Welcome to Indyeah… January 18, 2008

I just don’t know from where I should begin this. I mean emotions are running high in my mind, feelings are thriving and hands can’t decide from where I should begin this journey.

I have spent of 5 years of life here in India. So, India wasn’t totally new but coming here after whole 12 years and meeting my relatives to whom I have never seen and even for some, I have never heard of, was very exciting experience. When I was leaving Karachi airport, I felt like I am going away from home but while landing at Mumbai airport I felt like I am going to my real home. It was very emotional experience. When I had the first sight of Mumbai from 10,000 meters above, I just wanted to jump from there if had a parachute.

After landing and immigration process, when I first touched the land, I kissed the land of Bharat Mata. Driving through the traffic of Mumbai, I was trying to get the glimpse of the toughest city of planet may be. So called the city of fortune and opportunities has some charisma which was attracting me like a magnet. It felt really good when I first saw a woman with Marathi style sari walking down the road with some loads on her head. In short, I was tasting the real India, My India. Then from other side came the rickshaw, far wider than Pakistanis. Though traffic was annoying and roads were giving me bumpy drive but still I was enjoying the every moment of it. Going through different areas, then came the well-developed area of Mumbai where 30 story building was common. Even I saw few 50, 60 story buildings. But that wasn’t the India for which it is known for.

Going through flyovers I saw a basti of jhoopad-patis. Wow that was awesome. Now it has been two days since I came here. I am trying to analyze the India as common Indian. I am trying to see the India with different angles. The Booming nation with enthusiastic young people is the place for which I can write and write for may be my whole life time. And how could I forget the chat-pati pani puris, dosas and, itli samber.

 

I Love you,

Indyeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

 

More on the way……………………………………

 

Benazir Bhutto – A Legacy January 5, 2008

The word ‘Legacy’ is defined as “the inherited property or principles” and that’s what defines Benazir Bhutto as well in today’s context. She has given us the legacy to live with, the legacy which is going to live in hearts of people for a generation to come, the legacy which is going to walk with history to make future, the legacy which has made us to rethink, the legacy which is giving us a hint of a future tsunami. Not only that, but also she has left us with political vacuum that everyone is talking about. This charismatic, dynamic, charming and queens-English speaking woman has left us with some alarming questions which should be answered in the same way that they are being asked by us.

She was the only enough bold leader to talk about the extremism and terrorism in heart of their places. They knew that she is going to allow NATO forces to attack Pakistan’s territories which even give them a starting point of their campaign and may be to produce the suicide bombers against her. The inherited principles that I am pointing to, may be aren’t her own, one can say even those are the principles are of her father that she was carrying since she has joined the politics. But with the time the new challenges have emerged for Pakistan, Pakistan isn’t the same as it was in ‘70s or ‘80s. Pakistani people even didn’t know the word “terrorism” by that time nor do the world. Today’s problem is not the economy as it is used to be but today’s gravest threat is the Islamic extremist forces that are trying to take control of this nation and its nuclear assets. Benazir was the threat to them because she was a modern woman and even more pro-American than Musharraf, maligning their (extremists) aims.

One has to accept that she made her own personality with the time and proved herself a good politician (if, may be not a good leader) especially during her self-exiled period of 8 years. The way she made her path to Pakistan by drilling a loop hole in Islamabad through Washington is really admiring. That shows how much she learnt after two over-thrown governments. She came to Pakistan with old slogan but the new vision and new solutions for the new problems. She showed the people a hope of democracy, a hope which evens her father couldn’t fulfill. Like her father, she was very good orator, she knew how to stir up the adrenaline drive in people and most importantly to make the vote bank, which is an art which very few politician possess.

But people, following her assassination, were totally contradictory to her principles and vision. She lost her life which of course should and did activated the sympathetic nervous system of the general public but what they did with that consciousness, they burnt the property of Rs.300 billion of their own in riots. I mean 300 billion is equal to 10 times of total annual educational budget or 12 times of total health budget or total annual foreign direct investment or even more than total defense budget. Was Benazir was fighting for this? Did Benazir lost her life for this? Was Benazir wanted to be remembered like this? May be those people feel that they have honored the Bhutto by doing this but I believe they have done contradictory to what they believe.

But still she, as a leader, has left us with vacuum (political as well as social) which I don’t see being filled by anyone, in this election at least, having even inch of her capabilities. We lost a leader after which we have nothing except to pray that whoever comes in market prosper our nation and that’s what Benazir Bhutto wanted.

-Kitne Bhutto maroge her ghar se Bhutto niklega.