At least for today night

we citizens can sleep

peacefully….

what about tomorrow?

No doubt.

Sun with revenge

in his thousand red-hot eyes

will start raining fire

over the city

literally burning it

literally melting us citizens

‘cause, these are his times.

I mean the Summer. 

ASKING MYSELF

Ever seen a garden

without blooming flowers

of different complexions

showcasing a world of variety entertainment?

Ever seen a village

without a river, a canal, or  

a stream gurgling forth

or at least a pond filled with azure waters?

(even while remaining aware of brutal raping of

our ecological blessings by the plunderers

to gratify their greeds on a regular basis)

Ever seen a town or city

without serpentine roads lined at both sides

with buildings, crowds and vehicles

‘full of sound and fury’ signifying many things?

And for that matter

ever seen a village, town or city

without temples, churches

and mosques where devotees belonging to

different religions offering prayers?

Ever seen a State or Country

without a namesake govt?

Friends, I was asking to myself

in the thick of night

while lying sleepless

under the speeding fan…..

THE UNSTOPPABLE TRAIN

Like an unstoppable

express running apace

beyond  destination

jumping all  hurdles

since time beyond remembrance

I move on.

I am neither God

with the power to guard

you against evils

like diseases, natural calamities,

wars, earthquakes nor famine.

Am neither your enemy

endowed with power to

punish you for the

deeds or misdeeds you might

commit any time in your lives

nor a beast on the prowl

preying any victims

in the forests and beyond their borders.

I don’t know who I am and what I am

I wish, I could.

Like an unstoppable express running apace

beyond destination

I keep on screeching

along or chugging along

hooting sirens non-stop

I keep on moving apace

apace and apace…

beyond destination

from time beyond remembrance….

No amount of force would suffice

to pull the chains in each compartment in me

to bring me to an abrupt halt.  

I don’t know who I am and what I am

I wish, I could.

THE NECTAR OF LOVE AND AFFECTION

Daily afternoon, after lunch interval

when the Sun was in his prime

it was her pleasure

to stand by the side of

the window of 13^th floor of her flat

gifting herself, to the winds blowing from the sea

a slice of which was visible to her

which looked like a glistening blade

under the searing Sun.

Parting the rose-window curtains

to have a glimpse of

a slice of the sea

glistening like a blade 

and the coconut vendor

standing behind a pile of tender coconuts

attired in tucked a dhoti

a banyan and a towel

tied tightly around his head

with a sharp knife in hand

ready to serve sweet tender coconut juice

to the passersby

who were short in number during  day time

just one, two or three

she knew him and was a familiar

face to him since years.

Whenever she walked out

of the flat

she would approach him and seek

his welfare and about

his family in a hamlet in faraway Kerala. 

Upon seeing her

he would pick out

a tender coconut from the heap

knife the top of the coconut

serve the sweet , tender

nectar like juice, inserting a straw into it. 

In the evening the calm

sea of the day time

would evolve into a

violent beauty

with the waves lashing the shore

which reminded her of the roar of laughter

by the violent beauty

with the crowds of

visitors walking to and for

in singles and pairs

in groups cracking joke or secrets, politics, family matters, love

days developments  in the city

and everything  under the sun

simultaneously enjoying the

violently dancing beauty

with the reflections

of the stars and moon

dancing along with her.

The leaves of

the of the tree of time withered 

away unawares 

and one day a usual

parting her window  curtains,

she peeped thru the window.

To her shock and embarrassment

the coconut vendor

and his pile of tender

coconuts were not there  

and the sea was unusually

violent like her turbulent mind.

The coconut vendor never

came back

yet she like the Mother Sea

continued to peep through the window

expecting him one day.

Though he was none to her.

The sweet taste of the nectar

he had served her

she will never forget……

                   

FOR RAHUL GANDHI, IT IS BUSINESS AS USUAL

Political leaders are adept in the art of double-speak. Congress Vice-President, Rahul Gandhi is no exception to this ‘universal truth’. Since the UPA I came to power in 2004, Rahul has never wasted an opportunity to acclaim the neo-liberal reforms initiated step by step by our Prime Minister Dr.ManMohan Singh. Almost nine years have gone since he came to power. If UPA II could come to power in 2009 it was not because of Congress’s sole efforts, but much credit could be given to the Leftists who literally arm twisted the former and Co. into introducing   pro-poor reforms in the forms of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme and massive debt waiving of toiling farmers across India especially those in the Vidharbha and its adjoining areas in Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh etc, by extending support from outside. This truth was overshadowed and overlooked by the electorate of India not because of their faults but because of the curse of infighting in CPI(M) (Communist Party of India – Marxist) which was the strongest among the Left Front  in terms of strength in Parliament. The aforesaid fact was the main reason for their debacle in the 2009 general elections. The Left Front which had a strong mandate in pushing the ManMohan govt to do a lot for the poor had a massive strength of 61 members in Parliament, had to satisfy with a meagre strength of 16 in 2009 general elections.

When elections were round the corner Congress came out with an oft-repeated slogan of hamara hath gareebee ke sath (our hands are with the poor) and its leaders could succeed in grabbing the poor into its fold who are perennially vulnerable to the machinations of Indian National Congress and Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP), the two strong contenders for power since years. 

Now that the Left Front is still in a weak position since their debacle in 2009 due to its on undoing by which what I mean is that leftist leaders have not come to forefront to spread their influence in most of the States especially in the Hindi-belt. As Atal Bihari Vajpayee had said once ‘the route to Delhi is through UP’. Unfortunately in the poverty-stricken States in the North like UP, Bihar, Orissa, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh and even Gujarat which is being acclaimed as a developed State by Narendra  Modi and his party , millions and millions of poor are below poverty line, they are the most harassed, they are the most neglected, they are the most ignored, most of them still starving, illiterate, malnourished, subjected to sexual harassments, torture and murder, unemployed and unhealthy.

Why the Leftists still shy away from spreading their base in those States if not why are they unable to expand their mass bases even in the first half of the 21^st century.

If they were able to succeed in exerting influence among the suffering millions across these States they would have flocked around them,no doubt.

Millions of Indians, especially the poor and middle-classes who bore the brunt  of carrying over their shoulders the ruling UPA or the Opposition BJP or the fence-sitters like Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and innumerable splinter parties who nurse no ideology or their only ideology remains one or two Ministerial posts at the centre. The more the Ministers, the better.

Rahul Gandhi who stands thru thick and thin with Dr.ManMohan Singh and his Co. for initiating the neo-liberal reforms on a war-footing, now speak for the poor and Aam admi (common man). Through the ongoing reforms whether he is nurturing the optimism that India’s poor and middle-classes would benefit. If he keeps an iota of conscience will he be able to stand by the Prime Minister of India. Not because this writer is totally against neo-liberal reforms, but Rahul and his mother Sonia Gandhi in their capacities as the top leaders of the Congress should have seen that the interest of the masses are properly taken care of.  

Addressing the CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) conference, three days before he spoke passionately for the poor and middle-class (Aam Admi) and if that be the case what is left for him to point a finger at any measures initiated for the welfare of these categories. He might point out CBT (Cash Benefits Transfer) and Food Security Bill. Without a moral prick would he say the recently introduced Food Security Bill in Parliament is better than Universal Public Distribution System and in this context please note that he sixty percent of Indians are living in rural areas. It remains to be seen how much the rural poor would benefit from cash benefits transfer (aap ka paisa aap ke sath) slogan. Whether it is likely to succeed in rural India? I doubt it. Since I have been for good part of my hitherto  life in rural India, I am very well aware of the difficulties faced by the poor and a middle class citizen like myself. Rahul should have known that how far a poor man or woman should walk or travel by bus to reach a bank in a village in rural India, especially North India. And to draw a meagre sum waiting for a beneficiary through his bank account the process is too convoluted.

On the one hand Rahul raises his hand in Parliament even for Foreign Direct Investment in Super Retail Market like Walmart, Carrouf and the likes. Since the UPA II came to power in 2009 Rahul has not at all backed out from voting for all reforms bills allegedly harmful for the common man and most  beneficial for the business and industry tycoons. Sometimes I wonder whether he lives in India or in moon. Why? You might ask? Whether this so-called Congress Vice President, not aware of the widening gap between the haves and have-nots across India? What response he might have to offer? No idea.

True, as he said to the press persons after the conference the absence of miracle man is India’s bane. During the last four years we saw a number of skeletons tumbling out of the cupboard like the infamous 2G Spectrum scam, Common Wealth Games scam, Coalgate scam, Adarsh Housing scam and scandals – all cost a huge loss to the exchequer literally draining the latter.

As per recent media reports, an advancement of Lok Sabha elections along with elections to Assemblies in a few States is possible.

Apart from Indian National Congress and Bharatiya  Janata Party, two strong contenders, in the absence of a third alternative it is likely that either Congress or BJP would come to power with the support of fence-sitters who are the king-makers in  a poor democratic country like India. Business as usual would go on. Either the UPA III govt or the NDA alliance under BJP is a near certainty. In the event of UPA III being elevated to power it is possible that Dr.ManMohan Singh is there to score a hatric. On the other hand in the event of NDA being elevated to power the new man in waiting Narendra Modi is certain to be catapulted to the prestigious post. He has already stitched his Prime Ministerial coat.

A hung Parliament is almost a certainty. Hence a coalition govt too is a certainty.

Rahul Gandhi as usual will continue to harp on double-speak. He always want to keep aloof from any prestigious post in a UPA III govt. Responsibility becomes an alien word to him when it comes to issue of holding power. Nice man.