Passionate About India

A seventy-three year old unassuming man by the name of Kisan Bapat Baburao Hazare is again set to give sleepless nights to the Government of India. More popularly known as Anna Hazare, this isn’t his first endeavour to take the putrescent establishment head on. He earned his due recognition when he tirelessly fought to develop a model village in the district of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. As it happens to most in our country, for all the good work, Dr. Hazare was also factitiously arrested in 1998 and was released on account of a huge public uproar. Incidentally, the Government of India also recognized his efforts by bestowing him with the Padma Bhushan. But amongst all his mini revolutions which have advantaged the smaller sections of society, this time Hazare is taking up such an issue which is probably the biggest malaise of our democracy and is a cause which affects every living Indian in some way or the other. Our governments time and again have been most deleteriously corrupt and ...

When I wrote my previous editorial, “ Anna, my Prime Minister ,” many people pounced on me accusing me of writing it a bit too soon and getting carried away. It is true that I had written that piece on the second day of Anna's fast. But to us, Anna was not a new phenomenon. Twelve years ago, the IIPM Think Tank had initiated visits to Anna’s villages and had undertaken a study. For us, he has been a great icon since then and before too. And therefore, when he decided to come to Delhi, I instantly knew we needed to be behind him. Dr Kiran Bedi, whom I personally respect very much, had already come to our institute during the Bharatiya Manavata Vikas Puraskar ceremony – where she had also received an award for her longstanding commitment to changing India – and had given a passionate speech to support the cause. Arvind Kejriwal, to whom not just me but the entire nation also should be thankful (for fighting selflessly for the RTI Act) was also there with Anna; and so was Swami Agnive...

Yes, it’s just one man who has won us the Cup! And it’s not Sachin Tendulkar or Yuvraj Singh... The man is Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who won us the World Cup despite everyone else putting in their bit! Just before the India-Pakistan match, I was called by IBN7 for a discussion on India's chances. There, I had said that I personally believed that the 2003 team that reached the final was more talented than the current team. But I also said that it is this team that will win the Cup, and just due to one factor – not Sachin or anyone else; but for the great leadership of Dhoni! That's the kind of importance I attach to leadership – be it in a country, or in a game; especially like cricket. The 2003 Indian cricket team had a better bowling lineup. And an equally good, if not better, batting lineup due to the sheer presence of one of the best one-day batsmen of the world and the captain who started the great Indian march forward – Sourav Ganguly! But then, Sourav failed to win us the Cup...

India needs one more victory. This time against corruption. A seventy-three year old unassuming man by the name of Kisan Bapat Baburao Hazare is again set out to give sleepless nights to the Government of India. More popularly known as Anna Hazare, this isn’t his first endeavour to take the establishment head on. He earned his due recognition when he tirelessly fought to develop a model village in the district of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. As it happens to most in our country, for all the good work, Dr. Hazare was also arrested in 1998 and was released on account of a huge public uproar. Incidentally, the Government of India also recognized his efforts by bestowing him with the Padma Bhushan. But amongst all his mini revolutions which have advantaged the smaller sections of society, this time Hazare is taking up such an issue which is probably the biggest malaise of our democracy and is a cause which affects every living Indian in some way or the other. Hazare is one amongst those few ...

Our live Parliament sessions can make a Hollywood sci-fi director feel ill at ease. One can find virtually everything flying in our Parliament – ranging from bottles to microphones to footwear... and perhaps human beings too in the near future! A glance through Lok Sabha TV or even YouTube footage of our Parliament sessions would be enough to provide evidence of the extent of lack of basic culture and education that our honorable members of Parliaments possess. What comes as an utter shame and embarrassment, especially for the electorate, is the manner in which their elected leaders represent their cause! Starting from holding footwear in their hands, to throwing abusive words, and resorting to physical violence, this is how Parliamentarians resolve their concerns in the temples of the world’s largest democracy! Last year, the Women’s Reservation Bill was disrupted to such a level that seven of our MPs had to be suspended for the remaining sessions. So much so that the MPs went to an e...