Sunday, December 19, 2010

Editorial, 'WikiLeaks and Radia Tapes' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15 December 2010 issue

WikiLeaks and Radia Tapes


Two sensational and crucial developments in two different spheres of the globe we are witnessing today in Julian Assange’s Wikileaks which revealed the dastardly secret diplomacy as also the inhuman atrocities of American imperialism in collusion with many so-called democracies of the world, and in the tapes of secretly tapped conversations of Nira Radia, an upstart corporate NRI businesswoman playing a key role in the now Parliament-paralyzing multi-billion dollar 2-G scam in India. The former involves serious questions of principle and policy concerning the freedom of speech and expression, of diplomatic delicacies and confidentialities and charges of treason and betrayal of a nation, etc. Julian Assange is now the centre of whole world attention, hailed by the young and activists in civil rights movements as a hero but denigrated by the hurt and angered governmental and political leaders of America and elsewhere as a villain, so much so that the famous Life magazine displays a slideshow: ‘Julian Assange: Hero or Villain?’, and circles from the Russian Presidential office hint at his nomination for the Nobel Prize even. The latter is certainly not a heroine but may not be a vamp or foreign spy either though there are serious allegations against her on those counts. The point is, in the all pervading corruption in Indian society she was able to manipulate the highest circles of administration and political fields to her quick advantage and build up a multi-crore business barely in nine years. Also she damaged the reputation of many a famous figure including Ratan Tata who is now praying the Supreme Court for protection of his privacy. Here also the question of freedom of speech and information is involved and as the UN Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Opinion and Expression, Frak LaRue, has rightly stated, one should not face legal accountability for any information they disseminated and “if there is a responsibility by leaking information it is exclusively of the person that made the leak and not of the media that publish it. And this is the way that transparency works and corruption … confronted in many cases.” §§§

Editorial, 'INDIA PROSPERING, NOT INDIANS!' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 November 2010 issue

INDIA PROSPERING, NOT INDIANS!


A recent UN working paper states that China and India are generally regarded as the two large countries in the developing world that are the “suc­cess stories” of globalization, the success defined by the high and sustained rates of growth of aggregate and per capita national income and the substantial reduction in income poverty; further China is described as becoming the “work­shop” or “factory” of the world through the expansion of manufacturing production, and India as becoming the “office” of the world, in particular because of its ability to take advantage of IT-enabled services off-shoring; however, in both countries, the growth has been associ­ated with sharp increases in spatial and vertical inequalities, greater fragility of incomes among marginalized groups and adverse shifts in certain human development indicators. It quotes the most recent World Bank estimates which number the absolutely poor people in India in 2005 to be 456 million, significantly more than the Indian government’s own estimate of 301 million in 2004-05, and also the Asian Development Bank (2008) estimate of the number of poor in India in 2005 at 622-740 million. As for our own estimates, the latest Tendulkar Committee Report put the poverty in our country at 37% whereas the earlier Arjun Sengupta report gave the very high figure of 77% living on less than Rs. 20/- a day and the N.C. Saxena Committee put it at 50%. And with the Tendulkar Committee report accepted by the Planning Commission, we can “proudly say 37% of our population still lives struggling with extreme poverty and fighting with pangs of hunger.” As such no wonder India may seem prospering if GDP growth rates alone considered, but our agricultural production has been stagnant and certainly bulk of Indians are marginalized. All this needs a radical shift in priorities of funds allotment and good governance with stress on poverty alleviation, agriculture by medium and poor peasants, education, housing and health needs of the bulk of the people and elimination of corruption; but not gloating about the so-called development at the cost of people and environment §§§

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Editorial, 'Canker of Corruption' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15 November 2010 October Revolution Special issue

Canker of Corruption

is eating irreparably into the vitals of our society it appears, or has it already done that? All the ideals adumbrated in our Constitution for the establishment of an egalitarian social welfare society seem to have been thrown to the winds and the ruling coteries as also the aspiring parties, groups and persons, save for a few honourable exceptions, seem to have joined in the rape of the motherland. Veterans who still remember the days of the British rule generally rue that society had not fallen to such abysmal depths and corrupt drains in those days despite all the high-handed and atrocious conduct of the imperialists. Not only we see scams everywhere – of the Adarsh Housing Society in Bombay, illegal mining and land allotments in Karnataka, real estate and mining scams in AP and above all the 2-G scam which is creating tremors in the Union Government now, but also the corrupt and inept administrators seem to be confident of sailing through all the hazards of prosecution and punishment for their illegal activities in absolute safety. The Courts occasionally bark for the protection of the ideals underscoring the need for zero tolerance to corruption but then they too face serious allegations of corruption within their wing, which even if 10% of the same be established, stand as a matter of unredeemable humiliation for the society. While the rich, neo-rich and super rich are joyfully sailing on waves of affluence and luxury, comes the gruesome news of poor and hungry mothers selling away their children for paltry hundreds as the only way to save their families from sure starvation deaths! And now Mr. Kar, a senior economist, comes with the sensational revelation that more than 20 lakh crore rupees of black moneys are stashed away overseas right from 1948 till date and the so-called liberalization policies claiming to create more transparency have in no way reduced corruption but exacerbated it. He says with such huge amounts we could have paid for the entire infrastructure needs of the country and much else – better schools, better health and nutrition programmes for the poor, etc. Regrettably, instead of fighting this malaise with all devotion and strength people seem to be frittering away their energies in silly parochial and petty agitations which deliver no real fruits to the needy. All this fortifies our convicton that a real revolutionary upheaval by the people, rising above all petty concerns, against corruption, misrule and concomitant evils and atrocities can alone save this country §§§

16azar1389

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Editorial, 'UNITED WE STAND' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD,31 October 2010 issue

UNITED WE STAND
but divided we fall – this axiom of age-old distilled wisdom not only applies to all diverse nationalities and communities inhabiting a country, in our case India, but also to the Telugus of different regions inhabiting our united State. The people of Telangana especially, who fought a glorious struggle for the overthrow of a feudal autocratic monarchy and for the unity of the Telugu motherland, must learn from their own history that there is absolutely no need for brothers to separate, that Telangana stands in the relation of an elder brother, and an elder brother normally never desires, and is invariably never expected, to partition the family but rather advises and persuades any recalcitrant younger brothers to maintain family unity and honor. The present agitation of lawyers of different regions of Seemandhra for separate benches of the High Court, apart from its merits, shows that it is only Telangana which is the real cementing factor for unity. One should not forget that Telangana means the entire Telugu land, and should not be limited to just 10 districts of the present united state. But for the historical accident of a large chunk of Nizam’s dominions given up by the Nawab and gulped by the British, the present coastal and Rayalaseema districts would have been a part of Telangana all along and so there is no need to treat the dark interregnum of about 200 years feudal oppression and Nizam’s autocracy as lending any viable separate identity to the people of the ten districts. Above all, it would be a matter of utmost stupidity for a people to forego their access to the second longest coastline in India and the vast natural gas reserves and withdraw into a cocoon, when landlocked states anywhere in the world are sorely craving for such access. For these among many other reasons, on the eve of the glorious day of emergence of the united Telugu state, this editor once again gives a call for unity and amity between different regions and appeals to all separatists to shun their misguided path and heartily work together for the prosperity and welfare of the entire State §§§

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Editorial, 'SETTLE WITH OUR NEIGHBORS' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD,15 October 2010 issue

SETTLE WITH OUR NEIGHBORS

and strive for peace in Asia, consequently in the entire world – that is the sincere advice we offer to the rulers as well as the ruled in our country. It is a sad fact that only India in South Asia has so many unresolved border disputes with its neighbors. We are happy with none and none of them is happy with us. Even Bangladesh, for which we did so much sacrifice, is cross with us and is deliberately aiding anti-Indian tirades and fugitives. Now there is a talk about the US-Pakistan-China axis encircling India, despite our overreaching efforts to appease the Americans and the obvious American apprehensions about the Chinese overtaking. A couple of years ago we used to hear about a salutary Russia-China-India axis as a bulwark against the American schemes to dominate the world. Now things are fast changing. At one time it was Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai with the third world finding a beacon of hope in these two great neighbors but the 1962 faux pas by Nehru and the gruff rebuff meted out by China changed all that. And none of our neighbors barked for us in those trying times. Fortunately efforts to mend fences with China started again since Rajiv Gandhi’s times but now seem to have again struck an impasse. Our neighbors, Nepal and Burma, not to speak of Pakistan now chums with China, have come to mutually satisfactory border settlements with China in a friendly ‘give and take’ spirit. That is what we too need to display towards China with which we have no rancorous legacy of hostility (save for the lone 1962 conflict) instead of our rulers and bureaucrats longing to step into the shoddy and slippery shoes of our erstwhile British masters. The same holds good for our relations with Pakistan too. The Ravanasura Kaashtha of Kashmir needs a final quenching. After all, it is a continuance of the 1947 partition tragedy, with already a ground-level division of possession that satisfies nobody. We better remember our own promises to the UN in this regard and try to finally settle the dispute under the UN auspices or bilaterally with a ‘give and take’ spirit, duly catering to the sentiments and needs of both the Kashmiri Muslims and the expelled Kashmiri Hindus §§§

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 15 [Last]

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 14

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 13

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 12

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 11

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 10

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 9

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 8

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 7

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 6

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 5

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 4

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 3

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 2

Banned Documentary on Gujarat Riots Part 1

Genocide in Gujarat

This is what happens to Muslims in India

WE MUSLIMS MADE INDIA ACTUALLY .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1

NO PROOF RAM TEMPLE B4 BABRI MASJID. FALSE HINDU VOTE BANK ISS...

Babri Masjid or Ram Temple: A True Story

MUSTV WATCH BABRI MASJID REAL HISTORY PLEASE BE PATIENT AND WATCH ...

MUSTV WATCH BABRI MASJID REAL HISTORY PLEASE BE PATIENT AND WATCH ...

YouTube - MUSTV WATCH BABRI MASJID REAL HISTORY PLEASE BE PATIENT AND WATCH THE WHOLE VIDEO IF U R REAL INDIAN 1

YouTube - MUSTV WATCH BABRI MASJID REAL HISTORY PLEASE BE PATIENT AND WATCH THE WHOLE VIDEO IF U R REAL INDIAN 1

Monday, October 4, 2010

Editorial, 'Apex Ordeal and Ayodhya Verdict' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 September 2010 issue

APEX ORDEAL AND AYODHYA VERDICT


are the two most impressive and sensational socio-legal developments of most recent days which shook and are yet shaking the nation to its very core. The former especially is unprecedented - rarest of rare event in the annals of our judiciary with no less than eight among the last sixteen Chief Justices of India accused to be ‘definitely corrupt’ by a person of no less eminence than a former Union Law Minister and legal luminary Shanti Bhushan, who adds another two as cases of doubtful integrity. Going by his prima facie accusations, more than 60% of our highest judges seem to be corrupt and if so what could be the fate and state of lower judiciary in the country can be anybody’s guess. Truly, as Justice Krishna Iyer cautions, this issue needs be openly and quite seriously discussed, debated, assessed from several angles and remedied once for all lest the very stakes and honor of our country, already quite low, should fall to lowest possible depths among the international community. It is here that the need for establishment of a viable and effective national judicial commission becomes all the more pressing. And now to come to the latter, we may heave a sigh of relief that the much dreaded scenario of intense communal flare-up following the divided verdict did not come about and largely both communities remained peaceful perhaps because the judgments pointed to a sort of partition of the disputed site between the two communities though no sort of any historic justice was done to the good old Babri Mosque so shockingly smashed before our own eyes in 1992 December ensuing in widespread communal riots first and Islamic fundamentalist and later Hindu chauvinist terrorism next as its undesirable consequences. However, the justification and later validation of the stealthy placing of idols in the central hall of the Babri Masjid and on that reason allotting that part to Hindus may not be correct and not at all desirable since it amounts to condoning and validating criminal trespass, deliberate injury to the other community and wanton destruction of an existing place of worship. Of course, the way of appeal to the Supreme Court is still open and hope necessary correctives will be worked out there but we feel this delicate issue be, and indeed can only be, settled out-of-court on the basis of a historic friendly accord between the now-rival communities §§§

Editorial, 'Apex Ordeal and Ayodhya Verdict' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 September 2010 issue

Editorial, 'Apex Ordeal and Ayodhya Verdict' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 September 2010 issue

APEX ORDEAL AND AYODHYA VERDICT


Editorial, 'FARCE OF OUR RESERVATIONS' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD,15 September 2010 issue

FARCE OF OUR RESERVATIONS


system in its ugliest forms is coming to the open day by day. It was a colonial legacy sought to be shaped into a socio-economic uplift measure by our constitution makers but, regrettably, they learnt little from our history of subjugation that generated the national movement. It started with Minto’s machinations to drive a sharp wedge between Hindus and Muslims to consolidate the British Empire, and was extended to various communities from time to time to further the same object as also cater to various groups’ aspirations. The entire concept of scheduling certain castes and tribes was a British invention, dating from the Government of India Act 1935, from which a large portion of our Constitution is copied, almost verbatim. Given the requisite will and zeal, this system could have been done away with immediately after independence, but unfortunately it was given some small space that now has spread to enormous proportions, endangering the very democratic setup. Of course, it did benefit certain downtrodden communities to some extent, but more than that it had exacerbated the animosities between communities and is ultimately leading to the destruction of the very ideal of classless social democratic society. First it was interpreted that this sort of positive discrimination for affirmative action would be limited to really needy sections, classes socially and educationally backward; later one step more taken in interpreting it to encompass a backward caste in its entirety and, lo, the hornet’s nest of caste-based reservations was raked up, resulting in awkward caste ‘wars’ upsetting the polity. The Mandal Commission first, and then Sachar and Ranganath Misra Commissions thereafter, extend this system to further irrationalities and the latter particularly pave the way for religion-based reservations which have already once spelt doom to our country. Above all this, now spring demands for region-based reservations/quotas which discriminate people by their very birth in this or that place, and there too not satisfied with one generation antiquity even. We can only rue with Jug Suraiya writing in the Times of India blog: “Reservations have become like the fabled genie … let out of the bottle, and continued to grow and grow. Who is going to put the genie back? That’s the question facing not just the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court but all of us as well.” §§§

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

YouTube - (NEW) Pakistan Military Power

YouTube - (NEW) Pakistan Military Power: ""

YouTube - Pakistani Missiles by Indian Media

YouTube - Pakistani Missiles by Indian Media: ""

YouTube - Pakistan Military Report

YouTube - Pakistan Military Report: ""

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 2

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 2: ""

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 2

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 2

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 1

YouTube - Chinese Military vs. Indian Military Part 1: ""

YouTube - Indian Army Is Nothing Compared To Chinese Army - (See The Whole Vid)

YouTube - Indian Army Is Nothing Compared To Chinese Army - (See The Whole Vid): ""

YouTube - Very Impressive Chinese Military Parade (October 1st 2009)

YouTube - Very Impressive Chinese Military Parade (October 1st 2009): ""

YouTube - India can't match China's military force - Indian Navy Chief

YouTube - India can't match China's military force - Indian Navy Chief: ""

YouTube - (5) China Military Parade -- PRC 60th Anniversary Air Force and Nuclear Submarine Force (HD)

YouTube - (5) China Military Parade -- PRC 60th Anniversary Air Force and Nuclear Submarine Force (HD): ""

Monday, September 20, 2010

Sunday, September 5, 2010

www.narendramodi.in : Videos

Watch Amitabh Bacchan, the Brand Ambassador of Gujarat, passionately marketing tourism potential of Gujarat at www.narendramodi.in : Videos

Facebook (11) | Videos Posted by Satish Kumar Bhandari: Gujarat the State of our Vision

Facebook (11) | Videos Posted by Satish Kumar Bhandari: Gujarat the State of our Vision

Editorial 'BOOK BURNING & GURU BASHING' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 31 August 2010 issue

BOOK BURNING & GURU BASHING
are considered two awful crimes – in the language of believers, abominable sins – which no civilized society can or would tolerate. The first of these, usually carried out in public, is generally motivated by irrational moral, religious or political objections and leads to the danger of loss of cultural heritage and is symbolic of a fascist regime. This editor vividly remembers the incident of burning down, a decade or two ago, precious volumes of ‘Encyclopaedia of Marxism, Socialism and Western Society” of the Osmania University Library by some anti-communist goons on the mistaken notion that they were Marxist propaganda material; on the contrary, they contained some of the most enlightening intellectual critiques of Marxism and their loss is still irreplaceable for the library. This editor had then presented a protest petition to the authorities signed by about a hundred intellectuals, considerable number of whom happen to be the leaders or espousers of the current separatist movement in this State in which such detestable acts have now begun to be taken up with impunity and go without any sort of indignant protest. Are we being rushed into an Orwellian horror society with its ‘memory holes’ and ‘thought-crimes’? Better heed Henrich Heine’s warning: “When they burn books, so too will they in the end burn human beings.” The second of these is at once revolting to human conscience anywhere in the world, especially in our country which venerates teachers as gods, on par with parents. Again these tormentors of the mentors, once again on detestable pleas that they belonged to other regions though some of them got settled and naturalized in the same region, have gone without protest in a movement led by eminent professors. A university is meant to be a sanctified sanctuary for intellectual preoccupations and should never be converted into a centre of storm-troopers. The recent incident of teacher-bashing, marring the image of the same University, also reveals the intransigent infringement of fundamental rights to equality and points to the practice of discrimination by birth so caustically castigated by our Constitution. All this may even be an indication of degeneration that set in such movements, which generally leads to their decline and fall, or in the sad case of their success, to the ushering in of a much-dreaded totalitarian regime §§§

Editorial 'SIXTY THREE YEARS' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15 August 2010 issue

SIXTY THREE YEARS
of transfer of power, we enjoyed or suffered, need profound introspection. Whether we are truly independent is the real question – if independence means mere political identity, may be we are largely independent. But as it encompasses socio-economic justice too, we need to be alarmed. Kudos to independent India, it is said: India is one of the ten fastest growing economies in the world. India has emerged as one of the front-ranking nations in the world in information technology, missile technology, and in many other areas. Despite all the hardships, and braving all the challenges in these sixty-three years, India is standing in the world with her head held high. India’s stature in the world has gone up… The world is now recognizing India: 1) as the world’s largest democracy; 2) as an emerging global economic power; 3) As the confluence of a modern nation and an ancient civilization; 4) As a powerful country, dedicated to the ideal of peace.” But listen to Soutik Biswas, of BBC: “Impressive growth figures are unlikely to stun the poor into mindless optimism about their future. India has long been used to illustrate how extensive poverty coexists with growth. It has a shabby record in pulling people out of poverty - in the last two decades the number of absolutely poor in India has declined by 17 percentage points compared to China [decline by some 45%]. The number of Indian billionaires rose from 9 in 2004 to 40 in 2007, … higher than Japan [24] and France and Italy [14 each]. When one of the world's highest number of billionaires coexist with … the world's "largest number of homeless, ill-fed illiterates", something is gravely wrong.” Also, “India-wide, more than 43% of Indian children under five are malnourished, a third of the world’s total. Over 35% of Indians are illiterate and over 20m children out of school. For all its successes, including six decades of elections and a constitution that introduced the notion of equal rights to an inequitable society, India’s abiding failure is its inability to provide aid and economic opportunity to millions of its impoverished citizens” [Economist]. And that is what causes so much strife and violence in the society though Manmohan’s exhortation that ‘Violence does not benefit anyone’ may sound true and pious. And, unless we address and resolve the root cause, eliminate poverty, ill-health, illiteracy, inequality, and above all corruption, the violence will never even lessen, let alone abate, nor will we be in a position to walk the world with our heads high as free, prosperous and just citizens of the global community §§§

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Editorial 'INTIFADA IN KASHMIR?' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 31INTIFADA IN KASHMIR? July 2010 issue

INTIFADA IN KASHMIR?
The trite wisdom that a knife can be used for life-saving surgical exercise as well as for murderous assault applies equally to stones too. That is what one witnessed during the Palestinian intifada (‘shaking off’) against the Zionist State, which is being copied by our Kashmiri protesters now. And the lithic missiles anywhere are no less harmful than knives and sometimes as fatal as bullets too. Since the last one month or more Kashmir valley is again agog with agitations, this time in the ‘stony phase’. The unfortunate death of a nine year old boy, due to a tear-gas shell, served as further incitement to more incidents of stone-throwing in which mainly young persons, with no gender discrimination, participated and scores of police officers were also injured. The rubber and lead fired by the police, and possibly in some cases their own stones misdirected, have already taken more than a dozen lives of protesters or curious watchers and the valley is virtually in flames. Clearly a method is there behind this madness and it is reliably learnt that making martyrs has also become a lucrative business. The domestic power struggle between Abdullahs and Muftis is also said to be an important cause. However, one should not forget the root cause – the international India-Pakistan Dispute on the status and fate of Kashmir. Fundamentalist Muslims in Kashmir are as stubborn and crazy as those in other countries and had, in the name of their liberation struggle, the guts, and also no compunction, to cruelly and successfully carry out an ethnic cleansing in the valley, right under the nose of the mighty Indian Army, by expelling lakhs of Kashmiri Pandits, the original Hindu inhabitants there, and are now itching to do the same even to the armed might of the state. No doubt they are assisted to the hilt by the neighboring Pakistan but the question is how long we Indians are going to pamper these ‘spoilt children’ – by pumping lakhs of crores of taxpayers’ moneys to ‘develop’, ‘educate’, ‘suppress’ and ‘integrate’ them and also sacrificing thousands of lives – who anyway seem to be beyond any reform on the last count. We feel it is high time that India and Pakistan bilaterally, or better under international mediation, sit together, seriously negotiate and settle the dispute – if inevitable, even by some sort of partition of the accursed State §§§

Editorial 'COSTS OF DEVELOPMENT' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 15July 2010 issue

COSTS OF DEVELOPMENT


are being paid, nay extracted, in human blood – of innocent/ignorant poor folk of rural areas all over the third world and such development to benefit mainly the elite sections of the society and even causing extinction of marginal sections of the people. Sompeta Beela is no exception to this general rule of nauseating development in a globalization spree based mainly on privatization syndrome. Vast eco-rich wetlands, providing water for irrigating thousands of acres of paddy fields and coconut groves, source for various varieties of fish and abode for several kinds of birds from far and wide and sustenance for thousands of fishermen in the region, fit to be classified as a Ramsar Convention wetland area to be accorded international recognition, protection and upkeep, are sure to be destroyed by a potentially polluting Thermal Power Plant to be set up by Nagarjuna Construction Company. Well, could they not find barren lands in remote hinterlands for any such ‘development’ if warranted under the circumstances for benefiting the people? And how come eight institutes of repute have given a certificate of barren lands to these precious wetlands which are a source of livelihood to thousands of people? And when the matter of environmental clearance was still under consideration by the National Environment Appellate Tribunal why was the haste in conducting a foundation ceremony amidst anticipated popular indignation? Lo, after all this mayhem, with at least two precious lives sacrificed at the altar, now comes the Appellate Tribunal’s verdict quashing the said clearance; could it not have come a day earlier? Or was all this but the consequence of a preemptive move by the corporate cannibals to present a fait accompli before the forums of law? And why justice, even if and when it comes, is so delayed that it is often futile? It is very tragic and gruesome – this mode of development at the cost of innocent human blood and exploitation of marginal sections needs to be condemned by one and all and avoided with all scrupulous care. What we need is sustainable development, taking into confidence the people of the regions and avoiding even potential dangers to the environment as far as possible and not such bludgeoning inhuman course to fatten the purse of the capitalist rich §§§

Monday, July 26, 2010

Forbidden Sun Dance Iran by Lila Ghobady Part 1

Follow this link please.

Forbidden Sun Dance Iran by Lila Ghobady

Follow the link to see an exquisite and excellent documentary film exposing the horrible theocracy in Iran. http://asisasisa.zapto.org/media/total.avi

Sunday, July 25, 2010

SSC Certificates to have mom's name

This is a very progressive measure. Published in Deccan Chronicle, Hyderabad, 23 July 2010.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Editorial 'PROTECT OUR PLANET' in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 30 June 2010 issue

PROTECT OUR PLANET
we must, at all costs and under any circumstances, since to the best of our knowledge this is the only bio-sustaining planet in the solar system and we have nowhere else to go. Already we humans have so cruelly caused the extinction of thousands of other bio-species on this earth. What is more appalling is that we are now inviting our own destruction – acting like a fool cutting down the very branch on which he is sitting. The unrestrained proliferation of our population, the mania for industrialization and the passion for construction of big dams causing untold human tragedies and irreversible eco-degradation and use of science and technology to wrong ends creating and increasing the risk of a nuclear holocaust and chemical catastrophes, the wrong sort of globalization processes depriving billions of our own kind the minimum means of livelihood – all this is slowly driving us to the brink of possible extinction even. In this context, it would suffice for us to concur with and echo this enlightening exhortation of the UNEP: “…humans are among only a handful of species whose populations are growing, while most animals and plants are becoming rarer and fewer. A total of 17,291 species are known to be threatened with extinction … The reason? – Human activities. With our present approach to development, we have caused the clearing of much of the original forest, drained half of the world’s wetlands, depleted three quarters of all fish stocks, and emitted enough heat-trapping gases to keep our planet warming for centuries to come. We … making species extinctions occur at up to 1000 times the natural rate. As a result, we are increasingly risking the loss of the very foundation of our own survival. The variety of life on our planet – known as ‘biodiversity’ – gives us our food, clothes, fuel, medicine and much, much more. You may not think that a beetle in your backyard or grass growing by the roadside has a fundamental connection to you - but it does. When even one species is taken out of the intricate web of life, the results can be catastrophic. For this reason, the United Nations has declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity. It is an opportunity to stress the importance of biodiversity for human well-being, reflect on our achievements to safeguard it and encourage a redoubling of our efforts to reduce the rate of biodiversity loss.” §§§

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Article, 'Hyderabad: A cosmopolitan capital city', in the 15-31 May 2010 issue of LAW ANIMATED WORLD

Hyderabad - a cosmopolitan capital city

- Nalamotu Chakravarthy¨


When Sri Krishnadeva Raya took to the Vijayanagara throne in 1509, the empire was in a significantly weakened state. The entire coastal Telugu areas were occupied by Orissa. Similarly, the Kannada and Tamil regions have also raised a flag of revolt. 24 year old Sri Krishna Deva Raya was determined to put things in order. He first invaded Mysore (Srirangapatnam) and suppressed the Kannada revolt. He then marched on coastal Telugu region and drove out the Orissa army from Udayagiri, Kondavidu, Kondapalli, and Rajahmundry. After this Krishnadeva Raya marched on Tamil Coromandel coast and subdued that region as well. At the end of these battles, that lasted six long years, he was able to bring back the entire South India under Vijayanagaram’s suzerainty.

While Sri Krishnadeva Raya was busy consolidating his empire, Bahamani Empire of Deccan (Gulbarga) was going through infighting. Sultan Quli, who came to India from Turkey, raised a flag of revolt against Bahamani. He attacked Devarakonda and ended the Velama kingdom’s rule.

2

(Go to p. 139®)

charminarLearning of the attack on the Velama kingdom, Sri Krishna Deva Raya rushed with his forces to rescue and camped at Panagal in Nalgonda. In a fierce battle that ensued, Sultan Quli defeated Sri Krishna Deva Raya forcing his retreat from Nalgonda. Encouraged by his victory, Sultan Quli marched on Coastal Telugu districts. Sri Krishnadeva Raya learnt his lesson and moved into Coastal Andhra with a massive army and succeeded in driving out Sultan Quli’s forces. As a result, today’s Nizam region was separated from Telugu land and a tenuous peace reigned between Vijayanagaram and Qutub Shah who started ruling from Golkonda.

Sultan Quli’s brother Ibrahim was the assumed heir to the Golkonda throne. Ibrahim got into a dispute with his brother. Vijayanagaram, after the premature death of Sri Krishnaceva Raya, was now under the rule of his son-in-law Aliya Rama. Aliya gave a large estate in Vijayanagaram to Ibrahim and provided protection from his brother. After the demise of Sultan Quli, Ibrahim left Vijayanagaram and went on to become the king of Golkonda.[1]

Ibrahim, after the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire, started annexing its Telugu districts. In 1571-72 he captured Rajahmundry, in 1579 he captured Vinukonda, Kondavidu, Kacharlakota, and Khammam.

Hyderabad city was not founded at this time. After Ibrahim Quli’s death, his son Mohammed Quli continued consolidating his hold on Vijayanagara Telugu regions. Mohammed occupied Kurnool, Cuddapah, Nandial, Dole, Gandikota, and Nellore.

Mohammed Quli Qutub Shah completed the consolidation of the Telugu region under Muslim rule. He founded Hyderabad in 1589. At the time of the city’s founding the entire Telugu country, including the current Nizam, Circar, and Ceded regions, was under Qutub Shahis.

Moghul Emperor Aurangazeb intended to consolidate his hold on South India. He attacked Golkonda and captured it in 1687, thus ending the


(Carried from p. 2®)

Qutub Shahi rule. He appointed his representative Nizam to administer the Golkonda kingdom.

British entered India in 1600 to conduct trade through the East India Company. Inspired by the stupendous financial success of the East India Company, French entered Indian shores in 1650s through the French East India Company. The British and the French quickly went beyond their original goal of trade and got involved in regional conflicts between Indian kingdoms. British were the best in the world when it came to using gun powder, followed by the French.

Nizam Asaf Jah of Hyderabad declared independence from Delhi in 1720. Asaf Jah died in 1748. His sons got into a fight for the Hyderabad throne. British and French sided with different heirs in that power struggle. Both the British and the French had their eyes set on the Coastal Telugu districts for maritime trade and military reasons.

The French helped Nizam’s third son Salabat to capture the Hyderabad throne. In return for their generosity, Salabat assigned Coastal districts to the French. The British, concerned with the growing French influence, under the leadership of Colonel Clive, marched on the Coastal districts in 1759 and occupied the region. As a result, the British were officially at war with the Hyderabad State.

Seven years later in 1766, the British and Nizam reached an agreement to end hostilities. In return for keeping the Coastal districts, British agreed to pay nine lakh rupees a year to Nizam. As you can see, though Coastal districts were separated from the rest of the Telugu land, the districts were still contributing to Hyderabad exchequer through the taxes paid to the British, which are in turn being passed on to Nizam.

The conflict between the British and French continued in the Indian subcontinent. Nizam once again sided with French and invited 15,000 French soldiers to protect Hyderabad. British marched on Hyderabad and drove out the French soldiers. Nizam was forced to accept British protection through a treaty signed in 1798. As a result, six battalions of British forces were placed in Hyderabad. Nizam was required to pay 24 lakh rupees a year for the maintenance of British troops.

139

Nizam could not pay the British these monies and as a result amassed a significant debt. In 1800 he was forced to cede Bellary and Cuddapah to the British in return for the British military expense.

So, it is clear that Hyderabad continued to receive British protection with the taxes paid by the Circar and Ceded districts even after these regions separated from the Hyderabad State.

Hyderabad State, in addition to the 8 Telugu districts, had 4 Kannada and 3 Maratha districts. There was an atrocious tax regime under Nizam. Peasants of all these districts paid taxes through their nose to Nizam.

Today’s Hyderabad city is a source of revenue for the rest of the State. However, prior to 1956, the situation was quite different. The rural areas of the Hyderabad State financed the expenses required to maintain the capital city.

Now, with that background, who can stake a claim for Hyderabad city?

Our capital city belongs to the people living in erstwhile Nizam Telangana, Maratha, and Kannada districts- particularly the peasants. It belongs to Hyderabadi Muslims including those that came from Iran, Iraq, Turkey and other places. It belongs to the Marathis, Kannadigas, Marwadis, Rajputs, Gujaratis, Punjabis and many others who have been living in Hyderabad city for many generations.

Lastly, it belongs to the people of the Circar and Ceded districts. As separatists call them, these people are not “settlers” but are rightful stakeholders of the Hyderabad city. Just like the poor peasants of the Nizam districts, their forefathers have also contributed to the development of Hyderabad city by paying taxes to the Qutub Shahis, the Nizams and the British.

* * *




¨ Slightly edited; emphases ours - IMS.

[1] However, this Ibrahim reneged on the guardian-like Aliya Rama Raya, joined hands with the other Deccani Sultans (of Ahmadnagar, Bijapur and Bidar) in the name of Jihad and all of them concertedly attacked the Vijayanagara Army personally commanded by Rama Raya; they also induced and caused the treachery of Muslim commanders and troops employed by Rama Raya due to which crucial factor Vijayanagar armies were routed, Rama Raya taken captive and on his stubborn refusal to convert was cruelly beheaded by Nizam Shah of Ahmandnagar to which dastardly crime Ibrahim was certainly a conducive spectator if not an active collaborator - IMS.