Indians’ gambling tendencies have now become the subject of severe scrutiny and serious study. Not just law enforcers but psychologists too have got into the ring to unravel the secrets behind the raging IPL scandal. Indeed, if big-ticket businessmen with reputations at stake have no qualms in casting their lot with small-time bookies, the matter obviously goes beyond mere money and enters the maze of mind chemistry.
TMS — The Sound of Music
To me, TM Sounderarajan goes way beyond the cinema mania that lies latent in the psyche of almost all. He was a phenomenon that pervaded and penetrated all aspects of post-Independence TN.
It’s all in the game
IPL was never meant to be played on the field. By its very genetics, the real action was to happen beyond, in players’ dug-outs, platforms of cheerleaders, pavilion, parties, parleys etc. The short matches are also dwarfed by the tedious build-ups and extended post-match celebs. Cricket is incidental; it could very well have been Dhoni or Gayle playing marbles!
The hidden ‘Hand’-book
‘Is it in the CBI manual?’ queried the SC when told that it was perfectly normal for the investigative agency’s head to consult his political bosses. With due respect to the honourable court, we wish to place on record here that, notwithstanding whatever is in the CBI manual, which incidentally can be known only after a CBI enquiry and which report has to be vetted by the law minister, the SC must have actually called for the UPA manual.
‘Corruption’ eva jayate!
Indians’ mock war on corruption crossed yet another murky milestone in its jinxed journey to Destination Nowhere. With Karnataka voters at once rejecting, retaining and ratifying it, corruption has again turned out to be poll-proof and quite resilient. And has the advantage of arithmetic too. The familiar There Is No Alternative (TINA) argument also falls flat what with the corrupt getting positive votes. I get this gloomy feeling that there might afterall be a bright future for MSingh!
Law under trial
So once again, we have a situation were the buck is stopped at a stonewall that cannot be breached! The only comfort now is that the hapless janta of the nation are in the company of honourable Judges themselves. Both are clueless and curious over what is more scandalous: the various scams that dog the day or the sham investigations into them! Hear the SC Judge’s lament: ‘…if a shoddy job is done at the lower rung, then we call upon the CBI, but if the CBI itself is seen to be doing a shoddy job and is being partial then what do we do?…’
The 2G rainbow colony
The king, rather raja, of all scams reigns unsurpassed. 3G and even 4G may be the in-thing now in tele technology but 2G would never become obsolete as far as scandals go. And the connections have always been quite clear despite an orchestrated maze of missed calls, crosstalk, wrong numbers and line disturbances.
Everlasting echoes
The passing of music legends PB Sreenivas and TK Ramamurthy in a span of four days is sure to send nostalgic nuts like me down memory lane. Along with MSV, KV Mahadevan, TMS, P Susheela, Kannadasan and Valee, they spawned a musical pranava in movies that would remain and resonate forever.
The gloves are off
Not that we needed confirmation. But it is now official that the raging IPL is pure entertainment. The Chennai bench of the Income Tax tribunal has declared that the ‘IPL is an entertainment venture organised with the sole aim of harvesting profits’.
Brothers in alms, alas !
We left last week when the Dutch left and the British landed, circa, 18th century. Here’s a quote of 1796 vintage from a British official that I lifted from some books I have been reading: ‘Two nations from the very ancient period had divided between them the possessions of the land. The Sinhalese inhabiting the southern and western parts and the Tamils in the northern and eastern districts.