Delhi Gang Rape Case, a Reason to be Ashamed on Being a Man

It took more than one week for this writer to come out of the shock and the mental distress that he went through after knowing about the gang rape of a 23 year old girl in a bus in Delhi, for it was only recently that one of his younger sisters had explained to him the various harassments that she faces in her everyday bus journey through the city roads of Thiruvananthapuram. He had no courage to write about it hitherto as he was appalled and completely taken aback at what happened, for in his mind the Delhi gang rape survivor (she should not be called a victim, but a brave survivor, for she is showing tremendous bravery and courage in the hospital) suddenly become his own sister; her pain, his own sister’s pain and the agony of her parents and brothers, his own agony.

Whole of the country has joined with the protesters in Delhi streets to ask for justice for the girl. While the most important thing now is doing everything to save the life of the girl, making sure that the culprits get maximum punishment for the horrendous crime they committed is one of utmost importance as well. Though this writer, along with Amnesty International, for which he is a Voice Ambassador, has always taken a principled stand against capital punishment, he wonders what other punishment could be given to the culprits of this gang rape, who behaved worse than the beasts. The maximum punishment for those convicted for rape in our country is a life imprisonment of 10 years, which by any standards is grossly inadequate. Life time imprisonment for 10 years, together with permanent castration seems to be an adequate punishment for rape, which is a crime that must be considered a much graver crime than murder, as murder would end the life of a victim, but rape would put the victim under terrible lifelong trauma and social stigma. Though it is true that rape is not only about sex, but is about power, violence, intimidation and humiliation, it seems logical that the threat of castration as a punishment to rape will act as a deterrent.

The conviction rate of rapists in our country is abysmally low (studies show it to be as low as 20%) and most of the rapists go scot free, which gives a sense of impunity to them. Therefore for the rapists, it is not the enormity of punishment like capital punishment, but certainty of punishment that could act as a deterrent. The legislature should not only make strong laws to give model punishment to the rapists, but the police machinery should be made capable of providing incriminating evidence to nail the culprits in a court of law. A lot of onus also rests on the judiciary and there is an urgent need to create an environment in the courts where the victims are not further tortured while they are examined in the courts. The judicial system in India also needs to debate why the conviction rate in rape cases is less.

The impressive protests at Delhi show how the lay people feel about the whole issue – they are outraged, angry and livid. They call for justice, not only for the gang rape survivor, but for all women in the country. The protests see participation from all sections of the society; men and women, students and professionals, young and the old, people from various political parties and the apolitical. Women’s right to life is being threatened and they are protesting to save their freedom and to save their lives. The men folk are protesting because in such an environment of insecurity and danger no man can rest assured when his sisters, daughters and mothers are out travelling in public buses, trains and on the public roads of the country. The situation must change and the protestors are asking for action and not mere words of assurances uttered by the government machinery. 

The central government has some answering to do as the law and order situation in the capital city is directly handled by the central government. There is an urgent need of better policing in the country, particularly in the capital city of Delhi.  The government and the parliament must work together and bring about a stricter rape law. Fast track courts must be established to try rape cases and model punishments must be handed down. As Kiran Bedi has suggested there is a need of social audit to keep track of the how the police is functioning and to give valuable suggestions to improve the functioning of the police department.

The most important change that needs to come is not in the legal functions of the judiciary or the executive tasks of the police department, but in the social mindset of the country. In the patriarchal social order in India, women are still considered as second rate citizens, with unequal status when compared to men. Girl children are unwanted to many and female foetuses are destroyed in the womb itself; women are subjected to harassment at the workplaces and at homes; most husbands think the rights of their wives are to be trampled upon; wives, daughters and sisters are not allowed to make their own choices and many wives and even girlfriends don’t live their own lives but live lives that their husbands and boyfriends want them to live. It is high time we work to change this social mindset. Boys and men need to be trained from a very young age on why it is important to respect women. Teach them the importance of respecting their mothers, teach them that their sisters have the same rights as they have, teach them their wives and girl friends are free to have their individual choices, teach them that their daughters should be given exactly the same opportunities as their sons, teach them that a woman is not a sexual object but a human being that deserves respect and dignity, teach them that touching a woman’s body without her consent won’t make him a man, but a coward. 

When this writer’s younger sister told him indignantly that ‘all’ men are harassers, he got ashamed but took umbrage on that comment as he honestly believed he had never been a harasser of women and so told her to change her opinion and asked her to add the caveat ‘many’ men instead of a more generalised ‘all’ men. It is a matter of dreadful ignominy and pathetic shame that our sisters and daughters have started to think that all men are harassers. The men folk have no one else to blame but themselves, and as long as news about rapes, harassments and eve teasing come from any part of the world, men all around the world would be faced with occasions such as the one this writer faced, where he would be ashamed on being a man. 

Why Sachin Tendulkar Should Not Retire Now

Amidst the cacophony of diverse voices baying for the blood of Sachin Tendulkar, this writer, a self-confessed emotional fan of the great man, would point out some facts by which he would like to tell why this is the not the right time for Sachin to announce his retirement. When the instinctive Tendulkar-bashers and the so called pundits of the game are burning the midnight oil to come up with logical points to prove why Tendulkar should retire now, this writer would try to counter them with his own style of reasoning, which is an assortment of logic as well as emotion - without some emotional discourse, what is an Indian? 

First things first. One of the main arguments that the pundits put forward to say that it is high time for Tendulkar be asked to retire by the selectors is the fundamental philosophy that no one is bigger than the game. Now, let us face it, let us face the truth – Sachin Tendulkar is bigger than the game, period. The popularity of the game soared to magnificent proportions in India during the 90s only because of the great man Sachin Tendulkar. People flocked to the cricket stadium not to watch the game, but to the see the young prodigy at work; they left the stadium en masse the moment he got out. For a generation of Indians, including this writer, he has been a role model, a symbol of courage, dignity, hard work, perseverance, righteousness and an embodiment of a never-say-die attitude. For them he has been the living model of an emerging India after the opening up of the economy to global competition, confident and brave, competing in the global stage to make a name of itself. When he scored runs, the whole country rejoiced, when he got out cheaply, the whole country despaired. Millions of poor people in the country found a little redemption from their sufferings when the Little Master scored hundreds. When he scored runs against the English, people felt centuries of British domination of India is getting avenged, when he scored runs against Pakistan, Indians felt he is fighting a brave battle against the arch rivals for all of us. When his father passed away during the 1999 World Cup, the whole country mourned and when he got back to the team and hit a century few days after his bereavement all his countrymen praised the strength of human spirit that he showed. It is not a matter of ignominy, but a matter of human triumph that a mere mortal became bigger than the world that made him. And it is not the first time in the history of mankind that someone became bigger than his/her field of activity. Indian politics did not define Mahatma Gandhi, he defined Indian politics; pop music did not define Michael Jackson, the ‘King of Pope’ defined pop music; English drama did not define William Shakespeare, the great playwright defined English drama. 

The Indian team is going through a transition phase after the retirement of the greats Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. This is the time that the youngsters in the team need someone who can groom them and this makes it extremely important that Tendulkar remain in the team. If the detractors of the man come with an argument that he is not scoring runs and in such a circumstance how sensible it would be to retain him in the team, it must be noted that no one in the current Indian team is scoring consistent runs. Sehwag, Gambhir, Kohli, Yuvraj, Dhoni have all scored cheaply in the current series. 

It is again not that lot of great talents in the domestic circuit are knocking the doors of the Indian team to get in and take the place of Tendulkar. Names of Ajinkya Rahane, Subramaniam Badrinath, Mohd. Kaif, Manoj Tiwary, and Suresh Raina are going the rounds as the probables for replacing Tendulkar. All these players have got chances to play international cricket, but none has shown strong batting technique while playing against international bowlers, not to talk about about foreign match conditions. So it is not that there is a long queue of prodigious talents waiting for their entry in to the Indian team prevented only by the presence of Tendulkar in the team. 

Sachin Tendulkar still puts more efforts in constantly improving his batting skills and in rectifying technical glitches than any other of his teammates. It shows the commitment of the man and his determination. Even the great Sunil Gavaskar didn’t put a lot of effort in practice sessions during the fag end of his career. If about age being a factor, 37 test centuries in total have been made by 17 batsmen after they passed the age of 40. Englishman Jack Hobbs made 8 of them after he passed the age of 40 and he is also the oldest to make a test century at the age of 46 years and 82 days. So there are batsmen in the world who have defied age and hit test hundreds, notwithstanding the talks about reflexes getting poorer as you get older.

The retirement of the great Ricky Ponting, a contemporary of Sachin Tendulkar, has come as a shot in the arm for all those who call for the retirement of the great man. But one must note that the condition of the present Australian team is completely different from the condition of the present Indian team. Though the Aussies lost their recent test series against the Proteas, they are still a strong batting side. Michael Clarke is at his topmost form and is making lot of runs at will (this calendar year Clarke scored four double hundreds, a first time in the history of the game, even Sir Don had hit only three double hundreds in a calendar year), Michael Hussey, as always, is rock solid in that middle order, David Warner and Ed Cowan are good opening batsmen, Shane Watson is a brilliant all-rounder, already being compared to the great Jacques Kallis and the new comer in the team, keeper-batsman Mathew Wade has already shown he is not any bad with the bat. So the retirement of Ponting is not a serious setback for the Australians, but only a matter of natural transition. Therefore a comparison of Ponting retirement with Tendulkar’s is not correct in any way. 

At a time when the Indian cricket ship is sinking at a fast pace it is not 'Tendulkar-like' to jump off it, escape and look to save only his life. Many times the great man has single-handedly carried the whole weight of the team, like Atlas carried the earth on his broad shoulders, and rescued the team from many an ominous situation. The great Sachin Tendulkar has been a fighter, many times a lone fighter for his country, and one can hardly find him retiring now with this team in big trouble, unless of course he is forced to make such a decision by the team selectors who might humbly ask him to do it after convincing him that it is good for the team. And he always did what is good for the team, didn’t he?

Courtesy: Mohandas Menon for the statistics, the busy statistician found time to reply to this writer’s request in Twitter

Image Courtesy: PTI

Sponsor a Child’s Education through ActionAid

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. ― Nelson Mandela

For many children in India, the dream of going to school and get education remains only that, a dream. Abject poverty prevents them from going to school and they are made to work to help their families make both ends meet. Now you could lend a helping hand to these children and help them get school education through ‘Sponsor a Child’ programme of ActionAid.

ActionAid is an international organisation with 40 years of experience of working with the poor and the marginalised in India (find more information from www.actionaid.org/india). Through the ‘Sponsor a Child’ programme of ActionAid, you can sponsor a child’s education by contributing Rs.6000 a year. You can either contribute this amount as a one-time payment, or in three instalments – Rs.2000 in each quarter. You can use your bank cheque, your credit card or your debit card (in case of debit card you can make only the one-time payment of Rs. 6000 at ActionAid offices) to make the contribution. 

You can find more information about ‘Sponsor a Child’ programme from the following url.

www.actionaidindia.org/sponsor/

Will you join with me in brightening a child’s future?

Be the change you want to see in the world.- Mahatma Gandhi

Disclaimer: This writer is not professionally involved with ActionAid and this post is only a general appeal.

Protecting Freedom of Expression in the Online Space

A Facebook status message can put you behind the bars. When you heard such news from countries in the Middle East, China and many other authoritarian states, you thought that it would never happen in India, the country we all blissfully consider the largest democracy in the world. But what happened in those countries could happen to those in India as well, as discovered by two young girls in Palghar in Mumbai, as they were arrested for dissenting against the shutdown in the city after the death of Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackerey.

Arresting someone for voicing sentiments not liked by people with power is nothing but an act of fascism which has no place in a democracy. Everyone knows that not all shops and establishments remained closed on the day of cremation of Bal Thackerey not because of the respect for the leader but out of sheer fear. And the girls were only expressing their frustration on this sordid state of affairs, without naming anyone. In fact, as Justice Markandey Katju rightly pointed out, the girls were only echoing the sentiments shared by the Supreme Court on the illegality of bandhs in the country. Though the Maharashtra government suspended the police officers who arrested the girls, damage had already been done. The incident had created a sense of insecurity among the netizens in India and there was a sort of lull in the social media space in the country for some time. People thought a second time before scribbling their opinion in the virtual space. A healthy democracy can ill afford such as situation, where the citizens are afraid to speak out and express their opinions fearlessly. 

Silencing dissent has suddenly become the fad in India among many political parties. It was only recently that a man was arrested for tweeting that Karti Chidambaram, the son of Union Finance Minister P Chidambarama, was corrupt. In the month of April Kolkata police arrested Professor Ambikesh Mahapatra for posting a cartoon critical of the Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. In September this year anti corruption crusader and free speech campaigner Aseem Trivedi was arrested on charges of sedition. After the arrest of the girls in Palghar for their innocuous comment in Facebook, another man was dragged to the police station by MNS workers in Palghar, alleging that he had posted a status message that was “disrespectful’ of Raj Thackerey. 

The internet and the social media are powerful tools of political freedom, where the common man can express his opinion freely and it is better for a democracy to encourage people to express their ideas openly and fearlessly. In a democracy anyone has the right and freedom to articulate what he/she believes is right and express those ideas in way that is not inimical to the life and freedom of another person. If that freedom infringes upon the rights and freedom of another person, then existing laws can interfere. 

It has become imperative for the Indian government to review the Section 66 (A) of the IT Act 2000, the basis on which the Palghar girls were arrested. Many experts believe that the section is not in line with the Constitution of India and internationally accepted standards of freedom of speech and expression. The nebulous wordings of the section could be misinterpreted and abused by the various law enforcement agencies in the country. There is an urgent need to lay down clear and comprehensive explanations to the restriction on free speech in the IT act.

If freedom of speech and expression, which is the corner stone of democracy, is taken away from the people, we as a country will fail and the democracy that we are so proud of will meet its end sooner rather than later. 

An Accident(al) Writer

After a few minor personal tragedies, including an accident that saw him confined to the metaphorical ‘four walls’ of his house for a month, this writer is back in blogging mode after exactly 2 months since he posted his previous article. In the past he had eloquently explained to many why he was an ‘accidental writer’, who started writing when he was once in a depressing period of joblessness. Now after two accidents within a time span of 3 years and 3 months, it would only be fair to call him an ‘accident writer’ too, whose right hand that bore the brunt of both accidents has become a subject of self pity to him and a matter of wit and humour to others.

When it comes to accidents, how often could be termed ‘frequent’ is a question that this writer has been confronting all these while, for many have asked him why he is frequently meeting with accidents. On his part, this writer strongly believes that a time span of 39 months between two accidents could by no means be called ‘frequent’ and any man worth his salt would be very much capable of matching or surpassing his feat any time in the future. 

At the same time, this writer has great respect and admiration for his professional organisation, for it hasn’t fired him for his predilection of falling unceremoniously on his right shoulder, skidding off from his two-wheeler, that too twice in a time span of 39 months that saw him away from work for one whole month each time.

Unlike after the previous accident, where this writer had many things to write about The Peculiar Living - Life of a Temporarily Handicapped Man, this time around he has no claims to make, no situations to explain and no pretty physiotherapist to rant about (with due respect to the professional talent and kindness of the lady who helped him with the physiotherapy). He has only a prayer that he may not be subjected to such painful confinements in the future, neither 'frequently' nor rarely, which would put him away from work and away from blogging.

Hope the UPA Would Come Down Crashing Now

Now that Mamata Banerjee has withdrawn her support for the UPA government in the centre, this writer, like many other common men, hope that this Manmohan Singh government would collapse. There have been few governments in the recent memory that have tested the patience of the country and its people as much as the incumbent government. As if the very many corruption skeletons that tumbled out of the government cupboards were not enough, it made the lives of the people difficult with many increases in the petrol and diesel prices and its inability to rein in inflation, thereby increases in prices of food and other essential commodities, with effective fiscal and monetary policies. The immediate reason for Mamata’s decision to pull out of the UPA is the recent anti-people policy measures of the UPA government including raising the diesel prices, restricting the supply of subsidised cooking gas to six cylinders per household, and opening up India's huge retail sector to foreign super-chains.

This is Indian politics and therefore one must be very careful while making statements on how tomorrow will unfold. Mamata’s ministers will give their resignations only on Friday, which makes one wonder if they are waiting for some compromise formula to come up so that they can stay in the UPA. Though the ministers have denied any such possibilities, one would never know. The UPA would be hoping that Mayawati with her BSP would come and rescue the government with their 21 MPs. Unlike Mulayam’s SP and Mamata’s Trinamool, who got thumping victories in the assembly elections in their respective states of Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, Mayawati’s BSP won’t be all that happy with an imminent general election as they have less chances of making any gains. Moreover Mayawati is depended on the UPA government as there are many corruption cases pending against her and any government at the centre with Mulayam’s SP would spell doom to her personally.

Dr. Manmohan Singh of the UPA2 has been a disaster. When the Time Magazine called him an ‘underachiever’ and accused him of ‘unwilling to stick his neck out’, the Congress went berserk and accused the Magazine of not giving Dr. Singh a chance to be heard. Though being a great economist, Dr. Singh was unable to provide a direction to the faltering economy of the country in terms of its senile growth rate and ever increasing inflation. With Coalgate, his image as a man of impeccable integrity took a serious beating. The eternal ‘Yuvraj’ of the Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, seems to be always preparing to take up the mantle of Prime Ministership, but he never appears to be completely ready to take the responsibility.

In the eventuality of the crashing down of the present UPA government what other possibilities do we have at hand? The NDA under the command of the BJP would be the first choice for making a new government. But do they have the numbers? It is pretty unlikely that they have. LK Advani is the leader of the party but it is to be seen if he gets enough support within his party to become the prime minister. Narendra Modi seems to be the choice of many in his party for being their prime ministerial candidate and you can always find many comparisons being made in the media between Manmohan Singh and Modi. However, if Narendra Modi is the prime ministerial candidate then there are fewer chances for the NDA to survive as Nitish Kumar and his JD (U) are opposed in making Modi the prime minister.

What are the chances for the creation of a third front with the leftists in the lead? Many discussions are being held for a non-Congress, non-BJP third front. Mulayam Singh still has his prime ministerial ambitions intact and buoyed by the recent electoral gains made by SP in Uttar Pradesh he would well be taking a lead in making a third front possible. CPI (M), CPI, RSP, Forward Block, Telgu Desam Party, Biju Janata Dal and the AIADMK would all possibly join with SP. With the tension that JD (U) is facing in the NDA on the issue of Narendra Modi being made the prime ministerial candidate, one would never know what Nitish Kumar would decide once there is a possibility of a third front.

As this is Indian politics you can’t be sure what would happen in the future and what all changes can one see in the political dynamics in the country in the event of the fall of the UPA government. This writer would personally like to see the emergence of a third front and a government being made by this third front, with the leftists participating in the government. The leftists have been making all sorts of accusations on the UPA government on the mismanagement of the financial sector, retail sector and the energy sector, to name a few. It seems that the leftists have a magic wand in hand for all the curses of the country. Let them come to the government and using their magic wand bring back the Administered Price Mechanism for petrol and diesel prices and roll back the recent hikes in those prices, control inflation, bring down high prices of commodities and all in all present a new development direction for the economy of the country.

With the government of the third front at the centre, with many regional parties, there could be a danger to the federal nature of our democratic system. But with the availability of the leftists in the front, with a national policy on most matters concerning the country, one could safely imagine that federalism would not be compromised.

For the time being let us stop making predictions on how things would unfold and wait for political parties in the country to make their calls. However, this writer joins with many of his other countrymen in wishing that the UPA2 government would bite the dust sooner rather than later.

Milkman of India, Dr. Kurien is no more

A true legend has passed away leaving behind a legacy that the whole country can be proud of – Dr. Verghese Kurien, ‘Milkman of India’ is no more. Father of White Revolution, the founder of co-operative dairy movement in the country and the man behind the world famous brand Amul breathed his last yesterday in a hospital in Nadiad.

Born in the Kerala district of Kozhikode in the year 1921, Dr. Kurien did his Masters from Michigan University in metallurgy, with dairy engineering as a minor subject, after he completed Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from Madras University. He came to Anand in the year 1949 at the behest of Sardar Vallabhai Patel and later went on to become the founder of co-operative milk movement in the country and the Amul dairy. Under his aegis, India went on to become the largest milk producer in the world from a milk-deficient country. Because of his efforts India now contributes 17% of total milk production in the world. Amul, the brand he created, has one of the best brand recall (brand recall refers to the ability of study respondents to remember a name of a brand, company or product, as part of a particular class) values among the world’s leading brands in any sector.

Dr. Verghese Kurien is a true legend who used his life to bring economic freedom to millions of small and medium milk farmers. He and his ‘Operation Flood’ that revolutionised milk production in India will always be remembered for its true socialist vision and technology-led approach.

The Very Very Special Batsman Calls it a Day

The man who played the greatest test innings by an Indian will no longer demonstrate the magic of his flamboyant wrists in manoeuvring a cricket ball through the gaps to send it to the fence. VVS Laxman, one of the most stylish and prolific batsmen test cricket has ever seen, has called it a day leaving behind a legacy that few cricketers can hope to emulate.

If there is one test innings that has ever changed the course of the cricket history of a nation, then it is the 281 of VVS Laxman against the Aussies at Eden Gardens in 2001. After following on to a world beating Aussie side under the leadership of the charismatic Steve Waugh, India won the test match after a dream innings by VVS in partnership with the great Rahul Dravid, which saw the famed Aussie bowling attack of Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie and Michael Kasprowicz falling apart. That innings and the resultant win revolutionised Indian cricket and made it a force to reckon with. This writer has fond memories of watching that epic innings from the comforts of his home. It was a sort of an innings that was never seen before, where the great Aussie bowlers appeared to be mere university level bowlers in front of VVS. He played them to all parts of the ground at will and it appeared that he was not going to get out at any time. One whole day he pulverised the bowling and got out only in the morning session of the fifth day of the test match, by then the match was under Indian control.

VVS Laxman was the most feared batsman by the Aussies, who gave him the name Very Very Special, an interesting extension of his initial VVS. Once Brett Lee quoted Steve Waugh as saying, “if you get Dravid, it’s great, if you get Tendulkar, it’s brilliant and if you get VVS, it’s a miracle.” As a part of the renowned big three of Indian batting line up along with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, VVS made 17 centuries in his test career at an average of 45.97, in which 6 centuries were against his favourite opponents, Australia. Many a time he had to bat with the bowlers of the team and in every such occasion he handled them with prudence and got the best out of them for the team. VVS has been a saviour to the team in many occasions in test match cricket and his services would really be missed by the Indian team in the future. A gentleman to the core, VVS Laxman is a role model for the youngsters in the country who showed how to be aggressive on the field, yet calm and composed off it. 

Thank you very much VVS for your many very very special moments for Indian cricket and world cricket and you will always be remembered as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of the game. Thanks for the memories.

Blame Not the Communists, for Violence is in the DNA of Communism

At a time when allegations that the Communist Party of India (Marxist) is behind the murder of TP Chandrasekharan in Kerala is going the rounds, one would have imagined that the party members would tone down their violent rhetoric for some time. But the party surprised one and all as its members kept on going with their calls for violence. If MM Mani was boasting how the party had killed many of its enemies in the past, many other leaders of the party from seniors like Ilamaram Karim, MV Jayarajan, P Jayarajan to juniors like M Swaraj and Shamseer have continued with their tirade against the police and the media whom they consider their rivals. On the hartal day, which was called for as a protest on the arrest of P Jayarajan, the party workers went on the rampage and destroyed public property in the state and attacked commuters at will. However if one carefully examines the different Communist movements in the world one should not be surprised on the violent rhetoric of the party members as one can find that violence is in the DNA of Communism.

Marxian ideology, based on which present day communism (political system) works, is basically an economic and socio-political ideology, which is humane in its spirit. Karl Marx believed in the ultimate creation of a proletarian state where the proletariat or the working class has control of all political power. Political practitioners of this ideology, like Lenin, Stalin, Mao and others, believed that this political power can be acquired only by violent struggle, which they call revolution. As Vladimir Lenin once said, "the supersession of the bourgeois state by the proletarian state is impossible without violent revolution." In this violent struggle, or revolution, the communists eliminated their political opponents resulting in mass killings which can only be called genocide in all the countries where communism emerged. These mass killings were at its worst in the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin, in People’s Republic of China under Mao Tse-tung and in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge. 

Stalin’s reign in the Soviet Union can be termed as a period of Red Terror, where as many as three million people were ruthlessly executed and murdered, according to official records made available to the outside world after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. This include people who were executed for political offenses, deaths in Gulag, the government administered forced labour camp and deaths during the forced resettlement. The Great Purge, Stalin’s execution of various people in his effort to solidify his position as the supreme leader of the Soviet Union, involved execution by a gunshot to the back of the head, torture by beatings while in ‘investigative custody’ and overwork and starvation in the Gulag camp. Joseph Stalin, who many communists, including those in India, consider to be a great leader, is no one but a mass murderer, who can compete with Adolf Hitler in his brutality and terror.

After the communist revolution when Mao Tse-tung seized power in People’s Republic of China, his policies and political purges resulted in the death of millions of people. After studying the experiences of the Soviet Revolution, Mao came to believe that violence is necessary to achieve what he believed would be an ‘ideal society’. So he planned and executed violence on a grand scale and killed counterrevolutionaries, political opponents and those whom he considered disloyal to him and his ideas. He believed that for agrarian reforms to become a reality one-tenth of the peasants would have to be destroyed. Deng Xiaoping, considered as the architect of China’s transformation into a market economy and its present day prosperity, was purged twice by Mao during the Cultural Revolution as their political ideologies were at odds. Mao gave his Red Guards all rights and power to abuse and execute the revolution’s ‘enemies’.

A detailed account of mass killings under communist regimes in different countries of the world can be found out in Wikipedia, which forms the basis of the above mentioned facts. These killings by the communists have been so widespread, extensive and rampant that it could well form a subject of study in itself.

History of communist regimes and communist parties all over the world is riddled with such instances of violence, mass killings, torture and executions. Marxism is an absolutist ideology and the communism that it wants to achieve ultimately is all about attaining absolute power and this absolute power can only be attained by silencing critics and maiming all who stand against the ideology. Therefore communism without violence is non-existent and if communism has to prosper it needs to be violent. Communism is also about secrecy and hardly can an outsider be able to see through and understand what is happening inside the party and if this secrecy is lost, again the communist party will perish. A practical example of the same factor was seen in Soviet Union, where as a result of Gorbachev’s crusade to introduce Perestroika (restructuring) and Glasnost (openness) the party collapsed and as a result the Soviet Union disintegrated into small countries.  The openness and transparency that Gorbachev wanted to bring inside the party was antithetic to the secretive style of the party and hence it was not able to withstand it and thus collapsed. One can also notice that communist parties have always failed to come to power in countries where there is a healthy functioning of democracy. They have always excelled in places where there is a predominantly one party rule; see examples in China, North Korea and Cuba, where the party has been in power for very many years. In these countries, democratic dissent is often crushed, protests trampled and those who oppose the party are always put behind the bars or executed. In communist regimes there is hardly any personal freedom and citizens’ liberty is always under threat, if at all it is present. These countries are nothing but totalitarian states, where every aspects of public and private life are regulated and controlled by the regimes and citizens are forced to live as the regimes would tell them to live.

One of the gravest crises that the communist parties in India face is the inability to conceal their violent natural disposition and to present a facade of peaceful nature in front of the public. In a country like India, which has a proud history of non-violent struggle to attain freedom under the guidance and leadership of none other than Mahatma Gandhi, it is impossible to influence people and to sustain their confidence for a long period unless you are a party of the non-violent, peaceful patriots. Communism will survive in India only if it abandons violence and embrace peace and non violence; but as its genetic makeup is one of violent struggle and violent revolution, it would be very difficult for the communist parties to transform themselves into a non-violent entity, where in lies their real challenge.

As Boucher and Lee Retire, Cricket loses Two of its Finest Fighters

This week, which is on its way to its end, has been one in which cricket has lost, through retirement, two of its finest fighters – Mark Boucher and Brett Lee. When the Proteas star wicketkeeper-batsman retired because of an unfortunate on-field accident, the Aussie speedster announced his retirement on account of his inability to come out of his recurring injury issues. Two fierce competitors, Boucher and Lee, made the game of cricket richer with their talent, dedication, determination, and above all, with a never-say-die attitude, which could be a real source of inspiration for the future generations of cricketers all around the world.

When a freak accident at Taunton ended one of the greatest careers in cricket, South Africa lost one of its strongman, not only behind the wickets, but in their total game, for Mark Boucher was not just a wicketkeeper, but was the heart beat of the team whenever they were faced with a daunting challenge, a stiff opposition, an impossible target. Boucher’s eyes got hit with the bails while he was keeping in one of the practice matches against Somerset. Cricket enthusiasts will remember with great delight many occasions where the individual brilliance and marked doggedness of this diminutive keeper-batsman pulled out his team from certain defeats. May it be about playing an innings to snatch victory from the clutches of the opponents or batting out a day to hold out for a draw, Mark Boucher was always there with a resolve matched by few of his peers. Mark Boucher holds the record for maximum number of dismissals in international cricket with 999 scalps, with 555 coming in test matches, followed by his nearest rival Adam Gilchrist with 416 dismissals. He holds the record for the fastest century by a South African in ODIs and his unbeaten 50 against the Aussies at Wanderers in that famous ODI chase of 438, remains as one of the greatest episodes of international cricket. 

Brutal pace and soothing smile have rarely combined in a fast bowler as have in the New South Welshman Brett Lee, undoubtedly the most loved Aussie in India, next only to the great Steve Waugh. Express bowling would never be the same in international cricket as one of its greatest proponents Lee has called it a day. Four ankle surgeries and a persistent shoulder trouble have made it impossible for the unassuming and affable fast bowler to continue in international cricket. A bowler known for his genuine air speed in bowling, Brett Lee had been instrumental in making Australia one of the best cricket teams in the world. He partnered with the legendary Glenn McGrath and made the lives of batsmen difficult for more than a decade. Fast bowlers hunt in pairs and Lee and McGrath dismissed batsmen of all nations with their guile and skill. Known for his fierce competitive spirit Brett Lee was one bowler who always gave his all, may it be bowling, fielding or batting. This writer enthusiastically remembers how Brett Lee clean bowled Andrew Flintoff with a brilliant in-swinger in a crunch situation at Trent Bridge in the Ashes series of 2005. When most of the other Aussie players were thinking about an inevitable loss as Flintoff was taking the attack on to them, Brett Lee was not ready to go down without a fight and bowled a dramatic spell of supreme fast bowling. Though in the end the Aussie lost the match, Brett Lee won the hearts of all those who watched the game. 

Now that the great careers of two of the finest fighters in cricket have ended, cricket columnist and writers are busy writing eulogies for Mark Boucher and Brett Lee and let this piece be one in the same league from this humble writer, for he spent many of his leisurely time marvelling at these great players scripting their own chapters in cricket history. 

Get well soon Mark Boucher, all the best Brett Lee.

Gentlemen, thank you very much for the memories.  

Image Courtesy: Cricket World