Congress cannot Compete !

As far as Delhi-ites are concerned , Congress cannot compete when it comes to promising cheaper power ( - if voted to power on 4th Dec elections )

As far as reducing electricity charges are concerned , leading political parties have promised to Delhi-ites , in their manifestos :

>     0 % reduction      (  Congress  )

>     30 % reduction    (  BJP  )

>     50  % reduction   (  AAP  )

Reason  ?

It would be a " political suicide " if Congress promises to bring down power charges  !

For past one year , Sheila Dikshit has been bending backward to justify the existing power tariff , as being the cheapest in the country

Promising a reduction would amount to admitting that there is a scope for reduction  !

If Congress were to promise a reduction , two things were certain :

>     Delhi-ites will ask for massive " refunds " for over-charging / looting

        (  approx. Rs  6,000 Crores ?  ) over the past 5 years

>     Such a " Self - Exposure " of scam , would mean , a certain defeat

       at the hands of  Aam Aadmi Party  (  AAP  ) , on 4th Dec

>      And having been voted to absolute majority , AAP will ask newly

        appointed Lokpal to investigate who pocketed this Rs 6,000 crores

        and put them behind bars !

What Sheila Dikshit - and her bosses - do not realize is :

>    " Non-promise "  notwithstanding , Congress will be reduced to a

       minority when Delhi-ites vote on 4th Dec in favor of AAP

Congress sharing opposition benches with BJP  ?

Oh  !  What a dreadful thought  !

Oh   !  What a fall was there my Countrymen  !

*    hemen   parekh   (   27   Nov   2013   )

Greatest Show on Earth ?

Elections in 5 states will get over soon

National Elections will be over in 7/8 months

Here is a partial list of what Anchors and Experts will debate on TV channels for the next few months :

>    SEATS

      *   No of seats in Lok Sabha / State Legislative Assemblies

      *   No of seats contributed by each state

      *   Current share of seats /  political party-wise

      *   Projected share of seats ( who will win how many )

      *   " Combinations & Permutations " possible to form UPA 3 / NDA 2

>    CONTESTANTS

      *   No of contestants for each seat

      *   Dynasty to which each belongs

      *   Religion / Caste / Sub-caste , to which each belongs

      *   Declaration of Assets / Wealth - and growth % since 2009

      *   Criminal records

      *   Who will win , from where and why

>     VOTERS

 

      *   No of eligible voters ( State-wise / Religion-wise / Caste-wise )

      *   No of first-time voters

>     VOTES POLLED

       *   Total

       *   Constituency-wise

       *   Vote-Share %

       *   Vote % Swing

       *   Margins

>       POLITICAL  PARTIES

         *   National Vs Regional

         *   War Chest accumulated

         *   Money spent ( - of course , cash without account only ! )

         *   Gain / Loss of vote-share

         *   No of rallies

         *   Average attendance at rallies

         *   No of high profile campaigners

         *   No of helicopters / trucks / buses hired

         *   Kilometers covered

         *   Freebies included in respective Manifestos

         *   Pre-poll / Post-poll alliances

         *   Seat-sharing formulas

         *   No of violations of Code of Conduct

         *   Mastery in abuses hurled ( or , received  ? )

>      ELECTION COMMISSION

        *   No of polling booths / sensitive booths

        *   No of Returning Officers / Poll Observers

        *   No of policemen / security forces deployed

        *   No of EVMs

        *   No of complaints received

There is no doubt , I have missed out many items

Alas !

Our " Democracy " has been reduced to its " Lowest Common Denominator " , of  a  process called " Voting " !

Karl Marx may have said,

"  Religion is the opium of the masses "

I would like to paraphrase , by saying,

"  Elections are the opium of Indian Voters "

*    hemen   parekh   (  26  Nov  2013  )

    

Justice Delayed - but not Denied

There are 300 + lakh cases pending before India's judiciary system , comprising ,

>    16,000  Trial  Courts

>     21   High  Courts

>     Supreme Court

 If you go by the average rate of disposal during the past decade , it would take more than 100 years to clear this backlog  !

Of course , by then , 400 lakh new cases would have been filed  !

So , it came as a pleasant - and welcome - surprise that , on last Saturday , Lok Adalats managed to clear , 35 lakh cases in 8 hours ! More than 10 % of the outstanding !

In Delhi alone , 300 Lok Adalat benches cleared 366,000 cases , with each bench clearing ( on an average ) , 3 cases per minute  !

In Mumbai , the record was clearance of 37,975 cases  !

Many were pending for more than 10 years  !

What kind of cases ?

>   Bounced cheques

>   Bank Recovery

>   Civil Suits

>   Motor Accident Cases

>   Service Matters

>   Family  Matters

>   Traffic Challans

>   Loan Disputes

>   Restoration of Water Connection ..... etc

How did Lok Adalats manage such fantastic rate of disposal  ?

May be because ,

>  No lawyer was present to accuse or defend  ! Litigants argued their own

    cases .  No vested interest to keep the cases going for  ever  !

>  Lok Adalats were televised live through web-casting. World was watching

>  No court staff

>  Rather than shuttle between courts for another 20 years , weary  litigants

   were happy with any " compromise "

It is said ,

"   Justice delayed is Justice denied  "

Our Lok Adalats proved that justice need not be delayed  !

Sam Pitroda ( Chairman , National Innovation Commission ) would agree that this is innovation par excellence  !

How about decorating the person who thought of Lok Adalats in the first place , with a "  Bharat Ratna  "  ?

*   hemen  parekh   (   25  Nov  2013  )

  

Demand Vs Supply

Kapil Sibal is a Master of Law

But his knowledge of Economics is not negligible

Recently , he proved it by saying ,

"  Prices of vegetables have gone up because poor people now are earning more and want to eat vegetables ( what a cheek ! )

Demand has gone up but supply has not kept pace

And , Law of Economics says ,

Prices go up when demand exceeds supply - and vice-versa  !  QED  !  "

Thank God , Kapil  did not ask poor to stop eating vegetables so that prices can come down  !

Or , ask rich people to stop eating 3 different vegetables at every meal  !

He could have even asked ALL Indians to forgo all meals for one day per week , so that demand gets reduced  !

Or , he could have quoted ,

>   Raj Babbar ( MP ) , who said,

     "  In Mumbai , you can get a rice plate for Rs 12 / -  "

     (  address please ! )

>   Congress Rajya Sabha MP , Rasheed Masood , who said ,

     "   In Jama Masjid area of Delhi , you can eat well for Rs 5 /-  "

     (  He is now getting his meals totally FREE in Tihar Jail  !  )

>    Montek Singh Ahluwalia , who proclaims ,

     "  Any person in a city , spending more than Rs 26 per day , is RICH  "

Now , not being Agriculture Minister , Kapil cannot say why supply failed to keep up with the rising population of 20 million per year ( a well kept secret ? )

But he must be considering it " Utterly Unwise " of his Government to be trying so desperately to bring 400 million people above the Poverty Line ( remember Rs 26 per day ? )

Would not that make them " Rich " enough to demand vegetables  ?

Wouldn't that make matters worse  ?

Why can't we keep them poor like our Lok Sabha MPs , who get their food in Lok Sabha canteen , at the following prices ?

*   Tea............... Rs      1.0

*   Soup..............Rs      5.5

*   Daal...............Rs      1.5

*   Meals............. Rs     2.0

*   Chapati...........Rs     1.0

*   Dosa...............Rs     4.0

*   Veg Biryani......Rs      8.0

*   Fish................Rs     13.0

*   Chicken..........Rs      24.0

And prey , why are our MPs  poor  ?

Because their cooks  /  drivers  /  maids  /  gardeners  / servants  /  watchmen  / peons  ..etc are all poor !

These servants are all staying in out-houses of the small 10 bed-room living quarters of the MPs   !

Of course , rent free since the MPs are so poor  !

 No need to vacate either , when you stop being an MP  !

Why can't Kapil persuade the Lok Sabha canteen contractor to open branches , all over India  ?

*   hemen  parekh  (  24  Nov  2013  )

  

Thank You ! Thank You ! Thank You !

Thank you ,

>   SUSHIL KUMAR SHINDE ,

     -   for ordering a probe into foreign funding of AAP

     because ,

    _   now you have made it possible to expose the funding of other political

     parties , hopefully leading to amendments of Foreign Contribution Act  /

     Representation of the People Act  /  Model Code of Conduct .. etc

>   ANNA HAZARE ,

     -   for deciding not to join AAP

    because ,

    -    if you had , you would have paralyzed the working of AAP , by

     insisting that corruption be eliminated thru a " Change of Hearts " only !

>   BABA RAMDEV ,

      -    for declaring that AAP has hijacked the Jan Lokpal Andolan of Anna

      because ,

       -    to prove you right , AAP will now pass Jan Lokpal Bill on 29 Dec

>   SHEILA DIKSHIT ,

        -    for releasing Congress Election Manifesto on the same day as the

      release of AAP manifesto

      because ,

       -   that gave Delhi-ites, an opportunity to compare , " Apple for Apple ",

       which party will solve their " Top Priority " problems

>   ANURANJAN JHA ,

      -    for conducting a sting operation on 9 AAP leaders , then " Editing "

     ( not " Doctoring " ? ) the video tape and refusing to give a copy to AAP

     (  encouraging , a " Trial by Media " ?  )

     because ,

     -      you would have to expose  your " Sponsors " when Election

     Commission calls you for interrogation

>   DR. HARSHVARDHAN ,

     -     for proclaiming that AAP is nothing more than a " B Team " of

     Congress and may win 1 or 2 seats at the most

     because ,

     -     if for nothing else than to prove you wrong , Delhi-ites will vote to

     power AAP on 4th Dec  ( with 50 + seats ? )

What a fantastic coordination among you !

What a perfect orchestration  !

What a gift to AAP  !

Thank You , all  !

*    hemen  parekh   (  23   Nov   2013  )

Much Ado About Nothing !

American spy-agencies , FBI and NSA , regularly  " spy "  upon , not only its own citizens ( - including its Congressmen / Senators ), but also on foreign dignitaries such as ,

>   Chancellor Angela Merkel   ( Germany )

>   Prime Minister Hollande      ( France  )

>   Prime Minister Cameron      ( Britain )

>   Prime Minister Kerzai          ( Afghanistan )

>   Sundry Indian Politicians...  etc

When revealed by whistle-blowers like Asange / Snowden , American Secretary of State , John Kerry simply said ,

"   All of this spying is crucial for the security of America.  We just cannot discontinue spying even if persons being spied upon are our close friends. If anyone feels hurt , we cannot help "

What Kerry left unsaid is ,

"  Period . Put up or shut up !

   Every country spies on its own citizens .

   If you don't know about this fundamental fact of statehood , you must be

   an ignoramus !  "

Those high and mighty kept quiet , since they are guilty of the spying , themselves  !

So , what is all this hoolaboolu about Gujarat police spying on a girl , as requested for , by her own father  ?

But since opposition politicians have run out of serious election issues , they must clutch at the straw to remain afloat  !

They know this is their only hope of appearing on TV news channels  !

What they seem to forget  is :

TV anchors - and their businessmen owners - know too well that people will stop watching a debate on a 5 year old " Non-Issue " after just 3 days  !

So , if they wish to continue to be invited on TV panel discussions , opposition politicians must find another " Non-Issue " - and fast  !

Much ado about nothing !

*    hemen   parekh   (  22   Nov   2013  )  

The Real Issue

Elections or no elections , there is only ONE real issue before the nation

India's net population is growing at 20 million per year

This perfectly tallies with addition of 100 million first-time voters ( during past 5 years ) , since last general election in 2009

These young men and women, are asking Congress / BJP :

Where are our JOBS  ?

Ans :

Sorry , there are NO JOBS  !

Proof  :

>    During 2004 - 2009 , only 2.76 million jobs were created ( some

    5.5 lakh jobs per year ! )

>   I have no idea how many jobs got created during 2009-2013

>   With 42 million ( 420 lakh ) registered jobless on their rolls , India's

   Employment Exchanges manage to find jobs for less than 1 lakh persons

   per year  ( 1 job for every 420 jobless registered !  )

>   Remaining  4 / 5 lakh jobs must have been found by jobless themselves

Now , both , BJP and Congress Manifesto are promising to create 15 million jobs in next  5 YEARS , if voted to power in 2014

Except that their manifestos are silent on how they will find an investment of Rs 150,000 Crores required to create these jobs  !

I hope it is still not too late for Narendra Modi to announce :

"  If BJP is voted to power , we will facilitate and encourage the businesses / industrialists / politicians / bureaucrats / religious trusts etc, to invest their stashed away - and non-productive BLACK MONEY , into INFRASTRUCTURE / EDUCATION / HEALTHCARE / HOUSING ..etc, thru an AMNESTY SCHEME

 

We will create 15 Million jobs , EVERY YEAR  "

*    hemen   parekh   (  21  Nov  2013  )

Ignorant All !

American Congressmen are not much different from Indian " Congress "-men , when it comes to Modi-baiting  !

They are all , equally ignorant  !

American Congressman , Keith Ellison ( Democrat ) and Joe Pitts ( Republican ) , have introduced a resolution in their House of Representative , demanding that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi should continue to be denied a visa

Except that they don't even know ( or seem to ignore ) , that Modi has NOT even applied for an American visa  !

So , where is the question of " denying "  ?

I pity Mr Pitts  !

He has lost his only chance of being named , American Ambassador to India , when Narendra Modi takes over as Prime Minister of India , in 200 + days  !

But ,

if he wants to sit in the opposition , along with our very own " Congress "-men , in India's Parliament ,

>   India's Congress party , would be too happy to give him,- a " foreigner " - a ticket for 2014 elections ( - they have a precedent to go by  !  )

>   NaMo would be too happy to grant him Indian Citizenship

Provided he formally " Applies " for one  !

No " denying " in advance , assuming that he will apply  !


No " anticipatory denial  "  !

Till then , he , along with his 14 co-sponsors , should continue to welcome - and entertain on American soil , - dozens of ruthless dictators from Africa , Middle East and Latin America , who are still going around killing thousands of their own citizens , year after year

And that includes the Bosses of the Communist Party of China , who continue to torture thousands of Tibetans

Obviously , having " Double Standards " is not an exclusive prerogative of Indian " Congress "-men  !

*    hemen   parekh   (  20  Nov   2013  )