Reflections

This is the second part of the article  The Great West THE BACKDROP A cursory perusal of the coverage of a couple of websites from international media on the Narendra Modi US visit, and especially Madison Square Garden Event would show some rather interesting and more than a little irritating comments and observations : firstly, most articles explicitly mention the 2002 riots - get this : without any mention of the burning of the Sabarmati bogie with pilgrims in it, nor making any attempt to state a short summary of what happened, including the fact that subsequent investigations took place and court exoneration through an SIT happened. The way it is put forward, and its tone, is most damning; you are perfectly within your rights to mention any event - so long as you present a complete picture. But presenting it in an incomplete manner to an audience that is not aware of the full story is misleading in my opinion. Secondly, there are clear references to him being ...

The Great West... The land of development, equality and the abundance of opportunity; in the eyes of some, the land of fairness and openness, the land of open markets and free trade, the land where dreams come true, and the land which defends world peace and comes to the aid of the downtrodden. This is  the land consisting of nations that try to take the message of democracy and free trade to the rest of the planet, carrying a message of peace, rule of the law and equality of people everywhere This is the impression, most, or perhaps all of which are shared by most people in this Great Land, judging from the limited interactions I have had with people from those lands, their news reports and analyses, and an analysis of their policies over a long period of time.  Let us not get specific as to countries and nations, and restrict ourselves to the dream, the land called The Great West. We are currently, as a nation and as a people, in the midst of unprecedented tumult...

AND DEATH CAME CALLING... Mukul Deva is known for his edge of the seat thrillers on the topic of terrorism and/or Army-based thrillers, as shown in his books like Laskhar, Salim Must Die and RIP among others. Thus the expectation is that a Mukul Deva Book should be based on a similar theme; especially since we are used to Western Authors writing on similar themes for the entire career. Well, forget that expectation; the current book is nothing like any of his other books.  With this awesome work, Mr Deva has established his versatility and command over an entirely different type of book; one which can be classified as a deep and dark thriller. This is a masterpiece from the master of Indian Thrillers, one that is a must read for all Mukul Deva fans - and is a highly recommended read for readers of this genre. THE PLOT The plot can only be described as deceptively simple, yet pregnant with possibilities. This is based on a security outfit with a dif...

Our Forgotten Freedom Fighters Do We Really Care? Place : Nagpur Location : Zenda Chowk, Mahaal I was visiting a prospective business partner in the Central Indian city of Nagpur, when my eyes chanced upon a well-constructed building lying nearly vacant unvisited, with a statue. In a spare moment I walked upto the statue : that of a freedom figher, inaugurated by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Interesting part is, the featured person in the statue is Shahid Shankar Maahle, about whom there is no detail; only that the statue has been inaugurated by Pandit Nehru! I asked around the shops nearby; apparently this building - The Shaheed Smaarak - was one of 4 such memorials made to freedom fighters in India {I have not been able to find internet resources to support these 4 buildings; I can only report what I have seen with my own eyes}. The lament in the people nearby was that people have forgotten about this, and the building now lies unvisited, and is used for Ganapati...