MERE SLIP OF THE TONGUE..........

Well; well; well; the mutual acrimony; rancour; bitterness and bad blood between the swashbuckling opening batsman Virender Sehwag and India's so called most successful captain Mahendar Singh Dhoni is out in the public domain for all to see.......
At the outset; let me make it clear that I am far from being either a Dhoni fan or acolyte and have always believed that Sourav "Dada" Ganguly was and will continue to the best skipper that I have seen during my lifetime as he set the foundation and built up the team that took Indian cricket to unprecedented and unimagined heights of cricketing glory and stardom........
What made this fact crystal clear was Sehwag's noteworthy omission of Dhoni's name from the list of captains; coaches and administrators who allowed him to flourish and achieve the unique cricketing pedestal he occupies all by himself.........
 During the course of his all to brief speech during the felicitation ceremony organised by the DDCA preceding the onset of the India-South Africa test match early this (December 3rd) morning Sehwag took the time out to express his gratitude and eternal thankfulness to his father for allowing him to play the game; make it his entire life and express himself in the manner that only he could.........
 He also paid reverence to his first coach A.N. Sharma and other coaches whom he did not mention by name as well as his first captain Ajay Jadeja followed by Sourav Ganguly; Rahul Dravid; Anil Kumble and Sachin Tendulkar strictly in that order........
Viru also mentioned the steadfast and fawning Indian cricket fan who stood like the "Rock of Gibraltar" by his side at every step of his illustrious cricketing career and thus played an instrumental role in making him strive that extra mile in order to achieve cricketing immortality.........
 Was the omission of Dhoni's name from the list of captains to whom he owed everything and more a slip of the tongue; a momentary memory loss or then a deliberate slight to the captain that many believe truncated and short circuited Sehwag's career even though he had a good three to four years of cricket left in him at the point when the carpet was unceremoniously pulled out from under his feet by Dhoni and his burgeoning ranks of chamchas within the annals of the BCCI..........
 Sehwag who is the only Indian to notch up the rare and emulatory honour of notching up two test triple centuries as well as a 293 was accompanied by his devoted wife and dapper sons during the course of the felicitation ceremony in which a silver salver was presented to him by Anurag Thakur the incumbent BCCI secretary as a mark of gratitude and appreciation for his stellar and Everestian cricketing exploits..........
 Over to Dhoni and his sworn chamchas for their reaction at this supposed slight or downright insult.........

HEALTH UPDATE........

Life does certainly put all of us without exception to the test and life is certainly doing the same with me with effect from tomorrow afternoon...........
 Yours truly will be checking into a single room within the precincts of the city's Continental Hospital (Gachibowli) by 11:30 am or so tomorrow morning in order to undergo an intricate and painstaking surgery that could alter the course of my remaining years on planet earth..........
This life altering surgery is slated to be performed at around 9 am or so on December 5, 2015 and expected to go on for a good six to eight hours as it entails detaching and reattaching of the large intestine and the bypassing of the stomach area..........
 Dr. V. Amar a leading authority and exponent of such bypass (if one can call it that) surgeries and is also training other fellow doctors so that they can emulate him and perform such surgeries in the future.........
 As in the case with most major surgeries; the first 72 hours after the successful completion of the same will be highly crucial and I expect to be cooped up in the allotted single room within the said hospital for a minimum of 72 hours after I undergo the surgical procedure.........
 While the surgery will be setting us (both my better half and me) by Rs.4.25 lakhs or so there is no alternative to this sanctioned surgical procedure as my body weight has already exceeded a certain critical mass and things can only get worse from here on with the due passage of time..........
Let me make it abundantly clear that I do not desire anyone's pity or utterances like "so sad" and "poor fellow" but need your strength; determination and courage to emerge even stronger; fitter and rejuvenated after the surgery so that I can get on with the job of doing as much good as I can and trying to spread as much joy and succour as possible.........
 As I will be rendered hors de combat for the next couple of weeks or so and therefore unable to wish all my friends on their birthdays please note and believe that my best wishes and blessings are always with the lot of you stay blessed; stay healthy and do strive that extra mile to make the world a better place than the planet we inherited.........
 God Bless each one of you and grant you everything you desire and a little more........

BELIEVE THIS IF YOU WILL.........

One may well be forgiven for thinking that such scenes only lit up the silver screen and anointed eternal favourites like "Sholay"; pardonnez moi for I also discounted the age old dictum about about art imitating life and so on and so forth........
In a daring and Ripleyesque "Believe It Or Not" Act a single gent deigned to storm or rather unceremoniously barge into the engine of a goods train between Madhya Pradesh's Ishwarwara and -Naryaoli railway stations and then decamped from the very same after divesting the driver and assistant driver of the said goods train of their belongings and mobile phones in the wee hours of Tuesday morning.........
 According to railway police officials; the driver Dharmendra Patwa and assistant driver Suresh were commandeering the now infamous goods train between Uttar Pradesh's Jhansi and Madhya Pradesh's Katni railway stations when the daredevil bandit broke open a window pane of the engine and surreptitiously entered the same when the train had considerably reduced its speed in the vicinity of the Jaruakheda railway station.........
 Brandishing a stout stick and deadly looking pocket knife the masked assailant threatened the two railway employees with deathly consequences if they dared to oppose him; clubbed the assistant driver repeatedly when he tried to put up a fight and made good his escape a few kilometres from the crime scene after relieving the startled and disbelieving duo of all their precious valuables...........
 Much chastened and decidedly wiser after their harrowing experience the two drivers made their way to Madhya Pradesh's Sagar railway station where they halted the train and registered a case against the yet to be identified masked assailant at the Railway Police Outpost within the station's precincts.........
 A case has been duly registered against this facile lothario under section 394 of the Indian Penal Code and the police have initiated their investigations into the reported incident by making an effort to round up all the petty as well as notorious criminals within a 100 km radius...........
Though the act performed by the dapper and dashing gent was unlawful and reprehensible there is no denying his daredevilry; dexterity; presence of mind and adroitness to make the optimum use of the gilt edged opportunity presented to him by the slowing down of the goods train............

THANK THE LORD FOR EVERY LITTLE MERCY...........

A little more than 4,000 odd dedicated; passionate and committed cricket fans witnessed a near perfect enactment of the tragic and deathly Philip Hughes incident when they saw an on field umpire writhe in pain and unbearable agony after being struck on the back of his head by an immaculate straight drive from the striker's flashing blade.........
This bizarre and prospectively deadly spectacle was witnessed on a balmy December 1 afternoon at Dindigul's (Tamil Nadu) famed NPR Cricket Ground during the course of an ongoing Ranji trophy match/fixture between Punjab and Tamil Nadu........
 Brainder Sran a southpaw (left handed batsmen and bowler) who is better known for his bowling exploits with the red cherry was the batsmen on strike when Tamil Nadu's left arm spin maestro D.T. Chandrashekhar tossed up one enticing and tantalising delivery that was within Sran's striking arc........
 Unable to resist the temptation; Sran unleashed a partially lofted straight drive that flew past the bowler but unfortunately ended up striking the 53 year old Australian umpire John Ward (who has officiated in 6 ODI's) flush on the back of his head despite his earnest efforts to duck for cover and adroitly avoid the flight path of the dreaded red cherry..........
 Ward was down for the count thanks to the telling and lasting effect of the knock out blow delivered to his head and lay on the turf clutching his head and writhing in paroxsyms of pain and agony when the other on field umpire Paschim Pathak and players from the home (Tamil Nadu) team rushed to his aid..........
 Still feeling the after effects of the devastating blow that struck him down with disdaining impunity Ward was carried off the field by four doughty Tamil Nadu players who ushered him into an ambulance strategically stationed at the ground and the same then sped away towards the city's JCB hospital located some thirty odd kilometres from the said ground..........
A series of scans and a battery of other tests were carried out on the stricken Aussie umpire at the very same hospital and thankfully the same only revealed some swelling and mild concussion that should clear up in the next 36 hours or so even though the doctors on duty at the hospital preferred to keep the wounded soul within the safe confines of the medical facility for the next 24 hours and minutely observe him for any distressing or then concerning developments..........
 Experienced and highly skilled neurosurgeons have been summoned from adjoining/nearby hospitals as a purely precautionary measure and further treatment will be carried out under their able and specialised guidance even though the doctors at the JCB hospital have ruled out any imminent or prospective threat to the Aussies well being..........
 Order was however restored on the cricketing field after these ten or so odd minutes of terror and devastation when the fourth umpire Guru Rajan took umpire Ward's place and restored the much desired order to the otherwise disturbing and painful non cricketing activities that had ruled the roost for some time..........

SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TOO.........

You cannot keep Saurav "Dada" Ganguly away from a cricket pitch for too long or can you........
Notching up yet another feather in an already burgeoning cap; former Indian captain Saurav Chandidas Ganguly will be one of the very few legendary cricketers turning out for the first of it's kind Masters Champion League that is slated to be held at various venues throughout the length and breadth of the United Arab Emirates next year (2016)..........
This first of it's kind T20 tournament (for the UAE) will feature six teams comprising of retired stalwarts and cricketing legends of the eminence of Brian Charles Lara; Adam GIlchrist; Wasim Akram; Jacques Kallis; Virender Sehwag and Dada Ganguly all of whom have been anointed as "icons" who will set the grounds ablaze with their masterly strokes and unplayable deliveries between January 28 and February 14;2016.........
Abu Dhabi; Dubai and the Sharjah Cricket Stadium which have staged an umpteen number of test; one day as well as T20 matches will play host to the six teams mainly owned or co-owned by Indian expatriates featuring in this much anticipated and eagerly awaited tournament.........
Dada Ganguly will be turning out for the Pooja Jhunjhunwala co-owned Libra Legends along with fourteen other cricketers of repute as each of the six teams gracing this iconic tournament will comprise of 15 members each thereby taking the numbers of cricketers featuring in this cricketing extravaganza to an astounding 90 cricketers or thereabouts.........
Every team is firming up it's team members in active consultation with the icons who are already on board and this more than a fortnight long tournament will not only be an unforgettable spectacle but also rekindle fond memories of the immortal exploits of these cricketing legends both with the bat and ball depending upon their area of expertise..........
Here's wishing this cricketing smorgasbord unprecedented success and sporting immortality........

JUSTIFIABLE CAUSE FOR CONCERN..........

What will our omnipresent and scient bleeding hearts as well as self appointed guardians of juvenile criminals say/remark after this.........
 In the most shocking; macabre and morbid incident to come to light or then grab headlines in recent times a 16 year old long term resident of the national capital's somewhat down market Mukundpur region was taken into custody by the Delhi police personnel late on Sunday night........
 His 22 year old accomplice and comrade in arms who helped him ensnare; subdue and sexually abuse the 25 year old deceased victim is still at large and wanted by the Delhi police.......
 According to the case's investigating officer the 16 year old and four of his friends held an impromptu drinks and dinner party running into the wee hours of Saturday morning at the 16 year old's modest dwelling and three of his friends left the dwelling after sloshing themselves to the gills.........
The remaining 22 year old friend/accomplice who is still at large then saucily remarked that all this drinking had greatly enflamed his libido and that he needed immediate gratification or release through intercourse with a woman or else he would simply implode........
 On hearing his desire; the 16 year old remarked that his 25 year old female neighbour was home alone most of the time and could prove to be the answer to their wild and wanton sexual desires and proclivities........... Thoroughly inflamed by their insatiable desire and spurred on by the liquor flowing through their systems; the duo surreptitiously made their way to the said woman's first floor tenantment through an adjoining terrace forcibly broke into the same and then gagged and bound her before taking turns at sexually violating and defiling her...........
Thoroughly taken by surprise and overwhelmed by the sheer brutality and barbarity of the demonic assault; the 25 year old soon swooned into unconsciousness and tried to grapple with her assailants and force her way out of the undesirable predicament in which she found herself............
Totally incensed and infuriated by their victim's valiant struggle for freedom; the murderous duo strangled her to death and then proceeded to dump her semi clad body in a nearby densely wooded thicket where they continued to satiate their seemingly insane carnal desires with the deceased's senseless body........
. Concerned and alarmed family members who were startled and dismayed by the 25 year old's abrupt disappearance from her home and hearth stumbled upon her near naked body in the afore mentioned thicket after a day long search (late on Saturday morning) and promptly informed the police about the discovery of their kin's body.........
 Swinging into action the area police firstly rounded up all the known anti-social and criminal elements in the crime area and managed to identify and apprehend the main accused late on Sunday morning after intensely questioning at least a 100 people or so residing in the very same area............
 Knowing that his game was up and all avenues of escape were now closed to him; the 16 year old not only more than willingly confessed to his inhuman and ghastly crime but also named his accomplice and fellow assailant as one Abhimanyu who had been known to him for the last 8 years or so..........
 A mini truck that was used to transport the victim's body from her dwelling to her transit resting place as well as her mobile phone was recovered from the very same densely wooded area on the fateful Sunday after the 16 year old sexual offender and murderer revealed the whereabouts of the same..........
 Will our moribund and procrastinating government wake up to the stark realities about the heinousness; deviousness and ghastliness of the crimes being committed by juveniles with growing impunity and nauseating regularity or then will they continue to pretend that all is well and look the other way as is their wont...........

MUCH DESERVED HONOUR AND ENCOMIUMS..........

It is both gratifying and heartening to note the fact that a few state governments still care for our former sports persons who have shed their blood; sweat and tears in their effort to bring sporting laurels to our motherland........
 News about the incumbent Delhi government's laudable and noteworthy plans to honour and felicitate Delhi cricketing stalwarts like Mohinder Amarnath; Bishen Singh Bedi; Kirti Azad; Virender Sehwag; Gautam Gambhir; Ashish Nehra; Virat Kohli and last but not the least Ishant Sharma during the course of the fourth and last India South Africa test match beginning on December 3 at the city's famed Feroze Shah Kotla grounds is just about making it's appearance..........
 Kirti Azad; Madan Lal; Mohinder Amarnath and the unheralded Sunil Valson who were the four Delhi Cricketers to have made their way into the annals of Indian cricketing history and folklore for their soul stirring efforts in annexing India's first ever World Cup way back in 1983 will be accorded due honours for their World Cup Winning exploits..........
 I for one am well and truly aware of the fact that Valson did not figure in the first eleven throughout India's triumphant march to cricketing glory but that does not deny him his rightful share of glory and honour by just being there and having done that.......
 While Messrs Kohli; Nehra; Gambhir; Sehwag and Ishant Sharma will be felicitated; lauded and rewarded for their stellar exploits during team India's triumphant journey during the 2011 World Cup of Cricket that was held on hallowed terra firma...........
 Yes it is indeed true that Bishen Paa did not figure in any of these World Cup winning teams but the Delhi government does indeed need to be praised for showing both the sagacity and grace to honour this inimitable spin wizard who more than played his fair role in making team India what it is today both as a hard as nails captain and somewhat eccentric and unpredictable manager who had his wards squirming and fretting over his next eccentricity.......
 Here's wishing all these noble and indomitable sons of mother India the very best for their futures and remaining years of their lives and hoping that other state governments would follow suit whenever the opportunity is accorded to them..........

MAKING ASHWIN APPEAR BETTER THAN HE IS...........

Is Ravichandran Ashwin really the answer to team India's prayers for a genuine match winner or are the designer pitches being provided to team India making him appear so........
 Well; I guess the answer to the question would lie somewhat in the affirmative considering the lack of pedigree; technique; temperament; application; dedication and perseverance in the ranks of the opposition batsmen.........
While there is no denying the fact that Ashwin is indeed a much improved bowler who has tirelessly worked on developing a stock delivery rather than depending on his innovations like the carrom ball or straighter one all the time there is also no denying that most if not all the batsmen confronting him during recent times have more than contributed to their own demises with rank bad shots that almost defy logic at the best of times.........
 Call me whatever you will but I for one firmly believe that the pitches being provided to team India off late make Ashwin look much better than he actually is as any bowler with some mastery over the art of spin bowling would excel on pitches that start turning square from ball one in my humble opinion.........
I for one would only want to pass judgement on Ashwin's mettle and place/rank in the annals of spinners who have adorned the pathways of this hallowed game when he starts producing similar if not as spectacular results on pitches outside the sub continent that are not half as conducive to finger spinners like Ashwin and provide the opposition batsmen with a far greater opportunity of negating his spinning abilities with dexterity of foot and inimitable hand eye co-ordination..........
Yes there is no denying the fact that team India is going to be playing a minimum of two more home series in the near future and the rank turners being provided to it on demand (home conditions/advantage and all that you see) would prove more than handy in bloating Ashwin's strike rate and bowling figures; I for one would like to see him ensnare batsmen in his intricate and beguiling web on a sporting pitch that does provide the hapless batsmen with a more than equal opportunity of showing off their batting prowess...........
Well in my opinion for whatever it is worth; anointing Ashwin as India's finest ever spin bowler would be doing a great disservice to the real greats like Bhagwat Chandrashekhar; Erapalli Prasanna and the stormy petrel Bishan Singh Bedi who ensnared batsmen with far more pronounced abilities to play quality spin bowling in their webs with far more wizardy and mastery..........

ALL SET TO EXPLODE ON THEATRE SCREENS..........

It is indeed heartening to note that avid film buffs are still enthusiastic about patronising real and rivetting cinema.......
 Bejoy Nambiar one of the most promising up and coming directors on the Hindi film firmament is indeed a happy and contented man after seeing the heartening response to the official trailer of the much awaited "Wazir" (the same is directed by Nambiar)........
 A gushing and overwhelmed Nambiar quipped; "I for one was indeed petrified when we released the official trailer of our racy and pacy action thriller a little over a week ago or so considering the fact that we had released the first look or teaser trailer of the film exactly one year ago".........
 "What is even more satisfactory and gratifying is the fact that discerning and mature audiences are taking due notices of the official trailer and giving rave reviews to the same as my entire team and me spent many a sleepless night studiously working on the same and the more than gratifying response has indeed left us all humbled and ecstatic at the same time"; Nambiar signed off..........
 Starring or featuring the ageless wonder of the Hindi film industry Amitabh Bachchan; Farhan Akhtar; John Abraham; Neil Nitin Mukesh and Aditi Rao Hydari in stellar roles the films 120 second or so trailer certainly grabs you by the throat and leaves you breathless by the end of it with it's raciness and death defying action scenes.........
 The same also does give you a inward glance or glimpse into this mind blowing action thrillers taut and intense storyline as you are able to figure out that both Farhan and John play Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) officers who are pitted against an international terrorist (Neil Nitin Mukesh) who wants to reduce India to a glowering mass of humanity..........
 One also deduces that Shri Amitabh Bachchan essays the role of a wheelchair bound senior citizen equipped with a razor sharp brain that belies both his age as well as physical infirmity or disability while the petite and gracious Aditi Rao Hydari is Farhan Akhtar's love interest in the same........
 Co written by Abhijaat Joshi and producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra; the near two minute long peek a boo thrill a minute action adventure sure left me spellbound and waiting with bated breath for the much anticipated and eagerly awaited January 8;2016 when this "Wazir" will explode on the silver screen..........

ON ERRANT FATHERS AND LONG SUFFERING DAUGHTERS...........

Will young girls trust and revere their fathers after this horror.......
 A 40 year old labourer was apprehended by the Gurgaon police sleuths late on Thursday night on the grave and heinous charges of sexually brutalising his biological daughter when the two of them were home alone earlier in the day or then should I say fateful night.........
 As per laid down procedures; the accused was produced before a local court on Friday morning which remanded him to seven days police custody for further interrogation and medical tests carried out on the 14 year old survivor at a government hospital have conclusively established the occurrence of the alleged crime.......
 According to the still petrified and traumatised 14 year old; she was home alone at around 11 pm or so on the fateful night when her seemingly sozzled father sauntered into their home and hearth and asked her to disrobe as he fancied a sexual piccadiloe with her.........
Taken aback by her father's indecent proposal the indomitable 14 year old steadfastly refused to accede to his inglorious demands only to be be callously disrobed slapped around till she almost lost her consciousness and then to compound her agony brutalised till she was reduced to a copiously bleeding mass of humanity.........
 He then wandered out of the house without as much as a backward glance but not before threatening to cut his very own daughter into tiny pieces if she much as breathed a word to anyone about her sordid fate........
 Concerned neighbours who barged into the house on hearing the 14 year old's plaintive cries for help did indeed spot her father fleeing from the spot but were too late to accost and detain him; they however rushed the trembling and cowering girl to an adjoining police station where her statement was initially recorded and a manhunt launched for her accused father on the basis of the same..........
 Lo and behold; the local police sleuths successfully managed to arrest the demonic and deviant father from a friend's house where he was enjoying his usual or then preferred brand of tipple in the supposedly august company of his mates and boasting about his sexual exploits at around 1:30 am or so on the very same night/early hours of the morning........
 An FIR has been registered against the errant and murderous father under sections 376 (rape) and 506 (threatening to kill) of the Indian Penal Code and he has also recorded his putrid confession under section 164 of the Indian Penal Code in the presence of a judicial magistrate while his tormented and grievously injured daughter who is recovering in a city hospital also duly recorded her statement under the same section identifying her very own father as her assailant.........
 According to senior Gurgaon Police officials; the public prosecutor will be asking for the maximum punishment in this case as a deterrent to all such fathers who harbour malicious hopes of doing the same with their daughters..........

EVERY DONKEY HAS IT'S DAY..........

I for one thought that I had heard it all but this is a first for jaded; world weary and cantakerous old souls like me.......
Donkeys bearing the name of Shahrukh; Aamir; Salman; Narendra Modi; Rahul Gandhi; Nitish and last but not the Laloo; Maya, Mamata and Mulayam will be sold by the thousands during the course of the five day long annual "Gardhabraj Mela" (donkey festival that is unfailingly organised from the Probdhini Ekadashi (November 22 onwards) in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain town (55 odd kms away from Indore city)..........
 According to both proud and preening owners as well as oily and manipulative traders thousand of donkeys are sold during the course of this five day long annual jamboree with a fortunate and blessed few even fetching astounding and astronomical prices of Rs. 20,000/- or thereabouts........
 Owners generally name their donkeys after film stars and politicians owing to the belief that the humble and ubiquitous beasts of burden fetch a far more commanding price if named after resplendent film stars and politicians whose fortunes and stars are on the ascendant when the fair gets under way............
 Sample this for example; Laloo; Nitish; Shahrukh; Aamir and Salman are the current flavours of the season and hence a few hundred donkeys might end up bearing their names; donkeys bearing these seemingly hallowed names and glowing fitness are bought far more easily and openly in comparison to their less fortunate brethren..........
 Letting the cat out of the bag a wizened old gentleman who is gracing this annual event for the 25th time or so says; "I for one and a lot of other sagacious gents like me buy our donkeys and quote prices for the same depending on the number of teeth adorning their mouths at the current time".........
 "Two teeth signify or point towards the fact that the donkey is around two to three years of age while three teeth mean that the beast is four to five years old and so on as younger the beast better his load bearing capacity and virility and these two are the most priced virtues in any donkey worth his salt"; this veteran signs off.........
 So mock; ridicule; lampoon; castigate or whatever else you will; the fact of the matter is that Laloo and Nitish are not only ruling the roost during the course of this one of it's kind five day long festival but fetching astronomical and jaw dropping prices too........

CHANGE FOR CHANGES SAKE...........

Change is certainly the flavour of the season; but do all age old and hallowed traditions have to be subjected to the same........
Trust the English Cricket Board to be the harbinger of change and even harbour plans of doing away with and age old cricketing tradition namely the tossing of a coin that decides which team bats and fields...........
 I am well and truly aware of the fact that Messrs Ricky Ponting and Michael Holding are the two leading proponents or then the gents who pioneered the idea of doing away with the toss and letting the visiting team get first choice as the pitch conditions would anyway be heavily doctored in favour of the home team.........
 Yes; the same does hold true as every team is concerned with winning and winning handsomely at home by any means in an effort to improve both it's test as well as ODI rankings as they know that the same could take a beating when they are confronted with unfamiliar climes and seemingly hostile pitches on an away tour...........
 Every team without exception goes out of it's way to maximise the home advantage and nullify the cutting edge the opposing or visiting team may have over it and that is what adds the spice and flavour to this hallowed and much worshipped game as every cricketing enthusiast and purveyor loves nothing more than a battle of attrition between the bat and the ball.........
 Yes; test matches may be winding up in three days or a little more than three days on spin or then pace friendly pitches and conditions that sometimes reduce the best batsmen going around to nincompoops and amateurs struggling to cope with the eccentric antics of both the ball as well as the bowlers..........
 But this is what precisely makes this game a battle of the mind; resilient and resolute cricketers do not waste either their time and precious energies in fretting and fuming over the unfamiliar conditions and attributing their seemingly humiliating losses to the same rather they just buckle down and adapt to the surroundings in an effort to go one better than their opponents.........
Yes; the toss may indeed provide the home team with an undue advantage and even lead to the fate of a test match being decided with the tossing of a coin; but then that's the way it has always been and do not simply change the same to level the playing field and pander to the simpers of cry babies who will keep crying and simpering no matter what........

HORROR STORY WITHIN THE CONFINES OF AN AUTO........

Is there any place left in our motherland where a woman can feel safe and secure?????
 A 40 year old long term resident of Pune city was brutally sexually assaulted by a demonic and demented auto driver within the congested confines of the very same vehicle while on her way back from the city's Sangvi police station late on Monday night......
What is even more galling is the fact that this irrepressible survivor was turned away from the afore mentioned police station as she was purportedly inebriated or under the influence and hence in no fit state to register an assault complaint against her live in partner..........
 Much chastened and somewhat wiser; the woman who is currently associated with a prominent NGO boarded the said auto only to soon realise that she was in for an even more heinous and perilous experience than the one that she had just experienced at the police station.........
Taking undue advantage of the situation; the auto driver 28 year old Umesh Ravindra Sarkariya drove the auto onto a dark desolate and deserted street where he proceeded to satisfy his carnal and carnivorous desires before dumping the said woman and making good his escape from the spot........
 A good samaritan who was passing by on a motorcycle came to the bedraggled and somewhat disoriented woman's aid and led her towards an adjoining police station where she proceeded to painfully narrate her horrendous ordeal while providing the cops with the number of the vehicle in which she was defiled as well as a detailed description of her assailant.........
Armed with the auto driver and a near graphic description of the accused rapist the police sleuths managed to successfully apprehend him from one of the city's numerous watering holes that stay open until the wee hours of the morning and quench the seemingly insatiable thirst of such auto drivers...........
 A case has since been registered against the rapist under all the applicable and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the doughty survivor is recovering from her horrific ordeal at a city hospital........
 Trains; auto's; taxis; trams; bullock carts and any other mode of conveyance that you can conjure up and examine everything is fair game for wannabe rapists whose ranks seem to be rising alarmingly and horrifyingly.........

"Te3n"

This certainly augurs well for all afficionados of relevant; topical and logical cinema.........
 My present day favourite on screen actress Vidya Balan has reportedly returned to her second home (Kolkata city) and begun the process of doing her bit in Sujoy Ghosh's forthcoming production "Te3n"...........
"Te3n" starring mega star Amitabh Bachchan; Nawazuddin Siddiqui and the 37 year old Balan will also be the first Hindi film to be shot within the hallowed and revered precincts of Kolkata's iconic "Writer's" Building..........
 Taking to twitter to express her unabashed joy at being the first Hindi film actress to shoot scenes in this mellow and sacrosanct Victorian era building; Balan gushed that she always wanted to shoot there and was eternally thankful to both Sujoy Ghosh as well as the almighty for the fulfilment of this long cherished dream........
Directed by Ghosh's protege Ribhu Dasgupta this quixotic and somewhat eccentric film will be majorly shot at various locations in and around this rumbustious city over the next forty days or so and will hit the screens in the first quarter of 2016..........
 Here's wishing team "Te3n" all the best while hoping that they do one better than "Kahaani" with this one.........

BACHCHAN MANIA REVISITED..........

Trust the demi god of the Hindi film industry Shri Amitabh Bachchan to deliver a lot more than he promises........
 Shri Bachchan who has been gracing the small screen for the last few weeks while anchoring Star Plus's block buster show "Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi" was at a construction site in the National Capital Region late on Monday morning and proceeded to bestow the jacket that he had donned while shooting "Silsila" to an overwhelmed and overawed construction worker who cannot believe his luck.........
 Mr. Bachchan was at the said construction site as he was more than impressed by the humanitarian spirit of two young boys from the same site who had appeared on his television show and apprised him of what they did with the used clothes that they collected from residents of the said as well as neighbouring localities through their periodic and timely door to door campaigns.........
 Armed with suitcases of clothes discarded by him and his fellow family members; the pride and joy of the Hindi film industry drove into the construction site with other members from his Call To Action: TB Free Haryana Campaign (of which he happens to be the Brand Ambassador) and sent the construction workers at the site into raptures of unbridled and unabashed delight with his note worthy gesture..........
The man with the nation's most recognised and widely identified baritone also proceeded to post numerous photographs of the occasion on his facebook page and vowed to repeat the exercise every single time he was armed with a truck load of clothes that he could give away...........

STERLING HUMAN SPIRIT AND CHARACTER.........

This certainly reaffirms and re-establishes my long held belief about the innate goodness of the human spirit........
 Aruna R a daily traveller on Chennai's ubiquitous local trains certainly had more than a reason to smile and be eternally thankful to her fellow travellers as they helped deliver her newly born son within the dingy confines of the compartment........
Thirty year old Aruna; a long term resident of the sprawling city's Thiruvanchery locality was on her way to Egmore's Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology for her scheduled monthly check up on Monday morning when she felt an abrupt and piercing pain in her lower abdominal area........
 She preferred to ignore the same the first time around but doubled up in pain when the pain seized her for the second time while realising that the same was nothing else but intense labour pains that were rocking her petite being........
 Noticing the concern writ large on a fellow female travellers face Aruna managed to gasp out that she felt that her baby was on her way out and would not be able to withstand the sixty plus minute journey to her destination.........
 Lo and behold a space was instantly created for the prospective mother to lie down in relative peace and one woman held her hand and prayed with her while a second essayed the noble and seemingly improbable role of midwife while a third constantly massaged her back and nether regions in an effort to alleviate the pain and facilitate the baby's arrival into this world........
 Her bundle of joy a cute and healthy baby boy announced his arrival with a resounding cry sending the fellow woman passengers in the compartment into raptures of unbridled joy; what however caused consternation in the mind of the woman who essayed the role of the midwife was the fact that Aruna was bleeding copiously after the successful delivery of the light of her life and that the same could cause untold harm to her existence on planet earth.........
Whisking out her mobile phone without as much as a second thought; the good samaritan proceeded to apprise the Corporation Hospital in Saidapet about the arrival of the bay as well as the serious condition of the first time mother........
 The train reached the said Saidapet station and the divine lady christened Kannagi held Aruna's hand all through the ordeal and only left the scene after handing over the newborn and his mother to a doctor and nurse team from the afore mentioned hospital who arrived on the scene some ten minutes or so after the train's arrival.........
 All was well and ended well in this case as both the recuperating mother and her newborn son have been ruled out of danger and healthy by the doctors attending on them; "Aruna's due date was around January 1;2016 or so and hence the bay who weighs a little over 2.5 kgs at present was born around five weeks or so prematurely"..........
 "Yes the lady in question did indeed suffer from distressing post delivery bleeding but a seemingly alarming situation has been more than satisfactorily contained and both the mother and baby should be discharged from the hospital within the next 72-96 hours"; the on duty doctor concluded.........
. Here's wishing Aruna; her little bundle of joy and husband Ramalingam the very best for their future.. .........

WHAT SHOULD ONE DO WITH SUCH SPECIMENS............

Does age; physical infirmity and disability really matter to the rank and file of Indian rapists and the like.......
 In a heart rending and humanity defying incident a 60 year old deaf and mute woman was sexually ravaged by two notorious characters belonging to a Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh) district village late on Sunday evening.........
 According to the devastated husband of the doughty survivor she had gone to answer nature's call in the adjoining fields on the fateful evening when she was set upon by these two monsters masquerading as human beings........
These despicable and dastardly characters forcibly led the woman to a dark; desolate and deserted spot where they fell upon with animal like ferocity and barbaric intensity; they ravaged; savaged and defiled the woman and then made good their escape from the spot..........
 Copiously bleeding from the various injuries inflicted all over her anatomy by her tormentors and torturers; the 60 year old woman somehow managed to wend her way towards her home and hearth where she piteously conveyed the tale of her pain and suffering to her disbelieving and incredulous husband and daughter in law through signs and whatever else she could.........
Though aghast at the state of the elderly woman; the husband and daughter in law administered whatever first aid they could to the grievously injured woman and then asked her to lead them to the houses of her tormentors if she could do so.........
 Lo and behold the Jhansi Ki Rani like 60 year old woman led the duo to the doorstep of the main accused's home where the mother of the assailant pleaded with them and beseeched them to refrain from filing a police complaint against the apple of her eye........
 Sidestepping her pleas and entreaties with the disdain and contempt they deserved the trio proceeded to the area's police chowki and duly registered their complaint with the senior most police official who was on duty at the time.........
 Swinging into action with remarkable alacrity and agility; the police personnel firstly proceeded to admit the 60 year old woman to the district government hospital and then successfully managed to nab the two assailants within two hours of the complaint being registered against them.........
 Cases have been filed against the duo under all the relevant and applicable sections of the Indian Penal Code and they are being subjected to intense questioning in order to ascertain whether or not they were guilty of having committed such heinous crimes in the past...........
 Now you go ahead and decide the quantum of punishment in this gruesome incident that gives humanity a bad name..........

JOHN DOE COMES CALLING...........

Will the horrors and depravity ever cease.......
The capacity of human beings to do untold harm to fellow human beings certainly scaled new heights with the recovery of a decapitated and dismembered male body from a gravel godown constructed under a bridge in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city........
 According to senior police officials the decomposed; mutilated and partially burnt body of a male of about 45 years of age or so was recovered when the watchman of the godown stumbled upon the body owing to the putrid and foul stench emanating from the same late on Sunday evening..........
 "Prima facie it seems that the said body was lying in the open for a minimum of five days or so and the body is also missing a leg and both it's hands as strays seem to have gotten to it and made off with the spoils"; a forensic doctor who examined the body opined.........
What compounds the misery of the local police is that no identification marks or any other distinguishing marks were visible on whatever's left of the body as well as the fact that no material possessions were recovered from a one kilometre radius in all four directions from where the body was recovered.........
 Local police sleuths have begun scanning missing records filed over the last few days as well as liasioning with hospitals and other medical centres in order to ascertain whether or not they are missing any bodies in an effort to establish the credentials of the latest John Doe who has taken Indore city by storm..........

ON OLD GEEZERS AND THEIR DESPICABLE DEEDS..........

What is with old geezers and their growing penchant for toddlers and young one's.........
 61 year old Ashok Barot a long term resident of Ahmedabad City's Moti Salvivad area was arrested by the local police on the damaging and heinous charges of molesting a two and a half year nymphet hailing from the same area late on Friday night.......
 According to the gent who filmed Barot while in the despicable and deplorable act; the girl was busy playing outside her home and abode on the fateful night when her father abruptly made a beeline towards the interior regions of the house leaving her outside..........
Taking undue advantage of the situation; Barot who happened to live bang opposite the little girl's house stealthily approached her and enticed her by saying that the two of them would have a nice time gallivanting and splashing themselves to their heart's content in an adjoining pool of water.........
 Taking the elderly gent at face value; the girl readily acceded to join him in this venture and the duo then made their way to the said pool where Barot proceeded to whisk off her underpants and fondle and grope her nether regions..........
 A neighbour who was suspicious and wary of Barot's intentions and actions filmed him while he was performing the dastardly act and then proceeded to duly inform the little girl's father and other residents of the area about the vile and condemnable act.........
 Realising that his goose was cooked; Barot tried to make good his escape from the hotspot only to be accosted by a group of outraged neighbours who not only gave him a piece of their mind but also rained a series of blows on various parts of his anatomy before summoning the local police and handing him over to them at around 11:30 pm or so..........
 According to the case's investigating officer cases have been booked against the deviant Barot under all the applicable and relevant sections of both the IPC as well as POCSO acts and that the police have also taken hold of the incriminating video clip that will serve as crucial evidence against the molester........
 Police are also trying to verify whether the childless Barot who resided with his wife of many years was also involved in such incidents in the past or whether this was the first incident of this kind involving him.......
 I am aware of the fact that there are millions of paedophiles on the loose as our country has extremely lax and lenient laws when it comes to sentencing such criminals; but then there is always scope for improvement and I for one firmly believe that the concerned authorities will wake up to this alarming situation sooner rather than later and set their stalls right by making the necessary and much desired amendments to the existing/current laws................

METING OUT THE SAME TREATMENT...........

Have precious and valuable human lives become as cheap and trivial as this??????
 According to reports emerging from Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur district a seemingly inebriated and sozzled gent set his lawfully married wife ablaze as she refused to satisfy his insatiable craving for tender and succulent goat meat........
 This bizarre and ghastly incident occurred in the city's Chandni Chowk area late on Thursday night (around 11 pm or so) when the accused Liyakat Ali sauntered home sloshed to the gills and laden with a kilogram or so of uncooked goat meat.........
 On seeing his wife of nine years standing (25 year old Shabnam Khan) he imperiously demanded that she cook the meat just the way he liked it as he had an insatiable craving for the same and was enraged and incensed beyond all reasonable limits when the victim expressed her inability to do so citing tiredness and ill health.........
 In a fit of rage Liyakat doused Shabnam with a can of kerosene and set her aflame without even batting an eye; their seven year old daughter who was asleep in an adjoining room rushed into the room on hearing her burning mother's heart rending and blood curdling screams..........
 Though initially taken aback by the gory sight that confronted her nubile being and eyes; the plucky seven year old rushed to an adjoining house in the same locality and tearfully narrated the ordeal suffered by her beloved mother to her disbelieving and incredulous Naani (Shabnam's mother)..........
 The duo then made a beeline towards the crime scene and firstly doused the deathly flames that engulfed Shabnam's being and then rushed both her and Liyakat to a neighbouring government hospital with the help of concerned and disbelieving neighbours....
 Shabnam who had suffered more than 90% burns on account of her husband's bestiality and brutality succumbed to her grievous injuries within three hours of being admitted to the said hospital bu successfully cooked her so called husband's goat in her dying declaration in which she squarely implicated her monstrous husband........
 In the meanwhile; Liyakat who had suffered minor burn injuries on his palms and arms took advantage of the emergent situation and made good his escape from the confines of the ward in which he was admitted.........
 Local police sleuths have duly registered a case of murder most foul against him and launched a massive manhunt in order to apprehend him at the earliest..........
 Call me whatever you will; but I for one steadfastly believe that the devilish Liyakat should be subjected to the same treatment when apprehended so that he can first handedly experience the agony; trauma; extreme pain and suffering that Shabnam must have endured in her last moments on planet Earth..........

KANGANA AND VIKAS BACK TOGETHER...........

Talk about two bruised; battered and much chastened souls seeking redemption in each other's purportedly august company..........
 Confused; don't be as I am talking about the queen bee of the Hindi film industry Kangana Ranaut who is still trying to come to terms with the box office debacle of her last release Katti Batti and a hopefully wizened and humbled Vikas Bahl who thought he could do no wrong while helming the recent box office turkey Shaandaar.........
Kangana and Vikas had more than successfully teamed up in the 2014 blockbuster "Queen" which not only fetched them tonnes of moolah but also had the crotchety critics singing paeans in their glory.........
According to insiders from both camps; it is all but certain that the director actress duo will once again collaborate on a yet untitled and unscripted venture as the two have been discreetly bouncing off ideas of each other as well as chalking out other creative details of their next venture for the last three months or so.........
As was in the case of "Queen" Kangana was instantly floored when Vikas delivered the story of the proposed venture to her in his inimitable manner and immediately accorded her approval to the same; as of now the two are bouncing creative ideas of each other and firming up the script as both are more than aware of the fact that they need to do one better than "Queen" with this one.........
All that is confirmed about this dream project that is supposed to go on the floors by May-June 2016 is that Kangana will be essaying the role of a suave; sophisticated and stylish chef in the same and that the film will once again revolve around her character and her exploits..........
 Here's hoping that this uber talented duo gets it's act together once again and succeeds in their quest to make second best as the audience would be eternally thankful to them for recreating cinematic magic and rescuing from utterly mediocre and decrepit films like "Prem Ratan Dhan Payo" and it's acolytes.........

WITHER INNOCENCE AND SENSE OF WONDERMENT..........

Will the woman and child development minister Maneka Gandhi put her money where her mouth is and get the much debated amendments to the juvenile justice act passed in the forthcoming winter session of Parliament.........
This has been necessitated by the plethora of sexual assaults perpetrated by marauding and misguided juveniles all over the country off late.........
 In the latest such instance; a 15 year old girl who had taken temporary shelter/refuge behind a temple in east Delhi's Shashi Garden area in order to ward off a purported attack by a pack of stray dogs was brutally sexually violated by a fellow juvenile late on Thursday afternoon.........
This sexual predator who chanced upon the fearful girl who had ventured behind the said temple while returning after purchasing essentials from a neighbouring grocery shop boldly approached her and beseeched her to take refuge within the even safer confines of his adjoining home and forcibly pulled her into the same when she refused to do so........
 He then proceeded to rain a few blows on her in an effort to subdue her and subsequently sexually assaulted the teenager after having successfully subdued her; he then let her wander off in the general direction off her home and hearth but not before threatening her with the threat of gruesome bodily harm if she as much as let a whimper out about the sordid fate that had befallen her...........
 Somehow or the other; the bedraggled; devastated and desolate survivor reached her home and tearfully spilled the beans to her disbelieving and distraught mother on being questioned about the undue delay in returning from her errand..........
 Keeping her wits about her; the doughty survivor's mother firstly informed her husband about the heinous deed perpetrated on their hapless daughter and then made her way to the Pandav Nagar police station with her husband and daughter in tow...........
 The trio then proceeded to register a written complaint against the accused under the applicable and relevant sections of both the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act as well as the Indian Penal Code (IPC); as is customary in all such cases; the teenager was sent for a series of tests to a nearby government hospital where the tests carried out on her conclusively established the occurrence of rape..........
 Swinging into action as soon as the complaint was registered the Pandav Nagar police slkeuths constituted a team to nab the accused at the earliest and adroitly succeeded in their attempts to do so when they successfully managed to nab him from a neighbour's house at around 5 pm or so on the fateful Thursday evening..........
 He (the accused) who also happens to be a confirmed drug addict was then produced before the juvenile justice board which duly remanded him to a juvenile correctional facility in which he will be spending the next two years or so as he claims that his age is 16 and also asks for his daily fix of alcohol and drugs in the same breath..........
Will our politicians shed their age old sense of prevarication and dilly dallying and pass the necessary amendments to the existing acts pertaining to heinous crimes committed by juveniles as the numbers of such acts committed by this class is not only alarmingly increasing but also showing no signs of dissipation........

ON "WAZIR"............

I for one am indeed gladdened and chastened by producer Vidhu VInod Chopra's sage words and his sound reasoning for the action thriller "Wazir's" delayed release..........
 One may do well to recall the fact that the Bejoy Nambiar helmed and Vidhu Vinod Chopra "Wazir" was expected to explode on the silver screen on October 8 and then December 2; 2015 according to so called informed sources.........
 Chopra however put the record straight by saying that the Amitabh Bachchan and Farhan Akhtar magnum opus will only grace the screens on January 8; 2016 as producer Chopra was less than impressed with the special effects that were being done on Bachchan sahab's emaciated and supposedly useless legs........
 At the unveiling of the much awaited film's official trailer Nambiar said that both he and Mr. Chopra belonged to the somewhat dwindling school of thought which sought perfection and mastery in every frame of the narrative........
 "Achieving such perfection and mastery takes time and we the team at Vidhu Vinod Chopra Productions have never been one's to rush a film and release it unless it satisfies our own lofty standards as we believe that we would not only have cheated ourselves but also legions of dedicated and passionate film goers in the bargain"............
 "Our last release PK was also delayed by a good six to seven months for the very same as well as other reasons but we did not do a hatchet job and release the same despite the considerable pressure being exerted on us by distributors; exhibitors and multiplex owners", both Chopra and Nambiar signed off..........
 I for one can vouch for the fact that "Wazir" will create box office history (if the promos are any yardstick to go by) as the magnum opus has it all; adrenaline pumping action; mind boggling intrigue; Filmfare Award winning performances; romance; love; death; decay and destruction to say the very least............
 Here's wishing the team of "Wazir" unprecedented success; awards galore and gushing reviews.........

AN EYE FOR AN EYE..........

Despite the Supreme Court repeatedly castigating governments and passing strictures against the sale of acid; acid throwing incidents continue unabated........
 In the latest incident of a so called jilted lover hurling acid at his imagined love interest; a 30 year old man who carried on a one sided love affair with a much married woman finally succumbed to his growing sense of frustration and churlishness by flinging acid on his flame in a village abutting Rajasthan's capital city (Jaipur)...........
 According to fellow villagers; Babu was persistently pursuing Radha; a distant relative who had gotten married five years or so ago but was residing with her parents for the last few months because of seemingly irreconcilable differences between her and her husband.........
 On the fateful Wednesday afternoon as per his nocturnal habits; Babu unceremoniously barged into Radha's modest home and began imploring her to forget her estranged husband and marry him as he "genuinely" loved and worshipped her unlike her husband who had forsaken her and forgotten her.........
 An enraged and incensed Radha unceremoniously warded him off and asked him to get out immediately if he knew what was good for him; this however proved to be the last tether as Babu in this instance suddenly brandished a can containing acid and contemptuously threw the same at Radha and some of the same also found it's way towards the persona of Radha's 12 year old sister who also suffered burn injuries in the bargain..........
 Hearing 25 year old Radha's as well as 12 year old Poonam's heart rending cries and blood curdling entreaties for help concerned villagers firstly made a beeline towards their house and then rushed the two sisters to a nearby government hospital.........
 Doctors at the same hospital expressed their concern at the sisters piteous plight as the two of them had suffered grievous injuries on their faces; lips; chest; neck and other parts of their visage as they were doused with a considerable amount of acid by the assailant who still remains at large..........
 On the advice of the doctors at the government hospital; the two sisters were shifted to a private hospital in Dholpur late on Wednesday evening where the doctors attending on them asked the parents of the girls to raise some serious funds as the duo would have to undergo facial reconstruction surgery in the very near future..........
What's it with supposedly jilted desperadoes and their penchant to hurl acid at resolute and steadfast women who will just not bow before their wanton; wild; vile; despicable and fruitless overtures; such men are a disgrace to the human race and should be made to undergo the same trauma; pain; humiliation and social ostracisation so that they can be cured of their affliction once and for all.............

MUCH SOUGHT AFTER POLICE PROTECTION.........

Forget a witness protection programme; Indian authorities cannot even ensure the safety and security of prime witnesses and other such........
 A senior citizen was shot multiple times at point blank range by two yet to be identified assailants in his sprawling mansion in Haryana's Mahendragarh district a day before he was supposed to record his deposition before a trial court in an age old murder case.........
 According to alarmed and disbelieving neighbours; Shri Ram (65) was blissfully asleep within the four walls of his home and hearth in the wee hours of Monday morning when the two masked intruders stealthily crept into his house and pumped multiple bullets into his torso at point blank range...........
 Disconsolate and grieving family members surmised that a long standing dispute between Shri Ram and his estranged business partners could be the cause for his gruesome end; they also pointed out the fact that Shri Ram was the fourth person to be silenced forever in this manner.........
 In the meanwhile the local police who was summoned to the murder site by Shri Ram's distraught better half has registered a case of murder against two youths Birender and Vikram of Khairoli village based on the statement made by the deceased's widow......
 According to a senior police officer the accused duo is already facing trial for having allegedly bumped off three members of Shri Ram's family in a likewise manner and had also repeatedly threatened Shri Ram of dire and deathly consequences if he deposed before the trial court..........
Fearing for his life; the deceased had petitioned the court and the same had allotted him round the clock security but the sentry who was to safeguard Shri Ram's persona was found to be sound asleep when the assailants performed this dastardly deed and made good their escape from the spot.........
 So much for the much sought after police security; it's efficaciousness and ability to safeguard the life and security of a prime witness on whose testimony the ultimate fate of the case rested.........

CRUDE AND BARBARIC ACT.........

Is anything still sacrosanct in this increasingly insane and materialistic world.........
 A 28 year old life long resident of Manmad (60 odd kms from the famed Shirdi shrine in Maharashtra) was taken into custody by the local police on Monday afternoon as he allegedly sexually ravaged and tormented his 52 year old mother for the last fortnight and more..........
 According to other family members; the 28 year old accused who could be mentally disturbed did the same a little over seven years ago but that gory incident was hushed up at both family members as well as other supposedly concerned folks behest........
 Matters however came to a head on the fateful Monday morning when the 28 year old deviant beat up his mother to within an inch of her life when she spurned his incestuous advances and also gave him a piece of her mind........
 Fearing for her life and safety; a conscientious neighbour immediately summoned the area police who firstly admitted the tormented; grievously wounded and battered 52 year old survivor to the district's government hospital and then proceeded to arrest the accused from his friend's abode later that afternoon........
 A case under section 376 (2) (rape) has since been booked against the accused and he has been remanded to fourteen days judicial custody by a magistrate who also directed the local police authorities to verify his mental condition and fitness........
 I for one am of the opinion that this hedonistic and despicable behaviour must be the norm rather than the exception in many Indian families and such behaviours might also be cloaked and condoned under the convenient and age old garb of upholding the family's honour and prestige..........

HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN..........

Here's some news that will surely gladden the hearts and souls of all Ayushmann Khurrana as well as Yami Gautam fans.........
This handsome couple who set the silver screen ablaze with their crackling on screen chemistry in the sleeper hit "Vicky Donor" will once be seen together in the Rochak Kumar helmed romantic single "Yahin Hoon Main" which will be both produced as well as presented by the T series head honcho Bhushan Kumar.........
 Newbie director Amit Roy has already shot this romantic ditty that plays out from Yami's coloured view of life and romance in the sylvan; serene; salubrious and oh so romantic climes of Chail (Himachal Pradesh).............
 One will also do well to remember the fact that bum chums Rochak Kohli and Ayushmann Khurrana have more than successfully collaborated on romantic and evocative numbers in Vicky Donor; Nautanki Saala; Hawaizaada and last but not the least Ayushmann's super hit single "Mitti Di Khushboo".........
Wondering why producers and directors have not repeated the super hit Yami and Ayushmann pairing in their ventures despite the same being the prevalent norm within the annals of the Hindi film industry; Roy pointed out that he would consider none else but them when he launches his first directorial venture (read feature film).........
 Letting the cat out of the bag; Bhushan Kumar bashfully revealed that the song will see the lead couple maturing from happy go lucky and carefree college students to a much more measured mature and caring couple and also said that due diligence was paid to the styling and look of the supposedly deeply in love couple..........
 Here's wishing this suave; debonair and dashing couple the very best for the unprecedented success of this melodious chart buster and many more such creative and heart touching such dalliances to come.........

MURDER MOST FOUL.........

It certainly cannot get any more brutal and gory than this.......
 According to Bhubaneswar police sources; an elderly couple; both of whom happen to be retired doctors were brutally and disdainfully slain by suspected robbers who gained entry into their sprawling bungalow in the city's prosperous Sailashree Vihar locality in the wee hours of Sunday morning.........
 Neighbours found the elderly couple Prafulla Chandra Mishra; 73 and his better half Sushma; 67 in a somewhat unnatural and grotesque position at around 6:30 am or so on the fateful morning and promptly informed the local police personnel who arrived on the crime scene within a matter of minutes..........
 Initial investigations into the double murder have pointed towards robbery and a profit motive being the reason behind this gruesome development though a detailed and painstaking probe could turn this theory on it's head........
The doctor who carried out the preliminary investigation on the corpses of the deceased couple surmised that their assailants might have callously bumped them off between 5 and 5:30 pm by strangulating Dr. Prafulla Chandra and bludgeoning his better half to death with a weighty blunt object as strangulation marks were found around Dr. Chandra's neck and his spouses head bore numerous injury marks caused by the said object.........
 Cupboards; drawers; the bedroom and living room were completely ransacked and household articles were left lying in an ungainly heap by the band of robbers who seem to have made off with a sizeable sum of money and precious valuables if the police are to be believed..........
 According to their neighbours and close friends and confidantes; the somewhat reclusive and increasingly private couple had been residing by themselves for the last year or so as their two married sons resided with their respective families in other parts of the same city and visited them twice a month or so..........
Senior police officials strongly suspect an insider's hand in the twin murders as the band of robbers carried out their act with clinical precision and rarely seen perfection as the neighbours who lived in close proximity did not either hear or see the band of robbers who carried out this dastardly deed.........
 This devilish twin murder once again highlights the increasing vulnerability of elderly persons/couples to such wanton and fearsome attacks while pointing out the need for greater and far more regular policing of such areas where elderly citizens reside in great numbers or better still the erection of boundary walls; barriers and so on and so forth in such areas with the strategic and stealthy deployment of security guards in all such areas as these measures could both act as a deterrent as well as provide the elderly with a modicum of safety and security.........

IS THIS THE COST OF A FEW MEASLY RUPEES...........

Are families; nurturers; protectors; benefactors; mentors; or then destroyers; betrayers; slayers and brokers?????
One such family residing in the national capital's north west region shamed both humanity and the entire nation as their thoughtless and utterly despicable act resulted in the sexual assault of their daughter as well as the premature demise of her 12 year old cousin........
 According to police sources this utterly avoidable incident occurred late on Friday evening when the accused one Raju (21) who was promised the 17 year old doughty survivor's hand in marriage by her mother and step father as he used to fuel the step father's drunken sprees as well as render financial assistance whenever required otherwise.........
 On the fateful Friday evening; Raju entered the family's rented one room accommodation in a fit of rage and asked for the immediate formalisation of the supposed relationship between him and the 17 year old as he had resolutely resisted his sexual overtures and even registered a stinging slap on his face when he tried to get fresh with her a week or so ago.........
 Sending the parents out of the room; Raju proceeded to subdue his soon to be wife (according to him and the girl's parents) and sexually violate her; her twelve year old cousin who was sleeping in a corner of the same room woke up with a start on hearing the sounds of the fracas and tried his level best to save his sister's honour.......
 He however paid for his valour with his life as Raju reportedly bludgeoned him with an iron rod that was kept in the same room and left him lying in a rapidly increasing pool of his own blood on account of the grievous head injuries inflicted by him on the murderous and hedonistic Raju.........
 Rudely awakened out of their self imposed stupor and aura of indifference the dastardly couple rushed into the room and rushed both their daughter as well as the grievously injured twelve year old to the locality's primary health centre where the on duty doctor pronounced the boy brought dead on arrival.........
 As is the norm in all such cases; the on duty doctor firstly summoned the local cops who proceeded to book cases under all the applicable and relevant sections of both the IPC as well as POCSO act against the accused Raju and took the survivor to a government hospital for medical tests that established the occurrence of rape beyond all reasonable doubt..........
 I for one wonder why the local police stopped at booking cases against the still at large Raju and did not exercise a follow up act by booking cases of aiding and abetting against the remorseless parents who still continue to blame their 17 year old daughter and not the demonic Raju for the bloodbath and carnage that occurred in their rented accommodation.............
 Are a few measly rupees worth far more than the dignity and honour of your own flesh and blood; methinks not; what do you think????????

LIVING MANIFESTATIONS..............

Is/are these sordid and ghastly events manifestations of the so called enlightened and progressive society that all of us are supposed to be living in.........
 Bhind police sleuths early on Saturday morning apprehended four persons who were allegedly involved in the humiliation; bestiality and physical torture of a middle aged woman belonging to the district's Lahar area.........
According to police sources; the heinous incident occurred late on Friday evening when the four accused Murli Manohar; Ram Prakash; Jai Singh and a woman accomplice forcibly entered the home and abode of the middle aged woman in an unruly fit of rage........
 The four accused were reportedly enraged as the woman's son reportedly showed the courage and dexterity to marry a girl belonging to one of the accused's families against the expressed wishes and desires of her parents and other family members.......
They firstly roughed up the middle aged woman and beat her black and blue and then compounded their brutality and goondaism by parading her naked throughout the length and breadth of the area as a preventive measure to any other youth who mustered up the courage and pluck to do the same.........
 Family members of the middle aged woman who noticed her pitiable and horrendous state came to her aid and the four accused took to their heels as soon as they saw a mob rushing towards them; they then proceeded to admit the woman to the district government hospital and informed the local police about the carnage that had occurred at the woman's residence.........
 Swinging into action; the local police arrested the four accused in the wee hours of Saturday morning; but the four were let off on bail within a few hours of being arrested as the local police had only booked cases under bailable sections of the Indian Penal Code against the four accused...........
On being queried as to whether the local police were being lenient towards the four accused on account of their familial ties with a prominent politician; a senior police officer quipped that the matter was still under investigation and that the police may soon book cases under far more stringent sections of the IPC and rearrest the four accused if the evidence collected against them warranted the same..........
 I for one ardently believe that the case's investigating officer as well as his subordinates should be hauled up and cases should be booked against them for wanton and wilful neglect of duty and shoddy investigation as this and only this will raise warning signals; act as a welcome deterrent and force the police's hands into doing their job professionally and fairly..........

PRESENT DAY LOVE STORY.............

Will the carnage and mayhem ever end or then will so called "spurned" suitors continue attacking their so called love interests with growing impunity.........
 A minor class ten student hailing from Ranchi's Jamshedpur city was reportedly sexually assaulted by her tormentor and subsequently set alight as she steadfastly refused to accept his one sided and seemingly insane marriage proposals.........
 This gruesome and ghoulish incident occurred late on Thursday evening when the class ten student was making her way to the tuition classes that she attended thrice every week without exception...........
Mohan Lohar (24); her so called jilted suitor unexpectedly pounced on her and forcibly led her to a desolate and deserted spot in the city's Begun Nagar locality where he firstly proceeded to sexually violate her as he thought that she would accede to his unjust demands and marry him if he did so.........
 When the doughty and resolute survivor continued to fight him and stoutly refuse his futile marriage proposals; Lohar doused her being with kerosene from a bottle that he had brought along with him and set her ablaze before making an attempt to flee the crime scene.........
 Residents of the locality and other bystanders who reached the spot on hearing the girl's blood curdling and soul stirring screams firstly doused the flames that engulfed the girl while a few of them subdued Lohar and proceeded to rain a flurry of blows on him; they then informed the police who arrived on the scene on no time at all and rushed the injured girl to a government hospital in an ambulance.........
 In his statement made before a senior police officer; Lohar asserted that he and the grievously injured girl (she suffered over 30% burns) had an affair for a little over a year and that she had previously agreed to marry him; while the girl simply refuted Lohar's outlandish claims and said that he had doused her with kerosene with the intention of shutting her up for good as he was afraid that she would spill the beans about his deviant and devious ways and have him arrested as a result..........
 One only hopes and prays that the learned judge who pronounces the final or then ultimate judgement on/in this case gives Lohar such an exemplary and extreme punishment that the same ends up putting both the fear of the almighty as well as the law in the hearts and souls of all such wannabe Majnu's.............

CAUSE ENOUGH TO MURDER A FELLOW HUMAN BEING.........

Yet another so called teenage love story seems to have taken a gruesome and deathly turn........
 A minor boy allegedly stabbed his teenaged lover to death in the kitchen of a prominent hotel located near Hubbali's (Karnataka state) famed Court Circle late on Friday evening.........
 According to the case's investigating officer both parties; i.e. the accused as well as his victim were gainfully employed in the kitchen of the said hotel; the ghoulish murderer had joined the hotel a little over eighteen months back while his so called love interest had followed in his wake and joined the same establishment a little over twelve months back........
Narrating the sordid and demonic tale of the murderous rage; a fellow worker said; " the minor boy was relentlessly pursuing the harassed girl for the last three months or so and she repeatedly kept spurning his amateurish overtures with utter disdain and gloating contempt"..........
 "On the fateful Friday evening; the accused boy abruptly flew into a fit of untamed rage and ended up plunging a kitchen knife that was placed nearby in her abdomen and chest regions quite a few times".......... "We were alerted to these macabre developments when we heard the girl's moans and pitiable cries for help; about twelve of us or so rushed to the spot and found the girl lying in a rapidly spreading pool of her own blood and entrails while the boy was still making efforts to inflict further carnage and torture on her"........
 "Four of us apprehended and subdued the murderous minor while the rest of us got hold of a vehicle and rushed the grievously injured girl to the nearby KIMS hospital where the doctors pronounced her brought dead on arrival; in the meanwhile; the hotel's management summoned the local police and handed over both the accused as well as the murder weapon to them"; the hotel staffer tearfully concluded.........
 One waits to see the ultimate fate that will befall this so called minor boy; will he also be let off lock;stock and barrel as soon as he turns 18 according to the existing juvenile justice laws or then will the Modi government put it's money where it's mouth is and make the eagerly awaited amendments to the existing laws in this regard that will enable the concerned authorities to try all juveniles who commit murderous and other equally serious crimes as adults if they are over and above the age of 15............

SALLU BHAI ROCKS THE BOX OFFICE.........

While most of us are aware of the long standing convivial and congenial relationship between superstar Salman Khan and the box office; this is one relationship that only seems to be going from strength to strength.........
 Sooraj Barjatya and Salman Khan's eagerly anticipated Diwali release "Prem Ratan Dhan Payo" not only obliterated the box office collections of Shahrukh Khan starrer "Happy New Year" by the proverbial country mile but also ended up setting a new record for the opening day's box office collections........
 According to the figures available on the web site of the nation's most trust worthy box office reckoner (Box Office India.com); the magnum opus reportedly collected a whopping Rs. 39.40 crore nett (Hindi version) while the dubbed Tamil and Telugu versions of the same film added a further Rs. 1.50 crore to it's kitty; thereby taking the opening day collections of the same to an astounding Rs. 40.90 crore.......
What however may come as a dampener is the mixed response that Brajatya's latest directorial venture has garnered from both the audiences as well as the carping critics and it will indeed be interesting and worth one's while to keep an eagle eye on the box office collections of the same in order to see whether the hype and hoopla persists considering the somewhat lukewarm response the film has evoked (audience and critic reviews)..........

UTTERLY AVOIDABLE AND NEEDLESS DEATH..........

Will the murder; mayhem and carnage related to the festival of lights come to a conclusion now at least........
 A 42 year old long term resident of Udham Singh Nagar's (Uttarakhand) Sitarganj city lost his life and two other members of his family were critically injured in a macabre cracker bursting related incident late on Wednesday night.........
 According to senior police sources; a heated and particularly raucous argument broke out between one Jitendra Prasad 42; the victim and his long standing friends Sudarshan Prasad; Bhuleri Lal; Ajay Kumar and Sanjay Kumar as Prasad and his family members were bursting crackers that were emitting sounds well above the permissible limits in the opinion of the four accused........
What started as a particularly heated and acrimonious argument between five thoroughly inebriated and sozzled gents soon took a murderous and sinister turn as the above mentioned four accused initially left the spot but soon returned to the scene armed with iron rods; bamboo sticks; metal chains and lathis.........
 They then proceeded to mercilessly assault Jitendra Prasad and other family members thereby leaving an unconscious Prasad and two critically injured minor sons (Prasad's sons) in their wake; other family members who received minor injuries rushed the injured to a nearby hospital.........
 Prasad who received critical and gruesome head injuries in the heinous altercation was pronounced brought dead on arrival by the doctors on the scene while his two minor sons were admitted to the hospital's intensive care unit (ICU) in a critical condition........
 Perturbed and concerned doctors informed the local police sleuths about the unsavoury developments and the local police personnel firstly recorded the family members statements and then swung into action with surprising agility and remarkable alacrity...........
As a result of their prompt and timely actions; they managed to successfully nab three of the four accused from their respective abodes in the wee hours of Thursday morning while the fourth accused is still at large........
 Cases under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code have been booked against the four accused and the three who happen to be in police custody have been remanded to fourteen days judicial custody by a magistrate...........
 While I remain steadfastly opposed to bursting crackers as a matter of principle; I also do not condone the acts of the four vengeful men who could have enlightened Jitendra Prasad and his fellow family members with the wisdom and force in their contrarian arguments rather than resorting to violent means that resulted in the untimely and utterly avoidable demise of one of the participants in the fracas........

ANY EXPLANATIONS OR JUSTIFICATIONS FORTHCOMING...........

Will the cracker burning brigade come up with a convoluted; contorted; logic defying and seemingly insane explanation for this too.........
 Damini Nikam a demure; dainty; naive and innocent 5 year old resident of Tisangi Village in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district lost her fledgling life thanks to the wanton carelessness of a fellow villager/s who left a packet of highly carcinogenic and deadly bombs in the open.........
 According to police sources; Damini was enticed by the multi coloured wrappings of the very same (bombs) and innocently popped one of them into her mouth thinking the same to be an exotic brand of chocolates or sweet meats........
 Her disbelieving and distressed mother found her writhing in pain and clutching at her throat and stomach after some time and rushed her to the district government hospital for treatment........
 Alas; the 5 year old who was yet to blossom succumbed to the infiltration of toxins and poisons that had spread through her system as a result of ingesting the deathly cracker thereby ending an inspiring and awe striking tale even before it could begin........
 A case has been registered against unknown persons under the relevant and applicable sections of the Indian Penal Code and all possible efforts are being made to unmask and identify the culprits at the earliest........
 Will the self serving; self obsessed and self consumed cracker bursting brigade restore the five year old to life and reunite her with her inconsolable parents or will they once again dismiss this wilful and wanton murder as one of those things and go on bursting crackers with gay abandon as a human life is far less precious and valuable than their beloved bombs and other such vile and deathly crackers..........

WILL THE GUILTY BE PROSECUTED AT LONG LAST...........

Well; well; well nothing seems to have changed at the ground level after all........
Thousands of folks who feel that bursting crackers and polluting the already polluted environs manifold is their birthright and then made a misplaced and misguided effort to justify the same by citing facts and figures pertaining to vehicular pollution; consumption of meat and so and so forth.........
Whether you like it or not; here are a few unpalatable and blatantly truthful facts that will leave you squirming and ducking for cover..........
 FIRSTLY: your wild; wanton; utterly despicable; deplorable; totally selfish; self centred and self indulgent act not only helped increase the smog levels in the nation's capital by an inestimable 900% or then 9 times the present levels and did the same in Kolkata; Hyderabad and Bengaluru (to name just a few) in varying degrees and proportions.........
 SECONDLY: have you ever taken the time out to consider the fact that more than 80% of all the work force employed by these cracker manufacturing sweat shops or establishments you gloatingly patronise comprises of hapless and increasingly despondent children below the ages of 14; so will one of you kindly enlighten me why all of you heartless and conscienceless folks should not be tried as per the existing laws of the land as you not only patronise child labour but also glorify the same with your callous acts.........
 THIRDLY: you not only drove dogs insane with your mindless and insane antics (bursting loud and obnoxious crackers) but also caused the premature demises of endangered species like the domestic Indian sparrow and other such birds who have fallen prey to your hedonistic and brutal tendencies; so tell me why the full force of the law pertaining to the indiscriminate and wanton felling of endangered species so not be brought down on you.....
 FOURTHLY: you are also in violation of yet another law passed by the Supreme Court of India restricting rather completely banning the usage of fire crackers; loud speakers or then any other loud music etc between 10 pm and 6 am without exception; as folks belonging to your demonic category continued to burst loud and devilish crackers till well past 3 am in my immediate vicinity; so pray tell me why all of you folks should not be prosecuted under the auspices of the very same law/act and undergo the mandatory jail sentence/fines prescribed in this case.........
 FIFTHLY: you also compounded the miseries of long suffering senior citizens by directly contributing to the heart attacks suffered by them during the course of your so called festivities; I for one counted a minimum of three such cases in my immediate vicinity as I witnessed three such senior citizens being carted away in ambulances with tearful and increasingly fearful family members in tow; so why shouldn't you and others of your ilk be made to pay their medical expenses and other ancillary costs borne by their miserable family members and made to undergo the trials and tribulations the family members undergo when their beloved elders suffer on your account...........
THIS also includes the injuries you cause to vehicles personal belongings; folks who are doing their business as usual and both domestic and stray animals with your vile and despicable acts; the lot of you should be confined to a mental asylum for the rest of your natural lives as that is where the lot of you rightfully belong so that folks who put others before themselves and genuinely care for the betterment of society and the nation as a whole can go on with living and letting live without your insanity; madness; crudity; vulgarity and vileness polluting the peaceful and tranquil environs...........

ON CELEBRATING RESPONSIBLY..........

While celebrating the festival of lights in a befitting and resounding manner is an intensely personal and joyous sentiment; may I humbly take this opportunity of reminding you to spread the spirit of festivity and bonhomie as far and wide as you can..........
At the cost of being immodest; let me talk about myself; I for one stopped spending money on crackers and clothes three decades or so ago and have preferred to distribute the same amongst lesser privileged though equally deserving kids and other such folks through the auspices of CRY as well as the Concern India Foundation.........
 Who am I to give sermons and preach; you may well ask; well I am a well meaning and conscientious Indian who is simply appalled and disgusted with the callousness and heartlessness of fellow Indians who prefer to fritter away crores of rupees every year under the pretext of so called designer "Diwali" gambling parties organised at sprawling bungalows or opulent and garish farmhouses........
Or then flabbergasted by the mindless and somewhat insane antics of such fellow Indians who derive perverse pleasure through either torturing and petrifying innocent and demure stray dogs who are already besides themselves with fear and consternation by the unduly loud and terrifying noise emanating from continually exploding fire crackers and then compounding their bestiality by tying or affixing the very same to the tails of these long suffering strays........
 As if this was not enough; I for one have also encountered scores of such callous and crude fellow Indians who do not even bat an eyelid before bursting crackers and gorging themselves on sweetmeats as if they were going out of fashion while emaciated kids of labourers; daily wagers and so on look on fascinatedly with wondrous eyes in the forlorn hope that some of this moolah may eventually come their way.........
 Celebrate by all means as the Constitution of India has bestowed you with the right to do so in any manner you please; but spare a though for the have nots and speechless animals who have an equal right to participate in the festivities and celebrations in a manner that is a lot less hurtful and a lot more participative.........

DRAW YOUR OWN CONCLUSIONS..........

One wonders why middle aged men occupying senior positions in governmental organisations cannot keep their unholy tentacles off either their subordinates or their neighbours.......
 In the latest unsavoury/sordid incident involving a senior level bureaucrat and a harassed and harrowed woman; a senior Indian Information Services (IIS) officer gainfully employed with All India Radio Cuttack now finds himself facing the ignominy of being arrested on account of the allegedly lewd messages sent to a married woman on her mobile phone........
 In a written complaint filed before the police personnel manning Bhubaneshwar's Airfield Police Station; the complainant (a much married woman with two progenies of her own) alleged that one Prakash Dash her neighbour of more than ten years standing was besieging and barracking her with lewd; crude and sexual innuendo laden SMSes and MMSes for the last two and a bit years..........
She further goes on to say that "Dash behaved impeccably in the first five or so years as her neighbour; but then began to reveal his true and criminal self by constantly barraging her with requests to maintain a physical relationship with him; he also threatened to malign me and besmirch my reputation if I did not accede to his unreasonable demands"..........
 As if this was not enough; the accused senior officer also took to calling her up at odd hours and dropping in at her house in the absence of her husband if she failed to respond to his telephonic overures; what however turned out to be the last straw was the demonic threat issued by Dash to the long suffering woman's spouse............
 According to the case's investigating officer; a case has been registered against the afore mentioned senior officer under the relevant and applicable sections of the Indian Penal Code and an investigation has also been launched against him; but no arrests have been made thus far as the complainant has thus far been unable to provide the police with either the lewd SMSes or graphic videos that were allegedly sent to her by the accused..........
 A calculated attempt to tarnish the reputation of a respected bureaucrat or then a sordid and sleazy tale of unrequited sexual urgings and inclinations; well I leave you to draw your own conclusions..........

SENSELESS AND REPREHENSIBLE ACT.........

Think twice before taking on peeping toms and old perverts as your sense of outrage and bravado might just end up costing you your life.........
 A similar sense of bravado; outrage; disgust and disbelief ended up costing a 16 year old youth his fledgling life late on Sunday evening as his 70 plus year old uncle shot him down from point blank range with a country made revolver (tamancha) for mustering up the courage and audacity to question his lecherous habits.........
 According to the case's investigating officer; 16 year old Dharmendra (the victim) was browsing through a magazine within the supposedly safe and secure confines of his home in Bareilly district's Bajhera village when he happened to notice his 70 odd year old grand uncle Ramvir making lewd gestures at passing by women folk and ogling them in a supposedly obscene manner.......
Taking umbrage at the old geezer's nocturnal behaviour; the 16 year old rebuked and chastised him following which the old gent flew into a fit of rage and started abusing the young man in the vilest possible manner........
 Matters soon took an ugly and sinister turn and came to a head when the ageing lothario whipped out a country made pistol and shot at the seething and irate 16 year old at point blank range...........
 Concerned villagers and neighbours made a beeline towards the spot on hearing the resounding report of the pistol and found Dharmendra lying on the floor in a rapidly spreading pool of his own blood; taking full advantage of the prevailing confusion and mayhem; Ramvir took to his heels and made good his escape from the crime scene.........
 A few caring and concerned villagers carried a seemingly lifeless Dharmendra into a jeep and rushed him to a nearby government hospital where the doctors pronounced him dead on arrival; the very same doctors also apprised the local police who soon reached the hospital and took matters into their supposedly capable hands.........
 The area police have since registered a case under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (murder) against the elusive/absconding Ramvir and constituted two teams to nab/apprehend him at the earliest.........
 Like I said earlier; do ensure that your antagonist does not have access to a country made or then any other life threatening weapon before taking him on and making him realise the error of his ways..........