Why I do not want to vote this time

One of the first things I remember from my Civics class in school is mugging up the Fundamental Rights and Fundamental Duties of an Indian citizen. It did not make much sense back then, but I distinctly remember that one of my duties as a citizen was to vote when I was eligible to. Well, I also remember that the Prime Minister was responsible for the 'development' and that the President/Governor was an apolitical member in the state's machinery. So much for education.

I have voted every single time. Initially for the thrill of it, and then with real thought. My corporator is the wife of an ex-HAL employee who had a windfall when he sold his land and whom I had never seen before in my life; I still voted. My government put up MLAs for sale like the IPL auction; I still voted. Ministers were caught watching porn in the assembly, people who could not read and write were given ministerial berths; I still voted. And now, I don't want to. It is not because I don't feel a responsibility to 'vote for change', but because I am not satisfied with the choice.

If somebody gives you 5 rotten apples and tells you to choose one, what would you do? I would not choose any. In fact, 'I made a choice not to choose'. In that scenario, one cannot accuse me of failing in my duty. Giving nothing to choose from and accusing the citizen of failing in his/her duty is heresy. Wise men back then told 'vote wisely', not just vote. Anyway, this again brings up the topic of "null vote" or "reject-all-candidates" where the voter can register to vote and also exercise his vote but in fact makes a choice of not choosing any of the candidates. This is exactly what I want and also many people across the country. Believe it or not, I have asked Kiran Bedi about this (through social media) and she did mention that this is on the Lokpal's primary objectives.

So, is this not present in the current system? It is. It is called Rule 49-O. A registered voter can excercise his null vote. So why is it not effective? Firstly, the paper ballot had this option where the voter could drop a blank paper; but the EVMs do not have this. The voter needs to personally tell the election officer that he wants to exercise a null-vote. This is a bloody violation of the rights of the citizen! His choice should be a secret. Also, the logic of the null vote should ideally be: if the total number of null votes in a constituency is greater than the number of votes of the winning candidate of the constituency, that election is considered to "null and void". However, in our case: the null votes are just discarded and the winner is chosen. This system is just to provide to solace to those people who want to get a sense of satisfaction by voting, but the vote really makes no difference.


I wonder if I am actually failing in my duty when I don't vote this time. Maybe I will get that mark on my finger, pretend that I made a difference and feel happy. But I hope somebody gives a good choice this time around. One good apple and I will take it, does not matter who is giving it.

Be a dog, all your life!

Dedicated to my dear friend KV Bharat, who is getting engaged today. Spread the love mate. Be a dog!

Everybody has one of those days when everything around is irritating. Everything happening around is wrong, anything anybody says is wrong. You just feel like you have to take it out on people around, and it is usually someone close to you who gets the worst of it. Your wife or husband or girlfriend or boyfriend. Rest assured, you will get it back too. But what about your dog? I have shouted at my dog many a time, and I am not too proud of it. But the very next minute, he comes back and licks my feet wanting to be cuddled. I am amazed that an animal can be that evolved that it can love without any qualms.

I have heard many arguments that a dog has the intelligence of a 4year old, a dog is not an evolved creature, a dog is not very intelligent. Well, maybe that is the answer. We human-beings think too much, that is the problem. If I love him, will he take care of me later? If I love her, will she marry me? He is dark. Can I love him? We think so much that somewhere we lose track of the true emotion of love. I have learnt this from my dog and I can now tell that dogs are much better creatures than humans. When somebody calls you a dog, smile. It is a good thing!

There is this movie called Marley & Me. If you haven't watched, I suggest you do it. You will be happy that you did. Here is a quote from that:

"A dog has no use for fancy cars, big homes, or designer clothes. A water log stick will do just fine. A dog doesn't care if your rich or poor, clever or dull, smart or dumb. Give him your heart and he'll give you his. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel extraordinary?"

Seriously, about how many people can you say the same? At the time when people have absolutely no scruples, when people are ready to murder their own kin for money; can you really find someone who can give you their hearts unconditionally? I guess some people can, and they can thanks their stars for that. I have heard many people say "he is not worth it". I did not understand the meaning earlier, but after I have my dog I realize how ludicrous that statement is. Love was an emotion created to be spread unconditionally. When my dog loves me so much, I sometimes wonder what would happen if my dog questioned itself "Is he worth it?" Hell no, he would stop looking at me I guess! Like people say, maybe the dogs have the intelligence of a 4year old. That is very apt. A child can love a person unconditionally. A child does not care whether the other person is dark, SC/ST, crippled etc. But somewhere down the road, as we grow old, we get corrupted. Corrupted by the socitey around, by the people around and by ourselves. We bind ourselves in shackles which are unnecessary, limit ourselves to quench our selfishness. I wish I can be that child again, who does not think twice before loving a person.

I have found my life's calling. To be as good a person that my dog already thinks I am. To be worthy of that pure love.

If you have found another "dog" in your life, thank your stars. Somebody up there must really like you!

A new role for SRK?

This country of mine is a country where people wait for days in a long line just to get a glimpse of their favorite stars. Reel life heros are bigger than real life heroes and this makes the lives of those stars as close to "luxurios" as it can get. I mean luxurios, not comfortable or happy. Well, that is a conversation for another day.

While I was reading the news today, I was stunned by a statement by Mumbai 26/11 mastermind Hafeez Saeed which said "Sharukh Khan can move to Pakistan if he does not feel safe in India". Are you serious? I thought it was part of Cyrus' parody show. It is a disgrace that one of India's most wanted who is mocking us in our face by roaming free in Pakistan is now inviting one of India's biggest stars to come "home". That is alright. I have long accepted the our foreign ministry and the government is impotent to deal with any of this. But I cannot for the love of God accept the fact that a person who has made $600 million from his work in Mumbai is numb after starting this whole mess. Mr Sharukh Khan, the superstar, is a recipient of Indians' generosity. It has not only raised him to the pinnacle of Bollywood success, but also enabled him to be at a position where he can be an influence on the new generation. Well, he is a movie star. This is just another role for him I guess.

He writes a letter saying he does not feel safe in India and as a muslim, he is threatened. Such statements feel like a dagger going through my heart. There are hundreds of young men out there who are looking into the mirror with glassy eyes and wild dreams. Many of them dream to be like Sharukh; and here he is making these ridiculous statements. This has drawn a comment from Pakistan's foreign minister who has asked India to provide security to Sharukh. Well, that just made it to the list of ultimate-jokes of the decade. A brazenly-lying neighbor and an impotent government has made me insulated to all this pain. I don't feel like before when my country is insulted like this, and that fact hurts me more.

Once in a while, it makes you think if the chosen role-models of mordern India are supposed the ones we need. A man who has ordinary people guarding him with their lives has the audacity to come out and tell that he does not feel safe. He keeps silent when due to him, the nation is insulted by the neighbor. I was never a big fan of his. Thank God for that. Well if he does decide to go to Pakistan based on Saeed's advise, we won't be losing much apart from a few crores in income tax. I guess we can live with that.

An intense love story..an end?

I watched the India-Pakistan match today, and everytime I involuntarily wished I could see Sachin walk in to take guard. Yes, Sachin retired. He will never wear the Indian blue again.

It just took a small press conference, but now I am feeling the enormity of that announcement. This means no more being happy at India's first wicket falling, no more waiting to leap in joy for that flawless cover drive and no more seeing divinity brush shoulders with mortals on a cricket ground. No more Sachin. The thought itself  is scary, disturbing. Accuse me of being melodramatic, I plead guilty.

For a country which is only captivated by actresses, politicians etc.; this man captivated everybody's imagination. A kid to an old man. I think he is one of the few factors common across generations: "I saw Sachin Tendulkar bat". Now coming to think of it, there will now be generations in India which will not be able to see Sachin live on the ground. I don't know whether it was correct for him to retire, but all I am saying is that I miss him. People told it was "logical" for him to retire.

Logical? What is logical in sport, especially with Sachin? Was it logical when he stood alone against the greatest bowling attacks of the world? Was it logical for him to be decimating teams along with carrying a billion expectations? Maybe it was good that he retired, when he still retained the divinity. No debates on how much the team misses Sachin, and even Laxman, Dravid, Ganguly, Kumble. But we miss them too.

We are fortunate to have him in this country. However finally, the little master's love story with India seems to have ended. I am happy to have been part of this affair.If somebody asks me about the highlights of my generation, I will just say this: I have seen Sachin score a hundred hundreds, a double century and lift the world cup. I have seen Sachin Tendulkar bat.

Rape and everything else

My country was devastated by the recent gruesome rape of the girl in Delhi. It is probably one of the worst crimes "reported" in this country and one of those few which have struck a chord with the nation. I cannot but grieve for the girl's family, and also ask for the most severe punishment. However, I am intrigued as whether the death penalty through fast track courts is really befitting of our society. I understand that this is a heinous crime and it is natural to ask for castration etc., but is that what our society wants? They say, "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind". Ours is a civilized society and we cannot let some animals get us down to that level.

Instead of concentrating so much on the punishment, should the focus not be on prevention altogether. Assume they are castrated, what is obtained? A few dicks. But the girl is still dead. Her family is still hurt and their hearts broken forever. How does this punishment achieve the purpose? It might make a million people satisfied, but does not bring back that girl. That bright future, that gentle soul. The other question is: why is the government acting now? Of course due to public demand, not out of will. Why death penalty only for rape? Is murder any less horrendous? Is child sexual abuse not bad enough to be fit for such punishments? The list is endless. The focus needs to be on having better laws and more importantly, good implementation.

The recent arrest of the sexual abuser is Bangalore threw another important issue to the focus. This was the 23rd time he was caught for this offence and the past 22 families did not lodge a complaint  due to social stigma. And we, as a society,blame the government for everything? After all, we put them there. This is a time for self introspection. We can chop off a few dicks and we are satisfied? What next? We really need to think how we can tackle this. How the kids are educated to respect people, to understand the difference between good and bad. It is time we introspect if our education system is good, if our ideals are correct. Ours is a country where little girls are still sold off by the family, where innocent children are married off for money. Yes, the punishment needs to be meted out; but I pray it does not stop there. The only way to make sure that the poor girl's death does not go in vain is to work towards ensuring no other girl faces the same.

The change needs to come from us. Our politicians have raped the motherland for decades, this one rape will not change anything. Unless, we are the change. 

An open letter to Aamir Khan

Dear Aamir,

I wish to congratulate you on the wonderful effort at trying to repay your debt to the society. Your effort is much appreciated, and I was your biggest fan. Please note, "was" your biggest fan. The first few episodes of the show Satyamev Jayate were a massive hit, causing a million people to shed tears. Off-late, your episodes are almost leaning towards taking sides rather than becoming a platform for voicing peoples' opinions. I was thinking as to why this tendancy was not noticed in the initial few episodes? And I seem to have found the answer. 

The first few episodes were about issues such as dowry, woman abuse and female infanticide. These are issues which cannot possibly have two sides, at least going by your show. You show us a video of a woman whose nose was bitten off; there is no human being who can take your opposite side. Therefore, we all agreed with you and your opinions. Then there was a story of a woman whose kids were thrown off the stairs. Again, nobody can disagree. But will you show the store of a man whose life was ruined becasue his wife and her family filed false cases using the Dowry Act? No, you won't and we all know the reason. That won't capture the audiences' attention I guess. I was a huge fan and I have also shed many a tear hearing stories on your TV show. But all thse negative thoughts never came into my head until I saw the last few episodes, especially the one about "Effects of Pesticide".

The Kasargod incident was aired about 5years ago on news channels and is heart warming. The lack of planning in the spraying of pesticides is despicable and no punishment is enough for those responsible. There are NGOs fighting this and people who have given up their lives for this cause. This was aired on CNN-IBN a few years ago. Now my question is: What are you trying to achieve through your show? Is it like a show on Discovery Channel where you give us information that these issues exist in your country? Or is it like a forum where you urge people to take action? I am totally confused now.

You are almost taking on the role of one who has already taken sides and made up his mind before entering an argument. The way the MD of the India Phosphorous Ltd., Mr. Shroff, was made fun of was absolutely unacceptable. What are you trying to achieve? Are you challenging him with your repeated questioning on the alternatives of farming? What did you expect? That he would say: "Thank you for enlightening me Aamir. I now close down my company". It is a friggin 8000 crore rupees turnover company. You make a sarcastic comment and the crowd laughs and this is like a jester leading his monkey on. I noticed one lady who was nodding her head for every comment, both for and against. Who are all these people to laugh at him? If you really thought that by you calling big names and insulting them on stage, you have made your point; you could not have been more wrong. If you are challenging him with an alternaltive, you are asking him to say:"yes we don't need any more pesticides". And assuming that in your utopia, the pesticide industry is closed. Will you employ those people who are emplyed there? They are more than a lakh in number. By stopping pesticides, the productivity will go down. There is no denying it. Who will suppost their sustenance during the transition to Organic Farming?

I don't believe it. This is like a set of 10 people handing out Panacea to the whole world. 

Dear Mr. Aamir Khan, the world is not so black-and-white as you think. I appreciate your effort, and I am fully for the fact that we need a better India and a better society. Let us all work together. But just becasue we follow the show does not in any way put you in a position to take sides and propogate the same via the show. Please give different sides of the story, and let people decide who is wrong and who is wrong. At the beginning of the show you say:"Please use your intelligence to make a decision". And then you have 60% of the show talking about one side of the story and the other 40% insulting the poerson of the other side. Please correct this, else you will lose more fans like me.

Even I conducted a research and it shows that watching TV can cause damage to the eyes. I am sorry, I need to switch off your show as of now. 

Your fan,

Abhiram Kramadhati

Where is God?

I have read books, heard arguments and seen shows on how we can prove God exists or does not exist. I have thought about it a number of times as well. I don't know why, but I never seem to arrive at a conclusion. Maybe I was too lazy to think it through. On a warm Sunday morning, I am suddenly in the mood to think about this. The human mind is an amazing thing. It can generate thoughts so profound, that you begin to question yourself and the source of these thoughts. Like in the movie Inception, it is impossible to figure out the "origin" of a thought; all you realize all of a sudden is that you are thinking! You don't know how and when it started. In the same way, I have a thought and I need to pen it down. I just have to.

Does God exist? I don't know. What is God? Who is God? I have argued a number of times with numerous people on this issue, and the general consensus is that the fact the most people confuse God with "worship". "I don't believe in God, do you seriously want me to skip food for one whole day!". OK, you are confused that "not eating food for a day" is a form of worship/devotion to God. This defies logic, and thus you don't believe in God. This is just a ritual, and this is also the biggest lie humanity has believed in and still continues to do so. The lie is Ritual=Religion. Assuming there is God, do you seriously think he will be angry if one person somewhere in the corner of the world sat down in the wrong direction? One really does not expect the younger generation to believe in this. This misguided belief is something which is making people move away from Religion. Believe me, being religious does not mean you are to be ritualistic. You can consume alcohol and still be religious. The sooner we see through this mist of confusion, the better it is for us. But this is argument is for another day!

When you see people who are driven to believing in living-Gods like Nirmal Baba etc. , don't laugh at them. It is our system which has driven them there. In this whole system of prayers/rituals, one is so immersed in those activities that one stops seeing God and starts seeing idols/temples.

I am always intrigued by this question. "What was there at the beginning at Universe?". I still get goosebumps when I think about the edge of the Universe. What is beyond it? Just think about it. What lies beyond the edge of the Universe. Within what is the Universe contained? These are mind boggling questions that Science is trying to answer. But coming to think of it, science has always waged a battle against God. The fact that all phenomenon earlier attributed to God are finding explanations in Science, has fueled this battle further. But I have read this and makes a lot of sense:

"Science can explain what the Universe was and how it was as long ago as when time(t) is almost 0. In mathematical term: 'as limit t-->0'. But till now, there is no explanation of what was there when t=0".And this ladies and gentlemen, is the biggest advantage Religion holds over Science. As long as t=0 is not explained, the concept of God has to be in the picture logically. Until then, believers and non-believers will be at loggerheads over the existence of God.

But just think about it, is this the kind of God we would like to believe in? Think about this as well, "Why do you want to prove/disprove the existence of God?". By doing this, aren't you reducing the powerful entity to a mere object whose existence stands at the mercy of your validity? I would like to believe that the idea of God gives us a chance to believe, not just pray. I don't know if he exists. Also, my world will not change if suddenly there is a scientific theory proving/disproving his existence. For me, I see God around me in small things. You can too, you just don't look hard enough. Every morning I look at my family, I see God. Every day I play with my dog, I see God. I laugh my heart out with my friends on a little stupid joke, I see God. You see God in people around you, things around you and you be in a good place in life. Sometimes, you are so skeptical and bent upon the idea of non-existence of God that you fail to see the beauty around you. Would you really care if there is an explanation or not for the beautiful rainbow? for the aurora-borealis? Yes, it is scientifically explained. Yes, it is a known phenomenon. But don't fail to see the beauty behind this, believe that there is still joy and happiness in the world. You just have to look around.

I recently read "It's not about the bike", the story of Lance Armstrong's battle against cancer. He asked his doctors "Will I make it? What are my chances?". His doctor replied, "50-50". Armstrong was bombarded with series of chemotherapy, so much so that his body became a toxic-house. After an arduous struggle, he made it. He came back and won the Tour de France, the toughest sports competition out there. He won it many a time. Later in one of the casual conversations, he asked his doctor "What was my real chance?Be honest". "Less than 10%. You were one of the worst cases I have seen", his doctor replied. Lance Armstrong goes on to write that he did not and does not believe in God. But he worships people like his doctor who have spent countless years in research so that somewhere someone could live on to see his/her children grow up (his doctor was part of the team which developed the treatment for that form of cancer). You see God in such people. The doctor gave Lance a chance to believe, that is an act of God.

You are reading this article and probably listening to music on the internet. Think about all the people who spent years developing the technology. I see God in them.

I am agnostic. I spent sometime trying to figure out if God exists or not. Now, I don't want to find out. I may not worship idols, I may not have verses at the tip of my tongue and I may not even know the proper names of deities; but I know where to look for God. The next time somebody asks me "Do you know if God exists?". My answer will be "I don't want to know. I know where to look for my God".