While all this is heart wrenching, there were conflicting reports in the media.
Some said he died in MNS violence, some said he died in an accident while
catching a train. Not withstanding this, we must hang our heads in shame that
we are forced to migrate to other states even in search of basic livelihood. I
have seen menfolk from Purnia, Saharsa, Madhepura, Samastipur, Palamu,
Dumka and Gumla in most far flung and hostile reaches of Laddakh......
repairing roads. They were shoved in a cage-like apology of a trekker
with torn monkey caps and sweaters, as it was snowing heavily outside. It was
amusing and agonising at the same time, to see sun tanned dark Bihari faces
with snow flicks on their 'nose & eye lashes' . The issue is far more
serious than MNS violence. Here we have a politician out to make something of
his non-existent political career ..... a la his uncle, who became the 'Baap of
Maharashtra' by resorting to the same antics against south Indians in 70s. It
is time tested and has paid well in past. So whaile Raj Thakrey's son attends
an English medium school with French for his third language, he takes
charge of the 'Maratha pride' of the 'Marathi Manoos' while making an actress
apoligise unconditionally for speaking in Hindi rather than in Marathi.
More than Raj- I'd say it is the successive Governments of Bihar to blame
who pushed the state to the brink of disaster and ensured that the only economy
that can flourish here is the money order economy. They provided the likes
of Raj with enough number of hapless preys to prowl freely on, in order to
build their political fortunes. But I think, things are
looking up. This is the the time of metamorphosis of Bihar. A time period of
20,30,50 years is nothing in the history of a people. Let Adiga bask in the
glory of his Man Booker, usually given to those who unbashedly induclge in
highlighting the darkest side of their respective third world motherlands.
But Bihar will surely bounce back and you and me will have to be the prime
movers. And the metamorphosis of Bihar will be more just and equitable than
than the Singurs and Nandigrams, than our SEZs and IT heavens, where you
can see most devastated beggers in front of the most glitzy malls. Don't
call it quits so soon. While my heart goes out to all the Pawans of my
beloved motherland, I think the true homage could only be a pledge to work
unitedly for a Bihar where no Bihari is forced to go out of the state for
ensuring two square meals for his family. Amen.Those who call for boycott of
goods from Maharashtra, please don't bury the memory of Dr. Chandrakant Patil
so soon. He was also from Maharashtra and a truer Maharashtrian. You cannot
fight parochialism by stooping to parochial levels yourself.Can't this
incident rather be a trigger for constructive development of our
state.......... AnubhaOn Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:01:35 -0700 (PDT)
[email protected] wroteNo, I'm not a proud Bihari. Sorry
Jagdish Mahto has almost lost his mental balance; his feeble wife faints every
now and then. They have lost their only son Pawan who had gone to appear in a
Railway recruitment examination in Mumbai. Pawanwas their only hope in
life, only support for old days. Both had laboured hard to educate Pawan and
shared many dreams together. Pawan too had worked hard to get a low-paid
government job to realize their dream---of getting two-square-meal daily and
making their thatched house a pucca so that it does not leak in rainy days.
Mahto comes from Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar's home district,
Nalanda. Of Bara Khurda village under Noorsarai police station. Along with him
the whole village is in complete shock while seething with rage. The
body of young Pawan has just arrived. He died young---struggling to survive,
running away from the menacing hands of MNS goons. Still. His face says
he struggled hard to run away like others, to run away for his ageing parents,
to run away to get a government job, to run away for making his house pucca
before next monsoon. But luck ran out of him. Pawan died young; Pawan
died raw; Pawan died for being a Bihari. He was, reports said, caught
and beaten-up brutally to death by the rampaging MNS goons. MNS is Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena led by Raj Thackeray, an estranged nephew of Bal Thackeray.
Boththe senior and junior Thackerays are locked in proving themselves up
before Marathi Manus that they are their real guardian. Mumbai Ka Baap.
Like several others from Bihar they too were thrashed, beaten-up with stretched
fists, sticks and furious faces of MNS goons. But, they somehow managed to save
themselves and fled from there. Some with broken hands, fractured legs,
deepblue-burgundy marks on their backs, red punch marks on faces and poultice
eyes reached Patna junction on Tuesday and vented their ire. Pawan's
body reached by flight and the Bihar chief minister announced Rs 1.5 lakh
compensation to his family. 1.5 lakh to realize the dreams which they
had shared together; to make theirleaking house pucca; to get two-square meal
all through their life. At the village rage is reeling. I'm enraged too.
And, decided not to call myself a Bihari. I donot wish to die young, I
donot want to meet Pawan's fate, I donot want to get 1.5 lakh as compensation.
I simply donot afford to. For, I've a little eight year old
daughter, wife and old parents who all have shared so many dreams with me and
made plans for the future. My daughter wants to be a doctor and wife
wants to see her successful in any field she likes. I want to see heras a good,
strong human being. We all work hard to realize our dream which we
cannot have through 1.5 lakh compensation and a few words of sympathy.
Its not for the first time that the people from Bihar have been beaten-up,
thrashed and shooed away from Mumbai. It has happened earlier too. On many
occasions by these Thackerays. And, why only Mumbai? Just a day
after the Bihari students were treated like stray dogs there was a report that
a group of 12 migrant labourers from Bihar were herded up like buffaloes by
some armed men at Sonepat railway station for the work in their farmland.
The hapless labourers somehow were rescued by police and later resumed
their journey for Panipat to be used, exploited and engaged by some others in
their farmland. They say the wealthy farmers of Punjab and Haryana
pounce on them at railway stations to take them away as labourers. There they
treat them as their cattle, even worse than that. Months earlier when a
direct train from Patna to Goa was introduced a minister of Goa protested the
move saying hordes of beggars from Bihar would come riding on the train and
pollute their paradise state. Earlier, they were beaten-up, killed and
chased away from Assam and other northeastern states. The national capital
Delhi too did not like them and time and again they raise the issue, make it an
issue. We, the people of Republic Bihar are not welcome at so many
places. In fact, they detest us, abhor us and treat us like untouchables.
They mock at us, they laugh at us, they pity on us. When, for the
first time, I had goneto Delhi in 1987 to take my admission in Delhi University
to do graduation they addressed us as Tetnus, for we from Bihar used to carry a
tin box along with us. The girl students were called Behenjis, for their
oily mid-parted hair and untrendy salwars and slippers. When Ireturned
to my rented room after Holi my landlord while reading a newspaper asked me:
how do you Bihari play Holi in which 24 die? "Holi ke hurdang mein 24
marein" was the caption of the story in the Punjab Keshari. My wife says
I looked like Pawan those days. Young, fresh with a straight line of moustache
under my bulbous nose and with a dream for family. Even on my Honeymoon
in 1995 the hotel manager in Ooty had thrown a puckish smile on us when I named
the place Patna, Bihar in the check-in register column. Now, when things
have gone worse I fear to reveal my identity. I prefer to call myself Not from
Bihar. No, like you all, I donot have that enough courage to call myself
a proud Bihari even after so much of humility, pain, trauma, beating, thrashing
and killing. No, I'm not a proud Bihari. Sorry. But, I donot want to
have a waste death, like Pawan who, I'm sure, will be forgotten a day after
tomorrow. The mass of land larger than France and population five times
more than Australia Bihar, for me, has nothing to be proud of. It has nothing
to feel great about. Take any index, any survey, any report you would
invariably find Bihar at the bottom. The post office remittance of Rs
450 crore is the biggest economy of the state with per capita income as low as
Rs 5,772 per annum, as compared to Rs 22, 946 of national average.
Adiga's India of Darkness. Balram Halwai of The White Tiger. People have
no option but to migrate looking for their livelihood. We're everywhere now, in
every city, town, statepulling rickshaw, selling bhel-puri, making malls,
constructing houses, roads, highways, driving cars, running computers, papers,
hospitals, administration and hotels. What not, and where not ?
We're ready to work hard, do more labour than others for our survival and so
people are targeting us. But for the fear of Thackerays and others I
donot want to venture out and if I have to I wish not to be with a Bihari
identity. Pawan did that mistake and paid the price. Sorry to say
Pawan but even your death does not get even one-tenth of media coverage than
the arrest of Raj Thackeray whose goons allegedly were responsible for your
unexpected demise. But, has anyone ever thought of what if Biharis
would
. ? Perhaps, a deadly sequel to Adiga's White Tiger!
Amarnath Tewary Patna based special correspondent of The Pioneer Bihar
Group E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://yahoogroups.com/group/Bihar-Network
http://bihar-network.blogspot.com/
