Passport Story - 2

You know what, my good friend Mr. Bholanath Hansmukh, finally got his passport reissued after a battle of 3 years. I hope you all remember, his ‘Passport Story – part 1’!  Now, with his permission, I am sharing the 2^nd part of the story, in a nut-shell. I am going to share the one letter he wrote to the Appellate Authority sitting at Delhi, which set the ball rolling, in which he has summarized his complete story and his utter frustration with the system.  Here it goes:

“Respected Sir,

I, Bholanath Hansmukh, had applied for reissue of my passport on 7th August 2013, in Belapur.  And still I have not received my passport. Since last 10 months, I have been struggling to find out the reason for the delay, without much success and there has been no satisfactory answer to my queries from the RPO Belapur. I request you to please give 15-20 mins of your precious time and go through my letter fully, along with the attachments I have enclosed.

I had applied for reissue of my passport 2 times, once while I was staying in Junagarh in February 2012 and again in August 2013 in Belapur. Hence, first I would like to give you the background of my case.

1^st application, in RPO JUNAGARH, on 7^th Feb 2012  file no: ****420

1. I had applied for reissue of my passport on 7^th February 2012 at Junagarh RPO.

2. My police verification at Junagarh Police station had happened successfully in March 2012, and I was waiting to get a call from Ramgarh police station as I had stayed in Ramgarh for 6 months from May-2012 upto Sept-2012 and in Junagarh for 6 months in the past 1 year from the application date.

3. After around 1 month, suddenly I received a 'missing note' from Junagarh police station, stating that I have to come to Junagarh Police station as my file has come there. I was surprised that why the file arrived again to the same police station, when my police verification was already completed by them few days back. I went to Junagarh police station, and asked the same question. Upon checking my file, they informed me, that they had already cleared my file in March 2012 itself, and the file seems to be sent by RPO Junagarh, by mistake to them, and it should have gone to Ramgarh Police Station. They informed me that now they shall send back my file to RPO Junagarh in 2-3 days, and from there it will go to Ramgarh Police Station.

4. I waited for 2 months, but I never received any call. In these 2 months, I visited Ramgarh police station 2 times but they said my file never came there. They advised to visit RPO Junagarh to inquire.

5. In the meantime, the status on the passport website changed from ‘Police report awaited’ to ‘Police report is adverse’. I was wondering what has gone wrong, while I had provided all the necessary documents in my passport application and also to the police, and what exactly is the meaning of an adverse report?

6. Hence I went to RPO Junagarh in May 2012, to inquire about the same, when I didn't receive my passport even after 3 months from application date. But I didn't get any satisfactory answer from RPO Junagarh, as to what was the problem, and how much more time it could take to get the passport reissued. They didn’t treat me properly, and avoided my questions, as what exactly is the meaning of an ADVERSE report?

7. Meanwhile, my employer company (CHACHA Consultancy Services) had transferred me from Juagarh to Belapur location. Hence I needed to leave my rented house in Junagarh and relocate to Belapur AND also, I was totally frustrated with this harassment of last 2-3 months.

8. Hence I requested them to return my passport back, so that I can apply again for the reissue, from Belapur.

9. At that time, Junagarh passport officer agreed and he asked me to write an application for the closure of the file giving the same reason, and I wrote the application and submitted the same to the passport officer. And I was returned my old passport with a 'canceled' stamp. 

10. I was told by the passport officer then, that I can reapply for reissue of my passport in Belapur, and there will not be any problem due to closing of file.

2^nd application, at Passport Seva Kendra, BELAPUR on 7^th Aug 2013, file no: ******

1. I had applied for reissue of my passport on 7^th August 2013 at Passport Seva Kendra, Belapur under TATKAL mode, as I required passport urgently for going to Europe for project work assignment as instructed by my employer Chacha Consultancy Services.

2. But I was told by the passport officer at Passport Seva Kendra, that in the database, it is showing that my file was closed and police report was adverse, and hence as per the rule, I am not allowed to apply under TATKAL mode and hence I was asked to submit the application in NORMAL mode. 

3. I submitted my application in NORMAL mode on the same day, by filling additional form for TATKAL to NORMAL conversion as advised by passport officer.

4. Upon submitting the application, they stamped the receipt, as ‘POLICY’ and the passport officer informed me, that my case has become a POLICY case and for all further processing will be done from RPO BELAPUR directly. Nobody explained me what does it mean by a 'POLICY' case, and till today I don't know what it means. 

5. After 10-15 days, my police verification happened successfully at Belapur police station and I was informed, that my police verification shall happen again in Junagarh, as my previous police report was adverse from my old, closed application.

6. Hence I used to travel to Junagarh, almost every weekend from Belapur, to inquire about my file, whether my file had reached to Junagarh police Station or not. And after 1 month of inquiring, finally I received a call from Junagarh Police station In September 2013, that my file had arrived for verification and I was asked to visit Police station for the same. 

7. I went there and my police verification at Police station, Junagarh happened successfully in September 2013, I provided them all the documents and they informed that everything is fine and they shall send back the report in 2-3 days to RPO Junagarh.

8. After this, at least I was satisfied that all the formalities have been completed this time, and I was hoping to receive my passport in a month or so. But unfortunately that never happened.

9. I inquired at RPO Belapur in November 2013 as to why I have not received my passport, and they informed me that they have received police verification report from Belapur police station, which is all clear and not adverse. But they have not received any report from Junagarh Police Station. 

10. And also they informed me that, they have sent a letter to Junagarh RPO dated 4^th November 2013, asking them the reason for the closure of my old application and they can proceed further to issue me a passport, only when they receive a response from Junagarh RPO.

11. I even wrote a letter to RPO Junagarh (Copy enclosed), on 10^th January 2014, explaining them about the closure of my old passport application, and asking about the letter from RPO Belapur, but didn't receive any response what so ever from RPO Junagarh. 

12. After this, I was feeling hopeless and helpless. I waited for almost 5-6 months, but I didn't receive any call or any written communication from RPO Belapur or RPO Junagarh, about the progress or status of my application.

13. After all this, I had no option but to lodge RTI application.

1^st RTI Application to RPO Junagarh, dated 2^nd May 2014:

14.  I sent my 1^st RTI application to RPO Junagarh dated 2^nd May 2014, asking for information about police verification report and the letter from RPO Belapur, along with a postal order of Rs. 10/-.
15. But I received a response from RPO Junagarh, dated 16^th May 2014, which I received only on 27^th May 2014, stating that I have not sent the application fee with my application! Hence no information was provided to me.

2^nd RTI Application to RPO Junagarh, dated 28^th May 2014:

16. Hence I sent another  RTI Application to RPO Junagarh, on 28^th May 2014, asking for all the information again, along with the reason why they took 10 days to send me their response to my 1^st RTI application, and also how they received my application but not the IPO of Rs. 10/- which was present in the same envelope. 

17. I received the response from RPO Junagarh, dated 11^th June, but received only on 16^th June 2014, not providing the information I had sought, but only the following information was provided: That they had sent the reply to RPO Belapur dated 22^th January 2014, conveying the status of my old passport application and also they sent another reply to RPO Belapur, on 29^th May 2014.

18. I had requested the written proofs and documents applicable to my questions in my RTI application, but nothing was provided to me except for the above mentioned information. 

1^st RTI Application to RPO Belapur, dated 7^th May 2014:

19. I sent my 1^st RTI Application to RPO Belapur, to get the information about my passport application and to know the progress made so far.

20. I received the response on 28^th May 2014, that they are awaiting the response from RPO Junagarh on my old file closure, and as soon as they receive the response they shall take the further action. 

21. I could not understand, if RPO Junagarh had already conveyed the response on 22^nd January 2014, about my old file status, to RPO Belapur, they why there was no further action from RPO Belapur side on my application even after 5 months, and what other response they are waiting for from RPO Junagarh?

22. Hence I decided to send my 2^nd RTI Application to RPO Belapur.

2^nd RTI Application to RPO Belapur, dated 18^th June 2014:

23. I sent 2^nd RTI Application to RPO Belapur on 18^th June 2014, asking about what action has been taken since they received the response from RPO Junagarh on 22^nd January 2014 with other details. 

24. I received no other information, and only the following was mentioned in the letter dated 16^th July 2014: They checked my file and found that file is not granted. My Police report is adverse and they asked me to visit RPO Belapur office for further process!

25. If all this was not enough, as if to frustrate me more, I received a reminder letter from RPO Belapur dated 1^st May 2014, stating that 'I have not visited Passport Seva Kendra, for processing of my application submitted through passport website. And the ARN and fee payment may be deemed as invalid if I don't visit PSK within 12 months of online fee payment dated 1^st August 2013!'

After all this, I am writing to you, because I can see, that after so many letters and inquiries, and so much of my time wasted in this, I have been provided no information at all from RPO Junagarh as well as RPO Belapur, and the only information they have given me is that 'my police report is adverse' and another information is, that 'my fee and ARN will be deemed invalid'!!! 

Even they don't know what is adverse in my report and why it is adverse? What crime have I made? Am I a gangster, am I a thief or a rioter, or a dacoit, that they are not reissuing me a new passport that I legally deserve as a law abiding Indian citizen?  I am being treated as a criminal and have been harassed for 3 years in this matter and still no action has been taken.

I request you to kindly look into this matter urgently and take necessary action, in order to issue me the passport.

Also, I request you to provide me all the information I have sought, in all the RTI applications I had sent to RPO Belapur & RPO Junagarh, with written documents/receipts.

I am ready to discuss with you, or any other officials at RPO Belapur, or RPO Junagarh, to understand what is the problem, and I can take a day off, at my office in order to meet and discuss.

I don't think, I am left with any patience and energy, anymore, to visit the RPO office Belapur once again, and to stand in the queue for 3-4 hours only to be told that my police report is adverse and I need to pay additional fine/fee and I need to furnish additional documents!

I am not ready to pay any other fee or fine, as I have already paid all the fee and I have already provided all the valid necessary documents required for reissue of my passport.

I am not sure, if this needs to be another RTI application, or simply a letter, hence I am also attaching an Indian Postal Order of Rs. 10/- with this letter.

I am enclosing the following copies of the documents with this letter:

1)       Old Passport copy

2)       Letter written to RPO Junagarh dated 10^th January 2014

3)       1^st RTI application sent to RPO Junagarh dated 2^nd May 2014

4)       Response from RPO Junagarh dated 16^th May 2014

5)       2^nd RTI Application sent to RPO Junagarh dated 28^th May 2014

6)       Response from RPO Junagarh dated 11^th June 2014

7)       1^st RTI Application sent to RPO Belapur, dated 7^th May 2014

8)       Response from RPO Belapur, dated 26^th May 2014

9)       2^nd RTI Application sent to RPO Belapur, dated 18^th June 2014

10)   Response from RPO Belapur, dated 16^th July 2014

11)   Reminder letter for submission of application at PSK

12)   Indian Postal Order No. __________dated __________for Rs.10/- favoring

“Chief passport officer” [payable at New Delhi]

You can contact me on my mobile number for any queries: +91 1234567890.  Please make a note of my current residential address:  

A2 – 502, Manoranjan Society,

Belapur - 420420

Yours Faithfully,                                                                                Place: Belapur               

Bholanath Hansmukh                                                                       Date: 5^th August 2014"

He literally wrote down this mammoth letter and indeed enclosed 12 attachments with that and dispatched via speed post. He also sent all this in an email too. The very next day, he got a mail wherein he was promised that passport shall be dispatched soon, and soon he got it. After sending the mail, he got his passport in 15 days!

Tour De Fort - GolKonda

I have been thinking to write something….on something….since long time…but had been delaying it for some reason or the other!  But today, after visiting an old place with lots of history, finally I couldn’t resist but to pick-up my pen and paper…oops….sorry….I meant my laptop and start typing! (We are in digital age now….gone are those good old days of writing on paper with a pen…and if it used be an ink pen…then that smell of ‘Camel’ ink and hands all blue!)  Am I sounding like an old nostalgic man….then I am afraid it won’t be any different as you read further…lots of history…lots of ‘good old days’ dialogues! But what to do…can’t help…sometimes I do feel I am born in wrong era!  :-)

I visited The Golkonda Fort today…around 10-11 km from Charminar, Hyderabad – The capital city of QutubShahi Kingdom some 450-500 years back. While on route, my cab driver said you can also visit the 7 Qutubshahi Tombs on the way to fort. The interesting thing about these QutubShahi Kings was that they used to start preparing for their resting place after death during their lifetime itself, by constructing these grand Tombs with a big Dome (Gumbaj)! So I first decided to see the tombs first, but upon reaching at the gate, found that it opens only after 9.30 am, so could see only one of the tombs, outside the main gate. But as soon as I saw these old monuments, immediately I was convinced that it’s going to be a great day ahead & I have come to the best place in Hyderabad, matching exactly with my taste and temperament.

So after taking few snaps of the tomb with my camera, I headed to the GolKonda fort with enthusiasm. The entry fee was some 30 odd Rupees including permission for camera. Here comes the character that made this tour memorable and interesting…Mr. Mazhar Khan the Guide! He told me that he and few other guides are here government appointed guides and showed his ‘official looking’ ID card to win my trust, and then gave a short snapshot of the proposed tour of Fort for free and asked if I am interested. I thought it won’t be a bad idea to have some company, rather than roaming around alone, so I agreed.

The guy was speaking in not very typical Hyderabadi Hindi…but nearly the same….was very courteous and not loud in the sense that he told all those interesting legend and stories associated with the fort, which we generally expect from a Guide, but not forcefully….probably was aware that not all of that is history. But then….as time passes…after so many centuries the line between history and legend can get blurred…and quite often history becomes legend…and legend turns into history!  (Well…now this isn’t me…I can’t recall from where I stole this phrase…probably from some Hollywood movie! :-) )  I had gone through a few websites about Golkonda fort’s history and I found that Mr Guide was quite accurate with the dates, such as the year Aurangzeb attacked this fort and won, and mostly all matching with the information on websites.   I will take you through this tour of fort, mostly with his entertaining stories and ofcourse with my observations:

So we start at the main gate – filled with iron spikes for protection, in case of an Elephant tried to break it down, while a soldier would be ready at the top, to pour boiling oil on that poor Elephant’s head!  A scene instantly gets created in my mind going back to those days of Kings and wars with Elephants and Horses, with swords and lances. A face to face war with such lethal weapons must be so cruel so ruthless, as compared to today’s wars with long distance missiles and automatic guns.

He told how the fort was surrounded by 10 km line of big outer wall (40 ft high), and then 3 more such protecting walls as we moved up the hill.  At the gate, information plate said the name of the fort as: ‘Bala Hissar’, he told this name of Fort is due to the fact that Qutubshahi Kings were originally from Persia (Today’s Iran), so it’s in Persian language.

Once we enter the gate, beautiful lawns make for a soothing sight, before the climbing steps.

He shows me there a heavy iron cube sort of object, of around 240 kg which he said even Salman Khan couldn’t lift when he came here for the shooting of Bollywood movie ‘Tere Naam’ and ‘Wanted’.  He claimed that this iron cube was used as a test for recruiting men for the King. If you can’t lift this up, then you must leave the fort and if you can, then you get the job!  And what that job would be:  Carrying such heavy items like stones, wood etc, climbing up the hill and building this majestic fort, for the KING!  What a life, what an era!

After this, I said to him, please don’t tell me about movie shootings and all, as I have hardly any interest in which celebrity came here and what they did, instead tell me whatever you can, about the history of this place! (I knew he wasn’t a scholar or a historian, but I also knew that still his stories would give me something better, than this crap Bollywood general knowledge!)

So we start moving up, he shows me the remains of King’s office or secretariat building wherein 2 Telugu officers named ‘Akanna and Madanna’ used to work for King. The building came to be known with same name.

Further up, he shows water tanks built to store and supply water upto the top of the hill. There were 3 such tanks as we moved up the hill and he told how the water used to be brought up in these tanks from a freshwater lake ‘Durgam Chevuru’ some 8-10 Km away. I was wondering how without any pumps and electricity, they used to achieve this bringing of water from so far to up at top of the hill, in those days?

He tried to explain how it was achieved through the underground pipelines made of stone or wood I don’t remember now, and then some mechanical pumping operation involving manually rotating a wheel/Charkha or something.  Boy… so much human labor was involved to build a fort like this and then making it livable!

Oh yeah…and another interesting example of engineering marvel of those days, which I forgot to mention was just after the main gate entrance, there is a dome and if you clap standing at the center, Mazhar claimed that you can hear that at the top of the hill.  This was the virtual telephone of those days, a warning system in case of an attack on the fort. He promised to show me this, once we reach the top, and he shall signal his colleague down at the dome to clap.

Then there was story of some ‘Ramdas’, who used to take care of tax collection for the King and was jailed by the King on charge of stealing from Royal Treasury, for 12 years in one of the chembers in the Fort. But he was such a devotee of Lord Rama, that it is said that the Lord himself appeared in King’s dream and cleared the misunderstanding about the money so the King released him! Since then he came to be known as ‘Bhakt Ramdas’.  Here the Guide was aware of ‘Samarth Ramdas’, the spiritual guru of Shivaji Maharaj, as he said to me…this Ramdas is different from that Ramdas of ‘your Shivaji’. 

Then he told about 2 court dancers named Taramati and Bhagmati, who used to dance in the royal court and King was too impressed by their beauty. He wanted to marry them, but both were Hindus, so he first converted them to Islam and then married them. Both were buried in their respective Tombs after their death. The old name for Hyderabad, that is ‘Bhagya Nagar’ was named after Bhagmati, as per Mr Mazhar, and not just that but the new name Hyderabad was because after converting to Islam, the King changed Bhagmati’s name to Hyder Begum! 

Since these QutubShahs were Shia Muslims whereas Mughals were Sunnis, Aurangzeb decided to destroy this kingdom and attacked Golkonda fort in around 1687 and finally won the battle after 8-9 months of siege. He captured the 7^th Qutubshah king and jailed him for 12 years or so in Aurangabad, wherein he took his last breathe. As mentioned before, that these Kings used to construct their Tomb, he too had started it, and it can still be seen half constructed at 7 Tombs area, with the dome at the top missing.

Aurangzeb, as usual demolished, damaged half of the fort buildings/courtyards and only because there was a mosque at the top, that saved at least some of the Fort from Aurangzeb’s wrath, for guys like me to visit today!

The Guide told me some other things like how the royal rooms for King and Queen used to be lighted, with series of diamonds on the walls and oil lamps, whose reflection from the diamond would light the whole room!

The King had his room at the 1^st floor and her Queen at the ground floor, and he could hear even a whisper from Queen’s room and all her plans of adultery or treachery if any!

The guide demonstrated the same, by whispering at one corner of the room wall, and I was able to hear it clearly standing at the diagonally opposite corner near a hole in the wall.   And he was right, when we reached top of the fort, his man down at the dome, clapped and I could hear that sound clearly.

Indeed these are the examples of engineering marvels of those times, when the modern science and machines were not there, they might not be aware of the formal scientific laws of physics and chemistry, but human beings found the ways to use the common sense and macro observations of life to their advantage.

By the time I descended down the hill, the Deccani Sun had started baking the very earth, so I had a glass full of sugarcane juice at ground zero and felt just great. Mr Mazhar’s few stories are recorded by me, but now I regret I didn’t record them all. I thanked him for giving me an entertaining company and he was happy to get an extra 100 bucks as tip. He made me aware that this is also an occupation that requires lot of hard work and at the same time wit to engage the customer. He and other guides like him, are the ones who are keeping the history (Or the Legend..?) of Golkonda alive!  :)

After visiting the 7 Tombs, I asked my cab driver to drop me at InOrbit Mall where I planned to watch a movie ‘Lakshmi’ by Nagesh Kukunoor. But about the movie….some other time.

Before visiting this Fort, when I had asked few of my local colleagues from office about it, they said there is nothing much, it is just full of rocks and walls! 

Well….for me it was a treasure…full of history…rich and eventful. These rocks and walls have witnessed rise and fall of Kingdoms, Kings…these rocks and walls tell you the long forgotten stories…I find them much more interesting than the same boring walls of a shopping Mall…the queue at the MacDonald…and the same pepsi and same Coke..and same Ranbeer Kapoor!  

But it was pathetic to see all the walls at the Fort and the Tombs ….with full of crap written by fools….it seems as if same standards are followed all over the country at least in this department – art of desecration and destruction! We, as a nation are so insensitive, so irresponsible towards preserving our history, our heritage while the West is so good at keeping their historical monuments in such good order that even 'nothing' is made to look like something majestic! I remember going to Urquhart Castle in Scotland, it was indeed same as my colleagues described Golkonda…’just rocks’ in the name of a castle, but it was well maintained and well publicized, well connected via roads and hence it is a famous spot for tourist in Scotland. Yet I must say, that GolKonda fort was well maintained as compared to other monuments I have seen so far in India – there was a comparatively cleaner toilet, there was less waste scattered around.  

Why as a society we live in such dirty places, why we clean our house and dump the waste either on the road or in neighbor's backyard! Why we urinate on roads, why we spit on roads, walls and everywhere, why we throw all sort of junk in our lakes, ponds, rivers...why are we making them a 'Nala'?

We learned a lot from West –  we learned how to speak fluent English, we learned how to wear a Tie and Suit, we learned how to eat a Burger, we learned how to drink, how to party but when we will learn cleanliness, neatness, discipline as social virtues and not personal? When we will learn about social responsibility and accountability?

Sachin...Sachin...!

The News channels of India have been obsessed with only one news in the last few days.... retirement of Sachin Tendulkar..alias God of Cricket... alias 'Little Master' ..alias  'Master Blaster' and so on....

Braking news....Braking news.... in BOLD and so unthoughtful font & colour ....covering almost half of the TV screen, loud outbursts and repetitive sentences from the News anchor...hardly any analysis..and habit of making a big thing out of nothing!!  For me...this is the usual sight when I switch on most of the Indian News channels, with only few exceptions, be it Hindi or English news.

I have always been very appreciative of the way in which News anchors of BBC presented the news - In a cool & calm manner with a moderate voice without that loud pitch, without any fuss, concentrating solely on the matter and presenting it in a precise language. Also, the news running at the bottom is kept in proper font...not that half screen font of our news channels! No wonder my grandfather used to advise us to listen to BBC news (It was radio in those days.. till the Dish Antenna arrived), for improving our spoken English!

How ever, this time around, interestingly, I was not frustrated with or angry over the ways & manners of our news channels on the day when Sachin Tendulkar played his last Test match and gave an emotional speech at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.  I had mixed feelings - I was happy, I was amused, I was surprised..and ...I was not surprised.!! I don't know how to express it.  Even after knowing already that it was bound to be a braking news for all these news channels and it is going to be that way almost for the whole week,  I was feeling good about it....I indeed was happy to see Sachin all over the place and I was thinking he deserved it! Yet It was amusing to see on these very news channels ....that how so many people...almost the whole India  cared so much about this man....how so many people were moved by his parting words.......yeah of course he has many records to his name but still.....after all, it is just a sport...and he is just another sportsman......then what's so special about him?  And then I recalled my childhood memories to find out what's special about him at least for me!

I remember my childhood days....like any other boy in India, after finishing up the romance with domestic and local games like, 'Kanche, Gilli danda, Patang (Kites), Chain, Kho-baithni' etc... I too started playing Cricket (of course with plastic ball and later with tennis ball...and hardly once with the leather ball....but that shouldn't make you think I wasn't a serious cricketer!  :-) ) and soon had started imitating various bowling actions and batting styles. Playing Cricket and watching India's matches on TV and more than these two activities - discussing Cricket was the passion of almost all middle class small town teens like me.  :-)

I don't recall exactly when I started watching Sachin....but it must be in the 90s....I do remember watching the 1992 world cup...as Australia is around 5 hrs ahead of Indian time.... we used to get up early at around 4-5 am to not to miss out on India's batting.  Sachin & Vinod Kambli immediately drew attention of everybody....for their fearless batting and agile legs!  I do remember what poor team India used to have.... poor fielders...no prominent pace bowler to name except the aging war horse Kapil Dev....and that infamous batting lineup which had only one motto ' tu chal...mai aya' ....literally it was like that - If India lost 1 wicket....they used to loose the rest so quickly that we hardly used to win while chasing a target.

Then came Sachin Tendulkar...this 5 ft 5 inch little boy....small may be in size...but huge was the potential in him....tremendous power in those arms...very quick between the wickets...wonderful cricketing mind....street smart.... flawless technique...as they say pure...copybook technique...and above all his hunger to perform, hunger for runs...hunger to win....and preparedness to toil hard....work hard...practice hard...to achieve his goals!

Soon he became the backbone of the ailing Indian batting......started wining matches for India, single-handedly with his explosive batting.  I remember us switching off the TV as soon as Sachin got out in a run chase...and that was not just our case....but the whole neighborhood used to be out on street...and the typical dialogues I used to hear  were - "there is no hope...match is out of our hands now....Sachin was not out....Empire is sold out to Pakistani team (specially if they were playing in Sharjah! :-) )...the ball was missing leg stump....he didn't nick the ball...batsman at other end was wasting balls, he didn't get enough strike"....etc..etc....! :-)

Gradually this boy named Sachin had captured the imagination of all Indians with his consistent performances on the field...and some of them being almost charismatic....some even saw divine hand in him....specially when he helped India reach the Final of the Hero Cup 1993, bowling that magical last over in the Semi final against South Africa. Who can forget the world cup of 1996 where he was the highest run getter of all,  but could not win the world cup for India, after the tragic loss in the semi final at Eden Gardens.  Till the time he was at the crease, we all were so hopeful that this time India is going to make it to  final, but as soon as he got out in an unfortunate dismissal.....the rest of the batting line up simply started crashing down within an hour or so, only to frustrate and infuriate the Kolkata crowd!

I do remember his captaincy days during 1996-97 - most of the games played abroad - Sahara Cup in Canada, West Indies Tour, South Africa Tour.  What comes in front of my eyes, is  -  Sachin calling the new comer Saurav Ganguly his 'secret weapon' when India beat Pakistan 4-1 in Canada, thanks to Saurav's all round performances with bat & ball!  Sachin (169) & Azhar's (115) wonderful partnership to save the follow-on in 2nd test match against South Africa, and that forgettable test match against West Indies, wherein India failed to chase down a target of just 120 runs in 2nd innings and lost the match. 
As a captain, he hardly was successful - though he has a very sharp mind and deep understanding of the game, but somewhere he missed the leadership skills? Can we say that?...I don't know.... it is very difficult to judge that, because very few people reach there where he was standing. I think only Sachin Tendulkar knows how it feels being Sachin Tendulkar...carrying the burden of never ending expectations of billions of Indians!

His successive breathtaking centuries in Sharjah (1998) against Australia, are my most favorites. What a match it was when the sand storm struck in Sharjah, while India was chasing a stiff target (284) set by Australians, and more importantly needed to achieve a better net run rate in case of a loss, in order to qualify for final. Sachin was at the crease, and he was determined & totally focused, to get India through to final. The match was interrupted due to the storm, but Sachin didn't untie any of his stuff, pads, guards, helmet etc...he just wanted to go back to the field and win! Though we couldn't win that match as Sachin got out after scoring 142, but Sachin made sure India was in the final, by going past 240 odd runs within 45 odd overs. 
Then what happened in the final was no surprise to those who had watched his Desert storm innings!  2nd century (134) on his birthday, in the final and India easily chased down the Australian target of 272.  Both of these innings are still a treat to watch and Tony Graig's spontaneous commentary makes it even more enjoyable!
Shane Warne's bowling was completely destroyed by Tendulkar in 1998 - first in the Test Series at home and then in the One-day series in Sharjah - No wonder Warne had nightmares at the very thought of bowling to Tendulkar!  All his bowling into the rough, outside leg stump, coming round the wicket, getting that famed turn, was made to look so ordinary by Sachin, when he used to hit him for fours & sixes, hitting against the turn!

An unforgettable innings of 136, against the fearsome Pakistani pace attack with the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Yunis and the inventor of 'Doosra', Saqlain, in the 2nd inning in the test match at Chennai in 1999 is also one of my favourites. Akram was swinging the ball both ways and the way he clean bowled Dravid was a frightening sight, Dravid had no clue how the ball moved , pitching at around leg stump and swept away the off stump in a split of a second!
Tendulkar,showed tremendous temperament to see off the aggression of Pakistani attack and gradually he opened up and played beautiful shots all over the park, but his chronic back pain flared up and we could see him in pain, yet he played a gem of an inning to bring India so close to victory, as India needed only 17-18 runs to win with 4 wickets still left. But once again the same old story was repeated, as soon as he got out, the rest of the batting collapsed like a pack of cards and India lost the test match - Can you believe it!
What a wonderful display of courage, guts, temperament, innovation and batting skills by the little master!

Then there was 1999 world cup in UK, most difficult time in his personal life, as we know he lost his father. What a man Sachin was - he goes back to India, performs the last rites, his duty towards the family, comes back and hits another century - 140 in 101 balls against Kenya!   Nerves of Steel...I must say he has got!

There are so many other innings of his, to discuss....to talk about...to cheer about...and the associated memories, but that would require chapters after chapters of my blog...can't have all at one place here...

I am sure, every Cricket lover, had witnessed one or more or even all of his innings I wrote about here. And I am sure everyone must have had a similar feeling for this man....his game was indeed special..... he meant cricket to many of us....people knew Sachin Tendulkar....though they may not know anything else about Cricket!  
It is really amazing when I look back, that it was not only the children or teens like us, but also the elders in the family, not only men but also the women folk - mothers, grandmothers, sisters all knew about Sachin and all they cared was whether he is still there on the field or not! I remember my aging grandmother lying on her bed asking me whether Sachin is still playing or not....she was not bothered about the score, about the current situation of the match....for she believed in only one thing.....just like many others....that as long as Sachin was at the crease..nothing was impossible! - And I think I can safely say that this was the 'common sense'  of the common man in India those days.  That's what Sachin meant to the whole Nation.

This used to be the case only for first 8-10 years of his career, and as we saw a surge of new talent and new stars emerging from 1996-96 onwards such as Saurav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Sehwag, MS Dhoni, Yuvraj and the younger lot now having Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan & Rohit Sharma, there was no more switching off of the TV if Sachin got out! Now Indian batting line up is known as one of the strongest batting line up in the world, and Sachin's immense contribution - direct or indirect, in that, can't be denied or neglected by any means.

I think, a lot has been already written about his humility - Even after achieving so much success, fame & money over the years - I have seen many of his team mates, friends saying the same thing that he is still the same old Sachin - Simple, Shy, humble, soft spoken & smiling boy!  How he managed to remain the same, how he maintained the same focus & dedication for the game, how he did not allow complacency to come in, how he did not allow his ego to take over, how he managed to remain far away from controversies?  This is something for everybody to learn from him - not only for the new cricket stars but even for a common man.

So I am not complaining if Sachin.....is the only word I hear on all our beloved Indian news channels!  :-)

Ahimsa Parmo Dharma!!

Ironical it is…..that just few weeks back…in the wake of Kasab’s hanging….there was debate and the human rights activists, various intellectuals and media as well were talking about doing away with capital punishment. Some often repeated statements to vindicate their demand were: Hate the crime, and not the criminal. The society, the system is responsible for the person who becomes criminal, so just killing the convict does not solve the problem, hence don’t kill them. Every convict must be given a chance to repent & reform him/herself in order to be brought back to the civil society. Many developed countries in Europe and other parts of the world have already banned capital punishment, so should India.…etc..etc.

Now today, no matter which channel I watch on TV, I only hear one demand from one and all…..be it politicians, activists, celebrities or general public, CAPITAL PUNISHMENT for all those rapists who committed this heinous crime in a school bus in our country’s capital! In-fact many of them have demanded even much harsher, more severe form of punishment…such as, keeping them alive but ostracize them socially, not giving them any job, any social status, any respect, or rotting them up in kala pani styled jail for the whole life, some have gone even further talking about making them impotent, or piercing them similarly with rod as they did to the girl and so on.


After observing these two opposite views coming up within last few weeks, from the same set of people, certain questions did come up in my mind:


What is the difference between an act of rape against a woman of my country and an act of terrorism against my country that only the act of rape should attract capital punishment and those terrorists should be given a chance to reform?


If terrorists deserve a chance to reform on the basis of the above mentioned reasoning which was so prevalent in media at the time of Kasab’s hanging, then based on the same reasoning why not a rapist be given a chance? After all….they too are human beings….though their acts suggest otherwise!


Now let me explain what’s my opinion about this – I think, capital punishment has to be there and if enacted swiftly in a proper way, it can surely act as a deterrent. And especially in these two particular cases, it is more important and in-fact a duty of the state, to send a strong message to all evil minds….their very bones should be shaken by the fear and terror of possible consequences of committing such crimes! I consider the act of terrorism against our country by a foreign aggressor, equally serious and heinous crime if not more, than rape and in both cases the capital punishment to the convict, will surely make others think twice before committing similar crimes.


Of-course, this is not the solution in any case, but it is only a small part of the solution. Of-course lot of work needs to be done in other areas – mentality, social, political, law and administrative reforms and so on. And also, just like any other law or rule, there will be exceptions in case of capital punishment too and of-course, regard has to be given to time, place and person while meeting out such punishment by our courts. But the double standards by the so called human rights activists, intellectuals and some selfish politicians when it comes to punishing these criminals, is frustrating!!


The Hindu tradition, Yoga and spirituality talks about God’s presence in each and every human being irrespective of cast, creed, color  religion…that everyone can find that God and every man must try to find God within himself and so on. It’s really a very noble and liberating thought, we have given to the world, and we can safely and surely claim that we were the pioneers in the world of this philosophy. Also the ideal of ‘Ahimsa’ or non-violence is championed by Indians like nobody else on this planet (Who can forget Gandhi ji). But lets keep all this aside and lets not confuse ourselves when it comes to dealing with such evil!

Because the same tradition, has given us a very clear message that what needs to be done with such demons….Annihilate the devil with the sword of ‘Dharma’ (Justice)…just like a Rama, a Krishna or Arjuna did…pages after pages in our holy books it has been declared as man’s sacred duty! But due to too much of a dose of Ahimsa in recent history, it seems as if we have lost our martial spirit to resist aggression! When such lofty ideals are adopted without any regard to the time, place and person, then those ideals become corrupted, rotten and harmful to the very followers of those ideals.  

History re-written!

‘Six glorious epochs of Indian History’ (Originally written in Marathi as ‘Saha soneri Pane’ by Veer Savarkar) – A commentary and not exactly a history…on some important & significant chosen events from our history…to tell the wonderful story of the survival & growth of the Hindu race….amidst the invasion after invasion of foreign powers for centuries together!

Amazing work by Veer Savarkar. History is so full of dry events, dates, chronology, deaths, births and cold numbers….but he wrote in such a way that those very events started playing like a movie in front of eyes.

Throughout the book, his deepest faith in the ever-existence of a ‘Hindu Nation’ can be seen prominently.

He has tried to showcase based on the historical events and on his ‘circumstantial’ evidence & logic, that Hindus were not just a race of people fighting with each other without any sense of being a cohesive community or a united nation as has been portrayed by most of the foreign & even by Indian historians….but they always were a nation and their history is not a history of only defeats…. But it is full of valor, sacrifices and wins!

Infact whatever little I remember of the school text-books on history, those books never talked about India as a home of Hindus…infact India has not even been recognized as a country, rather they preferred to call it ‘Indian subcontinent’! Hindu religion as well….has been portrayed as weak and divided into many sects fighting with each other...! Chapters after chapters have only talked about the invasions and the dominance of various foreign powers over Hindus….as if Hindus have always lived like slaves throughout centuries…!

But Savarkar brought those pages out in light from the history, which other historians have neglected either intentionally or due to sheer ignorance. The details about Chandragupta, Chanakya or Vikramaditya, are known at-least to some extent to people, but I doubt if anybody from the young generation is aware of other greats like Pushyamitra, Yashodharma, Harihar & Bukka, Hemu, Guru Teg Bahadur, Raghunathrao Peshwa, and their heroics and their importance in our Indian history?

Savarkar brought to light some important historical facts to showcase the Hindu military strength of those times and the valor and indomitable fighting spirit of the Hindu race:

How may of us know that Alexander ‘the great’, who is considered as a conqueror of the world…and the greatest military genius of all time…could not even cross over the river Vyas (or Beas in the northern Part of India) and had to retreat back to Greece…as his army totally refused to march further…they were tired of fighting continuously with Indians and moreover had a fear of other massive Indian armies of Magadha empire! After managing to win over some of the frontier territories of India after many exhaustive battles, he & his army had to leave India for good and they say he was a conqueror of the world!!

And not to talk about, what happened after he left Indian shores….Did the Greeks rule forever in those parts? Not at all….within 3 years of his departure from India…all lost territories were won back by Indian kingdoms and no trace of his rule was left anywhere in India!  And guess…who were the leaders of this great political conspiracy….none other than Acharya Chanakya & his young & brave disciple Chandragupta (The future ‘Samraat’)!

Does anybody know this fact, that Saka-Kushan & Hun – those barbarous central Asian tribes, that had terrorized, plundered and demolished even the great Chinese empire to many European nations, were totally crushed by the Indian military might and whosoever of these tribes remained alive, accepted Hinduism…and got dissolved in the vast ocean of Hindu dharma….?

Does anybody know this fact, that after crushing the Huns successfully in around 530-550 AD, India practically enjoyed the immunity from any foreign invasion for almost 4-5 centuries?

Does anybody know this fact, that after the first Muslim invasion by Mohammad Bin Kasim, of Sindh in around 720 AD, India did not allow Muslims to attack and move further into India, for almost 300 years? During these same 300 years, Muslims had simply destroyed the powerful European nations of Spain & Portugal and they had run over the north African coast up to Gibraltar!  Why no history book talks about these 300 years…? Why these books give us the feel as if Muslims simply came and ran over whole of India and established the Delhi sultanate within a couple of years?

How many of us know about the once grand empire of Vijaynagar in southern India that was founded by the Hindu warriors Harihar & Bukka in around 1336 AD, when almost the whole of India had come under Muslim rule? This great independent Hindu Kingdom of Vijaynagar prospered almost for 200 years in south, fighting and defeating all the southern Muslim sultanates (The 5 ‘shahis’ created from splitting of the Bahamani kingdom)!

Even the Maratha history, which can be called recent and probably with much more recorded/written evidence….in comparison with the events mentioned above, has not been taught to Indian students with the due attention it deserves and definitely not from the national point of view.

Marathas emerged as a national force in India…which gave the final deadly blow to all the muslim powers and Marathas were the de-facto ruling force in practically through out the India. Not sure why can’t I remember of reading about Raghunathrao Peshwa’s successful wins allover the country starting from Pune upto the river Sindhu in the north! Why there was no mention of complete Maratha rule practically over whole of the India, in any of my school text-books on History? The books talk at great length about Akbar ‘the great’ and even other small Mughal, Turk, Pathan kings but hardly few pages are given to the great Hindu warriors & kings such as Rana Pratap, Rana Sanga, Great Shivaji, Guru Govind Singh, Veer Banda Bairagi and Peshwas?

This work of Savarkar, revealed to me that there was much more to the Indian history than just the Mughal dynasty & dominance of the western powers (English, Portuguese, Dutch, French) and splitting of Hindu religion into different sects due to the various perverse religious concepts of Hindus ex. Caste system etc. That’s all..what has been there in our history books!

Though I am not very sure to what extent the claim can be justified or verified…that all the above mentioned kings and warriors of Hindus were always fighting for the national cause and not just for the selfish reason of safeguarding the regions under their rule….and yes I felt Savarkar’s writings a little biased at some places in the book….but as explained above…most of other historians’ views….be foreign or Indian….have been one-sided, neglecting conveniently some very significant periods & events of our history from the Hindu point of view, that  Savarkar was left with no option but to be biased for Hindus! But even his ‘biased’ view has been backed by evidence. For every event or the fact, there is a sound reference mentioned in the appendix of the book! So he has not made simply some air castles based on some hearsay….but all his writings are backed by evidence…ofcourse the interpretation of the events & facts….has been his own…like any other historian.

The Passport story

Today I want to share a true experience of an Indian citizen with an establishment of the government. It’s a true account by Mr. Bholanath Hansmukh about the pathetic level of services, the insensitive and rude behavior and total lack of accountability he experienced at the hands of the government officials. Mr. Bholanath just like his name, is a calm and straight forward person with usually a smiling face...who worked in an IT company since almost 8-9 years, been at onshore locations outside India for couple of years. One fine day, when he was back to Ramgarh, India after finishing up his UK work assignment...he realized his passport is due to expire after 10 odd months. 

So he checked out the official passport website, and found that for the reissue application of an expired passport or to be expiring within next 1 year, one needs to provide the old passport and the address proofs of all the places where he stayed in last 1 year. Now it was only 2-3 months, since he had returned from UK, so he was concerned that what will happen if he mentions his UK address in the application form? He tried the passport office contact numbers, but nobody picked up! So he called up few passport agents, and was told, that in that case, it will take quite a long time and his file shall be sent to UK for address verification, but if he can spend Rs. 10-12000, then the agent can get his work done in 3-4 months by bribing some officials!

He was not ready to spend that much money and probably somewhere inside he was hopeful that he can get his passport reissued without bribing anybody - though he was not a person in love with lofty ideals and all....yet he was hopeful of an improved system in India, specially after seeing the online website and the facility of online application etc. Since he had no plans to go for any onshore assignments in near future and was planning to make Belapur his base, he decided to wait till he completes one year in India, and apply for the reissue after that.  But he was told by the agents, that if he changes his location from Ramgarh to Belapur within 1 year, then again his passport application will be in rounds from Belapur to Ramgarh back & forth. So he put his plans to move to Belapur on hold for the time being and waited till 1 year was over, but in the meantime, after renting a flat in Ramgarh, for around 6 months, he shifted to Junagarh as he was paying a very high rent, he wanted to save on some rent. So eventually he had 2 different addresses in the last one year of stay in India. Still he had thought that ...it will not create a big problem, as both addresses are within Ramgarh-Junagarh regions which are very close by. He didn't know that time, that he had committed a big mistake by shifting his home from Ramgarh to Junagarh!!

So after 1 year in India, Bholanath checked out on the website, and found that he has to fill an online application form and 2 sets of PP forms (Personal particulars), for the 2 different addresses he stayed at. So he submitted the form, and took the print out, on which an appointment date and a time was mentioned when he was supposed to submit his application with all necessary documents at the passport office. He was impressed by all this online stuff and he went to Junagarh passport office 15 min before the allotted date/time, only to find a long queue of almost 150-200 people ahead of him! All of them had the same date and the same time mentioned in their application forms too!  He was given a token number there, the number was 182 or something...and there he was standing in the queue waiting for his turn!! He thought.....what's the use of online application submission then??

After standing for almost 3 hours or so, when his token number was about to be displayed at one of the windows, the lunch time struck!! He would have to wait for another 30-40 min or so now….for the lunch time to be over and the officials to be back at their desk again. What a luck he had.....he thought! But he decided to wait and finish this passport business today! But while standing in the queue, he came to know that he needs to have 2 sets of copies of documents instead of 1, as per the website guidelines! Why don't they update the same on the website or why don’t they follow what’s there on the website?? Just to harass the applicant later?? What the hell! Thinking all this he ran downstairs to the photocopy shop to get the 2nd copy of all documents. At last, when it was his turn, his application form was thrown back from the window, and this time it was his mistake and not bad luck! He was supposed to mention name, address and contact number of 2 persons of the locality where he stayed in the PP forms and he ended-up writing Junagarh contact names in Ramgarh PP form as well. It was his mistake, and the official at the other side of the window was totally rude and was in no mood to cope-up with these mistakes. He was asked to print new sets of PP forms, and fill again with correct details. He was getting late for his office, and to make it worse...he didn't have additional set of photos too, he was frustrated to the core now...but at the end of the day it was his mistake and hence he was cursing himself and nobody else. The only relief was to know the fact that the online application remains valid for 5 days, from the appointment date. So you can come on any of these 5 days and submit your application. So he decided to leave and come again the next day with full preparations.

Next morning, he left for the passport office to reach 1 hour in advance from the opening hour, this time the queue was only a bit shorter than the day before....it was shorter….only for him to reach to the window just before lunch time...he still had to stand for 2-3 hours! This time he came prepared with all documents. So at his turn, the lady at the window verified his documents, and quickly submitted his application - till that time he was nervous and was praying for no mistakes to be found this time in the form or the documents!! Why there was such fear...?? Why the nervousness??  Had he committed any crime by applying for passport reissue...?? Was he submitting any false documents…??  Anyways....he was told to make the cash payment at the cash counter and get the receipt. The person at the counter was totally ignorant, took the cash and threw the receipt in disdain towards the window as if it was some trash he was throwing in a dustbin!!  Bholanath took the receipt and kissed it.....and came out of the passport office with a satisfaction of winning some sort of a battle! 

But when he looked at the receipt, he was not able to read a thing there….as if the letters were printed with some invisible ink!! Hahaha.....now he wondered how would he be able to check the status of his passport application on the website if he can't see the application number on the receipt??  Another struggle had started - now he was guessing numbers and letters by whatever little he could read on the receipt and keying in the application number on the website to check the status. After a lot of trial and error effort, he managed to decode his application number and he wrote it down in big font on the receipt and emailed to himself so as to not to loose it!  Again he had won the battle! Why there are so many battles to fight in India....when it comes to dealing with government offices/officials???

But he still had many battles to fight..........it was not as easy as he had thought to get his expired passport reissued.... he was not a Pakistani or a Bangladeshi.....it is easier for them to get a fake passport and visa in India than for a normal law abiding Indian citizen....like the protagonist of my blog!! Probably I am exaggerating here....but couldn’t help it after hearing out Bhola’s frustration with the system! 

So here was he....in hope of getting his new Passport soon now...he was waiting for the police verification call. He got a piece of paper at his flat almost one and a half months after applying for the reissue, which said he needs to report to the Junagarh police station within 2 days for the police verification between 4 to 6 pm. He went to the police station next morning to request if he could visit on coming weekend, as his office timings were 2 to 11 pm. They agreed, so he was happy thinking the ball had started rolling in right direction. On that Saturday, he had to wait in the police station for around 3-4 hours, as the queue was long there as well. But eventually his verification was done successfully and he was told that his file will go to Ramgarh police station and he should expect a call from there. Now please don't think that it was free.......I think I forgot to mention here that he had to pay Rs. 200 to police for a successful verification!

Now, he was waiting for another similar notice from Ramgarh police station....and it was more than 1 month since the Junagarh verification was over, and there was no call. In the meanwhile, the status on the website consistently showed as, 'police report not received'. He wondered how much more time will it take...so he went to Junagarh police station to inquire....there he was told that they send the cleared files immediately next day to the passport office, so he should check either with passport office or Ramgarh police station! 

So he thought first to check at Ramgarh police station.......and there he was told that they haven't received his file yet and it might be with CID! Now he was wondering what CID was doing with his file?? 

He was about to plan a visit to CID office or to passport office to inquire.....and suddenly one day he got another piece of paper at his flat...which was an exact copy of the earlier one he received from Junagarh police station! At the same time, the status on the website had changed to 'police report is adverse, show cause notice sent by post'!! He was frustrated but was trying to remain calm reminding himself that it’s India and things move at their own pace here and he should be patient. Next day he went to the police station asking why again he received the same notice, when he had already gone through the whole verification process? They expressed surprise...and asked whether he had filled the reissue form again? He told them that they had already done the verification 1 and half months back........then they checked the file again, and said that 'oh...it has come to us by mistake...it needs to go to Ramgarh police station'!! He was feeling so helpless and frustrated......but he couldn't say anything to them...apart from asking what next now? They told that they shall send his file back to passport office in 2 days and from there it shall go to Ramgarh police station. ‘Okay’....he said and left the police station with only one thought.....what wrong has he done ......is it not his right to get his expiring passport reissued??

Now Bholanath decided to go to passport office and inquire about all this....he wanted an answer.... just because of this passport issue....all his future plans about his career….his life.....were on hold....!!

So he went, the next day to passport office only to find himself again standing in a long queue.....he was surprised to see that even the inquiry queue was as big as the queue for application submission!! Once again after spending around 2 hours, his name was called and he entered along with around 4 other people into the assistant passport officer's cabin. He thought here he is going to ask the questions and seek the answers from this guy. But he was out of his mind....when he saw it was the other way round.......the officer who was supposed to answer to the questions of the applicants....was instead interrogating the applicants and was asking them whether they have brought this doc and that doc and the other!! The applicants were showing the documents as if they are applying for the passport yet again...!! Why the hell in the world they were being asked to furnish various documents when they had already submitted all the documents at the time of the application and their application was submitted only after verifying all those documents by the very same officials???  The officer was again a picture of rudeness and insensitivity.....he ill-treated an elderly man who just wanted to know when he would receive his passport as the status on the website was showing as 'passport will be sent soon' or something like that for him! At this time of point, Bholanath knew what's going to happen with his inquiry. At his turn, the officer told his police verification was pending....Bholanath told him that it was already done at Junagarh police station long back...and still his file was sent again to Junagarh.......the officer checked his file and said “oh...you have stayed in Ramgarh also......so you should have gone to Ramgarh police station.....when he told that he had visited Ramgarh police station without any success....then the officer says to him that he should have gone to Jhumri Talaiya Police station...and not Ramgarh!!  He was angry....and told that nobody informed him that he needs to go there...he was expecting to receive some sort of intimation. At this, the officer said...he can't help with that...and you need to check with Ramgarh police station why they didn't send any notification. Moreover he said...your report is showing as adverse...Bholanath asked...what's the problem. The officer said in a hurry....we need to check out the report in detail and we will let you know later!  

Bhola was totally frustrated and he decided that he can’t take it anymore now and he should ask for his passport back.....now he should not wait for any more notifications & investigations! He said to the officer...that his company is going to transfer him to Belapur by end of next month, hence if possible could they please return his old passport.

The officer said okay....write a letter mentioning all this and submit, and then we shall close your file and the old passport shall be sent to you later by post. On asking by when he shall receive his old passport...the officer got angry...and told him that he needs to entertain many other inquires...and he doesn't have time to keep answering to only one person...he asked to wait!  Bholanath couldn’t say anything…he wanted his passport back.......what a pity!  He wrote a letter in a haste and came back in the cabin…waited till the officer finished all other applicant's inquiries....then officer checked about the cancellation process with somebody over the phone and finally asked Bhola to sign at few places and gave his passport back in his hands after stamping it with a 'cancelled by passport office' stamp!!

So here was Mr Bholanath Hansmukh....with his old expired passport in his hands....it was more than 3 months since he had applied for the reissue of passport....and what he got in his hands after all this time....?? Not a new passport but the old expired one....with a cancelled stamp on it.......and yet after all this.....he had to thank the officials for giving him back his passport and closing the file!

After listening to Bholanath’s account I thought that probably he lacked the fighting spirit and the perseverance…but then I think…..what the hell……..it was just a matter of a reissue of a goddamn passport and not a freedom struggle of a country…not a warfront….not even a game of sport! Why the hell it was made so difficult for him and for many other Indians…by these government officials…why it is so difficult in India to exercise our basic rights….and the worst thing is the attitude and behavior of these officials starting from the police to the passport office………why they are so rude….why aren’t they polite…they are not even performing their duty…and they act as if they are doing a favor to us….when they submit our application or clear a verification!  Bhola had told me once…that in UK…even in a small office like a post-office, the employees did their job honestly…and treated all the customer’s with respect, politeness and courtesy! No wonder why educated people who go abroad don’t like to come back to India!

Still………Satyamev Jayate.....long live India.................India....I love you...........!!!!!!!!!!

Disclaimer: All characters and places appearing in this write-up are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. But the write-up is inspired by real life events.