Author Archives: Naim Naqvi

Jun
24
2010

The death of a ‘Love Story’

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The Cecil B. DeMille of Indian Cinema Kamal Amrohi along with Khayyam Saheb were going over and over again through the 200 stanzas submitted by the lyricist for now the famous lyric “Aarzoo kya hai ? Justuju kya hai ?” which could be unsuccessfully translated – “What does the desire mean ? What does the curiosity stand for ?” for their magnum opus “Razia Sultan”. Razia didn’t relish the idea of being a princess. She was confused. She wanted to be a commoner. She didn’t know exactly what she wanted from life? The poet had tried to express her feelings. Every critic worth his salt had hailed the film as ‘landmark’ and predicted that it would beat the records of “Mougl-e- Azam” beofre its release. The film miserably flopped. The language was too Persian zed; Hemma Malini together with Dharmendra failed to impress the movie goers with their acting talents and delivery of dialogues. The giants like Sohrab Modi were also wasted. The only saving grace was the songs of the film.

I’m not going through the sorry tale of “Razia Sultan.” I’m discussing here about the death of the normal ‘Love Story’ in Indian cinema. Why ‘Veer’ and ’Kite’ were not accepted the way it was expected ? Why the films that have happy endings get luke-warm receptions or fail at box office? No one talks about them when they come out the cinema halls. These are pot-boilers at best and never acquire the status of classics.

Either as a film-goers we are shorn off the faculty of appreciation or the presnt style heroic romance is not cut-out in this fast galloping life based on hard realities.

Love is sublime. Love means never having to say we’re sorry ! It has a unique place in our lives. Love stories assuage our evergreen aches for romance. We had nothing in common with the Prince Saleem of Moghl-e-Azam but he steals our sympathy when Anarkali was shown to be placed behind the bricks. Everyone finds a Saleem and a Devdas in himself hidden somewhere in the folds of his busy life. No heroin has garnered so much sympathy of masses than Madhubala when she was fettered into chains and pushed onto the floor of the prison. Love, sufferings and sacrifice are magnificent virtues which defy every conceivable adversity including death. Granted that naked sentiments are vulgar and garish but if expressed simply and sincerely, they are more effective and pass a message. Drugs, naked dances, stormy sex and free love dilute the sanctity and chastity of every delicate imagination. The film with cluttering of these attractions is left with little class and less authority. We have reached a point where a covered female body looks more attractive and graceful than a nymphet showing every possible asset.

For better or worse, most classic Indian Romances pivot round the tales of Leila-Majnoon, Heer-Ranjha, Soni-Mahiwal, Baaz Bahadur-Rani Rupmati and last but not the least Meera-Shyam. Bollywood had reminted and wringed the last drop of juice from these stories. Star crossed lovers born with different of antecedents and ending at the tragic crest leave a viewer with something to brood upon. The smiling and singing family picture at The End impress no one.

My question is – Is human nature more prone to savour the cruel pleasure of an unhappy ending ?

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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Jun
15
2010

Does poverty result from the pathology of the weak?

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I had just finished the last bite of my anti-sugar Veg sandwich; gulped the last drop of sugar-free tea with dregs of absolutely extracted tea-leaves, allowed the specks to explore every available space inside the hidden territories of my mouth and spitted them out expecting tranquility of mind and space. It was now the time for headlines of that day’s newspaper.

But no. It were not to be. A gentle knock at the door heralded the arrival of unsolicited guest – a burqa clad lady ducked in with a child – past no more than six or seven springs. She said she was widowed and dislocated recently. She had left her home turf or mountains to survive in plains. That was her story in the nutshell. She called me Hajiji and asked for help.

“We come across many needy-looking hapless individuals and its difficult for me to distinguish between a fake and a genuine….. How do I know the veracity of your statement ?”
Tear drops glistened behind the veil, they appeared at its edge and vanished under her chin.

“No, I’m the proof and this child is my proof. I’ve nothing to validate further…..may I go Hajiji ?”
“What is your name ?”
She was Taskeena, a widow, looking for survival in the planes …..strange land for the people used to live in mountains. I ultimately felt she was genuine and helped her with the limited alms that were affordable. She left with blessing“Allah apko khush rakhe (May God keep you happy).

Now, it was the time to get connected with the world again which is far flung and directly or indirectly affecting my life.
Today’s newspaper. An insipid editorial and then an article which began the next page:
Don’t feed the Gators!” read a U.S. representative’s sign during the welfare reform debate. “If we feed them, wild wolves become dependent,” noted another. Comparing the poor to wild animals, these legislators continued our political lurch back to a time when poverty was blamed on inferior human beings and not on the flawed political economy of society. It’s a neat trick, this willed innocence that hides the truth: that poverty’s problems are a result of political choices made by the rich and the powerful that further impoverish the poor. The iron fist of power always needs a velvet glove of persuasion – the drapery of a justifying philosophy to legitimate the dominance of wealth over want. This need explains diatribes about the brutality of gators, the dependency of wolves, the pathology of the poor and the virtue of the wealthy. Such theories argue that poverty is a fact of nature and results from the pathology of the weak, thus undercutting claims for collective obligation to design a better society.

That reminded me a sentence I had read a few days back in another magazine – “When the Congressmen came to power after freedom, every hungry militant was called a Communist. When Communists came to power in some states and still kept many people starving, these poor men were called naxalites.

In 1969, addressing a Conference of Voluntary Agencies at New Delhi, the Lok Nayak Babu Jayaprakash Narayan had said, “ I’ve every sympathy for Naxalite people. They are violent people. But I have every sympathy for them because they are doing something for the poor….If the law is unable to give the people a modicum of social and economic justice…………..what do you think will happen if not violence erupting all over ?” The climax of Bhopal disaster took away all my sympathies and respect for Congress. The shenanigans and BJP didn’t impress me. They both did nothing but played the ugly putrid game of power for very long. We need a new Gandhi, we need a new Swaraj and we need our innocence back. We don’t need the agents of capitalism and we don’t need the over-doze of religion. Islamic extremism is linked to the recent rise in international terrorism and the history of Christianity is every bit as blood-drenched as the history of Islam. Gujarat and Surat didn’t portray a rosy picture of Hinduism. Cambodia and Pol-Pot are built up on human skulls and Buddhism failed to solve the miseries of South Asia.

My God, for Your sake, please I don’t need the doctrines that persuade me to hate my fellow creatures.
I threw the newspaper aside and went out in search of the new Gandhi of my dreams.

He was there, just very near to the garbage heap abutting my locality. He is a very common figure in the morning silhouette of this landscape. A gunny bag on his shoulder and his scrawny body that seemed to disappear under his rugged tea-shirt. He was busier than bee in sorting over the bulging throwaway plastic bags there. Perhaps he was hungry.

I call him near.
“Did you take your breakfast ?”
He gave a cynical smile as if I was a source of disturbance in his endeavors to survive.

“What’s breakfast ?”
There is a unimaginably wide gap between haves and have-nots. I took out a couple of tenors from my pocket and ask him to spend the way he wants.

He lifts up his face in bewilderment. Tear drops, the watery garlands appear in his eyes and run on either side of his cheeks. They meet at his chin and plop down on the collar-bone of his shoulder. He is unwilling to accept this token of magnanimity. He comes near and moves back. No thanks ! There he goes.

My eyes darted down with him as he reached the signal that was red. He paddled barefoot between the stopped cars, his body reaching out only halfway up the windows.

I was wondering if one day he would become a Naxalite or the Gandhi of my dreams, Where is Arundhati Roy ? Where is Khalil Gibran. Perhaps they would be able to tell better.

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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Jun
07
2010

Barbaric Action – In the name of Islam

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TO A question – “Is Akbar an ideal for you in any way ?“ in an interview with Professor Gauri Viswanathan of Columbia University the acclaimed novelist Salman Rushdie replied, “No, I worry about the idealism of Akbar, because a lot of that is backwards projection. We want to have a liberal, tolerant, almost democratic man in the 16 th century. But Akbar was a despot. He was a man jealous of his power, and exercised it. So I think what interested me was to write about that conflict in him: between the self that was disputatious and open-minded and the other self that did not anyone to argue with him. Of course he tried so hard to break down the barriers created between the people of India – the barriers created by their different systems. Well, he’s attractive because he has open-mindedness on the subject. He tried to invent a religion that expresses that idea.

Clearly what happened in the case of ‘The Satanic Verses’ is that there was an assumption that I was on one side rather than another, and that therefore my meaning should be found in hostility, rather than in the defense. I think, on the whole, it ought to be possible in any open society to discuss openly how things happen.” Neither I’m an admirer of Salman as a novelist nor I’m impressed by his contorted interpretations of history. However, I believe that freedom of expression in a civilized form is our birth right and I’m perfectly entitled to accept or reject the doctrine I disagree with.What happened in Kerala the other day in broad light has put the Muslims in the darkest corner and put on defensive to those who practice and support secular-democratic cause of the country. The chopping off the hand of college professor was barbaric, anti-human and anti-Islam. Religious tolerance and Sufism go hand in hand.

These saints of Islam had created a culture of Universal Brotherhood based on love, mutual respect, tolerance and open-mindedness. As the creeping annexation of Islamic tolerance taking place under the veiled mask of Wahabiyat we are witnessing the sign of mindless violence around the world. This new doctrine of Wahabism, in the name of purifying the adulteration in Islam, is showing its iron fist in the velvet glove. They are killing in Iraq, in Afghanistan, in Pakistan and around the world. The menace is slowly spreading in India in different garb as Tableeghi Jamat, Salafism and Talebinization. Many of the Muslim youth who have been brain washed in the Wahabbi ideology in Saudi Arabia and other middle eastern states, on return from there, become more Islamophobic and intolerant. They forget that Ganga-Jamuni culture of India is the best way to live in a civilized society. The government and people of the country must guard against these growing fanatic ideologies.

Muslims of India have a special responsibility to arrest these nefarious currents of putrid thoughts that create a wedge between religions and inspire hatred.
Islam allows the difference of opinion and teaches us to respect and respond to all criticism through proper channels. You can’t chop hands and violate the law of the motherland!

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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May
12
2010

Mumbai or Bombay ?

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“Zara hut ke, zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jan.” The melody is old but still ringing fresh like the morning breeze for a lot of Indians who were born and brought up or landed in Bombay before 1993. They have an emotional nostalgic attachment to this very name – Bombay. Till 1993 no other freedom fighter from Maharashtra did ever try it to fiddle with this name. It was when Shiva Sena – BJP combine came to power that they snapped out of slumber and declared that this historical mini-archipelago has everything to do with Mumba Devi and Bombay should be called Bombay.

The pertinent question is – When Bombay is to be called Mumbai why Bala Saheb’s clan have not given up the anglicized name THACKERAY which reminds us the famous English writer William Thackeray of The Vanity Fair? Why did they not changed to Thakre that is pure Marathi ? But it is a trivial matter. Hypocrisy is not any individuals birth right.

Let’s us have a look at the history of Bombay. Tushar Gandhi, this name need no introduction, gives the history or Bombay as follows:
“According to ancient history, a grouping of seven islands comprising Colaba, Mazagaon, Old Woman’s Island, Wadala, Mahim, Parel, and Matunga-Sion formed a part of the kingdom of Ashoka the Great of Magadh, ironically in North India.

The Bhaiyas and Biharis whom the Thackerays accuse of being outsiders in Mumbai, come from the region, which was a part of Ashoka the Great’s empire. We judge everything according to history and the history of Mumbai proves that its earliest known ownership was with a North Indian.

The seven islands of Mumbai passed through many hands, the sultans of Gujarat, the Portuguese and the British. Every ruler left behind proof of residence in Mumbai. The Mauryans left behind the Kanheri, Mahakali and the caves of Gharapuri more popularly called Elephanta. The sultans of Gujarat built the Dargahs at Mahim and Haji Ali, the Portuguese built the two Portuguese churches, one at Prabhadevi and the other St Andrews at Bandra. They built forts at Sion, Mahim, Bandra and Bassien.

The Portuguese named the group of seven Islands ‘Bom Baia’, Good Bay.The British built a city out of the group of seven islands and called her Bombay.”
And now the Mumbai Connection:
“The original settlers of the seven islands, the Koli fishermen, worshiped Mumbaidevi, her temple still stands at Babulnath near Chowpatty. The Kolis called the island Mumbai, ‘Mumba, Mother Goddess’.

“In 1662, King Charles II of England married the Portugese Princess Catherine of Braganza, and received the seven islands of Bom Baia as part of his dowry. Six years later, the British Crown leased the seven islands to the English East India Company for a sum of 10 pounds in gold per annum.

It was under the English East India Company that the future megapolis began to take shape, after the first war for independence Bombay once again became a colony of the British Empire. History has forgotten this but the first Parsi settler came to Bombay in 1640, he was Dorabji Nanabhoy Patel.

In 1689-90, a severe plague epidemic broke out in Bombay and most of the European settlers succumbed to it. The Siddi of Janjira attacked in full force. Rustomji Dorabji Patel, a trader and the son of the city’s first Parsi settler, successfully defeated the Siddi with the help of the Kolis and saved Bombay.

Gerald Aungier, Governor of Bombay built the Bombay Castle, an area that is even today referred to as Fort. He also constituted the Courts of law. He brought Gujarati traders, Parsi shipbuilders, Muslim and Hindu manufacturers from the mainland and settled them in Bombay.

It was during a period of four decades that the city of Bombay took shape. Reclamation was done plug the breach at Worli and Mahalakshmi, Hornby Vellard was built in 1784. The Sion Causeway connecting Bombay to Salsette was built in 1803. Colaba Causeway connecting Colaba island to Bombay was built in 1838. A causeway connecting Mahim and Bandra was built in 1845. Lady Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, the wife of the First Baronet Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy donated Rs 1, 57,000 to meet construction costs of the cau seway. She donated Rs 1,00,000 at first. When the project cost escalated and money ran out half way through she donated Rs 57,000 again to ensure that the vital causeway was completed. Lady Jamsetjee stipulated that no toll would ever be charged for those using the causeway. Today Mumbaikars have to pay Rs 75 to use the Bandra-Worli Sea link, connecting almost the same two islands. Sir J J Hospital was also built by Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy.
The shipbuilding Wadia family of Surat was brought to Bombay by the British. Jamshedji Wadia founded the Bombay Port Trust and built the Princess Dock in 1885 and the Victoria Dock and the Mereweather Dry Docks in 1891. Alexandra Dock was built in 1914. A Gujarati civil engineer supervised the building of the Gateway of India. The Tatas made Bombay their headquarters and gave it the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel and India’s first civilian airlines, Air India.

The Godrejs gave India its first vegetarian soap. Cowasji Nanabhai Daver established Bombay’s first cotton mill, ‘The Bombay Spinning Mills’ in 1854. By 1915, there were 83 textile mills in Bombay largely owned by Indians. This brought about a financial boom in Bombay.
Although the mills were owned by Gujaratis, Kutchis, Parsis and Marwaris, the work force was migrant Mahrashtrians from rural Maharashtra.

Premchand Roychand, a prosperous Gujarati broker founded the Bombay Stock Ex change. Premchand Roychand donated Rs 2,00,000 to build the Rajabai Tower in 1878. Muslim, Sindhi and Punjabi migrants have also contributed handsomely to Mumbai. Mumbai is built on the blood and sweat of all Indians. Apart from its original inhabitants, the Kolis, everyone else in Mumbai, including Thackeray’s ‘Marathi Manoos’, are immigrants.”

I have quoted here a great scholar, a man of honesty and integrity whose credentials are beyond question. He is the founder president of Mahatma Gandhi Foundation. He is also Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson.
These are the facts that look straight into the eyes of those who are eventually lording over the cosmopolitan Bombay. How many times these protagonists who claim themselves the guardians of Kolis visited the Koliwarahs and what did they do to uplift the plight of these original inhabitants of Bombay ?

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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May
10
2010

Narco tests: The Rights and Wrongs

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We have seen the futility of these test made in Arushi Murder Case. According to some experts – persons who have been administered these chemicals can often repeat the interrogators’ words and cues or freely fantasize.

On May 6 th May, 2010 in an article published on Merinews, citizen journalist Subhash Chandra has written as following:

Gautam Swarup of “Nalsar University of Hyderabad” argues In his paper : “The right against Self Incrimination when it applies is an ABSOLUTE RIGHT and is subject to no exception.”

A very fine line has to be drawn to limit the power of State in attempting to acquire such incriminating confessions and prevent abuse of its undisputed power in course of the same.

The contention here is that torturing of a person to extract information from him has been restored to by law enforcement agencies as a convenient, fast and direct method of investigation to bypass the expensive and arduous process of lengthy investigation.

We have accepted this mode of investigation as a way of life as long as the accused is a weak non-entity and a petty criminal. Now, as the new technologies like narco-analysis, brain-mapping, and polygraph tests are making their way into scientific investigations, both the criminals or non-criminals, all are compelled to loosen their tongue during interrogation.

Before the recent Supreme Court judgment it was becoming a fashion to extract the information Chemically without the subjects explicit consent.

Narco Test has acquired popularity off late. Lie Detection and Polygraph Test serial “Sach ka Samna” had put the Reality T.V. shows in India on fire. The Narco-Analysis test is conducted by injecting three grams of sodium pentothal dissolved in water. It is designed to push the suspect towards a hypnotic twilight state where they are questioned several times over to sort out the ambiguities.

It is interesting to know that confessions elicited out through these methods are not admissible as evidence in court.

We have seen the futility of these test made in Arushi Murder Case. According to some experts – persons who have been administered these chemicals can often repeat the interrogators’ words and cues or freely fantasize.

It is a general view that no matter how much more sophisticated the technology used now, it is still a coercive and manipulative investigation tactic, and one that has been rightly regulated by our courts.

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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May
05
2010

The New Mughals set up office at Red Fort

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Red_Fort

Red_Fort

The Director General (DG) of the ASI has decided to take the seat once forcefully vacated by the unfortunate Last Grand Moughal, Bhahdur Shah Zafar. The DG is the new Sarakri Mughal, a new habitu, who has turned Red Fort into a habitat.

TILL DATE we have seen fake god-men, squatters and land grabbers occupying the prime lands in cities and towns. We have also seen the public occupying government lands. However, populating the historical monuments by ASI officials in the name of better services and protection of an old edifice is a new phenomenon, a new depth to which our bureaucracy could fall. It is like the old adage – Rakshak bane Bhakshak.

Now the Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India has decided to take the seat once forcefully vacated by the unfortunate Last Grand Mughal, Bhahdur Shah Zafar. The DG is the new Sarakri Mughal, a new habitué, who has turned Red Fort into a habitat.

Inside the colonial buildings at the 17th Century World Heritage Site, the ASI DG Gautam Sengupta and senior officials have developed two-bedroom sets. The Mughal building of Naubat Khana has been turned into an office. These quarters have undergone a makeover. Fancy tile-work, granite flooring, wooden interiors and air-conditioners are few of the facilities at their disposal at the new residents now.

These are the officials who are supposed to implement the policy of renovation and protection of historic sites.

If the memory of the public is not too short, let them recall the recent amendment in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act 2010. The amendment states: “No permission including carrying out any public work or project essential to the public or other constructions, shall be granted in any prohibited area on or after the date on which the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2010 receives the assent of the President.”

In 2003, the Army was also asked to vacate the Red Fort. There are guest houses located inside the historical building, but they belonged to the British period. It is interesting to note that all annexes for the concerned officers of Archeology, around the world, are temporary in nature.

According to Gurmeet Rai, conservationist and Director, Cultural Resource Conservation Initiative, “The spirit of the monument and its historic value should never be compromised when changes are made to it. Monuments should be put to adaptive reuse, officials should not abuse it.” The Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the Red Fort passed by the UNESCO says while the colonial structures can be used by officials, the Mughal buildings should be left untouched.

In violations of established precedents and an insult to the sacred memories and public interests, Naubat Khana, which houses the site manager’s office, has been redone with latest gadgets and new lavatories. Will these new incursions and innovation not damage the structure? They have put up a huge transformer next to the Hammam. Will it not pose a huge threat to the building in case of any malfunction?

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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May
05
2010

Kasab verdict: A new dawn for Indian democracy

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Kasab verdict: A new dawn for Indian democracy

Kasab verdict: A new dawn for Indian democracy

This judgment given in Kasab’s case is victory of those in uniform who sacrificed their lives to save the lives of thousands of their countrymen on that night of terror. Kasab has been pronounced guilty. It is a victory of Indian democracy.

KUDOS TO Justice M L Tahalyani for completing the proceeding of a complex and sensitive case in a relatively short span of time. Prosecutors also should be given due credit for the commendable job of building up a water-tight case against Ajmal Kassab, who became a willing instrument of mayhem, death and destruction at the hands of Satanic forces.

World has seen the real face of evil operating in the name of religion and freedom. The seven month long trial leaves no skeptic of international politics in doubt that rule of law prevails in India.

It is also a warning for any potential terrorist, individual or organisation, that criminals would not escape the long hands of law and justice would be ultimately prevail. The court has exhibited its utmost fair play in no uncertain terms as it has acquitted Ansari and Sahabuddin.

“The evidences against the accused suffer from many infirmities. It doesn’t inspire confidence in me that evidence ever saw the accused. It is doubtful whether he ever went to Nepal. His evidence is rejected,” the court said. From the hindsight, now, the police has to explain its theories of maps and sketches, proclaimed visits of accused to Nepal etc.

This judgment is victory of those in uniform who sacrificed their lives to save the lives of thousands of their countrymen on that night of terror.

Kasab has been pronounced guilty. It is a victory of Indian democracy. What next? In a transparent society like ours, the questions multiply themselves like the images in the hall of mirrors.

The next logical pertinent question is: What about those who are wagging a undeclared war against the hapless minorities in the name of religion for so long? They are still occupying lofty positions and roaming scot free.

Religious fanaticism and terrorism are concomitant. Bullets from AK-47 on streets or bombs that exploded in crowded markets or Dargahs kill the innocents. There is no thin line of demarcation between perpetrators of these crimes against humanity. Both should be brought to justice albeit as soon as possible. Justice delayed is justice denied.

Here is what director of CBI Ashwini Kumar said the other day: “The blast carried out at the Dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti Ajmeri at Ajmer, Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad and in Malegaon are linked.” I am not interested to know the name and religion of these butchers. Fanatics and killers have no religion. As a proud Indian I want to see them before the court of law; I want to see them punished. All peace loving Indians have to come together to maintain the sanity and sanctity of our motherland. We can’t afford to remain impassive or indifferent. As President Barrack Hussein Obama has once said:

“A struggle that demands we choose sides. Not between black and white. Not between rich and poor. No, it is a choice between dignity and servitude. Between fairness and injustice. Between commitment and indifference. A choice between right and wrong.”

Death to the ideologues and conspirators sitting and plotting against India under the aegis and auspices of Government of Pakistan. Long live Indian Democracy!

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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May
02
2010

How to surmount my ego

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I do always harbor a delusion that I’m a nice man. I feel everyone should have a good opinion if not an fulsome admiration for me. I’m not Mr Perfect but I’m not a bad entity either. If you aren’t necessarily bad, you are a good man. I love the people I come in contact, why can’t they be like me ? Why can’t they reciprocate in the similar vein. Why can’t I get along with every one ? Many people hate me, contradict me and ignore me. One penny question – Am I alone with this complex ? Did I ever ask myself : why the people don’t care for me ?

A wise man has said, “When people say they do not care what others think of them, for the most part they deceive themselves. Generally they mean only that they will do as they choose, in the confidence that no one will know their vagaries; and at the utmost only that they are willing to act contrary to the opinion of the majorities because they are supported by the approval of their neighbors. It’s not difficult to be unconventional in the eyes of the world when your unconventionality is but the convention of your set.” It would give me little relief if I accept this theory.

However, everyone is EGOISTS in this world. The levels may be at variance. Everyone wants to be superior to next person he or she meets. We may hide these feelings in the most sophisticated manner, style and language but we all are hypocrites. We all are the victim of a strange complex which you may term as superiority or inferiority complex. These complexes are invisibly intertwined. Superiority Complex is the acute form of Inferiority Complex.
We all need friends and we have two type of friends. A friend who tells point blank that I’m a loser. I may not like this friend. No one ever likes him anyway. And we have the other kind of friend who will always tell me that I’m a great guy. He lies but still he is the best friend ? It is socially acceptable to offer mild false praise. Its symbolic of mediocrity. We all want to be honest but we end up doing the opposite. Honesty is the best policy but the deliverance of this policy is also an art. Advice delivered in a caustic manner doesn‘t go far. We can’t see our shortcomings ourselves. That’s why it is necessary to surround ourselves with people who will tell us the truth about us – even when we don’t want to hear it. Still we let down the same best friends and they let down us at times.
Let us realize that human nature is prone to egoism. We do always want to receive. We feel ‘giving up‘ could be a virtue and ‘giving in’ is defeat. The law of nature is quite contrary to that. It is based upon altruism. The essential force which binds us is love. The whole balance of existence is based on giving in. The whole flora and fauna give in for us. The ecosystem of the universe revolves around giving in. As Paulo Coelho of “The Achemist’ has said – The whole universe conspires for us when we move forward. The separate objects which surround us work together just like organs within our body. Everything in nature functions that way except for the inner life of an individual that’s me.

I love to receive as much as possible to satisfy myself and I care two hoots about giving the least amount of effort to anyone. I always end up being at the expense of others. Our most outwardly kind and generous acts are done only with the intention of self-gratification. Is it our fault ? Aren’t we were built this way ? Hate, avarice and greed are integral part of our nature. How to mold these negative instincts into a positive energy ? Can’t we just turn around our egoistic nature in a way that allows us to rise above it. Religion and not the science has the solution for this dilemma. “Love our Neighbor as our self – Love others exactly as you love yourself! – Putting their interests before anything else – just like you do with your own self interest now.”

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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Apr
29
2010

How could you kill someone you love ?

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I believe a broken affair should not stink like a rotten fish. There is a good reason to be sad but life is too beautiful to remain melancholy long. If we love someone we have to learn to live with illusions also.

SOME ONE has said, “Love is wanting happiness and everything that is good for your loved one. Love is not wanting someone, it’s wanting what is best for them. I don’t care if he is with someone else, as long as he is happy. Knowing that he is happy is all I need. It’s about sacrifice.”

As one who believed that Love is God its very difficult to understand the unwarranted climax of this Love Situation: The 26-year-old son of a Delhi advocate, Love is God, reportedly committed suicide on Monday after allegedly stabbing his former friend Deepshikha Arora to death inside his car on Monday.

Her body was found in Varun’s car. The car was parked in a clearing near the Cross River Mall in East Delhi.

Police sources said her throat had been slit and there were deep stab wounds on her chest, chin and arms. The 25-year-old was left bleeding, the police said. From a note found near Deepshikha’s body, the police have surmised it might be a case of unrequited love. The note read: “You are not faithful to me. You don’t love me. You love somebody else.” The Mathura police said Varun had thrown himself on the railway tracks.

His father Deep Mehta accompanied Delhi officers to Mathura for identification.

“I’m not here to pass a moral judgment but to understand an ultimate dimension of love that is Marriage. I’m or I’ve an illusion that I’m an eternal cockeyed optimist;I always look for a rainbow after any sorrowful storm. What was there in his mind when Varun Mehta killed the fated unfortunate Deepshikha ?

What was there in his mind in those final fatal moments before Varun threw himself on the railway tracks ? Was it love or just an ephemeral infatuation ? After the girl jilted or he realized that she is not his baby, was it not possible for him to just cling to her memories, often with tears and laughter ? May be she was a good girl but she was, of course, she was not the best. Memories are more soothing and relaxing than marriage and the accompanied humdrum of life. Couldn’t he wait the situation to cool down ? Being a lawyer he must have known a lot of stormy love marriages that end in ugly divorces – within short time. Love and marriage are not the ‘be all’ and ‘end all’ of life.

Why there are so many divorces now a days ? These characters who bulldoze every thoughts of sanity aren’t the real lovers. As the old Indian song goes – “Phalsafa pyar ka tum kya Jano….” Let me emphasize here that if you fall in love, you fail in love. Isn’t strange ? The real lovers grow in love ! It takes time; it demands commitment; it demands sacrifice and it asks for dedication.
I fully agree that no two people and no two situations are perfect. Many lover become peas in a pod. The perfect people often end up in Real Ashrams, Monasteries and Darghas. When you expect nothing you will never be disappointed.

I believe a broken affair should not stink like a rotten fish. There is a good reason to be sad but life is too beautiful to remain melancholy long. If we love someone we have to learn to live with illusions also. Illusions are not always dressed-up lies. When you love someone you don’t hate them to death for mistakes they make. You try to understand them, help them and you don’t disown them.

You can’t fall in and out of love the way you catch a cold.

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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Apr
18
2010

A cruel joke near Batla House

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The Amnesty International report highlights how trials of political or security detainees in Saudi Arabia take place in extreme secrecy and fail to meet international standards of fairness.

Nothing could be a more flagrant travesty of truth, mockery of norms of the civil society and an insult to the dignity of human beings than the following news : “JAMIA MILLIA Islamia has conferred the Doctor of Letters ‘Honoris Causa’ degree on Prince Salman, Saudi Arabia for his contributions to humanitarian causes.”

Whoever is behind this joke of the millennium should know that this felicitation was a slap on the Democratic Values of Secular World Society. I am referring some reports of Amnesty International to open the eyes of JAMEYEES if these are not available in their libraries:

The Saudi Arabian authorities have launched a sustained assault on human rights under the façade of countering terrorism, Amnesty International said in a new report in July 2009.

Thousands of people have been arrested and detained in virtual secrecy, while others have been killed in uncertain circumstances. Hundreds more people face secret and summary trials and possible execution. Many are reported to have been tortured in order to extract confessions or as punishment after conviction.

As recently as 8 July 2009, the Ministry of Justice announced that 330 people had been tried for terrorism offences with sentences ranging from fines to the death penalty. However, neither the names of those tried nor the details of the charges against them were disclosed, maintaining the extreme secrecy of the trial process.

Malcolm Smart, Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program had made the following comments: “These unjust anti-terrorism measures have made an already dire human rights situation worse. The Saudi Arabian government has used its powerful international clout to get away with it. And the international community has failed to hold the government to account for these gross violations.”

Of the thousands detained by the authorities, some are prisoners of conscience, targeted for their peaceful criticism of government policies. The majority are suspected supporters of Islamist groups or factions opposed to the Saudi Arabian government’s close links to the USA and other Western countries. Such groups have carried out a number of attacks targeting Westerners and others, and are officially dubbed as “misguided”. The detained also include people forcibly returned from Iraq, Pakistan, Yemen and other countries.

“The abuses take place behind a wall of secrecy. Detainees are held with no idea of what is going to happen to them,” said Malcolm Smart.

“Most are held incommunicado for years without trial, and are denied access to lawyers and the courts to challenge the legality of their detention. This has a devastating effect on both the individuals who are detained and on their families.”

The anti-terrorism measures adopted by the government since the attacks in the USA on 11 September 2001 have exacerbated long-standing human rights abuses in the country.

Arbitrary arrests and prolonged detention of political and security suspects without trial and without access to lawyers have been long-standing human rights problems in Saudi Arabia. However, the number of people being detained arbitrarily has risen from hundreds to thousands since 2001. Those arrested include Saudi Arabians and foreign nationals.

In July 2007, the Interior Minister reported that 9,000 security suspects had been detained between 2003 and 2007 and that 3,106 of them are still being held. Others have been moved to an official “re-education” program, though it is unclear how they are selected and under what conditions they can obtain release.

Reported methods of torture and other ill-treatment include severe beatings with sticks, punching, and suspension from the ceiling, use of electric shocks and sleep deprivation. Flogging is also imposed as a legal punishment by itself or in addition to imprisonment, and sentences can include thousands of lashes.

The Amnesty International report highlights how trials of political or security detainees in Saudi Arabia take place in extreme secrecy and fail to meet international standards of fairness. In March this year, the government announced that the trials of 991 detainees accused of capital offences had begun in a special criminal court.

I don’t know how the peace-loving students who value the dignity of human life really felt about this felicitation.

Naim Naqvi

Naim Naqvi

Did his graduation in Science discipline from AMU in 1972-73. He was Secretary of University Ali Society in 1970 and M.M. Hall Literary Society in early 70 's and member of Tayyabji Literary Society. Did his Diploma in Bakery Administration from HTT College Oxford Street London in 1987. Worked with National Herald - Delhi, Blitz - Bombay as Trainee Journalist and in Production Department with 'Naya Sansar Pictures' of Khwaja Ahmed Abbas at Bombay in early 70's. Traveled for study and training purposes to Germany, U.K., Switzerland, France, Dubai, Oman, AbuDhabi, Bahrain and Philepines.

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