2011

The Taliban’s statement denying involvement in the killing of Burhanuddin Rabbani, head of the Afghan High Council for Peace, came on the third day of the incident. Evidently, the Quetta Shura thoroughly checked out with the various Taliban factions before coming out with this statement. Indeed, the Taliban, uncharac-teristically enough, was not on message this time. They are normally the first with a claim, but this time they weren’t.
A Guardian editorial, too, makes this important (…)

DESPITE LATEST STRAINS IN US-PAK RELATIONS IN AFGHANISTAN
The strategy devised at the London Conference on Afghanistan (held in January 2010)—“reinte-gration and reconciliation”—was a veiled scheme of once again handing over Afghanistan to Pakistan. President Obama’s rhetoric on the “Way For-ward in Af-Pak” has the same thrust.
The consequences of this dangerous scheme are not difficult to fathom. These are as follows:
(i) the resumption of civil war sucking in the neighbouring (…)

Referring to the new development in the 2G spectrum scam in the light of the revelation made in the note of the Finance Ministry (which is now known to be an inter-ministerial background paper on 2G), a pertinent query was raised in these columns last week: “Does this presage a brewing conflict within the UPA?” Thereafter it was observed:
“Perhaps a new drama is about to unfold in New Delhi’s corridors of power.” That is precisely what happened in the last few days. From all available (…)

Will patent rights be used only for ensuring the legitimate interests of pharmaceutical companies, or will these be used in an exaggerated and unjust way to deprive patients of their right to life? This crucial question, which has been debated time and again in the context of the significant case of Glivec, an anti-cancer drug, has now reached a critical stage.
It may be pointed out here that as early as 2006 many prominent persons and organisations from all over the world had petitioned (…)

The assassination of the former President of Afghanistan and presently head of the High Peace Council, Burhanuddin Rabbani, on September 20 at his heavily secured residence in Kabul marks yet another step forward for Pakistan in its campaign to sabotage the efforts to open up a dialogue with the Taliban.
Does it sound cynical to jump to accuse Pakistan of having a hand in an assassination which was clearly the Taliban’s handiwork? However, the time has arrived to call a spade a spade, and (…)

Mahatma’s Causes
The Mahatma stood for causes for which he struggled throughout his working life. They were—Freedom, Unity, Equality, Self-Reliance and Decentralisation. They were related to each other. Though these causes were ‘ends’, he was equally concerned with ‘means’ to achieve those ends. The means had to based on the principles of ‘Truth’ and ‘Non-violence’.
Such was the magnetic influence of his personality, his thoughts and actions that he was able to attract the support and (…)

“India’s destiny lies not along the bloody way of the West, of which she shows signs of tiredness, but along the bloodless way of peace that comes from a simple and godly life. India is in danger of losing her soul. She cannot lose it and live. She must not, therefore, lazily and helplessly say, ‘I cannot escape the onrush from the West.’ She must be strong enough to resist it for its own sake and that of the world.”
—Mahatma Gandhi
“Agriculture is more revolutionary than industry. In (…)

It is the irony of the day that most of the thinkers are assuming that change in the system will automatically bring about change in the individual. But we have witnessed that the more we are laying stress on having good governance and a democratic system, the more corrupt, unconscious and undemocratic individuals we are producing. Opposing this, Gandhi said it is not the system which will bring about change but it is the conscious and self-realised individual who will ensure all change. (…)

FROM N.C.’S WRITINGS
From the celebration of the Gandhi Jayanti to the commissioning of Bokaro, the largest steel plant in the country—we are reminded of the miles we have covered as also of the promises yet to keep.
The Gandhi Jayanti has become a mere annual ritual. If it were to be celebrated in real earnest, it should have been the occasion to set the millions into motion for building the edifice of a new, prosperous India as he did in welding them into a fearless army that could (…)

There are many conflicting versions of Anna Hazare and his movement that will endure. But not the least, the vision of exotic steamrolling that emerged out of Arundhuti Roy’s conver-sation with CNN-IBN’s Sagarika Ghosh. Whether true or untrue, real or fanciful, the agenda of a social network-media-spearheaded urban revolution clearing the decks for the penetration of foreign capital was intimidating (somewhat obliquely conveyed by the reference to the World Bank programmes in Africa where it (…)