“Traitors, with the blessings of the Congress party, go ahead. Shiv Sena will not block you. Why our Shiv Sainiks should be beaten up and arrested?” Would you believe? This was Bal Thackeray’s statement in Samna referring to Shahrukh.
Hats off to both Shahrukh and Rahul Gandhi for teaching Shivsena a lesson.They made Shivsena to accept their defeat.
Before that Rahul travelled in local trains in mumbai and made Shivsena dumb who earlier planned to show black flags on his arrival.Also shahrukh was adamant on his stand that he would not apologise unlike Karan Johar or Amitabh who succumbed to Shivsena.
Is it a sin to say that Mumbai is for all or to say that sports is above politics????
When celebrities don’t stand against such hooliganism how come a common man with no powers will stand.More and more maharashtrians should come in support that Mumbai is for all.We all are Indian First and then bengali,Tamilian,Telugite and whatever.
Sachin boldly stood up to say that he is Indian first.Many actors and celebrities from Mumbai should stick to the fact.Celebrities from other parts of India also need to stress this point.We all have become celebrity devotees that we need celebrities even to say that sun rises in the east.
We cannot expect a common Maharashtrian to say that Mumbai is for all.Because he is afraid of losing job to a non mumbaikar.This comes to the rescue of shiv sena and they keep justifying their acts.
Bombay, till 1960, combined Gujarat and Maharashtra till the two states were separated. What then came to be known as Bombay – that is, today’s Mumbai – was built literally by the Gujaratis and the Parsis, with the Marathi manoos playing a much lesser role.
I recently visited Hyderabad and was shocked by the acts of Telengana activists.They were blocking traffic,breaking rules,huge mobs travelling in open vans shouting slogans.They were spoiling student’s studies and regular life of lakhs of people.There is a huge difference between protests and hooligan acts carried by senas and other groups. (RSS,ShivSena,MNS…).We all live in a democracy that does not mean we can take law in our hands.
People should be educated to realise so that these senas don’t get any mobs to drive common people crazy.Thats a permanent solution.Near term solution is don’t vote such politicians.
Varun's Weblog 
I pity your understanding of the situations in India.
You only see the things from a frigid mind set.
People need to be mature enough to judge democratic movements in India.
sravank,
I understand the situation and we need to work for a solution.But I am completely against the solution given by MNS and its activists.Imagine when people from india go and earn in US we get respect.How bad it is when within a country we dont give that.Please have a broader thinking.If more people like you start supporting MNS the entire country would go blind.Pls dont do that.
Varun,
I am not supporting MNS. In fact I am quite against the MNS that is trying to unleash the same prejudice that was encouraged by elder thackerey against South Indians during 80’s.
I only objected the way you equated the case of MNS with the case of Telangana. In telangana local people are fighting for the fare share of power and resources that have been hijacked by plutocrats of Andhra.
Telangana region inspite of producing the most revenue in AP still lags behind the other regions in infrastructure and development. There has been considerable injustice done in enacting the safeguards and agreements that were made during the merger of telangana and andhra to form AP in 1956.
The description of the movement in hyderabad is no way in tandem with the MNS activities of selectively targeting Biharis who do not have any greater representation in Maharashtra politics or administration.
Where as in AP, andhra people dominate in politics, bureaucracy and administration. Telangana priorities have always been second to andhra regions priorities.
There were few incidents that attacked andhra businessman but you should understand that they were targeted against some film personalities turned politicians who initially made open statemetns supporting separation and then turned volte-face.
And Dharnas, mas mobilizations and bundhs are active and accepted methods of democratic struggles. You cannot deny that.
Sravank,
I appreciate your comment and feel sorry if I hurt your sentiments.Do you think once telengana region is split all the issues would be sorted out.
There is going to be the same MPS.If these MPs didnt work for the telenganan region these years will they do so.They are just trying to make politics.Please understand.
The right thing to do is throng the houses of the politicians.ASk them.Why didn’t they bring up any industry or any development?
The root cause of the issue need to eb fixed rather than upper problem.Many small states are suffering.It is again a headcahe to create another small state.
Hope things get resolve dsoon.
Varun,
You need not be sorry for expressing your opinions. You are free to write what you feel is rational.
And thanx for the reply.
Well… you don’t seem to understand the process of democracy. Democracy does not solely depend on politicians and political parties. They contest in elections to gain power and responsibility. That means they are expected to be most responsible and least selfish. But remember they are only expected to be.
They are not accountable. That is the sole reason in democratic process, the people indulge in other methods like mass movements, forming interest groups and associations and conducting agitations. These are all essentially democratic. Nothing wrong with that. What is wrong is looking at them in wrong perspective, like you have described the Telangana agitation.
Democracy is an evolving process. This is more true with India, where the democracy is still in its adolescence.
To create, or change or better any policy or deepen or evolve the democracy legislative process and political class lobbying and achieving consensus among parties represent least succesful methods. This is a general accepted theory in democracy.
Most common practices indulged by the people are mass mobilizations and agitations.
That is what history of present and past clearly depicts.
And telangana struggle is one of them. You cannot be indifferent to it.
An incident in which three staff at a railway booking counter in Mylapore MRTS station allegedly ganged up on Tuesday to abuse and literally chase out a woman, who presented an application for ticket reservation in Tamil…”
North Indian railway staff abused a Tamil woman in Chennai! If this can happen in Chennai where there are less Hindi speakers we can imagine why Marathis are revolting against north Indians in Mumbai. God save India!
If there is a problem that needs to be fixed but the approach is entirely wrong.When Indians go to US and live for earning.It is strange that Indians can’t live in MUmbai but can live in US.
Yes the problem needs to be fixed. The problem is in the attitude of some people who think Hindi is the national language and force it on others. All north Indians don’t behave this way. But many wrongly propagate that their mother tongue is the national language which every Indian must know. But the recent judgement of the Gujarat High Court that Hindi is NOT the national language of India should settle the issue. Migrants to a place should be free to follow their culture but they cannot force their culture on others.