Tomichan Matheikal's blog

From The Hindu “Are you happy with the election results?” A friend asked on WhatsApp. A fan of Modi, he was being facetious. The prelude to that question was proof of the flippancy. The BJP is happy, his message said, “because again we are the largest party.” Congress is happy since the result outdid their expectations and the claims of the exit polls. The message went on to give similar reasons why all parties and even the Election Commission were happy with the results. It concluded with Arvind Kejriwal’s happiness because his “sugars are now under control.” “I am happy,” I responded, “because Modiji’s hubris has got the jolt it should….” I didn’t vote this time though I took Maggie, my sister-in-law and niece to the polling station because they wanted to vote and I am a democrat who lets others follow their choices. I wrote earlier about why I wouldn’t vote this time . The results that came yesterday, however, are a great relief. Democracy is still alive in my country. It’s no...

From Deshabhimani , Malayalam weekly Exactly a month from today is the Parliamentary election in my state of Kerala. This time, I’m not going to vote. Bernard Shaw defined democracy , with his characteristic cynicism, as “ a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve .” We elect our government in a democracy. And the government invariably sucks our blood – whichever the party is. The BJP and the Congress are like Tweedledum and Tweedledee though the former makes all sorts of other claims day in and day out. BJP = Congress + the holy cow. The holy cow has turned out to be quite a vampire and that makes a difference, no doubt. In our Prime Minister’s algebra, it is: (a+b) 2 which should be equal to a 2 and b 2 . There is an extra 2ab which is the holy cow. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm , the animals revolt against the human master and set up their own nationalist republic. Soon politics develops in the republic and some pigs become leaders. The porcine ...

Courtesy: Lawlex Just ten days from the elections in Kerala, I’m left wondering who to vote for.  The UDF government that ruled the state for the last five years has almost ruined the state.  Scams and scandals haunted the government throughout its reign.  It appears that every Congressman in the state is either a money-guzzler or an accomplice of some swindler.  When the Opposition leader, nonagenarian V S Achuthanandan, alleged that there were many charges against the Chief Minister, Mr Oommen Chandy filed a defamation case for a damage of Rs 1 lakh.  Mr Chandy’s reputation cannot be very precious when the wily man had refused to file any defamation charge against Saritha Nair who went on hurling all sorts of allegations against him.  There seem to be very few Congressmen left in Kerala whose otherwise immaculately white, perfectly starched, khadi shirts are not tainted with variegated stains of corruption.  There are a few who are not corrup...