Vol 21 I No 6 June 2013 l Rs 20 www.opinionexpress.in A MONTHLY NEWS MAGAZINE COVER STORY BIG IDEAS FOR INDIA 2050 What will Drive India 40 years from now ? RNI UP-ENG70032/92, Vol 21, No 6 Rise & fall of Anna EDITOR PRASHANT TEWARI ASSOSIATE EDITOR Dr RAHUL MISRA movement POLITICAL EDITOR PRAKHAR MISRA ndia is a huge country, larger than a continent. BUREAU CHIEF Hetrogeneity, not homogeneity, has always been the GOPAL CHOPRA (DELHI), VEELAAS mantra of Social Homogeneity of Indian ethos, which is a KENJALE (MUMBAI), SOUMEN ACHARYA must for any progressive society.It boosts and develops (KOLKATA), DIVYASH BAJPAI (USA), KAPIL I adequate debates that ensure proper social and intellectual DUDAKIA (U.K.) RAJIV AGNIHOTRI (MAURITIUS), ROMIL RAJ (DUBAI), HER- churning to have the much needed social fermentation for a MAN SILOCHAN (CANADA), YASHWANT change, the Vyavasthaa parivartan, as both Baba Ramdev AMIN [AUS/NZ] and Anna Hazare say.There is no alternative to free thinking CONTENT PARTNER and frank expression for jettisoning the evil of hypocrisy. True,but Pratham Pravakta that is why the pre- Independence type Common Platform(C.P.) is required, which, like the LEGAL ADVISOR then Congress or the subsequent JP Movement, may not be bound and integrated for ever, it ASHOKA KUMAR THAKUR,GAURAV will at least play a very important role in bringing the urgently needed Second Freedom. BHATIA MARKETING DIRECTOR Corruption remains a restricted agenda for “have “ and certainly for not “have nots”in India DIWAKAR SHETTY hence the Anna movement created huge effect in urban India but it could not penetrate rural ADMINITRATION DIRECTOR India. Secondly,the rural India is driven by caste & religious divide hence an all India move- BAL MUKUND GAUR ment could not be constructed by Anna & Co. Team Anna targeted ruling Congress party with CORPORATE COMMUNICATION special focus on Sonia Gandhi, Is not Mrs. Sonia Gandhi a honourable Member of our QUEENIE SINGH Parliament, elected by none other than Indians? Ask the electorate if you dare, not the M.P. GRAPHICS & DESIGN She was a target for corrupt practices but important members of team Anna foucsed on sec- GREY CELLS ONLINE PRESENTATION ular image thus diluting core issue of corruption and the debate was expanded to Baba AMIT SONI Ramdev and later Narender Modi type of polity. It ensured that right wing people associated PHOTOGRAPHER with RSS & BJP were thrown out of the movement resulting in instant collapse of the entire K P SINGH movement. Let us be free from doubts. Let there be a C.P. and adequate social and political OVERSEAS MARKETING fermentation. The nectar of required awakening will be born automatically.The concept of OEMCL(Mauritius), OEHCL (DUBAI) Hindu votes, though ideal and all engulfing, is getting a shattering blow by the current I.T. and ADVERTISEMENT / PR / CIRCULATION economic revolutions of modern age.Whether Hindu or Muslim, all vote banks will have to be VINAY GOYAL treated in a common crucible, as for example, done by competent persons like Narendra DHRUV JANAK & CO. R -51 BASEMENT, Modi,Nitish Kumar, and Shivraj Singh Chauhan who interpreted and transformed the Faith to RAMESH PARK,LAXMI NAGAR,DELHI-92 mean developments in their respective states of Gujrat, Bihar and M.P. Ultimately, it is devel- TELE: +919871232631FAX: 011-22056817 opment, not any religious leaning, that will survive the fermentation oriented test of time.It will need various gears. VIJAY KALANTRI - ADVISOR Look at China.Religion has utterly failed to bring social harmony, daal-roti,medicines,shel- NEW EXCELSIOR BUILDING, 6TH FLOOR, A.K. NAYAK MARG, ter and the sukoon for all, and above all the much needed National Pride and Gold for India, FORT, MUMBAI - 400 001 (INDIA). as possessed by a modern German or Japanese,and an old Brittisher. Anna group, not Anna PHONE : 91 - 22 - 2201 9265 / 2201 9160 Hazare himself.The confused group will get enlightened or dissolved in the healthy atmos- FAX : 91-22- 2201 9764 / 2201 9760 phere created by the apologists of the RASHTRANEETI on a C.P.Then the corruption oriented politics will be transformed/ reformed or ousted. Parishkaar or Bahishkaar. They opposed The magazine is published and printed by Congress and Modi simultaneously, that created more confusion than bringing solution to the Rajiv Agnihotri for Opinion Express entire movement against corruption. No body should ever now venture to ignore the perenial Communications & Entertainments Pvt sufferings of the hapless masses, which Maoists claim to highlight and amplify. It is a stark Ltd, from 2 Ashok Nagar, Lucknow And printed at Kumpu Graphic Press. reality that is impossible to understand by the opulence born welltodo ruling the roost in soci- ety,market, religion and the politics that intends to frame and tame all.Their representation EDITORIAL & CORPORATE OFFICE on the C.P. will have to be there. Hegde seems to be a righteous and comfort loving gem of OPINION EXPRESS HOUSE society. He must be very happy to bless the C.P.once it is shaped.Let us pray that some apol- 24 - A Clyde Road, Lucknow-226001 (India) Ph: 91-522-4045728/4060880 ogist of the RASHTRANEETI becomes thread of the ANNA-RAMDEV needle to enter the flower Fax: 91-522-2208242 like hearts of honest Indians of consequences from every walk of life to form a coveted gar- 24x7 mobility +91 9984437000x Email: [email protected] land for Bharat Mata. Is Arvind Kejriwal ready for that ? Classicial error of entering electoral politics is a death nail to the entire movement, Indian are immune to certain way of life when it comes to politics. It is a pure game of give and take, All content published may be subject to copyright, team Anna with extremely limited resources may not be in a position to offer any tangible ben- seek written permission to re-produce. Opinion efits to hapless Indians, General Elelctions 2014 for team Anna will be a great disaster. What Express is trade mark brand of Opinion Express Communications & Entertainment a waste of huge effort and public support! Private Limited. Prashant Tewari O P I N I O N E X P R E S S June 2013 03 JUNE 2013 COVER STORY Congratulations, Mr. PRESIDENT Prez First Speech The hilarious chaos of the presidential race P 6-14 ARNAB KAR IS AN UPCOM- A COMMITMENT ING FINE ART AND FASHION P 49 TO PEACE AND PHOTOGRAPHER PROGRESS P 15 Whom is Modi P 21 Helping? Famine of political intent condemns P 24 India to droughts World Bank Mired In Dysfunction: Mess LORD MUNMEET Kapil Sibal P 28 Awaits New Head READY TO RELEASE P 19 a rare oasis in "ROKI NA" the desert Is Wal-Mart Destroying P 47 P 34 America? Is Death An Illusion? Evidence P 38 Suggests Death Isn't the End Pantel Technologies: P 41 Bridging the Gap 04 June 2013 O P I N I O N E X P R E S S Ansari follows Radhakrishnan Only second veep to get the second term istory repeated itself on Tuesday after five decades when United HProgressive Alliance nominee Hamid Ansari was re-elected Vice- President. He became the second Vice- President to get a second consecutive term after S. Radhakrishnan, who enjoyed two terms from 1952 to 1962. Mr. Ansari won with a thumping majority against the National Democratic Alliance candidate Jaswant Singh. He polled 490 votes against Mr. Singh’s 238. There was never any doubt about the victory of Mr. Ansari, given the numerical strength of the UPA and other parties supporting him. The NDA zeroed in on senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Mr. Singh essentially for political reasons. Having faced dissensions within its ranks in the presidential election, the alliance wanted to demonstrate that that was a one-off incident and no meaning should be read into it. Its purpose was served as it managed to line up all the con- stituents behind Mr. Singh. The JD(U) and the Shiv Sena broke ranks with the BJP and voted in favour of Pranab Mukherjee in the presidential election. Out of the 790 members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha who form the electoral college for the vice-presi- dential election, three are vacant — Mr. Mukherjee was elected President, Vijay Bahuguna became Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and the election of BJP MP J. Shanta was set aside by High Court. Of the remaining 787 members, 47 MPs did not cast their votes. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said 21 members from the Biju Janata Dal, 11 from the Telugu Desam Party, 6 from the Congress and supporting parties, including ailing Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, and two nominated members did not cast their votes. T.K. Vishwanathan, Lok Sabha Secretary General and Returning Officer, said eight votes were declared invalid. Congress president Sonia Gandhi had named Mr. Ansari as the second choice of her party for the Presidential election after Pranab Mukherjee. ness at the manner in which he one occasion, the first stint of the 75- As Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, Mr. “abruptly” adjourned the House on the year-old former IFS officer and Vice- Ansari faced criticism when the night of December 29, 2011 during the Chancellor of Aligarh University was Opposition parties expressed unhappi- debate on the Lokpal Bill. Barring that devoid of controversy. O P I N I O N E X P R E S S June 2013 05 COVER STORY CONGRATULATIONS, MR. PRESIDENT 06 June 2013 O P I N I O N E X P R E S S UPA's trouble-shooter faces no challenge PA Sangma no match to Pranab's popularity across the spectrum OE Bureau nited Progressive Alliance (UPA) candidate Pranab Mukherjee Uwins the presidential race by beating NDA-backed PA Sangma by a huge margin as he scored more than 558,000 votes crossing the required half-way mark of 5,25,140 votes.