To our Daughter X'traordinaire!

So you have finally left this world. The dirty, callous world of the weak. Sorry my dear we could not do anything for you. Not when you were alive and battling for life,  not when you were full of life once and not when your life was being ruined. But you are not the only one. You were 23, here are 3 year olds going through the same ordeal. Strangers had violated your body dear one but there are many little girls shamed by their own fathers and brothers. What can you expect of a society where Ma bhen ek kar do, Bhencho..., madarcho... is an expression of anger and something to cheer about in comedies.

Do you know you became Xceptional? The Xtraordinary because you wanted to live despite the barbarism meted out to you. Because we are used to seeing most rape or gang rape victims commit suicide. We are used to shutting up our daughters all the time. So most of them bear the brunt silently and do not raise a voice.

Had you not gone through these unfortunate circumstances you would have got married some day and fasted for your husband on Karva-chauth because his life is precious. And if you had had a son you would have been "Lucky" and "Fortunate" and you would have fasted for your son on the Ahoi Ashtami day.

Would you still have been so Xceptionally courageous to defy the social norms? May be you would have. May be you would have fought for your dignity first. For most of us the need to defy the norms does not arise because our lives go on beautifully...or at least that is what we think.

Beautifully??? Yes. So what if some of us feel 'complete' only after a son is born (after the two daughters).  After all we are doing a favour to our girls by bringing a brother in their empty lives, a reason to tie a rakhi. To promise her safety? Or to acknowledge her weakness. To acknowledge her incomplete world.

Sorry dear. Sorry. Apologies a million times to you and all those daughters who have paid with their lives. Dear daughter X, on all your 23 birthdays you would not have lit so many candles as many that are being lit on your death.

In a way I am relieved that you are gone because though your mind was beautiful till the end but your physical body was damaged and unable to go on. May your soul rest in peace before you embark on another journey into this world. And hopefully by that time there will be a changed beautiful world to welcome you.

May be then you would not need a bond of rakhi to get a promise for your safety!!

Voices of Gujarat's Muslim BJP activists about Gujarat and Narendra Modi

Coping with Coup??

Coup is the midde name of Pakistani Army. In the 65 years of Independent India no one has ever heard of a 'coup' like word for the Indian Army and it has been unthinkable. Nothing like that is spoken within the organisation or out of it.

The very fact that a National Daily has reported a possible coup by the Indian Army spoke a million more things that could be brewing inside the broad chest behind the Olive Greens adorned with medals and ribbons. Unthinkable..yes many unthinkable things have happened. Never before a General, a COAS, been ridiculed about his date of birth. Never before the serving Army General took his case to the court. Never before a serving Chief of the Indian Army spoken about the lack of preparedness to fight a war because of paucity of ammunition and arms and of sub-standard supplies due to kickbacks.

Never before a COAS in waiting's name raised so many doubts and PILs about his integrity and calibre to lead the most wonderful armies of the sub-continent. That too by his own colleagues. The way Congress Government is bulldozing the organization to place General Bikram Singh shows the politicization of the army. Rubber stamp Prime Minister, rubber stamp President and now a rubber stamp Army Chief??? It won't go well with the lower rungs of the hierarchy, at least not in the Indian Army.

Obviously all is not well. General VK Singh has opened the cupboard marked "RESTRICTED" and "CONFIDENTIAL" and many skeletons are falling out.

Its time for a complete audit of the system. Coup is better left for the other armies in the sub-continent. In India, we can do it in a better way. First and foremost, every Indian must support GEN VK SINGH. His date of birth should be accepted and he should continue in the office for one more year and throw the skeletons out of the Indian Army's closet.

For the sake of the honor of the real soldiers who stand at the borders in shoddy shelters, with sub standard equipment, eating poor quality food and obeying every order.........for you and me and our motherland!

Adarsh..... आदर्श लोगों की सोसाइटी aka Corruption Towers

This is the famous Adarsh Scam building...31 floors, big balconies, grand parking, tallest in the area closest to cantonment, overlooking the sea on both sides. I could not resist taking the picture, one more time. Its so imposing from all places in the vicinity that you can't miss it. We have watched this building come up in the last few years with everyone talking about it..."choron ki building" but no one dared speak openly because lot of bigwigs in the defence had their flats...including the previous GOC MGGA..Maj Gen Huda. Well CBI inquiries are on and perhaps in the decisive stage (hopefully).

Few days back, the court suggested the ARMY take over the building and put to some use. My 12 year old kid too feels demolishing would be waste of resources and she is excited at the prospect of living there, may be sometime....if it is handed over to the army.

How safe would this building be? Structure wise? Well wasn't it supposed to be just six floors? Who done it?? Who joined in, at what stage of construction, does not matter because everything is masterminded at the foundation level of the building. Else how could anyone raise a 31 floors on a plinth and pillar laid for bearing the load of 6 floors?  That is a very basic thing that came to my mind. Isn't it? I am no Civil Engineer but I have seen how they calculate the amount of Iron to be used for the plinth and pillars. This means that the building was designed for 31x4 corrupt and by the corrupt minds. Each one of them should be behind the bars.

As for me, I am in favor of demolition because it is an ugly reminder of corruption.. This will also be the best punishment to all those who have stakes in it. In any case, security will be a serious issue and can not be overlooked or compromised with.

We have seen the work happening in the building off and on while the investigations were on. I hear they have locked the building at last. I will get that picture for sure and soon....

And even when they demolish it... Corruption Towers....