|
|
|
|
|
| HOME | NEWS | DEAR REDIFF | |||
|
ELECTIONS '98
|
|
|
E-mail from readers the world over
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 12:06:53 -0500 Outstanding! Wish all 900 million Indians (or at least those who like to call themselves Indians) thought this way! Wish we could all take pride in our Bharatiya roots, its culture, tradition, and rich heritage. If we personally derive our self esteem from our roots, then we would be more motivated to do something about the present day ills. As for the coming election, I do wish it signs the "death" certificate of its leaders and the party itself. Gandhiji had long asked and urged for a dissolution of the Congress Party -- perhaps the 1998 election will do just that in a manner that Gandhiji struggled hard for all of us to follow -- exercise our right to vote and boot out the Congress and the likes.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 16:40:07 -0800 I agree that the PM of India should be patently Indian. Though I will state that the choice of leader should be based on the credentials of the person. Sonia has neither of the two qualifications. Her sole claim to fame is that she is Rajiv Gandhi's wife and thus has a link to the Gandhi family. The author is correct in saying that we are a nation of foreigner worshippers; I do not have a negative sentiment towards foreigners, or else I would not reside abroad. But it is so evident in the Indians of my generation in India. They will create Anglicised nicknames of their Indian names and will comment how stylish a European speaking English with his/her accent sounds, but how dehati an Indian speaking English with a regional accent sounds. What we need is pride in our culture and in our nation. Else we will never achieve our true potential. Arun Soni
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 08:11:05 -0800 Varsha's article comparing our history of "sucking-up" to foreigners is highly noticeable per her facts. A very good article. If you are "white" you are lord in India, we prefer to carve our idols with white marble, so the Italian girl should do well among the white khaddar topiwalla frauds and the saffron coloured crooks. Phoolan Devi was not white but notorious, and so we have replaced her with a widow who is white. For the educated who like me have left India in quest for better opportunities, I can only say that, "There is brain drain from India because drain brain's rule us."
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 15:19:02 EST What's wrong with our people? After a thousand years of foreign rule, not to mention the slaughter and rape here we are, ready to be ruled by an European again; and by the same party which led the fight. Gundappa
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 11:08:54 -0500 The article by Varshaji is on of the best I have read (covering the 1998 election news). She clearly tells us that we Indians need to understand what 'patriotism' means. What is pathetic is the statistics she has thrown out. It's surprising that most South Indians feel she is the best candidate for the PM's post. When will we understand the importance of an Indian leading the country? Is India so bad that it can't even produce a good PM? What about Vajpayee? Such an excellent personality by any choice. Even Gujral was good. We even have young politicians like Chandrababu Naidu. If it comes to that situation, I would prefer 'Phoolan' or even 'Rabari Devi.' Satya
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 10:45:15 -0800 I agree with you totally. It's a shame that the so-called senior leaders of the Congress are falling at the feet of Sonia. I believe that so-called leaders like Arjun Singh, N D Tiwari, Karunakaran etc must have at least done one good thing in their public life of so many years. It's a shame on them that instead of talking about what they have done they want to piggyback on Sonia. It speaks so much for their self respect and dignity. Even if Sonia was Indian born, I have a problem with her being promoted by the Congress for the simple reason that she is not open to public debate. The very essence of democracy is that the leader be subject to public accountability. I wish the BJP issues an open invitation to Sonia to have a debate on public television. Ratnakar
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 10:43:53 -0800 Very IDIOTIC, BELOW STANDARD and a VERY VERY BAD article. Need I say more!
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 10:43:54 -0800 Varsha Bhosle has taken a large cross-section of people with diverse interests and different reasons for their actions, and grouped them all as traitors and servile opportunists. This argument lacks discretion entirely. Varsha's insinuations are ridiculous. Maybe a reflection of her own right-wing roots? Sujeeth
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 12:38:08 -0500 I have just read this column and couldn't contain my laughter. God knows that I am not a fan of Sonia but her arguments are patently ridiculous. 1. This rhetoric of one of "us": I certainly do not accept any one of them as one of us. They were long dead and gone. The only qualification that makes them one of us is they were born in the land that is Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India. Does that make them one of "us"? Why doesn't this make "Ghauri" as one of us? 2. Sonia is a foreigner? If somebody who is born in the USA and gains Indian citizenship wants to contest elections, would Ms Bhosle cry "foreigner"? What if this person were a Hindu? Still a foreigner? Rama
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 11:35:26 -0600 We always conveniently forget that: 1. Had it been not for foreigners there would not have a country called India -- so diverse is its culture. 2. The existing infrastructure is laid by the English. Think about it yourself why are we prejudiced against Europeans? The reasons are.. 1. Most of them are well off -- which results in envy. 2. They look different -- another way of discrimination (India is undoubtedly the country with the most discrimination). I really don't know why there isn't a law that prevents parties like the BJP from contesting -- one of their public meetings near my house once said: "If you want to be Christians or Muslims, go to Rome or Pakistan, India is for Hindus." I live in the US now and have nothing in me for the country called India. I realise it's extremely difficult to live in India -- not because of poverty and dirt but because of the narrow minded people. Antony
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 16:10:22 EST I totally agree with Varsha's point of view. For most of the countries who profess to follow democracy, no naturalised citizen can become the prime minister or head of state. I think, we have a made a mess of ourselves with this business of Sonia Gandhi. Milan
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 10:36:48 -0500 I read your column about Sonia, and I don't think I agree with you. First of all, don't quote the American Constitution, Sonia lives in India -- we are Indians and not Americans. The law of our land, India, does not discriminate between natural born and naturalised citizens just like Canada, so Sonia can in fact become the prime minister of the country, which you also know and have quoted in your article. Also, don't quote the kings from the past and compare them with Sonia, because, this time it is done in a democratic manner. Moreover, even though Bharat always existed as an entity before, rulers always had trouble deciding who should rule over which part, and they had no trouble in their minds to seek help from whoever they can as history has shown us. It will be much more surprising to know that even the comman wo/man never cared about who ruled her/him -- read the chronicles of the British journalists who documented the Sepoy mutiny and their observations on the impact of the battles on the local population. It is not you and I alone that decide whether Sonia can become the PM, the people of India will decide. The people from the south, educated according to you, are interested in Sonia becoming the PM because may be they know better than you. If Vajpayee can become the PM so can Sonia, why don't you challenge this in the court and I bet you will lose. On a side note, how come you never quote the Marathas as one of the betrayers of India, even though they marched for the British drum as eager servants to subjugate the princely states of India. Is it too hard to even think about it? Everybody's hand is dirty, so stop blaming the Sikhs or Gurkhas or any other community as though they are the only ones to blame? Being a fascist is not the same as being democratic. I hope one day you will grow up. Nagaraj
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 09:02:04 -0600 This is an excellent article. Varsha has said everything I would like to say, verbatim. It is a shame for us Indians to run after a foreigner and ask her to rule our country. It has never happened anywhere else in the world. This reflects our spinelessness and craze for a white skin. We say that India is a democratic nation. But this is only as per the Constitution of India. In reality it is just a monarchy by the Nehru family. They have mis-ruled the country for 40 years, and took it to the verge of collapse. Forget Phoolan Devi, given an option, I would welcome even Rabari Devi to rule the country. The day Sonia becomes prime minister of India, India will lose its Independence. We will be slaves again. And the day is not too far. Monish Jain
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 09:54:44 -0500 It was with great sadness and a gnawing frustration that I read Varsha Bhosle's article condemning the principle of foreign rule in India, and taking Sonia Gandhi to be its present embodiment -- the implication of all of the citations of so-called "Indian" betrayals to their own people, being that Sonia Gandhi is yet another in a long line of foreigners for whom Indians are more than happy to scrape their noses in the dust. Certainly it is to be regretted that the dynastic legitimacy of the Nehru-Gandhi clan overshadows the preposterous nature of Mrs Gandhi's candidacy. That is only obvious, and quite a separate matter from Bhosle's self-hating and propagandistic remarks, of which I quote one of the worst here: "So tell me, how come the fathers of the Indian Constitution never felt the need to incorporate such safeguards? DUMB question. How could it even occur to a people used to being ruled by foreigners...?" Does Bhosle ever recall that for all the so-called waves of foreign conquest, Indian culture and polity has maintained its unique character and continuity in spite of all adversity? There is a great difference between a people "used to being ruled by foreigners" and ones only beginning to learn to rule themselves, that also in capitalistic modernity, and in the world's most adverse circumstances. Dynasticism is of course a feature of our traditional notion of the polity, which is being steadily eroded by the political activism of people like Phoolan Devi (a no less noxious candidate, though for different reasons entirely). The most offensive assumption underlying this article, however, is the projection of a national community into India's medieval history, and the attempt to prove that whenever a kingdom was vanquished or power changed hands, it somehow was a betrayal by one intrigue or the other that resulted in humiliating cultural and political defeat. Such a self-hating way of looking at our history is not only a remnant of the British shaping of the Indian past, but of present Sangh Parivar propaganda (which is largely based on the colonial accounts of Indian history). Bhosle cites Alexander of Macedonia, Shahabuddin Ghuri, Mir Jafar and the CPI as all the stooges of colonisers, the assumption being that our glorious classical -- and inevitably Hindu -- past was sullied by the machinations of self-serving stooges at the edges of the real movements of History. Bhosle seeks to impose a depressing uniformity on India's history that can only stifle the wonderful polyphony of Indian diversity, the very diversity that sustained and preserved our culture from complete colonisation. The characterisation of medieval history as a dark age of foreign conquest -- especially by Muslims -- is baseless propaganda, and easily glosses over the fact that each one of these conquering waves was subsquently absorbed and digested by Indian culture and polity. Need I point to the art of Gandhara, the Urdu language, or Westminster parliamentary democracy as evidence of this? What of the presence of every major religion of the world on the soil of the subcontinent, and their preservation on Indian soil when some, like Christianity, have become largely extinct in their original homes? Bhosle's closing exhortation of nationalism is quite praiseworthy, but also extremely naive. Is nationalism the crude reversal of national identities, a paranoic us versus them situation, or a project of socio-political reform that seeks to imbibe a healthy spirit of self-criticism that can only help us in our efforts to build a noble mansion of free India? Is nationalism a democratic movement that seeks to build an autonomy that results from the constant critical interrogation of ourselves in relation to others, or is it the baseless rejection of such contacts in favour of a narrow nativism that actually stifles the health of a people and their moral and intellectual development? Allow Sonia Gandhi to stand for Parliament, allow her to rule. She, like all of India's previous foreign conquerors, shall fall of her own contradictions. And if not, she shall prove that our forefathers were wiser and more enlightened than their predecessors in the West when they allowed a naturalised citizen to have unbarred access to the highest offices of state. For then she shall truly be an Indian. Shekhar
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 18:46:58 +0530 I find this article hilariously ridiculous. Not that I support Sonia Gandhi, but the comparison made with India's past history of inviting aliens and Sonia is rather amusing and more sort of childish. I have two points to make: 1. We are all here for survival. When there's no other alternative then it's better to choose bad than the worse. 2. Dubbing Sonia as alien is like adopting a child. And when it grows up to love you, depend upon you -- you are not ready to accept the child as your successor just because it's not your blood. That means you are not accepting yourself first. Why blame that child?
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 07:19:11 -0500 Thanks to the author for writing such a good article. But sorry to say its not going to make any affect on our dear secular nationalists. They will brand the author as a non-secular person.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 11:58:51 EST This column provided very interesting reading as it talked about an issue that is in the minds of many Indians. I do agree with the writer about the weakness of Indians in general to support or mass around a "foreigner." The pathetic state that Indian politics is in now does call for dire measures. It is sad to say that a country does not have a single politician of worth who has charisma and vision to lead it to the millennium. The obviously corrupt and classless politicians has caused the public to develop such an indifference towards politics in general, that a sense of hopelessness surround any election. There is no more faith left in any party, for another round of elections can be expected in less than three years. Other than the usual mudslinging, nothing good is expected to come out of supporting any party. So anbody who seems to exude an ounce of sincerity is instantly accepted by the people and is looked up to with hope. I take serious objections to Ms Varsha's view that even Phoolan Devi would be better than Sonia. Phoolan Devi was a dacoit and has murdered people in cold blood, come what her reasons may have been. She is no national hero, and it is rather sad to know that people are even willing to give the country into the hands of the likes of Phoolan Devi. Maybe there is no big difference between her and the scores of others who will be contesting this election, but that is no excuse for making such absurd suggestions even in jest. If educated and morally strong people of India take an active interest in politics of the country, there is some hope for us. Till then we have to contend with a Sonia Gandhi or her likes. It is a kind of pathetic turn of events.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 15:15:45 +0530 How very true.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 18:51:14 +1000 It's people like her who pull the country back every time it tries to take a positive step. I'm not particularly fond of the Gandhi family, but feel it's as much Sonia's right as an Indian to run in these elections. It's wrong to brand her ''alien'' because if she were, she wouldn't be Indian. Please keep such petty thinking away from your usually nice articles. Varsha! is this your contribution to the progress of our country?
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 06:31:34 PST As usual it is Varsha Bhosle's waste of time/words /webspace. It's an open secret that everybody knows Rediff being an out-and-out BJP crony. One has to see Varsha's great interview with HH L K Advaniji. In this latest escapade she is out to get Sonia Gandhi's blood. What do you refer as alien? At least one should have seen the film ET or a dictionary to see what an alien is... I think Sonia is one of "us" (I meant humans not Hindus). In the era of Ram maniacs, Bihari bandicoots, Karnataka/UP criminals, Punjab terrorists, corrupt "Ammas" etc, a lady of the stature of Sonia Gandhi is welcome definitely, at least to have some dignity. Dignity is the world for decent women. Sriganesh
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 00:06:07 -0600 I read your views about Sonia. I fully agree with you, but there is one very obvious inaccuracy. I cannot figure out how you and millions others of your knowledge and intelligence are misqouting facts. When did the Indira Congress fight for the freedom of India? I am 76 now, I did not go to jail in 1942 for her or her outfit. My father did not spend his whole life behind bars in the freedom struggle for it. They fought under the banner of the Indian National Congress that was betrayed by Indira Gandhi. She established her own Indira Congress. Everybody knows now what she and her son did to India. Indira Congress is not the Congress of Nehru, Gandhi, Patel, Abdul Kalam Azad or Shaheed Bhagat Singh and many others who gave their lives for India. Please bring these facts in the knowledge of the general public. PLEASE STOP THIS MISINFORMATION. Indira Congress simply destroyed India.
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 23:51:26 -0500 I was introduced to Rediff a few days ago and was impressed with the columns. Your article was very thought provoking and appropriate to the present situation. I would eagerly expect such columns hereafter. Keep up the good work. Karthik Sundaresan
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 19:25:32 -0800 This is very great article. One of many moments when I had to confess that what we lack is self-respect as Indians. Bhaskar
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 12:11:51 +0900 A good article. Though, I do not have any objection to Mrs Sonia Gandhi becoming PM strictly on merits - she does not have any at all. Her most important motivation may be to save the late Rajiv Gandhi from the Bofors scandal. It is indeed a pity that freedom fighters and politicians with long careers suddenly find that they need someone with "charisma," and not someone with a clean character. As far as the "love" Mrs Sonia Gandhi has for the country, well, we have absolutely no idea, but, yes, it is good to be in a country where they belong to the "royal family." I wish -- fondly -- that the Indian electorate was educated enough to see through these tricks. Unfortunately, it is not. And there is hardly anything one can do about it. I hope to see some more good articles from you soon. UDAY
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 17:59:59 -0800 There is no doubt that millions of Indians who support the largest political party in the country, the BJP, can easily share Varsha Bhosle's critical views on Sonia Gandhi at the helm of national affairs. I have lived in the USA for 20 years and have retained my Indian citizenship, for I cannot bring myself to salute any other flag. I live in the fond hope of returning to Bharatmata and spend my old age in the Punyabhoomi Bharat. Pradip Parekh
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 01:42:07 EST I think Ms Bhosle is letting her emotions cloud her judgement. The real issue should be who is the best person to lead the country. I think it is indicative of the pathetic leadership India has endured lately that Sonia Gandhi is even being seen as a viable candidate for the prime ministership. It must be remembered that Sonia has been thrust into the role she is now playing. She has consistently sought to stay away from politics, and who can blame her. After all it is through this vocation that she lost her husband and mother-in-law. In my opinion a less power thirsty, and thus less selfish leader may be able to right the ship better than the tired, outdated politicians that dominate the scene now. In any case she has the Constitutional right to accept the position if she choses to run. I think Ms Bhosle's article would have been more effective if she criticised Sonia based upon her qualifications, and not her personal decision to wait 10 years after becoming eligible for Indian citizenship. Sonia, after all is a native of Italy. Is it wrong for her to have second thoughts about giving up her native citizenship? And why should such forbearance be seen as a lack of allegiance to India? I was born and raised in the United States to Indian parents, and I resent anyone telling me that I cannot love India or care for its future as much as anyone else. Yet, if I were running for prime minister of India I would not resent if a commentator such as Ms Bhosle would criticise my lack of day to day experience in India, or deficient knowledge of the problems affecting it. My point is basically this, let the mudslingling be left to the politicians, let's use this space for constructive criticism and thoughtful evaluation.
Date sent: Sun, 18 Jan 1998 19:36:52 -0800 Wow! We are truly 1 billion people without any national pride or agenda. Our nationality is a joke in the eyes of the world, so how can you blame Sonia?
Date sent: Sat, 17 Jan 1998 10:42:55 -0500 Good article. Very interesting. Good points made. B L Noble
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 14:23:44 -0500 I liked your article. You have an aggressive flair for writing. There is a dire need for people like you to strongly voice opinions regarding the crucial affairs of the nation. I hope more and more people write and share such perspectives. I can see that you write with a love for mother India rather than as a commercial writer seeking praise. Keep up the good work. Sunand
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 22:29:26 EST Varsha Bhosle is great! I admire her style of writing and her analysis -- though sometimes she gets carried away -- and don't we all. She should have quoted an old Hindi adage: "Ghar ka bedhi Lanka Dhai!" Need I say more, when the truth is on the walls, that except for the BJP and its allies, the Congress party, the UF, and Laloo Yadav's Jan Morcha are playing the minority game to appease the Dalits, the Muslims, and other communities. What have they done during the last 50 years, that they would do in the next five? Any answers? Meshi
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 15:26:54 -0700 If only this editorial by Varsha could be printed in all vernacular languages in all the newspapers published in India! Arundhati
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 17:17:42 -0500 I enjoy your columns. But I have one *minor* bone to pick. In the column "Alien Resurrection" you refer to King "Porus." Why not refer to him properly as King Purushottam? Why use the Greek version of his name? K Raghunandan
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 12:02:40 -0800 I am an avid reader of your articles. Thanks to Rediff, I no more identify you as a daughter of a great artiste -- but as a fiery and entertaining writer with a distinct identity, even when I have almost never subscribed to your political views. I never felt an urge to react to your articles -- that is so far. The article on Sonia -- or shall I say Soniaji -- was the proverbial last straw. Congress leaders lying prostrate before Sonia should come as no surprise to anyone who has observed that party. Abhay Patil
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 14:14:39 -0500 (EST) I share one of the sentiments as Varsha's on this issue. How did we come up with such a Constitutional blunder like this! Although I differ with Varsha on her comparision of Sonia with past "invaders." To Sonia's credit, she being an Indian citizen is given. Ernest Joseph
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 11:14:00 -0800 The article is very emphatic. What has happened to our collective wisdom? Is this the maturity in us for which we claim ourselves to be the oldest civilisation? When Sonia was merely the wife of a PM, Italian companies managed undue favour in government offices, what will happen when she assumes office?
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 11:20:43 -0800 She is damn right! I could not have put it any better. The Congress should realise this to gain some self-respect. Ravi
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 12:58:51 -0500 I liked the historical facts mentioned in the article and the call to take pride in India, my country. But the author needs to practice what she is preaching. And she can start by coming up with an original name for the article rather than lifting the title of an English movie. I didn't like her extreme views, like her saying that Phoolan Devi is better than Sonia. This is exactly what needs to stop. We need to stop being so emotional and start thinking with our heads.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 13:21:50 -0500 I am a Ph D student at the University of Maryland, College Park. I thought that Phoolan Devi for prime minister was inappropriate. But otherwise, she makes many crucial points. Mani
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 13:02:33 -0500 Nice article by Varsha Bhosle. To the point and very very relevant. Lack of self-respect translates to lack of respect for others like us, and respect for those not like us. We need to develop self-respect and dignity. Hitting/berating ourselves is not going to do it. It will however serve the purpose of waking us up from our sleep and do something. For that we have to thank you. Since you have brought up the topic, the door is open on why this lack of self-respect. Can you think of the reasons? Was it the history of poverty due to irregular monsoons, unpredictable floods etc (compared to other countries). This feeling of helplessness. Did that kill the power to fight back? Now the economic structure has changed and we can get out of abysmal poverty. We still may be among the poor countries, let alone being the richest. That does not mean we can't have self-respect. Once we get out of this psychology of 'you have to be rich to be respected.' Once we realise that being rich or poor is a question of chance/luck. Americans/Japanese are rich not because they are hard working, but because of other reasons, a series of coincidences (land, technology etc). Our history and series of coincidences have given us as good as them: yoga, meditation, family structure, hospitality etc. The problem is that money is the visible thing, while what we have is not. Let's change that.
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 12:26:27 +0530 Just fantastic! But King Jaichand was the brother of Samyukta, not father. So he should be the brother-in-law of King Prithviraj Chauhan.
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 21:48:31 -0800 (PST) I read your cheap article in Rediff. You have mentioned about foreign invasion in history. I really wonder it has anything to do with the entry of Sonia in politics. Even after her husband was killed, she preferred to stay in the country than return to Italy at the risk of her children. She is very much an Indian citizen like you and me since 1984 As far as the foreign theory goes, even Advani is an outsider. We have more Indian citizens, who can advocate the destruction of a holy place, ask the cadres to fight on language and religion. You are blaming the Constitutional experts, but I know to get an Indian citizenship -- it is the toughest in the world. I reply to express my anguish for this sort of article. We expect better articles from you. Shelly
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 17:59:04 -0800 Great. You need this kind of columnist for Indian journalism. I am really moved by this article. Neel
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 12:58:05 +0000 I am amazed by the nonsense and puerile analysis of Varsha Bhosle -- Comparing Sonia Gandhi to Alauddin Khilji etc. I am NOT a supporter of Sonia, but neither am I a xenophobic Indian spouting nonsense. Phoolan Devi is a convicted murderer, notwithstanding her sympathetic background I would hate to see her as a head of sovereign India. Kaushik Banerjee London
Date sent: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 16:38:41 +0800 After reading the article by Varsha Bhosle all I could do was laugh. I had never read such nonsense in my life. After giving some irrelevant (albeit dramatic and historically correct) examples she sets out to say that Sonia Gandhi would make a lousy leader JUST because she is Italian. She mentions that India's PM must be PATENTLY Indian. Our history of Independence is 51 years old. So far all our PMs have been "PATENTLY Indian!!" From the honourable Pt J Nehru to I K Gujral. ALL of them. Where are we today?? India today is not exactly a paradise to live in. Why?? What was wrong?? According to Ms Bhosle, even Phoolan Devi would make a better PM. I am not too sure of that. Our political system is riddled with corruption. We all know that. Who are these corrupt people? Not Italians, Germans, or Chinese but PATENTLY INDIAN people! Yes they are Indians. Varsha Bhosle mentions that everyone wants Sonia to be PM. And why not?? Can she mention ONE other person who can take that role? Just one out of the 500 odd people due to be elected in the Lok Sabha?? Can you imagine Laloo or Mulayam as PM? Man! Those guys can't even speak English! Fine ambassadors of our country THEY will make! Gujral doesn't have the guts to speak because he is in the minority. Or maybe Phoolan herself? She'll probably shoot anyone who disagrees with her! Hence the fact that people support her comes as no surprise. They are not supporting Sonia for being a "foreigner" taking on the reins of leadership. They are supporting her because they want CHANGE! They are tired of seeing the corrupt promising them wealth and looting them. I am not saying that Sonia would make the greatest leader our country has ever had, but what I am saying is GIVE HER A CHANCE! She's an Indian. She even wears a "saree" when most other PATENTLY Indian women wear Western clothes! Balaji Narasimhan Singapore PS: I am an Indian citizen too.
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 13:36:46 -0600 Excellent article. "Soniaji, desh buchao"... This is pathetic, we get what we deserve. Rajesh
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 14:06:23 -0500 An eye opener!
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 12:53:27 -0600 I agree with Ms Bhosle. Few points though: 1. Please also mention Sonia's pedigree. She is not even fit to be her own country's leader. Forget leadership, she is barely qualified for any decent status, except that her husband belonged to the Indian dynasty. 2. Just that she is a foreigner should be an argument enough in this case, but may not be a universal argument. For example, I will prefer any foreigner over Nehru, Indira, or Rajiv)
Date sent: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 13:10:34 -0500 Fantastic. I agree wholeheartedly with every word that has been written there. Let's see how our 'socialist' columnists respond to this!!! Madhup Rathi
|
||
| HOME |
NEWS |
BUSINESS |
CRICKET |
MOVIES |
CHAT
INFOTECH | TRAVEL | LIFE/STYLE | FREEDOM | FEEDBACK |
||