(BIHAR TIMES) Even at this age, I dared to go for an unpleasant verbal battle with few of my friends during my morning walk today, when one of them sarcastically talked about ‘the reality show on the street of Patna’. And on return I underwent the worst possible mental agony. Why does it happen only with Patna and Bihar? Why can’t Bihar change? If it can happen in Patna where the protectors of the people- the top police and administrative and political heads of Bihar live, it can very easily happen anywhere in Bihar. And this time, it was a group of young men who appeared to be educated enough. Why is the youth so shameless? How can be the police so tolerant and inactive? How could the crowd keep on watching the horrendous scene? How could several national TV news channels be showing it for so long and police could remain inert? Were the TV crews called to cover the drama challenging the authority to show what they can?
I am not a Lalu-baiter. But I feel like asking Nitish Kumar as well as Police Chef Gautam, “What right they have to be present in Patna if such incident keeps on happening?” What is the need of any probe in such a case that has all the footage of video available as one in case of Varun? Why can’t all the persons seen on screen be put behind the bar as first thing? Why can’t the kings of Patna pass a single line order to the police force that this sort of incident can’t anymore be tolerated?
I was very happy last week when Bihar got a great coverage of its great sons. Pranab Mukherji referred to Kautilya twice in his budget speech. This is the centenary year of the discovery of Kautilya’s Arthshasthra. It was the first time, the manuscript of the treatise on politics and governance, believed to have been written circa 4th century BC, was found and identified by Rudrapatna Shamashastry, a scholar of Sanskrit who was the librarian and later the curator of the Oriental Research Institute (ORI). Mysore. Unfortunately, Bihar and his present rulers hardly respect or even remember the person known as Chanakya, Vishnugupta, or Kautitlya and whose name may cause shivers even today among the wrongdoers of the nation. May be, it is again because of the caste of Kautilya.
And then came the solar eclipse and the name of Taregna got known. Taregna that was a sleepy village till recently got known all over the world overnight and with that came the remembrance of the ancient astronomer Aryabhatta who had studied the heavens 1,500 years ago and set up his observatory here. It was NASA who could bring Taregna to the people of India and not any Indian agency.
Should not the Bihar’s administration learn something from these sons of ancient Bihar? Why can’t Bihar administrators learn to be ruthless from Kautilya to make a perceivable change of the image of Bihar? Why can’t Bihar chief minister himself an engineer, go all out for the propagation of science and technology education in the state? Will Nitish’s announcement of the “knowledge university” in Taregna in the name of Aryabhatta get materialized and be a globally recognized institute of excellence? My doubt is because of a poor report about Chandragupta Institute of Management in press that was to become the IIM of Bihar, and I still don’t find the name of Kautilya Law School in the top law schools of the country.
Will Bihar change and allow the Non Resident Biharis to live wherever they are with raised heads? I appeal to all the young men and women in Bihar to consider our feelings. Let them make their names known with some real achievements.

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I totally agree with Mr. I.R. Sharma and also share the feelings of humiliation.  It was a dastardly behave of a bunch of young people and more so of the police who are supposed to be the protector of the people especially suppressed and oppressed ones.  The irony in this whole episode is that the CAPTAIN of the Patna police was a woman at the time of this incident.  It was rightly supposed and expected that the police having a woman as its captain behaved sensitively towards a woman in distress.  Mrs. Mallar Vizy is an efficient police officer and has shown the same efficiency while being posted in Lakhisarai District where she eliminated several notorious criminals. 
 
By the way, this issue is not such a small one as has rightly been pointed out by Mr. Sharma that small tinkerings here and there in the police department and some transfers of the police officers can address the issue in totality.  It is a malaise festered in the society which was manifest in this incident.  In a semi-feudal society like in Bihar, women are either deities (Devi) or utilities (Bhogya).  Both these extreme positions obscure the status of the women in the society.  Police especially the sipahis come from this society and unfortunately their training process is so inadequate that even after being inducted in police service their feudal behave don't change.  This incident underlines the need for better sensitisation of the police towards women, dalits and suppressed ones.  Other administrative measures like punishment to errant officers should must be taken.  But any knee-jerk reaction won't work on this front. 
 
As far as societal behaviour is concerned, it is a process and sustained effort on this front is needed.  First but not the least measure would be to project Biharism at a large scale which will essentially require educating the people.  Education has two aspects.  First aspect is imparting modern education and achieving full literacy in the state in a phased manner.  This will take some time, but certainly it will have a lasting effect on the society.  Second aspect of impartition of education would mean launching an awareness programme about the values and greatness of ancient Bihar.  In school curricula behavioural aspect should be stressed upon.  It should be taught that any foolish act may lead to defacement of the image of the state.  This will essentially have bad financial as well as societal impact on the society.  While promoting tourism in Bihar which has a vast potential in the state, it must be kept in mind that image impacts more than the reality itself.  It should also be told to the people especially the younger ones that tarnishment of image would lead to migration to other states where they will be treated like anything but human beings.  People from north are facing the problems all over the country.  Just two days back commissioner of Surat Municipal Corporation ill-treated people from the north and brazenly advised them to go to the north when asked for help. 
 
Second step in this regard would be to send a clear and tough message to the class as well as masses.  This will inter allia include immediate arrest of all the people shown mis-behaving with the woman in the T.V footage and severe punishment should be ensured to the culprits under relevant cluases of the IPC and CrPC.  Besides names of other persons present at the spot should be promptly pulished in the leading newspapers of the state so that the society recognises such mute spectators no less than perpetrators.  These mute spectators are equally responsible and separate letters condemning them likewise should be despatched to their families and their Panchayats. 
 
No doubt the incident is the worst form of crime which has exposed the administration especially the police in an awkward situation.  But I would like to reassure the readers of Bihar Times that Biharism and the resolve of Bihar are not so fragile that an incident can dash it.  It must be kept in mind that Rome was not built in a day.  Bihar has also got to have its time.  Whenever positive forces cruise ahead negative forces always try to pull it down.  I hope it is just like a snag.  I have immense faith in Mr. Nitish Kumar and his resolve for Bihar.  One or two crimes of whatever magnitude can not derail it.  Let us have patience.

Mukesh Kumar

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ITS A SHAME INDEED.
And I feel it everytime when someone mention of it. And to lessen the pain of this realization of state of absurdity in my own state, I normally fall back upon the method of bringing to the fore the ignominous details of happenings in other states as an EXCUSE. But an excuse is just going to be only an excuse. Since deep inside, I know it that nothing is going to change. Since everyone staying in that state is pretty comfortable with the current situation. No one wants any change. No one wants to disturb the flow-of-this-filthy-river.
Change scares the people. So they dont want to change even for good.
I see 2 prominent problem afflicting the state currently. An incapable and corrupt police and an uneducated and unaware mass of people.
The problem with the police machinary is that they themselves do not know what they are supposed to do. The eternal practise of corruption has turned them into an organization of incapables. So, while they should have started acting on their own, they awaited for the whole nation to react in order to act. Books can be written on why this organization is so ineffective, but to sum it all, we can look at the educational standards of the beat constable that gets recruited. We still rely on the average matriculate to take care of our lives and rule our cities and states. No wonder, these things happen rampantly across India and shall keep happening.
 
Then there is a bunch of uneducated people who would keep laughing at these events when they are happening. Rather than stopping such incidents with all the courage, they would try to make-use-of-the-moment and turn it into a lifetime opportunity. The despicable idiots.
But does this thought change anything. Nothing. Only the frustration shall grow.

kishore das