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Linguistic Sanity: A Hoax

If I ask you to make a list of path breaking human innovations, how will it look like?
For one thing, it is ought to be a non-exhaustive list encompassing numerous
innovations, we humans have created over the last 2.5 million years of our existence
(of course if we include Homo habilis and Homo erectus in the class of humans).
But one great innovation which I bet will be missed by most of us- language. But had it
not for language, I would not have been able to communicate my ideas to you (or vice
versa) As most other important facets of life, language is taken for granted, yet
without it an invaluable trait of human life- smooth communication is rendered
ineffective.
In fact, Language has played a very important role in Human beings
coming to dominate the earth over such a short period of time. In any case, the sheer
diversity and precise structure of human language is something to seriously admire
and ponder upon.
It is this diversity of language; in fact, we have close to 7000 living languages¹,4500 of
which have a published Grammar; which is fascinating. However what is even more
fascinating is that amongst this pool of languages only a few have a substantial
speaker base(spreading across more than one linguistic zone).
Then what is that which makes these languages different? Not discounting the impact of colonisation
(which obviously led to the spread of languages like English, French) and other such
factors, one important reason was their continuous interaction with local languages
and hence their cultures.
A common feature running through all these major languages is they encompass within themselves words and phrases from diverse sources. It is this diversity which in turn enhance them. This is a spontaneous feature of any language-the same applies to most of our regional languages(the likes of hindi,
marathi,tamil, assamese, etc.)

How many of you remember being chided for using English words(like hello, sorry)
while speaking a regional language? Numerous times, right? We are often told that
this weakens the language, endangering it’s’sanity’. But this is a natural process, as
natural as your breathing. This is how languages evolve over time-encompassing
words and phases and hence related nuances of diverse cultures.
As when a word from a different language is incorporated,an unbreakable bond between the two
languages and it’s people develop. For instance, English words like table, School,
phone, tiffin have very much become an indistinguishable part of our vocabulary
even when we speak regional languages.

This synthesis,if anything only enriches the language .. While this seems as a threat
to linguistic ‘sanity’ by those who view language as an uniform monolithic
phenomenon; in reality this diversity only adds to the beauty of the language just as
the many colours of the rainbows beautifies and enriches it.

An Article by Rajdeep Mahanta, UG 2nd Sem, History Hons, Cotton University, Guwahati, Assam, India

July 13, 2023
How Urban Greed Washed Away the Accumulated Wisdom of India’s Past

Anyone who has studied history knows that the people of the Indus Valley civilisation built cities and towns with excellent drainage and sewage systems. Five thousand years later, have we in India moved forward or backward?
Anyone who has studied history knows that the people of the Indus Valley civilisation built cities and towns with excellent drainage and sewage systems. Five thousand years later, have we in India moved forward or backward?
The rains ( 2015 )in Tamil Nadu have caused havoc on the streets of Chennai and elsewhere. Twitter and Facebook are full of photographs and videos of the flooding, even if the TV channels and newspapers have tended to ignore the story.
Vehicular traffic has been severely affected, power supply disrupted at many places, trains have been cancelled, rescheduled or diverted, and the life of the citizen – ordinary and “VIP” – thrown out of gear. Even the Chief Minister’s car is reported to have been stranded.
The misery which has unfolded is, of course, not unique to Tamil Nadu.
All across India – from Srinagar to Chennai and Mumbai to Dibrugarh – rain is inevitably followed by water-logging on the streets of cities, causing immense suffering to the people.
In September 2014, heavy rains turned the capital of Jammu and Kashmir into a lake, with many localities submerged under 20-30 feet of water. In my home town of Allahabad, many localities like Allahpur and Mumfordganj go under several feet of water every year after heavy rains.
Kolkata’s waterlogged streets are well known, and parts of Delhi, e.g. Minto Bridge, have severe waterlogging in the monsoons. What is the cause of this?

The reason is simple to understand. Urban greed has destroyed our drainage systems.

Rains come every year in the monsoon or rainy season, and so there has to be a proper drainage system to take away the water, otherwise it will accumulate and cause waterlogging. Historically, indeed, all the way up to British rule and for some time thereafter, there were drainage systems in every city in India which were properly maintained by the municipalities.
There is water logging on almost all roads in Delhi with several feet of water, and people cannot move about.
How did this happen ?
I have explained the cause in this article.https://thewire.in/urban/how-urban-greed-washed-away-the-accummulated-wisdom-of-indias-past
5000 years ago our ancestors built the Harappa Mohenjodaro Civilisation. They were wise, and knew that every year there will be rains during the monsoon season. So they built an excellent drainage system to carry away the rain water.Our British rulers also built a drainage system in all Indian cities.But our people out of their greed have built houses, shops etc ( illegally) on these drains, and choked and destroyed them.So naturally there will be water logging every year, since the water cannot flow away. In my own home town Allahabad every year some localities are 10 feet under water during the rainy season. Similar is the situation in many Indian cities.So you reap what you sow

July 13, 2023
What should Indian Muslims do ?

By Justice Katju

Indian Muslims, who are about 213 million or 15% of India’s population of about 1400 million ( according to Pew Research Centre ) are today totally confused and perplexed about what they should do. After 2014 they have been politically totally sidelined in India, and atrocities and discrimination against some of them have increased.

https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/india-muslims-marginalized-population-bjp-modi

https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/fatimakhan

https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/10/07/india-surge-summary-punishments-muslims

https://twitter.com/mkatju/status/863039215738671105

Some feel that their problems will end once the BJP is ousted from power, which can be done by forming an anti-BJP alliance of Opposition secular parties and defeating the BJP in the forthcoming 2024 Indian parliamentary elections. I have expressed my view on this idea in my articles, in which I have pointed out that it is a superficial idea and will solve nothing.

https://www.hastakshepnews.com/opposition-unity-in-india/

https://indicanews.com/2023/06/18/justice-markandey-katju-the-2024-indian-parliamentary-elections/

https://indicanews.com/2023/06/06/justice-markandey-katju-on-rahul-gandhis-visit-to-the-united-states/

I have explained in detail in the following article that the basic problems of Indian Muslims are the same as that of most Hindus viz massive poverty, unemployment, malnutrition, lack of proper healthcare and good education for the masses, skyrocketing prices of essential commodities, etc, and these problems cannot be solved within the present system of parliamentary democracy.

https://indicanews.com/2023/06/16/who-should-muslims-turn-to/

No doubt in addition to the above problems some Muslims have in recent years also been subjected to violence and insults, problems created by politicians for getting Hindu votes, but these have affected only a few hundred ( or a few thousand ) Muslims, and are only a drop in the ocean compared to the huge economic problems mentioned above which affect a vast majority of India’s 213 million Muslims ( see Sachar Committee Report ).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachar_Committee#:~:text=The%20Sachar%20Committee%20concluded%20that,discussion%20that%20is%20still%20ongoing.

It is only a mighty, historical, united people’s struggle, lasting for 10-15 years or more, and in which tremendous sacrifices have to be made, which can solve these problems by creating a political and social order which will lead to rapid industrialisation and modernisation of India, which alone can abolish poverty, unemployment and other social evils. In other words, a social and political revolution is needed in India, and this will solve the basic problems of Muslims too.

https://indicanews.com/2023/03/17/justice-markandey-katju-the-old-is-dead-the-new-is-powerless-to-be-born/

Historical experience shows that every actual revolution is preceded by an ideological revolution, in which the weapons used are not swords, guns, or bombs but ideas. Thus, the great French Revolution of 1789 was preceded by decades of ideological struggle in France by great writers and thinkers like Voltaire, Rousseau, Diderot and the French Encyclopedists who waged a relentless struggle against the feudal system and religious bigotry in France. The same happened in England in the 17th century ( in the struggle between King and Parliament ).

India is presently passing through a period of ideological revolution, that is, it is in the pre-revolutionary stage.

Who will give leadership to the Indian people in this period ? It cannot be our present political parties, for they are only interested in power and pelf, and not the people’s welfare

I submit that at present such leadership will be given by 3 organisations viz (1) Ibaadatkhana (2) Indian Reunification Association (IRA), and (3) Kalidas Ghalib Foundation (KGF). I have explained in detail about these organisations in the article below, and hence I am not repeating its content

https://writerscafeteria.com/guest-blogging/the-need-for-reviving-and-revamping-kalidas-ghalib-foundation/

I appeal to the patriotic secular Indians to join these organisations ( the email ids of its office bearers are given in the article ) and contribute to our country’s emancipation. In particular, I appeal to Indian Muslims ( and also Muslims of Pakistan, Bangladesh and other countries ) to join them and work in them actively. That is the route you should follow presently.

Later, a genuinely patriotic secular political party with modern minded leaders will emerge, to whom these 3 organisations will then hand over the baton.

July 13, 2023
My tryst with Journalist Moeed Pirzada

By Justice Katju

Moeed Pirzada is an eminent upright Pakistani journalist who has been in USA for quite some time. He is bravely carrying on a struggle against the fascist reign of terror unleashed in Pakistan by the Pakistan Establishment.

He and I are both supporting Imran Khan who is bravely leading the democratic forces in Pakistan. Some time back he interviewed me about my article on the eminent Pakistani physicist Pervez Hoodbhoy given below

https://indicanews.com/2023/06/13/justice-markandey-katju-on-dr-pervez-hoodbhoys-superficial-understanding/

The video of the interview is given below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmoDYaAIbNI&pp=ygUda2F0anUgbW9lZWQgZGl2aXNpb24gb2YgaW5kaWE%3D

In this interview I said things which Moeed, and others, would never have heard before, and which may have shocked them.

This article is to elaborate on my central thesis in the interview viz that developed nations will oppose tooth and nail the rapid industrialisation of India ( in which I include Pakistan and Bangladesh for we are really one country only temporarily and artificially divided by a British swindle in 1947 ), because if we become a modern highly industrialised country, like China, with our cheap labour we will undersell the industries of the developed countries, causing them to collapse as they will not be able to face our competition, and millions will be thrown out of employment.

https://indicanews.com/2023/05/14/justice-markandey-katju-a-response-to-dr-akbar-ahmed/

On the other hand, our goal must be to rapidly industrialise and modernise India, for only then can we abolish the curse of massive poverty, unemployment, child malnutrition ( every second child in India is malnourished according to Global Hunger Index ), almost total lack of proper healthcare and good education for the masses, etc. which have plagued our country for centuries.
Thus our interest directly conflicts with the interest of the developed countries, and so our goal can only be achieved by a mighty historical united people’s social and political revolution, which will be opposed tooth and nail by the developed countries ( as their aim is not to allow India to emerge as a modern industrial giant, like another China, for then with our cheap labour we will undersell their goods and make them uncompetitive ).

Historical experience shows that every actual revolution is preceded by an ideological revolution, in which the weapons used are not swords, guns, or bombs but ideas. Thus, the great French Revolution of 1789 was preceded by decades of ideological struggle in France by great writers and thinkers like Voltaire, Rousseau, Diderot and the French Encyclopedists who waged a relentless struggle against the feudal system and religious bigotry in France. The same happened in England in the 17th century ( in the struggle between King and Parliament ).

India is presently in the stage of the ideological revolution, that is, the pre-revolutionary period. Clarity of ideas is absolutely essential in this period, but unfortunately these are missing. Our so called ‘intellectuals’ are really superficial thinkers who have little understanding of realities. My aim is therefore to provide this, and I have tried to do it in brief in my interview with Moeed ( as well as in several articles ).

As I explained in my interview, politics is concentrated economics, and so to understand what is going on in current history we must delve into economics.

Cost of labour is a big chunk of the total cost of production, and so if the cost of labour is less, the cost of production is less, and one can sell his goods at a cheaper price and undersell his business rivals. The same happens at the national and international levels.

To give an example, China had a revolution in 1949. Before that China was a very poor and backward country, with about 90% or more people being poor peasants. But after its revolution the Chinese leaders set up a massive industrial base, and that coupled with the cheap labour available in China enabled the Chinese to undersell the whole world in consumer goods ( and also some other goods ). If one goes to a Western supermarket he will find it packed with Chinese goods, because the Chinese can sell their goods at a significantly lower price than goods made by a Western manufacturer ( because Western labour is expensive ).

Indian labour is even cheaper than Chinese labour. So if we set up a massive industrial base in India will the developed countries be able to face our competition ? No, they will collapse, throwing millions out of employment. Will they easily permit that ? No, they will oppose it tooth and nail. And how do they oppose it ? By making Indians fight each other in the name of religion, caste, race or language. This was the real reason for partitioning India in 1947 on the basis of the bogus two nation theory ( that Hindus and Muslims are two separate nations ).

https://indicanews.com/2023/03/09/justice-markandey-katju-indian-reunification-is-an-idea-whose-time-has-come/

https://www.nation.com.pk/02-Mar-2013/the-truth-about-pakistan

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/pakistan-is-a-fake-country-markandey-katju/articleshow/18353631.cms

I have explained all this in my articles given below

https://indicanews.com/2023/02/22/the-puppeteer-and-the-puppets/

https://indicanews.com/2023/05/07/justice-markandey-katju-india-the-sleeping-giant-will-awake/

I may be having more interviews with Moeed shortly

July 9, 2023
If I forget thee O Allahabad, may my right hand perish

By Justice Katju

Even 2000 years of their diaspora Jews still say ” If I forget thee O Jerusalem, may my right hand perish ” ( Bible : Old Testament : Psalms : 137.5 ).
So also, I say ” If I forget thee O Allahabad, may my right hand perish ”.

Of my 77 years, I have spent 58 years in Allahabad ( Prayag ).. So I can rightly claim it is my city, which has made me what I am today.
This is the city where Lord Ram came after his exile from Ayodhya, and met Rishi Bharadwaj in his ashram on the bank of the sangam ( the confluence of the rivers Ganga, Jamuna, and the legendary Saraswati ).
https://www.nativeplanet.com/travel-guide/places-visited-by-lord-rama-prayag-002486.html#:~:text=Prayag%20is%20where%20Lord%20Rama,major%20places%20connected%20to%20Ramayana

This is the city about which the poet Tulsidas wrote in his Ramcharitmanas :
” Ko kahi sakai Prayag prabhau
Kalush punj kunjar mrigrau ”
( Who can tell the greatness of Prayag ?
It destroys all sins, like a lion which kills an elephant )

This is the city where Emperor Harshavardhan held his assembly in the first Kumbh Mela in 643 A.D. in which he honoured saints and scholars of all religions ( including the Buddhist Chinese pilgrim Hieun Tsang ) and then gave all his wealth to the poor, borrowing a cloth from his sister Rajyashree to cover his naked body.

https://www.historydiscussion.net/biography/harshavardhans-empire-sources-accession-and-other-details/3084

This is the city in which Kumbh Mela assemblies are held every 12 years, the largest congregation of people anywhere ( 200 million in 2019 ).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumbh_Mela#:~:text=Each%20festival%20attracts%20millions%2C%20with,the%20festival’s%20most%20crowded%20day.

This is the city where Hindus immerse the ashes of their dead in the sangam.
This is the city which was a centre of the Indian freedom struggle
This is the city which has produced great scholars, poets and jurists.

In Allahabad I met several people who were intellectually superior to me ( they are all dead now ), and I sat at their feet like a humble student listening to their rational explanation of things, events and treatises, until I too built up a huge store of knowledge.

Though born in Lucknow, I grew up in Allahabad. I was a student there in the Boys High School and the Allahabad University, then a lawyer in the Allahabad High Court, and finally a Judge in the High Court from 1991.

My exile fom Allahabad began in 2004 when I was appointed Chief Justice of Madras High Court, and since then I have remained out of the city ( except for a few short visits ).

The geat Urdu poet Munawwar Rana has written these verses about Allahabad in his long poem ‘Mohajirnama’ ( which was descriptive of the lament of mohajirs who had migrated from India to Pakistan at the time of Partition, but later regretted it ).
” Gale milti hui nadiyan, gale milte hue mausam
Allahabad ka kaisa nazaara chhod aaye hain
Kal ek amrood waale se kehna pad gaya mujhko
Jahaan se aaye hain is phal ki bagiya chhod aaye hain
Kuch der to woh takta raha mujhko, phir bola
Woh sangam ka ilaaqa chhoota, ya chhod aaye hain ?
Abhi hum sonch mein the ki usse kya kaha jaaye
Hamaare aansuon ne raaz ugla chhod aaye hain ”

The same is my plight, which cannot be described in words. I miss Civil Lines, Chowk, Katra, my school, the University, the High Court, the Coffee House, the sangam, etc, but all that has gone with the wind.

July 6, 2023
IMF Grants $3 Billion Loan to Pakistan: A Cause for Celebration or Concern?

On knowing of the IMF decision to grant a 3 billion dollars loan to Pakistan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan Shahabaz Sharif said repeatedly in a press conference ” Alhamdulillah ”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fdu9qnr-08&pp=ygUXc2hhaGJheiBzaGFyaWYgaW1mIGxvYW4%3D

Many Pakistanis are gloating over this loan by the IMF as if it is the end to all their economic woes. The Pakistan stock exchange has rallied, currency exchange rate has improved, and there is an atmosphere of glee and revelry in some quarters.
However there is another, darker side to the picture.
It is a loan, not a gift. Pakistan already has external debt of over 126 billion dollars, to which this will be added.

https://www.orfonline.org/research/debt-ad-infinitum-pakistans-macroeconomic-catastrophe/#:~:text=During%20April%2DJune%202023%2C%20the,burden%20is%20US%24%204.5%20billion

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/pakistan-needs-to-pay-usd-77-5-billion-in-external-debt-risk-of-default-real-says-us-think-tank/articleshow/99323626.cms.

This loan will cover less than the cost of Pakistan’s monthly import bill.
Loans carry interest, and this fresh loan will add to the debt servicing bill, which is already very high ( about 4.5 billion dollars )

https://www.brecorder.com/news/40247035
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2406940/cost-of-debt-servicing-up-to-rs318tr

The iMF reportedly set very strict conditions before granting this loan.
For instance,
(a) the heavy subsidy on electricity supplied will be removed. This will raise electricity rates to historic heights, affecting everyone in Pakistan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhFXSw0MZMs&pp=ygUmcHJpY2VzIGluIHBha2lzdGFuIHJpc2UgYWZ0ZXIgaW1mIGxvYW4%3D
(b) Duty on petroleum products will sharply increase
(c) There will be 220 billion dollars worth additional taxes
(d) Prices of essential commodities like food will rise

This reminds one of the situation in France before the French Revolution of 1789. The situation then was that the French monarchy was heavily in debt to foreign bankers ( mainly Dutch ). This was because of the heavy cost of supporting the American War of Independence (1775-81), and even more because of the great deficit between government income and expenditure ( primarily because, by feudal convention, the nobility could not be taxed ).

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/efforts-at-financial-reform/

The French Finance Minister, Necker, who dared not tax the powerful nobles, took loans from foreign banks to pay the huge debt. His successor, Calonne, went even further. He initiated huge public spending, thinking this will impress the creditors into granting more loans.

However, this plan backfired, because the Dutch and other foreign bankers realised they would never recover the loans ( what to say of interest ), and so a time came when they outright refused to grant any further loans. This led to the calling of the Estates General in 1789 and the French Revolution, in which many heads rolled.

I am afraid the Shahbaz Sharif Govt is heading in the same directiion. Can a government run forever on foreign loans ? The people of Pakistan are already suffering terribly in the economic crisis which has gripped the country. Taxing them further, directly or indirectly, as the IMF loan in essence requires, may well break their backs

July 4, 2023
Ending caste discrimination

By Justice Kaju
These days laws are being made in some states of USA against caste discrimination.
https://indicanews.com/2023/06/30/more-than-20-orgs-join-hands-to-form-america-against-caste-discrimination/
https://indicanews.com/2023/05/11/sb-403-california-senate-passes-bill-banning-caste-discrimination-in-state/
https://indicanews.com/2023/02/22/seattle-makes-history-first-in-u-s-to-pass-bill-banning-caste-based-discrimination/
https://indicanews.com/2023/04/26/californias-caste-discrimination-bill-sb-403-passes-judiciary-committee-with-an-8-0-vote/

I submit that such laws are largely gimmicks. Caste and caste discrimination can only be ended by changing the mindsets of most Indians, and this requires a mighty historical social revolution in India.

http://justicekatju.blogspot.com/2016/01/the-caste-system-in-india-this-is-old.html
The truth is that most Indians who migrate to the West carry their caste baggage with them wherever they go.
To give an example, in USA there is an organization called TANA ( Telugu Association of North America ) consisting mainly of people from Andhra/Telengana belonging to Kamma caste. There is also an organization called NATA ( North American Telugu Association ) consisting mainly of Reddy caste. There is even an association of Komatis ( Vaishyas of Andhra ) and a Telugu Brahmins Association in USA.
https://www.guidestar.org/profile/54-1994983
There is even a Brahmin Samaj of North America, and other caste organisations.
https://bsna.org/
I was informed by a reliable friend who lives in Fremont, California, USA that some time back a cricket match was played in Fremont between a team of Reddys and a team of Kammas ( Reddys and Kammas are castes in Andhra Pradesh ), which was abandoned midway as a result of a physical fight between members of the two teams.
I was shocked on hearing this. How could casteist teams be formed in California, and how could a fight take place between them in California ?
This shows how deep rooted casteism is in India. People who travel 13,500 kms ( the distance between India and California ) can still not leave behind their caste baggage, despite coming to a highly developed country.
Can socioeconomic evils can be abolished simply by making laws against them.? I submit that they cannot, and it is silly and puerile to think they can.
Supposing a law is made abolishing poverty and unemployment ( which too result in social discrimination, as caste does ). Will that abolish them? No, such a law will remain on paper only, and unimplementable. Jobs are created and poverty abolished when the economy is rapidly expanding, that is, by rapid industrialization, but the Indian economy is presently stagnant.
Similarly, caste and caste discrimination cannot be abolished by merely making a law against them. They can only be destroyed by a mighty united people’s revolution which destroys the present semi-feudal society in India and replaces it with a new modern society led by modern-minded patriotic leaders.
In the Indian Constitution, it is written that India is a secular country. However, the ground reality is very different. In fact, India is a very communal country, in which most Hindus are communal, as are most Muslims. So, the Constitution is just a piece of paper, whose provisions may have nothing to do with ground realities.
Similarly, Articles 14 to 18 of the Indian Constitution proclaim equality in India. But the caste system, which has been coming down from centuries, makes a mockery of these provisions.
When I was Chief Justice of Madras High Court one day a High Court Judge who was a Dalit came to meet me with his wife. His wife was an upper caste Hindu, and she told my wife that she had a love marriage with that Dalit Judge. But when they married, her relatives performed her funeral rites, saying she was dead for them, and thereafter had nothing to do with her.
Even today for a Dalit boy to fall in love with or marrying a non-dalit girl is often inviting a death sentence ( ‘honor killing’ ). Dalits are regularly discriminated, assaulted, and insulted in India in several ways even today.
I submit that great social evils cannot be destroyed by merely making laws against them, but by historical social upheavals of the people.

July 4, 2023
Indian politics is setting new records.

By Justice Katju
” Jeevan ka safar hai toolaani
Yaan ikraani hai naadaani
Jo Shahsawaar maahir hain
Woh raah badalte rehte hain ”.
( Life’s journey is long
Staying at the same place is foolishness

The expert horseriders

Keep changing their routes )
On 27th June this year Prime Minister Modi accused Sharad Pawar’s NCP as being involved in various scams of Rs 70,000 crores e.g. Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam, Irrigation scam, illegal mining scam, etc

Yet just 5 days later on 2nd July a section of the NCP, led by Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar, joined the BJP which is in power in Maharashtra. These defectors were promptly rewarded, Ajit Pawar being made a Deputy CM, and others being made Ministers.

https://www.indiatoday.in/india-today-insight/story/what-ajit-pawars-defection-brings-for-prime-players-in-maharashtra-politics-2400918-2023-07-02

It is interesting to note that corruption charges had been levied against many of these defectors by the Enforcement Directorate of India, but these tainted defectors have now become Ministers ! Their cases will now obviously be put into the cold storage.
Defection is nothing new in Indian politics. In 1967 Chaudhury Charan Singh defected 3 times in 3 days. In 1980 Bhajan Lal defected to Congress with almost all his MLAs. The list of ‘Aya Rams Gaya Rams’ in India is very long.
https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/states/story/19800215-bhajan-lal-35-janata-mlas-join-congressi-806443-2014-02-10
But this latest defection takes the cake. In 5 days the defectors have been transformed from heavily corruption tainted figures ( as described by the Prime Minister ) to snow white clean saints.
Indian politics reminds me of the Mad Hatter’s tea party in Alice in Wonderland !

July 3, 2023
Tavleen Singh’s superficial thinking

By Justice Katju
In her article published in Financial Express on 25.6.2023 the journalist Tavleen Singh lamented over decline of freedom of speech and democracy in India in recent times.

https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/fifth-column-by-tavleen-singh-democracy-in-our-dna/3141287/

She writes ” Sadly, when democracies become places in which dissidence and free speech are seen as crimes, when religious minorities are wrongly targeted, and when political opponents are crushed by the repressive organs of the state, they are called autocracies and not democracies ”.

The problem with Tavleen Singh and other so called ‘liberal’ and ‘independent’ journalists is this : they treat democracy and freedom of speech as a fetish, an object of worship, like a holy cow, which will last for ever.
I, on the other hand, regard freedom and democracy as only a means to an end, not an end in itself. The end must be raising the standard of living of the people, and giving them decent lives.

What use is democracy and freedom of speech to a man who is hungry and/or unemployed ? He needs concrete things like food and a job, not abstract freedoms.

In India we have massive and widespread poverty, unemployment, child malnourishment ( every second Indian child is malnourished according to Global Hunger Index ).

https://byjus.com/free-ias-prep/global-hunger-index/#:~:text=India%20ranks%20107th%20out%20of,countries%20covered%20in%20the%20GHI.

Proper healthcare and good education are not available to the vast masses. Prices of essential commodities like food are skyrocketing.

Freedom of speech can no doubt help the people in their historical united struggle which they must wage for creating a new political order under which there is rapid industrialisation and modernisation. However, it can also obstruct it.

For instance, speeches spreading hatred between castes and communities should certainly not be permitted, for it destroys unity of the people which is essential for us at this historical juncture.

https://writerscafeteria.com/guest-blogging/unity-of-indians-is-absolutely-essential-at-this-historical-juncture/

Similarly speech or writings promoting unscientific superstitions like astrology should be banned.
The great Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who came to power in the 1920s by ousting the corrupt feudal minded Sultan and Khalifa, did not give freedom to the Turkish people to choose whether they wanted to modernise or remain poor and backward. He ( and his associates ) forced them to modernise by abolishing sharia, burqa, madarsas and maulanas, and he permitted no political party to exist other than his own

So also, in India too people must be forcibly modernised, and for that, perhaps, an enlightened dictatorship is necessary.

We have the system of parliamentary democracy in India, but everyone knows it runs largely on the basis of caste and communal vote banks. Casteism and communalism are feudal forces, which must be destroyed if India is to progress, but parliamentary democracy further entrenches them. The people have therefore to use their creativity and find a suitable alternative, in which India rapidly industrialises and modernises, under the leadership of patriotic, modern minded secular leaders determined to raise the standard of living of the people, and give them decent lives.

Parliamentary democracy and freedom of speech must therefore be understood in the correct perspective, and not treated like holy cows or objects of worship

July 2, 2023
Imran Khan has become an idea which has gripped the masses in Pakistan

Justice Markandey Katju
When Imran Khan became Prime Minister of Pakistan in 2018, and for quite some thereafter too, I was very critical of him.

He had taken help of religious extremists during his election campaign, and had given PTI tickets to dubious ‘electables’.

Soon after becoming PM he had dismissed the renowned economist Atif Mian from the Pakistan Economic Advisory Council, just because he was an Ahmadi.

He had suppressed the press, even getting arrested and imprisoned Mir Shakil-ur-Rehman, owner of Jang Group, in a 34 year old land case, because of some criticism by his newspaper.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1540500

He constantly spoke of Madina ki Riyasat. Speaking of it a few times would be okay, but making a habit of it is going too far.

However, all that is in the past, and we should see the present.

Presently Imran Khan is leading the democratic forces in Pakistan, against the fascist reign of terror unleashed by the corrupt Pakistan Establishment.

He is basically an honest man, who has repeatedly said he will continue living in Pakistan, and not fly abroad like the corrupt Nawaz Sharif ( who was convicted by the Pakistan Supreme Court ). He has no assets abroad, unlike PDM leaders, whose names appear in the Panama Papers, and other credible material. In my opinion all honest and right thinking people everywhere should support him.
Earlier, 70% Pakistanis supported him ( according to opinion polls in Pakistan and the bye elections results ). But now the number has drastically risen, and may be between 80 and 90%. This means over 200 million out of the 240 million Pakistanis support Imran Khan.

Imran Khan is now no longer a person, he has become an idea in Pakistan, representing honesty, truth,and commitment to the people’s welfare.. Even if he is imprisoned or physically eliminated, the idea will live on, like the ghost of Caesar after his assassination.

July 1, 2023