Murder at Midnight - India's Tryst with Travesty

Murder at Midnight - India's Tryst with Travesty !!!

At the stroke of the midnight hour on December 30, 2011 , we made our tryst - not with our destiny as Jawaharlal Nehru said on Aug 15, 1947 - but with a travesty of democracy ! We hung our heads in shame when the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Vice President Hamid Ansari abruptly adjourned the session and called for the National Song to be played with out passage of the Lok Pal Bill in the House.

After 43 years of struggle and plenty of practical advice and suggestions from all sections of society, including legal luminaries, the country is still left with out  a strong and effective LokPal at the Centre, Lok Ayuktas in the States and Lok Adhikaris in the districts. 

We have heard a lot of rhetoric, especially so in the past few months from the political class about the need and urgency to fight corruption. However, when it came to the crunch, the UPA government, our Parliament (both Houses) and our political class let us down. This will only further the indignation of We, the People of India.

This is the eighth time that the Nation has been badly left down by our elected representatives, who have clearly - across the board - demonstrated their unwillingness to fight the cancer of corruption, to which they have paid loads of lip service. All our democratic institutions have let us down - it clearly points to a deep rooted mal intention not to let effective Lok Pal and Lok Ayukta institutions to emerge.

One, the UPA Government. By adopting a "My Way or the Highway", the UPA Government has shown scant respect for the will of the People and for the institution of Parliament itself. They first brought in a completely toothless ineffective bill earlier (prior to the August showdown) and despite all the subsequent consultations and discussions in the Standing Committee and outside, the revised Bill had also several serious lacunae.

1. The Lokpal / Lokayuktas have no powers of suo-motu enquiry. Such powers are vital to enhance the efficacy of these ombudsmen, and ability to gather intelligence, particularly about collusive corruption. If a complaint of a citizen is mandatory, many cases of gross corruption may escape attention as false, frivolous or vexatious complaints will invite penalties (Section 46 of the Bill). In many cases, there can only be grave suspicion and circumstantial evidence, and direct evidence of corruption will not be forthcoming. Absence of powers of suo-motu enquiry will convert Lokpal/ Lokayukta into a reactive,  passive post-office. We need pro-active, innovative ombudsman. The earlier Bill provided for suo-motu enquiry. There is no rational explanation for its deletion in the Bill now, and this omission should be rectified.
2. Lokayukta should be part of the central law as envisaged in the present Bill. Article 253 clearly gives parliament the power to make legislation since the United Nations Convention Against Corruption has been ratified by India on May 1, 2011. The argument that such a provision in a central law is against federalism is disingenuous. We cannot have a movement in every state to create Lokayukta. In any case, this Bill is a part of procedural law dealing with investigations and prosecution of corruption offences. This is entirely within the Parliament’s jurisdiction. The power of appoint the Lokayukta and other related matters vest in the States. Creation of Lokayuktas is the need of the hour, and any efforts to delete Lokayukta provisions from the central law should be firmly resisted and rebuffed.
3. It was vital to have Local Ombudsmen (Lokadhikari's) in States under Lokayukta’s control and supervision. These local ombudsmen, one per district, can deal with lower bureaucracy, and will report to Lokayukta. Thus, jurisdiction over local bureaucracy will vest in Lokayukta even as the institution is not swamped by cases of petty corruption.
4. Anti-Corruption Bureaux (ACB) at State level are completely untouched by the present Bill. Unless they are directly under Lokayukta’s superintendence, status quo will continue and they will be politically manipulated. Unlike in case of the CBI, the appointments of ACB director and senior officials are completely under political control in states. The appointment of director of CBI by a collegiums of PM, Leader of Opposition and Chief Justice of India is a vast improvement. Officials of CBI are appointed under CVC Act by a collegiums headed by full CVC. In states no such provisions exist. It is vital that ACB is brought under Lokayukta’s superintendence.
5. Section 6A of the Delhi Police Special Establishment Act, Section 19 of Prevention of Corruption Act, and Section 197 of CrPC continue unchanged, and only cases referred by Lokpal / Lokayukta are exempted from these legal impediments. CBI and ACB are rendered ineffective to act independently in respect of cases directly taken up by them. This is a travesty of rule of law, and makes these agencies helpless in combating corruption. These three provisions should be completely repealed. If any prior sanction of prosecution is deemed necessary, such powers should be vested in the Lokpal / Lokayukta.

This government showed no respect for the dissenting notes in the Standing Committee as well as the debates in the public and civil society sphere. if the Government had shown statesman like flexibility on key amendments, it is quite possible that the Bill could have been passed in both the Houses, including with a constitutional status for Lok Pal. A huge opportunity for a historic victory for true democracy was lost. Not only that, they seem to have deliberately orchestrated a farce in the proceedings, that lead to the disruption and the abrupt closure of the session. The Government clearly and unequivocally sent a message to the people of India, that it had NO intention to conclude passage of the Bill in this Winter Session - a deadline that it had itself committed to.

Two, the institution of the Presiding Officer (Chairman of Rajya Sabha) has been tarnished. The Chairman had every right to allow the proceedings to continue, especially so when the majority of the House members were inclined to continue and work on the passage of the Bill. Despite repeated pleas by the members, the session was abruptly adjourned. There would have been NO constitutional / procedural violation if the session has continued, and voting was conducted on the Bill along with its various proposed amendments. The President of India, as reported in the media, had apparently no objections to the session continuing, further clarifying that Presidential permission to do so, was in fact not required.

Three, Prime Minsister Manmohan Singh, Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha, sat through the proceedings silently, as though he had no will or desire to conclude the passage of the Bill. If the Leader of the House had shown sagacity and reached out in a non partisan manner to both the Opposition as well as the Allies, victory could have been certainly snatched from the jaws of defeat. The Prime Minister, with his Nero like fiddling while the House burnt, has lost the moral confidence of We, the People of India.

Four, the whole of the political class within and outside the UPA government, by bringing in a red herring  of violation of federal structure of the nation, clearly went back on the promise made to the people within the very same hallowed walls of Parliament in August, through the Sense of the House resolution. Article 253 of our constitution, clearly provides for a scenario such as Lok Pal + Lok Ayukta in a single centrally legislated Act, given that the Nation is party to the UN Treaty which has been ratified by Parliament. Further, the RTI Act clearly provides a legal and parliamentary precedence for the same. Without a Centrally  legislated Lok Pal + Lok Ayukta Act, the country will need 28 such public agitations to get it passed effectively in each of the States ! That is probably another century of wasted opportunity. The people of India do not have such patience anymore.

The honest tax paying middle class gentry can no longer afford to continue disengaging with our politics. If you Love democracy, you cannot afford to Hate politics. The answer to Bad Politics is not NO Politics, but Clean Politics. Getting involved in political interventions and actions by the best and brightest in India is the only sustainable response to the current political impasse.

We, The People of India will not give up this fight. The 43 year struggle is now in the last lap. Victory of We, the People of India, is guaranteed. 

Satyameva Jayate !!!

 

21st Century India CANNOT be run with 19th Century style politics !

WHy I am Anna

I'm Anna because he brought thousands of people out of the serenity of their houses into scorching heat of public places, which were noisy and full of mud and rain water, to fight for their rights — their right to tell the government that they want a strong system to prevent and fight corruption, to castigate those who are guilty of stealing our money.

I'm Anna because he didn't use any means of violence as his weapon. Indeed, he used the mahatma's non-violence — a weapon that doesn't destroy life but changes society.

I'm Anna because he did not denigrate democracy. He never asked the Prime Minister to step down; neither did he ask the ruling party to quit power.

He only reminded the government that the people are the masters of the land.

I'm Anna because he does not belong to any political party; his acts are not in favour of any party. He did not discriminate people on the basis of religion, caste, creed or sex. I don't remember any name or religion of the person around me while shouting “mai bhi anna tu bhi anna ab to sara desh hai anna” in Ramlila Maidan. I knew only one thing — they were my friends, Indians and countrymen.

I'm Anna because he is one of those people who gave up food so that the poor can have food, without caring about his health or age or even his life.

I'm Anna because once again he made us realise that we are a nation, we are united.

John Lawrence rightly remarked on the first War of Independence “Had a single leader of ability arisen among them [the rebels] we [British] must have been lost beyond redemption.” We had an able leader with us this time and that is why we won the battle. But the war remains to be tackled.

Yes! I Killed Mohandas Gandhi and I am Glad I Did It!

"THIS POST IS FOR THOSE WHO CAN READ KEEPING THE MIND OPEN"

Gopal Godse spent 18 years in prison for his role in the assassination of Gandhi. His brother and one other conspirator were hanged by the neck until dead.
But it was all worth it, says Gopal Godse. Gopal Godse proudly recounts his role in plotting the assassination of Mohandas K. Gandhi in 1948.

Sixty one years after the assassination of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, a ‘mahatma’ to many but really a cunning politician who had mastered the art of manipulating the Indian National Congress and offering simplistic solutions to the most complex problems, apart from coercing others to toe his line by abandoning food, the story of his murder continues to elicit both curiosity and passion. He was not the first leader to be felled by an assassin’s bullet, nor is he the only eminent Indian, or South Asian for that matter, to fall victim to an elaborate murder conspiracy.
But Gandhi’s assassination was different. Not only his killers were Hindu, they killed a man who had by then come to be regarded at home and abroad as an “apostle of peace” and symbolized the unique doctrine of ‘non-violence’. In those early days of freedom, it was unthinkable that anybody would dare raise a finger, leave alone a gun, at Gandhi. Yet Nathuram Vinayak Godse did the unthinkable, with more than a little help from Narayan Apte, Vishnu Karkare, Gopal Godse, Madanlal Pahwa and Digambar Badge. Godse assassinated Gandhi on January 30, 1948, approaching him during the evening prayer, bowing, and shooting him three times at close range with a Beretta semi-automatic pistol. Immediately after this, he surrendered himself to police. Nathuram Godse, Apte and their accomplices look remarkably relaxed during the trial, unconcerned about the possibility of being sentenced to death – eventually Godse and Apte were hanged; Karkare, Gopal Godse, Pahwa were sentenced to life imprisonment. They never regretted their deed.
Those were terrible days. Hindu and Sikh refugees from Pakistan were struggling to keep body and soul together. Many of them had lost their loved ones in the partition riots — women were raped in front of their husbands and children; young girls were abducted; men were disemboweled; trains arrived laden with dead bodies; people fleeing marauders were set upon with ferocious brutality. Madanlal Pahwa, a young refugee, Malgonkar writes, “reached a place called Fazilka, in Indian Territory, and discovered that another refugee column in which his father and other relatives had set out, had fared much worse. They had been attacked by Jihadi mobs: ‘Only 40 or 50 had survived out of 400 or 500…’.” Delhi was flooded by nearly one million refugees, all of them desperately looking for food and shelter. They were distraught and traumatized, unable to figure out why their lives had been turned upside down in so gruesome a manner. Nor could they understand the rationale behind protecting Delhi’s Muslims. What left them aghast was Gandhi’s insistence that Hindu and Sikh refugees should be sent back to Pakistan and Muslims who had left India be brought back. It didn’t make sense. Nor did the vicious blood-letting that followed. Meanwhile, Pakistan had launched its mission to smash and grab Jammu & Kashmir and was demanding that India hand over Rs 55 crore, its share of the cash reserve inherited from the departing British colonial Government.
After independence Gandhi used to start Satyagraha on every issue which went directly against the interest of India. Gandhi started hunger strike against sending of troops to Kashmir after Pakistani invasion. He was in favour of ahinsha Satyagraha against Pakistani invaders. In west Punjab, lakhs of Sikhs were killed and their body dispatched by train. In reaction to this, Sikhs started to retaliate here. Gandhi started hunger strike again to prevent it. 
The proverbial last straw was Gandhi’s threat to go on a fast to force the Government of India to accept Pakistan’s demand of Rs 55 Crore. In all fairness, it needs to be recalled that Jawaharlal Nehru was opposed to the idea: He famously declared that giving the money to Pakistan would mean providing it with “sinews of war”. The old man was not listening: In the end, Gandhi had his way although people were aghast. But did this gross act of injustice to the people of India and the callous disregard for the sentiments of millions of refugees — half-a-million people perished in the violence, 12 million were rendered homeless — justify Nathuram Godse’s action? What inspired Narayan Apte, son of a well-known historian and Sanskrit scholar, to decide on January 13 (the day Gandhi declared he would go on a fast to press Pakistan’s demand for Rs 55 crore) that he must turn into a killer? What was Madanlal Pahwa’s role in the conspiracy? And why did Badge turn approver?
Godse is often a misunderstood character. He is referred to as a Hindu fanatic. It is often hard to understand Godse because the Government of India had suppressed information about him. His court statements, letters etc. were all banned from the public until recently. Judging from his writings one thing becomes very clear – He was no fanatic. His court statements are very well read out and indicate a calm and collected mental disposition. He never even once speaks ill about Gandhi as a person, but only attacks Gandhi’s policies which caused ruin and untold misery to Hindus. Another interesting point to note is that Godse had been working with the Hindu refugees fleeing from Pakistan. He had seen the horrible atrocities committed on them. Many women had their hands cut off; nose cut off, even little girls had been raped mercilessly. Despite this Godse did not harm even single Muslim in India which he could easily have. So it would be a grave mistake to call him a Hindu fanatic.
Then what was the motive behind Godse’s act??? Nathuram Godse was a learned man, very sharp and intelligent – editor of “Agrani” (one of the most famous newspaper of that time – with Nana Aapte). In his last editorial of “Agrani” which he changed overnight – he said “Gandhi must be stopped – at any cost” and he justified why Gandhiji’s assassination was not only inevitable but also a delayed action and that should’ve happened LONG AGO.
He knew exactly what he is going to do. In Nathuram’s Words – “Assassination is never as easy as picking up a rifle and pulling the trigger, assassination is never an accident. Yes, murder could be an accident but not assassination. In this case of Gandhi, it could never be…”
Did he tamper with an important era of history?? He said – “I differ with the word era. It could be a page, a leaf of history. Certainly not an era. If we don’t turn this page today, the rest of the pages of the history of our nation will remain unwritten, blank…”
By seeing the nature of the assassination in public space and Godse’s act of turning himself over to the Police, we can see that Godse did not do this for personal reasons. He very well knew that he would be hanged and his name would be disgraced as Gandhi was considered a saint. And again Godse could have ran away and escaped punishment. But he did the reverse. He called a police officer and courted arrest. Before we proceed it would be wise to understand the backdrop of the assassination.
The central government had taken a decision — Pakistan will not be given Rs 55 Crores. On January 13 Gandhi started a fast unto death that Pakistan must be given the money. On January 13, the central government changed its earlier decision and announced that Pakistan would be given the amount. On January 13, Nathuram decided to assassinate Gandhi.
Also according to one source, after the state of Pakistan was formed administrative problems started to crop up. Therefore Pakistan came up with a proposal to link East Pakistan (the present day Bangladesh) and West Pakistan. According to the plan a road (you could say an area) 10 km wide would be linking the east division with the west. Now the RSS activists feared that if Pakistan requested Gandhi to sanction such a proposal then Gandhi would readily agree and the Mahatma’s would be the final word as he was the father of the nation. They knew that Gandhi was Pakistan’s best lobby so they had him eliminated through Godse. I wonder what would have happened if we had allowed a road to be built across our country. I just can’t imagine.
In the Hindu Rashtra daily dated 9/7/1947, Godse had given the following message to the fellow Indians. “Brothers! Our mother land has been cut into pieces. The eagles have torn her skin into bits. Hindu women are being raped in the middle of the road. How long can we tolerate this? It’s a shame that lakhs of Hindus live like refugees in their own country. Women being raped burn my heart.”
He warned Gandhiji “Gandhiji! By approving the Pakistan partition, you have stabbed the nation. Unless you change your activities, you must face harsh consequences. We consider the dividers of our nation as traitors our nation.”
In Nathuram’s words – “I don’t refute Gandhi’s theory of non-violence. He may be a saint but he is not a politician. His theory of non-violence denies self-defence and self-interest. The non-violence that defines the fight for survival as violence is a theory not of non-violence but of self-destruction. The division of the nation was an unnecessary decision. What was the percentage of the Muslim population as compared to the population of the nation? There was no need for a separate nation. Had it been a just demand, Maulana Azad would not have stayed back in India. But because Jinnah insisted and because Gandhi took his side, India was divided, in spite of opposition from the nation, the Cabinet. An individual is never greater than a nation. But Gandhi has stared considering himself greater than the nation.

We never opposed a Muslim prime minister. In a democracy you cannot put forward your demands at knife-point. Jinnah did it and Gandhi stabbed the nation with the same knife. He dissected the land and gave a piece to Pakistan. We did picket that time but in vain. The Father of our Nation went to perform his paternal duties for Pakistan! Gandhi blackmailed the cabinet with his fast unto death. His body, his threats to die are causing the destruction — geographical as well as economical — of the nation. Today, Muslims have taken a part of the nation, tomorrow Sikhs may ask for Punjab. The religions are again dividend into castes; they will demand sub-divisions of the divisions. What remains of the concept of one nation, national integration? Why did we fight the British in unison for independence? Why not separately? Bhagat Singh did not ask only for an independent Punjab or Subhash Chandra Bose for an independent Bengal?

At the time of Partition, when Suharawady surrendered only due to political pressure, but only Suharawady, not his followers…they went on with the massacre. Gandhi started his fast; the Hindus put their weapons down. I still remember that day. A poor Hindu told Gandhi, ‘I am putting down my weapons because I don’t want your death on my conscience but I am staying alone with my family in the Muslim area. That night, before leaving Hyderabad I visited his home. The whole household was screaming, weeping, his only eight-year-old son had been killed by the Muslims. He had no weapon to defend himself. He threw his son’s body on my lap and said, “Take his blood to your Mahatma. Tell him, if he goes on fast again, he can finish it by drinking not orange-juice but my son’s blood.” I could not say anything. Gandhi was the Father of my Nation. For a moment, I was tempted to pull out the Muslims from their homes and chop them down. But I controlled myself. Violence for self-defence is justified; otherwise it is an ill-cultured act. I returned to where Gandhi was staying but he had already left by car. Of course, there would have been no point in meeting him… he would only have prayed for both the killer and the victim. 
I am going to assassinate him in the open, before the public, because I am going to do it as my duty. If I do it surreptitiously, it becomes a crime in my own eyes. I will not try to escape, I will surrender and naturally I will be hanged. One assassination, one hanging. I don’t want two executions for one assassination and I don’t want your involvement, participation or company. (This was for Nana-Apte and Veer Savarkar as they were against Gandhi’s policies too; Godse wanted to assassinate Gandhi all by himself and took promise from Nana Apte that he will continue helping Veer Savarkar in rebuilding India as a strong free nation.)
On January 30, I reached Birla Bhavan at 12 pm. Gandhi was sitting outside on a cot enjoying the sunshine. Vallabhbhai Patel’s granddaughter was sitting at his feet. I had the revolver with me. I could have assassinated him easily then, but I was convinced that his assassination was to be a punishment and a sentence against him, and I would execute him. I wanted witnesses for the execution but there were none. I did not want to escape after the execution as there was not an iota of guilt in my mind. I wanted to surrender, but surrender to whom? There was a good crowd to collect for the evening prayers. I decided on the evening of January 30 as the date for Gandhi’s execution.
It was 4.45 pm when I reached the gate of Birla Bhavan. The security staff at the gate was scrutinising the crowd entering and I was a little worried about them. I mingled with a small group of people and sneaked inside. It was 5.10 pm when I saw Gandhi and his close associates coming to the prayer place from his room inside. I approached the passage from where he was likely to climb the steps of the lawn, in such a way that I was covered by a few people.
Gandhi climbed the steps and came forward. He had kept his hands on the shoulders of the two girls. I wanted just three seconds more. I moved two steps forward and faced Gandhi. Now I wanted to take out the revolver and salute him for whatever sacrifice and service he had made for the nation. One of the two girls was dangerously close to Gandhi and I was afraid that she might be injured in the course of firing. As a precautionary measure I went one more step ahead, bowed before him and gently pushed the girl away from the firing line. The next moment I fired at Gandhi. Gandhi was very weak, there was a feeble sound like ‘aah’ (There are proof that Gandhi did NOT say “Hey Ram” at that time – it’s just made up stuff) from him and he fell down.
Those who were close to me saw the weapon in my hand. They rushed away from the spot. Gandhi had fallen to the ground, I was standing and the crowd had formed a ring around us.
After the firing I raised my hand holding the revolver and shouted, ‘Police, police’. For 30 seconds nobody came forward and I scanned the crowd. I saw a police officer. I signalled to him to come forward and arrest me. He came and caught my wrist, and then a second man came and touched the revolver… I let it go…”
Trial and execution
Following his assassination of Gandhi, he was put on trial beginning May 27, 1948. During the trial, he did not defend any charge and openly admitted that he killed Gandhi. On November 8, 1949 Godse was sentenced to death for the murder. Godse’s legal team was savaged by critics for not introducing considerable evidence that their client was mentally unbalanced and/or manipulated by others. Among those calling for commutation of the death sentence for both defendants were Nehru and Gandhi’s two sons who felt that the two men on trial were pawns of RSS higher-ups and, in any case, executing their fathers’ killers would dishonour his memory and legacy which included a staunch opposition to the death penalty. Godse was hanged at Ambala Jail on November 15, 1949, along with Narayan Apte, the other conspirator. Savarkar was also charged with conspiracy in the assassination of Gandhi, but was acquitted and subsequently released. Godse stipulated that his ashes were not to be deposited in a body of water according to Hindu dictates, but rather were to be held in storage until they could be deposited in The Sindhu after Pakistan had been reunited with India. For years, his brother kept Godse’s ashes over his fireplace and held an annual salute to “the hero martyrs” on the anniversary of the assassination.

Go work for a startup company

Joining a startup company is a no-brainer. The pros far outweigh the cons. Whether you’re just graduating, or you’ve done your time “working for the man” now is the perfect time to make the jump.
Go work for a startup company.
Here are 10 reasons why:

1. More influence. With a smaller team, each person at a startup has more say. You should have more opportunity to voice your opinion and influence key decisions. And you want that, right?
2. More ownership. You might not be the founder, but you’re darn close. You should have some equity (or stock options.) Both a sense of ownership, and actual ownership are wonderful things; they’ll give you one more reason to work better and harder.
3. More meaning. The best startups are built on top of a strong purpose and vision; a raison d’etre that truly resonates. It’s a startup’s rallying cry and it provides other likeminded people with true meaning in their work.
4. More comraderie. Startup teams have to gel beautifully to succeed. Doesn’t mean you’ll always get along, but a little Saving Private Ryan never hurt anyone.
5. More diversity. There shouldn’t be much pigeonholing at a startup; you’re going to do and see a lot of different things. You will be thrown out of your comfort zone. You will get a chance to expand your horizons.
6. More learning. Startup environments are crash courses in business and life. You’ll learn more in 6 months at a startup than you will in 4 years at university.
7. More connectivity. With less (or zero) levels of bureaucracy, everyone is closer to one another. You should be well connected to your CEO as well as the network of customers, vendors, VCs, friends, etc. that surround the startup.
8. More emotion. Working at a startup isn’t a constant high. Far from it. But it is intense, and the emotional charge you’ll get on a regular basis is a worthwhile learning experience.
9. More future success. I don’t have any statistics to prove this, but I bet you that startup employees go on to bigger and better things. Whether it’s higher paying / more interesting jobs or starting their own companies, your resume and personal story benefit considerably from living the startup experience.
10. More fun. Startup employees have more fun. It’s just the way it is…

The job market for startup and early-stage companies is very strong. There’s no shortage of opportunity. Top talent can pick and choose amongst a slew of startups eager to hire. The risk is low.
Granted, not all startups are created equally. Not all startups may give you the benefits described above. You can’t dive in eyes closed and expect to find the perfect fit. Make sure you ask the right questions before joining a startup. Plenty of smart people have suggestions on the questions you should ask before joining a startup, so you shouldn’t have a problem being prepared.

But make the leap. Join a startup. It’s worth it.

Source:Instigator blog

Dum Biryani: Cook it and share with people

Today, I am going to share Dum Biryani here.

Share it and try it at home.

There are 3 basic steps for cooking a delicious  chicken dum biryani.  

1) Marinating the chicken 

2) Half cook the basmati rice

3) Layering chicken and rice together for the biryani.

 

Ingredients:

1 kg chicken, washed and drained completely

2 large onions, finely sliced

2 tbsps chopped coriander leaves

1 tsp saffron

1/2 cup luke warm milk

salt to taste

2 tbsps ghee 

5 tbsps oil

For marination

 3/4 cup thick curd

8-10 green chillis, make a small slit in them

2 tbsp ginger garlic paste

1 tbsp red chilli pwd (adjust)

1/4 tsp turmeric pwd

3/4 tbsp coriander pwd

1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves

3/4 cup pudina leaves

1 lemon Juice

1 3/4 tsps salt

Biryani masala

8 cloves

2 cinnamon stick

4 cardamom

3/4 tsp shah jeera

12 pepper corns

Ingredients to cook rice:

 4 cups Basmati rice

6 cloves

3 cardamoms

1 cinnamon stick

3 bay leaves

1 cloves

1 star anise/Anasphal

10 mint leaves

1 tbsp oil

1 1/2 tbsp salt

Marinate chicken:

Mix the chicken with the ingredients called for marination along with biryani masala and keep aside for 2-3 hours.

Now Half Cook the rice 

Cook basmati rice in lots of water along with ingredients mentioned above to cook rice till its half cooked. Strain the water and spread the rice on a large wide plate. Allow to cool.

Heat 1 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp ghee in a vessel, add sliced onions, saute for 8-10 mins till caramelized. Remove and keep aside.

Add the saffron to the luke warm milk and combine well. Keep aside.

Take a wide deep vessel to prepare the biryani. Add 3 tbp oil, add the marinated chicken and spread out over the vessel. Cook on high for 2 min. . Reduce flame and cook it for 20 min.

Now Spread half of the rice over the chicken layer, pour half a tbsp of ghee all over the rice, add half of the caramalized onions and spread over the rice. Next sprinkle a tbsp of coriander leaves and pour about one fourth cup of saffron milk over the rice. Over this layer, spread the remaining rice. Again pour half a tbsp of ghee all over, add remaining caramelized onions and spread over the rice. Finally sprinkle a tbsp of coriander leaves and pour remaining saffron milk over the rice.

Place lid and over the lid place a heavy weight and seal the edges with wheat dough. Cook on high flame for 2  min.

Reduce to low flame and cook biryani for 20-25 min. Turn off heat and do not remove lid for 15-20 min.

Now the biryani is ready and serve hot with onion and cucumber raita...

Please comment how is your experience

 

31 Rupee A Day Challenge _ The challenge is to find 500 people who can rule India

The Indian government just announced that you just need 31 rupees (less than 65 cents) a day to sustain in India. (http://www.hindustantimes.com/Rs-31-day-enough-for-family-of-5-Plan-panel/H1-Article1-748224.aspx). In 31 Rupees your food (about 2100 calories), health and education can be covered. For Rural India, the government has estimated that you need just 17 or less to sustain. I was wondering if this is even possible. I was wondering if I challenged my friends in India to live on just 31 rupees a day for 31 days if they would even last more than 5 days. I challenge 10 people across India to prove that they can live (and hopefully thrive) with 31 rupees or less. If you succeed, I shall pay you 31 rupees each day for a whole year!! Here's the challenge: For 31 Days (start date TBD), you must live on only 31 Rupees a day. How you choose to spend your money is up to you. Mobile and Transportation fits under 31. How you do it, is for you to figure out. You must document everyday on social media and a blog your experience. You cannot be over dependent on the goodwill of others. The only 2 exceptions are housing and access to the web. So if you live with folks, then you must refuse their assistance. Your friends cannot buy your movie ticket for you. If you do decide to include housing somehow with that 31 rupees, I should double your reward! Since this is all online, honesty and your friends and family have to vouch for you. Other stuff: Why this challenge? Honestly, I want to put it to test, I am not trying to go against the government or being pro. I just want to know if its possible to do so. If I was in India right now, I would be the first person to sign up! Unfortunately I cannot.. but I can put this challenge across to all of you. Why just 10 people? Why not more? Well, honestly, this is all out of my small pocket, there is no reality tv gimmick, no brand associated, no publicity stunt, no nothing nada! But if you are not among the chosen 10 and still want to take part, your more than welcome. We'll all be super supportive of your decision and follow along sincerely! For the next few days, we can all jointly discuss how to chose the candidates as well as monitor their progress. If you want to contribute financially, I won't say no, and any extra money will go to fielding more people! :) I sure hope there are people that have the guts to take on this challenge and it not just be an ideological debate.

I am challenging any Indian Lawmaker can do this?

The time has arrived we should vote going above the party line. Need to vote only genuine candidate. The challenge is to find 500 people who can rule India....

Source: http://31aday.in

Sev bhaji - My cooking skill - Marathi Style with bengali mix

Sev bhaji - My cooking skill
I love to cook. I am a good chef(my friends and family say). I thought why not share this with the world.
This is a Maharastrian cuisine and I love this dish.
I will start a new blog about cooking where people can share their recepie and  I will ensure to upload some good recepie which we cant get in any hotel i.e. Recepie of the people which usually cooked in the inner village area.
Its a spicy gravy of Sev( fried besan).
I will share with you how to cook. Try this at home and enjoy.


Ingredients:
2  Onions – small sliced 
1 medium sized Tomato- chopped 
1 tbsp Ginger-Garlic paste 
1/2 tbsp Garam Masala powder
2 tsp Red chili powder
1 tsp Dhania powder
1 tsp jeera powder
Pinch of jeera 
1 tsp Haldi/Turmeric powder
2 Curry leaves 
Coriander leaves, and lemon pieces for garnishing.
Oil for cooking
Salt to taste

Method:

Add oil in a pan, add curry leaves and jeera.
After few seconds add chopped onions and cook till it become golden in colour.
Now add the ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, dhania powder and jeera powder, red chilli powder and fry it till masala smells
Now add tomato to it and salt to taste and let tomato to mix properly 
Add water so that that it not become medium thick gravy. Cook it for 5 minutes.
Remove it from heat and add Sev in it and cover it with a lid.
Serve it after 3-4 minutes.




 

The Congress needs to shed its feudal skin

Historically, the unanimous resolution adopted by both Houses of Parliament on August 27, 2011, committing the government to a strong Lokpal Bill, will be seen as heralding a new era in political reforms just as Manmohan Singh's interim Budget on July 24, 1991 marked the beginning of economic reforms. An empowered electorate will increasingly reward political parties that practice good internal governance and punish those that don't .

The Congress party's top leadership knows that the tide has turned: growing public anger against corruption could damage its electoral prospects both in the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections next summer and the 2014 Lok Sabha poll. Since 1996, the Congress has never won more than 28.80% national vote-share in a general election. If its national voteshare dips by just 3% in the next Lok Sabha poll, it could slip below 25.82%. That's the vote-share the Congress received in 1998 when it won 141 seats - the second lowest in its history. The fear of losing power has sent a stab of fear through the Congress. That fear could yet prove productive if it ignites internal party reforms ahead of the next general election.

The Congress has less time than it thinks to reform itself. India underwent three quickfire general elections between 1996 and 1999. The Congress lost all three. The next Lok Sabha poll could give way to a midterm poll if the UPA government's credibility continues to plummet over the politically lethal issues of corruption and inflation.

The architecture of misgovernance has been built over decades of feudal politics . In no modern democracy does a political party depend so heavily as the Congress on a centralized, opaque leadership. Key political decisions are made by a coterie who owe their positions to loyalty, not merit. In a Westminster parliamentary democracy, there is only one centre of gravity, never two. In Britain, for example, the buck stops at 10 Downing Street. No caveats, no detours. In the UPA government, the buck does not stop at all: it skips between 7 Race Course Road, 10 Janpath and 24 Akbar Road.

The ambiguity is deliberate. Speaking in two voices- the government's and the party's - allows the Congress to be flexible with facts. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh bears full constitutional accountability for the government's acts of omission and commission. But in practice , he does not have absolute authority over those acts. The veto lies with 10 Janpath . At crucial times - including his statesmanlike address to Parliament last Thursday, saluting Anna Hazare and then, two days later, overruling hardline ministers on the wording of the resolution presented to both Houses of Parliament , supporting a strong Lokpal Bill - the PM has shown that, given the authority , he can act wisely and decisively.

The Congress hasn't held a serious internal election for the post of party president for 13 years. When you neglect democracy within, can you protect democracy without? If Rahul Gandhi is serious about transforming his party into a modern political organization, he must implement three key reforms. First, ensure internal democracy by holding a free and fair election for party president in which, putting self-interest aside, no member of the Gandhi family offers to stand. Young, professional talent will then rise to the top. Second, give the PM unchallenged authority over all cabinet and policy decisions for the remainder of his term. Power must shift from 10 Janpath to 7 Race Course Road - where it belongs. Third, end the "tyranny of the elected" . Political parties give tickets to candidates with criminal backgrounds, fund their election campaigns with black money and cynically exploit voters on the basis of caste, religion and region.

According to self-attested affidavits submitted by MPs to the Election Commission (EC), 158 MPs (nearly 30% of the current Lok Sabha) have criminal chargesheets pending against them. Of these, 76 MPs (including 13 from the Congress) are charged with serious criminal offences : murder, kidnapping, extortion and rape. The tyranny of these elected MPs, and those who gave them tickets to stand for Parliament, subverts our democracy. Parliament represents the sovereign will of the people. "In a democracy," as US Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter said, "the highest office is the office of the citizen." The Congress must absorb that democratic axiom and shed its feudal skin - or risk defeat at the next general election. 
Source: TOI

Karma is the result of our own doing

Whereas fate is decreed by whatever powers there be, Karma is the result of our own doing. Sins of omission are just as important karmically as sins of commission. What we ought to have done but did not do counts also as a karma-maker.

Although karma is clinched by what a man does, in fact, it is built up also by what he long thinks and strongly feels.One of the greatest misunderstandings of karma by its believers, and perhaps one of the chief hindrances to its acceptance by others, is the idea that it produces its effects only after very long periods of time. What you do today will come back to you in a future incarnation several centuries later; what you experience today is the result of what you did hundreds or even thousands of years ago .... We have only to open our eyes and look around us to see that everywhere men are getting now the results of what they have done in this same incarnation.

Events and environments are attracted to man partly according to what he is and does - that is, individual karma, partly according to what he needs and seeks or evolution, and partly according to what the society, race, or nation of which he is a member is, does, needs, and seeks - in other words, collective karma.

Siachen Glacier

This is the video of late Hemanta Mandal. my brother-in-law who left the world on 18-April-2010 due to cardic arrest. He served Indian army and during his duty he was posted to Siachen and developed heart disease while there. Click to know more about siachen glacier and Siachen
Peace peace......
Miss you a lot...

Will be with family during festive season after 20 years

I last spend durga puja wit my family(mom,dad) in 1991. It is 2011 now, a 20 years gap. I am excited to spend some awesome time with my family. I have a lot of plan and surprises for all my family members.