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HT blanks Sibal story; Express gives its own slant

Ashish Shukla
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HT blanks Sibal story; Express gives its own slant

What’s OpIndia.com? Apparently nobody since Hindustan Times completely banned the Kapil Sibal “land deal” story which has propelled the remarkable website on to the national consciousness.

Who is Smriti Irani? Again nobody since Hindustan Times, leave aside the investigative story, didn’t  even consider the presser of India’s Human Resource Development minister worthy of coverage. Every other story, from a Karnataka chicken to dime-a-dozen weather reports, mocked at its readers in complete disdain today.

Indian Express, typically, covered the story inside its covers but with a completely outrageous slant. It manipulated the story not as an alleged “land scam” but as Sibal allegedly siding with a “money launderer.” You see, scams—that too made-up– exist only for a particular political party in a particularly hostile mainstream daily. (Mischievous that the newspaper is, it covered its tracks with the mention of “land” in its online story).

These are the newspapers who are awarded and feted on fake “Panama Papers”—a CIA operation which is distributed to select media outlets around the world who then acquire a halo, claiming to have worked themselves to ground in heroically unearthing this massive scam. I mean how fake could you really get!!!

These newspapers run “investigative report series” on environmental hazards in Goa; every sneeze of a Dalit; every sweat of a Muslim, every strand of hair on a Dravidian mirror but try making them cover a scam concerning Congress or Left! It’s sunk on a sea floor without much ado. There are relaxed norms for columnists–such as Sibal, Yechury or Chidambaram–who are above reproach or probing questions.  (And by the way why Surjit S. Bhalla has stopped appearing in Indian Express since becoming a member of Modi’s Economic Advisory Council? Any idea, sirji).

But could heat on them would lessen any degree only because the English mainstream media plays the cover-up game? Unlikely. Such are the avenues and platforms—social media and TV channels—available to readers that truth is out despite wool being pulled over their eyes by presstitutes.

And it is these rogues who beat their breasts on the “freedom of press” having done their best to slaughter the cause of independent media.  All its “star” go into a slumber when their masters are grilled by unassailable facts. The more they stretch to cover, the more torn undies get in the process.

बंगाल: रक्त-नदी, नरसंहार और मीडिया का झूठ

पेटीवादक
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बंगाल: रक्त-नदी, नरसंहार और मीडिया का झूठ

बंगाल में बीते सप्ताहांत में राम नवमी उत्सव हत्या और दंगे का उत्सव बन उठा। खबर के मुताबिक, एक पुलिसकर्मी ने अपना एक हाथ भी गँवाया है।

क्रूरता!

मैं इस स्थिति के विशिष्ट तथ्यों को नहीं जानता और यह लेख उस बारे में है भी नहीं। बल्कि यह लेख बंगाल में हिंसा के लिए सोशल मीडिया पर प्रतिक्रिया के बारे में है। आश्चर्य की बात नहीं, सोशल मीडिया पर ज़्यादातर लोग नाराज़ थे और स्थिति के बारे में परेशान भी।

यह लेख उस आक्रोशक भावना को ध्यान से समझने के बारे में है। अफसोस की बात है, बंगाल के बारे में कुछ सच्चाई ऐसी हैं जिनके बारे में राज्य के बाहर के लोगों को जानना आवश्यक है। और यह खेद की बात है कि वो सच्चाई एक अच्छी खबर तो बिलकुल नहीं है।

व्यापक तौर पर, सोशल मीडिया पर प्रतिक्रिया में निम्नलिखित दो विषय निहित हैं:

  1. बंगाल में हिंसा पर आक्रोश की भावना
  2. बंगाल में हिंसा पर आघात की भावना

अब, आक्रोश की भावना पर मैं पूरी तरह से सहमत हूँ। लेकिन आघात? काश मैं उस भावना को साझा कर पाता।

एक बंगाली के लिए, बंगाल में राजनीतिक हिंसा पर उनकी आघात और आश्चर्य की भावना को स्पष्ट रूप में ऐसे बता सकते हैं: आप वो व्यक्ति हैं जो १९४४ में यूरोप पहुँचते हैं और आश्चर्यजनक रूप से पाते हैं कि चारों ओर तबाही और दंगे फैले हुए हैं। क्या आपको मालूम नहीं है कि दूसरा विश्व युद्ध १९३९ से सतत चल रहा है?

तो यह लेख बंगाल से बाहर के लोगों के लिए पहला पन्ना ही मान लीजिये। पश्चिम बंगाल में आग आज नहीं लगी है, यह तो दशकों से इस आग में जल रहा है। बस आपको ही इसके बारे में अभी तक नहीं पता था। कारण यह समझ लीजिये कि मीडिया नामक दीमक को बंगाल की राजनीतिक हिंसा के लिए बीजेपी और हिंदुत्व समूहों पर दोष मढ़ने का कोई जरिया नहीं मिला था, इसलिए उन्होंने इस बारे में आपको कभी नहीं बताया।

किन्तु चूँकि अब भाजपा का बंगाल में पाँव तेज़ी पसर रहा है, तो मुझे आशा है कि आप आने वाले दिनों में राज्य के बारे में अधिक से अधिक सुनेंगे।

तो यहाँ बंगाल में राजनीतिक हिंसा की कहानियों की एक छोटी सी सूची है जिसे आपने कभी नहीं सुना क्योंकि बिकाऊ मीडिया ने इसे आप से छुपाया रखा। आगे तभी पढ़िएगा अगर सच का सामना करने की हिम्मत रखते हैं।

१९९७ में, पश्चिम बंगाल विधानसभा में, राज्य के गृह मंत्री बुद्धदेव भट्टाचार्य ने स्वीकार किया था कि १९७७-१९९६ के बीच २८,००० राजनीतिक हत्याएँ हुईं।

चौंक गए? यह तो सिर्फ शुरुआत मात्र ही है।

उपरोक्त कथन का अर्थ है, प्रति वर्ष १५०० राजनीतिक हत्याएँ या हर दिन लगभग ४ राजनैतिक विरोधी की हत्या। जी हाँ, हर दिन ४ हत्याएँ!

बंगाल में, विरोध केवल एक खतरा नहीं था अपितु विरोध का अर्थ ही था मौत। “विरोध” का नतीजा फेसबुक या ट्विटर पर टिप्पणीबाजी करके थिंकफैस्ट सर्किट पर तुरंत सेलिब्रिटी का दर्जा दिया जाना नहीं होता था। विरोध मतलब ‘मृत्यु’।

आपने इसे कभी नहीं सुना है क्योंकि मीडिया और बुद्धिजीवियों और शिक्षाविदों के लिए अब तक बंगाल में दोष देने के लिए भाजपा नहीं थी। रक्त की लाल नदी को अनदेखा करना लाज़मी था, इसमें दो राय कहाँ हो सकती है?

अरे, क्या मैंने ‘रक्त’ कहा? क्षमाप्रार्थी हूँ।

कई मामलों में, खून का कोई खेल नहीं होता था। एक पूर्व सीपीएमएम सांसद ने बताया कि पिनाराई विजयन, अब माननीय केरल के मुख्यमंत्री ने एक बार अपने साथियों को ‘बंगाल तन्त्र’ अपनाने की सलाह दी थी।

‘बंगाल तन्त्र’ में राजनीतिक विरोधियों को उठाकर, ज़िन्दा, ज़मीन में नमक की एक बोरी के साथ गाड़ दिया जाता था। खेल ख़त्म, समझे? कोई खून नहीं!

कभी-कभी, हाँ खून की होली भी होती थी। ऐसा तब होता था जब कामरेड एक राजनैतिक प्रतिद्वंद्वी के घर में घुसते थे, शरीर को काट कर चीरते थे और फिर उसी की माँ को अपने बेटे के खून में सने चावल खिलाते थे।

जैसा कि मैंने आपको पहले ही चेताया है, बंगाल की कहानी हलके दिल वाले ना पढ़ें।

कलकत्ता में एक प्रसिद्ध “बिजोन सेतु” है। मैं उसे अच्छी तरह जानता हूँ। जब बच्चा था तो दादी माँ के घर पर गर्मियों की छुट्टियों के लिए कलकत्ता जाता था तो अक्सर इसे पार करता था।

एक वयस्क के रूप में, मुझे पता चला कि बिजोन सेतु पर क्या हुआ था। १९८२ की एक भरी सुबह, कलकत्ता में उस बड़े पुल पर सत्रह लोगों को (आनंद मार्ग संप्रदाय के भिक्षुक और साधु) ज़िन्दा जला दिया गया। और ज़ाहिर है, आज तक कोई भी गिरफ्तारी नहीं की गई।

कलकत्ता और बंगाल के बाकी हिस्सों में ऐसे कितने प्रसिद्ध जगह हम याद कर के भूल चुके हैं जो नरसंहार के गवाह हैं।

एक और पढ़िए, आपने जादवपुर विश्वविद्यालय के बारे में तो सुना ही होगा। एक महान संस्थान जो सभी बंगालियों का गौरव है, लेकिन आपने गोपाल सेन का नाम शायद ही सुना हो। वह विश्वविद्यालय के कुलपति थे। एक बार वो कम्युनिस्ट (साम्यवादी) छात्रों द्वारा परीक्षा के बहिष्कार के खिलाफ हो गए। ठीक वहीं, जादवपुर विश्वविद्यालय के परिसर में कुलपति गोपाल सेन की हत्या हुई।

अब आप समझ ही सकते हैं कि ये उदारवादी दावों से मुझे कभी बेवकूफ़ नहीं बनाया जा सकता कि जेएनयू में कम्युनिस्ट (साम्यवादी) छात्र खतरनाक नहीं हैं क्योंकि मैं बंगाल जा चुका हूँ।

फिर से क्षमाप्रार्थी हूँ। मुझे यह नहीं जताना चाहिए कि कम्युनिस्टों ने जादवपुर विश्वविद्यालय के उपाध्यक्ष की हत्या कर दी थी। यद्यपि ये हत्या अच्छी आबादी वाले कैंपस पर सरेआम हुई, इसके बावजूद एक भी भी गवाह नहीं मिला और पुलिस ने किसी की गिरफ्तारी नहीं की। सैकड़ों लोगों के सामने यह सब होने के बाद भी आज यह एक रहस्य ही है कि उपकुलपति की हत्या किसने की।

१९९३ में, कलकत्ता के प्रसिद्ध राइटर्स बिल्डिंग जो कि राज्य सचिवालय भी है, के सामने एक विरोध मार्च हुआ था। वहाँ, कलकत्ता के बीचों-बीच, पुलिस ने गोलियाँ चलाकर 13 लोगों को मार गिराया। ममता बनर्जी को तो घटना अच्छी तरह से याद होगी। आखिर वो इस विरोध में अग्रणी थीं।

राजनीतिक हिंसा का ये स्तर बंगाल में दशकों से आदर्श रहा है। कभी-कभी विरोधियों को ज़िन्दा दफन किया जाता था, कभी-कभी उनकी निर्मम हत्या कर दी जाती थी और उनका खून उनकी माँ को परोसा जाता था। कभी-कभी, मरीचझापी जैसी जगहों में, हज़ारों लोगों को सुंदरबन के एक द्वीप पर फेंककर, कुछ हफ़्तों के लिए भोजन और पानी तक काट दिया जाता था और फिर सशस्त्र पुलिस गोला-बारूद के साथ वहाँ नरसंहार करते और उन शवों को आस-पास के पानी में फेंक देते थे।

दिल की धड़कनें चल रही हैं? बस याद रखें कि ये सभी बड़े बुद्धिजीवी और बिकाऊ मीडिया, जो स्थानीय लखनऊ रेस्तरां में टुंडे कबाब के की पल-दर-पल की खबर रखते हैं, उन्होंने आपको इन कहानियों के बारे में कभी नहीं बताया क्योंकि टुंडों की कीमत और अहमियत दोनों इन बेकार जानों से कहीं अधिक है।

बंगाल में आपका स्वागत है, वही जगह जहाँ रक्त पानी से सस्ता मिलेगा।

और वैसे, अभी भी त्रिपुरा में लेनिन प्रतिमा के बारे में खार खा कर बैठे हैं? ये कहने की बात नहीं है कि त्रिपुरा में जो होता है वो बंगाल की राजनीति का ही परिणाम है।

आपसे मेरा आह्वान है कि खड़े हों और इन बुद्धिजीवियों पर सवाल उठाएँ कि ये बेईमान चुप्पी इन्होंने इतने वर्षों तक क्यों बनाए रखी? राजदीप सरदेसाई, जो कि खुद को “राजनीतिक सन्दर्भों” का एक प्रमुख प्यादा बतलाता है, वो कहता है कि कर्नाटक में २०१५ में बजरंग दल के कार्यकर्ता प्रशांत पुजारी की हत्या को उतनी तीव्रता के साथ मीडिया में दिखाने की आवश्यकता नहीं है क्योंकि हत्या में “राजनीतिक संदर्भ” है। उससे पूछें कि क्या त्रिपुरा में लेनिन की प्रतिमा का गिरना समान रूप से “प्रासंगिक” है और भुला दिया जाना चाहिए?

बंगाल में बेरहमी से नरसंहार करने वाले ये लोग आपके सह-नागरिक ही थे। उनकी कहानियाँ सुनी जानी चाहिए और मैं ये अधिकार के साथ कहता हूँ कि एक अदने सी मूर्ति के बारे में हल्ला करने से पहले उन मारे गए लोगों की कहानियों के बारे में सुना जाना चाहिए। उन लोगों से पूछिए जो “साहस की पत्रकारिता” करने का दावा करते हैं, कि बंगाल में राजनीतिक हिंसा की कहानी अब तक ‘राष्ट्रीय मुख्यधारा’ का हिस्सा क्यों नहीं बनी?

मेरे लिए, सबसे अजीब क्षण हाल ही में एबीपी न्यूज पर ये एक छोटी सी खबर थी। इसमें, स्टूडियो में एबीपी समाचार रिपोर्टर और एंकर दोनों ही चिंतित दिख रहे हैं कि २००५ में मानिक सरकार के घर में एक कंकाल मिलने के बारे में बीजेपी के सुनील देवधर के आरोप शायद आधारहीन हैं।

ये अजीब है, क्योंकि कंकाल की खोज कभी विवाद थी ही नहीं; टेलीग्राफ के इस रिपोर्ट के अनुसार यह स्वीकृत तथ्य था। यह और भी विडंबना की बात लगती है जब आपको पता चलता है कि द टेलीग्राफ एबीपी ग्रुप के अन्दर ही आता है।

तो क्या हुआ था? एबीपी न्यूज ऐसा क्यों सोच रहा था कि कंकाल की खोज एक आधारहीन आरोप है?

मैं आपको बताता हूँ कि संभावित रूप से ये हुआ कि एबीपी एंकर और एबीपी रिपोर्टर ये नहीं मान पा रहे थे कि ऐसी विस्फोटक खबर इतने वर्षों तक व्यावहारिक रूप से अज्ञात रही है। कि कथित तौर पर एक नाबालिग लड़की की एक कंकाल, जो मुख्यमंत्री के घर में मिली, उसे  मीडिया इस तरह से नज़रअंदाज कर सकता है। पर सच यही है कि ऐसा ही हुआ।

दरअसल, हमारा समाचार मीडिया इस कदर भ्रष्ट और बिका हुआ है कि मीडिया में मौजूद व्यक्ति भी कभी-कभी यह सोचने में विफल हो सकता है कि वो इतना भ्रष्ट है।

(यह आलेख ‘Welcome to Bengal, where blood has flown like water‘ का हिन्दी अनुवाद है।)

Resurrections of Jesus and Ramana, Maestro Ilayaraja

brnandhan
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Resurrections of Jesus and Ramana, Maestro Ilayaraja

Isai Jnani Ilayaraja, the Sage of Music, in fact he can be just called a Jnani- a sage of spirituality, in his recent interview cum Q&A event at Google headquarters at the USA, made a very valid point, that the resurrection of Jesus after death, is a very dubious event, whereas the death experience of Ramana Maharishi is more believable.

In the video recording of the event, this comes from 40:00 onward – https://youtu.be/KhCC-LsdmbI

He first sings a Tamil song that he wrote in praise of Sri Ramana Maharishi. He recounts that after penning that song he didn’t feel like penning songs on mere mortal themes. He then talks about realized souls and the resurrection. Here is the gist of what he says in Tamil:

[Paraphrase] It is said that Jesus was resurrected. The very foundation of Christianity rests on this premise. However, many historians have now opined that such an event never happened, as I come to know from the Youtube documentaries that I watched. However, a real resurrection happened when Sri Ramana Maharishi was sixteen and had a near death and out of body experience. He was pronounced dead but came back to life. He transcended the death experience and became liberated. There is no one comparable to Sri Ramana Maharishi. [End paraphrase]

For this, Christian outfits are protesting against him saying he ‘insulted’ Jesus during the Easter season (incidentally Easter falls on the “All Fools Day – April 1st, this year). The media is also projecting this story as if it was an expression of bigotry from the Music Maestro. The protesting groups, who are also very active in proselytizing continuously call Hindu Gods as devils and false all through their propaganda literature, speeches and sermons. And as usual the spineless seculars are silent in their support to his freedoms.

Let us consider some comparisons. I am not getting into the concept of resurrection after death; that I will leave to Neurophysiologists and researchers.

But only comparing what is generally said and believed, logic and history. Let us see which is more viable a resurrection, if such is possible.

  Jesus Ramana Maharishi
Manner of death Was supposedly killed by Romans and the Jewish people who held him rebellious and libelous to Jewish traditions. Voluntarily embraced the experience of death.
Reasons for death Christians present Jesus dying for the sake of sins of humanity,

They hold sex/procreation was Adam and Eve’s original sin, anybody born that way is therefore sinful. And only Jesus not born that way, can save us from that sin.

But I don’t feel I have sinned. And even if so, I don’t want anybody to suffer for me and would feel guilty if someone did so without my knowledge or permission.

 

So seems the intention is to make people feel an undeserved guilt, using this supposed death

 Ramana Maharishi embraced this death experience, to understand the nature of consciousness, to explore the “I”.

And then he returned, taught this to those who seeked him.

 
Impact on the body Was tortured and mortally wounded, before he died. And life returned to such a damaged body,

So the question arises, why could not the body then just stay alive in the first place?

Did it automatically heal when he resurrected? Then why did not automatically heal during torture?

 He voluntarily chose to embrace the onset of death, stopped breathing, shutting down organs and then he returned to the “undamaged” physical body.

 
Aftermath of death Vanished entirely after the resurrection. Not even remains were found. Supposedly ascended to heaven. Lived many years on this earth after his death experience. Was physically present to teach and guide many people,
Information about the death The story of his resurrection started making rounds only at least a century after his supposed death, Written by a series of councils to edit, revise and align the stories about Jesus.

 

 His experience was told by himself, in first person to the people who met him directly, in his own lifetime.
Motives of the followers The people who wrote the story of Jesus, were sponsored by the Eastern Roman Empire to organize a state religion, they had vested interest in the success of their religion and in suppressing of the existing ones After this experience, he left town and into seclusion for years, was then slowly recognized and still lived in peripheries of social life,

He owned nothing, had nothing but his devotion to Mount Arunachala, which he saw as Shiva.

Taught mostly by silence, established no globe spanning operations. Did not use his resurrection or teachings to convert others.

Did not even publicize or proselytize, only taught to those who came seeking to him.

Again, I do not presume to understand whether such resurrection is possible or achievable. But if I place these 2 events as described side by side, I know what is more believable.

We have many resurrections stories in all cultures. Inanna from Sumer and Osiris from Egypt are couple of examples,

A favorite of mine from Hindu traditions, are these acts of Shaivaite Saints Nayanmars, recounted in comparison,

* ThiruNavukkArasar revived from death, the son of Apoothi Adigal, whose body was available.

* ThiruGnanaSambandar revived from death Poompaavai, whose ashes and bones alone were available. (This is being celebrated this week at Mylapore, called the Phalguni Arubathi Moovar Utasavam)

* Sundarar revived from death, a boy who was eaten by a crocodile years ago, where there was no remains whatsoever and got him back as he would have been, if he had never died, appropriately aged.

Now all these are challenging for empirical science. So are all only a matter of faith.

But how is the faith in Jesus’s resurrection, more valid than faith in Ramana’s resurrection?

One could say that each one can have their own faith and not comment on others. But is that something followed by Christians, that they protest about Ilayaraja?

The whole of Christian indoctrination is entirely about how other gods, gurus and traditions are false, even satanic and only Christianity and Jesus is valid.

But the crux is here.

Assume Ramana’s resurrection never happened, still it would have no impact, because it is his teachings and guidance that matter. They are the greatest miracle, than death or life.

Death does not faze Hindus, either we are reborn or attain moksha, Swarga and Naraka are transient as life itself.

While for Christians, life is a one-shot affair, they die and rot in suspended animation till judgement day, then heaven or hell, as per God’s will. Your deeds are immaterial, but only whether you are a believer in Christ or not.

But assume that Jesus’s resurrection never happened.

Would Christianity survive? There is nothing original as philosophy or ritual in Christianity, it is mostly copied from other traditions. It is entirely dependent on the personality of Jesus, his immaculate conception and resurrection after death. And that those events unique only to him.

To summarize,

* If Ramana Maharishi’s resurrection is proved false, it has insignificant impact on his teachings or Hinduism.

* But if Jesus’s resurrection is proved false, then what is left in Christianity but plagiarized philosophies and appropriated traditions.

* If both are proved true, then again Jesus’ is no more unique and hence Christianity is no more exclusive, so again a false religion.

* If both are proved false, again Ramana Maharishi’s teachings rooted in Shastras and Advaitha holds good, whereas Christianity’s unoriginal teachings do not justify the universal monopoly of faith, it is trying to achieve.

In all cases, Jesus at best would be yet another spiritual teacher and at worst a confidence trick by scam artists of various Christian church denominations.

Given that Christianity is predicated on the uniqueness of Jesus being more than a man, in all of these possibilities, Christianity is on a very shaky ground, hence the ostriches want to raise a sand storm to hide themselves in.

Ad hominem, just by comparing Jesus to another man’s experience, Jesus is reduced to a man – homo, Christians consider that itself as an insult. That is ridiculous in public discourse.

Maestro Ilayaraja had every right to consider these 2 events, and as a spiritual seeker arrive at this own conclusions about them. He is free to express them as he sees fit.

If Christians can’t deal with criticism, they should learn not to criticize others in the first place.

Some commentators are comparing this with lyricist Vairamuthu calling Godha Devi-Aandal as a Devadasi. That is a false equivalence, which does not differentiate between abuse and criticism, between personal attacks and ideological debate.

For example, given the circumstances of Jesus’s birth, he could be called a bastard and Mary an adulteress. That would indeed be an unnecessary abuse, like what Vairamuthu did. Offensive and should not be acceptable in public discourse.

And then Vairamuthu’s citations were found to be false and claims without any provenance.

But to question the concept of resurrection in general or in specific in case of Jesus, questioning the legend that Godha Devi submerged with Vishnu at Sri Rangam, are acceptable debate on theology.

As usual, different standards are being applied by the media and the social narrative, where even abuse of Hindu icons and gods are touted as freedom of expression, while ideological criticism of Christians and Muslims are treated as abuse.

That is the state of Secular India.

***

Further reading:

https://swarajyamag.com/ideas/ilayaraja-jesus-and-ramana

https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/ace-composer-ilayaraja-says-jesus-didnt-experience-resurrection-but-ramana-mahar/310077

https://swarajyamag.com/politics/explained-vairamuthus-controversial-remarks-on-aandal

How to keep yourself safe in a digitally connected world, especially on mobile

manasdoon
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How to keep yourself safe in a digitally connected world, especially on mobile

With the news of online scams, malwares, hacks and data breaches the World Wide Web sounds like a very dark place which can just consume you. If you’re think about the rise in proliferation of devices from Smartphones, tablets, internet connected home appliances, voice assistance etc, this has opened us up to even greater risks. While the Govt. has invested heavily on Digital India, the same push has not been seen in promoting Digital Literacy. In a world of augmented reality, where truth is stranger than fiction, the people who are un-informed are more likely to be misinformed. Top it up with the every dormant fear of the unknown, mistrust in the system and Govt. and not enough lower digital literacy rate, the citizens are more likely to fall for propaganda.

With the current debates going in and people spreading all kind of theories and possibilities one can certainly be certain that the SKYNET is taking the world over. While the threat and risk is real, there are some simple tricks and basics which we citizens can share with our fellow citizens who are not digitally savvy.  Sharing handful of easy measures will not only help to reduce the risk but also help them to get educated. Some of the things we can share to make mobile surfing safer:

  • Permissions requested from the apps: In regards to current scenario, this is one of the most relevant handy tip. Whenever you download an app. Before the app can run it will ask for permission on what all it wants to access. Before you press on “accept” option, it’s good to do a sanity check on are these permission relevant and necessary. For eg: why should an app for a flashlight request permission to your camera and microphone? Or why should a photo editing app like to know your location? If you think requested permission are more than what is required, can the app.
  • Which Apps to download: The apps should be downloaded which are created by trusted developers or companies. The reason being is the developers are not only responsible for providing you with the app. But also ensuring that regular patches are provided in the form of updates to lug any loop holes found. Downloading an app with no support can leave your application vulnerable to attack.  Its good analogy would be would you buy a scooter with no servicing centre? Tough despite the media hype, malware on mobile devices is not a significant problem compared to computers (yet!), it’s always best to download apps only from your operating system makers app store and not a third parties.
  • It’s Free!!! : If an app is free it does not mean that we should have it. Judge on is this app really required and why? Is it duplicating a function which is already available on my phone? More apps could mean more drain on battery life, more permission would mean more sharing of your data with their third parties etc. for example: do I need an app for stop-timer when that function is built in my phone? Or do I need another photo-editor on top of my existing one?
  • Keep track of your apps:  Sometimes we get caught up in downloading tons of apps, much like a wiki-hole. You download one, and then another, and another… But, the thing is, updating these apps takes time and a lot of clicking the “Accept” button without actually reading the permissions/privacy-policy changes. You need to stay up-to-date on the apps you use, how they work, and the data they collect and use. Go through your phone, and be sure to get rid of the stuff you no longer use or recognize.
  • Use Settings for location: Many mobiles phone these days allow you to customise your privacy setting specific to applications. For example you might be comfortable in sharing your location with Google maps for navigation purpose but not with what’s app. Settings would often also allow you to customise to use location only when you are running the app (not in the background). This is also a good option to keep control over not necessarily what you want to share but when you want to share.
  • Where I am: This is somewhat similar to the information above however what really needs to be thought is whether sharing my location is really important or worth the risk I want to have? For example turning on location in FB would help you to check in at your favourite location a bit faster, but you can still do the same by manually typing in the location name in search option rather than relying on FB to do it for you. This will also save you from unnecessary promoted posts. Have a thought of it sharing my info worth the little manual effort i’ll have to do? A cost Vs benefit analysis is a good thing to do.
  • Access to contacts: I personally stay away from apps who wants to access my contact list unless it’s a completely trusted app. There is no reason why an app would need to access to your contacts and messages unless you see a real reason behind it.
  • Personal Vs Sensitive Vs Confidential Info: people should know the difference between these three. If your friends posts you a marriage card with your name, address and phone number. That is your personal information traveling via multiple hands with you having no control over it. There is no way or control on how to secure it. Much of this personal info is available via public domain and not much can be done with it apart from data analytics and creating hypothesis. Example of sensitive info would be your bank account numbers, again tough this information should also be in safe hands but many organisations have robust checks and balances to ensure that not financial loss is occurred by you. Confidential info would be CVC codes of your debit card, details of card for online shopping and pin of your cards. This info should never be shared. This gets important as there are multiple digital wallets available and the grievance redressed system is not very strong.
  • Share with care: Do not believe everything you see on social media. This is not as much as a technical risk but an information risk which sows the seed of mistrust. If any info which is shared makes you anxious, its best to seek communications from official channels/handles/pages. Sometimes sharing malicious information can also land you in legal trouble. Many people in rural India still follow the cardinal rule of seeing is believing but are not aware of things like Photoshop etc. Such audience is gullible for propaganda. So before you hit on that fwd. button or share button a good sanity check would not harm anyone.

In today’s world only living off the grid will save you from the web of data sharing. While Data sharing is not always bad it has its own benefits as well and this needs to be shared with others as well.  While the devices are becoming sources of information overloads, we still have the capacity to use our common-sense which would not require technical expertise to keep us safe. Remember to share that it’s their information, they are the master/owner of it and also partly accountable for it, and as the saying goes ‘precaution is better than cure’. Let’s do our bit to educate and contribute towards having more digitally aware citizens.

2019 का चुनावी गणित

Chetan Prinja
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2019 का चुनावी गणित

बहुत सारे विद्वान और चुनावी पंडित अपने अपने अनुमान लगा रहे हैं क़ि 2019 के चुनाव में क्या होगा। हालाँ कि अभी काफी समय है चुनाव में और परिस्थितियाँ बदल भी सकती हैं। लेकिन आज के हिसाब से हर कोई हिसाब किताब लगा रहा है और अपना चुनावी विश्लेषण कर रहा है। इस लिए हम भी अपनी थोड़ी बहुत समझ के अनुसार ये पता लगाने का प्रयास करते हैं क़ि अगले लोकसभा चुनाव में क्या हो सकता है।

राजनीति में कुछ भी हो सकता है। इसकी ताज़ा मिसाल सपा और बसपा जैसे दो कट्टर दुश्मनों का साथ आना है। ये दिखलाता है क़ि राजनीति अनिश्चितताओं का खेल है। इस में जो आज दुश्मन है कल वो दोस्त बन सकते है और जो आज दोस्त है वो कल कट्टर शत्रु बन सकते है। हालाँकि सपा बसपा यह सफाई दे सकती हैं क़ि बीजेपी ने भी जम्मू कश्मीर में पीडीपी से गढ़बंधन से सरकार बनाई है। और वैसे भी राजनीति में आज कल सिर्फ जीत मायने रखती है।आखिर में सब लड़ाई कुर्सी और सत्ता पाने के लिए ही है। इस हिसाब से देखे तो कल को एक तरफ मोदी तो दूसरी तरफ सारा विपक्ष चुनाव में नज़र आ सकता है।

ममता बैनर्जी अपनी पूरी ताकत लगा रहीं हैं कल को दुबारा मोदी प्रधान मंत्री न बने। इस के लिए वे तीसरे मोर्चे के गठन के लिए पूरे हाथ पैर मार रहीं हैं। सभी दलों के साथ बात कर रही हैं। वही यूपी में सपा बसपा का गठजोड़ भी लगभग तह है बात सिर्फ सीट के बटवारें पर अटकी है। हालाँकि कई बार सीट के बटवारें को लेकर कई गठजोड़ टूट जाते हैं। लेकिन इस जगह मोदी के प्रति नफरत और मोदी को हराने की चाहत में शायद यह लोग कम सीट पर भी चुनाव लड़ने पर भी राज़ी हो जाएं। बाकि के राजग के दल भी कोई बहाना ढून्ढ कर अलग राह पकडने को उतावले नज़र आ रहे है।

वहीं कांग्रेस जो की सबसे पुरानी पार्टी है वो भी काफी आक्रामक तेवर में नज़र आ रही है। हालाँकि कांग्रेस राहुल गाँधी को प्रधान मंत्री बनाना चाहती है। यह बात दूसरे दल कितना मानेंगे यह आने वाली तीन विधानसभा चुनाव के नतीजे तह करेंगे, क़ि वो कितनी मोल भाव की स्थिति में है। और अपनी मांगे मनवा भी सकती है या नहीं। दूसरे दलों की मजबूरी यह है कि उनका संग़ठन सिर्फ उनके राज्य में ही है और अगर किसी का संग़ठन पूरे देश में हैं भी तो वो बीजेपी और कांग्रेस के संग़ठन जितना मजबूत नहीं है। इस लिए उन्हें इन में से किसी एक दल की जरूरत पड़ेगी। जाहिर है कि वो कांग्रेस को ही चुनेंगे। दूसरी तरफ नरेंद्र मोदी की क़ाबलियत और अमित शाह की चाणक्य नीति। और बीजेपी और आरएसएस का संघठित संगठन और जोश से भरे वर्कर जो हर वक़्त चुनाव के लिए तैयार रहते हैं।

हालाँकि बीजेपी एक तरह से कमाल की चुनावी मशीन बन चुकी है जोकि हर चुनाव जीतना  चाहती है। किन्तु इस बार बीजेपी के खिलाफ एंटी incumbancy हो गई। और उनके पास भ्रष्टचार जैसा कोई बड़ा चुनावी नारा भी नहीं है जैसा क़ि 2014 के वक़्त था। लेकिन वो इसकी पूर्ति राम मंदिर के नारे के साथ कर सकती है। कांग्रेस यह उम्मीद लगा कर बैठी है क़ि अगले चुनाव में हिंदी भाषी क्षेत्र से बीजेपी वो पुरानी जीत नहीं दोहरा पाएगी। और वो दोसौ के आंकड़े पर अटक जाएगी ऐसी स्थिति में दूसरे दल अपनी मोदी प्रति नफरत के चलते मोदी के साथ नहीं जाएंगे।

बल्कि ऐसी स्थिति में राजनाथ सिंह PM के लिए दूसरे दलों की पहली पसंद होंगे। हालाँकि इस में भी एक स्थिति यह है कि बीजेपी ने उत्तर भारत में जो उनकी इस बार कम सीट आएंगी उसकी पूर्ति के लिए नार्थ ईस्ट और दक्षिण के राज्य में चुनाव जीत कर करने की योजना बनाई है। इस लिए अभी यह कहना की मोदी 2019 का चुनाव हार जायेंगे यह सिर्फ बेवकूफी हो गयी। क्योंकि सियासत के नए चाणक्य ने हर जोड़ तोड़ लगा रखा है। अब बॉल जनता की कोर्ट में है कि वो गठबंधन की खिचड़ी चाहती है या बहुमत वाली मजबूत सरकार। क्योंकि गठबंधन की सरकार की कई मजबूरियाँ होती है उन्हें सब को खुश रखना होता है।

बाकि पब्लिक है सब जानती है। देश की जनता है समझदार है अपने फैसले ले सकती है।देखना रोमांचक होगा क़ि 2019 में जनता किसे जीता कर मुकदर का सिकंदर बनाती है।

असल जिंदगी के बाँकेलाल राहुल गांधी

Saurabh Bhaarat
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असल जिंदगी के बाँकेलाल राहुल गांधी

”कर बुरा तो हो भला” यही थीम और पंचलाइन हुआ करती थी बांकेलाल की कहानियों की। बाँकेलाल सीरीज कॉमिक्स के हर एपिसोड में राजा के खिलाफ बाँकेलाल की साजिशों के तरीके अलग-अलग होते थे लेकिन कहानी का परिणाम सबमें एक। बाँकेलाल हमेशा राजा को मारने की नई साजिश करता था लेकिन घटनाएं और परिस्थितियां ऐसी उलझतीं कि वो साजिश अंततः राजा का कुछ लाभ ही कर देती। राजा भी इस लाभ का श्रेय बाँकेलाल को देकर उसके गाल पर पुच्ची ले लेता है। बाँकेलाल मन ही मन ‘बेड़ागर्क! सत्यानाश!’ बड़बड़ाते हुए अपना सिर धुनते रह जाता था।

कांग्रेस पार्टी के दुर्भाग्य और भाजपा के सौभाग्य से राहुल गांधी की हालत कुछ-कुछ ऐसी ही है। कल उन्होंने ट्विटर पर अपील की कि जनता प्रधानमंत्री मोदी के नमो ऐप का बहिष्कार करे, उसे डिलीट करे क्योंकि वो ऐप कथित तौर पर यूजर्स का डेटा चुराकर कहीं और ट्रांसफर कर रहा है। अब उनकी इस अपील में न जाने कौन सी पनौती लगी कि प्रधानमंत्री के नमो ऐप को इस्तेमाल करने वाले यूजर्स की संख्या 24 घण्टे में ही लगभग 1 लाख बढ़ गई। सिर्फ यही नहीं, न जाने कौन से गुप्त कारणों से गूगल प्ले स्टोर से खुद कांग्रेस का ऐप ‘With INC’ भी डिलीट करना पड़ा। यानी ‘लेने के देने पड़ गए’ वाली कहावत शब्दतः अर्थात् लिटरली चरितार्थ हुई।

यह अकेली घटना नहीं है। इसके पहले हाल में कांग्रेस पार्टी के मुखपत्र नेशनल हेराल्ड ने ट्वीट कर पूछा कि क्या मोदी राज में भ्रष्टाचार कम हुआ है। सवाल तो इस नियत से पूछा गया था कि सारे फॉलोवर्स “नहीं” में जवाब देंगे। लेकिन बेचारे कांग्रेसियों को क्या पता कि उनके नेताओं और पेजों को आधे से ज्यादा लोग तो सिर्फ इसलिए फॉलो करते हैं ताकि कांग्रेस के बेवकूफाना ट्वीट्स के मजे ले सकें। नतीजतन 87% प्रतिशत लोगों ने जवाब दिया कि “हाँ” मोदी राज में भ्रष्टाचार कम हुआ है। इससे तिलमिलाए कांग्रेसी एडमिन ने पहले तो लोगों को ब्लॉक करना शुरू किया लेकिन फिर खीझकर अपना सवाल ही डिलीट कर दिया। यानी बाँकेलाल की साजिश उल्टी पड़ी।

एक और मामला देखिए। 2017 यूपी विधानसभा चुनाव प्रचार के दौरान प्रधानमंत्री ने सपा, कांग्रेस, अखिलेश और मायावती को संक्षिप्त रूप में SCAM कहकर हटाने की बात की तो राहुल गाँधी ने इसका जवाब देते हुए कहा कि मेरे लिए SCAM का अर्थ Service, Courage, Ability, Modesty है। संयोग से उसी समय उत्तर भारत में भूकम्प के हल्के झटके लगे थे। तब मोदी ने फौरन दोनों घटनाओं को जोड़ते हुए कहा कि जो लोग SCAM में भी सेवा (Service) का भाव खोज लेते हों उनकी बातें सुनकर धरती माँ भी हिल जाया करती है। इस पर पूरा देश राहुल गाँधी पर हिल-हिलकर हँसा। यानी यहाँ भी बेड़ागर्क! सत्यानाश!

अपने ही बयानों में फंस जाने और अपने पेज पर अपने ही ट्विटर पोल में हार जाने के हादसे इतने आम हो गए हैं कि अब तो यह चुटकुला चल निकला है कि राहुल गाँधी अगर किसी रेस में अकेले दौड़ें तो भी हार सकते हैं। कभी कभी लगता है कि फुटबॉल की भाषा में ‘सुसाइड गोल’ या क्रिकेट की भाषा में ‘हिट विकेट’ या एक मुस्लिम कहावत कि ‘नमाज छुड़ाने गए थे, रोजे गले पड़ गए’ या विशुद्ध भारतीय कहावत कि ‘अपने ही पांव पर कुल्हाड़ी मारना’ जैसी उपमाएँ विशेषतौर पर राहुल गांधी के लिए ही बनी हैं। बचपन में जब तक मैंने कॉमिक्स पढ़ा था तब तक बाँकेलाल अपनी “कर बुरा तो हो भला” वाली नियति से तो  बाहर नहीं निकल पाया था। भगवान जाने इन अंतहीन पनौतियों के झंझावत से राहुल जी कब और कौन सी एस्केप वेलोसिटी से निकलेंगे।

BJP should focus on Telangana, the state needs a doer like Sunil Deodhar

rajashekhar
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BJP should focus on Telangana, the state needs a doer like Sunil Deodhar

What’s wrong with Telangana BJP? Why the new leaders are not staying in the party for long time like leaders in other parties?

1) Aelay Narendra was BJP MP from Medak 1999 to 2004, but left the party and won as an MP from TRS party in 2004.

2) Vijayashanthi, film actress once joined the party in 1998. She was general secretary of Mahila Morcha but very soon left the party. She joined TRS and won as MP from Medak In 2009, jumped to Congress in 2014, contested and lost.

3) Kota Srinivasa Rao, a cine artist, was once MLA from BJP, but left the party after completion of MLA duration in 2004. He got Padma Shri and acted in almost 650 movies.

4) Krishnam Raju, also a cine artist, was a minister in the central govt during Vajpayee days, but left the party in 2009 and joined PRP.

5) Latest, Nagam Janardhan Reddy and his son joined BJP before 2014 general elections, both lost and left the party.

6) Jagga Reddy from BJP contested Medak bypoll, but after losing went back to Congress and conducted a large public meeting where Rahul Gandhi attended.

7) Yennam Srinivas Reddy also won as an MLA in bypolls and lost in 2014 with just 3000 votes, and he left the party.

BJP’s high command should understand why all these leaders are leaving the party, they should rectify and nor repeat those mistakes if they seriously want to form govt in Telangana.

But one thing is for sure that all these netas are leaving party because of arrogance of state senior leaders. If this is not corrected then it will be a huge setback for the party.

What BJP and its high command should do to be the main opposition in 2019 in the state and to be in power in 2024?

1) It should appoint an in-charge for the party who’s not from the state but he should stay in the state like they sent Sunil Deodhar to Tripura. Such a person should be available to local leaders and people.

2) The current state leaders work to please their higher authorities in the party.

3) If there’s no leader watching them, then they act like they’re ruling state and get relaxed.

4) Unless there’s no in-charge to the state there’s no hope for BJP to be opposition or in power.

5) If high command neglect it, then it will become another establishment against Hindutva in the state like Left got established in academics, arts, mass media. State will become another Kerala, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu where it became hard to perform well for the party.

6) Party leaders should take in TDP leaders into the party before this July, so that they have enough time to campaign as BJP candidate and chances to win.

R Krishnaiah should be taken into the party before congress acts and takes him into the party. He’s all india backward castes president, Mla from L B Nagar constituency, with his joining party can get strengthened in other areas also, as he has clean image.

 

Open Letter to Indian parents from a veteran soldier – your children are being brainwashed

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Open Letter to Indian parents from a veteran soldier – your children are being brainwashed

Dear Parents,

As adults of the 21st century, we are not much aware about what our kids are learning from their textbooks. Let us, take some time off from our busy schedules and have a glimpse of our kids history text-book.

NCERT Text Book in History for Class VII, Social Science – OUR PASTS – II , Page No. 21 para -2.

NCERT history book
NCERT Text Book in History for Class VII, Social Science – OUR PASTS – II , Page No. 21.

This is what it reads:

“As we will see (pp. 62-66), rulers also tried to demonstrate their power and resources by building large temples. So, when they attacked one another’s kingdoms, they often chose to target temples, which were sometimes extremely rich. You will read more this in chapter 5.

One of the best known of such rulers is Sultan mahmud of Ghazni, Afghanistan. He ruled from 997 to 1030, and extended control over parts of Central Asia, Iran and the north Western part of the subcontinent. He raided the subcontinent almost every year – his targets were wealthy temples, including that if Somnath, Gujarat. Much of the wealth Mahmud carried away was used to create a splendid capital city of Gazni.

Other kings who engaged in warfare included the Chahamanas, later known as the Chauhans, who ruled over the region around Delhi and Ajmer. They attempted to expand their control to the west and the east, where they were opposed by the Chalukyas of Gujarat and the Gahadavalas of western Uttar Pradesh. The best known Chahamana ruler was Prithviraja III (l168-1192), who defeated an Afghan named Sultan Muhammad Ghori in 1191, but lost to him the very next year, in 1192.”

NCERT text book
NCERT Text Book in History for Class VII, Social Science – OUR PASTS – II , Page No. 65

Further, on page No. 66 of the same book Mahmud Ghazni appears again, this time to be equated again with another great Hindu Ruler Chola King Rajendra I.

Let’s look at the complete text from Page no. 65 of the same text-book:

“Because kings built temples to demonstrate their devotion to God and their power and wealth. It is not surprising that when they attacked one another’s kingdoms they often targeted these buildings. In the early ninth century when the Pandyan King Shrimara Shriallabha invaded Sri Lanka and defeated the king, Sena I (831-851), the Buddhist monk and chronicler Dhammakitti noted: “he removed all the valuables .. The statue of Buddha made entirely of gold in the Jewel Palace… and the golden images in the various monasteries – all these he seized.” The blow to the pride of the Sinhalese ruler had to be avenged and the next Sinhalese ruler, Sena II, ordered his general to invade Madurai, the capital of the Pandyas. The Buddhist chronicler noted that the expedition made a special effort to find and restore the gold statue of the Buddha.”

My comments:

A Native Hindu ruler attacked another Hindu / Buddhist ruler and took the God’s statue for worship, didn’t break it that’s why it could be recovered and restored.

The Text Book:

“Similarly in the early eleventh century, when the Chola King Chola king Rajendra I built a Shiva temple in his capital he filled it with prized statues seized from defeated rulers. An incomplete list included: a Sun-pedestal from the Chalukyas, a Ganesha statue and several statues of Durga; a Nandi statue from the eastern Chalukyas; an image of Bhairava (a form of Shiva) and Bhairavi from the Kalingas of Orissa; and a Kali statue from the Palas of Bengal.”

My Comments:

A Native Hindu Ruler collected statues of Gods and installed them in a new temple which he built.

The Text Book:

“Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni was a contemporary of Rajendra – I. During his campaigns in the subcontinent, he also attacked the temples of defeated kings and looted their wealth and idols. Sultan Mahmud was not a very important ruler at that time. But by destroying temples – especially the one at Somnath – he tried to win credit as a great hero of Islam. In the political culture of the middle Ages most rulers displayed their political might and military success by attacking and looting the places of worship of defeated rulers.”

My comments:

This text-book puts native Hindu and Buddhist rulers like King Rajendra-I and Prithviraj Chauhan in the same league as Mahmud Ghazni. These great native rulers were of the same faith as their opposite rulers.

The History text-book dexterously equates them with Mahmud Gazni, a foreign plunderer, who killed the native Indians in thousands, destroyed the ancient temple of Somnath and the revered idol, the jyotirlinga of Lord Shiva to destruct the faith of this land and to establish his jihadi faith. The book further narrates Prithviraj Chauhan and other Hindu rulers as targeting another kingdoms’ temples and looting them for their wealth!

Millions of Indian warriors have fought and died for the protection of this ancient land’s culture, its essence and its reach way of life, which is known today as Hindutva, must be crying in heaven upon continuation of this historical jihad. Our forefathers are feeling ashamed of our intellectual emptiness and colonial paralysis.

What did I do as a parent? Did I teach this fraud to my kid? Answer is no. I narrated to my kid, how our ancestors fought till their last breath against 17 attacks of Ghazni to save the dignity of the women of this land and to protect the reverence of jyotirlinga of lord Mahadev.

I did not want to pollute my child’s thoughts with the negativity of Mahmud Gazni’s plundering sprees. Therefore, I limited the conversion about Gazni, limited to a few sentences.

When I was a kid, my Grand Mother used to tell me historical tales of great Indian Kings, she used to call me by the nick name ‘Ram’. Daily recital of Ramayana taught us to embrace the virtues of maryada purushottam shri Ram. Family values instilled were like Raghukul Riti. Every girl inspired to be like Mata Sita and every boy wanted to emulate Lord Ram.

The equally illustrated tale of Maharaja Prithviraj Chahuan instilled us with great pride. The awe-inspiring tale of Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan is truly a lesson in life for us, Indians. The values practiced by him while he defeated the Mahmud Ghori in the battle of terrain in 1911 but still let him free as Ghori begged for mercy on his life. The Muslim invader Ghori re-groups, attacks, captures, tortures and blinds Prithviraj Chauhan. Prithviraj Chauhan, although blinded, kills Ghori with the help from his friend Chand Bardai.

I narrated memoirs of that historical day to my children when chand bardai recited “Chaar Baans, Chaubis Gaj, Angul Asht Praman. Ta Upar Sultan hai, mat chuko Chauhan.” I told my kids that the Great Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan was a fierce warrior. And like King Dashratha, father of lord Ram, Prithviraj also had mastered the elusive art of Shabda Bhedi (Sound piercing!) arrow. Chand Bardai, The poet, gave exact calculations of the distance and direction of Ghori. The great Chauhan did not miss the opportunity to kill the enemy, shoots and pierces an arrow through the heart of the gory invader.
I told my kids to always remember, who Prithviraj Chauhan was? While narrating about Prithviraj Chauhan, one can see the feelings of pride in the kid’s eyes.

This is my history, narrated to me, by my Grand Parents to them, by our forefathers. A history which could not be erased by bloody invaders the Muslims and the Europeans. The Muslims burned all the available literature and scriptures, killed all those who protested, stood tall and refused to convert to Islam. The Muslims enslaved the weak, the women and the children of my land. The invading Muslim men used Hindu women as machines whose role was to give birth to more and more Muslims . The Europeans brought out shabby theories of Aryan invasion to prove their supremacy.

The invaders did their best to erase each and every memory of our great heritage and history, they termed our historical texts, Ramayana and Mahabharata as mythical. Our warriors were written off and equated with plunderers. The keepers of our history and faith, the Brahmins are described by this very book as dominant groups because of their patrons (the Hindu Rulers) and their knowledge of Sanskrit (see para 3 page 11).

Many invaders came and went, the heart of our culture lives in the villages. No invader ever succeeded in changing our everlasting habit of keeping the history alive through folklores and recitals.
This is such a shame that contemporary historians are trying to soften the heinous deeds of past Muslim invaders by using their excellent linguistic skills and equating those mass murderers with great Hindu kings.

I, Petty Officer Manan Bhatt take pledge to never ever teach my kid this falsified history, even if it might result in him failing in his history examinations. I do not want my kid to fail his forefathers.

Jinhe Naaz Hai Hind Par Wo Kahan Hain?

(I am searching for people, who are proud of the great land, called India)

Jai Hind.

Right Wingers should learn not to fall prey to manufactured storm in a tea cup

theangryindian
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Right Wingers should learn not to fall prey to manufactured storm in a tea cup

It started with the Gujarat assembly elections, inched forward with Budget 2018, was fuelled at the India Today Conclave with Sonia Gandhi’s famous words, gathered steam post the Naresh Agrawal episode, became louder after the by-polls loss, seemed to have a life of its own with the No-Confidence Motion threat, and finally it unravelled with the Cambridge Analytica episode.

To all of us who have been able to distance ourselves from the unfolding series of events, the opposition’s hand is fairly visible and predictable. The opposition seemed to have discovered the Elixir of life at long last, that would resuscitate a moribund and rapidly decaying Congress party, as long as they can cobble together a few by-election, Municipal wins, Temple Runs, Caste fractures, Regional fractures etc, all courtesy Cambridge Analytica Brain wave.

They have been using these disparate ray of hopes (for them at least) to fan their rhetoric across Social Media, disseminated through their well-entrenched, seemingly innocuous handles. These apparent “logical” conclusions are picked up by self-serving, pseudo Right-Wing handles, in an effort to whip up support for their burgeoning political ambitions.

Nothing wrong with that at all! I mean why would anyone object if the opposition and a rag-tag coalition of deluded individuals suffering from hubris, chose to live in an alternate universe. To all intents and purposes, we are after all progressing, from being a nation of “lotus-eaters” to it being the way of existence only for the opposition and co.

These strategic moves by opposition on the political chess board of India have left many of us Right Wingers wondering what went wrong. Thankfully the agenda peaked and unravelled a little too soon. But, even if it had not there were loads of clues in our past election results to give comfort to those of us who were excessively troubled by the recent slew of events and the media coverage. All that one has to do to see-through the brouhaha is to look at the past elections. And what role, if any did the public perception, perception across media channels have to do with eventual electoral wins or losses.

Take for instance the 2004 elections. Under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, our economy was doing fantastic and spurred on by this economic success the General Elections for 2004 was called on early. NDA’s 2nd term in office was virtually ensured. All the media houses channels in run-up to the 2004 elections were screaming themselves hoarse, calling NDA’s India Shinning campaign a winner eventually sealing a decade of Sangh-Parivar rule and a quick extremely humiliating defeat for the congress.

https://www.economist.com/node/2423065

https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/india/mood-of-the-nation/story/20040209-vajpayee-bjp-set-for-landslide-win-in-forthcoming-2004-elections-790960-1999-11-30

http://guruprasad.net/posts/the-untold-story-of-how-bjp-lost-2004-elections/

What eventually happened is very well known. The 2004 elections heralded a decade of a corrupt government steeped in nepotism, as UPA romped home with 225 seats with external support from the Left front, while the NDA was reduced from 299 seats in 1998 elections to 189 seats in 2004. This was a shocker of a result going by the trail of exit polls and the expectations whipped up in media studios. This was not the last time when the media houses would get it so wrong.

The argument that 2004 was an outlier event was further undermined with the 2009 elections. In the run up to the 2009 elections, Manmohan Singh lost the support of the Left parties and hobbled into an election, which was slated to be a close contest, only to emerge a bigger, stronger party in 2009. The UPA alliance was able to romp home with 322 seats and a comfortable majority. The congress itself had around 260 seats belying expectations of it being a closely contested election.

http://www.travelindia-guide.com/elections-indian-lok-sabha/election09-exit-polls.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_general_election,_2009

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/may/16/indian-election-congress-victory-bjp

If one wanted to, one could extrapolate and figure out even more glaring diversions from the actual election results over a longer period of time. But, as off now these two elections should suffice in making the larger point. The point that election after election, the media seems to be getting as many predictions right as it is getting them wrong.

In fact, the mere fact that the Congress party under Rahul Gandhi has higher a data analysis firm with a detailed plan to coerce, convince citizens using the social media channels, points to a paradigm shift in the way electorate will be influenced. With each passing day the Social Media does a better and better job of predicting events, disseminating news and with each successive day, the traditional media loses a few more viewers/readers.

But, even social media cannot amplify an empty rhetoric and make it great. The ground level reality has to live up to the hype in the media. That alone is the biggest weakness in the congress armour, after 70 years of rule and now a new found social media outreach program all they have to show as work is a bagful of slogans and empty promises. For instance, the “Garibi Hatao” slogan was launched in 1971 by Indira Gandhi and yet 47 years later her grandson Mr. Rahul Gandhi is still trying to fight elections on the same platform. The sins of the past have, it seems caught up with the party as it tries to battle am increasingly efficient and transparent Modi government while fighting concurrently on trends and slogans in Social Media.

Each such skirmish initially seems to be going the congress way only to mutate and become a potent weapon in the hands of the BJP. What does not help the congress cause at all, is that the last modicum of efficiency and work was under the Narsimha Rao’s able leadership. A leader that congress party maligned and dissociated itself with in haste. Finally, it seems that consequence of ostracizing Narsimha Rao has caught up with the congress party.

Over time this 70-yearlong inefficiency and anti-incumbency will only magnify with each social media outreach that the Congress party plans in the run up to 2019. All that us RWs and Congress haters have to do is to not fall prey to the manufactured storm in tea cups for the time being!

On Ram Navami, let’s pledge to protect our heritage, and a poem for Shri Ram

darshannk
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On Ram Navami, let’s pledge to protect our heritage, and a poem for Shri Ram

A simple google search on Ram Setu will yield the results that its “Adam’s bridge”. How this age old monument which Lord Ram constructed to reach Lanka, an integral part of our heritage became Adam’s bridge?

This happens when a billion citizens become indifferent to their culture and legacy. This happens when your governing body (the Congress party) that ruled the nation for more than 60 years along with its allies is ready to destroy the Ram Setu and also files affidavits in court suggesting that Lord Ram (one of our most revered God/Icon) is only imaginary, and all this is just for petty economic gains. This happens when such representations challenging the faith of a billion citizens  are filed in courts but people don’t react.

This happens when the people of a society pay more heed to alien authentication of their own history and legacy rather than their own belief. This topic got more traction when a Western Science Channel claimed that rocks in Ram Setu can be 7000 years old and predate the sand and that the bridge is man-made.

Had it not been for timely intervention of Dr. Subramaniam Swami, Ram Setu would have been blown up as a part of Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project. We belong to a great civilization and we need to ensure that its heritage is rightly preserved and passed on the next generations.

I have tried to express the same message in the form of a Hindi poem “राम का आवाहन”

Wish you all a “VERY HAPPY RAMNAVAMI”

|| राम का आवाहन ||

शील विनय है मुझमे समाया, पर जब रावण सीता हर लाया
समुद्र को जय कर सेतु बनाया, लंकेश का वध कर धर्म निभाया

अयोध्या जब मै आया था, तुमने अभिषेक कराया था
दीप प्रजव्लीत कर हर जन ने, शरयु का तीर सजाया था

आदर्श बिताया मैने जीवन, त्याग किया जीता जन मन
रामराज कहलाया शासन, राज धर्म किया निरवाहन

फिर युग बीते तुम निरंतर हारे, अंग्रेज मुगल यवनो के मारे
कैसी विडंबना कि अब लगते, काल्पनिक मेरे किस्से सारे

है अतिक्रमण मेरी भूमि पर, मांगे प्रमाण है मेरे जन्म पर
अपमानित किया मुझे निरंतर, प्रश्न किये मेरे अस्तित्व पर

चाहा नहीं कभी सिंहासन, चौदह वर्ष रहा निर्वासन
न चाह कि मेरा हो आराधन, बस इतना है मेरा आवाहन

मर्यादा का पालन करना, पर पौरुष का भी दम भरना
अपने सम्मान पर मिट मरना, मातृ-भूमि खो दोगे वरना

जन्मस्थल मेरा है खंडहर, जाने कब वह बने मनोहर
मुझे अंतर मे संजोये रखना, मिटने ना देना मेरी धरोहर

-दर्शन कापड़िया

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