Thursday 29 November 2012

Section 66 (A) of IT Act


Dear all

Section 66 (A) of IT Act can result in police action for any of the following actions by an online user and can result in 3 years in Jail.

1 Punishment for sending offensive messages via electronic mail message

2 Any electronic mail message that is grossly offensive or is menacing

3 Any false info causing annoyance, insult, danger

4 Causing inconvenience

5 Deceiving or misleading recipient

When I wrote my views on Baba Saheb Thakeray’s Life and death, I was aware of this clause and hence was careful to be utterly balanced. Two days after my post the Palghar Girls were arrested

Earlier a local police official can book an offence basedon this act- which is a State subject- but now after the Facebook Incident, the Central government has sent an advisory to all the State governments that arrests can be made only after an IG level officer views the case.

More over the Supreme court is reviewing this clause based on a Public interest litigation;

Whatever the outcome, it is now clear that social media can create governance changes and the public should use this as an effective tool and becomes harbingers of change.

 Sanyasi:

Tuesday 20 November 2012


Dear all

When I wrote about Bala Saheb’s life immediately after his death, I knew that there would be many citizens in our country who would express their views on him and the importance given by the nation. However it is unfortunate to know that two girls in Mumbai had to face the brunt of the shiv sena’s shenanigans, for expressing their innocent and correct views in the facebook. Kudos to the former Supreme Court judge, Justice Markandey Katju for his boldly written letter to the Maharashtra Chief Minister. Let us hope that his letter and the subsequent public and media outrage on this , violation of right to expression is taken seriously and the concerned police personnel taken to task and the right message send across.

 Sanyasi:

Sunday 18 November 2012


Dear all

Bala Saheb Thackeray , the 86 year old veteran of Marathee Manoos is no more . Praying for the departed soul.

Started as a cartoonist, Balasab got into the political scene by galvanising Marathi sentiments particularly on the job less youth by proclaiming that Jobs are taken away by immigrant South Indians and sought for regional quota among factory workers. During the Mumbai riots and  the Ram Janmabhoomi  agitation he became a strong proponent of the Hindutva campaign with his fiery  speeches. Sri Krishna Commission indicted him in communal conspiracy and the state government saved him. His party joined hand with BJP giving him a national colour where he spoke more on Hindu pride and nationalism.

At the same time when there was choice between Abdul Kalam and Pratibha Patil he chooses the congress candidate because of her being Marathi. When his more capable nephew Raj challenged his authority, he chooses his Son and grandson as his political heir and then criticised Congress for family legacy. He asked Muslims to be first Indians then Muslims but when it came to Maharashtrians , he was first a Maharashtrian then an Indian. When his cadres started chasing  Bihari workers the patriarch   was silent on the Pan India Hindutva.

It is left for the readers to judge him either as  xenophobic and  Hippocratic or whether as a Nationalist or regionalist ,  but he leaves behind a legacy of political conviction , clarity of thought and the ability to  behold  the Regional Asmita (pride)of his  State .

Sanyasi:

Monday 12 November 2012


Dear all

David Petraeus , Director of CIA resigned on allegation of an extra- marital affair with his biographer Ms Paula Broadwell. So ended an impressive career of one of Americas best Generals, a four star ,  who made America’’s war in Iraq turnaround to its favour .

Irrespective of his shameful  exit from American public life Gen Petraeus will be remembered to have shown what military strategy was all about , which today is  an apt case worth emulating in Business Schools in the area of Strategic Management.

Gen Petraeus commanded the American forces in Mosul , in northern Iraq in 2003. He was not that kind of the General who followed political orders from Washington without looking into the ground realities. He believed counter insurgency operation required separation of wheat from the chaff by not looking at all Iraqis with the same yardstick. Accordingly rather than a military style evaluation of the insurgency, he was a man who thought laterally and was successful in winning the hearts of the locals in particularly erstwhile members of Saddam Hussain’s  Baath party:

With a doctorate in History, Gen Petraeus believed in learning from mistakes from the past. His strategy was that the US military’s adaptation to the local conditions was far more beneficial for  success in the counter insurgency operation in Iraq than military tactics, which  makes the local population look at American forces as  alien- the theme propagated by the rebel forces – a la Vietnam .

This Petraeus doctrine as widely  known in military circles made the Newsweek magazine caption on him as ‘’ Can this man save Iraq’ in one of its edition . Obviously Gen Petraeus was not appreciated by the republican government under George Bush and in particularly Petraeus’s Political Boss Donald Rumsfeld, for his independent approach . Finally he was recalled and  ‘’rewarded”’ for an outstanding performance in northern Iraq  by appointing him as a police trainer in Fort Leavenworth:

Years later Obama gave him the much prestigious roll of the CIA Director which he had to now ingloriously abdicate.

It might be quite common in American Civil Life of successful men being stonewalled for a late life extra marital affair. Whether it is Bill Clinton or Tiger Woods plethora of great men has fallen to the paparazzi and became disgraceful for not being able to uphold a fictitious notion of morality in public life. In the case of Gen Pepraeus it could be argued that an affair tantamount to compromising on national security, but who knows the other women might have been his success factor

All successful and proactive men pass through a stage of intellectual void which essentially the better half of our life might not be able to fulfil not due to an erosion of love but emanating from a need for a professional camaraderie which essentially may lead  to emotional entanglement.

Viewing it as an essentiality or social violation is yet another debate, but poor Petraeus had to hang his boot in disgrace and in the process The United States America lost a great soldier and statesman:

Sanyasi:

Monday 5 November 2012


Dear all

Political rhetoric hitherto was confined to politicians. It is strange or may be an emerging fashion now that people who are not only unrelated to politics but also regarded as part of India’s respected intelligentsia do politicking .

Yes I mean the utterly shameful behaviour of Mr Girish Karnad who is (was)  regarded as a cultural icon to have spoken on V S Naipaul’s writings on  Muslims in a derogatory manner in the Mumbai Literary festival, and that too at an invited ceremony called for facilitating Mr Naipaul. It is true that Naipaul’s books is extremely critical of the Muslim invaders that plundered India in the middle ages. However these   are his views as a writer, irrespective of whether it is right or wrong. If Mr Karnad has his counter views as a writer himself he can use his own words as swords of retribution in a mature literary creation. Instead being so disgraceful has only resulted in erosion of his long built credentials. It is a shame for a person of his repute, who is a Padmabhushan to have stooped to such low levels. Strangely he appears to have no regret and stands by his words.

V S Naipaul has won Nobel Prize in literature and he is respected as great writer. In his facilitation function Mr Karnad has no business to talk in this manner.

I can’t understand whether it is allergy felt by Karnadji for the nobel tag of Naipaul or has he played to the fence as like any politician eyeing the Muslim votes in India . Only time will say.

Sanyasi: