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डूबते सूरज की बिदाई नव-वर्ष का स्वागत कैसे 

डॉ नीलम महेंद्र
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डूबते सूरज की बिदाई नव-वर्ष का स्वागत कैसे 

पेड़ अपनी जड़ों को खुद नहीं काटता, पतंग अपनी डोर को खुद नहीं काटती, लेकिन मनुष्य आज आधुनिकता की दौड़ में अपनी जड़ें और अपनी डोर दोनों काटता जा रहा है। काश वो समझ पाता कि पेड़ तभी तक आज़ादी से मिट्टी में खड़ा है जबतक वो अपनी जड़ों से जुड़ा है और  पतंग भी तभी तक आसमान में उड़ने के लिए आजाद है जबतक वो अपनी डोर से बंधी है।

आज पाश्चात्य सभ्यता का अनुसरण करते हुए जाने अनजाने हम अपनी संस्कृति की जड़ों और परम्पराओं की डोर को काट कर किस दिशा में जा रहे हैं? ये प्रश्न आज कितना प्रासंगिक लग रहा है जब हमारे समाज में महज तारीख़ बदलने की एक प्रक्रिया को नववर्ष के रूप में मनाने की होड़ लगी हो। जब हमारे संस्कृति में हर शुभ कार्य का आरम्भ मन्दिर या फिर घर में ही ईश्वर की उपासना एवं माता पिता के आशीर्वाद से करने का संस्कार हो, उस समाज में कथित नववर्ष माता पिता को घर में छोड़, होटलों में शराब के नशे में डूब कर मनाने की परम्परा चल निकली हो।

जहाँ की संस्कृति में एक साधारण दिन की शुरुआत भी ब्रह्ममुहूर्त में सूर्योदय के दर्शन और सूर्य नमस्कार के साथ करने की परंपरा हो वहाँ का समाज कथित नए साल के पहले सूर्योदय के स्वागत के बजाय जाते साल के डूबते सूरज को बिदाई देने में डूबना पसंद कर रहा हो। यह तो आधुनिक विज्ञान भी सिद्ध कर चुका है कि पृथ्वी जब अपनी धुरी पर घूमती है तो यह समय 24 घंटे का होता है जिससे दिन और रात होते हैं, एक नए दिन का उदय होता है और तारीख़ बदलती है।

जबकि पृथ्वी जब सूर्य का एक चक्र पूर्ण कर लेती है तो यह समय 365 दिन का होता है और इस काल खण्ड को हम एक वर्ष कहते हैं। यानी नव वर्ष का आगमन वैज्ञानिक तौर पर पृथ्वी की सूर्य की एक परिक्रमा पूर्ण कर नई परिक्रमा के आरंभ के साथ होता है। वो परिक्रमा जिसमें ॠतुओं का एक चक्र भी पूर्ण होता है।

सम्पूर्ण भारत में नववर्ष इसी चक्र के पूर्ण होने पर विभिन्न नामों से मनाया जाता है। कर्नाटक में युगादि,तेलुगु क्षेत्रों में उगादि,महाराष्ट्र में गुड़ी पड़वा,सिंधी समाज में चैती चांद,मणिपुर में सजिबु नोंगमा नाम कोई भी हो तिथि एक ही है चैत्र मास की शुक्ल प्रतिपदा, हिन्दू पंचांग के अनुसार सृष्टि की उत्पत्ति का दिन, नव वर्ष का पहला दिन,नवरात्रि का पहला दिन। इस नववर्ष का स्वागत केवल मानव ही नहीं पूरी प्रकृति कर रही होती है।

ॠतुराज वसन्त प्रकृति को अपनी आगोश में ले चुके होते हैं,पेड़ों की टहनियाँ नई पत्तियों के साथ इठला रही होती हैं, पौधे फूलों से लदे इतरा रहे होते हैं, खेत सरसों के पीले फूलों की चादर से ढके होते हैं, कोयल की कूक वातावरण में रस घोल रही होती है, मानो दुल्हन सी सजी धरती पर कोयल की मधुर वाणी शहनाई सा रस घोल कर नवरात्रि में माँ के धरती पर आगमन की प्रतीक्षा कर रही हो। नववर्ष का आरंभ माँ के आशीर्वाद के साथ होता है।

पृथ्वी के नए सफर की शुरूआत के इस पर्व को मनाने और आशीर्वाद देने स्वयं माँ पूरे नौ दिन तक धरती पर आती हैं। लेकिन इस सबको अनदेखा करके जब हमारा समाज 31 दिसंबर की रात मांस और मदिरा के साथ जश्न में डूबता है और 1 जनवरी को नववर्ष समझने की भूल करता है तो आश्चर्य भी और दुख भी होता है। क्योंकि आज भी हर भारतीय चाहे गरीब हो या अमीर, पढ़ा लिखा हो या अनपढ़ छोटे से छोटे और बड़े से बड़े काम के लिए “शुभ मुहूर्त” का इंतजार करता है। चाहे नई दुकान का उद्घाटन हो, गृहप्रवेश हो,विवाह हो,बच्चे का नामकरण हो,किसी नेता का शपथ ग्रहण हो, हर कार्य के लिए “शुभ घड़ी” की प्रतीक्षा की जाती है।

क्या होती है यह शुभ घड़ी? अगर हम हिन्दू पंचांग के नववर्ष के बजाय पश्चिमी सभ्यता के नववर्ष को स्वीकार करते हैं तो फिर  वर्ष के बाकी दिन हम पंचांग क्यों देखते हैं? जब पूरे साल हम शुभ अशुभ मुहूर्त के लिए पंचांग खंगालते हुए उसके “पूर्णतः वैज्ञानिक” होने का दावा करते हैं तो फिर नववर्ष के लिए हम उसी पंचांग को अनदेखा कर पश्चिम की ओर क्यों ताकते हैं?

यह हमारी अज्ञानता है, कमजोरी है,हीन भावना है या फिर स्वार्थ है? उत्तर तो स्वयं हमें ही तलाशना होगा। क्योंकि बात अंग्रेजी नववर्ष के विरोध या समर्थन की नहीं है बात है प्रमाणिकता की। हिन्दू संस्कृति में हर त्यौहारों की संस्कृति है जहाँ हर दिन एक त्यौहार है जिसका वैज्ञानिक आधार पंचांग में दिया है।

लेकिन जब पश्चिमी संस्कृति की बात आती है तो वहाँ नववर्ष का कोई वैज्ञानिक आधार नहीं है। इसके बावजूद जब हम पश्चिम सभ्यता का अनुसरण करते हैं तो कमी कहीं न कहीं हमारी ही है जो हम अपने विज्ञान पर गर्व करके उसका पालन करने के बजाय उसका अपमान करने में शर्म भी महसूस नहीं कर रहे। अपने देश के प्रति उसकी संस्कृति के प्रति और भावी पीढ़ियों के प्रति हम सभी के कुछ कर्तव्य हैं।
आखिर एक व्यक्ति के रूप में हम समाज को और माता पिता के रूप में अपने बच्चों के सामने अपने आचरण से एक उदाहरण प्रस्तुत करते हैं।

समय आ गया है कि अंग्रेजी नववर्ष की अवैज्ञानिकता और भारतीय नववर्ष की वैज्ञानिक सोच को न केवल समझें बल्कि अपने जीवन में अपना कर अपनी भावी पीढ़ियों को भी इसे अपनाने के लिए प्रेरित करें।
डाँ नीलम महेंद्र

कॉंग्रेस का 2019 में होगा फिर से (नैतिक) विजय

lakvani
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कॉंग्रेस का 2019 में होगा फिर से (नैतिक) विजय

एक सिनेमा हॉल के दरवाज़े पर जितिन प्रसाद, ज्योतिरादित्य सिंधिया, रणदीप सुरजेवाला, खडे हैं. दरवाज़ा खोल कर सभी अंदर प्रवेश करते हैं. स्क्रीन पर स्टार वॉर फिल्म जारी है. तीनों किसी को तलाश करने की कोशिश कर रहे हैं. तभी उनकी नज़र जहाँ जाती है वहाँ एक व्यक्ति कुर्ते की आस्तीन खींचता नज़र आता है और तीनों के चेहरे खिल जाते हैं. दौड कर तीनों उस के पास जाते हैं. चारों के बीच कुछ बातें होती हैं और वह हॉल से बाहर आ जाते हैं.

त्रिगुट का एक सदस्य चौथे शख़्स को आईफोन पर किसी न्यूज़ चैनल की स्ट्रीमिंग दिखाता है. स्क्रीन पर कैप्शन आता है: काँग्रेस की गुजरात में नैतिक विजय. चारों खिलखिलाते हैं और हाथ मिलाते हैं. चौथा कुछ कहता है और बाक़ी तीनों फोन पर कुछ बातें करते हैं और फिर चारों इक एस यू वी में बैठ कर चले जाते हैं. कार पार्टी के दफ्तर के सामने रूकती है तभी पत्रकार चारों को कार से उतरते ही घेर लेते हैं.

एक पत्रकार पूछता है, “क्या यह सच है कि जब चुनाव के नतीजे आ रहे थे तब आप फिल्म देख रहे थे?” चौथा व्यक्ति मुस्कुराते हुए जवाब देता है, “क्या आपको पता नहीं हमारी नैतिक विजय हुई है?” पत्रकार कहा, “पत्रकारों ने भी यही कहा है”. चहरे पर हास्य के साथ चौथे व्यक्ति ने अपनी बात आगे रखते हुए कहा, “वैसे भी यह तो सिर्फ एक झडप थी, मैं तो डेढ साल बाद के युद्ध की तैयारी में जुट गया हूँ. स्टार वॉर देखना उसी रणनीति का हिस्सा है. बहुत आगे की सोचता हूँ मैं और लोकसभा चुनाव के लिए मैंने अभी कार्यकारिणी की आपात बैठक भी बुलाई है. धन्यवाद! बैठक के बाद मिलते हैं.”

चारों अंदर एक हॉल में चले जाते हैं. थोडी देर में कुछ और पार्टी नेता वहाँ आते हैं और बैठक शुरू हो जाती है. चौथा व्यक्ति बोलना शुरू करता है और सबके चेहरे खिल जाते हैं. बैठक समाप्त होती है और सब बाहर आते हैं. नेता प्रतीक्षारत मीडिया को संबोधित करते हुए कहता है कि हमने लोकसभा चुनाव की अभेद्य रणनीति बना ली है. एक पत्रकार पूछ्ता है, “क्या है यह अभेद्य रणनीति”? उत्तर मिलता है, “हम नैतिक विजय हासिल करेंगे और इसकी घोषणा पक्षपाती चुनाव आयोग नहीं, हमारे पत्रकार मित्र करेंगे, धन्यवाद.”

Agenda cum propaganda first, nation second

henaprasun
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Agenda cum propaganda first, nation second

The recent trend of nation bashing in the garb of FOE is nothing but, an attempt to rage the blood pressure to those who do not subscribe to such shallow thought patterns of the so called fake liberals.

Now-a-days, we see in news, etc that some section of students (who are basically middle aged individuals) from a couple of universities across the country speak against their country. While doing so the elderly students tend to forget the supreme sacrifice of our armed forces who protect us 24X7 as well as the hardships of the our Freedom fighters who fought with foreign rulers/invaders without any vested self interest and without any hankering for wielding power.

They had only one vision with themselves i.e., to establish the lost dignity of their motherland and also to reinforce the idea of nationalism which was wiped out due to the almost 800 yrs of uninterrupted foreign rule which in turn ravaged and looted our beloved country from its acute riches and unimaginable opulence.

The need of the hour is to instill the feeling of pure love for our nation. Our country is still recovering from the last 800 yrs of repeated exploitation and humiliation. We have received our independence just 7 decades back and we still have to go miles before we sleep.

At this delicate juncture of time the concept of nationalism is far more appreciable than the concept of patriotism as, the latter is the expression of emotion of love towards one’s country in a passive way whereas nationalism is a theme which revolves around the love & concern for independence,interests and domination of a nation in an active political way.

The young generation of India should strive hard to find out the causes they strongly believe in, the issues that affect their country today and the most important problems that our nation is facing these days. They must learn about our country’s foreign policy as to how our country relates to the world, the role our country plays in its region and side by side the role today’s youngsters can play to bring back the nation’s old glory.

Our motherland is hopeful that her dignity and authority are in safe hands now. We are proud of upcoming generation who can distinguish between the fake narratives of fake liberals and who can put their country on the fast track of development & modernisation.

Jai Hind, Jai Bharat.

Hena Prasun, Mumbai.

False equivalences by likes of Tufail Ahmad – how it is unfair to Hinduism

nnitin
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False equivalences by likes of Tufail Ahmad – how it is unfair to Hinduism

Tufail Ahmad, Ex-BBC journalist tweeted “All religions are false. All gods are false.” which has been re-tweeted several times. Perhaps he is trying to provoke Hindus for a debate (on Twitter?). But I doubt he will be getting anything better than rhetorical answers.

This is my attempt to answer him from a Hindu point of view. I am neither a saint or a baba nor a studious authority & historian or theologian. I am a common man.

Tufail Sir, We need to define what is called religion. Dictionary meaning says: “The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.”

Tufail Sir, exactly after 9/11, one my American friend asked me similar question “Who are You?”. So he wanted to know whether I am a Christian, a Muslim or a Jew. I told him I am a Hindu. He was confused. He couldn’t sense anything. We had a long discussion about Hinduism which went something like follows:

Who am I?

This question is being asked by our Indian ancestor for literally 1000s of years. They had even more difficult questions of which human kind is not able to get answers.

I am born to a Hindu Family & therefore I am a Hindu. But beyond that there is a deep rooted philosophy which every Hindus follows.

Following sentences are from Rigveda & translated lucidly in Hindi by Prof Dev for Bharat Ek Khoj. I have loosely translated them for this piece. It is not word to word translation but essential thought is the same.

There wasn’t anything as Truth or un-Truth before this universe came in to existence.

There wasn’t even the Sky. Where was this water before the universe came in to existence? Were the both hidden by somebody?

Who created this universe? Is there really somebody who created this universe? Where does he stays? Perhaps he knows that who created this universe or did he really know that? Nobody knows it…..nobody knows it.

The one who is in existence even before this universe came in to existence, he must be the one who is the master of the universe. We pray to that great one, giving a small portion of food (हवी दे कर ) to him.

If you look at these questions & last statement, human kind is not able to find out the answers to these questions even after so much scientific body of modern knowledge. Questioner in Rigveda himself is skeptical about that. But he has not closed his mind that there isn’t anybody. He also feels if at all he is there he could be somebody like me who can eat my food.

Several people have already said Hindu is the word derived from Sidnhu for the people who flourished around Sindhu river. Even Supreme Court has said it is not a religion, it is a way of life. This is how Hindu mind looks at god. He is always skeptical but he has not closed his mind.

Now you will ask questions that what about various Gods & Idols. So let me tell you some truth about Hindu mind. I don’t go to any temple & pray, I don’t worship any particular god. And still I am a Hindu. Nobody tells me that you are sinner because I don’t pray to the god. My mother used to worship Ganapati & she never forced me to pray. Forget about my mother, not even any Pandit ever told me about worshiping a particular god, if at all he thinks, he will just suggest, no force. I used to go in RSS shakhas when I was young, nobody ever asked me which god do you pray?

Hindu mind gives great respect to extraordinary abilities found in nature. He gives godly status to anybody around him & even his mother, father & wife or his love. That is what some times Sufism claims about relationship with god. That is why you see many erotic figures in many Indian temples & carvings & Hindu don’t get offended by it.

There is a story about Swami Vivekanad. Somebody asked him what is the point of having idol when you know that it is not a god? Swamji saw a frame of than man’s father & mother on a wall. He took that in his hand told the questioner to spit on it. The questioner refused because it was his father’s & mother’s picture. Swamji explained even though you know this is just a paper & ink/some chemicals that has created the image of your parents you consider them as your father & mother. In the similar way Hindu knows the idol is not the god but he is open to imagination of him & existence of him. So Hindu never insists about “The Particular God”

You must be aware, every Hindu has liberty to pray to idol of his choice. He can worship god in an idol form or he can worship in the form of non existence (Nirakar निराकार). So idol worship is essentially giving a visible form to a god. For those who can worship a non form god he can worship him, if it is difficult for a person to imagine without any material form, he can worship in the form of idol.

Now let us come to gods like Rama, Krishna & other gods. Tufail Sir, Hindu mind can easily give a godlike status to human being who has extraordinary capability according to him. He will worship him, will try to bring that extraordinary mans extraordinary qualities in to him.

Let us think about Lord Rama. With the stroke of palace politics, he was thrown out of the palace. He had to go to Jungle for 14 years. There also his wife was kidnapped by Ravana. He had to fight with Ravana creating an army of monkeys & rescue his wife. When he comes back he had to send his wife back again to jungle because of public perception. He was not able to enjoy his children growing in front of his eyes. Frankly speaking Lord Ram’s individual life was really miserable. (This was all said by Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev & I totally agree with it. Video on youtube). But why do Hindus worship him and give him godly status? Because in all these adverse conditions through out his life this gentleman Rama never compromised on humanly principles. The Dharama (not a religion). He never went off balance in so much adversities through out his life. He did his duties & the things which are good for human race. That is why he is literally called Maryada Purshottam (मर्यादा पुरूषोत्तम). Ultimately Hindu says he is a man but a Great Man. The one who realized these qualities in Rama was Hanumana, even though he was a monkey, Hindu mind doesn’t mind praying him also as a god.

So essentially Hindu mind worships human beings & also animals who have got excellent exceptional qualities (Cow). Same can be said about other gods. They are all human beings like us or animals or nature. They are like us. They have problems like us. But they have some exceptional qualities for which they are worshiped like a god. That is why Hindus say there are 30 Crore gods equal to population at that time. In every human being there is an existence of the God. In nature there is every where an existence of god, the goodness & greatness of nature.

Now let us come to Abrahmic religions. They think that there is only one god in the sky & you have to believe in his existence. You can not question it’s existence. If you say so you are punishable by that god & his followers. You are a sinner & you will be forgiven by that god in the sky if you accept his existence. This is closed mind which doesn’t accepts other views. If idol worshipers don’t agree with this, you are free to break those idols, because they worship false gods. You can take idolaters with their family in to possession & treat them as slaves. You can destroy their places of worship. Tax them. This didn’t happen in the ancient past only. It happened in today’s world in case of Yazdis in Syria.

Do you know Tufail? The problem with Abrahimic religions is they are too much organized as a military or a political party. There is little theology or philosophy. There is one god. There is one Father or a Mulla who helps you understand what is good for your religion & not. He is the person through whom you talk to or understand or connect to the god. And because you cannot think beyond what Mulla or a Father says he becomes a powerful political figure. You cannot defy him.

That is their strength because that gives these religions brutal power to oppress & weakness because they have a closed mind.

The problem is organized Abrahamic religions & their concept of god. Religions like Parsi & Jew who were alien to this land of Hindus were persecuted by Islam & found refuge in India because of the Hindu openness about the concept of a god. All were protected & had a place in this country.

Can we say the same about Islam or Christianity?

Now on this background seek yourself the answer for your statement “All Gods are false gods”. We Hindus are seekers not believers. So whatever you want to believe you can believe. As a Hindu you can believe”All religions are false, All Gods are false”. But can we say this about Islam or Christianity? That is the freedom Hinduism offers. Unfortunately, Abrahamic religions are abusing it to destroy Hindus themselves. And they succeed. Because Hindus are not organized like military or political party to prove their god is the only god & all other are false.

All non believers or atheist are following basically Hindu Thought, but they are afraid to accept this because they feel afraid they will get labeled.

Hindu expects you to keep your mind open.

One can discuss other Indian Religions on this background with the concept of Abrahamic Religions.

Kulbhushan Jadhav and the inhuman Pakistan

Rajat
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Kulbhushan Jadhav and the inhuman Pakistan

The story of the ex – commander in the Indian Navy, is heart-wrenching and exposes the rogue and farcical nation Pakistan completely.

It began with the abduction of Mr. Jadhav from Iran – Pakistan border which Pakistan asserts as arrest on the alleged charges of being a Raw agent and involvement in subversive activities to destabilize the rogue nation. As the story unfolded, Pakistan kept stooping new lows of indecency and the process is a continuous one.

First of all, why on this Earth would somebody try to destabilize a nation like Pakistan where a UN designated terrorist is aspiring to become the Prime Minister. The entire world is acquainted with the diabolical role that Pakistan has been playing since it’s inception in India and Afghanistan which has earned it the reputation of being a ‘Terroristan‘ across the globe.

The UN top court ICJ didnot buy the arguments of Pakistan presented before it and ordered a stay on his execution on 18th May this year after he was sentected to death by a Field General Court Martial in Pakistan on 10th April. Even after this verdict Pakistan is in defiance of the Vienna Convention to give consular access to Mr. Jadhav because it is afraid that if the access is given, the strategy for the pre-meditated murder to appease the illiterate masses of Pakistan would be completely exposed.

The latest development in this story was on 25th December when Jadhav’s mother and wife flew all over to Pakistan and as always the nation displayed how shameless and emotionless it is in an unflinching way by putting a glass barricade separating the trio. Furthermore, the disregard of the cultural and religious sensibilities of the family members by asking them to remove auspicious thread and bindis revealed that the nation is a bunch of uncultured people and bullies.

The entire conversation of the family was recorded and they were coerced to speak in that language which the Pakistanis wanted.This can only happen in a so called democracy like Pakistan where individuals need to speak in the language chosen by the establishment and a mother is restricted from touching her son.

We all know that the economic condition of Pakistan is pathetic and it is a bankrupt nation where a large majority of the citizens don’t have access to basic amenities but it is unimaginable that they cannot even a manage a pair of footwear for their ladies and deplorably have to grab one of their Indian counterparts. After all these humiliating tactics came the major PR stunt of releasing videos or so called confessions of Jadhav by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan.

The entire sequence of events shows that Pakistan can go to any extent and the bruised ear of Mr. Jadhav is a confirmation of the hardships and torture that Mr. Jadhav is going through in Pakistan. India should have all options wide open to neutralize any illegal tactic of that pathetic country

When Nehru ‘punished’ a bureaucrat for not giving free ride to a journalist

Nithesh S
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When Nehru ‘punished’ a bureaucrat for not giving free ride to a journalist

Very recently, we have been seeing the Congress party celebrating acquittal of Raja in the 2G scam and relief to Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam. But the nation is largely unaware of the attitude of the most celebrated Congressman, Jawaharlal Nehru towards national resources. The anecdote that I am about to share comes from an unexpected source; a book about Subramanian Swamy written by his wife Roxna Swamy.

In the first chapter of the book : “Evolving with Dr Swamy” , Roxna Swamy narrates an anecdote from her father (an ICS officer)’s career . The chapter is titled “The Precursor To Swamy : Daddy”.  Mrs Swamy doesn’t write her father’s name in the book , therefore I am forced to use the phrase ‘Roxna Swamy’s father’ .

She recounts her father’s experience with Nehru in early fifties regarding an order to make available a defence plane to an American lady journalist. There had been floods in Bihar at the time of the journalist’s interview of Nehru. After it was done, she lady journalist had expressed her wish to view the floods in Bihar from air.  Our hero Nehru, declared that he would make her wish come true. 

Nehru directed the Defence Ministry to make arrangements. The file came to the junior secretary in the ministry (Roxna Swamy’s father). The man refused to accept this request and returned the file. He got a call from M.O. Mathai, Nehru’s private secretary, who pointed out that the request came from the Prime Minister himself. Here I quote from the book ( page 9 ):

“Nehru has no authority to requisition a defence plane for this purpose”; and when Mathai persisted, my father (using what every seasoned bureaucrat  knows is the ultimate Sudarshan Chakra , to be used only at your peril) told him, “Give it to me in writing.” Mathai went and reported to Nehru

Apparently, her father presented himself before Nehru and received a long lecture on the freedom movement. “You people still think that you are working under the British“, he reportedly said. And then, Nehru went on to ask him to sign the requisitioning papers. Again, Roxna Swamy’s father asked for a written request. Eventually, Nehru did not give the order in writing and her father was transferred to Bombay from Delhi.

Of course this is no scam, but the tendency of the Congress to treat national resources as petty objects that can be used for personal benefit or enhance one’s own image is a very old and deeply rooted attitude. The same attitude has blossomed into a patronage based corrupt polity where embezzlement of public resources is not an exception but a norm. This episode, if accurate, also makes us think about the unholy nexus between journalists and politicians (especially Congressmen).

Is it possible that government exempts income tax up to Rs 5 Lakh per annum?

abhishekifmr
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Is it possible that government exempts income tax up to Rs 5 Lakh per annum?

Last week Income tax department has released the data of Income Tax Return Statistics for Assessment Year 2015-16 which is effectively for Financial Year 2014-15 i.e the first year of Modi govt. This data gives a lot of insight about the direct tax collections in India like which state contributes the highest, how many people paid tax, what is average tax paid by corporate etc etc.

This information has inspired me to write my 2nd article on direct tax (first one being here).

On 10th July 2014 when Mr. Arun Jaitley presented the first budget of Narendra Modi government he raised the personal income tax exemption limit by 25% that is, from Rs. 2 lakh to Rs. 2.5 lakh while he increased the investment limit under section 80C of the Income-tax Act by 50% from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh. At that point of time this was taken as a return gift from Mr Modi on his resounding victory.

These were generous increase by any standard but larger question remains unanswered, WHY central government has not considered simplification of direct tax at that point of time. In 2017 Mr. Jaitley has appointed a committee to simplify the 56 years old direct tax laws to widen the tax base, ease of doing business & improving compliance.

If you ask any economist which tax is more regressive: Direct or Indirect, 99% chances are that they will say Indirect as this tax is same for all strata of society i.e they pay same rate irrespective of their income. Egs: The GST (an indirect tax) on soap could be 5%, the soap which is bought by the poorest as well as the richest. On the other hand direct taxes are progressive as they are higher for higher income i.e. 30% tax slab for income above Rs 10 lacs

But if you will ask common people in India they will say opposite. Everyone wants to pay less direct tax but more or less ok with paying indirect (sometimes hidden) tax as long as all others are paying. This underlying attitude is the reason for abysmally small number of direct tax payers in India. From a population of 1.3 Billion, only 40 million (4 Cr) paid  Individual tax in 2014. We all know quite a large  population of India is either below poverty line/below exemption limit or falls under exemption income like Agriculture but this still doesn’t justify Income tax filing by less than 5%.

From the 2014-15 data for Income Tax Returns of Individuals we can actually deduce that if Mr Jaitley had taken the decision of simplifying the personal income tax by increasing the personal income tax exemption limit while removing the exemptions, it would have been a great decision.

As per the IT data released, sum of Income tax payable was 1,88,031 Cr. Now let us consider 3 scenarios replicating the tax rates:

Scenario 1: 2.5 Lakh exemption limit & 1.5 lakh 80 C investment limit: In this scenario collection would have been 1,94,927 Cr. But since we have other than 80 C exemptions as well the actual tax payable, actual tax payable is little less i.e 1,88,031 Cr.

Scenario 2: 4.5 Lakh as exemption limit with 0 investment limit: Total tax payable would have been 1,87,735 Cr only 296 Cr less than what govt achieved during 2014-15.

Scenario 3: 5 Lakh as exemption limit with 0 investment limit: Total tax payable would have been 1,80,268 Cr only which means 7762 Cr hit on Govt finances.

                                       Individual- Range of Tax Payable (AY 2015-16)

Range No. of Returns Sum of Gross (cr) Average Gross (lakh) Scenario 1 (2.5L+1.5 L) Scenario 2

(4.5 L+0L)

 Scenario 3 (5L+0L)
< 0              1,08,062
>0 and <=1,50,000           21,60,364                      18,289                                   0.85                   –                 –                 –
>150,000 and <= 2,00,000           15,61,078                      27,860                                   1.78                   –                 –                 –
>2,00,000 and <=2,50,000           43,69,446                   1,00,866                                   2.31                   –                 –                 –
>2,50,000 and <= 3,50,000        1,33,61,610                   3,88,735                                   2.91                   –                 –                 –
>3,50,000 and <= 4,00,000           33,11,801                   1,23,751                                   3.74                   –                 –                 –
>4,00,000 and <= 4,50,000           27,63,811                   1,16,960                                   4.23               641                 –                 –
>4,50,000 and <= 5,00,000           20,22,386                      95,917                                   4.74            1,502              491                 –
>5,00,000 and <= 5,50,000           16,87,835                      88,421                                   5.24            2,494          1,650              806
>5,50,000 and <= 9,50,000           61,40,397                   4,28,653                                   6.98         30,467        27,397        24,327
>9,50,000 and <= 10,00,000              3,02,399                      29,467                                   9.74            3,172          3,021          1,435
>10,00,000 and <=15,00,000           15,15,662                   1,82,066                                 12.01         25,822        25,064        24,307
>15,00,000 and <= 20,00,000              5,93,658                   1,01,939                                 17.17         19,302        19,005        18,709
>20,00,000 and <= 25,00,000              2,83,331                      62,977                                 22.23         13,510        13,368        13,226
>25,00,000 and <= 50,00,000              3,81,228                   1,27,824                                 33.53         31,104        30,913        30,723
>50,00,000 and <= 1 cr              1,16,901                      79,992                                 68.43         21,776        21,718        21,660
>1 cr and <=5 cr                 55,331                   1,00,179                              181.05         29,002        28,975        28,947
>5cr and <=10cr                    3,020                      20,323                              672.95            6,040          6,038          6,037
>10cr and <=25cr                    1,156                      16,862                           1,458.65            5,037          5,036          5,035
>25cr and <=50cr                       233                         8,114                           3,482.40            2,430          2,430          2,430
>50cr and <=100cr                          58                         3,873                           6,677.59            1,161          1,161          1,161
>100cr and <=500cr                          31                         4,175                        13,467.74            1,252          1,252          1,252
>500cr                            1                            721                        72,100.00               216              216              216
Total        4,07,39,799                21,27,964      1,94,927    1,87,735    1,80,268

Obviously changing the tax laws can have both positive as well as negative consequences.

The positive impact is mainly convenience to general public. Tax laws are difficult to understand be it Direct or Indirect. People don’t understand why they need to invest first in PPF, NPS, ELSS, PF, LIC to save tax and why all of these have different lock-in periods. Moreover people have a genuine complaint that they should survive first or save? If someone is earning Rs 30000 per month in tier 2 cities then probably average saving would be 5000/month. But to save tax he needs to invest all his money for some years and survive hard times to see that invested money.

With increasing limit obviously tax base which is already 1.7% will reduce further. With a flat Rs 5 lakh exemption limit we would have only 1.1 Cr Individual tax payers in India. This goes against the general rule of having a bigger tax base. Also the starting tax rate would be 20% instead of 10% (5% now) which could further increased tax evasion cases.

The challenge still lies to find the equilibrium between the positive and negative scenarios which I will explore in my next article.

‘Each booth should have 5 EVMs’ and other such electoral ‘reforms’

nandakumar
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‘Each booth should have 5 EVMs’ and other such electoral ‘reforms’

Path-breaking and historical electoral reforms have been announced by the Election Commission of India. These reforms address in detail the scourge of cash for votes, EVM tampering etc. It hopes to put an end to all complaints related to pre-poll, poll and post-poll actions, violations etc.

These are the highlights:

1. Cash for votes: Unable to stop cash distribution during elections, The CEC and RBI have hit upon a novel solution. Accordingly all Political parties will be given demonetized 1000 Rs. and 500 Rs. demonetized notes.

The political parties can affix their respective party symbols right below the words “I promise to pay the bearer the sum of Rupees” and distribute the same to the voters. The number and value of the notes that a voter gets will reflect the actual value the voter will finally get for voting the particular party. There will be no limit to the number or value a voter can get; nor will there be a limit to the number of parties from which a voter can get these notes.

Since only demonetized notes are distributed it will not be illegal whereas distribution of legal tender amounts to illegality. This would ensure a level playing field for all contestants. The RBI need not burn the stock of demonetized notes and create environmental problems; nor it has to incur expenses in storage of these notes. It also speeds up the counting of the DM notes by putting the onus on the parties to count them. The ECI will be spared of the expense and efforts in deploying CCTV cameras, police personnel and poll observers to monitor cash distribution.

2. EVM hacking: Though the ECI has time and again proved the that EVMs cannot be tampered or rigged, no Political party is willing to accept it. Many parties have raised the issue of electoral victory, moral victory, political victory, tactical victory etc.

Similarly voters are also unhappy with present system. In the recently concluded Gujarat election many staunch BJP supporters did not vote for Congress because their conscience did not permit them to do so despite being unhappy with BJP. Either they stayed at home or voted for NOTA. Party spokespersons also complained that they were unable to convince Arnab or Rajdeep or Sreenivasan Jain as to who won the election and how.

Keeping in mind all these invaluable s inputs the ECI has announce that hence forth the following procedure will be adopted in future elections.

Each booth will have 5 EVMs and every voter will have the option to cast in any or all the five EVMs.
The EVMs will be designated as the Electoral Victor Machine, Moral Victor machine, Political victor machine, Tactical victor machine and “AOTA “ machine (All Of The Above).

With immediate effect NOTA option will be dispensed. Further category and nomenclature of EVM will be added as and when parties come up with more such ideas.

Effectively any voter can now vote for the BJP in one machine, AAP in another and Congress in another and opt for AOTA in the case for TTV Dinakaran!

This will give a psychological boost for the ordinary voter. He would have done full justice to his inner feelings in a Democratic way by pressing the desired buttons. The ECI has also invited suggestion from the general public for additional Victor options.

Tail Piece : AAP has strongly protested to the ECI saying that their supporters have complained that even they voted for AAP by pressing AOTA the vote was registered as NOTA.

Modi Sarkar failings; my views as we approach the end of 2017

bhartiaa
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Modi Sarkar failings; my views as we approach the end of 2017

42 months have gone since we elected Modi to lead the country. Modi rode an unprecedented wave, not seen in past few decades, to become the PM with a majority of his own. After decades of coalitions, this was a welcome change.

Vote to Modi was a result of multiple factors, to mention a few;

  • Lacklustre MMS as PM who was perceived to be nothing more than a glorified rubber stamp of 10 Janpath
  • Series of Mega scams & large-scale loot & corruption as every Minister ran their portfolios as their personal fiefdom.
  • UPA was perceived by many as unabashedly and openly pursuing Minority (read Muslim) appeasement at the cost of Majority (read Hindus)
  • India under MMS was perceived to have become (even more) softer state when it came to Foreign Policy, especially w.r.t. to our neighbors who were seen to be bullying us every now & then and we were constantly on backfoot & reactive
  • Aspirations of millions who perceived Modi as a strong-willed, development-oriented, unapologetic Hindu, who would find solutions to the issues that have plagued us for decades

Modi ran a very successful campaign where he pitched himself as a one-man army to take us out of the decayed & stench filled political system that was a gift to us as part of the Nehruvian doctrine. His messaging was smart & while he appealed to the masses with his development plank (the famed Gujarat model) he made enough references (overtly & covertly) to fire up the imaginations of the millions of Hindus who have a belief (right or wrong) that the Indian state has been unfair to them as the state has been perceived to favour minorities at the cost of Hindus.

Modi raised issues that were dear to the hearts of many and to name a few; Jobs, eradicate corruption, nail the guilty & put them behind bars, sort out the menace of illegal Bangladeshis, get justice for Kashmiri Pandits, restore the pride and position of India in Global arena, take a tough stand with Pakistan, fight terror with an iron fist and so on….

All this combined with an exceptional oratory & connect Modi developed with the common man, a well-managed & orchestrated election campaign and very importantly a split opposition who had no visible face that could challenge Modi resulted in a political environment that saw BJP getting a majority of its own in LS. Not to mention the idea of Chai Pe Charcha which was a gifted by on one less than the MSA.

Basically, the country elected Modi, a person who touted his 56” chest over a timid MMS, with an expectation that a person with a humble origin like Modi would finally manage to replace the Government of the Lutyens, by the Lutyens, and for the Lutyens by Government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Over past 3 and a half years, the Modi Sarkar has done exceptional work in many areas and it needs to be lauded for these. The Jan Dhan, Antodya, Ujjwala, Saubhagya, PM Awas Yojna, PM Suraksha Bima, PM Jiwan Jyoti Bima to name a few. Similarly, a lot of efforts have been put into important social and economic initiatives like Beti Bachao; Beti Padhao, Swacha Bharat, Skill India, Make In India to name a few with varying degree of success.

There has been a renewed vigor in our Foreign relations and a marked effort to carve out a niche for India outside the famed Nehruvian concept of Non-Alignment (which was, in fact, being a foot soldier of the then USSR). FP is one area which is difficult to comment, especially for a rank outsider, as the visible part of diplomacy & FP are like the tip of an iceberg and the actual power games along with the hard bargains happen mostly backstage without any pomp and show.

All this along with the goodwill & connect Modi still enjoys with the voters and the rigor & passion with which Amit Shah manages the BJP poll machine has resulted in a near saffron march across the country. All you need to do is look at the political map before May 2014 and today to see this saffron sweep. This is a remarkable achievement and was unimaginable even after the spectacular LS win of 2014. No one & I mean no one (maybe not even Modi & Shah) would have expected BJP to expand so quickly and comprehensively across the nation.

So, after all of the above where do I see failings of the Modi Sarkar?

It is human nature, to judge by failures and unmet expectations rather than what has been achieved, and I am no different. Just to give a context, we judge Nehru more for his monumental failures & the good work he has done is incidental to this discussion. As PM of the country, it is expected that they will do good work, that is what we have elected them for. So, when they fail, especially in areas that are critical (at least from my perspective) they need to be called out.

So where do I think things did not work as per expectations (will stick to mine as I do not have any reason to claim I represent others)?

In my view, Modi initially tried to do a lot to bring about a significant change in the system & the way of governance set by generations of ruling classes. Let us call this the ecosystem, the ecosystem has co-opted (over decades) politicians (of all ideologies and across party lines), bureaucrats, difficult to comment on judiciary (as little idea + never know when could you border contempt), media, industrialist, Intelligentsia et al. where each saves the back of others and enjoys the perks of power (which invariably means money).

I remember vividly how Modi wanted to reduce the number of ministries by integrating them to synergize the efforts and reduce the Government.  Remember ‘Less Government, More Governance’? What happened to that? Probably died a natural death, as political realities of monkey balancing the cabinet took precedence and the ecosystem just would not digest such a drastic change so retaliated in its own way. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

I vividly remember the passion with which Modi pushed for each elected representative to take care of 5 villages each. It is a no-brainer, why would any LS member have any objections or issues with such an initiative? I think it was pushed by the PM for a few months and then it died, again a natural death, as even members of the ruling party probably did not bother to do the groundwork. The PM was expected to monitor but is it practical or really required? If the PM needs to monitor that the elected MPs work for their own constituencies, we really have reached a nadir in our polity and public life. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

Then came the fiasco of the Ordinance to relax the Land Acquisition Bill. The less said about it the better. This I think is where the goose was cooked for reformist Modi, the entire ecosystem got an opportunity (to give credit where it is due, recognized it as the most potent weapon Modi had gifted them early in his term) to regroup and retaliate & show Modi his true place in the larger scheme of things. As things stand today, this is one legislation that is the biggest challenge in launching any big-ticket infrastructure plans for growth and will remain the bottleneck now for a long time. Short-term political gains (even BJP is to blame as they helped pass this draconian law, amongst many others) beats the larger national long-term interest. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

Another fatal nail in the coffin of the reformist Modi (whatever was left out after the land Ordinance loss) was driven by the Supreme Court which ruled NJAC as unconstitutional. It was a classic showdown between the legislature and the Judiciary and in the end Legislature chose to give up its primacy on a platter to Judiciary, that too without a whimper. This subjugation has had multiple ripple effects on the way judiciary is now more boldly & with impunity encroaching upon the areas of both Legislature and Executive. The reverberations of this overreach will keep reminding us of how unaccountable & opaque one of the pillars of our Democracy is. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

Then is the entire Pakistan saga of mixed signals of what our stand on this Terrorist state, which is a constant thorn in our foot, is? A lot of hardball has been played along with a show of ample indicators to return to negotiating table without any tangible gains curbing the menace of terror as an official policy to bleed us by thousand cuts. The fact is this is too complex and difficult a situation for any one person or government to manage. The ecosystem with its Aman Ki Aasha tamasha is always there to snide any hard-line efforts and then we have the other group which is always there to snide any possible softer approach. I think it is still a tied match as of now and do not see any real breakthrough in near future. Modi 0, Ecosystem 0.

Kashmir, the paradise on earth turned into a throne that is bleeding us day in and day out still poses the same challenges as it did always. The inability of the Modi Sarkar to act upon any of the basic issues that are the cause of the Kashmir problem, despite being in Gov in both the state and the center is now apparent. That said, I think it will be very unfair on Modi, or for that matter of fact any government, to expect that Kashmir can be sorted out easily & without a major shakeup and pain. We as people of India must ask ourselves, are we ready for the kind of surgery along with ruthless politics and strong-arm tactics that are a must to curb the insurgency? We are not even ready to accept the basic nature of the beast and the reasons why Kashmir, to be specific it is just a few districts in the valley, is not willing to be part of our country. We are so delusional that we articulate multiple reasons (valid & invalid) and ignore the elephant in the room, that issue is in areas which have a brute Muslim majority. Modi 0, Ecosystem 0.

I am no expert on the economy and the indicators that show the health of our current state. Modi has been very lucky due to the crude oil price levels and I am not sure how would the economy played out if this was not the case. Overall, no doubt that there is an effort to push for greater transparency, better tax compliance and increase the tax base. Modi 0, Ecosystem 0.

Finally, the First of the two biggest falling of the Modi Sarkar; Near zero control on narrative. The way the Ecosystem has been able to manage the narrative from Suit Boot Ki Sarkar, Dadri, Churches under attack, Minorities feel unsafe, SC/ST/OBCs not getting representation/justice to the award wapasi is a long list of failure of Modi & his team to control and set the narrative. The famed communication machinery that worked wonders in 2014 to capture the fancy of the nation suddenly seemed to have vanished into thin air. The way I see it before 2014 Modi was setting the agenda and the narrative & others were reacting to it and after May 2014 the shoe is on the other foot. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

The second biggest falling of the Modi Sarkar, and I have a feeling that this will hurt them the most in near future is the inaction on bringing to book the culprits of the monumental scams under the UPA. The reasons are just inexplicable, from 2G to Jija ji to CWG to…. you name any, not even one conviction has happened. The issue is not that there have been no convictions, the issue is; visibly, no interest of Modi Sarkar in even doing a pretense of trying to bring guilty to the book. For reasons best known to Modi & his team they have chosen to give out a perception that they have no interest to chase the guilty and punish them. They are happy to tom-tom that their government has not done any scam, great!! But then, as I said is it a normal expectation from any sincere and honest government, why do we need to parade this? Now, I wait to see how Modi will play this out in 2019 when the public may not be so enthusiastic to lap up to the claims of Modi that he will put corrupt behind the bars. Modi 0, Ecosystem 1.

This ends my take on the failings of the Modi Sarkar, have I covered every possible facet of governance or my expectations? No, probably will keep these for the next time I decide to sit and rant.

Note: I have deliberately not mentioned Demonetisation and GST for reasons best known to me 😊

औरंगजेब की रूह का मणिशंकर अय्यर को पत्र

Pankaj Vaidya
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0
औरंगजेब की रूह का मणिशंकर अय्यर को पत्र

आदरणीय मणिशंकर अय्यर जी,

मैंने हाल ही में सुना है कि आपने कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष/शहजादे राहुल गांधी की तुलना मेरे साथ की है।

तुम्हारी ऐसा करने की हिम्मत कैसे हुई?

हमारे जमाने में यह जरूरी नहीं था कि मुगल बादशाह का बेटा होने से मैं अपने आप अगला बादशाह बनता। पहले मुझे उत्त्तर अफगानिस्तान, फिर दक्कन और गुजरात का शासक बनकर अपनी काबिलियत साबित करनी पडी, हां वही गुजरात जहां आपका शहजादा अभी भी लडखडा रहा है।

आपके शहजादे की तरह मुझे कुछ भी बना बनाया नहीं मिला। मुझे कुतुबशाहि, आदिलशाहि और सफाविदों के साथ लडाईयां लडनी पडी। मुझे अपने भाइयों शुजा, मुराद और दारा शिकोह के खिलाफ लडना पडा, जीसकी मैने आखिरकार हत्या करवा दी। क्या राहुल गांधी को किसी की हत्या करनी पडी? लडाई की बात तो दूर, उन्होंने किसी को चुनाव में भी नहीं हराया।

और तुमने अपने शहजादे की तुलना मेरे अब्बू के साथ की? मेरे अब्बू के साथ? माना की मैंने आगरा के किले में उनहें कैद कर रखा था, फिर भी इस तुलना से मेरा खून खौल उठता है। मेरे अब्बू को भी दक्कन, बंगाल, बिहार, दिल्ली और गुजरात का शासन करना पडा था और मुगल बादशाह बनने से पहले अपनी मां नूरजहां का विरोध सहना पडा था, जबकि आपके शहजादे तो इन सभी प्रांतों को हार चुके  है। अमेठी, वह एकमात्र जागीर जहां आपके शहजादे का शासन चलता है, खंडहर बना पडा है।

बस एक बात के लिये आपके शहजादे को सलाम करता हूं। मेरे परीवार के इस मुल्क में बहुत सारे महल और मकबरे है। लेकीन जीतनी सडकें, संस्थानों और योजनाएं आपके शहजादे के परीवार के नाम पर है, हम उसकी बराबरी कभी भी नहीं कर सकते।

आपने यह तुलना करने की जो नीच हरकत कि है, इसके लिये मैं चाहूंगा की  आप न केवल मेरी बलकि पूरे मुगल परिवार की माफी मांगे। मैंने यह पत्र जानबूझकर हिंदी के बजाय हिन्दुस्तानी में लिखा है ताकि आप यह बहाना न दे सको की आप मेरे पत्र को समझ ही नहीं पाये क्योंकि हिंदी आपकी मूल भाषा नहीं है।

यदि मैं जिंदा होता, तो मैं आपको हाथियों के पैरों के नीचो कुचलवा देता या लाल किले में कैद कर देता या फिर फांसी के तख्ते पर suspend कर देता. नीच बयान देने में तो आपने अपनी एक niche बना ली है। मैंने St. Stephen’s College जैसे काफिर महाविद्यालय में पढाई नहीं की है लेकिन अंग्रेजी मुझे भी आती है।

आपकी,
औरंगजेब की रूह

This post is a slightly modified translation of the following article by Anand Walunjkar:
http://www.opindia.com/2017/12/open-letter-to-mani-shankar-aiyar-from-the-ghost-of-aurangzeb/

Additional inspiration from this Tweet by Ashwin Kumar:
https://twitter.com/ashwinskumar/status/938979113724919808

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