Let there be copious tolerance, beginning with Onam

By O.J.George

Onam, that feisty festival of Malayalis worldwide, is in, with Thiruonam being celebrated on Wednesday.

Every Malayali knows that Onam denotes plenitude, an excess of everything, no shortage of anything.

If the legends are to be believed, we are setting right a wrong committed against the great demon king, Mahabali, for a day. Mahabali granted a boon, and he kept his word, went down to the nether world in keeping with his tradition of truth, fairness, justice and all.

Let us for a moment think about justice, fair play, and righteousness to rule all over us.

We are plentiful with earthly possessions, and ostentations are overtaking us. But are we tolerant of others’ views and dealings?

Let there be opulence of ideas, thinking, and let variety, which is the spice of life, be encouraged.

Protection of goons and criminals is going to be the single dirtiest trait in Keralascope. It is second only to the copious gulping of so-called foreign liquor. There is nothing foreign or alien about the inebriating liquor.

One should not call it not only intoxicating liquor, but liver-dissolving liquor. Water, spirit, colour and unhealthy substances constitute the so-called Indian-Made-Foreign Liquor.

There is a poromboke cluster of line houses near my residence. Not a single male adult can walk steady because of his habit of liquor gulping. Before he sets out for a coolie work, he has to drink the stuff. “ I need two large, Sir”, he said before starting his daily work. He would not take anything less than Rs 300 a day as wage earner. Much of it is spent on liquor and possibly drugs.

Men of his ilk will wither away within a few years.

Criminal hide-outs are plenty among such habitations, which are congenial for anti-social elements to flourish there.

Coming to Onam thoughts, should we make a decision not to harm another being for temporary gains? I know several people, particularly those who have been adorning seats of decision making, doing wrongs against others for no gain. I can understand, don’t condone, someone taking decisions for selfish gains, but there are a lot who make life miserable for others, osensibly for no benefit. The ilk of Timon of Athens are flourishing.

Then, should we emulate those occupying powerful positions just for some gains? No, one can go against unfair practices, fight against injustice.

There is no thrill in going with the majority, if they are rank worthless beings.

Onam musings should make us cultivate a lot of ideas, even clashes of ideas, thoughts, dissemination of pearls of wisdom. There is nothing much in physical ostentation, the mind should be noble.

A moral lesson should be drawn from Muthoot Paul M George incident
By O J George
The murder of Muthoot Paul M George, allegedly in a premeditated quotation killing act, is gruesome and that is unbearable for the family of the deceased.

A common man who has come across the news of the cowardly act does feel a sense of loss. One can, then, imagine the sense of loss of the family, to whom he was a scion.

All the same, the circumstances which led to the tragic and horrible end should be an eye-opener to those who retain goons to achieve their ends.

Criminals are there for fleecing the retainer as much as they can. They have no love left for those who pay up money for them. It is an issue of one rupee more for them from a different customer.

There is another dimension to the tendency to rope in gangs, which feel eulogized for getting things done in an illegal way. They think themselves the most powerful. If they have political power with them, they are definitely the kings.

The politicians who use them cannot go against them, for their previous wrong-doings would come to the fore, once they go against the very gangs which worked for them.

When business houses and enterprises get things done the quick and mortal way, the legal and constitutional realm gets eroded. Who will go to courts if people can get things done with the help of a few goons, and that too quite quickly.

This also calls for speedy dispensation of justice, otherwise even the judges and the jury will lose their importance.

Political parties should make a decision. Maybe they can win temporarily using goons for a purpose, but the practice will recoil on them one time or the other.

The incidents like the murder of Muthoot Paul M George should come out with all its details so that this would act as a moral lesson for the society.

I salute those who exposed the murder of BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, involvement of his son Rahul Mahajan in drug incidents, the death of the private secretary of Pramod Mahajan in drug consumption, the break-up of the marriage of Rahul Mahajan because of his drug abuse habit and the like.

This acted as a moral lesson and the BJP did not suffer anything on account of the expose.

Business tycoons, industrial houses and big fish should not hobnob with goons. They can very well establish a security set-up in a genuine way. When thousands of trained ex-servicemen and others are available in the country, why should they go after goons?

Perhaps the government should come to the aid of private business houses and tycoons in setting up efficient security regimen.

Free-for-all for goons in Kerala?

BY O J George

No amount of defence against it, people are disgusted with the zenith of goonda raj prevailing in Kerala.At no time, had there been such perversity of non-adherence to law as grievous as now.

Paul M George, a scion of the Muthoot family which has contributed to the economy of the country in a big way, has been murdered in cold blood.

The latest version of the police seems to simply write it off as an altercation between Paul George and a quotation gang of goons at the dead of night.

Paul George was travelling with other dreaded goons, apparently Omprakash and Rajesh Puthenpalam.Earlier, it was believed that both were in police custody.

Now it appears Omprakash is at large and the police has issued a look-out notice for him in connection with other cases.The murder incident unfolds scenes of a play within a play.

Paul George travels with deadly goons. The car driven by Paul George hits a motor-cycle. Paul George speeds off. At that point a gang blocks the car of Paul George arguing about the bike-hit incident.

Due to provocation, the gang members hack Paul George to death.The car driven by Paul George was not his, it was that of a goonda.

Paul George’s car came to the scene a little later, driven by his driver. The driver had gone to fetch the key of the guest house of Paul George.It was found by the driver, after he left Paul George, that the key was actually at the guest house itself. That means there was no need for the driver to leave Paul George to fetch the keys.

Coming back, the driver finds Paul George and another man, Manu lying in a pool of blood. There were two others there. The wounded persons were put in Paul George’s car and taken to Alappuzha medical college hospital.

The goonda’s car was driven off and the occupants left without attending to the wounded persons, including Paul George.

That car was abandoned at Chavara where people got suspicious and alerted the police. A gang came there in the guise of motor mechanics and took away the bags and other things in the car, in the presence of the police.

It is evident the case is being over-simplified to denote that the murder was the result of an altercation. Goons cannot survive if they would not get protection from the ruling echelons. Various political entities use them for various purposes.

Therefore, they cannot be touched. Any number of alibi would be found to fetch an escape route for them.Whatever it is, the situation in Kerala is not wholesome for anyone.

That an industrialist can be done to death in such simplicity does not augur well for the rule of law of the state.

Let the fresh faces bring in much-needed changes in the VS ministry

O.J.George
Thiruvananthapuram: Chingom 1, the first day of the first month of the Malayalam calendar year, could prove to be a bonanza for the LDF ministry in Kerala.

Three persons are being sworn in, with the thinking that freshness would endear the V.S.Achuthanandan ministry to the people. P.J.Joseph has been the most experienced minister in the Achuthanandan Cabinet.

In 2007, he demitted office saying he would be back with his innocence cleared in court. He is taking the oath at the Raj Bhavan tomorrow.The stand-in minister, Mons Joseph, has resigned saying he is giving in to the decision of the party. He has been lucky, to become a minister for one thing, and to continue this long for another.

Just because Finance Minister Thomas Isaac was indulgent only to him among the Kerala Congress representatives, he could see a lot of roads bitumenised.When the money is there even officials could do the work. Of course, there has been no dearth of announcements, like the vision of undertaking Rs 55,000 crore work by 2050 or so.

At the last moment, he hastened to order work worth a 1,000 crore.It would be worth probing why money was not forthcoming during the earlier stint of P.J.Joseph and subsequent term of T.U.Kuruvilla.P J Joseph will not speak out, I am sure.

A lot of people, within and outside, saw to it that Joseph was kept out. Now the court has cleared him, no one can deny him the post due to him.Also there was a concerted effort to keep him out of politics. The polity would have lost a man of accomplishments, experience and knowledge, particularly in the green world. Such cruelty be not inflicted on any human being.Kadannappally Ramachandran is going to be the second minister-to-be. Four decades of his political life had not fetched him a ministership as yet.

And he had not bargained for it either. Now there were several persons asking why he is not being given a post. Even M.P.Veerendrakumar was kind enough to speak in favour of him.

It was good that no one opposed his ministership at the LDF level.Jose Thettayil, the third nominee, is lucky. He has been strongly recommended by Pinarayi Vijayan. Even the Janata Dal leadership did not have much choice.His selection by the party was only a procedural formality.

And Janata Dal cannot have much bargaining power, as the stronger section has left the LDF bandwagon.And what is wrong with Janata Dal having a different person as its minister? Mathew T Thomas himself has agreed to it.

All of them would be ministers at 11.30 am at the Raj Bhavan tomorrow.Let there be fresh attempts to implement Smart City, Vizhinjam port and the like. The collective wisdom may bring in good.

Americans are a scared lot; so they bully innocent people

By O.J.George

The Americans are a sacred lot after 9/11/2001.The general history of the Americans is that they took wars to distant places.

Forget about their war of independence and Lincoln’s war to fetch freedom for the slaves.Otherwise, they would bomb Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq and now Pakistan.They had never dreamt that someone would take the war to their homeland, particularly after the world became unipolar.

The Al-Qaeda used American resources like pilot training facilities to fine-tune their suicidal attacks against the heart of America.For sometime, the all powerful George Bush, Jr, was hiding somewhere.

Perhaps, the-then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, has to be congratulated on his infusing a semblance of courage to even Bush then.Later actions of the Americans, in the name of war on terrorism, smacked of overcaution arising from fright.A recall of September 11 would be justified.

The September 11 attacks were a series of coordinated suicide attacks by Al-Qaeda upon the United States on September 11, 2001.On that morning, 19 Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners.

The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and many others working in the buildings.Both buildings collapsed within two hours, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others.

The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C.The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville in rural Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and flight crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C.There were no survivors from any of the flights.

It is assumed that the fourth plane was headed towards the White House, luckily the terrorists’ plan was foiled by the passengers.In total 2,974 victims and the 19 hijackers died in the attacks.The overwhelming majority of casualties were civilians, including nationals of over 90 different countries.

The United States responded to the attacks by launching a "War on Terrorism"; invading Afghanistan to depose the Taliban, who had harboured al-Qaeda terrorists; and invading Iraq to dispose of Saddam Hussein and Iraq's supposed stock of weapons of mass destruction.However, with the exception of chemical weapon traces left over from the Iran-Iraq War, no such weapons have been found.

The US also enacted the USA PATRIOT Act, while many other countries strengthened their anti-terrorism legislation and expanded law enforcement powers.Some American stock exchanges stayed closed for the rest of the week following the attack, and posted enormous losses upon reopening, especially in the airline and insurance industries.

The destruction of billions of dollars worth of office space caused serious damage to the economy of Lower Manhattan.The damage to the Pentagon was cleared and repaired within a year, and the Pentagon Memorial was built on the site.The rebuilding process has started on the World Trade Center site.

In 2006 a new office tower was completed on the site of 7 World Trade Center.The 1 World Trade Center is currently under construction at the site and at 1,776 ft (541 m) upon completion in 2011, will become one of the tallest buildings in North America.

Three more towers were originally expected to be built between 2007 and 2012 on the site.No doubt the Yankees’ ego has been crushed. Now they are acting in panic by questioning, frisking and segregating anyone who they think are suspects.

And if there is a Muslim word attached to the name, all hell would break loose. Continental Airlines was not satisfied when Abdul Kalam said he is former President of India.

Now Shah Rukh Khan has been given a shot. Earlier, Kamal Hasan, Malayalam actor Mammootty etc were given the same sort of treatment.George Fernandez, wearing his kurta pyjama, in his capacity as the Defence Minister of India ,was frisked.

Frightened Americans don’t care how the victims feel humiliated. Would they ill-treat Barack Hussein Obama after his Presidency because he sports the word Hussein? Perhaps a little bit of tit-for-tat should be in place to see whether the Americans stop bullying gentlemen on the premise of security check.

The paradox is that those responsible for unleashing the attacks on the Americans are safely hauled up in some holes or crevices with all facilities, in Afghanistan or Pakistan, while innocent people pay the price for their unjustified acts.

Farmers may turn refugees in a big way; help them

By O.J.George
When farmers’ suicide cases were mounting in Maharashtra, particularly in the Vidarbha region, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala etc, I noted a comment made by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.

He said something like this. The economy would be dependent on the farm sector for some more time. Those days, the IT sector was in the heydays.

What I feel is, farm sector holding the cards of the economy or life matrix in India would not be for some more time, but for all times to come.

No administrator can ignore roughly 70 per cent of the population making a livelihood from farm operations.

When the livelihood was not forthcoming thousands of farmers took away their own lives.

The corporatisation of farming operations would only drive out the farmers from their means of livelihood.

Agribusiness is the catchword in the corporate sector. In the globalised set-up, governments are prepared to give any amount of assistance to agribusiness.

The thinking is that group farming, leasing of farms, direct procurement of farm products etc would make farming operations profitable.

In effect, these measures would kill subsistence farming of our traditional ryots who would all be driven out from their farmland.

According to one study, about 400 million farmers would be offloaded from their traditional farming operations by 2015, and they would become farmer refugees.

Think of the situation, the comined population of UK, France and Germany is only 200 million. Double the figure would be agricultural refugees who may migrate to cities for some sort of livelihood. Would the cities be able to absorb these refugees as well, when these are already struggling to wipe out the urban slums?

The attempt may be to transform the prevalent food chain replacing traditional farming with the agribusiness.

European Union has been providing massive levels of subsidy to its farmers. Even then the number of farmers are decreasing. Even in the US, there are only an estimated number of seven lakh farmers; of course they use hi-tech equipment for undertaking farm operations.

We wail about free trade agreement with the Asean nations and demand inclusion of more items in the negative list. But that is only a temporary measure. Anyway after 2013, the situation would be level playing. There would be zero duty. We have to prepare ourselves now itself.

There may be zero duty structure, but there is nothing blocking the government from giving indirect assistance to farmers. Banks should be told to offload plenty of money to farmers. Even if there is default in repayment, the same should be borne by the government.

Totally ignoring the farm sector and bringing in agribusiness will not solve the problem, the essential thing is to keep people to maintain at least subsistence level farming, even as all measures are sought to increase production.

Gods should not be looted like this, guard their jewels

By O.J.George

Gods should not be left to fend for themselves like this. Temples are holy places for all God-believers. Forget about whether one is minority or majority.

Gods are adorned with invaluable jewels. No one had the courage to touch temple wealth in olden days. For a curse was attached to anyone snatching away the wealth of the Gods.

Now-a-days, there are people who would do anything, even steal the crown, the embellishments, the jewels and even the principal idols of Gods themselves.

One could see in English films scenes where deadly cobras were kept near valuable diamonds etc so that thieves would not think of taking them away. In the present times, they would not only remove the diamonds or jewels, but also they would hoodwink the hooded slitherers and sell them to drug manufacturers for their venom.

Sir, something is amiss in the safety and security set-up in our state. Maybe, there are specialist thieves who have arrived from neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. They may be trained to strike with ease and slip away with the booty.

Chain snatching incidents are a regular feature now-a-days. Youths roam around on motorcycles and simply snatch gold chains from the necks of unsuspecting women.

Bank vaults are pillaged, houses are burgled, whatever is worth is cornered and rushed off.

It seems ferocious dogs should be reared by devaswoms to guard temple wealth. No one can shirk the responsibility of guarding the life and property of not only men and women but also the spirits. Otherwise, they would strike with double-edged weapons on the most unguarded moment.

Father Badal Chief Minister, son Badal Deputy Chief Minister

By O.J.George

There is nothing constitutionally wrong in the father remaining the Chief Minister and the son being the executive officer in the capacity as Deputy Chief Minister.

Does it have any unethical principles involved? No one can be sure. In developed democratic countries, perhaps the people may not like this sort of serving the people.

In the US, one cannot be President for more than two terms of four years each. Otherwise William Jefferson Clinton, Jr, ie our Bill Clinton, may have continued as President for many more terms.

See the ease with which he secured the release of two journalist girls from the clutches of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, who was overpowered by Bill’s charm.

The latest report is that Kim had tried to do away with those who disclosed his fathering a child through his first love. Everything has been kept secret. What sort of a father he is who would not take care of his children, legal or illegal?

Barack Obama cannot be President after 2016, howsoever popular he could be.

In Russia also, there is such a provision. But Vladimir Putin was not to be cowed down. He saw to the coronation of his acolyte Dmitri Medvedev as the President who nominated our man Putin as the Prime Minister.

Maybe, after Dmitri completes one term, Putin may come back as all-powerful President again.

Let us come to Badals. Father Prakash Singh Badal is Chief Minister of Punjab. Son Sukhbir Singh Badal has been Deputy Chief Minister even as he was not a member of the legislature. After six months, constitutionally, one cannot remain a minister without being a member of the House.

So Sukhbir Singh Badal resigned. But that was not the end of it. Sukhbir has got himself elected from the Jalalabad Assembly constituency and he is Deputy Chief Minister again.

Well, that cannot be dismissed as a Punjabi style. Tamil Nadu has Kalaignar Dr Muthuvel Karunanidhi as Chief Minister even as M.Stalin, his son through the first wife is Deputy Chief Minister.

Kalaignar’s son M.Azhagiri (lately he has changed his name as Alagiri so that North Indians can pronounce his name correctly) through his second wife is Union Cabinet Minister. Kanimozhi, daughter through the third wife, is only an MP.

Go to Jammu and Kashmir. Father Farooq Abdullah is Union Cabinet Minister, while son Omar Abdullah is the Chief Minister of J and K.

Sometimes I think, suppose this should have happened to the Nehru family now, for example, Sonia Gandhi becomes the Prime Minister and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi become ministers, all hell would have broken loose.

Our democracy is still fragile. Let those who can muster people’s mandate rule over us. But let them work for a welfare state under which even as progress and enrichment ensue, poverty should be eliminated in toto.

Spend more and claim Central assistance for natural calamities

By O J George

We should find proper ambience to fetch more assistance from the Centre to deal with disasters, natural calamities and the fury of the elements.

Often what happens is we blame the Centre and its team which tour the state for assessing the damages for getting nothing.

The Central ministers and the Central team members are guided by the norms prescribed by the finance commission.

The states have been given a permanent allocation from the National Contingency and Calamity Fund for dealing with disasters and fury of the elements.

When the Centre looks at the amount given to the states, it always happens that the funds would still be remaining unspent in the account.

Often, this is a technical surplus. The settlement of accounts is reckoned on the basis of utilisation certificates. Such certificates would be issued by the local fund audit or AG after lapse of much time. Till then, even the amount spent would remain technically unspent.

This technical surplus fund availability is being bandied about by the officials before the Central ministers.

There is another problem in the states. The officials follow the guidelines in letter and spirit. There appears to be a direction to the effect that there should be a percentage of the fund kept as unspent balance. The officials do not have the courage to go overboard.

It is here that the State cabinet can take bold decisions. Spend as much money as it can possibly garner from various sources and convince the Centre and its team that the losses are grave.

Usually the State finance minister would be tardy in issuing largesse to deal with any eventuality. The minimal norm is the golden rule for the finance ministers and their officials.

Surplus funds are aplenty in co-operative banks. Take those funds out temporarily and compensate for the losses in disasters and natural calamities. If we overspend, the Centre cannot deny more funds.The Centre will not give anything if the state has funds in the account.

There can be a spirited movement to put pressure on the finance commissions from time to time to rewrite the unrealistic norms. Kerala’s peculiarities, terrain dangers, need for special schemes etc should be highlighted in practicable terms.

This time, the state has demanded grant of Rs 269 crore as Central assistance. The state government has granted an additional amount of Rs 25 crore lately, Revenue Minister K.P.Rajendran has pointed out.

There is a conducive atmosphere at the Centre for securing assistance, if Kerala goes about the task diligently.

Beastly action by Congressmen to a dead leader

By O.J.George

“Men have lost their reason and it has gone to beasts”. This was a lament made by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru once.The goings-on at the Thrissur District Congress Committee office justify this observation.

Khadi-clad Congressmen of various groups clashed among themselves on the question of allowing the body of Youth Congress district general secretary C.A.Sebastian at the DCC office for public veneration.Sebastian had breathed his last in a vehicle accident the other day. Reports say the DCC president was on the vanguard of the arguments against placing Sebastian’s body in the DCC office.“What a great fall it is my countrymen”!

Whatever the reasons, those who showed disrespect to the departed soul should be summarily dismissed from an office which exists in the name of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi et al.Nazi Hitler’s brutalisation of the Jews was dubbed as man’s inhumanity to humanity. What transpired at Thrissur DCC office was nothing but inhumanity.These are days when even dogs are given respect and decent burial.

The khadi-clad beasts should learn a lesson from ordinary mortals who stop there on the road seeing a cortege.There was a press conference organised in Thrissur for explaining the misadventure. Even there the explanation was couched in revolting language.“Something is rotten in the State of Denmark”.But this Denmark is Thrissur DCC.

Today when Opposition Leader Oommen Chandy reached the place, the people blocked him in protest.Oommen Chandy assures action against the culprits within two days.KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala says general secretary Benny Behanan has been entrusted with the task of making an inquiry. Youth Congress president M.Liju suggests that a complaint would be given to the higher-ups.

There may be a lot of explanation by interested parties, but the disrespect shown to a departed soul is inexcusable. Strong action is needed to deal with individuals projecting a bloated image.

One step would prove a giant leap for Muraleedharan

By O.J.George

Kottayam: “A small step for man, but a giant leap for mankind” was the famous comment of Neil Armstrong when he landed on the Moon.

His co-astronaut Edwin Aldrin has not so far compromised to his being the second human being to land on Moon.He feels that he was the first to land, but Armstrong had usurped his position and plagiarised the sentence he had written down for his use.

Anyway, Armstrong has been leading the life of a recluse ever since. And Aldrin has become a drunkard and almost a vagabond, according to various reports.

This is only an aside. What I want is such a small step, but which would result in a giant leap for our K.Muraleedharan, the state president of NCP.What is this small step?

He should find an opportunity to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi and tender an unconditional apology for all the misdeeds and misquotes he had committed. Also he should give much publicity to his regeneration.

A glittering world would open up before him in the Congress Party. For some time, he should lie low. Anyway, when he is back in the Congress Party, he would be automatically in the KPCC executive by virtue of his position as one of the former presidents of KPCC.

P.A.Sangma had apologised to Sonia Gandhi most sincerely. Sharad Pawar is hand-in-glove with the Congress Party.His party would ultimately merge into the Congress, by any reckoning.

Muraleedharan had made signal contribution to the Congress Party earlier. He had proved himself to be an efficient organiser.

What keeps him back from making a public apology is his egoism, having been a power centre himself, in the shadow of the-then most powerful father, K.Karunakaran.

A world would be opening up before him, if he dispenses with other tactics and seek direct rendezvous with the Congress.There are at least a few leaders who would want him to work for the Congress Party, irrespective of a lot of opposition from some others.

A section of leaders would like to have his input to work as a balancing factor in the light of KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala aiming to become the undisputed leader.

Kavya Madhavan’s make-belief world did not tally

By O.J.George
Kottayam: The much-hyped marriage of celebrated actress Kavya Madhavan is in totters within a few months of her wedlock.Family lives going berserk are quite common. But the lives of celebrities breaking up are flush with unparalleled curiosity.Thank God the departure is before children are born to them. Otherwise, the children would have been the hardest hit and the worst suffering.Too much expectation on the part of both spouses easily creates discomfort. Dream lives are far from reality. Even reality shows are not the depiction of the real world.Regarding Kavya Madhavan, a lot of stories were given to the fans. That Nishal Chandra being a child artiste himself was not unaware of the make-belief world of tinseldom.Now it seems Kavya Madhavan and Nishal Chandra had not achieved familiarization. There should have been much counseling on the part of elders on both sides about the pitfalls waiting for celebrities in married life.There would be a lot of explaining on the part of both spouses and their relatives regarding the wrong doings of either.One reason now touted is that Nishal Chandra lost his job. Is that a reason for breaking up. “Love is not love that alters when it alteration finds”. After entering into wedlock, cribbing about job loss and lack of income for a much-earned actress looks ridiculous.Definitely there would be other reasons. Naturally, they would explain these things in court.More than that, to tally with the provisions of the law to get the seal of approval for a divorce, either parties would resort to a pack of lies. That is quite common in divorce proceedings.Perhaps, Kavya Madhavan wanted her to be treated like a toy. Or Nishal Chandra was treating her like a toy. There would be unfairness on the part of both.Now that they have no children they can proceed with whatever is their wish. But the fans have been taken aback.

Let there be public audit of every action of officials

By O.J.George

Kottayam: The LDF government sprang a surprise today through the announcement of Local Administration Minister Paloli Mohamed Kutty in the Assembly, freezing the government’s executive order enabling plinth area-wise levy of building tax.

The Congress Party-led Opposition front had given notice of an adjournment motion to discuss the problem.While replying to the notice, when prodded by the UDF leaders, Minister Paloli Mohamed Kutty had no problem accepting the suggestion for freezing the fiat.

This should be the way the ruling party and the Opposition dispensation should function in a democracy, where it should be advantage people.

There should be a neethi (justice) attached to every nyaya (law). When the law proves to be an injustice to the people, there need be no qualms in scrapping it.Opposition pointed out that the hike in building tax was to the tune of eight or ten times the ruling rates. The injustice of hiking the tax by an executive order was also found fault with.

In this connection, one should think about numerous laws and rules framed avowedly for the good of the society.The experience is that the law enforcers often use these pieces of legislation for bribe-taking. Alleged violation can be flaunted only because the rules have been framed by the legislature.Panchayati Raj law was introduced for decentralisation of power.

But the benefits offered by various orders in this connection are being misused very often.Transparency International has grouped Kerala under the least-corrupt state in India.This was because the response to the questionnaire prepared by the organization was poor. The survey does not reflect the actual practice prevailing in various offices.Go to a panchayat, village, or other offices dealing with the issues of the people.

Nothing would work out without greasing the palm of officials concerned.There was a taluk supply officer arrested for taking bribe from a ration shop owner in Kottayam.An entire office staff of mining and geology department in Alapuzha district was caught in a bribe case.One official was lucky. He had taken leave that day. Otherwise he would also have got the share of bribe that day and he would have been behind bars.

Sales tax, Customs and Excise, motor vehicles department and name any number of offices dealing with variegated needs of the people. Nothing will work out without bribing them.One person recounted to me once. He never received bribe in his hands. He would ask people to put the money in the waste paper basket kept nearby.I reveal this because the person is no more.

Why can’t we delegate an administrative audit panel in every office, involving public figures, to review every action against which there are complaints?It should be driven home to the officials that there are people watching them. Gross injustices can be rectified this way.

Parading a Chief Minister as an offender

By O.J.George

Kottayam: What did we see these days in Kerala? A Chief Minister has been paraded in every nook and corner as an offender by his own party bosses.

Nook and corner is figurative, in the sense representative figures were all there in the zonal conferences of the CPM held at Vadakara, Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram.

The party Popes were drumming up support among the cadres for the stripping, emasculation and immobilization of V.S.Achuthanandan.

To pour chilly powder on the wounds, Prakash Karat has been saying on and off VS has been an accomplished leader before he was born, “Brutus-is-an-honourable-man”-style.

Nowhere in the world, democratic or totalitarian, this sort of deliberate weakening of a Chief Minister by his own partymen would be tolerated.

They may say this is a party affair. No doubt, it is. But these days when the media have access one way or other about the goings-on within, the humiliating affairs at the closed-door conclaves appear on the public domain.

The most paradoxical and embarrassing aspect of the episode is that the Chief Minister was being ‘attacked’ in his own presence.

This is just like officially reprimanding an offender, kept enclosed in a boxed chamber, and then taken to the execution chamber.

If someone thought VS would step down on his own, not able to suffer the ignominies any more, they are proved wrong. VS intends to keep going. Extreme provocations do not deter him to wait and watch out for an opportune moment.

‘Come September, I love to remember’, may be his silent refrain. Lavalin case is posted for September, when Pinarayi will be officially arrayed as an accused by the CBI in court.

He has to bail himself out in a criminal case.

Then, Pinarayi is trying his best to delay, and if possible to scuttle, the processes against him.

Reports suggest that Pinarayi is probing the possibility of approaching the Supreme Court, appealing against the action of Governor R.S.Gavai in issuing sanction for his prosecution in the Lavalin case disregarding the opinion of the state cabinet.

Perhaps, by seeking vetting by a constitutional bench of the apex court, he could buy more time, if not get himself ejected from the Lavalin dragnet.

Various interests are playing their cards close to their chest, offending and defending, with not just nicks and cuts but with gashes being caused to the state polity using double-edged weapons.

Talk, act and gain with Pakistan

By O.J.George
Kottayam: What does it gain by continuing a war of nerves between India and Pakistan?On the other hand it pays to talk and sort out all issues, including the Jammu and Kashmir question.Of course, it should be made clear that those who unleashed terrorism on the soil of India should meet with exemplary punishment. There is terrorism within Pakistan. That nation is paying a hefty price for the misdeeds it had done earlier. It had created, nurtured and used terrorist organisations with the intention of harming India.Ultimately, when Pakistan started taking steps to deal with some terrorist elements, albeit under pressure put on it by the US, the ultras have turned against it.Recently President Asif Ali Zardari has admitted to the fact that Pakistan had set up, encouraged and harboured terrorist outfits for short-term gains.It seems some light is evident on the other side where democratic processes have to be further strengthened. Now that Nawaz Sharif is exonerated from many charges by the court, which should eventually lead him to participating in the election process, mainstream multi-party functioning should be beneficial.The US is also encouraging Pakistan to come out of the terrorism-cocooned existence. It is well-known that all sorts of Islamic terrorists anywhere in the world have found safe haven in that country.When the leading nations are guiding the country to come out of the self-inflicted malady, there is no point in India turning against it.Also Pakistan cannot pursue terrorist motives as it used to in the past, now that the world is united against network of terrorism in all its ramifications. Talking does not mean that we are conceding. We should take a leaf out of the negotiation processes dealt with by Israel. It comes out winning points out of negotiations.Now that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in India, an atmosphere conducive to engaging anybody, Pakistan included, would be evolving.Leaving Pakistan to its fate, without our taking cogent action, would not be advantageous to its neighbours, particularly India.India’s aloofness would attract more engagement by China, which would not augur well for India.

The elements are against us, Nature’s fury full

By O J George

Kottayam: Lakhs of people in the state, particularly those in the Malabar region, are in the throes of Nature’s fury. No doubt, the elements are against us.

Broadly, we have been tinkering with the natural processes on Planet Earth. The very trajectory of so-called development is exploitation of Nature, which strikes back with full force.

Eons of years ago, there were continental shifts, movement of tectonic plates; mountains occupied positions previously held by the oceans and the oceans moved up the ranges of Himalayas.

Mind you, there were reports of findings of scales of fish in the ice layers of the Himalayas, meaning these places had linkage with the oceans in the past.No doubt these changes had occurred as the Mighty Being, which is Nature, wanted re-adjustments to ensure its own perpetuation.

So far as we manage things to an optimal level, the elements adjust themselves. But when we go overboard, they recoil rather harshly.Hills elsewhere are being demolished, rocks are quarried away to no end, sand-mining is going on at dangerous levels, forests are not let out to wild animals as man makes forays into its depths.

The very mining away of metals from the surface of earth causes imbalance to the solidity of the planet.What we see in the forms of unusual and often untimely and geographically illogical torrential rains, cyclones, gales, tsunamis are all Nature’s re-adjustments.

Nature is responsible for very many aspects and dimensions; human beings are only part of a whole phenomenon.

Coming to the monsoon fury, now the Malabar area is reeling under the devastations caused by torrential rains, landslides, overflowing rivers, uprooting of trees, razing of houses.Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Malappuram, and parts of nearby districts have borne the brunt of the devastation.

Inter-state routes are blocked in the Walayar stretch on the one hand and Munnar reach in Idukki district on the other.Kerala is dependent on Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for vegetables and a few other essential commodities.

Prices have picked up owing to short supply of essential items.Now the priority should be for saving the lives of people from falling houses, landslips, overflowing rivers and streams etc.Relief camps are being run in various places. People have no other go. Afterwards, they have to be properly rehabilitated. Assistance from the Centre is essential.

Quirk of fate waiting for many a partner of the LDF

By O.J.George
Kottayam: The fate of small parties in any front is dependent on the robustness of the main party leading them. When the principal protagonist crumbles, minuscule ones sticking on it also perish.

Otherwise, the pygmies should mobilise strength through their own union elsewhere, jointly or severally, or by re-arrangement of political affiliations.

In Kerala, re-arrangements outside of UDF and LDF are unthinkable. BJP is not that reckonable, for it cannot be part of a regime in waiting. What could any party do if it cannot be part of governance sooner or later?

Situations change in other states, but not in Kerala. A few years ago, it was unthinkable that a BJP dispensation would come to power in Karnataka. Maybe because Yeddyurappa had gained considerable sympathy from the people when he was cheated by Deve Gowda. The promised half term of governance was denied to him by Deve Gowda. Anyway the change in favour of the BJP was swift.

In Kerala, the NCP group led by former KPCC chief K.Muraleedharan is in a quandary. There are no takers for him. He went to the extent of telling his leader Sharad Pawar that if he is the problem, he would stand back for a rapprochement with the UDF.

In a different way Kadannappally Ramachandran suffered isolation, but he could pull on by clinging on to the CPM by retaining the old Congress(S). It is do or die for him with the LDF.

During the Lok Sabha elections, the CPI stood up against the CPM regarding seat allocation. Mutual distrust or squabbles within the CPM, the CPI had to bite the dust.

Judging from the precarious condition in which the CPM has fallen into, owing to surging groupism between V.S.Achuthanandan and Pinarayi Vijayan, the LDF partners have a bleak future cut out for them, now that the schism would only worsen.

As for Kerala Congress (Joseph) group, there seems to be a quirk of fate. Strong interests within the party had written off P.J. Joseph when he got embroiled in a sex scandal, public professions of loyalty notwithstanding.

After the rout in the Lok Sabha elections, the party has to mull about its fate in the Assembly elections due in 2011.

Mons Joseph and Surendran Pillai would be struggling, for they have lost their firm grounds. Mons Joseph was playing many cards, one using an acolyte who claims to have clout in the Orthodox Church. Lok Sabha election results have shown that everything is lost. Jugglery will not pay. And if Thomas Chazhikadan comes opposing him in Kaduthuruthy, Mons Joseph’s fate would be sealed.

Surendran Pillai, after hobnobbing with P C Thomas group, has little left to keep afloat in the Assembly polls.

But by a quirk of fate, P.J.Joseph, who was considered a lost soul in politics by many, may be the only survivor.

Ningal Enne Communist Aakki (You made me Communist)

By O.J.George
Kottayam: This was the slogan for the down-trodden in olden times. This was also the title of a play that ploughed through the length and breadth and the hearts and minds of the people of Kerala, espousing the cause of the Communist.

The tortured, tormented, marginalised, dispossessed beings of nothingness all clung to this classic cry.V.S.Achuthanandan was one among them and he worked for these people.

Now, when he is demoted and made to sit below the ranks of small fries of yore, opposing the principle against which he had fought a bitter battle throughout his life, he may be, while furrowing a new path, shouting from the roof-top, “You made me Communist”.Others have become un-Communist.

Perhaps, Marxist ideologue P.Govinda Pillai has to be admired for his don’t- care attitude while breathing down the ignominies of a series of demotions and still vouching for the title, “I will die a Communist”.

There is no forum below the one he is holding now in the party. He is a member of the branch committee, after having been serially stripped membership in the central committee, state committee, district committee, and area committee.

But once in a while he makes classic comments like “E M S was not that great an intellectual” and then subjects himself to correction, which lands him up in the branch committee, a pedestrian position for a well-read person.

Achuthanandan has also been demoted four or five times for various crimes of omission and commission. But he is a fighter, as K.R.Gowri Amma rightly said.

Now for a few days he would mull over the predicament. Meanwhile, he would make his mind clear to the people.

Today it was like that. His fight against corruption is unrelenting. Shanti Bhooshan argued on behalf of him in the Supreme Court seeking to expedite the Idamalayar corruption case against former Power Minister R.Balakrishna Pillai.

And Balakrishna Pillai has commented the case is not against him, but against Pinarayi Vijayan, figuratively.Which means Achuthanandan’s fight against corruption is not over and his views on Lavalin case are not corrigible.

The Opposition has been provoking him in the Assembly to make some statement about his demotion.

The first salvo was an adjournment motion stating the absence of collective responsibility and miserable failure of administration on account of the squabbles in the CPM.

The latest was an adjournment motion highlighting the attack on those who shouted slogans in favour of the Chief Minister. Achuthanandan is keeping mum.

Meanwhile, the party higher-ups are in Thiruvananthapuram to evolve proper strategy at the state secretariat and the state committee to save the party from perdition arising from groupism.

They forget for a moment that groupism is a fact of political life here. It is not like removing Somnath Chatterjee from the party.

Removing V.S.Achuthanandan will not solve the problems. It will only vitiate matters further.

As for Achuthanandan, since his followers in positions in the party as well as government would not be amenable to moving out with him, he may have to suffer.Achuthanandan can move out only if the CPI, the RSP etc follow him.

They support his cause, but when it comes to parting of ways, they may go back and cite the larger cause of fight against imperialism, colonialism, feudalism and all to remain with the official line as an omnibus entity.

Why not nominate K.J.Yesudas to Rajya Sabha?

By O.J.George
Kottayam: Our musician par excellence, K.J.Yesudas, would be a befitting nominee representing Kerala in the Rajya Sabha as a Presidential nominee.

It is now time for the nation to mull about the nominees for the Rajya Sabha, which has 250 members of whom 12 are nominated by the President.

The 12 members are nominated on the basis of their special knowledge and practical experience in fields such as literature, science, art, social service etc.

By adopting the principle of nomination in Rajya Sabha, the Constitution has ensured that the nation must also receive services of the most distinguished persons of the country who have earned distinction in their field of activity, many of whom may not like to face the rough and tumble of the election.

By nominating them to Rajya Sabha, the State not only recognises their merit and confers honour on them, but also enables them to enrich the debates by their expertise and knowledge that they have in different areas.

The first batch of 12 nominated members represented a galaxy of talented persons of proven merit.They were: scholar and educationist Dr. Zakir Husain, renowned historians Dr. Kalidas Nag and Dr. Radha Kumud Mookerji, national poet Maithilisharan Gupta, well-known Gandhian author Kakasaheb Kalelkar, eminent scientist Professor Satyendranath Bose, social worker N.R. Malkani, renowned exponent of classical dance forms Rukmini Devi Arundale, Gandhian scholar and teacher, Dr. J.M. Kumarappa, legal luminary Dr. Alladi Krishnaswami, famous stage actor and cine star Prithviraj Kapoor and eminent medical scientist Major-General S.S. Sokhey.

Speaking about the nominated members, Jawaharlal Nehru said in the House of the People on 13 May 1953:“…The President has nominated some members of the Council of States who, if I may say so, are among the most distinguished, taking everybody in Parliament altogether – it is true, distinguished in arts, science, etc. – and our Constitution in its wisdom gave that. They do not represent political parties or anything, but they represent really the high watermark of literature or art or culture or whatever it may be”.

Since the Rajya Sabha was constituted in 1952, in all, one hundred and five members have so far been nominated to the House.

Among these nominated members we find scholars, jurists, educationists, historians, scientists, poets and litterateurs, engineers, economists, administrators, artistes and social workers of proven ability and outstanding merit.From Kerala, poet G.Sankara Kurup was a member during 1968-72. There were others.Lata Mangeshkar was a member of Rajya Sabha this way.

Yesudas does not need an introduction. He has enthralled the people of Kerala and the nation through his carnatic recitals, Carnatic-Hindustani mix and sheer film songs in thousands.

He is also known for his contribution to national integration and communal harmony.A re-rendition of “jaathi bhedam matha dwesham ethumillathe…….” (without differences of caste, hatred of religions, here is the sojourn of fraternal living) will reverberate in Parliament and through it to the whole world, makikng it a better place for people to live in.

Ground realities do not favour VS taking the plunge

By O.J.George

Kottayam: The ground realities do not favour Chief Minister V.S.Achuthanandan to take drastic steps like going out of the CPM in protest against his removal from the politburo.

The support he gets from the people is nothing but mob hysteria for the time being. Once he is out of power positions, the mob would not continue to follow him on a decisive level.


Among the hard-core party cadres, his support is minimal. And the minimum support base may further erode once he finds himself out of the party.

Age and health factors do not favour an aggressive posture being successful on his part. There has been a rule that those who complete 80 years of age should be kept out of the politburo. Achuthanandan is past 80. He may not find himself within the PB again.

The pity is that in the party hierarchy within the Cabinet, Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan remains a PB member and Chief Minister Achuthanandan out of it. The stance of Kodiyeri should have an upper hand, in the normal course.

Some of the staunchest supporters of VS had not kept up the momentum or looked askance at him these days.

Minister S.Sharma today met the Chief Minister at Cliff House and urged him not to go in for drastic action. It seems he urged the CM to wait and watch and then take a decision.

Minister P.K.Gurudasan had been a staunch supporter earlier. But these days he has not been that keen. Once he told the state committee VS should be unburdened of the heavy weight of many responsibilities.

Many of his supporters among the second or third rung leadership would not be with him if he decides to part ways. In fact, there may not be a single leader to be with him, when he is out.

As for media support, it is the most ephemeral thing one can bank on. Media hoopla is nothing but monkeying around a person and an issue. There is no fixity. They jump from one issue to another.

Politicians may be insincere, but media, ie the fourth estate, are worse, they don’t care a bit about eternal wedlock with a person or issue.

It is a slippery slope for V.S.Achuthanandan for now. But then who knows something may crop up like new revelations in Lavalin investigation.

V S is lucky, he can continue as Chief Minister, lame-duck or otherwise, even when there was near-total rout in the Lok Sabha elections. In Congress, A.K.Antony had not got that benefit when he was Chief Minister.