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Maharashtra witnessed protest rally demanding bail for corrupt leader Chhagan Bhujbal

Nitten Gokhaley
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Maharashtra witnessed protest rally demanding bail for corrupt leader Chhagan Bhujbal

After Maratha and Dalit rallies, Maharashtra witnessed OBC rally on October 3rd. This may sound bizarre, but the rally’s organizers say their aim is to force the state government to release corrupt NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal on bail.

Maharashtra witnessed Maratha community’s silent protest marches in various cities last month.  There is no doubt that the state’s population wants quick justice for Kopardi rape and murder victim. They also want the government to make changes in Prevention of Atrocities Act and give reservation to the community. All the silent marches have been conducted peacefully.

In order to counter Maratha Morcha, MIM had organized Dalit-Muslim silent march. They have urged Fadnavis to give special reservations to Muslims and Dalits. They have also demanded the government to keep Prevention of Atrocities Act untouched.

Protest rally to support the corrupt?

After the above two, certain OBC community leaders, along with small outfits, organized their first silent march in Nasik. Around one lakh individuals participated in this rally. During their October 3rd protest march, the OBC council aimed to highlight issues faced by OBC community and also urged the state government to release super corrupt NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal. He is one of the state’s influential OBC leaders and has served as deputy CM, home minister, and minister for public works in the Congress-NCP Government.

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The former deputy chief minister is facing several corruption cases. He is in jail because of Maharashtra Sadan scam and a money laundering case. Transactions involved in this particular case are so complex that the government agencies had to rope in private firm to conduct an audit on Bhujbal’s investments, movable, immovable assets. Reports suggest that his overall assets are worth more than Rs 26,000 crores!  Bhujbal attracted negative attention for the first time when he was investigated for his role in the famous Telgi stamp paper scam along with NCP chief Sharad Pawar.

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The NCP did not openly support the rally, however, its OBC leaders like Jitendra Awhad (Ishrat is innocent fame), and Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council-Dhananjay Munde were part of the rally. Maharashtra Mali Samaj Mahasangh’s Chief Anil Mahajan interacted with journalists and said their next rally will be held on October 20th in Beed.

He also pointed out that their rally is not against Maratha reservation, but it is just to convey that Marathas should not be given quota under OBC category.

OBC council’s state convener professor Shravan Deore interacted with journalists and claimed that Maratha leaders from the state are acting against Bhujbal because of his political importance and image as a national level-OBC leader.

This reminds me of AAP MLA Sandeep Kumar who claimed that people are talking about his sex scandal, and are against him, because he is a Dalit. Is it right to play backward caste card when you are caught committing a crime? Is it right to support a crime suspect just because he belongs to a particular caste?

Beware of the TREACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES in our backyard (aka Asteen ke Saanp)

rameshwrites
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The surgical strikes in Pakistan occupied Kashmir demonstrate that we now have a government who has unshackled the army giving it all operational freedom to respond to terror strikes and fully backing it politically. This marks a watershed moment in our fight against terrorism sponsored by Pakistan govt and army.  Gone are the days when we would have “Kadi Ninda” as the highest level of response to a terror strike.

In this backdrop let’s discuss about two contrasting groups of people relevant to the current context:

  • One comprises all the soldiers who are willing to fight for us and also willing to die just to keep us safe. The recent terror strikes in Pathankot and Uri the nation lost more than 20 of our brave hearts while guarding against Pakistani terrorists. We know them as ARMED FORCES.
  • The second is a breed of people whose singular aim in life is to protect the interest of Pakistan while running their livelihood in India and sucking it dry. The unexpected cross LoC response has traumatized this select group of people in India more than the Paki establishment. They do not leave out any opportunity to run down the country and the Indian Armed forces both here in India and across the world. We can call them as TREACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES in India. They are most likely to be activated in India to work for their masters in Pakistan and to inflict maximum economic, security and social damage on India.

So who are these second set of people the TREACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES in India? Let me explain that in a little more detail with examples:

  1. GREEDY SCUMS worried about situation of not being able to earn money from releasing movies in Pakistan. If that offends the majority of Indians – so be it as they don’t care a damn. This trait is basically called GREED and includes the like of Mahesh Bhatt
    1. Mahesh Bhatt – Father of Rahul Bhatt who helped David Coleman Headley in scouting for places to attack for the 26/11 strikes by Pakistani trained terrorists. He also has the distinction of blaming RSS for 26/11 attacks and praising the terrorist inspirer Zakir Naik that he stands out for the truth. He now has the balls to say we need to give a chance to peace. Cynically – this looks like a waving of the white flag by a Paki Proxy.
    2.  Salman Khan – With cases against him of running over people on a pavement and shooting endangered black buck running, he has the audacity of backing Paki based actors. Says they came on a Visa issued by the Indian Govt. That is a separate topic of discussion, if these actors came on tourist visas and engaged in commercial activities. And furthermore he had no comments on Pakistan denying visa to Anupam Kher but expects all generosity from India. Why??? Because of movie revenue from Pakistan.
    3. Then there is the BDB – Bollywood Dumbo Brigade. Some of the key participants being Kalki Kochelin, Dia Mirza, Shruthi Seth etc. They have no clue about the ground situation and will tweet out motherhood and apple pie crap just to remain in the limelight. They have no qualms about being completely insensitive about the deaths of our soldiers. Unfortunately the nationalists on twitter fall for their bait and make them popular by slamming them rather than ignore them.
  2. There are the second set of TRACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES who exist in the garb of some of the Journalists in India. The undisputable leader of this pack is Barkha Dutt with her alleged active role in brokering places of ministers in Manmohan Singh’s cabinet in 2009 along with Nira Radia:
    1. Barkha Dutt takes the cake in describing the terrorist Burhan Wani of Pak supported Hizbul Mujahideen as the “son of a Headmaster”. She never took the time to understand if there was the son of farmer/laborer who joined the Indian army and was killed by the Paki sponsored terrorists.

Barkha is notorious for having allegedly shared with the terrorists the location of people hiding during the 26/11 attack (Chaitanya Kunte’s blog details that clearly). And there is an encyclopedia on this if you just googled “Barkha 26/11”  .

She has also extremely cleverly gone on to paint a saintly picture of Kanhaiya Kumar of JNU and conveniently camouflaging the anti-national slogans of Kashmir’s azadi that happened under his watch. The same Barkha did not do any significant coverage post the treasonous outburst of Kanhaiya Kumar who called our soldiers as rapists

Her blatant support to Pakistan is well known and she has earned the ultimate prize of being praised by the UN declared International terrorist Hafiz Saeed. Yashwant Deshmukh’s tweet aptly summarizes Barkha’ s tilt of coverage.

2. Rajdeep Sardesai: The journalist who took special taste in fomenting more trouble during the 2002 riots in Gujarat (ref: Manushi link below). He went to classify the terrorist attack in Uri as madness and absolutely no mention of Pakistan. The ordinary Indians on twitter however showed him the mirror and exposed his blatant Pro-Pak bias:

Recently he went to a Paki channel and started badmouthing other fellow Indian journalists. One of the other journalist was known to take a very hard stance against Pakistani sponsored terrorism.

During his coverage of 2002 riots he was clearly hell bent on making the situation worse rather than it was on the ground. There is a whole set of information available on this on the internet. One such excerpt is here titled – NDTV adding fuel to fire during 2002 riots: http://www.manushi.in/articles.php?articleId=1770#.V-_uRtLVzIU

He also had the achievement of calling Dawood Ibrahim a patriot, who masterminded the Mumbai blasts and is now hiding in Pakistan under protection from the Pakistani.

3.  Indian Express: “And THEY hanged him” : I don’t have to say any more for this paper which supports a terrorist responsible for the Mumbai blasts.

4. Rahul Kanwal – the most cunning swine in this lot. He conveniently gave out the location of burial of the terrorist Yakub Memon as if sharing about a news break. There were whispers that this was said to be a message from Pakistan to have a major turnout at the burial. This swine had the gall to then go out and blog about the turnout and its implications trying to scare the Indian state.

5. Rana Ayyub – the good thing about her is that she does not have a mask of neutrality, but rather openly supports Pakistan. She is least dangerous in this group.

3. The next lot of these TREACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES are the “Award Wapsi” and “Intellectuals” gang. There is a high probability that this gang would now go all over the world talking about our aggressive stance in an effort to build diplomatic pressure through their incestuous clubs and mutually-beneficial groups/associations. And in the unlikely event of a war with the Pakis these would be the first set of people to ditch India or most likely to damage the country within.

The one Hindi sentence that would aptly describe these TREACHEROUS PROXY SNAKES is “Khate Hinustan ka aur wafadari Pakistan ki”.

What should the patriotic and nationalist do now :

  1. Presurize the govt. to put these SNAKES on a 24 x7 surveillance and unearth their treasonous link to the Pakistani establishment. Once proved, the example set for such behavior must be through the most horrific punishment possible. Don’t know if the Namo govt will oblige here.
  2. Boycott all products, films and other events where these SNAKES or their immediate family is involved. Go to the venues of such events and films to peacefully protest calling out the treason these Snakes are committing. Upcoming examples could be Dangal, Raees etc.
  3. Apart from not watching NDTV, shows of Rajdeep Sardesai and their jamaat – you should uninstall all their apps from your phones, because the reach of the NDTV app is atleast a 100 times more than the channel itself. Also make it a taint if anyone has it installed- make it a point of ridicule. Also do not mark the handle of these SNAKES in your TL. Marking those handles gives them a wider twitter imprint. Instead use images of their tweets to say what you have to say in response to any such tweet.

We may have given a solid beating to the Pakistani terror machine, but the real challenge lies in being extremely vigilant with snakes like these in our backyard who are ready to shame us internationally, engineer riots or cause major caste tensions. These are the “asteen ke saanp” that we need to be aware of – as they will be the medium of Pakistan’s blow back on the surgical strikes.

Is Arvind Kejriwal’s entry into BJP imminent?

pratikshit
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Is Arvind Kejriwal’s entry into BJP imminent?

Yes this may come as a shock but it is highly possible that AAP Delhi CM and perennial hater of Modi, Arvind Kejriwal may join BJP very soon. The only hitch in this move would be determining whether Kejriwal will stick to his word, or make yet another U-Turn.

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File photo

Way back in 2014, when Kejriwal had dumped Delhi and was harbouring dreams of becoming PM of India, he had taken a vow that he will join BJP. Kejriwal said the following to some BJP supporters, at a roadshow:

I asked them that if the BJP came to power, will they have to pay less for gas? I told them that if that was the case, then we too will join the BJP

Of course he backtracked from this statement soon enough, but if one is to hold Kejriwal to his word, his entry into BJP is almost certain since just last week, the price of natural gas was slashed by 18% by the central Government. The new price is $ 2.5 per mmBtu.

A few days before his above “pratigya” Kejriwal had made another foolish statement which now stands exposed:

As explained above, the price of gas is now way below even what AAP wanted. So is this Modi’s grand plan? Is this the way he wants to eliminate Kejriwal by forcing him to join BJP?

Image result for modi amit shah laughing
Representative image

Me in conversation with Aakar Patel and his wife over Pakistan and patriotism

amitpandey
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Me in conversation with Aakar Patel and his wife over Pakistan and patriotism

AP – Aakar Patel

APW – Aakar Patel’s wife

Me – Consider myself an Indian, but now being branded by media as “Internet Hindu”, “Bhakt”, “Chaddiwallah”…..

So I was invited by AP and APW to discuss and prove – how “we majority” are “hate mongers”, “war mongers”, “Hindus” – which I of course realized at the end of the conversation. To know more about the conversation – read on –

AP: We’ve abandoned conducted surgical strike.

APW: What is that?

Me: For years we have faced attacks on our soil, sponsored by Pakistan. We have ample proof about Pak involvement in Mumbai attacks, sponsoring terrorism on our soil, hosting Dawood inside Pakistan. The world was not taking us seriously – and we were like “soft state”, as if you can continue to batter us like “child’s punching bag” and we would bounce back again.

APW: Okay, so each time there is an attack on us we will give up restraint? Or are we in a permanent state of strategic unrestraint?

Me: We did not wanted Kargil, it was imposed on us. If the situation warrants, when our repeated calls for taking action against terrorists fall on deaf years, we cannot continue to sit in our home, and wait for the “brain-washed” terrorists to come and attack us. We had to take some formative action.

APW: Okay. What level violation from the enemy will trigger our retaliation doctrine?

Me: How does that change the things? The enemy still continues to bleed us, even when we are not retaliating. We are sending a clear message to the enemy – if you want to continue to backstab us, let us meet in the open, else if you continue to do it behind a veil, we would be forced to “pre-emptively” take action rather than wait in anticipation. How long do you think we should continue to be backstabbed?

APW: So next time our response will again be a surgical strike? Or something bigger? If it will be a surgical strike will it not have to be a bigger surgical strike than this one if it is to be punitive?

Me: Years of terrorism and proxy war has bled the country in terms of mens, resources. They are unrelenting and would not refuse to stop. The current sponsoring of terrorism cannot go forever.

APW: Okay. Will talking to them continue? Or are we at war?

Me: When a country is sponsoring terrorism on our soil continuously – we are at war – even if we call it “proxy” war. Our soldiers continue to fight and die on the line of duty in our own land. Where is peace?

APW: Doesn’t this strike mean we believe we can force them to comply? Then why do we need to talk to them?

Me: Oh, do you read news. Do you know that Vajpayee had initiated a lot of discussion to resolve the issue, when Kargil happened. Manmohan Singh government continued to talk even after the dastardly Mumbai attack on our soil. Even the so-called “war-monger” Modi, who came to power extended the dialogue with Pakistan.

APW: Okay. We punish them in order to get them to behave?

Me: This is not about making them behave. We cannot wait in our homes and anticipate. Here the choice and place of attacks are completely in the hands of the enemy. Now we would go ahead and keep the enemies on toes. If it means going for all out war – so be it. We do not want war, but what to do if war is being bought to us, in our home?

APW: We broke their country into two but they haven’t learned to behave. Will they behave if we break them into two again? Or four? How can we know what level of punishment is effective?

Me: What makes you think we broke the country into two? For god sake if you do not watch news, there is at least google or wikipedia. Anyway for you – On March 1971, after the election victory by an East Pakistan political party led by Mujibur Rehman. The Pakistan Govt responded with violent aggression. Here do you believe New York Times, let me google an article for you – read this.

Over 2,00,000 Bangladeshis were killed in the violent reprisal, over 2,00,000 – 4,00,000 women were raped. Islamic clerics issued fatwas in support of raping Bengali women, especially Hindu women, as they considered the conflict a holy war. Over 10 million refugees – 1 crore influx of people as refugees in to India. Refugees were dying in India. Nixon the US president sneered – “Indians need a mass famine”.  Also it was not because of 1971 elections. Pakistan had always given step motherly treatment to Bangladesh – even when it was called “East Pakistan”, land of Muslim majority. There is a long story about it including a devastating cyclone, do read it, to realize, we did not “co-ordinate” the split, including creating a typhoon.

Bottomline is we were not responsible for breaking the country into two.

Also Pakistan keep on sponsoring terrorism on our soil – based on Sikhism and Kashmir. It tried to sponsor creation of Khalistan and continues to do so. However unlike the Pakistan states, Indian states have more powers, more decision freedom. Even in face of calamities the country stands as one – be it in Chennai, or in Mumbai, or in Assam or Kashmir.

APW: What have we won?

Me: We have communicated – that we would now retaliate. The world thinks of India as a “soft-state”. Pakistan thinks that it would continue to disrupt India by hosting Dawood and other terrorists – and denying it in face of evidences. It would continue to deny Mumbai attacks even after arrest of its National, laughing at us. It feels India as a “responsible state” would not consider or threaten with nuclear war, while it continues to say “mein bomb podh doonga”.

APW: There is a difference between those who want retaliation and those who do not want repetition. Will retaliation ensure no repetition of terrorism?

AP: Let me put it other way around – will not retaliating ensure no repetition of terrorism. How long you want dialogues to continue, and acts like – Kargil, Mumbai, Pathankot, Uri among countless others can continue?

I am not saying “retaliation” would stop “repetition of terrorism”, but “talks” are not working either – especially since past 16 years.

(Meanwhile Aakar Patel quipped in and said to his wife)

AP (to his wife): What a stupid thing to say! Will not retaliating ensure no repetition? You’re a hater!

APW: This is not about the Prime Minister at all. We’re discussing India and all of us have a stake in it.

Me: AP, why did you call her a hater all of a sudden? And APW how did you equate “hate” with Prime Minister, the elected representative of the people. Lets discuss India.

Both of them (to me): Oh so your in “majority” and that is why you are imposing your thoughts on us.

Me: Hey!! Soldier there are not dying for any Hindu, Muslim, Sikh or Christian, they are standing for Indians – for India. And we have around 15 crore Muslims, that is definitely no less, even though Pakistan was created on religious lines. It is not a question what majority wants, we need to talk as Indians ….

At this point, they started to raise their voice like and shoved me out

APW (to AP) : We need to start out act again. Getting a third party is not working. These bhakts and chaddiwallahs gang have started to talk “being Indian”.

AP: Definitely

And so it began –

Me: We’ve abandoned strategic restraint.

She: What is that?

Me: Not retaliating when we are attacked.

… and to read the rest of the act do visit the blog

Disclaimer –

The post background is as fictitious as fictional conversation published in the blog on Times of India.

Do we know enough about our Armed forces?

maharaaja
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Do we know enough about our Armed forces?

April 1991. The personal interview round of the Services Selection Board for entry into the Naval Academy. One simple question: Name three Indian Navy warships. No response except an embarrassed silence.

Those few seconds were the longest I’ve ever endured.

Till that moment, with my flawless English and metro city upbringing, I had considered myself “cool and aware”. The rest of the SSB interview opened my eyes to my ignorance and I was all at sea – pun intended.

25 years later, nothing much has changed. To this day, our youngsters grow up without an iota of awareness about the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. Our Armed Forces do not figure in the country’s consciousness except when the Pakis decide to send in a few jihadis to kill some more of our men, or the rain gods play havoc in Uttarakhand, or one of the numerous open borewells decide to prey on some kid playing somewhere!

Think about it.

How many of us can tell a Subedar Major apart from a Major?

Do we know what a Destroyer or a Corvette is?

Why does our patriotic fervour peak only on 15th of August, 26th of January, or Vijay Diwas or such other occasions, when we finally allocate some mind space from our busy schedules to our soldiers?

How many of us are familiar with the narratives of the Battles of Saragarhi, Assal Uttar, Longewala (immortalized on celluloid by the movie Border), Nathu La, MeghnaHeli Bridge, and more recently Battles of Tololing and Tiger Hill, or for that matter, the historical Operation Trident launched by the Indian Navy in 1971?

These tales of valour, as indeed, many others, lie confined to libraries in Armed Forces institutions. They are NOT a part of any school curriculum anywhere in the country. No wonder then that the civilian population of this country invariably draws a blank on these.

Is this ignorance deliberate? After all, isn’t this the same populace that rattles out details of headquarters of Google, Microsoft, Apple and Amazon? Aren’t the business leaders of these organizations held up as role models, notwithstanding the fact that Seattle, San Jose and Mountain View California are thousands of miles away?

Despite the fact that the Indian Armed Forces are an embodiment of the values we extol – loyalty, bravery, selflessness, honour, integrity and discipline – why don’t we hold them up as role models for our beleaguered world?

The ancient and honorable profession of Arms arises from the direct and inescapable need to defend our nation’s territory, culture, ideals and people. Indeed, it isn’t an exaggeration to say it ventures beyond physical borders into what is ethically right and morally just. The men who go to war and sacrifice themselves, do so, not for the pay and perks, but for Naam, Namak and Nishaan– all of which is about acknowledgement, recognition and loyalty. Under the circumstances, isn’t it shocking that the glorious tales of our Armed Forces and their achievements never made it to school textbooks?

When our veterans, demanding a relook into OROP in JantarMantar, were lathi-charged by the Delhi Police, how many of us stood up and took notice?

Haven’t we, the larger working class of this country, been largely ambivalent and disinterested in the repeated cries from the Armed Forces regarding the dilution of their authority vis-à-vis their bureaucrats and paramilitary services?

It’s not about taking sides or having an opinion – it is more about being blissfully unaware about an issue which the guardians of our frontiers consider very important to their morale, motivation and performance.

Why are we, the people, rather thankless to the men and women who protect our borders and give up their today for our tomorrow?

Given the precarious nature of affairs in our oh-so-friendly neighborhood, and the rather tentative internal security situation that prevails in our country, the Armed Forces need the best among us.  As we increasingly look upon our men in uniform to sort out the mess created by politicians or by nature, it is high time we took steps to teach our youngsters a thing or two about the Fauji’s role in nation building and continued well-being.

Tales of valour like those of a Major SomNath Sharma, a Captain Manoj Pandey or a Subedar Yogendra Yadav are sure to inspire generations of youth. Teaching our students about these bravehearts and their selfless sacrifices may move some of them enough to join the Armed Forces. At the very least, it will kindle a nationalistic fervor that is the most basic sentiment we owe this great motherland.

Now is the time to reverse the complete annihilation of the Armed Forces from our educational curriculums.

Now is the time to make sure all Indian citizens get familiar with the hitherto ignored goldmine of our military history.

Now is the time to teach our children of those places on the map where the Forces fought for them and continue to stand guard.

Now is the time to say Thank You to the soldier the next time you see him at a railway station with his black trunk waiting to join duty at some forlorn corner of this nation.

Let us – Now – work to give a different hue to our curriculum – Olive Greens, Virgin Whites and the Sky Blues would be a good place to start.

खुला पत्र रवीश कुमार के नाम

Shashank
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खुला पत्र रवीश कुमार के नाम

प्रिय रवीश कुमार,

आजकल सभी लोग खुला पत्र लिख रहे हैं तो सोचा मैं क्यूं पीछे रहूं। मैं आपके ज़ीरो TRP शो का दर्शक हूं, सही पढ़े, आपके गिने चुने दर्शकों में एक, जैसा आप ख़ुद ही कहते हैं। पर क्या बताऊं, मुझे आपका शो देखकर काफ़ी तकलीफ़ होती है। आप सोच रहे होंगे क्यूं, बताता हूं।

कारण है आप रोते बहुत हैं। मानते हैं आपके शो का TRP कम है तो क्या हुआ, बाद में आ जायेगा। आप दिखाते तो हैं कि आपको फ़र्क नहीं पड़ता, लेकिन पता तो चल ही जाता है। वो कहते हैं न इश्क़, मुश्क और TRP का दर्द छिपाये नहीं छिपता।

एक और बात कहना चाहता हूं। आप ख़ुद को unbiased कहते हैं, पर आप हैं नहीं। इसके लिये मैं आपके एक episode की याद दिलाता हूं, जिसमें आपने बिरयानि पर शो किया था। आपने उस एपिसोड में बिरयानि के बारे में काफ़ी कुछ बताया। यहां तक तो ठीक था, लेकिन फिर आपने बात को बीफ़ कि तरफ़ मोड़ दिया। आपके गेस्ट ने काफ़ी बातें बीफ़ पर की और बीफ़ क्यूं बैन नहीं करना चाहिये, इस पर काफ़ी ज़ोर दिया। लेकिन आपने उनसे ये नहीं पूछा की वे लोग बीरयानि में सुअर के गोस्त क्यूं नहीं मिलाते। सुअर का गोस्त सस्ता भी है और पौस्टिक भी।

अंत में मैं आपसे कहूंगा की आपको अब पत्रकारिता छोड़ देनी चाहिये क्यूंकि आप पत्रकारिता के बेसिक नियम भूल गये हैं। आपको फ़ीडबैक पसंद नहीं है। फ़ीडबैक के बिना mass communication अधूरा है। आप सोशल मीडिया से काफ़ी डरते हैं, क्यूंकि सोशल मीडिया के ज़रिये लोग आप से सवाल कर रहे हैं। अगर आप सच्चे पत्रकार होते तो आप सोशल मीडिया की आलोचना न करते। सच्चाइ ये है कि अब हमें पत्रकारों की ज़रूरत नहीं है। हम अपनी बात सरकार तक ख़ुद पहुंचा सकते हैं।

आपका ज़ीरो TRP दर्शक

In a huge blow to Pakistan, Indian government bans NDTV

Manithan
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In a huge blow to Pakistan, Indian government bans NDTV
Meanwhile, experts on TV ratings have projected that the ratings of NDTV stays in the same position as before, even after the ban.
Meanwhile, experts on TV ratings have projected that the ratings of NDTV stays in the same position as before, even after the ban.

New Delhi: Kashmir is facing severe unrest for the past few months. With the killing of Wani and the stone pelting riots that followed, the recent attacks by Pakistani terrorists (fighters as per NDTV) has simmered the rage of every Indian.

Many experts had been providing suggestions on how to cripple the Pakistani establishment by scrapping Indus Water Treaty or shaming them in international arena. Some Experts have expressed their apprehensions about doing anything that affects Pakistan.

While this war over the decision to go on a war with Pakistan is still going on, Indian government has gone a step further and has given a huge blow to Pakistan. As per directions from I&B ministry, licenses of NDTV channel has been cancelled and its operations had been told to be stopped from 24th September midnight.

Expressing shock over the sudden blockage of NDTV, Pakistanis took the Twitter by storm and trended #BringBackNDTV. Faizal Alam, a Twitter celebrity tweeted, “We could have tolerated a dry Indus or dead soldiers, but we lose our jaan when NDTV gets banned. #BringBackNDTV”

After hearing about NDTV ban, Nawaz Sharif who was present in New York stressed the US Government to issue stern warnings to Indian government that it should not impact the Pakistani interests within its State.

As usual, Internet Hindus and vile Sanghis celebrated the ban and continued their usual trolling of Barkha Dutt. But, they found unusual partners from across the border, Pakistani reporters, who were also celebrating this ban. Hamid Mir, a famous Pakistani reporter, breathed a huge sigh of relief, “NDTV was eating our TRPs and was the leading channel in Pakistan. We were totally stressed by its dominance in our country. Now, we can get back to our work, if we aren’t shot on the way by men on bikes.”

Ravish Jaat Kumar had tweeted that, “As a protest against this fascism and Nazism, we are going to show black screen in NDTV forever. Till we are brought back.. #BringBackNDTV”

A highly placed source from Pakistan said, “Our governments would have easily airlifted NDTV reporters and gave them a classy working environment in Islamabad. But, we would lose a Pakistani enclave in India. That is why, we have decided to do a diplomatic blockade on India instead.”

उरी का प्रतिशोध – एक कविता

Preeti Singh
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उरी का प्रतिशोध – एक कविता

एक गूँज उठी उस रात में,
हाहाकार मची चारों ओर,
जब अश्वथामा आया चुपके से,
ले हाथ तलवार बिना शोर||

न वो कोई था बलवान,
कायर वो रात में आया था,
उसके सीने में बल नहीं,
बस अन्धकार का साया था||

प्राण लूँगा मैं उन पांडवों के,
प्रण उसके पापी मन में था|
एक यही लक्ष्य दुर्योधन के बाद,
उसके संपूर्ण जीवन में था||

फिर जब उसने हर लिए प्राण,
माधव न रह सके मौन|
ले चक्र उठा उसे दिया श्राप,
इस वचन से उसे बचाता कौन?

जा तू जीएगा सालों साल,
पर मरने को तू तरसेगा|
कोढ़ी बन इस धरती पर तू,
जीवन पर्यन्त भटकेगा||

ये श्राप था द्वापर युग में,
कुछ ऐसा ही हुआ कलयुग में फिर|
जब रात के अँधेरे में डूबी थी उरी,
आये कुछ नर-भक्षक भारत में फिर||

सोये थे कुछ सिपाही देश के,
देश की रक्षा कर दिन भर|
उस नींद को भी लुटा दिया,
जाए कैसे नींद भी निष्फल||

कुछ लोग याचना करते हैं अब,
आगे मित्रता का हाथ बढ़ाओ|
बैरी होने से कुछ न मिलेगा,
प्राणी हो प्राणी को अपनाओ||

जब माधव ने ना किया क्षमा,
हम किस खेत की मूली हैं?
सीने में दागेंगे गोली,
वो रात हमें क्या भूली है?

प्रतिशोध तो लेना ही था,
अब तुले का भार भिन्न नहीं,
शांत हो जाओ तुम भी अब,
हमारा मन भी अब खिन्न नहीं||

पर मानवता के नाम पर हमसे,
यह अहिंसा का ढोंग न होगा||
जब वार तुम एक बार करोगे,
हमारा उत्तर भी कम न होगा ||

अहिंसा के राह पर चलो,
कुछ लोग हमें सिखलाएंगे |
पर जब भी देश पर वार करोगे,
हम महाभारत ही दोहराएंगे||

Clinton Versus Trump Debate – No Clear Winner

Naagesh Padmanaban
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Clinton Versus Trump Debate – No Clear Winner

The first 2016 Presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump was held on Monday, September 26th at Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY. The debate, organized by the commission on presidential debate, a non-partisan non-profit body, had the sports fraternity worried as the Monday night football viewership took a ntrump_clinton2osedive as Americans flipped channels to watch it. An estimated 81 million viewers were glued to their television sets making it the most watched debate ever. The debate had also set the social media on fire. With over ten million tweets, it was the most tweeted debate ever. America and many elsewhere in the world were transfixed watching Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump spar at their first debate.

The cable TV networks had spent the entire week speculating and ratcheting up the excitement about the debate. They discussed at length on how the candidates should prepare, what questions to expect and what to wear and so on. This drew sharp comments from some politicians. The indefatigable Bernie Sanders, the Senator from Vermont and failed Democratic candidate, blasted the media and its coverage leading to the debate. He wanted the media to focus on the views of the candidates on burning issues – economy, jobs, living wage, healthcare, college tuition etc. rather than their personal styles and attires.

At the debate, the candidates were on their Sunday best – all dressed up and at their behavioral best and displaying dignified courtesies to each other. Many were indeed impressed to see a pleasant side of Trump.

The moderator – Lester Holt of NBC News – drew attention for different reasons. Holt, as a moderator, was at best, tepid. There was a robot-like quality about him– devoid of enthusiasm and passion in his questions and interventions. Like a strict disciplinarian, he admonished the audience for cheering and clapping but said nothing when they cheered Clinton.

Holt had six follow up questions for Trump, but none for Clinton. He tried to pin him down on the birther issue, but conveniently forgot to ask Clinton about propriety of using private email server or hacking of DNC emails that exposed racism.  Many Trump supporters tweeted later that the moderator deftly steered the debate away from issues, reinforcing an anti-Trump bias. It should be pointed out that the Trump campaign had raised doubts about his neutrality even before the debate.

Back at the debate, Trump had a lot of surprises up his sleeve. His responses were measured and controlled. Judging by the post-debate discussions, the pundits were indeed disappointed that they did not see the real maverick Trump. He seemed to be in full control in early part of the debate when the debate was on trade and Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) in particular. Clearly Clinton was cornered for calling it the “gold standard” and later opposing it. However, she took control in the later half by attacking Trump on his comments on women.

The pre debate polls have given no easy pointer as to who the new President would be. Trump led in Colorado, Nevada and Florida – all key states. He has further consolidated his position in Ohio, a state which Hillary has not visited for a long time. While Trump leads in rural Maine, Clinton holds the rest of Maine. This even fight also played out in many other states. Clinton is way ahead in California, Oregon, and Washington where the lead is substantial. But the respective leads in individual states did not help either of them in the national tally where they are locked even.

The debate itself may not provide any significant bounce for either candidate. While the pundits have had a field day dissecting the performance, they too may not be able to sway the voter’s opinion one way or the other in this rather difficult race. Media analysts who have favored Clinton all along thought that her performance was the best and that she won the debate. But Republican supporters on the other hand were convinced Trump’s performance in the first half cornered Clinton. They were all in admiration for the restraint and statesman-like conduct of Trump. Even many Clinton admirers seem to be in agreement.  The next debate may see the return of the true Trump.

But did Clinton win the debate? Clinton’s supporters think she won. But the problem is even if she had won the debate, this may not win her new supporters who will vote for her. The reason is her problems – email scandal, Clinton Foundation, hacked DNC email and other scandals – have weighed her down. Further her personal health issues will continue to dog her in the coming days. Most important, there is no indication that her debate performance has induced a change of heart in Sanders supporters who remain a considerable voting bloc.

Did Trump win the debate then? Most cable television networks don’t seem to think so. But some have pointed out that the Trump we saw at the debate was someone who was clearly exercising self-restraint and reluctant to go after Clinton. Americans have admired this change in him. But the next debate promises to be a no holds barred debate where Trump’s plain speak and absence of political correctness will be evident. This will again play to his supporters and may even influence the fence sitters who do not want to support Clinton.

The debate outcome by itself is a non-issue. Recall how Obama did not do well against Mitt Romney in the debate, but bounced back quickly and the rest is history. It would be political naiveté to rule out Trump at this stage. In fact, the core issues that he stands for – immigration, unemployment and security – continue to resonate very well with most Americans and will be a huge positive for him. Clinton on the other hand continues to be perceived as ‘not trustworthy’ and her truck load of troubles will continue to haunt her.

The big question however is how will the election go. Given that the pre-debate polls have shown that both are almost evenly placed – except that Trump has caught up with Clinton – the answer may be with undecided voters. Supporters of Bernie Sanders, Jill Stein and Johnson may hold the key and may tip the balance in favor of Trump. However, even at this late stage – with just forty days to go for the big day – it may be too early expect this as the contestants have more wooing to do. Clinton and Trump may have, at best, tied at the first debate. But the real winners were the political pundits and armchair experts on cable networks who had a hell of a day and laughed their way to the banks. The 2016 US Presidential election promises to be another close election.

The Fourth Estate and the Fifth Column!

maharaaja
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The word NEWS, I learnt in school, has an etymology that associated it with the four cardinal directions. I learnt about the existence of News Reporters and News Readers, responsible for “reporting” news as it happened or “reading” it at an anointed hour on TV. This was the media of my growing years – responsible for merely conveying What happened, When and Where! Sometimes a How.

But No Why, Never!

Objectivity and faithful reproduction of events as they transpired, accurately without distortion was the underlying Dharma of this pillar of Democracy – So I learnt. This was Mass Media – the media of the masses!

Not any longer- Today, my son learns something entirely different. He learns that in this age of instant noodles, fast cars and instant gratification – not to mention the obsession with choices- he must choose what he reads, and that includes individual opinions, viewpoints and perspectives. Not a bad idea in itself.

So, we had this Internet and Social Media boom and Media stopped being Mass, despite retaining and exceeding its traditional reach. Borders and definitions between News, News makers, News Providers and the views they held in their personal lives blurred. As I adapted to this new generation blitzkrieg, I learnt that every news agency or channel had a “viewpoint” and “agenda”. Suddenly, I was being bombarded with details of personal lives of a Barkha Dutt and a Rajdeep Sardesai and such others, and constantly being tutored that personal lives of these journalists (see, they weren’t reporters and editors any more) and where they “came” from, did in fact, influence, what or how they published or covered an event.

Lo and Behold, I was seeing a new pattern. Channels covered the same news differently- They clearly took Sides – With or against an institution or an issue and that stand dictated the tone and tenor and extent of the coverage. Headlines were subjective, and newsreaders transitioned into opinion makers.

Multiple news channels beamed into my living room through a digital set top box in high definition mode and screamed for my attention 24×7, and were willing to creating a ruckus over it.

Suddenly, as a viewer of news, I wasn’t sure of what was happening – What was the News, after all? My dilemma was akin to that of a man who has two watches, and yet, is never sure, what is the right time!

Concurrently, in what Arnab Goswami so fondly calls the Pseudo Liberal Lutyen’s Delhi Cocktail Circuit, there was yet another species in the making – the Rohit Vemulas and the Kanhaiya Kumars and the John Dayals and the Arundhati Roys and the Kavita Krishnans and the Teesta Setalwads and the Shabnam Lones of the world – People with opinions and viewpoints divergent from the mainstream India. Armed with a laptop and a website which willingly hosted their thoughts on various issues – these were the new generation news broadcasters and newsmakers – the word “makers” itself being a strange paradox. National interest was no longer a consideration, merely the compulsive need to state a viewpoint.

Opinions, viewpoints, Freedom of Expression, Democracy – All of this was News!

Amidst all of this, I asked myself – Is National Interest Absolute, Is Truth Absolute, or are those too, subjective issues, best reserved for television debates?

The Truths l have learnt just yesterday through the fourth estate will shock you, surprise you and shatter you – if you love your country.

(a) I learnt that in this country we have a Supreme Court Lawyer – an authorized practitioner of law in the highest temple of justice in this country – with a sworn allegiance to the constitution of my land- who cannot answer a straight question with a Yes or a No- if Burhan Wani was an enemy of the state as a self-proclaimed Commander of a known terror outfit, globally acknowledged with a history of killing and openly flaunting his credentials on social media.

(b) I learnt that there are many liberals in this country who dare to call a patriotic, decorated Army Officer, with an impeccable record of service, as a Deshdrohi on live national television when all he said was that if you were on the side of the terrorists, you were against the Indian state.

(c) I learnt that Democracy in this country is a term can be used, abused or seduced to further all kinds of agendas and that intellectual one-upmanship scored each and every time over national interests.

Moral of the Story – I always knew Freedom of Speech wasn’t absolute and came with riders. Truth and National Interest are pretty much the same!

Jai Hind

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