The modern thinking Indian

The drama over Raj Thackeray is reaching a new high. Raj Thackeray, once he split from the Shiv Sena had to make a separate image for himself. So, one of the ways to do this was to try to appeal to the parochial nature of people; blame outsiders for whatever is the economic poor condition and try to inflame their sentiments. He has managed to be somewhat successful in this quest, inflaming sentiments and overall leading to a situation where immigrants from North India have been attacked inside Mumbai and other parts of the state of Maharashtra. In the past, this led to panic and the temporary stoppage of many industrial units with many of their workers running away.
And how does the Chief Minister handle this whole situation. The Shiv Sena has long been a thorn in the side of the Congress in Maharashtra, with their more pro-Marathi position and higher propensity to appeal to populist sentiment. The Congress cannot afford take such positions, since it needs to appeal to all sections of people, and cannot afford to antagonize the voters of North Indian origin. And of course, taking a more extremist position in Maharashtra would expose them to a backlash elsewhere; and their chief Sonia Gandhi would be targeted for such positioning; so if you get a person all ready to be more extremist than the Shiv Sena, you can imagine the scenario of a Congress Chief Minister salivating over the prospect of the Sena's divided vote.
What this has resulted in is the Congress treating Raj Thackeray with kid gloves; they come out with empty soundbeats about 'The law will take its own course', 'We will protect everyone and not let violence happen', and so on. And yet, they allow the lumpen elements of the MNS to attack and do violence in broad daylight, they do token arrest of Raj Thackeray, keep him in absolute comfort and let him out by the next day (first time, they let him out within a few hours, and the next time overnight). The police officers claim that they have nothing against Raj Thackeray. And they can see the campaign working, the Shiv Sena is now unsure of how to behave and is trying to take credit for the campaign of the MNS. Read this report of the treatment of Raj:

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Raj Thackeray need not worry about being arrested during Diwali, at least in the case filed by the Kalyan railway police. A Kalyan sessions court on Friday extended its interim protection to Thackeray till the next date of hearing, which falls on November 11. Sessions judge K K Tantrapale, however, emphasised that one of the conditions for the interim protection was that Thackeray will have to refrain from giving provocative and inflammatory speeches.
The judge questioned whether the state would be able to ensure the smooth functioning of the court if Thackeray was ordered to remain present in court. ‘Is the state machinery ready to provide adequate bandobast in the court premises,’ the judge asked the prosecutor. The judge further told the prosecutor that on Tuesday MNS activists had managed to forcibly enter the court premises and shouted slogans and created a commotion. Salian assured the court that the police would put in place adequate security.

This whole situation has seen a woeful lack of an attempt by the State Government to try and prevent the violence, and the whole atmosphere of intimidation that is equally bad. Even after large scale condemnation by various parties (including allies of the Congress), there does not seem to be any clear attempt to show Raj Thackeray the violations of law that he has committed. Instead, after seeing the repeated
statements of Raj (followed by direct action of his partymen), I am reminded of the way that the militants expelled most of the pandits from the Kashmir Valley. It is like a 2 step process, where Raj does not directly state violence, but leaves nothing else to be desired, and then his partymen carry out the actual violence.

Labels: Community, Discrimination, Empowerment, Law, Morality, Politics, Protest, Punishment, Security, Separatist

Indian MP's and MLA's are the major supporters of our sovereign rights. All it takes is for somebody outside the country to talk about how India should behave, and you can have an uproar (if Parliament is in session, then suspension of the zero hour and demands to give a proper response) with all the politicians trying their best to portray themselves as the sole defender of the honour and self-respect of the country. You also have the media getting into the game, with editorials bemoaning the tendency of others to try to tell us what to do, and that our politicians have led us into such a place whereby anybody can tell us what to do.
And now, when the situation in Sri Lanka, where a terrorist group (that killed a former Indian Prime Minister along with numerous Sri Lankan politicians and others) is on the verge of losing an armed struggle with the legally constituted Government of the country, you have Indian politicians trying their best to stop this action so that they can be seen as supporters of the rights of the Tamils:

All the seven DMK ministers in the UPA government are expected to submit their resignation letters to party leader and Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi on Friday to mount pressure on the Manmohan Singh regime to intervene in Sri Lanka. Simultaneously, Karunanidhi on Thursday announced a human chain protest in Chennai on October 21 to ask the Centre to act on an 'all-party' meeting's call that India take steps to halt the war in the island and despatch humanitarian assistance to Tamil civilians affected by the conflict.
"We will have no option but to quit if the Centre fails to take strong measures to stop the killing of our brethren in the island. We will have no hesitation in stepping down to show our solidarity with the beleaguered Tamil people," the minister said. He added that the DMK chief would forward the letters after watching the developments.

This is sheer hyprocrisy. All of the parties in Tamil Nadu know that the LTTE is a massively brutal terrorist organization that is only interested in its own welfare. It has not discriminated between Sri Lankan non-Tamil and Tamil politicians. It is noteworthy to remember that this is the same organization that had an active role to play in killing Indian soldiers during the IPKF operation, and its killing of Rajiv Gandhi (and 19 others in the same blast) should have always put it beyond the pale of Indian support.
The LTTE had even forced another elected leader of the Sri Lankan Tamil majority regions to run away by threatening him, it has single-mindedly pursued a policy of decimating all those who stand in its path from within the community. It had been criticized severely due to its policy of brain washing people to become suicide bombers, as well as forcing children to become soldiers. It also has never been a serious votary of genuine talks and negotiations, with an objective of getting more rights for the Tamils other than an independent homeland.
The Indian Government cannot advise the Sri Lankans to stop this military operation, they have been thirsting for the ending of this terrorist organization in their country; equivalent to how Indians would feel if there was a major chance of getting rid of the Lashkar e-Toiba and SIMI in India. Putting pressure on them only forces them to get the support of other nations and move away from India. Any suggestions we could give them would to be make sure that human rights are not affected, and people do not suffer during this campaign.

Labels: India, Morality, Politics, Protest

We talk about the police force being a help to people, a friendly hand towards the citizens of the country; helping them in getting solutions to their problems, and preventing unfairness and crime in society. By now people reading this must be thinking that either I am totally ignorant, or that this article is leading to something else.
That part is true. This article is leading to something else. The police force of any country is supposed to be all that is written above, but you go and speak to citizens, especially those who are weaker, and you realize the terror they live in. And this is something that many of us would have also observed. It may be the poor financial provision to the men wearing the uniform, it may be inadequate training, it may be lack of control, it may be anything, but the police force almost never evokes respect in people. Thus, you read about brave policemen braving terrorists, working under bad conditions, and you feel sympathy for them; and then you witness the normal working like (and read about the level of corruption) and you realize that honesty may be an aberration.
Besides this article that I will be referencing, I witnessed something a few days that reinforced this feeling. At around 9 PM, I was passing a local marker on foot, and there was this roadside vendor selling fruits, and a hefty policeman standing next to him. I was there for enough time to hear the conversation, and feel miserable about what I could hear and not do anything. Essentially, the policemen was telling the vendor to go and get him a bottle of whiskey from the nearby vend, and you could immediately see how the vendor would not be in a position to refuse.
Now read this article:

Denying policemen complimentary tea proved costly for Raju Shukla, who now lies in the emergency ward of Balrampur Hospital. Shukla was brutally assaulted by four cops from the Chowk fire department late on Monday night. Raju, who runs a tea-stall at Koneshwar Crossing in Chowk area, was even branded a thief by the fire personnel and handed over to the Chowk police station. The version of the fire cops though changed in some time and they charged him with assaulting a rickshaw puller.
Talking to TOI, the only breadwinner in the family of five, Raju said, "hum garib admi hain bhaiyya, Koneshwar par chai ka stall chalate hain. Ab yeh log aakar kehte hai ki muft me chai do, to aap hi socho ki agar hum muft me chai batenge to humara ghar kaise chalega." (I am a poor man, running a tea stall at Koneshwar Crossing and these cops demand tea free of cost. If I do so, how will my family survive.) Lying on the hospital bed in pain and unable to even turn on his side, Raju said, "the men from fire department even got my stall removed earlier when I refused them free of cost tea."

The problem now is that the police force has almost zero believability index. Even if the person was at fault (and it is difficult to see how), almost everybody would believe that it was the policemen who were responsible, and the story is very believable. Most people would not expect any action in this case as well, since it involved a poor man, and the police force is typically loath to act against its own.

Labels: Citizen, Corruption, Law, Morality, Police, Punishment

I read this article in a newspaper, and was shocked (and shocked is a mild word for what I felt). Read a few excerpts, and then we can discuss further:

Dr Harish Shetty, however, doesn't buy the logic. "Drinking with dad is just as bad as it can sow the seeds of alcoholism in adult life.'' He feels that there are some parts of the big bad world that parents should not get inside the homes. It's not just at house parties that alcohol is 'on the house. 'A Congress MLA's son from an elite school in the western suburbs celebrated his birthday party at Taj Land's End, where booze flowed freely until the wee hours of the morning.
For several city children, "beer and breezers aren't really alcohol.''Kids have often sneaked miniature bottles of vodka into the classroom and downed liquor in the loo. Some have even been caught for it, after falling asleep at school. Students at one south Mumbai school have openly gulped down vodka in Bisleri bottles during the school socials.

This is downright scary. Alcohol is not just a party drink; when drunk in moderation and under control, it can be accepted. However, there are many dangers to alcohol drinking that most people know about (and are outlined briefly). Please add more such stuff if you know about this:

1. Alcohol can be pretty harmful to the system. Regular drinking of alcohol leads to damage of the liver, and a craving to have a regular session with the bottle. Damage to the liver (enough to cause lasting damage) increases in probability due to the intake of alcohol.

2. During the formative years, children (or young adults as they would like to be called) are susceptible to peer pressure, and may be forced to join even when they would desire not to.

3. Similarly, in today's world, even with so many other careers available, the need for a good education is a significant factor in moving ahead in life; if children start to discover alcohol and spend time in such parties during this time, there will be a percentage of children who will be actually affected by alcohol.

4. Once a parent allows children to start consuming alcohol, it is one major moral point off; it will be much more difficult for a parent to try and prevent more 'social' drinking at parties / clubs.

5. Nothing comes for free. With an increasing proportion of population becoming obese, and coming down with the 'lifestyle' illnesses, such as diabetes, increased alcohol content just ends up causing more damage to the body.

6. Consider the case where you have given you almost adult child the keys to a vehicle (bike / car). He / she ends up at a friend's party where alcohol is served (you can maybe control going to clubs or other such places (how!!)), and drives home with a fair amount of alcohol in the bloodstream. Accidents happen, and in Mumbai, you stand the chance of having to get your child out of jail (where people caught drinking and driving are sent for atleast a day's imprisonment).

You can add many more reasons, and you could argue that this is a trend that one cannot stop, and you may be right; that does not mean however that one should accept this kind of behavior as normal. Out of readers, how many have faced such a situation, and do you know of things that will help out in this regard ?

Labels: Alcohol, Child, Health, Morality, Parents, Responsibility

The Section 498(A) of the IPC is meant for prevention of crimes against women, something that this country has struggled with for quite some time now. If you read the actual Section, it talks about: "Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine". This was meant to ensure that a woman subjected to harassment in her matrimonial home can take legal measure to protect herself. However, as with any law that favors one side of the dispute, it is subjected to misuse (and there are numerous complaints about the law being misused - refer to this link).
The main complaints against this law (from whatever I have read so far in various articles, web sites, and email) is that:
- the law has allowed the daughter-in-law to subject the entire family of her husband to its provisions
- the police do not investigate the case, but based on the complaint, have been known to drag all the accused (including elderly people and children)
So here is an update from a directive sent out by Bihar police:

There have been talks about misuse of laws relating to crime against women for quite some time now. Bihar police’s CID also admitted this when it directed all the SPs in the state to ensure proper investigation into FIRs lodged under Section 498(A) of the IPC before going in for arrest of the accused. “Sometimes such cases are framed against in-laws or others just to harass or settle old scores. Hence, the precaution against arrests,” ADG (CID) Yashwant Malhotra told TOI recently.
In his letter to district SPs, government railway police, range DIGs and zonal ADGs/IGs, Malhotra said it has been observed that in cases relating to crime against women, particularly those registered under Section 498(A) of the IPC, all the in-laws of the alleged victim are named as accused. And they are arrested without proper investigation into the case, thus marring the interests of justice.

This is actually a mixed step (in reality). One would like to think that, as per judicial and legal standards, the practice of doing an enquiry and then only proceeding against the named people is the right step. If one considers the law to be a just tool, then this is the right step.
However, there needs to be careful attention paid to the actual implementation of the law, since now proceeding on the basis of a complaint would be subject to the individual police officer of the region, and rural and semi-urban regions are known for police officers bucking under pressure, especially when the families and people involved are known / powerful.
What do people think ? Making sure that the provision is subject checks and balances is a good thing, but do people think that this could lead to a much watered down enforcement of the provisions meant to protect women ?

Labels: Court, Dowry, Family, Investigation, Judicial, Law, Morality, Police, Punishment, Security, Welfare, Women

The current turmoil in Jammu shows no sign of letting up. Part of the turmoil has been scripted, with the BJP and other parties such as the Shiv Sena also using this as an opportunity to demonstrate against both the State Government (previously headed by a Congress Chief Minister and now by the representative of the Central Congress Government), and against the Central Government. However, as of now, the agitation seems to have caught on a rage of its own, and the turmoil over there is threatening the peace in the region.
What is the background of this agitation ? Some time back, the State Governor (as head of the Amarnath Yatra Board) proposed that some land be transferred to the Yatra Board so as to facilitate the building of some pre-fabricated structures for the benefit of pilgrims. The conditions over there are not very easy, and building such facilities would make a lot of sense. However, once this decision was ratified by the State Government, the crisis started. There were agitations in Srinagar against this move, with many calling this a move to do some population shifts. Soon, the situation began to be seen as an anti-Hindu move, and Islamists started to take advantage, marking the resurgence of pro-Independence and pro-Pakistan slogans.
After this agitation threatened to shut down the Valley, the State Government shifted stands, and decided to reverse the transfer of land, portraying a Congress Government as again buckling down to pressure and taking a decision that was against the interest of Hindus. Historically, Jammu has always suffered in the state - Jammu and Kashmir has always been composed of 3 major regions, Jammu, Ladakh and the Valley. Jammu is hindu-majority, Ladakh is Buddhist, and the valley is muslim majority. In all these years, there has been a feeling that because of the need to keep the sensitivities of the only muslim majority state in the country, Jammu has always suffered second-grade treatment. It seems that the move to make this issue as a major issue in Jammu (and many other parts of India) is able to use this feeling.
What can be done now ? It's very tricky. The Government in its current state will not be able to again reverse itself and grant the land to the Amarnath Board, and it will do all it can to please with the BJP and the other parties to withdraw the agitation in Jammu.

Labels: Anger, BJP, Congress, Discrimination, Morality, Muslim, Politics

This was about one of the most anticipated news in recent times on an individual politician level. The Speaker, Somnath Chaterjee has been a member of the CPM for a long long time, having been a Member of Parliament from the party for 10 times now. For all appearances, he has been an articulate and devoted member for the party. At the same time, as the party drew up its leadership over a period of time, it was clear that Somnath Chaterjee was not going to be a candidate in the succession chain, and given that he is 79 years, not likely to happen in the future also.
There was a lot of buzz that he wanted to the President, but the CPM did not agree to this (leading to some disappointment with the party politburo). At the same time, even though the BJP keeps on accusing him of acting in a biased manner, he seems to have given the office of the Speaker his all. It was a familiar sight of the Speaker trying his best to bring an unruly house to control (and mostly failing). So, there must have been the feeling that he enjoyed a constitutional post, with the prestige associated with it, and above the dictates of any party.
Even then, it was a matter of surprise that he refused to obey the diktat of the CPM that he quit the office of the Speaker and became defiant in his attitude. This must have been very unsettling for the party; a Communist party likes to believe that once the Politburo has spoken, then there is no cause for dissent; even if it is the holder of a constitutional post. So, the party backed down a bit, keeping his name off the whip, but the action was predicted. It was the timing that was to be considered, and it was fast:

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee was on Wednesday expelled by CPM climaxing a fortnight-long defiance of the veteran parliamentarian to quit at the call of the party with which he was associated for four decades. The party invoked Article 19 (13) of its constitution to expel him under summary procedures without any notice on the charge of "seriously compromising" the party position.
The 79-year old barrister and ten-time MP, Chatterjee rejected both subtle and explicit hints from the party leadership, which asked him to quit the post to which he was elected unanimously after the 2004 elections, saying he was above party politics given the post he held.

Somehow, this action also gives a hint of the anger that is bubbling within the CPM over the vote loss and consequent loss of influence, that it took a fast and quick action against a leader who has been with the party for long.

Labels: Anger, Left, Morality, Parliament, Politics

For the past several days, ever since the UPA Government announced that a trust vote will happen on the 22nd, there has been an incredible amount of horse-trading ongoing to secure support. Everybody knows how Amar Singh ran circles around Shri Karat of the going-into-decline Left and left it in a position whereby it now has no influence and no leverage over the policies of the Government. So, one can assume that Amar Singh did what he could to win over rival MP's, while Mulayam Singh led the effort to ensure that the MP's of the Samajwadi Party did not bolt (seeing the final result where the Congress won it fairly comfortably, one can assume that all the efforts were successful). Who is left with egg on their faces ? Both the BJP that staked a lot of its political power on this no-confidence motion, and the Left, which went from a position where it was guiding the hands of power (a remote-control if you may) to a position where it does not count for anything more for the moment.
Given the low profile that Uttar Pradesh has played in the past few years in terms of a Government at the center, it was surprising that politicians from the state played such a key role. Mayawati was like the magnet, drawing in the likes of defectors from the SP, from the Congress, pulling in Ajit Singh (will the Government now rename the Chaudhury Charan Singh Airport back to another name now that Ajit Singh did not support the Congress ?).
There were a number of people who played up to her ego, calling her a future Prime Minister. Maybe it was a combination of this ego-massaging, a feeling that she is the future, as well as a call to the Dalit community all over the country to support her that she made comments such as these:

Undeterred by the outcome of the trust vote, BSP chief Mayawati on Tuesday alleged the UPA and as well as the NDA of "conspiring" to prevent her from becoming the country's prime minister. Talking to media soon after the UPA won the trust vote in the Lok Sabha, the Uttar Pradesh CM said, "UPA's victory is not due to their policies but a well thought-out political conspiracy by both the NDA and the UPA to check the BSP and prevent the daughter of a Dalit from becoming the prime minister of the country."
Mayawati claimed that in the last week, her party has emerged as the fulcrum of national politics. "The Left also sees merit and finds that when BSP has given such good governance in the largest state of the country, it can be tried at the national level," she added. "What BSP hoped to achieve in the next 6-7 years, it has managed to do in 6-7 days," she said, referring to the UNPA and her new positioning in national politics.

These are the kind of politics that are abhorrent, that drive wedges in an already divided country. So far the BSP, for all the money-making practices of its leader, has been accepted as a platform that shows oppressed Dalits that they can also lead and have power; however, when somebody starts indulging in such negative politics, it has a major effect on their credibility.

Labels: BJP, Caste, Congress, Left, Mayawati, Morality, Politics

If you consider the pedigree of these 2 gentlemen, RJD chief Lalu Prasad (who is a self-claimed socialist having risen up through the support of the people), and CPI leader AB Bardhan (and of course the Communists always consider themselves to be the representatives of the people, even if the ungrateful people do not elect them to the national level government); then you would realize that they should be natural allies. Both are opposed to the Congress (or were opposed earlier), both have come up through the support of the poor and the repressed sections of society; and of course both are violently and vehemently opposed to the BJP (after all, both these parties are pure secular parties). So, having said all this, why do the following statements not seem out of place and seem completely normal since these are political people after all:

Launching a scathing attack on CPI leader AB Bardhan for his remarks that UPA was buying MPs for Rs 25 crore each, RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Friday said the CPI leader should prove his 'nasty' allegations or 'apologise'. "Bardhan has harmed the reputation of all parties with his comments. He has said a very nasty thing," Prasad told reporters after chairing a meeting of the RJD Parliamentary Party at his residence here.
The CPI leader has "defamed" MPs of all parties and "assassinated their character", Prasad said adding, "he should either prove his allegations or apologise". Spewing more venom on the CPI general secretary, he said, "The country will never forgive Bardhan. He has defamed Parliamentary democracy. His allegations are a conspiracy to destroy the very foundations of democracy."

Of course, if the situation so requires, then the same Lalu could go off the next day to meet Bardhan and expound to the press about what a great leader Bardhan actually is; and no one will consider this to be abnormal. Is it then any issue that most Indian consider politicians to not have any morals, and be downright power-hungry ?

Labels: Deal, Left, Morality, Politics

The Left has always modeled itself on its adherence to political probity, and to good norms (in the process considering itself the party with the highest morals); of course it is another matter that people who cannot stand the policies of the Left (and its pandering to an out-dated economic model and to its adherence to a blind model of secularism (you just have to remember their threatening the Samajwadi Party with the loss of the Muslim vote if it supported the Congress) consider it the most morally bankrupt party. And of course, its dictatorial and violent ways in Bengal shows up its true nature. But this particular example takes the cake.
In the Indian system of parliamentary democracy, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha is seen to be an impartial judge, and even though a lot of politics go into the election of the Speaker, once in, the speaker is seen as the most unbiased political person, and specially not supporting the policies of the party from which he was elected. Many speakers in the past have tried to adhere to this policy (and some have succeeded to some degree). The current speaker, Somnath Chaterjee, has always claimed that he is now not a Left party member, but the speaker, the person who no longer will profess any political beliefs.
So, how come such a situation has come to pass that the speaker is being told by Comrade Karat that he is now a Left party member and should withdraw from the post of the speaker. This is crass bad political behavior, trying to force a person to resign who is supposed to be now above political beliefs:

Despite the pressure mounted on him by the CPM leadership to resign his post immediately, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee remains defiant as he questioned their very decision to go along with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). An angry Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) general secretary Prakash Karat, according to party sources, has asked Politburo member Sitaram Yechury to convince Chatterjee about quitting the Speaker's post, which was the result of an understanding that the Left had with the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) when it decided to prop it up in 2004.
However, Chatterjee, who has had meetings with Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Petroleum Minister Murli Deora during the last two days, is insisting he would give up his Lok Sabha membership also if he had to quit the Speaker's post. The Speaker is believed to have told the CPM leadership that he would not be in a position to vote against the UPA in the Lok Sabha. Chatterjee, who will be 79 on July 25, is also arguing that such a move would cast a shadow on the Speaker's office as it is supposed to be above party politics.

Somehow, in this case, one does not think that it is the loss of the chair that is worrying Chaterjee as much as the fact that suddenly he is being forced to resign to support a cause for which he was not consulted.

Labels: Congress, Deal, Election, Left, Morality, Nuclear, Parliament, Politics

A very sensitive subject indeed. Mercy killing, or allowing a person to take his own life (or a team of doctors to do so) is a dilemma that raises ethical questions all over the world. For a world that has derived many of its laws and regulations from religious backgrounds (Ten Commandments / The Gita / The Koran / etc..), mercy killing is something that raises the hackles of a large section of the world's population. It is only permissible in some countries, and that too under strict control. In many other countries (even one such as the United States), mercy killing has run against a moral hard rock and many physicians have been sentenced for helping in carrying it out. In a recent case of Terry Schiavo (Wikipedia), the case went through major conflict, with people at all levels (politicians, religious figures, family rights groups, etc) getting involved.
The basic premise for mercy killing is simple: There are many medical conditions that are terminal, and there is no established medical treatments that can cure the disease or prevent death. And unlike movies, people don't dance or sing till almost just before death, they go through horrible phases of steadily declining abilities - losing control of vital motor abilities, losing control of their mental faculties, unable to fend for themselves and being dependent on others, and a steadily increasing pain. In such cases, there has been the logic that given that their condition is terminal (that is, they have reached a condition where death is confirmed and they no longer have a life that seems meaningful in any way), they should be allowed an option to end their life when they still can command control of their life.

Taking the first step towards legalizing euthanasia or mercy killing, the Law Commission has decided to recommend to the government to allow terminally ill to end their lives to relieve them of long suffering. It allows those whose death is virtually certain to avoid their painful journey to the end.
The core of the recommendation to make euthanasia legal stems from several SC judgments which ruled that 'life does not mean animal existence’. "If a person is unable to take normal care of his body or has lost all the senses and if his real desire is to quit the world, he cannot be compelled to continue with torture and painful life. In such cases, it will indeed be cruel not to permit him to die," says the report, receiving final touches from Commission chairman Justice A R Lakshmanan.

However, aside from the moral and ethical problems that this issue comes up with, there are many other problems that arise when such a discussion comes up:
- There are a host of new treatments that are arising as we experiment more with genes and new areas such as stem cell technology, so is it right to assume that a condition that is treated as terminal now could not become one where a treatment is possible in a few years
- Who decides whether the condition is terminal ? If it is a team of doctors, who do you trust ? How do you prevent misuse, especially when we have seen so many new cases whereby elderly people are dumped because of the effort of taking care of them
- Will this become a poor vs. rich thing ? Suppose that a very expensive treatment is available abroad, and a poor person cannot afford to get this done for the terminal condition ?
- How will the actual logistics of carrying out the termination of a medically terminally affected patient be carried out ?
- In a country where there are many more needy people than hospital beds, would this become a misused thing ?
What do you people think ? Is India ready for something like mercy killing ?
I agree that we need to do this, subject to some stringent checks and balances.

Labels: Health, India, Law, Medical, Morality, Policy, Reform

The incidence of dowry in the country is a fairly high chance. Over a period of time, it has evolved from something that was supposed to be a gift given to the bride (and maybe the only thing given to the daughter of the house from the family property) to something that is seen as the right of the groom's family. The belief is that if the son is skilled or from a good family, or of the right caste, then it is the right of the girl's family to open their wallets and give umpteen amounts for the marriage. There are people who dispute the amount of dowry prevalent in today's society, but open the newspapers or see TV, and you will society temporarily idolizing the girl who stood up to the dowry seekers, or you will read more grisly tales of brides being subjected to torture or being killed due to problems with the dowry being paid. In many cases, it is not cash, but the demand is for a vehicle, or even more subtly, a loan (never to be returned), to help the boy do better in a business or some other need. I know a case where a boy's grandparents demanded a car at the last moment (within 10 days of the marriage), and the poor parents felt that they had no option other than to give in and mobilize the funds to buy and give the car.
So, there are a set of laws to even the scale; these laws would not actually pass the test of being totally lawful since they do weigh more in favor of the girl. Many would argue that this is right, since society is totally in favor of the demands by the groom. However, as always happens when there are a set of laws that are more in favor of one section, the misuse of these laws happen. So, for all the times when the dowry laws help a tortured or suppressed girl, there are numerous other cases where the same law is used to threaten the family of a groom where there has been no incidence of dowry. For a case where there has been marital discord, the threatened use of dowry can turn the tables, since the groom's family have learned to fear the use of dowry laws. The allegation of dowry can bring about unwanted media attention including vilification, closer attention by cops (maybe some days in jail as well), and a significant pressure level to settle the case.
Hence, over a period of time, there has been a lot of focus by many self-help groups to plead against the misuse of these laws and bring it to the notice of the government (not only the anti-dowry laws, but the recent domestic violence act that also has some harsh measures). Even many courts have pointed out the misuse of these laws in some cases and called for greater oversight to prevent misuse of these laws:

Following complaints about the misuse of dowry laws by women, the Centre has decided to look into the issue and will hold a consultation programme to get views and suggestions from NGOs and activists working for men. Acting on complaints about the misuse of dowry laws, the Union Ministry for Women and Child Development would organise a consultation programme where men from different walks of life would be invited to express themselves on June 25.
"The ministry has received complaints from men about the urgent need to amend Section 498(A) of the dowry law claiming that many women misuse the law to their benefit. After the consultation, the Ministry will examine how far this claim is right before deciding on any thing," Union Minister for Women and Child Development Renuka Chowdhary said.

Nobody doubts the need for laws to act against dowry misuse as well as warn people against the potential problems they face if they demand dowry and ill-treat women because of that; however, at the same time, a harsh law has a strong potential for misuse and there is an urgent need for reform. The main question right now is about whether there will be a proper review and necessary changes be brought in ?

Labels: Discrimination, Dowry, Law, Morality, Policy, Punishment, Reform, Welfare, Women

Rape is a heinous crime, something that can cast a horrible injury on a women (both on the physical body and the psyche); it can take a long time to get over this assault. Hence, there are some harsh laws on this crime in human society, with a world wide convention that such crimes will be handled to the maximum possible allowed under the law. In India, the Supreme Court has been sensitive to the nature of this crime, in many cases relying on the sole testimony of the victim. However, such measures are subject to misuse, and one comes across such cames occasionally that introduce a feeling that one cannot take a statement for granted. Read about ladies who extort money from innocent bystanders by threatening rape:

The women used to entice passersby and then extort money from them by putting them under fear of rape allegations. The three, Heena(25), Noorjahan(26) and Rukshana(26) (names changed) were active in Delhi and NCR for the past few years, the police said.
The police carried out the arrests after their suspicions were roused by a woman's complaint in which she alleged she was raped by a person who offered her her a lift while she was returning home.
The officer added that the women used to charge anything between Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 for not framing the victim. If he refused to pay, the person would be taken to the police station. The women had few male accomplices who would track their movements and come to their rescue if anything went wrong.

It is the fear of getting caught in such cases that makes most people unwilling to offer help. Colleagues whom I talked to confirm that most of them will hesitate to help a single lady standing alone (even though such cases happen in low numbers, but the fear of scandal and getting caught in such major issues hampers most people). In addition, quoting of such cases when the circumstances of the rape charge is not crystal clear may allow even guilty rapists from getting away.

Labels: Community, Investigation, Law, Morality, Police, Security, Women

In India, the police are still governed by a set of rules that were set up in British times; then the aim of the police was to implement the policies of the ruler against a ruled nation. Looking at the current situation, one would not be faulted for thinking that something similar is the current situation. The police is formed out of the society as we have currently, and assumes that the police is 'THE government' in areas that are away from major cities. If you go to a semi-urban area, then there are only 2-3 centers of power: the local politician of the ruling party, the powerful criminal, the local top bureaucrat, and then the policeman, in cahoots with one, or all of them.
In such a case, a policemen who does not have enough morals or controls would think that he is the local equivalent of all authority, and that any action of his cannot be faulted. If not so, how does one explain the case where policemen can rape a citizen of the country (without worrying that the law will catch up with them):

The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday rapped the Haryana police for the rape of a woman in Rohtak allegedly by two constables, saying "when the protectors of the law become perpetrators of crime, the life of the common man becomes miserable".
The Bench also directed the state government to file a detailed status report within two weeks on the circumstances that drove the young mother of two to the extreme step. They said the compensation announced for the minor daughters of the woman "cannot retrieve the honour of the deceased or the family" nor could it bring the victim back to life.

The biggest problem is that even when the victim complained, the police force did not investigate. It is only left to either the victim taking a drastic action like committing suicide; or when the media highlights the case and brings unprecedented public pressure to bear. However, this is not a solution. The solution, as pronounced by the Supreme Court, is to reform the Police Force and bring it under more responsibility.

Labels: Court, Empowerment, Governance, Law, Media, Morality, Police, Reform, Responsibility, Security

Citizens of the country have mostly bad thoughts about interacting with Government bodies; a lot of them come across officialdom who are not responsive and caring about their needs (as an example, making them come repeatedly even for small errors in the red tape process), and so on. There are babus (officials), who are friendly, but most are like hard faced officials, unwilling to come across as caring people. It would be nice for people to live in a gated community (and self-sufficient place) where one would not have to interact with the Government bureaucracy, but that is living in an ideal world. However, there are cases when official responses are such that you would be horrified to read about such cases, and wonder as to how the official structure of the country could be so insensitive to the problems faced by citizens, that too when the situation is due to a fault of the agency themselves. The Delhi Development Authority however has been roundly criticized from time to time over its openness, caring nature (lack of it), and inability to care about what citizens go through. Read this article for more information:

Wondering if DDA derives "some kind of sadistic pleasure" in harassing citizens, Delhi High Court has slammed the civic agency in a case of double allotment of a flat in 1991 due to which the rightful owner was deprived of its possession and had to wage a 17 year legal battle in court.
"Ignoring dictum of law the officials of DDA keep perpetuating their illegal acts giving an impression as if they derive some kind of sadistic pleasure to harass the citizens," HC observed while castigating the civic body for having the nerve to demand double the price of a flat which wasn't handed over to Gandhi in 1991 because of DDA's double allotment mistake.

This case really highlights as to how uncaring an agency can be. DDA double-allotted a flat in 1991, and when the lady in question tried to get the mistake corrected, the DDA did a fresh allotment to her after 10 years and charged her new prices, at double the original cost. In such cases, the Court should also assign individual responsibility and fine officials responsible (including fining officials of the rank of Chairman and Vice-Chairman if they had made such recommendations).

Labels: Court, Governance, Judicial, Morality, Policy, Punishment, Reform

One knows about the increased level of criminality in public life nowadays, especially when it comes to the increased nexus between politicians and criminals, and the increasing tendency of criminals (especially the musclemen variety) to try and enter the political life, so as to get a chance to 'serve the citizens of the country' !
One aspect of such a nexus is that politicians increasingly are unconcerned about the implications of their actions, and any repercussions such actions may have on them. Otherwise, how do you explain the strangeness of the act that the Uttar Pradesh minister was arrested for:

Sacked Uttar Pradesh Minister Jamuna Nishad was on Tuesday arrested by the police two days after he was charged with murder of a constable during a violent clash involving his supporters at a Maharajganj police station. Nishad was arrested while he was on his way to Chief Minister Mayawati's residence to attend a meeting.
Nishad, who was sacked by Mayawati on Sunday, was named in an FIR in connection with the killing of the constable during alleged firing by his supporters at Kotwali police station in Maharajganj. Nishad had denied his presence during the violence at the police station and also the charge that the shot was fired from his red-beaconed car.

Such things have been known to happen, and the harsh sentence handed out to the former Bihar MP Anand Mohan has not caused other politicians to resist from taking such actions. These actions need to be harshly prosecuted.

Labels: Governance, Investigation, Law, Morality, Punishment

How precious is human life actually ? We read all the time about thieves getting lynched in the rural and semi-urban areas of our country; as well as hang our heads in shame when some local caste panchayat or even the actual parents or relatives actually kill their own children pretending that their children have brought dishonor to their lives.
However, in a new low, you can actually measure how low the value of a human life actually is. It is Rs.1, that one rupee shiny coin that many of us in cities do not even claim can purchase anything worthwhile. In this incident, a youth ran away with a gutkha packet from a village shop in West Bengal, and was then chased by a mob that finally caught up with him and then beat him to death. This is a horrible manifestation of the new low that have shown for the value of human life. Don't believe me ? Read this article:

A 22-year-old youth was lynched at Dakshin Duilla village under Andul police station in Howrah on Saturday for filching a Re 1 pouch of gutkha (tobacco-laced pan masala) from a shop. The shop owner and other villagers involved in the incident are absconding.
The angry mob caught up with Rahiz near a bamboo grove, some half a kilometre away from the shop and beat him up with whatever they could lay their hands on, including bamboo poles and farm implements. Samanta and the others fled after the youth collapsed. Passers-by saw the youth and informed police. By the time police arrived, Rahiz was dead.

These incidents keep on repeating from time to time, and we also read about them and ignore them as no impact to our own life. That may actually be true, they may not have any direct impact on our life, but are a sign of the breakdown of law and order in the countryside. A mob can dispense instant justice, and the people forming the mob are sure that they will not suffer anything because of their action.

Labels: Governance, Law, Life, Morality, Punishment, Security

In a shocking incident that portrays how parents have a quest for male children, a couple abandoned their girl child under the pretext of claiming that their child had been switched with another baby, and that their actual child was a boy. They even demanded a DNA test, and when the DNA test proved that the lady was the mother of the girl child, they refused to accept the DNA test. In the end, the police arrested them for deserting the girl child:

MUMBAI: A couple from Dharavi's Rajiv Gandhi Nagar slum was arrested on Friday for abandoning an infant girl at the civic-run Sion Hospital. The parents, Rajmani and Sheela Jaiswal, had earlier alleged that their baby boy had been swapped for a girl child after delivery in December. They left the child behind when Sheela was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday.
They had approached the Shahunagar police station and had demanded a DNA test to confirm parentage. The DNA report, submitted by the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina, had confirmed that the DNA of the mother and child matched. The unlettered couple, however, remains unconvinced. ''We don't trust the DNA report given by the police or hospital. We want the DNA test to be conducted in Delhi,'' said Salam Kazi from voluntary organisation Al-Hind, which is supporting the family and promises to provide them a lawyer if need be.

This is shocking. The quest for a male child has caused the parents to abandon their own flesh and blood. In the end, even though the child deserves to live with her parents, given that the parents are even refusing to acknowledge her, one can only wonder as to how they would have treated her later. Such a child would suffer major discrimination, with a bad quality of life.

Labels: Child, Discrimination, Family, Morality, Responsibility

Surprising, but it happens in India. And the only reason that this could happen is because this involves a craze among Indians that is bigger than the one involving taking dowry, namely the craze for getting a citizenship of the developed world. For this craze, people are willing to pay huge amounts of money, live in horrid conditions and risk death to reach a place through illegal immigration, so if you can do this legally, you can pay much more. The groom would even be willing to let go of many pre-conditions such as the bride being elder than him, and so on.

Marry in Puducherry, honeymoon for the rest of your life in Paris. But first, dish out. In this exotic former French colony, young men are making a beeline for French belles, with starry eyes, pounding hearts - and bulging wallets. But marital bliss doesn't come cheap. The brides, Indian-origin French citizens, demand and get dowries between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 50 lakh.
Newly wed men could earn a fortune in France and enjoy a slew of welfare measures extended by the government there," said a 60-year-old Indian-born French citizen settled in Puducherry. The man, who did not wish to reveal his identity, himself got a hefty dowry for his daughter. "We sought Rs 50 lakh from the groom's family for the marriage. They offered an advance of Rs 10 lakh and promised to pay the rest in instalments. The marriage took place two years ago and the couple is settled happily in France," he added.

Seems like an answer to all dowry haters; but things are not so easy. The French Consulate knows about this, and is willing to do some hard and intensive questioning of would-be immigrant husbands to ensure that anybody trying to enter after doing a false marriage is turned away. Further, one wonders about the future of such marriages when the purpose of the marriage has been achieved and realism starts to set in.

Labels: Community, Dowry, Family, Morality, Welfare

Sometimes one comes across cases where you start wondering as to whether regulations are meant to help humans or to thwart them ? What purposes are rules that only lead to the death of humans or hinder them when they are in need. An example of this is seen in what happened in Delhi on the 7th of April, 2008. For a long time, movies and television have been propagating the prospect that any accident or other such grievous case victim cannot be treated unless there is a police case. Further, normal people are also worried about the same thing; nobody wants to get involved in cases dealing with accidents, even to the extent that if you see an accident happen in front of you, most people would look the other way and not try to get involved. This gets doubled if the injury is criminal in nature, say if a person gets shot or knifed.
But is this avoidance only because of the worry of getting involved ? Or is it because we are so involved in our own selves that we would rather not get involved - how many times have you seen young kids being exploited as labour and looked the other way; or seen an accident victim lying on the road and continued on ? We continually see examples of this kind of behavior:

Harshal ran to his father's car. "I saw the bullet had gone in right under his ear into the neck and there was blood spilling all over the seat. Because the seatbelt was still fastened, he was sitting upright. A crowd had gathered there and kept looking at me while I unfastened his seatbelt and put him on the back seat. No one even offered to help and when I asked for it, they just didn't," said Harshal.

Similarly, the distraught son has claimed that the hospitals that he went to refused to admit him because of it being a medico-legal case, and that is a real shocker. Even though the hospitals involved have refused that such a thing happened, how many of us think that such a thing could have happened ?

Forty-seven-year-old Arun Gupta, a businessman who was shot in the neck, died of his injuries after battling for life for nearly three hours on Monday morning. In fact, his son, Harshal, has alleged that the first hour — considered to be the golden hour for such victims — was spent in rushing him from one hospital to another which turned him down though a prominent hospital has denied any such incident.
According to two SC judgments, no doctor or hospital can deny life-saving emergency treatment to a patient. In two landmark judgments — Parmanand Katara vs Union of India and Paschim Banga Khet Mazdoor Samiti vs State of West Bengal — the Supreme Court upheld every person's right to life.

I see this everywhere, and maybe I am as guilty of this as anyone else. Even though I recall a case where we had helped a biker who had crashed into our case, one cannot be really sure about the response when we are confronted with a person who is severely injured or has just been shot. In addition to the human nature that is concerned with helping others, there is now a contrary nature that deals with avoiding any sort of trouble.

Labels: Medical, Morality, Responsibility