Give Women Their Rightful Dues!
Woman is a mother in one’s abode of sanctity and thus should be trusted writes CAETANO DE ABREU
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Considering the ordeals we are encountering
in our daily affairs it is worth giving an obscure
thought, at least in writing, to our
ordinances and how to counter the malefide intentions
of our Politicos to emerge the absolute
winner in this sea of inequities. The existing
garbage is overwhelming and we, the Aam Aadmi,
are still ensconced in our own make believe world,
and in verbatim criticizing the unwarranted while
awaiting for deliverance from the ill wills that
are plaguing us and yet we can do nothing about
it except clamour empty talk at some roadside
taverns which will not gain us anything, but
instead ply us with more miseries.
In India, might is in the brawns and not the
brain, therefore we witness unprecedented show
of strength by damaging public properties which
the exchequers will pay for while the government
seems to encourage those gauntlet of hostilities
which accrues nothing except that the powers
that be accumulate massive electoral support and
reverts India back to stone age where the men
ruled while the women suffered the penances of
being born the abject gender, although in most
parts of India women seem to be enjoying that
status.
Nevertheless, as is the world over, women are
highly respected societies where respect is paramount
in actuality, and that she rules the world
according to the diktat of her conscience and
she does so magnificently to provide food on the
table bought with her own sweat and tears while
her man, which is in most cases in India in general,
splurges his earnings on alcohol and anything
else he deems necessary to satiate his own hedonistic
pleasures. Yet when the Women’s Reservation
Bill was tabled in Parliament there was a
ruckus in that Hallowed House for the power of
the beast to reign supreme.
Being a Goan, and with Laws of Manu shunned
by our ancestors from our midst, the whole
process stinks of absurdity with the main opposition
together with a brood of their own, being
vociferous and agnostic to pass the motion in
the Rajya Sabha although at the end of the day
Womankind was vindicated when that first hurdle
was overcome. Thus my moot point remains –
Are you afraid that one day women will empower
themselves to rule both household and Country?
The answer is glaring in itself “women will come
out of their shackles and make the world face a
better tomorrow in lieu of the same exploitation
and usuries that we are subject to”.
Per se I may favour accommodating the entry
of women in the politics as I feel that it is their
birthright. However, I am against any type of
reservation as I feel that since India is a democratic
country, everyone has the right to exercise their
inborn credibility and face the electorate
unashamedly, thus the question of being a
winnable candidate does not arise as women will
manoeuvre themselves towards a comfortable
margin of victory providing their spouses do not
interfere in the electoral process and not make
the woman feel like a puppet in her husband’s
hands, which happens in most of the cases.
India is a vast country and the semblance of
understanding should be uniform without letting
personal ego run amok. If women want to participate
in the electoral process, let them do so
as it is their choice and prerogative. We should
not rely on the types of Yadavs, who are pilfering
the country left, right, and centre – otherwise
check the various scams where they are impugned
for malpractices. Women come as a whiff of fresh
air to aerate the putridity which is emanating
from the debris of rot and ignominy. So how
about having more woman-power in the otherwise
stagnated House, where man is involved in all
kinds of rackets?
Woman is a mother in one’s adobe of sanctity
and thus she should be trusted, although there
are various kinds of women for whom opportunism
rules sublime and they will trod that extra
mile to achieve what their envious heart craves
for, and for that matter the philosophy of husband,
boy-friend, lover, and assorted genre of gigolos
is set aside and they will abide for what they
earnestly desire and the rest be thrown in dumps.
I do not have any grouse with any woman in
particular for I feel they know what they are doing
which could be the best for them, although I may
differ in my antipathy towards a certain segment
of women who are jumping wagons just to boost
their own personal farcical agenda which I can
safely point out to Proserpina, the Goddess of
the underworld exuberance, which in earthly
tone can be related to the likes of Arundhati Roy.
I came across Outlook magazine, dated March
29, 2010 where the same Arundhati wrote with
panache about the tribulations faced by the
“Maoists” from the region of Dantewada, in the
mountainous forested region of Chhattisgarh,
where the so called Red Brothers are apparently
facing discrimination from the governmental authorities
due to mining explorations where the
ore is to be dispatched humorously to Red China.
I know that Arundhati appears to be an unbalanced
person; whether she is sane I cannot fathom in
my definition of events which are gripping the
heart of India and Arundhati is on a roll, telling
the Government about their grievances, but never
giving them a hand to assuage their plight. Au
Contraire she seems to be cavorting with the
enemy while earnestly guarding her own possession,
hoping to get better dividends, which is a
sad stage of decadence as she expresses that
Maoists are bent on getting justice through their
own guns never expecting that the coin has a flip
side as well. Did Arundhati explain to them the
errors of ways? Did she help them in whatever
way she could? Did she explain that violence
begets violence? Did she educate them on basic
amenities? Did she try to explain that communism
is not a way of life but a recipe for disaster? Did
she explain that she lives on the periphery of a
forest area (which could belong to some tribal)
with her second husband? Why, and who is Arundhati
is trying to protect, and against what?
Maoism is inculcated by the opportunists wanting
to rule over the pariahs to relish the cake. In this
regard, can we trust women like Arundhati where
her selfishness is drastically evident. Thus I utter
sans qualms – the women without any ambition,
desires emancipation. But when women with no
conscience aspire to be what is not desired, what
can we expect further?
Let the Parliament approve the reservations
Bill and let it give the much deserved freedom to
the women, or it is going to be the same old sad
story with the man-politician is wrecking havoc
amongst the poor with no accountability of whatever
kind. In view of such disparities can we conscientiously
say Mea Culpa ?
++++++
The Mysterious Regional Plan
By Venita Coelho
Imet my friend Sabina Martins of the GBA the other day. She
looked grim. When I asked her why she said that it was very
worrying – the Regional Plan 2021 seemed to have gone missing.
‘It was on its way to being passed by the Government and made
law – but someone seems to have kidnapped it.’ The GBA had
done it’s best to trace the plan. The aam aadmi got brief glimpses
of it – then it vanished again. The GBA had put out an all points
alert. But they thought the best place to search was the Chief Minister’s
residence. After all he seemed to be the only one with the
answers to where it was. But the RP2021 was such a tricky fellow,
he had even given the CM the slip a couple of times. After a hug
hue and cry across Goa, several postponements of deadline, and
general frenzy, the RP2021 had been declared finished. We sat
back satisfied – only to have it vanish on us for the first time.
Nobody in power seemed to know where it was, or what was happening
to it.
‘We were so worried’ said Sabina ‘Until we took a dharna to Altinho’.
There the CM mysteriously disappeared, but reappeared
when the protestors refused to go away. He assured them that the
RP2021 would be finalized in six months. ‘And there the mystery
begins’ said a puzzled Sabina ‘a few days later in the State Assembly
he said it could not be done in six months’. The RP2021 had somehow
gone missing in action again. The GBA went hunting for it
and landed at the CM’s residence in Goa early in the morning and
caught him in his short pants. He promptly assured them that it
would be found and finalized at the earliest – in six months. Sabina
said ‘We were relieved. Especially when the CM also assured us
that a flying squad would be formed to stop violations in the mean
time. But now both the flying squad and the RP2021 have gone
missing!’ She confided that the GBA was a little tired of hunting
down the truant Regional Plan. ‘And I can’t bear to see the CM in
his shorts one more time!’ she confessed.
At this point Miguel appeared. He told us that he had been off
to consult a Doctor, Dr. Rebello no less. Perhaps the RP2021 suffered
from some little known or mysterious disease that caused it to behave
in this truant manner. Dr. Rebello’s diagnosis was that the
RP2021 in fact was the carrier of a grave and virulent virus. When
in close contact it passed on a form of amnesia that caused
politicians to forget all promises that they made to the people.
Further, the RP2021 was a grave danger to the larger public. If it
was passed and became a permanent part of the laws in Goa, a
large part of the Goan populace would suffer terrible agonies. All
the mining lobbies, the builders, and promoters of grandiose plans
would suffer from ‘haltitis’. After all the RP2021 had marked large
swathes of Goan land to be preserved. Further it had been scathing
about mining and its effects on the environment. It had given ugly
and non responsible tourism a reality check as well. Everyone was
worried about the RP2021 becoming permanent and no doubt
they had something to do with the enigma of it’s frequent disappearances.
Reboni appeared with the latest news update. The RP2021 had
been spotted at last! It was being whacked on the head and bundled
into a truck filled with iron ore. Luckily an alert activist was able
to pass the message on before a bunch of builders jumped on him
with iron rods, and a passing casino tycoon kicked him in the ribs.
Miguel sighed ‘Not again! I’m tired of rescuing this Regional Plan!
Why can’t the government do its job, keep its promises and make
it into law?!’ Sabina looked the most upset. I asked her what the
problem was. ‘I can’t bear to see the CM in his shorts one more
time!’ she wailed.
