“Happy Independence Day!” shouted my neighbour as he hoisted the national flag. “Thank you,” I said. “Does that mean I am free?” “Of course!” he replied proudly. “This is a free country.” “So I may disagree with you?” His smile disappeared. “Why do you want to spoil Independence Day?” he…


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.