Putting up with IMAM SIDDIQUE'S ANTICS in Bigg Boss

The following letter was written to Shri Manish Tiwari, on Jan 11, one day before the Bigg Boss Season Six Finale 

Jan 11, 2013

Shri Manish Tewari,

Minister of State, I&B

Government of India

Subject: Socially Wrong Morals and Behaviour Being Justified by Bigg Boss

Respected Sir,

I wish to draw your attention to the undue footage being given to the ethically wrong and socially unacceptable behaviour of a Bigg Boss contestant, Imam Siddique, by the Colors entertainment channel.

It’s amazing that despite Imam’s aberrant behaviour and irritating actions, which often lead to his tiffs with co-contestants, he has made it to the Bigg Boss grand finale. The Colors bosses have gone out of their way many a time to ensure that Imam is not evicted from Bigg Boss. They may be justifying their love for Imam by pointing to his popularity among the audience. For that matter, a porn star can be more popular than Imam Siddique. But, then we can’t show a porn star in action on a national family entertainment channel of India. So, why are we putting up with Imam’s ethically wrong and socially unacceptable behaviour? Aren’t we encouraging many ‘potential’ Imams to become ‘real’ Imams? I don’t know whether the Colors bosses are trying to provide some kind of psychiatric treatment to Imam by retaining him in the show.

For the Colors bosses, it’s quite easy to preach non-violence and other principles of the Father of the Nation by keeping his three monkeys in the garden area of the Bigg Boss house. And, this preaching is just a lip-service, or for the ordinary mortals to follow. Because the Colors bosses are free to show the violent destruction of their rural house and make the contestants living there run for their life.

I vividly remember that in an earlier edition of Bigg Boss, a contestant, PraveshRana, had in a fit of anger destroyed the food stock of the house by throwing it in the house pool. Then Bigg Boss had preached to Rana that when millions of Indians do not get two square meals a day, you have no right to destroy the food. And, next day, a lunch was organized at the house for the children of an orphanage. Now, I think Bigg Boss knows well that millions of Indians also do not have a roof over their head. So, is he planning to build some houses for these people to atone the destruction of the rural house?

We all know TV programmes and reality shows are a multi-crore business. But most of this multi-crore revenue comes from we the ordinary people, who buy the products/services advertised on these shows. The price we pay for the products/services also includes the advertising expenses. A good number of TV programmes are uninspiring, run-of-the-mill sagas of family feuds or the ‘scripted reality shows’. Some of these shows run eternally without touching the issues which affect the man in the street. One pines to go back to good old DD days when serials had to be wound up in 13 episodes, and some serials like Ghalib, EkKahani and Bharat EkKhoj introduced the common people to world-class literature in their own language.

For inspiring people to follow the good aspects of the Indian culture,there is no better medium than 24x7 TV, provided the TV channels’ bosses understand this.

Best regards

Vijay Chawla

A Suggestion to Team Anna

The following letter I had emailed to Team Anna yesterday (Aug 6) to express my views on their decision to join politics: 

Team Anna’s Shot at Politics: Won’t it take Sting Out of the Anti-corruption Crusade?

I wish to draw Team Anna’s attention to the following famous quote:

Power corrupts. Absolutely power corrupts absolutely.

In the context of this quote, I think Team Anna’s decision to turn themselves into a political outfit is fraught with serious adverse consequences for their anti-corruption crusade. To understand my thinking, you just need to know about the original objectives of various political parties the world over or their election manifestoes. No matter how noble were the objectives for whose achievement these political parties had been founded, gradually all parties have compromised on these objectives for clinging to power. I would attribute the straying of these political parties from their stated noble paths to their leaders’ succumbing to basic human instincts of greed, hunger for power, amassing wealth for blood relations, etc.

Before proceeding further, let me introduce myself. I am 50 plus and I have spent all my life in Delhi and NCR. What I am going to write is based on my personal experiences and my little understanding of the way we Indians think and behave.

Now coming back to Team Anna’s proposed political foray. Anna ji and a bunch of his loyalists can remain honest all their life. But, can they guarantee that the candidates they would choose for fighting polls would also prove to be diehard anti-corruption crusaders? Will not they succumb to basic human instincts about which I have just talked? Here Team Anna may offer a solution by way of enacting a law to empower people to recall their corrupt elected representatives. But wouldn’t the implementation of this act lead to a democracy which would be in the election mode perpetually? Such an act may also make it difficult to run stable governments. Here I would like to know whether Team Anna has conducted any research on the existence and implementation of the right to recall in the democratic world, particularly in England and the large democracy of America which is home to diverse cultures like India.

I think we can effectively challenge a system from outside. Once we become part of the system, we become prone to do compromises on our stated principles or agenda for surviving in that system. Needless to say, Team Anna as a political outfit would need a comfortable majority to enact laws, which, as things stand today, is a Himalayan task to muster. Obviously, to succeed in the numbers game, they would have to compromise with their anti-corruption agenda. So, why not compromise now and keep the rulers under pressure?

‘Pretty Good Lokpal Bill’

I am no legal expert, but I have watched Andhra legislator Jayaprakash of Lok Satta Party on NDTV the other day saying the Lokpal Bill which has been passed by the Lok Sabha is a ‘pretty good Lokpal bill’. Mr Jayaprakash says the present Lokpal Bill has about 85% of whatever was demanded by Team Anna. One should believe Mr Jayaprakash because he says that he has been following the Lokpal issue for the past ten years. I think 85% success is a landmark especially when Team Anna representative Sanjay Singh informs us on NDTV that the Lokpal Bill is hanging fire for over four decades. As Mr Jayaprakash says once the bill is passed, it’s not end of the road. A Team Anna-friendly government in future, like the BJP government, can amend it to match it 100% with Team Anna’s draft.

Satyamev Jayate — Hamara Aiana

Over the last two months, Aamir Khan’s Satyamev Jayate ne humko aiane mein hamara asli chehera dikhaya hai. After watching Satyamev Jayate any sane person would not blame solely the Indian political class for the rampant corruption and all the ills afflicting the country. Granted, the political class in an inseparable and dominant component of the governance machinery, and it must take the first blame for corruption and be a willing party for putting in place an effective anti-corruption mechanism.

But, what about religious malpractices and a demoralizing lack of values in a country which is perhaps home to the largest number of believers in the world? Isn’t India the biggest example of people making mockery of religion? If we truly believe in the religious word, then we don’t need any Lokpal Bill, in fact, we don’t need any law. But this is as ideal a perception as Team Anna’s projection of Lokpal Bill as a Rambaan against corruption. Anybody who is in tune with the Indian social realities and the political happenings around the world will subscribe to this view.

If only law, irrespective of whether people have any values or not, could eradicate corruption then China must be a corruption-free country. Because enacting any law and implementing it with an iron hand is not as much a problem in China as it is in India. But China’s score (score 3.6, rank 75) in Transparency International’s corruption perception index* table is only slightly better than India’s (score 3.1, rank 95). This table lists 182 countries. Team Anna may be knowing that in the past, some Chinese firms were found guilty of exporting adulterated milk products and harmful toys. So, stringent laws could not prevent the Chinese straying from the path of fair business for the greed of buck. Here I would also like to draw Team Anna’s attention to what Dalai Lama has said few months back at a Delhi meeting about corruption in India and China. He said, “Corruption in China may be attributed to the Chinese not following religion sincerely, but it is surprising that in a land of believers like India corruption is so high.”

It’s an open secret that for majority of Indians, religion is just a lip-service. A good number of religious places are constructed illegally on government and private land and cause traffic jams and other problems. Among unauthorized religious places, Hindu temples would definitely be the highest in numbers. The Supreme Court had long back ordered demolition of such religious places. Any sensible person would ask: How can you illegally construct a place to worship God, who is supposed to signify and all virtues, at an unauthorized place?

Then we have festivals like Kanwar Yatra and other religious processions which deprive thousands of people of their fundamental right to travel for a living or emergency medical care. And, today when the world over stress is on green living, the Kanwar Yatra participants and their patrons spoil the environment all along the yatra route by using disposable plastic bags, cups, plates, glasses, etc in huge quantities. We can also imagine the immense pollution of the Ganga caused by the Yatra participants near Hardwar from where they start their Yatra.

Every year we celebrate the festival of asatya par satya ki vijay that is, Duesshra. But we don’t have the moral courage to side with truth in our real life. It’s a pity that Ram nam japna has not made us Indians inculcate good values and stick to them. Then we have large fields as Ramlila Maidans all over India which lie useless most of the year. These fields can be converted into good play fields. But, no, mock show of adherence to religion is more important for us than winning golds at Olympics.

I have seen how Blueline buses ran roughshod over Delhi roads for over 15 years, beginning in the early nineties. During my numerous travels in these overcrowded buses in these 15 years I often used to be among the few persons to raise voice against the bus staff’s delaying tactics and other malpractices. But, majority of commuters used to remain mute spectators. And, a good number of commuters had also found a way to compensate themselves against the bus staff’s malpractices. They either did not buy a ticket or simply bought the minimum denomination ticket and travelled the maximum distance. So, basically, we Indians, when faced with malpractices, also indulge in malpractices instead of standing up to fight.

If we sincerely look around, we will come across a number of malpractices which no law can curb. For example, the simple act of making a queue is a BIG NO for lots of Indians. We just can’t have policemen in cinema halls and at railway stations and bus stands to force people to make queues. On these very lines, a visually-challenged participant in Satyamev Jayate had said, “There is a rule that we should not throw banana peels on the road. But policemen can’t be deployed in every knook and corner of the country to enforce this rule. The people themselves have to adhere to this rule.”

I request Team Anna to teach people to inculcate and follow some moral standards in their life. Moral standards are more effective than the fear of law in tackling corruption. And, then in the RTI we have a very effective tool which enables us to circumvent the cumbersome legal procedure to put the corrupt in the government on the mat. Team Anna must encourage people to file applications under RTI whenever they come across fishy government dealings.

Vijay Chawla

*The Corruption Perceptions Index ranks countries/territories based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived to be. A country/territory’s score indicates the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 - 10, where 0 means that a country is perceived as highly corrupt and 10 means that a country is perceived as very clean. A country's rank indicates its position relative to the other countries/territories included in the index.

KBC's love for Narendra Modi —Narendra Modi's Sadhbhavna Mission, hardly undertaken a month ago, and other Modi and BJP related questions are finding place in Big B's KBC. Seems dal mein kuchch kala hai—an orchestration to present Modi as a credible prime ministerial candidate? Is Sony doing it on its own?? Or, is it a kamaal of Modi's media managers??? Anyway, let me remind the Modi company that BJP is painting the town with slogans like Anna Ki Jeet Desh Ki Jeet. Already Yediyurappa's deeds have proved how hollow is this slogan!!! Now, please do not make KBC a means of saffron indoctrination. All the best for Modiji if he becomes Prime Minister by fair means1!!!

Anusha, you are right

'Nothing can happen until people stand up and regulate the system.' Just read your this comment in an IANS news. No person who is well aware of the Indian reality can't disagree with you. But, first congratulations for showing the mirror to politicians, journalists and the society at large through 'Peepli Live'. I've not yet seen the movie. But going by the media reviews, you have done a great job by drawing the nation's attention to a serious problem in a hilarious way. You have hit the bull's eye in your very first shot.

How true are your words to IANS: 'Absolutely nothing will happen, the whole state is doing nothing, how can you think that some people will see it and feel the pinch on what they are doing themselves.... .until people stand up and regulate it (the system).'

The classic case is of people's and media's lethargy about the mess we have made of the preparations for the Commonwealth Games. A crore rupee question is: Why has the media failed to break the stories about substandard and delaying construction of C'wealth projects?
It woke up from its Kumbhakarna-like sleep only when the CVC exposed serious irregularities in C'wealth projects. The media didn't take cue even from Mr Fennel who had warned us about our lackadaisical preparations 8-10 months ago our.

It's an open secret that certain people are making crores and crores illegally in Commonwealth projects. But most of poor labourers who are toiling day and night at C'wealth projects may not be getting even the statutory minimum wages.

A man in the street knows this. A journalist knows more than the common man about the murky goings on. The powerful RTI is there to get to the truth. But who has the guts and time to pin down the corrupt mighty. And, all this is happening under the very nose of over about 800 MPs, the top brass of the Indian bureaucracy and the powerful media houses of India in Delhi, the seat of India's power. Those in a position (inside or outside government) to check or highlight the rot eating into the vitals of India have no time for Mera Bharat Mahan.

Maybe all of them have taken an oath for "Main Chup Rahoonga/Rahoongi Aur Apne Cut Ki Chinta Karoonga. Bhar Main Jaye C'wealth Games or Desh Ki Izzat.' Salaam is Jazbe ko 15 August par jise paane ke liye lakhoon logon ne Angrejon ka atyachar saha or sekkod phansi par char gaye.

Varun, please listen to Obama

About two hours ago, I listened to Obama's address to the Congress announcing his new plan for Afghanistan and Pakistan. His two-pronged plan aims at fighting the Taliban in both the countries with renewed vigour and also providing financial help to the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan for reviving their terror-battered economies. Obama's stress is on widespread social changes in both these countries for the betterment of the large mass of uneducated people to free them from the clutches of the orthodox Taliban.

While listening to Obama's logical pleas to the Congress for enabling him fight the scourge of terrorism, our own Varun Gandhi's recent vitriolic speech came to mind. Shouldn't the young Varun draw a lesson from Obama's book? Varun's bullet-for-bullet philosophy may appeal to many young Hindus who are led to believe that they are living as second-rate citizens in their own country. But the truth, which Varun and the Saffron brigade must understand, is that suppressing terrorism by force is only a temporary solution. For a long-term solution, you have to do the social engineering and bring the terrorist into the country's mainstream.

I personally believe that common cultural heritage, not religion, can truly bond a people. Had religion been a cementing force, Nepal, the only Hindu country in the world, would have never appeared to us as hobnobbing with China against India whose population is largely Hindu. The saffron brigade should know that by dividing people in the name of religion you may rule for a while. But the second shot at the power is a distatnt possibility. The saffron brigade knows this fact too well. Had the religion and the Ram temple been truly residing in the heart of the people, no power on earth could have ousted the BJP-led NDA government.

Advaniji's 'honesty'

"There is nothing wrong in Advaniji criticizing poor Manmohanji," I tell myself. Any politician aspiring to be the next Prime Minister will do the same. But, the upright and honest part of me is not satisfied with the answer of my other part which wants me to behave like a politician.

The honest part argues, ''Advaniji is so concerned about Manmohanji's so-called dependence on 10 Janpath for his every decision. But, did he and other heavyweights in the BJP ever allow Vajpayeeji to function freely as Prime Minister? One classic example of subjecting Vajpayeeji to undue pressure was his going back on his highly critical statement on Gujarat riots in 2002 — Mein videsh ja kar kya moohn dikhayoonga. Not only the BJP heavyweights and RSS functionaries, the NDA coalition partners like Mamata Banerjee and Jayalalitha were also a source of constant headache for Vajpayeeji."

My other part counters, "If Manmohanji was not subjected to the type of pressures that Vajpayeeji faced, it was all due to Sonia's total control over the Congress. On the other hand, poor Vajpayeeji despite being the moderate and nationally acceptable face of the BJP did not find many supporters in his party and coalition for his actions. Otherwise, he would have succeeded in strenghthening both the BJP and the NDA."

The honest part agrees, "Yes, you are right. Had Vajpayeeji been given a free hand like Soniaji has given Manmohanji in running the government, NDA might still be ruling the country. If you have any doubt about Manmohanji's grip over the government, I would like to tell you that renowned journalist Vir Sanghvi has written many times that Manmohanji has run the government in a fairly free manner. Neither the Congress party nor the coalition partners subjected to him the kind of pressure that Vajpayeeji faced."

Oh, it's going to be 11 p.m. I am going to sleep. Rest on the political freestyle tomorrow

'Sab chalta hai' – Aaakhir kab tak?

That our sab chalta culture entails a heavy price has once again been proved by the latest terrorist attack on India's commercial capital Mumbai. Over 150 people have died in the security forces' gunbattle with terrorists in Mumbai's three hotels – Taj, Oberoi and Trident. The loss of precious lives for no fault of theirs also makes a quote of George Bernard Shah on democracy more meaningful, especially in the context of our country. Says Bernard Shah, "Democracy is a device that insures we shall be governed no better than we deserve." In India, the leaders and masses have created such a system of governance that is in tune with this quote. Because from common people to heavyweight ministers – most of the Indians on the one hand try to look the other way whenever they come across something wrong happening if their interests are not harmed. On the other, they are always looking for shortcuts to achieve their small or big objectives – maybe it's jumping the red light to save a paltry one or two minutes or making millions out of public money by dubious means. So, it's not surprising that despite the lessons drawn from previous terrorist attacks in Mumbai and the Sansad Bhavan, despite the Coast Guard, despite our wide intelligence network, the terrorists sneaked into India's commercial heart and played havoc with the lives of the people.

So, we've got the leaders and the government that we deserve. No matter how tainted a minister is, his/her support to a coalition government ensures that he/she will remain out of the bounds of the law so long the government remains in office. Those accused of instigating the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, those charged with destroying the Babri Masjid despite assuring the court about the safety of the same, and so on, will always remain above the law because for political parties and the governments the charity never begins at home when it comes to booking wrongdoing big shots.

Apart from being natural low violators, we Indians also prefer giving knee-jerk responses than learning from what is happening around us. Only in September last, a deadly suicide bomber attack had destroyed a major part of the Islamabad Marriott Hotel but the managements of India's posh hotels did not seem to have anticipated this attack in India, hence no anti-terrorist measures.

Terrorists are trying to attack the very foundation of India but the political parties are more interested about their respective votebanks than taking a unified stand on the effective measures to root out terrorism. For some parties anti-terrorist law POTA is draconian while for others POTA is the best bet against terrorism. ATS chief Hemant Karkare has been martyred in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. However, till a day before his killing the Hindutva outfits had been criticising his team for their so-called high-handed approach in questioning the Malegaon bomb blast accused. It's high time that all political parties agreed to not to question the security forces' investigation because courts are their to verify the prosecution's claims.

Today a political party splashed Delhi papers with a hurriedly booked anti-Congress government ad. This ad, certainly prepared after the latest Mumbai attack, is in bad taste. Please be sincere in creating consensus to fight terrorism, not make others' misfortune a means to achieve your electoral goals.