Ranjit Sinha - Namak Haraam

King Henry II of England and Thomas Beckett were good friends. They were even “drinking club” friends. When Beckett was appointed Chancellor he did everything that the King desired, even taxed the Church. The King even had Beckett playing foster-father to his sons. The King was constantly in conflict with the Church and wanted the Royalty be supreme over the Church. To settle the conflict and gain supremacy he appointed his best friend Beckett as the Archbishop of Canterbury. That’s when things went wrong. Once he became Archbishop, Beckett turned pious and refused to oblige and sign any agreements that would establish the supremacy of the King over the Church. Beckett is reported to have started penance for his earlier sins. He refused to break with the Pope in Rome. Beckett was murdered in 1170, presumably under orders of Henry II, and was later bestowed Sainthood by the Pope. Beckett’s story became famous through T.S. Elliot’s “Murder in the cathedral” and partly referenced in Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Canterbury tales”.

When Ranjit Sinha (RS) was appointed CBI Director last year there were protests from the leaders of the Opposition, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley. They had apprehensions that he was another puppet who would do the bidding of Sonia Gandhi & Co. Their suspicion was justified considering RS had a record of being servantile and his record also had some minor blemishes. But when a person assumes a certain office he brings his own story and burden to bear on it. Not many newspapers or TV channels have narrated this story but OpenMagazine has found a genuine explanation for the twin stories that culminated in the destruction of Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar. We’ll get to that. In the meantime, let’s hear some familiar nonsense about who’s to blame for the last Parliament session washout.

It has been a tradition now in our media to blame the Opposition, in particular the BJP, for the Parliament blockades and washout of sessions. The media morons believe, like they do on their TV channels, that everything can be sorted out with a debate. My answer is a clear NO. You cannot debate obvious crimes. When the Parliament was blocked for the 2G issue the same media cried themselves hoarse blaming the opposition. The end result was a farcical JPC whose chairman was in a rush to distribute clean chits. The tweets of the Numero Uno and Numero Unee are reflective of this culture on TV where they believe parliament sessions are the only way to sort out crimes. This is an argument the Congress offers to gain time and prevent action on crimes. Democracy exists far beyond the walls of parliament and we have seen time and again that parliament is incompetent in dealing with criminals. They can only make laws, nothing more. In this case too CNN-IBN and it’s govt foot-soldiers blamed the BJP only to turn turtle in the next few days.

What Ashwani Kumar did was a serious crime which is being played down by the Congress and the media. His role was one of obstruction of justice and protecting people who may have the potential of being indicted by a court in the massive Coalgate scam. The Opposition is right in stalling the parliament where the Congress sought to divert all the issues by bringing in some bogus Food Security Bill with elections in mind and then accused other parties of being “anti-poor” because they stalled parliament. This dubious conduct by the Congress is now familiar to all. All, except our specialists in the media. The Congress, as usual, claimed the SC had not pronounced any verdict and there was an inquiry against Bansal. Nonsense! The SC observations on the doctored Coalgate affidavit is enough for the PM to be sacked. And Bansal? He wasn’t sacked because Sonia Gandhi had an attack of conscience as we came to learn. But in just over a week, Pallavi Ghosh meekly tweets that Congress was to blame for Parliament washout which ridicules the propaganda of her own bosses.

SoniaG reportedly rushed to PM’s residence on May 10 to seek the sacking of Bansal and Kumar. She created all the drama for the media to show how strongly she acts against corruption. Her phones were probably so dead that she had to rush to 7RCR. Nonsense again! It turns out that the tapes in which Bansal was pimping for railway appointments and distributing the loot was out with some in the media and so possibly also with the Congress boss. Kanchan Gupta indicates what exactly could have been the contents of the bribery tapes. It’s like when you’re finally clean-bowled in Cricket and even the third umpire can’t save you if it isn’t a no-ball. That’s when it dawned upon Sonia Gandhi that the damage in retaining Bansal could be far more severe than the Congress anticipated. So while at it, the Congress made both ministers go since AshwaniK would have to go anyway at some point of time. Better hurt now than later. That’s a good choice. But if knowing all this the PM and SoniaG were against sacking Bansal earlier it speaks of monumental dishonesty. All the editors in the media who kept giving MMS a certificate of “honesty” must hang their heads in shame.

In all of this can the lady who is now haunting Pakistan be left out of her own 2 cents of special intelligence? Absolutely not! So there you go, there’s Barkha Dutt telling us about the “Punjabi” conspiracy of some sort. What Open Magazine, which is far more reliable than Barkha, tells us is that an aspirant to the post of Law Minister leaked out information of AshwaniK’s meddling with the CBI affidavit. I don’t think we need the CIA to infer that OpenMag is referring to zero loss. The leak being a done job, there was no way Ranjit Sinha could escape admitting the facts in the SC of the affidavit. He had an added incentive. OpenMag reports AshwaniK was harsh on him and even humiliated him with rude comments on Ranjit’s poor knowledge of English. You see, in India, it is better to be an English Laloo like Salman Khurshid or Shashi Tharoor than a desi CBI director. In short, AshwaniK and the PM’s cohorts gangraped the CBI affidavit and left it a poor survivor to be sent to a hospital.

In the case of Bansal, RS had an old score to settle. It seems Mahesh Kumar, the 10Crore briber who was in the Rail business earlier too, had shunted him out to unattractive posts in the past. So without anyone asking him or any govt advising the CBI, RS started a special watch on Mahesh Kumar and poor Pawan Bansal was caught with his monkey-hand grabbing peanuts from the trap, just like that lady in Radiagate. Conversations were taped over months and even the sacrificial Goat that Bansal used in a puja in the end couldn’t save him. Unwittingly, Ranjit Sinha has become the saviour of CBI and may finally be the man to save it from the evil clutches of the most corrupt govt ever in the history of India. Ranjit Sinha became Thomas Beckett. RS also finally managed to put some fear into the hearts of politicians. He also proved there is no need for the Jokepal, a strong, independent CBI and Judiciary is quite adequate to deal with corruption.

The Congress and some of its allies in the UPA have spawned such a culture of corruption and brazen loot that every joker has started believing he has a “Right To Loot”. Whether it’s Bansal, Ashwani, Marans, Kripashankars or the whole gang of UPA. This doesn’t happen if there is zero tolerance for corruption. This happens only when the whole gang gets a clear signal that looting is okay as long as the Mafia is paid its due. This is what the UPA has been reduced to. And this birthright to corruption doesn’t end with politicians it also extends to the news media who keep lying through their nose to protect their corrupt masters. SoniaG has given a clear signal through Shashi Tharoor and Abhishek Singhvi that if you’re tainted just take a chill-pill, spend some time taking a vacation. You will be back quite soon. If banks are money-laundering as Cobrapost suggests it is surely not without approval and a guarantee of protection.

The Congress appointed Ranjit Sinha with the belief he will be another puppet and be loyal to the Queen and her coterie. The story has gone terribly wrong. The Beckett story was made into a movie. The same movie was adapted and remade in Bollywood – it was called “Namak Haraam” (featuring Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan). In both movies the “namak haraam” dies. I have no doubts that Ranjit Sinha is going to be called a ‘namak haraam’ in Congress and media circles. One just hopes he doesn’t meet the same fate.

US Reps, NaMo & The Bribery Fantasy

Most nations act in their own self-interest. Ours is probably one democracy that is at constant political conflict and uses every opportunity to paint patriots as fascists, as killers and bribe-givers. On the flip side, traitors and separatists are glorified by our MSM and some are even decorated by the GOI. For nearly a decade that has been the job of the Indian Congress party and their crony media happily picks up the song and plays it over and over again.

Remember Charlie Wilson? He was a specialist in Pakistan strategy for the US. I say ‘was’ because Congressman Charlie Wilson died in 2010. Apart from his colourful life, Charlie is most famous for ‘Operation Cyclone’ which involved the funding of Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviets. Some of the funding has also reportedly involved illegal lobbying by the CIA. It is famous as ‘Charlie Wilson’s war’. While Wilson may have succeeded in arming the Afghans there isn’t any doubt a lot of crumbs and benefits were also picked up by Pakistan. When the Soviet occupation ended late 1980s it is public knowledge where the attention of leftover warriors and Pakistan too turned to. It’s also now known that a good amount of Charlie’s funds went to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a senior Taliban leader and a supporter of al-Qaeda since the Soviet exit. Wilson is celebrated as a patriotic American hero.

So lately, when a group of US Congress members are on a visit to India, particularly Narendra Modi, the same machinery of the media started claiming the three US lawmakers were bribed to visit Modi, speak highly of him, speak highly of Gujarat, were bribed to give Modi an invitation to the USA and get him an entry permit. Who are these dumb people? It is one thing for dumb spokies to utter rubbish but quite another thing for the media to repeat such garbage like a box of parrots. That’s why the sign in a previous post says “Never trust an editor”. The profession of most editors is dead or at least their conscience definitely is.  Let’s sample some comments from an Outlook Magazine report:

Rashid Alvi (Congress): "Shame that the Congressmen were paid for getting a visa and certificate of development for Modi… One feels ashamed over this kind of news. It is an insult to a nation. The Congressmen were given Rs nine lakh each so that America can give him (Modi) visa and a certificate of development... This is unfortunate. If the money had been spent in Gujarat for the poor and development, then it would have been much better". Even if we buy the argument that the Congressmen were paid a total amount of 27 lakhs it is amazing to think that Congress spokie like Alvi, whose party has guzzled lakhs of crores in scams, believes 27 lakhs would dent development in Gujarat. This amount is less than even peanuts as bribes for even a low level political broker in Delhi. And then he makes the assumption that the Americans too are servile parrots and slaves of their party’s king or queen and make statements they don’t even believe in. Outlook quotes another:

AICC Secretary Praveen Davar hit out at the US delegation for inviting the Gujarat CM describing it as "thoughtless" move. "I strongly condemn the three Republicans for inviting Modi to the US. Have Americans forgotten who masterminded 2002 Gujarat genocide? Repeated victory at the hustings does not absolve Modi of alleged crimes against humanity. Lawmakers must withdraw their thoughtless invite.

Can you ever imagine an American lawmaker talking about their elected representatives in the manner that this guy Davar talks in reference to a foreigner? In my book this is the language of anti-nationals. First of all he makes a foolish statement. Then, by what logic or entitlement does he believe he has the right to condemn the American visitors? Even if the group was not an official one from the US govt this Davar demonstrates the kind of foolishness with which we handle our foreign relations issues.

Look at it from another angle. If the US Reps were indeed bribed to invite Modi and get him a visa then who were the people and parties who bribed the US authorities to deny entry for Modi in the US? Surely, a lot of money must have been spent on the lobbyists who urged the US govt to deny entry to Modi. This was around 2005. Your guess is as good as mine on who spent a helluva lot of money for the anti-Modi campaign with the US govt. Who knows! Maybe the anti-Modi clause has been used as “leverage” in many deals and with many institutions. This is one thing the GOI has never learnt from the US. That nation comes first. That no matter what Charlie Wilson is celebrated as a patriot despite some future unfortunate events supposedly being outcomes of his funding. Wilson has never been blamed for such outcomes.

So where did all this screaming of “bribery” start from? From a community news site called “Hi India” in Chicago. The very nature of the report itself is laughable and not surprisingly no editor or reporter in the Indian media has questioned it. It has no source whatsoever to report on except a printed “invitation” card which is nearly a public document. The rest is a background story on the sponsors organising the trip. Seriously, are the reporters at Hi-India suggesting that bribes were offered by printed invitations? Please note though that Hi-India itself does not mention “bribery” anywhere. This is an invention of the Congress party and Indian media. Is that such a surprise?

Here’s what I estimate and consider most appropriate: Three US Reps were invited by a BJP supporter or a sympathiser on a trip to India and a meeting with Modi too. Given that, the sponsor is certainly not going to invite US Reps who are anti-Modi or anti-BJP to lead the tour. He used their prominent names and position to rope in other businessmen or investors for a package cost options of between $3000 and $29000 per person or couple as the case maybe. Since the US Reps were not travelling as “couples” the news site concluded their cost would be $16000 (the highest rate for individuals in the highest class) which in turn is inferred as “bribery”. Very smart, isn’t it? On being questioned, one of the US Reps has offered clarification which is carried in the Outlook report but while you may read that, it is not even relevant to the whole case. Just for the record, a US Rep’s annual salary is reportedly $174000, just under $16000 pm. So, imagine our media implies that for just over a month’s salary they can be bought. Even Indian politicians can’t be bought for that.

If a sponsor is using the lead team of “prominent lawmakers” to invite others to join the trip at a price then how exactly does it amount to a bribe to the lead-team? Given that the Reps were “invited to lead” it is not even unnatural that their expenses would be borne by the sponsors. It is not confirmed that is the case though. Since I quoted India Today’s headline earlier let us consider Narendra Modi was invited as key note speaker at their recent Conclave and there would have been expenses. Now, we don’t know who bore the expenses of Modi. But supposing India Today had borne the travel, commuting, stay and food expenses of Modi amounting to say Rs.2 lakhs, would that be considered a bribe paid to Modi for speaking at their event? This is the stupid inference ‘Hi-India’ makes which our media editors then repeat like parrots.

As for the political statements coming from the Congress, the less said the better. Their hatred for Modi and their funding of anti-Modi media and NGOs is all too well known. After 11 years even Madhu Kishwar who had earlier bought the media arguments has now written nearly a whole book about the hateful campaign against Modi funded by Congress and other vested interests. Not surprisingly, this blog and many others have been saying this for years now.

And since we are on it, why not go another step? What exactly is this ‘Hi-India’? While the Indian media quoted their “bribery” source as a community news site in Chicago most of them did not even mention the name “Hi-India”. Because if they did, you would read and discover how farcical the story is. That would defeat the purpose of the lies, eh? Well, it’s published by a man named Hemant Bramhbhatt. Not much is known about him except that he has been doing a ‘South Asian’ community service news site for many years. Okay, what next? He also publishes something called “Sandesh”. And who helped him getting into this publishing business? Ah well, it’s family friends from the second-highest sold news newspaper from Gujarat called “Sandesh”. This is published from many cities in Gujarat. Sandesh does not have a reputation of being Modi-friendly but we don’t need to make any assumptions. It is important to merely know the connections of ‘Hi-India’.

That the US Reps came and spoke highly of a State within India seems intolerable for many politicians and media houses. Ever seen such shameful conduct? In July 2011 the GOI announced it would investigate activities of many journalists and activists who were frequent guests of an anti-India campaigner like Ghulam Nabi Fai. He operated liberally with ISI funds and the participants, including Dileep Padgaonkar, Kuldip Nayar, Gautam Navlakha and many more, were beneficiaries of his doles. Why doesn’t that constitute bribery yet? That too by a known enemy! These are not Americans who can’t be investigated. Is it any surprise that these people are glorified in our media?

The Gujarat 2002 riots campaign of lies failed to stick and win elections. They then turned to some lame corruption charges. Then they turned to fantasies about malnutrition in Gujarat being the worst in India. Having failed in all that, the media now clings on to fantasy of any kind that drops their way, including fantasies of bribery for praise and visa.