“The system is hopeless. It needs an overhaul.” This is an oft heard statement in many a heated discussions. The point, however, that ignored in most such discussions is: “What is this system?” If we look at a country, then the Constitution can be termed as the backbone of the system. It is a well known fact – and often reiterated – that the constitution is above all. I may be tagged as a constitutional extremist, but I have great faith in it. It is like the holy grail of the system in India, superior even to the Supreme Court.

A young girl gets pulled out of her car and beaten up, another gets raped in the middle of the road during peak hours, an Executive Engineer is beaten to death by a rude MLA, 27/67 MLA’s of Delhi have criminal records …and we continue to tolerate all this, saying we Indians are tolerant. So, who are we kidding? We are not tolerant, but impotent and selfish. We are the least tolerant, on the contrary, we, specialize in intolerance. We kill people in our rage – be it road rage, or the BMW rage, or the bar rage that killed Jessical Lal, or the murder of …

At times one wonders, why are these nations separate in the first place. That debate aside for the moment, what is it that makes us hate people? There are enough problems around us to submerge ourselves in and deal with, but we forget all that is around us and pay more attention to what someone on a TV channel is telling us.

Look at what we are missing out on, I am a hardcore cricket fan, and I will speak for myself, that I miss watching the fast bowlers from across the border playing in our IPL

Ask someone in India today, “What is the easiest way to make a lot of money?” and you might get any one of the following answers:

Become an Entrepreneur ,
Get an degree from an IIM and join the corporate world,
Start a web based company ,
Invest in the Market, etc., etc.

One answer you might not get, but which, it seems, is the right answer today is:

But what is the reason behind this dysfunctional mindset?

The answer, I believe, is fear. Everyone is afraid.

The politician is afraid that whatever he might do, he might not get a second term, so he wants to amass as much wealth as he can. He is afraid that the other party might malign his image, so he digs deep to find dirt on other politicians.

The day when you wake up and find that your city, no, your street has become a state unto itself is not a big impossibility now. But I would not simply close my eyes, and oppose or condemn anyone who asks for a separate state. We need to look at the history and the legitimacy of the demand, examine both these factors carefully and consider the sentiments and stifled voices of the people in that region. Only then can we make a call about any demand for statehood of any region. This brings us to the most hyped – and in the news – subject of Telangana.

In every aspect of life we often observe brothers rising against each other. India and Pakistan once formed a part of a unified state, and there is a lot that has been written and spoken about on this subject. So, instead of talking about the conflict between India and Pakistan, let us, for a change, talk about what can be done to transform the two nations from Brothers with Arms into Brothers of Peace.