Of Taufel, Howard And An Apology Re: # 1, Very much in mana Hyderabad harish. Moved to Gachibowli campus accommodation. But looks like hamare sheher to kisi ki nazar lag gayi.. cant understand why innocent Hyderabadis are being targetted like this.. sadly thats the case all over the world.. happened to pass by Lumbini around the time the blast took place. whatever, it is pretty sad.

Of Taufel, Howard And An Apology Sorry for the delay in replying folks.. internet ka masla hai .. Kaalbhai, I have no problems with the Aussie govt putting in laws to check the Islamist or other terrorist groups.. they have all the right to protect their country.. all I said is, they should also be bold enuff to acknowledge where they went wrong and apologise. But since u neither "ask nor advocate apologies, in general", I am understand why u dont appreciate what I wrote. Well the local Hyderabadi is the last one to apologise for anything (kyon Harish bhai??).. as one who has stayed in this city for long, I can tell you, it pisses me no extent when the pedestrian walks in the middle of the road and retorts with choicest ma-behen when asked to clear the way!

From Kerala to Islamabad (A Journey of Nine Decades) .. and your point is? The Moplah rebellion has been beaten to death by stupid communalists like you. So if you dont want to quote a Stephen Dale, you go on to bring in a wiki link which starts of with the disclaimer (The neutrality of this article is disputed).. pretty good. For rabid thinkers like you, a good Muslim is not only one neutered at birth but better, killed at birth. But then no IM needs a certificate from characters like you. IMs will stay in India and contribute to its growth and development, alongside every single Indian, irrespective of religion, who dreams of a strong and united India. Till then you can continue hollering from the top of your roof about how bad a living Muslim is for India.

From Kerala to Islamabad (A Journey of Nine Decades) Thanks Tariq. It felt good reading this piece. I come from near about the same place (just a lil up north). I was born there but moved on owing to my father`s transfers. But we go back as and when possible. I have very fond memories of visiting Kerala as a child. Kottapuram in Kodungallur (a place very close to Kunjithai) was the place where St.Thomas first landed. This is also the location of one of the oldest of the existing Christian churches. There is a fort there too and I assume that the author is talking about the same place. The first mosque constructed in India (the Cheraman Masjid - AD 629) is just a couple of kilometers away... its steeped in history. every now and then I manage to go back to my birthplace to visit my relatives and relive my childhood days... boatrides on the backwaters, the lush green paddy fields and the ubiquitous coconut palm trees .. nostalgia rules:) it is sad that some chowkies still manage to get in their penchant for Muslim bashing on a board talking about something as uncomplicated as the idyllic backwaters of God`s own country/

~ Salil ~

Diary of an ABCD [b] this doesn tno work [i] just tryoing to [/i]

Understanding Kashmir Roundtable: A Viewpoint From Jammu

Mumbai Rocked by Seven Bomb Blasts Re: # 21

Well if thats the way you look at things... how many Hindus vs how many Muslims.. then you should have no problems with the violence in Kashmir.. since the insurgency began, majority of those killed there have been Muslims. This what I call sick minds at play. We dont need people like you in these trying times.

A Desi Dilemma Khan saab that was an interesting story. Bada mazaa aaya. The happenings in NWFP cannot be ignored as something happening in a different world. But come to think of it, the way things happen there, it sure appears to be a different world altogether. THINGS have to change. But will it with the MMA types calling the (AK-47!) shots ?!

~ Salil ~

Control Room Documentary an Eye Opener! As a student of Media Communication and Journalism, this kind of plagiarism doesnt do u any good. I would have expected you to be confident enough of doing a good job of reviewing this documentary without having to `lift` from other sources. I am sure you will keep this in mind Zara. Wishing you the best.

Reservaion: Interest of Urban-Upper halves Yasser, you have presented lots of arguments here. Some of them are untenable I feel. As Burpi bhai said most of those guys who were protesting (not polluting) on the streets are doing so coz of an inherent need to survive, which is common to all of us here. It is a competitive world out there and each one has to fight it out to survive and grow. With opportunities shrinking and competition increasing, reservations become another front on which the battle has to be fought. So give the guys a chance to protest. It is their right. BTW none of the protests were violent. And thats a major difference from the anti-Mandal protests. In fact the peaceful protests this time were met with violence.

Secondly I think you should ensure that the length of your article is long enough to cover your basic arguments and short enough to keep the reader interested.

Finally I think you can ignore comments like the ones made by #13 ``Indian 007``. Carrying eponymous names and finding nothing more to comment about but the author`s name is a rather dim-witted response. Buddy you dont like what the author writes, say it. And also say why you dont like it. No use of passing inane remarks here.

~ Salil ~

Has Higher Education Failed India? Re: # 34

The UGC has a bar on increase of seats each academic year. Not more than 10%. Some idiot in the Parliament suggested a 50% increase in intake. Kya naatak hai! The universities are as it is having a problem handling the existing numbers. God alone knows how they will manage the proposed additional intake. Perfect masala for further chaos in our higher education set up. On the other hand, its perfect masala for Abhishek to write another article on the pathetic condition of Indian Universities.

Why Do We Reject Our Past? Re: # 175

I agree Ballu bhai. Ahmedzai sahab (#171), you have got it completely wrong. I can`t say about such mindsets in Pakistan, but in India this just doesnt work. The Indian Muslim mind does not subscribe to such straitjackets. In fact it is absurd to say the least. I have said this earlier too and I repeat, the Ummah is a myth. Some people try to legitimise the existence of such a community but the fact is that a grouping like the Ummah is just not possible.

Why Do We Reject Our Past? Well Masadi bhai if you agree so much with HP (does it stand for HeengoPhobic??) then I am sure you should read what has to say about contributions of an ``Islamic Civilisation``:

#47 by HP on May 2, 2006 9:19am PT

`` There is no Islamic civilization...It is either Arab or Persian or African. Since when civilizations are associated with religions?``

Why Do We Reject Our Past? Re: # 58

Paaji ek sardar joke yaad aaya... please, please bura mat man na.

There was once a dispute between the Hindus and Muslims about the faith of Hanuman. The Hindus claimed he was their God and had helped Lord Ram and so he had to be Hindu. The Muslims said that with Hanuman was Muslim coz he had a Muslim name like Rehman, Usman and Salman. Not able to reach a solution, they caught hold of Banta Singh who was passing by. On hearing the whole kissa he said he will have to go through the Ramayana and then only arrive at a decision. The next day the Muslims, Hindus and our turbaned gentleman met at the village chowk. Everyone waited with baited breath for the decision. Banta Singh got up and gave his verdict: Hanuman was neither Hindu nor Mulsim - he was a sardar ! On begin asked for a reason, Banta said: Jo banda kisi doosre ki biwi ke liye apni dum pe aag laga ke kisi teesre ke ghar pe aag laga sakta hai, woh sirf Sardar ho sakta hai !

Why Do We Reject Our Past? Re: # 37

So your basic problem is the name. And because it wasnt named after Sindh, everything in it is useless. And till now the Mughals were basically Indian (barring a Babur and Humayun) but now they have become `invaders` (reminds me of another Sindhi who parrots this line.. LK Advani)

``Cut this Indian civilization crap. I am happy with what I got. `` You dont feel like being a part of it so be it. It wont change facts though. Khush raho yaar.

One and a half intellectuals? Hope you are not referring to yourself. Anyway you can live happily in your delusional world.

You still didnt answer my question: ``Mughals were not Islamic.`` Whats your definition of Islamic?

Why Do We Reject Our Past? Re: # 26

Ballubhai thanks for the link. Well as I mentioned in a post here, the re-writing of history is fairly recent phenomenon. In fact the re-rewriting or `rollback` of history has already reached its climax under HRD Minister Arjun Singh. You wont find any objectionable stuff in our most widely used NCERT history texts anymore. Moreover, history texts have become the sparring ground for the Left vs non-Left historians. More often than not it is clash of egoes, than a clash of historical facts. Sad.

~ Salil