Tag: India

  • To beard or not to beard

    It is very interesting to note the judgement regarding the Muslim IAF officer who claimed that keeping a beard is his religious obligation. The Indian Express reported that the ruling given was, “Emphasising the need to “maintain discipline” in the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that Muslim personnel cannot keep…

  • Close Encounters of the Terminal Kind

    Ralph Chaplin said: “Mourn not the dead that in the cool earth lie, but rather mourn the apathetic throng, the coward and the meek who see the world’s great anguish and its wrong but dare not speak.” A friend asked me for my opinion about the Bhopal ‘encounter’ which is in the news at present…

  • If I advised the AIMPLB

    Okay! So, you are laughing. Good! I love to make people happy and after all we all have our right to fantasize. The question I asked myself was, ‘If I were to be invited to advise the AIMPLB at this rather heated moment, what would I say?’ Key word? IF. Please don’t get too worked…

  • When the voiceless get a voice

    If there’s one overwhelming sign that numbers mean nothing and organization means everything, it is the plight of Dalits and Muslims in India. Dalits and Muslims are officially 17% and 13% of the population. That means that together one in three Indians is a ‘Dalim’ – Dalit Indian Muslim (my coinage today – in case…

  • Same Chairs, Different Bottoms

    Same Chairs, Different Bottoms

    An over 12 year old cartoon that featured in the national media to mark 50 years of India’s independence: the situation is as grim Once upon a time there was a beautiful land in which clear rivers flowed through lush forests. Birds flocked to the trees which were heavy with fruit until one was almost…

  • Dear Mr. President

    Mr. Barack Obama President of the United States of AmericaThe White House1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington, DC 20500 http://www.twf.org/News/Y2010/0531-Attack.html http://joti2gaza.org/2010/05/31/george-galloway-speaks-out-against-israeli-piracy-and murder/ Dear Mr. President, I am sure you know more about the situation with Israel’s attack on the Freedom Flotilla than I do. The question that I and the rest of the world is asking is,…