The Vivekean Times

Grossly Mind-boggling Injustice: Framing & Arresting Innocent People to Protect the Guilty The Elgar Parishad (or Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad) case is claimed by its critics to be "fraudulent" primarily because of allegations that key electronic evidence used against several accused persons was planted on their computers through malware, and because of broader concerns about the investigation and prolonged incarceration of the accused. However, it is important to note that these are allegations and findings advanced by defense lawyers, independent forensic experts, and civil liberties groups, while the NIA and prosecution reject those claims and maintain that the case is genuine.  How It All Started A large number of Dalits came together at the Vijay Stambh memorial at Koregaon Bhima to commemorate the battle of 1828 where Mahar soldiers fighting under the British army vanquished the Peshwa forces. Clashes broke out between the Dalit attendees and local right-wing group...

As you are all aware, India is home to one of the world's most diverse religious landscapes, where communities of various faiths have coexisted peacefully together for centuries. Most importantly, Christians constitute a relatively small minority, accounting for roughly about 2.3% of India's population, and yet they are known to operate thousands of schools, hospitals, social service entities, and charitable non-governmental organizations (NGOs) across the length and breadth of the country.  However, in recent times, multiple legal and policy developments have stirred up the conscientious among us and caused intense debate among policymakers, civil society groups, religious organizations, and human rights activists in India. This blog post looks at 3 issues that have become particularly significant for Christian communities in India, particularly in the state of Maharashtra: the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) amendments, anti-conversion legislation, and Maharashtra...

 Public demonstrations and organised protests have long been an important feature of democratic societies, offering citizens with a platform to express their concerns and engage in civic participation. A recent student protest at the designated Jantar Mantar grounds, supported by members of civil society organizations including the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), has caught our eye not only due to the issues being raised by protesters but also to the response of law enforcement agencies. As mentioned by participants and civil society observers, students came together to voice concerns on matters affecting educational institutions and democratic freedoms. The organizers of this movement claimed that the protest was peaceful and intended to facilitate dialogue on issues impacting young people across the country. However, tensions reportedly erupted during crowd-control operations by the Delhi police. Videos, photographs and eyewitness accounts circulated on various social media sites h...

Don't get brainwashed by the propaganda around the recent US indictment of Adani and his accomplices. Just go through the following facts: 1) Adani was first arrested for fraud in 2002 by the Delhi govt directly under Vajpayee, a Non-Soros influenced, non-deepstate BJP Prime Minister. 2) The over-invoicing and over-pricing scams of Adani on equipment, coal, etc through global proxies and coercion tactics of Modi Sarkar make Indian consumers pay huge power bills due to inflated costs of acquisition. 3) The govt sets agencies like ED, IT, and CBI to target dozens of Indian businesses which result in the ownership of these businesses ending up in Adani's hands. 4) There is a set pattern and strong correlation between Modi's visits to multiple nations and Adani getting huge contracts by these governments a few weeks later. 5) Adani has got large amounts of land and infrastructure at throwaway prices by governments all over the country. Even the manner in which he got the Dharav...

         -   by Vivek Pereira So many humans But so little humanity Amidst the great rally For one man’s vanity. So much passion, But so little empathy; No expression of remorse Not even thru’ telepathy. Such a lot of promises, But most remain unfulfilled; All they want is power No matter who gets killed. So large a nation, But so few citizens, Daring to take on evil, And preventing all these sins. Such a small mindset, But an even narrower vision That’s taking us all backwards Thru’ the politics of religion So little time, But still a lot to do; Let’s work even harder And make our dreams come true.

                   - By Vivek Pereira India is my nation As much as it’s yours; Should a difference in ideologies Lead to rioting and wars? Having opposing views Is certainly not sedition; Too much of brainwashing Has led to this condition. All should come together: The left and the right; For the glory of India We must all fight. For our enemies desire To see our country divided; And this is being accomplished By citizens who are misguided. Never fear or envy Folks different from you; All colours are wonderful, especially saffron, green and blue. Don’t fall for political rhetoric That’s intolerant and cheap; Just for the sake of power, A divisive agenda they’ll keep. So let’s take a pledge to counter such seeds of hate; And strive for peace and unity; That’ll make India ever so great.

- Written by Yours Truly many years ago Juliet: (to herself) Which one of my boyfriends could it be knocking at my bedroom window at this unearthly hour? Oh, it’s Romeo!!! Juliet: (To Romeo) Romeo, you bledy bugger – What are you up to, men? Get down from the tree before you fall and break your b…...” Romeo: I climbest this tree to express my love for thou – a love that can survive tempests and tsunamis. Juliet: Romeo, dearest, dost thou havest – a car, a flat, or an ipad? Romeo: I haveth none of the above. Juliet: Then how dost thou dare to love? Thou livest in a fool’s paradise. I cannot love thee. Romeo: I just inherited a cool million from an uncle who passed away. He was quite a rich dude. The cash is in the bank. Juliet: I truly love thee now, my Romeo. Romeo: Why dost thou not respond to my SMSes, my darling? Thou knowest how much I love thee especially after thou went under the plastic surgeon’s scalpel. Juliet: A Daniel, still say I, a second Daniel! Ro...

My issue with the whole thing is why was the RBI flooding the ATMs and banks with 500 & 1000 INR currency notes when they had already planned to withdraw these notes six months ago. Was it to harass the public? All bank counters and ATMs were dishing out only 1000 and 500 Rupee notes in these past six months. Senior citizens and the poor will be deeply affected by this move. Let s forget the black money folks for a while. And, we re not sure what can happen to the econom y at this stage? Choppy waters for the stock and currency markets for sure! And why are there no measures to curb black money in the stock market through participatory notes and the inflow of tainted funds to political parties? Why are political parties still allowed to accept black money? They have good intentions but poor implementation - the time window should have been at least 3 months. And, how will it help if the present currency notes were once used by terrorists and changed hands twe...

An Open letter to Kashmiris by Vivek Pereira, Author of the Novel 'Indians in Pakistan' (a book on ISI-sponsored terrorism with a strong focus on Kashmir) My Dear Kashmiri Brothers and Sisters, The recent events in and around the valley have stirred our nation like never before. For as Kashmir weeps, most of us weep with her; and when Kashmir bleeds, most of us bleed with her. The bullets, stones and pellets may continue to fly thick and fast but not thick or fast enough to destroy the great bond of brotherhood that exists between us. Being the author of a novel with a strong focus on Kashmir as well as a fellow Indian with deep-rooted secular credentials, I dare address you as my brothers and sisters, for that is what you are. Today hope manifests itself as a distant star blurring away in the horizon. Terrorists continue to sneak in from across the border with impunity despite the tough security measures in place. Homegrown extremists like Wani have started using...

Hey, now it's officially confirmed that India is a Banana Republic. The details of the  Essar Leaks scandal have finally blown the lid off the subterfuge. Our democracy is a joke! In fact, it is actually a THEM-OCRACY. Read in sync with the Radia tapes controversy and recent press reports, I declare that whichever government is at the helm, whether it is a BJP, Congress, Left, AAP or any other formation, India will still remain a Banana Republic, at least for a while. And here's why I say this: 1) The details of the Essar and Radia scandals reveal that even Union Budget decisions, ministry formations and important government policies are decided by big corporates . What's more? It shows that even the judgment of a supreme court judge was bought in the 2G corruption case (We already know that the CBI director had taken money from guilty parties in the case) and journalists are being paid to write news articles in favour of politicians and large bu...

Dear Priyanka, We are truly proud of your achievements as an actor, singer an d model. We are prouder of your outburst against Donald Trump, the controversial US Presidential candidate who could very well 'Make America Hate Again'! You were spot on when you said: "I just think you can't put a ban on anyone; Generalising a type of people is really primitive." Insightful words Indeed! As a matter of fact, I too have been a staunch critic of Trump and his politics of hate. However, at this point I must dare point out that this phenomenon of bigotry is not confined to the American shores alone. All across the globe, terrorists and fascists have sprung to power and formed governments just by selling Hate to the local populace. We have seen it happen in Egypt, Turkey, Gaza, Russia, Syria, Afghanistan and even in some European countries! Social media and the collaborative conventional media (or bazaaru media) rather than curtailing this menace, have contributed to i...

I smiled at the irony that while we, the trainees, were equipped with rocket launchers, AK47s and other sophisticated weaponry, the head of the mission confronted us with a measly pistol. I was still smiling as my fingers pulled the trigger. The short, bald leader collapsed in a heap. Our jeep sped away. We left the camp that night, leaving a trail of destruction in our wake. Scores of dismembered bloody bodies lay strewn all over the place. Almost every solid structure had been reduced to rubble. Small fires flared at various places. There were a couple of big fires that lit up the night sky. But what I remember most vividly was the ghastly silence just before we left the site. The above segment is a short extract from my novel ‘Indians in Pakistan’, an action thriller that will leave you spellbound. It will also immerse you into a totally different world in which different forces are at play as jihadis plot a rebellion against their evil masters. Firstly, love blossoms...

My Suggestions to the Indian Govt, recommending a new anti-terrorism policy: 1) Hang all terrorists currently on death row within the next three months and send a strong message to all terrorists. The Government would need considerable assistance from the President and the courts to achieve this deadline. 2) Frame a new tough anti-terror law after reaching a consensus between political parties, the judiciary and the civil society. Representatives of each of these sections must process the bill in a drafting committee before it goes to the standing committee of parliament at the preliminary stage. 3) The new law must be stringent and based on past or existing legislations that have worked before. It must also consider existing terror laws in US and other countries which have managed to curb terrorism to some extent in the past decade or so. The legislation must be drafted such that it is not maliciously misused by biased authorities against members of particular communities. 4...

The sinister Vyapam scam has blown the lid off the hollow claims of the RSS and the BJP of being the protectors of Hindus and of being “true nationalists” as against the “treachery of pseudo-secular” politicians and “deshdrohi” minorities. Yes, the Hindutva brigade and their cronies have been massacring HINDUS (most of whom are ex-RSS recruits) in large numbers in Madhya Pradesh to cover up the massive corruption of the local BJP Government and the Sangh Parivar in the Vyapam Scam. It’s a well known fact that the origins of the Vyapam scam lay in the covert policy of the BJP Government more than a decade ago to hand over degrees and jobs on a platter to the offspring of RSS and BJP leaders. The modus operandi was simple. A student impersonator, an ex-student or a bright peer, would be paid handsomely to write the answers at the designated examination centre for the undeserving student whose parents could bestow special favours or money to the student as well as the state educa...

I smiled at the irony that while we, the trainees, were equipped with rocket launchers, AK47s and other sophisticated weaponry, the head of the mission confronted us with a measly pistol. I was still smiling as my fingers pulled the trigger. The short, bald leader collapsed in a heap. Our jeep sped away. We left the camp that night, leaving a trail of destruction in our wake. Scores of dismembered bloody bodies lay strewn all over the place. Almost every solid structure had been reduced to rubble. Small fires flared at various places. There were a couple of big fires that lit up the night sky. But what I remember most vividly was the ghastly silence just before we left the site. The above segment is a short extract from my novel ‘Indians in Pakistan’, an action thriller that will leave you spellbound. It will also immerse you into a totally different world in which different forces are at play as jihadis plot a rebellion against their evil masters. Firstly, love blossoms...

Here are a few points that expose the fallacy and evils of the Beef Ban implemented by BJP in Maharashtra and Haryana: 1) Cowslaughter was already banned 4 dec ades ago, but what we are protesting against is the extension of the ban to bulls and bullocks. 2) Most of us respect the religious sentiments of Hindus vis-a-vis cow worship; but the bull should not come under this category especially as the Hindi word for bull i.e. bayl is used to abuse people who don't have their own minds. How can it then be claimed that bulls are divine? 3) The leather Industry would be badly hit in Maharashtra ruining the state economy badly. 4) Lacs of people employed in the beef trade will face unemployment in Maharashtra 5) Sexual offenders face lighter jail terms than the 5 year sentence for possession of beef. In Haryana, you will be charged with manslaughter if beef is found in your possession. 6) Beef constitutes a major part of the diet of millions of people in Maharashtra (representing nea...