Goan Observer - Weekly News Portal

The Silken Chain

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:55:32 +0000

By Mahinder Singh Joshi

The narrator finally returned to Tejo. How would he find her?

AS THE afternoon wore on, an old man put in an appearance. He was suffering from dysentery and he had no respite from it. I told him, after proper investigation, that it was a case of dysentery. In my note book I had carefully jotted down that for dysentery they administered chloride in doses of 15 drops three times a day. But Alakh Narain had exhausted his stock of chloride and had already placed an order to replenish the stock. The medicine was expected to arrive in about a week’s time.
It does not behove a doctor to turn away a patient. I suddenly remembered a nostrum which was generally used in our house. I sent for two tolas of gum arabic and after pounding it into fine powder in a mortar, divided it into three doses and added adequate quantity of water to it to make it into a paste of reasonable consistency. Lest the old man should see through my game I assured him that it was a tried remedy. "My good old man, it is an expensive medicine", I told him, "Wouldn’t cost you less than a rupee. But please bring the empty bottle back in the morning. I’ve not charged you the cost of the bottle."
I thought Jagat would pat me on my back as soon as the patient was gone. But he only ridiculed me for the manner in which I had handled the patient.
The next day when the old man came I found him holding a bright rupee coin with the emperor’s face imprinted on it.
"My dysentery has stopped," he said beaming at me "And I’ve saved a dose."
The gum had cost me only two pice. I took two annas from him which meant I had made a profit of six pice. It could as well as construed as my medical fee. My assets had gone up four fold. Nothing short of a dacoity would have brought me such a windfall.
My poem was complete, but I didn’t know how to deliver it to Tejo. Even if it directly landed in her hands, she would have to take recourse to someone to read it for her. And would have anyone in Chagli appreciated my poem? Oh, if only Molar were here!
It was about 6:30 in the evening. Jagat had already left for the day when a man of about 35 years of age came to me and said he suspected he had caught ‘the heat’.
I had been told that in common parlance ‘catching the heat’ meant venereal disease implying either gonorrhoea or syphilis. The infection in the case of the former was internal and generally did not show on the skin surface while the symptoms of the latter manifested themselves externally on the body.
On enquiry, the man told me that his infection was internal. It was not necessary to ask him any more questions. I got up from my chair to compound some medicine for him.
"First have a look!" the man said. Untying his pyjama string, the man sat down baring his genitals. I had a fleeting glimpse of his deep dark navel, which was stuffed with cotton wool. I proceeded towards the medicine almirah.
The next morning, as usual, Jagat came by the 7 o’clock train and said that doctor saheb wanted the Cash Book to be sent to him. There was nothing much to show in the Cash Book. Two patients had paid one rupee and six annas in all which fact could verbally be conveyed to Alakh Narain. I feared that if things continued like this, it would not even cover the rent of the shop. And there was the question of my food and the daily trips that Jagat had to make in this connection. But I was working in right earnest and in good faith. I could do nothing more for I had stretched myself to my utmost limits.
A young stockily built man came panting to my shop. "Please come to Sujan’s house," he said. "And please come quickly at a clipping pace. His son is unwell."
Sujan’s five-year-old son was not only unwell, but he was almost on his last legs. He had been vomiting and purging constantly, the stools and the vomit being the colour of whey. His eyes had become glazed and his lips had turned blue. His pulse had become slow and erratic and his body was fast turning cold. It appeared he was counting his last breath. There was no knowing whether in his condition he would be able to retain any medicine, or an injection would act fast on him. I was in a quandary not knowing how to treat this serious case. The child’s condition had deteriorated further in my presence and there was hardly any time to go back to the shop to bring any medicine even if I knew of one.
"Quickly heat up an iron scraper," I told Sujan Singh. "I’ve to brand the child’s left heel with it."
The child’s mother raised a loud wail. "I won’t allow my child to be branded," she said defiantly standing akimbo. "They brand cattle, not humans. Tell me, have you ever heard of a man ever being branded."
But Sujan Singh brushed aside her objection. "In another two minutes we may have to burn his entire body. If his heel is branded, will it split up his nails?"
I had read of treatment by branding in an old book belonging to Baba Shukargir of our village. I was the last man to believe that this kind of witchcraft could have any curative power. But to my great astonishment the child who only five minutes ago was almost on the verge of death, suddenly sat up and said, "I’m feeling so hungry. Give me something to eat."
Before nightfall, the news of my medical acumen had travelled round the entire village of Chagli. About a score of persons brimming over with respect and admiration came to have my darshan as if I was an avatar or a saint who worked miracles.
I said to myself, "This may be a prelude for patients to make a bee-line to my shop. My practice may pick up before the month is out."
But the next morning Alakh Narain came and carried away all the medicine bottles, denuding the shop of all its contents.
Molar happened to visit our village to meet his sister who was married here. He broke to me the news that Tejo’s cousin, without observing proper decorum and formalities, had made Tejo go round the sacred fire four times and had then packed her off to her new home. Now she was living in her old village.
I felt so guilty. After having shown my back to her, how could I face her again? At the same time, my heart is pined to meet her. I was feeling so restless like a fish thrown out of water.
In the end, my heart won over my head. The next day I started early in the morning and, by ten, was in her village, Saluri.
Tejo’s mother was sitting in her courtyard. "I bow my head before you, Aunt," I said.
She blessed me and offered me a seat by her side on the cot.
"Tejo, your vir (brother) is here."
Tejo looked steadfastly at me for a while without uttering a word of greeting. Then she went in and came back with a ball of jute thread. Her fingers were swollen and raw as if she was suffering from some kind of itch.
"You must wash them with sulphur water," I said.
Her mother Bachan Kaur said, "Son, she refuses to apply sulphur to her fingers. She says it has such obnoxious smell."
My knowledge of treatment of skin trouble was very limited. Alakh Narain had taught me that sulphur was the only remedy for skin troubles. Cudgelling my brain over it, it occurred to me that crystallised saltpetre having similar properties may as well come in handy for skin treatment. It could be used mixing with sweet oil.
Tejo placed a palm-length of silk thread upon my wrist and asked me to put a knot on it. Blood was oozing from her knuckles.
I placed two rupees in her lap.
"Two rupees are a lot of money," Tejo’s mother said. "Tejo, keep only one."
"All right, Ma," Tejo replied heaving a sigh.
Bachan Kaur said, "You must have your food with us before you go. The food is almost ready." She disappeared into the kitchen.
Tejo put her hand in my pocket and immediately took it out. Her chin was trembling. There were tears in her eyes.
I felt my pocket had become heavier. I shoved my hand into my pocket and it struck against a purse. It was the same purse I had given her on my previous visit as a memento.
Tears flowed from my eyes as I sat there looking at that purse.

Translated from Punjabi by Jai Ratan

Courtesy: Contemporary Indian Short Stories

From the heart

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:37:57 +0000

By Ben Antao

Let me tell you about Quinta, By Savia Viegas, Penguin Books, PP 254, Rs 299.

THE NOVEL Let me tell you about Quinta by Savia Viegas, 54, will appeal more than most to the Diaspora Goans settled in the West after the liberation of Goa in 1961. Why? Because crocheted into the intricate design of Quinta, her ancestral mansion in Carmona, are threads of post-colonial life in the village, threads of land reforms and their abuses, threads of locked and robbed houses, of corruption, loot and lawlessness, and the farce of democracy.

As one who has been out of Goa since 1966, I read Viegas’s book with increasing fascination almost bordering on admiration that she could be inspired to write a novel about a house during which course she brought to life and light those ugly and unfortunate happenings that have visited Goan villages in the aftermath of freedom and democracy. Oh yes, the wheel has turned full circle and we can’t return to the past but live in the teeming, ubiquitous, baksheesh-bred present.

Quinta is segregated into four parts; each part opens with a dramatic monologue spoken by Robby who calls himself a bastard, "The pariah bred by two generations and owned and bonded to none. But I simply love this land and know that as its sole inheritor, if I don’t protect it, who will?"

Viegas’s narrative style is informed by a deep knowledge of Carmona, its lay of the village, its politics and status symbols, its bhatkars and mundkars, its rains, wells, fields, bunds and church bells, as one born and grown up in that village would know. Her portrayals of Carmona would apply to any other village in Goa.

California, a granddaughter-in-law of the Quinta family tree, on a visit from America wonders why there are so many locked houses. "Old, beautiful homes with ornate balconies in earthen colours, they stood amid the greenery with a sadness about them that was difficult to explain. Something must have gone terribly wrong that made their inmates move away from such luxury and send themselves into exile. If the families suffered distress, why didn’t they sell them? Why did they let old houses die?"

The story of Quinta begins in the 1930s when we meet the matriarch of the mansion, a feisty, strong-willed woman named Mariquinha, who is accustomed to getting her way as the elites of landed property did in those days. She has three sons-Ramon, Camoes, and Queirozito (Tito). It’s Tito who inherits the property. She tells California that the family migrated to Portugal, "that family lives in Africa, they are in Bombay and that one would soon be ruined as all the family had become extinct. Queirozito sometimes filled in the legal details of houses that were mortgaged and those that were shrinking under the weight and neglect of litigation."

An interesting side story develops in the property adjacent to Quinta. Here the family servant Piedade becomes sexually involved with one Bamonn, himself a mixed breed bastard. He got a job as a deck steward on a ship and was away for a long time. "His mother died and still he didn’t come. At last, when his cottage had nearly crumbled, he resurfaced. He brought with him a woman with red hair and they quietly opened the locked house, did some cursory repairs and began to live there. The entire village was agog with the mystery of the red-haired white woman who could be seen hovering in the kitchen, bathing naked in the yard or swimming in the sea."

The narrator Robby is the offspring of Piedade-Bamonn liaison.
At this point I’d like to comment on fiction writing, especially when it comes to transforming experiences into fiction. Real life is often bland and boring so that the author of fiction has an opportunity, even obligation, to make fiction more humanly interesting by inventing episodes that are funny, intriguing, suspenseful, thought-provoking and unexpected.

For example, the character of California seems a likely candidate to push the envelope, so to speak. She is a hippy and friendly with Tim, a horse ranch farmer of Mobor. Both are Russian second-generation renegades from the erstwhile Soviet Union. She rides through the village on horseback, which is how she attracted the attention of Suraj, the son of Mari, the daughter of Tito. The reader gets the impression that California and Tim are lovers, but this is not made explicit when it would be in her character, especially when she arrives in Carmona for the second time around, this time to estimate the value of property belonging to her by marriage. Such a love scene would have spiced up the plot.

In 1964, I broke the story in The Navhind Times about the impending land tenancy legislation after receiving the ‘scoop’ from Praxi Fernandes, the chief secretary to the Dayanand Bandodkar government. With only a slim majority in the then Union Territory’s 30-member assembly, Bandodkar achieved his double dream. First, to teach a lesson to the Catholic bhatkars whose elite status in Goan society he deeply resented. Second, to proffer land rights to the mundkars who tilled the land. The mundkars were of low caste as he was. Thus Bandodkar not only cured his deep seated envy of the upper castes, but also sowed the seeds of communal politics based on caste and religion, a state of affairs that sadly continues today.

In Quinta, Viegas writes, "The Land Tenancy Act had emboldened the tenants so that each of them laid claim to the strip that they had been cultivating, with the result that scarcely any substantial patch of land remained within the family holding. Hardly two decades had passed since the liberation of Goa, and the family fortunes had diminished considerably. This patch of land was all that was left to Preciosa (Tito’s wife) and afforded a meagre income."

It may not have happened in Carmona, but in many other villages the mundkars sold their tenancies to the highest bidder and became lakhpatis. Why till the land when you can live in comfort in the city or abroad, the tenants reasoned. And thus the outside real estate builders seized upon these fields that once produced rice, vegetables and coconuts for the indigenous population, and put up concrete high-rise flats for rent or ownership. Such a scene in Quinta would have added to the sad loss of property of the bhatkars and shown the mundkars in a different light, thanks to Bandodkar and his communal Maharashtrawadi Gomantak party.
Still, Viegas’s descriptions of the village life are truthfully rendered. Here she writes about the monsoon. "A storm raged for twenty-four hours blowing rooftops, thunderbolts struck houses and coconut trees. The paind resembled a tributary with water gushing through it. The river Sal, placid otherwise, had broken its banks and flooded the fields. In front of Mariquinha’s house, the water rose to the second step of Quinta. The sea seemed to be at high tide all the time and the last batch of fishermen who went out to sea before the storm broke did not return."

In writing this novel, the second in a trilogy, Savia has unburdened her soul for the story of her ancestral home is precious and dear to her heart. I had read her first novel Tales from the Attic. Now I look forward to the third.

Quinta is an impressive accomplishment. However, the publisher could have set the text in 12 point font size, instead of 9 point. This plus a thicker, better quality paper would have enhanced readability, which in addition to giving the reader much pleasure would also help marketing and sales.

Last year in January I had visited her mansion in Carmona. In the vast front yard of Quinta a gorgeous bougainvillea plant bloomed in glorious colours. It was a striking sight.

(Ben Antao is a journalist and novelist living in Toronto, Canada. His email: ben.antao@rogers.com )

How much tilgul have you eaten and how much has it sweetened you up?

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:31:36 +0000

By Tara Narayan

SIGH. EVERY time I come back from Mumbai-that-was-Bombay I feel like my life is boring and as dull as ditch water in Goa. When I’m in cold, dirty, dusty, polluted Mumbai, I pine with divine discontentment to return to Goa and when I’m in Goa I pine with divine discontentment to go back to Mumbai. Life is like that only. Back in golden Goa, I try not to see the garbage heaps along the highway and take a deep breath of Goa’s still clean air with gratitude…but I don’t know for how long I will entertain my current divine discontentment mood! Fact is, there’s always something happening in Mumbai which I want to go chase.

It’s a prolonged winter in Mumbai with Shivratri coming in mid-February, but the suburban wet markets are at their best and a real treat for the eyes. All good things go to Mumbai! There’re the fresh seasonal veggies of winter time - the veggies which go into the making of winter time oondhiyu … Surti papdi (fat and lean broad beans), purple yam and the more common pink yam, velvety royal purple aubergines, leela vatana (green peas) and leeli tuver (fragrant tur dal or streaky green pigeon pea pods which can take forever to shell)…piles of Indian gooseberry or aonla, amba ginger and golden yellow tender haldi, purple and green strings of mogri (with their exquisite sharp bite), bunches of greens - palak, khata palak, dill, green amaranth, red amaranth (tambdi bhaji), lots of radish/turnip/beetroot greens, arbi or colocasia leaves…. cauliflowers, carrots orange and translucently red (the sweeter, juice-worthy variety)…fresh green gram (a winter time favourite) and cartloads of sprouted pulses.

IN Mumbai, it’s still the season to enjoy ponk and oondhiyu with green spring garlic and wood apple chutney. The meal deal thali eateries down South Mumbai make a killing serving the Gujarati speciality veggie delight of oondhiyu and several outlets retail it, priced from Rs 150 to Rs 400 kg). If you’re buying some to take home, be sure they give you enough of the fenugreek or methi dumplings which come snuggled in the oondhiyu, these are the heart and soul of any oondhiyu made with oodles of love!

At my friends Ansuya Dutt and Gopal’s home down town Churchgate one evening, I got to eat oondhiyu and rice, a memorable meal. No, no, their cook Kannan makes excellent sambar and other South Indian fare, but the oondhiyu comes from Bakul and Gaurang Shah’s Hiralal Kashidas Bhajiawala outlet down at C P Tank in Mumbai.

What’s ponk? It’s roasted green jowar (or is it sorghum, same thing!) and green wheat mixed up with peppery crunchy sev (vermicelli) and little aniseed sugar balls, all laced up in sweet, sour, garlicky chutneys…folk have ponk parties or picnics! After that you drink curry leaf and roasted jeera powder spiked buttermilk…a thin pale green frothy buttermilk which is just wee bit tart to make it ambrosial. I don’t know why we get so stuck with rice and wheat in our day-to-day eating when this country has so many millets, millets are mostly alkaline grains and worth eating more if it’s health you’re seeking!

Most country homes in Gujarat still offer pearl millet (bajra), sorghum (jowar) bhakri or thick biscuit-like roti in evening meals, along with one or another of the greens, sometimes combined with one of the pulses or dal. A nugget of rich golden jaggery and a dollop of pure home-made cow’s ghee alongside….goes with the bhakri most deliciously. I don’t shun jaggery, be it sugar cane jaggery or palm jaggery or date palm jaggery (the chain of Sweet Bengal sweetmeat shops in Mumbai are retailing slabs of precious winter-time noton gur or date palm jaggery, wish I’d brought back a slab). Date palm or khajoor jaggery is more delicious and desirable than chocolate.

Hey, I cherish a simple three or four-course country home meal over any urban home’s 12 or 15-course meal! I always say that one can never put on weight on country home meals, .but city home meals can turn you into a veritable sumo wrestler and instead of walking one is rolling along! Oh, okay, no joking.

BUT if you’re a die-hard vegetarian, I will recommend that the next time you’re in Mumbai you look up this wonderful little eatery of Shree Thakar Bhojanalay, still located up some rickety stairs in the heart of Kalbadevi (Dadisheth Agyari Lane to be exact). My friend Jyoti Mirchandani takes all her guests from abroad here for one meal at least and that’s something I’d do too if I were still living in Mumbai! I remember this Gujarati eatery from its old hole-in-the-wall days; it’s dressed up some now to look like a cross between a temple and a museum of an eatery. It’s been consistently winning a host of awards for its thali meal deals since 1945 and that’s really coming a long, long way, no? The thali meal itself is priced at Rs 250 today… one time one could eat as much of the superb vegetarian burb vegetas one wanted for Rs 50 and less.

Eating in traditional eateries like Shree Thaker is always an experience, of course, and everything beginning with the starters or farsan (e.g. lilva tuver-ni- kachori, real dhokla, moong dal bhajia) to the final choice of dulcet sweets (gulam jamun, shrikhand, almond dudhpaak) is scrumptiously perfect. The half-a-dozen stainless bowls on your stainless steel platter get filled up regularly by a series of service boys …with choice veggies of the day, pure plain dal and sweet hot dal, buttermilk kadi, chutneys, pickles…the breads of thin fluffy rotli, bajra rotla, whole wheat flour bhakri, the thepla, deep fried puri sometimes…not to mention a final choice of rice smothered in lachka tur dal or kichri laced with desi ghee. Unlimited repeats till you say enough, no more. Since it’s still winter there is oondhiyu to eat and you may also buy some for the folk at home if you wish…Rs 400 kilo. It’s one of the best oondhiyu I’ve eaten.

Make it to Shri Thaker Bhojanalay the next time you’re in Mumbai and are pining for a real Guju thali meal deal! Of course in Mumbai it’s also tilgul time and no matter where you go you’re offered these little tilgul ladoo of sesame seeds cooked in jaggery or the same thing ingredients (with peanuts thrown in) come in wedges thin and thick, large rounds…you may find the finer gazak from Delhi if you’re lucky. Sesame seed and jaggery are ingredients to warm up in the cold months. Or so says traditional local wisdom. In Maharashtrian homes tilgul ladoo are offered with the words "Tlgul ge ani god god bola!’ Meaning, more or less, here, eat these sweet sesame jaggery balls of the season and warm up enough to speak sweetly and softly…like you love the world! I don’t. Love the world, I mean. In my current mood of divine discontentment, I think hell is other people!

Aravind Bhatikar’s Vovllam released

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:30:20 +0000

By GO Correspondent

VOVLLAM" is the name of a local flower commonly found in Goa that when blossoms gives a sweet fragrance. Aptly named after this flower is former bureaucrat Aravind Bhatikar’s book Vovllam, written in devnagiri Konkani published by Yugved Publications that provides an insight into some of the true-life experiences of the retired IAS officer. This book is yet another feather in the hat of the former MPT chairman-now-turned-social activist deeply involved in the fight to preserve the mother tongue Konkani as the medium of instruction in primary schools in the state, besides various other agitations.

Vovllam was released at the hands of former chief election commissioner N Gopalaswami at a well attended function held on Saturday, January 28, 2012 at the Ravindra Bhavan conference hall, Margao. Incidentally, Gopalswami, too, is a retired IAS official and in his speech, vividly recalled his former colleague, Bhatikar’s exploits when he was posted in his native state of Tamil Nadu, especially how the Goan bureaucrat took pains to learn and master the Tamil language that Bhatikar spoke while visiting the rural areas.

Remarking that this brought Bhatikar closer to the local residents, Gopalaswami further complimented his efforts to record his administrative experiences and urged the author to translate this book into Tamil as soon as possible. The former CEC also underscored the ‘electrifying power of a language’ that bound people together as he highlighted the initiative of India’s first Home Minister Sardar Patel who sought that IAS officers learn the local language of the state that they are posted in as this would strengthen the bonds of national fervour. Further narrating his experiences when he was posted in Gujarat, Gopalaswami also heaped praises on Bhatikar for taking up the role of an activist to eradicate corrupt politicians in Goa.

The former CEC aired his views on the present political scenario in the country that is presently going to polls in five states, including Goa while making an impassionate plea for a strong legal mechanism like a Lokpal/Lok Ayukta that would penalise the corrupt politicians as well as the bureaucrats.

Later, speaking to Goan Observer, the former CEC opined the need for a fast track court that would take up corruption cases and quickly hand out its verdict as the only way to clean up the current dirty political system.

Audhut Timblo, chairman of the Fomento Group, also congratulated Bhatikar for taking trouble to pen his autobiographical sketch in devnagiri Konkani as he further pointed out that this forced him (Timblo) to read the book - thus, reviving a habit that had slowly been forgotten. Timblo also drew attention to Bhatikar’s humour that was vividly expressed throughout the novel.

Former MLA and senior journalist, Adv Uday Bhembre, who has written the foreword for the novel, underscored the importance of recording the social scenario of the present era through one’s memoirs and appealed for more autobiographies to be published.

While another writer, Shantaram Walavalikar, presented a brief insight into Vovllam, former chief minister Shashikala Kakodkar also praised Bhatikar and requested that he translate the book into Marathi.
Earlier, Bhatikar welcomed the audience with wife, Snehalata, presenting the vote of thanks; the function was compered by Anju Kamat.

Ideate at the D D Kosambi Festival

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:25:09 +0000

THE 5th D D Kosambi Festival of Ideas will commence from February 7, 2012 at Kala Academy, Campal, Panaji-Goa. This year, the Directorate of Art & Culture has invited world renowned personalities from various fields for delivering lectures of substantial knowledge.

This year the Directorate of Art & Culture has invited Uma Dasgupta, Medha Patkar, Shekhar Singh, Saeed Naqvi and Mohammad Younus to speak at the event. Uma Dasgupta, D Phil, is an eminent author and former research professor, Social Sciences Division, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata. She has edited The Oxford India Tagore: Selected Writings on Education and Nationalism (OUP 2009), Rabindranath Tagore: My Life in My Words (Penguin Books, 2006), A Difficult Friendship: Letters of Edward Thompson and Rabindranath Tagore 1913-1940 (OUP 2003). She is the author of Rabindranath Tagore: A Biography (OUP 2004).

Medha Patkar, social activist and environmentalist, is known for her role in the Narmada bachao Andolan. She has also filed a public interest petition in the Bombay High Court against Lavasa along with other members of National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM), including Anna Hazare.

Shekhar Singh founder member, National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI), has worked with the government in various capacities, including as advisor to the Planning Commission of India on environment and forests, chairman of the Environmental Appraisal Committee for Power Projects of the Government of India, and as Supreme Court appointed commissioner on forestry and related matters for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Saeed Naqvi is an senior journalist and distinguished fellow at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. His articles appear in various newspapers in India and abroad. He is Parvin Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, US and studied journalism at the Thomson School of Journalism, Cardiff, UK.

Prof Muhammad Yunus is a Noble laureate, acclaimed economist and chairman of Yunus Center, Grameen Bank. He is dedicated to eradicate poverty. Against the advice of banks and government, Yunus carried on giving out ‘micro-loans’, and in 1983 formed the Grameen Bank, meaning ‘village bank’, founded on principles of trust and solidarity. In Bangladesh today, Grameen has 2,564 branches, with 19,800 staff serving 8.29 million borrowers in 81,367 villages.

The Directorate of Art & Culture had initiated the D D Kosambi Festival of Ideas to commemorate the birth Centenary of the legendary Damodar Dharmanand Kosambi the Indian mathematician, statistician, historian, and polymath who contributed to genetics by introducing Kosambi’s map function. He is well known for his work in numismatics and for compiling critical editions of ancient Sanskrit texts. D D Kosambi was also a Marxist historian specialising in ancient India and employed the historical materialist approach in his work. He is described as "the patriarch of the Marxist school of Indian historiography". He was an enthusiast of the Chinese revolution and its ideals, and, in addition, a leading activist in the World Peace Movement.

Interactive sessions between the public and the speakers will be held subsequent to the talk delivered by the speaker to elucidate any doubts the audience may have.

Advantage BJP?

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:23:58 +0000

By Xavier Cota

Will the Bharatiya Janata Party take advantage of Goans’ disillusionment with the Congress?

THE ANNOUNCEMENT of elections in Goa has brought in yet one more circus to take the mind of the average Goan away from the sordid reality of life dished out to him courtesy of the most corrupt and inefficient government to hold the reins of power in post-liberation Goa. It is a continuation of the ongoing entertainment like the RP 2021, Lok Ayukta/Lok Pal, the mining scam, and so on ad nauseam which is only marginalising Goans day by day. The on-again off- again flirtation of the Congress, NCP and the MGP coyly playing hard to get with both the BJP and the Congress, is like a needle stuck in the groove of the same old record. With the entry of the Goa Vikas Party, there is one more addition to the UGDP- Save Goa side show.

An interesting new feature is the serious attempt of the BJP to make inroads into the Catholic-dominated constituencies of South Goa. While Matanhy Saldanha’s affinity for the BJP was never a secret, this time around it has opened its arms to welcome Carlos Almeida who had earlier walked out and, in a surprise move, has roped in Adv Joaquim D’Souza, former president of the South Goa Advocates Association. One would have thought that they would bank on Mickky Pacheco, but the calculation seems to be that his image and mercurial nature are difficult to handle. In any case, if Adv Joaquim — with his upright, capable reputation — can make inroads into the ranks of middle class voters and short-circuit the power minister, notwithstanding the public misgivings of Manohar Parrikar, the BJP can certainly do business with Mickky.

FED UP

GOANS, in general, are fed up with the governance or rather the lack of it, by the Congress-led alliance. Goa’s finite resources are being plundered as if there’s no tomorrow and from a democracy we are lurching into a system of dynasties reminiscent of the robber-barons of yore. With the dynasty at the centre setting an example, every politician in every state seems to be nursing Generation Next to take over the reins. Of course Goa being what it is, some families want not two, but four tickets!

Given the level of discontent, and as a natural consequence of a multi-party democracy, the BJP should have been poised to reap a rich electoral harvest and storm back to power. Catholics, which form a strong swing factor, hold the key. Most Goans have seen the administrative capabilities and even vision of Manohar Parrikar, but they can’t forget the damage to the communal and social fabric under his watch. Parrikar has publicly acknowledged his faux pas as far as the Good Friday holiday is concerned, which actually is a minor symbolic peccadillo. The real damage was the ranks of RSS allegedly packed into the bureaucracy, especially the crucial police department, the opening up of Goan mines to illegal exploitation by non-Goan mining conglomerates and the freedom to cadres from fraternal organisations like the VHP and ABVP to criminally trespass and vandalise the Archbishop’s premises and humiliate a Goa University professor and get away with these and many other less serious incidents with impunity. When the Ram Sene after its hooliganism in BJP-ruled Karnataka was planning to come to Goa, Parrikar publicly said no, but he could probably afford to as he wasn’t in power then! His counterparts, who were ruling Karnataka, typically treated the Sene with kid gloves and sought to shift the blame onto the victims.

The public statements of the potential candidates seem a little naïve - no crosses broken, etc. Given the track record of the BJP, Goans have to be more than wary. A veritable pogrom and certainly a crime against humanity took place against Muslims with active government connivance in BJP-ruled Gujarat. In Orissa, where it was in the ruling coalition, a slaughter of Christians took place and displaced people are still in refugee camps there. In Karnataka, more than 200 attacks on Christians have taken place since the BJP government was installed and MLA Prahlad Remani of the ruling party has publicly vowed that he will not remain quiet until Christians are weeded out from the state. In Madhya Pradesh, another bastion of the BJP, Prof Sabharwal was killed under the nose of campus authorities and the police by activists of the ABVP.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

THESE are incidents to ponder over. Other parties, too, have skeletons in their cupboards, but the Congress has finally publicly apologised for the massacre of Sikhs. The BJP has not done so, neither for Gujarat nor Karnataka.

It is not my case that any party is permanently good or bad. The Republican Party led by Abraham Lincoln was the darling of African Americans for its strong anti-slavery stand. White supremacists like the Ku Klux Klan, at that time, packed the ranks of the Democrats. After some strategic course corrections, beginning with Roosevelt’s New Deal following the Great Depression which began to empower Afro-Americans, and culminating in Kennedy’s dismantling of racial discrimination, the Democratic Party today counts Afro-Americans among its staunch supporters.

If the BJP repudiates its lapses and charts out how it plans to rectify them, Goans at large can think of placing their destiny in the hands of the BJP for the next term, but these transparent course corrections are essential and they should not dillydally about the man for the CM’s chair. Despite his abrasive nature and ego and his servile flaunting of khaki knickers (much like the routine paeans to the beloved ruling family from his Congress counterparts), Parrikar is still admired.

Museum robbery: result of negligence?

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:22:31 +0000

By Victor Hugo Gomes

It appears that the members of the Committee of the Museum of Christian Art, which was robbed recently, have been negligent.

THE UNSIGNED ‘press note’ by the Committee of the Museum of Christian Art, Santa Monica Convent, Old Goa evoked shock and disbelief from my fellow Goans across the country and overseas. The renowned artist Dom Martin wrote to me saying, "Works of religious art and artifacts are manifestations of divine intervention. The theft or plunder of such works is an act of abominable sacrilege and violates the fundamental ethics to which we are universally bound and codified as conscionable human beings. To the damning detriment of religious heritage, such perpetrators and their co-conspirators callously characterise the progressive calibration of diabolic greed and gain."

This belated and weak ‘explanation’ on the course of unfortunate events that took place at the Christian Art Museum was in fact a brilliant exercise in hogwash meant to deceive the people of Goa about the real reason why on the night January 25, 2012, their heritage was stolen.

HOGWASH

THIS and earlier press comments by Committee members suggest that the Committee would not have provided any explanation/statement had it not been for the in depth media reports and strong condemnation from heritage lovers. For instance, a couple of days after the heist, the chairman of the committee Fr Avinash Rebello made the following toothless comment to Herald: "There is very little that I know. I haven’t been keeping track of what has happened" followed by priceless garbage from the curator, Natasha Fernandes, "Whatever information you want, you can get from the police." Apropos the priceless inventory, Committee member Jose Lourenco went on record as saying, "We are in the process of putting things in place in terms of inventory". So what exactly does the following statement in the current press note mean: "The Committee went through its detailed inventory (which includes photographs of all objects)"? Which inventory is this exalted committee referring to? It appears that the committee is merely trying to do some damage control and improve on their previous insensitive statements.

Goans, however, will not be fooled by the meaningless verbiage of this press note and the insincere ‘compassion’ and ‘sympathy’ towards life lost and the priceless property stolen on that day. We all know that the real reason for our immeasurable loss can be encapsulated in just a few words: negligence, apathy and inefficiency of the Committee.

Does the Committee expect Goans to laud them for having "rushed to the site and stayed till the early hours with the police"? Nice job of shutting the stable after the horses have bolted. Perhaps the public should be made aware that just one or two members spent a couple of hours at the site.

And the condolences to the family of the Luis Bogato? A fine display of crocodile tears after having put the poor man in harm’s way. Apt words from Milton come to mind -"Hypocrisy, the only evil that walks invisible, except to God alone."

It is imperative that we address the contradictory facts in these vapid statements so that Goans are aware of the crimes committed against their culture and heritage. Some questions need to be answered: if the committee members were present soon after the incident which occurred around 6 pm, then why was the press in the dark until past midnight? Why and what was the committee trying to hide from the public? At what time was the site sealed by the police? If the museum premises were sealed, how did one of the newspapers publish a photograph of the dead security guard lying inside the museum compound? If the premises were sealed, how were strangers and museum delegates/ overseas donors allowed inside the museum on January 27 without any security checks? Was the committee so confident that all evidence has been secured for future investigation? The committee lists the stolen items as follows: gold filigree rosary, gold rosary, gold waistband, gold bracelet, gold Cross with chain. This generic description is deliberately deceiving because it gives the appearance that the stolen items are simple pieces of handicrafts made of gold and not priceless museum exhibits of timeless heritage. Additionally, were they just ornaments made of gold or were they also studded with precious stones? What was the size and weight of the exhibits? Were they at least valued by a goldsmith before they went on display? Was it not necessary to publish pictures and technical details of the stolen exhibits so the public could value and identify them?

UNPROFESSIONAL

IRONICALLY, the inventory that was made public reflected the inadequacy and unprofessionalism in archiving and documentation of the museum’s artefacts. The press note clearly concedes that funds for providing adequate security for the museum since 2002 have never been a problem, thanks to the Government of Goa and foreign funding. Why then was there only one unarmed guard, a non-functioning surveillance camera, fluctuating lights and a non-functioning burglar alarm system on that fateful day? What are the funds being used for? What wisdom or folly motivated the committee to give the keys of the museum to the guard even after the museum was closed? It borders on criminality that in spite of ample funds, the committee in their apathy, inefficiency and negligence failed to provide a fool-proof security system and related checks and balances, a task that the public had entrusted them.

In their statement, their statement states that, since the inception of the museum in 1994 at Rachol, the Committee has worked tirelessly to document, preserve, administrate and update the Museum’s collection, raising funds from Indian and International sources.’ So where are all the funds that they collected? Why were they not utilised to fix electrical problems? Why did the museum experience constant short circuits? Why was there no recorder connected to the CCTV system? Why were proper alarm systems and sensors not installed? These are some of the most basic cautionary measures taken by the custodians of even the smallest of museums, but this utterly ineffective and futile committee did not deem them necessary.

We understand that on some occasions even photographic sessions take place within the premises of the museum, a practice completely unacceptable anywhere in the world. To make matters worse, pictures of some of the stolen exhibits as well as those of other priceless exhibits were published in a recently launched book at St Pius Institute at Old Goa. Who authorised the moving of the exhibits from the display cabinets and who moved them? Who was the photographer? What kind of photography was employed and where were the pictures taken? Were the items ever returned to their places? Who authorised photography of the loaned exhibits? Was it the original owner or the museum committee? Was the Christian Art Museum open for private functions? If yes, since when? Was it only for committee members, their friends and relatives or for the general public too?

Finally, the question that looms on everyone’s mind: what are the credentials of the committee members that run the museum especially since the items and artefacts on display belong to the people of Goa and are not the private collection of committee members?

VEIL OF LIES

IT is clearly becoming impossible for the members to hide their faces in a veil of lies and prevarication because the newspapers and the concerned heritage lovers doggedly continued to ask uncomfortable questions in their quest to seek truth and justice.

Sadly, however, the committee continues to hide its face! The deliberately unsigned press note avoids telling the public who the committee members are. What are their credentials for being on the committee of such an important institution? Do they actively participate in the management of the museum or are they merely ornamental figures that adorn the committee? It appears that the members have taken on this responsibility merely for personal aggrandisement and without an iota of accountability.

It is highly urgent and important that the committee works closely with the press, public, heritage lovers and Goa’s industrialists and gives us reliable information so that the perpetrators of this heist are booked and our heritage is returned to us. We need to be assured that our heritage is respected and looked after by people who are professional, capable and place the good of the people before their selfish interests.

The people of Goa hope that this heist will weigh on their conscience and drive the committee to come out clean and convincing.

The writer is founding curator of The Museum of Christian Art and currently curator & proprietor of Goa Chitra and Goa Chakra Museum, Benaulim.

Sacred art given irreverent treatment

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:05:09 +0000

By Rajan Narayan

AND A few stray thoughts and a few stray observations for yet another Sunday. For a Sunday following the week when the irresponsibility of Fr Avinash Rebello, who heads the committee which manages the Museum of Sacred Christian Art attached to the Santa Monica Convent was exposed. For a Sunday following the week, when despite the directives of the Archbishop against parish priests endorsing candidates, many politicised priests continued to flout the directive. For a Sunday following the week when the Congress gave in to most of Babush Monserrate’s demands, but refused a ticket for his wife Jennifer to contest the St Cruz seat. For a Sunday following the week when the BJP was a house divided with Shripad Naik not reconciled to the BJP High Command’s directive that he should not enter state politics. For a Sunday following the week when income tax raids were conducted on many builders alleged to be close to the BJP. For a Sunday following the week when the Director General of Police, Kishen Kumar, defied orders from the Chief Electoral Officer for Goa, S Kumaraswamy.

IRRESPONSIBLE

AND a few stray thoughts on the criminal irresponsibility displayed by Fr Avinash Rebello, the chairman of the committee responsible for the upkeep of the museum of Sacred Christian Art located at the Santa Monica convent. Incredibly, Fr Avinash Rebello has revealed that the burglar alarm system at the museum had been switched off because it was making too much noise. Apparently none of the priceless artefacts, which were painstakingly collected from various churches and individuals by the first curator Victor Hugo Gomes, were insured. Fr Avinash’s excuse for not having the priceless items on display in the museum is that they were priceless! Which is absurd because if the museum had secured the services of an expert valuator, the market value of the heritage items stolen would have been established and appropriate insurance could have been taken. The most ridiculous claim made by Fr Avinash is that the Santa Monica convent and the Church do not have money to insure the extremely valuable items in the museum.

SANTA MONICA

The Santa Monica convent, which comes under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Goa, has traditionally been a very rich convent with huge amounts of land gifted by the faithful. Soon after liberation, a large chunk of the land owned by the Santa Monica convent was sold to the Ciba pesticide company. More recently, virtually the whole of Vanxim Island, just off the island of Diwar, was sold by the Archbishop to a South India based builder who is planning to set up a super luxury resort. Obviously, none of the money that the Church collected from the builder has gone to the Santa Monica convent. The bitter ground reality is that the Church has never been interested in the museum, which was the brain child of two illustrious residents of Goa, the late Mario Miranda and the late Bal Mundkar who died in quick succession recently.

The Museum of Sacred Christian Art was first set up at the Rachol seminary with very generous funding from the Gulbenkian Foundation of Portugal. Victor Hugo Gomes was appointed the curator and he very lovingly and painstakingly managed to assemble a large collection of items from various churches in Goa. Part of the Rachol seminary, which played host to the museum of sacred art, was renovated at enormous cost under the supervision of architect Lucio Miranda. The inauguration of the museum was an extravagant affair with a huge banquet thrown for the then Portuguese president Mario Soares, who did the honours. As far as I can recollect, the Gulbenkian foundation had bestowed a handsome grant for the upkeep of the museum. The Archbishop, then as now, was not particularly interested in the museum.

RACHOL BUNGLING

It was only after the renovation of part of the Rachol seminary, which originally housed the museum, was completed and the museum inaugurated with great fanfare that the managing committee discovered that no long term contract had been entered into with the Rachol seminary for the lease of a part of its premises. So much so after just a few years the Rachol seminary insisted on taking back the premises. Again thanks to the intervention of the late Bal Mundkar, who had a genius for raising funds for a good cause, it was decided to shift the museum to the Santa Monica convent, which itself was restored at huge expense by the Gulbenkian Foundation and INTACH. The ceiling of the Santa Monica convent, like the Sistine chapel in Rome, has beautiful murals which were restored by experts from the Gulbenkian foundation.

The bishop insisted that a senior member of the clergy should be chairman of the committee which managed the museum. The objective was that the Museum of Sacred Christian Art, which charges fees for entry and also sells souvenirs, should become self supporting. During the tenure of Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister, the museum was given a grant of Rs three crore to install state of the art security systems. Obviously, Fr Avinash Rebello did not take his job seriously. If a similar dacoity had taken place in the Goa State Museum, the Director of the Museum would have been immediately suspended. I fail to understand why the Archbishop is not holding Avinash Rebello responsible for the failure to take adequate safety measures to protect the priceless treasures that have been stolen from the museum. And will the Church please explain what has happened to all the money it had collected from the sale of Vanxim Island to land sharks from Bangalore?

VOTING GUIDELINES

AND a few stray thoughts on the elaborate guidelines issued by the Church on how the faithful should vote in the forthcoming elections. The directives issued by the Church are a virtual indictment of the Congress party. The Church insists that it has a right to advise voters as part of its larger social responsibility. To be fair to the Church, it has also directed parish priests not to endorse candidates or take part actively in the campaigns of individual candidates. Historically, the Church has been very active in people movements in the state and the Church’s Council of Social Justice and Peace has been active both in the agitation against the Regional Plan 2021 and the demand for the cancellation of the allotment of huge amounts of land to land sharks under the guise of creating jobs through the setting up of Special Economic Zones.

ROGUE PRIESTS

But, regrettably, individual parish priests have aligned with some of the most dubious elements in Goan politics. In the last assembly elections, the parish priest of Taleigao openly aligned with Babush Monserrate. Similarly, it was the then parish priest of Navelim who aligned with Churchill Alemao to ensure the defeat of Luizinho Faleiro in the last Assembly elections. Despite a directive from the Church stipulating that parish priests should not get directly involved in the campaigns of individual candidates, rogue parish priests continue to act as election agents for discredited politicians and aspiring candidates. The electoral offices of Valanka Alemao, Churchill Alemao, Mauvin Godhinho and several other Christian minority community candidates were inaugurated by their respective parish priests. The Navhind Times dated Wednesday, February 1, carried a report which reveals that the election office of Tulio de Souza, son-in-law of Dr Wilfred de Souza, was inaugurated by Fr Domnic D’Costa parish priest of the Reis Magos church.

Under the Election Commission laws, it is an unfair electoral practice for candidates to invoke religion or take the help of religious leaders in campaigning for themselves in elections at any level, whether it is a panchayat election or elections to parliament. But the Election Commission only acts when there is a specific complaint. And, unfortunately in the past, nobody has specifically complained against church premises being used for political campaigns or against priests canvassing for individual candidates. The Election Commission should take serious cognisance of individual priests actively participating in the electoral campaigns of any candidate contesting the assembly elections. By the same token, of course, ‘godmen’ of other religions, whether it is mahajans of temples or the likes of Baba Ramdev, should also be forbidden from dabbling in politics.

BABUSH APPEASED?

AND a few stray observations on how the Congress High Command seems to have accommodated most of the demands of Babush Monserrate even while sending out a message that Babush cannot get his way all the time. According to a report in The Navhind Times, the Congress High Command has agreed to give the ticket for the sole assembly seat in Canacona to Babush confidant and collaborator, Isidore Fernandes. Though the Congress High Command has rejected Babush’s match-fixing candidate Somnath Zuwarkar for the Panaji assembly seat, it is apparently considering giving the ticket to another close associate of Babush, Yatin Parekh, who defeated Parrikar’s candidate in ward 14, Ashok Naik, in the elections to the Corporation of the City of Panjim. Apparently, the Congress High Command has also agreed to give another Babush supporter, Rudresh Chodankar, the ticket for the Mayem constituency.

But Babush has not got his way completely. He has been put in his place by apparently being told that there was no question of giving him a ticket for the St Cruz assembly constituency, let alone giving his wife Jennifer a ticket for the Taleigao assembly constituency. Yes Babush will get a ticket but for the Taleigao Assembly constituency from which he has been elected three times so far. But by way of arriving at a modus Vivendi, it has reportedly been decided by the High Command not to give a ticket either to Mummy Dearest or her goon son Rudolf Fernandes for the St Cruz constituency. If reports in the daily newspapers are true, the Congress candidate in the St Cruz constituency will be Irfan Mulla, who cannot be considered a serious candidate as he does not have much of a face even though the constituency has around 8000 Muslim votes.
It is to be seen whether Babush accepts the package deal offered by the Congress High Command or decides to quit the Congress party yet again in protest against the denial of a ticket to his wife Jennifer. Going by the pattern that is emerging, the Congress High Command is unlikely to give a ticket to Valanka Alemao in Benaulim or Yuri Alemao in Sanguem. Obviously, Chief Minister Digamber Kamat still has some clout with the Congress High Command, going by the fact that it has reportedly been agreed that Vijay Sardesai, who can create enormous problems for Digamber Kamat in Margao, will get the ticket for the Fatorda constituency. This may well spark off a revolt by the Coutinho couple, Savio - the former chairman of the Margao Municipal Council, and Pratima, the first elected president of the Youth Congress.

BJP RIFT

AND a few stray thoughts on the serious rift in the BJP in Goa. As in the past, Manohar Parrikar, who has always been envious of the support that Shripad Naik enjoys among the cadres of the BJP, has sought to keep the North Goa Member of Parliament out of state politics. In fact, historically, Manohar Parrikar has ensured that Shripad Naik is kept busy at the centre so that there was no challenge to his leadership to the BJP legislative party in the state.

Parrikar, who messed up when he was the chief minister by aligning with some of the worst elements of Goan politics like Babush Monserrate in his desperate bid to hold on to power, is universally unpopular with the party cadres both for his opportunism and his arrogance. Never mind the claims of his non-resident friends like Anand Virgincar that Manohar Parrikar is a changed man and had mellowed. In fact, when I was in hospital in Mumbai I got several calls from Dr Anand Virgincar, who is a fellow of the prestigious Oxford University, telling me that Manohar Parrikar was keen on apologising to me and my wife for the manner in which he treated us during my days in the Herald and immediately after I started the Goan Observer.

Shripad Naik, who has historically avoided a confrontation, is apparently insistent now that he should be permitted to not only return to state politics, but should be projected as the chief ministerial candidate of the BJP. But Parrikar has so far managed to sabotage Shripad Naik’s aspirations to become the chief minister of the state if the BJP-MGP alliance secures the majority in the Assembly elections to be held on March 3. Shripad Naik has always been close to L K Advani and was responsible for ensuring that Digamber Kamat was given the BJP ticket when he decided to contest Assembly elections the first time around. Shripad is still hoping that L K Advani will affectively intervene to defeat Parrikar’s conspiracy to keep him off state politics. In fact, the public spat between Manohar Parrikar and Shripad Naik can have serious repercussions on the fortunes of the BJP, particularly in North Goa. Parrikar represents the Saraswat face of the BJP while Shripad Naik, along with Ravi Naik, is the undisputed leader of the Bahujan Samaj. In fact, by his insistence of marginalising Shripad Naik, Manohar Parrikar is cutting his nose to spite the BJP’s face.

ANAND BOSE

AND a few stray thoughts on the Income Tax raids on as many as 18 builders in the run up to the elections to the Legislative Assembly. I understand that among the builders raided were Peter Vaz of Models, who has had a love-hate relationship with Babush Monserrate and the Kamat Construction people who have historically supported the BJP. Among the other big builders who have been the target of the Income Tax department reportedly was Anand Bose, the close associate of Mauvin Godinho who has many huge projects coming up in the Mormugao taluka. Anand Bose, incidentally, is the son-in-law of Somnath Zuwarkar whom Babush Monserrate had brought back to the Congress and lobbied for the ticket for the Panaji assembly constituency. The Income Tax raids are probably a message to the building lobby not to get involved in the funding of candidates and parties in the forthcoming election. One hopes that the raids on builders will be followed by a raid on illegal mine operators.

DGP STOOGE

AND the last stray thought for yet another Sunday. It is obvious that the Director General of Police, Kishen Kumar, is a stooge of the discredited Home Minister Ravi Naik and other dubious elements like Pandurang Madkaikar. This is clear from his reluctance to take any action against those who assaulted Fr Bismarque Dias and vandalised his house. It should be obvious to even a child that the attack on Fr Bismark, who plans to contest the Cumbarjua seat, must have come at the instigation of Pandurang Madkaikar, who has historically been addicted to money and muscle power to win elections. Madkaikar, in turn, happens to be very close to Babush Monserrate.

There can be no hope of free or fair elections in Goa with Kishen Kumar as the DGP, who did not actually distinguish himself during his tenure as Inspector General of Police in Goa. It may be recalled that Kishen Kumar was brought in after a fall out between the former DG Aditya Arya and Home Minister Ravi Naik. In the run-up to the elections, Goa has the misfortune of having dubious officers holding the two senior most posts of chief secretary and director general of police. I hope political parties and concerned citizens will demand the transfer of both Kishen Kumar and Chief Secretary Sanjay Srivastava to ensure free and fair polls in the state.

The Church’s call for responsibility

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:01:17 +0000

The Church in Goa has released guidelines for voters, on the basis of which they feel Goans should cast their vote in the forthcoming general elections. Key issues include RP 2021 and the medium of instruction. Reproduced here are the guidelines.

WHY DOES the Church teach about issues affecting public policy?
A foundational element of the mission it has received from Jesus Christ.
The Church’s obligation to participate in shaping the moral character of society is a requirement of our faith.
The Catholic community brings important assets to the political dialogue about the nation’s future.
It brings a consistent moral and ethical framework-drawn from basic human reason that is illuminated by Scripture and the teachings of the Church- for assessing issues, political platforms, and campaigns.
Making moral choices about political life is complex and requires the exercise of a well formed conscience aided by prudence.

Church and Politics?
BUILDING a world of respect for human life and dignity, where justice and peace prevail, requires more than just political commitment. Individuals, families, businesses, community organisations, and governments all have a role to play. Participation in political life in light of fundamental moral principles is an essential duty for every Catholic and all people of good will.
The Church is involved in the political process, but is not partisan. The Church cannot champion any candidate or party. Its cause is the defence of human life and dignity and the protection of the weak and vulnerable and integrity/morality in public life.
The Church is committed to a just political process, but should not be used. It welcomes dialogue with political leaders and candidates. It seeks to engage and persuade public officials. Events and "photo-ops" cannot substitute serious dialogue.

Who in the Church should participate in political life?
For Catholics, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation which is rooted in the baptismal commitment to follow Jesus Christ and to bear Christian witness. (Catechism of the Catholic Church nos. 1913-1915)
As Catholics, we ought to be guided more by our moral convictions than by our attachment to a political party or interest group. When necessary, our participation should help transform the political party to which we belong; and not the reverse whereby we neglect or deny fundamental moral truths.
We are called to bring together our principles and our political choices, our values and our votes, to help build a better world.

How does the Church help the Catholic faithful to speak about political and social questions?
The Church equips its members to address political and social questions by helping them to develop a well-formed conscience.
The Church besides teaching moral truth also encourages its members to develop the virtue of prudence.
Aided by the virtue of prudence in the exercise of well-formed consciences, Catholics are called to make practical judgments regarding good and evil choices in the political arena.

BASIS FOR VOTING

Catholic voters should use the framework of Catholic teaching to examine candidates’ positions/manifestos on issues affecting human life and dignity as well as issues of justice and peace, and they should consider candidates’ integrity, philosophy, and ethically correct performance. It is important for all citizens "to see beyond party politics, to analyse campaign rhetoric critically, and to choose their political leaders according to principle, not party affiliation or mere self-interest" (Living the Gospel of Life, no. 33).

As Catholics, we are not single-issue voters. A candidate’s position on a single issue is not sufficient to guarantee a voter’s support. Yet a candidate’s position on a single issue that involves an intrinsic evil, such as support for acceptance of caste system and religious discrimination, silence on environment and ecological destruction, disregard for preservation of life in all its stages and others, may legitimately lead a voter to disqualify a candidate from receiving support.

Towards a renewed politics

THE Church calls for a different kind of political engagement: one shaped by the moral convictions of well-formed consciences and focused on the dignity of every human being, the pursuit of the common good, and the protection of the weak and the vulnerable.

A political process focused more on moral principles rather than on poll predictions and media hype; focused more on the needs of the weak than on benefits for the strong; focused more on the pursuit of the common good than on the demands of narrow interests.

The Church is principled but not ideological. It cannot compromise basic principles or moral teachings. It is committed to clarity on moral teachings and to civility.

In public life, it is important to practice the virtues of justice and charity that are at the core of its tradition.
Catholics should work with others in a variety of ways to uphold and promote moral principles.

No poll vault for Babush

goanobserver — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:58:31 +0000

GO Correspondent

THE TISWADI taluka comprises five assembly constituencies. These include the Panaji assembly constituency, which has been represented by former chief minister and present leader of the opposition Manohar Parrikar. The other key constituencies in Tiswadi are Taleigao, which is the stronghold of Monster Rat Babush Monserrate, the St Cruz constituency where Victoria Fernandes warded off the challenge from Jennifer Monserrate in the last assembly elections, the Cumbarjua constituency represented by congenital defector Pandurang Madkaikar and the St Andre constituency represented by Francis Silveira.

Historically, Manohar Parrikar and Babush Monserrate have been the key players in the Tiswadi constituency. They had a match-fixing agreement during the last Assembly elections whereby the BJP, much to the irritation of its cadres, fielded a weak candidate against Babush Monserrate in exchange for the support of Babush to Manohar Parrikar in the Panaji assembly constituency. It was Manohar Parrikar who induced Babush to defect from the UGDP, on whose ticket he had been elected, and appointed him Town and country planning minister. The extent of the rigging of the Regional Plan 2011, which was formulated during the tenure of Manohar Parrikar as the chief minister and notified when Pratapsingh Rane occupied the Chief Minister’s post for a brief time, has been exposed by the Income Tax department. N Suryanarayana, the controversial former Director of Tourism turned real estate shark, has revealed that Rs 26 crore was paid to various companies represented by Babush to guarantee conversion from agriculture and orchard to settlement and commercial zones. The revelation is obviously an attempt by the Congress party at the centre to reign in Babush on the eve of the Assembly elections.

DON

BABUSH, who considered himself the don of Tiswadi, had proposed to shift to the St Cruz constituency while fielding his wife Jennifer Monserrate, who is the sarpanch of Taleigao panchayat from the Taliegao constituency. He had threatened to confront Manohar Parrikar in the Panaji assembly constituency in the run up to the bitterly contested elections to the Corporation of the City of Panaji. Presumably, the results of the election where the BJP almost defeated his panel forced a rethink. It was widely believed that Babush had again entered into a match-fixing team with Manohar Parrikar by lobbying for a Congress ticket for Somnath Zuwarkar whom he had persuaded to rejoin the Congress in return for BJP support for his candidature in St Cruz.

The Congress High Command has refused to play the Babush game. The High Command has rejected the candidature of Somnath Zuwarkar and, for that matter, even Surendra Furtado for the Panaji assembly constituency rightly viewing them as weak candidates. In a surprise, the Congress High Command has reportedly decided to give the ticket for the Panjim assembly constituency to Yatin Parekh, the mayor of Panaji who defeated Ashok Naik, the BJP candidate from ward 14 and for the mayor’s post in the CCP elections. Though Yatin Parekh is not exactly a chamcha of Babush Monserrate and has a vote bank of his own, Babush had no choice but to accept Yatin Parekh as the Congress candidate for the Panaji assembly seat. Indeed Yatin Parekh is the best bet of the Congress to pose a stiff challenge to Manohar Parrikar in the forthcoming assembly elections. The minority community votes, particularly those of the Catholics who have historically tended to vote for Manohar Parrikar in the Panaji assembly constituency, will be crucial. Yatin has already proved in the CCP elections that he has control over the Muslim vote bank in the constituency.

There is further bad news for Babush Monserrate. The Congress High Command has reportedly rejected Babush’s plea to grant the Congress ticket for the Taleigao assembly seat to Jennifer Monserrate and to permit him to contest the St Cruz assembly seat. But to appease Babush, the Congress has also reportedly decided that his bitter rival Mummy dearest or her son Rudolf Fernandes also would not be given the ticket for the St Cruz assembly constituency. At the time of going to the press, the talk was that the St Cruz assembly constituency ticket would probably go to Urfan Mulla, a Muslim minority community candidate even though Muslims comprise only a small part of the electorate in the constituency. Since Mummy Dearest or her son Rudolf is bound to contest the elections, it would be interesting to see whether the BJP decides to field Anil Hoble, who is the only candidate who can effectively challenge Victoria and company.

MADKAIKAR

THE going is not going to be very easy for Pandurang Madkaikar, the congenital defector and close associate of Babush Monserrate in the Cumbarjua assembly constituency. Pandurang Madkaikar was first elected to the Legislative Assembly on the MGP ticket. He subsequently defected to the BJP, along with Babush when Manohar Parrikar offered him a berth in the cabinet. When the Congress came to power, Pandurang Madkaikar split from the other MGP MLA — Sudin Dhavlikar — and decided to extend support to the Digamber Kamat government. Madkaikar, however, has been an active participant in the many toppling games against the Digamber Kamat government. This time around, Madkaikar will face the veteran Nirmala Sawant who is being backed by both the BJP and the MGP. The only threat to Nirmala Sawant getting the better of Pandurang Madkaikar comes from Fr Bismarque Dias, who has also announced his intention of contesting the election. Fr Bismarque Dias is a dissident in the Church and has been vehemently opposing the sale of the Vanxim Island by the bishop to a land shark from South India. Either Nirmala or Bismarque will have to make way for the other if the money and muscle power of Pandurang Madkaikar is to be neutralised in the forthcoming elections.

St Andre, the remaining seat of the Tiswadi taluka, is a unique case where the chances of the incumbent MLA Francis Silveira may be affected by the continuous emigration of his voters to sunnier pastures outside the country. In fact the majority of the voters of Siridao village, which is part of the St Andre constituency, have migrated to France or the United Kingdom thanks to the help of the late Fr Freddy D’Costa who built the Bambolim Church alongside the Holy Cross in Bambolim. I understand from residents of St Andre constituency that there has been a steady outward emigration of the residents of the constituency to the UK, New Zealand and Australia. In any case many of the voters of Francis Silveria are shippees who may not be in Goa during the election. So much so, the demographic of the St Andre constituency has undergone a major change. There has been a huge influx of migrants into the constituency of predominantly Hindu migrants due to the mega housing projects coming up. This will change the equation and may benefit BJP candidate Vishnu Wagh.

Whatever maybe the outcome of the elections in the Tiswadi taluka it is clear that Babush’s wings have been clipped. With the match fixing deal between Parrikar and Babush falling apart with the high command insistence on giving the Congress ticket to Yatin Parekh, even Manohar Parrikar and Babush Monserrate may not retain their seats. Indeed, the elections offer a great opportunity to NGOs to effectively intervene so that both the communal and corrupt Manohar Parrikar and the Monster Rat from Taleigao, who has completely subverted Goan politics, are eliminated from the assembly. Unfortunately the NGOs themselves are divided, which will only benefit the communal Parrikar and the corrupt Babush.