Saturday, May 8, 2010

Why did I stop!



Haven’t written anything since long…started blogging in Hindi sometimes in 2008. But could not carry it much forward. Laziness coupled with professional commitment…excuses, nothing important to write, lack of ideas….many reasons which I have made of late in my defence. But none of them was convincing enough to stop me forever. Though they were successful me holding me temporarily. I am at it again….will write…what are journalist meant to do!

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Is Madhuri Gupta, so different..!

I have little sympathy with Madhuri Gupta – the Indian mole from foreign services who betrayed the country for revenge or money or both. I am sure most of us are going to express plenty of dismay at the sad development. And the development is sad all right, deal as it does with sold out patriotism. Reprehesible as Madhuri’s act may be, just think about it. Exactly what has Madhuri done? She has indulged in the worst kind of betrayal – the betrayal of the country for money. What do you think every other mantri, every other government babu and every other Indian is indulging in today, if not betraying the country? What right does a corrupt country like ours have to expect only Madhuri to be above board? Isn’t she merely a member of the same corrupt population? Who is not betraying his country for money? The policemen whom you have to bribe if you want to file an FIR? The Government mortuary keeper you need to bribe in order to claim the dead body of your child who died in an accident? The ayahs whose palms need greasing if you want to take your new born baby out of the government hospital? Sundry petty officials whose beaks need considerable wetting before you get your motor license, passport or ration card? The tax man who needs his consideration to give you your refund check? The inspectors who for the right consideration will give you a fire-safety clearance irrespective of your violations? The municipal officials who will regularize your illegal construction for a consideration? The Government regulators who would not approve or accredit that engineering college unless you pay that sum he writes out on a slip of paper? The bank manager who will not release that government approved loan without a consideration? The IPL honchos who will not let you win your bid fair and square? The private secretary or the peon of the Minister who will not let you into the latter’s room without your slipping that Rs 500 or Rs 100 bill respectively? The Minister who will place every conceivable obstacle in the path of your project in his constituency unless you grease his machinery first? Or the one from under whose beds one recovers suitcase full of cash? The judge who may give you a favourable judgment for a fee? So why should we be surprised if a frustrated lady in External Affairs dispenses national secrets for a consideration, whether revenge or money? What is it in her conduct that is so very different from the rest of us as a people? Yes, we may fancy ourselves to be superior to Madhuri Gupta because we did not sell ourselves out to an outsider. But come on, it is simply that her job involved being in Pakistan. Had she been posted within the country, she too would have still sold her country, like all the rest of us. Is her offence any worse than all those who have stashed away some ridiculous sums running into lakhs of crores of rupee equivalent in the Swiss banks, which we hear so often about? When our politicos and other heavyweights siphon the wealth out of the country, where exactly is the difference between Madhuri and these others? Yes, what Madhuri has done is sad and reprehensible – but to my mind no more and no less reprehensible than all the rest of us who are forever bleeding the country dry. If as a people we are truly shocked at Madhuri, we have no option but to look inwards and join hands to clean the system that we live and grow up in.