Knowing right shining bright at fair

“I am taking home a copy of this book. It is very handy for laymen who are not aware of their rights in terms of police action. And the colourful layout will ensure that my son,13,and daughter,10,will also go through it and know their rights well. We read about horrific tales of police brutality and this ready reckoner will help us be on guard,” Kuntal Bose,a resident of Kasba,said.

Published by the London-based Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative as a collaborative effort with the Information and Action for Peoples Rights,who have been coming to the book fair since the inception of the Right to Information Act in 2005,this book,however,is not the bestseller at the stall.

‘Your Guide to Using the Right to Information Act 2005,’ which is also available in Hindi and Bengali,is the one that is getting picked up off the shelf the most. “Every year the footfall increases remarkably. People come in just out of curiosity and end up with awareness on one of the most important pieces of legislation in India,” Arabinda Ghosh,who was manning the stall with a fellow member,said.

Activist Amitava Choudhury,who led a rally on the fair premises on Tuesday,said a lot of work was required to spread awareness on RTI in Bengal. “Around 15 per cent people who come to the book fair are aware of the Act. Out of that,a large percentage of people haven’t exercised this constitutional right. This needs to change and taxpayers must question government decisions and moves which directly affects them,” Choudhury said.

The activist rued the sad state of the West Bengal Information Commission. “Over 3,000 cases are pending. There are just two commissioners when up to ten can be hired. The government has changed but things haven’t,” he said.

With Poriborton in the air,the RTI activists are desperately hoping for a change in government initiatives,too.

Vikram Seth’s mother recounts coming to terms with son’s sexuality

On the last day of Kolkata Literary Meet,acclaimed author Vikram Seth shared the stage with his mother Leila Seth and discussed at length questions on sexuality — an issue that make many uncomfortable. Seth,who has never made bones about his bisexuality listened as his mother recounted the days of coming to terms with his son’s sexual orientation. “At first,I was scared. I knew it was not termed illegal in India,forget being dealt with empathy. However,I was then reminded of a book I had read as a 17-year-old girl. It was about a lesbian couple and talked about how painful it is when someone doesn’t have another person to share his/her love with. That is when I realized that this was a biological phenomenon and there wasn’t anything that was necessarily wrong with,” said Seth,who was the first chief justice of a High Court in India.

She went on to say,how after her biography was published she had met parents whose children were homosexual and who had shunned them in fear of social stigma. “They realized after they read by work,how they need more love than a heterosexual child because they tend to be more lonely than the rest. These parents,after so many years,were making efforts to reconcile with their children. That was my greatest take away,” said Seth.