Final pdf for web 22 07 13

How the Armed Forces hire and fire

How 10 people formed a kidneyswap chain to save five lives

RS 35 2 2 j u ly 2 0 1 3

INSIDE Gang wars in Maharashtra prisons l i f e

a n d

t i m e s .

e v e r y

w e e k

“I’m very surprised that a rogue officer of the IB is being protected so vehemently by the agency” Digvijaya Singh, in conversation with OPEN

intelligence bureau

ROGUE AGENCY?

Open Mail | editor@openmedianetwork.in Editor Manu Joseph managing Editor Rajesh Jha Deputy Editor Aresh Shirali Political Editor Hartosh Singh Bal creative director Divya Saxena Features and Sports Editor Akshay

Sawai

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Volume 5 Issue 28 For the week 16—22 July 2013 Total No. of pages 64 + Covers cover illustration Pawan Tiwary

22 july 2013

Pankaj Kumar Singh

This refers to ‘No Country for Cyclists’ (15 July 2013). I have been cycling to office for the past three years and am now habituated to humiliation. Nobody pays a damn to cyclists as Indian roads are meant for trucks, cars, SUVs and motorcycles only. Getting tossed aside by rude traffic, having to wade through water People gift cycles to logged roads, pedalling their kids at home and in muddy pathways and encourage pedalling, risking errant drivers at but on the road they traffic crossings... I say consider cyclists a hats off to cyclists in the nuisance city. People gift cycles to their kids at home and encourage pedalling, but on the road they consider cyclists a nuisance in their way.  letter of the week Indignity of Labour

that you sit in your armchair while your servant mops the floor looks bad on the face of it (‘The Thing about Human Dignity’, 15 July 2013). But, there is another human angle.

Many of us would let others do menial jobs, for otherwise, they will find it difficult to earn a living. We haven’t yet reached the stage when everyone has a job of her/his choice. When that happens, there will be none to mop your floor except yourself. Now, when there is suffering all around, Mr Pergaein was riding on the shoulders of another person, even if he was smiling in front of a camera.

That is equivalent to asking your servant to mop the floor when she is unwell and in the presence of your guests.  Arun Murthy

the objection is to the ‘presentation’, wherein a reporter trying to evoke empathy for the victims of a disaster from a wider public is himself violating an ethical ‘code’ by exploiting or at least presenting an exploitative image.

What matters over here is appearance, which forms the core of the message, and if the messenger himself is the

damage, why not shoot the messenger for that?  Siddharth

Miracle for the Mind

exposing miracles is fun.

Though one ought to also acknowledge that faith does work miracles for the mind and thus the body, like the placeboes doctors prescribe (‘An Atheist in Exile’, 8 July 2013). It is a shame that in a democratic, tolerant and multi-religious country you [Sanal Edamaruku] weren’t allowed to speak your mind.

I feel a deep sadness and shame. 

hounding of Edamaruku is to be deplored.  Christine Osborne

if non-religious people were to start arresting religious people for ‘not accepting what they believe’ then there would be a massive outcry from every corner of the planet. [Sanal Edamarukku] can make whatever evidence-supported claim he wants, and the Church can be upset with him as much as it wants, as is its right. But harassing and charging him for debunking a fraud is just shameful. It is this kind of occurrence that makes religious groups just seem foolish and embarrassing. If you want sensible members of society to treat you with respect, don’t get your feathers all ruffled up every time something comes up that discredits something you believe. Accept that there are errors in the interpretation of everything that happens on this planet, and move on. 

raena

remember the statue of Ganesh in India that began ‘drinking’ milk? I don’t think, no matter how religious they are, that the educated believe in such ‘miraculous happenings’. In Assiut, a town in Upper Egypt with a considerable Christian population, was a sighting of the Holy Virgin, but when I visited the spot and asked the local Coptic priest, he said he had not seen it. Neither did I. People must believe what they want and there will always be those who profit from it, like the shop selling tiny photos of the vision. This said, the

Derek

Just a Fat Excuse

while i agree that people need to be comfortable in their bodies, being fat has no excuse except for those few cases where it’s due to genetic conditions (‘Taking Up Space’, 24 June 2013). Your fitness is completely in your control. If you have some extra lard on, go to the gym, run. I see no reason why someone would rather make an excuse. We’re a nation where fitness has taken a backseat. The last thing we need is people justifying being unfit.  Rahul Ar ora

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openmagazine to 56070

small world

the hindu archives

line of fire A Dalit woman whose property in Naikkankottai was damaged in the violence triggered

by Ilavarasan and Divya’s inter-caste marriage

A Love Story Gone Wrong caste divide

Ilavarasan left a suicide note wishing to be reborn into the same community as his wife Divya

The proponents of communal hatred who harassed two young lovers in Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu can hang their heads in shame.

Ilavarasan, a Dalit, and Divya, of the Vanniyar community, who loved each other and got married, are separated forever.

Ilavarasan was found dead on a railway track in Dharmapuri.

The cause of his death is not officially confirmed, but the police found a four-page suicide note probably written by Ilavarasan. Open had carried a story on how a caste-driven society had made the couple’s

kochi

22 july 2013

lives hell (‘Love in the time of caste politics’).

Ilavarasan blamed no one for his death in the note. ‘If there is a rebirth ever, I wish both of us to be born in the same community and get married with the approval of our parents,’ he wrote. He said he was unable to live without Divya, who had returned to her mother’s house.

On 1 July, Divya told the Chennai High Court that she wanted to live with Ilavarasan, but only with her mother’s consent. But on 3 July, she told the media that her marriage

was a closed chapter. The next day, Ilavarasan was found dead.

The state government has appointed a special investigation team to probe the death.

It has also instituted a judicial commission under a retired judge to look into the matter.

Ilavarasan’s father, Ilankovan, does not believe the suicide theory. He has complained to the police and the SC/ST Commission, seeking a probe of his son’s death. He also demanded action against leaders of the Vanniyar Sangh and PMK, which bitterly opposed the inter-caste marriage

and fanned attacks on Dalits.

Even if Ilavarasan’s death is suicide, those responsible for it should be made accountable, he says. The HC will be taking a decision on a re-autopsy of Ilavasaran’s body on 10 July.

It has also asked the police to provide Divya protection and psychological counselling.

Ilankovan, too, has requested authorities to help Divya see Ilavarasan one last time, and asked that she attend the funeral. He told the media that he had nothing against Divya and considers her his daughter. n Shahina KK

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contents

angle

Saints, miracles and delusions

22

cover story

INterview

Digvijaya Singh

10 armed forces newsreEL

The food security ordinance

38

Recruitment scam

survival pact

Domino kidney surgery

A Technological Whorehouse?

One tech innovation currently raising hackles in many Western countries is a new Facebook app called Bang With Friends. The premise of the app is simple: it allows users to anonymously select who in their Facebook friends’ list they’d like to have sex with. A notification concealing the identity of the user is sent to the individual concerned. In case this individual reciprocates by selecting the first user, an email is sent to both, identifying them to each other.

While the app has been around since January, it started gaining traction only after Apple removed an IOS version of the app from its Apple store. So far, its creators claim, over 1.1 million users have signed up for it, and it has generated over 200,000 successful matches. There is also a mobile version of the app for Android phones. Colin Hodge, one of the creators of the app, told Memeburn.com, “I think we’re in the midst of a shift in how people form and evolve relationships. We still think there’s too much taboo surrounding sex and since it’s a crucial part of healthy relationships, we should be able to straightforwardly say we’re interested.”

Many, however, haven’t been particularly enthused.

Writers in various papers and on websites have been using colourful phrases to describe the app. One writer called the app’s creators ‘Online Pimps’ and the application a ‘technological little whorehouse’. n sex app

Right Place, Right Time c a n n y Guess who got to kiss the Wimbledon men’s singles trophy without picking up his racquet? Mahesh Bhupathi. The 39-year-old doubles specialist is playing his last year on the circuit and increasingly concentrating on his celebrity management business. This year, Bhupathi became an agent to a certain Andy Murray. He was in Murray’s box during the Wimbledon final and later got a chance to cuddle the most coveted trophy in tennis. n 4 open

28

Intelligence Bureau: a rogue agency?

on able Pers Unreasotnhe Week of na ■

bahugu inister vijay fM nd Chie a h k Uttara ■

F o r transferring officials from

his information department over an ‘unfit’ photograph Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna is worried he looks too happy in a photograph circulated by his information department as part of the publicity for his government’s relief efforts in the flood-hit state. Though his concern is valid, cleaning out the state information department is a shade too harsh. Director-General of Information Vinod Sharma and Secretary of Information MH Khan have already been given transfer orders and sources say more are to follow.

The photograph features Bahuguna with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, both smiling, and is apparently an old one, used for an earlier campaign advertising the government’s achievements. The CM’s office is pulling all material featuring this photo and issuing sombre replacements. n 22 July 2013

42

brain drain

Re-reversal?

48

p

p

photo essay

52

Ethnic violence in Assam

m life & letters

The wonder that is Urdu

music

58

NOT PEOPLE LIKE US

Cover band The Other People

63

Hrithik’s brain surgery candour

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s promise to shut down casinos in his state turned out to be short-lived. He changed his stance in view of financial considerations g a mb l e

g e n d e r n e ut r a l How do you clear language of its centuries-old gender biases? Is it something that we will evolve away from over time? Or must we go after it like the US state of Washington? Recently, the state changed 40,000 words across its laws. For instance, ‘his’ is now ‘his and hers’, ‘freshman’ becomes ‘first-year student’, ‘fisherman’ becomes ‘fisher’, ‘clergyman’ becomes ‘clergy’, and ‘signalman’ becomes ‘signal operator’. According to a Reuters report, at least nine other US states are considering gender-neutral legislation. Last year, France banned the term ‘mademoiselle’ from official documents.

According to French officials, the term, meaning ‘miss’, forces women, unlike men, to acknowledge their marital status. n

Revolution or Coup?

The clashes and protests of the last few weeks in Cairo have continued after Egypt’s military overthrew Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi. An equally charged battle has surfaced online, particularly on Wikipedia. Ever since the military seized control in Egypt, Wikipedia editors have been debating whether to call the uprising a ‘coup’ or ‘revolution’. Much activity is taking place on the discussion page of a Wikipedia article titled ‘2013 Egyptian Coup d’état’. Many editors are arguing that the article should be titled ‘2013 Egyptian Revolution’. This is an interesting debate because, so far, the US government has refused to call the uprising a coup. Legally, as a Guardian article points out, US law prevents any administration from providing support to leaders of a military coup. According to reports, the US spends $1.3 billion on military aid to Egypt annually. n

S e m a n tics

22 July 2013

“I get Rs 150 crore worth of revenue from casinos.

Although I am personally against them, how will I be compensated if I close them?”

—Manohar Parrikar, Chief Minister of Goa, on his official Facebook page

—Manohar Parrikar, in an interaction with the Goa Small Industries Association,

turn

His, And Also Hers

“I am firm in my stand that no new [casino] licences will be issued by my government”

around

5 June 2013

8 July 2013

angle

On the Contrary

Saints, Miracles and Delusions As Pope John Paul II is slotted for sainthood, some observations about miracles M a d h ava n ku t t y P i l l a i

Pope Francis that John Paul II, who was his predecessor from 1978 to 2005, is a saint. Usually, two miracles are needed for someone to get this distinction. A Costa Rican woman with brain damage had prayed to him to remedy her condition and he interceded on her behalf.

Earlier, John Paul II had cured a nun of Parkinson’s disease after she appealed to his astral self. These miracles were performed by him after his death and that is not unusual. It is a condition of sainthood that one answers prayers.

It is, however, slightly strange that John Paul II himself suffered from Parkinson’s and the ailment progressed on its normal non-miraculous course. An ordinary man with such powers would be expected to cure himself, but let us swat aside that niggling thought with the belief that saints are far removed from self-interest.

But why didn’t other saints intercede for him? John Paul II created more saints during his tenure than ever in the history of popehood. An Associated Press piece by Frances D’Emilio noted that in 1983 he wanted to make the church more popular and made radical changes to the process of canonisation. Terming him a champion saint-maker, the article noted, ‘By the end of his long papacy, in 2005, John Paul had recognised 480 saints. That compares to 302 saints who were made during all the papacies of the previous 500 years.’ You would have thought one of those 480 saints would have put in a word to God to cure his Parkinson’s, but, as we know, that didn’t happen.

There are also other mystifying things about the process. Starting with the question of what exactly is a miracle. The common sense answer is that it is something that cannot be explained using the laws of natural science. For example, it would be an unqualified miracle if someone jumped out of the window of a 20th floor in a high-rise building and instead of falling down, went up. Physics does not allow that for human beings. The present-day miracles of saints are however not like this. Let’s categorise a man flying as a physics-miracle; water turning into 6 open

bettmann/corbis

I

t has been decided by the current

the saint maker Pope John Paul II recognised as many as 480 saints during his long papacy

wine without any additions as a chemistry-miracle. But, for some reason, what we always hear about would be a category called medical-miracle, of people getting cured inexplicably. Among all miracles, medical miracles are the most suspect because the body can and does cure itself once in a while, even an atheist’s. But atheists would be foolish to stop taking medicines because of that. The test of science is predictability and repeatability.

An aspirin will cure a headache most of the time and it will do so through manipulating a certain process inside the body.

It was a medical-miracle that got Mother Teresa her beatification. A woman in Kolkata named Monica Besra prayed to her to remove a painful abdominal tumour and was obliged. Except that she

It is, however, slightly strange that John Paul II himself suffered from Parkinson’s towards the end of his days and the ailment progressed on its normal non-miraculous course

was also being treated using modern medicine and her doctors said there was nothing unusual about it. Monica was taken to Vatican City and shown off. After six or seven years, she again made headlines when she railed against the Missionaries of Charity. ‘Mother Teresa ‘miracle’ patient accuses nuns’, went a headline in The Telegraph, UK, in 2007. The article quoted Monica as saying, “They made a lot of promises to me and assured me of financial help for my livelihood and my children’s education. After that, they forgot me. I am living in penury. My husband is sick. My children have stopped going to school as I have no money. I have to work in the fields to feed my husband and five children.”

You have to understand the complete unfairness of her stand—because she was cured by Mother Teresa, she expects to be supported by her throughout her life. You also have to note one more thing, that she is not expecting a miracle any longer.

There is none coming. Mother Teresa, John Paul II and all the sundry saints of every religion will usually only oblige one person once. Their miracles are only wilful delusions of the believer. n 22 july 2013

real

india

frank barrat/getty images

A Hurried Man’s Guide

It Happens

to Murray’s Wimbledon Win

Her Pen Cannot be Muzzled

Andy Murray created history at Wimbledon on Sunday, becoming the first British male to win the title since Fred Perry in 1936. It was a heroic performance by Murray. He played under enormous pressure of expectation and overcame tough opponents, including world No 1 Novak Djokovic, in his last three rounds.

Murray will be adequately compensated for his effort. His prize money alone is £1.6 million.

His endorsements are projected to shoot skywards. Murray could make £100 million in the next five years.

The establishment frowns upon a Kerala cop’s candid poetry about the system, but she will not back down S h a h i n a K K

Britons have lauded Murray’s victory, but many are baffled that Britain has all but forgotten the four English women who won the Four English women’s singles title in women who won the intervening years the Wimbledon between Perry’s and women’s singles Murray’s wins. Dorothy title since Fred Round Little won her secPerry’s win ond women’s singles title in 1937. The partially deaf Angela Mortimer won in 1961. Ann Haydon-Jones upset Billie Jean King to win in 1969. And Virginia Wade took the crown in 1977. In addition, there have been British winners in the juniors and paired events. But even excluding those, Britain’s wait for a singles champithe last brit champion Virginia on was 36 Wade holds up the trophy in 1977 years, not 77 as is generally broadcast. Only the wait for a male singles champion has been 77 years.

While no one is taking away from the scale of Murray’s achievement, people feel that the common ‘77-year-wait’ theme in the UK media coverage of the win was erroneous and unfair. The Times front page read: ‘Murray ends 77-year wait for British win’. The Telegraph said: ‘After 77 years, the wait is over’. The Daily Mail reported: ‘Andy Murray ends 77 years of waiting for a British champion’. Later, feminist writer Chloe Angyal famously tweeted, ‘Murray is indeed the first Brit to win Wimbledon in 77 years unless you think women are people’. n

M

the hindu archives

athew Arnold, the 19th

century English poet, says that poetry is the criticism of life and it is governed by the laws of poetic truth and poetic beauty. The present chief secretary of Kerala, EK Bharat Bhushan, feels differently. Poetry, he says, cannot always be ‘criticism’ and it may sometimes be governed by ‘service rules’. And so when B Sandhya, Additional Director General of Police (Armed Forces Battalion), wrote a poem critical of the system, it raised Bhushan’s hackles. He cautioned Sandhya about writing poems that criticise others.

Sandhya came down heavily on politicians, bureaucrats and the media in her poem I can only be like this, which was published by a Malayalam magazine. The Director General of Police summoned her for an explanation. Sandhya said that she did not violate any rules by writing the poem and was exercising her freedom of expression. The DGP forwarded her reply to Bhushan, who cautioned her to be careful in her writing. The chief secretary holds the view that though Sandhya may not have violated service rules, she has to exercise restraint.

The poem, written in plain language, directly addresses politicians, bureaucrats, print and visual media journalists. Despite being poor in quality as a piece of literature, Sandhya has received support and solidarity from all corners, including poets. The Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, PJ Kurian, is among the eminent people who have protested against the chief secretary’s warning to Sandhya. Kurian has written a letter of protest to the government expressing concern over curtailing her freedom of expression. He has also mentioned in his letter that Sandhya’s poem is timely and a genuine effort to highlight the current state of affairs in Indian society.

free thought Sandhya criticised politicians, bureaucrats and the media in her poem

K Sachidanandan, poet and former secretary of the Sahitya Academy, tells Open that it is undemocratic to curb freedom of expression, which is every Indian’s constitutional right. “It is not ADGP B Sandhya who writes The chief the poem, it is secretary of the poet and Kerala holds the citizen,” the view he says. “If the bosses think Sandhya that hers is must exercise not a poem, restraint my question is who are they to legislate poetry? I will not bring my aesthetic judgment into this discussion of rights.”

As of now, nothing has been able to stop B Sandhya from writing. She has recently published a new poem in the same magazine. More power to her pen. n 22 july 2013

business

w he e l s India’s luxury car market is dominated by German marques. Given this fact, the sales race among Mercedes, Audi and BMW for poll position looks meaningless. Or does it? “From a car manufacturer’s perspective, ranking is an important race,” says Manmeet Malhi, a senior analyst with EOS Intelligence, and even though such cars sell only 30,000 units a year, less than 2 per cent of all car sales in India, “lagging behind is not an option for any, especially when the craze for auto luxury is picking up.”

Elsewhere, luxury car sales are stagnant.

In India, brands are in a battle to secure their reputations in consumer mindspace while perceptions are yet to harden. The outcome of this battle could determine profits here in the decades ahead.

“Everybody is here for the numbers,” says Michael Perschke, head of Audi India, “Only four places are left in the world to fight it out: China, India, Russia and Brazil.

Every place else, the turf has already been taken,” says he.

If Perschke is pleased, it is because Audi has recently overtaken BMW as the country’s luxury topseller, just as BMW had whizzed past Mercedes a couple of years or so ago. “Mercedes was caught unawares [as India’s post-zips boom began],” says Malhi, “even as BMW and Audi, with their wide range of products, gained their way up.”

To win back marketshare, Mercedes, the classic chauffeur-driven marque, is trying to make up for its earlier SUV weakness with new launches. It has launched a vehicle in the Rs 20 lakh price range aimed

punit paranjpe/afp

Audi Ahead in Early Laps of Luxury Race

sound of success It made its debut in Indian mindspace with a cricket victory and has achieved leadership here

at the first-time luxury buyer. Meanwhile, BMW, the ultimate self-driven brand, is going all out to sell its diesel sedans as a sporty highway experience that could also conserve fuel in an optional cruising mode. Audi, which tends to straddle multiple appeals, has stolen ahead of its rivals on all those attributes with various models. In a country of India’s diversity, perhaps this is no surprise. But with models being re-engineered and relaunched all the time, Audi cannot assume its current lead is assured even for the rest of the year.

There is also Jaguar, owned by Tata

the slippery slope price of a dollar in Indian rupees

50 2 April 2013 54.3345

8 July 2013 60.62 27 June 2013 60.588

60 note: prices in the chart above are at the close of the day’s trading

22 July 2013

Motors, raring to break into an all-German race. The intensity of competition is sure to boost sales. By 2020, the big three expect luxury cars to be 4 per cent of the total. “It is this potential that’s driving the trio to bring their latest products to India,” says Sudarshan Shreenivas of India Rating & Research, who adds that assembly localisation could add a cost aspect to the competition. Especially with such a weak rupee. n SHAILENDRA TYAGI In a market of India’s diversity, the success of a marque with a wide range is no surprise

After the rupee fell to an alltime low of 61.2 to the dollar on 8 July, Indian authorities moved to curb currency speculation by closing some market windows being used for bids

compiled by shailendra tyagi

“If we have to grow at 8-9 per cent in the future, this has to come through sustained growth in manufacturing, particularly labour intensive manufacturing.

Manufacturing and manufacturing alone can absorb all those who need better livelihood opportunities” Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, announcing the Government’s plans to boost the country’s steel production and textile/apparel exports

news

reel

gambit

An Emergency for the UPA How else to explain the President’s food security ordinance? jatin gandhi

only later in the Budget session that this While the opposition parties have flayed T h e r a i n s m ay h av e a r r i v e d ordinance was okayed by Parliament. the food ordinance as a poll gimmick, it in Delhi well in time, but the cloud over “As far as the legality and constitutionthe UPA Government’s ability to push the also underlines the UPA’s inability to ality of the move is concerned, you can Food Security Bill through Parliament has gather the numbers to see it through bring an ordinance when Parliament is Parliament. Earlier this year, the UPA delayed the monsoon session, among the not in session,” says Subhash C Kashyap, a resorted to an ordinance to amend the last few sessions before a general election constitutional expert. Article 123 of the country’s criminal laws after protests is announced. It is believed that this broke out over the 16 December gangrape Indian Constitution authorises the session, which is usually a month or so and murder in Delhi. Though Parliament President to promulgate an ordinance in long and begins in the last week of July, such circumstances. “But you can raise was in session till over a week after the may now begin in the first half of August. issues of propriety and misuse of power,” incident and an amendment bill had With time running out to implement adds the former Lok Sabha Secretary its showpiece food policy, the UPA earlier already been put up for consideration, opposition-led disruptions and the UPA’s General. Using an ordinance for a matter this month chose to take the ordinance route—meant for urgent matters that sud- floor failures kept the bill hanging. It was that has not sprung up suddenly, he says, is frowned upon in a democracy. “There denly arise when Parliament is not in was prolonged communication through session. The food security ordinance was letters between the first Lok Sabha notified on 8 July and the Government has In the UPA’s case, the Speaker GV Mavlankar and Prime six months to get parliamentary approval. emergency arises from the minister Nehru on the issue of ordinancThe bill has been awaiting a go-ahead es. In his last letter, Nehru acknowledged since 2011, and having the President issue fact that it has not been able to that the Government should be more an ordinance rather than putting it to a run Parliament smoothly careful in bringing ordinances. Even in floor vote grants the ruling coalition extra and the BJP has played rowdy the Constituent Assembly, the spirit of the time to start working on the logistics of debates was that [it is to be used] only if an implementing the ambitious programme, in the Lok Sabha since December 2010 emergent situation arises in which you envisioned to cover 75 per cent of India’s cannot wait for the next session...” rural and half its urban population. raul irani In the UPA’s case, the emergency With foodgrain to be doled out almost arises from the fact that it has not been free, at Rs 1 per kg of coarse grains, Rs 2 able to run Parliament smoothly and per kg of wheat and Rs 3 per kg of rice, the BJP has played rowdy in the Lok subject to a monthly limit of 5 kg for Sabha since December 2010. “The every person in a household, covering argument that they have not been 800 million people as planned would allowed to run Parliament is a flimsy be a challenge that demands bravado. one,” says Kashyap. “The ordinance Given the leaky Public Distribution ultimately has to be [okayed] in the next System that is currently in place, the session of Parliament. If the House UPA runs the risk of reversing any doesn’t function again, the ordinance political gains it seeks from its food will become inoperable after six weeks.” security programme if it ends up a While the BJP has expressed fears in failure on the ground. Plans are afoot public that the Government may do to get Delhi Chief Minister Shiela away with the monsoon session Dikshit to roll out the scheme on 20 altogether and call for early polls, it August, the date of late Prime Minister knows that the Congress does not Rajiv Gandhi’s birth. stand to gain from such a move. On the The bill is part of the Congress other hand, when the ordinance is put party’s 2009 election manifesto, but to Parliament in the forthcoming the delay in first tabling it in monsoon session, the BJP cannot Parliament (due to the coalition’s afford to be seen as disrupting the internal differences) and then the debate over a bill that it says it frequent disruptions in both Houses supports but with amendments. As for have made a mess of the process of the UPA’s objectives, turning its legislation. Many bills have been left ordinance into a law would need unpassed and others pushed through big gamble The Food Security programme will cover 75 per Parliament’s nod. Soon. n as enactments without due debate. cent of India’s rural and half its urban population 10 open

22 july 2013

news

reel

breather

Lalu’s Contingency Plan As the fodder scam returns to haunt the RJD leader, his latest ploy to gather votes dhirendra k jha ravindran/afp

India’s Supreme Court restrained the special CBI court in Jharkhand from pronouncing its verdict—slated for 15 July—in a fodder scam case involving the RJD chief Lalu Prasad, the former Bihar Chief Minister had already put a contingency plan in place, fearing indictment.

The contingency plan, according to sources, started taking shape as soon as the Jharkhand High Court on 1 July dismissed Lalu Prasad’s plea to transfer the case to another special CBI court from that of Special CBI Judge PK Singh, alleging a possible bias in the latter’s judgment since he is a relative of PK Shahi, education minister in Bihar’s Nitish Kumar government.

One part of Lalu’s contingency plan, evident in his address to RJD party workers only days after the High Court dismissed his petition, involves ground preparation for a re-run of the spectacle witnessed in Patna 16 years ago when the leader’s arrest on the same charges in the same case was followed by an outburst of public emotion. “I remember how people were crying when I was going to jail. I remember how the party was united in my bad times,” said Lalu Prasad, addressing a large gathering in Patna of party workers from across the state on 5 July, the 17th foundation day of the RJD. Although he did not refer to the verdict expected on 15 July, he made it clear to partymen what he expected of them in the event of its going against him.

That, however, was merely one part of his contingency plan. The other part involves appointing a working president to run the party in the event of his conviction. According to sources, unlike 1997, when Lalu was in power and installed his wife Rabri Devi as Chief Minister after his arrest, this time he seems determined to look beyond his family. “It’s been decided that Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Shakuni Choudhary and Abdul Bari Siddiqui would get major responsibilities in case of an adverse judgement,” says a senior RJD leader on condition of anonymity.

“Raghuvansh Prasad Singh was the Well before

22 july 2013

According to sources, unlike 1997, when Lalu was in power and installed his wife Rabri Devi as Chief Minister after his arrest, this time he seems determined to look beyond his family preferred choice for the post of working president of the party.”

As observers would expect of a leader of Lalu Prasad’s calculations, his contingency plan is aimed at turning an adverse judgment into a political advantage for the party. Whether his effort pays off cannot be judged at this point, but apart from getting his party workers all charged up with emotion, he expects the plan to help consolidate the support of such social groups as Thakurs, Koeris and Muslims, who could form an electoral bonanza come 2014. While Raghuvansh Prasad Singh is a known Thakur face in the state, Shakuni Choudhary is a Koeri by caste, and Abdul Bari Siddiqui is a recognised Muslim leader in Bihar.

Decimated in the last Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, Lalu Prasad’s party has been plotting a political comeback ever since. With a general election due within

a year, the RJD has sniffed an opportunity in the dynamics of the recent split between the JD-U and BJP, which were ruling Bihar in a coalition.

In a boost to Lalu Prasad’s ambitions, a Lok Sabha bypoll in June saw RJD candidate Prabhunath Singh, a Thakur, win the state’s Maharajganj constituency by a significant margin, defeating the JD-U’s PK Shahi, the minister who Lalu alleges is related to special CBI judge PK Singh. In that bypoll, not just Yadavs and Thakurs, Muslims are also said to have voted aggressively for the RJD candidate.

The RJD chief, however, may not be able to haul himself out of his legal quagmire.

The CBI case, the judgment on which was to be pronounced on 15 July, has been his nemesis in his political career since the mid-1990s. In July 1997, it was this case that had cost him his CMship, and now—just months before the Lok Sabha election—it is catching up with him yet again.

The case relates to the allegedly fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37.7 crore from the Chaibasa treasury of undivided Bihar (and which is now part of Jharkhand). Lalu Prasad was Bihar’s Chief Minister at the time. Among the 45 accused in this case is Jagannath Mishra, also a former CM of the state. In all, there are 61 legal cases that concern the state’s fodder scam. The present case is one of five that involve Lalu Prasad and Jagannath Mishra.

The scam itself, usually pegged at ‘Rs 900 crore’, first surfaced in 1996 when large sums of money were found to have been disbursed by the Bihar state exchequer for the purchase of fodder and medicines for livestock that did not exist.

As many as 54 of the 61 cases were transferred to Jharkhand when it was carved out of Bihar in November 2000.

Different CBI courts have issued judgments in 43 cases. The current breather that Lalu Prasad has received from the Supreme Court, however, is only interim.

The apex court has granted the CBI and Jharkhand two weeks to file a response to Yadav’s petition. The matter has been posted for hearing on 23 July. n open www.openthemagazine.com 11

opinion

r a h u l pa n d i ta

p r e p o st e r o u s

History Lessons from Mr Tharoor Another absurd retelling of the story of the Kashmiri Pandit exodus from the Valley an old connection with Kashmir.

His first wife, Tilotamma Mukherji, is half-Kashmiri. His current wife, Sunanda, is also from Kashmir. In the past, Tharoor has mentioned in various forums the exile of Kashmiri Pandits, who were in a minority in Kashmir, and were driven into exile in 1990 in the aftermath of Islamist extremism. But recently the newly made Minister of State, Human Resource Development, has been making statements that are as ridiculous as the history lessons of an NCERT textbook.

In January this year, Tharoor was in Pakistan, where he appeared in a televised discussion organised by the Islamabadbased Jinnah Institute. While Tharoor remained steadfast on India’s position on terror and Kashmir, he played into the hands of a co-panelist who blamed the Pandits’ exodus on then Kashmir Governor Jagmohan. While mentioning Pakistan’s role in Kashmir, Tharoor says: “My wife is a Kashmiri Pandit. She grew up in the [Kashmir] Valley. And her 200-yearold home was burnt down by terrorists; certainly not by her neighbours who she grew up with, but by people who came across the border”. To which his co-panelist Naseem Zehra says: “But you know it was the BJP’s policy to remove Pandits from the (Kashmir) Valley.” Shockingly, Tharoor nods his head and says: “I think it was a terrible policy and she and I would agree on that.”

Whose terrible policy? Tharoor seems to have forgotten that in 1990 Jagmohan was not with the BJP. He was sent by the VP Singh Government to restore law and order in Kashmir, where the administration seemed to have collapsed. The exodus of Kashmiri Pandits had already begun when he took charge.

Tharoor recently went on to tweet that he knew many Pandits who blame ‘BJP’s Jagmohan’ for their plight. Hundreds of Pandits responded angrily to this untruth. He later stressed that his in-laws wouldn’t have left if Jagmohan had not asked them to leave. While it’s not clear under what circumstances Tharoor’s in-laws left the Valley, the facts of the Pandit exodus and the circumstances that led to it suggest otherwise.

Right from the beginning, Congress leader Rajiv Gandhi tried his best to sabotage Jagmohan’s mission in Kashmir simply because he wanted to play petty politics against the then VP Singh Government. He forgot that it was his mother who had sent Jagmohan in 1984 for his first tenure as Governor.

In March 1990, Gandhi landed in Srinagar with a political delegation and acted petulantly by raising non-issues like where Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal was made to sit (to the left of the Governor in an apparent breach of protocol). He of

Shashi Tharoor has

12 open

course did not visit the Pandits who had already fled to Jammu.

In May the same year, Gandhi’s cronies tried to stall proceedings in Parliament by quoting an interview Jagmohan had given Mumbai-based magazine Current in which he allegedly said: “Every Muslim in Kashmir is a militant today… the bullet is the only solution for Kashmir.” This interview is still used by propagandists to pin the blame for the Pandit exodus on Jagmohan. The fact is that Jagmohan never gave that interview; in fact, he filed a Rs 20 lakh damage suit against the weekly in the Delhi High Court immediately after. Both the correspondent and the weekly’s editor were forced to tender a written apology to Jagmohan.

Fact is that by March 1990, Kashmiri Pandits were being brutalised on the streets and inside their homes by mobs. Many were killed in cold blood, scores of women were raped. Despite this, Jagmohan’s office issued an appeal in newspapers on 7 March 1990, asking Pandits not to leave ‘even temporarily’.

He offered to set up temporary camps for them in the Valley.

The truth of the Pandit exodus is stated courageously Tharoor seems to by veteran Kashmiri journalist have forgotten that and Srinagar Times editor in 1990 Jagmohan Ghulam Mohammed Sofi in an was not with the interview he conducted in 1997 for a book. Asked about BJP. He was sent by Jagmohan’s alleged role in the VP Singh govt to the exodus, Sofi remarks: “It is Kashmir a total lie. It is part of systematic propaganda. The Pandit flight from the Valley was the sequel to a plan hatched well in advance from outside the state. It had nothing to do with Jagmohan.” To another question about the situation in the Valley when Jagmohan took over as Governor, Sofi says: “There was no administration worth the name anywhere in the state… I mean in the Valley. Police stations all over the Valley were centres of operation for militants. Jagmohan could not have done anything. Nearly 32,000 Kashmiri Pandit houses have been burnt since 1991. Is there Jagmohan’s hand in this too?”

One would have expected authors of books such as Pax Indica to have a better understanding of Kashmir. In 2010, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari, who seems to suffer from a virulent form of foot-in-mouth disease, had said it was a ‘fear psychosis’ created by Jagmohan that led to the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits. But then he is Manish Tewari. n 22 july 2013

mess

Catch-47

The trouble with recruitment to the Indian armed forces is this: it demands medical fitness, but your fitness may depend on someone’s whim Mihir Srivastava

A

tauseef mustafa/afp

job in the armed forces is not just another career. ‘It is governed by certain core values of loyalty, duty, respect, service, honour, integrity and courage, but as warriors... whether on the job or off’ according to a note for aspiring fighter pilots on the Indian Air Force website. Documents in the possession of Open, however, have another story to tell of the way India recruits its young warriors.

It is a sordid story of how processes laid down by the rule book have been flouted to favour some candidates over others,

how fitness clearances were fixed, and how merit has become the first casualty of this private battle against integrity.

That the forces have failed to attract Indian youngsters in recent years is not news. As Defence Minister AK Antony has reported in writing to Parliament, India’s Army, Navy and Air Force are short of 10,000 officers. In response, the Government has launched media campaigns and held recruitment rallies to avert a personnel crisis. But since it does not address the mess in how people are recruited, none of it will make a difference.

H

ow the system ought to work is laid

down in detail. After clearing a written examination and interview, every candidate has to go through a set of physical fitness tests for final eligibility as an officer in the forces. According to Letter No: 76054/policy/ DGMS-5A dated 20 December 2000 of the Government, this is the medical examination process: First, the Special Medical Board (SMB) examines the candidate’s suitability on medical parameters and assesses if s/he will be able to carry out her/his duty. It is usually held at Army hospitals in

unfit today, fit tomorrow The rules of recruitment are clear, but fitness clearances are manipulated at the cost of merit

not a matter of right’. An appeal for an RMB review can be made only once. And this Board does not reopen any case. If it rejects a candidate’s appeal, its decision is final. If it overturns the AMB’s ruling, s/he is recruited.

This is a sordid story of how processes laid down by the armed forces’rule book have been flouted to favour some candidates over others

T

he rules seem clear but leave

enough space for manipulation, as documents with Open show.

Consider the case of Sachin Kashyap.

He applied for a job in the technical graduate category. The SMB declared him unfit and so did the AMB. But, in July 2012, he was issued an appointment letter even before his RMB result was announced.

The result, out on 6 August 2012, declared

him unfit for being overweight.

That should have been the end of Kashyap’s bid for a job with the forces.

But some recruiters seemed particularly keen to select him. In a clear violation of rules, he was granted another RMB hearing by the incumbent DG AFMC Air Marshal Dr DP Joshi, and was declared fit on 14 September 2012.

Every year, 200-250 candidates are allowed RMB hearings to join as officers, of which only about a fifth are finally deemed fit. Kashyap’s is perhaps one of the few cases of a second-round RMB. Why it was allowed remains a mystery.

Another case of a candidate being allowed to apply twice for an RMB is that of Pankaj Mehra. He had applied to the forces under its Technical Entry Scheme.

His first appeal for an RMB was rejected by the then DG-AFMS Lieutenant General HL Kakriya on 14 June 2012, but was allowed a second chance to appeal

by Air Marshal DP Joshi on 20 July 2012 soon after the latter took over as DGAFMS. The second time round, Mehra was declared fit for service.

The case of Sahil Beniwal is even more indranil mukherjee/afp

Allahabad and Bhopal. If deemed fit, the candidate is recruited.

If the SMB declares a candidate unfit, s/he has the right to appeal within 42 days of the results’ announcement to the Appeal Medical Board (AMB), which relooks at cases, especially to see if the cause for rejection is temporary and/or curable through treatment, surgery or other means. If this board declares the candidate fit, s/he is recruited.

If not, a final appeal may be made within 24 hours of the result to the Review Medical Board (RMB), though whether the case will be taken up is entirely at the discretion of the director general of the Armed Forces Medical Services (DGAFMS). As the Army website makes clear, the candidate may ‘challenge the proceedings and may be granted review of medical proceedings based on the merit of the case... The application for RMB is routed through DG AFMS. The decision for grant of RMB is with DG AFMS, and is

shocking. He applied under the forces’ University Entry Scheme and was issued a letter declaring him unfit by the RMB under Lieutenant General Kakriya as he was found to be a patient of congenital hernia.

This was decided on 7 March 2012 and the rejection letter clearly states that the ‘decision is final.’ But Beniwal’s papers were summoned by Air Marshal Joshi, who granted him another RMB review that declared him fit more than half a year later on 26 September 2012.

Under the rules, if the candidate applies afresh, he must undergo an SMB test and then appeal if need be to the AMB before submitting an RMB application. But Beniwal did not need to apply again. The rules were cast aside for his fitness to be okayed at the top level. Reacting to this case, a senior functionary in the Union Defence Ministry says that the entire process “should be deemed null and void”.

T

he fitness regime is used the

other way round as well—to throw people out of the forces. Consider the case of Eilakya KC. Eilakya KC applied for a job with the Military Nursing Service and was declared unfit by the SMB. She appealed to the AMB, which declared her fit, and was duly issued an appointment letter on14 September 2009 and asked to report to the Air Force Hospital in Kanpur.

However, after a routine check-up detected a fitness problem, she was asked to undergo an RMB review—despite having already been recruited. The review found Eilakya to have a hearing impairment and she was dismissed from service.

According to service rules, the dismissal of an officer on fitness grounds must follow a multi-step process. First, s/he is asked to undergo an Invalidating Medical Board (IMB) examination, which rates the officer’s fitness on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being top-level fitness) on five counts of SHAPE: Psychological (health), Hearing, Appendages, Physical and Eyesight. If the IMB finds a serving officer unfit for duty, s/he is sent a notice and gets 15 days to re16 open

stead of cured] within 3 months.’

As a study in contrast, consider the case of GR Janaki, who in October 2008 was found unfit by the SMB on account of Atelectasis Tympanic Membranes in both ears. She was later deemed fit by an AMB review conducted on 10 November 2008 and was appointed to her job in Mumbai at the Indian Navy Hydrographic Department in January 2009. On reporting for duty, like Eilakya, she was subjected to re-examination and found unfit (for ‘mild conductive hearing loss’) in February 2009. Unlike Eilakya, however, she was declared medically fit after an RMB—again, oddly, instead of an IMB—review conducted in March 2009, and was allowed to keep her job.

T

The fraudulently appointed candidates, meanwhile, are under training at IMA, Dehradun, and Officers’ Training Academy, Gaya spond. The file with this response is sent to the Minister of State for Defence at the Centre, who takes a final call based on all these documents.

No such process was followed for Eilakya before she was thrown out of the armed forces in December 2009. In her letter of explanation in response to the IMB’s notice, she had stated that a ‘civil’ ENT ‘specialist’ had diagnosed hers as a case of Meniere’s disease, which would be ‘cured’ in three months. The final report in the file, signed by DGMS Deputy Director Meena Kumari Kumar, however, had twisted a few facts that weakened Eilakya’s explanation: ‘A private ENT specialist [and not civil] has informed her that she is suffering from Meniere’s disease and her hearing will ‘improve’ [in-

he office of Air Marshal Joshi

did not respond to Open’s queries on the above irregularities.

Speaking anonymously in the AFMS’s defence, a brigadier-rank officer attributes all the RMB re-reviews to the director general’s discretion and argues that since this body only conducts medical tests, such queries should be put to candidate selectors. The brigadier directs me to Major General SL Narasimhan, additional director general of public information in the Ministry of Defence. According to Major General Narasimhan, the five cases in question have already been brought to the Ministry’s notice. To establish as much, a major-rank officer in his office shows me an explanatory note dated 14 June 2013; it tabulates SMB, AMB and RMB examination dates of the five candidates.

However, they have no reply to my specific query—of why second RMB reviews were granted at all. The major general departs for another meeting. The major calls RMB re-reviews ‘untenable’ and declines any further comment.

The fraudulently appointed candidates, meanwhile, are under training at Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, and Officers’ Training Academy, Gaya.

They have not responded to Open’s questions despite messages being dropped for them at their academies. n 22 July 2013

punit paranjpe/reuters

u n d e rwo r l d

Open for Business The attack on Abu Salem at Taloja and the churn in the Mumbai underworld HAIMA DESHPANDE

unsafe behind bars Abu Salem, imprisoned for his involvement in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, narrowly escaped with his life after being shot at by a fellow prisoner

growing prison friendship between Salem and Rajan gang members DK Rao, Vicky Malhotra and Kalia Rajan, all of whom are in Taloja prison, located in Navi Mumbai. One of 43 prisons in Maharashtra, Taloja has rapidly been gaining notoriety for nefarious activities within its walls. Sources say that it is fast replacing Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail as a dreaded gang-dominated prison.

Aided by prison guards—easily intimidated by the infamous underworld names Taloja is home to—activities banned under the law thrive here. “Of all the bad ones, Taloja is the worst. All the central prisons in Maharashtra, where the gangsters are lodged, are seeing an increase in nefarious activities,” says a Crime Branch official.

A life threatening attack on Abu Salem on 27 June has once again brought into focus the goings-on in the state’s prisons.

Confessions from those arrested after the attack point to Chhota Shakeel, yet an-

Salem was shot at point blank range by Devendra Jagtap with a countrymade revolver provided

by Manoj Lamhane, a conduit for Shakeel

I

n the murky waters of the Mumbai underworld, a new friendship is blossoming. Fugitive underworld don Chhota Rajan and incarcerated don Abu Salem are edging closer to each other, signalling the likelihood of a new relationship, which could have widespread ramifications in the Indian underworld.

Rajan’s impending handshake with Salem, a former Dawood Ibrahim loyalist, is likely to set off “new action” in the underworld, say sources in the Mumbai Crime Branch.

This future alliance can be traced to the

22 july 2013

other fugitive don, a lieutenant of Dawood, who has long nursed a grudge against Salem. Their battle for dominance dates back to the time Salem spent in Dawood’s gang, and his unceremonious exit from the gang thereafter.

Salem was shot at point blank range by another prisoner, Devendra Jagtap aka JD, with a country-made revolver provided by Manoj Lamhane, a conduit for Shakeel. Salem survived the attack due to the three-foot-long cardboard sheets placed at the gate of each cell by prison authorities to keep rodents and cats from entering the cells. Interestingly, JD and Salem have been on talking terms and have even interacted sometimes in the yard of the high security ‘anda’ (eggshaped) cell, where Salem is kept.

According to a source, the supari (contract for the killing) had been fixed at Rs 5 lakh, paid to JD in instalments. He

was being pressured to finish the job by Shakeel via a mobile phone passed from Lamhane to JD, later recovered from JD’s cell. The late night shooting, police say, was more an act of desperation than a planned action.

“There is an indication that JD was helped by [a] prison guard. The revolver was hidden in a speaker installed near the anda cell and had been there since early May,” says the Crime Branch source.

Lamhane, who was arrested in the Navi Mumbai suburb Panvel, told the police that he kept the revolver in a mithai box that was thrown into the prison from a wall adjoining the prison’s visiting room.

It was then picked up by a guard and handed over to JD. The prison has always been a fertile recruiting ground for gangs, and the SalemRajan handshake, police say, may see a surge in prisoners keen to be recruited and become part of gangland operations.

This held true in the case of JD, who is in prison for the murder of Shahid Azmi, a lawyer who had taken on the defence of some of the accused in the 26 November 2008 terror attack in Mumbai.

Strapped for cash, JD was not in a position to hire a lawyer or even get his case papers photocopied.

T

he Salem shooting also brings into

focus another incarcerated gangster: Santosh Shetty. A former Dawood henchman, Shetty broke away from the gang after the 1993 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai. Shetty, along with Bharat Nepali, accompanied Chhota Rajan when Rajan walked out on Dawood post1993. Though he had placed his trust in Rajan, Shetty was not given an important position in the Rajan gang.

On realising they were not very high in the underworld hierarchy, Shetty and Nepali formed their own gangs and operated individually. A turf war started between them, and they became bitter enemies over the sharing of extortion money. Both controlled their operations in Mumbai from Bangkok.

Each took on Rajan separately, attacking his men. By 2010-11, between them they had killed Rajan’s close confidant Farid Tanasha, and advocate Shahid Azmi. Sources say that Shetty had edged closer to the Dawood gang once again, open www.openthemagazine.com 19

punit paranjpe/afp

was shifted to Taloja.

Prison attacks are not uncommon. In 1987, Vijay Utkar stormed the Agripada police lock-up with 10-12 fellow gangmembers and shot down Babu Resham, a Dawood affiliate. He belonged to the local Kanjari gang, headed by the Dholakia brothers who had taken out the contract to kill Resham.

In 2002, OP Singh of the Rajan gang was killed in Nashik prison by other Rajan men incarcerated there on the orders of the underworld don, following which about 22 prison officials were suspended and a department enquiry was launched. Now, four Taloja officials have been suspended pending inquiry.

Since both Rajan and Salem are at the top of Shakeel’s ‘bump off’ list, the future could see more gang wars across the country. In a bid to increase their numbers, Rajan, Salem and Shakeel are already scouting for sharpshooters and re-

express archives

and executed the Azmi killing through JD. The contract for Azmi’s killing was reportedly put out by Dawood’s trusted lieutenant Chhota Shakeel. This deepened the enmity between Rajan and Shetty. Later, Shetty also killed Nepali to gain dominance of the extortion racket.

On Nepali’s death, his close confidant JD was left in the lurch. Shetty took JD into his own gang’s fold and together, they started executing the gang’s activities from the Taloja prison—their current address. Shetty was extradited from Bangkok in the J Dey murder case.

The plan to kill Salem was firmed up just over a fortnight ago, when Shetty and Dawood-aide Mustafa Dossa met during a hearing at the Esplanade Court.

According to sources, Shetty told Dossa that he wanted to be back in Dawood’s gang. Dossa had attacked Salem in the Arthur Road prison some months ago, slashing his face. Subsequently, Salem

chor-police (Above) Underworld top boss Dawood Ibrahim; (Below) Mumbai Central Prison, also known as Arthur Road Jail, where Dawood’s former associate Abu Salem is imprisoned and was recently attacked

cruits with no previous criminal records, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Odisha.

This could lead to a huge churn in the underworld, and cause regional dons to emerge much stronger due to an affiliation either with Shakeel or Rajan. Both Rajan and Salem are seeking to reduce Dawood’s hold over Mumbai.

“An association with Salem works for Rajan,” says a police source, “as the former does not directly involve himself in any dirty work. But Salem operates through a lawyer.” Salem, extradited from Portugal in 2005, is being tried for his role in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, murder and a slew of extortion cases. The extradition followed an executive assurance by India that Salem would not be awarded the death penalty or charged with any section of the law that entailed a jail term of more than 25 years.

The real estate business, particularly slum rehabilitation projects, will see a lot of interference from Rajan and Shakeel, as both will want a dominant share. If Salem jumps the Rajan bandwagon, sources say, it may just get bloodier.

T

he Mumbai Crime Branch is keen

that the prison guards be taken to task for dereliction of duty. If gangland activities can go on unchecked in prisons, then the very purpose of arresting top gangsters is defeated. On the other hand, prison officials say it is a no-win situation for them. If they follow prison policing law, then under-trials complain to courts and the courts censure prison guards. To avoid being ticked off by the courts, they turn a blind eye to gangsters.

In underworld lingo, prison guards who ‘help’ gangsters are ‘taxis’. Such guards cater to the needs of the gang to which they are ‘assigned’. According to Crime Branch sources, taxis facilitate underworld activities within prison walls.

“They are on a monthly retainer from gangsters. It is a salary from gangsters,” says a crime branch source. “The taxis make sure their gangster-bosses do not lack anything, be it drugs, cigarettes, mobile phones or even weapons.”

A special taxi is assigned to high profile gangsters like DK Rao, Mustafa Dossa and Abu Salem in any of the jails where they are lodged, police sources say. The

22 july 2013

guards also act as conduits and messengers between fugitive gangsters like Shakeel and Rajan, and their lieutenants or henchmen in jail.

Rates for taxis vary according to the money power of gangsters. A gangster like Mustafa Dossa would pay a monthly retainer of Rs 20,000 to his taxi, while DK Rao would pay about Rs 10,00015,000. Smaller gangsters would pay Rs 2,000-5,000. Apart from this monthly pay, taxis get paid each time they pass on an important message or deliver an item desired by the gangster-boss.

Money and muscle power are what work in prison. Prisoners gravitate towards those who have both. The poorer among the prisoners are asked to carry out errands within the prison. In return, gangsters pay them paltry sums and often help them get legal help. Benevolence by a gangster gets them benefits such as an ability to break queues for the toilet

The real estate business will see a lot of interference from Rajan and Shakeel. If Salem jumps the Rajan bandwagon, sources say, it may just get bloodier and bathroom, a ‘good’ sleeping place in overcrowded cells, and even early court dates.

Police sources say a petrol station on the Sion-Panvel highway, close to the Taloja prison, is the meeting point for gangsters and their conduits. ‘Business deals’ with builders and businessmen are struck at this petrol station. The modus operandi is simple: the police van (whose guards are on the gangster’s payroll) will stop at this station for refuelling on a day when the gangster has a court appearance. The time for the meeting is already known to the conduits, who line up the businessmen or builders to be met with.

The refuelling finishes only after the meeting concludes. The police van then makes its way to the court. The same procedure is followed on the return.

Gangsters are not open to video conferencing; they want a reason to leave prison and hold their ‘meetings’. Even prison

guards are not keen on it as their ‘extra’ earnings would disappear.

There is a lot of infighting among prison guards and officials. Some years ago, a sting operation conducted by a senior jailor against his female subordinate laid bare the bitter khaki rivalry in prison. The female jailor then conducted her own sting, which showed her senior in poor light. The state home ministry conducted an inquiry and held the senior jailor guilty of dereliction of duty. He was suspended from service, but later reinstated.

The female jailor is in a very senior position now and is much hated by her male colleagues as she is extremely strict and closely follows the rule book.

Prison officials throw up their hands in frustration, citing overcrowding as the root of all problems, as it renders the segregation of gang members impossible— every inch of available space is already being utilised. All amenities fall short, prison sources say, and fights erupt over the use of toilets and bathrooms.

Overcrowding has led to prisoners sleeping in whatever space is available. The ones with money and power get the best spots in the cell, and poor prisoners have to make do with whatever’s left; many often sit out the night as they are not ‘allocated’ a place to sleep.

Of the 43 prisons in Maharashtra, 27 are ‘full’ and cannot house even a single additional prisoner. All prisons are filled far above capacity. The Maharashtra government has sought permission from the Centre to set up five additional prisons at Nandurbar, Washim, Gadchiroli, Sindhudurg and Jalna.Mumbai Central Prison, commonly known as Arthur Road Jail, is the most crowded in the state relative to its capacity. Built for 804 prisoners, it houses 2,710 at present, of which only 39 are convicts; the remaining 2,671 are in judicial custody.

Pune’s Yerwada Central Prison houses the largest number of prisoners in the state. Of the 3,307 prisoners here, 3,032 are men and 275 women. Of them, 1,211 men and 211 women are serving sentences, and 1,817 men and 63 women are in judicial custody.

There are 25,904 prisoners in the jails of Maharashtra. Of these, only 1,464 are women. The total combined capacity of all the prisons is 22,294, which means there are 3,609 prisoners too many. n open www.openthemagazine.com 21

raul irani

fa k e e n co u n t e r

Rogue Agency?

photos amit dave

whodunnit (Facing page) ‘Justice for Ishrat Jahan’ campaign holds a briefing at Constitution Club, New Delhi; The CBI reconstructs the encounter (Tarun Barot with pistol and GL Singhal in white); DG Vanzara being shifted to Mumbai prison

In the bid to defend the IB in the Ishrat Jahan case, neither the CBI’s evidence nor the close relationship between Narendra Modi and the agency’s man in Gujarat at the time is being given due consideration Hartosh Singh Bal with Mihir Srivastava

I

n the incestuous power circles of Delhi, the

chargesheet of the Ishrat Jahan case has become just another way of playing out meaningless theatre in TV studios.

The BJP, worried that the chain of evidence may lead up to Narendra Modi, has raised questions about Ishrat’s antecedents, as if that excuses her murder. The Intelligence Bureau (IB), worried about the possibility of a murder charge against one of its senior officials, has sought to make this seem a threat to national security.

Even the ruling party stands divided. Many in the Congress are keen that CBI chief Ranjit Sinha, an Ahmed Patel appointee, succeeds in singeing Modi, but the PMO, where former head of IB Nehchal Sandhu is a prominent voice as deputy national security advisor, has been fiercely lobbying to keep the IB out of the case.

Many journalists have pitched in too. Some have been happy to plug IB leaks as exclusive stories, while others have been making arguments that on calm reflection would seem absurd in their own eyes.

In all this, little attention is being paid to the specifics of the case. The fact is that the CBI investigation has been ordered by the court, and the chargesheet speaks for itself.

As does the interaction between the officer under scrutiny, Rajinder Kumar, ‘former joint director of the subsidiary Intelligence Bureau’ (SIB), and Narendra Modi, which clearly went beyond a working relationship.

The IB’s role, according to the chargesheet

…The Investigation revealed that in the last week of April 2004, Jishan Johar (deceased) on his arrival at Ahmedabad was taken into illegal custody by a joint team of accused Gujarat Police officers and SIB officers of Ahmedabad consisting of GL Singhal, Rajinder Kumar. Thereafter Jishan Johar was confined at house no. 164/165 in Gota Housing, near Vaishno Devi Crossing, off SG Highway, Ahmedabad and was put under au22 july 2013

‘That on 13.06.2004 evening, Shri DG Vanzara, Shri PP Pandey and Shri Rajinder Kumar had discussed in the Bungalow No. 15, Duffnala, Shahibaug office chamber of Shri DG Vanzara about the further plan about elimination of the four detainees’: chargesheet dio-tap by Rajeev Wankhede, MK Sinha & T Mittal the SIB officers and the surveillance was maintained by CJ Goswami PSI, PG Waghela PSI, Hanubha Narsinh Dodiya HC and Zahir Ahmed PC. open www.openthemagazine.com 23

ashish sharma

Investigation revealed that on 26.05.2004, a team of DCB, Ahmedabad City, comprising of accused NK Amin, Tarun Barot and IK Chauhan with the assistance of Shri MK Sinha and Rajeev Wankhede, ACIOs of SIB, Ahmedabad abducted the deceased Amjadali from Gota Crossing on the outskirts of Ahmedabad. Investigation revealed that the above team of accused officers after abducting the deceased Amjadali, confined him in illegal custody at Arham Farm House from 26.05.2004 to 15.06.2004 early morning…

Investigation revealed that on 12.06.2004, accused N.K.Amin and Tarun Barot with the assistance of M.K.Sinha and Rajeev Wankhede, ACIOs of SIB, Ahmedabad, abducted Javed and Ishrat Jahan from Vasad Toll booth, District Anand, Gujarat, when they were travelling in the blue Indica car bearing registration no. MH 02 JA 4786. The above accused police officers and SIB officers took Javed and Ishrat Jahan to Khodiyar Farm, off SG Highway, Ahmedabad, and kept them in Illegal custody…

Shri DG Vanzara, Shri PP Pandey, Shri Rajinder Kumar and Dr NK Amin had met Javed and Ishrat Jahan during their illegal custody on different days and times. On 13.06.2004, Jishan Johar was shifted from Gota Housing confinement to Khodiyar Farm house by Shri Tarun Barot.

That on 13.06.2004 evening, Shri DG Vanzara, Shri PP Pandey and Shri Rajinder Kumar had discussed in the Bungalow No. 15, Duffnala, Shahibaug office chamber of Shri DG Vanzara about the further plan about elimination of the four detainees i.e. Jishan Johar, Amjadali, Javed and Ishrat and lodging a FIR showing their death in an encounter.

That on 14.06.2004, Shri GL Singhal had gone to the office of the SIB as per instructions of Shri DG Vanzara, and had collected weapons in a bag from SIB Office Ahmedabad. He had sent this bag through Shri Nizamuddin Burhanmiyan to Shri Tarun A Barot, who was at Khodiyar Farm…

The investigation revealed that, following accused officers had fired on the four deceased from their service weapons as detailed hereunder: » NK Amin fired 5 rounds from his 9mm pistol; 24 open

» JG Parmar fired 4 rounds from his revolver; » Tarun Barot fired 6 rounds from his revolver and 3 rounds from the revolver of IK Chauhan; » Mohan Kalaswa fired 32 rounds from his AK-47 and 10 rounds from the AK47 of Commando Mohan Nanji; and » Anaju Jiman Chaudhary fired 10 rounds from his Stengun.

The investigation revealed that the above firing had taken place in two successive stages. It is revealed that in the first round of firing, Sh. Tarun Barot and Mohan Kalaswa exhausted their ammunition and stopped firing. Thereafter for the second round of firing, they forcibly took away the weapons of IK Chauhan and Mohan Nanji respectively and Sh. Barot fired 3 rounds from the weapon of IK Chauhan while Mohan Kalasawa fired another 10 rounds from the weapon of Mohan Nanji Menat. Further Commando Mohan Kalasawa was made to fire several rounds from AK 56 rifle (planted on the Amjadali Rana), on the official Gypsy vehicle of Dr NK Amin.

This AK 56 rifle was brought to the scene by Shri Tarun Barot.

After firing from this weapon, it was placed near the dead body of Amjadali…

That the investigation conducted so far disclosed that the above said fake encounter was a result of Joint operation of Gujarat Police and SIB, Amedabad. In this operation the overt acts committed by the accused Gujarat Police officers have been established by the evidence on record. However, further investigation is in progress against the SIB officers namely Rajinder Kumar, MK Sinha, Rajeev Wankhede & T Mittal and others.

Therefore in view of the above facts and circumstances, the Investigating Agency CBI seeks permission of the Hon’ble Court to continue investigation against the SIB officers named above and others.

The chargesheet details the extent of the role of the IB officers in the murders. IB officials, including at least in one case the then IB head in Gujarat, Rajinder Kumar, were part of the team that illegally abducted those killed.

They took part in the interrogation of the victims who were confined in safe-houses for extended periods of time.

Most damningly, the chargesheet also suggests that the 22 july 2013

encounter most foul Ishrat Jahan’s mother Shamima Kauser (L) and sister Musarrat Jahan during a ‘Justice for Ishrat Jahan’ vigil in New Delhi on 6 July; the four who were killed in the 15 June 2004 fake encounter on the outskirts of Ahmedabad

weapons planted on the victims after they were killed were supplied by the IB. There is only one possible interpretation of these facts and the chargesheet spells it out: ‘…the above said fake encounter was the result of joint operation of Gujarat Police and SIB, Ahmedabad.’

The IB’s Defence

Four serving IB functionaries of the ranks of joint director and deputy director spoke to Open.

They argued that the Ishrat Jahan case was a successful IB operation. The encounter was fake no doubt, according to them, but the information that Ishrat and the other three were part of a larger terror network was true.

They went on to say that this was a successful intelligence operation, as the IB was able to infiltrate their sleeper cell and plant informers.

One of the alleged terrorists, Pranesh Pillai, alias Javed Sheikh, was actually in touch with the IB and more specifically with Rajinder Kumar. He was later abducted and gunned down. Javed Sheikh could well have been an informer, as there were some IB plants in the sleeper cell that Ishrat was allegedly part of. An IB joint director who has supervised many anti-terror projects said that three of the alleged terrorists could have been double agents.

He argued that almost all ‘encounters’ carried out by the local police are based on IB inputs. He made a special mention of the Special Cell of Delhi Police, and added that at a functional level it is almost an executive wing of the IB and not of the Delhi Police. Citing the example of the Batla House encounter, he said that the Special Cell was asked to check out the antecedents of certain people in a certain house based on an IB tipoff. “That will make Arundhati Roy happy. But there is no malafide [intent].

This is how we function.”

The danger of the current investigation, he went on to argue, was that if encounters carried out by the local police were to be investigated in similar fashion, it would be easy to implicate IB functionaries because the organisation still depends heavily on human intelligence.

According to him, there are hundreds of operations underway at any point of time where an informer has been planted in a sleeper network. This involves being in the company of drug and arms dealers, fake currency smugglers, explosive experts and contract killers. Some operations involve working with the mafia and dealing in and supplying arms. There are safe houses in which certain terrorists are kept, briefed and debriefed, then pushed back into the terror network to extricate information.

There are, he says, some 5,000 telephone numbers being monitored in Delhi alone right now. On many occasions, special IB simcards are made available to terror networks and sleeper cells to monitor their activities. There have been a few cases where attacks were carried out by terrorists using IB simcards. “If these cases were to be investigated, the CBI would say the IB carried out terror attacks. We have a job at hand,” says the IB official.

22 july 2013

The Fallout

It is hard to make the case that intelligence agencies should do no dirty work or that they should not enjoy a degree of legal protection. But the terrifying fact is that the IB, and in general all Indian intelligence agencies including RAW, are not part of any legal framework, and there is absolutely no Parliamentary oversight of their work.

In their defence, IB officers have argued that their job is to provide information; they cannot be held accountable for what the police do with it. They counter the CBI chargesheet by arguing that the issue of the weapons planted on the victims in the Ishrat Jahan case cannot be sustained by the evidence, because it is only based on the confessions of some state police officers without any corroboration. But the officers do grudgingly concede that the IB plays an active role in many such ‘encounters’.

Shekhar Gupta, editor-in-chief of The Indian Express, in a recent piece has made much the same claim in more explicit terms: ‘The larger argument, therefore, is if they did so in Gujarat, it is not the first time the IB and state police forces have collaborated to kill. So while it is one thing to investigate this case as a crime, be careful of what you will unravel if you do not ensure a “controlled fallout”.

Fighting terrorism in any democracy is tough enough.

But if you also unleash Congress versus BJP, and agency versus agency factors in it, you are asking for trouble. We can’t have a weak government set free one agency as a caged parrot and kick the other into a hangdog. This needs to be handled very, very carefully.’

In the arguments leading up to this conclusion, political observers and police officers cite instances from the years of terror in Punjab and the upheavals in the Northeast. open www.openthemagazine.com 25

But then if India’s intelligence agencies cannot tell the difference between the Punjab of the early 90s and the Gujarat of 2004, it must frighten us all.

Arguments by analogy are always problematic. Past successes and past needs, right or wrong, in situations vastly different from the Gujarat of 2004, are being summoned to defend the deeds of the IB officials in Gujarat.

And these are being used to stymie the probe of this particular case where no one can offer a reasonable defence for what was done.

According to The Economic Times, ‘Former Intelligence Bureau Chief and Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan has voiced strong reservations in a letter to the Prime Minister over naming of Intelligence Bureau officers in fake encounter cases, saying it would seriously impinge on the fight against terrorism. Sources said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is understood to have responded to Narasimhan’s letter with the assurance that the concerns raised by him would be addressed.’

Now Governor Narasimhan is a government appointee, one of the many ex-IB chiefs who have had such rewards tossed their way. His letter does not befit the constitutional authority invested in him and it is baffling

‘Shri Rajendrakumar, JD, SIB, Ahmedabad told me that some Congress leaders are behind the recent communal incidents in Ahmedabad city and we should try to uncover this diabolical link’ that he would make such a statement about a case that is being monitored by the Judiciary. It may even be tantamount to interference. But what Narasimhan and others like him seem to be suggesting is that IB officers should be immune under any circumstances.

As Digivijaya Singh, coincidentally the Congress incharge for Andhra Pradesh, has said in an accompanying interview, “I’m very surprised that a rogue officer of the IB is being protected so vehemently by the agency itself.”

Rogue Officer?

However much anyone may argue against framing this issue in political terms, the fact remains that it cannot be separated from politics and the thread that binds Rajinder Kumar, the senior IB officer implicated in the death of Ishrat Jahan and others, to Narendra Modi. This is not to argue yet for Modi’s involvement in the case. So far the evidence does not suggest it, but it is not hard to make the case that for an IB officer reporting to the Central Government, Rajinder Kumar was overly keen to please Modi and act in ways that favoured the Modi administration.

An IB officer we spoke to, who has worked with Rajinder Kumar, said that the SIB chief keeps in touch 26 open

with the Chief Minister, Chief Justice, Governor and top civil and police officials on a regular basis. He is treated almost like an unofficial representative of the Central Government in the state, and one who provides critical inputs. He said, “Many SIB chiefs have got warm sendoffs and the political leadership of the state has attended such functions. In fact it is important that the SIB chief has a good rapport with the Chief Minister so that he can seek ready support of the state administration and police,” said this IB officer. He went on to say, “So what does that mean... Kumar and Modi were friends? Does that mean Kumar was Modi’s agent?”

But that precisely is the question. In 2005 I, Hartosh, had travelled to Gujarat to report on the investigations of the 2002 riots. I had spoken to RB Sreekumar, who had been made head of state intelligence soon after the Godhra killings. The copy, based on a diary kept by Sreekumar during this tenure, I filed then with Mahesh Langa for Tehelka, still available in its archives. It states, ‘At a meeting on April 16, 2002, Modi told Sreekumar that Congress leaders, in particular Shankersinh Vaghela, were responsible for the continuing communal violence in the state. The meeting (apart from Modi and Sreekumar) was attended by then DGP K Chakravarti and the CM’s PS PK Mishra and Modi’s OSD. Sreekumar told Modi that he had no information regarding the involvement of the Congress leaders in communal violence. At this, Modi asked him to tap Vaghela’s phone but Sreekumar refused saying he had no information on the basis of which he could order surveillance. Interestingly, two days later, controversial IB Joint Director Rajinder Kumar, posted in Ahmedabad, sold the same line to Sreekumar. When Sreekumar sought specific information, the IB man said he had none.

The IB had been one of the few claiming the Godhra incident was a ‘pre-planned conspiracy’. It is still not clear how the IB was able to reach this conclusion within hours of the incident and questions have been raised about Kumar’s proximity to Modi.’

The diary noting by Sreekumar states: 18/05/2002 11:30 AM Shri Rajendrakumar, JD, SIB, Ahmedabad told me that some Congress leaders are behind the recent communal incidents in Ahmedabad city and we should try to uncover this diabolical link up.

Then, I asked Shri Rajendrakumar about any special intelligence in this connection. To this question, he replied that he has no pin pointed intelligence in the matter.

It appears that JD, SIB, perhaps in pursuance of the CM’s suggestion to involve Congress persons as persons responsible for the continuing riots wants to build up a case against Congress leaders by soliciting intelligence reports.

It is true that Sreekumar has been at odds with the Modi government. But in 2005, neither Sreekumar nor I could have known that Rajinder Kumar would one day be facing the kind of scrutiny he is facing today. n 22 july 2013

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I N T E RV I E W

“Surprised a rogue officer is being protected by IB” the Third voice “I’m in the [Congress] and it’s the right of the organisation to raise issues and bring them to the notice of the Government”

Congress Party General Secretary Digvijaya Singh spoke to Open’s Political Editor Hartosh Singh Bal about the Ishrat Jahan case, the state of the Congress Party, allegations of communalism, and what he believes Rahul Gandhi thinks about some of the major issues facing the country. (A video of the entire interview is available on our website Openthemagazine.com) The interview was part of a monthly conversations series organised by Open at Smoke House Deli. Excerpts: photos raul irani

You met the Home Minister over the Ishrat Jahan case. What were you told?

Well, I had a meeting with the Home Minister, but not specifically on Ishrat Jahan’s case. There were other issues also, [such as] the issue of Telangana.

Let me say that people are seeing a lot of politics in this—frankly, there is no politics. It’s an issue of whether you can allow some kind of partnership between intelligence agencies and the state police to eliminate [people] at will.

You are fairly certain that the partnership existed?

This is what the CBI says, I am not investigating it.

In this context, does Ishrat Jahan’s background matter?

Does any organisation or agency have a licence to kill? [Agent] 007 had a licence to kill, but do they have a licence to kill?

Even Kasab, caught in the act, was tried in court. Therefore, no agency or state police has the right to take the law in its hands.

India has a long tradition of police using extra-legal methods. You would know, for example, that in Chambal, the way the police fought dacoity was not without its problems. Is this a comparable situation?

It’s not comparable. I don’t support any kind of false encounters, whether it is [in] dacoity-infested Chambal or in this case. The fact remains that this is quite different. Here, a false input was provided by the IB at the request of the Gujarat Police, and an encounter took place. It was not once but six different times that these false encounters have taken place, [carried out] by the Gujarat police, and ever since Mr Vanzara has been behind

bars, surprisingly there has been no attack on Mr Modi.

Do you think the dimensions of this case suggest more than just the involvement of one rogue officer of the IB?

See, I’m very surprised that a rogue officer of [the] IB is being protected so vehemently by the agency itself.

And your PMO is also supposed to be part of this…

Well, I’m not questioning that. What I’m trying to say is that when the Judiciary called the IB or the CBI certain words which were derogatory, I was the only person who stood up for these agencies, [saying this] was not good for the nation or the agency. I am not against the IB or CBI or any agency, but the fact remains that one premier agency that is investigating [a case] under the directions of the High Court has ample evidence [against], and has gathered the courage to prosecute or investigate a senior IB officer—and not only him, there [are] three more—which means that there has to be some truth in what they are doing.

There’s a common perception in a large section of India’s Muslim population that the agencies and security forces have a communal bias. Do you think this is true of the IB? See, I can’t say that. It’s too serious an allegation. But there are rogue elements in every organisation.

Is the political establishment in Gujarat also culpable in some ways?

Tell me one state government where senior police officers have been prosecuted for so many fake encounters as in Gujarat. Why [has] no other instance [of open www.openthemagazine.com 29

such encounters] taken place ever since Mr Vanzara and [Abhay] Chudasama and other officers have been arrested?

Not only that, Mr Amit Shah has also been chargesheeted in another case, so I’m not charging [and] I’m not alleging, but does it not really point a finger at [Gujarat’s establishment]?

For the 2014 General Election, Amit Shah is handling the BJP’s campaign in UP. Narendra Modi is the face of BJP. The state we are talking about is Gujarat. What do you think of this whole scenario?

Well, it’s nothing new. The BJP has been oscillating between extreme rightwing so-called Hindutva and Gandhian socialism. This pendulum has been swinging from one end to the other [for] the last three decades—so there is nothing new.

What are your personal views about Narendra Modi?

Well, it’s better that I don’t speak out.

But at this juncture …

Well, it’s not very complimentary, I can tell you. In fact, he was the general secretary in charge of the BJP when I won [MP] for the second time and he was campaigning—not only campaigning, he was organising the campaign

in Madhya Pradesh—and if you see his track record, in spite of the APCO worldwide taking him to new levels, wherever he has been an in-charge in [a] state as a BJP general secretary, [the] BJP has never won. Also wherever he has campaigned, except Gujarat, he has not been very successful. Therefore I think he has been very successful in creating an aura, an image around him. I would give him full credit.

And do you think the same portent holds for 2014?

(Laughs) Hopefully, yes.

But senior journalists such as Shekhar Gupta have said it is the Congress that is politicising and communalising the Ishrat Jahan issue...

I have great regard for Shekhar Gupta, but I don’t see any substance in this. On the contrary, why is [the] BJP suddenly feeling the heat? Why are they sort of politicising it? That is my question. I have never politicised it. Tell me one instance where I have politicised it.

You, of course, took on your own government even over the Batla House encounter.

The fact is even in the Batla House encounter I had requested a judicial enquiry, which is a fair demand. Of course, it

free exchange Social scientist Ashis Nandy pays attention

was not acceded to. That is it.

The claim being made is that you are feeding the victimisation of Muslims and also raising questions about the professionalism of India’s intelligence services.

It’s not only that. If you see in the last one decade what has happened [after] Malegaon One, Malegaon Two, Ajmer Dargah Shareef, Mecca Masjid Hyderabad, Samjhauta Express...

Initially, Muslim youth were arrested and investigations found them innocent later. Within half an hour of an incident, the media comes out quoting sources, [saying] that so and so has been [blamed] and invariably it’s a Muslim name.

Are we not creating a situation where Muslim youth suddenly feel that they are targeted? What wrong [have] those Muslim youths done who were wrongly implicated? Does it not create a psyche among the Muslim youth which is susceptible to Pakistani propaganda? And [Pakistanis] have been saying this ever since Pakistan was created, that Muslims in India will never get any justice. Should we allow this to happen?

I have been saying from day one, I would be the first person to have found out the reality that some of the rogue elements in the Sangh were responsible for the bomb blasts. In fact, in 1992 they were making a bomb in Neemuch in the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) office [when] suddenly the lights went off and they lit a match stick and there was a blast.

One VHP worker died, one absconded [and] was later found to be teaching at a Saraswati Shishu Mandir. [But] because a BJP government was there, the prosecution was botched up and we really could not carry on the investigation. After that, a bomb was thrown in a temple in Mhow, near Indore. Again it was found that... six Sangh workers... were involved. One of them was Sunil Joshi, Sangh Pracharak of Dewas, and the other was Ramji Kalsangra, who is still absconding and has a reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head.

They had done this just to create anger against Muslims. These are [also] the people who attacked Muslim habitations and burnt their houses.

I remember you had flagged this off in conversation with journalists in 2001, but from 22 July 2013

We follow liberalisation with a human face. If we don’t really go for liberalisation, we don’t really get growth, and if we don’t get growth, we don’t have resources

Gandhi, I can assure you that he’s a pragmatist. He supports economic liberalisation and he has, and his heart and head [are in] the right place... He believes that we have to go for economic liberalisation, and, at the same time, with higher economic growth, channelise resources to bring about change in our human development index [score], spend more money in rural areas for infrastructure so that the quality of life in remote areas improves.

He has some very strong views on the environment and ecology and mining.

He’s not against mining, but then it has to bring on board the people who are losing the land. The Mining Regulation Act amendment is pending with the Government of India. It has been to the select committee. For the first time, the Government of India has looked [at] how we can bring the land oustees in mining areas on board and let them have [a share of] profits of the mining sector delivered to them rather than giving [them] some compensation and throwing them out.

So I think these are the issues which he has in mind.

the kind of policies they espouse?

Has he been involved in the framing and preparation?

2004 onwards it’s been your government... and you have raised these issues repeatedly. Why has your own government not taken these things seriously?

have problems within our own government. Lot of allies have reservations on this, so therefore I think you can’t blame us for that. And in fact there were some reservations among the economists who are advising the Government also.

I think that has been resolved now, but the fact remains that Food Security— and not only Food Security, we have believed in empowering the people [with the] Right to Information, Right to Education, Right to Work and Right to Food. This is the ethos of the Congress party and the ethos of the UPA. And [it] has been one of the major issues taken up by my Congress President.

But you have often had to argue with your own government over important issues and not been on the same page on law and order.

You mentioned some economists advising this government. What are your views on

It has been taken seriously. [The] National Investigation Agency was created and it has been investigating all these acts of terror. It was only at the insistence of the NIA that the facts about Sunil Joshi’s murder came to light, and now it’s one of the proven facts that Sangh elements were responsible [for] the murder of Sunil Joshi, because he knew too much and he was asking for too much and threatening that he would blurt it out.

Well, as [far] as I’m concerned I’m in the organisation and it’s the right of the organisation to raise issues and bring [them] to the notice of the Government.

Which often means that as far as the media is concerned, on almost every issue we look for three voices—the BJP voice, the Congress voice and the Digvijaya Singh voice. How do you manage this independence?

(Laughs) Well, it’s not very often.

The charges you made about the BJP—the oscillation between rightwing politics and Gandhi’s socialism—can in some measure be levied against this government. We have gone from one extreme of liberalisation to subsidies or populism.

I don’t think you are correct because we have been following economic liberalisation with a human face. If we don’t really go for liberalisation, we don’t really get growth, and if we don’t get growth, we don’t have the resources. So I think whatever resources we have been able to generate have been channelised for social sectors, whether it is allocation for education, health or employment.

So it’s not I would [call] contradictory. In fact, it’s complementary.

But how is it that the human face of this government, elected in 2009, emerged only in 2013?

You’re referring to Food Security? Food Security has been a part of our election manifesto... We have [been] raising this issue but because of compulsions... we 22 July 2013

I’m not against economic liberalisation. You know, I have been supporting economic liberalisation but it has to be pragmatic, it has to be doable. In fact, I had my reservations on cash transfers initially, but when I saw it has succeeded in Latin countries and in Mexico, I changed my opinion and I thought it’s a good way to check leakages. Even on the issue of FDI in retail, I have supported it.

On many of these questions—since you’re the only one we can ask this question—what does Rahul Gandhi think?

(Laughs) But why me alone?

Nobody else seems to know what Rahul Gandhi thinks on any issue.

Why don’t you call him here?

We’re most willing—through you, or directly—if he would be willing to come.

You’ll have to do it directly.

But where, really, does Rahul Gandhi stand on these issues?

[From] what little I know of Mr Rahul

To some extent, but not directly.

But that’s a rather complete articulation.

How come we don’t hear this from Rahul Gandhi himself?

Well, at the right time, maybe.

What is your own interaction with Rahul Gandhi? You seem to play a key role.

I think I must put on record that people have mentioned that I’m a mentor, I’m an advisor, I’m so and so... [and] frankly, I’m none.

He doesn’t need anyone. He is well-educated, he understands developmental economics. He has done his Masters in developmental economics, so he has a mind of his own. He reads—he is a voracious reader. He doesn’t need anyone of that kind. I came into contact with him when I was made in charge of UP because that is his state. We worked very closely, and he is extremely focused and when he takes up a task, he doesn’t let go until he completes it.

For example, he took up [the] very challenging task of having fair elections in open www.openthemagazine.com 31

ashish sharma

opening up “I’m not against economic liberalisation. I have been supporting it, but it has to be pragmatic”

the students’ wing and youth wings of the Congress party, which was unheard of. People in the party were very apprehensive that this would ever be possible, but he did it—to the extent that today it is only the Congress party which has elected representatives of the NSUI in every Assembly segment of the country, [something] no other political party has.

An organisation, which [includes] Mr Lyngdoh and Mr Rao from the Election Commission, has been keeping track of these elections. It’s a tremendous task that has been achieved. When he takes up a task, he is extremely focused, loves to build up systems, loves to build up structures, and leaves nothing to discretion.

Well, last time…

Well, even if you see the election of the leader of the CLP in Karnataka. It was done so quickly that people never imagined this could happen so fast. [It happened] because everyone was fast, and the person who had the largest mandate became the Chief Minister.

Two years ago, Open had interviewed you after the Bihar results. You told us not to attribute the Bihar results to Rahul Gandhi, but you did say that UP was his baby.

Yes, yes, yes.

32 open

So is that a setback?

No, it is not a setback. If you see, post the 2009 elections, except [in] Goa and Bihar, in every Assembly election, the vote share and the number of seats [won by] the Congress party has gone up, and the number of seats and the vote share of the BJP has gone down. We have lost one state of Goa; [the] BJP lost three states...

Even in UP our vote share—the base vote share—in 2007 was only seven per cent. It went up to about 11.6 per cent in [the] 2012 elections. [Our] seats—we had 21, it went [up] to 29—but in Parliament, our vote share went up from seven per cent to 18 per cent. So therefore I think you can’t say that we didn’t do too well in Uttar Pradesh.

But the fact remains our organisation in UP and Bihar is not at all good. In states like UP and Bihar, it takes a lot of time to build up an organisation.

At that time you also said the Government will continue in power till 2014 and Manmohan Singh will remain Prime Minster. But during and after the 2014 elections, who will be the face of the party? Will Rahul Gandhi take this responsibility?

First of all, what I said two years ago is probably coming true, that he will remain Prime Minister.

There will be no early polls?

No, I don’t think so. I think as far as 2014 is concerned, Mr Rahul Gandhi has been given the task of organising the campaign, and there is a group set up which is doing this. The Congress party usually doesn’t announce prime ministerial or chief ministerial candidates in advance. We feel that in a parliamentary democracy, it’s the right of elected representatives to choose their own leaders. I think last time, [it was] because Dr Manmohan Singh was already Prime Minister that the [candidate] was declared, that too at the time of the release of the election manifesto. It’s too early to say what will happen, but usually the Congress party doesn’t declare its candidate in advance.

What is your personal view of this matter?

Would you want to see Rahul Gandhi as the face of the party?

He’s already the face of the party.

The prime ministerial candidate?

That is something for the party High Command to decide.

What about your own plans? You had told many of us in Bhopal after the 2002 loss that you won’t fight an election.

Again, give me credit that I stuck to that.

22 July 2013

And now?

Now I think I [am] open to fighting the Lok Sabha elections but certainly not the Assembly elections.

You are now in charge of Andhra, you mentioned at the very beginning of this interview. Is there any decision on Telangana?

Maybe, in the very near future. I think the widest consultation has taken place and now it’s in the final round. And I think I have requested the CM, the PCC president, [and] the deputy CM to prepare a roadmap for two options: 1) Bifurcation of the state, and 2) United States of Andhra. And they’re working on it. And I would be submitting to my Congress leadership [that it should give a] hearing to all the three [leaders] and then take a conscious decision.

And you think this is very much on track? It will be before the elections?

Much before the elections.

Are the [various] factions of the Congress from both these regions on board?

It’s not easy. There are such hard feelings on both sides, but then most of the Congressmen will sort of abide by the decision of the Congress party.

In this roadmap, what happens to Hyderabad? Is that on the table? Has some decision been taken on that?

You see, Hyderabad is no longer a city which belongs to one or the other. It’s a cosmopolitan city where most of the people from Andhra and Rayalaseema have settled down and have become voters in Hyderabad. So it’s really not an issue. And if you see, most of the corporate leaders of Andhra Pradesh are from Hyderabad and... most of the business community is from Rajasthan. So therefore I think the Telangana issue is not so serious in the city of Hyderabad.

Sure, but I mean the status of the city...

Status of the city... if it’s bifurcated, then of course the choice is obvious.

Clear enough. So it’s not a Chandigarh-like solution?

Unlikely.

The other issue which you have been taking up in a serious way is the issue of Naxalism.

22 July 2013

What is your impression of the recent attack in Chhattisgarh? Why was the Congress party targeted?

I’m very surprised. In fact, if you see, there was a Vikas Yatra at the same place, Sukma, where more than 6,000 policemen were deployed. For the Parivartan Yatra, with a fair amount of advance notice, there were hardly any policemen in sight of the public meeting. If you count the security people with the Congress people, it would not be more than 100.

Then if you drive down from Sukhma to the other part near Darbhaghati, the only place where the ambush could have taken place was this place. And it was so obvious that if ever there was an attack or ambush, this was the only logical place.

And the Naxalites had a free run for more than four-and-a-half hours.

From the place of the incident, the police station was 4 km away. They were informed within 15 minutes of the inci-

“From Bastar itself, Naxalites collect Rs 300 crore every year from tendu patta, from beedi leaves. This is the kind of money that is involved”

dent, and the policemen in Darbha police station had locked themselves from outside and... were sitting inside.

In a situation of this kind, how can you fight Naxalites? You cannot fight leftwing extremism unless you win the support of the people living in those areas.

We had involved Dr BD Sharma in bringing gram swaraj, empowering the people. In fact, [when I was] CM we had passed a unanimous resolution to give the Sixth Schedule to Bastar, which was unfortunately rejected by the Government of India.

[T]herefore I think the issues of governance, issues of tribal unrest, of land, forest, and mining are the real key issues which the Government of India and the state government have to address.

In 1927, the British brought in the Indian Forest Act, which took away the rights of the Tribal, and there was a huge jungle satyagraha led by Mahatma

Gandhi, where thousands of people were killed, mostly Tribals. Unfortunately, when we became independent, the same Indian Forest Act continued, and after the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980, people living in forest villages lost their livelihood also. I have been saying... for a long time that the Indian Forest Act needs to be revisited now, and we have been giving the rights of minor forest produce to Tribals, which is not enough.

I must give full credit to the UPA Government that in their Forest Rights Act they have included bamboo as one of the minor forest produce, which has led to huge income. For example, in Maharashtra, in one year, one village made Rs 1.5 crore, which went to people in the forest areas. I have been saying that the forest rights which they enjoyed pre1927 [have] to be restored to Tribals and forest dwellers.

The amount of money that we are spending on security forces would be much less if we had done this empowerment [of] Tribals. Balaghat in MP has the highest growth of bamboo and it was leased [out to a] paper company till 1996.

As Chief Minister, I did not renew the lease and we said that it is for the paper industry to buy bamboo from depots in auctions.

And Naxalites would tell the Tribals not to cut the bamboo. Of course, bamboo was cut as per the forest plans. So what we did was, we said the forest committees of the area [would have] to be sitting in the auctions, and 30 per cent of the proceeds would go to them. We raised the labour charges of cutting bamboo by 50 per cent.

They used to burn the trucks which were transporting bamboo from the depots to the railways. We said we will have no contractors, [and] we gave the funds to Tribal societies for transportation, and gave them tractors and trolleys. After [that], there were no instances of burning of tempos and burning of depots.

You have to eliminate the institution of contractors from these areas. Naxalites love contractors because that is their source of earning. I will give you one figure: from Bastar itself, Naxalites collect Rs 300 crore every year from tendu patta, from beedi leaves. This is the kind of money that is involved. n open www.openthemagazine.com 33

amr dalsh/reuters

under pressure Egypt’s Coptic Christians suffered a series of attacks under Morsi’s regime

ov e rt h r ow

Perpetual Revolution With Morsi’s ouster, Egypt’s democracy project is in flux again NAZES AFROZ

I

s it a coup or is it not? This is the

question that has been raging in Egypt since 3 July when the country’s powerful military stepped in to eject President Muhammad Morsi from his post and suspend the constitution, following a massive public protest against the president and his government, creating an impasse in the country.

Another revolution was in the air, my former colleagues and friends from Cairo were telling me for almost a month before President Morsi was forced out.

Some who were passionately against the government said, “It is more important than ever. It’s for the survival of Egypt.”

Egypt, it seems, is going through perpetual revolution. It started with the Tahrir Square gathering of 25 January 2011 to depose a dictator, and continues with the ouster of a president who was 36 open

democratically elected only a year ago.

Egyptians had high hopes in 2011 when they took on their three-decade dictator Hosni Mubarak, staying put at Tahrir Square for three weeks till he stepped down and facing pressure from his biggest domestic support base, the military, and his big Western backer, the US. After a year of transitional government led by the military, Egypt’s citizens had the opportunity to choose their government in their first-ever free election.

A slender majority gave the Muslim Brotherhood leader Muhammad Morsi a mandate to govern Egypt.

Interestingly, many who voted for the Freedom and Justice Party—a political front for the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood movement—have been out on the streets since 30 June, demanding that President Morsi step down.

This latest turnout was the biggest ever, billed as ‘unprecedented’ by independent observers who had witnessed many such gatherings at Tahrir Square since January 2011. This gathering gave President Morsi an ultimatum: 48 hours to resign for his failure to deliver a credible government. He refused, and the military swung into action to oust him.

What went wrong for Muhammad Morsi and his government, elected by the people of Egypt only a year ago?

“H

e was behaving in a most authoritarian way over [his] past year in power,” says Heba Morayef, director, Human Rights Watch, Egypt.

Morsi gave himself extra-constitutional powers within five months of his election, she says, a “pharaoh, answering to 22 july 2013

no one”. His announcement that constitutional declarations, decisions and laws issued by the president were final and not subject to appeal drew the wrath of the people, and at least 200,000 descended on Tahrir Square in protest, only to be greeted by police batons and tear gas.

Morayef believes that millions, including conservative Muslims, were getting weary of the regime’s packaging of political Islam. Many important positions, including the judiciary’s, were only being allocated to people with Muslim Brotherhood links. This made Egypt’s secular liberals suspicious of the President’s real agenda and they flatly refused to work with him.

On the other hand, the Nour Party, led by ultra-Islamist Salafists, was getting impatient with the Muslim Brotherhood for being too soft and not pushing the hardline agenda hard enough.

While Morsi had used the democratic process to attain power, he failed to shield minorities and uphold the right to dissent, two essentials of a true democracy. In Morayef’s words: “Morsi was using the same toolkit of [the] Mubarak era to gag voices of dissent.”

The intimidation of media people was alarming, the example of Comedian Bassem Youssef being a particularly glaring case. An Egyptian American cardiac surgeon, he started a satire show in 2011 on YouTube in Arabic, similar to Jon Stewart’s Daily Show. It soon became so popular that an Egyptian channel picked it up and began broadcasting it as El Bernameg. In March this year, Youssef did a programme making fun of Morsi and was slapped with an arrest warrant.

Anticipating a backlash, the government did not try to have his show axed. The following week, El Bernameg tore into the President and his government.

I was in Cairo in early April when Youssef’s show went primetime. A colleague was walking with me to a popular restaurant for dinner. Usually, downtown Cairo’s streets, shops, markets, cafés and restaurant bustle with people until 2 am. But that night, we saw deserted streets at 9 pm. Most people had apparently stayed home to watch the comedy show. Some of the cafés and shops had put up streetside TV sets, and people thronged them to watch Youssef rip Morsi and his party to pieces.

22 july 2013

As criticism of Morsi’s government rose, so did the regime’s intolerance of it.

Many cases were filed against journalists for being critical of the government or Morsi. Media houses that were not aligned with the government, or were not toeing its line, came under increasing pressure. To people’s dismay, the Morsi regime was even trying to control NGOs and other independent groups.

Morsi also failed in ensuring the safety of minorities. Coptic Christians, who have lived in Egypt since the early days of Christianity and form about 10 per cent of the country’s population, began to feel more and more insecure about their future under the Brotherhood. Over the past year, they faced unprecedented violence, including an attack on a cathedral housing the Coptic Papal Office.

Several Copts, including a priest, have been killed in these attacks. There are also reports of about 100,000 Copts mi-

Morsi refused to yield power, saying he could only be removed by the ballot, but the Tahrir protestors felt he had lost legitimacy and had to be recalled grating to Europe and North America in search of safe enclaves.

Copts accuse the Brotherhood of organising these attacks, though its direct involvement may be hard to prove. In almost all cases, the police played the role of passive onlookers as they took place.

The government did not institute any investigation of this police inaction, stoking suspicions of the Brotherhood’s tacit sponsorship of the violence.

It’s not only Copts. Shia Muslims have also faced varied forms of invective and violence in recent months. In June this year, four Shia men were lynched by a mob led by a Salafist gangleader in the presence of a riot police contingent. Once again, Morsi failed to take action against the police’s dereliction of duty.

It is no wonder Shenouda, a Copt, says that “the military intervention was not a coup, but the need of the hour to protect the country.”

I

nept governance, a crumbling econ-

omy, an acute fuel crisis, high inflation and extraordinarily high rates of crime across Egypt had already made Morsi and his government extremely unpopular. So at the first anniversary of his assumption of office, his opposition—the same people who started the revolution in 2011 against Mubarak—collected 22 million signatures demanding his resignation. Morsi and the Brotherhood refused to yield power, saying they could only be removed through democratic elections, not coercion.

To Tahrir’s protestors, however, Morsi had lost all legitimacy, and they were, in effect, recalling him. The military made a grand entrance over Tahrir Square, with choppers carrying the Egyptian flag and fighter jets creating a heart shape with exhaust trails in the sky.

Egypt’s generals, dubbed accomplices in Mubarak-era atrocities by the same protestors two years ago, are now being seen as saviours of democracy. Secular liberal opposition to the involvement of the army in politics seems to have largely evaporated. Mohamed Elbaradei—the former head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog body IAEA who entered politics as a presidential candidate in last year’s election—put it this way in a recent interview: “We were between a rock and a hard place.” Reports say that Elbaradei may be appointed prime minister under Egypt’s interim leader Adly Mansour, a Constitutional Court judge.

Despite being critical of Morsi, Heba Morayef is opposed to the idea of army involvement. She thinks this intervention and the arrests of Brotherhood leaders will set a dangerous precedent.

As Open goes to press, supporters of the Brotherhood have taken to the streets as well, saying they will not give up their agitation until Morsi is reinstated. Pro- and anti-Morsi rallies have already led to deadly clashes—over 50 Brotherhood supporters were reported killed by the army on 8 July—and there are fears of widespread unrest.

Democracy in Egypt was always going to be hard fought. But with the country so deeply polarised, much will depend on the performance of the interim set-up, and how well it comes to grips with Egypt’s challenges of governance. If not, Tahrir Square may erupt yet again. n open www.openthemagazine.com 37

photos ritesh uttamchandani

pac t

Ten People, Five kidneys, One Domino Swap

F

or almost two years, an employ-

ee of the Government of India’s mint in Mumbai would routinely accompany his 58-year-old wife to and from a hospital. She was suffering from acute renal failure and needed to visit the hospital thrice a week for dialysis. The couple, Kashinathi and Sushma Khochre, would travel almost two hours by local train from their home in the farflung suburb of Badlapur to Bombay Hospital in South Mumbai. Kashinathi would drop Sushma at the hospital and return four hours later. On their way home, she would often fall unconscious.

Sometimes, she would throw up.

“She was dying in front of me,” he says.

“And I couldn’t do anything.”

In another part of the city, a former 42-year-old tuition teacher was certain her husband wouldn’t survive long. A two-year wait for a donor kidney had yielded nothing. Ramesh Purao’s health was in rapid decline. The haemoglobin count of his blood was extremely low and he also had high blood pressure.

Meanwhile, a grocer in the city’s Dongri market had to endure the same trauma of uncertainty. It had been over three years since Umesh Dedhia had learnt of his diabetes-related kidney failure, but he had been unable to find a relative in his family who had a compatible blood group. chain of life Arif Mohammad (left) and Umesh Dedhia received kidneys from donors while their wives donated theirs in exchange

How ten people formed a chain to save five lives Lhendup G Bhutia open www.openthemagazine.com 39

dedhia

khochre

purao

wife

husband

wife

wife

Donor

Surekha

kashimathi

Smita

Samsunissa

recipient

Umesh

Sushma

Rajesh Purao

Arif

husband

wife

husband

husband

daughter

BOMBAY HOSPITAL

HIRANANDANI HOSPITAL

HIRANANDANI HOSPITAL

HINDUJA HOSPITAL

BOMBAY HOSPITAL

Halfway across the city, a barber was struggling to cope with the burning and swelling caused by dialysis, particularly in his feet. He was weak and exhausted, but kept working. Each work day would leave his legs bloated under the strain.

“Both my wife and mother offered me their kidneys,” says Arif Mohammad, “But God had other plans.” Neither of them had his blood type, A. On 25 June, each of them—and a patient from Rajasthan—got a second life.

Forty senior doctors performed India’s largest chain of transplants ever. It involved 10 simultaneous surgeries in three hospitals, as healthy kidneys were transplanted from a compatible donor in one family to a recipient in another, thus saving all five patients.

T

he chain of transplants was ena-

bled by a 2011 amendment of India’s Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act (THOTA) of 1994 that allowed donation swaps: whereby a donorrecipient pair of relatives (an old clause to prevent organ hawking) whose organs did not match could legally swap organs 40 open

mohammad

with another such pair. Since there are multiple blood groups, a perfect swap between two donor-recipient pairs is hard to find. But multiple swaps mean a broader compatibility field.

Soon after the change in law, Dr Ganesh Sanap and Dr Vishwanath Billa of Apex Kidney Care, which was running dialysis centres in several states and had data on plenty of patients, put together a chain of five families with individuals willing to donate a kidney to someone else in dire need in exchange for one for a member of their own family.

However, permissions for this domino swap from two of the patients’ states, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, proved difficult to obtain. It took about nine months, by which time one patient had passed away, breaking the chain of five. In the meantime, they had set up a swap transplant registry. “We trawled through our registry again and again,” says Dr Sanap, a 29-year-old doctor, “but we couldn’t find donors for them again.”

Of the original five, another patient died earlier this year.

Some four months ago, however, Dr Sanap visited Dr Billa in his chamber

rajasthani Father

with a sheet of paper that had blood group types scribbled against names on it. “Sir,” he told his senior, “I think we can try again.”

The chain started with a computer algorithm and, as Dr Billa says, an act of kindness. The Apex Swap Registry was equipped with software to match unrelated donors and recipients and throw up random pairings: “Like a matrimonial website,” in Dr Billa’s words, “except this one saves lives.” In this case, it had come up with 10 names. On this list was a donor-recipient pair of a father and daughter who had compatible blood types. The 70-year-old father was type O, a universal donor, and he wanted to donate a kidney to his type-B daughter. They need not have joined the chain at all. But Dr Shrirang Bichu of Bombay Hospital, the daughter’s nephrologist, convinced them of how they could complete Dr Billa’s domino chain. “They were crucial, like all the others were crucial. We sat them down and pulled out our chart of ten different names,” Dr Billa says. “They looked at the names and I think somehow realised what hope their [collaboration] held out for these people.” Both the 22 July 2013

father and daughter signed up.

In the course of the next few months, Dr Billa and Dr Sanap explained to all ten how the domino swap would work, telling them how their earlier attempt had failed. When Arif learnt of the plan, he had an overriding fear. “My wife was going to give one of her kidneys,” he recounts, “But I wanted to be certain that I was getting a kidney from a young and healthy person.” To convince him, before any of the other members of the group could meet, Dr Sanap arranged a meeting between Arif and Smita. “I was happy when I saw her,” Arif says. “It was not just that she was healthy and young. She spoke about her husband and his illness.

And in her story, I also saw my own.”

Once they all met, the five families found themselves in a mutual embrace of empathy. They exchanged phone numbers, and over the next four months, made a point of reaching out to one another, especially their own donors or recipients. “We didn’t just become friends,” says Surekha Dedhia, “It was more than that.” Kashinathi fondly remembers the day they all met. “They were just names for each of us initially. But when we met each other, there was an instant connection. Each of us had a similar story of helplessness. And now here we were, giving each other hope.”

A

fter that came the challenge of

paperwork. The doctors were particularly anxious about getting a nod from the Maharashtra and Rajasthan governments. After their last chain had fallen apart, Dr Billa had written to the Maharashtra Health Ministry blaming it for the patient’s death. Dr Pravin Shingare, the head of Maharashtra’s directorate of medical education and research, had apologised and promised to hasten matters if such a chain were attempted again. So this time, the state quickly granted the request.

But the Rajasthan government was proving unhelpful.

The State Organisation Committee refused to allow the family from Rajasthan to participate in the arrangement, arguing that Supreme Court guidelines made no mention of any ‘domino’ procedure.

Other problems kept cropping up too.

Ramesh Purao’s health was deteriorat-

22 July 2013

ing. His haemoglobin count was perilously low and doctors were trying to raise it to ensure that he could participate in the chain of surgeries. “Each life was dangling by a thread,” says Dr Billa. “We did not know if we would pull it off.”

A few patients were also facing a financial crunch. Smita had quit teaching two years earlier to take care of Ramesh. Now, with over Rs 5 lakh required for the surgery, she sold a plot of land she had inherited from her parents in Aurangabad.

Kashinathi, who had already used up most of his life’s savings to treat his wife, took a loan of over Rs 3 lakh from friends and relatives. Arif was being helped by his brother who had taken charge of his barbershop. And Umesh Dedhia had not been able to open his grocery store for almost two years. “The money, we were all going to somehow arrange,” says Arif,

The surgeries were slated for 25 June. All of them had to be done simultaneously, so that no donor could break the pact after his or her relative had received a kidney “But now we didn’t know if the government was going to allow it.”

Publicity helped. A few days after DNA ran a report on how the Rajasthan government had refused to okay the procedure, the Rajasthani family approached the authorities again and got permission.

There was much paperwork in Mumbai too. Earlier in June, for their request to be processed, the ten individuals involved had to appear before the state authorisation committee in the city. One of the criteria for the swap was that they had to be of ‘sound mind’ and could thus not have been forced to participate.

Kashinathi remembers a committee member asking them if they were sane. “‘Sir,’ I told him. ‘Don’t you think we would be mad to not make this request?’”

The requests were granted and the surgeries slated for 25 June. All of them had to be done simultaneously, so that no donor could break the pact after his or her relative had received a kidney. Surekha,

who was donating her kidney to Sushma at Hiranandani Hospital, was speaking with her husband Umesh on the phone as she was being wheeled into the operation theatre. Umesh was in Bombay Hospital, at the southern end of the city.

She recalls being a little anxious and wishing he was with her. The doctor with her noticed this; just before she was administered anesthesia, she remembers his asking her the last film she had watched in a theatre. It had been many years earlier, before her husband’s illness: Ghajini. “It was a happy thought,” she says, “I blanked out immediately after.”

When she recovered many hours later, there was another doctor by her side. All the operations had succeeded, he told her, and her husband was well. Her first question was about her recipient: “And what about Sushma? How is she doing?”

D

r Billa says that while cadavers or

brain-dead individuals account for most donor kidneys in the West, live donations make up most cases—though fewer in number overall—in India. This is because post-demise organ donation is rare here, and getting a cadaver kidney could take “between six years to a lifetime” as Dr Billa says. According to him, until organ donations become routine, patients must rely on relatives and domino swaps.

Of late, Dr Billa has devised another plan to tackle India’s shortage of kidneys.

As Apex’s registry expands, he can create several chains of individuals with compatible blood types, like he did for the domino swap of 25 June. This chain, however, would not need a starting donor; a cadaver will be used to start the chain. It’s an interesting idea, but will require planning, logistics and government approval.

Again, publicity would perhaps help promote the cause. The day after the success of the recent domino swap, Dr Billa received a call from Satvasheela Chavan, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan’s wife. Dr Billa says she told him she was thrilled to read of the operation in the papers. Dr Billa thanked and told her about his other plan. “She has promised to look into it and try getting me an appointment with the [state] health minister,” he says. n open www.openthemagazine.com 41

disappointment

Reverse Brain Drain: the Untold Sequel Many NRIs have been returning to India for good, but a large number go right back. Here is why Akshay Sawai

O

ver the past decade, as the West

floundered and India’s economy prospered, Non Resident Indians (NRIs) started returning from the US, UK and EU to their home country in large numbers. Not only were career prospects brighter in India, something that was unthinkable a generation ago, their homeland now offered many of the West’s comforts: gated housing enclaves, gyms, shopping malls, Italian restaurants and even coffee shops with whiffs of the knee-weakening aroma of Java that characterises the air abroad.

According to a study by recruitment consultancy firm Kelly Services India, nearly 300,000 NRIs will return by 2015. The number could increase if the US government imposes stiff immigrant visa rules. This phenomenon has been called India’s ‘reverse brain drain’, with India’s best minds going overseas only to come back after some years 42 open

with their skills enhanced. In an interview with Thefinancialist.com, Anita Raghavan, the US-based author of The Billionaire’s Apprentice: The Rise of The Indian-American Elite and The Fall of The Galleon Hedge Fund, says, “I think a large cohort of Indians will still come to America, but in the past they would have stayed in America and built a life. Today, because of the dazzling array of opportunities in India, they will probably go home.”

The term ‘reverse brain drain’ sounds catchy, but as with many such complex patterns of migration, it does not capture the whole story. While many NRIs stick with their decision to return to India, quite a few go right back. Initially, coming back feels wonderful to most. The din and quirks of India are fun. Family is close at hand. But after a while, many of these Indians are drawn back to where they were. Some are cases of profession-

al compulsion, but many are decisions to do with lifestyle, children’s education, health and safety. What follow are the stories of some people who went back abroad, and they reveal as much about their aspirations as they do about India and their adopted homes.

M

ilind Patwardhan is a Mumbai man employed as an R&D professional in America’s infotech industry based in Silicon Valley, California. He has been in the US since 1995. In 2002, he moved to India for a 12-month assignment with a choice of staying back after that. Asked what was nice about coming back to India, he says, “The thought of being together with family, rekindling old friendships, experiencing the luxuries of an expat package as well as the emergence of India in the context of BRIC nations [Brazil, Russia, India, China].”

22 July 2013

mick wiggins/getty images

Patwardhan, however, chose to return to the US. He lists his reasons: “It was the inability to adjust [to India] despite my best efforts, realising that lives and people change and things move on, and that what I was looking forward to was probably locked in [an old] context and time.”

He was also disturbed by the corruption in the country, as also a deterioration of values among the young, as he saw it.

“Though you see extreme acts such as mass school shootings in the US, when it comes to grassroots rules and regulations, the US system is very high up on [the scale of] fairness and justice for all,” says the father of two.

These factors, coupled with professional logic—his contacts network and market for skills were still in the US and Europe—put Patwardhan back on 22 July 2013

Some go back abroad out of professional compulsion, but many cases have to do with lifestyle, children’s education, health and safety reasons the plane to America. He says he is willing to return to India so long as he is able to manage his assets and liabilities irrespective of where he stays and lead a quality life.

A

jay Kela, a 1981 graduate of IITBombay, is a senior member of India’s infotech fraternity in the US. Currently CEO of Wadhwani Foundation, a non-

profit organisation management company aiming to accelerate economic growth in India and other emerging markets, Kela spent 22 years in Silicon Valley before moving to Bangalore in 2003. Kela’s wife and two children shifted to Bangalore as well. But last year, after nearly a decade in India, his family returned to the US. The main reason for this was not any of the usual. Kela wanted to expose his children to foreign countries in their formative years. It is why he had brought them to India. It is also why he sent them back to the US. “There were three reasons why we moved to India,” Kela says. “The first was that I wanted my kids to experience another country. They were four and six [years old] then. I think kids need to be more global in their experience these open www.openthemagazine.com 43

days. You cannot be one-dimensional. If you have lived in India, you should live elsewhere for a while and vice-versa.”

The second reason was his career. India’s software industry was doing well, but Indian firms were mostly doing backend work. Kela had a rare opportunity to set up a software company in Bangalore, Symphony Services India Pvt Ltd—of which he was managing director and chief mentor—that would go out and generate revenue. That excited him. The third reason was that he did not see relocation as an emotional or logistical strain. “For my father’s generation, even changing a city or a job was difficult.

When we moved to India, we thought ‘No big deal, if we don’t like it, we can move back.’ I didn’t feel I was uprooting myself or my family.”

The Kelas spent a reasonably happy ten years in India. “As a company, [Symphony] flourished. The kids were flourishing too,” Kela says. “I have three siblings and my parents in India.

Reconnecting with extended family was excellent. Had my kids been in the US in this phase of their lives, the bonding with their extended family would not have happened.”

But after almost ten years, Kela felt the kids had absorbed enough of India. And there were a few aspects of life in the US that the family missed. “In India, your standard of living goes up but quality of life diminishes,” Kela says. “The moment you step out of your cocoon, it is a mess.

We loved to go on hikes and long road trips in the US. Marin County has some beautiful hiking trails and we often went there. Also, we once did a 3,000-mile road trip in ten days, covering Yosemite, Reno, Disneyland [among other places].

These are some of the things you cannot do in India. You drive 45 minutes in Bangalore, you are tired. Also, my children are athletes. They were at the top level in India. In the US, they are nowhere. And in India they would participate in three or four meets a year. In the US, there are 21 meets in a four-month athletics season. It is only when you compete with the best, and on a regular basis, that you improve.”

Asked if he’d bring his family back to India, Kela says that he’d rather his children experienced China or a European country.

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onsiderations of the well-being

and prospects of children are often a determining factor in decisions to go back abroad. Kalyani Balaji, a therapist with Sparrow Health System in Okemos, Michigan, is candid about her India experience, especially about the attitude of schools here. Kalyani, her husband Balaji Srinivasan and their two children shifted to Chennai in 2006 after over a decade in the US. The experiment did not go well.

“We shifted mainly hoping to be closer to family. The big tech growth [in India] encouraged us in that decision,” says Kalyani, whose husband is an infotech professional. Asked about the experience, she says, “Being near family is probably the best thing. Other than that, we are not very attracted to India, even though there is an emotional attachment.”

They faced problems of various kinds.

The hassle of enrolling their children in school was the last straw. “School ad-

missions are a horror,” Kalyani says.

“Have you seen an application to elementary school and the ridiculous questions they ask, not to mention parent interviews in addition to these exorbitant so-called donations? Frustration [over this] was a major concern. Re-enrolling kids in school in the US only required an e-mail.”

Kalyani does not foresee moving back to India. Her children too are at home in the US. “My kids love visiting India to see grandparents, cousins and relatives. [But] they have always known the US as home.

At this stage, we feel the kids are benefiting from the US educational system.

There is some stress involved in [the American] high school syllabus, but there is still time for my kids to pursue music, dance and sports.”

While the family’s experience of India was difficult, almost seven years on, Kalyani does feel that they could perhaps have been more patient. “I know that our 22 July 2013

India is not good enough (Facing page) Ajay Kela, CEO of Wadhwani Foundation; Kalyani Balaji with her husband, son Sanath and daughter Jayani

plying it practically. While I say this, she was a topper right from the beginning in her school and the teachers and principal appreciated it very much and gave her a lot of exposure.”

Walawalkar says he is open to moving back to India as long as he does not have to work here.

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struggles are not unique and have been encountered not just by us, but by every parent, be it Indian or America-returned Indian,” she says. “We have not been conditioned to endure the little stresses of life [in India] and were not patient enough. There are a lot of things I might do differently now that I have hindsight.”

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shish Walavalkar, an infotech

consultant in Hartford, Connecticut, was also not very comfortable with his daughter’s school when he came back to India in 2003. He thought the work culture here was poor as well. And he disliked the bumpy roads and traffic that made his commute an ordeal.

A Dadar boy, Walawalkar studied engineering at Bombay University and got a job in the US in 1995. He came back to Mumbai in 2003. “As the IT industry and India in general was booming, I decided to come back, anticipating much improved standards of living. With my parents being in India, there was no reason I had to stay away from my country,” he says. He enjoyed the perks of the move: “A good salary, standard of living, being with relatives, food and festivals.”

But then, the downside began to register. Asked what the difficulties were, Walawalkar says, “The commute. The roads and traffic were still in terrible condition, although claimed otherwise.

22 July 2013

[Also, the trauma of] adjusting to the social structure in general—especially the school atmosphere for my daughter and to the still-backward work culture for me—and of seeing Indian politics and life entangled in corruption and injustice.”

Walawalkar’s employer sent him

Asked if he would bring his family back to India, Ajay Kela says that he would rather his children experienced China or a European country again to the US on a prolonged assignment. A couple of years later, his wife and daughter rejoined him. “I was worried how tough it was going to be for my daughter in the long run [in India].”

Asked to specify what problems his daughter faced, he says, “They were not problems; it was more about the difficulty adjusting to the school atmosphere.

Crowded school, sanitation, the way teachers deal with students. In the US kids are appreciated for everything, whereas in India it is very straightforward. And finally, the way students study. In India, you have by-heart [memorising], whereas in the US it is more about understanding the concept and ap-

Khergamkar, an IITBombay and IIM-Ahmedabad graduate, works as a techie in San Francisco.

In 2011, he and his wife Yaffa Truelove moved to Delhi temporarily from the US. Khergamkar had a project there while Truelove was doing research with a jhuggi cluster in Vasant Kunj, Delhi, on the politics of water access in the city. Though they lived in Delhi only from October 2011 to July 2012, it was long enough for them to learn enough of life in North India. There were some positive things they saw. “Tech companies in Noida were more professional than, say, in San Antonio,” Khergamker says. But the bureaucracy, street culture and infrastructural shortcomings tested their patience.

“We came for potentially a year’s stay,” Khergamkar says. “So I got a car and house. Living in Delhi was difficult. I got blindsided by quite a few things. I had to make 18 trips between the FRRO and the Ministry of External Affairs office to convert my wife’s visa into a spouse visa. There was also a water shortage at home. You had to carry water in buckets.

Wires would be of inferior quality... You have to give yourself six months to get used to things.”

There were safety concerns as well, given the notorious Indian male gaze and Delhi’s crime rate. “My wife said that in India you become aware of your identity as a woman,” says Khergamker. “On the Metro, if there was a girl in jeans, just the way people looked at her was a social experiment. My wife never went out alone after dark. We went out only with people we knew. It’s about contacts. If you find a reliable taxi driver or electrician, you stick with him.”

Once their work was done, the couple returned to the US. Khergamker is open to coming back to India. “But not Delhi,” he says, “Just like we won’t work in Texas or Alabama, the Bible Belt, where people love Jesus and guns.” n rijesh

open www.openthemagazine.com 45

between the sheets

Use Your Words

Sexting is an art, and there’s more to it than just good grammar sonali khan

S

entence construction. Past participles. Split infinitives. I used to pray for the perfect balance of these elements in a man. Good grammar is sexy. It’s a verbal caress. It’s a turn-on. I don’t want to be mentally editing his dirty-talk, mid-coitus. So I was giddy with happiness when The Boyfriend showed every sign of knowing his gerunds from his present participles. I thought I’d struck gold. Fleetingly, I toyed with the idea of sealing the deal with a marriage certificate, lest some other subjunctive-sniffing vixen got her claws into him while I hemmed and hawed. But that train of thought came to a screeching halt the day I realised The Boyfriend is abysmal at sexting. In action, he can make me blush from the roots of my hair to the tips of my toes, but the subtle art of innuendo is lost on him. It’s like he didn’t even stop for a cursory glance at the chapter on courting in the digital age in Growing Up For Dummies.

Now, I’m the kind of girl who won’t give up without a fight. So I soldiered on, redoubling my efforts to elicit a halfway sexy response. ‘Come on, you can do it,’ I silently urged as I sent him strategically lit photos in my sexiest, most uncomfortable lingerie; the kind so obviously crafted for the purpose of visual gratification that I’d rather scrub my lady parts with pumice stones than wear it to bed.

In response, he spent an obscene number of thousands to fly back into town for the night, a highly desirable consequence, no doubt, but my inbox continued to stare at me in taunting silence.

After about a fortnight of banging my head against what appeared to be a brick wall, I was ready to throw in the towel. All told, I still emerged the winner. Imagine if he could sext, but he did so with dangling modifiers and misplaced semicolons?

Shudder. I would count my blessings. All I needed was The Best Friend to back me up and a few bottles of wine to blunt the knife of disappointment lodged in my gut. To find a man who knows where to put the apostrophe but never texts dirty is a sublime form of torture for a writer.

Two bottles of some very cheap wine later, we came up with a manual for sexting etiquette. Let me elaborate:

spend the night with your bookmarked Youporn videos, go slow. Test the waters with flirting before telling her about your sexy schoolteacher fantasies.

There’s massage, and then there’s maalishwaali bai

This is the cul-de-sac for most couples. After you’ve been flirting for a while, one party is bound to develop a back/ foot/neck ache that can be magically cured by the online ministrations of the sextee. While this can open the door for touchy-feely texts, use this tactic too often and you’ll be left with a JustDial link to massage parlours in your area.

Nw iz nt da tym 4 bad spelling

True, sexting is tricky. Sometimes, you’re using one hand to type. Other times, you’re nodding along as your boss drones on about financial projections for the next quarter. But if the sextee has to struggle to understand the words in your erotic epistle, chances are, s/he is already browsing her/his Twitter/Facebook feed.

Talk like a grown-up

To find a man who knows where to put the apostrophe but never texts dirty is sublime torture

Like sex, sexting needs foreplay

While sexting isn’t the same as sex for some very obvious disease-and-intimacy-related reasons, unless you want to 46 open

Nobody wants to feel like s/he is doing the dirty with an M&B-inspired tween; so do away with ‘folds of pleasure’ and ‘mounds of milky flesh’. Be clear and concise, instead: ‘I want to ____ and ____ your ____ with my ____.’ It’s hot.

Picture perfect

Don’t Instagram and Photoshop pictures of your boners/décolletages. It’s weird. Also, tighty-whities and Crocs?

Not a good idea. Most importantly, make sure you’re both on the same page. Sending photos of your genitals to someone who doesn’t want to see them is in poor taste at best and sexual harassment at worst.

Just when I’d made my peace with the fact that my perfect grammar man would never send me a perfect sext, we had a breakthrough. Last night, I texted him saying that I wanted fuller lips and I was going to get a lip-filler. His response: ‘Come here, I’ll kiss and show you how you’ll look.’ Oh my. n

Sonali Khan was holding on to her virtue, and then she fell in love...with several men.

She drinks whisky, not Cosmopolitan 22 July 2013

mindspace Life & letters

A Snakeless Snake-charmer

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O p e n s pa c e

Hrithik Roshan Katrina Kaif

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n p lu

Lootera Despicable Me 2

61 Cinema reviews

Bose Sound Link Mini El Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3

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Tech & style

Exercise Doesn’t Just Burn Fat Pollution Shortens Life Breakthrough in Artificial Skin

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Science

The Other People

52

music

Aftermath of the Assam Violence

50

p h o t o e s s ay

The Art Rental Business

a rt s

The Story of Urdu

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Kurshakati, near Kokrajhar in assam, where some refugees are beginning to return, but tension continues

vivek singh

india at arles Photo essay on Assam’s ethnic violence of 2012 52

life & letters

wilful ignorance Urdu originated as a mix of several languages spoken during the Sultanate era in Delhi. Those who reject the language now are rejecting their own legacy Omair Ahmad

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indian school /getty images

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know that it is a moral failing, but I have never been able to summon any sympathy for the ignorant.

In this day and age there are so many ways and means of getting information that it takes a great deal of effort to stay ignorant. Those who stay without knowledge in today’s world are those who have made an effort not to know, and it is difficult to sympathise with this.

One example of such wilful ignorance is the increasing use of the term ‘Allah hafez’ among South Asian Muslims. This is a twisting of the Farsi term ‘Khudahafez’, which translates as ‘May God take care of you’ and is used as goodbye. In fact, ‘goodbye’ is itself a contraction of the old English term ‘God be with ye’, so it’s an almost exact translation. But for some people, ‘khudahafez’ no longer suffices, and instead of ‘May God take care of you’, they prefer to say, ‘May Allah take care of you’.

omair ahmad is the author of The Kingdom at the Centre of the World: Journeys into Bhutan

It is a distinction without a difference. ‘Khuda’ is Farsi for ‘God’ and the Arabic term ‘Allah’ is a contraction of the words ‘al ilah’—or ‘the god’. Insisting on ‘Allah, not khuda’, thus, is the equivalent of insisting on ‘God, not God’. At best, it signals a preference for Arabic instead of Farsi. What sounds silly is when an Arabic term ‘Allah’ is forced into a Farsi phrase, leaving it neither Farsi nor Arabic but a mockery of both.

When Arabs say farewell, they use the term ‘Ma Salaama’ or ‘Go in peace’. Considering the warfare that has blighted the Arab world, it is a plaintive prayer. If people preferred Arabic to Farsi, they would use this term, but they do not. Instead, they insert an Arabic term into a Farsi phrase and assert the imagined superiority of one language by distorting another, exposing their arrogance and ignorance in equal measure.

Such idiocy is not peculiar to a single set of people. Across North India, another visible effort is the trend of renaming old Urdu Bazaar areas of small cities ‘Hindi Bazaar’.

Unfortunately for these rewriters, the ‘Urdu’ in Urdu Bazaar has nothing to do with language. In Turkish, the word for military is ‘ordu/urdu’. These Urdu Bazaars were cantonment markets set up during the Sultanate and Mughal eras. Their civilian equivalents were the Sadar Bazaars. As far as I can tell, the British continued this tradition with their cantonment markets and Civil Lines, which we still follow.

The name of the Urdu language comes from the term ‘zubaan-e-urdumualla’ (language of the noble army), a name it only truly acquired in the 18th century. In its early days as a popularly spoken language, it was an eclectic mix of Turki, Farsi, Braj, Khadi Boli and other local dialects that emerged during the Sultanate era in Delhi and its environs from the 12th century onwards. Among this blend’s early literary exponents 22 july 2013

Urdu was a mix of

Turki, Farsi, Braj, Khadi Boli and other local dialects that emerged during the

Sultanate era in Delhi and its environs from the 12th century onwards. As the language of a

mixed culture, spoken on the streets and used in Sufi poetry, it was looked down upon by aristocrats of the time

were people like the great poet Amir Khusrow, who called it ‘Hindavi’, and wrote: ‘Chu man tutı ¯ - -ye hindam ar rast ¯ pursı-/ Zi man hindu'¯ ı- purs ta¯ naghz guyam ¯ (As I’m a parrot of India, to speak truthfully/ Ask Hindu’i of me so I speak beautifully).

As the language of a mixed culture, spoken on the streets and used in Sufi poetry, Urdu was often looked down upon by aristocrats who looked to Persia for inspiration, especially since they relied on Central Asian recruits for a large measure of their military power.

By the 17th century, the Mughal court had lost some of its linguistic arrogance.

Buffetted by changes in Central Asia and reeling under a series of uprisings, it learnt to honour local allies and acknowledge that a key part of its strength came from the mixed culture of the empire. And that is how Urdu was finally recognised as a ‘sophisticated’ language, and even aristocrats started offering their verses in this common tongue. As late as the 19th century, poets like Ghalib composed their early verses in Farsi, only later writing them in Urdu (which was called Rekhta at the time), but it was this switch that has assured them immortality.

The history of Urdu as a language is a history of indigenisation, of the way Indians taught the haughty Mughal Darbaar some humility. Instead of understanding this history, some would like to paint over the name ‘Urdu’ and write ‘Hindi’ in its stead much the same way that some Muslims, turning towards the Arab world, would like to replace Farsi with Arabic.

Maybe it feels empowering to say, ‘Our way is best, and we will overwrite history in our name.’ Yet, in trying to overwrite history, we lose out so much that is our own. In rejecting a mixed legacy, we only reject a part of our own inheritance, leaving all of us poorer in the process. n open www.openthemagazine.com 49

arts

rudra rakshit sharan

Your Impermanent Collection A Bangalore-based start-up allows art aficionados of modest means to rent works of art rather than buy them Anil Budur Lulla

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f people can rent furniture, air conditioners, cars and DVDs, then why not art? This question niggled art lover and designer Narayan Gopalan so much that the 30-year-old gave up a lucrative career as a web and mobile interaction designer to team up with his buddy PD Ganapathy, a quintessential Coorgi with a zest for life, to pursue a radical idea: rental art. Most people, they figured, can’t afford to pay the number of zeroes trailing the price tag on an oil-on-canvas or moulded brass 50 open

work. But rent? Why not? Thus, in 2011, in collaboration with the well-established Gallery Time and Space in Bangalore , The Art Renter was born.

The Art Renter is a unique venture, working in collaboration with artists and galleries to let individuals, companies and organisations rent original art pieces. They not only deliver the customer’s choice, but also ensure that it is mounted safely. Some of the works available can be rented at 10 per cent of their value a year. They can be kept for

a month or even a whole year.

The Art Renter’s catalogue includes water colours, oils on canvas, brass works and photographs by artists like Mridul Chandra, JMS Mani, Dhiren Sasmal, V Elango, Prasanna Kumar, Vijay Nagvekar, Amit Bhar, among others, along with a collection of lithograph prints by British painters from the 1800s. Those interested in perusing the collection can access the catalogue online at Theartrenter.com.

Perhaps art rentals is an idea whose 22 july 2013

art for all Narayan and Ganapathy collaborated with collector and gallerist Renu George to start The Art Renter

time has come, though the cofounders admit that San Francisco-based start-up Artify.it has been a huge influence on their project. Artify.it is a sort of online gallery that rents and sells art to customers, frequently updated with a selection of new works by local artists at a fraction of their retail price. Through the website, customers can experiment with different artists, medium and styles. The Art Renter, too, allows its clients to freshen up their walls regularly.

“Our clients can also buy a piece they rent if they want,” says Ganapathy.

Any doubts about this model working in a high-brow close-knit art community can be put to rest by speaking to Renu George who owns Gallery Time and Space on the upmarket Lavelle Road in Bangalore.

George, who has tied up with The Art Renter, agrees the idea is still nascent, but believes it has great potential: “Younger and upcoming artists are open to renting out their works, either paintings or bronzes. We wouldn’t touch senior artists, though I am trying to persuade some of them. They are yet to test the waters. But I think renting their work is a good idea as it increases visibility. Art is all about appreciation and [the] more they are seen, the better it is for the fraternity.”

Herself an art lover, George’s interest in starting a gallery in her beautiful old Bangalore bungalow can be traced to her own years as a collector. “We want this kind of activity to grow with the involvement of artists. Of course, we have bought a good collection of work from younger artists, which is available for rent,’’ she says.

In 2007-08, when India’s art market was upbeat, there was a buzz about investing in art collections; it was said that an investment made today would increase in value manifold just a few years down the line. ‘Buy a piece of art today and it will realise three to five times its value’ screamed the message put out by auction houses. But then, instead of going under the hammer for astronomical sums as predicted, the 22 july 2013

country’s art market, mirroring the economy, simply went under. Young artists were further hit when architects and interior designers side-stepped the art market and covered their walls and spaces with imitations, reducing the visibility of fine artists. Then the inevitable happened: cheap prints flooded the market, sidelining original art.

“But, art is not like gold or real estate.

It is a very personal thing. My personal feeling is that art gets value only if people don’t want to sell,” says George.

With the market yet to make a course correction, in stepped Gopalan and Ganapathy sensing an opportunity to creatively market art. “There is no market for works in excess of Rs 25,000 [apiece],” says Ganapathy, “[Through] this concept, we make [art] more affordable for patrons as well as create a market for artists too.”

Upcoming artists are open to renting out their work, while senior artists are yet to test the idea. Gallery owner Renu George thinks renting work is a good idea “as it increases visibility... the more they are seen, the better it is for the fraternity” An upcoming painter adds: “There is also no set formula to calculate value. For example, a well-known artist’s work may go for an astronomical sum just for the name involved, while a better appreciated piece may not fetch more than a small slice of [that sum].”

Currently, The Art Renter operates only in Bangalore, but its cofounders aim to gradually expand its presence to other cities. Tie-ups with galleries and sourcers from abroad, too, are on the cards, which will help it offer a wider range of choice.

They also want to create a bank that will help to resell across borders. Apart from the tie-ups adding numbers, they are aware that no one buys art from abroad as it attracts 100 per cent duty.

But if the piece is meant for rental or ex-

change, no duty is levied.

As security for original pieces is important, they prefer mainly hotels, corporate offices and a limited number of homes on their client list. “Hotels are an important area where we intend to extend our presence by displaying art in some rooms and place a catalogue on the coffee table. These may help generate interest. At corporate houses, we suggest receptions, conference halls and CEO chambers [as places] where art pieces can be displayed. Changing works frequently will [enhance] the corporate image and aesthetic appeal of its top guns.”

The general manager of a boutique hotel with a primarily infotech clientele says he has several long stay guests who get bored with the same decor.

“Buying art and artefacts is very expensive. Changing them regularly is one way of retaining clients... just putting fresh flowers in the vase everyday is not enough. The works are carefully chosen to provide a soothing environment in common areas and rooms.’’ This hotel has rented four pieces so far. As the hotel is new, it does not invest in art in the same way as, say, the Taj Group, which has accumulated a rich collection over the years. “For new players like us,” says the GM, “even buying medium range art costs as much as 30 per cent of the interior cost per room. It’s easier to rent art, and we also get a commission if any pieces get sold.”

Of course, the going has been slow, as, the duo feel, the art market still lacks maturity. “Attitudes towards rented art have to change; egos, too, come in the way. But there’s nothing wrong in renting works, as you will eventually become a better patron,” says Ganapathy.

The Art Renter has made a point of showcasing junior and upcoming artists, arguing taste is just as important as fame: “Our aim is to make expensive art more affordable. Eventually, the client has to draw satisfaction [from] seeing the work, and not as much [from] owning or renting it. One should know that tastes also vary and improve over a time. So renting art would be a better starting point than buying pieces that may eventually not be your taste.’’ n open www.openthemagazine.com 51

photo essay The Aftermath A documentation of the 2012 ethnic violence in Assam makes it to one of the biggest international photography festivals, Rencontres d’Arles photographs and text by vivek singh

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n the last week of July 2012, the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts (BTAD), administered by the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council of Lower Assam, witnessed large-scale ethnic violence between local Bodos, considered original inhabitants of the area, and migrant Bengali Muslims. More than 400,000 people of both communities were reportedly displaced during the clashes. Ethnic conflict, displacement and migration in Lower Assam is, however, not a new phenomenon. It has often been used by both State and non-State actors as a political tool, resulting sometimes in the mass exodus of entire communities, an ethnic cleansing of sorts. In July and August 2012, an eerie silence accompanied me as I traversed the vast Western Assam countryside, dotted with one burnt village after another, both of Bodos and migrant Bengali Muslims. Arson had been used as a tool of terror with devastating effect by both sides of the brutal conflict, with villages targeted on the basis of the identity of their residents. n The Aftermath of Violence in Assam is the recipient of the MRO Foundation’s grant for documentary photography and will be exhibited at Rencontres d’Arles this month

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22 July 2013

black dust The soot-filled remains of a Bodo house in Bhaoraguri, Kokrajhar district (left); and in Bijni, Chirang district (previous page); (below) A migrant Bengali Muslim woman amid the remains of her home, hardly a mile away from a Bodo relief camp in Chirang district. Women and children were targeted by both communites during the ethnic unrest, and many people remain missing

destruction trail (Above) Commerce College in Kokrajhar turned into a refugee camp for Bodos from Dhubri district who escaped to the town in large numbers after the riots broke out. Here, women of the camp get together to cook for the refugees; (below) the burnt remains of a house in Duramari, near Kokrajhar

becoming outsiders (Top) The Bilasipara College makeshift camp for migrant Bengali Muslims in Dhubri. The town wore the look of a ghetto with most displaced migrants finding shelter here in school and college buildings; (above) a Bodo refugee with her child at the Gambaribeel refugee camp in Gossaigaon 22 July 2013

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it never ends Protracted ethnic violence and government inaction has often displaced people of all communites living in Western Assam. Above, a Bodo man looks towards an uncertain future that not only bodes ill for his family and himself but most of the Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts

22 July 2013

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music

Chicks and Licks Mumbai-based cover band The Other People pull consistently large crowds of all ages at their monthly live gigs Aastha Atray Banan

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first heard retro/cover/boy band The Other People (TOP) play at Blue Frog in Mumbai on my 31st birthday. But as the band played Mmmbop by the once-hot band Hanson, who released the single in 1997 when I was all of 15, I felt young again. The next time I saw them, I took my school best friends along and promised them it would be worth their while. And yes, as the band belted out Shakin Stevens’ You Drive Me Crazy (which is much before even my time), we girls were back to school again.

But the band doesn’t just have retro appeal. The crowd at Frog at the band’s standing gig every last Saturday of every month is between the ages of 16 and 60. It’s not just the music they play— covers of everything from retro to rock to contemporary pop, and even the occasional Swedish House Mafia track— it’s about the boys themselves.

A duo of middle-aged ladies next to me, dressed in their best LBDs, checked out lead guitar player Gavin Cason, 45, and whispered to each other, “He’s hot,” before shouting, “Go Gavin!” A bunch of 30-something girls on the other side were counting the number of undone buttons on 27-year-old lead singer Zarir Warden’s shirt. “Take it off already,” said one. And as Zarir obliged, just to put on a black ganji, they moaned, “Why can’t he just sing like that? And why can’t the whole band be shirtless?” One of them grinned, “Yes, that was fun, but when will Sam [Samuel Berlie, the rhythm guitarist] take off his shirt—he is the one that totally gets me.”

It’s been a while since I’ve seen a band have groupies, and it’s a charged atmosphere. Sam tells me later that some of the girls were trembling as they took pictures with them after the gig. And over lunch a few days later, 58 open

Zarir says it’s not just the women who love them, not that they are complaining about the female attention.

It’s also been a while since I’ve seen a band singing in English become this popular, despite never having released an album. Ever since Indipop died, the Indian music scene has seen only a few bands survive—Euphoria and Pentagram, whose latest albums came out in 2011, and Indus Creed, whose last album was released in 2012. Many of the more contemporary bands, like Agnee and Advaita, sing in Hindi.

Record companies love Bollywood— that’s what sells, so that’s what gets top priority.

In a music scene dominated by

“Girls have come up to say ‘what a great gig’ and then taken my phone from my hand and taken down my BlackBerry pin,” laughs lead singer Zarir Warden Bollywood, it’s surprising to see 500 people turn up every Saturday to hear a band that sings covers. First formed in 2004 as a college band, the five-member group now includes, apart from Zarir, Sam and Gavin, Garth D’Mello, 21, on keyboards, and Aloysius (Loy) Henriques, 62, on bass guitar. The band plays gigs all over the country, at venues like Hard Rock Café and Blue Frog, and is very popular in the corporate and wedding circuit. They have opened for international acts such as Michael Learns to Rock, and recently won an award from The Pixel Project, which works to prevent violence against women, for their cover of a Kelly

Clarkson song. The fact that they are super cute just helps everything along.

At lunch, they come across as a confident, fun, passionate bunch in tune with each other. Rather than paying attention to the food, one or the other is trying to guess the song playing on the restaurant’s system or singing along.

Though they are working on an original album now—at Universal India’s studios, as Zarir has been signed on as a writer—they have no qualms being called a ‘cover band’. “At the end of the day, you have to earn money. And you have to have people listen to you.

Maybe out of the 600 people [in the audience], at least half of them would come back when we do perform original stuff,” Zarir says.

“We do put in an original here or there, just to see how people react— sometimes it’s good, sometimes it doesn’t work. Nobody really wants to listen to original English music. It’s Bollywood all the way,” says Garth. But they know that the cover scene works, and they do their best with it. “We sit together and brainstorm—and we try and see how we can do it our way. We have done covers of completely electronic tracks from DJs like Swedish House Mafia, and that’s our twist to it.

No one expects that from us.”

Thanks to their age groups and their varied musical interests, the band has a massive set list—from popular songs by contemporary acts like Rihanna, Maroon 5 and boy band One Direction, to retro hits by The Beatles and Neil Diamond, among many others. And they know that they had better do it right, or else the original will come and bite them in the butt. “It’s not easy to make original music, but neither is it easy to do covers. There is a great legend you are being compared to. You have to do it well,” says Zarir.

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what’s going on The Other People, which started out as a college band, play all kinds of music from contemporary pop to retro rock and roll

They do seem to be doing it pretty well. If the crowd at Frog is any indication, they have a lot of loyal listeners. The band remembers a gig last year when the Mumbai monsoon was pouring down and the lights went off at the venue. “There was a big crowd gathered, and Sam just took an acoustic guitar and we sang without instruments and everyone went silent. We sang songs like 4 Non Blondes’ What’s Up and everyone joined in. It was mad.”

They understand that many people might think they are selling out by playing covers, but as Loy says, “It’s because we are doing so well. It’s hard being a band in India and there is no money at all. But we make it work.”

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Then there is the question of all their female fans. When I bring it up, they all smile shyly and slyly at each other, and then burst out laughing. Have they ever been propositioned by fans?

“Lots,” they all say. Sam had a lady fan inform him every day of her gym routine so that he knew that she was losing weight for their Bangalore gig.

“Some girls have come up to say ‘what a great gig’ and then taken my phone from my hand and taken down my BlackBerry pin,” laughs Zarir, “Now when they ask for a number, I give Sam’s.” They also remember a time when a hot Russian girl climbed on stage to dance with them; they later discovered that she was a he.

They may be soaring ahead but they seem to have their heads on their shoulders. “It’s taken us some time to reach this level,” says Sam. “People would think nothing of paying Rs 25 lakh to a Mika,” Zarir adds, “but they would think many times before paying us even Rs 3 or 4 lakh.” It could be a while before their album hits stores, but The Other People lose no sleep over it—after all, who has the time when they are busy entertaining? As they wind up their gig at Blue Frog and thank the happy crowd for coming out for the nth time, I see a teenager sigh as she looks dreamily at the stage: “They’re better than Justin Timberlake.” High praise, that. n open www.openthemagazine.com 59

particulate matter In China, particulatematter levels were more than 400 micrograms per cubic metre between 1981 and 2001. In the US, levels were about 45 micrograms/cubic metre in the 1990s

The Many Wonders of Exercise A rigorous workout does not just burn those calories, it changes the way your body processes and stores fat

Pollution Shortens Lives in China

image source/getty images

science

A new study based on long-term data compiled for the first time projects that the 500 million Chinese who live north of the Huai River are set to lose an aggregate 2.5 billion years of life expectancy due to the extensive use of coal for heating boilers throughout the region. Using a quasi-experimental method, the researchers found very different lifeexpectancy figures for an otherwise similar population south of the Huai River. The research study stems from a policy China implemented during its era of central planning, prior to 1980. The Chinese government provided all people living north of the Huai River free coal for boilers. n

R

egularly participating in rig-

orous exercises like cycling and aerobics is known to help rid one of excess calories, but, according to a new study, its benefits may go deeper. A group of scientists from Sweden has found that regular exercise changes the way the human body stores and processes fat.

The study, which was published in PLOS Genetics, found that exercising regularly adds and removes chemical groups to human DNA in a process known as epigenetic imprinting.

This process, also known as methylation, causes genes to be switched on or off. Regular exercise was found to have affected more than 7,000 genes in overweight individuals who participated in the study. They also found that the activity of key genes involved in storing blood stream sugar inside fat cells was reduced by the exercise.

Thirty-one slightly overweight individuals who had never engaged in regular physical exercises participated in the study. They were asked to undergo three hours of exercise— 60 open

two hours of aerobics and an hour of spinning classess—every week for six months. Many of them, however, failed to participate in all classes.

They collectively worked out for an average of 1.8 hours instead. Despite this, when the researchers took tissue samples of the body fat of participants after the exercise, they noticed changes in the levels of epigenetic imprinting. As many as 17,975 locations were altered on 7,663 genes.

Further tests revealed that the epigenetic imprinting of two key genes associated with storing fat reduced the quantity of free fatty acids.

Explaining the reasons for their study, the authors write in the journal: ‘The mechanisms behind the long-lasting effects of regular exercise are not fully understood, and most studies have focused on cellular and molecular changes in skeletal muscle… ’ Excess fatty acids in the blood are known to be associated with diabetes, and the authors argue that their study explains why regular exercise has been seen to reduce the risk of the disease. n

Breathrough in ‘Artificial Skin’

A team of scientists at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology has discovered how to make a new kind of flexible sensor that could one day be integrated into electronic skin, or e-skin. Once scientists learn how to attach e-skin to prosthetic limbs, people with amputations might once again be able to feel changes in their environment. The secret lies in the sensor’s ability to detect three kinds of data simultaneously. While current kinds of e-skin detect only touch, the new invention “can simultaneously sense touch, humidity and temperature, as real skin can do,” says research team leader professor Hossam Haick. The findings appear in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. n 22 july 2013

noise cancellation Speaker specialist Bose also makes noise-cancelling aviation headsets— headphones that reduce unwanted ambient sounds (i.e. acoustic noise) by means of active noise control— that have been used in Nasa’s Space Shuttle to help astronauts save their hearing

tech&style

Bose Sound Link Mini An ultra-compact speaker that combines performance with portability gagandeep Singh Sapra

Elw Primero Stratos Flyback Striking 10th

Price on request

Rs 16,200

T

he iPod changed the way we

used to carry our music around.

It allowed us to carry thousands of songs in our pocket and listen to them via headphones. As phones and MP3 players evolved their storage capacities increased, but for the sake of portability most models excluded inbuilt speakers, and we saw a slew of portable external speakers from various manufacturers. Even Bose came out with its Sound Link. Bose has now launched a more portable avatar of Sound Link—the Sound Link Mini.

And it is adorable.

The problem with Sound Link was that it was slightly big and heavy to travel with. My wife and I did buy one, and we love to carry it, but as phones became lighter, the speakers needed to lighten up too.

The Mini comes in a single-piece anodised aluminium case, which makes it sleek and durable, and with Bluetooth pairing capability it pairs easily with your iPhone, MP3 player or any phone for that matter.

Bose has also innovated on its high efficiency transducers that move twice as much air as its nearest com-

22 july 2013

petitors, meaning more sound for its size. With the addition of dual passive radiators, the Mini generates plenty of low notes, while keeping the vibrations in control. Wherever you put your speaker, it stays there without moving, whatever the volume level you have.

The Mini weighs just 680 gm, and measures a cool 5 cm high, 18 cm wide, and 5.8 cm deep. Its rechargeable lithium-ion battery delivers up to seven hours of playtime. It takes about three hours to fully recharge an empty battery.

Like interchangeable cover options for phones, the Sound Link Mini offers three cover choices—orange, green and a blue that is available at an additional cost of Rs 1,350. You can also buy a separate travel bag for the speaker for Rs 2,250.

With big buttons on top, controlling the Mini is easy, and it comes with a wall charger that gets plugged into a cradle, so you get wire-free charging. There is also an auxiliary port where you can connect an additional MP3 player. It has a USB port but it is only for software updates. n

This ‘supersonic watch’ from Zenith is resistant to sudden changes in pressure and temperature as well as to extreme vibrations. Its mechanism beats at the high frequency—36,000 vibrations per hour—of the El Primero movement, the world’s first automatic chronograph calibre; and the model also features the Flyback and Striking 10th (displaying tenths of a second via its sweep seconds-hand) functions. n

Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3

Rs 31,490

It has a huge 6.3 inch HD LCD display and runs on a 1.7 Ghz Dual Core processor. Its features include an 8 megapixel rear camera, a 1.9 megapixel front camera, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, USB, GPS, NFC, 16 GB internal storage that can be extended to 64 GB using a microSD card, and 1.5GB of RAM. The Mega runs Android 4.2 and Samsung’s own ROM. It weighs 199 gm and is large, so if you have been looking for a phone that doubles up as a tablet, the Galaxy Mega is a good option. n Gagandeep Singh Sapra is The Big Geek at System3. He can be reached at gadgets@openmedianetwork.in

open www.openthemagazine.com 61

CINEMA

one part james dean, one part dev anand Ranveer Singh has said that his look for Lootera, set in 1953, was inspired by 1950s Hollywood icon James Dean and India’s own mid-century heartthrob Dev Anand.

Singh says he has received positive reviews for his look.

“Especially,” he says, “from the ladies”

Lootera The film is painfully slow, but Motwane still makes a fine cinematic experience of it ajit duara

o n scr een

current

Despicable Me 2 Directors Pierre Coffin, Chris Renaud voices Steve Carell, Kristen Wig,

Benjamin Bratt, Russell Brand Score ★★★★★

ha, ranveer Cast sonakshi sin anda singh, barun ch ditya motwane Director vikrama

L

ootera is there or thereabouts.

It’s nice to see that Vikramaditya Motwane has changed his budget, but not his style. The film is unhurried and contemplative, a wide-angled look at the way things end. Though this is a love story, the director clearly finds endings—the breaking of a heart, the final chapter in the world of a zamindar, a fatal illness—more affecting than beginnings, the last leaf more tender than the first.

Motwane also has a good feel for the atmosphere of time and place, connecting periods and locations and seeing how they shape people. Just like he did in Udaan, looking at the impact of industrial Jamshedpur on a teenage boy, he takes us to Bengal of the 1950s, where the zamindari system is still in operation. The system is about to end, but the zamindar (beautifully played

by Barun Chanda) is in denial.

Cocooned in his inheritance, Mr Roychowdhury dotes on his only child, Pakhi (Sonakshi Sinha), and the two 62 open

are unworldly enough to be seduced by the quiet charm of a man called Varun (Ranveer Singh), posing as an archaeologist, complete with books, music and oil paint. He makes off with all the zamindar’s antiques and bits and pieces of his daughter’s heart.

The next sequence is in snowbound Dalhousie and this is where Lootera, so far deliberate and measured, lapses into a state of hibernation. Apart from one terrific action sequence, where a police officer (Adil Hussain) hunts and corners the fugitive Varun, the film just marks time, waiting for its O Henry ending.

Though stretching things out was sometimes a problem in Udaan as well, there the poignancy and pain carried the narrative through.

Here it doesn’t.

Still, Lootera is a fine cinematic experience and it is such a relief to see Sonakshi Sinha, who looks and talks like an Indian woman, instead of the usual faux Western clone. n

This is a hilarious movie, and there is no need to spoil it by comparing it with the first edition. But if you must, you could say that that had more substance, if you can call an animated East European accented-villain-based-comedy ‘substance’, and that this has funnier animation. At any rate, Felonious Gru (Steve Carrel) and his minions are an apparently inexhaustible source of entertainment.

Gru is now domesticated, living with his three adopted daughters in suburbia.

He is no longer an alpha male, and his stealing of the moon is a distant memory. He is now in the corporate world, manufacturing jellies and presumably also the consent that Noam Chomsky speaks about.

Then suddenly he gets an assignment from the AVL (Anti-Villain League) to help them catch a technologically upgraded villain. The espionage that follows is amusing, but not as funny as the focus on Gru’s love life, especially one American date who threatens to ‘fix’ his accent so that he can talk ‘normally’.

But it is the minions who steal the picture. The use of 3D for the end credits are not to be missed. Mischievous minions fall off the screen and on to the first row of the audience. n ad

22 july 2013

Not People Like Us

R aj e e v M asa n d

An Open Relationship

When Hrithik Roshan was admitted to Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai for surgery to remove a brain clot last weekend, his family reportedly wrestled with the decision to confirm the news to his fans and the media. Tabloids had already got wind of the fact that the actor was unwell; an outdoor shooting schedule of Bang Bang was cancelled literally hours before the unit was meant to take off. And before Chinese whispers could lead to panic, the actor and his folks decided it was only fair to reassure his fans that he was going to be alright.

Just hours before going into surgery on Sunday, Hrithik posted a cheery message on his Facebook fan page: ‘Minor brain surgery to remove blood clot (chronic subdural haematoma). Should be rock n rolling by evening! U guys have a great day too! Supersonic!!’ Later the same evening, his father, filmmaker Rakesh Roshan, and his doctor addressed newspersons outside the hospital and confirmed that the surgery had been performed successfully.

In these times when film stars have become particularly cagey about revealing or confirming sensitive personal information, the industry is lauding the Roshans for their decision to share rather than hide and as a result eliminate any scope for exaggeration or an invasion of their privacy by pesky journos. The blood clot, likely to have been caused by a diving scene that the actor performed repeatedly from a 30feet height into Thai waters while filming Bang Bang some weeks ago, has been cured, the hospital has revealed. Hrithik has been advised rest for four weeks, after which he can jump right back to the film.

Blank Calendar

Katrina Kaif, who flew off with boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor for a holiday to Spain after the release of his Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, may now have a little extra time on her hands.

The cancellation of a recent schedule of Bang Bang because of Hrithik’s emergency surgery has left the actress with a hole the size of two weeks on her calendar. Too bad Ranbir must report to Sri Lanka to begin shooting Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet, or they might have extended their holiday.

Now it is learnt that Katrina will take off for London to spend time with her mum and siblings, and to usher in her birthday on 16 July.

22 july 2013

Meanwhile, there’s uncertainty among industry insiders whether Dhoom 3, in which she stars opposite Aamir Khan, will make it in time for a December release as initially expected. Yash Raj Films has confirmed that a release date for the action film hasn’t been locked yet.

The actress, who doesn’t have a single film on the horizon after Dhoom 3 and Bang Bang, remains Dostana director Tarun Mansukhani’s first choice for that film’s sequel opposite John Abraham and Abhishek Bachchan, but the film doesn’t have a start date yet, and Mansukhani has confirmed that he doesn’t have a leading lady signed on either.

With everyone from Karan Johar, Imtiaz Ali, Anurag Basu and Zoya Akhtar currently in the process of casting their latest films (at least three of those filmmakers slated to be working with Ranbir), it is likely Katrina will be busy again shortly, but the actress doesn’t seem the least bit perturbed that she’s got a blank diary right now.

Waxing Vexation

A disgruntled beauty salon employee has been telling friends that she will never again make a house call to this A-list Bollywood actress who gave her a hard time recently.

According to her story, the salon received a call from the actress’ manager asking for someone to be sent over to the star’s Bandra home to give her a bikini wax.

The young lady has said the actress was in a grumpy mood and barely communicated with her while she was at her home and throughout the waxing. “She wasn’t shy, she was just rude,” she has said of the star’s manners, or lack thereof. Midway through the exercise, the actress received a phone call, presumably from her superstar boyfriend whom she affectionately referred to as “Baby” during the conversation.

The lady added that the actress’ home is ‘modest’ at best, and hardly befits a celebrity of her prominence. But what she has grumbled about most is the fact that she received no tip at all from the actress. The payment for the bikini wax was simply added on to the star’s tab at the salon, so no cash was exchanged. And after waiting around “foolishly” for a few minutes, hoping to be rewarded with a generous tip, the lady reveals she was shocked to realise that none was forthcoming. n Rajeev Masand is entertainment editor and film critic at CNN-IBN open www.openthemagazine.com 63

open space

Snake-charmer without a Snake

by r au l i r a n i

Raohtasnath, a 50-year-old snake-charmer, first made his mark when he entered the Guinness Book of World Records for blowing his been pipe continuously for nine hours. He has also worked in the film Tum Mere Ho, which features Aamir Khan as a man with magical snake-charming powers and Juhi Chawla, and in plays for the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony as well as with Tom Alter and Zohra Sehgal.

However, Raohtasnath’s snake was taken away by the government, which cited ‘cruelty against animals’ as its reason, even though he claims that he used to treat his reptile like a son. Now, Raohtasnath is a struggling artist who plays at Surajkund in Faridabad and earns about Rs100 each day

64 open

22 july 2013