“Laughter is an instant vacation,” said Milton Berle. Here at NK, we would like to contribute to lightening your mood in preparation for a meaningful and relaxed weekend. So here’s a tongue- in-cheek look at the events of the week that has passed, for which you have patiently been waiting :)
Constitution Day (National Law Day), also known as Samvidhan Divas, is celebrated in India on November 26 every year, to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India in 1949 after, mind you, a very spirited debate in the Parliament; the same one that rarely sees a debate these days. In fact, the next session will be, like all things modern and Chinese, the instant and short-lived variety – just 10 days.
Given the pressures of the modern world and the no fly lists of airlines, maybe the next logical step is to have the sessions by Skype through VPN under the Digital India Initiative! In any case our leaders say that High Speed Internet for all will be a reality by 2019. This way parliamentarians can devote all their time in the service of their constituents, sessions can be called at short notice, be short and swift, and the tax payer (now that there many more of them) can save mightily on travel and sitting allowances – What say thou?
November 26 being the National Law Day, also saw the PM stressing that the legislature, the judiciary and the executive were part of the same family and should work to strengthen each other, even as the Chief Justice and the law minister sparred over the issue of judicial activism. Sure, the three wings of governance functioning as a family can bring cohesion, in deed if not in thought, for in the Indian context, the word of the head of the family is the law! But like teenagers in a family, a few in the constitutional scheme of things do tend to think for themselves and can be very argumentative, though they identify strongly with the family always! No stress there!
November 26, 2017 by coincidence, also happens to be the 9th Anniversary of the most dastardly and cowardly attack by terrorists on Indian soil. Flash backs on television reminded us of our vulnerability, and we were humbled by the courage of our soldiers, and the resilience of our country men in the wake of the attacks. That the then government responded with diplomacy and evidence rather than bullets and brutality, might have been based on the premise that the pen is mightier than the sword. However, this is a theory that has succeeded only after the sword is bent and spent.
There was also something unique that took place on Sunday, at the start of the week. People tasked with other important roles in the nation’s capital flew down en masse to Gujarat from Delhi to listen to the radio over a cup of tea! Perhaps the radio signals in the nation’s capital had deteriorated due to the pollution or other reasons, or the tea was not as good, or the tea leaves had become too costly after the advent of GST, or maybe there was not enough cash going around to purchase the tea or indeed the airlines, barring IndiGo had come out with one of their many year end offers! Could be anyone of the reasons. Oh! I completely forgot about the Gujarat Elections!
With the Gujarat Model and Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas slogans not cutting much ice among the public according to media reports, it was back to humble beginnings on the campaign trail. “Yes I sold Tea, I didn’t sell the nation,” thundered the PM. Taking a cue from this rallying cry, a cup of tea is likely to be offered (not sold) to every voter at every booth in the state, before he/she enters the booth – a good way to kill two birds with one stone – beat incumbency, and provide a boost for Skill India! By the time the election results are out, so many people would have learned a new skill! As for those that had a hand in selling the nation as alleged, be warned – never ever drink tea made by those hands – they are stained beyond Vim!
The Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of India hosted Ivanka Trump, American dynast – daughter of and advisor to the US President Donald J Trump – for a gala dinner, ironically, at Hyderabad’s famous Falaknuma Palace. Luckily, there had been no call for its destruction prior to the dinner, given that it was built by the Nizams who were distantly related to the Mughals. We can rest assured there will be none hereafter – History was rewritten here.
Reportedly, for the dinner, a five-course menu, inspired by Hyderabad’s famed cuisine, prepared by a host of culinary experts, was set out on its historical 101 seater dining table. The lavish menu supposedly contained a mix of exotic Indian ingredients and delicacies like dahike kebab, goshtshikampuri kebab, kubanikemalaikofta, murgpistakasalan and sitaphalkulfi presented over several courses – Aghaz (soup), Waqfa (sorbet), Mezban (appetisers), Mashgool Dastarkhwan (main course) and Zauq-e-shahi (dessert). Neither banned items nor tea was served according to reports emanating from the summit.
The long awaited tryst between the PM and the dynast (albeit American Dynast) at the Hyderabad Global Entrepreneurs Summit, was watched with keen eyes because it was in the midst of the Gujarat election campaign and we all know what that is about! The American Dynast however, went against the grain to lavishly praise the transformational PM, and rightly so. Both also spoke passionately about empowering women. Nobody mentioned chopped noses and the Women’s Reservation Bill, and rightly so!
Meanwhile in Delhi, the Supreme Court, unusually curtailed the freedom of expression of Netas, and upheld the freedom of the creative filmmaker whose role in society was to express freely, with what is widely known in the civilized world as “reasonable restrictions” (he will have to obtain the certification of CBFC, and they are known to be very reasonable) when it said they – the Netas – should not speak on subjects beyond their jurisdiction. Now the Netas have apparently decided that if they cannot express, then the film maker must… at a parliamentary panel hearing to which he has been summoned, CBFC notwithstanding. It’s a screenplay deserving of a Film Fare award.
Another Royal Wedding is on the anvil – next year. Prince Harry, third in line to the Throne of England, is all set to marry American actress Meghan Markle, (not to be confused with German Chancellor Angela Merkel – they are miles apart. in more than geography), a constant on the American television legal drama ‘Suits’ for 7 seasons now, playing the sassy paralegal, Rachel Zane. They apparently suited each other, and will make it a legal drama next May. Not may… definitely! Everything’s ready but the date, though the two have been reportedly dating since October 2016. It is learnt that the British PM, Theresa may attend.
The icing on the cake was when Virat Kohli and his team crushed the Sri Lankan team with the heavy road roller used to deaden the cricket pitch to go one up in the ongoing 3 match bilateral series with one to go – to be played in poor visibility in Delhi. Probably will have to guess where the ball is landing and follow through!
The way the Indian team have been playing under Kohli’s aggressive leadership, provides for hope in South Africa in January, but there I understand, the rollers used are mighty different and could unsettle the sub continental competitive edge the team enjoys. Time will tell – it always does, no matter the watch.
Have a good weekend!
