I love India, I don’t like Indians
He was ‘jhatka’ meat. ‘Operation X’ (the evocative codename for the macabre process of getting him to the gallows with the least fuss) was clean, efficient and secretive. There were no sly YouTube videos, even the prime minister didn’t know. The judicial proceedings — I read them with interest — were almost flawlessly fair. Then, it came down to the mercy of the highest authority in the land on such matters — the president. And the heavy, invisible will of that strange entity called “the people”.
I do not like “the people”. There are many of them. They rejoiced, gloated, when news of the hanging came in. I report on a murder trial in India on a regular basis — one that has the possibility of a similar result. On my way to court, I heard the radio — a jockey cracked a joke about the hanging; a young reporter with a mock under-teen delivery asked the hangman “how he felt”. Television took the story forward: why not use the “momentum” (!) to also hang Afzal Guru for the parliament attack case?
The media is part of “the people” and the people are everywhere. In Pune, where Kasab was shifted for the specific purpose of his execution, diabetics gorged on distributed sweets. In south Mumbai, an effigy with a noose attached was installed with the kind of love and loathing only necrophiliacs can feel — a few realistic details might have been missing, like the fact that a man who is hanged usually shits his pants (Kasab’s post-mortem said he had defecated). But that’s a matter of detail.
Relatives of the 166 victims who this mindless villager helped kill, have the right to visceral emotions — nobody who isn’t their kin would understand their loss. The celebrations made it emphatically clear that “the people” didn’t.
A few days before Kasab met his maker, a Mumbai icon died a natural death. The mourning around Bal Thackeray’s passing had state ceremony written all over it, but the people reacted too. Close to two million turned up. Thackeray had overseen and fuelled the division of Bombay like no one before him. Along the way, as in the riots after the bomb blasts of 1993, several times more people died than on 26/11. But a few words protesting the shutdown of Bombay after a matter as certain as death at a ripe old age, incurred the wrath of “the people”, and, sadly, the state. A ‘Facebooker’ was arrested, her relatives terrorised. “The people” did this.
I love India. I do not like “the people”.
Why is it that I do not like them? I dislike them not as much for their penchant for “collective punishment” as my friend and fellow columnist Aakar Patel puts it; I dislike them for their collective ignorance and their lack of reason. Common people, for me, must first of all have common sense.
The notion that the death penalty deters fidayeen is absurd. These individuals are dreaming of Heaven. It is the place they want to be transported to. Before they hang, they say thank you — or laugh, as Kasab did. The suicide mission man takes the death penalty out of the equation — you may feel good about executing him, but he feels better.
Is it justice we are talking about when we discuss Kasab? Or is it retribution? I’d say neither. In the end, the process is a fairly cynical one. I didn’t use the word ‘jhatka’ loosely early on in this piece. Kasab — and hundreds of people like him — are no more than cattle for the jihad factories that operate out of our dangerous little neighbourhood. He is expendable, and as a bonus, actually sold for a good price for his masters. For those who executed him, he is a chip on the negotiating table. It could be that a possibly innocent, but completely disposable life like that of Sarabjeet Singh, the Indian against whom the accusations, if not the evidence, are similar to Kasab’s, has just been lost.
“The people” don’t think about these things. I do not like them.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 24th, 2012.
COMMENTS (84)
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@Pria:
No one likes Indians lol.. not even Indians themselves!
They like themselves so much they love to find out what they don't like about themselves. Public display of such love does get on nerves at times. For, they should know: Gham-e-aashiqui se keh do raah-e-aam tak na pohanche//Mujhey khouf hai ye tohmat mere naam tak na pohanche! (Pain of lofty love isn't a cheap story of streets, let not the blame befall me of ever having made such a display.)
No one likes Indians lol.. not even Indians themselves!
@gp65
Nice to see you back. Compliments of the season.
I am a loser with no hope. By commenting on Pakistani blogs, I try to bring some joy into my hopeless life.
@gp65:
@Rakib: I tried responding to you multiple times but has not been accepted by the mods.
And so did I to you Miss Piffle, many many times but Avirook's petit chien ate my posts!
@gp65:
I know the feeling. At times getting a post to see the light of the day is more chancy than playing Russian roulette, albeit a benign one. Some strange Law works: higher the importance of things to be said greater the chances of their remaining unsaid.
@Rakib: I tried responding to you multiple times but has not been accepted by the mods.
The funniest artilce on ET. I love the childish tone of the writer. Reminds me of 'Taare Zameen Par' .
@Cynical:
He is incorrigibly unreachable.
Very apt!! Some are hard to cure, harder to endure. I made the mistake but one lives & learns.
@gp65: The SS killing was not born in a vacuum and they were seen as protectors.
(This is not to find fault with you. You have made disapproval of such ways clear by saying "Sadly bigotry was easy to sell and both sides indulged in it.") Justifying the unjustifiable are a normal argument in the subcontinental narrative. I wonder aloud... may be "Muslim killing" was born in a vacuum then. Or was it the case of an effect becoming fresh cause to avenge the effect of original cause? Or should the general from Samarkand have known what was going to happen at the hands of SS & others five centuries down the line & the action-reaction that a demolition will set in right till Guj-02? Babur richly rewarded the vicious boor & Indian electorate rewarded another set of vandals, promoting one of them to the level of Dy.PM. This kind of action-reaction Newtonian logic to rationalise if not justify murder & mayhem is applied by many worthies from Modi to Mooraj. A PM felt a tree had fallen to shake the ground when thousands perished in Delhi. A CM recalled the Third Law. And a respected columnist sincerely believes Tiger Memon did a good turn to Muslims. Such are the very sagacious among men that this subcontinent has produced.
@jahandad: Sir my concern is not Pakistan and Pakistan is not our responsibility .First you have to believe that Pakistan is an independent country.Looking at our history(the war which we fought),there was a necessity of anti -pakistan sentiments.Thankfully our text books do not preach anti-pakistan or for that matter anti-muslum sentiments.So someone has to do this.You cannot bully us anymore and backstab.This is true for every other enemy nation.Now you r coming clean.We will judge you.....And if friendship grows ,anti-pak sentiment will automatically die.Till then you have to believe that neither you like us nor we like you.I have no regret for what he did with pakistanis(Actually he didnt harm anyone from pakistan).This Hindu-bania thing which you have been taught is the real cause of all the mess.I dont know what kind of expectation you people have from India.Today one writer in the parallel blogs write inidia is a theocratic secular state rather true secular democracy.Buddy pahle apna desh sambhalo...we r mature enough to look ourselves.india should be this...india should be that.....But have you ever think that pakistan is the biggest enemy of itself.No you cant expect friendship with us based on emotion.We r two different nation with differnt ideology have chosen different path.
@Sultan: "And most of the indians I have met are decent, upright people who don’t come and spit venom in these forums against Pakistan like you or your co-agents do. I mean how many topics can you be an expert at? You even tried to convince me that the US social security system was solvent! You have absolutely zero credibility–we need some credible people to lower the heat, not self important typists!"
Glad to know that most Indians you have met are decent upright people. That is clearly not how you described them in your post To Anwer Mooraj. http://tribune.com.pk/story/470738/the-death-of-a-muslim-hater/ Elsewhere too you have denigrated Indians with a broad brush. If you think I have no credibility, you are entitled to your opinion. No-one compels you to read my posts. Usually whenever you write to me, you do not rebut the facts and logic I provide but rather attack me as a person. This is a well recognized form of logical fallacy. Providing reference for ease of use "Ad hominem – attacking the arguer instead of the argument. Poisoning the well – a type of ad hominem where adverse information about a target is presented with the intention of discrediting everything that the target person says[45] Abusive fallacy – a subtype of "ad hominem" when it turns into name-calling rather than arguing about the originally proposed argument.@Faraz: "@Faraz: "Its amazing that Nitin thinks that I am a Pakistani. ALL of Thackeray’s victims were Indian… so to my mind if anybody has a grouse against him, it would have to be Indians"
What you say is absolutely logical and frankly, when you say you are an Indian we have no reason to disbelieve you. But if you have seen the spate of articles on Thackeray in Tribune including Anwer Mooraj's article o Thackeray lionizing Tiger Memon, then you must know that Pakistanis do have immense grouse against him - whether justified or not. One reason is that any suffering of Indian Muslims is used by Pakistani establishment proxies to generate anti-India/anti-Hindu hatred. "He was the bully that should have been crushed under the weight of the law" Agree. All manner of bullies have sadly flourished in India and continue to function unchecked whether Shiv Sena goondas, Mulayam Singh goondas, Laloo goondas, CPIM goondas. COmgress and BJP do not have their own goondas but operate through proxies. This is unfortunate and hopefully will get corrected. Fortunately with an active media, election commission, civil society and just the check and balance that democracy creates, the window of opportunity for these people to do their tasks before there is an uproar is getting narrower and narrower. Hopefully some day this window will shut completely. "the fact that he got away with murder most foul and the fact that he was allowed to tear apart the fabric of society is an appalling comment on the pusillanimity of the state." If by murder most foul you are referring to the 1992-93 riots, you must be aware that phase 1 of the riots (Dec 12- Jan 5) was Muslims attacking Hindus and phase II was a retaliatory action by Hindus (Jan 6 to Jan 20) where SS was widely believed to be involved. The SS killing was not born in a vacuum and they were seen as protectors. Sadly bigotry was easy to sell and both sides indulged in it.
jahandad
Brother, anybody in India or Pakistan who has convinced you that anti-Pakistan sentiment exists in India because of Bal Thakray is not a friend of yours. Such a person is serving his own purpose by clearly misleading you. He is not helping you deal with reality at all.
@Nitish:you are missing some facts,,,,,,,baltahkheray was the mastermind of anti pakistan sentiments in india,,,,,,,,,if not direct he was responsible for many indirect crimes against pakistanis ,,,,,so to say he was only indian oriented hate spreader crime master is wrong ,,,infact he was the very basis for all the hate and media wars plus bollywood anti pakistan movies after 1992,,,,and his poison is still deep in the air,,,,,,and amongst his lovers,,,,
Faraz
You know, at a certain level, I agree with you. I wish none of our leaders ever did those things. I wish we ourselves didn't do any of those things. But Faraz, the tragedy of politics is that such leaders and such actions on our own part are far more common than we would accept and not everyone always considers them evil. In this situation, to single out just a Marathi leader seems a bit unfair.
The fact of the matter is that rise of Thakre also reflects the fact that society may be changing too fast for people like him to matter much longer. People in India are moving around - Hindus, Muslims, Marathis, non-Marathis. The time when leaders exploited resulting conflicts may be passing very quickly.
Someone made a very telling remark. The ONE hatred the man really had was toward Pakistan. Now whether he had reasons or not is a different question. I personally think that instead of going to town about Thakre being evil, Pakistanis should accept the reality that Pakistani government does not enjoy the best of reputations in India (as may be the case other way too).
Hopefully, one day there will be little hatred for Pakistan in India and no reason for mutual animosity. But we are not there yet.
@Another North Indian: Its amazing that Nitin thinks that I am a Pakistani. ALL of Thackeray's victims were Indian... so to my mind if anybody has a grouse against him, it would have to be Indians. My gripe with Thackeray is that he appealed to the basest of human emotions. he discovered and honed the most atavistic and murderous urges in people. Such a man does not deserve to be a leader, an icon .. anything. He was the bully that should have been crushed under the weight of the law .. the fact that he got away with murder most foul and the fact that he was allowed to tear apart the fabric of society is an appalling comment on the pusillanimity of the state. Thackeray's demise in ripe old age reminds me of a Ghalib couplet " Aah ko chahiye ik umr asar hone tak. Kaun jeeta hai teri ..........."
@Rakib
'Not all such that blindly approve of the immature shenanigans of upstarts among Indians are well wishers of India.'
How true. It reminds me of George Orwell when he said, 'Nationalism is power hunger tempered by self deception.' At the root of this self deception that these 'shenanigans of upstarts' nurture is a total lack of historical perspective of all things past and present. They seem to have remembered everything, but learned nothing. And many of us know what happens to people who fail to learn from history. I am holding my breathe.
Liked your commendation @Faraz "Verily, Thou speaketh the truth .."
As an aside, please don't waste your time on @Nitish (I did it though). He is incorrigibly unreachable.
@Sultan ‘Please get a new prescription for your glasses or a pill for dyslexia–I said all Pakistan hating indians, not all indians!’ Point taken. Sincere apology for the oversight on my part.
Thank you. Old adage: hate begets hate, love begets love!
@Nitish:
Question is legitimate coz you cannot convince a pakistani.They live in a different world called Denialistan…..Dont believe….try youself…..
You cannot convince any indians either--they live in Malarkistan! If you don't know what that means, Google Joe Biden.
@gp65:
All the Pakistanis I have met, I have unfailingly liked. Even on the Tribune board there are many with whom I have enjoyed communicating
And most of the indians I have met are decent, upright people who don't come and spit venom in these forums against Pakistan like you or your co-agents do. I mean how many topics can you be an expert at? You even tried to convince me that the US social security system was solvent!
You have absolutely zero credibility--we need some credible people to lower the heat, not self important typists!
@RAW is WAR:
idiot
Sounds like an admission!
The author is quite right, but he should have taken enough effort to present it properly instead of just pointing to the glee of indian people on the streets.The new kind of nationalism that flourishes nowadays is more a sensationalism uprooted from the cultural and traditional origins. They are enthusiastic about criticising the violence in their neighbourhood but don´t notice that while doing it they themselves are showing the same insticts.That´s what happens when one rejoices in others´ flaws without correcting themselves.
@Sultan
'Please get a new prescription for your glasses or a pill for dyslexia–I said all Pakistan hating indians, not all indians!'
Point taken. Sincere apology for the oversight on my part.
@Cynical: "But on a serious note, there is a subtle difference. His concern is about the remaining 1.2 bln; mine is about the 1.6 that could have been. The hint is there in the names I named and in the reference to the middle of previous century."
Well I did catch the reference to middle of last century but elected to ignore it because unlike the others you chose not to refer to the names. IF you wanted to be subtle about it, I in turn wanted to defer to that and not make it explicit. In your next response though you go a step further than I have ever seen by referring to the 1.6 that could have been. That is a bold and lonely path you are treading Sir. You will find very few fellow travelers on either side of the border today. Bon voyage.
All those bleeding hearts who rejoiced the death of Bal Thakre yesterday, are now shamelessly expressing disgust over the victims' happiness at the justice meted out to Kasab, the monster. Hypocrites!
@Rakib: See buddy,you simply got angry but my comment was not intended to do so.....I know many in india who love kasab.............For example arundhati roy..........Frankly you can speak your mind as it is an open forum and india is a free democratic country.........No need to hide your heart............I love thackrey ,i spoke.......you love kasab,you should do the same......
idiot
@Truth Seeker:
Much is made up of the sentence: ” I love India, I don’t like Indians”. Even as differently intended it is in the same vein as "not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more" kind of talk.. As I see, the Author has used the shock value of the sentence while garnishing the essay with well known Sanskrit/Hindi embellishments (known as Alankar) such as Exaggeration,Paradox or Contradiction etc, For e.g. Main nadiya phir bhi main pyaasi (I am the river & thirsty am I). Or 'Vajradapi kathorani mruduni kusumadapi' (he is tougher than a diamond & softer than a flower) & so on. Though he is guilty of repeating himself, it is just a way to show his disapproval by being hard towards those that he probably loves. Not all such that blindly approve of the immature shenanigans of upstarts among Indians are well wishers of India. And not all that use mere wordplay to chide Indians for being childish display chicanery.
@Nitish: "...My ideal is Thackrey........."
I do not question your right to speak for yourself, of course.
@Sultan: "So madam, do tell if you like Pakistanis? Because if you do, based on your own argument, you must love Pakistan!"
Unlike you, I have never made the statement that I love Pakistan but hate Pakistanis. So there really is nothing for me to defend. I will still explain my point of view. All the Pakistanis I have met, I have unfailingly liked. Even on the Tribune board there are many with whom I have enjoyed communicating - thus I could never have made a statement like I hate Pakistanis. Secondly, Pakistan is a country that has attacked my country thrice and so I am a little wary of it, so I certainly could not have said I love Pakistan. My hope is that Pakistan finds peace internally and lets India be in peace. True long lasting peace - if it can be found will immensely benefit the wide swathes of extremely poor people that can be found in both your country and mine.
@Rakib: My ideal is Thackrey ,yours is kasab...............
@Faraz:
Thackeray was a far greater evil than the murderous and yet idiotic Kasab.
Verily, Thou speaketh the truth ..
@Faraz: Your country- india or pakistan…………
Yaar Nitish, Faraz mian hasn't raised any question or issue that Mr Avirook Sen did not. If we can accept Mr Sen as an Indian, there shouldn't be any problem accepting Mr Faraz as the same. It is the wrong mindset we have to address.
Faraz
North Indians have been at the receiving end of those tender mercies - as many other people have been at the receiving ends of the politics of other politicians. I hope you and I personally are never in those situations.
Even if we are, let's hope we keep our minds with us, and not abandon reason and decency, Societies are not made by charging at every politician we don't like, sword or bomb in hand.
@Faraz: Your country- india or pakistan............
@Cynical:
Please get a new prescription for your glasses or a pill for dyslexia--I said all Pakistan hating indians, not all indians! I think @Bitter will be a better name for you than @Cynical.
@Cynical:
It is an ancient feeling, kind of genetic. But you are in good company. Md Bin Qasim, Ghaznavi, Ghodis, Nadir Shah etc. and a few in the middle of the previous century; they all felt the same way.
Seems like your industrialist buddies in india share the same genetic material: hate Pakistan but love to take over the industrial base ;)
@gp65:
The people make the country. If you despise the people, how can you love the country?
So madam, do tell if you like Pakistanis? Because if you do, based on your own argument, you must love Pakistan!
More indian skulduggery!
Mr Sen, u said that the person behind the creation of Kasab has died natural death before him. Tell me, by your same same logic, why the likes of Thakare has born? do you like to go in history correctly? Somebody has written in this news paper that why our (pakistani) missliles are being name as Abdali and like. So please study the history be unbiased and try analyse crtically about the this newspapae 'contry's religions history and why other are so much scared about them. I naddition, I also like to tell you that I read Kasab's testimony given immediatly after his arrest. In fatc he was no that much guilty. But what happened to the master minds, if you have clear sens I need not said. contaraary, Guj riot or Samzauta express culprits are being tried in Indian courts. So intellectuals like u are also equal to extreamists in any communities. ,
The rejoice over the death of Kasab shows the 'animal instinct' of human species. However, if someone doesn't like a community or race for this as the reason', then it shows his own hypocrisy because this 'animal instinct' is present in all the races and cultures across the world. When Bin Laden was killed, the same 'animal instinct' was on display in the US. The 9/11 event showed the same 'animal instinct' when many in the middle-east openly rejoiced and celebrated the event. I've never personally liked the politics of Bal Thackarey and would have been the last person to pay homage to him on his death. The Hindus of the sub-continent look at Islamic invasion and mass conversion as gross injustice to their culture and their way of life. Adding salt to the wound was the history of mass murder and forced conversion of the people of the sub-continent. So long as the sub-continent Muslims continue to celebrate people like 'Aurangzeb' and "Md bin Kasim', the ilks of 'Bala Thackarey' will continue to be celbrated. So long as the missiles and warheads of the nation across the border will be named after "Gazni' and 'Gauri', the people like 'Bal Thackarey' will continue to be born and respected in India. So long as the Muslims of the sub-continent hide the real history including events, such as, killing of 100000 Hindus on a single day by King Temur, the likes of Bal Thackarey will continue to be celebrated. If the sub-continent wants to move forward, the history books across the border needs to reflect the real history of subjugation of the people of the sub-continent and not the glorification of the invaders. And they need to do this for their own self interest to overcome their confusion and identity crisis.
@Another North Indian: I am definitely not "positing equality" between Kasab and the Marathi ManHoos( pun intended). Thackeray was a far greater evil than the murderous and yet idiotic Kasab. Being at the receiving end of the tender mercies of the Sena might help you to change your mind.
@Mohammed Abbasi: Agree my friend, when we love animals they love you back, humans think about what they are going to get in return.
Some American president said something like this - by the people, of the people and for the people. And JFK said ask not what your country has done for you ask what you've done for the country. When there was no money left in our coffers, the then PM of India , PVN Rao who spoke 17 languages including persian told the rich of India like the TATAs etc etc and Manmohan Singh to help and all sat down and worked out economic reforms and this is working now. Of course it will take time to mitigate the suffering of the whole lot. I can say hats off to these people. Kyaa junoon thaa! to take on the responsibility of the nation. I would like the author to learn something from these people, and of course the meaning of patriotism.
The title of this article sounds exactly like the justification military gives for the coup - I love Pakistan but do not like the poeple or its representatives. They cannot rule. They are corrupt. So we are declaring martial law and we shall rule
This is the story of the Pakistani elite - contempt of its own people. Don't blame the foreign hand or even the military - the people have failed to develop thier own democratic values and then got what they themselves prepared. The time again theory that Pakistan suffers from lack of leadership is only partially true - the lawyers movement which overthrew Mush was people inspired and not leader inspired. Leaders are representative of the people and not the other way round.
The Indian elite (and the author is not representative of it) is held in check of these emotiions due to the strong democratic ethos of India which even the Indian eleite begrudgingly accept and subscribe to. The 2004 Indian elections was a case in point - elites were celebrating India shining, and the people thrrew them out.
Faraz
One can abhor many people. Perhaps abhor them equally. But one cannot, if society is to be preserved, publicly posit equality between them all.
I have a friend who is a good man, but he abhors Mr Jinnah with every fiber in his body. I do not know if he is right or wrong, but he makes arguments that make kasab appear like a misguided schoolboy.
It would be terribly wrong and unfair of him to draw equations between the two, and to build pseudo arguments based on such equations. I am glad he hasn't done so. He is a mature and decent individual.
@gp65
@Cynical: For a change, you and Nitish are on exactly the same page in your response to Truth Seeker and Sultan.*
One of those accidents of life. It’s his lucky day I suppose. But on a serious note, there is a subtle difference. His concern is about the remaining 1.2 bln; mine is about the 1.6 that could have been. The hint is there in the names I named and in the reference to the middle of previous century. Anyway thanks for the mention.
@Cynical @gp65
The feeling runs both ways
@Akhter: Your overall point of view is very reasonable and I can agree with having more measured responses. Certainly while Kasab's death may have provided closure for many, I hardly see it as a cause to rejoice.
One area I perhaps disagree with you: You are trying to give benefit of doubt to the author by saying "I think what he is trying to postulate is we can perhaps be measured/thoughtful in our responses to events rather than being taken up by the moment. God knows i have said the same thing about Pakistan. It does not mean i hate Pakistani’s.". Well no-one needs to guess what the author meant when he says it flat out " I love India, I don't like Indians".
I agree with the author that you can love the country but abhor the behavior of your compatriots! It does not mean he is saying lets get rid of all Indians, I think what he is trying to postulate is we can perhaps be measured/thoughtful in our responses to events rather than being taken up by the moment. God knows i have said the same thing about Pakistan. It does not mean i hate Pakistani's. It just means that i wish for a more tolerant society.
@Cynical: For a change, you and Nitish are on exactly the same page in your response to Truth Seeker and Sultan.
@Sultan: @Truth Seeker: "I agree with the author. I love India the country, but truly despise its people i.e. Indians!"
It is an ancient feeling, kind of genetic. But you are in good company. Md Bin Qasim, Ghaznavi, Ghodis, Nadir Shah etc. and a few in the middle of the previous century; they all felt the same way.
@Another North Indian
@sh(india) "If the man is an India, he need not leave the country."
I can not say enough, how profound is that statement. Pls consider a million recommendations from me.
Why should he leave? He has every right to express himself. Does it matter that he wrote for a non-Indian news paper? You have the right to ignore it, disagree with it, argue with it, but NOT kill the the expression or source there of.
I disagree with the articulation that one can love a country and not it's people. That seems ridiculous at best.
..pc
I do not agree with Capital punishment, but India's qualification of "rarest or the rare" seems like an attempt to curb it, even if a feeble one.
Now about celebrating one's death, it is never appropriate. It's the time to contemplate.
However, There is a human factor (we are not Robots after all). I saw the joyous mood on Time square and else where, when Bin Laden was killed. There was a sense of closure that came out as joy. One has to think about the weak human tendency, inherent probably, to celebrate some sense of achievement, right or wrong. I do not condone being joyous over one's death, but can not be oblivious to the fact that it is a human tendency.
I agree with writes's sentiment, but there is something wrong the way it has been articulated.
He forgot that people make a country and country is not just land, sea and mountains. If one does not like the people of the country then why say I like the country?
I am sure he will get the point. ..pc
strange article.
Is this a Pakistani online News portal....I doubt...
... an excellent article, and great insight .... the comments elicited are even more insightful, as these prove the author correct ...
In any country, you would find people who rejoice the death of all icons of vices. Look deep inside the annual ritual of Ram Leela, slaying of Ravan is rejoiced and remembered. Perhaps, the day a hapless Indian is "hanged til dead" in Pakistan, I may see rejoicing people celebrating, diabetic devouring sweets, etc, etc.. ditto what happened in Mumbai. Just because their feelings (and obviously, actions) don't reflect his, Avirook Sen has no right to condescend on the unwashed masses.
As far as the columnist's ire about a facebooker getting rough deal first by Shiv sainiks and then by Maharashtra police, I have only one thing to say. Just a few days ago, when Kapil Sibal, the learned central minister (of the zero-loss-to-exchequer-due-to-2G-spectrum-allotment) brought in a law, to prevent use of social media painting a bad picture of Sonia-Maino-Gandhi, I don't think Avirook Sen raised any alarm. Strangely enough, the same law was used by Maharashtra police to book an FIR against these "facebookers". So, the law is "draconian" if used favoring Bal Thakarey, (let me make it very clear, I am NO fan of him) but not so bad if used removing objectionable contents of a leader of different political lineage! How convenient!!!
The day people like the author succeed in convincing a nontrivial number of Indians that there is some sort of equation between Bal Thakre and kasab will be the day when Indian political system and Indian society will become like that of Pakistan.
I am not interested in passing judgements about who is right or who is wrong. Our Pakistani friends are most welcome to adopt that mindset, persist with it, and celebrate it if they so wish, but we Indians have never done so, and must not.
You do not create people like kasab because some political leaders around you are like Bal Thakre (and many others like him). When kasabs arise, you most definitely don't try to score points by foolishly, rashly, irresponsibly equating them to political leaders you don't like. It's plain basic common sense.
So plain that we Indians must not waste time trying to convince those of our Pakistani friends who have a different point of view. We must just protect ourselves from this most poisonous of mindsets. May be Pakistanis will learn from experience, or not.
Time is the greatest teacher of all, even if an unwilling one.
@Truth Seeker: I agree with the author. I love India the country, but truly despise its people i.e. Indians! @Sultan: I love India, I don’t like Indians My sentiments exactly for all Pakistan hating indians!
There is a saying which goes like this..........A place is as good as its people............Now my question to both of you,whether you actually like India?If yes then which India......An india with 1.2 billion population or an india with empty land which you easily conquer and occupy....... ...
Mr. Sen, I like your way of expressing your thoughts, but you are wrong title itself, i don not agree some context. India is poor and politically corrupted, only politics are corrected not people. India is nothing but Indians, India is unity in diversity, Today we are going to celebrate (sad day i dont know what to call) Ashura. I expect that you might have followed Indian news papers and channels on the days of Kasab execution, India gave all chances to Kasab to utilize Indian law. One thing i can say in India, he dont have god fathers like Afjal Guru. Afjal having support of some hidden hand in Indian politics. You and i know Indo-Pka is similar in most things, rule of law, civilization, culture, politics, education, poverty and many more. As a nationalist still im not believing India and Pakistan are two different countries. We are once one we want one nation in future. Thanks for your statement, plz in future dont make this kind of statements, these may help poor Pakistanys to hate India further, so that we may not able united like Germany
@gp65: I meant to say I agree with @Another North Indian NOT the author. @Faraz: One does not have to be an apologist for Bal Thackeray to find the attempt to equate a legitimate politician with a terrorist from across the border. I did not agree with his politics - particularly his stance on immigrants (though as a local person born and raised in Mumbai I was not negatively impacted in any way) but I still think the author's attempt to equate the 2 people is wrong.
As far as wrapping him in the national flag - whose decision was that? His part was part of NDA and UPA was in power in Maharashtra and the center. So why did the supposedly secular Congress take that decision. Why did the UPA government not prosecute him if it believed all the accusations that it made in public meetings? It was in power in both Maharashtra and the Center for the last 7 years was it not?
@Truth Seeker: "I agree with the author. I love India the country, but truly despise its people i.e. Indians! "
The people make the country. If you despise the people, how can you love the country?
the author is plainly expressing his views and by asking him to leave India or not to criticise just proves his point. close mindedness
I do agree with the author to some extent - any jubilation and/or celebrations associated with sanctioned killing is rather macabre in itself.
Just like us..we love Kashmir; not the Kashmiris
FACT: From Pakistan to China & Nepal to Bangladesh, SriLanka n others India is having rifts with all their neighbours...India Certainly is the biggest hurdle for peace in subcontinent...
Bal Thakurey was the key player in inciting violance in many communal riots that claimed lives of so many innocents. Yet people celebrate his Legacy.. This is Hypocrisy!
It appears that Mr.Sen is looking for some cheap publicity just like the other Indian busybody, Ms.Arundati Roy. He states that the it is understandable the visceral emotion of the kith and kin of the 166 people who were murdered by the monster Kasab and his team. According to Mr.Sen "The celebrations made it emphatically clear that “the people” didn’t." So, is he one of the 'kith and kin' or someone special with divine insight that told him the celebrations were wrong? It is fashionable and has some shock value to stake a position against the collective emotion of a whole nation that underwent a trauma. Mr. Sen appears to be milking the associated notoriety for all it's worth.
Mr,Sen, there is one very 'common sense' reason to rejoice in the hanging - economics. If this murderer had been sentenced to life in prison think of the security, 'boarding and lodging' expenses that will have to be borne by the tax payers to keep this animal in a cage.
Agree 100%. I saw an attempt to do this even in the ET blog titled 'How many Kasab's are we raising'.One can disagree with Bal Thackeray but to equate him with Kasab is just plain wrong.
@sh(india): And you have secured a lease on indian public opinion.had you said 'I' don't need .... It would be perfectly fine as you are entitled to your opinions. However to pretend to speak for the multitude (we) is presumptuous and silly.
@Falcon: "t is enlightening to see that they are those in India who can criticize India once in a while as well. Some times reading the comments on this blog from Indian friends, it seems like all the good lessons of life are reserved for us Pakistanis."
Well. This is a Pakistani newspaper that covers Pakistani problems - so any comments by Indians will relate to that. Please check out satyamev jayate a 13 part series by Amir Khan where he addressed all kinds of socio political issues and see the type of response his website has got. Check out Indian newspapaers and media also.
Not just media and common people ruling party politicians are not shy in talking about problems. For example a few weeks back Jairam Ramesh said that there is a greater need to build toilets than temples in India (keeping in mind the very real problem of open defecation). Can you imagine a Pakistani politician saying there is a greater need for girls schools than masjids in Pakistan?
It is because issues such as communal harmony get such wide coverage in media and active engagaement of civil society also that over the years there is much greater tolerance and far less communal riots.
I love India. I do not like “the people”. How? Who is India, if not its people? You certainly don't like Indian people, that's why you write for a Pakistani newspaper. Shame on you!!
I love India, I don’t like Indians
My sentiments exactly for all Pakistan hating indians!
I love all Creation on this planet apart from Humans
I love this article, I don't like ET...!!
sh(india)
If the man is an India, he need not leave the country. The world needs all kinds.
But there is this equation being drawn by some people that Kasab = Bal Thakre.
All those North Indians, South Indians, Hindus, Muslims who reject this equation must speak out now. An extremely dangerous, hateful precedent is being set by some people for their own narrow purposes. This hateful precedent will be very dangerous for Indian politics if it is not countered effectively and immediately by the more sane Indians.
ok take the positve side of hanging him like this dear author..........if he would have been given life imprisonment...daily protests......tax payers money looting, kandahar like hi-jacking and god knows what all things could have happened........had he been allowed to walk away....u know what would have happened............so in such cases only 1 thing was left >>>DEATH.......
It is enlightening to see that they are those in India who can criticize India once in a while as well. Some times reading the comments on this blog from Indian friends, it seems like all the good lessons of life are reserved for us Pakistanis.
if u dont like a country just because of poverty ,illiteracy and corruption....then my frnd u should say u dont like planet earth................perhaps dats one of the reasons y pakistan is much happier country than us.......we are number 1 in cribing......
as an atheist i hope u leave inidia if ur an indian or else if ur an immigrant who left india plz dont come back
be happy in ur own country
india doesn't need any hindu,muslim or any religious group who hates india to come and insult us.