Modi Has Won The Battle - But The War Has To Be Won !

Today my mother in law went to the bank here in Jaipur to exchange her old currency notes with the new ones .She –like the rest of us – is entitled to 2000 rupees per week .She was apprehensive ,but decided to take the risk .After all – some sections  of the Press ,political parties and some sections of society , have been raising the spectre of long queues causing immense hardships that could lead to violence .However she came back  gushing with praise .She recounted how orderly the queues  were  and how optimistic and willing the people were to sacrifice their comforts because they felt the PM had    “morally” made  the  right move ! From a AAP supporter ( she is a Delhi resident ), she was “Modified”!! And by the way ,my  mother in law is no greenhorn to  politics .She can teach a thing or two to economists and political scientists .She reads the newspapers on her smart phone and uses facebook and twitter.She is wise and a survivor of the Partition.She has seen it all –from Nehru to Modi .She is up there with a very informed  political opinion .1

Yes ,Modi  seems to have  won the demonetization game .The teething problems will continue for sometime.Everyone is prepared for that .One does not need to a rocket scientist to know that the Kejriwals and Mamtas  would whip up frenzy .One does not need to be expert in differential and integral calculus to predict that the “award wapasi” brigade and communist dominated university intellectuals ( all have  studied in American Universities and send their  kids there  too ),will try to intellectualize a simple idea and tie it into knots of abuse and negativism   . However the positives  of the idea has gone deep and far into the corners of India

I am not a Lutyens Delhi man and live in close proxity to rural areas .I interact with a huge army of  rural poor  with whom I work .I also interact with a huge class of educated citizenry  on a daily basis .Most feel that what the PM did was that he took  a calculated ,bold ,innovative decision .He took the risk because he feels for India .

It is a excellent move .Out  of the box  disruptive  thinking is required in a country like ours .The aspiration and the dream must always be beyond our means .When John Kennedy said in the early sixties that he dreamt of putting a man on the moon – we all laughed .When we saw movies in the 90s  of cars without drivers we all laughed .We laughed at a lot of things and we criticized a lot of things .That is becoz in our  mind  we never imagined the way some game changers do – the Einsteins ,the Zuckerbergs ,the Steve Jobs .A “disruptive” idea holds the key to progress in todays world .It has to be really disruptive to be effective – remember how the cell phone eased out the telephone , or how the transistor chip eased out the radio ,how a laptop eased out the PC , how cell phones are easing out lap tops , how emails killed the postal service ,or how digital cameras killed “roll cameras”? These ideas caught us unaware and we slowly adapted to a better lifestyle.We felt uncomfortable with cahnge initially .

I haven’t been able to understand the  argument  of those who are opposing the move – do  they want the black money to be eliminated ? If yes – then what is the best option to do that ? And if that option existed – then why has  it has not been exercised till now  7 decades since independence ?And if it has been exercised ,then why are there no result? And if better options are there – how many decades more will it take for them  to bear fruit ? Can India wait ? They need to make their stand very clear – they cant run with the hare and hunt with the hound .

The man from Gujarat exercised  the best option .He has thrown the dice .There is no point about complaining about its implementation .Any refinement of the implementation part before it was introduced , would have led to the leakage of the a measure that ,depended on secrecy The success of it would depend on  adhocism as the system ( people) responded once it was declared  The very fact that the government is responding on a near day to day basis proves that it is dynamic and responding and adapting  whenever  required

There is no doubt that the citizens are furious, but they will NOT  punish Modi for it .He has already gotten away with it, only the extent of his rewards is unclear.

Why ? Because there was a message which was loud and clear .It was a message that had nothing to do with your caste or your religion .It was a message that was based on the twin pillars REMOVAL OF CORRUPTION AND NATIONAL SECURITY. It was a message that what we leave behind for our successive generations must be worth it .We  cant  leave behind something  cancerous and moth eaten .

This may not be apparent at first glance, especially if you are not very fond of him.But there is observable evidence that the general public is with him.

It is our only chance to eradicate corruption .We must use his charm ,guts ,honesty and great orotorial skills to create a new India .He connects very well with the masses .He seizes every opportunity .Look at the way he seized the opportunity at the Coldplay concert yesterday to connect with the people  via a video  address, and quoted lines from Bob Dylan’s iconic song, “The times they are a-changin”.and said 

“You have been smart in asking me to only address the gathering and not sing, else I’m pretty sure your audience would be asking you for their money back, and that too in Rs 100 notes,”.!!! He rocked !!

Methinks - he has won the battle !!.But remember - the war has yet to be won .


(Please share if you agree and become a stakeholder for removal of corruption .)

Down Memory Lane - Remembering Jaswant 30 years down the line !! Part 1.

25 Kms North of Amritsar is a place called Chowk Mehta .It houses  the Damdami Taksal ,a  seat of Sikh learning and education .Tucked away almost unknown to the outside  world ,it sprang into prominence when one of its heads ,held the country to ransom .He was instrumental in instilling fear in the minds of many like  us who by birth were as close to any Sikh in any part of the world .Then, as  now, we always made our way to the nearest gurudwara in our vicinity with the same regularity as to a temple or a masjid  .It was a  bond (between us and the Sikhs ),that no one had ever dared to drive a wedge through .It was also crystal clear that  no one would succeed if they attempted .

 Sant Bhindrawale tried to do the impossible .He was headquartered at Chowk Mehta from where  lists were prepared and  diktats sent  to carry out gruesome killings of Hindus .He had a narrow support base -but it was a  ruthless and committed one  .Those  who did not support his ideas ,were confronted with a choice –leave or be prepared for the repercussions .Maybe death ..

Jaswant Singh chose to leave Chowk Mehta.

“I have come to teach here .Why have you come ?To sell "andaa" and chicken on a cycle .It does not make sense to me ” ?I had asked, as a young teacher at Rai  .It was a logical question.

“How can one stay in a place where we are told that Hindus are our enemies . How can one stay in a place when people tell you that a separate country Khalistan is going to be created ? They keep saying   "Sikh ik vakhri qaum hai. (Sikhs are a different race)  .In our family we have Hindus .And in our family I have relatives in Andhra ,Maharastra and Assam .Sa…la , Ch…..ya,  sanoo bewakoof  samajdeh hai “ ( they think we are fools”) .He was a raw and rustic man .But he was a true secularist and a nationalist .

Rai is a residential school .And having the mess food day in and day out was uphill task –even though the food  was top class .But even top class food loses its edge once it becomes repetitive , predictable and assured  .By the time I had spent my first year at Rai ,I knew what was going to be served for breakfast on Monday ,lunch on Tuesday or dinner on Saturday !! We always had the option of eating at the world class dhabas at Murthal but one could not do that very often .The distance and the pocket protested sometimes .

Jaswant Singh changed all that .He gave us options .He peddled raw  eggs and  dressed chicken and it suited us fine .I always preferred having boiled eggs which were warm ,and cook my own chicken and share it with my other bachelor friends .He would announce his arrival by ringing the bell of his cycle three times !! I would open my door and inspect his eggs and chicken .One day I told him that the eggs were too small and so were the chicken .I was at the prime of my life and had taken to playing squash daily .I had fairly good biceps .I flexed my muscles and showed them  to him.

“I need  big eggs and chicken to feed my biceps” I boasted !! Get me big eggs and a good “kooker” (chicken).And I expanded my chest !!

He was quick to retort

“If you eat the eggs  and the chicken I supply you ,you will be like this”, and proceeded to show me his biceps !!And I swear ,they were really big and bulging !!And as a afterthought he said

“But you wont get them  ,because you are a Amul eating man .Desi ghee khaaya karoh(eat pure ghee).” he added with a smile and a hearty laugh !!

“Can you get me desi ghee”, I asked ?

“Of course I can .You just have to tell me a day or two in advance .I will get you desi ghee and looni makkhan (white butter). You need it .”!!

That’s how I started to eat farm fresh eggs,farm fresh dressed chicken ,desi ghee and looni makkhan !!Jaswant  started feeding my body . From  a acquaintance ,he became a friend .I would talk to him in Punjabi  .I asked him once whether he travelled to Punjab often .

“Of course I do .I have some land there .I will return once the madness is over .I don’t  like it much here .I feel homesick” .Punjab at the time was in the grip of terrorism .Terrorists used innocent  human beings like Jaswant as couriers  to pass messages to each other  or hide in their homes .And if the police came to know of such incidents ,then the innocents were targeted .People like Jaswant were caught in the crossfire of the Police and the Terrorists .No one was obeying or playing the game according to rule .Punjab lurched from one gory incident into another .I got married .The Principal of the school changed .And for reasons best known to him ,he stopped the entry of Jaswant into our school campus .I don’t know what the reasons might have been .I could not understand  why he ordered the cutting down of  eucalyptus trees and  targeting  people like Jaswant .Jaswant stopped coming .

In the mayhem of terrorism ,I lost my brother in law who was a senior IAS Officer .Jaswant came to meet me .On his cycle but without his eggs ,desi ghee ,and chicken .I was grieving and trying to cope with the tragedy .I heard the bell of the cycle ring 3 times .I got up and opened the door .........

To be contd and concluded tommorow .

Demonetization -When One Is At The Crossroad Of History , Speak Up .

One should not and cannot remain neutral when one is at a crossroad of history .The demonetization move by the PM is the single biggest and most revolutionary attempt to remove corruption .Those indulging in pessimism and casting aspersions on its success ,don’t even know what else is up his sleeve .Those marching to the Rastrapati Bhavan are doing something good – they are walking !! Its good for health .

I watched the debate in the Rajya Sabha yesterday for sometime .The opposition parties have clearly lost the plot .They are barking up the wrong tree by deputing journalists ( all beneficiaries of the “ancient regime”, ), and getting sound bites from the elite  - the “award wapasi brigade”.The collective picture that is being “manufactured”, is that India is on the verge of riots and economic anarchy .!!

That is far far away from the truth .The truth is that people are willing to wait and the queues are getting shorter .I have made sure that I try to get a feel of the mood of the crowd .I have been out on the streets and talked to them in detail. I was surprised as to how much of goodwill the move has generated for the PM .He has a huge task cut out for himself – will the results of this move ,translate into facts ? That’s the risk the PM has taken .And that’s a risk every game changer  takes .

Of course some parties who have a few seats in parliament and state assemblies – will be able to garner enough people to stand in a line so that their leader can come and get selfies with them !! .The vocal chords of the commies also need to get primed once in a while outside the campuses of  anti national universities   – becoz their brands’   catch line is “Empty vessels make the most noise”.!They are doing that .

Closer to the ground – the people have overwhelmingly accepted the great initiative .Of course it could have been implemented better ,but parties during whose tenure, the 5 year plans ,Nrega ,Clean Ganga project , Food for work ( people actually sold food instead of eating it ), Scams , subsidies ( they never reached the actual target group), ……..one can go on and on ( difficult to find a particular project that was successfully implemented ), cannot lecture as to what will happen in the future .Of course one understands their pessimism .But then they need to deal with it themselves rather than impose their negativity on a optimistic nation .No one expects them to cooperate

A word of caution though .I would have liked  the PM  not to make this as  a issue of the rich versus the poor. This should not be taken as a “class” war ( as distinct from a caste or communal issue). It is a extremely dangerous ground to tread on .I have seen many poor people becoming slightly haughty and spout disdain against the rich and middle classes .I think the attempt should be  to explain to the people what black money is ,why the steps are being taken , and not indulge in rhetoric that “ameer goli dhoondh rahe hai ,garib aaraam se so rahe hai”. There should be a difference between Che Guera  and Narendra Modi .A revolution has started from the top of the pyramid .It will filter down through sensible policies and not  through  conflict on the streets .Lets keep it that way .Good for everyone .

How "Conveinient" to make a issue of "Inconvience" to defend Black Money !!

When people stood/sat/slept/ in Jantar Mantar and brought the capital to a standstill in April 2011 , it was called a movement against corruption. The roads were blocked,people defecated on the streets, and there was near total collapse of law and order. But people tolerated it-even though the people who heralded the movement were men and women of dubious character-one of them became a CM after pledging that his movement was apolitical.!!! 
Now this talk of inconvenience when a real solution is being offered?( And talk of business houses being in the know of demonetization ?And talk of most black money being in form of gold property and parked in foreign banks ? All attempts to create a negative opinion against the move ). I hope people join the queues and make them longer till these queues reach Kanyakumari. I hope someone can convert this inconvenience into a vehicle of change. Let everyone just join the queues (even if they do not need immediate money) as a show of solidarity in the fight against corruption. Come on INDIA-Jantar Mantar was fake. It did not manage to bring in the Lok Pal bill the way the people wanted ! It was political ( in the garb of being apolitical), and made Chief Minister's and Governors of people involved. It was a movement against the government to grab power. This is real. It is a decision by the government to eradicate corruption. That's why we must support it.

Why we must support Modis demonetization move

The social media has been dominated by two major events in the last 36 hours - the election of Trump to the White House and the stunning masterstroke by the PM - Narendra Modi.Much has been debated .It should .Most of us have applauded him and a few of us have criticized him .Fair enough .Those who have supported him have been dubbed "ultra right wing". Those criticizing him are the so called "left liberals" (JNU types, and the losers who have still not accepted the moral responsibility in any democracy –to respect and accept the will of the majority !!!).
All that is reflective of our democracy( so vibrant that slogans of "barbaadi", and support of terrorists are justified as "freedom of speech by not only respected intellectuals, award wapasi phoneys but also by glamorous TV anchors !!).
I do not want want to add to anything new to the election results - except the fact that though no prediction is verifiable ,i think that the responsibility of office of the President will transform Trump - he is too intelligent not to learn quickly( by the way i am a staunch Hillary supporter .She gave a fantastic speech yesterday - gave me goose bumps as i listened ) .So i am not going to believe that he will nuke Syria or Pakistan or throw the immigrants out !!.He has his ears close to what are real issues which Hillary Clinton tried to soft peddle becoz she did not want to take a risk.Its time we gave terrorism a name – whether Hindu ,Islamic ,Christian etc .Terrorism operates through religious fundamentalists of all religion .Lets not avoid the fact to win votes .
Back to India -again too much has been written and debated to write something which does not sound cliched !However ,I do want to make a point about all the noise some political parties are making in the aftermath of demonetization of 500 and 100 rupee notes .Their silly arguments about the middle, lower middle and poor segments of our society , suffering because of the paucity of 500 and 1000 rupee notes being made irrelevant, is shocking to say the least .Some phoney intellectual started this argument ,spokespersons of political parties picked it up , the supporters of political parties became noisy on facebook and twitter and ran with the hare and hunted with the hound - not having guts to give a compliment without a rider !! .I disagree - yes even the Prime Minister said that there would be inconvenient , and the Finance Minister also acknowledged the same .They are not like Mohhamed bin Tuglag who took to to reforms without knowing the consequences .The government is like a good doctor who will tell you that you need a operation because the tumour is threatening to get malignant .Its like a doctor who will tell you that you will have to be operated and that the operation means loss of inconveinience of staying away from your home and family members .Its like a doctor who will tell you that there may be pain and incisions on what appears outwardly a beautiful body .Yes the doctor will tell you that forget the inconveinience for a few days /weeks because once you recover ,the quality of life will be better .So dont squeal - and dont expect not be operated and still remain healthy .If you want that – then you have suicidal tendencies !!.

And one thing i have noticed about the PM -criticize him as much as you want ,call him names ,slap cases on him ,try to demoralize him ,BUT - he does what he is convinced of .You may either call him a man with dictatorial traits or like me - admire him becoz he seems to know his mind .!! He is not a flip flop man like the young pretender to the throne of his dynasty !!.And unlike a bhakt or his rabid opponents - i will criticize and applaud him on issues .And not blindly .!! Come on - give him his due !!

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Leonard Cohen - RIP

When we were in the University ( Delhi ), it was “hep and cool” to listen to western music .90 percent of us were brought up on Hindi music and got baptized into western music inorder to upwardly move into the “hep” crowd .Of course we had heard the Beatles and a few other groups but names like, Jethro Tull ,Grand Funk railroad ,Pink Floyd , Doors , Deep Purple ,Jimi Hendrixs ,The Who ,Santana,John Lennon ,Bob Dylan,Three Dog Night ,Petula Clark ,Neil Diamond ,Grateful Dead ,Blood Sweat and Tears ,Abba ,Elton John ,The Beach Boys ,Osibisa ,Doors ,The Rolling Stones ,Carpenters ,Bee Gees ,etc were new to us .But once we (I ) started to listening to them – I was hooked .It did not matter whether it made me hep or not .I just loved to listen to them because they were terrific musicians and bands .I listen to them even today –sometimes starting midnight till 2 am – the way I did in College.

One name is missing from the above list – and that is Leonard Cohen who passed away 2 days ago .He was one of my favourite musicians – had a fabulous voice and sang on a range of subjects – politics ,religion ,sexuality ,personal relationships ,tragedy ,hope , hopelessness – everything which you and me experience .I am not going into the details of his life ( was a Canadian and won Canadas top honour), and was singing till about a couple of weeks back even at the age of 82 .
Back in July, he wrote a touching final letter to his muse, lover and friend Marianne Ihlen whom he met on the Greek island of Hydra in the 1960s. He would go on to have several other relationships with beautiful and glamorous women who would bear him children and grandchildren---but Ihlen stayed in his heart.
Ihlen’s close friend Jan Chrstian Mollestad wrote to Cohen that Ihlen was suffering from leukaemia and time was running out .Mollestad recalled that after contacting Cohen “it took only two hours and in came this beautiful letter from Leonard to Marianne.
“We brought it to her the next day and she was fully conscious and she was so happy that he had already written something for her.”
This is what he wrote in the letter to her , and what Mollestead read out to her in her dying moments
‘Well Marianne it’s come to this time when we are really so old and our bodies are falling apart and I think I will follow you very soon. Know that I am so close behind you that if you stretch out your hand, I think you can reach mine.
“And you know that I’ve always loved you for your beauty and your wisdom, but I don’t need to say anything more about that because you know all about that. But now, I just want to wish you a very good journey. Goodbye old friend. Endless love, see you down the road.’”
Mollestad said that when he read out the line “stretch out your hand,” Ihlen did indeed stretch out hers.
“Only two days later she lost consciousness and slipped into death.”
Mollestad added
“I wrote a letter back to Leonard saying in her final moments I hummed 'Bird on a Wire' because that was the song she felt closest to. And then I kissed her on the head and left the room, and said “so long, Marianne.”

Do try to listen to the song “So long Marienne” ,Hellulajah” and “Bird on a Wire”
Though times have moved on maybe some of you may like them.
Cohen died on the 7th of this month .RIP – you enriched my life .