Freedom from the Past..!
And as we proudly hoist the flag today, imagine our surprise and consternation if the flag doesn’t rise, “Hey,” we shout, “Come on, we are hoisting you up. Fly free!” “I can’t!” says the flag. “And why not?” we ask, huffing and puffing to pull the rope that holds the flag,…
Protest to Protect People..!
As I write this piece, my wife is off to join a protest, “For Manipur?” I ask looking up. “No!” she says, “But against atrocities committed against all Indian women!” I nod, and know who will be there; women from all communities, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and all those shocked and…
Shooting the Messenger..!
A few years ago, a news item appearing in Indian newspapers mentioned that people had found out that blankets offered by the Indian Railways to its passengers for their overnight journeys were washed only once in two months! Which meant, realized horrified passengers that they had slept in the sweat…
Fooled by Tiger Statistics..!
Front page headlines of a leading national English daily yesterday carried news that the tiger population had increased by five hundred tigers! Not in the fourth or fifth page, but headlines on the front page at the same time as the more important news of twenty one of our country’s…
The Maturity of Faith..!
Yesterday, at lunch I met a young lady from Manipur, and in her eyes saw sadness, “They have decided to kill each other till they finish each other!” she told me, and there was sorrow in her voice. Yes, we know who she was talking about; two tribes who believed…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.