Didigiri Tales

For the last year, most of my posts on this blog have not been about social/political events happening around me that make me want to express my reaction at their occurrence. They have all been on more neutral and easy topics: movie reviews. Maybe because I am staying in a country where the happenings around me don't affect me at an emotional level to make me want to comment on them? And my own country is too far away for me to be able to feel strong emotions for them? Questions I don't know the answers too..

But then events happen (thank Indian politicians for that!) when all those strong emotions are stirred up again..! And here I am, writing, trying to express my exasperation and the feeling of helplessness at Indian politics (this time in Bengal) ..

Maya Diaries were the flavour for the last few years. And now that behenji is not on her throne for the moment, a new didi has taken her place; to give us stories of new heights of what (stupidities?!) a person in power is capable of! (I am so thankful that I am not staying in Paschim Banga right now, seems like for a post like this, I could easily have been put into jail there!)

Every few days, there is a new story, bigger and worse than the previous! Renaming the state! Colouring the city blue! Recalling your own railway minister for marginally increasing railway fares! Rubbishing rape cases as Left conspiracies! Banning English dailies! Changing school syllabus! Putting professors into jail!.. There is no end to new and even more bizarre steps being taken by Mamta Banerjee. A new headline screams from the newspapers every day, each event more bizarre than the last..

She does make for interesting times. You actually start looking forward to what new story will come out of Bengal now! That's looking at the bright side of it:). But on the real side, each and every story makes one feel sadder for Bengal and India, making one question and think hard.

I can't even begin to describe what I feel reading each new story. Can this really happen? Can a person in such a high post really take such immature and insensible steps? What about other people in the government, does no one see the lack of sense in these actions? Bengal is supposed to be the intellectual state of the country. In a state like that, can such things happen so easily? What was Mamta thinking? If she can do this, what if everyone else starts doing things like these on a whim? Where is the country heading???

Mamta's supporters term this as being her style. That she is a person who has grown from the grassroots. That all these stories are just blown out of proportion by the media. Somehow I can't buy their reasoning. Is the entire media against her as one big unit? Why? Are all the stories fabricated? But then whatever is written in the media has actually happened. How could they all be false stories? And of course, another question that bothers me is whether maturity and sensibleness is required in a leader? How important is it, and what if its missing?

There are questions and then some more. But no answers. Leadership changing from one leader to another and all turn out the same. When are we going to get a generation of leaders who can be respected and trusted to take the country forward, not backward? Or are they all a myth? Do such leaders come only at times of exploitation and slavery, but not in peace and democracy? Again some questions which come to mind but no answers yet. Maybe someday...

Till then, we will get entertained regularly by Mamta diaries..