Delhi has been right royally screwed by all political parties through the decades with inducements of quarter, half, full statehood & then Union Territory status thrown in for good measure.
At one time the only noticeable difference in localities was whether they were managed by the MCD 96% or the NDMC 4% with the Cantonment under a different Board.
However, now anything a citizen points at, the CM directs you to the Centre & the Centre in turn, says it comes under the Delhi Govt…
We turn up for the Lok Sabha & Assembly elections but the importance of the MCD elections is entirely lost on us -
the one which actually determines the quality of our lives.
In my unpopular opinion the capital of the country should be w/the Centre- no matter who is in power!Period. That’s the only way this will work
Stop passing the buck at the expense of our lives.
One would think Rahul has finally found his calling.
Not for him the responsibility & accountability that comes with the post of a Party President; that ties one down to the administrative, mundane, nitty gritty, interacting with regional leaders & worse, beholden to a fickle
electorate that can cast their vote this way or that, even after cheering wildly at road shows & rallies, leaving a President holding the can of electoral defeats docked against his name for posterity.
As if two consecutive Lok Sabha elections wasn’t bad enough & assembly
elections one has lost count of.
So for him these shine-bright postcard-capture moments work well, thank you. As that is all, he’s willing to give of himself.
Walking with a tiny tot wearing a hijab.
Holding an elderly woman close to his heart.
Enjoying a sugar cane.
More than a decade ago I was pleasantly surprised when on a visit to India a young niece who had been brought up for most of her life in the US recited the Hanuman Chalisa fluently, without hesitation, with her other cousins.
Her mother told me how it came to be.
At the age of 8 my niece asked her parents, both successful & busy doctors, if she could become a Christian…
All her friends had such fun on Sunday with Sunday school, church, camps where they bonded over campfires, story telling sessions & sing along hymns.
When my cousin explored further she found their Sikh friends went to the Gurudwara of course, but also had a Granthi come home for a few days of the month for the children.
As did her friends of the Muslim faith have a Maulvi teach the Quran.
Many of us have friends & extended family members of other faiths who have for long participated & enjoyed our celebrations as we have reciprocated theirs.
However, this sudden interest in #GarbaNight & this push that it should be open to all by the very people who through
the year mock every belief, tradition & ritual & till last week were happily posting on social media with the same toxicity…has been a surprise.
So it is not without reason that we, who once took great pride in sharing with openness our culture & festivities are now wary
& distrustful of these new enthusiasts.
We would then naturally prefer they stay afar than mar a happy time & leave a bitter taste.
It must be said however, that anywhere in the world, music concerts, shows, establishments of repute hold the right to deny admission.
On a cold, wet afternoon in Brussels a 17yr old girl walked into a chocolate store absolutely awestruck at the mouthwatering array displayed.
Chocolatiers such as Godiva, Neuhaus, Leonidas were only names in foreign magazines & here she was actually taking in the aroma…!
This, this & this she said, savouring every moment of the selection while a young man carefully placed her pieces into a box, which in itself was a beauty.
Till she stopped at a tray of beautiful chocolate hands. Hands?
Why hands? She asked the young man.
It’s a Belgian - how do you say - he turned to an elderly man at the till - a Belgian delicacy.
But what is the significance of hands? persisted the young girl.
I will find out & tell you when you come the next time.
Today any chavvani worth politician, activist, political analyst doesn’t think twice before cursing & abusing PM Modi night after night on Prime Time TV & they say democracy is dead in India.
Two bit journalists have made a livelihood on malicious lies & falsehoods & they say there is no freedom of speech.
Forget about authoritarian regimes like China or military-run Pakistan where they would disappear in a jiffy for a even hint of what they do here.
In western democratic countries the State would come down with an investigation, immediate incarceration, destroying reputation, career, personal life.