May

31

Iftekhar Murtaza (22), a Bangladeshi-American, from Van Nuys, California, has been held for the Dhanak family murders in Anaheim, Calkifornia. Iftekhar is the ex-boyfriend of the surviving Dhanak family daughter Shayona, and was arrested at the Phoenix airport. A one-way ticket to Bangladesh was recovered from him.

Police have said that Iftekhar’s cell phone was used within 2 miles of the crime scene within the hour of the Dhanak family murders. The motive for the murders is not apparent yet, but it is speculated that the Dhanak’s being Swaminarayan Hindus, and Iftekhar being a muslim, may have given rise to some kind of conflict leading to the crime.

Murtaza’s family, who own a convenient store in Van Nuys, California, defended him saying that he was innocent.

May

31

Noam Chomsky’s leftover wisdom on India

May 31, 2007 posted by indiatime | 2 Comments

In a recent interview given to Michael Shank, a doctoral student at the George Mason University, political activist Noam Chomsky expressed his views on the India-Pakistan relations. Chomsky, a staunch liberal and a consistent critic of the US foreign policy, is considered one of the world’s leading intellectuals.

But reading his views on Indo-Pak relations, I was surprised to see how superficial, one-sided and ill-informed this intellectual is regarding the Indian subcontinent. I will give 3 separate instances why I think so.

Chomsky was asked if he thought that the Indian diaspora in the UK or US was escalating tensions in the subcontinent. Chomsky answers that the migrated Indian diaspora communities in the US and UK are more rabid and more extremist in views, and more pro-BJP.

Having lived in the US almost half of my adult life, and having met with, talked with, and communicated with more Indians than Chomsky can ever claim to, I can assure you that Noam Chomsky is totally, unequivocally, flatly wrong here. In fact, I have never seen better examples of Indo-Pakistani friendship anywhere else than in the American Asian community. I don’t know whether to laugh at Chomsky’s assertion about the pro-BJP thing. I’m sure there are thousands of BJP supporters in the states, but at the same time, I can show you many more who have consistently supported the Congress party for more than 30 or 40 years.

Asked what he thought about the Indo-US nuclear deal, Chomsky says that the deal is illegal and will only help escalate tensions in the region. The deal, if goes through will bring about a breakdown of all non-proliferation systems, says Chomsky. If India can do this, Pakistan and China can follow, he says. Here is the problem. Amongst these 3 countries (India, Pakistan and China), only one is a democracy. Does this intellectual see no difference in the nuclear technology controlled by a civilian, elected government and a dictatorship or a communist regime? Nuclear technology is here to stay. It is not going anywhere. With all the energy and power sector crises that India is facing, isn’t it theoretically possible that India seriously wants it for peaceful purposes? And sorry, Mr. Chomsky, this is not your favorite pinata - BJP government. BJP is not in power anymore (In fact, it is about to lose any residual power in a few states as well).

Lastly, Chomsky is asked about religious extremism. Once again, the intellectual giant shows his utter ignorance about the facts on the ground by making a simplistic argument (apparently, BJP is the only extremist element in India, if you listened to Mr. Chomsky) blaming BJP. Now if you knew where Chomsky is coming from (extreme left), it is not surprising that he is attacking the so-called right wing in India. The problem is Chomsky is still far from dead center and his understanding of the political structure in India is weak, at best.

Do you really think that BJP stalwarts go to sleep at night, chanting ‘Rama’ and ‘Krishna’ ? BJP’s religious ideology is a political strategy, not a religious strategy. Every other political party has similar strategies, some of them cater to this or that caste, some of them cater to this or that religion. It is the political power, not any religious awakening that is the heart of the matter.

The problem with people like Chomsky is that in blaming others, they themselves are stripped naked, with their own extreme agenda in full public view. Noam Chomsky may be a great intellectual, and I have the greatest respect for anyone with that kind of brainpower. The problem is when such giants build glib and gullible theories based on mere assumptions and hearsay.

May

30

Salman and Hussain

May 30, 2007 posted by indiatime | 3 Comments

Salman Khan recently auctioned one of his paintings for Rs 1 crore. Not able to fetch a good price at an earlier auction for the charitable organisation Plan India, the Bollywood heartthrob had taken the painting off the auction.

Plan India’s brand ambassador, veteran actor Anil Kapoor managed to get Salman to come back to the auction, but eventually, Salman himself was finally able to make a phone deal that put the price of the painting at a crore rupees. But this timearound, the money won’t go to Plan India. It will go to Salman Khan foundation, a charitable organisation floated by Salman himself.

M. F. Hussain, another one of India’s great artists, also managed to sell his paintings for such astronomical sums. But he also managed to get himself mired in artful controversies. While Hussain got sidetracked painting nudes and running after Bollywood damsels, Salman rode to fame with his half-naked shirtless characterizations on the silver screen. Hussain spent time painting horses while Salman busied himself hunting antelopes in India’s wildlife preserves. And both of them still have their own ongoing battles in India’s courts.

But art, it turns out, is a great uniter. Bad boy-turned-good samaritan Salman Khan is now on a path to redeem his good name. It may be too late for Hussain to emulate Salman on the physical front. And he probably won’t generate oohs and aahs taking his shirt off, either. But he can certainly start by donating a few of his paintings to Salman’s charitable foundation. And who knows, if all goes well, we can even get Miss Madhuri Dixit to host that auction for her two old (one very old, actually) friends.

May

30

Top 10 reservation strategies

May 30, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

For a while now, the Gurjar community, based in India’s western states, has been demanding its inclusion as a scheduled tribe. Yesterday, thousands of Gurjars from the state of Rajasthan, exploded into a protest, blocked a major railroad and in return, got shot at by the state and the paramilitary police. At least a dozen died, more than few dozens were injured. Gurjars (or Gujjars) from other states have gotten a nod for the scheduled tribe (ST or Adivasis) status before. But in Rajasthan, the community, which already enjoys the ‘other backward classes’ (OBC) status, has been agitating for an upgrade as an adivasi tribe.

I think India’s reservation system does need an overhaul now and then, and so here are my top ten suggestions for a new reservation strategy:

1. Anyone who asks to be classified as backward should be given that privilege.
2. This facility should be made available online
3. Even if my community may not be classified as a backward community, I should be allowed to be classified as a backward person in that forward community. e.g. I may belong to the same caste as Mukesh Ambani, but he definitely seems to be more forward (at least economically) than me. And that should qualify me for some discounts.
4. The art of reservation and quotas needs to be extended to Bollywood as well. Every movie should have either the hero or the heroine from backward classes. This should finally allow people like me to pair against Mallika Sherawat and Aishwarya. This will also give a new meaning to the term ‘casting couch’.
5. The Indian Cricket team must have at least 50% players from scheduled castes, tribes or backward classes. We have too many forward-class players who are always on back-foot when they face international teams.
6. 50% of the stocks and shares of every business in the country must be allotted to backward people. Also, at the time of the Initial Public Offering (IPO), 50% of the offering must be in the name of the backward classes.
7. In buses, trains, planes, rickshaws, 50% seats must be reserved for backward classes.
8. Every 50 years, all backward classes should be renamed as forward, and all the forward classes that have been left behind for those 50 years should be renamed as backward.
9. Every caste and tribe, forward or backward, should assign a brand ambassador to promote its cause.
10. To discourage any further propagation of birth/vocation-based caste system, children should be prohibited from continuing into their parent’s profession. This will prohibit most Bollywood celebrities, most industrialists, most doctors, and most politicians from doing what they do and will finally force them do some real work for food.

May

29

Fists of curry

May 29, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

India has now postponed the planned China visit, of 107 Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers from the 1991 batch. The decision was made after China refused to grant a visa to Gonesh Koyu, an IAS officer from the Arunachal Pradesh cadre. China refused the visa stating that there was no question of granting a visa to someone from Arunachal Pradesh, as it (the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh) was an integral part of China.

Arunachal Pradesh is a 56,000 square mile area south of the Mcmahon line, a line of control recognized from the 1914 Simla agreement between the then British government of India and the government of Tibet.

On China’s side, the visa dispute illustrates, that

1. China does not take India seriously in matters of border dispute.
2. China doesn’t really feel much pressure from India’s new position
3. Chins is still controlled by old school hardliners whose arrogance is fuelled by China’s military might.

On the Indian side, it illustrates that

1. Indian politicians do not take the China issue seriously
2. Indian politicians do not really feel much pressure from anybody
3. India is still controlled by old school softies whose trepidation is fuelled by China’s military might

May

29

Elephant toll

May 29, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

tusk·er (English):
an animal with tusks, an elephant

tusk·er (Hindi/Sanskrit):
a thief, a robber, a raider, or a smuggler

A rogue elephant in the northeastern state of Orissa is said to have been making life hell for the highway motorists. The elephant first blocks the cars, forces everyone out of the car, and then sniffs tthe car for any food such as banana or vegetables. If the driver doesn’t roll the window down, the elephant stands in front of the car and blocks the way until it is allowed to frisk the car.

The elephant has not yet harmed anyone, said Sirish Mohanty, an Orissa state forest ranger. The state boasts of several wildlife sanctuaries, and it has been claimed that the overpopulation of elephants in the state has led to an spilling over of elephants out of the jungles, and into the townships and people’s farms.

The word tusker (or taskar) in Sanskrit, literally means a thief. But this tusker seems to be getting a pass on the Orissa highways. As a symbol of India’s numero uno deity Ganesha, this thief is sure to keep getting his prasad from the motorist devotees.

May

28

NRI family murdered in California

May 28, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

karishma dhanakLast tuesday, police in California made a grisly discovery of the charred bodies of Jayprakash Dhanak (56) and his daughter Karishma (20), near a bicycle trail near Irvine. Karishma’s mother Leela Dhanak (53) was found badly beaten outside their burning home. Also surviving is daughter Shayona (18), who was not at home when the family was attacked.

The night of Monday May 21st, at around 11 pm, Dhanak family’s neighbors heard explosions, saw the Dhanak house on fire, and called 911. When the police arrived, Mrs. Leela was found lying on the neighbor’s lawn. She was brutally beaten, and was in no condition to speak. Nobody was found inside the house on Monday night. But on Tuesday, police discovered the bodies of the 2 family members who dies in the attack - Jayprakash and Karishma.

The Dhanak family’s 500K house was set on fire after the attack, and the police are looking for two unknown assailants who probably escaped in a white van.

In 2003, Mr Dhanak had pleaded guilty to charges of mail fraud, did a prison term for a few months, and is said to have paid fines upto more than 2 million dollars. It is not known if the attacks had any connection to that aspect of Mr. Dhanak’s past.

Anyone who knows about this crime, should contact the Anaheim police hotline at 714.765.1944.

May

28

In what is definitely India’s largest mass conversion, more than a 100,000 hindus converted to Buddhism in Mumbai, on Sunday. The Dalai Lama couldn’t attend, though there were reports advertising that he would.

Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), one of Hinduism’s greatest scholars and philosophers, once said this about Buddha -

“…Buddha was the only great Indian philosopher who would not recognize caste…all the other philosophers pandered more or less to social prejudices; no matter how high they soared, still a bit of the vulture remained in them. As my master used to say, the vulture soars high out of the sight in the sky, but his eye is ever on a bit of carrion on earth…”

- Swami Vivekananda: (Inspired Talks : Thousand Island Park lectures - 1895)

So, I can understand why people. oppressed for centuries in one religion, would want to try a new religious ideology, one not too different than the original one, but a lot more compassionate, a lot friendlier. Go for it, I say. After all, we are supposed to be a free country, and should be free to choose any religious ideology that we like. Having said that, however, I see some problems with this mass exodus.

This particular religious exodus was not attended by the Dalai Lama, but Maharashtra state’s chief minister Deshmukh did grace the occasion with his presence. So did a lot of political bigshots in the state.

I think this largest religious conversion in the country is not really a religious conversion. It is a political conversion. During these times, what matters to the lower caste Hindus is not what religious philosophy they adhere to, but rather what political party they support. The government has already qualified the lower catses as scheduled castes, so anyone who claims to belong to such groups can already avail better opportunities, discounts, and specially reserved quotas for education, employment, practically everywhere in India’s public life. So why bother? And why now?

My feeling is that this conversion is
1. a clever ploy to switch the voter loyalty away from the pro-Hindu parties.
2. a shrewd strategy to split the Hindu vote
3. a way to exploit the lower castes further

That the Dalai Lama himself didn’t attend the largest religious conversion to Buddhism can tell us a lot about this great man as well as the not-so-great political tricksters who have spearheaded this charade. I’m sure the Dalai Lama knows that this conversion hasn’t come out of a 50,000-plus Hindus suddenly realizing the need to convert. I’m also sure the political masterminds of this religious deception know that this conversion allows them a leverage and an added advantage, come the election time.

Trust me, I don’t put much stock in any of our political parties. Each and every one of them have shown the inclination, the willingness and the greed to mortgage religious values and heritage of this country for the benefit of political power. Sunday’s mass religious exodus in Mumbai, in my opinion, is just one of those ugly political deceptions pulled off by some of the brightest political minds on the planet.

May

27

Cheat if you can’t take the heat!

May 27, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

I’ve always wondered if there’s a gene for cheating and if we, Indians, have several copies of it in our makeup. And I’m sure each and every one of you, has, at one time too many, felt cheated or tricked by another citizen of this country. Probably more so in business and public life than in our homes, but cheating has become a second nature to many of us. From our waking moment to the time we go back to bed at night, many of us cheat and are cheated many, many times.

Driving in traffic every day, traveling in the local trains, or taking a rickshaw to some destination, when was the last time you felt as if you were fairly and justly treated by a stranger? Standing in a line, interviewing for a job, doing a business transaction, when was the last time you felt as if this was a good honest day and nobody was cheating you out of anything? Browsing the morning paper, and watching the TV news, when was the last time you felt that this country was finally in the hands of honest do-gooders?

Even Indian Idol, a reality show is a great window into this nature of ours. Though the list of contestants keeps dwindling every week, practically every contestant has had some excuse or another for their bad singing. Almost every other participant has ever, throat infection, vomiting, or fainting spells right in front of the judges. Almost every other participant is playing the old game of emotional blackmail, eyes always tearing up, memories of mothers at home, and what not. What’s surprising is most of these participants have hardly crossed their twenties yet, and yet are so unhesitating and experts at lying.

I remember, when, after many years of living outside India, I had returned to my life in India, and the very next day, was standing in line at an anytime money booth. As the person in front was finishing his transaction, I respectfully waited behind the line painted on the floor. To my utter surprise, one-by-one, people started cutting me and barging ahead. It brought me back to my streetsmart senses before ever traveling abroad. And very soon, I had forgotten about that painted line on the floor. There were more signs to be ignored, the traffic signs, don’t spit signs, trash can signs, just a lot of signs that son became insignificant.

Most of us are probably good, honest people at heart and in our homes. But the minute we walk out of those doors, we get into our survival modes, donning the garb of protection, turning into cheaters and tricksters like the villains in the spiderman movies, tackling the web of corruption and cheating and trickery in our public life. Most of us get by alright, except a few fools like the the kins of a freedom-fighter, a middle-aged couple who drank poison and killed themselves yesterday before a district magistrate’s home in Hardwar. They were so unable and desparate to make ends meet, that they went on a fast unto death, expecting some attention from the local government. They were probably two good souls who never figured how to cheat and criss-cross their way through our corrupt system and still survive.

May

27

Touchy topics

May 27, 2007 posted by indiatime | 11 Comments

The catholic bishops of India are welcoming a resolution in the United States congress to end untouchability in India. US congressman Franks from Arizona was deeply moved by the human rights stories about India’s dalit women and introduced a resolution to highlight the oppression against the untouchables in India.

As much as I admire and respect the compassionate and loving gestures of the individuals and the agencies involved with this, I don’t understand the connection. Forgive me if I am not that smart. Sorry, if I don’t read between the lines that well. But to me, this piece of news is as strange as say, the Hindu priests in the United States welcoming a resolution in the Indian parliament to abolish all sorts of racism in the American public life.

I’m not saying that people in other countries shouldn’t be criticizing the happenings in India. They have every right to. What I don’t understand is the legislative condemnation of a deep-rooted social ill in a country where matters of religion and ethnicity are far more complicated, subtle, and truly beyond the comprehension of a US legislative body.

May

26

Parrots and pierrots

May 26, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

Pi·er·rot:
masquerader, a made up buffoon

Watching CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education) chairman, Ashok Ganguly, at his press conference yesterday, I realised that the main problem with our whole education system is the leadership at the top. And as he spoke about the latest CBSE results, Mr Ganguly gave many glimpses into the shortcomings of that education system (No, I’m not speaking about his grammar - that has to be a shortcoming of the education system of 40 years ago).

Time and again, the CBSE chairman seemed to highlight the number of marks, percentage points, how many above 90%, how many above 95%, etc, etc. (8000-plus students abobe 90%, 500-plus above 95%). That kind of statistics hides the real issues that plague our system. All it tells you is 8000-plus CBSE-system students have good rote memory, that’s all.

India’s traditional education methodologies (seemingly) worked very well for Indian schools of learning. Our older system of memorising, rote chanting , and antiquated methodologies are however, totally useless for the study of basic sciences, and basic humanities and arts. Our methods are able to instill only a limited qualitative aptitude that can go only so far in acquiring and maintaining ordinary, mundane jobs. But what we do not give our kids is the ability to think, explore, and innovate.

Exams such as the one Mr Ganguly is speaking of, create misconceptions of aptitude and understanding amongst parents, educators, as well the future employers. For too long, India has shunned open universities, the ones that produced the likes another Bengali, Satyajit Ray.
For too long, Indian universities have neglected research, innovation and exploration, the ones that build the engines that run humanity’s future.

Our education, on the other hand, gives the students and the graduates nothing, nothing at all, to work with. Not just no life experience, but not even the skills of the trade that would feed these clueless lot. We have, with great pride and no lesser sense of accomplishment, indulged a rote system, one that produces only parrots and pierrots (masqueraders). Our perception of our excellence is a mere spitting image of it, not the reality. And unless we change the ways we educate ourselves, our grandstandings about world leadership will soon prove to be hollow claims without substance.

May

26

Police brutality in India

May 26, 2007 posted by indiatime | 4 Comments

Several times during the last few months, I have seen live or taped pictures of the Indian police beating Indians up. Whether it is farmers protesting against Special Economic Zones (SEZs), vegetable vendors agitating against retail juggernauts, thirsty public taking to the streets to protest water shortages, art students demanding freedom of expression, or people at their prayer places, the police in India, seem to be taking a sadistic pleasure in viciously and barbarically attacking old people, women, teenagers, pedestrians, onlookers, whoever they can get their hands and sticks and guns on.

And I’m just talking about what’s happening on the streets, in plain view of the watchful eyes of the TV cameras and millions of us. I shudder to even imagine what must be happening behind the closed doors of the police custodies all over this country. Every few days, there is a report of an accused being held for a few days committing suicide in police custody. Every now and then, there are reports of mysterious deaths under police supervision. Every now and then, there are unexplained encounters and shootouts that end up with a few people dead. Every month, there are reports of a policemen kidnapping and raping young women.

Incidences of police brutality and abuse aren’t new to India. But what is alarming is the changeover of what was once perceived as an aberration, to something that has become a customary practice, a beaten path, if you will.

I used to treat the reports of police brutality in Kashmir as something that happened in another country, another state, another place. But watching this gross and libidinous abuse of power by our police, I have started feeling that maybe the Jammu & Kashmir state police is reponsible for a whole lot of mayhem in that region.

India’s police is out of control. They need to learn how to police a democracy. Democracies are just not policed with uncivil savagery. Because when they are, they are not called democracies anymore.

May

25

The real auto motive

May 25, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

According to recent reports, India will be the fastest growing automobile manufacturing country on the planet for the period from 2006 to 2011. New automakers entering the auto market practically every month, banks more eager than ever to loan money to buy cars, promises of better highways, everything seems to be pointing to a stage where milions of middle-class Indians would seem to be proud owners of at least one car, in very near future.

Years ago, when India jumped into the cellphone market, we had the advantage and the access to the newer technology in cellphones, one that was even superior to the that being used in the United States. Now with this new dawn of the auto-age or whatever, India could have demanded and insisted to be privy to the latest, the best, and the cleanest technology and research the automakers around the world have to their disposal. India should have held companies like GM and Ford and BMW at bay, asking for the initiation of most advanced technology these guys have to offer.

It is much more difficult for these companies to set up new and latest assembly shops to produce cleaner vehicles in the already existing markets, than it is in India. Here, they start from scratch, and it would have been so much easier to go for autos the western nations won’t see running for another 5 years.

Instead, the automakers around the world are now using India to dump their old, unclean, secondhand and used technology. The reasons are obvious. The auto industry and the oil industry share the same greedy blood. So before India even has a chance to examine the disastrous consequences of the saturation of gas-guzzling cars all over the place, we will be buried neck-deep in oil-dependence.

In her book, Crude: The Story of Oil Indian American writer Sonia Shah explains how the oil companies and the automakers, endanger the future of this planet by stripping it empty of the natural resources. But the automakers and the oilmen know that the average middle class Indian still dreams of replacing that two-wheeler with a brand new four-wheeler. And they can’t wait to chain that average Indian into the slavery of oil that the car buyer will keep buying for the next 50 years.

May

24

Implosive intentions

May 24, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

A few days ago, LeT (Lashker-e-Toiba ) threatened to blow up Mumbai’s World Trade Center sometime on May 24. Now, SIMI (Students Islamic Movement iof India) has issued yet another threat against a 17-storey highrise in Jalgaon, Maharashtra. There was increased police presence today, in Mumbai’s film city after alleged more threats. Seems as if, LeT & SIMI, and other terrorist outfits are trying to ride the media wave out, after last week’s Hyderabad blasts.

Mumbai a few weeks ago however, was rocked by another kind of bomb blasts, the ones that thousands gathered to watch, and the ones that had the governmental go-ahead as well. Mumbai’s construction industry is now using implosion techniques that can save time, labor and energy and bring a building down within seconds (last week’s Mumbai implosion took a little longer - Indians are still learning to implode).

The implosion demonstration in Mumbai didn’t go very well, and lasted several hours instead of seconds. In spite of the German techniques and what not, the imploders probably just lacked the raw willpower. So the next time LeT or SIMI want to blow something up, they need to give a return address on the letters they send to the Indian government, and the government should actually give them the addresses of Mumbai’s old buildings.

- Shanghai has already started hogging the limelight as one of Asian’s modernest cities. Mumbai can use some quick help from young, enthusiastic volunteers.

- This way the dons who are so tied up with the construction industry can still get to participate in Mumbai’s real estate activities.

- India can use the fervor, enthusiasm, and some free labor by having LeT and SIMI blow up old delapidated buildings. There are a lot of those all over the country and any voluntary help from any organization would be welcome at all levels.

- This way, SIMI and LeT remain occupied, get a lot of media attention that they so desperately seek, get their pictures on TV, and may, once ina while, manage to earn bread and butter the way the rest of us do.

- SIMI and LeT need to find something to do very quickly. Their faustian pact with Pakistan’s intelligence agencies is going to implode on them very soon, as Pakistan’s own struggle towards democracy shapes up fast in the next few months.

May

24

The dowry gazette - May 24, 2007

May 24, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

It has been barely a week that I posted a dowry gazette. But these stories are kind of getting out of hand, and it is rather hard to keep up with the unending list.

This week, West Bengal state’s women’s commission received an unusual complaint by a wife against her husband who tried to film her on their first night of marriage. The women’s commission is alerting young women that such films are later used by the husbands and their families to blackmail the brides and their families into bringing more dowry.

Two days ago, in Phulwarisharif, Bihar, greedy in-laws killed their daugher-in-law Ruby Devi, as she failed to bring a motorcycle as a dowry gift.

In Meerut yesterday, a woman slapped her dowry-seeking husband inside a police station, and told him that she no longer wished to live with him.

An NRI based in London, was booked in Bhopal for harassing his wife Uzma for dowry. Uzma told police that her family had given her husband about Rs. 10 lakhs for securing a british visa and also for setting up business in London.

Last week, in New Delhi, 24-year old Renu aparently killed herself to escape the torture and harassment of her husband Sonu.

In Ghaziabad, on May 14, Dhimant Singh Rawat, an engineer, and his parents were arrested after the dismembered body of his 24-year old wife Shobhana was found near the raiilway tracks.

Also last week, a Delhi court ruled that filing charges of dowry harassment against a husband cannot be equated with cruelty on the wife’s part.

In New Delhi last week, the wife and son of a high court judge were accused by the daughter-in-law of harassing and torturing her for dowry. The family allegedly snatched the young woman’s kid away from her and threw her out of the house in the middle of the night.

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