Patil resigns, Chidambaram new Home Minister

 Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has come up with a master move. With the Mumbai terror saga still refusing to die down, first he got Home Minister Shivraj Patil to resign, replacing him with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and finally taking himself the additional responsibility of finance. Indeed, the PM has got two birds with one stone. Patil as minister had been committing blunder after blunder, and is pretty infamous for his cliched remarks after every terror strike – “We are looking into it.” In fact speaking of the Mumbai attacks he had said that for a large and famed city like Mumbai, the recent attack is just a ’small’ thing. 

Also,with recession looming large over the nation, the PM’s decision to make himself handle finance is also a welcome move. Chidambaram had been under performing and  could have done a lot better considering his credentials. There is no doubt that the Mr. Singh is the best economist in the country and is no stranger to his new post, having served as FM under PV Narasimha Rao. Manmohan is  the best person in the country who could probably save the country from a financial crisis. 

The changes are also good for the Congress with general elections just around the corner. The PM and his colleagues better pull up their socks if they want to see a repeat of 2004.

ECB should cancel the test series

I know this is just a small issue when compared to the terrorist situation in Mumbai. But I felt something should be said about it. The ECB and the BCCI did the right thing by cancelling th remaining two ODIs of the current one day series between the two sides. But I really don’t see the justice behind the ECB’s decision to carry on with the test series next month.  It is the same ECB that along with a few other ‘white’ boards refused to play in the Champions trophy in Pakistan a couple of months back. Isn’t it the same situation here in India too?

The point is BCCI is reimposing its role as the Big Daddy of the cricket world, even bigger than the ICC. It is only under pressure from BCCI has the ECB decided to play. I would be surprised if the players agree to play the tests, after all they were the ones who were scared to play in Pakstan. Although the 2nd test earlier scheduled to be played at the Brabourne in Mumbai has been moved to Chennai, the ground reality in India is still the same. When a group of 20 terrorists could bring a city as grand as Mumbai to its knees, what’s the guarantee that Chennai which so far hasn’t seen any terror issues, can cope up?

Then again, what is the need to move the test to Chennai and not any other city? The city has been plagued by heavy rains for the past week. MA Chidambaram is one stadium that has seen more rain interruptions than any other stadium in the country. Kolkata should ahve been the ideal venue for the test. But as we all know, Jaggi Dalmiya is back at the top of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) and the BCCI certainly is not impressed with this. Sharad Pawar had earlier moved the BCCI headquarters from the Eden Gardens to the Brabourne in Mumbai after replacing Dalmiya as the BCCI head. 

If the ECB has any conscience of its own, they should refuse to take part in the test series. The bottom line of all this is that Indian cricket, Money and Politics are blood brothers.

Mumbai terror: Saluting the brave men

The whole country’s eyes are on Mumbai. It is astonishing that it took such a major terror strike for us to realise the importance of the country’s security forces. In the past 24 hours, the country has lost 14 policemen including 3 of the country’s best. ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, DIG Ashok Kamte and encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar laid down their lives fighting for the safety of the citizen’s of the country. Men from forces including the Army, the Navy, the National Security Guard (NSG) and the Mumbai Police are still bravely putting their lives opn the lines trying to bring the situation under control and ensure the safety of the people. 

It is high time that the politicians, bureaucrats and even the people of India should look up at the men who protect the nation from anti-social elements, criminals and terrorists alike. Heroes from the previous wars are yet to receive their dues. All those who have lost their lives may have got awards for their bravery but their families are still not able to cope with life after that. There are many who have lost their arms and legs, most of them are willing to go back to the fronts once again if the nation requires. It is saddening that the government has done nothing about these courageous men. It is not the top officers, but the average Jawan who lost everything waging war against the enemy, but his spirit, who is fighting hard now to get a proper compensation. This at a time when the pay commission is playing games and creating havoc on the lives of the patriotic men who are afraid of nothing.

I salute the brave men who have sacrificed their lives over the years fighting the enemy. The nation will never forget you. Jai Hind!