IPL - Greed, Ego, Arrogance and Lalit Modi

My interest in cricket has almost got to a point of no return after the match fixing scandal some years ago. It was only the odd Sachin Tendulkar innings or a great performance by one of the Indian players that would invoke some interest.

The IPL changed it to a fair extent and i feel the way the product was packaged and marketed was phenomenal. Lalit Modi was the guy who almost single handed created this product and marketed and lived it right thru. Somewhere down the line Lalit Modi became (well it seems he always was!) arrogant and egoistic. He probably was taking the IPLs succcess to his head. This ego, greed, arrogance led to Lalit Modi's downfall and the sad exit in the form of a suspension.

Dantewada - A final wakeup call

For many of us who live in cities and urban areas, the life and times in remote corners of India are the images seen in movies and documentaries. Like most others I too have been far removed from the realities and the real troubles that people living I these areas go through day in and day out.

No violence is justified or can be justified and the voices that I get to hear on TV are alarmingly both pro and anti Maoist violence. How can a democratic set up thrive and live actively if there is a sword of consistent and repeated violence (mis)directed at innocent citizens as well as armed forces (police, CRPF etc.) at will? One always felt that there was a marked difference in insurgency from within and the one we are subjected as a nation from across the borders, but the recent incidents have brought out a stark fact that both need to be dealt with strongly.

I for one am unable to make a decision as to why and what has gone wrong so horribly that we as a nation state are unable to convince, sell (or market) the idea of a thriving, large democracy to the millions of people living in these remote areas?

For many years now, close friends have called my views as socialist, communists and even Maoist, it hurt for the first time when someone tried to equate me with Maoist, I do not think any principle – socialist or communist justifies violence of the kind we have been seeing over the last few months. It’s time for both the parties to come to the table and solve the issues at hand – PEACEFULLY.