It is a Communication Gap!

The Congress party amazes me by the priceless way they work! It is a political party and they can do what they please.  If the voting public like them they will remain in power or else they would get booted out.  Why should it matter to others?

It would when they deal with people outside the party.  The Congress President is not a mere president.  She is now close to a monarch, an empress, whose wishes are commands for the people within the Congress.  Within the party, a glance from her would ensure that her desire shall be done.  Any one daring to question her would be immediately pensioned and put to pasture. Now, Congress party leaders and members know that very well.

So when Sonia Gandhi meets you, non-Congress fellows should understand this.  They should understand even before audience is granted to you, your case has been cogitated by the spin doctors and they also agree that an audience can be granted.  So the students from JNU and such organizations should realise that they have got a royal decree when she tell them that she would look in to it.  These kids do not understand that emperors and empresses are not to be questioned or doubted!!

When Shinde (Home Affairs Minister) tells us on TV that “Soniaji has met them, what more do they want?”, his surprise is genuine.  Even reasonably senior Congress men do not get to meet her.  So anyone who gets to meet her should consider it a blessing.  When an emperor promises you that you have been heard, you are supposed to genuflect and come away.  And wait for the minions to come to you with the purse.  One is not supposed to say things like “We have heard assurances before” kind of stuff.

While the Congress party is living in the feudal times of 18^th century, the youngsters are living in the 21^st Century.  Their incredulity is born of their natural scepticism of most establishments; the Congressmen’s amazement that anyone could doubt the promise made by Sonia Gandhi is also genuine.  The communication gap is understandable.

Bala@Panaji

Avoiding a Barbarian World?

I have no doubt in my mind that the maximum punishment under the law has to be given to the rapists in the most recent incident in Delhi. I am sure that the no judge is going to spare them if the evidence is presented. I have no issues in the India Gate protestors highlighting the issues connected with the recent rape and trying to broaden the debate to the wider issues of definitions and bringing about a more acceptable definition of rape or molestation. An FIR to be filed, police sensitisation is all necessary.

What I cannot understand is the cry for some punishment which sound barbaric.  Some of the banners hold out demands like “Hang them now”, “Castrate them” and the most horrific one “Treat them the same way they treated the girl”.  That to my mind is unacceptable.

The whole protest is to bring about some order in the society.  A society where each person is able to go about with his or her own life without hindrance. To go about without getting commented or molested or worse raped is a part of that.  More civilised we want the society to be, the more we need to respect the other person’s right. Right to go about the life and let other live their lives.  This also includes how we will correct the wrong doer.  What punishment we will give out and how we will give it out.

Remember, we as a nation got the admiration of the whole world in the way in which we treated Ajmal Kasab.  He waged war on India.  We did not just string him up on the nearest lamp post.  He went to a judge, had lawyers “prove” that he did do wrong and had lawyers defending (at least ensuring that the legal process was correctly done) and then it went all the way up to the Supreme Court and then the President and then he was hanged.  It was probably a forgone conclusion that he would be handed the death penalty. We could have just done it without too much of ado.  Then we would not be a civilised society and pretty barbaric.

In the distant past, before we became civilised, it was common for men to have sex with whomsoever he pleased? Rape was not an issue then.  It is in a civilised society that there is a concept of rape? So those who argue strongly for a civilised society should stop arguing for barbaric punishments? Even if we amend the laws we cannot probably make it applicable for this case? As they would have to be tried under the current rules. 

However we much we may detest them, however much we feel that they deserve more stringent punishment, we have to be law abiding.  Else the difference between the rapists and the rest would cease to exist.

Bala@Panaji