P A G E
Thursday, September 23, 1999
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E D I T O R I A L P A G E |
Thursday, September 23, 1999 |
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An
attack most foul
FUNCTIONING
OF POLL PANEL |
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Treating
children with cleft lip Remembering
a father
The
charge of DC!
September 23,
1924 |
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An attack most foul THERE is a street-fighter lurking inside Defence Minister George Fernandes. Wittingly or unwittingly, he attacks important institutions (the Navy in the case of Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat and the Army’s morale when he started issuing good conduct certificates to the ISI and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif). This time he has taken aim at the Election Commission, challenging it to punish him if it so wanted. The Samata Party spokesperson chided the commission for talking like a rival political party. This individual is known for defending every lost Fernandes cause; still dragging the poll panel into an ugly controversy over a non-issue and keeping up the attack for the second day is the limit in unacceptable political manners. What is shocking is that the Samata is persisting with its canard of the Bihar government printing an unusually large number of excess ballot papers for the Nalanda and Barh Lok Sabha constituencies even after the top three in the Election Commission patiently denied the charge and appealed to all parties not to bring their credibility into question. The written complaint of the Defence Minister is very vague but contains one “confirmed misstatement”, as the commission puts it rather elegantly. An old hand at fighting parliamentary elections, he knows that once the electoral process starts everyone, candidates and their political parties, should fully cooperate with the Election Commission. If there is a major violation affecting the winning chances of a candidate, he can seek redressal from the commission and if it is not convinced, as in the present case, he can move the court of law with an election petition. This is the rule applicable to all, the Defence Minister included. The aggressive stand of
the Samata candidate from Nalanda has provoked strong
protests from secular parties. The BJP has offered
qualified support, saying the response of the commission
is not fully satisfactory. It will be well advised to
step out of the fray lest it gets sucked into the
unprincipled confrontation the candidate is actively
inviting. It is possible that he is baiting the
commission rather than defying it. As the Chief Election
Commissioner remarked on Monday, there is in Mr
Fernandes’s complaint an attempt to stall the
election process in the state. Newspaper reports without
exception explain why. The Samata’s chances of
success in the two constituencies are not rated high. A
defeat will mean not only an end to a stormy political
career of more than 35 years. It would also mean loss of
face for both the Samata and the BJP. If the process is
frozen at today’s level, the evil moment can be put
off and if the present alliance comes to power, another
attempt can be made to dismiss the Rabri Devi government
and use the administrative machinery to improve the
electoral chances. The Acting Governor’s
unreasonable action fits in with this plan. If there is
even a grain of truth in this line of thinking, the
Election Commission and the opposition political parties
should ignore the antics of the Defence Minister. He
should not get an opportunity to pose as a victim of a
capricious commission. |
Kapil as cricket coach THE appointment of Kapil Dev as coach of the Indian cricket team for a period of two years in place of Anshuman Gaekwad should receive wide support. The new President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Mr A. C. Muthaih, has said that no condition has been set for accepting the most trying assignment for anyone familiar with the unimaginative working of the richest sport body in the country. The offer has been made in response to the hints from the former superstar that he would like to coach the national team. However, he has also put on record his view that he would like to have a say in the selection of the team and the freedom to involve himself with domestic cricket for talent scouting. Knowing his total commitment to the game the board should have no problem in giving him the freedom to set the agenda for raising the performance level of the team. There are some nagging doubts about his new assignment which only he can clarify. A primary reason why the BCCI did not offer the job to either Sunil Gavaskar or Kapil Dev was that they had crowded commitments elsewhere. Gavaskar makes more money as a cricket commentator and column writer than the board can offer him for coaching the Indian team. Kapil Dev has found a second career in golf and his diverese business interests demand his personal attention. When he launched Dev Features, a sports writer whom he had given the charge to run it let him down. He may not want to repeat the mistake by letting others control his businesses. Before accepting the assignment Kapil Dev should agree to put his golf and business interests on the backburner for at least the next two years. During his playing days
he never missed an international game because of injury.
He was a fitness freak which he still is. But it is one
thing to work on one's personal fitness and quite another
to make unwilling players do even routine workouts.
Mohammad Azharuddin and Robin Singh are the seniormost
players in the team and also the fittest in relation to
some promising young players who shirk hard work. Ajay
Jadeja is another player who does not need to be told
about the importance of physical fitness at the
international level.But then, he is a Kapil Dev protege
and that is why he never gives up trying to turn a losing
match in India's favour. But Robin Singh does not fit
into the Test team and Azharuddin is currently out of
form and also unfit to be considered for selection. One
fit player does not make a team. Kapil Dev should realise
that coaching the Indian team is a 365-day-a-year job.
The current players need to improve their out-cricket and
running between the wickets if they want to do justice to
their talent. India gets beaten not because it is a bad
team but because it does not believe in hard work. As a
coach Kapil should also make every player - including the
established ones - earn his place in the team. There are
those who believe that Krish Srikkanth would have been a
better choice for the demanding job. As the coach of the
"A" team for the past several years he has
indeed done a splendid job. Some of the "A"
players currently in the national squad would testify to
his ability to get the best out of every player and make
them raise the level of their game. Kapil Dev has to
prove the Doubting Thomases wrong, who believe the
assignment should have gone to Srikkanth. However, there
should be no doubt that the new coach has it in him to
turn the current players into the Kapil's Devils of 1983. |
Killer quake THE earthquake that struck Taiwan on Tuesday has turned out to be one of the worst not only in the island but also in the world. At a time when thousands of persons are still trapped in the debris of high-rise buildings, which succumbed to nature's fury like matchboxes, it is impossible to make a correct guess of the casualties. The toll has been mounting by the hour and is already past the 1,800-mark at the time of writing. There are fears that it may go much higher, considering that cities like Puli have suffered 98 per cent structural damage and people are buried under mountains of rubble. If it is any consolation, the toll could have been even higher if the epicentre was somewhere near the thickly populated Taipei instead of Nantour 150 km away in a hilly region. The intensity of this earthquake was not much more than that of the one that struck Turkey recently. But the damage was limited because most of the buildings in Taiwan are new and there are very strict building laws in force. This is one lesson that India must learn. It has to bear tremendous losses merely because no respect is shown to safety rules. The problem with Taiwan is that it lies in a seismic zone and suffers tremors virtually round the year. That is why there have been as many as 2,000 aftershocks following Tuesday's earthquake, which in themselves should count as medium-intensity quakes. Relief work is hampered by them. This would compound the misery of those injured. Many buildings and bridges are standing precariously and may not survive even the limited impact of the aftershocks. Warnings have also been issued to the neighbouring China, Japan and the Philippines. Since Taiwan has been
hit by such earthquakes in the past repeatedly, it now
has a well-oiled machinery to take care of rescue and
relief work. It has gone into the top gear in the minimum
of time and this alertness may help save many valuable
lives. What is all the more creditable is that the world
community has risen as one man to help the Taiwanese
people in their hour of crisis. Interestingly, even rival
China has sunk political differences to come to the aid
of its brethren. Till we advance to the stage where
technologies are available to prevent such disasters,
tackling these as the problem of the entire human race
instead of the predicament of any one nation is the only
sensible thing to do. |
FUNCTIONING OF POLL PANEL IT may be a trifle harsh to call it a slap in the face, but the Supreme Court’s categorical rejection of the Election Commission’s plea for the endorsement of its ban on opinion and exit polls should rid the commission of its sense of absolute power and absolute wisdom. It should also help to steer it back to performing its principal and proper functions which certainly do not include holding forth on extra-jurisdictional subjects or, worse, issuing ill-conceived and whimsical edicts. None of this was in evidence during the first 10 general elections. The commission did not do or say anything that was controversial or plain silly. By all accounts, these elections were held smoothly and efficiently and without the hype and tripe and self-publicity that accompanied the conduct of the last three elections. Things changed with the advent of Mr T.N. Seshan the focus shifted from the conduct of elections to the persona of the Chief Election Commissioner. Mr Seshan indulged in a lot of uncalled for utterances and unprecedented warnings against electoral malfeasance and altogether revelled in the media attention he received. But he also succeeded in preventing, if not election malpractices, at least excesses thereof. It was widely acknowledged that less money exchanged hands, less liquor flowed down voter-gullets and fewer bones were broken in the election he conducted. Not unsurprisingly, he was less than popular with almost the entire tribe of politicians, which could be construed as a measure of his impartiality in the discharge of his responsibilities. Not many discerning people outside the political spectrum are prepared to credit his successor with the same extent of impartiality. This unflattering perception was spawned by the commission’s decision on the dates of this election. Pressures were brought to bear on it or (as some uncharitable critics believe) were encouraged by it against holding the election reasonably soon after it became due. Among the reasons advanced by interested parties for delaying the election were the monsoon and the hot summer days. Consequently, the election was delayed as long as it possibly could be and longer than any election in the past, and spread over as long as one month, which compared favourably with the time taken in any far-flung “bush” country. The rainy season argument had some weight but not as much as the commission gave to it. At the time of writing, the first two phases of the five-stage elections are over. The low turnout even where the monsoon was completely over is proof that rains alone don’t keep voters indoors. On the other hand, floods do. Even at the end of September, and this is nothing abnormal, there are vast areas in some states which are still under knee-deep flood waters. As for the hot months argument, one would imagine that elections are some sort of picnic, to be held only in salubrious weather. If people can go about their work and business and all essential chores during the hot months, as they do, there is no reason to look upon the task of voting in summer as a cruel imposition on them. In the event, many people saw the delayed election as a ploy to deny the ousted government a possible sympathy vote on account of the manner in which it was ousted. As for spreading the election over a month, the only argument was the availability of security forces which the commission feels need to be deployed in large numbers to ensure free and fair elections. Actually, for most of the constituencies in most of the states, the fear of serious malpractices and violence is highly exaggerated. (For instance, the booth I voted at had a voter list of less than 400 in a quiet central Delhi area. Of these, barely 150 turned up to vote over the nine-hour period, but there were as many as eight bored policemen lounging outside the centre!). But even where the chances of coercion and violence are high, the idea of staggering the polling in such areas and thereby concentrating police forces there also enables criminals and goondas from neighbouring areas to converge on these places to carry out their plans for mischief. Apart from those fake or duplicate ballot boxes found in Bihar, witness the huge number of booths where repolling had to be ordered. The point I wish to make here is that the wisdom of spreading an election over a month is highly dubious for all practical purposes. On a different plane but also questionable have been the commission’s other acts and pronouncements which do not form part of its constitutional mandate. For instance, the firman against one-to-one discussion with politicians on television. Or exhorting parties in a special and repeated telecast to nominate more women candidates. (The CEC did not tire of citing the case of South Africa in this regard, as though it is the only other country on this planet!). Well-meant though this appeal was, gender composition of the candidates is no business of the commission. (Next on these lines would be to ask for more nominations from particular groups or communities or castes.) The worst example in this genre was the CEC’s “advice” to keep Kargil out of the election campaign. The country fought a war but the commission did not want people and politicians to talk about it! Even more unfortunate was the CEC’s advice to the Army “to step back from the limelight” — as if the Army had captured the media to project itself! Similarly, the commission virtually admonished politicians for talking about personalities rather than issues. This ignores situations where personalities are the issue. I am not talking about the videshiness of Mrs Sonia Gandhi or the alleged “unpatriotism” of Mr Vajpayee; I am talking about the criminality of candidates. That criminals have come to adorn our legislatures is no secret. Even this time there are tens of scores of them in the fray — in the Chaibasa constituency in Bihar, for example, all three main contenders have a “glaring criminal record”. Surely, the commission should have spoken its mind on such cases, even taken some steps to debar such candidates. But, it will be said, the commission has no such power. Nor did it have any power to ban opinion and exit polls, but it did so and got away with it until the Supreme Court called its bluff. When this fiat was issued last year I wrote a detailed critique to argue how misconceived and unjustified it was. There has been a mushrooming of such “findings”, and many of them are unscientific or plain bogus. But that is no reason to ban what is and must be seen as an integral part of electoral democracy the world over. “Don’t you think that the constant battering of the poor and illiterate masses with advertisements would influence them? The commission’s opinion on exit polls and advertisements was given keeping in mind that 50 per cent of Indian voters are illiterate and poor”, Mr Gill said two days before the Supreme Court snubbed the commission on this score. Now Mr Gill wants “a national debate” on this! But why only advertisements and opinion polls, Mr Gill? What about film stars who participate in campaigns? Surely, they also influence the voters, and not only the poor and the illiterate. And what about the candidates themselves — don’t they influence the people? After all, what is a campaign if not an effort to influence the voters? The belief that opinion
and exit polls decisively affect the outcome of an
election is not based on any reasonable evidence. In the
first place, as far as India is concerned, the media
reaches barely 50 million voters out of a total of over
600 million. Secondly, even if these 50 millions are
swayed by the surveys, there is no knowing which way they
are swayed. But the point is: what is wrong in being so
influenced? As a voter I would like to be rather
influenced by the views and preferences of my
fellow-voters than by the exhortations, claims, promises
and lies of politicians. In the event, one wishes the
Election Commission busied itself with the essentials of
elections like correcting and updating the voter list,
which is the heart of the matter, rather than indulge in
publicity-prone gimmicks and fiats which don’t stand
the test of reason or law. |
TIME TO REMEMBER JP AT a time when the nation is passing through a crisis of character, recalling the memory of Jayaprakash Narayan, whose birth anniversary falls on October 11, should have some cathartic value. The man who could have become the second Prime Minister of India became the second redeemer of the nation, freeing the country from the shackles of dictatorship when Indira Gandhi derailed democracy in a neurotic bid to perpetuate herself in power. Sometimes leaders scale such lofty heights of national eminence that they become too big for mundane office. In his heyday after the Emergency, JP was regarded as the nation’s patron saint. JP wanted to eradicate the canker of corruption from the political and administrative system and make it responsive to the needs of the poorest of the poor. In simplistic, pragmatic terms, this is what he meant by “Total Revolution”. The sweeping reforms JP advocated may, collectively, appear like a utopian, but their fundamental desirability is incontestable. Being above the common breed of power-seeking politicians, JP was basically a visionary and social reformer who campaigned for values and causes all his life. But this did not necessarily mean loyalty to ideologies which, in his case, ran the gamut from Marxism to Socialism to Sarvodya. Curiously, it was in the land of capitalism that JP developed a fascination for Marxism because of the inequities he observed in American life as student. After flirtation with Marxism, JP co-founded the Congress Socialist Party and went underground. His subsequent escape from prison during the 1942 upheaval reads like a Scarlet Pimpernal story. Ultimately, JP’s quest for the elusive utopia brought him to Sarvodya and spawned his queer brainchild — partyless democracy. JP’s hop from ideology to ideology is an indication of his failure, like most other thinkers, to resolve the dilemma of ends and means. Changeability of ideological stance and aggressiveness of thought brought JP into clash with all the three giants — Gandhi, Nehru and Patel. When Gandhi condemned the 1942 socialist movement against the British for using violent means and being unauthorised, JP was so hurt that the Mahatma’s attack created an emotional estrangement between them. Quoting Lord Acton, JP once told Nehru, “power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely”. Nehru’s retort was swift and straight: “Irresponsibility corrupts, absolute irresponsibility corrupts absolutely.” It is interesting how in the case of big men political differences often do not affect personal relations. JP used to stay with Nehru and was with him at the time of Gandhi’s assassination. JP’s continued regard for Nehru found reflection in his ambivalent attitude towards Indira Gandhi. Irrespective of the shabby treatment she accorded to him and his vehement opposition to her dictatorial politics, JP retained a soft corner for Indira Gandhi. His letters to Indira from jail read like avuncular exhortations. The surrender of dacoits in central India was brought about by JP. But his role was not without the type of contradiction which at times marked his leadership. At a grand ceremony near the Chambal ravines the surrendered dacoits, all spruced up for the well publicised occasion, symbolically dropped their arms before a large portrait of Mahatma Gandhi, touched JP’s feet and participated in the chanting of hymns. Subsequently, they were lodged in an open jail, where the luxurious comforts and easily available parole made a mockery of crime and punishment. When I asked JP whether it was in keeping with the principles of natural justice that hardened criminals guilty of felonious crimes should be let off the hook like this and whether such lenient treatment would not spawn dacoits in the future, he lost his temper. Even the great have their foibles. Seen warts and all, no man is perfect, and JP was no exception. Despite his dependence on Prabha Devi, JP neglected his wife because of his passionate attachment to political work. First, he went away to America, leaving his newly-wedded wife in the care of Gandhiji’s entourage. On returning, he became too deeply immersed in public affairs to think of his role as a husband. Prabha Devi lived as a nun at a time when she should have been sharing marital joys with her handsome husband. JP had no children. Although few would
grudge the placement of JP as one of the greatest
Indians, an authentic evaluation of his contribution to
the Indian nation must await the perspective of history. |
The
charge of DC! DEPUTY Commissioner is perhaps the most important administrative entity at district level in our country. The importance of this office is indicated by the supersonic speed with which the DC is transferred if and when things go awry in his district. He/she is expected to defuse crises like droughts, floods, epidemics and communal riots within minutes and hours. The DC is supposed to be gifted with the power of MW. Call it “mysterious wisdom or wit” or “magic wand”. The Hindi equivalent perhaps is “mantra-wantra”! The District Cure-all is expected to solve all the ills his/her district is heir to! The general impression is that immediately upon occupying the coveted chair, the occupant — despite heavy load of duties and responsibilities — loses his weight. This earth becomes a kind of moon for him. He tastes unlimited powers, privileges and patronage. People begin to deify him. They bow before him. They fall at his feet. As if he were a district deity! He guides, advises, coordinates and, quite often, bullies other departmental officers. Some of them secretly call him the District Chameleon. Quite often he puffs up profusely. Like a vainglorious cock. And contracts in the presence of powerful politicians as if they were foxes. Perhaps rightly so. No DC can afford to incur their wrath. For they can convert the DC into a shuttlecock! To use an oxymoron, the DC becomes a light heavyweight. As Additional District Magistrate, I have had the chance to officiate as DC a number of times. The first time I took the charge I was in a fix. To sit or not to sit in the DC’s chair? I thought and reasoned hard. And decided to sit. I regarded it as an awkward detraction from the dignity of office to sit and work on the side-sofa as a few of my officiating predecessors were said to have done, my minor voice also advised me not to treat the DC’s chair like the sacred throne of Lord Rama! The black or blue flag the DC flies on his car seems to clear the traffic-infested road with its “magic-wave” in the air. The muscular truck-drivers give you “prompt and polite passes”! As if DC meant the Danger Carrier. A few months ago, I happened to phone some sarkari officer from a superintendent’s office at HIPA at Shimla. I told my name to the person at the other end. He was behaving casually. The superintendent snatched the phone from me and said, “Bhai, ADM Kinnaur baat karenge.” When my chat was over, the superintendent advised me that I should invariably and imperatively reveal my designation howsoever, modest, if I did not want to be taken lightly or simply put off. One day, sitting in DC’s chair, I dialled a number. I wanted to talk to Settlement Tehsildar at Shimla. The person at the other end wanted to know my identity. “Mein DC bol raha hoon!” I said, trying to execute the superintendent’s formula. And Lo! The gentleman at the other end took fright, put away the receiver and ran to call his boss. Then came the ASO. He too wanted to know who I was. Since, technically speaking, I wasn’t telling a lie, I repeated my claim. He seemed to give a start! He expressed his doubts about my claim of being DC. I requested him to put me through to Tehsildar without wasting our time. He seemed to be quite familiar with the impressive and booming voice of my boss who was on leave. Finding the boom missing in my voice, this is how he fired his last salvo. “Tehsildar is on tour. Lekin Kinnaur ke DC to J.P. Singh hain. Aap J.P. Singh bol rahein hain?” And the sarcastic sting
in his voice made me hang up! |
Treating children with cleft lip
PGI (Post-graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh) has established its high credentials in its various faculties. Many a foundation stone has been laid at the PGI with pioneer work in the face of various challenges be it in the departments of surgery, paediatrics, gastroenterology, psychiatry, gynaecology, pathology or dentistry etc. Most of the faculties have displayed remarkable consistency and perseverance in research, adaptations and in improving upon the existing infrastructure. The Department of Dentistry, nowadays called “Oral Health Science’, right from its inception had evolved a certain kind of unmatched discipline in handling its patients, which continues till date. In this backdrop, 25 years ago in 1974, Dr Ashak Utreja joined this department as an Orthodontist. This speciality deals with the correction of jaw and beautification of irregular teeth. (Incidentally Dr Reena Anand was the first Orthodontist in Chandigarh to practice this speciality at the Government Hospital in Sector 16). Relentless research and untiring efforts of Dr Utreja and his colleagues in the past 25 years have borne fruit. Today the PGI has a much sought-after post-graduate course in Orthodontics (started in 1989) besides having established a sound foundation for various branches of this speciality. One such branch of Orthodontics is the treatment of ‘clefts of the lip and palate’. Children born with this common major congenital facial malformation not only need special care but also a long-drawn dental treatment. The largest number of children affected with the clefts of the lip and palate are in Japan. However, Indians too are highly afflicted with this peculiar condition. Approximately, one child in every 750 live births is born with this major deformation. Interestingly, children born of consanguineous marriages (performed among close blood relations) suffer much higher frequency of such congenital facial malformation. “Nevertheless there are other diverse factors which contribute to the occurrence of cleft in a child. So far, research all over the world has not succeeded in pin-pointing as to what are the other factors that cause a cleft in a child and how to prevent it in pregnancy itself. In the face of this reality, in our country typical of our socio-psychologic set-up, the birth of a cleft child in a family is immediately marked with intense social stigma and psychological trauma for both the child and the parent”, comments Dr Utreja. PGI began paying special attention to children afflicted with clefts of the lip and palate. Soon doctors at the Orthodontics unit realised that such children needed a “joint clinic” comprising a plastic surgeon and a speech therapist along with an Orthodontist. Thus this concept was introduced and concerted efforts of treating such children started. “At present at least 250 new cases of cleft are examined every year and at any time some 70 to 80 cases are deriving the benefit of comprehensive orthodentic treatment with fixed braces and other appliances. The concept of a joint clinic has given unprecedented results. Thousands of children have recovered as near-normal”, speaks enthusiastically, the senior resident, Dr Sanjay Suri. In 1992, Dr Ashak Utreja was invited by the Ministry of Health Sultnate of Umaan, to establish the “cleft palate orthodontic clinic” at their National Plastic Surgery Centre. He spent two years in laying the foundation of that clinic, stressing the urgent need for a joint clinic. Today is functioning at par with the facilities available at the PGI. As per the European Audit of this particular treatment of cleft affliction amongst the European countries, Norway has given the best results. Responding to this Dr Utreja commented “You see the first world has a tendency to presume that the Third World countries are far behind. However, not only the PGI but also the AIIMS and the King George’s Medical College, Lucknow, has acquired expertise in handling cleft cases that can match anyone in the world”. The orthodontists at the PGI revealed that concerted efforts at the joint clinic had distinctly improved cleft children’s appearance besides enabling them to eat well and speak better. “Successful protocols of cleft care involve early lip surgery at the age of three months to correct the congenital defect of the lip. Then planned palatal surgery is normally undertaken between 12 and 30 months of age. These children need constant supervision and care of an orthodontist”, elaborated Dr Sanjay Suri. (Incidentally, he has been selected by the “Cleft Palate and Cranio-Facial Unit”, at Chapel Hill in the USA to do research in this field for a period on one year). Dr Utreja made an
extremely interesting and significant observation saying,
“Orthodontics is the oldest branch of dentistry or
‘Oral Health Science’ and much in demand
because human race is driven by the passion of appearing
‘beautiful’. But treating a cleft-afflicted
child primarily demands compassion on the part of
doctors. This treatment is extremely exhaustive, at times
frustrating and hasselsome for all — the child, the
parents and the doctors. Patience, cooperation and
rigorous consistency are the key-words of success in such
cases and my colleagues at the PGI have displayed them in
abundance. Besides, the PGI also offers extremely
cost-effective treatment to those children who have a
cleft lip”. |
Remembering a father ALL parents are protectors. My father! He was my umbrella. He protected me from the hot sun and the cold rain. Never allowed anything bad to get near me. But, the fateful moment in the early hours of September 12, took my protection away. And then, I put his mortal remains on a heap of wood. Gave fire to the man who had not allowed any harm to touch me. Immersed the ashes in water. So, he is gone. From this land of the dying. To the land of the living. To live forever. Never to die again. To be with Him. The Master who rules us all. Eternally in heaven. Born on May Day in 1914, he lived to see six generations. From his grandfather to his great grandson. His whole life in this world was just a preparation for the next. Two hands with 10 fingers were his only tools. Two legs were his basic means of transport. To labour was his first love. Cleanliness was a habit. Honesty an obsession. Neatness was a natural gift from God. He lived the 85 and more years of his earthly existence with dignity and devotion to duty. Without fear of anyone. Always disciplined. Never dependent. To him, work was worship. Today, he is with Him. He would meet his maker with a clear conscience. Look Him straight in the eye. He would have eternal peace. But, with the parents gone, I have suddenly ceased to be a child. A foolish child. A stupid son. I have suddenly become old. In fact, the eldest. Who would now call me ‘bewaqoof’ the way my father did? No one can proxy for him. No one would talk to me the way only he did. I am just left alone. An unfortunate orphan. Today, I am standing immediately next to death. With none to protect me. Or to even guide me on this ocean of life. To be in the forefront. To face the vicissitudes of life. I am lonely. Insecure. Even in this heat, I am feeling cold. No one can fill the void that his passing away has left. We had been together for more than 57 years. He gave me love and affection. Total protection. He sacrificed his pleasure so that his children could be happy. He gave up his yesterdays for our today. He walked in the sun so that we may live in the shade. He gave us all that he had. Everything. Without even a thought. We were a part of his flesh and blood. He invariably slept after us. Got up before us. Worked harder than the family. If I got late in school, he would meet me on the way. If I was late in returning from the College, he would be standing at the door and waiting. Even on a winter night. Who would do this except a loving father? At that time, I did not understand anything. I thought I was no more a kid. I was grown up. Could look after myself. Why should my father worry? I could imagine no reason. The truth had drawned on me only after I had become a father. Only then, I had become aware of the parental concern. Only as a parent I learnt as to how a parent feels. The chord is snapped. Yet, the ties shall last. He seems farther to the eye of flesh. But, he would always be close to the eye of faith. He shall still guide and bless all of us from wherever he is. Shall we unite? Would the interval be just a dreadful dream? Only He knows, when and where. Dear Father! I am too
full to say goodbye to you. May God be always with you!
May you never be as lonely as I am without you! Just an
orphan. |
September
23, 1924 IT says much for Mrs Besant’s regard for Indian unity that holding the view she does she has informed the Mahatma that she is quite willing to spin. The spirit which underlines the offer may be seen from the single sentence in the statement she has just issued: “Obviously, there was no principle against spinning for half an hour a day; if only this stood between the Congress and myself, I would gladly agree to do my bit, there being nothing that I would not do to secure a united Congress, except a thing which I believe to be wrong”. This, in the case of a woman, who is probably the oldest of all national and patriotic workers in India, at the present time is truly remarkable. If only we could expect all others to share this view, the Mahatma’s terms would offer no difficulty. Unhappily we cannot and do not expect this. There are many
objectionable factors in principle, and since the
co-operation of these is just as essential to a united
Congress as the co-operation of Mrs Besant herself, we
have ventured to suggest that the Mahatma should either
eliminate this clause or make spinning only an
alternative qualification for membership of the Congress. |
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