Tiger behind the mouse

Mumbai, January 23: The pugmarks tracked through cyberspace long after the roar had died out. Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray was availabl...

Mumbai, January 23: The pugmarks tracked through cyberspace long after the roar had died out. Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray was available for the first time ever for a live chat at expressindia.com. In the three hours he was online, 2,600 question flowed in from all over the world.

No amount of interviews in the trusted leading dailies or celebrity court-martials on television can satiate public curiosity. The latent journalist in every one of us wants that one chance to cross-examine the people who chalk out our destiny or at least make a significant difference to it.

Small wonder that surfers started logging in much before the man himself was scheduled to arrive, and had initiated a dialogue amongst themselves.

Finally, when Balasaheb logged in, he took the questions and the world in his stride. The tempo was set with topics ranging from the Karmapa8217;s controversial arrival in India through the increase in underworld activity in Mumbai to the prospects of the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra.Thackeray8217;s most touching reply: quot;I don8217;t want to be another George Fernandes.quot; He had just been asked about India-China relations. Excerpts from the chat:

Bhaskare_Thakare: Should we give political asylum to the Karmapa?
BT: The Karmapa must be asked to quit India. We have enough problems; he will only create more.

AMMustafa: I am a true Muslim, but I really love your leadership. You are just like our late Tamil hero turned chief minister of Tamil Nadu, MGR.
BT: Mustafa, there are two kinds of acting. MGR acts well. I don8217;t: no make-up in whatever I do. I have to play different roles in the party and in politics.

S Sanjay: Jai Maharashtra, Mr Thackeray. Always wanted to talk to you. My suggestion to you is plain and simple. We should give the Kashmiri Pandits money for all the houses and property they have lost and resettle them.
BT: Who is responsible for their condition. If the government is responsible, it will have to bear the burden.

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Parag17: Why don8217;t we launchan attack on China and Pakistan to reoccupy the places which formally belong to us?
BT: It is a difficult question and without any power it is very difficult to solve the issue of Pakistan, but we must be strong. We have the military and they are doing their job well. But under pressure it becomes difficult for them to move.

Rahul: What guarantee is there that the Shiv Sena will not be next in asking for a separate country, and become a problem like Kashmir?
BT: Rahul, the Shiv Sena will never ask for a separate country. Every state is a part of Hindustan and it would be a rather foolish idea to get separated, like a child getting separated from his mother.

Next in the series: Chandrababu Naidu, CEO of Cyberabad. Only on expressindia.com