ELUSIVE CONSENSUS..........

The union cabinet despite all it's homilies, platitudes and hollow reassurances in this regard, failed to arrive at a consensus over the contents of the draft Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill-seeking to reintroduce the contentious word "rape" in place of the gender neutral sexual assault that is in vogue at present in the proposed stringent rape law...........


What is even more ironical is the fact that the cabinet failed to resolve it's differences on a day where a 19 year old young woman alleged that she was firstly taken to a secluded place and then repeatedly raped in the same auto that she had boarded along with three other male occupants in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad district........

And a 32 year old multi national company executive was brutally assaulted and raped in the company vehicle that she used to moved around in on a daily basis by the cab's driver and a male colleague; FIR's have been registered in both cases but the culprits were yet to be apprehended by the police when reports last came in........

Differences emerged between various cabinet ministers on replacing the present gender neutral sexual assault with the woman specific or centric word "rape" as suggested by the justice Verma committee in it's report and differences also cropped up on the controversial issue of lowering the minimum age of consensual sex to 16 from the present 18 according to informed sources........

The very same sources also confirmed the facts that the law ministry has expressed it's serious apprehensions and misgivings about the home ministry's draft that replaces 'sexual assault' with 'rape', while the ministry of women and child development is proving to be the biggest impediment in lowering the minimum age for consensual sex to 16 from the present 18.........

A consensus has to be reached at any cost given the fact that this bill has to stand both the intense scrutiny of parliament as well as the eagle eye of the judiciary; the draft is likely to undergo major changes and be brought before the cabinet in it's refurbished and revamped avatar in the very near future, these sources added.......

Law minister Ashwani Kumar on his part strongly refuted all reports of differences of opinion amongst the cabinet ministers and attributed the undue delay to the fact that the bill was yet to assume a concrete shape and structure as the same was yet being framed by the union home ministry...........

"The thoroughly revamped and amended bill will soon be placed before the cabinet," the minister went on to say; it may worth be remembering here the fact that the ordinance making the proposed anti rape law far more stringent and potent was promulgated by the president on February 3, 2013.........

Informed sources also opined that though hectic consultations to fine tune the contents of this far reaching bill were on between the mandarins of various ministries, it was a given that the home ministry's informed opinion about the usage of the word 'rape' in place of the term 'sexual assault' would definitely prevail in the ultimate analysis........

SON, WHAT WILL YOU BECOME..........

A song dedicated to my favourite all time sport; CRICKET, I am an unabashed music lover and hope that the same holds good for you too........




Ever since I was a lad of one,

I've been plagued by this question-

"Son tell me what you want to be

when you've grown as tall as me?"



But ever since I was so big, or say small,

I've been good with the bat and ball,

And it never occurred to me

That there's a world beyond the boundary.



So, when asked by men, fool or wise,

off I shoot out my reply,

I smiled and I added, "Sir,

I want to be a cricketer",



Some laughed 'n said, with a sweep of hand,

'You're a kid of ten; you don't understand,

When you grow old and mature,

You'll be able to answer me, I am sure.'



I grew old and I was fifteen,

When I was asked to choose my studying stream,

I picked maths and science, and well, I did well,

But cricket still had me under it's spell.

So when asked again what I wanted to be,

I said what I said at ten and three,

'You may laugh; it's your wish, Sir,

but I want to be a cricketer.'



Some scratched the head and some shook theirs,

Said, 'one must be a doctor or an engineer,

Don't talk like a fool, you know not yet,

Cricket won't bring you money or respect.'



I raised my brow and let out a breath,

And wondered if I could explain them fat heads,

That I must follow my dreams, follow my heart,

As 'the road less travelled' was beyond them smarts.



So I played on and scored many a ton,

And many a match, with my bat I won,

And I graduated too, just for back up,

Though my heart was still with the cricket cup.



And now that I am twenty three,

Sirs still tell me, what I should be,

But before they begin, I tell 'em what they'll say,

'You must do an MBA'.



And thank god, I am saved from the boring speech,

When I see the opener's caught-I bat at three,

I say, 'I must take your leave, sir,

For I am a cricketer.'



Ever since I was so big or say small,

I've been good with the bat and ball

And it never occurred to me

That there's a world beyond the boundary.

FINES FOR ERRING BABUS..........

Be it on account of a rapidly approaching general election, strident and vociferous criticism from the opposition benches or then on account of a rapidly growing perception amongst the urban populace about this being the weakest, most ineffectual and corrupt government ever; the Manmohan Singh led government has off late being sending out signals of having gotten it's act right at long last........


The latest in a series of initiatives to make the burgeoning bureaucracy and sarkari babus more responsive and officious towards the plight of the aam aadmi is a bill providing time bound delivery of services such as pensions, passports, caste certificates, death certificates, ration cards, tax refunds and do on and so forth.......

This draft bill which is expected to be placed before parliament later today will also contain provisions of penalising and punishing errant and truant officials with fines ranging from a minimum of Rs.250 per day and a maximum of Rs. 50,000/- in cases of repeated and chronic defaults in the timely delivery of required and necessary services.........

Entitled the "right of citizens for time-bound delivery of goods and redressal of Grievances Bill", the same is slated to be enacted under the concurrent list thereby guaranteeing the fact that the states will have no other choice apart from offering the entire gamut or range of services listed or contained in the centre's citizen charter.....

Highly placed government sources inadvertently let the cat out of the bag by acerbically remarking that this proposed bill is nothing more than a belated effort towards deflating the wind out off the anti corruption crusader Shri Anna Hazare's sails and take credit for passing a citizen friendly bill originally envisaged and drafted by Shri Anna Hazare and his bunch of dedicated followers.......

Certain provisions of the very same bill allow or empower both a state as well as a central government redressal commission to refer or bring forth before the Lokpal a case for criminal investigation or enquiry if the said commission arrives at the conclusion that there is enough evidence of corruption and deliberate delays in the timely dispensation of the above mentioned services........

One only hopes that this long overdue initiative does not go the way of other such citizen friendly initiatives that precluded it, most if not all of us are aware of the undeniable and concrete fact that these very same sarkari babus are a law unto themselves at the best of times and will certainly do their best to scuttle a bill that is likely to hit them where it hurts the most if implemented sagaciously.........

BE A HERO............

Women's day is just around the corner and the Hyderabad for Change' facebook page and community initiative would like to take this opportunity of showing Hyderabad's women that we menfolk do indeed care for them and share their safety and security related concerns........


Who is a hero, one who gallivants in the rain with his lady love, bashes up twenty goons single handedly or then a man who is undemonstrative yet caring, deeply perturbed by the increasing instances of crimes against women yet unobtrusively doing his bit to make a lasting and telling difference, each one of you needs to make up his mind in this regard.......

One doesn't need weapons of mass destruction and the latest gadgets on the block in order to be a hero, but just the courage of conviction to take a stance on a particular issue and stand by the very same come what may; you just need to listen to your heart's voice and find your inner calling.........

My heroes, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Mohinder Amarnath and Shri Anna Hazare to name just a few did not possess adonis like physiques, rippling muscles, weapons and gadgets, but have still left indelible impressions on the sands of time with their inherent courage, sheer determination and ability to remain steadfast in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds......

Be a hero, take up cudgels on the behalf of our long suffering womenfolk, usher in a sense of perestroika and glasnost about their safety and security, raise your voice against any and every wrongdoing and make sure that you are not the problem but an integral part of a lasting solution to a long standing problem.......

Share your stories of bravery and valour with us, narrate instances of your taking up cudgels on behalf of your mothers, sisters, female friends, compatriots and colleagues, we in turn will share the same around on any and every platform and avenue available to us and make sure that these stories and profiles in courage emerge as a starting point and inspiration for others to follow in their wake.......

Let's once and for all put paid to this widely held perception about men being the perpetrators of injustice against the fairer sex and usher in a Rennaisance in both our collective thinking and actions as well..........

SHARED CABS:BOON OR BANE??????

Cabs or more specifically shared cabs have for long been the lifeline of many a harried woman employee who has to wend her way back from her workplace after a long and harrowing work day, rapidly increasing instances of sexual attacks and molestation bids have however put the spotlight on these very same cabs and questions are now being raised about this supposed lifeline being a huge security risk...........


Hundreds of such cabs can be seen ferrying women to and fro on a daily basis, but what is a cause of acute concern for the authorities is the fact that there are an estimated 1,500 illegal and unregulated shared cabs in existence and what is even more worrying is the fact that over 30% of the passengers who commute by such cabs happen to be women........

These very same cabs have almost become a lifeline for many a harried employee thanks to the pitiable and virtually non existent public transport system in far flung areas; these vehicles which are expressly meant to ferry the employees of companies that they are attached to can often times be seen plying other folks from destination to destination in their spare or free time..........

Faced with unduly long delays and endless waiting for public transport many an employee of IT and software companies situated in relatively far fling areas do not even think twice before jumping into these cabs that charge anything between Rs. 15 to Rs. 40 from their passengers depending upon the distance travelled........

It is not as if we are unaware of these very same cabs being a threat to our safety and security, we are also aware of the fact that these cabs often have two men or more in them at the best of times, but the absence of public transport leaves us with little or no choice in this regard a few women employees go on to say.......

Organisations employing the services of such cabs say that they are not unaware of the seemingly unlawful activities of the cabs and drivers hired by them, we have dismissed five such errant drivers from service over the last two months and do unfailingly initiate action whenever such an instance is brought to our notice, they point out.......

As is their wont, the police force squarely lays the blame for plying by such cabs on the shoulders of the people using them; we have repeatedly warned the female employees of these companies and asked them to refrain from using such dubious modes of transportation they say, but also hold out some kind of hope for the future by saying that they have decided to summon a meeting of all such cab owners and drivers.......

"A stern warning will be issued to all such people and they will be direly warned about the consequences of indulging in such illegal activities", the police sources conclude.....

All one can say in conclusion is that warning or not, harried women employees will continue to use such modes of conveyance in the absence of other alternatives, the best one can do when faced with a Hobson's choice such as this is to board the cab with a prayer on one's lips and keep the pepper spray, chilli powder and trusty pocket knife ready for action at very short notice..........

LITANY OF COMPLAINTS...........

Hundreds of schoolgirls belonging to various schools spread across the length and breadth of Hyderabad have now decided to voice their concerns about the treatment meted out to them by errant bus conductors employed by the APSRTC and petition the police and APSRTC higher ups in this regard..........


More than 200 girl students belonging to one school in the older areas of the city have decided to come together on a common platform and draft a petition and a slew of letters addressed to both the commissioner of police as well as the managing director of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation.......

These letters will narrate our litany of woes in explicit detail and highlight the shame and humiliation that we are subjected to on a daily basis by these unrepentant and incorrigible conductors, one of the students drafting these letters goes on to say, these letters are being addressed to the higher authorities as our complaints to the local police station have been both disregarded and summarily dismissed.........

We not only have to put up with the derisive, highly objectionable and sexist remarks of the conductors but also bear the brunt of the local police authorities callous indifference and utter disdain towards our plight, now sample this as a sterling example of the police's disdain towards their plight; "Is it really possible for a bus conductor to beat up a schoolgirl and push her out of a moving bus in broad daylight", Bahadurpura sub Inspector of police Veera Babu counter questions........

"The complaints filed by the girls were too general in nature and did not give details about the offending bus conductor and this is why the police could not initiate any action whatsoever on the girl's complaint", he adds and even goes on to challenge the veracity and authenticity of these very same complaints........

The higher ups have however not shown scant regard for these slew of complaints and assured the long suffering girls that suitable action will be initiated against the culprits; "all we need is the bus route number, date and time of offence. We will zero in on the culprit and take such exemplary action that such instances are not repeated", APSRTC regional manager Venkateshwar Rao said, the DCP (South Zone) Tarun Joshi seconded his comments and assured the girls of speedy and timely action against all the culprits........

As things stand, the hapless girls and the concerned school authorities have no other choice other than accepting these assurances at face value and waiting for the higher ups to make good their assurances and promises in this regard...........

HORROR IN PUNJAB...........

So much for Hyderabad, the much harried and tormented Indian women are not safe and secure anywhere throughout the vast expanse of this country that all of us euphemistically call our motherland........


In an even more heart wrenching and horrifying incident in Punjab's Tarn Taran district, a bunch of policemen who are supposed to come to the aid of women in times of distress, preferred to behave like a bunch of blood thirsty bandits and mercilessly beat up a young woman for no fault of hers........

The gut wrenching visuals that were played on the 24 hour English news channels times without end have narrated the sequence of events as under......

This hapless young woman was wending her way back from a marriage celebration and merrily walking her way back home when she was teased and inappropriately touched by a truck driver, the woman asked the truck driver to mend his ways and when this did not have the required salutary effect on the offending truck driver she approached a police party who happened to be on the spot.......

To her utter horror and dismay, the four demons in khakhi sided with the erring truck driver and turned their collective wrath on the beleaguered woman instead of taking the offending truck driver to task.........

One of these notables jostled and pushed her, while a second made a furtive attempt to snatch her dupatta away, the third of the lot repeatedly slapped her while the fourth compounded her misery by mercilessly beating her up with his lathi........

The father of this young woman also was subjected to the same inhuman treatment and also beaten up in turn by the very same bandits in disguise when he approached them and demanded an explanation for their highly objectionable behaviour.......

As has come to be the norm in such cases, the police higher ups have taken cognisance of these heart wrenching visuals, suspended the four erring cops and initiated an internal departmental inquiry into the incident.......

One is well aware of the fact that such enquiries are a little better than an eyewash and nothing more than a ill concealed attempt at buying time and sweeping the unpleasantness under the carpet at the earliest......

Nothing has ever come out of such enquiries and nothing will ever come out of them as long as they continue to be con ducted by the very same police higher ups who have the same disgusting sexist and age old mindsets towards the fairer sex......

One wonders why the respective state governments have failed to act against these repeat offenders despite the Supreme Court passing many an order on the same; naming and shaming such repeat offenders and the setting up of a rogues gallery prominently displaying the photographs of these bandits in khakhi is the only way forward........

Will the Punjab government put it's money where it's mouth is and dole out exemplary and punitive punishment that will serve as an example for all other such cops who harbour these very same deplorable tendencies or then will this instance too be given a quiet burial as is the governing norm; well your guess on this one is as good as mine..........