The ‘Narova Kunjarova’ moment of Arvind Kejriwal

Most of us know that historic moment of the epic battle of Mahabharata when Yudhishthira had to speak a half-lie. Let us quickly refresh the incident to appreciate its modern day context.

The Kauravas were going strong under the leadership of Dronacharya. They were decimating the Pandava army, which led to a panic in the Pandava camp. There was a serious brainstorming session in Pandava camp during which it was decided that if they were somehow able to demoralize Dronacharya, even momentarily, they could regain their control over the war. But then, how to weaken Dronacharya even for a moment? That was a challenge. Then it dawned upon them that Dronacharya loved his son Ashwatthama very much. If they could spread a rumor that Ashwatthama was dead, Dronacharya would be dejected and morally down.

Accordingly, the Pandava camp named an elephant as Ashwatthama. Then Bheema killed Ashwatthama, the elephant. Immediately, the Pandava camp spread the news in battlefield that ‘Bheema killed Ashwatthama’. Dronacharya, who heard this news, did not believe it initially. He happened to be near Yudhishthira, so he approached him and asked his whether the news was true. The impeccable reputation of Yudhishthira, that he always spoke the truth, can be gauged from the fact that the commander of enemy’s army chose to ask him to verify a news related to his son.

It was one of the defining moments in the war. Yudhishthira knew the truth. Yet, he could not divulge the truth, as he wanted to win the war. At the same time, he could not tell a lie, as his reputation of several years would be washed away. He was in a dilemma.

He chose the middle path. He spoke the half-truth.

He said, “Ashwatthama Hata iti, Narova, Kunjarova’. Which meant, ‘Ashwatthama is dead. I do not know whether man or elephant’. He intentionally uttered the last two words, ‘Narova Kunjarova’ in a low voice, so that they could be suppressed in the trumpets blowing all around. On hearing this confirmation from Yudhishthira, Dronacharya instantly dropped his bow and arrow and sat down on the floor, overwhelmed with the grief of losing his beloved son. That gave the Pandava camp the much-needed opportunity and they swung the battle in their favor.

Now fast-forward to the current times.

Arvind Kejriwal went to attend the much hyped and publicized event of Nitish Kumar’s oath taking ceremony. As he entered on the stage, he found Laloo Prasad Yadav, who warmly embraced him and raised his hand together with Arvind Kejriwal’s hand, in a show of unity and togetherness.

Later, Arvind had to clarify to his supporters and critics that it was Laloo, who forcibly hugged him and caught his hand to raise it, in a show of solidarity between the two leaders. How far his clarification is likely to be accepted is anybody’s guess.

However, we ask five pertinent questions at this stage.

When he went so enthusiastically to the oath taking ceremony, did he not know that he would encounter Laloo Prasad’s dominating presence in the event? How did he plan to react / respond when such a situation, which was logically anticipated?

Does Arvind Kejriwal support the Bihar government, which has major presence of Laloo Prasad Yadav? He had mentioned Laloo Prasad Yadav as a corrupt politician, just a few months ago.

Does Arvind Kejriwal support Laloo Prasad Yadav’s son’s becoming the Dy. CM and a minister in the government? How can he then criticize or comment on Smriti Irani’s qualifications?

Arvind Kejriwal had gone in a chartered plane to Patna to attend this event. How does he differentiate between himself and Narendra Modi, whom he had accused of using chartered planes?

The video clip did not display any expressions of embarrassment or hesitation on Arvind Kejriwal’s face, when Laloo Prasad Yadav hugged him on the stage. 

So, was he really embarrassed at all?

The country today is so deeply divided among various political affiliations that the merits of opponents and demerits of their own leaders have become almost invisible. Obviously, the AAP supporters would find nothing objectionable or wrong in what their supreme and the holier-than-thou leader has done in full public display. They would pass it off as basic courtesy, social obligation and political etiquette.

However, history has recorded this hug. Moreover, future will reveal whether this was the ‘Narova Kunjarova’ moment in Arvind Kejriwal’s political career. The reason why we consider this moment as ‘Narova Kunjarova’ moment is also very simple. Arvind Kejriwal has been the fulcrum of the anti-corruption movement spearheaded by Anna Hazare. He has fought elections on anti-corruption plank. His ‘unknown, low-profile’ candidates have won the elections because of his faith and belief in eradicating corruption from Indian politics. He has challenged all the high and mighty from across the party lines on issue of corruption. He had almost created a halo of ‘most clean’ politician on Indian soil today.

However, his national ambition had overtaken his other interests. He wanted to hog the limelight on national scene rubbing shoulders with the third front politicians to emerge as a possible consensus prime ministerial candidate during the 2019 general elections. This ambition momentarily blinded him and (mis)led him to share the stage with Laloo Prasad Yadav. If he did not huh Laloo Prasad Yadav, his national interests would be in jeopardy. If he hugged Laloo, then his clean image would take a hit.

It was indeed a difficult moment. He had to take a decision. He took. Now this moment shall re-define his destiny in Indian politics.   

It is said that till the time Yudhishthira did not speak that half-lie, his chariot always rode two inches above the ground. Once he uttered that half-truth, his chariot too, like all other chariots, rested on the ground.

It would be interesting to see what impact it would have on Arvind Kejriwal.  

Why Congress is the ONLY TRUE WINNER of Bihar elections?

The Bihar election results have brought the Modi rath to a standstill. The Delhi elections had already dented the aura around the Modi – Amit Shah Combination. Now, the Bihar elections have punctured their vehicle badly. They urgently need to replace a Tyre or two, if they have to run at the same speed again.

The debate and analysis about the colossal failure and the charismatic victory shall go for a long time to come. This was one election, where every forecast and predication was proved wrong, including those made by the responsible media houses. Nitish Kumar has now created a divine halo around himself as an invincible CM of Bihar and he shall undoubtedly be the front runner as the PM candidate of the opposition parties in 2019 general elections.

The most stunning element of this election had been the phoenix like rising of Lalu Prasad Yadav, who was almost written off by all and sundry. His campaign style shall be under close scrutiny to find out the winning mantra, which he had adopted to script such a spectacular victory against all odds. He has actually given a fresh lease of life to all his family members, who were fast fading into oblivion. He has rekindled strong hopes in their mind about occupying positions of power in Bihar politics. His stupendous victory, nevertheless, makes one wonder about the audacity of the Bihar voters who did not mind voting for the party of a person, who lost his membership of Parliament due to proven corruption charges, and who is disqualified for contesting any elections by none other than the Supreme Court of India.

In this scenario, the one party, which washed its hands in the strong currents of flowing Ganga River, is the Congress. It has improved its tally from 4 to 27, which is an incredible 575 percent jump. This victory is very sweet for Congress, as it has been a long time since it has tested some success. The party cadre of Congress is suddenly rejuvenated and energized. That inspired the party leadership too. The party leadership was the first one to make a public appearance as if it was the single largest party in the elections.

Going forward, it is a difficult road ahead for all the stakeholders except the Congress. Here is the analysis:

JD(U) will soon realize that it is extremely difficult to provide good governance having Lalu’s inexperienced sons at the helm of affairs and many important portfolios grabbed by Lalu’s ‘seasoned’ leaders. It would be anything but easy to fulfil the promise of development and social justice. However, he would have to eat the humble pie and accept his fate. He would have not imagined in his wildest dreams about such a superlative performance from Lalu, pushing even himself to a second position. It will be a most sympathetic exhibition of a tightrope walk by Nitish for the next five years, or till this government lasts, whichever comes first. Nitish’s MLAs are going to develop strong animosity towards  the RJD MLAs in no time, though it may take some time before it comes out in open.

RJD is having a field day. It is almost as if they have found a Kalpavriksha.  Ask anything and you will get it. This new found boon is going to make all of them going berserk and celebrate every day with a new vigor till they actually break every rule of the law. Already Lalu is saying that he shall travel around the country building an opinion against the ruling party. So, what Kejriwal could not do, Lalu is attempting to do. What an irony. The best thing in favor of Lalu is that he does not have any responsibility of governance. That is entrusted with hapless Nitish. So, they indulge in all fun and frolic with a very comfortable feeling that Nitish is the scapegoat for everything that would go wrong in the next five years in Bihar.

The allies of BJP in the NDA are the worst sufferers of this election and they deserve their fate. They conveniently assumed that once they ally with Modi, they do not need to make any efforts to win the election. How sadly mistaken they were. They lost their value in the present central government as well because of such disastrous performance.  They would need to make sustained efforts to regain the lost ground.

In this charged atmosphere, Owaisi appeared like a comedian who appears on stage for a while, gets slapped by the hero and returns to his fold. He would definitely re-think before contesting elections in other states outside Telangana. He would seriously wonder whether his small victory in Maharashtra was a fluke.

That leaves us with the oldest party of India, the Congress. It has increased its tally handsomely. It has no burden of performance on its shoulders. It does not worry about which ministry it will get, because it knows very well, what a cat can expect when sitting with two tigers. It will use this victory to target Modi for a long time to come. It has nothing to lose and only gain.

It is the ONLY TRUE WINNER of these elections. 

Reader's Reviews of 'Return Journey of a Stranger'.

I am thankful to every reader who has communicated his/her feedback about my third book 'Return Journey of a Stranger'. This feedback has given me an insight into how my work has been received by the audience. All positive comments have made me satisfied with my efforts, while constructive criticism helps me to improve my writing skills further. I thank all the readers for taking time to have given their review about the book. 

Reader #1 - DS

My dear Suhas, I could not control myself after reading your third book ‘Return Journey of a Stranger’ and my heart has opened up automatically. The words below are a sequence of that phenomenon. 
• I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. In fact, I finished it just in two days’ time. I read every word, every sentence, every para and every page – I could not skip and jump as I normally do while reading other books. Unfortunately, this is what I have been doing right from my childhood days. It was grasping and kept the interest flowing.
• The book is very well worded, intriguing and makes the reader ‘mad’. Each word is scientifically placed in the right place and can’t be replaced by another. 
• The plot in the story flows down like a river – originating in mountains and hills, flowing through various terrains and finally meeting the sea and in the process carrying everyone and everything with it. 

• Chandu – the hero of the story is really very lucky that he met all good people in his journey except Kundan and his father Mukundilal who advised him to run away from the scene of murder. That was also a good thing. Normally, in our lives we come across many characters – black marketers, politicians, jailbirds, terrorists, pimps, wrong friends and all types of unsocial elements who trap us and lead us into wrong tracks. What happened in this book is a rare occurrence. To make the story natural I think there should have been one or two such characters and then Chandu rising up in his life fighting all the evils –this would have been more natural. 
• It is also a little unnatural that no ‘girl’ has played any role except of course his ‘painter’ girlfriend who has a very minor role 
• If I had enough money I would have made a Hindi / Marathi movie with the title “Chandu”.  
• This book has presented a new ‘ SUHAS’ to the world who is not only devoted to his work and family but 
is also very much aware of the legal aspects, court scenes, social structures and child psychology. 
• Let almighty give SUHAS a long peaceful and trouble free life so that he could write many more such inspiring books. 

Reader #2 - SI

Completed reading 'The return journey of a stranger'...a solid storyline told at a reasonable pace keeping the users interest intact.it is also laces with couple of thrilling moments which come as surprise to the users. The main motto of 'enthusiasm' is not lost anywhere and that is what the specialty is.
However, some of the situations seem to be highly positive which may not be the case in this cruel world.
An excellent piece from an equally excellent person...

Reader #3 - KB

The best part of all the stories is its simplicity, in language, in content and in emotions. All the characters are driven by emotions, we encounter in regular life. It also gives an insight to your simple observations of regular life and the ability of drawing deductions at times practical and at times ideal. More than any suspense its a ...wish which blossoms in reader and that captivates the reader binding him to go on reading in order to reach the outcome. Personally, it connects me to various moments of my personal past/ present life... 
I can term all your books till date as "Trilogy of Life".... I look forward to have many more pages written from heart with so much youth. Great Success for future...

Reader #4 -  VS

Dear Suhas, I finished reading the book quickly, and i loved it a lot. This is definitely the best one so far.

I urged my sons to read it because it is so positive, motivational and simple.

I loved the whole thought process... it’s so Indian and something we are losing with each passing day.

Values, grit, determination, respect.

Fantastic book.

Chandu is the next maryada purhsotam after bhagwan Ram.

Best wishes and look forward to your next jewel of wisdom.

Reader #5 - SI

Like the last time, I couldn't put the book down, and finished it in 4 hours today afternoon :)

Amazing book :) A very interesting narration of a well-kept suspense.

The best suspense was in Mathur's knowing Chandu's background and still appointing him as the office boy!

At one point of time in the book, I really wondered the reason behind the sympathy of Mathur toward Chandu, which got cleared eventually.

I am also curious about the amount of law you had to research for writing the court account, the death-declaration part. I could see K D Pathak in the defense lawyer.

On the whole, it was a wonderful reading experience :)

Cheers!

Reader #6 - KS

Congratulations on your 3rd book 'Return journey of a stranger'. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. 
What I appreciated most about the book was your firm conviction that the moral values taught by one's noble parents at a young impressionable age are a thousand times more powerful than any university education and can easily catapult a person to the highest pedestal irrespective of his humble origin.
More strength to your already powerful pen.
Keep going.

Reader #7 - PK

  

Suhas ji. At last got some time to read the Return Journey of a Stranger. Wonderful. If the speeches at the end by Mr Mathur, Mr Pawar could be cut short, I feel it can be turned into a blockbuster movie.

Reader #8 - MB 

I read the 'Return Journey of  a Stranger'. it is a quite interesting book, this is not a 'Stranger'  it is 'Return Journey of a Strongman'.  Super book you have written. I admire the characters like Chandrakant Shantaram Pawar, Tea stall owner Tau, Om Prakash Mathur and Ms. Nirmala Devi. I like the restaurant name 'Tai Ki Rasoi' , when I spell this name I feel I have eaten a Rasagulla Sweet. Chandu's farewell party speech and International Golden Peace award function speech is very interesting and useful for the entire society.             When you write the new book every time your writing skills is jumped to 100% compared to your previous book. May God bless you to become a one of the famous writer (Global) in the World. My best wishes for you.

Reader #9 - SS 

Hi, I read the book today. Your new book came in market and it is creating a history.

5 Lessons learnt from the #Lalitgate

Seeing the #Lalitgate explode day after day since last two weeks, one is reminded about a popular movie ‘Mohra’ released in 1994. In this film, Sunil Shetty meticulously eliminates one by one, the criminals from two gangs of Jibran and Tyson. In fact, in one scene, he instigates a full-blown fight between the two camps, while he himself is hidden behind the scene. That fight leaves many of them dead and injured.

Here are five lessons, which can be learnt from the snowballing #Lalitgate, which is threatening to swallow big names in the Indian politics across the spectrum.

1. Bad deeds will haunt … always

The phenomenal rise of Lalit Modi in the multi-billion Indian sports industry during the last decade is nothing short of a miracle. It talks about a suave and shrewd businessman who went about achieving his objective in a most professional manner. He wielded tremendous power in the corridors of political circles in Rajasthan and New Delhi and influenced the decision making body of Board of Control for Cricket in India, the cash-rich controversial sporting body, for his benefits. He gave birth to the glamorous (some call it immoral) version of Cricket called IPL, of which, no season has passed without some controversy or other.

Whoever allowed him the free run, have also indirectly aided him in his pursuits, for whatever gains. Their deeds of enabling him to dream are now causing them their biggest nightmares. They are scared to realize that Lalit Modi has kept a record of every document, big or small, which can implicate them in several ways under law.

2. High Profile games involve high risks

There is one similarity in the politics and underworld. The rewards in both these fields are very high … and so are the risks. The winners enjoy tremendous power and wealth, but the losers pay heavy price. In politics, a character assassination is almost similar to the loss of life in underworld. A disgraced politician lives a life much worse than a beggar does on the street.

Lalit Modi is playing this dangerous game by tweeting the names of high profile personalities on a daily basis, just as a magician takes out rabbits from his bag, much to the amusement of the spectators. What he does not seem to realize is that the politicians have a bad reputation of going to any extremes to safeguard their personal interests. With his revelations, he is not only making himself highly vulnerable but also closing all his already bleak chances of returning to India.

3. No one escapes the mud, while standing around a puddle

Whichever way the case moves from here, and going by the indications, a lot more is still to come out from his black box, there shall be mud thrown all around. People, who enjoy watching the slug fest by standing close and inciting the players, cannot escape some pieces of mud falling on their dress as well. Only the amount of mud shall vary based on the position one is standing. However, if anyone expects that he shall come out clean after this storm dies down, is sadly mistaken.  

4. Gang wars do not follow rule books.

The gang wars are not fought on rule books. They are fought only on one principle … seize the moment and attack. Every member of every gang looks for an opportunity to strike. There is no tomorrow in gang wars. Everyone playing the game knows that one may be eliminated at any point of time. The only objective is to ensure that one stays alert and causes as much damage to the members of other gang as possible.

5. Falling standards of media

The media has played a very immature role in this entire saga. There is one channel, which is non-stop showing the same news repeatedly for last two weeks, almost deciding the fate of people involved in this, in whichever manner. The channel has missed covering in detail several important news during these days, including the floods in Northern India and the terrorist attacks in three countries on Friday.    

The other channels also got a precious fodder to invite members of all parties and entangle them in acrimonious debates asking their opinions and reactions on the tweets emanating venomously from England.

…

The #Lalitgate is surely a turning point in the Indian Politics. At least for the Modi government, which boasted itself of a corruption-free governance since it came to power a year ago, this episode is causing a serious embarrassment.

On a very wild note, one should not be surprised to expect the biggest cover-up to protect the interests of all the high and mighty politicians involved. When Salman Khan and Jayalalithaa can walk free, it is quite possible that Lalit Modi is the prime ministerial candidate for the 2019 elections.

Politics, after all, is known to throw surprises at the gullible people from time to time. 

Re-living the magical experience of DDLJ.

On the eve of completing incredible 1000 weeks run in a single theatre, the movie ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ was released worldwide once again last week. I went to witness it once again and re-live the golden magic of DDLJ. And I was not disappointed. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the movie, partially due to my fading memory, as I had seen it in theatre before in 1995, the year it was released.

Following are some of my observations about this epic movie, which has cemented a place for itself in all-time Bollywood blockbusters.

The on-screen chemistry of SRK and Kajol was mesmerizing. It had a freshness, youthfulness, romanticism and what not. This pair can easily be compared with other classic pairs in Bollywood like Raj Kapoor – Nargis, Dilip Kumar – Vaijayanthimala, Dev Anand – Waheeda Rehman, Rajesh Khanna – Mumtaz and Amitabh Bchchan – Rekha.

The entire star cast has now changed with times. 20 years has changed a lot. Sadly, Yash Chopra and Amrish Puri are no more. Kajol is a happy mom with two kids. SRK is struggling to keep his stardom alive. Mandira Bedi, almost a newcomer in the movie, has come and gone into oblivion. Karan Johar, who played a cameo as sidekick of SRK, has established himself as a premium filmmaker. 

The film does not have a single kissing scene. This tells us about how the society has changed in the last twenty years. As the years progressed, in the name of being advanced or progressive, the sensuality has been lost somewhere.

The film has a dialogue, ‘Bade bade shahron me aisi chhoti chhoti baten hoti raheti hai.’  This dialogue had put RR Patil in serious trouble and cost him his home minister ship when he had wrongly used it after the tragic terror attack in Mumbai In 2006. However, this dialogue was deeply honored when Barack Obama mentioned it in one of his speeches during his recent visit to India.

The audience mainly comprised of people in their forties and fifties, some of them with their young children. The elders were excited to re-live the magic while the children were excited to see their parents thrilled. Conspicuously, there were no youngsters-in-groups in the movie hall. This could be because they might have seen this movie on television many times or simply, they do not value it enough to watch in theatre.

This was a cult movie, which later gave birth to several remakes with selective portions of the movie. It was very easy to relate some portions of this movie with plots and sub-plots of movies released subsequently, for several years. In that respect, it has retained its freshness and originality, even after twenty years.

In the last minute of the film, when Amrish Puri leaves the grip of Kajol’s hand and says in his deep voice, ‘Ja Simran Ja … jee le apni zindagi…’ it was as if the whole world had accepted the concept of true love. It shows a victory of love over everything else. If Yash Chopra has earned the title of ‘King of Romance’, then this film surely marks an important landmark in his achieving this coveted title for himself.

Overall, it was a great experience. I came home satisfied that I had enjoyed once again a masterpiece of a movie, which had stood the test of time. A whole new generation had grown up in Mumbai by watching its morning show in Maratha Mandir. 

5 reasons why AAP will not survive the full term in New Delhi...!

AAP has set new benchmarks in the history of India as far as the winning percentage in assembly elections are concerned. By any standards, this is an unprecedented victory and shall always figure in the top 5 list of victory margins for decades to come. The AAP cadre deserves to be complimented for their sustained efforts during the last few months for campaigning for their candidates.

With this verdict, the Modi juggernaut has symbolically come to a halt. The BJP may console themselves by saying that this was a referendum on Kejriwal and not on Modi government, but even a child will say that this is not entirely true. BJP faced its first big challenge post the general elections last year and they lost the contest very badly. 

Going ahead, the AAP will have unlimited power as the people’s mandate has been completely in their favor. However, will AAP live up to the people’s expectations? Can the Kejriwal government fulfill all its poll promises? Can Kejriwal bring the Moon, which he has promised, to the Aam Admi of Delhi during the campaigning?

Well, the road ahead for Kejriwal is not very easy. He has a challenge ahead of him, which is much bigger that what meets the eyes. Let us analyze the threats faced by Kejriwal at this moment of time, and see whether he can survive a full term of five years or again sacrifice his powerful seat, to satiate his inner need of doing dharnas and agitations.

Threat #1: No opposition

Kejriwal has achieved something, which neither he nor any of his ardent supporter might have dreamt of. He does not have an opposition in the assembly. He can virtually pass any bill, any resolution, any act without having to bother about anything. In fact, there would be no meaningful discussions in the assembly at all. The ruling party legislatures are stretching from the right side of the speaker to the extreme left side, a place reserved for the opposition party legislatures. How much debate can be held with the three members of BJP, who will appear and behave more like invitees to a marriage function that posing any serious challenge to the government?

This is not good omen for democracy, since the government tends to become complacent about its actions and likely to lose focus very soon.

Threat #2: Old habits die hard

Kejriwal has been an expert agitator while is efficiency as an administrator is yet to be tested. He has already squandered one precious chance last year. During his infamous rule for 49 days, he has initiated and participated in several agitations and dharnas, some of them on the roads leading to north block. He had not only threatened to disrupt the republic day parade, but had also openly incited the policemen to join the agitation. He also uttered those words ‘Yes, I am an Anarchist.’

If he indulges in any of these things now, he might be in trouble again. Moreover, this time, he has no excuse. The people have given him an enviable mandate. He has to govern, not agitate.

Threat #3: Difficult promises

Kejriwal has made several rosy promises to the people of Delhi. He may not find it easy to deliver on these promises. For example, if he is going to reduce the electricity and water bills for the people, and collect the money from people indirectly by way of additional taxes and duties, then this may not work for long. The electricity and water authorities cannot operate on losses. The government cannot grant subsidies to the people, unless they know where the money is going to come from, to cover the loss in revenue.

Similarly, roads cannot be built without collecting additional money from the public. 

Threat #4: High expectations on fast results

The mandate got by Kejriwal is unrealistic by any standards. People do not even dare to dream what he has achieved. Naturally, the expectations are running high and people expect the result of good governance to be reflected in their daily lives from day one. Every day brings more pressure to perform and any delay is looked upon with suspicion about the capabilities to bring about the changes. Unfortunately, he has many things in his agenda like bringing Delhi police under the Delhi government, statehood for Delhi, audits of power companies etc., which are not easy tasks. These changes require prolonged deliberations with different stakeholders, patient discussions, compromises and adjustments from one’s original stand etc. Unfortunately, the AAP leadership has not demonstrated so far any of these qualities while dealing with such issues. They instantly go on offensive and threaten a dharna. This only derails the process and brings down the trust levels between various parties.

Threat #5: Internal contradictions

By far, this is the biggest threat for the AAP. This is one factor, which could accelerate the process of bringing down this government before completing its term for full five years. The only thing common to all the elected representatives is that they are all clean, without any corruption charges against them. But then, that alone is not enough for ensuring a good governance. Even Manmohan Singh was clean, and we know what happened to him and his party. Moreover, all these legislatures are inexperienced in politics, principled and people with an opinion. Kejriwal is known to be autocratic in his functioning style and he is bound to ruffle some feathers among his own party members while taking decisions, small and big. It will be interesting to see how these legislatures accept the diktats form the high command without questioning and adjust to the dictatorial work environment.

Another big worry is that some of the inner coterie like Somnath Bharti and Rakhi Birla, who have been in controversies before for their unruly behavior. Would they unintentionally embarrass the government like before? Would they spread anarchism around again?.

Given these five challenges, it looks very unlikely that the Kejriwal government would complete its term of five years. The internal contradictions would bring it down faster than anyone can expect. This has been a roller coaster ride for the AAP. Now it will stabilize and continue to be like any other political party. 

We all have heard that absolute power corrupts absolutely … now we are going to witness it in Delhi in coming few months.

10 reason why I love Srilanka

We had a short trip of 5 days to Srilanka in third week of December 2014. It was a memorable trip, which brought us close to the nature in an enchanting way. We visited the capital city Colombo, the commercial city of Kandy and the hill station Nuwara Eliya. 

Here are ten reasons why we will always remember this Srilanka trip on a positive note.

Immediately on arrival at the Colombo airport, the immigration officer noticed an issue relating to my daughter’s visa. While she should have had a separate visa for her, the travel agent had by mistake put her name in my visa as a dependent. To our surprise, the immigration officer was very helpful in resolving this issue, which required him to leave the counter for well over fifteen minutes and consult his superiors. He made an online application for her visa and obtained approval immediately.

Reason #1: The immigration officer was extremely polite, cooperative and helpful while dealing with us.

Once in the city, we noticed that there were auto rickshaws of different colors like Red, Black, and Yellow etc. Later, we were told later that just like cars, the autos in Srilanka come in different colors. The first observation we had in Colombo was that there was a traffic discipline. All the traffic lights worked, the roads were without any potholes, no one sounded the horn unnecessarily and people followed traffic rules.

Reason #2: The traffic sense in the people was far superior compared with other Asian cities.

As we traveled to Nuwara Eliya, which is located at an incredible height of around 6000 feet from the sea level, we observed that even the narrow roads had markings of the road divider and the hard shoulder (end of lane) all along. However interior we went in the hilly roads, or outskirts of the cities, we found that the roads were clearly marked.

Reason #3: The roads are laid properly with lane markings, which gave a neat appearance of the roads.

While we traveled from Colombo to Pinnavala, on one of the single lane road, the driver overtook an auto by momentarily crossing over to the opposite lane, as there was no road-divider, and also the road in other direction was empty. There was a policeman standing just ahead, who stopped the vehicle for violating the traffic rule. The violation was that there was a solid line dividing the lanes of both direction, which meant that overtaking was not allowed on that patch of the road. However, when the tourist guide and the driver explained to the policeman that they were carrying tourists to Pinnavala, where they needed to be on time and were already late, the policeman just checked the license of the driver and let the vehicle go. He did not take any money with or without receipt.

Reason #4: The policemen appeared to be honest. Just imagine, if he was corrupt, he would have taken some bribe. Then for the rest of the day, the driver would have cursed the policeman and passed some of his stress to us, by not being as courteous. So, in this case, an honest policeman ensured that we spent our day blissfully.

Our guide informed us that the government wants that every child in every government school has a nutritious breakfast every day. However, to ensure that the disparity in the financial status of various children does not come to the fore, they came up with a very novel idea. They ask the parents to cook the breakfast for all the children in their ward’s class. So, if a child has say thirty students in his class, the parents of every child cook the breakfast for all thirty students by rotation. The government pays a specific amount to the parents towards this, with an advance intimation about their turn.

Reason #5: The government is interested in developing a better future for their country, by ensuring that every child has a nutritious breakfast.

As we were watching the road traffic while travelling in our cosy van, we noticed something amazing. A boy was running to catch a bus and as he boarded the bus, his wallet fell down on the road. While some of the bystanders were watching this, suddenly, one of the person came forward, picked up the wallet and ran behind the bus, which had slowed down now for some traffic congestion ahead, and handed over the wallet to this boy who looked anxiously all along.

Reason #6: It appeared as though the percentage of honest citizens is higher than average in Srilanka.

Throughout our stay in Srilanka, we did not spot a single beggar. This showed that the people engaged themselves in some activity or other to earn sufficient money for their survival. Also, the government might have several measures in place to ensure that the beggars are rehabilitated in some remunerative work.

Reason #7: No beggars.

In all the hotels we stayed, what stood out was their hospitality. The hotel staff was utmost courteous, which was probably because of their training of course, and also it could have been their basic nature to be polite and humble. The attitude and behavior of the hotel staff has a direct bearing on the level of comfort of your stay in any hotel.

Reason #8: Excellent hospitality.

The nature must have been extremely generous while designing various countries on earth. The hillside of Nuwara Eliya is a treat to the eyes. It is a wonderful experience to travel through the narrow roads, surrounded by hundreds of tea plantations, spread over thousands of acres of land. The scene of clouds passing below the mountain heights leaves an imprint in the mind for a long time.

Reason #9: Natural beauty of Srilanka.

The religious harmony of Srilanka is worth appreciating. The population comprises of 80 percent Buddhists, 10 percent Muslims and 10 percent Christians. Barring a few incidents, the society is generally tolerant towards one another’s religions. This is probably, because Buddha emphasizes on noble qualities such as peace, tolerance and harmony.

Reason #10: Communal harmony.

Our guide told us many other trivia like how the Indian satellite channels were making inroads into Srilanka. Some of the popular ‘saas-bahu’ serials were already dubbed in the local Sinhala language. These serials attracted all the womenfolk in sitting glued to the TV sets when these serials were telecast. Apparently, the local fashion market is also deeply influenced by these serials, with various dresses, bangles, accessories coming out with the brand names of popular serials.

As we left Srilanka, we felt that this land had suffered a lot in the last few decades due to the insurgency of LTTE and was experiencing some peace now. We pray that the peace reins in Srilanka for ages to come and it develops and grows to become a powerful south Asian country.