I thought A.R.Antulay would stick it out. He had nothing to lose. He may have spunk, but he had lost out in the race…Minority Affairs Minister. That’s what they gave him as a sop to keep him happy.
We do not need such a ministry to begin with. We have enough mofussil organisations representing every religion, caste, cult, pimple, silicone implant. This Ministry has done nothing for anyone – the Parsis continue to fight in their panchayat, the Christians in Orissa have not benefitted, and the Muslims have got no reprieve from any of their problems. It is a useless ministry that is answerable to bigger powers.
Antulay raised a question that has to be addressed. Unfortunately, even as he spoke out those words “I said a man like Karkare is born among millions... Who pushed him into the trap of death? Who sent him there to be killed by the Pakistanis?’’ I had a queasy feeling that he would be used.
Suddenly, Muslim leaders came out of the woodwork; maulanas stood up for him. That is what bothered me. To question something ought to be a part of democracy and civil society. Antulay had never been a Muslim leader. So, now for him to be anointed the “Muslim messiah”, even though he had mentioned Pakistan terrorists, was reducing the argument to the lowest common denominator which we as a society are so good at doing.
Why did he speak out?
“Nobody spoke. But I did. I said so because it has been found that a number of things are pushed under the carpet in the name of a state subject. A federal agency is being made... I said it at an opportune moment as a reminder of duty.’’
Many people want to know about Hemant Karkare. Many people are interested that the probe into the Malegaon blasts must not stop. Some wonder about bad timing. Actually, this was the only time to talk because the events may not be connected like Siamese twins, but the Mumbai carnage has pushed the Pragya-Purohit enquiry on the backburner.
Antulay was planning to resign. He said so:
“I am a self-respecting person... forget the resignation. That is a very simple thing. I had resigned from chief ministership of Maharashtra...when 100% of Congress MLAs were with me.’’ Asked about clarifications, he said, “A clarification is sought when something is hidden.”
Today’s news is different. He has become much like Sharad Pawar who had wanted to take on the might of the Congress but finally copped out. Pawar had his reasons.
Antulay would have gone down as at least one who stood up and questioned. He would be known for more than arranging some stuff for Mrs Gandhi and becoming her fall guy in the cement scandal. He would have been A.R.Antulay who had nothing to hide.
Alas, today he sits with a tepid excuse from the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who described the rebellion as “to err is human”. Sure. We can extend this phrase for several other erring activities, Mr. PM.
Antulay told reporters, “There was no need for a further probe. The home minister has clarified all doubts.”
Really? Please tell us. You mentioned earlier that things were pushed under the carpet. Bring it all out on the rug now. You had suggested that Karkare’s killing was facilitated by those who were upset with the arrest of a group of ultra-Hindu radicals in connection with the Malegaon blast of September 29.
Has the home ministry exonerated these people? If not, then what makes you convinced about things?
Next time a politician decides to go public with such sensitive issues we should wait before we listen to her/him.
You must be wondering why the government is not letting him go or getting rid of him. It cannot. Right now, for whatever it is worth, he managed to get some Muslim support and also from other ‘silent liberal’ quarters. Not for himself as an individual but for his views. Throwing him out now would make him into a martyr and give the BJP one more reason to inch forward.
Now, the Congress will play Antulay like a flute. They will choose the tune he sings.
It is a huge tragedy for India that we are too insecure to even afford a rebel or two.
11 comments:
FV,
I keep reading your posts every now and then, and I keep getting this feeling that though you reside in India, you are extremely pained by almost everything happening around you, esp. with regard to Muslims. I don’t know if you just prefer to vent out the frustration that you otherwise cannot, through your posts. Its scary to imagine what if every Muslim in the face of the Indian soil feels a deep sense of anguish!
The talk of persecution of Muslims in India is not new these days. However, if you are well-verse with History, probably you should have read this section on Persecution of Hindus over the ages:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Hindus#During_Islamic_rule_of_the_Indian_sub-continent
Some excerpts:
* The Mohammedan conquest of India is probably the bloodiest story in history. The Islamic historians and scholars have recorded with great glee and pride the slaughters of Hindus, forced conversions, abduction of Hindu women and children to slave markets and the destruction of temples carried out by the warriors of Islam during 800 AD to 1700 AD. Millions of Hindus were converted to Islam by sword during this period.
* Mahmud of Ghazni was an Afghan Sultan who invaded the Indian subcontinent during the early 11th century. His campaigns across the gangetic plains are often cited for their iconoclastic plundering and destruction of Hindu temples such as those at Mathura and he looked upon their destruction as an act of "jihad".
* In the Taj-ul-Ma'asir by Hassn Nizam-i-Naishapuri, it is stated that when Qutb-ul- Din Aibak (1194-1210) conquered Meerat, he demolished all the Hindu temples of the city and erected mosques on their sites. In the city of Aligarh, he converted Hindu inhabitants to Islam by the sword and beheaded all those who adhered to their own religion. The Persian historian Wassaf writes in his Tazjiyat-ul-Amsar wa Tajriyat ul Asar that when Alaul-Din Khilji (1295-1316) captured the city of Kambayat at the head of the gulf of Camay, he killed the adult male Hindu inhabitants for the glory of Islam, set flowing rivers of blood, sent the women of the country with all their gold, silver, and jewels, to his own home, and made about twenty thousand maidens his private slaves. Ala-ul-Din once asked his Qazi', what was the Mohammadan law prescribed for the Hindus. The Qazi replied, "Hindus are like the mud; if silver is demanded from them, they must with the greatest humility offer gold. If a Mohammadan desire to spit into a Hindu's mouth, the Hindu should open it wide for the purpose. God created the Hindus to be slaves of the Mohammadans. The Prophet hath ordained that, if the Hindus do not accept Islam, they should be imprisoned, tortured, finally put to death, and their property confiscated." Sayad Mohammad Latif writes in his history of the Punjab, "Great jealousy and hatred existed those days between the Hindus and Mohammadans and the whole non-Muslim population w• subject to persecution by the Mohammadan rulers.
* Muhammad Ghori committed genocide against Hindus at Kol (modern Aligarh), Kalinjar and Varanasi, according to Hasan Nizami's Taj-ul-Maasir, 20,000 Hindu prisoners were slaughtered and their heads offered to crows
* Timur himself recorded the invasions in his memoirs, collectively known as Tuzk-i-Timuri. In them, he vividly described the massacre at Delhi: In a short space of time all the people in the [Delhi] fort were put to the sword, and in the course of one hour the heads of 10,000 infidels were cut off. The sword of Islam was washed in the blood of the infidels, and all the goods and effects, the treasure and the grain which for many a long year had been stored in the fort became the spoil of my soldiers. They set fire to the houses and reduced them to ashes, and they razed the buildings and the fort to the ground....All these infidel Hindus were slain, their women and children, and their property and goods became the spoil of the victors. I proclaimed throughout the camp that every man who had infidel prisoners should put them to death, and whoever neglected to do so should himself be executed and his property given to the informer. When this order became known to the ghazis of Islam, they drew their swords and put their prisoners to death.
* During Aurangzeb's reign, tens of thousands of temples were desecrated: their facades and interiors were defaced and their murtis (divine images) looted. In many cases, temples were destroyed entirely; in numerous instances mosques were built on their foundations, sometimes using the same stones. Among the temples Aurangzeb destroyed were two that are most sacred to Hindus, in Varanasi and Mathura. In both cases, he had large mosques built on the sites.
* The Hindu minority in Kashmir has also been historically persecuted by Muslim rulers. While Hindus and Muslims lived in harmony for certain periods of time, several Muslim rulers of Kashmir were intolerant of other religions. Sultãn Sikandar Butshikan of Kashmir (AD 1389-1413) is often considered the worst of these. Historians have recorded many of his atrocities. The Tarikh-i-Firishta records that Sikandar persecuted the Hindus and issued orders proscribing the residency of any other than Muslims in Kashmir. He also ordered the breaking of all "golden and silver images". The Tarikh-i-Firishta further states: "Many of the Brahmins, rather than abandon their religion or their country, poisoned themselves; some emigrated from their native homes, while a few escaped the evil of banishment by becoming Mahomedans. After the emigration of the Bramins, Sikundur ordered all the temples in Kashmeer to be thrown down. Having broken all the images in Kashmeer, (Sikandar) acquired the title of 'Destroyer of Idols'". The 2000 Amarnath pilgrimage massacre was another incident where 30 Hindu pilgrims were killed on route to Amarnath temple.
In a nutshell, the list is endless. The point is not to remember these wrongs and do another wrong (like kill a few innocents of the religion, which caused so much bloodshed, so I can sleep in peace at night, nor is it to blame them for all my problems), because you must have heard that two wrongs never make a right. The point is also not to say that atrocities and oppression has only been from one side. There are poisonous faces and there have been terrible, terrible incidents, which, given a choice, no common man living in India would want to witness again.
To the contrary, then there are people you almost loathe -- all of the famous people from bollywood are Muslims. We love them and don't decide to watch a movie or not on the basis of what religion he/she comes from. Our previous president was a learned Muslim, and we still hear voices to bring him back. I'm dead sure that no other Islamic country in the world can boast of such a thing. As with a lot of pains, time is the best healer, and its best, wise and educated people like you choose to introspect, and think if its going anywhere.
Congrats Again!
Hurry up with our cluster bombs, says India.
Carpet Bombing time!
India has sought over 500 advanced technology cluster bombs from the US. This is a clear sign that the government wants to arm itself to take on large targets, including terrorist camps.
Cluster bombs attracted controversies during their extended use in Iraq, Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia.
India requested for them in September.
But, after the Mumbai terror attacks, South Block has asked the Pentagon to fast-track the request, sources said.
According to documents listing India's request - an exclusive copy of which lies with Headlines Today - India has specifically asked the US to provide 510 units of the American CBU-105 cluster bomb and full logistics support services. If Washington approves of the sale, it will cost New Delhi $375 million (Rs 1,700 crore).
(http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=23381§ionid=4&Itemid=1&issueid=85)
Carpet bombing time...Well sounds like the war will start after the delivery..I will breath easy for couple of more weeks.
HP
Dear Rajesh,
Please don't bring religion into this. At least, not you too. You are just playing to the gallery without probably realizing it..
Just a thought. No offence
FV, I can relate to your angst, if that's the right word. But thankfully, we can at least comment. Hail the internet. :)
What about freedom of speech. Atleast he should have been granted that. I understand the Indian sentiments at this point in time and the fact that he sticks out like a soar thumb but I can't fathom what Burkha Dutt's written. I thought it was over simplistic and she sounds like an embarrassed parent who is trying to hide her child's botched up report card.
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/showcolumns.aspx?id=COLEN20080077216
Went to a talk at the asia society with rushdie, kardar and suketu on the panel and every one seething with anger to really have a constructive discussion. I am getting depressed at this hatred surrounding us. Wasn't hoping for such depressive holidays at the end of final exams.
It is all very depressing and enough to make you realise that the common person is being caught in a battle fought between the two media sides, not just politicians. We are thriving on this.
Please spread the 'War against war' idea. It is very important.
Rajesh:
If you want me not to blame anyone then do not hark back to a history I was not a part of. It is amazing the number of people who have gone back in time only because I mentioned Dec 6, 1992. I can talk about it because it is what happened before my eyes. The people responsible for it are still around. It should be the duty of every citizen to seek justice. If it pains me as a Muslim it is because no one has let me forget.
Atul:
Thanks. We need to not talk at cross purposes, even if you don't understand my poetry!
Madiha:
I think it is time people stopped holding forth on the same thing. I rarely watch the news. But the other day I watched some standup comedy by a kid and he was talking politics. That is how violence is internalised and built up.
HP:
No time and place for cluster bombs. There will be no war. You expats should stop. Aap log araam se eik doosre me zaike is mazaa lete hai aur hum logoun ko aapki garm hawa sehni padtee hai:-)
PS:
You posted on the Obama blog. So enamoured?
Ok. Am flat out. My world is moving round. It is acute vertigo attack, so if my replies sound sensible please excuse!
Can't get out of bed. I can write so many funny things but like a good Indian I can't even nod my head this way and that. What do do?
Pending email replies. Not taking calls. My wishes to all who care. I should be nice and straight before we embark on another year or if I feel like penning some prose in repose.
I ate up the lipgloss. Okay. That is far-fetched.
Have fun. Wear a black band only if it looks sexy on you. Everything else is stage-managed.
Trust me. You are in good hands!
All I need is some TLC. Nah. Not Tender Loving Care but Twinings, Lindt & Chanel.
Time up. I need to change position:)
That was not fair FV. I am not enamored by anyone. Neither do I post on the Messiah's blog. If you do want to follow my serious comments please check out www.moonofalabama.org. It has couple of thread on India and Pakistan conflict and you will find my comments easily as they present the most candid picture of the situation as always.
I appreciate your faith in no war but India has not expedited the cluster bomb order for some peaceful purposes. India is competing Pakistan for the US attention. What good US attention done to Pakistan that India covets that so much would probably answer the war or no war question. Otoh, the problem of fundamentalism and its allied terror groups is real and something ought to be done. The public opinion about them is changing in Pakistan but the war like conditions or the war would sent people back right in their arms.
These groups are not controlled by the ISI anymore. They are all Saudi contractors and I was laughing my head when I heard that Saudi FM was trying to broker peace in Delhi... The mother of all ironies!
Regards
HP
PS. My daughter is pushing for lunch now so I can't review this post now...regret any errors.
HP:
Seems like you mistook my comment addressed to PS (Pune S) who posted on the Obama post instead of here as a post script to you.
No quarrels. Don't have strength to battle over no battle. Talk of irony. Mine is incidentally not a peacenik stand but aggressive anti-war.
Oh the Saudi FM help is ridiculous. Am wondering when Nawaz Sharif will jump on it or at it!
Farzana,
What Antulay wasw asking for was very valid - a probe into the circumstances of Mr Karkare's death.
He was a a genuine martyr, and the kind of person who is truly born to stand out amongst millions. It is truly sad that vested interests muted Antulay's voice, but we must carry the matter further
Milind:
While I agree with you that the investigations must not stop (incidentally, my first blog post on the Mumbai carnage alluded to this) I do not think anyone - politician or otherwise - should so easily give up on a stand he has taken. BTW, the 'secular flagbearers' like the Azmi-Akhtar team sought his apology for casting aspersions on the police! And these same people go shouting enough is enough and want to make the powers accountable. What a bunch of hypocrites.
FV
Munafiqeen are nothing new. Abdullah Ibn Ubayy existed in the time of the Prophet. If the modern day Abdullah Ibn Ubayys want to put pressure on Antulay, then modern day Abu Dharr Ghiffaris will have to stand up for him - too bad he abandoned his own stand.
I am happy you are maintaining your stand
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