Anna Hazare has decided to go forward with his fast on 16^th Aug 2011, crusading his campaign and movement against corruption and implementation of the ‘Lok Pal’ bill. Majority of Indians (including me) love someone doing the dirty work and we will wait and watch. If Anna Hazare succeeds in his movement which is remote, many will facilitate Anna, and it will be soon forgotten. If it does not, which is highly possible, and there is police atrocities, media will benefit either ways with its breaking news and raking in the moolah with ad revenues.

If corruption needs to be reduced, as it can never be eradicated, then we need to think on our education system. The system is designed to build achievers and success, and not character. Even achievement and success is encouraged to be got by any means, even foul. There are no moral values in the education system. Instead rules are dictated that students should stand and sing the national anthem, viewers going for a movie should stand sing the national anthem before the movies begins. No one is educated to stand for the country.

Surprised to see NRI’s (Not Really Indians) showing solidarity with Anna Hazare by congregating outside the UN Headquarters in New York. How many of these allegedly patriotic Indians will fly down and support Anna Hazare in his movement? Thousands of Indian Diaspora will congregate for the ‘Pravas Bharati Divas’ meetings in India, wish even a handful of them could come and fast with Anna Hazare.  Not a single one will be there, as there are no cocktails served at the end of it.

The Indian Diaspora are the same who would be referring to India as a ‘shit hole’, and complain how bad India is, and how its infrastructure sucks. Well now there is someone who is fighting to building it, why not come down and invest with your courage and love for the Mother Land, instead visit only to see how investments could be made to multiply fortunes.

Anna wants a place to stage his fast, but the governing party will use the police institution and avoid giving permission, or will dictate that his fast should be only for three days. Surprisingly lands are encroached by slums and there is place for that. Buildings like Adarsh are constructed illegally and there is place for that. There is place for corrupt leaders statues or Samadhi to be erected, but no place for a person to exercise his fundamental right to protest.

Suddenly Anna Hazare’s records are checked to see if any fault could be leveraged to show his intentions as doubtful. When Baba Ramdeo went on a fast, his assets and source of his million dollar empire are probed. Was this all sudden revelation when they decided to go on a fast? How come no politician’s assets and wealth have been probed? How come they all become rich after coming to power?

It’s time we stir our consciousness, which is numb or dead to the India outside us. It’s time we fast forwarded our thoughts and ideas, as else it would be too late and many Anna Hazare’s may come and just die of a fast. Why not support someone desiring a fast success of the nation, or we prefer a slow death with corruption? The choice is ours.

Very soon the Nursery Rhyme London Bridge, would be sung as ‘London Bridge is burning down’. A colonial power intoxicated by its past of ruling the world, looting wealth from its colonies, to the extent even the Royalty’s crown has the Kohinoor diamond robbed from India; is today burning.

A power that colonized most of the world now regaled to a piece of land which boasted that the sun never sets on the British Empire, does not even have decent sunshine. A nation that was driven out from many countries after more than hundred years of evil ruling is today facing its own homes and businesses burnt.  A power that ensured nations stayed in disharmony after they with their divide and rule policy, is today divided by Immigrants who are larger than the ethnic population of UK.

A nation that prided itself with the title of ‘Great Britain’, has now realized how small and vulnerable they are. A nation known as United Kingdom, is crying for unity. Has a monarchy which is tainted with infidelity, a past where the kids who are today adults used to revel in pubs and create a ruckus, gets one wondering is this Royalty and class? A Royalty like Lady Diana pregnant with an Arab’s child and gets killed for that, and covered up as an accident because of paparazzi. A democracy challenged regularly, by religious fanaticism, and immigrant ideology.

They prided their colonial ability, today they are colonized by Immigrants, many of them from the countries they once occupied. Their businesses are getting colonized by countries like India which has taken over their national pride of business houses like Jaguar and Land Rover. An Indian Immigrant holds the title of being the richest in UK. Their government now having Immigrants in it, and won’t be too long in the future where a person of Immigrant descant will be ruling the country. Even their language is today better spoken by Indians.

The same goes with the United States of America, which would soon have to rename itself as the ‘Devastated States of America’. A nation whose economy that was fuelled by greed, production of weapons and selling it to countries that were war torn and financial institutions that lacked ethics. A country that cannot be trusted for its policies and intentions as it engaged with Iraq during its war with Iran and then turn against Iran. Engaged with Al-Qaeda during its war with Russia and then turn against them as they refused to be dictated by US. Arm Pakistan to the teeth and keep the region always in a state of war, and then cuts of aid to Pakistan as it today it is a threat to US by it offering safe heavens to terrorists. Their currency which states in God we trust, but the problem is even God cannot trust them.

Today the United States ratings are downgraded by an Institution that is based out of there. The decision to downgrade was an unprecedented move was taken under the leadership of Deven Sharma an Indian Immigrant. The downgrading confirms US has no Standard and is going to be poor, and the rating Institution coincidentally is Standard and Poor’s. The fact that US was weeks away from pulling the plug on payments that they are obliged too, shows how poor they are. This included salaries to government employees and even soldiers fighting wars in countries they never wanted to be in the first place.

With these super powers tumbling down, there would be small hiccups, maybe a recession, but it’s not going to be end of the world. It just could be a new beginning of new world powers like Brazil, India, China, etc. This could be a good lesson for the new world powers, to have more human values and genuine trust and faith in God when they will be prosperous as what goes round, comes around.  

The fall of Hosni Mubarak and other leaders in the Middle East region falling is nothing short of a ‘Humpty Dumpty’ domino effect. Just that these countries without the so called clichéd ‘democracy’ were able to fight corruption what India is battling after the colonial power ousted from the country.

India’s enemy is now within and if not ousted from power, Indians will continue to remain powerless and enslaved with poor infrastructure, law and order, autocratic administration from utilities, to licenses and even survival due to the apathetic health facilities. Like these countries in the Middle East, India too is a rich country. The fact if we can donate USD 2 billion to fund bail outs in Europe, fund Afghanistan, fund Bangladesh and even Pakistan during its flood calamity, confirms we are not only rich but stupid. How can we fund other countries when our country is in a mess? Couldn’t these amounts be used to cool of inflation or provide better infrastructure? Even a country like South Africa today boasts of a bullet train, when we are still in the bullock cart era in some parts of the country.  

We still keep talking to Pakistan and they keep infiltrating terrorists into our country. Right on our borders they have training camps for terrorists. Shelter criminals from our country in theirs and we just keep talking. Recent visit of Pakistan Foreign Secretary Hina Rabbani Khar, was mostly covered for her beauty and style statement. If that was the purpose we could have sent Rakhi Sawant to meet her than waste time of our Ministers, who could have used their time more constructively in scheming scams. None of them are working in the interest of the country besides their own.

It is proven that private enterprise is what is taking our country forward. Even though it is thwarted with red tape, these enterprises have shown the grit and courage to forge ahead. Some of them embroiled in controversies, but many of them have proven we can make it. Some of these entrepreneurs are contributing back to society by building educational institutions or improving rural lives and we also have people like Mukesh Ambani who pride to build the world’s costliest home (read house) where a family of six have hundreds of employees to serve them. It can never be a home where brothers are vying for each other’s downfall.

Why can’t the government do what these enterprises could? We pride to be the world’s biggest democracy and it is a failure. At the same time the Middle East is toppling its evil ruling regimes to get democracy. What an irony?  We claim to have the highest literacy rates, the world’s largest no. of CEO’s driving Multinational Corporations, and yet no one to drive the country. How long are we going to chase individual pursuits over national interest?

We have rotten eggs at the helm of power in India and we all know it, but what are we doing? The world is ensuring these humpty dumptys are thrown down. The choices are ours, are we going to topple these rotten eggs, or are we going to stay in this rotten state?

If we don’t act now, our Humpty Dumptys will continue sitting on the wall, these Humpty Dumptys will never fall. All the kings’ horses and all the kings’ men will ensure that Humpty Dumptys stay on the wall.

Bombay once famed as a city of dreams in now reduced to rumbles of a city of fear. Now one ends up even dreaming fear. The recent terror attack has once again proven it even stronger. Its’ not that we don’t have enough fear to live with. Every day for most Bombayites even reaching home alive is a dream. It does not have to be just a terrorist attack. Even a train journey to work and back home is a risk. A drive on Bombay roads is a risk. Rains are a risk. Eating food and drinking water is a risk. Breathing the air is a risk. Hoping of a city that is governed by law and order is the biggest risk of fear.

Recently we had people from the MSN party rough up officials as the roads were in a bad condition. Now will they rough up the police as they too not functioning? Will they rough up politicians for the blasts? How much more Bull Sh#T is Bombay going to cope with and live with? After the terrorist attack of 26/11, we had one of the ministers who commented that such small incidents do happen in big cities. Now we have our CM proudly claiming that Bombay is not a soft target. We are not interested in knowing the density unit of hardness that Bombay is able to withstand attacks. We want to know the hardness of the law to deal with it? In our country media does the role of the police and covers crime and the police literally ‘covers’ crimes done. The judiciary has to function like the government and the government does the job of the mafia, by bullying innocents who decide to fast to protest and extortion of tax payers money which is done through scams.

With a population that is in multiples of some countries in the world, the city is bursting from it seam, and now we are bombed out of it. Those who are not affected care a damn, and for this attitude we are paying a price. Why not blame ourselves for the rut we have regaled ourselves too? Why do we need a PM visiting us when there is a crisis? How is the visit going to change anything? In fact it would be a blessing if the biggies from the centre stop visiting us, and when they do, they get the city to a grinding halt. Extra security is pressed in to protect their precious souls. Roads are blocked to traffic and their presence is a bigger pain to the already pained city. The passing the parcel game goes on and on. One party blames another. Wish all politicians would play a real game of passing the parcel and the parcel they pass on had a bomb; at least that way some of these jokers could be wiped out.

Every terrorist attack is indirectly hinted or alleged to have its origin in Pakistan. If that is so, and since we lack the balls to wage a war with them, can we stop the ongoing peace dialogue with them? A country which itself is getting blown to pieces daily what peace are we trying to make with them? Stop this cricket diplomacy and any other diplomacy to stem the problem. India gives a list of people that they want to be tried in India for various crimes, not realizing that a name in the list is a person who is in India. Now if you don’t know who the culprits are, what are you negotiating with Pakistan?

The killer of Afghanistan president’s brother recently was lynched and hung in a public place. If this can happen in Afghanistan who not in India? We don’t have to be feral in our approach but at least can we have Kasab and Afzal Guru face the gallows. These guys get high level security and citizens get none. Scam tainted politicians and tycoons enjoy a life a luxury in prison. If Bombay is a city of dreams and we continue believing, things will get achieved dreaming of better law and order, no more bombings, effective police……..Keep dreaming.

So Baba Ramdeo’s indefinite fast has ended in nine days. Never knew indefinite was a period nine days. Prior to him we had Anna Hazare, and we were all made to believe some big magic will happen and India will be rock and rolling. We are definitely rolling in the evil of corruption, which has seeped into every aspect of life. Bribery is a way of life, and there is zilch that can be achieved with a fast. A fast can never fasten cleaning the mess, on the contrary the fast ends faster and the mess gets messier.  

Ensuring Congress or any dynastic ruled party never comes into power, does not need an indefinite fast. Instead it needs a definite will and desire which maybe lacking in the common man, but can the uncommon men who want to make a change start here and not make a drama of fasting, as it is only slowing anything that maybe be expected.

What is the fuss about Sushma Swaraj breaking into a dance at a recent protest function condemning the use of force by the government of Baba Ramdeo’s peaceful fast protest against black money?

If you fast and protest peacefully the government has a problem. If you dance and protest the government has a grudge. A protest long ago of sending pink panties to a party that beat girls in a pub was a problem. At that time one of the ministers enquired what the problem was, did they not like the color of the panty? What is the problem now with Sushma Swaraj dancing? Is she too good that she can participate in the reality dance shows?

Farmers are dying of starvation and the government has no problem with that, but if a man wants to fast it is wrong. From the time of independence we have been made to dance by the governments that have ruled us, but if someone wants to dance to protest it is bad. One of the idiot minister (that’s beside the point, all are) enquired if the BJP party to whom Sushma Swaraj belongs is a party of dancers? Well my question is, Nehru was a sex addict and his sexacapades with Lady Mountbaten and his dying with syphilis is public knowledge, so has the genesis of the Congress from screwing literally, come to now screwing the country?

Coming to dancing on the ground where Gandhi’s was cremated. It is better dancing to where he was cremated rather than the hundreds who were burnt alive in the Godhra carnage in Gujarat, which is the land of the Mahatma. A place where he spent his life there hundreds are burnt and it is now history, but dancing where he was cremated is bad, what logic? People sing and dance in worship in temples so that should be more sacrilege then dancing at Gandhi’s memorial ground. The Congress government has anyway banned ladies from dancing in bars in Mumbai where they made a living through a legal entertaining way. The reason for the ban is nefarious activities are planned in dance bars and safety of women were a concern to the government. Delhi the capital of India which is also known as the rape capital, are the rapes happening due to dance bars there?

After Sushma Swaraj’s gig, Omar Abdullah tweets that his father Farooq Abdullah who is a minister is a better dancer than Sushma Swaraj. What’s new about that? All our political leaders are good at everything but running clean governance. Currently we have political leaders who are competing for who is most corrupt, then we have the so called crusaders of eliminating corruption to who can fast longer, we have ministers who compete on the size of their houses, to one having a chair made of gold to seat his valuable rear, then it is competing who can build most amount of statues of themselves or their party founder or their party symbol, or how many city names we can change to the old or original name it was allegedly knows as, and even drag it backward to the dark ages of that period in history.

Leave aside clean governance nothing developmental or futuristic is going to be done by any government in the near foreseeable future. India’s development was never a government based initiative but more business economy driven. Only a paradigm revolutionary change in government with new people and not dynastic politics can bring about the change, and if it can be done by dancing…………..let’s dance.

The crackdown on a peaceful demonstration and the right of every citizen thwarted by the government as if it was raiding a group planning to destabilize the nation, is nothing short of Emergency rule during the draconian Indira Gandhi’s time. This time it was a demonstration by Baba Ramdeo. I personally am not for or against Baba Ramdeo’s agitation. What I am against or surprised is at the government’s action on a peaceful agitation. 
 

Has not a citizen a right to express his displeasure on something wrong, in a peaceful manner?  What does one do when the system fails? What does one do when there is no faith in the judiciary or law? What does one do when everything is corrupt? Here is not someone who is acting like a Bollywood film hero taking the law into his hands, and trying to cleanse the system. Here is a man who just wants to protest peacefully by fasting. 
 

Where the government has to use force it behaves like a eunuch. When innocent migrants in Bombay make an honest living by driving cabs, they are brutally beaten by local political parties with weird agendas; these political parties were not brought to book. Now these migrants are not from Italy. At the same time an Italian who remote controls the government can squash a peaceful protest, with high handedness. When Pakistan sends hundreds of militant trained terrorist into India, instead of retaliating India gets into negotiating and keeps going on its knees using cricket for politics to build friendship. If India could negotiate with Pakistan for decades and still not resolve any issues, what was the harm in negotiating with Baba Ramdeo? Why was instant results expected from an Indian who is protesting and decades spend negotiating with an enemy country?
 

Why was this yard stick not used with Anna Hazare? What is different from what Anna Hazare did to what Baba Ramdeo wanted to do? Both wanted to peacefully protest and had followers to fast with them, so what was the crime that Baba Ramdeo did that he had to hurled up like as if a criminal was caught and hauled up into a flight and thrown out of Delhi? Highlighting Baba Ramdeo as corrupt with the zillions he has made claiming a cure from pimples to cancer with his twisted art form of yoga, was this something that the government only realized when he wanted to peacefully protest on the issue of back stashed in foreign banks to be brought back to India. 
 

What is so weird in Baba Ramdeo’s call for capital punishment for the guilty who have stashed black money overseas? Then think of it if an Ajmal Kasab a terrorist who is caught is not hung yet, how will the corrupt politicians, bureaucrats, industrialists be ever hung in any life time. On the other hand how can anyone be hung in India, as it seems there are no hangmen in India? How much more weird can it get as it seems a making a noose is an art, as the rope needs to smoothened clarified butter, bananas, and hell knows what all gourmet recipe needs to be applied to a rope just to hang a criminal, in the name of humanity and reducing pain when hung. 
 

Can criminals not be just shot or given a lethal injection and done with, or will it be only people who raise their voices in peaceful protests be treated with no humanity?

Punjabi now becomes the 4^th top language in Canada. Just shows the grit and determination of a hard working community who have travelled to foreign lands and created an identity for them and gained respect of the local community where their language now is respected and signboards have directions in Punjabi language, besides English, French, etc. This was a community on who was the butt of all jokes in India, now rocks the world.

Back home in India, we have a brigade of political parties in the state of Maharashtra who feel that Marathi as a language must be forced and muscled into society.  So it is forced into the school curriculum, which kids learn it disgustingly as it adds to the pressure of already burgeoning amount of academics. Then traders are threatened with vandalism if their shops don’t have Marathi signboards. If a politician takes his oath for his swearing in ceremony to office in the National language in Hindi, he is beaten as he did not take his oath in Marathi.

Marathi a very beautiful and sweet language is now getting pushed to a language of being hated and repulsive. Hated and repulsive again thanks to the politicians whose speeches are just of inciting violence, dominance and hatred to other communities. In the process these parties don’t even make it to State elections. When they were in power it was ruling the state inciting fear of learning the language or you get out. So development, infrastructure and investments into the State dwindled. The State wanted to carve itself as an independent autonomous entity where outsiders were not allowed, language imposed, so now Bombay City which was the first preference as a port of landing for trade and commerce from pre colonial times, is a city which is a literal mess.

Punjabis wherever they migrated it was not easy for the first generation  who labored in factories and most have great success stories of fortunes made. They never forced recognition of their language, but the sheer respect of their peaceful coexistence with the local community got the community reciprocating respect of not just recognizing their language, but also having Punjabi people who are in Canadian Parliament. Recognition of Punjabi as a language came about with local Punjabi radio stations urging Punjabis to register the mother tongue as Punjabi. In Bombay radio stations are forced to air Marathi songs, theaters vandalized if they don’t show Marathi movies. Why would Radio Stations and Theatres not run Marathi programs or movies if there was a commercial gain? Today Punjabi Radio stations are a rage across Europe and Americas. Bhangra music is a part of the International Disco circuits. Would International audience be bothered about Punjabi if there was no entertainment and commercial gain?

South Indian languages and culture which were also a butt of jokes in India, is now dominating the entertainment Industry in India. Bollywood actors cannot command anywhere near the remuneration earned by actors in the South. South Indian cuisine is fast catching up globally. At the same time Maharashtrian cuisine was doled out subsidies in real estate to serve Maharashtrian food at cheap prices. These outlets were called ‘Jhunka Bhakar’. How many Jhunka Bhakars does anyone know off in Bombay? How many would take their families there for a meal. So with the language the politicians even degraded the culture of Maharastrian cuisine. Maharashtra cuisine is not just ‘vada pav’ the politicians have made it to be.

Being a Maharashtrian by birth, I want to revel In Maharashtrian culture and music. I don’t want it pushed onto people of other cultures from India who made Maharashra their home, I want people yearning and craving for it. I wish my Bombay to be a city of dreams where people like Dhirubhai Ambani come from a foreign land like Aden and create history, where an Amitabh Bachhan comes from Allahabad and becomes a legend, where we are proud daughter of the State like Lata Mangeshkar, where a Rajniknath who is a Maharashtrian rocks in South India. If Punjabis can make it in Canada, I want Indians to make it in Bombay. If an Italian can make it in India, its time Indians make it India and not abroad. Its time Maharashtra made an identity, not by force or power and bullying of few politicians but by sheer talent of the Maharastrian people and by people across India.

When I think Punjabi it is Balhe Balhe…..so when I think Marathi I should be Dhina Dhin Da, ekdhum solid dhinchak. Jai Maharashtra.