I will take a page out of Mr Sardesai and state exactly what he stated. This indeed, seems to be a season of open letters and how better to respond to an open letter (http://scroll.in/article/761659/open-letter-to-aditya-thackeray-why-dont-you-defend-states-pride-by-helping-marathwada-farm-widows) than with another from yours truly. I am not a Xavierite nor any of the exalted schools that everyone (who seems to be anyone) seems to be from. I happened to grow up in a very 'normal' school where we were taught right and wrong in the true spirit of life and stealth and spite were completely beyond us. Ok, beyond most of us! I guess, one needs to be schooled in one of these exalted schools that most journalists have been, to understand guile. Or maybe not. I am happier I don't have to stand in front of a mirror and actually lie to myself each day. I am happy that I can be true to my own heart each and every time. And I am happy that I can peacefully go to my pyre. Peacefully is the catchword here!
Dear Mr Sardesai,
This morning, when I woke up, I was feeling not too bright and cheery. I am sure more than 75% of fellow salary earners would share the same opinion of a Monday morning. Groans and mumblings apart, forced myself to land up at work and just about finished getting over the pending issues of the weekend when I happened to browse through news channels. That is something I generally avoid these days. The trash that is visible in them is extremely toxic, and I hate to spoil a decent day having to listen to people shout at one another for the greater part of 60 minutes, trying to drown the others' voices with their own (including anchors) and finally achieve zilch. Yes, you got it! Zilch almost sounds euphemistic. Yet, photographs of parties and gathering with all the glitz and glory have the same 'arch enemies' hugging and sharing smiles. So was all the shouting and anger merely for the cameras? I am sure the very classy educated journalists and politicians would be able to offer an explanation that would be extremely convincing. After all, they have been doing the same for years now and practice sure makes one perfect.
You then went on to describe his "crime". Yes you did use that very word, not me. His criminality arose from the fact that he "had organised a discussion in Mumbai on former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri's book". Oh my god, something as trivial as a friendly gesture helping out a former minister from our overtly friendly neighbour? He certainly didn't deserve such a treatment. I am sure many of my learned readers agree too. Especially since Mr Kasuri has been going so much overboard in establishing friendly ties with India that his nation keeps sending friendly messengers across on a routine basis. Who can blame them for possessing an AK-47 or two, or a few grenades. After all, those bully Indian soldiers sitting at the border just don't permit these peaceful messengers to pass through peacefully. This, even when they try hard to make sure they don't burden our soldiers by trying as much as they can, to avoid detection. How much more peace-loving can these messengers be? Mr Kasuri even had sent ten on a fishing expedition, just to make sure Mumbai is supplied with the freshest possible fish. And what did the cruel Indian soldiers do? Pinned them down, shot at them, and forced them to defend themselves using their peaceful weapons. Definitely Mr Kasuri should have been welcomed personally by Mr Modi at the border and escorted under SPG to wherever he wanted to travel in India.
"..ink had to be spilled on the streets of Mumbai yet again" Yet again? When did ink get spilled last? Maybe you happened to lose a bottle while travelling around. Cant blame you sir, the roads definitely are horrible, especially that patch of Marine Drive. I barely could touch 80 when I drove. BJP/SS after all are ruling BMC and the blame for condition of roads definitely lies in their backyard. Aha! I gave you a genuine reason to grouse, did I? Never mind! I would appreciate if you could indicate the exact position where you happened to break your ink bottle since evidence would help claim it as a 'tax break'!
"Last week Ghulam Ali, this week Kasuri" Did I miss the ink throwing episode on Mr Ghulam Ali? Another of our friendly neighbour who came to spread love through his charming manners and extremely soothing music? Ok, you were exaggerating. I can read as much. You see, one doesn't have to be exclusively educated to understand you many a time! Coming back to Ghulam Ali, if his music indeed was so peaceful, shouldn't he be playing it to the military leadership back home so they can take some time out from their plans of sending their peaceful messengers and concentrate on developing democracy back home? I know it is such an alien word across the border but technically, Pakistan still is a democracy even though even a child could reveal true reality without blinking an eye!
"... much like the Sena is angry with the invite to Kasuri, I am angry with the Sena, although I am not surprised." Nor are we! The Sena has been one organisation that has believed in openly stating their intentions and carrying it out to the last, regardless of public opinion slant. Much unlike a lot of journalists who would evaluate each and every option and possibility, and eventually opt for the one that guarantees maximum eyeballs. Or, maybe maximum chance of being termed secular, since that is the flavour of the season at present. Again, maybe the Sena is not as educated as you all are. How uncouth are they, right? Certainly do not deserve to be sharing time with classy educated people like you.
"... Kulkarni is not the first public figure you have attacked "..... "When I wrote an article against the Sena, there was a protest outside the Times of India building against me. I was lucky: I escaped unhurt. My senior colleague Nikhil Wagle who edited a Marathi eveninger was less fortunate: his office was broken into and he was physically attacked" Suddenly, you share something in common with a BJP leader. Oh the secular Gods must be kicking themselves. Oh I forgot, Mr Kulkarni redeemed his secular credentials with his association with Mr Advani (remember how he rebuked the very communal Modi publicly when he was attempting to become the PM candidate in 2013?) and Mr Vajpayee (Ahaa here it comes! 2002! Raj Dharma! Dereliction of duty as CM!) and of course this association with the extremely secular Kasuri. So your credentials are still unharmed. How you managed to escape unhurt would be something SS would have to offer an explanation about since, as I said earlier, they practice openly what they preach, again openly! Poor Nikhil, you should have forwarded your escape tactics to him so he too could have escaped. Maybe you can be held guilty for something trivial like that. Otherwise, who can question you, Mr Sardesai?
"Many years ago, ... the Sena had dug up a cricket pitch ... to protest against an India-Pakistan cricket series" You missed the 'not once, but twice' part here Mr Sardesai. Remember Ferosha Kotla in 1999? Gosh, you lost a chance to throw more muck. I, for one, was not really really hurt. When my soldiers were dying or being killed (many brutally so) on the borders, I could not imagine my country desiring to host the same people for fun and frolic. Call me bloodthirsty, (am sure you do), but unfortunately, my lowly education didn't allow me to fathom the higher thought processes that people like you are blessed with. Many of your friends, the 'Aman ki Asha' kinds felt outraged, nay, cheated. They had been deprived of their moments of fame by an openly Hindu party! God save this nation! How can someone even profess openly to be a Hindu, let alone a party. Saffron was something we would prefer to call 'Orange' and that too grudgingly, merely because our forefathers had poor foresight to leave it on our national flag. How much better would our flag have been with just the White and Green, so truly secular!
"The difference is that then you were in opposition, now you are in government. In government, you are supposed to be the guardians of the law, not lawbreakers" Surprise, surprise, I agree with you here. Yes, guardians of law have been elected for guarding the law. Shiv Sena, as a member of the elected government, had no right to be breaking the very laws they were supposed to be guarding. They should have either resigned from the government and vented their feelings, especially since they were opposed to the protection that Mr Fadnavis was offering or else desisted from this attack. Oh, you thought you would get off easy? Ok, here is the rider to my agreement! That agreement is merely on the technicalities part. On principles part, I still agree with what the Shiv Sena did (or for that matter any individual/party might similarly do). I can't stand openly flirting with the enemy, regardless of whether he's doffed the wolf's clothes and wearing a sheep's now. All the more considering, his nation very recently exported some messengers to ensure some of my brave soldiers and countrymen left for heavenly abode, without their choice.
"You have every right to feel strongly about Pakistan-based terror. You have every right to dislike Mr Kasuri. But if you don't like him or Pakistan, or his book, don't read it, boycott the function, wear a black band. Ditto with a Ghulam Ali". Do you really feel merely boycotting a function so openly supported by so many of you would have achieved anything at all? Mr Kasuri would have come here and been welcomed with open arms. Lots of smiles all around as pictures are clicked, at least one of which would have prominently included you. And then gone back, smug in the knowledge that we Indians don't care what hurts his country keeps causing at frequent intervals. We still would believe in the policy of "Athithi Devo Bhava" and even buy a few hundreds of his books so he can happily tote that money home and indirectly allow his messengers of peace to procure some more sophisticated weapons of peace.
"But what gives you or the Sena's goons the right to physically attack the organisers or force the government to call off a concert?" Nothing, no rights at all. I would have completely been in agreement if there had been another open letter when a play had been called off at the behest of Christian organisations who felt their religion was being threatened by the very enactment of the play. Your studied silence then, and your very vocal protests now leave no room for doubt on your intentions. Not just you, but so many of you who call themselves journalists. The term has almost become an abuse, and that is all thanks to the way people who attach that term to their CVs have been behaving. If you think the common man on the street is still unaware, I would like to rewind a few months to one particular moment when you were 'reporting' from Madison Square Gardens. Not in India, very much outside, where your attempts to poison the atmosphere with your reporting left more than your reputation in tatters. You just experienced us common men (and women) in their rawest form. We believe in expressing our ideas openly, Mr Sardesai, not surreptitiously, as you have been taught. Our slip of crude upbringing showing, isn't it?
"By the way, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has promised full protection for the book release function. Good for him." Oh, Mr Fadnavis could have looked the other way (as many secular CMs have done in times of crisis) but that is not how the BJP governments have behaved. History, is replete with examples of how impartial, even at danger of alienating own voters, BJP CMs have been, while ensuring restoration of law and order in shortest possible period. While you, undoubtedly, will dispute this, but Gujarat is classic example of how riots were controlled within the shortest possible period with relatively less casualties. You may keep quoting figures but the relative word is what will catch you out. 2002, your pet story, only therefore ends up buttressing my case! Sad, isn't it? I could place links here but then this blog would become too long so I will request you to Google if you still disbelieve me.
"...how did you allow Mr Kulkarni to be a soft target?" Mr Kulkarni, if he so desired, could have demanded police protection and I am sure, Mr Phadnavis, the sweet guy that he is, would have ensured you were unapproachable by anyone. Instead, he Mr Kulkarni gets himself smeared with ink. Knowing the Sena, anything was possible so this was as mild as it could possibly get. There have been other politicians who have also had ink attacks (AAP leaders are easy reference) and every one of them have not failed to extract maximum mileage from the attacks. Mr Kulkarni, with ink dripping from his face and onto his clothes certainly made prime time TV look good but I am sure he would have encountered at least 25 (I am being conservative here) toilets where he could have cleaned himself up before appearing for a presser. Would he have done the same had he been attacked in Pakistan? Let alone a press meet, I am willing to stick my neck out in stating that he would have ensured he was on the next flight home. Here, knowing fully well that he was in no danger, he utilised his apparent discomfit to maximum gain. For whom, only time and the way journalists decide to take forward the attack, will tell.
I will not like to dwell into the patriotism that you touched upon in your post script (where else for such an irrelevant topic, Mr Sardesai) since that would be beyond your comprehension. That feeling one gets on seeing the saffron(!), white and green flag flutter or unfurl, or the national anthem played is unparalleled. Maybe clearheaded classy educated people like you would dismiss it with a wave or a sneer but trust me, for us country bumpkins, that is India. We would willingly sacrifice a lot, including our own lives to keep honour of both. Maybe it's high time you learnt that India does consist more of uncouth guys (and gals) like me who wear nationalism close to the heart. You might understand the "feeling called India" better!
PS: I am sure you wont even be reading this but I poured my heart out and am feeling so much better. Pride, nationalism and a lot of emotions, all of which flowed out.
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