Showing posts with label maharashtra. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maharashtra. Show all posts

Monday, 20 October 2014

Maharashtra Politics : a bollywood love triangle

Last evening I had a few friends come over to my place. Instead of chatting about fashion, relationships and the usual topics, we often discuss literature, Politics and current affairs. (Yes, we are geeks and we are boring!) Since it was the day of Vidhansabha election results in Maharashtra and Haryana, obviously the same was our topic of discussion (read bakchodi). Almost all results were out and BJP had emerged as the largest party with 123 seats, yet not enough to form government on its own. Shiv Sena with 63 seats emerged as second largest party. The rest fared as follows :
With all the high voltage pre-poll political drama in Maharashtra, that witnessed split in not one but two alliances, the scene was nothing less than a political equivalent of an Ekta Kapur Sas-Bahu melodrama. NCP soon offered its support for a BJP government from outside unconditionally. With this new kahani mein twist, we all could see a perfect Bollywood love-triangle. "What if this Love-triangle was from the movie Devdas?" - with that thought in mind, we continued our Bakaiti session and equating parties with characters from the movie. Here is the outcome.

Right from the tug-of-war between Sena and BJP for seats to their breakup and then all the vituperative epithets used by Sena for Modi, Sena's behavior was more like an insolent girlfriend who had put her foot down on a demand, which lead to a breakup and then she dumps the blame on the other. Not just Paro, but Angry Paro!
A few members were expelled from Congress for opposing Sonia Gandhi's claim over the post of Prime Minister, back in 1999. These members came together and formed NCP. withing next 6 months the same party joined hands with Congress in Maharashtra to form government and then Joined UPA in the center as well. Hence, right from its 'accidental' conception, NCP has always enjoyed chair. Ever ready to partner with other parties for the pleasure of power, today after its split with Congress, its eyeing BJP; any guesses why? If Chair and Beds are furnitures and Politics, a brothel, we've found our Chandramukhi - Beautiful, shrewd and Fatal!
No points for guessing, which role resembles BJP; but since the whole scenario revolved around not the party but Modi, we had to nominate Modi for the role of Devdas, but a different Devdas. You see, as per the story, Devdas gets drunk and screws up his own health. Modi on the other hand is a teetotaller. So, what would he drink? MILK! And instead screwing up the whole situation even more like the original Devdas, Modi rolls up his sleeves and gets down to business. Hence, Modi isnt Devdas, but a Sanghi Devdas!
So, if Modi is Sanghi Devdas, who fits the bill for Chunni Babu? Ofcourse, the one and only Amit Shah! but again this Chunni Babu does not help his friend screw his life even more, but does everything he can to ensure his friend's victory. Thats Amit shah - a Sanghi Chunni Babu!
One party that has been trying to mediate a deal between Shiv Sena and BJP right when the tussle about the seats began has been the Republican Party of India (RPI). Even post polls, RPI chief Ramdas Athavle has remained hopeful of a Sena-BJP reconciliation. Yes, thats our Dharam da!
Born in an affluent family but low on morals, Congress has not only lost its ally, but now also helplessly watches it make advances towards its rival. Congress is a Cocky villain and hence Kali Babu... a Secular Kaali Babu.
An aggressive character with negative shades that has a presence on the scene as good as a cameo, provides a bit of comic relief and as the story advances which is soon rendered irrelevant is Kumud Bhabhi. Enough said!

Just when everyone thought we had discussed all the characters and parties and were busy making jokes on the last character, and predicting about new alliances, Ashraf Ali entered the scene.

Wait, what! isn't that a character from ... errm, from Gadar, ek prem katha?
yes, you guessed it right.
So isn't this kinda an intrusion?
Exactly!

Now chew on this : All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul-Muslimeen, AIMIM - a Communal party based in Hyderabad known for its floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi's venomous hate speech against Hindus, won 2 seats in Maharashtra.


Monday, 22 September 2014

Supriya Sule : Feminism or Tokenism?

Surfing news channels for my daily dose of current affairs while sipping late morning tea, a lady answering audience questions on ABP news caught my attentuon. This was Supriya Sule, daughter of NCP suprimo Sharad Pawar, in a program titled 'Ghoshnapatra'. Political biases aside, I must say I was impressed with the grace with which she answered some serious and tough questions, may it be about Farmers' suicides in Maharshtra or Dynasty politics.

What caunght my attention was her answers to two differnt random questions, that strangely connected on one subject.

A gentleman in flowery words questioned her about Dynasty politics. Obviously, this was directed towards her own 'Pawar-house' (*hint, pun). To which she gave example of R.R.Patil (Home Minister Maharashtra) who has no political background. Also, she mentioned about Nationalist Congress Party's efforts in incresing women's participation in politics right from grass-root level and how they have reached out to Women in rural Maharashtra.

After few other questions, another gentleman pointed out that often her name is mentioned as a candidate for the post of Maharashtra's CM...will the people see her as Maharashtra's first female CM?

The answer to this question is always a shy denial, but the way she denied was what impressed me the most. "I am against any kind of tokenism. A female CM does not guarantee safety and security for women. Uttar Pradesh had a female CM (Miss Mayavati) for four terms and we all know about the situation there." - She denied and NOT!

She cleverly denied any sexist ethusiasms and left the question on CM's post unanswered. We all know what an unanswered question means.

Every now and then we see people demanding more posts be headed by females, since that would ensure soltion to women's issues. Is this not sexism...against women? Are we saying a person should be given a certain post and celebrated only becuse the pronoun associated is 'SHE'? In doing so are we not undermining that person's talents and capabilities? And most importantly, drawing from Supria Sule's words, aren't we trading Feminism for Tokenism, thereby opening new ways for women to be exploited? (Remember how Lalu Prasad Yadav used Rabri Devi as a remote control? Oh, those who'd call it misogynitic Male dominated Society's treatement of women, remember Manmohan Singh's case?)

There is a thin line between all these 'isms'... let us not forget this in our enthusiasms for whatever sex we favour.