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Friday,
May 3, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Time for
rehabilitation Return of
Mayawati |
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Hari Jaisingh
Your
slip is showing, General
Will USA
go the European way?
A system
marred by non-governance and corruption
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Time for rehabilitation NOW that the Gujarat-related debate over the censure motion in the Lok Sabha is over, it is time for politicians of all hues to concentrate on the task of rehabilitating the uprooted people of the riot-torn state. Debates do serve a purpose, but only to a very limited extent. What happened in Parliament — basically mud-slinging between the Treasury Benches and the Opposition — is not going to heal the psychological and physical wounds of the poor victims. They can benefit only by a process of healing touch followed by concrete steps to help them lead a normal life again. All this must be initiated on a war footing. The task requires enormous funds, as the loss, according to various estimates, runs into thousands of crores of rupees. The Rs 150 crore package, announced by the Prime Minister during the course of the acrimonious Lok Sabha debate, is too little to serve the purpose. He made a similar gesture during his delayed visit to the violence-devastated state. Even the two put together cannot be called an adequate amount. Banks and financial institutions have been, no doubt, specifically instructed to grant loans to the needy on liberal and concessional terms to supplement the government's efforts, but there are so many ifs and buts. It is, however, good that the implementation project will be monitored by the Cabinet Secretariat. That means that those associated with the task will be under watch by the Centre. But what about the efficacy and sincerity of the delivery mechanism? The nation is well aware of the bitter experience of Gujarat's earthquake-hit people and what happened after the Bhopal gas disaster. A large part of the relief money is invariably squandered away. Many real claimants are ignored to benefit the bogus ones. In the case of the current man-made calamity in Gujarat, the communal factor may also be at a play. This is but natural, given the sharp divide on religious lines refusing to get narrowed down. The ideal situation in which no one is discriminated against, or feels so, is just not possible to be created under the circumstances. There is the fear of a small mistake or aberration getting blown up to vitiate the already communally surcharged atmosphere. One can, therefore, understand the search for a senior Muslim bureaucrat with impeccable credentials to function as the Relief Commissioner. This will have a great psychological impact on the minority sufferers of the communal madness. But those looking after the rehabilitation programme must keep aside their religious glasses to see things as they are. Rehabilitation efforts, however, cannot carry meaning unless there is a simultaneous drive to restore the people's confidence in the law and order machinery. In the situation prevailing in Gujarat today, it is futile to talk of guilty police officers or those with a tainted reputation. But the Narendra Modi government, with all the charges it has been faced with, can do one thing. The police officers having a reputation for showing results on the desired lines should be asked to work overtime to enable the force to regain the image last in the course of all that has happened since February 27. This is necessary to send the right signals across the state and the country as also to tell the disturbed world community that India knows how to manage its affairs despite inbuilt difficulties. |
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Return of Mayawati THE return of Ms Mayawati as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh means different things to different people. For the civil and police administration she is bad news. During her earlier stints she had fine tuned the art of humiliating officers in front of others, particularly if the audience was made of members of her Bahujan Samaj Party. She has not given any indication that her third spell is going to be different. For the people in general her return marks the beginning of another chapter on pushing the state towards political and economic bankruptcy. For the Opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, power in her hands means calculated harassment. For the Bharatiya Janata Party the power-sharing deal with her meant at least 13 Bahujan Samaj Party votes in favour of the National Democratic Alliance during the crucial vote in the Lok Sabha on the developments in Gujarat. The BSP-BJP government that will be sworn-in today is indeed an act of political opportunism. Of course, the reason why the Samajwadis and the Congress legislators have decided to boycott the oath-taking ceremony is based on as flawed a political logic as the one that made the BJP revoke its decision to sit outside. Yes, the decision by the BJP to join a coalition led by Ms Mayawati does look like an act of political opportunism. The same charge cannot be made against Ms Mayawati, because she has always maintained that she would form the government with whichever party backs her. After the guest house "treatment" that she had received in Lucknow when Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav was Chief Minister it was clear that her dream of returning to power could come true only if the BJP backed her. The political uncertainty in Delhi because of the developments in Gujarat forced the BJP to once again extend support to the person whom it had humiliated during the first two deals with her. However, even though an elected government is always the better option than President's rule, no one in Lucknow is willing to place a bet on Ms Mayawati completing the full term. The first two spells lasted a few months each. She may be able to stretch this one a little further. That is if her own part does not fall apart as it had done in the last Vidhan Sabha. What should be a source of worry is the likelihood of Ms Mayawati introducing populist measures for nursing her constituency. Dalit youths are likely to find themselves being offered specially created jobs. It is a widely known fact that UP is among the states that are on the verge of bankruptcy because of the introduction of a series of populist measures and reckless spending by the political leadership. Ms Mayawati is not going to sleep over such a trivial issue. She had made unrealistic promises to the Dalits that she would like to fulfil and for which the state would have to bear the burden. By the time she leaves, the economic mess would have become unmanageable. But who cares? Not the BJP. And certainly not Ms Mayawati. A source of immediate concern for the BSP leader ought to be the stand some of the Muslim MLAs have taken on shaking hands with the BJP. If they walk out of the BSP, Ms Mayawati may find herself in the familiar situation of seeing the flock deserting her when she needed the numbers for political survival. |
Doublespeak & double standards HOW come unscrupulous politicians, wayward bureaucrats and operators manage to thrive? This question was put to me by a professor friend of mine the other day. My instant reaction was one of helplessness and disgust but soon I collected myself and gave him three reasons for this sickening state of affairs. One, the growing ranks of dishonest intellectuals who see selectively, think selectively and draw attention of the powers that be on the strength of their sycophancy power rather than on the basis of the quality of opinions and logical assessment as to what is right and what is wrong. Doublespeak. Double standards. These two elements sum up the neo-feudal class character. The Indian intelligentsia has been politicised. It has also been selectively communalised. It plays an increasingly partisan role in which truth is the first casualty. This is not the role expected of the thinking class. It is supposed to guide the people correctly so that they acquire the ability to sift the right from the wrong and the brutal from the humane. Two, increasingly subjective and selective role played by the media and its godfathers. Market-driven quickies and sponsored opinions have captured some critical areas of the Fourth Estate. To say this is not to deny that a large number of journalists are public-spirited persons. They conduct themselves freely and fearlessly and keep the media world afloat
not standing certain serious functional distortions. These distortions often emanate from the new class of owner-editors who have sidelined professional editors. The owner-editors generally pay lip sympathy to ethics while they use newspapers as crass commerce. The professional voice is stilled in these circumstances and newspapers start playing a cash-for-news role. All that glitters in the electronic media is not "gold". The Gujarat coverage is one such latest example. Professional ethics and values are no longer taken seriously. Everything is market-driven, including fleeting images which may dazzle but may not reflect the truth. There is considerable mismatch between promise and performance. Still, we have a very bright set of
journalists, both in the print and electronic media. They have a professional attitude and know their job. The failure, if any, is of the seniors at the helm who are supposed to set the standards. Most news persons these days have become part of the floating political culture. They hardly care for fair and clean journalism. Objectivity and credibility suffer in the process. Despite communication gaps, India is experiencing a quiet information revolution. The process of politicisation has triggered demands for instant revolutions at the doorstep. This is understandable as a new wave of human consciousness sweeps over the hitherto untouched segments of society. I believe that the media will come out of this glitter business sooner or later. The people have common sense as well as the ability to discriminate between good and bad. They will finally accept or reject newspapers or TV channels on the basis of how credible they are in the dissemination of news and views. Objectivity is the key. Facts have to be told truthfully in a larger perspective. The people have the right to information and it is the duty of the media to give them a fairly accurate package without bias or prejudices. Every piece of disinformation needs to be owned and corrected. For, democratic institutions thrive best when we provide a helping hand for building an informed society. Ours is still an ill-informed polity. An air of secrecy prevails in official functioning both at the Centre and in the states. Transparency is hardly visible in the working of our politico-bureaucratic establishment. Everything is labelled "secret". This is the main reason why the country has been periodically seeing major scams and scandals in different segments of public life. What make things difficult are the cumbersome legal provisions and procedures. Guilty persons hardly get convicted as facts are twisted to the advantage of powerful manipulators. We run the system on antiquated rules. The country's ruling class has found these colonial rules convenient to promote their interests. Who cares if people are restive and angry and the custodians of law and order are tilted in favour of the wealthy and the mighty? How can we evolve a just system in the circumstances? A lot depends on the quality of leadership. The country's political leadership lacks vision, drive, dynamism and right perspective on problems. Even the system of decision-making and decision-enforcement is faulty. Most leaders become prisoners of their own indecisions. They have also come to be branded as "self-seekers". They are concerned primarily with the pursuit of their self-interest for which they may not even hesitate to break the harmony of community life. Any number of examples can be cited to prove this. Since politics has become business, the lust for money has brought into play crooks and scoundrels in every segment of life. A third major reason for corrupt and unscrupulous elements to thrive is the silent majority. We, as a people, all the while seem to follow the famous "monkey rule" of not seeing an evil, of not hearing an evil and of not speaking an evil. How can things improve if we prefer not to speak out and assert ourselves? Perhaps, the fear of witch hunting forces people to digest insults quietly rather than speak out against erring officials and publicmen. However, we cannot improve the system unless people pick up courage to question wrong acts and demand a fair deal. This is the crux of the problem. Erring politicians, guilty bureaucrats and their collaborators can be put on the mat if people question their wrong moves while appreciating the good deeds. Democracy cannot thrive in a state of vacuum. Nor can improvement in the system be brought about if people rationalise their sufferings as part of their luck (kismet). God helps those who help themselves. The world belongs to the brave and the wise. The country can be shaped and reshaped as a land of opportunities with the right vision and concerted efforts for the good of society. The nation's destiny must not be entrusted to the timid and the opportunist. They have to be sidelined. This is the only way we can throw up the right leadership. Nothing is impossible. India can be governed competently provided we learn to be at least 25 per cent more honest to ourselves as well as to fellow citizens and the country at large. A corrupt society can only provide a decadent system to the delight of manipulators, operators, musclemen, criminals, crooks and scoundrels. The people deserve the best. They have to be given the best. This is possible if they learn to assert themselves instead of resigning themselves to fate. I may sound an idealist. Well, I am an incorrigible optimist. I believe in the principle of "never say die". The country's young generation is very good stuff. They can make any country proud. All that we have to do is to create a proper atmosphere so that they can take initiatives and function professionally with a degree of freedom and commitment to liberal values. Democracy is a live system founded on morality. It cannot be made a plaything of crooks, scoundrels and operators. The intelligentsia and the media must not be indifferent to the ugly facets of modern India. Looking ahead, the present contradictions and conflicting trends need to be viewed in a larger perspective of change and the compulsions of the times. However, as long as the intelligentsia and the media conduct themselves objectively and justly and the public is exposed to new ideas, the modernisation process and consequential adjustment, there should be no cause for concern. Indian thinkers, however, should be worried if these "contradictions" and "conflicts" are allowed to get "institutionalised". This is where the thinking persons have a role to play, not as passive onlookers but as active catalytic agents to bring about the desired changes in the right direction. With known and unknown scams in the PPSC and other critical areas of public life, the time has come for a massive "operation clean-up". It is going to be a long and painful process. Sleepy indifference can be disastrous. The danger of being caught unawares and giving in is to crumble as everything crumbles around us. An honest approach to men, matters and issues can make a difference to the quality of the democratic polity. |
Your slip is showing, General THE charge against me was not that I had tried to be intimate with Pandit Kanshiram’s girl. All I had said to her was that as a WACI (Women Auxiliary Corps-India) she was being paid her salary out of the funds for the welfare of troops and as such, I was no less entitled to her favours than Pandit Kanshiram. Panditji had almost monopolised the girl. He was getting his seven-year itch far too often. And whenever he got it, he would send for Beula. Beula was an Anglo-Indian WACI much in demand. Of course, she preferred to go to the late-night film shows in the Nishat Talkies, Ferozepur cantonment, with Tommies. But Captain Kanshiram, whom I always called Panditji since he was a Panditji, was the regiment’s adjutant and in that capacity, he was, so he thought, above the rest of us. But the reason why he took me to the Commandant, Col V.C. Alderson, was not Beula. It was something more serious. It so happened that we had all gone to the cantonment railway station to see off Capt Henderson. World War II was on. Having seen Henderson off, Capt Walsh, Panditji and yours truly were coming back in a tonga. We all knew that Henderson was going home to England. My stupidity that I asked Panditji whether he was going there on leave or posting. Rumour-mongering was a serious offence in those days of the war. The charge levelled against me by Panditji was that by putting that question to him, I had indulged in rumour-mongering. How? Let me explain that. I had made the statement that Henderson was going to England. That meant that a ship was leaving for England. That meant that I was exposing the lives of all those, including Capt Henderson, sailing in the said ship, to the grave risk of being bombed by Luftwaffe, the German Air Force. How the hell was Luftwaffe to know about that innocent question that I had put to Panditji? Only three of us and, of course, the kochwan, were there in the tonga. The horse or mare was not a German spy. And the kochwan, not knowing English, did not know what question I had put to Panditji. But anything off the mark could be treated as rumour-mongering. And Panditji, because of Beula, I suspect, decided that as a result of that innocuous question, he could have it out on me. There was no need for me to request for the presence of Walsh. For as Pandit Kanshiram saluted Col Alderson, the buttons of his trousers let him down. “Your slip is showing, Captain,” Col Alderson shouted at him angrily. Kanshiram was taken off guard. From me, his attention shifted to his trousers and his buttons. And I was let off without much ado. Long years have gone by. But as I look at the scene around — Afghanistan, Pakistan, Taliban, the USA, Kabul, Bonn and all that — my mind travels back to those days of World War II. And I hear myself whispering to myself, “Your slip is showing, General.” |
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Will USA go the European way? A
new spectre has come to haunt the continent of Europe — the spectre of Neo-Nazism. It has shown up its ugly head in Norway, Holland, Denmark, Austria, Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain. In short, all over Europe. The success of Jean-Marie Le Pen in the French presidential election is the latest scare. He came second after President Jacques Chirac. But he pushed the socialist Lionel Jospin, Prime Minister, to the third place. He is a racist, who is opposed to immigration, the European Union and globalisation. Unchecked immigration is what is worrying Europe. More so, France, where the crime rate is on the increase. People associate it with immigrants. They see Le Pen as the only champion of Europe. Very strange! These people were invited by the European nations and Britain to do their dirty and low-paid jobs — jobs which the native whites refused to do. Now, you want to drive them out? Is this the “human right” you are gloating about? Before World War II, the Nazis were pitted against the Jews. Today, the Jews are few in number. But the non-whites are on the increase. Britain if full of Asians, France of Arabs, Germany of Turks. Slaves were inseparable from the life of Europe. The Spartans had their helots and Athens and Rome had their slaves. The word “slave” comes from Slav — the Slav people of Eastern Europe. In ancient times, they were sold all over Europe. But they were all whites. The Africans were not the only people to have been uprooted to serve the interests of Britain and Europe. Asians too were taken in millions to work in plantations. Today, most of them are not even sure whether they can continue to live where they have been for the past two centuries! Such is the magnitude of the tragedy that Britain and Europe had brought upon these people for no fault of theirs. Although two centuries have passed, since the last slave ship set sail from the shores of Africa, the soul of Africa cries out for revenge and reparation. There is very little population growth in Europe today. In fact, population is ageing. It is becoming negative. By 2050 Italian population is expected to fall by a third. So Italy alone will need 350,000 workers each year. How is Europe going to face the future? Will the neo-Nazis accept a lower standard of living? Or will they change their ways of thinking? Only time will tell. The great Emerson called America the “melting pot”. The idea was to put the “refuse” of Europe into it to produce a homogenous people — the Americans. But assimilation failed because America was not ready or willing to incorporate into its society the African-Americans. So, America has taken to multi-culturalism. In fact, this is the new “mantra.” The generation of Martin Luther King had hopes of integration, but that did not happen either. The Civil Rights Movement, school integration, mixed neighbourhoods, etc. were designed to bring about integration. They failed. A report on global immigration says that there were 75 million immigrants in 1965 all over the world. Today it has gone up to 120 million. Of them, 20 million are Indians. A new industry has grown up around it. It reminds one of the slave trade. It is in the hands of criminals. About 34 countries export manpower today. India ranks third. But these are countries with dead souls, for they do not know what these immigrants have to suffer to earn their bread and help their families and countries. Britain tried to assimilate the immigrants. The idea was to make them British in all respects except in religion. But racial inter-mingling was taboo. Britain tried integration — the liberal solution. It accepted the cultural differences and diversities. But it failed to promote these diversities for want of finances. What is more, these “differences” proved to be a burden. Prof Bikhu Parekh, an eminent authority on the subject, says: “It is not easy to bear the burden of differences, especially for the young. Differences draw attention to one-self, intensifies self-consciousness, singles one out as an outsider.” Speaking about Indians in Britain, Prof Parekh says: “Low self-esteem is the curse of being an Indian in liberal Britain.” He says the effort of the Asian students to excel in their studies is a “defence mechanism against racial hostility.” Today Tony Blair is for multi-culturalism. He rolls out the welcome mat for our computer kids and other specialists. Should they respond? They should. But on honourable terms. Let us have a global Charter for “immigrants”. And it is time for the whites to say candidly that they will not share their destiny with non-white people. We will not take offence. It is a lesser evil to being Nazi. Each year a million people enter America, legally and otherwise. Had it not been for this immigration, America would have ground itself to a halt. But there is a price tag: there is the danger of the whites becoming a minority in America. The growing population of non-whites has already alarmed the ageing white population. In California, the blacks are in majority. And in fifty years or so, about 45 per cent of the population of America will be non-white. One can hear the alarm bells all over America. Will America follow the European way? Will it take to neo-Nazism? It legitimate to ask this question. The prospect is terrible to even think of. But we must think. |
A system marred by non-governance and corruption
THE bureaucracy is terminally ill, instead of being a bullwark of freedom, prosperity and good governance, it has become an albatross around the neck of the people. The pity is that there are no signs of improvement anywhere. Instead there is total deterioration. Mr Ravi Sidhu’s racket is the tip of the iceberg. Politicians and bureaucrats have jointly plundered the country. Probably politicians think that democracy is nothing more than a tool to capture power and a licence to loot. They have also included in this orbit civil servants, the police and other instruments of power who are feathering their own nests like many “Ravi Sidhus”. Therefore, sadly our Republic has drifted from democracy to kleptocracy — a system of non-governance, characterised by rampant greed and corruption. The greatest tragedy of state kleptocracy is that it has rotted the moral fibre of the nation as a whole. The reason is that the core of political system involves around theft, for the holders of political power and their cohorts. The main perpetrators of kleptocracy are the bureaucrats either by complicity or by compliance at the behest of politicians. As can be seen in the case of Mr Ravi Sidhu, merit is first casualty. Some very competent, hard working and conscientious civil servants have themselves been prime victims of the rot. Instruments like frequent and arbitrary transfers, humiliating assignments and vigilance inquiries are freely used to subdue public servants. But overall bureaucracy has become a puppet in the hands of politicians and some times vice versa to keep each other in good humour. Let the pillars of society rise to change the system for the benefit of the nation and also the bureaucrats who are maintained at a massive cost to the exchequer to guard India’s democratic fabric before it is too late. Col MAKHAN
SINGH (retd), Mohali What a shame! If jobs are sold to inefficient degree holders, having bought the same through emperors of corruption, where will our nation go? A nation can survive without gold medals in games, but not with an inefficient and corrupt bureaucracy. Maharaja Bharat, who gave the name Bharatvarsh to our country, did not allow his nine sons to succeed him for being inefficient. How shameful it is for us in today’s happenings! Those who tolerate wrongs are equally guilty. Poor Nisha Kaura! I too suffered the same fate after having been a topper throughout my education. But instead of fighting, I shamelessly compromised and suffered perpetual burning. My grand-daughter Nisha Kaura, I failed but you should not. Real life is in dying standing rather than living kneeling. PRAN SALHOTRA, Gurdaspur VIP links This refers to the news item “Sidhu helped people at Badal’s behest: Jagman” (April 25). In his statement Mr Jagman, who recently turned a public approver, seems to have made startling revelations by dragging the names of Mr Parkash Singh Badal and a high court judge. How far this statement carries conviction, only time will tell. There is discussion in every corner of street and everybody asks one question whether the post of PPSC Chairman is so powerful that one can manoeuvre freely to hoard money as Mr Ravi Sidhu did. Frankly speaking, one can’t. The post of PPSC Chairman is powerful, but it is not all powerful to operate like a crocodile in the ocean of corruption, where big sharks (political rulers) are also present. In a sense without connivance of the political elite, the PPSC Chairman could not have hoarded money in this way. Keeping in view the terrible level of corruption and likely involvement of V.I.P.s in the case, it becomes imperative for the top leaders to ensure speedy investigation and prosecution of the persons involved in the case. The safety of all the main culprits must be ensured. P.
L. SETHI, Patiala Ways of the world The Tribune report “But for an uncle, all desert Ravi Sidhu” (April 27), albeit touching, hardly comes as a surprise. It simply pinpoints the ways of the world. The following couplets in Urdu sound pertinent: “Ban jaate hain sab rishteydaar jab dhan (office) paas hota hai, Toot jaata hai garibi (adversity) mein jo rishta khaas hota hai!” “Siah bakhti (adversity) mein kab koi kisi ka saath deta hai, Ki tareeki mein saaya bhi juda insaan se hota hai!” TARA CHAND, Ambota (Una) A novel idea In the backdrop of PPSC Chairman R.P. Sidhu’s case, a novel idea of uplifting the economy of Punjab has come to my mind. Let us consider on an average a Chairman is worth Rs 50 crore only. Then by unlocking the lockers of almost 60 Chairmen of various boards we can have about Rs 3,000 crore. By the same token, each minister will be at least worth Rs 100 crore. If we have only 20 such ministers, the money from them comes out to be Rs 2,000 crore. By these standards a CM should be worth Rs 1,000 crore. The total amount that can be recovered from them will be at least Rs 6,000 crore. Thus the debt trap in which Punjab finds itself can be easily tackled by this money only. RAJESH MALIK, Jalandhar Surprising It is surprising to see the role of Ravi Sidhu’s mother in his corrupt practices. Mother is the person who always teaches her child to follow the path of truthfulness and honesty. I am shocked to know that she was also a party to Sidhu’s racket. I wonder why she never bothered about the result of his misdeeds. It is very rightly said, “Give me good mothers, I will give you a good nation”. Dr PARAMPREET BAWA, Nalagarh Teachers’ posts I am astonished to read about the claim made by the Selected Government College Lecturers’ Association that all other selections made by the PPSC are doubtful but selections of teachers have been done in a free and fair manner. I think this claim is far from truth. I am a topper and a gold medallist both in B.Sc (Hons) and M.Sc (Chemistry) from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. I am the recipient of Roll of Honour and my name is written on the Board of College of Basic Sciences and Humanities, PAU. I have completed my Ph.D from the UK. I have good teaching experience both in private college and public schools. I too appeared for the screening test. Despite the fact I did very well in the written examination, I was not called for interview for obvious reasons. Perhaps, I did not had enough gold coins to give to the greedy dogs. I am very much sure even if today my answer-sheet is rechecked. I will qualify for interview call. I don’t think it is only the Chairman and the Secretary who are responsible for this heinous crime, the whole board of the PPSC is a party to it. Now when the Chairman has been caught red-handed, the rest of the board members have started making a hue and cry in an effort to wash their dirty linen in public. Dr (Mrs) GEETA DUA, Ludhiana Akali protest The CM deserves appreciation for pursuing the anti-corruption drive, and the allegations of Akalis of witch-hunting are totally baseless. There was rampant corruption during the Badal regime and it is well known that Badal’s family was also involved in this. It is not possible that the former CM did not know about Ravi Sidhu’s functioning, rather he could be getting his share too. This needs to be thoroughly probed and told to the people of Punjab so that it serves as a lesson to politicians and officers. I.
S. SIDHU, Ludhiana From PCS to PS I would like to draw the attention of the new government of Punjab to the irregularities in the selection of Panchayat Secretaries. The Punjab Public Service Commission’s working has shown the hollowness of the system. What to say of the class I jobs, the last government in the selection of Panchayat Secretaries flouted all rules and regulations. If the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat looks into this matter, many more fishes will come in the net. BHUPINDER SINGH PARMAR, Jalandhar Austerity The people occupying high places such as chairmen of statutory bodies like the PSCs used to have noble ideals and lead austere life, holding right kind of role models to society. My father, who was a member of the HP Public Service Commission, must have been instrumental in recruiting hundreds of young men and women to govt. jobs during his six years tenure, in which he also acted as chairman of various interview boards. He would even return sweets packets, what to talk about costly gifts, from those selected. Austerity in practice and contentment of heart were the twin personality traits which guided every activity of his life. Times are changing fast and persons like Ravi Sidhu are a natural product of the value system which infests society as a whole. Avarice is the root of all evils and everyone around suffers from uninhibited greed. Values are to be ingrained and political men/women should hold right role models if rampant corruption is to be controlled or else people having noble ideals will surely become oddities. Dr SANJAY PATHAK, Una Prayer for success The exposure of corrupt officials of the Punjab Government in such a short time after taking over as Punjab CM, Capt Amarinder Singh has generated hope in the minds of Punjabi people who had lost all hopes of good governance. We only pray that the initiative does not become a political gimmick and the guilty are awarded stringent punishment under the law of the land. In this campaign against corruption the CM has the backing of the masses and majority of us are praying quietly and silently for the successful conclusion of this urgently needed campaign. This would surely bring fresh energy to the enterprising spirit of the people to make the state prosperous and progressive. Air Marshal
P. K. JAIN (retd), Chandigarh Badal’s complaint The decision of the National Democratic Alliance to send a delegation to Punjab following a complaint by former Chief Minister Badal (April 2) reminds one of a thief trying to arrest a cop. Considering only a few weeks ago the people of Punjab had rightly given the Badal administration the well-deserved boot through the ballot box, while expressing full confidence in the Congress through democratic means, Mr Badal’s cheek is admirable. Amazingly while Mr Badal and his friends in the NDA, which is led by a fascistic BJP, seem to have enough time to moan about Punjab for no apparent reason, but appear to have lost their voices about a monster called Modi in Gujarat, where not only hundreds of innocent people have lost their lives, but also the international community is deeply concerned and the European Union has compared the situation with Nazi Germany. Why the Saffron Society (SS) and its fans in the Badal-led SAD are refusing to look in their own backyard of Gujarat? PARAMJIT
BAHIA, UK |
Buddha said: “Not cultivating (the society) of fools, but cultivating (the society of) wise men, worshipping those that are to be worshipped, this the highest blessing. “Great learning and skill, well-learnt discipline, and well-spoken words, this is the highest blessing. “Waiting a mother and father, protecting child and wife, and a quiet calling, this is the highest blessing. “Giving alms, living religiously, protecting relatives, blameless deeds, this is the
highest blessing. “Ceasing and abstaining from sin, refraining from intoxicating drink, perserverence in the dhammas this is the highest blessing. Reverence and humility contentment and gratitude, the hearing of the dhamma at due seasons, this is the highest blessing. “Patience and pleasant speech.... religious conversation at due seasons, this is the highest blessing. “Penance and chastity, discernment of the noble truths, and the realisation of Nibbana, this is the highest blessing. “He whose mind is not shaken (when he is) touched by the things of the world (lokadhamma), (but remains) free from sorrow, free from defilement, and secure, this is the highest blessing. “Those who having done such (things) are undefeated in every respect, walk in safety everywhere, theirs is the highest blessing. —Khuddaka Nikaya. Fom the Minor Anthologies of the Pali Canon (translator F.H. Woodword) *** In your striving be mindful to preserve good conduct. In your deliberations, discover it is your staunchest ally. —
The Tirukkural *** Good conduct is the seed in virtue’s field; Wicked conducts’ harvest is never-ending sorrow. —
The Tirukkural *** Those who cannot live in harmony with the world though they have learned many things are still ignorant. —
The Tirukkural |
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