viewpoint

Apology is a curse. Excuse is a crime. But then the only daily that proclaims itself as India’s National Newspaper has to come true to the burden of expectations from its readers. Unfortunately The Hindu fails on this account. It is liked and loved for sticking to old journalistic values and practices. Its coverage is exquisite. Very few newspapers in India publish book reviews. So insightful are the reviews that one is tempted to buy well-reviewed books. The Hindu is the mainstay of India’s future civil servants as it provides in-depth material in all subjects.

But unfortunately it is too leftist for comfort. The shameful part is that it has had to censor news of naxal atrocities of late. You would not find a word about the Gadchiroli massacre of policemen last week in India’s national newspaper. The Hindu editorial dated October 10, 2009 - Keep Out the Armed Forces also fails to mention the recent acts of violence by the naxalites, which include the beheading of Francis Induvar and the Gadchiroli incident, forget their condemnation.

The editorial is a bag full of excuses and apologies on behalf of the naxals. The Hindu has thankfully not as yet become the mouthpiece of the naxaites, but it remains the only national newspaper that provides space to the naxal viewpoint. The editorial vehemently opposes any use of, what it calls ‘counter-violence’, by the State. The naxals and The Hindu are scared that the terrorists will be exterminated a la the LTTE if the Indian government were to use the armed forces.

No one can fight a war with one hand tied to their backs. The Indian armed forces should be used proactively to root out the naxalites. Till this is fully achieved, I shall not dump The Hindu, but will keep a vigilant eye on it. I still love the paper for its overall coverage. But then patience has its limits.

22nd July 2008 will go down in the history of Indian Parliament (sorry for the capital P this one last time). MPs brandishing cash, cross-voting, and mud-slinging; a Prime Minister not having the courage to speak; a Sikh MP from Bihar exhoring the Sikhs to vote for your own; Omar Abdullah’s crocodile tears; and so forth and so on.

With 15 cross-votes and all in favour of the UPA, imagine what would have happened if the ruling party had not managed to buy MPs. The biggest loser in this is undoubtedly the BJP which has once again proved its incapacity of offering an alternative; it cannot even hold its flock together!

The Congress, already gasping for breath hasn’t won either. It will now be hostage to smaller parties, giving in to their petty demands. Will it be able to push through the reforms the Left has not allowed it to implement so far? If it can do that and control inflation, it can hope to do well in the future.

As the world watches mutely, hundreds of Tibetans are losing their lives. They had lost their freedom long time back, so no one is actually shedding a tear about that!

What is surprising is that the world at large has been subscribing to the Chinese view. That includes the Indian government, and some leading newspapers in this country. I was appalled to note that the Hindu, which is on this weblog’s list of favourite sites, chose to publish what read like a Chinese press release in its editorial titled ”The question of Tibet” (March 26, 2008).

The editorial was a stunner and raises many questions about The Hindu’s editorial policy. It taken a highly biased, pro-China, stand. The editorial mentions that Tibetan demonstrators committed arson, to the extent of killing people on March 14. Why didn’t The Hindu or any other newspaper not cover this earlier?

You editorial also goes on to equate Tibet with Kashmir. That Kashmir is not accepted by vested interests as part of India is not our headache. Kashmir acceded to India as part of the partition agreement. Princely states had the right to join either India or Pakistan. When the accession of other states is not questioned, why should Indians themselves doubt the legality of Kashmir? It was shocking to see such flawed logic to justify Chinese policy. Another needless reference in the editorial is between the demand for ‘Greater Tibet’ and breaking up of states in India. If newspapers were to begin dispensing such logic like politicians, where would we end up?

It is also news, as per the editorial, that political discussions have been going on between Tibetans and China for three decades. If Tibet is a part of China, then why should there be any negotiations at all?

That the entire world dare not challenge China’s hegemony over Tibet, thanks to its military and economic power, does not mean that all is hunky-dory in China and Tibet.

But then all is not lost. We still have conscientious men like Baichung Bhutia who have the guts to stand up. 

While Indians were pillorying the Australians for their obnoxious behaviour on and off the cricket field, the Australian Prime Minister had the guts to say sorry to the “Lost Generation”. This was a great moment in Australian history, particularly more so when his immediate predecessor had openly refused to apologise.

Generations of original Australian aborigines had been subjected to the white man’s burden, as Rudyard Kipling would have us believe, of civilising the differently coloured. This exercise of culturing people has imposed unimaginable harm on at least three to four generations of parents and children.

In this context, “Closing the Circle” by Lotte Mjoberg, Reader’s Digest, July 2007 is a moving story of the Swedish author who discovers that her forefathers were robbers of Australian aborigines’ graves. She narrates the tale of apologising to the affected families in a highly emotional account.

Another article I would like readers to refer to is “The Aboriginal Butterfly” by Liza Bejoy, published in the Hindu dated 16 March 2008. The author compares the attempt by the whites who had reached Australia only in 1778, to tamper with the million years old aboriginal way of living to the harm that a person may do to a butterfly by helping it come out of its cocoon. This the author says results in an ugly and handicapped butterfly. Readers can access this article by clicking the following hyperlink:

http://www.hindu.com/op/2008/03/16/stories/2008031650021400.htm

The killing of a Maharashtrian by the pro-Marathi trouble makers is unfortunate. Someone who had nothing to do with an ill-conceived agitation has, as happens in all such cases, been sacrificed. Mahatma Gandhi had said during his Satyagraha movement in South Africa that, there is suffering to be borne in all forms of conflict - whether violent or non-violent. The same has befallen an innocent man and his family.

Separatists have time and again targeted their diatribe against Gujaratis, South Indians, and now North Indians, in Maharashtra. The moot question to be asked is - Is Maha-rashtra larger than the Rashtra that is India? While it is alright to be patriotic, why should it be limited to borders of state and country?

We all are too deeply rooted to our sub-nationalities, if the existence of any thing of the sort is to be acknowledged. Whether we like it or not, each one of us is an Indian first. The current agitation is akin to the Kashmiri Pandits being thrown out of J&K. There is only the difference of degree.

The issue of development is getting lost in the din of the turmoil. States like UP, Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal have very little to offer to those who have chosen to seek work in large metros. All the menial jobs go to these migrants. Their role in the development of Mumbai, for instance, cannot be undermined. These people offer the choice of labour at low wages to the moneyed people.

Since 2001, when Lata Mangeshkar was bestowed with the nation’s highest award - Bharat Ratna, India has failed to nominate someone of calibre to the exalted honour. What a shame then that instead of finding a person of irrefutable stature, politicians in India are busy lobbying for their own “men”.

The lack of consensus on issues has been a major casualty these days - be it the Indo-US nuclear deal or the running of Parliament. The government of the day has the onerous responsibility of taking every one together in a direction that benefits the nation as a whole.

There are a number of persons who have excelled in their areas and each one of them has unparalleled achievements. The government could well consider the following names for the award:
1. Public Service - Sundarlal Bahuguna, Medha Patkar, Baba Amte
2. Sports - Vishwanathan Anand, Sachin Tendulkar
3. Films - Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand

There could be many more names that can be considered, but only if the government is serious about the whole issue.

The silent aggressor has added a new dimension to team sports. By reaffirming the spirit of the game of cricket Anil Kumble has started a healthy debate. Even leading sportspersons from Australia are buying this theory and calling on Cricket Australia to end the disgusting behaviour of its world champion team.

Since the days of Steve Waugh, Australia have taken pride in their aggressive on and off-the-field behaviour. Thanks to the dubious role of umpires and the match referee, the sheen has been taken off Ricky Ponting’s team’s world-record equaling achievement. Instead of celebrating that record, Australia is bitterly divided over the way its cricketers behaved at Sydney. And nobody is blaming the Indians for crying over the loss. They have been able to show to the world that their defeat was engineered by some pretty bad umpiring decisions.

Winning is everything in this world but certainly not through dubious means. As Gandhiji had said the means are more important that the end.