Opinion Disrespect for institutions
Abu Azmi was perfectly entitled to take oath as a legislator in Hindi which is our national language....
Abu Azmi was perfectly entitled to take oath as a legislator in Hindi which is our national language. The MNS legislators are entitled to their view that a person who has lived and worked in Maharashtra should make an effort to take the short oath in Marathi. But they are certainly not justified in manhandling Azmi in the House. The assault on Azmi was in substance an attack on the legislative assembly of Maharashtra,an august institution of the State. Their action betrayed utter contempt for parliamentary and ethical standards and was tantamount to contempt of the House. There is no remorse for their condemnable action,which is sought to be justified on specious grounds. Exemplary punishment is needed to deter these legislators from behaving in future like fascist goons.
My view is that Chief Justice Dinakaran should voluntarily abstain from judicial functions till he is cleared by the Supreme Court collegium of the serious charges against him. Understandably that is the view of many lawyers in the Karnataka High Court. But that is no excuse for their unpardonable acts of disrupting court proceedings and manhandling the Chief Justice and other judges who wanted to discharge their judicial duties. The action of these lawyers was in effect an attack on the institution of the judiciary. When legislators act like goondas in the Assembly,and lawyers behave likewise in courtrooms,the sanctity of these constitutional institutions is desecrated. And that indeed is a mater of deep concern and highlights the necessity for corrective steps.
Universal language of Jazz
Jazz Utsav 2009 organised by Capital Jazz Delhi will be presenting jazz musicians from five countries. Beatle Jazz from the US will play homage to the Beatle giants. Wayne Krantz,a quartet also from the US,is a strong rhythmic group featuring Wayne Krantz,on the guitar with unrestrained individualism. Netherlands is represented by Eric Vloeimans Quartet. Eric is regarded as one of Europes best trumpet players. Then there is Norway as usual. This time in the shape of Nils Olav Johansen Quartet who will appeal to fans with its jazz standards. Andrea Marcelli Trio from Italy will showcase the dynamic Marcelli on drums. Rafal Gorzycki Trio from Poland is sure to liven the atmosphere with its rendition of European modern jazz. Amit Heri and Sanjay Divecha will be the Indian participants. The only language in which groups from these different countries can express themselves and communicate with one another fluently is jazz. Verily,verily,I say unto you,jazz is a universal language.
Scrabble: Game or Puzzle?
Is Scrabble a puzzle or a game for excise classification? Justice H.S. Kapadia of the Supreme Court after delving deep into the matter with characteristic industry concluded that it is not a puzzle but a board game. Why? Because in a puzzle the outcome is pre-determined and fixed inasmuch as there is a grid of squares and blanks into which words crossing vertically or horizontally are written according to clues. In Scrabble there are no clues as in a crossword puzzle where words are written according to clues. A player in scrabble gets lettered tiles to create words by chance. However skill comes in because a player with better command over language can coin words with highest maximum value. These two elements of chance and skill,which are the key elements in Scrabble are absent in case of a puzzle.
The Court further applied the test of common parlance and concluded that Scrabble is a board game because departmental stores put it in the board game section and not in the puzzle section. That assumes that owners of bookstores classify books according to common parlance. In fact,that is done for reasons of convenience dictated by constraints of space. Suppose a storeowner places a book sonorously called The Philosophy of Erotic Love in the philosophy section instead of the erotica section,surely that will not justify classifying the book as one on philosophy? To equate bookstore owners practice with common parlance is a bit of a puzzle.
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