Aug

31

Adnan Patrawala didn’t die in vain

August 31, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

Adnan Patrawala didn’t die in vain. After the 16-year old Mumbai teen was murdered in the back of his own car by his own so-called friends, questions were raised about the role of the police-media connection, and the TV coverage that might have pushed the kidnappers beyond the edge.

Now, Mumbai police seems to have learnt a lesson or two from what hapened with Adnan. The police have now adopted a policy of ‘total secrecy’ to deal with cases of kidnapping which for the police are not crimes that have happned, but crimes in progress.

1. Delaying FIR:
The police will not register an FIR immediately even if a kidnapping complaint is filed at a police station. Ordinarily, once the FIR is registered, the police has to present the case to the courts within 24 hours, and once that documentation trail starts, it gets harder to control it.

2. How local stations relay the case to the other police:
So far, the police used to relay the kidnapping case messages via regional and main control rooms where several people at one time have access to the kidnapping information. Henceforth, the messages about kidnapping will be passed on directly to the crime branch, which remains the investigating authority.

These are major changes in how the police handles kidnappings. Leaking of sensitive information to the media has in the past, leaked police strategies to the media, the public and the kidnappers as well. Nobody knows whether Adnan Patrawala would have survived if there hadn’t been any media leakage and the consequent blanket TV coverage.

But these changes will put a lid to even the needless and benign leakages that serve no purpose when both the crime and the investigation are in progress. For Adnan Patrawala, the changes have come too late. But he would have been happy to know that he didn’t die for nothing.

Aug

31

Chennai GPS-enables mail trucks

August 31, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

A cousin of my father started out as a mailman. Father alwas told about how this guy, when he carried letters for delivery, would just throw the bulk of the of the letters in the river, lightening his load up. Aparently not many on his delivery route found out about that, because he eventually became a postmaster in the same village.

A few years after this guy became the postmaster, my father, while in the nearby town once, decided to pay a visit to this cousin’s post-office. He found the place closed for the afternoon, pushed the door open, went in, and was amazed to find that the postmaster was sleeping on a long table in the office, using the long postal gunny bag like a sleeping bag.

The city of Chennai’s post office, however, is making history by going hi-tech in a novel way. Chennai is getting a fleet of Global-Positioning-enabled mail vehicles, to streamline, expedite and modernise its postal force. Officials plan to enable most of the postal vehicles with GPS by the end of the year.

My father’s cousin would have been caught red-handed in a minute if they had had GPS-enabled bicycles then. But few people in the village noticed that they weren’t getting any letters. In this age of emails and cellphones and text-messages, its hard to even imagine what it must be like, to have to wait ages for a message to come your way.

Aug

31

Whether Ram Gopal Verma’s remake of Sholay, India’s best box-office hit ever, does well or not (I don’t see one reason why it will), the original Salim-Javed script is on its way to a Shakespeare-style immortality with its versions, imitations, and remakes coming up faster than Basanti’s horse-carriage.

There are reports that Pritish Nandi Communications has bagged the official remake rights for the original Sholay. On top of a remake, Nandi communications will also get the rights to make a prequel, a sequel, and an animation version of the original.

Like a Shakespearean play that is adopted, imitated, discovered, and rediscovered, Sholay, the classic, has achieved that stature where the charm of the story can probably be spun off as plays, remakes, animations, comic strips, and TV serials.

Coming back to Ram Gopal Verma, had he used any of those other formats like a play, a comic strip, or an animation, I wouldn’t mind spending a few rupees to enjoy it all over again. But a revisionist non-western with a 70-year old Gabbar Singh is not my idea of a Sholay remake. Ram Gopal takes pride in never having made an original. But as sombody once said, people who never walk except when they march in other people’s tracks, seldom make exciting discoveries.

Aug

30

The bovine identity

August 30, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

India’s border authorities are issuing passports to cows, to track the cattle smuggling trade across the Indo-Bangladesh border. These ‘passports’ or ID cards include a passport picture (with both ears showing of course), and a detailed description of color, gender, height, of the animal. The border authorities have started creating a database of cattle in the border areas, and are trying to use it as evidence once the cattle smuggleing operations near the border are raided.

India’s porous border with Bangladesh and the tremendous shortage of livestock within Bangladesh have created a fertile ground for cattle smuggling catering the increasing demand for beef in Bangladesh. The cattle trade itself is not illegal, but the smugglers run an unlicensed operation that promises them lucrative profit margins. The illegal outgoing cattle trade from India to Bangladesh often goes hand-in-hand with a reciprocal incoming trade in arms, drugs, and fake currency. The matters have gotten more complicated since local farmers on both the sides have accused the Indian border patrol with illegal activities, the Indian farmers accusing them of complicity in the illegal cattle trade and the Bangladeshi farmers accusing them of illegal seizures and searches.

Local farmers, nowadays, are busy getting their cattle photographed. But they have found that cows don’t appreciate the new rules much. One farmer complained that his cow damaged the photo studio’s flash lights and he had to cough up half his monthly income to pay for the repairs.

Aug

30

Taj Mahal, one of the marvels of our times, was shut down yesterday, thanks to the chaos and the riots that erupted in the streets of Agra. It all started when a truck hit and killed 4 persons, part of a group of Muslims walking home from the ‘night of forgiveness’ or Shab-E-Barat prayers. What happened later, however, turned that night of forgiveness into a nightmare of vengeance as a large mob clashed with the local police, setting fires to several vehicles and destroying nearby property.

Ordinarily, celebrating the night of forgiveness (or the night of emancipation) on the outskirts of the monument of love might sound like a romantic, serene, and an idyllic concept. But the lines in the books of religion have come to mean little for the frustrated, angry, and unsocial radical elements. And it’s not just one particular religion. Within each and every religion, we see an increasing presence and influence of radical thoughts that contradict the very edicts of the religion that the radicals pretend to espouse.

That you can see the world’s most beautiful wonder from your window should seem to be a great antidote for any stress out there. But deep-rooted discontent, distrust and hatred are a combination million times more powerful than a scene where the beautiful Shab-E-Barat moon shines bright and blue on Shah-Jehan’s immortal tribute to everlasting love.

Aug

29

Prime suspect

August 29, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

police sketch of Hyderabad blast suspected terrorist - source CNN-IBNAuthorities in Hyderabad have now released a possible sketch of the suspect who, they believe, planted the bomb at the amphitheater, resulting in the death of about 3 dozen people at that site.

The man is said to be in mid-twenties, about 5 feet 8 inches in height, and is apparently well-built. He was seen carrying a black bag, which police think contained the explosive device.

Aug

29

Undressing society princesses

August 29, 2007 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

Five months ago, Anand Jon, an Indian-American fashion designer was arrested on charges that he had sexually molested young models, including some who were minors. Hailed at different times as as a ‘top 20 Asian’, ‘India’s cultural ambassador’, ‘21 faces of the future’, ‘Newsweek 20 most upcoming people’, ‘one of Sexiest South Asians in America’, ‘one of 50 most Influential Indians in the world’, etc., Anand Jon has been in the Los Angeles county jail for last 5 months.

Yesterday, Jon appeared before a judge, changed his lawyers, and had a postponement of his preliminary hearing until September 26. His family is totally supportive of him, though, and they believe that he is innocent of all charges.

Interestingly, Anand Jon’s homepage lists all the media coverage surrounding this once-celebrity designer. The first item on the list is a wish-listing from year 2020, when Anand is supposed to have become a bigtime celebrity dressing society princesses, rubbing shoulders with celebrities, and himself having become a fodder for the papparazzi. That prophecy on Jon’s own website, may have come true a bit too soon, and this time it is for undressing the society princesses instead of dressing them. And if the charges against him stick, India’s cultural ambassador to the west might have to spend the rest of his life behind bars.

Aug

29

Men in khaki and men in white

August 29, 2007 posted by indiatime | 3 Comments

police_brutality - image source NDTV.comBhagalpur in the state of Bihar, is once again justifying its psycho-vigilante reputation. A mob of people and a few policemen, lynched a suspected thief yesterday, tied his hands behind his back, tied his legs to a policeman’s motorcycle, and the policeman dragged and paraded him on the streets.

I wrote about the police brutality in India in general, only a few months ago. Bhagalpur police, however, make the rest of India’s cops look like Mr. Rogers. Years ago, police from the same Bhagalpur, were found guilty of blinding more than 30 prisoners by pouring acid into the prisoners’ eyes. Yesterday’s incidence attracted attention only because the media cameras caught the police in the act.

But not just the police, the entire administration of the state of Bihar comes off as arrogant. Only a few days ago, Bihar’s chief minister transferred a district magistrate (DM) because the DM didn’t recognise the chief minister’s voice on the phone. “…This is your CM speaking..”, said Nitish Kumar, the CM while the guy at the other end probably thought of it as a hoax. Minutes later, the DM was transferred. No need to shed tears for him either, he, just like most other government officials was an arrogant bastard as well (People from his district had been complaining about him for months).

But why single Bihar out? What about Maharashtra, one of the most modern and one of the most industrialised states? Recently, R. R. Patil, the home minister of Maharashtra, initiated investigations on seven policemen and sacked one for hugging and shaking hands with actor Sanjay Dutt. During a press conference, a reporter asked him what action if any, would be taken against Baba Siddiqui , the ruling party’s labor minister, who had been seen hugging and shaking hands with the same Sanjay Dutt all day? “…Don’t ever ask me such questions again…”, a visibly angry Mr. Patil castigated the reporter as he abruptly left the press conference.

That kind of arrogance and an utter disregard about accountability is a hallmark of India’s politicians, public servants, and the police. It doesn’t matter what state you’re in, you just have to keep praying and hoping that yours and your family’s lives aren’t touched and soiled by the official machinery of the state.

Aug

28

Help wanted - a coach for Indian cricket team

August 28, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

India’s Cricket control board has come out with a public advertisement seeking a coach for the Indian Cricket team. Anyone interested can email bcci@vsnl.com.

Here are the key responsibilities as stated in BCCI’s classified ad and how prospective coaches need to interpret those.

a) Working closely with the Selection Committee

Selection can often be based on state quotas, celebrity quotas, and political inclinations. And the committee members are old unsuccessful cricketers with long-held grudges.

b) Should have the ability to plan and manage programs for the elite cricketers

Know the difference between newbies and celebrities. There are some cricketers on the team who are supposed to be elite. These brats are Indian cricket’s Gods and do not need coaching. They are naturally gifted Cricketing avatars.

c) Should be capable of building positive relations with the public and media.

The Cricket Board has screwed up relations with the media so badly, that some in the media, have now formed their own Cricket board (Indian Cricket League). Plus, the coach needs to keep his middle fingers wrapped all the time and is not allowed to display it to the public.

d) Should be capable of motivating players

Indian cricket team is a demoralised bunch of brats and morons. For the elite cricketers, the way to motivate them is by performing ‘maha-aarti’ (worship) and making offerings of money. Remember, these players revered deities of our times.

e) Familiarity with performance analysis software.

Oldtime statisticians like B. B. Mama have been replaced by ‘Performace Analysis’ packages (not performance enhancement packages). So any knowledge of IT (Java, SAP, C++, Oracle) or even a call center stint will help.

f) Should have excellent communicating skills

Be fluent in Urdu/Arabic as there is a need to comunicate with bookies in Pakistan and Dubai all the time.

g) Should be capable of providing tactical expertise

This includes how to win, lose or draw depending on the bookies directives. This takes a lot of experience and cooperation from elite cricketers as well.

Notes: Only non-Indians preferred. Please read these instructions carefully before you apply.

Aug

28

The babying of Salman Khan

August 28, 2007 posted by indiatime | 5 Comments

Salman Khan, Bollywood’s famous leading man, has now spent about 2 days inside the Jodhpur prison. There is a tremendous outpouring of support from Salman’s family, friends and his fans. All pretty much expected. What is surprising is the way Salman’s family seems to be treating this 40-plus year old man. Starting the first day of his imprisonment, his girlfriend, brother, sister, mother, father, lawyers all flew to Jodhpur, trying to seek a visitation with him.

That seems rather unnecessary. Salman Khan has gone in for the crime of animal cruelty, and though his sentence has seemed rather harsh to many (I myself have written against it, advocating using him as a resource against poaching), his family’s and friends’ attitude reveals something behnid the making of Salman Khan, the human being.

Aesop, in one his fables (many of which originally come from India) , wrote about a boy who stole a book from a friend and brought it home to his mother. The mother didn’t discipline or castigate him, instead, her behavior seemed to encourage him further. The boy grew up to be a thief and was sentenced to be hanged. As his last request, he asked to say speak privately with his beloved mother. And as he pretended to say something in her ears, he bit the ear off, and said, “Mother, if you had beaten me when I first stole, I should not have come to this, nor have been thus led to a disgraceful path…”.

Nothing wrong with being supportive, but isn’t Salman’s family doing him a disservice by their unconditional continued affection in spite of his history of felonies and misdemeanors ? And can a 40-plus middle aged adult not be a man and live alone for a few days? Why do Salman’s family and friends and the public treat him like a baby?

Aug

28

The knife and times of Amarendra Nath Ghosh

August 28, 2007 posted by indiatime | 4 Comments

Only the knife knows what goes on in the heart of a pumpkin.
- Simone Schwarz-Bart, writer

bank fraudster amarendra ghoshAmarendra Nath Ghosh, India’s scam artist extraordinnaire, has finally been caught. Having swallowed a knife (yes!) to avoid extradition from Germany to India, Ghosh had remained in German custody for 4 years. But yesterday, an Indian Airforce medic plane specially equipped with doctors, surgeons, and CBI officers, took custody of Ghosh from the Germans, ending Ghosh’s decade-long run.

Between 1992-1996, Ghosh swindled some of the biggest banks in Kolkata for millions (Allahabad Bank, Andhra Bank, Punjab National Bank, United Bank of India, Bank of Baroda) using forgery, fraud, and friends at the banks. He then fled to Dubai and later to Vanuatu Islands in the South pacific. In Vanuatu, he joined hands with the then prim eminister Barak Sope and almost got that country’s reserve bank to issue him bonds worth $300 million.

Ghosh’s luck caught up with him in Wiesbaden, Germany, late in 2002. But he fought his extradition to India for months. When the extradition was finally okayed in June of 2003, Ghosh swallowed a 4-inch long knife and then refused to undergo surgery. The German authorities got scared and stopped his extradition for another 4 years, for the fear that the long flight to India would endanger his life.

Fast forward to 2007. With India now providing a VIP transportation to carry Ghosh back, the Germans are no longer worried about him and have now allowed the Indians to take him home. Ghosh is expected to have his day in Kolkata courts, soon.

Aug

27

The family of murdered teenager Adnan Patrawala showed up on national TV yesterday and talked about the tough times they all have been going through since their son was kidnapped and murdered by his friends. Adnan’s mother was calm, composed, and resolute, his father mostly calm but at times, upset and indignant at the media and the killers.

The family decided to go on national TV to address the rumors about their son’s lifestyle. Adnan was a good kid, a good son, they said, and it pained them to see their son painted as a rich kid in bad company playing pool at night. They sat through a long gruelling interview without hiding their pain and stress. They also talked about the tremendous outpouring of love and affection they had received from strangers, message and phone calls from faraway countries.

They couldn’t hide their disgust and anger at the so-called friends of Adnan, and demanded that the five young killers should be publicly hanged to death.

I sincerely hope the Patrawalas get their wish. One could easily have asked for the same punishment for the killers had they been strangers and unknown perpetrators. But Adnan’s killers betrayed his trust, betrayed his friendship, and betrayed an online community as well. That betrayal of a trusting friend is a crime worse than murder. No punishment could be said to be too harsh for such a crime.

Aug

27

Why Tasnim Aslam has zero credibility

August 27, 2007 posted by indiatime | Leave a Comment

“…They have been making these allegations and nothing ever came out of those allegations and yet they continue maligning Pakistan…”

“…Only the Indians have this kind of some supernatural powers that as soon as some terrorist act takes place they know how it happened and who is responsible…”
- Tasnim Aslam (Pakistan foreign ministry spokeswoman) , commenting on India’s allegations that Pakistan’s ISI was involved in the Hyderabad terror attacks.

Here are some of the other Tasnim Aslam quotes:

- There is no infrastructure of terrorism in Pakistan. This is a baseless allegation.

- Pakistan had never claimed that Kashmir was its integral part during the last 60 years.

- There is no al-Qaida or Taliban safe haven in Pakistan.

- f there are any terrorist elements hiding in our tribal areas it is for the security forces of Pakistan to take action against these.

- There are no Indian PoWs in Pakistan.

- Pakistan never ever gave military support to Taliban.

Aug

27

Army daughter dies of hunger in the capital

August 27, 2007 posted by indiatime | 3 Comments

A 37-year old daughter of a late Indian army retiree, has died of starvation in New Delhi. Her two sisters were found emaciated and starving in the same house where her own body was rotting for a few days. One of the sisters had lost her job a few months ago, and the family had been going without food for several days.

The neighbors sensed that something was wrong when they the foul rotten smell of the young woman’s dead body spread out of the house. The two surviving sisters have now been admitted to a medical facility.

There haven’t been any official comments from any politicians as of yet. India’s first woman president, meanwhile, was busy watching the screening of Bollywood’s new hit ‘Chak De India’ at her presidential palace. “…You were too good in the film..”, she told Shah Rukh Khan, the king of Bollywood.

Aug

26

Shaking hands

August 26, 2007 posted by indiatime | 2 Comments

sanjay shaking hands with policeEight policemen from Pune have probably lost their jobs thanks to a harmless thing they did a few days ago. As actor Sanjay Dutt got out of Pune’s Yerawada prison two days ago, he was seen shaking hands with a few policemen as he walked towards his car. That act of shaking hands with a Bollywood celebrity has been rewarded not by a slap on those wrists, but job suspensions for the 7 policemen. The state government in Maharashtra today suspended one, and has started investigations on 7 other policemen who were seeing shaking hands with the Bollywood star.

salman shinde and deshmukhJust 2 weeks ago, Mr. Vilasrao Deshmukh, chief minister of Maharashtra state and Mr. Sushilkumar Shinde, the union minister for power were seen with Salman Khan, another convicted felon, at the Rajv Gandhi award functions. The duo not only shook hands with Mr. Khan but felicitated him with an award . So will the chief minister of Maharashtra and the union minister for power resign now, that they were seen shaking hands with a convicted felon?

sanjay and deshmukhOnly a few years ago, the chief minister was seen shaking hands with the same Sanjay Dutt at the Pune International Film Festival. So why discriminate against lower-rank police constables for whom shaking hands with the Bollywood celebrity was probably the biggest day in their lives? While he made the rounds to the TADA court in Mumbai, Sanjay Dutt was seen shaking hands with every policeman on his way through the security before entering he courts. So is the government now going back to all those video fotages and typing suspensions for every one of those too?

But most importantly, why not go back to the videotapes all the way from 1993, and see who was shaking hands with whom and who was bowing to whom and who was hugging and kissing whom. Since there aren’t any more important things to do for the government, why not have some fun at the taxpayer’s expense?

keep looking »

Search

 


Translations




Most visited

Hollywood’s first Indian star
Meeting Raj Kapoor at the barbershop
Madhubala on a postal stamp
Why I’m happier than Mukesh Ambani
An inconvenient truth about India’s intellectual property
UFOs may be ‘idlis’ but time travels only in ‘medu-wadas’
Dr Singh is no Dr King
Lesser Known Indians
The Most ‘Nobel’ Teacher of Them All
The third Indian revered in China
A little Poland in India
The vanishing of Indian languages
The looting of Chandigarh’s treasures
Bharat, Pakistan and Hindustan, Indiana
Welcome to India, Steve!
Top 5 explanations for the president’s gesture
An IIT on every street, an IIM on every block
Pakistan, Jinnah, Wadias and the American anthem
An IAS officer’s nightmare of lustful, lascivious stares comes true