Indian-American dean of UC Berkeley law on 'indefinite leave' over sexual harassment suit

You meet one Indian, and if he is good, your ratio is 100% of good Indians. Now, you meet two, one of them turns to be an asshole, your ratio drops to 50%,  and finally if you meet a 1000, and the bad ones are 3 or 4, your ratio goes down to .003%  and they will start making the news. 

As we (Indians) increase in numbers, the bad guys will start popping up, we will start seeing Indian gangs, Indian thugs and Indian in bad things. We have seen plenty of men in banking scandals, stealing millions and getting caught, we have seen Doctors robbing the patients, and now we will be appearing in day to day life.

Last year 355 mass murders took place for a population of 318 Millions, that is roughly 1.2%, compare that to Muslims, there was one mass murderer in San Bernandino out of 6 Million - that is less than 0.12%  - ten times less than the their proportionate share.

Now, Indians will be popping in bad news and are going to Jails.

Should we be ashamed of these men? Hell no, you did not do it, I did not do it, even if he were our son, it is his heine that will be hauled off to jail, not yours or mine.

This guy Sujit Chowdhry is a dumb ass, and ruined it all to please his prick. It is annoying, we could have been proud of him.... ah well.

Mike Ghouse
http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com
 

Courtesy - Times of India
Chidanand Rajghatta | TNN | Mar 10, 2016, 06.45 PM IST

WASHINGTON: The Indian-American dean of the prestigious University of California, Berkeley, law school - the first ever PIO to head a law school in America - has been felled by a sexual harassment lawsuit.

Sujit Chowdhry, a highly-regarded constitutional scholar, will be stepping down and taking an "indefinite leave of absence" after the university reportedly found some merit in the charges against him by his executive assistant, who said he made inappropriate advances at her over a period of months.

"A thorough investigation of this case found that Dean Choudhry's behaviour in this situation violated policy and that he demonstrated a failure to understand the power dynamic and the effect of his actions on the plaintiff personally and in her employment," University executive vice chancellor and provost Claude Steele said in a statement on Wednesday night, disclosing that Choudhry will be "stepping down to his faculty position and salary."

"Based on the findings of the investigation I believed that a combination of disciplinary actions, monitoring of his behavior and formal training would be an appropriate and effective response, and would produce the necessary changes in his behavior," Steele added.

In a complaint filed on Tuesday against Choudhry and the University of California Board of Regents, Tyann Sorell, the former executive assistant, said Choudhry sexually harassed her — rubbing her shoulders and arms, kissing her cheeks and giving her bear hugs that pressed her body against him. When she brought this to the notice of supervisors, they first failed to stop Chowdhry and then tried to retaliate against her.

"The hugs became tighter and more lingering and the kissing more intimate in that over time Choudhry's kisses began to land closer and closer" to her mouth, according to the court documents cited in the local media.

Chowdhry had not commented on the charges or against the university action at the time of writing.
Choudhry, 46, moved to California from New York University (NYU), where he founded, and helmed, the Center for Constitutional Transitions. The New Delhi-born academic has received rave reviews for his scholarship in the area, including for work in the sub-continent (he is currently co-editing the Oxford Handbook of Indian Constitutional Law), before he came to head the UC Berkeley Law School, whose alumni include former Chief Justice of the United States Earl Warren, former Secretary of State Dean Rusk, and Silicon Valley legal eagle Larry Sonsini, among others.

Law is not among the favored subject of Indian students in the United States that has brought some 100,000 collegiates stateside. According to the Open Doors report that monitors foreign student inflow to the US, some 75 per cent of students from India go into engineering, math, and science streams, and close to 15 per cent study at business schools. The report does not tabulate law school entrants, but social sciences and humanities account for less than 5 per cent.

Anecdotal reports suggest that is starting to change, particularly among Indian-Americans, and in a 2014 interview with TOI, Choudhry concurred. "When I went to law school 20 years ago there weren't many Indian kids growing up in North America who considered law," he recalled. "The way in which legal education had been viewed relative to other opportunities at home (in India) had kind of carried over to North America."


In part, there were historical reasons for Indian students not looking to U.S for law studies. "If you look at Indian legal elite, Oxbridge and London were the central points of reference from the 1930s to 1980s," said Choudhry. Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, Jinnah and others trooped to the UK to burnish their legal credentials, and only Ambedkar among the Founding Fathers came to the US (to New York's Columbia University).

Choudhry maintains it is very different now, and top law schools in America are "full of Indians, whether they are from India or Indian kids who have grown up here." The perceived value of legal education has changed since liberalization, he says, and India has turned increasingly towards American institutions of higher education, because "work here is more interdisciplinary and increasingly global in its orientation."


Even more so in culturally and ethnically diverse California and Bay Area (where UC Berkeley Law goes head-to-head against Stanford Law School), which Choudhry said, is what drew him to the West Coast (in addition to the small matter of having an extensive family network there).

"Great law schools of the 21st century will be a global crossroads for people and ideas from around the world," Choudhry said in the interview. "Legal issues are not confined to single jurisdictions now. They may have state, federal, foreign, international and transnational dimensions."

Pakistani Hindus are a resilient minority too

Pakistani Hindus are a resilient minority too | MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.comhttp://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2015/06/pakistani-hindus-are-resilient-minority.html

It's a  fascinating article about Pakistani Hindus, Sameer Arshad writes, "The likes of Karni do not fit into how Pakistani Hindus are perceived in India" and most Indians would nod yes to it.   There is no doubt about the persecution, abductions and forcible conversions that are going in Pakistan; unfortunately the government has failed Pakistanis in protecting the rights of all citizens. Those thugs should not call themselves Muslims. Here is another story to it as well, that Sameer has painted it well.  The Pakistani Muslims have hard time believing that Indian Muslims would not want to live in any other nation than India.
Both Nations are identical in nature; they are indeed copy cats in doing bad things. Nuclear power, minorities live in apprehension, honor killing/bride burning, forcible conversions/ ghar wapasi, church burning, both deny visa to each other, and the leaders on both sides don't have the balls to put their foot down. Then the right wing Hindus of India and right wing Muslims of Pakistan speak the same language. What we need to do is to speak up against the extremists, because the majority of all of us are good people, be it religious, nationalistic or whatever stick, 

Some 12 years ago, I spoke at Hare Krishna Temple in Dallas on the eve of Janamashtami, several Pakistani Hindu Americans came up and talked to me, and said that they could relate with me. And in Louisville, my second home, I spoke at length with Dr. Lohano and Dr. Bhimani - yes, I could relate with them; the story is same except role reversals.  I am focused on initiating a course on Pluralism at this time, if not there is a need to study the Majority Minority relationships - no matter what religious cloak you wear, the behavior is identical.  The responsibility to call ourselves a civil society falls on the majority in how they treat their minorities.  No nation on the earth can be called completely civilized nation. May be we need to develop a civility index and measure nations.

I have appended three related articles below if you have the time.

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net 

# # # #
Pakistani Hindus are a resilient minority too
Coutresy - Times of India
Disbelief swept social media when the scion of an influential Pakistani Hindu family, Karni Singh, married an Indian woman with much Rajput pomp in Jaipur last week. It was understandable as any mention of Pakistani Hindus conjures up images of a necessarily persecuted minority. Expressions like influential Pakistani Hindu groom as such naturally sound oxymoronic. How has been it possible for Karni’s family to maintain its status and influence? This was the question that baffled many. The likes of Karni do not fit into how Pakistani Hindus are perceived in India. It has a lot to do with the idea of India seen as an ideal one in contrast with flawed Pakistan and prompts a broad-brushed portrayal of Pakistani Hindus as essentially hounded. The depiction cloaks complicated issues of class and caste besides admirable resilience of many Hindus, who have excelled in varied fields despite odds.

Karni Singh’s family is one of many upper caste Hindus, who have made a mark in politics, judiciary, activism, sports and fashion. In fact, at least one Hindu business family is among the highest taxpayers in Pakistan along with two Parsi clans of hoteliers and winemakers. In politics, Karni’s family has excelled since partition when its patriarch and Hindu Sodha clan head Rana Arjun Singh stayed back in Pakistan. He was a Muslim League member, who ignored calls for joining the Congress. Arjun Singh’s son, Chander Singh, carried forward his legacy and went on to become a parliamentarian, a federal minister and founding member of liberal Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Chander Singh enjoyed cross-border influence to the extent that he brokered the India-Pakistan thaw that facilitated then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s historic Lahore trip in 1999.

Karni’s father, Rana Hameer Singh, now holds sway in Thar Desert region that has a large Hindu population as Sodha Rajput head. His family has maintained its status in the area over centuries despite many destabilising upheavals due to its unique legacy. Hameer’s forefather and Amarkot (now Umerkot) ruler Rana Prasad had given refuge to emperor Humayun and his pregnant wife after Sher Shah Suri ousted the Mughal emperor in 1540. The royal couple’s illustrious son, Akbar, was born in Amarkot two years later under Rana Prasad’s protection. Akbar would perhaps have never been able to reclaim his father’s empire and expand it had not it been for Rana Prasad’s help. The bond boosted Hindu-Muslim affinity in syncretic Sindh. It endured in places like Umerkot even after the horrible rupture in 1947 that convulsed large parts of the subcontinent. The syncretism was evident when Rana Hameer Singh was anointed his father’s successor in May 2010. A large number of Hindus and Muslims joined his grand coronation in a procession in Hindu-dominated Mithi town. Hameer Singh arrived at the venue to his coronation in a convoy of hundreds of vehicles as two girls performed aarti. Hameer Singh sat on a decorated chariot while Rajputs in traditional headgear lined the road amid Hindu chants as part of an 800-year-old coronation tradition.

Communist leader Sobho Gianchandani was antithesis of the Ranas and perhaps best embodied Hindu resilience in Pakistan. His death aged 94 in Larkana in December 2014 ended his seven decade struggle against the establishment, imperialism, dictatorship, unjust society and Sindh’s autonomy. Gianchandani, who belonged to a landed upper caste family as well, refused to leave Pakistan in 1947 even as he was repeatedly incarcerated after his Communist Party of Pakistan was proscribed six years later. His consciousness was shaped a decade earlier while he studied at Rabindranath Tagore’s Shantiniketan University. Gianchandani remained resolute as one of Pakistan’s best-known Marxists. He organised peasants and industrial workers. The mobilisation helped Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s socialist PPP win the 1970 national election within two years of its formation. Pakistan’s slide began after General Zia-ul-Haq deposed Bhutto and had him hanged. The USSR’s invasion of Afghanistan eight months later made Zia the darling of the west as he colluded with it against the Soviets. Gianchandani was a leading voice of dissent against Zia-US alliance that abused religion, boosted fanaticism and began corroding the society in the 1980s. Despite his lifelong anti-establishment credentials, the government at least recognized Gianchandani’s contribution to literature when he became the first Sindhi to be awarded Pakistan Academy of Letter’s Award of Excellence in 2004.

Away from the uncertainty of activism in feudal, rural Sindh, designer Deepak Perwani remains Pakistan’s best-know fashion designer and most glamorous Hindu. He belongs to landed elite among Pakistani Hindus based mostly in Karachi and Hyderabad and remains enduring symbols of the country’s soft power. As the face of Pakistani fashion globally, the iconic fashion designer has been the originator of Islamic fashion festival, He was named Pakistan’s cultural ambassador to China and Malaysia a decade earlier. Deepak’s brother, Naveen Perwani, is among Pakistan’s best-known snooker players, who has represented the country globally and won medals at the Asian Games. But cricketer Danish Kaneria remains the country’s most successful Hindu sportsman. He became the country’s highest wicket-taking test spinner before match-fixing ended his promising career. Kaneria’s cousin, Anil Dalpat, too played for Pakistan in the 1980s.

Pakistani Hindus are predominantly traders, who have excelled in big businesses as well. Hindu-owned Chawla International (CI) is one of Pakistan’s biggest agricultural products company. It is among the largest suppliers of pesticides and owns Pakistan’s biggest rice mill. Businessman Bhagwan Das Chawla set up CI in December 1999 after excelling in family trade in tobacco, coal and beverages. Chawla’s main business before 1999 was octroi/tax collection nationally for the government with annual turnover of one billion.

Beyond business, Captain Danish earned the distinction of being the first Pakistani Hindu army officer when he was commissioned in 2006. Another officer Aneel Kumar has followed in his footsteps. Both belong to Sindh and joined the army despite family opposition. Danish has served in Wana in Pakistan’s tribal areas, where army soldier Ashok Kumar died fighting Taliban terrorists last year.

In judiciary, Rana Bhagwandas remains a role model thanks to his integrity. He went on to take the highest judicial post when he served as the first Hindu and third non-Muslim chief justice of Pakistan. He headed the country’s Federal Public Service Commission after his retirement. Bhagwandas is a regular visitor to Hindu mystic Neelu Bhagwan’s ashram in Uttar Pradesh and a follower of Sindh’s most-venerated saint Ishtadeva Uderolal Jhulelal or Darya Shah. The saint epitomises Sindh’s unique syncretic culture. Both Hindus and Muslims venerate mystics like Jhulelal, who are often known by different names among the two communities. A mosque and a temple exist in harmony on Jhulelal’s mausoleum complex near Sukkur in Sindh.

Sindh retains the semblance of its inclusive past as a result of the legacy of the mystics such as Jhulelal. It is home to all religious and ethnic communities. Over 90% Pakistani Hindus live in the province, where Hindus account for 49% of the population in Umerkot, 46% in Tharparkar and 33% in Mirpurkhas district. Their population varies from 8-19% elsewhere in Sindh. A majority of them belong to lower castes, who have not been beneficiaries of caste reform like in India. It is no coincidence that the Ranas, Gianchandhanis, Perwanis, Kanerias, Chawlas etc are all upper caste and largely shielded by vulnerabilities Dalits face particularly in rural Sindh. The plight of lower castes mirrors that of Muslim peasants reeling under the oppression of waderas (landlords), who dominate politics and have frustrated all attempts to carry out land reforms.

A minuscule minority of Goan Christians and Parsis like upper caste Hindus have excelled in virtually all fields purely because of their class. Goan Christian community in particular has given Pakistan some of its finest journalists, top ranking military officers, educationists, sportspeople, businessmen, musicians, jurists etc. Its affluence is in total contrast to Dalit Christian converts in Punjab, who continue to suffer discrimination like Hindu scheduled castes. A weak state and deep-rooted feudalism compounds their problems and make them softer targets of violence. Benefits of the quota systems in legislative bodies and jobs have not benefited lower castes as the state sees the Hindus as a monolith without taking yawning disparities between upper and scheduled castes into account. Reservations as such have been reduced to tokenism as upper castes exclusively benefit from them. Except Khatu Mal Jeewan, Kanji Ram and Poonjo Bheel, all other 21 Hindus lawmakers in Pakistan’s parliament and four provincial assemblies are upper caste. Pakistani activists have long complained 10% upper caste Hindus rule the majority 90% scheduled castes.

Quotas in jobs have not helped lower castes either at both federal and provincial levels as they are not exclusively entitled to them. Minorities on the whole irrespective of their varied conditions are entitled to five per cent job reservation in federal government services, including the Central Superior Services (equivalent of Indian Administrative Services) and provincial jobs in Punjab and Sindh. Smaller provinces Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa offer them three per cent job reservation. Quotas would remain meaningless as long as they are not implemented with greater sense of purpose that ends all forms of discrimination as well. Perhaps serious revision of text books that portray minorities as the other could be the first step in this direction. Pakistani state’s attempts to overhaul the country in the face of existential nihilistic Taliban threat would remain meaningless unless well-being and equality for minorities is not ensured. It is now or never for Pakistan to understand diversity is a strength that needs to be nurtured. The sooner it is realised, the better it would be for the state at crossroads and corroding from within courtesy Zia’s toxic legacy of exclusion dating back to the 1980s.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.
 

Sameer Arshad is a chief copy editor with The Times of India. He primarily rewrites and edits news stories, but writing on Kashmir, human rights, minority affairs, Af-Pak, South and West Asia is his labour of love.

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Hindutva forces hell bent on converting Muslims and Christians

Every human should be free to eat, drink, wear and believe whatever the hell he or she wants, and no one should be forced to do otherwise in a free country. It is the freedom that is allowing each one of us to be who we are out of our own volition. At no cost we should let this freedom be compromised.

This is the story of aggressive harassment by extremists among Hindus. Bajrang Dal is becoming to be ISIS or Hindu ISIS of India, when this is allowed, at the very end of the tunnel, no one, yes no one, including Hindus who do not subscribe to their extremism will be affected severely.

I am glad the entire Muslim world is condemning ISIS, they are tarnishing the name of Islam and there is nothing Islamic about them, they are rogues and freaks. Even the Talibans have washed hands off them.  Now, the entire Hindu world has Hindu-ISIS on their hands and I hope they condemn the harassment and threats they pose to fellow Indians.

We should have no problem if Muslims convert to Hinduism or Hindus to Christianity or any combination thereof, even if each group is lured financially to become one. The politicians switch parties for money or election; we change jobs for better money. Why shouldn't people switch for the same money, and meeting their dire needs of food, clothing and a source of income?

For years the extremists among Hindus have attacked Christians for bribing people to convert, and now they are doing the very same thing they accused others of. What Muslims factually or allegedly did in the past, should remain behind 1947. We are a new independent and free India and our story began on August 15, 1947 and we don't want India to be like what we shun.

Now, every Indian is a goddamned Indian regardless of his or her faith, caste, color, social, political or financial status, and we need to stand up against injustice to every Indian. We should rise above pettiness and speak up, before the extremism takes over and we have to regret.

I hope to write my 16th essay about Modi urging him to take the lead and speak up and not be a silent spectator and watch his dream, like the dream of 1.25 billion Indians go down the drain. We want pragati and not religion.

Mike Ghouse

www.MikeGhouse.net 

# # #

TIMES OF INDIA

Lure of ration cards for food led to Agra 'reconversion'?

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/Lure-of-ration-cards-led-to-Agra-reconversion/articleshow/45443004.cms 

AGRA: A day after a group of around 200 Muslims in Madhunagar slum-cluster here claimed they had "reconverted" to Hinduism, many of them on Tuesday said they were still Muslims, with some admitting that they had joined the RSS and Bajrang Dal-organized 'ghar vapsi' ceremony after being promised ration cards and houses. The saffron outfits, though, rubbished this claim, saying there was no inducement for "reconversion".

Farhan, a slum dweller, said, "If 40 people in saffron scarves come and stand on your head, you will do just as they want." Farhan was among those who had taken part in the puja, washed the feet of Hindu gods and also briefly worn vermillion on his forehead. On Tuesday, though, he said it was all for getting those men in "saffron scarves" off his back.

The re-conversion event was painted as "ghar vapsi" or re-conversion of Muslims who had Hindu ancestry. It was organized by the Dharma Jagran Samanvay Vibhag, an offshoot of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Bajrang Dal. A 'shuddhikaran hawan' was also performed in the slum.

Bajrang Dal functionary Ajju Chauhan said the re-conversion had indeed taken place, and if the people were denying it, it was out of fear. "All these people have Hindu ancestors. They just did 'ghar vapsi'," he said, adding, "They were not lured by ration cards or houses. They wanted to lead clean lives."

District magistrate Pankaj Kumar and SSP Shalabh Mathur said no one had approached them in connection with the re-conversion event.


READ ALSO: RSS 're-converts' 200 Agra Muslims, says more in line


Ismail, who led the 200-odd Muslims in the event, said he offered namaz on Tuesday after no one from the saffron outfits turned up in their neighbourhood. "We're poor people and anyone can do anything with us. We can't afford to lose our lives over religion and conversion," Ismail said, adding that the promise of ration cards and houses had drawn many people.

"They first threatened to get us to vacate our homes. The land is owned by a Hindu. Later, they said that if we converted, we would get houses and better schooling for children," Ismail said. The women who had posed before cameramen on Monday sappeared withdrawn the day after and would not even allow the kids out to play.

Read this in Hindi: नया मोड़: RSS ने लालच देकर कराया धर्म परिवर्तन?

A letter to my Prime Minister Shri Modi by Janab Ali Khan

A letter to my Prime Minister Shri Modi by Janab Ali Khan
URL - http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2014/05/a-letter-to-my-prime-minister-shri-modi.html

Kudos to Mr. Ali Khan for writing a thoughtful letter to the next  Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi. As usual one of our right wingers,  a Kiran Mehta see faults in it. Sadly,   the hardcore right and left are incapable of seeing another point of view but tearing up others – and of course their freedom must be valued without having to agree. In a democracy, the best thing to do is respond with a better answer. 

So, here is my response to Kiran Mehta’s five questions (at the very bottom of this entire note);

1.      He said, very few people – that is Muslims of India, have the honor and privilege of choosing their home land – compared to the 80% Hindu majority who did not have that option of choosing.
 
2.      He said, the new government will allow me to express my feelings of patriotism in my own language – that is Jai Hind, as opposed to Modi’s language he contrasted Bharat Mata ki Jai.
 
3.      Muslims, Dalits, Christians and other do not want any appeasements, handouts or favors, all they want is to have equal opportunities, access and equal say. Thank God India is a democracy that allows every one the freedom to speak  of which you and I are beneficiaries.
 
4.      He addressed the specifics – to be treated like an Indian as guaranteed in the constitution, but the right wing elements of India cannot see an India together, like the goon Giriraj, who does not treat other Indians as equals. Ali did the right thing by asking questions, that is the right of every citizen.
 
5.      Yes, Indian electorate has chosen development, and Muslims, Christians and Dalits have also chosen Modi in the same percentages as the Hindus.  Modi has the best answer for your question, he said, “whether you voted for me or not, I represent you, and I am your prime Minister’.
 
All Ali Khan letter must be admired, and I do hope that Mr. Modi invites him to the inauguration and gives him a hug and assures him that every Indian is his Bhai or Behan as he has repeatedly said.

What Ali Khan did was fulfill the duty of a responsible citizen to point out the flaws, so India can be flawless, that is Patriotism and we need to reward this guy for writing such a letter. Indeed, a true patriotic Indian is the one who takes the responsibility to tear down the government policies, if they are wrong, no matter who they are, God, Gandhi, Pundit Nehru or Narendra Modi.
  
More about Narendra Modi at my website site MikeGhouse.net.  I am getting convinced Modi is the right man to shape India’s rejuvenated destiny, when I read the letters like this.

Mike Ghouse
Dallas, Texas

A letter to my Prime Minister
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/counterflows/a-letter-to-my-prime-minister/
 
As a citizen of India I want to have faith in my government. No matter who is elected I want to feel that the only thing that matters when the government looks at me is the fact that I am Indian. Given that Shri Narendra Modi is about to be Prime Minister of India, I have some questions. Before I ask these I want to preempt the usual diatribes that will be leveled at me and say to those who might disagree with my questions, at least allow me to ask them because I do so in complete sincerity.

As an Indian I want to believe, in fact I need to believe, that the Prime Minister will not only be representative of me and all my fellow countrymen but will also continue the proud traditions of equanimity, equality, harmony and justice that I grew up with. I too want to celebrate democracy in my country and participate in welcoming a government that has promised so much but I do not want to feel that just because my views on certain things might be different I might be excluded.

There is no doubt that the Congress Party has yet again demonstrated an arrogant callousness about their role in politics in India. Compared to the well-managed, well funded and indeed overwhelming campaign of the BJP, the Congress' attempts suggest a complete dereliction of duty and are therefore inexcusable. Rahul Gandhi's snub of his own Prime Minister recently when he did not attend a farewell dinner, his un-remarkable speech and what could easily be interpreted as a supercilious expression during and after it only add to the public perception that the Gandhi family are disconnected and unconcerned about their role in Indian politics. He was a study in contrast to Tarun Gogoi who announced his decision to resign following the results in Assam, a state that has consistently voted for the Congress Party.

However, certain features of the BJP's campaign are worrying to me. I do not think that only a Muslim can represent Muslims or only a Hindu can represent Hindus but I do believe that whoever leads India has to instill confidence in all sections of society that they are impartial and non-partisan. Thus, what worries me is that although Shri Modi has only spoken using the rhetoric of development and has rightly castigated the Congress for its shortcomings, people who have openly declared hatred for sections of the Indian population are nonetheless in the BJP. There are many people who believe that religion is an inextricable part of Indian citizenship. Would this be the government's point of view?

Some time ago when I was in rural Uttar Pradesh, a state that has given the BJP a huge mandate, an old farmer said to me "Look! I eat bread from the same soil that my neighbor Shakeel tills. We used to go to the same well and now we share handpumps. The same wires bring us electricity, when I have crops to sell we walk on the same road and sell in the same market." As was implicit in what you said in Ahmadabad, and as I am sure you would agree, suffering and poverty have no religion.

Not long ago I, born 35 years after independence, was asked by a compatriot about whether Muslims regret not going to Pakistan? Very few people have the honour and privilege of consciously choosing their homeland. The fact is that millions of Indians chose to remain Indian after we acquired our independence and continue to be proud and happy to be Indian. Every single day since then many of them have prayed and prostrated themselves on the soil of the homeland they embraced 67 years ago and in doing so have affirmed their belief in the sanctity of this land. These feelings are borne out of their respect for and trust in our constitution and our institutions and so I am sure that arbitrary and unfair legislation will not be used to undermine these institutions or our bond to them. Today if some of my fellow countrymen persecute me or others on account of our views, beliefs or even backgrounds will you fulfill the duty of protection that the government owes to all its citizens?

History is more a prism to understand the present than a mirror that reflects the past. Our country is only 67 years old and before that many things happened which today would be unjustifiable. The reasons for injustices are manifold. They are not reducible to simple binaries. So would you agree that history should not be placed as a burden on any citizens of independent India? Especially not the overwhelming number who were born Indians, remain Indians and are committed to the idea of India?

Finally I would like to end by saying Hindustan Zindabad! I know that you began your speech in Vadodara by saying Bharat Mata ki Jai. I reaffirm and respect the extent of his veneration for our homeland but I hope the new government will allow me to express my feelings of patriotism in my own language. Jai Hind!
____

@Ali Khan Mahmudabad Your silence is deafening. I am still awaiting a response to the points I made in my previous comment which I repeat here. When you say \"Very few people have the honour and privilege of consciously choosing their homeland\", ARE you seriously suggesting that those Muslims who chose to move to Pakistan were privileged?? Please clarify. 2) You conclude by saying \"I hope the new government will allow me to express my feelings of patriotism in my own language\". Are you seriously suggesting your freedom of speech to express your \"patriotism\" for India (in YOUR language) may be curtailed - now that NDA is in power? 3) Your blog smacks of a \"sore loser\" wanting to maintain a discredited status quo of appeasement and special treatment. 4) To be treated like an Indian, start acting like one. In the words of JKF \"ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country\". 5) The Indian electorate has chosen development over petty minded irrelevance that is evident in your blog.

Pak says India played big role in its bid for UNSC seat

PTI | Oct 29, 2011, 10.34AM IST
Times of India

KARACHI: India played a big role in supporting Pakistan's successful bid to become a non-permanent member of the powerful UN Security Council, Islamabad's envoy to the world body Abdullah Hussain Haroon said here today.

Many of the countries that Pakistan had considered as friends were no longer its friends, but India "supported us in becoming a non-permanent member of the 15-member Security Council," Haroon told reporters at the Karachi airport.

Pakistan, which was challenged by Kyrgyzstan, was backed by 129 of the 193 member states in the UN General Assembly. Kyrgyzstan polled 55 votes.

Pakistan will replace Lebanon, which currently occupies the Asian seat, on January 1, 2012, for a two-year term.

Haroon said that Pakistan had worked very hard in the past six months to win votes for the prestigious seat.

"I think we should not be discouraged by the reaction by some of the nations in the UN because I can say the world wants Pakistan to play its positive role in the global scenario," he said.

Pakistan has been on the Council six times earlier -- 1952-53, 1968-69, 1976-77, 1983-84, 1993-94 and 2003-04. It's new term would overlap with India -- which began its two-year tenure on January 1 this year -- for the fourth time.

Pakistan and India had earlier shared terms on the Security Council in 1968, 1977 and 1984.

Haroon said Pakistan was committed to multilateralism and promoting principles and purposes enshrined in the UN Charter.

To a question on US drone attacks in Pakistan's tribal areas, he said he could only take up the issue if the government authorised him to do so. "But we should not be scared of these attacks." he added.

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, writer and a thinker committed to cohesives societies and presents pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.
www.MikeGhouse.net