Oh dear God, here I go into the dirty world of politics. If I get “roughed up” in the near future during one of my trips to Pune, I shall know that it was due to pious and religious people who believe in free speech and they were simply using their right to free speech to make a statement against me.
I have thankfully been isolated from many reports and interviews on this issue by various parties involved, and yet I found defenders of this cause quite weak in their arguments (or at least, not committed to them). From what I do know however, I can surmise some facts and I leave it up to my readers to correct me if I’m wrong.
Now let us first start with the rules of the game. As you all know I don’t believe in “right, righter and rightest”. There is “right” and there is “wrong”. Nobody is “more right” or “less right”. When it comes to the Law, I am not a Judge nor a person contracted by the Indian Judiciary System to act as a delegate, therefore I do not make up my own laws – I have only the letter of the law to follow.
When the law is inconvenient, people turn to “principles” (or invent a few if necessary) and if they are bigger cowards, talk to me about supernatural powers, God, religion, etc. For those who would use religion as a labeling mechanism, I would like to emphasize as I have done in countless other blog posts, that I never question the rules of any game, but I expect every player to follow them – especially the player who establishes the rules. A rule must be defined as f(x) where x is a person and no matter who that person is, the definition of f is immutable. Of course this is my interpretation of my religion, and since I’m neither God myself, nor a contracted agent of God given authority by God to decide between what is right and what is wrong (as so many people around me seem to be), I leave it up to each reader to make up their own mind.
Having established this fact, let us look into the whole violence that was caused in Maharashtra against “North Indians” (a label I have not assigned and am not capable of demarcating) and understand the facts. I would like the reader to fill in whatever information they have regarding one question. Specifically I want to know in short, what was the objective of this whole movement. Is it to stop all that is illegal? If so, I understand completely. The violence itself was illegal, and in retrospect, those who caused it, I assume, have turned themselves in voluntarily in their local police stations to fight for their cause. I would like facts on the numbers of people currently under voluntary arrest.
Now coming to my main point – I find it disturbing just how many literate (I do not call people with a ‘degree’ educated, but I will grant that they can read and write) people in my own state and falling prey to labeling. I am not one who would deny people the opportunity to fight for what they want – if they want jobs and others are taking their jobs, it’s fine to fight for them. I am afraid of people who try to present their personal convenience in a framework of principle so that they get a feeling of moral superiority over others. I recently heard that a certain leader of this movement in a televised interview stated that while all other leaders are donkeys (an imprecise translation), he is “less of a donkey”, and therefore people should support him.
The disturbing reality of such a leader, as history has shown us ever since history has been recorded, is that subconsciously we end up giving him the greatest power on this earth – the power of God – the power to Judge – the power to say what is right and what is wrong – a power I do not allow any human being to have over me. What makes this situation particularly dangerous is, by supporting such people politically we give them the power to execute their judgment – thereby making them Gods. I would prefer a leader who said, “I’m a donkey, elect me.”, or a leader who says, “I am pure, therefore elect me.” Heck, I would probably elect the donkey rather than the pure leader because I know I am a donkey too. I am afraid of anyone who thinks they are Agents of the Supreme Court of India or the Agents of God and can determine they are “less of a donkey compared to me.” Who is to say when they will change their mind on what constitutes “donkeyhood” and what does not?
A famous peom I would like everyone to read:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came…
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.
It is time we all faced our fears and admitted our own sins. When we break a traffic light, we convince ourselves that we are “less of a donkey than a murderer”. Over time we build a strong resistance against our conscience so that these things don’t bother us. Then we end up in a catch-22 situation – other people have played our game and gone Pro, while we still remain in the Pee Wee league. We built illegal buildings in our Mumbai and others came and they build them over thousands of square acres. Now we want to label them so that we are not judged for our sins. We crapped in our own house and now the stench of others crapping here is bothering us!
I am not saying what is happening is appropriate or legal, but I am certainly saying that two wrongs don’t make a right. There are better ways to improve the situation in the state and it is up to each and every one of us to exploit all such means. Imitation is the highest form of flattery and we cannot “teach them a lesson” by imitating them.
As for the job situation in the state, I am a standing testament to the real situation. Within Pune or within my own state I would not have been given a job two years ago when I passed out. And it wasn’t because of the “North Indians” or the “South Indians” or the “Caste X people” or anyone currently labelled as “them”. It was because I did not have a “B.E.” degree and I did not have a job because back then the B.E.’s were “us” and I was a “them”. Back then, I was a “them” for the very people who would now have me become a part of “us” because some other “them” came and took up all the jobs of those elite “us” in the state. If history has taught us anything, such people are the most dangerous sort of people you can ever hope to encounter. Tomorrow another community may come up and start killing a part of the Maharashtrians who form a part of “us” and have lucrative jobs. Can anyone who has lived in the state seriously tell me with a straight face that the have not seen this happen countless times in their own lifetime already?
This is my request to all those out there, I don’t wish to preach and I don’t wish to pass judgment, but I do want each and everyone of you to make sure that the day they come for you, you will have someone left to speak.
A typical article from a techie . The point is the issue is not just restricted to just one state , it has infected many parts of the world. The solution should be generate the jobs locally so that people stop migrating to greener pastures . For that to happen there are 3 basic needs 1)Power(Energy)
2)Road Connectivity 3)Quality Education
A recent survey in India mentions that about the population size of 6 Australia will migrate to cities . The so called MNC’s under the name of globalization are killing the domestic culture . Just take the example of Finland , no grand theories of GDP growth
Comment by Sameer — November 2, 2009 @ 4:46 pm
A typical comment from… I’m guessing a ‘literate person’ at least?
Two things about your writing style:
1. Don’t use the word “typical” when you say something, because if it were typical and commonplace, you’d not be saying it. When someone says “Needless to say,…” it means it needs to be said.
2. “The point is” – what point? You’re not responding to my questions or questioning my statements. You’re saying stuff which I don’t care about – “the solution is” write your own blog and see if I care enough to read it and respond to it.
Now for a response to your political agenda:
1. You are not making any point. You’re saying “it” has infected many parts of the world. “What” has infected many parts of the world really? Be clear.
2. Solution to what? What’s the problem? Nobody came to you with a problem.
3. Thanks for sharing a bunch of GDP information that I really didn’t care about, and found to be, in no way helpful in understanding why people broke the law, behaved in an uncivilized and uncultured manner (I’m guessing MNCs hold training camps on how to go to people’s homes and drive them out).
4. MNCs are killing what culture? People in US follow traffic laws. Don’t tell me MNCs brought this culture of breaking rules, bribing officials, etc. US/Europe/Australia has strict law enforcement on hooligans. What culture are we demonstrating here? Given all the “Marathi Manus” on the road in Ganesh Festival, I’m guessing it should be _the_ safest day on earth for a young girl to walk on the roads. If you have a daughter or sister, I dare you to send her alone on the most “cultered” road in Pune on Ganesh Festival (Laxmi Road) at midnight when it’s filled with cultured holier-than-thou non-MNC-trained “Marathi Manus”.
Frankly, I don’t think MNCs are killing our culture – it still exists unfortunately..
Comment by archisgore — November 2, 2009 @ 5:58 pm
There is a law which says that there should be signboards in Marathi. No one cared to bother about it.
w.r.t to North Indians, Raj Thackeray is very specific. He states that he is against only two specific states – the specific reason being that the leaders from these states come to Mumbai and try to wield their political clout.
Again, I am not justifying the violence or discrimination. However,at the same time I feel that the media is biased and does not give a balanced view of the affairs.
Disclaimer :- My view is from over a distance of 6000 nautical miles.
Comment by Devendra — December 7, 2009 @ 10:20 am
You know what’s really wierd? None of the “marathi enforcing” people understand Marathi – they need to be taught.
There may be a law that says all signboards should be in Marathi, and you know what they enforced through violence? English signboards in Devnagri script. This is the level of “love for marathi” they have.
Go to Appa Balwant Chowk. I dare you. I’ll post photographs if you don’t believe me. It’s the same English words written in Devnagri script. For someone like me who is admittedly bad at Marathi, I know better than that.
Comment by archisgore — December 7, 2009 @ 2:37 pm
Devendra, it is because the media is biased, that I asked for facts on this blog. You have to admit Raj Thakery is equally biased and you can’t take everything he says on face value. That’s why I asked for facts from people who live there on his agenda, promises and policy. What is he pledging for the state beyond removal of those politicians? A “North Indian” politician is not my problem. A “Corrupt” politician is my problem. I refuse to believe just because someone’s born Marathi, they have some sort of inherited genetic corruption-prevention-mechanism inbuilt.
That’s why I specifically talked about labelling above, and it’s people like us who need to fight it. Labelling moves the people’s focus from what they are really fighting to something more virtual. If the people truly began fighting against corruption and misbehaviour, do you think Raj Thakery stands a chance? It’s not a rhetorical question. I honestly would like to know. If he does, then trust me, he doesn’t need to beat up anyone to get elected.
Why does he feel the need to say “North Indian” politicians will create trouble in Mumbai? Why not have a simpler label – “Politicians who will not follow the interests of the people”, and “Politicians who will”. Then he should fight any Marathi politicians too if they fit the first label.
As for politicians coming to Mumbai and trying to wield their power, it is the people’s choice. If Raj Thakery thinks the elections are scammed, he should enforce election rules, but he has no right to enforce his judgement on people who, if they choose, have every right to elect an official that may not belong to the same caste/sect/birthplace/whatever-labelling-mechanism-Raj-Thakery-wishes-to-add as Raj Thakery himself.
Frankly, I believe politicians should be elected to represent the people’s needs and wishes. If Raj Thakery has a good agenda for developing power generation, roads, water works, etc. in Pune, what North Indian resident is going to starve himself to death just to spite a marathi manus? Do you think he gives a damn? Seriously?
Comment by archisgore — December 7, 2009 @ 2:51 pm
I don’t agree with all the points put forward by MNS/Raj Thackery. But, let me play the devil’s advocate.
/me don’s the hat of MNS advocate :-
MNS/Raj Thackery is not stating that Marathi manus is less corrupt. Again, he has stated that he is not against any language, but he is “for” Marathi (something similar to PLUG not being against Microsoft, but for FOSS).
Note that he is stating that needs of the local people should be taken into consideration, and that people from every state should get preference in their own state.
He is saying that people from outside are coming in and not serving the interests of the local people. He also believes that the current politicians and the opposition are not doing their job. So, MNS is fighting with politicians from inside as well as outside Maharahstra (MNS is contesting elections after all). Secondly, the whole goal of MNS and its formation is to serve the interest’s of Maharashtrians. This is similar to a number of political parties in other states. Is it wrong to create a such a political party ?
Finally, MNS is getting the people’s mandate in term’s of votes. So lets assume that he wins the elections and decides to implement reservation’s for local people of the state. That would be the democratic way to do it. Would you be against this ? btw, Mr Thackery is against reservations based on caste/religion basis.
/me put’s down the hat and returns to his normal self.
Again, how much of it is just rhetoric and how much of it is the truth, is something to be seen. Again, bashing up people (north indians or not) is not going to help. At the same time, I don’t see why people have a problem with having a Pro-Maharashtra regional political party called as MNS. Of course, if the party is hell bent on *only* slapping “outsiders”(inside or outside the assembly), it will soon be irrelevant.
Comment by Devendra — December 7, 2009 @ 9:47 pm
Raj Thakery is biased. He openly states his bias.
The media on the other hand is more dangerous. The media can selectively filter out information to *create* an image or point of view (which it’s not supposed to do I believe)
Comment by Devendra — December 7, 2009 @ 9:57 pm
Sorry, I seem to have hit the depth limit of commenting.
After a long time, I got a sensible reply.
So far as people coming in and “not serving the interests of the local people”, I disagree completely. I find this to be simply a way to assign blame without answering for it ourselves. If people come in from outside, they only survive because they serve the local interests.
If he does get votes and wins, then I completely concede. He can do whatever he wants. As per democratic rule, I would be the very first advocate for his party. If he beats up and drives away anyone he wants, I shall tell them to not crib about it, because the majority wanted it.
Until that happens, however, I should like to see justice executed in order to serve the interests of Maharashtrians. Who is to say if someone attacked my home and the justice system was riddled with so many “exceptions” that I would lose the very protection I democratically deserve?
Opposition to reservations based on caste/religion should be interesting to see once he gets elected. If for no other reason, I shall pray that he gets elected so that we both may together discover whether he will give up vote banks in order to stick to his principle of non-discrimination.
As for people, I totally endorce people having a problem with a Pro-Maharashtra regional party – it is their right to do so. If he wants to say anything about anyone, he should allow anyone else to say anything about him that they wish. Expressing discontentment or disagreement with his party is every Maharashtrian’s right.
For me personally, I find Maharashtra having a billion problems that he could have fought for – illegal constructions, corruption, law and order problems, etc. Hence, I oppose a party that doesn’t talk about things that matter to me and concern me, but rather go after “outsiders” who are here simply because without them, those jobs wouldn’t get done. I believe that’s my right too.
Comment by archisgore — December 7, 2009 @ 10:23 pm
I think you misunderstood me when I say that people should not have a problem.
MNS is stating their views, and you are stating yours. Both parties are free to criticize each other.You cannot criticize their existence – They are within their rights to form such a party and state their views. If you don’t agree with their views, don’t vote for MNS.
Comment by Devendra — December 8, 2009 @ 2:07 pm
If you notice, I have never criticized their existence. Heck they exist and I have to live with that.
I have questioned their actions, and the motives those actions indicate. I have questioned whether their statements are consistent with their actions. I have criticized some of their actions.
I have asked people to consider these things for themselves.
They however do criticize anyone who doesn’t necessarily subscribe to their point of view, and what’s worse, go break the very Marathi Maharashtrian law and turn their criticism into action.
And yes, I am asking people not to vote for MNS.
Comment by archisgore — December 8, 2009 @ 4:19 pm
Sorry for the hiatus, I was busy.
Again, you state that “If people come in from outside, they only survive because they serve the local interests.” Not that they have an altruistic purpose.
You state that Maharashtra has billions of problems, and that he could have fought any one of them. But may I ask how have you come the conclusion that he is not fighting other issues ?
https://www.manase.org/maharashtra.php?mid=67&smid=35 lists other work that MNS is doing. However, most of these items are not “news worthy.”
Also, note that MNS is an upcoming party. Other parties who are in power have not found solutions either. By the way, he is not just critical of politicians from outside Maharashtra, if anything he has been more critical.
Comment by Devendra — December 18, 2009 @ 3:07 am
Let’s not kid ourselves that these people survive here because Maharashtrians are altruistic either. We needed them to provide cheaper services or better craftsmanship – something we could have learnt ourselves. So yes, they do serve the local interests, and serving those interests serves them. If that weren’t the case, they’d have left.
I came to the conclusion because:
I see actions and results. Arun Bhatia too fought for other reasons – how come I know him? There are ways to do news-worthy things in this world. Which of those one chooses to do is how I judge that person.
Ask him to file demolition show-cause notices at the Municipality office. It’ll be news-worthy. Using the party power, he could actually see it through, and fight illegal constructions.
Also, before he formed the MNS he was part of another party that is equally to blame. While it can be claimed that his formation of MNS at a time when his power in the other party diminished, is simply coindicidence, I find it hard to believe.
I should also like to see him establish a code of conduct for other politicians, if he is critical of them. I made my objection very clear on his criticism – his exact statement in marathi was (and I got this 2nd hand from an MNS Supporter so don’t have a source – if you’re nitpicky I would have to find a video), “Mi pan gadhav aahe na, mi kuthe nahi mhantoy. Pan mi kami gadhav aahe.”
That’s what I don’t like – because he reserves the right to judge “kami” and “jasta”. Tu aamhala evdach sang ki asa kay ahe je te loka karataat je tu karat nahis, ani Marathi Manus tharavudet kon kiti gadhav aahe te.
Comment by archisgore — December 18, 2009 @ 6:16 pm
Yes, Raj Thackery was part of Shiv Sena. The way I see things, he was not allowed to lead the party, and his views were not taken into consideration. He was ousted from Shiv Sena. So he formed his own party. You do agree that forming a new political party is not an easy task. Infact, Shiv Sena has more resources and organisational structure, which he had to leave.
“Mi pan gadhav aahe na, mi kuthe nahi mhantoy. Pan mi kami gadhav aahe.” sounds like political rhetoric. I would like to see the context of this statement. He has been called many things by many politicians. If it was in response to some comment, then it should be taken into context.
Lastly, lets see what he is against. He is against politicians from UP/Bihar coming to Maharashtra and forming their own vote banks. If the BSP leaders come to Mumbai and erect posters stating “UP hamari hai, ab Maharashtra ki bari hai” I will be very concerned. Do you think that it is correct to put up such posters ? When you criticise Raj Thackery for his gadhav statements and ask him to follow a code of conduct, in the same breath you should also criticise the politicians who called him a gadhav in first place. Why does Abu Azmi state that he is from Uttar Pradesh? He is an MLA from Maharashtra assembly right ? So, would he care for Maharahstra or for Uttar Pradesh once he gets into the state government? This guy only talks about vote banks and how BSP is bad, how Muslim’s should get united etc.
See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0T9ocARk00 (Slapping him was wrong and an idiotic political move from MNS)
I feel that there are some real issues that Raj Thackery has raised. And no other party is ready to raise them. So there should be proper discussion, instead of just criticizing MNS/Raj Thackery or Pro-Maharahstra politics.
End of day, there is a question of identity. You quoted the poem First they came. Let me rephrase it:-
First they came for the jobs, and I did not speak out—because I was not unemployed;
Then they came for the traders, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trader;
Then they came for the Mumbai, and I did not speak out—because I am not from Mumbai;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.
Comment by Devendra — December 19, 2009 @ 9:36 pm
Now we’re really getting somewhere useful.
You really phrased the poem as it really did happen.
Now we need to speak out by “doing a better job than they do.”, by “trading better than they do”, by “Being better Mumbaikar’s than they are.” (Meaning showing much better culture than they will ever be capable of demonstrating)
That’s the way to win.
Comment by archisgore — December 19, 2009 @ 9:58 pm
And yes, of course the same applies to politicians who call him Gadhav. Now you have to admit that the media didn’t consider their statemetns news-worthy and never highlighted them.
BTW, I am a man of my word. I’m not “better” or “worse” than anyone else, and I follow a mathematical principal I laid out.
I do criticise anyone who would use labelling as a mechanism to divide and conquer. This Abu Azmi character is as much an asshole as one can get. You know how you show you’re better than him? By NOT doing it.
Imitation is the higest form of flattery. You don’t teach a theif “a lesson” by stealing from him. What lesson do you teach him? That you admire his methods? That you endorse stealing?
It is exactly that I am a Maharashtrian and I love Maharashtrians that I am asking them to set a better example. I’m not the enemy here.
As I said, when they talk of dharma and stuff, I would actually demonstrate true Marathi culture. I would have dared anyone on earth to walk on Laxmi road on Ganesh Chaturthi and assured them that they will find it the safest road on earth. It’s a difficult ideal to live up to, but then that’s the price we must pay for grandeur. Let any other religious gathering in the world say the same before they criticize “my culture”. That’s the dream I look forward to some day…
EDIT: I just saw Devendra’s link and I appeal to all people who follow Islamic beliefs – you have sects and you have labels within yourself. Today you are “special” for this Azmi guy because there aren’t enough “sub-special” people for him. Make sure that when he uses his right to decide who falls into the “better musalman” and “worse musalman”, you have someone to speak.
Comment by archisgore — December 19, 2009 @ 10:06 pm
Yes, now we agree upon things
I agree that we don’t have to stoop to the level of Abu Azmi. But we have to point out the low level politics being played out by these guys. There has been a lot of talk about how MNS is wrong and how Raj Thackeray is Hitler etc etc. However, no one is pointing out that the other side is equally at fault (or even more at times).
I am not saying that you are the enemy or anything. But I think you and me are in a better position to understand the situation. So we can also present the other side of the coin. And put up a balanced view instead of just hearing it from Raj Thackeray.
Comment by Devendra — December 19, 2009 @ 10:30 pm
And that is why I criticized his breaking of the law. Until he makes up for that, there can be no trust. And he has to “make up for it”.
The North Indians didn’t come to Mumbai saying, “Hey look we’re here to break your laws.” They came as our friends. They came to “help us”. They came when “our politicians” weren’t looking after our interests, so they said, “Give me a chance, and I’ll fix it.” When they gained power, they did whatever the hell they wanted.
Raj Thakery’s methods don’t inspire any more confidence than them today. He’ll post anything he wants on the website, but when he wants if he will break the law, then he violates the one last protection that remains for me against goons, and he takes that away. I wouldn’t want to test what he would be like in power, when he holds the power of prosecution.
Now another equally series angle applies rhetorically which I was trying to make is, if Raj Thakery is breaking the law and the current government is unable to prosecute him, it says a lot about their incompetence too.
Arun Bhatia inspires confidence in me mainly because you should note his methods on his website – they went to the courts and started filing show-cause notices against every officer who wouldn’t proscecute forcing action in a day. It’s a more difficult method and takes maybe 500 people to move just one case of drunken driving, but it’s the only method that assures me protection if Arun Bhatia goes haywire against me some day. It’s an equally news-worthy method too.
When we try to label people as “better” or “worse” it’s not the flaws in Raj Thakery that I point out, but the flaws in all his believers. We all want to be “better”, and we all internally resort to such comparisons between us and other people. When we do something wrong, we’ll self-justify it as being “less worse” than the other guy. That’s what caused the problem in the first place. Today, Maharashtrians aren’t conserving any more water or power than the North Indians. It’s not like pure-marathi villages don’t have wire-taps onto the power grid, or have better law and order.
What I’m trying to say is, driving out a North Indian is not going to make our life any better unless we change. And every time someone breaks the law on behalf of Maharashtrians, he takes away part of my credibility to comment on the dangers of outsiders.
Comment by archisgore — December 20, 2009 @ 9:32 am
You are now jumping all over the issue. Here are my points:-
1. Indians from all places come to Maharashtra.
2. They decide to settle down in Maharashtra.
3. They don’t think of themselves as Maharashtrians. They will label themselves as Bihari or UP or Punjab or , but never god forbid a Maharashtrian (maximum a Mumbaikar).
4. Due to mass migration, the demographics of state have changed. Now more assembly seats are from Mumbai region as compared to other regions.
Notice that I am not saying anything about “better” or “worse”, or people being “bad” They are just Indians, just people. Do you agree that this is the ground reality ? Are you suggesting that I should not really care about this happening?
Right now, MNS is taking an extreme view on this situation. You are criticizing MNS and its actions. At the same time, speak out against people who are not looking after the interest of Maharashtra. There is no problem with Pro-Maharashtra politics if it means that people of Maharashtra looking after the interest of Maharashtra. At the same time, Pro-Maharashtra politics need not mean Raj Thackeray/MNS politics.
Comment by Devendra — December 20, 2009 @ 11:26 am
Yes that’s certainly a problem. Wherever they come from, they need to label themselves as a Mumbaikar. I don’t give a damn if they probably don’t call themselves Maharashtrians. But supporting the local ecosystem is an integral part of any sustainable system, and if you notice even in the US that spirit exists. I am personally very critical of those who live in the US, become successful then say they’re successful because they were “Indians”. Heck no, I don’t grant them that right.
As a matter of fact, this has always been a VERY large part of my criticism of what’s really going wrong in the state. If you look at Hyderabad or Banglore or Delhi, people probably make shitloads of more money than any other city in India, but the local economy is structured in such a way that the money is also spent there.
This means more rickshaw-walas, more power generation, more water supplies, more shops, more malls, more stores, more of everything. Tons of jobs, tons of money, all rotating within Hyderabad.
Heck this is exactly what Mumbai really needs. You wanna live there? Look at Mumbai’s traffic, look at Mumbai’s roads. Wanna look at UP’s roads? Go to UP and look at them.
I notice this problem every single time I visit Pune in fact. People are so used to a sub-standard life. People will compromise on broken broadband connections, people will go by horribly-managed public transport, but nobody will stand up and say, “Hey, I’m paying you for this service, not give me some goddamn service.”
There I totally agree that we dropped the ball as localites. If you look at Hyderabad, many of the peasants and adivasis became billionaires when they built hostels and guest houses and bunglows, etc. on land they owned historically. The Government gave them loans to build so that their profits would not leave the state. Same applies to Banglore, Chennai, etc. More than the Government though, even the local people will do everything it takes to prevent money from leaving their ecosystem. Instead, our people sold the land to outsiders for a quick buck and are now regretting it.
A simple case in point from last week. A bottle of Gordons that costs $20 in Europe, costs Rs. 1,500 in Pune, and Rs. 7,500 in Hyderabad. Instead of placing unenforcable bans on alchohol then spending more taxpayer rupees on enforcing it, and even more money on the damages done by drunken driving, they simply say, “If you’re pretentious enough to donate 6K rupees to the state, you can have your liquor.”
You know what? It works. I pay the price for being pretentious in my social circle, and Hyderabad just sucked out 6K rupees of this “MNC” money into their local ecosystem.
We are supposed to be the city where people come from all over India to study, and it is our own people who give illegal admissions by taking donations. We do not have the spirit of cross-subsidizing which I guess you see in the US every single day. Your own university perhaps gives admissions with exhorbitant fees to those who can afford it and in the process 10 poor students get high-quality education for free, plus their ecosystem gets money and manpower.
And yes, I am speaking out against people who are not looking after the interests of Maharashtra, which is why I’m questioning the very people who live there – regardless of where they came from.
Comment by archisgore — December 20, 2009 @ 12:46 pm
From the original post …
This is my request to all those out there, I don’t wish to preach and I don’t wish to pass judgment, but I do want each and everyone of you to make sure that the day they come for you, you will have someone left to speak.
The problem is not the person who pays taxes and is a known/recorded part of the infrastructure.
The problem is someone who “just shows up” in the city and starts consuming resources, not being accounted for anywhere and ends up driving prices up. Also, not paying back (taxes) to the place where he/she is consuming resources from.
This is true for any city/state/country and not only for Maharashtra.
Solution … create opportunities everywhere and there will be “migration” to all parts pf the country and no one will be really bothered by it.
Y’know … “If one is not part of the solution …”
Comment by Shantanu — February 15, 2010 @ 8:12 pm
I agree Shantanu. In fact that’s why all I’m demanding is an implementation of “law”. There are many people of that category who must have been part of those who were rioting against “Biharis”. That’s the very evil labelling brings in – it allows you to overlook the truth about yourself.
If Raj Thakery had labelled “illegal residents”, “non-tax paying residents”, “illegal constructions”, etc. etc. I would be the first person out there with red-hot pitch forks on their asses. Simply saying “Biharis” alieanates even those good biharis who might be paying billions in taxes to Maharashtra today. That’s no good for anyone.
Comment by archisgore — February 16, 2010 @ 1:25 pm